It's the first week in June, and I've already accomplished one of the things on my Summer Bucket list! I've been scheming about this little road trip for a year now, and decided this would be a fun birthday adventure to share with my friend Tara. Each year, we try to plan some kind of "adventure" in which to celebrate our birthdays. One year we made scarecrows for our gardens, sometimes we hike, go shopping or out to lunch. Once we went to the Arboretum to look at all the plants. The objective is to make a memory, because memories last longer than things.
On Friday afternoon, we drove to Abingdon, Virginia, a pleasant two and a half hour trek. I've always loved my neighboring state. It's so beautiful! We checked into our hotel and headed out to explore historic Abingdon. Charming, all the fountains and sculptures. I am smitten with this little town.
We had dinner at the Peppermill, located in a beautiful historic home. We chose to sit outside at a table on the wrap around porch. The weather was perfect, and being in no hurry, we dined for hours. I can't remember when I've had such an enjoyable meal. After dinner we walked up and down Main Street.
This is the Martha Washington, originally a girls college and now an inn. After swinging under a huge oak tree for a few minutes on the grounds, we decided to walk right in like we were guests and check the place out. Wow. We've already decided the next time we come to Abingdon, we are going to treat ourselves to a night here.
This is the lobby. Isn't it beautiful? We snooped around in the parlor and the library, equally lovely rooms. They also have a spa with an indoor pool. Yeah, we definitely have to come back here.
The Barter is the Virginia State Theatre, and is located across the street from the inn. We weren't able to make it to a show this trip, but next time, hopefully, that will be on the itinerary.
Early Saturday morning, we drove to Damascus to catch a shuttle that would take us to the trail. We used Sundog Outfitters and were pleased with their service. It took about thirty minutes on a twisty road (thank goodness we were in the front seat of that big van) to get to Whitetop Station, where we would get on the trail. We were only a mile from the NC border at this point.
So here's the history of this awesome trail. It began as a Native American footpath. Later, the European pioneers, as well as an early explorer, Daniel Boone, used the trail. Shortly before 1900, the Virginia- Carolina Railroad was constructed from Abingdon to Damascus. In 1905, the line was extended to Konnarock, NC. In it's day, the line hauled lumber, iron ore, supplies and passengers. It's nickname, Virginia Creeper, came from the early steam locomotives that struggled slowly up the railroad's steep grades. Virginia Creeper is also the name of a vine that grows prolifically in this area. The line had over 100 trestles and bridges.
The last train ran on March 31, 1977, having failed to turn a profit since the Great Depression. Now...it is a quiet trail. Well, except when children come flying by you on their bikes squealing with delight. They were obviously having a wonderful time even though they didn't get to see views like this. As much as I miss having little ones around, it's nice to be able to stop at every overlook and read all the informational signs, old people style.
My favorite color is green. Ahhh...
Propping our bikes on the side of the trail, we wandered down a foot path to see this beautiful sight. It smelled like Christmas, as we were standing on the edge of a tree farm.
The sixteen miles from Whitetop Station to Damascus is an easy ride, flat or downhill all the way. My kind of bike trail. We crossed lots of bridges and stopped at Green Cove to check out the restored Green Cove station.
This is how it looked back in the day.
These original products were on the shelf when the train station closed.
For miles, the trail runs right beside the Laurel Creek.
The AT criss crosses over the Creeper trail. I had to stop and take this photo because I hope to be here on foot in the future. If all goes as planned, I will start backpacking on the AT this summer, although I won't make it this far.
Much of the trail is wooded, but at times we would ride through fields. Some of the trail is on private property and we talked about what it would be like to live here. It's remote, but we think we could do it. You'd have to make every trip into town count.
Red barns. I love them.
Taking our time, stopping often for pictures and for lunch at the only restaurant on the trail, we were back in Damascus in four hours. If my back side hadn't been hurting at this point (must get a fatter seat), I would have been tempted to have kept on riding to Abingdon. The lower trail is supposed to be just as beautiful as the upper one.
We did it! What a fantastic adventure. The most difficult part of the trip was loading our bikes on my car. And that wasn't so awfully bad. You can rent bikes in Damascus, but we are partial to our own. We were home on Saturday by dinner time, tired and happy.
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