(This is a lot of fun to do...)
By this point, you'll have reached Damascus, VA, one of the best towns on the trail...Damascus is a milestone on the trail, the quarter way point...by now, you'll have strong legs and a great feel for what the trail is like...you'll have seen a lot, but the next challenge you face isn't physical...it's mental...my piece of advice for that is this: EVERYONE goes through it...the trail is hard...fight through it, the trail experience is worth it...what you have seen in GA, NC and TN are nothing like what you'll see anywhere else...what i did/do when the trail blahs hit, i hit the nearest town, get some beer and pizza, take a shower and relax...one day, two days, heck three days...the cost of a hotel or two is far less than a bus trip home and the inevitable regret of being off the trail and away from your new hiker friends...as long as money isn't the issue, stay on the trail!
Anyway, here we go:
By this point, you'll have reached Damascus, VA, one of the best towns on the trail...Damascus is a milestone on the trail, the quarter way point...by now, you'll have strong legs and a great feel for what the trail is like...you'll have seen a lot, but the next challenge you face isn't physical...it's mental...my piece of advice for that is this: EVERYONE goes through it...the trail is hard...fight through it, the trail experience is worth it...what you have seen in GA, NC and TN are nothing like what you'll see anywhere else...what i did/do when the trail blahs hit, i hit the nearest town, get some beer and pizza, take a shower and relax...one day, two days, heck three days...the cost of a hotel or two is far less than a bus trip home and the inevitable regret of being off the trail and away from your new hiker friends...as long as money isn't the issue, stay on the trail!
Anyway, here we go:
Mile 467.1 Damascus, VA - One of the best towns on the trail...we had the great pleasure to live in Damascus for 3.5 years while i was the manager of Sundog Outfitter...Damascus is the perfect place to shop for new shoes and lighter summer sleeping bags, the outfitters there are seasoned at what hikers need when they come through...take a zero, grab a slice of pizza and go visit Dot's for a beer...
***Blue Blaze Alert
Mile 468.5 Virginia Creeper Trail - Take the Creeper Trail out of town! i implore you! one of the best sections of the trail, the Creeper Trail walk is a easy grade, gradual up hill that will feel like a summer's breeze compared to what you are used to...it's 11 miles on the trail but 13 A.T. miles and takes about 3 hours...tons of camping, chill spots and swimming holes...take the Creeper Trail out of town!
Mile 495.4 Thomas Knob Shelter - Another classic A.T. shelter...i recommend either staying here or grabbing water and camping just past the shelter...this area is filled with great campsites, spending an hour exploring around this area is time well spent...also, climb Mt. Rogers...it's the tallest mountain in Virginia and the ecosystem that exists up there is unique and internationally famous...
Mile 531.1 Partnership Shelter - This is the shelter you've been waiting for...order a pizza, grab a couple cokes, take a shower and relax pondside here...a wonderful shelter that should be a designed stop in your itinerary...
Mile 607.8 Dismal Falls - Definitely a must visit, there's some nice camping nearby...
Mile 620.9 Woods Hole Hostel - One of my favorite hostels on the trail, they do such a nice job of making it woodsy, country, comfortable, delicious and tranquil...a great place to take a near-0 and relax a wonderful spring day away...
Mile 631.3 Pearisburg, VA - This is another classic trail town and definitely one of the biggest you'll come across...Pearisburg is a great town to take a zero, grab some food, resupply and relax...it's also a town that would have a semi-decent bar scene and live music, so building hiker comraderie is easy to do...tons of places to sleep and eat...
Mile 658.4 Wind Rock - Great place to camp...
Mile 695.8 Dragon's Tooth - Definitely go check this out...it's a great place to camp, you can catch sunset and sunrise very easily from up there...
***Blue Blaze Alert
Mile 743.9 Blue Ridge Parkway - Walking the BRP is one of my favorite pastimes, and this is a great opportunity to do that...the walk is from mile 91.8 to 76.3 on the Parkway while it's over 20 A.T. miles...while it does cut miles, that's not why i do this hike every time i'm in the area...it's because of Peaks of Otter...it has a campground, restaurant, relaxation area, camp store, ice cream, post cards...a bunch of stuff...it's a wonderful exploration day off the trail that i highly recommend...
Mile 780.6 James River Footbridge - A great place to hang out on a nice summer's day...
Mile 838.7 Devils Backbone Brewery - A great place to escape from the trail for some food and beer...hitching down to the brewery is fairly easy and they let you camp on their property over night...it's easy to blow $30 there, but you will eat, drink and sleep well...sometimes you got to "treat yo 'self"...
Mile 858.8 Shenandoah National Park - The Shenandoahs are a fantastic section of the hike...there are a ton of waysides, places to get food, animals...what i recommend is leaving Waynesboro with 3 days of food and $50 cash...you'll want to eat as many meals as you can at the waysides, the sun will be shining and it's a great time to just enjoy life...make sure to heavy sample the blackberry milkshakes...
Mile 965.6 Front Royal, VA - A great town to take a zero...it's a small bustling town with tons of civil war history...i love to explore this town, walk around, grab a coffee, visit the outfitter, check out the used book store...take advantage of the towns on the trail, they differ from state to state and really showcase a lot of the local culture...Front Royal is no different...
Mile 999.1 Bears Den Hostel - One of my favorite hostels on the trail...the staff is fantastic, the food is plentiful and the rest is wonderful...the property has plenty of sleeping options, relaxation areas and tranquility...stay here for sure...
Mile 1019.6 Harpers Ferry, WV - Known as the "half way point", this historical town is awesome...but i love history...there are so many historical locations, parks, bridges, hills...it's not the cheapest town, or the best town to resupply, but it is a town worthy of a near-0/zero...relax, grab a beer, ice cream, expensive veggie burger, and new pair of socks and enjoy the trail...
***Blue Blaze Alert
Mile 468.5 Virginia Creeper Trail - Take the Creeper Trail out of town! i implore you! one of the best sections of the trail, the Creeper Trail walk is a easy grade, gradual up hill that will feel like a summer's breeze compared to what you are used to...it's 11 miles on the trail but 13 A.T. miles and takes about 3 hours...tons of camping, chill spots and swimming holes...take the Creeper Trail out of town!
Mile 495.4 Thomas Knob Shelter - Another classic A.T. shelter...i recommend either staying here or grabbing water and camping just past the shelter...this area is filled with great campsites, spending an hour exploring around this area is time well spent...also, climb Mt. Rogers...it's the tallest mountain in Virginia and the ecosystem that exists up there is unique and internationally famous...
Mile 531.1 Partnership Shelter - This is the shelter you've been waiting for...order a pizza, grab a couple cokes, take a shower and relax pondside here...a wonderful shelter that should be a designed stop in your itinerary...
Mile 607.8 Dismal Falls - Definitely a must visit, there's some nice camping nearby...
Mile 620.9 Woods Hole Hostel - One of my favorite hostels on the trail, they do such a nice job of making it woodsy, country, comfortable, delicious and tranquil...a great place to take a near-0 and relax a wonderful spring day away...
Mile 631.3 Pearisburg, VA - This is another classic trail town and definitely one of the biggest you'll come across...Pearisburg is a great town to take a zero, grab some food, resupply and relax...it's also a town that would have a semi-decent bar scene and live music, so building hiker comraderie is easy to do...tons of places to sleep and eat...
Mile 658.4 Wind Rock - Great place to camp...
Mile 695.8 Dragon's Tooth - Definitely go check this out...it's a great place to camp, you can catch sunset and sunrise very easily from up there...
***Blue Blaze Alert
Mile 743.9 Blue Ridge Parkway - Walking the BRP is one of my favorite pastimes, and this is a great opportunity to do that...the walk is from mile 91.8 to 76.3 on the Parkway while it's over 20 A.T. miles...while it does cut miles, that's not why i do this hike every time i'm in the area...it's because of Peaks of Otter...it has a campground, restaurant, relaxation area, camp store, ice cream, post cards...a bunch of stuff...it's a wonderful exploration day off the trail that i highly recommend...
Mile 780.6 James River Footbridge - A great place to hang out on a nice summer's day...
Mile 838.7 Devils Backbone Brewery - A great place to escape from the trail for some food and beer...hitching down to the brewery is fairly easy and they let you camp on their property over night...it's easy to blow $30 there, but you will eat, drink and sleep well...sometimes you got to "treat yo 'self"...
Mile 858.8 Shenandoah National Park - The Shenandoahs are a fantastic section of the hike...there are a ton of waysides, places to get food, animals...what i recommend is leaving Waynesboro with 3 days of food and $50 cash...you'll want to eat as many meals as you can at the waysides, the sun will be shining and it's a great time to just enjoy life...make sure to heavy sample the blackberry milkshakes...
Mile 965.6 Front Royal, VA - A great town to take a zero...it's a small bustling town with tons of civil war history...i love to explore this town, walk around, grab a coffee, visit the outfitter, check out the used book store...take advantage of the towns on the trail, they differ from state to state and really showcase a lot of the local culture...Front Royal is no different...
Mile 999.1 Bears Den Hostel - One of my favorite hostels on the trail...the staff is fantastic, the food is plentiful and the rest is wonderful...the property has plenty of sleeping options, relaxation areas and tranquility...stay here for sure...
Mile 1019.6 Harpers Ferry, WV - Known as the "half way point", this historical town is awesome...but i love history...there are so many historical locations, parks, bridges, hills...it's not the cheapest town, or the best town to resupply, but it is a town worthy of a near-0/zero...relax, grab a beer, ice cream, expensive veggie burger, and new pair of socks and enjoy the trail...
