morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-07-03
From: Helvey's Mill Shelter

To: VA 606
Miles today: 16.3

This was our biggest mileage so far. We didn¢t intend to hike so far in one day but after leaving Jenny Knob Shelter there was no place to camp. Last night we stayed at Helvey¢s Mill Shelter because if the rain. We played some cards until it was time to sleep. Relentless beat me at Rummy and Go Fish. I think we tied at Black Jack. We got up fairly early this morning and quickly made the 9.8 miles to Jenny Knob Shelter where we ate supper on a new picnic bench provided by Eagle Scout, Kevin Lavender. He had just built it last week with some help from members of the Blacksburg Church of Christ. Thank, Kevin! Then we hiked on planning to go 2 or 3 miles more and find a place to camp. WRONG! The trail goes up Brushy Mountain from Lickskillet Hollow then follows a ridge and finally takes a long down on the ridge to Kimberling Creek. The creek was running fast because of all the rain. It has a really neat suspension bridge over it that extends 150 feet between 14 ft pine towers. It bounces a little when you walk on it. After the bridge comes VA606 and still no place to camp. We were really tired at this point and running out of day light. Fortunately, the thru hiker companion said that .8 miles west was a small pizza place, convenience store, gas station, and campground all rolled into one establishment called TRENT¢S. We got a hitch from a nice fellow in a truck and got there just before 9, which was the time they closed. No pizza, but we each got a pint of ice cream and got a few snacks then put up our tent in the dark in their field. There is a bath house here and a lot of campers with no one in them. We are the only people camped here tonight. The price was right, $3 each and we even got to see some fire works thanks to some kids who were setting them off by the store. They open at 7AM for breakfast. That¢s what I like about hiking the AT, you never know exactly how your day will turn out.
Date: 2003-07-07
From: Pearisburg

To: PeterÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Mountain Campsite
Miles today: 4.0

We packed up to go and Bill, the care- taker of the Holy Family Hostel picked all of us up and took us where we wanted to go. Doppler and American Nomad went to the trail. Paul, a hiker who came in last night, Relentless and I went to breakfast at Friends and Family Restaurant. Bill came back to get us when we were done eating and took us downtown. That was so nice of him because it would have been a 3-mile walk for us. We picked up our stuff from the post office and mailed some things. Then we went to the super market, a Magic Mart, and a Chinese restaurant where they had a really good all you can eat buffet. We headed out of Pearisburg about 2PM. We crossed the New River and headed off into the woods where we had to cross a big creek. I didn¢t make it and ended up falling in. My boots got totally soaked along with my socks and bed pad. We stopped to dry them out a bit in the sun and get me a dry pair of socks. Wet socks cause blisters and I already have one on each of my big toes. We crossed the creek several times and I got my dry socks wet again. Relentless did better, he has longer legs and better balance with his pack. Next we headed up Peter¢s Mountain. A LONG up over lots of rocks and very steep. Finally we came to a campsite and settled in early for the night because of the bugs. We hope to get an early start in the morning. There shouldn¢t be much up tomorrow, mostly ridge walking.I really enjoyed the people in Pearisburg, they were some of the friendliest people in the trail towns and that is really saying something because almost everyone we¢ve met has been friendly and helpful to us. I especially appreciated Bill because he has done so much for hikers in fixing up the hostel, giving rides, and being a friend.
Date: 2003-07-08
From: PeterÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Mountain Campsite

To: Symms Gap Meadow
Miles today: 7.7

We got a decent start this morning despite the thunderstorm about midnight last night that left everything wet. My boots are still wet inside and out from the drenching in the creek yesterday and are rubbing my already sore feet into blisters. Relentless says my feet and legs look like we¢ve been through a war. We hiked a way through the woods until we came to Rice Field and the shelter where we ate an early lunch then went on to hike to Symms Gap Meadow where we found a nice campsite and called it a day. We didn¢t make it a lot of miles and it is still early, but thunder and lightning were heard and seen in the distance and we don¢t know of a campsite within 7 miles of here so we decided to stay. I built a small fire in the nice little fire ring to dry my shoes and socks and keep away the bugs which have plagued us all day. The view here is fantastic. From this ridge we can see West Virginia across the valley. We could see the lightning coming down on the mountains over there but it wasn¢t storming here. Today has been a good day for wildlife. I saw a turtle, salamander, two deer and two humming birds. Right now it is 5:19 by my new watch that I purchased in Pearisburg. Good to have a watch, good to have dry feet and happy that the sun is out now and it doesn¢t look like it will storm. We have a long way to go to get to Daleville, the next town that even has a small grocery is about 51 miles from here. Our packs are heavy with food and days seem long and buggy.
Date: 2003-07-09
From: Symms Gap Meadow

To: VA 635 Stony Creek
Miles today: 9.8

Last night was a beautiful view. There was a moon and stars half hidden by the clouds and on the West VA side of the valley a thunderstorm was taking place. We could see the flashes of lightning. We could also see all the little pin points of lights from the houses, farms, and villages over there in the valley. There were several times when we thought it might rain on us but it didn¢t. We got up about 8:15 and had breakfast packed up and got to Pine Swamp Branch Shelter about 3:00 in the afternoon. Just before we got there, a thunderstorm dumped a lot of rain on us. We were on a big down when it hit which was much better than being on a mountaintop or a high ridge. We got our water and spent the time in the rain cooking and eating our supper in the shelter where it was dry. We were joined there by 6 Boy Scouts and their two leaders. They are hiking from Catawba, VA to Damascus, a trip of 234 miles. They are trying to section hike all of VA. They are from a troop in Richmond, VA. We left them have the shelter for the night and hiked on to a nice campsite by the road and the creek. There is a bridge here and a picnic table and benches for watching the creek a little way down the road. The rain stopped by the time we left the shelter. It was a pretty good day for us. Our packs are getting lighter as we eat.
Date: 2003-07-11
From: War Spur Shelter

To: VA 42
Miles today: 8.2

Morning came and no one came for the backpack. We looked around the area a bit and hiked off. Later we met a girl who left it coming up the trail. She had only planned to be gone for an hour and ended up not coming back until late noon the next day. She thanked us for covering it with a trash bag. She was part of a large group of girls from a girl¢s school. There was also a large group of boys also doing a section hike. When we got to Rocky Gap, we found a nice surprise. A trail angel named Super Dave (GA-ME 2002-2003) left a cooler full of pop and candy bars for thirsty hungry thru hikers. We took full advantage and downed a Dr. Pepper each and two Almond Joy candybars. It couldn¢t have come at a better time. The trail had been steep and rocky and we were tired and cranky. The trail magic improved our mood greatly. Thanks Super Dave! The rest of the day went well and toward the end we decided to hitch into Blacksburg when we reached VA42. We met a guy doing trail maintenance who said it was a pretty easy hitch and they had an outfitter where we could get fuel. The walk down to Rt 42 was just beautiful! Fantastic scenery with farms nestled among the tree covered mountains. We hiked through fields with cattle lowing and a Bob White singing. We met a girl walking her dog and she offered to take us to Blacksburg. She is a student at Virginia Tech and really went out of her way to get us to a hotel within walking distance to all the places we needed to go. We spent the evening enjoying the hotel restaurant, TV, and real beds with pillows. It was nice to be clean and well fed again!
Date: 2003-07-12
From: VA 42

To: Sarver Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 4.0

We enjoyed the hotel and did laundry until checkout time at noon. I even got in a little swim in the hotel pool. Then we walked downtown, ate yummy food and drank some great milkshakes and visited the library and the outfitter. It was nice to be able to catch up on some e-mail and call home to the family. We got a hitch back to the trail about 3:30 with a thru hiker named Black Sheep. He was heading out to do some camping with his girlfriend. It was nice to talk to someone who had done the trail and could tell us about the cool things we have coming up on the trail. We did the 4 mile hike to Sarver Cabin Shelter. Actually it was a 4.75 mile hike because the shelter is a bit of a walk down from the trail but well worth the extra steps. It is a new shelter with everything a hiker could want. We have it all to ourselves tonight so we put our tent up in the shelter for protection from the rain, bugs and shelter critters. We really are quite alone here. I wonder how far away the nearest person is to us.
Date: 2003-07-13
From: Sarver Cabin Shelter

To:  Campsite past VA 621
Miles today: 8.0

Some critter living under the shelter kept waking us up last night. We don¢t know what it was , but it was noisy. Mice with combat boots maybe? We slept in a little then pumped water and walked the .75 mile up hill to the trail. The trail was pretty good at first, but then went along a rocky ridge where we were walking across the rock face and over big boulders. The view was great though! We ate our lunch looking out over the valley to the ridge across from us and then to endless folded mountains beyond. We still made pretty good time and ate supper at Niday Shelter about 4PM. We were joined shortly by a father and a daughter from Canada who are doing a thru-hike. We had a little shower just before we got to the shelter, but decided to go on for a bit after eating and find a tent site. So here we are, getting an early bedtime while it thunders in the distance threatening a storm.
Date: 2003-07-14
From:  Campsite past VA 621

To: Lost Spectacles Gap
Miles today: 12.9

Rained last night so it was a bit wet packing up. We had a big up to start out then a long walk along the ridge to Audie Murphy Monument. He was the most decorated WW2 Veteran and was an actor in Westerns when he came back from the war. He died in a plane crash not far from this point. We got to the next shelter about 3PM and decided to hike 4.5 more miles to the Dragon¢s Tooth lookout and down. This was a rough climb but the view was fantastic. Coming down was even harder than getting up there, steep rocks and a lot of it close to the edge so if you would lose your footing over the edge you would go. I was actually scared going down this trail bit we made it. We got to the gap at dusk and put up the tent. Then I went down a blue blaze for water. It was dark coming back with it. I had to use my light to see the trail. Tomorrow we will go to the grocery store near here and eat ice cream.   I can¢t wait! We didn¢t have time to cook supper tonight because of the water situation. Just had a candy bar and some cookies.
Date: 2003-07-16
From: Catawba Mountain Shelter

To: Sawmill Run Lanbert Meadows Campsite
Miles today: 8.5

Today was blessed with beautiful views from the rocks at McAfee Knob and Tinkers Cliffs. Both sites over look the valley and from McAfee one can see Tinkers Cliffs and from Tinkers one can see McAfee across the valley. We had a nice day, no rain. Tonight we are camped by a small stream. Four deer came down to feed and drink while we were eating our supper. Early in the day one led me up the trail on a long up. It was as if she was just waiting for me as I struggled along. She would go a ways and then look back to see if I was there. The mushrooms and fungus are interesting. Some are bright yellow or orange. Even small bright red mushrooms. We are early going to bed tonight. We want to get up early to make it to the I-81 interchange at Troutville. Motel, food, showers, rest and phone calls.
Date: 2003-07-17
From: Sawmill Run Lanbert Meadows Campsite

To: US 220
Miles today: 9.1

Last night we enjoyed hearing two owls hooting at each other from either side of our campsite. We got a decent start and got to town about 3PM checked in at the Best Western down two beers and then went to eat at the Country Cookin Restaurant. This was a great place with all you can eat salad bar, veggie bar, and dessert bar. Yumm. Later on we ordered a pizza. First time we¢ve been full in two weeks.
Date: 2003-07-18
From: US 220

To: US220
Miles today: 0.0

Spent our zero day doing laundry, swimming in the pool, and eating, eating, eating. Waffle house, McDonalds, Country Cookin. We also visited the outfitter and Krogers for resupply. We made phone calls too. It was so good to be back in civilization for a day!
Date: 2003-07-20
From: Fulhardt Knob Shelter

To: Sharp Top Overlook Blue Ridge Parkway 
Miles today: 14.2

Nice day for hiking except for the bugs in the afternoon. That caused me to wear my bug net over my head. The trail was pretty easy. We are following the Blue Ridge Parkway and the AT crosses it several places so that we can look out from the overlooks. The views are very pretty. We would like to come back and drive the parkway some time. We passed the 1/3 point today- 725 miles.
Date: 2003-07-21
From: Sharp Top Overlook Blue Ridge Parkway 

To: VA-614 Jennings Creek
Miles today: 8.9

It was a little hot and muggy today and the bugs were bad. The sjy was blue until almost 2OM when it rumbled and grumbled, turned dark and sprinkled a little. Then the sun was back out without even a quick cloud burst. We are at It¢s a Wonderful Life Campground where we chowed down on hot dogs, onion rings, ice cream, beer, hamburgers, and French fries. Full tummies, clean bodies, and clean clothes, sigh¢¦How good can it get?
Date: 2003-07-23
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Marble Spring
Miles today: 12.2

We started out with our water filter not working. It took me an hour to pump 4 liters from the stream. From now until Waynesboro I will have to chemically treat the water instead of filtering it. This is OK if the source is pretty clean, but I've used some water I wouldn't want to drink without the filter. My lighter also quit working and I can't find the spare. We stopped for lunch at Thunder Hill Shelter. We'd just done a big up going to 4, 200 ft at Apple Orchard Mountain. We also went under a rock suspended between two other rocks. They call it Guillotine because it looks like it will fall on the helpless hiker beneath it. After lunch it clouded up, but only sprinkled a little. For a day that got off to a bad start with the filter, it turned out pretty good.
Date: 2003-07-24
From: Marble Spring

To: James River Bridge-501
Miles today: 7.6

It sprinkled a little last night then colled down with a refreshing breeze. I woke up about 6:30 AM, but the breeze coming in te tent was too tempting and I went back to sleep. Relentless was sound asleep when i woke up again at 7:30, so I went back to sleep again. We finally got going about 10AMafter lots of sleep. The day as super! It was not hot and the breeze kept the brugs away. The view was also fantastic. We walked along te ridge looking across the ridge we had traveled yesterday then finally took in the James River Valley and the big beautiful river. We ate blueberries as we walked along and met Hillbilly also eating them as he was headed south bound. As we approached the James River Bridge, we met a day hiker, Sarah who offered us a rode into Glasgow. Here we got a good meal and decided to stay at the little motel. This town is really cute. They call themselves the "Town Time Forgot" and have dinosaurs all over town. They even have one hanging ot an upstairs window with a tennis shoe dangling from his mouth. The people here are very hiker friendly and the two small stores in town carry lots of good hiker type foods like Slim Jims, noodles, candy, cookies, and individual packages, etc. They also ave a nice little library with internet access of which I made good use. We didn't make a lot of miles today, but it was fun. We are probably the slowest thru-hikers on the AT this year. Oh, well, we've probably been passed by more people too and that means we have met a lot of hikers.
Date: 2003-07-25
From: James River Bridge-501

To: Salt Log Gap
Miles today: 7.4

We enjoyed the morning in Glasgow, ate a nice breakfast at the motel restaurant and then went to the post office. On the way back, I tripped and fell splat right in the side of the street. I¢m not even sure what tripped me, maybe my garter string which I later discovered was broken. Anyways there I was spread eagle on the ground with my pack on top of me unable to get up. How embarrassing!! Some townspeople went by in cars. They probably thought I shouldn¢t be allowed if I can¢t even manage to walk down the street. Relentless got the pack off me. Then we went for ice cream and got a ride with three nice women who are day hiking various trails in the area. They were really sweet to give us a lift to the trail. It was mostly up today and pretty steep. The views were great though. When we got to Salt Log Gap, I went looking for the water source that was supposed to be down a blue blaze .5 miles. I must have gone at least a mile and never found it, so I hiked back up very thirsty. Since we had no extra water we ate stuff we didn¢t have to cook. It was good that we had a big breakfast.
Date: 2003-07-26
From: Salt Log Gap

To: US-60
Miles today: 13.7

We managed to get up early for the climb up Bluff Mountain and got this big up out of the way before the heat of the day set in and the bugs were at their worst. We met a group of boys from the Discovery School, a place for kids at risk. They seemed to be having a good time. We decided to hike on past Brown Mountain Creek Shelter to the road and hitch into town. On the way, I saw my first bear. He was on the side of the creek and took off when he heard me coming. They can go really fast for such big animals. We heard a bear around our camp last night too. It ran off into the dark when I went out with my head lamp, but I couldn¢t see it in the dark. Fortunately, the bear bag was hung high so he didn¢t get our food. The hitch into town was a bit hard to come by, but finally a small red truck came up the hill and the driver, Crystal and her friend Orin offered us a ride in the back. This ride was a wild one with lots of twists and turns. It probably seemed like we were going faster then we were because of the wind. They dropped us off at the motel and gave us each an ice -cold beer from their cooler. Wow! Just what we were looking forward to after a long hot buggy day. Then we went to eat at Burger King across the street. We probably should have stayed out hiking, but the urge for real food and a hot shower to sooth the bug bites was too strong to resist. I am covered with bites everywhere from the stinging gnats.
Date: 2003-07-28
From: Hog Camp Gap 

To: Spy Rock
Miles today: 10.5

We got up late and didn¢t leave camp until 10 AM. It was a pretty easy day and we took it easy. There was a threat of rain in the air and some rumble of thunder but nothing came of it. We probably could have done more miles but we found a good site here and decided to settle in. We saw Sarah, the day hiker who gave us a ride into Glasgow. She was hiking up the mountain as we were heading down. She didn¢t pass us on her way back so she must have gone by while we were eating lunch at the shelter. Spy rock is a Big rock that can be climbed but neither Relentless or I are in the mood to do it tonight. There are several good campsites behind it. Two section hikers, one a teacher and the other a pilot, were hiking with us part of the day. They let us use their cell phone to call Kristen. It was good to know she and Jay were back safe from their trip out west. Tomorrow we head into Crabtree Country. There is a Crabtree Falls, Crabtree Camp Ground and Crabtree Farm Road. I am sure that these places were named after a distant relative of our since I have researched my father¢s side of the family and ancestors came from Maryland and Virginia. I am anxious to see the falls. A deer grazed by our camp all night while we sat by the fire.
Date: 2003-08-03
From: waynesboro

To: Charlottesville 
Miles today: 0.0

We visited Monticello and Ashlawn-Highland, James Monroe¢s house. Monticello was fantastic. We were both glad we got to see it because it was something we had been wanting to do for a long time. Just as we finished the tour of Mulberry Row, the rain started to come down, so we went off to eat at Mickie Tavern again in the hopes that it would quit while we ate lunch. They give seconds at the tavern. For the second day in a row we had fried chicken, stewed tomatoes, black eyed peas, potato salad, corn bread, and cole slaw. After lunch we went to visit Monroe¢s home. It is not as fancy as Jefferson¢s but very interesting to see. I love the long driveway between the trees. As we ended the tour it began to rain buckets! We went back to the visitor center and watched a movie about Jefferson. After that, we got down to the business of buying food for the trail, doing laundry again and packing up. We ate at Applebees rather late. It will be hard to go back to the trail. This has been fun!
Date: 2003-08-08
From: Pinefield Hut

To: Swift Run Gap
Miles today: 10.0

We said good-bye to the Ohio Exterminators. They were headed home today. They gave us an extra canister of fuel and gave Relentless a pair of socks to try out, since his feet have been really giving him a hard time. We were sad to see them go home because it was really nice to have people to talk with in the evenings. I hope to see them again back in Ohio. The hike was fairly easy and we decided to head for Swift Run Gap and go to a motel or campground instead of staying at the next hut. This would make this day's hike longer and shorten the next day's hike too. When we got to the gap, we had a little problem getting a hitch Elkton, but a nice man finally stopped and gave us a ride there. He even drove us from the motel to the campground when no one seemed to be home at the motel. The campground is really nice and there is a little store right in front of it that sells sandwiches, etc. As we went into the campground, we saw a guy chopping wood for his fire. We talked to him and later he brought us wood for our fire. They have showers here but no laundry.