morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2017-03-01
From: greasy creek hostel

To: overmountain shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: light rain

3/1: overmountain shelter - 17.5They closed down all the schools in Tennessee today. Even the university!!One of the guys at carvers gap right after roam mountain said 1-2 in in diameter hail. The tv was staying 60 mph winds and hail. CiCi and gadget were telling us to stay with them.But we didn't think it looked that bad and it looked like we had till 1 or 2 pm.So we ate breakfast and settled up around 8 and pushed on out about .6 back to the trail. Ally and I split up a few times today. It was a lot of ascending and we move different speeds up hill.The weather was windy on the way up roam mountain, but not bad. There was no rain and the sun even shined for a few seconds on top. But roan is dense spruce on top.We met 2 guys at carvers gap after coming off the mountain who told us about the storm warming again and said it was suppose to start any minute.After that it was all exposed balds for 2 miles or so. Halfway through it started to pour. Not rain, but complete down pour. Then about 3/4 of a mile in, thunder and lightning struck a few times but we just kept going and made it back under the tree line. It was raining so hard.The trail down to the first shelter was completely flooded and it up to our ankles at some parts. The rain let up, but then started raining extremely hard again before the shelter. We both rain the last bit and stood uncomfortably in the shelter and talked. I took mavericks pack and we set out in a regular rain fall for the next shelter in 1.9 miles.Overmountain shelter is an old barn. It's .3 off the trail and we were lucky that the rain let up a second time and we just had a drizzle to light rain to the shelter.We watered up right before it and were happy to see the upstairs was closed in. We set our tents up, changed our clothes, dried off maverick, did a few laps to dry wet clothes, and ate dinner.Overall, it was a really great place to be during the storm. It did pour on and off through the evening, and we could hear the wind a lot, but not 1 in hail or 60 mph winds. If the weather wasn't calling for the temperature to drop to 20 degrees overnight, we thought the weather was a pretty normal rain storm.
Date: 2017-03-02
From: overmountain shelter

To: v/a mem hostel
Miles today: 21.9
Weather: scattered clouds

3/2: v/a memorial hostel - 21.9Super windy night and there were a ton of nice. They chewed up a few of Allys things. Nothing real important though. I hate mice...I know they won't hurt you, but I can't sleep with them running around and trying to steal all of my stuff. They didn't bother me though.We got up with they sun, it was really cold, and the wind was still hitting pretty hard. Our packs, shoes, and everything else that was wet, was frozen. This was the first time on trail we had to deal with stuffing our feet in frozen shoes. From the shelter we had to go over 2 exposed balds called little and big hump. These are in my top ten favorites on the AT .Little hump wasn't too much of a problem but big hump was super windy the whole way up. Everything was frosty. There was hardly any wind for a little bit on the other side, then it picked back up and slowly died down the further we descended.That was the end of the roan highlands and we slowly went back down to normal elevation and everything was pretty regular. We took a break at doll flats 10 ish miles in and laid in a field and made oatmeal. We crossed fully into TN.It warmed up a bit but not much. The second half of the day was easier, but tiring. We wanted to make it to the hostel because it might snow tomorrow morning and there is a high of 33 and a low of 17 in town, not the mountains.We pushed on and made it there around 5. I email the guy at Greasy creek to see if they were still open because he removed the add from the AWOL guide. He said they were open, but there was no one here and the heated bunk room was locked.There is a tiny old on I slept in back in 2015 (because no one was here...) and it did the job and we were happy to have it.Cold day tomorrow and we are aiming for a shorter day to another hostel in Hampton, TN...hopefully with heat!
Date: 2017-03-03
From: v/a mem hostel

To: denis cove rd - hampton, tn
Miles today: 12.0

3/3: Denis cove rd - Hampton, tn - 12We woke up to snow outside the old bunkhouse we slept in. It was cold all night and super cold this morning. We were in no rush.Made some oatmeal and got back on trail around 930.Certain parts of the trail were really windy today and it was cold. It definitely felt like winter, but not dark and grey winter like New England.We split up and met mid way at a shelter for a quick break and then right back to moving. After that we hiked on and off together until the road crossing.There weren't many cars passing. A mail truck and school bus passed then finally a lady with two kids. She drove by and her kids, who were 11 and 14, convinced her to turn around. The two kids actually started a thru hike with there father in 2016 and hiked from springer to harpers ferry and then all of Maine before going home due to a foot injury. Pretty crazy.They were nice and told us about the area. Their mom dropped us off at the castle, which is the local hostel.We walked over and checked in at the grocery store and the hostel was wicked nice. It was an apartment, but with bunks in it. We shared the place with a guy named nick. He was cool and it was interesting to hear about his seasonal traveling lifestyle.We made a bunch of nachos.The low was 17 degrees and we slept happily in the heated bunkhouse.
Date: 2017-03-04
From: denis cove rd - hampton, tn

To: 434.4/spring
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: clear sky

3/4: 434.4/spring - 16I was in no rush to get out of town today and I was moving slow.We ate breakfast and finished up the food we bought. We didn't leave the building and just hung around until around 10.We had a hard time hitching. So many people had little yappy dogs running around there yards. Everywhere we stood, we were ambushed and surrounded by a bunch of unleashed dogs. Someone had a pony. Maverick likes ponies a lot because they don't bark in his face.One house, on the hill and right before the road starts winding up the mountain, had +6 medium sized dogs running in the road.So we had to walk back and forth a few times looking for a good flat spot without turns or dogs. We pushed one of our boxes back. We planned on picking it up at V/A memorial hostel, but we didn't know if it was open. We sent it to Boots off hostel instead. So we were able to walk around 9 miles without food today.Boots off hostel is a cool place. It's new and we planned on staying there last night, but due to the weather, we didn't make it. The owner, Jim, was really helpful and a really nice guy. He put his dogs inside before we got there to avoid any problems. Someone else had a dog there and maverick got along with him pretty well.There bunk room was one of the coolest I've seen. It looked like Jim was doing a really great job at building and running a great hostel. We were bummed we didn't stay, but we also enjoyed our stay at the castle.After that we had beautiful weather around watauga lake. For 4 miles you can't camp or (according to the signs) stop for any reason, because of the bears in the area. So we pushed on to the next water source, which was up the mountain on the other side.It was suppose to be a low in the 30s, the tent site we found was pretty slanted, we have x3 the amount of food we need, but we will be in Damascus Monday morning.
Date: 2017-03-05
From: 434.4/spring

To: double spring gap
Miles today: 21.5

3/5: double spring gap (not shelter) - 21.5We slept in until sunrise, which is getting earlier and is now before 7.We climbed up to the top of a ridge and spent most of our day up there. It was easy cruising and it warmed up early. We both were in shorts.Maverick seemed tired earlier in the day, so we took a few good breaks along the way. We stopped at a few shelters and stopped at water source that were on trail. The second shelter we hit, we made breakfast and split oatmeal.There were a lot of day hikers out today.2 miles before our tenting area, we passed a gap. There were really loud cars and motorcycles flying up and down it. We heard them for a ways. One of the locals said it was called the snake or something. People just drive really fast on a road that winds through the mountains.We saw a puppy at the gap too.Easy cruising on the ridge after that and we made it to our camp spot.Overall, a really nice day with great weather.
Date: 2017-03-06
From: double spring gap

To: woodchuck hostel - damascus, va
Miles today: 13.9

3/6: woodchuck hostel - Damascus, va - 13.9It was a pretty short and easy day into Damascus today. We woke up with dry tents, but it started to drizzle on and off once we got back on trail around 7.I was a little tired this morning and was looking forward to a day off to relax, but we made good time.I think we only stopped one time this morning and it was brief.Ally and I split up for the last stretch in. I met a guy from Johnson city who was really nice. He was section hiking the trail south of Damascus in small bits. I saw him again later in the day at the outfitter in town.I hung out on the pavilion in town and waited a little while for ally to show up. I normally move faster on days that we go into town. There was surprisingly good town wide wifi at the pavilion.We hung out for a bit then walked over to the woodchuck hostel. It's in town and close to everything.We were greeted outside by one of them small yappy dogs who ended up lingering our entire stay. We found woodchuck, and he showed us around. Probably one of the coolest guys I've met on trail. He's just really relaxed and a great guy to talk to. He also makes a killer all you can eat waffle breakfast and invited us to play corn hole.We got the private room outside. Between the two of us and maverick, its been costing us about the same to get a private room as a bunk. It also allows me to keep maverick separate from other people. Maverick gets along with everyone well, but it gives me time to relax and eat breakfast without worrying about him bothering other people. We were all checked in and settled up by 1230. We unpacked, showered, went to the grocery store, and I picked up a box from the PO and bought a new filter at the outfitter. I've had the same one for a few years now...it was time for a new one.
Date: 2017-03-07
From: woodchuck hostel - damascus, va

To: woodchuck hostel - damascus, va
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

3/7: woodchuck hostel/Damascus - 0I didn't sleep in much today. I guess I was too excited and ready for some waffles. We went inside the hostel around 730 and found woodchuck had the table all set for us and he threw on some blueberry waffles. They were so good. Ally was happy to have some coffee and drank a ton.After that we went for a walk with maverick around town. It was warm. Once we got back, we slowly accomplished a lot of stuff and split up watching maverick and wandering around doing town chores alone.Woodchuck let us use some bikes so we went out on a few bike rides, we mailed a box of food to Atkins (75 miles north), and we went to resupply at the grocery store. In between, we made a bunch of food. The bikes made everything really easy and we both hadn't been on a bike in years.It was suppose to rain all day, but it didn't start until 5, which was after we finished doing what we had to do. We made cookies and read other people trail journals for a while, then went to bed at 830.Our stay at the woodchuck hostel was in my top few favorites, but I didn't stay at too many last time. I stayed at "the place" last time and I would definitely recommend this over that. There is a price difference but the woodchuck hostel offers a lot more.I changed the layout of the photos menu, so it should be easier to view. Also, I really enjoy writing these, but sometimes it's really tough to get myself to do it at the end of the day. I just type them up quick, so I know there are a lot of grammatical and spelling errors. Most of the time I'm too lazy to reread them before posting, but I normally read them later on and find the errors funny.I've also been posting more pictures than I have before. It doesn't take much more time to do the extra ones, so I haven't been holding back. Thank you to everyone who is reading. If you would like to shout out to us, please do, we would love to hear from you .As of right now, I am happy to be out here doing something I like doing.
Date: 2017-03-08
From: woodchuck hostel - damascus, va

To: stagnant pond
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: light rain

3/8: stagnant pond - 11.6Same deal as yesterday. We roles out of bed and had an awesome waffle breakfast and a good conversation with woodchuck. After that we hung around for a bit and packed up slowly. We also packed two boxes to mail our. One was to trents grocery, and the other was a small envelope of gear we didn't need.I was really full, but I made some food and finished off some leftovers before we left. I figured I'd rather eat real hot food now than bars later. That was around 1030 and we left a little before 11. We stopped at the post office and dropped of the boxes. I accidentally mailed the food drop to Atkins, which we already mailed yesterday, so we had to turn around and fix that. It was suppose to go to trents grocery. We didn't make it more than a minute or two down the road. I wasn't thinking when I went in, no problem though. It was an easy fix.From there we left Damascus. We really enjoyed our time spent there, mostly the bikes though. Those were fun. But now it was back to walking. We had about 3 and a half days of food. I brought a really big navel orange too. I planned to eat it tomorrow.Warm weather, shorts, and not a lot of people on the trail, but we did pass a few. Around halfway through we passed a group of 7-8 who looked college age. They ended up showing up to the pond we camped at after us and there wasn't a lot of options for tenting, especially for their large group, but they made it happen. Then more of them came from the opposite direction to join them.While the pond wasn't the most beautiful pool of water we've stayed at, it was a nice campsite. We made a fire and went to bed.
Date: 2017-03-09
From: stagnant pond

To: big wilson creek
Miles today: 21.7
Weather: clear sky

3/9: 502.6/big Wilson creek -21.7It got cold last night but the morning wasn't so bad. We got on trail around 7 and we're heading back down in elevation to meet up with the creeper trail again. It was still following the water and it was really cold down there. We were happy we stayed where we were and didn't try to push on.From there we went uphill and took a morning break at a shelter and then continued up to the summit of whitetop mountain. It was a pretty long way up but I broke out the orange right at the start and we shared it. Then we split up and met back up at the summit. It was a beautiful view and the temperature was warmish/chilly with a breeze. Ally had service and checked the weather. It was a major change in weather since we were in Damascus and the next 5 days were below 20 degrees at night. It looked super cold.Later in the day we passed a major trailhead parking area and were able to empty our trash out. After that there was a lot of people. We passed up the .5 to summit Mt. rogers and kept moving to pass by the people. Thomas knob shelter was packed with a huge group of college kids. We assumed most of the people we passed were in college, and on break.Greyson highlands was even more crowded, but the views and weather were both beautiful. It got pretty rocky and there was a lot of mud.Tenting isn't allowed in Greyson highlands, which is about 2.5 miles or so, so we planned on staying at wise shelter. We didn't plan on there being so many people, and we got a little nervous we wouldn't get a tent spot. The crowds let up about 1.5 miles before the shelter and we didn't see anyone.The shelter was empty, but you can't camp there, so we pushed on about .2 miles and camped in the camping area across the creek.Oh yeah, and we saw some ponies. Greyson highlands is known for the feral ponies. There was pony poop in our field/tenting area. Hopefully we don't get ambushed by ponies during the night!
Date: 2017-03-10
From: big wilson creek

To: trimpi shelter
Miles today: 19.9
Weather: clear sky

3/10: trimpi shelter - 19.9It rained a lot through the night, but when we woke up it stopped. It was windy and foggy. Once we got on trail it started drizzling and rained on and off. The trail was flooded in some places.The nice clear views and warm weather we had yesterday was now all fog. Where we tented was an opening surrounded by thick trees. Within a few minutes of walking we were crossing a really big field. The field was super windy and cold.On the other side was a fenced in cattle grazing area that we passed through. I waited on the other side for ally and the visibility was under 50 feet. She had to call out my name in the middle to see if I stopped.We kept moving together for a while and it was pretty rough. Eventually we split up and I made it to the shelter before her. I looked forward to laying down on the shelter floor and getting out of the cold rain. I'm sure maverick did too, but when we got there it was completely packed with a college group from Minnesota. They were moving, but still in there sleeping bags. I hung out on the side, under the over hang and I talked to them for a while.They told me the rain would stop around 10. This was great news because we thought it was going to rain all day. They said it was going to be cold and confirmed that trimpi shelter had a fire place inside the stone shelter.Ally and I hiked on to the next shelter 4.2 miles further and made oatmeal there. It was empty but really windy and super cold. We ate a lot of oatmeal and another thru hiker tenacious D showed up before we walked off. He was at the last shelter with the college group.We talked and he said he might be at trimpi. We pushed on and moved much faster than the morning. The rain stopped and the sun came out. It was still cold and windy, but we were happy maverick could keep dry.We made it to the shelter before 3 and I started a fire in the shelters fireplace right away. Then we gathered a ton of wood for the night. Tenacious D and 2 other section hikers showed up. The section hikers left and tenacious D stayed and contemplated night hiking out. He hung out by the fire with us until 830 and then left.It's not common for there to be a fireplace in the shelter outside of the smokies, and we were really happy to have it. It kept us much warmer than our tents.
Date: 2017-03-11
From: trimpi shelter

To: relax inn/atkins, va
Miles today: 21.4

3/11: relax inn/atkins, va - 21.4It was way warmer in the shelter than outside when we woke up. Everyone slept really well. The mice messed with some of Allys stuff but nothing was taken/harmed. I got up a little before our usual time and got the fire going again so we could heat up. Ally got up right after me and we both appreciated the convenience of sleeping in the shelter.That was the first shelter we've had to ourselves. Once we left the shelter we felt how cold it was. It wasn't nearly as bad as we thought it was going to be yesterday, but still in the 20s. It's mostly the wind that made it bad.As we normally do in the cold weather, we kept moving and didn't take many breaks.We passed the 2 section hikers and tenacious Ds tent on the way to the next shelter. It was 9.8 miles to the shelter and there was also a visitors center there. I was hoping to get a few extra snacks.The visitors center was closed, but we cooked up some oatmeal and the 2 hikers we passed showed up shortly after. They did the same thing and we all ate breakfast.From there it was bumpy with some steep uphill. It was really windy on a few ridges but we were just happy the skies were clear. It was 12 miles from our breakfast break to Atkins. After about 5 miles, the rest was mostly downhill. We had been hearing about possible snow tonight, so we were planning to stay at the relax inn. It's right on trail, where the trail passed through Atkins. Atkins is pretty much a truck stop off of I-81. We didn't plan on staying there and mailed our resupply to the barn restaurant across the street, but we figured it was a good opportunity to warm up and rest indoors.We check in at 330 and dropped our stuff off in the room. Even though our package was at the barn, we headed over to the Mexican place next door. What a great meal! I lived in San Diego for a while and love good authentic Mexican food. Ally and I were both really happy with the quality and quantity of the food. It was also wicked cheap.After that we grabbed and paid for our package and went back to the motel room. We went through our gear and cleaned up, but mostly just laid around for the evening. We were all really tired.We aren't picky, but the motel here definitely isn't one of the better places we've stayed.
Date: 2017-03-12
From: relax inn/atkins, va

To: possum creek
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: clear sky

3/12: 556.5/possum creek - 12.5It might not be the cleanest place, but we both slept really well and woke up after 730. I was surprised we slept so late, and we later realized the time change was last night.Either way, we slept really well. We hung out, discussed plans, and I tried to get the wifi in the lobby area for a while. It doesn't reach to the rooms.Then we went over to get breakfast at the barn around 915. We both were happy to have a solid breakfast before leaving. I would have went back to the Mexican restaurant, but it didn't open until 1130.Breakfast took a while. We took our time and got back to the room around 1030. We felt a little behind and rushed this morning. Normally, we are packed up and out the door by then. We left the room right at 11, and so did tenacious D, who showed up yesterday evening and was roomed next to us.We crossed under the highway and were back on the trail. It was chilly but was warming up right as we started walking. The sun was out. We went though a lot of pastures today. We both agreed the scenery was an awesome change and some of our favorite. We also climbed over a ton of fences. They all have some type of way to climb over or zigzag through them. It's hard to get maverick through sometimes and even harder to lift him over. Most are barbed wire, which are hard to get him under, and others are just regular fencing. We moved a nice relaxed pace today and talked on and off on the way. We took a long break on top of a really big hill in a field, and crossed the 1/4 way mark sign.Like most nights we had a fire and hung out around it until it got dark, which was now closer to 730. The next few days will be cold..