morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-06-17
From: Mosbey's Camp

To: Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Up and gone by 8 AM that morning. Gozar planned on going off the trail at Manassas Gap at VA 55 and VA 725 which was just a few hours away (about 7 miles). He was heading to Linden, VA and planned on staying off of the trail for about three days. I wished him well and hoped that he enjoyed his time home. I hoped we would be seeing each other again (and we did).    I finally caught up to Dandylion at Ashby Gap. He was taking a break with Low Jack and Chef Boyardee. I was happy to catch up to him. It looked like the two of us will be finishing the state of Virginia together. Dandylion did plan to go in to Washington D.C. once we got to Harpers Ferry and asked if I wanted to go along. I declined and decided when he left the trail I would go on alone (as it was my way). For now though it was nice to be hiking with another friend. We took another break up the trail and the subject of Dandylion's back pack came up. I noticed how it was riding and I asked if I could take a look at it for him. I found out that since he sent his winter gear home nothing seemed to fit right. I wanted to see if there was a way that I could re-pack it for him. He accepted, I was surprised, he was the first person to do so. Most people do not want your help when it comes to their stuff.    I have been hiking (in the military) for years, I probably forgot more then most people know about living out of a back pack. Nineteen years in the Special Forces and two years in the 82nd Airborne Division will do that to a man. I will be the first to admit that even I learned a lot on this trip (from the very beginning) and was constantly learning new tricks. By the time I was done with his back pack it rode totally different. He was very satisfied with what I had done. I zipped the lower portion shut as if it did not exist and packed the lighter stuff to the bottom and the heavier stuff towards the top. This is how it should ride on a man. A women's center of gravity is lower so I would advise to pack a little different (heavier stuff towards the middle). Dandylion said his back pack rode great and was comfortable to wear.      We ended up at the Rod Hollow Shelter and realized we only had 13 miles to go until we hit the VA/WV border. Hard to believe that we were so close to the end of this state. That big old critter was over 550 miles long and took about a month to do. I slept in my tent and Dandylion went in to the shelter. This shelter had a great water source with an area for taking a cold shower (a pipe that spewed water out about two feet of off the ground). It was more then enough to do the job.    Staying at the shelter that evening was Princess from Colorado, Eagle Foot from Florida, Skillet and Bottle from Texas and Low Jack from Poughkeepsie, New York.    Personal note: Happy Birthday to my brother Dave.
Date: 2005-06-18
From: 20.8 miles back

To: Blackburn ATC Center
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Dandylion and I did walk together this day. Before long we were standing at the VA/WV border. We took a number of photos as we passed the border and ended up at the "Bears Den" for lunch. Queen Diva, the owner, offered us some of last evenings left overs and we gladly consumed it (outstanding Pork Roast). We did our laundry and got on line and checked our e-mail as well. This is where we found out that Oxy Clean does remove the "Hiker Funk" from your clothes and equipment. We had our Ben and Jerry's ice cream over dose and believe me it was difficult to leave that day (however, we did). I was sooooo tempted to stay, Dandylion talked me in to going (it was his fault..... just kidding). We just got done walking over the "Roller Coaster" and I was beat. It was a long week, I was doing some big miles and it was gaining up on me. I counted a lot of ups and downs in a short distance of about 8 miles.      We moved on to the Blackburn ATC Center and were again fed a free meal (Spaghetti). At first Dandylion said he did not want to stop there but I told him that he was the reason why I left the Bear's Den hostel and that I was not going to miss free food (the place was known for its spaghetti). We arrived just in time and settled in for a good meal. Everything was fine until the wine consumed was starting to get to one of the people there. The next thing I know I am listening to a drunk, leaning over in to your face, telling you their opinion about the government, putting down the president and how she believed "we" should not be in this war and so on and so on. I had enough, bit my tongue and went to bed. I have learned never to argue with a drunken fool however, it bugged me that we were in sight of the capital of this country and when the pentagon was burning you probably could see it from their front porch. I guess everyone citizen has the right to voice their opinion, I just do not have to sit there and listen to it. I wondered still what she meant by "we" should not be in this war, I never saw her there when I was there last.    We left a donation and were up and gone by 7 am.
Date: 2005-06-25
From: Duncannon, PA

To: Spring (mile 1149)
Miles today: 15.5

Up and gone out of town by 9 AM. Prior to this I showered, ate breakfast, re supplied my food supply and went to the ATM. Though I had a good buzz on last evening I was up and moving strongly by this time. I was re-introduced to a beer called Yueneling at the bar and have been enjoying it ever since. A good beer at a good price. There was a bit of a climb out of town and I wanted to get up to the top of the ridge line before the heat of the day. Duncannon was on the Susquehanna River at 390 feet above sea level and the elevation rise went to 1250 feet. Not much of a climb however, it was nice to get it over before the heat rose. We were now walking through tree tunnels and the humidity was becoming an issue. Any chance you got to do the exertion part of the hike before the heat hit you was welcomed. Less then ten miles away at PA 225, New heart had set up his "Trail Magic site".    He had quite the spread set up there. Enough chicken to feed a lot of through hikers I am here to tell you. I even went and put some in to a zip lock bag and took it with me. In fact when New Heart told me just how much chicken he planned on bringing to this mini-trail feast, I asked him if he could pick up zip lock bags so we could do just that. He said it was a good idea and had them there for us to use. This was some of the best chicken I ate on the trail (twice that day as a matter of fact). There I met New Hearts wife, a few of his relatives and even the Pastor of his church. He pulled up on a foreign motorcycle and being a Harley owner I had to bust his chops. I told him no matter how much he watered it, it will never turn into a Harley. They were nice people and I thanked them for their hospitality.   At one shelter (I believe the Peter Mountain Shelter) there was the original shelter built by Earl Schafer many years ago. Here I linked up with O'Connor and Thumper. Snowy Man was with them as well. We hiked for the next few days and put on many miles together. At the shelter I came upon Crazy Horse who was going south at this time. I met him in Damascus weeks earlier at "The Place". Crazy horse was a Vietnam Veteran who has thru hiked before. He was doing sections at the time and was resting there at the shelter. He warned us of the difficult terrain and scarcity of water ahead of us up the trail.    There was a good size Black Snake or Rat Snake inside of the shelter. We were not really concerned because it was just chilling in the corner, probably full from a meal of shelter mice. Also there was one other hiker who's trail name was Red Blaze (from VT). A young lady and a small dog (a Pug) was with him however I can not recall their names.   We ended up at a spring near mile mark 1149 that evening. We set up our tents and had a nice fire going. I shared my leftover chicken with Snowy Man and soon was off to bed. There at the fire was Mello, Thumper (from NH), O' Conner (from Long Island, NY),Snowy Man (from NH) and myself.
Date: 2005-06-26
From: Spring (mile 1149)

To: William Penn Shelter
Miles today: 26.7
Weather: few clouds

Up and gone by 8:30 this morning. A late start because I planned to walk with O' Conner and Thumper and this was the time they wanted to leave. I was using them to set my pace and do big miles. A technique I used before following Fig and Just Visiting when I was sick just North of Erwin, TN. Snowy man was going to walk the same distance but wanted to hike alone. Mello ended up at the same place this evening but that may have been unintentional, I do not know.   With O Conner in the lead followed by Thumper and then yours truly, we moved out and traveled fast. In fact these two girls hiked faster then anyone I hiked with yet. The terrain was getting tougher on the feet but that did not stop the two of them. We took a break along the "Rausch Creek" after 13.3 miles of constant moving. I took a stream bath there and we all ate lunch as well. We next stopped in at the "Rausch Creek Shelter" just off the trail from our break spot to sign the shelter log. While there in the mail box (yes a mail box), I found a Mountain House breakfast meal. They are costly so I never bought one before, I tried it the next day and it was OK (the scrambled egg and bacon meal).      We moved on at a fast pace and did not stop until we were at the Waterville Iron Bridge. I wanted a picture with the bridge behind me because of the fact that it was built in Berlin, CT. My wife was born in Templehoff just outside of Berlin Germany. I wanted to make that connection (Berlin to Berlin) through this photograph. There were two bridges from this manufacturing company that I did happen to see along the trail.    We all ended up at the William Penn Shelter that evening. What a long hard day it was. Mellow was there already and had a fire going. He was the type to move out early and take short breaks. I asked him if I could join him and we sat in front of the fire drinking a little Irish Whiskey. The subject turned to politics and I figured I would handle it a little different then I normally did. I just asked out of respect for my feelings, if we could talk about anything other then that (or the war for that matter). He said ok and added if I ever wanted to talk about those subjects, just let him know. I thanked him for that, I normally get worked up pretty good when people ask me about my opinion on those things.    Most folk on the trail know a lot more about the details of it all then I. In the service I was just a knuckle dragger who was paid to do a job (sometimes I did it good, sometimes I did it bad). I do not do that for a living any more and I also try not to get to involved in the political world. I have friends and family there (in harms way) and I still support the troops when I can. I have also lost friends there and it sets me off emotionally when the wrong thing is said. For now though I figured out a way to avoid getting worked up over it all. An interesting perspective for me, no bad feelings at the end of a conversation (cool).Note: 1000 miles to go!
Date: 2005-06-28
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Dan's Spring
Miles today: 20.5

Up and gone early but only after eating a good breakfast at the 3 C's Family Restaurant a little way down the road along PA 61. Great food at a great price, well worth the trip. I went early and by the time I got back almost all the other hikers were up and moving back to the trail.    After about five miles the trail really began to get rough for me. The terrain was becoming more and more difficult. It also seemed as if those who chose the route deliberately made it go through the rougher areas. You could see where the trail did go around these sections and was re-directed to go right up the middle of the worst of it. I understand there are bragging rights for the hardest section of the trail. If so you who control this section have my vote. The only thing I could suggest is that if possible, before you pick any route, walk 1200 miles first and then chose. Then let's see if you put it through the areas you have chosen. By the time I reached that section I had enough of rock scrambling to have no problem in going around it all. Blue blaze it if you wish, let hikers choose to spend the time on the difficult route. The heat, the lack of water and now the over-zealous efforts of the trail route deciders made PA the worst state yet. I guess if there were something to see after you got there it would be worth it. Do not get me wrong there were views that were worth walking to but, for the most part they were not worth the effort. I could just see the organizers laughing out loud as the plotted there little "trail of pain" (you insensitive bastards, just kidding).   Pulpit Rock at 1582 feet had a great vista, the same thing can be said for "The Pinnacle" (at 1635 feet). I stopped there for lunch and sat and talked with English Bob. I met him in Port Clinton the night before. He was from England and his name was Bob. A nice quiet man who was suffering the same as I. We were two beat up Bobs, no doubt. The Buzzards were circling and I yelled to them, "I'm not dead yet". A bit of British humor from the Monty Python days.      I went as far as I physically could. I stopped and set up camp just past Dan's Spring (mile 1222.9). I was so thankful that there was water at this spring. I settled in and slid my back pack under my rain fly primarily to keep it from getting wet. This was the last time I ever did this (until my chair finally broke). In the morning I went to load my back pack and there must have been a couple of hundred black ants in side of it. They were climbing all over me as I hiked the next day. My new way of keeping my pack from getting wet was to place it on top of my chair and cover it with my pack cover. I made sure no straps were touching the ground so the insects could not crawl inside of it. Then it was placed right in front of my tent. I had to keep an eye on it to prevent thievery and to keep it away from the critters. (Porcupines, I know they were still out there..... waiting).
Date: 2005-06-29
From: Dan's Spring

To: Lehigh Gap
Miles today: 19.8

Up and gone by 6:00 Am. I was hoping to cover a lot of ground today. It didn't look good for making it to the Gap by the end of the month so I figured perhaps I would go on till the first of July. I moved a grand total of 19.8 miles this day and to tell you the truth I had all I could do to make it off of the trail.   I think going over Bake Oven Knob did me in. No water, heat from hell and the terrain was the worse it has been to date. Bake Oven Knob started from a parking lot that was abused by the locals. The road was the trail and the trail was the road. Nothing but solid rock (rock rubble that is). Too small to step around, not large enough to step on, a description given to me from a former through hiker. I worked my way to the George W. Outerbridge Shelter and made my decision to head home the next day. I hobbled down to the bridge over the Lehigh River and pulled off the trail at the Gap. The road to Palmerton was an impossible hitch. I wound up walking the two miles but at least it was flat.   I stayed at the Straup House and there at the Restaurant's bar I saw Mello, O' Conner, Thumper and Snowy Man. They all came in to town just behind me. We never saw each other again on the trail, I wished them all luck.    The room was affordable and the food at Bert's Steak House was fair. It wasn't long before this old man was racked out. I called my wife Brenda and said I planned to hitch home the next day (It was only 125 miles).
Date: 2005-07-06
From: Home (Zero Week)

To: Port Clinton (again)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

The bus departed 10:30 this morning for the 6 hour trip back to Port Clinton. The next closest station was the Delaware Water Gap. Too bad I did not make it that far, a true regret. I ended up at Port Clinton and went to the pavilion to see who was there and who signed in. I met up with Live Strong and luckily he offered to give me some fuel for my stove (thanks brother). I could not carry fuel on the bus and by the time I got to the Appalachian Outfitters it was closed once again. I walked to the Cabellas (outfitter store) a few miles down the road in hope of getting a ride, no luck. I figured I would walk and hitch to the Lehigh Gap instead of walking that horrible section of trail once again. I walked until 11 PM that evening. No rides at all and I walked till I could walk no more.   A sloth of skin came off the end of my little toe that was the most painful thing I received on the entire trail. It was raining and my feet were soaked. What a horrible way to return to the trail. Unfortunately I was walking on the least used road I could have and hardly saw any traffic. I had a road map of the North East with me and probably should have looked at it a little harder before heading out on the road.    I ended up in a corn field doing a little stealth camping. By headlamp I figured that I would need to cross the AT and get on highway 895 that ran directly into the gap. I was on 143 and after looking in to it a little bit deeper I realized 143 went south instead of north (where I needed to go). What a pain in the butt it was to finally get to where I needed to go. I guess it all was part of the adventure. Once again it was better then hiking up and over the Bake Oven Knob.
Date: 2005-07-07
From: Corn Field

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

I was up and out of the corn field before anyone ever saw me (I think). I walked in the rain until I came upon a gas station. There I got dried off the best I could, ate food and drank coffee. When the rain let up enough to move on again I went further north toward route 309. Two ridge runners (Border Line and CC) picked me up and thanks to them gave me a ride up and over the mountain, crossing the AT and dropping me off at a diner in Snyder. It was raining out once again so I stopped in for an early lunch. A couple that was leaving, who evidently heard me talking to the owners son, wished me luck. I thanked them and then found out that they bought me my meal.   Joe, the owner's son, gave me a ride right to the trail. I gave him ten dollars for going out of his way and thanked him for the ride. I was so thankful to get back on the trail. At 11:30 I began climbing from 380 feet to the 1400 feet on top of the ridge before me. A hard scramble of rock that welcomed me back to the trail in its own way. I brought with me from home a heavier pair of boots and was glad I did.    I ended up at the Leroy A. Smith shelter between 7:30 and 8 PM. There I met a fellow military retiree called Nimble Foot. He was retired Coast Guard who now calls Wisconsin home. At the shelter Nimble Foot was the only one there and I asked if I could join him. It looked like rain again and I wanted to try to stay dry. The water there was about a half of a mile down hill and by the time I returned it was beginning to rain.   It was so nice to be back. I missed the trail. The feet were healed as best as they could be. I was clean shaven to help keep cool (a beard held in the heat). I was about 10 pounds heavier and well fed from home (energy to burn). Life is good.
Date: 2005-07-08
From: Leroy A. Smith Shelter

To: Wind Gap
Miles today: 4.6
Weather: moderate rain

I awoke early and was ready to depart soon after however, the rain was coming down hard. It did not look like it was going to let up any time soon. Nimble Foot and I decided to wait it out for a while. A while ended up being a long time. We left the shelter at 10 AM. After the soaking I got the two days before, I could not see myself leaving any time sooner.   The shelter was small, clean and dry. Most of all there were only two of us there. I had enough water with me whereas I did not have to go the 1/2 mile down hill for more. I stretched, read a little and basically relaxed there high and dry. Nimble Foot was a funny man, plus he was my age so we had a lot in common. I know from reading his journals that he made it all the way to Mount Katahdin where he had to leave the trail. He got sick, was physically exhausted and decided to summit when he was healthier sometime in the future. A smart move in my opinion, that mountain isn't going anywhere soon.   We finally left and wound up walking in to Wind Gap. This was where I was dropped off and tried to hitch I 33 over a week ago (I wound up hitching the secondary roads north, it was easier to get a ride). I knew exactly where to go to and we soon took a room together in a local hotel. I asked the hotel manager what was in the room before I rented it (soap, microwave, etc). He laughed and said, "yes, we even provide toilet paper". I then explained the bad experience I had in Bland, VA and he understood why I was so inquisitive. A nice place with a fair price, that is all anyone could ask for. We dried out our gear and settled in the room for a warm comfortable night.   While there I called the Osprey Company to tell them of the problems that were occurring with my back pack. It basically was wearing out. They sent me a new one further up the trail (Bear Mountain, NY) and I sent them my old one, no problem.   A short day today indeed, a true nero. The plan was to get to the Delaware Water Gap the next day, finally