morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-06-02
From: Top of Whitetop Mountain

To: Fox Creek
Miles today: 19.4

I woke up a little before 6:00 and packed most of my stuff while still in my tent. I left about 7:30 after talking to the hikers in camp for a short while. I knew that I would be taking lots of pictures today so I wanted to get started. I soon met a Ridge Runner on the trail that was hiking south we talked briefly and I moved on. When I came out of the woods I was at Elk Garden and I quickly knew that it was going to be a great day. They had a privy at the parking lot that couldn't have come at a better time. After crossing a gate I was in an open area with views of mountains in all directions. After climbing into some woods I got my first glimpse of the wild ponies. I went over to get some close up pictures and met two fellow hikers. We hiked for awhile and they told me that they were doing a practice hike and were planning on doing a through hike next year. After walking for awhile we exchanged information as to where we were from. One guy was from Mississippi and the other guy was from Illinois like me. He lives just a little over an hour from where I live in Chrisman. It was great to meet and talk to someone from back home. A shout out to Randy from Mahomet and your hiking partner. Good luck next year on your through hike, I wished that I had taken a picture of you both to put on trail journals. I stopped at Thomas Knob Shelter to fill up with water and moved on about 11:30. While hiking in the Wilburn Ridge area I got confused and ended up hiking the ridge trail instead of the AT. It was a rough climb on rocks that took me over the AT and then back down to the right of the trail. I was hearing people talking and I thought that I was on the trail and they were ahead of me, but instead they were below me. I considered dropping my pack and going back but I was worried that the ponies would get into it, so I just convinced myself that since I didn't intentionally skip part of the trail that I would be able to live with it. Besides it was a tougher hike and I was just a few feet from the trail the whole time. I entered the Grayson Highlands at 1:00, changed my socks and dried out my tent in the sun. I kept running into small groups of ponies as I hiked through the state park. I stopped at Wise Shelter, I couldn't help but notice that they had two privies, maybe his and hers. Better yet I realized that I had passed the 500 mark on the trail. It was 2:30 so I hiked on reaching Old Orchard Shelter at 5:15. I felt that I had a few more miles left in me so I hiked to a camping area at Fox Creek. I elected to cross the road and set up camp near a mountain stream for the night. It was only 6:00 but I felt that I could get an early start tomorrow and still get to Partnership Shelter in three days. The sound of the water running down from the mountain was very relaxing and made it easy to fall asleep.
Date: 2014-06-04
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Day Off
Miles today: 0.0

I woke up at 6:00 but went back to bed because nobody was ready to get up. I then woke up at 7:00 and got ready to go to town. I walked up to the Visitors Center at 8:00 to look around and charge my phone and camera. Twelve people took the 9:00 shuttle into Marion, it only cost 50 cents one way, what a bargain. I had them drop me off at the laundry and made phone calls while I was there. I talked to my wife Paige to see how she was doing and see if anything interesting is going on back home. She said the strawberries are ready and they have had a few people come out and pick their own. I then talked to my daughter Meghan to set a up a package drop in Pearisburg in about a week. I had the buffet at KFC and ate until I could hold no more. Then I went to Food City and Dollar General to get food for the next 3-4 days, the old food bag will be heavy again. Then I walked to Hardees for a milk shake and to finish charging my phone and camera. I called to get the 2:30 shuttle back to camp. Only two people that rode in this morning were on it going back. One hiker Glo Worm was going back, she had went to town the other day because she was sick. She was going to try and hike to Harper's Ferry before she has to leave the trail for her new job teaching English in Brooklyn, New York. I was planning on hiking when I got back at 2:30 but they have storm warnings for tonight, I will rough it in the shelter one more night. I have hiked 64 miles in three days so I don't feel too guilty taking a zero day. I had a piece of cake from the store, some Pringles, and a Hardee's burger for dinner at the shelter. I was showered, had clean clothes and was packed to start hiking in the morning. I got to talk to Spoon Foot (NY), Glow Worm(Boston), Grandpa George(young guy from Iowa)he moves slow I guess, Stitch, Foxfire, Blaze, and Pocket Fire. I also met Extra Credit, he is waiting to catch up with Wild Child tomorrow so I gave him some Girl Scout cookies that I have been carrying to give to her. Since I am leaving tomorrow I will miss her. Stitch has done a southbound thru hike so he had lots of information about New England. I finally went upstairs after dark thinking that everyone up there was fast asleep. They were all reading or playing card games.
Date: 2014-06-05
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Chatfield Shelter
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: overcast clouds

No use getting up too early,it rained last night at the shelter. I got up at 7:00 I already had everything packed up last night intending to hike out this morning. I decided to go into town again this morning and at least eat breakfast because of the rain. I could come back on the 11:00 shuttle if necessary. I walked up to the Mt. Rogers Visitor Center and it started pouring at 8:00 so I decided that I could stay in town even longer and work on journals at the library. I ate breakfast at Hardee's and walked about a mile or so to the library to use their computer. I went by a barber shop and inquired about how long the wait would be, he said one hour. I didn't have that much free time so I moved on to the library. I worked on journals and got caught up before 2:00. I walked back to Hardee's for lunch and called for the 2:30 shuttle back to the trail. I walked to the shelter to see if anyone had hiked in today that I knew and it looked the same old crew. I left at 3:00, it still looked like rain was possible but I made it to the first shelter without getting wet. Only had one decent view on the way so I made pretty good time in spite of my sore feet. I stayed in the shelter with Grandpa George(Iowa) and Fox 40(Michigan). Grandpa George hikes really slow that is how he got his name. He also sent his outerwear and sleeping bag home so he is banking on warm weather. It was nice and roomy in the shelter and Fox 40 and I talked for quite awhile before going to sleep.
Date: 2014-06-06
From: Chatfield Shelter

To: Knot Maul Branch Shelter
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: clear sky

Woke up at 6:00 and packed everything up. We skipped breakfast because we were going to stop at The Barn in Atkins a little ways up the trail. We had Trail Magic at an old schoolhouse about an hour into our hike. The Lindamood School was used up until 1937 an was in really good shape. Fox 40 and I each grabbed a Mountain Dew for later and continued on to breakfast. At 9:00 we ordered breakfast and Chainsaw joined us, he had stayed in town. I had eggs, potatoes,country ham, toast, and coffee it was tremendous! We walked past an old cemetary, the people buried there had lived during the Civil War. We saw a farmer spraying his vineyard on the hill side. In Virginia the scenery is constantly changing; a mixture of forest and high pastures during the day. We stopped for a lunch break and I drank my Mountain Dew from this mornings Trail Magic. We had a couple of climbs in the afternoon and stopped for the night at Knot Maul Branch Shelter. There were two gentlemen there from North Carolina- Pop(Charlotte) and his son-in-law Remi(Winston-Salem). Pop had walked most of the trail in his 81 years, some of it multiple times. One time he was hiking in the Smokies and a bear got into his food bag so he cut his hike short. He was laying down at home when his daughter came over and she asked him what he was doing home already. He told her a bear ripped his pack but she heard ripped his back. It didn't help that he moved and moaned a little at the time. She asked him what he was going to do about it and he told her he was taking care of it tomorrow. She immediately went and asked her mom why he was not taking care of his problem and she said "He is going to get it fixed tomorrow." It took awhile before the daughter got the full story and they all had a good laugh about it later. You could tell that he enjoyed telling the story and also talking about all of his hikes. Weather, Fox 40, Ginja Ninja, Thespian, and Spoon Foot all stayed or camped near the shelter and some other hikers came in after dark. A Whipporwill started calling before dark and didn't shut up for a long while. He also started in again early the next morning.
Date: 2014-06-07
From: Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: light rain

I slept until 6:15, took down my bear bag and started packing up. I didn't leave until 7:30,I wasn't looking forward to the uphill climbs today, There was one short, steep uphill early and a long climb of 2000 feet later to finish the morning. We took a break at the pond to refill with water. We walked through a huge field of flowering raspberries on our way to the next shelter on the trail. The Chestnut Knob Shelter is made of stone and sits on top of the mountain. It has windows and a door, I believe that a fire tower was once on top and their is a nice view up there. When I hiked down the mountain I thought that I could smell food cooking, but no Trail Magic at the road. We had a spell of 8 miles without water and some people had ran out of water today hiking to the next shelter. There was a hiker named Sparky that started May 13th and was hiking 25 miles a day to finish in 3 months. Some hikers said that he had ran out of water today and was filtering his own urine through his Sawyer water filter. I got to Jenkins Shelter about 6:30 and got set up before the gang showed up. Camping with Weather, Fox 40, Spoon Foot, Thespian, and High Mileage. Ginja Ninja figured it up and we had 7500 feet in elevation gains for the day. I woke up in the middle of the night and saw my first firefly of the season. Hopefully, there will be some nights later when they light up the sky.
Date: 2014-06-08
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: 600 mile mark
Miles today: 24.8

I had along day planned so I was up at 5:45, packed up and out by 6:30.I went behind the shelter and went up the hill to use the privy. I was glad that it was early morning because there were no walls, just a potty in the middle of nowhere. When I got to the top of the first hill my cell phone started pinging, I had forgot to shut it off last night. I dropped my pack to check my phone and I heard a huge tree or limb falling just above me. There was no wind so I figured it must be a bear either falling out of a tree or pushing one over to look for insects. I got my camera ready for my first bear picture but it didn't happen. Later while walking below a ridge something exploded above me. A grouse took off in flight and flew right over me. At 8:40 I reached the first road that had a nice stream with a bridge over it. I was talking to Ginja Ninja and a young man from Kentucky walked up the road to the trail. He had spent 10 years in the Army,5 years in the 82nd Airborne and 5 years in the 101st. He said the 82nd makes you a soldier and the 101st trains you to be a leader. Last year he worked in the Baaken Oil fields in North Dakota, where the big oil boom is going on. A one room apartment rents for $3500 a month, you can make lots of money but everything is super expensive. He was searching for something after his time in the military and was thinking of going to Alaska after hiking the trail. It was interesting talking to him but I needed to move on. I had a long road walk down to the Bland intersection and crossed over the interstate and back into the woods. I stopped at Helvey's Mill Shelter for a long break and was able to make phone calls back home. I brief storm passed through while I was there so I didn't even get wet. There was rat scat on the floor of the shelter but I had no intentions of staying anyway. I saw one small snake and took a picture of a small bird, maybe a woodpecker while hiking this afternoon. I got to Jenny's Knob Shelter about 6:30 but it looked like the shelter was full of mosquitoes and there were no camp sites so I moved on. I later found out that the bugs were some kind of wood boring insects that I saw at a shelter the next night. I hiked down the trail to the next camp site and passed the 600 mile mark. There was no water at the camping area like the guide book said so we all had to hike back south on the trail to get water. Rocky, Sweet Tooth, Captain, Paperboy, Skippy, and a few others were also camping here.
Date: 2014-06-09
From: 600 mile mark

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: scattered clouds

I woke up at 6:30 and took down my food bag, ate breakfast and chilled out in my tent. I had an easy day planned so there was no hurry. We had about 7 tents and one hammock set up last night. I talked to Meghan last night and it looked like I would be getting to the Hostel before my package arrives. I needed to slow down for a few days anyway and let my feet recover. I hiked 65 miles the last 3 days. We had a bear in camp last night but when I went out of my tent for a look around he was gone. I saw a firefly again but I doubt if it was the same one from the other night. Some other campers also said that they heard the bear roaming around. I left about 8:00, nothing on this mornings hike but a nice stream and suspension bridge at the road. I walked to Trent's Grocery for lunch, I was out of food until I get to the Hostel. I had a cheeseburger, large chili cheese fries, and a Pepsi for lunch and took a turkey and cheese sandwich, chips, Pepsi, and apple pie for dinner. A stop at Dismal Falls for a long break, it was entertaining. Within a few minutes one person fell off crossing a log and got his guitar all wet. Another fell backward off of the falls and another fell on the rocks and hit his head. That was enough for me so I moved on. Just before getting to the shelter a came to a nice pond where I took a break with Chainsaw. At the shelter there was a large church group with tents and hammocks everywhere section hiking. They go hiking every year with a group of kids. There was plenty of room in the shelter so I stayed. While talking to the leaders of the kids I was fascinated to find out that were from Indiana and they lived in the same area as my daughter. One of them lived right down the street from her family. I enjoyed visiting with them and found out that the kids found a 4 1/2 foot black snake in the privy. I was glad that they got there before me! I enjoyed my dinner that I brought from town and talking to all of the other hikers. A father and his son from Texas were section hiking and Nomad(Maine) thru- hiked in 2012 and had lots of stories to tell. I am finding that lots of hikers are yellow blazing the trail. That means that they are skipping sections of the trail and getting rides on the road. That's OK with me as long as they don't claim to be through hikers that hiked all 2200 miles of the trail. Hike your own hike.
Date: 2014-06-10
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Woods Hole Hostel
Miles today: 7.2

Started raining last night about 10:30 and drizzled off and on all night. Woke up before 7:00, there were only 3 people in the shelter so it wasn't crowded. I was ready to go by 8:00 but was enjoying talking to the group from Indiana and probably didn't leave until much later. The mountains seem to dry off quickly and there were only a few wet spots to walk through this morning. There were plenty of uphills but since I knew that I had a short hike to the hostel I charged up them quite easily. There was one nice view at the top and I saw one grouse that startled me when it took off. I was hiking with Chainsaw for awhile but left him on the downhill climb, he twisted his knee coming down. We had lots of large, angular boulders coming down and you had to be extra careful. I reached the road by 11:00 and headed the half mile down to the hostel. My first impression of the place was I could stay here for awhile. I texted my wife and asked her jokingly how much was in my account, that I might be here a week. As is the case at most hostels she didn't get the message,it's hard to get a good signal in the mountains. The main house is a chestnut log cabin built in the 1880's and bought and restored by the current owners grandparents. They also moved a log building here and turned it into a bunkhouse with several beds with REAL mattresses. They have started building a real nice bathhouse and restroom facility that will replace the older smaller buildings. They are also a sustainable farm with chickens, goats, pigs, cattle, and several raised beds of organic vegetables. They have free yoga lessons and are massage therapist. They serve breakfast and dinner daily, for dinner we had fresh salad and pizza with fresh bread that was delicious. I can't wait for breakfast tomorrow! Later in the evening we had ice cream cones because 2 people were celebrating birthdays today. Ginja Ninja was here and Chainsaw is right behind me. I met Samuari(Michigan),Spoon Foot, Moxie, Phoenix, Johnie Appleseed, Nomad,No Pants,Roo(Australia), and many more hikers coming in all day and evening. Some of them hiked in just to look around and have one of their famous smoothies. The hikers volunteer to help with food prep and cleanup chores so it is truly a group effort. We were going to eat outside by the campfire but the rain chased us inside or on the porch. We were rewarded with a beautifully bright rainbow afterward. The bunkhouse ended up being filled to the max and the rooms inside the house were occupied. A few hardy hikers even tent camped up the hill but for $5 more I couldn't turn down a bunk. Thanks Meghan, and thank your friend at church for steering me down this road to Woods Hole Hostel, my best stay on the trail so far. That's not counting our stay at the hotel in Erwin, that was only memorable because of two little grand daughters that were there too. I still recommend that every hiker spend a day here it's as advertised a " slice of heaven not to be missed."
Date: 2014-06-11
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: Zero Day
Miles today: 0.0

Woke up about 6:30, even in a nice comfortable bed I can only lie in one place so long. I got dressed and went up on the porch and talked to Chainsaw. I had volunteered to help with breakfast so I was waiting for when they called me to the kitchen. Coffee was ready about 7:30, I pampered myself and put raw sugar and milk in it, it was great. Breakfast was served at 8:00,scrambled eggs and bacon,fresh bread, orange juice, pineapple, and bananas. I helped with the cleanup afterward, guests help with the meals,cleaning up the kitchen, and some cleaning in the bunkhouse and shower area. I tried to just chill out for the day but I was ready to hike. My package wouldn't be here until around 4:00, if it showed up at all. I filled the lawn cart with firewood in case we had a campfire tonight. Some hikers came in during the day that I knew and I visited with them a while.I had one more journal to do so I finished that while talking to Stone Bear. He was taking care of the hostel while the owners were out shopping and doing other things. I kept trying to find someplace on the road where I could call home but no luck. Lots of hikers came in and then left, I think some of them were looking for a hostel where they could drink or whatever and this waasn't the place for that kind of activities. They can stay at places like Ft. Bastian for that. When the groceries and supplies arrived I helped take things inside and also helped prepare tonight's dinner. We had pumpkin lasagna, pork, bread, salad, and ice cream cones later. I never really liked pumpkin pie so I didn't enjoy the lasagna that much. My package arrived so I took inventory of what food I had and what I would need to pick up in Pearisburg tomorrow. Meghan had put in a package of triple double stuffed Oreos in the box,100 calories per cookie. Perfect trail food! I looked at the guidebook that she sent me and mapped out my hike for the next 150 miles. We'll see how that works, it should get me close to Shenandoah National Park. We had a pretty good rainstorm again this evening, glad to be inside. The top bunkhouse is full again I am not the only person that doesn't like camping in the rain. People tend to stay up a little later in hostels so hiker midnight is around 10:00 tonight.
Date: 2014-06-12
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: broken clouds

I woke up early but went back to bed until 7:00, after all I am retired. I offered to help with breakfast again because I like to keep busy. Coffee was ready again about 7:30 and I can't turn down caffeine. I helped pull green onions and greens from the garden and washed and cut them up. I helped cut up the sausage for the scrambled eggs. When we are ready to eat we stand in a circle and each guest tells ther name, where they are from, and something that they are thankful for. I said that I am thankful that what the trail takes from you physically it gives back to you in other ways. We had peach crisp with yogurt on it, sausage and scrambled eggs,bananas,pineapple,orange juice, coffee, and lots of fresh bread with apple or peach butter. I settled up my bill for my visit, packed up,said good-byes, and quickly cleaned the bathroom before I headed down the road to the trail about 10:00. There was a snake stretched out on the road and it quickly curled up and looked like it wanted to strike at me. I took its picture and later found out that they are called Mountain Racers, they are not poisonous but can be aggressive and chase you. I stopped at Doc's Knob Shelter about 11:00 and wrote a few comments in the register book that hikers need to stop at Wood's Hole for at least a visit or a smoothie. Ginja Ninja, Sage, and his dog Red were still there. Ginja Ninja later caught up with me and we hiked to Pearisburg together. We saw a deer, orange turtle, and some grouse. We also stopped for pictures at some nice overlooks, especially Angel's Rest. When we got down to Pearisburg the trail actually went between peoples yards. We walked about a mile into the business section, it started pouring just before I got to the store. I picked up a few things and sat out front and drank a Pepsi and made phone calls while the rain subsided. I saw lots of hikers in town as I walked back, stopping at Hardee's for a cheeseburger and a large sweet tea. After about two hours in town I had to start hiking if I wanted to get to the next shelter before dark. It was 5:30 and the next stop was a new section of trail where they rerouted around a powerline being built. The guidebook wasn't clear how many miles would be added. I had to cross the New River to get out of town . Ironically it is the second oldest river on the planet behind the Nile River. Up on the mountain the rains finally cut loose and it poured for awhile. I finally got to the shelter just before 9:00, it wasn't full but nobody seemed willing to make room so I just pitched my tent. I didn't need to cook anything so I hung my bear bag, crawled in my tent to get out of wet clothes, and worked on my journal until 10:00. Tomcat, 3-D, and Samauri came in after me and also put up their tents.