morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-01-08
To: Walk today in gorgeous snow
Miles today: 0.0

Our local park is a beautiful place. Parker (our dog) and I just returned from a walk in the snow and very cold temperatures. She is used to a walk everyday, and is still missing her buddy who died a week ago so we go no matter what the conditions. We rescued her from the park 4 years ago this month. She is adorable and a great companion.As for trail preparation, it is a never ending list as most of you know. A lot of trail terrain we will remember, but there is a lot we don't know. We have met so many wonderful hikers over the years, and I would follow them on trailjournals their entire hike to the summit. I cried with joy for all the ones we cheered for. Some hikers we met depended greatly on mail drops while others thought it caused increased stress. We are planning a few especially to the spots we remember were easily accessible.I am hoping to get some photos posted and will work on posting a gear list.
Date: 2010-01-09
To: Beaver Creek State Park Snow walk
Miles today: 0.0

Jim, Parker and I went to Beaver Creek State Park to hike in the beautiful snow. Jim and Parker played fetch during the walk, and he snapped lots of photos. The park is frozen over and is so quiet. Today,we are planning to dehydrate more fruit for our maildrops and also work on the daily hiking mileage between Springer to Hot Springs. We will be making a quick trip home in April for Jim to sign retirement papers,so this is another logistic detail to address.
Date: 2010-01-15
To: Turkey dust
Miles today: 0.0

Jim continues to plan meals and find new recipes. He has always been the trail cook while I am the main cook at home. Anyhow, he found a super good barbecue sauce recipe that I made and simmered for him to dehydrate into a roll up. Yum. Yesterday he got the idea to dehydrate the leftover (frozen) turkey from Christmas. He is working today so I was supposed to stop the dehydrator at 0800. It looked like turkey jerky, and I thought what a great idea. I tasted a piece which exploded like that candy we used to buy as kids. It still tasted OK, and provided good protein I thought to myself. The real test came when I dropped a piece on the floor which exploded like a crystal goblet. He will come home to check his invention, and I can't wait to see what he thinks!Parker and I went for a walk in much warmer temperatures today. We went to the campground that we love so much, but have been avoiding lately because of the memories so strong of our buddy, Lenny, who passed away 2 weeks ago. He was a Brittany (otherwise known as an angel), and he and Parker were buddies. Yesterday she wore her new Granite Gear coat so she could get used to it for time on the trail. She looked so cute, and she loved it.
Date: 2010-01-31
To: Delerium poet
Miles today: 0.0

Ohio is known for cold winters, but this one has been blustery and mean. Now we probably had it coming since we have had a few mild ones lately, but mother nature lashed us good. Just for good measure our furnace broke 3 days ago giving us a chance to polish our survival skills. Did you ever notice that things break or go haywire on a Friday so that you have to contend with weekend closures or premium fees? We are maintaining on space heaters and a fireplace which works well until night time when it is too dangerous to leave the gas fireplace burning. This will all work out, and it is good to have to improvise and endure (so they tell me). It will get fixed this week.So it must be the cold nights that cause me to sink into delerious thinking. Last night I kept thinking of rhymes and doing poetry. I am a nurse not a poet I told myself, but none the less, the rhyming continued. At this point nearly all of my waking hours are filled with thoughts of the hike, but now I am into the sleeping hours as well. Maybe it's the smell of dehydrating home made barbeque sauce or the crock pot full of rump roast in preparation of dehydrating. Maybe it's purchasing the airline tickets to Atlanta or studying a section of unfamiliar trail in the companion book. Maybe it's the falling at the park on the ice with Parker or the living room full of boxes and gear. It's probably all of those things, but the trail has taken over for sure.OK, just in case you care to know my delerium poetry (it's corny for sure)but it's ongoing.       May the posies outnumber the poisons      May the bunnies outnumber the bears      Let laughter outweigh any misery or pain      Dear God protect us from Springer to MaineWhat sleepless nights bring......
Date: 2010-03-04
To: Visually challenged
Miles today: 0.0

We have been collecting gear for nearly 10 years. Stoves seem to have the highest rank of replacement only to find us back to an original purchase of an alcohol trianga. We started our hiking quest using a dragonfly which is a great stove, but noting the use of alcohol stoves by other hikers on our first trip, we purchased one at Neel's gap. A few section trips later, Jim slipped and knocked the stove off the table burning himself (I put him out with the wet stinking clothes we had hung between trees). He had only minor burns and was OK, but the alcohol stove stayed home for quite some time. Jim then got a Jetboil which made a couple of trips, but took up a lot of pack space.We have also replaced tents and packs in the hope of saving weight, but realized that saving weight sometimes translates into less durability.Gators have also become scrutinized. Our first pairs were knee high and probably snake proof, but heavy and hot. The second pairs were ankle high, but held moisture in causing blisters. Several trips with no Gators yielded frequent stops to get debris out of boots to the point I cut up a sock and made a ridiculous looking set of Gators that did work. This time the plan is to make the right pair of Gators. These Gators should be light but capable of keeping debris out of our boots. The local fabric store had ripstop material and the cuff ribbing I wanted. My sewing maching is 33 years old and looks like new which is not a good thing since it indicates I am not a seamstress.The first thing one has to do to use their sewing machine is to thread the needle. It was evening and the lighting only adequate for usual lifestyle, not threading a needle that apparently had no hole to thread. I asked Jim if I could use his glasses, but he said they would be too strong. I asked him to thread the needle, but he wanted some apparatus he had used before that we couldn't find. He tried, and he even verified that there was a hole in the needle, but said the thread buckled every time he approached it. I finally got it threaded through poking over and over. I have one Gator at this time because it got too late. I am planning to work on them today.
Date: 2010-03-12
To: Friends and blessings
Miles today: 0.0

With only a week until take-off the list is shrinking of things to do, but emotions are filling in the list. For example, tonight my friends from the OR had a retirement party for me. They are not just friends, but wonderful friends that are part of my life. We ate a little, drank a little, and laughed a lot. I am thankful for their friendship.A biking friend is moving into our home to take care of our house and Parker. We plan to pick Parker up the end of April and take her with us, but our friend will live here until we are done. She is also a blessing in our life.Other friends and neighbors are going to help with the house and Parker. Other friends helped their uncle pursue his AT adventure a few years ago and have been a great resource and support.I am going to miss these friends and Parker so much, but know that this adventure has been calling me for 10 years, and I am ready to pursue the quest.We have put away the dehydrator, slow cooker, and sewing machine. We sent boxes to hostels, organized maps, and scrutinized the weight of our packs to the nearest ounce. Thanks to all who have signed our guest book. It means a lot to know that we have you with us. I will update as often as I can get service and have any energy left at the end of the day.
Date: 2010-03-21
To: Destination Hiker Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

There was really only one detail to complete this morning before Gingie drove us to the airport. I wanted to wash our comforter and hang it out for her. The comforter was too big for our washer so we took it to the laundromat and forked out the 5.75 to use the mega washer. We took Parker with us and took her for a walk once the washer was started. Timing the walk to correspond with the spin cycle, we thought we were clever. We put Parker back in the Pathfinder, went in to get the comforter. The time said 3 more minutes and spin, but the suds were to the top. Three minutes later we removed a sudsy soaking wet comforter from the malfunctioning machine. Not inclined to try that maching again, we tried to shove it in a smaller cheaper one. Our arms were soaked, the suds were all over the floor, and we looked like Lucy and Ethel. OK, plan B was to take it home, put in on the line and hose it off or hope for rain. I was deep in thought about this dilemma, ran a red light and saw the cop sitting right there. He pulled behind us and I had a to stop at a stop sign. I was so certain he was pulling me over for running the light, and we were out of time to get to the airport, I jumped out of the car and ran back to him to plead my case. He gave me a puzzled look, said "what is the matter, my lights aren't on". I said "oh yea, that's right, never mind." I think he thought he probably imagined the whole scenario.Gingie got us to the airport, and things pretty smoothe from there to here. It is raining a little, and there are a lot of hikers here. I'll update whenever I can get service. I'm using the Hostel's computer for this entry.
Date: 2010-03-22
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mountain shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: light snow

The Hiker hostel fed us a great breakfast of eggs, grits, banana pancakes, juice and coffee. Nine hikers loaded up in Josh's van and somehow he got us up the forest road slipping and sliding in the mud. He dropped us off at the parking lot and we had to backtrack 1 mile to the beginning of the AT on Springer mountain. It was snowing most of the day so hard to take nice breaks, but we got to the shelter and set up our tent since the shelter was already full. Somebody shared wasabi almonds that tasted so good. We went for water and found that the coughlin bag worked great making it so we could bring the water back to the shelter to filter instead of stooping over the creek to pump it.It was cold and we got wet in the tent a little due to the snow covering.It was a good start to this adventure.We miss you Parker and hope you are going to be happy.
Date: 2010-03-23
From: Hawk Mountain shelter

To: Gooch Mountain shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: few clouds

We left Hawk Mountain shelter wearing all of our warm clothes. We started to warm up as we climbed Sassafras mountain, and really got warm as the day went on. The sun came out and the day was gorgeous. We met Dave who is hiking with his son and also Superman,Ripple,Tim and Kelly. We kept running into each other off and on all day as we took breaks. We got to Gooch mountain shelter too late to get a space on the bottom platform, and I really didn't want to be in the rafters so we found a wonderful tent site next to Tim and Kelly. The shelter was jammed full and all the tensites too this night. Jim cooked our homemade dehydrated spaghetti and meatsauce that was so good. I couldn't get any cell service, but those who had Verizon could with ease. Oh well, farther up the trail maybe better.The weather stayed so nice all evening so we kept dry. I am not as organized with my gear as I should be with this new pack. My camera fell out of my shorts pocket already so now I have to carry it in my pack, and I can't reach it easily because I have to use water bottles in the pack pockets because my hydration system leaked all over, and I through it out!It was a great day.We miss you Parker.
Date: 2010-03-24
From: Gooch Mountain shelter

To: Campsite by a creek before Jarrad gap
Miles today: 8.2

Got a good start out of Gooch in nice weather conditions. We wanted to get to Jarrod gap so we would have a short day into Neel's gap tomorrow, but we congregated together too long at Woody Gap watching some fellow hikers trying to Yogi a ride into Suches for a pizza. He struck out, but it made for good entertainment. We made it to a campsite and ended up camping with Ripple, Dave, Tom (Trippin) and his son John. It was a great evening. As we started to doze off in the tent an airplane flew over so low it scared us. Jim thought it was crashing into the tent.A day without rain and snow is such a good thing!We miss you Parker.
Date: 2010-03-25
From: Campsite by a creek before Jarrad gap

To: Neel's gap
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: light rain

We got our earliest start yet knowing we were headed for a place to stay other than our tent! We didn't eat any breakfast except dehydrated apples and lots of water.We started hiking with Ripple and Dave, but Tom and John hiked with us too off and on. We sat on a log near Wood's Hole shelter and shared snacks of homemade granola, applesauce, and candy. We still had to climb Blood mountain and five more miles to Neel's gap. We ended up at Blood Mountain shelter together and took lots of photos. It is so amazing up there. The decent to the gap is rocky, and we took care. We ended up missing the trail magic of hamburgs, etc., but picked up our maildrop and got shuttled to Goose Creek along with Ripple and Dave. The cabins are quaint and the owner Keith is great. We have showered, sorted gear that is getting sent home, and gone through our mail drop. Keith will shuttle us to Blairsville for dinner tonight. We're not sure about tomorrow yet. We need to keep moving to reach our goal.I got to talk to Gingie tonight to hear about Parker. I miss her so much.Thank you Sue for your report too. I know Parker is in good hands.Thank you all for signing the guest book. It is so great to know you are with us. I will update again as soon as I can.
Date: 2010-03-26
From: Neel's gap

To: Stealth campsite before low gap shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Keith shuttled us back to neel's gap about 0900. Ripple, jim, and I sent some stuff ahead to reduce pack weight. The trail magic was being set up again at the walasi, but we didn't want to wait. So again we missed the trail magic and consequently earned our trail names of "too late and too early".We only could take quick breaks due to strong winds and cold, and after nine miles ripple and I were tired, but we were on a ridge and suitable tent sites were scarse. Jim left his pack with us, and went up the trail to see if he could find a better site. He found one and we got the tents up in the wind and ate some cheese and tortillas and crawled in the sleeping bags.
Date: 2010-03-27
From: Stealth campsite before low gap shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

We all dreaded getting out of our tents this morning due to the howling wind and cold up on the ridge, but we knew we had to get going because we needed water. Jim, Ripple and I headed for Low gap shelter to have breakfast and get water! Ripple got so excited over her hot chocolate and choked. We met Razor the ridgerunner there, and he told us about getting shuttled to Hiawassee from Unicoi gap so we could get a hotel room. The seed was planted, and we were determined to get to the gap instead of stopping at Blue mountain shelter. The weather improved as the sun came out, and we kept moving. At the gap Ripple decided to go to the Holiday Inn Express with the younger crowd, and Jim and I had opted for the Hiawassee Inn. Jim and I got a ride quickly from a trail angel named Cindy who waited at the Inn to make sure they had space. Jim has blisters so we didn't want to put any extra miles on his feet going too far for dinner so we went to Subway, then DQ. The DQ could get wifi from the place next door if you sat in one particular booth. I typed yesterday's journal on my phone which is not the easiest for me so now I am at the Holiday Inn per Ripples invitation using their computer. The new owner of the Hiawassee Inn brought me here and is coming to pick me up when I call. Ron Haven owns it now along with several hotels in Franklin. He plans to update the Inn and have wifi along with many hiker services.We are not sure about tomorrow. Jim may have to hike in his crocs.The Inn will shuttle us back to Unicoi gap to keep heading up the trail.Miss you Parker.
Date: 2010-03-28
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Zero day in hiawasee
Miles today: 0.0

We are back in the booth at DQ using the wifi from next door. The weather channel called for thunder storms, and given the condition of jim's feet, it seemed the prudent thing to do was to zero. Tomorrow is our anniversary, and 36 years ago being cooped up in a hotel room for over 24 hours together would have been an easy task. However, at this stage of the game, we found entertainment by catching the wire to the alcohol stove on fire trying to save money by cooking our lunch of homemade barbeque sauce and dehydrated chicken that we carried. Then we decided to go back to rite aid and get pepto bismul and then of course ice cream. We ran into superman. Professor, cope, and some of the others who have moved from the holiday inn to where we are. We wll head out tomorrow. The sun is shining instead of rain, and we're hanging out instead of moving forward. It is fun!!" too late, and too soon"
Date: 2010-03-29
From: Zero day in hiawasee

To: Stealth camp before addis gap
Miles today: 8.0

Last night journal entry from iPod using the wifi next to the dq and tonight from my phone on a windy cold ridge may have errors, but wanted to take advantage of having a signal. Last night as we were returning to our room from the dq superman, cope, troll, professor, 3bears, and some other hikers being driven by Ron haven, the owner of the hotel, pulled up in his school bus, and said to come with them to the Mexican restaurant. We had just been to the dq, but hopped on the bus! It was yummy! Ron had a full bus load this am to shuttle back to the trail. We started the ascent out of unicoi and only took a couple of short breaks because of the cold. We climbed up tray mtn and stopped T the shelter for water and lunch. John and Carlos were there, and we met chicken feathers. We had only gone about 6 miles, and wanted to get closer to dick's creek so we could get shuttled back to hiawasee again tomorror for a room, a shower, and the Mexican again! After that we start a 40 stretch of trail with no opportunity to get off the trail. The weather is supposed to improve, and we would sure appreciate that, but you take what you get out here.We are in the tent with our coats on inside our sleeping bags so I'll end for now to get my hands warm. Miss you Parker .
Date: 2010-03-30
From: Stealth camp before addis gap

To: Dick's creek
Miles today: 8.6

We packed up the tent in a light drizzle and really cold temp. We put a homemade granola bar in our rain coats with hopes of warmer weather as we got lower. It stayed cod most of the day, but we had to stop and eat anyhow. We could feel it...dead legs. Millertime came behind us, and went by, and we also saw paco and tomato.We needed water, but thought we could make it without stopping thinking the terrain wasn't too bad with the exception of Kelly knob. Turns out it did seem like a hard day, and jim endured with those blisters, and my knees were aching. But thankfully, nothing wrong that wouldn't be expected until we get stronger.We made it into dick's creek, and saw professor, cope, and superman having lunch. We had aail drop at the blueberry patch, and had to find a way there. The hitch hiking ability wasn't as easy as it had been at unicoi so we started the 3.5 mi. Finally, a pick up truck driven by a trail angel, Shelton, stopped. He got out, moved theasonary equipment around in the back and said hop in. Well at that point it was more like plop in for me. We got to the blueberry patch and were greeted by Gary who showed us to a bunk, pointed out that they woud do our laundry, and take us into town. This place is amazing wit a donkey and other animals out back. Kevin, cricket, tomato, Jim and went into town thanks to bob who drove. We gotore blister med, and we went to big ALS pizza.We have showered, and are getting things ready to head for Franklin nc tomorrow. I don't know if I'll be able to get a signal for a few days, but will try.Miss you Parker.Too late and too soon
Date: 2010-03-31
From: Dick's creek

To: Bly gap
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: broken clouds

We loved the blueberry patch hostel. Gary and Lenny served us scrambled eggs, cheese bisquots, blueberry pancakes, juice and coffee. It was mat's birthday so he had happy birthday sung to him.Bob drove mat, cricket, Jim and I back to the dick's creek trailhead to head for the Georgia -north Carolina line at Bly gap. We have completed Georgia and start nc tomorrow. We started in warm wonderful conditions that only got nicer all day. We took a nice break to let our feet dry, and then sat under a tree at the plumprchard shelter side trail for lunch. Wert wio from near Cleveland, oh, and magnet. The trees are starting to bud, and we have seen a few squirells, but not much more animal activity yet. The birds are singing a little, but are still just getting tuned up. We are tenting next to magnet and rockstar and Andrew. Our tent is facing west, and I just watched the sun go down. We are warm, intact, and grateful for this day. We are going to get Jim new boots when we get to franklin because the blisters are no good.Miss you Parker .Too late and too soon
Date: 2010-04-01
From: Bly gap

To: Standing Indian shelter
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: clear sky

We started out of Bly Gap with Rockstar and Magnet. We were treated to a very steep rocky climb that tapped my energy for later. However, the day was again gorgeous, and we could take nice breaks. We stopped at Muskrat shelter for a snack and met Kutsa, from Israel. Yahtzee stopped in and shared hummus and pita chips, Yummmmmmm. I tried to listen to my IPOD while we hiked, and sometimes it helps, but I wanted to listen to the birds instead. They are not in full tune yet, but some are singing. I put it away at the next break.We stopped at Standing Indian shelter and put up the tent because the bugs were hungry (just like hikers). Bob, Paco, Ryan, Tim and Kelly were there along with some others. Jim cooked dinner, and we hit the tent early. I could not get any cell service so was disappointed that I couldn't journal or look for your messages ( I love them).
Date: 2010-04-02
From: Standing Indian shelter

To: Betty Creek Gap
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: clear sky

We ate a homemade granola bar for breakfast and hit the trail. Tim and Kelly left a little while before us. The hike this morning was the easiest trail so far this trip. The rhododendrens are abundant but not in bloom, and the trail had many little waterfalls. At one crossing a young hiker had a big safety pin in his hand doing surgery on his blisters which is not an uncommon scene out here. Jim has suffered with them most of the trip and I can't wait to get him different boots. We stopped at Carter Gap shelter for a cooked lunch of spaghetti. We did this so we could camp tonight and not have to cook. We ate with Tim and Kelly. We had made good time on the easier terrain so we moved on to Betty Creek Gap which was beautiful. I thought I recognized Tim and Kelly's tent, and they came walking in from the water source. So we camped together again. They gave me a great headband like the one I had seen Kelly wearing that worked so well. We shared some food, and then hit the tent. The weather was gorgeous again and so welcomed!