To celebrate our second wedding anniversary we decided to take an adventure. We biked part of the Virginia Creeper Trail! We've had it on our list of things to do since moving to Virginia, and thought we'd better try it before we embark on the adventure of parenting.
The Virginia Creeper Trail is located on a 34-mile stretch of old railroad bed between White Top and Abingdon, Virginia. The trail is part of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, which is a nonprofit organization that is creating a nationwide network of trails from former rail lines. This portion of the railroad was likely named Virginia Creeper because of the train's slow speed through this mountainous area.
About 100,000 people bike this trail each year. Once you take a look at our pictures you might understand why. Along the trail there are beautiful mountain scenes and trestles. There are also bathroom and food stops along the way.
You can bike the entire trail in one trip or just a section at time. There are several places to rent bikes with shuttle services that will take you to your starting point.
We biked the easiest part of the trail, which lies between White Top Mountain and Damascus. You can almost coast this entire 17 mile section.
We rented bikes from JC's Outdoors in Damascus, and they shuttled us and three other couples to the top of White Top. The total cost for the bikes and shuttle was only $50 for the two of us.
The trail starts off on flat terrain, but its not too long before you are just coasting.
There was a great place to stop and take in the scenic mountain views about a mile from the starting point. There were already several people there having a picnic.
After a quick stop, we jumped back on the bikes, enjoyed the lovely scenery, and stopped for the occasional photo op. Three miles later we reached Green Cove. This old station now offers snacks, food, restrooms and a little history to visitors.
The trail was so fun and beautiful, but it was a cold and windy day. The day started off with beautiful sunshine, but we were under the trees for the most part. Toward the end of the trail, the sky became overcast. Luckily seven miles from Green Cove, there's the Virginia Creeper Cafe where you can grab a bite to eat and refuel (and for us, warm up)!
The cafe is known for their World Famous Chocolate cake. I couldn't pass that up!
From the cafe it's only six more miles to Damascus. This section of the trail does require more pedaling and was definitely a workout for me, but still worth it. We were running a little late so we didn't stop very much during this section. There seemed to be more water stream views. There's a small waterfall somewhere along this section. But with the threat of rain and being late to return our bikes, we didn't stop.
Although it was a bit colder than I would have liked, we still had a great adventure. Biking is such a nice way to view the local terrain. The trip wouldn't have been complete without getting a souvenir sweat shirt at the cafe. It saved the day!
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