We drove to Damascus to ride the Creeper Trail. JD grew up on a farm near Damascus. There were 11 children in his family. JD said he really enjoyed plowing the fields following behind the horse-drawn plow, but lost interest in farming after his dad bought their first tractor.
The trail goes UPhill for 17 miles to Whitetop Mountain at the VA-NC border. We crossed 27 bridges in the 13 1/2 miles we rode to Green Cove and my legs were aching. Because the grade is up to 5%, the train had to “creep” up the mountain.
The Appalachian Trail crossed the Creeper Trail several times.
Laurel Creek was nicely loud with many little waterfalls.
I haven’t given Brother-in-law Tom the Geologist any rock pictures to analyze in a long time. This is for you, Tom.
Beaver Dam.
Whew! the 27th bridge, I was creeping at this point.
This guy is retired and volunteers with the US Forest Service as a bike patrol officer along the trail. He rides it 4-5 times a week. There are many shuttle services who take bike riders (of all ages and ability levels) to the top to ride downhill for 17 miles. On holidays and weekends, it’s quite crowded and there are many falls and breakdowns.
The ride down was glorious, and made the uphill struggle worth it. Miles = 27
arletelouise 