morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-05-01
From: Lewis mtn campground 

To: Pass mountain hut
Miles today: 27.6
Weather: broken clouds

This is hard when service is horrible. Come on Verizon! Get with it. Today was a great day and a lot of fun. We enjoyed a great stay last night in our simple cabin. It rained all night. At around 0715 we got on the trail and moving. Immediately we stumbled upon a bedding area of deer. There were eight of them. Breath taking! They stood up slowly waking up as we did, stretching and shaking off the nights chill. What an amazing thing to see. We moved on and made it to big meadows wayside and ordered a great breakfast. After filling up we moved on down the trail. A few hours later we hit a resort and stopped in to grab a cold soda. That turned into ordering fancy burgers and enjoying a few beers. We made a toast to "To poor choices but Great decisions". After our meal we hit the trail yet again. Thank God we were making great miles! Somehow we made it to shelter at just before 2000. Talent is what I call it. We went to bed soon after and slept well. .
Date: 2012-05-02
From: Pass mountain hut

To: Front royal hostel 
Miles today: 26.5
Weather: broken clouds

And the Shenandoah's came and went. Short and sweet. I hiked alone today as Orange lightening got a late start. Didn't see much today, Was planning to hit more miles but my mom is not coming to harper's until Saturday now. So time to delay a little. I got a nice bunk at the hostel and cleaned up. Always a welcomed feeling. Now time to relax.
Date: 2012-05-04
From: Bear's Den Hostel

To: Harper's Ferry
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: overcast clouds

1000 miles!!!!!!!!!! Finally!!!!!!!! *Does a happy dance at the sign in the middle of the woods*Sorry I have not updated, but here it is... better late than ever. I was very lazy waking up this morning because I had a short day to Harper's ferry. The night before I was invited to lunch at a very nice families house. They told me how to get to their house and to be there around 12, it was only 4 miles down the trail. This meant that I could not get started until around 11 as I would get there to early. I slept in until 0800 and then got up, taking my dear old time. It was nice. I talked to Justin and the other bear's den staff for a bit and headed out just after 11. They offered to bring my gear to town the next morning since they would be there.. SLACK PACK DAY!! woohoooo.I made it to lunch on time and enjoyed a very nice lunch that was extremely filling. What a generous offer on their part, I could not thank them enough. I got back on my way and the trail was very easy. Before I knew it I was at the 1000 mile mark! What a great feeling to finally have hit this milestone. I hung out for a few minutes and celebrated and then moved on to Harper's. I was meeting my uncle at the ATC at 7 and was hurrying to get there on time. My pace stayed strong as I had a light pack. A few hours later I walked into Harper's Ferry!! My uncle pulled up at the same time which was cool. He took me to his house in Maryland for a great night stay and a warm bed. This was the first family I have seen since I left for my trip, what a great time.
Date: 2012-05-05
From: Harper's Ferry

To: Gathland State Park
Miles today: 10.0

Today was a lot of fun. I woke up after a nice nights sleep at my uncles. They made me a great breakfast and returned me to Harper's at the ATC. My uncle hung out for a bit and got to see me get my picture taken for the books. There was a Hiker event taking place that had a few seminars to inform people about thru hiking. There were tents set up in the grass fields next to the church and curious passerby's asked questions about gear. I volunteered as a current thru hiker to help out for the day and participate in a Q&A session. They fed me a free lunch and I felt very welcomed. I happily did the Q&A and it was a lot of fun to inform others about the hike and talk about our adventures. The best part about today was helping a thru hiker who was starting today and heading north. He would then flip flop to get back down to Springer. He had way to much gear on him, with a pack that weighed about 60 lbs. We got talking about gear and I offered to help him with a shakedown, we cut out over 20 lbs of gear that was not needed. He was very happy and shocked at how much gear he had over packed. The most exciting part about today was that my mom and dog were coming to see me! They called and said they would be there around 8, so I decided I would do some hiking while I waited. I made it ten miles and met up at the state park. It was a very welcomed reunion, I miss home and my family and friends. Tonight I will spend time with family and Zero tomorrow and do the same. I know it will put me behind, but it is worth it. Off to enjoy.
Date: 2012-05-06
From: Gathland State Park

To: The hotel... Zero Day
Miles today: 0.0

Howdy all, so today was a nice zero day. My mom came with her friend, carol. They brought my dog logan who I was very excited to see. We spent the day hanging out and getting things caught up for my hike. I switched out some gear and cleaned some other gear. It felt amazing to wear normal clothes for once as they brought me jeans and a cotton tshirt! After lunch I was able to get a hair cut in also, don't worry I did not touch the beard. There is not much more to report than just spending time with family today. We had a great dinner to celebrate my half way point and my birthday (which is today may 7th). It was a great way to celebrate things. Now I am back to the trail after breakfast! Planning a big miles day. Adios!
Date: 2012-05-07
From: The hotel... Zero Day

To: raven rock shelter
Miles today: 26.0
Weather: mist

Happy birthday to me! Today was bittersweet. I woke up in the morning in a nice warm bed. It was great to go out for a nice dinner and feel like a normal human again. We got a great breakfast and I had a big piece of cheesecake. They brought me back to the tail after which is where it got hard. As much as I love the trail it was great to see family again. I tried to say goodbye quick to make it less painful. I did not make it far up the trail before my eyes filled with tears. It was a bittersweet reu nion with home. I focused back on hiking to distract myself. Soon enough I hit trail magic on the trail. A nice couple with snacks for us. I got my birthday cupcaker after all! I moved on after a great snack and saw some cool civil war memorials. The Washington monument was very cool. I finished my day at a great shelter which was very fancy and new. There was a cool group there to talk to and enjoy company with. Maryland was mostly easy terrain, pa will be fun.
Date: 2012-05-08
From: raven rock shelter

To: quarry gap shelter
Miles today: 25.4
Weather: moderate rain

Hello everyone! So today was pretty rainy. I got up and moving and not far into the day it started to rain. Sun in the liquid form. I heard rumor of metro North pulling a huge day so I was searching for him. I came to a shelter in the rain and sure enough he was passed out there. I woke him up and we had a fun reunion, it had been a few hundred miles. We waited out the rain for a bit and then carried on. Late in the day we stopped at a great Italian restaurant. It was right off the trail and very good. After enjoying some garlic bread , garlic knots, and a huge sub each.... we got ice cream. Oh right! We are here to hike, back to the trail. A few short miles later we got to the shelter, it was beautiful. It even had flower pots, a table, and a bear can. There was a nice crew at the shelter and we had a few laughs. Then off to bed.
Date: 2012-05-09
From: quarry gap shelter

To: duncannon, pa
Miles today: 62.1
Weather: overcast clouds

That's right sports fans!!!!!! You read correctly! I just got done with a super hike. It all started after I heard about metro North fifty mile hike. I got going this morning and it was a great day. There was some rain but minimal. I wanted to push it to boiling springs which wad 38 away. The day was fun we officially hit the real half way point and now have les miles to go than we have done. We took a minute to celebrate the feat and take pictures. Jackrabbit was not far behind, I had met him two days ago at a shelter. Metro and I pushed on to the home of the half gallon challenge, however, it was closed. Stupid seasonal stuff and being here early. We checked out the A.T museum and asked around about the ice cream challenge. They told us to hike eight more miles and a store there could do it. We pushed on and made it in the rain, even more bad news though.... they don't do the challenge. Ugh so subs it was. By this time I had been thinking hard all day about my miles. I was 25 miles in and it was about seven pm. I had a crazy thought about going all the way to duncannon which was way far away. I was off! I hiked into the night with my headlight shining my way. The path was windy and hard to follow with the dark skies around me. The weather was cool and drizzling but nice out. I made it to boiling springs around 2300 and took a break to eat and dry my feet. The terrain was easy but very wet and long grass. Onwards. I hiked through many fields and woods, crossing bridges and roads as the night grew older. I kept my goals small and stopped to ring out my socks often. Slowly but surely the miles got less. The sun slowly came up and I was still hiking. Not far to go! I drank my red bull and went for my finishing stretch. Atlas I made it to town. 27 hours, no sleep, 62.1 miles... oh yea! You may ask why I did this? Simple. To prove to myself that I could. I did not think it was possible . But impossible is nothing. It is a excuse not to try. I saw a impossible day, so I went for it giving it all I had. And i made it!!!! What a great feeling. So i challenge you now, what have you done to push yourself recently? Get up, do something you call impossible.
Date: 2012-05-10
From: duncannon, pa

To: Zero day trail angels house
Miles today: 0.0

My day ended at 0900 when I finished my crazy hike. I had met a hiker a few days back who gave me his number and offered any help. I called Terry that morning and he said he would let me stay at his house. Perfect! As soon as I limped into town he was there waiting. I was very thankful. He gave me a room to sleep in and a warm shower. After that it was 1030 in the morning and I went to bed. I slept very well. Later on we did some food shopping and got dinner. Soon I was back in bed. Ha. So to sum up my day and night it was amazingly nice and i got some much needed sleep. Back to the trail tomorrow. Feeling really great! Just sore. Lol
Date: 2012-05-11
From: Zero day trail angels house

To: Tent site on trail
Miles today: 24.6

It was a early wake up as we wanted to beat traffic back. I cant thank terry enough for his generosity! I got hiking and back into the stroll of things. I ran into fellow thru hiker Pa Bert and he was immediately congratulating me on my crazy mileage. I was shocked word had already got out. He told me everyone had heard and it was spreading quickly. What a cool feeling. We continued on and met up with Noreaster, another thru hiker. He pointed to use caution. He had spotted a four foot timber rattlesnake just off the trail. We took some pictures and watched it. I then got out my gopro and attached it to my pole. I took some incredible up close footage as it rattled and then struck the camera. Cant wait to see the video. We hiked together for the rest of the day. Camp was nice, great fire pit with stone seats. A curious doe hung around us getting very close. The mystery was though where was everyone else? Many more said they were headed here. However, come night nobody came..... time to get some sleep.
Date: 2012-05-12
From: Tent site on trail

To: 501 shelter
Miles today: 22.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Hello everyone! Yea I know today was short, but I am ok with that. Nor'easter and I got a late start as we waited to see if Pa Bert would come along. We enjoyed a morning campfire while waiting and i ate my honeybun breakfast. We laughed about how the night was very noisy. A doe had spent the night circling our camp standing gaurd I suppose. I yelled multiple times at her but she did not listen, they never do. It was a very nice night, I did not even put on the rain fly. We soon got hiking and the terrain was easy. Half way through the day Pa Bert caught up and solved the question of what happened, he had stayed on site behind. I hiked on and made it to William Penn shelter. Shortly after I hit a huge milestone! Only 999 miles left to katahdin!!! Feels great to have the number in the three digits. A few miles later I hit a road, Trail Magic!!!! Slick was there with his wife and sat me down in a chair. I was quickly swarmed with cold drinks and a sub and snacks. I again got choked up from the amazing generosity of complete strangers . The best part was he immediately knew me, as he reads my trail journals daily and was half expecting me to show up. Hi Slick!!! Thanks again. We chowed down and had some laughs. Nor'easter and Pa Bert rejoined me. After we were happily full we finished the last two miles. Easy. The shelter is great, cloesed in, a door, bunks... even a outside shower. The care takers live next door and let me charge my phone. Well worth it stay. We had dinner delivered by some Italian place, they butchered our order but the food was still alright. Then the car campers near by brought some amazing sausage over for us on rolls so good. Now time for a full night sleep in a warm bunkhouse.
Date: 2012-05-14
From: Eckville shelter

To: Jail house hostel
Miles today: 25.4

Hmmm yes I am at the jail house. Not the jail. Today was a fun day. It was very wet in the afternoon and Rocky all day. I was shocked that it did not rain in the morning. I carefully walked on the rocks, meticulously hopping from one to the next. One slip and my trip would be over. Darn rain made them so slippery. Other than rocks and wet feet there was not much more. I made my way into town after losing the trail for a moment. The jail house is a free hostel ran by the town. It is a interesting place, but dry and warm. There are three other hikers with me. Time to dry out and enjoy my evening.
Date: 2012-05-15
From: Jail house hostel

To: Gateway motel
Miles today: 20.5

This morning I woke up in a nice dry room. After a long wet day already, my gear had dried overnight. But now it was time for another rainy day. The forecast predicted up to two inches of rain. I got out late because I was lazy. Around 0800 I got back on the trail after hitching back up to the trail. The trail was flooded almost immediately from the overnight rain. Soon enough it began to rain again, time for the fun to start. I geared up and kept moving. My rain system is less than efficient, I want to switch to a poncho. My pack cover only keeps the top of my pack dry, not helpful. My rain coat makes me sweat and it has spots that channel water. My rain kilt is great but does not keep my top dry. So I will be trying a pack poncho I think. My feet were soaked all day today. It was very bad because of the extremely rocky terrain I was on. My feet took a beating and are blistered a bit. I made it to the shelter at two. Granddad was there and expressed interest in going to a motel. Five miles away. I gave in, so off we went. They went quickly and I was down before I knew it. We got a room at the Gateway. Wow, not at all worth the money! We just wanted a bed so we dealt. But really?!? Cigarette butts under the bed, exposed wires, stained ceiling tiles, mold in the cabinet. Just bad. But the pizza was great that I ordered. And it is still pouring out! We are enjoying a dry room and hanging our wet gear all over the room. Hopefully I will sleep well tonight.
Date: 2012-05-16
From: Gateway motel

To: Mohican Outdoor Center, NJ
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: light rain

Well I survived my night in the worst motel I have ever stayed in. I cannot complain much though because I slept great and my gear dried. I got going soon after Granddad and made my way up the steep climb out of wind gap. The rocks were still deadly from the rain overnight, my steps were slow and carefully chosen. As the day passed however, the terrain became less rocky and intense. I hiked alone all day and passed only a small handful of other hikers, and only one or two of them were through hikers. Due to my miles I have become more and more secluded as I pass through hikers. There are very few ahead of me. It is a little depressing to not see through hikers every day, I hope to meet up with more soon. After Delaware water gap I happily left PA and entered NJ. I was shooting for the mohican outdoor center as there was a sweet trail magic box waiting for me from some long time friends. They packed me up a great box with treats, that soon became my motivation to keep me going. I was tired and sore, but moat of it was mental exhaustion from everything today. The rocks took complete concentration, then the hot sun beat on me, and so on. I got to the sunfish pond which was pretty. Of course another risk then appeared... big water snakes, I nearly stepped on four of them. Although not poisonous a bite would quickly get infected and be very dangerous. After the snakes i got swarmed by ticks for the rest of the day. I must have pulled at least two dozen off me today, the good news was that none of them had time to bite me and they were the bigger dog ticks. The bigger ones do not carry Lyme as far as I know which is reassuring but I still hate them. The downfall is the deer tick who does carry Lyme is all over and VERY small. They say it is about a speck of a ground up piece of pepper. So even seeing them is a challenge. Ugh. I got to my goal and went in and got my box. This was amazing! Fresh home made cookies! YUM! So soft! This was by far the best part of the day and a huge spirit boost that was much needed. Since I now had a feast to enjoy I got a bunk room. They have great accommodations here for only 28 bucks. I have a private bunk room, and community kitchen, living room, and multiple showers around the building. The building is very clean and comfortable. Perfect way to end my day. There is also three other section hikers here. One from Germany, one Austria, and one from the states. Great mix. For now though I am going to eat my cookies and be a happy hiker.
Date: 2012-05-17
From: Mohican Outdoor Center, NJ

To: Sunrise Mountain pavillion
Miles today: 23.0

What a great night sleep! I woke up well rested and happy. I enjoyed a nice breakfast which was not only a cherry Danish but I was able to heat it up! Yay. I got going and was feeling much better. I was getting low on motivation yesterday until I got an amazing care package. Its funny how just a few treats can turn a mind around. Thank you again for the great package! We will all have to meet up when I am done. The hike today was not all that exciting. Less snakes. Only two small ones today. Ticks were not horrible either. I enjoyed a few ridges and met some nice people today. The 2065 at hikers group was really fun to talk to. I ate at a tavern in branchville I did not feel welcome at all there... but the food was decent. Now I have made camp in the pavilion, exactly where camping is not allowed. I guess kids sneak up here to do drugs. Well I will keep watch for them... just doing my civil duties. And of course enjoying the last of my cookies.If you give a thru hiker a homemade chocolate cookie .. he is not going to ask for a glass of milk. Why? Because milk does not settle well with hiking in the hot sun. Also because I am very content with the cookie which has made my day and lifted my spirits.
Date: 2012-05-18
From: Sunrise Mountain pavillion

To: Vernon, NJ - St Thomas Episcopal Church
Miles today: 27.5

This morning I was rudely awaken by a couple coming up to watch the sunrise at 0430. Thankfully I was able to go back to sleep, I did not get up until nearly 0630 after that. I guess I needed my beauty sleep, didn't help. I ate and packed up enjoying the morning view and made my way back to hiking at 0730. Today's terrain was not all that bad, it had a few rocky sections but lots of nice areas to counter it. I hiked alone again, but finally ran into some through hikers! Soon after I made it to the New Jersey state high point, it is a 220ft tower on the summit. Sadly, it was .3mi off the trail because apparently the AT is to cool to go up there, I went anyways. I quickly left though because there was a hoard of 4th graders headed up and I wanted nothing to do with that headache. Back to the trail, I was feeling motivated and much more energetic so I wanted to keep on pushing out the miles. There was nothing else to really report, no cool critters, no fun people... just the trail and me. I made it to the road in Vernon at just after 1900, it was 2.4 miles to town. Thankfully there was a guy sitting in his car at the parking lot, I asked for a ride and he quickly said sure. I am now at the St Thomas Episcopal Church which so kindly allows hikers to stay here in the basement/lounge area. They ask for a small donation, but include a shower/laundry/computer/tv/kitchen... what more can we ask for!? I am enjoying a nice dinner from the local chinese take out. Yummy. That is all for now!
Date: 2012-05-19
From: Vernon, NJ - St Thomas Episcopal Church

To: Fitzgerald falls
Miles today: 19.0

Today was a fun day. I spent the day hiking with AMS, he is a really cool guy and down to earth. He is incredibly quick and very hard to keep up with, thankfully he wears out much quicker than I so I can catch up. The hike today was much more difficult than expected. Granted, we left at 0930 for the trail after a burger king b-fast... but we moved quick.You can check out his blog at www.dekompress.tumbler.comWe had a major event occur today, WE ARE IN NEW YORK! We left New Jersey and crossed into New York!! MY HOME STATE!!! WOOOHOOThe hike was slow and tedious with rocky terrain that required 100% concentration. We then came up on a road that reportedly had a ice cream shop down the road, we went there. WHAT A AMAZING PLACE! The ice cream was homemade and incredible, the place was packed. I was shocked at how packed they were at 1300. We spent a nice chunk of time there while we had ice cream, and a root beer float. Time to move on. We hiked on a few miles and made it to the falls.. we found a nice site, we gave in and made camp. We enjoyed a nice fire while we ate dinner, and then headed to bed around 2030. We would be getting up at 0500 to get a early start so we needed our sleep.
Date: 2012-05-20
From: Fitzgerald falls

To: Palisades Parkway
Miles today: 19.7

Today was another short day... why? not because of effort... but because NY is simply a pain in the butt!! It was very hilly today with very steep climbs that took the energy out of us. We got up and going at 0500 but unfortunately that did not seem to help all that much. Water was really hard to find today. We resorted to asking day hikers for spare water, as the streams we crossed were polluted and nasty. Some very nice people helped us out and kept us from getting severely dehydrated in the hot sun. We were given a gatorade and water from some hikers and a liter of water from some others. They were our trail angels during our hike today. The terrain got a little interesting today, as there was very steep climbs and even some rock climbing involved on some spots. Then there was the lemon squeeze which was very tight and constricting. There were not good places to rest today, no soda machines, no diners.. ha yea we are spoiled. However.. My aunt lives about 1/2 hour away. She posted on my facebook and offered a place to stay!! TRAIL MAGIC!! AMS and I quickly took up on the offer and set up a meeting point at the Palisides Parkway. After a long hike we made it there, it was shocking to see how low our mileage was for the day and yet how tired we were.. it is frustrating. The positive side is we did get to see the NYC skyline for the first time today, that was neat to see. My aunt picked me up with my cousin and took me to their house, what a great stay. We had a great dinner and enjoyed a great stay. It is amazing to simply have a chair with a back on it and a warm, dry place to sleep. Thank you.