morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-05-31
From: Harper's Ferry

To: Rocky Run Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: moderate rain

Started at: Harper's FerryEnded at: Rocky Run ShelterMiles: 15.5They call Harper's Ferry the "psychological halfway point." The actual halfway point varies from year to year, due to all the reroutes on the trail. We've been thinking a lot about what this means. On the one hand, we can't believe we're already here. We were looking forward to HF for so long, it began to seem like a destination in itself. On the other hand, I can't believe we've been walking for three months, wearing the same clothes every day for three months, and we're only halfway there. That is messed up!I remember back in North Carolina when we hit the 100 mile mark. I was beside myself with joy; I'd never walked so far in my life. And then I thought, "Ok, all I have to do is do that 22 more times. Oh crap..." Now I think about all we've been through in the past 1000+ miles. I think about the raised relief map of the trail they had back at the ATC that stretches from one side of the room to the other. In my mind I can see us, miniaturized, standing smack dab in the middle of that map, heading north. Now I don't think to myself "All I have to do is what I just did, one more time." The next 1000 miles won't be a duplicate of the past 1000, and I'm glad for that. Nothing will be like our first 1000 miles, and nothing else will be like the last 1000. They will be new. New and different and challenging, packed choc full of their own high and low moments. I think about us standing in the middle of that big map, and I feel deep inside that we will make it to Katahdin. We don't need to worry about that any longer. From now to the end we just need to soak up every bit of this trail, before it's only a memory.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-01
From: Rocky Run Shelter

To: Ensign Cowall Shelter
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: few clouds

Started at: Rocky Run ShelterEnded at: Ensign Cowall ShelterMiles: 15.7We've seen some neat sights in Maryland the past couple of days. We've crossed from one random rinky dink state park to the next. They're all neat in their own quirky ways. Yesterday was Gathland State Park, which as far as I could tell was not much more than the ruins of an estate built by a guy (Gath) who served as a correspondent during the Civil War. He built a huge arch on his property dedicated to the war correspondents who perished during the war. Gath's overblown writing style fell out of fashion after the war, and he lost his big fortune. The sizable mausoleum he built for himself now stands empty, carved with the words "Good Night, Gath".Today was Washington Monument State Park. Not the Washington Monument you're thinking of. This is the *first* Washington monument, built in the 1820's by the citizens of the valley below which it stands. This one, much smaller and more homegrown than the one standing in DC, looks, near as I could tell, like a large stone beer stein. Hmmm I could go for a beer right now. Nice views from the top though. The other thing we've been seeing a lot of lately is plaques. Not the kind on your teeth, the kind you read. Arwen says I'm a habitual plaque reader because if ever there's a plaque in the vicinity, no matter how unpromising, I feel an uncontrollable urge to go out of my way to read it. I can't help it; they're like fortune cookies. You only know if you've got a good one or a bad one once you read it. And hey, that pile of rocks over there with the plaque out front could have once been really cool, you never know.In all seriousness though it's been a refreshing change of pace to be walking through these areas steeped in culture and history. It complements the natural history we've been camping in and hiking through.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.netPS. For all you concerned readers, we wanted to let you know that Heather's edema seems to have gone away. The culprit seems to have been a daily medication she was taking that perhaps wasn't tested on women exercising 10-14 hours/day. Since she stopped taking it she's experienced no swelling at all. Good news.
Date: 2004-06-02
From: Ensign Cowall Shelter

To: Tumbling Run Shelters
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: few clouds

Started at: Ensign Cowall ShelterEnded at: Tumbling Run SheltersMiles: 17.7 We had fun today. Around lunchtime we hit Pen Mar state park, on the border of Maryland and Pennsylvania. It used to be a popular place to go in the early 1900's for ladies with parasols an gents in straw hats. Now it's a great place for stinky hikers to guzzle soda out of the machine and have pizza delivered. Yay! We also had fun playing on the playground, riding the teeter-totter.After lunch we crossed another milestone: the Mason Dixon line and the Pennsylvania border. We've crossed 3 state borders in the past 3 days. But this one... this one seems important. One, we're not in the South any more. No more sweet tea. Two, for the past 600 miles we've been hearing "the trail is pretty easy until you hit the rocks in Pennsylvania." And three, I've never been to Pennsylvania before!Even though it's been raining on us every afternoon for the last few days, we've been enjoying ourselves immensely. We've been hiking with No Dog (woman) and No Beard (man), a nice young couple from Georgia. Also, we run into Slips, Fitz, Slim, and Biscuit, every day or so...they are a really fun bunch. But watch out, you will probably find yourself doing a lot of pushups hanging around these guys... Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-03
From: Tumbling Run Shelters

To: Birch Run Shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Started at: Tumbling Run ShelterEnded at: Birch Run ShelterMiles: 19.6 Today was a day where you had to take the bad with the good. It didn't rain on us today (good) but we had to do 19+ miles (bad). The concession stand at Caledonia state park was closed, so no burgers or slurpies (gasp! a crushing blow) but we found a market with supplies and a deli a mile away (thank heavens). We got a hitch on the way there (good), but had to walk the whole way back (son of a chipmonk eater, and on a 19-mile day too!)Tomorrow is a big day, another major milestone: The Half Gallon Challenge. This is a grinding test of will and stamina in which the hiker purchases one half gallon of ice cream and then consumes said ice cream before one half hour expires. Should we succeed, it shall be one of our finest moments.Oh yeah, and we pass the *actual* halfway point tomorrow too! Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-04
From: Birch Run Shelter

To: James Frye (Tagg Run) Shelter
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Started at: Birch Run ShelterEnded at: James Frye (Tagg Run) ShelterMiles: 17.2Today was Arwen's finest hour. Not only did he rise to meet the Half Gallon Challenge, he set a new record! He consumed an entire half gallon of mint chocolate chip ice cream in a mere 7 minutes, 57 seconds. That means he snarfed a pint every 2 minutes, four times! It was a beautiful, yet monstrous sight to behold. Arwen, armed with nothing but a lexan spoon, pitted against his frozen, green, unforgiving enemy. He went in with determination; fiercely stirring the green mass until it was forced to yeild itself unto him in a more rapidly edible form. He carved massive melting chunks from it and consumed them with such speed that even his own body began to rebel against him. Yet he would grant his swollen stomach no quarter; groaning he sent spoon after spoon of the green monster to its end, until at last none was left and he stood victorious over an empty box, holding his blue lexan spoon in victory.Moments later he was on the ground. For he next two hours his body went into recovery mode. But fear not, our champion was soon back on his feet and fully restored. Except that mint chocolate chip ice cream is no longer his favorite flavor! Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-05
From: James Frye (Tagg Run) Shelter

To: Alec Kennedy Shelter
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: moderate rain

Started at: James Frye (Tagg Run) ShelterEnded at: Alec Kennedy ShelterMiles: 8.3 Hmmm. Right now it's 11 am and the furthest we've managed to move is from our tent, where we camped last night in the rain, next to the shelter. It rained all night and so far it's rained all day. The temperature also dropped considerably. Good thing neither of us has any pants of any kind - no rainpants, no fuzzy fleece pants, not even any thermal bottoms. Just one pair of soggy shorts each.We had planned to attempt a 26 mile hike today. That's obviously not gonna happen. Hopefully we'll manage to make it 8 miles to the next shelter. The problem is we're coming up on a long stretch where there's no camping allowed and the shelters are spaced real far apart. Whatevuh..."If you're lucky enough to be on the AT, then you're lucky enough." - Butta, 2004 Ridgerunner, 2003 GA -> ME***********************************Update: After loafing about and grumbling abut the weather till 2 pm, we did in fact manage to make it to the next shelter, though it was a long 8 miles. The rain hasn't let up all day and doesn't show any signs of stopping soon. We manged to get two dry spots in the shelter though, so things are looking up. And we met back up with Ramblin Man, Satori, Dave and Miranda. It was so cold once we got here that we had to get right into our bags, wet clothes and all. The downside to today was bad weather and short miles but the upside was catching up on sleep and our journal. Over and out...Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-06
From: Alec Kennedy Shelter

To: Darlington Shelter
Miles today: 18.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Started at: Alec Kennedy ShelterEnded at: Darlington ShelterMiles: 18.2We awoke to a faint drizzle that quickly fizzled out. "Oh goody," we thought. Our damp-not-drenched boots may make the leap from damp to dry. Alas, it was not to be. On our walk into Boiling Springs through high wet grass they went from damp back to drenched.But Boiling Springs was a beautifully picturesque town, with huge victorians lining a small lake. The fly fishermen, ducks, geese and swans were out in numbers. We parked ourselves on a bench for an hour or so, made some calls and grabbed some grub.Then we got back on the trail. At many points in the last 1000+ miles people have spoken of the "flat" trail up ahead. We're always disappointed by their promises, but today we finally found a 17 mile stretch of flat trail. It was in fact all we dreamed it could be. Late into the afternoon we found the perfect spot by a cattle pond with picinic benches to sit on. We pulled out all our wet clothes and gear and spread them out to dry. The sun managed to make a brief appearance before returning behind the clouds.It's hard to explain the bliss of a dry tent. Just knowing Arwen's not lugging an extra 5 lbs in water weight warms my heart. And the reassuring feeling that our "house" isn't molding away in its stuff sack. And most importantly, knowing that if we needed to tent again tonight we'd be able to do it without getting our bags and all our gear wet. Or wetter. Yippie.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-07
From: Darlington Shelter

To: Duncannon, PA (hotel)
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: broken clouds

Started at: Darlington ShelterEnded at: Duncannon, PA (hotel)Miles: 11.3To the Doyle! We set out early (7:00) this morning so we could get to Duncannon and spend the day doing errands without too much stress.We arrived about noon and checked into the Doyle Hiker Hostel...what a great place! It is an old four story Anheiser Bush bar and hotel building that was built 100 years ago this month; actually the last of a number that were built all around the country. It cost $17.00 a night for a small crappy room with a bed, ceiling fan, and a communal bathroom. No tv, phone, or ac. It seemed like a palace to us but most people would think that it needs to be condemed. There is a bar and pool table downstairs, and a juke box!!. We made it in time for happy hour (Beers for 1$) and the juke box only played good music all day! All of our trail buddies showed up and we had a fun evening. Wolf Cookie even drove in to meet Dances w/ Wolf Cookie. Late in the evening we decided to take a little three mile walk down the main street for fun! We just can't get enough walkin. Our legs don't know how to do anything else. We sat on the wrap-around porch of the hotel building for a long time just watching the town. It's really interesting to see how people live in these small towns, most of which have seen better days. I can't help but ask what people do around here. Some of these places we pass through almost seem like ghost towns and you wonder why anyone is still living there. It seems generally that the good jobs have long ago moved elsewhere and most of the people with them. Duncannon is no exception; it apparently used to be "the jewel of the Susquehana" but you'd never guess that now. It's always interesting to hear the town histories from the locals. Sometimes these places had booming economies only five or ten years ago. Other times people don't remember why anyone ever lived here. I wish we had more time to really get to know these places. They always seem to have surprises.   ACamera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-08
From: Duncannon, PA (hotel)

To: Horseshoe Trail (stealth tenting)
Miles today: 20.8

Started at: Duncannon, PAEnded at: Horseshoe Trail (stealth tenting)Miles: 20.8Well, we didn't get as early a start as we hoped, but got a great breakfast in the bar of the hostel. The Doyle really seemed to lift our spirits. What a wonderful little dump.Wolfcookie gave us a ride to the trail along with her husband Dances w/ Wolf Cookie. He has a full time trail angel now that she is off the trail. She gave us all a ride to the grocery store yesterday also. Anyway, we hit the trail and lost sight of Dances with in the first hour; he does 25 miles a day now like it's nothing.We did 20 miles and it went by very quickly. It was hot and the bugs were out in force. Your entire body gets drenched in sweat so the bugs can smell you from miles away. The gnats are the worst. They constantly divebomb your eyeballs in an incomprehensibly kamikazee drive to suck water and nutrients from you. Within an hour, you may have dozens of little black carcasses smeared all over your face. We discovered midway through the afternoon that we somehow lost one of the hoses to our water filter. It wasn't there when we stopped to get water from a spring. Don't know how that happened. Luckily we have a backup: Aquamira, chemical drops. Hopefully that'll be enough to get us to the next town.In the early evening we stopped by a creek and soaked our feet in the icy water. That cool relief seemed to help us make the final stretch. We are camped by a spring tonight. We couldn't find an actual campsite, so we just set up tent on the trail. O well, hopefully we won't be in anyone's way tonight.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-09
From: Horseshoe Trail (stealth tenting)

To: William Penn Shelter
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: few clouds

Started at: Horseshoe Trail (stealth tenting)Ended at: William Penn ShelterMiles: 20.4We had a beautiful start to the day, but a torturous end. Early on we enjoyed flat, easy terrain that allowed us to make good time. We took a long lunch and a nap by a beautiful stream. We just lay there on our mats, looking up into the treetops and the blue skies beyond them.Then in the afternoon as it warmed up, we had a steep hike uphill. The bugs began to swarm. And we finally met the infamous Pennsylvania rocks. To make matters worse, the trail was very poorly maintained through that section with dead wood and branches overhanging it and thick brush overgrowing the sides. We had a very difficult time navigating around the poison ivy all over the trail. There was tons of it everywhere! Not long before we got to the shelter tonight we found a red waldee (plastic campshoe) on the side of the trail and recognized it as Miranda's (of DaveandMiranda). Turns out it fell out of her pack mesh the same as our water filter hose. She was so happy to get it back when we met up with them at the shelter. Who knows, maybe someone will do the same for us and our filter hose.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-10
From: William Penn Shelter

To: Eagles Nest Shelter (tent)
Miles today: 19.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Started at: William Penn ShelterEnded at: Eagles Nest Shelter (tent)Miles: 19.2After 2 long days and late arrivals into camp (8:30, right at dark) we were thinking of taking it a little easier today. Especially since we were a little slow going this morning. After only 5 miles we hit the 501 shelter, a veritable palace as shelters go. It's fully enclosed with a composting privy, cold shower, and running water. We couldn't resist taking an early first lunch here, especially since we passed up a chance for cheeseburgers at the road crossing.At the 15 mile mark was a nice campsite where we ran into another hiker named Midas. We took a good long break there and visited with him for a while trying to decide whether to call it a day or push for the 20. Finally it started to rain, and the prospect of tenting in the wet and the mud was not appealing. If we made it to the shelter, we thought, at least we'd have a dry place to sleep.Ah, would it were so. Instead it rained steadily on us that last 5 miles to the shelter, and when we finally arrived - at dark yet again - we found the place full. At least the bugs don't bother you when it's wet. You may have slippery, sharp rocks to contend with but I'll take those any day over the bugs. Needless to say we set up our tent. Oh well. It may be wet in the morning, but se la vie. Tonight we'll enjoy a little privacy and treat ourselves to a luxury: reading. We got a small paperback prose translation of the Illiad and decided it was worth carrying the weight. What a treat!Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-11
From: Eagles Nest Shelter (tent)

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: moderate rain

Started at: Eagles Nest ShelterEnded at: Port Clinton, PAMiles: 8.6Sitting here in a huge wooden pavillion in town, looking out at the moutain at the setting sun and the fireflies dancing in the grass, I am taken aback by the trail magic we've received today. We slept in late this morning, late enough for the rain to have nearly cleared out. We got into Port Clinton around 2, hungry and in need of an outfitter. You never know what to expect when you hit a town on the AT, but we got off to a pretty disappointing start in Port Clinton. The outfitter was out of most everything we needed, there's no grocery store at all here, the only hotel in town is a dump and the lady there was so rude to Arwen he vowed a total boycott of the place. And unfortunately that dumpy hotel is also the only restaurant in town. Things were not looking good.We were walking down the street, looking glum, trying to figure out what to do when a van pulled up. They rolled the window down and asked where we'd hiked in from. "Georgia," we said nonchalantly. We love seeing the look on peoples' faces when we say that. "Goin the whole way?" they asked. "Yup." After a little friendly chit chat they offered to drive us down the road to pick up some lunch and bring us back. Things were looking up.Later we ran into our friends No Dog and No Beard, who we thought were way behind us. It was great just to see them again. But when No Beard said, "Hey man, I think I've got something of yours. Did you lose the hose to your water filter?" we coulda hugged him. Then we headed down to the pavillion to get organized. Next thing we know, a tricked out Ford Festiva pulls up and the driver leans over and says "Get in." We didn't know what was going on. Turns out the guy is one of the Pennsylvania Dutchmen, the fellas who are throwing a big hamburger cookout tomorrow. He decided to have a pre picinic warmup this evening. He and a buddy brought over a six foot long sausage sandwhich, with sauteed onions, pickles and tomato sauce. Whoowhee! It was a party. A bunch of hikers rolled in and good times were had by all. Days like this I wonder at how lucky we are to be out here.P.S. Camera1's face hurts because she got poison ivy on it. It is under her eye and on her forehead. She looks a little funny...I'll try to put up a picture.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-13
From: Port Clinton

To: Allentown Shelter
Miles today: 22.6

Started at: Port ClintonEnded at: Allentown ShelterMiles: 22.6Got an early start today. The miles seemed easy and the rocks did not seem to hurt too bad for some reason. It is amazing what a zero day can do for your morale...and your next day of hiking.We had some nice views at the Pulpit and the Pinnacle. Lots of cotton people were out for a Sunday hike. One cotton person had a large nickle plated handgun strapped to his side...I didn't ask. I thought he might say that he likes pickin off a few stinky thru-hikers whiles on the trail. We took a break at Eckville Shelter - a house with a hiker shelter out back and a fully stocked fridge on the porch. Ice cream sandwhiches for all! The last few miles dragged on, but that was forgotten once we got here and met up with Lucky Dog, No Beard and No Dog.It's a nice new, clean shelter...only seen one mouse so far. We're settling in for a good night's rest. Tomorrow we go to jail!Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net
Date: 2004-06-14
From: Allentown Shelter

To: Slatington, PA (hostel)
Miles today: 17.7

Started at: Allentown ShelterEnded at: Slatington, PA (hostel)Miles: 17.7[phone rings. you pick it up]Uh, hi Mom, hi Dad. Yeah, it's Arwen and Heather. We're calling from jail. Uh yeah, jail. This is our one phone call. It turns out that all you gotta do is hike into this town and they put you in jail. Really. For free.So Palmerton is a very cool town. They figured out what to do with all the stinky hikers that show up here: round em up an put em in what used to be the old jail. It looks like more of an historical building than a corrections faclity. The boy scouts and girl scouts have meetings here, and there's a large gymnasium. The basement is the hiker area, with bunks handmade by an eagle scout. They even give you a "goody bag," complete with granola bar, toilet paper, stamped postcard, and souvenir toothbrush, all courtesy of girl scout troop #411. The friendly police officer we checked in with escorted us down here and gave us the full tour of the building and welcomed us to use the facilities: coke machine, showers (hallelujah!), and restrooms.Tonight's priorities: laundry (got to get rid of the traces of poison ivy on our clothes - we've both got it now), showers (again with the poison ivy), food (duh!), and sleep. We's tired! Nothing like a good night in jail to get you straightened out.Camera 1 & Camera 2Heather & Arwenvaughan@pocketmail.comhttp://www.hobbithole.net