morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-09-15
From: North Woodstock, NH

To: North Woodstock, NH
Miles today: 0.0

Day 178 - I slept late, not getting up until 7:15am. I walked down to the local diner to have breakfast. On my way, I saw a beauty parlor and stuck my head in and asked the lady if she had hair clippers. She said yes, and I asked her if she had time to cut my hair before her 8:00am appointment. She had time to do that but not enough time to trim my beard. Twelve dollars and 5 minutes later I walked out and headed to the diner. For breakfast I had 2 eggs, hash, ham, and 2 blueberry pancakes. I walked all the way into Lincoln again, did a little shopping and went by the library to use their computer. I am trying to figure out how to get from Hanover, NH to North Adams, MA since I can't hike through Vermont. I hope to be in Hanover within the week. I have 2 remaining mountains to conquer and then hopefully my speed will pick up. The one gentleman I called in Hanover said it would cost me $225 to be shuttled. I have a few more days to figure it out.
Date: 2011-09-16
From: North Woodstock, NH

To: Eliza Brook Shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 179 - I did not repack last night so I tossed and turn most of the night thinking about packing. I thought it was best to allow my gear to continue to dry and air out a little. My gear really smells offensive, I am pretty sure I am going to have to throw most of it away when I finish. I got up at 6:45am, showered, packed and walked down to the cafe for breakfast. Dan picked me up at 9:00am and took me to the same parking lot that I had hiked to the other day. That meant I had a 0.9 mile hike back to the trail, which was OK. I was on the trail at 9:40am and the morning hike was OK, but very overcast and damp. I had to climb up North Kinsman Mt with an elevation of 4,358 feet and the weather kept deteriorating. By the time I got up near the summit all the condensation in the air had frozen to the fir trees and I was freezing. I did not stop soon enough to put on warmer clothes. By the time I stopped I could not use my fingers and had to unzip my bag using my teeth. I put on my wind pants, jacket, rain jacket, hat and gloves. The ice was starting to melt and fall off the trees so I had to dodge being hit with ice clumps. I got to Eliza Brook shelter at 5:30pm and set up my tent. Since it is supposed to be 30*F tonight I figured it would be warmer inside my tent than inside a shelter. I hiked 9.0 miles today bringing my total to 1,503.9 miles with 677.1 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-17
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: Chet's Hostel
Miles today: 7.6

Day 180 - I was in my tent by 6:00pm, using my body heat to warm up the enclosed air. I started out with my wool socks, silk long underwear, t-shirt, hoody, another long sleeve shirt, hat and gloves. I had a large industrial size trash bag, so I put my sleeping bag down inside it to help keep the heat in. I am still using my summer bag which is only rated to be comfortable at 40*F. Prior to going to sleep I put on my down jacket. Sometime during the night I put on my long pants. This was good, because I could put my hands inside my pockets. Around 4:00am my feet began to get cold, when I got up to go pee, I actually did some jumping jacks to try to warm them up. I got up at 7:30am and it was 45*F inside my tent, so I figured it was 30-35*F outside. I ate some potato chowder for breakfast needing something warm. As I was packing my sleeping bag I felt that it was soaked toward the feet area plus the zipper had come undone. Since I had stuffed the bag into the plastic bag the condensation had nowhere to go so the bag absorbed it. Certainly a learning experience for future reference-- no wonder my feet were cold!! It took me quite a while to pack and I was not on the trail until 9:15am. The day was nice, no rain and a good day to hike. I saw Nitty and Gritty going northbound, slack packing. They were staying in Lincoln at a hostel which got me to thinking that I perhaps needed to do the same. The shelter I was planning to stay at was only 1.5 miles from the highway so I would not forfeit that many miles by getting off the trail. I got to NH 112 at 3:40pm and got a ride from some guys from Boston. I had another good dinner and got to Chet's hostel at 6:00pm. There were a dozen or so hikers there but I did get a bunk. Chet also allowed me to tumble dry my sleeping bag in his dryer which was great. Another short day of 7.6 miles, increasing my total to 1,511.5 miles with 669.5 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-18
From: Chep's Hostel

To: Jeffers Brook Shelter
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 181 - I slept fairly well and I was at least warm and dry. It only got down to the upper 30*s during the night so it was very comfortable inside the converted garage. I got up at 6:45am and weaved around the hikers on the floor and walked to McDonald's for breakfast. I got back to the hostel, packed up, called my shuttle contact and was on the trail at 9:20am. The first climb of the day was up Mt. Moosilauke and it was very steep but it had a lot of steps and was managed fairly easily. I reached the summit around 12:40pm, ate lunch and headed down the other side. I helped myself to an apple off a tree which was a real treat. I arrived at Jeffer's Brook shelter at 4:10pm and settled in for the evening. My mileage today was 8.3 miles, bringing my total to 1.519.8 with 661.2 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-19
From: Jeffers Brook Shelter

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: few clouds

Day 182 - I slept well and it only got down to 50*F so it was good sleeping weather in my tent. I was up by 6:45am and on the trail by 7:50am. I had an immediate steep climb up Mt. Mist then it leveled out for a period of time which was a nice change. I ran across another apple tree so that made for a nice snack. The water sources are not as plentiful as they have been so I have to watch that and make sure I stay hydrated. In the late afternoon I had a 2,000 foot climb up Mt. Cube that has an elevation of 2,922 feet. I got to the Hexacube shelter side trail at 5:40pm but did not feel like hiking another 0.3 miles up a hill to stay there. I found a small, 8 by 6 foot level spot and decided to pitch my tent there. This was tight quarters, with fir tree limbs rubbing up against the tent. I had a water source near by so it worked out well. It was so tight quarters that once I pitched my tent, I had to unpack my pack and eat dinner inside my tent. The day was gorgeous, blue sky and in the low 60's*F. Someone had put a pair of reading glasses that they had found on a sign post and since I had broken mine in Lincoln the other morning I decided to take them. I had a good mileage day today, 15.7 miles, increasing my total to 1,535.5 with 645.5 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-20
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: Trapper John Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: light rain

Day 183 - I slept well but was awakened at 4:00am with rain drops falling on my tent and it continued to rain all morning. I had to totally pack my bag inside my tent and quickly took down my tent so it would not be too wet. This was difficult with the tight quarters plus the water dripping off the fir trees. I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for breakfast and was on the trail by 8:30am. I had put on my rain gear but I had to stop after the first 15 minutes of hiking and take off the jacket and pants because it was too hot. I ended up hiking in my shorts, tee shirt and gloves. I got to Smart Mt. fire station cabin at 12:30pm and the wind was howling and the temperature had dropped. This is an old abandoned cabin used by the fire rangers in the years past. I put all my clothes back on, had hot potato chowder and a cup of hot chocolate for lunch. The descent off the mountain was not too bad and I got to the highway going into Lyme mid-afternoon so I decided to hitch a ride into town and eat dinner. I got a ride fairly quickly from DeWayne Smart but forgot to ask him if the mountain was named after his family. He was a nice gentleman and we had a nice discussion riding into town. I ate at Stella's and had a salad and a Reuben sandwich. I walked up to the little general store and had an ice cream cone, a pint of milk and 12 Oreos. I was able to hitch a ride back to the trail head and arrived at Trapper John shelter at 6:10pm. I set my tent up inside the shelter to help stay warm. Another SoBo, Reboot, showed up around 7:00pm and stayed in the shelter as well. This part of the trail is maintained by the Dartmouth Outing Club, I believe the oldest hiking club in the country. The shelter is name for the M.A.S.H. character who had a degree from Dartmouth. I had another good mileage day, 15.2 miles, bringing my total to 1,550.7 with 630.3 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-21
From: Trapper John Shelter

To: Sunset Motor Lodge, Hanover, NH
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: broken clouds

Day 184 - I slept OK and was up by 6:45am and on the trail by 8:00am, I had a 0.3 mile hike back to the trail from the shelter. Today was very nice weather wise, which was enjoyable. I got to Hanover right before the Post Office closed and got my Vermont maps, did my laundry and took the bus to Sunset Inn. I had to order a pizza and salad and have it delivered since there were no eating establishments near the motel. I had a good day hiking a total of 16.7 miles, raising my total to 1,567.4, with 613.6 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-22
From: Sunset Motor Lodge, Hanover, NH

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 5.8
Weather: light rain

Day 185 - I did not sleep that well but I was lazy because the bus back to Hanover did not leave until 10:25am so I had plenty of time. I walked up to the bus stop in the rain and got there early and decided to try to hitchhike instead of standing out in the rain. Fortunately, I got a ride into Hanover and went over to the Dartmouth Outing Club to drop my pack. I needed to get some groceries and eat and they allow hikers to use their building to store their packs. As I mentioned the other day, the DOC is the oldest hiking club in America, formed in 1909. They maintain around 70 miles of the AT. I spent some time attempting to determine exactly how much of the trail was open in Vermont. The entire trail had been closed for two weeks after tropical storm Irene passed through. I learned from the National Park Service for the Green Mountains that everything was open except for an area around Killington. They reported that there are several bridges out but the trail was passable. Since I was only going a few miles into Vermont today, I did not get on the trail until 1:20pm and crossed the NH/VT state line at 1:35pm. Of course, I did this in a steady rain. My feet are holding up OK but I don't like them being damp all day. The mosquitoes are terrible now, all the rain and standing water has brought out a new hatch and with so few hikers on the trail they are swarming me. The few miles into Vermont was on fairly level ground and I arrived at the Happy Hill shelter at 3:40pm in a hard downpour. The weather forecast is calling for rain the next 4-6 days, joy, joy. I hated to stop this early in the day but I could not reach the next shelter and I really did not want to set up my tent in the rain. I was the only one at the shelter tonight so I ate and turned in fairly early-- 7:30pm. I only traveled 5.8 miles today for a total of 1,573.2 with only 607.8 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-23
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: 1.3 miles North of VT12
Miles today: 15.6

Day 186 - I slept well in spite of the hard rain banging on the tin roof. I was up by 6:45am and on the trail by 7:30am. I had read in my guidebook that there was a general store with a deli in West Hartford, so I decided to skip breakfast and eat something there as I expected to be there by 9:30am. I passed under I-89 at 9:00am and walked into West Hartford on VT 14 along the White River. Oh my, the first 4-5 buildings, including the general store, were completed destroyed by the flooding. For this to have happened, the river must have been 20-25 feet above its banks. I continued to walk along the highway and saw a young lady out in her parent's yard. I asked her how high the water had gotten and she pointed to the bridge and said it was over the top. I have a picture of the bridge to give some indication of how high the water was. Since I needed water, I asked if the Red Cross had brought in a tank and she said "no", but that the city was distributing 1.5L bottle water. I asked if I could have a little and she ended up giving me 3 L. In talking to her about the flooding there was no feeling sorry for herself or her family. She stated matter of fact that they would rebuild and be fine. Just a tremendous attitude with everything in their home destroyed. They were living in their garage which was on higher ground then their house.It did not rain today but was very humid and around 65*F, so I was still soaking wet. I saw a bunch of sugar maple trees with permanent tubing for collecting sap in the early spring. I believe they have to re-tap the tree every year but they keep the tubing in place. I also ran across an apple tree, raspberry and blackberry bushes, so I had a variety of fruit to eat today. The terrain today was nice; it had a lot of variety, some up and down hills and walked along old logging trails. I did have to rock jump several streams and had to pick up rocks and put into the stream to build me a walk way across. The water level on the streams is still quite high. It is supposed to rain again tonight and once again I am in between shelters. I arrived at Thistle Hill shelter at 12:30pm but it was too early to stop so I continued south. The mosquitoes continue to be heavy; I have no clue whose blood I splatter when I kill them against my leg. I have been putting on bug spray but the sweat washes it away so I have to continue to reapply. I finally stopped at 4:40pm to set up my tent. I put my backpack inside my tent, stripped off my soaking wet clothes and hung them on the tree limbs and jumped into my tent totally naked. I immediately killed the few mosquitoes that had followed me in the tent, wiped myself off the best I could and put on dry clothes. I was able to cook my dinner just outside my tent without letting any additional mosquitoes in. There were a dozen or so on the outside on the screen looking for an opportunity to join me. I had a good mileage day, hiking 15.6 miles, increasing my total to 1,588.8 miles decreasing my remaining miles to 592.2 miles.
Date: 2011-09-24
From: 1.3 miles North of VT12

To: 1.1 miles North of Stony Brook Shelter
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 187 - It started raining last night at 7:30pm and rained all night. I was a little lazy this morning and did not get up until 7:30am and the mosquitoes were anxiously waiting for me to exit my tent. After applying bug spray I was on the trail by 8:40am. My tent and rain fly are soaked so I am carrying a little additional weight on my back. I have water puddled inside on my tent floor, how the water got inside is a mystery. My first hurdle today is wondering how I will cross Gulf Stream at VT 12; I know from the Park Service lady that I talked to that the footbridge is washed away. I arrived to the parking area on VT 12 and one could assess very quickly that they had had major flooding. The stream runs parallel to the road and there was a lot of debris and rocks along the way. The stream was still flowing very hard with a large amount of water volume. I was able to find the foot bridge, the only problem was it was 20 yards downstream, across on the other bank. I walked up and down the stream a little, looking at my options, none of which excited me. The stream was only 10 yards wide but it was too murky, flowing too fast and I was not able to see the bottom. I saw a gentleman up the road a way out in the highway adjacent to a house. I decided to approach him and see if he had any ideas how to cross the stream without straying too far from the trail. Thinking he lived in the house, I asked him if he had incurred any flood damage. As it turned out, he was a member of the Green Mountain Club (GMC) and was there to assess the situation as well. He showed me a bridge that the farmer used to cross the stream with his tractor and how to follow a gravel road back to the trail. If I had been ten minutes earlier or later I would have missed this individual, it amazes me how fortunate I have been on this journey. So, I was able to easily cross this stream and did not lose my time off the trail. It was a long day, a lot of up and downs and the trail was extremely muddy. I stopped for lunch at 2:30pm and hiked until 5:20pm and was pretty well shot for the day. I found a relatively flat spot, set up my tent, wiped the floor out the best I could with an old sponge. I had been carrying this little sponge since I started since it weighs nothing but had not used it until today. I hung up the rain fly in hopes that it might dry out a little or at least to allow the water to run off it. I did not put it over the tent, so if it starts to rain tonight, I will have to move quickly to keep my gear from getting soaked. I did a stupid thing today, I bent over to a little spring stream to get water and my transistor radio fell off my pack into the water. It, of course, stopped working, so now I am cut off from what is happening in the real world. Sometimes I wonder if being on the trail, somewhat isolated, enjoying and appreciating God's creation really is the real world.I hiked a hard 13.6 miles today, increasing my total to 1,602.4, with 578.6 miles remaining.
Date: 2011-09-26
From: The Inn at Long Trail

To: Rutland, VT
Miles today: 1.9

Day 189 - I had an extremely short mileage day today but I needed to spend some time understanding if the trail was open south of Rutland. This area, Rutland/Killington, received a tremendous amount of rain (10-14 inches) from Tropical Storm Irene. Many of the homes and small communities in this area were isolated when the roads were washed away. In fact, U.S. 4 had to be reconstructed in at least 3 different sections, where the water washed the roadbed away. I contacted the National Park Service for the Green Mountains and they continued to report that the 17.4 mile section over Killington Mountain is still closed. I have not seen any NoBo so I have not been able to confirm the condition of the trail from their perspective. From what I have heard, part of the trail is gone. So the dilemma is do I attempt it or by-pass it? In my judgment, if the NPS says it is closed, there must be a reason, so I have decided I will jump over that section for the time being. Like Barry Bonds, my name will have an asterisk beside it until I finish these miles. I hiked the short 1.9 miles from where I left the trail yesterday to U.S. 4. I caught the $2.00 bus into Rutland and got supplies for the next couple of days. I am really trying to keep only 3-4 days¢ worth of food on me and resupplying more frequent, verses carrying the weight of 6-7 days. My plans were to spend the day at the library updating my journal, but they only allow visitors to spend 60 minutes on their computers so that was disappointing. I was going to get a haircut and shave but all the barbershops were closed on Monday. So, I actually spent some time off my feet resting and reading. The leaves are really starting to fall now and are obscuring the trail, as well as the rocks and roots. I have to be very careful to look for blazes because with the newly fallen leaves the trail is not as obvious as before. Additionally, I have not really seen any other hikers for 4-5 days. With the 1.9 miles completed today my total is now 1,608.7 with 554.9 remaining, plus the 17.4 miles sometime in the future.
Date: 2011-09-27
From: Rutland, VT

To: Little Rock Pond shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 190 - I slept well after watching the Cowboys beat the Redskins on Monday night football. In walking back to the hotel from dinner last night, I saw a grocery cart lying next to the sidewalk which gave me a thought. Since I had a 1.5 - 2.0 mile walk downtown to the barber shop I decided to confiscate the cart and put my pack in it and stroll toward town. I know I must have looked like a homeless, southern redneck, walking down the sidewalk but my neck and shoulders appreciated it. If I could figure out how to pull it along the trail to Pennsylvania I would. I had to pull it because the front wheels were out of kilter and I could not push it. I found Henry's barber shop which opened at 8:30am; I was there at 8:20am but there were already 2 gentlemen in front of me so I did not get into the chair until 10:00. I got my hair and whiskers cut for $10.00 so that was not too bad. I called a shuttle contact to take me to the trail head on VT 103. I would have hitch hiked but I would have had to walk with my pack, as I had ditched the cart in front of another grocery store. More to the point was I wanted to get on the trail because I had 12.6 miles to do today to get to the next shelter. I got on the trail at 10:40am and had a good day. I crossed paths with four groups of day hikers but no thru hikers. It was a little humid so I was soaking wet but the mosquitoes were not as bad-- that was good. You could detect that a lot of running water had been on the trail plus all the streams were still full. I got to Little Rock Pond shelter at 5:40pm and rinsed off in the pond. With the 12.6 miles done today my total is now sitting at 1,621.3 with 542.3 remaining.
Date: 2011-09-28
From: Little Rock Pond shelter

To: Bromley Shelter
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: light rain

Day 191 ¢ I slept well in the shelter but woke up at 2:30am and put on my hoody. I woke up at 6:30am and finally got up at 6:45am. The caretaker for this shelter, Alicia, was still asleep in her hammock so I had to eat, pack as quietly as I could to prevent from waking her. I got on the trail and had to stop to get water from a spring. Again, I find myself between shelters today, Peru shelter is only 9.7 miles and Bromley is 17.8 miles away, which about my limit. The trail is really being covered up with leaves so I am having to be extremely attentive to the white blazes. As I approached Peru shelter near Griffith Lake the foot bridges were actually floating in standing water. I had to divert into the woods and attempt to walk around the water. I got to Bromley Ski slope and the trail actually goes down one of the beginner slopes. I don¢t know what happens during skiing season when you have hikers and skiers using the same ground. I arrived at Bromley shelter at 5:15pm and set up inside the shelter since it is supposed to rain tonight, in fact, it is supposed to rain the next several days. I had a good mileage day, 17.8 miles, increasing my total to 1,639.1 miles, with only 524.5 miles remaining.