morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-02-15
To: March 27 confirmed
Miles today: 0.0

Changing the start date has been hard for me, I want so much to leave this stressful, irritating combination of deadlines, bills, constant roadwork and other bull-crap out of sight and out of mind. Beginning the trail a month later than projected allows us to have a better chance for making it all the way. No worries about money, bills, etc. We have had more people looking at the house. This has been the hardest time I have ever had selling a house. This economic down turn is unbelievable!!!Sorry for the blah blah talk of the situation at hand, I just find it ridiculous that things in this country have gotten financially upside-down. Back to talking about the trail. We drove to Fernandina last week to meet with the Wild Poodle to discuss our quest. Everyone gets so hyped up when we are talking about the hike, almost where topics drift from one to another and we forget what we initially were discussing. We plan to leave Jacksonville (FL) on March 26, driving straight to the Hiker Hostel where rooms have been reserved. We will store about 10 days worth of food in our truck. That way we don't have to lug it in our packs. We plan to return to the hostel a few times, the first from Woody gap to stay. It will be convenient having the vehicle parked there for the first week. When we get to Neel's gap, we will shuttle to pick up the truck and move it to Hiawassi. All this planning, and we are only talking about the first week. Phew, I can't imagine how long the rest of the planning will take! We have set up our excel file of the journey all the way to Damascus for informational purposes only. This helps us with our dates for the mail drops. It sure takes a long time. I think for the rest of the trail, I'm gonna look at the 12 mile average hike from Appalachian Pages. We can make an educated guess anyway and correct the dates on our journal.I read other journals that tell of the bad weather everyone is having. The weather here in Florida has been colder and rainier than previous years, yet not totally "unpleasant" like the others. Second Stage is certainly having a time with the snow and ice up on the trail. She seems like a trooper though. It is so exciting living through her while we are anxiously waiting on "our turn." Last weekend my husband and I had to stuff all of our hiking gear, food, etc in a closet, away from view. We had an Open House and had to clean, clean, remove clutter, clean and make the house look like on HGTV. I sure don't need one of those people coming off the TV telling me what I need to change in order to sell it. Anyway, I couldn't browse through my gear as I do on a daily basis. Now our house is so clean I can't find anything. I must break it back out so we can pack our packs and get an idea of weight. We have changed some gear since our last outing, reducing weight by at least 5 pounds each. Last time, we had 35 pounds each. We'll see. And of course I will report it as soon as I can.Thanks to everyone for updating journals and sharing of your experience. Can't wait to meet you all on the trail or possibly at Trail Days!!!See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-02-22
To: Getting serious!!!
Miles today: 0.0

This weekend has been the best weekend of the year!!! 1) Officially signed the "contract" to sell the house on Saturday, hoorah!!!, 2) Temps in Florida this weekend were in the 70"s, sunny, breezy, beautiful!!! 3) Sold some more furniture via Craig's List, can't beat this free service!!! 4) Cleaned out closets, kept only what 2 people need and prepared to give extra towels, sheets, games, kitchen stuff to the kids for their apartments. 5) My mother in law (best ever) Pearl loaned us her "FoodSaver Smart Seal Vacuum Sealer", We have sealed at least 50 dinners so far, vacuum packed, added extra vegetables (bought from www.harmonyhousefoods.com), flavorings, spices and some TVP flavored, chicken, beef etc to Knorr sides, Lipton sides, Mountain house meals and to grits. These meals now look like restaurant quality meals, let's hope they taste as good.6) Got to golf 18 holes in Palatka, priceless.Now, we have to sift through the house, separating what we "need", "want", from what we are giving to the kids, sell at garage sale or donating to hospice thrift center. Our gear has been finalized for a few weeks. Food was the only thing left in regards to the trail to get ready. We have still decided on 11 drops. We will bump food from Hiawassii forward to Franklin, Fontana etc. Other than that, the drops will be pre-packed but left unsealed in case we want Samantha to add extra stuff in them. We bought extra warm clothing because of our intial start date of March 2, now that we have backed up the date to March 27, we aren't sure if it's overkill or not. If we have too much, we will send it back with Paula, our friend that will be hiking with us to Hiawassii. My stress level has decreased by tenfold! Preparing to hike is fun to me, not stressful in the least. Selling a house, worrying about funds is not on the top of the list anymore. Now, just prepare, dream, move forward, pack and place our real world in a storage unit and begin the quest we have been dreaming of.Thank you God for making our dream a reality, allowing us to put one foot in front of the other and keeping us healthy!This journey is going to be life changing. This economy has forced us to change our life in regards to what we really need, simplifying life and it sure has been relieving. We just don't need all this stuff!!! And we will prove that by hiking the AT in 2010. Now let's get serious!!!See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-02-26
To: 4 weeks :)
Miles today: 0.0

Luckily postponing our hike has been a Godsend. The weather on the trail is horrible, snow, ice, slush, downed trees, yuck! Isn't it nice when the universe puts what you think are stumbling blocks in front of you to slow the pace and it makes you change your original course only to find out it was a silver platter. I was talking to Wild Poodle on the phone yesterday, we were discussing the downed trees and having to hurl yourself, pack and all over them. Sometimes, the huge downed tree covers the trail, and you can't see the continuation of the trail on the other side. It is frightening! On a solo trip along the NOC/Fontana stretch, a downed tree startled me, causing me to loose footing, and of course fall, puncturing my leg, twisting my wrist and hurting badly. My first reaction, to look around and see if anyone saw me, isn't that ridiculous, noone was near me for miles! I got up, limping, hurting and scared. I couldn't find the other side, no white blazes anywhere! This was my first solo, I feverishly, looked around, up and down, no blazes. I thought I could back track and return to NOC, NO WAY! that was not going to happen. Then I decided to use my brain, it was a switchback, the trail went up the mountain, switching back to the left about 50 yards uphill. The only way to get up there was to forge my way through the bushes, up & over the huge bolders, over branches, 50 yards to the continuation of the trail. Whew, what a relief, not scared anymore, just sore I made my way to camp, and told a few SOBOs to look for it. Lesson #1, don't take your eye off the trail, especially if rocks are present.Our good friend, Karen Miller, aka "Girl Hobo" will be transcribing our journal. She hiked part of the lower section of the trail in 2006 with me, Wild Poodle and Sherpa. Injuries pulled them off, I only had a month to hike. She is a writer so the entries should be interesting. We are steadily packing our house up, getting rid of more than we are packing. We will be moving out of a 2500 sq ft house, first into a 24 sq ft home then into probably 1000 sq ft. So we must get rid of lots of furniture, nick knacks,extra junk we've been hanging on to for some reason or another, donating most to the Hospice Thrift Store.Tom's mom and dad will be looking after our Chihuahua, Pogey for some of the time, Joshua and Samantha have volunteered to watch her when they need relief.As you can see, she is computer literate so she will follow us on trailjournals.I have heard many hikers are postponing their hikes because of the weather. No one can afford to lay low in towns, they cost too much money, although sometimes it can be fun.Can't wait to meet everyone!!!See y'all on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-09
To: 18 days :)
Miles today: 0.0

Wow, time is ticking so much to get done! We have been packing up the house, fixing a few things the house inspector noted on his report and also finishing up our mail drops. Sam's Club was the final stop for bulk foods, they have lots of prepacked chips, crackers, salami and bulk GORP. We will be separating all of the snacks and lunches into bags tonight and finish making dinners. I sure hope the food doesn't get too boring. Lots of hikers always talk about being bored with the drops. We aren't packing and sealing the boxes so we can ask Samantha to ship us what we are in the mood for. We both feel so pumped up! Things are falling into place. Half Left put his notice in at his job yesterday. He has been stressing about it for a while. He really likes the people he works with and is the type of person that doesn't like to let people down. It all went well, they were shocked but accepting of the fact. When we get back, he will call them and possibly be able to resume his job. He is such a good worker and cares about his clients. He is so relieved that is out of the way! Thanks Nanak's for understanding.Lots of people are starting the trail this week. Seems the trail is bright and sunny today. Hopefully the snow and ice will melt and the Smokeys will clear up, chest high snow is not what any hiker wants to maneuver in. We have the opportunity to bring all the winter gear we bought to the start and send home stuff that maybe too much of an overkill. Paula, our friend dropping us off can take it back and give it to Samantha for our later use. This will help keep the weight down if we can leave the down jackets, heavy gloves etc. We bought this stuff expecting to start earlier and certainly would have needed it and much more, luckily stalling the hike has been to our advantage.It is going to be hard, coming from Florida into the mountains carrying a 35 lb. pack up and down the mountains of Georgia. We will be sore, aching and winded in the beginning. Supporting each other along the way mentally will be a big advantage. Wild Poodle, Cahoda, Half Left and I have discussed the brutal beginning we must endure. All of us decided to take it slow and easy starting out, pepping each other up, following the blue blazes (waterfalls, overlooks), enjoying the journey. We have all hiked the trail in Georgia and know it is kick butt! So taking our time to get "trail legs" will be important. Once we can all hike with confidence, we can hike more miles and not have injuries to deal with.Saturday is our "Moving out of the neighborhood, leaving for the trail party". We have invited lots of people from the neighborhood, family, friends and people from Tom's work for a "Last oyster roast on Samontee Road". It will be sad to leave this house, it is a real comfortable large home. But we are moving forward, into a new phase of our lives.Good luck to all starting this week. And thanks to all who acknowledged what a great employee Tom has been, it means the world to him.See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-10
To: Facts about the Trail
Miles today: 0.0

About the TrailIn 1921, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail was simply an idea. Benton MacKaye proposed the idea of the Trail as the connecting element of ¢a project in regional planning.¢The efforts of countless volunteers made that part of MacKaye's idea a reality. Today, the Appalachian Trail is best known as a simple footpath.At a GlanceA.T. MapThe Appalachian Trail, completed in 1937:   * Is a privately managed unit of the national park system.   * Is the nation's longest marked footpath, at approximately 2,178 miles.   * Is the first completed national scenic trail, designated in 1968.   * Crosses six other units of the national park system.   * Traverses eight national forests.   * Touches 14 states. Houses more than 2,000 occurrences of rare, threatened, endangered, and sensitive plant and animal species at about 535 sites.   * Crosses numerous state and local forests and parks.   * Is maintained by 30 trail clubs and multiple partnerships.Fun facts about the Appalachian Trail:   * Lowest elevation: 124 feet ¢ near the Trailside Museum and Zoo at Bear Mountain, New York   * Highest elevation: 6,625 feet ¢ on Clingmans Dome in Tennessee   * There are 165,000 blazes along the length of the Trail.   * More than 10,000 people have reported hiking the length of the Trail.   * It takes approximately 5 million footsteps to walk the entire length of the Trail.   * More than 6,000 volunteers contribute about 200,000 hours to the Appalachian Trail every year.Just some interesting facts. You can get more information at the AT Conservatory Websitewww.appalachiantrail.orgWorking on mail drop addresses, gosh this takes a lot of time. We packed more drop boxes last night with food. We still need about 20 more dinners to be complete along with some lunches. Moving van coming on the 18th to move us into storage, then California on the 19th. We will visit Lore, in Beverly Hills, my dear friend who had a stroke and also Tom's father in Norwalk, CA. After the brief trip, we will have 2 days in a hotel or with family before driving to Springer to the Hiker Hostel. Lots to do, getting anxious when I talk about it. Can't wait!See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-12
To: 2 weeks!!!
Miles today: 0.0

So much has happened this week, so much more needs to happen the next 2 weeks. We had Chinese take out last night, my fortune cookie was perfect for our impending venture. We bought tickets for California this week, put in notice at work, packed more food and in the process of packing a 2500 square foot home into a 200 square foot storage unit. Not sure how this will work out but the mover assures me it will fit.We have been conversing with our group of hikers called the Tenners. Lots of them are starting this week, they should be interesting reads if anyone loves to follow people making a go of the trail. Some of them are: Longhaul, Erin Fuller, EZ Hiker, Ham and Brian Glass, Ridley and Panther (from Florida), Second Stage, Fahmah, wudhippy, Cross, Kinnickinic, HDMama and Tuney (SOBO). If you click on journals above, you can scroll down the list of current hikers and find them. Good Luck to all! Another couple with roots in Ponte Vedra are http://klaukstokatahdin.blogspot.com (parents from Ponte Vedra).Yesterday my mom brought over some "Cozies" she made for our food. They are insulated bags to put our food in while it is cooking. They are made similar to an envelope in which our freezer bag meal is placed in, the boiling water poured in, then it sits for 10 minutes while the food cooks. The bag insulates the freezer bag helping it retain heat. Thanks MOM!!! She also made us some neck gaitors that will come in handy early on and up in the Northeast.My aunt and 2 cousins came over yesterday and saw all of our food all over the pool table, our packs strewn about. They said why in the world would you want to do this, our vision of a vacation is hotel rooms, warm showers and comfortable beds. My response was: I love the woods, not to shoot animals like a hunter but being in the wilderness, enjoying nature, getting back to the simplicity of it all. As a kid, I was always in the woods, always on my bike roaming the trails, loving every minute of it. This is just an extension of childhood. I hope to come home with a sound mind, fit body and an adventure of a lifetime. Walking over 2000 miles is like putting together 180 day hikes. Lots of people think we are crazy, oh well, it is what it is.Good luck to all starting this week/weekend. We will be following the progress while preparing for our start.Anyone wanting to meet thru hikers should look up trail days in Damascus, VA which is in May, the weekend after Mother's Day, I think May 14-16 this year. There is a hiker parade with all the thru hikers from years back, all kinds of gear people and booths, food, party and lots of fun. We will be there, come on out. You can do a search on google for more info.See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-15
To: Send off Party
Miles today: 0.0

Wow, what a turn out for the send off party. If you weren't there, you missed a great get together! Oysters, pulled pork, meatballs, shrimp, beer, white russians, casseroles, goodies, yum. Everyone brought a dish and we all filled up with lots of wonderful food. Thanks to everyone for making it one of the best parties at the house. This was also a sad note because it was our last get together at the house. We will be closing on the 24th turning it over to the new owner. It has been a great home, Thanks Dad (RIP). More party photo under tab to left, photos.On another interesting incident, my cousin (Cathy), and Aunt JoAnn walked in the Gate River Run on Saturday while we were preparing for the party. Cathy told me she saw 3 or 4 hikers with packs and all, hiking the 9 miles on the pavement. She went up to them and told them her cousin was getting ready to hike the AT. They said oh yeah who is it? She told them "I think, All Right and No Left (ha ha)". They returned with "OMG, we have been following them!", "They just sold the house and are ready to hike". What a small world we live in! Whoever you were, please sign our guest book, my cousin can't remember your trail names. Thanks.Stuff still left to do:1) Finish packing house for movers (18th)2) Pack suitcases for California (19th - 23rd)3) Take food and boxes to Mom's for storage, she is helping Samantha with the   drops, Thanks Samantha and Mom4) Close on house (24th)5) Find a place to crash for 1 day because house will be sold and still have the night of the 24th in Jacksonville.6) Put housing proceeds in bank. Organize bills for easy pay on computer.7) Drive to Athens, TN (25th) to drop off Wild Poodle's car at Trail Angel (Allen's)house. Poodle and I met him in 2006 during our hike.8) Drive to Hiker Hostel (26th)9) Pray for good hike, then begin hike, yay, yay, yay!!!Found out from reading journals from other hikers over the weekend now instead of snow on the southern part of the trail, there's rain, mud, wind. We have rain gear, gaitors, pack covers and compactor bags to protect us and our gear but you still get wet, your tent gets wet, and you end up being a soggy muddy mess, even with all the expensive rain gear. Then if it's cold, brrrrrrr. I won't want to get out of my sleeping bag in the morning. Half left is the timekeeper, he is very good at it by the way, so he will get me up after lots of "no not now's". That to me is the worse part of the trail, getting up in the morning, to cold temps, with no real way to heat up, except a small propane stove.The next week and a half, we will be really busy doing our final touches, final so long's and then on our way. Thanks for following us.See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-22
To: Last day in LA
Miles today: 0.0

We are leaving tomorrow for home. Hopefully to close on the house and leave for the Hiker Hostel on Thursday. We saw Lore, our friend who is ill. She was very excited we came to see her. She wants to come to Jacksonville to stay with us after we make it to Katahdin. I told her to get strong and we will come get her after summitting and finding a new home. During the trip, we stayed with Tom's Dad and Mom, David and Donna. We had a nice time, we went to the Griffith Observatory in Hollywood, Tom played golf and I visited with Lore and shopped with Donna. Thanks for letting us stay. And thanks to Sally and Tonya for taking such good care of Lore.Tomorrow we fly home, to finish packing our garage, packing our food and taking it to Mom's, along with the boat, truck and a suitcase we will use when coming back into town in July for my class reunion.Then off to the trail, we are getting so anxious, following the other hikers journals. It helps to have other hikers go before you, because they explain the trail conditions, any closings, etc. Thanks to all who have started. I can't wait to see the shelter registers reading your entries.Off for our last day in LA, see you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-27
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.8
Weather: clear sky

Finally ready to begin our hike. We are at the Hiker Hostel in Dahlonega. Not a full house tonight but some nice people, amazingly 8 of us are from Jacksonville. The air is cool, about 45 degrees, there is a fire roaring in the pit out back and hikers all around are going through their packs. Weight of the pack is a definite factor for how your body reacts to the higher altitudes and the uphill miles. So everyone packs and repacks to develope a weight manageable for them. Half Left and I share much of our gear therefore saving weight. Our tent is a two man, our sleeping bag a double and we only need one kitchen set (stove, fuel, etc.). Food for two is neatly packed together except for snacks. Checked and rechecked and ready to go.We had a rough last few days, my mortgage company are idiots so they have been slowing down the closing. I had to sign docs so they can close without me. Our 2500 sq ft house was overstuffed which required much patience of my husband to get packed up. Our mover did a great job, Thanks Here 2 There Movers, Jacksonville Beach!!!Went to dinner at the Oar House, nice place on the river, we all enjoyed our food choices.Now Wild Poodle, Cahoda, Paula (Heine Can) and Half Left are preparing for bed. We will be up at 6:30, breakfast at 7:30 and leave for the trail shortly after. We may update if possible from Hawk Shelter or Gooch Shelter. Next stop for showers and food resupply, Neels Gap, Monday. Wish us luck!See you on the trail...
Date: 2010-03-28
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Gap
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: light rain

Wow what a grueling 2 days on the trail. First day we hiked to the summitt of Springer to begin our hike. About 20 people were there, some starting, someSome section hiking, some cheering on friends. We took lots of photos thenStarted our trek. It was 7.4 miles of ups and downs, actually a great sunny dayDay. We finished at Hawk Mtn shelter and actually stayed in it, with about 14 other hikers. It rained about midnight and continued all day. We got soaked on our way to Gooch shelter. 7.6 miles of mud, slop, cold windy rain all day. At Justice Creek, we decided to call for a shuttle to get dry and warm. We called Hiker Hostel and got a shuttle to our truck. Wild Poodle and Cahoda stayed at Gooch Shelter, they were exhausted. It was Another 1.2 miles to the gap for our ride. We are now clean and dry getting Ready to have dinner.Tomorrow we will slack pack to Woody Gap as planned.Paula (Heine Kan) is as sore and exhausted as us, but excited for a niceDinner and a Heineken. She is glad she is here as are we.Thanks to all following. Updates as we can.Get.to the trail so we can "See you on the trail!!"