Seventeen miles of the Creeper - from Whitetop to Damascus - were destroyed in Helene and is currently impassable to bikes, a devastating blow to local tourism during peak leaf-peeping season in September. The town of Damascus and local advocates have urged visitors to come anyway with initiative like "Reverse the Route" - shuttling to Abingdon and riding back to Damascus, but folks have been eagerly and anxiously waiting to hear about the trail rebuild.
On Feb. 26th, our own Tommie Waters attended the Creeper Trail Conservancy's update meeting to hear a status update on the restoration of the Virginia Creeper Trail after the devastating damage caused by Helene:
"Attending the Creeper Trail Conservancy meeting was exciting because it was loaded with good news. Rob Ward from Gov. Youngkin’s office started with the great news that the $660 million allocated for Helene recovery was already in the hands of the US Forest Service and the restoration of the Creeper Trail will get its share.
Dennis Sanders from VDOT had a great report with slides showing the significant damage done to 1.5 miles of Route 58 and the progress that has been made. VDOT's work began one week after the hurricane and is ahead of schedule for completion! The base of the rocks that will support the new road are 10,000 lb. boulders.
There were also some pictures of the creeper trail which was completely destroyed and 31 trestles need to be repaired or replaced. Three of the folks from USFS discussed their efforts moving forward. In Early January they requested public input and got 350 replies. Most were positive and emphasized ‘build it as fast as you can’. Their plan is:
1. Debris removal
2. Boundary and land survey and
3. Taking bids for the work.
The chosen contractors will agree to a timeline to prevent delays but will present their own proposal for repair. Weather will be a factor. The trail will follow the same pathway as before.
The Forest Service and the Conservancy encourage trail fans to stay engaged, encourage people to visit us now to support business through these times with no trail, and be ambassadors for this project."