morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-09-03
From: Big Meadows Campground

To: Skyland Resort
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: broken clouds

The group at the next campsite were still making noise at 2:30 this morning. I had taken half a sleeping pill and slept for about 4 hours when nature called at 2:30. Had some trouble getting back to sleep but did get a couple more hours. Everything was wet or damp this morning...must have had a very heavy dew so packed up a wet tent again The plan was to only do 3 miles today because the next shelter after 3 miles was over 10 miles more. It was Labor Day so I deserve a holiday too. Saw 6 or 7 deer in the first 30 minutes. 3 of them were fawns who still had their spots. There were again several day hikers and a couple of SOBOs on the trail. I made it to Rock Spring Hut by noon and decided to continue hiking since it was so early. Then I stopped for a snack and a little later stopped just to take a break. The trail has rocks in it today that  make your feet and knees ache. I made a phone call and it started sprinkling. While I was talking it started raining so I cut the call short. It was the same as a couple of days ago when a fog rolled in and brought rain with it. Thankfully this time the rain wasn't nearly as heavy. I  put on my pack cover and my rain jacket.  The rain jacket came off immediately because it was too hot. So I walked in the rain for a few minutes then it let up and stopped.By this time I was getting close to the Skyland Resort. I definitely didn't plan to stay here, but I decided to stop and take a break. Then I decided to ask if they had any rooms available and ended up handing the woman at the desk my credit card and staying the night. I was hot and tired and felt the money would be well spent. Got everything dried out and relaxed the rest of the evening.
Date: 2018-09-04
From: Skyland Resort

To: Byrd's Nest #3 Hut
Miles today: 6.5
Weather: clear sky

Had a great night's sleep last night and feel much better this morning. Was late getting on the trail but it didn't matter because this will be another short day. Started around 9:45 after checking out and visiting the gift shop. Good thing I don't want to carry any more weight or I would have bought a few things.The trail wasn't bad this morning but there are still rocks embedded in the dirt causing you to pay attention so you don't turn an ankle or trip. Enjoyed lunch at Pinnacles Picnic Area and filled up on water because the water source attached the shelter is .4 from the shelter on a service road. That would be almost a mile round trip.Have only seen a couple of other hikers today. As I was hiking along I saw a female hiker standing in the middle of the trail facing me about 30 yards ahead. I saw a set of hiking poles at the side of the trail and thought maybe her hiking partner was taking a bathroom break so I slowed down and waited to get a signal from her.  Turns out she was just waiting for her brother to make a phone call. As we talked I found out they were into their second day of a section hike and things weren't going well. It was really hot and they were struggling with heavy packs. They had lots of questions and I encouraged them to lighten the load and not to give up.  They had called for a pickup at the picnic area and were going home to regroup. I remember those first weeks four years ago when I started in GA. It was incredibly hard. And section hikers go through that same conditioning phase every time they start again. I gave them my contact info in case they had questions and I think they'll tweak their gear and try again and will probably be successful. It's trial and error at the beginning.I arrived at the Hut around 3:30 and got set up. As I was walking back to the shelter after pitching my tent I met a couple who were SOBOs. The husband looked at me and said  "I think we've met before." He asked if I had been in the Whites, and I realized we'd crossed paths a few weeks ago in NH. They are flip-flopping from Harper's Ferry and are heading south toward GA. Crazy how you run into hikers over a thousand miles later!Looks like I'll be the only one here tonight. Got to move in the morning because I'm headed to Luray to resupply and spend the night in Open Arms Hostel.
Date: 2018-09-05
From: Byrd's Nest #3 Hut

To: Panorama Parking Lot
Miles today: 3.2

I was the only one at the shelter last night. Had a decent night's sleep and got up at 6:45. Was on the trail by 8:00. It was hot and muggy even at that time. Also the rocks in the trail didn't disappear overnight. It was a short climb up to Mary's Rock. The view was nice but the smoggy pollution was certainly visible. I called Alison at the hostel and we set a time to meet at the parking lot. The descent down from Mary's Rock was not long in miles but it seemed to take forever. I passed the side trail to the Panorama parking lot and ended up at the road and had to road walk back to the parking lot.  Alison picked me up and took me to Open Arms Hostel. It was so nice to be in air conditioning and get a shower. Had decided that morning to try to find a way to go home now instead of waiting a week as planned. The heat was supposed to last for 2-3 more days and then the rain was forecast to start and continue for a few days. So I spent the afternoon on the computer looking for an inexpensive way to get home. Finally after several hours I found a rental car that didn't have a drop charge for a one way trip...bingo, I was going home tomorrow. I can't wait!Alison took me to town and I ate dinner at Mok & She. It is a diner with some seafood options. I had a crab cake, mac & cheese, green beans and an ice cream cone. Then Alison came back and picked me up. This evening Alison, Taylor (another guest at the hostel) and I went to the Appalachian Outfitters first trivia night. It was fun and nice to meet some of the outfitter employees.I pick my rental car up in Harrisonburg tomorrow morning. I'll be back in a few weeks to enjoy some hiking in the fall weather.
Date: 2018-09-27
From: Thornton Gap

To: Elkwallow Wayside
Miles today: 8.6

Iheaded back to Virginia yesterday and stayed at the Teahorse Hostellast night. Drove my car this time and parked it at the Harper'sFerry National Park this morning. Tom, a hiker that I met on thetrail the day before I left gave me a ride from Harper's Ferry toThornton Gap. On the way we stopped at Mountain Cabbin Hostel todrop off a supply box (I'll stay there Saturday night). We got tothe trail and it had already started raining and was supposed tocontinue all day and night. I considered just taking a zero but Ineeded to do some miles because I'm on a tight schedule to finishthis section by next Thursday and meet Rosie Red (my sister, Yvonne)in New York next Friday. So I put on my pack and started hiking. Just as I was about to walk over to the trail, Tom's pastor pulled inbehind us. He thought Tom was having car trouble so he stopped tohelp. Since there wasn't an issue with the car and Tom explainedwhat I was doing, Jim prayed for me and my safety. That was verynice.Ifinally started hiking at 11:45 and the rain was steady but not tooheavy. The trail was very wet to the point of being a muddy, sloppymess in places. I can't believe I'm saying this but the rocks andgravel in the trail keep it from being slick. If the trail was goingup or down (those pointless ups and downs, PUDS) it was easier tohike. The flat sections just collected water and became one bigpuddle or the dirt turned to slick mud. About 3pm the rain picked upand the trail as well as everything else got wetter. I startedgetting concerned...I had planned to stealth camp because the closestshelter was 6 miles further and I was too tired to even attempt thatmany miles. However, I knew finding a stealth site was going to bevery difficult and I was wet and starting to get chilled so I wentinto the Elkwallow Wayside to decide what to do. I didn't have acell signal and couldn't even get a text to go out so the cashier,Carol, suggested I call Alison at Open Arms Hostel and ask her topick me up. I had to use their landline and thankfully Alison hadroom and would come and get me. I'm so thankful to everyone whohelped me today...that was a lot of Trail Angels in one day.
Date: 2018-09-28
From: Elkwallow Wayside

To: Stealth @ 963.4
Miles today: 12.8

Todaywas a glorious day. It rained very hard around 2am for at least anhour before I fell back to sleep. So glad I was at the hostel. Thismorning was sunny but chilly. As Alison was driving me back toElkwallow Wayside we saw a bear by the side of the road. It was justeating and looking at us. This was the closest I've been to a bearyet, 10 yards. We did have the car for protection, but we didn'tneed it. He was uninterested in us.Startedhiking at 8:45 and made it 6 miles by 12:45. I ate lunch at GravelSprings Hut. I really didn't want to go there because it is .2 offtrail with a steep downhill which means .2 uphill to get back on thetrail, but I needed water and that was the only source until muchlater in the day. It was peaceful there and I filled up on water forthe rest of the day and for tonight and the beginning of the daytomorrow. The next water source is 6 miles ahead and I wasn't sureif I would make it that far today.Therewere so many hikers on the trail. They were all headed south. Several thru hikers had been at hostels for a couple of days waitingfor the rain to stop. There were also several section hikers whowere out for the first time ever. They were full of questions. Itis neat to see their enthusiasm.Theterrain was varied today. Lots of water and mud in the flatsections. The views from the mountains were clear after theundercast cleared. That is a term I'd never heard before. It's whenthe clouds are below the ridges of the mountains in the valleys andyou look down on them.Istopped at a stealth site after the top of Compton Peak. It was bigenough for 3-4 tents. I got set up and was eating dinner when twosection hikers walked in and I asked if they were going to join me. They said yes...if it was ok with me. Truth be told I was glad theystopped. It will be nice to have company tonight (Sodium and RestStop). My last night in the Shenandoahs is a pleasant one. TomorrowI will cross the northern border of the Park and stop at Front Royalfor the night. The best news is that the forecast says no rain untilnext Tuesday. I hiked a whopping 12.8 miles today. Haven't donethat many miles in a while.
Date: 2018-09-30
From: Mt. Home Cabbin Hostel

To: Signal Knob Parking to Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 7.2

Iforgot to mention yesterday that we were upgraded at Mountain Homefrom the Cabbin to a guest room in the main house. It was great tosee all the changes in the house since I was there 2 years ago. Themain house was built in 1849 and was uninhabitable when Scott andLisa bought it. They have redone the whole house and turned it intoa B&B. How cool it was to actually stay in a room they use forhikers when the Cabbin is booked. They cooked us breakfast...I hadFrench Toast and Scott had baked a peach and blueberry pie so I had aslice of that and grapes and strawberries. It was a feast and tastedso good.Scottdrove me to the trail. I had hiked the 16 miles north of the hostel2 years ago with my friend, Pam, so he dropped me off where I neededto resume hiking. It was a beautiful, sunny, cool day...perfect forhiking. There were lots of day hikers on the trail and I stopped totalk with many of them. The trail passes through Sky Meadows StatePark and everyone was having a great day hiking in the perfectconditions. Everythingwas going wonderfully until the last mile or so before the shelter. We went through a low lying area that had many creeks or maybe it wasjust many branches of the same creek, but anyhow I had to do a lot ifrock hopping and figuring out how to cross the fast moving water. Itwasn't dangerous, just very slippery and the goal was to cross andkeep your boots and hiking poles dry. I succeeded but there were afew almost mishaps. Got to the shelter at 4:30 and did my campchores. Met Lighthouse, a section hiker doing 100 miles in VA, and 2young men hiking MD, WV and VA going south. Nice talking with them. It was a great day!
Date: 2018-10-01
From: Rod Hollow Shelter

To: Sam Moore Shelter
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: broken clouds

Thismorning I headed into the Roller Coaster. The AWOL guide says "14miles of tightly packed ascents and descents." It was right. I went up and down all day. There is still a lot of water on thetrail. In places you cross streams however you can. Thank goodnessI have hiking poles...the rocks sticking out of the water are slickand without the poles I would have gotten my boots wet or fallen inmany times.Nottoo much to see today but I almost stepped on a turtle. He went inhis shell very quickly and finally stuck his head out and pulled itback inside in a hurry. Only saw 4 hikers and all of them were SOBOthru hikers.Madeit to the shelter by 3:30 and got set up and dried out some stuff Ihad put away damp this morning. There is a note in the shelter towatch out for the black snake that lives in the shelter...I guessthat's why no one else is staying here. I'm in my tent 25 feet fromthe shelter so I'm not worried. Cooked dinner -- Chicken TortillaRamen with pinto beans and diced tomatoes. First time I've had thatand it tasted good.Goingto call it a night early since I want to get an early start tomorrow. Only doing 3 miles but rain is supposed to start late morning and Iwant to be at the hostel before that.
Date: 2018-10-02
From: Sam Moore Shelter

To: Bear's Den Hostel
Miles today: 3.0

Wokeup at 6:15 and started getting ready because I wanted to make it toBear's Den Hostel before the rain started at 11:00. While I waseating breakfast I looked at the weather and found that now the rainwasn't going to start until 2:00 which made me not so rushed to getstarted. But I did leave at 8:15. I'm still in the roller coasterso the hiking is still strenuous. Imet 4 SOBOs and one day hiker. I saw a deer and many squirrels. Thesquirrels are very busy collecting nuts for winter. A few of thetrees have just started to turn. The trail is still wet in placesbut most of it is rock so it's much drier than earlier in the week. Streams are still flowing fast and out of their banks.Asyou can tell not much happened today. I arrived at the hostel at11:15 and as of 9:00 tonight it still hasn't rained. You just can'twin when you trust the forecast. Don't get me wrong... I'm glad itdidn't rain. The hostel has a hiker special...a bunk, shower,laundry, pizza, pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream and a soda for$30. So I have leftover pizza to take with me and the rest of my icecream for breakfast. What a deal!
Date: 2018-10-03
From: Bear's Den Hostel

To: David Lesser Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: broken clouds

Leftthe hostel at 8:00 after having ice cream for breakfast and I broughtleftover pizza for lunch. I still had 5 miles of the Roller Coasterto do, so I finished it at 11:00. What a relief that it's finished. The trail still went up and down for the next couple of miles butthen leveled out and was easy for a few miles. Then it turned rockyfor the rest of the day.Istopped at the Blackburn Trail Center to eat a late lunch and getwater. Hikers can use the wraparound screened porch to relax and Iused the porch swing to sit on while I ate lunch. It was wonderful. I could have sat there all afternoon, but I still had several milesto hike.Ithad turned humid so hiking this afternoon was not easy. I got to theshelter around 5:00 and started looking for a tent pad to pitch mytent. There were a couple of other women looking for sites also. After we all settled on our sites, they came over and one of themasked if I hiked last year and I answered "yes". She thenasked if I hiked with a gentleman from Australia and again I said"yes". I recognized her as soon as she got closer. It wasNimble who had hiked several days in the same area of Virginia as NoWorries and I. Amazing! She is hiking this year with a differentfriend, Joyce, who is getting close to finishing the trail insections. We all ate dinner together and caught up. It was a goodday on the trail today!
Date: 2018-10-04
From: David Lesser Shelter

To: Harper's Ferry then to Lickdale, PA
Miles today: 8.2

Gotup a little earlier but still didn't get on the trail until 8:00. Ate breakfast with Nimble and Joyce and said goodbye to them as we hit the trail. The trail isstill full of rocks and very wet in places. Met several SOBOs andone woman who was on her second day of her first section hike. Shehad been a caretaker for a difficult relative for the last 3 yearsand was now taking time for her dream. She has some equipment issuesbut has new gear ordered which should make her hike more enjoyable. Spent a considerable amount of time talking with each hiker. It wasinteresting to hear their stories.Thetrail goes across the Potomac River on a .5 mile bridge. It was noonby the time I got there and very hot but it was a neat view of theriver. As I was headed up the trail after the bridge I saw a foxcoming toward me. As soon as it saw me it took off running in theother direction. That is the first fox I've seen this year.TheAppalachian Trail Conservancy office is in Harper's Ferry and that'swhere I ended this section. Hooray another state (West Virginia)done!!! I can't cross off Virginia yet because I still have asection south of Waynesboro to do. I took the shuttle bus to theNational Park to get my car and went back to the ATC office to get mypicture taken for the scrapbook they keep of all the hikers. Therewere several hikers who wanted to ask me questions now that I'vecompleted about 1700 miles. It was fun, but I didn't leave thereuntil 4:00 and I needed to get on the road toward New York. RosieRed is meeting me there to hike for 3 days. I can't wait. We bothwill have a car so we hope to slack pack those days. It was up to 91today and as I was driving a front must have come through and itrained hard for about 1/2 hour and dropped 15 degrees. Stopped forthe night in Lickdale, PA at the Days Inn.
Date: 2018-10-05
From: Lickdale, PA

To: Southfields, NY
Miles today: 0.0

Gotup and had breakfast at the hotel and did laundry. Checked outbefore 11:00 and went on a wild goose chase to find where I got offthe trail near here a couple of years ago. It took me an hour tofind it but I finally did. I'll have to hike from there north to thePA border xt year.Droveto NY and checked into the Tuxedo Motel in Southfields. Rosie Redarrived from Rhode Island about 7:00 and we ordered pasta, salad andbread for delivery from a pizza place. We had it delivered and itfilled a jumbo pizza box that I almost dropped when I took it fromthe delivery man. Rosie Red moved quickly and saved it from going onthe floor. We ate about 1/3 of our entrees and saved the rest fortomorrow.Weboth were exhausted from driving and ready to sleep.
Date: 2018-10-06
From: Manitou Rd. parking lot

To: Seven Lakes Dr. parking lot
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Gotup at 6:00 after a good night's sleep. Took a shower and got readyto slackpack today. Left the hotel around 8... don't know what tookus so long??? Then it took us an hour to get one car positioned atone parking lot and another at the other lot. When we finallystarted hiking we missed a blaze and walked 20 minutes the wrong wayand had to turn around and walk back.Today'shike went to several of the tourist places in Bear Mountain StatePark. It drizzled all day but we didn't get soaked or even put inour rain gear. We walked across the Hudson River on the Bear Mtn.Bridge. That was cool...it was .5 mile across. Then the trail goesthrough the Trailside Museum and the Bear Mtn. Zoo. When we walkedup to the bears they were feeding them. There were 2 bears in theexhibit area and we were feeling sorry for them not being able toroam free. Then we read that most if the animals in this zoo arethere because they were injured in the wild somehow or had somehealth issue or were unable to take care of themselves in the wild. That made us feel better. Then we sat at a picnic table under a roofand ate lunch.Thisafternoon we hiked up Bear Mountain...a 1200ft. ascent...a lot of itgoing up stairs. When we got to the top you can see the New Yorkskyline but, of course, since it was raining and foggy we couldn'tsee anything. We didn't waste any time at the top and walked down. The descent was less steps and more trail (thank goodness).Wegot to the road where the car was parked and there was a woman hikerat the side of the road trying to decide which way to walk on theroad to call her husband to pick her up, so we offered her a ride. The roads in the area are confusing and so we got turned around acouple of times and it took us 45 minutes to get her to where herhusband was when it should have taken 10 minutes at the most. Ohwell, at least she got a ride.Wehad finished hiking at 3:00 and dropped the hiker off at 4:00. Westill had to go pick up my car which we had parked at the lot wherewe started our hike this morning and then find a place to park forthe night. We were both hungry so after we moved the cars around weate an early dinner...leftover pasta and bread. Tasted even betterthe second night. We're sleeping in Rosie Red's SUV tonight so itwill be cranped but we're tired so it will be fine.
Date: 2018-10-07
From: Seven Lakes Dr. parking lot

To: Arden Valley Rd. parking lot
Miles today: 9.2

Gotup at 6:00 and moved cars around and we were hiking by 8:00. It wascloudy and foggy until around 2:00 so we didn't get to see any NYCviews still. Rosie Red took a tumble and landed on her side. Sheis fine except for a small scrape on her arm. It's time for her toget new boots! We were done hiking at 3:15. Then we stopped for gasand I had an ice cream sandwich. Then we scoped out the parking lotswe'll use tomorrow.Asyou can tell it was an uneventful day. Oh, one bad thing...when wegot back to the parking lot we noticed a small pickup in the ditchalong the side of the driveway into the lot. Appears someone had hitit and it went into the ditch. The owner was able to gun it and getit out of the ditch. Later he drove it away but it didn't soundgood. Hope not too much damage was done.
Date: 2018-10-08
From: Arden Valley Rd. parking lot (Elk Pen)

To: Newburgh, NY
Miles today: 0.0

Whenwe woke up this morning everything was wet outside. We had spent thenight the past 2 nights in Rosie Red's SUV. At least we stayed dry. We got up and got everything ready to hike and drove to TioratiCircle where we finished yesterday. It was raining now and wedecided not to hike today. Rosie Red is going home tomorrow and onher way back we'll park my car at Manitou Rd. and she will drop me atPawling, NY where I hiked a section northbound last year. Then I'llhike south to where my car is parked. I'm sure you're confused...itconfuses me too. I'm just filling in a section I didn't hike lastyear.Wedrove to Newburgh. NY later this morning because the hotels in theBear Mountain area are expensive. We are staying at the Super 8because they have laundry facilities. Got that chore done and I got things ready to go back to the trail. Not looking forward tocarrying a full pack again.
Date: 2018-10-09
To: Indiana
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up early and looked at the forecast for the next week. It is supposed to rain all day Thursday and every other day for the next week. And the temps will drop also. That's it...I'm going home and will be back next year...unless in the next few weeks there's a string of days with good temps and no rain (which probably won't happen).Rosie Red is going home to Rhode Island today. She'll hike the 100 Mile Wilderness and Mt. Katahdin with me next summer.  So we spent our last day by shopping and having lunch. It's back to the real world for both of us. It's home to Indiana for me.I'm sad because I wanted to finish New York so I'd have less miles to do next year. The stats are 526 miles this year for a total of 1726 and 464 to do next year. It's been an eventful year and I'm thankful for all the hikers I've met and the Trail Angels who provided much appreciated help! I also thank my family and friends who provided lots of support and encouragement!