morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-05-12
From: Catawba

To: Daleville
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Our longest day yet! We got up early and left the general store around 7. We weren't lucky at getting a ride to the trailhead so we walked the mile or so up hill on a trafficy road. Blah. But we were glad the sun was shining and were happy to have a beautiful view when we got up to McAfee Knob. Egg hiked further than us the day before because she was heading home to go to her sister's graduation. So it was just me, Storm, and Grommet today and it was hilarious to read Egg's messages that she left for us in the registers. We miss her already!The hiking was really pleasant today. We took a quick lunch break and 1 or 2 quick stops and we didn't talk to each other too much. It was quiet on the trail and I enjoyed the low humidity and fresh spring air. Mountain laurel started blooming, too. The last 45 minutes really seemed to drag, but otherwise I think we all felt pretty darn good after hiking 20 miles. We met Peachy Keen, a thru-hiker last year who was out for a short hike with her 2 dogs. She left an encouraging message to this year's thru-hikers in one of the registers. I read it out loud and I think we were all touched by it. We made it to 700 miles today. And man do I need a new pair of shoes!The evening ended deliciously at the Cracker Barrel. Mmmm.
Date: 2009-05-13
From: Daleville

To: Daleville
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

We took a zero in Dalesville! It was our first zero where we actually relaxed and I took a nice nap and watched lots of tv. We went to the Mexican place across the street with Nutmeg, Billy Hoot, Little Dipper and One Stick. My foot is pretty sore so it was good to give it a break.
Date: 2009-05-18
From: Trail Days

To: Trail Days
Miles today: 0.0

Trail Days was amazing! We arrived on Friday evening and left Sunday afternoon. Some of the highlights:1. Meeting Persistent and spending some serious quality time with her.2. Seeing so many hikers that we haven't seen in awhile. And meeting so many hikers current and past.3. New shoes! 4. Relaxing and enjoying a world of hikers. It was amazing.In other not so exciting news I went to the medical tent to see a doctor to see what the hell is wrong with my foot. Apparently I have a bone spur on the top of my right foot. Great. The doctor made me feel pretty good about it, surprisingly. She told me I needed new shoes (which I already knew) and to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't get any bigger. She told me it would probably hurt for the rest of my hike but if I get the right shoes and care for it, I can manage it. It's hard to think about this pain being with me everyday for the next 3.5 months, so I'm trying to keep things a little lighter. I've named the bone spur Arnold Palmer and am keeping my fingers crossed that he is happier in my new shoes.We ended the weekend off with an incredibly fun celebration of Storm's birthday including fake plastic jewelry, barbie birthday cake, dinner at a hilarious dive bar, and cold pinot grigiot. Happy Birthday, Storm!!! And a THANK YOU to Persistent who made our weekend so awesome. Her generous home baked treats, picking us up and driving us around, and sharing an incredibly fun evening at the Natural Bridge Hotel. We miss you already!!!Reality changing moment of the weekend: meeting Persistent!
Date: 2009-05-19
From: Daleville

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: clear sky

Today was difficult in the beginning because we had several days of not hiking. My body really needed the rest and relaxation, though, and after the first few miles I started to warm up and get in the groove. Arnold, my new hiking partner (/ bone spur) felt much better in my new Montrails, and every creek I pass I make sure to soak my feet in. The water is numbingly cold and feels really good on tired and sore feet. So we climbed Floyd Mountain after a quick stop for lunch and a foot soak. The climb wasn't bad and I made it to the next shelter and soaked my feet and relaxed. No one was there and it was a quiet and peaceful spot. The rest of the Divas showed up and then when we were making dinner the Baltimore girls, Leif-e and McBride showed up! Reunited and it feels so good! It was great to see them. We caught up on each others hikes and were all blown away by the fact that it had been 500 miles since we last saw them. They also gave us red star patches to put on our packs as honorary members of The Commrades, the name they've given their hiking group (it includes Leif-e, McBride, Thin Mint and Ziggy). I hope we end up hiking with them for longer than last time. They are a great group and really fun to be around. We miss The Condiments and the Georgia girls, too though! And I hope we will see them soon, too.Reality changing moment of the day: reuniting with our friends after 500 miles!
Date: 2009-05-21
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Lynchburg
Miles today: 7.7

Today was a quick 5 or so miles to Matts Creek shelter which had a great creek to dunk our feet and head into. Storm's feet were really hurting her so after we pushed on and made it over the James River foot bridge we decided to try to hitch a ride to Lynchburg. Amazingly the hitch was really easy! I think we're getting better at it. I stuck my thumb out and 5 minutes later we were on our way. The dude didn't know where the hospital was so we got dropped off and grabbed some food at Wendy's and then called Ken who was listed in Appalachian Pages as a shuttle driver. We got to the hospital, found out Storm's foot is ok (thankfully) and went to get dinner. While eating at the Mexican place a nice couple approached us and told us their friend thru-hiked a few years ago and asked if we needed help. We took them up on it! Ken drove us to a motel where we went swimming in the pool (sweet!). Looking forward to hiking out in the morning.
Date: 2009-05-22
From: Lynchburg

To: Punchbowl Shelter
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: broken clouds

We resupplied at the Kmart across the street (vomit!) and got Storm some new Kmart shoes. We called our friend from last night and he picked us up and drove us back to the trailhead. I am still in awe of the generosity of people to us hikers.We got a sweet view after a pretty intense climb up. And then towards the end of the day another beautiful view atop Bluff Mountain. We're staying at Punchbowl shelter which has a little pond and subsequently a horrible amount of little biting bugs. We ate dinner and got into our tents quickly tonight!
Date: 2009-05-23
From: Punchbowl Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: broken clouds

What a day. We were hiking around 7:30 after a group of like 15 boy scouts invaded the shelter to explore the pond. I was in a hurry to get out of there because the bugs were horrible and biting us as soon as we got out of our tents. So we banged out an easy 7 miles or so and then I started running into a lot of people out for the holiday weekend. And then I ran into the rigerunner who told me about trail magic up ahead. Sweet! Egg was already there when I got there and it was awesome trail magic. A delicious cheese sandwich, pecan pie and lemonade. Mmmm. Such nice people. We walked a little further to the shelter and had a second lunch, soaked our feet and I dunked my head in the water too. The weather is really warm and humid so it felt great. Then we had a 4.5 mile climb up that totally kicked my butt. When I found Grommet sitting at the top was so relieved! I feel like I haven't climbed like that in awhile. Oh, and Bald Knob is not a bald on top. Cold Mountain, the next mountain of the day, is however. What beautiful views from the top. Unfortunately I had some intestinal trauma at the top so that kind of sucked. We made it down to the gap where a bunch of weekenders are camping for the holiday. The thru-hikers have a different area by the water source. We seem to all stick together! Today we met Sam Wise and O.G. who seem really nice.Off to bed!
Date: 2009-05-24
From: Campsite

To: The Priest Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: light rain

Today was really muggy with almost no breeze but the sky was cloudy all day so at least the sun wasn't scorching us. The hiking was pretty uneventful until we got to Spy Rock, where we climbed on top of this huge rock outcrop with 360 degree view. We could see the clouds rolling in and it was beautiful.Egg, Grommet and I met up with Storm who was taking a break. And Grommet said 'I wanna cut my dredlocks off.' and Egg said 'now?' and we all looked at each other and laughed. Grommet and Egg got their scissors out and I got my brush out. And now Grommet has really short hair. Ah, the trail is liberating!We made our way half way up the Priest mountain and found a sweet campsite at the Priest shelter where everyone is writing their confessions in the shelter register.Reality changing moment: the Divas cutting off all of Grommet's hair!
Date: 2009-05-25
From: The Priest Shelter

To: Rusty's Hard Time Hollow
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: moderate rain

Whoever said Virginia is flat was totally wrong! Today we went down 3000 feet and then immediately up 3000 feet. In between we rested and soaked our feet in the lovely Tye River and also at the beautiful Harpers Creek. What a great spot for a shelter! After we climbed up the 3000 feet I was soaked with sweat. It looked like we all just went swimming. The bugs were so bad at the top that we left Egg a note and told her we'd meet her at the next shelter. When we all met up we decided to do the 1.7 to Reeds gap, hitch a ride and then spend the night at Rusty's. While we were making that plan a friend of Grommet's who thru-hiked last year showed up. She had the unmistakable look in her eye of someone who knew what it was like for us to be out here. She said not a day goes by that she doesn't think of the trail.So we got to Rusty's and were immediately entertained by the signs on the driveway in. And then a man in a skin tight wrestling outfit playing a bugle greeted us (his name is Lowrider and he ended up giving us some awesome stickers later on). Wow. A bunch of hikers we have been with the past few days were here and we had a lovely evening eating hot dogs (my first one in years!) , hitting soda cans with a baseball bat, watching baby goats and soaking in some real AT history. Thunder rolled in and we are cozy in the bunkhouse as rain falls on the tin roof. Tonight I took a freezing cold rainwater shower and loved every minute of it. Reality changing moment: Rusty's!
Date: 2009-05-26
From: Rusty's Hard Time Hollow

To: Waynesboro
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: moderate rain

We spent just a little too long at Rusty's this morning! We had a great time and really enjoyed his homemade blueberry pancakes. But it was 11:30 by the time we got hiking! It lit a fire under us and we walked pretty fast all day. The trail was pretty rocky for the first 2 miles or so which slowed me up though. Oh, and it started absolutely pouring about an hour after we started hiking. It was raining so hard at times I could barely open my eyes. Storm and I hiked together for most of the day and we chatted when it wasn't pouring to keep our mind off of how many miles we had left! We met up with Egg and Grommet and we all walked through several extremely swollen creeks. Wow. We made it to the shelter and were glad to have only 5 miles left. We also saw Grandpa Hughes who we haven't seen since the Smokies so that was fun to catch up with him. Freeze joined us for our final push to Rockfish gap that we did in like an hour and a half. Not bad! We called some trail angels whose info we got from the visitor's center and a man came within minutes and drove us to the Lutheran Hostel in Waynesboro. I had the best shower ever, enjoyed some incredible pizza and am looking forward to a good night's sleep!
Date: 2009-05-27
From: Waynesboro

To: Calf Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I slept like a log last night and the woman at the hostel actually had to wake me up this morning! I packed my stuff up, grabbed some OJ and a bagel and we were on our way. The hostel was wonderful and I hadn't gotten that good a night's sleep in awhile. We went to the PO where I mailed home my rain pants, gloves and some maps and picked up contact lenses my Mom sent me and some more maps that I had bounced ahead. We resupplied at the Kroger (love it!) and then spent some time at the laundramat. We then had the best meal I've had since I left home at Stone Soup Books, an incredible cafe and bookstore that made me realize how much I miss both cafes and bookstores. I am starting to miss a lot of things about the regular part of my life that I guess I always took for granted. I've never appreciated my local bookstore in my old neighborhood as much as I did today. A nice man that we met out front drove us to the outfitter where I got a new stuff sack for my first aid stuff, a playpus with drinking tube and some new socks abd liners. Exciting!We hiked out in fog. At least it wasn't raining and it actually started to clear up about an hour into our hike. We walked through an area with some lovely pine trees and a meadow with milkweed growing. We also made it to a pretty weird area with a massive Comcast tower that was just plain ugly. We crossed over Skyline Drive once and ran into Leif-e and McBride and a friend who is hiking with them. Tonight the shelter is crowded with Bunion, OG, Leif-e, Franzia, McBride, MD3 and one or two others. A fun group and a jam packed day. We read in the register that the Condiments are only half a day ahead of us. We hope we catch them soon!Reality changing moment: 2 today! Lunch at the cafe and entering the Shenandoahs.
Date: 2009-05-28
To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today I had a hard time waking up. So I got started around 8:45 and hiked by myself for an hour or so until Grommet caught up. We hiked together for the morning and stopped along Skyline Drive for lunch. Storm and Egg caught up and then a big cloud moved in. It was incredibly humid all day and every now and then it would rain a little. The hiking was pretty uneventful except for a few times when I thought I heard a bear (but never saw one).I'm still really exhausted and glad we made it to the shelter early so I can get to sleep early.
Date: 2009-05-29
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: scattered clouds

This morning's hike went by very easily. The hiking in the Shenandoah's has been very good to us, and we're enjoying hiking quicker than usual. We made it to the Loft Mountain campground, got a little turned around and then finally found the campstore. I got a huge bag of doritos and then Leif-e, McBride and Franzia showed up and we all road walked a mile or so to the wayside for lunch. After we got there we found out that if we'd have walked on the blue blaze trail we might have seen a bear with her cubs. Drats! We filled up on food and milkshakes and then relaxed for awhile. I got us a ride back to the trail from a nice couple with a minivan and then we were off to the shelter. A thunderstorm came rolling in just as we were getting to the top of Loft Mountain which soaked us for about a half hour. But the skies were blue soon enough and we made it to the shelter quickly. We have a sweet tenting area and enjoyed having dinner with Brown Cow and Brown Chicken. The wind is blowing through the trees now and I'm off to sleep at 8pm because we have a long day tomorrow. Maybe we'll finally see a bear one of these days?!Reality changing moment: grilled cheese for lunch without having to go into town!
Date: 2009-05-30
From: Pinefield Hut

To: Bearfence Mountain Hut
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was a big day. I got started hiking a little before the others and left the shelter before 8. I hiked by myself all morning and around 9:30 I saw my first bear! I heard a loud crash and looked to my left and about 30 feet away a bear was trying to climb a tree. I got out my camera to take a picture and then he looked over at me. We stared at each other for awhile until I felt like his stare turned into more of a glare and then I let him be. It was exciting! I hoped the Divas behind me saw him, but when I saw them later they missed him.Storm and Egg hit the hiker picnic hosted by Blissful as it was starting and brought us brownies and sodas. Sweet! Later on in the day we hit mile 900. Amazing. The end of the day was tiring and my feet were dragging for the last 2 miles or so. But then we got to the shelter and Ironman and Freeze were here! Ironman made us some incredible s'mores and we sat by the campfire and chatted. Today was a great day.Reality changing moments: mile 900. And a bear. And s'mores!
Date: 2009-05-31
From: Bearfence Mountain Hut

To: Big Meadows
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: few clouds

Today was hot and humid for the little hiking we did. We were still really tired from the hike yesterday and none of us slept well because every crash in the woods sounded like a bear and Storm and I were yelling to each other from several feet away. And then the most intense thunderstorm I've been in rolled through. Wow. The hair on the back of my neck stood up during some of the lightening flashes. But, anyway, the hiking this morning was pretty blah and we made it to the gravel road in good time. Someone made a sign with rocks that said "beer" with an arrow pointing to the wayside and we booked it. Big Meadows was a beautiful stop and I remember stopping here a few years ago when I visited the park with an old boyfrined. I have to say it was much more exciting being there this time because I walked over 900 miles to get there! We had a lunch and beer and then got picked up by the woman who was taking care of Grommet's dog, Hershey. They were so glad to be reunited! It was great to see Grommet so happy with her dog. We took the afternoon off and will return back to Big Meadows tomorrow.
Date: 2009-06-01
From: Big Meadows

To: Campsight
Miles today: 12.0

We got a later start today but when we returned to Big Meadows there were lots of hikers hanging around. Some of them were staying or hiking just a little, but we pushed on as far as we could go. Hiking later in the day is tiring, but the light was beautiful and we got a couple of really nice views. I was exhausted though and when we found a place to pitch our tents I couldn't wait to sleep. I'm pretty sure we camped illegally so hopefully we won't get in trouble!
Date: 2009-06-02
From: Campsite

To: Gravel Springs Hut
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: scattered clouds

We got started early today and made it to the first shelter in an hour or so. There were lots of nice views in the morning but then the heat and humidity kicked in and it was all we could do to keep hiking. Our main motivation was Elkwallow wayside and when we finally got there we took several hours to eat, relax, and let the day cool off a bit. Oh, earlier in the day I tripped on a rock and was airborn for like 4 seconds. The fall seemed to go on forever and when I finally landed on my butt I laughed so hard Grommet had to help me stand up. I knew my exhaustion and the heat were really getting to me then.Moving on from the wayside was hard! It seemed like a long couple of miles and when we got to the shelter it was really crowded. There was a bear there when we got there but I was too tired to even be worried! We made a quick dinner and then headed to bed for some much needed rest. I wonder if it will rain tonight?
Date: 2009-06-03
From: Gravel Springs Hut

To: Front Royal
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: few clouds

Today's hike was frustrating! The heat and humidity were pretty intense and the bugs were horrible. And then a sign said we needed to go 1.2 miles and it was sooooo 2.2. Ugh! We stopped at a road where we knew we had less than 2 miles to go and I really just wanted it to be over! I had a hard time hiking today. But then we got to the road and a truck pulled up instantly. We hopped in the back and within 10 minutes we were jumping into the pool at the Quality Inn. It was probably the best half hour of my life. I went from being miserable to having the time of my life. Who knew that all I needed was a pool?! We had a nice evening in Front Royal doing laundry, eating a delicious salad and having fun resupplying at Martin's while it completely poured outside. Front Royal is a sweet town with some really neat homes that we walked past on the way to the food store. Reality changing moment: misery to pure bliss in 10 minutes!
Date: 2009-06-05
From: Dick's Dome Shelter

To: Bear's Den
Miles today: 18.3

Today was a trip down memory lane! We woke up to pouring rain that lasted the entire day. Thankfully, we had a section of the trail that we had been looking forward to. Storm, Grommet and I did this section in January for our shakedown hike. It was one of the most fun hikes I have ever done and hiking it today brought back all of those memories. Of course we did most of the hike this afternoon that took us like 3 days to do this past winter. The weather was terrible all day and we were all completely soaked the entire time. Just like yesterday. Blecht. We stopped at Rod Hollow shelter for lunch, banged out a bunch of the rollercoaster, made it to Sam Moore shelter and then pushed on to Bears Den. The final half hour or so was horrible and I practicaly screamed because I wanted to finish hiking for the day. We are all really feeling the need for a zero.We made it to Bears Den and were greeted by Hopeful, Red Wing and Hikelet! They remembered us from our hike in January and we spent some time chatting and catching up over pizza and Ben and Jerry's. It is wonderful to be back here and remember our hike a few months ago. I remember being so unsure if I would make it to this place this spring. Tomorrow we'll hit 1000 miles. My feet hurt, my legs are tired and I've never been happier.Reality changing moment: making it back to Bears Den!
Date: 2009-06-08
From: Harpers Ferry

To: Harpers Ferry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

For our second zero day in Harpers Ferry, Storm, Grommet and I went on a little road trip to the closest REI in Storm's Mom's car. It was about 45 minutes away and we had a fun time driving, finding new shoes for Storm and buying new Superfeet with my dividends! For a minute it felt like we weren't hiking but were at home doing normal things like shopping. When we got back we said goodbye to Storm's Mom, who was an incredible trail angel to us. We couldn't thank her enough for her generosity. I hope she knows how much her visit meant to us!The afternoon was spent catching up on email, eating leftover Chinese food and going to the post office. We grabbed dinner in a very vacant and quiet historic district. We talked to Persistent on the phone and are relaxing in the hotel. Tomorrow we're off to Maryland!Reality changing moment: mini road trip!