morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-06-03
From: RPH Shelter

To: Wiley Shelter
Miles today: 25.3
Weather: overcast clouds

After yesterday¢s unintended zero, I was ready to hike today. Although I mentioned a few days ago that I was enjoying the lower mileage days, 25 miles today felt great. I was up early, and had 15 miles done by 1230. I didn¢t feel like I needed to take breaks, so I just kept those legs churning. The trail passed by a beautiful ¢Nuclear Lake¢, the largest oak tree on the AT (20¢4¢ girth, over 300 years old), and the Metro-North train station, which would take me into NYC for $11 if I so desired. Instead, I walked an additional 1.2 mile roundtrip off trail to Tony¢s Deli, which was very good. I¢m at the Wiley shelter alone (one other tenting) with my brand spankin¢ new mousetrap set up in the corner. For those of you who look down upon such ruthless tactics, too bad. I think of mouse-catching as a community service project to all other hikers who sleep in the shelter. Also, I had a great talk with my family. There¢s also an unconfirmed report that Shepherd will be returning to the trail in late June! Awesome! In yet other news, I am only 1.2 miles away from New England! I¢m still a long way from home, but it is going to feel great to be back where the sports teams are superb and the weather is crazy. ¢Trust your own instincts. Your mistakes might as well be your own instead of someone else¢s.¢ ~ Billy Wilder
Date: 2008-06-04
From: Wiley Shelter

To: Kent, CT
Miles today: 12.7

Today did not go as planned. That¢s not always a bad thing, but today it was. Since it rained hard last night and into this morning, I was not really able to get out of my sleeping bag until 0815. That threw a wrench into today¢s plans because I was originally planning to hike 19 miles thrown in with a town stop. That wasn¢t going to happen, especially with the several rocky, wet ups & downs today. I finally made it into Kent (Connecticut) at 1530, where I hung out for the rest of the day. First stop was the library, then the grocery, and finally some chicken fajitas at the sports bar. Kent is a beautiful town. The centerpiece is the Kent School, which looks like an uber-expensive private high school. Since there is no reasonable lodging in town, I had a decision to make. It¢s supposed to rain tonight, so a roof would be particularly nice. The closest shelter north on the AT is 7 miles away. The closest south is 0.3 miles away¢¦.but up a huge hill. I chose Option #3. I am under a bridge folks! I am sleeping under the main road into town in a tunnel that connects the Kent School with its hockey rink across the street. Since I highly doubt anyone will be playing hockey tonight, I think I should be set on the stealth issue. In other news, I am in New England! It feels really good to be inching my way home. The bad news is that I am grinding miles. I¢m not very motivated right now, and it has been tough pushing through the mid-Atlantic states. Hopefully, a dose of New England plus a family visit this weekend can pick up my spirits. ¢There is a sumptuous variety about New England weather that compels the stranger¢s admiration ¢ and regret. The weather is always doing something there; always attending strictly to business; always getting up new designs and trying them on people to see how they will go.¢ ~ Mark Twain
Date: 2008-06-05
From: Kent, CT

To: Limestone Spring Lean-to
Miles today: 29.3

In honor of Bigfoot¢s and Crazyleg¢s ¢man week¢, which will consist of several consecutive 30-mile days, I thought that I would have my own ¢Dynamite Day.¢ To be honest, the purpose was more to make up the miles from yesterday in order to get in range for Great Barrington this weekend. I¢d also like to vow now to never do a 30-mile day again. I don¢t need to and the longer you hike, the more injury prone you become. So, I¢ll stick to my 20s. Today was a long, confusing day. After some OK sleep in the tunnel last night (the automatic lights turned on after dark ¢¦ lol), I was up at 0530 and hiking at 0600. That is by far the earliest I¢ve been up and was in part because I knew I was attempting a 29-miler today. The first 12 miles were rough. The terrain was steep and rocky and I couldn¢t find my rhythm. Frustrated about my pace and the miles ahead, I took an early lunch to give the legs a rest and rummage through my head for a way to motivate myself. Every day brings new challenges out here, and I often feel that all it takes to overcome them is a tweak in my state of mind or a new thought to ponder. It worked. After lunch, I rolled along quite nicely. The terrain got easier (from my perspective anyway); and I cruised up and down all the bumps in the road. I¢m at the shelter (.5 miles off trail down a huge cliff) alone, looking forward to seeing my family for the first time in over 3 months. Normally, 3 months is not a big deal, but I¢ve been through some big transitions (literally) and I miss them. ¢Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.¢ ~ Ambrose Redmoon
Date: 2008-06-06
From: Limestone Spring Lean-to

To: The Hemlocks Lean-to
Miles today: 17.5

Making it to Limestone Spring Lean-to last night was a clutch move. It rained all night long. If I had cut the day short, I would have ended up tenting in heavy rain, which is less than ideal. Secondly, it rained most of the morning as well, which would have meant breaking camp in the rain. Instead, I was warm and dry in the shelter. Also, since I had a relatively short day, I slept in until 0830 to wait out some of the rain. In trail news, I¢m now in Massachusetts, which contains mountains! Not to knock the mid-Atlantic states, but it feels good to do some real climbing again. I thought I had gone soft! The rain only lasted a few hours, but the humidity and clouds lingered all day. I¢m at the Hemlocks Lean-to tonight with several section hikers and Spruce! I last saw Spruce in GEORGIA ¢¦ an excellent surprise! Spruce is the first thru-hiker I¢ve seen since early New York. Furthermore, I discovered that Spruce used to work at a camp on Chestnut Cove on Lake Winnipesaukee!! (Chestnut Cove is very close to my grandparent¢s place on Roberts Cove ¢ the same lake in New Hampshire). Small world! I¢ve only got 8 miles to hike tomorrow morning before some quality R&R time with the family. ¢No man¢s knowledge here can go beyond his experience.¢ ~ John Locke
Date: 2008-06-07
From: The Hemlocks Lean-to

To: Rte 7 (Off trail for the night with family in Lee)
Miles today: 8.0

Family day! My Mom, Dad, and sister Julia were planning to meet me around noon at Route 7, so I didn¢t want to be late. I was up and out at 0800, where I had a 4-mile drop and 4 more miles of flat. Good thing I started early, because the downhill was really rocky and steep. It took me quite some time to do it safely, but I made it. I hope the family hike that we are planning for tomorrow doesn¢t have too many of those rocks, or it might get a bit hairy. The 4 flat miles included one absolute mosquito infestation. I was really glad I picked up some DEET in Kent because there would not have been any blood left in me if I hadn¢t stopped to put some on. There must have been at least 200 mosquitoes surrounding my back as I put my DEET on. Amazing stuff. It works very well. I got to Route 7 by 1100 and took an hour long nap waiting for the fam to get here. I really couldn¢t wait to see them. It¢s only been a little over 3 months, but A LOT has happened since then, and those familiar faces should do me well. They showed up at 1215, and there were the ceremonial hugs, etc. We got into the air-conditioned car (it was in the mid 90s), hit Subway, and checked into our Super 8 Motel room. I showered up but did not think it was a good idea to bring my stuff inside because it smelled too badly. I resupplied and did laundry. Then my brother Ryan and his girlfriend Kait showed up. We all headed out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Great Barrington. The food was great. We talked about some deeper trail issues than ¢What do you eat?¢ It was meaningful to attempt to formulate and express ideas for others to comprehend rather than just letting those thoughts develop internally. The temperature should be pushing in the mid 90s again tomorrow with humidity, but the family still wants to hike, so hiking we shall do. ¢The obvious is that which is never seen until someone expresses it simply.¢ ~ Kahlil Gibran
Date: 2008-06-08
From: Rte 7 (Off trail for the night with family in Lee)

To: Tom Leonard Lean-to
Miles today: 6.4

Today was the day ¢¦ the day the entire Stevenson clan hit the trail. To be honest, I was worried about the heat. It got well up into the 90s today with some serious humidity. For their one day on the trail, I was hoping the hike would be enjoyable, but at the same time give them a taste of AT trail life and my second home for these past few months. I think the trail gave them that plus a bit more. We were at the trailhead around 1100 (where I was picked up yesterday). Julia, Mom, and I hiked a flat mile while Kait, Ryan and Dad set up the car drop off for getting back here afterwards. We all met up at the Housatonic River crossing and proceeded up East Mountain. I was particularly amused by everyone¢s observations of unique tree formations, small critters, and appreciation of the small things that I sometimes miss. The pace wasn¢t very slow at all. The forest seemed to keep the temperature a bit cooler than 90 degrees, but the multiple breaks contributed to the mosquito concentration. I was amused at their trail finding skills and their reactions as we went over a few PUDS. With about 2.5 miles left to go, the sky unleashed the most intense rain that I have experienced yet on the trail. It was too hot for rain gear, so we all just got completely soaked. It felt great to cool off a bit, but the thunder and lightning were a bit too close for comfort. We all met up at the shelter, where we dried off a bit and waited out some of the storm. Eventually, they said good-bye and pushed along another mile to the car, and I stayed at the shelter, fully expecting to spend the night alone. Little did I know that I would meet some awesome section hikers (Nevada, Sunnyside, & Pebble) as well as Trill, Master Alex & Allgood, who were waiting out the storm in town and got to the shelter here just before dark. We successfully built a good fire with the aid of Nevada¢s rubbing alcohol and shared trail stories. It looks like I will no longer be on my own for at least a bit because all the thru-hikers are planning a 21-miler tomorrow to Upper Goose Pond Cabin. ¢Depend on the rabbit¢s foot if you will, but remember it didn¢t work for the rabbit.¢ ~ R. E. Shay MORE FAMILY PHOTOS: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevensonvisuals/sets/72157605653389054/
Date: 2008-06-09
From: Tom Leonard Lean-to

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: scattered clouds

It was hard to get up this morning, but it was totally worth it to be tired. Later on last night, Trill, Allgood, Master Alex, Sunnyside, Pebble and myself all made the .1 mile trip over to a beautiful ledge with a well-situated tent platform and did some stargazing. Allgood brought his mandolin, which is a banjo-like instrument. We talked about life and just relaxed until about midnight. This morning was hot and humid. I made it to Upper Goose Pond cabin by 1615, where I met the caretakers and then immediately went for a dip in the pond to cool off. I spent the rest of the day lounging, waiting for the others to show up. They all trickled in sooner or later. This cabin is awesome. Mattresses, great caretakers, cool dog, fresh cantaloupe, and ¢¦¢¦¢¦ a pond. ¢I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see.¢ ~ John Burroughs
Date: 2008-06-10
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Dalton, MA (Tom Levardi's house)
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: clear sky

It¢s not often that hikers can wake up to the sound of ¢pancakes¢! Mike and his wife will literally keep making them as long as you keep eating them. The pancakes were amazing too ¢ embedded with blackberries that added a high quality sweet kick. Although Trill still wasn¢t up yet, Allgood, Nevada, Master Alex and I all quietly shoved down pancakes as long as Mike enthusiastically talked about Katahdin and his involvement in the American Chestnut Foundation (dedicated to the restoration of the American Chestnut through scientific breeding and cooperative research). The others decided to zero, but it was time for me to move on. Upper Goose Pond cabin would have been a great place to zero, but I only zero when I need to and I was ready to hike today. Plus, I got in early enough yesterday to take a dip in the pond and explore a bit, which the others hadn¢t had a chance to do yet. Additionally, there were some serious storms in the forecast for tonight, so I wanted to make sure I at least got close to town before those hit. The trail was flat so I was able to move quickly, especially when 8 billion mosquitoes were chasing me. I stopped at the house of ¢The Cookie Lady¢, where an older couple always has freshly baked cookies on hand and water available for hikers. Although the Cookie Lady wasn¢t there, the Cookie Man was. He treated me to some delicious cookies. Thanks! I rolled into Dalton, MA, planning to stay at 83 Depot Street, which is the home of a retired guy who lets hikers sleep on his lawn and porch. When I found Depot Street, I was counting down to 83 when I saw a house with 5 hikers chilling on the porch. I think I¢m in the right place! Tom is probably the nicest guy I¢ve met on trail so far. He offered me a (free) cold drink, (free) shower in his house, fed all of us a (free) dinner, and let us sleep inside (free) on the floor due to the imminent and powerful lightning storm coming through tonight. The other hikers included Spruce, Yep, Vortex, Ben & Matt. We all chilled with Tom on his porch, talking about everything from the trail to Oprah. In peak season, Tom says he can get as many as 30 hikers camped in his backyard. Wow! Ben, Matt and I retreated inside from the storm to watch the Celtics lose Game 3 and then crashed for the night on the floor. Good day. ¢Many¢s the long night I¢ve dreamed of cheese ¢ toasted mostly.¢ ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
Date: 2008-06-11
From: Dalton, MA (Tom Levardi's house)

To: Wilbur Clearing Lean-to
Miles today: 20.3

BOOM! Dynamite is officially back. Between seeing my family, meeting up with Trill, Master Alex, Allgood & Spruce, Upper Goose Pond cabin, Tom Levardi, and now today¢s perfect hiking day, Massachusetts has been a treat. After last night¢s severe thunderstorms, all the humidity dropped out of the air, leaving me with highs in the low 80s, sunny, and breezy. I knew watching the Celtics game last night would leave me tired today, but it is affecting me more now as I write this tonight than it did this morning. Since Spruce, Yep and Vortex were zeroing and Ben and Matt were up and out absurdly early, Tom Levardi and I went out to breakfast at Duff & Del¢s. Tom goes there every morning. Everyone in the whole place knew him too. In peak season, Tom hosts as many as 30 hikers in his yard/house and nearly all of them head over to Duff & Del¢s for breakfast. I chatted with Tom while eating my pancakes and ordered a turkey sub to go for lunch/dinner later on today. Next stop was Cumberland Farms for a 1-day resupply. As I was packing up to go, a guy comes up to me and asks if he can take my picture. I agreed, thinking he was just going to pull out a digital camera. But, he hurried back to his car and returned with one of those really professional birdhouse-looking cameras. It took like 10 minutes to set up and take a few different shots at various exposures, etc. He promised to send me a copy sometime this fall. Cool! Today¢s hiking was some of the best I¢ve done. The first half of the day got me from Dalton to Cheshire over a rolling hill on a well-maintained pine forest trail. The breeze kept the mosquitoes at bay, which makes hiking much more enjoyable. I passed Ben and Matt before town, and proceeded to begin my climb up Mt. Graylock. Mt. Graylock is the highest point in Massachusetts at 3500¢ and is the first serious sustained climb I¢ve had since Virginia. However, I was more than ready for it. I stopped at a shelter for a 1-hour power nap and then pushed on up to the summit. Greylock also has a tourist road, but it is closed this year for repaving so the summit is only accessible to hikers. Although partially attributed to the perfect weather, but Mt. Graylock has made its way into my ¢Top 5 Mountain Experiences¢ list, which also includes Max Patch (NC) and Roan Highlands (NC/TN). I took another power nap on top and then enjoyed the 3-mile downhill stroll into my very own shelter for the night. Let¢s see what tomorrow brings! ¢He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home.¢ ~ Johann von Goethe
Date: 2008-06-12
From: Wilbur Clearing Lean-to

To: Seth Warner Shelter
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: clear sky

I¢m writing this journal entry around 1700 because frankly, I feel like I¢ve been slacking on my journal entries. I¢ve been either too tired or busy to write. I¢m catching up. My memory can be sketchy too. I remember numbers quite well, but sometimes I have a hard time remembering trail names, shelter names, and other non-numerical things. Anyway ¢¦ Last night was cold! It actually felt great to be cold. I woke up, wrote in my journal, and headed 3 miles down into North Adams, MA for resupply. For whatever reason, my guidebook didn¢t list the grocery store which was close to the road crossing, but Tom Levardi told me it was .3 miles west. However, when I asked a lady hanging up laundry to dry in her yard where the nearest supermarket was, she answered there was a grocery store one mile away in both directions. I decided to trust Tom and started walking west. Tom was right on target! I¢ve found that non-hikers have a tough time judging distances and their estimates can be off significantly. Not only was there a grocery store, it was a Super Stop & Shop. It was really super too. They had everything, reasonably priced too. I met thru-hikers Grasshopper & Brakeman there, who unknowingly convinced me to do a short day. I scarfed down a big sub from the deli, and lazily sauntered my way across the MA/VT border and into the Seth Warner shelter by 1530. I¢ve been eating like a king, napping in the sun, and enjoying the bug-free, humidity-free day. Although I¢m considered a fairly fast hiker by most standards, I have absolutely no problem cutting a day short like I did today. I could have easily made it the 7.2 miles to the next shelter, but I don¢t need to hurry anymore. I still enjoy pushing big miles (like tomorrow), but I relish the fact that I don¢t need to. Push days are more a function of reduced pack weight than scheduling needs. I¢ve already worked hard for the past 3 months to slow down and really soak up everything the north has to offer without worrying about the finishing at any particular time. On that note, I¢m going to take another nap, cook some dinner, call the parents, then eat some pack weight before a big day tomorrow. ¢If people concentrated on the really important things in life, there¢d be a shortage of fishing poles.¢ ~ Doug Larson
Date: 2008-06-13
From: Seth Warner Shelter

To: Kid Gore Shelter
Miles today: 25.9
Weather: clear sky

Happy Friday the 13th! Nothing bad has happened ¢¦ yet. Although I was fully aware it, today was a great reminder of the difficulty of 25+ days. It feels great afterwards, but they are less than spectacular while they are underway. On the upside, Vermont is beautiful. There are mountains to climb, but not incredibly difficult ones. The highlight of the day was the Glastenbury Mountain firetower (3700¢), which provided 360 degree views of pure wilderness, including Killington mountain and even glimpses of the White Mountains (I think). I rolled into the Kid Gore shelter, expecting it to be empty. But to my pleasant surprise, Bigfoot was there cooking dinner after his grueling 4-mile day. Apparently, Bigfoot¢s friend Crazylegs has gone crazy and is pushing for a July 8th Katahdin summit, which is pretty hardcore. Bigfoot is in favor of a more leisurely route with plans to summit sometime in the third week of July, as am I. We might be seeing a lot of each other. Who knows. I have cooked up a few meaty journal entry topics, but I shall elaborate on them at a later time in order to do them justice¢¦ AKA not after a 26 mile day. Don¢t worry though. I wrote them down. ¢Our torments also may in length of time, become our elements.¢ ~ John Milton
Date: 2008-06-14
From: Kid Gore Shelter

To: Spruce Peak Shelter
Miles today: 22.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Great day today. Not a great night ¢¦ interesting though. As soon as it got dark, a massive porcupine hopped up into the shelter and started gnawing away at the wood, which makes some serious noise. It was impossible to fall asleep, so I had to do something. Do I poke the beast and risk getting a few quills in the face? I gave a few warning thumps on a nearby wall with my trekking pole, and he seemed to get the message ¢¦ for a while. He soon returned, I hit the wall, he retreated, returned, and so the night ensued. Today¢s hike, on the other hand, was awesome. The terrain was mostly flat with a 2000¢ climb up Stratton Mountain. But, the main awesome factor was Bigfoot. It was so great to have another thruhiker to talk to and bounce ideas off of. We hiked the whole day together, catching up on trail news and just chatting it up. As it turns out, we have a lot in common. [NOTE: Eric last saw Bigfoot in late March, after having Easter dinner at his home in Tennessee. Bigfoot (Matthew Birdsell, 6'4") is 23 years old and graduated from Tennessee Technological University in 2007 with a degree in Chemistry.] Bigfoot and I are planning to hike together at least through Hanover, NH and perhaps longer. We finished our 23-miler with time to spare and are chilling in the shelter with a couple and their 9-year-old daughter, who are out hiking for the weekend. And, we beat the rain into the shelter and are particularly enjoying our dryness in the midst of the wetness outside. Hopefully, this rain will drop a majority of the humidity out of the air, because today was rather stuffy. ¢Real excellence and humility are not incompatible one with the other, on the contrary, they are twin sisters.¢ ~ Jean Baptiste Lacordaire