morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-09-02
From: Daleville, VA

To: Wilson Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

Hiked 11.2 miles to Wilson Creek shelter. The trail was good today, but had a lot of steep sections the last few miles.I caught up with John & Paul, who camped south of Daleville last night about 2 miles north of Daleville. They said, they were going to camp tonight next to a creek, 3 miles before this shelter. Good luck! The mosquitoes were bad when I came by there.Saw a total of 8 hikers on the trail today. Five were SOBO. Tonight at the shelter are Katydid and Shagbark. They are finishing their section of the trail at Daleville. They have spent 10 years hiking all the sections of the trail and will finish tomorrow.
Date: 2009-09-03
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Middle Creek Campground
Miles today: 16.9

Hiked 16.9 miles to VA 614 at Jennings Creek. I then hiked 1.2 miles to Middle Creek campground, where I took a shower and settled down to relax after a long day. The trail was pretty good today but there were some annoying PUDs. A good part of the day was spent along the Blue Ridge Pkwy. There were some great viewpoints. I crossed the parkway several times today.Water is getting harder to find on the trail and some shelter's sources have dried up. A SOBO day hiker told me Thunder Hill shelter has no water. I'm planning on staying there, so I'll check it out making sure to bring plenty of water just in case.My feet are a little sore and my legs are tired, so I'll try to take it easy tomorrow with a 14 mile day planned.
Date: 2009-09-04
From: Middle Creek Campground

To: Thunder Hill Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

Hiked 14 miles to Thunder Hill shelter. A SOBO hiker I met the day before told me the water source at this shelter was dry, so I detoured up the Blue Ridge Pkwy about .3 miles to a year round spring to get water prior to reaching the shelter. I was the only hiker at this shelter tonight. About 6PM a young SOBO hiker came in but didn't stay when he found out there was no water. I didn't catch his name, but I recall he had a playing card tattooed on each cheek. I heard mice scurrying around all night, but apparently they didn't get into my gear since I found no traces of them in the morning.In the privy was a half full 3 gallon plastic bucket of powdered lime, used to keep down the fly population in the pit. When I looked into the bucket, I saw a mouse that had obviously fallen in and couldn't get out. It was sitting perfectly still and I stared at it for awhile, trying to tell if it was alive. I then saw its body move with a large intake of breath, as if making a large sigh. It was probably exhausted from trying to escape. I took pity on it by scooping it up in the cup, that was also in the bucket and depositing it under a bush near the privy. When I came out of the privy a few minutes later, I saw it had moved about a foot away from the small amount of lime, that was dropped with it from the cup, when I put it under the bush. Other hikers will probably curse me, especially if a mouse gets into their food at this shelter, but I don't really care what anyone else thinks about it. Many hikers hate the mice in the shelter area, but my attitude is they're just trying to make a living and raise a family like everybody else!
Date: 2009-09-05
From: Thunder Hill Shelter

To: U.S. 501 James River
Miles today: 14.6

I hiked 14.6 miles to highway US 501 at the James River foot bridge. There were a lot of teens diving off the footbridge, at a swimming hole on the south bank of the river. I hoped to catch a ride with someone from the footbridge, into the town of Glasgow, VA. where I planned to spend the night in the motel listed in my trail guide. I also, needed to resupply prior to returning to the trail in the morning. None of the teens appeared ready to head for town, as it was only 2 PM on a great day for swimming. I went to the side of the road but after 15 minutes had no luck hitchhiking. I then saw a small fishing boat, with a man and a boy pull into a nearby creek from the river and proceed to a boat landing where, several pickup trucks were parked. I realized, these were the same folks I'd met about a mile prior to the footbridge, along a fishing area on a creek south of the James river. I went over and said hello again and asked if they'd give me a ride into Glasgow. At first the man said they weren't going into town, as they were camped near our present location. I offered to pay him and he agreed to take me into town, but refused to accept any payment. The father, Kent, and son, Luke, were very nice and when we couldn't find the motel in the small town of Glasgow, took me over to the Dollar General store to ask for directions. The folks in the store said the motel had been closed for years and they didn't know of any place to stay in town. I said goodbye to Kent and Luke and went off to try and find a city park to pitch my tent for the night. After about 45 minutes with no success I decided to buy my food for the next section of trail and hitchhike back to the trail to make camp. As I came back to the Dollar General I saw Kent's truck in front of the post office and after finding him again, he agreed to give me a ride back to where he'd picked me up. With my resupply in hand we headed back to the trail. Kent said they were camped only a half mile from the trail and invited me to camp with them. I accepted and soon had my tent set up next to a creek in their campsite. They had 3 coolers of food and drink and Kent told me to help myself to whatever I wanted. He then fixed me a dinner from the leftovers of their dinner the night before. I had barbecued pork steak with scalloped potatoes cooked with bacon strips, accompanied by sliced bread. It tasted great! We sat around all evening chatting by the fire. It was one of my best nights on the trail. Thanks Kent & Luke!
Date: 2009-09-08
From: Buena Vista

To: Hog Camp Gap
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 6.3 miles to Hog Camp Gap tent area. A spring is located nearby. I hiked with Weatherguy, who has joined me and hopefully, we'll be together at least until Harper's Ferry.We started hiking at the road at 2065 MSL and climbed to 4059 MSL in 2.8 miles so it was a steep climb out of town with packs heavy with fresh supplies.It rained lightly and drizzled most of the day, but we hardly got wet. At 7 PM it is 59 degrees, so we should be able to sleep comfortably tonight. We're camped under 4 large pine trees and the ground is completely dry beneath them. Our tents are set up on pine needles which makes for a soft bed.
Date: 2009-09-09
From: Hog Camp Gap

To: The Priest Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Hiked 14.6 miles to The Priest Shelter. It was a long day, but there were only a few really steep sections. Unfortunately, the last .9 miles was one of those sections up Priest mountain to the shelter.It started to rain lightly soon after we got here, but didn't last long. A young man named Abe hiked in just about dinner time, so there are 3 of us here tonight. Abe's very nice and is considering a thru hike next year on the Appalachian Trail.
Date: 2009-09-10
From: The Priest Shelter

To: Maupin Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 13.7 miles to the Maupin Field shelter. Weatherguy and I are the only ones here tonight. There is a very nice tenting area at this shelter, but it looks like it could rain so we're staying in the shelter. We had long steep climbs down Priest mountain (4040 MSL to 997 MSL) and up Three Ridges mountain (997 MSL to 3970 MSL) and we're very tired tonight. It started raining about 1:15 AM last night and rained until about 8:30 AM when we started hiking. We only had some light drizzle for our first hour of hiking and then the rain stopped, but it stayed cloudy and cool all day. Last night it got down to 52 degrees and it was in the mid 60s most of the day. Tonight after dinner, it has already dropped to 56 degrees and will no doubt go lower overnight. The cool temps make for good sleeping.
Date: 2009-09-11
From: Maupin Field Shelter

To: Paul C Wolf Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

Hiked 15.8 miles to the Paul C. Wolfe shelter. Seven miles of the trail, were very rocky and hard on the feet today. This is one of the newer shelters on the trail and is very nice, with two levels for sleeping and a covered cooking and eating area. Tomorrow we go into Waynesboro, VA. Another section hiker has joined us tonight, so there are 3 of us here tonight.
Date: 2009-09-12
From: Paul C Wolf Shelter

To: Rock Fish Gap
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 5 miles to Rockfish Gap and will spend the weekend in Waynesboro, VA. Weatherguy jammed a toe, which was bleeding after Friday's stumbles through over 7 miles of very rocky trail. He'll evaluate the injury and we plan on heading back to the trail after lunch on Monday. Monday morning we have a few chores in town to take care of and then, we'll start hiking into Shenandoah National Park. I hope the hiking in the park is as good as I've heard. We plan on taking our time and enjoying the park. I hope to see my first bear on the trail in the park. It seems that every hiker on the trail has seen a bear but me.
Date: 2009-09-14
From: Rock Fish Gap

To: Calf Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Left Rockfish Gap at 11 AM and hiked 7 miles to the Calf Mountain Shelter. The shelter is not actually in Shenandoah NP, but we crossed short sections of the park while hiking to it. Tomorrow we will cross back into the park and our camp at days end, will be in the park.I've heard and read so much about how nice the trail is in the park. I'm looking forward to hiking it. Today's trail was nothing to write home about, so I'm expecting it to get better in the days ahead.
Date: 2009-09-15
From: Calf Mountain Shelter

To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: clear sky

Hiked 13 miles to Blackrock Hut in SNP. It's supposed to rain tonight, so we're staying in the shelter. So far it is just Weatherguy, me and Rob. We saw several SOBO thru hikers today so we may get some in the shelter tonight.There is bear scat all around this shelter, as there are some bushes with ripe berries nearby. Maybe I'll see the first bear of my hike.Last night, there was a very large rat running around on the upper sleeping deck of Calf Mountain shelter. I turned on my headlight and saw him in the corner. His coat was sleek and he looked well fed. He was bigger than a squirrel. I hung all my gear off the floor and nothing of mine was bothered.I've heard from many other hikers, how great the trail is in SNP. Based on todays hike I'm unimpressed. The trail was OK, but there were quite a few long hill climbs on trail that wasn't too steep, but it got old climbing one hill after another. I hope the trail gets better the further we get into the park.
Date: 2009-09-16
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 21.4 miles to the Hightop Hut. The trails were good the first few hours, but the rest of the day was a grind going up and down long hills, that were just steep enough to wear us down.Stopped at Loft Mountain campground and visited the camp store, for a few supplies and then went down to the Loft Mountain Wayside restaurant for a hot lunch.It was a good day for spotting wildlife, since I saw my first bear on the trail and later a 6-8 point buck grazing along the trail. The bear was a half grown cub up in a tree and when he saw us, he climbed down and ran off.We stayed in the shelter with one other hiker, Iron Horse, and it started raining about 10 PM and poured most of the night. It's let up this morning as we're about to start hiking.
Date: 2009-09-17
From: Hightop Hut

To: Lewis Mountain Campground & Cabins
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: light rain

Hiked 11.7 miles to Lewis Mountain Campground & Cabins. We hiked the first hour without rain with the temperature 59 degrees. Then it started to drizzle and that lasted the rest of the day. We planned to spend the night at Bearfence Mountain Hut which is .7 mile beyond the cabins. When we got to the cabins we were cold and tired and wet so we decided we'd like a nice warm cabin, bed and a hot shower more than we'd like sleeping in a cold shelter. We saw 4 deer on the trail today. The trail continues to be a walk up long hills that grind us down while we wade through the weeds at trailside, which cause our legs to itch and burn, when we move through them. SNP is the poorest excuse for a national park I've ever seen. The AT has poor to no views, while walking up endless moderately steep hills surrounded by weeds and brush. I can't believe I was so excited by the idea of hiking in SNP. I've been sorely disillusioned.
Date: 2009-09-18
From: Lewis Mountain Campground & Cabins

To: Rock Spring Hut
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 12.2 miles to Rock Spring Hut. Finally, we hiked some great trails and the SNP looked like a national park. We'll see what tomorrow brings.We stopped at Big Meadows Wayside for lunch and resupply. Our next resupply will be in Front Royal, VA. At the shelter tonight are Iron Horse and a father and his young daughter about 10 years old.
Date: 2009-09-19
From: Rock Spring Hut

To: Pass Mountain Hut
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: broken clouds

Hiked 15.3 miles to Pass Mountain Hut.We had another good day of hiking. SNP is starting to redeem itself for those first lousy days of hiking this week.We stopped at Skyland Resort for breakfast at about 10 AM. I had pancakes and sausage which was very tasty, but left me with a heavy feeling as I hiked the rest of the day. We saw many tourists out for day hikes today and while they were all nice folks we got tired of explaining about hiking the AT. We also got tired of getting stuck behind them as they putt putted down the narrow trail. We wanted to get to the shelter and get set up for the night.We saw quite a few deer today including a doe with two large fawns about a quarter mile from the shelter. I also saw my second bear of my hike. It was similar to my first sighting a few days ago in that, it was a small bear up a tree and when it saw us it scrambled down and took off.
Date: 2009-09-20
From: Pass Mountain Hut

To: Gravel Springs Hut
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 13.1 miles to the Gravel Springs Hut. Stopped at Elkwallow Wayside for lunch seven miles into the day. I had a bacon cheeseburger, fries and a Pepsi.The trail and weather were beautiful this morning. We hiked under blue skies with great views from the mountainsides. The trail was covered in bright gold leaves with a scattering of crimson. Autumn is definitely in the air.About a mile before Elkwallow Wayside I came upon a rattlesnake on the trail. It buzzed at me and I stopped about ten feet short of it and took some pictures. It was colored a beautiful shade of green on its lower body. It crawled off the trail and over a small log where it coiled up in a defensive position, but was no longer buzzing. There were two hikers not far behind me so I waited to warn them, since it was close enough to strike someone walking on the far right of the trail. One of the hikers, Iron Horse, was grateful for the warning and when we reached the wayside he offered to buy me a beer. As luck would have it, I was too full from lunch to take him up on it.
Date: 2009-09-21
From: Gravel Springs Hut

To: Front Royal, VA
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 13.4 miles to Front Royal, VA.There were some steep hills today, but hiking on our last day in the park was good.It was foggy with a light mist when I started the climb out of the shelter area back to the AT. I'd gone about .1 miles when I saw a bear in the trail about 50 feet in front of me. My camera was in my pack under the pack cover. I waited for Weatherguy and Iron Horse to come up as they weren't far behind me. We all enjoyed watching the bear searching for food. When the bear became aware of us he didn't seem to care and just ambled off into the brush. Weatherguy had his camera and tried to get a shot, but in the early morning gloom and fog we aren't sure if he got anything. About an hour later we had climbed above the clouds and were enjoying good trail in the sunshine when I spotted another bear ahead of us on the left side of the trail. He wasn't aware of us and came out onto the trail and walked ahead of us. We tried to get some pictures but, they just show him walking away from us and aren't very good. When he became aware of us he took off running down the trail and was soon out of sight. We kept our eyes open and about 30 minutes later I spotted another bear about 50 feet above us on the hill walking parallel with the trail. At first I thought he had wandered away into the woods, but when I got directly below the last place I had seen him, I saw him sitting down and watching us. We were able to get several good pictures of him watching us, as he sat there for 3-4 minutes. Finally he got bored and wandered off up the hill. This was our best day for bear sightings.Tonight and tomorrow we're in the Quality Inn in Front Royal, VA. for some much needed rest, as my legs and feet are sore and tired.
Date: 2009-09-23
From: Front Royal, VA

To: Manassas Gap Shelter
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: broken clouds

Hiked 10.7 miles to Manassas Gap shelter. The last 2.5 mile climb up from Manassas Gap to the shelter was exhausting. The trail was steep and it was 85 degrees with high humidity. Today's hike confirmed my decision to get off the trail in June, rather than continue hiking in the heat of summer. A cold front is supposed to come through tomorrow and bring in more seasonable temperatures.About a half mile from the road this morning a sweat bee stung my ankle as I was crossing a creek. It burned a lot at first, but now it is just an annoying pain once in awhile.It's almost 5 PM and so far we're the only ones at this shelter. We hope nobody else shows up, as this shelter sleeps 6 but is small for that number of hikers.
Date: 2009-09-24
From: Manassas Gap Shelter

To: Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 12.9 miles to Rod Hollow shelter. It was hot and muggy most of the morning, but it clouded over near noon and it was cooler in the afternoon.We didn't see much wildlife this morning. I only saw a small garter snake and and a black snake about 3 feet long.There are 5 of us here tonight at the shelter. Two are tenting. Tomorrow we are headed to Bear's Den hostel.
Date: 2009-09-25
From: Rod Hollow Shelter

To: Bears Den Hostel
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 9.9 miles today to Bears Den Hostel. I looked at their pictures of the 2009 thru hikers and only recognized Gezza & Topshelf. Chris told me they summited Mt. Katahdin the day before yesterday. Congratulations guys, you earned it! Weatherguy and I were joined last night by Red Dawn, who started NOBO on July 12, 2009 at Springer Mtn, GA. He said he started seeing my NOBO log entries in early September and had been trying to catch up with me for three weeks especially, after he saw I was with Weatherguy and he could join up and hike with a couple of other NOBOs. He was tired of hiking by himself. He has a dog, which is well behaved and good company. His dog also chases away any bears that come around, so we don't have to worry about bears stealing our food.We've been hiking the area of the trail called The Roller Coaster, because of the close succession of hills through a 13 mile section of the trail. I haven't enjoyed it very much. The hills aren't long, but they are steep.The caretakers here at the hostel took our picture for the 2009 collection and we told them we were the last three NOBO hikers of 2009, that had started the trail at Springer Mtn., GA this year. My 1000+ mile section hike will end on Sunday in Harper's Ferry, WV. I'll plan further sections as I can, to complete the trail in the years ahead.
Date: 2009-09-26
From: Bears Den Hostel

To: Blackburn AT Center
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: moderate rain

Hiked 7.9 miles to the Blackburn AT Center.We planned on going 11.1 miles to the David Lesser Memorial shelter but as we passed the turnoff to Blackburn Weatherguy ran out of drinking water so we decided to go the .2 miles down the side trail to get water. As soon as we got there a cold rain started. We decided we didn't want to hike the 3.2 miles to the shelter in a cold rain so we went to the bunkroom and set up for the night. We were soon joined by the four ladies who had been at Bears Den the night before. It was 55 degrees in the bunkroom when we got there but we soon had a fire in the stove and it warmed up to a balmy 78 degrees. We spent a pleasant evening chatting with the ladies and everyone was asleep before 9 PM.
Date: 2009-09-27
From: Blackburn AT Center

To: Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Harpers Ferry, WV
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: light rain

Hiked 11.8 miles to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy office in Harpers Ferry, WV. We had our pictures taken and I was NOBO thru hiker number 707 for 2009. I have until 3/9/2010 to summit Katahdin and keep my thru hiker status. I don't think that will happen and I'll switch over to section hiker status. I'm just happy to have completed over 1000 miles on the AT this year. Tomorrow I'll catch AMTRAK to DC and then a flight back to KC on Tuesday. It's been fun but I've definetly developed a love/hate relationship with the trail. I've been hiking with Weatherguy for the past 3 weeks and have enjoyed his company. He kept me from pounding my feet to a pulp by trying to put in too many miles a day. I had a lot of fun, I hope Weatherguy did too. Weatherguy's wife Judy is just great, she's so supportive of what we are doing. Thanks Judy!
Date: 2010-05-25
To: Back on the trail.
Miles today: 0.0

I'm going to resume my AT hike starting next week at Harpers Ferry where I stopped last September. I'll be going at least to Delaware Water Gap and maybe further. I have the remaining 1166 miles of my hike broken down into four sections that I will finish as I get the opportunity. The HF-DWG section is 270 miles and the three remaining sections are right on 300 miles each. I'm excited to be heading out again and looking forward to seeing a new section of trail.
Date: 2010-06-03
From: Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Harpers Ferry, WV

To: Harpers Ferry Hostel
Miles today: 2.6
Weather: broken clouds

Flew from KC to DC then took AMTRAK to Harpers Ferry. Met Stumble Wolf on the train coming back to finish his thru hike interrupted the week before by a broken tooth. He hiked to the Hostel with me where we tented because all the bunks were taken up by a large group of kids. It rained most of the way from DC to Harpers Ferry but just as we got there the storm moved off and we got off the train to blue skies and brutal humidity. I'm in a new state, Maryland.
Date: 2010-06-04
From: Harpers Ferry Hostel

To: Dahlgren Backpack Campground
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: scattered clouds

The campground is great with running water, flush toilets and hot showers. Also electrical plugs if you need them, I did. First half of day was great. Second half had steep rocky hills and my legs were trashed. 15.9 miles was too far for my first full day back on the trail. The shower at the campground helped make me feel human again. Tomorrow I plan on 13.7 to Free State Hostel. I'll take it easy on the trail to keep from beating my legs up further.
Date: 2010-06-05
From: Dahlgren Backpack Campground

To: Free State Hostel
Miles today: 13.7

Hiked 13.7 miles to The Free State Hostel. Good trail today. It was humid but cool with a nice breeze. It sprinkled on and off all day but I never got wet hiking under the trees. Free State is a very nice hostel with everything you could want, very modern. The walk from the trail on a very narrow moderately busy road was the only drawback.