morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-08-23
From: Stratton-Arlington Rd. (Kelly Stand Rd.)

To: Prospect Rock
Miles today: 12.6

Climbed the fire tower on top of Stratton Mountain (4,000ft). Very beautiful 360 degree view from the top. Passed the 3/4ths (75%) completion mark. Ended the night camped near a local hotspot that had a sunset and an outcropping rock that gave views of the Manchester Center, VT below. ----------------------------------------------" Bathroom Habits on the Trail "In the first few weeks on the trail hikers would walk a tenth of a mile into the woods to hide behind stuff out of view to use the restroom. This didn't last very long. Most people barely even pee or poop a foot away from the actually walkway of the AT. Hikers also talk very freely about their poops, farts, and buttholes.
Date: 2013-08-24
From: Prospect Rock

To: Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 4.9
Weather: clear sky

Short hike to town today. Resupply at the Price Chopper.Exchanged my used/damaged pair of Vermont Darn Tough socks for a free new pair at the EMS outfitter. Laundry for the first time in a week or more. We treat ourselves to a movie tonight at the tiny local theater. The people working their are very friendly and give us a hiker discount. The movie ends around 11:30pm and we stealth camp behind the building right next to a creek.
Date: 2013-08-25
From: Manchester Center, VT

To: Griffith Lake tenting area
Miles today: 10.6

Breakfast at McDonald's lasted a couple of hours. We were feeling lazy and more hikers kept rolling in. The Voice, Rabbit, and a slew of yellow blazers are here. The highlight of the day is on display when we ride the ski lift gondola down from Bromley Mount to the fun center below. The ski resort is still making plenty of money during their off season. People of all ages are running around everywhere playing carnival-like games & rides. There is everything from mini-golf and bumper boats to zip-lining and sliding down a few hundred feet of mountain side. We don't spend any money but we do spend a lot of time people watching. Campsite tonight is between a small swampy lake and some smaller swampy swamps. Mosquitos are annoying but this is an every night ritual.
Date: 2013-08-26
From: Griffith Lake tenting area

To: Greenwall Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Pretty basic day. We slept in much later than usual and had to eat dinner in the dark though. My guidebook completely screwed up on listing the mileage between two or three landmarks. Smirks decides today that she is going to go on a vow of silence until we hit New Hampshire. She ends up making it about 30 something hours before accidentally talking. She was extremely upset about breaking the streak but its still pretty impressive. I wouldn't be able to go that long without talking. Even on the days when I saw absolutely zero other humans I still talked to the trees and animals around me. ------------------------------------Vermont was tough and muddy on the first day but since then it has grown into my favorite state on the trail so far. Maybe I've forgotten about all the beauty from the previous 11 states though.
Date: 2013-08-27
From: Greenwall Shelter

To: Clarendon Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: broken clouds

Our mileage has been slipping lately. It's a little nerve racking because Baxter State Park in Maine has a set closing date and the weather is going to be very uncomfortable soon. Near the end of the day we stop at a local deli / general store located 1 mile from the trail. ---------------------------------For bottles on the trail I use two 36oz empty plastic soda bottles that I bought hundreds and hundreds of miles ago. They have both had some visible dirt around and inside the caps but I never paid it much attention because I'm always in the dirt so what's the point of scrubbing anything clean right? Welllllllllll upon further inspection Smirks and I realize that one of the bottles has more than dirt in it.....black mold! Yep, spores and mold was all up in one of my water bottles.
Date: 2013-08-28
From: Clarendon Shelter

To: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Smirks has been pretty sore and down about hiking lately so today we work out a way to give her a break of sorts. She walks about a mile back to the last road to hitch north to the Yellow Deli hostel in downtown Rutland, VT. We had previously heard great things about the hostel and that they also offer work-for-stay opportunities. This is great because we want a bed and shower but don't have the extra funds for something like a hotel. She gets to town easily and begins her chores at the hostel which I think was laundry and light cleaning of the bunk rooms. I hike the trail. Just under 17 miles from last night's campsite is a road that also leads to Rutland and the deli hostel. This works for me because I can end my night clean and happy at the hostel and still get in some daily mileage toward my ultimate goal: Katahdin. The Yellow Deli (and hostel) is great. The members of the Twelve Tribes religion are extremely generous and nice people. The hostel is unlike any other I've stayed at yet. It is located downtown in a real city and is above a deli / coffee shop. The deli part focuses on drinks and meals made from organic and fresh products. My work-for-stay duty involved a light sweep and mopping of the dinning room area of the deli. During my work I ordered a hot Chai Matte and they gave it to me for free! They normally charge $2.75 per cup. It's delicious! After both of us have cleaned up and finished our quick working chores Smirks and I walk around a few blocks downtown and grab a couple of items from Wal*Mart. This is the first shower that either of us have had in 11 days!!!!
Date: 2013-08-29
From: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT

To: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT
Miles today: 0.0

Thought about slack packing today but there were no great options for setting up the task so instead we went to the Twelve Tribes' organic farm located an hour southwest of Rutland in the tiny area of Bellow Falls, VT. The hostel caretaker Nataan and farm hand Sirah gave us a tour of the farm community and then did the work with us. All of us talked, shared stories, and worked together as a group. Smirks, Whisper, I were the only north bounders who opted for the farm chores today. Also helping us were south bounder hikers Grub, CoCo and Wildcat.We started with cutting and picking pumpkins, then moved to transplanting roman lettuce before snacking on raspberry bushes before having a homemade organic lunch. After lunch a few of us played a quick game of volleyball - the choice recreational activity of the community since TV is not allowed. After the game we head back to the field to remove overgrown weeds from the long rows of carrots. We end our full day of farm work by trimming up some onions in the second story of a 3-story large barn. It was a good day and a nice change of pace. I learned a little about organic farming and used the time off for catching up on my trail journal.
Date: 2013-08-30
From: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT

To: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Took a full true zero day. No chores and no hiking. Smirks and I walked around the town a little bit and watched some of the free entertainment going on to supplement the State Fair festivities. Spent the night hanging out with the other hikers here and had a great time.
Date: 2013-08-31
From: Yellow Deli (Hostel) - Rutland, VT

To: Kent Pond. 
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We got back to the trail a little late. Our hitch took us to the wrong trail head so we walked on the main road for a little over 1 mile to get back to where I had previously gotten off a few days ago. Terrain is sloppy and muddy. Light scattered showers rain down on us. There comes a short break in the rain so I take my rain jacket off because it was making me uncomfortable. Twenty minutes pass and then we get the heaviest storm of the day. Now I am even more uncomfortable. My entire body is soaked. It's too late to put the rain jacket back on now so I carry on. We stop at a supposed hiker-friendly lodging place to take a short break from the heavy rain. We grab a Pop-Tart and a Rice Side from the hiker box but when I go in to ask to use the restroom I am given a look of shock from one of the hostesses catering the ceremony that has bought out all the rooms tonight. No hikers are allowed to tent up on their property this weekend. It will be dark in 30 minutes and we still need to cook dinner so we don't hike much farther away. We set up a stealth camp site in a parking lot near a nice large pond (I would described most of the ponds in the northeast as being lakes). As I finish setting up the tent and throwing all my stuff into it I notice some human feces and lots of toilet paper located next to a boulder right next to us. Sometime overnight a car pulls into our tiny parking lot and parks facing away from us. I try to wake Smirks up but she is sleeping hard. I grab my pocket knife and headlamp just incase the people in the car get out and come near the tent. I look out of the vestibule once but it doesn't take long before the car leaves. I assume whomever pulled up was just some couple looking to be alone. Nobody ever got out the car. Our tent probably disturbed their plans. The weather ended up being fine overnight
Date: 2013-09-01
From: Kent Pond. 

To: Lookout Farm "private cabin"
Miles today: 13.5

Rolling climbs throughout the day. The weather held steady in our favor until we were safely sleeping in an enclosed two story private cabin. The cabin is owned by Lookout Farms but is open to hikers as long as they don't burn it down and do respectfully clean up after themselves. A wooden ladder has been built onto the outside of the cabin leading to a tiny deck and bench above the roof. The view from the top is great. You can see mountains all around in a 360 degree view. The sunset was okay. We didn't wake up early enough to catch the sunrise and we didn't venture outside to see the stars because it rain all night. Southbounder Peru is here doing a section. Munches, whom we just met a day ago at the Yellow Deli hostel, is also here.
Date: 2013-09-02
From: Lookout Farm 

To: Woodstock, VT (Dan Q's Barn)
Miles today: 6.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Rained overnight and into the morning. Peru left first. Munchies left an hour later - in between two heavy rain showers. Smirks and I lazied around the cabin and eventually packed up and left around 11am. We may be the only people on the AT consistently leaving campsites after 9am every morning. Our lethargic behavior helps us today as we miss the final rainstorm of the morning. The ground and rocks are still wet and slippery from all the rain. Vermont is known to be muddy and I can confirm this. Most sections in this state seem to never be dry. While stepping down on a rock Smiles slips and falls in an awkward fashion. She gets up and walks it off well but later starts to feel soreness in her ribs. I would describe her fall as looking like a folded up lawn chair, but in reverse with the back of her head almost touching her heels. It didn't look fun.We see Mudslide today ! He was a north bound thru-hiker who decided to flip-flop at Harpers Ferry a few months back. I'd hiked with him a little bit back in TN and have been looking forward to crossing paths with him again. We talk and take some photos together. He tells us that the upcoming road crossing has a small store and that there is a barn that we can sleep in as well. It starts to sprinkle a little as we get to the road. I take off running for cover at the store and Smirks keeps a steady walk behind me. Her ribs are still hurting her a little bit. It's nothing serious but still a little pain is never comfortable. The store is a bust. $1.25 for a can of soda and $2.00 for a bottle of better soda. Everything else is homemade handcrafted cheeses, bake goods, and meats. We can't afford anything in here and I'm honestly not interested in much anyways. We each get one can of Mt. Dew and Smirks also gets a bag of Doritos too. Due to some nasty looking clouds and Smirks' rib pains we agree to call off hiking for the rest of the day and check out the barn down the street. Heavy rains come down during the .2 mile sprint to the barn. We get permission to use it first and then spend our time before bed checking out all of the cool random items inside the barn, which is about 50 feet tall with 4 different levels and full of stuff you'd see during an episode of "American Pickers".Tonight I finished reading "Walden on Wheels" and do not plan on getting another book this trip.
Date: 2013-09-03
From: Woodstock, VT (Dan Q's Barn)

To: Norwich, VT (Trail Angel Greg's House)
Miles today: 20.9
Weather: mist

Smirks yellow blazed today to let her ribs heal up a little. I gave her the cell phone charger and asked her to send me text message updates through the day. Good hiking weather today. No crazy long climbs today but plenty of rolling pointless ups & downs. It felt like most of the day was climb 300ft , drop 100ft, climb another 300ft, drop 100ft and then repeat over and over. Halfway through my day the trail guides me through the small town of Hartford, VT. I stop to get water from a spigot at one house that has an AT sign hanging in the front yard. While filling up my water bottles I check my phone messages for updates from Smirks. She made it to Norwich with no problem and even has us a place to stay for the night with an AT trail angel named Gregory Cook. Unfortunately I also get a text message saying that she has lost my phone charger I get to town somewhat late. Greg is incredibly friendly. He has been allowing hikers to stay at his home for the past three years. It seems that most people have gotten burned out on helping hikers because they hear the same sop stories over and over but Greg still seems genuinely interested in hikers' stories and well being. He also understands what hikers need. Even though I got into town close to nighttime and Greg already had a full 10+ hrs of work for the day he still takes us to the grocery store so we can get a full food resupply. I end up watching a few hours of tv tonight before finally falling asleep. Normally I crave and love my tv time, but tonight it feels lackluster. Maybe I'm getting comfortable without tv.
Date: 2013-09-05
From: Norwich, VT (Trail Angel Greg's House)

To: Lyme, NH
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: overcast clouds

When we left town today there was a sign posted on a tree promoting "Trail Magic, Pancakes, 9/5/13 7am at Bill Ackerly's house". Bill is known in the trail community as "The Ice Cream Man". At first we are surprised to see a trail magic cookout this late in the season. We've been out of the large bubble of hikers and so that means we missed all the trail magic cookouts. This post gives us some motivation to hike a little further than usual. When we get to Bill's house there is only one tent in the yard and no hikers in sight-- yes! This means all the pancakes are mine mine MINE!!! Before we even reach the steps to the front door Bill comes outside to greet us and welcome us into his house. I am taken back at how friendly and happy he is. Bill asks us about our trip and we talk about the trail for a while. He is originally from Louisville, KY and once he finds out that Smirks and I are also from The Bluegrass State he offers us shots of Jim Beam, which is made in KY. Tonight is going to be the coldest night in months and even though Bill offers us a spot in his netted side patio we chose to tent up outside instead. It's cold outside but once is slip into my (I mean Tin Man's) sleeping bag all is well. I dream of pancakes.....mmm
Date: 2013-09-06
From: Lyme, NH

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 11.1

We wake up to frost on the grass and some thin sheets of ice on the tent. Some condensation made it to the outside of my sleeping bag as well. No biggie, the inside of the bag is still warm and dry. Inside the house is Bill, his two friends and pancake makers Mary & Beth, and the owner of the other tent in the yard John. Smirks got into the house before me and has already finished 4 huge fluffy pancakes. I grab some black coffee and Mary cooks me up 8 fresh hot delicious pancakes. The only other hiker here is John. He started his thru-hike back in February with his dog whom was just recently diagnosed with Lyme's Disease. Bill and "his girls" ,as he likes to call them, are sitting around and having good conversations but are a little sad that more hikers aren't showing up. It's late in the season but other hikers Future, Belch, Boomerang, and a few other thru-hikers (as well as 15 students from the Dartmouth Outdoor Club) show up before Smirks and I leave. The hiking today consists of long drawn out climbs over Smarts mountain and halfway up Cube mountain. At the summit of Smarts we take a snack break on top of a fire tower and then a lunch break at the nearby ranger's cabin. We are the first hikers to reach the Hexicuba shelter and after a little debate I decide to just pitch our tent inside of the shelter. The shelter is 6 sided, mostly enclosed and can accommodate anyone else who shows up- which ends up being Future ad Belch. The privy at this site is 5 sided and has a sign on it labeling it the "Penta¢¢Privy". To make things even more uncomfortable there are pentagrams and satanic drawing or references on the walls of the privy and shelter logbook. Weather is cold again tonight but all is cozy in the sleeping bag. Ohh crap though, this is only the beginning of fall. I cringe to think of what the worst weather conditions are going to become as we head further north late into the year.
Date: 2013-09-07
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: Hikers Welcome Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: broken clouds

Though it wasn't planned we ended up staying at the Hikers Welcome Hostel at the base of Mt. Moosilauke. Our goal was to make it another 1.1 miles to the shelter but it was getting late and a rain storm was on its way. We got to the road where the hostel is and didn't even have to hitch the .4 miles. Legion, the caretaker of the hostel, was driving by and picked us up. Smirks and I dropped off our things and picked out a bed before making a trip with Legion and Spark2fire to the convenient store for snacks. Legion said we could do some work-for-stay chores and figure things out tomorrow. There is one indoor room with a tv, computer, table, refrigerator, and a shelf/wall with hundreds and hundreds of DVDs. The rest of the rooms are all located outside under some sturdy weather ready tarps. This outside area includes the beds, toilet, laundry machines, and the shower area. We borrow a phone charger from Spark2fire. She has an extra one that she has been carrying around for Soul Flute. Eventually she just lets us have it. If we run into Soul Flute I plan on giving it back to him, but I'm not sure if he is going to want it back though. We learn through Facebook that his phone was recently broken or lost.
Date: 2013-09-08
From: Hikers Welcome Shelter

To: Hikers Welcome Shelter
Miles today: 9.6

Smirks and I start the day off with a pancake breakfast and then do some dishes to fulfill our work-for-stay duties. Plans change. They always do in the AT. Last night there were some talks about getting a group together to drive north and slack pack south over Mt. Moosilauke to end up back at the hostel for another night. Originally I was not in favor of doing this but it rained so much overnight and in the morning that it made me change my mind. Moosilauke would be our first mountain in the Whites and has one of the steepest descents of all the trail so going over it in slippery conditions with a full pack could be dangerous. We also had enough people wanting to slack pack so it was not an expensive cost. So, we slack pack today. It's Smirks 1st official slack pack (even though she routinely hikes with the lightest pack on the trail). The base of Moosilauke was beautiful weather but by the time we summit the weather has turned. We go from 60 something degrees and no wind to about 40 something degrees, light-light snow, and 45mph winds. We are the 2nd couple of the 6 slack packers to get back to the hostel. The first couple took a wrong turn and got back a little earlier. The last couple arrive shortly after us. Much later into the night Legion makes a trip out to pick up two other hikers who also made a different wrong turn and needed to be somewhat recovered from the wintry conditions.
Date: 2013-09-09
From: Hikers Welcome Shelter

To: Lincoln, NH (Chet's Place)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Yesterday was our first hike in the White Mountain range and it was unlike anything we have encountered the far on the trail. It was a change of terrain and a change of weather. It's almost as if winter slapped us in the mouth from out of nowhere. I still have all of my cold weather gear, some of which I've carried and not even touched for the past 100 days. Now all that extra weight I was carrying can finally be used again. Smirks doesn't have all the proper clothing necessary for comfortable survival so we have Legion drop us off in the nearby trail town of Lincoln, NH. In Lincoln there is a hostel of sorts that is free (donation accepted) for thru-hikers. It is a finished extended garage connected to a single level home. The owner Chet is very hiker friendly. You won't find him or his hostel in any of the AT guide books though. He likes to stay somewhat under the radar and operate more as word-of-mouth between hikers. We claim a bed at Chet's place, resupply our food bags, and spend the night doing little else.
Date: 2013-09-10
From: Lincoln, NH (Chet's Place)

To: Lincoln, NH (Chet's Place)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We get an early weather report that storms are in the area and it is not recommended to hike today. We take another zero day. My anxiety hits early. How are we going to make up for lost time, is the weather going to be bad the next day too. My bank account was low on funds as well so I had to ask for money to be deposited into my checking account again. I feel pretty bad all day and start to ask myself if continuing is worth it.
Date: 2013-09-11
From: Lincoln, NH (Chet's Place)

To: Lonesome Lake Hut
Miles today: 13.4

A thru hiker named Mail Man had recently got his truck delivered to him from his home in Virginia. Him and his girlfriend Whisper give Smirks and myself a ride back to the trailhead. Whisper is going to stay off trail today and use the truck to pick up Mail Man later after he finishes south bounding Mount Moosilauke today. Smirks and I head the opposite way and begin a grueling nasty day of climbing. The weather surprisingly stayed in the mid-high 80's most of the day. A drastic change from the 40-50 degree weather we had the days before. It was a hot and humid day and hours later when we finally reached 4,000+ ft. the thunder clouds rolled in. We got a little bit of a view on the summit of South Kinsman but it was quickly replaced by dark skies. Thunder, lightning, and rain stormed down around us. Parts of the trail turned into giant puddles and the other parts were slippery awkward rocks. The storms lasted long enough to steal our last hour of daylight. Smirks had a dead headlamp so we both tried to navigate the path using only my headlamp. Not fun. We arrive at our first AMC hut very wet, tired, and hungry. Uke is hear helping in the kitchen. One of the hut croo (crew) members Anne welcomes us in. She allows us to do a work-for-stay option where the hiker gets food and a sleeping spot on the floor in exchange for doing dishes and sweeping the huts. The day was terrible but the hut experience was worth it. We are able to get into warm dry clothes, get a dinner, a breakfast, and a warm place to sleep out of the stormy weather.