morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-03-06
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: clear sky

Day 18Today kicked my buttocks. I had heard that the second day in the smokies was the toughest but didn't really believe it. As I have read in several journals and also from looking myself, it doesn't look like it would be tougher the second day than the first. What is missing from the guide books, or what is not realized by those of us just looking at it, is that the ups and downs that the trail goes through are all steep and relentless. You are hiking in a gutter because the trail is washed out from so much foot traffic. Once the sun comes up all that frozen mud turns back into mud and makes the footing tricky so that it requires that much more effort to navigate, I think I slipped and slid as much as I walked today. I know, wa wa wa, it really was tough though. Even though 13.5 is no where near the most miles that I have covered, I was completely wasted at the end of today. I don't think I could have hiked another mile if I had to. The big pay off for the day was that I got to see the first real wild life of the trip, well the first that wasn't a bird or small rodent. At the shelter there was a Doe and her yearling that was still following her from last year. She was fat with this year's fawn not yet birthed and completely unconcerned with a smelly hiker. I litteraly had to chase them off the trail so that I could walk to the privy. Once again though it was a really scenic hike and right at the end we had another of what I'll call vegitation change and we went from a mostly hardwood forest that we had been walking through to a mostly evergreen/pine of some sort forest. So, it looks like things will change charicter for a while and we will be walking through a darker evergreen forest where we have been walking through hard woods with no leaves interspersed with stands of Laural.The wind is picking up and it looks like it might be a cold night.
Date: 2012-03-07
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: New Found Gap/Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 19Wow! what a tough hike it was today. I didn't mention this in yesterday's journal, but at some point yesterday morning I pulled a muscle in my right shin, so it is uncomforatable to over extend or flex my ankle. This makes the down hills very difficult, just when I thought I was getting the hang of going down hill so that my feet don't hurt. That, said we woke this morning to the wind howling accross the mountain. It must have been blowing 30+ mph and the temp was right at 30*. The trail as promised at the end of yesterday did change charicter today though and we were walking mostly through dense evergreens so the trees mostly blocked the wind. It definatly got your attention though when walking out of the trees on the ridges of the mountain. We had about a 3 mile walk from the shelter up to Clingmans Dome the highest point on the Appilachian trail. After that it was mostly down hill to New Found Gap. Unfortunately the Mountains were all covered in clouds today so no views. The big supprize today was the ice. The decent down the far side of Clingmans Dome had lots of sections were the trail was iced over. The first 300 yards or so of the decent on the north side of the mountain was the worst though. Most of the decent I was able to step to the sides or step on protruding rocks to gain tracktion. There were a couple of times though that I had to depend on my treking poles to hold me while 'walking/skating' down a section of ice. Then on one of the last patches of ice that I had to cross I slipped and fell. Not too bad, except that I still had my head lamp in my thigh pocket and that is what I landed on. Ouch, that left me with an nice charlie horse to deal with on the rest of the decent. Oh well, 6 miles with a bum shin mucle and a charlie horse on my thigh, atleast it was the same leg. Ran into lots of collage kids out on spring break, I am looking forward to a hot shower and warm bed tonight in Gatlinburg.
Date: 2012-03-08
From: New Found Gap/Gatlinburg, TN

To: New Found Gap/Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 20Well, my leg feels ok today but I decided to give it one more day to heal before tackling the rest of the smokies. Bug Eater has also decided that his feet need a break so we will finnish up our resupply today and then head out tomorrow morning sometime. 3 days to get out of the smokies then another 2 or 3 days into Hot Springs, NC. Had a great dinner last night and got to have a really good bottle of wine with it. I really didn't think I would miss wine, but I guess I've become a bit of a wino. Oh, well there are worse things. Gatlinburg is a nice town with lots to do (Big tourist trap) so a 0 day here will be nice. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next update, I haven't had good internet or computer access since Franklin. By the way the new mattress pad is working great. Thanks to all those that have signed my Journal!
Date: 2012-03-09
From: New Found Gap/Gatlinburg, TN

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 21Well, taking that 0 day was a good decision; my leg is feeling much better. Just a little stiffness from the charlie horse and the shin doesn't hurt at all today. We caught a ride from Eric with 'A Walk in the Woods' to Newfound Gap this morning after another round at the breakfast buffet. The hiking was fairly good from a terrain point of view, not too many steep climbs to deal with. The trail was like walking up a river most of the time though. All of the springs in the area seemed to dump directly onto the trail and then flowed down the trail like a little river, the Appalachian Stream I called it. The views were spectacular though, we were hiking almost entirely along the ridge line of the mountains all day and we had clear skies so you could see a very long way. The only down side was the wind blowing like mad all day making for a cold day on the ridge tops. We meet Robert and Jeff at the shelter along with a ridge runner. It was good comic relief listing to Robert and Jeff give everyone in the shelter a hard time about one thing or another but particularly the Ridge Runner. Robert and Jeff are going to start their through hike on April 1st, I wish them lots of luck, I know they will have a good time on the trail.
Date: 2012-03-10
From: Pecks Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: clear sky

Day 22Another great day of hiking, perfect weather and the trail wasn't too difficult especially with another short mileage day. It will be nice to get out of the Smokies and have to option of tenting/sleeping somewhere other than a shelter again. The shelters are spaced just so, and you either do 2 really long days of hiking or 3 moderate days, there is no in between choice.   It occurred to me last night as I was laying in my sleeping bag in a shelter with 10 other people, how amazing it is that you can hike all day seemingly alone with no one around then end up sleeping with 10 other people; lots of people on the trail. The trail was nice and easy today and the views once again were spectacular. I may not like having to sleep in the shelters every night but the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is full of beautiful views. Meet some great people on the trail today. Gamel and Laurely (hope I got those names rite) gave me some trail magic by carrying out my trash and giving me some hard candy. Then I meet Libby and Brenda who wanted to take pictures with a thru hiker. Another great day on the trail, just one more day and I¢ll be out of the Smokies.
Date: 2012-03-11
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Green corner Rd (Standing Bear Hostle)
Miles today: 10.7

Day 23The temps were above freezing this morning (yea! no frozen boots to deal with) and continued to warm through out the day. We walked out of the Smokies today and crossed under I40, a mile stone in my mind. True to form the Smokies left us with some easy hiking and spectacular views on our final day.We are spending the night at Standing Bear Hostel to get a few supplies to get us to Hot Springs. Curtis is a great host, he took us down to a BP station a few exits down on I40 so we could get a Cheese burger for lunch. We then did our usual clean up and laundry chores and were able to have Frozen Pizza and ice cream for dinner. The Hostel itself is great very scenic with a creek that runs through the middle of the compound and actually ran under the cabin that I am going to sleep in. That will be nice, though I might have to get up an extra time listening to running water all night. All in all a great place to ¢decompress¢ as Curtis puts it.
Date: 2012-03-12
From: Green corner Rd (Standing Bear Hostle)

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

Day 24It was nice to finally be putting in a few more miles again, rather than having to cut it short to reach a shelter. We are staying in a shelter tonight but that was planned due to a forecast of rain. It was actually supposed to rain this afternoon but never did, and the forecast is for rain tonight and in the morning with clear skies tomorrow afternoon (here¢s hoping). Last night at Standing Bear was great, I slept like a baby on the big queen size bed with the creek running under it, and I didn¢t have to get up anymore than normal (bonus). That said I think I slept too well because I didn¢t really feel like hiking today. Just dragging and wanted to stop and take a nap all afternoon (hehehe). Since, we were under a bit of a time crunch to get to Hot Springs with the supplies that we had, I decided to forgo the nap and push on. The scenery was back to the normal hardwood forest that isn¢t in bloom yet with the occasional Rhododendrons thrown in. By the way, I found out that those plants I¢ve been calling Mountain Laurel are really Rhododendrons, finally talked to someone who knew for sure. We did get some new scenery today though, two balds (so called because it is a hill top with no trees [bald]). The first was the site of an FAA tower and I managed to get some good pictures. The second was Max Patch which had better views, but honestly I was very tired by that point and taking pictures was not on my mind, oh well maybe I¢ll go back someday. It is finally starting to sprinkle a little bit now so I guess I¢ll call it a night.
Date: 2012-03-13
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: light rain

Day 25The rain that was supposed to come last night didn¢t really show up until around midnight. It was still a pleasant night though, not too cold and no wind to speak of. The rain had tapered off by morning and I was going to start hiking without any rain gear when it started raining heavily again. Fortunately, I hadn¢t left the shelter and was able to dig out my rain gear and put it on without all my stuff getting wet. The hiking was easier today, even though it rained all morning. Just 2 relatively easy climbs in the morning then just some rolling stuff in the after noon, so the 18 miles into Hot Springs wasn¢t too difficult. Bit of sad news, when we stopped for lunch today Bugeater called home to get an update on his Dad who¢s been sick and found out that they are putting him into Hospice. So, with that news Bugeater decided (rightly) to get off the trail and go be with his family and Dad at the end. I wish him and his family well during a trying time.So, now I¢m on my own again. I should have 4 nights and 5 longish days to get into my next resupply in Erwin, TN. Next installments should come then¢¦.
Date: 2012-03-14
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Spring Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: few clouds

Day 26Summer is here, it was a much as 80* today as measured on the cheap little thermometer that I carry on my pack, which made for some hot hiking. I didn't get out of Hot Springs today until after 11; I had to wait for the Library to open so I could do my updates. The hiking was mostly typical for a day leaving resupply; heavy pack and all uphill. The hike out was really nice though. I got to hike along the river for almost a mile before the climbing started which made for a nice warm up. Then it was almost straight up, which made for some great views of Hot Springs. One of the highlights of the day. Was an old watch tower that I took about a 30 minute break at to let my feet rest and grab some pictures. It was also nice to get up above the nats and other small flying insects that are out in force after a couple of warm days. I shared the shelter with a guy from Charlotte who had lots of stories from his Moutainiering trips in the past. It was interesting to get a different perspective on what I am doing from someone who has had some big climbing adventures around the world. He was out doing a section hike for spring break which he usually did with his daughter but she had to work so he was out on his own. Well, tomorrow is another day, and I plan to do 15.5 miles.
Date: 2012-03-15
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Jerry's Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 27Another beutiful warm sunshing day hiking on the AT. I heard thunder in the distance off and on all day, but no rain or storms came my way durring the day. I did have a recurrance of the issue that I had with my right shin on my way into Gatlinburg. So when I got to the shelter even though it was early I decided to stop anyway and give the shin a chance to rest. I took a break today at Little Laural shelter around 11 and decided that it was time to order a new back pack. The one that I have has a size Large frame and since I have lost some inches it no longer fits correctly and the frame is riding lower than it should. So I called and ordered a medium pack and had it delivered to Uncle Johnny's in Erwin. Hope it gets there before I do. After I resumed my hike with a nice 1100' climb, after a few miles I came to a sign; Right to the Ridge Top Trail (white blaze AT trail), Left to a foul weather bypass trail (blue blaze non-AT trail); I thought about it for a minute and headed on the White Blaze trail up over the ridge top. Wow, what a hike. It was only a mile and a half but it was very tough. Several sections were hand over hand and it literally followed the ridge top. Nice views, but a challanging rock scramble for sure. After that it was a nice 1.5 miles to the shelter where I could rest my shin. Plan to do a big day tomorrow, I am going for a 20+ mile day.
Date: 2012-03-16
From: Jerry's Cabin Shelter

To: Bald Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 24.8
Weather: light rain

Day 28OUCH! 24.8 was a little more than my feet were ready for. That said... YEA! I've been wanting to get in a 20 plus day and I did it. So, enough with the back patting.... To day was a long day and 25ish miles covers a lot of different terrain and sight seeing opportunities on the trail. The trail today, though it had the typical ups and downs that are expected, provided a couple sections that were a mile or more of easy hiking and that helped with the long distance covered. I went over Big Butt Mountain (real name look it up on Google) which was a bit of a rock scramble, saw a civil war era grave site that is still maintained with fake flowers by the family, and the occasional vista of the mountains around me. I also saw my first bear today, I think. What I heard was something big crashing through the trees in the draw below me as I was hiking into Sam's Gap (I-26 crossing). When I looked what I actually saw was something big and black halling boogy through the under growth away from me faster than I would have believed a bear could move. It could have been a REALY big black dog, or a REALY fast hog, but I am going with bear. Guess he saw me first.... Once again today I was 'chased' by sounds of thunder in the distance as the afternoon started getting late. I had actually planned to camp at Low Gap, a point just over 20 miles with a spring; hearing the storm moving in behind me though I decided when I got to Low Gap to push the extra 4 miles to Bald Mountain shelter so I would have some shelter. So that meant that I had to slog my way over Big Bald Mountain. Great views and the Bald is amazing. From there I could see the storm building to the southwest and was sure that it was headed my way and I didn't want to get caught by the lighting out on the bald so I continued to the shelter. I made it there and had just enough time to prepair dinner and get my food bags on the bear cables when the rain and the storm started (very glad that I went to the shelter). For the next 4 hours or so it was all wind, hail, heavy rain, and a light show. Up side is that I made almost 25 miles today and that means I am with in reach of Erwin tomorrow so that I can watch the Austrailian F1 race. Down side is now I can't get to sleep because my feet hurt so bad, so I am up writing in my journal trying to kill some time while waiting for the Ibuprofen to take effect. I did get to sleep around 11:30 or so and slept like a baby until around 7.
Date: 2012-03-17
From: Bald Mountain Shelter

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 29Today's hike was nice, once again (that phrase starting to sound old already but it is true). I walked in clear skys all day today even though there was rain all around me it seemed to never reach where I was walking. I had another treat today. Part of my hike today was through a valley that contained what looked like an old growth rain forest. There was a nice mix of large evergreens and hardwoods intermingled and the forest felt close and snug like walking with a blanket wrapped around my shoulders. This lasted for all of about 4 miles or so and ended with a climb up out of the vally next to and criss-crossing a stream that cascaded down into the valley below, pretty cool stuff. Then it was into Erwin, I picked up my package at Uncle Johnny's (sadly they have no Cable TV), then headed down the road to the big chain hotel that had access to the Speed Channel so I could watch the F1 race. I ordered a Pizza for dinner, did my normal town chores, and will get to watch the race tonight.
Date: 2012-03-18
From: Erwin, TN

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Day 30Well, good news is that the new back pack fits much better than the old one. With it fully loaded it sits on my back in what I feel is the best place for me. The shoulder straps even feel better, but that may just be a placebo effect from having a pack that sits in the correct place on my back. Unfortunately today is Sunday, that means there is no way to ship the old back pack back. That then means that I have to take a 0 day here in Erwin and hope that I can get to the Post Office tomorrow then back out on the trail at a decent time. The good news is that I don't have to stay at the more expensive national chain hotel and can move back down the road to the hostle where I can also get a free ride into town for the post office tomorrow. It isn't all bad though I think it has settled in to a long slow rain today. Not good news for the guys down the road at the NASCAR race at Darlington this weekend but good news for a hiker stuck in town and not on the trail. Next updates may be a while, I have two long sections between me and Damascus and I'm not too sure about getting computer access between here and there. I'll update whenever I can though.
Date: 2012-03-19
From: Erwin, TN

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: broken clouds

Day 31Well, I got my package off after breakfast this morning, and it is good by to Erwin, TN. Interesting story about Erwin, thier clam to shame is an incedent involving Murderous Mary. Look it up on the Internet, it is a very sad but quite comical story. So, after eating, shipping my package and hearing about Murderous Mary, I got on the trail around 10:45. Just after leaving the hostle, the trail crosses a rail road track. Wouldn't you know it a train came along just before I got to the crossing and then stopped in my path. I waited a few minutes and when it was obvious that the train would be a while, I decided to risk climbing through the train (between cars) to get past it. So, I climbed up on the ladder of one of the cars and then through between the cars and down the other side. The whole time I was thinking, what am I going to do if this thing starts moving? I had my pack on and my treking poles strapped to the pack so jumping off the train onto the gravel wouldn't have been any fun at all. Fortunately the only thing that happend was that I got two hands full of train grease which the almighty baby wipes took care of (those things are great). About, 20 minutes later I was in a place where I could see the train tracks again and the train was still there, so good thing I risked the climb. The hiking the rest of the day was pleasant. The weather was clear and warm and the scenery was as good as it has been anywhere along the trail. In typical fashion the trail information in NC/TN wasn't the greatest and when I got to my planned camping spot it was next to a gravel road which I had seen a lot of traffic on and I didn't want to camp that close to the road so I went on to the next shelter which was Cherry Gap. I got in late but ended up meeting Diesel and The Kid, a son (12 yro) and father, from Alpharetta, GA thru hiking. I had a good couple of hours with them at the shelter while eating and doing the typical night time chores. Going to try for another 20+ mile day tomorrow.
Date: 2012-03-20
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 32Whew! today was a tough day. The weather was nice though toward the end of the day I felt like I was being chased by a thunder storm that never caught me. The hiking was very challanging today. It started off with one climb after another, none too big but each one just enough to get the sweat rolling down my forhead. Then around noon I hit the big climb for the day, Roan Mountain. This was a bear of a climb. Lots of it almost straight up (or it felt like it) and lots of it was a rock scramble. None of the rock climbing was actually hand over hand but it wasn't far from it. It was 2200' of torture, but the scenery was nice, as usual, and the climb was soon over and then it was down the mountain I went. I opted to pass up my first bail out point which was the Roan Mountain shelter, it was still just before 3pm, there was a storm blowing in over the mountain, and there was NO privy so I headed out for Overmountain shelter which I had heard good things about. From Roan Mountain, it was down through a spruce forest that gave way to open fields once I crossed Carvers Gap. After Carvers Gap I actually had 3 balds to climb over, again with thunder and dark clouds over my shoulder. Then finnished off at the day at the shelter which was a converted old barn with a view that was the best from a shelter that I think I will likely get on the trail, we'll see. Tomorrow it will be into Roan Mountain, TN for resupply.
Date: 2012-03-21
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Hwy 19E Elk Park, NC/Roan Mtn., TN
Miles today: 9.2

Day 33I had a short day today, into town to get resupplied and cleaned up. I am staying at the Mountain Harbor B&B and Hostle. A very nice place with sheets in the hostle and Mary will do your laundry. The hiking this morning was great, I had two big balds to climb and the views with fog in the valleys was very nice. I got a picture that I posted on my FB page. The hike I think replayed all the different terrain that I have covered so far. There was rutted trail, bolder fields, roots, smooth tredway, steep ups/downs, etc. it made for a nice hike out to the Hostle. I also passed 400 miles today and left North Carolina behind. I also ran into a group of forest service guys at the end of the hike that were burning an old shelter (apple house) and it was quite a bon fire.