morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-06-22
From: Hightop Hut

To: Big Meadows
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Mostly hiked alone, but ran into Are We There Yet, Soco, Ox, and EZDuzit. Saw another bear at a fire road. He was looking around in general, must have been aware of me, but he was sauntering in a direction not directly at me and staying in the woods. I made gentle noises so he wouldn't be startled by me, but he didn't seem to care. This is #10 for the hike. Deer don't seem to care either - the Shenandoahs are famous for this. I was fascinated once again by the "green tunnel" effect. In this particular locale, the canopy is dense, but apparently enough light gets through to allow the underbrush to thrive. I also was startled by a grouse that I flushed. I tried all day to call Kristin - every mile or so. We are on for tomorrow. Soco was very excited about breaking the 900 mile mark today. Song for the day: I will walk 900 miles and I will walk 900 more.A slightly spooky event - I camped early, lots of daylight left when I was ready to settle in. I purposely aimed my tent so I could watch sunset from inside. I ate, set up my tent, set up my bear bag, then I got into the tent and started writing my journal. I heard a critter outside the tent, clearly looking for food. I yelled "Go away!" and heard it start moving - it sounded bigger than it had. As it moved into my field of view through my tent flaps I realized it was a bear. I yelled at a bear! Yikes! Actually, I found out later this was a very correct course of action for black bears. Not necessarily for other breeds, though. Thrilling, nonetheless. So I checked my pack one more time for any signs of food, and found a power bar, and just chucked it out of my tent. Not a smart move, but expedient. I also left my fleece jacket outside the tent in case it smelt like food.
Date: 2007-06-23
From: Big Meadows

To: Franklin Cliffs
Miles today: 1.9

Anotherfamily visit day! Kristin, Ed, Grace and Eddie somehow connected with me in spite of phone reception that almost deep sixed the visit. I was once again able to shower and launder before they arrived. Fortunately I had talked to the lady at the laundry area, and she sent them to the right place.I also ran into Harry and Sue again(2 motorcycling tourists who befriended Rex, Loose Bruce and I at a wayside yesterday. They allowed me to use their calling card to try to call Kristin, but it didn't succeed. Still, it counts as trail magic!The Hughes's and I did trail magic at 2 places - Milam Gap and Pinnacles Picnic Area. At Milam, Loose Bruce was just hiking through as we arrived. I had Ed ask him Hey Mister Do You Want a Cold Soda?, in reference to a joke Loose Bruce always made when a car drove up to an overlook while we were there. Justin and Sarah came by as well, as did Longhunter, who I hope to run into again during the SOBO portion of his flip-flop hike. We then moved to the Pinnacles Picnic area, where I knew almost every through hiker who came through, including Comet, SOCO, Hold-on, Moose, and Julia, plus Coffeebean who started late in Roanoke. We then had lunch ourselves, then went to the visitor center where Ed and Eddie took naps while I gave Grace a tour of the museum (exhausting, when a 5 year old gets into the 20-questions mode!). We then had dinner at the Big Meadows Lodge,where I ate a Thanksgiving Turkey dinner (I wish it had been Grouse!), plus half of Eddie's Mac & Cheese, and all the extra bread. Sad to see them go, but hopped right on the trail and got a whopping 2 miles in before the sun started to set. The clouds were just right for a gorgeous sunset, so I stopped setting up camp, watched it set, and then set up camp in the dark - well worth it. I decided I'm sick of seeing bears - saw 2 more today, although I'm not sure they count since we were in a car at the time.I was sad to see the Hughes' go, but I headed off pronto and got 2 whole miles in. Got to see a gorgeous sunset after setting up camp. Called Socrosse since I had reception and found out he was just finishing up his section hike in Vermont, and had left me messages in some registers.
Date: 2007-06-24
From: Franklin Cliffs

To: Pass Mountain Hut
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Started hiking early. Caught up with Cahoda, a woman in her 60s who my brother in law Andy had given a ride to the Waynesboro PO. She mentioned this is her 3rd attempt at a thru hike. This confirms my decision not to wait until I was older to do this. As I always say, people who can hike the AT in their 60s are gifted athletes as much as the people who do 4 minute miles. Cahoda is a rather slow hiker, so I moved on. Surprisingly, Radar caught up to me and we hiked together the rest of the day. Stopped at Skyland Restaurant, where we both decided to have a second breakfast for the day, then since we had phone reception we did email and phone calls - ended up there at lunchtime so we had lunch too. I had been talking about my favorite overlook in the Shennies for some time. Radar and I figured out that Mary's Rock was probably that place, and we would be passing it today. We started hiking. As we crested one hill, we saw a yearling on the trail ahead of us, walking in the same direction as us. It turned its head as it walked to look at us, never breaking stride. It did it again, and I could have sworn he had an irritated expression, like, "are you still here?". Eventually he found his trail and jumped off the AT. That was the 14th bear sighting of the trip. I also saw 2 fawns today, one with its mother. Radar told me a cool/scary story of a group that walked between a mothe rand her 3 cubs yesterday. Fuzzy Monkey was at Skyland, and he eventually caught up to Radar and me.We had 8 miles to go at 2 pm. I looked forward to a relaxing afternoon hike. As it turns out we spent so much time at Mary's Rock. It was indeed the place I had wanted to see, with its wide vista of Thorntons Gap. We liked it so much that we ran late. One final stroke of luck for the day - it started raining on us only 1/2 mile from camp. So I slept in the shelter.We have been encountering 3 incredibly fast hikers lately - Golden Boy, Vernon and Insomniac. I found out at the shelter that the first 2 are Patches' brothers. You could have knocked me over with a feather, they are so different from him. They mentioned that Patches came off the trail due to a hip infection and achilles tendon problems. I remembered Patches showing me a blood blister on his hip, and mentioning leg pains. Of course right after that he started ripping out 20+ mile days in rugged terrain. One benefit of being my age is that when those kind of things go wrong, I CAN'T push myself that hard, which probably keeps me out of trouble.Saw Wooly at lunch, still going strong. Greg is not far behind, his trail name is now Safari 26. Safari for his clothes, and 26 because, as a man of many theories, he has theorized that when any woman asks you how old you think she is, the safe answer is 26.At the camp" Radar, Dirty, Tater, Sir Privywinks, Insomniac, Golden Boy,Verne, Further, Fuzzy Monkey, some section hikers.
Date: 2007-06-25
From: Pass Mountain Hut

To: Gravel Spring Hut
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: overcast clouds

What a bunch of sleepy heads - I was on the trail before anyone else in the shelter even got out of their sleeping bags. I hoped that by getting out early I would do high mileage for the day and meet Further very close to Front Royal. Not to be. There was an up side, though..... because I was the first one to the wayside 8 miles down the trail, I got the last blackberry milkshake the store had. Because this made me persona non grata, I was forced to walk alone the rest of the day. Just me and my rapidly digesting milkshake. Heh Heh. Before I left the wayside, though, trail magic arrived. Dirty's Mom came to visit him - from Holland. She brought cherries for everybody and then passed around a box of BERGER COOKIES! I just about flipped. The trail was about the last place I expected to see those. Apparently she flew in to BWI, where they recommended the cookies to her. Good call, airport staff! And thanks, Dirty's Mom.In the early evening I went to a shelter to cook dinner and get water. I ended up staying because of the threat of rain. It was a fun crowd of folks there, but I napped most of the evening. When I completely unpacked, I discovered that my week old water bag sprung a leak and soaked my sleeping bag and mattress with Kool Aid, already going rancid when I opened the pack. Fortunately it was a warm night, so I slept in the bag not to keep warm but to use my body heat to dry out the bag a bit. Fortunately I should reach Front Royal tomorrow, where an outfitter may be able to help.At Camp: EZDUZIT, Thumper, Tater, Bag Lady, Dirty, Dirty's Mom, Bigby, Sir Privywinks, Radar, Fuzzy Monkey, Binjali(first meeting, working off a knee/leg injury), Cahoda, Slick.
Date: 2007-06-26
From: Gravel Spring Hut

To: Front Royal
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: light rain

Completed the Shenandoahs! What a nostalgia trip - a reverse of a section hike I took with Blake Gardner and Dave Thomas back in the 1990's. Saw quite a few well remembered sites, including Mary's rock, the hang gliding launch site (now looking unused), the place we saw a bear, the place we camped afterward, Big Meadows Lodge, the starting trail, plus just the general mood of the trip.   It also reminded me of 2 strong impressions from that 1990s section hike that inspired my through hike - first the overall positive experience of adventure and fellowship with Dave and Blake during the trip and second I remember when we started I saw that the trail continued in the other direction as well, and felt very incomplete that we didn't explore that direction as well. One thing I didn't remember from my earlier trip was that the terrain was easy. I remember it being very steep. Apparently the Appalachian Mountains continue to erode. Somebody told me that "a few years ago" the Appalachian Mountains were taller than the Rockies are now. Apparently a lot of the shrinkage must have happened in the last 10 years.It was also a neat day due to the variety of people interactions. I hiked with varied groups all day, and it was all very social rather than the usual solitary or silent hiking. We ended up working out a deal where Radar, Fuzzy Monkey and I shared a hotel room in Front Royal. Interesting conversation with Sir Privywinks, my first time really talking to him. I sensed he is a young man with lots of ideas (usually entertaining ones too!) who expresses himself well. I asked 2 catch questions that he really ran with - How did you end up with time to hike the trail (he's between completion of his Air Force enlistment and starting college), and who would you like to see as our next president?(a long discussion of politics ensued).   Standard town stop - a very nice retired Army soldier picked us up in his pickup truck within 5 minutes of sticking out our thumbs. 4 of us, none of us sat in the cab with him, which I apologized for, explaining that we all smelled so bad that we didn't want to mess up his truck. Laundry, shower, food shopping, eating, visiting the outfitter store. I was excited to find cheap patches for my water bottle that had leaked inside my pack and soiled my sleeping bag and mattress.   Nature highlight of the day - found lots of black raspberries ripening along the trail, so we practiced living off the land. Avoided the raspberries close to the ground for 2 reasons, the first of which was to leave some for the rabbits, the second for more selfish and hygienic reasons best left unsaid. Civilization highlight of the day: We "discovered" a mom & pop Italian restaurant in a strip mall that was superb. It was actually a desperation shot when all the other restaurants were closed or just not what we wanted. This was exactly what we wanted.
Date: 2007-06-27
From: Front Royal

To: Dick's Dome Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Started the day in town, and did some trail journal updates, caught a shuttle to the trail head at 10:30. As we entered the trail, I remembered once again how, 10 years ago, when we went the OTHER way for our Shenandoah section hike, it felt incomplete to walk away from the unexplored trail behind us. Today I righted that wrong. It felt great. Hiked all day with Radar and/or Fuzzy Monkey. Water dominated our thoughts all day, because of the intense heat and reports of water sources that had dried up. One highlight of the day was when I sat at a picnic table along the trail to wait for Radar and FM, and noticed I was sitting under a mulberry tree full of ripened fruit. So I got a 3rd lunch of the day. I left a few for my buddies too.   In the late afternoon we heard reports of storms north of us and headed on our way. While writing in my journal I am hearing thunder but for now I am warm and dry and fed. Life is good. Hopefully the weather will stay good enough to do 18 miles tomorrow, so I can stay at a hostel at that milepoint.
Date: 2007-06-29
From: Bear's Den Hostel

To: Harper's Ferry
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: light rain

First, a huge thank you to Glenn and Jason Everhart for coming out to pick me up. Glenn is a former coworker who promised me he would give me a ride from Harpers Ferry to my house when I got there, to help me with my plan to spend a few days at home at this point. I actually tried to talk him out of it - I could take the train instead, but he left a message that left no doubt that he really wanted to do it and had essentially committed himself to it. I was glad to have friendly and familiar faces to talk to on the way home, and of course this arrangement made it very easy and relaxing for this very tired hiker. And he got me home a day earlier than the train could. So it really helped a ton. Again, Thanks, guys.   Well, folks, I made a rash statement last February, but here it is, 1017 miles later and the deal is done. I said I would hike to Harper's Ferry, go home for a few days, and then decide whether to continue all the way to Maine. Had I known what this trip took, I might not have been so confident about the first part, but my first sight of the Shenandoah River was such a thrill of victory and achievement. I was high fiving myself all the way down the mountain, singing Rocky music and Shenandoah You Rolling River. However, one thing did not go according to plan, as Socrosse will tell you - I did not wait to decide. I decided over a month ago that I am going the distance. I still wake up eager to put in my 30,000 steps for the day.   Eager to listen to the birds, conquer the mountains, meet the challenges of the trail, adapt to the obstacles and discomforts that come my way, see what I can see, make new acquaintances, meet with new/established friends, and finally find a way each day to go to bed warm and fed and dry. In fact, my favorite slogan is now "No pain - No rain - No Maine".
Date: 2007-07-05
From: Harpers Ferry

To: Ed Garvey Shelter
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: moderate rain

Thanks to my neighbor Glo for the lift out to the train station and my sister Kristin for the ride from the Metro station to Harpers Ferry. I entered Maryland today! 5 states down, 9 to go!The early part of the hike shed a bad light on my home state's portion of the AT, Traffic noise, cow noises, industrial smells, rotting smells, and the fact that the only signs of animal life were 2 stings from insects or nettles on the trail. One good moment was the view from Weverton Cliffs which highlighted a lot of the trail I had just hiked, and a very nice view of the Potomac River. I learned the next day, from Cahoda, that the cow noises were probably upset mothers because the farmers had separated them from their the calves.Camped with 3 section hikers, including one who was a NOBO last year.
Date: 2007-07-07
From: I-70 Crossing

To: Pen-Mar Park
Miles today: 18.4

The day started out early, Walt and I did breakfast at Mickey D's and Kazuko joined us for 4 miles of the trail. She also provided me with rice balls for lunch, and a licorice flavored Okinawan candy packed with minerals. During the day I ran into a lot of people I knew from before my time off the trail, including Ronin, Young Eagle, Persistent and Melk. I particularly remember visiting a vista at High Rocks where Ronin asked me what we were looking at. Although I did not know for sure at the time, it was the Cumberland Valley. Eventually we hiked into Pen-Mar Park, where I also met Mayo and Cobweb, folks I had heard of but not met before - Tuna Bags arch friends. At this point I was feeling really good except my feet were beat up, and my ankles had been moderately twisted by the constant rocks enough that it was taking a toll. Nothing serious, I expected all pain to be gone by morning, my usual situation. We'll see.I got to catch up with another friend at Pen-Mar, as a good friend from work, Dave Deli, had called me up while I was on my home break and invited me to go camping with him when I got to Pen-Mar. 10 minutes after I arrived, so did he, bearing sodas for all the thru hikers that were on site at that time. Major points scored for Dave! He also offered that anyone who wanted a break from the heat could camp with us, as he had an air conditioned pop-up camper. No takers, though. Understandable, since the weather was moderate. Still, I decided to take up his offer so he wouldn't feel too rejected. LOL. We drove to the campground and started talking for so long I was worried that the stores were going to close down before we got out. So I took a shower, and we headed to the Mountain Gate Restaurant, an AYCE place near Catoctin. Awesome. When we got back, we stayed up pretty late chatting some more. I was particularly glad to see Dave because he was a co-worker I regretted not talking to before I left BGE, and had planned to touch base as soon as the trip was over, so this event worked out very well. And, I got to spend a night with many of the comforts of home. And, it was a great time to boot. Thanks, Dave!Oh, and BTW, I crossed the Mason Dixon Line today, so, 6 states down and 8 to go.The picture is of Cahoda, a hiker I'd run into yesterday who I'd also hiked with further south.
Date: 2007-07-10
From: Pine Grove Furnace Park

To: Boiling Springs, PA
Miles today: 19.4

We did the ice cream challenge today! The group that I had hiked with yesterday caught up to me early, and we went to the next road crossing with a general store. Candybar won the open age category, with 18 minutes. I won the 40 and over age category in 44 minutes 38 seconds. Actually, I was the ONLY contestant in the 40 & older category. So all I had to do was finish and not barf. In a moral victory, though, I was the only participant in the challenge who made it to Boiling Springs that evening. The key was that I developed diarrhea faster than anyone else, hence I recovered more quickly.While walking to Boiling Springs, I caught up with Boognish (who did not do the ice cream challenge today). We had an interesting walk, but the coolest thing was that at the end of the hike he talked me into walking all the way into town rather than a campsite just outside it. As a result, we had pizza for dinner (I also had a turkey & bacon sub I had picked up at the store where the ice cream challenge was held), had a few beers at the town tavern, and watched the all-star game, where I didn't recognize a single player. Also in town were Jake (who hikes with Boognish's group) and Jake's friend Bob. We all slept in somebody's backyard.(with their permission of course). Didn't get to bed until after 11:30 am. Arrggghhh - how am I going to get up early to beat the heat of a day with a predicted high of 92 degrees?
Date: 2007-07-11
From: Boiling Springs, PA

To: Cove Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: moderate rain

I set my alarm for 5:50 am to give myself some extra sleep due to the late bedtime. However, I was laying in bed awake at 5 am when I heard the first bird of the morning, and somehow I had enough adrenaline pumping over the upcoming day to get up then and there. The prospect of heat, and walking in the open pastures of the Cumberland Valley (Rather than in the sun-protected forest) had me very nervous. I was on the trail at 6:45 am - my earliest start yet. I took my time walking though, eating lots of mulberries & red raspberries, and taking a few pictures. During the day I met Crazy Horse and talked with him a while. He was very knowledgeable about the upcoming hiking and water supplies. When I asked him about his own hike he didn't seem quite as knowledgeable, or at least he couldn't explain it very well. I also met Night Lion, the ridge runner for the area. Found out about a major freebie in Duncannon that I missed by a week. Sounds like everyone I knew was there. Except of course the people I'd been hiking with.At lunch the short night's sleep caught up with me, as I fell asleep for an hour. Messed up my day's plans a bit, but I felt a ton better, walking much faster after lunch. Caught up with Yonder and Janet, 2 thru hikers I had not met yet, and played leapfrog with them much of the rest of the day. We ended up sheltering together at Cove Mtn.Rain threatened all day, and we did get rained on a bit. I wished for more to get a break from the heat, but it really didn't do much until we were already in for the night.
Date: 2007-07-13
From: Duncannon,PA

To: Peter's Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: overcast clouds

This day had a bit of a nostalgic air, as I had hiked this portion of the trail a few years ago in the opposite direction. In fact, that was the trip when my knee developed severe soreness that matched the pain I felt at the beginning of my AT thru hike that I thought would take me off the trail, thus earning my trail name. The views of the Susquehanna and Juniata Rivers from this section were still spectacular, even though the summer growth obscured much of the views. At the midpoint I met Tuna Bag, and we hiked to the shelter together, matching paces very well, and enjoyed conversation rather than continued communion with nature. At the end of the day, I needed to sleep in the shelter because the weather might turn bad, but as it turns out there was an old, small shelter about 50 yards from the main shelter, so I slept there by myself. Some wise guys claimed my snoring STILL kept them awake. At camp that night: Boognish, his brother Fartacus, his friends Nick and Jess, Tuna Bag, and Bean. This seems like a good time to list some quotes I often say or hear:1. It's only gross the first time2. No Pain, No Rain, No Maine3. Sometimes civilization is a little TOO civilized4. Finish the day warm and fed and dry. Life is good. (Note as time goes on this list may get a little longer. I am already thinking of adding healthy and hydrated to the list)5. I wake up every day pain free.6. Going from town to the woods is like going home from Disney World - You had a great time but it is a relief and a comfort to go "home" to your comfort zone.7. I wake up each day eager to hike another 30,000 steps (Note that as my hikes get longer it is more like 50,000 steps a day)8. The balls of my feet are numb. But that's ok because otherwise they would hurt. And the feeling should come back a few months after the hike is done.9. When you reach a fork in the trail that is not marked, assume the AT follows the side that is most worn and is steeper uphill.10. It's not about the miles, it's about the smiles. These kinds of lines are what happens when ad executives are allowed to hike the AT.11. Hikers are easy to please.