morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-06-11
From: Mt. Collins Shelter

To: Tri-Corner Shelter
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: light rain

First 20+ miler today! Go me go me...Hilarious day.First, it started pouring on me the minute I left the shelter about 7am.Second, tried zipping on my pant legs and one of the zippers broke. So, I hiked with one pantleg on all day.Third, was cruising downhill pretty fast, stepped on a wet log, slid down it about 8 feet on one leg, and fell face first in a mud hole. One pant leg covered in mud now.Fourth, I made it to Newfound Gap about 9am. There is a big parking lot there full of cars, tour buses, and of course... people. I was the most ragged looking hiker ever. One pant leg. Covered in mud. Soaked to the bone. Bleeding from my elbow. Sweating and panting, I walked into the crowd of people, who flocked me with questions. I must've been quite the sight! I hung out by the bathrooms for like an hour(under the overhang and out of the rain) to dry my feet out for a bit. Putting my boots back on, I broke a lace. Square knot took care of that. Thanks Boys Scouts =) Then, going to the bathroom, buttoning my pants back up, the button popped off. This is when I said to myself,"You've got to be kidding me."Then, walking down the trail, I had a deer walking straight at me. I pulled over to the side and let the deer walk by, got out my camera and was following behind it taking video, when I saw some legs coming down the trail that froze when it saw the deer. "Who's that?", I yelled. It was Mountain Chicken Mike, who I hadn't seen in a few days. It was good to see him. We hauled it to the shelter and got in just before dark. There was a forest ranger there and an intern from Pensacola, who were there trying to take care of a problem bear in the area. There were also lots of other cool people at this shelter and we had a good night sharing food and stories. Also, there was a fungus growing around there called "Foxfire" that is bioluminescent and glowed bright bluish-green in the night.No bear ,too bad, I wanted to see him get beanbagged in the bottom...
Date: 2009-06-12
From: Tri-Corner Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm Hostel
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Out of the SmokiesThere was a huge change in ecosystems the minute we left the Great Smokey Mountain National Park and crossed the road. It was so much drier. Like a desert compared to the Smokies. Don't know why, but it was amazing. We made it to Standing Bear Farm about 6pm. This is a must stop on the trail. Great place for hikers. There were a bunch of new people to meet. Everyone ended up being there. There were like 20 of us in all. Ate rattlesnake on a stick, cooked over the campfire. Met the infamous owner, Curtis. Whitecrow was also there. 2time veteran thru-hiker. We all had some beers and a good time. What else can I say?
Date: 2009-08-07
From: Maine

To: Maine
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Quick Update: At the Stratton Motel in Maine. Computer here is EXTREMELY SLOW, so this will be quick until I get to a better computer, hopefully in just a few days. Sorry for the lapse in journal entries, for those of you reading at home. Tim and Jenna ended up getting up to Katahdin about 5 days before us and they are still 5 days south of us. Squatch, who I met at Standing Bear Hostel, have become good friends. He flipped up to Massachusetts to visit his girlfriend, and I came up to Massachusetts to visit friends, family, and girlfriend as well. Took 12 whole days off the trail. We both rode up to Maine together to start our southbound hike. After leaving the Smoky Mountains, we had an amazing stretch of hiking through the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC and lots of "balds". Big grassy mountains with little to no trees. 463 miles total from Springer to Damascus, VA.Yesterday ended up being a zero day. Lots of gear repairs and waiting on packages to come. I am currently hiking with a group of about 7 people. We've had a great streak of nice weather over the last 5 days or so. Our hike up Katahdin on July 21st was really great. Very tough and spectacular views. The 100 mile wilderness was unexpectedly tough. Lots and lots of muds, bugs and rough terrain. Gear failure and rain made this even more of a daily mental challenge. I got stung by a bee on the calf, twisted both my ankles numerous times, and took many falls on roots and rocks into mud and rivers. Some of the river crossings up here are incredibly tough. Record rainfall for this year up here in Maine. I can't tell you how good we felt coming out of the 100mile and going into the town of Monson. I southbound thru hiker's heaven, to say the least. Now, we are just getting into the bigger mountains and they will continue through the White Mountains of NH, through VT, and into MA. Then we are expecting it to mellow out a bit where we can knock out some much bigger mile days. The blueberries are in full bloom up here and can be found all along the trail on the sunny open areas on the mountaintops. They have been a constant treat and have been great in keeping us all "regular". haha I am feeling good overall, my body is holding up. My weight is so erratic. For example, I gained over 10lbs in the last 1 and a half days in town, and lost 5 of that today already. Another 90 miles or so and we'll be in New Hampshire. So, that's the plan. Its simple. Keep heading south. 2500 miles to go. Loving the experience of the trail.   Appalachian Trail Friends (ATF) Addicted To Freedom 2009Better, more thorough updates soon...
Date: 2009-08-20
To: NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Just entered NH. I zeroed here in Gorham yesterday, because I was sick with a high fever and flu like symptoms. It's something thats going around. Quite a few others hikers have been feeling bad as well. The last section of Maine for me heading south was a section called the Mahoosuc's. Mahoosuc notch is supposively the "hardest mile on the AT". However, everyone I've talked to including myself agree that it was extremely fun. It just takes alot of time to get throught that section because its all these huge boulders in a deep ravine that you have to go up, over and under.   Pretty fun. Oh yeah and there was still ice down there making the air temp like 20 to 30 degrees cooler. Felt good since it was an 80 to 90 degree day! Things are going well and now its off into the White Mountains. Moriah and Carter Dome will be today and the Presidentials including Mt. Washington will be over the next few days. I'm super pumped! More soon....!
Date: 2009-09-07
From: VT!!!

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

3 mins remaining on library computer. Finally got out of NH. We got laid up in Hanover for about 4 days or so. Miss Step was sick. Everyone was aching from the big mountains of NH. Ever since we've entered VT, we've had the best of times. Great weather for hiking. Lots of wild edibles, apples blackberries, mushrooms, etc... and really great people. Not to mention the colors of fall are just starting to arrive. I found out yesterday that my friend Patrice "STORM" summited Katahdin! Congratz!!! More soon time up!
Date: 2009-09-08
To: MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I'm in Dalton, MA at the library. I've been getting slackpacked for the last three days by Rob Bird at the Birdcage. Heading south to CT tomorrow. We are going to hike through the entire state of CT in one day. We'll see how that goes... Vermont was an amazing section of trail. VERMUD? Not even close. Got lucky I guess. The trail was really dry. Great weather through most of it. Lots and lots of trail magic. New boots which already need replacing soon after only a couple weeks. Keep heading south is the plan! To Virginia or bust~!
Date: 2009-11-03
From: PA

To: VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hey everyone! Sorry for the lack of entries on here. I'm still on the trail. Currently in Duncannon, PA. Here at the Doyle Hotel downtown where they take in us beat up hikers and revitalize us with showers, clean clothes and warm beds then spit us back out into the cold. So much has happened since the last time I wrote. I feel like a professional bum at this point. I've been living out here on the trail for the last 5 months. Loving it! Even this cold has its own rewards. Well, rewards may be a bit of an overstatement. The sun finally came out after a week of hiding and it lifted up my spirit. Did 35 miles yesterday to get here, because for one it was just too darn cold to stop hiking and two I was COMPLETELY out of food! I did the last few miles to here on some graham cracker crumbs(thanks Storm!), a few Jolly Ranchers and 11 almonds. It felt so incredibly good to get here and retrieve my food drop box at the post office! It was a long run with crap food. Lots of times ramen noodles saved me from starving to death. So, here is the big news. Its all I've been thinking about....Drumroll please!.....................I am writing a book.Its going to be AMAZING AND VERY INSPIRATIONAL.I have the thing written in my head and when I get done with the trail its going to be a major focus of mine. Its going to be a collaborative work of different stories of those I've met along the trail and my focus is to inspire those who are leading, shall I say... a stagnant life. Unhappy, unsatistfied, or lacking something... whether its an adventure, a sense of self, a challenge, some spirituality. It is a very spiritual experience to be out here. I couldn't imagine doing anything else with my time.Anyways, there will be plenty more talk of that in the future and hopefully over the next few weeks as I finish up this journey, I'll get more chances to update here.600 miles and change left until I finish the trail. I will be done before Xmas unless I break a leg, get eaten by a bear, freeze to death, or starve. Hopefully the trail angels are with me and stay with me to the end. They've gotten me this far!Until next time...I love you, MOM!!!Swampcricket
Date: 2009-11-10
From: VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 32.0

I'm here in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. I'll be heading into Virginia tomorrow, feetfirst into some residual effects from the hurricane that will probably last over the next week or so. What do I have to look forward to then? Being wet. Cold. And sore from trekking 20 miles a day through the Shenendoah's in this bout of bogus weather. The sun will come out at some point though... and OH will it SHINE! It will poke its way through the clouds some day and I will find a sunny spot to warm up and dry out, like a snake coming out of his hole to warm his blood. I try never to let the rain or cold get me down. It tests the human spirit, however, and this is for certain!So yeah, the state of Pennsylvania. Rocks! Covered with leaves! Rocks + Leaves = DANGER! Maryland was a quick 41 miles and I did 32 of them in one day, most of those miles at night... with a headlamp whose batteries decided to fade away about an hour after dark. I hiked for the next 8 hours or so by the light or lack thereof, a half-moon over jagged rocks and slippery leaves. The trails through this section have been relatively mellow. Alot of "flat" walking up on the ridgelines. OH and the SHELTERS! The shelters in PA and MD were most amazing! There were many unique designs. Most of them were so well kept, clean, had nice privies and all the water sources have been really good.So, I'm heading out of here tommorrow. I ended up taking a zero here because of the rain, had a free place to stay(thanks Gary!!!), and Ole Yeller has to wait until tomorrow to get his box from the PO because it was closed for Veteran's Day. I appreciate all you veteran's, by the way. Thank you very much.I hike for you all tomorrow. "Bad Idea" one of my new friends I've been hiking with on the trail over the last couple weeks, was in the special forces just prior to coming out here on the trail. Its incredible what he's been through.Southward I go to Damascus and then I am going to skip down and meet up with my GIRLFRIEND (that's right!) Miss Step to finish up with her to Springer Mountain in Georgia. That's right! We have been talking on the phone and are back together. Not physically with each other, but mentally and emotionally we've come back together. I couldn't be more happy. I am so thankful to have her in my life.   Addicted to Freedom!
Date: 2009-11-11
From: Shenandoah National Park

To: Central Virginia
Miles today: 0.0

Hello all you that happen to be reading this!I have made my way south, up and over the Shenandoah Mountains of northern Virginia and down into the Blue Ridge Mountains. I have just over 300 miles to go to finish my journey for the year. I've met so many amazing people and have seen so many amazing things. About 2 weeks and I'll be done. Can't wait to be done, but also can't believe there's actually an end to this trail, and it is in sight! This is one super long ass trail people...
Date: 2009-12-01
From: Central Virginia

To: McAfee's Knob
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Hey, I'm in Daleville, VA. I'm about to go get my box at the post office that I've beening bouncing ahead for what seems like weeks now! My friend Russ "Bonk" came down from Richmond to hike with Yeller and I this past weekend and we had a really great time. As soon as I can figure out how to link my facebook to here I will do so because that is where I have been posting all my pictures. We had great weather over the weekend and the 22 miles that Bonk hiked with us pretty much kicked his butt. haha He wouldn't want to admit it, but its been over 4 months since he got off the trail and there is a very noticeable difference in how fast I can hike now. On Thursday, Thanksgiving I came hiking into Montebello with no shirt on. Had a nice Thanksgiving dinner, courtesy of Marylynn and her aunt Helen at the Dutch Haus B&B, filled up and got back on the trail the next day in the snow. That night it got down to 15 degrees with a wind chill of probably 0 degrees. Brrr.. well, I got to go get back on the trail. Gotta hike gotta hike! Gotta keep heading south I'm almost done! I'll update again when I get to Pearisburg...
Date: 2009-12-17
From: McAfee's Knob

To: Damascus
Miles today: 37.7
Weather: overcast clouds

So, I made it back to Damascus on December 17th and right before the big snow. Completed my flip flop and glad to be done and home for the holidays. What a 7 month long journey! I still have plans on putting together a book in the near future and collections of all my photos! Thanks for everyone's support that helped me along my journey!!! I could not have done it with out you. When people ask me how I liked the trail, I say, "Well, it had its ups and downs.".... and lots of them! Thank you Appalachian Trail. I will be thinking of you contstantly.
Date: 2008-03-01
To: To Journal Or Not To Journal?
Miles today: 0.0

We (Tagless and Tag-along) have spent a considerable amount of time contemplating whether or not to create this public journal of our thru hike. Will maintaining it distract from our hiking experience? Could it create an inconvenience during town stops, particularly if access to a public computer is needed? Will it offer interesting reading? What useful purpose might it serve? After looking at many pros and cons, we've settled in on a plan that should suit us. Here are some considerations.Will maintaining it distract from our hiking experience? We don't intent to let this happen. We will share updates periodically - when it is convenient for us to do so. We have no preconceived notion about how often "we have" to journal. Several hikers' Trail Journals that we've followed captured large blocks of time - not so much individual days. That may be a good plan for us. Several local successful thru hiker acquaintances maintained a public journal and say they would do so again. That's encouraging.Could it create an inconvenience during town stops, particularly if access to a public computer is needed? We won't need much access to a town computer. More on that topic later. Will it offer interesting reading? Time will tell. As we've prepared for our thru hike, we have benefitted incredibly from other hikers' journals. This offers an opportunity to support those that will follow us. We will address specific topics from time to time. Examples include: eating on the trail, honest reviews about our gear and equipment choices, lessons learned, etc.What other useful purpose might it serve? Maintaining regular communication with parents, our daughter and her husband Hayne, grandkids Trey and Campbell, and other family members is a nonnegotiable priority. In addition, we are blessed to have many past co-workers and friends that have expressed interest in following our progress. Trail Journals offers an efficient way to keep many special people in our lives informed. About eight months ago I (Tagless) ran across a journal written in 1976. Specifically, at the age of twenty, I was selected as a community ambassador to Denmark and travelled abroad for eight weeks. Reading my journal entries from that summer again seemed like reading someone else writings. Many events discussed had been completely forgotten. If journaling on the trail will help retrieve great memories thirty years from now, then it will be well worth our effort!
Date: 2008-09-05
To: Training Strategy - Hike Up A Mountain Repeatedly
Miles today: 0.0

One 2008 new year's resolutions was to begin our 2009 AT hike in good condition. We are focusing hard to achieve that goal.In January we joined the Y and have been working out there fairly regularly. Like many other long distance hikers, we find that a good way to prepare is simply get out and hike! This has become our main strategy to get in shape and stay in condition. We are very blessed to live near Chattanooga, Tennessee, an area surrounded by mountains and hiking trails. One of our favorite training activities is to park at the base of Lookout Mountain (near Reflection Riding Stables) and hike up to the top of the mountain and then back down - about four miles total. This trail offers a little bit of everything - steep and challenging rocky trail in some sections as well as a smooth grade in others. Once on top, there is an incredible scenic overlook called Sunset Rock. It's a beautiful place to eat a sandwich, cook up a backpacking meal, or have a snack. The picture on this page was taken there. We plan to hike this as well as other nearby mountain trails at least 3-4 times each week, increasing the distance and the amount of weight that we carry. A successful 2006 local thru hiker, Sourdough, shared that "if you can hike up and down Lookout Mountain three time a week with thirty pounds on your back, you'll be ready to begin hiking the AT." Makes sense to us - thanks for the tip Sourdough!In early October we are planning to hike about 68 miles with a group on the AT in Virginia for a week. That will be our last major "equipment shakedown" before departing on our thru March 2009. It should serve as a good indicator of how effective our conditioning program is as well.
Date: 2008-09-23
To: Virginia Hike Equipment Shakedown
Miles today: 0.0

We are really looking forward to 7 days of hiking the AT in Virginia, scheduled October 8-14. The plan is to put on the trail at the 76.3 mile marker of the Blue Ridge Parkway and hike southbound 76.3 miles to Catawba. Hopefully we'll enjoy viewing the start of some fall colors and interesting weather patterns. This week on the trail will provide a good opportunity to review our gear choices and make needed adjustments in anticipation of our 2009 thru hike.Special thanks to Kent Zotter (Toothless) for organizing this hike!
Date: 2008-10-28
To: Electronics On The Trail
Miles today: 0.0

Like many other hikers on the trail, we go into the woods to disconnect from routine stresses of life. With this in mind, it might seem ironic that we¢ve been considering electronic items that we might need or want to carry on the trail. Having a cell phone to stay in contact with family, particularly in case of an emergency, is a necessity for us. We want to take a lot of pictures, so add a camera to the list. A Pocketmail Composer would allow us to write journal entries and email content to a friend for uploading on Trail Journals without having to find a public library when in town (see March 1, 2008 Prep Entry: To Journal or Not to Journal). An mp3 player/radio might come in handy, particularly when settling down for the night in a noisy camp. Weighing all these devices on our postal scale was a sobering reality check. After throwing a cell phone charger and two extra batteries into the mix, everything weighed in about 1.5 pounds! Back to the drawing board.Recently we purchased a Blackberry Curve and found that it will meet many of our needs. The Curve is small and light at 4.3 ounces. Features include a cell phone, still camera, video recorder, notes (for journal writing), and Internet access so that we can occasionally upload entries to Trail Journals ourselves. The camera photo quality is surprisingly good! Battery life can be greatly extended through disabling ¢broadcast¢ status. In this mode, the Blackberry won¢t attempt to search for nearby cell towers. If kept unpowered, except for use, we expect to get at least seven days from one battery charge. We will also pack one extra charged battery (.5 oz.) and a lightweight recharging cord. When it¢s all said and done, we¢ve lightened our pack load about 1 pound taking this consolidated approach.We are still undecided about carrying a small radio. Tagless has purchased a simple 1.7 oz. Sony am/fm radio (with ear buds) to try out. It will operate over 40 hours on one AAA battery. We¢ve never hiked with a radio or mp3 player playing - preferring to enjoy quiet woods, talk, and remain aware if one of us needs help. We believe the key to polite use of electronics on the trail is always showing respect for fellow hikers seeking quiet and solitude in the woods. A radio, if either of us decides to take one, won¢t be noticed. Our cell phone will remain ¢disabled¢ unless there is a need to touch base with family. Calls will take place out of the view and earshot of others. We¢ll use the Blackberry ¢off¢ button liberally ¢ connecting with the ¢real world¢ only when we need to.
Date: 2008-10-29
To: Leavin the Kitchen Sink Behind
Miles today: 0.0

We have good news and bad news about pack weight. The good news - our typical winter base weights (i.e. everything needed for long distance hiking except consumables - food, fuel and water) average about 15 pounds. The bad news - just about all of the gear we first purchased had to be replaced in order to lighten our load. When we started backpacking ten years ago, carrying a 50-pound load was our norm. Like many others getting started in the sport, we packed more food and clothing than we could possibly use. Our camp kitchen, sleeping bags and tent were extremely heavy by today¢s standards. Even our backpacks weighed in at 6-7 pounds each. We didn¢t know what we didn¢t know. This amount of weight seemed to represent a burden that all hikers assumed. Books like Don Ladogin¢s Lighten Up: A Complete Handbook for Light and Ultralight Backpacking educated us in how to pack light without sacrificing the essentials or compromising safety. We discovered other print and web resources designed to support lightweight backpacking. A few of Tagless¢s favorite web sites are Backpacking Light, Whiteblaze, and Practical Backpacking.We have worked steadily to educate ourselves the past four years, in order to lighten our load. This includes experimenting with proven lightweight gear selection strategies and field-testing products. We are indebted to Winton Porter, the proprietor at Mountain Crossings at Walasi-Y. He was instrumental in helping us understand the right clothing choices.All of this has resulted in us being very happy with our gear and pack weight. Feel free to look over some of our gear choices using the ¢Gear¢ link on the left.