morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-04-13
From: Rocky Run Shelter

To: Ensign Cowall Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: moderate rain

   Had a good start today and then it started to rain. I had been watching the 10 day forecast every day before I left and saw clear skies for the first 10 days of the planned hike. Go figure! It rained pretty hard and I made it to the Pine Knob shelter wet and cold just before noon. I debated stopping at that point for the day but it just seemed too early to sit and do nothing. So, I ate my lunch and sat it out for a little over an hour and the rain lifted a little. Got up and out and dealt with rain showers until I reached the Ensign Cowall shelter.    The trails are pretty nice in this area except it is a little rocky and when the rocks are wet it is easy to slip or lose footing. I walked a little slower today because of that. Along the way today I saw a half brown / half white deer which was weird. Not spotted but half brown / half white in color. I passed by the Washington monument which was built in 1827 and stopped to take some pictures. Met up with "tic" who is hiking to Kahtadin from Harpers Ferry. He is taking it nice and easy and I am sure we will cross paths again. His intent is to get to Kahtadin and then go back to Harpers Ferry and hike south to Springer. At the shelter with me tonight is "BK" who is section hiking doing a 100 mile section heading to Harpers Ferry. Also at the shelter is a turkey strutting around and singing to us. It is cold out here tonight so I am using my silk liner with my sleeping bag and it seems like this will work well for me. Not too hot but warm enough!LATA Southside (As told to Pam)
Date: 2010-04-14
From: Ensign Cowall Shelter

To: Antietam Shelter
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: clear sky

   Crossed the Mason / Dixon line today   Great day, Felt great physically and mentally! Bad connection update to follow...   Another great day of hiking...The days start out the same most often but you never know what you will see or who you will meet which is what makes this such an adventure. Today I felt great both physically and mentally. I have to admit that I was really bummed about the rain and I let it get me down because I had set myself up with what I thought was a good 10 day block of weather so that I could ease back in to the hike. I needed today to get my attitude adjusted and focus on the bright side of how lucky I am to be out here.    Todays hike took me thru Pen-Mar park which is truly as nice as the handbooks say it is. Crossing into Pennsylvania from Maryland which is the Mason / Dixon line I walked along some paved roads and across Falls Creek bridge to reach the Antietam Shelter late afternoon.    There I set up and decided to wash up in the fresh water creek. I washed my clothes and myself in the creek and believe me the water was cold. Here I am in the water in next to nothing and discover that there are fly fisherman down stream from me. I did not realize that there was anyone else around. One of the fisherman offered me some fresh trout but I had no way to cook it and asked him why he wasn't gonna cook them. His response was that his wife wouldn't cook 'em. I wonder why he wouldn't cook them himself...fresh trout how can you beat that?    Spent the night at the shelter alone and think that I will stop tomorrow at a cabin that a friend of mine said I could use. LATA...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-15
From: Antietam Shelter

To: Birch Run Shelter
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: clear sky

   Miles only...update to follow Remote for detachment, narrow for chosen company, winding for leisure, lonely for contemplation, the Appalachian Trail beckons not merely north and south, but upward to the body, mind, and soul of man. (The Thru-Hikers handbook-stanza composed by PATC member Harold Allen in 1936) At the Birch Run shelter alone. This shelter is nice and big sleeps about 18 and is well maintained. Big miles today since I have been feeling great and the cabin that I thought I would stop at was just about 8 miles from my start. Way too early to stop for the day when everything is going well so I just kept moving. Dealing with some "pudding legs" but not enough of an affect to sit down and not keep on course.    Met another girl out here with a big pack. "Lonewolf" is carrying a 60# pack and plugging along. I am not sure why some of the hikers feel that they need to carry so much. Me, I like to travel light and have not had an issue finding shelter, water or good food not far off the trail. People are willing to pick me up hitching and most often the first car that I see has given me a lift. Today I picked up a sub sandwich and a soda at Teramini's (sp?) italian restaurant which was a short walk off the trail. Ate half of the sandwich for lunch and the rest for dinner. I have a blister on my heel again this year. It seems that no matter what boots I have I get that same blister. Not a big deal but frustrating to deal with. I guess it is just part of the hike for me. I will be an expert on treating blisters when this is over...new career? Maybe...LATA...Southside
Date: 2010-04-16
From: Birch Run Shelter

To: James Frye Shelter
Miles today: 17.3

   Today I set my sights on making it to the general store where they have a 1/2 gallon challenge on ice cream. Ice cream happens to be my favorite and I had heard about the challenge from several people. As it would happen, I made it to the store around noon to find that it was not open today. So, I moved along continuing my hike and encountered a lady heading to Harpers Ferry with a big dog named Justice that she had found at Springer Mountain. Like "lonewolf" yesterday "Becky" was traveling with a heavy pack and pushing to do a 17 mile day. I also came across a couple of young guys thru hiking that had left Springer early on. They were putting in regular 30 mile days and moving fast.    Good hiking day making it to the turn off for the shelter around 2:30 and decided to clean up in the stream. After I washed up I headed to the shelter put my clothes on a line to dry and set myself up for the night. Right after getting everything done the rain came. Timing was great but my clothes on the drying line got rained on. A couple that I had met earlier in the day "Moo" and "Scout" made it to the shelter and will stay the night here with me. Nice to have some company. I have discovered that if I wear my ear plugs that Chad gave me I can go right to sleep and last night I slept well. Didn't know and didn't care if the mice were rustling around.    Tomorrow I plan on sleeping in town after a 20 mile day to get there. Need a real shower and a way to charge my phone batteries. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-17
From: James Frye Shelter

To: Harrisburg Pike
Miles today: 20.0

   Another hiker checked in at the shelter last night so in total there were four of us there. "Eric" left Springer on Mar 10th and has been knocking off 30+ days covering over 1,100 miles. He is carrying an 18# pack and was looking at a 42 mile day today. I can't imagine what that is! He has hiked the PCT 7 times in 6 years and is thru hiking the AT this year.    Today I met up with 2 people riding horses and one was a Belgian draft horse. "Sonny" was being ridden by a woman bear back and he was so massive her legs were sticking straight out! Beautiful animal    I stopped at a pizza place in Boiling Springs and got a steak sandwich for lunch. Here I met 4 people slack packing a 22 miler and they tried to give me some of their pizza. "Cowboy" is from Fl and convinced me to take a piece of their pie. I didn't want to take anymore because it looked like they could use it more than me.    After crossing over a $1mm foot bridge that spans the highway, I arrived at the Super 8 as planned. Thinking that I could resupply there but basically all that exists here is some hotels and a truck stop type convenience store on the clover leaf. Got my laundry done but was unable to shave because a single disposable razor would have cost me three dollars from a vending machine. I had to buy the comb that was in front of the razor so said forget it and decided to wait until tomorrow to take care of it. Showered, ate and got a good nights rest.Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-18
From: Harrisburg Pike

To: Duncannon, Pa
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: overcast clouds

   Had a good nights sleep and was up and out at 6:05 this morning. I took a couple of donuts with me from the hotel and walked across the street to the diner for breakfast.    Today it was a little cool out and the hike was fairly easy. I covered a lot of ground doing the 17 miles in about 7 hrs. There were a lot of day hikers out today. With it being a Sunday I guess you should expect to see a lot of people in the spring enjoying the outdoors. Not a lot of interaction other than hellos but it is nice to see people along the way. One thing that I have seen today is a lot of poison ivy.      Arrived at the Doyle which is a thru hiker stop and was built by Anheuser-Busch sometime around 1900. Had to stop here for the historical factor but not really my cup of tea. It could use some TLC but there is a warm bed and I could resupply here in town. I did getto buy a disposable razor so my neck doesn't look so scraggly.   No laundry to do since I did it yesterday so I just sat back and relaxed until dinner. I recommend the pulled pork sandwich it is tremendous. There are a couple of guys here that are section hiking and as we compared notes it seems as if we will be on the same shelter schedule for the next few days. It will be nice to have some "regulars' at the next few shelters. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-19
From: Duncannon, Pa

To: Peters Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: clear sky

   After eating breakfast I picked up Subway sandwich to eat half for lunch and half for dinner. Crossed the Susquehanna river which is the longest river crossed by the trail, it is 444 miles long. The Potomac which I crossed last week is the third longest. The first hour of my hike was up,up, up and a real butt kicker then it leveled off and the rest of the hike was very rocky but not too bad.    This morning I met another bloke from over the pond. One of my favorite people from my earlier hike is from England {the "General" hiked portions of my 2008 hike with me). "Gentleman" is a young hiker with long legs and he is moving fast. A real nice guy, he went by me like a blink with a plan to do a 27 mile day and will stay tonight at the shelter that I plan on being at tomorrow night. A lot of guys out here doing big miles. I also met a couple from Germany that were doing a day hike because they had nothing to do. The volcano ash is keeping them from taking their flight back home.    Today's hike had a lot of great views of Duncannon. My shortest hike day this outing (avg. 18 mile days) was shorter than I would have liked. The shelters here in Pa are spaced out too close or too far to get a smooth rhythm down. My plan was to do this short hike and then put in a long day tomorrow. I was at the shelter by 1:00 and set up for the night by 3:00. The water source at this shelter is down 275 steps that are all hand made out of rocks. BIG ROCKS! It took 45 minutes just to round trip it for water.    There are four of us here at the shelter tonight. "Bluevista" a woman that has hiked the trail before in 1992 and two guys from Ohio. "Boneman" and "Drifter" are doing a long section hike. The shelter is big and well maintained but everyone is tenting tonight. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-20
From: Peters Mountain Shelter

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: scattered clouds

   Good enough day today, feeling good and the hike went smooth. My boots are taking a beating on the rocks so I am glad that I have the heavier ones on for this part of the hike. I was disppointed because I had been looking forward to seeing the ruins of an abandoned town on todays hike but when I got there everything was gone. They took out everything including the foundations of the buildings. There was a mailbox on the trail and that is that.    The shelter is nice but absolutely no cell service here. The shelter has a great water source and unlike the last shelter it is easy to get to. A veteran of the Irag war is at the shelter with me. "Mike" is doing a shakedown of his gear and struggling with post traumatic stress syndrome. "Drifter" and "Boneman" showed up at the shelter too.   We have been on the same shelter pace for the past few nights. Everyone out here hikes at there own pace but after a while you know who will end up at the same shelters that you hit. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-21
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: Pa 501
Miles today: 17.4

   Today was a very uneventful day on the trail. I found out that my friend back home was in the hospital and decided that I would head into town so that I could make some calls where I know that I could get service. I walked down to the road intending to hitch and saw no cars at all and thought 'oh boy'. After about 2 minutes a car came along and I was picked up. This is how it goes most of the time along the trail. People are very nice and willing to go out of their way to help the hikers.    The driver happened to be a scout for the Diamond Backs who was out here scouting a kid with an unbelievable fast ball. He actually drove me all the way into town and dropped me at the hotel. I cleaned up and washed my clothes and went to the Subway to get a sandwich to split for dinner and lunch tomorrow. The young man that made my sandwich asked me if I was a hiker and I laughed telling him that I had showered and he said 'you can just tell'. Andrew offered to give me a ride back to the trail in the morning. We made plans to meet at 6:30 at the McDonalds. I continue to be grateful for the generosity of strangers being kind to me.    I made my calls and plans for the next six days and since there is no computer here at the hotel did not catch up on journals. Went to bed early hoping to get a good nights sleep.Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-22
From: Pa 501

To: Eagles Nest Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: scattered clouds

   Met Andrew the trail angel from Pine Grove as planned at the McDonalds and got a good start on the day. I offered him gas money that he would not take and he asked me to pay it forward to someone that may really need it. As we parted he asked if he could pray with me and of course I agreed. He held my hsnd and we prayed then parted ways. He went off to school and I went back to my hike. Again, the generosity and true goodness of the people is wonderful and uplifting.    Today's hike was rolling and took me past some nice view and overlook areas. No really big ups or downs so not to difficult except for the rocks. Definitely a rocky section of the trail through these parts which makes it tougher to make mileage. The shelters are apaced in a way that you either end up doing long days or short. I think tomorrow will end up being a 23 mile day because of this. It looks like there is some rain coming over the weekend and I sure am not looking forward to that but will keep going. I am about 6 days from the Delaware Water Gap and then I am in territory where I have friends not far off the trail. Looking forward to that.    Eagles Nest Shelter is nice and the water source is a good one. There are two brothers here with me. "Rotten Rodney" and "Jim" are doing a section hike and make some good company. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-23
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 24.1
Weather: clear sky

   Today was a big day for me hiking 24 miles and it was up and down. I climbed as high as 1,635' and as low as 600' with a lot of ups and downs between. As has been the norm through Pa there were a lot of rocks which means toe banging. Took me a long time to cover the 24 miles but I made it to the shelter at about 6:00.    At the top of the Pinnacle which is an overlook I met a guy that was bringing a group of astrology buffs up to camp and look at the stars for the next couple of nights. There are some scopes up there to view the surroundings and the stars. They are hoping that the clouds don't roll in and ruin their outing. Anyway this guy was interesting to talk to and he gave me a bottle of poland springs water because he thought I looked like I could use it.    This shelter has four walls and a door which is unusual for a shelter in this area. It also has a full privy and a solar shower (which was freezing cold) it has bunk beds and sleeps six. The shelter looks like a garage and the bathroom looks like a shed. Turned out to be a good stopping point for me. There are two guys from North Carolina here tonight with me. They are doing a 280 mile section hike and are suffering from blisters. This was an ass kicking day, I'm tired and heading to my bag for an early night. Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-24
From: Eckville Shelter

To: Palmerton, Pa
Miles today: 24.9

On a hike from Georgia to Maine, a thru hiker will climb and descend a total of about 91 miles. This is the equivalent of going from sea level to the summit of Mt. Everest and back more than sixteen times! (thru hikers handbook)Today's hike to follow...
Date: 2010-04-26
From: Palmerton, Pa

To: Palmerton, Pa
Miles today: 0.0

         Well still here in Palmerton, stayed the night and it looks like I will be here until Tuesday. On Sat I was going to go to Bake Oven Knob shelter after a tough 17 mile day I pulled in at 3:30 only to find 6-7 hikers already there and 20-30 boys scouts on the way. So my choices were go 7 more miles to George Outbrige shelter or 8 miles to Palmerton. Easy choice, go on to Palmerton. It was a good move,the rain came in at around 7:00pm and I was dry and cozy in the basement of the Palmerton town hall which they have turned into a hostel. The basement has 16 bunks and we get the use of the gym showers. I can't say enough nice things about the kindness they have shown me. And when I asked if i could stay one more night they said with a smile YES.         Getting back to the trail. I know that everyone says the rocks are bad,but come on now this is no joke. It's not that 40% 50% or even 70% of the trail is rocks my guess is that 80% of the trail is rocks. My boots have paid the price, they have only 235 miles on them but look like 2000 milers! The only physical problems I have incurred are two blisters on my right foot and 1 on the left foot; both on the heels and I feel lucky. Most of the hikers I have talked to are all suffering from foot problems. All though the trail is flat, rock hopping and the constant twisting in your boots as you walk on top of these deamons sure takes its toll.          I can't thank my wife Pam enough for all of the help and my son Chad has been there on the end of the phone when ever I need him. Chris thanks for the moral support. You all make what I am doing that much more enjoyable. Tomorrow its on to Leroy Smith shelter than a 21 mile hump into the Delaware Water gap. Where Ron Orner will pick me up for the night and then drop me off the next morning.          So with Penn. almost done its on to New Jersey. LATA..............Southside
Date: 2010-04-27
From: Palmerton, Pa

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: scattered clouds

   So after two zero days I was ready to roll this morning and left the hostel with Chris (a hiker), had breakfast and grabbed the shuttle to the trail. Bill (our shuttle driver) and Mojo his dog were great company for the short ride to the trail.    We started the climb out of Lehigh gap as a group. Me, Chris, Bill and Mojo walked up the face together. The climb was 1,000 feet hand over hand with Mojo and Bill only going as far as Mojo could make it. Believe it or not, it was great fun! When I got to the ridge I took a break and took some pictures and Chris headed off on his own. The weather was pretty good this morning and I hiked all day in a t-shirt and shorts but as the day went on the wind picked up and by the time I made it to the shelter at 3:30 I was pretty cold. There was a second straight up climb out of Little Gap roughly 300-400' and then you arrive on the ridge and trek along the ridge for the balance of the miles. The mountain is pretty devastated by zinc smelting and this area of the trail is very interesting.    I arrived at the shelter and got set up figuring that Chris was way ahead of me but about two hours later he showed up. He had made a wrong turn somewhere along the trail and had to back track to get here. We tried to talk but after a few minutes decided it was too cold so we went to our bags for the night. I am in the shelter, in my tent, in my silk liner tucked into my sleeping bag. The liner is working our well and adding the additional warmth without the heavier bag. I am happy that I made the decision to take my lighter weight bag with the silk liner. I have only had to use it three times.   Brrrr....Good night!22 mile day tomorrow to the Delaware Water Gap250 miles under my feet with 914 to Kahtadin! Very Doable!!!!!Lata...Southside as told to Pam
Date: 2010-04-29
From: Friends House

To: Ron Orner's house
Miles today: 0.0

               Well just a little run down on Pa. If I had to pick a trail, just any old trail, in any state, at any time of the year, the AT in Pa would not be it. My boots are shot; 271 miles and the rubber is coming off the front and the leather is beat to hell. I tried to look up to see "anything" wildlife or scenery, there are no streams "anything". The problem is that you have to concentrate so hard on where you are going to place your feet you rarely look up. Forget hiking poles... 4 points to place no way! I just carried them in my hands and this actually worked quite well. Now for the good of Pa, I liked the shelters and most of the water sources were good. The people could not have been nicer and more accommodating. Every time I stuck out my thumb within two cars I got a ride. So, for the record its just the condition of the trail that made this section tough. The General said it could be worse and it could be mud,so walk on the rocks. It doesnt mean that I have to like it!          I am in NJ and taking another day off. In 2008 I went 52 straight before I took a day. But there is no hurry I only have 5 hiking days left before I have to get off the trail for 6 days. My freind Ron is going to pick me up at the Bear mountain zoo. When I get back on the ninth he will pick me up at the train. The next morning on his way to work he will drop me back at the Zoo and off I will go. Another great trail angel, it sure is great to have such wonderful friends. I am starting to like these days off but somtimes I feel like I am cheating myself. Guilt oooooohhhh the guilt of it.                My blisters are healed and for all the pounding my feet took they are no worse for wear, so on we go. LATA...........Southside