morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-08-23
From: Garfield Ridge 

To: Ethan Pond Campsite
Miles today: 14.5

I shared the tent platform last night with a nice man from Maine named Tim, out doing a section hike for the week. It's so nice when I can have friendly conversation to get the day going. I started out happy and in no hurry, just going to enjoy my day. I got water then on the trail. The first thing I had to do was cross a waterfall. I successfully did that then couldn't see the trail. I backed up and looked down the steep waterfall, yep there was the blaze. I had to climb down it. Well, good morning. It was quite a challenge.Slippery wet rocks, my favorite. I got to my campsite just as it was getting dark. people were sitting at the pond to watch the sunset. It was such a beautiful place.
Date: 2016-08-25
From: Nauman Campite

To: Base of Madison
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: scattered clouds

It was 4.6 miles to Lake of The Clouds Hut. All up hill over Mount Pierce, Mt Eisenhower, Mt Franklin and Mt Monroe. Storm was outside the hut talking on his phone when I got there. I ran over and gave him a hug. I was really quit overwhelmed that he would wait for me. I warned him that I am walking a lot slower because my knees and ankles are done. He said great we are going to the five mile a day plan. This is something we talked about awhile ago in an effort to slow down our hike. I said perfect, I can do that. At Lake of The Clouds I told everyone about my friend Tim Sandford back home. Tim worked at this hut approximately 60 years ago. He would have loved to been here with me. I wish he was. Storm and I headed up Mt Washington together. This is the one I was scared of. After Franconia Ridge I didn't want any more wind. We were able to get cell reception at the top I called Stephen and sent off a few text. We made it to Madison Spring Hut by 5. We were spent. unfortunately they did not want to take any work for stays until 7 or later. The young man suggested we "pop over Madison and stelt camp or go to Osgood Campsite". All this was not happening today!. There would be no Popping. We made our way slowly down the 0.6 miles to the worst campsite. Storm and I shared a spot only meant for one tent. It was so funny trying to make it work. more hikers were coming in all evening. Storm was worried where they were going to go. After such a long climb down you just couldn't not find a spot. I said well don't worry we are not taking up too much room
Date: 2016-08-26
From: Base of Madison

To: Storm's Grandma's house in Stark
Miles today: 7.8
Weather: clear sky

We climbed the 0.6 out of the worst campground we stayed in so far. Then we climbed Madison. The north face was not too bad. I'm always better at up. The wind grew as we got to the top and we had a mist, not quite rain. Wet rocks, my favourite. The way down was all boulders. I got more tense the further along I went. I had a small slip and banged my elbow again. Storm had a big fall down by the river. He was ok, but his knee hurt. These things happen so fast. When we got to Pinkham Notch we had something to eat and Sherry Storm's sister came. We went out to the Chinese buffet then off to Grandma's.
Date: 2016-08-27
From: Storm's Grandma's house in Stark

To: Still here
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

It is so nice to be looked after and fed. Such a lovely feeling. We had a big breakfast. I made the blueberry pancakes. Sherry made hash browns and bacon and eggs. It was so perfect. Storm, Sherry and I went to the river behind their house. We went to Crystal Falls and Christine Lake. It was so nice to see some of their favorite places. At supper my feet where getting worse as I sat there. By the end of supper my feet where so swollen. I soaked them in an ebsom salt bath it felt good but did knowthing for the swelling. I was a little worried how I was going to hike in the morning. Well, in the morning they looked so much better. I was able to tighten up the laces soon after I started . I guess my feet just don't know what to do with a day off.
Date: 2016-08-28
From: Still here

To: Mt Hieght
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: clear sky

Sherry made us sandwiches to take with us and the rest of the bacon. She was so great. Grandma came to our rescue with two ply toilet paper. You can only buy one ply in the single rolls. I hate it. It just melts in my hand. We had some big dangerous climbs today. Wildcat has several peaks. It really was never ending. To finish our long tiring day we had a thunderstorm threatening. We were on the top of mount Height. We found a spot along with Mosey another through hiker. We got some rain but the real went around us. We were very lucky.
Date: 2016-08-29
From: Mt Hieght

To: White Mountain Lodge and Hostel
Miles today: 13.1

We packed up a little wet. It is so nice to have Storm to talk to all the time. We have so many laughs together. This trail is so hard right now there is really know describing it. Only another thru hiker is able to understand what it does to your body and mind day after day. My knees are so sore. My ankles are turning on me more easily now. The balls of my feet are swollen each night. I am grateful to be out here. I am grateful to still be on the trail. I am grateful for all the wonderful views I get to see each day. I just wish I didn't hurt.
Date: 2016-08-30
From: White Mountain Lodge and Hostel

To: Gentian Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: few clouds

The White Mountain Lodge and Hostel was beautiful and clean. It was so nice to be there. They made a wonderful breakfast for us. The day started great because of them. The trail started with a hill of course. Up Mt Hayes then Cascade Mountain. The terrain was really rough, so many rocks and roots.I love the water, not the puddles and water on the trail but the lakes and ponds. We saw Dream Lake and Gentian Pond today. They were beautiful, quiet, peaceful.We set up our tents on the tent plat forum. It is wonderful when we have them to use. It gives us somewhere flat to sleep on. It must be a lot of work to build this stuff for us.
Date: 2016-08-31
From: Gentian Pond Shelter

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 9.6
Weather: broken clouds

We are doing low miles. It is frustrating me but at the end of the day I know I have done all I can. We went over Mt Success this morning. What a great name. I kept saying," success doesn't come easy. Success is difficult. You have to work hard for success." You get it. It was a hard climb but finally at the bottom of it there was the sign. We entered Maine, unbelievable.
Date: 2016-09-01
From: Full Goose Shelter

To: Grafton Notch 
Miles today: 0.0

my mileage on the journals doesn't match my actual miles. I think it is because I counted the approach trail and a couple entriesloaded multiple times. So the fix that a little I will just count my miles in the entry for a while.Today we did 9.7 of the hardest miles yet. We did the Mahoosuc Notch. This is known as the most difficult or funnest mile of the trail. It is all boulders the size of cars or bigger. The trail goes over, under and around these things. It certainly was challenging. I got myself stuck at one point. It was a good job Storm was there. I hope everyone goes through that with a buddy. We passed by Speck Pond today. I would have loved to stay there but we had a dinner invite. Prim and Gray from way back in the first half of my hike, were in the area. They hiked to Harpers Ferry then came up to Katahdin and have been hiking back. It's called a flip. Storm and I tried hard to get to Grafton Notch as fast as we could. It took us till 7. Thankfully Prim and Gray waited for us. We had a great visit. We could have talked all night about all our adventures.We got back to the parking lot around 10:30. There was a little picnic area and two privies. We camped on the privy path. It was the flattest part. What fun.
Date: 2016-09-02
From: Grafton Notch 

To: Andover
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Yesterday I fell again. I was climbing up the Mahoosuc Arm. I slipped trying to get up the steep rock. I knew I cut my knee again but it wasn't till I rolled onto my side last night that I discovered I was very hurt. I got on my head lamp and took a look. My hip and upper thigh is very bruised and my rib hurts but no bruise there. Well lucky I have another side to sleep on.I did not want to put my wet socks on again today. It's the worst. The wet along with the dirt just makes your toes so raw. We decided to go in to a hostel at Andover and get cleaned up again. Before that could happen we had a mountain called Baldpate to go over. I was so scared on top, well not on top, as I was climbing up the open rock . We have had every challenge on this trail. I kept saying the next thing they were going to give us was a rope. Today we got it. To help us get down the rock to the ladder today we had a rope. I wish there was a lot more rope. I felt comfortable with that. So many times a day we have to cling to roots and trees to get down the steep wet rock.We went 10.3 miles today. The last 4 miles were so pleasant . It was just a nice walk in the woods, nothing scary, so nice.
Date: 2016-09-03
From: Andover

To: South Arm Rd
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

We stayed at the Pine Ellis Hostel last night. The sheets were not clean. It was cold. It smelled terrible. The shower was good and the laundry got done. If I had any advice for the ones coming next I would say don't do it. Stay at the cabin down the street. The Red Hen Restaurant in Andover gets high praise from me. Just excellent food and service. The hike was a slow steady up for the first 5 miles. I was worried about some steep downs today but it turned out to be not too bad. We got to our planned camp site at a great time. There was no one else there. That should have been our first warning. We set up and realized we were both being eaten. It was fleas. We got in our tents and then decided we had better find another place to camp. We packed up so fast all while being attacked. Luckily we didn't have to go too far to find another nice spot. Total miles today 10.1
Date: 2016-09-04
From: South Arm Rd

To: Bemused Stream
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

We had a lot of fun today. Storm played the Sound track from Wicked on the way up the mountain. It was great. The trail here in Maine is hard but well looked after. We have stairs and ladders and rebar to help us. This takes a lot of work. I am so impressed with the effort put in by the trail builders here. For the past little while I have been dreading what I will face each day on the trail. That is changing again. I am a little more optimistic. I like hiking. It's all this mountain climbing with a 30 pound pack on I have been having trouble with. We found a nice place to camp by a stream. I love hearing the water. Storm and I put our tents so the doors face each other. Then we make dinner and chat. It's fun. Just a really nice way to end the day. We did 12.4 miles today.
Date: 2016-09-05
From: Bemused Stream

To: Rangeley
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

We did 14 miles today. It started with a steep 700 ft climb then it was just lots of little upset and downs. We made good time. We were so excited to be going into town. Shower, laundry and food We stayed at The Farm House. The owner Stacey was such a pleasant lady. She has beautiful taste. The farm house is a work in progress. I would like to come back and see it in a few years. I was complimenting Stacey on the fixtures and attention to detail. I told her how happy I was to be there and she said I feel I just have to give you a hug. Well, that was nice. Storm and I stayed up late, me listening to music on the utube and him on Netflix.
Date: 2016-09-06
From: Rangeley

To: Poplar Ridge Lean-to 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Despite our late night we were up and on the go by 7. We got our resupply and hit the trail. Piazza Rock Lean-to was 1.8 miles into our day. I had to stop and visit that. It has a two seater privy with a cribbage board inbetween. So funny. I wonder if anyone really uses that. We stopped for lunch at Eddy Pond. I could have stayed there. It was just so beautiful. We climbed Saddleback Mountain, The Horn and Saddleback Junior. We went 10.7 rough miles today. The shelter had lots of people tonight. We went a little further and found a great spot to camp. I got water and Storm made a fire. I bought marshmallows in town and we roasted them for dessert. So good.
Date: 2016-09-07
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to 

To: South Branch Carrabassett River
Miles today: 0.0

The morning went great. I did 8 miles in 4hours. We climbed Lone mountain, Mt Abraham, Spaulding Mountain and then Sugarloaf. It was lot of work but nothing scary till the end. It was such a nice day till it wasn't. I really do not like steep downs. This one was bad. Lots of boulders to climb down, straight down. It took me forever. Fortunately there was a great camp site at the bottom. What makes a campsite great? It's flat with spots without roots and rocks. It should have a fire ring and it gets big bonuses for seating (rocks and logs). This spot had it all. Flash and Wolverine camped with us. They are 25 and 19 respectively. I was happy to hear they thought the down was hard too. I always joke about the kids running by me in sandals. Really I am jealous they can do it.
Date: 2016-09-08
From: South Branch Carrabassett River

To: Horns Pond Lean-to 
Miles today: 22.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we did the Crockers and headed into the Bigelows. We went from our camp at 2147 ft to North Crocker at 4228 ft. Then down to 1203ft and back up to 3165 ft for the night. When we were in the valley it was a little warm. A hiker came toward us in his white underware. I said," now that is the way to hike in this heat". He was so happy I approved. What was I going to say? It was so funny to see. I hope he doesn't try hitching to town like that. I was climbing through some hard stuff and saying to myself, thousands of people have done this. That's what my husband says. Well it sure didn't look like thousands of people had taken the path I did today. Maybe thousands of people skip that part We did 13.5 miles today and passed the 2000 mile mark, unbelievable. I just stood there and cried.
Date: 2016-09-09
From: Horns Pond Lean-to 

To: East Flagstaff Rd
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

We climbed the never ending Bigelows. I was told they were beautiful and I was not disappointed. We even had great views of all the water here in Maine. This time the steep down ? was worried about didn't prove to be difficult. We had wonderful trail magic at the road. Former thru hikers had everything we could ever want there. After some confusion Stephen finally met us. This would be his last visit till the end.
Date: 2016-09-10
From: East Flagstaff Rd

To: West Carry Pond Lean-to 
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: broken clouds

It was wonderful to see Stephen again. It is so fun to have Storm there too. He tells Stephen all the stories of our days. He makes it sound much more interesting than I would. We got our laundry done and had a fantastic breakfast. Then it was off to Walmart for our final resupply. We packed a box for Stephen to deliver to Monson for us. This was stressful because it had to be enough to get us through the 100 mile wilderness. Today is Stephen's birthday and he is helping us. We got back on the trail about 2:30 Much later then expected but that's ok. We hiked to the shelter and called it a day.
Date: 2016-09-11
From: West Carry Pond Lean-to 

To: Pleasant Pond Lean-to 
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: broken clouds

Well we had some thunder and some rain and I was in a hurry to make the ferry crossing so...... I fell again. It was a good one total wipe out. This time with a little roll down the bank a few feet, just for fun. We made it to the crossing. It is a canoe. The ferry guy was so friendly and helpful. We were his last crossing of the day. Do I bother to take a picture of the water or the ferry guy? No, just the dog Emma.
Date: 2016-09-12
From: Pleasant Pond Lean-to 

To: Bald Mountian Stream
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: clear sky

The morning started out with Pleasant Pond Mountain. Well there was knowing pleasant about it. The roots and rocks were ridiculous. Just when you think you have it all figured out. It was a rough climb. It really zapped my energy. At least I wasn't scared. Next was Moxie Bald Mountain I feared the worst and got the best. We are on the last pages of the guild book. I started the count down at 10. We are now at 6.5. I remember how excited and happy I was when I finished the first page. It doesn't seem that long ago.
Date: 2016-09-13
From: Bald Mountian Stream

To: Monson
Miles today: 12.6

I read trail journals for about four years before I did this. I have thought about making it this far for so long. I am amazed to be here. Storm and I got into town at 1:30. We got cleaned up and some food then I started working on my journal and email. I would like to just take a minute and say thank you to all the people who have sent me such encouraging words. Thank you to Ellen, Al, Jana and Denise. I got to meet Storm's father in law, Peter, tonight. He reads my journal too. It is so fun getting to know people this way. Storm's brother in law Doug is joining us for the rest of the journey. I am excited to have him with us. The book has said ford stream several times. The water levels have been so low we haven't got our feet wet until today. The water was warm so it wasn't too bad. Ok, I am up to the minute. Tomorrow I enter the 100 mile wilderness. I will not be able to up date for some time. Don't worry, I'll be back
Date: 2016-09-14
From: Monson

To: Little Wilson Stream
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we covered the three miles between the two Monson exists then entered the 100 mile wilderness. We got just over six miles of it done today, pitiful. I have never weighed my pack. I just didn't want to know. The food for six days in the 100 mile was too much for me to carry. It was so heavy I had such trouble just getting my pack off and on. After our late start Storm and I saw a beautiful campsite and decided to call it a day. Our dinner choice was based on how much it weighed. I knew it was going to be hard but this was not good. We had a great camp spot by the water. I love hearing the water as I go to sleep.
Date: 2016-09-15
From: Little Wilson Stream

To: Cloud Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: clear sky

The water levels are really low this year, even in Maine. Our guide book has said we are to ford a river or stream then when we get there we rock hop and we are done. Well not so with this one today. I was extremely anxious. Fortunately a ridgerunner was on the other side. We watched her masterfully cross the river. She was so helpful. I asked if I could hook my pack on the rope then hold it and cross. She said some people do that. She helped me so much. I am so lucky to have help right when I need it. Storm is such a great help. We both made it across, he didn't use the rope.Cloud Pond was 0.4 miles off the trail. That isn't normally what we would do. That is effort that doesn't count towards trail miles. We needed water anyways so down the side trail we went. It was a very challenging trail. I was hoping it would be worth it at the end. It really was. The pond was so beautiful but it did bother me how quiet it was. We had a good night. I am always so happy when we have a safe night for our selves, our gear and our food.
Date: 2016-09-16
From: Cloud Pond Lean-to

To: Gulf Hagas stealth site
Miles today: 13.3

It was a quiet morning between Storm and I we were both worried. How were we going to cover the miles at this rate. We were going too slow for the amount of food we had. I it crazy. The food was slowing us down but it wasn't enough. We did this dam Mountain called Chair Back, today. I innocently commented, "I wonder why they call it chair back". I really should know better by now. Yes, you guessed it, we went down the back of the chair. It was a steep boulder climb down, with a snake thrown in for fun. I never saw the seat of that chair. To add to my lovely afternoon I was out of water for five hard miles. The spring I was intending to use had red puffy stuff growing on the bottom, yuck. At the end of our day Storm and I met a ridge runner. She was so pleasant. She told us we were just about out of the really hard stuff and we should start making better miles soon. We went to bed feeling more optimistic.
Date: 2016-09-17
From: Gulf Hagas stealth site

To: Mountain View Pond
Miles today: 16.2
Weather: overcast clouds

We had our last big climb today until Katahdin, White Cap. We also had our first view of Katahdin. I was emotional thinking about that, but when I actually saw it I felt nothing. I just wondered how hard it was going to be going down the mountain I was on. The trail in Maine has had more work on it than I ever expected. The trail down White Cap was extremely pleasant. It had a lot of great stairs. This must take so much work. It is truly an honour to walk this trail that so many people work so hard to maintain.Storm normally says, "I like our little campsite". We had another great one by the pond tonight. I love the water. So my plan to lighten my pack by eating all my food was working well. I felt better with the weight. Now we just had to get out fast.
Date: 2016-09-18
From: Mountain View Pond

To: Gravel road by Nahmakanta Lake
Miles today: 24.7
Weather: moderate rain

In our guide book it shows a flat line for most of today's hike. Unfortunately it does not show how much rocks and roots and bogs are on the trail. With lighter packs it was easier. We got the word from Storm's family that Doug was on his way to meet us with more food. Storm made it sound like we were starving. We weren't. I was just about out of snacks. Doug brought me two bags of M&M almonds. He hiked in five miles to meet us. He carefully tossed me the almonds afraid I might attack him I think. He did a great job of navigating logging roads and getting permission to use them in order to reach us. We told Doug about the two seat privy at Antlers campsite. We had stopped there for lunch. He said Storm and I hadn't really bonded until we used that together. I said, "no way, never". It was all pretty funny. We hiked the last mile or so in the dark. Storm said he wanted to night hike. It was really slow going. We set up our tents in the parking lot by Doug's car. Doug gave me a great Mountain House meal I hadn't had before. I went to bed very happy with our day.
Date: 2016-09-19
From: Gravel road by Nahmakanta Lake

To: Abol Pines Campground
Miles today: 25.5
Weather: light rain

With Doug taking the weight of our packs we were able to cover the rest of the miles easier. It was still challenging terrain. I was aiming to make this day five of not falling, so I was trying to be careful. My favorite spot today was Rainbow Ledges. I just thought they were beautiful and I felt so happy up there. Some places just feel better to me than others. It was dark before we reached the road. We were night hiking again with our head lamps on. Storm was a little out of it for a while. He was incoherent. I was concerned. Maybe a blood sugar problem. I still had a package of Fig Newtons. I suggested he eat them. He did. He was soon much better. We reached Abol bridge in the dark and walked the Golden road that leads to Baxter State Park. We found where Doug was camped waiting for us. He got us a great spot. We dropped our stuff a Doug took us into Millinocket for some food. Storm loves McDonald's. He had been talking about chicken nuggets for days. Never in my life did I ever think I would crave chicken nuggets but I did. I could hardly wait to eat them. We now covered the last fifty miles of the 100 mile wilderness in two days. I was very pleased with this. I never wanted to rush this hike but we had people who needed to know when we would finish so they could meet us. The end of the hike really becomes about everyone, all your support team. I am so grateful for them.