morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-03-30
From: High Tower Gap

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: clear sky

This morning we woke up in a tent! Yay! We were itching to get get on the trail so we grabbed pop tarts instead of cooking. Sorry Kelloggs, not the "breakfast of champions" (wheaties arent either). We were hungry very quickly after and had to eat Golden Grahams and a cliff bar as well. Today we hiked 12 miles. The last 7 were uphill. We camped on the slopes of big cedar mountain and will leave the summit for tomorrow. Both of us are starting to get small blisters on our right feet. Maybe because we are right handed we use that side of our body more? Or maybe we just need to lighten our packs... Ironically, at a road crossing a few miles before we finished, some people offered to give us a free "pack shakedown". They claimed to be expert hikers offering advice on reducing weight. They seemed sketchy though and we weren't about to let random strangers help themselves to our packs! There are lots of people who offer services to "help" hikers. Occasionally people give out food or other things and call it trail magic. More on that in a bit. Speaking of sleeping in a tent, our sleeping bag was so comfortable! If you are a set of honeymooners, we recommend that you carry the double sleeping bag made by big Agnes called the King Solomon. King Solomon was the richest king of the ancient Hebrew people and built the very first Jewish temple in Jerusalem (both of us have seen the Temple Mount where that amazing building once stood). His life was so blessed but he forgot the source of the blessings and his heart turned away from the Lord. Don't worry though, the sleeping bag isn't going to have that affect on us! At a little over 4 pounds it keeps two people warm in 15 degree weather which is a good weight for winter camping for two people. We will be trading it out  for the Nemo tango duo when the warmer whether comes in May. The sleeping pads really make the bag. So back to trail magic- early in our hike someone at a road offering offered to take garbage from hikers. Every one makes a difference. What a blessing. And near where we stopped there was a touring bus from a communal Christian sect set up handing out free meals to hikers. They had a beef lentil soup. The bible mentions a guy named Esau who was drained after a day of hunting and came home to a bowl of soup made by his brother. It says he was so hungry he traded his birthright for it. We now know how hungry he was! One question we get is, "aren't you bored?" The short answer is no! We have been memorizing the gospel of John together. Today, we learned that "The true light, which gives light to everyone" came into the world and that when we believe in him, we are children of God. When we met those nice people handing out meals, it reminded us that there are lots of people offering answers. They were offering a chance to live off the grid and be part of a community. What Jesus offers, though, the true light, is life and a chance to be part of his kingdom.
Date: 2016-03-31
From: Woody Gap

To: Neels Gap, Off Trail
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we started near woody gap and climbed two mountains. The second was called blood mountain because of an Indian battle that took place there. It took us most of the day to climb up and down it. We hiked to the bottom to a place called Neels gap where we were picked up by friends. SHOWER. HOME COOKING. BED. WASHING MACHINE. It rained the whole day, which means our rain protection got a really good test. So let's pause for a quick gear review: * The good- neither of us got wet feet (figuratively and literally). Vasque makes great rain proof hiking boots! We really recommend them. She used hers to climb Kilimanjaro a few years ago and they still keep you dry. Also, we read online that trash compactor bags are a good way to keep the stuff inside your hiking backpack dry. Mission accomplished. we put everything inside the bag, and put it inside our packs, and our gear stayed dry. * The bad- His rain pants let quite a lot of water in. Thankfully it appears to have been a user error. They completely zip up the sides for ease of removal (maybe strippers use these? We wouldn't know...). If it wasn't obvious, you have to zip them all the way up to keep water out... * The ugly- Her pack cover failed completely. We eventually just gave up on it and tucked it into her pack. Also, fitting because it happened on blood mountain, her rain jacket pocket zipper fell apart early in the day without our knowledge. She got a small cut on her finger reaching her hand into her pocket. Not a huge loss, though, because the rain jacket leaked. It was an older rain jacket, soon to be a trash item.Despite the rain, we couldn't helping singing. God is good. There were supposed to be thunderstorms and we just prayed that the Lord would hold them back until we were off the mountain. As we got to the top, we ran into another hiker who was complaining because he had all his rain gear on and there was no rain at the top! We may have asked the Lord to give him what he wanted after we were gone from there. It was a bit exposed and we didn't want to be in it up there with lightning, hail, etc. Some friends picked us up for the night which was a blessing because apparently there were tornado watches forecast for the night and the next day. The friends have a house but only visit it 4 times a year. They just happended to be there this week. We don't believe in coincidences. God is good. The song that stuck with us in the rain all day was based on an old Irish poem and it goes like this: "You make the road rise up to meet me, you make the sun shine warm upon my faces, the wind is at my back, and the rain falls soft, God I lift you high..."
Date: 2016-04-01
From: Neels Gap

To: Off Trail
Miles today: 0.0

Well, we quit the trail. April Fools Day is the number one day when people start hiking the Appalachian Trail. What does that say about people who hike the Appalachian Trail? What does that say about us? We actually didn't hike today... Stayed with some awesome friends who rescued us from terrible rain yesterday. We took the time to rest and eat lots of food. (We still probably walked 4 miles around town lol). We will hit the trail again tomorrow. Guess we aren't good quitters. As a side note, today is the first day of his adult life that he hasn't been paid! He was using up vacation until yesterday at work, but today was officially unpaid. Weird! Did you know that the bible says in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 that if a man won't work, he shouldn't eat (I.e. be given handouts to eat for free)? Working is good for us. In fact, God created us to work. We love working and will be hard at it when our honeymoon is over. Right now our job is to finish this trail!
Date: 2016-04-02
From: Neels Gap

To: White Oak Stamp
Miles today: 7.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we went to Neels Gap after a hearty breakfast with friends. We had our packs shaken down and adjusted at a camp store at the road crossing. A guy named Pretzel helped us a lot. Without food and water, both our packs now weigh 25 pounds each. They will be much lighter after the winter season when we can ditch extra layers and swap to our summer sleeping bag (also super comfy for newlyweds of course- the Nemo tango duo- weighs about 2 lbs). We got a really late start (almost 2 pm) but still got decent mileage in. The views today were spectacular. The trees still don't have leaves and with the rain the last few days the sky is really clear. We got some good pictures which would have made for a good post except that in the evening we stumbled upon a tree that had a knot growing on it shaped just like his nose! It even has the bump. Amazing! For the next season of hikers, here is our advice to you. Don't bother with rechargeable batteries that require you to carry a charger. Don't waste your time with a solar charging kit (plenty of places to charge a phone). A GPS is totally unnecessary (get the AT hiker app for your phone if you want one), we even ditched our bowls. Meals cook right in the bag or can be eaten directly from a pot. We didn't listen to them about ditching our super comfy fleece pants, but will get rid of them when it warms up. Speaking of cold, do buy a warm enough sleeping bag (ran into a guy we affectionately called "kneebrace" who made that mistake- it was below freezing last night- oops!). Don't pack too much food (we are still eating what we brought a week ago and have been to town already, why carry it).
Date: 2016-04-03
From: White Oak Stamp

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: light rain

This morning we woke up in a place that was away from the nearest road crossing. We got a late start (don't judge us, we are married) and began our hike by 11am. It was very cold and windy last night so it didn't hurt to let it warm up a bit. We hiked our longest day so far and made it to Unicoi gap by around 5. From there, a really nice lady who had just finished a day hike, offered us a ride into Helen, Georgia (a Bavarian themed mountain town with a river wandering through). A fellow hiker from Alabama named Mountain Goat caught a ride with us. We are staying in the River Bend Motel and Cabins. The person at the desk was awesome. We had called and checked for availability. When we got here, the guy at the desk handed us keys and told us to go to our room, take a shower, and then come pay. He also recommended a good German restaurant called "Bodensee". Wow, we would go back. The sampler platter for 2 could feed a family of bears that just woke up from hibernating (we were hungry from the hike and finished it). The waitress saw that we were really thirsty and gave us to go cups of water. Thanks! We just bought a cookie and grabbed a few hot cocoa packets from the lobby to make a dessert. Off to the river to enjoy it on one of the swings this beautiful waterfront hotel has. By now some of you may have realized that we aren't really roughing it. Yup. It's our honeymoon after all. Later.
Date: 2016-04-04
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Deep Gap Shelter
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: clear sky

This morning we started out in Helen Georgia. After a hearty Bavarian breakfast, we caught a ride from Betty's IGA back up to where we were picked up last night. Thanks Betty! (Actually, thanks Betty's daughter, who currently runs the store). One of us had an upset stomach (surely not from dinner!) so we went really slowly today. "Pole, pole" (pronounced pole-A) is a Swahili phrase that she learned hiking Kilimanjaro that translates to "slowly, slowly".   Progress seemed slow, but we still finished with over 13 miles which is pretty good. At the top of the big mountain, called Trey mountain, we came to some really nice views. The woman who drove us into town yesterday lamented the lack of good views. Hopefully she comes up here some time. Ironically, it looks like someone trimmed the brush so that we could enjoy the views. It didn't bother us any. We camped near the deep gap shelter tonight. Met another married couple about our age that seemed pretty nice. They were going to sleep in the shelter, but a mouse ran across a ceiling board and scared them into setting up their tent. Maybe we will see them again. Her name was "snail" and his was "sandal." The are hiking in sandals (we would be done because of rolled ankles if we tried that). Our competitive nature compels us to compare our mileage with fellow hikers. It was quite satisfying to learn that they had started two days before us, hadn't taken a day off yet, and were just as far as us.
Date: 2016-04-05
From: Deep Gap Shelter

To: Dicks creek
Miles today: 3.6
Weather: clear sky

Today was a "Nero" day for us. A "Nero" day is when you hike nearly zero miles. Today we hiked only 3.6 miles from Deep Gap Shelter to Dick's Creek Gap. It was a lot of uphill followed by a lot of downhill. Thankfully the tummy troubles from yesterday have resolved and we had new energy today! On our way down this morning, we chatted with a fellow thru hiker. He first hiked the AT in 1980 and is hiking again with his son! Wow! To leave such a legacy! We hope to leave the same legacy in our family! This man gave us the phone number of some women who shuttles hikers for a reasonable price. We decided to give them a call to get to Hiawassee for the day. Our shuttle driver, Joyce, first took us to drop our bags off at a hotel. She gave us the details of the three hotels in Hiawassee. We decided on the Holiday Inn that has a hot tub and free hot breakfast. When we asked to get a room another hiker was checking in and offered to share a room with us. We took her up on the offer and in return we paid for her laundry, dinner, and also the shuttle back to Dick's Creek tomorrow morning. It's a fair trade, and she said she got the room with reward points and she was thankful to be able to share it with someone. After we dropped our bags off, our shuttle driver took us to Brasstown Bald, the high point in Georgia. On our days off we just can't sit still! We climbed the 0.6 mile paved trail to the top of Brasstown Bald and enjoyed the amazing view! It was so fun to see the mountains we have been climbing for the last week! We had originally planned for Joyce to come pick us up at 5 pm...but we found some kind people to hitch a ride back to Hiawassee with because we were finished before 5. They let us ride in the back of their truck. We have really been appreciating the kindness of strangers!
Date: 2016-04-06
From: Dicks creek

To: White Oak Stamp
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: clear sky

Today we got a late start...our room buddy who we were shuttling back was a little slow to get started and preferred not to take the shuttle at 9 am. We tried to reschedule for 10, but they couldn't get us until 10:30. We didn't get started until after 11:00. We hiked a big up and then a small down. We sat for a lunch break where we were surprised we had done 5 miles in about 2 hours! That was a pretty good pace considering one of us was still on the mend from a tummy bug. While we were eating lunch, we met Josiah. He told us he had already done 15 miles today! Crazy! He went to the shelter because he was done for the day. After lunch we pressed on toward our goal for the day...the North Carolina/Georgia boundary! We were so excited when we got there we hugged the tree with the sign! One state completed! We had no mileage goal for the day, we just thought we'd hike until we were tired. Josiah caught up to us on the way up Sharp Top. He passed us so easily we started calling him "Jet Pack". He said he didn't feel done so he decided to go on to the next shelter, Making his total mileage 23 for the day! We need to step up our game! We heard there was going to be some bad weather, so we thought we might stay a night in a shelter so we wouldn't have to pack up our wet gear and we'd have the chance to get an earlier start the next morning. We came to Muskrat Creek Shelter and it appeared as though everyone had heard about the coming storm. It was so full we didn't even stop and instead decided to hike until we found a place to camp. It worked in our favor! We hiked 0.9 miles past the shelter and there was a new camping area cleared at White Oak Stamp that is not marked in the guidebooks yet. We were the only ones there and we certainly enjoyed it! We hunkered down for the storm and got in our tent quickly after dinner. We went to sleep early and hoped for a good night's rest. As soon as the rain, thunder, and lightening started one of us awoke to some residual tummy whoas and had to brave the elements. Not the most pleasant experience, but we're both thankful we have each other in those types of instances!
Date: 2016-04-07
From: White Oak Stamp

To: Betty Creek Gap
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: moderate rain

Today we woke up in North Carolina determined to go the distance. Even with a late start (about 10am) we still managed our furthest day yet, with over 15 miles. The sun ran out before our legs did. It wasn't an easy day either. We started with a series of long climbs eventually putting us at our highest elevation yet (5,498'), which by the way is higher than the highest mountain in Georgia, Brasstown Bald. Georgia had hills by comparison. The weather started out cool and damp and got progressively worse throughout the day, ending with hail and lightening. We finished our day just before reaching the 100 mile mark at a small but congested campsite near a creek.Along the way we met a hiker named "prairie star". She was a really nice middle aged woman from Nebraska. We had two unfortunate run ins with her. The first time we crossed her path, she was stopped to take a picture of a sign. He couldn't resist offering to take her picture with it. The sign read "chunky gal trail"... A little later as she was coming to a road crossing she lost her footing and did a face plant as we were eating our lunch. We rushed to assist of course. She confessed it wasn't the first time. Good thing she already had a trail name...And now for some "potty" humor. So apparently we weren't the only ones getting high up in the mountains. Prairie star told us that she couldn't believe it when some guys at her shelter were already lighting up before breakfast this morning. We wrote them off assuming they wouldn't make it very far, but sure enough, a group of 5 college aged guys came strolling by, bragging about their weed smoking. Yikes! Their reputation certainly proceeded them. They seemed to lack direction and ambition but were otherwise harmless. That wasnt our first run in with the pot today. You see, it got off to a "crappy" start. While one of us was tending to the diary, the other was tending to the diarrhea (in the pouring rain in the middle of the night!). The only thing that would have made it worse would have been to be buried in a cemetery we passed several miles from Springer mountain. The sign directing you to the cemetery was an old toilet seat cover. Now that's crappy!
Date: 2016-04-08
From: Betty Creek Gap

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: broken clouds

This morning we set our eyes on the 100 mile mark. After 10 days since starting on the trail (including one off day, and 3 half days), we were ready to push ahead. That may not seem like a lot, but we have been consistently pushing a couple more miles per day then most hikers. The advice is to take it easy until you adjust to life on the trail. We came upon Albert Mountain, the first mountain worth conquering! It was steep, so much so that trekking poles became useless and hands became necessary. It was so cold, the first time we tried to take a picture of ourselves, the phone shutdown due to temperature. But it was satisfying. No more were we just ascending one hill just to get to the next. This was a destination. In general, the trail seems to be more intentional in North Carolina. In Georgia, the trail just took on the hills (they called them mountains) by brute force, running straight over top of them to get you quickly out of the state. In North Carolina, the trail seems to run around the hills instead of over them, giving you the feeling that you are meandering, not in a hurry, with purposeful ascents, rather than just being moved as quickly as possible from one place to another. Not only has the nature of the trail changed, the weather seems to have as well. Probably because we are now over 1000 feet higher than our first week on the trail, in the last 24 hours, we have experienced rain, thunder, lightning, hail, and snow. The snow was beautiful! Probably our prettiest day yet of hiking. But with forecasts of 55mph wind gusts over 3500 feet, we chose to catch a ride and spend the night in a hotel in Franklin vs risking having a tree fall on us in our sleep. It seems a plausible scenario given all the down trees we have seen while hiking. We have even heard a few at night. It is a sobering sound when you are in a tent surrounded by trees... Before we got off the trail, we met some other hikers who were waiting for a ride. We mentioned in our previous post that we had heard about some hikers before we met them. Occasionally, people's reputations proceed them on the trail. Apparently, the same is true about us. Probably because for the most part we haven't camped near the shelters, which tend to be crowded this time of year, a lot of people have heard about us but haven't actually met us. Something similar to this has happened to us three times now. One of them said to us "you're the hitched hikers!? We've heard about you!" followed by "congrats", and "I'll buy you a beer in the next town." Well, that sentiment is appreciated but totally unnecessary in Franklin, North Carolina, the land of free beer today. We stopped in an outfitter after catching a ride to town. There was a large sign "Free beer for thru hikers." Our next stop was a pizza place called Gondolas. We learned that it was cheaper for them to just give away beer with the meals then to buy the liquor license. What a fantastic business model. Should have seen all the happy locals drinking free beer. There was even beer in the hiker box!
Date: 2016-04-09
From: Winding Stair Gap

To: Licklog Gap
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we got another late start...we checked out of our hotel in Franklin at 11:00. Without scheduled shuttle services on the weekend, we decided to hitch hike. We walked down to 64 west and stuck out our thumbs. It took about 15 minutes for someone to finally stop and offer a ride. The man who picked us up had just finished turkey hunting...we felt really safe in his truck, he held onto his shotgun the whole drive :o) We got to Winding Stair Gap 11:40 and starting hiking. It was a lot of uphill today! One of the highlights of today was lunch...we had leftover pizza from last night. It was so good! Not a lunch we would usually have due to the weight, but we certainly enjoyed. As someone wrote in a log book at a shelter, "Every bite is a victory because it's one less thing you have to carry." We're happy to report victory over the pizza, we have none to carry :o) We got our first trail magic of the day at Wayah Gap. A former through hiker from 2014 set up a trail magic station. There were all sorts of snacks and sodas. We enjoyed a soda we shared, chips, cookies, and candy. We certainly weren't in want for snacks! We hiked a while longer and ran into our second trail magic of the day at Wayah Bald! A boy scout troop from Tennessee had a tent set up and had dinner and snacks. We had hot dogs, a black bean burger, chips, and lots of hot cocoa! They were very hospitable and sent us away with more snacks than we needed. They gave us hard boiled eggs and string cheese and we even have powdered donuts for breakfast tomorrow. We are so incredibly thankful for all the trail magic today! We trekked on to mile 122 at Licklog Gap to camp. The view is beautiful from the camping area and the area is nice and flat. It's supposed to get to 26 tonight! We're bundled up and plan on cuddling to keep warm tonight! We plan on getting up early for a big mileage day tomorrow!