morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-04-16
From: Stecoah Gap

To: Walker Footbridge
Miles today: 11.6

April 16, 2016   11:00 ¢ 6:45Day 14 ¢ Stecoah Gap to Walker Footbridge29,900 steps   11.6 milesNot much to write about today. We started off with a climb up a mountain called ¢Jacob¢s Ladder¢, which peoplewere touting as a very tough uphill. In reality, it wasn¢t anytougher than what we¢ve already been through. The Jumpoffand Jump-up were much, much more difficult. Other than thatit was an uneventful day. My knees cooperated for the most part, I just took it a bit slower which I think was a key to their well-being.Camping 4 miles from our shuttle crossing to the Fontana Lodgefor a nero day!Oh, I forgot to mention I saw my first ¢real¢ wildlife today in theform of a snake. Not my first choice of animal, but whatever, it means the forest is finally coming to life! A girl named Peaches saw a momma bear and 3 cubs not 30 minutes afterwe passed through that area. That would¢ve been good to see.Also, I fell for the 1st time today when I was stationary on a rock and my left foot decided to slip down the rock. I guess you can¢tthru-hike without a couple falls that leave you on your back.
Date: 2016-04-17
From: Walker Footbridge

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: clear sky

April 17, 2016   9:30 ¢ 12:00Day 15 - Walker Footbridge to Fontana Dam15,584 steps   4.0 milesA short hike today as we arrived at the dam to relax onthe 2nd half of the day. The dam was pretty cool to seeand the lake (Fontana Lake) was beautiful towalk next to. The evergreen covered islands werereminiscient of Fiji on a sunny Spring morning. We getto hike across the dam tomorrow and onto the Smokies!The lodge and resort are a pretty nice place to stay except for the lack of phone service and reliable wifi.A lot of hikers are staying here tonight including a few guyswe have been seeing on the trail for a week or so. Indy,Stretch, and Pyro are pretty cool and more on the normal side.A lot of hikers seem a bit eccentric, but those 3 are more downto earth, which is why we gravitated towards them perhaps.I found it strange the lodge didn¢t try to rush getting our roomsready faster as us thru-hikers are basically a bunch of smellyhomeless people lounging on their clean sofas in the fresh lobby.We had to wait so long for a room, one guy was washing his clothesin the public sink. I didn¢t think anything of it, but a non thru-hikerprobably would¢ve been turned off by the scene we were creating.At any rate, we are back on the trail tomorrow morning !
Date: 2016-04-18
From: Fontana Dam

To: Russel Field Shelter
Miles today: 14.1

April 18, 2016   10:40 ¢ 6:40Day 16 ¢ Fontana Dam to Russell Field Shelter35,586 steps   14.1 milesWe had a rude awakening at 6 AM in the lodge whenour fire alarm went off for no reason. The sound wasdeafening and spread to the rooms nearby. It wasn¢t shut off until we went to the front desk and complained.Later when we woke up for real, I complained to the managerand got a half price room, so not too bad of a deal. Westarted back on the trail by crossing Fontana Dam then walking alongFontana Lake during our 2 mile long ascent to begin our hikethrough the Smokies! It wasn¢t too tiring or steep, but the heat was getting to us. Temps rose to around 82 degrees bythe time we reached the first plateau. With no clouds or windto give us relief from the sun we took breaks for water in theshadows of trees. After that 1st ascent, the walking was fairly easy and fast ¢ paced. We are probably going to try for our1st 20 mile day in 2 or 3 days. Danny¢s pain killers seem to helpmy knee pain really well, so I¢ll definitely continue taking those.The vegetation so far in the Smokies is much more inviting thanGA or NC. The spacious trees and green carpet of low-lying grasses reminds me of the Shire in LOTR. Walking to the shelter for the night had the feeling of walking through a well manicuredgarden at a tropical setting rather than through the wild outdoors.
Date: 2016-04-19
From: Russel Field Shelter

To: Silers Bald Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: broken clouds

April 19, 2016   9:20 ¢ 6:20Day 17 ¢ Russell Field Shelter to Silers Bald Shelter37,702 steps   14.6 milesToday is what I anticipated from the Smokies. It was some of the toughest walking we¢ve done so far on the AT.A lot of steep ups, downs, rocks and roots. For a 2 mile stretch at the beginning, I thought my feet might start bleeding¢¦they didn¢t . Other than a tough hiking day, not much happened. Our friendsIndy, Stretch, and Pyro decided to do a 19 mile day totry and catch sunrise at Clingman¢s Dome. That wouldbe cool, but it¢s not worth the 4 mile hike at 4 AM to makeit in time. My knees did well today, but my right Achilles heel was killing me for the last 2 miles. I couldn¢t even bendmy foot at my ankle. Oh well, hopefully tomorrow will beless painful.   Camping at shelters sucks!
Date: 2016-04-20
From: Silers Bald Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: overcast clouds

April 20, 2016   8:45 ¢ 4:15Day 18 ¢ Silers Bald Shelter to Newfound Gap33,029 steps   12.1 milesWe began our hike today with anticipation as we nearedClingman¢s Dome, the highest point on the AT. At 6,643feet above sea level, it provided great 360 degree views of where we¢d just hiked and where we were about toventure. It wasn¢t the best view we¢ve had so far, but definitely top 3. We both felt in good health all day exceptfor the 1st two miles where my knee was in pain. Fortunatelythat went away and it was smooth sailing after that. Today was a lot of hiking through pine forests that had a fresh cushion ofdead needles with fallen trees laying on top smothered in bright green moss. The dimly lit forest was reminiscient ofman-made ruins taken over by nature in Ancient Babylon. The only annoying part about this whole day was the onslaught of ¢stairs¢ put in place by trail maintainers. They are most prominent near the tourist heavy parts of the Smokies supposedly put in place to make hiking easier. They doanything but that. Oh well, we¢re in Gatlinburg for thenight, it¢s 1:00 AM and I¢m tired. Until tomorrow!
Date: 2016-04-21
From: Newfound Gap

To: Peck's Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Started off in Gatlinburg at the Motel 6, which by the way doesn¢t put shampoo in the rooms. Lame! We got up early to go to the post office to send stuff home and to the general store for a few supplies. Well, the Post Office ended up being too far away and the store too pricey. After the NOC not having our gear yesterday, it was no almost pointless to go into town. Oh well, it¢s good to sleep in a bed to rest the body every once in a while. We got a free shuttle from the 1st Baptist Church back to Newfound Gap where I forgot to mention what happened yesterday.About a mile before the Gap, we got stuck behind some old person hiking group who were going slower than snails and wouldn¢t let us pass them. Eventually the guide stopped to talk about an acorn or something so I used that opportunity to get on the steeper part of the mountain and blow past them all. It would¢ve taken us a couple more hours at least to get to Newfound Gap if we were behind them the whold time. It¢s a good thing we didn¢t because at the Gap, we ran into a middle-aged couple who were uber excited to talk to us about our hike. They brought their two friends over to talk to us more and eventually we had a group of 6 or so strangers around us asking us questions and being genuinely excited about our answers. It was pretty cool to have such a captivated audience and that would¢ve been enough of a treat, but we still needed a ride to town. So I asked for a ride to town, but they had no room in their car. So we just went and stood by our packs to try and get a hitch, then their car pulled up and started giving us whatever snacks they had! So all in all, meeting them was worth it. Okay, back to today. Most of the hike was gradual rolling terrain on the ridge, with not too many tiring sections. Our feet are killing us however due to all the jagged rocks we had to walk on. I believe that coupled with my Achilles pain that decided to pay a visit, slowed our pace a bit, but we still made it to our goal by a decent hour. The ridge walk was especially cool because most of it was about 3 feet wide with a cliff on one side and super steep hill on the other. Despite walking next to such dangers, I felt safe the entire time because of the thick Rhododendron growing on the side acting as a guardrail of sorts. There was also a lot of strong wind today foreshadowing the thunderstorm we expect tonight. Hopefully we stay dry!
Date: 2016-04-22
From: Peck's Corner Shelter

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 4.9
Weather: light rain

Woke up to a downpour, so we had to break camp under our rainflies. It was surprising easy to do, plus I got to fill my water with runoff on my rainfly. I had my pack and self protected from the rain as much as possible and hung the rainfly from the front of my pack so I didn¢t have to put it with everything else and get it all wet. We only did 5 miles today partly due to the rain/being cold and partly because I wasn¢t convinced my body would make it another 8. But we only have 15 more to go to make it out of the Smokies, so we may try for that tomorrow!The only thing worse than the rain is the fact that we have to stay in a shelter tonight because a ridge runner is staying here and we aren¢t allowed to hammock if the shelter has available space. We had to spend the 1st two hours listening to some hippie babble nonsense from the ridge runner and the 3 others. I¢m pretty sure they have no idea what they¢re talking about, just some talking points¢¦they¢d be great politicians! HaHa. To top it off, our arch nemesis on the trail, Thorn (refer to Ziploc notes) just arrived and immediately started being just as annoying as ever. Oh well, just one night of this crap and we can go back to sleeping out in nature away from dumb people like God intended. 22 people in a shelter built for 12 ¢¦ Fun Fact: Tricorner Shelter is the most remote place in the Smokies and 2nd most remote in Tennessee. It¢s a 9 mile hike to help if injured. They can¢t evn basket you out with a helicopter, you¢d have to walk 4 miles for that.
Date: 2016-04-23
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 18.4

After a crowded, loud and overall unpleasant night in prison¢¦ I mean the shelter, we made it out of the Smokies! Not only that, but we recorded our longest day yet! Neither Ziploc or I have been so motivated to get anywhere so far as we were to get out of the Smokies. I still think it¢s a beautiful place to vacation, but I will never backpack through the Smokies again. The bureaucracy and governmental influence is very restrictive for being out in the wilderness. Oh well we¢re done and on to the next great adventure. Fortunately my knees and Achilles weren¢t in pain at all today, allowing us to go as far as we did. We stopped at Standing Bear Farm for a quick bite. It is not what I expected. It looks like some random hillbillies attempt at creating a hippie commune full of thru-hikers. I know the owner just died of cancer and his wife is now running the place, but it seemed like an overpriced, unpleasant place to stay. The food was paid with the honor system, which is cool, but the guy you pay is the slowest thinking person I¢ve ever met. We ate our food and got out of there as fast as we could. Slow Jam had the same idea and came with us to find hammock spots by the nearby creek. When we got to camp, Ziploc was freaking out about all of the poison ivy, so he made me pull every single plant he saw with my pliers, then wash them thoroughly in the stream. It was hilarious hearing him cringe every time I pulled one out. I¢m glad I don¢t get poison ivy like he does. Anyway, hopefully in 2 days we¢ll be in Hot Springs, 3 at the latest!
Date: 2016-04-24
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Max Patch Bald
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: clear sky

Cowboy camping for the first time! After starting the day with a 5 mile decently steep ascent in sunny with no wind conditions, we were pretty tired. Luckily at the top of that ascent was Snowbird Mountain. Why is this special you ask? Because trail magic was waiting for us! They were set up next to an FAA radar station with an assortment of homemade and store bought goodies. From there it was a 7 mile hike to Max Patch. It became something I needed to do after reading Clarity¢s website, to camp on top of here. Fortunately, the mileage and weather worked out perfect to get here before sunset. The well maintained grassy bald has provided us with our best view so far on the AT. 360 degree views of endless ridgelines fade into a hazy horizon. The sunset was gorgeous despite no clouds and happened around 8 PM. It is currently 9:15 PM and the colors are finally fading into a starry night sky. Being on a balk like this affords us the opportunity to cowboy camp and wake up to the sunrise. I look forward to the morning colors with great anticipation. The sunrise is so much more beautifu than the sunset. My pictures will never do it justice, it is a must see real life experience. Oh, also being able to stare up at the night sky while falling asleep was a huge plus. I¢m pretty sure I had a smile on my face when I finally dozed off.
Date: 2016-04-25
From: Max Patch Bald

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: broken clouds

Our first 20 mile day! Officially, it¢s only 19.8 to the beginning of town, but since the AT goes through the entire town, we walked an extra 0.2 to dinner, so it counts! Interestingly enough, 4 or 5 days ago I mentioned that maybe we aren¢t the kind of people that can do a 20 mile day¢¦ boy was I wrong! All it took was making our lazy butts leave at a decent hour. After Max Patch, there weren¢t any good views of note, but the terrain was more difficult than expected. We started off with a pace of 3.5 mph or better (probably close to 4 mph) with some gradual downhill, but after a couple big ups, our pace definitely slowed to the point where I didn¢t think we¢d make it to Hot Springs until after dark. It¢s a good thing we didn¢t because after our showers we ran into our long lost friends Indy, Stretch, and Pyro. We were sure we¢d never see them again, so it was cool we did. They were just finishing dinner as we got there so they invited us over to their campground cabin for beer they got from a dumpster. Let me explain¢¦ apparently a local business threw out a bunch of day old beer, so they went dumpster diving and picked out all of the craft beers, then the not-so-craft beers like Bud Ice and the like. The business saw what they were doing and put a padlock on the dumpster. Anyway, I went to go hang out with them after dinner for an hour or so, but Ziploc was too tired and went to the hotel. As I enter the campground, there were 3 guys grabbing beer out of the same dumpster so I guess the padlock was taken or broken off. Either way, they said ¢oh, you have to get some beer from there, you can¢t leave withoug that experience¢. I of course said yes, so with two of those guys holding my ankles, I grabbed a 12 pack of Icehouse beer. Really crappy stuff I would never drink, but hey, free is free. I finally make it to their cabin and luckily they have some craft beer left over kep ¢cold¢ with river water. I¢m glad we met this group of guys, they seem to be the few normal people thru-hiking. Oh, I forgot to mention that you can see the nearby forest fire from the town. I¢ve always wanted to see one in person, so now I get to! You can¢t see any flames, but there is a good amount of smoke. Apparently about 2,500 acres have already burned and they are intentionally burning 4,500 to stop it from spreading. This is all a bit crazy, but very fascinating to witness first hand.Okay, well we have a zero tomorrow, then 2 days of hiking before 4 days off for Jenny¢s graduation!
Date: 2016-04-26
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0

Not much to report today. We switched hotels for the night since our shower had an insanely steep slope to the drain, the toilet didn¢t flush and the sink didn¢t drain in the other one. This hotel (Creekside Court) is a vast improvement from the Alpine Court Motel. Our bed is smaller, but the room overall feels more homey. While waiting for our room to be ready, we did our laundry at the laundromat and got some ice cream at the Artisan Gallery. They had a bunch of intersting homemade flavors. I wanted to try them all but settled on the Lemon Sorbet, which was nice and refreshing. We ran into Slow Jam at the laundromat, another normal guy whose company we enjoy. IPA was at the outfitter as well as Indy and the guys. After dinner, we called mom and dad while watching the smoke billow from the forest above. A spotter helicopter flew over the flames while a chopper with a water bag was taking off next to us. We were hoping to get to see it dump water, but they must¢ve went somewhere we can¢t see. Still very cool to view firsthand.
Date: 2016-04-27
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: overcast clouds

We started off the day with 15 free miles due to the forest fire. The ATC shuttled us around the affected area for free. This kind of thing happens at some point every year on the AT, so they know how to handle it pretty well. It¢s too bad we have to miss out on the 14.8 miles between Hot Springs and Allen Gap, but there¢s nothing we can do about it, so I¢m just treating it as trail magic. Instead of free food and drink, we get free miles! The hike today was fairly easy but we were taking our time and not trying to push too hard because we only have 20 miles to go in 2 days. Our parents are meeting us at Devil Fork Gap so I can get my car and to to Jenny¢s graduation! I have been looking forward to seeing her this weekend since I started out here and now I¢m only 2 days away from that coming true! While I¢m in Cincy, the rest of the family will be having a bit of vacation in Gatlinburg and the Smokies. So everybody will get to have a fun weekend during a much desired break from the trail. (morning note) Last night was the loudest thunder I have ever heard. Equivalent to a shotgun blast next to my ear. I thought the Earth would start falling apart around me. As it echoed through the mountains for a few moments after, I was able to appreciated the full power of a lightening storm. Definitely the coolest storm I¢ve ever been a part of.
Date: 2016-04-28
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Devil Fork Gap
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: moderate rain

The rain last night ended before we woke up, so we were able to get ready in relative dryness. We again took our time hiking today, but still arrived at the pickup point a couple of hours early. That means in a couple hours I will be out of the woods and on my way to see Jenny! Of course it will be good to see my parent¢s and sister as well. Since we got here so early, we went back into the woods to hang and dry our rainflies from the downpour last night. It¢s easier to dry using trees than bedposts in a hotel, haha. Anyway, it will be nice to have 4 zero days in a row, even if 2 of them involves driving 6 hours.¢¦General thoughts about month #1-        the terrain is never what you expect it to be and much more difficult than it looks.-        we have been very lucky about how little rain we¢ve had to deal with, although the first week or 2 was freezing cold at times.-        a lot of the people out here are eccentric weirdos with no common courtesy, personal space, or a mind of their own. So when we find fairly normal down-to-earth people (usually old guys, girls, or our one group of friends), then it¢s good to maintain a good relationship with them.-        Shelters, hostels, Standing Bear Farm and the like are ¢must-see¢ stops for thru-hikers who have little to no original thought. These are just places for the hipster backpacker to be cramped, uncomfortable, dirty, and spend unnecessary extra money because it¢s all part of the ¢true thru-hiker experience¢. often times the AT planners will take you near a summit, but not over it.So when you do get a summit with a view, take that extra second to truly enjoy it. The same goes for side trails to a summit or view. Go ahead and walk an extra 12 mile or so, if there¢s a trail, it¢s usually worth it to take.-        the wild outdoors are once in a lifetime beauty to witness and no amount of pictures or poetry can capture the true essence of theis lively wilderness. Take some time and some risks to experience it firsthand. You will not be disappointed. -        Hammocking is way better than tenting. It¢s more comfortable, you and your stuff stays dryer, you have more options on where to camp and you have a seat off the ground when ever you want it. -        my body took some major beatings at first, but after fighting through the pain, I am stronger for it.-        Changing socks ofter and using toe sock liners are a must!-        My clothes and myself always have a foul odor to them, no matter how many times each of them are washed.
Date: 2016-04-29
From: Devil Fork Gap

To: Cincinnati, OH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I took off 4 days to go to Cincy for Jenny¢s graduation. I¢m glad I was able to do that because I was very happy to see her and didn¢t want to miss this special occasion for anything!I am lucky to have parents and siblings willing to take time off from their lives in order to allow me much needed R & R with my girlfriend. I think they like these breaks I¢m taking because it gives them an easy excuse to take a vacation. Jenny, I know your family, Sammy and myself have said this already, but I am very proud of you.   It isn¢t easy making it through DAAP, but what doesn¢t kill us makes us stronger. So I know you will find your calling on your time and show those other designers what you¢re made of!
Date: 2016-04-30
From: Cincinnati, OH

To: Cincinnati, OH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I took off 4 days to go to Cincy for Jenny¢s graduation. I¢m glad I was able to do that because I was very happy to see her and didn¢t want to miss this special occasion for anything!I am lucky to have parents and siblings willing to take time off from their lives in order to allow me much needed R & R with my girlfriend. I think they like these breaks I¢m taking because it gives them an easy excuse to take a vacation. Jenny, I know your family, Sammy and myself have said this already, but I am very proud of you.   It isn¢t easy making it through DAAP, but what doesn¢t kill us makes us stronger. So I know you will find your calling on your time and show those other designers what you¢re made of!
Date: 2016-05-01
From: Cincinnati, OH

To: Cincinnati, OH
Miles today: 0.0

I took off 4 days to go to Cincy for Jenny¢s graduation. I¢m glad I was able to do that because I was very happy to see her and didn¢t want to miss this special occasion for anything!I am lucky to have parents and siblings willing to take time off from their lives in order to allow me much needed R & R with my girlfriend. I think they like these breaks I¢m taking because it gives them an easy excuse to take a vacation. Jenny, I know your family, Sammy and myself have said this already, but I am very proud of you.   It isn¢t easy making it through DAAP, but what doesn¢t kill us makes us stronger. So I know you will find your calling on your time and show those other designers what you¢re made of!