morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-09-12
From: Harper's Ferry

To: Bear's Den hostel
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: overcast clouds

I yawned awake. I stretched my arms; it caused my body to arch under the softest sheets I've ever experienced. We'd been wined and dined the night before and entertained with excellent conversation. We were spoiled with a hot breakfast: seasonal fruit and fresh ground coffee so that we would be well-fueled for the day's slackpack - one final gift from our new friends. They say that since you can not give back, you must give forward. But how could I ever hope to repay the generosity of such spectacular hosts? These people who went above and beyond to enrich our journey? What retribution I must owe to them and all who have had our AT hike possible. In my mind I see them - like a montage set to the song "Shenandoah," a song has been in my head since we crossed it this morning: the hostel in Monson who helped us tend our wounds, the AMC employee whispered to us the location of staff laundry upon seeing us soaked and shivering, the northbounders who shared their plate of fresh baked brownies, the upper-crust couple who gave us a hitch in their luxury vehicle because they read "A Walk in the Woods," the fella from NY who's entire truckload was trail magic, the NJ boy scouts who shared their energy bars, the internet friend who reported on PA water conditions, the trail maintainer we saw clipping vegetation, the ridge runner researching trail usage, and the creative caretaker who thought to create "snoring" and "non-snoring" shelters. Every day I step on a path made possible by the giving and hard work of others. Last year alone 6,028 volunteers gave 196,000 man hours to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, trail groups, and hiking clubs. Countless others contribute with small acts of kindness: a lift, packing out extra trash, etc.. In half the trail, we have received so many examples of giving, benefited from so many acts of kindness that it will require more than a lifetime of giving forward...and what an excellent goal that will be.
Date: 2008-09-13
From: Bear's Den hostel

To: Rod Hollow shelter
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: few clouds

If you ask former thru-hikers what has changed about the AT the answer comes quickly: technology, specifically cell phones. Just yesterday afternoon we rushed to a mountain top so that Hank could have reception for his conference call. I have a feeling he had the best office view! I often pull the phone out for a quick weather report or to coordinate an upcoming visitation. When I was sick, Hank was able to find a doctor, a hotel and a taxi accessible by the nearest road all because of our smart phone. We are not technology-junkies and can remember the days before personal computers. I can operate a rotary phone ¢ in fact I spent many an hour wrapped in its long cord as I gossiped in the kitchen. Many days we do not even turn on our phone, but it is nice to have it there. It is nice to be connected.
Date: 2008-09-14
From: Rod Hollow shelter

To: Tom Floyd wayside
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Death by poison, it is their preferred method for disposing of their prey. They inject their venom through hollow fangs which they quickly sink into their victim. Hank was such a victim, and I came close to being another. It is the duty of the hiker in front to take out the spiderwebs; today¢s task was overwhelming. Fifteen minutes and several dozen webs into my turn I ceased counting because some tallies are bad for morale. I took many a web to the face. Goliath-sized spiders ran down my arms, but I was unscathed. Hank was not so lucky. Five minutes into his turn one chomped down on his hands as he tried to remove the webbing from his fingers. Poor Hank. Our next encounter with a poisonous foe came within the half hour and was much scarier: a copperhead. This time it was my turn to shout the expletive. I saw it in the nick of time, just before my foot touched down on its tan and brown body stretched out across the trail. My momentum was too great to stop so I lept/sidestepped into the shrubs. Hank (very lucky this time) must have stepped over it ¢ those rascals are camouflaged which had gotten it irritated because it was poised in striking position when I reached it. Talk about an adrenaline rush! Whew!
Date: 2008-09-16
From: Skyland

To: Swift Run Gap
Miles today: 25.1

Hank¢s in-depth philosophical studies qualify him to speak on the matter in great detail. However, I have no such education and so what follows in merely my ridiculous musings: today I experienced pure being.My body was broken and exhausted from hiking nearly 60 miles in two days. My mind was wasted after spending the morning lost in numbers. I was emotional spent from constant roller coasters from natural highs like seeing the bear run down the trail this morning down to tears over nonsense. I was empty, yet I kept hiking and hiking and hiking and hiking.Late in the afternoon, as I continued to pace down the Shenandoah¢s trails lined in soft green grass, I realized I could feel nothing, sense nothing. I thought nothing. I simply¢¦was.I told Hank I had just experienced pure being. He laughed and asked if I needed an early water break.
Date: 2008-09-17
From: Swift Run Gap

To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 24.8
Weather: clear sky

As we ate a slice of bread homemade by a family of trail magicians¢¦(When I write ¢slice,¢ I mean ¢quarter loaf.¢ By ¢homemade¢ I mean they even mill their own grain. ¢Family of trail magicians¢ translates to ¢super friendly people spoiling us rotten as we hike the Shenandoah¢s.¢) Anyway, as we snacked on bread on a rocky outcrop overlooking the soft brick reds and subdued greens of the valleys below, Hank commented that John Muir was said to have packed with him a loaf of bread and a bit of tea when he explored the woods. Hank liked this connection. For the rest of the day I thought of John Muir and his nature writings. I often traveled this way. I watched the seasons change in the prairie with Aldo Leopold. Robert Service took me prospecting in the Yukon. I studied wolves with Farley Mowat and gorillas with Jane Goodall. In Walden¢s woods, I too lived deliberately. As I swished through the leaves listening to the calls of crows and ravens, as we watched a bear sniff about the ground before staring at us with dark eyes above its cinnamon nose, as we paused to watch a black-throated blue warbler bounce about the branches, I thought: I am living the same kind of adventure about which I used to read, and this time it is recorded in my own words. How cool.
Date: 2008-09-18
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: clear sky

We picked peaches straight from the tree ¢ sweet, juicy tiny peaches. The trail in early Fall is loaded with tasty treats: crisp apples from old orchards, sugary muscadines grapes ¢ their rich scent wafts great distances, soft persimmons ¢ not the ones that make you pucker, but the deep orange ones that send you running back to the tree for more. Autumn is delightfully delicious.
Date: 2008-09-20
From: Tye River

To: Jar Jacket Ridge
Miles today: 18.5

They call it the ¢Priest.¢ A 3000+ ft continual climb up a 4000+ ft peak. I reckon it must be named after one of those snake handling preachers, because an Episcopal chaplain would have merited a much milder climb!Actually, I did not think it was so bad¢¦Then again, I had the pleasure of hiking it packless since, in one final act of uberkindness, our friend Ozone carried my gear up the mountain so that I might keep pace with him and Hank.I will miss our friends in Waynesboro. I feel lucky to have gotten to spend an extended amount of time with such good folk. The trail is difficult like that. You must always move past the grand people you meet. You cannot idle long at the beautiful places that beckon you stay forever. Journeys are like that I guess: with the coming and going of friends, places, things. More awaits down the trail.So we hike on and the trail entertains us with new delights such as a summer tanager and a bunch of puffer mushrooms much in need of puffing (so we obliged). Hank was tickled as I conversed with a barred owl. We munched on apples from old orchards. We hiked paths lined with wildflowers. At one particularly spectacular view Hank observed, ¢Well this hike just gets happier and happier.¢
Date: 2008-09-21
From: Jar Jacket Ridge

To: Matts Creek shelter
Miles today: 31.0
Weather: overcast clouds

To use Hank¢s words, the sky was a ¢constellation map¢ when we peaked our heads out of the tent. As always he remained inside to stuff-sac the fluffy sleeping bags that kept us so cozy during the cold night. I walked into the woods to fetch the bearbag and to organize the snacks and meals for the day. By the time we finished packing, we could hardly move our frozen fingers. The sun rise was too pretty to pass up. Every moment it added new colors, new shades of pink, gold, and indigo. Every moment more and more purple silhouettes of mountains emerged in the distance.Normally we ate breakfast on the trail as a break, but today we needed more time to watch the sky, so instead, we took it at camp. Purple clouds rimmed in orange against the barely blue backdrop. As we sat watching in the grass, we cuddled for warmth.
Date: 2008-09-22
From: Matts Creek shelter

To: VA 614
Miles today: 26.4

The Reign of Terror saw the execution of thousands. Nobility, intellectuals, politicians, and prostitutes all found death under the guillotine. Execution by decapitation. A heavy blade suspended by a tall upright frame.Crowds came to watch. They bought programs that listed the itinerary of the soon-to-be-deceased. The sharp angular blade fell, slicing the head from the victim ¢ a head which landed in a basket and was then hoisted up for the crowd.We hiked under the ¢Guillotine.¢ A heavy rock suspended by two tall upright boulders. It was well named as it resembles the real thing I saw while in Paris¢ Musee Carnavalet.The day was sunny. There were no crowds. The rock had likely been suspended like that for thousands of years. Still, I must admit, as I passed underneath, I was the slightest bit nervous!
Date: 2008-09-23
From: VA 614

To: US 220
Miles today: 28.1

Normally, it is one of my best creative places: a candlelit bath. The hot water requires me to ease in slowly. I love it and the flickering shadows cast upon the walls.I have plenty about which I could write. Every mile on the trail leaves us with views and adventures worthy of ten thousand words.But I hiked hard today, and as I melt into the steam of the tub the only thought that comes to mind is "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..."
Date: 2008-09-24
From: US 220

To: hwy 111
Miles today: 0.0

We slept soundly in the familiar bed of a long time family friend. After a french toast breakfast and a stern warning not to do the dishes, we were whooshed away to the trail by my uncle, who would hike with us this morning. We pilgrimed past Tinker Creek up the dusty path to Hay Rock. My uncle carried on about how he'd not hiked these hills since he was a boy. His stories were full of names we did not know from a time years before us, but in my mind I could see a younger him scampering through the thicket with his buddies from Camp Nimrod.At the first overlook we hugged sweaty hugs. We hiked on, but I turned back often to wave.Up on the Tinker Cliffs I lay on my back and breathed in the perfect clear sky. I felt connected here. Silly maybe, but I loved it all the same.We hiked on to McAfee Knob. At the dinner party the night before it had been revealed that my mother and her two best friends would hike to the Knob every Thanksgiving. I can remember as a child watching her go off. Gran kept me and my brothers busy with games of Monopoly, but I always wondered where she disappeared to. Now I have been there too and seen the same green valleys of Virginia spread out below.We did not linger long. Further down the trail awaited something grander: a meeting with another family friend and with our biggest fan - my daddy. I was practically running.
Date: 2008-09-25
From: hwy 111

To: Nidday shelter
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: overcast clouds

"This feels like we are climbing the stairs to an Ogre's house," said Hank pulling himself up a large, slippery boulder. "What would you say to the Ogre if you saw him?" I asked balancing on the slanted stones. Hank changed his voice and meeked, "Please don't eat me!"
Date: 2008-09-26
From: Nidday shelter

To: VA 613
Miles today: 23.3

After twenty miles of sloshing trail, when day has passed to night, the trail is growing ever rockier, and the rain continues to fall, it is time to call it a day, even if you fall short of your intended goal.A flat, grassy spot appears from nowhere. Hank works quickly to erect the tent in between the droplets. We are quite the team getting stuff inside - the sleeping bags are dry, fluffy and enticing. I cook dinner with similar speed.Hank calls my attention to two shining eyes watching us from the dark. They stare with great interest. Something small: a weasel? No, a kitten. It scampers off.
Date: 2008-09-27
From: VA 613

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

6 hours and 36 minutes into our hike the trail dipped us down out of the mist.For the 6h36m before this moment the woods were masked in fog as thick as peanut butter. The bright colors of early fall were colored pastel, as if all the world were an Monet. We hiked close together so as not to lose the other.Then, 6h36m into the hike we stepped below the cloud. Hank commented that it was like seeing the woods in hi-def. The colors popped: the yellow of the smilax and the pink of the black gum were in fact neon! We could see the rocks under our feet, the twisting bare branches of trees, individual blades of grass.At 6 hours 38 minutes, the trail turned upward and we were back in the fog once again.
Date: 2008-09-28
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Our bodies begged to remain in bed, so we obliged them and took our first zero day since New York. Time to rest our bodies. Time for Hank to work. Time to learn new tricks - like how to open a beer bottle with a quarter, a lesson compliments of a rough, tough lookin' fella with "hate" tattooed on one set of knuckles and "love" on the other.
Date: 2008-09-29
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: small stand of white pines
Miles today: 19.5

I am quick to choose a stealth spot, but Hank flirts with the oncoming dark while he looks for the perfect place to camp.He found it. A small grassy area hidden from the trail. A makeshift fire ring indicated we were not the first to discover today's treasure.I set up the stove in the stove ring. Hank sets up the tent on a flat straw bed in a clear center under the white pines. Hank threw the bear bag and lands the branch first try. I unroll the mats and the sleeping bags in the tent as I wait for the water to boil. It does ,and I pour it into the ziplock freezer bag to dehydrate tonight's culinary delight - tuna casserole.In the pot the dried peas and rice soak up the water. Outside the pot Hank blows on his harmonica and reads Winfield. Hank looks up."I hope we don't shiver the whole night through," he said.I didn't understand so he pointed to the trees above our tent and sang, "In the pines, in the pines where the sun don't ever shine, I shivered the whole night through."I told him I think we'd be alright. I could think of few better ways to get a good night's rest than a hot dinner, a pine straw floor, and the fluffy warmth of goose feathers.
Date: 2008-09-30
From: small stand of white pines

To: ?
Miles today: 0.0

I was not feeling the trail today, beautiful though it was all decked out in its fall colors and valley views. My body did not want to hike. My mind spent all day scheming how to escape to the comfort of a hotel.Minutes lasted millenia. Miles tripled in length under my feet.I drove myself crazy. Likely drove Hank crazy too.No, Hank was my motivator. He sympathized and offered a hug. He helped me over I-77 - a straight shot to home. He pushed me forward. He encouraged me onward. He helped me climb my mental mountains.At camp, we drank tea and watched the pink sky fade to black. I realized I was back to my old self again and thanked my husband. I would not be able to do this hike without him.
Date: 2008-10-02
From: Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 25.5
Weather: broken clouds

I believe it is at mile 15 of the Chicago Marathon that the aid station workers provide the runners with banana halves. It is the classic comedy set up: thousands of leftover banana peels covering the street to create chaos for us slower runners toward the end of the pack. Anyone who¢s ever watched a cartoon knows the consequences of a runner and a banana peel.Banana trees are tropical, and so this hazard has not been a concern of mine while hiking. Oh, I should have recalled the Loony Toons lessons from my youth, for there is more than one way to slip up a traveler. The trail choose marbles.The trail may look like a red carpet. The rich crimson leaves cover the path so densely one might think they were VIPs at a Hollywood premier. But walker beware! Under those leaves hide the hazard: acorns. Thousands of acorns, millions of acorns.I have not read any recent studies or reports on the subject, but from personal observation I will say that this was a very good year for acorns! The tiny round nuts are thick beneath our feet. Sometimes my shoes will not even touch dirt, but just slip and slide across the sea of acorns. And how did Hank handle this challenge set forth by the Quercus species in the woods? He ran! The rascal ran down the mountains and powered the ups! I was flabbergasted. I wondered if somehow his morning poptarts were caffeinated. Na. We were meeting his mother this afternoon. Few things motivate so well as family.
Date: 2008-10-03
From: Ashville

To: Ashville
Miles today: 0.0

It was my first time putting on make-up since Paris. Did I even remember how? Yes, silly Andrea. It¢s mascara, not advanced trigonometry.Lip gloss, earrings, and a dress later, I am laughing with old friends and making small talk with new ones over Sauvignon Blanc and roast asparagus. The night grows colder and I wish my dress had sleeves.After toasts and tears, an Australian builds a bonfire. We bring over our fine cigars and (Heaven be praised) our single malt scotch. Conversation flickers and pops like the flames. I learn the particulars of the inner workings of Wall Street from a NYC accountant.I feel wide-eyed, like the chipmunks we pass on the trail. They stare at us as we hike. When we pass, they dart away and hide under the leaves.The economist begins in on short selling in a free market economy. Oh, how I envy those chipmunks!
Date: 2008-10-05
From: Ashville

To: Saluda
Miles today: 0.0

Though I might wish it would, real life does not stop when we are on the trail. As we¢ve hiked these past 1600 miles, we¢ve occasionally peaked our heads out to watch the chess/wrestling match that is the presidential race and to learn that the unfortunate economy has slipped even further. Normally we shriek an ¢eek¢ and disappear back into the forest.Alas, real life is always waiting for us when we re-emerge. We zeroed again. Hank makes faces at the computer screen and types rapidly on the keyboard. In need of a break from bills, I blog. Yet, I catch myself easily distracted by the mountain view from the porch. They are calling me, and I am desperate to return .I feel so lucky that we will soon be able to do so. I do not under-appreciate the treasure that is the Appalachian Trail.
Date: 2008-10-06
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Hurricane Campground
Miles today: 16.6

Hooray: We ate doughnuts for breakfast!Hooray:   We are back on the trail!Hooray: My brother is hiking with us!Hooray: The trees are beginning to peak!Boo Hiss: Trimpi shelter¢s spring is NOT reliable. The guide book lied.Hooray: The temperature is lovely and mild!Boo Hiss: Our water filter died.Hooray: Coners Creek gifted us a spectacular waterfall!Boo Hiss: A yellow jacket stings Michael.Boo Hiss: More yellow jackets sting Michael.Boo Hiss: Yellow jackets sting Michael horribly.Hooray: A night at a campground with tenting and restrooms.Boo Hiss: Dinner tastes terrible, absolutely terrible. Hooray: Pecan twirls!
Date: 2008-10-07
From: Hurricane Campground

To: Wilburn Ridge
Miles today: 17.0

Oh, the colors! Brilliant, beautiful colors. Bright oranges, rich reds, and deep browns mosaic the forest floor. Distant mountains are patchworks of scarlet, ginger, olive and saffron. Golden leaves flicker and fall like confetti. I love it! I love it! I love it!
Date: 2008-10-08
From: Wilburn Ridge

To: Virginia Creeper Trail
Miles today: 16.7

I awoke to the muffled gallops outside the tent. I emerged out into the gray, but the fog was too thick to see. I might have been sad that the haze masked the brilliant colors we enjoyed so much yesterday, but the fog created such a fairy tale quality to the hills that I found it quite enchanting.We hiked into the hills and into the clouds that veiled them. The air was saturated; tiny water droplets clung to our eye lashes and kissed our cheeks. The morning sun through the opaque air cast an ethereal light upon the patches of blond pastures.We moved through the maze of giant boulders and emerged into a field. Golden grasses and short sedges leaned gently in the breeze. Then, more beautiful than I could possibly imagine I saw what I had so wanted to see: two wild ponies stepping out of the mist. Their manes hung long on their necks and in their soft brown eyes. The wet air dampened their wild, thick fur and tangled the draping hair on their tails. The bay pony approached us. It nuzzled the fingers of Michael¢s outstretched hand. I thought my heart might melt.   The cr me colored pony lifted its head and watched as the bay followed us down the trail. Eventually, the trail turned higher and the mist reclaimed the pony for itself.
Date: 2008-10-10
From: Damascus

To: Double Spring Shelter
Miles today: 18.3
Weather: clear sky

Because milestones are fun to think about.Today, we finished hiking Virginia, the state with the longest section of trail. Eleven down, three to go.In two days we will only have 400 miles to go.In three days we will have hiked 1800 miles.In less than a week, we¢ll only have 300 miles to go.And after that we¢ll hit the 1900 miles marker.In a week and a half, we¢ll be under 200 miles to go and climb the tallest peak on the trail.In less than two weeks time, we¢ll have hiked 2000 miles and we¢ll have knocked out Tennessee. In two and a half weeks, we¢ll have less than 100 miles to go.Milestones are fun to think about. Fun and sad.
Date: 2008-10-11
From: Double Spring Shelter

To: Laural Fork
Miles today: 29.5

Last night I fell asleep early, really early, before sunset (and the sun is setting increasingly earlier these days.) Hank sat beside me and read his philosophy, as always.I am deeply dreaming when Hank startles me awake. The night is black. Hank exclaims, ¢Andrea! There is a mouse!¢He shines his headlamp on a tiny guy scurrying across the rafters.1733 miles in and we are just now experiencing the joys of shelter mice. Hank tells me the shelter has lots of them, that one even watch him as he read his Hegel. We listen to them run across the metal roofing.Hank asks if he should set up the tent. I yawn and ask why he even woke me up in the first place. Then, a particularly bold rascal runs down the wall and dives into Hank shoe. This is too much for poor Hank who declares he is fetching the tent.I¢m sleepy and my bag is comfy. Since no one is with us, I propose that we sleep long-ways in the shelter in the floor¢s center away from the walls (a.k.a mouse super highways). We use all the mouse trapezes, hanging all our gear including Hank¢s shoes. I pull the electronics bag in my sleeping bag with me and cuddle it like a teddy bear. No need to have rodents ruining the wires.As I doze, Hank continues to pause from his work in order to spotlight a mouse as it darts across the beams.