morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-04-14
From: Damascus, Virginia

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: overcast clouds

These next few posts are going to be difficult to stitch together. That was a long stretch of hiking and no phone time, but I always make notes in my guidebook to help me along. The theme today then will be music. First, let me back up and tell you about yesterday. The Mariposa Taco Feast was a hit! I think they planned just right and got to meet a lot of other hikers. It's always interesting to see where you are in the bubble of hikers and putting faces to names you keep reading in the shelter logs. Also, Mariposas parents were a delight. So this morning we set out together and Mariposa's mom joined us for the long walk up the road to where the trail reenters the woods. I think she was really just trying to make sure Scorch and I were upstanding citizens but it was nice to have a mom along. Made me miss my own mom who's birthday it is today. Back to music. So most days you have a song stuck in your head. It's usually a result of some random thought or something that happened. When the sun finally pokes through the clouds you naturally hum Here Comes the Sun. And when you get to the rhododendrons which are thick and tropical looking it's Welcome to the Jungle. But lately I've been obsessed with schoolhouse rock songs. Particularly Interplanet Janet. Always loved that one. And Interjection. That all changed when I decided to finally put on the iTunes. What a difference! I had actually sent my iPod ahead as I wasn't using it but now I want it back! You hike at least twice as fast. I had Florence and the Machine on and ended up running part of it! Awesome. It's now my new method of motoring up hills. Tonite was also a great food night. Busy shelter but we managed to carry up a package of hotdogs, buns, mustard, cheese and a six pack. Envy dripped from everyone else.
Date: 2014-04-15
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Wise Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: moderate rain

Again with the crap weather. It just doesn't seem like we can get to elevation without the weather turning bad. Everytime! Starts with the rain, but then as you ascend it gets colder and colder and windier and windier and then back to snow. Ugh. And the real annoyance is that it could have been amazingly beautiful views. Went up and over Mt Rogers where all the ice was. Peeked into the Thomas Knob shelter to see a group of spring breakers huddled in the loft zeroing and just waiting it all out. We pressed on to lower elevations through an area called the Grayson Highlands. Very cool! Full of wild ponies and all windswept with rock outcroppings. It had a very Lord of the Rings feeling. Wish I could have enjoyed it more but just a long cold slog all day. Made it to our shelter at about six to find it full so I had to tent. We had hiked with Machine for the day so she and I set up a little camp area while Scorch and Mariposa squeezed into the shelter. Really I just wanted today to be over and considered hiking on; but made some ramen, broke all the rules by eating it in my tent and falling asleep with my dirty jetboil and food right there in my tent. Too cold for bears anyway.
Date: 2014-04-16
From: Wise Shelter

To: Trimpi Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: clear sky

They say that after you pass Mt Rogers you can send your winter gear home. After the last day I hope it's true. Woke up to a light amount of snow, but I was so over it I just packed everything up, had some pop tarts, and told my hiking buddies I was heading down and we'd meet up later. I had had enough! So had Machine and we hiked together for awhile. I eventually pulled ahead and really enjoyed a much needed warmer and dryer day a few thousand feet downhill. It really was an amazing change. Felt so much more motivated. As even nicer I got to the shelter first and for once it was empty. And even better it was really one of the best shelters ever! Beautiful location on a hillside. Water was piped and really convenient. The privy was far enough away to be private and on a nice even path. But the best was we had a fireplace IN the shelter. I got there so early I had time for a snack, to use the privy, and to do some more stitching on my rapidly falling apart pants. Then I cleaned out the fireplace and laid out my spot. While I was collecting firewood the gang arrived and it was like the day you graduate high school - you think, no more of that baloney again, let's party. Really nice night. Got cold as expected but didn't freeze. We had the fire going and put the tarp up. Nice and cozy. Plus, I found a card player in Mariposa so we played a few hands. Also she gave me The Picture of Dorian Gray a few days ago and it all of a sudden got good!
Date: 2014-04-17
From: Trimpi Shelter

To: Chatfield Shelter
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: light rain

What an easy day! The terrain has really evened out. And we've also gotten tougher. Hills that look like hell on the map turn out to be easy! Nice change. Lots has changed lately. The weather is noticeably warmer. The leaves and flowers have really started to show up. I'm stronger. All feels good. Today's big moment was to be the Partnership shelter close to the Mt Rogers visitors center. Not only does this one have showers....heaven; but you can use the Visitors Center phone and get this....order pizza!! Camping food is a bore. Pasta sides, Vienna sausages, peanut butter wraps, and candy bars just become icky.To get real food is such a plus. We were each going to order a pizza, eat half, then pack the other half for dinner. We got to the shelter and visitors center, got to use nice clean REAL bathrooms, plug our phones in, and take a load off. Then on to the pizza! Until we hear " I'm sorry our delivery driver isn't here today". UGH! This sort of thing happens a lot to us. "Our wireless isn't working" or "that's only on Mondays". Stuff like that. But this, after hiking all morning dreaming about pizza really took the cake. We ate the regular junk out of our bags and forged on. Pearisburg is only a few days away and that promises real food. Ended up at a nice little quiet shelter in front of a rushing steam in a rhododendron forest. Only one other hiker was there -Stops to Pick Berries, from NYC. Liked him. He was finishing up his section hike that year and heading southbound so a one night only meet and greet. There was a silver lining to no pizza though. They had a scale at the visitors center. If you can believe it I've lost 21 pounds! Gheez. At this rate I'll be emaciated by Maine. Still have a little belly but I can barely keep my pants up.
Date: 2014-04-18
From: Chatfield Shelter. 

To: Knot Maul Shelter
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: light rain

Yay for today! For many reasons. The weather is overcast but cool. No cold wind or rain. No blazing sun. Heading into Atkins, Virginia today which means downhill! Also means into definite springtime. Our first stop was the Lindamood School, an historic school from the 1800s. Inside they left trail magic. And just the things I needed. A Dr Pepper, superglue, more ziplocks, band aids, and a whole bag of combs. I was just thinking how much I wanted to comb my hair. I grabbed the smallest, most lightweight comb and immediately pulled it through my hair. Ouch!! Five days of no shampoo is tough. Once I got through it felt soo good. But also that weird feeling like when you comb it opposite the part you usually have. Hurts but not bad. What did hurt was looking at the comb. Like pulling it through a pile of cobwebs and dirt. I can run my fingers through my hair right now and it stays exactly that way. At least I combed it, because next stop is the highway in Atkins and The Barn - a restaurant with some hiker specials. Food!! We got there and headed right for the first table. All ordered the 2x4 breakfast. Two eggs, two bacon, two sausage, two pancakes, toast, hash browns and coffee. And it was gone in two seconds. I had to order extra toast. Mariposa got extra toast and bacon. Scorch got biscuits and gravy. Still hungry. But happy! Also charged our phones. It's turning out this is the longest stretch without staying somewhere. Nice to have a little city break. Also nice that it was only $7.50 for that breakfast. Love small town prices. Headed out afterwards into these beautiful green beyond green fields and passed over a milestone shortly outside if town. Made it a quarter of the way! Three more times and I'm done. Worked our way back into the mountains to stay at Knot Maul shelter where someone added Darth in front of Maul for maximum Star Wars effect. Well done
Date: 2014-04-19
From: Knot Maul Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: moderate rain

We are piling up the mileage! And for the most part it feels like nothing. Today though, it did. Loooong climb up Chestnut Knob to a very cool four-sided shelter with picnic table inside. It sat on this wide bare mountain top with 360¢¢ views. The one to the north was called Burkes Garden - a huge circular low area surrounded by low hills. This is a site where the Vanderbilts considered building their mansion before deciding on Asheville. Very beautiful. The trail rides the ridges around the thumbprint for eight torturous miles. What looked ok on the map turned into this rooty rocky mess. Constant rolling of ankles and changing directions and tripping on roots. Slowed us down by half I'm sure. Put in a lot of long hard miles today. Glad to be done.
Date: 2014-04-20
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Jenny Knob Shelter
Miles today: 23.8
Weather: few clouds

Another long day. Expected more of those awful rocks but was a really nice easy trail all day. Yippee! And we got a good long almost 24 miles in. Met some new hikers today I've read in the logs several times - Cheeseburger and Baggies. A nice couple who are rock stars when it comes to food. Made some sort of lentil chili that looked delicious! Since there's not a lot to report on today I think I'll talk about all the disgusting things you end up doing but all hikers freely do and talk about because there really is no other option. Let's begin with pooping. I think by now everyone has somehow created control over their bowels to allow them to poop only when a privy is available. But, when it's not an option I had an enlightening discussion with Bean Dip on how to use a tree. You see I always dig a hole close to the base of one so I can lean against it to squat. But the ground is tough there and I can rarely dig a six inch cathole and the whole leaning back on the tree never quite works right. She has moved me to now being uphill from and facing the tree. You use your hands on the tree to balance. Smart. Noted. Another thing is travel adjustments. This being farting and snot rockets. There was at one time decorum, now it's fart when you need to. As for snot rockets I do this about every ten minutes. Something about hiking produces a lot of it. My moustache sometimes gets in the way but I really just don't care. You're dirty. Were all dirty. It's a struggle just to hike some days, so what's a little snot? It sure does feel nice having a shower though.
Date: 2014-04-21
From: Jenny Knob Shelter

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: few clouds

All good things must come to an end and our triumvirate is no different. We knew it would soon. Mariposa is meeting friends in Blacksburg and I'm going to Roanoke. Scorch has a deadline in Harpers Ferry, so were all on mixed schedules. Today we hiked down to a road where if we walked west a half mile we could stop at Trent's Grocery for a little resupply and a small diner - food again!! What stopped us in our tracks were the plate glass windows in front that acted like mirrors. Hadn't seen myself in a week and I was shocked! My hair is crazy and my face thinner and I'm incredibly tan. I'm someone who tends to burn over tan but this is crazy. If you backed up and looked at the bigger picture I could see my legs. All muscle! Awesome. Went inside and ordered a bacon swiss burger with onion rings and a corn dog. Yes! But now it was time to split. Scorch really wants to get ahead so he's hiking 24 again. Mariposa and I are holding back as our friends aren't ready yet to pick us up so we're taking it slow. And how to celebrate short mileage? Hotdogs and beer of course! We each packed in half a six pack and food and headed up. This hike followed a creek for a while. Nice to have on a hot dry day. And our shelter was right near it. Nice to finish early. We set up camp, met the people in the shelter. Then headed down to the creek to stash and cool the beer, soak our feet, and wash up. Tonite turned out to be one of my favorites. A few more hikers came in and we all hit it off. Roasted hot dogs and drank beer. Then cut holes in marshmallows and stuffed in 100 grand bars and roasted em. Made the weight all worthwhile. We even played some cards and I finished Dorian Gray. Goodnight.
Date: 2014-04-22
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Macarthurs Inn
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: light rain

Today will be a well earned shower. It's been nine days since I've had one and every part of me is ripe! There is nothing I own that doesn't stink. Strange that I've gotten completely used to it. I don't normally smell my own smell - only when taking shoes off or lifting my arms. I don't really smell other hikers any more either. It's just part of the daily routine. Nice in a way, but I get very self conscious when I get back to civilization. And when civilization calls everything changes. I get up early. I hike fast. I'm excited. Shower! Laundry! Food! The next stop is Pearisburg where we'll hopefully be meeting up with Scorch again. The morning started off with a big uphill. Kind of like those. Well not like but nice to get it done early. I'm more of an afternoon hiker I've found. I really get my groove on after lunch. The morning has a lot of aches and stiffness to get over but it's great later in the day when you say " whelp, at least that earlier climb is done". After that it wasn't too bad. Kinda rocky which is a pain but rewarded with the Woodshole Hostel about halfway. This a beautiful little farm all centered on sustainability. They raise livestock, grow fruits and veggies, raise bees, have yoga classes and cook a lot of food. The timing was off for us to stay but Sockless and Blazer did and bought bread. We thought we could stop by for some lunch. Stashed our packs in the brambles and headed down the road. Loved it loved it loved it. Really nice people. Sold us bread and cheese and gave us some birthday cake. Also told us that Pearisburg didn't offer much and a construction project was taking up all the hotel rooms. Suggested a little town close by and let us use the phone to call ahead. Got a hold of the MacArthur Inn and reserved a room. And they'd pick us up. Now it was time to hustle. Hiked the rest of the time there quick and got surprised to find a little microclimate valley where everything, even the big trees, were completely leafed out. It was phenomenal and so welcomed. Steps beyond was the road and four bars of service! A real rarity. The hotel picked us up in about ten minutes and brought us home. What a great little place. The town is called the Narrows and is picture perfect. Really just two streets with a small grocery, laundromat, farmers market, restaurant, and pool hall. What more could you ask for?! The hotel was old timey with a piano and Mariposa about freaked! The night went like this: showers, grocery to buy every bad thing we could think of, eating all those things, Mariposa playing the piano, and some random guest singing Disney songs. Awesome.
Date: 2014-04-23
From: Macarthurs Inn

To: Random Campsite
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: clear sky

Showered! So awesome to be clean. But as typical the hotel is missing shampoo so I used my camp soap. It felt like I was getting dreads. My hair is crazy long and thick and sometimes hard to get a comb through. Not sure I mentioned earlier but they actually had combs as trail magic back at a school site. It's disgusting what comes out of your hair. Yesterday, we were so excited to get to a hotel we had the shuttle pick us up one stop too early, so now, in order to actually hike all the trail, we got dropped back off at where we were picked up - about half a mountain up. So we had to hike back down to the same place we had been earlier with our packs. This time we needed to actually get into Pearisburg so Mariposa could pick up a package from REI at the post office. Great opportunity for me to hang out at Diary Queen. Cheeseburger and fries ordered. While I was sitting there outside (even clean I'm too embarrassed to sit my dirty ass down with the regulars) Sloth walked by. He actually stayed at the Hiker Hostel in Georgia and rode with me to start at Springer. I see him off and on. Compared beards and where we were and our gear and all that. Then it was ice cream. The package did not arrive as planned so after a few frantic calls to REI and her parents, the problem was solved. Finally headed out around 2pm so we knew it would be an easy day. And a very pretty one if not for the miles and miles it seemed we had to walk around (no joke) the "world's largest cigarette filter factory". Annoying . Even when we finally made it to the top of the mountain you could still hear it from the ridge. While it was warm and toasty down low, it was breezy and chilly up top. Typical. Just can't escape the cold. We had planned to hike to a campsite and bypass the one shelter as it was very pretty up there. Another big bald with the shelter just into the trees down below. Went to check the log book and there was a big group of students from Toronto. They had lots of questions but we needed to move on and found the campsite about an hour later. Nice water source, big trees, and protected from the wind. We set up camp and both new it wasn't going to rain so set up our hammock and tent without flies so we could see the stars. Also got a fire going and Mariposa's hammock was right in front so we shared it and the heat from the fire. It was pretty awesome - but even more awesome was she filled her platypus with the rest of her wine bottle so we had a few drinks with dinner. For me it was Spanish rice and chicken. Classy. Not long after, Short Stop and then at least five more hikers showed up and set up camp. And the stars were great...with the gentle hum of the cigarette filter factory lulling me to sleep.
Date: 2014-04-24
From: Random Campsite

To: Bailey Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: clear sky

Things are different right now. Scorch has moved on ahead of us. He got about half a day ahead and I think there's no stopping him. So it's just Mariposa and I. She's a lot of fun and we got along great so I'm really liking it. We hike about the same pace and sometimes we'll get into a conversation that lasts for an hour and we get surprised at how much mileage has gone by. Also - so much has! We're all hiking much faster than before. That 20 miles that seemed huge earlier is kind of common. And three miles an hour is now fast compared to the 2 we all hiked from the start. But right now we both have people to meet and they have schedules that prevent us from getting there to early. Means we get to put in some slower days. A treat that lets you stop when you want, get to camp early, have lots of time to chat with your fellow hikers, or play cards, or get cleaned up, or just put your feet up. The morning started out overcast and the trail was really rooty. I'm a root slider and rock kicker so there was a lot of rolling of ankles and cursing. Later though, the sun came out and we got down to a lower elevation where the vegetation is thick and lush. Real bonus is that today we get to stop at the Captains. This is a guy who has property on the opposite side of a creek/stream as the trail. He allows you to camp for free on his lawn and usually has drinks - even better he has a zipline installed across the creek you get to ride over! I love people. Got there to an empty yard, again we're pretty early and most have moved on and most don't really plan to start to set up camp until 5 or so but we zipped across. He's got signs up that answer pretty much every question you'd have (no you can't unplug stuff to plug in your phone, yes there's wireless and here's the password, no I won't shuttle you into town, etc). It was really nice but I think he was on a drink run so there wasn't anything for us to have. There WAS wireless although so at least a quick check in to email and facebook. It's annoying that cell coverage is almost non existent when you want it but I keep hearing it gets much better as you head north. Headed back over the creek to the trail.The rest of today's hike was short but as the builders like to do, you always end with an insultingly steep climb to the shelter and today was one of the worst. So hot and so steep and no water. We finally got to the source and knew the source at the shelter was difficult so we filled up here and slogged the rest of the way up. Always nice to drop that pack. Had the shelter to ourselves for a while when three more hikers showed up going south bound. They tented. Then we had another, TipToe from Connecticut doing a southbound section hike. She and I hit it off immediately. She is older, did work for Fine Gardening, and knows her plants too so we had a lot of good chats about what's around us and what we'll see further down the trail.   About a gajillion games of Canasta and Sets Of later and it was off to bed. Last night hanging out with Mariposa. Sad.
Date: 2014-04-26
From: Laurel Creek Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 22.5
Weather: clear sky

Ah great morning! Woke up a little late but at that point when you can see the storm that was around all the previous day is way down on the horizon and it's cool and clean outside and fresh. Didn't sleep great but I was ready! Plus, all alone, so I just get up and then left maybe an hour earlier than normal. Really really nice today. One of my favorite parts of the trail is when it goes through farms and fields. Without a doubt the prettiest one I've seen so far. I know it sounds all sentimental but imagine just you, walking across these rolling green grassy hills ringed by soft mountains and hedge rows. Cows and sheep are lazing off in the distance, some farm house and barn are tucked just behind a hillside. The sky is deep blue and the birds are all tweeting and singing in all directions. In my head was that Simon and Garfunkel song - America. Starts with a hum and moves to a quiet story about a cross country road trip across America. So peaceful and perfect; plus, being a plant person I got to pass by what is the largest oak tree in the southern part of the trail (New York has one that is slightly larger). This tree.....HUGE. Unfortunately, still with the leaflessness - annoying. I just had to stand there and put my hands on it. It was massive. If you check out the picture, those wooden stiles on the right - those are as tall as me. Gave me lots of energy. And really really needed. Later it got very hot and humid and I had a very steep hour-long climb up to the top of Brush Mountain. This is where Audie Murphy died in a plane crash and there's a monument to him isolated up top. Nice to see a Texas flag - not that I'm a diehard Texan, just a very nice reminder of home so far away. Later, I head back down the other side to find trail magic! A cooler of Dr. Pepper and Mountain Dew. Perfect! I downed that DP so fast I forgot I drank it. Had a few moments to get water in a creek, soak my feet and head to the last shelter today. This shelter was a half mile off trail so decided it was best just to set up my tent at the junction and shorten this journey. Besides, tomorrow is Roanoke and the Eastmans! Yay! Off trail for a REAL break.On another note - while at the stream I noticed the next weird body change. There are areas on my legs where the hair has been rubbed off. Like it happened several days ago and the stubble is starting to come back. And not where you might imagine such as where your thighs might rub. This is just random spots where I guess my pants had brushed across it all day and it's gone. Hope it comes back in the end.