morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-03-28
From: The Priest

To: Hog camp gap
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: clear sky

Blah¢¦mom I don¢t want to hike in the rain, and well it is raining. Mom informed me that we are moving from this shelter rain or no rain as we are not spending anytime with this guy unless I absolutely have to. It turns out he doesn¢t have any waterproof gear for him or his gear, thus equaling him not leaving the shelter in the rain. We did a six mile rain trudge to the next shelter where we called it a day, knowing he wasn¢t going to come to the shelter.At the shelter I meet two section hikers who also hiked in out of the rain, their stove wouln't work so I gave them some of my alchol so they could cook dinner, I hoped it worked for them although they didn't have a pp can stove. It stopped raining and the sun came out while at the shelter, so we decided to pack up and move again. Only problem is that new storm came rolling in and well this time it wasn¢t just rain but also lighting and thunder. We were hiking over this nice grassy meadow in the lighting storm¢¦mom kept trying to get me to hike faster and even took off my pack, but I was so tired that I couldn¢t pick up my pace. Once getting to the next camping area, I realized that it was a meadow with very very few trees around. Mom didn¢t have any choice but to set up a tent in the meadow between the trees for the night. I was so scared with the lighting above my head that I didn¢t eat dinner as I¢m scared of thunder, mom ate a cold snaked dinner as she couldn¢t cook her dinner. In a thunderstorm make sure your dog is on a insolated pad as he can also get shocked if lighting hits the ground nearby.
Date: 2012-03-29
From: Hog camp gap

To: Buena Vista
Miles today: 9.0

I¢m still alive¢¦.we survived the night through the thunderstorm. We hiked over cold mountain which was also as I watched small clouds blow across the mountain which I was about to climb. At the top I ran through a open meadow through the clouds with views all around. Mom made a comment about wanting to come back during a meteor shower as it is a open and as NO LIGHT POLUTION. Once jumping back into tree line I saw a fellow four leg limping down the trail while being pulled by a slip chock color. It hurt me just to watch this fellow dog being pulled down trail. Mom stopped and talked to the owner about his dog and checked out the dog, it seemed to her that the dog had strained a muscle and would need time off, along with the dog being malnourished. Mom gave the man some of my ascription which is used as a pain killer. As leaving the man we passed a couple more hikers who showed concern about over the dog, which I don¢t blame them. We hiked to the road crossing that leads into Buena Vista, at the road crossing I had a dog run across the road and decided to bother us. Mom and me had to walk the dog across the road back to his house. It took us forever to get a ride, to the point where I took a nap while mom sat on her pack with her thumb out. We finally got a ride from 3 older folk; one was a speech therapist who guessed my ¢accent¢ correctly. Town wasn¢t was great as I expect it to be on a Sunday, the wine shop was closed they are known to be a great contact for trail angles, I can¢t afford a hotel, and the camp ground had no one there to take my money and I couldn¢t find the shower. I ended up sleeping at the camp ground with mom in the kazoo, and ended up seeing a albino (all white) deer. -Dogs also get strained sore muscles like we do when hiking big miles, plan accordingly-
Date: 2012-03-31
From: Bluff Mountain 

To: Matt's Creek Shelter
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: broken clouds

I am the most put upon dog on the whole 500 miles of Virginia¢¦It was cold this morning on top of the mountain and mom and me didn¢t want to get out of the tent¢¦but like always you have to at some point of time. When we did get out mom put her down jacket on me over my pack and zippered it, thinking it would keep me warm and try to hike with it on. Needless to say, with the fat suit and small jacket I couldn¢t walk but instead sit there and give mom the ¢really¢ face. We got nice and warm after during our hike down the mountain as we were descending elevation and were getting our blood moving. It was a nice easy hiking day as we did low miles because of our extra miles yesterday. We hanged out down at the river for a long time, while mom gave herself a soap bath and laid out in the warm sun to unthaw. The river had tons of huge flies, which mom kept killing¢¦but it didn¢t seem to make a difference more kept coming. Once we crossed the longest foot use only bridge on the AT we noticed a small but tall water fall on the other side. Mom for some reason has a love for waterfalls..The hike to the shelter was REALLY easy and we passed a few section hikers (boy scouts at that.) We got to the shelter really early in the afternoon, but it was to far to the next shelter and no where good to sleep in between. So we just hanged out at the shelter for a easy afternoon where mom played her fife, completed more of her puzzle book, and read her bible and register. -easy days can save your hike or even your dogs, if you push to big of miles for too long then you may not make it the whole trail-
Date: 2012-04-01
From: Matt's Creek Shelter

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: few clouds

Mom told me today was going to be a really long tree but it is going to be totally worth it as town will be tomorrow. We keep seeing one or two people everyday but like always they are heading in the opposite direction of me. Mom decided to kill time by tracking, she noticed huge squash like foot prints heading the same way we were walking, she also noticed that they were kind of fresh and was probably only a few hours in front of us. I would have loved to pass a hiker going the same way as us but we never had a chance as there are barely anyone hiking south in springtime Virginia. When we left Thunder hill Shelter to make it to the next shelter we passed the mystery Sasquatch feet coming in the opposite direction. He ended up doing a in out hike, and yes they were huge feet but not to the point of noticing in everyday life only in the dirt on the trail. We climb up on top of Apple Orchard Mountain where there is a FAA tower, and great views. Mom was a little out of her mind upon reaching the top to the point when she saw the tower she only thing that came to her mind is the fact that it looked like a gulf ball. Mom imagined that me and her did the exact opposite of¢honey I shrunk the kids¢ and instead make us into giants and play a extreme game of golf. Mom figured she would pull up a dead tree and use it to hit the Faa bowl so I can run after it and play a game of fetch. Needless to say mom entertained herself imagining this while hiking off the mountain. The weather once again began to threaten us once again while hiking to the shelter; can I say how much I dislike having to out run a thunderstorm? We were once again the only on at the shelter for the night¢¦.we also had a couple of grouse walk right in front of the shelter and kept walking. All I did was sit there and look at them as I know I would get in trouble for chasing after them. -You need to make sure your dog does not chase wildlife, as it could potentially injure your dog.-
Date: 2012-04-02
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Jennings Creek, Va614
Miles today: 9.0

Mom you walked me way to far yesterday and my legs really hurt!!! We took 614 into town as it was closer to the hotel we were staying at but didn¢t realize the road had no traffic (2 cars an hour traffic type of road.) I got lucky as there was a grandfather with his 3 sons down by the water fishing. Mom figured it would be a good idea to water me before heading into town along with trying to yogi a ride (which worked.) After they were done fishing only 30mins of waiting they allowed me to get in the back of the truck and took me to the Post Office. I do not recommend going into this town unless you absolute have to! Mom¢s e-mail got acked into and spammed all her contacts when she checked her e-mail, and Laundry mat didn¢t have a quarter machines, and the guy next door at the restaurant was just rude as can be. The locals like to hang outside of the of the fast food joint and tell mom how stupid she was to be hiking alone, and we stood on the road hitching for 45mins-hour waiting for a ride. The Watstull in had it¢s own file of complaints but I will reserve from them incept the fact that when mom took a shower They had no Shampoo and the showers drain was clogged. So mom ended up washing off all her mud and dirt just to find her standing in it, let¢s say the water wasn¢t very good looking. In the morning when mom did end up getting shampoo from her parents who came to visit she decided to wash her hair in the sink. Most I can say was good about the town is the fact that I got to lay down and sleep the whole afternoon away, and mom got to watch TV for the first time since being out on the tail. I heard a knock on the door late into the night and kinda freaked out that it was someone I should be worried of so I ended up barking to scare them off. Mom ended up opening the door, and much to my surprise I saw her parents standing there, mom never told me that they were coming down to visit. -Yes dogs also need zero day..So give it to them-
Date: 2012-04-03
From: Jennings Creek, Va614

To: Bobblets Gap Shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: clear sky

I feel so much better this morning after resting yesterday afternoon away! Mom¢s mom and dad was packing their car back up this morning and I decided I would rather see where the car was going instead of keep walking. So I decided to sneak out of the hotel and jump in the car and hope they want see me! Needless to say they found me but let me stay in the car up until I found myself back at the trail head and being dragged out once again. Halfway up the hill I decided to stand up for myself and stop walking and face back to the road where the car was. Needless to say it didn¢t work ? we didn¢t do tons of miles today but instead relax at all the road crossing where mom stopped to play the Fife. Mom was torn between stopping at the shelter or continue to the next one¢¦she knew the next one was too far away for us to hike but at the same time she really didn¢t want to walk the 0.2 down to the shelter. Needless to say we did end up walking down to the shelter which wasn¢t as bad as it seemed, due to the company who came stumbling in a little after dark. Mom started a fire in the fire ring where she accidentally cut her hand on a sharp piece of glass someone threw in to burn. The last thing you want is a cut from a unsanitary piece of place as it is a infection wait to happen, not even to mention the fact that it could have been deeper and needed stitches then would have to hitch to the hospital (thank God that didn¢t happen.) When the sun fell and it became dusk mom turned on her headlamp to read for a short bit before closing her eyes and sleeping for the night. I heard voices up on top of the hill make tons of noises, felt a little threaten as they were approaching so I decided to give out a few quiet barks to warn mom and to scare them if they could hear me. Mom quickly informed me not to bark and be nice, which I did. When they got closer to the shelter it turned out it was 2 father son groups out for the weekend eye. Mom great hummers watching the boys try to figure out how to set their bed up for the night, as they expected their dads to do it for them. I got feed little pieces of scrap food which mom didn¢t mine due to me getting the extra calories in which I needed just as she does. -If someone offers your dog food and they are not allergic, fell free to give it to them as they need the extra food just as we do.-
Date: 2012-04-04
From: Bobblets Gap Shelter

To: Troutville, Va
Miles today: 17.0

Mom and I were the first one up this morning (what a shock) so we just snuck out the shelter and feed ourselves at the picnic table so we don¢t wake the weekenders up. But they all started to stir and were up not long after mom and I were. We meet a couple of young men who were thru hiking today at the shelter we stopped at for lunch¢¦they gave mom a fresh apple, I couldn¢t believe a thru hiker was giving another thru hiker fresh food. There we were informed that you could get a free shower and laundry at the fire station and free camping at the park. This sounded more appealing to us then sleeping in a shelter with little to no water. We got to the road crossing a little before dusk and started the whole hitching process¢¦it was only a mile to the park but after a long ay there would be no way we would be able to walk another mile. No one would give us a ride, everyone drives by and waves hi and keeps going¢¦mom finally gave up and said F*** it and started walking the mile into town on the verge of tears. A guy in a trash filled pickup truck pulled over who knows how far up in front of me to give me a ride. While walking to see if he pulled over to give me a ride a cop flagged me driving the opposite direction then pulled up next decide me to ask me where I was going and hopefully give me a ride. I informed her that I think I just got a hitch from the guy right up the road. I totally should have taken the ride from the cop as I¢ve never been drove by a cop in a cop car somewhere. Once getting to the park I noticed posted everywhere (NO DOG ALLOWED!) Mom was already in a bad mood and was at a lost of what to do¢¦she decided to just go in with me and if someone said something she would ask them to give us a ride back to the trail. Needless to say no one said anything but instead everyone looked the other way (Thank You!) We ended up not getting a shower as she didn¢t know if it was the fire station across from the park as the paper she got said It was the opposite left from where the trail crosses the road and the park was to the right. Mom decided to just stay at the park for the night and not venture out to find a home cooked food. -Sorry for not following the dogs rules...I do not recommend anyone else doing the same thing.-
Date: 2012-04-05
From: Troutville, Va

To: New Port road
Miles today: 10.0

I got woke up this morning by a guy walking around the park picking up trash, I swore he was going to come over and inform me that I wasn¢t allowed in the park but like everyone else he looked the other way. Mom and I walked a short bit over to Daleville, where mom went and got a coffee at Mill Mnt Coffee. In their mom was talking to the locals about our hike and just mentioned in passing how we were hoping to hitch over to the trail Va 311 trail crossing. Mom has learned that a women talking about hitching freaks the town¢s people out more than just telling them that you¢re walking alone. Mom asked the lady at the counter if she had a piece of paper and sharpie so she could make a sign to where she wants to go. While making the sign one of ladies she was talking to offered to give us a ride the whole way to the trail, a offer mom couldn¢t give up. Thank You Thank you Thank You..we didn¢t have to go through the trouble of hitching again today. Mom already hiked the whole section we just missed and I hiked half of it, as this was the place mom rescued me back in December. Mom didn¢t want to bring back memories of this spot or wanted me to try to run back to the old house. We ended up tripping over people every 5-10 for the first 5 miles for the 311 rd crossing, as it was a nice weekend and a very popular day hiking spot. We ran into a past thru hiker heading north who did a flip-flop thru hike a couple years ago, he was filled with tons of tips and tricks but at the same time was full of himself and could stop talking about himself. We had a couple heading the same way as us today who were out for a wildflower hike, mom learned some of the names of the flowers we were seeing on the side of the trail. We got to walk through farm fields today, in which mom took my tennis ball out and let me chase after it. ? Once we got the road crossing where 4pine hostel was we turned and started our half way walk towards it. Half way there a truck stopped coming in the opposite direction and asked if I was heading to the Hostel and if I wanted to head to the grocery store first. Looking at the guy and the people in the truck I could tell he was probably the guy who runs the hostel and so I took him up on his offer and jumped in the back of the truck with mommy. Once getting to the grocery store mom introduced ourselves and mom tied me up outside so she could go in and buy half gallon of chocolate milk and a Gatorade. Once making it back to the hostel I was satisfied to find a hot shower and a number of cots and beds to choose from. There was another small yappy dog that one of the thru hikers found and was hiking with him now and four other 4legs who belonged to the hostel owner family. There were 5? other NoBo thru hikers there for the night...it was great to see other crazy people like mommy and me.
Date: 2012-04-06
From: New Port road

To: Craig Creek
Miles today: 19.0

Mom kept telling me to ¢before careful with your nails¢ I didn¢t understand exactly what she meant by that but I did notice here saying it every time we got to a really rocky section. Today was one of those really rock section days¢¦we hiked up and over dragons tooth which required true rock climbing for me being so small. There was one point in time when we were climbing were mm put on my harness and leash just in case I fell. Once at the top we took a side trail over to the actual dragon¢s tooth where mom left her pack and me at the bottom and climb up to the top of the stone. She tried to climb the other one but it was a touch more technical and should probably have some sort of rope incase she fell. There were tons of people at the top of the mountain but 5 miles down tail they all once again disappear and it once again became mom and me alone in the middle of nowhere. The trail was PUDy but easy¢¦well up until the act of walking all day started to affect my feet. We knew we wouldn¢t be able to make it to the shelter for the night, but at the same time there were no designated campsites in my book for the area we were in. We did end up finding a place near a small run off creek for the night, it wasn¢t the best but at least it was flat and water was drinkable. By the time we got to camp mom and me were so dis-hearted and just didn¢t want to do anything but sleep¢¦I had a hard time chocking down food as I was so sore that I didn¢t want to eat. The morning should be better.
Date: 2012-04-07
From: Craig Creek

To: Laurel Creek Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: clear sky

Figured after a great night sleep I would feel better¢¦well I was wrong I just feel worse. Mom got worried today that this could be the end of my hike due to me not adapting to trail life. I just didn¢t feel too well these last two days because I ate bad dog food out of the hiker box at fourpines. Mom ended up calling home and discussing possible pick up places for me, but luckily her mom talked common since into her an told her to slow down, and let him rest¢¦even if that means taking multiple zero days off in town. We actually made it to the shelter we originally planned for¢¦I figured there would be a few hiker in the shelter has we passed multiple people again today but like always the shelter was once again to ourselves. Sometimes this is good but when you have a bad day you sometimes want somewhere to talk to.
Date: 2012-04-08
From: Laurel Creek Shelter

To: Bailey Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: clear sky

Up and at it once again¢¦this time with more energy and a will to want to keep hiking! We originally planned on taking our mid day break at wind rock as the guide book said it had a view¢¦but when we got there we were shocked to look out at a thunderstorm blowing in on us once again. This time with strong wind (would only make since as we are on wind rock) and freezing cold rain. Mom looked at me and asked if we could push four more miles to the shelter; mom just like me has learned to not like the rain and so off we went full speed ahead trying to hit the shelter. The storm was very spotted as it would rain for 10 minutes then the sky would clear for five minutes until the next storm came in, when the rain eased up mom and me stopped for our afternoon break as we were tried and really couldn¢t push on much more unless we took a break. During our break we had 3 thru hikers pass us, one of them was Green Bean and Fern¢¦I really liked Fern, she is another female good looking four leg They decided to stop and take a break with us who I think mom enjoyed also as Green Bean was another female and like most people who hike with a dog has a book of advice. Fern has been hiking with dog boots for a little while now due to her pads wearing down, from what other hikers have told me it is a comic relief watching them put on the shoes. At the shelter I enjoyed company of 2 section hikers and 3 thru hikers, I enjoyed talking to Sharkey and Rummy and rummy enjoyed getting tons of attention from me (asked for a course.) The people in the shelter was also really nice and gave us some water for the night as the water was another 0.3 south from the shelter¢¦in the rain. A hike in which we didn¢t want to take and ended up not needing to... Thank you all!-Some dogs just like humans have a dislike of rain; keep this in mind when hiking with a dog-
Date: 2012-04-09
From: Bailey Gap Shelter

To: Rice Field Shleter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: clear sky

2,000 mile marker today for mom¢¦I¢m sitting just over 200 miles ? The sad thing is mom says she doesn¢t feel like she has done 2,000 miles, only thing that says she¢s done them is the warn out shoes. The rain never stopped falling from the sky today and it was even colder than yesterday¢¦we have 16 miles to cover to rice field shelter and needless to say when you stop walking you get freeze. We tried to push on hiking hoping to make it to the shelter without taking a break besides at the last shelter that was only 4 miles away from where we started the day. We finally had to just stop up on top of the ridge and eat¢¦while doing so I curled up into moms lap while she had lunch ¢¦but we just couldn¢t stop shivering and we both were starting to become hypothermic. Mom pack up quickly and off we went down trail just to find us less than a mile away from the shelter. We decided to stop 0.2 miles before the shelter at a AT&T cell phone tower to call home and inform them that we crossed the 2,000 mile marker and was once again in one piece. While at the phone tower Yogi passed by us, unfortunately since we were off trail we didn¢t get to talk but instead just wave. (We later caught her when she passed by the house up in Front Royal.) At the shelter we were pleased to share it with two section hikers who gave mom freeze dried mountain house for dinner. Mom made one whole package disappear and still found herself hungry so she cooked a second dinner. I¢ve always noticed how you are always hungrier on rainy days, because you are burning more calories to stay warm. -Plan on feeding your dog three times more food than he would normally eat at home, as he gets just has hungry as we bi peds do when long distance hiking.-