morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-03-18
From: Fontana Dam Shelter

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: light rain

Day 17. Mile 165.8-176.8 Left Fontana Dam "Hilton" shelter. Quick escape, made some coffee but skipped the oatmeal. Belvita Bars FTW! Enjoyed the 1.5 paved road parade as we crossed the Fontana Dam, the biggest dam I've ever seen. great views but the cloudy skies have us worried. Forecast doesn't look good either. Dropped off our permits as we entered the Smokey Mountains National Park and started a 2000 foot climb. Dead Mau5 this time helped me get to the top. Took a break to see an old fire tower, sketchy as hell but beautiful 360 views of the mountains and Fontana Lake. At the bottom was an old cabin foundation, nothing left but some low walls and a complete chimney. You could see the upside down V where the roof used to connect, cool. Leprechaun and I finished the rest of the hike, trying to decide how far to go but the rain and lightning surprise helped us decide the next shelter would do, Mollies Ridge. We got in a little after 2 and the whole crew joined eventually, even Joe the Hiker. The shelter had a fireplace so I got that ripping for a few hours as we hung out, cooked dinner, played 20 questions, and dried off...as the rain, wind, hail, lightning and thunder barraged us all day. By 7 we had no more firewood and 30 minutes later it was bedtime. Rain slowing a bit now, hopefully we'll all stay warm and tomorrow will be a drier day.
Date: 2013-03-19
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 18, miles 176.8-188.8. Slept poorly, definitely think my tent beats sleeping in a shelter but in the GSMNP, you don't have much of a choice. Even the ground seems softer than the wood planks. freezing cold morning but clear skies, definitely below freezing. Quick coffee and oatmeal, had some of Tracker's Hot Chocolate/Coffee. Took off today from Mollies Ridge Shelter and flew threw the first 6 miles, met some Spring breakers. What a bunch of idiots, they could have been in Florida drinking Margaritas on the beach with bikini-wearing ladies but no, they got rained on, hailed on, and froze. Good call. Met up with Slapp, Leprechaun, Fly and Roswell shortly and climbed Thunderhead Mtn, great 360 views from the Rocky Top. We can still see Fontana Lake, the fire tower from yesterday now a few hundred feet below us, and the huge climb tomorrow, Clingman's Dome, highest point on the AT. The ups and downs killed the knees and ankles today but we finished strong. Got to Derrick Knob Shelter early and got plenty of firewood. folks eventually joined and we all had a cold but close evening, making dinner by the fireplace. Tomorrow, pushing 18 miles to Gatlinburg!
Date: 2013-03-20
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 19, miles 188.38-206.8. Derrick Knob Shelter...I appreciate the folks who built the shelter but damn did they do a poor job of sealing it. The whole night the gaps in the rock wall let a 20's-breeze in. 1am I layered up and shivered until sunrise.Slapp had the fire going first this morning, it was very welcoming considering how cold it was. Leprechaun, AJ, Fly, Roswell, Joe, and I were some of the first ones up this morning. Got packed up QUICK and downed some instant coffee, oatmeal with raisins and powdered milk, and a pack of Belvita Bars. Going to need the energy on this long day.We all took off around 8:15, staggered. Journey today, starting with Separate Ways cold me moving in the cold. One of these days I'll be the first one out and try to walk quiet, see some wildlife. If I'm not the first one out though, there's almost no point.We went up and down, up and down, passed a few other sheltered that definitely had been used by some Spring Breakers (they love leaving garbage everywhere almost as I love assuming it's them :/) but we pushed on. Finally started the long trek up to the top of Clingman's Dome, the highest point on the AT, higher than Mt Washingtin! 6,643 feet, it was quite a hike. Halfway up we entered an almost exclusive Spruce-Fir forest. This was almost as good as getting to the top. It smelled like Christmas! I stopped several times to rub a pine branch in between my gloves to smell the fresh pine, ahh happy memories.A few vistas on the way up, I could see blue mountains and Fontana Lake still. Finally to the top....turns out the public road opened up that day, so our hard work reward was shared with other outdoor enthusiasts who took the easier way up. meh. Still loved it, a great and windy 360 view right on the TN/NC boarder.We pushed on down, very slow. Icey. Dangerous. Woodrow Leprechaun and I made our slow way down, eventually met Slapp and Fly. 8 miles from the top is NMewfound Gap, our goal. Halfway it got better, and even more beautiful. Sections of the trail had platforms with streams of ice, snow and running water dug out on either side of the trail, I've only seen such work put into trail maintenance in New Zealand. I wasn't in the best state of mind at this point but it was amazing and serene, the most beautiful part of the AT in the 200 miles we walked so far easily.Finally made it to Newfound Gap, hitched a ride, got checked into the Marriott and ready for a zero day tomorrow. Well Earned!
Date: 2013-03-22
From: Newfound Gap

To: Peck's Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 22, 206.8-217.2.Woke up on the floor of the Fairfield Inn at Gatlinburg. The plan to check out and catch the NOC free shuttle was successfully executed. This plan did include feasting on the free continental breakfast. Left the room a mess but made it out on time, squeezed into a cheap taxi van since the shuttles don't start until 10 and headed out. NOC was able to ship a package home, some post cards and an extra pair of pants. Need to keep weight down, I only have my hiking and rain pants now. The shuttle took us up to Newfound Gap and we got started pretty quickly. Slapp carried half my banana that he stabbed for the first few miles unknowingly. Still no name for him but we tossed around 'DK' for a bit.Today we hiked from Newfound Gap to Peck's Corner Shelter and I think this was one of the most beautiful days yet. There was a few inches of fresh powder on everything once we got up above 5500' and the whole day I walked mostly alone and in silence. The snow, the peace, the natural beauty of the Spruce-Fir forest. Loved it. After a thousand foot climb, we continued on to Charlie's Bunion. A bit off the AT but it was an amazing experience. Charlie's Bunion is an exposed rock face and a sheer drop a few hundred feet but the view was awesome. we carried on and were constantly Oooing and Ahhing at the views we saw: the canyons, peaks, and terrain of GSMNP.Once we began our decent from the ridge walking, we entered the first again. I saw happy faces, name tags, and artwork drawn into the snow from the people before me. I was alone but the presence of others sharing the joy of the day made me feel good. Finally, what seemed to take forever, 10.9 miles were completed, shelter .5m off the AT, and I made it. Grr, Leprechaun, Fly, and Slapp all beat me there. Woodrow and Moxie followed shortly. We all scavenged for dry wood and collected quite a lot. stayed warm in Peck's Shelter and even toasted some marshmallows that Fly brought. Heard this place is haunted. Peck was a hikers that was found dead in this same shelter back in the 60s. He had his hands tied behind his back and was hanging from a rope by his neck in the corner....giving this creepy place the name. It looks of decent quality compared to Derrick's Knob but we've already seen a few mice and the snow is still falling. Hope for an uneventful night and plenty of warm sleep tonight!
Date: 2013-03-23
From: Peck's Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: light rain

Day 22, mile 217.2-230.1.Woke up this morning to a nice fire by Slapp around 7:15. Still pitch black outside. I heard pouring rain around 4am and as expected, it was a cold wet morning. Tons of oatmeal mixed with powdered milk, PB, and raisins plus a cup of coffee got me moving today. It was cloudy, foggy, wet, and muddy all day. My feet were soaked within the first hour and never dried. Steven King's short story "UR" followed by starting his novel "Under The Dome" kept me happily walking most of the day. I passed Lep, Grr, Fly, and Slapp and kept going. At one point while on a ridge, the left was foggy but the right, through trees, I could see a nice view of mountains shrouded in clouds.Upon arrival to Cosby Knob Shelter, I met a bunch of spring breakers from Kalamazoo Michigan. The shelter later filled up with everyone I passed plus Fire Hands and Cat. Grr presented us with a motivational short story by the fire about an enthusiastic and optimistic frog who was deaf. The second half of it he told and also gestured in ASL, it was touching. Packed in tight tonight! About 15 in a 12 person shelter. Tomorrow's supposed to be more wet and rainy but we're heading 10 miles to Standing Bear Hostel, looking forward to a warm dry bed again!
Date: 2013-03-24
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 10.7

Day 23, mile 230.1-240.8.Woke up a bit late at Cosby Knob. I knew we had a short day and there was no rush. It was cold again, we didn't get any fire going this morning. It poured overnight and everything was soaked but the morning was mostly dry, just overcast. I left the spring breakers behind and took off, picking up Under The Dome from where I left off. Leprechaun and I met back up with Woodrow around the Mt Cammerer lookout. Beautiful, the clouds are finally starting to clear and the fog is lifting.I continued on and finally after a long downhill, I reached Davenport Gap, end of the Smokies! Woot! Also saw a sign posted...Fresh Ground and trail magic in a few more miles! I high tailed it over and met up with everyone and Fresh Ground who setup an awesome trail magic stop with hot chocolate, soup, crackers, bread, salad, hot dogs, bakery treats, and of course, Coffee! Stayed for about an hour until we started walking over to I40. Fresh walked with us for a bit until we met a few SoBos and hung out on the off-ramp for a bit, eventually a jeep pulls up. Guy throws it in park and start to talkin, he's Ball Pahk from MA who through hiked in '03. Everyone hikes the AT, it's an awesome connection.We all went to Standing Bear Hostel and Ball Pahk bought the first round of beers for us there. We met Curtis, Rocket Man, and Gator, very hospitable staff of the place. Made a good dinner of eggs and hashbrowns, they had a decent store and kitchen.Later that night, the rain started again....joy. Hopefully the warm bunk bed bugs don't bite and the rain stops tomorrow!
Date: 2013-03-25
From: Standing Bear Hostel

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 24, mile 240.8-255.9Woke up early at Standing Bear and made myself some delicious eggs and potatoes. Tried to get a quick exit but still took awhile to get out the door. It's a shit day, cold and snowing. Under The Dome is still keeping me going. The day got worse and worse, eventually made it to Roaring Fork Shelter without much of a break. Slapp was right behind me with Leprechaun and layer two guys there for a weekend trip from LA and AL.The snow was really starting to blow...not a bad storm when you're inside a house in NJ, maybe a bit worse if you were driving but when you're outside at 4000' it sucks. Snow was accumulating inside the shelter at the same rate we were sweeping it out, and our hands were getting colder. Thought maybe we could set up our rain flies from the tents as a 4th wall but that didn't work too well either, hands are about useless at this point and the toes are starting to lose feeling too. 20 degrees outside. With the last ditch effort, we setup tents inside the tiny 3-walled shelter, 3 tents total. My 2-person fit 4 that night: Slapp, Leprechaun, Fly and me. We called it a night by 5pm, inside the tents and in our bags trying to warm up. Got a foot massage from Leprechaun, score. Got feeling back in the toes and hands eventually. Can't really get comfortable or even move around, literally. I'm surprised the tent's walls aren't ripping. Now we stay warm and wait for morning.
Date: 2013-03-26
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Garenflo Gap
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: light snow

Day 25, mile 255.9-267.3. So I was up on and off, waiting for daylight. Condensation in the tent froze a majority of the outside of my sleeping bag, socks, gloves....other folk's stuff too.We all quickly got out and started breaking down and packing up our stuff. Got about a foot of snow and it's still coming down hard. About 15 outside. Grr suggested that we at least stick to pairs, one person watching for blazes in each direction, trying not to get lost this morning in the snowstorm. We eventually all decide to leave as a group and get to the first road, a gravel one, 3.5 miles away at Lemon Gap. Once we eat some food and get cleaned up, shove our frozen boots on our feet, we push on caravan style forward. Woodrow lead. We slowly made it to Lemon Gap. At this points, we all just want to get off the mountain, it's not safe and we're in way over our head. We need to get off the mountain now.Our new friends from AL and MS explained that their car is parked 8 miles ahead. We decide that we'll split up here, one group walking down this long road back to a highway and hope for a ride, Woodrow and I will push onto the car as the worst case scenario since we're two of the stronger hikers. I lead us forward through the blizzard, up Walnut Mtn and Bluff Mtn, over 1500 feet together. I felt lost a few times, very tough to navigate. We pushed on, eventually started seeing footprints of other hikers from hours ago, mostly covered up by now, later learned that it was Shutterbug. Finally got to Garenflo Gap, got a message the others got picked up, got a free lunch, and a free ride to Hot Springs, NC. Seriously. We took their jeep to Hot Springs and met up at the Happy Heart Hostel. We hung out there and gave the car back over to the guys, and waiting for our own ride to Leprechaun's parents' cabin. What a place. Got showered, got cleaned up and warmed up finally. Snow is still coming and but so happy to be inside. Looking forward to a zero and setting up some trail magic in the coming days!
Date: 2013-03-27
From: Garenflo Gap

To: Mill Ridge Road, US25 Gap
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: overcast clouds

March 27-29, Days 26, 27, 28. Miles 267.3-279.8. We finally got with Leprechaun's family the night before. We spent our time relaxing, I cooked with Woodrow, reading, it was great. On day 26, we slacked from Garenflo Gap and into Hot Springs. A quick 6 mile hike in 2 hours with everyone, including Leprechaun's fog Finnegan who lead the way. He loved sprinting ahead and back again, and also loved the snow. He doesn't get to see much in Mobile, AL. On day 27, we set up some trail magic back at Garenflo Gap. Coffee, Hot Chocolate, cookies, fruit, Jumbalaya with sausage and shrimp. Delicious! We served many who came though that day. Day 28 we slacked another 6 miles, SoBo this time, back to Hot Springs again. We passed a small dam and a few fields. Finally got to Lover's Rock with Slapp (JUST WHAT IT'S CALLED FOLKS) and enjoyed the sweet view of the mountains and of Hot Springs from a few hundred feet up. We hiked to the bottom and then took the AT thru the town, following the metal AT blazes/sidewalk markers. Wish we could have stayed longer Hot Springs!
Date: 2013-03-30
From: Mill Ridge Road, US25 Gap

To: Little Laurel Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 29, miles 279.8-293.5. Last day with Leprechaun's family. We woke up early, had some cereal, got packed up and said thanks and goodbye. Mike and Kathy Smith are some of the nicest and most hospitable people I've met along the trail. We got a ride to hot springs where we saw a parade of hikers marching through the town including AJ/Iced Pee and Papi. We also dropped off Woodrow's pack who forgot the entire thing the night before. Nice job. We started at Tanyard Gap, where the AT overpasses 25/70. We all left together but quickly staggered. An initial uphill for a few miles, I stopped at Spring Mountain Shelter to make some chocolatly memories. Nestle really does make the very best. Had a snack with Slapp and pushed on. I listened to some embarrassing metal, then switched and trying to finish up Under the Dome, got a few more chapters though. The last 8 miles flew by and I was at the shelter by 2:30, early enough to catch up to Rooster, Cribbage and Hobbit before they took off. Even got some sweet sweet trail magic someone left, candies and junk food, nice. Slapp showed up soon, followed by Grr, Lep, Fly, and finally Moxie. Really nice night, warm, dry but overcast, and a good fire. Had my 2nd Knorr Side tonight, 2nd the entire trail. They're delicious but heavy and my brown rice mix is more nutritious. No worries, as for nutrition, Leprechaun brought marshmallows so I nommed those for awhile, really felt like happy camping. Little Laurel Shelter fits the 6 of us comfortably, hopefully we'll stay dry overnight when the rain is 100% coming. Can't wait. Got 13 more days to Demascus, expect to be in Erwin by Tuesday. Slapp and I are going to increase our mileage, keep it above 15 a day. Tomorrow might be a big day if we push hard, hopefully everyone stays fit and healthy!
Date: 2013-03-31
From: Hogback Ridge Shelter

To: Little Laurel Shelter
Miles today: 21.5
Weather: light rain

Day 30, miles 293.5-315. Woke up a few times to the sound of pouring rain. Slapp keeps his headphones nearby he said but I kind of like it. Hail on a metal roof or thunder are different but waking up to a bit of rain at 3am lulled me back to sleep quickly. We all woke up around 7:30 this morning, not much exciting but breakfast, my own oatmeal mixture and coffee. My oatmeal is a giant bag of quick oats, raisins, cinnamon, and some granular sugar. Yum. Grr left first, followed by Slapp and then me. Moxie was leaving soon and Lep and Fly were practically still in their bags. I thought we'd have an easy day ahead of us...oh man. Way wrong. Foggy muddy and wet. After the first 1000' incline and passing Grr (who I'm still a bit worried about) I hit the Firescald ridgeline. There is a bypass called the Bad Weather trail, a blue blaze you take if the weather is bad. here, the AT got rocky and strenuous. I crawled up and down rock faces along this ridge on all fours for about 1 mile, 45 minutes. It was foggy and muddy, at least no rain. I pushed on, eventually made it down and to the Jerry Cabin Shelter. The Cleaner does a great job at maintaining this sweet shelter, looks like one from the Smokies with a fireplace. Sat for a moment with Slapp and ***? and then pushed on. So fucking muddy and slushy. A few more miles and I reached Flint Mtn Shelter. Slapp was 15 minutes behind. We sat and chatted with Hobbit and Cribbage for a bit while it poured. We had just made it in time. After a bit though, the rain stopped, we felt good and then decided to push on. 8.8 to the next shelter and we had already done 12.7. We got lucky for awhile and didn't see any rain but it eventually came as we started the 1500 incline to Lick Rock. It was beautiful with some small waterfalls but tough to appreciate with the sore legs, cold, wet bodies and rain. More mud, I took a fall and bent my hiking pole...hope Leki will replace it. Better my pole than a knee or something, I was okay. Eventually made it to Hogback Ridge Shelter. The rain never stopped. I hiked another half mile and brought back a few liters of water for Slapp and me, I'm tired but not feeling too bad. Got back and got naked, out of my cold wet clothes and into try comfy camp clothes. Had dinner in my sleeping back and called it a night. Cooked a cup of brown instant rice with a cup of powdered Navy Bean soup, made a full liter of deliciousness. Feeling warm again, its time for bed. The rain is still falling, it's almost 9 and I've covered at least 21.5 miles today. A warm bed in Erwin on Tuesday is sounding better and better. Gnight folks!
Date: 2013-04-01
From: Little Laurel Shelter

To: No Business Knob Shelter
Miles today: 20.7
Weather: clear sky

Day 31, miles 315.0-335.7. Slapp and I woke up this morning pretty early. Blue Moon, Rocky, and Jake all got out before us but since we did our big 21.5 mile day the day before, we weren't in a rush. Same breakfast of quick oats, pb, sugar, cinnamon, and raisins with coffee. delicious. My appetite is unreal when we're hiking. I COULD ration my food but since we'll be in Erwin tomorrow, I had about a liter of oatmeal. Might convert to 5-6 packets. We put on our soaking wet clothes from the day before and hauled ass out of there to get warm quick. I put some old Korn before switching over to Under the Dome. Book is getting good. After leaving Hogback Ridge, a few miles later we made a significant climb to a beautiful meadow at the top of this forest. Sun was shining, views were great, I wish I could call Epona and get across quickly. Mountains in the background, it seriously looks like Hyrule field. More miles later, we get to the big climb. Big Bald, almost 2000' higher than where we were earlier. 5500' is the peak. Looks like Max Patch but clear today. The Sun's been missing for a bit, now overcast. Soon it rained and even hailed briefly on our way down. We passed the shelter at 10 miles and pushed on. We passed the campsites and beautiful stream crossing at 15 miles and pushed on. Reminded me of NZ a bit, so green and wet, almost like a rainforest. We crossed Spivey Gap and climbed one more time. Then the trail wrapped around the edge of a canyon, beautiful. Sharp inclines above us to the left and drop offs below us to the right. We wrapped in and out of ravines to ridges, crossing many streams. Finally ducked back into the woods and while I thought there was at least another 30 minutes of hiking ahead, there was No Business Knob Shelter. Fire Hands had the fire ripping, I gathered a round of firewood and dried my stuff out. Someone had left some instant potatoes so I had one of those packs mixed with my instant Navy Bean soup, delicious. Those potatoes are super processed, at least 45 ingredients, no joke. Better tasting than my plain brown rice but I'll take the trail magic. Tracker, Rocky, Goat, Blue Moon, Firehands, Cat, Cricket, Trixie/Yay Blaze, Rooster are all here. Fine night, stars and no rain...for now. Should be a good nero into Erwin tomorrow
Date: 2013-04-02
From: No Business Knob Shelter

To: Uncle Johnny's Hostel
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: clear sky

Day 32, miles 335.7-341. Woke up at No Business early. Got the morning fire going, it was a nice treat for everyone as we all packed up and had our breakfast. I was one of the last ones out this morning, right behind Tracker and Slapp though. Only doing 6 today with a light back (little food and water) and feeling good. I was hauling ass, passed Slapp, Tracker, Cat and was borderline running downhill. Stopped for a few beautiful vistas over the river valley and mountains. With the sun behind us, the views were picture perfect. I felt like Sonic a few times. The downhill switchbacks were curved on the outside, in a way I could plant my inside pole down hard and run a quick 180, riding up on the walls of the trail. It was sweet as. made it down to the bottom and got checked into Uncle Johnny's, met Grim and heard about his bullshit 9 lb pack. Totally impractical. I rented bikes, along with Slapp, Firehands, and Cat. We rode into town along the Erwin Linear Path, a nice path along the river, sometimes industrial park and I26 though