Damascus to Pearisburg: The Start of a Long State

So there’s a bunch of trail in Virginia…554 miles worth of it.  It hosts by far the largest portion of the AT of any state.  I knew I’d be here for a while, and I couldn’t have been greeted by a finer welcoming commitee:

(For the record, they didn’t moove.)

One distinct difference in VA is the amount of open pasture the AT passes through.  A welcome change from the ‘green tunnel’ of the forests south of here.  And as an added bonus, the very hiker-friendly livestock that roam these pastures.

Out of Damascus, it didn’t take long to get back into elevation.  27 miles of climbing and I was at the highest peak in Virginia, Mt. Rogers.  The weather was nice, so I decided to camp in an open spot on the mountain.  A good choice.

A sky full of stars at 5500′ is something to see.

Rogers stands as the southern border of Grayson Highlands State Park, a beautiful day hike with amazing views and some interesting locals…ponies.

Left unattended, the area would quickly become overgrown.  So, they were introduced in the 60s to basically act as free lawnmowers to the Forest Service.  The ponies, who are hardy enough to hang out through winter, keep the unwanted vegetation under control throughout the year.  Thanks for the hard work, guys.

A few days later I would cross another milestone, the 1/4 way point.  I met a friend there to help me celebrate.

Dismal Falls were next up, what a great spot.  A peaceful little waterfall with a swimming hole and camping.  And since summer was now in full effect, a nice way to cool off.

The next night I would stay at the Woods Hole Hostel, just outside of Pearisburg.  A mountain retreat offering accomodations to thru-hikers.  The owners there keep vegetable gardens, bees, and livestock in a pseudo-homestead environment.  They host visitors in a yoga/meditation-infused, slightly hippie, communal-living-experiment kind of way.  Fascinating and relaxing.  It was worth the price of admission to get to prepare, what is now widely considered, the most badass hiker breakfast on the planet.

A quick stop and resupply in Pearisburg and I was on the road again.  So far, settling into Virginia nicely.

SFSSF:

Miles: 648.8

Mi/Day: 12.7

Highest Elevation: 5728′ (Mt. Rogers)

Mountains: Way more than last time

Pop Tarts: 32