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The Virginia Creeper Trail
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 The area around Damascus, Va is a hiker's and biker's paradise. Almost any time you visit Damascus, you'll see plenty of people enjoying the town's trails, either on foot, on horseback or most likely riding a bicycle. Of course there is the world famous Appalachian Trail with its constant flow of thru-hikers, but the favorite of the bikers is easily the Virginia Creeper Trail. The Creeper Trail follows an abandoned railroad bed beginning at nearby Abingdon and ending up at Whitetop Station near the North Carolina border. Damascus lies about half-way along the trail. Most of the section of the Virginia Creeper Trail between Damascus and Whitetop parallels a breathtakingly beautiful stream called Straight Branch. But don't let the name fool you - Straight Branch is far from straight! In fact, it twists and turns its way for miles down a beautiful but narrow gorge until it reaches Damascus, passing under US Highway 58 as well as several trestles (old wooden railroad bridges) numerous times. Today's picture features a scenic section of Straight Branch as it passes underneath one of the trestles. As I was getting ready to snap the photo several people crossed the trestle on bicycles, completely unaware of my presence just below them. And as usual, there were several fishermen along the banks trying their best to land a trout or two. |