We left off as lil Belle and I had just escaped the hailstorm in the Roan Mountains and were enjoying some chicken wings at the Station at 19E, which was one of my favorite hostels we have been to thus far. It was attached to a bar that had over 350 unique beers and canned drinks and had live music. The next few days after that the AT provided a lot of opportunities to get inside.
We essentially hiked from hostel to hostel and stayed out of the cold weather. To be frank, we had had enough of spending the night in freezing temperatures and this area of the trail is home to some of the most famous trail hostels along the AT. We essentially made our way to southern Virginia by hiking during the day and staying indoors at night. We got to stay at some wonderful places and meet some amazing people.
The first town in Virginia that we came to was Damascus. We did 21.6 miles that day. It felt like we didn’t even notice that we were walking because all around us the woods were coming alive. Spring was knocking on the door. The perennial flowers were just beginning to bud and the greens of warmer weather were starting to emerge.
Damascus is a fun little town and home of the hiking festival Trail Days. Our first day there we biked along the Virginia Creeper, which is this little bike path running alongside the AT for about 20 miles north of Damascus.
We got caught in what is known on the trail as a “vortex”. Meaning getting trapped in a town for multiple days. We ended up staying for three days and ate our fill of hot wings and pancakes. One night our friend Bass caught some trout in the Creeper (it’s the name of the river… no I don’t know why they decided to call it that either), and then grilled them up for us for dinner. It was delicious.
The Grayson Highlands is the first section to walk through after leaving Damascus. This area in known for their wild ponies that reside in the area of Virginia. Despite our best efforts, it was pouring down rain while we walked through the area. The ponies didn’t seem to mind so we decided not to either.
spring break. We made it seven miles into the trail the day I slipped on a loose rock and sprained my ankle. Longterm was hiking with me at the time and we both heard a loud snapping noise coming from a tendon in my foot. Luckily we were only a mile and a half from a dirt road and other thru hikers to help me and my stuff get down the mountain.
n the way to the forest service road Longterm called the sheriff’s office to see if they could unlock the gate so that we could get a ride into town and then the call dropped, so when we got down to the forest service road there was an ambulance and a fire truck waiting for us. Which was a bit awkward considering that it was just a sprained ankle. But the EMTs were really nice and gave us a free ride to the Econolodge. I felt really bad about wasting their time but everyone else seemed to be having fun.
with Belle’s parents. My ankle is feeling better now and the two of us are heading back to the trail as I write this. Anyway, thanks for reading and everything!
Til next time,
Peter Pan and Lil Bell
from the other side 