morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-12
From: Jennings Creek/Va 614

To: Marble Springs
Miles today: 20.9

It was so nice to leave our "Wonderful Life" at the campground.On the trail by 8:10am. We climbed for the first 9 miles! That is not a typo, 9 miles uphill, to start the day. So much again for Virginia being flat. We seriously do not know where people come up with this ridiculous idea that Virginia is flat.We topped out at Apple Orchard and had lunch there. We dropped down to "The Guillotine". It is a rock the size of a truck engine that is wedged between two rock slabs. The trail goes right under it. We took pictures of each other hiking under it.We met up with Tofu & Figaro on the trail just before the Apple Orchard Falls Trail. They were headed south on the section we had just come up. They said that Crampy got off just fine at the airport this morning. They also said we should check our voice mail for a "message" from the "management" of the Wonderful Life "chip-board shed" place. We look forward to checking our voice-mail, it should be funny!We met up with Miles McDuff and Ranger at Thunder Hill Shelter. They were taking an extended break and were trying to decide to either hike on or stay there for the night. We convinced them that another 7 miles to Marble Springs to camp was doable even for two old guys! They took the bait. The four of us got to Marble Springs to tent for the night.We set up our tent, cooked dinner, hung up the food and climbed into our sleeping bags at 8pm. Chance of rain tonight.The Rhodies and Azalias(sp?) are starting to bloom. Also saw fields of pink wild flowers and took some pictures. Poison Ivy is EVERYWHERE on the trail. We spend as much time avoiding rocks and trail obstacles as we do watching out for poison ivy. We listened to Whipperwills(sp?) as we drifted off to a well earned sleep. 20+ miles today, much of it uphill and none of it flat.
Date: 2005-05-13
From: Marble Springs

To: US 501/Va 130/Glasgow, VA
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: overcast clouds

We got an early start today. The night was rainy, but fairly warm.The hike today only had 2 minor ups and the rest were even smaller ups and downs into town. We wanted to make it to town early enough for breakfast.We hitched a ride and got into town at 10am. Boston and Cubby both had a huge breakfast at Mom & Pop's Motel & Restaurant. It was called the "Mountain Man" breakfast, served on three plates! Yikes. It had two biscuits with gravy on plate #1. Two eggs, 4 slices of bacon and grits or hashbrowns on plate #2. Plate #3 had two pancakes that were the size of the plate. Wow, now that is a lot of food. Even we had trouble plowing through it. All that food and the price was about $5 for each of us. Very good food for a very good price.We then went to our room, showered up and did our laundry. We got our bounce box ready and took it to the Post Office. We then went to the Grocery Express across the street to resupply our food for the next 4 days.We planned our next 4 days of hiking while at the laundromat. We thought it was possible to do it in three days, but more realistic to do it in 4 days with 3 nights on the trail.We are still working on trimming our pack weight. We cut down our medical kit, toiletry kit, and some clothing.After all the busy work was done, we had dinner at Mom & Pop's and then relaxed in the room. Gravity and Danger Pea are also staying at Mom & Pop's.The bugs are definately out, Boston got bit up on the trail. She has over 25 bites and itching like mad!We did get that "message" from "A Wonderful Life Chip-Board Shed Management". It was hilarious. Seems they are missing a fork and that we left a light on. So they will be charging us an additional fee per kilowatt-hour for the time we left the light on.We got some disappointing news from Miles McDuff. He told us that Ranger went to the Doctor and he has a hernia. The Doctor told him that it is serious and he must get off the trail. Ranger is very disappointed and upset. Steadystep was giving him a ride so he could get home.We talked to Sandman and he says he will be getting back on the trail. He will meet us in Waynesboro next week to start the Shenandoah National Park with us.
Date: 2005-05-14
From: US 501/Va 130/Glasgow, VA

To: Brown Mtn Creek Shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: broken clouds

We had a great breakfast at Mom & Pop's. Not the "Mountain Man" breakfast, but a smaller version "Maw's Breakfast". Stuart shuttled us back to the trailhead. Miles McDuff shuttled back with us also.We hiked to Blue Ridge Parkway and took a snack break and refilled our water. We saw the Ottie Cline Powell Monument on Bluff Mountain.We saw a bunch of hikers headed south and they had all seen a rattle snake on the trail sunning itself and they warned us of it. We looked for it, but never did see it.The weather was nice all day, but got warm toward the afternoon, up to 82 degrees. We hiked through a new section of the AT around Pedlar Dam. Some sections were very nice to walk through, tall pine trees. There was a new suspension bridge over the Little Irish Creek.We got to the shelter amid some threatening thunder, but no rain. "Flash" and "Hot Flash", a 1987 thru-hiker couple stopped for dinner and brought Trail Magic with them. They made us ham salad sandwiches with pound cake and fruit turnovers for dessert. Also had soda for us and candy. They were even nice enough to haul out our trash, always a good bonus. They were a very nice couple and great fun to talk to. We would have liked to have talked with them longer, but the weather was threatening and the rain was coming, so they had to go.Miles McDuff got to the shelter 2 hours after we did and the first thing he said when he got there was that he was going to "get off" the trail tomorrow first chance he got. We thought he was kidding, but he seemed pretty serious about it. He has been hiking with Ranger for a lot of miles and doesn't like hiking by himself.Hell-Boy and Tom showed up at the shelter at 8pm. They ate the rest of the Trail Magic left by "The Flashes".
Date: 2005-05-15
From: Brown Mtn Creek Shelter

To: The Priest Shelter
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: light rain

It was foggy and overcast this AM when we got up. It did not clear up all day. There were episodes of sprinkling.Miles McDuff said last night that he was getting off the trail today. We saw him trying to hitch a ride on the road to Buena Vista. We tried to talk him out of it, or at least tried to convince him to make it to Waynesboro. We will have to see if he shows up in Waynesboro. We really hope he changes his mind and stays on the trail.The hike today was filled with PUDS (Pointless Ups and Downs) and MUDS (Mindless Ups and Downs). It rollercoastered all day long.We got to The Priest Shelter at 5pm, cooked dinner and got water ready for tomorrow. We went to bed at 6:45pm.We did think about going into Montebello to the B&B today, but the timing wasn't right.We had considered moving on to the Tye River camping area, 5 miles past The Priest, but in the end we stayed put.We had all of our gear set up for the night in the shelter. Hell Boy and Tom then started talking about spiders, Hell Boy had two of them crawling on his sleeping bag, Tom saw another one and Cubby killed one. Cubby then read in the Shelter Register that Mr. Pink had said the mice were terrible and that he had burned a big trash pile. To top it all off, "Trelvis" showed up and said when he thru-hiked, this shelter had a lot of mice. We looked at each other and convinced each other that tenting was probably the best option. Even though it was close to dark, Boston got up and set the tent up and we moved into it for the night.
Date: 2005-05-16
From: The Priest Shelter

To: Dripping Rock
Miles today: 20.2

Our decision to sleep in the tent last night was a good one! Proven by the two dead mice that Tom had trapped in his mouse traps he had set up in the shelter last night. He brought them over to our tent for us to see. Boston looked, but Cubby didn't care to see them.We slept in a little bit waiting for the sun to hit our tent and warm things up a bit. It was chilly last night, 41 degrees when we woke up. Come to find out, The Priest Shelter is the highest shelter for the next 500 miles!It was a sunny day until about 1:30pm. It clouded up and sprinkled for about 5-10 minutes.We climbed the rest of The Priest and then down to the Tye River. We then started our ascent of the Three Ridges. It was a long 6 mile climb over the ridges, but we got it done. We got to Maupin Field Shelter at 2:45pm for lunch. It was too early to stop for the day so we headed on. We met "Shadow" at Maupin Shelter and Tom was there also. The three of us headed toward Dripping Rock for camping. Shadow said he was going to stop before he got to Dripping Rock.When we arrived at Dripping Rock parking area, Tom was there with Trail Magic in hand. A Trail Angel (Pam) dropped off some goodies. He told her that we were coming so she gave him some for us also. It was great. Two big bottles of Pepsi, cookies filled with cream, puddings and drink mixes. Thanks. It was great stuff after a long day.When we were hiking today, we saw a big snail attached to a rock in the trail. It was brown and the size of a 50 cent piece. Pretty cool.We are tenting tonight above Dripping Rock Spring with Tom. Tom had his dinner down at the Spring by the road, and we did the same. It was nice just sitting around talking.
Date: 2005-05-17
From: Dripping Rock

To: Rockfish Gap / Waynesboro
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: overcast clouds

We did 14.5 miles today in 5.5 hours. We got up early to get to Waynesboro early. We wanted to get some things done today so we would have a better ZERO tomorrow.We were on the trail at 6:20am. Hiker Tom left just ahead of us. We did the first 9.5 miles to Wolfe Shelter in 3 hours and 15 minutes. That's cookin'! We had town fever and were looking forward to neroing and zeroing. We stopped at Wolfe Shelter, 5 miles for Rockfish Gap/Waynesboro, to have a snack and check the trail register. Tom also stopped in for a snack.We saw "Old Yeller" and Kitty Litter slackpacking south.We saw an old stone fireplace along the trail, it was made from stacked rocks. No mortar. It looked like a lot of work to make and quite precarious. We wonder what the history of it is.It was great weather for hiking, cool and no rain.Last night was a bit chilly for sleeping, but at least 6 degrees warmer than the other night at The Priest Shelter.We made it to Rockfish Gap at noon and walked over to the Visitor's Center. REALLY NICE people at the Visitor's Center. They called a Trail Angel to drive us to the Outfitter and into Waynesboro. This town really understands the value of hikers to their economy/business. This is a great hiker town, thank you to Trail Angel Roger for the ride and the tour of town. Thank you to all the Trail Angels who are involved in the "Trail Angel Network" here, great job!First thing on the agenda was hot showers. Ahh! The simple pleasures of a civilized life. Second on the agenda was to update our Trail Journal for you all! Our entries got a little behind, due to no access to computers/internet at Daleville or Glasgow, VA. When we arrived in Glasgow, we arrived early on a Friday. Wingfoot says the Glasgow Library is not open on Friday, he is correct.We are now finally updating in Waynesboro, VA at the Public Library. They have a great library with great computer facilities and very hiker friendly.On the way to the library we stopped at "Sam's Hot Dog Stand" for a quick bite to eat before getting to the library. The hot dogs and BBQ sandwiches were excellent. They were so good in fact, we ordered a second round.We will try to get as much done today so that we can ACTUALLY ZERO tomorrow. We still have to do laundry, transfer pictures to disk, hit the Post Office, and buy food.Speaking of food, we have heard from several hikers that you can pretty much eat your way through Shenandoah National Park if you plan it and time it right. There are supposedly restaurants, snack bars, and campstore groceries at campgrounds and road crossings. We will be doing some research on this before heading out. Anytime we can eat food without carrying it, it is huge bonus.Thank you to everyone who has signed our guest book. It is always great to hear from you. We will try to update next when we get through the Shenandoah National Park.And to Acronym and Jersey Judge - where are you? Please email us, we do not have your email address!
Date: 2005-05-18
From: Rockfish Gap / Waynesboro

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Zero Day!We slept in this morning after having a late night of pizza, milk and ice-cream. All eaten in bed. We got up at 7:30am and had the hotel continental breakfast, then went to do laundry. While at the laundromat we planned our next 9 days, 6 through the Shenandoah's and 3 to Harper's Ferry. While at the Laundromat, the "Laundry Lady" started talking to Cubby. She is elderly and works at the Laundromat.The Laundry Lady told Cubby that when she was younger, she grew up on a farm. It was popular back then to have "colored" chickens. She explained what this meant. Back then people would dye their chickens any fancy color they wanted. Her family had a pink rooster. She said it was very mean. Cubby replied, "That's kind of like a bull-dog in a doggie sweater. No way would that dog want to be seen out in public in a sweater." So Cubby figured it was probably the same for that pink rooster. Anyway, she told stories about what the rooster would do. One of the stories was how her sister was all dressed up to go out for the evening. The rooster chased her over a fence and up a tree, it wrecked her good clothes. Eventually, her father threw a mop handle at it and accidentally hit it just right and killed it. Cubby told her that if she had that rooster, you wouldn't be wondering what was for dinner. Oh the things you learn on the trail and in Laundromats.We got back to our rooms and organized our bounce box and went to the post office. Then headed to Kroger's for food resupply. On the way to Krogers we stopped at Shifflets Barber shop so that Boston could get a hair cut. No, it is not as short as Cubby's.We went to Cirro's, across the street from the hotel, for lunch. We had cheese steaks. Then back to the hotel were we packed up our backpacks.Tofu and Figaro came to town. We joined them and Tofu's father at Cirro's again for Calzones for dinner. Sandman had not made it to town yet, his train was delayed. After dinner we talked for an hour or so with Tofu's dad, he is a great talker and story teller. Tofu and Figaro then took us to Wal-mart to have our digital pictures downloaded to a CD to send off to SupplyGuy.Afterwards, we all headed to the Tastee Freeze for dessert. Boston had a banana split and Cubby had a soft serve cone. We were plenty full by this point.We got back to the hotel, and still no Sandman. He was suppose to be in at 6pm. He finally arrived at 11pm. He was tired and had had a long journey. We welcomed him back to trail life.
Date: 2005-05-19
From: Rockfish Gap

To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: light rain

Sandman's first day back on the trail. Welcome back Sandman!A trail Angel by the name of Roger picked us up at the hotel at 7:45am and we were on the trail at 8:05am. We met Rhino and his dog at the hotel, his shuttle dropped him off about the same time. We ended up hiking with him and his dog, Ronja, all day.Sandman tripped and fell on the trail a couple of miles after starting. He was behind the three of us. We heard a ruckus in the vegitation and looked back. All we could see was a backpack laying horizontal in the weeds. Then the backpack rose from the weeds. It was then that we discovered that Sandman was under the backpack. Seems he tripped on a root, fell forward, landed in the weeds off the trail, and was pinned down by his backpack. It may not have been the new beginning that Sandman was hoping for.Trail and terrain were good for a 20miler today. We beat the rain to Blackrock Hut. We cooked dinner a little early to beat the rain. The spring at the Hut was running slow, but plenty of water despite Park warning signs of low/no water at the Blackrock Hut Spring.Rhino built a HUGE, and we mean HUGE fire in the fire pit at the shelter! He threw in a huge tree stump and numerous 8 foot logs. It was more of a Bonfire than a fire-pit fire, it probably would have shown up on satellite as a hot spot. It rained all night long and the fire was still going strong in the morning.There were lots of hikers in the shelter tonight due to the forecast of rain. There were 10 in the shelter and 2 tenting. This is the fullest shelter we have had the whole time on the trail.Sandman did say his knee started to bother him around 3pm today. He put his knee brace on at that time. We are all surprised that it is hurting him so soon.
Date: 2005-05-20
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Frazier Discovery Trail
Miles today: 8.5

Last night the fire was HUGE and it burned all night long through the heavy rains. We stayed warm last night and there were no mice and no bears.We got up to a steady rain and packed up. Some of the other hikers in the shelter decided to sleep in a little to see if the rain would subside.Sandman's knee was still hurting this morning. His hip had been bothering him yesterday from falling, but it was good this morning.We hit the trail at 7am and headed to Loft Mountian campstore for food supplies. After Loft Mountain Campstore we planned to hit the Loft Mountain Wayside. They have a short-order grill and we thought we would get an early lunch before heading on.We got to the Loft Mountain Campstore and discovered it was closed. Rhino was there ahead of us and he talked to an employee who told him that instead of opening at 9am, they were going to open at noon today. This was due to the weather being rainy and foggy, so they didn't figure any tourists would be coming in until later.Boston waited at the campstore for Sandman to catch up, while Cubby waited down on the trail for him so that he wouldn't miss his "exit" from the trail to the campstore. Sandman made it after about 20 minutes.The first thing Sandman said when he saw Cubby, was that he was done. His knee was too painful again. He was very disappointed and we were too. He worked so hard to get back on the trail and it was disheartening for it to end so soon.We hiked a little further and got to Loft Mountain Wayside and short-order grill. We ordered lunch while Cubby scoped the place for a possible hitch back to Waynesboro. With the weather being so foggy and rainy, possible rides were slim to ONE. There was one lady eating lunch at the grill. Cubby struck up a conversation with her and by the time the conversation was over, we had a ride all the way back to Waynesboro and the hotel, even though she was heading in the opposite direction.At the short-order grill we all had the famous Blackberry Shakes that everyone talks about. It is a must have!We ended up staying another night at the Quality Inn and washing up our soggy clothes at the Laundromat. Sandman then took us out to dinner. Sandman said that he really needed to give the trail another try and he did. It was just unfortunate that his knee wasn't willing to cooperate. Boston and Cubby arranged a ride back to the trail where we had left off at Loft Mountain Wayside. Sandman arranged a ride to the airport.We are relaxing tonight at the hotel before starting again tomorrow. The first thing we did in order to "relax" was to go to the store and get some ice-cream!
Date: 2005-05-22
From: South River Fire Road

To: Big Meadows Campground
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Got up early and packed up. We hit the trail at 7:45am. We got to Lewis Mtn. Campstore at 9:30am. We each had ice-cream for breakfast, Crunch Ice-Cream Bar and a Butterfinger Ice-Cream Bar. We also got a couple of cold Ruby Red grapefruit juices. We then used the nice "facilities" before getting back on the trail. It is a whole different world at a "car-camping" campground. There were girls in the bathroom using curling irons. You will never see that on the trail.We hiked on to Big Meadows Wayside were we ate again. We ran into "The Brits" as they were leaving the Wayside. They had just finished eating and recommended the Blackberry Cobbler. We each had a hot sandwich, and finished it up with hot blackberry cobbler topped with blackberry ice-cream.We saw a lot of deer today, but no bears. Other hikers today have seen some bears.Hiked on to Big Meadows Campground. The Brits had a campsite reserved for all of us. Shadow showed up a few hours later and camped with us also. The first thing Cubby and Boston did was to take some hot showers and do a load of laundry. It was nice to be clean. The hot showers were on a 5 minute timer for 4 quarters, you never quite knew when it was going to turn off. They were nice showers though and we did get the stink off.We joined The Brits and went to the Taproom at the Big Meadows Lodge. After a few drinks, we went upstairs to the restaurant to enjoy some fine dining. We had a turkey dinner with all the fixins. Of course, we had to finish the meal with more blackberry ice-cream for dessert.We then went downstairs to use the computer and update the journal. Then back to the Taproom for beers with The Brits and live entertainment. The bar waitress, Debbie, was a singer. She sang with the two guys who were suppose to be the "live music." She was better than they were. She sang in the style that was like a mixture between Patsy Cline and Wynona. She was very good. It was a late evening, but very fun. We left The Brits to close down the bar.