morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-06-20
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Aquablaze- Day 1
Miles today: 0.0

** Aquablaze begin**This is when you paddle rather than hike a section. I have already hiked the Shenandoah National Park and decided to paddle the Shenandoah River to Front Royal. Uncle Buck, his dog Jake and I paddled together for 6 days. Many thanks to Miss Janet for the shuttle services and flexibility to make this trip possible!Captains Log. Day 1.The crew and I began floating up the Shenandoah river about noon from Port Clinton, VA. We boarded the vessles and headed in a northernly direction with the town of Front Royal in our sights within the week. I dubbed my boat the trusty G-blaze, short for Granny aquablazing. I had been named Granny Stretch for the adventure due to my dress, floppy hat, large sunglasses, and gaudy pearl necklace. Comfortable to the extreme. Day one was swift and uneventful. Uncle Buck, Ghost and I arrived at a flat area just before dusk and set up camp. I had learned my poles were left in Miss Janets van, so I rigged up my tent using paddles and guy out lines and prayed the weather held up overnight. The mosquitoes mad a feast of me and bit through my clothing, despite a smoky fire. I ate a spaghetti dinner and ran into my tent to avoid the bloodsuckers. It was time for bed.
Date: 2013-06-21
From: Aquablaze- Day 1

To: Aquablaze- Day 2
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Captains Log. Day 2.Ghost awoke early and hit the river prior to the rest of camp.We scrambled to pack up and get on the water prior to the mosquitoes having a second feast. The rapids were plentiful today and uncle buck flipped his boat twice, causing everything to get wet. Our waterproofing had not held up and the cereal got the worst of it. My sunglasses were lost at sea today. RIP sunglasses. My skinned burned and the air was stagnant. The 2 portages were rough but we got intel about them thanks to grizz and frog, who loaned us their guides. Many thanks. We also stopped at a McDonalds off the river to enjoy some "real food".
Date: 2013-06-25
From: Port Clinton Pavillion

To: Front Royal Hostel
Miles today: 107.1
Weather: broken clouds

We got in to port around 9 am and were promptly picked up by Miss Janet and returned us to the VFW pavillion where breakfast wraps were waiting. She dropped us off at the grocery store to resupply, took us to Spelunkers for ice cream and burgers, and then we were dropped off at the hostel. I lounged around, talked, and drank beers donated by some section hikers. Siren rolled in just before dark. She was tired, exhausted, and was incredibly upset to find the water wasn't working and that she could not use the shower. She reported she hadn't had a shower since Waynesboro, nearly a week before.Siren finally got her shower and we crashed at the hostel.
Date: 2013-07-13
From: Cove Mountain Shelter

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 177.51

Yes, I am still on the trail, well and hiking! The past month has been insane and I will update you ASAP I get to a computer without a huge line of people and a decent internet connection.We got up in the morning to find that it was still raining. Yay. After a very slow pack up, we started heading back up the rocky hill toward the trail. 4 miles and one mini-rockslide later we pulled into Duncannon, PA. We made a quick stop at a store, where I stepped in a massive puddle after leaving. My left foot was instantly soaked. Great. We finished walking at the historic and infamous Doyle Hotel. We walked into the bar and ordered tall, cold drinks, lunch and a room. A few drinks later, we checked out the room and walked down toward the hiker feed. Many thanks to Billville and Trail angle mary for the feed! I ate pulled pork, veggies, pasta salad, and the most amazing desserts that I've eaten to date. After dinner, a few of us tubed down the Susquehanna to be met with fireworks shot at us from the shoreline. We were picked up and driven back to the campground to find a movie being shown about the CDT. 2 hours later we caught a ride back to the doyle where I turned the fan on full blast and fell into a deep sleep.
Date: 2013-07-14
From: Duncannon, PA

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I woke up feeling incredibly sick. After running to the restroom every 15 minutes for 8 hours, I made the executive decision to go to a hotel and relax for the rest of the day. Siren was nice enough to comandeer a car from an aquantaince, so she drove me across town to the Stardust motel. My energy had been completely depleted, so she was even nice enough to carry my pack. I crashed on the bed, watching reruns of Seinfeld and drinking Pedialyte until I fell asleep.
Date: 2013-07-15
From: Duncannon, PA

To: Campsite before 325
Miles today: 17.9

I awoke feeling sort of refreshed with slightly more energy than the day before. Trail Angel Mary was kind enough to pick me up and drive me back into town. After a quick resupply at the mini-mart, I stopped at the Doyle, ate a pint of ice cream and chugged a Gatorade. 1 hour later I deemed it safe to hike and started out on the trail. The heat and humidity were crazy. I was dripping sweat constantly and started to doubt my decision to hike. I stopped to drink water and take a break about every 30 minutes. I took a 30 minute nap at the first shelter and then went to the second one to do the same. A huge group of hikers were at this shelter, including Brother Bear, Little Bear, Smiley, LostnFound, Rambles, Uncle Buck, and many others. I stopped in for a 3 hour break to avoid the heat of the day. We all headed out around 6 pm aiming for the spring. We never made it that far and nearly everyone stopped at the campsite 1 mile prior to the spring as the sky started to get dark. I wasn't hungry for dinner, so just set up my tent and tried to sleep... the heat wasn't making it easy.
Date: 2013-07-16
From: Campsite before 325

To: Swatara Gap, Rt. 72
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

I woke up to Smiley and Lost's alarm clock going off at 0530. Everyone else got up and packed while I fell back asleep. 2 hours later, I woke up, packed up and left camp. The heat and humidity were still overbearing, but starting earlier made life a little better.After hiking 6 miles, I ran in to Siren again! She had just woken up and only hiked half a mile from her camp site the night before. She said she was going to make it as far as possible before getting off trail to go to a Bluegrass festival early the next morning. I told her to have fun, I was going slow in this heat.Today is the day I decided I hate the AT in PA. The rocks started. My feet were screaming at me all day long and my ankles rolled multiple times. I was smart enough to switch to an old pair of boots, but I was not smart enough to switch to higher socks. My ankles were blistered and bleeding and covered in dirt. The temperature in the afternoon rose to over 90 degrees and the bugs were swarming us, pig-pen style. There were hundreds of gnats that surrounded us in a cloud. You couldn't see and they would dive bomb your eyes, ears, nose and throat. It was nearly unbearable. I took a break at Rausch Gap shelter with Huckleberry and Copperhead where I made lunch, just as a church group of 30 children swarmed the shelter. After a quick ramen noodle lunch, I started hiking again only to find the gnats back in full force. My mode of avoidance was swinging a bandana in a circle around my face and head. Don't tell siren, but I take back all those times I made fun of her bug net. I was tempted to catch up to her, steal it and run away.I stopped at Swatara gap where there was an abundance of trail magic. Limping Eagle was taking hikers into town, while another triple crowner (he completed the AT, CDT, and PCT!) brought us sodas and water. I took a rootbeer and then headed to the stream to cool off and rinse out my clothes. I fell asleep dreaming of ice and bug nets.
Date: 2013-07-17
From: Swatara Gap, Rt. 72

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 28.8
Weather: clear sky

501 501 501... the only thing going through my head this entire day was that there was a nice shelter with a shower and the ability to order delivery to the shelter... 501 501 501...Today was a bad day. The trail was unrecognizable, horrible, just miserable. It was overgrown beyond belief. I constantly found myself questioning if I was bushwhacking or actually on the trail. Poison ivy was plentiful and unavoidable. I see perfuse itchiness in my future. The rocks somehow managed to worsen and yet again my ankles and feet were protesting this hike. The bugs were out, yet again. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I rolled into the 501 shelter. I read over the delivery menus more times than I can count. I finally decided on a steak salad and the sampler. Smiley and Lost came in a few minutes later and we placed our food orders togehter. I took a cold shower from the solar shower, changed into somewhat clean clothes and found myself feeling much better. The food arrived and I scarfed down the salad and sampler, putting the fries on my salad, Pittsburgh style I talked to friends around the firepit, sans fire, for a few hours then set up my tent and crashed.
Date: 2013-07-18
From: 501 Shelter

To: Eagles Nest Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was supposed to be another hot day, and it was (seeing a theme yet?). I got up pretty early to find pastries had been delivered to the shelter for us to enjoy. I had a blueberry scone for breakfast and began hiking.Around 11 I came to the Hertline Campsite. A nice backcountry campsite with a picnic table and ice cold spring water. I soaked my feet in the water for a little and talked to a few people including Hagrid, Killer, Coach, Navigator, Rabbit, and Smiley(2). Around 3 I got tired of sitting around and decided to hike on.I arrived at the shelter around dark, quickly made a lipton side, talked to Hagrid, Killer and some section hikers for a bit and then left to set up my tent and sleep.
Date: 2013-07-19
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Port Clinton Pavillion
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: few clouds

I got up early and ran into Port Clinton, TOWN DAY!Today was supposed to be the hottest day of the week, so I arrived in town before the heat, around noon. I ran into Mailman on my way in, who told me to go to the pavillion, that CandoWilldo was there and had trail magic and shuttles.I got to the pavilion and was handed a cold water. Perfect on such a hot day! Cando said he would shuttle in the near future, so I caught a ride to wal-mart and cabellas in town. I got resupply at Walmart and then walked around the airconditioning in Cabellas for a few hours. I found a bugnet (hehe, now I don't need to steal Siren's!) and the store employee told me he had been through 1/2 his bugnet stock in the past 24 hours. I wasn't surprised.Cando picked me up and drove me back to the pavillion. After sorting my purchases, I went to the hotel to get some dinner. They had the biggest turkey wrap I had seen in my life! I ate half and donated the other half to another hungry hiker. I was enjoying a Mailbu sweet drink when Little bear, Copperhead and Huckleberry showed up. We talked for a few hours and then I returned to the pavillion. I talked to a few other hikers for a few more hours and decided to cowboy camp on the front yard of the pavillion.
Date: 2013-07-20
From: Port Clinton Pavillion

To: Port Clinton Pavillion
Miles today: 0.0

It was not supposed to be a zero, but it was. Huckleberry and Copperhead (now deemed Hucklehead as their couple name), little bear, Damsel Fly, Limping Eagle and I decided to take the Yuengling tour in the next town over. Excellent tour, I highly recommend it to anyone near the Pottsville area. Post-tour we got 2 free samples of Yuengling. After much work, Huckleberry scratched off the sharpie mark on the bottom of his second glass, giving him 3 free beers. He proudly returned with the 3rd glass and a huge smile on his face. The plan was to hike out after the tour, but after a few free beer samples and ending the tour at 2 PM (we were expecting to be on the trail by 1), we collectively made the decision to stay for the day, enjoy the trail magic, and drink some more Yuengling. It was a perfect day, lounging in the river, drinking amazing beer brewed right down the street, and talking with good friends.
Date: 2013-09-12
From: Please Read

To: The Whites
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: thunderstorm

Hello all!Just a quick update-Finished VT and am in NH.The long trail in VT was amazing. I want to go back and do the long trail in its entirety some day. I saw my first moose! It was huge and loud and I would be ok if I never saw another one up close.While in VT we visited the state fair. We watched bears go down slides, pig races, and motorcycle tricks. I ate BBQ pork on French fries and fried Oreos. The fair was amazing.Many thanks to Greg and his slackpacking services, which allowed my feet to heal and hike with siren again, who has a broken toe and is currently hiking in a boot.Also, thanks to Rich and Pam who graciously allowed us in to their home and fed us, and allowed us to do "town chores".We walked into the white mountains yesterday. It was 90 degrees summiting Moosilauke, which meant awesome photos. On the nearly vertical decent, it began to darken, then thunder, then hail. We were peeled with hail the size of grapes and had to climb downward while skating on marbles. The rest of the night was no better, as it hailed at least one more time. When the forecast called for storms today, we had no problem taking a zero.The trip is going better and better every day and the views are getting more and more beautiful as our legs get a workout climbing and descending multiple mountains a day. I can't wait until I return home and download photos so that you can see for yourself!
Date: 2013-03-27
To: Getting TO the trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Hello friends and family. Welcome to my 2013 Appalachian Trail thru-hike journal.The following is my first post. A few ramblings before I really begin.- I should officially be on the actual AT (Appalachian Trail) sometime late in the day on 3/31. - Before hitting the AT, I sort of have a little mini-adventure to go through first. This includes catching a Greyhound bus ride at 11pm on 3/29 to Atlanta, GA followed by an hour train ride, and then a 90 minute shuttle ride to the Hiker Hostel. - At this point it will be pretty late in the day so I have reserved a bunk. I'm actually pretty excited to stay at this hostel. It is a pretty traditional and popular starting point for the most recent NOBO thru-hikers. (pics and follow up post likely in a few days)- Upon waking up the next day, I will begin hiking..... the approach trail. Named Amicalola Falls ,this serves as an 8.5 mile trail that leads to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Pretty eventful start. -------------------------------------------------Websites for reference: Slang / Terminology Wikipedia Modified Google Map ------------------------------------------------- Couple quick thank you's: Most importantly Thank You to my mother and step father. Without their help the previous year, I would not have been able to save up the financial means to support this selfish endeavor. I'd also like to thank every friend who showed a general interest in this trip. Thanks to Derek for letting me crash on his couch for the past 3+ wks and giving me rides to REI for supplies (if a bear attacks me you are going to feel like shit). Thanks to Johnny for introducing me to this whole trail idea nearly 4 years ago (hopefully you can join me for a few hundred miles). I may or may not update everyday from the trail. Feel free to sign the guest book and leave me a note whenever you want. I will read them eventually.
Date: 2013-03-30
To: Hiker Hostel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

After a day of traveling through different means of transportation, I have arrived at the Hiker Hostel. This place is pretty nice, much cleaner and spacious than I originally had imagined. Staying at the hostel tonight are a German couple Melanie and Joung , another German fella named Jay, myself, Dwayne, ahhh crap I don't remember the other names. All cool people though , everyone of us with the same lengthy goal in mind. Tonight should be pretty uneventful, maybe some light reading and then staring at the ceiling of my bunk for hours upon hours upon hours anxiously awaiting the dawn and the next big step to this journey. After breakfast, we start hiking.
Date: 2013-03-31
From: Amicalola Falls State Park

To: View Entry
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: light rain

Woke up early for eggs and silver dollar pancakes cooked by the hostel. A 45 minute shuttle ride later and myself and a few others were dropped off at Amicalola Falls to do the AT Approach Trail. Two things surprised me on this section. 1). The falls are larger and more beautiful than I ever imagined (750 ft). and 2). I am not ready for this trip. My pack is a little too heavy for any compromising comfort. The first thing that I need to mail back to home is the camera and its ginormous bag. It's so bulky and the trail is so rough right now that carrying and/or digging it out of my pack are too much of a hassle. I have up on it after 2 hours. I started the hike overdressed and had to take off articles in the first quarter-mile. I left my cold gear base layer bottoms on. This proved to be counter productive once nighttime came. I leapfrogged fellow hikers Subaru, Slow & Steady, and Danger Dave for the first 4 miles and finished the last 6+ miles hiking with Wyatt. The longest climb of the day came at Springer Mountain. We reached the top, took a few pics, and then immediate crazy heavy rain started pelting us. The rain caused a few issues, my clothes got wet and the trail became muddy and slick. Even though it was still very early, 2 miles later we dipped into a shelter for the night, met some new friends, ate and slept. Good decision as it rained the entire night.
Date: 2013-04-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 13.5

Had some tough climbs today. A few of the views were good. I look out into the mountain range off in the far distance and can't imagine hiking to them. It really is a long journey. During the day I feel decent but when I stop hiking for the day then the doubts and anxiety creeps in. Being out here without old friends makes the downtime and shelters quite boring. I don't know how far I plan to hike but I no longer have the goal of thru-hiking the entire trail to Maine. My short term goal is to hit Neel's Gap tomorrow to send my camera home. I might also buy a fleece jacket and might also consider staying at the hostel they have on site. This will be the first place on the trail that has stores of any sort. I look forward to it greatly but it will make for a long hike tomorrow at 16 miles away. Could be easy depending on the elevation ups & downs, but I don't know what it holds yet.... I forgot my Guide Book back at home.Noticed some bags of trash on the trail today here and there. Also walked up upon my first piece of Trail Magic (wraps, trail mix, jerky). I thought about taking something but after realizing it would add to my pack weight I decided to just keep walking.
Date: 2013-04-02
To: Neel's Gap
Miles today: 16.5

Saw a lot of Army vehicles in the first mile or two today, which I later learned that this area is training grounds for Army Rangers. Apparently they were firing off blank rounds into the night at each other. I was either too far away to hear the loud bangs or I was too concerned with the guy at our shelter who had been puking and covered up all day and night. Some say he was exhausted, some say he had not been filtering his water. This motivated me to keep a better eye on my calorie & water consumption. Slept in my tent next to the shelter. We got some cold winds in the night but no rain. I started my hike off very slow. The first 2 days of hiking I went a little too fast and now my left leg is pretty sore. Looks like it might be the IT Band. Slowing my pace for the day I leap-frogged Kate for the first 9 miles. Found some trail magic (cold can of Coke) near the Chatahoochie National Forest. Just before Blood Mountain I started hiking with Tin Man and S'all Good. The last climb of the day had wasn't too bad, we took breaks, ate snacks, and kept a steady conversation going. The climb was worth it. Blood Mountain is the highest peak in all of Georgia and it gave the best views of the trip so far. It took an hour to traverse down the other side but there at the bottom was my goal, Neel's Gap. A free dinner cooked by a church group, a backpacking store, and best of all a Cabin we all for split the cost for.
Date: 2013-04-03
To: View Entry
Miles today: 7.5

Thanks for the comments in the guest book. It is fun to read them each night before I go to sleep. Slept in this morning, the bed at the cabin was great. The best sleep that I've had in a month. The four of us packed up our gear around noon , ate a quick breakfast and spent an addition 90 minutes at the outdoor supplier down the street. I finally got to ship home the DSLR+bag+lenses (yeah,,, I know). Removing that from my sack opened up space for useful things like a fleece jacket (now I'm warm at campsites), trekking poles, and an alcohol stove. We hit the trail late, around 2pm, agreeing last night to just do an easy day to heal our bodies some. Terrain wasn't bad, only one long climb near the end. High bear activity was reported for this and the previous 5 miles, so bear bags are hung. Constant wind tonight and a decent chance for rain after midnight. We are camping next to a guy who didn't stake down his tarp too well so I've had to listen to a loud flapping plastic sound since the sun dropped. I'm getting slightly more accustomed to the trail life and things have been looking better.
Date: 2013-04-04
From: Hogpen Gap

To: View Entry
Miles today: 14.0

I don't know how much it rained last night, but I do know that whatever hit the ground turned into slick mud and the rest turned into ice sickle on trees. Woke and packed up a cold tent and bear bag full of ice. S'all Good hiked out first. Then Tin Man, Kate, and myself hiked out 30 mins later. Howling winds and the occasional sleet made this a tough day. After a mist-filled 4 mile hike we met at the 1st shelter. Immediately after stopping, my legs started feeling way too cold. Knowing I didn't have any warm dry clothes for later in the night , I decided I needed to keep moving. My only option was to trek the 14 muddy miles to Unicoi Gap to get a ride to a nearby hotel. S'all Good and myself left the shelter while Kate and Tin Man stayed back to have a meal. There was no real plan on what town, direction, or hotel I was going to and I really wasn't sure if the two staying behind were even in full agreement on a hotel. I figured our group had split and may not reunite for days. None of us had exchanged numbers. The 2nd shelter of the day was 7 miles from when the group split up. I left a message in the shelter hiker book with my cell number and a note saying that we were definitely going to town. I can only assume I will get random texts from bored hikers now for the rest of this year. S'all Good and myself got to Unicoi Gap around 7:15pm and called for a shuttle to the nearest hotel. I felt bad for sleeping off the trail so soon again but knowing I wouldn't have frost bitten appendages or hyperthermia made it all worthy. Also, we put in 14 miles on a day when very few other hikers did any decent miles. It all somehow worked out though. Kate and Tin Man found my note and gave me a call, we all went out to a somewhat trashy - somewhat awesome townie bar and enjoyed a warm hotel room for the night.