morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2023-04-18
From: MM 859

To: MM 872
Miles today: 13.0

Tue Day 38. 5 mi MM864Part 1 In to Waynesboro for resupply, laundry and shower. Great trail town with good restaurants. AYCEChinese at Ming Garden that is really fantastic. I went through four plates without a blink. Box wasn¢t here - in fact was still in Columbia SC with no guarantees for tomorrow so I bounced it forward to Front Royal the next town. Shenandoah National Park is next and there is no place to send a box in the park. The consensus plan is to do minimal resupply at the waysides and ¢eat¢ our way through. Fingers crossed!Day 38. 8 mi. MM 872Part 2 Calf Mountain ShelterStarted into SNP in the afternoon after taking care of resupply. *Delayed updating cuz I lost glasses.
Date: 2023-04-23
From: MM 930

To: MM 946
Miles today: 16.0

another great day¢¦ moving too fast Started at 930 this morning. Shooting for 942 or 946 to stop. Day 43 16 mi. MM 946Pass Mountain HutOver run tonight by fast thru hikers that came in from 7:00 to 9:00. These folks are doing 25-30 miles per day consistently. Not looking forward to being run over as the bubble gets here. Oh, well, I knew the quiet wouldn¢t last forever.
Date: 2023-04-24
From: MM 945

To: MM 959
Miles today: 13.0

Day 44 13 mi. MM 959Gravel Springs HutAnother cold night just below freezing. Expecting this all week. All my gear is holding up well to the cold. Thankfully! More fast hikers tonight. This shelter is inhabited by a rat, not mice, named Annabelle. No one slept in the shelter¢ all tents tonight. Trail magic at the shelter. Cold beers in the spring.
Date: 2023-04-25
From: MM 959

To: MM 972
Miles today: 13.0

Day 45. 13 mi. MM 972 In to Front Royal for resupply and a night in a hostel. Staying at Stumble Inn. Big day from a hiking perspective ¢ passed the 500 mile mark for this section. Seems a little crazy as I look back. That¢s kind of a big deal. Lots of people won¢t even drive 500 miles. I'm actually amazed. Thought I'd have much more trouble. The 500 mile mark is when your stage 2 legs are supposed to kick in. I think they are. I'm really feeling smooth. Sorry I haven¢t written more but believe it or not my days are pretty full. I¢ve been walking about 10 hours a day counting the little breaks - 2-5 minutes each - but not lunch which can be 20-60 minutes depending. For a couple of days I¢ve been able to average 2 mph when walking. And that¢s a milestone as well. That speed is necessary to get in the occasional 18-22 miles that are needed to bridge locations.
Date: 2023-04-26
From: MM 972

To: MM 987
Miles today: 15.0

Day 46  15 mi. MM 987In Whiskey Hollow shelter. Out of Shenandoah so the shelters are shelters again. Good breakfast at Stumble Inn hostel this morning. On the trail by 9:00 am and got a full day in. Miles felt good; the trail surface was really good for the most part so the miles are much easier for me. I made the last 1.4 miles in 25 minutes which works out to over 3 mph. Felt like I was flying over a smooth downhill! Lots of flowers out now - passed three or more miles of pink and white trillium. It was really pretty. Wish I knew what more of them were but I have a heck of a time with flower names. Gonna try for another 15 tomorrow. If that goes as well as today I'll be super happy. The Roller Coaster and lots of rain on Friday. Great combination - Not!Harpers Ferry WV here I come.
Date: 2023-04-27
From: MM 987

To: MM 1003
Miles today: 16.0

I've come a long way, baby!Day 47 16 mi. MM 1003Passed the thousand mile mark today. WOW!10 down and 12 more to go. It¢s a little mind boggling! Big rains coming tonight and all day tomorrow. Staying in a shelter so I don¢t have to carry a wet tent. Walked the beginning of the Rollercoaster today. A series of hills 500 - 900 feet up and immediately down.  It was tougher than I thought it would be much much easier than it would have been a month ago.
Date: 2023-04-28
From: MM 1003

To: MM 1021
Miles today: 18.0

Day 48 18 mi. MM 2021I hate it when the forecasters get it right. Started raining about 10 PM last night and never quit. Hiked almost 12 hours to get here. Really slow and careful downhill in the rain. But there is good news:VIRGINIA is done!!!!  Woo hoo!!!!I'm in my native state tonight and expect to sleep especially well with the sound of rain on my tent.
Date: 2023-04-29
From: MM 1021

To: MM 1037
Miles today: 16.0

Day 49 16 mi. MM 1037Picked up a resupply box at Harpers Ferry post office. What a great little place to come back to some day. Not at all what I figured it would be. Downtown was built in the 1700's. Much history around. WV is done!  Hate to leave it but small miles in the state. In Maryland now for a couple of days. First 4 miles were along the C&O canal trail/tow path. Dead flat and gravel. Took an hour and 10 minutes to do. Light drizzle off and on during the morning but not enough to justify a rain coat. Sun came out in the afternoon. MD looks to be gentle by AT standards but moderately rocky. Spending the night with ex-special forces guys. Interesting conversation.
Date: 2023-04-30
From: MM 1037

To: MM 1049
Miles today: 12.0

Day 50 12 mi. MM 1049Rain shortened game today. Another day of 24 hour rain. Trail is a running stream of water.  So speed was down and I stopped at 1:30 to get dry. Next shelter is 8 miles and it would have been dark when I got there. Been through a couple of state parks so far.  Very well done and kept up - I'm impressed. One was the original Washington monument. May have a new favorite  dinner: Pad Thai with chicken from backpackers pantry. It was delicious and 820 calories!  Yahoo. Couple that with a Snickers bar and you are over 1000 - easy peasy.  Hope the rain lets up tomorrow but showers are forecast all week. Sigh...No Rain - No Maine.
Date: 2023-05-01
From: MM 1049

To: MM 1062
Miles today: 13.0

Day 51. 13 mi. MM 1062Same weather. Cool and semi wet. I¢m meeting Clare on Friday at Furnace Grove State Park. It¢s at 1105 so I¢ve decided to throttle back a bit. No reason to get there early and pay for a hostel. Oh, I¢m in PA now. Finished MD yesterday. Forgot to mention I think. PA is looking a lot like my old hunting grounds in WV. I like it.
Date: 2023-05-02
From: MM 1062

To: MM 1075
Miles today: 13.0

Day 52 13 mi. MM 1075Ok. It¢s getting monotonous. Same weather! On the plus side, the rain was actually snow so it doesn¢t get me wet. Stage 2 legs are really working.  The hills seem easier but the numbers say they are basically the same. Not quite as high as down south which is a surprise because i always thought of PA as being higher. Maybe that will change as I go along.
Date: 2023-05-03
From: MM 1075

To: MM 1088
Miles today: 13.0

Day 53 15 mi. MM 1090Staying at possibly the coolest shelter on the AT - Quarry Gap. It has flowers, a gate, gnomes hiding everywhere!  Really beautiful. I¢ll send pix. Mini-bear got into my food bag last night. That¢s a raccoon. Always worse than a bear. Apparently he has learned to climb the pole to get to the bags. Didn¢t get much food but ate two big holes in the bag.  Went to my backup plan for the next few days. I hate raccoons!
Date: 2023-05-04
From: MM 1088

To: MM 1105
Miles today: 17.0

Day 54. 17 mi. MM 1105Made it past the halfway point today!!!The picture of the sign has the wrong numbers for the 2023 hike but the location was within a mile of the actual midpoint of 1098.2. I¢m actually starting to get a kind of surreal sense of watching someone else do this. It doesn¢t seem possible that this is really me. Today I did 17.2 miles in 8 hours and 5 minutes - breaking the 2 mph barrier. Several miles of the walk were pretty flat - plus or minus 200 feet per mile is now flat to me. And there were also  some miles through pine forests which make for the softest trail surfaces. I love the smell too. So far PA has been no more rocky than anywhere else. That will change I know but it¢s nice for now. It reminds me of my old hunting grounds in WV.  Heading off Trail tomorrow for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-05
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 55. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-06
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 56. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-07
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 57. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-08
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 58. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-10
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 60. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-11
To: Visit new Granddaughter & Family
Miles today: 0.0

Day 61. OFF TRAIL Last finished MM 1105Heading off Trail beginning 05/05/2023 for about a week to visit family and meet my new granddaughter, Anna Marie.  I¢ll check back in with you when I¢m back on Trail. Thanks for reading - hope it¢s not too boring.
Date: 2023-05-15
From: MM 1105

To: MM 1122
Miles today: 17.0

Day 65  15 miles MM 1122 Back on the Trail!Finished my visit with the family yesterday - it was wonderful. Anna Marie is a doll but no surprise at that. Got to see all the older kids play soccer which was a lot of fun for me. Clare dropped me off around 10:00 this morning and with much trepidation, I got back to it. I have to admit to being somewhat concerned after taking 10 days off.  So I was pleased to have a pretty easy trail today for the most part. Pine forests make the softest trail surface and I had a lot of that. Some rocky hills to go up and down but all pretty small - less than 500 feet anyway which is starting to seem small. I managed to keep my overall speed above 2 mph but the easy day had a lot to do with that. So I finished up just outside Boiling Springs, PA. The trail passes right through town and there¢s an ATC regional center along the way too. I came down the last of the Blue Ridge mountains today. Been on them since Springer in GA.  Tomorrow I cross the Cumberland Valley and go up into the Allegheny mountains. There will be a big change in the geology and I expect the mountains to get really rocky. But for today¢ I made it to my destination and feel pretty good. I¢m sure that I won¢t feel this good tomorrow but I¢m happy at the moment. Hike on!
Date: 2023-05-16
From: MM 1122

To: MM 1138
Miles today: 16.0

Day 66. 16 mi MM 1138Second day back did bring some issues. My left hip bothered me most of the day. Just felt like it wasn't getting loose or something. Uphill steps were painful. Flat and down were fine. Fortunately, today had the most flat miles I have ever seen and possibly will ever see. Today I crossed the Cumberland Valley- about 14 miles of almost dead flat. I spent about two hours during the day resting the hip and taking vitamin I. Ibuprofen. By 4:00 it seemed okay just in time for the climb back up into the mountains. So all in all my strategy worked. I arrived at the shelter feeling pretty good. So yesterday ended my hike through the Blue Ridge Mountains. After crossing the valley, I will be hiking the Allegheny mountains for awhile. Geologically very different and the beginning of Rocksylvania. Todays uphill was not very difficult but the rocks were definitely different. Didn't see any limestone. The rocks are much harder probably some kind of shale. Very dark in color and having sharper more planar edges. I did see some chunks of sandstone as well. Clare took some more cold weather stuff back and substituted some warm stuff in. The net was a loss of 2 pounds or so. My base weight is 15.5 pounds now. Much better than the start of 20-21.  Felt much better    One other first for today. I ate "town food" three times! I had breakfast in Boiling Springs to start the day. I was passing by Carlisle at noon and wanted to rest the hip again so I walked a quarter mile of trail to a diner and had a gyro platter. Then just before crossing I81 for the last time (I think), I passed an Amish farm stand and got a pint of homemade ice cream!  It was delicious!!! I was so full, I stopped by a river and took a half hour nap. Sometimes this backpacking thing is just sooooo difficult. Buttoned down in my tent for the night. Hope the hip is back to normal tomorrow. Stay tuned to find out.
Date: 2023-05-17
From: MM 1138

To: MM 1150
Miles today: 12.0

Day 67 12 mi. MM 1150NERO today. Walked into Duncannon today to do a resupply and overnight at the Kind of Outdoorsy hostel. It feels really good to put NERO and 12 miles in the same report. Remember when a full day was 10 or 11 miles!!!  I averaged just over 2 mph for the day. The hip felt pretty good today - only a little soreness to deal with. Had a wonderful spaghetti dinner at the Christ Lutheran Church.  They do it for hikers from May to September. What a fabulous ministry. They had a table of things hikers need like toothbrushes to take what you need. Really fun ladies to talk with as well. Tomorrow going to try an 18 mile slack pack back into town. Really curious to see if this one works better since I feel much stronger now.
Date: 2023-05-18
From: MM 1150

To: MM 1168
Miles today: 18.0

Day 68 18 mi. MM1168Slack pack out of Duncannon today. Wanted to give the hip one more day of "rest". I carried only food, water and emergency gear. Pack probably weighed 12 pounds - it was like carrying air.  Easy to see why ultralight is so desirable. The first hour uphill was 2.46 miles!!! It felt like I was flying. Saw something today that was completely unexpected.  I passed a group of 12 Amish women hiking!  It was actually an interesting sight. They were in traditional clothing and pretty decent backpacking gear. Anyway, I think it's pretty cool that they were out there. So the numbers of the day were 18.4 miles in almost exactly 9 hours so I kept my 2 mph target speed.  It's easy to see the appeal.  Back to normal hiking tomorrow.
Date: 2023-05-19
From: MM 1168

To: MM 1179
Miles today: 11.0

Day 69 11 mi MM 1179So a short day today because of external factors. I wanted to a tent site 15 miles out but realized in the afternoon that it was Friday. This site was close to a road and my past experiences made me leery of that. Next good site with ester was another 7 miles and I felt like two 18s in a row was too much.  So I stopped short. Passed a lot of coal mining stuff in the area which was fun for me. Even one drift mouth that was still open. Should have been closed but wasn't.First hour uphill with a 30 pound pack was 1.68 miles. Contrasted with yesterday (2.46 I think) you can see how much pack weight matters.
Date: 2023-05-20
From: MM 1179

To: MM 1197
Miles today: 18.0

Day 70 18 mi MM 1197Ok. Today was really unbelievable. I started at 7:00 am and was at the shelter at 4:00 pm. So 18.3 miles in 9 hours including all the stops and breaks! I've never done 2 mph over a whole day. I usually go much faster in the morning than in the afternoon. Today I did the last 2 miles in 45 minutes. That works out to 2.67 mph. I think maybe something switched out my body this week. I'm starting to feel like a real thru hiker. Staying inside a cool cabin tonight and it has a caretaker that keeps things going.  Only long distance hikers allowed. We all ordered food from town and had it delivered.  Nice reward for a good day hiking.
Date: 2023-05-21
From: MM 1197

To: MM 1211
Miles today: 14.0

Day 71 14 mi MM 1211Great day today from a ¢milestone¢ perspective.  Passed 1200 miles so 12 down 10 to go. Amazing to be going ¢downhill ¢ now.  At the same time, I passed the 1000 miles to Katahdin point. So from now on, I only have  3 digit miles to go!  Might not seem like a lot but it feels really good to me.It was a Rocksylvania kind of day as well. Several boulder fields to cross which are a little rough. For me, it¢s not really a physical challenge as much as a mental one. It takes a ton of continuous concentration to pick a path and not FALL.  I¢m really interested in not doing that again. So far, so good - knock on wood!
Date: 2023-05-22
From: MM 1211

To: MM 1226
Miles today: 15.0

Day 72 15 mi MM 1226Today was a bit of a disappointment. Not because of hiking but because of food!  I passed down off the trail into the town of Port Clinton through which the trail passes. It was about noon so I was really hoping to get a town meal in. Unfortunately, PC only had two restaurants and they were both closed on Monday and Tuesday. Double dang. No gas station or convenience store to even get a sandwich. The only thing open was a really cool candy store that specializes in the old timey stuff we had as kids. It was fun to look through and I got a couple of bars from my youth that I hadn¢t seen in decades. I also managed to get a couple of bottles of Gatorade and a coke for the fizz in Fizzix. I ate my jerky with the coke for lunch. Not a fresh sandwich but better than nothing. Used the Gatorade for the climb back out of town. That was a nice part of the day. That climb would have been hard several weeks ago but not was not that bad. I would not call it easy but I felt pretty good when I got to the top. More boulder fields but, hey, what¢s new?  Made it to Windsor Furnace shelter for the evening where I set up my tent. Why tent at a shelter you might wonder?  Well, the tent is more private than the shelter for one. Imagine sleeping in the shelter being like sleeping side by side on the floor with 5-7 others. It can get crowded and you have to change clothes under your quilt. Just inconvenient compared to being alone in a tent.Also, I can get to sleep a little earlier and stay a little longer. In the shelter, once the first person gets up you kinda have to also. If it¢s going to rain I try to stay in the shelter. The tent keeps me perfectly dry but it gets wet and has to be packed away wet in the morning. That makes it heavy - not really - it¢s probably only an ounce or two of water but it weighs on the mind. Get it!
Date: 2023-05-23
From: MM 1226

To: MM 1246
Miles today: 20.0

Day 73 20 mi MM 1246Hiked into the Lookout Hostel today. The place is fabulous. It has everything a hiker wants and an incredible view out over the valley.  It is advertised as ¢light resupply¢ which means you can get things to supplement what you have and stretch out the time before a full resupply.  But I could easily have done a full resupply here.  Reasonable prices as well.  Only downer was I was in a tent and there was a lot truck air-brake noise.  Have I mentioned before the road noise in PA?  Well, it pretty bad.  Interstates seem to flank the AT for large sections. There has rarely been a place where you can¢t hear road noise. Right now as I sit in a shelter, I can still hear the trucks. Not a lot for sure, but at till there. Hiking was a tale of two cities today. Morning was really heavy on rocks and so was slow. But the last 5 miles was mostly clear of rocks and flat. With a good surface, I did the last 4.1 miles in 70 minutes.  That works out to 3.5 mph!  Woo hoo!
Date: 2023-05-24
From: MM 1246

To: MM 1261
Miles today: 15.0

Day 74. 15 mi. MM 1261Hiked to Lehigh Valley and got a ride back to the hostel. Meeting the ladies tomorrow at the hostel but still got a full day in. Pretty typical PA day which means a lot of rock scrambling. But today featured a one special enough to be named ¢Knife¢s Edge¢. What makes it so special is that you can fall off on either side of the mountain as opposed to only one!  My method was to put one foot on each side and then not fall in a sitting position.  Worked. Shoes held on and I was upright the whole time. Hikes are getting drier.  Not liking the amount of water needing to be carried. Mini vacation starting tomorrow. I¢m excited!
Date: 2023-05-25
From: 1261

To: Walkabout with my Trail Angels
Miles today: 0.0

Day 75. 0 milesMy "twin Lizzies" made it here. (Both ladies are named Liz - so I use that name when referring to them collectively.  When I need to be specific, I use their Men in Black names:  K and C. Short and sweet.)We started the day off by touring the Lookout Hostel and talking to hikers still there. I reminded them several times that most hostels aren't that nice. But it gave them a good feel. Next came some instruction on the use of hiking poles. I am a big believer in them and  feel all new hikers should give them a try.  On level ground they don't do a lot unless you are in Rocksylvania where they help to prevent tripping falls. On uphills, they can reduce the workload on the legs by 25% if used properly. Course your arms get tired - but, hey, there's no free lunch. On downhills, they again prevent falls which are much more serious than on level ground.  But they also reduce the impact load on knees and help cushion the steps.The ladies managed to do two outbound miles which of course comes with two return miles. A very respectable 4 mile AT hike!  They met 10 hikers in that 4 mile hike - so much for being lonely, right?  There were 7 men, 2 women and a dog in that sample.  Ten percent is heavy on the dogs and twenty is a little light on the women based on my experience. We ate several times during the day - a thru hiker's dream and plotted the next day.
Date: 2023-05-26
From: MM 1261

To: Crystal Cave
Miles today: 0.0

Day 76 0 miles. Started the day by going back to last night's restaurant where I had left my wallet. Next, we did a cave tour (I've forgotten the name already) that was very educational. (Editor note: Crystal Cave). It wasn't a big cave but they really maximized the opportunity to learn.  Our group included 3rd and 4th graders which were a hoot to watch and very well behaved. Next stop was a diner style restaurant - Isaac's - Lancaster, PA); a favorite of K back in the day. (Both ladies had ties to this area in years past which made it a great location to be) I had soup and sandwich and that were  absolutely delicious.  It passed muster with K as well for still being top notch. The whirlwind day continued at the Turkey Hill Experience. Now, if like me, you wonder how much you can learn about a gas station-- you'll be surprised to find out that their business is ice cream!  So we learned how the whole process works. For an ice cream fan such as myself, it was really nice to see. We also managed to sample 7 of the 10 flavors of the day.  One person had 4 of the 7 but I refuse to name the soul. I leave as an exercise for the reader to determine. Finally, one more trip to eat in the evening at a local bar-style restaurant; Hops Fogelsville. The food was fabulous as was the menu. Wish this place was open at home! With a tremendously full belly I managed to get to a happy, happy sleep.