morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-06-18
From: Gren Anderson Shelter

To: Jim Murray Property 
Miles today: 18.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up to a grey overcast morning. It was starting to drizzle. I got my tent packed up before it got too wet. I pulled out my pack cover that I did surgery on the other day ( I finally remembered to buy duct tape to cover the giant rip) Hopefully it works! It stayed dismal all day. Drizzled and misted but no crazy down pours. Sadly, my pack cover didn't hold. The tape got all discombobulated from scraping against bushes and stuff. Oh well, at least it wasn't really raining. The hike was pretty decent. Some rocks, some ups and downs. The rocks were super slick. There were some pretty awesome views though. Even with a grey sky. At lunch I made it to the High Point State Park Headquarters. Nice facility. They had flush toilets and they gave hikers a free soda! Super cool. I was able to enjoy lunch inside instead of in the rain. It was disappointing it was such a crummy day there was a beach only .3 off the trail. Oh well, I moved on and made it to camp about 4/430. The Jim Murray Property is privately owned by a guy who does some backpacking. He let's hikers tent in his yard, shower, there's even a small hiker cabin to sleep in. I was excited to get there and check it out. The place was amazing. He has a lot of land. The cabin was just a room with floor space to sleep on. But there was a fan and plugs to charge stuff. The shower was warmish. I couldn't enjoy it too much though because it was on the outside of the building. Anyone walking down the road to get onto the property was going to see you. I showered fast. But it felt pretty good. A lot of people ended up arriving. Mighty Mouse and the Germans, Five, Ninja Geisha and Smokescreen along with Timber, Copperhead and Ice Cream. We hung out and chatTed while making dinner. Sleeping tonight in the soft grass was going to be aweseome!
Date: 2015-06-19
From: Jim Murray Property 

To: Wawayanda Shelter
Miles today: 18.6
Weather: scattered clouds

I had some of the best sleep last night! It was so hard to get up. The well at the Jim Murray Property wasn't working this morning. I had a liter and a quarter when j left camp. Not a lot. I prefer to carry 2 liters. And book said there was no water all day...which was a lie. Anyways, I left camp about 730. It was humid but still pvercast. I was hoping the cool temperatures from yesterday would continue today. The morning hike wasn't too bad. Mighty Mouse and I ended up hiking most of the day together. It was nice having company for the day. We hiked through a Wildlife Preserve which was gorgeous. I am absolutely astounded by how beautiful New Jersey has been. It's awesome!! After the preserve was a lot of ups and downs. They were kicking my butt today. We've been a bit spoiled for the past few hundred miles, not much elevation change. But were getting back into the constant ups and downs and my legs need to get back in shape! We walked along a nice boardwalk for a mile or 2 this morning too. It was a great change of pace. The marshes were beautiful. And we were able to hike at a pretty good clip as well. Finally we made it to NJ 94. We pushed hard all day to get here. We made it about 130. .1 mile west was a farmers market where we were aiming to eat lunch and ice cream. It was a nice place and they had picnic tables with a tent set up just for hikers. We were able to take off our shoes and socks without grossing anyone out, lol. I was starving and ended up eating a lot of food...a chicken wrap, chips, cookies, watermelon, ice cream and apple struedel sticks. I was pretty stuffed. I took a cap nap in the grass for a while. We ended up staying at Heaven Hill Farm Market for 2 hours. They even had wine there! I didn't buy any otherwise I wouldn't end up hiking any more!We pushed on about 330. The climb up the mountian was called stairway to heaven. It was a beast, all rocks and rock steps. But we did it! After that we had another 3ish miles to the shelter. Ups and downs that made our tired sore legs even more tired. We made camp and set up our tents. We had to walk .4 to the water source. But this source was on the outside of the park office building. No filtering! And they had a real restroom. I took a bath in the sink. Not super clean but a lot better than I was!Back at camp I was actually hungry and made dinner. Mr. Clean, Pinnocho and Mighty Mouse are going into town tomorrow to zero. I'm pushing on. And thankfully don't have to go into town tomorrow to resupply. I had some extra food from eating at delis and Mighty Mouse and the Germans gave me some extra snacks I'm all set! Now I just have to figure my miles. It's either 12 miles or 27 miles to a shelter. There isn't any camping in between and you're suppose to camp only in designated spots in New York. So we'll see I guess
Date: 2015-06-20
From: Wawayanda Shelter

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: light rain

I got up fairly late today. I didn't have too far to go so I wasn't worried about leaving early. I had Orginally planned to go into town to resupply so I planned shorter miles. Even though I didn't have to resupply I ended up keeping the short miles. The next 2 shelters were placed too far apart for me to hike. I didnt really want To stealth Camp either. It started raining early on. Just a slight rain, no down pours. But it made the rocks pretty slick and there were a lot of rock climbs. After 4 miles in crossed into New York!! So excited to be on the 9th state!!I made it to the road crossing for greenwood lake about 1230ish. I called my sister to wish her a happy birthday. About .1 down the road was a place called the Hot Dog. I was so tempted to go there for lunch. I really should have. But I didn't. I still don't know why, lol. But I moved on the next 2 miles to the shelter. I set up my tent, thankfully there was a lull in the rain. After that I went up to the shelter to eat lunch. One guy already set up his tent in the shelter. He was actually hiking the Long Path, with mwets up with the AT for a few miles. He was a bit odd. Smokebreak stopped in for lunch as well. We chatted for a bit. Eventually a few other hikers came in that I had seen before. We chatted for a while. Eventually I went to my tent. It was raining on and off all day. Tonight it was supposed to rain a lot. remnants of a tropical storm. Let's hope it's done raining by the morning.
Date: 2015-06-22
From: William Brian Memorial Shelter

To: Peekskill, NY
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: clear sky

It was a pretty windy night last night. Everything was dry but my boots of course. I moved out of camp a little after 7. It was an uphill climb first thing of course. But this time there were rock stairs! Easier than bouldering. I had to cross the Palisades Interstate. I hate when the trail makes me cross highways where cars are doing 80 miles an hour. It really sucks. Bear Mountian was amazing. The climb up was great. Nice stone steps and a clear easy path. I never thought I would say that I looked forward to stairs. But after all the bouldering and rock climbing on hands and knees I really really enjoyed the stairs. The view from the top of the mountian was great. They had an observation tower where you could see the NY CITY skyline. There were a ton of people around. I wasnt expecting that since it wasn't a weekend. The climb down was pretty nice too. Very well maintained. I do so enjoy walking on the trail where a lot of tourists go. The trail is always so nice. I had lunch down at Hessian Lake at the Bear Mountian recreation area. Thier concession stand was open. I got a burger and fries and at that point in my life it was the most amazong burger ever. Lol. The lake was beautiful and the day was too. Nice and breezy. After the lake the trail goes through a small zoo. It's donation based. It was interesting. They had a fee animals...fox, porcupine, Deer and black bear. There was some construction going on, I hope they emprove the animal habitats next. But it's a cute little place for people to learn about local plants and animals. Male people more aware.Next i crossed the Hudson River on the Bear Mountian Bridge. Pretty cool! After that it was a steep climb up another bloody mountian, lol. The trail wasn't too bad after that. Small ups and downs. I was moving at my normal pace Thank god. None of that crap from yesterday. Looking back now my freak out was really rediculous but at the time it was everything. We really take a toll out here. Plus I haven't had a zero day since Front Royal, VA which was May 29th. I really need a break, lol.Dad was waiting for me when i got to the road! He had my new boots!!! I wore the crap Out of the other ones. They lasted over 1300 miles but it was time for new ones. He took me into town to resupply and to grab a motel. I finally got to take a shower!! And I did shower laundry, lol. I can't wait to get home and get the chance to really clean everything. After that we went to dinner. It was pretty tasty and I ate a lot. He went home and now I'm chilling in bed. 3 more days and I'll be in CT!!
Date: 2015-06-23
From: Peekskill, NY

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: clear sky

Had a great night in the hotel. I tried to sleep in but I still woke up around 5. I dozed on and off until my alarm went of at 7. I packed up everything and waited for the shuttle. Sliding my feet in new boots was amazing! I felt pretty bad about leaving my old boots in the trash. They took me so far and my thanks is the garbage bin. I feel really guilty. I should have had my dad bring them home with him, lol. The shuttle driver was 30 minutes late. Super irritating. But he was a nice guy and we chatted about the trail and traveling the while ride. Turned out to be a 35 dollar ride for like 10 ish miles. But he only charged me 30. Good grief, no wonder the guy drives a Lincoln. I hit the trail about 845am. And boy was it humid. Just standing doing nothing you actively sweat. No bueno. Onward I went. Lots of PUDs today. (Pointless ups and downs). New York is really disappointing me. The terrain sucks. There were some rock climbs too. I keep reminding myself that I am hiking in the darn woods. This isn't a stroll in the park, lol. I am going to be climbing mountians. The bugs were pretty bad today. I put on bug spray but within 5 minutes I sweat it off. CompletEly useless. I feel like the bugs are going to turn me into a homicidal maniac. I hit a great spot for lunch. It was at a road crossing. They had a water spigot on the side of a building and a nice large grassy area. I rinsed off in the cold water, it was delightful. Onward I hiked. I made it to the road for the lake. A lake with swimming. The second I hit the road a crack of Thunder sounded and lightening flashed. Lovely. No point going to the lake, they're probably closing the swimming. I put on my pack cover and hiked some more. It rained but only briefly. And no downpour! I was expecting a deluge at any second but it never came. Eventually I made it to camp. It was a long day and I was pretty exhausted. Smokescreen was there. As well as some section hikers Jersey, Mama Bear and Cub. The shelter was pretty nice and had bunks. I set up my tent of course. There was a hand pump to pump water. Unfortunately it had to be filtered, not only was it discolored but there was a sign saying it had bacteria. Bleh. Hopefully my filter gets it all out. A but later Iron Man Bill and Just Pete came in. I've seen them at a few shelters the past couple of days. We all chatted for a bit. Big mikes again tomorrow but I have the possibility for a shower!! So close to being home! I can't wait!
Date: 2015-06-24
From: RPH Shelter

To: Wiley Shelter 
Miles today: 25.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Slept pretty good last night. Woke up to a nice sunny morning. Got on the trail about 730. The morning went pretty good. Some ups and downs. Stopped for lunch at the next shelter. It was a pretty nice one. While at lunch I decided to try for the shelter at 25 miles instead of the garden center at 20. This way I could get into Kent earlier tomorrow. The next section was my old stomping ground. I used to live off RT.55 in ny. I was about 5 minutes from the trail so I would hike the trail often from old rt. 55 to Pawling. It was wierd looking at the trail from a thru-hiker perspective. It was the same but different. As I was getting close to nuclear lake I saw a day hiker coming toward me. It was Val, my boss/co-worker (from my ny job) and very good friend! It was great to see her! And what a suprise. She had no idea I was going to be on that section of the trail today nor I her. It was crazy! We talked for an hour and a half. I wanted to hang out longer but I really needed to get a move on!I made it to the next shelter at 430. I stopped for a quick dinner and water break and then moved on. It was a pretty decent hike down to the road with the garden center. The guy who owns it backpacks so he let's hikers camp and shower at the garden center. I thought about stopping since it was getting late and i was behind schedule but decided to keep going. I crossed some open fields which was really hot in the sun. At one pint I crossed through a small paddock with cows and calves. The cows were ok one side and the calves were on the other and the trail went right between. I really didn't want to get run over by a cow today. I edged into the field. Babies got up and ran and only one of the cows starting walking forward. I made it out alive, lol.It was starting to get pretty late and I still had a few more miles to go. I figured if it got dark I could just stealth camp. We'll it turns out that the next 4 miles were a nature preserve where camping was prohibited. Of course. I was stressing a bit so I booked it. If it ended up getting dark then I would camp in the preserve even though your not allowed. After a giant climb the trail leveled out. I made it to the road on the other side of the preserve about 8pm! Thank god. Just another .4 to the shelter. I got there in plenty of time to set up my tent in the daylight. Papalu was at camp! After setting up in sat and chatted with him for a bit. I was pretty exhausted by the time I crawled in my tent. I probably shouldn't have pushed those extra miles. But I can't wait to get into CT!
Date: 2015-06-25
From: Wiley Shelter 

To: Kent, CT
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: overcast clouds

I slept decent but the night didn't last long enough. I set my alarm for 5. I wanted to be up and out of camp early. My body was pretty sore from the day before. I got started but kept it a little slow to warm up. I hit the CT border about 7am!! So exciting! In my 10th state!! It was a nice day for hiking. Nice and cool. But I was struggling. It was really hating on me for the huge miles I did yesterday. I had a pretty big climb to do. And then a ton of ups and downs. It was getting super annoying. Finally I made it to Kent about quarter to 1. My grandmother was there at the road waiting! I felt bad because I called her earlier and told her I was going to be at the road by 12....which didn't end up happening. There were some rock scrambles that really slowed me down. But I made it. I gave her a huge hug! It was awesome to see her. And it was great sitting in a car and watching the miles fly by. I went home and showered and started laundry. Everything smelled so bad! I relaxed on the super soft couch until my sister got home. My nephew was really excited to see me!! It feels so nice to be home!
Date: 2015-06-26
From: Kent, CT

To: Southington, CT
Miles today: 0.0

How fitting that my 100th day on the trail I'm zeroing with my family!! My mom took the day off work so we could spend the day together. We went down to Mystic Seaport and looked around in all the shops. We ate lunch at Mystic Pizza! Oh Mt God it was sooooooooo freaking good! For dinner we all went to my favorite resturant. TD Homers in Southington. I think they have the most amazing wings wver!! So freaking good. Such an amazing day!
Date: 2015-06-27
From: Southington, CT

To: Southington, CT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Today we went to the Dinosaur State Park. It was a little disappointing. I was hoping for more dinosaurs. But the baby was happy to see the few dinosaurs we did. We walked around one of the nature trails as well. We packed a picnic lunch but decided to eat it at our next stop. Ember was house sitting and they said we could use the pool. We had lunch and swam. It was a cold, cloudy day but we told the baby we were going to swim. So we had to, lol.Later that night I picked up Salmon, Moment and Sweet Eyes from Kent. They came in for the picnic were having tomorrow! I brought then to dad's to stay. He made an awesome dinner of pork chops, corn and rice. There was also brownies and cookies!
Date: 2015-06-28
From: Southington, CT

To: Southington, CT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

My last zero day. We all converged on Mimis for the picnic. Dad had brought the hikers to resupply and to REI. They said he made them an amazing breakfast as well. It was rainy and cold but the picnic was pretty awesome. The food was amazing. We sat in the garage and ate and drank for hours. I also had a pre-hike friend come to the picnic. It was so great to see her too!! Friends of my mom, dad and gravy d parents came. People who are following the hike! It's great to have the support of so many people.We all went back to dads to chill for a bit. Decided to leave by 7am tomorrow for the trail.
Date: 2015-06-29
From: Southington, CT

To: Pine Swamp Brook Shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: broken clouds

The alarm went off too soon. Dad made a ton of breakfast sandwiches for us. They were super tasty and not one was left! We finally got to the trail about 9am.First thing off we had a climb. My legs felt so stiff and tight. I felt like my calf muscles were going to snap at anybsecond. 3 days off was making me super slow. I was ready to be back on the trail though. Not too much more to go!About lunch time I made it to the shelter. We all stopped there for lunch. There were a father daughter team there as well doing trail maitanence. They gave is chips and fruit!! I do have to say, CT has done an awesome jobs with thier shelters and campsites. Everything is well maintained, well marked and just so mice. I also love that they have campsites spread throughout the trail between shelters. A few states, like CT, Oy allow camping at certain spots. You aren't suppose to stealth camp. Some places that's difficult because shelters are over 20 miles apart. But not CT. They have lovely campsites everywhere. And they have great privies! After lunch I had 10 miles to go. It was tough. The terrain got pretty difficult. A lot of ups and downs. And rocks. I was moving very very slow. The last mile took me 45 minutes. Ugh, so annoying. But I made it to camp. I set up my tent and went down to get water. It was actually a pretty nice spot. The misquitos were horrible! Everyone retreated to thier tents. I cooked dinner and then went to my tent to eat. There was just no other way. We all tented close so we'd talked through the tent walls, lol! Not too bad for my first day back.
Date: 2015-06-30
From: Pine Swamp Brook Shelter

To: Riga Shelter
Miles today: 18.9
Weather: broken clouds

I skept great last night. I left camp about 730 this morning. It was actually a pretty decent hike this morning. Nothing crazy. Once i got to the road at Falls Villagr, CT I had to go on a detour. The bridge was out so they skirted the trail though town. It took us by a church where we all ended up for a snack/lunch break. A guy pulled into the parking lot and asked if we wanted to use the bathroom! He unlocked the doors for us! So awesome. After break I moseyed on down the trail. I went past an awesome waterfall. Seeing as in ate lunch an hour ago I didn't hang around too long. I still had quite a few miles to go. After town we hit a climb. It wasn't too bad! A nice gradual up that didn't last too long. Pretty soon I was working my way down into Salisbury, CT. It got pretty steep, there was even a ladder. Finally I made it down. There was some more road walking. It was hurting my feet pretty bad today. I got back into the woods and it was a lovely pine forest. It was about 3pm. I pulled out the footprint for my tent and spread it out to sit on. I took my boots off, it felt so good, and ate some snacks. I relaxed for almost an hour. It was great and really revitalizing! I had about 3.5 miles left till the shelter. The next climb up to Lions Head i thought was going to be tough. In my day hikes book, it's always listed as strenuous. Well, it wasn't too bad. Pretty nice in fact. A little steep rock climb just before the top. But it was such an easy climb! There was a nice view once I got up there. I 2 day hikers. It was thier first time on the AT, they were out for a few days. They were pretty cool and I loved thier enthusiasm! After chatting with them for a bit I moved on. I made it to camp about 545. I set up my tent and did my chores. This shelter has a lovely view and the tent sites were pretty nice. I decided to be a bit antisocial tonight. I made dinner and crawled into my tent. I washed up and then relaxed. And worked on my journal! Apparently there are 2 bear cubs lurking about and no one knows where the mother is. There's a tiny bear box here for food and it is stuffed full!Crossed 1500 miles today!! Amazing. Rain may be in the forcast...I hope not. I have a tough hike tomorrow
Date: 2015-07-02
From: US 7 Sheffield, MA

To: Mt. Wilcox North Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Had an amazing all you can eat breakfast this morning. Blueberry pancakes! They were so good. I met Mother Moab and her dog Utah. We chatted all through breakfast and got dropped off at the same trailhead this morning. She's finishing up her triple crown. She's already done the PCT and CDT. Very nice lady.I got on the trail at about 8 am. I planned to make 17 miles today. Well, you know what they say about the best layed plans. The terrain wasn't too bad. I'd have a climb, then some ridgewalking, then back down and repeat. The weather was gorgeous. No humidity!! And the sun was out drying out the messy trail. I met another hiker called Twinkletoes. He hiked the trail to CT last year and got off. He's finishing the rest this year. We chatted for a bit as we hiked. At lunch we all met up at the same shelter. There were 2 other hikers there too, that i can't remember thier names. At lunch Twinkle toes was talking about just going to the next shelter. That way tomorrow it'd be a short hike to Upper Goose Pond Cabin. Where we can swim, canoe and hang out at the pond all day and camp there at night. I originally wanted to Goose Pond Cabin but with the rain my miles got out of whack. So I was going to have to skip it. Unless I did short miles...which I was easily talked into. Lol.So I did 13 miles today. I took my time, stopped a lot to take in the views. It was nice and I wasn't super exhausted getting into camp. I feel a bit guilty hiking short miles but it will be worth it tomorrow! Unfortunately there was a group of kids out camping for a few days. A summer camp thing. They took over the place but I found a tent site out by myself. I sat with Twinkle toes to eat and socialize a bit. I was hoping the camp group would feed us, lol! No such luck.