morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-05-22
From: Mt. Algo lean-to

To: Stewart Hollow lean-to
Miles today: 7.3

There is a saying that I read while preparing for this venture......that a rainy day on the trail will always be better than a sunny day at work.So I try to keep perspective, as I struggle to get out of this rut that I have fallen into.I have absolutely nothing interesting to write today. Yet I am holding a pen in my hand, and choosing to fill this page.My commitment to continuity trumps my desire to be interesting. As we look back on our lives, there are whole days, weeks and months that just vanish into nothingness. This would be one of those days...but for the journal i keep of it.I saw no one on the trail today. It was sunny today...that is good. I didn't die coming down from St. John's Ledges...also good. I passed the 100 mile mark for the trip...good.And I did a short day, which is supposed to be good, but once you stop hiking, you get cold very quickly....I was in my sleeping bag by 6:30.No people...no mobility...no inspiration....it certainly doesn't feel like freedom.I've spent a lot of my time reading the last 2 days. Someone left a Reinaldo Arena book in the last shelter, and I've already finished it. Plus I've been reading the hiker registers from cover to cover.I really wanted to call Bethany today...call anyone in order to find some spark of life inside of me...but I was never within cellular range. That's another lonely feeling, being so far in the middle of nowhere that there are no cell towers for miles and miles.Damn it, this experience sure is bringing out the worst (and the best) in me. I used to believe that I was totally self-reliant. And that I loved simplification. Somewhere Henry David Thoreau (who I have tattooed on my upper right arm) would give up nonviolence to give me a kick in my ass right now.Tomorrow will be another short day, but I am going to make a town stop in Cornwall Bridge.I need to get myself a little change of pace, some town food, and hopefully some town cellular reception. I need to get out of this rut.
Date: 2006-05-23
From: Stewart Hollow lean-to

To: A blessed hot shower! (Housatonic State Park)
Miles today: 6.2

after 8 or 9 days of hiking through muck and mud...sweating up and down mountains...and being miserably cold when not hiking...I got my a hot shower today!I even used some Bert's Bees Bay Rum exfoliating soap.Wow, i smell clean.I feel clean.I sat underneath the shower head for what must've been an hour, just steeping myself in the hot water. It really was difficult to drag myself out, especially as it is another chilly day.The transformation was amazing. I looked in the mirror when I walked into the bathroom, and I jumped back i was so frightened by what i saw...."hey, haven't I seen you before, over at the soup kitchen on Third St.? What? I'm you...you're me? wow, we are a mangy couple"But after the shower, and with some clean fresh clothing, I looked into the mirror and I looked like one of those guys from an LL Bean catalog (okay...well, at least hiking brochure).I am camping at a state park (hence the shower), just off of the trail, and I have built a fire. Thanks to 2 days of sunshine, there was actually some dry wood to be found. I am the only person here, and I spent probably an hour collecting wood, so that I can burn this fire all night long if I desire.This is much better than huddling in my sleeping bag for hours. I still have nothing but myself, but the burning fire has a meditative effect that sends me through the endless caverns of my mind. This feels right. I don't feel lost and impotent tonight. I feel free. I feel worthy of this challenge. I feel...   like I am getting drunk...When I stopped in town for lunch today, I picked up a half bottle of Cabernet....i feel like a cheap date as this wine runs through me so quickly.I wasn't such a cheap date for lunch. I actually ate a 12 inch sub, a banana, a plum, a canister of mixed nuts, and a quart of milk...(hiker hunger is kicking in)...and my requisite 20 oz coffee.I'd drink a Big Gulp coffee if someone offered one.I talked to B. today, her voice was like soothing music...well briefly. Seems that she had a flat tire today and had been waiting for me to call so that I could guide her through what to do.I definitely understand why people don't bring cell phones out here. Oh well, I guess I am far from a purist, and i'll take the good and the bad with it.okay I'm done with you, journal. I'm going to enjoy the rest of my night aside my campfire on the banks of the Housatonic River with whatever sweet nectar is left in this bottle....damn...i smell clean
Date: 2006-05-24
From: Toymaker's Cafe (Falls Village, CT)

To: an interlude
Miles today: 0.0

this is not a journal post.errrr...not an AT post.ummmmmm...combine that, you have what it's not.why Yossarian? (you would say, if you talked aloud to my journal.)1. it's kinda the half way point...good time for an intermission, right? well if nothing else it's a good time for me in the present to step up and and take away the narrative from the other me that existed 3.7 years ago.2. i am really enjoying transcribing my AT journal.I am currently holed up in Portland, Oregon with a torn quadriceps tendon.This means, no hiking...and I really have developed a deep affinity for hiking (even spent a few bills on actual gear!). Not being able to hike right now disheartens me...but rereading this journal and posting it on TJ is very therapeutic. Adding an interlude, gives me one more day to write about hiking.3. Day 15 marks a huge turning point in the story of the hike, emotionally speaking. These are some of the hardest days of this hike to read and write about for me.............so I take one more day to be light-hearted...So where are we in the 2006 narrative. oh, that's right, Falls Village, Connecticut. My little Stars Hollow away from the WB...It passed without mention in the journal, but i did not develop any symptoms of Lyme Disease from the ticks that I so ineptly pulled out in the first week. Also, I have not developed any grand realizations or "found myself".The reality is, I was not looking for depth... and the bigger reality is that most days I was thinking about hiking mountains. It doesn't leave much time for thinking about other things. Even when not hiking i'd be thinking about the mountains that i would be hiking on the following days...planning out how far i can go, where i can get water from, and how to break the day up into sections.The journal is the extent of my reflection, and as you've seen, most days it's not much.My body was holding up pretty well for an overweight, out of shape, pack a day smoking, non-hiker. Besides the ligament that i kept mentioning, usually one additional body part per day would hurt. It would change by the day...knees, heels, shoulders, arches....but rarely the same pains 2 days in a row.oh yes, and i was chafing in all sorts of odd places.I just re-read that last paragraph, and thought i should clarify...the pack a day habit was down to about half a pack when i was hiking. OK let's get back to the day by day accounts. ...if you have read my journal to this point, the next drink is on me...for allowing me to hold the floor for this long.I am much more of a listener than a talker, more of a reader than a writer.If you have signed my guest book, make it a double...I will always love the love.
Date: 2006-05-27
From: Salisbury, CT

To: Brassie Brook lean-to
Miles today: 8.4

I suddenly feel as though all of these words are vanishing into nothingness, so forgive me if I allow myself and them to wander a bit.I've always felt as though I should write a journal having the feeling that I was writing it to someone...telling a story....but if the axe is going to drop when i return home, i don't possess the energy to manifest a new captive audience in my imagination.and so I am allowing my thoughts/words to meander aimlessly through a passage that progresses my story not 1 iota.Sleeping in that bed last night was wonderful. Making myself a real dinner, even if it was just shrimp, pasta, butter and garlic, was awesome.Television.... When Vanessa, the woman who runs the boarding house, gave me the tour, and pointed out the t.v. room, I didn't even pay attention. I had no desire to watch it. But the lure of mindless entertainment won me over. I watched Seinfeld, Jeopardy, and about a half of the Phoenix Suns/Dallas Mavericks game. I haven't watched much post-Michael Jordan basketball, and I was a little thrown off. These 2 teams were playing for the Western conference championship, and on both teams, the best player was a white guy...what kind of weird portal have I walked through, I wondered.I woke up this morning at 8:30...9 1/2 hours of uninterrupted sleep was wonderful.I went across the street to the coffee shop this morning, and was treated to a small bit of "trail magic" again. The woman behind the counter, gave me 2 large chocolate chip cookies. She said, "you're going to need some energy out on the trail today".And it's amazing how much energy I did have today (though i don't think the cookies were the difference maker). Mountains felt like hills, and I really had a spring in my step. When I got here, I almost decided to hike to the next shelter, but i then realized that it is 12 miles away. There's no need to push myself on a pulled hammy...which by the way, almost doesn't faze me with this brace on. I guess, in reality...hiking is merely a form of walking...there's much more mental strain, than there is physical. Endurance is more important than the fine tuning. I think it will be just fine.It is the start of Memorial Day weekend, so I can forget about solitude for a few days. I'm sharing the lean-to with an older guy from rural Pennsylvania, named "Paul with Bunions".The tentsites, which are directly in front of the lean-to, are filled with families and boy scout troops.The black flies and mosquitoes are absolutely insane. They have been swarming me since I got here. This is the first warm day of the hike, after 2 and 1/2 weeks of pretty continuous rain. I have covered myself with more bug spray than ever, and yet somehow several dozens of them are constantly hovering, landing, biting, pissing me the **** off.It maybe another early night into the sleeping bag.
Date: 2006-05-28
From: Brassie Brook lean-to

To: Eating at a place called Mom's
Miles today: 16.8

my strange hike continues. tonight I have set up camp in a hayfield behind a roadside stand called the Corn Crib. my guidebook pages said that they allow it. No one inside was certain that they allow it. In fact, for insurance reasons, they were "pretty certain that they didn't allow it." It took some finagling in the setting sun to get them to acquiesce.and here i am.I am sharing the hayfield with a few horses. They will not stop running circles around my tent? It's making me a little nervous.I did a big mileage day, and my body still feels pretty good. There are some pains that I'm sure won't go away until after I am finished hiking.There is not an inch of my body that doesn't have a bug bite. The variety of the bites is truly mind-numbing.some are very typical mosquito bites.some look like warts.some have formed lumps on my skin the size of...umm...i don't think "finger bowls" would be overstating it.some are pointy.some are just red spots.The only commonality is that they all itch like a mother...I stopped in town again today. When they are close to the trail, I just can't resist the lure. Hey, I've never claimed to be a nature person...just someone who set a goal for himself to hike from NJ to VT. And if this is how I will have to accomplish that goal so be it. I've read the expression, "Hike your own hike!" many times. And I think that today I finally understood it...understood it...like the difference between listening to something and hearing something.If getting out of the 90 degree heat and sitting in an air conditioned restaurant, having a meal prepared for me helps me accomplish that goal, recharges me...that then is how it will be.When I go into town, it is also fun to smirk at people paying $3.09 for a gallon of gasoline.and so it is that I made my way into Great Barrington, Massachusetts today.Nelson Algren (fellow Chicago native) left us with a bit of wisdom..."Never play cards with any man named "Doc."Never eat at any place called "Mom's."And never, never, no matter what else you do in your whole life, never sleep with anyone whose troubles are worse than your own."sorry, Nelson, but I am on foot...my choices are limited. This was the place that I found. What would you do? eat another granola bar? No, no, NO...there is fresh coffee inside those doors...and a full diner-style menu...air-conditioning...screw you!!!oh yea, did I mention I made it to Massachusetts today. I can't wait for the holiday weekend to end. The trail actually feels crowded.Who'd a thunk I'd start to get nostalgic for the days when I saw no one at all?(Damn these horses! they can't run around all night, can they? when do they sleep?)
Date: 2006-05-29
From: sorry mom (part one)

To: the best dollar i ever spent(pt 2-Upper Goose Pond
Miles today: 27.5

...standing somewhere lost in the woods, off trail, w/ a dead headlamp...nauseous, dizzy, fatigued, dehydrated, and stupid with exhaustion...I surprisingly remembered the miniature disposable reading light that i had picked up in one of the $1 bins at Target.This was bright enough to get me back to the trail. my only fear now, knowing that i was getting close to the cabin, was that i would miss the side trail. Signage on the trail is sometimes scarce, and not always exactly visible, even in good light.Slowly and cautiously, i managed to progress, and found the side trail to the cabin. Unfortunately, two realities smacked me in the face. a.) there was another 1/2 mile to go on the side trail. 2.) side trails are blazed with dark blue paint...there was no way that I was going to follow blazes with my feeble reading light.to my benefit the trail was pretty straight and well tread. by 11:30, i stumbled upon some tents.quietly, not wanting to wake and frighten everyone (last thing i need on a day like this is to get pelted with rocks cause some half-asleep hiker thought that i was a bear), i tried to find my way to the cabin.[A caveat...for anyone who think that this whole adventure sounds fun.Check the farmers almanac before you head on out. It's readily available online(Lunar Cycles) or at your local A & P(A & P.   Make certain that your first night hike doesn't coincide with a new moon like mine did.]I'm not sure how long it would have taken for me to find the cabin, if it weren't for some other fools that had just stumbled in by boat. They were standing on the porch with flashlights, trying to figure out why the cabin was locked.Yes, after how much i beat myself up to get here, there was no caretaker in residence, and so it was all for naught. No bed, no pancakes, no fresh mountain spring water.At this point i honestly didn't care. the fact that i am sitting down at a picnic bench is enough for me. I talked to the others for a bit. i think they said that they had canoed in from Albany. i'm not even certain if this is possible, or if i heard them right. you'll have to forgive me if the conversation skills are eluding me.i can not even stand up. let me try.........nope, my legs just told me to go f**k myself, and then they called me a citified mama's boy.I'm just glad that the day is done. I believe this is the most i've ever physically exhausted my body. In football, coaches would make us do a thing called "suicide drills"....they seem like a walk in central park in the shadow of this day.i am going to pass out now.I don't even think i have the energy to pull out my sleeping bag...nor will i need to.
Date: 2006-06-03
From: Wilbur lean-to

To: When you touch someone's gear...
Miles today: 10.4

I sat around most of this morning waiting for the rain to pass. When I had caught the weather report a couple of days ago the forecast was for the rain to end this morning. Hahaha...the weather forecast isn't very accurate when you get it that morning. Why i was trusting the 3 day forecast, I don't know.Eventually I put on my .99 cent poncho and went. I knew that it was going to be a crazy day...I was descending into a huge valley. Over the course of a mile or so, I would be going from an elevation of 3000 feet down to about 700 feet....quickly thereafter, I would be ascending back to about 3000 ft.This first part was ridiculously treacherous, made more so by the fact that a wet rock is a slick rock. I lost my battles with the mountain a couple of times, and only my backpack saved me from knocking myself silly.When I got down to the valley, I decided to stop in town for coffee...North Adams, Massachusetts. As soon as I got there though, I noticed that the rain had stopped. I decided to head back to the trail.The ascent out of the valley wasn't nearly as difficult as the descent had been. It had stopped raining, but the trail had become a stream. After a while, I stopped trying to avoid it, and i just splashed and slopped my way down the trail....tiptoeing about had been costing me too much time. At the 7 mile point in the day, I hit the Vermont border!I wanted to stop...scream...be excited...I had crossed my last stateline. My hiking days have just about come to an end...but the reality was the shelter was still 3 miles away, and it was already past 7:00. Under a dense tree cover, it was already starting to get dark.I had no desire to repeat last weeks adventure in night hiking (especially as i never bothered replacing the battery in my headlamp.)No time to celebrate...it was time to fly. Fly I did. I made it to the shelter in about an hour.The shelter, which is built for 8, was filled...with 3 people and their stuff. And they were all asleep...at 8:10."Hello?", i said.silence"Hello?!", i said again, somewhat louder.silence...more silence...someone snores.So i just started moving their stuff out of my way. It's amazing how quickly people wake up when you start touching their gear.Now i am heading off to sleep.Reaching Vermont, one of only 4 states in the U.S. that I had never been to....and approaching the end of my journey, is creating no emotion in me right now.good or bad...I'd like to feel something. anything.good night.
Date: 2006-02-22
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mt. Shelter
Miles today: 7.6

Well...let's get hiking! We started our thru hike today at 10:55 a.m amidst fog, rain and howlin' winds. We spent last night at the Amicalola Falls Lodge and got spoiled on buffet and soft beds with pillows I might add! We spent the night at Hawk Mt. Shelter and made some new friends....Matt,Jessica and Mic with their dog hershey and also Caruna Miel...they were the sober ones and all hikers to boot. Our other shelter denizen was AWOL and he had along his little friend a nalgene bottle full of some mysterious clear liquid that had magical powers. Needless to say he was amusing! Mom set up her tent in shelter to avoid mist as there was ample room for all! Well...day one is down and onward to tomorrow...oh yeah mom saw a bear today too! Neat!
Date: 2006-02-23
To: Gooch Gap
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we decided to go a little further past the Gooch Mtn. Shelter and start our habit of tenting it! We found this great little spot complete with tibetan prayer flags and all. Needless to say we felt right at home. The rain cleared up today and the hiking weather was beautiful! Our water purifier decided to hold out on us and not produce the cool clear liquid our bodies desire so we have a fire going and boiling water for the next day but...oops...we were almost done when alas some magical unseen creature decided to spill our bottles and leave us cursing and yes boiling away! Today my feet started to really hurt and that makes me sad.
Date: 2006-02-24
From: Gooch Gap

To: Woods Hole Shelter
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Woohoo 10 miles today....seems like a small amount but it really is not! Today we start the Blood Mtn. Wilderness and I think it is really beautiful. I think everyone else is worried about BLOOD MOUNTAIN!!! Really though...how bad can it be? Stay Tuned!
Date: 2006-02-25
From: Woods Hole Shelter

To: Neel's Gap
Miles today: 3.7
Weather: light rain

Okay...Blood Mountain. Not so bad going up. Cold and windy at the top but what a view. Coming down though....I keep hoping my feet will just fall off so I don't need them anymore...I am in some extreme pain here folks so Neel's Gap better have my cure or else I am going to sue the state of Georgia for something! So when we get into Neel's Gap a couple of hours later I was a little suprised. They didn't have any hoagies or pizza..I mean come on guys! Seriously though....I thought the hostel here was really crappy but the guys at the store were tremendous with all their knowledge and effort they put into helping folks!!! My advice..stop in early shower up and hit up the staff but keep on moving to Hiawasee....
Date: 2006-02-26
From: Neel's Gap

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

I got some inserts for my boots in Neel's Gap...I was ready for the miracle cure and instead I got the double whammy! I spent 35 bucks on em and they just made the pain worse! I am limping by mile 7 or eight every day and let me tell you it sucks! On the upside the weather has been really nice if a little cold but hey it's still winter! We shared our shelter tonight with the travelling dingleberries....aha ahah haha
Date: 2006-02-27
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Windy as allgetout Campsite
Miles today: 10.7

We wanted to stop at Unicoi Gap but guess what it was just a big old road going to Helen Ga. I guess we gotta keep on hiking...just up to the top of this hill you say? Well...have you ever really slept in a wind storm? I have now!! I love this place...my feet still hurt alot!
Date: 2006-03-02
From: Crescent Moon Campsite

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: light rain

Today we entered North Carolina and let me tell ya folks if you thought Georgia was tough the first 3 miles of NC are a real heartbreaker! BUT don't despair it gets better real fast. It rained on us all morning but then the sun came out and dried us all up like mother nature making litte golden raisins...We are supposed to have 45 mph wind gusts tonight so no fire for us!! Anyhow...cover all the children's eyes and ears cuz the big news for today is that I poohed at the state line....sorry.
Date: 2006-03-05
To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Well hey there everyone! i am just going to write one big journal entry here right now but will go back later and get more day to day info going for ya....we made it to Franklin which is about 106 miles up the trail from springer mountain....we are all doing pretty we but have been having some foot problems...mom's got some blisters and I have found out that hiking boots are the vilest thing on earth and am currently searching for a wonderful cushy pair of sneaks. I have been limping into camp every night since day two because there is no cush in my boots. it is like walking barefoot on concrette carrying all your belongings! We have had a couple of days of rain and some really cold weather and some really beautiful weather! It is different every day! the other morning mikey and i woke up to find a solid sheet of frosty ice on the inside of our tent...brrrrr...Georgia was beautiful and so far North carolina too....except the first three miles which were really tough terrain and freezing rain with almost no visibility due to heavy fog! I guess that's it for now because I am still relishing in the fact that I can eat whatever and whenever I want!!! Hope ya'll are doing well!!! Love you guys....Zama and Lug
Date: 2006-03-06
From: Franklin

To: Franklin
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we had more of our fill at the buffet...Also Peacemaker and darwin joined our group and we all had more buffet..mmmm buffet. ALSO Root and I got some new shoes..I just might get to keep my feet after all...we watched TV and ate pizza and gave thanks to Dionysus....back on the trail tomorrow kids! Are ya ready?