morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-09-02
From: Mount Wilcox South Shelter

To: East Mountain Retreat Center
Miles today: 3.2

Some crazy screaming bird scared us awake in the middle of the night, kinda freaked me out. Got an early start in nasty humidity and headed for the road to Great Barrington. Along the way we saw the remnants of another large beaver dam that had collapsed and wiped out part of a footbridge. Even this long after it had collapsed the water still looked putrid. Got a hitch from the first car to drive by. Great Barrington is a very, very cool town. Lots of nice restaurants and several shops with hiking gear, so I was able to replace more disintegrating socks. I kinda wish I'd waited till I got here to replace my boots because there's a huge selection, but my neon Salomon trail runners are holding their own. We lost track of how many times people came up to us to ask if we needed a ride or any help. We took the offer from a sweet lady and got a ride here to this "spiritual retreat" about halfway between town and the trail. Weird place. People apparently pay to come out here and meditate and pray and read, and are supposed to be silent the whole time. The effect is lost on the fact that the owner's dogs have been barking and yapping ever since we arrived. The library has books from every religion you could think of, and when she was helping out a customer, the owner suggested for her to take a novel to read in addition to a few religious books. I'm not sure why you would pay to come out here and read someone else's books for a few days, but to each his own. Beka has pretty much decided she needs to go home, and we're going to figure out how it will happen over the next few days. It will be very different when she's gone, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-03
From: East Mountain Retreat Center

To: Glen Brook Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Headed out around 8 because apparently the owner of the retreat is pretty temperamental and there has been drama for people caught there at 8:30. She pointed us toward a blue-blazed trail back to the AT, but I'd be hard pressed to call it "blazed". Finally found the AT and soon started having some of the great views we've been missing lately. As we came down East Mountain we took a detour that a posted sign advised hikers to take because there had been flooding on the AT ahead. The flooding was a lot worse around here and hasn't completely receded yet. The mosquitoes were horrendous in places, worse even than they were in Maine. My stomach compelled us to stop in at Highway 7 Grill for lunch, which had just reopened after a week of repairs because of flooding. It was a little high-end for thru-hikers, so we just split a gourmet burger and fries (we passed on the $1 "local organic pickle spear"). Back on the trail we did a lot of hiking through fields and farmlands, where we saw large tracts of crops under water still. Jug End and Mount Bushell turned out to be pretty steep ascents, and the terrain reminded us of Maine ascents. We're in much better shape than we were then, and it's become almost enjoyable to put your head down and tackle tough climbs like those. Awesome campsite here: a lean-to, several tent platforms and tons of flat space, plus a bearbox. Bearboxes, large heavy metal trunks with latches, have become more prominent in this region, and offer a safe and immensely more convenient alternative to bear-bagging. Good day today, enjoyable hiking and a nice evening in camp. - 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-04
From: Glen Brook Shelter

To: Salisbury, CT
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: few clouds

Got an early start in thick fog and humidity. We had more rough and rocky Maine-esque climbs up Everett, Race and Bear. The views from here were probably amazing, but all morning we were completely socked in with fog. The ridgeline walk was pretty cool though, even with 30 ft visibility. We quietly crossed into Connecticut. New states come so frequently lately that it's less exciting than entering NH was. Lots of dayhikers around here, especially on Bear, there was quite a crowd at the peak. Came down and went through Sage's Ravine which was nice, good hiking and lots of swimming holes. We had planned on stopping in town here to resupply, but decided over the course of the day that we'd pay to stay at Vanessa's tonight. It's at the front of our minds now that Beka is leaving soon, and we've kinda decided that we'll spend more time doing enjoyable stuff like this, after all that's why she's called Townie. At the road we got a ride from a nice young couple we saw on top of Bear. Salisbury is a quaint little town, and is apparently home to the oldest library in the United States. We resupplied at the small "artisan" grocery store which charged nearly double for everything. We've heard everything is more expensive in Connecticut, and so far the rumors are true. We ran into Hazel while in town, and he's staying at Vanessa's with us tonight.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-05
From: Salisbury, CT

To: Pine Swamp Brook Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: light rain

Hard to get out of that comfy bed today, but finally got going in the lingering humidity. The rain started intermittently shortly after getting back on the trail, and the mosquitoes continued to harass us. Saw the first deer we've seen on the trail so far today, 3 whitetail. We passed a hydroelectric dam with a big waterfall along the way. Beka again kept met focused and we passed up stopping for lunch in Falls Village. Hazel caught up with us as we were refilling our water, and we hiked as a group the rest of the day. As we were walking up a small ridge we caught site of a racetrack, which we heard is the first every automobile race track in the US. They were having an antique car race. We passed a lot more flooded farmlands; this area has been hit pretty hard by the storm, and apparently this is nothing compared to Vermont. The rain finally started in earnest, and we walked the last 2-3 miles in a torrential downpour. It had the desired effect of doubling our pace, but by the time we got to the shelter we looked like drowned rats, and our stuff had gotten pretty wet too. WORD TO THE WISE: don't just buy a waterproof cover for your pack and start hiking the next day like this guy. TEST, TEST, TEST before you start. I have a 50L pack, my cover claims to be for 50-70L, yet I have to stretch it to get it around my pack, and there are still lapses in coverage that let water in. It continued to rain the rest of the evening here at the shelter. We hear there's a tropical storm that just came through the Gulf of Mexico and is on pace to hit us, and I wonder if this is a precursor to that storm.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-06
From: Pine Swamp Brook Shelter

To: Kent, CT
Miles today: 12.5

It rained all night last night, and the tin roof of the shelter made it sound like the apocalypse starting. The water source down at Pine Swamp Brook was lived up to its swampy name yesterday, but this morning the water was up a lot. We hung all our clothes up to dry last night, but when it's this humid, it feels like that makes them even wetter, and everything was dripping when we took them down this morning. Rain like this is demoralizing, and we're very blessed that there was so little rain during our first month on the trail, it may not have been as "exhilarating". Got started before Hazel and headed downhill until we came to a road crossing that had permanent signs for a high water detour. We figured if that was there when it wasn't so wet, the way ahead would definitely be impassable today. We took the detour and then walked the extra half mile to Cornwall Bridge to get a burger & fries at Jim's mobile burger stand. The "package store" next to him offered a free beer to every thru-hiker that came in. The fact that we had never heard anyone talk about this is amazing, apparently the best-kept secret on the trail. Back on the trail, after we did a steep up and over past the road, we had a 5-mile stretch of pristine trail alongside the Housatonic river, completely smooth trail surface and completely flat. We were going to stop at Steward Hollow Brook shelter, but when we got there there were 2 section hikers already setting up. Really nice guys, but they had a chihuahua in a sweater and a bag full of "controlled substances". After a few minutes we decided we'd just go in to Kent tonight and get dried out. Pushed on another mile to the road where we called and got a ride from an outfitter that offers (overpriced) shuttles. All we'd heard for the past couple of weeks was to avoid Kent, that everyone there hates hikers. Our experience was the exact opposite. We met a lot of friendly people. We got some really good pizza at the Pizza Garden, and while we were there Hazel walked in too. He told us he stayed on the trail at the detour and the water was over waist-deep. We're staying at the same B&B tonight, the owners offer a hiker rate and are really friendly. We are staying in town way too much, but the nasty weather is a good enough excuse today. Besides, Beka's heading home in about a week. We'll figure it out as we get closer, but we're thinking she'll catch a train to Charlotte and my folks will pick her up. - 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-07
From: Kent, CT

To: Ten Mile River Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Had a nice conversation with Hazel and the B&B owners over a pancake breakfast and then caught a ride back out. Dropped Hazel off on the way back to do some resupply. It rained a lot last night, and I believe it was what's left of that tropical storm. The whole area has been soaked, we passed a lot of flooded areas on the way to the trailhead. We had hoped for a long day today but we could tell very quickly we probably wouldn't be making great time. The climb up from the road was basically walking in a stream. Stream crossings that would usually be an afterthought caused some major delays for us today, Thayer Brook in particular. It took us probably 20-30 minutes to finally find a safe way across, then actually get across, then get rebooted and going again on the other side. I had to throw together a makeshift bridge at the next stream crossing by tossing some logs as close together as I could in the rushing water. The streams aren't that wide at all, but the water is just deep and fast enough right now that we probably can't keep our footing, and falling in that would make it a bad day in so many ways. All the other state lines have been very prominent, but not the CT/NY line. We only found one small sign on a tree, and our trail guide says that's actually incorrect. After crossing into NY our stride seemed to pick up, and we ended up hiking alongside the Housatonic again today. It was high back when we hiked alongside it near Kent, but it was an absolute raging torrent today. I have never seen a flood like that, Beka and I had to shout just to hear each other. Our shelter is along Ten Mile River and near where it feeds into the Housatonic. This is a really cool shelter, because there's a large open field in front of it right in the middle of the woods. I can imagine when fireflies are active this would be amazing. There's a really nice waterpump here, always nice to have. We have the shelter to ourselves tonight, so we stretched out and set the tent up in the shelter. We only have a few days left together, so it's nice to get to spend some time just the two of us. Despite the flooding, we actually never got rained on today, though it looked like the sky would open up all day. Hopefully it stays that way tomorrow because the ground is completely saturated.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-08
From: Ten Mile River Shelter

To: Pawling, NY
Miles today: 12.1

It rained all night again but we took our time getting ready and by the time we set out the rain had stopped. Today was forecast to be rainy again, but by noon we finally started seeing blue skies, the first time in several days. Despite the humidity, it felt good to feel the sun on our faces. The trail, however, was not in good shape. We spent at least 50% of our time on the trail sloshing through a stream. New York got hit by Irene a few weeks ago and then got another soaking from the tropical storm, so the ground has been beyond maximum saturation for a while now. We have developed the habit of trying to hop our way around the water to keep our feet dry over the past couple of months, but it was an exercise in futility today. Finally we just started splashing our way right through the middle of it - it was a very liberating feeling, and our pace actually even quickened. Did some beautiful field walks, and we passed the tiny little Appalachian Trail train station on the NY train line. We had one more hill till Pawling, and right before we had to hike through a knee-deep section where a brook had massively flooded. We heard the bridge on the trail had been washed away, and had to be pulled back up stream and cabled in to the trees. Once we got out of this and headed up the hill, I came upon a few puddles and started splashing my way through, then at the last second almost did a flip and somehow managed to avoid planting my foot down on the biggest snake we've seen so far, right in the middle of the trail. I think I scared him more than he scared me, but after I'd passed he definitely acted pissed off. The largest oak tree on the AT is where the trail crosses the road into Pawling. It's illegal to hitch-hike in NY, but we subtly let drivers know we wanted a ride, and we got one from a nice gentleman. On the way to town he told us his son went to college in a town in Pennsylvania that was currently evacuating over 70,000 people due to the flooding. Got to Pawling, nice little town. We had some good NY pizza while our laundry ran, then stopped by the library where some eccentric old lady stopped us and talked our heads off. Hikers are allowed to tent for free at a public park on the far side of town, so we walked over and made camp. There's an outdoor pavilion there, so we got to have lights and charge our phones too. We think the weather has finally broken. Beka is heading home when we get to Bear Mountain, her dad is going to come pick her up. We're going to celebrate our 9/12 anniversary a couple days early in Fort Montgomery. - 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-09
From: Pawling, NY

To: Pawling, NY
Miles today: 0.0

Today was a rough day. Didn't feel like illegally hitching the 4 miles back to the trail so we paid $12 for a cab. Beka woke up with an uneasy stomach but we figured it would pass. We got 0.6 down the trail to the first shelter and the diarrhea kicked in full-force. My poor wife who has been an absolute warrior over the past 3 months just hit the wall, with all the aches and pains, and now this, she was done. We stayed at the shelter long enough to make sure she was okay, then turned around and came back to Pawling. A nice guy pulled right over and offered us a ride back to town, and even gave us his number in case we needed another ride over the weekend. We decided to see how she felt over the course of the day to decide what to do tomorrow. There's a train station here in Pawling, but we're nervous because she'd be traveling through New York City on 9/11 and retard al-Qaeda has supposedly threatened attacks on NYC on the anniversary. We came on back to the park around noon to set up camp so Beka could lie down and relax. Went to charge my ancient phone up, and of course the charger has stopped working. Called around but nobody has this charger any more, so there's another major problem. We haven't yet decided what to do tomorrow. Either we'll just figure out a way for her to go home from here, or we'll push on to Fort Montgomery and wait for Beka's dad to come pick her up.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-10
From: Pawling, NY

To: Poughkeepsie, NY
Miles today: 0.0

As soon as Beka woke up this morning it was clear her stomach was still messed up, so we went ahead and made the call to get her a train ticket home. Went back to the public library and looked for tickets online. After thinking it over, we decided to spend some time in Poughkeepsie, a pretty large city about 20 miles north of Pawling, way WAY off the trail. Pawling turns into one big collective yard sale on Saturdays, and we spent some time looking around before catching a cheap shuttle to Poughkeepsie. After a drawn out series of bus changes, we arrived at the Poughkeepsie mall and spent the afternoon there. We got more than a few weird looks from the people there who have probably never heard of the AT and may have never seen a long-distance hiker in their lives. Dick's let us drop our packs, and we walked around. We hit the jackpot at a cell phone kiosk and found the VERY LAST charger they had that fit my phone - maybe the last one in the entire world. Caught a movie and then pigged out on pizza at the Super 8 before hitting the sack in the most comfortable bed we've been in in a while.Last night we were both stressed to the max, but once we made our decision this morning, we felt peaceful about it, mostly because it's just nice to have a plan again. We've been "playing it by ear" for a while now, plus Beka is very ready to go home. We're spending tomorrow together here in Poughkeepsie, staying in the Residence Inn thanks to Beka's mom. What a romantic anniversary celebration it will be.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-12
From: Poughkeepsie, NY

To: Fort Montgomery, NY
Miles today: 5.7

Today was a very emotionally exhausting day. It's just me now. We had a simple but great time in Poughkeepsie, and got up early this morning and caught a shuttle to the downtown Amtrak station. She bought her ticket to Charlotte, and I got my ticket to Peekskill, NY where I would hitch back out to the trail. Sat and joked around for a couple of hours at the train station waiting for Beka's train. When it finally got here, the doors opened, they checked Beka's ticket and she got on board, the door closed and the train was gone. Just like that, the weight of the situation finally came down on me. I knew I'd miss her when she was gone, but it hit me like a ton of bricks that we've been a thru-hiking team for the past 3 months, and now I'm doing this by myself. Went and caught my train to Peekskill with very mixed feelings. I've been dreading her leaving, but I've been anxious to start picking up the pace and booking it on down the trail. I am still trying to make it home for Thanksgiving dinner. Beka took some of my extra stuff with her, but I still only got my pack weight down to 32. It's a work in progress. Once I got to Peekskill I just caught and over-priced cab back to the trail since I had no sense of where I was. Met three really nice SOBO brothers at the convenience store right on the trail at the road, but I just started hiking right away. I've skipped about 30 miles of trail here, but I need to make up for the time we lost in Pawling. I amazed even myself at how fast I went, though I put my head down and almost over did it at starting out. I covered about 6 miles in 2 hours and reached the bridge at Bear Mountain, but I was feeling very out of sorts still. I caved and decided to stay in a hotel in Fort Montgomery myself, just get myself organized in a comfortable room. Stopped in at the trailside zoo at the bridge, not that impressive. I find that it's not too bad as I'm moving, but as soon as I stop to get water or take a break or whatever, the loneliness hits me all over again. I hope this doesn't feel like this too long. Made more of a tentative plan in my hotel room tonight, I'll see if tomorrow feels better.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-14
From: Fingerboard Shelter

To: Southfields, NY
Miles today: 7.5

Today was my last day on the Appalachian Trail. I had a good signal last night and was able to talk to Beka for a while. I finally decided that I think it's time for me to go home too, though not without much reluctance. The loneliness of the last few days has been rough, and for all I know I could go for days or even a couple of weeks like this, since NOBOs are history and us SOBOs have spread out so far at this point. And solo hiking the AT is obviously very doable, but it gets complicated when you've hiked for 3 months with your best friend and suddenly you're on your own. I spent a year separated from my wife, home and family deployed to Iraq just before we started hiking. Obviously the circumstances of our separation right now are infinitely better, but I'm just not ready to spend 2-3 more months like that yet. Things could have easily been different. If the three brothers had showed up at the shelter last night, I would have had some interaction to get my mind off of my loneliness and may have just moved on. If I hadn't stopped so dang early and just sat dwelling on it all evening. If I had just put my head down and pushed through it. If, if, if...It really is right for me to go home now. We're both unemployed and have spent more money out here than we thought we would. I want to try to go to grad school next year, and I have to start getting applications ready now. It's still really hard to walk away from it. It wasn't that I was prideful about it, but I really loved being in a position where I could be a genuine thru-hiker. I know people say finishing the whole thing isn't important, but it was to me. Plus I really like it out here. It's a very simple life, but you can feel you accomplished something at the end of the day. I'm no tree-hugger by any means, but it is great to be out here so in touch with Creation every day. I love that people all the time talk about being out of touch with the "real world", but this out here - the woods, the mountains, the rivers, the challenges, the simple pleasures - this is more real than a lot of things we hold so sacred and desperately important these days. I'm done philosophizing now. After a lousy night in the shelter being awakened by scurrying mice all night, I got a quick start down the trail and had a relatively easy hike down to the road a Harriman State Park. Beka left early this morning to drive up and pick me up. At the road I hitched a ride in to Harriman and just ate and killed time till she got here. We're staying in the Tuxedo Motel tonight, without a doubt THE most disgusting motel I've ever stayed in. The room has dim lighting and is painted a shade of pink, and everything in here is moist. We avoided the shower and are sleeping fully clothed, hoping we don't contract anything before we leave tomorrow. We're stopping by Unionville to pick up the 1-man tent I ordered. Headed home...- 2-packs