morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-05-08
From: Johns Spring Shelter

To: US220 - Daleville, VA
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: scattered clouds

My alarm went off at 5am but I didn't start packing up until 5:45. I knew I'd miss sunrise on McAfee Knob so I wasn't in a huge hurry to get hiking, but I wanted to get to town on the earlier side and had almost 19 miles to walk.I started hiking just before 7am, with Yetta close behind me. I was the first one hiking that morning so I was getting lots of cobwebs in my face. I felt a tickle on my neck and brushed whatever was there and a HUGE spider fell to the ground. EW! I didn't think it had bitten me and Yetta assured me it wasn't a brown recluse. I crossed the 700-mile mark within 30 minutes of leaving the shelter. I made a 700 out of stones on the trail and celebrated with some early morning Skittles.   Hot Sauce, Yetta, and I spent some time on McAfee Knob taking photos and enjoying the views. They were amazing...we are very fortunate to be on the knob on a clear day, it would have been a bummer to have missed these views.Tinker Cliffs was another highlight on the trail today. Hot Sauce, Steamboat, and I had lunch up on the cliffs overlooking the mountains and Yetta and Bow Willow met up with us shortly before we started hiking again. The hiking has been surprisingly hard the last 2 days (don't believe it when someone tells you that Virginia is flat!). I was excited to get to town in the afternoon...I beelined it to the gas station and bought a Coke and ice cream sandwich. Hot Sauce, Bow Willow, Steamboat, and I checked in to the Howard Johnson which is basically on the AT. Hot Sauce, Ducky, Madison, and I are all sharing a room tonight.We grabbed dinner at the Three Lil Pigs which was amazing! I had a grilled wrap with portabello mushrooms, roasted corn and peppers, and melted pepper jack cheese, with sweet potato fries and grilled asparagus. We also split some pitchers of good beer and topped the meal of with some homemade key lime pie. This was one of my favorite trail town meals so far!I also picked up my 40 degree sleeping bag at the outfitter which I'm so excited to use. Hopefully this will prevent me from sweating all night long. Tomorrow I'm going back to the outfitter to look into possibly getting some new shoes and maybe some new hiking clothes.It's been a fun and long day and I sure am looking forward to taking a day off tomorrow!   700 miles!Loon on McAfee Knob
Date: 2009-05-09
From: US220 - Daleville, VA

To: US 220 - Daleville, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was my first day off since Erwin, TN and it was definitlely a much needed day of rest! Ducky, Hot Sauce, and I woke up early and took advantage of the free hot breakfast that HoJo serves. We saw a bunch of other hikers down in the lobby - Oblivious (OB), No Toys, Spitfire, Brickyard, Radio Freq, Yoni Bear, Steamboat, and Bow Willow. Today ended up being a very busy day. We had visions of laying in bed all day eating popcorn and watching movies, but that of course didn't happen with all the errands that had to be done. I spent a pretty penny at the outfitter...a new shirt (yep, the tech t was sent home...again), new shoes (I'm really nervous this purchase...Montrail Continental Divides), camp soap (I realized over the past week that I'm pretty much the only hiker who doesn't carry soap!), bug spray, a new buckle for my hipbelt since mine cracked a couple days ago, and fuel. I then bought 5 days of food at Kroger, burned my photos onto a CD at CVS, and before I knew it, it was dinner time! Radio Freq has been in Daleville nursing a shin splint for the past few days and has a rental car so he was able to cart me around town to get all my errands done before everything closed. Thanks Radio Freq! Ducky bought things to make ice cream sundaes (vanilla ice cream, strawberries, and whipped cream) which was a nice afternoon treat Radio Freq, Ducky, Hot Sauce, and I went back to Three Lil Pigs for dinner. Unfortunately there was no live music because of storms in the forecast. Steamboat and Bender showed up for dessert and then we all headed back to the hotel for the night. All in all it was a great day off! Back to the trail tomorrow, and the weather looks GREAT!
Date: 2009-05-10
From: US 220 - Daleville, VA

To: Wilson Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: broken clouds

Happy Mother's Day! A lot of people have made comments in my guestbook about how they are appreciative of my frequent journal updates. Well, that wouldn't happen without the help of my mom! She has been key in the upkeep of my trailjournal and supportive of my trip in other ways, including sending me homemade brownies and other goodies Thanks mom! xoxoxoHot Sauce and I took our time getting ready this morning and didn't actually start hiking until 12:30. It's probably a good thing that the check-out time at the HoJo was noon, or it's possible we wouldn't have left town until much later in the afternoon. She left just before me as I enjoyed an icecream cookie sandwich (which had a whopping 21 grams of fat!) in front of the gas station near the trail. In order to get to the trail, you have to cross US220 which is a super busy 4 lane road. It took me a good 10 minutes before I was able to cross the street, and good thing there was a median or it would have taken much longer. Crossing busy roads might be one of the most dangerous parts of hiking the trail!The hiking was great today...the weather was perfect, everything is in bloom, and the terrain was nicely graded. My feet felt alright in my new shoes and I love my new hiking shirt! The new shirt I'm trying is an Outdoor Research polyester/wool blend shirt that I can put in the dryer. It doesn't smell at all after wearing it all day today. I decided to get rid of the tech t for good yesterday because it smelled just as bad coming out of the wash as it did going in. Not good!I got to the 2nd shelter where I'm staying tonight around 6pm to find a huge tent city...everyone is here tonight! Hot Sauce, Yoni Bear, Ducky and Madison, Old Spice, Bender, Steam, The Darkness, Spitfire, No Toys, Bow Willow, Yetta, and I are all tenting around the shelter tonight and one section hiker has the shelter to himself. He has severe sleep apnia so everyone is tenting...but the bad news is that we can all still hear him snoring from our tents! He is probably the worst snorer I've encountered on the trail so far. I didn't know this until after I set up my tent (which is probably only 15 feet from the shelter)! I did make the best store-bought trail dinner I've had yet...Annie's white cheddar mac and cheese with added mexican seasonings, avocado, chopped scallions, and hot sauce. SO GOOD! I carried out scallions for the first time that I chopped up in town and put in a ziploc bag. I'm hoping they will last for at least a couple days.      A bunch of us hung around the fire for a bit...lots of great stories and laughter. I'm really liking the crew I've been hiking with for the past couple weeks. It's going to be a long mileage day for all of us tomorrow, so it's early to bed. Goodnight!Oh yeah, and tonight is the first night with my new sleeping bag (a Kelty 40 degree bag)...I have a feeling I'm going to love it!   Out with the old, in with the newVery busy US220 and Hot Sauce
Date: 2009-05-11
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Bryant Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: moderate rain

Turns out the snorer last night also talks in his sleep. Even though it kept most of us up for a good chunk of the night, we found it to be hilarious and we joked about it all day. We were all relieved to hear that he was hiking south!I really like my new sleeping bag - it got pretty chilly last night but I was the perfect temp in my sleeping bag. The night was clear but it started to rain lightly around 6am...I wish it would have held off for another hour so I wouldn't have to pack a wet tent. Oh well. We all hiked out at different times between 8 and 10am...I left around 8:45 and hiked in the rain until lunchtime which is when it began to let up. Even though it was raining, the terrain was easy on my feet and the blooming rhododendrons lined the trail which made for a very pleasant walk. I made some bean/rice/cheese burritos for lunch at Bobblets Gap Shelter and moved along. Shortly after lunch I got to the Blue Ridge Parkway (mile 92.5) road crossing and SURPRISE! Wayne and Susan were there waiting for me. Wayne and Susan thru-hiked the trail together a few years ago and I had met them in New Hampshire at an ATC workshop about hiking the AT. They were on their way down to Damascus for Trail Days and knew I'd be hiking around this area today. They planned it perfectly and caught me at the road crossing, it was awesome and quite the surprise. They gave me, Hot Sauce, Steam, and The Darkness all sodas and we chatted for 45 minutes or so. I would have loved to chat longer with Wayne and Susan but I wanted to get to Bryant Ridge Shelter before dark so I had to get a move on.The next 13 miles were nicely graded and we actually had some nice views since the rain had moved out. Virginia is beautiful and I have a hard time understanding why so many hikers get the "Virginia Blues". I got to the shelter around 7pm, which was much earlier than I had expected. This shelter is amazing...it has three tiers, sleeps 20 (one of the largest shelters on the AT), and has a picnic table under an overhang on a large porch. When I arrived, Spitfire and No Toys already had a raging fire going which is always a welcomed sight when first getting to a shelter. Yogi Bear, Bow Willow, Steam, and The Darkness were also here when I arrived, and Bender, Hot Sauce, and Old Spice arrived shortly after.There is plenty of room in the shelter but I chose to tent tonight. There aren't many good tent sites here but I made it work. Even though today was a big mileage day, my feet felt good (it's all relative!) so I am feeling relieved about my shoe purchase in Daleville. It's a beautiful night tonight and the weather tomorrow is supposed to be great...hooray!   Surprise visit from Wayne and Susan!
Date: 2009-05-12
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Marble Spring
Miles today: 17.2

*photos have been added to previous entries...enjoy!*Last night was one of my best nights of sleep on the trail so far and I probably could have slept in until 10am or later. It got down into the 30s last night but I stayed toasty warm in my sleeping bag. I woke up at 7 but didn't actually start hiking until 9:30 which was a mistake considering how far we were hiking today. The day started off with a huge 3,000ft climb up Floyd Mountain and I felt great as I motored up it. Apparently this is the biggest climb until we get to New Hampshire. There were no views at the top and the descent into Cornelius Creek Shelter (where we were stopping for lunch) was gradual. After lunch came a climb up Apple Orchard Mountain that has a FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) radar dome on top of it, which looks like a gigantic white soccer ball. It was a weird sight to see as we summited the mountain! Just 0.3-mile later we walked under The Guillotine, which is a boulder suspended over the AT that is wedged between two slabs of rock. I thought that was pretty neat. Hot Sauce, Steam, The Darkness, Old Spice, and I had a quick afternoon snack around 4pm at Thunder Hill Shelter and still had 7 miles left to hike for the day. I've been getting into camp around 7pm for the past few nights which is on the late side for me, and I knew it would be around that time again today. I'm really going to try to get out of camp earlier...no more of this 9:30am departure business on high mileage days! It's crazy how different my feet feel between the start and end of the day. I felt great this morning going up Floyd Mountain but my feet were screaming at me at the end of the day as we climbed and descended Highcock Knob. I was pretty much hobbling as I got to Marble Spring (where we are staying the night) and it felt great to take my shoes off. I'm hoping my feet make a speedy recovery overnight because tomorrow is going to be a long day with more steep climbs! I'm hoping to get hiking tomorrow by 7:30am so I can actually get into camp at a decent time For some reason I've been setting my tent up on trails lately without realizing it. A few nights ago I didn't realize until the morning that my tent was pitched on the blue blazed trail that leads back to the AT (which had confused Yoni Bear as he tried to find the trail in the morning...oops!), a few nights later I set my tent up on the trail to the privy (I also didn't realize this until the morning!), and tonight my tent is actually pitched right on the AT. I'm not actually blocking the trail if any night hikers were to come through, so I think it's ok The weather today was PERFECT...I'm hoping for a similar day tomorrow!   FAA Radar DomeThe GUILLOTINE!
Date: 2009-05-13
From: Marble Spring

To: Punchbowl Shelter
Miles today: 18.2
Weather: light rain

So many awesome things happened today! Let's recap- 1. I had a great night of sleep, and although I didn't get hiking by 7:30 as I had hoped, I was hiking by 8:15 which was still early for me. I was psyched to get moving early so I could (finally) get into camp by 6:30pm.2. Hot Sauce and I walked across a footbridge over the James River (I think it's the longest footbridge on the AT) and were greeted on the other side by Ken, a trail angel wondering if we needed a ride into town. We weren't planning on heading into Glasgow, but he said he would drive us right back to the trailhead if we just wanted to grab ice cream and snacks. Done! I got an ice cream cookie sandwich, oreos, and other snacks and candy. We also had a chance to throw away garbage we've been accumulating over the past few days which was a treat. Thanks to Ken for the unexpected trip into Glasgow!3. It was just a 2 mile hike from the trailhead where Ken dropped us of to the first shelter. We hadn't planned on stopping in at the shelter since we just took a 45 minute detour off the trail, but Steam was calling to us from the shelter about there being a bear. Of course we took our packs off and ran down to the shelter and lo and behold there was a baby bear just hanging out behind the shelter! My first bear sighting! I took some photos and a video but didn't want to get too close in case mama bear was around. It was about 20 pounds and resembled a cute puppy from far away. It was adorable, I wish it could have come hiking with me!4. A couple miles later as we were climbing up towards Fullers Rocks, we spotted a copperhead! It was right on the trail and didn't even really react as we tried to coax it off the trail. I snapped some photos and eventually it slithered off into the leaves on the side of the trail. Although it was cool to see, I hope I don't run into many more copperheads out here!5. The views from Bluff Mountain were awesome...close to 360 degrees and the weather on top was perfect. There is a memorial on top of the mountain for Ottie Cline Powell. In 1891 he (at almost 5 years old) was out collecting wood for the school house and ended up getting lost. His body was found 5 months later on top of Bluff Mountain, which is about 7 miles from the old school house. There is a memorial on top of Bluff, but Ken told us that he is actually buried north of Punchbowl Shelter and a ways off the AT.Tonight we are all staying at Punchbowl Shelter. There is a huge tent city tonight! The usual crew, plus Carla from Nola, Snake Eyes, Phoenix, and 5 section hikers are staying here. Apparently little Ottie haunts this shelter but I'm not finding the area to be too creepy. The privy here is brand new, it's awesome!Rhododendron lining the trailCub behind shelter
Date: 2009-05-14
From: Punchbowl Shelter

To: Cow Camp Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Luckily there were no visits from little Ottie last night! Despite all the tents set up near me, I slept pretty well. I woke early and packed, and as I was headed over to the shelter to cook breakfast, a ridgerunner had just arrived to check in. Usually I don't say bad things about people in my journal, but he was the rudest, most judgemental person I've met on the trail so far...it was awful!! I think he was trying to be funny or clever but instead he was stereotypical and just plain mean. Ugh, I was so honked off all day just thinking about it!Anyways, our group has disbanded for a bit...I wonder when all our paths with cross again. Bender, Ducky, and Madison are all a shelter or two behind, Hot Sauce and Yoni Bear are headed to Trail Days for the weekend, and The Darkness, Steam, and Old Spice went into Buena Vista for the night. The hiking today was mostly flat with a long section along a river. Apparently there are remnants of a civilization started up by freed slaves located along that section of trail. I saw remnants of old stone walls but that's about it. I sometimes forget how much history the Appalachian woods hold...I can't wait to read more about the history of the areas that the trail goes through after I finish hiking. I'm waiting until after the hike because all the specific place names will mean more to me after having been there.There was a big climb up Bald Knob (which ironically is not bald) at the end of the day. I felt alright going up it...I have come to realize that my feet usually start hurting after 15 miles. Today's mileage was very close to 15 miles so I felt pretty good all day. I'm thinking I'll do around 15 miles or less for the next couple days to give the ol' feet a rest. My stomach was hurting for most of the day...it was the first time my stomach has really hurt since the beginning of the hike. I was convinced it was from drinking pond water (treated) at Punchbowl Shelter but I'm sure that's just my paranoia. It feels a little better now so hopefully it will be 100% in the morning.Tonight I'm at Cow Camp Gap Shelter which is located a whopping 0.6-mile off the AT. I was heavily debating going that far off trail but the only other option was Hogback Gap, located another 2.2 miles and at a road crossing. I didn't feel like hiking over 2 more miles and I prefer not to camp near roads, so I chose to go the 0.6-mile. It's a really nice spot for a shelter...I'm tenting out in front of the shelter and Bow Willow, Phoenix, and Point Two (as in 26.2...he runs marathons competitively and started hiking the trail April 8 and plans to finish in July!) are in the shelter.It looks like it may rain tonight, but I'm optimistic it won't Happy Birthday Aunt Pat!
Date: 2009-05-15
From: Cow Camp Gap Shelter

To: Fish Hatchery Road
Miles today: 12.5

The storms last night were CRAZY! I got in my tent around 7pm to read and journal and around 8pm some intense storms rolled through. I thought I had set my tent up in a decent spot but it ended up being a low lying area with clay-like soil that doesn't absorb water well. The rain came down in buckets and a pool of water quickly formed just outside my tent. It was getting deeper and deeper, probably up to 2 inches deep, and I was worried I'd have to evacuate my tent and run to the shelter with all my stuff in the pouring rain. The thunder was so loud, it was like surround sound as it rolled through the mountains and valleys. And the lightning was so bright that I could see the flashes through my closed eyelids. Luckily the rain let up after about half an hour and the pool of water outside my tent slowly disappeared. I've been having a splash issue with my MSR hubba tent...basically when water rolls off the fly and onto the ground, the water splashes up onto the mesh of my tent resulting in the inside of my tent getting wet. This only happens in the heaviest of downpours but I really need to get it straightened out.The storms died down and by morning we could see patches of blue sky amongst low lying clouds. I left the shelter a little after the others because I wasn't meeting my dad's cousin Patty at Fish Hatchery Road until 2 or 3pm so I could take my time packing up. I left around 8:30 and had an immediate climb up Cold Mountain. Cold Mountain was awesome!! It is bald on top with amazing views all around, and the low lying clouds in the valleys with the mountains poking through made the views very dramatic. I stopped for a quick lunch at Seeley-Woodworth Shelter with Phoenix and Bow Willow, then moved along to Fish Hatchery Road which intersects the AT. I started walking down the road and saw Patty (with her dog Molly) within 5 minutes...perfect timing! We walked back to her car together which was just over a mile or so. We stopped at the Dutch Haus B&B (wich is super nice) so I could pick up my packages (my maildrop, brownies and treats from my mom, and a nice letter from my good friend Lily), made a quick stop at the store, then drove to Patty's brother's house in the Wintergreen area (less than an hour's drive from the trailhead) where we would have a nice, relaxing night. It was amazing! I got in the hot tub immediately and drank a cold beer as the jets massaged my back. I then did the usual chores...laundry, shower, organizing food, drying out the wet tent, etc. Patty made a delicious dinner that I of course devoured, and we had brownies for dessert. It was such a treat staying the night in such a cozy house!It's midnight and I'm just getting into bed...it's been a great day! Cold Mountain