morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2021-04-24
From: Black rock Hut

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: broken clouds

I rolled out of my hammock at 6 this morning, left the hut at 6:45 and was back at the trail by seven. The weather report remained unchanged: rain by 3:30 becoming heavier at times throughout the night. So in looking at the map, it was 13 miles until the next hut, and after that there were no huts or camping spots for another 8 miles. Seems like I¢m going 13 miles today. Hopefully before the rain hits.  Right out of the gate I had to climb black rock Mountain. And let me tell you it was steep. The top of the mountain was literally a pile of rocks there was a sign that said climb at your own risk. My risk told me, don¢t climb. I usually consult my risk when asked, though his consul doesn¢t always hold sway. span class="Apple-converted-space"> The campground area is very pretty surrounded by mountains there are Bear boxes at every campsite. I don¢t think they¢re there for show.I made it to the camp store well ahead of schedule so I took the side trail 3/10 of a mile to the building. The camp store is not open yet and the bathrooms were locked but I was able to get water and charge a few devices. I also took time to cook lunch for the first time in a few days. Cheesy beef tacos were on the menu which in reality weren¢t tacos but just a rehydrated meal with beef, spices and one big clump of cheese.After lunch I hiked on with 6 miles left to go to my planned stop for the night. About a mile down the trail I came across a man taking a selfie, his name was Jeff. Jeff is from Maryland and is trying to hike all 560 miles of trail in the Shenandoah national park: he¢s completed over 400 miles to date and when I came across him, he had just completed his last 2.6 miles of the AT that runs through the park. In all his time hiking in the park he has never fought a bear, and he¢s poorer for it. I hiked with Jeff for about 4 miles back to where he had his car parked. He¢s a bit of a madman, competing multiple times in an extreme trail racing event called ¢MEGA¢ up in Pennsylvania. It was good to have some company for 90 minutes or so. I got to Pinefield Hut a little after two with rain already threatening. Shortly after, another hiker came in, he just started a flip flop hike four days ago in the southern end of the Park with designs like me to hike the whole trail in 6 months. He¢s 56 and an engineer by trade and is taking this hiking hiatus to evaluate what comes next for he and his wife. I was amazed by the amount of cooking gear he had, he explained he had hiked the National Park countless times as a Boy Scout leader and never skimped on meal time. By the time the rain started, three more hikers came in and now at 6pm there must be 10-12 people here. Most of them are SOBO¢s section hiking the park. I was cocooned in my hammock by 4 and dozed throughout the afternoon listening to a weird and wild book called ¢Gnomen¢ recommended by my friend Chris. My dreams should be lit tonight. Going to be a wet night.
Date: 2021-04-25
From: Pinefield Hut

To: Bearfence Mountain Hut
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: moderate rain

So the rain stayed steady all night as was forecasted, finally letting up about 5 am. Was pumped that I made it 13 and a half hours before the call of nature could not be denied. 54 year old dudes take their w¢s where they can get them. Was also happy that my tarp set up kept me, my hammock, and my gear dry all night. Two weeks in and I¢m mostly happy with choosing a hammock. The sleep had been good, there¢s no muddy/wet tent to pack up. Also, no condensation inside like you can get when tenting. Downside is that I don¢t have a mini-home in which to layout gear or change clothes easily. Also, it can be a bit stressful looking for the right trees, the right distance apart, and hopefully facing the wind the right way.So, hiking on this Sunday. The weather was ca-ray-zee. Seemingly every half mile it would change. Started in a light mist at 6:45, then the sun popped out for 3 minutes, then the wind picked up and blew in fog, then it would repeat all over again. I had the toughest time getting warm and staying warm. Did a lot of hiking above 3000 feet where it was 42 degrees with 10-20mph winds. At one point as I was ascending Hightop Mountain two women were coming down from the summit raving about the gorgeous views. When I got to the top 20 minutes later the fog had everything totally docked in. Lesson for the day: women lie. There were a lot of day hikers out today as well. Must have passed at least two dozen going up Hightop as a descended the opposite slope. And also noticed about half of them were hiking with masks on. To each their own.The camping areas weren¢t really convenient today. I could have stopped at 8.9 miles or around 12 miles. Or go for a bigger day to Lewis Mountain Campground. I was feeling ok, so I made for Lewis. As with most plans, this one didn¢t pan out. The Campground was almost completely full and the few open spots that I *maybe* could have used for a hammock were in a veritable wind tunnel.So I moved on from there about 4:30 and hiked another 1.2 miles to Bearfence Mountain Hut. Lots of shelter dwellers and tents set up here. Nearly all section hikers from what I gather (they smell better). This has been a rough three days out Waynesboro, what with very poor cell connection. So I am sorry if I have worried anybody, but even getting a post up has proven to be beyond me. Better days ahead!
Date: 2021-04-29
From: US Rte 522

To: TuckerÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Lane
Miles today: 8.4
Weather: clear sky

As per yesterday¢s thoughts, I went ahead and did an 8 mile hike today from the west side of Front Royal to the east side. There were five of us who got dropped off for this slack pack: myself, Brian and Matt who are friends and southbound flip flippers from Pennsylvania.  And then a married couple - the Hurries. (He¢s Inna Hurry, she¢s Inno Hurry). The Hurries are also flippers who started their hike about 2 miles from where I began mine. The hostel owners Danielle and David recommended this hike as an easy 8 miles to do and they were correct. There were only a few stretches that were rocky and requiring my full attention. I¢ve taken to calling my right foot Dudley Dursley and my left foot Harry Potter. I shower love and attention on Dudley diddims and look out for its every need and want while metaphorically shoving my left foot into the cupboard under the stairs to fend for itself. The analogy does fall apart in that my left foot has no cool lightning scar and shown no innate magical abilities, unless you count being able to avoid injury (so far - I shan¢t tempt fate!).Hiked with Brian and Matt and talked a lot of beer. Both have a highly refined taste in beer (meaning it matches mine) and Brian works at the Tattered Flag Brewery in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It¢s brewery started by a veteran for veterans, which Brian is. Pretty Cool. Between the two of them in their years of service to our country they seemingly have visited half the globe. We completed the miles in just under four hours and sat talking until the Hurries arrived an hour later, then back to the hostel. So that¢s it for today¢s hiking. My sweet little Dudley did ok (he¢s just so special!) and is feeling much improved. Tomorrow I set off for Harpers Ferry WVa. Q and A: (from a few I¢ve received)Q: Has anything surprised you so far?A: Yes: how quickly I¢ve become used to backwoods privies. Q: Do you think you¢ll stay on trail?A: That¢s my intention. My Wife and family are beyond awesome in their support and coaching, so if I can stay healthy and life doesn¢t intervene, I¢m walking on. Q: Have you seen any hippies?A: Only when I look in the mirror. Q: How much time do you spend studying the trail ahead?A: Not much. I look (if I remember) at the water situation for the day and maybe Towns that are ahead for resupply, but I really don¢t look too much at the trail elevations or read comments from hikers about what to expect. I mean, it¢s the trail, I can¢t change it, just move along as best I can. Q: Is this really Fine?A: This is fine.
Date: 2021-05-07
From: Birch Run Shelter

To: Alec Kennedy Shelter
Miles today: 25.4
Weather: scattered clouds

There were three Whipperwills around the shelter last night and at least one owl. I had a dream where I was being yelled at by a Chicago Sports Radio host named Dan Bernstein because he thought my mask was non compliant. How was your night?I was on trail at 6:20, hoping to get some dry miles in before the predicted rains rolled in midday. Hikers had been talking about getting to Pine Grove Furnace State  Park and their famous ¢half gallon challenge¢ for thru hikers: eat an entire half gallon of ice cream in one sitting and it¢s free. When I got to the park¢s general store at 10 am, it was not yet open. A few hikers were planning to do a short day and stay at the hostel next door, but I decided not to wait (50 and rain doesn¢t strike me as ice cream weather) and I was itching to get some miles in. So onward I went.  I passed a couple of section hikers just outside the state park, but then didn¢t see anyone for the rest of the day. I did get a phone call from Smithsburg that my shoes had arrived! I called them back and arraigned to have the box forwarded 115 miles up trail to Port Clinton, Pa. Hopefully the timing will be right. I¢m still planning to drop by the outfitter in Boiling Springs Saturday just to see what footwear they have in stock. I can¢t say enough about how kind and helpful the employees at the Smithsburg post office have been - truly above and beyond  Around 2 I made another short road walk to the Green Mountain General Store for an intended resupply. When I got there, I saw they also had a deli counter - SCORE!  I ordered 1lb of roast beef, 1/2 lb of smoked turkey, some pork rinds and an iced tea. Lunch and dinner served!  I ate on their front porch as the rain, which had started at 11, continued to fall. I shared the bench with a section hiker who thru hiked back in 2008 when he turned 60 and a flip flopper who lived just a few miles away and decided to head home for a few days to get out of the cold and rain. Had a good conversation with the SH for about an hour while he waited for his ride  he did give me a heads up that the next 5 miles of trail had some very tough rock climbs. Back on the trail, the rain really started to come down. I kept my rain jacket on more for warmth than to keep dry. The rocks were very slick but the climbs were hella fun!  A few times I had to chuck my trekking poles up above me onto a rock ledge and hoist myself up. I¢m just daft enough to think this was made better by the rain fall. I¢m now trying to get warm whilst laying in my hammock and listening to the rain hit my tarp. I did manage to get everything set up while keeping my gear dry, a victory I will relish!  The toughest thing about writing these entries is that my hands turn to ice. Maybe someday, spring will arrive.
Date: 2021-05-12
To: EagleÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Nest Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: few clouds

I started my day with a .3 of a mile limp to the privy near the 501 shelter and a somewhat lighter .3 mile limp back to my camp. I then spent 10 minutes applying mole skin patches and bandaids to both of my big toes, my right pinkie toe, and both heals. Suffice to say that my new shoes have solved one issue but caused others. Oboz? More like Ono¢s - amirite?!?I walked back to the road to partake in Fresh Ground¢s Leap Frog Cafe breakfast offering. He had eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes, blueberry pancakes, watermelon, chips, oranges, Oreo cookies and fantastic coffee. It was quite a spread. I showed some moderation so as to actually enable myself to hike today. Again, this is all free and all Fresh Ground wants is happy, stuffed hikers. I knew that I wouldn¢t be doing big mileage today due to the post office timing in Port Clinton. I only needed to do 14 or so to set up a short 9 mile hike into town on Thursday. I hiked all day with and around the Trout Family as well as the ¢Locos¢ who I had camped with for two nights. Nice people all around, although the Trout family¢s dog seemed to take a shine to me That she¢s in heat is both hilarious and troubling. For the second straight day I managed to walk into a tree limb dangling over the trail and the rocks were a sore subject (ha!) all day. Then about 1.5 miles from the shelter I was intently watching the jagged, rocky trail and I walked into a tree trunk that blocked part of the path. My stars and garters, did that really hurt. I managed to keep my feet (still haven¢t fallen, yet) thsnjs only to my bucket hat saving me from a worse blow. Just shy of the camp there was a gravel road and a sign reading ¢Fresh Ground¢s Leap Frog Cafe .2 miles east¢. Off I went on the detour. There were 26 hikers total there within 30 minutes. I had a beef burrito, chicken fritters, salad, watermelon, and a good time. I saw two hikers I hadn¢t seen since Front Royal: Whispers and Cheesecurds. Talked to the. For a bit then decided not to camp in the field where the van was parked but to instead continue .6 miles (.2 trail miles) to the shelter for the night.As everyone was eating, we discovered that three other hikers had knocked heads with the same tree I just tangled with. Two of them went to ground after their encounter. Here at the tenting area I sat and talked with Maps who is on a section hike. Maps has hiked on 5 continents and has even hiked to the Mt Everest base camp. People do some amazing things.  If I get up early enough, I just might backtrack to the Cafe for coffee, bacon and pancakes. Fresh Ground is then planning to take a few days off and chances are I won¢t see him again this trip. Decisions, decisions. The post office with my long awaited package is 9 miles away and opens at 12:30pm. So I have one target for the day!  After that, maybe another 6-10 to camp. We shall see.
Date: 2021-05-17
From: Kirkridge Shelter

To: Pennsylvania/New Jersey state line
Miles today: 6.7
Weather: overcast clouds

When I got to the shelter last night there was one guy there. He has a house nearby that he Airbnb¢s and sometimes when it¢s booked he camps for a few nights at the shelter. Something that I never would have considered, but he seemed happy. I got my limp on early just beating the sunrise out of camp. I had six miles to town and two nights planned at a hotel. Man, did I have barn fever. There were a few nice views down to the Delaware river valley and the fog over the river was pretty thick. I did so much silk blazing through the forest and underbrush it felt like I was wearing a wedding veil. I can report that whatever variety of spider is responsible for the drag lines is not endangered. Though it wouldn¢t break my heart if they became so. On the way down into Delaware Water Gap I met two older hikers climbing out, they asked if I was staying in town and when I said yes, told me I had to stop by the Village Farm and Bakery for their apple pie. Itinerary adjusted. When I got to town I turned right and began the half mile walk across the Toll bridge so as to reach the Pennsylvania/New Jersey state line. I was more than willing to break my ¢no backwards¢ pledge to check off another state and Guthooks map. Back into town and then to the Outfitter¢s just as they opened at 9. I broke both of my trekking pole tips over the last two days of rocks and was looking to replace them. On further inspection at the shop, I noticed the carbon fiber had started to splinter on one pole. This is fine. I found a pair of $99 Leki brand poles, a new pair of sock liners (old ones blew out at 500 miles), Superfeet shoe inserts (for more support), gaiters to cover the tops of my shoes and keep debris out, two probars, and a Gatorade (which never stood a chance). Then a short walk to the Bakery which had more pies than I¢ve ever seen in such a small space. Hundreds of pies. They also had a permanent special called the ¢True Love¢ - a hotdog and piece of apple pie for $2.95. Hell. Yes. (I¢d been up since 4:45, so it was lunchtime)Washed it down with a coffee and then another short walk to the motel where they were nice enough (or I smelled of 30 day old cheese and they wanted me gone) to get me a very early check in. Washing off 8 days of trail felt sooooo good. Then I did my laundry. Going back to my room I found two boxes of food outside my door. What the...? I toed it aside and then got a text from from my friends Mike and Jason who had ordered all that grub for me. Wings, garlic bread, garlic twists, mozzarella stix, a chicken Parmesan sub and a whole pepperoni pizza. Dayum! I got after it with a vengeance. Then a Lyft to Walmart for a resupply, mostly foot care and health products and some peanut butter and almonds for my food bag. Just now finishing a second foot bath and getting ready for bed. Tomorrow I may walk a half mile to the post office, but that¢s about it. Going to stay off Harry and Dudley as much as possible.
Date: 2021-05-18
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Killing time can be a chore, but I think it was a necessity for me today. It feels odd not to be on the trail and moving miles under my feet. I¢ve soaked my tootsies about 8 times since yesterday evening in a basin with hot water, Epsom salts and mouthwash (kills bacteria, I¢m told). Did some blister care and generally took it pretty easy, keeping my feet elevated when not dunking them. Headed out about 11 for the short walk to the post office to ship a few things home. I¢ve decided to go stoveless for the near future. Trail cooking has just seemed to be something I couldn¢t rally myself to do. So the titanium pot, stove, and alcohol bottle are going back to Michigan. The other piece of gear I sent back I¢ve actually worn a lot, but with temps (likely) not going back to the 30¢s at night, my wool bottom layer is probably overkill. They are Smartwool 250 weight Marino wool and really worked well. Side note: little known fact, Marino wool was developed by former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino, who after a very successful turn as an Isotoner gloves pitch man, decided to get into the fabrics business himself to great success. True Story. On my way to the post office I saw the Locos having lunch at the Bakery before heading back to the trail. I thought they would have been long gone this morning, but they stretched leaving the hotel until check out time and planned on a short 14 mile afternoon hike. I gifted them the three dehydrated meals I hadn¢t used instead of shipping them back home. I may see them in a few days up trail. Time will tell After leaving the post office I bumped into Slippers, who I had last seen back in Maryland when he gave me a lift back to the trail head. The trail can be a small world. Back to the hotel for the afternoon where I managed to finish the last of the food bought for me yesterday by my friends. Thanks, guys! (I think). I¢m pretty happy with how I felt after walking a couple of miles today. I¢m going to keep a close eye on the healing process and if I need to limit miles the next few days or take a break, I¢m going to do so. (At least I tell myself that, being your own worst enemy can be a thrill ride!)Back hiking tomorrow, looking at maybe going 13. Got some great info from Easy, who I met back in the Shenandoah¢s, he¢s a New Jersey native who knows the upcoming trail really well. Kinda fired up about the next week!
Date: 2021-05-24
To: West Mountain stealth site
Miles today: 19.2
Weather: clear sky

Enjoyed a bear-free night in my hammock, just had the usual unexplained leaf rustling and a Whipperwill going off now and again. After a quick pack up I was hiking by 5:45. Today¢s hike was one where looking at the elevation profile would leave an incomplete picture of the hike. I never crossed a peak over 1400 feet, yet it was a top-five day for total elevation gain. There are just so many ¢up and over¢ hills that it really adds up (425 flights of stairs, according to Garmin).  There were a handful of rock climbs as well where trekking poles just got in the way. Balancing the ups and downs was a perfect weather day for hiking: partly cloudy, breezy, and highs in the low 60¢s. ¢Twas a bit of a lonely hike for most of the day. I¢m a day behind the Trout family who constitute their own hiking bubble and a half day ahead of some of the hikers I met in Unionville. About noon a came to a section called ¢The Lemon Squeezer¢ where the trail went under and through a large rock formation necessitating me to take off my pack and slide sideways through the rock. As I was putting my pack back on Punisher came through - I had thought he was long gone, but he and Bopit took a zero yesterday to get out of the heat. As usual, after chatting for a minute he was gone-daddy-gone up the trail at a speed I cannot match. Around 2pm the trail passed a shelter and Punisher was there along with Free. Free was happily getting...relaxed and Punisher was waiting for Bopit who arrived 5 minutes after I did. This will likely be the last time I see them. If you want to check out Bopit¢s hike, she has a YouTube channel called, I believe, ¢Bopit hikes¢.After a half hour break I hiked on. I have a food box waiting for me at the Fort Montgomery post office and a hotel room booked for Tuesday night (Thanks, Vargas!) so I needed to find a spot that¢ll put me within a morning¢s walk of the road. As I was topping another ridge I noticed that I could see the New York City skyline about 40 miles away across the Hudson River. (Pic above is of the skyline which you can juuuuuust make out). This is the first time I¢ve seen it and the closest I¢ve been to the Big Apple. I have one more mountain to cross in the morning that may provide a better view. I did manage to find a hanging spot, through the only two trees I found are pretty far apart. Good thing I have long straps!  The shelter about .4 of s mile away has had an active bear reported, so I¢m a bit paranoid about an ursine encounter. Consequently I hung my bear bag far from my camp, shooing away two large rat snakes from under the tree where I tied up. As the man said, This is fine.