morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-04-25
From: Newfound Gap, Gatlinburg, TN

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Gatlinburg is brougt to you by the 'good' people at Ripley's Believe it or Not. No seriously, I can't think of a more tacky main street, it is awesome!!! In fairness I didn't make it over to Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburgs main trolley rival, but I hear it's just as fabulous. Of all the amazingly horrible attractions I decided to go to the aquarium, you can't go wrong with an aquarium. Though a bit over priced it was great, watching the other tourists was almost more fun than looking in the fish tanks. I spent about two hours wandering the aquarium, and another hour parusing the gift shop for a squeeky cuttlefish, sorry Katie they just don't give the cuttlefish it's marketable do. I also made it a point to go into every crazy sovenier shop and look at the plastic crap. There is no shortage of airbrush art in this area either. On the other hand if you go to the local artisans shops there is some really nice work being done there. Appalachian art is not my 'thing' but it is well represented. Since I splurged the night before on the buffet I bought stuff for meals at the local convenience store and ate in my room. The weather was supposed to be really bad this weekend but here in Gatlinburg it is beautiful. The news reported deadly tornados that touched down last night not to far from here. Checked out the outfitters and bought some rain pants and a waterproof stuff sac for the food. Now when it rains overnight I wont have premoistened oatmeal packets in the morning and with the rain pants hopefully I'll be able to make it farther on rainy days before succumbing to being soaked. The thing about rain gear is none of it will keep you dry while hiking. It will keep the rain off of you but by the time you've gone a couple of miles you're soaked in your own sweat anyway. It does keep you a bit warmer and takes the bite out of the wind. Talked with G on the phone and I'm really excited about coming home to work the Robin Hood Festival. We finally have a canvas pavillion tent!!! Right now the plan is for me to make it to Hot Springs by the first of May, enjoy the hot springs for a couple of days and find a way home. I'm a little sad that this break will bump me out of the thru-hiker category and into the section hiker/ 2000 miler category but there's only one first season with the new tent.
Date: 2010-04-26
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Peck's Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: light rain

Took the trolley to the Post Office this morning to pick the maildrop. Got back to the hotel around 10:30am, had to hustle to pack and check out by 11am. Went down to the outfitters and signed up for the noon shuttle back to Newfound Gap.. In the valley it had been drizzling but warm. Once back at the monument it was cold, rainy and a nasty wind was blowing. I grabbed the pack out of the back and headed to the public restroom to put on rain gear. Then it was up the mountain again. About a mile in I realized that I left the camelback water reservoir full in the back of the shuttle. ARGH! I have such bad luck with leaving things in shuttles. There is an empty nalgene bottle in the pack though so at Icewater Spring Shelter I can fill up and have at least one liter of water with me. At Icewater Spring Shelter, Mandog, FoodNetwork and a day hiker are here. The day hiker is out on a test hike for a future thru-hike of the AT. He generously shared his food with us and I had a large chunk of very dry but very sweet cheese. He made an alcohol stove from a cat food can and is testing it out. I¢m debating whether to continue to Peck¢s Corner Shelter or stay here for the evening. Here is only 3 miles in and I wanted to get further today so I make it to Hot Springs by the first. I decided to push on; about a mile later there was a sign for Charlie¢s Bunion, an interesting rock outcrop just off of the trail. I went on a fool¢s errand out in the misty clouds to get a look at it. The wind was fierce blowing the poncho straight up off of the pack, it almost got away but it was tied to the top straps. I was glad that it was so fogged in as I traversed the ridge. If I could have seen the drop off it would have made me double think what I was doing. At the rock it was just me staring at a round formation surrounded by mist and clouds, it was rather a surreal void to be in, like being stuck inside a television without reception. The wind had stolen all the sound away and I almost felt like I was floating. 8pm Finally got to Peck¢s Corner Shelter and as I figured the shelter is full. Several people have set up tents. Not looking forward to setting the tent up in the rain but I am looking forward to getting out of these wet clothes and into the warm dry tent. Had a cold, dry dinner set up the tent and got warmed up. The weather for tomorrow may be thunderstorms. I¢ll try to wait for a break to pack up in before heading out. Overall the hike in the bad weather was decent, I made just under 11mi which is great for me considering the late start.
Date: 2010-04-27
From: Peck's Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Woke up at 7am, it is still raining steady. I'm going to try to wait for a break before packing up. My hiking clothes are still soaked but I have one more dry base layer so I could put on the base layer with the wet clothes over top. This leaves me with only sleeping clothes that are dry though, not certain I want to do that. Noontime, hungry and the food bag is out on the hoist cables. Hopefully there will be a break soon. 1pm the rain has turned to an ice/sleet mix coming down at a decent clip. I'm watching it clump and slide off the tent. I'm warm in the tent in the sleeping bag and have put the idea of doning wet clothes to hike in this weather out of my head. 7pm There was a small break in the percipitation long enough for me to get the foodbag, eat dinner, use the privy, and tuck in for the night. I had contemplated moving things into the shelter but once I got back in the tent the sleet-now-snow mixture started coming down twice as hard as before. I'm having to shake the weight of the snow off the tent every five minutes or so, real time not hyperbole. I may be in an igloo by morning.
Date: 2010-05-14
From: Newfound Gap

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

It has been two weeks since arriving home, I light the firebowl in the back yard when ever possible and think about being on the trail. This weekend will be the second week of the Robin Hood Festival in Connecticut and I can't wait to sleep in the tent. The new tent is awesome, life is great! I am hoping to do another section of the trail between the Robin Hood Festival and Pennsic War but there is the chance of another show in between. We'll see how things go, another day on the journey.
Date: 2010-11-10
From: Damascus

To: Lost Mtn
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

2010_11_10 (treiadienis) Damascus ¢ Lost MtnDamask palikau pilnas ¢entuziazizmo¢. Dar prie¡ tai kavinukje  kals espresso kavos. Bet kuo toliau kilo saul tuo greiiau mano entuziazmas tirpo. Ka34kaip keista buvo eiti girdint tik lap3 ¡iug34des . Sustoji ir tylu. Pauk¡i3 neiulba, vabalai neskraido ir dar prie¡ pabaig kojos lyg gumins pasidar. Nieko, i¡tvrm.Esu jau Lost Mtn shelter. Danguje 34vaig34ds 34iba ir i¡linds pro med34i3 vir¡«ni3 kra¡t ¡vieia siauras mnulio pjautuvas. Ramu. Anei krep¡t. Tik gal alkaniausios pels ka34kur arti po sausus nukritusius lapus brazda.12i«riu   begalin  34vaig34dt dang3 ir matau kaip blykiojanios lktuvo ¡viesels be garso bga dangumi. Ten sdi 34mogeliai ir net nenumano, kad ka34kas i¡ apaios juos stebi.Band34iau pagauti krentanius lapus. Nepasisek. Trys buvo prie pat, bet taip ir nepagavau, gal rytoj pavyks?---|---I left Damascus full of "enthuziasizm¢. Even before at caf© I ¢punch in¢ espresso coffee cup. But as the sun continued to rise my enthusiasm quickly diminished. Somehow it was strange to hear only the leaves to rustle. Just stop and it is so quiet. Birds do not chirp, bugs do not fly, and before shelter my legs became like rubber.I am already at Lost Mtn shelter. Stars shine in the sky and through the narrow edge of the tree tops moon sickle sticks out. It is so calm. Not a sound. Just maybe hungriest mouses somewhere close scratching in the dry fallen leaves.I look at the endless starry sky and see an airplane flashing lights silently running sky. High above people are flying and may even have no idea that someone is watching them from the bottom.I tried to catch the falling leaves today. Unsuccessful. The three were so close, but I never caught them. Maybe tomorrow I will succeed?
Date: 2010-01-08
To: Gearin' Up
Miles today: 0.0

I purchased my shelter today, deciding on the Lunar Solo Enhanced tarp/tent. It weighs in at a miniscule 23 ounces! I also fired up my Jetboil stove for the first time. I've read a LOT of posts about meal options and cusine on the trail and intend to use my pre-hike time preparing many of the delicacies I've read about on my stove. Essentially, if the package says Knorr, Lipton, or Ramen then it's on the menu. Yummmm!It snowed in Atlanta today. It was only a light dusting, mabye 1/2 inch, but it was cold all day (teens and 20s) and unlike a normal dusting this snow didn't melt away by noon. Of course school was cancelled and the metroplex paralyzed. The cold weather we get in Atlanta is usually magnified (colder, more snow) in North Georgia and up into North Carolina/Tennessee. I checked the Class of 2010 on Whiteblaze.net and 44 people have posted a leave date of Jan/Feb. Not sure how many were departing the first week of January but those who have will definitely find themselves in a cold winter wonderland. My springtime April departure date sounds really good right now.
Date: 2010-01-22
To: All good things...
Miles today: 0.0

Today was my last with my company. I have no regrets walking away at this time. After 10 years and the luxury of perspective I can honestly say that this was the right experience at the right time in my life. My company and co-workers have always done right by me, and even at the last an assignment was available that might prolong my tenure. But right now I'm at a point where I think I need to step back and take stock of my life path. Other than my upcoming hike I don't yet know what the future holds. After 10 years of commuting and conference calls, to the point where one assignment began blurring to the next, I'm strangely at peace with this beckoning and brave new world.
Date: 2010-01-27
To: Re-Boot
Miles today: 0.0

Let me start by giving a shout out to Jeff and the crew at Half Moon in VA Highlands. Their main concern is making sure I get the gear that's right for me and not just selling me something because they carry it. These guys rock! That said, I bought a pair of boots there. They felt great in the store but after walking around house and neighborhood for a couple weeks I developed a nagging feeling that perhaps I wasn't walking on cloud 9 after all. I'd also been reading enough to begin doubting I even needed a heavy boot as opposed to a lighter trail shoe. If Grandma Gatewood could manage a thru of the A.T. (not once but thrice!) at the tender age of 67 (& 72 & 75) in a pair of Keds sneakers then surely I could manage in a trail shoe. Back at the store we worked it out with the decision falling to the North Face Hedgehog GTX. Mind be at peace!
Date: 2010-01-28
To: Tune Up - Stone Mountain
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today was a milestone of sorts, marking my first 7 mile conditioning hike with pack. The important thing was to hike with a 25lb pack but I still wanted to go through the motions of loading it with a proximation of the gear I intend to carry. I began packing around 8:00A and dismay set in around 9:00A when I realized an hour had passed and I was still trying to fill and organize a pack that was no bigger than a duffel bag. The art of packing is clearly an area rife with the potential for improvement. Good lesson.The hike around and up Stone Mountain was pleasant, temps in the 40s-50s with a near cloudless sky. With the addition of arm warmers I was comfortable in shorts and t-shirt. A pair of light gloves would have been nice. The hike around Stone Mountain is a 5 mile paved loop and the climb to the top is another mile. I followed the loop and found out afterward that there's also a parallel 5 mile nature trail that I'll look for next time. The mountain is appropriately, if unimaginatively, named as it is literally a huge mound of granite, nearly void of vegetation, jutting 1686' from the earth. From the top is a commanding 360 degree view showcasing the Atlanta skyline.
Date: 2010-02-10
To: The Waiting
Miles today: 0.0

It's 2 months before I set out but most of my preparations are made. Eagerness and anticipation have set in and that 'hurry up and wait' feeling has begun to creep over me. This feeling I most closely associate with my closing days of high school or college, when I would ease the foot off the accelerator firm in the knowledge that a life chapter was both ending and beginning. Mostly it's a feeling of just biding time. I'm eager to get started and excited about the prospect of living to a natural rhythm, walking and sleeping when the sun rises and sets or when my body simply tells me it's time to go or stop. I can't recall the the last time I pushed my limits every single day, did so because it's what I wanted, what I chose, what I could get passionate about.I recently finished reading 'Three Cups of Tea' and caught myself feeling both jealousy and envy, though not for obvious reasons. In the book the author's story begins with a wrong turn descent off of K2 that delivers him to a remote tribal village in Pakistan. This wrong turn ultimately reveals to him a life journey that is both rewarding and challenging on so many levels. For those of us not gifted with a terra firma vision of our life path, we should all be so lucky to take such a 'wrong turn'.
Date: 2010-02-18
To: Training Day
Miles today: 0.0

I awoke this morning with the remnants of fatigue lingering deep in my head and bones courtesy of yesterday's training hike at Stone Mountain. My game plan called for an up/down hike of the mountain (2 miles) followed by a trip around (5 miles), capped with a final up/down, all with my 30lb pack. The first climb was uneventful, my legs fresh and my strides strong and sure. The walk around the mountain was pleasant, the trail mostly level as it meandered through the woods and next to the adjacent lake. Mile 6 was when the gremlin showed up. I should explain 'the gremlin'. The gremlin is that insidious little voice that starts off faintly, originating from the recesses of nowhere, whispering that 'things are getting hard, you're getting tired, you hurt, maybe 7 miles is enough today and you don't really need to make that final 2 mile ascent, you'll feel better next time'. In short, it's that slow poison that would rob anyone of their capacity to wholeheartedly pursue their dreams, goals, and desires. At the 7 mile point I took pause at the base of the final ascent, fully aware of the gremlin and my wavering fortitude. I removed my pack and retrieved some granola and water as I considered my situation. No doubt I was fatigued. My legs felt like lead and no amount of strap adjustment could lighten the load on my back. The sun had already traced its' apex and the sparse trees and rocks had begun to throw lengthening shadows. It was getting colder and the wind was snapping and whipping taut a nearby flag. So it was with a final glance down the hill where my vehicle awaited, I gathered my resources, donned my pack and set my feet toward the summit. Climbing now, my strides had grown shorter, more tepid and ginger than the bold steps that came so effortlessly on my first ascent. The wind gained strength and drove a chill through all layers of clothing and I cupped my arms like shovels to ward off this additional transgression. At last I ambled to the summit, pausing for the briefest obligatory moment to take in the skyline view before turning into the wind and finishing my march to the bottom.
Date: 2010-02-20
To: Family Excursion
Miles today: 0.0

They won't be with me on the trail but I'm glad they were with me today as the family joined me for some fun and hiking at Stone Mountain. The kids did awesome hiking to the top and back down, with only the occasional stumble causing my pace and pulse to quicken or my arm to extend as if I possessed some Jedi power that will protect them from the evil clutches of gravity and their own clumsy feet. I was particularly impressed with Iowa's stamina; she's gotten much stronger. On the way down Connor and I part ways with Iowa and Roxana as we determine to meet up at the playground on the backside of the mountain. The girls will take the car around while Connor and I set out on foot. Connor claims that he wants to hike so he can get strong legs. On the dirt trail I retrieve the trekking poles from my pack. Connor wants to walk with one of the poles so I let him; father and son stride for stride on the trail with trekking poles in hand. We arrive at the playground at the same time Roxana and Iowa are pulling up in the car. I watch the kids for a spell while Roxana parks the car. When she arrives we agree that she will sit at the playground letting the kids play while I continue hiking around the mountain trail. We negotiate to meet up 30 minutes later at the old mill. Regrouped, we spend a little more time at the mill by the water before heading home.
Date: 2010-02-21
To: Seam Sealing
Miles today: 0.0

A gorgeous day, temps reaching 60, and just the weather I've been waiting for to seam seal my tent. Seam sealing is the process of applying a silicone based adhesive with a small brush to the seams of your tent. The seams can be a weak link in your defense against rain and moisture penetrating the inerior and seam sealing fortifies this weakness, ensuring the tents ability to withstand this intrusion. I knew nothing about seam sealing prior to my preparations for this trip.I lay the tent out on the front porch, anchoring the corners against the wind with convenient porch parphenalia; 2 umbrellas, a small bag of charcoal, and a bocce ball set. The weather and outdoor activity clearly calls for some tunes so I set up the boom box and iPod to help me find my seam sealing groove. The activity itself is straightforward, applying small amounts of the sealer directly from the tube with the brush, about 2 inches at a time, along all of the exterior seems. The whole activity takes 1-2 hours.
Date: 2010-03-01
To: Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield Park
Miles today: 0.0

Today's training hike took me to Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park. It was at this site that a large Confederate army made their stand against Sherman and his advancing Union troops. Twenty miles south, serving as the resupply hub for the Confederates, stands the prize city of Atlanta.The day is yet again cold, temps in the 30s with a stiff 15-20 m.p.h. wind; the wind being the worse of the two. On the mountaintop and exposed flanks the wind cuts through my clothing sending a discomforting chill over me, yet shielded by trees or on the leeward side of the mountain the wind drops and abruptly I begin to feel the beads of perspiration. All day it's like this, fluxing between hot and cold.I set out along the main trail leading to the top of the Mountain used for transporting cannons during the war; the trail a combination of dirt and boulder/rock outcroppings. The hike is pleasant with little foot traffic. I identify one family as tourists by their neck-slung camera and German conversation, the rest appear to be locals out simply for exercise, many walking dogs. I exchange a quick pleasantry or nod with most. One approaching fellow with an unleashed dog volunteers in lieu of a greeting, "She won't bite, she's just a puppy." I make my own assessment, eyeing this knee-high "puppy" for a wary moment before I accept his truth. The high, bright sun illumines the winter-brown landscape in crisp detail below the leaf-bare trees. A great number of blowdowns are brought into sharp focus lieing on the ground and across one another. The solemn location of this memorial battlefield stirs to mind the image of these fallen husks as the fallen bodies of the Confederate and Union soldiers that fought and fell on this location 150 years ago. I press on.The park hosts around 17 miles of trails but in many cases they are poorly marked and on several occasions I find myself facing a branching trail with no signage. The free map provided at the Visitor Center doesn't detail these branching arteries and is of little help. Due to my late start (because of the cold weather) and 5:00p closing time of the visitor center and parking lot I'm hesitant to push on to the further reaches of the park. I had planned to hike a large loop route but because of the poor trail markings I'm not exactly sure where I am, how far I've come, or how much further I've still to go. I note that this is good experience for planning my next hike at Kennesaw Mt. and take an (of course) unmarked path that leads back in the general direction from which I've come. My instincts and luck prove true and before long I'm back at the trail head, slipping out of the wind-whipped cold and into the warm, toasty comfort of a happily sunning car.
Date: 2010-03-23
To: Mundane and Mundaner
Miles today: 0.0

Just over 2 weeks left and small, nagging doubts careen like sunbeam-illuminated specks of dust in my mind. These doubts have nothing to do with the trip itself but rather the buildup and preparation. I don¢t want to spend my last week feeling rushed or harried, or set foot on the trail with any mental baggage other than moving forward and embracing this long held dream. I jot to-dos on a small notepad as they drift into my mind and far too occasionally enjoy the simple satisfaction of crossing something off. The disconcerting thing is that nothing on my list feels urgent or big, in fact just the opposite everything feels small and surreptitiously non-urgent. An REI visit placates my sense of preparation inertia as the final remaining gear pieces fall into place, and with their acquisition the pleasant feeling that a small unseen weight has lifted. Like jigsaw puzzle pieces that just don¢t quite fit where you think they should go, these are items I could have lived with but only realize my annoyance with them after they are finally replaced. I exchange a small compression sack for a medium size to better accommodate my few pieces of clothing, replace my current hydration pack with a more durable and functional Platypus version, replace my small titanium cup that never found a comfortable niche in my pack with an even smaller collapsible cup and my water bottle with a smaller (750ml), narrower bottle that also is more pack friendly. Later I load everything into my pack, including food and water, tweaking the placement of each item until I¢m satisfied with the arrangement. I set the pack on the scale for weigh in and am pleasantly surprised at the 28-29 lb result. I¢m sure I¢ll hit 30 lbs with the addition of a bit more food and a couple odds and ends but I always held 30 in my mind as the magic number so I¢m satisfied.I pick up my kindergarten age son from school and his teacher beckons me over. She tells me she¢s intrigued about my trip and asks if I would mind speaking to the class about my upcoming hike. Next week is my last ¢free week¢ and I don¢t want to over commit during this period but I¢m excited about the idea of sharing my adventure in some small way with the kids. In fact I have always held a hope that I could engage them and perhaps find a way to share my journey while it¢s in progress, even if it¢s just stick pins in an A.T. strip map to track my progress. I ask my son, Connor, if he¢d like me to talk to his class about my hike and with his ¢Yes¢ I¢m already thinking about the show and tell fun I¢ll have with my pack.