morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-07-22
From: Cherry gap 

To: Greasy Creek gap hostel
Miles today: 7.6

Up at 7am but awake since 4 since it turned really cold and we all woke to put our sleeping bags on. We left camp around 9am we had 4 hills to climb up and down today but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, mind we had no views at all and it gets very old after you get to the top of mountain 4 and there are still no views! Trees trees and no trees....yep a walk in the woods. At Greasy Creek gap camp site we met the 2 brothers that we first met wt Woody Gap, then Fontana and again at hot springs. We walked the 0.7 miles to the hostel down a very rocky Creek bed...Greasy Creek friendly hostel is run by Connie who told us she was a little ocd...hmm! We were given 3 pages of rules to read before we even sat down but she was very good fun and friendly, in fact she asked Richard to drive her car to the store with her boyfriend and another hiker called Cecelia. Cece had a german shepherd called Chaos who dragged around a big block of wood for us to throw for him.
Date: 2016-07-23
From: Greasy Creek gap hostel

To: Roan high knob shelter
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Up around 7am and had a chicken biscuit for breakfast. Left the hostel at 8:25am to walk back up the trail hmm! that rocky Creek down to the hostel wasn't so bad last night but up the creek this morning was bloody awful. It was the start of a heatwave with high ozone and heat index warnings...just our luck to have a heatwave on the day we have a 11 mile hike every step of which was uphill! First up little Rock knob- nothing little about it I can assure you, then a mega climb up Roan mountain, we climbed up for 8hrs finally getting to the shelter at 5pm, just minutes before the thunderstorm started. Sailor Pete had just got there but thought the shelter was dark and dingy so had put up his tent up the hill a little. The shelter is a 2 story stone buildings with 4 walls instead of the usual 3 and had a door but no lights so very dark inside but we put up the tent inside.
Date: 2016-07-24
From: Roan high knob shelter

To: Overmountain shelter 
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: scattered clouds

We slept in until 8am Pete had already left before I got up but since we only had 7.1 miles we decided a lie in would be good. The downhill off Roan mountain was long and hard with those small rocks that twist your feet every which way. After that we were rewarded with fantastic 360° views on the balds, which were very hot and I got burned and had to pull out my sunsleeves. Then we had about 1.5 miles of overgrown stingy nettles and blackberry bushes until we got to Stan Murray shelter from there until the Barn the trail had been cleared. The views from the shelter, which was actually an old barn, we're awesome. Pete was at the Barn also. Saw the 2 brothers again but they night hiked until 1am.
Date: 2016-07-25
From: Overmountain shelter 

To: ROAN MOUNTAIN B+B
Miles today: 11.0

Very hot and humid at night so we were up early, high heat index again. Left the shelter around 1/4 to 8 and oh boy talk about climb a mountain! Just as you get to the top of one you find another even higher one hiding there...no wonder AWOL described them as false summits.All were bald so it was hot so I'm glad we had an early start. I set off at a good pace and stopped to wait on the bald's but it was way too hot so just pushed on, the last couple of summits weren't too bad but then I got into the trees and hit the rocks, that was a bad stretch. Passed the NC boarder so now we are officially hiking in Tennessee our 3rd state. I didn't want to stop and wait for Richard in the woods cos it was dark and creepy so I just kept going, next thing I knew I was on the road us19, I'd hoofed 9.5 miles by 12:15 Richard at 1:15 and Pete a half hour later..not bad for such a hot day and all those summits.Walked 0.3 to mountain harbour hostel but nobody was there so we thumbed (hitched) for about 1.5 miles into town before we got a ride. That's a first for me, never thumbed a ride before...57yrs old and now I start thumbing rides! Anyway got a ride eventually to Bob's dairy land and met the brothers again. Had a yummy Philly cheese steak and huge house salad before Anne from Roan mountain B+B picked us up. The B+B was wonderful and Anne and her husband Steve are so sweet they shuttled us back to Bob's for a burger diner since everything else was closed on Mondays.
Date: 2016-07-26
From: ROAN MOUNTAIN B+B

To: ROAN MOUNTAIN B+B
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Awake around 5:30am but didn't get up from the oh! So comfy bed and Pillow until I smelled coffee at 7:30am. Went for breakfast then did a small shop for the next 3 days until we get to Black Bear Hostel in around 3 days. Laced around in the hammock in the garden or reading or watching TV in the snake and bear free air conditioned house. Went for pizza to celebrate Richard's bday then went back and sat on the porch chatting with Anne, Steve and Pete on the porch a perfect zero day.
Date: 2016-07-27
From: ROAN MOUNTAIN B+B

To: Mountaineer falls shelter
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: light rain

Up around 6:30am had a lovelyhot shower and lots of proper coffee. Back on the trail by 9:10am, me, Richard, Pete and 3 boys. It should have been an easy day but the heat and humiditywere just awful, just energy zapping. The 3 of us arrived at the shelteraround2:15pm soaked through with sweat and the 3 boys arrived around 4:30pm but just called in for water, they were hiking another 2.5 miles to a hostel. It was a nice 3 level shelter, clean and didn't see or hear any mice but of courseRichard assured me they were there, he'ssuch a comfort! Weven put our tent up on the middle level and Pete put his on the 1st level. The Thunder started around 5 but we didn't get rain until sometime during the night and when the skies opened it poured down.
Date: 2016-07-28
From: Mountaineer falls shelter

To: Moreland Gap Shelter
Miles today: 9.6
Weather: overcast clouds

We didn'twake until 6:45am, we had planned to leave very early to avoid the worst of the humidity and walk the 16+ miles to the Black Bear resort, but we ended up just walking the 9.6 miles to the shelter. We got there just before 2pm just as it started to rain. We were exhausted from the heat wave conditionsthat they are having here so recovered for about an hour before going about 0.4 miles down a steep hill for water, good water source but an awful long way to get it so we filled all our containers so we wouldn't have to go down again tomorrow morning. Had dinner and the Raspberry crumbleI had bought for Richard to celebrate his birthday if we couldn't get to a hostel and boy did it taste good!
Date: 2016-07-29
From: Moreland Gap Shelter

To: Black Bear Resort Hostel
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It rained very hard pretty much all night and my goodness it was pitch black out, it made no difference whether you had your eyes open or closed it was that dark out...yep! Scary.Richard was up around 7 and I finally dragged myself out of my sleeping bag at around 7:30 when the rain finally stopped. Not too bad of a hike though some of the hills were much steeper than they looked on the profile mind it was hot and humid again so that may have made them feel steeper.Got to the hostel around midday, had a shower then had a Philly cheesesteak and a cold beer. Did laundry and lulled around reading Orr watching movies the rest of the day.
Date: 2016-07-30
From: Black Bear Resort Hostel

To: Boots Off Hostel
Miles today: 8.6

The Black Bear Resort had cabins with bunk beds but the beds felt damp and the room smelled of mould for the $45 they charged I was expecting a pillow and covers on the bed but no, we had to use our sleeping bags, they don't have WiFi there either and one toilet block that's near the store. If we had known that there was great camping along the river near a great waterfall we would have got some cold beers and camped cos it was a 1.5 mile hike on totally flat ground until the steps down to the river.We left the hostel around 9 and it was a very easy 3.5 mile hike to the bottom of pond mountain. We saw the brothers asleep in their hammocks along the Riverside. Pond mountain was hard work- 2.5 miles up and 2.5 miles down, made worse by the high humidity. I was sitting on a log waitingforRichardand not 20feet away comes this bear crossing over the trail, he either didn't know I was there, though I would have thought he would smell me miles off cos I was a bit pongey from the climb up, or he just ignored me but that's 7 bears we've seen now.Got to a new hostel called boots Off at around 3pm, an awesome place just opened around May. One of the best Hostels we've stayed at, very clean and all the bunks have privacy curtains, lights, sockets to charge your phone and your own backpack locker.The owners Jim and Jordan are very friendly and go out of their way to help you. They have a resupply or will shuttle you to town for a small charge.Sailor Pete and another hiker called friendly were there and then Jim's mum arrived after work and we all had a huge dinner of salad, sirloin steak and garlic bread, what a treat! It was good to have real food and a clean comfy bed in air-conditioning.
Date: 2016-07-31
From: Boots Off Hostel

To: Boots Off Hostel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Pete left this morning, he had a zero day here yesterday but we are having a zero today since we are zapped from the last few days heat and stifling. Went into town to get a few supplies and had a burger. Relaxed the rest of the day before our big push to Damascus VA.
Date: 2016-08-01
From: Boots Off Hostel

To: Vandeventer shelter
Miles today: 9.6
Weather: clear sky

Stayed up chatting around the camp fireuntil gone 2am. Bonnie who runs the Fiddlesticks Hostel in Damascus VA arrived and brought our long lost friend Bandana and another hiker crab cakes, some locals also arrived so it was quitea party.Up around 7am had a doughnut breakfast with lots of coffee and a POWERade before leaving at 8:45. It was glorious hiking around the lake and over the dam, it was 3.5 miles before we started our first climb. There were aggressive bear signs everywhere- in parts we couldn't even stop to eat, the signs said hike through with no lingering. The Watauga lake shelter re-opened this year after a 2 year closure because of aggressive bear activity but it closed after a few weeks because bears were getting the food bags and ripping into tents looking for food- I guess the bears realize hikers carry their food in their backpacks now too, next the those bloody bears will realize that the signs on the trees mean no hikers stay at shelters so no food bags and they'll be taking the signs down ha! ha! We got through the area with no bear sightings.It was hot and humid and some of the streams were dry and we got word that the water at the shelter we were planning to stay at was 0.3 down a heart attack steep path so we ended up carrying 4 litres each for the last 1.7 miles needless to say I got to the shelter gasping my last, there were lots of trees down blocking the trail. Another nobo hiker Greg arrived about an hour after we did and set up his tent behind the shelter. Greg needed water, it took him an hour to get 2 litres and he was soaked with sweat and red in the face. Another couple arrived around 8pm but they had a tree tent and needed 3 trees for set up so they went to camp closer to the water. Chatted with Greg until around 9pm after we hung our food bags.
Date: 2016-08-03
From: TN91

To: Iron Mountain B+B
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

We decided to take a zero day since the B+B was so nice and our boots were still soaking wet. Vicki put our boots in her oven warming draw...Yeah! In retrospect not a good idea since the leather shrunk and our boots were blister tight.Vicki lent us her old truck to run around in since she was off running errands all day. We drove to Jonesborough, the oldest town in Tennessee, had lunch there, visited a quilt shop and bought some patterns then drove back to Butler and the B+B. We were greeted at the door by Liz, a friend of Vicki's, who was busy trying to choose a bottle of wine..yes, my kind of friend! We sat and chatted and had a drink then drove to a delish Italian food then back to chat on the porch and star watch.
Date: 2016-08-04
From: Iron Mountain B+B

To: Double Spring shelter
Miles today: 3.0

Didn't manage to leave the B+B and get back on the trail until quarter to 12 when Vicki shuttled us to TN 91- had lots of rain this morning but it was dry as we started to hike. We were screaming along and it only took us 45mins to do the 3 miles to the shelter...I know must be a record! There were lots of cow pats all over the first couple of fields we hiked through and I constantly thought about you Dawn and how scared you would have been especially just before we climbed a style to get into the woods cos there must have been at least 20 cows who came to the fence to watch us...Richard kept saying that they were watching and following me, I think he was assuming that because you were scared of cows that I would be too but I was too busy ringing my bell to ward off the bears, so I'm guessing that a fear of cows is not genetic sis...you might not be scared of bears just the cows...ha! Ha! But somehow I think you will be. Anyway, the other night when Richard was borrowing the phone from the farmer guy he told Richard to be careful cos the bears were very bad around there (TN91) and Richard said "yes I know we've been reading all the signs" and the guys said "no! I mean really bad". Of course this did nothing but make me even more paranoid than I already am. Anyway, we got to the shelter at 12:30pm and there was a guy called Pangia there trying to dry out, he had been caught in the morning rain and was soaked. Since 75% rain was forecast for the afternoon and the skies were dark and gloomy we decided we were going to stay there- only 3 miles I know but after our drenching the other day when everything in our packs got soaked, sleeping bags and everything- so lesson learned and heeded today. Pangia told us that about an hours hike north of us he came across a hiker who asked him for food and water, apparently this guy was at a campsite site just off the trail and a bear ripped his food bags to shreds and bite a hole in his water bladder that he had hanging. Oh goodness why do people tell me theverything things! I wondered if it was Greg, who said he would stay at this shelter last night but if he arrives too early he just walks on and pitches his tent wherever he is when he gets tired..Pangia described an older guy with white/grey beard and glasses but almost every hiker after the initial bubble look like that..most of the younger crowd started with the bubble in April. Pangia was headed to camp at Uncle Nick's monument tonight- uncle Nick is a famous TN hermit who'should epitaph reads "lived alone, suffered alone, died alone" though he's probably turning in his grave with all the hikers who go to the monument and camp the night there!
Date: 2016-08-05
From: Double Spring shelter

To: Abingdon Gap Shelter
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: clear sky

It was so dark out last night, we lit a fire using some of the pages of the book I was reading, sacrelidge, I know but in the darkness the flames were so amazingly bright.I had a weird dream though I would have sworn an oath that I was awake and it was all real. Richard had got up during the night and for once I didn't need to go, when he was zipping the tent back up he told me that a bear must have been around cos there were two fresh bear seats out there. Well, I was so panicked that I put my whistle around my neck, my headlamp on and had my bear spray clutched in my sweaty hands, I lay awake for hours with my heart racing at the tiniest noise. I awoke in the morning wearing all my bear scaring paraphernalia and got up to look for the bear scat...when I asked Richard where it was he thought I'd gone crazy and said I had dreamt it all hmm! So I guess I really am still living the dream ha!ha!We set off around 9:30am with yet again dark skies and rain looming. Around mile 7 we saw one of the original AT shelters built in the 1920'shelter, it is tiny and no longer in use except for emergencies. We got to the shelter at 1pm just minutes before the downpour. A hiker called weird turtle who had passed us about a mile from the shelter was there having lunch and waiting for the rain to stop. The water was about a quarter of a mile down a steep hill but we were smart this time and took our poles and left our boots on. We put the tent up in the shelter and got in it around 7:30pm and read.
Date: 2016-08-06
From: Abingdon Gap Shelter

To: Damascus VA 
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: overcast clouds

What a night! Saw panga again around 8pm he was soaked to the skin for the 4th day, he doesn't like shelters to camped close by.Crab cakes came in at around 10:30pm, we met him at boots off hostel he came with Bonnie and Bandana.We hung our food bags as usual, they are supposed to be hung 10 to 12 feet off the ground and on a branch about 6 feet away from the trunk, Well Richard picked the perfect tree last night thank goodness. However, something thought it could get at our food, we heard something running up the tree, which was right behind the shelter, we could hear it scratching at the paracord that the bag was hanging from, I would bang on the floor of the shelter and it would scurry down the tree and scamper away. No idea what it was but if I had to guess it sounded like a goblin...it scampered over the ground as if it had a limp and sounded like it had hooves and a snuffley cold...so who knows what it was but it kept coming back all night long. When I first heard it it scared me but by the 5th or 6th time it was really ticking me off and I was really ticking Richard off by banging on the floor and yelling at it to get off our bag...yes folks I may be loosing a few marbles out here! We Broke camp at 9:30am after first chatting with crab cakes, we were under the impression that the hike today was going to be flat,well that's what it looks like on the AWOL profile hmm!I reckon they must have moved the trail! It was overcast and so humid- I know it's only men who sweat and we women merely glisten but I must have grown a pair overnight cos I was sweating buckets and was soaked by the first hour. There were certainly more ups than I expected but it wasn't too bad of a hike. About 3.5miles from Damascus we got to the state border- our 4th state so far. We got to the bottom of the last hill around 1:20pm and onto the main road the trail went into a park that had a shelter in it, though no camping was allowed in that shelter. Pangia was lying in the shelter cooling off before he hiked on. The park had lots of power points and charging stations, fresh water could be pumped it's really a hiker friendly town.We walked through town, Went to Bobo McFarlans for a great lunch. We've decided that we have to leave the trail in Damascus and head back to Maine. There is the tricity airport nearby so we will fly back yeah! No more hours and hours on a bus! We wanted to keep going and get to Grey's on state park and the wild ponies but the next place to get off the trail where it would be relatively easy to get transport home is around 150 miles away. We decided to fly because there was no way I was not going back on the bus, it was about 100 miles to the nearest train station and we found out that renting a car is only cheap if you return the car at the city you rented it, to return it to Maine they wanted a $400 fee on top of the rental cost.We went to the outfitters next to the restaurant and got a shuttle to take us to the La Quinta hotel in Kingsport. Our flight isn't until Wednesday morning so we have a few days to unwind and do laundry etc.
Date: 2016-03-21
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 52.9

Woke up this morning in my tent at Blue Mt. under a blanket of snow. The Blue Mt. area had approximately 30 hikers all moving very slowly. Mid 20's temp will do that. Hiked 2.4 miles to Unicoi Gap and then to Hiawasse, GA for the night. Another brutal morning forecast for tomorrow. Will enter trail at Unicoi Gap with a planned camp at Addis Gap. Brrrrr!
Date: 2016-03-22
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Addis Gap
Miles today: 0.0

My hike today mostly uphill from Unicoi Gap to Addis Gap. After huffing and puffing for 4 hours I get close to the summit of Tray Mt for a planned lunch break of protein bar and fig bars. What did I see when I arrived at that summit? A trio of Trail Angels with chairs, hot dogs, chili, and cold drinks! What a feast. An hour later I am back on the trail climbing again and encountering numerois stretches of extremely rocky trail. After 11.5 miles I arrive at Addis Gap and go to the water source 1/2 mile east to find cascading water falls and idyllic camping. Great day!
Date: 2016-03-23
From: Addis Gap

To: Dicks Creek Gap
Miles today: 6.0

I woke up to a glorious morning to see this. Did not sleep much but feel rested. Heard a screech owl hunting for an hour or so and coyotes howling. This was a great place to stay and hated to break camp. Began the days hike of six miles of arduous climb. Some beautiful trail. Having a great time. Arrived at Dick's Creek Gap to begin a short R & R.
Date: 2016-03-24
From: Dicks Creek Gap

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Trail journal 3-25. Day 10Crossed from Georgia into North Carolina today. A milestone. Also had more altitude gain today than any other. Hiked 11.9 miles. Always climbing. Great day. We are camping at Muskrat Creek Shelter. Good water. No bear cables. I am acclimatizing well. Today is my 11th day. I hope to have my trail legs by mid-April. Total miles 81.4
Date: 2016-03-25
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: View Entry
Miles today: 12.5

Hiked from Muskrat Creek Shelter to Carter Gap Shelter 12 1/2 miles. Mostly climbing. Terrain becoming rockier and more vegetation. Good hike. Staying in a shelter for the first time. 6 hikers and supposedly 500 mice. Rain forecast so I opted for shelter vs tent. Rainy day forecast tomorrow. Total miles 93.9
Date: 2016-03-27
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Longbranch Shelter
Miles today: 23.5
Weather: overcast clouds

3-27 Day 12Carter Gap Shelter to Longbranch Shelter. 8.6 miles. Climbed Albert Mt. Toughest climb yet. Firetower at summit marks another milestone 100 miles. Total miles hiked 102.5
Date: 2016-03-28
From: Longbranch Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 0.0

Had an interesting night for my second stay in a shelter. It rained off and on with thunderstorms forecast. Bald Eagle and I were the first to arrive. Hikers straggled in later, two with dogs. Jingles, who has a boxer named Ziva, was the first. She wanted to stay in the shelter but thought we would disapprove because of her dog Ziva. We assured her it was OK so she put her mattress pad and Ziva's next to mine. So I was resting with a boxer bulldog less than arm's length. I could not sleep for smelling something much like a skunk scent. I also heard a psssst like an occasional spray. Laying in the dark and fearing the worse, a skunk, I grabbed my light. It immediately illuminated a boxer butt within 2 inches of my nose. So you know what the occasional psssst was. I learned today that is a common trait with boxer's. I immediately turned my mattress pad and sleeping bag 180 degrees so that my head was sticking out of the shelter opening in fresh air. At breakfast I told the story. We had a heck of a laugh to start a beautiful day. This AT hike is a hoot!   Today' mileage 6.7Total mileage 109.2
Date: 2016-03-29
From: Winding Stair Gap

To: Wayah Bald
Miles today: 0.0

A beautiful day. We hiked from Winding Stair Gap to Wayah Bald. The first 6 miles were nice and easy with the last 4 miles uphill and gnarly. That is the AT. There was gathering of trail angels at Wayah Bald. Quite a smorgasbord to choose from. Great day!