There was a campground with lots of horses across from the trail to Mt. Rogers.

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The campground

Roots made running difficult in some spots.

More of the trail

Christmas tree farm on the way to Hillsville.

A stone maze in Hillsville. I never figured out the significance.

It might be the city in me, but I tend to use caution when I hear gun shots.

Inside the original section of the Hillsville Diner.

The 'new' part of the Hillsville Diner.

Diner.

Less than $3 for a BLT? Can't beat that.

You can't own the bank. You can only rent it.

I was disappointed with the little museum in the courthouse, although Col liked seeing the dress worn by Eleanor Roosevelt.

Part of the trail in Galax. I didn't take a whole lot of photos.

In Galax, there are no violins. Only fiddles.

The Vaughan-Bassett Furniture Company in Galax. The book Factory Man is a good read about the furniture industry in the area and the Bassett family saga.

One of the displays at the Galax Smokehouse.

Not a great place to live, but not a bad one either.

Getting ready for the start of the Bristol 5K.

One of the performers at the Rhythm & Roots Reunion Music Festival.

OK – by this point, I have to admit, I ran out of motivation to keep up on writing. So these entries are rather short…

Day 7 –
Mt. Rogers – Grayson County
Mt. Rogers, at 5,729 feet above sea level, is the biggest mountains in Virginia. And, while the climb to the top is not all that treacherous, the nine-mile trek is more than I was willing to do.  I did do part of the trail along the side of the mountain.  There are also supposed to be wild ponies in the area, but I didn’t see any of them.

Day 8 –
Beaver Creek Trail – Hillsville – Carroll County
It rained as we took on a trail in the small town of Hillsville.  The run included seeing the back of a flooring factory and going through a firing range, although no shots were fired.

New River Trail – Galax City
The New River Trail is a whopping 57 miles long. We trotted along a small section that started out in the city of Galax.  The paved path ideal for runners and walkers actually follows Chestnut Creek.

Galax is known for its Fiddler’s Convention and bills itself as World Capital of Old Time Mountain Music. While we weren’t in town for the big event, we did catch the weekly show at the Rex Theatre.

Day 9
Bristol 5k – City of Bristol

Bristol, with the border between Tennessee and Virginia running right down the center of town, bills itself as the birthplace of country music because of a series of recording sessions by the Carter family in 1927.

The deal we got was if we ran the Bristol City 5K in the morning, we would get free admission to the Roots & Rhythm Reunion Festival during the day.

The race had a few bumps. Limited water along the route. Street crossing where officers failed to stop traffic.  A final section through the festival that wasn’t well marked. Col, definitely in a competitive frame of mind,  was fuming made when she finished because of the lack of direction.

The Roots & Rhythm Reunion Festival itself was nice enough that I could see  dedicating a trip full trip to it, although I’d look for better accommodations. The Bristol Red Carpet Inn, will go down as one of the worst hotels I ever stayed at.