morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-06-06
From: Niday Shelter

To: Four Pines Hostel
Miles today: 16.8

I am in so much pain. Not because of the hike though, but because of The Homeplace! I literally cannot move. This place is everything that everyone on the trail has spoken of. There was just the four of us, SuperFeet, Tuna, Yellow Beard, and I and we devoured the food like animals. Once we arrived to Four Pines Hostel, we quickly headed to the restaurant meaning yes, we skipped showers. Probably a terrible decision because everyone was dressed so nicely while a group of dirty, stinky hikers come up. People actually kept a good distance from us! And those who sat down after, quickly got up and moved. Yeah...I couldn't imagine how terrible we smelt combined. But at least dinner was absolutely amazing. I can't even believe I ate that much. I even had two peach cobblers a la mode!! Like, I'm impressed with myself for eating so much, but I definitely hate myself right now. Absolutely worth it though!!!As for today's hike, it was terrible. Probably the worst stretch ever. I mean, Dragon's Tooth was awesome and Audie Murphy's monument was cool, but the hike to get there was crazy tough! We woke up early (like 6:30am early!) because we had a big day ahead of us to make it to The Homeplace before it closed. So I expected to make it to the hostel by 4ish. We didn't get there until 6:30-7ish. The hike was so intense! The first climb to Audie Murphy's monument was tough, but it didn't even compare to the second climb. I thought it would never end!! Maybe halfway up, SuperFeet got so sick and tired of the mountain that he yelled out a war cry and charged up the rest of the mountain. I was left behind in his dust! I couldn't even catch up to him for about an hour or so. Even Tuna couldn't catch up to him! Then the climb down Dragon's Tooth was intense with its extremely steep, rocky sides. Yeah, our feet and knees were throbbing halfway down. I had to use my hands and sat down to slide down the majority of the time. Definitely the steepest climb down yet, but it's probably nothing compared to what's ahead for us with the Whites or so I've heard. I'm just so glad today's hike is over and I'm more than ready to fall into a food coma - if I can even waddle my way to the army cot in the hostel (yeah, I let SuperFeet have the actual bed because I'm just that generous of a girlfriend). I'm seriously in so much pain I don't want to move!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-07
From: Four Pines Hostel

To: Four Pines Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

I woke up today to see that there was absolutely no motivation in anyone to hike out. Maybe it was from all the food from last night or the big mile days were catching up to us, but today's zero was inevitable. Instead, everyone relaxed outside the hostel playing corn hole and listening to music. I, on the other hand, was entertained by the alpacas and couldn't resist trying to play with them. Of course, all they did was stand still and stare at us with their goofy looks as if not moving would make us believe they weren't there at all.It wasn't a completely unproductive day though. I hand washed our laundry! SuperFeet's clothing were in dire need of a wash BADLY. It took forever to wash everything, but I did it! And as a reward, we had The Homeplace for a second time and just like the first time, I left there in pain and hated myself one again. The dessert this time was black berry cobbler a la mode and it was absolutely amazing! I love peach cobbler, but this black berry cobbler definitely beats it. Again, I had two but with extra ice cream this time! Totally worth the pain!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-08
From: Four Pines Hostel

To: Lamberts Meadow Shelter
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: broken clouds

Today, we passed the 700 mile marker! And it led up to two amazing, beautiful views - McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs. There was an overcast throughout the day, but luckily as we passed over McAfee Knob the rain had held off. The Turtle crew lounged around for a few hours relaxing by the view after taking many, many photos. This was the most talked about place on the trail so of course we had to catch as many memories as possible here! As much as I would have liked for it to be bright and sunny, the overcast created this ominous beauty over the valley down below that was breathtaking. And seeing our hike along the ridgeline to Tinker Cliffs was really cool. It looked so far away, but in just two hours we'd be on the opposite side looking back on McAfee Knob to where we just were. That's what really amazes me about this hike. The miles traveled in a day can take you so far and you never really realize it until those few moments you can actually look back on what you just did and see your progress. It's amazing.The walk along Tinker Cliffs was not very fun though. Just as we got near the top of the very, very steep climb, the skies opened up and we were poured on - soaked from head to toe. I've never hiked in such heavy rain before so that was different. And then we had to walk along the cliffs in the wide open clearing! I have to say though, looking back on McAfee Knob was amazing. The views from Tinker Cliffs definitely beat the views from McAfee Knob. It may sound weird considering the fact that they both looked down on the same valley, but it was still different. Tinker Cliffs opened up more so that you could see more of the valley. Plus, it was crazy seeing McAfee Knob and how sunny it was on that side of the ridge. That's right - sunny and not a drop of rain! While on this side it was pouring so hard it turned the trail into a river in just 30 minutes! Crazy, but amazing.Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-09
From: Lamberts Meadow Shelter

To: Daleville, VA
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: broken clouds

As we hiked towards town, all SuperFeet could do was reminisce about his first hike. The trail we traveled today brought back memories of when he randomly found a geo-cache hidden on a cliff with a beautiful view.It's been a nice, relaxing day though. The trail has been much easier than its been the past few weeks and it's very much appreciated. I can only hope the trail will be nice to me after Daleville as well.Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-10
From: Daleville, VA

To: Daleville, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Poor SuperFeet woke up feeling sick today so a zero day was inevitable. So instead of going around town to eat all the different foods, we chose Chinese food for their soup (plus, they delivered!). Hot and sour soup was the best option for SuperFeet! He's on antibiotics and drinking lots of organic tea so hopefully he'll start to feel better by tomorrow! Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-11
From: Daleville, VA

To: Daleville, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Guess the soup and tea hasn't done a very good job because SuperFeet woke up feeling worse than yesterday. With as hot as it was outside, there was no way he was going to be able to stand outside for long. So another zero day in Daleville was going to happen and another day for more hot and sour soup!Tuna and Meticulous have left, but as for everyone else (Hooch, Red, and Kelsy), they've decided to stay as well. And it was a good choice for us to stay because it poured! It definitely would not have been very fun for SuperFeet to be out there in the rain and heat.Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-12
From: Daleville, VA

To: Wilson Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: light rain

With SuperFeet still not feeling well, we didn't want to hike very far. Pushing his body while he was trying to get well just seemed like a bad idea so today was going to be a slow, easy day. Of course it had to be hot and extremely humid though. And water sources weren't the best. The first shelter 5 miles out provided water through a cistern and it did not look good at all. Yellow, dirty water? No thanks. So we had to push on until we reached a stream 4 more miles out. And of course there were no campsites nearby so we had to push on to the shelter - up a steep climb. So much for it being an easy day! But at least we made it to camp in time to set up our tent and have dinner before the rain came and boy, did it pour. With it being out first time in the new tent, it was going to be a good test! And so far, so good. Gotta love tents with vestibules!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-13
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Bearwallow Gap
Miles today: 10.4

SuperFeet woke up today feeling worse than he had since he first got sick. His sinus infection seemed to be in full effect today because he said he felt a lot of pressure on his face that he hadn't felt before. We wanted to take it easy again today, but there seemed to be no water sources inbetween this shelter and the next which was 10 miles away so easy wasn't going to be an option again. At least today's hike had plenty of views as it ran alongside the Blue Ridge Parkway. We even got to see a young deer up close as it ran across our path. Good thing it was smart enough to run towards us into the woods instead of away from us into the busy street of the BRP!We decided to hike on past the shelter to this water source marked in the book. With there being a stream, there was bound to be a campsite. And there was, except it was very small and the one good tent spot had a surfie covered with rocks. So SuperFeet and I hiked on without Hooch, Red, Kelsy and the gang with tons of water in our packs since the next shelter had none. Not a very good choice for a shelter if there's no water available...Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-14
From: Bearwallow Gap

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: clear sky

Spending lunch by the creek was relaxing. Families were there swimming and picnicking as hikers sat nearby enjoying the scenery and water. Being here was much better than out hiking in the heat. Plus, the entire day's hike was going to be all uphill after uphill.Slow moving as usual in the heat, it took a lot for me to get motivated. The first shelter we reached was large (holding about 20 people!) and it sat by a creek. Thoughts of ending the day and staying right there seemed so nice, but we had to keep moving. Of course, the rest of the time consisted of pure uphill after uphill. Ending the day with climbs was not fun. Half way up, I was dying. I could barely move my feet! I let SuperFeet go on without me to the shelter. I don't know how he had so much energy still left in him! The last climb was terrible. I saw blue skies and I figured I was FINALLY at the top! But no. I got to the top and was so excited, but then saw that the climb was not yet over. Right after getting to that point, the climb continued but this time much steeper than it just was. Fabulous. I felt like crawling the rest of the way up since I was out of energy. I pushed myself though and eventually made it to the shelter to find SuperFeet already there relaxing in his chair. How does he do it?!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-15
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Marble Spring Campsite
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Happy Father's Day! Hiking the rest of the climb today was much easier than it would've been last night. It was still tough, but bearable. In no rush to get to the campsite for tonight, we casually hiked. Just before the big climb at the end of the day, I was hiking ahead when SuperFeet saw something on the trail just after we walked right by it. There on the trail where any one could have stepped on or hit it with their hiking poles was the tail of a rattlesnake. Oddly though, the snake was not startled and just layed there. SuperFeet started hitting his poles on the ground to get the rattlesnake moving and off the trail. Seeing as it wasn't working very well, he picked up a rock and threw it at the snake. Bouncing up and actually hitting the rattlesnake, it instantaneously jumped up and coiled itself as it rattled its tail. And just as fast as it had done so, I was just as fast to run away up the trail! The rattle was insanely loud. With this being by first time seeing and even hearing a rattlesnake, its rattle was much louder than I expected. Even 200 yards down the trail the sound could still be heard! Looking back on pictures, we think the snake was at least 7 years old since it had 7 sections on its rattle.When we got to camp, the bugs were intense so SuperFeet decided to make a fire to keep them away. As we were enjoying our dinner of instant potatoes for the third time in a row, we heard rustling near the tent. When we looked over, a deer emerged from the bushes just a couole feet from us. As we watched it, it watched us - unnerved and didn't care for us at all. It stood there for awhile before continuing on its way, grazing through the bushes. These deers just don't seem scared lately!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-16
From: Marble Spring Campsite

To: Glasgow, VA
Miles today: 7.7

I was slow moving today with how hot it was, but with how nice the trail was it made it much easier. The heat has just been so intense the past few days! We had just been talking about how oddly cool nights have been for it to be the middle of June. And now literally right after saying so, the heats just been getting crazier and even nights are warm. Guess the summer solstice on the 21st is going to happen after all!It took awhile to hitch a ride into Glasglow since no one seemed to be headed that way, but eventually we has one and we made it to town early in the day. Now all we wantes to do was sit in the shade with the rest of the hikers and do absolutely nothing - which is exactly what we did. Sadly, the only restaurant in the entire town happened to be closed on Mondays so we were terribly out of luck. Instead, we were forced to eat frozen burgers and pizza rolls. All we wanted was a nice, cooked meal!Other than that though, Glasglow is a great hiker town because of the fact thst they actually have a shelter in town with free, extremely hot showers and a privy! Its always so nice when towns don't charge you for camping. Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-17
From: Glasgow, VA

To: Buena Vista, VA
Miles today: 21.8

Happy 100th day on the trail to us! I can't believe its been that long on the trail already. Time has flown by faster than I can even grasp. All the memories and friendships already made have been so unbelievable. And as tough as the trail has been lately, knowing I've made it this far and this long makes me even prouder of myself and SuperFeet (for dealing with me this whole time and my slow speed)!And with it being our 100th day, the trail gods must've wanted us to celebrate because they rewarded us with an amazing hitch out of town. As we tried to get a hitch out of Glasglow to the trail head, this man pulls up to give us a ride, but instead of the trail head we were planning on he offered to take us straight to Buena Vista! We didn't even ask for it or even mentioned that place. How could we resist this amazing offer? So we jumped on board without a second thought. Poor Tuna though had a package he needed to pick up in Big Island (the opposite direction of Glasglow) so he wasn't able to hitch a ride with us to Buena Vista as much as he wanted to. He looked so sad as he watched us pull away!So here we are camped next to the river in the park in Buena Vista enjoying this relaxing, 100th day on the trail. It's been crazy hot, but nothing the pool couldn't cool us off with! We even got to see our first beaver on the trail! We saw something in the distance so we decided to walk over and see what it was and this beaver just waddled it's way away from us back into the river. We had lunch at the Bluedogart Cafe (great food and icecream!) and spent the rest of the day laying out by the pool and grass reading, writing letters, and napping. Yeah, I'd say its been a great day 100. Thank you trail gods! Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-18
From: Buena Vista, VA

To: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: broken clouds

We were up by 6 and out on the trail by 7. By far, this is our earliest start yet and it'll probably be our wake up plan for the rest of the trip, or at least until this summer heat dies down. Route Step and his wife were kind enough to drive us to the trail head out of Buena Vista and actually went out of their way to drop us off there since he was actually starting at a different spot on the trail. There to greet us were these two silly local dogs who wanted nothing more than our undivided attention. Howling and pawing at each of us until one of us would pet them and if one didn't get any attention, boy did the other one get jealous. It was actually a nice way to start the day being greeted by these two! Before it was even noon, we had done 10 miles! Crazy what a difference time makes between waking up early and starting late. The temperature was nice and cool in the morning so climbs weren't as terrible as they would have been in the middleof the day. Plus, today had a really nice breeze that helped even with the intense heat. With all the time left in the day to go, we couldn't help but relax once it hit noon. We lazily hiked from one relaxing view to the next until we reached the shelter and still it was early in the day. Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-19
From: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter

To: Maupin Field Shelter
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: broken clouds

Today was not fun. It was pretty miserable actually. The day started off nicely despite it being hot. We hiked to Spy Rock and climbed it to the top where we had breakfast. The view from there was amazing. Very, very windy, but we managed to find a decent spot blocked from the intense wind and relaxed there for quite awhile. SuperFeet played with his slingshot, slinging the rocks into the air and watching it fly against the wind. It was such a nice spot that it made it tough to leave! There was a steep, rocky 5 mile hike downhill which hurt the knees, but I'd choose downhills to uphills any day! As we rested at the bottom before the steep 5 mile hike back uphill (ridiculous...), we noticed The Mau-Har trail. The Mau-Har trail was a side trail that connected from one part of the AT near one shelter to the next shelter on the AT and it was a shorter distance by a couple miles. Shorter distance? Definitely taking that trail! But there HAD to be some catch to the trail right? There was. And it was an absolutely terrible catch. For 2 out of the 3 miles, we hiked alongside a waterfall and it literally went straight up the waterfall. I felt like I was rock climbing more than hiking! With my short, little legs it's was hard enough to climb rocks, but make it miles of climbing big rocks and I'm drained of all my energy. I'm struggling to climb these big rocks in the heat while gnats were trying to get into my eyes (as usual) and flies are dive-bombing my head. It drove me insane! When I finally reached the shelter (it took HOURS!) I had no energy to do anything. My entire body was so sore and I felt weaker than I've ever felt in my life. I hated today.After settling down and regaining some sort of energy to cook dinner, we were accompanied by a deer. We heard rustling around us to find a deer grazing nearby - about 20 feet from us! She saw us and watched us for a bit, but continued grazing nearby for quite awhile. I was hoping she'd get even closer - like touching distance closer! One day, it'll happen! Maybe in the Shenandoahs? Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-20
From: Maupin Field Shelter

To: Paul C. Wolfe Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

Guess what we saw today! Another bear!! It was around 11am so it surprised us that we saw one. We had just stopped for breakfast and started hiking again when we heard branches breaking and leaves rustling. SuperFeet quickly turned the music down and we looked to our left down the ridge. Hidden behind the trees, we saw a black mass moving in the same direction we were. As we followed it, it heard our footsteps amongst the rocks and it turned away and left. Our fourth bear sighting! I wasn't able to get any clear pictures though...As easy moving as we were going, the trail wasn't very easy for the fact that it was all rocks. Half way through our feets were already hurting. We had to take so many breaks just to release tension in our feet. We wanted to get to the shelter and dip our feet in the creek, but after we set up our tent the rain started. Terrible, heavy rain hit us and everything we had just got soaked. And there was so much humidity in the air that nothing we had was safe. Go away rain!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-21
From: Paul C. Wolfe Shelter

To: Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: scattered clouds

It's the first day of summer and do you know what that means?! Hike Naked Day on the AT! So you're probably wondering, did SuperFeet and I participate in this? Course not! And surprisingly we hadn't seen anyone naked either. Probably because we only had 5 miles into town and it was still early in the day to see anyone (which is probably a good thing!). But hikers are definitely doing it or so we've heard!After all that rain from last night and how soaked all our things were, we justed wanted to get into town as soon as possible - for McDonald's (we spent $30 there!) and a warm hotel to dry and clean all our things. And surprisingly we didn't even need to try hitching! A lady named Willow instantly pulled up and offered us a ride. She was on her way home which was the opposite direction of where we were going yet she still wanted to shuttle us into town! She even took us to McDonald's to order food and waited for us to take us to the motel. How sweet is she?? Definitely an amazing trail angel!Thwap-Thwap- Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-22
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We still haven't managed to learned how to buy the right amount of food for a certain amount of time. We walked into Kroger and came back out with an insane amount of food. All the variety from an actual grocery store got to us and we went crazy. We're definitely going to regret this resupply...Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-06-23
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Just Past Calf Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we started the Shenandoahs! I had heard so much about this place and how the deer run freely and were unscared of humans. I was excited to start this part of the trail and see all the wildlife. And so far the trail has been nice to us! Minus the fact that our packs weighed way too much from all the food, the trail was nice. I took it easy though and SuperFeet walked ahead. My knees were feeling the weight and that wasn't very fun.We got to our first gap alongside Skyline Drive and decided to take a break. We weren't planning on going very far so we were going to take as many breaks as possible. As we sat in the grass, we waved to all the cars that drove by. SuperFeet was convinced that if we waved to everyone, someone was bound to stop by and offer trail magic of some sort. And sure enough, a car that had passed by had turned around and came back to us and offered us a plate full of watermelon!! That was amazing!Along the way, we also saw two bunnies who were very tame and weren't bothered a bit by our presence as well as a very large copperhead. Hidden in the tall grass, we couldn't see the length of the snake, but the width of it was scary big. I had no idea they could even get that large.The best part of the day though was the sighting of a cub! The shelter was filled as well as the campsites around it so we had to push on until we could find a decent campsite. I was casually walking and staring at my feet when I heard leaves rustling right in front of me. Thinking it was a snake of some sort, I was startled and looked up to see a tiny black mass run across the trail and down the hill. A bear! And it was only about 5 feet in front of me! Silly thing was running so fast it looked like it was about to fall over. It stopped shortly after behind some trees and sniffed around before walking further down the hill and disappearing. I was so excited! And I guess I was so startled I couldn't think fast enough to bring out my camera so no pictures of this cub. Too bad SuperFeet had to be so fast cause he missed it!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles