morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-03-12
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Lance Creek Camp Site
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Last night it drizzled off and on and when we woke up at 8am it was just dripping off the trees. We were on the trail by 9:15am and it started to drizzle once again right as we set out. That was how the day was all day, it was foggy and drizzly which made the trail slick and muddy. We were planning to hike to Woods Hole Shelter but due to the condition of the trail we set up camp at Lance Creek Campsite along with a dozen or so other hikers. So I am now sitting in my tent listening to the rain and waiting for dark to come so I can get to sleep. On a good note, we crossed our first paved road today, it was Route 60 in Woody Gap. Chef (Kody) had to walk west on Route 60 into town to get food (*note Sarah was not sure what Andy was trying to say here but did her best!) and Montana and I continued on. Chef is a fast hiker and got to camp 5 min right after we did. Space was limited here at the camp site but we all fit. Because we are not at a shelter and do not have bear cables to hang our food on, we had to hang our food in a tree. We tried to fit all our food in one bag because we all have one days worth of food left and it all fit but it was too heavy for the bag and my bag broke. We did rig it up to work and luckly tomorrow we will be going to the Walisi-Yi center which is an outfitter so I can get a new one. Tomorrow we will be climbing over Blood Mt, our biggest climb yet and it looks like the weather is to be the same as today. We are going to try and get a bunk room or a cabin at the the center in Needle(sp?) Gap to take a night off the trail and dry out all our gear becaue everything is damp. That's all for now, now I just wait until it gets dark to hit the sack.
Date: 2012-03-13
From: Lance Creek Camp Site

To: Blood Mountain Cabins
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: broken clouds

Last night it rained once again off and on but cleared up by 7am when we got up. We were on the trail by 8am and on our way to climb Blood Mountain; the tallest Mountain in Georgia. It was easy going for the first 4 miles so we made good time and arrived at the Woods Hole Shelter at 11am. There we filled up all of our water bottles for the big climb. Blood Mountain started right after the shelter so up we went. Surprisingly the climb was fairly easy because there were a lot of switchbacks and it never really went up too steep. As I was going up, I could tell that I was going to have a hard time breathing due to the elevation, which was 4,461 feet, but was fine once I got to the top. At the top of the mountain was the Blood Mountain Shelter, it is the oldest shelter on the trail and was built by the CCC back in the 1930s.   It was four stone walls, four windows, a front door and even a fire place. We took a break to eat lunch and enjoy the views on a big boulder and by then the sun was out and the sky was blue. I decided to take advantage of the sun and the breeze and got all my wet gear out to dry. Chef, Montana and another hiker Tim decided to head on down the mountain but I stayed up top to finish drying my gear. It took about an hour for my gear to dry so i uploaded some pictures and made some phone calls. It was about 2:30pm until I had all my gear packed up and started heading down to Neels Gap. It turned out that it was harder going down than going up. The hot sun made it more difficult and there were a lot of big boulders to maneuver around all the way down. I caught up with Chef, Montana and Tim even tho they left and hour and a half before me. Turns out they took a wrong turn and had to find their way back to the trail. So the four of us finished the last two miles together and arrived in Neels Gap and at the Walasi-yi Outfitters at around 3:45pm. At the outdoor center they do a free shake down of all your gear and give you advice on any changes you should make. So I unloaded my pack (again!) and laid everything out on the floor and they said that I did a good job at cutting weight. That did say that I did not need a fleece coat if I bought a lighter and smaller mid-weight long sleeve so I decided to mail the fleece coat home and bought the mid-weight one. I then picked up my first mail drop and we headed to the cabins that we reserved the night before. Wolfe reserved the cabin last night for the four of us and we got the hiker special at 15 bucks a person!! Tim also reserved his own cabin but hung out with us all night. The cabins had two bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, back porch, tv and the owners did our laundry for us. We called and got a ride into Blairesville GA to get some food for supper and breakfast. Chef decided to make us all homemade pizza and it was awesome, so the five of us just hung out for the rest of the night and hit the sack by around midnight.**Side note: Pictures will be uploaded later tonight - there are several so be sure to check them out!
Date: 2012-03-14
From: Blood Mountain Cabins

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: few clouds

Well its official I made it past Neels Gap and that means I am not one of the 30% of hikers that drop out after the first 30 miles!!! Today we woke up around 8 am and once again Chef cooked breakfast for Montana, Wolfe, Tim and I. He made loaded hash browns with eggs, sausage, peppers, onions, tomatoes and bacon. We all ate until we were stuffed...too stuffed and headed out by 11am. There were some major climbs today and lots of up and downs. The sun was out and in the 80s so it was very hot. Also the flys decided to start biting today so every time we stopped they would start their onslaught of biting. Today by far was the hardest and worse day for me so far. My left knee hurts a bit, my feet hurt, it was hot, water was scarce so I was not staying hydrated enough, the bugs were out in full force and the hills never ended. But after all that, it was still a wonderful day on the trail. Once again Tim, Wolfe, J-dub, Chef, Montana and I are at the same shelter. We all hike about the same pace and get along really well I guess we call ourselves a trail family. Sorry this days entry is short, it was not a very good or exciting day for me but now that I am in my tent relaxing i am looking back at it and I feel very good about what I did and I know I am getting closer to the finish every day.
Date: 2012-03-15
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Helen, GA
Miles today: 9.7

*Trail name update, Montana is now called Big Sky and Tim is now called Tookalook.Today we woke up at 8 am, ate breakfast and were on our way by 10am. The first half of the day the trail followed old logging roads so it was easy going. The second half of the day was a little rougher. The trail went through some rocky sections then up to the top of Blue Mountain. We could hear thunder off in the distance to the west and knew the storms would be right on top of us in no time. Right as we got to the top of Blue Mountain it started to rain and hail. The hail was about pea size but luckily that storm stayed to the north of us. Once we started down Blue Mountain, the storm pushed on and we all dryed out in the sun. From the top of Blue Mountain to the bottom we dropped around 1500 feet so that was hard on my sore knee. I just took my time and went really slow and before I knew it, I was at the bottom on GA RT 75. There we meet two hikers, SOS and his friend John, SOS is thru hiking and is hiing it to raise money for his churchs youth ministry. We got to talking to SOS and John and they offered to take the 6 of us into Helen, GA. John and SOS drove Chef, Wolfe and Tookalook to a local Super 8 then came back and took Big Sky, J-dub and I to the Super 8 -- Thanks John and SOS! We are going to stay the night so we keep dry because there is going to be thunderstorms all night. So tonight all my gear is dry and ready to go tomorrow!
Date: 2012-03-16
From: Helen, GA

To: Sassafras Gap Camp Site
Miles today: 10.4

Today we left the motel in Helen GA at 11am and started walking down the road into town trying to get a ride back to the trail. We walked from one end of the trail all the way to the other end without even getting anyone to look at us. At the end of the town there was a grocery store and thought we would ask some people there if they could give us a ride back to the trail. There was one guy getting into his truck and we asked him and he said yes! So we packed all our gear into the bed of his truck and three of us got in the truck and the other three got in the bed and we were on our way back to the trail.We got to the trail at 11:40am and thanked the guy (I forget his name) and started up the first of two hard climbs at the start of our day. The first climb was up Rocky Mountain, 1500 feet up then right back down 1300 feet the other side into Indian Grave Gap. We ate lunch there then started to climb up Tray Mt, it was not as hard as Rocky Mountain because it had a lot of smalled climbs with flat spots in between. We got to the top of the last hill before the top and we came experienced our second bit of trail magic. There along the forest road, were two guys cooking hamburgers on a grill and they were huge burgers! We all introduced ourselves and when I went to say my trail name the one guy said "You must be Diesel" and I was like how did you know that!? Here he has been following me along my hike on my journal, what are the odds of that!!? Thanks to Bill and Jeff those two burgers and mountain dews really hit the spot!!We then climbed to the top of Tray Mt then right back down 1200 feet. We all decided to only hike 6 miles to the first shelter due to our late start and the two big climbs but once we got there we all felt good and made really good time getting there so we decided to push on to the next camp site Sassafras Gap.   The rest of the day going to Sassafras Gap was easy going with only a few small ups and downs and arrived at camp just as a thunder storm started rolling in. We did get a small shower of rain but the storm passed to the south of us and thankfully we all stayed dry. We went to bed around 10pm.
Date: 2012-03-17
From: Sassafras Gap Camp Site

To: Hiawassee, GA
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Last night it rained off and on and didn¢t quit around 8am. We only had to do 6.3 miles today so we took our time packing up and let our tents dry. We headed out of camp by 10:30 and had a steep climb right off the bat up Kelly Knob. It started raining right as we started going up and I decided to put my pack cover on once we got to the top because I could see the top...or so I thought. The mountain just kept going and going, every time I thought I could see the top, there would be another hill to climb. Finally, I got to the top and I put my pack cover on and it then decided to stop raining...figures. The rest of the day was all downhill - 1516 feet down the Dicks Creek Gap and US 76. The trail was slick and muddy so we all took our time going down but we all got down without any falls. We were to meet up with Tookalook's wife at the parking lot and then go into Haiwassee GA but she was not there. Luckily, once again, there was more trail magic. A guy called Peak Seeker, who thru hiked in 2008, was set up in the parking lot! Every year since then, he did trail magic in the gap. He was making hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, butterfingers, fruit, water and punch. So once again, I downed two burgers as we waited for Tookalook's wife...that makes it five burgers in the last two days. ?Tina, Tookalook's wife, arrived at 3pm and we packed the truck full of hikers. Chef, J-dub, Big Sky, Tookalook and I put our gear in the truck. Wolfe decided to push on and take a zero day in the next town so we will meet up with him in three days. Right as we were ready to pull out, four other hikers (Uni Zoomy, Nina and two other girls) asked if they could get a ride too! So we stuffed them in too. In that truck we had six people in the truck, four people in the bed and nine packs in the bed...it was packed! We dropped off the four girls at the hiker hostel and we went to the holiday inn. We went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant and I was not impressed. This was the first time I ate Mexican food other than Taco Bell...and I think I will stick with Taco Bell. We then headed back to the hotel and hung out and then went to bed.
Date: 2012-03-18
From: Hiawassee, GA

To: Hiawassee, GA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today Big Sky, J-dub, Chef and I took a zero day in Hiawassee GA and hung out at the pool and hot tub all day. Tookalook decided to call it quits today, he was only planning on hiking all of Ga. We all tried to talk him into doing a thru hike because he was doing awesome but he decided not to. Tookalook - you will never be forgotten, we had some great times and cannot thank you and your wife for all you have done for us. We ate breakfast...a lot of it at that and walked around town and hung out with two other hikers here at the hotel: Ally and Steamroller. Haley also met up with us here and is ready for another go at it with some new and better gear! We are all supper excited to have her back, especially Big Sky because for the last week she was the only girl in our group. There was a AYCE (all you can eat) just down the road and we decided to eat there to get ready for tomorrows climb back up into the mountains. I finished off four full plates and three deserts; I think I have officially acquired the hiker appetite. We were going to see a movie after we ate but decided to just go back to the hot tub because it felt soooo good on our sore legs and feet. Tomorrow we head back into the mountains and we will finish off the last six miles in GA and start into NC. Wow I can't believe we are six miles from crossing one state off the list...can't wait!!
Date: 2012-03-19
From: Hiawassee, GA

To: Bly Gap Campsite
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: few clouds

Today we got a shuttle back to the trail and we were on the trail by 11am. The trail was not as steep as the other side of Dicks Creek Gap but we still had to climb back up to the top of the mountains. Today was another hot one; it was in the high 80s, no wind and again no shade from the trees yet. I took my time today and drank one and a half gallons of water so that I would not over heat and shut down. On a good note, because we took a zero day in Haiwassee we are now hiking with all new hikers. The ones that we have been seeing through the whole trip are now one day ahead of us, but we will cross paths again at some point. Today was our last day hiking in GA and the trail maintainers made sure to leave a lasting impression; the last 5 miles in GA were all uphill with very few places to get water. We all originally planned to hike to the second shelter but J-dub, Big Sky and I just could not do all those miles in the heat. We decided to stop three miles short of our plan and stayed at the Bly Gap Campsite, which is about 100 feet across the NC boarder. Tonight will be our first night in NI along with three other hikers. So far I find that on the hot and difficult days I write much less in my journal entries. I guess it is because I keep my head down most of the day just focusing on getting to the next watering hole or the shelter. And plus all of you who know me know how much I hate the heat and know how cranky I can get. But all in all any day on the AT is a good day.**Side notes from Diesel's sister: (1) I¢ll be uploading more pictures from Andy, sorry I mean Diesel, tonight or tomorrow ¢ sorry for slacking on uploading them! (2) As his sister, I can attest to his comments on how cranky he gets when it¢s hot out ¢ more power to his fellow hikers who are with him on those days!
Date: 2012-03-20
From: Bly Gap Campsite

To: Beech Gap Campsite
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: broken clouds

Last night another hiker showed up really late and it turned out to be Gus. Gus is an older guy who is hiking the trail for the 5th time. He starts really early in the morning, hikes really slow and arrives at camp really late. He uses two long bamboo sticks as hiking poles and his gear is really old and tattered. We have been running into him almost every day since Gooch Mountain shelter; he is a pretty cool guy. Today I woke up at 730am and was on the trail by 9, I am getting better and faster at packing up in the mornings. First thing in the morning, Big Sky and I started up the three consecutive climbs. They were steep and had a bunch of switch backs but we made good time and got to the first shelter by 11:30am. We meet up with Chef (he pushed on last night and spent the night there) and Codger and we together we started up Standing Indian Mountain. Standing Indian Mountain is the tallest mountain we climbed so far at 5,498 feet but we only had to climb 1100 feet up from the gap we were in. The trail followed an old logging road up to the top so it never really got steep and we were on the top in 50 minutes. The downward side was even less steep so we once again were able to make good time. We arrived as planned at our campsite at 5:30pm. We immediately went to get water because we were a little low from Standing Indian Mountain. We set up camp, ate our supper then made a fire to keep the bugs away. So far from what I can tell Gus did not make it to camp yet but I am sure he will at some point this evening and if he doesn¢t i am sure we will see him again...I hope to get a picture with him at some point too.
Date: 2012-03-21
From: Beech Gap Campsite

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

Last night it drizzled throughout the night but was clear by the time we got up. We were packed up and on our way north by 9:45am. The trail is a whole lot easier in North Carolina than it was in Georgia, it has less climbs and the times the trail goes over a mountain its not steep to steep. We can maintain our speed and thus taking very few breaks. Today I ran into a group of maintainers from the Nantahalla Hiking club, its kind of cool being on the other receiving end of trail maintenance since I was a maintainer for many months prior to leaving. I have a greater appreciation of what we do and want to thank all of the volunteers that keep this trail in good condition.The trail followed the ridge tops of mountains until we hit Albert Mountain. The trail rose up 450 feet in less than 1/4 mile. There were lots of steps and sections were we had to use our hands and feet. Once we got to the top there was a fire tower we could climb. The views were amazing; that mountain was my favorite part of the trail so far.From the top of Albert Mt. it was all downhill all but one climb for the rest of the day. We passed three shelters and decided to push on to do a big day because we are planning on taking a zero day in Franklin NC. We only had 3.8 miles to do after we left the third shelter but they were some pretty hard 3.8 miles! By then we were all exhausted and I know I was in ¢hiker zombie¢ mode: head down, trudging along oblivious to my surroundings, just looking for that shelter. We finally got there around 7 pm and it was packed along with the tent sites. There was a tent city there; I think there are 16 tents here tonight. ((Pictures to come later))Here are is a list of the hikers that are here that I know: Just Joe, Just John, Two Percent Tim, Dream Child, Steam Roller, Nina, Flasher, Savago and a bunch of others but I did not get all of their names.
Date: 2012-03-22
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: light rain

Today we only had three miles until we got to the road where we were to be picked up by Ron Haven to go into Franklin NC. We all decided to take a zero day and possibly another zero day tomorrow because we all have some pretty bad blisters on our feet, plus there are to be some really bad storms tonight and tomorrow. We were picked up at 930am by Ron himself and he took us into Franklin where we got a room at one of his motels. I took a look around our motel and right across the street was a Hardees!!! We went to Hardees for lunch and ate and ate and ate. I had a six dollar burger combo and was still hungry so I got a double cheese burger. That still did not fill me up so I then got three buffalo chicken strips and that did the job. We had to walk about a 1/4 mile into town to do our laundry and then went across the street to Outdoor 76, a hiking gear store. They had a ton of awesome gear I wish I had but only got a free bumper sticker. My favorite thing at the store was a super comfortable chair that you hang in a tree, you could even recline it back and sleep in it almost like a hammock. I could soooo use that at the end of a long day and everyone would be super jealous of me but I didn¢t think it was worth it at 3 pounds.We then went back to the motel and meet up with a bunch of other hikers. We all were hungry (again) so we had ourselves a little hiker bash and ordered a bunch of pizzas and wings. We slowly called it a night one by one and now we are going to bed at 11pm.
Date: 2012-03-24
From: Franklin, NC

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: broken clouds

Sorry about not doing a journal entry for yesterday everyone! We did nothing all day but sit around the motel hiding from the rain and just hanging out with the rest of the hikers who were here doing the same thing.Today we got up at 7 am and got ready for the free pancake breakfast at the local church. They drove to all the motels and hotels in town and picked up all the hikers. They took us to their church where we had pancakes, bacon, coffee and orange juice. After we all ate, they took a picture of each hiker, printed it out and gave us a card to write a note to send home. They are going to mail it home for us. Once we were over stuffed, we loaded back up into the van and were dropped off back at the motel. We got a ride back to the trail by Ron Haven and we were headed north by 9:50am. We were feeling pretty good because of the two days we took off and all our blisters, bumps and bruises felt much better. We saw on the radar before we left town that there were some more strong thunderstorms and sure enough, it started to rain at around 1:45pm. We decided to push on to the next shelter and see if it would clear up. It got really cold and windy so we got out our sleeping bags to keep warm and we were joined by 4 other hikers. It was getting late and getting even colder so we decided to stay put and keep out spots in the shelter. It keep raining off and on all evening and now still into night...this is the first night that we are using the shelter and not our tents, we really hope we stay dry!!