morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-02-18
From: Dicks Creek Gap (Hiawassee)

To: Plumorchard shelter
Miles today: 4.3
Weather: clear sky

I start the morning with a great hot bath. What a luxury! I'm supposed to be ready at 9:30 for the ride back to the trail but I don't want to hurry and decide that I'll hitch if I have to. The guy from the motel is so nice though, he says we can figure something out. After finally locating the library (which shouldn't be that hard but I guess I was a little spaced out), I check my e-mail. What a great surprise! Lots of people have signed my guestbook. It puts a big smile on my face. Happy! Happy! Happy! The library here still doesn't allow the trailjournals site on their computers (it's supposedly a chat room) so I can't see where the other hikers like Jaws or Hydro are. Oh well, I'll have to wait till Hot Springs.I then head for the P.O. and send a book that I finished reading to my friend Tracy. It was just too good to leave in a shelter, I might want to read it again (it was about a woman traveling the Inca road).When I get back to the motel my ride is ready for me and I'm off to the trail again. Before starting to hike I have to eat this huge apple I bought and don't want to carry on the trail. Just when I finish a car pulls up and a guy comes out. He's very interested in the AT and asks all sorts of questions which I'm happy to answer for him (yes, I like to talk). It sounds like he might actually give it a try one day. Cool!I'm not in the mood to haul ass today so I move at a leasurely pace and take a few breaks. At some point I want to listen to my music and discover that it's gone!!! I turn my pack inside out and it's really not there. I panic. Music helps me stay (somewhat) sane. I need it. I can't continue this hike without it. Not with the state of mind I'm in right now. Did I leave it in the motel? I remember having it there. It must still be there. Please let it be there... I turn around and hike back. I run into Chasing Amy and Mallrat (the non-couple) again and ask them if they've seen my MP3 player on the trail. They haven't. I continue to the road.The first couple of cars pass me by but then an incredible nice lady picks me up. Her life story puts my troubles into perspective. It makes me realize again how lucky I am to be able to do the things I do. They found my music at the motel and just as I am starting to hitch out, their van pulls up and I am again driven to the trailhead. The guys at the Hiawassee Inn rock!!!I get back on the trail and make it to this shelter right before dark. I probably hiked about 10 miles today but got only 4.3 progress, blah! But at least I got my music back : )I am sharing the shelter with Chasing Amy and Mallrat. It's a very cool shelter with multiple levels. I'm in the basement and they are in the loft upstairs. We're reading the register and I decide to add some palm tree stickers to my whiny entry."The sun will come out, tomorrow". Ain't that right, Annie?
Date: 2005-02-19
From: Plumorchard shelter

To: standing indian shelter
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: scattered clouds

I took it easy this morning chatting with Chasing Amy and Mallrat. Around 9:00 I finally made it out though. The hiking was good the weather was great and I made it into North Carolina. Bye bye Georgia!My mood was not so good though and didn't improve during the day. I kind of zombied along the trail, cried some, zombied some more, sat down and cried a lot. Sometimes being by yourself isn't such a good idea. I was even wondering if I should just quit the trail and stay with friends for awhile. But that wouldn't really solve any of my problems.Finally some southbound section hikers came by and I tried to pull myself together. They asked how I was doing and with tear filled eyes I told them I wasn't doing so great. They offered me snacks and water, I told them I was okay in that department and that I was fine hiking wise. They advised me to go to Standing Indian shelter where there were a couple of guys with a campfire. I said that sounded like a good idea and zombied on. Let me tell ya, hiking and crying really isn't a good combination. You trip over twigs and such.Anyway, I finally made it to the shelter and it was full of people. A group of boy scouts had settled down.Then there were the three guys the other hikers had told me about and later a couple arrived. Everybody was real nice and they offered me dinner and cookies. So nice!!!They had lots of questions about thruhiking and in the evening I was the guest of honor at the campfire.I'm thankful for the nice people in this world.
Date: 2005-02-20
From: standing indian shelter

To: standing indian shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: snow

I wake up in my tent this morning and notice how low the ceiling is. Just to see if it makes any difference I poke my finger against it. I hear ice breaking and sliding off. Suddenly the ceiling is higher again. My tent is coated in ice!!! I decide to abandon ship, pack up all my gear and move to the shelter. This is harder than it sounds because my tent zipper is encountering so much frost that it gets stuck and I can't get my door fully open. I struggle to get out and not drop my sleeping bag and pad but I manage to do it.The guys welcome me in their palace and we discuss our options for the day. I decide that unless it clears up dramatically I'm not going anywhere. It's just too cold and wet. They don't really want to leave either and we all decide to stay here.That's awesome because these guys (Skip, Larry and Malcolm) treat me like a queen and they have plenty of food to share with me. I couldn't be any luckier. These are true trailangels!!! They fix me breakfast and offer me entertainment. I mean, just watching these guys hang up a tarp to keep the wind out is really exciting. And they also manage to get a fire going. Too bad the fire is about 50 yards away but it is still pretty to look at. And despite the rain and falling chunks of ice it is going strong.After a nap and basically doing nothing for most of the day (I guess my trailname could be 'sleeping bag lady' from now on) I decide to do something useful and repair my backpack. The extension collar is torn beyond recognition so there is a lot of sewing to be done. After this tedious task it is already time for dinner and Larry makes us some great chicken soup/stew. After telling them my lava bed spaghetti experience from last year they decided to save that one for their last night out, which I greatly appreciated. I honestly have never eaten this well on the trail. Yesterday they made beef stew and had dried pineapple and cherry for dessert. Yum!!!Since this morning I have accumulated more food. The boy scouts left a big bag of trailmix and another group of hikers gave me cheese. This was one of the best zero days ever!!!Great company, great food. During the day it was interesting to see how the trees were coated in ice and the layer of ice grew. At some point I guess it got too heavy and big chunks started falling down. They made impressive noises on the tin roof. Every now and then we would check the temperature and I don't think it ever got above 35F. I am so grateful for the great company I have!!! Skip, Larry, Malcolm, you rock!!! Hope you don't snore too loud tonight ; )
Date: 2005-02-21
From: standing indian shelter

To: Carter Gap shelter
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: overcast clouds

This weather is unbelievable!!!Yesterday an ice storm now thunder and lightning. And RAIN!!! I think a branch just fell on this shelter. Thank God for these shelters!!!This morning we looked outside and it didn't look too bad. It was rainy and foggy but it seemed liked it might clear up. The guys and I got our shit packed up and were getting ready to go. It had been dry for a little while but when we are saying goodbye the rain starts again. Oh well, just a little drizzle. The trail was all muddy and slick. I was very happy to have my trekking poles. Added to the rain there was some thunder and lightning and when that stopped the rain turned into hail!!! Luckily that didn't last long and it stayed dry for awhile until it started raining again...I met four weekenders headed south and we talked about the great weather we'd been having.At some point my raingear didn't keep me dry anymore and my shorts got soaked. My shirt wasn't doing too badly. My shoes had been a lost cause from the start. All the water on the trail had formed giant puddles and small streams. Thankfully I was still generating enough body heat so I wasn't cold.I was so happy when I got to the shelter. Hung out my tent to dry, took off my wet clothes, put on dry clothes and started eating lunch. Heaven!!! It seemed to really clear and for a second I seriously considered hiking on to the next shelter. I mean, there was even some sunshine, "how could I not take advantage of that?".Luckily, lunch took long enough to see the weather change again and I couldn't be happier about staying here. It got really nasty again. And like I said there is some serious thunder & lightning going on right now and rain is pouring. I wish I didn't have to pee so badly.
Date: 2005-02-22
From: Carter Gap shelter

To: Siler Bald shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: clear sky

Today was beautiful!Great weather, easy hiking.This morning it took me awhile to decide what I was going to do today. Did I want to do 12 miles or almost 20? I felt a little lazy and had a hard time deciding which clothes to wear. I knew the best way to dry my wet ones was to wear them but I didn't have the courage. The sky looked promising but it was stil pretty chilly. Finally I decided to go for the 20 miles. The weather was so nice I had to take advantage of that. And maybe I could get to NOC tomorrow.I started out with the warm dry clothes but soon the sun was warming me up and I put my wet shirt and shorts on. Brrrr! It worked though. While walking the stuff dried out.I had some great views. Especially when I got to the top of Albert mountain. I thought I would take a relaxing lunch break and enjoy the view. The relaxation got interrupted when the dog that had been hanging out at Standing Indian shelter showed up. He definitely wanted my food. My sandwich wasn't safe. He was all over me while I was trying to eat and protect the food around me. I was trying to get him to go away but it didn't work. I made myself one more sandwich and packed up planning to eat the sandwich on the way down. The poor dog must have been starving because it wolved down the one slice of bread that I had tossed when I got desperate to get him out of my hair.I logged my pack to the spot where I had hung my tent to dry. In the confuson I dropped it in a nice puddle so the bottom got soaking wet again. Then I proceeded to go down and the dog followed me. This got me very nervous. I don't have enough food to take care of a dog. I don't want a dog. Please let him go away.After a while he passed me and finally disappeared down a slope. I heard him bark in the distance. I hope he's okay. The hiking continued to be easy. The climb up Albert mountain had been steep and rocky but fairly short and the rest of the trail was pretty gradual. Some stretches were definitely damaged by the hurricane or other storms and I had to find a way around or over fallen trees. There was also quite some erosion. Some spots I had to be real careful. Other than that it was smooth sailing.The weather continued to be sunny and warm. Awesome!Only saw one section hiker today. Again I have a shelter all to myself.Oh, and I launched the best snot rocket today. Spur would have been proud of me ; )
Date: 2005-02-23
From: Siler Bald shelter

To: Wesser Bald shelter
Miles today: 17.9
Weather: clear sky

I had a hard time getting out of bed again this morning. I'm just so comfortable and lay there thinking about things. Things other than packing up and hiking...Around 8:00 I finally leave the shelter. My plan was to try and do 23 miles to the shelter closest to NOC but the late start makes it highly improbable. On top of that I decide to climb Siler Bald. Awesome views!!! I find a group camped there and chat for a short while. These are to be the only people I'll see all day.I'm still sort of thinking that I can do a long day but there is so much climbing to slow me down and then I take a nice break on top of Wayah Bald. It's so clear and sunny. Very enjoyable. I listen to the radio and hear the weather forecast. Rain expected tonight till Saturday. That doesn't sound good. Maybe they're talking about some other region (right!).When I leave the bald I see a big bucket dangling from a tree. What the heck?? I walk on but am curious and turn back. It reads 'hike on' or something like that. It's trailmagic!I lower the bucket and it's filled to the brim with all sorts of goodies. It looks brand new! There are drinks and snacks. Very cool. I take a pepsi and some snack that I've never had before (great chance to try it). The problem is that the bucket is so heavy that I'm not able to lift it as high as it was. I hope the critters don't get their paws on it. Thanks to whomever left the goodies!!!There is lots of up and down again and boy, does it get to be tiring!There was an interesting little section that reminded me of the CDT. Because of a mudslide on the trail there was an alternate marked with ribbons. There was lots of nasty side hill walking and prickly branches all over. My legs are nicely scratched up. I was glad to get back on good tread again.Then there was more up and down and some nice views. The last climb was a little more than I wanted and when I sat down at the top and looked at the time and the miles I decided to stop the crazyness and to just stay at the next shelter. I wasn't going to make it to the one after that before dark anyways and 18 miles is good enough for one day. I guess I could have made it if I'd gotten up earlier and not climbed Siler Bald. But then I would have missed out. I should still have plenty of time to get my maildrop in Fontana Dam on Saturday morning.Again I'm in a shelter all by myself. Chasing Amy and Mallrat are about half a day ahead of me I guess. In one of the registers they wrote that they had also taken a zero when the bad weather hit and that they were aiming for NOC tonight. There are no other hikers close by. A brother and sister are about four days ahead of me and a few other hikers are way ahead. Of course I have no clue what's behind me.
Date: 2005-02-24
From: Wesser Bald shelter

To: Sassafras Gap shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: light rain

It started raining during the night that might be what woke me up at 4am. I don't know. I thought it was almost time to get up so kind of waited for the sun to come up. After a while I decided to check the time and it was only 4 am!!! I put some earplugs in and went back to sleep. Somehow when it was actually time to get up I felt less rested than before. Am I sleeping too much?The drizzle wasn't really inviting but I made it out and once hiking it wasn't bad at all. There wasn't really much rain and I ended up hiking just in shorts and t-shirt.There were no great views to be had, just one white mass of fog. I guess last year's picture will have to do.Still took some pretty cool photos of trees and whiteness.The hike to NOC was mostly downhill and very steep at that. Combined with the mud and the wet leaves it became a little sketchy sometimes. I just took it slow. Finally I made it down and sent all my journal entries over the phone. I also received some e-mail. One of them had quite an impact and occupied my mind for the rest of the afternoon which was good in some way because it took my mind of the looooong climb out of NOC.I'm now at Sassafras Gap shelter. Yup, by myself again. Almost forgot to mention, I bought a great blaze orange raincover for my pack. Would have been good in Colorado last year.No restaurants are open in NOC yet, maybe in March. Did take a shower. Will do laundry in Fontana Dam.
Date: 2005-02-25
From: Sassafras Gap shelter

To: Fontana Inn
Miles today: 20.7

I was rereading my journal this evening and noticed that I never really explained why I got so sad last week. It's no big secret really. I just feel very lonely sometimes and fear that I will never find a compatible partner. Hiking by myself makes me realize that I really do need to share my experiences. I can be all tough and say that I can hike that trail in New Zealand by myself but honestly, I don't want to.This brings me back to this morning. I had this great dream. Realized it wasn't true and felt sad again. I stayed sad for the rest of the morning until I finally decided that I needed an attitude adjustment.I mean, I'm out here hiking which I love. The weather is awesome. I'm an attractive, funny, adventurous, romantic girl (sounds like an ad in the personals...). There has to be someone out there who will adore me and has the drive to go on adventures too. Quit the whining already!After that I felt better and didn't cry anymore. I met two weekend hikers in the afternoon and those were the only people I saw on the trail today. Right after we passed each other I came to a nice mudslide on the trail. Branches all over the place. I tried to stay close to the trail and get up and over the branches but after I almost slid down the side of the mountain I decided to try a higher route. This wasn't the greatest option either. It was steep and the leaves were slippery and there was lots of brush and branches. I was very relieved when I made it back on the trail.I wasn't sure if I would make it all the way to Fontana with day light but to my surprise I made it to the road right in time. I tried the house phone of Fontana village which was at the info kiosk but it didn't work. The pay phone didn't work either. So I decided to gamble it and walk to the registration desk 2 miles further (in the dark now). Those were some good up hill miles! But I made it to the registration and they had a room for me. Their restaurant was even open! Fresh food! I'm so lucky! I even got a ride from registration to motel and made it just in time for the all you can eat buffet. Anyway, I've taken a nice hot shower and a bath and it's so nice and comfy in this room I don't even have to put my stinky clothes back on ; )Oh, I almost forgot to mention how beautiful it was this morning. Great views over the valleys with low hanging clouds. And branches with ice on them, so pretty. I took lots of pictures.Also, I have to mention this of course, I've walked about 23 miles today. Doing pretty good if I may say so myself ; )Entering the Smokies tomorrow. Hope the weather stays this nice.
Date: 2005-02-28
From: Spence Field shelter

To: Double Springs shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: light snow

Snow fell during the night and the ground is now covered in a couple of inches. We are still hopeful that we might do the 20 miles to Mt. Collins shelter. Hiking in the snow slows us down quite a bit though and it's much more tiring. When I see Chasing Amy's register entry in the next to last shelter I am very relieved. It says: "Only 1.7 miles further until I can crawl in my sleeping bag". I was afraid that she might have had more energy and I would be holding her back but this proves she had no desire to go on either. 13.5 miles is good enough for today. We plan to go into Gatlinburg tomorrow and reevaluate our hike. We need a break.
Date: 2005-03-01
From: Double Springs shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: light snow

Today was exhausting!!!The snow was knee deep in a lot of places. There were blow downs, there were low hanging branches that would dump snow in my neck and the progress was extremely slow.I also fell multiple times. Twice I ended up on my back like a turtle and couldn't get up without unbuckling my pack. Pure joy!It was almost dark when I finally made it to the pass and I was incredibly relieved to find the restrooms open. A dry warm shelter for the night. It was so good to join up with Chasing Amy and vent my frustration.We are in the seventh heaven now though. No complaints here. We got our restroom, running water and it's warm. Now if only that mouse would stop running over me...
Date: 2005-03-02
From: Newfound Gap restrooms

To: Gatlinburg
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

So we headed out to the Smokies. The weather forecast said we might get an inch of snow. Nothing to worry about, right?Well that inch turned into a couple of feet and we ended up hiking in knee deep snow!!! Unbelievably slow progress. We decided to go to Gatlinburg to regroup. Take a day off? Continue through the Smokies? Jump up to Hot Springs? Take multiple days off and wait for more hikers to catch up?I've had my fill of the Smokies. Although this morning it was unbelievably beautiful. Bright blue sky, snow on the trees. Awesome!!! It made it all worth it. Yes, it was miserable hiking yesterday and it took us all day to do 11 miles but so few people get to enjoy these kind of views. The night in the restrooms had actually been quite comfortable. Most of our stuff had dried out so we weren't really miserable anymore. I almost changed my mind and thought about hiking on tomorrow. But you know what? I've already hiked this section and I've already hiked in the snow. I'd like to hike the Smokies sometime when the weather is nice and there is no snow. So for now, bye bye Smokies! Maybe I'll come back later this year and fill the gap.Right now I'm leaning towards taking some time off and waiting for people to catch up. Hiking by myself was good for me but it's time to have some fun again. I really am a 'people person' and there's nothing wrong with that. Chasing Amy and I are planning on jumping up to Hot Springs, enjoy a good soak, pick up our maildrops and then we'll see. Maybe I can visit some friends on the East Coast. I'm figuring lots of people are two weeks behind us. Hikers if you read this, CATCH UP TO ME!!!PS. Check out Chasing Amy's new journal, sounds like she's a hot chick!!!
Date: 2005-03-03
From: Gatlinburg

To: Who knows??
Miles today: 0.0

Yesterday morning made me realize that it's not only the people that I miss on this trail. Experiencing how energized I was by the stunning beauty of the white trees against the bright blue sky made me realize that I miss the awesome scenery more than anything else. I've been so spoiled by the PCT and the CDT that hiking the AT is hard for me. It's taken me over two weeks to get really excited about something on this trail. I need those moments where I'm totally hyper about the scenery. Where I can't stop saying that it's SO beautiful. I'd say it's better to hike the AT first, then do the PCT followed by the CDT. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying the AT is not worth hiking. It definitely is. But it's a lot harder to do when you're used to having stunning vistas and awesome wildlife sightings. The AT is much more in the trees and it's more monotonous. Of course I can't say how it's going to be after the first 700 miles and I sure want to find out. I just realized why it's a challenge for me to hike this trail. Lack of people, sure. Lack of stunning scenery, even more important.It was so great to feel all excited about the views yesterday morning it almost did make me want to finish hiking the Smokies. Yeah, that's what I've been missing these past weeks, the excitement.I'm still going to take some days off but I don't think I'll be off for long. By the way, I totally forgot to mention that we got the coolest ride down to Gatlinburg yesterday. The road was still closed and we almost got hit by the snow plow when we hiked down it. We didn't feel too safe but what else could we do? When we got out of a scary dark tunnel though the snow plow and the sand truck were waiting for us and they offered us a ride down. It was so cool!!!I mean who ever gets to ride in these kind of vehicles? The guys that drove them were so nice to us it was so uplifting. An awesome experience. This afternoon we're going to be picked up by a trailangel who e-mailed me. He and his wife invited us to come relax at their place. Of course we jumped on that opportunity. They're both AT hikers and I'd love to hear their stories and see their pictures. I feel so reenergized today.