Appalachian Trail, Days 32-34

I crossed a major state line into Virginia and spent a few days hanging out in Damascus, Virginia. Damascus is one of the most iconic trail towns and host to the annual Trail Days festival, celebrating the Appalachian Trail every May. I had my second zero day, gave a presentation about my Appalachian Trail Conservancy artist residency at the Damascus Trail Center, and gathered a crew for the 4th installment of AT karaoke blazing.

Mallory Weston 6/20/25 Mallory Weston 6/20/25

Appalachian Trail, Days 29-31

Days 29 through 31 on the Appalachian Trail brought some great weather for the epically beautiful Roan Highlands. I reached Mile 400, and there was a rotating group of familiar people camping with me at the end of the day.

Mallory Weston 6/13/25 Mallory Weston 6/13/25

Appalachian Trail, Days 26-28

I’ve been falling so behind on my blogging, so I’m going to try a 3 day format! Plus I’ve been writing more than I expected, so maybe this will make things more manageable. I wrapped up my time at Uncle Johnny’s, probably my favorite hostel stop along the way so far, and departed Erwin. The vibe at Uncle Johnny’s was great, but I think trail friends that I reconnected with and the new crowd of people that I met were really the defining factors of my time in town. From here on out, I’ve been camping with a really wonderful semi-consistent group of people.

Mallory Weston 6/9/25 Mallory Weston 6/9/25

Appalachian Trail, Days 21-25

The trademark AT weather created a week of highs and lows: a sleepless night in the torrential rain followed by dreamless sleep in the shelter and another night of pleasant camping. There was also so much wonderful and unexpected trail magic. Big Bald was the hiking highlight of the week, but there was also a fun scrambly ridge line that I tackled in the fog.

Mallory Weston 6/1/25 Mallory Weston 6/1/25

Appalachian Trail, Days 16-20

There is little fanfare when crossing over into Tennessee, mainly because for the next 200 odd miles, I’ll be hugging the state line, criss crossing back and forth between them both. This week, I visited Gatlinburg and Hot Springs, two places with opposite vibes. I surpassed 200 miles on the AT. I continued my quest to karaoke blaze. Plus, I connected with some new cool people.