morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-08-17
From: Cloudland Farm

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: clear sky

I slept well in the horse stall at the Cloudland Farm horse barn. It was nice being inside and dry while a good storm raged outside off and on all night. I had shut myself into the stall and the cats and dog on night barn patrol didn't bother me. I awoke to a foggy and damp morning but the fog had burned off by the time I left for the Trail at about 8.00 AM.Just before starting the descent to the White River and I-89 crossing I was walking along a broad ridgeline and came to a nice open meadow with a wide view to the south. Someone had brought up a wooden easy chair and set it next to a large lone maple tree facing the nice valley view. I just had to sit in this chair for a while and take in the view, along with a mid morning snack. An easy chair set in a meadow on a ridgeline looking over a wide valley view should not be passed by without being sat in for at least a short period of time!I stopped at the country store in West Hartford and got a deli sandwich to go for lunch. The hike back up and out of the White River canyon would be continuous and long so I decided to wait for lunch until after I had finished the climb. It turned out that there wasn't really a good place to stop for lunch until the Happy Hill Shelter 4.5 miles later. From the shelter it   was another 4.5 miles across rolling woods terrain to a road just outside Norwich, VT. From ther it was a 1 mile road walk down to the Connecticut River bridge and the VT/NH state line, then another half mile road walk uphill to the Dartmouth College Campus in Hanover, NH. As I was nearing the bridge about 4.00 PM Mom and Dad drove by on their way to meet me in Hanover; what perfect timing! They walked a short ways back to meet me as I was walking up the hill into town.Having my parents meet me in towns along the way made it much more convenient to get all the town errands done that I needed to do. Today I needed to pick up a large box at the outfitters that Brenda had shipped UPS to me. The box was there waiting for me when we arrived so we loaded it into the car and went to the hotel to check in. After I took a shower and did a quick load of laundry we went to dinner in Hanover, immediately after which I went to bed early anf crashed!
Date: 2007-08-18
From: Hanover, NH

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a typical town day for me. I spent the entire day doing a variety of errands and repacking food and gear into several different boxes to be mailed to several different places. Dad helped a great deal by driving me around to a number of different stores and supermarkets. He also put a second coat of seam sealer on my tent and waterproofer on my boots. Mom helped by wiping down the new seam sealer with baby powder after it had cured to take the tackiness off of it and prevent it from sticking to itself. It was a full day of packing and repacking.I sent home the smaller pack I have carried since Damascus, VA and replaced it with the larger pack I had carried into Damascus. Having picked up my heavier sleeping bag, my heavier rain gear and a few extra warmer clothes I needed more pack space than my smaller pack had available. Space would have been a big problem when I tried to carry 7 days food thru the 100 mile wilderness. Unfortunately my pack base weight just gained about 8 lbs, which doesn't sound like much but feels like a lot more. It was a typically busy day and late evening of organizing and not getting everything done that I had hoped to do. But most things got done sufficient to hit the trail in the morning.
Date: 2007-08-20
From: Goose Pond Road

To: Hexicuba Shelter
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: overcast clouds

I awoke to a temp of 33 this AM. Putting on my still wet hiking shorts and shirt was especially tough this AM. Welcome to the NH high country!The climb up to the top of Holts Ledge began immediately out of camp and continued steeply at times for 1,100 ft over 2 miles. The view from the top was very nice but limited to nearby Smarts Mt and a few other nearby ridges. It was a clear blue sky day and I looked forward to the view from the firetower on Smarts Mt. Signs along the top of Holts Ledge said that Peregrine Falcons are now nesting on the cliffs below the trail and requests hikers pass along and not bother the birds. I didn't see any sign of falcons but am likely too late in the season for birds to still be hanging around the nest cliff.After descending from Holts Ledge I came to a gravel country road and a homemade sign tacked to a sawhorse at the end of a driveway. The sign said "free water". I went up the drive and knocked on the door. I'd been told that they were really giving away free ice cream to thru-hikers. Unfortunately for me no one was home so I filled my water bottles and headed up the trail. Oh well, you can't get trail magic every day.The hike up to the firetower on Smarts Mountain was fairly long (4 miles) and quite steep in places. It was also rocky and rooty and involved a lot of scrambling over open ledges and rock slabs. I was glad it wasn't raining. The total elevation gained was 2,350 ft and was the biggest climb since Killington Peak.The view from the firetower was excellent and seemed to stretch on forever. I quickly recognized Mt Mansfield and Camels Hump on the western horizon in central VT, peaks that the Long Trail traverses north of where I left it. To the south I saw Killington Peak and Stratton Mt also in VT. To the north Mt Mooselauke was the dominant peak with its alpine zone clearly visible. Just beyond it were the high peaks of the Franconia Range which I will cross in about a week. The towers on Mt Washington were clearly visible, along with a plume of smoke from the cog railway.there were many other high peaks visible around these mts but I didn't recognize them, although I presume I will be walking aver some of them.The view was superb and far reaching and I hated to leave but needed to continue on to the next shelter. I arrived at Hexicuba Shelter about 5.30 PM and found only 2 other hikers there. It was a unique 6 sided log structure on the of Mt Cube, hence the equally unusual name, Hexicuba. As usual I tented rather that sleep in the shelter. It cooled quickly in the evening to 45 but felt colder. Another fine day on the AT.
Date: 2007-08-21
From: Hexicuba Shelter

To: Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 14.8

It was a warmer night last night, only 41. There were only 2 tent sites at the shelter and 1 was already occupied so I didn't have much choice where to tent given the steep slope around the shelter. I kept sliding downhill inside my tent on the slippery silnylon floor so I didn't sleep well and got up just after 5 AM. When I left, Cheeks and Steps Small were in the shelter. They must have come in late. I haven't seen them since just before Port Clinton, PA. The hike up to the summit of Mt Cube was interesting and challenging, over lots of ledges and rock slabs. There were great views to the south and west including Smarts Mt nearby, and Camels Hump and the Mt Ellen ridge in VT. There was a thick layer of fog hanging in the valleys but it   was clear about half way up the mountain sides. It was hard to leave the summit rocks with the views to be had in most directions.The hike down from Mt Cube was entirel forested and steep and rocky. About half way down I met a day hiker with a 1 year old golden retriever who was very excited to see other hikers. He was fun to visit with for a few minutes.The rest of the trip to Glencliff was about 10 miles of rolling trail in the forest with only 2 real hill climbs in it. I tried my phone on top of Mt Mist but there was no survice. I arrived at the Glencliff trailhead at 3.30 and Bobcat was there in her car. I had last seen her in Harper's Ferry. She has to end her trip in a few weeks and has skipped ahead to be able to here to be able to hike the Whites and ME before her time ends.At the hostel I did laundry, took a shower in their outdoor shower, and paod for a shuttle into Warren, NH. I had planned on buying town food for dinner and breakfast here in Glencliff but there is no food to be had in town, only in Warren. So I bought a few supplies for the next few days and overnight here. I tried my cell phone in Glencliff and again in Warren and found no service in either town. Verizon's famous network has been almost non existent since NY, except in VT, so transferring journal entries to the web has been difficult and time consuming.Tomorrow, I go over Mooselauke, the first alpine peak in NH and on the Trail.
Date: 2007-08-24
From: Franconia Notch

To: North Conway, NH
Miles today: 0.0

I had not planned to get into Lincoln until this afternoon so today was a free day off for me. I checked the Mt Washington weather web site and their weather forecast for the high peaks for today and tomorrow was for rain, fog, high temps in the low 50's, and winds in excess of 60 mph. Not good hiking weather but not uncommon for Mt Washington in August! The forecast for the mts was much better on Sunday, mostly clear with lower winds, so I decided not to cross the Franconia Ridge until Sunday. This would give me a free day to firm up travel plans for my return home and figure out how to get a new Osprey Aether 70 pack.I spent the moring and afternoon doing laundry, going to the post office in North Woodstock to pick up my bounce box, getting resupplied for 5 days in the Whites, and talking to the travel agent and Brenda. By the end of the day my airline tickets had been confirmed, I was resupplied and ready for the next section of trail, and Dad was coming to meet me with a new pack from the EMS store in Burlington.I had not been happy with the way my pack had been fitting since changing back to my larger pack in Hanover. I realized that it just didn't fit me right and I hadn't realized it during the early portion of my trip. Mt light pack fit well and now I was noticing the poor fit of the heavy pack. It was a large torso length and I should have been fitted with a medium. The result was that I was getting some back pain and rashes from the hipbelt that were gradually getting worse each day since Hanover. Unfortunately, the pack model and size that fitted me was not available at any of the EMS stores in NHM but they had 1 left in the Burlington store so Dad picked it up and brought it over for me. What Service! He arrived about 5.30 PM and we went to dinner then drove over the Kankamagus Hwy to North Conway for the evening. Tomorrow AM I'll go into the N Conway EMS store and have them heat fit the hip belt to me in Osprey's special bake oven process. That's one of the best features of Osprey packs, they have a hip belt that is custom moulded to your hips. N Conway was the closest outfitter with an Osprey oven.
Date: 2007-08-25
From: North Conway, NH

To: Liberty Spring Tentsite
Miles today: 2.6

Dad and I got up, had breakfast and went to the EMS store to get my Osprey pack hipbelt baked and molded. It was immediately apparent that the staff in this store had no idea what they were doing. They spent quite a while reading the instructions on how to operate the oven and paid little attention to how it was going. There were few other customers in the store but they were too busy hanging clothes on racks to pay any attention to how the process went, to help us put the hipbelt back on the pack,or to how the pack fit. This was such a contrast to the level of service I received in all the outfitters I stopped at along the trail. This store was about sales , not service. But, I got out of them what I needed and there was no need to hang around after we got my pack put back together again.We had a nice drive back across the Kancamagus Hwy with some nice views into the surrounding mts and nearby Pemiguasset Wilderness. It was nice to see the country from the roads and viewpoints for a change instead of having my head under the Long Green Tunnel for most of the day. It was a very nice drive with great views that made the morning very enjoyable.Dad dropped me off at the Liberty Springs trailhead in early afternoon then headed back to Burlington, VT. I sat down at the trailhead and worked on updating my Trailjournal. My cell connection was weak so it took quite a while to get it all uploaded.While I was working Popeye, Lightweight and J.B. came off the trail headed for Chet's hostel in Lincoln. I hadn't seen Popeye and Lightweight since Story Spring Shelter in VT and J.B. since I Bear Mt, NY when I visitwd with Jason and Lisa. It was good to see them all again and I expect they may catch up with me in the next few days. It would be fun to go over some of the high peaks and AMC huts with friends.I finally headed up the trail to the campsite about 5.30 PM. It was a hot and humid afternoon, high temp 86, and very hazy. About half way up the hill a very active thunderstorm built up fast and caught me on the run. I was soaked pretty quickly and the trail immediately turned to a muddy running creek. I arrived at the tentsite just after most of the rain finished and managed to get my tent set up in between rain storms. This was my first time tenting on a platform and first time setting up my Shires tarptent with treking poles instead of stakes. It took a little more time than usual but went OK. Several more thunder cells rolled overhead then quickly passed over the ridge above. They were impressive storms with nearly constant lightning and loud thunder that rolled around the nearby ridgelines and peaks. Most of the platforms were occupied and a number of other hikers came in near dark with me. It turned out that I wasn't the only hiker on the trail on a late and wet evening. The caretaker told us that the storms were supposed to end early this evening and tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day for walking the famous and spectacular Franconia Ridge.
Date: 2007-08-26
From: Liberty Spring Tentsite

To: Galehead Hut
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Today I will cross the Franconia Ridge, a several mile stretch of trail above timberline that is famous for its spectaculat views in all directions off the narrow rocky ridgeline. It tops out on Mt Lafayette at 5,200' and has several other peaks also above timberline.I awoke at 5 AM to light rain and overcast skies. Not the weather I had been hoping for for this stretch of trail. I ate breakfast and packed up in my tent, then packed my wet etnt and hit the trail.It was a misty hike up through the spruce-fir zone to timberline on Little Haystack Mt, but at least it wasn't officially raining. Just below timberline I flushed a Spruce Grouse form near the trail. It flew up into a low tree perch right next to the trail and I managed to get some good photos. It was a male with beight red eye combs. This was a new bird for my trip. I also found several Boreal Chickadees and heard a Winter Wren.On top of Little Haystack the clouds lifted briefly just enough to get a quick view into an adjacent valley, then closed in again. This would be the last time I saw out through the clouds for the remainder of the day.At the summit of Mt Lincoln (5'100') I came on a Raven just sitting on the summit rocks. He didn't appear to like the fog any more than I did and did not want to fly but finally did when I got too close.For the duration of my traverse of the exposed alpine ridge visibility was less than 100', high temp was 51, and winds were10-20 gusting to 31 mph. It wasn't the best weather to be out in, but tolerable and not unpleasant walking as long as I kept moving. In some ways it was neat to traverse the narrow ridge in this kind of weather. In most places I could see the trail ahead and the slopes falling away into the fog on both sides of the narrow ridge.There were about 30 people on the summit of Lafayette (5,250') when I got there. I didn't stay long due to the weather and just pressed on. Near the summit of Mt Garfield I stopped for a late lunch and was visited by a friendly White-throated Sparrow. I managed to get some photos of him while I was eating. This made photos of two nice NE boreal forest birds in one day.There was a very steep downhill section from Garfield Campsite down to Galehead Hut. It was basically walking down a steep creekbed with quite a bit of water running down it. Needless to say my boots were soaked by the time I got down.I managed to get the last of 3 spots to do work for stay at Galehead Hut so was able to eat and stay for free. We had to wait until the guests were done then ate with the hut croo, which was much more interesting than eating with the guests. It was a small croo (4) and they were very sociable; we had a good time with them. By 9.30 PM the hut lights were turned out and all the thru-hikers slept on the dining room floor, which was dry and comfortable compared to the light rain and blowing fog outside.
Date: 2007-08-27
From: Galehead Hut

To: Crawford Notch
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: scattered clouds

I was able to do work for stay at Galehead Hut and my work was in the morning afte the guests had left. My work was about 1.5 hours of sweeping and counting blankets on bunks. Pretty easy work for free dinner, breakfast and a dry floor to sleep on.I left the hut about 10.00 AM and headed up the steep pitch to South Twin Mtn. It was a beautiful mountain day, cleadptand cool with great visibility. The view from the hut down into the deep valley below was excellent.I pulled my way up to the peak of South Twin and was met bya spectacular 360 view of most of NH's high peaks. From Moosilauke and the Franconia Tidge in the south to Washington and the Presidential Range to the north, each peak jumped out of the morning clear air. The foggy hike over the ridge yesterday made the view that much more impressive and appreciated. I hated to leave the peak on such a glorious mtn morning.Just over Mt Guyot on my way down to Zeacliff trail I got another new bird for the trip, Blackpoll Warbler. A male was singing briefly from the top of a spruce near the trail. I had not expected to find blackpolls on this trip because they should be done singing by now and are nearly impossible to find unless they are singing.I stopped briefly at Zealand Falls Hut but there were no lunch leftovers so I continued on. It was a quick trip on very nice trail down to Ethan Pond Campsite then fairly good trail on down to Crawford Notch, a total of 7.7 miles.I arrived at the road in Crawford Notch about 5.30 PM and was able to catch a ride from the trailhead 3 miles down to the Crawford Notch Campground and General Store. They had a very nice and clean hiker bunkhouse for $20 with laundry and free shower and shuttle back to the trail in the AM. There were 2 other NOBO's and a SOBO there with me. We cooked burgers on the back grill and had ice cream from the store. It was a very nice overnight stay before our big hike up the Webster Cliffs and along the crest of the Presidential Range.
Date: 2007-08-28
From: Crawford Notch

To: Lakes of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: broken clouds

Today was a day of climbing, 4,000' over 11 miles but most of it came in the first 3 miles. It was another superb mountain day with cool temps (high 55) and clear skies. I was glad I brought a small tube of sunscreen and managed not to get sunburned like some other thru-hikers did.I got another new boreal forest bird on the way up Mt Webster, Black-backed Woodpecker. It has been many years since I have seen these woodpeckers because they don't occur in CO. Their close cousin, the Three-toed Woodpecker, is a relatively common bird in the boreal forest of CO. I got another new bird for the trip when I arrived at Mizpah Spring Hut. A man was standing outside the hut and holding his hand up with a piece of bread. A Gray Jay was in a nearby tree eyeballing the bread and finally swooped over and grabbed the bread out of his hand as he flew by.I ate lunch at Mizpah Hut and spent the rest of the afternoon walking the crest of the Presidential Ridge on a beautifully clear mountain day in the bright sunshine. At every turn of the trail was another spectacular view up the ridge to Mt Washington. This stretch of ridgeline is about 25 miles long, much of which is above timberline. The weather today was too good to hope for, and tomorrow is expected to be good as well.I arrived at Lakes of the Clouds Hut about 4.30 PM and asked about work for stay. They put 3 of us to work amost immediately washing dishes which we did for over an hour. I also helped give a naturalist talk after dinner about plant adaptations to living in the alpine zone. It was fun to do and dinner was quite good. The sunset from the hut was colorful and many guests stood outside watching it go down in the relatively warm and calm evening air. The Hut was nearly full with 92 guests, and 6 thru-hikers and 8 croo. It was a busy place just before and after dinner.
Date: 2007-09-01
From: Gorham, NH

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: fog

I spent the day today doing my usual array of town chores, such as laundry and food shopping, drying and cleaning much of my gear and myself, and repacking my provisions for the next section of trail. As usual, Mom and Dad were happy to shuttle me around to the places I needed to go and visiting while we ate and I did my chores. These visits with them have been fun since I don't see as much of them in CO as either of us would like, and they have been very helpful in getting my town things done more quickly and convienently than if I had to walk or hitch hike on my own.At the laundromat I saw Birdlegs and Z-Man. Birdlegs and I had had a very nice afternoon together in a canoe on Upper Goose Pond, MA wheee we had gooten good close looks at a young loon. The Cookie Lady's blueberry farm near Dalton, MA was the last time I had seen her. She has been quite sick off and on for much of the intervening time and was actually in town to recuperate from her latest bout. She had hitched in from Crawford Notch so was nearly a week behind me on the trail. I had not seen Z-Man since Shenandoah NP where he decided to drive his truck north to Mt Katahdin and flip back south. He has picked up a second vehicle and is now leapfrogging his way south with both vehicles and hopes to reach Shenandoah by about Thanksgiving.They told me that Buffalo Bobby was also in town at the hostel so I may see him on the trail soon too. Sven and Uffda remain about a day ahead of me and try as I do I just don't seem to be able to catch them. I've been hoping to go thru the Mahoosuc Notch with them but this seems unlikely now with only 2 trail days left to go. But. I have really needed the time to rest my feet and get ready for the challenging terrain of ME.
Date: 2007-09-02
From: Gorham, NH

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Today is my second zero day in Gorham and I am trying to just stay off my feet and rest as best I can. I spent about 3 hours updating my Trail Journal while I have a good cell signal here in town. I'm told that Verizon has poor cell service in western ME so I don't know hoe often I'll be able to update during the final month of my trip. I hope to be packed tonight and ready for an early start up into the rugged Mahoosuc Range tomorrow.