morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-05-18
From: Spivey Gap

To: Chestoa Bridge Nolichucky
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Yesterday we finished a drive back from a week of recuperation at the beach in Florida. Today we are getting back on the trail. Due to her ankle injury, she is going to be slack packing him until her injury heals. Basically, he will be doing day hikes. Her ankle is still bruised, swollen, and painful. She tried walking a mile on flat ground and found it painful, so she's going to recover for now. This however changes our trail life! Since we will be slackpacking, we decided to upgrade our house, bed, and our kitchen. We stopped in at the Coleman store because we had called them and knew they had an awesome deal on a four person tent. We got a tent for $30 that is normally $100. We feel like that's a steal! While we were there, we saw a propane grill that also had a burner for $60 marked down from $100. Also a great deal! We bought that as well as the griddle that you can swap out the grill grate for. We see pancakes and French toast and maybe even grilled cheese on the menu in the coming weeks. After we made our purchases, we set out to the campground she found online. The Rock Creek Recreation Center. Because we have the America the Beautiful Pass, our tent site was only $6 a night and there are hot showers! We are going to stay here for three nights. It is a great park with lots of hiking trails and because it's off season, it's very quiet. Before we left, we decided to make a quick grilled cheese lunch! It was so tasty! Thank you Mom L.K. for sending us off with a cooler of food! Next she dropped him off at Spivey Gap and planned to pick him up at Chestoa Bridge at Nolichucky in a few hours. He took nothing with him as today's hike will be fairly short. After she dropped him off she set off for the local Walmart to do a little grocery shopping. She picked him up after just 3 hours and 20 minutes on the trail! Awesome timing if you ask us! We headed back to our campsite which was already set up and began to prepare dinner. She made a salad while he grilled steaks! We are sure enjoying this luxurious trail lifestyle...it's a little different than dehydrated meals and cliff bars for sure!
Date: 2016-05-21
From: Carver's Gap

To: Bear Branch Road
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: moderate rain

On the way to take Sherpa back to Carver's Gap, we drove through the Roan Mountain Park. It is a beautiful park and we both agree that it would be a great place to go for a vacation someday! We stopped at the gift shop briefly and picked up a nice hammock (car camping accessory). It was reasonably priced and has a bug net...she will appreciate that more than him. We can't wait for dry weather so we can enjoy the hammock at camp! Because it's a weekend there were a lot of people at Carver's Gap. We both got out and she walked a few feet of the trail...her ankle still won't hold up for an entire day of hiking unfortunately. We got a nice photo together and they both went on their way. His hike took him by some really beautiful landscapes that for he most part were buried behind puffy white clouds. For part of the day, he hiked with a guy who had worked at oversees consulates teaching. He gave advice on visiting Patagonia, hopefully we can use it some day. He also lamented the American celebrations oversees where people bring hot dogs because they think of that as being somehow uniquely American, when almost every country in the world has hotdogs at food stands. Sherpa laughed at this as he could relate, he once got food poisoning after eating a pink colored "hot dog" from a street vendor in the Peruvian Andies. The guy told how when he wants to share uniquely American culture, he gives people root beer. Nowhere else in the world so people have ready access to this wonderful substance. After parting ways, at one point Sherpa climbed a mountain with fog so thick that he could only see a few feet. The most exciting part of the hike was getting to the sign which said "leaving North Carolina." From here, the trail goes into Tenessee for a short while before moving into Virginia. We have been looking forward to getting past the area where her ankle was hurt...There was nowhere for them to meet for lunch, so she just ran errands until it was time to pick him up. She enjoyed the coffee shop so much the day before that she went back and got a coffee to go before picking him up. The weather was very rainy out, so she showed up at the meetup location with a hot chocolate for him. We are trying to only eat out about one meal a week and mostly cook for ourselves but decided that tonight is a good night to eat out because of the weather. We found a Mexican restaurant to try in Elizabethton. It was tasty and we are glad we stopped!We're continuing to test out the rain resistance of our new tent as tonight should be rainy again. So far our new tent is holding up remarkable well we're staying warm and dry. There isn't even condensation in our tent when we wake up in the morning.
Date: 2016-05-22
From: Off Trail

To: Off Trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

We've decided that if possible, Sherpa will take a zero day on Sunday's so that we can go to church and spend time together. God is the center of our lives and for us, it is important to attend church when possible. Right now, we have a car and it makes attending church very easy. So today, we attended a church near our campground in Erwin. We went to the Erwin Church of Christ. They had a sign in their yard that read "hikers welcome" so we went. We really enjoyed the church service here. It was sure wonderful to fellowship with fellow believers and worship God. we also moved campgrounds today. We left the Rock Creek campground and moved to Cardens bluff, which is closer to our hikes over the next few days. The new campsite is lakefront. Not bad for $6/night!
Date: 2016-05-23
From: Walnut Mountain Road

To: Bear Branch Road
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: clear sky

After a leisurely morning, we did some devising so that Sherpa won't have any super long days. We decided it would be good for him to knock out a segment later in the trail and then do the segment that was next in line. Around 11:30 she dropped him off at Dennis Cove Trailhead with plans to pick him up at Shook Branch Recreational Area. This will save him from a very long day in a couple days. While he was hiking, she went back to the beautiful campsite on Lake Watauga and enjoyed the sounds of nature while reading a book. She loved her relaxing afternoon. Today she could just wait for him to call from the end of his hike as her drive was less than 5 minutes. When he was finished, she picked him up and brought him back to the campground for lunch. BLAT sandwiches! (The a is for avocado) Yum! Sherpa sure did enjoy a nice hot lunch during his break today! Next we decided that Sherpa could do the section from Bear Branch Road to Walnut Mountain Road. Knowing that it would be getting dark around when he finished, we decided that we would drop him off at Walnut Mountain Road (a remote dirt road) to hike southbound since she was more comfortable picking him up at Bear Branch Road at dusk. He finished around 8:20 PM and it wasn't quite dark. We were thankful...although he did have a headlamp just in case. These days, he's been hiking with just a waist pack that holds some snacks and two water bottles. He also fits his jacket in it as well...$10 well spent! After getting dropped off, Sherpa went the wrong direction from Walnut Mountian Road and headed northbound! Oops. There really are not very good markings at trail eads to let you know which way is North. They assume you know, which gives slack packing a challenge. He made it to over a mile before running into a hiker that was actually going Southbound and realized he had gone the wrong way. Santing to get back before dark, he jogged as much as possible. He was exhausted by the time she picked him up...and ready for dinner! While he was on the second leg of his hike, she ran errands and did laundry. It was a productive afternoon for her. She also got some more reading in. She's currently reading "The Hiding Place" by Corrie Ten Boom. It's a great book, and she would recommend it! Corrie Ten Boom is a Dutch woman who tells of her life during the Holocaust. She doesn't want to spoil the book for anyone...she just recommends reading it. After a long day and a late dinner they are both exhausted and ready for sleep! It will be nice to wake up next to the lake again! It sure is beautiful at this campground!
Date: 2016-05-24
From: Walnut Mountian Road

To: Dennis Cove
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: clear sky

Today we had another relaxing morning. It's sure nice to be able to cook breakfast and enjoy it lakefront! This morning she made whole grain pancakes with blueberries, and also some with chocolate chips and bananas. They were delicious! Sherpa topped his chocolate chip banana pancakes with peanut butter for a little extra protein and calories to fuel his hiking. We dropped him off at Walnut Mountain Road again. He headed northbound this time. She made sure he was going to correct direction before she left. We don't want him to do extra miles if we can help it! The weather was very warm today, in fact Sherpa decided to hike without his shirt until he was out of the shade. He got started at about 1:15 with plans to be to Dennis Cove around 7 PM. The hike itself was unremarkable, mostly in a tree canopy with a lot of mud, filler miles to get from the beautiful Roan area to the beautiful lake area near their camp site. The section had a wildfire just like there trail north of hot springs. A few places were charred pretty bad, but mostly the under growth was already returning to life with bigger trees completely unaffected. With a lot of free time, she decided to run some errands. She found a local produce stand and bought some fresh peaches. We will enjoy peach cobbler tonight cooked over a camp fire! Sherpa will be preparing it as it is his recipe. She then went back to the little coffee shop in Elizabethton, TN that she enjoyed on Friday. She got some reading in. Later she went to a couple of shoe stores to find a pair of sandals...she's been wearing crocs since she hurt her ankle as they are her only pair other than her hiking boots that she has with her. Today was a good day for both of them. After picking up Sherpa, we headed back to the campground for dinner. We had dinner prepared over the fire and it was delicious. Sherpa's peach cobbler was the perfect finish to the day. We enjoyed our campfire for several hours tonight before bedtime. Some other campers were a little on the loud side and we heard another man shout at them that they were being too loud. It didn't phase them at all! Thankfully we can sleep through any noise and they didn't keep us awake!
Date: 2016-05-26
From: Tennessee 91 at mile 447.3

To: Damascus
Miles today: 22.5
Weather: few clouds

Today, we decided that while she is setting up the new campsite, he would do an extra long day to push them into Virginia! We are thrilled to make it into Virginia...even though we know that many hikers get the Virginia blues (it constitutes about 25% of the trail, and has a reputation for being a really long tree tunnel). Hopefully he can help push us through it fast since he isn't carrying his pack right now.She dropped him off sort of late in the day, and set off to find the new campground. We are moving to Grindstone Campground. We knew that they had some non reservable sites that are walk up, and we're fortunate to find a spot to stay in through the busy holiday weekend! The drive felt like it took forever, but she made it and they had space! We are so thankful that we were able to get a spot! God is so good! It is a beautiful campground that is a good proximaty to several of the trail crossings that Sherpa will be coming to over the next 100 miles. We might stay here several nights! The only downside is that neither of our phones get service here. There is however weak wifi at the front of the park, so we'll try to update if possible. After setting up camp, she went to Damascus to putz around a little bit. Damascus is a town in southwest Virginia that caters to outdoor enthusiasts. She poked her head in an outfitter and also stopped at a cute coffee shop for lunch where she plans to wait for him to finish his day! She worked out some potential mileage options for him over the next few days while there. She enjoyed the coffee shop! She also met a fellow Thru Hiker who was an incredibly friendly older gentleman named squarepeg. She hopes Sherpa runs into him on the trail! Meanwhile, Sherpa, undeterred by the bear encounters of the previous day, pressed on. After about 30 minutes on the trail, a fellow northbound we approached him from behind to pass him. Since Sherpa isn't carrying a pack, and this hiker was, pride was hurt. Stepping aside, he asked the guy's name. "Bullet". Aptly named. Instead of being left in the dust, Sherpa kicked it up a step and walked the whole day with him. It was nice to have company other than squirrels for a change. Bullet was a college student from Virginia Tech who had been a cross country runner and decided to hike he whole trail during his summer break. Initially planning on doing it in 90 days, he realized his is on track to finish it under 80! He had already walked about 15 miles by the time they met and walked another 22! An engineering student and a licensed pilot, they had plenty of nerdy things to discuss during the day (after all, Sherpa is an aerospace engineer...). He strolled into town early in the evening exhausted as you can imagine after such a long trek. We headed back to the campground for some much deserved dinner! We went to sleep early because Sherpa was so tired! She was grateful that Sherpa approved of both the campground as well as the site she chose! We will enjoy this campground very much! An extra bonus is that the hosts are probably some of the sweetest people we've met!
Date: 2016-05-28
From: Massie Gap

To: Off Trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

We are trying to hit the high point of every state we go through...Virginia's is Mt. Rogers. It is a short trek from the AT and it is close to our campground, so we would like to do it now if her ankle can tolerate it. This morning, we went to Grayson Highlands State Park to climb Mt. Rogers by way of the AT from Massie Gap. The plan was, if all goes well, Sherpa will continue to hike the AT for about 10 more miles after we're done with Mt. Rogers. We started our trek from Massie Gap, and we couldn't have been more pleased with the weather! It was a beautiful day with incredible views! After about a mile on the AT we encountered something she had been looking forward to...wild ponies! They are so pretty! There are signs everywhere that tell you not to feed or pet the ponies...however we went to take a photo near them and they come right up to you as if they're frequently fed by tourists. We really enjoyed all the cute ponies! We continued our trek and found a nice place with a beautiful view to take a lunch break! We enjoyed our lunch from one of the prettiest spots on the trail! Thank you to the kind gentleman who pointed the spot out to us! As we continued our way up to Mt. Rogers, there were more ponies! With this bunch, there was a foal! It was so cute! It stayed near it's momma, but we still got some good views of it! We didn't stop long for the second ponies since we'd already seen the first bunch! It didn't take us too long to get to the summit. Only about 3 hours for 4.5 miles with lunch and breaks to see the ponies. We think that we made good timing considering she has a sprained ankle that is still swollen. Thankfully, it didn't give her too much trouble. She had to take some to the rocky areas a little more slowly. She didn't really have pain until about 3.5 miles in. Not too bad all things considered. Now thankfully she had researched a bit about the Mt. Rogers summit prior to them going so she knew that there was no view and no real way to tell that you were at the top! We were told that the second rock pile with the medallion on it was the high point, so there we took our photo. She read a story of someone who got to the top and didn't realize it and looked around for a while before someone else told them they were at the top. We are thankful that we made it to the top and especially that her ankle held up for the hike! We decided to change plans and just go back together as it was getting a little late and he would have finished after dark. This meant he would have to redo a 4 mile section of the trail, but he also wanted to make sure she got back safely since her ankle was hurting. Grayson highlands state park is probably the most beautiful section of the trail we have been to yet, a future vacation spot, not one he minded hiking through again.
Date: 2016-05-29
From: Off Trail

To: Off Trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we have been married for three months. We know that it is not long compared to a lot of people, but we are enjoying celebrating every milestone...at least for the first year! They say hiking the trail is like getting 6 years of marriage in 6 months. If that's true, 3 is a big accomplishment! And since we were married on leap day, we will only get maybe 15 real anniversaries if we live into our nineteen... Our first priority today was to thank God that he brought us together and that we are enjoying the blessing of marriage that we've been given. We went to church at Damascus First Baptist Church where Sue and her family attend. The congregation was very welcoming and the pastor was spot on, clearly teaching verse by verse what the bible says. His family was in town and they sang a four part quartet to lead worship. It was really sweet. Definitely a church we would return to if in the area. They also support hikers, providing showers during the trail festival which required washing over 500 towels a day. Many people took hikers into their houses too during that time. Their next outreach- free oil changes for the community to help people get ready for summer driving season. Very healthy church that was helping out the community. Following church we had lunch at an old mill that was right in front of a waterfall. Gorgeous. We poked around a few stores in Damascus and in the afternoon we rented bikes and took a shuttle up the mountain to the head of the Virginia creeper trail. We road a 17 mile section of the bike path that is mostly downhill through beautiful Appalatian mountains along a stream. There were about 20 different trestle bridges they crossed which were left over from an old railroad. So enjoyable. Lots of families were renting bikes and taking their children. If we have a family some day, this is a place we would definitely consider taking them. There are even cute stores and cafes all along the trail to visit. A must if you go to Damascus. The perfect end to a perfect day and a great way to start the week together.
Date: 2016-05-31
From: Massie Gap

To: Dickey Gap
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: broken clouds

Today we set out to hike northbound from Grayson highlands state park. This was going to be another mostly downhill day for Sherpa, and goodbye ponies for Porter. When she climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2010, there were lots of people called "Porters" that helped with everything from making sure the climbers were well fed, to guiding them, to getting them to places of rest, etc. eerily similar to what she is doing for Sherpa while her ankle heals. He decided to start calling her Porter in honor of that memory and all of her help. Porter really enjoyed the ponies today...even if it was raining. She had them all to herself! She sat on a bench and simply enjoyed watching them. She followed a small side trail and found a mare and her yearling. They were a little more skiddish than the rest of the bunch but Porter still enjoyed them. As soon as Porter was back on the AT, it began to rain. She put on her rain jacket and decided to head to the car. It started pouring rain. There was a steady flow of water pouring down the trail. By the time she made it to the car, she was soaked through all her clothes and her boots were full of water. She was praying that Sherpa wasn't in the rain storm as well. She warmed up in the car, went and got dry clothes on and then headed to meet Sherpa for lunch. She was happy to see that he was dry! After lunch, we decided to take Sherpa to Dickey's Gap and drop him off to hike back to the area of the campground. She left him and went to town to get some internet and find our next campground. Thankfully she discovered that there is another USFS campground that will meet our needs for several days, Stony Fork Campground near Bland, VA. Meanwhile, Sherpa, now walking southbound, crossed paths with healer and his girlfriend who he had also passed going northbound in the morning. They were throuroughly confused. It was a fairly uneventful day. There was a pretty waterfall in the afternoon. Nothing really funny happened today, but we forgot to mention something we found amusing yesterday. Sherpa came across a guy who walked past him and said, "I just played for the cows, and they came and listened." Sherpa asked, "played what?" He replied, "my melodica". The guy was carrying around a keyboard that was mouth activated and playing for cows in a field. The only regret is not getting to the field in time to see this take place. He explained, "I've heard that strong quartets play for cows sometimes so I tried it. They came and listened!" He then excused himself. When Sheepa approached the cow field, the thought briefly crossed his mind to serenade the cows. Right before he belted out a rendition of "the hills are alive with the sound of music,". He notices several other hikers in the area and instead made small talk.
Date: 2016-06-01
From: Dickey Gap

To: Settlers Museum Rocky Hollow Road
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: clear sky

Today, we started back at Dickey's gap and headed northbound. When she dropped him off, there was a guy at the trailhead that didn't seem to have all of his marbles, so we waited until he left before saying our goodbyes. Healer and his girlfriend walked up before Sherpa headed off and Porter got a chance to catch up with them. After 14 miles, Sherpa came to partnership shelter. This shelter has a hot shower! Needless to say, that has attracted a lot of hikers. We know frommoose that some have been camped here for over a week consuming large quantities of alcohol. Porter had walked up the trail a ways to meet Sherpa and we passed by the shelter together, recognizing a few faces from the pot smoking bubble of hikers they had been trapped in around hot springs.. We enjoyed a nice late lunch together (it was around 4pm) and then Sherpa continued North for 4 more miles to finish the day. When he got there, Porter was not to be seen. It was obvious that the road was impassible so he continued on another 3 miles to the next crossing. This was not even a road, witch meant he had to go another 1.5 miles. Finally, we were reunited and got a few extra miles in. We try to scout out most crossings together which results in walking southbound much of the time. This is an example of what can happen. We were prepared for this and had discussed going ahead if not there by a certain time, etc. The mountain roads are usually pretty good, but usfs roads are reliably unreliable in this part of the country at least. We knew we would eventually get to a good road.