morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-08-16
From: New York City

To: New York City
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Having left the Trail on July 11th, I returned to New York via Connecticut where I played some golf with my old High School buddy, Rob Thompson and his wife Edie. After a week of jury duty I re-entered my life of writing and work.After a couple of weeks at home I noticed a red circle about two inches in diameter had developed on my arm and beat a hasty trail to my dermatologist who suspects Lyme's Disease for which he's treating me. Since the ¢Western Blot¢ blood test ( a test one takes to see if the antibodies are present for Lyme Disease), can't be taken for several more weeks, we don't know for sure whether it is or isn't but there's nothing to be gained (and much to lose!) by waiting to begin treatment so I'm doing the antibiotics 2X/day as prescribed -- this is definitely something not to take lightly! Fortunately if it is what we expect, we've got it very early in its development which is extremely important.I am in the process of putting together a plan for a couple of weeks of hiking later this month. Two years ago I experienced southern Virginia in the month of August and know how hot and empty the woods down there can be at this time of year. Fortunately, I've got a great approach to make this years¢ experience notably different. My brother-in-law, Bill (Rogers) has recently purchased a pop-up camper and is looking for an excuse to put it to good use. So, we're looking to go together -- me as a slack-packer and him as my logistical support person! Hopefully we'll be able to figure out ways that he can drop me off in the mornings, drive ahead and find a place to set up the camper (full of food and water, comfortable cots, mosquito nets, and the luxuries of the civilized world) then come and pick me up at day's end. Bill is not a hiker (yet) but this may be a way for in to get in some daily miles on the AT, too by hiking in to me, then the two of us finishing up together.This approach means not having to carry shelter and several days of food in the heat and it solves the problem of dry springs and creeks as I encountered last time. It also adds a great degree of flexibility and ensures good company to "hang" with... should be fun!Now to begin the planning...
Date: 2008-08-24
From: New York City

To: New Market, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Over the weekend I made my way from New York to my brother-in-law, Bill Roger¢s house in New Market, VA via a combination of cabs, train and rental car. I arrived here yesterday afternoon where I was in for a big surprise! As you recall, my arrangement with Bill was that he¢d accompany me over the coming couple of weeks in the role of logistics support guru. (Rather than have to contend with the heat, lack of hikers and dry water sources that drove me from the VA woods two summers ago, the plan was for Bill to shadow me in his SUV pulling a ¢pop-up camper¢ while I slack-packed from drop-off to pick-up point). When I arrived yesterday I was floored to find that Bill¢s camper is an official, real-life camper, not a glorified tent on wheels. Our mobile ¢base camp¢ comes complete with oven, stove, microwave, shower, flat-screen TV, commode, kitchen table, couch, refrigerator, stereo, one queen-size and two bunk beds (plus two others that are created when the couch collapses and the kitchen table is lowered!) and, most wonderfully, air conditioning ¢ everything including a kitchen sink!Clearly, this is going to be a very different experience from any other section I¢ve hiked as I¢ve never stayed in a camper of this type with all the amenities it has to offer. In some ways it¢ll not be unlike last summer¢s experience of staying in the AMC huts or the slack packing I did in Maine earlier this year while staying at Gull Pond Lodge and The Cabin. But ¢camping¢ in a ¢camper¢ will be different form staying in shelters and ¢stealth camping¢ in the woods as I¢ve done most of the time up until this point. But, what the heck ¢ it¢s going to be a new and unique part of my Appalachian Trail experience, and I¢m looking forward to it. Besides, as I learned the hard way two summers ago, the option isn¢t very pretty and cannot be sustained for very long at this time of the year in the Virginia woods where the springs are drying up, the woods are empty (the NOBO¢s are long gone through, the SOBOs have not yet arrived and the locals have enough sense to come in out of the 100-degree temperatures!)This should be fun.
Date: 2008-08-25
From: New Market, VA

To: New Market, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

What better way to prepare for a couple of weeks on the AT than to play golf with your own teaching pro? My nephew, John Rogers, and I played a quick nine together and then I continued on while he went to teach a lesson and managed to shoot a near personal best 79! (Which only goes to show you what a great instructor, John is!)I met Bill, his father (and my brother-in-law) for lunch and after dropping off my rental car, he and I shopped for basic hiking gear for Bill to use, when he decides to join me out on the trail. We bought him hiking shoes, socks, poly-pro shorts, a shirt and a day pack with a bladder in it. We dug up some poles for him at the house, and voila! ¢ An instant hiker, ready to go! I hope he¢ll get the bug while we¢re out together these coming weeks.
Date: 2008-08-26
From: New Market, VA

To: Camp Creek State Park
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

We spent the morning organizing food, gear, maps, and equipment for the trip and then packing Bill¢s Expedition and camper (it holds a lot more than a single backpack, that¢s for sure!)Around 2:00 pm we headed south and immediately encountered grey skies and rain ¢ the remnants of Tropical Storm, ¢Faye.¢ We arrived at Camp Creek State Park in West Virginia at dusk, parked the camper, got things reasonably organized and after a hot dinner, called it a day.Tomorrow, back to the Trail!
Date: 2008-08-27
From: Stony Creek, VA Rt. 365

To: Groundhog Trail
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: light rain

The planning we did last night called for me to get an early start on the day and get 18 miles in on the first day (maybe a bit ambitious?), but when the alarm went off at 5:00am, when I peered out the window at the pouring rain I told Bill to roll over and forget it. At 9:00 am we started to stir but it wasn¢t until nearly 1:00 pm before I got to hiking. We drove first to the trailhead for the Groundhog Trail, the only egress point from the ridge along Peter Mountain that was accessible. After several scenic junkets on the back roads of southern West Virginia we found the place the trail on the maps depicted ¢ only trouble was the name was different. But what¢s in a name? It had to be the place since we had explored every other possible place and it wasn¢t any of them. Realizing how confusing things could be, we decided to drive over to the other side of the mountain and make sure we could find where the trail intersected Rt. 635. Even though I had been there last November, it still took us a good half hour (on top of the hour required to drive down the west side of the mountain then up the eastern side!) to find it. The problem was that they had relocated the Trail since I was here last in order to build a bridge over Stony Creek and there were no signs indicating where the AT crossed the road.Once I started hiking, however, everything fell into its proper place ¢ including the weather! Although I was in the clouds along the ridge the entire time, the rain stopped the moment I got out of the car and didn¢t start again until we were on our way home after dinner at the Outback Steakhouse in Princeton, West Virginia. I was astounded with how well I hiked ¢ I didn¢t feel like I had lost any of my ¢Trail Legs¢ from my earlier section in Maine more than a month ago. I cranked out four miles in less than one hour and fifteen minutes and didn¢t feel at all winded or fatigued. The Trail was as good as it comes ¢ well-maintained, no stumps, few rocks and soft ¢ all of which helped. I reached the top of Groundhog Trail (now Sugar Camp Farm Trail) not knowing what to expect ahead but was pleasantly surprised to find that, it too, was well marked and maintained. I completed the two miles to the parking lot where Bill and I had been a few hours earlier just a little bit before he arrived to pick me up.After dinner we returned to Camp Creek and enjoyed a hot shower and a few minutes of reading before lights out; very happy to be inside Bill¢s camper nice and clean and warm listening to the rain on the roof instead of being in the cold dark rain atop Piney Swamp Ridge on Peter Mountain, wet, cold and probably fairly miserable! This camper, camping business is okay by me!
Date: 2008-08-29
From: New River, Senator Shumate Bridge

To: Big Horse Gap
Miles today: 12.5

It was still cold and grey with mist and sprinkles in the air, remnants of our old friend, Faye this morning. We drank coffee and hooked up the camper then headed to the Shumate Bridge (to drop me off while Bill relocated the camper to a new site in Wytheville, VA). En route we stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel and the Post Office to pick up the wireless key for my computer. As we approached the drop-off point the cloud ceiling started to lift and tiny pockets of blue could be seen. As I turned into the woods and began the 2,000¢ climb to Angel¢s Rest overlook and on to the top of Pearis Mountain the sun was out in its full warming glory - a first in three days! What a glorious day! The Trail was as good as it comes, the temperature and humidity unseasonable cool, and the visibility down into the valleys that could be glimpsed from time to time on either side of the ridgeline was unlimited. Cows grazing on the opposite side of the valley miles away could be seen clearly. The woods were magical ¢ fresh and scrubbed. Alive! This was indeed a day that the Lord has made and every step I took in it was a way of rejoicing in it. I was glad to be on the Trail and walking alone in the woods.I arrived at the high point of Pearis Mountain and enjoyed my lunch in the sunshine beneath the power lines that make a wide swath across its top, offering views in both directions. I napped for a while stretched out in the grass then headed out for Doc¢s Knob Shelter and my afternoon break. Unlike the morning¢s terrain, much of these next three miles were in what I call Rhododendron Tunnels ¢ dense growths of 15 to 20¢ plants whose large waxy leaves interlock overhead blocking out all but dapples of sunlight beneath them. The trees are so deep and close that they are literally impenetrable. They not only block the lines of sight, they would block any exit from the trail ¢ not a good place to encounter a bear out for a walk in your direction! Fortunately, I had no such misfortune and arrived at the shelter in as good a shape as when I started out.After crossing a fire road at Sugar Run Gap, the Trail climbed steadily around the backside of a knoll with just about every type of condition to be found ¢ rocky in spots, a small boulder wall to be scaled and soft well-worn dirt. It was just two miles from there to Big Horse Gap near the entrance to some Radio towers and I hope to talk Bill into giving it a go in reverse direction when we return here to drop me off next time out.After Bill arrived we returned to our new campsite in Fort Chiswell Campground just south of I-81 East of Wytheville. This being Labor Day weekend the campground is filled with every size and shape of camping vehicle imaginable (and people to match!) A shower, dinner and then off to bed having just made a very ¢mature¢ decision ¢ to take a ¢zero day¢ tomorrow to rest up before my body gets worn down to the point that it tells me to do so.
Date: 2008-08-30
From: Ft. Chiswell RV Park

To: Ft. Chiswell RV Park
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a perfect ¢zero¢ day: I slept in (but still was up and had finished breakfast before Bill even began to stir!) ¢ did laundry, read several chapters in ¢The Bourne Sanction¢ (written by Eric Van Lustbader, the sixth novel in the Jason Bourne series created by Robert Ludlum), while drinking coffee. I then retreated back to the camper for a late-morning nap ¢ pizza for lunch (an entire medium sausage and mushroom pizza for me, alone!) ¢ read a few more chapters. In the evening Bill and I went to the movies to see ¢Tropic Thunder¢ followed by a steak dinner cooked out on the barbecue. I read some more, showered, bed. Ahhh: sweet R&R!
Date: 2008-08-31
From: Big Horse Gap

To: VA 608 Lickskillet Hollow
Miles today: 17.6

The morning began as have each of the preceding ones: grey and overcast with a lot of ground fog. We drove back to where Bill picked me up the day before yesterday and, after sharing our maps and some lore with three locals looking for a scenic overlook (they found the overlook, but no ¢scenic¢ due to the low clouds that had the tops of the mountain socked in until a little after noon), Bill and I set out together at an easy pace. After a mile or so he turned back as planned and I continued on focused on making time as there was very little to see for the next few hours.Around 2:00 pm the sun had come out and I had settled into a good, comfortable pace, enjoying the woods, a few Rhododendron Tunnels, and the cool temperature. Using the walkie-talkies Bill had picked up at one of the many Walmart¢s he¢s visited for various sundries over the past week, we were able to make contact with one another and rendezvous at a lovely spot ¢ the Dismal Falls ¢ for a picnic lunch together. The Trail had been paralleling the Dismal Creek for several miles and, most of it had been barely wet, let alone flowing enough to call it a dribble: forget ¢creek¢! It was really a series of loosely connected puddles as far as I could discern. But somehow it had amassed enough support from its various tributaries to actually ¢fall¢ over the rocks and thus created a waterfall: a beautiful place to rest and enjoy the afternoon sun. Like a couple of schoolboys, Bill and I sat on the rocks dangling our feet in the stream above the falls watching guppies and crayfish devour the pieces of fried chicken Bill had brought for the occasion. It was a most relaxing way to spend an hour or so soaking up the Virginia sunshine and just ¢chillin¢¢.The last three hours of the day¢s hike was as pleasant as any I¢ve had! I was in no rush to get anywhere requiring a sense of urgency. The Trail was lovely. The sun was now casting long shadows through the woods. The air was laden with the sweet smells of late summer and a few songbirds could be heard getting ready to call it a day. ¢Me too!¢ I cooed back at the birds. When Bill picked me up a little before 7:00 pm I was ready for dinner at the Wytheville¢s best (and only!) Chinese restaurant. I then took a hot shower and fell into bed. But as tired as I am, I know sleep is going to be elusive. As my son, Jack, somehow managed to get a test message to me as I was approaching Lickskillet Hollow informing me that his wife, Alicia, had begun labor and they are expecting that my second grandchild, and first grandson, will be born tonight. Alicia has been in the hospital in Minneapolis for nearly two weeks since her water broke in her 29th week of her pregnancy and we¢ve all been praying that ¢Little Buckaroo¢ would stay put for a few weeks longer. But he seems to have other plans¢¦
Date: 2008-09-02
From: VA 21/52

To: Lickskillet Hollow
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: broken clouds

Off to a later than intended start due to issues at work that needed to be addressed. By the time Bill dropped me off where we finished up yesterday so I could continue my northbound section it was close to noon, but the sun was out and the fog had completely burned off.My start was delayed by very poor Trail markings along the road that crossed over I-77 and it took me about 20 minutes to locate where it re-entered the woods. But once on the ¢not-so-straight-but-narrow¢ path again, I made really good time. I completed almost 8 miles in 2 12 hours. The Trail is as much of a footpath in this part of Virginia as any place I¢ve been on it ¢ soft, wide with no roots and few rocks. On a sunny day like today it lent itself to walking and thinking about business, my upcoming book, my new grandson, or whatever happened to pop into my head. I stopped for lunch at a lovely campsite in the woods and, toward the end of the day, I pitted at Jenny Knoll Shelter for a snack and to sign the logbook. I arrived at Lickskillet Hollow a few minutes before 6:00 pm and before Bill arrived to pick me up.After checking the maps, I decided to overnight in the woods tomorrow as there is no convenient egress point for the next 25 miles over Chestnut Ridge. So, while Bill made Hamburger Helper I busied myself organizing everything I¢d need for the trip that I haven¢t had to even consider thus far due to the facilities afforded by Bill¢s Camper ¢ things like, food, sleeping bag, tent, clothes, toiletries, etc.As I was just finished my packing and lifted my Granite Gear Nimbus pack to put it in the car for an early departure tomorrow, the right shoulder strap came off in my hand. The retaining screw that went into a special fitting had come loose somewhere along the line and without it, I wasn¢t going anywhere! Frustrated and tired, I just declared tomorrow to be an official ¢zero day¢ to repair my pack, get some rest and ¢chill.¢ The dishes can wait, too. G¢nite.
Date: 2008-09-03
From: Ft. Chiswell RV Park

To: Ft. Chiswell RV Park
Miles today: 0.0

If you go back and read last Saturday¢s ¢zero day¢, today¢s was almost an exact duplicate except instead of doing laundry I went to Lowes and bought the necessary hardware to fix my pack. I didn¢t read either. Dinner was at Doug¢s Barbeque and the movie we went to see was ¢Death Race¢ (the 4:10 pm show didn¢t pull in a big audience from the greater Wytheville area ¢ Bill and I were the only two in the theatre!) Desert at the DQ and now to catch up on back emails and my journaling before hitting the trail for some ¢real hiking¢ for the next couple of days.
Date: 2008-09-05
From: Chestnut Knob

To: Va 615
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: light rain

I was up twice last night to (among other things) stand in the field and stare at the heavens in complete awe. I don¢t recall when I¢ve seen the Milky Way shining so brightly.Other than those two nocturnal sojourns, I slept for 11 hours and awoke refreshed and very much at peace. It was good to be out under the stars on the Trail sleeping once again. Although, I am thoroughly enjoying my ¢camping¢ experience with Bill and could not be doing what I¢m doing without this kind of arrangement due to the weather conditions and the lack of water, but being alone on the Trail overnight is a particularly wonderful aspect of the Appalachian Trail. I certainly wouldn¢t want to do the ¢camper-thing¢ for too much of it. Last night was a perfect reminder of this missing piece of the AT experience.Today¢s hike was slower than I expected as much because the Trail along the ridge was on rocks (shades of PA). But the woods were, as always, lovely and the overlooks provided spectacular views down into Burke¢s Garden and the surrounding area. I ate lunch on one such outcrop while I dried my sweaty hiking togs in the sunshine. The day¢s walk was mostly a descent and, even so, I was feeling a little dehydrated when I heard Bill¢s voice on the walkie-talkie about an hour before I was due to arrive. He had moved the camper to a new location and came out to hike a bit while I was coming in. We met one another about a mile from the parking lot, and returned to the car together.We drove back to Hungry Mother State Park where he had found a very nice spot. I hydrated, ate dinner (the hot Mountain House meal I didn¢t cook last night due to insufficient water, some chili and mixed vegetables) and then loaded an old Gary Cooper western into the DVD, caught-up on some journaling and vegged-out.Now sleep and tomorrow, back to the Trail.
Date: 2009-04-30
From: New York City

To: Mt. Rogers
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The call of the Trail beacons! Having just returned from a week in Antigua with my children and two grand kids, I find it difficult to believe that I am actually going to allow myself to think about taking another week off as to complete the ~50 section between Mt. Rogers and Damascus in time to wind up at Trail Days in mid-May (BUT I AM!!!)I'm in the best of pre-hiking shape I've ever been in and all I really have to do collect my gear (spread out between New York and central PA), solve some basic travel and logistic problems and then head south.I've never been to ¢Trail Days¢ so I think I owe it to myself to experience it firsthand. I also hope it'll be a time to run into this year's crop of Thru Hikers and, hopefully, run into a friend or two from previous years.So, barring any major business-related or personal crises... Here we go again!
Date: 2009-05-08
From: New York City

To: Todd, PA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Left work around 3:30 pm this afternoon, picked up my rental car, swung by my apartment to load up my stuff and headed out, just catching the Friday evening rush hour as the rest of the New York lemmings and I headed for one tunnel or the other in the direction of the wilds of New Jersey beyond.Listening to ¢American Lion¢ (the biography of Andrew Jackson) on tape the drive to Todd, PA., where I keep my gear at my business partner¢s farm was without incident or much recollection.It¢s now about 11:00 pm and I¢m enjoying myself as I sit on the front porch at her house, smoking a cigar and drinking sparkling water as I watch the full moon rise over the mountains that shape the Trough Creek Valley. Tomorrow I¢ll head for VA and meet up with my brother-in-law, Bill Rogers, and sort through which stuff I¢ll need to take along and which to leave behind.For now, though, I¢ll just enjoy sitting in the dark on the porch and listening to the sounds that can¢t be heard in The City ¢ crickets and frogs the occasional dog and, even more occasionally, the hoot of an owl.
Date: 2009-05-09
From: Todd, PA

To: New Market, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I spent the morning at Sam Ortbal¢s (Barb¢s soon-to-be 11 year son) soccer game and then headed to New Market, VA to spend the night with Bill. He and I drove in to Harrisonburg for dinner at Outback Steakhouse with my #2 (of four) nephews, John. Now to bed.
Date: 2009-05-10
From: New Market, VA

To: Hungry Mother Campground, Marion, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Happy Mother¢s Day to all for whom that appellation applies! Bill and I readied his trailer and did some trip planning before heading south on I-81 to Marion, VA, which took us about five and a half hours including stops. We are once again at the Hungry Mother Campground (fitting considering what day this is!) where we stayed our last couple of nights of hiking last summer.Tomorrow we plan to drive around and see if we can find a place to set up the trailer as a base of operations closer to the section of the Trail I¢ll be hiking before Bill drops me off.I¢m looking forward to getting back into the woods and I am glad that Bill is ¢slack packing me¢ again because it¢ll allow me to cover more ground than if I had to get my trail legs back while carrying a full pack. Bill makes for easy company which makes for a pleasant way for us to stay connected since my sister¢s death last year.I feel about getting back on the Trail tonight, a lot like I do when I¢m riding up the lift for the first ski run of the season ¢ ¢Can I really do this? ¢Will I remember everything I¢m supposed to?¢ ¢What if I¢m not in as good a shape as I think; as I need to be?¢ The angst is offset by the allure of being in the woods, breathing fresh air, exhilarated by vistas, trees and plants and creatures and other hikers I¢m bound to see, all for the first time.