morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-01-15
From: Stover Creek Shelter, GA

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter, GA
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: light rain

No mice in Stover Creek shelter. Started hiking around 8 am, again. It is still incredibly warm for this time of year. Light rain as I left the shelter. It was so warm & the rain so light: that I was not wearing my raingear. The walk to Hawk Mountain Shelter is easy. There is a small climb up to Hawk Mt. The long MLK weekend is coming to the end. I only see two guys(the whole day) with full Frog Togg raingear that were trying to get to Amicalola from Neels Gap in 2 days(39 miles). They were promoting The Hillbilly Huntin' Ranch. Arrive at the shelter pretty early. I stayed here as I am staying in shelters. The next one is 7.1 miles from here. As I was hanging at the shelter: I heard machine gun fire. Initially, it concerned me; but, then I remembered that mountain army ranger training is conducted in this area. About 4pm in comes "Mr Happy" smiling from ear to ear. My first thru hiking peer that I have met. We talked most of the evening. I put my ear phones on(listened to some sort of MLK opera tribute) & lit the candle as the mice were out in full force. 60 degrees at 5pm. I guess I should talk a little about trail names. Everyone on the trail has a nickname. You either pick one or you will be given one. Why nicknames, because everyone is on the run from the law? No, it is kind of like a "rite of passage". Like when an indian gets his adult name. You know like in the movie "Dances With Wolves". That becomes Kevin Costner's name. My trail name is "Zero" because I take many days off. In trail jargon: no miles hiked in a day = a zero day. I will talk more about trail names at a later date.
Date: 2007-01-16
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: overcast clouds

The weather changed last night. The wind is howling & the temperature at 3126 feet is 38. This section was kind of tough. I climbed up and down 4 times. The first big climb of the AT is Sassafras mountain. It is steep and long. At the top it was spitting snow here and there. On top of Sassafras, I started getting cold. I sweated too much coming up the mt. I also had a "blonde moment" and wore shorts. Also, on the descent I cooled down; and on top of it all: the wind at Cooper Gap was being funnelled. It had to be 50 miles an hour. The real problem was when I began climbing Justus Mountain. I am still not in good enough shape to move fast enough to get my "motor running" enough to get warm. I found a spot out of the wind and set down on my sitting pad(given to me by Joe Green the long time helicopter weather/traffic reporter in the Boston area). I got out my thermos & drank some hot soup and then did some jumping jacks. I got warmed up. Man, that was close. I climbed over to Justus Creek and there was Mr Happy. He is from The Berkshires; so, he thought I was silly being that cold. Duh, your wearing shorts! I talked with him some and then I drank an Emergen-C and walked the 1.3 to the nice Gooch mountain shelter. When I got there I quickly went to the spring and got some water. I rushed back; got into some warm clothes; got my Jet-Boil heating some water; got out my two sleeping bags; and crawled in. Yes, I said two sleeping bags. OK, here is the story. One is a down 20 degree REI rectangular bag. It is fairly new. The other is a Marmot 0 degree down bag that has been caught in several rain storms and washed several times. It is only a year old, though. Anyway, if you do not know it yet. Ratings on sleeping bags are alot like miles per gallon on cars. They are exaggerated in the sellers favor. These two bags together are probably good to -10 degrees. I plan to get rid of the Marmot later in my hike. Mr Happy came in a little bit after I arrived. When he left the shelter earlier in the morning: he was about a minute ahead of a tree that fell. He said that he had heard it fall back behind him. He tried to start a fire after he got settled in. He was bored. He tried starting it with his Jet boil. No luck. I was too cold to help him. We saw no one else this day.
Date: 2007-01-17
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Woody Gap, GA
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It was in the low 20's last night with the wind howling around 20-30 mph. Luckily, it was not blowing into the shelter. I slept very warm. Mr Happy woke up and was shivering pretty bad; so, he ate a snack and drank some Chai and left. The wind died down around daylight to nothing. That was a nice change. I packed up and wore long jogging pants. I learned my lesson yesterday with shorts. I left the shelter again around 8 am with the temperature around 29 degrees. There was alot of hoarfrost along the trail. It made for a crunchy walk along the trail. If you have not seen this type of frost. It looks like 1-3 inch gray, translucent, curling ribbons that come up along the trail formed by the wind. It is pretty to the sight. I started out really well. I did the gradual climb up Gooch Mountain. It was clear skies with the sun starting to rise. I got so warm: I took off my hound's ear winter cap and old sierra designs rain coat. As I began to climb Ramrock Mountain, things started to change. I heard on the Radio this morning that there could be sleet this evening. The sun was being covered by clouds and a slight wind of 5 mph began to blow. I looked up on the top of Ramrock and it was completly covered with Ice on top. Mr Happy and I talked about going to The Wood's Hole Shelter(12.4 miles). That is a long way for me. I knew I could do it; but, it would be tough. As I was climbing Ramrock, I started getting cold again. I was like: not again! I tried to get going fast enough to warm up. I could not do it; so, I stopped. I got out the sitting pad, the thermos, and drapped the REI bag around me. Just between you and me and the world: I thought about quiting. I was able to warm up pretty well and got going. I started feeling pretty good again and forgot about quiting. Once you get over Ramrock, it is a fairly level walk to Woody Gap. I told myself that when I got to the gap, I would try to get a ride to the Hiker Hostel in Dahlonega(DAH-LAWN-UH-GUH). If I could not get a ride right away, I would keep hiking to Wood's Hole. When I got to the gap: there was Caterpillar. He was doing day hikes in the area and had his vehicle right there, yes! He drove me to the Hostel. What a palace (http://www.hikerhostel.com/). I took a shower, washed my clothes, and ate some left over food in the refrigerator. It was awesome. Went to sleep around 9:30pm....I wonder what happened to Mr Happy?
Date: 2007-01-18
From: Woody Gap, GA

To: Woody Gap, GA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Well, woke up today to freezing rain. Do not think climbing up Big Cedar Mountain would be prudent at this Juncture. This is such an awesome place anyway. Will head to Wood's Hole Shelter tomorrow. Probably will not be able to update the journal for some time.
Date: 2007-01-19
From: Woody Gap, GA

To: Blood Mtn Shelter, GA
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Josh, the owner of The Hiker Hostel; dropped me off at Woody Gap. The luxury of the hostel was over as soon as I got out of the SUV. The wind was blowing around thirty miles an hour an it was just a little under freezing. I started moving fast right away trying to get to the ascent of Big Cedar Mountain. The climb was not as bad as I expected and the mountain blocked the wind(yeah). Once to the top, it was down hill for a couple of miles and it was on the sunny side & the windless side of the mountain. I cannot stress enough the importance of being out of the wind. I could stop several times and sit to rest and eat a snack. My pack was a little heavier as I took a few things out of the hiker box(hiker boxes are boxes that are filled with things that hikers do not want to carry or want to leave for those who follow. I like them. You never know what you might find) at the hostel. As I walked I thought about the people that had signed my guestbook on trail journals and what I might write the next time I found an internet site. I joined that site on a lark; but, I think it is going to give me some encouragement. Today, I am starting to feel like a real hiker. I still need to take it easy because of the surgery I had on my left ACL 5 years ago. I have to let all of the supporting muscles, cartilage, & tendons get strong before I can really move. I came to the blue-blazed trail to The Wood's Hole Shelter & debated: "should I stay or should I go now!" About then, 3 section hikers showed up. They did a loop over Blood Mtn & around & back 1.7 miles on the Freeman Trail. They advised me to go on that trail because it was so bad on Blood Mtn. Well, that made my mind up. Im going to camp on Blood! Where the AT meets the Slaughter Gap Trail: the AT starts it's climd to Blood & there is a spring here. I loaded up on the water, as there is no water up there. I climbed the mountain with the thought in my mind that: this climb is easier than I thought. On the way up, I meet a guy, his dad, and his dog. The guy said he was starting his thru hike on Feb 1st. By the time I got to the shelter, my feet were really hurting. It was about 28 degrees and the wind was howling. There was ice in all the trees that was falling as the wind blew. It looked like snow-cone ice all over. I quickly got my stove going, hung my food, swept out a place in the shelter out of the wind, and got in my sleeping bag. Some local college yahoos showed up wearing sandals and t-shirts. The looked at the view out off of the rocks behind the shelter and left. They said that they had a friend that hiked the AT. I thought to myself that GA sure has some pretty women, not as good as Dallas, but......
Date: 2007-01-20
From: Blood Mtn Shelter, GA

To: Walisi-Yi Hostel(Neel's Gap, GA)
Miles today: 2.5

I slept really well, especially considering the conditions. Spent most of the night listening to Jazz Piano. The mice had got into my food bag; the bastards. I had to clean it out before I could get going. I ate a granola bar and left the clothes that I had slept in, on as I hiked. There is a beautiful view as the AT goes down this side of Blood. It is a little difficult to follow. When I used the restroom last night: I noticed how close the lights of civilization where to the trail. Thank goodness for the ATC and the mile wide corridor. The trail was a little steep as I went down. I could feel me knees and my feet hurt from the previous day. I was getting a little warm, too. The clothes I sleep in are much warmer than what I usually hike in. I saw a guy that was heading up to the top and then I saw another "Georgia Peach" going down the Freeman Trail. I came into Neel's Gap and went into the Walisi-Yi outfitter. Too be honest, I was not sure what I was going to do. I had been here before & had some bad experiences(had my food drop stolen, etc) over the years. But right away, "Cornbread" and I recognized each other. He was running the register and made me feel right at home; so, I decided to stay. Im glad I did. It took awhile to get the gas heater started and about twelve hours for the hostel to warm up. I took a shower and washed my clothes. About 1 pm, a thru hiker named "magic" showed up. He had hiked to here in 2 days from Springer. He had not started the trail with any stove fuel; so, he was starving & cold. He took a few things from the hiker box, bought some fuel, heated some stuff in the microwave and headed out again. I slept in front of the heater and watched the movie MASH & went to sleep.
Date: 2007-01-21
From: Walisi-Yi Hostel(Neel's Gap, GA)

To: Walisi-Yi Hostel(Neel's Gap, GA)
Miles today: 0.0

I woke up to a driving cold rainstorm and decided to take a zero..heck that's my name! Im glad I took a day off; not only because of the life threatening conditions; but, because I was invited to watch the NFL conference championships on TV upstairs in "cornbreads" lair. Also, Mr Happy was coming. He evidently was feeling sick and had spent a zero in Helen, Ga. It was good to talk to him. He was not physically sick; but, more lonely sick. He is just out of high school and his first time away from home. He really needs some company. I just dont have the legs("trail legs" is a term that is associated with long distance hiking. It takes awhile to get them. You have to get used to walking up and down hills all day, every day with a heavy pack. When you can hike up and down hills with a pack for hours; then you have trail legs) yet to hang with him & I have asked him to keep going and not wait on me. Im not ready for a "trail marriage"(this is a term that means that you have hiked with someone for more than a week or so; and it is either said or assumed that you will hike together till the end of you all's hike), yet. About noon and in the pooring rain; in came another thru-hiker. His name was Mark. He had not chosen a trail name yet. He was just out of the army and Iraq. I shook his hand and thanked him for his service. I reminded him that he was the reason the Mr Happy was not drafted into the miliatary & that people could hike the AT. He and MR Happy looked at me like I was nuts. Mark bought him some food and left out into the pouring rain with a really small pack(20 pounds?). Mr Happy and I went upstairs and spent the next 7 hours watching football. Who says that you have to give up watching sports on the AT. I think that was me, as I was leaving The Lodge at Amicalola?!
Date: 2007-01-22
From: Walisi-Yi Hostel(Neel's Gap, GA)

To: Low Gap Shelter, GA
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up really late: 9am. Now my circadian rythym was going to be all messed up. The games made it worth it, though. I headed out with an incredibly heavy pack as I raided the hiker box, again. It was really windy and the temperature around freezing again. It was going to be one of those AT days where I was going to be fogged in all day. As I hiked, I thought what I had learned about vapor barrier and staying warm. This is what goes on 20-50 times a day, in order to stay warm. As I walked up Levellend Mtn, I quickly began to get warm. I first expose my fingers in my mittens that change into fingerless gloves. I warm up some more. I remove my hood from my head on my rain jacket. I warm up some more. I unzip the rain coat. I warm up some more. I take off my hounds ear warm stocking cap, putting it in my rain jacket zipper pocket.I warm up some more. I take off my gloves all together and zip them in my rain jacket pocket. This leaves me with a Under Armor ball cap covered by an ear warmer; with a synthetic long sleeve top that is covered by the unzipped rain jacket; with alpine lowe rain pants; with knee high gaiters; with silk sock liners covered with wool socks; and with Montrail hiking shoes. Then I get to the top of the Mtn and walk along the undulating ridge to Cowrock Mtn where the wind is howling and I put everthing back on in reverse order. This procedure is not what I did at the beginning of my hike because of laziness, being out of shape, learning curve, etc. I know to hike and stay warm that this is what I must do. I climb to the top of Wildcat Mtn.(Oh, my lungs are gaining capacity and my shoulders/chest/rib cage do not hurt all the time now! I still have not smoked a cigarette. I did drink a six pack of PAle Ale while watching the football games.) At the top of Wildcat is A blue blaze that goes to Whitley Gap Shelter. It is 1.2 miles to the shelter. It Ain't happening. I walk down to Testnatee Gap on the AT and there are some cokes that "Bravefriend" AT thru hiker '06 left for trail magic. I drank 2 of them; even though the gave me a headache as I drank them too fast and they were too cold. The next 3.5 miles to the shelter was up one mtn and down, then up again. I guess 5 times, until Sheep Rock. I never saw a rock that looked like a sheep; but, was happy to get down, way down, to Low Gap Shelter. I quickly did my routine and got into my bag.
Date: 2007-01-23
From: Low Gap Shelter, GA

To: Blue Mountain Shelter, GA
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Stayed up late listening to NPR. Could not get to sleep until around 11pm. That football game really messed up my sleep pattern. Did not get out of the sleeping bags until around 11am. When I did I noticed that the mice had got into my foodbag again last night. I did even hang it on the bear poles. I am really getting disgusted with the vermin. I should have carried my tent. While I was preparing my brunch a little mouse kept running around the shelter. he was not afraid of me one bit. I could have killed him; but, he really was cute and the only contact with a living being since leaving Neel's Gap. So, I tolerated him and even talked to him some. I finally got going around 2pm. The walk is a slow steady easy climb for about 2 miles and then 2 miles of the same up and down. This section of trail was made by the CCC in the 1930's and it is relatively easy walking. There is alot of water in this area. It is still cold, cloudy, and a wind of 5-10 miles an hour. Much of this walk was out of the wind, though. There was one mountain in this walk; where it was snowing. There was not snow up on Brasstown Bald(highest point in GA) which I could see in the distance. It was very surreal to walk over that mountain and into the snow; and then down and out of the snow. There were a couple of pointless up's and down's(pud's) before I made it to Chattahochee Gap that I handled pretty well. It was a pretty easy descent, until the climb to the Blue Mountain Shelter. This climb was very rocky and the icey patches made it kind of dificult; plus my feet were killing me. I got about 4 liters of water right before the shelter. I did not want to walk the .3 miles back to get water; after I reached the shelter. Anyway, it was already getting dark when I arrived and I did my routine and got into my sleeping bags.
Date: 2007-01-24
From: Blue Mountain Shelter, GA

To: Blue Mountain Shelter, GA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up to the sun shining, a temp of 32, and I light wind. One problem though was my knee was tight around my left ACL. I knew that there were some steep up's and down's to Tray Mountain; so, I decided to spend the day here at this shelter. I know many reading this journal are thinking that this is bizarre; but, I started this early in order to taking easy on my body. Starting this early gives me many more options than those starting later. I do not have people zipping by me that judge me and then make me competitive. I do not have to hurry to get to Katadhin before it closes & I do not have to try to keep up with friends. It is a little tough on my ego. Anyway enough rationalizing. The mice did not get into my food last night because there are hangers inside this shelter that have a barrier on the hanger that the mice cannot get over to the food bag. Not good if a bear came in(there was bear scat on the trail to the shelter); but at least the mice are not getting food that I have toiled to carry. There was another baby mouse in this shelter that hung around me all day. He stayed about 5 feet from and even got on my shoe a couple of times. I started to lose my disdain for the vermin. I guess they are just trying to live like everything else. Weird, I know. Remember, I have not seen anyone since I left Neel's Gap. I decided to get everything ready for the morning; so, I did not have to cook or "dilly dally" when I awoke.
Date: 2007-01-26
From: Tray Mtn Shelter, GA

To: Deep Gap Shelter, GA
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: clear sky

I woke up expecting it to be a terrible day. It was around 10am and the wind completely stopped. I could not believe it. The sun came out too! It was still around 28 degrees; but without the wind and with the sunshine, it was like Florida! I dried/thawed out my clothes that I hiked in the day before. I took my time and ate a good breakfeast. The shelter was really trashed from a party some time back. Beer bottles, a hatchet, clothes, MRE's, etc. I could not carry the mess out. I did see an entry in the shelter register from a female hiker that I had hiked around over the past 2 or 3 years named "Swiss Miss, The Chocolate Bandito". I wish I could have met her. Maybe next time. What a great day of hiking. The walk north of Tray basically follows a ridge to the Swag of the Blue Ridge. Todays walk was so warm that it made a change in my usual routine and I lost my hound's ear winter hat. This was a psychological hit for me. I do have a Turtle Fur baklava that I sleep with; but, I will miss that hat. There is a very tough climb out of Addis Gap up Kelly's Knob. It is about 1200 feet in a mile. There are four false summits and then it is a long way down to Deep Gap. I strained the instep of my right foot going down. I was wanting to get to Dick's Creek Gap; but, this injury sent me to the Shelter. At the shelter were three ex-thru-hikers: UV Ray, FAL(Free At Last), and Hercules(C-130 airplane pilot). It was good to have an extended conversation with some people after 4 plus days. They used to live very close to where I live in Colleyville, TX. It is good to talk to some people with Texas knowledge. They also invited me to come see them when I come through Allen Gap, NC. They got a good fire going and said they were going to Tray Mtn tomorrow and would look for my hat and bring it to The Cloud Nine Hostel if they found it. Went to bed around 8pm and was listening to my FM radio when it quit working. It was not the batteries. What a drag.
Date: 2007-01-27
From: Deep Gap Shelter, GA

To: Cloud 9 Hostel, GA
Miles today: 4.5

I woke up around 5 am and got moving around 6 am. I was on the trail around 8 am. It was around 29 degrees and no wind. As I prepared I watched a beautiful sunrise. About 30 minutes before I left; the other campers woke up to say goodbye and good luck. I ate a good breakfeast and took my vitamins; so, I had plenty of energy to get up and over Powell Mtn. On mt descent of Powell: I saw an old friend approaching. It was "Tater", AT 2000. He did not recognize me because I did not have my big beard that I had when we met in 2004. He and his wife had allowed me to stay with them in their cabin near Hiawasee. Once he recognized me, he invited me to stay with him again. I declined because he would not be back to Dick's Creek Gap until around 5pm. He was doing a day hike to Unicoi Gap. I walked down to Dick's Creek Gap and the highway. My right instep was really hurting me. It was not a constant pain; but, every now and then there was a sharp pain. This pain made me limp. I was toying with the idea of passing on the Cloud 9 Hostel experience; but, with this minor injury: I needed to rest. I started walking the 1.5 miles down to the Hostel. After about a 1/2 mile down the hill an SUV stopped. The driver was Fran, the owner of the Hostel. He said that he had been expecting me. "Mr. Happy" told them that I was coming. When I got out of the vehicle: there was "Crutch". He is a hiker that I had meet in Pearisburg the year before. He, Fran, and I talked for sometime. Eventually, I showered and washed my clothes. We then went into town to a local pool hall/pizza joint. It was fun and I know I am an ex-smoker now. I drank some beers and did not even want a cigarette.
Date: 2007-01-30
From: Cloud 9 Hostel, GA

To: Cloud 9 Hostel, GA
Miles today: 0.0

Last zero day. My foot is better, my eye is concerning me...I hope it gets better. It feels like I have something in it; but, I cannot find anything. "Mr Happy" showed up here today. He made it to Wayah Bald and pulled out to Franklin. I will be heading out tomorrow; no matter what. It will be a week to 2 weeks before I can make another entry.
Date: 2007-02-03
From: Standing Indian Campground, NC

To: Haven's Motel, NC
Miles today: 0.0

well, I am taking another zero....no excuses....I plan to watch the superbowl tomorrow and then will head out from Deep Gap, NC to The NOC..."Mr Happy" & I set a link to his web site at 2000miler.net with http://2000miler.net/2007/02/ask-zero.html that will allow me to answer particular questions about hiking or the trail in general....please ask, I love to answer questions.