morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2022-10-22
From: Newfound Gap 207.7

To: Derrick Knob shelter 189.8
Miles today: 17.9

I had been looking forward to today - my younger daughter and her husband were to meet me and hike a bit together on the trail. It turned out to be a great day. After being dropped back off at Newfound Gap, there was a long climb up to Clingman¢s Dome, at 6643¢ the highest point on the AT (and 3rd highest point east of the Mississippi) through old growth forest. A half mile from the top they came bounding down the trail. It was wonderful to see them! We hiked together up to the summit, emerging from the trees to a Disney-like experience at the observation tower. As it is possible to drive within 12 mile of the summit, and it was a beautiful Saturday in October, the tower was thronged with visitors of all nationalities. While the view was excellent (particularly as it was a 360 degree sweep), better views could be had about 0.2 miles away. We snacked on some great trail magic at the top, then hiked down southbound a couple of miles more together. After our goodbyes, I hustled another 6 miles to Derrick Knob shelter, the target for the day. At this elevation, most of the leaves have dropped and were dry and slippery on the trail, so a little caution was required. The shelter was in good shape and Float was already there checking out the best tent sites. A group of section hikers followed shortly, exhausted from the day. It became obvious why as they emptied their packs of hotdogs, charcoal, marshmallows, and cans of side dishes. We started a fire (the shelter has a fireplace, a common feature in the Smokies) and they were kind enough to share marshmallows. The stars were out in full force tonight. There is little light pollution in the Smokies, so they were dazzling.
Date: 2022-10-23
From: Derrick Knob shelter 189.8

To: Fontana Dam Rd 164.3
Miles today: 25.5

So - why not finish the Smokies with a 25 mile day? This held lots of appeal - the alternative was a 12 mile day followed by a 13, both fairly short; water supply was tricky in the southern end of the Smokies; and the elevation was mostly downhill. However, I had never done a day this long, and knew it would be a stretch. Departure from Derrick Knob shelter was necessarily before sunrise, to permit arrival before sunset. It was a day with lovely views and a number of section hikers. I ran into a crew of trail maintainers building new steps to manage trail erosion on steep slopes, and learned that there are approximately 2500 of these steps built into the trail in the Smokies. Finally emerging from the park at the Fontana trailhead, I strolled across the Fontana dam, built by the TVA, which creates a beautiful lake for recreation. Tonight¢s stay was to be at the Fontana Village resort, and I was fairly well spent. However, Float had the good fortune to run into Ox, the head for trail maintenance for the Smoky Mountain trail club (which maintains the AT in the park), who generously treated us, as well as Living Proof, to dinner at the Lodge restaurant. What a nice bit of trail magic after a long day!Net conclusion - we made it through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in 4 days, filled with views. I had regarded this section with apprehension, but found that the previous weeks gave me all the preparation I needed. Onward to Springer!
Date: 2022-10-24
From: Fontana Dam Rd 164.3

To: Stecoah Gap NC 150.5
Miles today: 13.8

Today was a Nearo - a shorter day to give a chance to resupply, do laundry, etc. Float and I slackpacked for 14 miles from Stecoah Gap back to Fontana Village. The trail was not as well groomed as the Smokies - a bit edgy, with more rocks, roots, and climbs (like Jacob¢s ladder, 650 steps in 0.6 miles) that went straight up instead of switchbacks. However, clearly the local trail club has a sense of humor, as evidenced by this sign at a trail bridge. And the day was sunny and the elevation changes quite manageable. It is very noticeable how much more relaxed the thruhikers are now that they are through the Smokies. Almost lighthearted, as the remaining days on trail number 10 or less, the trail is not overly difficult, and the weather is cooperating. Another good dinner in the Lodge restaurant. Such a pleasure to get a break from dehydrated dinners!
Date: 2022-10-25
From: Stecoah Gap NC 150.5

To: Tellico Gap NC 128.8
Miles today: 21.7

The trail from this point goes over a series of balds, each with lovely views. No one is quite sure why balds exist - according to the Forest Service, fire, drought, grazing, clearing by settlers or insects have all been theorized to be the source of these open mountain tops. Today it was first Cheoah Bald, as we hiked from Stecoah Gap to the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center), then Wesser Bald as we slackpacked north from Tellico Gap back to the NOC. It was a long day with very tight logistics to be able to knock out 22 miles in two segments. We started hiking as the sun rose (while I am not a fan of pre-dawn hiking, the sunrises are unforgettable) and hustled through the first section of 14 miles. As I have mentioned in earlier posts, most leaves have fallen and are dry on the trail. On rocky downhills, like we had today, they are slippery and deceptive. I had my 7th fall today as my feet slid out from underneath me on a downhill and managed to snap a trekking pole. Argh. Happily, I was 4 miles from the NOC, which is also an outfitter, and was able to get new poles relatively quickly. A bit bruised, but on my way to knock out the 2nd segment before nightfall. The 22 miles today and the 25 miles out of the Smokies have allowed me to recast my finish plan and reach Springer faster than anticipated. A lot of replanning to do¢¦.
Date: 2022-10-26
From: Tellico Gap NC 128.8

To: Moore Creek Campground 110.4
Miles today: 18.4

It was a very mellow hike today, through a beautiful autumnal landscape. It had rained last night and the early weather was misty, so we had no views at Rocky Bald (circa 9am), but by the time we reached Wayah Bald (lunchtime) we had spectacular views over the mountains.Happily, the rain tampened down the leaves on trail and the footing was a bit less slippery. Captain Hook joined us today, and we also crossed paths with Living Proof again. The SOBO hikers are marching inexorably towards Springer, and we will all finish within a couple of days of each other. A highlight of today was the appearance of Fresh Grounds, famous for the trail magic he delivers up and down the trail. When we arrived at Burningtown Gap he was set up and cooking a full breakfast from his van - blueberry pancakes, deep-fried bacon, hash browns, and eggs to order. Plus coffee, tea, fruit, sodas, and snacks! The breakfast was lip-smacking good. We finished the day at a creekside tenting site around a campfire, trying to plot out different strategies for the coming days and how we might finish NC and Georgia. With only a week left, there are still a surprising number of permutations of shelters, tent sites, and hostels. There is an ongoing tension between finishing as quickly as possible and stretching out these last days to maximize the enjoyment. Last one to Springer wins.
Date: 2022-10-27
From: Moore Creek Campground 110.4

To: Beech Gap Tentsite NC 90.3
Miles today: 20.1

The trail crossed Winding Stair Gap this morning, and climbed up to some mystical views of mountains poking through the clouds. At our elevation, though, we were treated to sunshine all day. Like yesterday, it was a walk through autumnal forests, with generally rolling terrain - the one exception being Albert Mountain at 5200 ft, most notable because it marks the 100 mile point to Springer Mountain. I felt great all morning, then overcommitted myself to a longer day than initially planned. Dry leaves again proved to be my nemesis, as I wiped out again on a rocky down hill section, straining my ankle. By the time I reached the campsite I was dragging¢¦only to discover that the water source was another 0.5 miles away. Sigh. We were joined by 3 groups of section hikers, including one family who had clearly never read the directions for assembling their tents until they arrived. It was hilarious to listen to them (¢I think the REI label goes up.¢ ¢Do the colors go together?¢) as they problem solved together. Bears are an increasing problem this time of year as they scramble to bulk up for the winter. There have been several reports recently of aggressive/acclimatized bears, so we were all quite careful about bear hangs. I was buoyed today by the sentiments of a young well wisher in California who drew me a picture encouraging me to finish. I¢ll do my best!
Date: 2022-10-28
From: Beech Gap Tentsite NC 90.3

To: Dicks Creek Gap Hiawassee GA 69.2
Miles today: 21.1

The trail crossed into Georgia today! This is the final state on the southern leg, 78 miles of steep elevation changes (rumored to be the 2nd or 3rd most elevation change per mile of the AT¢s 14 states). Because GA is the typical start for most NOBO thruhikers, many of the locations are shrouded in legend; I am looking forward to seeing them in person I packed up from the tent site in the dark and got moving before sunrise due to a planned long day. My ankle, which I strained yesterday, is giving me a bit of trouble and slowing me down. I am confident it can see me through the final miles, but I will be switching to hostel stays for the last nights to give me a chance to ice it in the evenings. I was amused to cross the junction for Chunky Gal trail. Although now down 20 lbs, we Chunky Gals need to stick together!There were limited views today, but I arrived at 6 at the Hostel Around the Bend, a very well-run hostel in Hiawassee GA.  Lots of close-to-finishers in tonight, all grappling with finish logistics. It was a good evening.
Date: 2022-10-29
From: Dicks Creek Gap Hiawassee GA 69.2

To: Unicoi Gap GA 52.5
Miles today: 16.7

The trail section today is the toughest in GA, with lots of elevation change, typically straight up and down instead of switchbacks. A group of us were dropped off at Unicoi Gap to slack back to Dick¢s Creek Gap and the hostel. We were all eager to get going. A phrase that I have heard a lot from SOBOs and Flip Floppers is ¢It¢s nothing you haven¢t seen before,¢ when evaluating the difficulty of an upcoming section in the south. Given that they have been through Maine and New Hampshire, this is undoubtedly true.  But at this point, I feel the same way. I have had harder climbs, tougher rocks, and longer days than I will face in Georgia - maybe not all together, but when you are hiking you take it a piece at a time. Today was tiring, but manageable. The skies were leaden, portending a change in weather. My ankle barked at me for most of the day, making me slower, particularly on the downhill sections. But I finished in enough time to join the group at a local brewery. Great food and relaxed company. Reality is starting to set in about how soon the end is approaching. At this point everyone has settled in on their target finish date, subject to weather and achieving some long mileage days between now and then. I am shooting for Nov 1, only 3 days away. I am so happy for my fellow SOBOs and Flip Floppers, but sobered to realize that I will only be halfway done.  Need to keep my head in the game to get across this season¢s goal line.
Date: 2022-10-30
From: Unicoi Gap GA 52.5

To:  Neels Gap GA 31.3
Miles today: 21.2

And then the rain came.Look, I have been so, so fortunate with weather this fall that it is ungrateful to complain about any little bump in the relentlessly sunny weather forecast. And today was not terrible - a steady light drizzle, a bit windy, but not a downpour.  Today¢s hike was long, and key to hitting my Nov 1 target for finishing. The first 14 miles was very gentle - a walk in the woods - before adding some elevation in the last 6 miles. Due to the drizzle, my feet were wet in the first 30 minutes and stayed that way for the next 10 hours. The real challenge came from my ankle, still sore and swollen from the fall several days ago, which decided to be rebellious until conquered by steady doses of Vitamin I. Completing the hike today took more focus than usual. Fittingly, the last steps of the hike took me through the archway of Mountain Crossings at Neel Gap to the Tree of Soles. Neel Gap is 31 miles north of Springer Mountain, 2-4 days of hiking for NOBO thruhiker aspirants. Common wisdom is that 25% quit in these first miles, and the tradition is to tie your hiking shoes together and toss them onto a branch of the Tree of Soles on one¢s trail exit. The tree is strewn with shoes!  Glad I¢ve persisted.My stay tonight is at Above the Clouds hostel, where I was treated to dinner of red beans and rice with homemade cornbread. Filling and comforting after a tough, wet day.
Date: 2022-10-31
From:  Neels Gap GA 31.3

To: Cooper Gap GA 12.3
Miles today: 19.0

I¢ve mentioned before that the flow of thruhikers along the trail is like a river, with hikers aware of who is ahead and who behind, sometimes getting caught in eddies but inexorably moving forward. There is also a river of time in this community... thruhiker legends and wisdom, traditions and tips. Experienced hikers who take newbies under their wings. A wonderful example of this is Nimrod at the Above the Clouds hostel, the first hostel north on the trail, a mere 20 miles from Springer. Self-described as ¢older than dirt¢, Nimrod first hiked the AT more than 40 years ago, and now runs the hostel along with Lucky. Each spring, along with the early thaw and the first buds, fresh-faced NOBO hikers arrive in droves - most cold, wet, confused, or overburdened with too much of the wrong stuff. Nimrod dispenses food and comfort, as well as expansive tales of the AT then and now. His words: ¢Yes, I get asked the same question 200 times a week. But for each person asking, it is their first time asking that question.¢ This morning there was a section hiker benefiting from that advice. Today¢s hike was a 19 mile jaunt that took me up and over Blood Mountain. At 4438 ft, this is the first 4000 footer that the NOBOs hit, so holds a special place in AT lore for perceived degree of difficulty. For me, though, as for other SOBOs, it felt like a straightforward climb. As it was another wet day, the view from here (as well as Preacher¢s Rock, which followed) was pretty non-existent.  A damp carpet of leaves covered the trail, coloration varying depending on the trees above. Picking out the trail is often a matter of detecting a minor depression in this leaf carpet, but I find that I am doing this subconsciously now. I caught up with Float at Woody Gap, and we hiked together to Cooper Gap to be picked up by Nimrod to go to the hostel. This was strategically a great move, as Float¢s wife had driven in with a delicious white bean chili soup and craft beers. Everyone is focused on tomorrow¢s finish and the subsequent logistics of life re-entry. The blended notes of anticipation and anxiety permeate the conversations.  Personally, I am going to miss the mountains and the community, but can¢t wait to get home.
Date: 2022-11-29
From: Port Clinton, PA 1220.6

To: Hawk Mountain Rd, PA 1235.1
Miles today: 14.5

While I am unofficially on hiatus until next spring, I am planning to knock out some day hikes in my home state of PA in late fall and early spring, trying to get some of the least favorite portions of the AT behind me before my long haul NOBO. ¢Rocksylvania¢, as the state is unfondly referred to by thruhikers, consistently shows up as the worst ranked state (of 14), due to a shortage of views and water combined with a surplus of snakes and rocks. The rocks are a vestige of the last Ice Age, when large quantities of material were deposited in PA by glaciers. The trail through PA has both large rocks (above) which must be climbed and small rocks (below) which must be carefully navigated to avoid sharp points and sprains. Hiking shoes go to PA to die. The worst of the PA rocks are the northernmost 80 miles, from Port Clinton to the Delaware Water Gap, which I am hoping to do over 6 day hikes prior to my start from Harpers Ferry in April. The trick (since it is a lot of rocks) is to find days where it hasn¢t rained in the past 24 hours and the overnight temp is above freezing, as I don¢t want to be dealing with ice. Today¢s hike was the first of those rocky adventures, and I had several objectives:See how bad the rocks really wereTest out some new trail runners (Hoka Speedgoats) which are highly cushioned and which I hope will minimize the impact of the smaller pointy rocksSee how much stamina I have lost in the past month so that I can set my startup pace for next spring appropriatelyThe hike itself was, I found, quite manageable. There were a couple of climbs that seemed to wear out the day hikers around me but that I found fairly straightforward, with reasonable grades, and there was a 2 mile section of large rocks (approaching Pulpit Rock and onward to The Pinnacle) that I needed to pick through carefully - but there were also 4 miles of well graded fire road. Overall I made great time. Leaves have completely fallen in PA by now, so there was no ¢green tunnel¢ and I was occasionally able to glimpse farmland through the branches. I passed by a spring named ¢Pocahontas Spring¢, which I found curious- surely she didn¢t come this far north? Further on I stopped to eat lunch at The Pinnacle:where I chatted with several groups of day hikers, all of whom, like me, were festooned in orange blaze clothing as the trail in this section is on State game lands and it is hunting season. I finished off at Eckville shelter, where I was picked up and returned to my bed and breakfast. Conclusions on a couple of points:if this is as bad as the rocks get I am going to be fine, just need to take my timethe Hokas did great on their first outing. I felt much less pain from those pesky little rocks due to the spongy soles I had plenty of stamina for a 14 mile day but am pretty sore! Need to find ways to keep those hiking muscles in shape during the winter.
Date: 2022-12-02
From: Hawk Mountain Rd, PA 1235.1

To: PA 309, 1246.6
Miles today: 11.5

I love hiking in the early winter, when it is dry and crisp. The light quality changes, which along with the missing leaves provides a different clarity to the light. I was in my ¢Great Pumpkin¢ outfit again today. Hunters were visible on the trail (the ones I saw were looking forlornly for deer as they walked slowly up the path), but I could also hear the rifle shots of their more successful compatriots away to the east. The hike started with a gentle climb up to Dan¢s Pulpit and continued on to Balance Rock, both of which provided nice views. The rocks continued to be manageable, and overall today¢s walk reminded me of the other epithet for this state, ¢Flatsylvania¢. There is much less elevation on this part of the trail, certainly in comparison to NC and GA, and I made good time. For some reason, however, there were many downed dead trees (¢blowdowns¢) across the treadway, some of which took some effort to bypass. These are usually cleared by AT trail crews, but they apparently have not been through here recently. I had hoped to hike tomorrow, but the forecast is for steady cold rain - not optimal for rocks in general, and for the next section¢s profile in particular. The advantage of these close-to-home winter day hikes for me is that I have more control over weather conditions. I¢ll wait for a better weather window.
Date: 2022-12-05
From: PA 309, 1246.6

To: Ashfield Rd, PA 1254.9
Miles today: 8.3

I had a great start to my day by running into Moondawg, a volunteer trail maintainer, shortly after starting my hike. Moondawg has adopted this section of the trail, and comes out most mornings armed with a handsaw to make sure that the treadway is clear for hikers. He can¢t do much about the rocks, but I can attest that this section was pristine in terms of blowdowns and branches (a nice contrast to the previous day). Moondawg clearly loves this portion of the trail, which is considered one of the more difficult AT stretches due to the Knife¢s Edge and Bake Oven Knob rock formations, and he provided me detailed guidance on how best to traverse today¢s hike. I left him and continued onwards, the ground crunching under my feet as the temps were in the low to mid 30¢s. The first couple of miles were fairly easy, and then the larger rocks began. I passed bobcat scat (Moondawg had mentioned that a bobcat lives in this area) and eventually reached Knife¢s Edge (above), a somewhat daunting rock scramble/boulder hopping adventure that extended about 250 yards, with the rocks piled into a peak along which the intrepid hiker progresses. Following Moondawg¢s advice, I stowed my poles, stuck to the left going NOBO, and took it slow. There were a couple points where I needed to slide on my butt or swing using a tree branch to get to the next level, but I finished without incident. The top of the traverse was graced with lovely views of the PA farm countryside. I looked cautiously - it was a long way down!After descending Knife¢s Edge, the trail continued to Bake Oven Knob, with both a rocky approach up and an even rockier route downwards. This caught me a bit by surprise, as I had expected most of the drama for the day to be over. There was again a nice view on top (Moondawg¢s advice: take a right at the triangle rock to get to the best view), but coming down Bake Oven Knob NOBO was, for me, perhaps even trickier than Knife¢s Edge. A lot of patience and a couple more butt slides were required. The rocks continued for most of the rest of the segment. AT trail design tries to route the treadway over durable surfaces to limit erosion; it doesn¢t get more durable than this:I finished midafternoon on this short segment, glad that I had left plenty of time to not feel rushed, with a deeper appreciation of why PA is nicknamed ¢Rocksylvania¢, and really happy I didn¢t have to do it in the rain. This is my last hike for 2022; I hope to come back early next year and complete NE PA, then start the ¢flip¢ of my flip flop from HF to ME in April.