morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-05-09
From: Hughes River Overlook

To: Luray VA
Miles today: 7.4

I woke up this morning after another crazy night trying to sleep. The air mattress leaked several times during the night again. I packed up and was on the trail a little after eight. Only had to go a little over 7 miles, and get picked up and brought into Luray. Today was a very nice day! The weather was perfect. Also, several beautiful overlooks, which always makes the day better. The last overlook was at Marys rock. It was the best view I¢ve had in probably several weeks. I took a video and I¢ll include a photo here. The hike down from Marys rock was very tough. The trail was so rocky, and such a steep downhill, it just pounded on my knees and feet. I finished about 2 o¢clock, and was picked up and brought to the hostel in Luray. I took a shower, tried to get a haircut again, no luck. The owner brought me and fellow hiker, Crafty, to a Mexican restaurant. I haven¢t had Mexican food in a couple of months so even though it was probably very average, it tasted pretty great.
Date: 2018-05-10
From: Luray VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

today was a day of rest in Luray Virginia at the Open Arms hostel. It started off with me finally getting a haircut in town. I also ate a great burger at an Italian restaurant! Imagine that! I then went to Dollar General for resupply, and came back to the hostel. I¢ve gotten  no updates about my air mattress, and can¢t leave it here while I continue north. My plan is to call the post office in the morning, and if it is not there, Allison here at the hostel has agreed to  take me about 10 miles up the trail, and let me walk back to town where I will spend another night in Luray waiting for my air mattress.
Date: 2018-05-11
From: Luray VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 12.7

I had to spend another night at the hostel . My replacement air mattress did not arrive today. Rather than sit around doing nothing, I got the hostel  owner to drive me to Hogback Overlook. It was almost 13 miles, and I hiked southbound back to the city. The day was not too tough, because I did not have my big heavy pack. All I had was food and water. It¢s amazing how much easier it is with a small pack. I stopped at one of the wayside grills and got a chili dog and fries. It was good. Other than that, they didnt have any overlooks, nor was there any excitement. I am back at the hostel now, and will be packing my stuff up tomorrow to head north to Fron Royal!
Date: 2018-05-12
From: Little Hogback Overlook 

To: Super 8 
Miles today: 12.2

I had a little bit of trepidation, or maybe it was dread, knowing that I would be going the longest distance I had gone with a full pack. Today¢s objective was 12.2 miles away. I felt pretty strong, and didn¢t have much difficulty. Things were going very well.  The second large elevation of the day, really sucked  all the energy out of me. It took much longer than I thought, and it was pretty hot. I could only go 100 yards or so and then have to stop and rest.  For me, the second half of every hiking day, my feet, ankles, and knees begin to hurt. If it is the third or fourth day in a row, my back likes to join in.  One of the really aggravating things on the trail, is that there is no place to sit that is comfortable. Forget about laying down to rest your back. It doesn¢t exist. It was probably around  3 o¢clock or so in the afternoon, and I was coming down one of the mountains. I crossed a road, and saw a parking lot. I noticed there was a car parked in the back, with a lift gate open. There were two people standing near the car. There were a couple of chairs, and what looked to be the cooler. I crossed my fingers, and hoped it was someone wanting to help out poor stinky,  hikers.  I was so lucky! It was two people who had through hiked a few years earlier. Their trail names were Splinter, and PJ.  They provided fruit, and water, and Gatorade to the thru hikers!  They even provided a chair for me to sit in. I drank a 20 ounce bottle of Gatorade, and it was so cold and so good!  I told him, that I thought the chair might be a better treat than the Gatorade!  I sat, and drank my Gatorade leisurely. Toward the end of my drink, an Englishmen, who was a through hiker, walked up. They began to engage with him, and I got up to leave. When I stood up, splinter told me she thought I would kill it! I thought, I have already killed my will to live! Done!! I had about 3 miles to go, and it was all downhill. The hiking was easy, and I got to the shelter feeling pretty good about myself. At this point, I thought, hell, I can make it to Maine! What an idiot!  I laid in the shelter, reading a book, enthralled with my own abilities!
Date: 2018-05-13
From: TOM Floyd Wayside shelter

To: Fiery Run Road
Miles today: 9.2

The day started out very exciting! I was awakened around 4 AM by severe thunderstorms. It just so happened, that where I decided to sleep in the shelter, the roof leaked! So, at about 4:30 AM, I moved to the other end of the shelter. It rained until about 9 AM.  I got on the trail at about 930, about an hour and a half later than I wanted to. I had three significant elevation changes to deal with today. The first was moderate, the second was large, and the third was moderate. This may have been one of the most boring days on the trail. Nothing to look at, hiking through people¢s backyards, lots of heat and humidity!  At about 4 PM, I stopped at a spring , to get water. I was completely exhausted, and my knees ankles and feet were hurting something awful. My back was also starting to chime in! I called two shuttle operators, neither would come and pick me up because it was Mother¢s Day and they were busy. The third shuttle operator, named Mike, states in his ad, anywhere anytime! When I called him, he said he was busy. Apparently  what he really means is sometime if I feel like it. I will be calling him back no way, no how! I took a chance on uber, as well as lyft. Neither came back with a response. It was looking like I was going to have to hike that last 2 1/2 miles like it or not. When I could tell I was descending off of Highground and would lose cell service, I tried Uber one more time. It went through! I got a driver named Anna! She picked me up in about 20 minutes, and brought me into  Front Royal! I took a shower, got something to eat, and relaxed. I was so grateful for Uber!
Date: 2018-05-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I took a day off in Front Royal to rest my aching bones, clean my dirty butt, and wash my nasty clothes . The day started off fine, and I walked about three blocks to shopping center. I brought my dirty clothes, threw them in the washer, and got them going. There was a store next-door that sold shorts, and I was in dire need of something besides these long sweatpants that I¢ve been wearing.  This trail has gotten so hot so fast! It¢s 90° again today. I went and bought some shorts, went back and dried my clothes, and then went back to the hotel room. It was around this time, that I noticed something still stunk. I kept smelling my shirt, but it was mot my shirt. It took a little while longer, but I realized it was my LSU baseball cap. It was rancid!  I hated to say goodbye to my old friend, as we had been together for 290 miles. But it was so nasty, and it was going to be so hot to keep wearing it, that I left behind in front Royal. I went to the outfitters, and bought some shorter socks, and a buff for my head if I decide to wear something. I got what little groceries I needed, and will be ready to go out tomorrow and hit the trail again!  Late in the afternoon, tremendous thunderstorms came through, and we lost electricity for about an hour and a half or so. Other than that, a very relaxing day.
Date: 2018-05-15
From: Fiery Run Road

To:  Whiskey hollow shelter Yes 
Miles today: 8.9

well, I was supposed to be picked up at 9 o¢clock, and brought to the trail by about 930. My shuttle was late, and I didn¢t get on the trail until about 945. No big deal. The day had three big elevation changes, with the second one being about 1200 feet. It was as challenging as I thought it would be. I know it took at least an hour to get up there. The temperature was in the mid 80s  and the humidity had to be near 100%. It reminded me of being in south Louisiana again! Other than the heat and humidity, and huge elevation changes, it was a fun day! Not really. I got to the shelter kind of late. About 530 or so. This was a strange situation in that there were two shelters. An older one, that had a Geodesic  shape, and was called Dick¢s dome.  The new shelter was about 100 yards away, and was called whiskey hollow shelter. For some reason, all the hikers wanted to go to the new shelter. Either way you slept on the plywood floor, and there¢s really no difference, as long as the roof doesn¢t leak. I had already dropped my stuff at the first shelter, I didn¢t feel like moving to the second, so I had the geodesic shelter to myself. I spread out up my junk, and went to sleep.  A large stream flows right in front of the shelter, so it was like having white noise all night long. I really couldn¢t hear anything.
Date: 2018-05-16
From:  Whiskey hollow shelter Yes 

To: Rod Hollow Shelter 
Miles today: 8.5

I slept pretty good last night, and woke up at daybreak. I thought I would get on the trail early, since I had 8 1/2 miles to go to the next shelter, and if I was really energetic, I could go the last 4 miles, and call for a shuttle to take me to Winchester Virginia. All of that changed as soon as I started packing up. I could not find the top to my pack! I knew It  had been in the shelter with me  yesterday, but it was nowhere to be found. My first thought was it had fallen out. I looked all around the shelter, went up to the privy, I even went to the other shelter looking for it. I asked the last two hikers who were at the other shelter if they had seen anything like that and they replied negatively. I went back to my shelter, and turned it upside down once again. Still nothing. I could not imagine a hiker having stolen it,  and so I started to think about animals. If it were a bear, I¢m sure I would¢ve heard it. So it must¢ve been something smaller. So that¢s when I started thinking maybe it were a smaller animal, and it was too big and heavy to drag  very far. I thought maybe it would be some where close in the woods. The first place I thought to look, was under the shelter. I turned the flashlight on my iPhone, and there it was. Under the middle of the shelter. I took one of my trekking poles, and pulled it back out. Whatever little animal had it, had broken open one of the zippered compartments.  It didn¢t take long to look at the paw prints, and realize it was probably a raccoon. They apparently came into the shelter, grabbed what was closest to the entrance, and dragged it under the shelter looking for something to eat. There was no food in it, and so they abandoned it. Crisis averted! I packed my crap, and left the shelter. I had an 8.5 mile day, which is  not too bad for me. The hiking was actually nice today. I got to the next shelter early, but the rain was on the way. I got a prime position in the corner, and then just watched it fill up with hikers. There must¢ve been 15 to 20 people either in the shelter or in tents  around the shelter. There was a group of young girls, and young guys. It was like  watching high school kids. Everything the guys did, made the girls giggle, and the two guys were acting like fools most the time.  I cooked my favorite supper, which is dirty rice with pepperoni and bacon bits. Very good! I went to sleep pretty early. This was my wife and me¢s fifth anniversary. I didn¢t like spending it away from her, but she will be here in three days, for a week¢s vacation! I¢m really looking forward to that. Good night!
Date: 2018-05-17
From: Rod Hollow Shelter 

To: MorganÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Mill Road
Miles today: 3.7

It rained hard almost all night last night. Every time I woke up, it was pouring. I expected to have water everywhere, and that¢s exactly what we had. People started leaving the shelter at daybreak, and I waited for the shelter to clear out so I could pack my stuff. With 10 of us sleeping in there, it was very crowded if we all tried to pack up at once. I only had about 4 miles to go today, so I let everyone else clear out. I called  my shuttle company, and they agreed to pick me up about four hours earlier than agreed-upon, since it would only take about 2 1/2 hours to hike the distance I had to go today. I hiked as quickly as I could, because I didn¢t want to be late. The roller coaster is very challenging! The hills are very steep, both up and down, and today, the trail is flooded.  I walked in water anywhere from a puddle, to mid calf, all day long.  At one point, I slipped on a large rock, I held myself up with my poles, did a complete 180° turn, facing backwards, clicking my polls around like a praying mantis! If it weren¢t for my catlike reflexes, and my superhuman abilities in balancing, I definitely would have fallen.  But, maybe next time. Haha!!I recovered from what may seem like a slip on my part, which was actually an attack by the trail, and continued on. Apparently this is more rain than Virginia usually gets. Reminds me of the beginning of my trip, when Virginia was getting much more snow than they usually get! I got to my pick up point at around noon, and my driver took me to Winchester Virginia. He is a former CIA agent! He said he has done both undercover and overt missions overseas! A very interesting gentleman who is somewhere around 75 years old now. He is also a historian, and has written several books. One on the history of the NSA.  The title is, American cryptology during the Cold War. The complete declassified official for volume history of the NSA! This is who drove me to my hotel room! Is that amazing or what! I just bought the book on Kindle, and that will be something I will read while I am hiking! Finally, today, I officially went over the 300 mile mark! A milestone, that feels great, even though it¢s nowhere near the 2189 that I need.
Date: 2018-05-23
From: MorganÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Mill Road

To: Snickers Gap
Miles today: 6.8

today, my wife wanted to hike some of the Appalachian trail with me. We picked out a 7 mile section. It was the meat of the roller coaster. It was still a little wet and muddy from the rains earlier in the week. We had several moderate uphill climbs. She did great! A natural! One with nature! We finished about 530 in the afternoon. Back to a shower and hotel!
Date: 2018-05-24
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

when my wife and I got done with our hike, we drove on skyline Drive, to Luray Virginia. It¢s a beautiful little town with lots of shops and restaurants. Also the famous caverns are there. We visited the caverns and my wife did some shopping. We also went to a few resale shops and my wife found some great bargains!  When we left there, we drove on skyline Drive to Wainsborough Virginia. Ate some Japanese food at a local restaurant and got a good nights sleep.
Date: 2018-05-25
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

We left Waynesboro, and continued on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We went down to the Tye  River, which is beautiful! From there, we went to Lynchburg Virginia and had lunch. Then on to Roanoke Virginia, to Black Dog salvage. Ate some Mexican food that night and prepared to drive back to Washington DC tomorrow
Date: 2018-05-27
From: Snickers Gap

To: View Entry
Miles today: 7.3

I returned my rental car in Charles town West Virginia, and caught a ride to the trail. I intended to go to the next shelter which was about 10 or 11 miles, but the weather was threatening all day long. There were severe thunderstorms in the area as well as a tornado warning later in the afternoon. The highlights were, I am now in West Virginia, and I am done with the roller coaster! The terrain is noticeably easier. With the weather threatening all afternoon, I decided to stay in a hostel Which is just off the trail. I also had the most amazing trail magic today. It was provided by a through hiker from last year, named Circus. He was cooking fresh burgers, he also had burgers from McDonald¢s, he had complete resupply with medicines, toiletry items, and food for at least four or five through hikers. A truly amazing spread! Also live music!!
Date: 2018-05-28
From: Blackburn Trail Center 

To: Harpers Ferry 
Miles today: 11.6

I didn¢t sleep very well last night. I don¢t know if it was raining or if it was fog, but there was intermittent precipitation falling on the metal roof of the shelter. Finally around 715 or so, other campers as well as a dog woke up. I got up, brushed my teeth, ate something, filled up my pack and got on  the trail. My objective was to hike 12 miles to Harpers Ferry. Today, the elevations were easy. I don¢t know if I¢ve ever said that before. The biggest elevation was maybe 100 feet or so. Most of it was downhill, which really makes the feet ankles and knees hurt. There wasn¢t much to see, as most of the day I was in fog. I made it to Harpers Ferry about 5 o¢clock, and got in the shower. I¢m looking forward to a good nights sleep, and  getting into Maryland in the morning! My third state!
Date: 2018-05-29
From: Harpers Ferry 

To: Ed Garvey Shelter 
Miles today: 6.3

The day did not start off very well. I left my hiker poles at the front desk of the hotel. When I realized that this morning, I went and asked if the hotel clerk found them. No one knew where they were. I was quite frustrated that I had been so stupid as to leave those poles at the front desk. I went back and looked in my room, and two hotel workers searched the hotel. After about 10 minutes, one of the workers came down the hall with the poles in his hand. He said they were behind The door in his store room. I was pretty excited! I started hiking into Harpers Ferry, and took a wrong turn somewhere in the hills above town. I ended up hiking on a road, and went down to the outfitter. I bought a pair of socks, then headed across the Potomac River into Maryland! My third state. I walked along an old towpath that follows the river. It¢s flat, level and as wide as a one lane street.  This went along  for about 4 miles. Then, came my dreaded elevation change. I had a 1000 foot climb! It was hot and muggy, and it was a pretty stiff two hour climb! Once I got to the top, the hiking was very easy, and I  wheeled into the shelter. It was a typical shelter, and I had a decent nights sleep.
Date: 2018-05-30
To: Rocky Run Shelter 
Miles today: 9.1

The other guys in the shelter woke me up early this morning. I finally got up about 630. After preparing my food and water for the day, I hiked out about 8 AM. This was a great hiking day! The trail was almost level! Very favorable! About mid day, I walked through one of Maryland ¢s state parks. Very strange place. There are monuments there, but I¢m not quite sure what they¢re for. There was a Civil War battle fought  where the state park is also.  There was one good view today, but other than that, a pretty boring, easy day. I was worried about rain all day long, but it never caught up with me. I got into the shelter at about 3 PM. The rain hit shortly after, but didn¢t last very long at all. I cooked supper, tuna Alfredo, brush my teeth, and got ready for bed. I¢m not really looking forward to tomorrow, as there¢s an 80% chance of rain Tomorrow!
Date: 2018-05-31
From: Rocky Run Shelter 

To: Pogo Campsite
Miles today: 11.0

today was another nice day of hiking. The elevations were not too great. I went through Washington Monument State Park. I didn¢t realize it, but there is an original Washington Monument, that is located in this park. It was built before the large monument in Washington DC. The trail goes directly through here. The trail today was easy to moderate, but with lots of mud.  My intentions were to go to the next shelter, but I got there fairly quickly due to the easy terrain. I went ahead and skipped  that shelter, trying to get to the next. It turns out, the next shelter was a bit too far, and the rain was gaining on me. I stopped at a nice tent site, that had a nice stream running near it. That way I had plenty of water for cooking that night, as well as a refill for my water to hike with tomorrow. I slept in my tent, in the woods, all alone.   As soon as I set my tent up, the rain hit. No more than 15 or 20 minutes after. It rained hard for about an hour, and that was the extent of the rain for the day. The day was fairly uneventful, except for the fact that I met a couple from Montreal Canada. They were out in the woods taking pictures for some reason.  I tried to impress them with my command of the French language! It was a pretty big fail. I got out a few phrases, and they said that that one day they wanted to visit Louisiana. Other than that, a pretty quiet day.
Date: 2018-06-01
From: Pogo Campsite

To: Raven Rock Shelter 
Miles today: 9.6

it took me a little longer to get on the trail this morning, cause I had to pack up my wet tent. It was filthy, due to the fact that the tent site was dirt, and so as it rained, it splashed mud all over the outside of my tent. I packed up the tent, mud and all and headed north. This was a fairly uneventful day, but it had several moderate uphill challenges. The last one, right before the shelter, was about 700 feet. It was exhausting ! It reminded me of the huge mountains in Virginia. I guess I was already tired from the other smaller hills I had to go up. I got water about a half mile before the shelter, and that added 8 pounds to my pack. I could really tell the difference. My back was killing me by the time I got to the shelter. I met a couple of through hikers, curb, and sheepdog. Curb is from Nashville, and sheep dog is from Arizona. They have both come from Georgia.  I slept in the shelter with one other person. He came in right at dark, and I don¢t know his name.  It rained during the night, and seem to be raining most of the night.
Date: 2018-06-02
From: Raven Rock Shelter 

To:  Cobblestone hotel Wainsborough Pennsylvania 
Miles today: 7.5

when I woke up, about 630, the rain was over. Everything was muddy and wet. I packed up, and got on the trail. I was pretty excited because I¢m headed to a hotel, and a days rest. I have hiked seven days in a row, and my left knee and my right ankle are really starting to hurt. I want to give them time to heal up. I got on the trail at about 8 AM. I had a couple of streams to cross, and a couple of Moderate to large  uphill climbs. The second climb was over 1 mile in length. It was very tiring. My back was beginning to hurt again. When I got to the road, where I was going to hitchhike into town, I walked about a quarter of a mile toward town, and thought that the traffic seem pretty sparse. I checked my Guthook app, and realized I was on the wrong road. I walked back into the woods, and came out another 3/10 of a mile later on to the correct highway. There was a large parking lot there,  and as soon as I showed up, a car backed in and popped the trunk open. There was a hiker there, and he started loading his pack into the car. I guessed that this may be a shuttle driver, and it was! I got an immediate ride to my hotel! What great timing! The hotel let me check in early, about 1 o¢clock. And here I am.
Date: 2018-06-03
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

today, I went to the nearby Walmart supercenter and resupplied. I also watched LSU nearly lose to Northwestern State in a regional. I ate a Subway sandwich that night, plotted my course for the next week, and watched LSU Embarrass their coach, themselves, and all their fans by losing a second time to Oregon State. The combined score of the two games was 26 to 1. It¢s as though they had never played the game before! Oh well, maybe next year. I also watched  the movie Dunkirk. Pretty good movie. Not what I expected but good anyway. Tomorrow, back on the trail.