Washington County is beautiful on the outside, and offers a number of recreation options for those who enjoy fresh air and fun. Here are examples:

A Fine Kettle of Fish

Anglers of all types enjoy flocking to Washington County on a year-round basis, but from early spring through late summer, the focus is on fly-fishing. Specific sites that are best for fly-fishing fanatics are Big Tumbling Creek, Green Cove, Hidden Valley Lake, Holston River, Taylor's Valley and Whitetop Laurel Creek. All those fishing spots are especially ideal for good catches of brook, brown and rainbow trout, and several other species.

Whitetop Laurel Creek is perhaps the area’s best-known spot for the sport of fly-fishing, with the most active months being from late March through most of June.

Hit 'Em Straight and Far

For golf enthusiasts, Washington County venues are on par with any throughout the region. Abingdon is home to Glenrochie Country Club, an 18-hole course that measures 6,887 yards. The Greenway Creek Golf Course in Glade Spring is a public 18-hole course, while golfers visiting Damascus can play nine holes at Deer Field Golf Course.

Nearby Bristol also has two venues – the public Clear Creek Golf Club and The Virginian Golf Club, a private course. Clear Creek is a scenic 18-hole championship venue that is widely regarded as one of the Tri-City's finest-conditioned public golf courses. The Virginian was designed by renowned golf architect Tom Fazio, and has been honored as one of the Top 100 Courses in America by several national publications.

Bike, Hike, Camp

The Virginia Creeper Trail is a 35-mile multipurpose rail trail that stretches from Abingdon to Whitetop near the North Carolina state line. It is well-groomed, has gorgeous scenery, and is gentle-grade friendly to bikers and hikers of all levels. More than 100,000 people visit the trail annually, and it has helped Damascus - located where the Virginia Creeper and Appalachian trails intersect – to go from a sleepy town with a slowing economy to a bustling center of recreation-focused activity.

Also available for outdoor enthusiasts is the Appalachian Trail, commonly called the A.T. It is sometimes referred to as the granddaddy of all U.S. hiking trails because it spans a distance of 2,160 miles, and traverses eight national forests and touches 14 states. The A.T., established in 1937, was designated in 1968 as the first completed national scenic trail. Since then, more than 10,000 individuals have reported hiking the entire trail.