morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2023-10-17
To: MM 139
Miles today: 0.0

4.7 14 mi. MM 139Thanks to all those who sent birthday wishes today. It was great to be where I was and feel the love. Wish you all could be here. It's fabulous!Arrived at the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) about 2:15 and had a wonderful birthday meal. Picked up my last, sniffle, resupply box and started up Cheoah Bald about 5:00. Kept running in to people to talk to. Cheoah is the last, sniffle, big climb left to do. It's about 3300 feet over 6 or so miles. It's not overly steep but it's a long way up. Oh,  almost forgot - saw bear #14 today. This morning about 30 minutes before I started hiking, five hunters with three dogs each came by the shelter. I could hear the dogs working to make left down the hill. Wind was blowing left to right up the hill. As I rounded a curve headed north, there was a bear about 100 feet up the trail headed south.  He had let the dogs go by and was now sauntering away from them. Five men, fifteen dogs and the bear outsmarted them all!  We both looked at each other. I asked him where he was going - he huffed. I asked if he was in a hurry - he huffed. I asked if he wanted by - he huffed. I Took it to be a yes so I stepped off the trail uphill about 10 feet. Wasn't enough, he just kept looking. I went another 10 feet and he was satisfied. He continued SOBO; I continued NOBO. Just two hikers on the AT.
Date: 2023-10-18
From: MM 139

To: MM 156
Miles today: 17.0

4.8 17 mi. MM 156What a difference a couple of years and 2100 miles make. I climbed Cheoah Bald in 2021 and it was tough. Today, it wasn't easy but it wasn't tough either. Just another mountain to get up. Thru hiker legs are a real thing. I wish there was a way to keep them going forward. And I wonder how long they will last. Sigh. Lots of sun and beautiful leaves today. What a great way to finish. Saw several more SOBOs now really close to their goal. I feel really mixed up. "Normal" has become walking with a pack up and down mountains. Not sure what the "other" world will bring and how I'll re-enter it. But if the AT has taught me anything - it's that you can do anything you really, really want. That's where it starts. I'll try to collect my thoughts in a wrap-up journal entry in the next few days. Thanks so much for your support in my journey.
Date: 2023-07-02
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello Friends and Family,After many years and some long section hikes, I am making final preparations to complete the AT. Starting in Vermont on July 11th (or thereabouts) I am hoping to complete my 5th and final section hike to end on Mt. Katahdin. I've had some incredible experiences, some very difficult days and so far it's all been worth the ride.
Date: 2023-07-04
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Because I thrive on a plant-based diet, it takes a little more planning to get the right foods and the right quantities to keep me going. Experience tells me that if I stay on the trail long enough I will lose weight no matter how hard I try to keep the daily calories up. It's always a question of balancing the volume of food you carry against the weight on your back. But the food planning is done and I know I'll eat well on the trail. I just finished reading a great book by Colin O'Brady entitled "The Impossible First". Here was a young man who planned and accomplished an unsupported and unassisted walk across Antarctica via the South Pole. The minor planning effort for this last leg of my AT adventures is absurdly simple by comparison. So much has changed about the AT since it was first conceived and laid out to make it easy and accessible. We should never underestimate the difficulties we might encounter with any endeavor, but my personal challenge has always been to overcome those fears and start moving.
Date: 2023-07-06
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I've had lots of good wishes from some special friends and that always lightens the load when starting out on a big section hike. It's too easy to flat-line through our daily routines so when I am presented with friends who care, who are thinking of me...it is uplifting! We leave very soon to connect with more good friends as we make our way north to beautiful Vermont.
Date: 2023-07-10
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

After visiting our good friends in Pennsylvania, we made our way up the highways to Manchester, VT. Rain, lots of it. Still raining. The good news is always that the rain will stop...eventually. The facts of life on long-distance hiking adventures are that you have to accept whatever weather shows up. My start is still on track for tomorrow as long as we can get to the trailhead. I suspect there won't be any shortage of water on the trail through Vermont for drinking; another silver lining in the clouds I see right now.
Date: 2023-07-11
From: Kelley Stand Road Trailhead

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 6.2

joani and I have had to do some serious travel planning on the fly due to the torrential rains the last few days. But the skies cleared this morning and we drove at Kelley Stand Road. This gravel road through the heart of the Green Mountain National Forest survived the rains very well. There were a few minor washout but we made it to the trailhead and Joani sent me off as she has done a few times now. I am having difficulty uploading photos from my phone but as soon as I can I'll catch up. My first day back on the trail was very tough. I had gotten away from my hike-training and I could tell. Each year we age it gets harder to do the things we took for granted. But I planned to start out slow this week and so I got to my first nights destination. I wound up sleeping in the shelter instead of tenting. I had what is advertised as Vermonts largest AT shelter all to myself. The other irony of the day was that our gravel forest road got us to the trailhead while the hard-road access was closed due to flooding. It's been tough for our intrepid Vermonters.
Date: 2023-07-12
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: Spruce Peak Cabin
Miles today: 7.2

Another beautiful day of hiking that contrasted with the muddy, wet, waterlogged trail and woods. Since starting out yesterday I've just accepted completely soaked shoes and socks. As soon as you wash them off in a clear stream or gravelly section of trail that has water running in it, the next bend is a deep, muddy quagmire. I know Vermont is notorious for its mud season in the spring but these rains have made a soupy mess of the trail. Just keep on slogging through it. The little log cabin that is tonight's shelter is a welcome stop. The neighborhood chipmunk is not happy with my presence at the picnic table.
Date: 2023-07-13
From: Spruce Peak Cabin

To: Bromley Warming Hut
Miles today: 5.8

There is something slightly off when you see a ski area in the summer. Bromley was no exception and since it doesn't operate any summer activity at the summit that I could see, it was strangely out of place. But thank you Bromley Ski Resort! You open your ski patrol Hut to AT and Long Trail hikers. There's no water so I had to carry the extra weight up from down the mountain, but having a shelter for tonight when rain is in the forecast makes it worth it. The hut isn't exactly set up for overnighter like me but it will do. They have entrusted hikers and backpackers by leaving it unlocked. No vandalism, it was clean when I got here but I swept it out anyway. There is even a privy nearby. I only hope hikers continue to respect this gift so it can continue to be used.
Date: 2023-07-14
From: Bromley Warming Hut

To: Peru Peak Shelter
Miles today: 7.1

After the wild night of weather on Bromley Summit, the dawn broke peacefully but still ominous. It was a cloudy, muggy hike to what turned out to be a nice, large shelter. Further evidence of the damage caused by the week of rain was the footbridge right in front of the shelter, which was tilted precariously, and officially "closed". But the Vermont structures are so solid hikers crossed the little bridge anyway, avoiding a bushwhack alternate trail to continue our way north.
Date: 2023-07-15
From: Peru Peak Shelter

To: Greenwall Shelter
Miles today: 14.3

A sunny day in the dark, dense woods of Vermont can have a tremendous effect on your morale and mood. After gloom and wetness just the hint that things could possibly, maybe, dry out a bit makes for an upbeat day. But arriving at Greenwall Shelter and checking the weather, it looked like rain would return overnight so I opted not to set up my tent. Like all weather guesses, I was wrong and would have had plenty of time the next morning to pack up dry. But the shelter was reasonably quiet with just two other hikers and few mosquitoes so I didn't mind foregoing my little tent cocoon.
Date: 2023-07-16
From: Greenwall Shelter

To: Clarenden Shelter
Miles today: 9.3

each day you calculate what the weather, your body and your mental state will allow you to do. The weather report from my Garmin InReach unit indicated rain this morning and light rain throughout the day. So knowing the goal for the day was only about 9 or 10 miles, I took my time leaving Greenwall Shelter. It paid off because once the morning rain let up and I got on the trail, the rest of the day was rain free. It was a muggy, overcast day of walking but I was still able to take in the sights and take my time getting to Clarenden. Once there I enjoyed a cold stream for washing up, the company of a nice young hiker, and a flat, grassy spot to set up my tent. Why my tent instead of the shelter? The promise of a rain-free night and a respite from the mosquitoes ( which have been surprisingly few...but still annoying.
Date: 2023-07-17
From: Clarenden Shelter

To: Cooper Lodge
Miles today: 10.4

The long climb to reach Killington Peak was something of dread because I have been really feeling the fatigue of a first week's effort. The legs and back were feeling stronger but the heart and lungs are still feeling their age. It takes me probably twice as long to ascend a couple thousand feet as the normal, younger through-hiker. This is made worse by the punishing design of this older part of America's eastern foot trail; straight up and straight down, then repeat. Fortunately the trail leading up to Killington was a bit more gradually but it was a tiring day for me nonetheless. It never really presented any views other than the "long green tunnel", which doesn't improve morale. But I made it to the shelter near Killington Summit. An old stone cabin so decrepit and leaky it literally dared you to spend a night inside. I didnt. There was just enough room for my tent nearby. A 0.2 mile scramble up a VERY steep and rocky trail to the open summit offered a sunset view but more smoke from Canada made for an underwhelming visit to the top. I still enjoyed the evening with 3 other tenters and slept well through the cool, breezy night at elevation with the Spruce and fir trees adding a freshness to the air.
Date: 2023-07-18
From: Cooper Lodge

To: Mountain Meadows Inn
Miles today: 10.3

Nothing spurs you to action like an anticipated meetup with your loved one. Yes, the hot shower and comfortable bed, and the cold drink and hot meal are big motivators but it was so nice to see Joani's smiling face and supportive presence. It made a long and tiring day of hiking all worth it. I don't think I have ever gone 8 days without a town-stop, hostel or break in the action until this starting stretch of my 5th AT section hike. I was clearly fatigued and absolutely OUT of gas (food)! What a welcome sight to walk out of the woods around Kent Pond and see the grassy meadow leading up to the Inn. So glad I made it and so glad to spend a couple days with my wife.
Date: 2023-07-20
From: Mountain Meadows Inn

To: Winturri Shelter
Miles today: 16.0

yesterday was a great Zero Day. For my non-hiking friends, that's a day without miles on the trail. Today I'm also enjoying a Nero. We are taking our time Checking out this morning and enjoying afew hours together before I head out for a short mileage day to tonight's camp spot. Everything about Killington has been relaxed but a bit quirky. It is oddly inactive, I guess because the village is built around winter skiing. We still enjoyed some good meals and even some live entertainment at Mary-Lou's on a Tuesday night. I'm resupplied, cleaned up, rested and hopefully ready for some big days ahead that will challenge these old lungs and heart. So it's on to New Hampshire.A footnote, after writing this entry I ended up taking advantage of a good weather day to walk extra miles. So my NERO turned out to be a late evening rush to get to the shelter. There was room at the inn and I slept well.
Date: 2023-07-21
From: Winturri Shelter

To: Thistle Hill Shelter
Miles today: 12.3

Today I woke up to rain, which let up some before I left the shelter. But it was a drizzly, damp day throughout the hike. This part of Vermont varied a little bit with the trail winding through valley farmlands and vast meadows that would be the envy of every butterfly gardener. Of course, there were no butterflies out on this day. I crossed several roads that showed the evidence of the big floods. Washed out footbridges and trailhead parking area filled with mud and debris. Even with the farmlands, there were multiple wooded hills that the trail went up and down, a long, tiring rollercoaster. I made it to a very nice shelter fronted by open woods, but the heavy thunderstorms were closing in just as I got settled into the shelter. It poured well into midnight. Today the sun broke out, the virds are happy and I am about to step out. It looks to be a good day.
Date: 2023-07-22
From: Thistle Hill Shelter

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 8.8

After a wild night of thunderstorms I was again feeling fortunate to have been in a dry shelter. The storms passed sometime in the night, and the sun broke through the trees and into our faces, which promised a good day ahead. And it was. The trails were still soggy and wet with the new accumulation of rain (clearly the ground is well saturated in Vermont by now). But I had made the call to make it an easy day and pull up after about 9 miles at Happy Hill Shelter. Probably because it was only 7 miles from Hanover going north, the shelter site was empty and I had my choice of tent sites. One other late stragglers stayed in the shelter, arriving after I had turned into my tent. The nearby creek was loud enough to provide just the right volume of white noise for sleeping. Ahhhh.
Date: 2023-07-23
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Sunset Inn Motel
Miles today: 7.0

After some lengthy road walking to get under two interstates and over two large rivers, I walked into bustling little Hanover, NH. and immediately bought a fresh squeezed lemonade and a vegan hotdog. This is the home of Dartmouth University. It was a planned and yet serendipitous stopover. Thanks to the generous help of Bill Young, one of Hanover's Trail Angel's, I was able to get some groceries and essentials, have a couple slices of pizza, and get a ride out of town to the old-style Sunset Inn Motel. The laundry is getting done! The shower was awesome! The air conditioner is drying out most of my soggy gear! The Hanover free bus system will whisk me back to town and the trail in the morning! I have some food to eat right here for tonight (thanks to the Hanover COOP store)! I have an alcoholic beverage chilling in the mini-fridge! My shoes dried in the sun! What a day!
Date: 2023-07-24
From: Sunset Inn Motel

To: Trapper John's Shelter
Miles today: 16.7

My wife and I have a code for places we like. "I could live here". That's how I felt about Hanover, NH as I was riding their free bus from the motel ba k to town at 6:30am to get back on the trail. It was a long day of hiking but a beautiful, sunny day and the woods were brighter and full of birdsong. I spooked a porcupine that scrambled up a tree with its posterior all a-quiver. Insurance that I would make no attempt to pursue it! Reaching Trapper John's Shelter, a passing thunderstorm briefly interrupted the camp routine. But this storm passed quickly, so I set up my little tent for a night's rest without being troubled with the occasional mosquito. As a footnote, it seems the recent rains in the region have finally resulted in a mosquito hatch, as they are now a minor, if persistent, annoyance.
Date: 2023-07-25
From: Trapper John's Shelter

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 12.0

The hike today was shorter than yesterday's, but it felt longer and more difficult. Short's Mountain presented a steep, rocky climb. There is an old fire tower and fire wardens cabin at the summit that made a great mid-day stop and offered some panoramic views from the tower. Hexacuba shelter was, indeed a hexagonal design structure with a central supporting post and two sides for the opening. The privy was called the Penta-Privy but it didn't seem to have any geometrical connection to the name. The mosquitoes have become more troublesome so I set up my tent in front of the hexagon on a little narrow shelf of flat ground and slept comfortably. A large group of southbounders joined me that night and made for a sociable, if somewhat crowded stay.
Date: 2023-07-26
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: Hikers Welcome Hostel
Miles today: 15.0

To gain a day and have a chance to take a Zero day at a hostel, I doubled up my mileage for the day and walked on in to Hikers Welcome Hostel near Glencliff, NH. On the way there one encounters all sorts of varied terrain. The highlight of the day was a rest stop at the top of Mt. Cube. There, a large area of exposed, flat rocks made for some great views, cool breezes and sunshine. You can take in where you've been and look forward to where you're going. A literal and metaphorical rest stop not to be missed.
Date: 2023-07-27
From: Hikers Welcome Hostel

To: Nowhere
Miles today: 0.0

Enjoying an unplanned day of rest at Hikers Welcome Hostel. It's a rainy morning and I am warm, dry and well nourished. It's a good day to rest my tired and sore feet, wear clean clothes, and anticipate my first introduction to the White Mountains tomorrow. I will have a tough, steep climb from here up and over Mt. Mooselauke.
Date: 2023-07-28
From: Hikers Welcome Hostel

To: Beaver Brook Shelter
Miles today: 7.8

It was good to have a day of rest at Hikers Welcome. Because the weather and the trails to Beaver Brook Shelter were very steep and wet. The big climb up to Mooselauke however wasn't nearly as tough a climb as I feared. And the reward was a first look at Alpine habitats above treeline. A bit of a shock at the summit though because 3 or 4 trails come together there and the sunny skies at the top brought out lots of people. Unfortunately the hike down the other side of the mountain was unexpectedly steep and damp. About a mile out, the rains commenced and when I got to the shelter it was almost full. It's not a good thing to try to set up a tent in the rain so some room was made for me in the shelter and as the rain continued well into the night, I was grateful to be sheltered yet again on this trail adventure.
Date: 2023-07-30
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: Lonesome Lake Hut
Miles today: 6.0

A good weather day! And with a pretty short day of walking, the sudden appearance of the Hut right along the trail was a fitting end. This is my first introduction to the Appalachian Mountain Clubs "huts" here in the White Mountains. Lodgings are shared bunkrooms, with blankets and a pillow. There is no electricity or hot water but plenty of drinking water, very clean composting toilet systems and wash sinks. The highlight of course was a massive dinner served family style, and a similar huge breakfast the next morning. They are warm, cozy places in the forest with friendly and energetic staff. My decision to hike from Hut to Hut through the Whites seems like a great choice, if for no other reason than the calorie loading to propel me along in the difficult terrain!
Date: 2023-07-31
From: Lonesome Lake Hut

To: Greenleaf Hut
Miles today: 10.4

walked down to Franconia Notch from Lonesome Lake Hut and was greeted by a couple with a complete spread of wonderful trail magic. Fresh fruits and vegetables, sandwiches, lemonade, chips and dips...you name it. It made the steep climb up to Franconia Ridge a good bit easier. And what a ridge! Once I reached treeline, the trail was a gentle grade through the rocks. Wonderful views and dramatic cloud formations whistling by. I traversed up and over Mt. Lincoln and Lafayette. Below the summit of Lafayette, one can clearly see Greenleaf Hut perched among the low conifers.
Date: 2023-08-01
From: Greenleaf Hut

To: Galehead Hut
Miles today: 7.8

another day another hut. They are all a little different in size, layout and location but the operation, staff and routines are all almost identical. A fun little benefit is an evening talk or program. I've learned a lot from some of these young, enthusiastic naturalists. Geology, Watersheds and alpine birdlife have all been featured talks. It's been such a relaxed and immersive way to experience these special mountains.
Date: 2023-08-02
From: Galehead Hut

To: Zealand Falls Hut
Miles today: 7.0

The big perk at Zealand was the cascading waterfall right out the front door. Lots of flat rocks for sunning and cold, clear pools of water for soaking my tired feet. So nice. With ea h hut stay I've met wonderful fellow travelers. The huts are somewhat noisy, busy places in stark contrast to the solitude of the trails but I have really enjoyed the social interaction with so many folks from all "walks" of life.
Date: 2023-08-03
From: Zealand Falls Hut

To: Mizpah Hut
Miles today: 14.5

The longest stretch of miles between huts today. Still, the first half of the day was a gradual descent to Crawford Notch and Highway 302. The second half was more challenging with a climb up and along the Webster Cliffs. But what a payoff with wonderful views down to the notch and up to the summit of Mt. Webster.
Date: 2023-08-04
From: Mizpah Hut

To: Lakes of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 4.7

There was some threatening weather and it had rained before leaving Mizpah but I reached the treeline dry. Then I heard thunder to the south. It's hard to tell where the thunderstorm really was or where it was going because I was actually walking through a cloud. It was open and exposed walking so I ducked under a large Boulder until the thunder gradually moved off. From then on, the open, rocky path was a wonder of 360 views, rare and tiny plants and wildflowers all along the trail. Lakes of the Clouds Hut is the largest of them all and now right before dinner there is a bustle more akin to a downtown hotel.