morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-13
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Ah, to be warm and dry! We planned to come down to town for a few days, but wow, we didn't know what great timing we had. CRAPPY weather! As I mentioned my "first" new day of hiking was amazing and actually yesterday was too in a strange sort of way. I was kept awake at Derrick Knob all night by my tent blowing fiercely in the wind. I kept making up terrible stories in my head for the next day of hiking in torrential and lightening. So needless to say, I was a bit nervous when I got out yesterday. Rain was definately in the air! I was feeling a few aches in my feet the night before so I was telling myself I'd go extra slow. BUT...So I think I got about 3 miles out before it started to sprinkle. It was a gradual uphill and I was feeling pretty good. Apparently, I was haulin' and didn't even know it, 'cause I was passing people like crazy (something I don't normally do!) and arrived at the next shelter (5.5) miles much earlier than I expected. Even though the weather wasn't that great, I found that perma-smile and was having SO much fun on an AWESOME section of trail! Uncle Joe, remember that really cold and rainy day on my first Michiganander where we stopped at that bakery near the single track and I thought it was the coolest thing eaver? Yeah, it was like that! AM I totally mental that I LOVE the sorta crappy days? Anywho..so my group had agreed to meet at the Clingman's Dome parking lot at mile 10 to find a ride to town. I arrived MUCH earlier than expected! Everyone got out of the rain and huddled in the women's bathroom while we waited on a shuttle. I eventually was just too cold and bombarded this poor guy and his son, asked them if they were going into Gatlinburg and could I have a ride? He agreed so I hopped in with his family in their clean, dry Toyota and off we went. Not until I caught a glimpse of myself in the rearview mirror did I realize how scary I probably looked. Ooops. But, thank you so much for the family from Cinncinati who drove me to the Grand Prix! I was COLD!The first item on the agenda was to shower and WARM the "bleep" up! So all is good now. I'm warm and dry and clean and will be for another day while we all rest. "We" is still Moonpie, Pumpkin, Mother and Tim. We're havin' a grand ole time out here! Smilin' again and it feels good!
Date: 2005-04-16
From: Ice Water Shelter

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

The past two days have been BEAUTIFUL! We waited out the rain in Gatlinburg for two days. My perception of the Smokies has definately changed! I'm loving the park. The view from Clingman's was pretty cool. Apparently the road to the top was closed yeaterday morning due to snow. There were remnants and it was pretty cool. Of course I was hiking in shorts and a t-shirt. I did see my breath though. That crazy sun! The views the whole day were AMAZING and I was so grateful for the good weather. I can only imagine what snow and rain would do to this section. The Ice Water Shelter that we stayed in last night was pretty cool too. Packed 'cause it was the beginning of the weekend, but I found a spot in the shelter and had a decent night's sleep. No major snorers. If I had felt ambitious I would have crawled out of my bag to see a beautiful sunrise, but alas, I was too lazy! The setting was just too cool. After setting out we had an AMAZING sight from Charlies's Bunion. Lots of photo opps. Wish I could share them with you all right now. I'll finish tomorrow... losing light.
Date: 2005-04-17
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Mt Cammerer Lookout Tower
Miles today: 12.0

I'm writing this entry in THE coolest palce ever! 0.6 miles off the trail is this tower that overlooks the valleys of the northern Smokies. There are rocks leading up to the tower to traverse and our group is the only one up here! Actually the 4 that I've started with, plus part of Team Methane. I believe that makes 11 of us. Its gonna be THE coolest slumber party EVER! I was crabby on my way up here 'cause we had to haul extra water for dinner, etc. and my pack was extra heavy, but WOW it sure is worth it! the sun is shining down on us and the Smokies are kinda smoky. The sunset will be pretty awesome.Again, the past few days have just been great. I'm feeling pretty darn good physically and mentally. The weather is AMAZING, views are AWESOME and compnay is pretty darn fun. We've walked ridge lines for the past few days too, so I've gotten LOTS of views of most of the park on either side. I'm totally blown away and MUST come back. I can only imagine the beauty of parks out west with even more grandeur.Really, I'm at a loss for words!Cool observations:1. We've come down in elevation, out of coniferous forest and into deciduous forest.2. Saw a few horses today with riders, of course, on trail rides across the AT. There was a woman tho thought we were all pretty cool for going to Maine.3. Aaron and Lidia- I found your picture at the Happy Hiker in Gatlinburg. It was cute!I really do wish I could bottle all this coolness up for y'all! The beauty is beyond words or photos for that matter. I've been feeling the urge to sketch lately which is VERY exciting seeing as how I haven't really wanted to since school, two years ago. I've just a few blank pages and a pen away from entertainment. Wish I had them while here in the Smokies, though. I don't know when we'll get views like this again.Oh, hey Em! We are approaching Max PAtch in a day or so, I'm so excited, I hope we have weather like we did last year.Team Methane includes:Tristan and Sarah, Tina and Jay and Zero. They are all cool cats travelin' roughly at the same pace.
Date: 2005-04-20
From: [Standing Bear hostel-possibly]

To: Deer Park Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

I'm taking a little break right now. I'm probably only 2 miles from the shelter, but its only 2:45, its HOT and I'm tired. Today was supposed to be lazy and relaxing, but somehow it turned into a grueling day. I made the mistake of trying to keep up with Mother and Monnpie. I probably could have done it on a cooler day, but...oh well!Since last I wrote at Mt. Cammerer, I've exited the GSMNP and have hit up a few coolt trail spots. The actual last 5 miles out of the park to Davenport Gap were all down hill and easy to cruise down. We then walked to "Mountain Mommas" which is famous for its "huge cheeseburgers". I wouldn't say it's the best I've ever had by any stretch of the imagination, but oh my gosh, how I inhaled that thing with a few sodas and a candy bar!I was ready to go. A few members of Team Methane actually went back for second burgers. They are better eaters than I, I guess. Moutnain Momma herself shuttled us the 1.3 miles back to the trail where we then continued just a few miles to Standing Bear, a hostel that I spent some time at last year trying to recover. It was great to be back there. That place is SO cool. Curtis the owner even remembered me, nuts! I refueled ourselves and our fuel bottles there, enjoyed some new company and headed out at 6:30 pm. for another 5 miles.We were warned that it would be some pretty big ups and boy were they right. We arrived to our campsite and 9:15 pm, only using our headlamps for 20-25 minutes or so and were glad to see Sensei already in bed. After hearing coyotes a mile back or so, more people were a welcome sight. Turns out night hiking IS as cool as everyone says. Pumpkin and I were so proud of ourselves for being such big girls, we deemed ourselved "Extreme Hikers"! Hardly. But it was fun none the less.Yesterday, was very nice, but very long, nothing all that exciting except we did go over Max Patch, a bald. It was as great as I had remembered from my trip there last summer with Emily. Em, wish you were here, girl! Got into camp kinda late, we were trying to avoid a storm that never ended up coming through.Like I said today was supposed to be lazy and I pushed a little too hard. This break has done me well and I should have no problem finishing up these last 2 miles now. Tomorrow will be a very short hiking day, 3 into Hot Springs where I'll be able to SHOWER! I think this is my longest strretch so far at 6.5 days "in the woods". Not bad! I am looking forward to washing all of the salty sweat out of my hair. Yippee! Hope everyone is doing well! Let me knopw by signing the guestbook and droping me an e-mail! Love y'all and PEACE!
Date: 2005-04-26
From: Flint Mountain Shelter

To: btw. Hogback Ridge Shelter and Bald Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Location sort of unknown. Somewhere between Hogback Ridge Shelter and Bald Mountain Shelter. Today was interesting. It started out REAL well cause I got a great night's sleep in my tent last night. I was up by 6:00am getting stuff put away, but a little slow to cook. Pumpkin and I didn't leave camp until 9am. I was expecting a 15-mile day, so I was trying to get psyched up about it. I was also expecting T-storms that I was NOT excited about! We walked to the next shelter where we had a much needed lunch. Extreme appetites are starting to kick in! Lots of ups all morning too. Cold, as well. Not ideal conditions, but better than thunder and lightning. We left from the shelter intending to hike another 6 miles and tent at Low Gap, but unfortunately the rain started falling at the top of some random mountain that I'm lying on right now. We were all able to pitch our tents before everything got too wet, but argh, it was only 5:30 pm. What to do?? READ! I just picked up a book in Hot Springs and it was the perfect opportunity. Again, plans have changed as far as mileage into Erwin, but I'm determined to get there by Thursday so I can sufficiently re-supply without having to go hungry. I'm thinking A LOT about food these days and really I'm probably not even that hungry yet. Scary to think of what's to come. In more exciting news, I passed the 300-mile mark yesterday. Oh, all right, I guess not that exciting. Looking forward to Trail Days in a few weekes. I was hoping to walk past it by a week or so and "hitch" back, but looks like I'll only be a day or two beyond, SAD! I wanted to avoid the wave out of Damascus, guess I'll be smack dab in the middle of it. On the foot front, they are doing very well. I'm getting ready to switch into my 2nd pair of orthodics for the trip, hoping there won't be any blister issues. Yippee! Oh, hey, if yer checkin' out this journal, sign my guest book if you have the chance. I'm so curious to see who's out there! Peace, y'all!
Date: 2005-04-27
From: btw. Hogback Ridge Shelter and Bald Mtn Shelter

To: No Business Knob Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: light rain

Do I have any words for today? Hardly! Hellish perhaps? No, it wasn't THAT bad, but close. We had nearly every possible type of weather except for warm. I'm not kidding either! We awoke to sun, prospects for a nice day and were out for the first mile or so. Stopped to get some water and was greeted by the rain, then the wind picked up. Approaching our big climb for the day, we were in a cloud. At the top, the wind was literally knocking me over while being accompanied by sleet. At lunch the sun peeked through for I think 5 minutes. Enough to warm my back a bit that had been drenched just minutes before. After lunch was promising with flashes here and there from Mr. Sun but also, we walked the last few miles in the RAIN, the ONLY part of the day I hiked without my RAIN ocat! Temperature control was absolutely horrendous. I kept putting on and taking off my winter hat, or should I say tabogen? Same went for the gloves. In addition to the freaky weather we had 16 rather interesting miles to deal with. I think it would have been really a great day if we could have seen anything. Nutty! But...there is always tomorrow. Actually, I'm looking forward to tomrrow, we are pulling into Erwin. I'm gonna hit up Erwin Burrito! Looking forward to it greatly. Hoping to get a spot at Miss Janet's tomrrow night, but there are SO many people here at the shelter tonight walking the 6 miles to town tomorrow.Hey, Hey, any LAs remember when Spencer used to talk about the State skits, in particular about pudding "I cook, and then I chill." Some guy was just talking about it. Made me giggle! I miss you guys!Oh, any Michiganders....this is how I rolled in tonight....as if it was a REALLY hot and long day and then the school is at the top of a REALLY big hill! Can you picture it? Miss you guys too! A big tent city here tonight in AT shelter terms. This is SO FREAKIN' FUN! All the crappy stuff is so quickly forgotten after a pot full of Mac and Cheese! UNBUH!
Date: 2005-05-03
From: Clyde Smith Shelter

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

So, I've kind of been dreading this entry 'cause I've got SO much to say! Remember when I was saying I was going to stay at Miss Janet's? Well, I ended up calling some family friends that live pretty close to Erwin and they put me up for a very fabulous 2 1/2 days! It was GREAT! I took one of the best showers of my entire life, slept in a big huge soft bed with down pillows, ate great food and kept awesome company! Aside from all the amazing hospitality that the Gambrell's offered, I attended a very unique "thing" with Josh Gambrell (son and former thru-hiker). He is getting a Masters in Storytelling from ETSU and I was lucky enough to be invited to the final exam for one of his classes. It was a very small gathering, but the warmth from the group was overwhleming. Each student presented their project, which were all so different and creative. Josh described his professor as the Michael Jordan of Storytelling, Linda Gross, she was VERY cool! My time with the Gambrells was so relaxing and the perfect opportunity to rejuvenate! Thank you SO much Cindy, Van, and Josh!I was taken back to the trail on Sunday afternoon. It was a little weird 'cause I was by myself again after 6 weeks. It was feeling like I was at the Approach Trail all over again, waving to my Dad goodbye. Maybe even scarier. I was going to have to meet all new people and at this point they know most of the people within a day or so of each other. Pumpkin had taken 2.5 days as well with a friend, so we were hoping to run into one another, but there was no guarantee. I only walked 10.5 miles and camped with some other people. It was a grueling day 'cause my pack was SO heavy from resupplying. Not so much fun. Camped with a bunch of new people, as well as Smoke and Mutt. Caveman from last year was also with them. He's walking with them from Erwin to Damascus for Trail Days. Great to see another familiar face.The enxt morning I broke camp pretty early and took off to try to catch Pumpkin. I thought she was a few miles ahead. I got to the next shelter and checked the register, she wasn't signed in. Huh?!? So, I sat around and started in on my lunch when I heard, "VOUGIE!" Yippee, it ended up that she camped 1/2 mile south of where I had stayed the night before. Even though we had only split with the group a few days before, it was a nice reunion! The rest of the day was pretty lazy, we were just glad to catch one another.5/3/05- Today was pretty nutty, we climbed Roan High Bluff, Up, UP, and more Up! It was LONG, I'm tired and gonna sleep, but it was a good day.
Date: 2005-05-04
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Mountain Harbor B & B
Miles today: 9.0

WOW, this place is AMAZING! We hiked into an unfriendly area on the trail today. TN 19E, doesn't have the greatest reputation. However, it's been one of the most enjoyable stops so far. Mary and Terry at Mountain Harbor saw the need to improve the reputation of the area and started opening their doors to hikers. Their hostel is AWESOME! It is the loft above their working horse barn. I thought we would be sleeping among hay bales, but NO the place looks like the cutest finished apartment. An awesome bathroom, fridge, stove, microwave, VCR, etc. AND they made an amazing breakfast in the morning. I highly recommend! AND to increase the coolness of the day, we did short miles and experienced GREAT trail magic from Prometheus, a former thru-hiker. Sandwiches, sodas, vitamin I, fruit AND he was offereing shuttles! Thanks again!
Date: 2005-05-05
From: Mountain Harbor B & B

To: campsite before Mountaineer Falls
Miles today: 8.5

A good day, not overly exciting. Walked a bit, only 8.5 miles, camped at a GREAT site with Pumpkin, Easy Does It, PB & J and Zero. We all arrived pretty early, got a lot of chores done, the others got a great fire going and just chilled! One funny thing, Pumpkin and I were sharing a bear bag rope that we had thrown early in the afternoon. After dinner we were hoisting our food bags up and CRACK, we pulled down the entire branch. it was hilarious and I thought Pumpkin was going to pee in her pants.
Date: 2005-05-06
From: campsite before Mountaineer Falls

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 15.2

Oh, I'm so happy to be here! This is a milestone for this trip. I was told to stay here last year and wasn't able to 'cause I went home and have been looking forward to it since. So far, so good! The hike in today was really very nice. Not huge ups and downs. I was able to keep a pretty steady pace for the whole 15.2 miles today. In fact the last 6 in from the shelter Pumpkin and I walked with PB and we all hauled! Her boys were not expecting us and the road for another hour and we sure did surprise them! It was awesome. I'm glad we were able to have girl time with PB, she's pretty cool. Only another week 'til Trail Days! I'm pretty excited! I think we'll roll in just in time. No hitching required! Oh, yeah, I haven't told y'all bout my great hitch-hiking experiences! Fun stuff! I also love hiker guitars, especially ones who have owners who play them. Music on the trail is AWESOME! Another random note....my Nanny, turned 90 years old today! She's a pretty amazing woman and I love her! Of course!
Date: 2005-05-08
From: Kincora Hostel

To: Laurel Fork Gorge and Wautuga Lake
Miles today: 12.0

Laurel Fork Gorge---What an afternoon! Just came a mile from Kincora Hostel and enjoying the Falls! The water is COLD, but oh that soothing sound!There are tons of hikers down here. Section, day, thru, all kinds of people. We've got a shortish day and lots of opportunity for lounging. We'll probably roll into camp pretty late!Today is Mother's Day and I'm really missing my Mommy! Talked to her yesterday, which was nice but I wish I could give her a big hug too. Also Nanny, Corinne & Grammie. This place is a double-edged sword. Love it so much, but miss so much from home at the very same time. What to do? Guess I better keep hikin'! Wautuga Lake---A perfect night! A great temp and good location. And again, great people! Its like having a dinner party EVERY night where everyone cooks and cleans for themselves. I must confess something however about THIS evening. We, Pumpkin and I are camped with the usualish crew from the past week; Zero, PB & J and Southpaw and Nipmuk have found their way back. Well, after getting to this particular campsite a few realized how VERY close we are to a highway, they decided to hitch out to a McDonald's we knew was nearby. A few of us stayed behind and they brought us back some treats. I however, had a TON of food from my resupply at Kincora and needed to cook dinner. ERIN! Thank you so much for the Trader Joe's suggestion! My Mom sent two different meals, tried one tonight and loved it! They are a tad heavy so I may have to save them fo special occasions.
Date: 2005-05-09
From: Laurel Fork Gorge and Wautuga Lake

To: Just shy of Iron Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: clear sky

Tonight is my 51st night out! Hard to believe. So far, its been just a stupendous 51 nights.Today...not a whole lot to say other than, boy was I HOT! The sad thing, it probably really wasn't all that hot! I guess it just seemed as though 'cause its been so damn cold.Last night was interesting. Remember I mentioned how we were close to civilization, yeah well, it may have been too close for my comfort. We heard tractor trailers all night and a few "whoo-hooing" kids. Just not quite far enough in the woods.Hiking today was alright, a little more UP than I expected and a bit warmer as well. A relatively short day too. Pumpkin and I cut it 2 miles short for a total of 12 for the day. We are here camping again with Zero, PB & J. A great crowd. A bit gassy at times, but great. The trail, at least where we are, is extremely crowded at the moment. People slowing down to get to Damascus for Trail Days, people speeding up and tons of former thru-hikers just doing a section into Damascus. Its kinda cool, but a bit overwhelming also making me a bit nervous that I may be going too slow. Orginally I was hoping to be a week past. Oh, what is Trail Days you may ask!?! I've never been, but have heard it's pretty darn cool. Basically, a whole lotta hikers converge on Damascus, Va. for a long weekend of mostly partying, but other stuff too. I must confess I'm really looking forward to a big, cold, pint of....ICE CREAM. Alright, maybe a beer too. Lots of vendors will be there too, so those with broken gear can usually get it fixed or replaced. There is a huge water fight/parade on Saturday and opportunity to do a bit of trail maintenance as well. I'm actually looking forward to that most of all. A great way to give back to this amazing trail we are hiking on day after day and a little manual labor never hurts. The trail maint. is called Hardcore and run by the ATC and an awesome guy named Bob Peoples, he and his wife own Kincora Hostel. Actually, I'm mostly looking forward to seeing my friends from last year and those I've made this year that are a bit ahead. Yippee, only two more hiking days and we'll be there! I think it's only 32 miles or so from where I am now. AND we'll be walking into VA, our 4th state! So exciting!
Date: 2005-05-10
From: Just shy of Iron Mountain Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap near Abington Shelter
Miles today: 15.0

Today...hmmm, we had great intentions of waking up early to beat the heat. Yeah, uh, we all need a little practice with that. Fortunately, it wasn't nearly as hot as yesterday. The terrain was supposed to be easy, so we tentatively planned an 18-mile day, however a thunderstorm got in the way. Luckily, we were already at a shelter for lunch and just waited it out. So we only ended up doing 15 miles. They were a GREAT 15 miles though. I didn't snack enough in the late afternoon and tanked at about mile 14. I think if I had tried to push it to the shelter it woulda been a pretty sad sight. Luckily, I think a few others in the group felt similarly and we found an awesome campsite. probably a good thing anyway 'cause of these freaky crowded shelter. I can't remember the last time I actually stayed in one. We've been camping a WHOLE lot lately. I love it. Pumpkin has a great big two person tent so I've been able to share with her a few times. Mine is so, so, so, tiny sometimes. Especially with the threat of rain. Only 13 miles into Damascus tomorrow. Should be nice and again, crossing into Virginia. Whoohoo!Pumpkin and I have unofficially been inducted into Team Methane. The two of us and PB have been extremely gassy. What is it with us girls? I mean all my close peeps know I can belch with the best of em, but come on! Something's gotta give. At least we can all laugh about it!