morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-08-15
From: Zealand Hut

To: Mizpah Hut
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: fog

Comfortable night in the hut. I was warm and dry as the rains poured all night. Up at 6 again as the croo set up for breakfast then we all filtered back outside in the rain as the guests ate. At least Zealand hut has a roof. Left over pancakes and even bacon for breakfast was nice then time to head out in the weather. Quick 5 miles to 1st shelter for our 1st break then a gradual 2 miles downhill where some beer magic awaited us. Pigeon and I each drank a beer in the rain, for the extra calories of course then it was time to climb back up on the ridge. An extremely steep wet rocky climb up webster cliffs. Unique climbing conditions. Pigeon, Cleanshave and I even fell on the same root. It was intense and strenuos climbing all day with steep ups and steep downs. No views due to the weather. Nasty cold rain all day.Made into Mizpah Springs Hut for another work for stay. Perfect. Great hut and even a warm place for us to hang out while the paying guests ate. Getting sick of being treated like a second class citizen. Oh well. Almost done with huts. Also some fucking day hikers came up from the parking lot and asked for work for stay. Bastards that means less food for me. Oh well. Still loving the whites but sick of the huts. I am use to doing whatever I want when I want and now I can't.
Date: 2011-08-16
From: Mizpah Hut

To: Lake's of the clouds hut
Miles today: 4.7
Weather: fog

Good breakfast at hut. Eggs and oatmeal then on trail by 9. Epic hiking conditions. Dense fog, rain, high winds. What an amazing experience. It's very unique being on a fully exposed ridge above treeline with 50-60 mph wind gusts. Also visibily for today was 1/16 of a mile and cold stinging rain and hail. Loving it.Made it the 5 miles into lakes of clouds hut by 11. Because the weather was so bad we were able to get work for stay here too. Sparkplug, Muffin Man, Zen, and few other hikers were able to zero at the hut too. What a great place to stay. The winds blew outside and the rains poured down and here I am inside beating sparkplug at cribbage. Awesome.Chill day at hut. As the day wore on more and more hikers showed up and all got work for stay. 18 total. Haha what a great croo. About 6pm the clouds finally broke and the sun even came out. Hikers went crazy running around outside in excitment as we all got our 1st view of Washington. So amazing.Huge meal too. Lasagna, pasta, salad, cookies, and soup. Plenty for everyone and the croo even cooked more for us after. Best croo in the whites. What an amazing trail experience. The dining room looked like a homeless shelter as 18 hikers made their beds on benches and the floor. Also the skies cleared and the stars came out. Very comfortable place.
Date: 2011-08-17
From: Lake's of the clouds hut

To: White Mountains Lodging
Miles today: 14.9

Slept very well in the dining room up at 5:30 for an amazing sunrise over the presidential range. Clear skies and every one is excited for the day. Huge pancake breakfast then a quick hike up Washington. I even beat the cog train which started the same time I did. Haha. Epic views from the top. Perfect cloudless sky. Yesterdays visibily was 1/16 of a mile today is 75-100 miles. Just amazing.Because Zen and I beat the train to the top we got the Washington sign before the crowd showed up. So we had a photo shoot up their as a line formed behind us. One lady said "there our other people waiting for a picture" while zen's reponse was "we hiked here from Georgia, you drove here you can wait in the car" Haha obnoxious thru-hikers. Loving it. It was also funny watching people run from the train or car indoors to warm up.A huge group of us chilled on the summit for over an hour and half. Pigeon, Cleanshave, Zen, Rambling Man, Sparkplug, Muffin Man. Couldn't have asked for a better day on Washington, 237 days in the clouds and we have a clear day.After a while time to hike on. Amazing above treeline ridge walk over the Presidential range. Views all day. Just a perfect day, probally my best day on trail. I didn't get views on Clingman's dome, grayson highlands, or roan mountain. But here I am in the Whites traversing the presidential range with amazing views. It's all been worth it just for this.After summiting mount madison the trail decended steeping below treeline for the 1st time all day. It continued down until Pinkham Notch. We made reservations at a hostel and even got a shuttle back. Pizza and beer at the end of the day was our reward for a perect day. Loving the AT.
Date: 2011-08-18
From: White Mountains Lodging

To: Imp Shelter
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Slept very well at the hostel in a nice warm bunk. Up for breakfast then shuttle back to the trail. After taking my pack out of the car I went to grab my trekking poles and woops I left them at the hostel. Perfect. Oh well nothing I can do now. Started hiking at 9:15 with an immediate ass kicking climb up Wildcat. Over 2000 feet of elevation gained over 1.6 miles. Yeah that's steep. A lot of tricky rock scrambles but plenty of views looking back at Washington and the Presidentials. Wildcat has 5 peaks and the trail traversed them all, each steep and rocky. Then an intense downhill to Carter Notch hut.Today was the new croos first day. No soup or baked goods available so I asked them if their was any leftover food they didn't want to pack out. The hut master gave Pigeon, teflon, and I a huge bowl of jumbalaya which we finished and a bunch of cookies. Perfect. Last hut on the trail and ended on a high note.The trail didn't get any easier after that. Another steep climb up Carter dome then up and down Mt Height and North and South Carter. The miles went by slow due to terrain but they also offered great views which caused me to take lots of breaks. Just a great day on trail, again. Made into Imp Shelter around 6 where I planned to eat dinner then night hike to the next shelter right before town. When I looked in my pack for my headlamp it wasn't their. Fuck. I left that at the hostel too. Well that made my decision to stay at this shelter. Tough miles on trail maybe it was for the best.
Date: 2011-08-19
From: Imp Shelter

To: Gorham, NH...White Mountains Lodging
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: broken clouds

Up early and on trail by 6am. Amazing to be on trail in the cool hours of the morning. Another unique experience hiking in the whites during sunrise. The presidential range was colored in a pink hue. Just amazing. After the climb up Mt Moriah that marked the official end of the White mountains. They were amazing, I couldn't have asked for better conditions.On the way down I got to thinking about my hike. I can't believe I just finished the whites. I was never even sure if I would make it this far or even out of Georgia. It still hasn't hit me what I'm doing. Less than 20 miles from Maine the most talked about state on trail. I've almost walked from Georgia to Maine. I mean it's real. I feel once I cross the Maine border I can officially think of myself as a thru-hiker. Since I was in such a daze all I day I still managed to fall 5 times in 8 miles maintaining my 2 fall average through the whites.Got down to Rt 2 about 9:45 and check into the hostel. Pretty excited one of my friends from home was driving up to meet me. It was chill hanging out with Jack again and his new BMW. Just like old times back home, driving around aimlessly and shooting the shit. It was great to see a familiar face again.Once back at the hostel it was time for some much needed R&R after completing the whites and getting ready to gear up for Maine. Beers and movies made for a great end to the day. Loving the trail and excited for Maine, 14th and final state.
Date: 2011-08-20
From: Gorham, NH...White Mountains Lodging

To: Gentian Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: clear sky

Chilled around hostel until 1. Easy terrain through out the day which was nice after the Whites. Short day out of town too, not sure I'm ready to start a new state today. At the shelter a kid from high school was also out on a weekend trip. Pretty strange being in the woods for over 4 months then running into someone you know at a shelter. But it was a very chill night.With a very clear sky and no light pollution it was easily the best night of stars I've had on trail. We could even see the milky way. Pretty amazing.Maine tomorrow. 14th and final state.
Date: 2011-08-21
From: Gentian Pond Shelter

To: Carlo Col Shelter
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: clear sky

Late start out of shelter, hung around until 10:15. Tough terrain out of NH with rock scrambles, rock steps, ladders, and ledges to climb up. I guess this is the way NH says goodbye. After about 5 miles of hiking I arrived to the most amazing sign I've seen on trail "Welcome to Maine. The way life should be". I've made it. I can't believe I'm here. On trail you hear Maine to Georgia or Georgia to Maine all the time. But to actually have hiked from Georgia, through North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Conneticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and now Maine. It's a pretty amazing feeling. I think I can actually call my self a thru-hiker now.Pigeon, Cleanshave, Sparkplug, Zen and I hung around the sign for a while sharing some of our most memorable moments on trail then hiked a short ways to the next shelter for some lunch. At shelter storm clouds started to roll in and we all quickly lost motivation to hike on. Not really ready to start final state. I can't believe I'm already here. Nero the north. I will be hiking slowly through maine. I'm at a crossroads of emotions. I want to be done but I don't want to leave life on trail. Oh well still 281 miles left.That night we had a crazy thunder and lightning storm. Glad I didn't hike on.
Date: 2011-08-22
From: Carlo Col Shelter

To: Grafton Notch
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Left shelter around 9 this morning excited for my first full day of hiking in Maine. Good terrain. Very fun, interactive and technical with steep ledges we that you had to pull yourself up on to then steep rocky descents and ladders. Nice climb upto Goose Eye Mountain which is an exposed rocky bald and exposed ridge walk. Great views and extremely intense winds. From the summit you could lean into the wind and it would hold you up in place.Slow miles all day and after 6 miles on trail it was time to enter the Mahoosuc notch, the most difficult mile on trail. It wook me over an hour to hike one mile through the notch with the most technical hiking on trail and to make it even more exciting it started to rain. Up, over, around, under and around as I manuvered through the boulder field. I also explored a couple of the caves and took a couple of breaks under rocks to sit in a dry spot. It was nice to exit the notch and have the toughest mile behind but then a long, never ending climb follwed up Mahoosuc arm. After only 9.5 miles I was completly exhausted and planned to stay at spec pond shelter. At the shelter I met Sparkplug and Zen who were also spent but convinced me to hike the 4 miles down to road to get pizza and beer in Bethel. Pigeon and Cleanshave already hiked on. My only weakness on trail in town food and beer so I decided to hike on. The tough miles continued to the road.We got to the road about 6:30 and well this winding mountain road had absolutly no cars on it. Perfect. About 1 car every 10 minutes. After about an hour of standing by the road waiting to even see a car I started getting the point were I was just going to pitch tent. Sparkplug just left to look for sites when a pickup truck pulled into the parking lot. As the car was coming down the road Zen said that looks like the truck that just passed us, and it was. They thought we looked miserable and cold so they came back to give us a ride to town, 20 miles away. Amazing. By far my longest hitch on trail.They were a nice family from New York and were very interested in our hike. We even saw a bear cross the road. Arrived at the hostel about 30 minutes later and the hostel owner gave each of us 2 beers and a pizza menu. Perfect. The hostel even had working bikes which Zen and I took out at 11 to cruise around. All in all a great day on trail with a perfect ending. Chill night.
Date: 2011-08-23
From: Grafton Notch

To: Pine Ellis Lodge
Miles today: 10.3

Hung around hostel for breakfast then around 10 decided to try our luck again to hitch the 20 miles back to trail. After about 45 minutes of waiting we got a ride. Amazing. Hiking by noon. Perfect.Maine had a little change of pace today. Much easier terrain then yesterday but then I guess anything is easy after the Mahoosuc notch. A nice above tree line walk over Baldpate with more amazing views. Maine: the way life should be.The trail continued gradually down to the road that lead into Andover. Sparkplug had a ride meeting her so Zen and I lucked out with a ride on road with no cars. Checked into hostel and ate dinner at the general store, the only thing in Andover ME. Pigeon and Cleanshave showed up a little later but our 10 miles ahead of us on trail. Chill night at hostel.
Date: 2011-08-24
From: Pine Ellis Lodge

To: Tree House
Miles today: 10.1

While eating breakfast at the general store, sparkplug showed up to see if we needed a ride back to trail. Zen and I were very grateful. Her ride was a friends mother from work who has a house in Andover. She offered a tree house in her backyard to Zen and I for tonight which we quickly jumped on. Perfect. Their are amazing people on trail.Back on trail by 10 and the 1st 6 miles were just a walk in the woods. The last 4 had a steep descent then an immediate ascent and finally one more descent down to the road. Just as we arrived to the road Jerry was pulling with his truck to take us back to his house. Perfect timing.Andover again. We met Muffin Man on trail today too and they even allowed him to stay at there house. Just amazing people. They even bought us pizza and beer. Perfect.Then to cap off another amazing day on trail I got to sleep in a tree house. What a great experience.
Date: 2011-08-25
From: Tree House

To: Bemis Mtn Lean to
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Up and out of tree house by 7:30 for a huge pancake breakfast. Thank you to Jerry and Carol for their amazing hospitality. Zen, Sparkplug, Muffin Man and I were back on trail by 9. Weather was suppose to be bad today. Maybe even hail. Hmmm. Comfortable weather to hike in a decent terrain however just before the shelter a light mist rolling in then rains. Perfect timing. In shelter at 2 to wait out the storm but it poured the rest of the day.Chill day at shelter with everyone.
Date: 2011-08-26
From: Bemis Mtn Lean to

To: Rangeley,ME
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Up way to early this morning. Plan is to hit up Rangeley for yes more beer and pizza. On trail by 7:45 and I felt groggy on trail all day but terrain was extremely easy. Only 1 steep descent and ascent then just another walk in the woods as the train meandered by a few lakes. I even heard my first loon. Just an amazing sound.Was in kind of a strange mood all day. Katahdin is so much closer than I thought. After talking with 2nd shift steamer at Sabbath Pond Lean to he told me expects to be done in 2 weeks. What? I don't want this adventure to end yet. On trail I just kind of moseyed along reflecting on the past 1900 plus miles and wondering where I'll be in 2 weeks or what I'll be doing in a month. It's strange to be nearing the end of the journey. Met up with sparkplug and zen at swift river campsite and cruised the final 5 miles to the road. First car hitch was nice but when he dropped us off in town he said he was actually a shuttle driver. It sounded like he wanted to charge us for the ride so Zen, Sparkplug and I just slowly walked away after got our gear.Ate a big meal in town and even got ice cream. About 8 just as it was getting dark came decision time. Hitch back to the trail or find a place to stay in town. All we have heard about lately is Hurricane Irene and how it is on a direct path for us. We tried to check into a couple places but they were full and eventually found a cheap motel. Not bad.
Date: 2011-08-27
From: Rangeley,ME

To: Rangeley,ME....Hurricane Irene
Miles today: 0.0

Zero in town. Everyone is preparing for this storm to hit. Wandered around town but their is not much to Rangeley,ME. Hitched up to the IGA to do my resupply and got a ride from a police officer. Haha. Then I even got a quick hitch back to the hotel.Zen, Sparkplug, and I decided to go bowling. Good times in town. The rains started about 3am.
Date: 2011-08-28
From: Rangeley,ME....Hurricane Irene

To: Rangeley,ME....Hurricane Irene
Miles today: 0.0

Woke to heavy rains in the morning. Got breakfast in town and even Vegemite made it in. Poured all day and the winds picked up. Got kind of restless staying all day. I just want to keep moving. I hate feeling stranded.
Date: 2011-08-29
From: Rangeley,ME....Hurricane Irene

To: Poplar Ridge Lean to
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Up for breakfast at 8:30. The wind and rains had died down. The sun was looking like it would make an appearance today. Chilled at the hotel until 10 then walked down the street to go to the library but before I could even get there I got offered a ride back to the AT. Well I can't refuse a ride so back to the trail I went, hiking by 11.It felt good to be back on trail again. The trail was absolute slop. A river of a trail with deep mud pits. Not many blow downs though which was nice. Got up Saddleback which offered great views and an enjoyable ridge walk. Then some slow miles as the trail got steep again. Straight down then back up to the Horn and again down the up to Saddleback JR. Great views along the way as most of the trail was above treeline.After a quick decent down from Saddleback Jr. the trail flattened out although still mostly a mud pit. Chill night at shelter with Zen, Muffin Man, Sparkplug, and even Ramblin Man showed up later. Looking forward to the upcoming trail.
Date: 2011-08-30
From: Poplar Ridge Lean to

To: Crocker Cirque
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: broken clouds

Up and 7:15 but not out of shelter until 9. So lazy in the mornings. Immediately met by a steep 2 mile downhill to first river ford on trail. Not a bad way to wake up in the morning. Shoes and socks off then across the cold thigh deep river, higher because of Hurricane Irene.This section of trail became an AT obstacle course. Tons of blow downs. We had go over, under, and around trees causing the miles to be slightly slower but otherwise the terrain was pretty easy. After another steep decent down from Sugarloaf the trail came to the 2nd big ford. Another thigh deep ford. Actually a lot of fun. Another new experience on trail. Loving the AT.About a mile after the river I pitched tent with Ramblin Man, Muffin Man, Sparkplug, and few other hikers. Great day on trail and yet another milestone. We now have less than 200 miles until Mount Katahdin. Insane.
Date: 2011-08-31
From: Crocker Cirque

To: Stratton,ME
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Last night rains came in about 11:30 and soaked everything. First time on trail dealing with a wet tent. Sucks but another trail experience. Oh well. Up and out by 8.A nice steep climb up and across the Crocker range to start then a nice long gradual downhill to the road. Quick day on trail. Muffin Man, Ramblin Man, Sparkplug and I head into yet another town in Maine. Haha. Truly neroing the north.We waited at the road for a long time waiting for cars to pass. Very few and none of them wanted to pick us up. Eventually Ramblin Man called the hostel and sent a shuttle to come get us. We found the the bridge on this road was washed away from Hurricane Irene so traffic has become very light. Crazy.Chill day in Stratton. Resupplied and another fun bar night. I even got to watch the Sox beat the Yankees.Fifteen miles tomorrow and I will be out of Southern Maine. The last tough stretch of the trail will be over. Then cruise control to Katadhin.
Date: 2011-09-01
From: Stratton,ME

To: Little Bigelow Lean to
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: broken clouds

Got up for breakfast, ride back to the trial, and hiking by 9:45. Last tough stretch of trail before me. Felt great all day on the steady climb up the Bigalow range which offered great views, maybe even the greatest view of the all. Off to the distance on this clear day you could see Mount Katadhin. Haha it does exist. The one mountain I've been chasing since Georgia. The trail was tough through out the rest of the day going up and down across the ridge. Felt great though. Passed another notable mile marker. Two thousand miles. I can't believe I just walked 2000 miles. Holy Shit.After a pretty steady down to the shelter I ended the day feel great. 175 miles left. Southern Maine is now behind me. It was extremely tough but I made through.Over the past few days I've been noticing more color in the trees. Today I saw one tree completely transformed with bright red leaves.
Date: 2011-09-02
From: Little Bigelow Lean to

To: Pierce Pond Lean to
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: clear sky

Another late start, out hiking by 9. Great terrain the easiest in over 600 miles. Cruised down to the 1st road, with 2000 miles written down the center lines. Also, trail magic here. First magic in over a month. Beers, soda, ice cream, and cherry pie. Awesome. Zen and I drank 5 beers each because well why not.After chilling for a while a van pulled over, he was a member of the Maine Hut crew. He said he needed help carring groceries to the hut because of a blowdown across the road. We would get free food if we helped. Perfect. So Zen and I climbed in the drove towards the hut. The supposed blowdown was already cleared so he was able to drive right up the hut. We only had to carry to boxes a short distance. Wicked easy and we got chili, bread, and pie. We even got chicken salad sandwiches to pack out. Perfect.We cruised the next 14 miles to the shelter in 4 hours and upon arrival a few other thru-hikers were walking away from the shelter saying some freshman orientation was taking up the whole shelter. Well that wasn't going to fly. When we got down their they said it was full. We responed with well this shelter isn't ment for large groups and we will get a space. With that they moved out. Haha silly freshman.Chill night at shelter with Ramblin Man, Muffin Man, and Zen. But some sad news too. Sparkplug who fell a few days ago was going to the hospital because she was having pains while breathing. She thinks she broke a rib.Late night star gazing. No light pollution and the milky way was visable. Zen and I could even spot salellites moving across the sky. Their was even some sporadic meteotite showers and a lightning show off in the distance. Amazing.