morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2017-04-24
From: Motel 6, Gatlinburg, TN

To: GreenCorner Rd, Hartford, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today, Monday, 4/24, they are waiting for the shuttle to take them from Gatlinburg back to Newfound Gap, where they will start their hike again. They are well rested and fed and ready to get back on the trail again. When Fahmah picked up his re-supply box I had sent to the NOC Outpost there, I got a message from Klip, saying it was 3-4 days to Green Corner Rd, and Fahmah has 84 days of food!!! I guess he had to send a box forward so I don't have to send any more food until Hot Springs. Klip had to get some medicine for his "Fahmahitis". I'll upload a photo soon. They have had 4-5 inches of rain, therefore stayed overnight 4 nights total and are leaving today. The brook below the hotel was a flood! Running too heavy for even the ducks! Klip tells me Fahmah has bought some gaiters! Oh no, that will be an extra hour each morning while Fahmah puts them on. (Klip can sleep an extra hour every day!) I don't think Fahmah got his shave or his haircut. It didn't look it in the photos Klip sent. I will upload them as soon as I can. They are on my iPhone. He has been feeling very self conscious about his teeth and had asked me to send them. I was going to, but after talking it over with the kids and Klip, we have thought better of that. What if they got lost or ruined in some way? He decided to wait until I see him in May. (phew!) I did send him a charger so that he can recharge his phone while he is on the trail. That way, if there is service, I will get to talk to him. He just called from Newfound Gap. It was real noisy, with hikers going in to town and hikers going back on the trail!! Meeting up with hikers they had met on the trail before! Hopefully the sun will shine a few days and dry things out. Will update when I have more news. Pray for them please.
Date: 2017-04-28
From: Newfound Gap, Gatlinburg, TN

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Fahmah had no phone service for the 4 days traveling north on the AT out of the Smokies. At least, he didn't call me. Mid afternoon on Friday the 28th I heard from Klip, do not fear, the "creeping  thermo-rest still lives"!  They were heading toward Standing Bear Hostel for a much needed stop and rest. It was a wet and muddy 4 days.  I got a call from Fahmah shortly afterward but we couldn't keep a connection. He didn't tell me much. Of course, he usually doesn't.  I was on my way to Amanda's confirmation and was relieved to have finally heard something!  Lionel sent a message saying they were heading toward Hot Springs, NC on Sunday morning.  I still didn't hear from Fahmah until about 2:30 this afternoon. They were about 5 miles north heading toward Groundhog Creek Shelter where they will stay.  They must have been on Snowbird Mtn, a grassy bald. It was real windy. That was all I could hear over the phone. I did get that I needed to send 5 days f od.    It's  ready to go in the morning!
Date: 2017-05-03
From: GreenCorner Rd, Hartford, TN

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I hadn't heard from Fahmah since Sunday night. They were on the other side of a mountain where there was an FAA tower. He had great phone service at the Groundhog shelter when he called me. That was short lived.  No service again until they got in to Hot Springs a little before 3 this afternoon. There was no room at Laughing Heart Lodge where I had sent his resupply box. He didn't think to ask for the box and by the time we talked he was too tired to get it tonight. He just wanted a shower and dinner!  They plan to stay there for 2 nights. Klip definitely want to take a soak in the hot springs there. I really hope Fahmah tries it too!  It would do them both good to soak their tired, old bodies!!  They arrived in Hot Springs a day sooner than I thought they would.  They travelled 33 miles in 3 1/2 days!  I'm impressed!There are lots of hikers in the area. I'll fill you in on any stories they share when I hear them. I'm sure I'll get a call tomorrow!  TTFN
Date: 2017-05-09
From: Log Cabin Rd

To: Uncle Jonny's, Erwin TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Well, that was heart breaking. I just updated the journal and lost everything I had entered! Oh well, here we go again!Fahmah and Klip ended up staying in Hot Springs for 4 nights. The day they had planned to leave, it was pouring rain and they decided to stay another night. They were planning to stay at Hikers Paradise, 4 days away. I went to ship his resupply and found that the telephone number we had was not in service. They decided to stay at Hemlock Hollow instead at Log Cabin Rd in Greenville, NC. On Friday morning I send his package to their address.While in Hot Springs they met up with an Irish couple that they visited with and had breakfast with. Fahmah really enjoyed their spirit and listening to her brogue. He said I would like them for sure if I were to meet them. They left the day before the guys in the pouring rain!Well, it turned out that Hemlock Hollow was a lot closer than we thought. They arrived there in just 2 days. It was only a little over 12 miles! Don't know how we made that mistake, but, oh well! The resupply was on it's way there, to be delivered on Monday. But that's not bad, they got there on Sunday and are able to get back on the trail today. Hopefully the weather won't be too bad. It will be 6 days to Erwin as long as all goes as planned.There is NO phone service at Hemlock Hollow. Fahmah called me last night from the owner's land line. We were only able to talk a few minutes. In the conversation, I told him how much I missed him. He said "big ditto". What I heard was "big deal"! My heart sank. I asked him why he said that, then he corrected me and all was good again. That is just the way things have been these days. I really miss him. I will be meeting them at Uncle Jonny's in Erwin on the 16th or 17th. We are heading up to Damascus, VA for Hiker Trail Days the 18th to th 20th. We plan to meet up with Jack there! The Tres Amigos will be together again, if only for a couple of days. Pray for good weather for the old guys and safe travels for all. What is the next plan?? Who knows. Until then...................
Date: 2017-05-11
From: Hemlock Hollow

To: Uncle Johnnys, Erwin, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I missed a call from Fahmah while I was talking to Joan on Tuesday. No calls since. I received the photo of wild flowers on the AT from Klip today. I know they are alive.  Three of the six days to Erwin. Am counting down to leaving on Tuesday.  Will let you know when I hear more.
Date: 2017-05-15
From: Uncle Johnnys, Erwin, TN

To: Damascus, VA for Hiker Trail Days
Miles today: 342.7
Weather: few clouds

It happened again! I just lost a whole page I had written and have to write it all over again! Will probably leave some out because I'm tired and need to go to bed.Fahmah has called me often since they arrived at Johnny's on Sunday.  He has to walk out to the road to get good service though! He didn't call Jack to confirm that he would meet us in Damascus so I called tonight. Jack is coming and I invited him to stay with us at the motel in Abingdon. Reservations are all made! Fahmah was looking through a book at Johnny's with photos of a bunch of hikers in it and there was a photo of Jack! He was tickled and showed Klip. Well, I'll be darned, if the guy who took those photos and created the book didn't show up at Johnny's today on his way to Trail Days!! I told Jack about it. It turns out Jack was there, but not hiking, when he was taking photos, and included him in the book! We will hear all about it when we get to Trail Days!! Tony pointed Jack's picture out to the guy and the guy said "Oh yeah, I remember him, he was quite the talker!" He knew Jack!!Today is Klip's birthday! Well, I had better sign off for now! I need to get on the road early in the morning to make it to Erwin tomorrow night. Google maps says it's about 14 hours! Please pray for safe travels and good weather at Trail Days! Thank you all for following along on our journey! Till we talk again.................................
Date: 2017-05-19
From: Uncle Johnnys, Erwin, TN

To: Home to Templeton!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

We arrived in Abingdon from Erwin around 2 pm on Wednesday. We have a Cracker Barrel right near the hotel, so, of course, we had dinner there!  I called Jack to let him know the name of the hotel and room numbers.  He would be here on Thursday around noon. After dinner we took a ride to Damascus to see how much was prepared for Trail Days. It is about a 14 mile ride, very convenient to the hotel.  We came back and celebrated Klip's birthday, his 80th, with apple pie and ice cream!  Jack had said he'd be here around noon so we were watching for him. About 12:30 we stepped out on the balcony and saw a red van come in to the parking lot. I recognized Jack driving. He said he had just pulled in to call me, looked up and saw us. Had actually found us by mistake!  We went to Cracker Barrel again with Jack for lunch.  We planned to go to the Damascus Old Mill where the food is good and the atmosphere is great right on the river that runs behind it.  A lot of hikers had arrived in town and when we sat down at our table, we looked down on the deck below and there were was Ole Man and Navigator from the AT Lodge Hostel in Millinocket, ME.  Dinner was delicious, visit was nice. We took a little stroll down Main St Damascus, Fahmah and Jack holding hands and skipping, a dream come true!!!  There is always lots of laughing and stories from that 2007 hike!  They all met on the trail that year and hiked all the way to Harpers Ferry WVA and flipped up to Mt Katahdin in ME and hiked south. Lionel had to head back to So Africa so, when they finished hiking the Whites, I gave him a ride to Boston for his flight home.  Fahmah and Jack continued on to North Adams where I picked him up and Tony brought his truck back, and Jack and Tony finished the trail, using the truck from trail head to trail head each day and arrived back in Harpers Ferry on Dec 7th to complete their thru hike in 2007!!  Oh, the stories they can tell!!  And these reunions are wonderful!  Today we went back to Damascus, had breakfast at Cowboy's, and found parking near the park where the festivities were planned. There are dozens of vendors selling hiking equipment or supplies, having drawings, there are booths for ALDHA, The Appalachian Trail Conservancy, The Hiker Yearbook, and many others.  There is another section that has vendors selling crafts, tee shirts, jewelry, pottery, books and dozens of other booths. And then all the junk food vendors, funnel cakes, ice cream, barbecue, gator meat, fresh squeezed lemon juice and anything your heart may desire!  There is a stage, music, and speakers where there will be a hiker talent show after the Hiker Parade!!  The Damascus Trail Days is the largest Hiker celebration held on the trail each year.  Well, I will sign off for now.  Tomorrow will be a long day and Sunday Jack will head for home early and Fahmah, Klip and I will head back to Templeton, our adventure will have come to an end!  Thank you for following along!  Happy Trails, from Ma and Pa Fahmah
Date: 2017-03-09
From: Georgia

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

The day is getting closer. Friday we leave for VA where we will visit our dear friends who are going to drive us to Georgia Saturday. We will all spend the night in Georgia and then, off to the trail Sunday morning for me and my hubs. The last two days I have had anxiety. There was a lot to do to get our house in order before we left. By Gods grace we have an amazing house sitter and for this I am so thankful. Everything just fell into place the last few days. I can't wait to get on the trail and start this adventure. It's been crazy lately trying to get a lot of practice miles in and keep up with regular daily household tasks. In the end, whatever didn't get done won't matter anyhow but for the moment, my crazy OCD won't let me rest ?? And nature is calling at the same time.
Date: 2017-03-12
From: Springer Mounain

To: Hawk Shelter, Georgia
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: few clouds

Today it rained ice balls all day. It was cold and we were moving slow. We did get to see a beautiful waterfalls, Long Creek Falls. We only got 9 miles in and had to stop at Hawk Shelter to tent camp for the night. Everyone built a fire which was great! We headed to bed early because of the cold. Thomas got a few blisters today and was having muscle spasms in his legs at night. The wind started to blow so hard around 1:30am I could feel it through the tent and my sleeping bag so Thomas switched spots because his was warm, It was bitter cold
Date: 2017-03-13
From: Hawk Shelter, Georgia

To: Gooch Gap Campsite
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: clear sky

This morning started out so windy and cold we could barely get moving at our campsite.   My fingers were frozen and my toes were NOM Thomas had to take my shoes off to warm my toes before we could start hiking. We hiked up sassafras Mountain today it was pretty steep we both had to stop several times. We were headed to Gooch shelter but there were so many people on the trail the shelter was really full so we push Thomas to hike another mile and a half to a campsite. Two guys were building a fire and having trouble and asked if anyone knew how to build a fire so of course Thomas suggested I help them while he put up the tent. I took one look at the wood they were using and went out and got some nice drive pieces I told them I wiould get the wood and show them how to start it but they had to blow on it . We got it started in a couple minutes and had it blazing a few minutes later. We cooked our dinner by the fire and then got ready for bedIt's drizzling rain right now as we are laying in our tents hopefully it will stay that way and not get worse .
Date: 2017-03-14
From: Gooch Gap Campsite

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: light snow

Today we woke up to beautiful snow all over the trees and ground. It was another chilly night. I really didn't mind the snow because it was better packing up our stuff in snow than it would be if it was raining. We started at Gooch gap and hiked to Woody gap which was about a 4 mile hike. We decided to find a place to bunk down for the night because it is supposed to be in the teens and even colder up in the mountains. So from Woody Gap we started the 2mike hike on 60N to Suches and someone picked us up, we rode in the back of his pick up, and he drove us the next 1.5 miles. We are staying at Two Wheels of Suches in a quaint little red cabin. We have showers, yes! Tomorrow we have someone driving us back to where we stopped hiking and we are going to hike without our backpacks for about 11 miles which will include Blood Mt. (Sounds like a good Mt to hike without our packs). We plan on getting picked up and briought back to the cabin to spend one more night if possible.
Date: 2017-03-15
From: Jarred Gap

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: broken clouds

Today we had a wonderful breakfast of muffins and fresh coffee compliments of Mary and Skip from Two Wheels of Suches. Then Mary called retired Ranger, Mr. Bud to see if he would give us a ride to Jared gap so we could hike from Jared gap down to Woody gap without our backpacks and then return to the cabin for the night. Mr. Bud graciously drove us there and told some great stories about the Mountains, Rams Rock, and Preachers Rock. I asked him about all the beautiful mica schist I was seeing along the trail and he told us there were many things they manufactured with it. I also have been seeing a lot of crystal quarts on the mountain trails. Mr. Bud dropped us off and we hiked about 1/2 mile to get to the trail. We had on 3-4 layers of clothes because it was 2degrees with the wind chill in some places. The mountains were full of snow and beautiful ice crystals. We hiked the 6 miles back to Woody Gap then walked 2 more miles to get to our cabin. We are staying tonight and tackling Blood Mountain in the morning. It was great to slackpack as they call it without our backpacks. We finished our hike and we were back at the cabin before 1:30. We had some pizza at the only store for miles and there was a little motivation typed on the box that said "The task ahead of you is never as great as the Power within you." We will remember this.
Date: 2017-03-16
From: Woody Gap

To: Swaim Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Today we hiked Blood Mountain. I told My husband before we hiked up that I bet the hike down willl be rough because they probably named it so because the decent is so steep your toes hit the end of your shoes and bleed. The decent was mostly rock, some were so huge I think most of the Mountain was a huge Rock and it was very intense with the mud and ice. When we got to Neel Gap we stopped at the store there then bought a couple packages of food for dinner. We rested for an hour and a half before continuing our hike to Swaim Gap Ridge. There was no water in between but a gentleman named Paul had an app on his phone to helped us find water two tenths of a mile up the trail. It was a tiny spring but it was perfect and was still flowing. It was getting really windy so I put the tent up while Thomas cooked us dinner and made something hot to eat. I made a fire and found lots of wood to burn but the wind was so crazy even by the fire it was hard to get warm. It was still really cold probably because we were on a ridge but we did have a beautiful view of the mountains. It was one of the coldest nights for me but Thomas said he was fine. I'm not looking forward to waking up in this cold.
Date: 2017-03-17
From: Swaim Gap

To: Lower Gap Shelter
Miles today: 9.0

Today we got a slow start because it was still cold and windy. It was the coldest night for me sleeping but Thomas said he was fine. Later the sun came out and it was a beautiful day. Thomas has been coughing the last few days and was moving slow today. I tried to occupy his mind by asking a lot of questions about him playing baseball as a kid. He wanted to stop a lot and I just wanted to keep going. I was getting a little frustrated. The photo is one of the times he made me stop and I swear he would have taken a nap if I let him. Lol! ??. We started hiking at 10 am and got to Lower Gap Shelter tent area around 5pm. Thomas made a fire, got more water and cooked dinner while I put up the tent and got our mattresses and sleeping bags organized. More hikers , Bob, Bruce, Mark a couple from Ohio and their two beautiful dogs and also a couple of very nice guys we talked to at Neel Gap two days ago, (I really need to pay attention to names, lol) came to enjoy the fire and set up their tents near us. There were around 35 people camping at this site. We went to bed at 9 pm.
Date: 2017-03-18
From: Lower Gap Shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Today we hiked an easy 5 miles first on a fairly flat ridge. There was a beautiful misty fog and I watched an owl swoop down from the mountain above and disappear below. My husband was really struggling saying his shoulders were hurting no matter how we adjusted his pack. I knew he was not feeling well because he coughed most of the night. He started asking me how far we had gone (hoping it was more) when we had only gone . 5 miles. I was really pushing him so we could get another 5 miles and to a hotel. Around 6 miles he said he was going to get rid of the food because it weighed too much but I made him give it to me and added it to my pack hoping to lighten his pack enough to get him to move faster. The trail got very muddy and rocky and was a steep decline for a couple miles and it was wearing on my ankles. I had called for a ride to the hotel to meet us so I was way ahead of Thomas trying to make sure we got there on time. When I could see the parking lot from the trail which was another quarter mile, I left my pack and went back up to find Thomas. I made him take off his pack and I carried it down to where mine was so he could rest. We met our ride at Unicom Gap and a wonderful lady drove us to the hotel. I washed our clothes, we got showers, found a place to eat, got Thomas some medicine and went to bed.
Date: 2017-03-20
From: Hiawassee, Georgia

To: hotel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Tom is still sick and I started feeling it Sunday night. Today both Thomas and I went to urgent care, (Serendipity) in Hiawassee. What a wonderful staff and Dr Kilee Smith! We both have flue symptoms and I have a sinus infection so she prescribed us some meds which we picked up at Fred's. We've been resting all day and we will definitely take another day to rest. We are hoping to be better by Wednesday morning to continue our hike but not sure if that will be possible as we are still not feeling great. We are off the trail for now but thankful it's just the flu and not an injury that would make us quit our journey. Prayers appreciated for us.
Date: 2017-03-21
From: hotel

To: hotel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It's the first day of spring and things are looking up. We spent the day relaxing in the sun outside the hotel. I recorded our day above in my sketchbook while Tom read. We are ready to continue our journey in the morning. We will be hiking less miles the first few days to finish recuperating from our battle with the flu and sinus infection. We are both feeling much better today and are excited to get back to nature. Thanks for the messages of well wishes and prayers.
Date: 2017-03-22
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 6.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we called our favorite lady Sally to give us a ride back to Unicoi gap at 8 am. We decided to make it a short day and only hiked 6 because we were still recovering from the flu. We hiked a very steep mountain and ended up settling camp at the top of tree Mountain. We had a fantastic view once we got our tent set up and built a nice fire. We sat at the top of huge rocks and relaxed in the sunshine. We met a young man named !maverick! Who cooked with us over our fire. We also met the cutest dog named Isis who seemed to love hiking. The wind became violently cold and strong overnight and we didn't want to leave our warm bags when morning came. I was feeling cold , dizzy and nauseated but just wanted to get going to warm up. We decided to eat later and packed up and headed North.
Date: 2017-03-23
From: Tray Mountain Shelter

To: Deep Gap
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: clear sky

Rough start today because the wind was blowing so hard making it hard to pack up. My fingers and toes were freezing. It was too cold to eat breakfast. We hiked about two miles before stopping and making tortillas with peanut butter and jelly and eating a granola bar. We hiked 7.8 miles and ended at Deep Gap. After setting up the tent, We made a big dinner of beef stroganoff and mashed potatoes because we were both hungry. Later I made hot tea and coffee and then before bed we ate some hot oatmeal. I went to fill the water at the spring and loved how someone used a Mountain Laurel leaf to funnel the water where it trickled down so alll you had to do was hold your bottle under it. Shout out to Cory from St Louis for making a beautiful toasty fire tonight! Met some great people tonight one young lady from Pittsburgh too. I'm sleeping in my coat tonight for now anyways. We are really hoping it will warm up tomorrow.