morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-02
From: Stealth camp near Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Stealth camp near James River
Miles today: 23.5

start: Stealth camp near Bryant Ridge Shelterfinish: Stealth camp near James River miles: 23.5day: 56A quiet day.  We didn't see anyone all day except for when Mountain Man and Mountain Dew came to a shelter where we were finishing up a break.  And they don't talk very much.  It started out clear, but by mid morning had clouded over, and it spat rain a few times throughout the day but never got anything very wet.  It was cold enough that we had flurries on top of Apple Orchard Mountain.  By late afternoon the sun came out and strong breezes blew the clouds away.  It turned into a beautiful day.Regarding our mileage, I know I said we were cutting back a bit.  We did keep the pace slower today, but the miles came easy, and this puts us near town for breakfast tomorrow morning.  We have to go to resupply anyway, and we have no more food.  Perfect planning.Which is bigger? Lumberjack's, Trucker's, or Hunter's breakfast special.  I want the one with three of everything.It's kind of nice camped here next to Matt's Creek where it flows into the James River.  Pleasant gurgling sounds.  Punctuated by big trucks' jake brakes on the road across the river.  And really long trains rumbling by on the tracks next to the road.  The trains remind me of staying at my grandmother's house when I was a kid.We saw lots of flowers today: acres of pink trilliums, pink azaleas, white dogwoods, violets, irises, little white and yellow things that look like old fashioned ladies underwear, and others I've not seen before.  The other day we saw red columbine.  I also saw my first tick today crawling on my shoe.
Date: 2005-05-03
From: Stealth camp near James River

To: Stealth camp near VA 607, Robinson Gap Rd.
Miles today: 12.6

start: stealth camp near James Riverfinish: stealth camp near VA 607, Robinson Gap Rd.miles: 12.6day: 57It got down to freezing last night.  A real damp cold camped by the big river.  We woke, packed up and got hiking before 7:00, the fastest ever.  I wonder if it had anything to do with having no food left except one apple between us?  We walked about a mile along the James River and then crossed it on the footbridge - no wait, The Foot Bridge.  Dedicated to the man who made the bridgebuilding happen, last name Foot, really.  The plaque said he was a former thru-hiker and he and his wife "The Happy Feet" were the first people to thru-hike the ADT in 1997.  The ADT is the American Discovery Trail which is close to 5000 miles and runs east-west from Delaware to California ending at each ocean.Anyway, it's a great bridge, and we walked across as the sun was rising above the trees to burn off the fog, and at that moment a train came across on the nearby railroad bridge.  Very nice.We got to the road and quickly hitched a ride into Glasgow, VA, 6 miles away.  The answer from yesterday's question is The Mountain Man is the largest breakfast special.  We each had one, plus a side of toast and jelly.  Eggs, pancakes, bacon, hash browns, and a whole separate plate of biscuits and sausage gravy.  All for 6 bucks.  I love this town.We did our post office and grocery store chores, not carrying much food since we'll be in Buena Vista tomorrow to pick up a pair of shoes in a mail drop.  Then we rolled over to the library, a very nice little place, and played on the internet for a couple of hours, until lunchtime  We finally got back to the trail around 2:30.The trail followed a creek for a bit, then climbed long up to a ridge with many viewpoints of the valley we had just come from.  It has become normal that we change our elevation so drastically, so quickly, all on foot.  Most people never see these views because of the effort involved, but in the shape we're in we can easily bang out the climb in an hour or two.  It's great to be able to do this, if only one didn't have to walk ALL DAY, EVERY DAY to keep in shape  Well, I guess we didn't walk all day today, did we?We're camped only a few tenths from the Blue Ridge Parkway, but you'd never know it - it's deserted.  There's an owl hooting "who cooks for you?" close by.  My definition of a good campsite.
Date: 2005-05-04
From: Stealth camp near VA 607, Robinson Gap Rd.

To: stealth camp at Hog Camp Gap
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: scattered clouds

start: stealth camp near VA 607, Robinson Gap Rd.finish: stealth camp at Hog Camp Gapmiles: 16.5day: 58Slept well last night.  Woke, ate some donuts and an apple, packed up and started hiking around 8:30.  The walking was easy this morning, through some beautiful forests.  We covered the 10 miles to the Buena Vista road in about 4 hours.We saw Darcy at a roadside picnic table.  Goldilocks hitched while I had a nice long conversation with an older gentleman who turned around and came back to the parking area when he saw us.  He would've given us a ride but for his three dogs - black and tan coon hounds I believe - who were good dogs but nasty to strangers while they were in the car.  So as we talked about everything from computers to radar towers to how to make moonshine I kept my distance so as not to set the dogs barking.  I could have talked with this fellow all day.  He had lots of stories to tell about how he had bear hunted all these hills as a young man.Finally we got a ride, I said goodbye, and we rode into town.  We stopped first at Hardee's for a burger and shake, just to tide us over.  Then we walked quite a ways to the post office.  We picked up the boxes waiting for us from Mrs. Moosie and a friend of Goldilocks'.  Goldilocks' box was full of candy!  The other box had my new shoes - a replacement pair of NB 806 13 4E, the last pair on the planet to my knowledge.  This first pair got me 800 miles, and look like they could go further, but the cushioning is nonexistent anymore.  I mailed the smelly ones home.  The new ones felt horrible - they just need to break in I guess.A nice lady coming out of the PO offered us a ride to the Food Lion where we picked up groceries for a few more days.  I updated my pocketmail at the payphone there and it said I needed new batteries.  Finally!  One pair of lithium AAs has gotten me this far, using the device every day for journalling, etc.  I had been avoiding using the backlight to lengthen the battery life, but started using it a few weeks ago.  Three sets of batteries may do the whole trip!Another nice lady asked if we were "stranded", and she gave us a ride to Subway, where we got some lunch.  Then we started to hitch out of town.  We consider many factors, such as Goldilocks takes off his pack with the guitar on it to make it appear smaller, etc.  I've been joking with Goldilocks that lately we get our rides when I'm standing in front.  So today he says after a few minutes, "go ahead, you stand in front", teasing me.  I do, and the first car pulls over.  Hah!We got hiking again at 4:45, starting off with a long climb.  We hiked over a beautiful grassy bald summit (Cold Mountain) and now we're camped in a very nice spot under some white pines.  I'm probably not cooking dinner tonight - too full from town and not that many miles walked.  The temperature is going down again tonight, and we're at close to 4000 feet.  Good sleeping weather.  I think I'll make a cup of tea.
Date: 2005-05-05
From: stealth camp at Hog Camp Gap

To: Tye River
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: overcast clouds

start: stealth camp at Hog Camp Gapfinish: Tye River miles: 19.4day: 59It was around freezing last night, and damp.  For some reason I was cold in my 30 degree bag.  I slept fitfully all night, finally getting up at 6:00.  Aside from the cold, it was a great soft, flat camping spot under the pines.We were headed for a road 10 miles distant by 11:00, where the folks from the Dutch Haus B&B serve a FREE LUNCH to thru-hikers.  We banged out the miles early, walking over some nice ridges in early morning light.When we got there we walked 1 mile off trail, straight down to the fish hatchery where a call for pickup can be made.  While we waited we saw some really large trout (20+") in the pools.The proprietor, Earl, picked us up and brought us back to the house.  We wanted the free lunch, and were thinking of staying the night, but didn't really want to lose 1/2 day of hiking.  Until Earl mentioned we could hike north and get picked up at the Tye River 9 miles north.  Perfect mileage.  We ended up doing the afternoon hike with Johnny Blaze, Darcy, the North Carolina Brothers, and Steak-n-eggs.  Johnny and Darcy came back with us to stay at the hostel.  By dinner time Kodak and Tea Break had showed up as well.We also met three New Zealanders starting a flip flop at Harper's Ferry: Kiwi Al, Kiwi Girl, and Jungle Girl.  Also a section hiker named VolFan.All in all a good day with friends, got some good miles done, plus got fed and bathed.  Who could ask for more?
Date: 2005-05-07
From: somewhere south of Humpback Mountain (face plant)

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: clear sky

start: somewhere south of Humpback Mountainfinish: Rockfish Gap miles: 13.3day: 61I heard Kodak stirring and looked at my watch.  5:47 am.  Way too early for when we went to bed, way too late for getting to Waynesboro before the PO closes.  Oh no!  Goldilocks, get up, get up!  We're all set to hike within minutes, with nothing but the odd candy bar for breakfast.  Then we have to wait for Tea Break, who is walking dead, to perform his "morning tinkle" in the middle of the trail.  Tea Break, not there!  Someone may want to sleep there!We start off at 6:00 am, and the pace is scary.  Blistering.  No way we can keep this up for 13 miles.  As I run to catch up every time the trail permits, I realize this could be a very long, painful four hours.  Yes, we're shooting for the road by 10:00, allowing an hour to hitch, and handle all at the PO before they close at 11:00.  I know Stumpknocker would have no problem with it.  Or Traction.  Or Goldilocks and Tea Break, as it turns out.  They made it by 9:30, running and hollering the whole way down.  Kodak soon after, and old Moosie walked into Rockfish Gap promptly at 10:01.  I'd sure feel a lot faster hiking with people my own age.The North Carolina brothers (Mike and Sean) were there and we hitched in together.  I got off at the PO and they went on to camp near the YMCA.  The usual assortment of hiker trash was already sorting stuff when I got there.  After sorting and remailing our bounce boxes we all checked in at the Quality Inn.  Later in the day Johnny Blaze came along and we had 5 smelly hikers in one room.  We can sure reduce property values in a hurry. We cleaned up a bit (wonderful shower) and went to Gavid's Steakhouse to eat.  I had a 16 oz steak and AYCE food bar.  Sweet.  We saw Darcy and the NC Brothers there.  After eating I stumbled back to the room for a nap.  Slept blissfully for a couple hours and then went with the group to the outfitters to find a tea cup and replacement spoon, as mine is cracked.  A trail angel named Bill picked us up at the motel, shuttled us over there, waited and brought us back.  He knew me when I got in the car from reading my journal.  Bill recently relocated here from New Jersey and is very proud (rightly so) that he's recently been able to get responsibility for maintenance of a 1.5 mile section of the AT a bit north of here.  Bill, it was nice talking with you.  Thanks for the shuttle!After aimlessly chilling for a while, we decided it was time to eat again, and went to the pizza place across the street.  We wanted to rent and watch a video, but neither the motel or Blockbuster had a player we could use.  Johnny's zeroing tomorrow, waiting for the PO, but I think the rest of us are hiking out.
Date: 2005-05-08
From: Rockfish Gap

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

start: Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)finish: Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)miles: 0.0day: 62Yep, we all decided to take a zero today.  I love zeroes.  We started by eating the free breakfast the motel offered, then we checked out and walked over to Weasie's to eat breakfast.  Tea Break and Goldilocks attempted the pancake challenge - the current record is 24 plate-sized pancakes.  I had a great breakfast of country ham, eggs, and red-eye gravy.  It was fun to watch the pancake eaters as their chewing slowed.  Tea Break spent some time in the bathroom - making room - but to no avail.  Neither contender was even able to eat ten pancakes.  Tea Break was in fine form, loudly practicing his best southern American accent.  The waitress wasn't sure how to respond.  We had to interpret a few times.  And convince her he was fine when he left the establishment and proceeded to lie like roadkill on the pavement in front of the door.We moseyed on down to the YMCA where they offer free camping and checked in.  Somehow the day passed very quickly doing all this bunch of nothing, and after chatting a while with some other hikers we thought it'd be nice to go see a movie, which none of us has had the opportunity to do so far on this trip.  The problem was that the nearest theater is in Staunton, 10 miles away.  So we used Coco Bean's cell phone to call some names on the trail angel list that is posted around town.  After arranging a ride, we chatted some more with Len, a trail angel, and Gourmet Dave, a past thru-hiker.  Dave was full of good information on the upcoming section (he's the field editor for the Companion through this area), and he was telling us all about the IAT.  Cotton Joe is planning to hike that when he reaches Katahdin.Before the movie we (Goldilocks, Kodak, Tea Break, Coco Bean, Cotton Joe, Johnny Blaze, and I) all trucked over to the chinese buffet.  All but Coco Bean then went to the movie when our ride arrived.  Trail angel Pam and her friend Megan brought two cars to drive us over.  It was fun to talk with Megan, who is planning a thru-hike for next year.  Thanks so much for the ride angels!We saw Kingdom of Heaven.  Then we needed to get a ride back.  It was shaping up to be a truly impossible hitch, so we called a cab.  Problem solved.The night was clear and it was late, so we just plopped our sleeping bags out on the grass and slept.
Date: 2005-05-09
From: Rockfish Gap

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

start: Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)finish: Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)miles: 0.0day: 63Woke to a heavy dew wetting everything.  But it's clear and the sun is shining, so we laid our gear out to dry and went to Weasie's for some breakfast.  The plan is to get on the trail and start actually hiking, but no one else seems to be in a hurry.  Goldilocks needs to swing by the PO to check on a missing package.The package was mailed via UPS from their store in Daleville and they said it would be no problem to ship to a PO General Delivery address.  They have no idea what they're talking about.  The PO here in Waynesboro didn't have the package, and said they wouldn't have accepted it from UPS.  We happened to see a UPS delivery person on the street and he said he would have delivered it to the Chamber of Commerce.  I wish the change of delivery location had been reflected in the tracking information.  So we went over there and a helpful person eventually found it for us, along with Johnny Blaze's package.  Goldilocks remailed his box and I carried Johnny's down to the campground.  When we got there Johnny was just getting a ride to the Quality Inn where he's spending the night.We hung out for a bit discussing the feasibility of going to Costa Rica with Tea Break later in the month, as he leaves the country to meet his visa re-entry requirements, but the details proved complicated so we bagged the idea and will just hope that Tea Break catches up when he gets back.We barged in on Johnny at the motel to use his phone and stuff, and then went to Long John Silver's for a meal.  After that we just wandered back to the YMCA campground and hung out for the rest of the afternoon and evening.
Date: 2005-05-10
From: Rockfish Gap

To: Dundo Group Campground
Miles today: 22.3

start: Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)finish: Dundo Group Campgroundmiles: 22.3day: 64Well, Goldilocks, Tea Break and I finally got out of Waynesboro!  Trail Angel Len came by the YMCA campground at 8:00 am to pick us up.  He shuttled us to Hardee's and the PO, and then to the trail.  Thank you Len, Bill, Pam and Megan for all your help while we were in Waynesboro.  We really appreciate it.We signed in at the visitor's center at Rockfish Gap and spoke with a very friendly and helpful man there.  I didn't get his name.The hiking was uneventful and easy today - the Shenandoah is going to be a piece of cake.  My pack felt heavy this morning - guess it's that full food load coming out of town...  The main happening today was that we crossed and re-crossed Skyline Drive so many times.  In the afternoon we saw Coco Bean at the road.  She has been having problems with her leg and was waiting there for her mother to come and pick her up.  She's going home to Pennsylvania for a few days to rest and heal, but we made her promise to come back!  Coco Bean, please sign my guestbook when you get back on so we have some idea of where you are in relation to us after we come back from Trail Days.We waited around a while talking with Coco Bean a) to keep her company and b) because we're lazy, and c) because we held out the faint hope that her mom would show up laden with cold soda.  Eventually we hiked on to get to water and camp before dark.Now we're set up in this public car campground, but no one's here, and there's garbage cans, water from a tap, and privies.  But the ground is hard as a rock.  I prefer the forest.  This place is thick with deer that seem almost completely unafraid of us.  I can hear them tromping around in the leaves and can see their eyes when I shine my light into the woods.We've positioned ourselves for about a 7 mile hike to a wayside restaurant for breakfast.  I can't wait.
Date: 2005-05-11
From: Dundo Group Campground

To: Simmons Gap
Miles today: 13.0

start: Dundo Group Campgroundfinish: Simmons Gap miles: 13.0day: 65We slept well, and the bit of rain that threatened never came.  Another beautiful day on the AT.  The only problem is that Spring seemed very short and Summer's here.  It was in the 80s yesterday and is very warm already today as we walk to the wayside restaurant for breakfast.  By the time we get there around 10:00 we're completely drenched in sweat even though the trail's extremely easy.I immediately headed to the men's room and stripped off my shirt and washed it in the sink.  Dirty water just kept rinsing out of it until I decided it was sort of clean enough, wrung it out and put it back on.  Much better.  I think the tourist who came in while I had my shirt off was a little bewildered.  Clash of cultures.The food, while not bad, was incredibly expensive.  Overall I think we each spent about $20 there trying to get full.  I can't stand national parks.  Tea Break met a fellow Englishman and they talked for a while.  There was no pay phone but I was able to use the house phone line to update my pocketmail, although I'm pretty sure it's screwed up again.  I don't receive any email.  The cause seems to be when certain as yet undetermined types of junk mail are waiting, stupid pocketmail just doesn't retrieve anything, and doesn't say there's a problem.  But I automatically send myself a stock quote every day, and if I don't get that, something's wrong.  I can only fix it by getting to a pay phone during pocketmail support hours.  This has been happening a lot lately and is very frustrating.We were feeling very lazy in the heat and decided to take a nap under a shady tree and hike in the evening.We met Billville heading down to Trail Days and talked with Walking Home and Old Faht for a while.  As we were leaving we met trail angel Len who was coming back from a guided wildflower walk at Big Meadows.We started hiking again around 4:00 and it was still too hot so we slowed our pace a bit.  When we hit the next shelter we cooked dinner, while talking to Michael and Sean (NC brothers) and others.  We only hiked a couple of miles past that and decided to sleep even though we hadn't done many miles, as we don't really night hike very well.  We came to the ranger station for water and just bedded down here under the stars.  Hope the ranger doesn't get here too early...Note: I mentioned yesterday that my pack was feeling quite heavy.  There turned out to be a reason for this.  Last night as I was unpacking I discovered a stowaway - a 1 lb. can of creamed corn.  I cursed, ate it, and vowed to get Johnny Blaze for this.  Today I found out it was Michael, who I hereby name Leprechaun, or how about Leprecorn.  Sneaky bastard.
Date: 2005-05-12
From: Simmons Gap

To: Just north of Big Meadows Lodge
Miles today: 26.7

start: Simmons Gapfinish: Just north of Big Meadows Lodge miles: 26.7day: 66Aah, it's lovely sleeping under the stars.  Wait, what's that I feel?  Oh crap, it's raining at 3:00 am!  Yelled for the others to wake up, stashed my sleeping bag to keep it dry, and hurriedly set up my tarp.  Then it stopped raining, of course.  As I was settling back down to sleep I could see stars in the sky.  This little spit of rain has occurred several times over the last few days, never really raining.Woke up for the last time around 5:45 wondering what time the ranger comes to work.  It would definitely be best if we didn't get caught camping here.  By the time he arrives at 6:45 we're all packed up and Goldilocks is cooking his breakfast.  We seem innocent and the ranger is friendly to us.  We've left no trace.We mentally break the big day up into three 6 mile sections and then a remaining 8.5.  It's cooler than yesterday and overcast so we bang out the miles.  We finish the 18 miles into the campground store and pay phone by 2:00 pm.  We get food and I work with Pocketmail support to resolve my email issues.  I also call Underpants and arrange for us to be picked up tomorrow at 1:00 pm at Thornton Gap.  We'll need to push a bit tomorrow morning, but then we get a couple of days off.  After touching base with Mrs. Moosie (more of our house is falling apart while I'm gone), we hike the remaining miles into Big Meadows for dinner.Fine dining.  The first on this trail.  The best food and dining experience in 900 miles.  Yes, we did our 900-mile happy dance today!  I had a salad, french onion soup, and a glazed pork chop with mashed sweet potatoes and broccoli.  Finished with good decaf coffee and blackberry cobbler ala mode.  Oh yeah, baby.After dinner came something completely different.  Down in the pub there was live entertainment.  A fellow who sang and played turn-of-the-century (1900) Irish, English, and Appalachian folk songs and ballads.  Many of the refrains were sing-along.  We participated heartily.  The instruments were guitar, banjo, and best of all, hammer dulcimer.  A truly memorable trail experience.Now it's over and time to waddle out of this comfortable lodge into the quite chilly darkness to find our way back to the AT and find a flat place to camp.  We find a place quickly and set up.  Up very early tomorrow to bang out 18 miles by 1:00 pm.