morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-08-27
From: AT via NYC

To: Gorham
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Lotta traveling ...but no ¢AT trail miles¢ today. Left the hotel, walked up to Hertz, got a car, proceeded across Manhattan to the FDR parkway and took the NY crossway to CT. Turned north up Hwy91 thru MA and VT and then east on 93 before dropping down into The White Mountains. What gorgeous country our big north forest is! (with lots of Moose crossing signs to boot)Passed thru Bretton Woods and by the Mount Washington hotel. Really cool to see the Presidential Range I hiked just a few weeks ago from the valley floor. (Seeing those mountains dissolved the apprehension that¢s been nagging and made me SO excited. I¢m back! ...And the sun is shining! )On thru Crawford Notch and then pulled over to pick up hitchhikers at the AT trail head. Buddha and Budapest (SoBo flipfloppers) were headed for Crawford Notch Campground and it was nice to be able to get them a few miles down the road quickly. Always good to put Trail magic in the universe!Dropped the car in Glen, NH then grabbed a ride to Pinkham Notch visitor center. Paul, from the Barn hostel in Gorham where I stayed a few weeks ago, came and picked me up there and had me in Gorham in moments. It is a full Barn tonight, with the majority being SoBos, and I¢m happy that I talked to Paul ahead of time. This is a great launching point and will be back here Wednesday night before heading into Maine. Many many thanks to all the folks sending well wishes. It means a lot to have your support. Special thanks to the family. You guys are the wind beneath my wings and I love you more than words can say. Song of the Day: Lovelight. (How apropos that the rental car had Sirius Xm Grateful Dead channel playing this when I got in the car. Tacoma Dome 8/26/88 show. Thanks universe)Life is Amazing - Keep on Truckin¢!
Date: 2018-08-28
From: Pinkham Notch

To: Imp Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: few clouds

¢In every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.¢ -John MuirThe hostel stirred to life about 5:30am. Hikers hobbling about in an attempt to quietly get their gear in order before the shuttles head out...¢weird scenes inside the gold mine¢ ran thru my head in Jim¢s voice and had to stifle a laugh. Time to get this show started!Not technically slack packing but did pull a few pounds of gear out and leave them at Paul¢s Barn. Pack weighed out @ 18lbs with food and H2O this morning. Everything helps when tackling the White¢s! The resumption of this Journey began at Pinkham Notch. The big white Cadillac dropped us off at the visitor center and I headed north. After a half mile around Lost Pond, the trail climbed up out of the Notch on the south side of Wildcat Mountain. The plan was to cross the summits of all the Wildcats, Carter¢s Dome, Mt Hight, and South/Mid/North Carter¢s along the way to the Imp Shelter. Bagging 8 of the 48 NH 4000 footers on day one was perhaps a bit presumptuous but, as mentioned previously, Excitement ruled the day!Felt good thru the morning but didn¢t arrive at Carter Notch Hut until noon. Frankly, rocking along at only 1.5 mph, the trail was kicking my butt. The sharp climb up the Carters after lunch was no joke and wore me out. Still had to lay down 5 more miles to the Imp Shelter ¢and going down North Carter to it became more of an exercise in ¢controlled falling¢ than hiking. Limped in completely gassed. Thankfully there was room in the shelter as I was too tired to set up a tent. And given the crazy wind I don¢t think I could have! (Gusting to 70 mph!! No, I¢m not making that up¢see the pictures)After dinner was treated to an amazing sunset and a reminder of just how special the great wide world is. Beautiful.Song of the Day: Scarborough Fair/Canticle by Simon and Garfunkel. This one came on the iPod shuffle as I stepped out from the pines on Mt Hight and got a stellar panorama of the White Mtns. For 3 minutes I was awestruck and the music fit the moment.Life is Amazing. My knees hurt like hell!!
Date: 2018-08-29
From: Imp Shelter

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: clear sky

Early awakenings in the Imp Shelter but no rush hitting the trail. All the hikers took their time this morning. Cup of coffee was a joy as I watched the valley floor below light up in the morning sun. Sleep did the body good and last nights aching knees felt stronger. The AT headed straight up another 4000 footer to start the day. Mt. Moriah got the blood flowing (and set us up for a long steep drop toward the Androscoggin River, and the town of Gorham, below). The southward views on Moriah were breathtaking as yesterday¢s gale-force winds cleared the skies at low altitude and the Presidential Range sat basking in the summer sun. Rare to see the Mt Washington summit without a halo of clouds. Magnificent!The descent was taxing but devoid of the dangerous ¢rock slides¢ required on Carter yesterday. (I¢ve been asked about the elevation in emails so here¢s the math: today the trip down Moriah was an easy drop of 1600 feet in a mile. Basically a 30% grade. Steep but not the 40% grade off North Carter yesterday-yikes) After about 3 miles down we hit the 1890.9 mile mark...less than 300 to go! The trail leveled out there as well. We chatted and strolled along the Androscoggin River for miles all the way to Route 2. What to my wondering eyes should appear at the Route 2 trailhead but...Trail Magic! Cooler full of beer & soda and a big box of various treats...what a way to finish the White Mountains. Thank you dear Magicians!The guys i hiked with the last two days stopped at the Rattle River Hostel but we exchanged contact info and plotted the coming week with a plan to hike together into southern Maine. Not necessarily a ¢tramily¢, but fun to have folks to walk with. TreeHugger, Steve the Hiker, Giggles, Bluegrass, FreeBird... are all NoBo (and looking at a similar Katahdin summit time) so it¢s good to know some faces I¢ll see progressing north. The rest of the afternoon was spent leisurely in The Barn. Washed clothes, resupplied food bag, recharged the electronics, drank some beers and laughed with the hiker trash. Another full house tonite here and the joint is chock full-o-characters. AT-riffic.Song of the Day: Wiser Time by the Black Crows.  Good slow groove kept cadence on descent of Mt. Moriah and the forest felt alive. Ah, the power of music to enhance the moment.Life is Amazing. Keep Walking! ¢Want of Care does us more Damage than Want of Knowledge¢  ¢ Benjamin Franklin
Date: 2018-08-30
From: Gorham, NH

To: Gentian Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: broken clouds

Very hot at lights out but, by 2am, a blanket was required. Unusually quiet for a full bunk house and got a wonderful nights sleep. Slept a little late so packed up quick, weighed out at 26 lbs (with 3-4 days of food and water), and jumped into Paul¢s fleetwood Cadillac for a ride back to the Route 2 trail head. Unfortunately, the old Caddy¢s wipers were marking time in a steady rain. Blade, Skywater, and I were dropped off at 7:15am at the headed straight for the trees to get cover from the rain. Donning pack-covers & raincoats, we all sat waiting for the heavy stuff to slow...40 minutes later, a break in the downpour signaled time to roll. Crossed the Androscoggin river, flush with ducks and herons, then began to climb up the first hill. The skies cleared on the walk up and ol¢ Mother Nature put on one of my favorite perfumes: ¢damp fetid forest¢. (Second only to ¢Sideyard Gardenia¢)A damp forest not only offers a deliciously pungent walk but a quiet one as well. Followed a few turkeys (hens) on the way up and was startled by a grouse. (First grouse I¢ve seen since The Smokies... and it sounded like a helicopter taking off!) A damp forest in NH also provides slick rock faces. Took a hard fall about 5 miles into the day and was lucky to only sustain some ugly bruises. One of my trekking poles didn¢t fare so well as it bore the brunt and snapped. Damn! Will be awhile before I can replace it and that makes the coming miles all the more difficult. Luck remained spotty as I ran into some black-n-white hornets and got stung in the following mile. Swatting & running for 50 yds in pain but a little chewing tobacco from another hiker (Skywater) applied as a poultice helped take the fire out of the welts. The rest of the day rolled along relatively uneventful though I did pass the 1,900 mile mark(!) and the views were wonderful. Startled a second Grouse later in the afternoon too. That whirring at takeoff is intense. The mornings rain front offered a cool wind all day and, despite working with only one pole, found myself in the Gentian Pond Shelter by early afternoon. Hot tea, Miso Soup, and hiker Pad Thai (punt butter/ramen) for dinner.Eight of us in the shelter tonight and the conversation has been raucous.Unfortunately the signal strength prevents me from posting tonight. (Also prevents me from paying Toby but c¢est la vie) Guess I¢ll just hang it up at this point. Life is Amazing. Keep Walking!Song of the Day: (a two-fer from the iPod Shuffle)Take a Chance with Me - Roxy Music   ...right into...Never my Love - The Association{WAMHAS, Jenny}
Date: 2018-08-31
From: Gentian Pond Shelter

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: mist

Nice sleep ...with the exception of a little mouse I had to knock off my head at 2:27am. Ah, Shelter living. About 5:45 the sky turned pink and that signaled time to rise. Made coffee and enjoyed nature¢s show as the shelter stirred to life. The valley below was fogged in and the wispy cirrus clouds above changed color as the sun climbed above the horizon.Last nights conversations came back over breakfast and we didn¢t stop laughing to hit the trail until 8am. The first couple hours were a climb up Mt. Sucess and then we dropped down to cross the Maine border. YES! It has been a long, long road to reach state #14. We all hung out and ate lunch ¢on the border¢ (Maine side of course) before beginning a tough climb over the Goose Eye peaks. Chamber of commerce weather, 75 mile visibility, mucky bogs, rebar ladders, a little blood and a lot of sweat. Maine is, frankly, badass!We pulled over @ 4:00 to get a good rest and the campsite became super crowded. Labor Day weekend has made for a very busy trail. Rest is at a premium because tomorrow we tackle the ¢hardest mile on the AT¢: the Mahoosuc Notch. (Followed by a tough climb up the Mahoosuc Arm.) Actually only planning a 5 mile day tomorrow given the path. Am excited to see how it goes ...and glad I have a crew of four others to go into ¢the Notch¢ with. (The picture of us is in photos) Far too dangerous to hike alone. So I¢ll cut this short so I can upload and get some sleep. (Love chilly nights in the big woods!) Life is Amazing. So is Maine!
Date: 2018-09-02
From: Grafton Notch

To: East B Hill Rd
Miles today: 10.2

Woke up early and headed back downstairs to the Pine Ellis porch. Acquired coffee and homemade blueberry muffins walking thru the kitchen... hostel life is nice. Even the funky loaner clothes (tie dyed cotton moose shirt!) feel great. Hummingbirds buzzed ¢round enjoying breakfast at the porch feeders as the building came to life. The leisurely morning was afforded by a late (9am) shuttle to slack pack. We arrived at Grafton Notch trail head at 9:45 and promptly headed upwards. {Note* Up here the various notches are not valleys. They are deep clefts in the mountain ridges and the trail is steep in and out} Sweating hard, we arrived at the top of West Baldplate Mtn and found central Maine spread out in all her glory below. We then traversed the bog (thankfully no fall here, just muddy shoes. Not ready to change my name to Daddy BogLegs quite yet!) between the peaks to climb the bigger Baldplate Mtn next. A few trees low, and all Alpine zone up top, as usual the hard climb in Maine was rewarded with a stellar view. (360 degrees view, broken sunshine, with terrific visibility.)We lingered and ate lunch before hiking back down. Ropes and ladders helped in the steepest part of our descent and the last 4.5 miles flew by as the trail elevation profile eased. Not a ¢big mile day¢ but enjoyed rolling through some tough terrain in south Maine only carrying a few pounds on my back. David, one of the hostel owners, sold me a ski pole ($5) as a replacement for the broken trekking pole. Simply cut away part of the handle and duct taped the old strap from the broken pole to it. Worked well, despite it¢s heaviness, and definitely helped. So happy to have two poles, especially for the descents. Back at the hostel, Maverick, Blade, Skywater, Bluegrass, the Germans, and Voyager (triple crowner) had arrived. Hikers putting away beers and chortling the late afternoon away. Following ¢happy hour¢, Dinner was giant burgers at the Andover General Store. Awesome stuff and fun being amongst a crew of hikertrash again...Song of the Day:Traveling Light - JJ Cale (First song to pop up on the iPod Shuffle heading out of Grafton Notch. So apropos given the slack pack. Got the feet happy!)Life is Amazing. Keep walking!
Date: 2018-09-03
From: East B Hill Rd

To: South Arm Road
Miles today: 10.2
Weather: broken clouds

Happy Labor Day! Trust that your holiday was swell and your Labors fruitful. Awoke early and packed. Coffee and delicious homemade blueberry muffins to start the day. Our shuttle dropped us off at 7:15 at South Arm Road and we began the day with a SoBo hike over Moody Mtn. Not a ¢big mountain¢ but a very memorable one! Wicked steep and lots of rebar to assist with those steep faces. On the other side we hit Sawyer Notch, reloaded our H2O, and made the steep climb up Hall Mtn ...and then further up to summit of Wyman Mtn.By 10:00am was not only gassed but discouraged. Sat on the Wyman summit going through dark contemplation. Actually my thoughts all morning were about quitting this dang trail. Took about 3 hours to go 4 miles. That is lousy progress! The legs feel like worn out rubber bands and, despite very hard work for a week, there is no sign of ¢hiker leg stamina¢. It¢s not just the physical aspect either ...hard to describe the mental drain of a long hike. Focusing all your senses, concentrating on the placement of every step. Getting immersed in it again is taxing.Likewise missing the family terribly. Tried to call home but signal was sparse. Did connect with Jenny for a few minutes before getting cutoff. Then talked to Jake for a few minutes too. These touches, and their encouragement, were a healing tonic.Even with heavy legs, the next 6 miles rolled off in under 3 hours ...so took a side trail to the swimming hole we spied on yesterday¢s hike. Icy cold but immensely refreshing. (Body AND Mind)Decided to do another hostel stay so hopped the free shuttle at East B Road to the HumanNature hostel. Very cool GeoDome (built by an ex-marine thruhiker) 8 miles outside of town. Super clean and well thought out. We arrived ten minutes before the thunderstorms blew in and the heavens opened up. Can¢t explain just how nice it felt to watch it storm from indoors! A shower, a beer, and hot meal completed the attitude adjustment. Day by day, step by step...tomorrow is a new day.Song of the Day: America - Simon & Garfunkel Life is Amazing. (So is my wife) Keep Walking
Date: 2018-09-05
From: Bemis Rd Campsite

To: Rangeley, Maine
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: broken clouds

Woke Up (still grinning) in the dark at 5:30am, packed, breakfast done, and crossing the river as the sun rose at 6:30. We made the ¢Height of the Land¢ just after 7:00am and kept rocking. No major mountains today (hiked over Old Blue yesterday) but felt a push to make headway today as a 2017 thru hiker, the amazing ¢El Vago¢, was meeting us at Route 4 at 3:00pm. Had 7 miles under the belt by 10 am and just kept cruising thru the muddy bogs and roots. Stopped for lunch (and Cake... Happy Bday, Cotton!) at Long Pond and though we slowed, ultimately found ourselves at Route 4 at 2:15. (Easiest trail thus far still put a workout on the knees ...but it was a good day) By the way, what should we find at Route 4?... Trail Magic!Zoom Zoom, a 2017 thru-hiker, had cold drinks, chips, ice cream and some resupply items. Since we were early, seven of us relaxed in the shade and rejoiced in these simple pleasures. Thank you so much ZoomZoom! (Hope to see you up in Stratton in a few days)My man El Vago (frequent trail journal readers will remember him from last year. His 2017 journal is a great read too!) rolled up in his truck. He looks like a civilian without the hiker beard (and a few more pounds on) since I last saw him but seeing that face instantly put a big grin on mine. We loaded up and drove to the Hiker Hut where I picked up a resupply box (thanks honey!) and then off to the grocery store. After shopping, we took a couple of the hikers back to the trailhead (their dog was waiting), picked up the Germans, and headed to El Vago¢s lake house. Cleaned up, went out and ate amazing food in Rangeley. We came ¢home¢ and talked ¢til well after hiker midnight. We probably could¢ve kept reminiscing all night... but El Vago recognized my yawns as time to shut it down.Fell asleep ensconced in soft cotton listening to the call of loons on the Lake.  What a great day! The AT community rose up and made things awesome once again.Tomorrow we take on Saddleback Mtn...Life is Amazing. Keep Walking!
Date: 2018-09-06
From: Rangeley, Maine

To: Nowhere!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke early to get packed up and enjoy morning at the lake. El Vago had the dog walked, coffee brewed, and was cooking eggs & sausage when I got upstairs at 6:10am. The plan was to eat, roll into town for additional resupply, drop off The Germans (Buttercup & Dread Pirate Roberts) at a hostel, and be back on the trail headed up Saddleback Mtn about 9:00.Reality was yummy breakfast and then hard rain beginning at 7 am. We decided to delay departure...(no one wants to ride in a pickup truck bed in the pouring rain. No one.)Still raining at 8. Still raining at 9.Then, given El Vago¢s graciousness, we decided to call it a day and take the fabled Zero here at his place. Didn¢t have a ¢Zero¢ planned in the schedule but the knees applauded the decision. The 0.25¢ of rain, and potentially subsequent very late start, made it a no-brainer despite a nice afternoon forecast. By 10am, of course, the sun began breaking thru and the day became beautiful. At noon, we took the truck into town for resupply shopping. By 2:00 we were enjoying beers and chairs with backs lakeside. (Chairs with backs are an amazing invention and quite the hiker luxury. Much better than sitting on a log, stump, or ground) Hard to believe my only thought a few days ago was ¢throwing in the towel¢. The journey has really turned around. Hence the reason they say, ¢Never quit on a bad day¢.In the evening, we trucked on into Rangeley for dinner at The Red Onion. (Unlike my food bag, Ramen ain¢t on the menu) We chowed down on everything from Pizza to liver-n-onions. Satiated, we came home and readied ourselves for the trail tomorrow. What a fabulous day!No song-o-the-day since it was a Zero Day. Instead here¢s a thought:No woman has ever shot a man while he was washing the dishes.Hmmm... Life is Amazing. Keep walking.
Date: 2018-09-07
From: Rangeley, Maine

To: Perhaps Stream stealth site
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Everyone got up early and was eager to hit the trail. Yesterday¢s rain was pushed out by cooler air and it was 44 degrees when I stepped out to throw the pack in the truck. But first, we started with a giant breakfast for 5... Two dozen eggs scrambled, one package of bacon, toast, grapes, blueberries, apples, OJ and coffee. Absolutely stuffed ourselves!El Vago shuttled is back through Rangeley to the AT trailhead. We said goodbyes, snapped photos, and packed away gloves and jackets (dress for mile two) before crossing the highway and beginning the 5.7 mile climb up Saddleback Mtn. in the crisp morning air. The trail was work, and a little muddy, but found myself on the summit in a couple of hours. The view in all directions rivaled any on the whole trip. Visibility was enhanced by the cool air and absence of humidity. The PeakFinder app noted Mt Washington visible to the south and I was stunned (as that is 200 trail miles behind) to still have the massive peak in sight. Actually; Adams, Carter Dome, Goose Eye, Baldplate, were all visible. Cool to see our path. Enjoyed a grapefruit and hard boiled egg before rolling down Saddleback ridge toward the next big peak, The Horn. From here my views North were better and, upon checking the PeakFinder, my heart skipped a beat. The ghostly form way off in the distance, beyond the looming Sugarloaf Mtn, registered as Baxter Peak. What?!?Now that is 95 miles north (as the crow flies) so I was skeptical ...but...I sat for a few minutes just awestruck. There was Mt. Katahdin. (No one sees it this soon) I left Springer Mtn, GA on March 12th, 2017. At lunchtime today, 541 days later, there it was. Trembling, I started back down the trail toward Saddleback Junior. (From its summit, Katahdin again registered in PeakFinder.) The next few hours were a blur of roots, rocks, mud, and moss. Despite arthritic flaring in ankles and knees, progress was inevitable today. The thought of Katahdin held sway and pulled my body inexorably north. Eventually crossing the Orbeton stream and climbing the ravine up past her steep falls, my body cried stop. We set up a stealth camp on an old logging road 2 miles up Lone Mountain. Had macaroni noodles, broccoli, salami, & cheese in a pot. Two cups, rather than the usual single, of red zinger tea in celebration of a good mile day. With some work tomorrow hope to push all the way to Stratton. Several big mountains lie between... but what else is new?!Snugged in my bag&tent, anticipating sleep will come easy (despite a cold night) given today¢s hard charge. No service here so will post this tomorrow.Song of the day: ¢Right down the line¢ by Gerry Rafferty(This one came on as I rolled up Lone Mountain to the campsite. Thinking about my sweet Jenny with each step. Thanks for making this possible!)Life is Amazing. Check out the view!{**Note- Special shout out again to El Vago. Thank you so much for the fantastic hospitality. You rock!}