06/03/2026
We ❤️ this blogger’s review. Welcome to VA!
“From Grayson Highlands, the next hiker town you hit is Marion. Marion is a really sweet little town in southern VA. We stayed at the Merry Hiker Hostel and ate in town at The Wooden Pickle TWICE because it was so good.”
Grayson Highlands State Park
The Merry Inn
Wooden Pickle Food & Spirits
The Town of Marion, Virginia
Grayson Highlands is iconic! This state park has been a section I’ve looked forward to for years. I didn’t realize we would hit it so soon after leaving Damascus, but it’s pretty much the first thing you do. It is famous for the wild ponies that roam freely in the park. They were cute and beautiful and everything we wanted, but I was equally blown away by the landscape! It’s not like anything else we’ve seen on trail and reminded me of northern New Mexico. What a treat!
From Grayson Highlands, the next hiker town you hit is Marion. Marion is a really sweet little town in southern VA. We stayed at the Merry Hiker Hostel and ate in town at The Wooden Pickle TWICE because it was so good. We slack packed a large section which included our first major highway crossing where we were able to get chocolate milk and sodas at the gas station for lunch. We’ve also started passing through several cow pastures, power lines, 19th century school houses, railroads, etc. Sometimes it’s strange but sometimes it’s beautiful and all around having different landmarks is welcome in my book to have a change of scenery/pace. Marion was especially sweet because we still weren’t that far ahead of our friends so we had some overlap at the hostel! We will have any reunion we can get.
Hello, Virginia! 👉 https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/hello-virginia/
