morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-03-23
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: clear sky

Another good N.C. day. Pretty fair terrain, a few bumps, but the big challenge today was Albert Mountain, which I immediately renamed ¢Albert-you-whore-mountain (with no offense intended toward my brother-in-law of the same name - well nickname.) Albert-you-whore-mountain goes from 4,790 feet to 5,250 ft. in .3 miles. That¢s pretty much straight up. Now, once the mountain is summited, you are rewarded with a splendid view of the surrounding mountains and a peek at Franklin, N.C., my next re-supply town. I¢ll hike into Winding Stair Gap tomorrow, an easy 3.5miles, and get a ride into Franklin, 10 miles away. I¢ll get a room, shower, lunch, re-supply, and then relax for the evening in a bed. Even watch NCAA hoops. But - NO NEWS!!! One of the nice things about being out here is the separation from world events. I think everyone should try that for a while. The media have such a grip on our everyday lives, that to ignore it all for a while is really NOT a bad thing. After being at the shelter for a while, ¢KTR¢ from the Budget Inn in Franklin came up with a 12 pack of grape soda! Very cool!! I¢ll stay tomorrow!!
Date: 2007-03-24
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 3.8
Weather: clear sky

As planned, I walked an easy 3.8 miles to Winding Stair Gap, the portal into Franklin, N.C. At the trail head, Ron Haven, (who happens to own a few businesses in town, including the hiker friendly Budget Inn), was cooking a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes and coffee for hikers....TRAIL MAGIC! This was a great way to start the day. Now, I¢ve never been much of a coffee drinker, but that coffee was damn good. Black - right out of the pot. A church group pulled into the trail head as we were boarding the shuttle to town to offer rides and drinks to hikers. This is a Magic thick spot!!!So, we get to the Budget Inn and I split a room with ¢Donny¢ and ¢Finnegan¢, the Massachusetts guys that I¢ve mentioned before, and ¢Fidel¢, a younger kid who folks decided looked strikingly similar to a young Fidel Castro with his thick black beard and curly black hair. Someone had a cigar, and had him chew on it, and the deal was sealed. So, all 4 of us got a room, got beer, ate and slept well. We are planning a big day tomorrow.
Date: 2007-03-25
From: Winding Stair Gap

To: Cold Spring Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

Today was tough. The shuttle back to the trail head was easy. Don Haven drove us in his ¢Trail Angel¢ short bus and bid us all good luck. Then, 100 yards into the trail was easy - a nice waterfall in front of which we took each other¢s pictures. Then it got hard! Much uphill - it got way hot and when you stopped to rest, the bugs would drive you insane. I had not planned on bug issues this early on, so I am carrying no bug spray. I¢m not keen about slathering DEET on the largest organ of the human body either, but I will now!After the grueling 15.8 miles to the shelter, I saw noone was there, then I experienced why - the bugs were worse here! I was exhausted and was not going to be relocated when ¢Fidel¢ came from the north and told me that there was a campsite 50 yards further up that was on the summit; more views and less bugs. That got me moving again. The summit was nice, but still, the bugs were there, less, but a little less than a billion doesn¢t seem too helpful. I tried to pitch my tent as fast as I could, but by the time I had it up, I noticed that one screen was open and many, many bugs had already found their way inside. AAARRRGGGHHHH! Luckily, they were not mosquitoes, but were blood suckers of some sort. But, they seemed to be attracted to the roof and pretty much left me alone when it got cool, so I actually slept okay.Lesson from the Trail: ALWAYS close your screen before re-packing your tent!
Date: 2007-03-26
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

Downhill is not all it is cracked up to be! After the ¢bug night¢, I had my sights set on the N.O.C. - the Nantahala Outdoor Center, an oasis that the Trail runs right through. They have an outfitter with limited resupply, a hostel or cabins, a restaurant with good food and cold beer. However, you must hike from 5080 feet to 1740 feet to get there. As easy as that may sound, that much downhill in one stretch is NOT easy. Especially with a 40lb. Pack pounding down on your knees every step. Some places I would actually have to jump down to the next level. ¢Fidel¢ and ¢Danger Dan¢ had passed me earlier, and I found them at a shelter less than a mile away from N.O.C. They had found some Trail Magic at the shelter a?la Yuengling beer and tried to entice me to come and stay there and share. But, the N.O.C. was calling. It was, after all, at the N.O.C. where my first exposure to the A.T. and inspiration for this hike occurred. (I can thank my former company for that!) So, I moved on and got to the N.O.C. in time for a shower, laundry and a dinner - bacon cheeseburger, fries and a Guinness Beer! Much to the chagrin of ¢Donny¢ and ¢Finnegan¢ hiking behind me, and whom I had spun stories of the Guinness Beers there, I bought the last one. They made sure to give the waitress plenty of shit regarding this. I turned in early, and slept well. I knew that the next day would be a ¢zero¢ day. NO HIKING - a rest day to allow my muscles to heal, for when leaving the N.O.C. we would have a major 6 mile climb uphill to retake all the altitude we had to surrender getting into our little chunk of the real world.
Date: 2007-03-28
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Stecoah Gap
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Slack- Packing Rules! But, before we get to that, let me start by saying that, yes, even out here on the Trail there are inconsiderate, egocentric assholes who think the world revolves around them. This is evidenced by the hiker who decided to get up at 6:45, cut the overhead light on, despite 5 other hikers still slumbering and started packing his gear up - loudly. It took all my newly acquired self restraint and understanding of karma not to lay into this guy. I let it go! Aren¢t ya¢ll proud? I just knew the universe would take care of everything.Back to Slack-Packing. As promised, ¢Jelly Bean¢ accepted our packs this morning. I bought her and myself breakfast and headed out. About 12 way up the first climb, I was thanking the hiking Gods, who sent us Trail Angels, for the 1st slack-packing experience of this hike! It was a bear of a climb with my little converted daypack with a liter of water, some snacks and bug spray. I hiked with ¢Stitches¢ for much of the day. ¢Donny¢ and ¢Finnegan¢, also slacking started 12 hour behind me. About 2/3 of the way to Stecoah Gap, guess who I passed with his full, heavy, burdensome backpack? Yep. Mr. ¢When I get up, everyone gets up¢. I guess no one told him about the slack-packing offer. Rats. I love Karma.Anyway, I pull into the Gap, there is ¢Jelly Bean¢ and also another ¢Weekend Warrior¢ R.V. at the parking lot. They were both thru-hikers last year. ¢Jelly Bean¢ and ¢Bare Bear¢ had set up a major Trail Magic shop at the Gap! Sodas, dogs, burgers, chips, fruit, candy! All the things we dream of after a 13 (+) mile day!
Date: 2007-03-29
From: Stecoah Gap

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: light rain

So, having a full pack coming out of Stecoah Gap was a dose of reality. Lots of uphill. Coming out of any ¢Gap¢ usually means lots of uphill. ¢Donny¢, ¢Finnegan¢ and I decided on a light day so that the following day we would have an easy hike into the Fontana Dam area and perhaps get a hotel room at the Fontana Village. It rained on me today. Only the second time I¢ve been rained on since I started, the first being coming down Blood Mountain to meet Duncan at Neels Gap. I put my pack cover on but on rain coat or pants - too hot. The rain felt nice. The trail became very slick though and were it not for my hiking poles, I would have busted my ass many times. Cable Gap Shelter is very old, originally built by the C.C.C. in 1939 and updated in 1988, but it reminded me, in smell mostly, of one of Grandad¢s old barns. Already there was a hiker named ¢Thunder¢ who I soon came to learn how he earned that name . . . his snoring. He did give us fair warning regarding his ¢talent¢ but I have slept with snorers on this trip already, no big deal. Wrong! This guy didn¢t just snore, he had a major case of sleep apnea. I vacated the shelter, and ¢cowboy camped¢ a few yards away from the shelter where even though I was on a slope, slept fine away from ¢Thunder¢s¢ rafter shaking, on again-off again snores. When I woke in the morning, 3 of the 5 shelter dwellers had abandoned our posts and retreated to the relative silence of the non sheltered camp area. Now, I had read posts on Whiteblaze.net re:shelter etiquette and snoring in case mine became an issue. The general consensus was that, if you know that you are a loud, disruptive snorer, common courtesy dictates that you should tent. I mentioned this to ¢Thunder¢ in the morning, and another hiker, ¢Boo-Boo¢, a female who was the lone survivor of the previous night¢s sonic attack, snapped back at me informing me that my snoring was just as bad! I have slept in shelters, a couple of packed hotel rooms and hostel rooms with no previous complaints, so this took me aback a bit. I quickly confirmed with ¢Donny¢ and ¢Finnegan¢ and determined that while, yes, I do snore, I snore consistently and way more quietly than ¢Thunder¢ as evidenced by those 2 guys who I have slept near for many nights, never causing them to complain or vacate the area. My guess is ¢Boo-Boo¢ took exception to the way I tried to handle the situation with ¢Thunder¢ and struck out at me. Oh well, my point was made. Lesson from the trail: Don¢t sleep in a shelter if you disturb other¢s sleep with your snoring. If you disturb other¢s sleep with your snoring, the trail community is just that, a community and the needs of the many outweigh the needs of one. Also, don¢t sleep in a shelter next to folks with trailnames like ¢Thunder¢, ¢Chainsaw¢, or ¢He-Who-Snores-Like-Bear.¢By the way, I had the pleasure, again, to be entertained by ¢Finnegan¢s¢ fiddle after dinner.
Date: 2007-03-30
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Editors Note: Okay, so everyone has figured out by now that ¢insert name here¢ indicates people¢s trailnames. So, I am dropping the ¢¢ because they take too much time to put in... Thanks...Donny, Finnegan and I hiked the short 6.6 to the Fontana Dome. We hopped the Fontana Village shuttle to the village for some resupply and dinner. We ended up getting a room and splitting it 4 ways, with Big Ol¢ Boy. Great dinner tonight, and a good bed! The village is kind of a neat little area - it has a General Store, Post Office, outfitter and more.
Date: 2007-03-31
From: Fontana Dam

To: Fontana Dam Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

After a big, good breakfast and showers, resupply, etc... it felt too late to begin the brutal climb up Shuckstack Mountain and so we decided to take a zero day. Donny and Finnegan and Big Ol¢ Boy caught a ride with the ¢She Dino¢ back to Franklin for a Hiker Feed and April Fool¢s party. I decided to shuttle back to the shelter, the ¢Fontana Hilton¢ and relax there for the day and read some. The "Hilton" is so named, because it is a new, nice, huge shelter that sleeps 24 on 2 levels. There is a nice view of the pending climbs across the Fontana Lake. The Smokies! The Mass. guys may be back tonight or tomorrow, but I¢m starting up in the morning regardless. I like the company of those guys. They¢re smart and funny, and good natured. They¢ll catch me, I¢m sure - they¢re pretty fast. They are long time friends who play off each other like a comedy team at times. They¢re easy to joke with and quite intelligent. And, getting to hear Finnegan¢s fiddle some nights is a major bonus. The boy can play! They both worked for an Outward Bound program with sailing, and they know their sailing well.
Date: 2007-04-01
From: Fontana Dam

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: light rain

The Smoky Mountains. Today¢s hike was pretty tough. Even after a zero day yesterday I had to climb from 1700 feet to 3800 feet in 3.7 miles. Shuckstack Mt. was the same hill I climbed in Sept. with the PCMI kids and Mr. Rick. Back then, it kicked my ass. Today, I knocked one hour off the ascent time with a 40lb. pack! I¢d say that I am in a tad better shape. Plus, I continued on past Mollies Ridge shelter to Russell Field shelter - a total 13 12 mls. I would regret moving past Mollies though, as it was empty save one guest. Russell Field shelter had a High School group staying there. The shelter rules in the Smokies dictates that there are 4 spots reserved for thru-hikers and day or section hikers get the rest of the spots. They must make reservations in advance and can bump thru-hikers at any time they show up. So, I decided to go ahead and pitch my tent up the hill a ways. It rained most the day and got colder. My streak of great, unseasonable weather seems to be over. It¢s supposed to get really cold on the 6th. I¢ll have to stuff my wet tent in the morning. Not a happy prospect. Another weird rule her in the GSMNP is they have banned dogs, but allow horses and there is horse shit in the middle of the trail all over! Dogs at least seem to run off for their business.  I feel pretty good for 13.5 miles - may take an Advil though. I have taken less than 5 pills this whole time, a testament to not pushing myself too hard I think. Donny and Finnegan stayed in Franklin last night, so I pushed on. I will be a 12 day to a day ahead of them for a while. I camped near ¢Swamp Foot¢ tonight. Nice guy. The Smokies should be nice. The most diverse forest in North America, it has over 100 species of trees, 1570 flowering plants, 60 mammal species and 25 different salamanders. I had to get a free Back Country permit at the Dam to enter the park.
Date: 2007-04-02
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 9.2
Weather: scattered clouds

This was a really tough day despite the clearing weather and the outstanding views of the surrounding mountain ranges on all sides. I suppose my legs were a bit tired from the tough day yesterday, but I¢m disappointed that I¢m not able to cruise up the mts. faster. Granted, the mts. are getting taller and harder to climb. I was also feeling a little blue today. Not sure why. Donny and Finnegan did catch up with me late in the afternoon and that perked my spirits a bit. There were 3 section hikers at the shelter, the 2 Mass. guys, a new girl, Sniper, and me. So, we all had room. I dried all my gear out all afternoon in a sunny, grassy bald.
Date: 2007-04-03
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Mount Collins Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Today, Donny, Finnegan, Sniper and I started for a big day. We were making for Clingmans Dome, AT 6643 ft. - the highest point on the AT. That gave us good motivation for a pretty long hike in the Smokies. The views all day were great. The forest changed to more of an evergreen forest with some Frasier Firs and others. There were a ton of ¢Griswalds¢, or tourists, at the observation tower at Clingmans and we were treated like either rock stars, oddities, or bums, depending. Many took pictures, some put their kids with us for pictures, and we got many questions. Some over and over: ¢How long have you been hiking?¢ ¢Where¢d you start, where are you going?¢ ¢Where do you sleep, eat, poop etc...?¢ It was really kind of wild. We felt like celebrities. Or zoo animals. After lunch, pictures and our Q&A sessions ended, we continued on to Mt. Collins shelter. Last night, by the way, Finnegan came eye to eye with a shelter mouse. Quite funny.
Date: 2007-04-04
From: Mount Collins Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Last Night we endured a friggin huge thunder storm on Mt Collins from around midnight to 4:00 am. we were in the shelter and dry, but with a tin roff and with all the thunder, it was quite a loud, spectacular show, making it tought to sleep. This morning we were still socked in and it was drizzly, but we broke camp anyway knowing that a hot shower and meal awaited us in Gatlinburg! we passed the 200th mile today, that was good for a cheer, only 1970.4 left to go! At the Newfound Gap trail head on U.S. 441, 2 former thru-hikers, Papa Smurf and Big Red were throwing out some Trail Magic! Hamburgers, chips, fruit, and sodas! Such a nice suprise and boost! Big Red also offered to shuttle us the 20 minutes into Gatlinburg so we didn't have to hitch, very cool of him! WE GOT TO TOWN AND CHECKED INTO THE HIGHLY recomended Grand Prix Hotel,(which had Christian paraphernalia galore including a light up year round manger scene,) went to the local outfitter for some gear odds and ends and some hiker food then on to a recomended local micro-brewery and pizza joint! The recomendation came from a really cool girl working at the outfitter, the Happy Hiker, who incidentaly understood my pronunciation of Boat Drinks and told me I must be a Parrot Head! finaly, someone who knows who Buffett is! after dinner we tried taking the Trolly to the local grocery store, on the outskirts away from tourist central, and ended up walking about 60 miles to get there and finish our resupply. The ride back was easier. Big Red has offered us a ride back to the trail head in the morn. I sure can't wait to re-pay some of this Trail Magic we're getting out here!
Date: 2007-04-05
From: Newfound Gap

To: Peck's Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: few clouds

The smokies are offering incredible views and awesome ridgeline hiking with sheer drop offs on both sides! We climed to Charlie's bunion today and got some cool pictures. Its getting very cold though and it may snow soon. I'm hoping my sleeping bag and liner will keep my cozy. We are sheltered tonite in a crowded shelter with folks getting out of the elements. Donny Keyhote, Finnegan and myself along with many others, its damn cold. Good news is there's a fireplace in the shelter. There is frost everywhere and it certainly paints the trees in a pretty but forboding way!
Date: 2007-04-06
From: Peck's Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: broken clouds

It was a friggin cold morning, cold to get out of my bag, cold to move around and eat, damn cold. I miss Florida now. the walk today was good to warm me up.   There is a lot of snow coming down now at the shelter, same crew as last night and another fire place, thank God! This cold certainly testing the limits of my gear. Too cold to write more.
Date: 2007-04-07
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Green Corner Rd
Miles today: 10.4

so, we woke up to about 5 inches of the white stuff, of which I have not seen in about 12 years of tropical living. Again, hard to get motivated in this weather. donney, Finnegan and I hiked the 10.4 miles mostly down hill, which is hard on the knees, to Green Corner Rd, went under I-40, and off the trail a bit to Standing Bear Farm Hostel. We were promised snow in the Smokies by all the old timers we have met and the promised was fullfilled! We descended from a winter wonderland, out of the Smokies to a warmer clime in the matter of a few hours. The Smokies were awesome, but dissapointing in the wildlife arena; of the 200 species of salamanders, I saw none...   The scenery was majestic with the snow capped summits. The bunk house was heated with a wood stove and quickly became the gathering point for the full house at the hostel, as everyone was coming off the mountain werever they were and hunkering down for warmth until this system passed. Curtis, the owner was very cool and accomadating. I got a bed in a loft in a bridge house spaning a creek, very cool and quaint. There was no heat in the little cabin, but they had many heavy quilts to pile on top of me, warm and cozy! The sound of the flowing creek directly under me and the heavy quilts afforded a good night's sleep. The farm had laundry, a kitchen, a re-supply, shower, all the needed things. It was very nice to stay there. Again, many folks there warming up before the trip to Hot Springs were a must take Zero Day awaits! There was plenty of fun times and music around the wood stove in the bunk house. Finnegan's fiddle and Tree on the guitar and some singing. Sproket, a part time employee of the hostel bought a bunch of beer for Trail Magic and set a camp fire going out side when it got a tad late, thanks Sproket! And Thanks Curtis, great place, highly recomended! On a side note. MARMOT GEAR SUCKS. My nice Marmot jacket outer shell busted in the Smokies, the 4th time I used it. when I finaly got Marmot on the phone, they wont send me a new one, they want to take 2-4 weeks to fix the zipper. I explained to them I was thru-hiking and this was not acceptable, he told me I should have been prepared with a backup and that I shouldnt be using what he thought was a Precip Jacket as it was not meant for backpacking. I did not have the Precip jacket but a Rim jacket, but was interested to hear Brian and his supervisor, Brian down-talk a very popular rain coat with hikers to me. This was not the customer service I expected from a reputable company. Now I have to lug a busted zipper to beyond Hot Springs to where I can get my back-up jacket Duncan sent out. Thanks Assholes, Brian and Brian, I now have a billboard on the back of my back-pack that reads, MARMOT SUCKS ASK ME WHY. I sure hope I get to tell my story a lot in the next 5 months, to all those hikers out there and potential hikers and anyone who will listen... All you had to do was overnight me a jacket to replace the defective one... so easy.....
Date: 2007-04-08
From: Green Corner Rd

To: Brown Gap
Miles today: 10.1

After a good night under multiple quilts, we relectantly left the hostel to climb back up to altitude. It was warmer with bouts of frigid air blowing in all day. we summited Snowbird Mt around 2:00 and saw some ammazing views including the distant Max Patch, a grassy bald famous for its views, which we will summit soon. Lots of uphills today but I felt stronger most likely due to the soda and hot pockets I had for brekfast at the Hostel this morning. It's nice being able to eat whatever and whenever you want and I've lost over 15 pounds already! The Hikers Companion I'm carying led us astray a bit with regards to a campsiite near Brown Gap, so we had to walk a long ways down a forest service road to find a good flat campsite. we found one with a fire ring so as soon as I pitched my tent, I gathered wood for a fire and got it going. This helped to warm up our core temps and feel a bit better and dry our boots out a bit. Donny, Finnegan, Swamp Foot and Sauce all camped here. I now have a second gear issue as my capiline silk long john bottoms have split down the seat. I'm not pleased with this issue either. I'm done with this cold!!! I feel physically good though, no issues or sprains or pains to speak of really. By Asolo boots are really taking care of my feet and I have had NO blisters!! (Can you hear me knocking on wood?)
Date: 2007-04-09
From: Brown Gap

To: Garenflo Gap
Miles today: 16.7

I slept great last nigh5t, better than any other night yet, in doors or out! I don't know why, maybe I was really tired...   We missed our proposed camp site today, so we walked further than anticipated until a suitable site appeared. we had to split up to find water and I scored about a quarter mile down a little used side trail. Donny volunteered to go get everyone water so we could cook our dinners, very cool! We did get that much closer to Hot Springs today with the longer walk, so that's a bonus! Donny, Finnegan, Sniper, Swampfoot and I all tented on a closed forest service road. Sniper had recently been visited by her folks and had procured some Makers Mark! Atta Girl! A couple of snorts and our spirits were good and bodies warm! Sleep came easy, a good long day!