morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-07-06
From: Quarry Gap Shelter

To: Unnamed campground 
Miles today: 20.1

Day 91 - My goal for today was to get me within easy walking distance of Boiling Springs to my rendezvous point with Mrs. Pockets tomorrow. I think I've succeeded - only 16.2 miles. I should be able to do that by 3:00 pm. The weather today was not as bad as the forecast had suggested - the thunderstorms held off until late afternoon. I did get soaking wet - it was like getting a shower while walking, but the rain did stop in time for me to find a place to camp for the night and get my tent set up. I hiked most of the day today with Cricket. We passed the official 1/2 way point and made it to Pine Grove Furnace State Park where I had a California cheeseburger - one with lots of avocado slices. This is the location of the official 1/2 gallon ice cream challenge. Since I had more hiking to do, I settled for a large 2 scoop dish of raspberry ice cream. I badly need a haircut - I look like a wild man out here and I scare all the young kids at the state parks. Maybe I'll get one tomorrow. The beard will remain, however, dice Tom C., my brother-in-law. Unbeknownst to me, he grew one to show his solidarity with my hike. I promised him I would not shave again until my hike is over. It's starting to come in pretty well, I think. Lots of hikers have been finding ticks on them. One hiker, Freedom Fry, found one on his penis - a dick tick? We got a good laugh about that, wondering what the bullseye rash would look like. The hiking in Pennsylvania has been easy so far - far fewer rocks than in Maryland. A ridgerunner named Patches said that the bad rocks that Pennsylvania (Rocksylvania) is famous for are 90 miles ahead, far too distant for me to worry about yet. The next trail town after Boiling Springs is Duncannon, home of the famous (to hikers anyway) Doyle Hotel. I'm looking forward to getting to Duncannon because I've driven through that town many times when heading south. It's right off Rt. 15 (the future I-99). Until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-07
From: Unnamed campground 

To: ATC Center in Boiling Springs
Miles today: 16.2

Day 92 - First off, Happy Birthday to my daughter!!! May # 24 be a good year for you!!! The AT, amazingly enough, has 4 separate center points: 1.) the 'psychological' center at Harpers Ferry, 2.) a permanent ATC marker fixed in place, 3.) an ATC center marker that is moved every year to show the actual center that changes due to yearly rerouting the trail, and finally 4.) a 'Center Point' stone monument put up by the town of Boiling Springs on the trail about 4 miles south of the village. Today was supposed to be an easy day. Just a bit over 16 miles to get to Boiling Springs and mostly downhill. But when you have wet shoes and socks, your feet can start to chafe and blister in very short order. And well, mine did. To make matters worse, while navigating through the 'rock maze', I fell and really bruised my butt. Plus, it was a hot and humid day and the last 1.5 miles into town went through unshaded fields with no cooling breeze. I came limping into town - hot. blistered. sore. I was so ready for some TLC from Mrs. Pockets. We stayed at the Allenberry Resort in Boiling Springs, close to the ATC Center and not far off the AT - they have a special hiker rate of $40 per night. I don't know if we got an extra good room because Mrs. Pockets was there too, but this room is nice. After a much needed shower and laundry, I ordered a large pizza and large salad at the local pizza place in town, but couldn't quite finish it all. Tomorrow, I'm planning to take a zero day to spend time with Mrs. Pockets, eat some more large meals to put some weight on, re-supply my trail food, and just give myself some recovery time. Until tomorrow......
Date: 2015-07-08
From: ATC Center in Boiling Springs

To: Allenberry Resort, Boiling Springs
Miles today: 0.0

Day 93 - Total zero day. Today was a day of R&R - resupplying trail food, looking for equipment upgrades and lots of eating. Mrs. Pockets and I had a great breakfast at a local diner that reminded me of those classic Long Island diners. They must not get hikers at the diner we ate at today. The waitress thought I was joking when I placed my food order, but she seemed quite impressed with how much food I ate. This is a new skill for me - ordering and eating prodigious quantities of food at restaurants. We had a good dinner at the historic Tavern Restaurant in the pretty town of Boiling Springs as well. Today was mainly about trying to take it easy. Mrs. Pockets and I spent much of the day driving around Carlisle and Harrisburg looking for equipment upgrades. I've been trying to find a new pack cover that will actually keep my pack dry in a storm, an eyeglass band that is comfortable and will hold my glasses on when I get really sweaty and I needed some permethrin (an insecticide especially effective in keeping ticks away) to re-treat some of my clothes. I was successful on all counts- well, at least I hope so. Until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-09
From: ATC Center in Boiling Springs

To: Miller's Gap @ AT mile 1137.5
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: few clouds

Day 94 - The weather forecast for today called for strong late afternoon thunderstorms. Mrs. Pockets came up with the idea of staying 1 more day so she could pick me up from hiking @ Millers Gap Road, where she needed to go anyway to retrieve some water jugs she had just left as more trail magic on her way to meet me in Boiling Springs. I'd be able to dry out in a motel room if it does rain - as has been predicted by the weather guys. Plus, I'll only need to carry enough food to get me through to about 4:00-5:00 in the afternoon, so my pack will be relatively light. So that was the plan. After another large breakfast @ that same diner from yesterday, Mrs. Pockets dropped me off back at the ATC Center in Boiling Springs, where I had left off and then I headed north on the trail. Aside from the heat and humidity, which always seems to bother me quite a bit, the hiking was easy - only 1 ridge to cross near the end of my planned day. At one point though, I saw a man out in his yard and asked him if I could refill my water bottle. Not only did he allow me to fill my water bottle, but he also asked if I needed anything to eat. His kindness was greatly appreciated, especially since the next reliable source was a drainage ditch 3 miles ahead. I didn't relish the idea of drinking from that. Today was the first time I have even stopped at someone's house and asked for water. I'll do it again - if necessary. Mrs. Pockets picked me up at Miller's Gap as planned. She said she had given some water to a couple of thru-hikers, Tootie Fruity and Ghost Something..., while waiting for me to arrive. As we drove back to town, I commented about the lack of thunderstorms today and how I just can't let a bad forecast control my hike. As we sat eating dinner 30 minutes later, a really violent storm front came through with intense lightning, strong winds, tree branches down, restaurant lights flickering on and off and extremely heavy rain. It must have been pretty scary for anyone staying at Darlington Shelter, which is at the top of the 700 foot ridge I had just crossed a little earlier in the day. Mrs. Pockets told me later that she learned a tornado had formed from that storm and leveled a school building - about 55 miles east of where we were eating dinner. Anyway, passage of that front now means lower humidity and temperatures - for the next couple of days. Mrs. Pockets is going to head back to Upstate New York and I'll be heading on to Duncannon tomorrow. Until then.....
Date: 2015-07-10
From: Miller's Gap @ AT mile 1137.5

To: Clark's Ferry Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: broken clouds

Day 95 - Today I passed through Duncannon, PA - where the very old and historic Doyle Hotel caters to AT hikers. The trail goes through a residential area before crossing over the Susquehanna River on a large bridge shared by major highways (Routes 15 & 322) - those head toward Harrisburg as well as other points. As I walked through the residential section that runs about a mile in length, I was thinking about how much time and money we all spend to purchase, maintain, and fuel our cars and trucks. There were so many of them rushing around and parked on the streets of this little town. We have a great deal of our country's wealth tied up in cars and trucks. Although I enjoy the convenience of cars when I'm not hiking, I kind of wish we had fewer cars. More bicycle use, better public transportation, and a slower pace of life, like some of the European countries have, would be ideal - at least to me. I'm guilty of having multiple cars myself - I guess change should first start at home. The other thing I noticed while resupplying at a small grocery store in Duncannon is how much of the food sold in stores in this day and age has very little nutritional value. I guess I just never paid much attention to it before. Mrs. Pockets is our grocery shopper at home. Once again, I'm having a difficult time readjusting to trail life - this time after only a 3 day visit from Mrs. Pockets. Her visit made me realize how much I'm missing at home. I hope a couple of good days back on the trail will straighten me out and restore my desire to hike on toward Maine. Until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-11
From: Clark's Ferry Shelter

To: unnamed campsite
Miles today: 16.8

Day 96 - In my last post, I may have sounded a little depressed. I'm not planning on getting off the trail. It just takes a few days to get back into the hiking mentality after one or more zero days and having loved ones around seems to make that extra hard. I got an early start today in hopes of hiking a 20 mile day, but things didn't go according to plan. About 4 miles in, there was a group doing a trail magic breakfast. Lucky me! Being one who never turns down food (even when not hiking), I had a second breakfast there - scrambled eggs, sausage, and bacon! Wonderful, but that took an hour of my day. Then 12 miles later, that same group showed up at a road crossing and offered dinner! They had just gotten there and weren't set up yet. I waited around for another hour chatting, but dinner still wasn't ready. I settled for some strawberries, a banana, a bottle of Gatorade and headed up the trail. But by now, there wasn't enough time to get to where I wanted to be, so I just had to settle. Still not a bad day. If I average 15 miles a day for the next 8 days, I'll be able to reach Delaware Water Gap and then enter into New Jersey, my eighth state!! The last 50 miles of Pennsylvania are very rocky, however, so I'm not sure I will be able to do 15 miles a day. Time will tell. I do need to do more miles when the hiking is still relatively easy. The number of thru-hikers I'm meeting continues to decrease. I don't know if that means lots of hikers are getting off the trail or if I am behind most of them. Everything I've read and heard indicates that I'm just about where I need to be at this point. I'm not going to worry about it. There are quite a few section hikers out here. It's not like the trail is devoid of humans. Not much else to report, so until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-12
From: unnamed campsite

To: William Penn Shelter
Miles today: 26.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 97 - Today was another one of those heat and humidity days along with buzzing mosquitoes thrown in for good measure. I finally had to break out the Deet in an effort to stave off the annoying little critters. To deal with the humidity, I shed my shirt and drank lots and lots of water. I did get in 25+ miles, though, and had trail magic too! Hot dogs, grilled chicken, strawberries, and a root beer, so I count today as a win!! I'm sorry to say I do need to vent a bit about the club that maintains this section. Nearly 3 miles of this afternoon's hike had lots of poison ivy along the sides of the trail. Someone with a weed whacker knocked down all the poison ivy plants (great), but left pieces and shards of poison ivy everywhere. The cut up poison ivy allowed for the plants' resin to be all over the trail! There's lots of poison ivy in the woods surrounding my home in Western NY. I know it's a struggle to contain or kill it. Normally poison ivy doesn't bother me, but it will be a miracle (and I don't believe in miracles) if I don't come down with a really bad rash. Usually a hiker doesn't care for rain. It slows you down and makes the trail muddy and slippery. Since I'm soaked in sweat anyway today, I'm really wishing for the cooling effect of rain and the shade the clouds provide. Tomorrow's forecast calls for 20% chance of rain. Maybe I'll get lucky. Until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-13
From: William Penn Shelter

To: Eagles Nest Shelter
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: clear sky

Day 98 - This update will be short because my iPhone battery is close to dead. I got another early start today. The trail's been mostly flat so I was able to get to Eagles Nest Shelter pretty early and decided to call it quits for the day. In this part of Pennsylvania, the trail follows a ridge top for 10-20 miles, then drops off of that ridge, and then up onto another ridge for 10- 20 miles. Not a lot of big mountain ascents or descents. Today was a good day. I saw no thruhikers until I got to Eagles Nest Shelter where I ran into Cooter, Freedom Fry, and SquarePeg. I plan to head into Port Clinton tomorrow to try to get a room there, resupply, and charge my iPhone battery. That's all, since my battery is just. about. dead. now.Until tomorrow...
Date: 2015-07-14
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 99 - I awoke this morning to the sound of gentle rain hitting my tent. I'm glad I didn't get moving early because within the next hour, it escalated into a full blown thunderstorm. What a direct contradiction to the National Weather System forecast for Eagles Nest Shelter. The forecast @ www.atweather.org called for a 20% chance of showers and no mention of thunderstorms. I thought they were better at predicting a forecast than that. Anyway, it was a short day to Port Clinton so waiting for the storm to pass wasn't a big issue. I had to stop in Port Clinton to recharge batteries, resupply for about 5 days, do laundry, and get a shower. Resupplying turned out to be a bit of a problem. Walmart, the closest resupply store, is about 2 miles away from The Port Clinton Hotel. The hotel is just a bit north of the AT. To resupply, it's a 40 minute walk one way on busy Highway 61 into Hamburg, PA - if I can't get a ride. And I couldn't. I think the problem is people won't stop to pick up someone who looks like an escapee from an asylum. I wasn't wearing my pack, which would have identified me as a hiker, so that probably compounded the issue. I walked the 4 miles round trip. It was not an option to skip the resupply of food, so I did what I had to do. Delaware Water Gap, which sits on the PA side of the PA/NJ border, is 75 miles ahead. The miles between here and there are notoriously rocky. It's unlikely I'll be able to maintain my recent pace, but within a week or so I'll be out of Pennsylvania and into New Jersey. I'm looking forward to leaving another state!Until tomorrow..
Date: 2015-07-15
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: stealth campsite
Miles today: 16.3

Day 100 - It's typical for me to get a late start out of a town. In this case though, I had to wait until after 9 am for the bartender at The Port Clinton Hotel to arrive so that I could get my room key deposit ($10) back. A bit unusual, but that didn't hold me up from doing reasonable miles today. While waiting for him, I had a great breakfast @ 3C's Restaurant with really large portions. Now that's the way to leave a town - with a very full belly! Today is my 100th day since starting on Apr. 7th. If I'm @ mile 1234.3, that puts my average daily distance at 12.343 miles (including zero days). I feel like I'm in the middle of NoWhere, PA, but today I ran into 2 large groups of non-thruhikers on the trail. The first group consisted of 30 Japanese tourists staring off into the distance from an overlook called 'The Pinnacle', which wasn't particularly scenic. I don't have any idea how they got there: there aren't any roads leading to the overlook and they certainly weren't dressed like or looked like hikers. I probably should have asked if they were lost. About 5 miles later, I ran into a large squadron of Civil Air Patrol members training to locate airplane crashes. At least they all had backpacks so they looked more like they belonged in the woods. Aside from that, there's really not a lot to say about the AT in Pennsylvania - except the rocks. The trail doesn't go anywhere particularly interesting and there aren't a lot of great views. For those reasons, I'll be happy when I get to New Jersey. Until tomorrow......
Date: 2015-07-16
From: stealth campsite

To: campsite @ mile 1254.2
Miles today: 19.9

Day 101 - Well, I certainly got introduced to Rockslyvania today. Some hikers hate the smaller rocks: the toe stubbers, the sole piercers, the ankle twisters, and the pole grabbers. Those don't bother me that much - my feet are pretty tough and my shoes can handle them. What I don't like, because of the chance of severe injury, is the boulder leaping. Boulder climbing isn't so bad because if your foot slips you're just not going to go up - you won't necessarily fall. But if you are jumping from boulder to boulder or if you're descending down a boulder field and your foot slips or a rock tips, gravity takes over. You're going down and it's going to hurt, probably pretty bad. Poles are of little use then because the metal tips just skitter across the rock - they can't be trusted. There's a place called the Knife Edge I had to walk on today. If I were a dancer and graceful on my feet, I probably would have loved the boulder leaping. Those who know me also know that I'm about as graceful as an elephant. Anyway, I'm only about 39. 5 miles from New Jersey, where hopefully this rock madness will end! I was glad I ran into a guy on the trail today surveying Elm trees in this part of Pennsylvania. He said they are bouncing back very strongly from Dutch Elm Disease. That's good news to hear - the Emerald Ash Borer has been playing havoc with Ash trees as well. As you may recall, dear readers, I recently stayed at the Port Clinton Hotel. I've read some hiker reviews on-line that call it a "rundown old fleabag". The Port Clinton Hotel was built in the early 1800's and at one point was a stage coach stop. Very old, yes, but I loved it. It could have been a set right out of a western movie with a saloon downstairs and a few rooms for rent upstairs. The folks were friendly and the food was good. It met my needs. I guess if some hikers prefer more sanitized, homogenized rooms near the trail, they can stay at a Microtel, Red Carpet Inn, etc, which seem to be abundant.Until tomorrow,,,,,,
Date: 2015-07-17
From: campsite @ mile 1254.2

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter
Miles today: 19.0

Day 102 - This morning I stopped in for water at the George W. Outerbridge Shelter and met "The Belgium Machine". He pointed out a snake that was living up in the shelter rafters. I couldn't tell what kind it was, but I never considered snakes living there before. Now I have something else to consider if I'm thinking of staying in a shelter. Thankfully, I never did get poison ivy from that section of trail where they weed whacked it. I guess miracles do happen (even if I don't believe in them). Today I climbed out of the Lehigh Valley and into a boulder field. Literally, a huge field of nothing but boulders. The reputation that Pennsylvania has for it's rocks on the AT is justified, but they really are doable. Patience and good weather help. It's said that nearly half the people who make it past Harpers Ferry drop out in Pennsylvania because of the rocks. I don't understand this - like any nuisance (long high climbs, hot humid weather, heavy rain, etc.) - you just need to wait it out and eventually it will end. I think that's why it's said that half of the AT challenge is mental. Anyway, only 20 miles more and I'll be out of this state. Tomorrow's plan is for about 16 miles to set me up for a nero day into Delaware Water Gap on Sunday so I can meet up with some pre-retirement work friends from Rotork Controls. Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I met the world's most interesting man today - I didn't know he was doing the trail this year.Until tomorrow...stay thirsty my friends!!
Date: 2015-07-18
From: Leroy A. Smith Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA 
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: broken clouds

Day 103 - I know there are some that don't, but I love thunderstorms - especially when I can get to a shelter so none of my gear gets wet. There was one early this morning. Unfortunately, by 7 am, it had moved on and I had to hike. I planned to quit for the day at a campsite about 4 miles from Delaware Water Gap because I'm meeting John and Laura, my friends from home, there on Sunday. While hiking over Wolf Rocks today, I came upon a young day hiking couple sitting on the rocks enjoying the view. As I passed by, the guy said, "We've got a friendly snake here". There was a medium sized rattlesnake about a foot beneath them on the rocks. I told them what it was and I've never seen anyone move as fast as they did. I think the girl dragged the guy right back to their car! Gernot ( a hiker from Germany) and I arrived at Kirkridge Shelter around 2:30 in the afternoon. Hiking with Gernot ( trail name Tonreg) is a bit of a challenge in that he speaks almost no English and I speak absolutely no German. Communication between us becomes a game of charades - but usually the point gets across. We decided to push on toward Delaware Water Gap. Thanks go out to some section hikers staying at Kirkridge Shelter for providing us with a couple of beers. I'm sure they helped us endure those last 6 miles! Anyway, we met my friends, John and Laura, at The Deer Head Inn. They treated Garnot and me to a wonderful dinner - minestrone soup, potatoes, asparagus, steak, and blueberry corn cake w/ice cream. There was no calorie deficit today!! John speaks fluent German, so with him as a translator, I learned more about Gernot in the time it took us to eat than I had in all the days I've hiked with him. I'd better install a German voice translator on my iPhone if I continue to hike with him. There'll be another filling breakfast and then lunch with my friends before they head back home to Upstate New York. It was great to see John and Laura, who brought me up to date on happenings at home and my former workplace. Tomorrow I'll cross the Delaware River on a walkway over I-80 and enter New Jersey. I look forward to saying goodbye to the rocks of Pennsylvania, but, according to some hikers, I'll say hello to the rocks of New Jersey. Stay thirsty, my friends! Unless you're hiking...