Appalachian Trail Days Festival

Trail Days is the biggest event of the year in Damascus and the world’s largest celebration of the Appalachian Trail and hiker culture! Each year in May, the town swells to an estimated 25,000 people for the festival. You can expect a grand reunion of thru-hikers past and present, over a hundred vendors of handmade goods and some of the best outdoor gear in the industry, a packed schedule of live music and events, and a large crowd of trail supporters and hiking enthusiasts. Trail Days is always the weekend after Mother’s Day. The Town-wide Yard Sale is always the weekend before Trail Days.

Schedule of Events:

8-9am at the Rock School Auditorium: Trail Epiphanies with Warren Doyle. Receiving the gifts the trail provides, IF you are aware and open to them. (no mention of ounces/pounds; equipment; Far Out; hostels/shuttles).

8am at One Way Ministries: Prayer Gathering - Everyone is Welcome!

9am-noon at Laurel Creek Park: Stop by the Damascus Farmers Market for fresh and local produce, meats, eggs, baked goods, craft items, and more. Laurel Creek Park is located downtown by the Post Office and Damascus Old Mill Inn.

9-10:15am at the Old Mill Conference Room: Appalachian High Route: Exploring Endurance. Come and hear about Meg Landymore’s AHR FKT during the summer of 2023. Learn how she put together an adventure to explore personal endurance and join a discussion on setting new records vs. chasing records. The Appalachian High Route is a new loop trail in North Carolina that incorporates the Appalachian Trail, Mountains-to-Sea Trail, and the Black Mountain Crest Trail.

9am-2:30pm at First Baptist Church: Blood Drive with Marsh Regional Blood Center

9:15-10:45am at the Rock School Auditorium: Going SOBO on the AT. Join Joe Gleason of ALDHA as he presents the ups and downs (i.e. physical/emotional) of hiking the AT from Maine to Georgia from the perspective of a hiker who decided to get off the couch one day and hike 2,194 miles.

10am at the Damascus Trail Center: BearVault Game - Visit the BearVault booth for a discussion on how to use a bear canister to properly store food while backpacking. Participants will have the chance to try out their skills in opening a BearVault canister, learn the best practices for food safety and storage, and compete in games to win a bear canister

10am at the Blue Ridge Discovery Center booth in the Town Park: Join BRDC naturalist Brendan Murphy for an AT Plant ID Walk on the trail identifying both native and non-native plants. Learn identification tricks, edible properties, and some history of the plants along the AT.

10:30-11:45am at the Old Mill Conference Room: Appalachian Trail RunVenture: The Busy Moms’ Guide to Adventure Logistics. An adventure tale of two mother runners (i.e. Celia Eicheldinger-Sweet Potato; Meg Landymore-Rock Dancer) taking on the entire AT without losing their jobs, their sanity, and family balance. We’ll take a deep dive into the planning and logistics, as well as the laughter and struggle of leading a double life.

10:45am at the Damascus Trail Center: ATC gear raffle! Stop by to toss your name in the raffle. Must be present to win.

11am-12:15pm at the Rock School Auditorium: Grandma Gatewood’s Walk. Come see actress Anne Van Curen transform into Emma Gatewood to describe what it was like to become the first woman to solo hike the AT in 1955. Based on the book “Grandma Gatewood’s Walk.”

11am at the Damascus Branch Library: Foraging for Edibles on the Trail with Ben Casteel - Walk with Horticulturist Ben Casteel and he’ll explain the kinds of plants you can forage and eat on the trail, and which you should avoid! (A very popular event – there will be books and displays on this subject in the Library.)

11:30am at Allyn ‘Fix it Man’ Morton’s Flyin’ Pig Repair Center in the Manufacturer Rep Area at Tent City - Musical Chairs with Crazy Creek. 1 winner and prize per event - 1 Crazy Creek Chair!

12-1:15pm at the Old Mill Conference Room: Women Endure: Realizing our female superpowers in the realm of endurance sport. Sarah ‘Gazelle’ Baker and Tara ‘Candy Mama’ Dower will talk about their thru-hiking experience, motivations for setting FKTs (Fastest Known Times), and how they hope to inspire a new generation of women to reach their full potential through endurance efforts.

12pm at the Damascus Branch Library: Herbal First Aid & Remedies on the Trail with Megan Boissiere. Megan is a Flower Essence Therapy practitioner and herbalist and she will explain how to find and use herbal remedies and tinctures on the trail to help with blisters, tension, sore muscles, cuts, and more.

12pm at the Damascus Trail Center: Hardcore Reunion - Stop by for a reunion of past Hardcore volunteers with Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoe Club before heading to the Hiker Parade.

12pm at the LiteAF booth in the Town Park: Gather for the Ultimate Gear Giveaway! by LiteAF, Jolly Gear, and Deliberate Life Designs. 30 minutes of gear giveaways! Get your raffle tickets at any of the three booths.

12 to 4pm at Wicked Chicken Winghouse & Tavern: Live music by Ed Main and RJ Smith.

12 to 8pm at Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery: Beer Garden. Enjoy draft beers from the newly opened Appalachian Heritage Brewery while listening to live music. Fat Daddy’s Chilli Dogs and Patriotic Pitmaster BBQ food trucks on-site.

12-2pm at the Town Park Stage: Live Music by The Well Drinkers! The Well Drinkers are a progressive, original bluegrass and Americana band based out of Western North Carolina whose range extends to festivals and venues across the Southeast. The group doesn’t shy away from the opportunity to bring experimental jams, jazz, Cajun, classical and reggae into their live performances.

12:30-1:45pm at the Rock School Auditorium: The Wonder of Woods Hole. Come hear about a special place along the trail just south of Pearisburg, VA. Find out what makes this spot like no other. Neville Harris, the guiding spirit/caretaker of this oasis, will share her thoughts/feelings on Woods Hole’s past, present and future.

12:30pm at the Granite Gear booth in the Town Park: Swing by anytime before 12:30pm on Saturday to get entered into Granite Gear’s “Trail Name” raffle! 30 minutes of pure gear-giving-away! Simply stop by and pick up your “Trail Name” sticker and drop your name in the hat. It’s that easy! Participants must be wearing the corresponding Trail Name sticker at the time of the event and be present at the booth to win.

12:45pm at the Damascus Trail Center: ATC gear raffle! Stop by to toss your name in the raffle. Must be present to win.

1pm at the Damascus Trail Center: BearVault Game - Visit the BearVault booth for a discussion on how to use a bear canister to properly store food while backpacking. Participants will have the chance to try out their skills in opening a BearVault canister, learn the best practices for food safety and storage, and compete in games to win a bear canister.

1pm at the Six Moon Designs & Toaks booth in the Town Park: Allgood’s Gear Giveaway. Lucky winners will have a chance to win a variety of ultralight gear to help them get on down the trail. Sign up and get a ticket in advance at the Six Moon Designs booth. Must be present to win.

1pm at the Gregory booth in the Manufacturer Rep Area at Tent City: Raffle Drawing & Winner of the Guess the Weight Contest. Come visit Gregory where you can get your pack fixed, have a chance to win cool swag, participate in our raffle, and test your skills in our Guess the Weight game. The winner of Guess the Weight will walk away with a new Gregory backpack. Raffle & Guess the Weight hosted twice daily - winners announced at 1pm and 4pm on Friday and Saturday.

1:30pm at Allyn ‘Fix it Man’ Morton’s Flyin’ Pig Repair Center in the Manufacturer Rep Area at Tent City - Musical Chairs with Crazy Creek. 1 winner and prize per event - 1 Crazy Creek Chair!

2:45pm at the Damascus Trail Center: ATC gear raffle! Stop by to toss your name in the raffle. Must be present to win.

3pm at the Damascus Trail Center: BearVault Game - Visit the BearVault booth for a discussion on how to use a bear canister to properly store food while backpacking. Participants will have the chance to try out their skills in opening a BearVault canister, learn the best practices for food safety and storage, and compete in games to win a bear canister

3:30-4:45pm at the Old Mill Conference Room: Building a new AT segment to Cheaha State Park, AL. Jeff Hayes proposes building a new, 21st century trail segment to connect Amicalola Falls State Park with Cheaha State Park in Alabama.

3:30pm at the Ripstop by the Roll booth in the Town Park: Cottage Gear Raffle. A daily raffle with prizes from Nashville Pack, Red Paw Packs, UGQ, FarPointe Outfitters, Walhalla Hammocks, and more! You can expect to see backpacks, quilts, accessories, and other one-of-a-kind items from the best names in cottage gear.

4-5:30pm at the Rock School Auditorium: Untold Stories. Listen to Jennifer Pharr Davis (Odyssa) and Brew Davis share their adventures on the AT. There will be new content from Jennifer along with original songs from Brew’s latest ‘Brewgrass’ album and more!

4pm at the Damascus Trail Center: Journey to Kings Mountain - In the year 1780, 400 men from southwest Virginia joined a gathering army of Patriots from the mountainous frontier. These men journeyed hundreds of miles through extreme conditions and won a decisive victory during the American Revolution. Join the storytellers of the Overmountain Victory Trail Association for a dramatic retelling of this journey and how these men changed the course of American history.

4pm at the Gregory booth in the Manufacturer Rep Area at Tent City: Raffle Drawing & Winner of the Guess the Weight Contest. Come visit Gregory where you can get your pack fixed, have a chance to win cool swag, participate in our raffle, and test your skills in our Guess the Weight game. The winner of Guess the Weight will walk away with a new Gregory backpack. Raffle & Guess the Weight hosted twice daily - winners announced at 1pm and 4pm on Friday and Saturday.

4pm at the Big Agnes booth in the Town Park: Dirtbag Wheel of Prizes - Swing by the booth earlier in the day for a chance to spin the wheel and win great prizes. Sign-ups are limited to once per person and to the first 20 or so people per day. Everyone wins something and maybe even something BIG.

4 to 6:30pm at the Damascus Brewery: Live music by Shake It Like a Caveman.

4:45pm at the Damascus Trail Center: ATC gear raffle! Stop by to toss your name in the raffle. Must be present to win.

5-6:15pm at the Old Mill Conference Room: Navigating the Trail Within: Managing your mental health while hiking the Appalachian Trail. This is an interactive, discussion-based workshop that focuses on how to manage your mental health on the AT, facilitated by Stu Skinner, a mental health professional and seasoned thru-hiker who leads challenging hikes in remote environments all over the world.

5pm at the DryFoxCo booth in the Town Park: Adventure Towels Raffle for compact, lightweight DryFoxCo hiking towels. Enter to win before 5pm on Saturday. Winner does not have to be present at the drawing but must pick up their prize in person at Trail Days.

5:30-7:30pm at the Town Park Stage: Live Music by Jake Mosca & The Travelers! Jake has been immersed in his musical pursuit from age 15 and was featured on American Idol in 2022. Based in the blues, he is now chasing his honty tonk dreams and exploring country music with a classic Nashville sound. Jake Mosca was also the winner of the 2023 Trail Days Hiker Talent Show with his original song, Hiker Trash.

5:30pm at the REI Co-op Path Ahead Ventures booth in the Town Park: Enter to win the Founders Market Cottage Gear Giveaway anytime before 5pm on Saturday to win gear from Allmansright, Outdoor Element, and ANDA. Additional good vibes and free high-fives all weekend!

6-7:15pm at the Rock School Auditorium. Dream Big, Be Courageous with Anish. Stories of Adventure on America’s Long Distance Trails. Heather ‘Anish’ Anderson prolific/successful self-supported FKT long-distance hiker, author, speaker.

6:30-7:45pm at the Old Mill Conference Room: A Feat with our Feet (All 16 of them.) We made it! 6 kids, 1 job, 5 seasons. From Sept. 2020 to Sept. 2021, this family of eight (known on trail as the Perch Creek Explorers) completed an unconventional northbound AT hike. This all with six children, facilitated by two vans, while homeschooling and working full-time along the way. Come meet them and hear how they did it, along with what happened along the way.

7-10pm at One Way Ministries: Live music under the big tent with snacks and drinks.

7pm at Tent City: Billville Useless Gear Contest with prizes. Be creative and enter or just come and watch the fun.

7:30-9pm at the Rock School Auditorium. ‘Safe and Found’ film screening showcases the gripping world of search and rescue in the rugged Smokies and surrounding mountains of western North Carolina. The film dives deep into actual SAR operations, witnessing the intense experiences of rescuers and those in need of help, while highlighting how to stay ‘safe and found’ on a hike.

8-10pm at the Town Park Stage: Live Music by Gents & Liars! It’s time for a road trip, destination unknown. The needle has landed on the Gents & Liars, a band of groove engineers based out of Johnson City, TN.

9:15-11pm at the Rock School Auditorium. My 56 y.o. Love Affair with the AT