morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-05-10
From: Damascus

To: Saunders Shelter
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: overcast clouds

I slept poorly yet again and was slow in the morning. We had another shower and then headed to the free breakfast. They had make-your-own waffles, donuts, and cereal. As I ate I got to meet a genuine Southern Baptist Preacher. Thankfully he decided to leave my religious preferences out of the conversation and was more interested in hearing about our trip and what we were eating.We arranged a shuttle from Mt Rogers Outfitters which carried us to the Food City store outside Damascus. We resupplied here and spent far too much money, tempted by better stuff than our usual Dollar General fare. Fresh produce was well worth the money and I left with two apples and an orange, along with some sweet peppers! Heavy, but very tasty. We then used the Virginia Creeper trail (similar to the Iron Horse) to return to downtown Damascus, which was much quieter now that the yard sale was over.After a quick trip to the dollar store we spotted Funky Monkey across the street at Quincy's and joined her, River, and City Slicker for lunch. Monkey was waiting for Gonzo, who was now far behind after leaving the trail four days to attend a wedding. He'd been pulling long miles and slackpacks to get caught up and was due in anytime. Before long he walked past the window and she practically knocked over her chair to go give him a hug! He walked in, looking very tired, but somehow she convinced him not to take a zero day and hike out an additional 9 miles that evening. After our lunch she followed him to The Place (church hostel) where he jumped in the shower, handed out his dirty clothes, and she did his laundry! She even bought all his resupply too so he could go!We made another quick trip to SunDog so Beth could get some new SuperFeet and then hit the trail again about 3:15. The trail was thankfully not too steep and the temperature not too hot so we made a good pace, reaching the first shelter about 7:15 where we setup the tent. Joining us were Bear Blaze, Mad Mike, The Professor, and a few fast hikers we didn't know. As we setup our camp in rolled Monkey, followed by a very tired Gonzo! We all ate dinner and rolled into our tents early when temperatures dropped.
Date: 2010-05-11
From: Saunders Shelter

To: Deep Gap
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Left camp late at 9:45 and did some climbing before a long drop to a little pond for a snack. Gonzo and Funky caught us here and we all hiked together to the next shelter. The AT dropped again and merged with the Virginia Creeper trail for awhile along the river bank. We crossed one very large trestle which was impressive! From there we climbed uphill again to the next shelter, stopping there for a lunch break. As we ate HD Mama and Sabbath Keeper passed through. HD Mama kindly offered to leave us some sodas in the next stream crossing, where her truck was parked!Packing out to the road we found the sodas, just where she said they'd be! That was a really welcome treat and sugar boost, which we would need for the rest of the day. Ahead of us was Mt. Rogers, the highest point in Virginia. We steadily climbed up the side on good trail but all of us were tiring. The trail alternated between nice meadows and open forest. Though gray clouds were building the rain held off. When we reached the open meadows at the top we stopped for a snack and to admire the view.Our plan was to camp on the ridge at a road crossing site, but when we reached it we found the camps to be very slanted and a little boggy. Instead we decided to try to push on to Thomas Knob shelter, an ambitious goal given the daylight we had left. Poor Gonzo trucked along though we promised him it wouldn't be a long day. I was in the lead now and tried to keep a fast pace to make the best of the remaining daylight. We made some great progress and were soon crossing the VA 600. Just beyond this, traveling through the meadows, a group of dayhikers moving the other direction informed us the shelter was full. This shelter sleeps 16, so we had our doubts, but knew there were no camps around it and opted to just grab the next site near water we could find.We hit a blue blaze side trail and investigated, finding a great site. As we pitched camp Funky took the water bucket and made the trek to fill it at the spring. The sun was now nearly down and temperatures dropping. Thankfully it wasn't raining, but it looked due at any moment. Funky is a minimalist and had even ditched her tarp, planning to sleep in shelters when its rainy and in the open otherwise. Now she had the choice of jumping in with Beth and myself, in our 3-person tent, or Gonzo in his 1.5 person Lightheart Tent. She chose Gonzo, somehow even cramming her Big Agnes pad inside.It was cool evening so we started a nice fire for heat and light while we cooked. Everything was damp and the fire was hard to start. I'd heard hand sanitizer works well and gave it a shot, squirting some on a big piece of moss. It flamed right up and got the fire going! I'd always wanted to try that. We stayed up very late listening to Mitch Hedberg on Gonzo's Blackberry and just relaxing. It was supposed to rain in the morning, then taper off, so we slept in.
Date: 2010-05-12
From: Deep Gap

To: Big Wilson Creek
Miles today: 7.6

I was up early, like always, and getting antsy to get moving. Eventually Beth got antsy too and we finally rolled out about 12:30 pm. Ouch. We walked to the cramped LightHeart tent and knocked, greeted by a groggy Funky and squished looking Gonzo. We told her our plan to which she alertly responded "....huh....?" Off we went up the side of Mt Rogers on slick, muddy trail. Near the top we dropped our packs and ascended the side trail to the top so I could claim another state highpoint. No views from the treed summit but with the clouds I wouldn't have seen anything anyway.We reached Thomas Knob shelter to find Gonzo and Funky here! We all ate lunch together and regrouped with Bear Blaze, who had stayed the night and was taking a zero in the shelter. And then an odd thing happened. Funky had brought in a loaf of bread, peanut butter, and a jar of homemade jam. She had made a sandwich for herself when a young dayhiker asked her to make him a sandwich too! She stared but he was all seriousness! Bad etiquette; you never ask a thru-hiker to give you food, let alone make you a sandwich! They are the hungriest people on the trail, you feed them! She made him one anyway but with no jam.After lunch we moved onwards trying to reach Wise Shelter. Along the way we kept our eyes open for any of the feral ponies that inhabit the area and Grayson Highlands. Sadly we only spotted one pony skeleton, which still provided a great photo opportunity. Funky had also heard about a warning sign in the area that, among other things, warned visitors not to "molest" the ponies. We had to find it. In the end we dropped packs and made a side trip to the parking area to see this. Seems pointless, I know, but when one spends weeks in the woods simple things like this are important. Mission accomplished, we returned to the trail.The trail was now very rocky and rough. We crossed over Rhododendron Gap, the highest point on the AT in Virginia, before dropping down. Soon we were passing through Fat-Man Squeeze, a narrow rock gap the trail passes through. We continued our drop, climbing over sections of fences as we went, before reaching Wise Shelter. It was taken over by a group of southbound hikers who were not accommodating. There was still space for one more inside but they strongly hinted we should move on.We still had some daylight so we moved on another mile, camping in a grassy meadow beyond a creek. It was a little boggy here with lots of pony droppings but a serviceable site. Joining us for the night was Hedgehog, while Hollywood made his way to the shelter. There he informed the other campers if they didn't move over he was going to lay across all their legs! He's a big guy and kind of intimidating so they made space. We expected to get rained on but stayed dry overnight.
Date: 2010-05-13
From: Big Wilson Creek

To: Hurricane Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

In the morning Funky tried her best to make pancakes on her alcohol stove. It ended up resembling pancake-flavored and buttery chunks of goo but was still very tasty. The sky was clearing so we had high hopes of sighting a wild pony. We moved on through the meadows and soon reached The Scales, sight of an old cattle weighing point before the cows were walked out to town. (the idea being the cows were at their fattest here and brought the best price, vs weighing them in town) Up on the hill I could see some ponies so I dropped my pack and ran up for a photo. When I returned the rest had moved on so I jogged awhile to get caught up.Soon we were crossing a creek that marked the 500 mile point! We stopped here for a photo op before continuing on. Onward we went, stopping at Old Orchard shelter for more water and a lunch break. We met Stix here, who wasn't feeling well. We dug through our packs and fixed him up with anything we had. He was planning to hike down to the road and hitch out if he didn't get better. We even gave him some hot Propel water (it's actually good hot) which helped.Our plans were to cover some miles and break up the next few days but that wouldn't last long. The rain started just as left, slowing us down. Combined with that we found more sodas at the next highway! But the ultimate temptation was ahead. We reached Hurricane Mountain shelter and found it totally empty. It's a newer shelter and very nice. We all waffled on what to do and in the end decided to just stay here for the night, judging the weather to be bad overnight. Soon after us, Bear Blaze showed up and the five of us had the shelter to ourselves all night. All of us cleaned off as best we could and we stayed up later than usual listening to music on Gonzo's Blackberry, as well as his "Quiet Storm" radio show. In the distance we could see lightning flashes, though we stayed dry.
Date: 2010-05-18
From: Atkins

To: Va. 42
Miles today: 11.8

We debated how to salvage the day. We had to cover some miles! To help the others wake up I made a pilgrimage to the Exxon for coffee. We finally decided to accept a slack-pack offer from HD Mama, gaining us 12 miles. At 9:30 she and her husband came by and off we went, hiking from the Relax Inn north to VA-42. The day was cloudy and the trail muddy but we made good speed. Along the way we ran into Laidback and Trashman. Laidback hiked with us, at our pace, even with his heavy pack.Before long the trail crossed a road and some cow pastures. Cows were present, along with their, um, leavings. Most of us avoided this hazard but Beth several times mistook them for rocks and ended up ankle deep in cowpie. We made short work of the miles and reached a picnic shelter at VA-42, where we again ran into Draggin'-Tail and Sherpa. They had spent the night under the highway overpass to escape the rain. We cleaned up a little and enjoyed sodas from HD Mama's husband and their chihuahua Daisy. We all piled back in the truck where they gave us huge rice-crispy treats and enjoyed the very twisty road back to the motel.Laundry was started, showers enjoyed, then Bear and I walked to The Barn Restaurant for dinner, to be joined soon by Beth and Gonzo. One curious item on the menu: you can add "21 shrimp" to any meal for $2. Sadly they were out of shrimp in any quantity. The food was very tasty though. After dinner we walked over to the Exxon, which offers Internet access, before returning to the Relax Inn for more relaxing and planning.
Date: 2010-05-19
From: Va. 42

To: Garden Mountain
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: light rain

Checked out, we again hopped into HD Mama's truck for a ride to VA-42. Big thanks to the two of them for keeping us moving! We hiked uphill and soon reached the Knot Maul Shelter. Before long Tour Guide and Timber showed up. We signed into the register, naming our small group the "Motley Thru". Dropping into the valley to collect water, most everyone put on their headphones for a long climb back above 4000 ft. The climb was easier than we thought and everyone made it in short order.On top of the ridge the clouds were swirling. We stopped at the stone Chestnut Knob shelter briefly and then continued on, hoping to add some mileage. We dropped again to a gap, gathered more water, and continued onwards back onto the rocky ridge. We hoped to find a camp here which was more difficult than we'd anticipated. Finally we found a site on Garden Mountain and just as the tents went up the rain began. We all hopped inside, except for Funky. The Hennesy-Hammock she had just purchased at Trail Days was not packaged with a rain fly! She decided to sit inside it and sulk for a bit, then jumped in with Beth and myself for the night.
Date: 2010-05-20
From: Garden Mountain

To: Laurel Creek
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

It rained a little overnight but we all stayed dry. I was, as usual, the first one up but couldn't rouse the others. I took down the bear bag and tried not to fidgit too much. Finally up and packed we departed camp about 10:30. We walked along but were distracted shortly by a nice rocky view. We stopped here for awhile and admired Burke Garden (rocky valley) far below, checked cell phones, and then moved on. The group split a little as some went faster and others slow, but we all rendezvoused at the next shelter for lunch.As we ate Funky told us she was not feeling well and after lunch she decided to just stop here and rest in the shelter. Beth and I were on more of a deadline so we pushed on, along with Bear Blaze. Gonzo lingered awhile but eventually caught us. We made it down to the creek about 5 miles further, followed a trail reroute, and reached a campsite with a big styrofoam cooler of water from a church group. By now it was clear I wouldn't reach Pearisburg Friday evening as I had wanted and I was pretty dejected. I couldn't make a decision where to go, so we just stayed the night here. Staying with us were Eric The Red, Timber, and Tour Guide.
Date: 2010-05-21
From: Laurel Creek

To: Brushy Mountain
Miles today: 23.0

In the morning Beth, myself, and Bear Blaze left early. Gonzo decided to stay behind with Tour Guide and get a ride into Bland with a church group for breakfast. The trail was excellent and not steep so we climbed quickly out of the valley and again onto the ridge. Before long we crossed a dirt road and read an unfortunate sign: the church pickup was only Mondays and today was Thursday! We had no way to warn them so kept moving. The trail was poorly marked here. We followed along and found it again, becoming the shoulder of a paved road for quite awhile.Eventually it left the pavement and we stopped for lunch here at a creek. Heading out again I surprised a very large garter snake! As he slithered away he startled a very large, creepy spider. Creepy crawlies rule this area. We reached Jenny Knob shelter about 4:45, making 20 miles for the day so far. At the shelter were Timber, Stix, his neice, and soon Krispy Kritter rolled up, followed by Red Stick. We ate dinner here (Bear again had two dinners) before gathering water and heading onwards. Just as we were heading out Gonzo caught up!About two miles further Gonzo spotted an awesome camp and he and Bear Blaze stopped for the day. Beth and I continued on and up to the ridge again, finding a decent campsite right on the 600 mile mark of the trail. We were joined in our tent by a very cool fuzzy caterpillar with large antennae. Less welcome was all the poison ivy to which Beth is very allergic.
Date: 2010-05-22
From: Brushy Mountain

To: Near Angel's Rest
Miles today: 22.0

In the morning I was feeling stiff but ok, while Beth was very beat up. She put on her game face though and we got moving. We again found our caterpillar friend, this time hanging on the outside of the tent. Beth named him "Norm" and we moved him to safety as we packed the tent. A very large suspension bridge spanned the water.Across the way the trail continues flat and just seemed to go forever. We stopped to clean off in Dismal Creek and kept moving onwards to Wapiti Shelter for lunch. Three section hikers were here (Stoolie, Remog, and Busch). Later we would learn this particular shelter was the site of a double-murder in the 80's! Even worse the killer, when let out of prison a few years ago, went back to the area and shot two fisherman. A creepy place and Beth was glad we were not staying here.I was running on calorie deficit today, short of food due to our low mileage days before, and had a hard time keeping up. The climb to the ridge, again about 4000 ft, was thankfully not too bad. Some rocky viewpoints on the ridge were nice but we could see gray clouds on the way. We continued on, riding the ridge, and the trail became very rocky. Large pieces of slab made for slower progress and tired us after two long days.After another hour we reached Doc's Knob shelter and stopped here for dinner. The shelter itself was in a very wet site, spanning the water source, and within smelling distance of the privy. Not the best site. Inside we again found the three section hikers. Just as we dropped packs the rain began. We ate our dinner and thought about what to do. We needed to get a few more miles in so we had a short day into Pearisburg Saturday. We had to make it to the Post Office before they closed at noon or get stuck another day waiting. Happily as we finished dinner the rain stopped!We agreed to continue on for another mile or two and setup camp. The trail dived between large thickets of rhododendrons and didn't offer any inviting spots to stop. Other sites were far too slanted and we were tempted to continue on in the fading daylight. We considered camping on an old logging road but again moved on. Nearly out of light, about 8:30, we finally decided to stop in a grassy clearing on the ridge below some high-voltage lines. Not the most ideal site but not bad either. We pitched the tent, deployed all the guylines against the wind, and finally hung our bear bag right on the metal tower.With great cell-phone service I called United and delayed my flight from early Sunday morning to Monday afternoon. I wasn't going to make it for the early flight and had to incur the fee. We stayed up awhile and relaxed. This was my last night in the tent, indeed my last night outdoors, on the trip, and I was sad. Just a few short miles away was Pearisburg, my departure point from the trail. I had a fitful nights sleep, thinking about all I was leaving behind, everything and everyone.
Date: 2010-05-24
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

No alarm was set and I slept in the latest I had all trip. Amazingly the first one up was Funky Monkey, normally the snoozer in our group! She left early and returned with coffee for all of us and cinnamon rolls courtesy of Hedgehog! I had yet another shower and then we sat around sorting gear. Beth packed up her cold weather gear and broke out the summer sleeping bag. I went through my pack and gave her anything she could use. I traded my more efficient and lighter folding Optimus stove for her Pocket Rocket, gave up my remaining first aid stuff, and then stuffed all my gear into my pack.Later we took a pack and walked the 2 miles across town to Super-Walmart for her resupply. We also had a mission to buy some first aid supplies for Funky, bike-shorts for Bear, and a new umbrella for Hollywood. As I followed Beth around, she loading food into the cart for her next few days, I had nothing to do. It was about now that it really hit me: I was going home. Of all the things to make me sad it was a simple resupply trip. I walked away and bought a T-shirt that fit me better than my now oversized street clothes and we left the store for lunch at Wendy's.On the walk back we talked and wrapped up some things we'd been trying to figure out the past few weeks. Back at the motel room I sat on the bed and watched the madness of a thru-hiker resupply, this time as a simple observant rather than participating. It was interesting, surreal, and emotional at the same time. We sat around some more and I just enjoyed relaxing. It was just the four of us now; Gonzo decided to hit the trail a day earlier while Funky, Bear, Beth and I stayed again at the Plaza. Later on Bear, Beth and I walked over to Lucky Dragon for Chinese food. It was honestly the worst Chinese I've ever had and despite the cheap price of the buffet and our huge appetites none of us had seconds. But as a going away dinner by awesome friends it was one of the best meals I've had.My fortune cookie? "The time is right to make new friends." I dont know how to take that.
Date: 2010-05-25
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Roanoke, VA
Miles today: 0.0

In the morning I was slow to get up again. After another shower we all walked for coffee, then hit the Post Office again to mail some stuff home. I was carrying the rest of Beth's cold weather gear on the plane in my checked luggage. My flight was due to leave Roanoke later that afternoon and I had lucked into a ride! Radar, a Virginia Tech grad, was also leaving the trail and one of his friends was picking him up. He graciously offered me a ride to Blacksburg, where I could then catch a bus to Roanoke!The next hour or two passed slowly before his friend showed up. I knew leaving the AT was going to be hard after so long but I didn't know how hard it truly would be. I couldn't believe it was really over, it felt like the trip had just started. I even shed some tears. It was so much to leave behind: the hiker lifestyle, the freedom of just walking, the trail, all the new friends I had met, and the girl I loved and had shared everything with for the past two months. I didn't want to leave any of it or anyone. Finally I forced myself into the Jeep and we were off.At Virginia Tech I boarded the SmartWay bus and rode this for an hour to Roanoke airport. I had time to kill so I sat in the bar and ordered an $8 beer, then finished my trail journal. My luggage checked, I walked to the United boarding area and sat down. Strangely, sitting right across from me was Luke, one of Beth's friends from Seattle! What a small world! We talked for a bit before he had to leave for his flight. And then it was announced that my flight was delayed. This delay was long enough that I wouldn't make my connecting flight. I checked with the ticketing agent and he informed me I'd have to wait until 6am the next day on Delta, and they'd pay for a hotel room. Argh! I could have spent one more day on trail!Voucher in hand, the van picked me up and took me to The Sheraton. It was the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in and totally blew away everywhere we'd stayed on the trail. The clerk apologized but they were out of one-bed rooms and would I accept a room with two. Yes. I walked up to find a huge room with two puffy queen beds, piles of pillows, a huge television, big bathroom, and a coffee maker! It was very nice. But all honestly all I could think about was how much my friends would enjoy the place and how many hikers could sleep on the floor. I would have happily given up this clean and fancy room for one more night in the small Plaza motel.I ate dinner in the hotel restaurant, sat in the ballroom for no particular reason, then wandered around awhile. Later on Beth called me from the trail. I missed her very much already. She was camped on the ridge with a nice view, along with Bear Blaze. I wished I was there. I set a very early alarm and went to sleep alone for the first time in two months. It felt wrong.