morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-05-27
From: Groundhog Creek shelter

To: Walnut Mountain shelter
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: light rain

First off I forgot to mention that I crossed my first interstate highway yesterday, I-40. They put the white blazes on everything so it is easy to follow.I slept in a little this morning so I didn't leave until 8:15am. There were a lot of water sources along the way so I didn't need to carry more than a quart of water at a time. I didn't see more than 6 long distant hikers today but saw a lot of people on Max Patch Bald. This is a huge bald at an elevation of 4629 feet. It is so beautiful. there is a 360 degree view. I could see the FAA tower I hid under yesterday a long way off. It is hard to believe that I have hiked that far in less than 24 hours. I sat with a young couple and their golden retriever puppy talking for over an hour. Definitely going to spend more time here on my through hike in 2012.Went to Roaring Fork shelter for lunch and when I left I got on the wrong trail. I climbed all the way to the top before I realized it. Luckily I only lost about 15 minutes. Got to this shelter at 5:00pm. 1 other person here now, a section hiker. She is 4 feet 7 inches tall and has been working on doing the trail for 4 years now. What an inspiration.Had dinner and am sitting in my tent now. It is getting dark so time for bed. Good night everyone.One step at a time.Mike.
Date: 2010-05-28
From: Walnut Mountain shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: light rain

Got a late start today' around 9:10am. A great sunny morning. Made the decision to go all the way to Hot Springs. After 5 days without a shower I am starting to smell myself.I got to see my first turkey today, a hen. I tried to get a picture but she saw me first and took off.A long climb followed by a long descent. Seen the graves of the Craigs. They must have lived near here. They were born in 1881 with her dying in 1945 and her husband in 1968. After that I met a guy doing trail maintenece and he doesn't even belong to the hiking club that is suppose to maintain this portion of the trail.I finally arrived in Hot Springs at 3:00pm with a thunderstorm threatening. The trail goes right down the main street. It has the AT logo embedded in the sidewalk. With it being the Memorial Day weekend I was turned away at the hostel and was told everything else was booked but to try the campground. I went to the Hot Springs Campground and got a tent space for the night but that Sat. was already booked.I set up my tent then went and had a huge dinner at the local diner of 2 chopped sirloin steaks with grilled onions, mac and cheese, green beans, corn bread and a skewer of shrimp. For dessert I had a pint of chocolate ice cream. I went back to the campground and got my laundry and got it done. I got another pint of ice cream and am sitting at the campground watching the sun go down. Definitely a great place to stay. Well time for bed.One step at a time,Mike
Date: 2010-05-29
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Spring Mountain shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: scattered clouds

I got up early and started packing up. I then went to have breakfast at the same diner I had dinner. Look to see where the locals go and you will find the best food. I had 2 eggs, bacon, toast, home fries and 2 large pancakes.I called Dave to let him know where and when to pick me up. I hope he got the message.I bought a paper and then ran into KT and Walking Stick as they arrived into town. I then went to the library and did some journal entries but the computer kept messing up so I don't know how much got on.Left Hot Springs at noon with 81 degree temp. and a difficult climb. It was very tempting to set up my tent next to the French Broad River.I finally met Dos Equis who I have been following in the shelter journals hanging with Hagar, Raggety and Growley. The same thing goes for Old School out of NY.Got to shelter at 7:00pm, set up my tent and had dinner. Writing this in my tent by headlamp and am very tired so I am off to sleep. Sweet dreams.One step at a time, Mike
Date: 2010-05-30
From: Spring Mountain shelter

To: Jerry Cabin shelter
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: broken clouds

Left this morning at 8:00am. Forgot to take my ibuprofen and had a long steep descent right off the bat. My knees were feeling it. Ascents are best in the morning to help get my knee ligaments stretched out.I hiked the morning alone but then I hooked up with Tecolote and Venado for the afternoon. We have been leap frogging each other for over 200 miles. I stopped to get water and left my bandana there so after about a mile I discovered that and dropped my pack and went back for it. I even jogged part of the way. It seemed like I could walk forever without my pack on. Just as I was nearing where I had left it Tecolote and Venado had picked it up for me.Climbed to the summit of Big Firescald Knob and got some amazing views. It was a real challenge climbing up and getting down from there. I slipped and fell for the first time descending from there.I am now here at the shelter tenting as the shelter is full. I like sleeping in my tent best except when it is raining. Not that I get wet but carrying a wet tent adds weight to my pack and that sucks.Well off to bed. Goodnight everyone.One step at a time,Mike
Date: 2010-05-31
From: Jerry Cabin shelter

To: Hogback Ridge shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: light rain

Left at 7:30am to a light sprinkle. Feet were staying dry until I missed a turn and went straight into an open field. It looked like the trail but I didn't see the posts with blazes on them like in other fields. I continued on to the far side and it looked like some one had bulldozed the trail. I came across 2 bears and scared them off by clicking my hiking poles. I then went a little further and decided that it was better to go back and be right than to continue on and be wrong. Well when I got back I found that I was wrong and got on the right trail.I stopped for lunch and met Chainsaw. I had heard about him but hadn't met him yet. I left there and came across 2 different cemetaries. The oldest one was from the Civil War era.I arrivrd at the shelter at 4:45pm. Water was 400 yds. away so I went and got that first. Someone was sleeping in the shelter so I tried to be quiet as possible. She woke up as I was cooking my dinner and introduced herself as Long Bow. She is from Canada as is Chainsaw. She is hoping to do some night hiking if it clears up. Raggety, Growley and Dos Equis showed up without Hagar. He injured himself and decided to hitch into Erwin TN. Dos Equis wrote a nice little piece in the shelter journal "Hagar fell into a ravine. Had to give him a mercy bullet. Boy he sure does taste good. I guess there is a little bit of Hagar the Horrible in all of us."Time to get some sleep after that huge meal.One step at a time,Mike
Date: 2010-06-01
From: Hogback Ridge shelter

To: No Bisiness Knob shelter
Miles today: 20.7
Weather: broken clouds

Left the shelter at 7:30am to cloudy skies and a light sprinkle. Climbed to the top of Big Bald Mtn. where the sun came out. I could see the storms heading my way so I headed to the Big Bald Mtn. shelter to have lunch. Raggety, Growley and Dos Equis was just getting ready to leave. I ate lunch, packed up and as soon as I was getting ready to step out from the shelter it started to pour so I un packrd my sleeping bag and took a little nap. When I woke up I cread the shelter journal and seen that Raggety had left an entry about Hagar. "Stopped to dispose of Hagars remains in the privy. I sure am going to miss him." To which I added "We should have a memorial for him in Erwin. Anybody have a toothpick?"   Just as I was leaving Tecolote and Venado showed up. I left and decided to do a 20 mile day. I got to the shelter at dark. If I had hiked any longer I would have had to use my head lamp. I have had dinner and am off to bed. It is 10:00pm, very late for a hiker. Only 6.3 miles to do tomorrow and I am done. Dave will pick me up on Friday so I will have a couple of days to spend in Erwin.   Good night.   One step at atime,         Mike
Date: 2010-06-02
From: No Bisiness Knob shelter

To: Nolichucky River
Miles today: 6.3

My last day on the trail. Just a short walk and I will be in Erwin TN at Uncle Johnny's Hostel. What an amazing journey.Left the shelter at 9:00am and arrived at the hostel at 11:45. Got a quick shower, man did that feel good, and got the shuttle to an all you can eat pizza place. Came back at 2:00pm and got a cabin for 2 nights. Great people here.Raggety and Growley joined up with Hagar and are leaving the trail. Hagars injuries will not let him continue so they are off to enjoy other adventures.Got to say goodbye to Tecolote and Venado. I will send them a care package to Troutville when I get home.What a great trip with amazing people and places. Time for bed. See you soon.One step at a time,Mike
To: home
Miles today: 0.0

So I've finally taken the time to re-visit my trail journal; I just re-read my journal entries, edited my gear list in order to comment on how things worked out... and realized that when I am not waxing rhapsodic about nature in this journal, there is a recurring theme of me sleeping poorly and fantasizing about/describing food. The trail was so much more to me than that though, and I hope some of it shines through. I now realize that quitting my journal after only a quarter of the trail short-changed me a bit in terms of recalling memories - that being said, I am amazed at how clearly I can recall moments of this hike. I hope eventually I'll be able to commit more of these memories to writing even though I'm not entirely sure writing can ever capture entirely how I feel about the trail and my experiences on it. I will write this much though: I want all of the people that I met while hiking to know that I think about them still - I remember small conversations with strangers whose names I can't even remember and overwhelmingly wonderful acts of generosity - and both fill me with happiness. I want anyone who reads this while teetering on the edge of making the decision to hike to know that it is worth it. All the pain, all the boredom, all the repetition... hiding within is an awe-inspiring sense of community and camaraderie... and an indescribable sense of freedom.
Date: 2008-08-30
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

So I'm going to thru-hike the Appalachian trail in 2009. Or rather, I'm going to attempt to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail in 2009. Key word being attempt. We'll see how it goes. I think originally I was romanticizing the trail and what hiking it would be like... but the more I've worked toward it, the more I've thought about it, the more I've learned and the more I've trained, the more realism has set in. It's not going to be all scenic vistas and satisfying days and communing with nature and having fun. It's going to be difficult both mentally and physically. Occasionally mundane and boring. And lonely. There are days when I struggle to get out of bed and start my day even when I have all the comforts of my life and home around me. So it's going to be a challenge. But one that I'm looking forward to. Normally I don't get too excited about things before they happen. I love planning but I don't experience any real excitement until the events actually happen. But in planning this, I've experienced these small flashes of excitement every now and then. I'm genuinely looking forward to this. Even the monotonous parts.There's something oddly appealing about the concept of focusing on just one task for days and weeks and months on end. Putting one foot in front of the other, over and over. Your sole responsibilities being the maintenance of your body and the momentum of your movement. Tunnel vision with a mountain at the end of it... and many more mountains in the way of that final one. Of course, I say all this now... ask me how I feel about in about eight or nine months! But until then I'll be planning and thinking and training. Occasionally posting on here. And feeling little bursts of excitement and anticipation every now and then.
Date: 2008-09-23
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I had a really great run today. Usually I crash and end up walking parts; I have a really hard time regulating my energy levels. But every now and then I feel energized the whole way and it just comes together. I love how I can completely lose myself in the running - I start focusing so much on my momentum and not tripping over rocks and roots that I end up completely zoning out and not needing to focus at all. It's like my body goes on auto-pilot and I feel like I can run forever. I had a moment like that while hiking this weekend too. I'm in a really good mood right now. Fall is my favorite season and the M-M trail is one of my favorite places. They may be pretty underwhelming mountains here in Massachusetts compared to further down the trail in New Hampshire, but it's the mountains that I get to see every week. Right now there are goldenrod and wild asters and clusters of rose hips everywhere. Leaves are just barely starting to turn. And running after work, there's this deep golden light that you get right before the sun sets slanting through the woods. I just wish I had more time. The days are getting shorter and there's this little thing called work. I'm going to be pretty sad when I have to swap out mountains for roads this winter with my running. I only started running as a way to condition during the work week and at first I hated it. But now even though it's still a struggle I'm really surprising myself with how much I enjoy it from time to time. And it's definitely improving my hiking as well.
Date: 2008-10-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I didn't expect to post many entries before my hike began but I do appreciate and enjoy when others share and that is what trail journals is all about. So on that note, here are a few details of what I've been up to lately. I decided to meet up for a shake-down hike of Mt. Moosilauke with Patrice and Karen. I'm not a big talker when I hike, but somehow when I hike with Patrice (and now Karen, too) I end up talking so much that my throat starts to hurt! Obviously, this was really fun trip. My day began with a great big hug from a complete stranger (a really adorable older gentleman who had mistaken my identity) at the post office in a tiny town in New Hampshire... possibly the highlight of the entire trip. The temperature at the summit of Moosilauke was 33 and there were flecks of snow and ice swirling in small gusts and sharp bursts of wind. I felt recklessly happy up there. Almost as though all of my problems had receded into the distance as I ascended higher up the mountain and by the time I got to the top there was nothing left but happiness. It was a really nice feeling. Probably the best I've felt all fall. We stayed at Beaver Brook shelter and there was a beautiful view and three separate former thru-hikers. Sadly, there were no beavers at Beaver Brook Shelter. But the rest of the hike made up for that. There were drifts of magenta and golden leaves starting to cover the trail; so many colors contrasting with the usual shades of green. It smelled like wet moss and rocks and evergreen trees and dirt and cold fall air. The trail crossed and followed lots of small streams... and at times the trail itself felt more like a stream!   Speaking of moss... Patrice christened me with a trail name of Moss. Appropriate, considering that I could fill an entire photo album just with the pictures of moss that I've taken. I can't help it, for whatever reason... I just really, really like moss.
Date: 2008-10-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I told myself that I wasn't going to be on here all the time posting, but apparently this was a big fat lie. The procrastination potential here is way too appealing to ignore. And it's a Saturday night and I'm bored and going nowhere. I think I've actually run out of gear to obsessively research, which is just crazy. And not helping with the boredom. When I say I'm going nowhere, I mean that pretty literally. Running was going great and I was really happy with my progress. I was running more. A lot more. No more walking (except at the parts where I'd fall and die if I didn't walk); just flat-out running, and much farther than before. Then my knee started to hurt... and I decided to ignore the pain and continue running. Turns out that wasn't such a great idea. I might have patellar tendinitis. I haven't ran or hiked in about a month and I'm slowly losing my mind. I finally saw my Doctor yesterday - she gave me some drugs that are a step up from ibuprofen and told me to keep being lazy, basically. So I'm sitting here with an icepack and my laptop. Blabbing away to the internet and feeling very antsy.
Date: 2009-01-09
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

So first of all, thank you and hello to those of you who have read along or signed my guestbook! To be perfectly honest, I've been postponing writing my next entry for a long time now. I wanted everything unsettled to fall in place... and... it kind of has not.I wanted to be able to announce that my knee is healed and I'm 100 percent ready to go. But my knee is still giving me problems (some weeks more than others) and while mentally I'm more than ready to go... physically, I'm not sure. The past few months I've done core, joint, and leg strengthening work but I feel like a lot more is needed.Injuring myself forced me to slow down and look at other things that I was ignoring. I have enough money to hike right now and scrape by for a few months upon completion. But I'd be coming back to a really slow job market. I'd probably have to accept a job with far less hours or lower pay. The company I work for now has reduced hours and pay for over half its employees. I've been lucky to escape that. But I know my job won't be waiting for me when I get back... and I'm an art school grad working in a very narrow field. I'm not a new college graduate searching for a job or a retiree leaving one. So quitting my job now with very little to fall back on will have repercussions if I ever want to go back to school or switch careers (which I do). My two fears are not completing the trail due to injury and not being able to support myself once I am done. I know if I wait a year, I'll be able to fully heal (I hope) and I'll have a much larger amount of money saved. It's a really hard decision to make. The thought of staying in the same place and sticking out my job for one more year feels really awful - frustrating and unhappy. But at the same time, I can't look at things with tunnel vision anymore. This hike is really important to me. But so are many things I hope to accomplish in the future. I wasn't addressing the money issue earlier because of my personal life. Initially, it was not an issue because I was at such a positive stage in my life. I was ready for a change and I was confidant that no matter what, things would work out. The economy appeared to be a distant issue that I could skirt around. Then things did change, but in an unexpected, negative way. At that point, planning a thru-hike became even more important to me. It was something I could focus on. Something bigger than me. Now I'm getting to a more balanced, positive place in my life again. But it's tough to figure out what the right decision is for me. I will say this much: I feel really lucky to be at a stage in my life where I can work towards making this happen. I've met some fantastic people that I now call friends. Whether I hike this year or not remains to be seen. But I'm happy to even have started the process of undertaking it. I hope that whether it is this year or the next, I'll still be able to fulfill this goal.
Date: 2009-08-10
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well, not that I particularly expect anyone to notice... but I have finally taken the much needed step of moving my journal to 2010. I was procrastinating for a while because initially I was pretty depressed that I had postponed my hike; I just didn't want to acknowledge it. But while I was procrastinating, I also managed to get out and have a few really great hikes and I came to terms with things. I finally feel good about deciding to wait. I'll have more financial stability and (I think) a better sense of myself and my goals. And my knee feels much better. Hurray! I will also have some friends spread out along the trail next year to keep me company... speaking of these friends - they are thru-hiking right now and I have had a great time tagging along on a few day hikes and surprising them with trail magic and can't wait to see more of them in Maine soon! I was a little worried that posting on here again would jinx me (irrational, I know) but Loon & Wags convinced me that the more I talk about it, the more it will become a reality. So here I am. Also: thank you to Theresa and Blue Jay, who both left me awesome messages on here many months ago! I hope you see this and know how much I appreciated the encouragement!
Date: 2010-02-22
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I just discussed the possibility of hanging my hammock in the backyard of my parent's house with my mom... and she was concerned that a bobcat might eat me. Visions of me mauled and ravaged like a helpless squirrel are dancing through my mother's head and I have yet to even hit the trail. I tried to convince her that the odds of me being slaughtered by a predatory animal in our backyard are about a million to one and that bobcats only prey on much smaller mammals. To no avail. "You're not that big!" was her response. Thanks, mom. I'm cycling pretty rapidly between DEAR GOD WHY ISN'T IT APRIL YET and SHIT. It's going to be APRIL WAY TOO SOON right now. My brain keeps running around in circles. Sort of a secret inner tizzy. Mental hyperventilation, if you will. I tend to calm it down by reading trailjournals and backpacking forums. Very zen of me, I know. I also have been taking an obsessive, sick pleasure in making as thorough a gear list as possible. I love lists. And for once, I'm actually being responsible and documenting every penny I spend. And yes, as I mentioned before... I weigh my gear. The dirt little secret is out! I'm a closet gear head. A very non-judgmental one though, I swear! You won't find me preaching to the masses. Except about how much better microspikes are than yaktrax. Because it's true. (If Storm reads this I am in trouble... I may have lectured her once or twice on this topic already...)I'm going to keep the hike momentum/excitement going and attempt to post more pictures on here. Ok, fine. You caught me. I'm also posting these because it's a Monday morning and Springer fever has hit me. Hard.