Offering one of the most unique “hiker showers” along the Appalachian Trail, the 30th annual Trail Days in Damascus, Virginia is home to a renown hiker parade and massive water gun fight. The weekend also features a hiker talent show, Leki trekking pole throwing contest and opportunities to dance to local music, indulge in regional chow, and explore hundreds of craft, outdoors and informational vendors.

The festival officially takes place Friday, May 13 through Saturday, May 15, though events are scheduled leading up to the main event.

Thousands pack the streets of Damascus including locals and hikers from around the world, forming a melting pot for new hikers, trail legends, craftsmen, bikers, lecturers, and others.

“The hiker parade is a huge deal and covers the street from bridge to bridge,” said Tim Williams, Trail Days Committee chair. “You can’t see the street — nothing but one crowd of hikers coming through there.”

Gene Espy, the second hiker to ever thru-hike the entire trail, will once again lead the parade as Grand Marshall. Williams said it is Espy’s 65th year since that original thru-hike, and the town will honor him Saturday morning. May 14 was in January declared Gene Espy Day by the Town of Damascus.

“This festival celebrates milestones for us and for him and for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy,” Williams said.

The trail began to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ATC, Williams said, and it was the idea of Charles Trivett, a long-time Damascus councilman.

“This festival has grown from that, from a celebration of the ATC to a hiking festival in town, and that’s a big draw for Damascus,” he said.

Now the festival is a celebration of trails and outdoors activities of all sorts and features dozens of vendors and organizations.

Events include an auction, outdoor movie, “hiker’s prom,” foraging hike, contra dance, edible plant presentation, climbing wall, film showings, presentations and live music. The Washington County Library will for the first time host an outdoor movie showing Friday night.

“There are so many educational things that go on at Trail Days for families,” Williams said. “One guy is teaching and demonstrated fly fishing, and people are really interested in that. So it’s a festival for people with any interest in doing things outside.”

Authors and speakers include Johnny Molloy, Buddy Medeiro, Mike Bonfils, Meachele Montgomery Martin and others, as well as a public discussion Saturday on how the AT has changed over the last 40 years.

The allure of hiking approximately 2,200 miles and meeting folks from around the world is leading to more boots on the trail every year. However, with trail maintenance crews active along the trail, it continues to improve.

At the conclusion of the weekend, dozens of hikers join in a trail maintenance project that began 16 years ago, under the guidance of Bob Peoples, owner of Kincora Hostel in Hampton.

Hard Core is a two day maintenance event in which hikers camp out and remedy areas of the AT rerouting trouble areas, diverting water, creating stairs and switchbacks and removing obstructions.

Peoples said hikers who wish to participate must sign up at Trail Days, because they accept a limited number of hikers — usually only 100. Work will begin Sunday morning at 8 a.m. and will continue Monday.

This year, the event is being hosted for the first time by Mount Rogers AT Club. Dinner and breakfast will be provided.

Peoples said this is a way for hikers to give back to the trail and to pay it forward to future generations.

“It’s payback,” he said. “Somebody built it for us.”

In the past, the Hard Core crew has rerouted hundreds of miles of trail, built shelters and made what Peoples called significant improvements to the trail. In fact they were so productive, Peoples said they nearly ran out of regional improvements for a group of 100 to do.
“We finished the 20-year plan in 15 years,” he explained. “They worked themselves out of a job.”

The project this year will take place at the “scales” in the Grayson Highlands of Virginia.

For more information on Trail Days or Hard Core, contact the Town of Damascus at www.visitdamascus.org.