morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-07-05
From: Port Clinton

To: Windsor Furnace
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: broken clouds

Took a sweet long sleep in. Me, RM and corporal went to the road to attempt a hitch towards Hamburg. There was a Carbella's and food store on the way. The ride took time but it came in the end. I have one rule about hitching, 'I always get aride in the end'. Never doubt it. I managed a cheap resupply but a heavy one. I bought a bottle of squeezy jam which weighed 1lb 5 oz alone!!! It better taste good.On the way out of the store a lady offered us a ride to Carbella's as her nepthew thru hiked last year. We could actually see the carbella's from the store but it would of been a certain death trying to skip across the complex set of roads and junctions. Carbella's was a cool store,It had everything a hiker needed but didnt have the evil empire feel to it such as Walmart. They had a trout river flowing through the store and numerous stuffed animals roaming around. Well, they were'nt roaming because they were dead but it was still cool. I solved my boot problem and purchased some merrel reflex boots and seen as i was in the mood to blow my budget i bought a radio aswell. The radio had shortwave frequency on it so i may be able to pick up the BBC with some patients. We asked carbella's to give us a ride back to Port Clinton and they complied. After spending over a $100 there it was the least they could do!I rang home and heard about how my cousin drove his car off a pier as a stunt, but hopefully he will make a full recovery. The climb out of 'town' was really draining. The humidity must of been at 100%. We passed doc narley at the overview, he is one of the most scruffy looking hikers but an amazing gentlemen as well. At shelters he is always making sure he's not in anyones way. The new boots felt good on their first trip out. I am carrying my old pair just in case my feet hurt but its weight i really dont want to bear for to long. 'I was like a child with a new toy' as Doc narley put it, I was playing with my radio all night. It was like christmas, i never imagined how excited i could be about buying a radio before coming out here. The rain came down hard all night and should help the springs out. First time a shelters been full for a while, like being back in Georgia.dandylion
Date: 2005-07-06
From: Windsor Furnace

To: Allentown hiking club shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Out early as Mouth and Blotter slepted. Those guys wont start hiking till 10am at best. The morning is so golden, i cant understand why people miss it. Pulpit rock was cool, nice to have a reward for your climbing efforts. Some rocky sections gave me a taster for whats coming up but after that I found myself on a good track all the way to Eckville shelter. Eckville was like 501, had a caretaker and four walls but this one had a fridge stocked with goodies. We chilled there for a couple of hours. RM and corporal are not use to taking 'power breaks' as i call them but they tried it out anyhow. Dorothy came along soon after us and made this her stop for the day, she is taking it really easy at the moment. The caretaker told me London had won the 2012 olympics! how cool is that? Its nice to see one of our commissions actually win a bid for something. We had one climb onto the ridge and then we just stayed right up on it, very typical of PA. Allentown shelter was very nice and RM put on his radio to give me my first taste of the Micheal Savage show. This guy was hugely entertaining but so right wing he made you dizzy. Finally i will get some laudry done, my kilt is filthy. Dandylion
Date: 2005-07-07
From: Allentown hiking club shelter

To: Palmerton
Miles today: 17.7

I was first away this morning, I could tell it was going to rain so i threw on my rain pack cover. Usually my rainpack cover discourages rain so it is a piece of prevention gear in reality. I didnt stop till i hit Blu mtn summit hotel to get water. A sprinkle of rain jogged my memory of a question i long to answer. On some hot days i have been walking along and then a solitude rain drop will hit my head! I thought it may be runoff or condensation from the trees but it happened when there had be no rain all week. I for a while was convinced a bird or other small creature was urinating on me but that seems too far fetched. RM and corporal came along and disrupted my puzzled state of mind. We all hiked on together and as we climbed the cliffs the heavens opened. This was the slowest hiking I've done. Rocks will slow you down but wet slippy rocks will slow you down and maybe kill you. Often there would be 3ft gaps between the rocks which i would have to tumble,crawl or jump across. However once past bear rocks the trail was good again. Took some time to dry out at Bake oven knob, it was littered by day hikers i imagine. After all the dry weather the rain has been a great shock. It was good to hit leigh gap. We got a hitch in quickly and thats when i heard about the London bomb attacks. The lady who picked us up said 'you hear about london?' and i thought she was talking about the olympics but it she then went on to tell me about the bombings this morning. When your abroad i think you identify with your nationality far more. I was sad to hear the news but felt out of the loop at the same time. The events were well reported but not with any passion. Innocent people died this morning due to a unjustified Jihad against democracy and freedoms, some of the opinions i was hearing on the radio did not impress me. I feel most people, including myself are confused to what this 'war on terrorism' is about. Are we fighting some lone rangers? or even worse, lone rangers that have the support of the muslim people all over the world. Are we fighting the terrorists or just using them to justify wars against potential dangers?I rang home to check everything was okay, i dont have strong connections with anyone in London. The hostel was infact the city hall but they had bunk rooms in the basement for us to stay. I grabbed a shower and me and the boys went for a pizza at Tony's. It was very good. Great hiker town, everything in walking distance. Princess and Mouth came in later but Ox still had not caught them up. They were really beat up from falling on the rocks. More rocks to tackle but we will be out of PA in 2 or 3 days! 3rd longest state will soon be a thing of the past.dandylionThe hostel in the city
Date: 2005-07-08
From: Palmerton

To: Leroy A Smith shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: moderate rain

We hitched out together and waited 20 minutes for a ride, then 2 came along at once. It was nice to be able to pick a ride. We started the climb out of the gap up a exposed rocky mountain. This section is known as the twlighg zone as the vegetation was all destroyed by a zinc mine that polluted the soil. The climb was really fun, the best part of PA for me. I was glad we did hike over the top in the morning as there was little to none shade. Coming down into little gap a police officer asked him what he knew about the lady stuck at the top. It was the first we had heard of it. We took a break here to see if we could get anymore infomation as we knew that it must be one of the people in the group behind us. The sent up 2 pickups, 2 quad bikes and eventually a helicopter to aid her. I hope its not serious but if they are dispatching a helicopter one must think it must be. We later found out it was Dorothy and she had soem kind of mini stroke or amnesia.Mr clean had gone with her till her husband comes down. I wish her a quick recovery. Bad things do happen to people out here. After hearing that i was a little less confident on the rocks and nearly fell a few times!We got to the shelter in the early afternoon. These guys keep a good pace up all day. Water was way down the hill as two of the springs nearby were dry. however it was a great water source. As i got my water a guy from nowhere came up to me and said 'what do you know about uranium. I encouraged him i guess by replying and i got an history lesson to extend my knowledge. After i wore my interested face out i went back up the hill to the shelter and showed everyone my new red flair dancing boots. RM picked them up out of a junk box in Palmerton and gave them to me. They remind me of the boots from the song 'lets dance' by david bowie. I dont know how long i will carry the things for but i want them to wear back at home. 'Quieto' joined us later on, i am afraid i cant spell her trailname so thats my best attempt. She was also planning to make Delaware water gap tomorrow.dandylion
Date: 2005-07-09
From: Leroy A Smith shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Fast out the traps to tackle the last of the PA rocks. Trail myth strikes again. First 'they' say Virginia's flat and boring, which so far was my favourite state and 'they' told me PA would chew me up. There has been some rocky sections along the way but ive been able to do 20 milers comfortable if i wanted to. PA in terms of terrain has been long flat ridge walks which are scarce in views. We had a climb down to wind gap, then up and out again before taking a break at Kirkridge shelter. PA threw some rocks at us before the end but we hopped across them in a defiant mood. We got some beautiful views of the Delaware River and New Jersey, my next home for a while. We stayed at the church hostel ran by pastor Karen. It was nice to shower and rest. We went down to this bakery in town and had great applepie. The outfitters gave me,Ramblin and Quhito a ride to the grocery store. Quhito was very tense on the ride there. She was braced for impact the entire time, like we were on a roller coaster. This guy to be fair was hurtling down the road. I found out Bob was only a day ahead of me, it be nice to say hi before i go visit the girls. dandylion
Date: 2005-07-10
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Catfish fire tower
Miles today: 12.9

I was very sleepy this morning and got up about 6:20amHad no plans for a big mile day today as my boots were making my feet sore. When i take my time off the trail i hope to heal up. We had to grin and bare the walk across the bridge with the trucks roaring by my ear. Goodbye PA, we had good times but i really would not want to hike that part of the trail again. New Jersey started out really good, Sunfish pond was a pretty spot. However you cant camp,have a fire or swim here. Ramblin summed it well by saying 'they may aswell just have a sign saying 'NO FUN'. The reason all this is prohibited is due to hippies taking their vacations here and trashing the environment. We had a open ridge walk afterwards which was delightful. We rolled into the Mohican center at the right time for a power break. I love my power breaks which consist of about 1 -2 hrs of doing nothing. RM and Corporal struggle to adjust to this concept of taking big breaks. We decided to squeeze a few more miles by climbing up to Catfish fire tower. I sat up top writing my journal in the breeze, very refreshing. I had a healthy blister on my left foot, starting again with new boots is like being back in Georgia with girly man feet. Despite beign up above treeline it was a very warm night.dandylion
Date: 2005-07-11
From: Catfish fire tower

To: Gren Anderson Shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: clear sky

I probably had my worse trail experience this morning, it was truely aweful. I was asleep and started having a dream about peeing in a toilet and it was feeling really good, too good. It seemed all too real and i awoke to make sure everything was in order. It appeared fine at first but then i soon came to realised i had wet myself. I was dismayed, apart from the toilet accident i had on my 18th birthday which was due to a unfortunate combination of factors i had not wet myself in a long time. I pride myself on my superb bladder control. Luckily most the substance had been absorbed by my boxers and sleeping bag, no puddles to deal with. I had many questions to ask the cosmo, such as why didnt i wake up and just go outside for a leak. Why would my mind trick me to pee- WHY???I threw my boxers outside the tent and decided to go back to sleep and deal with it in the morning. As RM and corporal arised, they saw me with my sleeping bag and boxers drying on the tower but didnt seem to think anything of it. Despite the mishap it was a lovely morning. I got water from Blue mtn lakes road from the water pump you needed two people to operate. I was glad i wasnt on my own. It was a hot day with no breeze, always makes hiking hardwork. I saw a rattlesnake on rattlesnake mtn which seemed extra cool and did some extensive blue berry picking. Great to have fruit on the trail. I took my power break at Brink shelter, RM and corporal are slowly coming around to the idea. Some nice ridge walking till we dropped down to Culvers gap. We went down to the garage to get some soda and saw nimblefoot leaving the steak house. We watched this indian man fill up cars at the garage, i dont remember the last time i saw a station fill the gas for you. I climbed up Culver fire tower on the way out, im really getting good with heights. Stayed at Gren anderson shelter hoping for some goodies from Desparado, he had left a few bits we could enjoy. A storm appeared to be rolling in so i pulled my stuff under cover and went to bed. Lets hope the night will be dry inside the shelter at least!dandylion
Date: 2005-07-12
From: Gren Anderson Shelter

To: secret Shelter
Miles today: 18.3

Got out a little late and as we reached the top of Sunrise mtn there was a pavilion. The mtn was closed in by cloud but as a compensation there was a man sitting there with trailmagic. We talked with him for a while eating donuts and drinking soda. Rooled into Mashipacong and used the solar powered toilet facilities. The day began to brighten up but i could not see NYC from the high point state park. ME and RM were giving the corporal a hard time all day because he hikes faster than us. We call him a BMB, which is short for 'Big miles boy'. I didnt go up to the high point monument as it looked a tough side trail up. I was ready to stop by the time we reached the secret shelter. This shelter is not in guidebooks as it was set up by jim murray and is for thru hikers and section hikers only to avoid big groups using it. It had a shower on the side of the building which is always a great thing. In the night the shelter got so hot RM and corporal went outside and set up there tent. The bugs were bad in here and if that wasnt bad enough the donkeys were making alot of noise. I understand why everyone mentioned the donkeys in the shelter register.Dandylion
Date: 2005-07-13
From: secret Shelter

To: Vernon
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: clear sky

RM and Corporal survived the donkey stampede last night. We walked into Unionville for breakfast and then pushed on over to Vernon. We hiked through some wetlands which had some extensive boardwalk. I dont know much about birds but i hear there is a great diversity of species here. Also this boardwalk is the most expensive project undertaken by the ATC. NY has been really pretty so far, far better than PA. We managed the hitch into Vernon and headed to the StThomas church hostel. This morning they had the funeral for their pastor Steve Steele who loved helping out the hikers among many others. He died of lung cancer and was clearly a pillar in the community. We kept out the way till we were approached and welcomed in. They were pleased to see us as there was plenty of left overs from the reception. I rang Sarah and she was fine about picking me up tomorrow. Everything came together so i decided to do laudry chores while i had nothing to do. Plan to shed some more girl and leave it with the girls, and of course leave my red flair dancing boots with them. Unfortanetly i will miss the Corporals birthday this sunday, so happy B'day corporal. Looking forward to hanging with the girls. Had a healthy dinner of soda and cake. Everything one needs.dandylion
Date: 2005-07-14
From: Vernon

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

The Barefoot Bunch excursionThe girls were not due till about 8pm so i had time to kill. I decided to rest as i had the feeling the girls would not give me much chance to. I watched a few films and never realised how bad the batman films were. RM and Corporal didnt get out early and when it started raining i could not see them leaving. Very much like the situation back in Palmerton. The girls arrived early, thank goodness. I was so bored. Mel was the first to appear and i greeted them all with hugs, even their friend who ive never met before. Her name was Anna, friend of the girls is a friend of mine. I showed mel her old stick ive carried for so long. I had completed my sub quest to return the stick. I was reluctant to lose its company thou.It was great to see them all again but the greatest part about leaving the hostel with them was how envious the onlooking hikers were. Ha Ha, if you could only see all those fustrated males faces. By this stage in the hike we are starved of female company like those prisoners in 'Alien 3'. Beth drove us to Mels house first where we were to stay tonight. Mels parents were really nice but i couldnt figure out where she got her curly blonde hair from?We had some spag for dinner and bed time came around quickly. Me, Mel and Sarah slepted in the living room. We talked a little before deciding to sleep for we needed our rest. Tomorrow i am joining them for a days work on the farm. Yes, this will be a part of my 'cultural enrichment'. Dandylion
Date: 2005-07-15
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

The girls got up talking about how they didnt want to work a full day. I on the other hand was excited about picling some fruit. We drove down and i met their boss Debbie. We had to pick Green beans for the first hour. Mel and Anna looked miserable. I was starting to reevalutate this decision to see the girls in their daily lifes. I had a fragile vision that they skipped through the fields occassionally picking some berries with big smiles. We took our beans back and then we went to the Blueberry patch. As lunch drew closer everyone really brightened up. I remember Hannah telling me Sarah was the far superior harvester and she was right. Sarah was working 2 or 3 times harder than I. She was outpicking everyone. I guess we all have our talents and Sarah has found hers!Maybe if i trained and worked flat out i could match her but i was only here for cultural enrichment so i took my time. At twelve we went back to the farmhouse and Debbie leaves out an array of fresh food so we can make sandwiches. It was truely awesome. I would work here just for this and i understand now why the girls became happier nearer lunchtime. Soon after some more work it was 3pm and time to go. Anna was shocked when i said i have never drove before. She wanted me to drive the van back but i really didnt want to destroy anything. Debbie really took to me and everything i said she went wild about. Just laughing and saying all sorts of crazy stuff. As i said by and got into the car she shouted 'your legs are too sexy for that kilt'. All i could do was smile and hope Beth stepped on the gas. Tomorrow the girls are going to give me some driving education. Every Friday the girls play football (soccer to ya yanks) with some friends. I had not played in a while but i didnt let the folks back home down. I played a decent game considering ive just hiked 1300 miles!!!I was very tired and beaten up afterwards. My body can hike but not play soccer. Mel drove home to make some phonecalls and the rest of the crew went to the lake. It had a rope swing. I am not keen on going underwater but i knew it would bug me if i didnt try it. It was alot of fun but i kept taking up alot of water and snot was dribbling down my face as i stumbled around the lake. Anna and Beth just laughed at me as i polluted the lake. I tried it again with far more success before heading home. I finally got to see the studt family home that we talked about so much on the trail. It was a beautiful stone building with a stable across from it. I talked to Sarahs parents for a while as Beth made us all burgers. I asked their dad about what he taught them in homeschool. I didnt have the heart to tell him he should concentrate on English more with Sarah. I give her a hard time about her spelling in her emails. I laugh so hard when i read them. She is the only girl i know that spells jealous with a G. Tomorrow i will try to master the way of the automobile and the horse. Beth showed me their trail pictures. It stirred up some fond memories and reminded me im still on that same journey despite them days feeling like another time.dandylion
Date: 2005-07-16
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I went out with Sarah this morning to see all their animals. I would like to live on a small farm one day. I have this vision of a small log house with a few animals and a vegetable patch. Beth made me breakfast, these girls are really looking after me!I promised to make them a English fry up if they ever come visit me. The time came for me to try and crash the car. Sarah sat up front with me and guided me over the bumpy road. I only hit the bumps twice! Also took Amigo the horse out for a little jog. It was easy enough to do. I didnt try galloping because i enjoy my bones being connected. I am starting to think that if i can survive this trip i will finish the trail. Beth came back from Churh and Anna came round for the road trip to PA.It was a few hours drive and we stopped in Norwich,NY so i could resupply. The Norwich back home is far more impressive. Mels friends we were visiting were at a campground they planned to stay at for 1 month!!! They were a family of 7 like the studts. People out here like big families i guess. We all went down to the river and after a little paddlin i met mels friends junior and Andrew. Andrew was very excited when he found out i was English. He is really big into accents and tracing his family tree. Listening to his stories made me more curious about my roots. Eventually we all went back for dinner. It was a buffet style feed. and the meat was really good. I said outloud, 'this meat is really good' and the father replied 'yeah,it was our cow that we raised and slaughtered', I merrily said 'im sure he is happy that we are enjoying him'I love meat and dont see anything wrong with killing for meat but i would have second thoughts eating an animal i had even named!!! but i guess cows are not the most loveable animals.After dinner we all went around the park for a walk. Originally they wanted t do a 4 mile hike but i was severly against the idea. No white blazes, no walking. We found this stage with lights and everyone was cheering someone to go up and do something. Finally Andrew went up and delivered a sermon. I enjoyed the passion of it very much but if we were playing spot the non-believer then i would of been it. I wonder if people were trying to gage my reaction to the preaching. We went back to camp for smores and i got very little sleep on this night. dandylion