Travel & Leisure

     Neither vision was very comforting—and by sunset both our nerves and legs are beginning to weaken. And then, thankfully, we see it: the Wise Trail Shelter. It’s a rustic, three-sided cabin where as many as eight people can crash in rough comfort on a wooden floor (if you don’t mind a slight odor of sweat). Perched within sight (but not smell) of a primitive privy, this place will be our home for the night.

     Dozens of shelters like this dot the Appalachian Trail, the famous footpath stretching 2,167 miles from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, Maine. Each year, the trail attracts about 575 “thru-hikers”—intrepid individuals intent on covering the entire path—and all of them pass through this state, of course. Virginia boasts more miles of the AT than any other state, and with the varied terrain from south to north, the lush valleys and rocky ridges, the wildflowers and open vistas, there is something to please just about anybody who likes to hike.

     Indeed, the Old Dominion’s natural lookouts—such places as McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs (both near Roanoke)—are among the AT’s most famous. “Virginia has it all,” says Jeff Patrick, owner of Mount Rogers Outfitters in Damascus. “We have a little bit of the Georgia incline, some of the North Carolina canopy and a lot of the igneous rock that’s found in the Northern area, like New Hampshire or Maine. There are blackberries and wild blueberries and animals—deer, turkey, wild trout. It’s truly a taste of heaven. It is everything but a concrete jungle.”

     In southern Virginia, Grayson Highlands State Park is a natural entry point for a jaunt on the Appalachian Trail. It’s where we started our trek. Nearly hidden on a two-lane stretch of U.S. 58, about midway between Abingdon and Galax, Grayson Highlands boasts a variety of trails, leading to waterfalls, odd outcrops and overlooks. There’s also a campground, overnight horse stables and an interpretive center perched high atop Haw Orchard Mountain, with exhibits showcasing early mountain life, native plants and the area’s wildlife. Park manager Harvey Thompson calls this nature center “a miniature Appalachian cultural museum.”