morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-03-06
To: 6
Miles today: 0.0

Well it's Tuesday and I'm only 4 days from my departure. Today, Rachael and I will be driving to Cleveland to enjoy a night away and to enjoy some of the sites. Of course, the windchill is like -4 right now and snow is on the way. Seriously, when I get to Springer, even if it gets into the 30's, it's going to feel balmy to me because it's been so harsh here in MI this winter. Yesterday's lunch was fantastic. It was so good to see Nicole and Ann again. Of course, Ann went WAY above and beyond and walked into the restaurant with these two HUGE gift bags for Nicole and I. She stuffed them with all of this great stuff that we could use on our hikes like some dehydrated veggies, Emergen-C (which is a vitamin packed powdered flavored drink mix that gives you a huge energy boost), some protein bars, and a couple of deyhrated Mountain House meals, and a million other cool things. Thanks again Ann!! It is SO appreciated. Of course, I failed to mention the best goody in the bag, which was a package of 5 yummy yummy brownies that had been made at Zingerman's Bakery. Oh my gosh.....these things were a little slice of heaven. Rachael also got a chance to meet some of my hiking friends, and I was really glad about that. Now she got to see first hand, that I'm not the only "crazy" out there! haa haa Here's all of us at our table yesterday.And then it was back home to get some other items in order. I actually ended up coming home and taking a nap (this is becoming a habit here....and it sure is NICE!) and after I woke up I tutored Rachael on how to post my journal entries and pics. Then she so patiently endured my going step-by-step through all my instructions that I left (organized by month of course) that pertain to our bills, vehicle tags, stuff in a box I may need her to mail to me, etc. She's so patient w/me, because I'm giving up my precious financial responsibilities (which I love by the way) and it was a little nerve racking for me, so I was super serious when explaining to her that I needed her to mail my nephew's birthday card out on a specific date. (seriously people...how hard can that be?...I'm such a dork). Rachael showed infinite patience w/my nonetheless. Thanks for that Rachael! Today I'm feeling pretty nervous. When Nicole and I walked out of Zingerman's yesterday I was like, "hey...see ya on Saturday," and she was like, "yup, see you then." Then it hit me and I turned around to her and said, "oh my god...can you believe that the next we see each other will be when we are driving to Georgia?" She kind of got this deer in headlights look on her face and smiles and goes, "No, I can't."
Date: 2007-03-07
To: 5
Miles today: 0.0

We just got home from Cleveland. It was A BLAST!! We lived like we were royalty (for a 24 hr period that is). I got us a room at the Embassy Suites and just to prove to everyone how much of a goof-ball I am, here's another example of my never-ending dorkdum. We got our room key, go up to the 9th floor and our room was at the very end of the hall. The thing is, the room numbers down here were really confusing because they were on the wall in between room doors, so I wasn't totally sure which room was ours. So, I go up to what I "think" is the correct room door and wouldn't you know it...the key won't open the door. Rachael is standing there patiently as usual, as I fumble around with sliding the key (credit card type) in all the ways it could possibly fit (afterall...I used to work on cars for a living...I can do this right?). Everytime, the little red light comes on. So finally, Rachael goes, "Michele....isn't this door kind of small?" So I stop for a second, look at the door compared to the other doors and realize that I had been standing there for 5 minutes trying to gain entry into the house cleaner's closet!!!! The door was blatantly smaller (as in 1/2 the width) than the others...DUH!!!! So, I stepped a few steps over to the door that was to the left of the room # and wouldn't you know it....the door opened! Man, I'm in for it out on the trail. Of course, we stood there and laughed our butts off for a good 10 minutes. One more thing....if you live anywhere near Cleveland, I highly suggest going to the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame. It was fantastic! We had a really wonderful time and the time away helped me calm down a lot.So, much like my buddy Nicole, I also took a picture of all of my gear (check out her journal...her picture is HILARIOUS!!!). I'm laughing simply because I obviously had WAY too much time on my hands when I took this pic last week. I base this assumption on the fact that I took the time to lay every single thing out in a nice/neat little pile. Can you say OCD? So tomorrow is grocery shopping and weather permitting, we'll adjust the underquilt on my hammock. If not, it will have to happen on Friday. My backup plan for that is another hammock hanger (from Michigan too!) is going to be at the Hiker Hostel on Sunday, so he volunteered to help me go out and do it if the weather won't cooperate here. I think it will all work out though, so I'm not stressing. It will only take like 5 minutes, so no biggie.Much like Nicole expressed in her journal, this does not feel real. This does not feel like it's going to finally happen. It feels like Saturday will just be another day that I get up and read everyone else's journals, surf around on Whiteblaze and Hammock Forums and then dream a little more. It's time to wake up and soon!
Date: 2007-03-09
To: 3
Miles today: 0.0

Ok, so today was the most insane emotional roller coaster I've been on since....let's see....puberty? I've gone from total excitement to feeling like I was going to vomit on the carpet in my friend Heather's apartment (glad I didn't go through with that one huh Heather?). Let's just say my nerves are in overdrive and I'm exhausted. It was an equally difficult day for Rachael too...who normally displays an infinite amount of patience, but today, a simple task like putting up a shelf on the wall had her cussing like a sailor! We both took turns calming each other down. Right now it's 11:15 p.m. and she's loading a few more songs on my MP3 player. I still have to figure exactly where she needs to take me tomorrow....nothing like procrastinating huh?I spent a long time packing my pack tonight....making sure I had everything. In the past week everything got a bit scattered and my OCD-ness got me again. I kept walking around the apartment looking for anything I'd left out and convincing myself I didn't have it all. I've even written myself a huge reminder note that says "Cheese"--my cheese is in the fridge....   So here's what my pack looks like with everything in it. I put it on tonight, fearful that I'd fall down, but surprisingly it felt really really good. I went downstairs and walked around outside a bit and came back up the stairs with no problem (could have been that double espresso Starbucks drink I just had though).I get back up here, ready to put my pack in its holding area and go to extend my hiking poles. Wouldn't you know it...one of them won't tighten up! You just extend them to the proper length (for your height) and then twist it....it is "supposed" to tighten up, and always has unil tonight. So, what does a nervous as hell woman who is getting ready to leave her life behind for 6 months (in only a matter of hours) do? I sat down on the floor, took the damn thing apart and fixed it myself! Now I know how Leki poles "work" and I was really surprised that plastic could be so strong...but I now have that much more confidence in my gear since I think I can fix most of it if I need to. So here's a pic of my pack. She's been oh so patient with me for the past year, waiting for me to take her out and let her do her job. Well, now we're almost there. Seriously....I may need to take a barf bag tomorrow!If the hotel has a computer I can use, I'll update from the road tomorrow, if not, I'll probably send my first update to Rachael via my pocketmail so she can put it up. Alright everyone...send calming vibes my way, it's almost showtime!
Date: 2007-03-10
From: Michigan

To: Knoxville, TN
Miles today: 0.0

Well, right now Nicole and I are both sitting in our hotel room typing on ourpocketmails....we look "special" LOL!!It was pure torture telling Rachael goodbye this morning. Lots of tears. I wasgoing to try to hold it together, but that ended up being a lost cause. I picked up our cool Saturn Ion (which is way fancier than my truck!) and wewere on the road by 12:30.It seemed like a really quick ride, but it was also full of laughter due toNicole deciding she had night vision and didn't need to use the car headlights.About 20 min. after it got dark she goes..."Is it really dark to you?" I ofcourse had an explanation that it must be because we are driving inmountains....it sounded good at the time. Then I shared the fact that I thoughtthe headlights weren't very bright. It was then that she leaned forward and Iheard a "click"....suddenly we could see the road! I'm still laughing as I sithere!! In her defense her car's headlights come on automatically...but we laughed for along time.We found a grocery store instead of eating fast food and I just ate some sort offake sushi for dinner. That's what I get for buying it in a land locked statehuh? The plan is to head out around 7:30 a.m. and then make our way to the NorthSprings MARTA Station for our ride to the Hiker Hostel.It still does not feel like this is for real...but I am relieved that its reallywarm down here.Well...nighty night. Gonna try to call Rachael and hit the sack.Leigh from the Hiker Hostel called to confirm we were still on the way....and Isaid YOU BET!~Michele
Date: 2007-03-24
From: Hiawasee, GA

To: 1st Campsite in N.C.
Miles today: 8.7

WE ARE IN NORTH CAROLINA NOW!! Woo hooooo. One state down, 13 to go!So last nite @ the hotel, the hot tub and pool were awesome. My muscles havebeen aching a bit at nite, so that hot water was just the ticket.We talked to a couple from Virginia who were down in GA to buy a pure bred dog. Really nice people. Well, this morning before we left, the lady gave us hercontact info and said when we get up their way to call, and we could stay withthem. Cool.We got our shuttle ride at 9:00 a.m. and were hiking by 9:30. We hadconservatively planned only a 6.4 mile day, but we were feeling good, so wedecided to get ourselves into our first new state! It was pretty exciting tosee that GA\NC sign on the tree.We actually made it here by 5:15 p.m., and didn't know what to do with ourselveswith all that daylight and time! So Nicole and I built a raging inferno in thefire pit for everyone to enjoy.Today coming out of town I felt pretty sluggish, but your pack is always reallyheavy too, with full food. I just kept plugging along, and you always get thereeventually. You have to expect low energy days, and be prepared to deal with itin a positive way.We stopped at Plum Orchard Shelter for lunch around 1:00 p.m. We had lunch withNot Guilty, who thru hiked in 2005. He's a lawyer, which is funny, becauseeveryone out here seems to have an aversion to lawyers. He's a really nice guythough. Right now I am sitting around our fire with Nicole and Trail Thought, a sectionhiker from CT. Very nice guy, and his son is thru hiking this year. He owns apublishing company in NY and gave me his busines card after we talked about acool idea for a book. So Rachael, wanna move to NYC? LOL (I am JUST kidding) Sailor is here tonite, as is Not Guilty and 2 other guys with their dog Sadie.When we actually hit the border of NC we hooted and hollered and took severalpics in various poses. Nicole was totally high, I had an interesting reactionthough. I was almost numb or perhaps exhausted due to my lack of energy today.I was excited, but I also was really looking forward to getting to camp, whichwas luckily just over the hill. We have a great spot tonite. The moon is out, the stars are bright and there isa slight chill in th air. It was in the 80's today by the way! We were sweatinglike pigs, and the affects of the showers the past 2 days are little more than afleeting memory. Stinky again! LOLThis week will be a big week, we are in our first new state, we will hit 100miles, and we will probably do our first double digit day. Lots going on! Today we took a break and were sittig in the shade of a Rhodadundron tunnel. Weboth sat totally still and could hear the constant buzzing of bugs, like adrone. We felt like we were being watched! LOL It was cool though.Well, nighty night, time to go hang and get a great nights sleep.By the way, I know everyone will think I am full of it (except for my hangingbuddies) but my hammock is more comfortable than the nice bed in the hotel! ~Certain
Date: 2007-04-12
From: Cherokee, NC

To: Cherokee, NC
Miles today: 0.0

Today was a good day of rest and preparation for our re-entry into the Smokeys.Persistent, Eric and I went and got breakfast, did laundry, and got some minorsupplies @ the Food Lion. Persistent found these mini containers of Ben-n-Jerry's, so we ate those in thecar back to the hotel. mmmmmmWe also went to the library and signed up for our 45 min. slots to get onlineand catch up with emails and other people's journals. I, of course touched basewith all my hammocking buddies on www.hamockforums.net. GREAT resource foranyone wanting to ask questions. I had to tell them (and only they seem tounderstand) that my friends out here make fun of me because I take a picture ofmy hang everyday. LOL Then it was back to my room to wash my gear off, repack, and chill out a bit. The weather looks a little scary (again). Tomorrow will be beautiful, but itgoes down hill after that. Oh well, you can't stay in towns for weeks at a timeto avoid ALL of the bad weather. We've been VERY lucky so far, in that usually we're hiking into town the day itis miserable, so I really can't complain.I feel ready to get back out. Eric and Persistent went to Franklin and broughtGadget and Scribe back! They are hiking out with us tomorrow, and that is superexciting too. Now if we can get Sailor back with us, the AT Patrol will betogether once again! LOLI wanted to touch upon an issue that I think isn't really an issue at all,regarding hiking the Smokys. I (and many others) was under the impression thatyou "had" to sleep in the shelter, if space is available. So far, this has notproven to be true. Yes, you have to go from shelter to shelter, but therehasn't been anyone around telling us we have to sleep in it. I have always hungwithin the shelter area, and Persistent has always set up her tent. 2 of the 3nites, there has been space in the shelter, so if you are like us, and prefernot to sleep in shelters, I don't see why it would be a concern. I have onlyseen 1 ridgerunner so far as well. Maybe we are jus lucky, but it hasn't been adeal to expect to hang everynite.If you have transportation and are resupplying half way thru the Smokys, Irecommend coming into Cherokee. I have not been to Gatlinburg, but Cheroke haseverything you need, but you definitely need wheels. I also don't know if thereare shuttles back to the trail though. I went to NAPA and got some Heet toresupply my stove fuel. We'll see how it works.Well, tomorrow we hit the 200 mile mark! I think another toast may be in order! LOL While I have the chance, I wanted to thank Rachael for taking care of myjournal, and pics, and everything at home, and for supporting me in thisendeavor. It is not easy for the family members at home, and it takes a prettyselfless person to say, "Sure, you go right ahead and hike in the woods for 6months, I'll take care of everything." Thanks babe, I REALLY appreciateeverything!Well, time to get some zzz's. I'm fighting a bit of a sore throat, so hopefullysome sleep wil take care of it.   ~Certain
Date: 2007-04-23
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I went out to the road yesterday evening to wait for Rachael to show up so Icould show her where to park, and who walks out of a store across the street,none other than Not Guilty! I gave him a big hug, and he sat out there with meand we caught up. Last time I'd seen him was @ Tellico Gap, NC and we'd heardhe hurt himself, so didn't know if he was on the trail still.He's doing fine, and it was great to see him again. Then I saw my truck comingdown the road and the world disappeared. After Rachael got settled in, we decided to find a store with medicine, both forPersistent (who was feeling horrible) and me (who was starting to feel a coldcoming on).We ended up taking a drive (man is it nice to have a vehicle! LOL) to Newport,TN (where Persistent and I stayed to recup from the Smoky's) and went to thestore there. It was a pretty drive, followed the French Broad River for a bit, and fromNewport, you can see the silhouette of the last half of the Smoky's, so I got toshow Rachael where I had hiked. She said I was crazy. LOLAfter stopping @ Sonic on the way back and delivering medicine to Persistent, wejust enjoyed the evening together. Rachael brought her computer down, so welooked at all of my pics, which is the first time I've seen most of them on areal sized screen, and it was amazing to see a visual version of my journey sofar.We resupplied today, and I got some new insoles, made by Spenco that I thinkwill provide a bit more cushion than the superfeet, but with similar support. I'll report on the outcome when I test them. I also got a new foodbag. Mysilnylon stuff sack leaks (not seam sealed), but it was a bit small, so I got aSea to Summit 13 liter dry sack, and it is much more durable and since I amstarting to eat more, I'll have the room for more food. I'll be honest herethough, Rachael wouldn't let me pay for anything! I felt so spoiled, I swear. Iam so lucky to have such support. I told Persistent we aren't leaving town until she feels better. I know Iwouldn't want to start hiking until I felt better, and I told her my time wouldcome.Gadget and Scribe called us and they are in town. They heard Sailor isn't toofar behind them! Man, it would be great if he showed up too! In the meantime,I'm contemplating using the tiny scissors on my Swiss Army Knife to cut a wireon my truck that will prevent Rachael from leaving tomorrow. We're going to gosoak in the Hot Springs tonite. It should feel really good. Probably one more day to get our stuff together and for Persistent to get somerest. Then off to Erwin!~Certain
Date: 2007-04-24
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Well, found out (at 9:08 p.m.) that the Hot Springs closed @ 9:00 p.m. Bummer. No soaking afterall.Last nite, Not Guilty, Persistent, Rachael and I all met for dinner @ the SmokyMt. Diner, which has excellent food by the way. As we were all walking out, whois sitting there but Sailor! YIPPY! The AT Patrol is back together again! LOLWe all talked for a bit, and walked outside, then Gadget and Scribe showed up,so I got a pic of all of us plus Rachael and Not Guilty (who is being made anhonorary member of the AT Patrol). Gadget and Scribe didn't realize that they had missed dinner and the diner wasclosed. They were starving, and nothing was open, so I gave them the pizzaRachael and I had left over. It was only 4 pieces, but it sure beats anotherLipton's! LOL We all decided to meet @ 10:00 a.m. for breakfast. I'm soexcited to have my friends back out here. It is so weird how you can be as muchas 5 days apart and all end up in the same town again.It was a really tough parting this morning when Rachael had to leave. It wasn'tany easier than the day we left for Georgia. I'd be lying if I said I didn'tconsider just hopping in the truck and going home. I knew this would be thehardest part for me, and it is proving to be totally true. Half of my braintells me I am insane for being away from home (BY CHOICE!) and then the otherhalf reminds me of the sacrifices (especially) Rachael and I have made in orderfor me to be out here, and I don't want any of that to be in vain, as long as Iam capable of continuuing. It is a wild emotional rollercoaster for sure, andI'm pretty bummed out today.Persistent and I moved from the Creekside Inn Cabins (which are VERY basic, buthave their own shower\bathroom and bed) to share a cabin @ a place that is notlisted in the guidebooks, called Springbrook Cottages. Man are these NICE!! They have to be brand new, but we have one with 2 double beds, kitchenette, theyhave hard wood floors, and a front and back porch. Only drawback is the trainruns about 100 yrds in front of the cottages, but trust me, it doesn't matterwhere you stay in Hot Springs, you'll hear the train! LOL After our crazy resupply yesterday, I didn't want to spend 2 hrs repackingeverything with Rachael here, so I did it after breakfast. We are planning onhiking into Erwin on the 7th day, so this will be our longest run betwenresupply. I'm ok with that, like before, towns stop your momentum. As much asI need the downtime, I think I am going to try to start zeroing in the woods tosave $ and especially since the weather is starting to get nicer. We'll see. Well, that's about it for now. Persistent, who has no voice, is watching one ofher old favorite TV shows, Beverly Hills 90210! LOL Cracks me up totally. Iam going to find a payphone and send my entries off, and rest before tomorrow'sdeparture. My pack is SO heavy with 6 1\2 days of food. I'd like to apologizeto my knees now, they are going to hate me tomorow. LOLAnd Rachael, thanks for everything. I wouldn't be here on this personal andintense journey without your support. ~Certain
Date: 2007-05-23
From: Charlottesville, VA

To: Charlottesville, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Another day of rest. This down time has given me the opportunity to reflect on this journey as if it were a thing of the past (only because it's been so long since I've hiked, but the plan is still to be back on Saturday...YIPPY!)It has so far, been an amazing thing. It isn't until you have removed yourself from that life that you start to fully take in what it is you are doing everyday out there.Being back into civiliation, watching my friend, Cindy, get ready for work everyday, hearing Karen make phone calls and listening to her stories of how she had to figure out why 10 pages of the bibliography of her dissertation were missing from a copy....it is such a different sense of my purpose in life right now, knowing I have no details to tend to, no follow up phone calls to make, no job to get to by a certain time everyday. It is about the biggest sense of freedom I've ever felt in my life. And I keep running my "getting back onto the trail" through my head, and I wonder what it will feel like. What will it feel like to walk away from my friends, who have been so gracious and wonderful housing me for this week. What will it feel like to hike up the mountain that waits for me just outside of Damascus, and what will it feel like to know I am entering the woods again, only alone this time.So for those of you tracking the stats, I had a chance to go in and make sure everything was correct, AND (drum roll please) Leif (one of the incredible people who run this website) added "hammock" and "under the stars" to our options for how we sleep out there!! So, I went back through and changed all the "tent" clicks to "hammock"!! YIPPY!! Thanks Leif!!!!Tomorrow, I'm going to go with Karen to walk the dog and see how it feels. Other than my having tons of time to reflect on this hike and having the time of my life with my friends, nothing else major is going on. I got a text message from Fuzzy Monkey asking how my foot was. I'll really miss his company. But there's more new people hiking out there right now for me to meet, and that's pretty exciting as well.~Certain