morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-03-12
From: Blue Mt Shelter

To: Helen Ga
Miles today: 2.2

Warm night, full moon, but we thought it might rain, so slept in the shelter. Nothing worse than packing up in the rain. NO MICE thank goodness! We are both miserable with head colds so decided to hike two miles then hitch a ride into Helen, GA for the night. Plan to load up on cold medicine and sleep a lot. We got an awesome deal at the Helendorf Inn (thanks mom!) and we're sitting on the deck in rocking chairs eating Frosties! The town has 300 residents, but turns into a tourists' mecca on weekends, many riding motorcycles. The main street is like Harbor Avenue on Sundays in July.   Before bedtime we ran next door to Wendy's for a treat. In walked David and Ryan-they hiked down from Blue Mountain Shelter then nearly the entire 9 miles into town for dinner. They were ordering coffee and dessert when we left for bedtime at 9:30. They planned to hike back up to the shelter in the dark. We had a good dinner and we're looking forward to an excellent night's sleep in our king size bed.
Date: 2006-03-13
From: Helen Ga

To: Helen Ga
Miles today: 0.0

We had a great night's sleep in a king-size bed and stayed there until the pharmacy opened. Craig talked to a P.A. at work and got her recommendation for meds (Thanks Jule). While we were out we picked up fruit and more granola bars. We also did a load of laundry. The rest of the day was spent sleeping and taking cold medicine. We hope we feel well enough to hit the trail tomorrow morning, but we won't make the decision until then.
Date: 2006-03-14
From: Helen Ga

To: Tray Mt Shelter
Miles today: 5.5

We felt much better when we woke up at 7, but thouht we should rest one more day, but by 10 we knew we couldn't stand to spend all day in the motel again. We packed up, hitched a ride, and we were back on the trail at 11:30. It was a grueling uphill hike-we climbed 2540 feet in just 5.5 miles. As the day went on, it got colder and more windy. We arrived at Tray Mountain Shelter the same time as fellow hikers we met earlier: U-Haul, Mudflap and Daisy, Walk-about, and Caboose. It was so cold everyone retreated to tents from about 4 pm until morning. We woke up at 7 pm and talked about fixing dinner, but neither of us have much appetite yet. We ate a couple of granola bars and went back to bed. It's amazing how much we can sleep!
Date: 2006-03-15
From: Tray Mt Shelter

To: Blueberry Patch Hostel 
Miles today: 10.6

It was so cold this morning, we actually cooked our oatmeal in the tent. Craig said it got down to 18 degrees in the night. The wind on the mountain top was 20-30 m.p.h. throughout the night and into today. We left camp at 8:15 for a long day. We hiked just over 11 miles, climbing 2430 feet, to Dick's Gap. We got there by 2 PM but it took us a 1/2 hr until we got a ride into the Blueberry Patch Hostel. We are picking up a mail drop there and plan on spending the night.
Date: 2006-03-16
From: Blueberry Patch Hostel 

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter 
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Restful night and delicious breakfast at Blueberry Patch Hostel. Gary took us to the trail head at 9:30. The hike started in a drizzle, but by noon the sun was out. Cathy was determined to get to the North Carolina state line today, and we were both excited to get there at 2:30 pm. The first shelter in NC was only 4 miles north, so we kept hiking. Our introduction to NC proved to be very difficult--a steep 1000 foot climb. In all, we climbed 4360 feet today. Arrived at Muskrat Creek Shelter at 5, made dinner and a fire, and went to bed at 8.
Date: 2006-03-17
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter 

To: Carter Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: broken clouds

Our shelter mates, Spoons and Ole' Forester, left early with a promise of a fire if we land at the shelter together tonight. North Carolina proved to be very comfortable hiking-gradual slopes for the most part but with lots of ups and downs. We climbed 4390 feet today   in 12 miles. Our legs actually felt pretty strong. We hit a low time regarding finishing this adventure. This time Cathy too was suggesting many reasons for quitting and finishing next year. It is quite uncomfortable when you are not hiking. We get to the shelter by 4 and sat around on logs waiting until time to make dinner-and it gets colder and colder as the time progresses. In the morning it is so cold you don't want to get out of your sleeping bag. When you do, you put on your dirty clothes from yesterday, patch up the hot spots on your feet, and anticipate another oatmeal breakfast. Hopefully we will be able to work through these feeling of being ready to give up. We arrived at a very decrepit shelter at 4, and we were pleased to find out this shelter has been replaced with a new one just 300 feet ahead. Spoons and Forester were already gathering wood for a fire. There were no hoist cables available so Craig had to fashion a bear bag with rope. We stayed up around the campfire until 9-a late night on the trail.
Date: 2006-03-18
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: clear sky

This was our coldest morning so far. We woke up to 24 degrees and windy. We treated ourselves to blueberries in our oatmeal to try to lift our spirits. The real change in attitude occurred when we came upon trail magic at the top of Bear Pen Trail. A large group of trail maintainers have a camp set up which they maintain for 3-4 weeks to provide meals, campfires, and encouragement to the thru hikers. We sat in lounge chairs drinking coffee and having sandwiches and snacks for over an hour. Best of all was all of the experiences and encouragement shared by the group of a few past thru hikers, trail club members, and hiking enthusiasts. We were very encouraged as we left their site, and had a good 6 mile hike up and over Albert Mountain. Our elevation today was 2375. We're finding North Carolina hiking easier than in Georgia, and easily getting in 12 miles daily. When we arrived at Rock Gap Shelter, there was a sign indicating trail magic 500 feet ahead at the road. We left our packs and hiked ahead to find Crutch, a 2005 thru hiker who has returned to bring trail magic to this year's hikers. He had cokes, sandwiches oranges, bananas, etc. Crutch owns Rockslide Brewery in Grand Junction, Colorado with his brother and spends 6 months each year hiking and providing trail magic. Elevation today was 2375 feet. We had a fire again with Spoons and Ole' Forester and slept in the shelter instead of putting up the tent tonight.
Date: 2006-03-19
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Franklin NC
Miles today: 3.8
Weather: clear sky

We slept in the shelter and it only got down to 34 degrees. Cathy still said her feet got cold! Craig said it was his best night's sleep-he was glad to not be in the tent. We had a breakfast of hot cocoa and poptarts and took off for a short hike into town.   We went less than four miles in 1 1/2 hours with only 875 gain in elevation. Along the trail we came to more trail magic--Capri Sun packets in a stream alongside the trail. We reached the road at 9:30 where there was a case of Pepsi. Yesterday Crutch said he'd have a shuttle there for us at 10, and sure enough, Ron Haven showed up to drive us into town. We checked in at Haven's Budget Motel, took showers, and watched TV or slept all afternoon. About 6 we walked to an all-you-can-eat (AYCE) buffet. We overate and were miserable. We don't have the ravenous appetite we've read about yet. Still had a good night's sleep in a big soft bed with a warm bathroom only a step away.
Date: 2006-03-20
From: Franklin NC

To: Franklin NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Woke up at 7am, had coffee and rolls while watching the Today Show. Later we went to the Motel office where there is a room with 2 computers and a couple couches. We spent some time e-mailing and just relaxing while talking to other Thru Hikers. We discussed hikers who have already left the trail as well how each of us are doing. We certainly are doing well physically, except for these stupid Colds, and will continue to search for that vision that brought us to the AT in the first place. We later did some shopping, lunch and while stopping back at the motel office, ran into Miss Parkay. She had run into Crutch and decided to come back to town for lunch. It was great seeing her and we hope to be able to catch up to her again in a day or two. We did laundry, went out for dinner and then relaxed in our room the resr of the night. We'll be back on the trail tomorrow.
Date: 2006-03-21
From: Franklin NC

To: Cold Spring Shelter 
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We both slept good and got up at 7am. We had a quick shower, breakfast and were on the bus to get back to the trail by 7:45. We were on the trail by 8:10 along with 8 other hikers. We started out in the rain but by noon the Sun came out. The Shelters were not spaced too well for us today so it forced us to walk our longest walk, 16 miles. That wasn't bad enough but we ended up climbing 4630 ft. We were tired at the end because the last mile was all uphill. It turned out to be a beautiful day until we got to the Shelter at 4 pm. We got the tent up quickly because it started to get cold and windy. Then it started to sprinkle and there was no covered area to eat. We manage to find enough room in the Shelter in order to fix and eat our dinner. It wasn't long, however, before we we in our tent trying to get warm. Surprisingly our mood remained up and we're looking forward to getting to the NOC tomorrow. We're at 5000 ft elevation so it might get a little cold tonight.
Date: 2006-03-22
From: Cold Spring Shelter 

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

What a morning! Snow on the ground, ice covering the tent, and our drinking water was frozen. It was so hard to get out of our sleeping bags, but once we did, we really worked fast to get on our way. It was only 24 degrees but all the guys from the South thought the snow was just to beautiful. It was sunny but never got above freezing until afternoon. There were beautiful views throughout the day and Craig had a difficult time limiting his picture taking. Throughout the day we did a lot of ridge walking. At one point there was a 2 ft wide path with the mountain sloping down on each side. The views were outstanding and on one of the ridges we could see Fontana Dam. We would be there in two days. (see pics) We arrived at NOC in Bryson City, North Carolina at 2 and relaxed on a park bench in the sunshine. It was right next to a river where kayak lessons were being given. Very entertaining! We had a great dinner and made it last 2 hours so we could stay where it was warm! David and Ryan walked in-just like they surprised us at Wendy's in Helen. We spent the night in a warm bunk in the hostel with a new thru hiker Betty-the Energizer Bunny, who's from Pennsylvania.
Date: 2006-03-23
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Brown Fork Gap Shelter 
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: broken clouds

We woke up at 6am, fixed breakfast in the NOC kitchen and were on the trail by 7:30. We wanted to get an earlier start because today was going to be a difficult hike. We had to walk 16 miles again because of where the shelters are located. The first 6 miles was all up hill going up 3000 ft until finally going down some. We climbed a total of 6385 ft and the last 2 miles were almost straight up. It wasn't a very pretty day and it was cold and windy at times. The temperature was between 32 and 40 depending on the elevation. We had a couple of nice Mt top views but it was mostly cloudy all day. We did pretty good though and got into camp at 4pm. It started to snow lightly, so we put up our tent quickly and then made mash potatoes, gravy and turkey with hot cocoa and then chocolate pudding for dessert. It hit the spot and we were in our sleepng bags by 5:30pm. It continued to lightly snow and the talk is that we could get a couple inches by morning. Now wouldn't that be fun.
Date: 2006-03-24
From: Brown Fort Gap Shelter 

To: Fontana Dam Visitors Center 
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: light rain

The tent was covered with snow--not just frost on the ground! At least two inches had fallen and it was still snowing. While our water heated for our oatmeal and hot cocoa, we shook the snow off the tent and packed up. The only problem was that when we returned to the shelter, a hiker's dog had helped himself to Cathy's breakfast. She was not happy! It continued to snow all day, and Craig often had to duck under trees because they were snow and ice laden. The views were beautiful (short range), but they wouldn't have looked as good in pics. Elevation gain today was 2750 and the temperature stayed below 30 all day. As a result the hoses from our water bags continue to freeze if we didn't take a drink every 10 minutes. We called the Hike Inn from the Fontana Dam visitor center, and were so happy to get into a motel room with a hot shower. The proprietors did our laundry and drove us into town for dinner and groceries. Tomorrow we'll be in the Smoky Mountains National Park. We'll pass the Tremont Institute where we first went backpacking and came up with this thru hike adventure!
Date: 2006-03-25
From: Fontana Dam Visitors Center 

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter 
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We woke up at 7am after a good nights sleep. We made breakfast in the kitchen in our room and at 8:30 the Hike Inn Staff drove us back to the Dam in order to resume our walk. Randy and Footloose also stay at the Inn and rode back with us. We started walking at 8:20 in about 4 inches of snow. The trail was fairly easy except for the snow, which continued to get deeper as we walked. We climbed 4115 feet but it seemed like much more because of the snow, which continued to come down. Cathy didn't stand under any trees and shake the snow unto herself today like she did yesterday. She appears to be tiring of the snow & Craig thinks he has enough snow pictures as well. When we got to the Mollies Ridge Shelter at 3:30pm, a park ranger, who was checking the safety of walking the trail, said it had snowed 6 to 8 inches, and that we could get more tonight. All the hikers are tired of the snow but the weather won't improve for a couple more days. When we arrived we were happy to find that the shelter had a fireplace and the other hikers had a great fire already going in it, and there was room for us. Also the open side had a tarp hanging to help keep some of the wind out. However, even with this the temperature was still only 23 degrees inside. It's going to get in the low teens tonight so we put on extra clothes, including our down coats in order to stay warm. We were in our bags by 6:30. It's 9:30 as I write this and we're still warm, so we think we'll have a good nights sleep. We have 14 hikers staying the night so the snoring sounds are almost harmonic. All in all it's been a good day and our outlook remains positive and we're excited about walking the Trail again. It was good reuniting with hikers we've met in the past as well as meeting several new people.
Date: 2006-03-26
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter 

To: Derrick Knob Shelter 
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: broken clouds

It snowed 2 more inches in the night--hooray! We definitely did not want to get out of our sleeping bags and back on the snowy trail, so we procrastinated. The shelter was full with 14 hikers, so we listened and talked with everyone and eventually got going at 9:30. There were some beautiful views-especially with the heavy laden trees.   We climbed 3800 feet; it is really hard trudging through the snow. We traveled less than 2 miles per hour. The temperature never got to 30 degrees but the wind was calm all day. We arrived at Derrick Nob Shelter at 4:30 to find it empty. We were soon joined by Betty, Randy, Casey, & Emily, now called Doodle, because she doodles on all the shelter log books.. Craig looked for wood and built a fire that everyone really appreciated. In fact, Betty's shoes were soaked so she put them by the fire to dry. When Craig went out to hang our food bag on the bear cables, he smelled rubber burning. He came inside the shelter and found Betty's shoes melting! (see pic). The heels partially melted but she can still wear them-she doesn't have any others.   We were cozy in our sleeping bags by 7. And feel a little bit warmer than last night even though it was 25 degrees already. It's supposed to get warmer tomorrow, we hope.
Date: 2006-03-27
From: Derrick Knob Shelter 

To: Mt. Collins Shelter 
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: clear sky

It was our coldest night so far getting down to 10 degrees but it didn't snow anymore. As a result it was hard to get out of our bags but we still got up at 6am because we wanted to get to Mt Collins Shelter which was 14 miles away. Typically we could do that in 7 hours or less but in this snow it will take a couple more hours. We started out at 8 with the temperature at 24 degrees. However by 11 it actually got to 55 and we were able to walk without our coats, hats and gloves. The skies were bright blue and the views were fantastic. We couldn't ask for a more beautiful day to walk to the Highest point on the trail, Clingmans Dome 6,654 feet and to view the spectacular sights. The Tower at Clingmans was rebuilt since we first saw our Thru Hiker several years ago. However it still brought back fond memories and how that was the catalyst for our own Thru Hike. It was a difficult walk today due to the deep, slippery snow and our climb of 3980 feet. The snow also started to melt from the trees and dropped on us most of the day. One time Cathy had what seemed like a bushel of wet snow fell down on her and down her neck. She was not happy in the least. We got to the shelter sign at 4:30 but then had to walk a 1/2 mile off the trail to get to it and then 2/10s of a mile to get water. We were wet from the hike and needed to start a fire. Calumet, an 18 yr old Section Hiker from Calumet Mi., was trying to start one when we arrived. We had a difficult time finding dry, dead wood. We finally got one going, got things dry and had a good dinner. Betty, Randy, Casey and Doodle got into the Shelter a couple hours latter and then C Ram showed up at 7:30. He got his trail name because he has curly hair and carries a 14 inches knife, just like Rambo. It's supposed to rain or snow tomorrow, we're unsure as to which we want. Thank goodness it's a short trail day. We were in our bags again at 7 pm and plan to only walk 5 miles tomorrow in that we need to go into Gatlinburg tomorrow so we can buy 2 more days of food.
Date: 2006-03-28
From: Mt. Collins Shelter 

To: Gatlinburg 
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Mount Collins shelter has a chain link fence across the opening, and we had heard it was an area of bear activity. Every time the fence rattled during the night, several of us sat up with our cameras at the ready, hoping to see a bear. We later learned from a ranger that the bears aren't active yet at that elevation-too cold! We ate a cold breakfast and got an early start (7:11 a.m.) in anticipation of going into town. We also quickened our pace, both because we were anxious and because the trail was largely downhill. We hitched a ride with parents of thru hikers who had zeroed in Gatlinburg for a few days and the daughters were returning to their hike. We were in our motel room by 11, and warm and dry within an hour. We found a Burger King so Craig could have a Whopper-he didn't think his recent burgers measured up. Rode the trolley to get groceries and to the outfitter for fuel, then returned to our room to sort and pack food bags and do some hand laundry. We were finally able to get on-line (no connection in the mountains the past three days)--thanks for your entries in our journal. It's always so encouraging to hear from friends and from hiking enthusiasts. Ended the day with pop, pizza, and TV.
Date: 2006-03-29
From: Gatlinburg 

To: Peck's Corner Shelter 
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: clear sky

We woke up at 6:50 and watched the today show for an hour while we had breakfast. We then took a shower and then packed things up to get back to the Trail. Even though we'll smell after hiking for an hour, it just feels too good to pass up a warm shower. On our way out we ran into Betty. She said she was staying in town for the day, hoping her knees would feel better. She said Randy was also staying because he was tired of walking in the Snow. We started hitch-hiking at 9:15 and after three rides we were back at Newfound Gap by 10am. After getting out of the car we saw Chainsaw motioning us to come over by him. We found that a couple were doing Trail Magic. We had just eaten but hikers never pass up FOOD. We had orange juice, milk, Krispy Kremes, apples and a sandwich. What a way to start a walk. We started walking at 10:30, and we were feeling good about how dry the trail was until walking for a 1/2 an hour. We then ran into SLUSHY SNOW, ICE AND THEN DEEP WET SNOW! It was as hard walking as what we had been doing the past 3 days. We were worried about slipping over the steep ledges or hurting our knees. We were lucky and neither happened. However the sky was a deep blue and the temperature was in the 50's. We were able to walk without our coats or fleece. The mountain views were incredible and Craig had a hard time not taking a picture at every turn. We climbed 2,720 feet and remained above 5,000 feet elevation all day. We were all alone on the trail and when we got to the Peck's Corner Shelter we were alone there as well. We are beginning to see fewer hikers the farther we go because people are quitting their Thru Hike. We arrived at 5pm after a very tiring walk. We looked for wood, and ate a good dinner, Beef Stroganoff, while sitting alone by the fire in the shelter. It was nice to be alone but it will be good to see our hiker friends tomorrow. We were in our bags by 7pm and Cathy fell asleep in no time. We commented this morning that even though we're more comfortable at night in a motel room, we actually sleep better now on the Trail. It's 40 degrees at 8pm so we're hopping that the Trail will be somewhat better to walk tomorrow.PS: We haven't taken any cold medicine for 3 days and we both feel great.
Date: 2006-03-30
From: Peck's Corner Shelter 

To: Cosby Knob Shelter 
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: broken clouds

We had a great nights sleep and then had our usual breakfast, Oatmeal and Hot Cocoa. We were on the Trail by 8am and had walked for 15 minutes until Craig remembered that he had left his socks hanging over the fireplace. Twenty five minutes latter he was back to where he had left Cathy and we were walking North again. Yesterday and today we were walking up and down to ridges all day , and a couple time they were only 6 feet wide. The Trail had not improved as we had hoped and was just as difficult to walk as it has been for the past several days, because of the SNOW!!! However it continued to get warmer and when we finally got below 5,000 feet, the SNOW started to go away. The Trail did become muddy and at times it was like walking in a small stream. This was still much better to walk in than the SNOW and it's related elements. We climbed 2,850 feet and enjoyed some great views at elevations over 6,000 feet. We arrived at the Cosby Knob Shelter at 3:30pm and were met by a new Thru Hiker to us, Pyro, from North Carolina. He started his hike with a friend but seriously injured his knee a couple days ago and will now have to end his walk. He's in great shape but the Trail can get anyone at any time. We made a great fire and enjoyed talking until the wood ran out at about 8pm. We'll be out of the SNOWky Mountains tomorrow and hopefully will leave on a snow less Trail.PS: Some people have asked in our guestbook if we have trail names. None yet, but we're not really looking very hard either. Also people have commented about our gear list and how it maybe helpful in planning their hike. We are very happy with all of our gear choices and have made no changes, as yet