morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-07-12
From: Carlo Col Shelter

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 4.4
Weather: broken clouds

Dutch, First Shadow and I were up at sunrise and were the first ones to leave the shelter at 7:05 a.m. The map shows us having to go over four peaks today. From the top of Mt. Carlo, we could see clouds down below us. Again the climbs and descents were steep, rocky and difficult. We weren¢t moving fast, me with my hand problems and Dutch with his cold, but we were moving forward into Maine.At about 300 feet from the top of East Peak Goose Eye Mountain and about two miles from the shelter, we came to the spot where I turned around and went home last year. From here on, it will be new miles in Maine for me. Also from here we could still see Mt. Washington. The last 300 feet up the mountain we had to climb up a cliff and at one point we had to climb up a huge vertical log ladder. This was one of the scariest sections of the trail I have been on. Going down the other side of North Peak Goose Eye Mountain, we went down another cliff. At one point there were metal ladder rungs driven into the rocks. It had taken us 5 1/2 hours to only go 4.4 miles. I thought the trail in New Hampshire was difficult, but so far Maine had proven to be even more difficult.It felt great when we got to the shelter at 12:30 p.m. We were eating lunch at lunch time for a change. Only saw one person on the trail so far today, his name was Turbo, a young southbound thru-hiker. After lunch, it was time to do our camp chores - filtering and purifying water, drying our boots in the sun, hanging up our clothes to dry, treating our cuts and bug bites. We have a log of bug bites, we have even been bit by the black flies up here. For such a small fly, they have a mean bite. At about 2:00 one northbound thru-hiker stopped to get water and moved on.Tomorrow we go through Mahoosuc Notch, the hardest one mile on the entire A.T. It has huge, house-size boulders that we have to climb over and under.It was after 7:00 p.m. when three northbound thru-hikers showed up at the shelter. They were in their twenties and two were going to Virginia Tech. They had hiked all the way from Gorham, NH, today ¢ that is 21 miles in one day. Tomorrow they plan to hike through Mahoosuc Notch and go on to Andover, ME. That will be a 20 mile day. These guys must be super heroes to hike that kind of mileage.
Date: 2008-07-13
From: Full Goose Shelter

To: Speck Pond Shelter
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: overcast clouds

We were up early today since it is going to be a real challenge. The three super heroes were waking up when we were leaving the shelter at 6:45 a.m. The first climb up Fulling Mill Mountain was only about 350 feet and at the top we could see clouds down below us.It was 8:00 a.m. when we entered Mahoosuc Notch, this is the most difficult mile on the entire A.T. We were going over and under huge boulders. We were near the area where the skeleton of the dead moose was when the three super heroes passed us. Dutch saw one of them take a real bad fall and bounced off a rock. He said the young hiker got up and went on like nothing had happened. These guys are super heroes. The moose had fallen in the notch last year and died. Someone has placed Tibetan flags over its bones. The young guys moved fast but Dutch, First Shadow and I move slowly, if we fall we would not be able to just jump back up and keep going like the young guys.It was real cold in the notch, there was still ice at the bottom of the boulders and at one point we had to walk across the ice. It took us 3 hours and 15 minutes to go only one mile. We all agreed that this is the hardest mile on the A.T. At the other end of the notch, we stopped to eat an early lunch since it looked like rain. As soon as we started up Mahoosuc Arm, it started to sprinkle. The climb up Mahoosuc Mountain, a 1600 foot climb, was difficult because it was steep. But it was made even more difficult because the rocks and roots were wet from the rain. As we crossed over the top of Mahoosuc Mountain, the wind and heavy rain made it cold and miserable. Boy were we glad to see the shelter at 3:15 p.m. It is hard to believe that it took us 8 1/2 hours to only hike 5.1 miles.Did not see a soul on the trail today except the three young hikers who passed us. We were cold and wet, but the first thing we did was go get water before changing into some dry clothes. These three-sided shelters give good protection from the rain. While we were getting water, ¢Lone Taildrager¢ came in. He wasn¢t too far behind us coming through Mahoosuc Notch. I had met him in 2006 when he was hiking with his teenage son. Everyone ate an early supper to help get warm. A cloud has moved in around the shelter and a little later it started raining hard again. It is almost 9:00 p.m. and everyone is asleep. As soon as I finish writing, I am climbing in my sleeping bag. Today was really hard on our old bodies.
Date: 2008-07-14
From: Speck Pond Shelter

To: Baldplate Lean-to
Miles today: 6.9

It rained hard all night long and was still raining lightly when we woke up. It was hard to get out of the sleeping bag knowing we had to put on our cold wet clothes. The caretaker brought us the weather report, it was a 60% chance of rain with maybe a chance the sun might come out. Does not sound like today is going to be a fun day for hiking. Packed our cameras deep in our packs in several plastic bags.It was a misty rain when we started hiking at 7:20 a.m. and by the time we reached the top of Old Speck Mountain, it was raining harder and the wind was blowing about 20 mph, making it even colder as we came down the mountain. We had a 2500 foot drop down the mountain, as we descended the rain stopped, we were out of the wind and the trail started getting easier. We had heard that the trail got easier near Grafton Notch.We got to the parking lot at Grafton Notch at noon and there was a picnic table. We took the opportunity to sit and eat lunch. A fellow that works for the state parks gave us a Mountain Dew to drink, it was his last three. I guess Dutch, First Shadow and I looked like very tired, wet hikers and he felt sorry for us. The drinks sure did taste good.With only a little over two miles to go, we had 1000 feet to climb and the last mile was flat. The trail proved to be a lot easier and we were at the lean-to. A lean-to is really a shelter - that is what they call the shelters in Maine. The sun had just started coming out. As we came in, we met a young French-Canadian woman in her early twenties. She was one of the leaders for a group of 12 girls about 13 years old, they all spoke French. We could hear the girls coming in behind us.The sky was clearing and the forecast looks good for the next few days. We had already eaten supper when Cruise, a young 20-year-old, showed up. He had gone through Mahoosuc Notch this morning. He lives in Damascus, VA. The group of girls have set up their tents on the tent platforms. They are out backpacking for eight days and tomorrow is their last day. They are a happy group of girls. It is 8:30 p.m., the sun is going down and it is getting cooler ¢ time to get in our sleeping bags.
Date: 2008-07-16
From: South Arm Road from Andover, ME

To: East B Hill Road to Andover, ME
Miles today: 10.1

Today we are getting slack packed, leaving almost all our gear at the Andover Guest House and carrying packs that weigh between 10 to 15 pounds. We went over to the diner at 5:00 a.m. for French toast and bacon for breakfast. At 7:00 a.m., Mr. Natural shuttled us up to South Arm Road. Mr. Natural is a young man who did a southbound hike on the A.T. last year and this summer he is working at the Andover Guest House for Joel. We are SOBOs today, that is southbounders, because it is easier for us to be picked up at East B. Hill Road.The climb up and down Moody Mountain was real steep. At the bottom, we ran into The Tourist, about our age. He is going north and is getting picked up where we started and is staying at the guest house. We have become a lot better at climbing and going down these steep slopes. Some of our techniques are tree hugging, tree swinging, going backwards downhill and using roots and small trees for rappel and climbing.Going up Hall Mountain we ran into Tinker Bell going north. She is a young woman in her twenties doing a northbound thru-hike. We had heard about her from the super heroes from Virginia and Cruise. Stopped at Hall Mountain Lean-To to eat lunch and the Railroad King hiked in as we were about to leave. A little later we ran into Cruise. It was only a 500 foot climb to the top of Wyman Mountain, the trail down the mountain was real easy, but the day was getting warmer.When we were almost to the road, we could see Mr. Natural down on the road waiting for us. Got to the road at 3:45p.m. It felt good to know we were going back to a place we could get showers again, clean clothes, a good meal and a bed to sleep in.Saw Tinker Bell at the general store, she is going to pick up her mail-drop from the post office and get a ride back to the trail. I though her name came from the Disney cartoon character, but she said she got the name because down south she had a bear bell on her pack that rang all the time.Had another good supper at the diner and ice cream at Grammy¢s Kitchen. The weather forecast is clear and hot. We have arranged another slack pack day for tomorrow but it will be for 13.3 miles over six peaks. Going to bed early tonight at 9:00 p.m.Oh! A couple of days ago, First Shadow noticed that the last mountain we went over did not go over the top and Dutch said, ¢Someone must have made a mistake putting the trail on this mountain because they always go over the top.¢
Date: 2008-07-17
From: South Arm Road from Andover, ME

To: ME17 to Andover, ME
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: broken clouds

Had breakfast at the diner before Mr. Natural gave us a ride to the trailhead at South Arm Road. Left at 6:00 a.m. and we were hiking by 6:20 a.m. The Tourist is slack packing in the same direction also. It was almost a straight up climb of about 2,400 feet to the top of Old Blue Mountain. Near the top we saw a father and son, Methane and Topo, breaking camp. Topo and his Dad have been hiking the A.T. in sections since he was five years old and he is in his early twenties. Within a mile, they caught up with us and we hiked together for a while. Methane and his family live near Charlotte, NC, within 1/2 hour of my daughter and granddaughter, Kelley and Shanna. They stopped for water and we move on.The temperature was getting warmer. We started to get views of the many lakes in Maine. Stopped at Bemis Mountain Lean To at 12:30 p.m. for lunch and Methane and Topo were right behind us.With four to six miles to go, the terrain at the end of the day would be difficult with a steep 700 foot drop down and a steep 700 foot climb up to ME 17. Along the trail we ran into two southbounders, Bogie and Slim, they recognized Dutch and me. We had met them at Tom¢s Run Shelter in PA in 2006. It is a small world on this trail. At the bottom we had to cross one of the many streams that we will have to cross in Maine. It had become hotter in the afternoon, making the 700 foot climb even harder. We were glad we didn¢t have our full pack weight. At the top of our climb to ME 17, Mr. Natural was waiting for us with some cold lemonades. The Tourist was already there. We had arrived at 3:45 p.m. and it was a 45 minute drive back to Andover.Getting a shower, doing laundry and sleeping in a bed for three days has been great. Had another good supper over at the diner. A lot of action over at the town hall - they are having an election for a new ¢Selectman,¢ a city council person. After supper we went and got another scoop of Maine Black Bear ice cream. The rest of the night was spent packing our packs with all our gear. Carrying a fully loaded pack won¢t be fun tomorrow.
Date: 2008-07-18
From: ME17 from Andover, ME

To: ME4 to Rangeley, ME
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Went over to the diner at 4:45 a.m. for our last meal in Andover. At 6:00 a.m., Mr. Natural drove The Tourist, Dutch, First Shadow and me back to the trailhead on ME 17 in the big brown station wagon. We could always tell when we were getting near the trailhead because the check engine light would come on. Mr. Natural had done a great job getting us to and from the trailheads, we were going to miss seeing him waiting for us.Today the terrain looks better but the weather forecast does not. We had gone about four miles when we got to Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to. Just before we got ready to leave, it started to rain. On went the rain pack covers and the rain coats. I don¢t remember if I have mentioned this before, but by accident I put my arm through the zipper vent opening in the armpit and discovered I could convert my rain coat into a short sleeve rain coat or a poncho. This makes it a lot cooler for hiking.It rained for the next four miles and the trail got more muddy as we hiked along. It had stopped when we got to Little Swift Pond Campsite where we stopped to eat our sub sandwiches we bought from the general store this morning. Boy! They tasted good.With fully loaded packs, we were making better time than we thought we would, but we were getting really tired. It was close to 3:30 p.m. when we came out of the woods to the parking lot at ME 17. I saw a minivan pull up and drop off a young couple of thru-hikers.   So I asked the woman driving if she was going to Rangeley. She said she was and offered to give us a ride into town. Her name is Lisa and she and her family are from Maryland and are up here on vacation. She took us to the Town and Lake Motel and then back to the post office so we could get our maildrop boxes before the post office closed. She was a real trail angel.For supper we went to the BBQ and ice cream shop across the street. The rain was back and it was raining even harder. After eating Maine Black Bear ice cream (for the fourth night in a row), we ran to our rooms in the rain. After showers, all of us just crashed on our beds since we were so tired. The last few days have been hard on our bodies. It continued to rain harder as we fell asleep.
Date: 2008-07-19
From: Rangeley, ME

To: Rangeley, ME
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

It rained hard all night last night. Glad we decided not to camp last night and push on into town. Slept late, until 6:30 a.m. Today is going to be a zero day in town but we have a lot to do. The sky has cleared which will make doing our chores easier. First on the list was to get money from the bank since we hear that almost all the placed north of here only accept cash. Before leaving the room at 9:30 a.m., we had gone through our packs and mailed some more items home, so we stopped at the Post Office next. Then to the BMC for breakfast. We had our dirty clothes with us so we moved on to the laundromat next. First Shadow watched our wash while Dutch and I walked 1/3 mile further out of town to the drug store and grocery store. Dutch bought some more food and I got a CD of my photos made to mail to Kelley.With clean clothes, we started hiking back through town, stopping at the outfitters to get some boot waterproofing and Dutch needed some Crocs and some fuel in a canister. It was 12:30 p.m., so we walked across the street to the Red Onion Restaurant to get a pizza and beer. We had heard that the Red Onion has the best pizza in Maine. After lunch, Dutch headed back to the motel and First Shadow and I stopped at a sports shop to look around. As we were walking past the Rangeley Dawg Stand, a young girl was waving at us from a picnic table. Then I recognized her, it was Tinker Bell. Stopped to talk to her for a while. She was hiking behind us and we thought she was ahead of us. She was raised in Massachusetts but lives in Toronto, Canada now. She was going to use the pay phone across the street so we invited her back to our room to save her some money. Dutch was surprised to see her. She called home to let her Mom know she was alright. She is staying out of town at the Full Pond Lodge and is going to meet a friend tomorrow.The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning, making repairs and waterproofing our boots. Walked up to the Parkside and Main Restaurant for a good meal and stopped at Scoops for another Maine Black Bear ice cream. Saw another beautiful sunset walking back to the motel.
Date: 2008-07-20
From: ME4 from Rangele, ME

To: Piazza Rock Lean-to
Miles today: 1.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Slept late, until 6:30 a.m., again today. We have short mileage planned for today. Dutch, First Shadow and I all put another coat of waterproofing on our boots - it sounds like we will need it. The weather forecast is rain, rain and more rain. At 9:30 a.m., we walked a couple of blocks to a small diner for breakfast. This town eating is coming to an end.After packing up, we started thumbing out of town. It took 45 minutes to get a ride, a young man named Philip going the other way came back and picked us up. A lot of cars went by but we figured that they were coming into Rangeley for church and other reasons and that is why we were having a hard time getting a ride. It was almost noon when he dropped us off at the trailhead. We only had to climb 350 feet in 1.8 miles to get to the lean-to. It only took us an hour to get to the lean-to. It looked like rain when we got there so we went and got water right away. While we were scooping our water, Cruise walked by. He was headed for the next lean-to or further. As soon as we got back to the shelter and started eating our sub sandwiches we had bought from town, it started to rain. Took about an hour nap when Goose hiked up and in another hour his hiking buddy Chub came in. They are in their twenties and doing a section hike. The privy here is unique, it is a double-seater with a cribbage board between the seats. It is even named ¢Your Move.¢It has continued to rain and after supper it even started to rain harder. Only the five of us in the shelter tonight. Hope the rain stops by tomorrow morning. The next few days are not going to be easy since we have the Saddleback Mountain range to go over. Rangeley was the last big town we will see in Maine, if you call Rangeley big. Stratton, ME is our next town and we are already looking forward to going into town.
Date: 2008-07-21
From: Piazza Rock Lean-to

To: Poplar Ridge Lean-to
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: overcast clouds

It was a heavy rain all night long. It did not stop until 4:00 a.m. That means it rained for 12 straight hours. The trail is going to be muddy and the rocks and roots are going to be slick. Today was difficult with three mountains to go over. First there was a 2000 foot climb up Saddleback Mountain. We could see Rangeley, ME, from the summit and we could see the next mountain we had to climb, The Horn Mountain.Stopped for lunch on top of it when a cloud rolled in and surrounded us, we could feel the moisture in the cloud. Looked like rain, so we hurried down The Horn and up Saddleback Junior Mountain. Oh! Goose passes us on Saddleback Mountain and his friend Chub had to get off the trail because he was injured.The sky was getting darker when we got to Poplar Ridge Lean-to at 4:15 p.m. Three people were already there ¢ Moose, Gennein and Bryan. Gennein and Bryan are from Tampa, FL. Gennein is British but lives in the U.S. now. This lean-to is an old one built in the 1950¢s. It even has round poles for a floor, very hard on the knees. Bryan is sleeping in a hammock outside and there are five of us in the lean-to and it is crowded. Good thing no one else is staying tonight.It was 5:00 p.m. when it started raining with thunder but it only lasted for two hours. It was tight quarters for six of us cooking in this lean-to but it worked out fine. Goose has this neat old Optims stove that he is using, it was one that his father used when he was a young man backpacking. No leaks in this shelter, that is good. Everyone was in their sleeping bags and asleep by 8:15 p.m.
Date: 2008-07-22
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to

To: Spaulding Mountain Lean-to
Miles today: 8.0

Today was a very eventful day but not in a good way. Up at daylight and hiking by 7:10 a.m. with all the rain in the last two days, everything in the woods is wet or damp, there is a lot of mud. Had a lot of bog bridges to cross coming down Poplar Ridge and they were extra slick. I slipped on one and landed on my back, but my pack broke the fall. It looked worse than it was.As we came over the top of Poplar ridge we could hear Orbeton Stream 1500 feet below. With all this rain, the streams were really overflowing. When we got to the bottom and saw Orbeton Stream, we had reason to be concerned. It was flowing fast and we were going to have to ford it. Dropped our packs and changed from our hiking boots to our Crocs. I went across first without a pack to see how deep and how hard the current was flowing. It was up to my knees and as long as I faced upstream, used my hiking poles and walked sideways it was not too bad. I forded back across the 75 foot stream to get my pack. It was so cold my feet were getting numb and I still had to cross the stream one more time! Dutch crossed over, then me, then First Shadow. First Shadow and I talked Dutch out of trying to cross over on a fallen tree that went most of the way over the stream but the rest of the way was very dangerous.It was 12:30 p.m. when we reached the top of Lone Mountain and stopped for lunch. We really needed the rest. The next two miles were a real flat and easy hiking trail with no mud. But that is when it happened ¢ Dutch took an easy fall landing on his hiking pole and breaking it in half. He was upset because he had bought them for his daughters years ago and had been using them. We got to the lean-to at 2:15 p.m. and after helping get water, I helped Dutch repair his hiking pole so he could use it to hike with for the next couple of days. I carved a wooden stick to shove up inside and Dutch found a 10-inch nail we could tape to the outside. I had some duck tape I carry on my hiking poles and we used it to tape Dutch¢s pole back together.Getting colder and it started raining again at 7:00 p.m. The good news is that my hand is almost healed. Saw a Snowshoe hare about two feet outside the lean-to. Boy! They are big rabbits.