morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-07-25
From: Wadleigh Stream Lean-to

To: Hurd Brook Lean-to
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: overcast clouds

On my way to the privy this morning I was confronted with a moose, I guess he was waiting in line for the privy as well. I ran and got 2 Shoes to show him but that beast was gone by the time we came back.Hiking this morning wasn't bad at all. I got another view of Katahdin from Nesuntabunt Mt. The light was great and it was pretty clear. After finishing up the rounds of pictures, I continued on.I made it to a shelter about 8 miles in and took a break. While there, it started to rain. I wasn't about ot hike for the next two days with wet shorts, so I took them off and hiked in my boxer briefs for the rest of the day. So I took off from the shelter with my poncho on and in my boxer briefs, but it stopped raining after a short while so the poncho came off.The rest of the day went pretty quick. My mind has been recently flooded with ideas of what to do when I get home. From a T-shrt business, to computer repair, to a restaurant called "The Pit", to web page design, to fascilitating commercial groups.So I was blown away today on the Rainbow Ledges. There wer so many blueberries up there and they were soooooo big. Some were as big as marbles. My Siren Song. I had to stop and eat. They were so frickin' good. I must have spent 15 minutes up there just eating away at clusters of blueberries. After I had my fill, I headed down to the shelter, the last one I will stay at that is on the trail.The floor has that baseball bat design so sleeping is going to be tough. There were two other Northbouders in the shelther as well, a young kid and an old man who was dipping and spitting inside the shelter. Very gross.Tomorrow we hit Abol Bridge, I can't wait. It's going to be quite the celebration. I'm almost done with this trail. What a wonderful feeling. Thank you God for getting me this far.apple jacks---crunchy peanutbutter, pepperoni---chicken vegetable ramen noodles x3 with cheese
Date: 2006-07-26
From: Hurd Brook Lean-to

To: Birches Campsite
Miles today: 13.4

Last night we had this incredible thunderstorm. The rain came down hard, the lightning illuminated the sky, and the shelter leaked all over on the front sections. Everyone was up moving things once we realized what was going on. But the most ironic thing happened to me. The shorts that I didn't wear all day I had put up on that front section to just hang up and keep dry. Well, the roof leaked so bad in that spot that they were completely soaked. I tell ya, things like that always happen to me.So this morning we woke up and headed to Abol Bridge, at last. It was a beautiful morning. The red sun shown through the foggy woods, sending rays of light shooting down all over the place. It was a wonderful sight.So I was the last to pull into Abol Bridge, the other guys were already there eating. So i join in the eating. Later, I called Mom and Keri, 3 minutes each from this special pay phone, and told them how I was doing. Mom told me that Dad was going to try to beat me to the top of Katahdin and surprise me there. That upset me a tad bit. He didn't cross that by me at all. I wanted to be the first up to the top, I thought I deserved that. But, I don't know what he was thinking that he could beat me to the top. I'm in world class shape, no one in the world could beat a thru-hiker to the top. So that all troubled me a bit but I got over it and eventually told God that His will be done and that I hoped things panned out for the better.So we all hung out there for a couple of hours and then resupplied and then took off. We ate lunch at Daysey Pond that had an amazing view of Katahdin. Next, we packed up and headed over to the Birches - a Northbounder only campsite.We unloaded our things and snacked a bit. A lady and her family were there when we arrived, people we met at the pond, and brought us a watermelon, so that was cool. Later, a couple of ladies that went up the blueberry ledges trail gave us tons of blueberries.Around 4pm we went to the Ranger Station to pay our $9.00 dollars for the night. Jolly Green Giant, Pebbles, Fat Camp, and Salsa still hadn't come back from their summit. So we were the 43-45th people to make it this year, although a lot of those in front of us were section hikers and a few blueblazers. Next we headed back to the Birches and ate dinner.Tomorrow is the big day. The event that I've been picturing in my mind for the last 6 months. And it will probably happen nothing like I've imagined it. Crazy. GA -> ME. Wow. I'm getting more anxious by the minute. We're gonna try to be hiking by 4am. Early yet I don't care. Let's finish this beast.Thank you God for getting me this far. And tomorrow, I get to see my baby cakes and hold her in my arms, not having to let go.apple jacks---chicken salad sandwhich x2, coke---ramen noodles x3
Date: 2006-03-21
From: Springer Mt.

To: Hawk Mt. Shelter
Miles today: 7.5

Woke up on the train from Charlottesville just as it arrived in Gainesville, GA. Must have been about 6:30 am. Met the only other hikers on the train as I was getting off. Ork and Bean. Amazing, Ork was wearing a Brooklyn Dodgers hat and so was I. Mooched a ride with them to a hostel for breakfast then on to Springer Mt., arriving there at about 11 am. Got interviewed by some guy doing a graduate study of some sort on conditioning. He said he would be at Springer Mt. interviewing hikers for about a week. Partially sunny day, cool but not too cold. The hike was easy and took me through a wonderful forest of rhododendra and giant virgin hemlocks. I heard that the hemlocks are endangered due to some parasite or bug introduced from outside the country. I need to come back here and draw these beauties. To think that they might all be gone during my lifetime is very upsetting to me. Passed a hiker named David, from New Zealand/Australia, setting his tent up at Three Forks. David claimed that he weighs 340 pounds and his pack is over 50. That makes his total carrying load close to 400. He was purposely taking it very easy. I hope he makes it. I set up my tent at Hawk Mountain Shelter where there must have been about 20-25 people. Most were in tents but, the shelter looked close to full.
Date: 2006-03-22
From: Hawk Mt. Shelter

To: Gooch Gap
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: clear sky

Left Hawk Mt. late. Did a drawing there before taking off. Saw army ranger helicopters doing some sort of manuevers while I took a lunch break on Sassafras Mountain. Nothing but gray woods and mountains as far as I can see in any direction. Arrived at Gooch Gap tent site a little before dark. Only two other people, both women, showed up at the site - seems everyone is staying at the shelter site a mile or two back. One of the women at the tent site said she was a trail volunteer and that they were just camping for a couple of days. They had a car parked near by and put my food bag in the trunk with theirs so that we didn't have to rig up any bear cables for the night.
Date: 2006-03-23
From: Gooch Gap

To: Woods Hole
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: broken clouds

The day started off cold but, warmed with the sun and the exertion of the hike to where I could cut back to one layer by about noon. I feel like I'm in pretty good shape with the exception of my feet. I guess there is nothing one can do to get the feet in shape for something like this. I haven't gotten any blisters but, the bottoms of both feet are really getting raw from the constant rubbing friction, especially when going down hill. Just as I arrived at Woods Hole Shelter it started to snow. We packed the shelter well beyond its capacity; a couple of people slept on the picnic bench which was set up just inside the roof overhang. I'm beginning to recognize several people who seem to be keeping a pace similar to my own. One young guy named, James, seems particularly friendly, although a bit shy perhaps. He reminds me a bit of Frederic's friend, James, in Charlottesville. He looks about 30 years old and said that he had been working with at-risk youths in a wilderness program in central Florida. Also, a group of deaf people from Washington, DC. When I first saw one of them back at Hawk Mountain shelter, I was getting water from a spring and said hello to him. He ignored me and I assumed he was just rude, in a rather strange way. Turns out he just never heard me. Two of these guys and I passed each other off and on all day. Their names are Silent Nomad and Hikbik. Silent Nomad told me that Hikbik had bicycled across the US from D.C. to Venice, CA last year in just 38 days!
Date: 2006-03-24
From: Woods Hole

To: Neel's Gap
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It was vey cold with snow everywhere when I got up this morning. I'm only hiking to Neel's Gap which is just 4 miles away but, Blood Mountain stands in the way and I was told that it was a pretty tough climb. As it turned out, I found it to be a fairly easy climb. I went up approximately 1,000 feet in a mile with my 36 lb pack and never had to stop. The shelter at the top of the mountain is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (and so is the hostel at Neel's Gap). It was a nice but, very rustic stone structure that was obviously an extremely cold and windy place to spend the night. Several other hikers I found in the shelter told me that they were just stopping for a break but, that some boy scouts had spent the night there. Apparently the boy scouts decided that they didn't have to hang their food from bears since it was obviously too cold for bears to be out and about that night. So, at some point during the night a skunk walked right into the shelter, picked up one boy's food bag, and walked out with it. The boys and their scout master apparently stood in absolute fear and watched.I got to Neel's Gap in the early afternoon. The trail actually goes straight through the building via an open breezeway. On one side is an outfitter's store and on the other, a hostel for hikers. The whole complex is called "Walasi-Yi". I took a bunk in a room with about 20 or so other hikers, got a shower, did a laundry and bought pizza along with some of the others. It was over the pizza that one hiker looked at my drawings and declared that my name was no longer Bob but, Michaelangelo. I'm sorry I never got his name because I never saw him again. He was hiking with his wife and they may have been in their 50's.I spent some time talking with one hiker, named Bear, who had been at the shelter with our group the night before. He was a lawyer from Hanover, N.H. who had lived in Charlottesville for a few years. He was probably a couple of years older than me and told me he was having trouble with one of his knees and was going to have to abort the trip. He gave all of his food to James and me so we were spared having to buy anything at the outfitter's store. I liked the man and was sorry to see him leave. I talked to Dominique on the phone before turning in.
Date: 2006-03-25
From: Neel's Gap

To: Low Gap (2 miles beyond)
Miles today: 13.0

It was extremely cold when I left Neel's Gap. There was sun most of the day and I was able to go beyond the shelter at Low Gap. The shelter was not very appealing. The water source didn't look great and it was absolutely jammed with people, including a group of boy scouts. I kept hiking and soon passed a beautiful small water fall shooting off the side of the mountain. I replenished my water supply there then continued on, passing another group of boy scouts. There did not seem to be any decent tent sites when I finally came upon two hikers I had seen off and on for the past couple of days. They had found what appeared to be a good site so I set my tent up. Before it became totally dark 3 more hikers arrived. The group included FDR, Keystone Dave, the Red Baron, Trooper, and Cheeze Wiz. I had been bumping into all but FDR and Keystone Dave. They all seemed to be in their twenties except for FDR who later told me he was either 40 or 41, can't remember. We had a good fire but, the cold drove us into our tents by about 9 pm.
Date: 2006-03-26
From: Low Gap (2 miles beyond)

To: Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: few clouds

Stayed in my tent until the sun hit it! Too damned cold to even go out to pee! Found out later from someone who had one of those watches with all the gauges that it hit 18 degrees during the early morning. I stopped at a spring about mid morning where I ran into the group of boy scouts we had passed the night before. They left, going north, just as I stopped so I had the bad fortune of having to follow in their tracks the rest of the morning. They dropped enough trash behind them that I was able to fill two pockets with it! They had told me they were from Decater (sp?), Georgia, just incase any of you ever happen to read this!At Unicoi Gap I got one of the biggest surprises of the trip: TRAIL ANGELS! I did a lot of reading in preparation for doing the AT but, it was all restricted to getting in shape and locations of shelters and mail drops. I had never heard of "Trail Angels" until I arrived at Unicoi Gap. I had to cross a highway and a small parking lot with picnic benches to get to the point where the trail continued. Right at the beginning of the trail on the north side, two large SUV's were parked with a tarp stretched between them to act as a wind break. As I walked around one of the SUV's I was approached by a fairly large man, maybe in his 50's who asked if I was a through hiker. When I responded in the affirmative he then asked for my trail name. He told me his name was "Stump Knocker" and then asked if I was hungry. There were four of them and unfortunately I only got three names, the others were "Mother Nature" and "Smoke Stack". They sat me down in a folding chair and then stuffed me with hot dogs, potato salad, orange juice and orange soda. Soon several of the guys from last night's tent site showed up and then I decided to leave before I ended up eating so much I couldn't hike.There were two big mountains to climb today, Rocky Mountain and Tray Mountain. Tray went up to 4,439 feet and was the first place where I really experience spectacular views. It was crystal clear with evening setting in. FDR and Keystone Dave were at the summit making cell phone calls. The shelter was nearby and it was cold but seemed less so than the previous night. The night stayed clear and I stayed up just looking at stars. The same crew from last night was here along with a south-bounder named, "Jeans" (guess why), a 70-year old named, "Stones", and one other fellow whose name I didn't get.
Date: 2006-03-27
From: Tray Mountain Shelter

To: Hiawasee
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: clear sky

Up in time to see the sun rise. Very clear day and cold but, not like the previous 3 nights. The day got much warmer and sunny so I was able to strip down to a short sleeve shirt by about 11 am. I had lunch with 3 of the younger guys who were in camp last night. I drew Cheeze Wiz's feet (he hikes in sandals) then moved-on while the others took a longer lunch. I climbed Kelly Knob (up 800 feet in one mile) in 30 minutes with stopping. I'm really feeting physically in-shape now except for my feet. I,m wrapping both feet (just behind the toes) in electrical tape to cushion against the constant rubbing.The guys at the tent site last night convinced me that I should go into Hiawasee tonight to take a break, replenish food supplies and call Dominique. When I arrived at the highway that crosses the trail at Dick's Creek Gap I hitch-hiked into the town. The 3rd vehicle to pass me did a U-turn and came back to get me. Apparently hitching into "Trail Towns" is pretty easy. I ended up sharing a room at the Holiday Inn Express with Keystone Dave and FDR. It cost us $22 each at the "hiker's special rate". Did a laundry and used the swimming pool and jacuzi at the hotel. There was a food store and an "all-you-can-eat salad buffet restaurant next door. Everyone seems to have discovered that we all are craving fruits and vegetables. We must have seen 10-15 other hikers at the salad bar. Saw Ork and Bean again.Jumped in the swimming pool with my wallet in my pocket. Had to discard the wallet, which just fell apart, and spent an hour or so drying my money with the hair dryer in the room.
Date: 2006-03-28
From: Hiawasee

To: Muskrat Creek
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The hotel had a shuttle service to take us back to the trail in the morning. I left about 8 a.m. One of the hikers who rode out with me was a 68 year-old named "Gut". He told me that he had a wired-together elbow that he had felt coming apart while on the trail a week or so earlier so he went into Hiawasee, called his orthopedic surgeon in Michigan, rented a car, drove it straight home to Michigan, his doc friend operated and replaced the wire in his elbow, then, I guess he must have rested a day, then drove back to Hiawasee and was now back on the trail again. He was a slow but, very steady hiker.At about mile 6 I ran into a sign that announced the border between Georgia nad North Carolina; my first state crossing! About 100 yards into North Carolina is a large, ancient tree, twisted and knarly looking like a huge bonsai. I think it was an oak but, not sure because there are no leaves yet. It stands completely alone right smack in the middle of the trail as if it were planted there just to announce the beginning of the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina. I drew it.Arrived at Muskrat Creek only to find the shelter full and the worst water and privy conditions of any place I'd seen on the trail. When I asked were the privy was, another hiker warned me not to even go close to it, as it was the most disgusting place imaginable. It had apparently reached and exceeded its maximum capacity. I stayed in my tent and used my pump/filter to obtain clean water from the stream (no spring here), then found my own privy at the base of a nice clump of rhododendra.
Date: 2006-03-29
From: Muskrat Creek

To: Carter Gap
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Had trouble getting started because of the cold. The tent definitely keeps you warmer than you would be in a shelter but, its harder to get started in the morning because you don't want to leave the warm comfort of the tent.Fell down this morning. Going down hill and my foot hit something I didn't see. Made a nice landing by rotating myself in mid-air and landing on my back pack. No damage.Really nice, long tunnels of thick rhododendra which seem to go on and on at times. I stopped to draw one section near the top of Standing Indian Mountain. It got nice and warm during the day. I'm starting to see more of the earliest mountain flowers: small violets, always just peeking out from under some form of protection; dead leaf, stone.Carter Gap Shelter has two shelters: the original shelter and a brand new one. There were only 3 other people staying in the shelter so I decided to stay in it also. One of them was a very tall blond woman named "Swiss Miss". She was about 6'-1 or 6'-2 and very attractive. I remembered passing her and a young man on the first day of the hike at Springer Mountain. It appeared that she was trying to avoid the young man who must have been suffering from raging hormone syndrome, common at his age (as I recall). Other interesting people I found at this shelter were "The Wanderers", a father, 12 year old son (being home-schooled) and 17 year old daughter. Also, an English fellow who keeps turning up, "Crake" and a young fellow from Middletown, Conn named "ET". Lots of tents here tonight. Looks like 25-30 people! I must have lost my night cap at Muskrat Creek.
Date: 2006-03-30
From: Carter Gap

To: Franklin
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: clear sky

I ran into my second group of "Trail Angels" near Big Butt Mountain this morning. "Flat Bread", "Skirt", "Fishing Fred", and "Gator Aid" had just served the last of their blue berry pancakes and were switching to sardines on grilled pita bread when I got there. I tried to draw them but, they were moving so much it wasn't easy.Right after the "Trail Angels" I had to climb Albert Mountain. It was only about 380-400 feet up but, the steepest climb yet and the toughest. I did manage to do it without stopping but, ready to die when I got to the top. There was a lookout tower on the top with views and big winds! Elevation is about 5,250 +/- here.Late in the day at Winding Stair Gap I ran into 4 other hikers who were hitch hiking into Frankin for the night so I decided to join them. A local motel owner in Franklin (Ronnie)had arranged for a "Trail Days" celebration in the town for the weekend and apparently it was going to start early. He owned two motels and they were both filled with hikers. An all-you-can-eat cook out with live music was going on at one of them so he dropped all of us off there after we had secured our rooms for the evening. The cooks were both former hikers who were volunteering their time, the food included all the pork chops, hampburgers, hot dogs, beans, rice, potato salad, and sodas that one could eat and, another colorful character from past trail days, named "Ma" or "Maw" or "Maul", donated several cases of beer. The fee was a "recommended" donation of $5. Ork and Bean, FDR, Keystone Dave, Trooper, Red Baron, Cheeze Wiz, and Silver Back were all there along with about 30-40 others. Ran into "ET" who had gotten a ride to Franklin from the Trail Angels earlier in the day. Said he is dropping out.
Date: 2006-03-31
From: Franklin

To: Cold Spring Mountain
Miles today: 16.0

Got a ride to Winding Stair Gap from Ronnie, the guy who owns the hiker motels in Franklin. He tried to talk me into coming back to the Trail Day Fest again on Saturday; said they had hikers being shuttled in from as far away as Neel's Gap and Nantahala Outdoor Center and expected as many as 200 for the big party. I declined the offer and decided to keep on hiking; leave the partying to the young bucks.Got to Siler Bald, the first "bald" mountain top that I've seen. Did a drawing. Hiked 16 miles today and ended up at Cold Spring Mountain where I found Silver Back, 3 younger guys and a woman hiker from Asheville named, "Transcriber". Only met 4 other people on the trail all day; all going south. I must assume that a lot of the hikers are now in Franklin at the big party.I keep hearing a strange noise in the distance; sounds like an old motor starting up. Someone finally told me that its the sound of grouse doing a wing-flapping dance which they perform during the mating season (spring).
Date: 2006-04-01
From: Cold Spring Mountain

To: Nantahala River/Gorge
Miles today: 11.5

Very foggy and drizzling in the a.m. after a soaking rain all night. Cleared about 11 a.m. as I got to Wesser Bald. Nice views as I walk along a ridge so I did a drawing looking toward a couple of lakes in the west. Very long descent into Nantahala Gorge; dropped about 3,000 feet over 6 miles. Spring is suddenly making an appearance at the lower elevations. The sun is warm and I start to see a lot of flowering cherry trees. A 4-5 ft. black snake, waiting in ambush for his afternoon meal, took a strike at my walking stick. We scared the crap out of each other. The warmer air at the lower elevations means that I need to keep an eye out for snakes now. Ran into a young fellow with his dog at the shelter (about 1 mile from the gorge). He's going south and has run out of food. I gave him some jerky and rice. He said that he just saw a large black snake as well.Arriving at the gorge, I find its a mad house. There's a very busy outdoor center here with outfitters, kyaks, white water rafting, a restaurant, and bunk houses for hikers and others. Some kind of intercollegiate extreme sporting event is going on. I got a bunk in one of the hiker cottages, ran into Silver Back and we did a laundry together then went to the restaurant for a massive all-you-can-eat salad bar where we dined with other hikers: "Mountain Doer", "Gunner", and two other guys.