morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-03-29
From: NOC

To: Locust Cove Gap
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

Well, sports fans, I'm not going sugar coat the news: today was not a good day - my first really "not a good day" of my hike. The problem is simple - my right knee is killing me. The problem started last week, and was noticeable during my stop in Franklin. It got progressively worse during the 28 miles from Franklin to the NOC, which was the main reason for taking a zero day there yesterday. I had hoped a day's layoff might help, but apparently not.Our original plan was to hike just seven miles today, as it was all uphill. Apparently, however, and despite my knee problem, our hiker legs have kicked in as we covered the seven miles in less than five hours, and arrived at Sassafras Gap Shelter by noon. There was a good sized crowd there having lunch, but everyone was inclined to keep going to the next place with water and a place to camp - which was Locust Cove Gap.While my knee was hurting, I figured it would be better to do an additional three miles today, leaving me with only 18 miles for the next two days than to stop early and have 21 miles to go.I took a few more aspirin and hiked the three miles in about two hours, arriving before the main group. There are more than a dozen tents set up in the clearing here, including me, BfM, Hopeful Hiker, Red Hat, Hareball, Phoenix, Snowman, Buzz, and several new hikes whose names I can't remember.As a plus for the day, the weather was gorgeous, with clear skies offering wonderful vistas at the top of a couple of mountains. It did warm up considerably, which brought out the bugs, but it was still worth it. I'm bug free here in my tent working on my journal.At this point, I don't really know what is going to happen with my hike. I am confident I can make the 18 miles into Fontana Dam by Thursday night as planned, but what will happen after that depends essentially on my knee. Time will tell.Today's hike is dedicated to my wife, once again--the light of my life, my rock, and the best thing that has ever happened to me. Thanks, Babe, for all your support.Stay tuned, Longhaul(Editor¢s Note)Hang in there, Longhaul. We¢re all cheering for you. Just remember to listen to your body and take a break when you need to. It¢s not a marathon. Hike your own hike.Tenacious Tanasi (Shelly Hale)
Date: 2005-03-30
From: Locust Cove Gap

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: broken clouds

Today was very much a repeat of yesterday - both in terms of making fairly good time, which allowed us to do 11.6 miles despite my knee and setting up a 6.6 mile hike into Fontana Dam for tomorrow, and in terms of my knee hurting really bad whenever the effects of my aspirin wore off.I did manage to keep up with the herd, which was encouraging if painful at times. It doesn't hurt as much on the uphill side, and we had one today that just seemed like it was never going to end.The weather, fortunately, was sunny once again, which brightened my mood and provided a number of good vista views.As we neared the end of a long day's hike, less than a mile from the shelter at which we're staying, we encountered two ladies up from St. Augustine Florida - Erin and Rita - who were doing trail magic at a road crossing. They had done a section hike, and got to talking to Hopeful Hiker, and the next thing I knew I was enjoying cold ale, crackers and cheese, and humus. (I understand from Hopeful and Red Hat that THEY got some strawberries as well - one of the penalties of being slow, I guess. If I heard them correctly, Erin and Rita are giving some thought to hiking the trail themselves, so we steered them in the direction of Trailjournals.com to check it out. (Hey, Ladies - you were super trail angels today. Thanks a ton!Tomorrow I will get into Fontana Dam, the kickoff point for the six or seven days hike through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The question I will face is whether or not I think my knee is up to that particular challenge. I can't say even tonight what the outcome may be - as I just don't know. I will probably only make a final decision Friday morning when I wake up.Today's hike is dedicated to whomever it was that discovered aspirin....Stay tuned, Longhaul(Editor¢s Note)Well, Longhaul, I couldn¢t find out exactly who discovered aspirin because the active ingredients have actually been in use since at least 400 BC when Hippocrates of Kos, also known as the father of medicine, was documented as prescribing a tea extract from the bark of the willow tree for pain, fever, and labor. However, I did find out who was able to refine the process for creating acetylsalicylic acid also known as active ingredient in aspirin. His name was Felix Hoffman, and he worked for ¢can you guess it ??? Friedrich Bayer & Company. I found this information on   http://www.didyouknow.cd/aspirin.htm. That¢s all for today¢s neat facts.Tenacious Tanasi (Shelly Hale)
Date: 2005-04-15
From: Home

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Ok, there's good news and there's better news! The good news is that yesterday's knee operation went smoothly. I even decided to stay awake this time and just do the knee "block" so that I could watch the operation on the camera monitor. It was fascinating, and there was clearly some cleaning up to do of the inside of my knee. The even better news came this morning when I was able to begin to put some weight on the knee. There was almost NO pain!! The reason that is important to me is that I was unsure how much of the pain I had when hiking was from the miniscus tear and how much might have been from the stress fracture. The answer: almost all of the pain was from the miniscus, NOT the tibia. YESSSSSSSSSSSSS! So, now I give it 48 hours (24 more, today), and get the wrap off. Meanwhile, I am already doing some muscle exercises to keep the knee limber. I will stay on the crutches for the next week, and then slowly begin to work on walking again without them. Each day, and with careful attention to how the leg feels, I will increase the distance until I am "back in business". In short, all systems are "go", and now it is only a matter of time until I am back on the trail. The key, of course, will be to NOT become impatient and rush the healing process, thus jepardizing the whole enterprise. It won't be easy, but it's still all about "hiking smart."Meanwhile, yesterday afternoon while I was "napping", my wife took a call from Phoenix who rang to check up on how I am doing. They talked for about 20 minutes and my wife was able to experience more first hand the kind of friendships that develop on the trail in surprisingly short periods of time. It really is impressive, and wonderful, and I just can't WAIT to get back to that kind of experience. She and I also talked about how I am doing in facing up to the challenge of being off the trail. She said she was impressed with how well I was doing in facing up to the tremendous disappointment of being out there. I told here I was also pleased, and that I had simply relied on what I had learned from her about dealing with such challenges. But frankly, it was also reassuring to me that it really was about the journey itself, and how that was going, and encouraging that I was not overly distressed with my current situtation. I take it as continued evidence of my progress in getting rid of "Worrier Man" -- that paragon of negative thinking that was so much a part of my pre-hike persona. In fact, I'm not sure what happened to him, as he clearly did not accompany me to Springer Mountain, and he hasn't shown up here at home after a week, so that is kind of encouraging as well.Moving along, and to keep me "oriented", I hope to start tomorrow with journal entries going back to my earlier section hikes of the AT so that my experiences on those hikes will be recoreded in my journal. That will be good for my soul, and help to keep my focus on the journey that really started almost three years ago.   Stay tuned! Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-21
From: Blackrock Shelter

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: moderate rain

(A continuation of the record of my section hike of the SNP in August, 2003.)Day three began with a climb up to the summit of Blackrock Mountain. Just after we reached the summit, which had some nice views off to the west, we started around the northern side and came to this incredible rock slide where a whole chunk of the mountain had obviously been shaken loose and just slid down the hill. It was an awesome sight, though a bit treacherous to get over as the trail traversed the slide for a distance of about 100 yards. We descended the mountain, finally reaching the side trail to Loft Mountain campgrounds where Spook had agreed to meet his wife. We parted company sadly, wishing each other luck, and I then limped on down the trail. I had begun to learn to tighten up everything that might rub or otherwise cause friction, and that seemed to help in terms of reducing futher wear and tear, but the damage had already been done. I had done my best to patch up my feet with gauze and duct tape, and was grateful to have those handy, but hiking on sore feet is still not my idea of a good time. Still, I was pleased to be able to continue my hike and was able to make reasonably good time. I did the 13 miles at about 2 miles an hour when hiking,and got to the Pinefield Hut before 5 pm. The bad news was that, once again, it rained during the afternoon. This became very much a pattern for the hike, as it rained for some part of each of the first six days! The good news was that this at least meant that water sources were available. In dry years, many of the springs dry up, especially during the later summer months. In fact, the guide book noted that the water source for Pinefield Hut - a small stream that ran near the shelter - was unrealiable during the summer. When I arrived, however, it was a veritable river, rushing happily down its course, a welcome site for a thirsty hiker. The stream had one other advantage, which I discovered later as I retired for the night: sleeping next to sound of a gugglining stream makes for a very restful nights sleep. It's kind of like white noise, drowning out the unfamiliar night sounds that might otherwise have kept me awake. Things like acorns falling onto the tin rood of the hut, and mice scurring about looking for food.As this was my first night all alone in a shelter, out in the woods where I knew that bears lived, I have to admit that I was just a bit nervous as I climbed into my tent -- set up once again in side the shelter. Somehowe, I found the noise of the stream to be especially comforting and was soon fast asleep. stay tuned, Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-21
From: Rock Spring Hut

To: Pass Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 16.3

(A continuation of the record of my AT section hike in the SNP in August, 2003.)Day Seven was a longer hike - about 16 miles, but over familiar territory. For the previous year I had been doing trail maintenance work with my mentor, Cathie Cummins, on the section of the AT that runs from the horse barns at Skyland down to the Passamaquady trail - about a mile and a half. It also goes past Stony Man Mountain and Little Stony Man Cliffs. The good news was that my feet were finally beginning to heal, now that I had figured out how to prevent the worst of the blisters and had taped down my poor little piggies so they didn't bang so hard against my boots on the downhills. The bad news is that, whenever you have a mountain named stoney man, you gotta figure that the trail is going to include rocks. Lots of rocks. MOSTLY rocks. And rocks is hard on the feets. (I am reminded of an account of a journalist doing a piece on the AT who asked a through-hiker if he could sum up his thoughts about the trail after having spent five months hiking from Georgia to Maine. The response: "I hate rocks!"   I could relate. In addition to Stony Man the trail also passes Mary's Rock, a famous overlook at the top of the last mountain before you descend into Thornton Gap, and just after that it begins the climb up Pass Mountain. I had stayed a couple of times before at the Pass Mountain Shelter, so I was looking forward to getting their once again. I reached the shelter relatively early, and managed to round up enough dry wood to start a fire. I took off my socks and tried to dry them by the fire, but to no avail. The humidity was still just too high. Once again, I was the only person staying at the shelter, so I set my tent up inside. It was a quiet night, and I was already beginning to contemplate the end of my hike -- only two more days. Still, I was looking forward to getting back to civilization, including restaurant food, as my trail dinners were getting to be a bit old. The good news, of course, as this was the end of six days, was that my pack was gradually lightening up. I had started out with what I figured would be eight days food - over 16 pounds in all - so every day helped to lighten my load.The only thing I would have liked at that point was a bit more company. It's not that I minded hiking by myself. In fact, I found it kind of nice as it allowed me to let my mind go and think about all kinds of things I wouldn't normally have time for. But at the end of the day, its also nice to have some company. To share thoughts about what the trail was like that day, or the weather, or whatever. It wasn't bad being alone, and I was pleased to note that I was getting used to being out there in the woods, all by myself, with whatever wildlife was there as well. I didn't quite feel as though I belonged yet, but I wasn't so intimidated by the sounds, or by my thoughts of what might happen if I encountered some wild thing. It was a start, and I was proud of myself for having at least made that start. It just would have been nice to have some company. stay tuned,Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-21
From: Gravel Spings Hut

To: Va 602
Miles today: 12.0

(A continuation of the record of my AT section hike of the SNP in August, 2003.)Day eight: 12 miles to go to civilization - restaurant meals, a shower, clean clothes. I was ready for all of that. The hike was relatively easy, in part due to my stronger legs, and in part due to the motivation of reaching the 4-H Center near Front Royal where we had stashed my car eight long days before. According to the guide book, the Center had a swimming pool where I figured I could get a shower and go for a quick swim, AND, ta dah!: a snack bar. Along the way I passed the boundary of the park, and also stopped at the last shelter in this section, the very nice Tom Floyd Wayside Shelter. Other than that, the trail was relatively uneventful, thought there were one or two decent climbs. As I approached the side trail leading down to the Center I began to use a pace count, as the last thing I wanted to do was to miss the turnoff. When it finally came I was more than ready. The rest of the trail was all down hill, through a picnic and camping area and finally out in to the parking lot of one of the facility's cabins. I could see my car, and the swimming pool from where the trail came out of the woods, and both were a most welcome site. I got to my car, off-loaded my pack, changed shoes, and held the camera up for a congratulatory photograph. I looked pretty darned happy with myself, I must say. I then crossed the road and hiked up to the pool. Unfortunately, they told me that the lady who ran the snack bar hadn't turned up for work that day, so it wasn't open! Bummer. I decided the swim by itself wasn't worth the extra time, when I could be in my car and into Front Royal for a meal in only about twenty minutes. Which is what I did next.I stopped at the first restaurant I came to, a KFC, and devoured a couple of chicken dinners. Burp.... It was fabulous just to sit there in the air conditioning, feed my face, drink all I wanted, use the men's room to wash up a bit, and just generally enjoy being back in civilization. It was also a very good feeling, sitting there, to realize that I had hiked from one end of the SNP to the other, 104 miles, in just eight days. And, I'd done it exactly the way I had set it out in my plan. It was, I realized, everything I'd hoped it would be -- with the obvious exception of the pains I had encountered due to friction, something I vowed that I would work on until I got it fixed. It also gave a real boost to my confidence that the AT was something I could do -- as a through-hike. I knew it was only 100 miles, but then the AT would just be 100 miles, twenty one times. In short, I knew it was doable, and that I could do it. It was a very good day.Stay tuned,Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-23
From: Jim and Molly Denten Shelter

To: Dick's Dome Shelter
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: light rain

(Continuation of my AT section hike from SNP to Snickers Gap in Novermber, 2004)Today's hike was a bit dicier than yesterdays as we were going through an area specifically open to hunters. The leaves were all off the trees, as it was mid-November, so visibility was generally good, but we were still nervous about the possibility of being mistaken for a deer by some overly-anxious hunter. During my SNP hike I had come up with what I called my bear whistle. After having encountered what I considered to be my fair share of bear sightings (five in the space of about 75 miles), and with amble evidence of their presence - judging from the amount of scat on the trail, I decided that I would give them ample notice of my pending arrival so that they would have plenty of time to get out of my way. My whistle, a higher pitched tone followed by a lower pitched tone, worked well enough that I never saw another bear after I began using it. I only had to whistle every few hundred yards, so it wasn't onerous, but was distinctive enough to make it clear that some hiker was in the neighborhood.I did the same thing all day during our hike from the Denton Shelter to Dick's Dome, and we came across a number of hunters on the trail who thought perhaps I'd been whistling for my dog! I said no, just wanted to be sure we weren't shot.... They weren't always pleased, since I was obviously also scaring away any deer that might have heard me coming, but hey - that wasn't MY problem, was it? The hunters were definitely out in force, and we could hear shots being fired regularly throughout the day. The closer they sounded, the louder and more frequently I whistled!The hike itself was uneventful, except for a growing pain in my right knee. I wasn't sure what was causing it, but I was concerned because I had had the same pain after running the Army Ten Miler road race a couple of weeks earlier. I had laid off running since then, and thought the knee had "healed", but now it was starting to complain again. Not badly, but some. We got into Dicks Dome about 3 pm, early enough to collect fire wood for another campfire. The Shelter itself is one of the more unusual shelters, as it is formed as a geodesik dome. Interesting shape, but not especially function, as the space and layout of the floor was somewhat inconvenient. Nonetheless, I was able to set up my tent inside the shelter, a good thing as it looked like it was going to rain.Altogether another pleasant day on the trail, despite our apprehensions about getting shot....stay tuned,Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-23
From: Dick's Dome Shelter

To: Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: light rain

(A continuation of the record of my AT Section hike from the SNP to Snickers Gap in November, 2004)Day 3: This was very much a repeat of the day before, except for the hunters, as it was Sunday and no hunting was allowed -- according to the information we had. I didn't take any chances, however, and continued with liberal use of my "bear whistle." The trail was not much of a problem, just the usual ups and downs, but my knee was complaining a bit more than the day before. Fortunately I was carrying aspirin and made liberal use of it, which helped. Once again we got to the shelter early enough to collect wood for a fire, and I must say we were getting used to the idea of sitting about the campfire each evening just staring into the flames. Not a bad life if you can spare the time...Rod Hollow as a more conventional shelter, but in a pretty setting. Another good day on the trail - except for that nagging knee problem. stay tuned,Longhaul
Date: 2005-04-25
From: Crampton Gap Shelter

To: Pine Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: overcast clouds

(A continuation of my section hike of the AT from Harpers Ferry to PennMar in August, 2004.)Day two: This was a very tough day of hiking, made miserable simply by the severe pain from the blister on my right heel. It was also a relatively long day of 12.4 miles, made all the more enjoyable by the rain that fell intermittantly throughout the day.As yesterday at Cromptons Gap, the trail passed through areas rich in civil war history. The battle of Comptons Gap saw heavy fighting between north and south, and the nearby Garthland State Park has a monument dedicated to Civil War newspaper correspondents. North of Crompton, at Fox Gap, the battle of South Mountain occurred. Beyond that, where US Alt-40 crosses the trail, is the famous "Old South Mountain Inn", over 200 years old.Not long afer that we reached the park area of the Washington Monument - the first one erected to George Washington. There were benches available, and water, and I took advantage of the opportunity to resupply and to have lunch. As my foot was killing me, I'd agreed with Spook that he should not have to wait for me - that he should go on ahead and I'd meet up with him at Pine Knob Shelter, so we were both hiking solo at that point.One of the last features before camp, and one that I had seen a bunch of times before from my car, was the pedestrian footbridge over I-70. Since my family has remained in Ohio, I can't even think how many times I have driven from Washington to Columbus, going up I-70 and passing directly under that footbridge. As I crossed it, there were a number of section hikers out, including a number with small kids, and the kids enjoyed standing over one of the lanes and trying to get the truck drivers to blow their air horns. It was pretty cool. I'd have enjoyed it more if my foot hadn't made my day's hike an absolute misery. I was not a happy camper by the time I reached the shelter, I can tell you that for sure.One of the first things I did when I reached the camp was to change from my boots to my new camp shoes, these really light-weight things called "crocs". They are rubber-sort-of shoes, kind of like a sandle, with a strap across the back and air holes through the front part of the shoe. They were such a relief after the pain of my boots! As I set about putting up my tent, it occured to me that I should have a go at hiking in them tomorrow. It might not work, in which case I'd just have to switch back to the boots, but it was worth a shot. Nothing to lose certainly.As it was a Saturday night, there was a pretty good crowd at the shelter, which didn't matter to me as I have always preferred my tent in any event. It was nice to socialize, though, and to sit around the campfire with a bunch of like-minded people, all out to enjoy the woods. The only bad thing was that we were still so close to I-70 that we could hear the engines of the big trucks struggling to get up the hill all night. The good news was that it rained, and the rain itself helped to drown out the noise. I slept like a baby. Stay tuned,Longhaul