morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2002-06-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well, the training goes on. I'm up to 6 miles of walking/jogging now, but I strained my knee last week and had one session I can only describe as "crawling" around the cove. It took me an hour and a half to hobble 3.5 miles. I bought a knee brace and it worked wonders for pain-free walking--still no running though. It's supposed to rain almost every night this week, so I can take a few days off without guilt. Maybe I'll do some sit-ups or maybe not.I bought a storage tote to keep my stuff in finally. My husband was tired of stepping over it in the bedroom. I won't keep my backpack in it though. I need that out where I can see it everyday. I love my pack :) And my jacket, I love my purple gortex jacket :D But that's all, everything else goes in the box. Except my books, they go everywhere, at least one in each room. BUT THAT"S ALL....everything else goes in the box! I do love to look at my stuff and make lists of stuff I have and lists of stuff I need to get.Has anyone tried a Sierra Designs stretch-type sleeping bag? I've been looking at the Sweet Dreams bag. It's 15 degree rated and weighs in at 3 lbs 3 oz. with Polarguard 3D fill. I've seen lighter weight bags and that will probably be the ultimate decision factor, but I am a "busy" sleeper and thought the stretch idea might be a good comfort feature. I would appreciate any input. I really don't want to use a down bag--I'm terrified of it getting wet and weighing 300 pounds!Oh yes, on very personal note, my Tennessee grandbaby, Austin, pooped on the potty yesterday. How cool is that? I'm hoping he and his mom and dad will be seeing us off at Springer next March. Grammy loves you, Austin!'Til next time, Happy Hiking!
Date: 2002-07-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello--Well it's been a little while since I added to our journal. My sister and hiking partner, Brenda, was visiting me for the past 2 weeks with her very sweet grandchildren. It gave us a chance to do some price and product research and some shopping, and we even had a chance to take off for a day to do some hiking in New Hampshire. It was a great visit! We went to the Kittery Trading Post, LL Bean, The North Face Outlet, and Patagonia Outlet here in Maine; then to EMS outlet, IMES outlet and a couple other shops in N. Conway. So, after much looking, comparing, talking, etc, we made some decisions on gear. We're pretty committed to MSR miniworks water filter, Sierra Designs Clip 3 CD tent (we went for a little more weight to have a little more room w/3 person tent), Leki ultralite Ti cor-tec PA trekking poles, and z rest 3/4 sleeping pads. We both bought sleeping bags (see gear list). As for our hike, we drove to Crawford Notch in New Hampshire and got so excited when we saw an AT sign we immediately pulled over and decided that was the trail to do. It was the Ethan Pond Trail up Mt Willey. While we were being totally goofy taking each others' pictures under the AT sign and touching the white blaze, out of the woods walked a "Real Hiker"--I can't believe that's what I actually said :) Anyway, we met this really sweet guy who was walking up from Harper's Ferry. He stopped and chatted with us for a few minutes and wished us luck for next year. I think he saw the awe and admiration in our eyes. We wanted to just follow him off into the woods, but he was headed straight up the other side of another mountain and we opted to go south on the "easier" trail. This was my first hike other than with little girl scouts tagging behind me and all I kept thinking as I struggled up the side of Mt Willey was maybe I should have tried it before I went and spent all that money on a backpack, etc and told everyone about our great idea to thru-hike the AT! However once we got to the top and I could actually breathe again, it was beautiful. We hiked down to the shelter (which was very cool) and read the trail register that was still there from last year and still being used. I know I really need to get out there walking more, hiking more, doing more sit-ups and losing that last 10 pounds! In reality, it was a little hard at first, but we did it and I still can't wait to go! When you get to Mt Willey, you need to look up the story of the Willey family--a trail ghost story of sorts and you can visit the Willey house if you take a little side trail coming down. So all in all, I'm even more of a trail nut now that I can claim to have hiked on part of it. Seeing those white blazes was part of my dream coming to life! Happy hiking :)
Date: 2002-08-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I haven't had anything to update lately and I really don't have much now, but I miss checking in! It looks like a lot of this year's trekkers are crossing into Maine already and I feel guilty for not being able to meet anyone at the road crossings. I'm hoping my sister will be able to come up for a visit soon so we can go hang out at a trail head somewhere and catch some thru-hikers and spread a little trail magic for them. It's hard to be so close and yet so far!! I do have a little bit of news to share--I got a seasonal, part-time job at L.L. Bean's for the holiday season :) I'm so excited...I can finish my out-fitting there and take advantage of the employee discount!!! Guess where all of my Christmas shopping will be done!?!I've also gleened some advice from current hikers' journals. I've been putting off having a crown done on a tooth I cracked awhile back, but after reading a couple of peoples' journal entries about toothaches on the trail, I finally gave in and went to the dentist. I get my new crown in a couple of weeks (have to wait for approval from insurance--like that would stop my anyway now). I'm also wishing there was a vaccination for Lyme Disease! This is a scary thought for my sister and me, as I'm sure it is for everyone heading out next year. Oh well, all we can do is keep a sharp eye out for the little buggers and for bullseye rashes! That's about it for now, so until next time, Happy Hiking!
Date: 2002-08-28
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Today is one of those days when I want to just pack my bag and GO...NOW...TODAY!!! I keep reading the journal entries of this years' hikers who are finishing. They make me happy, jealous and sad all at the same time. I start to think about this time next year when we will be getting close to finishing our trip (hopefully :)) and it brings this wave of anxiety about the whole thing being over. I know that probably sounds a little crazy since we haven't even started! Then I think, "Hey, that's okay, we'll just move on and hike the Pacific Crest or Continental Divide or turn around and walk back to Georgia!" BIG dreams! Oh well. Thanks to all the kind folks who have been reading along and sending good thoughts and wishes our way for next year. Lord, it's not a year anymore... it's only six and a half months!! Makes my tummy do little flips:)Happy hiking!
Date: 2002-09-02
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hi! I hope everyone is enjoying reading journals of this year's hikers who are finishing up or getting close to it. I know I am! Last time I wrote about how much I would love to catch some of them as they are passing through from New Hampshire to Maine. So, yesterday (Sunday), I dragged my 9 year-old grandson Marcus over to Crawford Notch, NH to hike a little and see if we might run into any thru-hikers. This time we went prepared with extra fruit and other goodies to share, but unfortunately, didn't meet anyone. :( Marcus is not much of a walker--he grouses when we go grocery shopping, but he actually had a great time and we hiked about 3 miles. He hammed it up for me under the trail markers and blazes so we could take pictures. But I think his favorite part was eating Snickers bars for lunch. Hopefully some of the pictures will come out good enough to share in our journal. One major change I noticed in the landscape since the last time I was there in June was the lack of water. Not to worry anyone--there is a lake just up the hill, but when Brenda and I were there, we crossed probably a dozen little streams going up the trail to Ethan Pond. Marcus and I crossed only damp rock beds, no little babbling brooks! It was also neat to see how the plants have changed--lots of berries and seed pods instead of flowers. Some of the maple trees are already turning red and orange. I can't believe summer's over! Six months to go!!Oh my goodness!!! Happy hiking :)Sassafras
Date: 2002-09-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I just had to share the coolest thing. I keep having these nagging little episodes of doubt--not about wanting to do the trail or even about being able to do it. It's more like should I do it. You know, I guess it's a little guilt over doing something so completely selfish (I say that from a Mom/wife/daughter/grammy perspective). Anyway, my honey treated to Chinese food the other night and my fortune cookie produced the best fortune ever! It read:"You've spent your life writing the introduction. It's time for Chapter one."I just love it! Unfortunately the numbers on it were not the winning lottery numbers, but hey, you can't have everything :)
Date: 2002-11-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I can't believe how long it seems since my last entry. I've finally had a chance to catch up on the journals I was following. So, first I want to extend my most heartfelt congratulations to everyone who hiked this year! Whether you walked 200 miles or 2,000 miles, the success was in getting out there! We haven't done much by way of trip planning lately. My little sister was in Guam with her sweet husband for awhile, and I've been working 2 jobs now. I started my evening job at L.L.Bean's and continue to run my child care business during the day, so keeps me busy! (Gotta love the discount, though!) The extra money will pay my bills while I'm gone.We did purchase our tent. We finally decided on the Sierra Designs Clip 3 CD. We went for a little more room at a little more weight, but since there are two of us sharing most of the gear, it will average out okay. Brenda also picked up our Ursack bear bags for food and personal stuff. There still seems like an insurmountable amount of stuff to buy, plan, schedule, etc. Or maybe I'm just tired tonight. Anyway, the planning goes on and on....Happy hiking!
Date: 2004-09-30
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Today is our anniversary. It was exactly 1 year ago that we summited Katahdin and ended our incredible journey. Sometimes it seems like just yesterday and at other times it feels like it was a lifetime ago. During the past year I have had this feeling of overwhelming sadness when I thought of the trail. Last night as I lay in my nice warm bed and thought about our final night on the trail, I decided to really try to clarify those feelings.I came to the realization that it wasn't truly sadness as such, but instead an incredible longing for the trail, the friends I had made who felt more like family, the amazing adventure. How could I be sad? I have been blessed with the opportunity to do something so out of the ordinary! I was able to take six and a half months off from work to take "a walk." I was supported by my family and friends who took care of things at home, followed my adventure, encouraged me and believed in me. I had been blessed with good health and no accidents for the entire trip. I spent 3 months with my little sister and 3 months with my husband in close quarters, under sometimes stressful conditions and I'm still on speaking terms with both of them! In fact our relationships grew and blossomed in ways I never would have guessed. I have made friends I will never, ever forget, seen beautiful mountaintop vistas, waterfalls, starlit nights, full moons and flowers as never before. Sad? No. I am grateful, joyful and blessed. I love the trail, the lifestyle, the adventure. Do I miss it? Every, single day. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat.Happy anniversary Cricket, Sean-O, my loving Bump and everyone we met along the way. Happy Anniversary to Us!
Date: 2003-01-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello! We're Sally and Dave Campbell from the beautiful Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Can't believe in 46 days we'll be leaving to fly to Atlanta to begin this A.T. adventure! Our goal for this year is to hike the southern half of the trail to Harper's Ferry, WV. Next year, Lord willing, we'll complete the northern half.   Our interest in the trail has grown gradually over the years until this point in our lives when we knew we should attempt this. Dave, who is retired, has worked on Mt. Greylock at Bascom Lodge for several summers now, first for the Appalachian Mountain Club who ran the lodge for many years and lately for Nature's Classroom who has the present contract with the state. He has had much contact with the thruhikers who stop in and through conversations with them gleaned valuable knowledge about the trail and was able to section hike through much of New England.   We were married in Bascom Lodge on July 15, 2000 so Mt. Greylock is very special to us and accounts for Dave's trailname of "Greylock". I have also loved hiking all my life and while I don't have the hiking experience that Dave has, I've enjoyed the backpacking trips that we have done together. In the summer of 2001 we hiked between the huts in the White Mountains and in the fall of 2002 we did a section of the A.T. in Massachusetts.   Last Spring my daughter Kristy (KayDeeDid) and her husband Todd (Popeye)attempted an A.T. thruhike and we took them to Springer Mt. to begin. We met them at road crossings as they hiked north, finally saying good-bye at Fontana Dam. It had been such fun to hear from them about the trail...the shelters, the other thruhikers, their adventures, that we thought... well, why don't we do it too?    We're both retired so we have the time available, right now we're both in good health, and it's not wise to put some things off for the future. Dave and I have both lost spouses to cancer so we know the reality of this. 2003 then is the year we begin our hike! Happy Trails!
Date: 2003-01-15
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

   The dehydrator is running non-stop and the house is filled with good smells. The den is filled with food-drop boxes and bags of food as we decide what to eat and how much to take. We need to finish our list of mail drops so we can figure carefully, putting in enough supplies but not more than we'll need. There are so many little details, but KayDeeDid and Popeye are a tremendous help in advising us. They are staying with us now and will live here while we're gone, sending us supplies, getting our mail, watching over things in our absence.    At least our gear is complete. We've been gathering items over the last year and we've tested our equipment on the trail. We've slept outside in the snow and we've cooked practice meals. I think we're almost ready.   Last week I was so delighted to find a yahoo group website of other hikers also starting to hike the A.T. this year. I wish we had known about it sooner, but it's so exciting to know that we're not alone in planning this adventure. All over the USA there are hikers preparing just like we are - gathering food, pouring over the guidebooks, deciding on gear. Very cool.
Date: 2003-01-15
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

   Wow! Today was great! We had our first trail magic today and we're not even on the trail yet. Well OK, pre-trail magic anyway. We had gone into our local " natural" retailers, called North American Naturals, here in Pittsfield, and Dave told the owner, Carl Becker, about our hike. He was very interested and gave us five little bars of natural soap that's made right there in the shop and also a bottle of "Uncle Carl's All-Natural 'Bug Away' Insect Repellent". It's Deet and chemical free and Carl says he's had favorable comments from other hikers about it. We'll certainly try it. Thanks Carl!      I was excited too, to get my new Cho-Pat knee brace in the mail. I am very concerned about my left knee keeping up with the rest of my body parts as we hike, especially on the downhills when l.k. gets quite painful. I've seen an orthopedist who x-rayed l.k. and saw nothing wrong. We've taken his advice and joined the local gym where we work out three times a week to strengthen my quads, but the pain is still there. Then, lo and behold, I read online about a nifty miracle fix-me-up called the Cho-Pat dual action knee brace. Thanks Jan! I sent for it immediately and it arrived today. I can't wait to see if it will do the trick, and in reading about it and knowing how my particular l.k. behaves, I think there's a good chance it's the answer. Sure hope so.   The dehydrating continues in the kitchen and the little ziplock bags of shriveled veggies are piling up. The keyword here is "little". It's absolutely amazing to see one pound of vegetables shrink down to only a cupful of microscopic multicolored particles. We actually paid for all that extra water and then blew it away? I think we'll appreciate these veggies in the woods though, at least I hope so.
Date: 2003-01-21
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

   Our preparations are definitely in full swing! We read online about the cold temperatures in the eastern U.S. and wonder what we¢ll find in Georgia in March. Yikes!     We did an overnight snowshoe hike in the Adirondacks in December in sub-zero temps and had a great time so we know we can deal with the cold. Since the temps were forecast to be down in the single digits all day here in Pittsfield, we decided to take a hike to the top of the mountain in Pittsfield State Forest to further tweak some of our cold-weather gear.    It was a beautiful day in the woods... the snow crunched and squeeked with each step, and we hiked using lightweight crampons which worked wonderfully. We¢ll take them with us to Georgia since we¢re very likely to have snow or ice at the beginning of the trail. Our hats and facemasks worked well; wool gloves inside GoreTex shells were fine when we were walking and warm but our fingers got cold quickly when we stopped to heat water for hot chocolate. We¢ve decided to carry some hand-warmer packets for times like that.    This was also the first trial of my new ChoPat knee brace and it really did seem to help! Hooray! The ¢feel¢ of it took some getting used to, but there was no knee pain at all coming down the mountain. If it works on the trail the way it worked today, I¢ll be so pleased!    Now some great news! We got an unexpected offer from new friend Gary, who is going to shuttle us from Atlanta to the trailhead on Sunday. We fly into Atlanta on Saturday and Gary invited us to his house to spend the night Saturday night. Thanks Gary! God is so good to supply each need that we have.
Date: 2003-02-03
To: Saranac Lake Winter Carnival
Miles today: 0.0

What a wonderful weekend we've had! We just returned from Saranac Lake, NY, where the annual Winter Carnival was just beginning. Each year a uniquely designed Ice Castle is built by volunteers from over 2000 blocks of ice cut from Lake Flower. Every night it glows with colored lights and on Saturday a large crowd gathered for the opening fireworks display that burst from behind the castle. It was incredible! The carnival will continue all week with competitions and games and end with a parade next weekend. The North Country provides the perfect backdrop to the activities with spectacular Adirondack scenery. Thanks Debbie, Roger, Chris and Luke for letting us house/dog sit while you were away!This was a much needed mini-vacation from the mega-planning we've been doing for the hike. It seems as if every waking thought is focused on food planning, gear review, and thinking of things yet-to-do to prepare for our absence in less than a month. In only 25 days we leave for Atlanta! We can't wait to begin our adventure yet there are so many little details to think about. I know the 25 days ahead are just going to fly by!
Date: 2003-02-08
To: Trail Magic!
Miles today: 0.0

   We had some great trail magic today! I had seen online, a website for Enertia Trail Foods. They make a variety of dehydrated meals and food staples and sell through the internet but also through outfitters across the country. They¢re just getting their business under way and are looking for hikers to contact their local outfitters. If the outfitter ends up placing an order with Enertia Trail Foods, the hiker will get a box of samples of all the meals and desserts that Enertia sells, worth $55.00. Well, to make a long story short, Dave contacted The Arcadian Shop, our local outfitter, they placed an order for the store, and we got our free box of meals in the mail just in time to include them in our food drop boxes. Hurray! Thank you Arcadian Shop and Enertia Trail Foods!    We have our dinners all packaged up and are working on breakfasts now. Instant Oatmeal seems to be the favorite, with Instant Breakfast and Pop-Tarts coming in second. The old K.I.S.S. principle seems to work best, and quick clean-up and on-the-trail works for me.    We seem to be living the trail 24/7 and we¢re not even there yet. It¢s our constant conversation topic and reading the many trail journals online has certainly helped to accelerate our excitement. Doing this as a couple is just SO neat! We never get bored of trail talk, we¢re always kicking around ideas for gear improvement, we¢re having a ball getting our meals together, and the best is yet to come. We¢ll experience each part of this adventure together - the good times and the tough ones - and then we¢ll always have those memories to share. It doesn¢t get any better than this!
Date: 2003-02-16
To: Surprise Farewell Party!
Miles today: 0.0

We had a surprising extra-special day today! After returning from church and lunch on the way home, we stepped into the house and were greeted with "Surprise!" We were astonished to see a houseful of family and friends gathered to wish us farewell and Good Luck on our hike!    While Holly, Kristy & Todd, Sally's daughters and son-in law kept us busy at a restaurant on the way home, Dave's daughter and her husband (Karen & Dave)and son and his wife (Jeff & Joan) along with grandchildren Christopher, Lizzy and Paige, had decorated the house with balloons, hung pine trees along the wall that said "Happy Trails", and filled the dining room table with the most delicious food with a definite trail theme. There were bowls of GORP placed strategically around the living room and in the dining room the menu centered around creative A.T. sandwiches flying little flags with mountain and trail locations on the front and little white blazes on the back (see these on the Photos page), a fondue pot of tiny cocktail franks, veggys and dip, chocolate-dipped strawberries, crispy trail energy bars, lemon bars, punch with sherbet, and lastly a delicious ice cream cake sparkling with candles. What a lovely, thoughtful way to send us off! Thank you all so much!      God has certainly blessed us with wonderful children and it means so much to have their support and that of our friends as well. Everyone without exception has been just great and we appreciate that more than you can know.   In just two weeks from today the adventure begins!