Photos of the Day: A Run Down the Virginia Creeper

Green Cove Station: Black and white and color. A spot, anyway.

Green Cove Station on the way down the mountain from White Top.

Your favorite editr at Whitetop, the top of the run.

It's hard to concentrate on the trail when this is the view.

Blooming heather near the bottom of the run.

There's not much better for the soul than a run down (18 miles down--all down) the Virginia Creeper Trail near Damascas (which is near Abingdon, which is near Bristol). You can do 36 miles all the way to Abingdon and you're still only going flat. It's the dream of people who aren't in great shape or don't have a lot of time.

The old railroad bed trail is a pretty good drive from Roanoke and the run is only about an hour and a half, unless you dawdle--which you should--but it's a beaut. My pal Will Milsaps, who lives in nearby Whitesburg, Ky., avoided bad weather and had a truly spectacular run. Wish you'd been there.