morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2019-02-06
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well ¢¦ 2 weeks until we board the flight to Atlanta to begin our adventure and I¢ve been doing a little reflecting. It was 7 years ago that I was diagnosed with cancer which forever changed my life in so many ways. It also led me to my dream of hiking the Appalachian Trail. During my recovery I began hiking and getting reacquainted with my love of the outdoors. It was great therapy. Both mentally and physically. Shortly after that I met and fell in love with my soulmate who was more than willing to accompany me on my journey. Fast forward a few years and here we are 2 weeks away from starting our adventure. It is so incredibly surreal. I¢m excited, nervous, anxious, impatient, but most of all I can¢t wait. Onward to Georgia
Date: 2019-02-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

It¢s getting real. 3 days and we¢ll be on the trail. We¢ve already had to adjust our schedule. We are scheduled to fly out of Dulles on the 20th. Originally we had a ride to the airport in the morning but there is supposed to be a snow/sleet/ice storm Tuesday night into Wednesday so we¢ve decided to get a ride tomorrow afternoon and get a hotel room by the airport. In the meantime we¢ll be packing and unpacking a 100 times until everything becomes second nature. I want to limit the on trail surprises as much as possible.
Date: 2019-02-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

We finally made it to Georgia. This morning we woke up to a snow storm. We were flying out of Dulles in DC which had cancelled over 100 flights. Luckily our flight was one of the fortunate ones that took off close to on time. It was interesting taking off in a blizzard. We then took a train to North Springs where our shuttle driver, Ron Brown, picked us up and took us to the Barefoot Hills Hostel. We¢re staying in a converted shipping container (attached photo). Tomorrow at 8am we are being shuttled to Amicalola Falls State Park where we begin our journey. Can¢t wait.
Date: 2019-02-22
From: Amicalola Falls State Park

To: Springer Mt Shelter
Miles today: 0.2

Well it¢s been one helluva start. Day one started off well enough. It was raining but not heavy and it eventually stopped. The stairs going up the waterfall at Amicalola were tough. They are the equivalent of climbing a 40 story building. The rest of the trail was hard as well. Then the downpour started. We ended up stopping two miles before Springer Mt at a shelter on the Approach Trail. We set up the tent and it poured all night long, with some thunder. We stayed dry in the tent but everything I had in the vestibule was drenched. Started off this morning in another downpour with wet shoes, socks, pants, and just about everything we had. As we climbed the mountain the rain got heavier and it got colder. By the time we reached the summit (the official start of the AT) we were both completely soak and I was starting to shiver. We walked a little more then ended up stopping at Springer shelter to warm up and have lunch. I had a hard time getting warm so we¢ve decided to call it a day and stay in the shelter tonight. As someone said last night ¢the miles will come. Don¢t push it¢. I¢m cold, wet, miserable, but still looking forward to many more miles.
Date: 2019-02-26
From: Springer Mt Shelter

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: overcast clouds

I haven¢t posted in a few days due to lack of cell service. We ended up taking a zero day at the Springer shelter due to more rain and cold. Everything we had was soaked. The next morning the sun finally came out so I hung everything up for an hour or two. Then got back on trail ... late but moving forward. We hiked 7 miles and spent the night at Hawk Mountain campsite. A nice place even if we did see a pile of bear scat in the site next to ours. Woke up to sun, but high winds and in the 30s. Still better than rain. The day became beautiful, sunny and in the 50s. The big climb was up Sassafras Mt. Hard but doable. We made it to Gooch Gap shelter which had some really nicely laid out campsites. We picked one and set up camp. There were probably 10 other tents there but we were spread out so it was fine. Another 8 miles in the books. It¢s good to get some miles in. This morning we woke up and after 6 days on the trail couldn¢t stand the smell so we got a shuttle to Barefoot Hills Hostel. Our trail friend, So Far So Good (Katherine), came with us so we rented a 2 bedroom cabin for the night. Ahhhhh... a shower and nice bed. And a FLUSH TOILET! Beats sitting on a bowl out in the woods in 30 degree weather. Tomorrow we¢ve got a shuttle to take us back to Woody Gap to continue our journey. The last 3 days have been great. I¢m beginning to get my cardio in shape so I can hike up mountains without too many stops. My legs feel good except my calves are a little sore. No big deal though. We¢ve had a great time so far. Even in our wettest, coldest time it never entered our mind to quit. The people we have met have been incredibly nice and supporting. It truly is a family out here. Everyone watching out for each other. Tomorrow it¢s off to Low Gap, then Neel Gap. Both short days but there are restrictions where you can camp in that area because of bear problems. We¢ll stop and camp before that, then hike our way through to Neel Gap. We¢re both doing well and looking forward to many more miles. Kevin and MJ
Date: 2019-02-27
From: Woody Gap

To: Neel Gap
Miles today: 10.7

Another great day on the trail. MJ and I got our trail legs, at least some of them. We hiked our first double digit day ... 11 miles. That included up Blood Mountain and down, which may have been more challenging than up. We arrived at Neel Gap just before sunset. We had reservations for a cabin at Blood Mountain Cabins, which we¢re sharing with our friend Katherine (So Far So Good). Since we walked in we got the hiker rate ... $70. Well worth it considering it¢s supposed to rain tonight. As we got our keys, John (Achin¢ Aiken) was standing on the porch and said one of the cabins had burgers, if we wanted. WE DID! Knocked on the door and were greeted by Sonya, Big Toe, and Colton. All people we¢ve met earlier but never thought we see again. The camaraderie, bond, and friendships we have established are amazing. You meet someone and 10 minutes later feel like you¢ve known them your whole life. I haven¢t met anyone out here that I haven¢t liked. Tomorrow¢s plan is a 7 mile day to Whitley Gap shelter. We¢re hoping for Hiawasee in 3 days. We¢re loving it out here and are so proud of ourselves. We are far exceeding our expectations but still keeping the miles short for another couple of weeks. No reason to push it. We¢re in no hurry.
Date: 2019-02-28
From: Neel Gap

To: Hogpen Gap
Miles today: 6.9

Another beautiful day in the bush. We woke up to rain but at least it wasn¢t heavy. Off to Mountain Crossings for supplies. I decided to trade out my sleeping bag. The one I have will probably not be warm enough for the Smokies so I wanted to upgrade. Plus I had a mail drop waiting there for me. My Uncle Willie and Just Bill set me up. Then it was off to the trail, which runs right through the building. The climb out was tough. 1000 feet in a little under 2 miles. A hard way to start the day. Plus it was starting to rain harder. We got to the top and the fog was very thick. It was spooky but I love hiking in it. It wasn¢t long before we started feeling the strains of the last week. Our bodies were beginning to rebel. Everything hurt and we were soaked. We decided it was time for a zero day. We hiked another 5 miles, got a shuttle ride to Hiawasee and are now holed up in a Holiday Inn. We¢re going to take tomorrow off and just rest. Our bodies need it. Our shuttle driver, Jeff, was a character. He was great. I know more about the history of Union County, Georgia than I ever suspected I would. Look him up on Facebook at Jeff¢s Appalachian Trail Shuttle and Tours. Tell him Kevin sent you. Tomorrow I¢m looking forward to rest, a meal that isn¢t made with boiling water, and a dram of scotch. The trail has been very difficult. We knew it would be but you still don¢t know how hard until you¢re actually on it. It is definitely the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I am so proud of both of us. At no time since we¢ve been out here have we ever thought of quitting. No matter how tough it is, we are loving it.
Date: 2019-03-02
From: Hogpen Gap

To: Blue Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: overcast clouds

We got picked up by our shuttle driver, Jeff, at 8am and we were on the trail by 8:45. We were pushing to do our highest mileage yet. We wanted to get to Blue Mt Shelter which would be a 12 mile day. The first 9 miles went great! Not a lot of significant ups and downs but most of it was walking on the edge of the mountain. Not a lot of room for errors. As a matter of fact, MJ lost her bottle of water off the cliff while she was trying to get it out of her pack. Luckily we had an extra bottle. We breezed through with little problem until we hit mile 10. It became very rocky which slowed us down. The last mile was straight uphill which is the last thing either one of us wanted to see after 11 miles. We finally made it to the shelter around 4. Tired, sore, but in high spirits. We had plenty of time to setup, relax, and eat dinner. Tomorrow we are meeting back up with our friend So Far So Good. She has the keys to a friends cabin located about a mile from the trail. It¢ll be a short day, 6 or 7 miles. We hope to get an early start so we can beat the rain in the afternoon. Today was a good day. Felt good getting back out here after our much needed zero in Hiawasee. Other than the usual aches and pains we¢re holding up well. It¢s time to turn in now, it¢s hiker midnight ... 7pm. Back at it in the morning.
Date: 2019-03-03
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Tray Mountain Rd
Miles today: 6.8

Another good day but then any day out here is a good one. We got up and out early (for us). Hit the trail by 8:30. We wanted to beat the afternoon rain and thunderstorms. Down into Unicoi Gap, up and over Rocky Mt. We were meeting So Far So Good at Tray Mountain Rd. She had access to a mountain cabin and invited us to spend the night. It was about 2 miles off trail and just as we got to the road the skies opened up. We are so far back in the woods I¢m expecting to hear dueling banjos. It was well worth the extra 2 miles to stay out of the storms. Then it¢s back at it tomorrow morning. I recently posted the following on Facebook but I thought I would include it here too. Sorry it¢s a little long ... Our journey is going really well. We¢re both having a lot of fun and meeting a lot of great people. I wanted to write a little bit about trail magic. Usually when you hear that, you think of free food or maybe an unsolicited ride into town. But trail magic comes in many forms. Our first few days on the trail were pretty miserable. Cold, wet, tired. We zeroed in Springer Mountain Shelter, the first shelter on the AT, because of conditions. After 3 days we had gone a total of .2 miles on the AT. We were sitting in our sleeping bags in the back of the shelter feeling cold and defeated. Miserable. A hiker came in and said he was reliving some memories from his thru-hike the previous year. We talked for a minute and as he left the shelter he turned around pointed at us and said, ¢you are all superstars¢ and left. Those 4 words did more for my morale and spirit than any free cheeseburger or ride into town could ever do. I think about that moment often and it always lifts my spirits and makes me smile. So thank you, Scab (Travis McDaniel) your words of encouragement meant more to us than you ever dreamed.
Date: 2019-03-05
From: Tray Mountain Rd

To: DickÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Creek Gap
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: few clouds

Yesterday was our first day hiking in sun-freezing temps. It wasn¢t bad though. It was also one of our longest days. There were a lot of ups and downs including Kelly Knob in the last couple of miles. You don¢t hear a lot about it but it was a killer. 1000 feet in a mile. Especially after already hiking 8 miles. The real star of the day was the hoar frost. Hoar frost is when the condensation in the air freezes on the trees and grasses. It¢s like everything in the woods is frosted. I attached a photo but it really doesn¢t do it justice. It was amazingly beautiful. Of course it was also cold but as long as we kept moving we were fine. We got to Deep Gap shelter and set up shop inside. Two young kids we had met a couple of days ago joined us late. Tim and Britney from Florida. Last night was cooooold ... it got down to 16, which none of us were prepared for. I didn¢t freeze but kept waking up chilled. Sunkist (MJ¢s new trail name because of her sunny disposition and her orange pack cover) was very cold. We tried starting a fire but everything was too wet. No more sub-30 temps at night unless we¢re prepared. Tonight¢s another 15 degree night so we did a short hike this morning then got a shuttle into Hiawasee and we¢re at the Holiday Inn again. We have 3 of us in a room so it¢s cheap. Tomorrow we¢re going to zero at the Top of Georgia Hostel and spend the night. It¢s a great place and well known on the trail. We stopped in today on our way to Hiawasee and everyone was very nice. Thursday the temps are going to rebound a bit so we¢re back at it starting at Dick¢s Creek Gap. North Carolina is only 9 miles away. A big milestone. We¢ll probably cross over Friday morning.
Date: 2019-03-06
To: Top of Georgia Hostel 
Miles today: 0.0

Not much to say today. We zeroed in Hiawasee. Walked around town (because we haven¢t walked enough lately), picked up some things, and got shuttled to Top of Georgia Hostel. Staying the night. We met ¢The Family¢ at the Hostel. Mom, Dad, and 4 daughters. They¢re thru hiking as well. They¢re also doing twice the miles as we are. Oh well, hike your own hike. I¢m not really a hostel kind of guy but this place is ok. Very friendly people. One guy, Tom Kennedy, helps run an organization that supports mental health thru hiking, Hike for Mental Health. A very worthy cause. Look for it on Facebook. Other than that we¢re off to the trail at 9 tomorrow.
Date: 2019-03-09
From: Top of Georgia Hostel 

To: Long Branch Shelter
Miles today: 33.0
Weather: drizzle

We haven¢t had cell service lately so I¢m a little behind. Big milestone Thursday ... we crossed over from Georgia to North Carolina. One state in the books. We also did our biggest day ... 12.6 miles. The weather was perfect. Sunny and around 50. The first 10 or so miles were not bad at all. Typical ups and downs but nothing too drastic. We were very excited to be in North Carolina then we started climbing and climbing and climbing. Straight up. It was one of the hardest climbs (in our opinion) to date. North Carolina sure welcomed us. We¢re renting at Muskrat Creek shelter tonight. There are 6 or 7 in the shelter and a half dozen tents here. It was an unusually crowded day on the trail today. We seem to be in a miniature bubble. We passed and were passed by probably 10 different people. Most we¢ve run into before. Plus ¢The Family¢ was out there too. It¢s Mom and Dad and 4 daughters. The youngest 5 and the oldest around 12. It¢s supposed to start raining tomorrow morning and rain for the next 3 days. Tomorrow is supposed to be in the 40s so we may do a short 5 mile day to the next shelter. Saturday and Sunday are supposed to be warmer. We¢ll see what we do for those days. I kind of like just planning one day at a time. Just getting through the next day or two is almost all we think about. Other than our next meal. We start thinking about dinner before we finish lunch. ¢-Friday we slept in. It rained off and on all night. Broke camp and headed out around 10. We hiked 5 miles in a cold rain. Got to Standing Indian Shelter around 1 and decided to stay. Too cold, too wet. It was a good idea to stop. We got there before the crowd. We were able to jam 7 of us in like sardines. There are also 7 or 8 tents setup. I don¢t envy those who had to set them up in the rain.     Tomorrow is supposed to rain but hopefully 10 degrees warmer. My fingers are crossed. ¢-Saturday was a good day. It never really rained hard, mostly misty and foggy. We powered through and did our biggest day. 15.5 miles and that included a hand over hand rock scramble up Albert Mountain. We also had another milestone ... 100 miles completed so far. For the second night in a row we are in a shelter, Long Branch shelter. It¢s new and roomy. Plenty of room to stretch out. Tomorrow we have 5 miles then get a shuttle into Franklin for some rest. We¢re still upbeat and having a good time and happy to be here.
Date: 2019-03-10
From: Long Branch Shelter

To: Rock Gap
Miles today: 3.4
Weather: light rain

Didn¢t sleep well last night in the shelter. My shoulder was aching and the guy next to me was a world champion snorer. As I laid awake all I could think of was what kind of food I wanted to eat when I got to town. It was another good group of people. We saw Waffle and his 13 year old son Hawkeye. We hadn¢t seen them since Blood Mountain. Also saw Rick from Hamburg PA and Clair who we hadn¢t seen since Blue Mountain Shelter. We only had a 4 mile hike to Rock Gap where we were going to call for a ride into Franklin. As we got near the parking lot a guy coming up the trail asked if we needed a ride into town. When I asked how much he said no charge. Turns out he is the owner of Baltimore Jack Hostel. Ron Haven. A great guy. Even though we weren¢t staying at his place he still gave us a ride. That¢s typical of the people we¢ve been meeting. So we¢re in Franklin for the next 2 days. Today was sunny and 72 degrees. Would have been a great hiking day but our bodies needed a break. Back on the trail Tuesday.
Date: 2019-03-12
From: Rock Gap

To: Siler Bald
Miles today: 8.4

Back on the trail today. We got dropped off at Rock Gap and to our surprise there was someone whipping up some trail magic. It wasn¢t just anyone it was the Crawfords. They were the family of 8 that thru hiked last year. We followed their journey on YouTube. They were so nice and accommodating. It was a pleasure spending time with them chatting. Also there was Fresh Ground. He has been doing trail magic for years and is somewhat of a legend himself. We finally bid farewell and got back on the trail. It was a beautiful sunny day, temps in the 50s. We hiked 9 miles to Siler Bald. It¢s a beautiful grass meadow at the top of the mountain. There are 360 degree views of the mountains. We decided to camp there instead of going to the shelter. We are the only ones here. Our first stealth camp during our hike. We are hoping for a spectacular sunrise over the mountain tops. Tomorrow our plan is to go 11 miles to Cold Spring Shelter. Supposed to be another beautiful day.
Date: 2019-03-14
From: Siler Bald

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 22.9

Yesterday was not a particularly good day. It started off with the zipper on my tent fly coming apart. That was in the middle of the night during a nature call. Luckily it wasn¢t raining or windy. I¢m trying to get a replacement at the NOC tomorrow. Then about 4 miles into our 11 mile day I had my first fall. Not sure what happened but I ended up on all fours in a small stream. I knew I had hurt my ankle but wasn¢t sure how bad. I sat on a log for a few minutes then tried walking on it. No dice. I couldn¢t put any weight on it. It was very tender and sore. I sat for another 15 minutes or so then tried again. I was able to limp around until I felt like I could continue. I really had no choice. It was almost 7 miles to the shelter and we were far enough from civilization that I had to try. I took 4 ibuprofens and started up the trail. We went very slow and I watched every step carefully. It seemed to loosen up as the miles went by but it still hurt. By the time I got to the shelter it felt pretty good. It still hurts but at least it feels stable. It¢s swollen but not real bad. I think I¢ll be ok. MJ gave me one of her compression socks to put on. I¢m hoping it¢s not too sore tomorrow. We¢re doing another 11 mile day to the NOC to meet our friend So Far So Good. There was one part of the day that was good. The sunrise where we stayed on Siler Bald was spectacular. Very colorful. Once I got to the shelter in my bag I started feeling very fortunate. Fortunate that I should be able to continue my journey. It could have very well ended in that small stream. ¢There were 4 of us in the shelter last night so there was plenty of room. I didn¢t sleep particularly well but then I never really do. But since we go to bed at 7:00 we¢re getting enough sleep all in all. My ankle was stiff but after a couple of miles and a handful of ibuprofen it felt pretty good. I still kept it slow and very careful. It was raining when we left the shelter but stopped soon enough and turned out to be a pretty nice day. The sun even made a brief appearance. We hiked 11 miles into Nantahala Outdoor Center. We met our friend So Far So Good and got a room for 3. Good thing, my ankle is quite swollen and needs ice. Fortunately it doesn¢t hurt all that much. I¢m just going to have to tough it out for the next few days. Not sure where we¢re going tomorrow but there is a 6 mile climb out of here. Should be fun.
Date: 2019-03-17
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Yellow Creek Gap
Miles today: 21.5
Weather: clear sky

We were fortunate to find a place to stay at the NOC. The Olympic Kayaking qualifiers are being held there this weekend. It was fun watching them practice. We decided to do our first slack-packing. We shipped our gear, minus a few essentials, to a hostel 14 miles up the trail and started hiking. It was nice only carrying 10 pounds instead of 30. The only problem was we couldn¢t leave until noon and had to make the hostel before dark. The climb out of the NOC was 6 miles uphill. It was pretty grueling. Turned out we walked out of the woods just as the sun set. Perfect timing. The hostel owner picked us up and took us to a Mexican restaurant in Robbinsville then back to his place, A Cabin in the Woods. The 3 of us got a little cabin which was great. Craig and Eileen were wonderful hosts. I highly recommended the place. The next day Craig drove us back to the trailhead. The climb out of Stecoah Gap was hard. One of the top 5 hardest IMO. We only hiked 7 miles and got picked up by So Far So Good¢s husband and driven to their home in Asheville. We¢re going to stay there a few days to escape some of the frigid temps in the Smokies. Plus my ankle needs some healing. It doesn¢t hurt much but is pretty swollen. I¢ve also ordered something to fix the zipper on my tent fly which split the other night. I bought it right before we left. I am VERY disappointed in the customer service at Big Agnes. They basically told me my options were buy a new fly or fix it myself. It¢s the worst service of any outdoor company I¢ve ever dealt with. Live and learn. And the last thing is I finally got my trail name ... Goat. I¢d like to think it¢s because I¢m the ¢greatest of all time¢, but alas it¢s because I¢ve been climbing the uphills like a mountain goat.
Date: 2019-03-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

We¢re in Asheville for some rest. We went to the Biltmore Estate today.  Amazing. My ankle is thanking me though. It¢s become quite swollen and sore. Even though I hiked about 35 miles on it since I hurt it it¢s  good that I¢m resting it. I think I was going on adrenaline mostly. With that being said I really miss the trail. REALLY! One more day. Wednesday morning 8am we should be on the trail. 7 miles to Fontana then we¢re in the Smokies. I¢d love to be through them in 5 days. I think it¢s time to pick up the pace.