morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-07-05
From: Carlo Col Shelter

To: Trident Col Campsite
Miles today: 10.1

DAY 26MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 10.1MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 10.5Woke up this morning to another day of no rain! We said goodbye to everyone and we were off! It was a big day. We were going to FINALLY be crossing into another state! First thing out of the gate we hit this crazy steep uphill. I mean STEEP. Nightwalker even said, "What is this ' The Notch' round 2?!" (He kind of just became part of our group We were literally bouldering again! It only lasted for a few hundred feet though. It was just hysterical. We always hit uphills first thing in the morning and after lunch. My legs just don't want to do it! And no one in the shelter said anything about this section haha.Half a mile in we hit the border! It really was a monumental moment for me. I had gone 281.8 miles on the AT. I conquered the 2nd longest state on the AT and also what many consider the hardest state. I felt pretty accomplished and although I had much more to go, it was a huge mental and physical accomplishment. So on it was to a new state! The state of New Hampshire! We only had one mountain to climb and that was Mt. Success. I think it's perfect because you've either successfully just finished the white mountains in NH, or like me just finished the state of Maine. Success! The views from the top were incredible looking down on Gorham and out onto the whites. I could very clearly see Mt. Washington which was incredible because that's where I first got my inspiration to do the trail. I couldn't help but smile knowing that I had walked all this way and now I could finally see it! After that we just moseyed through the miles. They were up and down but comparatively they were easy and it was a gorgeous day. As we traveled through the miles the woods started to really change. Suddenly there were a lot of beech trees and their leaves covered the trail. It reminded me if hiking back home in MA where I grew up. It was really refreshing and sort of nostalgic. We met a northbound woman by herself. A solo like me! Her name was Lady Grey. She really stood out to me because she just looked so happy to be going into ME and finishing her last leg of her trip. And she was the first other female thru-hiker I had seen by herself. It gave me confidence!We got to the campsite very early at about 3:30pm. It was nice because we could really relax on our last night together (with my aunt and uncle). We set up our tents and hung around. I was low on food and was lacking options so I had mashed potatoes for dinner. I had had peanut butter and bread for breakfast and lunch. I would literally have just enough food to get me through till the morning when we would reach Gorham. Good planning, but needed to ration some of my food better haha. We all shared some mountain house mocha mouse pie and then went to our tents. We would have to be up super early around 4am to pack up and hit the trail to get to Gorham in time for our ride. My dad and boyfriend were coming to pick us up, and I sure didn't want to be late for that
Date: 2013-07-07
From: Gorham, NH

To: Meredith, NH
Miles today: 0.0

DAY 28Zero day in Meredith, NHAhhhhh. Finally. My second zero day of the trip and I was home! I couldn't stop smiling. Still woke up pretty early because now it's just natural. Went to the coffee maker and just grabbed a cup of real coffee (not instant with powdered creamer) from what my mom had already brewed and sat on the couch and sipped it. Things you take for granted!My stepdad Gary makes an infamous Lennox breakfast. Loaded with blueberry pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs, fruit, and more. There's literally a pile of bacon! It's typically done Sunday mornings but when I'm home or people are visiting he will do it. It was, of course, incredible. My Mom, Brandon (11 year old brother), Nick (boyfriend), and I ran some errands after breakfast. We were getting more food and as usual, I went overboard. We went to Walmart and Stop n' Shop and I ended up spending $130. Good thing is my family can send me out any extras so it'll all get used! My dad also sent me about 20 dehydrated Packit Gourmet meals so I'm good to go on food for a while haha. On our way back home we made a pit stop at Friendly's for a Reese's Friend-Z. Since I'm from the home of Friendly's (Wilbraham, MA) it only seemed natural. After we got back we dropped my stuff, switched to bathing suits, and hit the road to go boating! We had the most relaxing time out on the boat with my family, boyfriend, and brother and friends! Just hanging out on the sandbar having a brew. It made me wonder what the heck I was doing sweating my ass off walking around in the woods haha. No but really, it was nice. We swam and went tubing out on Lake Winnapasaukie until the sun started to go down. After that, it was time for a cook out Before my brothers friends left to head back to MA, my Mom and stepdad Gary made the most ridiculous cookout to celebrate my brothers birthday. When I say ridiculous, I mean I was so full that I passed out immediately after, drooling and all (which I only do when I'm knocked out haha). BBQ chicken, burgers, guacamole and chips, spinach dip, corn on the cob, and more. I was getting fed so well it was hard to imagine going back to my trail food. I ended up only napping for a half hour though before I woke up and said goodbye to my brothers friends. After that we ended up all slowly making our way to bed. Being out in the sun all day wipes you out. And I was back on the trail the next day so I would need my rest. I was excited. I could feel the white blazes calling me, but it would be hard leaving my family and boyfriend again. I don't know if it gets easier. But I just remember how much I love what I'm doing and why I'm out there and then it's ok.
Date: 2013-07-17
From: NH 112, Kinsman Notch

To: NH 25, Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 9.3

DAY 38MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 9.3MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 9.3We woke up early. 4am. It was time to hike up Mt. Moosilauke, the last mountain in the Whites, for sunrise! It would be the last 4,000 footer until Virginia and was the last bit of the white mountains. It was actually pretty symbolic because everyone said to us going southbound that "If you can get through Maine and the White Mountains, you'll make it". And this was it. We were here! It felt like a such massive accomplishment.I barely slept the whole night having waking up at 4am on my mind. Guess I just didn't want to sleep through the sunrise. We packed up in the dark and headed out. My headlamp was pretty dim so it was a bit slow going trying to make sure I didn't trip. This was really my first night hiking experience so it felt kind of awkward. Funny that I decided to have it going up 2,200 feet in less than 2 miles.Mt Moosilauke is extremely steep consisting of wooden steps literally drilled into rock faces going up the mountain along with rebar. It's incredible though because right next to you are cascade falls running down the side of the mountain while you hike up. It's really a beautiful hike. About half way up the sun started to emerge and we started getting some nice glimpses of the sunrise as we hiked up. It encouraged me to hike faster to get even higher before it fully rose. It was such a beautiful sight. Another one of those moments when you know that this is why you're out here.When we reached the top it was quite different than many of the other 4,000 footers we had been on. It was a mound of a mountain and was covered on top by a meadow and these massive cairn piles. It looked like something that should be in the alps or something. Not in NH. Looking out the clouds were all still settled and low in the valley below and it looked like lakes. Cloud lakes. And there was still this pretty pink hue in the distance from the sunrise.It was a gorgeous morning on our last mountain in the whites and we enjoyed it with breakfast on top and soaked it in. After hanging out for an hour or so it was time for our descent. It was time to put the whites behind us. Our descent was much easier than our ascent. Much more gradual. We kind of just cruised down to the road. My stepdad was going to pick us up to slack pack and take a day off but we arrived at the road early so we hiked down to the Hikers Welcome Hostel.At the hostel we got some soda and ice cream bars and chatted up the caretaker Legion. He had hiked the AT two years ago and the PCT last year. He was super knowledgable and basically later out exactly what hostels and trail angels I needed to hit up along the rest of my trip. I was glad to meet him and get his contact. A good person to get advice from for future trips! When we got back to my house we made some sandwiches and hit the pool. Much deserved after conquering the whites. I felt proud! After that I showered, journaled, caught up, had dinner, and then finally after waiting all day my boyfriend Nick got there Perfect way to top off an awesome day!
Date: 2013-07-18
From: NH 25, Glencliff, NH

To: NH 25A, Wentworth, NH
Miles today: 9.8

DAY 39MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 9.8MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 9.8Today we were slack packing! And I was finally going to hike with Nick! We got up, had a quick breakfast, and headed out. It was me, Nightwalker, Nick, and my step dad Gary. We stopped by a shoe store quick to grab Nick some new hiking shoes and we were on our way. Plopped one car at one end and then drove to where we left off the day before. The hike was a breeze. We did 10 miles in less than 4 hours. One of the other caretakers at the Hikers Welcome Hostel named Fat Chap had mentioned that these would be easy miles but little did I know they would be THAT easy! As he said, "The miles you just did are MILES. From here on out your just going to be walking miles. You're going to fly through them!" And so far we did!The terrain was pine needle covered. Soft and graded hills. We had no views and it rained a bit but it was a nice walk. The total opposite of what we had just been through in the beginning of our hike. When we got to the end there were two older women who were section hiking. We gave them a ride to a farm down the road they wanted to camp at. Gary got to do a little trail angel work When we got home we had a nice cookout, chilled and watched some movies, and treated the muscles good by hopping in the hot tub. A nice easy day. Didn't even feel like we had gone another 10 miles! Oh yea and we hit the 400 mile mark. Another 100 down
Date: 2013-07-19
From: NH 25A, Wentworth, NH

To: Meredith, NH
Miles today: 0.0

DAY 404th ZERO DAYSpent an awesome day out on the boat on Lake Winnepasaukee with my boyfriend Nick and my family! My Aunt Lisa, Uncle Randy, and cousin Callum came down to hang out and catch up as well. Nightwalker went tubing for the first time Had a day off from hiking but got recked wake boarding and tubing all day! Ate so much of my Mom's great cooking that night I thought I would die! Super fun day off but time to go back to the trail tomorrow!
Date: 2013-07-20
From: NH 25A, Wentworth, NH

To: Fire Wardens Cabin
Miles today: 10.3

DAY 41MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 10.3MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 10.3Woke up early. It was time to get organized, packed up, and back on the trail. Had a nice grilled muffin, coffee, and some fresh fruit to start the day right! Gary and Nick dropped Nightwalker and I back at the trail at 10:15am. On our first day back we saw the most NoBo's we had seen yet. Some of them were named Condor, Maine-iac, Yard Sale, Mud Mouth, B-Rocket, and Blazer. The northbound bubble was really hitting now. We ended spending a lot of time stopping and talking to a bunch of them which slowed us down but it was nice. We had hopped back on the trail in the middle of the day smack dab in the middle of the heat wave. Hottest day EVER. It was extremely humid it was almost nauseating. The terrain was pretty mild although there were a lot of annoying ups. We had gotten so used to actually stepping up on rocks that now just having a slope up was kind of awkward to do. I would almost RATHER step up onto something than have the strain on my calves of the 30-45 degree flat, rockless, rootless slope.Early in the afternoon we got to the fire tower at the Fire Wardens Cabin. We decided this would be a good spot for the night. When we approached the tower there was a couple there on a day hike we ended up talking to for a while. After that we climbed the tower, my first fire tower on the AT, and looked around only to see storms in the distance in pretty much all directions. It looked really cool and WAS really cool until we began walking down the tower and got hit with heavy rain. Not your ideal spot to be when the rain and wind pick up. We rushed to the Fire Wardens Cabin and managed not to get too soaked.The cabin was a little gross but it would do. It was fully enclosed which was nice with the rain. We got right to eating to decrease the weight of our newly replenished food supply and passed out early somewhere around 6:30pm.
Date: 2013-07-23
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Dan's Barn, VT 12
Miles today: 17.0

DAY 44MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 17.0MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 17.0So it was still raining when we woke. We just tried to pack up quick and drag everything up to the shelter where it was dry. As we were leaving in the AM I was surprised to see Chef and Sean laying under a tarp. They were going to wait out the rain.We went 4 miles till we hit a road and hit a deli. Turducken and Sprout were already there. We decided to stop for breakfast. Mmmm breakfast burrito We got back on the trail after about an hour. We ran into Turducken and Sprout again and stopped at another road for a snack break. We should've pushed just a bit further for our break because down the road was some trail magic! Homemade cookies!!As we hiked on we passed someNoBo's named Pumpkin Head, Roadrunner, and Wanderlust. They mentioned that they had stayed at this guy Dan's house in his barn the night before and that he wasn't in AWOL's guidebook. It sounded like a good spot so we changed our plans and decided we would stay there for the night. When we got there no one was there so Nightwalker, Turducken, Sprout, and I just hung out in the backyard and cooked dinner. Apparently he typically would take hikers out to the lake nearby so we assumed that's where he was. There were no other hikers around.Finally it was starting to get dark so we investigated the barn to find that some hikers had already thrown their stuff in there so we went in and set up. I'm sure he was used to it. He showed up around 9:30pm finally. Stinky Jesus and Moose Legs were with him which I was surprised to see since I thought they were way ahead... And there were some new hikers I had never met! I finally met Nectar who I knew Stinky Jesus had been hiking with and had read many of her entries in the log books. He was always a few days ahea of me but here she was! She was a bubbly little thing from New Mexico with red hair down to her butt. I was happy to meet another SoBo girl on the trail! There were also a few section hikers there... Some of them being from a band called the Keystone Mountain Boys. Everyone was prepping for a little cookout so we got to tag along over to the house and indulge in their cookout. We had burgers and Long Trail Ales and Dan the trail angel busted out his guitar so we got a nice little private show from two of the members of the band. It was great! Even better I got a foot massage from the trail angel himself! A little weird buttttt how can you turn down a free foot massage?!We had an awesome night meeting new friends and listening to music and ended up not going to bed till midnight. Probably the latest night for me on the trail yet... Except for at Chet's! I blame the late nights on Stinky Jesus for keeping everyone up with his chatter. Was worth it though. These are the experiences you get on the trail you can't pass up and that you'll remember. At midnight I passed out immediately. Dry and in shelter.... A barn!
Date: 2013-07-27
From: The Yellow Deli, VT 103

To: Minerva Hinchey Shelter
Miles today: 2.7
Weather: scattered clouds

DAY 48MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 2.7MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 2.7Soooo today was a bust. Well not totally. We ended up doing a nero unintentionally. But what can ya do! We woke up late. I ended up feeling much more hung over than I would have expected after just a few beers but I guess my tolerance is much lower these days. Had our delicious breakfast for a 3rd day in a row! We were getting too spoiled at this point. We finally decided it was time to do laundry and in the meanwhile checked the bus schedule only to find out that the only bus running to the trailhead we needed to get to wasn't until 3pm. I guess that gave us time to finish laundry, gather up our stuff, and hit up the cool farmer's market down the street!I picked up some crazy kind of cheese, habanero cranberry jam, and maple zuchinni bread. I was going to be having a gourmet FEAST later! It would be heavy but well worth it! I also got to enjoy a half avocado with mango salsa! A salsa-cado! Any chance I get to have some fresh fruits and veggies I do it! We went back and packed up, packs heavier than ever. The food I took on took the place of what I had eliminated and more! Oh well! We headed down to the bus stop and ended up waiting for quite some time. Stinky wasn't going to be able to take the dog on the bus so he started walking. Nightwalker was getting fed up with waiting so he went to go hitch a ride. Smithy, Nectar, and I were left there wondering where the heck this bus was. Come to find out, it wasn't running at all!! We ended up having to call a shuttle. We had waited the whole day to hike out only to find out we had waited for a non-existent bus. Oh well :/It was hot, the packs were very full, and we were hung over. Not a good combo. I guess it ended up being a good thing we started very late and were only going to get to the first shelter. The bus never showing was a blessing in disguise??We only went the 2 or 3 miles to the first shelter and decided we would feast and try to reduce our pack weight significantly. There was a camp group there but they made space so it worked out. Mike and the Dirty Boys showed up later much to my surprise. I hadn't seen them since Monson, ME! Their individual names being Smash, Ya-ya, and the Friar. They tented so we didn't end up catching up too much. After eating as much as we could, we settled down. We wondered where Stinky was and he showed up around 9:30pm that night. Poor pup had to do a long road walk on a hot day with not much water on her second hike She ended up barking all night. Ugh.
Date: 2013-07-28
From: Minerva Hinchey Shelter

To: Lost Pond Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: light rain

DAY 49MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 14.9MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 14.9So the dog barked all night. This equals not much sleep. This also equals the latest I've slept in at a shelter and gotten going in the morning. 11:30am. Have to listen to your body though I guess! Because we got a later start we decided not to go as far as planned. Nightwalker had split off the night before and gone to a further shelter so it was me, Stinky, Nectar, and Smithy. We just had a small mountain, Bear Mountain, to get over and then it was pretty much all down hill. It ended up on and off showering all day but nothing too heavy. We hit this cool spot in the middle of the day called "White Rocks" which was this random area in the woods where TONS of cairns were built up in unique ways. It was beautiful because it was all pine needle ground cover with these white rocks in the middle of it. It really made it pop and stand out. I even added my own little cairn We had lunch there and then headed on. We came across the youngest hiker on the AT! He had literally just turned 5 and his name was Buddy Backpacker. I believe him and his parents were trying to set the new record for youngest thru hiker. We had initially seen his mom cooking them some dinner at a parking lot to bring in to the shelter for them, and then we came across him and his dad hiking which I snagged a photo of! He was adorable. He had ear buds in and when I asked him what he was listening to his Dad said it was an educational soundtrack of divisions of 2 from 100. Child prodigy. When we got to the shelter it was pretty much full but Nectar and I managed to squeeze in. The boys tented. We were in there with NoBo's B-Line, Why Not, and Handstand. There were a few long trail hikers but I didn't catch their names. We chatted about what was necessary to hit up in each direction on the trail and ate dinner. We were literally shoulder to shoulder. The next morning I would be needing to be up and out of there early. Like 5am early! Unfortunately I needed to be by a road to meet my Mom to go to Amy's wake. It was something I felt I needed to do, to pay my respects. Immediately after dinner to sleep I went.
Date: 2013-07-29
From: Lost Pond Shelter

To: USFS 21, Mad Tom Notch
Miles today: 9.3

DAY 50MILES ON AT FOR DAY- 9.3MILES TOTAL FOR DAY- 9.3Woke up early and tried not to wake anyone when I left. Nectar got up with me but was taking too long to get ready and I had a time I needed to be at the road so I took off. The first half hour or so I needed a headlamp but it got light quickly and I got a nice view after the sunrise when the sky was still lit up with pink. It made me think of Amy. Almost at that exact moment my Mom texted me saying they were on their way but also that my cat Chance who I had had my whole life passed. I told myself I wouldn't cry and focused on hiking fast. To distract myself from my thoughts, I put in my headphones and cruised at about 3mph. I was in a zone and got freaked out when I came upon NoBo True and her dog. I was looking at my feet too much! I ended up getting to the road much earlier than planned and my Mom, Stepdad, and brother Brandon were still an hour away. I ended up just hanging out by the road by the water pump. It worked in my favor because the water pump attracted many hikers so I had company. I met NoBo's Face Plant, Mac, Cat, Snow, and Beyonc©. When my family came up I was just wrapping up my chat with Beyonc©. And yes Beyonc© is a boy. My 10 year old brother found that hilarious of course. Although under terrible circumstances, it was nice to catch up with my family. We went straight to my Dad's house where my boyfriend Nick met me (to also come support me) and we got ready and headed out. My Mom, Nick, and I went to the wake. What else is there to say. It was sad. Very sad. But I was glad I could pay my respects to her family. I was glad I was close enough to home that I could get off the trail and do so. Everyone at the wake got a white ribbon to wear. I decided I would wear it on my pack until I finished the trail. After the wake we split ways until the morning when my Mom would bring me back to the trail. Nick and I got dinner and headed back to my Dad's house. We just relaxed and watched TV (which is an odd treat nowadays). As I always did before my trail days, I passed out watching TV.