morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-03-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well I was planning on having a few more entries done before we left but we seem to be out straight trying to get everything finalized. It was much easier before when someone was back home to keep everything going without a hitch. This time my wife and I will both be on the trail and we are struggling with the logistics of closing up the house, getting all the bills on automatic pay, getting our mail taken care of (thanks Franz and Joanne), and all the other endless details that we deal with on a daily basis. I think we will both be glad when we are on the trail and life slows down. We haven't got much training in lately, so we have pretty much resigned ourselves to getting into shape on the trail. We have packed and repacked or bags several times and I still have difficulties getting all my stuff to fit. Once good weather arrives, I'll lose a lot of bulk from my pack but at the start I'll be packed to the gills. Weight wise I think we are doing alright. My wife's pack with all her stuff and one and a half liters of water weighs 20 to 22 pounds. I'm running about 27 pounds with water but no food yet. We packed our first food bag for about 4 1/2 days and it came in about 9 pounds. I'm not sure how we'll divide it up, but it takes up a lot of room. Hard to believe but in 4 days we will be leaving for the trail. We have checked out a few videos and journals of hikers already on the trail and that only gets us more excited. Looks like some are running into typical nasty spring weather. Hopefully when we arrive that will all change, and we will only have sunny pleasant weather. (yeah right!)See you soon from the trail.Alan "Earl Grey" and Mary Barrett
Date: 2018-03-06
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

The last two days at home are a blur. We installed 3 garage doors with the help of our good friend Gary, finishing around 6:00 pm before we headed off to spend the night with family. Our niece Nicole gave us a ride to the airport (we had to get up at 3:00 am to make our 5:30 am flight - who books a flight that early in the morning?!). With Nicole's more than competent driving skills we made it to the airport on time.After two flights, a MARTA ride, and a taxi ride we are in a hotel outside Atlanta. Tomorrow morning at 7:00 am our shuttle driver, Survivor Dave, will pick us up and take us to Amicalola Falls to start our hike. Final descent into Atlanta was a little "bumpy", but the good news is we flew through the rain front that was hitting Georgia, and now we can look forward to some clear but cool weather for the next few days.Stuffed everything into our packs, and they are way too heavy! We will have an official weight tomorrow when we register at the visitor's center.Looks like the weather here will be much nicer than it will be at home. We will miss the blizzard which could bring a foot to a foot and a half of snow to New England.Somewhat apprehensive, but excited to be starting the trail tomorrow.Alan "Earl Grey" and Mary
Date: 2018-03-07
From: Amicalola State Park

To: Stover Creek Shelter
Miles today: 2.8
Weather: clear sky

Day 111.6 total miles today, but only 2.8 on the AT.Survivor Dave picked us up promptly at 7:00 am and we headed for Amicalola. Of course, as we neared the park, we started seeing snow flurries. When we arrived at the park it was cold, no shorts or skirts today! We registered and got our numbers 723 & 724 for the year. Weighed our packs at 27 for Mary and about 37 pounds for me. More than we wanted, but we'll lighten up as we get more dialed in. Quick picture at the arch and we were off. After 45 minutes or so we had made the 600+ steps and we were at the top of the falls. Mary said she didn't think the stairs were as bad as she feared. The day was sunny, but it stayed cool and breezy all day. Never really took many layers off, actually had to add a couple as the day went on. Stopped for lunch on the way to Springer and met Rambling Man and Papa Dale. They were sitting beside the trail in a nice spot, so we joined them. We made the top of Springer about 1:00/1:30, signed the log, touched the first white blaze and took a picture or two. Being as early as it was, we figured we would make it down to Springer shelter, stretch and see how we felt. As we were about to leave, we encountered a woman with a Thru-hiking tag kind of milling around the top. As we started to talk to her, she started telling us that she had taken 3 days to do the approach trail and that maybe this wasn't for her. She was going to call her shuttle driver and head home. We continued on down to Springer shelter where we found it mostly empty, and all the tent sites vacant. We stretched for a while and felt so good we decided to make the extra 2.8 miles to Stover Creek Shelter. Probably moving on from Springer was a mistake as we both were sore and tired by the time we arrived, and the area was quite full. But we secured a tent spot, ate and climbed into our bags as it was getting very cold and windy. Not much socializing tonight as it was too cold. Sleeping with the water filter tonight so it doesn't freeze.
Date: 2018-03-08
From: Stover Creek Shelter

To: Justus Creek Campsite
Miles today: 11.5

Day 2It was a long, cold night in our sleeping bags for about 11 hours. Mary never did get completely warm so I heated a water bottle up at about 5:30 to put in her bag; this helped a little. Our water bottles were slushy this morning, so with all our clothes on we got up, had some oatmeal and tea, broke camp and got moving. Once we got moving, we both felt pretty good. The outside of my right foot that bothered me yesterday felt better today. We made good time to Hawk Mountain Shelter where we had lunch with Michelle, Tyler "Bum Knee", Bo-Bo, Nerp (Nurse who wears/likes purple), and Emily. We headed out to see how far we would make it, and 2 miles later we came down into Horse Gap where we found a hiker wrapped up in his tent saying he was sick and needed a ride, but his phone was dead. We offered to make a call, but he didn't know who he wanted to call. Our shuttle driver, Survivor Dave, had given us a contact list of shuttle drivers. We tried Survivor Dave, and Ron Brown. We didn't have good cell phone service and were only able to make quick contact with Ron and then the call was dropped. We did get a few text messages out to a shuttle with hopes that he could pick the hiker up. It was cold, so we needed to move on. It never did really warm up today and we hiked in our layers with our hats and gloves on most of the day. We only removed them on a couple of the long uphill climbs. We thought about stopping a littler earlier today, but the sites we saw were not near water, and we really didn't have enough water for drinking, dinner, and breakfast. We ended up pushing on to Justus Creek Campsite, where it was just us and another thru-hiker that just cowboy camped even though it was very cold. By the time we set up and ate it was time to crawl into the tent for what is sure to be another long, cold night. Hot water bottle for Mary tonight as she climbs in and I'll sleep with the water filter again so it doesn't freeze. Additional note: The thru-hiker staying with us is the same hiker we met at Horse Gap. He had also come upon the hiker wrapped in the tent. He said he charged the kids phone and gave him some food. The kid told this hiker that he had fallen and was not only sick but out of food. Hopefully he got a ride, all we know is he is from Kansas...
Date: 2018-03-09
From: Justus Creek Campsite

To: Lance Creek Tent Sites
Miles today: 9.6

Day 3Up when it was light, too cold to linger. Ate a cold breakfast and got moving with a plan to have tea at Gooch Shelter. Got to Gooch quickly and the place was still packed with everyone packing up. Saw Rambling Man and Papa Dale and met a hiker named FloBo for the first time. We had tea, chatted and got organized for the day as we had now warmed up. Headed out hoping to reach Lance Creek Tent sites, which will set us up for Neel Gap on Saturday. Supposed to be warmer today, so maybe we won't need gloves. Couple of good climbs over Ramrock Mt and Big Cedar Mt. It was still cool, but we were able to hike in less layers and we got to see some really nice views on Preacher Rock. On Preacher Rock we met two women, each day hiking with their dogs. The dogs were Dixie and Olivia (didn't get the names of the women). Anyway, one of the women told Mary she looked like she just stepped out of a Title Nine catalog. Mary got quite a kick out of the comment (she isn't wearing anything from Title Nine). We met lots of other hikers as we all plodded along, I still have trouble remembering all of their names. We got to Lance Creek pretty early today which was good because sites were limited and the later arrivals are having trouble finding level ground to set up on. We both are doing pretty well, but we were glad to see camp as our feet are sore and Mary managed to get a blister on her pinky toe. Should be a warmer night so we will be able to chat with more people. Tonight we have Rambling Man, Papa Dale, Steven, River Jack, Jedmorgensen, and many others at camp. Hoping for an earlier start tomorrow so we can make it to Neel Gap early to beat the forecasted rain and get a cabin for the night. It will be nice to have a hot shower and a warm bed.
Date: 2018-03-10
From: Lance Creek Tent Sites

To: Neel Gap
Miles today: 7.2

Day 4Up about 5:30 packing up. Much warmer, so we weren't shivering. We were hiking by 6:30, most hikers had the same idea as nearly everyone was up and packing as we left. Rain is forecasted for this afternoon into Sunday morning, so everyone is looking to score a dry place to spend the night. We made pretty good time up and over Blood Mountain, but the climb and steep downhill really beat Mary up. While we were on the top of Blood Mountain, I called Blood Mountain Cabins and got a cabin for the night so we can resupply, get cleaned up, and do laundry. Made it into Neel Gap just after noon, Mary limped in with a couple of blisters on her pinky toes and one big toe. One of the workers at Neel Gap, who is also a Federal Woodlands Firefighter, is hooking me up with some new pole straps free of charge. I neglected to replace them before I left, so when I inquired at Neel Gap, he said Black Diamond had left some there free and he said he would install them for me. He was having a little trouble remembering how to do it, so we left them and will pick them up in the morning. We ate a Bacon Lover's Pizza as we waited to head down to our cabin. Made our way down the road to the cabins where we got our laundry done, ate (pizza again, not much of a choice), and got cleaned up. The plan is to stay off our feet and wait as long as possible tomorrow to avoid some rain. It may rain until Monday though, so we shall see...
Date: 2018-03-13
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 2.4

Day 7Woke up at what we thought was an early time, but it was really 6:45. Of course it was still dark so we packed in a hurry because we wanted to make the 9:00 shuttle into town. We figured if we left at 7:00 we would easily make it. Unfortunately we got a later start than we planned, so it was going to be close. We needed to finish the climb up Blue Mountain and then do the long down hill into Unicoi Gap, a total of 2.4 miles. The wind was howling and it was very cold, so we moved as fast as we could to stay warm. We ate our breakfast as we hiked (blueberry poptarts). Again we were hiking in nearly all of our clothing and our fingers were still cold. The downhill was slow, so we didn't think we would make the 9:00 and would have to wait for the 11:00. As luck would have it I was able to get a call to the Motel to confirm the shuttle was running, and he informed me the shuttle probably wouldn't be there until 9:15 or maybe even 9:20 depending on which gap he went to first. With this info I picked up a stick and started whipping Mary to get her to move faster. (Very funny Earl Grey, he knows I will be typing this. He certainly didn't whip me, but I was moving slow due to my blistered toes and sore legs!). Just kidding, I did encourage her to move as fast as she could as we still might make the early shuttle. We made it with about 5 minutes to spare, and soon were the only ones on the shuttle from both gaps heading into town. I think the cold and still dark skies have a lot do do with us being the only ones there. When we left the shelter no other hikers were stirring in camp. On the plus side, we did get to see an awesome sunrise. We are spending most of the day in town doing our normal chores. Showers, laundry, organizing and cleaning gear, and of course eating. We had a good meal at Daniel's Steakhouse, an all you can eat buffet. Later we had subs at the Subway that is right next to our motel. We are trying to rest our bodies up and will do the same tomorrow. We did catch the weather and see that our home state is getting their 3rd major Nor'easter with a possible 4th on the way, and that is just in the month of March. At least I haven't had to plow and shovel all the snow, but I wasn't expecting such cold weather this close to spring in the south. I'm sure it will change soon, and I'll be complaining about the heat!
Date: 2018-03-14
From: Hiawassee, GA

To: Hiawassee, GA
Miles today: 0.0

Day 8Still more of the same today. Rest, finalize our resupply, and make sure everything is ready for us to leave in the morning. Yesterday when we arrived we found some Calgon Lavender Honey Epsom Salts in the hiker box. We went to the local hardware store and bought a $1.99 paint roller tray so Mary could soak her sore, blistered feet. Seemed to work quite well, she says it feels really good. The strong scent gives both of us a head ache, but I guess it is worth it if it helps her feet. Today we'll let her feet air out, and hopefully they will toughen up a bit. We were able to get a couple calls off to family and friends while we are here in town and have good cell phone service. Along the trail we may have service, but usually only enough for texting, not phone calls. Mary has been sending out texts once in a while as she knows her mom was worried about the cold weather. Now that we have the journal entries up to date, we will mostly turn on our phones to see if we have any texts from home that need attention, or if we need a shuttle, or we have a problem. We are at the library again so Mary can finish typing, and I can finish up today's journal entry. It is a really nice and friendly library here in Hiawassee. That's it for now, tomorrow we will be back on the trail.Again, we apologize for any grammar, spelling, or other errors in our journal. We haven't had a nice day where we can just sit and write during the day, so much of this is from memory and done in a hurry. Alan just got back from Rite-Aid with an adapter so we can hopefully upload some photos!
Date: 2018-03-15
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Sassafras Gap
Miles today: 10.4

Day 9Up pretty early to catch the 9:00 shuttle back to Unicoi Gap. Shuttle was full to the brim with 11 people leaving. Everyone except Mary & I were going back to Dick's Creek Gap so we had a longer ride and arrived at Unicoi around 9:45. Still pretty cold, but once we got hiking up Rocky Mountain we warmed quickly. Soon we were down to a single layer with no hat or gloves, hiking in perfect weather with not a cloud in the sky. Made good time up over Rocky Mountain down into the gap and started up Tray Mountain. We broke the climb up today with lunch at Tray Gap. As we reached the summit of Tray we met a trail maintainer who calls himself "Rock Kicker" because he clears all the rocks off the trail. We thanked him for his work and all the work his fellow maintainers do. He also suggested places to eat in Hiawassee, and said Barney's was a good place for a burger and beer.  Once we were up and over Tray, we went to Tray Mountain Shelter for a rest and to check the log. When we arrived we met Richard and Jennifer who we had seen several times earlier in the hike. They also started on the 7th, and stayed at Stover Creek that first cold night. They headed out, Mary stretched, and I went to fill up on water as we may dry camp tonight depending on how far we go. When we got ready to go we noticed that there was a full 64 ounce Sawyer sitting on the fire pit. We thought it belonged to Richard and Jennifer, so I grabbed the 4 pound plus bladder and strapped it to my pack hoping to catch them later down the trail. We hiked for a couple of miles but were unable to catch them. A mile or so later we found them getting water down a blue blazed trail. I asked Jennifer if they had left something at the last shelter, and she replied "I don't think so". I said you didn't leave your Sawyer at the shelter, and she said no, it must have been the hikers that were leaving as we arrived. I hiked the Sawyer bladder a couple more miles to Sassafras where we thought everyone would be. When we arrived I asked around and was told that the Sawyer bladder was sitting there for the past day. I was kind of dejected when I realized it was a wasted effort. There were quite a few people camping at Sassafras Gap including Richard and Jennifer, and Emily who we haven't seen since Hawk Mountain Shelter. A little warmer tonight, but still very windy. It took both of us to secure the ground cloth and tent to set it up. Cooked a quick meal, hung our bearbag and climbed into our bags around 7:45 pm.
Date: 2018-03-16
From: Sassafras Gap

To: Dick's Creek Gap
Miles today: 6.3

Day 10Very windy all night, but not as cold. When we awoke we thought it was early, but no, once again it was already 7:45. Rushed to pack and hit the trail to get to the Top of Georgia Hostel early enough to get all of our chores done. Even though we only did 6.3 today, we started with a tough climb out of Addis Gap up over Kelly Knob, and that really slowed our progress. Coming down the other side Mary's pinky toes were really bothering her so we stopped at the entrance to Deep Gap Shelter to try a different sock combination. By the time we were making the final descent down Powell Mountain, it had turned quite warm and we were down to shorts/skirt and tee shirts. We met Rock Kicker again, this time coming in from Dick's Creek Gap. We stopped and had another pleasant chat with him. By the time we made it to Dick's Creek Gap Mary's feet were very sore and she was moving slowly. We still had to make the 1/2 mile down the road to the hostel. We started down the road, but Mary's feet were really bothering her and she thought the tape had come off. Just as we decided to stop and re-tape, a gentleman in a pickup truck offered us a ride. We were very thankful, and he brought us right up to the front door of the hostel. Lots of familiar faces at the hostel - Richard, Jennifer, Fishtail, Pesto, Emily and we met a couple of new hikers, Nick & Shawn (who we call Stray Cat). We got our bunks, gave them our laundry (which they do for you), and got our free soda. When you give them the laundry they give you a towel and hospital scrubs so you can shower and put on clean clothes while yours are being washed. There were a lot of doctor jokes being made with everyone in scrubs & Crocs. At 4:00 anyone that wanted to could be shuttled to town for a resupply at Ingles, and a chance to get something to eat. The recommendation was Daniels AYCE, Barney's for burger & beer, or a Mexican place. Mary and I chose Barney's along with Stray Cat & Nick. The food and beer were good and we had a fun time laughing and joking with both Nick & Stray Cat. There was also a group of Thru-hikers there from the Budget Inn, which is right across the street. We pretended we couldn't socialize with them because we were of much higher class. After dinner we walked to Ingles for a resupply before being picked back up. All in all it was a good time of resting and hanging out with some new friends.
Date: 2018-03-17
From: Dick's Creek Gap

To: Bly Gap
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: few clouds

Day 11Our plan was to make the 8:00 shuttle back to the trail so we could finish Georgia today. Of course at 6:00 a.m. we awoke to a clap of thunder and a downpour. The rain didn't last long, and by the time we were packed and had our breakfast it had stopped. (Breakfast was a free cereal buffet with your choice of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate). The forecast was for rain for the next two days, so many got another night. When we were dropped off we had our rain gear and pack covers on, but once we started we had to remove them as it was too hot and the rain had pretty much stopped. We hiked into Plum Orchard Shelter where we met Logan again. He was looking a little dejected. He had word from home that he may have to get off trail due to family issues. He was still waiting for a text, and trying to decide whether to go on or hike back to Dick's Creek Gap. After lunch at Plum Orchard we hiked on and the weather warmed enough that we got down to shorts/skirt and tee shirts which felt really good. It is a good climb to send you out of Georgia and into North Carolina. So, by the time we reached the state line we were pretty tired, but also pretty excited to have the first state done. We hiked just a short distance further to Bly Gap where we set up camp by ourselves at about 4,000 feet. Soon a section hiker that is hiking to Virginia came in and set up next to us. Then Michelle, Emily, and "Mojave", as well as three other hikers down the hill and one hiker who set up on top came in. When we first arrived we thought we would be alone for the night, but that certainly wasn't the case. It was a nice night, and we had a small fire and chatted with Michelle & Emily.
Date: 2018-03-19
From: Beech Gap

To: Long Branch Shelter
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 13We had a good night last night, very little rain, and when we awoke we had time enough to eat and pick up before it started sprinkling. We started hiking with our rain gear and pack covers on. After hiking a short distance the rain gear came off. We made the 3 or so miles to Carter Gap Shelter for a break pretty quickly, and there was a lot of discussion at the shelter about getting to town as soon as possible as there was possible snow in the forecast for Wednesday. We were planning on a short day into town Wednesday, and decided to make reservations at the Comfort Inn. With our reservations made, we planned where to stay to make it easiest for a short day into town. We figured a short hike to Betty Creek would work, but about the time we got back hiking it clouded over and began to rain. Pack cover and rain gear back on as the rain grew steadier and harder. When we arrived at Betty Creek it was way too early to set up in the rain and sit in the tent for half a day, so we continued on without stopping. By the time the rain let up we were starting up Albert Mountain, and figured we should just get over it and camp on the other side. We leap frogged with eight or so hikers all day. When we arrived at the bypass to Albert Mountain there was a whole group that directed us to the by-pass saying the trail around was this way. Mary responded that we were going up over Mt Albert, even though it was wet and foggy. I was very proud watching her just take off over the very steep, almost rock scramble as the whole group of guys wished us luck, and said kudos to you as they took the road around the steep summit section. It was a short but tough climb up to the tower at the summit where there were no views, but we took some pictures anyway. Once we started down Mt Albert, we realized there wasn't much camping as they are doing some restoration projects of the former camping spot. So, we decided to just continue on to Long Branch Shelter. Because we did a couple of bigger days, we will make town a day early. We will probably zero even though Mary's feet are feeling better. I think the extra day of rest will help us in the long run.