morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-05-05
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: clear sky

Cell phones are wonderful things. Jerry called while waiting with about 7 other hikers. They were being held up by a ranger. Seems that they were doing some blasting up ahead on the AT and of course they didn¢t want anyone in the area.Once he can get hiking again he will be heading up Mt. Rogers, highest mountain in VA @ 5729. In fact there is only one mountain left on the AT that is higher ¢ Mt. Washington in NH.   He is hoping to make it to the top tonight. He has yet to sleep out under the stars, maybe tonight will be the night. Since he left Damascus and began climbing again it said that it has become spring all over once more ¢¢a parade of flowers¢.   He even spotted some Jack-in-the-pulpit which because of their color he usually over looks. He is feeling much better, cough almost completely gone.   His spirits are high! The AT passes by the VA Creeper Bike Path which follows a nice size mountain stream. Thoughts of our niece, Sally and kayaking kept occupying his mind.As we were talking he said the ranger put on his hard hat. Jerry needs to evaluate his food supply to see if he needs to hit a trail town to resupply or can make it another 3-4 days without¢¦¢¦¢¦..BOOOOM¢¦¢¦.. resupplying. Apparently the explosion happened on schedule. Thought is that in this area the AT was being shared with a horse trail. They are hoping to create another trail just for the horses to make it a little more pleasant for the Hikers.He says that he is just ¢enjoying his walk in the woods¢.   After leaving Lost Mtn Shltr, I crossed a road then shortly after I came across a field of pink lady slippers, maybe about 80 or so. Never saw anything like that before. Later, while waiting for a forest service crew to do some blasting (see Sue's note above) I was surprised to have Veto come up from behind. He and King Krawler and JB were close behind. We all gathered together later that evening and camped at Thomas Knob Shelter, below Mt Rogers. The sky was clear and i kept peeking out of my tent all night to look at the stars. It was very windy. There were some wild ponies wandering around, begging for food. We did a campfire.
Date: 2010-05-06
From: Thomas Knob Shelter

To: Old Orchard Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

A wonderful hike today, through Fatman Squeeze (a tight fit through some rocks) and the Grayson Highlands. Saw quite a few wild ponies, plus one skeleton of a pony that didn't make it through the winter, I guess. Much of the day was hiking in the open, through fields, over tops of mountains. We wound up at a nice shelter with good camping spots around,and did a nice campfire. There was quite a crowd of hikers at the shelter.
Date: 2010-05-07
From: Old Orchard Shelter

To: VA 672 at mile 518.1
Miles today: 15.6

Jerry called tonight. The first time he has had a any bars in 2 days. It seems while he was waiting for the blast of the previous entry to take place, Veto and King Krawler joined him. He wasn¢t too clear on just where Jay B was but as of tonight the foursome is back together + one. King K.¢s wife joined him for a couple of days. Having spent last night under the stars, they are now in a cabin at Hungry Mother State Park in VA.   Yea, I looked up why it was named that, see below.All is well. With Mrs. King K around they will be doing a little slack packing for the next couple of days. Later next week Gray Goose, Veto¢s friend from Boone NC will pick them up and deliver them to Damascus for Trail Days.   Seems as though they have a plan.(The Legend of Hungry MotherLegend has it that when the Native Americans destroyed several settlements on the New River south of the park, Molly Marley and her small child were among the survivors taken to the raiders¢ base north of the park. They eventually escaped, wandering through the wilderness eating berries. Molly finally collapsed, and her child wandered down a creek until the child found help. The only words the child could utter were "Hungry Mother." The search party arrived at the foot of the mountain where Molly collapsed to find the child's mother dead. Today that mountain is Molly¢s Knob, and the stream is Hungry Mother Creek.) Followup: We were to meet King Krawler's wife at a road crossing today, and stay at Hungry Mother State Park in a cabin. JB was in the lead, and apparently when he got to the road crossing he had his head down and just kept going. When the rest of us got there and met up with Queen Krawler (aka Joann) we decided to try to intercept him at the next road crossing, so we drove around and Queen Krawler dropped us off and we began hiking backwards (south) to catch JB. We did not find him, but after meeting up with Queen Krawler again we located him at a hostel down the road. He had realized his mistake, returned to the road crossing before Queen Krawler got there, and hitched down to the hostel. End result was we all wound up at Hungry Mother that night but it was confusing for awhile. We went to town to resupply, got pizza and ice cream.
Date: 2010-05-08
From: VA 672 at mile 518.1

To: VA 16 Mt Rogers NRA Headquarters
Miles today: 9.2

Did a slackpack today. Queen Krawler dropped us off, we had a fairly easy hike with light packs. Passed Partnership Shelter, which is by the VA 16 road crossing and you can get pizza delivered there, but we did not stay. There was quite a crowd gathered, and it looked like a wild and crazy time. We were glad we had a cabin to go to. Saw Fig and Supermax at the shelter.
Date: 2010-05-09
From: VA 16 Mt Rogers NRA Headquarters

To: Crawfish Valley, Reed Creek Campsite
Miles today: 17.8

The foursome travels north!   Nothing much new to report. I'm not sure exactly where they are at the moment. The AT crossed a road with a gas station near by so they stopped for a soft drink and to make the obligatory calls home for Mother¢s Day. When Jerry called our kids were here ¢ all but Clair who couldn¢t make the trip from Antarctica for the day. By the time I got the phone the other guys had packed up and had started walking. Our conversation was short but it seems as though all is well. Terrain is fairly easy on them and the trail is quickly becoming a tunnel of green. Today started off in the mid 30s in VA and was a windy, cool day as it was here at home. Clair however had us beat with winds of over 40 knots. Happy Hiking ! We did a nice breakfast at a family restaurant in the morning, before Queen Krawler dropped us off at the Trail. It is always nice to meet the spouses and family of our fellow hikers. We hiked over Brushy Mtn - again. Seemed like Brushy Mtn kept reappearing. Also passed an old "settlers museum" with old farm equipment, showing how people lived a century ago, but no one was around. In the early afternoon we came to a road crossing that had several gas stations and food markets, so we stopped and had some snacks,and I was able to call home. Crawfish Valley turned out to be a nice campsite down by a stream. We got there pretty late and it was almost dark.
Date: 2010-05-10
From: Crawfish Valley, Reed Creek Campsite

To: Pond/Spring at Mile 560
Miles today: 14.9

Camped by a pond that had lots of frogs and other critters. The spot we camped had a lot of locust trees, with many thorns, so we had to be very careful with our tens and sleeping mattresses to avoid punctures. King Krawler didn't like the site and hiked on to look for a better spot and wound up at Chestnut Shelter a mile or so ahead. He lucked into some trail magic when some local folks brought up pizza and some soft drinks to the shelter. And, during the night, rain moved in, so the shelter was a better place to be. Chestnut Shelter is an enclosed shelter, up on top of the hill, with no water source. It was rainy and misty as we passed it the next mnorning.
Date: 2010-05-11
From: Pond/Spring at Mile 560

To: Campsite by Laurel Creek Mile 576.7
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: light rain

THERE WAS A SIGHTING !! Today Was The Day! Jerry saw three bears, a mother and two cubs cross the trail right between him and a southbounder. WooHoo! Not every thru hiker gets the opportunity to see bear. Jerry was the only one of the foursome who was in the right spot at the right time. Now, if he were the only one to see them I¢d say, ¢Yea, where¢s the picture? ¢ But since there was someone else there at the moment I guess we¢ll have to believe him.He made it to the top of Bushy Mountain today. Weather is cloudy and cold. Apparently it was in the mid 20s a night or so ago. The sun has been scarce. The days have been hard and the miles long. Spirits are not as high as normal. Cold, rainy weather will do that. Also, Jerry¢s right leg is bothering him. Jay B fell and twisted his knee and broke his glasses. And King K¢s visit with his wife has come to an end.   On top of that the next trail town is Bland, VA. Hopefully they will be there tomorrow and then they can hike out of Bland and on to bigger and better times. Bland is 583.0 miles in.At this point Jerry may have decided against going back to Damascus for Trail Days. Stay tuned¢¦.
Date: 2010-05-12
From: Campsite by Laurel Creek Mile 576.7

To: Jenny Knob Shelter
Miles today: 18.9
Weather: light rain

P.M. Report ¢ Jerry called from the top of yet another mountain. Turns out that Bland VA was not so bland after all. When he came to the road crossing and decided to hitch in to town he got out his ¢Hiker To Town¢ bandana that his dear wife made for him. He held it up and it worked like a charm and he got a ride with the first car to go by. (Had to be the bandana, couldn¢t have been his looks.)Then Another Sighting ¢ this time a Dairy Queen! First one ! WooHoo! He ordered a burger, fries, coffee and blizzard, whipped out a gift card that our good friends Karen and Jim gave him to pay for it. For whatever reason their register would not read the gift card. After a few tries they decided just to give it to him for free. On the way out of town they stopped at a gas station to but some ¢Heet¢. That is the denatured alcohol that Jerry uses for fuel in his little homemade stove (Made out of a coke can and a beer can ¢ Thank you Clair for the design.) Well, the gas station was out of heat and so was Jerry. However, a hiker had been there earlier that day and bought some of the denatured alcohol, used a little and left the rest for the next hiker who needed it ¢ aka Jerry. Then they stopped at a dollar store and met a retired school teacher. He graciously offered them a ride back to the trail head.What a day ¢ sunny skies, nice temps. and a day full of angels. Pretty much a nature report this morning: The sun is shining and the sky is blue. Report on wild flowers includes, but is not limited to, flame azaleas, maidenhair fern, purple rhododendron and the mountain laurel is just beginning to pop out. It seems that lately after they get settled in for the evening Jerry has been starting a campfire, one of Jerry¢s favorite past times. I suppose it pulls the little community of hikers together after a long day on the trail. Before Jerry hit the trail his brother Jay told him that he did not envy Jerry the hiking but it did envy the evening campfires. (Just so there are no reports of forest fires along the way.)Hike Happy !At Jenny Knob Shelter, there were quite a few hikers, including a fellow from California who was just doing a few days to get a feel for hiking the AT. When I got into camp, he was stretched out on his sleeping pad doing yoga. He looked like a pretzel, wish I had taken a picture. Later that night, as I was in my tent, I heard a comotion and some yelling. Seems there was a large black snake in the shelter, where he was well fed with shelter mice and small birds, and the California guy saw him climbing up the shelter wall just next to him in his sleeping bag. He jumped up, grabbed the snake by the tail, swung it around his head to keep the mouth away from him, and stuffed the snake into his sleeping bag. Then ran up the trail a ways, and threw the snake out into the woods. This of course resulted in a trail name for him - Snake Charmer. One of the lady hikers, Supermax, set her tent up after that, on top of the picnic table. She was a military veteran, had served in Iraq, but didn't much care for snakes.
Date: 2010-05-13
From: Jenny Knob Shelter

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: clear sky

Jerry just called from Wapiti Shelter. He left the other three at a road crossing where Gray Goose, a fellow hiker of Veto¢s from ¢06 was suppose to pick them up and take them back to Damascus for Trail Days ¢ or not. Jerry said that they might be changing their minds at the last minute.Last night was spent at Jenny Knob Shelter which apparently brought its own entertainment.   When Jerry hiked in he said there was a guy doing yoga and in one of the strangest positions he had ever seen a person in. A little latter they discovered an 8 foot long black snake in the shelter headed towards the rafters in the direction of a bird¢s nest with freshly hatched little ones in it. Yoga guy grabs the snake by the tail, swings it in circles above his head in order to keep the head away from himself, throws it in his sleeping bag, wraps it up, runs up the trail, all the while screaming and tosses the snake somewhere far, far from the shelter . Man, I can¢t wait to hear the trail name he ends up with.King K also writes of this event in his blog and he also has a picture of Jerry with his ¢Hiker to Town¢ bandana. (Which his dear wife made for him ¢ now if he could only remember her name¢¦) If you¢re interested - http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=309796I must say Jer¢s version is much more exciting. He is hoping to make it to Pearisburg tomorrow which would give him a 16.6 day.Today he made it past the 600 mark by 10 miles.From Jenny Knob hiked over Brushy Mtn again, then to VA 606 road crossing. Stopped at a gas station/market/hiker dive to get some food, a shower, and do some laundry. King K, JB, and Veto were contemplating going to Damascus for Trail Days, I was going to head on alone. So, left them in early afternoon, and headed up the mountain to Dismal Creek. Did a side trail to Dismal Creek Falls, which was very pretty. Followed Dismal Creek quite a ways, eventually got to Wapiti Shelter. Saw lots of pinxters, flame azaeleas, and catawba rhododendron in bloom. Met a father and son from Alabama who were hiking for a few weeks. Also at the shelter were Supermax and a number of other hikers whose names I can't remember. One of them had a skillet and was making biscuits over a fire, which he shared with others.
Date: 2010-05-14
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Campsite at Mle 623.5
Miles today: 13.7

Hello - I am at the Wood's Hole Hostel, just a "lunch break", headed out in a few minutes. It is a very interesting place, they have a "bed and breakfast" sort of offering in addition to the "bunkhouse". Very AT-oriented, neat people, interesting vision. You could look at their website at woodsholehostel.comAm planning to hike into Pearisburg tomorrow (Saturday) and stay at the Holy Family Hostel. And, maybe get to church.   Jerry That arrived in the form of an email today. This evening he is 3 miles short of Pearisburg. Saw some yellow lady slippers for the first time today and realized that the pink flame azaleas have a wonderful fragrance. He is not sure if the others went back to Damascus or not but he sounded happy just where he was ¢ sitting in the rain with his backpacker¢s umbrella (yep, they make those) on the top of Pearis Mountain at a place called Angels Rest.
Date: 2010-05-15
From: Campsite at Mile 623.5

To: Holy Family Hostel
Miles today: 2.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Spending the night at Holy Family Hostel which is sponsored by the catholic church in Pearisburg. They have had this hostel going for over 40 years. I wonder how popular the Trail was back then. Beautiful setting on top of a hill with a view of the mountains. Showers, stove. covered deck. People there who have crossed paths before include Stitch, who was at Standing Bear Hostel and Wizard who enjoyed some trail magic at Beauty Spot. He is hiking with his dog who apparently is having paw problems. Others at hostel included Cheese, Supermax, Brooklyn, and Stitch. I did resupply at the Walmart located near the hostel, and got a nice big meal at a restaurant. Another patron at the restaurant turned around and looked at me and behold it was Tom Thumb, who I hadn't seen since early in the hike, with his girlfriend, taking a few days off the trail. Later in the evening, Cheese, Stitch, Brooklyn, and I went to a "concert" at the local school. The concert turned out to be a stand-up and clap sort of event with a Christian rock singer. My back was hurting, and it wasn't my cup of tea, so I left early and went to a Mexican restaurant, then back to the hostel, which turned out to be a good thing because there was a sort of goofy guy there who was bicycling sort of cross country, and Supermax was a bit uncomfortable being there alone with him. Earlier in the day, I ran into the parishioner at Holy Family who is sortof the Hostel Minister - I thanked him for the service provided by the hostel, and inquired about mass times for the next day (Sunday).
Date: 2010-05-16
From: Holy Family Hostel

To: Campsite Mile 638.6
Miles today: 12.2

Hiked out of Pearisburg this morning. Last night proved to be an interesting one. There was a woman who invited the group to a Christian Rock concert. Jerry when for a while but headed back to the hostel after a short time. Seems a biker had arrived. Jerry described him as being half baked. At the time there was only one female hiker at the hostel and she was sure glad when Jerry showed up to increase the odds ¢ 1 biker, 2 hikers. It was just a little weird according to Jerry. Then in the middle of the night the police dropped off another guy who had just been released from the hospital and had nowhere else to go. He had a dog with him and perhaps he was on pain meds¢¦more weirdness.Breakfast this morning was at D.Q. This time the gift card worked and who says you can¢t have a blizzard for breakfast.Word has it that life on the trail is good. Everyone, young and old is enjoying themselves. They seem to be very focus on one thing ¢ hiking. Jerry experience speaks of, in his words - simplicity, linear thinking, straightforwardness and patterns. It is chilly and rainy at the moment. He has set up his tent off the trail. He promised to hang his food bag. He is somewhat dry. Comfy and cozy. He has his sleeping bag, a little radio and a good book ¢ the New Testament that a friend gave him and he has been carrying with him even though he knows how that one ends.Sleep tight!I attended Mass at Holy Family this morning before leaving. Did a little cleanup in the hostel, took out the garbage. The weather turned bad as I got further from Pearisburg. Late in the day, after hiking in the rain quite a while, I came to a campsite with many tents set up. I recognized the tents of King Krawler, JB, and Veto - looks like they skipped Damascus and are now caught up with me. There didn't appear to be any good sites left, and I felt I had a few more miles in me, so I hiked on and camped off the side of the trail a bit further on. Had to set up in a drizzle, but was able to keep all the critical stuff dry. I looked on it as an opportunity to see if I could manage to stay dry for several days in a row of wet weather.
Date: 2010-05-17
From: Campsite Mile 638.6

To: Wind Rock
Miles today: 14.9

Tonight the tent is set up along the trail at Wind Rock. Apparently, Wind Rock is also a Wet Rock at the moment, as is Jerry and his tent along with his backpack and everything in it. He knows there is a view out there somewhere but not for him tonight.He said that it is very hard to get up in the morning and put on the same wet clothes that he wore the day before. He did manage to get some hot food and drink in this morning when he stopped at a shelter after he had hiked for a while. Heating up water on his stove allowed him to have some hot oatmeal and hot chocolate. One area that he passed through today was like a rock garden with rocks and flowers all about. Another area resembled a fern forest with some ferns waist high.Here's hoping for drier weather tomorrow!The weather looked threatening so I stopped at a suitable campsite near White Rocks Mtn. No one else was around. In the morning I wandered up to the overlook and it was beautiful. The sky was temporarily clear, the clouds were down below in the valley, the sun was illuminating the mountains. Ran into King Krawler at a shelter. Saw lots of pink lady slippers.
Date: 2010-05-18
From: Wind Rock

To: Sarver Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: light rain

Hiked past the Keffer Oak today, then on up to a ridge top where there were many piles of rocks of uncertain origin. From farming in the past? Maybe a CCC work project? Don't know. Ran into Seeker and her brother who is hiking with her for a few days. He seemed to be struggling, not quite in shape for this, but handling it well. The shelter was a good ways down off the ridge top, farther than the book said, and had meager flat spots to set up a tent, but I managed. Everything was pretty wet, people were trying to dry socks out on a fire. Thin Mint and Highway there, plus others.
Date: 2010-05-19
From: Sarver Mountain Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: broken clouds

Jerry was on Cove Mountain this morning at Dragons Tooth. Elevation 3,020 and 690.4 miles in to the trail.Sky is blue. Feelin¢ good.Left early, ran into Spiritwalker and Funk camped at the top of the ridge, they wisely did not hike down the hill to the shelter area. The trail followed along a rock exposure at the top of the ridge quite a ways, good views, but rather exhausting hiking. Later on, down off the mountain, to a nice bridge across a large stream. Hiked up a pretty steep climb later in the day, and passed the Audie Murphy memorial, near the location good ol' Audie died in a plane crash many years ago. Pickle Branch shelter was a ways off the Trail, but a nice spot to camp in a field. JB, King K, and Veto showed up also. Met Alkaline, a young hiker, who used a tarp. JB seemed pretty worn down and was questioning whether to go on or not. The water source was a stream way down behind the shelter, and when I got water, I think I saw leeches in the water so I was very careful. I was able to dry out a lot of my stuff.
Date: 2010-05-20
From: Pickle Branch Shelter

To: Catawba Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: clear sky

When I left Pickle Branch Shelter I left my pack hanger on the tree, so after walking half a mile I went back to get it. Other than that the day was glorious. I spent part of the day walking with Spiritwalker, who is a physician from Connecticut, hikng with this son, Funk, who had thru-hiked some years ago. Had some interesting conversation. Then we got to Dragon's Tooth, one of the prime photo op locations on the Trail.   The rock formations were astounding. The descent down on the other side was long and arduous but had lots of great views. Then, the best part of the day came when we got to VA 311 road crossing. We headed to the left, walking, then finally got a hitch, to The Home Place for supper. There were about 15 other hikers there also, and the meal was stupendous. It was served "family style" and as soon as a bowl or platter of food got empty they would bring some more. The food vanished pretty quickly. Fried chicken, pork, and all sorts of veggies, followed by a cobbler with ice cream. There were many hikers. Only bummer was that JB had somehow dropped behind, and did not show up until we were finished eating, so he ate alone. King K, Veto, and I hitched back to the Trail and got to the shelter several miles in, to position ourselves for the Feature of the next day - McAfee Knob. The campsite at the shelter was marginal, not many flat sites, and I wound up on a slope, which was not good for my already sore back.