Trail days
Thanks to one of my best friends glen McDowell I was able to get picked up in Pearisburg, VA. He arrived early Thursday morning, so we decided to sleep in the car and then head to the trail festival in Damascus. A German woman who was also looking for a ride to the festival jumped in with us as well. The drive back to Damascus want terribly long, yet I managed to sleep the majority of the way waking up only for breakfast at bojangles. Getting to the festival is was a little overcast and dreary. We threw up our tent and then just tarted walking around to see what was there. It immediately started to rain. The vendors themselves don't truly open till Friday, so that combined with the rain made for nothing really to see.
My only reason for coming back this early to trail days was to make sure I could sign up for a program called hardcore. It is a program dedicated to building new sections of trail on the AT. The section we would be building was a section on Roan mt. That was in dire need of some switchbacks. Sign ups would be on Friday at 9 am. I was first in line at 7:30.
The rest of the 2 days spent here is just a collection of hikers getting free stuff and a lot of shenanigans. I would honesty describe trail days as a music festival but without the music. You have those returning, and current hikers, festival volunteers, and then a lot of cops. Lots of cops. Where we stayed was called tent city. Our camp site was backed up to the woods where one could say the wildest festival participants camped. Luckily we were far enough away to not have to endure their noise. I didn't manage to win any of the drawings like I had hoped, but I will take a free pair of darn tough socks and be happy with that no question.
Of the random activities that were provided there were free hiker feeds, a parade, a talent show, a hiker prom, free haircuts, free check ups, free movies were shown, free showers, and lots of giveaways. It was quite a sight. I got a couple free showers just because it was the best feeling ever to have wrk water rush over the film permanently glued to my body. I even got a free haircut, a Mohawk of course. I know some of you are a little confused/concerned even with my Mohawk, I just thought tomorrow is my birthday and I am sure I will never have another chance to do something like this. I didn't participate in the talent show although I wanted to. I couldn't come up with a good enough song to sing where I thought I would grab hue he attention of the hippies in hue he crowd. I was gonna try and play to the mob I suppose in hopes I won that way. I did however participate in the parade. Which I can say with all honesty, may have been the smelliest parade ever in history. I don't know if any of the people in that parade took advantage of the free showers or not but I know every few people I waked past smelled as though Something had had died inside their tent at which they had snuggled with it thinking it a stuffed animal. There was one parade participant who was holding a piñata the entire parade. He smashed it at the end and every hiker scrambled for the contents. Chicken nuggets and mini liquor bottles. Best piñata ever...
My time at trail days ended with the final activity Saturday night of hiker prom. Now when I think prom I think suit. Since my friend glen was coming I asked him to grab my suit. It was to my surprise that the majority' of everyone going to prom wasn't wearing anything dressy at all. So glen and I ended up being the only gentleman there wearing full suits. The only time in my entire life where I felt like a celebrity. The prom took place at the Damascus brewery which is by far one of the coolest places I have ever visited. All run and operated by one guy named Adam. Before he was brewing beer he was organizing and categorizing DNA sequences. He decided he wanted to brew beer and a few years later he has a good business with great beer and even better clientele. I'm sure the boost in business from the hikers doesn't hurt either. If you are ever around or near Damascus I urge you to visit. Brewery is open Thursday - Saturday 5-9, but if it gets rowdy enough he stays open till 12.
Alright I am finally getting caught up... Kinda. Next install should be right(soon) after this.
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