morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-04-06
From: hunting creek trail

To: Stealth site south of Jennings Creek, VA
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here again, with another trail support entry to pass along. Went to church at Valley View Baptist Church just outside of Buchanan (pronounced buck cannon). They were a very friendly church, had about 90 people at the morning service and about 50 in the evening. The pastor's name was Daniel Boone; all my last name would be needed to be changed to Crockett and we could have been two frontiersmen. Oh well, I just thought it was an interesting thought. After the evening service, they invited me to spend the night in the youth house next door. It was very generous of them to do so. So instead of spending the night in the van, I will actually be sleeping in a bed.Tracy and Cassidy were going to camp by Jennings Creek area tonight. It felt like it might be a good day for a hike, but that was at the bottom of the mountain. I would gather that it would probably been a lot breezier up there than down here. Will see how the weather holds up for tomorrow. There is supposed to be rain tomorrow, so will see how that will turn out.Will probably be meeting them at Bearwallow Gap tomorrow late morning. Trust that they will be okay. Plan is to get to Troutville /Daleville sometime on Wednesday. Will see how that goes. Just a little more about trail support. Since my portion is written from the trail support side, I view the trail as different places to provide support to people who are actually hiking the trail. The people I am primarily supporting are my wife and sister-law. But it is not limited to them; if there is an opportunity to help other hikers, I will do it when I can. I can't do it for everyone, but I can do it for whom I meet.Catch you later. Foodwalker............Hi, Tracy McG here. Spent a good night in the ridge, slept good. A bit cold first thing in the morning, frost on the ground. On the way about 7:30. Found we weren't that far from the Thunder Hill Shelter when we suddenly came upon a very nice privy right by the trail. Some kind person had even left an unopened roll of toilet paper! Almost unheard! Right after that was the shelter, a nice enough one, pretty clean. On we hiked on a beautiful Sunday morning. Passed the Guillotine, a large boulder suspended over the trail between two other rocks, and Apple Orchard Mountain, I think our highest elevation so far at 4225 feet. FAA tower at the top, ancient apple trees scattered all over. Mostly downhill after that. Met Mango and Sunshine at the beautiful Bryant Ridge Shelter, where Breezy and I stayed last year. Decided to wait to get water until after going over Fork Mountain, so got it at Jennings Creek, actually a small river next to a fairly busy road, with fishermen all over. Felt a little weird, but whatever. Hiked about 1/4 mile up the next mountain, where we found a nice stealth site on a ridge. Supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow.
Date: 2014-04-07
From: South of Jennings Creek, VA

To: Bearwallow Gap, VA
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: moderate rain

Foodwalker here again. Woke up relatively early and packed up. Felt good sleeping in a bed and getting a warm shower. Left to go to Bearwallow Gap a little before 10:00 am, got there a little after 10 o'clock. They (Tracy and Cassidy) had already gotten to the parking spot about five minutes before I had gotten there. They had hiked about 6 miles in a cold rain, and had gotten into a tent to keep warm before I came. Fortunately had gotten there before the possibility of hypothermia could set in. So we decided to take a Nero and got off of the trail at Bearwallow Gap. Supposedly the weather is to take a turn for the better. Signing off for now. Foodwalker ..............Hi, this is Tracy McG. Rained pretty hard durning the night, stayed mostly dry in the tent, Cassidy said hers got a little wetter, mostly with condensation. Despite the pouring rain, we got up and going as usual, hitting the trail about 7. Seemed mostly uphill today, going up Cove Mountain. Rained steadily. Our original plan was to meet Foodwalker at Bearwallow Gap, resupply, and continue on. However, with the cold rain, we thought maybe we could modify it to slackpack an additional 7 miles and then get a room for the night. As we walked, at first we were fine, but we got increasingly cold, and by the time we got to Bearwallow Gap, we just wanted to stop. The top of Cove Mtn was interesting, you could see where a pretty intense forest fire had gone through a few years earlier and all the young growth springing up. I was afraid of hypothermia when we got to the Gap and Foodwalker wasn't there, so we set up my little tent and both dived in. Steam started rising immediately! Foodwalker arrived a few minutes later, and suggested we go to the Travelodge in Daleville, where we have stayed a couple times before, so off we went. A great supper at the Country Cookin'. Spent the rest of the day drying stuff out, laundry, and sleeping.
Date: 2014-04-08
From: Bearwallow Gap, VA

To: Stealth site north of Fullhardt Knob, VA
Miles today: 15.3

Pleasant day of hiking. Slackpacked 7.3 miles to Taylor Mtn Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Nice trails all day. Some steep ups and downs to cross many creeks, which were running full and beautiful after yesterday's rains. Camped on a sheltered ridge tonight, enjoying the city lights spread out over the valley below us, after a good supper. I have really enjoyed the trail today.Foodwalker's addendum. It was a pleasant afternoon down in the valley as well. Some driving around. Have been taking off the temperature readings of the towns that we have been going through and are not planning on returning to on the AT trail. Deleted Glasgow and Buchanan from the weather channel that I have been using.When I was doing some shopping, I saw a hiker who needed some food. Stopped and found out that his trail name was Bass; got him some supplies for on the trail. It sounded like he was going to resupply in Waynesboro. While I was there, a young couple shared some pizza with him. He was about my age(guesstimating) and had the hiker beard, gear, and general appearance. Tomorrow sometime I will meet Tracy and Cassidy at the Troutville AT parking area. They will then no pack from the parking area to Daleville, a little over a mile. It will be a while before I will be able to slack pack them again. McAffee's Knob and Dragon's Tail are coming up soon. The Guillotine is already past.Write more later. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-09
From: Stealth site north of Fullhardt Knob, VA

To: tinker mountain
Miles today: 16.8

Foodwalker with another entry, as we keep moving southward and westward on the trail. Met Tracy and Cassidy at the Troutville AT trailhead. They then no packed to the Daleville trail near the Pizza Hut. While they were coming, found out that the Waffle House and Shoney's were both open for brunch. We ended up going to the Waffle House, and we each had a good meal there. Then dropped them at the Daleville trailhead, and they ended going out of Daleville.Got some time to get to the Catawba area. Stopped at Mason Cove Chapel for their Wednesday night service. The people were very friendly, but it was a relatively older group of people. They asked a lot of questions about the Appalachian Trail; they definitely asked a lot of questions about the trail.Tracy and Cassidy are presently staying near Tinker Cliffs. They have been doing a tremendous job of just keep on plugging along on the trail. Will need to see where I will need to meet them next.Write more later.   Foodwalker .............Hi, Tracy McG here. Definitely a hard afternoon of hiking, after a relatively easy morning. Very steep and rocky trail out of Daleville, followed by a very rocky ridgeline that went on for a couple miles or more. Cassidy is having trouble with blisters on her heels, finally switched to crocs, which seemed to help some. I really admire her fortitude in continuing on despite the pain (of course, we are part of the Sisterhood of Payne). We ran into Sockless and Blazer, whom we had first met at Shenandoah, in the snow. It was great catching up with them.
Date: 2014-04-10
From: tinker mountain

To: beyond catawba
Miles today: 13.3

Foodwalker here--filling in yesterday's journal today, as I had zero bars in NewCastle Virginia. Got to a place where I got some bars, so am going to do this entry, and then put in today's entry before I get out of range again. Yesterday I waited for quite a while at Catawba; Tracy and Cassidy were at the trail head around 2:00 pm. They resupplied and will meet at the Virginia 42 AT crossing, pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It is roughly half way between Newport and NewCastle. I won't need to be meeting them there until Saturday evening or Sunday morning. Will have to see how far they get as they travel. Cassidy had a lot of blisters on her feet; she switched over to a new pair of shoes, will see how that works out for her. They are still keeping on going.Got to NewCastle and checked out the town. Very small library; any more than 4 people and one has to walk sideways. Did have some good books in there. Found a place to sleep in the IGA parking lot. More later.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-11
From: beyond catawba

To: past the dragon's tooth
Miles today: 12.4

Foodwalker here--am doing my update a little update while I still have some cell phone coverage. That gets to be somewhat random, given the sides of the mountains that may times tower over you. While I was on the road, Tracy and Cassidy were getting over the Dragon's Tooth before lunch time; so a very good bit of progress. The earliest that I will see them is going to be Saturday evening; otherwise, it will be Sunday morning.Not a lot more from my end. Later, more to come. The weather is pretty warm at this time, and sunshiny. Take care. Foodwalker .........Hi, Tracy McG here. This was a very hard day of hiking. Got started early for the climb up Dragon's Tooth. After quite a trek we reached the 0.7 mile base of the actual climb. The huge rocks took a while to get up, and then came the dreaded rock wall, which I remembered well from last year. Got up the wall okay, and the first set of rebars. The next ledge I needed to get my knee up, but I couldn't get my weight to shift forward far enough with the pack on. Cassidy was ahead of me, so she told me to take off my pack and pass it up to her, which I somehow did, despite standing on a small precarious ledge. I was then finally able to get my knee up and crawl up the ledge. After that I had to sit down and cry for a while, to let all the fear out, from now, last year, and from the White Mountains last year. We were finally able to continue up, saw the Dragons Tooth, and start the long, rocky, tiring climb down and onward. Finally camped for the night at a little site we found on the ridgeline leading up to the Audie Murphy Memorial.
Date: 2014-04-12
From: past the dragon's tooth

To: VA 42 trail crossing
Miles today: 16.3

Hi, this is Tracy McG. Had a beautiful start to the morning. Made it to the Audie Murphy Memorial before 8 am. By 10 we were down the mountain, where we found sodas floating in the creek and took a nice break. Continuing on up the next mountain we met Prom Queen's mother, who gave us homemade cookies. Thank you, trail angels, you make the journey so much easier! The rest of the day was just long, long, and tiring. Cassidy's feet are really hurting her, she really does a good job of keeping on. Crossed the long, rocky ridgeline, which actually wasn't as bad as I remembered. Then just walking, walking, and more walking. Cassidy switched to her crocs for the final mile and a half. Foodwalker was there waiting, a very welcome sight! We went to get a motel in Blacksburg. There were no rooms available due to a sporting event, but just then a lady walked in and canceled her reservation, so we snagged it and collapsed.Foodwalker here for an addendum. Was in NewCastle last night; I was able to sleep in the church parking lot and actually slept pretty well. Woke up a little after 7:00 am, and went and got myself ready for the day. Did some final exploration of NewCastle, then went on my way on Virginia 42. It was as the Beatles put it, a long and winding road. Saw two groups of deer, one group with nine, and the other one with six. Fortunately, they were in grazing rather than road crossing mode. Just an observation: the roads the trail angels travel, like the trails that the hikers hike, are seldom in straight and well laid out. Sometimes I wonder if the one who designed the trails also designed the roads. Just a thought... Finally, there was a donkey at the trail crossing where I met Tracy and Cassidy. He was making a lot of racket for a while. We are going to a motel in Blacksburg tonight. Every one is plum tuckered.More later. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-13
From: VA 42 trail crossing

To: on the trail towards pearisburg
Miles today: 10.2

Foodwalker here again. Well, two out of three people didn't sleep the best sleep last night in the room. The trail angel did fine; Tracy and Cassidy both had a more difficult time sleeping because of the various aches and pains in their legs and feet. They are, however, past both McAffee's knob and the dragon's tooth, which was very slow and strenuous. Even with the days off because of snow and the difficult trails, they have done very well. Got to Pearisburg about 1pm; did some dawdling time. Went to evening church service at Pearisburg Christ Fellowship, a contemporary evangelical worship service, and a very blended church of a number of different age groups and every one seemed to be glad to see each other. Spent a bit of time after the service talking with different members. A lot of people were very interested about the trail and the experiences Tracy and Cassidy were having on the trail.Just some cultural things that I have noticed. The northern person calls the trail the appalayshun trail; the southern person calls it the Appalatchian trail. When southerners say honey or darlin' or sweetie, it is common courtesy, and can be used in conversations with complete strangers. Most northerners do not use these phrases often, if at all. To a northern person, most affection laden terms indicate a strong commitment. Will pen more later.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-14
From: on the trail towards pearisburg

To: past war branch trail
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: moderate rain

Foodwalker here on the trail journal. Checked out the skip in the engine at auto zone, and it looks like it is a misfiring ignition cylinder in the Kia. Didn't have a chance to get an estimate on how much it will run, but I will be giving my brother John a call to see if he can give me an idea of how much it could fun. Well, I will finish the entry and then give him a call and pick his brain about it. Can't do anything until I have a chance to get it checked out.Weather has been overcast and somewhat windy for most of the day. So far, there have only been a few drizzles of rain so far, but the sky looks grayer and more threatening. Just got a text message from Cassidy. Feet are hurting, may take a couple days off to recuperate. Hopefully the feet can heal up for the next round of hiking. They will be hiking in tomorrow; trust all will be okay for them.
Date: 2014-04-15
From: past war branch trail

To: pearisburg
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: heavy intensity rain

Foodwalker here once again on the winter-like weather in Virginia. Wasn't too bad in the morning, but kept on getting colder as the weather kept changing from rain to sleet to hail to snow, with a particularly cutting wind. Day started early enough, with a trip to get the Kia fixed up with a misfiring ignition cylinder. Every thing worked out well, and got out of the garage before noon. That is about the quickest that I have been in a garage.But the day wasn't finished yet. Tried getting a hotel room in Pearisburg, but the two hotels were all filled with road construction workers. Tried MacArthur inn in Narrows, but they ended up having no room at the inn either. I did find out about the Tuesday senior citizen AYCE buffet at Anna' s, a restaurant in Narrows. Good buffet for 5 dollars a person. Tracy, Cassidy and I took advantage of it earlier this evening. Did find a budget inn in Rich Creek, about 7 miles away from Pearisburg. Tracy and Cassidy got off of the trail close to three pm. They hit pretty much every type of precipitation as they hiked. Will be taking a zero tomorrow.Write more later. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-16
From: pearisburg

To: rich creek
Miles today: 0.0

Short entry from Foodwalker tonight. Took a zero today at Rich Creek, a small town about 7-8 miles from Pearisburg. Did shopping, resting, and Tracy and Cassidy getting geared up to go on the trail tomorrow. No deep philosophical questions, no noting of regional differences; just ready to get back on the trail again.More later.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-17
From: rich creek

To: view at mile 615.8
Miles today: 15.7

Foodwalker here once again. We all got up relatively early on the morning, with the moon in a dark sky and the sun starting to rise up in the east. Took a little bit to wake up, and then got going getting everything packed up. The sky was clear, and it has remained so the whole day. We got started on the road just before 7:00 am. Tracy and Cassidy started out on the trail about 7:15, and the last that I saw of them was heading up the trail to get out of Pearisburg and start heading towards Bland. It was about 45 trail miles to Bland. Probably will see them again on Saturday evening. Will probably go to an Easter Sunday service after getting a hotel on Saturday evening. Hopefully, the weather will be pleasant the next few days and show a warming trend. We had wanted to start on March 10th in West Virginia because we thought it would be the start of springtime and nice pleasant weather. We were planning idyllic; what we got was a chilly trail reception. Write more later. Foodwalker ............Tracy McG here. Long climb out of Pearisburg, finally arriving at Angel's Rest. Fantastic view from there! Then lots of up and down the rest of the day (haha). Passed a lot of NOBOs headed for smoothies at Woods Hole Hostel, kind of wished we had also gone but we headed south before we knew about the smoothies. Sometimes an extra mile just seems like too much. Oh well. Ended up for the night at a fantastic viewpoint, in a nice little cluster of rhododendrons.
Date: 2014-04-18
From: view at mile 615.8

To: jennie's knob
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here again. Finally left the Pearisburg walmart in the morning, and started my journey toward Bland. It was a little disorientating, since I came from a different direction than I had last year. I had to drive through town to get orientated once again. It is funny how a change in direction can throw one for a loop. Well, it wasn't much to figure out. Day was somewhat cool; I did some hiking/road walking in the afternoon, and logged on about 4 miles or so. Weather was nice for hiking. Got a room reservation for tomorrow for the three of us, and so that should take care of us for tomorrow evening. I went to a Good Friday service in the evening; they had the last supper and Christ's betrayal intermixed with music. It has been a while since I have been to one. Earlier in the day I met Laugh a lot at the motel. Very friendly at the motel; had a hiker box and reasonable rates. He was taking a day off before heading up north on the trail. Seemed a very friendly guy; will be giving him a ride to the trail from the motel tomorrow. Tracy and Cassidy are about 13 or so miles from the meeting place.More later. Foodwalker ............Hi, Tracy McG again. Today was mostly a day of walking ridgelines and crossing streams. A lot of bridges, thankfully. Meeting more and more NOBOs every day. Met quite a few who were slackpacking quite a long distance. Had lunch in the DismalFalls area. Set up camp in the Lickskillet Hollow area, pretty close to the trail but okay, right beside a little stream, which was kind of handy.
Date: 2014-04-19
From: jennie's knob

To: Bland, VA
Miles today: 12.9

This is Tracy McG.......Today was a pretty nice day of hiking. Left Lickskillet Hollow just after 7, after a good night's sleep. Hiked the mile to Jennie Knob Shelter, where we found a friendly group of hikers enjoying breakfast. Chatted with them for a while, then headed south. At the first road crossing we noticed a deer ribcage, then looking around we noted a few more, along with scattered bits of fur. Felt kind of eerie. Met a guy there who was waiting for Huff'n'puff, whom we had met at the shelter. He said he had spent the previous evening chatting with Foodwalker, at the trailhead he was meeting us at today. Met a lot of northbounders today, including Crazy Legs, June Bug, Jack on a Mountain (who thruhiked in 2003), Laughs a Lot, Coocoo, Mama Bear and Company, and many others. Foodwalker slacked us the last .8 mile, then off to the Big Walker Motel in Bland. Planning to go to Easter services tomorrow, before heading out again.While Tracy and Cassidy were hiking along the trail, I was waking up to get Laughs a lot to the trail. Checked out the next section of the trail for slack packing. Went back to the 612 parking lot and met a number of of northbound hikers. Young Beard, Sunny, Sun Bear and a number of others. This was the biggest group of northbound hikers that I had seen so far. Are at the Big Walker motel right now. For supper, we had an extremely disappointing meal. We had a BBQ sandwich and a couple of shrimp dinners. For the price, it was extremely slim pickings. Would not recommend the DQ to any hikers. Write later. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-20
From: Bland, VA

To: virginia 623
Miles today: 13.1

Foodwalker here again, for another journal entry. Today was Easter Sunday, and went to the Sonrise service in Bastian, followed by a big breakfast and Easter morning service. Got to the AT crossing at highway 52 in between Bland and Bastian. Tracy and Cassidy left around 11 am and slack packed to Laurel Creek, about 7 miles. The day was very beautiful; saw a lot of yellow and black butterflies flitting " by the creek. They got there around 2 pm or so; didn't have to wait very long. There was an English guy in his twenties who was doing a through hike on the AT, and his mother was hiking along with him for about a week. Saw some other hikers going northbound as well. Not as there was yesterday. Just checked Tracy' s and Cassidy's mileage. They logged in almost 15 miles, which was an excellent job.Will pen more. Foodwalker.......... Hi, Tracy McG here. Beautiful Easter Sunday. After the church services we managed to get quite a few miles in. Ran into trail magic of plastic Easter eggs full of candy left on the trail for the hikers, much appreciated!