(Campsite before Damascus (mile 468.5) - Campsite after Damascus (mile 472.2))

My alarm woke me up 6:45am. Everyone broke camp and we started hiking at 7:30am with hopes of making it to the Damascus Diner as early as possible. We had 1.7 miles to Damascus, essentially all of which was downhill. With both the elevation gradient and the insatiable hunger of five thru-hikers on our side, we made great time, arriving at the edge of town a little after 8am.

We started hiking this morning at 7:30am, intent to knock out the 1.7 miles into Damascus early enough to grab a breakfast table at Damascus Diner

The trail routes directly through the center of Damascus, and as we entered the town, we passed through the Damascus Town Park. The park is the home of “Trail Days,” a giant celebration of all things AT. The festivities are attended by current thru-hikers as well as alumni and are held sometime in mid-May. So unfortunately, we were about a month early. Nevertheless, the park was cool, featuring old train engines and train cars as well as an actual AT shelter built right in the middle of the park. The shelter feature featured a prominent “NO CAMPING” sign, so I guess it’s just for the vibes.

The trail passes under an arch welcoming hikers to Damascus

We made it to the diner at 8:30am, just before the morning rush of hikers — We made it to the diner just before the morning rush of hikers

We made it to the diner a little after 8:15. Fortunately, the morning rush had not trickled in yet and we were seated immediately. I looked over the menu and decided to build my own Waffle House All-Star Special, ordering eggs, bacon, hashbrown casserole, biscuits and gravy, grits, and a waffle. It was wonderful🤤 As we ate the thru-hikers trickled in. They were easy to distinguish from the locals, sporting scraggly facial hair, disheveled clothing, and generally congregating in rowdy groups.

After breakfast, I headed to the post office to send a postcard and pick up a package that Anna Claire had sent me including a new bear line, nestle NIDO, and olive oil. I then swung by the outfitter to see if they had a cork massage ball (inspired by Lighthouse). They didn’t, but they let me drop my pack off so I didn’t have to carry it around town. For my resupply, I needed to walk 0.7 miles from the outfitter to a Food City on the outskirts of town.

Damascus seems to consider itself THE AT town — Damascus seems to consider itself **THE** AT town

The walk took me through Damascus along the Virginia Creeper Bike Trail. As I walked, I came to the conclusion that Damascus is a pretty cute town. There’s a nice big creek running through the center of town, many green spaces, and lots of old Victorian and craftsman style homes. I made it to Food City and ran into Lighthouse, who had just finished his resupply. We chatted for a bit and I explained that I wasn’t staying the night. He offered to let me use his room at the Virginia Creeper Lodge for a shower and I gladly accepted.

After resupplying, I met Lighthouse at his room and did my laundry in the shower. It’s startling how many times you can wring out a pair of socks and still get dirty water. Thru-hiking is a dirty affair. Afterwards, Lighthouse and I chatted for a while and he told me about his son who works as a professional brewer in Maine. His son apparently makes a mean coffee stout, and we both bonded over our shared love for a good stout or porter. He offered me two coffee stouts from Highland Brewing Company, which is based in Asheville, North Carolina. I drank one and saved the second for later.

Feeling so fresh and so clean (clean), I headed back to the outfitter to pick up my pack. I then lounged in the town square under a tree where I packed my resupply, ate a pound of strawberries, and called AC. Later, I met up with Excel, Delta, Clover, and Puddin at the Broken Fiddle Hostel (where Excel, Clover, and Puddin had secured a private room). We engaged in a heated game of yard Jenga and then made our way to 7 Trails Grill for Dinner. Together, we shared a bunch of appetizers and I ordered a big plate of nachos for myself. Afterwards, we made our way back to the Broken Fiddle under the guise that Delta and I still had to pick up our packs before heading out of town. When we arrived, Excel and Clover busted out a surprise lemon cake for Puddin's birthday, which we all proceeded to gorge on.

Delta and I headed out just as the sun was dropping over the mountains. We saw Mose sitting on the porch at Crazy Larry’s Hostel and also ran into Cloudkicker and another thru-hiker named “Mr. Darcy” eating outside Wicked Chicken Winghouse and Tavern. We then hiked 1 mile out of town to an unofficial tentsite, which we reached at about 7:45pm. Someone seemed to be squatting at the campsite. They had established a precarious looking tarp homestead with lots of trash strewn about. Emitting from the tarp, I could hear what sounded like a sports game TV broadcast, which I can only assume was being played (very loudly) from a phone. I hung my bear bag, set up my tent, and chatted with Delta a bit before bed. At one point, I told Delta I was thinking about visiting a chiropractor after trail and we were both startled when a gravelly voice erupted from the tarp structure: “THEY’LL BREAK YOUR FUCKING BACK!!!” Although he seemed willing to provide pro bono medical advice, we never saw the tarp man.

Enter Damascus eat a pound of strawberries exit Damascus