morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-08-17
From: Sutton's Manchester Center, VT

To: Clarendon Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

Like yesterday, the day started with breakfast at the Up For Breakfast restaurant. This time I had the Hungry Hiker: 2 each of scrambled eggs, pancakes, wheat toast, Canadian bacon, and sausage links with coffee. Then it was back to Sutton's for our shuttle.Last night there was a call from our shuttle driver while we were having dinner. He indicated his van had broken down, and that he could take us in "the Saab", but that it might take two trips and cost two fees. What could I do but say OK, hoping that we could all fit in for one trip. It turned out all four packs fit in the trunk, and we fit in the rear seat and passenger seat. Once again we started hiking from 18 miles north of the road crossing for Manchester Center, this time going north and with full packs. After yesterday's minimal packs, they seemed extra heavy.Fortunately, there was a long, gentle ascent, and the trail was excellent. At about 2 miles we came to Little Rock pond, which was very pretty in the morning light. Then we completed the initial 1200' ascent to the summit of White Rocks Mountain. There was no view, but there was a nice place to eat lunch at 11:30 in dappled sunlight under the light shade of a grove of white pines. Twice near the summit in denser groves of pines, there were art installations constructed of rocks and stones laid to form abstract images. Hopefully the picture came out well.After lunch we had a down of nearly 1000', during which JohnnyK caught up with us. Forty-eightLeaves had passed us in the morning. He had a sixpack of cold Long Trail Pale Ale, which he shared around except for Veto. The afternoon hike continued with a hike up Bear Mountain, where there was a vista over Rutland's airport way down in the valley. We had a long descent to a suspension bridge over Clarendon Gorge, cut through the rock by Mill River.At the end of the day there was a steep climb up a rockfall to Clarendon Shelter, where we arrived at 6:15pm. By the time I finished my camp chores and sponge bath it was 7pm. I wound up finishing my dinner by the light of the headlamp.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-18
From: Clarendon Shelter

To: Churchill Scott Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we reached the 500 miles-to-go mark, had trail magic twice, and made a 2500'climb of Killington Peak.We all got up early and were on the trail at 7:15am, with me in the lead. As of yesterday, BigFoot started feeling much better, and has been keeping up instead of falling behind on the climbs. Veto also remarked that he was feeling good, so it appears the FDOM* is back in top hiking condition.This morning's hike took us to the first trail magic of sodas in a stream near Kieffer Rd, just 2-1/2 miles into the hike. The trail angels for this one are HikingGnome and OuthouseRepairman. Last year they put out over 1000 sodas. Just a few miles later at the 500-miles-to-go mark there was more magic, cokes and cheese crackers at Madhatter's Magic Stop. Many thanks to the trail angels for the magic. They helped fuel us up today's climbs.After the second magic, the climb up Killington Mountain began in earnest. At first it was fairly gentle on good trail, but toward the top of Little Killington, an intermediate peak, the trail was poor over the steep section. We had planned to go to the top of Killington for lunch, but pulled up short at 1pm, when we saw the gondola there, a mile beyond a saddle below Little Killington. We had our first lunch on some sunny rocks and headed to the summit. As we ate, the sun finally broke through the overcast.About 2:30pm we reached the point where a side trail headed .2 miles straight and steeply up to the summit. We shed our packs and headed up. The views were good, but the distant mountains were shrouded in the haze, so we couldn't see into Canada or to Mt. Washington. We headed down the trail to the ski area snack bar at the top of the gondola. That was where we had our second lunch. Mine was an excellent cheeseburger and fries, pepsi, and an ice cream bar.We debated taking a round trip on the gondola, but decided to move on, as we had about 4.4 miles to reach here, and didn't want to be too late. Pulled into this shelter partway down the mountain about 6pm.We firmed up a plan for my wife Carol to join us at Hanover, and slack us from there to Glencliff. We would later hike together into the Whites when my oldest daughter, her husband, and my grandson join us next Saturday through Wednesday.Onward to Maine!
Date: 2006-08-19
From: Churchill Scott Shelter

To: Stony Brook Shelter
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we reached Maine Junction and crashed a wedding.We got up at the usual time, but lollygagged and finally left the shelter at 7:30am. We headed down to the highway at US4, where there were rumours that proved to be false of trail magic. We then did the ascent up the other side and descent to the state park where, yes, there was a soda pop machine. We broke there for a snack at 10:30am, and noted that we were close to Mountain View Inn B&B that provided hiker lunches. It was there that we "crashed" the wedding that was occurring later in the afternoon. We got our lunches, very satisfying sandwich, chips, cookies, and soda, and additional pop from the groom's father who was also a backpacker. Then it was about 6 miles to go with a major climb of 1400'. The climb was easier because it was an excellent, well-switchbacked trail with smooth tread. The rain which threatened all day finally started just after we reached the top, slowing our descent to the shelter. There were 2 other thrus and a sectioner finishing his 2000 miles with his pre-teen daughter and son. They are tenting, and the FDOM are in the shelter.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-21
From: Wintturi Shelter

To: Thistle Hill Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we had town food for a second breakfast and for lunch, yet still pulled into camp at 5:30pm after actually walking 14.6 miles, 3 miles of which were to/from town. The rain had stopped overnight, and the wind had dried the forest slightly, but clouds looked threatening. The forecast called for clearing skies in the afternoon with highs in the mid 70s. That's exactly the weather we had. The first stop was at VT12, where just .2 miles west of the trail was a "farmstand" store that had all sorts of goodies for hikers, including Lipton's Sides and foil tuna. We could have resupplied there and avoided the 2 mile roadwalk into South Pomfret, VT, where the oldtime general store served up grinders, Ben&Jerry's and resupply items, although at high prices. We really wanted the second breakfast, however, and the FDOM split a sour cherry pie 4 ways and had ice cream on the side. We also each had a large cookie, so we were fairly stoked on calories for the steep climb up and over the ridge to the road for South Pomfret.South Pomfret is a classic VT community. It's just a crossroads, a short distance from Suicide Six ski area, anchored by a general store/post Then it was back out the road, where the trail took us up and down several ridges. The top of one offered great views to the south and north, along with sweet, ripe blackberries. At 4pm, one of the road crossings had a sign indicating goodies and ice cream could be had two miles west, but we were pretty much satiated and anxious to get to camp.The last few days we've noticed plastic tubing networks extending downhill on private land, from the mature maples that are tapped for making the famous Vermont maple syrup. Interesting how these replace labor with capital.Veto and I are tenting, as there were quite a few mosquitoes when we arrived. BigFoot and GreyGoose are in the shelter, along with a southbounder who was zeroing here. We are planning an early start, hoping to reach the post office in Hanover before it closes, so we can start our 4 slack days on Wednesday. Carol is already en route for a rendezvous and to support our slacks. I'm looking foward to seeing her.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-22
From: Thistle Hill Shelter

To: Hanover, NH, Sunset Motel
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: clear sky

Our goal today was to reach the post office before it closed at 5pm. We made it. The highlight of the day for me was seeing Carol again after 5 weeks.The FDOM got an early start, and quickly reached the end of a 4-mile downhill section at West Hartford, VT. There was a heavy dew in some fields we passed through, which pretty much wet my hiking kilt and washed the mud off my shoes. Veto and I were hoping for a pepsi machine, but were disappointed and had to settle for a snack break on the outskirts of town, just before the day's 1400' climb. BigFoot and GreyGoose weren't catching up, which is unusual, as they are usually no more than 5 minutes behind. Turns out they got trail magic at one of the houses in town.The climb wasn't too difficult, as the trail was well-switchbacked with smooth tread. Veto and I reached Happy Hill Shelter for lunch about 11:30, and Goose and BigFoot pulled in about 15 minutes later. Goose joked that this was Snoopy's birthplace, referring to Happy Hill Puppy Farm. Actually this recently rebuilt shelter did kind of resemble Snoopy's doghouse in shape.After lunch there was a long downhill, including nearly 2-1/2 miles of road walk through an upscale residential area in Norwich, VT, and across the Connecticut River into Hanover, NH, home of ivy league Dartmouth College. Again Veto and I were hoping for a pepsi, expecting to find a convenience store near the interstate exchange. Again we were disappointed and didn't find one until two blocks past the post office, which we reached at about 3pm. The Shell gas station had a deli and convenience store. We got liter bottles of pepsi and pints of Ben&Jerry's to eat on the benches outside the post office while we waited for Bigfoot and Goose. We couldn't figure what was taking them so long. I was anxious to call Carol to come take us to the motel, but wanted to wait until everyone had arrived, got their mail drops, and had whatever snacks they wanted.It turns out they were delayed by trail magic in Norwich, and even were offered a ride into Hanover. They declined the ride, as that would be "yellow-blazing", the practice of hitching or riding cars in lieu of walking the white blazes of the trail. It gets it's name from the yellow lines (blazes) on roads.When they finally arrived and had eaten their B&J's, I called Carol. She had just pulled out of the motel to come into town to pick us up. How did she know we were ready?The motel was very nice, very clean, and very hiker-friendly. I recommend it highly. Although it's a bit south of town, there is a shuttle bus stop nearby. We got showers, laundry, and headed back to town chauffered by Carol for dinner and supplies for our first slack.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-23
From: Lyme-Dorcester Road

To: Hanover NH, Sunset Motel
Miles today: 17.6

This was the first of four days of slackpacking. Carol is driving us to/from road trailheads, and we are hiking with light packs and eating town food for breakfast and lunch. Today we hiked southbound into Hanover where we are staying a second night at the Sunset Motel. We had breakfast at Lou's Cafe downtown, each of us ordering a large special.We started off the day at a road crossing near the Dartmouth Ski Area, with lifts on both sides of the road. We drove right by the trailhead, having missed the signs, and wound up quite a bit out of our way before I finally realized we'd missed it. The trail took us steeply up to an overview at Holts Ledge, then continued on up to the summit of Moose Mountain for a total elevation gain in the morning of 1400'. Although the day started out overcast, it cleared off and we enjoyed lunch in the sun atop Moose Mtn. Alas, we saw no moose.We started the afternoon somewhat tentatively, since the trail was poorly blazed on a relocated section. There were lots of footprints, attesting that our track was indeed the AT, and eventually white blazes reappeared. The afternoon hike was, as usual, up and down, and we were all glad to be carrying light (5 lb. compared to 40 lb.) packs.As we reached about 3 miles from the end, Bigfoot slipped in a muddy area, and wound up with mud on his hands, knees, and poles. Murphy's Law prevailed, and there were no streams to wash off the mud. After what seemed like an hour, Bigfoot brushed off the now dry mud, and Veto provided enough water from his hydration bladder to wash off Bigfoot's hands and pole handles.some day-hikers had warned us about ups and downs near Velvet Rocks, a After showers dinner was at Mollie's where Carol and I shared the special wood-fired pizza and mussels marinera that were reminiscent of those we had in Italy.Seen on our southbound slack: Bearcan, NoPliers, CatchUp, BrightEyes, ChuckBuster, 48Leaves, and many day hikers. It was nice running into these folks I knew were ahead of us, from register entries I've been reading.Onward to Maine!
Date: 2006-08-24
From: Lyme-Dorcester Road

To: NH25A
Miles today: 16.0

This was the second day of slackpacking. We picked up where we started south yesterday and headed north. There were two big climbs, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The first took us up to some open rocky ledges on Lambert Ridge, where we snacked and had a view of the firetower on the summit of Smarts Mountain. We made the summit at 11:30, completing the first 2500' ascent. We climbed the firetower for some pics and a view off toward the afternoon's high point, Mt. Cube. We stopped for lunch in the nearby Firewarden's Cabin Shelter. All of us put on our wet weather gear, as it had become cloudy and was a chilly 50* at this 3200' elevation. We kept the jackets on as we began a 3-mile descent after lunch. Once we got moving our hiker metabolism kicked in, and it was time to doff the jackets and hike in shirt sleeves again.Next it was another 1500' ascent to the summit of Cube Mountain. I was in the lead, with Veto close behind all afternoon. Partway up we came to Eastman Ledges, where we took an afternoon snack break. Bigfoot and GreyGoose soon caught up, and we all looked back toward the fire tower where we had lunch. We speculated on why they called it Cube Mountain, and thought the summit resembled a cube, when we finally saw it from some false summit ridges further up the mountain. From the summit, we could look forward toward Moosilauke, which we'll climb on Saturday's slackpack. The hike ended with a 2000', two mile descent to the trailhead at NH25A.About 50 yards before we got there, Carol appeared coming toward me around a corner of the trail. How did she know I'd be coming down momentarily? Must be more ESP. She'd brought Pepsi's for everyone, and had scouted out cute Calamity Jane's restaurant in Wentworth, where we had dinner. Then we drove to our our Cozy Cabin in North Woodstock.We all like the slackpacking, but after two long days with big elevation gains, we agreed to sleep in tomorrow when we have an easier, shorter day planned.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-25
From: NH25A

To: NH25, Glencliff
Miles today: 9.8

Today we crossed the 400 miles-to-go mark on a relatively easy hike with unremarkable ups and downs.We had breakfast at a cute diner, which also offered excellent pastries. I had home-made roast beef hash, eggs, and hashbrowns. The hash was how my dad made it when I was a kid -- very tasty. I bought a huge piece of baklava and a blueberry muffin for the trail. After breakfast we stopped at the post office, where many of us had packages. I doubted my boots were there yet, but sure enough they'd come in overnight, having been sent from Poland, OH by my daughter Candace at lunchtime on Aug 23 -- just two days ago. That was great because I wanted to wear them on today's easy slack to see how they'd react.Then it was on to the trailhead with a brief detour to the post office in Glencliff to pick up my bounce box, which I'd sent there before Carol and I'd worked out the slackpacking.We finally set out on our ten miles about 10am, with Bigfoot in the lead. He set a steady 2-1/2 mph average pace up to Ore Hill Shelter, where we came across MinnesotaSmith and two sectioners we'd met yesterday, packing up to leave at 11am. We had snacks, and three of us used the unique privy -- it had a hexagonal throne. We also snapped pics of M-Smiths 70# pack contents spread out over half the shelter floor. At 11:30 we continued our hike, reaching NH25C about noon. On the way, we heard heavy equipment remediating the acid mine tailings from the abandoned mines.There we had lunch among some pines just beyond the road. Finally came a climb to the top of Mt. Mist, where a sign pointing to the viewpoint had the message, "Beware of Tourists". The view was of Mt. Moosilauke over Wachipauka Pond. Finally came the descent to the trailhead at NH25, where we arrived ahead of schedule, to make up for being late yesterday.Carol came about 10 minutes later, having stopped to refuel and buy cold pepsis, and chauffered us all to the others' room at the North Woodstock Motel. She had used it to stow the contents of her trunk, to make room for our packs, avoiding the drive up to Bethlehem, NH where we would be staying the night.All of the FDOM showered, and we went out for an excellent meal at the Greek-American Restaurant. We made plans for an early start for tomorrow's slack, then Carol and I drove north to Bethlehem NH for our night at the Northern Star Inn B&B.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-26
From: NH25, Glencliff

To: Kinsman Notch, NH112
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a slackpack over Mt. Moosilauke, elev 4802, the first of the White Mountains.Carol and I got up early at our B&B and picked up the FDOM in North Lincoln, then went for breakfast before tackling our highest climb since April, a 3650' ascent. Carol dropped us off at the trailhead, and we were underway at 8:55am.Almost right away the trail took us on a steady up. As we came to a short road walk section, we came on a nobo thru from Lithuania, who asked to take a photo of our group, using a very professional-looking digital SLR. Later he passed us, as did a few dayhikers heading to the summit. As we hiked, the beautiful clear day we had starting out turned cloudy, and we feared we wouldn't see much from the summit. During the long ascent, BigFoot led at a steady 2 mph pace, which we sustained all the way to the summit, save one brief stop while I doctored a hot spot on my heel, a result of the new boots.As we approached the very top, the views opened up, and it became partly cloudy. We broke for lunch at the top. Even with our jackets and insulation layers, we felt cold so we started off. As we reached partway down the descent, it was clear we'd come to the trailhead well before the time we'd set for Carol to pick us up. I called and moved up the pickup time from 4:30 to 3pm.Initially, I thought we'd reach the trailhead even earlier, but we reached a very steep section that slowed us way down. Veto was in the lead on this section, and I was last for most of it. Much of the way was beside a series of cascades. This area had steps made of railroad ties anchored to steel bars drilled into the steep rocks. It seemed to go on forever.We finally arrived at the traiihead at 3:15pm and found Carol waiting there for us with cold Pepsi's. We stopped by a pharmacy, outfitters, bank, and grocery store on the way to returning the other guys to their motel. This is the point where I will be leaving the FDOM to spend some time with Carol, my daughter Vicky, son-in-law Rich, and 9 month old grandson Anthony in Littleton, NH. I'll join Vicky and Rich at the end of a long slackpack from Kinsman Notch to Franconia Notch on Monday, and on a hike up Mt. Washington on Tuesday. Tomorrow, Sunday, will be a zero/family day here at Littleton, where we're staying at Thayers Inn. Thayers is an historic old hotel that has been tastefully updated. Littleton, a bit out of the tourist traps, is a charming town with reasonable prices. It should be a nice respite and enjoyable reunion.In a respite from Onward to Maine.
Date: 2006-08-27
From: Littleton, NH, Inn

To: Littleton, NH, Inn
Miles today: 0.0

Today was a family/relaxation day at the Thayer Inn in Littleton NH. My oldest daughter Vicky and her husband Rich had an early morning marathon training run, while Carol and I watched grandson Anthony, while eating items from the continental breakfast. I used some of the time to send and post trail journals.After they returned from their run, showered and dressed, it was time to go to church at the white clapboard Methodist church down the street, where Vicky and Rich had worshipped on a previous visit to the Whites a few years ago. The pastor preached an excellent sermon.Afterwards there was a visit to the farmers' market just beyond the main street, across a replica covered bridge. There we got maple sugar candy, lemon-blackberry scones, and a homemade blueberry pie for later. We got grinders from the local deli for lunch and ate them at the hotel.In the late afternoon, I washed clothes at the laundromat and got supplies at the adjacent convenience store for tomorrow's slackpack. Finally, at 6pm we had dinner at a very authentic Italian restaurant and retired, planning an early start in the morning.
Date: 2006-08-29
From: Littleton, NH, Thayers Inn

To: Littleton, NH, Thayers Inn
Miles today: 0.0

Today was a hiker's busman's holiday, with a climb up Mt. Washington with Vicky and Rich along the Ammonoosuc River. Although we hiked on a bit of the AT, I'll be repeating it later, so I'm not counting it.The trail followed a rushing stream up, and provided views of waterfalls and ravines cut into the flanks of Mt. Washington, at 6288' the highest peak in the northeast US. Even though Vicky and Rich are running 18 miles in training for a marathon, they are used to the flatness of Florida, and had to call on me to stop for 10 second breather breaks, due to the 4,200 ft elevation gain during the climb. I must be in pretty good cardio shape.Toward the end of the climb, we came to Lake of the Clouds Hut. There we sampled bottomless bowls of soup with our lunch. I also checked out work-for-stay with the "croo". After lunch we headed on up the remaining 1000' foot climb to the summit. On the way, some people offered cog rail tickets to descend to where our car was parked, as they would not be taking the round trip. Vicky offered $40 for the 3 tickets, expecting some garage-sale style bargaining, but the people surprisingly accepted the offer. Thus we rode down for less than 1/3 of the one-way price. We also encountered a video filming crew from the AMC as we approached Mt. Washington summit.We arrived at the top, took obligatory summit pictures, and checked out the restaurant/lodge. We learned the 3pm train would be the last down, and were glad it was mostly empty as our ride was strictly "space available". The ride down was interesting and seemed very slow, but it certainly was better than walking.On the drive back to the hotel we stopped at a deli, and picked up a pint of ice cream and some items for my lunch food bag. We arrived just as Carol was returning with Anthony. I got to play with him a bit, and we decided on the Littleton Diner for dinner, having the whole back room to ourselves. After dinner, my main activity was packing to get ready to start back on the trail tomorrow -- for the first time in over a week with a full pack.On! On!