morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-06-18
From: Eagles Nest Shelter, PA

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Got good sleep after the early crowd finally got out of the shelter at sun-up. Another cold night last night. I slept good. Still have my 20 degree bag and all, so it was good for the 50's. Rolled out late because I can. Sun was out and temps were creeping toward 70. The hike down to town seemed like it would go pretty quick, but I was slowed by all the rocks. Had to go slow and be careful not to trip, fall, and break something. Passed lots of scouts out on the trail today. Haven't seen those in awhile. Guess the weather's been bad or something. Got into Port Clinton for the PA Dutchmen's hiker feed. It was over at the town pavilion. They roasted a pig and had all kinds of food. Good stuff. By the time I showed up, the pig had already been destroyed. There was plenty meat around though. I looked over at the carcass on the grill as I ate my BBQ pig sandwich. Don't think I've ever had the creature I was eating stare back at me. Sort of a strange feeling. But the pig was delicious. Then I gorged myself on all the pie, ice cream, and other baked goodies the folks had made. Sat back and watched the croquet and horseshoe tossing going on at the lawn. Just a big ol' picnic. PA Dutch and hikers, an interesting sight from afar, I'm sure. This was another demonstration of the great generosity of people along the trail. The guys that put it on were hikers on the trail several years back. They and their families do the cookout every year apparently. I happened to be in on the right day. After a round of food, I went over to the "outfitter" in town to try and get my broken pole situation dealt with. Well, I happen to be carrying Black Diamond poles. Nobody along the trail bothers with them apparently. It's all Leki this, Leki that. So, I ended up buying a new pair. Not sure that I got what I wanted, but they're mine now. Not much to pick from, and the stick wan't going to keep me happy for much longer. I think the old poles are on the way back home, so we'll see if I can't get a repair job done eventually. After that, Rambler gave me a lift to the grocery store. We drove around for 20 minutes, though, looking for it. Someone in the car "knew how to get there", and you know how that goes. So, I got just about everything done in PC that I needed to except for the fact that the town has 0.0 pay phones in it. Borrowed a cell for a quick call to check on a mail drop and my dead camera. I'll probably miss the package and the camera is lost in space. Let down. So, I spent the rest of the night chillin' round a fire. Bam, Matt, Bag o Tricks, and I kept it real well into the night. Had a good talk and then cruised back over to the pavillion and crashed out.
Date: 2005-06-19
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Eckville Shelter, PA
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: light rain

Fathers Day. Sorry, Dad, that I didn't call. I wasn't resourceful enough to find a phone today. I left Port Clinton about 11. This was after sleeping until 8, then going down to the diner for a little breakfast. Then arranging for my poles' transit home (thanks BoT) then dragging around, then finally getting out. Left with Bams and Matt. Overcast today, no sun in sight. Climbed up to a view spot. One of the better ones in the state so far, the pulpit rock as it's called. Sat there for a little bit, then played thru-hiker ambassador to some curious day hikers. Walked over and looked at some observatories in a little field. No one was manning them, though, so no looking at the stars. Of course, it was mid-afternoon on a Sunday, so not real surprised at that one. Then it was more boulder hopping over to another view spot, the pinnacle. Lots more day trippers around over there. Another good view of the rolling hills of PA. Lots of farms all around below. Not so wildernessy of a spot, but we were high up over everything. Then, walked what seemed to be forever down dirt road to a paved road, then down to the Eckville Shelter. Not the typical shelter. There's a house, a yard, a toolshed that's really a shower/bathroom. The toolshed behind the house was the shelter, or bunkhouse as you might call it. Six bunks for six hikers. Snacks in the fridge. Took an ice cold shower with all that remained of my camp suds and ate a deli sandwich I carried from town.
Date: 2005-06-20
From: Eckville Shelter, PA

To: (Easy) Bake Oven Knob Shelter, PA
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: overcast clouds

I seem to be becoming quite the shelter rat lately. With the nights being so cool lately, the bugs are down. So it's pretty convenient especially since there aren't many hikers around. The four walls of the shed made sleeping in pretty easy. Got out around 10, one hour improvement over yesterday. Sunny and cool at step-off. Had a climb to the ridge top, wasn't too bad. Once up, though, the rocks began. Hadn't really gotten too pissed off at them just yet, but today was the day. I'd go through long stretches of uneven ground. Sharp, uneven ground. Started to wish I had some heavier soles on my shoes, or maybe boots instead of the sneakers. After that, it was a trip through a giant rock garden. Scramble over top and around these boulders, no problem, let me just put my other set of knees in... For a little bit though, the trail gods of PA smiled down and delivered a walk on an old dirt road for about 6 miles. Then it was back to the rocks. High rocks too. Went over the "Knife's Edge". That should just about sum it up. Had visions of falling to my death, or at least falling to my broken leg. Managed to get through it okay though. More rock gardens later, I found myself cruising over Bake Oven Knob and then into the Bake Oven Shelter. Old shelter, vintage 1937. I'd take a picture, but I still have no camera. Looking back on the day's travels, water is starting to become a little more difficult to come by. There ain't much to begin with on these ridge walks, but springs are becoming further away and drying up too. Tomorrow will likely be really short or unusually long, depending on how the water supply pans out.
Date: 2005-06-21
From: (Easy) Bake Oven Knob Shelter, PA

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter, PA
Miles today: 23.5
Weather: broken clouds

Another cool morning. Had a fairly rock-free hike in the morning while things were cool. The water at the shelter was a long ways downhill, so I didn't bother topping my water off. Had a little less than 2 liters to go 6 1/2 miles. Made it no problem, though I drained my last bit right at the water source. My book didn't have another source listed for another 16 or so miles, so I loaded up. Trip filled me in on another source listed in his guidebook, so I felt okay leaving the place with 5 liters of water. The next part of the hike involved a twelve hundred foot climb up a rocky face. Sun was out roasting me by that time. Had some dicey moments as I hopped up and climbed over some of the boulder faces. Really glad it wasn't raining, because if things were slick, I definitely would have been in trouble. Got up to the top to find absolutely no cover from the sun. I was in industrial wasteland, withering away. The ridge sits above old zinc smelting plants whose fumes caused a die-off. As I got a little further down the ridge, some trees and vegetation had sprouted amongst the rock fields. Stopped and took a long break in a shade patch. Drank most of my water. Thought it best to wait out some of the heat. Saw a ridge runner up there and got some info on the water sources coming up. Dry spring where I had thought of stopping, so I hit a spring up on the ridge. Not in the data book (probably since it's not healthy), but Wingfoot called it the Metallica Spring. Ha Ha. I carried about 6 liters out of there for the next 10 miles of trail. Probably got my year's dose of heavy metals right there, but oh well. Doubt it'll kill me. Drank it all too. The rest of the day was uneventful by comparison. Trail got flat for a bit without rocks, so I made okay time. Glad to have the headphones for tunes. Today was the longest day of the year, but that still wasn't enough daylight to get the hike finished. Did the last half hour in the dark, with my headlamp, of course. Harder to see where I was going. Found a tentsite just before the shelter and pitched. Hardcore was there and we chatted a bit while I cooked dinner. Then I crawled in the tent and passed out. Long, long day.
Date: 2005-06-22
From: Leroy A. Smith Shelter, PA

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: few clouds

Got up and stirred around slowly. Hiked the 1/2 mile down to the spring, then back up. Yet another long stretch without water ahead. It was cool, but the sun was coming out. Things warmed up by noon, and clouds started popping up. Managed to dodge the thunderstorms, but heard them around. The trail was plenty rocky as expected, so it was slow going picking my way through. So what else is new? Played leapfrog most of the afternoon with Rainbow and Spartacus. I'd stop, they'd pass, they'd stop, I'd pass and so on. Later on that day, I ran into a whole pack of day hikers. One says to me, "Hey man, what that poison ivy look like?" So I look next to the trail, find some, and point to it. Some excitement follows, then some 13 yr. old kid proudly announces that he's just finished eating some. "Am I going to die?", he smugly asks. "Well," I say, "if your throat starts swelling up, you should probably go see somebody about that." And off I went, dispenser of sound advice and sage of the trail. Heck, I think that's sound advice in any situation. No idea on the kid, but they were almost to their cars. I hiked to the next shelter, which had a spigot nearby, thankfully. Sat and drank a bit. Bantered with Shadow, Chuck and Hardcore. It was 5:30 and six miles to town. Hiked it. By then, though, my feet were killing me. Sat overlooking the Delaware River for awhile before dropping off the ridge down into town. Passed a picture spot that I recognized from the AT wall calendar. Stumbled into town at dark. Went to the Church-of-the-Mountain hostel. Took a shower, then walked down to the pizza joint. Sat out at some picnic tables and watched the fireflys go crazy.
Date: 2005-06-23
From: Delaware Water Gap, PA

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Zero mile day. Breakfast at the diner, then into town (East Stroudsberg) for laundry and groceries. And the Irish Pub. Got back for a pot-luck dinner at the church (mmm.. good) and then listened to the people of DWG play bumper cars in the street.
Date: 2005-06-24
From: Delaware Water Gap, PA

To: Camp Rd., NJ
Miles today: 10.3

Stopped into the diner for breakfast, the convenience store for snacks, and the bakery for some goodies. Rolled out of town by 11. Crossed over the Delaware River and into New Jersey. Goodbye PA, so long, see you later. At the end of a long road walk, we popped on some pretty civilized trail up to Sunfish Pond. Still some rocks, though. Apparently they aren't all in PA. Amazing. Made a quick climb up to Sunfish Pond. Finally, something along the trail that's interesting and scenic. Big ol' pond lined with mountain laurel, some still in bloom. Sat in the shade for about an hour next to the lake with Bams and Trip. Could've been convinced to stay there had we not been in the middle of a no-camping zone. Eventually took off and made our way to the next water source - the Mohican Outdoor Center. Got there around 4 o'clock. Had a soda and sat on the picnic table long enough to be sucked in for the night. We were all thinking it was a good place to stop. Free tenting for thru-hikers. Place had a lake too, so off I went for a swim. Bams rented a canoe, he and Trip played around with it for a bit. When we were finished at the waterfront, we roamed out to a point near the tent site and cooked. The mosquitos were relentless and chased me into the tent early. Glad to have had some play time. Good stop.
Date: 2005-06-25
From: Camp Rd., NJ

To: Culvers Gap, NJ
Miles today: 17.9

Knew it was going to be a roaster outside today so I was up early. Hollered at the other two. Step 1 complete. Then we went over to the store/lodge and grabbed coffee. Shadow was there too. We all sorta sat around for awhile drinking coffee instead of getting out on the trail. Oops - Step 2 failure. Had a couple hours before things got nasty. The trail climbed up to a ridge and ran for awhile. The exposed parts were scorchers and there were lots of them. Had some views though. Less looking down on farmland and roadway. More looking out over trees and a little civilization. Went through a ton of water today. Tried to take a long break in the afternoon to let some heat pass. Found that whereever I sat, the ticks would come running toward me. Picked one off my leg, then stabbed about 4 that were on my rock with a trekking pole. Relentless little suckers. Since today was Trip's birthday, we decided to stop at the tavern in Culver Gap for a burger and some beers. It was toward the end of the day, but we were the only people in the joint. An alumni hiker showed up shortly after and bought us a couple rounds. Apparently he'd seen the three of our packs and pulled in to say hey. The three of us ended up there for awhile. They had good tunes on the jukebox, cheap beer and the bartender was super. Good hiker-friendly place. They let us sleep out behind the place after we'd had our fun. The hobo-ing was in full effect.
Date: 2005-06-27
From: Goldsmith Rd., NJ

To: Wawayanda Shelter, NJ
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: few clouds

The crew was up early. I awoke to a donkey yelping. Sounded like it was in pain. Ran into Quarter of the Way, hadn't seen him in some time so we spent a little while chattin'. Off later than I wanted to be, but not before forcing a quart of water down. Hydration is the key to happiness, and I often forget that. Lots of road crossings early. I went down one road to a grocery/deli to bump my food bag's weight up just a little bit. The selection there was poor, but they did have a sandwich with my name on it. Got out with what should be enough to hold me a couple days. Then it was back to the races. Roasted on a long road walk which led to hiking through exposed wilderness refuge. No cover at all, must've been near 90 and humid. Just like home. In the desert that is NJ, one of the water sources was a spigot on the back of a house next to the trail. Looked to be empty, though. I laid on the concrete pad in the back for an hour or so. Forced myself to drink a quart of water while I was there. Pretty sure yesterday's misery was dehydration, so I didn't want a repeat. Couple of hills to climb, scared up deer and a flock of turkey. Found myself in a lot of boggy areas today. Did a lot of walking on long bridges and even about a mile's worth of boardwalk. Yup, boardwalk. Meandered through a sea of cattails on it. Better than the alternative, by a long shot. Stopped into a Farmer's Market right by the trail near the road to Vernon. Got a couple apples and some orange juice. Then a brownie. Sat around there for a good minute, then took off as the rain clouds rolled in. I was pretty much teased with rock all the way up the big climb that followed. Just some intermittant drizzle. Saw a bear on the way up. He was off trail about 50 yds. and heading downhill. I stopped to bear watch. The bear continued down the hill, then cut over to the trail once it was past me. Bears use the trail too. Went further to the shelter where there was a crowd of people. Just missed pizza that a guy packed in, but did get in on some gatorade and Doritos. It was good. Then the rains started, so I set up my tent. These days the mosquitos are relentless and the tent provides the only refuge. Ate some food, then put the food bag up a tree.
Date: 2005-06-28
From: Wawayanda Shelter, NJ

To: Wildcat Shelter, NY
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: moderate rain

Rain fell most all the night, and into the morning. Didn't want to pack up in the rain, so I tried to wait it out for awhile. By 8:30, the rain had let up, so I went to work taking my tent down and getting ready to hike. When I did leave, drizzle was falling and it was still pretty muggy. Lots of bugs out too. Did a bit of ups and downs through forest (for a change). Got up to a ridge line and before I knew it, I was in NY. Shortly after, the sun came out so I had a chance to dry my things out on the rocks. It was a good boost. The sun and humidity were up at that point. I roasted. As is par for the course, I ran out of water. There's been jugs of water on the sides of the road - great trail magic, so I was hoping I'd find some at the next road crossing. Didn't find a jug, but there was a sign pointing off down the road. Water, ice cream, .1 mile. Walked down the road to find a big ol' ice cream shop. Nice. Got a cone and a soda and sat in the A/C. Trip, Matt, Bams, and Hardcore were there already. We moved out to a picnic table and sat in the shade. Had every intention of going much further, but the day was going pretty slowly. Lots of townies around, and one took us on a beer run. Loaded up my share and headed off for another 2 miles. Got to some nice rocks overlooking some hills and the valley below. Beer stop. Bam, Trip and Matt joined me on the rocks after awhile. An hour passed and we walked the rest of the way to the shelter. Cooked dinner, finished off the beer round the fire.
Date: 2005-06-29
From: Wildcat Shelter, NY

To: NY 17, NY
Miles today: 10.1

No rain last night, so everything packed up dry in the morning. Not much water in the itinerary, so I left the shelter with a gallon. Heavy. After I loaded up with all that water, I didn't get more than a couple of miles before it started falling from the sky. Lots of rocks, and they got all nice and slicked up. Made me glad it didn't rain on me when I was in PA much. Luckily, though, there were plenty of dirt patches to walk in. Took a lot of spills yesterday, but luckily none today. Kept the skin on my rear another day. As I was slogging on through the rain, I ran into Bams heading the other way. He was off to town for a motel. I joined him. Did a 2.5 mile roadwalk into town in the rain. Got to the only motel in town to find no vacancy. Dammit. As we were trying to figure out what to do now, the motel guy came out and told us to stick around for another few minutes. If some folks with reservations didn't show, he'd give us the room. They didn't. He did. Ordered chinese food, took a shower, and laid down on the bed. Not many miles, but the stop was needed.
Date: 2005-06-30
From: NY 17, NY

To: Bear Mountain Bridge, NY
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: haze

Slept like a rock. Woke up feeling like Popeye after he eats the spinach. Good to go. Caught a ride back up to the trail in no time, so we had some good hiking weather in the morning. All the rain had moved out, skies were clear. Hiked through the Lemon Squeezer today. It's a narrow chute between the rocks that one must hike through. Did it with my pack over my head before I handed it off to Bams. It was a mosquito pit too, but then again, the mosquitos were pretty much everywhere else on the trail. Hiked by several little lakes, perfect for the suckers. Oh well, we made great time through the morning and afternoon. Didn't feel as fatigued as I had been the past couple days. That helped my attitude out a lot. The past several days haven't really been a picnic out here. Seems others are feeling that way too. Maybe it's the weather, maybe it's the terrain starting to get tougher again, maybe it's the moon. I don't know. But, I did have a conversation with another hiker and Bams on the subject. Tri-guy was the catalyst for it, and it was almost like a complain session, but not. It was good, though, because through it I saw that the trail is wearing others down too. Not just me, so I felt better about it. Maybe I also found that I didn't have it as bad as I thought. Back to the hike, I tore through the last bit with Tri and Bams. Had some of the steepest climbs since VA, real leg burners. Got up to the top of Bear Mountain and had a good view. Then down to the park below. Needed a pay phone to call our hosts for the night, but couldn't find a phone that worked. The trailside zoo was closed, so we road walked around. I hiked about a half mile to the Inn of Bear Mountain to find a phone and got in touch with Mrs. Brown. The pickup point was across the river, so we walked across the Hudson at twilight. Very pretty. Mrs. Brown met us on the other side, and took us back to her house for the night. The Browns are parents of one of my old hiking buddies, Biscuit. They made me feel right at home. Got showered, fed a tremendous meal, and slept in a bed. I'd missed Biscuit there by a day, but we had caught up a little on the phone the night before. We were all up pretty late with our hosts, but finally managed to call it a day.
Date: 2005-07-01
From: Bear Mountain Bridge, NY

To: Graymoor Friary, NY
Miles today: 6.4

Slept like a rock right up til 9 without even trying. Last one up. Ate a little breakfast, then lounged around the Brown house for awhile. Between the three hikers, none seemed in a hurry to leave. We did eventually leave for a drive around town. Mrs. Brown took us on a guided tour of the area. Stopped down by the river and got a look at West Point on the other side. Got driven over to the P.O. to pick up my temporary replacement digital camera, then to the grocery store for resupply. We stopped by the ice cream parlor for a tasty cone on the way back toward trail. Good stuff. Got back to the business of hiking around mid-afternoon. I was definitely feeling better about things after the stop at the Browns. They were great hosts, and it couldn't have come at a better time. I made my way slowly up the trail and took a lot of breaks. I planned on hiking into the evening, and I stopped by the Friary to refill my water before continuing. They had a little pavilion and a spigot at the ballfield. When I got there, one of the friars happened to be there and invited me for dinner. Apparently they do this every July and August when there are hikers about. Not being one to turn down a meal, I stuck around. We ate dinner there and then took a walk around the grounds of the friary. Very interesting. By that point, though, I was done for the day. Rain was looming and I opted to sit it out in the pavilion rather than hike in it just to squeeze a couple miles out. It was a deluge, but over in an hour or two. I chose to lay out my pad in the pavilion instead of setting my tent in a puddle on the ballfield...
Date: 2005-07-02
From: Graymoor Friary, NY

To: Hosner Mountain Rd., NY
Miles today: 22.3

Worst nights sleep EV-ER. I foolishly failed to set up my tent. At some point, all the mosquitos descended on the pavilion where I slept. I woke up to the suckers just buzzing in my ear. I tried to hide in my bag liner, use it as a mosquito net, but no luck. All I heard was the fzzzzt all night, keeping me up and swatting. I bathed in deet. No use, they still come on and on. Miserable. Considered pitching the tent at 1 in the morning, but didn't do it. Dozed just a little bit the rest of the night. Kept telling myself they'd go away as soon as the temp dropped a little more. But they didn't. As soon as the sun camp up, I was outta there. Had a mission to get to the hiker 4th of July party spot the night before for some pre-partying. The morning had a lot of ups and downs to it. It was harder because I was tired I think. As the day went by though, I felt better. A lot of people were out on the trail today. It was a low-humidity day with temps near 80. Perfect weather. Listened to the Live 8 concerts going on on the radio all afternoon. Something different. Started fading toward the end of the day with about 3 miles left to go. So I laid down for about an hour and popped some ibuprofin. As soon as the pains went away I felt like a new man. Rocked up and over the next mountain in no time at all it seemed. I also was listening intently to the Pink Floyd reunion set, which helped with the spirit. Got to my final destination (Gaseous's House) just in time for a run to Walmart and Pizza Hut. Gaseous piled us into his car and took us into town. Got goodies, groceries and dinner, then chilled on his couch and watched DVD's.