morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-06-13
From: Home Place

To: Lambert's Meadow Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: light rain

Meet Pit and Ponyboy at Rt. 311 as rain threatens, yet again. This is insane. Truly. The climb up McAfee's Knob goes well but rain drops begin to fall as we reach the top. As I walk out to the knob, Dirty Frank is just sitting there in a slight drizzle. Picturesque. I turn to look at the clouds and see that there are no clouds follwing this one. Clear skies ahead. Sho' 'nuf the rains have stopped by the time Ponyboy returns to the knob with his rainjacket. The rest of our time up there is spent in cool sunshine. Sate our senses and move on to the Tinker Cliffs. As we approach the climb to the cliffs and what seems for sure to be a glorious sunset, I turn my ankle. With it goes the strap of my left Chaco sandal. Gone. Am left to take the Andy Layne Trail, bypassing the cliffs, down to the shelter. Wait for the boys to arrive, confirm glorious sunset and we head out in the dark for destinations unknown. Flopping down th etrail in the dark, I am ready to stop at anytime. No campspots. Finally we agree on a crappy spot in the middle of the trail. Nighty night. Looking forward to the Best Western, being clean, washing my hair, and realxing in air conditioning.
Date: 2003-06-14
From: Angel's Gap

To: Daleville
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: few clouds

Short but interesting day. Ponyboy jets out early so he can buy a fleece bag and send his home. Pit and I are soon to follow. After about six miles of flopping about in my broken sandals I have had enough. At Hay Rock, I take off the sandals and put on every pair of socks I have. Walk the last 4 miles into town in socks. Felt alot better than the shoes. The occasional rock dug into my foot, but all in the experiment went well. Get to town. SMD Brenda offers to resupply me with new Chaco's. Thank you, Brenda. Without your health, you haven't got anything. Same goes for footwear. Retire to Best Western and lounge. Sure feels like VA. Motivation is hard to come by and so are the good times.
Date: 2003-06-16
From: Daleville

To: Bobblet's gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: light rain

Finally pull ourselves away from the I-81 vortex and make our way up the trail. The trail is muddier than anything. I am having trouble keeping my feet and I fall twice in the first mile. Frustrated and tired by a maddening weather pattern and its effects, I make the call. I will slack the boys 15 miles up the parkway and we can stay at Bobblet's Gap. Get hitch from Venus'(AT'01) husband, small world. Make mental error and take too much time getting to the parkway for my final hitch of the day. Get to the BRP around 6pm. Who is entering the parkway at 6pm? Nearly no one. 2hours and 45minutes later while 'please' hitching, I get a ride from someone going in the opposite direction. They noticed Pit and Ponyboy up the trail and figured I was with them. He would only let me in the car if I promised I didn't have a gun. He was twice my size. Get to the trail and meet the boys with their packs. Walk down to Bobblet's Gap shelter after dark. Very stressful. Could have been avoided. Mental weakness is a bitch.
Date: 2003-06-17
From: Just outside Pearisburg

To: Thunder Hill Shelter
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: light rain

Walk two miles. Three pack hitch to Thunder Hill shelter. Ranger informs me that hithcing is illegal. Rules! Five minutes later, I get a hitch the whole way to the shelter. Reach shelter early and nap. Meet many new hikers, SnotRocket, BlueBird, PuffDaddy, The Dude. We have a good time. I claim two spots for the boys. They arrive after 11pm. Tough day for them, made less tough by the fact that I slacked them. Easy and good day for me. Ready for some hiking tomorrow. Almost all hikers have abandoned purity in a struggle to retain there sanity. Saw seven hikers walking the parkway as a means to avoid the wet trail. Not Pit and Ponyboy. Purists. Pure. Sleep well after post dinner party.
Date: 2003-06-18
From: Thunder Hill Shelter

To: Glasgow
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Nice easy day planned into Glasgow. Wake up early with Snotrocket, Bluebird, Puff Daddy, The Dude, Pit and Ponyboy. The sun is out for the first time in days. There is a party to be had. So we have it. A little sun celebration. Must be how rituals get started. Finally pull away from the shelter and head on down the trail. Singing. The sky becomes a bit overcast again as I head down into Petites Gap. The forest is dark, the air is cool, and world is quiet. All senses in harmony, like melody, rythym and lyric. Nothing particularly beautiful or outstanding, but a memorable moment, nonetheless. I prefer these moments to static views any day of the week. At Petite's Gap, we all reconvene for a break. Ponyboy whips out the cell and we call the Glasgow P.O. to see if I have a package waiting. I do. The race is on. Move over High Cock Knob and turned on the afterburners. Sadly, the area that was devasted by the Gypsy moth is coming back alive. 'Tis a shame, the walk around the exposed ridge was one of my favorites. Without trouble I make it to the road with an hour and a half to spare. Pick up a ride lickety-split and am in town in no time. My last paycheck is there and away I go. Bam! Nobody will cash my money order. Huh? The bank? Nope. Pit and Ponyboy show up and we make for the restaurant/hotel. Eat and get a room. Rain is on the way. Rain is always on the way. Our room is comically small. We do have two couches, though. Amenities, to that.
Date: 2003-06-19
From: Glasgow

To: Brown Mountain Creek Shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: light rain

Do the town routine. Eat, shop, eat, laze, leave. Watch as another hiker flails at the passing cars trying for a hitch. You need to walk out of town to get the ride. And we do. Just as we are setting our packs down for the hitch we are offered a ride. Instantly weird. Our driver is very religious man who left his home in upstate NY last night because God told him to. He was coming to woods to kill the bad god in him. O.K. He drops us off at the trail with a blessing. In unison, in our best Lebowski, "eight-year olds", is all we say.Now onto the climb. The corkscrew uphill to Rocky Row Run is the first off the Blue Ridge monster climbs. But the view from the top pride-inducing. You look back on James River, you can see the bridge you crossed, you can assume where the trail goes to reach the climb, and you can look two thousand feet down and know you just climb up from there. A mist greets us at the top. At this rate, I won't be dry til a week after I summit/. From here, it is up Bluff Mt and down to Punchbowl. Chill at Punchbowl for a while and head for Brown Mt Creek Shelter. Get past Pedlar Dam and watch the sunset over the reservoir. Headlamps alit, we head for home. Pow! Bam! Right in the kisser. I had been warned of the mud to come but scoffed at the suggestion that I hadn't seen worse. Nothing is comparable to the stretch from past the reservoir to the shelter. Soaking wet red clay for miles. You could only be mad for a short while before you had to start laughing. You had a lot of time to laugh. So we finally make it to the shelter, our footwear twice their original sizes. Eat a very late dinner and go to bed. Good day. New experience.
Date: 2003-06-20
From: Brown Mt Creek Shelter

To: Tye River
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: moderate rain

Wake up early in anticipation of making the free lunch in Montebello. Pit and Ponyboy sleep in. Oh well. We get an afternoon start with big miles planned. Waiting around all morning has sapped my motivation to even walk to the road where I palnned on slacking them from. When I hit US60, I set up shop and start hithcing to the Tye. Hitching with three packs is amusing. What did I do to the other two? Get to Tye River, via 4 hitches, set up and go to sleep in Pit's tent. Six hours later, they arrive. A nothing day.
Date: 2003-06-21
From: Tye River

To: The Hollow
Miles today: 9.0

Wake up early and head up to the MauHar Trail. Will meet the boys in Waynesboro in a couple of days. It is nude hiking day. Yippee! The MauHar is a disappointment; had idealized it too much, I guess. Get to Maupin Field and read hilarious register. Head for the Hollow. Arrive at the Hollow as everyone is leaving. Have Hollow to myself nearly all day. Soon, Bucky, Circus, Double A, SnotRocket, The Dude, Backtrak, Superfly and others show up. Much fun is had. Gotta love the Hollow.
Date: 2003-06-22
From: Hollow

To: Hollow
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Day at the Hollow. Goto Amish church for services. Are taken back to the house of some of the parishoners for a sunday smorgasbord. Yummy. Homemade everything, from the bread to the blueberry pie. Back at the Hollow, we fire up the sauna, the hot tub and the fire. Party well into the night.
Date: 2003-06-23
From: The Hollow

To: Turk Gap
Miles today: 13.0

Hang out in town with Rusty. He cashes my money order at his bank. Journal at the library. Make it out of town around four. Head into the Shenandoahs. 4 ticks in the first 3 miles. Motherfucker. There is nothing worse than ticks and there is no worse place for them than the Shennies. Am trying to catch up to Pit and Ponyboy. Hike into the night trying to do so. Walk thru the woods shouting "Pit, Ponyboy, Pit, Ponyboy" Must have sounded redaculous. But it worked. Off the trail, I finally hear a reply. "Yahtzee". I am home. Catch up with the boys and go to sleep. Just lay there, if you want to be literal.
Date: 2003-06-24
From: Turk Gap

To: Simmons Gap
Miles today: 23.0

Get up early and hike hard. There is no water for miles. Hike hard to Blackrock Hut, replenish and revive. Loft Mt campground is 7.5 away. Food and beer await. Get there absurdly early considering we have done over 15 miles. Ponyboy gets a sixer. Pit yogies a sixer from a military man. Two more sixers are had. HWI ensues. Hiking while intoxicated. Not bad, though. Make it to Simmons Gap and cook at the ranger station. Find a place on the southside of the road and set up camp. 23 miles, 24 beers, welcome to the Shenandoahs.
Date: 2003-06-25
From: Simmons Gap

To: Spring short of Big Meadows
Miles today: 24.8

Get up around 5:30. Can't say I have slept a wink in the last 2 or 3 days. Make it to Big Meadows by 6:30. Get's my coffee and paper. Find a tv room and chill watching sports scores until the boys show up. Get breakfast and move on out to Skyland. Get lunch at Skyland and move on out to the bar. I am exhausted and needing sleep but the whiskey is calling. Ponyboy gets word that the AC unit in his house broke thru the roof over his room and flooded his belongings. Drinks are on him. We doublefist Jack and cokes at 5 bucks a pop til we are drunk. Then we decide to hike on. I have stayed at the cliffs on Little Stony Man Mt three times, now. Evertime drunk. A great view of the lights of Luray greets us at the top. We settle in and recount two days of drinking. We could be anywhere. That's why I am not enamored with the Shennies. I must sleep tonite. I must. I can't. First spot is near an ant empire. Second spot is too rocky. Third spot will do. But it is in the middle of the trail. It is late, I don't expect anyone to pass by. No one passes by but Superfly sure does stumble well. After nearly walking over me, and then nearly stumbling off the cliff, he stumbles on. I am awake. I will remain awake again. Most sleepless nights are sufferable, this one is tortuous.
Date: 2003-06-26
From: Little Stony Man Mt

To: Compton Gap
Miles today: 28.0

I am a wreck. Lack of sleep has finally impaired my ability to hike. My concentration is non exisitent as I stumble down to Skyline drive. Will three pack hitch it again, meeting them at Elkwallow Gap. The bugs are insane and I have to hitch from the opposite side of the road. Must be a sight. Sad and miserable me. Finally get a hitch from former thruhiker, Bag Lady, to Panorama. From Panorama, first truck that passes gives me a ride. Once I know I will be at Elkwallow shortly I begin to fall asleep in the truck. Get to Elkwallow, eat, and go to sleep in the grass. Within 20 minutes of finally falling asleep for the first time in 4 day, I a woken up by Chaco. "Yahtzee it's raining" And so it is. I get up and crowd under the walkway. Awake. And damn near hallucinating. The macadam is rising and falling with my breathes. What a sorry state to be in. Slowly, I regain my senses and wait for the boys to arrive. Arrive they do, and with a story to be told. Seems they harrassed by a crazy women outside of a bathroom. She is weilding a knife, imagine that. She seems more scared than threatening. Still, it just adds to list of psychotic people out here this year. Decide to meet them at Compton Gap. Start hitching for there. Ranger pulls in next to me. Busted! Not at all, in fact, he was a thruhiker himself. We chat, I mention the crazy lady. He knows her, has talked to her, and she is crazy. This is the first she has brandished a weapon, though. So into action he springs. "115, this is 116,....." Another ranger lassoes Pit and Ponyboy ahead and they fill out teh requisite forms. Got my hitch from a ranger. Indeed. Make it to Compton Gap. Amidst a blazing sunset, a ranger cruiser flies by. Gotcha. And they did. Will sleep better tonite, if I sleep at all. Wlak about a half mile from the gap until we find a suitable camsite. Lay out and lay down. Please, let me sleep.
Date: 2003-06-27
From: Compton Gap

To: Dick's Dome
Miles today: 0.0

Wake up early due to crawling ants. Still, I slept a little. Victory. Head on down to Tom Floyd to wait for the boys. Wildflower rolls by and is headed into Front Royal. Says the PO is open late on Saturdays. Sit there for a while and decide to go in. Maybe this is the P.O. where I will get a package. et to the road and get a nice hitch into town. Handed a cold Heinekin right off the bat. Get to P.O., no love. Go to Pizz Hut. On way a car pulls over and hand us more beer out the window. Good town. Grocery shop. Chill out. I head up towards Linden. Not much room on the side for hitching, so I walk. A car pulls over and offers me a ride. Small talk, then bam! "Would you like to go to church with us tomorrow?" "No thanks, I am trying to meet up with my friends tonite." "Oh, well the trail is just right up there." Lets me off two miles from the trail. Right up there, his ass. Bad christian. Walk some more. Am offered another ride. He's a minister. Drives me to the trail armed with a pleasant demeanor and good questions. Drops me off with a "Good Luck". Good christian. Wait ont he boys. Someone just saw them a mile back. I wait and wait and wait. Two maybe three hours go by. Head for Manassas Gap shelter before it gets dark. Get there cook and decide to stay. Where could they be? What happened? With my sleep deficit still running high, my mind is weak and malleable to the most absurd notions. Later I hear two gunhots, pretty far off. In what seemed the exact amount of time needed to walk from the shots to where I was, flashlights appear. Must be them. Not. Those are big, handheld flashlights. These people are not hikers. Shitfuckdamn. They walk down the side trail to the shelter. I pack up as fast as possible. They come back up. I pause in mid squat next to my pack. They flash their lights on a sign, which I am en tableau directly behind. Deadman. Nothing doin', they head back south on the trail and stop. Pop some beers. No mind, I am out of there. I throw on my pack and carry my sleeping pad, and Ernie in my hands. Walk for miles without stopping to look back. It must be 2 in the morning. Finally make it to Dick's Dome Shelter and crash next to the shelter. Steppenwolf wakes up to stir the fire so I have someone to share the insanity with. It all sounds insane when you say it out loud, but in your head it is real. As real as my threesome with Selma Hayek and Ingrid Bergman. Near dawn, I fall asleep.
Date: 2003-06-28
From: Dick's Dome

To: Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Short day from Dick's Dome. Got a little but strong sleep once I arrived at the Dome last night. Roll into Rod Hollow early and decide to wait out Pit and Ponyboy. The wait lasts all day and all night. Where the hell could they be? Thankfully, I have good company at the shelter and my spirits are high enough for the first time in days to truly enjoy myself. Spend time chatting and joking and telling stories. Fall asleep early. The rollercoaster awaits.
Date: 2003-06-29
From: Rod Hollow Shelter

To: Harpers Ferry, WV
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Get up super early and head into the rollercoster with a good energy. Up and down I climb, up and down. For 10 miles without so much as stopping for water, I kick that rollercoasters ass. Get to Bear's Den by 9:15 am. By 10, I am at the road and hitching to Harpers Ferry. I am worried about the boys. Don't know where they could have gotten to. Hitch into Harpers Ferry. One of my rides was a former thruhiker Glenn ('79) who slipped me 40 bucks as I got out of the car. Arrive at ATC center in town. Not more than five minutes later, Pit and Ponyboy arrive. They ahd stopped short the first night, woke up at 3am and hiked 31 the next day, and had hiked 18 by 1pm today. An unlikely scenario.They are spent. We get food, drinks and head for the Comfort Inn. Take the rest of the day off lounging in our room.
Date: 2003-06-30
From: Harpers Ferry, WV

To: Crampton Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hang around the hotel until exactly checkout--get lunch---meander up the C&O Towpath. Climb out of Harpers Ferry and enter Maryland. Chill at Ed Garvey for a minute until a kid's group arrives and starts a cacophony. Pass another group of camper/hikers obviously from the city. One is furious, one is freaking because she is surrounded by a bug. Back of the pack is a a girl, crying and miserable, dragging her backpack behind her. We followed the trail of her backpack for over a mile. Laughing the whole way. Get to Gathland State Park, cook dinner and move on, to camp in the dark. This nighthiking has become commonplace. It is nice to hit some easy trail. Md is a breeze. Too bad it only lasts 36 miles.
Date: 2003-07-01
From: Past Compton Gap Shelter

To: Warner Gap Road
Miles today: 23.0

Wake up with thoughts of the Dog Patch on our minds. Hike to the original Washington Monument. Pretty Cool. Head to the saloon for refreshments. Really don't feel like drinking, so I stuff myself instead. Listen to choice county on the jukebox, play some pool, and bullshit with the bikers. Head out for the PA border. After crappy water situation at Cornwall Shelter we move out in the dark headed for the border. Not gonna happen. Big miles aren't hard, but big miles at night over rocks is. We fall short by 6 miles. Ignoring the no camping sign, we camp near a spring. Tomorrow the north. These days of N. Va, WV, MD and Pa are pretty nondescript.
Date: 2003-07-02
From: Warner Gap Road

To: Rocky Mountain Shelters
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: light rain

Get an early start and head for PA. Reach the border and let out a Yankee holla. Forget to take picture and move on. We are hungry and looking forward to town food. et to road and are offered a ride to Waynesboro. Get fried chicken and resupply from the Food Lion, read the newspaper and head back to the trail. Well, well, a legitimate climb. Short but up. Glad with food, nothing fazes us and we make it to Rocky Mountain Shelters after dark. The spring is back down to the road we just crossed. Argh. The bugs are horrendous. In the middle of the night, I move to the other shelter, seems to make a difference. Wake up super early and head down to Caldonia State Park. Call mom. She offers to come and get me. The offer is too good to refuse. The concept of sleeping in my own bed, the concept of sleeping is too luxurious to pass up. She gets there in record time. Still no boys. Must have slept in. Was gonna slack 'em to Pine Grove, but alas, we must go. Spend rest of day in domestic bliss.
Date: 2003-07-13
From: Before Yellow Srings campsite

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 23.0
Weather: few clouds

Wake up and move. Big day planned. Will make it to 501 and wait for Pit's friends tomorrow. Saw a bear early on near the Cold Spring Trail. Got a good look. Would say it was a 2-3 year old adolescent. This lifts my spirits and carries me thru the day. It is such an honor to see a bear and to see one so near my home is an additional thrill. Kinda float the rest of the way to the shelter. Don't remember too much. Hung out at Swatara Gap, got some free cookies. Nothing really to impede progress. Make it to the shelter relatively early and hang out with the magazines and free fried chicken. No phone, though. Pit and I will have to hitch to Pine Grove in the morning. Chill out and go to sleep. A good first full day back on the trail.
Date: 2003-07-14
From: 501 Shelter

To: Port Clinton
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: clear sky

Head down into Pine Grove to call Pit's friends and see when they arrive. Phone troubles keep us there for a couple of hours. Finally, they call our payphone. They are 8.5 hours away. We decide to head for Port Clinton. Hit the trail at 12:30pm. They weather is perfect, but there is a bunch of miles ahead. Take the day big chunks at a time. 4 miles here, 5 miles there. Make it to Philip's Canyon Spring by dark, only four miles left. Pit and I are very tired and only want to be done. Alas, we have 4 rocky miles and a kneebreaker of a downhill at the end. Suffer the last few miles and start downhill. The feet are screaming. Get near the bottom and see the town lights. Less than 10 feet from the road, I go down. Straight down on a rock with my knee. Ouch!! Get up quick and head for town. Always, get up quick. Make it to the pavilion, where the Bridgettes are waiting for us. It is 11:30 pm. We cook dinner and hit the sack.
Date: 2003-07-15
From: Port Clinton

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

Yippee!! We get to slackpack today. Bridgette i svery pleased since this is her first day on the trail and the hills are bigger than she expected. We all move along at a good pace. Take a break at Windsor Furnace Shelter. It is a beautiful day. Climb up to Pulpit Rock where Charity and Hopeful are resting. A few military types are practicing roping techniques of the side of the mountain. They give us some goodies, Gatorade powder and cookies, and we move on. Reach the Pinnacle and take in the vista. Some younger military types are being drilled in compass and map. Everytime they are barked at, Pit and I smile. Ex-military men have no sympathy. Take a long break, get some pictures and move on for Eckville. We reach Eckville the same time as the caretaker, Lazee Mick. First thing he says to me, "Does that have a filter on it, cos if it does its gonna have to go. I ain't picking up your shit". "Nope, a rollie", I reply seething. What an asshole. He continues to bark out obscure rules at hikers. Who needs this? Not I. If Bridgette weren't here, I'd be gone. As it is, I head across the street to the camping area and don't return. Lazee Mick has really screwed that place up. What a shame. The trail is being inundated with rules. The result of bad hikers? Probably. I ain't one of 'em though, so the rules and how they are administered stick in my craw. Like wearing a tie to school. Cut off the oxygen to the brain, how can you learn. Take away the freedom, why hike? Lay out reading and getting bit up. Finally move into the shower/bathroom in the yard when the bugs get too bad. Lucky for me. The rains start 10 minutes later. I sleep well on the carpet in front of the shower. Another day with a bad taste in my mouth. Spit.