Virginia Creeper Trail, Damascus, Virginia, United States July 31, 2026

Some railways retire. The Virginia Creeper Trail simply changed gears. Stretching 55 kilometres through southwest Virginia, this trail follows a former rail line once used to haul lumber and iron ore through the Appalachian Mountains. Its unusual name traces back to the steam locomotives that laboured up steep grades in the early 1900s.

© Eifel Kreutz/Getty Images

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