morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-04-03
From: Roan High Mountain

To: Elk Park, NC
Miles today: 16.4

Trail Mover and I arose a little after 6. The temp was 20 degrees. We skipped breakfast for the time being, got dressed and moved out. The trip down was COLD. But it was not as treacherous as we expected it to be. Although, I fell once and trail mover fell a few times. Nothing but our pride was hurt.We hiked a few miles until we got out of the nasty stuff, ice,snow and mud. Then, we stopped, bid each other farewell and I skyed up wanting to get to Elk Park to meet JC. The weather turned beautiful, really. But, there were some tough climbs. Round Bald, Jane Bald & Little Hump were very challenging. The balds before had trails that switched back and forth up the mountain. But, these trails went straight up and over which were much more strenuous. After finally climbing them, the trail was much more tolerable on into Elk Park.I was coming up on the end of the trail, and could actually see the trail head on Hwy. 19 and who did I spy, none other than my good friend, Jerry Concannon! I thought it was his SUV. Then, he got out and I was sure it was him. He had just arrived a few minutes before me. What precision!! We greeted each other and JC said, "Let's Go". We went to Boone and checked in at The Marriott. I took a shower and we went looking for a restaurant. We found one and got lucky. It was great. After dinner, we went back to our hotel, opened a Bottle of Cabernet and watched American Idol. Don't think JC was a fan but he said, "Christeau, it's your night, man, watch what you want".Now, I ask you, what kind of a friend would drive 350 miles to take another friend to dinner? I'll tell you what kind, THEE VERY BEST kind !!! My Brotha' from another Motha'...Thank you very much, JC, love you brother.And so it goes on The AT...
Date: 2013-04-04
From: Elk Park, NC, Mountain Harbor Inn

To: Hey. 293
Miles today: 14.3

JC and I had breakfast at The Marriott, ran a few errands and he dropped me at the Mountain Harbor Inn/Hostel. Then Jerry headed for Charlotte to visit his son and family. What a nice visit we had. I owe JC, BIG!! For the rest of the day, I caught up on my Trail Journal, made phone calls back to the world, washed clothes, etc.The owners/operators of the Mountain Harbor Inn/Hostel are Terry and Mary Hill. Mary takes care of the "Big House", where they have some upscale rooms, and the cooking, etc. Terry works quietly behind the scenes doing the shuttleing, taking care of the bunk house,horses, etc. Of course, I stayed in the bunk house, located over the horse barn. But, for breakfast and lunch, everyone was invited to the big house. Never have I experienced such great food in a hostel. In fact, the breakfasts were beyond compare. Let me give you an idea of our breakfast presentation. The first morning, we had chopped fresh fruit, hash browns, French toast with maple syrup and pecans, ham, home made buscuits, milk gravy, sliced fresh tomatoes, sweet potato custard, eggs with green peppers, onions and cheese, danish, plain eggs, coffee, tea and OJ. This morning, potato salad on Belgian Endive, quiche, red potatos and whole green beans and strawberry tarts were added to the list of divine dishes. Can you believe that!!! When I scanned the log where hikers make comments, the breakfasts were invariably raved about. And, I raved about them in my comments, also.At this hostel I met a lot of new hikers. Among them, Smooth, Goat, who had frost bite on his toes and a fractured bone in his foot from his travails on Roan Mountain, Blue Moon, from Coopers Town, NY, Bean from Philly, Papaw and Snow Frog from Mass.That's it for now. Sandman69 saying good night and good luck!!
Date: 2013-04-05
From: Mountain Harbor Inn

To: Hwy. 293
Miles today: 14.3

Today, I chose to do a "slack pack" hike. For those of you uninitiated in the hiker's lexicon, let me explain. Slack packing is simply a day hike where a hiker is taken from the hostel, in my case, ahead on the trail, by a vehicle, to a designated point. From this point, the hiker hikes back to his point of origin. The primary advantage of slack packing is carrying less weight. My tent, sleeping bag, etc., were left behind at Mountain Harbor Hostel. All I took with me was my food, water and Pocket Rocket which means I was carrying about 30 lbs. less weight. Of course, this makes a lot of difference when climbing mountains.Terry dropped me off at Hwy. 293, 14.2 miles from Mountain Harbor and I hiked back to Mountain Harbor. What a beautiful day and what a wonderful hike. Man, I was zooming up mountains with such a light load. One more thing, I logged zero falls today. That is an accomplishment for me.Ciao for now...
Date: 2013-04-06
From: Hwy. 293

To: Black Bear Hostel
Miles today: 13.2

Left Mountain Harbor this am and was dropped at Hwy. 293 where I had slack packed from. Another beautiful day and a very gentle hike for the most part. I arrived at Kincora Hostel around 4:00. There, I met Bean, from Philly, Snow Frog and Crow. I planned to stay at Kinccora. I had heard so many good things about Bob Peoples. However, Bob did not have an Internet connection which I need when I am in town. So, he took me to Black Bear Hostel a half mile up the road.Black Bear is one of the nicer hostels I have stayed in. I definitely recommend it. Owners, Bob and Mary, were very accommodating. The only hiker in the bunkhouse was Smooth, from Georgia. He was a good guy and we got along fine.My first experience with slack packing had been so positive that I decided to try it again. After breakfast the next morning, Bob dropped me off on the Wilbur Dam Rd. I hiked 13.2 miles back to Black Bear. Laurel Falls was a place everyone suggested that I take time to see. So, I did. When I arrived, there were lots of tourists and locals there. It was Sunday. The falls were beautiful. They were so loud that I could hear them from nearly a mile away. When I was descending to the bottom of the falls, I noticed red, pink and white rose petals scattered down the rocks to the water. I asked a young lady if someone was getting married. She said no, her girlfriend's boyfriend was going to propose to her. What a beautiful day and perfect setting for such a momentous occasion!When I arrived back at Black Bear, AJ was in the bunkhouse. AJ is from Fayetteville, Arkansas. The home of the University of Arkansas and the corporate offices of Walmart. He's a good dude. Slow talking with an easy smile. Just a good ole southern boy. Of course, we got along dandily. Hope to see AJ and Smooth again.Next morning, we took a few pics, said adios and Stephanie, Bob and Mary's daughter, delivered me back to Wilbur Dam Rd, where I had slack packed from. She dropped off her daughter, Hannah, at kindergarten. What a beautiful little girl and so friendly.And so it goes on The AT...
Date: 2013-04-07
From: Black Bear Hostel

To: As far as I could hike toward Damascus, Va.
Miles today: 23.5

I lit out for Damascus this am which is 37.8 miles from Wilbur Dam Rd. The hike started off with a fairly steep climb to the ridge overlooking Lake Watauga, a TVA lake that is HUGE! I hiked along the ridge line for hours without losing sight of Watauga, a beautiful lake as well as large. Today, I met only one hiker on the trail which was Roswell, as in Roswell, NM. He is a big young hiker. The friendly lad passed me from behind. We stopped and chatted briefly. He told me he was running a little low on food. So, I offered him some of mine. Nearly everything in my food bag contained some sort of meat or fish. It was all dehydrated food. Roswell told me he does not eat meat or fish. So, I said how about a Snicker bar. He smiled real big and said "sure". I gave him two and he was a happy man. One word of advice to future hikers, never go on the trail without Snickers. They are a universally liked commodity and may be worth their weight in gold during tough times.After hiking about 19 miles, I came to Double Springs Shelter. Roswell was there ahead of me. It was still daylight so I decided to forge ahead. My highest mileage day thus far is 19.2. I wanted to eclipse that number and today was the perfect day to do it. Roswell said, "go for it, Sandman". And so I did. My hike for this day ended a couple of miles past the Shady Valley, Tn. Road. My total for the day was 23.5 miles. I was happy. One of the few nights I have slept well in my tent. Must be the below freezing temperature that was missing. This was also the only day, to this point, that I had only met one hiker all day in either direction. Most days, I see anywhere from 3 to five hikers or more. Sandman69 signing off for now.
Date: 2013-04-08
From: As far as I could hike toward Damascus, Va.

To: Damascus, Va.
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: clear sky

Today is a special day for me. It would've been my Mom's 84th birthday. It started off as a somewhat melancholy day. But, I tried to concentrate on the good times with her and not the fact that I miss her so much. She was a housewife and mother most of her life until my Dad died suddenly and prematurely at 45. She was left with five children and she was 7 months pregnant with our baby sister, Laura. Can you imagine such a plight for a 35 year old Mother?? Many women would have collapsed at the thought of it. I don't know how she did it but, somehow, she raised us all, Brenda, me, Mike, David, Susie and Laura and did an excellent job of it, in my opinion. She babysat for other working parents. She sold Avon cosmetics, sometimes door to door. She did what she had to do give us a nice home and the things we needed. No, we didn't have everything we wanted, but we had everything we needed. No, she did not remarry. What man would marry a woman with 6 kids? Out of the six of us, I guess I was the black sheep. I was forever getting in trouble at school. Actually got suspended for 3 days once for throwing a snowball in the cafeteria. I considered it a 3 day vacation. Needless to say, Mamma didn't. She never ceased to be amazed at the wild and crazy things I came up with. Right after I turned 17, I came home one day and told her I wanted to take up sky diving. She responded with, "you want to do WHAT, young man?" My response was "yep, I want to jump out of an airplane, Momma". I probably wouldn't have asked except that I needed her signature unless I was 18. And, I kept on until she finally relented and I started sky diving the very next weekend. If she hadn't, I would've figured some way around the required signature. She probably knew it. A few months later, I came home and told her I wanted to join the Marine Corps. You can guess a mother' s response. "Boy, don't you know there is a war going on." My response, "that,s why I want to join, Momma". No signature was needed this time. Right after graduating from high school, off I went to Parris Island, SC, to become a member of the USMC. I can visualize her response to my AT adventure."Mom, I want to hike the Appalachian Trail.""Where does this trail go to?""It goes from Georgia to Maine, Mamma.""What??? You want to walk from Ga. to Me.?""Sure do, Mamma.""Eddie, have you lost your mind??? You have a car. Why don't you drive to Maine if you want to go?""You don't understand, Mamma...."I could go on with a dozen other examples, but I won't bore you. The Cardinal was my Mom's favorite bird and I was hoping I would see one on the trail today. But, it was not to be. However, I did see lots of other things I know she would've loved.I love you, Mom, and I can't wait to see you again on the Other side.
Date: 2013-04-11
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Old Orchard Shelter
Miles today: 23.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Today is another great day for hiking and this beautiful day finds me in Grayson Highlands State Park. I find a lot of open country here and a lot of rocks. Also, this is where we find the wild horses and Mount Rogers. The horses were cool. They just run around in the fields and trees like most wild animals. The exception, with these little horses, is that they are very curious. The brown one in the picture just walked right up to me like a big dog. He let me pet him and stroke his mane. All the while he was licking my pant legs. I thought this odd. After further investigation, I was told they crave the salt that comes from sweat. So, all of us hikers got a good licking. I climbed Mt. Rogers and that was a total waste of time and energy. No views at all. Just a lot of dead trees and all of them had green moss all over them. Somewhat eery, I must admit. There is a shelter in this area but I decided to hit the trail and rack up a few more miles since it was so early.And, so it goes on the AT...
Date: 2013-04-12
From: Old Orchard Shelter

To: Trimpi Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: light intensity drizzle

After a high mileage day yesterday, I decided to back off a little today. My feet were screaming again because of all the rocks in Grayson Highlands. Speaking of rocks, I HATE ROCKS!!! Before the AT, I simply considered them innocuous, inanimate objects. Things that get in the way when one is cutting grass. Things that kids cannot overcome the urge to pick up and throw. Now, I consider them evil tools of torture invented by Lucifer, himself, to make the lives of hikers miserable. They twist, scrape, bruise, blister and beat my feet up on a daily basis. In many places on the AT, especially in Grayson Highlands, the trail is nothing but rocks. Hikers cannot get around them, we must negotiate with them and hopefully survive their unmerciful attacks on our feet. What is the difference between rocks and stones. The implication seems to be that stones are small and rocks are big. Do rocks start off as stones and then grow into rocks and then grow into mountains. Or, does the reverse order of this sequence of events make more sense??? Enough about rocks for now...
Date: 2013-04-13
From: Trimpi Shelter

To: Relax Inn, Atkins, Va.
Miles today: 22.2

A lot of the hikers decided to go to town in Marion, Va. After all, there is a Walmart there and Walmarts are to hikers what road kill is to buzzards. Blue Moon, Shivago and I decided to go another few miles to Atkins. There was a good vibe on the trail about a little motel there, the Relax Inn. That was the goal and we went for it. The long hike was not that bad until the last few miles. Again, my dogs were barking loudly. When hikers close in on a town, The adrenalin and endorphins kick in sweetly. The mountains are not as high, the rocks are not as hard and all is well in the hiker's world as the miles slide by. The euphoric feelings created by the endorphins are the same ones we experience after excercise, after sex and, some swear, after eating hot peppers. We have visions of hot showers, a real bed, good food, we don't have to cook and cold, frosty beer.Sandman69-over and out.
Date: 2013-04-14
From: O'Lystery Pavilion

To: Relax Inn
Miles today: 11.7

Today I decided to slack pack. Dahesh dropped me off at the Pavilion, a Sierra Club picnic area adjacent to the AT and I hiked back to the Relax Inn. It was a fairly moderate hike with a few challenging climbs but not too bad. When I returned to the Inn, I ate hot dogs at the store next door and a pint of ice cream. Then I called Diamond Cab Co. and asked them to pick me up at the Inn the next morning to take me to the Roanoke Airport, 106 miles away, to rent a car and head south to Myrtle Beach. It was time to go home for my appointments.Aloha for now. Be back in 8-10 days.Sandman69
Date: 2013-04-26
From: O'Lystery Pavilion

To: Chestnut Knob Shelter
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Willis, the owner of the cab company, picked me up at Roanoke Airport and delivered me 106 miles to the point where I left the trail. By then, it was 4:00. Willis and I settled up, said our good byes and he left. I struck out at a brisk pace hoping to make my objective before dark. A few miles down the trail, I met my first new friends, Glover and his wife, Atlas, from Lawrence, Kansas. All of my old buds had moved up the trail since I left the trail and I needed to make new ones. Glover and Atlas were nice folks and would prove to be very important to me later on as you will see.Before I reached Chestnut, I ran out of daylight and pitched my tent beside the trail. My dinner was M&M's and two protein bars. Then I hit the bag. After driving 7 hours from Myrtle Beach to Roanoke, another 2 hours from Roanoke to Bland, Va. and hiking for 11 miles, I was spent. Rain was forecast for the next three days and nights. Around 3am, I awoke to the pitter-patter of rain drops hitting my tent. Not a downpour but a steady rain continued for the rest of the night. Fortunately, I was able to stay pretty dry.Sandman69 signing out for now.
Date: 2013-04-27
From: Chestnut Knob Shelter

To: As far as I could hike before dark
Miles today: 20.0

At 7:25, I broke camp and hit the trail. It quickly became obvious to me that my speed and endurance had suffered since leaving the trail. Guess it was all the easy living and good food that caught up with me.After running out of steam and daylight, I pitched my little tent on a high ridge and wilted into my sleeping bag. For today, 20 miles is enough. It rained all night long. At times, there was such a deluge, I thought it would wash my tent right off the mountain along with me. But, my tent and I held our own against Mother Nature and we survived the night. In a fairly dry fashion, I might add.ENOUGH RAIN!!!Over & out for now...Sandman69
Date: 2013-04-28
From: As far as I could hike before dark

To: Big Walker Motel, Bland, Va.
Miles today: 2.9
Weather: moderate rain

Sunday, 7:00 am-Broke camp in a light rain. It had rained all night long, very hard at times. I was hoping the weather would break. Instead, it got worse. The rain poured from the sky. By the time I hiked a mile, I was soaked even though I had my rain gear on. I finally got off the mountain and the trail and began hitching. Quite a few cars passed me but they didn't even slow down. Why would they? I was a soaking wet, nasty hiker. Who would welcome me into their vehicle? Locals are usually very good about picking up hikers but, not today. Not only was I wet, I was cold and shivering. As I hitched, I walked. I came upon a row of well kept brick ranch homes. I noticed a white SUV sitting under a carport with the head lights on. Right after I passed the home, the SUV pulled on to the road going in my direction. The driver promptly pulled over and I opened the door. A young lady was driving the vehicle and she asked me to put my pack and trekking poles in the back seat and get in the front seat and, with water running off my gear and me, I asked her if she was sure. She said, "yes, I pick up hikers all the time". She went on to tell me that she was a minister, but she had this Sunday off. She also told me that she had just come in off the AT after several weeks and her trail name was, what else, Holy Bejeevers! She and I actually knew a lot of the same hikers currently on the AT. Holy Bejeevers dropped me off in the parking lot of the Big Walker Motel. I thanked her, wished her well and said good bye. Then, I checked in, went to my room, took off my cold, wet clothes and crawled into bed. A very hard day that ended well. May the Lord continue to bless and keep you, Holy Bejeevers.Ciao for now...Sandman69
Date: 2013-04-29
From: Va. 606-Trent's Grocery

To: Big Walker's Motel, Bland, Va.
Miles today: 0.0

Bubba, the shuttle driver, dropped me 18.4 miles north on the trail so I could slack pack (hiking with a lighter pack with food and water only) back south to Big Walker's Motel. The weather was cool and partly sunny, as opposed to partly cloudy, which is perfect for hiking. The vast majority of hikers on the AT are NOBO's or north bound hikers going from Springer Mountain, Ga to Mt. Katahdin, Maine. Since I was hiking south today, I met lots of hikers going north or in the opposite direction. I met Pushup, a Canadian man who was a big NASCAR fan. He was surprised that he met so few racing fans on the southern portion of the AT because the south is the birthplace of NASCAR. He seemed happy to meet me because I am a racing fan. I also met Pringles, a lady section hiker from Michigan, Minnesota Pete, from Minn, Pilgrim, from Los Angeles and also one of the few hikers I met who was older than me! There was Fire Weed, a lady section hiker from Alaska, Hawkeye from Minn, Sherpa, from Seattle and Tonto, from Ohio.Glover and wife, Atlas passed me and Atlas asked me if I had lost anything. My answer, of course, was yes, I probably did. She presented me with my check book which I had lost earlier when I first met them. She found it and I hadn't even missed it. You don't really need a check book on the AT but I like to keep up with my debit card expenses. Atlas made my day to say the least.Sandman69 signing out for now.
Date: 2013-05-01
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: Pearisburg, Va. Plaza Motel
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: overcast clouds

The hike for the day is 10.4 miles into the town of Pearisburg, Va. A nice, quiet, uneventful hike on a pretty, Virginia May Day. The Plaza Motel is like most of those we visit on the AT. Nothing fancy or exotic but, it is clean, cheap and has everything we need. Also, there is a good Mexican Restaurant and a Food Lion Shopping Center right across the street and it is only a few blocks from downtown Pearisburg.That's it for now.Thank you,Sandman69
Date: 2013-05-02
From: VA. 635 Stony Creek Valley

To: Pearisburg, Va. Plaza Motel
Miles today: 19.6

Today, shuttle driver, Don Raines, took me out 19.6 miles to slack pack back to Pearisburgh. A fairly flat hike for the most part. I met Meadow Flapjack, a retired army officer from Florida. Also, met Buffaloe and Postman. A pretty day for hiking. As soon as I got back to Pearisburg, I stopped at the Dairy Queen and got me a big ole hot fudge sundae. It was so good, I could not eat it and sit still!!! Then I went to my room at The Plaza, took a shower had a few cool frosties, made a few calls and said goodnight to the world.If any of you hikers need a good shuttle driver for slack packs or whatever, I heartily recommend Don Raines. If he can't help you, he will refer you to someone who can.Sayanora, y'all,Sandman69
Date: 2013-05-03
From: VA. 635 Stony Creek Valley

To: Sarver Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 24.6
Weather: clear sky

Shuttle driver, Don Raines, dropped me back at Va. 635 and I hiked 24.6 miles north to Sarver Hollow Shelter. A few steep climbs and descents on this stretch. The most interesting point on this hike is the Keffer Oak. The Keffer Oak is one of the largest blazed trees on the 2180 mile Appalachian Trail and it isn¢t that far from Blacksburg. You know the tree is impressive when it makes it in a book called Remarkable Trees of Virginia. Estimated at over 300 years old, the Keffer Oak is 18 feet in circumference. To a small child, it seems even bigger! From the VA-630 trailhead, it is only 0.6 miles to tree. There is a hill, but an easy one. If the tree is not enough, next to the tree is a stile, which Penn loved to climb. It was like a mini jungle gym in the middle of the woods! My objective for today is Sarver Hollow Shelter. My only objection to this shelter is that it is .4 miles off the AT. And, it is all downhill. Now, .4 miles is not a terrible distance but it does not count as AT miles. These off the trail miles really mount up after a while. Water sources can be up to a half mile off the AT. Some shelters are over a mile off the AT. Hiking to off trail motels, stores, etc. can mount up to many miles and those miles do not count toward the monumental total miles of the AT which is 2,180 miles. So, in my estimation, a hiker could hike as much as an additional 500 miles including all the miles that do not count in achieving a through hike from Georgia to Maine.I achieved my objective and there was only one hiker at the Sarver Hollow Shelter. When I arrived, Meadow Flapjack, was there and no other hikers arrived. But, we were ok with that.Ciao for now.Sandman69