“Those zero days, or days of rest, are very important to a vast majority of them. Located 5 miles from Reeds Gap along the AT, the business has become a popular spot for a “zero day" for hikers on the trail. The basecamp houses the “test kitchen” for Devils Backbone beer, a restaurant and pub, an outdoor grill serving up fire-smoked food, and The Shanty, a tasting room with aged spirits and whiskey. More than a spot to relax, enjoy a beer and experience the outdoors, it has also become a sanctuary, providing hikers with a glimmer of civilization during a very rugged journey. “Over the years we got excited about all the hikers, and we wanted to help support them."ĭevils Backbone Basecamp sees hundreds of hikers a year pass through. “It’s a really natural partnership that evolved, and the beer was the initial piece, along with that lifestyle that inspired the founders, but it naturally came together,” says Tual. In 2017 the brewery decided to partner with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and donate $1 from the proceeds of each case of their Trail Angel Weiss beer to the nonprofit. Those two experiences made quite an impression, with the Crandalls eventually opening Devils Backbone Brewing Company in 2008. During a trip to Northern Italy in 1992 they recognized that a common factor for most outdoor destinations was a brewpub and that the spaces often served as a hub for the surrounding communities. That same year they also drank their first craft beer.
“The people that do it as a thru-hike, it’s more of a pilgrimage and an experience that for many is life-changing, and so there’s almost a spiritual aspect to it,” says Chris Blosser, director of corporate and foundation relations for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, a nonprofit formed in 1925 that works to preserve the AT.ĭevils Backbone founders Steven and Heidi Crandall are avid travelers and nature lovers. Completing the trail takes an average of four to six months and requires intense dedication and endurance. Virginia is home to 544 miles of the trail, more than any other state. Roughly 3,000 hikers attempt to trek the entire AT each year, the longest hiking-only footpath in the world, extending about 2,200 miles from Maine to Georgia. “When they are up there on the trail and then come to the brewpub, we're now a part of something that’s pretty special.” “We see people from all over the world,” says Elizabeth Tual, corporate social responsibility manager for the brewery. Over a 10-year span the space has expanded from a community watering hole into an oasis for hundreds of thru-hikers traveling along the AT, and now the brewery is using its product as a way to give back to the trail community.
At mile marker 842 of the Appalachian Trail running through Nelson County, nestled in the Virginia heartland, lies Devils Backbone Basecamp Brewpub.
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