morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-06-22
From: Newton Memorial Hospital

To: Newton Memorial Hospital
Miles today: 0.0

Here I am in the Newton Memorial Hospital. I am still waiting for a diagnosis. The doctors still have not decided what I have. I called Lynne and my oldest daughter, Amy. I knew Amy would research the options and sure enough she did, and updated Lynne on Guillian Barre. Only problem with the diagnosis is that my breathing doesn't seem to be compromised. I am still hoping it will be tick related and easily treatable. The hospital is not where I want to be. Not because the people here or the place is not nice, I just want to be healthy and back on the trail in the forest where I feel at home and where I need to be to complete my journey. I am hopeful that my journey can continue. Meanwhile, I sit here watching TV shows that are uninteresting. I WANT OUT!!But, I am still hopeful, how long I can patiently sit and wait will be my biggest challenge. This sucks. Why can't I get some information from these doctors? One of the neurologists visited today and performed a spinal tap, removing some fluid for testing. The doctor couldn't have been more wonderful. She explained the entire procedure step by step as she went along. The procedure was over quickly and she said the results will be available tomorrow. Later in the night I experienced back pain which was difficult to bear, and I finally got the night nurse to bring me some motrin for the pain and thankfully fell asleep.
Date: 2006-06-23
From: Newton Memorial Hospital

To: Newton Memorial Hospital
Miles today: 0.0

I awoke to more tests, hospitals constantly take blood, check blood pressure, heart rate, temperature and it's hard to go long without someone checking your vitals. I was put on an IV last night and have a monitoring device which transmits to a central location. The monitor keeps me from moving freely in bed, but I don't even have enough strength to easily change positions in bed. I woke to my favorite nurse who is very good with people and takes very good care of me. I had breakfast and she brought me a paper after helping me walk the 6 feet to the bathroom. I am not feeling any better but thankfully I am not any worse. I had another doctor visit and unfortunately my diagnosis is still unknown. I asked about the chest xrays results and he said he'd find out. There is no new news on the blood tests or spinal fluid tests. Lynne and my daughter Beth and 3 grandsons came today. I was given some motrin again and fell asleep in my chair. I was awakened to be tested for my leg strength and ten given a vital capacity test to check my lungs and breathing. Three tests, 3.96, 4.0 and 4.2 litres. Why am I writing this down? I have nothing else to do except wait...I just spoke to my doctor and it looks like Guillian Barre and I will be here for awhile. Hopefully I will be better, but I still will have a long recovery.
Date: 2006-06-24
To: Newton Memorial Hospital
Miles today: 0.0

An update of the journal to this date will come soon. Mrs. Bushwhacker here to report that Bushwhacker has been in the Newton Memorial Hospital in Newton, New Jersey for the last 4 days. He was driven to the hospital from Blairsville, and they have considered a diagnosis of either Guillian Barre or Tick Paralysis. The word tonight is that it is Tick Paralysis, which is the best case scenario. He will be treated with tetracycline and should show improvement in a few days, if this is the correct diagnosis.Will update further as I know more. We are just waiting it out at this point.
Date: 2006-06-29
From: Newton Memorial

To: Newton Memorial Hospital
Miles today: 400.0

Bushwhacker still in the hospital and the diagnosis is leaning now towards the Guillian Barre direction. This is not what we were looking for and he is obviously not happy about this. He is not severly impaired but it's enough that he is using a walker and does not have normal functions.I will be there with him tomorrow and he may be able to come home with me.
Date: 2006-06-30
From: Newton Memorial Hospital

To: Ocean Grove
Miles today: 0.0

Mrs. B here, I have gone to Newton and Bushwhacker is now home with me at the Jersey Shore. He is better than I left him last week, but is using a walker and has limited strength and energy.He will write again when ready, he really appreciates all your encouragement, thoughts and prayers.Still thinks he is going to be summitting Katahdin this fall. I'm glad he has this dream.
Date: 2006-07-08
From: Ocean Grove

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Thank you so much for your calls and guestbook messages. I'm still in Ocean Grove with Lynne. I have improved so much in the last week that I am able to walk without the walker. I'm far from being whole but far from what I was last week. I start therapy on Monday and will walk in a pool and do stretching then work on my strength. I've talked to Bone Saw, Tricycle, Sleeper, Da Bear, Lady Green and Sir Wounded Knee who are doing well and headed towards Maine. Last night I talked to Little Brother who said he's back on trail and down in Virginia. I would love to be able to hike again when he gets to New Jersey and be able to join him. I know it would be hard to get in hiking shape by then but this is going to motivate me to get going and be whole as soon as possible. I still want to complete my journey and it would be sweet to be able to summit with Little Bro. Please continue to keep me in your thoughts and I will do my best to get back on trail as soon as possible. Peace to you all. I miss my friends on the trail and hope you all are staying safe and happy. Bush Whacker.
Date: 2006-11-02
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Franklyn NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

A while ago I received a phone call from Lady Green and Sir Wounded Knee. They were calling from Miss Janet's. It's always great to hear from my hiking friends and an added thrill to get to talk to Miss J. They advised me about their hike and their schedule. I was happy they called because I wanted to get out and do a shake down hike to see if I could walk the walk on the trail. Long story, short, I planned on meeting them either in the Smokies or Fontana Dam. I called and left a message that I'd meet them at the dam. I drove up to Franklyn and met with Ron who set me up with a shuttle to the dam. I pulled up and met them like we had an appointment. They said they had just checked their messages and had just arrived a few minutes ago. Perfect timing!We hiked south over the next few days, staying at Brown Fork Shelter, NOC, Cold Spring Shelter and ending at Winding Stair Gap. The fall colors were beautiful. A cold front blew through and temps fell into the teens. The trail was covered in fallen leaves which made for tricky footing. I am proud to say that I did very well and walked away with good feelings about going back. I enjoyed backpacking with good friends and being with them when they ended their year long journey on the trail. They are special people and make great partners. I am happy I got to be with them again.This brings me to closure on my 2006 Thru-hike attempt. But it brings me to an exciting decision to re-do the hike and start in late February 2007. I have started a new 2007 journal and will try to make it better then last years. I want to finish this journey and do it having as much fun as possible. I hope some of you will join me next year either on the trail or via trail journals. Thank you all for all the thoughts and prayers. I really appreciate all you've done to make me feel good again.I am planning on going to Miss Janet's for Thanksgiving and hope to see some familiar faces and some new friends. Best wishes to you all.Peace,Bush Whacker
From: Boiling springs, PA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hi guys and gals. still going strong, Camel is kicking my butt. Getting ready to do another 30 miles on Aug. 3. Is getting me a ride and a place to stay while he does so. my lovely brother and his bride Kathy are picking us up at the Thayer at west Point academy on Aug. 23rd . Almost there! Last nite , the bugs were so bad and noisy we could hardly sleep! and boy is it hot, hotter than you know what!!! Pennslyvania is rocky that is for sure! Keep us up to date on news ffrom home, love, mary and jeff
Date: 2006-06-11
From: Damascus, VA

To: Atkins, Va
Miles today: 78.0

About three marathons into the hike, they are still alive. Camel and Little Billy Goat Gruff checked in from Mile 78 on Sunday to say they are doing great. They spent Sunday night at the Relax Inn, just off the trail in Atkins, Virginia.¢It¢s been great,¢ said Mary, AKA Little Billy Goat Gruff. ¢I¢m in a great mood because we¢re in a hotel room.¢¢I¢ve only cried twice,¢ she said. ¢I cried because we did more miles than I was ready for, and it was tough. Sometimes, there¢s no place to put your tent. Sometimes the shelter doesn¢t have any place for tents.¢The tough days were Thursday and Friday when they did 16 and 17 miles, respectively. One of the days they had to keep hiking an extra five miles because the shelter they intended to stay at was full.Here¢s a look at the daily distances:Day 1 (Monday): 9 milesDay 2: 12Day 3: 12Day 4: 16Day 5: 17Day 6: 7Day 7 (Sunday): 5One of the highlights for the two has been the people they met in the first week. Everyone has nicknames on the trail, and here are a few they have crossed paths with: Danger Zone, Bed Bug, Big, Jonah (the first one they met; he¢s from Israel); Locomotive (he draws a little train on the journals located at each shelter); Diesel and Cargo; Limbraker and Whistler; Clear Bear and Deacon Bear; Alky and Doobie.¢We meet them at the shelter,¢ Mary said, ¢and talk to them for a little bit, and then they¢re on their way. You¢ll be just getting there, and they¢re leaving.¢If there¢s a campfire, people gather around that. Our first night we had a nice campfire, and we sat around and talked.¢Saturday was their best day so far ¢ maybe because they did only seven miles after the two long days. They stopped around 2 p.m., and Jeff spent part of the day catching crawdads and salamanders and boiling them and then eating them along with a couple other hikers (Mary not included).¢It¢s a beautiful rhododendron forest with a stream right next to it,¢ Jeff said. ¢I¢m looking around and see these crawdads and I say to Whistler, ¢You want crawdads for dinner.¢ He says, ¢Yeah, let¢s get them.¢¢There have been better snacks. One thing unique to the trail is something called Trail Magic, in which people leave gifts of food or drink for hikers behind them to find. Mary found a lollypop during the week.¢It was the best tootsie roll pop ever,¢ she said.No one has left them any cigarettes, though Mary said the biggest surprise so far is how many smokers are on the trail.So far they are still healthy, if a little sore.¢My pack is giving me lots of problems,¢ Mary said. ¢ I had one of the girls help me adjust it. I did have some sore aches on my hip bones. I think I¢m getting skinnier.¢After a week on the trail, they are starting to feel like real hikers. Many of the people they have met started the trail at its beginning in Georgia.¢It¢s fun,¢ Jeff said. ¢After a week under our belt, it¢s a lot of fun.... Now we¢re starting to feel like we belong.¢
Date: 2006-06-15
From: Atkins, Va

To: Bland Virginia
Miles today: 0.0

From Mary aka "Little Billy Goat Gruff" as told to her sister Barb:Yesterday we hiked 14 miles which takes about 8 hours. 14 miles is tear time for me as that is my limit. We are staying at Big Walker Motel in Bland Virginia which is near Roanoke and Perrysburg. We have hiked 115 miles thus far. Our mantra is " Take it 1 day at a time." Haven't seen a bear yet but another hiker did. He or she wrote "BEAR" in big letters in the mud. Nice to have a warning. By the way, everyone at home might be imagining that we are just strolling along flat ground. NOOOOO! Walking on flat ground is like being on vacation. HIking on the trail is up and down. We also took a bath in a freezing cold stream using biodegradable soap. We are looking forward to picking up our supply box soon. Mike Vogel-Wish you were here with us hiking. Can't wait to tell you about it in person. Love to all.
Date: 2006-06-19
From: Pearisburg virginia

To: Pearisburg, Va.
Miles today: 161.0
Weather: light rain

Greetings Family and Friends, Thanks for all the wonderful comments in our guest book! The encouragement really helps our spirits. We are here at the Holiday Motor Lodge where the phones aren't working but Lois says they are getting fixed today! She has been working here for 43 yrs. Geez! Had a rough day again yesterday since we hiked 16 miles. Oh man that is tough for little billy goat gruff. I keep thinking of new trailnames we could use. One of them if I changed would be the hare and the tortoise. WE can't check into our room till 1 p.m and it's only ten thirty now. We stopped at this famous hostel yesterday and met the owner who's name is Tillie. She is 88 yrs. old and has been running this establishment for ever.People can stay there for free with showers and everything. Last nite I was scared when I heard voices around ten thirty at nite at our campsite. Jeff had been asleep since 7 p.m and it was pitch black. Found out it was 2 young men who hiked 28 miles. The shelter was full so they had to hike to the campsite. Some of the hikers have miners lights thay they wear on a headband so they can see at nite. These young men saw a coyote last nite! Man I miss everything! Two nites before the shelter had a bear but when we stayed there the following nite we had no problems. Well Jeff has been really cool about looking out for me. Yesterday I had a meltdown and Jeff said I needed to eat some real food. I had for lunch a Coke, candy bar and peanut butter crackers. Guess that's why they call it junk food. So we sat down in the middle of the traill and I had some tuna. boy did I feel better!!!! You are all welcome to meet us at any of our stops. We will definitely be staying at the towns where our post office drops are. And looking forward to staying at Shenadoah State park. Probalby 2 days there. Hope to make some calls tonite back home! LOVE Billy Goat Gruff "Mary" and Camel "Jeff".
Date: 2006-06-20
From: Pearisburg, Va.

To: Troutville, Va.
Miles today: 11.0

PEARISBURG, Va. ¢ Two weeks into their 928-mile hike, Mary and Jeff (aka Camel and Little Billy Goat Gruff) found themselves at the Holiday Motor Lodge on Monday ¢ 162.6 miles from their starting point in Damascus.Here are a few highlights from the last week, as told by Jeff:Playing spoons¢We spent one night at Jenkins Knob Shelter (54 miles south of Pearisburg). You mother ran into a group of five 14-17-year-olds delinquent teens on an eight-day hike with two counselors. So they were the first hikers there at the shelter. We get there and they¢ve got all the good tent sites. Anyway, it was an awesome night (Dean Blues and his 16-year-old daughter Clair Bear also showed up). Mary turned them onto spoons (the card game). They guys were going wild. We got violent almost (grabbing for the spoons). The ids loved it. Even the counselors joined in. It was a blast.¢Fending off bearsThe next night they stayed at the Wapiti Shelter. Wapiti means Elk, Jeff said. The night before they arrived, a group of hikers including Whistler, Limbraker, Diesel and Cargo, Tractor and Whipporwill spent the night fending off a bear at the shelter, as Mary and Jeff read in the trail journal at the shelter.¢He appeared at 9, looking for handouts, and he stayed all night. They had to tend the fire all night. They were worried. I don¢t think he wanted to eat them personally, but they all stayed in the shelter. That was a tough night. They heard him circling the camp until morning."Making friendsJeff said their best friends on the trail right now are Whistler and Limbraker, a couple from Georgia in their early 30s.Waking up¢Usually, we¢re getting up around 6. The birds start chirping at 5:30 as soon as the sun breaks. Then I kind of lay there, but she¢s got to get up. Today she slept in a little bit, and we had a big talk with a couple of hikers, 10 Bull and Coyote Paw.¢At the LodgeThey met Lois, 82, who has been at the Holiday Motor Lodge since 1963 when the place was first built.¢She¢s still working four days a week. She gave us free coffee. Just friendly as could be.¢The hard parts¢It¢s been awesome. The toughest part of the trail is the rocks. It¢s not going up 2,000 feet or down 2,000 ¢ going down 2,000 is harder than going up ¢ it¢s walking on these rocks. They¢re toughies.¢Injuries¢Mary has a couple of blisters, and her knee¢s bothering her. I had to get her another wrap.¢Average hikeThey¢re going about 11 miles per day so far and are right on the schedule they made out before the hike.Losing weightJeff said he has lost 20 pounds and is down to 163. He said Mary has lost maybe 5 pounds.On Mary¢s pace¢Her pace has quickened. She¢s slowest on the downhills and the rocks. Once she gets to 14 miles, she starts getting tired.¢The next big stopIt will be in Troutville, Va., in eight days and 93.7 miles.
Date: 2006-07-03
From: Troutville, Va.

To: Daleville, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Hey Everyone,    Sorry for the delay. I have been without internet for sometime at home because of moving, and so I have finally resorted to using work hours to update the journal for my parents. -EmilyTrail Journal Update: As told by Jeff Jablonski, written by Emily JablonskiBreakdown by Days:Day 1: 10 milesDay 2: 14 milesDay 3: 9 milesDay 4: 18 milesDay 5: 11 milesDay 6: 6 milesDay 7: 10 milesDay 8: 8 milesThe first day, Jeff and Mary stoped at a campsite with a beautiful view along with Whistler and Limmraker (spelling?). Jeff relaxed and watched the surrounding view for about 2 hours while drinking the wine that he and Mary brought with them in their back pack from their last stop. Jeff hid a Jefferson nickel under a rock wtih hopes of one day having a child/granchild looking for that same nickel with help from the hand drawn map Jeff made for the occasion.The second day happened to be the Summer Solstice, otherwise known as "Naked Hiker Day." Obviously, Jeff had to partake! Jeff walked 2 miles wearing only a bengals bandana. Granny Fanny was the only hiker other than Mary that saw Jeff that day. According to him, she took a second look...Jeff also ate wild escargot that day and enjoyed them immensely. They ran into a raccoon earlier that day that seemed very friendly but they didn't test their luck with petting him. Other hikers continued to run into that same raccoon throughout the day.The third day, Jeff and Mary had a shelter to themselves for once. Jeff found a book titled, "I'm a soldier too, the Jessica Lynch story." Later on that day, Tin Bowl and Coyote showed up. Mary gave Coyote his name, b/c when they were setting up camp a real coyote was staring at them the whole time.The fourth day was 18 miles! Jeff said they were only going to go 12, but Mary had extra energy, so they had to push it. The rain started right after they set up their tent for the night.The fifth day was tough. They started the day going downhill which isn't the best way for Mary to start the day since downhill hiking is hard on the body. They met Rickles McPickle that day.On the sixth day, Mary and Jeff met up once again with Whistler and limmraker in Coltoba and ate at a place called Home Place. Home Place is owned by two brothers and both brothers have wonderful families. Jeff and Mary really enjoyed meeting them. There were people waiting in line to eat here. They ate for 2 hours, and Jeff's hands were cramping from eating so much beef. They next morning the owner of Home Place let them shower. On the seventh day, Mary got her name the "miracle worker" because she is always able to get rides to and from the trail to various stores. During the eighth day, they saw their first bear...at least the tail end of a big black bear. It rained that day and didn't let up. Finally, Jeff and Mary reached shelter after a long day in the rain, and there were already some kids there with their counselors. Mary got along well with a boy named Sage, and was able to talk about God with him that night.The next stop for Jeff and Mary is Daleville.
Date: 2006-07-04
From: Daleville, VA

To: Daleville, Va.
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: haze

Hi friends and family, thanks so much for all your love and support/ I can't believe how much better I am doing. Probably because of all the prayers and good wishes of those backhome/ Please keep the guest book updated . I would 2love news from home or you can email me / w ON to climb down from the Priest Mtn/tomorrow / Next town stop in Waynesboro/Virginia/Wednesday July 12 2
Date: 2006-07-16
From: big meadows lodge

To: Big Meadows Lodge
Miles today: 8.3

HI Friends and Family,   Well Camel andI made it to tthe Shenandoahs. That is a milestone for me.We are staying at the historical Big Meadows Lodge for one nite. Tomorrow we hike ten miles to Skyline lodge. So things are looking up when we don't hike as far and get to stay in a nice place. Jeff says that today we have hit the halfway point, about 460 miles! Yipee! Friday , July 15, we hiked 21 miles. We started at 7 a.m and finished at 6 p.m. We decided to get to the lodge early.The only bad thing is we have to use a pay phone to call the kids. Rats, I don't like pay phones.   Ran into a guy we met at the start of our journey. His real name is Keith. Trail name is Seed and his dog High 5. I have been calling him son since I miss my kids. His dog is so sweet. He even has blue booties to protect his paws. On the way here we met some nice people who took our picture with their digital, Bobby and Ricky. Thanks guys. Everytime I meet someonewho has a digital I try to get a picture and have them sendit to David. Cried a little yesterday aafter meeting a family on the trail. Missing my kids again. One thing this trip has taught me is that the only thing important in life our the people in them.    On Thursday we will be staying at a hotel in Front Royal, Virgina. Expecting to be out of Virginia on July 24 in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Looks like we are going to get really hot here, so as early as we can we'll be out covering the miles.    Jeff said he saw a bear. I saw the blur of one in the woods. But we are continually looking for them. According to the other hikers, they have seen a bunch. Please sign my guest book. I love looking at them. Love, Mary and Jeff