morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-07-27
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Kay Wood Lean-to
Miles today: 17.6

Bama was up early, having asked Deborah, the Upper Goose Pond Cabin caretaker, if she and Little Wing could get an early breakfast. Deborah has happy to comply since this meant she could clean-up and leave earlier. The breakfast of blueberry pancakes and coffee was absolutely delicious! Thanks, Deborah!On the trail at 6:40 am because the day called for almost 18 miles and it was supposed to be hot (mid-80s). Lotsa swamp, lotsa humidity, many rocks in places and mosquitoes ¢ but nothing Bama hasn¢t experienced in the last month. No biggie. Stories of Lyme on the trail are picking up. I keep up my mantra: DEET . . . DEET . . . DEET. I worry ¢ what can I say? Bama called from a mountain top at 7:40 am. Pretty view and really a nice day, in spite of the aforementioned trail conditions.About two miles after the October Mt. Lean-to, was the trail-side home of Marilyn, "the Cookie Lady." Known for keeping cookies in a basket on her porch, Bama and Little Wing stopped by only to find she was not there. But Mr. ¢Cookie Lady,¢ Roy, was and sure enough, he had some cookies. They visited for awhile and the old gentleman (late 70s?) said he would let them camp there if they wanted to trade out to do some chores. Bama said they really had a tough day planned, but thanked him for his offer. Thanks, Cookie Couple!Later on up the trail Bama came up on a road and saw Vince, the male half of Windtalker & Mom¢s support team (Mom's dad). She and Little Wing stopped to catch-up on W&M and other trail tales. Vince was very nice to offer some Trail Magic: water re-supply, fruit and cookies. You can¢t get enough calories on the trail ¢ what a nice problem! Thanks, Vince! Very nice.On to Kay Ward Lean-to in hopes of beating the incoming thunderstorms sweeping in from the west. Just the two of them again. Where is everyone?Bill
Date: 2006-07-28
From: Kay Wood Lean-to

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: light rain

No one showed up late at Kay Wood Shelter and again, Bama and Little Wing had the shelter to themselves. Bama¢s Hubba tent is free-standing, so she set it up inside the shelter to ward off the mosquitoes. Nice night! Thunderstorms threatened, but never materialized. Nice, quiet, uninterrupted sleep ¢ priceless!Morning brought another rain scare, but nothing happened. Really big day today ¢ 3 whole miles! The goal was Dalton, MA and breakfast at Duff and Dell's restaurant, a hiker mainstay. Bama and Little Wing saw lots of SOBOs and some old NOBO friends. Very nice. Good food.The treat today and the reason for the short hike was a pick-up from the parents (Sylvano and Judy) of a friend of Little Wing¢s. Silvano met them in Dalton and drove them to North Adams, MA to get their mail drop at the P.O. Then a trip to the outfitters and then to his and Judy¢s home in Pittsfield. Bama and Little Wing got a chance to taste civilization again and even surf the Internet. Strangely, Bama has found some trail town libraries who do not seem to welcome thru-hikers at their computers. Maybe a coincidence of who¢s on staff or a right-wing, conservative conspiracy against hikers who resemble homeless people (ha!). Confusing Bama or Little Wing with a homeless person is a real stretch. Trail Angels, Silvano and Judy¢s home is lovely and a welcome break. Tonight, Silvano will cook dinner for everyone and tomorrow Judy will drop the girls off back on the trail for a day hike, then pick them up again for another night at their house. Thanks, Judy and Silvano!I will be leaving for a trade show for a week and I will do my best to keep up the journal.Bill
Date: 2006-07-29
From: Mt. Graylock

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: few clouds

After a great dinner last night Bama and Little Wing were taken up trail this morning, to the top of Mt. Graylock where it was cool and foggy. They started back toward Dalton and soon it was clear and climbed into the 80's. They stopped at Cheshire, MA and went to Diane¢s Twist ¢ a sandwich and ice cream store near the trail for lunch. Bama had a large chocolate milk shake and another great turkey and cheese deli sandwiches made from fixin's that Judy and Silvano picked up for them. Cheshire is also home to a long bicycle trail that goes to Pittsfield and Diane¢s serves bikers and hikers. Rob from the Birdcage Hostel in Dalton had just slacked a group up here and he asked Bama and Little Wing if he could join them for lunch. They had a great time chatting and swapping news and trail tales. He and Tom Levardi seem to handle all the thru-hikers needs on a friendly, 50-50% basis. About three miles from Dalton, the skies opened up and Bama and Little Wing got soaked to the skin. After arriving back in Dalton, Silvano picked the girls up and got them back to the house and a hot bath and more laundry time.Judy and Brian, friends of Judy and Silvano's, came over to meet Bama and Little Wing and they had an excellent pizza party. Thanks to both couples for a wonderful evening and the great pizza! Very special thanks to Judy and Silvano for making their home Bama and Little Wing's!! Your hospitality was very much appreciated.Bama and Little Wing are so thankful and humbled by the sweet trail families who have made them part of their family for a few days.It was 105* in Las Vegas today - whew!Bill
Date: 2006-08-01
From: Melville Nauheim Shelter

To: Story Spring Shelter
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: broken clouds

Today began gloomy and overcast again; Bama thought she was going to have to use her headlamp to pack up her tent and stuff at the shelter. Bama tends to sleep in the shelter when she can, but sometimes sleeps in her tent to ward off the bugs. It was the first time in her memory that no one slept in the shelter but her.Again, she was with her constant trail buddy, Little Wing, and John the school teacher and the other two LT hikers. Up early this morning, based on the gloom, Bama wondered if it was going to rain, But the weather was forecast clear and the overcast would burn off. Today, still lots of black muck to hike thru. She climbed gradually and then hit one of the tallest mountains since NC/TN - Glastenbury Mountain at 3,748 feet - an elevation gain of over 2,000 vertical feet.As she was climbing toward the top there was a section with stone steps! This was really something! Later, a section hiker newbies was huffing and puffing and complaining about the tough climb. Bama said, "Tough? Hell, that wasn¢t tough! That was a five-star sidewalk compared to the rocks we had to drag ourselves up on all fours." I¢m sure this hiker looked at Bama, the grizzled veteran, and wondered what this woman was talking about.Bama, Little Wing and John reached the Kid Gore Shelter, but it was nasty and had a resident porcupine that had gnawed up just about everything. The Caughnawga Shelter next to it is probably just a museum piece. Built in the 1920s, it only holds four small people. The area was depressing and ugly. Bama, Little Wing and John decided they didn't want to stay there and lit off for Story Spring Shelter, about 5 miles farther up trail.About that time, thunder! Then it got dark! They all said S*#! and started hauling. When they reached the Story Spring, Bama marveled at the mob of 15 or so people cramming this shelter area. There were LT hikers, NOBOs, SOBOs and some inexperienced section hikers with children.Bill
Date: 2006-08-03
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light rain

Bama and Little Wing left the shelter this morning and headed into Manchester Center, VT where they had called ahead to Sutton¢s Place for a room (802-362-1165). Sutton¢s is a well-known hiker hostel in the center of town and Frank, who runs it, is a really nice guy. They got to the highway off the trail and soon hitched a ride with Dave (Weatherman) and Francesca who were terrific and delivered them right to Sutton¢s front door and they checked in. Thanks, Angels!Bama and Little Wing went to a restaurant called Up for Breakfast (on the second floor) for a nice lunch and then visited the local bookstore (cool place) and afterwards to The Mountain Goat outfitters. The staff there is very nice and helpful, especially with lodging ideas if Sutton¢s is full. Most of the motels in town are fairly expensive, but there are options if you ask. Then back to Sutton¢s for a shower and clean-up. After that, they did laundry and while things were in the dryer, went to Friendly¢s (like a Shoney's or Bob's Big Boy) and had an ice cream sundae. Then to the grocery store to re-supply. It's really hard to grocery shop when you are sick and tired of everything you've had to eat on the trail. I mean how many times can you eat boiled rice with artificial flavoring and vacuum-packed chicken chucks? Then they went to dinner at the Manchester Pizza House ¢ the food was OK, but the service was not very good. At the pizza place they talked with Fiddlehead, Mule, Knock Knock, Tecumseh, Cool Hand and Komodo. Bama also ran into Baldylocks at the Eastern Mountaineering Store (EMS) and had a good chat with him. Finally full of townie food and good times, the girls when back to Sutton's to pack up and enjoy a bug-free night.I'll end with something that Brainfreeze put in her journal: I hope she doesn't mind because it is hilarious to thru-hikers and describes how their trail life has changed them:Brainfreeze's Post A.T. Traumatic Stress Disorder (P.A.T.T.S.D.); an inability to readjust to normal society after thru-hiking. Characterized by: (1) asking for a "spork" at restaurants (to take with you) (2) putting leaves in the toilet (3) hanging your food from the ceiling (4) digging catholes in the backyard (5) sleeping on your Thermarest or on a 17" wide space on the edge of the bed (6) filtering water from the faucet (7) gaining 800 pounds because you still think you have your "metrailbolism" (8) blowing snot rockets from the couch (9) changing your clothes in parking lots (10) walking around the house with your trekking poles (11) asking guests to please pack out their trash (12) referring to other people as "hikers" (13) checking for water sources everywhere you go (14) asking people how far they're going today, or how many miles they're planning on doing.Bill
Date: 2006-08-04
From: Manchester Center. VT

To: Lost Pond Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: light rain

This morning was a long wait at Sutton¢s to let some passing storms get out of the area (Oh, boy! More mud on the trail!). Then a trip to McD¢s for an Egg McMuffin to have for lunch then to Friendy¢s for a great breakfast. At 8:30 finally back to the trail after a really quick pick-up ride for Bama and Little Wing from Brian and his Labrador, Dana. Thanks, Brian! When they arrived at the AT crossing, they saw and spoke with Brainfreeze and G-Walk who were getting off the trail to go to Manchester - having hiked in during the morning storms. Brian was really nice to turn around and take them into town.The highlight of the day was the morning climb up Bromley mountain, past the shelter and on to the ski lift and warming hut. The ski lift building has been described as looking like a spaceship that¢s landed on top of the mountain. The view was very pretty. However, most of the day was spent hopping on rocks to avoid missing ankle deep water and mud. Bama and Little Wing have renamed the state Ver-Mud. She said she feels she has aqua-blazed about half of it so far (aqua-blazing is were you follow the trail in a boat or by hiking in water).Bama received one of her few chuckles of the day when she was straddling a watery trail and a big frog covered with mud jumped and landed right between her feet. She thought, so I¢m not the only muddy one out here, huh froggy? No other rain during the day, thankfully, and a fairly rolling terrain without any real killer rocks. For Vermont, not a bad day.Bama, Little Wing and Baldylocks arrived at the Lost Pond Shelter and the three of them had it to themselves. The mob of LT and section hikers they had experienced earlier were behind them. The forecast is for lows in the 50s, some fog tonight and a bright pretty day tomorrow in the upper 70s. Finally - the big heat wave seems to have broken and New England is back to normal. Now, just knock off the rain, OK Lord?Bill
Date: 2006-08-05
From: Lost Pond Shelter

To: Clarendon Shelter
Miles today: 18.6
Weather: clear sky

Slept great last night ¢ it was cool and the bugs were slowed down. This morning was clear and beautiful and Bama hit the trail at 6:45 am. The trail was less wet and much of the standing water from the previous storms had receded. Bama crossed a bridge over a stream with a serious looking sign that said, ¢Only one person at a time on the bridge.¢ Granted, she and Little Wing are getting trail punchy, but the joke was, ¢What kind of person? A male person? A female person? One with a pack or without a pack?¢ Anyway, they thought it was funny. Guess you had to be there . . .At Big Branch Shelter, she ran into Fox (¢94) and his wife Sunny Day and their Labrador, Four Mile Max. Fox says Four Mile goes 4 miles and that¢s it! Time to take a break. Sort of a four-legged odometer.Strange thing about this part of the AT and Vermont's Long Trail (LT), the shelters are very close together and there¢s a lot of them, some have GMC caretakers who live in nearby tents and must be paid for the use of the shelters. Some are free. Go figure. The earlier comment from a Vermonter about the ATC¢s and the GMC¢s joint management of this area makes a lot more sense. Bama ran across what was a Trail Magic cooler with water in it from melted ice. Looking for a drink, she found a trapped frog in the cooler water. Probably looking for a beer and fell in and couldn¢t get out. Bama let ¢im loose and wished there had been drinks in there instead of a frog.Bama and Little Wing did a little mountain climbing today, hitting White Rocks Mountain and Bear Mountain before reaching the Clarendon Gorge and the Mill River. The suspension bridge over the river was neat and the view was beautiful.At VT 103, Bama, Little Wing and Rising Sun took a little detour and hiked near North Clarendon, VT to a restaurant called The Whistle Stop. It¢s very hiker friendly, being only 0.7 miles off the trail and famous for its French fries and large portions. They had sandwiches, fries, cokes and then polished it off with a hot fudge sundae at the caboose adjoining the restaurant where ice cream is served.Bama and Little Wing will pay dearly for their hiker meal with a 1,000 vertical foot climb out of the gorge up to the Clarendon Shelter for tonight. Bama renamed it Puke Mountain. At the top they ran into Windtalker & Mom who were tenting at the shelter and everyone had lots and lots to talk about. Bama, Little Wing and Rising Sun were the only three in the shelter. No charge for this one. Very nice shelter . . . very clear area . . . nice spring . . . is this an ATC shelter?Bill
Date: 2006-08-07
From: Churchill Scott Shelter

To: Rutland, VT
Miles today: 5.2

The day started out with a wet trail again after rain during the night. Today¢s plan was to go to the Gifford Woods State Park and tent. On the way there Bama passed by the big trail junction at the AT mile marker 1687.6 where the Vermont Long Trail veers off to the north and the AT continues on somewhat east. She¢ll probably see no more LT hikers and maybe the shelters will be a little less crowded.When Bama and Little Wing reached the State Park, the weather information signs called for a 60% chance of rain and thunderstorms today and tonight ¢ not good tenting weather. The cabins were a little pricey, so they took a $2 bus ride the 9 miles or so into Rutland to stay at the Back Home Again Hostel, run by the Twelve Tribes Communities. Bama called me from the town laundromat and said the hostel was very nice, extremely clean and they run their own caf©, as well as a number of other businesses. However, the sleeping areas are not air conditioned and the women¢s sleeping room has no windows or ventilation. For more information, visit http://www.backhomeagaincafe.com/home.htm.She and Little Wing had lunch at the hostel caf© (which was very good) and Bama took off to do some shopping at Wally World (Wal-Mart) only block away & the Price Chopper grocery next to it. Later this evening, she, Little Wing and K¢ache had dinner at a pub a few doors away from the hostel. A lot of the NOBO trail regulars are in town, too, Baldylocks, Rusch Hour, Indiana, etc.Bill
Date: 2006-08-08
From: Rutland, VT

To: Stony Brook Shelter
Miles today: 6.7
Weather: broken clouds

Short entry today. Bama has not been able to get a good cell signal.She got a lazy start out of Rutland and was very glad to get out of the stifling heat of the hostel and into the almost crisp 50* morning. It was a very beautiful morning. Outside of town she saw a road sign that said, "Warning! Moose Crossing." Bama thought, "With my luck at seeing animals on this journey, I wouldn't see a moose walk by if he weighed 3,000 lbs.!" She did see lots of piles of moose droppings - oh boy, there's a wildlife moment for you.As warned by passing SOBOs, she encountered a washed out bridge and had to bushwhack upstream to find a shallow place to ford. This involved sliding down a 12-15 ft. embankment, crossing on rocks and climbing back up an embankment.When she reached the shelter, she ran into a number of section hikers and many of her old NOBO trail pals. It had been a really great day for hiking, one of her best weatherwise, and the evening was topped off with a big campfire and lots of trail tales.Bill
Date: 2006-08-09
From: Stony Brook Shelter

To: Wintturi Shelter
Miles today: 9.9

Another fine day for hiking ¢ cool, bright and refreshing. Bama left Stony Brook shelter and headed out into a great morning. This particular stretch took her over the New England Continental Divide (water on one side to the St. Lawrence river, water on the other to the Atlantic).Still looking for those mooses ¢ moose? Whatever. Nada. There were some particularly nice vistas, but the best was the Lookout at mile marker 1704.1. Egad! Has it been this many miles already? There is a cabin at the top of the Lookout which is on private property, but hikers can use it if the owners aren¢t there. Imagine having your own cabin in the middle of Vermont¢s Green Mountains for a week-end getaway. Priceless. No water source there, but I guess the owners manage to bring whatever beverages they need when visiting.She arrived at Wintturi Shelter and joining her were Baldylocks, Identity Crisis and Windtalker & Mom ¢ familiar faces ¢ and also several section hikers. Looks like another good night for sleeping (50*). Bama is looking forward to getting her mail drop in nearby Hanover, NH (two states to go!) that I sent her with her winter sleeping bag and other cold weather gear ¢ plus lots of munchies and a food re-supply. The ¢Whites¢ are beckoning (The White Mountains of New Hampshire), a return to the knee-kissing, ass-kicking climbs she left in NC/TN. She¢s psyched and rarin¢ to take them on!Bill
Date: 2006-08-10
From: Wintturi Shelter

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: broken clouds

Last night there was eventually quite a crowd at the Wintturi Shelter, about 20 in all, consisting mainly of old NOBO friends and several section hikers. Most stayed in their tents but Bama and three others stayed in the shelter which they plenty of room.Bama left this morning at 6:00 am. Many miles to go today. Again, cool and crisp ¢ a bright, sunny day. The scenery (and the trail) is really improving and forested beauty is everywhere. Soon after passing VT Hwy 12 to Woodstock, VT, she received some Trail Magic from a Trial Angel named Tailwind. He was picking blackberries along the trail and says he always keeps a bag full of fruit for thru-hikers. He gave Bama a banana, her favorite breakfast fruit and even offered to take her peel (Thru-hikers are pretty strict about ¢leave no trace¢ hiking and getting rid of trash is always an issue). Thanks, Tailwind!She met two SOBOs today, special because they were both from the South - Coldfeet, a woman from Huntsville, AL and Playing with Bears, a man from Savannah, GA. After about 7 miles up the trail she crossed Cloudland Road and there was a farmhouse selling ice cream and organic stuff to hikers. Of course, Bama had to have ice cream and soda. While she was sitting in the sun enjoying the beautiful farm Baldylocks joined her for lunch. Nearby was Cloudland Shelter, a former AT shelter, but now in private hands. Hikers can still use it unless notices say otherwise.The trail has been very forgiving today. The terrain was pretty easy and the climbs are properly switch-backed. There¢s also been a lot of open farmland and meadows full of black-eyed susans, queen anne¢s lace and goldenrod. Beautiful!Another stop at Thistle Hill Shelter to check the trail registry for news and grab a bite to eat and then about 8 more miles to Happy Hill Shelter for the night. Rain is forecast late this afternoon and evening and over the next two nights the lows will be 42-44*. Wow! Hope she gets her winter sleeping bag soon.Bill
Date: 2006-08-11
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Hanover, NH 13th State
Miles today: 5.8
Weather: broken clouds

Happy Hill Shelter was a happy place. Good sleep.A short hike into Hanover, NH today (New Hampshire! Yea!) after passing over the Connecticut River at Norwich, VT. Actually, the trail empties into a nice suburban area after only about two miles from the woods. Bama said it was great hiking past the fine homes and gardens and the flowers and folks on porches. Very pretty.The Hanover exit from the trail is at mile 1732.7. Only 441.0 miles to go to Katahdin! It¢s a nice little college town, home of Dartmouth. She and Little Wing had breakfast at Lou¢s ¢ great food. Much to do: post office, bus shuttle, check in motel, wash clothes, clean up, re-supply gear and food from mail-drop, repackage returns home, hitched ride with Gary & Brianna in their LeBaron convertible (with top down- Thanks, Guys!), return to post office, EMS outfitters (more shopping), grocery store, eat at 99s (like Applebee¢s), cab ride to motel, repack backpack and crash into the bed.I¢m tired just writing this. So much for the relaxation of a Nero (nearly zero day)!Bill(This was found on the Internet ¢ apologies to the author ¢ it¢s apparently been replicated from somewhere and I have no way of knowing whom to give credit.)REPORT: To the Mosquito High CommandSUBJECT: Human Feed Stock Project on Planet EarthOur long-term project to perfect mosquito feed stock on the planet Earth has come with great success! Eradication of the dominant large dinosaurs was a complete success but it took excessive time to stabilize planet¢s climate. Gene modification of hairy apes to get a hairless one through selective breeding showed good results, albeit with several time-consuming dead-ends. Available target skin is now about 95%. Human feed stock does manage to cover portions of body at times but this usually does not pose any problem for normal mosquito feeding population and the amount of skin covered seems to be minimal with the younger and healthier subjects.Strange herding behaviors have been noted. Once a planetary year, large groups of human feed stock travel up the eastern mountain ranges, sometimes through some of our most dense and successful population areas. There¢s a large attrition rate of these north and southbound travelers but the human feed stock that manages to reach either the northern or southern terminus has blood of the very finest quality.Caution: Human feed stock is somewhat intelligent. It has devised a product called DEET which has confused some of our population, but fortunately the effect wears off quickly. Casualties are minor compared to the quality of the blood product produced. Recommendations:¢¢ Continue full scale colonization of planet Earth.¢¢ Continued development of several other travel "gauntlets" over central, western and north western mountain ranges to develop more prime human feed stock.¢¢ Mosquito gene modification to increase immunity of DEET.That is all.