morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-06-15
To: Harper's Creek Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Hi-This is Leanna's sister again. David, Max and I got to spend almost 24 hours with her this weekend. After getting lost on a couple mountain roads we finally found the AT pass on Rt. 56. I get out of the van and there's a lady asking if I'm looking for my sister. She says, "Thought so, you look just like her but taller." She showed us where the path was and we followed it to a swing bridge that went over the Tye river. As we crossed a hiker was sitting on the rock by the river. "Hang a right at the end of the bridge and you'll find her. Is he 5?" My husband yells back, "Yes." "Yeah, then you'll find her if you go right." I was left wondering what Max being 5 had to do with our directions, but I just chalked it up to trail logic.We saw her, exchanged hugs and kisses. She looks basically the same. I don't know what I expected - I just thought this journey would change her on the outside too, I guess. She hiked 10 miles Saturday. We went back and picked up her pack at the B&B she stayed at Friday night. And we hiked Cranberry Falls - supposedly the longest falls this side of the Mississippi, although Leanna says that other falls dispute that claim. We were all surprised at how Max bounded up the switchbacks and stairs. Later that night we found a yummy German restaurant and an ok hotel, Leanna worked on entering her journals and we got some zzzs. Sunday was spent doing errands. She broke her tent pole but a quick fix couldn't be found - so the tent makers are mailing her a new one. We finally found an outfitters that was open on Sunday. She got the rest of the supplies she needed there and at WalMart. And we worked our way back to where we picked her up yesterday. It was raining as usual and I could tell that the rain and the a newly weighted down pack with food that we just bought was not making her a happy camper, but the drive to get to Waynesboro and the entrance to Shenandoah National Park propelled her onward. She had a goal of 10 miles today. I'm sure she's made it and is probably pulling into the shelter right about now. I think the best thing we all can do to support her is to pray for sun. The trail is extremely nasty and I could tell such a marked difference in her demeanor from Saturday's sunny hike to today's rainy hike. I can definitely see how days upon days of rain can be demoralizing. But she's doing well and hopefully she'll be seeing more friendly faces the closer she gets to DC. I know she's looking forward to getting into the Shenandoah.-Tracy
Date: 2003-06-16
From: Harper's Creek Shelter

To: Paul Wolfe Shelter
Miles today: 22.0
Weather: overcast clouds

My first 22 mile day. I¢m exhausted and ready for bed. I reached the shelter 45 minutes before I expected to, which is a good thing. The bad part of today was that it was cold (it couldn¢t have been above 50*) and wet most all of the day. It started raining after about four miles of walking in the clouds, and once it started it just kept going. For fourteen miles (about seven hours) it rained. Everything about me was permeated by the persistent precipitation. I stopped in at the Maupin Field Shelter, but only for a slight instant or two to get water and to eat a snack in a dry spot. Later, I ate lunch on a rock by the Blue Ridge Parkway. Trace came flying by me while I sat still during lunch. He¢d made a new friend at Maupin Field Shelter, taken a longer break than me, and was in a state of imaginary grace (I really do think he was enjoying it) during this long day of hiking. Finally, a couple of hours before I reached the Paul Wolfe Shelter the rain let up. It gave my skirt enough time to almost completely dry and my shirts were also drying. When I made it to the shelter the rain started up again. Ugh! Will it EVER end?
Date: 2003-06-17
From: Paul Wolfe Shelter

To: Waynesboro
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: moderate rain

Wow! Keeping up with this journal has been tough. My apologies to you folks out there wondering about where I've been. I do plan to do some solid updating to fill in all the blank spaces previously. And I'm going to work on getting a transcriber to take care of things from here on out. Today has been a rough day for me. Actually the past three have been difficult. Tracy, David and Max saw me off at the Tye River on Sunday around 3:30. I took my time getting my pack together under the safety of the tailgate of their van. But I couldn't postpone forever. Finally, I took to the trail with a very heavy heart. After I quit my sobbing, my staggared breathing evened out and climbing the mountain wasn't quite as hard. Tracy predicted in her last update that I made it the 10 I'd planned to do. I quit early (at 3 miles!) and decided I'd do big miles the following day. Yesterday I hiked 22 miles! My biggest day yet. I wish I could say I loved every minute of it. It was tough. It was foggy when I left Harper's Creek Shelter; I walked in that cloud for the first four miles. Just as I said to the southbounder Just Plain Tom that I didn't mind hiking in the fog so much, as long as it wasn't raining, it started raining. It rained hard, all the way to Maupin Field Shelter. I took a break there, then pushed on again. It rained for the next six hours, at least. There was nothing exciting to see, nothing spectacular struck my mind. All I could think about was getting to my destination - getting dry and getting warm. The rain let off during the last couple hours of my hike, so my clothes were able to dry out a little bit. After I made it to the shelter it started to rain again. It rained all night. And all morning. After I was sure it wasn't going to let up for the day, I gathered my things and hit the trail. Today town was calling me. I just couldn't handle another day of cold weather hiking in the rain. They aren't predicting better weather until Friday. I'll leave tomorrow no matter what - but, oh, how I wish the sun would shine. Give me at least the HEAT that should be radiating from the sun this time in June. The good news is that I've travelled more than 850 miles and I'm still going strong. I'm just a little beat down from the persistance of the rain. - Leanna / Moonshadow
Date: 2003-06-17
From: Paul Wolfe Shelter

To: Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: moderate rain

Awoke to the persistent rain that had danced on the tin roof all night long. This weather system had moved in and decided to stay. All of us at the shelter had decided we¢d better hit town and a motel if we ever want to dry out. Actually, our sentiments were much more vulgar about the rain. We¢d totally had it. Everyone ¢ Chilly Willy, Kilroy, Tumbleweed, Gray Sqrl, Trace, Foz and I were off in matter of minutes, through the rain, to get to town. It was a fast five miles of hiking. Before I knew it I was at Rockfish Gap with Foz and Trace. We¢d planned to meet everyone at the convenience store across the street. Funny thing was we couldn¢t locate anything for the fog all around us. We were lucky if we could see 100 ft. before our eyes. When we¢d all assembled at the visitor¢s center, the people who worked there were kind enough to track down some rides to take us to town. We got to the PO and waited what seemed like an eternity before going to the hotel; eternity in totally dripping wet clothes in an air-conditioned building is about 40 minutes. We got a room at the Quality Inn in the center of town. I did the mundane town stop duty of sorting my mail drop. Then I bounced a box to Tracy¢s, visited the CookieLady and went to the library to check e-mail. It was still raining out, and it was 5:00 p.m. What gives?Walked back to the hotel where Foz, Gray Squrl, and Trace were getting ready to do laundry. I needed just a couple items laundered ¢ socks, rain jacket, t-shirt. I went, too, and while our clothes ran we went to a $3.99 pizza buffet at Four Star. It wasn¢t great; it wasn¢t awful either. I¢m sure we were a sight to see, multiple rounds at the buffet bar, and Trace wearing a garbage bag as a skirt while his rain pants were being washed for the first time. What we realized while standing outside the pizza place after we ate was that Trace had a HOLE in the back of his garbage bag ¢ I wonder if anyone else noticed. Either way, we got a good laugh out of that. We returned to the hotel in the rain. Oh, I was cold and looking forward to the warmth of the room. I tried reading some books I¢d bought from the library for 10 cents each, but they weren¢t all that exciting. I enjoyed talking more with Catherine who called from Key West. She updated me o news from friends and about the Girl Scouts. Plus, she was super encouraging. It helped put my spirits in a better place.
Date: 2003-06-18
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Wild Cat Ridge
Miles today: 8.0

Wohoa! And Oh-La-La! My first night tenting alone. It is actually a more comfortable experience than I thought it would be. I¢m glad to finally get it (my first time) out of the way so I can do it more often and have the confidence for it. I hiked about 13 miles today from town. The weather has been clear and gorgeous; the terrain has been pretty kind, too. Though there wasn¢t a lot of water after mile 8, so I had to carry a load with me, which slowed me down a bit. When I found a place to camp (a bit difficult ¢ lots of rocks in the area) I set up my tent and went about hanging my bear bag. The first attempt took me about an hour and half. Then I ate a cold dinner because I was too lazy to cook. When I went to hang my food bag so the bear wouldn¢t get it (especially encouraged here in Shenandoah Natl. Park), I pulled the wrong string and messed up my hour or more of work from earlier. The whole thing had to be redone. This time it took me another hour and half. Generally I get my bear line rope hung in no time; I¢ve got no clue as to why it took me so long tonight. Ah, it¢s 9:00 and the fog is setting in. I guess it¢s going to rain tonight.
Date: 2003-06-19
From: Wild Cat Ridge

To: Pine Field Shelter
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: light rain

What a big long day of hiking. I was so glad to see the shelter this evening. My left gluteus muscle that I pulled the day before Waynesboro got another tough workout today and isn¢t too happy with me. Not to mention my feet. They feel like I¢ve been walking on glass all day. They¢re just beat up. I¢m pulling some big miles so I can meet friends in Big Meadows on Saturday. These plans have me doing another 20 miler tomorrow. I¢m not positive that I can do it, but I guess I will try. Today¢s hike was fairly uneventful, though I switched up my routine some by eating a hot lunch on an overlook on Skyline Drive. Off to sleep now. They¢re calling for big rains tonight (according to those with radios)! Hope we can expect clear skies again tomorrow. Tonight at the shelter- me, Here¢s Jonny, Two Dog Night, Crazy Talk, Moxie, Wind Talker, Pipes, Crash is tenting up the hill.
Date: 2003-06-20
From: Pine Field Shelter

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: moderate rain

I guess in some ways I feel like I cheated the system today, because I missed two rainstorms and thoroughly enjoyed my hike. The rain this morning started shortly after my 7 am breakfast and lasted until way after 10. But by the time I was actually ready to hit the trail, the sun had come out and the sky was blue. Of course, during the first hour or so of the day, I¢d come to the conclusion that I wasn¢t actually going to do another 20 mile day. Plus, my gluteus muscle had ailed me last night during my sleep, helping me decide I¢d better take an easy day to benefit my butt. I stopped by the ranger station and used the phone to call Christina. My plans to get to Big Meadows by Saturday weren¢t going to happen, so I knew I needed to call and amend our plans. I¢d sent Pipes, WindTalker, Moxie and Two Dog (who all expected to be to Big Meadows by this afternoon) with a message for Bridget, but I wanted to be certain to get a message through to my DC friends. Here¢s Jonny actually showed up at the ranger station to make a phone call, too. When we hiked on we ran in to Carolina Cruiser ¢ he¢s out filming a documentary on the AT. He filmed us going through the ¢green tunnel¢ of Shenandoah. Jonny and I walked the remaining six miles together discussing energy companies, socialism, futures and dialects. Before I knew it, we¢d reached the shelter. Being the first two here, we spread our stuff out all over the place. I finally had enough sunshine to spread my tent out to dry. The sun had been out dancing for us the entire hike; it was awesome. We even took a rest break at a nice overlook on the way ¢ spending a half hour relaxing on the rocks. Back to the shelter, though, where I fixed dinner for Jonny and I; I had a BUNCH of tortellini and a red bell pepper pesto sauce mix that would be too much for just me. I made salmon for an appetizer, which we ate on Jonny¢s Flat bread. He contributed Rollos for dessert ¢ the perfect caramel-y way to complete a meal. About that time (5 or a little before) the storm rolled in. Subsequently, so did all the people. We¢ve got a full house here tonight of seven thru-hikers and three section hikers ¢ not to mention all the folks brave enough ¢ and with hearty enough tents ¢ who are tenting around here. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. Predictions and weather forecasters are continually wrong, so I¢ll take my cues from Mother Nature and hiker according to her schedule. At least it worked for me today!
Date: 2003-06-22
From: Swift Run Picnic Area - Harrisonburg, VA

To: Big Meadows
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Sleeping late after being on the trail is really tough. By 6 I was awake but forced myself to wait until 7:30 or 8 before rousing the girls. I really wanted to wake them up and pick up where we¢d left off the night before, but I knew they had a big day of driving ahead of them. Those sweeties took me out to eat breakfast at Shoney¢s before we left for the trailhead. I¢d worked out a way to slackpack six miles of my day with Jonny¢s friends, so they took my pack and Bridget dropped me off at swift Run Picnic Area where she¢d found me a day earlier. I had feared having a terrible tearful goodbye with my friends as I had the previous Sunday with my sister. But I think their pride in my journey, their encouragement and the clear blue skies gave me a stronger confidence in my hike. I left feeling very refreshed and ready again for the trail. Knowing I had to meet Jonny with my pack at Lewis Mt. Campground and that he wasn¢t hiking but half the miles I planned to cover, I picked up my pace. I was covering ground at better than a 3mile per hour pace. Now that was a first for me. I actually got to Lewis Mt. Campground before Jonny, Andrea and Brian. Now I was feeling studly. My bubble burst a little when they said they¢d been up at the overlook for quite some time. When Jonny¢s friends left, he and I hoisted our packs ¢ heavy with the weight of resupply back on our backs and pushed off down the trail. This time as we walked, we were talking about journaling. When he said he doesn¢t include lots of emotion in his writing, I inquired. He said he thinks of describing his emotion, not so much in words and phrases, but in equations. Now that¢s an engineer for you. When we got to the next shelter, he showed me some ways to look at emotions using calculus techniques: Sin, Cosin, e to the t, and logarithm. It was really neat to learn calculus again, especially put in the context of emotion. Now that¢s a great way to teach folks who aren¢t numbers oriented with something they CAN understand. After lunch of refried beans, salsa and cheese on tortillas, I convinced Jonny that we should push on to Big Meadows, where we¢d get flush toilets and could hit the taproom for a drink and music. The afternoon hike was beautiful, through ferns, a cemetery ¢ with grazing deer, and the wild trees lit perfectly by the setting sun. We arrived and started out in search of Molasses, 2/3 and 3/3, who Carolina Cruiser had said were also at the campground with him. The campground host was able to direct us exactly where we needed to go. We ate dinner there, by a nice fire that 3/3 was tending, then hit the taproom, albeit, a bit too late. When we arrived at 11 the band was wrapping up their set and the last call was made. Needless to say, we didn¢t stay long, but it was a fun excursion. To bed we went, near midnight.
Date: 2003-06-23
From: Big Meadows

To: Little Stoney Cliffs
Miles today: 10.0

The boy scouts camped next to us last night were nothing short of productive this morning at 6 AM!!! I tried sleeping in until 8 but mainly just layed there thinking. Nice hiking today- a couple bear spottings - Jonny's got an ear for it. Great suset view while we prepared and ate dinner at the cliffs. We're tented far off the trail in a neat area. I think tomorrow I'm going to have to depart from Jonny. He's taking the trail a bit more leisurely, because of a scheduled date to meet his dad and brother who are coming to hike with him. I'll miss his company.
Date: 2003-06-24
From: Little Stoney Cliffs

To: Woods after Elkwallow
Miles today: 0.0

Tenting on my own tonight - beyond Elkwallow where I stopped for a milkshake and to make some phone calls. I didn't get through to anyone on the phone. When I got to my spot -really it's barely a spot - i've wedged myself in a less than ideal location - I prepared dinner. Ate quickly, hung my food and bunked down. The bugs are terrible...really really bad. The sun was setting behind me while I was eating. I saw my shadow ahead of me and there was this mass around my head of bugs - so many of them that they created their own shadow! Yikes!
Date: 2003-06-25
From: Woods after Elkwallow

To: Jim and Molly Denton Shelter
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: clear sky

Had a huge day of hiking today. The neat factoid for the day is this: I did 25 miles on the 25th of June on the last day that I am 25 years old. Perhaps the most impressive part of this huge mileage day is that I still feel strong. No sore feet, no sore muscles (at least not right now). This morning I ate breakfast at Rattlesnake Point Overlook on Skyline Drive. It was a beautiful way to start the morning. Plus the breeze from the overlook helped keep the bugs at bay. I just couldn't imagine eating breakfast where I camped yesterday - they would have eaten me for breakfast. I had planned to oly go to the Tom Floyd Wayside shelter - but near Compton Gap I saw Chicken Legs. She and I met there for essentially for the first time - she was sitting in the shade eating a snack. She planned to push on; I told her I'd like to do the same and asked if she minded if I tailed her. She was fine with it. We had some great conversations the last nine or so miles we hiked together. We had some adventures too. When we crossed US 522 the road that would take us in to Front Royal there was a sign suggesting that the heavy rains had made some trail ahead of us bad and gave us an alternate route along the road, then up a dirt road, before picking up the trail again. We decided not to take the reroute. Instead we followed the white blazes. We realized our mistake when we got to this mudfield - there is no other way to describe it. Now when you get to a mud field, you can see where other people have walked, how far down they sank, if the sides of the muckpuddle are better than the center, etc. So, we danced around the sides, the center, between trees trying not to get sucked down too low. The worst part about all this mud was the smell, and the sinking knowledge that it wasn't just mud. A lot of this was poo that had run down the hill from the wild animal farm above us. Yes, we were kicking up exotic bird crap, llama doodoo, endangered cat yack, and so much more on to our legs and clothing. But in the interest of the hike - we just trudged on through like champs. Then up. Then flat. Then the shelter. Tomorrow I will get up early to go to Linden for resupply and phone calls. Then about sixteen miles farther to the next shelter. I'm glad to have met Chicken Legs today; she's a good hiking partner.
Date: 2003-06-26
From: Jim and Molly Denton Shelter

To: Rod's Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: scattered clouds

It was a rather unimpressive day (for a birthday). A lot of hiking driven by my desire to get to my destination. I slept horribly last night because I stayed in the shelter. The bugs absolutely ate me alive and because of the heat I didn¢t want to be in long sleeved anything, much less a sleeping bag or a head net on me. I tossed and turned all night, waiting for 5 a.m. when I could start the day. I got up and out by 7:30 and was down the road by 8:30 (3mph ¢ that¢s great!). Chicken Legs and I started walking west on the road, hoping someone might pick us up and drive us the mile to the convenience store. No suck luck. A little farther than half-way there, a woman in her driveway saw us, waved and asked if we wanted to come to the house for food and drink. It¢s tough to pass something like that up, so we obliged. I realized about 34 of the way up the drive that we¢d made a mistake; I¢m not sure when Chicken Legs caught on that we¢d accepted to visit a woman who NEEDS a captive audience, and we were the targets for the day. She told us numerous dramas of her life while offering us water and sugar pops from the freezer. Somehow, Chicken Legs and I managed to gracefully escape the situation in less than a half hour. Finally we got to the store and did some shopping for the next couple of days ¢ until we got to Harper¢s Ferry. I made some phone calls to friends and family but had absolutely no luck in getting through to anyone. BUMMER! So I ate my birthday goodies ¢ 2 ice cream sandwiches and a frappachino drink. Alpha, Trench and Cadbury were there with us, too. After everyone did all their shopping, eating and phone calling, I approached a woman in a pick-up and asked if she could drive us back to the trailhead. Thankfully, she agreed. The hike to Dick¢s Dome Shelter was nice and by that time I was ready for lunch. I figured I was making such good time, I could afford to stop for a couple of hours, read and maybe take a nap. I did all of the above and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Hiking, however, after a big break like that is really difficult. The first five miles of the last nine flew by, but the last four were agony. Thankfully, my pace from the morning ws holding strong and I made it to the shelter an hour earlier than I¢d first predicted. For my birthday dinner this evening I ate ramen noodles with hiker-box cheese soup. Ah, nothing short of gourmet for my very special day! In other news: plastic collapsible water bottle seems to be leaking inside my pack. I¢m really enjoying reading Midnight¢s Children so far. I have been spreading the good word about Body Glide to hikers today (considering the recent heat), Andrea and Chicken Legs seem to be converts. I¢m looking forward to a better night of sleep tonight. Oh yeah ¢ AWESOME TRAIL SHOWER at the end of the day ¢ which totally made today worth it.