morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-08-16
From: Inn at Long Trail

To: Inn at Long Trail
Miles today: 0.0

I stayed at the end late in the morning working out my remaining hiking schedule, so I could tell Lee when to meet me in Maine. I'm very excited about him and Grand Dewey coming up to climb Katahdin with me.Around 10:30 I checked out and sat out front debating on whether I wanted to wait and have lunch before leaving. As I pondered the question to which I of course already knew the answer, Chuckles and Gottago were dropped off by their hitch. Decision finalized!We all had lunch and I headed down to the road to hitch. I waited for about ten minutes with no luck, and heard a muffled sound over the traffic. I looked up to see Gottago waving out the window grinning "perkily.". :-). It was a sign....to take a zero day!I went back in and got a room next to theirs, and then went to beat on their door to ask if I could tag along with them on their errands. They were laughing at me as they opened the door, and said of course I could go with them.We hitched to the outfitter and then Wal-mart. I got my hair wacked off while they were in Wal-mart, and then we all had an excellent italian dinner.It was a very good day. I was asleep by 8:30. Gottago and Chuckles showed up around 11AMHad lunch with themTook shuttle into Rutland, VTWent to Outfitter where I got gaiters and seam sealerWent to Walmart, hair doctor's, and bus station to catch a shuttleIn bed and asleep by 8:30
Date: 2005-08-17
From: Inn at Long Trail

To: Woods
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: scattered clouds

I headed out from the Inn after breakfst with Chuckles and Gottago. It was time for the final push to Maine. I had the two hardest states (NH and ME) to complete, and my motivation and enthusiasm were starting to wane a little.Don't get me wrong, the scenery is still beautiful, and not a day goes by that I don't realize what a great opportunity I have, but I guess I'm just starting to get a little tired. There are those days when this can almost seem "job like." I'm up at 5:30, hiking til 7:00, and the starting the whole process over the next day, and the next, and the next. I take zero days, but mostly I go into town and leave the following day, and while in town my hours are filled with chores.There are still moments though. Sights that make you catch your breath, and hiking through rolling trail "in your stride," that just makes you smile. I still know every morning when I wake up, that every second, minute and hour is going to be unique, and that I will probably only pass this way one time. Enough of my rambling. Bear Can caught up with me later in the morning, and informed me that Sleeveless was not far behind and excited about catching up. Sleeveless was the woman attacked by the racoon, and I had not seen her in several weeks.I stopped to get water and took my time waiting on Sleeveless, who finally came over the hill. She is a much slower hiker, but makes up for it in endurance. I hiked slowly for the rest of the afternoon catching up with her, until we reached a remote road crossing where we found Africa and a SOBO named wild Thing. I may not have mentioned it, but a SOBO is a southbound hiker. I am a NOBO or northbound hiker. I have already run into no less than 40 or more SOBO's over the last 2 or 3 weeks. They typically start their hike at Katahdin around June or July. It is a far more solitary hike since far fewer people go south.Africa was standing by the dirt road (if you could call this mud track a road) with a rather grim expression on his face. He was slack packing, and his son was supposed to pick him up, but it appeared they had not planned well. He had simply told his son to find the road, and had nothing but food and water in his daypack. It was getting dark, and supposed to be one of the coldest nights of the season...down into the forties. He had on shorts and a t-shirt with no jacket of any type, or a headlamp. He had come to the grim realization that he would have to hike nine miles on in the dark to try and reach a paved road. There was supposed to be a full moon, so at least he had that going for him.Sleeveless and I decided to camp there with Wild Thing, and Africa headed on out with Pus Gut and Free Radical that were just passing through. There was a good clearing off the mud track, with a creek nearby, and my feet were screaming already.I set up camp, made supper, and tried to fall asleep as I listened to Sleeveless spend two hours readying her camp and then beep away on her pocketmail. She had pitched her tent so close it sounded like she was in my tent.I fell asleep worrying about Africa.
Date: 2005-08-18
From: Woods

To: Thistle Mountain
Miles today: 16.5

I froze my butt off last night! Clearly, North Woodstock was too late to get my winter gear. I needed something now, and although my guide did not list anything in the next town of Woodstock, VT, I was going to have to hitch anyway.I did ten miles out to the road by 11:30 and decided to wait on Sleeveless since I knew she woold probably want to go in to eat lunch. I was just about to start hitching when she came out on the road an hour and a half later. Africa's son was just dropping him off to resume hiking (with a full pack). Africa informed us that the previous evening he had hiked until he could see no more and then laid down and piled leaves on himself to try and keep warm. He said he froze. I'm glad he was ok.Africa's son dropped us off in town where we had lunch, and I purchased a Fleece pullover not mentioned in Wingfoot's guide. We caught a hitch back to the trai. I had just killed about 3.5 hours on the little town visit. "Enjoy it" I thought. I would not have the liberty of that kind of wasted time any longer if I was going to make it to Maine by September 17th.I camped on an old logging road about a quarter mile above the Winturri shelter. I did not want to tent near the shelter b/c it was late, almost dark, and I knew I would wake people. Sleeveless decided to go on and stay in the shelter.The woods were peaceful, and I listened to the quick rapid hoot of an owl as I drifted off to sleep.
Date: 2005-08-19
From: Woods outside Hannover

To: Lyme, NH
Miles today: 12.0

I woke up around 5AM to a downpour. I waited for it to quit and finally gave up and packed in the rain. It continued to poor for a couple more hours as I hiked.I had one major climb, with what probably would have been gorgeous views, before heading down to the road crossing about 5 miles out of Lyme, NH. I had already decided I was heading into town since everything I owned was soaked, and I was not a happy lady. Did I mention I had fallen in a creek also?I had started to cross the creek on a very slippery log. My feet shot straight out from under me, and the next thing I knew I was sitting in the creek. I think the only reason I was not hurt more was b/c I fell flat on my back and landed on my pack before rolling over into the creek. I just sat their a second, and then stomped out. I was wet. My pack was wet. My shoes squished....and I had a lot of climbing to do. As I hiked, my mood deteriorated.I came out on the road, and saw an SUV parked at the fork in the road. The road was dead, and I knew it was going to be very hard to get a hitch five miles into town. A man opened the door and stepped out of the SUV. "Are you Mayfly?" he said. I did not recongize him. Oh lord, a "hiker stalker." "I'm Katie's Dad" he said. I had to think for a minute, and then the lightbulb went off. It was "Goosebump's" father.I had met Goosebump's Dad in Salisbury, CT when he and her mom were doing trail magic at a road crossing while they waited for Goosebump. He was slacking Goosebump, Easty and Goosebump's aunt, and he was waiting on them to finish. He gave me a soda and we waited. Once they arrived, he was going to give me a ride into Lyme.We waited about an hour and then headed into Lyme. There was nowhere to stay, so I headed over to Hannover.   I got a room at the Chieftain. Goosebump and her Aunt were going to pick me up on Monday morning to head back to the trail. This was not my intended plan, but due to logistics, it was now the plan. No fears though, I'm still on schedule. I just have less wiggle room, and no more opportunities for zero's unless I do major miles to get ahead. In a nutshell, I have to average 17 miles/day for the next 24 days to get to Katahdin on time. No problem! I will just be even thinner and more fit when I finish.I better get some sleep.
Date: 2005-08-19
From: Woods

To: Hannover, NH/Woods
Miles today: 20.5

Today was a long, tiring day. It involved a town stop and some real food though, so it was not all bad.I arrived in Hannover, NH around 1PM. The walk over the CT river into town put me in NH and my second to last state. I wanted to make sure I got my PO package before the PO closed. I also needed to grab lunch and hit the grocery store.The trail goes straight through the middle of Hannover and I could go everywhere I needed without ever leaving the trail. The PERFECT town stop.Hannover is where Dartmouth is located, and it is a typical college town. As I walked into the middle of town and stopped at an intersection, I observed about 20+ hikers hanging out in the town square. I recognized a lot of them, but just wanted to relax and do my own thing, so I quickly crosed the street and headed down the sidewalk.I stopped in at Lou's Bakery for lunch since it had been recommended. It was excellent, and very hiker friendly. They even let me put my pack inside the door, and did not seat me in a back corner. I then went by the PO and walked on to the grocery store (Coop). I went outside after shopping, moved over some flowers on the stands, and sat down to pack my pack with food.Thrifty, Brother Buzz and Lightning were also sitting on the flowere stands packing, and I chatted with them while I packed. I gave a SOBO some extra food I had, and headed down the trail, which circled around some sports fields before heading up into the mountains. The skies looked pretty ominous, so I was pretty eager to set-up before it started raining, but it was 6-7 miles before I found a decent stealth site. I had watered up in Hannover and brought a sandwich from Lou's, so I did not need to be near a water source.Tired, I climbed into my tent, journaled a little, and quickly fell asleep.
Date: 2005-08-22
From: Hannover, NH

To: Plymouth, New Hampshire
Miles today: 16.0

Goosebump's Aunt dropped us all off at the trail head outside Lyme, where we had gotten off a day and a half earlier. Easty and GB were going to slack to another road crossing about 16 miles up.I flip flopped with them all day as they tried to talk me into staying in town with them that night. I was tired after climbing Smart Mountain, and finally agreed around 5:30.We met Goosebump's aunt at the road crossing. We had a tough time finding a hotel since the area was so rural, and finally ended up driving over to Plymouth where we got rooms at "The Common Man." The rooms were a little pricey and everyone wanted to split a double, but I got my own room.The room was nice and the food was great. I knew it would be my last time in a hotel for a while, so I enjoyed it.
Date: 2005-08-29
From: NH

To: Katahdin
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I've been remiss in my journal entries. As the days have gotten longer and harder, the journal entries have gotten shorter and tougher to complete. I lay in my tent with every intention of typing on my tiny Blackberry, and as the first line stretches across the screen, my eyelids begin to droop.The whites, really beginning with Mousilake, were tough. I went from a 18 mile day to a 9 mile day, all in about 48 hours. NH has certainly lived up to it's reputation. Going from a 2.5 mph trail to a 1 mph rock face climb has been frustrating. The beauty of the views above treeline has made it all worthwhile. NH is truly a more rugged hiking, and often "climbing" experience.Climbing out of Crawford Notch was memorable. I underestimated the climb, not starting until 3PM in the afternoon, and did not reach Mizpah camp til dark. The climb up Webster and Jackson peaks had nothing to do with trail hiking. The climb up half these mountains consisted of packing up my poles and finding cracks and crannies in the rocks to lodge my fingers and toes as I climbed...the whole time praying the rock outcropping would hold, and my worn down treads would grip the sheets of rock on the downhills. If not the grip of my treads, then the grip of my shorts as I slid my butt down the rock.The Presidential traverse above treeline is something everyone should see. Go to Mount Washington. Climb Mount Washington...or drive. Whichever...just experience what many don't know exists on our east coast.The hike over to the summit of Mt. Washington (highest summit on the trail) was absolutely breathtaking. I could not have asked for better weather. Even more fun was scrambling around all the tourists over the rocks up to the summit. As I loped past all the people looking at their red faces and listening to their haggard breathing, it really sunk home for the first time that I was in pretty damn good shape. I reached the top, hardly breaking a sweat, and headed for the concession building where I knew a soda would be waiting.The end is drawing near. I'm in Andover, ME now @ "The Cabin" hostel. I'll be heading out early in the morning in my final push for Katahdin over the next few weeks. My brother and the "Grand Dewey" are going to hike for two days with me, and climb Katahdin. I am so looking forward to having them come up and join me. I think it will be a lot of fun, and one of those memories you always keep in the "top 20."This chapter is drawing to a close, and soon it will be time to start a new chapter. I can't wait. I love to hike, but I'm ready to see what else lies around the corner. I'll do a better job with journal updates in this final stretch. I won't be posting more pictures til I get home though.Cheerio
Date: 2005-08-30
From: The Cabin

To: Bemis Mountain
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I stayed at "The Cabin" last night. It is a great hostel in Andover, ME. It is run by Bear and Honey...extremely nice people that do an excellent job with the hostel. It is by far one of the best hostels on the trail, and definitely a "must stay" on the trail.Bear dropped us off at South Arm road around 8:30, and the day's hike was kicked off with a stiff climb up Old Blue Mountain. The whole day consisted of a lot of stiff ups and downs, making for very slow hiking due to the wet rocks. I did not get to the shelter until around 3PM, which was very frustrating.. I was pretty tired when I reached the shelter, and decided to stop for the evening.Papparazzi, Red Wing, and Hopeful were already in the shelter, and were reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" out loud. I unpacked, settled in, made supper, and took my turn reading a chapter. They finished passing the book around, but I dozed off somwhere during the final four chapters. I think I was asleep by my usual hour of 8:30PM.
Date: 2005-08-31
From: Bemis Mountain

To: Sabbath Day Pond
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: moderate rain

Today was a rough day with more low mileage. I spent most of the day hiking through what was left of Katrina. It poured ALL DAY long, and since the entire state of Maine sits on one big rock, all of the rain collected in and ran down the trail. For the most part, I hiked in a river all day long.I was going to shoot for 16 miles, but only achieved about half of that amount. I reached the shelter around 2:15, and after slipping and sliding for five hours, and busting my ass about 6 times, I felt as if I had hiked 30 miles. It was time to stop for the day.The shelter was leaking in about three different spots, but there were only five of us in the shelter, so we were able to spread out around the leaks. About an hour after arriving, a college orientation group of around 11 kids walked up and peered in the shelter. They were clearly frustrated we had arrived at the shelter before them. They went to set up their tents. It is no fun to tent in pouring rain. I felt badly for them. I'm sure that for most of them, it was their first time backpacking.About a half hour after the kids arrived, Paparazzi showed up at the shelter. Unfortunately, every empty space had a leak. There was an old tarp down at the tent platform, so he went down to get it, and put it over the roof eave using two ropes. Perfect...no more leaks for that section!As I type this, the college group is slowly starting to spread into the shelter. All eleven of their packs are piled at our feet, and their clothes and sleeping bags are hanging all over the shelter.   They appear to be settling in for the night and are eyeballing the shelter as we speak. They also appear to be preparing to play games, and it is almost dark. If it was not pouring, I would definitely be in my tent. Thank goodness it is clearing up tomorrow.
Date: 2005-09-01
From: Sabbath Day Pond

To: Gull Pond Hostel
Miles today: 9.0

Katrina let loose on us last night, but I was thankfully in the Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to with Red Wing, Hopeful, Paparazzi, and a couple of section hikers. A group of college kids arrived, but had to tent.The next morning cleared up, but the trail was knee deep in some places, and I literally waded into Rangely. I gave up all hope of being anything close to dry when I fell off a log right into the AT creek. I sloshed my way on down the trail and found Red Wing and Hopeful in a parking area at the road crossing outside Rangeley. We all got a ride into town with a family that had come out for a day hike, and thought better of it after seeing the river running down the trail.They took us straight into Gull Pond Hostel, but Bob the owner was not home, and we were too far to walk back to town. Needless to say we were hungry. Hopeful called the Rangeley Chamber of Commerce, which gave us a shuttle number. The shuttler gave us her friend's number, and she came to pick us up, and took us back to town.We had lunch, went to the library to check e-mai, and got a ride with Bob back out to the hostel. The hostel was great. I took a showere and then headed back into Rangeley to the laundry mat and supper.I crashed as soon as I got back. Wading in knee deep water will wear you out.
Date: 2005-09-03
From: Stratton

To: Bigelow Mountain
Miles today: 11.0

I left Stratton with every intention of making the other side of Bigelow. The mountains had other plans though, and I ended up stealth camping on the near side of the mountain. I could have tented at Stafford, but there was a large loud group of French Canadians headed in that direction with air horns and walkie talkies.The hostel in Stratton was very nice. The owner just recently bought the place in April, and has done a lot of renovations. I actually stayed at the hotel hostel in town, but he took me down to see his other hostel, ""Roadhouse." This was a a very impressive hostel, and definitely the nicest I've seen on the trail, with laundry, internet services, and a full kitchen. It is about 5 miles out of town though, so you have to make sure you get food and hit the PO before heading out.The weather was perfect for the hike, and I was so glad with the climb over Avery. The views were absolutely gorgeous, although the winds at the top were a little stiff. I am not crazy about heights, so I looked like a hunchback doing baby steps up the the ridge of rock on the summit.My tent spot was a wonderful soft carpet of pine needles.Cheerio
Date: 2005-09-04
From: Bigelow Mountain

To: West Carry Pond
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: light rain

I woke up on Bigelow to showers, and was completely socked in on my hike over the summit. Once down the mountain, it cleared up and ended up being a beautiful day. The hike to West Carry was fairly easy, and I got my Maine reminder of the roots and rocks yet to come.I think a lot of hikers view the last 200 miles of Maine as the promised land. There are still a few stiff climbs though, and in between these are a lot of little hills mixed in with rocks, roots and the ever present mud. All of these little obstacles don't make Maine a cake walk, but the beauty of this state far outweighs these things.Everyday consists of some type of pine needle evergreen walk in between the mud (my feet have been wet each day in Maine so far), and in between the evergreens are the most beautiful, clear, rock lined lakes. In Maine they refer to these huge lakes as "ponds," which always makes me smile. The most amazing thing about these lakes is the lack of civilization. I'm guessing b/c that in many cases the only access is ancient logging roads or the Appalachian Trail. In this day and age this still amazes me. I've not seen Mr. Bull Moose "Bull Winkle" yet, but I'm sure he is just out there waiting for some loud noisy hiker, cursing as they sink in goo up to their knees. Here moosie, moosie, moosie......
Date: 2005-09-04
From: Bigelow Mountain

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Origin: Bigelow MountainDestination: West Carry PondMiles: 10Date: 9/4/05TentStarted rainingEnded up being a gorgeous dayTheir "ponds" are my "lakes"Gorgeous lakesOnly saw one section hiker "Patches"Stopped early around 3:30Pierce Pond tomorrow and Harrisons for breakfastBold chipmunks at West Carry PondI woke up on Bigelow to showers, and was completely socked in on my hike over the summit. Once down the mountain, it cleared up and ended up being a beautiful day. The hike to West Carry was fairly easy, and I got my Maine reminder of the roots and rocks yet to come.I think a lot of hikers view the last 200 miles of Maine as the promised land. There are still a few stiff climbs though, and in between these are a lot of little hills mixed in with rocks, roots and the ever present mud. All of these little obstacles don't make Maine a cake walk, but the beauty of this state far out weighs these things.Everyday consists of some type of pine needle evergreen walk in between the mud (my feet have been wet each day in Maine so far), and in between the evergreens are the most beautiful, clear, rock lined lakes. In Maine they refer to these huge lakes as "ponds", which always makes me smile. The most amazing thing about these lakes is the lack of civilization. I'm guessing b/c that in many cases the only access is ancient logging roads or the Appalachian Trail. In this day and age this still amazes me. I've not seen Mr. Bull Moose "Bull Winkle" yet, but I'm sure he is just out there waiting for some loud noisy hiker, cursing as they sink in goo up to their knees. Here moosie, moosie, moosie......
Date: 2005-09-05
To: Caratunk, ME
Miles today: 14.0

The hike from West Carry to Pierce Pond FLEW by quickly. I had considered staying at Pierce Pond when I got there for the Harrison's breakfast the next morning, but it was only 11:00A and Mud Pumpkin, Stats, and Slow and Steady, who arrived when I did, informed me they were going another four miles and staying at Northern Outdoors in Caratunk.I was told Northern Outdoors was a lodge with rooms, a restaurant, and its own micro-brewery! Sold! The perfect ending to a rather easy hiking day. I grabbed my pack and headed down the trail. I would just eat lunch at Northern.I arrived at the Kennebec and waited for the canoe service. The Kennebec is a fast running, deep, wide river used for rafting, and you are advised not to ford it. I forded it going south several years ago without issue, but decided to wait on the others for the canoe ferry this time.Eric took us across in the canoe, and I headed for the road with Slow and Steady to hitch down to Northern. Nobody would pick us up, so we headed down to Steve's store a mile down the road, and he gave us a ride the couple miles more to Northern.Northern was great! I was able to wash myself and my clothes, and have a good dinner. I also had a couple of appetizers and a sample of their micro-brews. I'm not a big beer fan, and was reminded of this when I tried the beers. It's nice to try the local beverages though.It was a good day.