morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-08
From: Campsite after mile 401.8

To: Dennis Cove
Miles today: 7.5

Campsite was good. It actually rained a little during the night. Heard a small shower around 2am but it was all dry by morning. I put more seam seal on the rain fly last night and it looks good. 3rd tube of it.Took it easy hiking. Nice long break up on a small mtn. Then a easy hike down to Dennis Cove and to the Laurel Fork Campground. The store was closed and management was gone for the night but Blotter was kind of working for his stay so he pointed everything out. Got a campsite. #7. Very laid back place. Redbeard, Zen, Crazylegs and others are here. Didn't think I'd see them until Damascus.Finally met Phoenix who is being a Trail Angel since she got off the trail. It was fun talking about airplanes with her. She went to Emery Riddle, got her private license and then worked for a big insurance company. It all sounded fun except for the working for a big company. Hmmm.Since the store was closed there was no laundry soap. Gave the Basic H a try and it seemed to work fine without foaming up. The dryer wouldn't get hot so we all just let our clothes bang around in it and they are still damp. Clean but damp is much better than salt crusted stinky and damp any day!They ordered pizza delivery so I got a chef salad. It came delivered with no meat on it so it was more like an anti-chef salad. Still veggies are good.Hopefully the store will have enough food and fuel to get me to Damascus.There is a nasty climb up about 2000' to Ponds Flats tomorrow that doesn't look fun at all.Shot a few hoops. Poorly. Watched a little "Gleaming the Cube" movie. Old one with a very young Christian Slater. Going to have to watch the whole thing someday.Oh, and got in a wonderful hot shower.Life is good!
Date: 2005-05-09
From: Dennis Cove

To: Campsite past Watauga Lake Shelter
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: clear sky

Success at the camp store. Loaded up on food and fuel. Heavy stuff. Lots of tuna. Scored a jar of peanut butter from Phoenix. Weighed my pack with max food, fuel and water. 65lb. Crazy! Going to have to unload gear after Damascus. It has been fun having all my toys with me but it is time for some of them to go. My feet are taking too much of a beating with the longer miles. The heavy pack got me in good shape though.Didn't make it to the trail until 11:30am. It is a beautiful stretch. It goes along a river and there are waterfalls. Then a serious climb up to Ponds Flats. Really tough climb in the hot sun. But, it is so much nicer hiking in good weather. The climb was about as tough as Roan Mtn but the weather made all the difference. Zen found two poisonous snakes. I got to see one of them. I don't know my snakes but Redbeard said they were poisonous.Then a nice drop down to Watauga Lake. Hung out there for a while but decided I wasn't hungry enough so skipped the cookout. Found a campsite on the lake that looked great. Looks can be wrong. Had more Mac and Cheese and that was good. Then tried to go to bed. The ground was really sloped and rocky. Then I was just about to get to sleep and two boats came right up to my tent with their lights shinning on the tent and lighting it up. It sounded like they were coming right into my camp. They cut their motors and then just sat there. They talked a little really quiet like and then didn't make much more noise. I was thinking, great, some locals want to mess with a hiker. They sat out there for hours. Finally I heard a repeated plunk and click so I guess they were just fishing. But they kept lighting up my tent with their lights so I didn't get much sleep.Oh well, can't win them all.
Date: 2005-05-10
From: Campsite past Watauga Lake Shelter

To: Campsite mile 440.3
Miles today: 20.3

Rough night and then sprinkles in the morning. At least the boaters were just fishing I guess and not up to trouble. Had a dry breakfast because I was low on water and the lake looked nasty. The next spring was a little over five miles down the trail. Ran out of water about an hour before I got to it. Spring water really tastes good. It would be a shame to put iodine or chlorine in it. The filter is staying with me!Had lunch at Vandeventer Shelter. It is way up high on a ridge and backs up to a small rock wall that then drops off 50' or so. And then the ridge just drops way off down to the valley below. You wouldn't want to fall off it. Great view for lunch.The bad weather was heading our way and I wanted to get off the ridge before it hit. Almost made it. 20 minutes and I would have made it to the next campsite that is in a little valley. As it was, the storm hit right as I was starting to head downhill. Still was way too exposed for that much lightning and thunder. I got to the campsite and it was storming so bad I just stood there until it passed. Nothing else to do. There was even a little hail mixed in for good measure. Couldn't even put the pack down or it would have gotten soaked. It was a quick storm so I just kept hiking to dry off.Got to Iron Mtn Shelter and Redbeard, Zen and Tomato Head were just getting ready to push out. They were heading for the next shelter 7.6 miles on. They said they were trying to get to Damascus on Wednesday to get a good campsite. Sounded like a good idea so I told them I'd try to keep up. It was my first 20 mile day. And I'd been ready to quit at less than 10 miles. Hiking in a group can slow you down or motivate ya. Zen can really set a pace!Passed the Nick Grindstaff Monument. Looks like it is his grave. It said "Lived Alone, Suffered Alone, Died Alone". Makes you think.The weather held out and was nice. Had supper and got the tent set up before dark. I had taken 400mg of vitamin I when we stopped hiking and at 11pm it was feeling like someone was poking knives into the bottoms of my feet. Took two more I's and finally got to sleep.What a long day!
Date: 2005-05-11
From: Campsite mile 440.3

To: Damascus, VA !!!!!!
Miles today: 19.2
Weather: few clouds

Georgia... Done!North Carolina... Gone!Tennessee... History!It is now Virginia for a long, long ways.And actually the trail leads in through town so I did a good bit more than 20 miles. And the campsite is another mile down South Shady Ave.The hike in was great. Painful, but the weather was good and sunny and hot. By the end it was really hurting. Did hit trail magic at Low Gap. Thanks to Hammer for the bean soup. It was excellent. And then a crew from the First Assembly of God pulled up in a van and got out a gas grill and cooked up hot dogs and had coffee and hot chocolate. Mmm! It slowed us down a bit but was worth it! Trail magic always makes my day.The public campground is really kind of in rough shape. They mowed down some areas for the tents but there is poison ivy everywhere in the woods. I walked through a lot of it looking for a spot. Had long pants on so am hoping for the best. Got a spot where I can hear the river a bit. Lots of critters making noise. Along with the half crazed hikers.Went to get out of my tent and at least 6 spiders dropped in. Mostly daddy long legs but one fast big jumping spider. Finally got him out of the tent but have been picking out the rest ever since. They have just got the tent covered up. Stretch has a tarp and said he had ants. I love having a tent! There are so many creepy crawlies out there at night! Not much more than one or two hundred people here so far. And the porta johns are not here yet. The bathroom is a two holer. Gonna get ugly if they don't get them here soon!Missed the ride into town for supper so just munched on what I had left. Slim Jims and dried banana chips and tootsie rolls. Not the worst supper ever.Another good long day! And man do my feet hurt.
Date: 2005-05-12
From: Damascus, VA !!!!!!

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Not a bad night but the feet hurt again. More before I could get to sleep. Took a hot shower and then drip dried. Got laundry around and found the laundromat. Stretch was there so we went to Cowboys. Fast food at the gas station. Had a big omelet and tatter tots. Mmmm! Then did laundry. Spent most of the day just walking around town. Just feels so good to walk without a pack and wearing comfy sandals. Nice friendly town. Got a couple of milk shakes at the Dairy King. Tried to order a peanut butter chocolate mix shake. But they gave me two separate ones. I made the best of it and ate both of them and an order of onion rings. Way too much junk food. Didn't score a meal ticket for the Baptist Church Hiker Supper. Had hot dogs on the lawn instead. Not bad but real food would have been good. I did find out that Dollar General stores are the next best thing to a WalMart. They have peanut butter and grape jelly mixed in a plastic jar for only $1.50. Mmmmm! Already ate half the jar. Going to have to get more. Fiddle Faddle for a buck. Good empty calories. Going to have to catch a ride to the supermarket for real food before I get back on the trail.Got back to the campground and my tent was covered in a sea of tents. Story is right next to me along with Skeet. Don't think I've met Skeet before. And they say most people show up tomorrow. It is crazy. Pretty much as expected. Intoxicated hikers whooping and hollering at the tops of their lungs and it is only 9:45pm. Got the earplugs out and ready. Some local kids got a fire nearby and one of them plays a pretty good guitar. Can't wait for the Drum Circle. Ear plugs won't help for that.Craig the trail angel from before came through with the shower trailer. Might get to check that out tomorrow. Soap and real towels he said. Nice!Oh, this morning they dropped off a big dumpster a little ways down from the tent. That was noisy! And they now have 4 whole porta johns. For at least 500 people. It is interesting. Another nice hot sunny day.The Virginia Creeper Trail is a rails to trails type trail that goes through town. I hear it is a lot nicer than the AT for this stretch. And I think it crosses the AT about 30 miles down the trail. Oh well, maybe someday I'll get to check it out. It is only 10pm but I'm beat. Time to try out them earplugs.
Date: 2005-05-14
From: Damascus, VA Trail Days

To: Damascus, VA Trail Days
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I've got to stop waking up so early. The crazies keep ya up past midnight and the critters and sun wake you up before 6am. Got up and wandered around and then went back to bed for a while. Finally hiked into the park where everything is set up. Walked there with Sweet 16. Ran into Circuit Rider. He has been ahead of me and I've been wondering how he has been. And Sherlock too. Didn't see Sherlock. Good to see Circuit Rider though. Watched some of the hiker talent show. Some were really good. Then hit the Go Lite drawing. Scored a finger toothbrush. Hmmm.Then walked to the shower trailer with Phoenix. She was looking a bit beat. Trail Days can wear ya out. Took a shower and it was sunny when I went in. It was a hard thunderstorm when I came out. Only 15 min later! That was right before the parade so they all got washed. I just stood under the tarp with Craig and his wife until the storm passed and the Hiker Parade went past. Got to see it, didn't want to be in it. Worked out great. And the shower felt wonderful.Craig is the trail angel I've been running into. Turns out he is from right by where I live. Going to have to look him up after the hike and visit with them. He has a great ministry going on.Figured it was time to resupply for the hike out of here so walked up the half mile to Food City. A REAL grocery store. They even had my breakfast gruel that I eat and ran out of. And got a pint of B&J ice cream. Peanut Butter Cup. Mmmmm. Ate that and charged the Sidekick out at a table in the sun and waited for the shuttle that never came. That was ok because I got talking with Darwin and just walked back to town with him. It is nice to just meet someone new. Looked like rain so headed back to camp. Missed the Backpacker giveaway. Might have missed out on another pair of socks. Don't need any more socks right now any ways. Caught a ride to Subway on the shuttle and just got there when another hard thunderstorm hit. Seafood Salad. Mmmmm. Perfect timing. And then got a ride back to tent city too! Missed all the rain for a change. Some tents are in huge puddles. It was worth it getting here early and getting high ground! So just hanging out in the tent waiting for the campfire and drum craziness to start. Might just watch it tonight if the rain stays away. A good day with lots of calories. More than usual were actually healthy ones.
Date: 2005-05-15
From: Damascus, VA Trail Days

To: Damascus, VA Trail Days
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

A relaxing morning of doing nothing. Lots of rain so just laid around and slept. Too much rain to hike in for any of the movies or talks. Most of the tents are gone. There are only 5 or 6 left back where I am. The sun did finally come out and the weather report looks good. Going to break camp in the morning and get back on the trail.About the only thing I did today was hike to Subway for another seafood salad and Root beer. Mmmmm. Too much Root beer and thought I was going to pop. Subway is about the only place I can get a signal to send email. Did that and hiked back to camp. As it was getting dark Story decided to move over to The Place. Redbeard, Zen and Panoramic are already there. It is a nice house right in town but it looked full and people are still tenting on the lawn. Looked like a lot of work late at night. Especially if she can't get a place inside.So, today was a day of eating, sleeping and resting. Nice.
Date: 2005-05-16
From: Damascus, VA Trail Days

To: Camp by Whitetop Laurel Creek, VA
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: few clouds

Broke camp from Tent City and got back on the trail around 9:30am. Four zeros about did me in. Everything hurt for most of the day. Even had a hot spot on one heal. Way to long to go without hiking with a pack on. That and I had the pack maxed out with food and water and fuel. The AT is cruel. It takes you up and over mountains and the Creeper trail takes you along the pretty river. And then ten miles later they meet up again. A lot of people just took the Creeper trail.Finally met up with Moonpie and Mother. Was finally able to tell him (Mother) that I delivered his message in Gatlinburg. Saw Thrifty and Vogue also. And others from that group. Good to see them.Now I'm camping with Squeaker and Umbledog. They just got a two person hammock. This should be interesting. I hope it works for them.
Date: 2005-05-17
From: Camp by Whitetop Laurel Creek, VA

To: Camp past Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Nice relaxing campsite, we didn't get on the trail until around 10:30am. The body felt a lot better today. It just took a day to convince it we were doing more hiking. The climb up Whitetop Mountain felt good but took a lot out of me. It had great views for a lunch break. Spent about an hour there. Nice! By Deep Gap my feet were getting sore and the climb up Mt. Rogers was harder. Made it to the shelter and saw Drifter. Visited with him for a bit. He said there were nice campsites past the shelter out with the horses. He was right. Can't believe all the people camped out by the shelter when less than a half mile later it is just beautiful. There are spots back in the pines but I camped out closer to the ridge. A bit chillier out here with a little breeze but if the clouds lift there should be a great view in the morning. And maybe horses. Hope they don't eat tents.
Date: 2005-05-18
From: Camp past Thomas Knob Shelter

To: Old Orchard Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Nice morning. Great campsite. Ponies showed up right as I was finishing packing up. One was really pushy. He tried nipping at me when I reached out to pet him. No treats for them! They followed me for a while. There were some baby horses too. Nice hiking. Grayson Highlands St. Park is really cool. Lots of wild horses and baby horses running around. The trail was really rocky and my feet took more of a beating. Was glad I only had to go 11 miles. Got a nice secluded camp site. Then a big family type group set up camp right by. Oh well. That is what I get for camping anywhere near a shelter. Going to bed early. Got my earplugs ready.
Date: 2005-05-19
From: Old Orchard Shelter, VA

To: Dickey Gap, VA
Miles today: 10.2

Over 500 miles on the AT. Wow. Just past the 500 mile mark there was a park and someone had left some chairs and a note saying Thru Hikers should wait for trail magic because they had just gone to town for supplies and would be right back. Barrel Slug was waiting so I figured I'd hang out for a bit to see what showed up. An hour later there were 20 hikers waiting there. I left and from what I heard nobody ever showed up. "When trail magic goes bad". Moral of the story, if you don't smell the hot dogs, keep hiking. It was fun to visit with everyone. It looks like at least 5 of the 6 thru hikers that I was with that first night in the shelter on the approach trail are still going strong. Very cool.Had just a super day hiking. Great mood. Very excited about meeting my parents. Then wham, migraine headache. Took the really strong meds for it and it knocked it out pretty good. Kinda makes hiking feel like you are in a fog. Decided to push on all the way to where I was supposed to meet my parents the next day. The people hanging out waiting for rides into town said my parents had just been there and were bringing hikers to the store. Way cool. About 5 min later they showed back up. They shuttled another couple of hikers and then picked me up. Saved me a night of camping in the rain and they didn't have to get a hotel. Just super lucky timing. So, I got to catch a ride home for my 14th anniversary. Made ALL of us very happy!Life is good!
Date: 2005-05-26
From: Dickey Gap, VA

To: Campsite at mile 516.3
Miles today: 7.6

Nice 6 hour drive back to the trail. Felt good to be back. My Parents hiked the four miles into Trimpi Shelter with me. That is some really nice trail. Then they hiked back to the car and I kept heading north. It was fun to hike with them and tomorrow they are planning on heading south from Partnership Shelter until we meet up. Hope that works out. Then they are heading back to Michigan. That was a lot of zeros but it sure was nice. Found a nice flat campsite and now it is time to start catching up on my sleep!
Date: 2005-05-27
From: Campsite at mile 516.3, VA

To: campsite at mile 534.0, VA
Miles today: 17.7

Long day. My parents hiked in four miles southbound when I met them. Beautiful stretch of trail leading up to Partnership Shelter. Then they brought me to a restaurant for lunch. Mmm. More good eating. Then about 1:30pm they dropped me off at the trail and they started the long drive back to Michigan. I had a great week with them. Hope we get to meet up again soon.Made it to Chatfield Shelter by about 5:30pm and nobody was there. No good places around it to camp and the road is only .3 miles away. So, decided to keep going. No good campsites and I ran out of daylight so I camped in an overgrown field on a hill overlooking I-81. It is morning now and there is a light rain so I'm not in any hurry to break camp. But it is almost 8:45am so I'd better start moving.
Date: 2005-05-28
From: campsite at mile 534.0, VA

To: Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: light rain

What a postcard perfect day. Slept in until the sprinkles stopped. Then hiked through the most beautiful fields and valleys so far. The flowers were out. Cows in the fields. Perfect.Dutchman is staying at the shelter too! Haven't seen him since Georgia. He has lost 30lb also. We hardly recognized each other. Very cool!It just doesn't get any better than this!
Date: 2005-05-29
From: Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA

To: Campsite around mile 563.7, VA
Miles today: 15.0

Well, just as much as yesterday felt wonderful, today hurt. Lots of uphills. Almost had forgotten what a long climb felt like. The weather really wasn't bad but when I finally got up to Chestnut Knob Shelter (4410') it was cloudy and cold. Dragonfly was calling it a day there. She is a section hiker from Quebec Canada and speaks French. Her English is pretty good but sometimes it is hard finding the word she wants. She doubled my French vocabulary by teaching me how to say "Goodbye" in French.Made it past the 1/4 way mark. Over 550 miles hiked. Whoo Hoo!After I left the shelter I didn't see another North Bound Thru Hiker all day. Not a one. That is kinda strange. I know from the shelter journals there is a group of about 10 just ahead of me and the Damascus bubble is way ahead of me now. Gotta keep on moving!
Date: 2005-05-30
From: Campsite around mile 563.7, VA

To: Campsite around mile 572.0, VA
Miles today: 8.3

Short day, almost a Zero. Near Zero. Oh well. Great campsite last night. Out of water in the morning though. Close to noon before I got any. Up on a ridge with some great views. Met 2 Mt. Bikers at a road crossing that had just seen a momma bear and three cubs. Guess I had better get back to hanging my food bag. Have yet to see a bear. Bugs were biting by Jenkins Shelter. Had lunch there. Can't believe how long it took getting there.Met 3 hikers from Michigan. The U of M shirts gave it away. They hike south to their car and then drive up and hike south again. Not a bad way to stay resupplied. Not sure all the logistics to it but I'm guessing someone is driving the car or maybe they have two cars. Hmmmm. Maybe next time.Got a spot by a stream and it is getting dark. Had Uncle Ben's black bean and rice soup for supper. Mmmmm. With pepperoni added too. Mmmmm.
Date: 2005-05-31
From: Campsite around mile 572.0, VA

To: Campsite on Ridge somewhere after mile 582.3, VA
Miles today: 10.3

Got an early start. Very early for me. On the trail at 8:08am. Wow! Found a big cooler with Trail Magic still in it. Individual bottles of apple juice. On ice! Wasn't even going to bother looking because they have all been empty lately but Muskrat and Birdie said there was some there. That was super nice of them! They are newlyweds. I think they said they got married April 9th and hit the trail on the 15th. Amazing.Later in the day there was more trail magic. Gallon jugs of water. I should have loaded up because the water at the next shelter was way down a hill and clogged up the filter. Bummer for Helveys Mill Shelter. Oh well. I got enough water that I'm able to camp out up on the ridge. Nice long view of the valley. Time to call it a night.
Date: 2005-06-01
From: Campsite on Ridge somewhere after mile 582.3, VA

To: Dismal Creek Falls Campsite, VA
Miles today: 17.4

Oh yes, good pictures to go with today's entry. Met Moonshine, guy with kilt and sword and shield. Praying Mantis, guy with loin cloth and no shirt and feathers and cool staff. Also, Captain Hook, normal looking guy. Also a guy with dreadlocks who for the life of me I keep forgetting his name. And it is an easy name to remember too. Aghhhh!Any ways, good day of hiking. Went over an awesome suspension bridge and then in to Trent's Grocery. Chefs salad and onion rings and frozen Snickers ice cream bar. And resupplied on munchies. They were very nice there.Moonshine and Praying Mantis did battle in full costume in the middle of the road for me so I could take pictures. I'm sure the semi drivers were amused. They blew their air horns for us when they went by. Good fun.Hopefully the rain stops in the morning so I can get some pictures of Dismal Creek Falls. They are worth the .3 mile hike in and there are some good campsites nearby.I was hanging the food bag and heard little birds peeping. Was looking up in the trees for them and almost stepped on two of them. I can hear more around so I think that is where they belong but they didn't look happy in the rain.I'm loaded up on Snickers bars so I hope no critters find my bag tonight. Got the tent up as it was starting to rain around 4pm so at least I'm dry for now. They say rain the next two days. Joy.