morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-10-12
From: Mt. Wilcox South Leanto

To: East Mountail Retreat Center Hostel
Miles today: 3.3

What an amazingly perfect day. I awoke in the Mt Wilcox South leanto. It had rained hard all night and the wind roared. I was cozy in my sleeping bag. So nice to be dry and warm listening to the rain and wind. I was the first up. I had breakfast, packed, and was on the trail before 8:30 am. My shelter mates were slowly stirring about the time I was ready to leave. I hiked on to MA 23. When I passed Benedict Pond, I stopped to admire the glacial pond. The fall leavers were falling slowly onto the water. I hitched a ride with two young girls who lived in MA, but had NJ plates from one of their parents. The driver worked on a goat farm. I was so psyched to meet a goat farmer! I gabbed with her about my dream of having a pack goat to hike with. She took me right to the door of the East Mountain Retreat Center. I was greeted by a kind woman who showed me around to my room. The room was beautiful with white carpet and sheets. I was almost afraid to walk in. The hot shower felt wonderful. The rain has started again and I'm warm and dry.Continuation of October 12, 2005 journal entry---Life is good.(Guest entry by Swamp Fox: Rocky and I had planned to meet at the East Mtn Retreat Center Hostel on the afternoon of Oct. 12. We were anxious to renew our trail partnership that ended on June 21st with my knee injury. I was anxious to see how my knee would hold up after 3 12 months of rest. When I got to the hostel, the weather was not conducive to hiking, so we enjoyed the warmth of the hostel, and caught up on each other¢s lives since June. That night we went into Great Barrington with Scooby and Southpaw to get burgers and beers.)
Date: 2005-10-13
From: East Mountail Retreat Center Hostel

To: Homes Road
Miles today: 5.5

The morning dawned wet and chilly. However, the hostel owner strongly urged us several times to be out of the hostel by 8:30. So pouring rain or not, we drove to the trailhead at Rt 23, and headed south. Swamp Fox was fine for the first two miles, to the Tom Leonard Lean-to. We saw Scooby and Southpaw there for the last time, as we could not keep up with their young legs. After that, Swamp Fox started to struggle, falling several times. He suffered from leg cramps as well as a repeat of the knee problem of June. We ate lunch in the rain and made it to Homes Road. Swamp Fox was in no mood to continue after that, and we hitched back to the East Mtn Retreat Hostel, to spend another warm night indoors.
Date: 2005-10-14
From: Homes Road

To: US 7
Miles today: 2.9

In accordance with the urgings of the hostel owner, we were out of the hostel by 8:30. We drove to the Kellogg Road crossing of the Housatonic River. We intended to slack pack northward to yesterday¢s stopping point at Homes Road. However, we misread the map and headed south on the Trail and soon came out to US Route 7. We had been warned about high water flooding along the Housatonic. The Trail wandered through the flood plain, which was wet but not as bad as we had been told. At one point, we passed a pumpkin patch, with floating pumpkins. We came through with nothing worse than wet feet. From Route 7 it was about a one mile walk back to where we started. This time we did head north on the trail, over June Mtn. Without packs, the trail was not too difficult and we soon arrived back at Homes Road. After a short wait we got a ride from a local real estate lady back to our car. After some discussion, we realized neither of us was too enthusiastic about continuing to hike in miserable conditions. We retreated to a warm room, and my 2005 Appalachian Trail hiking was over for the season.Next year I plan to complete the Trail. Swamp Fox and I plan a tune up hike in Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee in April. We want to see the highlights again of our early thru hike, and we want to visit special people we met along the way. After attending Trail Days, we will resume hiking north at Port Clinton PA to Route 7 in Massachusetts. Then we will do Maine during August, and I expect to reach my goal of Katahdin in early September. Thanks for following my 2005 adventures on the Trail. Stay tuned for 2006.
Date: 2006-04-15
From: Philadelphia

To: Philadelphia
Miles today: 0.0

Rocky and Swamp Fox¢s AT hike begins anew. Rocky finished 1573 miles in 2005. The remaining 602 miles will be completed this year. We began our preparation with a 51 mile warm up hike in Georgia, from Springer Mountain to Unicoi Gap:April 5                Springer Mtn to Hawk Mtn Shelter                7.6 milesApril 6                Hawk Mtn Shelter to Gooch Gap Shelter        7.3 milesApril 7                Gooch Gap Shelter to Henry Gap                9.0 milesApril 8                Henry Gap, thru Neels Gap to Swaim Gap        8.7 milesApril 9                Swaim Gap to Low Gap Shelter                8.5 milesApril 10        Low Gap Shelter to Unicoi Gap, into                                 Helen, GA                `        9.4 milesOne of our goals was to meet the Class of 2006 thru hikers. We met many and enjoyed spending time with Librarian, Pacer, Woolly Bear, Old Space (all on Trailjournals.com)and Jolly Green Giant, Garden Gnome, Kojak, and Baggin, among others whose names elude us right now. We enjoyed the Helendorf Hotel in Helen, GA, again, with its Mexican restaurant. Thanks to Trail Magic from past thru hiker, One Eighty, we returned to our car at Hiker Hostel in Dahlonega, GA. We headed northward to Catawba, VA, and on April 13th, we got to climb Dragon¢s Tooth, this time in good weather (see Rocky¢s journal entry for May 19, 2005). We watched the birds of prey soar. Many thanks to Briar Patch (GA>ME 2001), and Mandy for their hospitality, great food and great fun.During our time in the south, we had a chance to renew acquaintances with various Trail legends:        Bob Peoples, at Kincora Hostel, Hampton, TN        Elmer Hall, at Sunnybank Inn, Hot Springs, NC        Gary Poteat, at Blueberry Patch, Hiawassee, GA        Josh and Leigh Saint, at Hiker Hostel, Dahlonega, GAWe had a chance to do some Trail Magic of our own by providing rides to some of our fellow hikers. We loved hearing the story of Southpaw¢s adventures during his 9 months, southbound, on the Trail. We met Southpaw last October in Massachusetts (see Journal entries for October 11, 12, and 13).Tomorrow we will renew our AT thru hike at Port Clinton, PA, with a goal to arrive at Delaware Water Gap on April 24th. We learned this trip, that GA does still indeed go up and down, and that Swamp Fox can still whup me, even with his ¢bionic¢ right knee.Hold on to my pack and enjoy the ride with me to Katahdin.
Date: 2006-04-16
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Windsor Furnace Shelter
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: broken clouds

As with so many other journal entries, I would begin this one with ¢What a glorious day¢. This day began in Philadelphia packing up our finds from the Russian Market and driving to Port Clinton, PA to renew my AT hike.   We also packed a generous gift of leeks from a neighbor of Swamp Fox¢s dad. Enroute I enjoyed my last cup of Wawa coffee for a while. We left Port Clinton at 10:40 am, crossed the Schuylkill River, and began the climb out of Port Clinton. The sun was bright, the breeze cool, and the Trail awesome. I kept looking for the Big, Bad Pennsylvania rocks, but didn¢t find them. We enjoyed the day in a leisurely fashion; taking liberal breaks and munching on the oranges and kielbasa from the Russian Market. We arrived at the Windsor Shelter at 3:10 pm. There was not a soul around. We only saw two weekend hikers on the Trail, who made me feel ill at ease. We relaxed for 90 minutes before starting dinner of leeks, kielbasa, parsley and fresh whipped butter.
Date: 2006-04-17
From: Windsor Furnace Shelter

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: overcast clouds

(Guest entry by Swamp Fox, as Rocky is quite tired tonight)We got an adequate night sleep despite some noises in the night. We were a little chilly in the shelter as temperatures had dropped to the low 40¢s. We did the morning chores quite efficiently, and were on the Trail by 8:20. The day was perfect: clear, breezy, in the low 60¢s.The first order of the day was to climb up to Pulpit Rock for an excellent view. We continued to the Pinnacle for lunch. The Pinnacle is reputed to be the best view on the Trail in PA, and we concur.   The farmlands were a vivid green. At the Pinnacle we met RB, a section hiker from Columbia, MD who is doing the Trail in stages since his 2003 start. After the Pinnacle, the Trail mostly follows old logging roads, as it descends to the Hawk Mountain Road. However, Rocky¢s knee started to ache again. Her right knee has been tender since late March, before we left for Georgia. However, she is a tough trooper and she rarely talks about her aches. She seems to be more concerned with my ¢bionic¢ knee, which has rarely ached during our April hiking. We arrived at Eckville Shelter at 3:15 pm. We met the caretaker, Lazee, who fortunately for us was activating the flush toilet which is near the shelter. The shelter is actually a four sided small building with doors and windows. There are 6 bunks and a table. It¢s quite nice compared to most trail shelters. Later a young man, Private Joker, came in for the night with a well behaved dog. We enjoyed taking about people we all knew from the Class of 2005 thru hikers. He started from Springer three days before we did in 2005. We were astounded to hear that he started his hike with a female hiker we knew by the name of Quinn. Quinn and Captain Patagonia (see his 2005 Trailjournal) became quite a Trail team. We spent quite a bit of time with Quinn and Captain Patagonia in Virginia to Harpers Ferry in 2005.The Trail abounds with amazing stories. One concerns a young man by the name of Southpaw who we met in Massachusetts. (see Rocky¢s journal for October 11, 12, and 13, 2005). Southpaw continued his southbound hike through the winter. He actually got frostbite in the Virginia Highlands. His oddest adventure involved hitchhiking in Virginia. He was picked up by two ¢rednecks¢ who were drinking beer as they drove. They ran out of beer before Southpaw got to his destination, so they stopped at a convenience store to get more beer. While they were at it, they decided to rob the place. They were all caught, including innocent bystander, Southpaw. Apparently, Southpaw was released, as we heard he was within 150 miles of Springer in early April, while we were hiking in GA.Rocky crawled into her sleeping bag at 6:30 pm. The night should be cool, but we are indoors tonight.Swamp Fox
Date: 2006-04-18
From: Eckville Shelter

To: PA Route 309, Blue Mountain Summit
Miles today: 11.5

I was beaten to a pulp today. My poison ivy (caught in Georgia) was draining. I fell, removing the skin from my left knee, and also twisted my back and left ankle. I basically hobbled and whined my way to the Blue Mountain B&B where Swamp Fox and I tented behind the building. I found every rock that I thought was lost in PA. Very few people are out in the woods.   We passed a family from NJ staying at the Allentown Shelter. We also passed a day hiker and two women (Leaf and Flare) who are finishing the AT hike they began last year. One of the women is going into the Peace Corps this summer, to Africa. She will be teaching math. I am excited for her. I cooked dinner on a picnic table behind the B&B. Then I crawled into our tent for a sponge bath, and was in bed before sunset. Rocky
Date: 2006-04-19
From: PA Route 309, Blue Mountain Summit

To: 1 Mile North of Lehigh Furnace Gap
Miles today: 9.3

(Guest entry by Swamp Fox)Another beautiful day on the Trail. Aren't they all? After all, a bad day on the Trail is better than a good day working. However, this was a frustrating day for me; Rocky on the other hand is always optimistic. It was clear and 45 degrees in the morning, warming up to the low 70's in the afternoon. Today was Rocks-big rocks, little rocks, small rocks, pointy rocks, flat rocks, moving rocks. It took 10 minutes to go 100 yards through some of the rock fields we had to traverse. The biggest aggravation was a senseless trail relocation just before Lehigh Furnace Gap. The Trail was purposely rerouted over a rocky crag. That relocation just about killed any chance we had to make it into Palmerton today. However, the good news is that we will get into town early tomorrow and enjoy and nero day, as it is now less than 5 miles to Palmerton. We were on the Trail by 8:10 am; another good start. By 10:30 am we were past the Knife Edge, a rock walk along an exposed ridge. I recall this was quite a scary walk for some of my Boy Scouts during a 1996 hike. Lunch was just past the Bear Rocks formation. By 1 pm we were at Bake Oven Knob Shelter. This was our last water refill for the day. We would have to make it through dinner, the night and tomorrow with 104 ounces of water.We found a beautiful campsite just off the Trail, about a mile past Lehigh Furnace Gap, and settled in for the nighdt, and hopefully, an early start tomorrow. We saw three other hikers today.Swamp Fox
Date: 2006-04-20
From: 1 Mile North of Lehigh Furnace Gap

To: Palmerton, PA, Jailhouse Hostel
Miles today: 4.3

Today began at our campsite, one mile North of Lehigh Furnace Gap, at 7:30 am. Swamp Fox and I hiked steadily. We took a short break for a snack at George W. Outerbridge Shelter. We continued to the road into Palmerton by 9:30 am. We hiked over a section of the Trail which was marked on the map as ¢unmaintained, very rocky, and open¢. Given that a previous section of Trail called ¢Knife Edge¢ had no warning, all we could think was this area would be much worse. Thank God, we were pleasantly surprised. Today¢s trail was a great improvement. There were only short rocky sections. It was a very enjoyable hike. We hiked over to where the trail reenters from the other side of the road into Palmerton and began hitching. We were quickly picked up by a young man with at least a 125 lb dog in the back seat. He was traveling cross country and he lived in his car. Many cardboard signs were in the window about ¢lovin¢ and ¢working for gas or money¢. I took the back seat, figuring I would get along with the huge dog better than Swamp Fox. I put my pack in first, and the dog growled. The driver was very interesting and kind to us. He brought us to the Post Office where we asked directions to the Jailhouse Hostel. It¢s referred to as the ¢jailhouse hostel¢ because it used to be the jail in the Palmerton City Hall. We were greeted well at the City Hall hostel. The Girl Scouts had goodies for us in a bag. The City staff was welcoming and kind. We showered and then went for lunch first, then came groceries and laundry. Another kind woman gave us laundry detergent at the Laundromat. Dinner was huge and yummy from the Hunan House, and desert was delish at Bert¢s Steak House. Bert¢s is really a fun diner. I recommend it to all. We went back to the hostel. Swamp Fox collected our laundry and we watched the high school senior mothers prepare for their senior ¢dry¢ party. This has been an interesting day. Life is good.Rocky
Date: 2006-04-21
From: Palmerton, PA, Jailhouse Hostel

To: Campsite 0.5 mile North of Delps Spring 
Miles today: 10.2

I love Palmerton. Everyone is so friendly. Swamp Fox and I ate our left over Chinese for breakfast and got an early start. We were out on the road in front of the hostel to hitch to the trail at 7:15 am. The first truck coming by picked us up and we were off. We began hiking up the rock boulders on the east side of Lehigh Gap at 7:30 am, and we were at the top at 8:52 am. I loved the boulder climb and the views.(Guest insert by Swamp Fox: I found the boulder climb dangerous and a little scary. At times you needed to climb on all fours. I thought it was the most difficult climb of the trail so far. Much worse than Albert Mtn. However, it was very satisfying to reach the top, and look down at what we accomplished.)The ridge showed some signs of plants trying to grow on the barren soil, left from the zinc mining operation. There were many alpine pinks budded. The ridge was desolate, but had its own beauty. The first part of the ridge walk was on an old dirt road. It was mostly flat and a pleasure. I also enjoyed the rock climb out of Little Gap. Lunch was at the top. The day ended when I was tired but not worn out to the point of exhaustion. We tented just off the trail 12 mile north of Delps Spring. The day was cool, in the 50¢s, perfect for hiking. Dinner was macaroni, cheese, large cherry tomatoes, pepper and garlic. Swamp Fox had chili seasoning added to his. It was yummy. After I was tucked into my sleeping bag and dozing, I heard the rain begin. We were warm and dry.
Date: 2006-04-22
From: Campsite 0.5 mile North of Delps Spring 

To: Wind Gap
Miles today: 10.2
Weather: light rain

We awoke to the sound of steady rain. Breakfast was eaten in the tent as we discussed our options for the day. The temperature inside the tent was 35 degrees. We decided to hike in the rain to the Leroy Smith Shelter and then see if we could make it to Wind Gap from there. My hands became too cold to function, very quickly, and I could not use my hiking poles. My thighs stung with the cold. We made it to Leroy Smith Shelter in record time around 11:30 am. Both Swamp Fox¢s hands and mine were not functional.   It took some time to even be able to unbuckle our packs. We ate granola bars the Palmerton Girl Scouts had given us with peanut butter and junk food. We were both badly chilled and realized this could be dangerous. I kept shaking and had trouble warming up. We decided to hike in our fleeces under the rain jackets, and we used hand warmers. I had my hands in socks in my rain jacket with the hand warmers. I felt much better hiking after lunch (less chilled). We hiked down to Wind Gap and began hitch hiking to town. It took a long time to get a ride. Finally, a couple of friendly hikers picked us up and took us to the Travelers Inn in Wind Gap. The desk person had to fill in the registration form for me because my fingers would not work. We showered and warmed up nicely. Swamp Fox worked hard drying and cleaning our gear. Dinner was at the Gap Diner. It was very good with excellent service. Nice to be warm and dry. I have learned to appreciate the simple things.
Date: 2006-04-23
From: Wind Gap

To: Kirkbridge Shelter
Miles today: 9.2
Weather: overcast clouds

(Guest Entry by Swamp Fox)The day dawned wet and dreary, so we were in no hurry to leave our motel room. The room was a mess, with wet gear and clothes drying.   We had a nice breakfast at the Gap Diner, and Rocky enjoyed people watching. We then packed up and stood in the drizzle in front of the Diner trying to get a ride to the Trail. After half an hour of standing in the drizzle, a young man in a pickup offered us a ride to the Trail. We were on the Trail at 10:05 am. The weather was initially drizzly and cold. The Trail was very rocky for the first 7 miles. Rocky had a difficult day due to soreness. She also had to hike with out trekking poles, as Swamp Fox mishandled one of them while trying to clean them. Except for lunch we walked steadily in the drizzle. Swamp Fox tried to keep up Rocky¢s spirit with his usual inane jokes and songs. However, when we got to Wolf Rocks, Swamp Fox was exasperated by yet another tricky rock walk along a ridge. He took a fall and banged up his shoulder, but no real damage was done, except for a bent trekking pole. Rocky also fell on the wet rocks. Wolf Rocks is supposedly the south limit of glaciation and the Trail was less rocky after that. We saw no one all day, until we reached Kirkridge Shelter at 4:45 pm. Kirkbridge Shelter is beautiful, as it looks to have been rebuilt in the last few weeks. The wood isn¢t even dirty yet. We erected our tent in the shelter as we expected a cold night and no one else was in the shelter yet. Later a father and son joined us, but they tented. About 7 pm, three young men came into the shelter for the night. Rocky was in her sleeping bag immediately after dinner, but Swamp Fox sat in the tent for several hours. Swamp Fox gets by on 4 or 5 hours sleep and never wants to go to bed early, so he journaled. A difficult but interesting day is over. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. Swamp Fox
Date: 2006-04-24
From: Kirkbridge Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: light rain

The night was stormy. Thunderstorms were loud and the rain continuous. We were tucked into our tent in the shelter, warm and dry. I was asleep by 7:30 pm. I awoke briefly to see Swamp Fox writing the Journal entry for yesterday. Then I went right back to sleep. Yesterday¢s rocks wore me out. Swamp Fox and I both slept in until 8:15 am. We were in no rush because it was still raining. We had breakfast and gabbed with the three New Yorkers who had shared the shelter with us. They were very nice and we enjoyed the conversation. We were on the Trail at 9:45 am. We walked in intermittent sun/cloudy, but no rain. The views were nice. The 6.4 miles from the shelter to Delaware Water Gap went quickly. The terrain was ever changing. The wildflowers, waterfall, and rhododendrons were awesome. We stopped and visited at Church of the Mountain Hostel in the town of Delaware Water Gap. Very friendly. Lunch was at the Water Gap Diner. Lunch was incredible. I highly recommend the diner. (Guest insert by Swamp Fox: Rocky charmed her way into free deserts for us, by the way). The bakery next door also has a huge selection of pies, chocolate, etc. I bought a garden turtle to give as a thank you for the leeks before I began this hike with. Then off to the bus station to go home and work a few weeks. Then we¢ll be back on the Trail. More to come in late May.
Date: 2006-05-26
From: Route US 7, south of Great Barrington, MA

To: Just past Jug End
Miles today: 5.6

The morning was spent tying up loose ends at home, before leaving for Great Barrington, Mass. I have under a week to hike this time, so I wanted do a section of the Trail close to home. Swamp Fox and I arrived in Great Barrington around 2 pm. We decided to have lunch at the Mexican restaurant, just past Friendly's, on U. S. 7. It was excellent.   We started hiking south from U. S. 7 at 4 pm. Our plan was to hike until it was getting dark. It had started raining as we ate lunch. By the time we started hiking, it was only a drizzle. The red eft salamanders were everywhere. I love spotting them. We hiked thru swamps, fields and woods and had a good climb up Jug End. The mosquitoes were out in force in the swampy woods. It was like being surrounded by a cloud of hungry bugs. We swatted constantly and went as quickly as possible. Tonight I am glad to be in a tent. It is raining softly as I write this. My shoes are soaked from the wet day. I¢m happy to be dry and warm in my sleeping bag. Nite all