morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-06-29
From: Damascus, VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Friday, June 29, 2007This is my 3rd night in Damascus. The first night I stayed at the Old Mill Inn - very pricy but has air conditioning. The air conditioner leaked water all over the place so I had to get out of there in a hurry. The second night I stayed at Dave¢s place. It was nice but was no place to relax b/c a resident hostel Nazi kept coming and going and coming and going - all day long! You can¢t sleep b/c he has to slam a door every 5 sec. and you can¢t read a book b/c he is always going in/out the door and distracting you. Tonight I am staying at the place which is very nice - except some old man will not stop lathering to me and I can¢t get any reading done. I need to get back on the trail and take a zero day from all my zero days so I can finally get some relaxing done.
Date: 2007-06-30
From: Damascus, VA

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

Saturday, June 30, 2007I hiked from Damascus to Lost Mtn. Shelter today - finally some relaxation! I am in a full shelter tonight - Mudbug from LSU, GQ from Australia, One Step from Hawaii, Take 5 and Sweet Dreams from Ohio. They say they have been on my tail since Springer - they must be slow hikers too. Part of the At connects w/ the VA Creeper Trail - a 17 mi. bike trail - which is all downhill on a bike, and even has an ice cream stand in the middle of it. You just get shuttled to the top of Mt. Rogers and coast down. If I still had my trekking poles it feel great to stick them in the spokes of people going down the mountain - they have it too easy.
Date: 2007-07-01
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Sunday, July 1, 2007Hiked from Lost Mtn. Shelter to Thomas Knob S today. Apparently the reason GQ hikes 20+ miles a day is because he wakes up at 5 a.m. sharp. Hiking the AT is hard but waking up at 5:00 a.m. is just unthinkable. Thomas Knob S is neat w/ great views and am sheltering w/ Take 5, Sweet Dreams, Mudbug and Brent (somehow after 500 miles on the AT he does not have a trail name yet?!). We spent several hours this afternoon at the shelter deciding whether to go on or not. If we had kept walking instead of thinking about it we would have been there by now but probably wouldn¢t have been as much fun. Plus the weather is beautiful today - can¢t waste it hiking, it would be a shame!
Date: 2007-07-02
From: Thomas Knob Shelter

To: Hurricane Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Monday, July 2, 2007I hiked from Thomas Knob S to Hurricane Mtn. S today. The hike was probably the most scenic yet but I couldn¢t look at the mountains much b/c the trail was so rocky. Grayson Highlands St. Park had wild ponies in it - but none so wild they wouldn¢t take food from your hands. As I approached a set of rocks called ¢Fat Man Squeeze¢ I was glad to see there was a trail going around it. Being fat myself plus carrying a huge pack, plus having my hiking buddies an hour ahead of me I did not want to get stuck in what looked like prime Timber Rattler territory, between two rocks leaning towards each other in what looks like a blatant disregard for the law of gravity. I tried to hike w/ Mudbug, Take 5, and Sweet Dreams but they hike at speeds that may not be ¢break neck¢ speeds but I will certainly break something. At their pace I am confused why it took them so long to catch up to me if they only started ~ 10 days after me. Tomorrow we plan to meet up at Partnership Shelter - the only shelter on the AT that you can order pizza and beer from, and one of the few w/ hot water.P.S. Whoever said VA is flat and easy is stupid - just not as stupid as I am for believing them.
Date: 2007-07-04
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Atkins, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Wednesday, July 4, 2007Hiked from Partnership S to Atkins, VA. Staying at Relax Inn for Fourth w/ friends tonight. Mudbug, Take 5, Sweet Dreams, Grizzly Journey & Camper are all cramped in small rooms as well as me. Not much ¢Relax-Inn¢ going on cramped in these small dirty rooms. Took one look at shower and decided I would be cleaner w/o shower; this must be where Psycho was filmed! Passed Settlers Museum on way here but all was locked up on the Fourth.
Date: 2007-07-12
From: Baxter State Park

To: Katahdin (and return)
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Thursday, July 12, 2007Hiked Baxter Peak of Mt. Katahdin today. Took 4 12 hrs. to climb and 4 hours to get down. Getting down was actually harder than going up. On the up, at the tree line, I looked out and the clouds were at eye level. When on top I was looking down at the clouds! Excellent weather today which was needed since the term trail, in ME, is a misnomer. I climbed a stream for 2 mi. and then boulders for 2 mi. never once seeing anything that remotely looked like a trail.
Date: 2007-07-13
From: Baxter State Park

To: Hurd Brook 
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: broken clouds

Friday, July 13, 2007Hiked from Katahdin Stream Campground to Hurd Brook S today. I stopped at the store just befor the 100 mile wilderness for one last roast beef sandwich and cream soda. I also bought bug repellant since mine got snatched at the airport and cost me $12 - $3/ounce. Maybe its related to price of gas or something but is necessary because of the mosquitoes. Still no recognizable trail.
Date: 2007-07-14
From: Hurd Brook 

To: Rainbow Stream
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: light rain

Saturday, July 14, 2007Hurd Brook to Rainbow Stream Shelter today. Still no ¢trail¢ in sight. Why didn¢t Noah swat those 2 mosquitoes on his ark? Did see two huge moose just before camp. Got me thinking I would like to eat moose steaks when I get to Monson.
Date: 2007-07-15
From: Rainbow Stream

To: Wadleigh Stream
Miles today: 8.1
Weather: light rain

Sunday, July 15, 2007Rainbow Stream S to Wadleigh Stream S today. Its raining so I¢m going to see if it¢ll clear up and I can move on or hope for better weather tomorrow. Things are very too slippery and rocky to continue in rain.
Date: 2007-07-16
From: Wadleigh Stream

To: Antlers
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Monday, July 16, 2007Hiked from Wadleigh Stream S to Antlers Campsite today. Fell in a big mud hole up to my waist and then washed the mud off by falling in a stream. This is a nice campsite for drying all of my wet stuff and swimming though the water is cold.
Date: 2007-07-18
From: East Branch

To: Chairback Gap
Miles today: 20.7
Weather: light rain

Wednesday, July 18, 2007East Branch to Chairback Gap today. Weather has turned cold and rainy. After hiking all the way through limbs and brush that the trail crew neglected to cut and falling on one of their staircases I arrived at Carl Marshall Shelter and found them packed shoulder to shoulder in it w/ no more room. They even used up all the tent sites. No wonder this trail is so awful w/ trail crews quitting when it rains - it rains all the time here! I wound up hiking to the next shelter at Chairback Gap in the rain and dark which wasn¢t too bad until the batteries in my headlamp went out. I switched them with the ones in my camera and they went out too. I had to get to the shelter by the light of my butane lighter and it took about 1 12 hours for the last 150 ft.
Date: 2007-07-19
From: Chairback Gap

To: Cloud Pond
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: light rain

Thursday, July 19, 2007Hiked from Chairback Gap to Cloud Pond today. It was only 6 miles but very tough. For some reason the AT planners up here decided to put the trail on flat, smooth, angled rocks which when not (its still raining by the way) are more of a water slick than a trail. After falling on several of these I gave up.
Date: 2007-07-24
From: Horseshoe Canyon

To: Bald Mountain Brook
Miles today: 0.0

Tuesday, July 24, 2007Horseshoe Canyon S to Bald Mtn. Brook S today. Caratunk tomorrow. Nice views over Moxie Bald but my camera is broken. I guess the 100 mi. wilderness is no place for electronics. 2 days out of Monson and I am covered with mud which should stop the mosquitos but it doesn¢t.
Date: 2007-07-25
From: Bald Mountain Brook

To: Caratunk
Miles today: 14.7

Wednesday, July 25, 2007Bald Mtn. Brook to Caratunk today. Stayed at Northern Outdoors which was a mistake. There were as many staff as guests and it still took forever to get any service. It took an hour to get checked in and about 12 hour wait to get a waitress to take my drink order. I¢ll be happy to leave tomorrow.
Date: 2007-07-26
From: Caratunk

To: Pierce Pond
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: clear sky

Thursday, July 26, 2007Crossed the Kennebec today on a canoe and hiked to Pierce Pond S. Took a 2 hr. nap along the way to settle my stomach from a greasy breakfast in Caratunk. This shelter has a nice view of the pond and mountains and a bunch of loons fishing right off shore. All of days hiking should be this nice.
Date: 2007-07-27
From: Pierce Pond

To: Little Bigalow
Miles today: 17.3

Friday, July 27, 2007Went from Pierce Pond S to Little Bigalow Shelter today. Very easy, nice hike. Tomorrow will be hard with the Bigalows, and hopefully the weather will hold so I can actually see something from one of the mountains in ME. Several thru hikers here today planning out their hikes to Katahdin; they think 172 more miles isn¢t that much but I would disagree - they have been pretty tough.
Date: 2007-07-28
From: Little Bigalow

To: Avery Peak - Stratton
Miles today: 8.4

Saturday, July 28, 2007Hiked from Little Bigelow to Avery Peak today. Weather looked bad at the top so I hiked down the Fire Warden trail (skipped 6.9 miles). As soon as I got down the sun came back out. Staying at the Stratton Motel w/ Micel & Jen, Seaweed (both SOBOs) and Cheeze (NOBO). Went to Traitors Lounge - named after Benedict Arnold who marched his troops on the trail in the Rev. War - and listened to a band called Boomballattee.
Date: 2007-07-30
From: Stratton

To: Spaulding Mountain
Miles today: 13.5

Monday, July 30, 2007Stratton to Spaulding Mtn S today. Feeling guilty about skipping 8 mi. but Fire Warden trail is way too steep to climb w/ 40 pound pack. Some guy tried to pawn his new Harry Potter book off on me at the shelter. Way too big & heavy no matter how addictive it may be.
Date: 2007-08-01
From: Piazza Rock

To: Bemis Mountain
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2007Piazza Rock S to Benis Mtn. Lean-to today. Spent 3/4 of the day walking 50 ft. up, 50 ft. down, then 50 ft. thru mud. Passed nice campsite on pond w/ canoes - nice but they didn¢t have motors so I didn¢t go out. Benis Mtn. Had lot of blue berries on it but not anymore, I ate them all. Caught up w/ Seaweed at shelter.
Date: 2007-08-03
From: Hall Mountain

To: Frye Notch
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: few clouds

Friday, Aug. 3, 2007Hall Mtn. to Frye Notch lean-to today. Trip into Andover was easy - got a ride both ways. On the way back a guy at his cabin fed me a sandwich and gave me a ride back. Rain is coming.
Date: 2007-08-04
From: Frye Notch

To: Full Goose
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: few clouds

Saturday, Aug. 4, 2007Frye Notch to Full Goose today. Rain cleared away and weather is beautiful. Got to Old Speck S and charge $8 so I went down Mahoosic area (thank God down, not up) and thru Mahoosic Notch - which is so hard the moose cannot get through it alive. Yes, there was a dead, decomposing moose right in the middle of the trail. No scavengers have eqaten at all - it is probably too much work to get to the carcass.
Date: 2007-08-06
From: Trident Col

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: fog

Monday, Aug. 6, 2007Trident Col to Gorham, NH today. Rainy and cold, but luckily all downhill. Sleeping in Northern Peaks Motel in a room by myself - no other hikers will share w/ me b/c I snore too loud. Also noticed more people tenting outside shelters for some reason.
Date: 2007-08-08
From: Gorham, NH

To: Imp
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: light rain

Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007Gorham, NH to Imp Shelter tonight. Not feeling good with all the junk food in my stomach. Enjoyed the zero day yesterday by the pool playing Uno. Very windy at the shelter tonight and am glad it had 4 walls instead of the usual 3.
Date: 2007-08-09
From: Imp

To: Osgood
Miles today: 17.9
Weather: broken clouds

Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007Impt Shelter to Osgood campsite today. Still feeling bad - I barfed on the side of the trail climbing Carter Mtn. Stopped for soup at Carter Hut and went across Wildcat Mtn. to Pinkham Notch then on to Osgood. Have a 3,000 ft. climb in the morning.
Date: 2007-08-10
From: Osgood

To: Lake of the Clouds
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: broken clouds

Friday, Aug. 10, 2007Osgood Campsite to Lake of the Clouds Hut today. Very nice weather on top of Mt. Washington which is home of the worst weather in the U.S. Still not feeling good and have decided I am sick instead of having eaten too much junk food in Gorham. I am cold all of the time despite the 80 F temp inside the hut.   Barfed again too. Am doing a ¢work for stay¢ at the hut where I trade 3 hours work to sleep in the hut instead of paying $100. Glad I do not have to sleep in the dungeon - an emergency sshelter in the bottom of the hut that is dark, wet, and cold and am told gets used as a latrine in winter when its too cold to go outside.
Date: 2007-08-11
From: Lake of the Clouds

To: Ethan Pond
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Saturday, Aug. 11, 2007Lake of Clouds to Ethan Pond today. Still feeling sick but this was a pretty easy hike - even the last 2,000 ft. climb wasn¢t bad. The caretaker at the campsite is a survivalist - he knows all about oil running out and all the doomsday scenarios as well as has a 2 year supply of food in storage on his private island off the coast of Maine. The conclusion we reached is that it¢s a good thing I¢m hiking the trail now instead of later since civilization may collapse later.
Date: 2007-08-12
To: Crawford Notch
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: fog

Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007Ethan Pond to Zealand Falls Hut to Crawford Notch today. Made it to Zealand Falls Hut and was too sick to go on. Took 5 mi. hard trail to Crawford Notch instead of easy 3 mi. b/c the ATC maps are not very good naps and I mysteriously took wrong trail. Charged $65 for bunk in bunkhouse - even sicker now. Sad to leave Carnies and Seaweed but maybe I¢ll catch up to them later.
Date: 2007-08-16
From: Crawford Notch

To: Garfield Ridge
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007Pressing on to Garfield Ridge. I can be sick in the woods for a lot cheaper than I can be sick in a motel. Hopefully I can get out of New Hampshire w/o applying for bankruptcy. All campsites are $8/night and all towns are expensive b/c of the tourists. I¢m surprised air is still free.
Date: 2007-04-22
From: Dalgren Back Pack Campground, MD

To: Pine Knob Shelter, MD
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: few clouds

Dahlgren Back Pack Campground, Turners Gap,MD 9 a.m. SundayIn groups of 7 to 15 the Scouts all trudged on out. A few remain, tossing a fresbee around (with little finesse, I note: my, I've become such a frisbee snob!)I really enjoyed my two Scout leaders, Dave and Steve. Together we observed the foibles of teenage boys and the necessity of still keeping an alert eye on them as they build their fires too high, start throwing water at one another on a chilly night, and leave critical equipment behind the picnic table when packing up. We chuckled as a pair argued endlessly about who should pick up which piece of trash, agreeing that what they were really arguing about was "responsibility". Still, when I crawled into bed last night there was no one to say goodnight to and that's a very lonely feeling. I also determined to shed only tears of sorrow; no more of anger and dismay. Selp pity is off the table as well. Pine Knob Shelter, near hiway 40 and Greenbrier State Park, MD, Sunday pmBefore I left this morning I spent a good half hour "doing my toes", 3/5 of them: "Second Skin", mole skin, bandaging.... all in the name of dealing with blisters. Tonight they feel ok. Otherwise my body is holding up well (dare I add, "for a 64 year old"). All those years of off and on jogging and now more recent treadmill walking has given me good endurance and leg strength. My back has held up fine too. Its only where the shoulder straps dig in that is hurting. I've decided this first week is probably all about the physicality of backpacking: body parts in pain; solving for pain; figuring out where each piece of equipment packs best; re-thinking every piece of equipment now that experience is teaching me more. I didn't go far today because Usha and the kids are coming up to meet me here at Rt. 40 tomorrow. She'll bring me the things I asked for and I'll fine tune my backpack items a bit. I arrived here pretty early, but just spent three hours enjoying two young people (in their 30's), both trying to figure out what's next in their lives too. We might be at different ends of the age spectrum, but making "lifeforce" choices are never easy easy for anyone.
Date: 2007-04-23
From: Pine Knob Shelter, MD

To: motel, Boonsboro, MD
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Pine Knob Shelter, 9 am, MondayYeah! Usha and the kids coming today! All I need do is backtrack down hill 1/2 mile to meet them where Rt. 40 crosses I-70. Incidently, crossing I-70 on a footbridge yesterday was weird: suspended over a 6 lane interstate with cars and trucks zooming along, going so fast to get to.....? My life of just hiking has no particular destination other than that of "further north". No zooming along either. Truly, I am just taking it all "in stride". Again, its just a beautiful, sunny day in Spring. I camped alone in my tent near the shelter last night and no bears, raccoons or mice found my food or nibbled at my toes. I slept some, certainly better than the first time I was all along. I've covered 20 miles in three days of "newbie" hiking. Three nights of tent set up; three nights cooking my dinners; three mornings cooking breakfast, three days of re-packing my pack, solving for water, solving for blisters, "leaving no trace" - all in all just little issues, but all with new solutions that I've had to figure out. None of it is yet flowing and familiar but I'm sure it won't take many more days before it is. A lot of my thinking is about supplies still, as in what can I do without or wondering if I could accept the added wight of, say, A MORE COMFORTABLE SLEEPING PAD! I've asked Usha to bring me my next set of maps and guidebook, my food box, a cotton shirt (the days are too warm for polyester), another bandana to pad my shoulds from the backpack strap, more fuel for my stove. I'll send home with her my fleece vest and green anorak windbreaker (I still hve my raincoat). And this time I won't take as much food- less oatmeal and more granola bars, no gorp with chocolate (it melts).It rather tickles me that the quartzite that has been trying to trip me up the past three days is half a billion years old - laid down as sediments in ocean waters long before there were even fish in the seas. I acknowledged that fact as my big toe gave a piece of quartzite a little modern DNA sampling, appreciating that in those 500 million years a creature has come along that can be "amazed" by the earth's history! The same mind and emotions that so cherishes knowledge and adventure is the same mind and emnotions that so suffers the loss of a loved one. Vive la mind and emotions, eh!!Actually, though the rocks themselves along the AT have been around for 230 million to 1.2 billion years ago, the simultaneous erosion and uplift of the last 40 years (about 1 3/4 inches both ways every 1000 years) created the range I'm trekking on. (This is half as long ago as the dinosaurs disappeared.) Ahh, I like this stuff.
Date: 2007-04-27
From: motel, Waynsboro PA

To: trailside
Miles today: 10.3

Friday, 4/27, trailsideI thought about resting another day but the weather was nice and I just wanted to get going. It was five miles to the trailhead so I started walking. Going through town was rather nice (I like these old towns in this part of the state), but once beyond it the hiway narrowed, the cars were zooming past, and I felt vulnerable. I stopped at a shopping center and asked a man who was turning onto the hiway in the direction of the trailhead for a lift. My driver is a mechanical engineer, retired, and he was nice enough to do so. When I alighted at the trailhead I told him, "Hey, its been 40 years since I hitchhiked - thanks for making it a good experience!"By mid afternoon I'd passed a couple of shelters but wasn't ready to stop. Instead I enjoyed Chimney Rocks and the afternoon's lovely walk in the woods, settling trailside before dark.
Date: 2007-04-28
From: trailside

To: Fayetteville, PA
Miles today: 5.0

Sat. morning, trailside:I awoke to the sound of military drilling at a place called Visionquest not far from this trail. What could that be? Why do I worry that it might be some white only para military training place for youth?My feet aren't well. I'd like to get to Fayettevill/Caledonia State Park on Rt. 30. Five miles. Come on, feet, we'll try it in sandals today. Blisters just keep doing me in.Finally, a good night's sleep. Dreamt of Jim and I trying to buy a house together but it just couldn't work out. In the 6 hours I hiked yesterday I didn't meet another hiker. On the other hand I'm beginning to recognize some of the trail names in the shelter registers and that makes me feel like I'm beginning to be part of the community out here. Wonder where the Scouts are this weekend.