morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-07-02
From: PA 501; Pine Grove, PA

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: clear sky

¢ . . . staying for the night. Great place, nice town, great people!¢- Popeye, from Appalachian Outfitters RegisterLong day done relatively quickly so I could make the post office in time to pick up my package before it closed. The chafing seems to be under control. There was scant elevation change today ¢ it was mostly ridge walking with the notable exception of the knee-jarring descent into Port Clinton.I again felt ¢funky¢ today ¢ I¢m really looking forward to hitting New England and seeing and hiking with friends. This felt like a grind today, and the next few days feature the ¢worst¢ of the Pennsylvania rocks. Maybe I just need to fall in with a steady group of people; I felt as if I were hiking between waves today ¢ I saw a couple of southbound section hikers but no thru-hikers today. Although judging from the entries in the registers in town, I was right behind Meanderthal, but I don¢t run into anyone in town, and I especially don¢t feel like walking the half mile out to the town pavilion where most hikers stay.I¢m about a mile east of Port Clinton, across the street from the behemoth Cabela¢s Store ¢ a 250,000 square foot monstrosity larger than the L.L. Bean store in Freeport and the REI flagship store in Seattle combined. For some reason going there put me in a deeper funk ¢ everything was ridiculously overpriced and garish. I¢m tired and out.
Date: 2004-07-03
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Boston, MA
Miles today: 0.0

Impromptu Trip HomeJust as I was nearly out the door, headed for the trail, it occurred to me to ask Pattie to come down and meet me in Philadelphia (about an hour away from Port Clinton) for the July 4th weekend. But after 45 minutes of wading through the logistics, I realized that it would be much easier if I made the 5-hour train ride home.What an ¢excellent-good¢ idea! I spent time at home with Pattie, and a family barbecue tomorrow, and I visited with my colleagues at REI Boston. It was great to see Dan, Samantha, Jeff, Chris, and the rest of the Saturday night crew. Being home is fantastic. It¢ll be hard to leave.
Date: 2004-07-04
From: Boston, MA

To: Boston, MA
Miles today: 0.0

July 4th At HomeGreat to see Lisa Price ¢ who has done a nice bit of trail magic ¢ Brek, Andrew, Chris, and Dan, and the rest of the Sunday crew at REI Boston. An ¢excellent-good¢ barbecue at my sister and brother-in-laws¢ house ¢ thanks Cyndi and Larry! And it¢s a memorable 4th of July.
Date: 2004-07-06
From: Boston, MA

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: broken clouds

.¢Back on trail after zero day getting reacquainted with the wife ¢ time well spent. Good to be hiking again and closing the miles to Maine.¢- Mad Hatter, from Windsor Furnace Shelter RegisterFlight down to Philadelphia this morning, shot back an hour northwest, and on the trail by 11:30 a.m. Going home was ¢excellent-good,¢ but it¢s always difficult to leave the comfort of being with family and sleeping in your own bed.Other than the 1,000 foot ascent up out of Port Clinton, it¢s mostly ridge walking, albeit rocky and ¢Pennsylvania style¢ and rugged. It¢s a breezy day so it feels quite comfortable ¢ and the views of the Lehigh Valley from Pulpit Rock and the Pinnacle are grand and quite beautiful.Eckville Shelter is a caretaker shelter and is on private property next to a home. There¢s a refrigerator stocked with soda and ice cream, and a flush toilet and solar shower available. Bucket, Crash Bang, Friar, and Megabyte are also staying here.
Date: 2004-07-07
From: Eckville Shelter

To: PA. 309; Blue Mountain Summit
Miles today: 11.5

Run Down BluesFelt lousy and rundown after a fitful night¢s sleep due to the active No-See-Ums at Eckville Shelter. I saw a turkey and her 2 chicks this morning, I startled them and they took flight. Despite the crappy way I felt I stopped at Balanced Rock and enjoyed the view from Dan¢s Pulpit.I was planning a 24-mile day into Palmerton, but after 11 miles I decided to call it a day. I¢m at the Blue Mountain Summit ¢ Hawk and his wife are also staying here. After a shower I crawl into bed and have no intention of getting up until tomorrow morning. I should be feeling much better after having been home for 3 days, but I¢ve got some sort of funk.
Date: 2004-07-08
From: PA. 309; Blue Mountain Summit

To: Lehigh River Bridge
Miles today: 13.4

¢The idea of sleeping amidst a superfund clean-up site is unappealing . . . on to town . . .¢- Epiphanaius, from Outerbridge Shelter RegisterThe 24-mile day I was going to do yesterday turned into an 11 and 13-mile pair of days. I believe if I feel funky I should shorten my days - well, that¢s what I did anyway. Rocks, rocks, rocks: large talus fields, rocky knife edges, broken ridges, scree galore, boulder fields . . . every imaginable type of rock formation . . . we walk over it today.I run into Slow Poke, Beagle and Sanchez today. There are also many overripe and fat blueberries to be had on the ridge just south of Overbridge Shelter. Most hikers head into Palmerton to stay at the Borough Hall, actually underneath the gymnasium and basketball court. It¢s free, and has the most powerful showers on the trail ¢ guaranteed to take the dirt, and maybe some skin off. Tomorrow, the most fun rock climb and scramble south of the Kinsmans in New Hampshire.
Date: 2004-07-09
From: Lehigh River Bridge

To: Wind Gap
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: overcast clouds

¢Osma must die¢- Graffiti on Lehigh Gap rocksThe way I figure it, if you¢re going to deface nature ¢ as this former spelling bee champ did ¢ you might as well spell it out correctly. The above is what hikers are greeted with after nearly completing the 800-foot rock scramble up out of Lehigh Gap. This section of the trail was declared a Superfund clean-up site over 20 years ago due to the zinc smelters that used to be active in the area.It looks much better than it did when I first saw it 5 years ago, - it now has healthy trees and blueberry bushes sprouting up all about, - but it¢s still obviously an impacted site, still denuded in areas, and there are still many gnarled trees and blanched rocks.Oh yeah, rocks, rocks, rocks, and even more ¢Pennsylvania rocks,¢ and a long stretch without potable water. Blah, blah, blah, and more rocks!
Date: 2004-07-10
From: Wind Gap

To: PA. 611; Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: broken clouds

¢. . . The state flower of Pennsylvania should be a rock . . . ¢- Mousebait, from Kirkridge Shelter RegisterJust two-tenths of a mile short of New Jersey today. But first the last of the now tiresome Pennsylvania rocks. Luckily for us, rocks know nothing of state boundaries so plenty await us in New Jersey ¢ and wait until we get up to the Whites, Mahoosucs, and Bigelows ¢ those are rocks!The weather has been pretty good ¢ the humidity has been kept in check and it¢s been in the high 80¢s. I¢m looking forward to getting back up to New England within a couple of weeks; although I am planning a short trip into New York City when I get closer.I saw a ton of NOBO¢s today: Ole Man, Friar, Joe Flamingo (who I hadn¢t seen since Virginia), Ladybug, and Bear. We¢re all headed to the comforts of Delaware Water Gap before taking on Jersey.And today I received the most ¢excellent-good¢ mail drop from my colleagues at REI Boston. Thanks to Lisa Price, Chris Erbland, Bruce Jergens, Dan Casten, Samantha Slattery and so many of my colleagues from the store for the goodies. It really helped to lift my spirits. I hope to hike with some of my colleagues once I get into New England.I¢ll probably take a zero day tomorrow before heading into New Jersey.
Date: 2004-07-12
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Outta¢ Tha¢ Funk-O-RamaIt¢s no secret that I¢ve been in a funk for a couple of weeks ¢ the midway blues or some much thing, even some time back at home last weekend didn¢t get me out of it. I¢m only about 9 or 10 days away from New England ¢ 160.9 miles. I¢ve taken too many days off the trail in the last month, including my hospital stay, and I¢m taking yet another today. Although it¢s easier to rationalize today¢s day off due to the severe weather moving through Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which include nearly 5 inches of rain and flash flood warnings in nearby Pottsville, PA. The storm system is supposed to taper off overnight.I¢ve reconsidered and refocused my approach toward the rest of the hike. I¢ve pared down the ten objectives I started with to five, as some no longer applied, i.e. a continuous and contiguous hike without injury, et al. While it¢s no longer the ¢ideal¢ hike I set out to do, I think I¢m still doing well and am on a 5 12 to 6 month pace with plenty of time to spare before October 15th, when the weather turns in Maine and overnight camping is prohibited in Baxter State Park where the trail ends on Mt. Katahdin. Despite this I still intend to take a short break in NYC in the next 2 weeks, and I¢ll be going home to Boston for a couple of days for an August 14th commitment.The blues, or ¢funks¢ are a part of long distance hikes ¢ for some of us anyway ¢ it¢s a long haul over many months, and as long as I stay healthy, and build in some ¢fun¢ side trips off the trail, all should go well. See, I¢m already feeling better.
Date: 2004-07-13
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Brink Road Shelter
Miles today: 24.6
Weather: overcast clouds

¢Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!¢- Mouse, from Mohican Outdoor Center RegisterWelcome to state number eight ¢ New Jersey! The rocks here are just as bad as in Northern Pennsylvania, but it sure is nicer to be closer to New England. It¢s foggy and quite cool this morning ¢ Sunfish Pond is shrouded in fog and the Hemlocks and Oaks with the thick fern understory in Worthington State Forest are beautiful! It remains quite cool throughout the day ¢ at 12:30 pm., as I¢m finishing lunch at the Mohican Outdoor Center, it¢s only 66 degrees. It seems yesterday¢s monsoon ushered in a cold front.After the climb up to the long ridge of Kittatinny Mountain, there is barely any elevation change, although it¢s exceptionally rugged and tough to get into a good walking groove ¢ the rocks, often hidden by tall grasses, are relentless. I do spot my first bear since Virginia ¢a smallish 100-pounder that bolts when it sees me. That¢s the way I like it. I also run into folks that I haven¢t seen in a while ¢ Party Girl (since Hot Springs, NC), Now or Never (Harpers Ferry, WV) and Luna (two weeks ago in PA).The shelter seems as crowded as the shelters in Georgia in April. There are girl scout and boy scout troops here, and so are Sunshine, Big Red (I hiked with him in 2002), Now or Never, Poppins, Skippy, and Luna. I¢m in my tent trying to avoid the swarms of mosquitoes ¢ the skeeters will be our constant companions through New England. Joy.
Date: 2004-07-14
From: Brink Road Shelter

To: Secret Shelter
Miles today: 24.7

¢. . . Someone finally turned off the rocks!¢- EGHM, from Secret Shelter RegisterBone jarring, ankle twisting, knee torquing; oh, today was ¢special.¢ I¢m so tired right now I can barely write . . . here¢s the abridged version: cloudy, very humid, a high of 66 degrees with a dewpoint of 66, which equals 100% humidity. Then the deluge came late in the afternoon. And oh was it rocky ¢ as rugged as anything in Pennsylvania.Leapfrogged Now or Never and Luna all day ¢ they and others went to Raven¢s sister¢s hiker feed. I pushed on. Then the rocks gave way to the New Jersey swamplands. Plenty of mosquitoes and swarms of deer flies ¢ joy! Pushed on to the ¢secret shelter¢ ¢ a property owned by Jim Murray (a former thru-hiker) where a rustic cabin (a converted dark room) serves as a shelter. There¢s a shower and well water. I used them both. Here tonight are Still Learnin¢, Megabite, Red Cap, and Alligator. I will now pass out.
Date: 2004-07-15
From: Murray Property, Secret Shelter

To: Vernon, NJ
Miles today: 14.0

¢ . . . Huffing and puffing up Pochuck Mountain . . . What are we going to do when we hit real mountains again?¢- Oxymoron, from Pochuck Mountain Shelter RegisterI felt beat up this morning when I started walking ¢ my legs felt rubbery and sapped. I don¢t think it was the mileage over the last 2 days, but the beating your body takes over the jarring rocks. So I decided early to take a shorter day. And it started with a two and a half hour visit to Unionville, NY; the trail in this area traverses the New Jersey ¢ New York border ¢ I won¢t be in New York until tomorrow. Hiking through this area one understands why New Jersey is the ¢garden state.¢ Despite some of the swamps and mud pits, the farmlands and rolling hills are quite beautiful. I spot 3 Garter Snakes, 2 trail kittens, and Eastern Cottontail Rabbits in the Walkill Wildlife Preserve. And the relocation just south of Vernon, NJ is really neat ¢ a raised wooden walkway was built through the Pochuck Creek swamp area, as well as a suspension bridge over the creek. The sun finally peeked out and I was able to dry out all of my stuff just past the bridge on the wide walkway.At NJ 94, I hit Heavenly Hill Farm, and have some ¢excellent-good¢ New York sweet corn ¢ man, that¢s good! I found a ride into Vernon within 5 minutes (I love trail angels!) and saw the Pokie Puppies and Luna at the Church hostel. Luna has hurt her foot and caught a ride from the Walkill Preserve ¢ it happened on those nasty rocks in the first 40 miles of Jersey. She¢s a strong hiker and will try to walk through it.I spend most of the evening on the phone with Pattie working out the arrangements for meeting in NYC. Tomorrow, this weekend, is too soon. So it looks like I¢m going to do a week¢s worth of shorter days ¢ which thrills me, I¢m ready to take it easy for a while ¢ and I¢ll go into the city next weekend from Wingdale or Pawling in NY, or Kent, CT. Shorter days and ¢thee city¢ next week ¢ that¢s an ¢excellent-good¢ week!
Date: 2004-07-16
From: Vernon, NJ

To: Campsite at 1354.7
Miles today: 12.4

¢Yipee! State #9!¢- Ponderer, from Trail Register at NJ/NY borderShorter days until New York City next week! I¢ll walk to Hoyt Road, 97.8 miles north of Vernon, NJ, up to the New York/Connecticut state border, and take the train from Wingdale, NY. So I take it easy and leave Heaven Hill Farms after lunch around noon.Great view of the Vernon Valley from Pinwheel Vista . . . photo at NY/NJ state line, Skippy and Poppins are also there . . . incredible views of Greenwood Lake from New York ridges . . . the area is festooned with enormous summer homes, sailboats, and other watercraft . . . White Tailed Deer . . . tenting in a hollow below the ridge about 150 yards away from Skippy and Poppins who are tented by the stream. Tomorrow, more taking it easy.
Date: 2004-07-17
From: Campsite at 1354.7

To: New York 17; Harriman, NY
Miles today: 14.8

¢ . . . The mosquitoes are killing me. I¢m out of here . . . ¢- Skippy, from Wildcat Shelter RegisterThe highlight of the day: eating 4 ears of corn, 8 tomatoes, 2 nectarines, and a pint of green beans at the farm stand on 17A (the road into Greenwood Lake, NY); then 6 hot dogs, 2 bags of chips, and 2 sodas at the hot dog stand on 17A.The lowlight of the day: eating 4 ears of corn, 8 tomatoes, 2 nectarines, a pint of green beans, 6 hot dogs, 2 bags of chips, and 2 sodas . . .I obviously felt like puking all afternoon. But it was neat to see Wildman was back on the trail (from the register at Wildcat Shelter), albeit 15 days ahead of me; he took 3 weeks off in Florida and jumped up here ¢ he¢s probably in Vermont by now.I was bummed I couldn¢t see New York City from Mombasha High Point ¢ it seems like the trees have grown tall enough to obstruct the views south ¢ or it was just too hazy today. The mosquitoes were unaffected by the haze and the views ¢ they were out in full force, the worst yet. But that¢s life on the trail ¢ more DEET tomorrow.
Date: 2004-07-18
From: New York 17; Harriman, NY

To: Bear Mountain Inn
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: haze

¢I smell. I sweat. Katahdin here I come.¢- Leki-Less, from Bear Mountain Tower RegisterOvercast and drizzly all day. The Lemon Squeezer and a bunch of ¢pudlets¢ to contend with today. I run into a ton of hikers today as the ¢fatfest¢ hiker feed at Lake Tiorati has created a bottleneck of hikers: Caterpillar, Octane, Friar, Now or Never, Raven, Skippy, Poppins, White Patch (who believes he broke his ribs, but has managed to hike a few days in this condition), et al.There are very limited views today from Bear Mountain Tower ¢ one can barely see the Hudson River much less New York City. The Bear Mountain Inn area is teeming with people from the city out for a ¢day in the woods¢ ¢ there are literally thousands grilling, hiking, playing soccer, rowing, and playing volleyball down by the Inn, despite the lousy weather. ¢Thee City¢ is less than 50 miles from here ¢ I¢ll have to wait 4 more days, when I hit the New York/Connecticut state line until I visit.
Date: 2004-07-19
From: Bear Mountain Inn

To: Graymoor Friary
Miles today: 7.2

¢Afoot and light-hearted/ I take to the open road, / healthy, free/ the world before me, / the long brown path before me/ heading wherever I choose . . .¢- Walt Whitman, from ¢Song of the Open Road¢A very short day, but a good one. Left the Bear Mountain Inn around 9:45 a.m., and then spent an hour and 20 minutes at the Bear Mountain Zoo. I found Now or Never waiting at the gates of the zoo ¢ the trail goes right through the zoo and the door don¢t open until 10:00 a.m. We took photographs in front of the bear exhibit ¢ the lowest elevation on the trail at 124 feet above sea level.Later, on the bridge across the Hudson River, we meet Mousebait as she left Fort Montgomery. After only 7 miles, at Graymoor Friary, I thought I¢d have dinner, which the friars host for the hikers, and then move on, but after a great tour around the friary courtesy of Brother Leo, I decided to stay. Lonesome Dove showed up with her mother and sister, Maria, and treated us to some ¢excellent good¢ trail magic.Rainy Jay, Crash and Cadbury, and Baby Blue arrived later. Today¢s epigraph is excerpted on the base of the Walt Whitman statue in Bear Mountain Zoo ¢ quite appropriate for thru-hiking. I¢m now going to have to stretch out a couple of days, since I took such a short day today, so I can get to Connecticut by Thursday, and into New York City Friday. Luckily the upcoming terrain is moderate so it should be okay.
Date: 2004-07-20
From: Graymoor Friary

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: broken clouds

¢ . . . It¢s good to be under 800 miles . . . ¢- Diesel, from RPH Shelter RegisterHot, hot, hot, and humid ¢ it sure felt tougher and longer than 18 miles. The mosquitoes, deer flies, and gnats are insufferable ¢ but what¢s new. Water sources are becoming scarce, some are drying out, so we¢re carrying extra water that adds to the weight on your back. When the heat index is in the 100 degree range and the bugs make your life miserable, hiking is not enjoyable. But a close knit group consisting of Now or Never, Lonesome Dove, Rainy Jay, and Crash and Cadbury has formed so it¢s nice to see the same people in the evening, and sometime we hike together for short stretches.Admittedly, this section of New York is neither scenic or well maintained so the ¢fun¢ quotient is quite low. Even the vistas, as on Shenandoah Mountain (1,282 feet) are uninspiring ¢ power lines, roads, nondescript ridges pockmarked with communication towers. But we do get some ¢excellent good¢ trail magic from Rainy Jay¢s brother Josh and his friends Mike and Hanmea. They arrive at 10 p.m. to RPH shelter with 2 large pizzas, 6 pints of Ben & Jerry¢s ice cream, and 4 gallons of water ¢ which we need because the water coming out of the RPH well is rusty tasting and salmon colored. We usually don¢t get trail magic this late ¢ what a treat.Tomorrow should be better food wise ¢ hot dog stands and delis near the trail ¢ but it will be quite hot again and doubtless a bug infested day.We did pass another landmark ¢ the 1400 mile mark near Dennytown Road. We¢re at the unofficial two-thirds of the trail completed mark. Cool!
Date: 2004-07-21
From: RPH Shelter

To: NY 22
Miles today: 19.7

¢ . . . The trail maintainers should be introduced to machetes . . . this is the worst maintained trail yet . . .¢- Rocker, from Morgan Stewart Shelter RegisterBlah. Blah. Blah. Walk, walk, walk. Heat and high humidity. Enervating and stupefying. Mosquitoes, ticks, gnats, deer flies . . . I can¢t wait for the long weekend in New York City coming up ¢ obviously my head is already there.It wasn¢t all lousy today ¢ we hit 2 delis, and a hot dog stand, all within a half mile of the trail. Rainy Jay, Lonesome Dove, Now or Never, and I made all the stops. There was talk of swimming at Nuclear Lake, but I skipped that. I just shot straight ahead to NY 22, past the Appalachian Train Station, and the overgrown, poorly maintained pastures near Dove Oak ¢ the largest Oak on the trail ¢ and found myself a motel room where I can insure a tick-free night.I think I might rent a car tomorrow and slack the last 7 miles of New York to the Connecticut border, and maybe do some trail magic tomorrow after my chores.
Date: 2004-07-22
From: NY 22

To: Connecticut-New York state line
Miles today: 7.1

¢ . . . Train maintenance in NY ¢ it sucks! Weed wackers ¢ they work! How are we to avoid the ticks if we constantly walk through weeds up to our eyeballs? Glad to be moving on to a new state . . . ¢- Starburst, from Wiley Shelter RegisterHey! State #10! Easy day despite the oppressive heat and humidity today ¢ I was only slacking 7 miles. I rented a car and did trail magic for those I could find. I drove Crash and Cadbury to Danbury, CT so he could rent a car, and I drove Lonesome Dove and Now or Never to a food mart at Bulls Bridge so they could get snacks and cold drinks. I¢m headed into New York City tomorrow morning for 3 days ¢ I¢m psyched!
Date: 2004-03-15
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello Everyone!Let me first thank you for visiting my Trail Journals site. Over the next five months I will be updating this site with journal entries, pictures and any other interesting tidbits from my 2,000 mile adventure. Please visit as often as you like and feel free to sign my guestbook and leave me a note. I am sure any encouragement will be a great help. You will notice that my journal as well as all of my entries are signed ¢T¢ This is the trail name I have chosen. For anyone unaware, every thruhiker on the Appalachian Trail chooses (or is given) a trail name, a moniker that can be replete or devoid of meaning but that nonetheless serves to unify the hikers in some whacky way. ¢T¢ stands for Toronto. I am from Toronto and hold the city very dear to my heart. It is for this reason that I will use its name as my own.Thank you to all for your support and enjoy the adventure!
Date: 2004-03-24
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

It is eight days until go time and things are definitely heating up (weather not included). With the exception of a couple of final items I have all the gear and supplies I am going to need and a number that I am sure I do not. I have yet to pack all my stuff into my bag and weigh it but I am thinking that I will be leaving many once believed to be inseparable items behind. My mental preparation of sleepless nights has also commenced. It has gotten to the point where I just want to get out there and put an end to all the anticipation; soon enough everyone keeps telling me.That is it for today ¢ more soon