morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-08-05
To: I'm an REI member!!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

There's a single REI within any sort of reasonable (less than 2 hours) driving distance from my house. I love going there. I touch the sleeping bags, I caress the cooksets, I fawn over Patagonia nano-puff hoodies, I crawl inside the pitched tents, and I load and wear different packs around the store and act like it's all normal. I'm often still in my work clothes, so that means a dress, or a skirt, or fancy business pants and blouses. I get asked, "Do you need help?" once every 1.256 minutes (not necessarily a bad thing - yay helpful REI people!). Usually I get flustered and startled because I was lost in thought about the merits and demerits of adjustable trekking poles, or something equally obscure. While in a dress and heels. Wearing a huge pack stuffed with random things around the store. Muttering to myself. Maybe they think i'm crazy?In any case, my last visit resulted in me signing up as an REI member! $20 fee is easy to justify when I'll be spending crazy cash over the next few months. Might as well get 10% back and enjoy the great customer service from REI before and during my hike! Hooray for good companies.With my shiny new member card in hand, I bought a tent and a sleeping pad. I haven't quite decided between hammocking and tenting as a long term shelter solution, but I know that I'll start with a tent in March. If I choose to switch to a hammock when it warms up, that'll be awesome, but my first few weeks will be tenting (and, I assume, my last few weeks in NH/ME). I'm really worried about being cold! And I love the 'home space' that tents create. In any case, I settled on a Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 (for the space) and a small Thermorest Prolite Plus (I'm almost shorter than the regular anyway). I'm very happy with both! I did wear a loaded Osprey Exos 58 (small) around the store for about an hour and a half but I didn't pull the trigger. I have a really short torso. almost comically short. I'm tall for a woman - between 5'7" and 5'8" - but my torso is on the cusp of extra small in packs. That makes me worried about finding a pack that has good fit and is large enough for my stuff, but distributes weight properly even though I'm so leggy and have such high iliac crests. I liked the Exos but I think a pack will be nearly the last thing that I get... then I can pack it full of my actual gear and wear it around REI like a crazy person Has anyone out there chosen a pack and it just didn't work out at all? How did you choose a pack that felt good?
Date: 2015-08-24
To: (F)unemployment - 190ish days and counting
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I've decided that I'll leave my current job at the end of February - my lease ends on the 29th, so that will be perfect. At the moment, that's only 190 days away!! I won't be the first person, or engineer, or graduate from my specific university to willfully choose to leave my job - some of my techie friends from college embarked on various FUNemployment stints over the past few years, usually as a result of career changes or extended leaves of absence. They usually traveled, or visited friends, or went back to school, or spent time with family. I'm going to run away and live in the woods, and I think it's the best way to spend the time!! Some days it seems like February can't come fast enough... this is one of those days, for sure.My hike preparation has stalled lately due to the fact that I just moved from my beautiful home in the country into a small apartment near the city. I'm happy to be so much closer to my office (a 2hr commute is the worst, let me tell you!), but I'm sad to leave my house and my friends, and moving just sucks in general. Most of my boxes are unpacked and lots of the big stuff is put away, and my pet tarantula is happily settled and nesting again, but the apartment is still soooo messy and I feel like I don't have room to breathe, let alone spread out my growing gear pile and prep for a hike. So, in an effort to continue to make progress on my planning while simultaneously hiding from my explosion of moving detritus, I've been researching health insurance options. I'm too old to be on my parents' insurance, I don't have a spouse or significant other who can cover me with theirs, and I won't get any employment benefits since I'll be a jobless hobo. I know there are some companies that provide individual health insurance but I have NO idea how to go about choosing one. Some of the ones that pop up in Google searches look... shady. Then there is COBRA coverage, and other disaster-type stuff, but it's hundreds of dollars per month!! I read this, too, http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php/18278-Health-Insurance-while-Thru-hiking but I can't tell if it's still applicable since it's from 2008. Are other hikers on government health insurance? Medicaid? Does that apply to people who quit their cushy consumer goods tech jobs on purpose and aren't disabled or otherwise disadvantaged? Should I put out a Craigslist ad asking for someone with sweet benefits to marry me for 6 months so I can leech coverage from them? (please remember that last part is a joke. I'm no Craigslist-order bride). Sounds like more research is in order on the healthcare front....
Date: 2015-09-29
To: I have a ride!!!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Two updates in one day!? After not updating for weeks!? I know, I know. But I've been busy with non-trail things and haven't had time to update, so you get two in a day today! This one is short, though...My big news is that I have a way to get to the trail in March!!!My wonderful father signed himself up for the task of taking me to Amicalola so I can start the approach trail on my chosen date. The specifics are still fuzzy, but the general plan is there! We have to solidify where we're leaving from to get to Georgia and if he's going to stick around for a few extra nights to make sure I start without problems (I bet he will, he's my dad!) - I'm so excited for him to be my ride to the trailhead!! And... even though I know my parents will be huge supporters throughout my hike, it's really comforting to know that my dad will be an integral part of the beginning of the whole thing. Hooray for awesome family!!
Date: 2015-10-22
To: Meeting TrailJournalers in person
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

I like beer. My family likes beer. We¢re German, Scottish, and Irish so I guess I never had a choice! I went to visit my brother earlier this month and we specifically planned it so we could attend an Oktoberfest beer tasting event together. It was awesome. Short story even shorter, I like beer.So what does my affinity for beer have to do with meeting TrailJournalers in person? Well, let me explain!! (no, there is too much, let me sum up.) A few weeks ago I went to the annual Oktoberfest celebration in a small town near where I live and I ended up watching the parade and dancing to polka music like any good German girl would. However, just as the local lawnmower drill team was passing by (push mowers, not ride-on¢¦ I live in a weird place), I noticed a man wearing a screenprinted t-shirt with a photo on the back. A photo of group of people surrounding the famous Katahdin sign. I did a double-take and looked again and noticed an ¢AT¢ symbol above the photo. My brain started yelling at me that he MUST be a hiker!! I screwed up my courage and gave myself a pep talk and¢¦ silently followed him around for about 20 minutes before working up the chutzpah to ask him if his shirt was in honor of a thru-hike. And maybe, was it HIS thru-hike?? And then I apologized about 600 times for ¢being weird¢. I know¢¦ I¢m super awkward.AND IT WAS ROCKETMAN! of Rocketman and Princess fame! He had a TrailJournal that I kept up with this year! It¢s here: www.trailjournals.com/Rocketman2015. He writes so well!! And he's done two thru-hikes! And he was so nice to deal with my fangirling and (probably stupid) questions and awkward conversation because I was so blown away that I actually met someone that I read about here! He gave me some great tips about pack weight and his experience with Lyme and water purification options and we talked about the virtues of slackpacking and he offered some advice about using your phone to track position relative to the trail. It was AMAZING and I told him that I¢d comment on his journal so we could stay in contact but I¢ve been too shy to actually do it yet. So Rocketman, if you¢re reading this, you¢re awesome and I¢m so excited that we met!!!I'm sure that I'll meet many more internet-famous hikers in person at different places on and off-trail next year but I highly doubt that I'll ever get used to it. I'll probably still awkwardly stare in awe at people the same way that I did with Rocketman. I'm proud of the hiking community (and the AT community specifically!) for being so supportive and strong, and I'm humbled to realize that I'm slowly becoming part of such a cool group myself. Maybe someday I'll be able to give advice to the next generation of thru-hikers just like everyone has been doing for me
Date: 2015-10-23
To: Spelling and grammar and capital letters (ew)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I love spelling! I love grammar! I don¢t love capital letters! Oh well. So incongruous. A few people have told me that my post about chafing was pretty funny, and I'm glad that it was taken that way. I hope you guys know that I would never judge anyone by their writing or spelling! I just love words so much that I get carried away sometimes.In honor of my pedantic spelling obsession, please enjoy this hilarious comment excerpt from my guest book (thank you, whoever you are!): The assent and decent of the mountain weren't two bad, so I thought I would take a brake and eat lunch. HUH? WHAT?(My attempt at a funny reply: ¢I assent that the ascent and descent of the mountain were decent, though two more would be too much! I was happy to slam on the brakes and break for lunch¢)On the flip side, I've been called out about my lack of capitalization. My bff from Maine confessed that my refusal to properly capitalize where appropriate is ¢annoying¢ and although she¢s excited to read my hiking chronicles, she made it clear that it might be nice if I'd write like a normal human. Well!! If it¢s really annoying, I suppose I can change it . TrailJournal fans: what do you think? should I ¢fix¢ my writing and add capital letters? SHOULD I GO FOR ALL CAPS? i cOuLd WrIte LiKe ThIs If YoU WaNt!? (ew, no I couldn¢t. please don't choose that one.)
Date: 2015-10-24
To: CAPITALIZATION Y'ALL
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

You guys. I fixed my sentences. ALL OF THEM. I capitalize now. I wouldn't want to annoy even one person with my incorrect writing and the response was pretty clearly telling me to "friggin use capital letters already!". If people can spell chafe the way I prefer, I can capitalize letters the way that other people prefer
Date: 2015-10-25
To: Short term New Hampshire-ite!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I'm in New Hampshire! For a few more hours, that is I came up to visit family and friends and to see beautiful northern colors before winter wipes the trees clear of leaves. Living out in the Midwest is hardest in October and November. I miss my family and I miss the weather and seasonal cues that just aren't the same is flat farm country. There aren't many trees in my current home and the temperatures were close to 70s all week. Red, yellow, and orange trees and 30-degree days are my favorite and I'm so glad that I was able to get up here and visit for a few days.It's too bad that my hike plan is a NOBO starting in March - those fall colors would be GORGEOUS to see, but I don't plan on hiking past September, so I doubt I'll experience any foliage change. I'll just have to do an October trip like a touristy leaf-peeper! I'm very excited to see the views that the trail does have to offer - the Balds and the Smokey Mountains specifically, because I've never been there!!! And, of course, to hike all the way through NH and ME ranges will be awesome since I haven't been up in those mountains for a while now. I miss them!! They're like old friends and I'm looking forward to a reunion soon In the meantime, I'll be starting to bundle up for these falling temperatures and unpacking my scarves and gloves for the winter. Can't wait for snow!!!
Date: 2016-03-02
To: VERY short-timer! Two weeks left
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

I have two SteriPENs and a pack of AquaMira. I have four Nalgenes and two Camelbak pouches, a Leatherman and a Swiss Army knife, and three different thermal layer outfits. At one point I even had two different Osprey packs in similar sizes. I guess that's what happens when I plan an outdoor adventure for nearly a year. There's so much time to second guess all the different gear choices... And if you're me, that manifests as simply buying both options and hoping the choice is clear when everything is laid out at home!I'm leaving in less than two weeks to head to Amicalola SP and only today did I finally make those last official gear decisions (spoiler: the rechargeable SteriPEN, two 1L Nalgenes, and the Leatherman made the cut. AquaMira gets to tag along as the backup). It's been a long road to get to this point but I think I'm ready for the adventure to finally start. I'm hesitant to say "I'm excited to begin my thru-hike" or anything like that, because right now I'm just a soon-to-be hiker heading northbound from Springer Mountain. I'm not a thru-hiker. I'm not even a long distance hiker. I'm just a person with a plan and a crazy dream and I think that's perfectly alright. I'll rethink my status after I make it to Harpers Ferry, maybe I've been trying to have as many adventures as possible over the past few months as a Last Hurrah before my hike starts. My weekends have been so full of snowmobiling that I've probably put more miles on my sled than my car this winter! It's been wonderful and exhausting. Wonderfully exhausting. Exhaustingly wonderful? All of the above! But honestly, now that time is getting short, I'm really just looking forward to seeing my family and making some memories with them to take with me on the trail. I'll be posting regularly once I get going - hand writing entries in a journal and transcribing to upload by phone when I have service. It feels real now!! Here we go!
Date: 2016-03-08
To: Florida livin' 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Yesterday I drove 1,116 miles in 17 straight hours. My main thought (other than "DEAR LORD GET ME OUT OF THIS CAR") was that I'll be walking more than TWICE that distance pretty soon... but will take me so, so much longer.I drove to Florida to meet up with my parents at their vacation house and relax for a few days before heading to Springer. It will be a good opportunity to spray permathrin on my pack and tent to keep out ticks and potential Lyme disease as best as possible! Much nicer to spread out gear in sunny 75 degree Florida weather than 40-something Midwest. Glad I have my mom to help me with it, too! Not much else going on in terms of hike prep. All my gear is already bought and loaded and the only thing I feel like doing is obsessively packing and unpacking everything to double/triple/quadruple check that I haven't forgotten some key item. With my luck I'll end up 5 miles down the trail and realize I left my water bottles in Florida! Maybe I just need to do one more inventory check?I'm so ready for this adventure to start.Pretty sunsets from the village over the Peace River estuary into the Gulf of Mexico.
Date: 2016-03-10
To: Token charms
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I have the best support system that anyone could ask for. Between my family, my friends, and the awesome hiker community, there's no way that I could ever feel unloved or unencouraged. Every person that I've shared my thru-hike dream with has been excited and positive about it (well, there's always a little bit of worrying there too, but that's just another bit of love). I'm super thankful to be so lucky and have the best 'home team' of all time.And my home team set me up to be hiking in style!! I can't take anything heavy or bulky into the woods but I absolutely can take these adorable tokens that were given to me!!This is a St. Christopher medallion (saint of travelers) and an engraved charm with a quote from Aristotle ("in all things of nature there is something of the marvelous") from my Midwest group.And from my mom and grandmother, a sewn-on flamingo charm that I will see every time I open my pack, to remind me that I'm loved and supported . We have a family bond around flamingos - trust me, it's awesome.I'm so excited to be hiking with these bits of love attached to my pack and for all the other "mementos" inside. I leave for Georgia in the morning and I'm just a bundle of excited energy right now. I might have to go for an afternoon swim to burn some of this off... Or another practice "hike/walk" around the neighborhood with my loaded pack. The neighbors definitely thought I was odd for walking around like a pack mule yesterday! One guy asked if I was in the army and practicing for boot camp - my forest green pack DOES give off a military vibe, I suppose!Does anyone else carry charms or mementos from their support team? Letters? Pieces of gear that have been passed down? Or am I just extra sentimental...? (traveling to GA tomorrow! 1 day left!)
Date: 2016-03-11
To: Just another typical Friday night
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

NOT! This is absolutely not a typical Friday! I'm in a hotel room in Dahlonega, 12 hours from the Approach Trail!! This is my last Preparation update!! It's my final night before I start this crazy journey!! Tomorrow I'll be an AT hiker and I am BEYOND excited. Even though it's supposed to rain all weekend... I say, "bring. it. on!"
Date: 2016-03-13
From: Springer Mountain Shelter

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.1
Weather: clear sky

My adventure finally began!! Yesterday I hiked the Approach Trail (not quite sure how that works with the mileage on this site so I'll just recap it in this "AT Day 1" update). My awesome Dad hiked half of it with me - the hard half! - then turned around to head back to the car and start his long drive to New England. I was so excited yesterday morning that I could barely eat breakfast at the hotel. My excitement didn't stop there... I don't think I stopped smiling (nervously) for hours.I mean, look at this excitement for my first day!Still excited, this time for strenuous trail conditions!Okay, time for some real talk. The Approach Trail was so hard, you guys. I was very glad when I finally reached the Springer summit after four and a half hours with a very full pack. I took a few mediocre pictures and headed down to the Springer Mountain Shelter, where I pitched my tent and cooked up some dinner. Then the best thing happened!! I heard my dad calling my name! He had driven around Springer to the north side parking area and hiked up for one last goodbye. It was awesome and I was so glad for the opportunity to see him one more time and show him my pitched tent and bits of gear all organized inside.And I'm so glad that I practiced pitching that tent so many times over the past few months, because my first night on the trail was WET!! It stormed from sundown through the morning, which meant I worried about splash-up all night and had to wrangle a soaked and muddy tent in the morning. I threw on my rain gear and tried to get everything packed as fast as possible (again, glad for all the practice!!) and headed down Springer. Thankfully the weather tapered off around midmorning and my boots were barely muddy. I only planned to head to the Hawk Mountain Shelter area since I want to keep my miles fairly low in the beginning. I'm concerned about blisters and injuries from pushing too hard, so 8 miles felt like enough for Day 1. And of course, I took a picture of my first white blaze of MANY. Keep 'em coming!Hawk Mountain campsite area is really nice and since there is a another chance of rain I'm planning to sleep in the shelter. Lots of awesome people here and lots of prospective thru-hikers! The legendary camraderie is already apparent and I love it. My tent is dried out, cleaned up, and packed away, and I'm full of instant mashed potatoes and beef jerky. I successfully gathered and purified two Nalgenes-worth of water and I'm looking forward to a restful night with a roof over my head and no chance for a wet tent. Let's hope the mice aren't too curious and active!!
Date: 2016-03-14
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I hiked most of the day with another hopeful thru-er (trail name "Shoe") and it was great having some company in the afternoon. We met last night at Hawk Mountain Shelter and when we met again at the Gooch Gap Shelter it was clear that we have the same plan and similar paces. Since I wanted to get as far past Gooch Gap as possible today (I'm hoping to get into Neels Gap in the early afternoon tomorrow) that meant I'd be staying between shelters. That means stealth camping! Woooo! And since I knew I'd be stealth camping on the side of the trail somewhere, and since the weather isn't looking too great, Shoe and I decided to camp together.As we came into Gooch Gap itself there was a surprise!! My first trail magic!! And it's only Day 2 of my AT hike! "Sticks", a former thru hiker, was making hot dogs and had water and a trash bin! Let me tell you, that hot dog was magical on this damp, chilly day. The hot dog powered me through a hard stretch to Woody Gap and there was thankfully a small hidden campsite soon after just big enough for our two tents. I'm at the bottom of a steep uphill (I think it's Preaching Rock) and the rain is coming down lightly. Luckily I'm already snug and dry in my tent! Tomorrow will be a tough day - lots of altitude change, including Blood Mountain in the afternoon. Yikes!
Date: 2016-03-15
From: Woody Gap

To: Neels Gap
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: light snow

Today was so difficult. I got on the trail at 8am (packing a wet tent again, hooray...) and powered up Preaching Rock, Big Cedar Mountain, and Gaddis Mountain, but I lost all my steam around 12:30 on the approach to Blood Mountain. I don't know if I was just physically tired, intimidated by the huge climb ahead of me, or just plain hungry, but I felt like crud. However, since you can't camp between Jarrad Gap and Neels Gap in March without a bear canister, and it's March 15th, I'm between those sites, and I have no canister, I had no choice.I made it over that damn mountain. And the views were so worth it.Looking at that view, I could only think about how lucky I am to be experiencing this adventure. My sore muscles and heavy pack and tired feet will all get stronger, lighter, and more durable, but views like that will never get old. Georgia is HARD but it's a challenge in the best way. Plus, my amazing reward for booking it up and over Blood Mountain was a hot shower and fresh food from Mountain Crossings Outfitter at Neels Gap! I wolfed down an egg salad sandwich, a can of lemonade, and a can of fruit punch... and still went back for a cold meat sandwich and a Mountain Dew. Then I sat in the gorgeous sunshine and let my feet dry out and rest before crawling into my tent for the night. Today was definitely the hardest day so far but I'm still smiling and excited for tomorrow.