morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-04-13
From: Standing Indian Shelter 

To: Big Springs Shelter 
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: light rain

Biggest hiking day for me thus far. I got beat to a pulp today. The bottoms of my feet hurt now. I managed the calorie burn pretty good but the terrain beat me up today.Last night was a miserable night. The shelter faces the wrong way and the wind and clouds were blowing into the shelter all night. On top of that the roof leaks and of course it was over my spot in the shelter. So the foot of my sleeping bag ended up getting a bit wet. Hope I don't freeze tonight. It's now 6PM and it's 38 degrees.Anyway, the hike started with packing up my wet gear. Heavy pack!!! Hiked up Standing Indian Mtn. The elevation is almost 5500 feet; however, there were no views to be had since I was in the clouds. That was a really long and brutal grind. From there it was an easy hike down to Coleman Gap through rhody tunnels, which was pretty cool. The rain also held off for most of the day too.Made it to Carter Gap shelter for lunch. Since it was only 1PM I decied to push on to the next shelter versus staying at Betty Creek and camping. The thought of an easy 6 mile hike to the road and Rainbow Springs Campground was too much to pass up. The thought of setting up my wet tarp in the rain, then tearing it down tomorrow didn't sound appealing either.The climb over Albert Mtn was a sick joke!!! Another mountain over 5000 feet. Man was it steep!!! It looked like something out of the White Mountains. I would go 50 feet and stop for a bit to rest. What a way to end my 14 mile day: Geez, what was I thinking?!?! To make things worse, all that work getting up there and it was cloudy and no views. From what I hear there is an incredible view from there too. Nice fire tower that one can climb too. Probably a grat place to watch the sunset. Not be be had for me this trip. :-(The hike off the mountain to the shelter was pretty easy. It also appears the I beat the rain too. This is an old shelter but doesn't appear to leak and it's not windy tonight.The day was another one in which I saw very little wildlife or nature. I was encased in clouds all day, with only about 100' of the woods visible at a time.Ok, bedtime. Hope I warm up soon!!
Date: 2004-04-14
From: Big Springs Shelter 

To: Wallace Gap (Rainbow Springs Campground)
Miles today: 6.0

Woke up this morning to 28 degrees. Damn, was it cold!! I got very little sleep at all due to wet clothes and wet sleeping bag. In addition to the cold there was 1-2 inches of snow on the ground.It was a race to get packed up and on the trail as fast as possible in order to get warm. The wet boots were like blocks of ice. Not a pleasant feeling in the morning.To complicate things, everything in my food bag was frozen which meant no breakfast. The water in my water bottles was frozen as well, in addition to a frozen filter. So no water for me to drink either. Good thing it was only a short, downhill hike to Wallace Gap.I'm so glad I pushed hard to get over Albert mtn yesterday. I couldn't imagine how dangerous it would have been this morning with ice and snow on it. However, the crew I stayed with at Standing Indian Shelter camped at Betty Creek, just before Albert. They did climb over it and said it was very slow going but not bad. They had no views either. Such is life on the AT.The afternoon was spent drying gear and of course eating non-hiker food. The weather down here in the valley warmed up nice. In fact, the weather report is calling for warming temps and 80's by the weekend. I could use some warmer temps so I can make it to NOC by Sunday or Monday at the lastest.Tomorrow is my zero day (day in which I hike no miles) to recoup.Z-time for me it's getting late.
Date: 2004-04-15
From: Wallace Gap (Rainbow Springs Campground)

To: Wallace Gap / Rainbow Springs Campground Starting 
Miles today: 0.0

Today was my first zero day since the beginning of this trip. After the hair raising cold/snow adventure, I needed a day off. Also today's chores included cleaning some remaining gear and most importantly, getting new shoes.So the morning was spent on a town run into Franklin, NC. Blister care products, contact stuff and a greasy lunch. YUM. Do I think about food too much??Afternoon was spent working on the shoes. After trying on and wearing somw low cut trail runners, I ended up getting a new set. I bounced the boots up to Fontana just in case. But I sure hope this solves my problem!! Some say the only thing constant is change, well on this trip it has included pain as a constant.Weather is calling for great temps and plenty of sun. That's a welcome change from the 28 degrees and snow the other morning!! Hope to make it to he NOC by Sunay, 3 days from now.I spent my evening sitting by the Nantahala River drinking a few beers, sending emails to some of my good friends and waiting for the sun to set.Not much else to report on my zero day. Kinda uneventful. Tomorrow should make for better journal writing.Happy Trails!
Date: 2004-04-16
From: Wallace Gap / Rainbow Springs Campground Starting 

To: Unnamed campsite past Wayah Bald 
Miles today: 13.6

Today's hike was sponsored by the word, "abuse". That's the word I'd use to sum it all up.The weather was fantastic, sunny and in the 70's. The terrain was a different story. 2 huge climbs today, Silers Bald and Wayah Bald. Fortunately both offered excellent views!!The day started with checking out of the campground/hostel, then I got a ride back to the trailhead. The birds were out chirping which was nice. No other wildlife to speak of during the day. The walk to Winding Stair Gap went by quickly. The grind up to Silers Bald did not go so quickly, but was rewarding with a fantanstic 360 degree view.On top I enjoyed lunch with a local family out for the afternoon and Rooney, who I met earlier in the morning. The bad part is that the summit was a steep blue blaze off the AT.After lunch and decending back to the AT, I received another surprise. Ladybug and Bear appeared out of the woods. WOOHOO!! I had been trying to sync up with them for days now. They went into Franklin last night.The three of us hiked the remainder of the afternoon together. That included a HUGE climb up to Wayah Bald. On top there is a large stone lookout tower. Man, what a view!! I was able to see the whole way back to Dicks Creek Gap, Standing Indian Mtn, Albert Mtn, Silers Bald. Looking to the north, I got a glimpse of Clingman's Dome in the Smokeys. Only a short 28 miles away, yet about 50 trail miles.The climb beat all of us up pretty bad. So tonight we are tenting at a small place just off the summit.Tomorrow the plan is for a 16+ mile day into NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center). Only one big "up", and lots of downhill. Especially down into NOC. Right now I'm about 5000' up. The NOC is arould 1700', BIG change.Well, it's geting a bit too dark to type again. Need more time in the day. Until tomorrow, good night.
Date: 2004-04-17
From: Unnamed campsite past Wayah Bald 

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) / Wesser, NC
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: clear sky

Ok, I spoke too quickly about the abuse yesterday. Perhaps I should consider the AT, the Abuse Trail. Yesterday was indeed rough with two tough climb. However, today included one rather long climb, but the killer was I did 16.7 miles and ended it with really steep 6.5 mile descent off Wesser Bald down into NOC or Nantahala Outdoor Center on thr Nantahala River.The was a killer descent, one which I wish I didn't make!! The reward was that the lower elevations Spring has Sprung. There are many more leaves on the trees. There are more flowers out, and their sweet smell is in the air. Oh, it's lovely to be out here. The downside toay has, been that is was realy hot with the sun out all day. Of course, it was just 3 days ago I was bitching about the rain and snow right?Anyway, right now I'm sitting a few hundred yards up the hill from the NOC. The plan was for Ladybug, Bear and myself to meet at the shelter .7 miles before. Somehow I blew right by that shelter and ended up here....Here they come...More in a bit.Ok, turns out the NOC was closed. So we got a cottage at Wesser Cottages.The bad news is I still have to pick up my maildrop at the NOC. Guess we'll do that in the morning after we feast at the restaurant.One rule on the AT, what goes down, must come back up. So that big climb down into the gorge today means a huge climb back out tomorrow, 8 miles all up hill. Blah!!! I am not looking forward to that.Today brings me to 134 miles total for this trip, Woohoo... That's a long way to walk. It also completes 14 days on the trail. Time flies when you are having fun.It's just 29 miles to Fontana Dam, and where I'll enter the Smokeys. I guess it's possible I could make it there in just two days, but after abusing myself the last couple days, I'm going to opt for three easy days instead.It's getting close to 10, past my bedtime.
Date: 2004-04-18
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) / Wesser, NC

To: Cheoah Bald
Miles today: 8.2

Another day on thr trail and another day of abuse thrown my way. Today's climb out of the NOC and up to Cheoah Bald was really rough.Well, it started with a ride back to the NOC then a huge breakfast at The River's Edge. I had the River's Best Breakfast. It consisted of three eggs, hash browns, ham, sausage with gravy and baked apples. Oh, it was really tasty.Next came the climb up and out. The trail didn't seem to bad for the first half mile or so. The suceeding 7+ miles were inredibly rough. The sun was out in full force and there was little to no wind. Geez, it was hot.I made it to the shelter about 2:30. The good news is that's where dinner was to be had. The bad news is that I still had another 1.2 miles of up hill climbing. It certainly didn't get any easier either. All day was spent sweating buckets. Probably leaving me dehydrated.The reward for the day was two fold for a chance. The views from here are some of the best I've seen all trip. The second reward was a most awesome sunset. An unobstructed view to the west from the summit. Some hazze in the air gave a fantastic orange glow to the sky as it set over the mountain chain to our west. I also took a wealth of pictures. :-)Ok, time for bed. We are also hoping to catch a great sunrise tomorow. So I'll need to get up early.
Date: 2004-04-19
From: Cheoah Bald

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The sunrise from Cheoah was almost as nice as the sunset. Surprisingly I wasn't cold last night, as the wind was whipping all night.The hike off Cheoah was pretty easy and it was really neat to see the forest come alive in the lower elevations. Just before Stecoah Gap the forest floor openned up to a blanket of wild flowers.I'm being told the we are now seeing Wind flowers and some type of lilies.After Stecoah Gap was another one of those surprises. A really steep climg up onto a ridge. While it wasn't a huge grind, the heat and sun made it tough. I sure hope the leaves start to come out.Brown Fork Gap shelter served as the lunch break for today. The map showed a fairly easy six miles to the next shelter. Again, the heat took it's toll, making it a rough six miles.Today crossed the 150 miles from Springer. That number seems so large, yet I still have 2000+ miles to go. A long way to go.Arriving at the shelter seemed like planes landing at an airport. We all kept arriving just minutes apart. There must be 16 or more people here tonight. The lore of a short day into town is apparently appealing to more people than just me.The large number of people made the tentsite selection process shorter, since there wasn't much to choose from. I have a feeling that I will be fighting gravity all night. My site is not all that flat.Time for some Z's.
Date: 2004-04-20
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam, NC
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Last night was pretty restless. My tarp was setup on an incline. So all night I kept sliding to the bottom of the tarp. I could have used some good rest too, since the night before at Cheoah Bald wasn't a great night of sleep either.The day's hike into Fontana was actually pretty easy. A short climb up out of the shelter then a ridge walk for a bit. The two mile descent into town seemed to go on forever. Probably because I wanted to get in and get cleaned up.Also on the descent I had my first touch of trail fame. Trail Fame you ask?? I met a nice older couple, who asked me my trailname. After replying, "Radio Flyer", the gentleman responed, "Goldsworthy". That was kinda freaky. LOL I guess there really are people who read these entries. I beleive they called themselves the two Ash-Dllions (If you guys ae reading, Sorry if I butchered your name! I was focused on town food)The morning was also rewarded with the forest coming alive. Down here in the valleys the forest so much more alive. More flowers, more leaves, more wildlife. Ah, a day in nature.I'm staying at the Fontana Village resort. It's kinda neat, but I think would have a MUCH different flavor during their peak (tourist) season and outside the thru-hiking season.Takin' a zero day tomorrow to recoup, clean gear, sort food and get ready to hit the Smokeys on Thursday.Right now I'm watching TV, which I haven't done in over two weeks. Geez, primetime TV sucks. At least on Tuesday it does.Almost 10PM way past my bedtime... Gee what a different life I'm living out here.
Date: 2004-04-21
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Fontana Dam, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Today was a rather relaxing zero day. Got up and had a wonderful breakfast that had nothing to do with breakfast bars.After sorting my maildrop, it was off to the store to get additional supplies and misc food. Wingnut was right about the campstore. Not muxh to choose from and not geared toward hikers.The rest of the day just blew right by. I can say it was relaxing and nice to not worry about making it those last couple miles.Tomorrow we head back into the woods. The Smokeys to be more exact. The rules and regulations are making me want to rush through as quick as possible. I've been to the Smokeys before (by car) and thought I'd be able to deal with the stupid rules if/when it came time for me to thru-hike. Well, just like so many others, I'm feeling confined and annoyed with the Nat'l Park Service! This is my hike, not their's, and I want to do what I want. Blah...Oh, I managed to send my boots and old maps home today. Also got some other mail out today as well. I hope to be able to share some photos soon. The camera media card is in the mail too.Nothing else to report today.Back to the hike tomorrow.
Date: 2004-04-22
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter 
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Welcome to the Great Smokey Mtn National Park...Today the hike started at the Fontana marina, which is were it was suspended two days ago for the town stop. The first mile flew by as it took a fairly easy route to the actual dam.The dam was rather impressive and consumed about an hour of the hiking day. For those who aren't familiar with Fontana Dam, it's the highest dam east of the Mississippi. 480ish feet tall. That's a lot of concrete!! There was a little info board there that said when water goes over the high water gate it exits the tunnel at 95 mph. Now that is moving!After being entertained at the dam, the hike started a rather rough climb. I think started about 1800' and climbed to 4000' in 4 miles to Shuckstack mtn. The reward was a lookout tower which offered 360 degree views. I'm not affraid of heights, but that tower was a bit shakey and the steps were really steep. I guess the reward was worth it.The climb continued for about another 2.5 miles to Doe Knob. That was rough climb. Low on energy and humidity was brutal too. The top of Doe Know was really nice. The forest floor was covered with little white flowers, but nobody knows what they are.So for about a mile it was flat and peaceful. I strolled along enjoying the flowers, the wildlife and was thinking about all my family and friends. I wish they were here to enjoy it with me.The hike concluded when I arrived at Mollies Ridge Shelter. An interesting hiking fact for this shelter is that it is exactly 2000 miles to Katahdin. So just a short couple thousand miles to go. LOLOver all the day was nice and much easier than our previous days. Am I getting used to it, or is the trail easier in the Smokeys?? I guess time will tell.Hopefully we can put in some miles tomorrow. I'd like to be out of the park in 5 more days. Should roll over Clingman's and through Newfound Gap (road to Gatlinburg) on Saturday.It's dark now, time for bed...
Date: 2004-04-23
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter 

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: light rain

Another rough day on the trail. Not because the terrain was hard, but the humidity made the day seem so much longer than it was.And to think I had grand ideas at lunch of going on one more shelter. Not today... It just wasn't meant to be today.The actual terrain was fairly easy, with just one brutal climb and descent (Brier Knob).The 2.2 miles to Russell Field shelter went pretty quick. And lunch was taken at Spence Field shelter. Boy, that was a really nice area. Open field with views in many directions. Rocky Top and Thunderhead were absolutely amazing. I sat up there and took a nice long break in the sun. I'm beginning to really like these 360 degree views. It would; however, be a bit more nice if I could share it with my family and/or friends. I guess the pictures will have to surfice.The last couple miles to shelter just seemed to drag on and on forever. Maybe it was just the fact I wa out of water and a bit dehydrated.The forest is still covered with those little white flowers. And nobody seems to know what they are. Ladybug mentioned Loon would know, but I haven't seen him in two days.About a week ago someone told me that the guy with one leg was off the trail. (If you haven't heard about this guy, he's an amputee with a hydraulic leg making a go at a thru-hike). Yesterday I saw his entry in a shelter register. Today someone pointed out that on 4/21 he was at this shelter with a broke leg. I guess he was waiting on the park rangers to bring him an allen wrench so he could repair the leg. So my guess is that he's only a day or two ahead of me. Hope I get a chance to meet him.Tomorrow we should cross Clingman's dome. I REALLY hope the weather is nice. It'd be sweet to have some great views for a reward. Wonder how many people will ask me thru-hiking questions. I'm sure there will be one or two, and if not there at Newfound Gap for sure.Well, time to get ready for bed.
Date: 2004-04-24
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Mt. Collins Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: scattered clouds

The night proved to be rather interesting. No bear encounters to report, unfortunately. About 2AM we had a pack coyotes come near the shelter making all kinds of racket. I guess they were hunting something. Nevertheless, it was alarming.For a change I've got nothing to bitch about hike wise... Well, I could but won't.Today started with a few deer milling around the shelter. It was slow going getting out of the shelter. Once I managed to get going it was easy hiking.Silers Bald shelter provided a quick snack break. Silers Bald was nice too, but a bit hot due to the heat.When I arrived at Double Spring Gap Shelter I was greeted by a local hiking club. A lovely group out for a Saturday hike.Next on the list of things to see was Clingman's Dome. The highest point on the AT at 6643' above sea level. The climb up wasn't all that tough except for the last half mile up and over Mt. Buckley.Bear arrive about 15 minutes after me, and Ladybug about an hour after me. The haze was pretty bad and cut down on the amount we could see, but nice nevertheless.An amazing thing about being on Clingman's was that I only had to answer 4 thru-hiker questions. LOLThe climb down from Clingman's wasn't all that bad either. The bad news is that we somehow lost Ladybug today. We'll look for her tomorrow.Another bad thing is that this shelter is about .3 miles from the trail and downhill. That means a climb out in the morning. :-(The wildlife report for the day is, three snails, two chipmunks and one AT Ridgerunner (Kent).Kent informed me that the little white flowers which are blanketing the forest floor are called Spring Beauties. He also said the lillies are called Trout Lillies.I've noticed that I'm starting to eat more and always hungry. I'm not sure I've got enough food to get me out of the park. Might need to get some more.Once again it's getting too dark to type. So time for me to head off to bed. Guess, it might be a Gatlinburg day tomorrow.
Date: 2004-04-25
From: Mt. Collins Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Got going today the same old time, 8:30AM. The plan was to hike to Newfound, hitch to town, look for Ladybug and do our town chores.After about an hour of hike I found Ladybug siting along the trail with donuts. Oh, what a way to start the day... Not only was Ladybug safe and sounds, we had town food. Yummy. After filling up on sugar, the hike to Newfound whizzed on by.There was a large group of bikers at Newfound when we got there. They were nice enough to share two beers with Bear and I. Could the day get better?A short time later Ladybug had secured a hitch to Gatlinburg with a nice couple from New Orleans.The afternoon started with a trip to the outfitter. I needed to get stove fuel and wanted to change to a chemical water purification system. Unfortunately, they didn't have what I wanted, but did get some fuel. Ladybug, Bear and myslelf also had our picture taken for their wall of thru-hikers. Pretty neat!Next on the agenda, was lunch. I had a dinner portion for lunch at a mexican place here in town. Boy, was it good, and so was the beer.Laundry was an adventure too. The place we are staying doesn't have on-site laundry and the laundromat is on the other side of town. So the trolley is the main mode of transportation here, but very slow.Bear and I passed the time doing laundry by tossing back a few beers at the restaurant next door, and splitting a pizza.After a 3 hour laundry adventure, Ladybug wanted to goto dinner. Gee, whom am I to turn down food. We all went to the local microbrewery. The beer was yummy and so were the wings. I've been craving wings for more than a week now. So it was pleasant to get some wings for a change.It really started to rain while we finished dinner. I was kinda happy to see it rain. That made the trip to town and a low mile day seem more worth it.Hopefully, I can get some miles under the shoes tomorow. The National Park is getting really old, albeit it has offered some great views and experiences. The general view point of the thru-hikers is to be out of the park. The trick will be to get out of town.Time will tell how that will happen.