morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-15
From: USFS 48, Hog Camp Gap

To: US 60
Miles today: 6.3

Sunday May fifteenth 2005. Yesterday we met Razz and his wife again, that we've met twice before on the trail. I was really impressed with their enthusiasm and support for the trail and the hiking community. We think they had told us they were from Arizona. we got up at six o'clock this morning. Six fifteen on the road, went up to the Long mountain wayside, US 60. Sat there and had breakfast and looked at the books and decided to leave one car there. and come around to Hog Camp gap and start hiking there, and get a 6.3 mile hike in today. the weather's overcast and drizzled on us a little bit up on top of Cold Mountain, that was totally fogged in. we were in a cloud so we didn't get any views but it was still neat. so we got on a trail at 8:15. And By 8:45 we were up in the open, and by 9:15 we were coming off the mountain. Met a couple of gals going up and then two guys just moving really fast. And then down in the gap, we stopped at Cow Camp gap for a twenty minute break. and this guy came along and he sat down with us. And we talked to him and sounds like all he does is hike for the most part. He's doing a big section here going southbound. and his trail name used to be Bigfoot but he found out Patagonia means Bigfoot, and there's too many Bigfoot out here on the trail. so he's known by Patagonia now. He made mention of going to Chile and Argentina hiking. and he's from northeast Pennsylvania near the border with New York and New Jersey. Now we went up over Bald Mountain it's still overcast but at least we can see down and across. it's just a cool cool day with a cool breeze. At Cow Camp gap shelter we took a ten minute break. Left the shelter at quarter to twelve. We came down to US 60 trail parking at 12:15. We met another couple and their dog, not too far from the end. Just day hiking and looking at wildflowers and stuff. and now the sun is actually shining a little bit, and we're going to see what we want to do the rest of the day.
Date: 2005-05-17
From: Bearwallow Gap, Va 43

To: Jennings Creek, Va 614
Miles today: 6.4

Last night we picked our car at Catawba Va 311.   We spent last night at Baymont Inn on exit 141 off I-81. We didn't get the king sized bed this time. Two doubles but it worked, we were so tired, we ended up not eating near as much, but that's a good thing. Tuesday May seventeenth. This morning we got up and had the continental breakfast which was much better than any we've had so far this trip. and they had a courtesy USA Today paper there for us, which I was looking forward to reading on the drive home. We got up at like six or should I say the alarm went off at six. We got up about 6:15 am and it was somehow 7:25, before we get out of the parking lot there at the motel. And then we drove. Twenty eight miles I think it is, up I-81 to highway 614. To Arcadia. Came back in to Jennings creek, and this time we left the minivan there, so that all our clothing and stuff would be there when we get back from hiking. We took the rental car on up to 618. And it comes out on the Blue Ridge Parkway. and right when it comes out there were two couples standing there on the road, all excited. And their truck and trailer was kind of pulled off the Blue Ridge Parkway on our road. Turns out they are wild flower enthusiast. and they'd just seen, a whole bunch of Yellow Lady Slippers. We pulled by and you could see the flowers really well from the road. But we got out, took some pictures, then we went on to Bearwallow Gap, VA 43. Parked the car, and got on the trail at nine am. Now I had made the mistake of reading out of The Appalachian Trail Virginia hiking book. And he made it sound just like it's going to be a terrible hard hike. but so far it¢s been great. One point eight miles we hit the intersection with Cove Mt trail, goes off to the right and that was a 9:55. Took a little five minute breather there. And then the trail was very nice, gentle down, after climbing probably the first half hour. And the Rhododendron and the flowers and Azaleas up on top were just beautiful; we¢re trying to enjoy all the flowering shrubs up there. And now we're just hiking along going towards the car.  We made it to the Cove Mountain shelter at 10:40. Spent ten minutes there and left at ten fifty. At 11:40 we passed Buchannan trail, at 11:50 we went through some old log fences that are laid out like a split rail. And then at 12:20 we cross a bridge came out onto Va 614. Oh, there was one thru hiker went by us, I ask what his trail name was, and it was August. And I said "Oh I've heard that name before". He said, well there's two August. He¢s August West and he think there's an August 2000 also. Anyhow beautiful day, great, just what we thought, a nice shorter hike to end our trip. So we can get back home tonight. Home to Belleville.
Date: 2005-10-05
From: Montebello State Fish Hatchery road(Spy Rock rd)

To: Crabtree Falls TH, Va 826 Meadows Ln
Miles today: 3.7

Wednesday, Oct 5th. We got up and it was drizzling. We got ready and left about 8:25am and drove to the Montebello State fish hatchery and above it on Spy Rock road to the parking. From here its 1 mile to the A T. It was a hard, hard drizzle. It was like you were in a cloud in a fine mist. We decided to wait to see if it would stop or slow down. We ate breakfast in the car, read the paper and lay back down and finally decided to start hiking at 11:20am. We got on a gated road and it was up, up ,up. Then we heard the sound of a truck behind us and said we would pay a dollar for a ride to the top. The driver and this old guy who we had seen walking down this road a couple of hours earlier went right by. They didn¢t say anything and we said hi, but could not bring ourselves to ask for a ride, so we hiked on. We kept walking up this old gravel road which was fairly steep. We walked and walked and got to the A T at 12:00 noon. We turn north from there on up to the intersection with Spy Rock at 12:20pm. We had a five minute standing break, then up some more and at 12:35pm we were at the top of Spy Rock Mt. We took a 10 minute sitting break. This whole time we were in a cloud of mist, taking my raincoat off and on. Terry took his shirt off. We couldn¢t see anything, very foggy. We started down and got to an area where the trail leveled off and we made good time and then got to a slab of rock going down the hillside. They had put logs alongside the rock in order to walk along it. At 2pm we came to Cash Hollow Rd. Then the trail went up again which I didnt care for. We stopped a couple of times to catch our breath and then finally we started down toward VA 826 road at 2:30pm. Turned on VA 826 Meadows Lane and walked down the road. Arrived at our car at 2:42pm. We were concerned about getting out of there in our rental car which we had left at the parking lot overnight. It had been raining and we had a couple of creeks to ford. We made it out with no trouble. We had hiked 1 mile to the AT then 2.9 miles to Cash Hollow Rd. and then another 0.8 miles to VA 825 Meadows Lane for a total of 3.7 miles on the AT with an extra mile at the fish hatchery road and an extra 0.5 miles down VA 825 to our car totaling 5.2 miles of hiking. It was plenty for us since we haven¢t been getting in shape. We both felt it in our legs. We left the red car at the Montebello fish hatchery road parking. We drove back up and over to the interstate to Exit 217 on I-81 outside of Staunton. We¢re staying at the Days Inn. We cleaned up and looked forward to the evening.
Date: 2005-10-11
From: Dripping Rock Parking,BRP, Mile 9.6

To: Humpback Parking, BRP mile 6
Miles today: 7.5

Today is Tuesday October eleventh. We drove back into the mountains up to Blue Ridge Parkway, our red car was still at the Humpback Rocks parking area. We drove on up to Dripping Rocks parking area. We got on the trail at ten o'clock this morning. The trail started up and it was raining, drizzling, foggy, you know the usual. And then the trail went down, dipped down a bit, there was a couple springs, and then started back up. But we were saying the trail wasn't bad, there were no big rocks or anything. And so we got up to the first outcrop at ten thirty five. We get up to the outcropping, which I think is the top of Mt Humpback, which is a ridge over one mile long, at 10:35. And we sat and we didn't do much, may have not been the top. And then eleven o five we get to the side trail to the picnic area, and they had some signs there. 11:35 is another overlook; we're up at the top now. And we had lunch there and we stayed there till noon. the first outcrop is where we stood, and the fog kind of went away, and we could see some of the other mountains around. And then at lunch time the fog did kind of go away a little bit but not enough to see too much, and then it came back in. And then at 12:35 we're at another set of overlooks, and we're there for five minutes looking around, because there are some old blue blazes, and they looked somewhat white. But we stayed on the main trail and 1:05pm we reached like a talus slope. Which I think was probably the end of the mountain. And then at one twenty, as we're going down, the trail got a lot worse, a lot of rocks again, and then you have steep down and have to watch your steps. We met the two guys with the two dogs. And had a conversation with them, they were day hiking with two cars in that section. Neat stone fences in this section. And then we left these guys and we went down, and at 1:20 we were at a side trail to a view and there we said 3.8 miles completed, 3.8 to go on the A T. And then they kept taking us down and winding us around and going away from the car. And finally at 2:30 we hit the Howardsville turnpike and then we start going up. At 2:45 we complete the AT portion of todays hike. Right where we had turned off Howardsville turnpike yesterday morning. At 2:55 we were back at the car, a 7.5 mile day. Thats all the A T hiking for this year. It¢s still a dreary day out and then we're going to slowly head on down to Gatlinburg for some vacation time. 220.9 miles completed on the A T in 2005. I believe we have 962.9 total miles on the A-T.
Date: 2005-03-12
From: Damascus, VA

To: Harpers Ferry, WV
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

As of yesterday, I finally have all the gear I will need for this trip. A few hours this morning was spent weighing the final gear and making decisions about what will make the cut on the trip. I have a few luxury items- small deck of cards, journal, but after packing all the gear up there may be some adjustments to be made.The training plan is to hike with my pack a gear a few times a week in all weather conditions for 10 miles at a time. I am working on cardio conditioning 4-5 times a week for 45 minutes and strengthening activities for core stability. There are a few weekends picked to go out with the gear for overnights so that I am familiar with the gear and can make changes with things that are not working before the big trip.As it gets closer, I am getting excited to be out again. The planning is almost over and the fun can start. Motivate on !
Date: 2005-03-24
From: Harpers Ferry, WV

To: Harpers Ferry, Wv
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

As we get closer and my training gets more detailed, I have found some things just have to be modified. The socks I had picked don't work with the boots so new socks have been ordered. The boots need to be updated and broke in but time is running short so that will have to happen this weekend. The pack I will carry seems to be great, everything fits and it wears comfortably. I think I can carry that no problem, looks to be about 25 # with food.My hiking partner has changed his approach to the trail. See (trailjournals.com/curtishall). In Georgia, the mountains are pretty rough, lots of elevation change and so his knees are not happy. There was a brief stop to have some medical care and he is back on the trail. Last I heard, he may opt to jump ahead on the trail to get out of the rough elevation and give the knees are rest. He would end up in Damascus at bit earlier and so this would push up my departure time to as early as April 1st. So about a week to go, need to get new boots and break them in and fine tune the pack. Starting to look forward to it, the time out will be great. So off we go !!
Date: 2005-03-31
From: Harpers Ferry, Wv

To: Harpers Ferry, WV
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I am just a few weeks away from starting the trail and was hoping I would be a little more ready by now. The tent I bought has a defective pole and so I need to get that taken care of soon. My camera is not working properly so I need to send that to get repaired. There are boots to break in and I need to get more organization.Training has slowed a bit since I had that virus for a week, so tired and run down, and now I am finally back on the plan but a little behind.Keep looking at my hiking partner's site: trailjournals.com/curtishall   From where he is you can guess how soon I will start. He has more of North Carolina, then Fontana Village at the edge of the Smokey Mountains, and on to the VA state line.. Still working on a trail name. Any ideas and suggestions are really welcome, I have a few ideas but looking for a real great one. Thanks for all the kind words.Happy trails !!chris
Date: 2005-04-06
From: Harpers Ferry, WV

To: Harpers Ferry , WV
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

OK, Well once again things have changed in the trip plans.It seems my partner will not be at the meeting place in Damascus until later than anticpated. Health issues in the beginnng and snow in the Smokies slowed the earlier part of the trip. My choices are to either meet him later and end later or meet him at the set date at an earlier point on the trail. It looks like that is how I'll proceed. There is a place we can meet up about 75 miles south of Damascus in Tennessee and I can hop on the trail. I plan to meet him there between the 15th and the 20th, ready or not !!The drawback is that I had mentally planned to hike through Virignia and West Virginia and with the new plan I won't complete a state or pre-set amount miles. I was looking forward to a definitive accomplishment, so I will have to adjust my mindset. Who knows, maybe I will be motivated to hike the whole thing!!Still working on a trail name, Liggy is the new favorite one."The longest journey begins with a single step, not with the turn of an ignition key" Edward Abbeyoff for now-chris
Date: 2005-04-29
From: Harpers Ferry , WV

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Many of you are probably wondering how the trip is going.   Well, it's not "going" exactly. My last day of work was on a Thurdsday and I planned to meet my hikling partner within a few days. I had a call from him the very next day, Friday, to tell me his foot was broken and he would be off the trail for awhile but returning to the trail. Whoa! Decison time for me. Back to work? Meet him later? Bag the whole thing? After a few days of soul searching, I decided to take the 6 weeks off I had planned. For 4 months, I had worked overtime to save for the trip, I had planned with my work for the time off, and to be honest, I think my body was ready for the time off. The stress of all the work had accumulated and was showing with lots of aches and fatigue. So here I am with weeks to kill and nothing planned. I took a week at home, lots of yardwork was done and Jamie was home so I visited with him. Yardwork is done, Jamie is gone, so now I have time. So, I am out in Washington with all my gear. I lived here for a summer in the past and visit as often as I can. The hiking and camping is awesome and I just love it. There are still a few friends here so I got a ticket, rented a car, and arrived just yesterday.   The plan is to hike in the Cascades, try out all my gear and get used to trail walking. My friend is an alpine guide so she may talk me into some climbing. I am still trying to conquer the issue I have with heights. Climbing rock walls helps but still takes a lot of mental work on my part.   I will be here for a week loving life and then back to Maryland on the 5th of May. My partner will be ready to try the trail again May 15th so I will meet him then and hike until June 3rd or 4th. I promised work I would be back June 8th so my 6 weeks of hiking the AT will turn out to be just 3 but I will still be out there, getting dirty, and hopefully come back energized. Thanks for all the support, I have received many kind words in the past few weeks. Look for some pictures to be added after the Washington trip. chris
Date: 2005-05-14
From: Erwin, TN

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: broken clouds

Friday the 13th was the starting day of the AT trip, that should say it all. When I started unloading the car it was apparent that I left my tent at home in my truck. First night out was kind of rough in the rain but I had the cover of a porch and a tarp. Once I got set up it wasn't too bad. There was a problem with a kamikaze moth/cicada that flew down my shirt buzzing and flapping. Yea, I must have looked like a mad woman ripping off my shirt and beating this thing with it. All said, I slept well after that.Saturday we drove to Erwin, TN to a hostel and were dropped off at the trailhead for an 8.3 mile hike. It took just under 5 hours and was my partners first hike without his boot. I tried to slow him down to take it easier on the foot but he was anxious so we went at his pace. Great hike along a mountain with lots of hollows and glens. Kind of dark at times due to the cover and the tightness of the hollow. With 3 miles to go it started to pour so we walked out wet and muddy but without any damp spirits. The hostel gives you a bed in a bunkhouse, showers, use of the grill for $12 a night. Pretty cool. Today is Sunday 5/15 and the plan is a 10 mile day over Unaka mountain from Iron Mountain gap to Indian Grave gap. Not sure I like that name.It is raining now at 9am so deciding when and how to start.Trail name is "easy going"Off for now
Date: 2005-05-15
To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: moderate rain

Slack Pack out of ErwinIndian Grave Gap to Iron Mountain Gap10.8 MilesStayed at Uncle Johnny¢s hostel and got a shuttle up to Indian Grave gap and hiked north 10.8 miles to Iron Mountain gap.I have learned that the "ups" kick my butt. I think my heart rate gets up high. My resting heart rate is 90 so up those mountains when the pitch is pretty intense it gets up fast. I stopped on an ¢up¢ today and counted; my heart rate was at 175! That's a little intense so I have learned that I go slower than my partner on the ups but can go faster on the downs.The 10.8 miles was great, through thick spruce forests so wet you would think you were on the Olympic Peninsula. Then you would walk across a meadow with a great view full of mountain flowers and valleys. On top, it would be wet with the mist and fog blows through the gaps.My partner is suffering with a blister on his third toe, every morning we doctor it up but the hiking takes its toll.Tomorrow the goal is 14 miles with a lot of downs. We¢ll see!"Easy going"P. S. I met a guy who has hiked the trail for 25 years. He said my trail name should be "tall timber", all the height jokes I endured as a kid made that one not so appealing but I have to admit: my head has been bumping into bunks and branches an awful lot.I'll stick with "easy going"
Date: 2005-05-16
From: Carvers Gap

To: Iron Mountain Gap
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Slack Pack out of ErwinCarvers Gap to Iron Mountain Gap14 milesMonday was hell.We took a shuttle to Carvers Gap at the near top of Roan Mountain. The hike starts up through beautiful pine forest and stops at a forested top of Roan so no good views until you head down a bit. According to locals there was an old hotel up there. All we saw were some collapsed chimneys in the woods. Also the Roan Mountain shelter is the highest on the AT at over 6200 ft.The trail was rocky and slow going. The 14 miles went extremely slow, I still struggle with the ups.Towards the end we were really just trying to get to the pick up shuttle in time and not enjoying it as much. My partner ran out of water and was stumbling so I gave him some of mine, the last thing we need is a fall. He is on my list though; he has the maps and the watch. For the last 3 miles he is telling me how late we will be for the shuttle, how we have another huge up to do yet. We get to a road crossing and I think we have 2 more miles left and he lets me walk on a few feet before he says " you go ahead, I'm just going to wait here for our shuttle". The turkey had been lying to me half the day about our mileage and time; I spent the day dreading 2 more miles that didn't exist! It could be a long 3 weeks."easy going"
Date: 2005-05-17
From: Erwin, TN

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: broken clouds

Tuesday, May 17Slack Pack out of ErwinSpivey Gap to Nolichucky River11.2 milesLast slack hike was today. That means you get a ride to the trail and hike with a daypack and get picked up at a spot where the trail crosses a road. We have done that for the last 4 days to get me used to the hills and his foot used to walking again before we put on a 30-pound pack.Today¢s hike was the best yet. It consisted of a long climb up beside as stream, with many crossings then into a forest with lots of traversing along the side of mountains. Rhododendrons were like trees, just huge but not in bloom yet. I scared myself and my partner today by screaming like a girl. Since the trail is uneven you look up and down to make sure you don't trip. I was looking up at the views and looked down where my foot was going and I saw a snake¢s head about 8 inches from my foot. Man did I move quick and my poor partner had no idea what was going on until I ran back up the trail away from the snake. It turned out to be a 5 foot long black snake. A rattler or copperhead would have got me good.We saw tons of flowers in bloom at the top--Lily of the Valley, Solomon¢s seal, rhododendrons of white, orange, and pink colors, and lady slippers. The orange rhododendrons are native to here but we did not realize we would see them up on the mountain.Off for now"easy going
Date: 2005-05-19
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: light rain

Thursday,May 1916.3 MilesLog Cabin Rd to Hot Springs, NCOur plan was to travel from Hot Springs to Erwin on the trail, 5-6 days with the first 2 days all up hill. We had an offer to get a ride to Allen Gap northof Hot Springs and hike south to Hot Springs, that would mean we get to travel downhill instead of up hill and shave a days food out of our pack weight. Sounded great to us.It would be the longest day so far so we started at 8 am. We decided because we were doing over 16 miles we would take our time and rest frequently. Most importantly, we would not look at a map. We would walk south until we reached town, it did not matter how many miles we had left, how many ups/downs left, or how steep the pitch was. We would just walk the walk.Nice hike through great flowers, mountain laurel¢tunnels and nice hollows. It was ¢buggy¢ in places, I really don't get why they circle your head and then dive bomb right into your eyes. If anyone can explain that to me.....There was one huge pitch up, it was southern exposed and hot, and those gnats were circling. Halfway up I was huffing and puffing and swinging my poles in the air cussing the damn bugs who were blinding me by diving in my eyes. My new trail name might be "the wacky chick who talks to bugs"So after a long day of 16 miles we ended walking back into town along a river. It looked so great and my partner was a few minutes behind me so I thought I would just take a quick dip and cool off. I was just ready to jump in when a whitewater rafting company came around the corner down the river, just a few minutes from getting an eyeful.So, no swimming for the day. It was a long, hot day. Over 16 miles, his foot held up great, we took our time, great trail day."easy going"