morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-03-06
To: Greenville, SC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Its getting closer...   I was thinking about starting my hike this year on Sunday, March 13th. However, I may slip this a day depending on the rain forecast.   I know we'll get our share of rain somewhere on the trail; I just don't want to start out with Berkeley in rain if I can avoid it.I think I've finally got my journals on this site figured out. After completing my hike in 2010, I added a couple of entries of a winter photo workshop at Yellowstone NP (remarkable for a neg 45 deg temperature!) I thought these were going to be posted in a separate journal, but learned these entries were appended to my AT entries. The "ghost" journal (Other Trails 2011) has now been deactivated. And I notice my "Guest Book" contains all entries. My original journal was quite a production. I almost always had a "word of the day", "song of the day", and "person of the day". I also had great transcription support from Ground Control. This journal will not be such a production. I'll be mostly using my Iphone on the trail when I have battery power and cell service. Town stops will be influenced by internet access and "free time".
Date: 2016-03-10
To: Greenville, SC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

The weather forecast for my projected Sunday departure is 100% thunderstorms. Monday is a bit better, but its looking more and more likely that Tuesday the 15th will be our departure date.I was asked if I had a trail name for Berkeley. I haven¢t thought about that yet. When I ¢adopted¢ Berkeley from her ¢foster parents¢, the family made a request that I keep her name Berkeley. No problems, sure. However, I need a crisper name for voice training commands and truncated her call to Berk. One AT hiker alum I have communicated with had named his dog Aramis, the Hairy Missile. So, we¢ll see if she gets a trail name.Speaking of Berk, her participation will significantly impact my planning. I will use a special diet for her and will have to use mail drops for her re-supply needs. I have the 1st 250 miles covered; but won¢t know if my planning is successful until we get out on the trail for a while. Once I get comforable with her needs and my planning, I¢ll post my mail drops with the gratuitous ¢yogi¢ing¢ for treats.
Date: 2016-03-15
From: Springer Mtn

To: near Horse Gap
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: broken clouds

1st day is in the books. Got up early in Greenville and said farewell to Libra Lady. B2 drove Berk and I to the Springer Mtn parking lot. We took a quick slack pack to the summit to sign the register and then returned to the parking lot to get all our gear. I passed more than a dozen on my summit walk and doubt that 1/3 will hike past Neels Gap. We left the lot about 1230 and made good time stopped about every hour for water and rest break. Berk was very good but she started yogying for pets I think she would roll over on her back for belly rubs if she wasn't carrying her own backpack. She was showing a tender pad and I carried most of her weight. She favored it a little at first but then went into her hunt mode and forgot about her foot. We were approached by several loose small dogs that were supposedly friendly. However, they became aggressive once near Berk. We passed the Stover Creek Shelter at 3 miles and a good group was camped out. I met a Ridge Runner at some new campsites justS of the Hawk Mtn Shelter (8 mi). We talked a bit, he reported he was going to bethe only one at Hawk Mtn, and I thanked him for the service. I planned to stop at Hawk Mtn for food, water, hygeine and rest break. When I arrived, it looked like Tent City. There were over a dozen tents and 2 dogs. It was about evenly split between 1st and 2nd nighters on the trail. We leapfrogged a young couple on a day hike passed one guy in trail who probably won't make the next shelter and another might if he's lucky. They said that we're ok and didn't need any help. I had planned to hike on to Sassafras Mtn at 11.5 miles. However, my legs started complaining at 9 miles. I went another mile and saw a perfect campsite calling my name and decided to call it a day at 10 miles. And I think at least 9 of those miles today we're all uphill. Tents up, bear bag hoisted and sun is down...Hikers MidnightWe're going to bed.Life is good!
Date: 2016-03-16
From: near Horse Gap

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 10.8

For new readers: hikers have their own language and names. WhiteBlaze has a glossary on their website. B2 is my son, Libra Lady my wife, and the granddarlings are PP1 and PP2Yesterday adds:After adopting Berk, I get obedience training with her in German Language commands. She did very well on leash and in controlled environments. However, off leash her feral hunting instincts took over. These were so strong that I gave up trying to overcome them as it would have resulted in a less happy dog. Then last year I took her hiking section of the CDT and learned I needed hiking commands. I didn't have German skills so used English, the most used was "Hike On" for her to lead out to end of her cable. She picked this quickly. Now back to yesterday, we were on the approach trail to Springer Mtn and had to stop as 3 BBW had blocked the trail. They noticed and cleared a path for us to pass. I gave a hearty Hike On and was met with evil looks. I explained it was a command for the dog and one replied she thought I was telling them to move their big fat a$$e$ up the hill. And she was never to good with Haw and Gee and looked at me like she wasn't a mule. I now have received German commands for our hikeAnother yesterday. Met an Army Ranger at one of the gaps. The Rangers have an outpost down one of the hills. When I was SoBo in 2010 I remember Blackhawk helicopters flying at night below my campsiteToday was a hard 10.8. After 10 yesterday in little German half day, I was expecting a lot more. But we had an early 700' climb followed by a 300' climb which was mostly vertical. I don't think the first 7 miles had 1/4 mile of flat terrainBerk is doing great. Still yogying for pets. She is very good about doing her potty business off the trail. When she does cross dog or coyote scat she does leave her mark as Queen of the trail. We did cows some bear scat and Berk went into serious hunt mode. I had to poke her haunches to get her to move. But she is enjoying herself, still quite a bit in the hunt modeTomorrow could be another tough day or I may decide to take it easy. We'll seeLife is good.
Date: 2016-03-17
From: Woody Gap

To: Blood Mtn
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Only 8.5 miles today but I'll take. There was a morning wake up climb of 500 ft and an afternoon climb of 1900 ft. We're staying at Blood Mtn shelter tonite. Should have tried another couple of miles to Neels Gap but we were bushed. We got a late start this am. I slept in late and was slow gearing up. Then when I was loading my backpack I thought I saw a tent pole repair sleeve which wasn't where it supposed to be. Turned out my pack strut came loose and I had a time getting it reinstalled properly Berk is doing good on hydrating at streams. Our vet said she be drinking filtered water but that's not very practical out here. Berk has learned to did a hole where the streams are very shallow to pool up the running water. She still yogying for pets at all stopsSaw some trail maintainers working this am. Early Bird caught up with me and then I leapfrogged here. So several young hikers at a stream a mile short of Blood Mtn. There was a blue blaze trail for campsites and water, but it was a hard .4 miles downhill. I was considering just camping near the stream and as the youngsters were leaving I asked them to shout out if they saw a flat spot to camp. I didn't hear anything and was .4 up to a trail crossing and another .4 up to the shelter. I cooked dinner and fed Berk and was going to the trail crossing to look for a camping spot and if I felt good slug it on up to the shelter. I didn't go 100 yards and found an official campsite and there were another 1/2 dozen or so just beyond. It wasn't very well marked and I accidentally got off the AT a bit in the campsites. I easily made the trail crossing and there was no camping areas. I decided to press on as the trails usually get much less inclined as you approach the summitWe're fed, tired and Berk is already snoring. Hikers midnight... Going to bedLife is good!
Date: 2016-03-18
From: Vista Blue Blaze

To: wildcat Mtn
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: clear sky

Berk and I were the only ones in the Blood Mtn shelter last night. We had some excitement around midnight when two hikers with I think a young Great Dane hiked thru. Berk was on duty!I'm glad I didn't try to make Neels Gap yesterday. The trail up was mostly rock steps, good for knee workout. The trail down was more technical, with lots of bald rocks. Berk even had a couple of challenges and she has 4 paw drive.I got to Neels Gap and picked up my 1st drop box. Neither Berk or I have our trail appetites yet one good thing about going to a drop or town is that your pack is at its lightest weight and it's usually all down hill. Conversely, leaving is almost always uphill with max pack weight. About Neels Gap, the rule of thumb is that about 1/4 of the starters will drop out by now. And it's reported that a few will even decide to quit on the approach trail to Springer.We rested up a bit at Neels Gap and then headed N. I met 3 Amigos ( no names yet) with a nice Boxer pup. And we were met by a loose "friendly" Husky that approached with hacked up, tail down and growling. He became friendly again after a hiking pole in the ribsOn the trail I saw a lot of trash and had some unkind thoughts for the hiker. A little bit later I saw what looked like maybe a bear had found someone's food bag. Still, the hiker should have cleaned up the messWater sources are dictating a lot of the hike. I thought I had missed one but found an alternate. It was late in the afternoon and I thought I could carry on to the next source at 4 miles this section was the first that had what I would call switchbacks and we were blazing, covering this in a little over 1 1/2 hours.We got to the water at a road crossing. Stopped and fixed dinner. RC, a local showed up on a bit Harley and asked if I needed anything. USAF no at first and the asked if he would take one of Berks feed sacks. Neither she nor I have trail appetites we talked a bit, he's a7 generation county boyI wanted to hike up and camp on the next Mtn top or the next gap. The former was only 1/2 mile and latter another 1/2 mile. This leg almost did me in. I was huffing and puffing the whole way up the Mtn and decided to bed down at the first good looking camping site. I checked by guidebook and saw that this was 500' climb...something less than a 20% grade!!!It's supposed to start raining and get cold soon. B and I are tired and going to bedLife is good!
Date: 2016-03-19
From: Wildcat Mtn

To: Rocky Knob
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: broken clouds

X Rocky Knob11.4Wow...what a day. After posting entry last nite I checked the wx forecast. It was rain starting at 0600 and lasting all day. So, I was strongly considering a zero. I got up around 0700 and was overcast. Around 0900 I decided I could make the next shelter at 5 miles and settle down there. I was making good to rand was there just after noon. I decided to take a power nap but it soon got cold and windy. I wrapped up in ground cloth and tried to sleep. Then it started misting, more overcast and I set up tent and Berk and I laid down. After an hour it clears up and got hotter. I saw a lot of hikers on the trail today and Early Bird and Victory came in to bed down at shelter campground I planned to hike up to the next stream at 3 miles, eat and water up and then press on to camp at next trail crossing. I passed several small dreams that weren't very interesting and came to one at what I thought was the right mileage. There was a another hiking blazing thru and I asked him f he thought this was stream at the gap. He said he was on autopilot and didn't know. So on I pressed. I was getting tired and found the trail crossing signs, having missed the stream. Press's on another 1 1/2 miles and reached the Rocky Knob campsite and decided to call it a day. I went to get water which was a pain. Majestic War Eagle, Woodchuck and Swamp Donkey were in camp. MWE offered Berk some pork tenderloin scraps which I added to her food and she was a happy dog It's getting cooler, rain is supposed to stay away for several more days. I got another mail drop in20 miles and will probably take a zero thereLife is good!
Date: 2016-03-20
From: Rocky Knob

To: Tray Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: clear sky

I didn't have cell coverage last nite and earlier noticed that some entries went awry. I'll try to clean this at next hostel stop in day or two. My strategic plan is gone at Mt Katahdin ME before end of Sept. My tactical plan is my next resupply. And my daily plan is to not miss my resupply point. I got a late start this am. Just Pete stopped by the camp and several hikers passed as well. I had good farewell with overnight campers and was on my way to Unicoi Gap, a 2 1/2 mile hike with big 1K ft descent at the end. There were more technical sections, if fact Berk had the 1st official fall and the cable kept her from rolling down the hill. Just before Unicoi I met a coed teenage group of hikers that were being challenged , especially one gal I gave her an encouraging word and when I passed the leader at the end I mentioned she would need a lot of assistance/motivation to reach the topWe got the Unicoi around noon and Praise the Lord. The Taylor Foundation put out the best trail magic in memory of service member hikers. There was cheeseburgers, hot dogs, pizza, homemade Cole slaw, potato salad, chips. Then on the lighter side were donuts, cookies, coffee and juice ( No offense MWE but your coffee this am was severely lacking) And everyone seemed to love Berk. Now for the bad news... It was a 1100 ft climb out of the gap!! We made good time and I was getting concerned about our water. The next water hole was a FS road crossing, straight out of the pipe. Berk then gave her "horse running to the barn" move and raced to the road. We met a lot of hikers there and Berk got a lot of pets. There were several blue blazes, a named trail and a parking lot, but no visible water. I started hiking down one of the blue blazes and met a day hiking couple who reported water was about a mile down the trail. I met some other hikers with a dog and asked if they knew where the water pipe was. They didn't know either but gave me a liter and half as they were leaving. I hiked another mile and came to the referenced site with water. The prior, more identifiable road crossing wasn't even on the map. We camelled up and started a 1200 ft climb. It started a light snow/hail.   We made the Tray Mtn shelter before 1800 and pitched the tent in a driving snow/ hail shower. I fixed dinner but Berk got cold and didn't eat. I have her in a sweater and may put Ina 2 new as well. Me, I'm in my wool shirt, down sweater and getting ready to climb into my sleeping bagLife is good!
Date: 2016-03-21
From: Tray Mtn Shelter

To: Vista Blue Blaze
Miles today: 8.5

Last night was one for the books!! It was getting cold, still late snow/hail and wind blowing sideways. There were 1/2 dozen youngsters camping nearby and had a small fire going. I joined briefly and then went to bed. I closed my tent vents to keep the white stuff out. The wind howled all night. My feet were cold and Berk was shivering most of the night. I had a fleece vest on her, covered her with her insulated rain jacket and tried to get her to sleep on her dog pad. She wouldn't stay on her pad and got cold soaked from the ground. If the middle of the night I traded my down jacket I use as a pillow and used it to cover her up. Eventually she warmed up a bit. We all got up late and what a surprise to see the ground almost covered in the white stuff. My inside water bottle was mostly frozen and Berks water bowl and my water bladder frozen solid. One of the guys terms gauge was reading 14 set The youngsters were having a little trouble getting a fire started... Usual no tinder all kindling. I went and found a bunch of dried out hollow stems and returned just as they had a small ignition. But, soon we had a small fire going. I was last to pitch camp and leave. My day plan was to take a "light" day today and nero at a hostel tomorrow. It was mostly excellent hiking weather: cool and dry but a bit windy. I had my first official fall, slipped on some mud. Noticed another hiker had the same issue a few feet down the trail. I trying something new to me in all my camping experience. I try to take an early afternoon rest stop and power nap. Then have dinner late afternoon and then hike some more after that. It's working out very well so far. We're bed down for the night already. Berk is already asleep. I treat her paws with Mushers Secret and even added some to my feet tonite. It's not dark yet but I'm calling it a night too Life is good!
Date: 2016-03-22
From: Vista Blue Blaze

To: Top of GA Hostel
Miles today: 2.5

Journal comment: got some computer access and was able to clean up some of my journal entries. Discovered my Wildcat Mtn entry didn't get posted. Corrected some of the erroneous dates. and was able to download an app on my Iphone to upload some pictures.Tray Mtn shelter updates; got a 2nd confirmation of 14 deg low temps for the night. One of the youngsters camping in a hammock tent had the wind blow over an aluminum tent peg into a 90 deg turn. His guyline wouldn't secure so he ended up in shelter for the rest of the night.   Then as part of my morning predeparture routine, I went to to a log around the campfire to put on my boots, check the map one last time, and then headem up and move on. Only today, i made a call to reserve a room at top of GA and they wanted a credit card deposit. so over to my pack to retreive my cc info. All done, loaded up and moved on. After a short whilem, i noticed my glasses and map were missing.   Back to the campfire to collect my valuables.Today was an absolute 10. an early departure and short 2.5 mile hike to Dick's Creek Gap. there were the "sirens" putting out trail magic. hot dogs and drinks. I was getting ready for a 1/2 mile hike to the hostel when their shuttle bus arrived. I got all checked in, hot bath and laundry load done. I weighed my pack at Unicoi Gap and found a disturbing 42 lbs. So, part of today was shedding serious weight. In the afternoon I took the shuttle into town, mailed 6#s to B2, had a wonderful rib dinner, baked beans, onion rings and garlic toast. Then made a very quick resupply run at grocery stroe to catch the next shuttle out. Saw Just Pete in the store and we barely recognized each other; sorry I didn't have more time to socialize. I fed Berkeley and gave her some attention. Time now to mellow out and relax the rest of the day. tomorrow is serious hiking again.Life is Good!
Date: 2016-03-23
From: Top of GA Hostel

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: clear sky

Yesterday evening was interesting. There was a presentation by a couple of youngsters on Leave No Trace. It was quite informative, learned a bit, and when I went to find them to complement their presentation, they had Left...Without aTrace. Then there was a large group that had a campfire and guitar music. Then later the owner Bob, Sir PacksALot arrived and gave a thru hiking presentation. He confirmed my fears that there is no easy way to erect my tent in the rain other than trying to be quick. I had a hard time going to sleep, must have been past 0130, got up for potty break at 0500 and Berk was ready to start hiking. We had spent the night in the Wolf Den at TOG hostel, with 1/2 dozen other hikers and another dogMorning continental breakfast was awesome: pan sausage biscuit, link sausage biscuit, pineapple mango scone, better biscuit with honey, and some cinnamon crumb cake with coffee. There were other homemade pastries as well but I haven't got my hiker appetite yetMy primary objective at today's start was to significantly reduce my pack weight. I had mailed 6#s home to B2 yesterday. And this am I gave Berk her first full pack weight. Previously I carried her food and let her carry about 3-4#s of water and snacks. Today she carried her full rations: 6#s. My pack felt considerably lighter but still pegged the scales at a whopping 48#s. My tactical plan was to complete my 2nd half of a neon to equal one zero. So I didn't even check my map because I had no real plans other than an easy hike. (Note to self: Don't try this stunt again!). I won't say I've got my trail legs yet, but I really felt strong this am. I didn't have any rest breaks in the am and finally forced myself to stop after 2 hrs to eat and drinks. Beams thing for the next 2 hours. I did try to make it to the GA-NC border, but was starting to watch Berk labor a bit. We came upon the border just after our break and then had another water refill shortly after that. There was a pipe with clear water flowing and when I filled Berk's water bowl it was filled with trash. I looked at the other end of the pipe and wished I could unsee what I had just seen. I then filled my water bottle and the next point of interest was the Bly Gap Oak tree where we took pix. Oh, did I say we already climbed over 1000'and the next 1.3 Mi had a 900 ft climb. There were times when it seemed the trail was only about a foot from your face. Berk started to fade noticeably in mid afternoon. I started taking longer breaks just for her. I had hoped to stop at a piped spring just short of the shelter, eat, camel up and then hike on past the shelter But the spring was no where to be seen.   So we hiked on to the shelter with probably a couple of dozen of other hikers. Saw many I had seen before: Silent Bob, Crooked Foot, Ungawa a few others who don't have trail names yet. Berk started to perk up a bit later in the afternoon. I fed and watered her when we stopped at the shelter and she ate full rations. She also got her share of pets and then went to sleep.
Date: 2016-03-24
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Carter Gap Shelters
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: clear sky

I was tired last night and think I was fast asleep before the light went out after closing my headlamp. I was up early and wanted to get an early start and try to make it to the Carter Gap Shelters, as wx forecast was calling for afternoon rain and evening thunderstorms. It was almost 13 miles and mostly downhill. I got all my gear stowed,had a quick breakfast and was out hiking shortly after0800. We had an early 1k' climb to Standing Indian Summit. This was a relatively easy climb with numerous switchbacks along the way. We were making good time up until the last 3 miles when I started to fade badly. But we pressed on and got to the shelter area about 1630 under threatening skies. I pitched the tent and was starting dinner when it started to sprinkle I finished dinner as the rain started to increase and am now bunkered down in the tent with Berk.