morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-03-06
From: Mt Collins

To: Pecks Corner
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

Another perfect day and into Newfound Gap. Newfound Gap is the only road that the AT crosses through the whole park. It is exciting because after many days in the woods, you get to see real people. It is also the place to hitch into Gatlinburg. I sat on a little rock wall and contemplated the decision to hitch in. After dreaming of warm beds, pizza and TV, I decided all I needed was a quick refill of water from the bathroom and to people watch here.        There were a ton of sightseers and day hikers, even an elementary school field trip. So sitting on that rock wall, I just watched what people did for an hour.        After tearing away from semi-civilization, we walked to Charlie¢s Bunion, aka the Bunion, for the best views of the whole trip. Definitely a mental milestone and something I was looking forward to.        The trail is incredible in the way that you never know who you will run into. Just past the Bunion we find Adam and Phil, who went in to the Gat. And finally got to meet Hurricane and Spencer who also went to the Gat. I thought they were long gone, but right now we have 6 Thrus and 1 long sectioner in the shelter. Pretty good group.Where did Chuck go?JordanReal time journal entry posted 3/16/08Just another quick update. I am surprised my entries from the smokies haven't made it up yet...perhaps I'll have to call the parents and find out what the deal is. But I am in Erwin, Tennessee. One month of hiking has taken me 340 miles. I expect this number to be much larger for next month as the miles are easier and my ability is greater. I have had some wonderful and crazy experiences in the past week, and hope my journals have captured them well. I'm taking a zero day today at Uncle Johnny's and getting to the post tomorrow to send journals home with more pictures.Thanks again for all of the messages. They really do have a tremendous impact on my overall moral. One of my craziest hiking days happened two days ago, it should be a good read. It involves a long day, hours of night hiking, rain, wind, and nearly getting lost on top of a bald mountain.
Date: 2008-03-07
From: Pecks Corner

To: Davenport Gap
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: moderate rain

So, today started out terrible. The threat of rain caused me to want to wake up and headlamp for a while to get dry miles. But it started early. So after seeing today was going to be miserable, the whole shelter (11 people) slept in.        Going by 9 and in for lunch (freezing) by 11:15. I don¢t have rain pants and don¢t plan on getting any. I¢ll come back to this later. And my gloves could not fight the war against massive ridge walk wind gusts. I decided in a frozen brain state to turn my space blanket into a space rain kilt. The level of warmth and dryness was incredible. But it wouldn¢t stay together very well. So for 7.7 miles, I held it up with one hand and carried my trek poles in the other.        This brings me to two revelations. First, if there is a real rain kilt available, I need one. Second and more importantly, my knee pain is gone. Call it coincidence¢¦ maybe getting broken-in on the trail¢¦ I doubt it. But I¢m just laying this out there. Maine ¢ no pain ¢ no poles. Penn ¢ pain and poles. Training for trail ¢ no pain no poles. Real deal ¢ pain and poles. Today ¢ no pain no poles. So I¢m thinking about bouncing my poles (and stove¢¦ again more later) when I get to Hot Springs.        This afternoon the sun came out and I convinced Felton to do 7.1 more miles than we had planned so we can "nero" tomorrow at Standing Bear Farm. Rumor is 3-6¢ of snow is coming. So we want to set ourselves up for a quick icy dash to clean clothes and hot food.Note: Considering a true Scottish hiking kilt. (I might have been really, really close to hypothermia today). But seriously, if I could find a Frogg Togg rain kilt or make one, I would wear it proudly, not matter what color. Thinking about calling the company for a special order.Note 2: Chuck is the man. Two super-long days and a stealth camp and he is already at Standing Bear Farm¢¦ impressive.Note 3: First 20 mile day.
Date: 2008-03-08
From: Davenport Gap

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 3.3
Weather: light snow

Following a 20-mile day, a nice 3.3 put us into Standing Bear Farm hostel. I will say that the 3.3 hurt more today than hiking all day yesterday. The snow and rain finally came and drained us during the tough 1.2-hour hike.        I should say a few things bout SBF. Great people. Everyone seems so helpful and funny. This is what makes it a great place to be. The facilities are incredible. I think they were hand-built, but I would have enjoyed them more in the Spring or Summer¢¦ it was pretty cold. The upside to this: the whole day was spent huddled around a wood-burning heater telling stories -- something that was priceless and could not have happened on a warm day. In addition to meeting and hanging out with Curtis and Rockhound, Jack Tarlin was passing through and gave us many useful tips about hiking the trail. It all turned out to be a real nice experience.         Other important notes on the day: I crossed under Interstate 40, which is a stretch I have traveled many times driving to school (College of Charleston). It was my favorite part of the drive. Also, we got shuttled to a gas/food market at exit 447 from SBF. I realized I had purchased gas there no more than a year ago. Same person (me) -- same place ¢ totally different circumstances a year apart¢¦ felt neat.
Date: 2008-03-09
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Max Patch Summit 
Miles today: 13.6

This was the perfect day¢¦the day you walk alone in the rain for. Started out bounding through snow and cold, but by midday, the sun was out and warm. Great trails, slight breeze, Max Patch.This mountain has been a landmark for me since the beginning of the trip. A mountain with views, no trees, and soft grass for nearly a mile on top. It was better than that. I finally found a sense of achievement and gratification from the trail. I have had small victories, but this feeling is the reason for the thru-hike. It got better. Me, Felton, Alex, Matt, Chuck and Allgood slept near the summit. We had a breezy evening, but sunset, stars, and sunrise were all visible out my tarp overhang. Sleeping up here makes those dingy, old shelters seem like prisons (especially ones with bear fencing). I think I¢m going to try and tarp more, especially as it warms up.
Date: 2008-03-10
From: Max Patch Summit 

To: Hot Springs 
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: few clouds

I woke up this morning on Max Patch with just an orange/pink ribbon on the horizon. I laid there thinking about hiking and realized I was sick of being stuck in my bag. Pretty much every morning, I wake up with the temp inside my bag a nice 75F or so, temp outside 30ish. It is just getting annoying being cold every night and morning. I decided right then I was going all the way to Hot Springs (not the original plan).With the thought of getting up to use the restroom and not going into full-convulsion-muscle-freakout due to the cold, I hiked confidently into Hot Springs by 5:30. An 8-hr hike with incredible rewards. I finally decided to stay at (found) the Sunshine ____ run by Elmer Hall. The old Victorian house is enormous and filled with all sorts of interesting things. But the true highlight is hanging out with Elmer, who gets almost all the Thrus and treats them like family. A former Thru-Hiker (¢76), he knows what it¢s like. Giving preference to Thrus over other guests even though they pay only a fraction of the price¢¦ a true trail saint.        Only regret is that I ate at the diner across the street instead of here (although I joined everyone for the meal). Food was good at the diner, but Elmer is an artist. I guess I¢ll have to stay tomorrow to fix this problem. Haven¢t had a zero in a while (but a nero 2 days ago). I guess it¢s worth it. One of the trail towns that¢s worth checking out. Possibly going for some Hot Springs soaking tomorrow.Night.
Date: 2008-03-11
From: Hot Springs 

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

So this is my day in Hot Springs. Woke up thinking breakfast was at 8:30. But no Elmer (he had to go to Ashville). So I went to the diner across the street and ran into Chuck. Nice timing. Ate (4 eggs, 2 biscuits + gravy, sausage, English muffin w/ apple butter, $6.65). Re-supplied at the outfitter and bought way too much food. (However I am excited to say I found a rain kilt. It is blue and it is going to rain Friday). Walked 10 minutes to the library (11:05). It was closed from 11-12:30 for employee training. Walked 10 minutes back. Went to post office (11:35), closed from 11:30-1:00. Started laundry at the Laundromat. Back to outfitter for a new book to read on trail. (Couldn¢t decide on a book, but laundry was done, so back to Laundromat). Dropped off clothes, back to post office. Then back to Elmer¢s. Ran into Alex. Walked to library again. Finally got to do the Internet thing. Back to Elmer¢s. Back to outfitters to choose a book for real. Halfway back to Elmer¢s I ran into Alex and Felton at the Hillbilly Market. Didn¢t want to buy more food so I left, but was drawn into the Dollar General. After looking around, decided then that I needed more stuff, but not from Dollar General. Back to Hillbilly Market. Spent too much money on too much food. Finally back to Elmer¢s. (I honestly feel like I could eat for 10 days on what I bought. I only need 5 days worth). Dinner was outstanding, totally incomparable to anything I¢ll see on the rest of the trail. Followed by a trip to the hot springs in Hot Springs¢¦ super soaking. Back to Elmer¢s and into bed. I really enjoyed my time here and spent a lot of time exploring the ¢littlest big town¢ on the trail (pop. 500ish). But even on a zero, I seriously walked for hours. The only zero part is no trip miles. Daily miles I probably had my biggest day, yet.Totally exhausted. I am going to plan a true ¢0¢ mile day sometime soon so I can lay around and rest.Drained. Done.
Date: 2008-03-12
From: Hot Springs

To: Cold Spring Shelter 
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: clear sky

I would say it was tough leaving Hot Springs, but it wasn¢t. Travelers have to travel. Plus I think I wore out Hot Springs yesterday. A couple of notes, then a typical day. I think I'm ready to generalize.1.        Didn¢t walk through snow today. I had mixed feelings about this. Dry feet good. But now I have no idea who is in front of me. I know the tread pattern and size of several (about 5) people¢s shoes.2.        There were several occasions I ran into people today. They weren¢t hikers, so it kind of freaked me out. Maybe I¢m getting used to woods, even find safety in it so I was startled¢¦ like walking into your house and having a stranger sitting at your table. I guess I¢ll get used to more people on the trail as the weather gets nicer.Typical day -- based on several days on the trail-        Wake up. Sun almost up. Usually awoken by someone else packing up. Roll back over. Re-insert ear plug that came loose overnight. Sleep for 30 more minutes. -        Get out of sleeping bag. Usually in the 30¢s. Feel the sharp sting of the air like a slap on the hand with a ruler. -        Breakfast. Poptart. Again.-        Walk for a long time. Re-evaluate aches from yesterday¢s hiking. Await new pains.-        Lunch: tuna wrap with mayo. Disgusting PowerBar.-        Walk for a longer time. Get hot and take off jacket, hat, pants, everything. Get cold and put it all back on. Get hot and get irritated. Walk uphill when you thought you were going to be doing easy miles the rest of the day.-        Finally arrive at shelter and realize the thing was built in 1938, sleeps 5 (2) and the decomposing wood has been patched with duct tape. Also you hear a dinner bell rung by a mouse on lookout alerting every rodent this side of the French Broad (River). It is time to annoy hikers.-        Eat dinner: whatever is left in the food sack. (No more noodles for me. Sent the stove home). Whatever it is you realize it is lodged in your throat and you need a drink. Out of water due to the excessive uphill to get to the shelter. Now you have to walk 200 yard through leaves and ice in crocs to get water. Get back, 20 minutes to purity. Blue in the face and choking on dry food. Finally you quench your thirst and finish dinner.-        Get in bed: unroll sleeping pad and bag, damp from the night before (mysterious condensation). Time to rest. Nope, time to journal making sure to get all you complaints on paper so everyone knows how big of a wuss you are. -        Sleep kinda. Toss and turn. Weird smells and snoring coming from across the shelter. Have crazy dreams (more later). Manage to catch a few. Do it all tomorrow.
Date: 2008-03-13
From: Cold Spring Shelter 

To: JerryÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Cabin 
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Went to sleep last night without any water. The spring was nearly dry and not flowing so I decided to walk this morning to the next spring. 1 mile, spring on map, dry. 2.5 miles, dry. 4 miles, dry. Just as I was really starting to get thirsty I saw Adam and Phil standing and staring in awe. Water? Nope¢¦ ¢Trail Magic, March 13, East 300 yards and up the concrete driveway¢. The license plate was THRU HKD. We were in the right place. Some former hikers, Fal and Hercules fixed us up Belgian waffles, stuffed bell peppers, and banana splits. Also sending us on our way with reading material and WATER! This was our first trail magic experience. It truly came out of nowhere, and was at an unbelievable time. Thank you folks so much. Rest of the day was nice with a great ankle breaking, ridge walk and a tough 2500-foot ascent after lunch. Hiking today ¢ Hiking tomorrow
Date: 2008-03-14
From: JerryÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Cabin 

To: Bald Mt. Shelter 
Miles today: 24.8

So today was a really crazy day. I¢m going to try to put words to what happened. Morning was a late start, 9:30. Had to have second breakfast at 10:30. By 1:00 ,me, Spencer, Hurricane and their friend Will were at Devils Fork Gap. 8.7 miles. They were heading back to Hot Springs for the weekend with family. So I leave them and head 6.1 miles to Hogback Ridge Shelter. Along the way, the clouds break (it had been threatening rain all day) and I get a glimpse of the 10.2-mile ridge walk over Big Bald. (Could it be possible)?   So I eat dinner at around 4:00. Along came some hikers who I had met the previous day. Crazy Alex and Crazy Bob. (Not their real trail names). Somehow after hearing they are pushing on to tent, and I hadn¢t seen Adam of Phil all day, I decided to push north. It was 5:30. Things are ok for a while. Then I break to rid myself of rain gear, start back up and my knee has totally stiffened up. Stop again to put rain gear back on, and it does it again. I get so mad. Next, no water in any springs. So my knee loosens up (thankfully) and it gets dark and starts to rain. I find water. Soaking everything I have just to grab a drink. I get my pack back together and continue. With my headlamp on I can see about 4 feet. Realizing the fog is so thick I need fog lights. With my headlamp in hand, I can see 6 feet. Good enough. I slipped, fell, got off trail a few times, and I was actually a little worried. But finally ascended over 1200 feet in the dark and made it to Big Bald. Strangely, no wind or rain. This is a grass hill, 5500 feet in the air and I am on the moon. I played connect the dots (poles with blazes) using my 6 feet of vision and manage to cross the balds and make it down to the shelter. I got in at 9:30. I thought Chuck, Chris, Jenny and all thru hikers who left a half-day ahead of me would be there. I was planning on stumbling in, soaked, and covered in mud (in my rain kilt), in the dark and surprising them. But the joke was on me when I rolled into an empty shelter. So I don¢t know where those guys went.It was a little scary hiking this evening, but it turned out ok. I don¢t think I¢ll be doing any solo rain night hiking anytime soon. Especially across the windy balds. (Oh yea, one side of the mountain was calm and dry, the other insanely windy and blowing rain). Notes:1.        Group night hiking fun, solo night hiking doable. Group nigh hiking   in rain, (possibly hilariously awesome), solo night hiking in rain, DUMB. 2.        At least I¢ll make it to Erwin tomorrow.3.        I have no idea what to think about my tendon issues. It just won¢t go away for good. 4.        Longest day. 25 miles. Probably did it in just over 10 hours excluding my 2-hour dinner break.
Date: 2008-03-15
From: Bald Mt. Shelter 

To: Erwin Tennessee 
Miles today: 16.8

When I woke up, I realized I was in one of the nicest shelters I have stayed in. And although the prediction was thunderstorms, the sun was out. So after about an hour of warming up I decided to take my shirt off and get some sun. Really felt good. But after lunch, clouds rolled in and it started to storm. All I could think about was catching Chuck. (He can only think about staying ahead of us). So I was doing a pretty good pace. There was some thunder, which also pushed me along. But the scariest thing happened on the trail today. I was walking with my head down and really cranking when I heard a super loud bang, the ground shook, and I jumped and spun around. Not lightening, but a 6-foot tree branch with an 8¢ diameter fell across the trail 2 feet behind me and exploded. It really shook me up. 1 or 2 steps slower on the whole day and I would have been knocked out. Crazy.I did make it into Erwin, found Chuck right as I walked into Uncle Johnny¢s. Every bed in the whole area was booked for the Nascar races in Bristol. With only tent space available (I don¢t have a tent, only a tarp) I looked around to find a dry place to sleep. Under the bunkhouse, sneak under a bed (creepy), or in the laundry room. Finally I decided, with the help of a section hiker named Lance, to ask to rent the couch in a totally full bunkhouse. Dry sleeping. Although loud, hot, and squishy.I think I¢ll be just fine in Erwin.Note: Dinner ¢ Large super deluxe pizza and a 4-pound salad. I did manage to finish. (But pizza wasn¢t totally consumed until breakfast in the morning.)
Date: 2008-03-16
From: Erwin Tennessee 

To: Erwin Tennessee
Miles today: 0.0

This is my 4th zero-mile day. Right on schedule as I have just finished my first complete month on the trail. I managed to walk 340 miles. Not as many as I thought I would do, but totally respectable. (I also had three 3-mile days). So I expect the miles next month to be much larger¢¦ easier miles, warmer weather, more people, and longer days. Not much to see in Virginia (although I¢m sure it¢s still nice). I¢m hoping for around 500 miles. Maybe a little high, but certainly possible at 6-20 miles per day¢¦ a week of hiking and a rest day-ish. I was also thinking about the time it takes to walk the trail. At 25 miles per day, it takes 88 straight days. That seems crazy. If you walk 2 miles per hour, it takes 1100 hours. Twelve hours a day, 7 days a week, 85 hours a week for over 3 months just to finish without taking time for anything. That¢s 2 fulltime jobs. Crazy My pace is definitely not that quick. And I¢m glad because it would not be any fun. Just thoughts that make the trail endless and I¢m taking today off because I have to go the post office tomorrow (I planned this to make myself zero). Also, Felton made it today. Adam and Phil oddly did not. I think they might be sick. A quick tangent¢¦ In Hot Springs, we walked into a biohazard zone. Everyone I talked to had or had had the flu. The workers at Elmer¢s, the lady at the outfitter who helped me pick out fruit (I didn¢t take her advice since she touched the apples and bananas), the lady at the Laundromat/quick stop/movie rental/beer store. So we all thought we were going to get sick. I was crazy paranoid keeping my hands clean. So I¢m hoping Adam and Phil don¢t have the flu, but they may. (That was not so quick of a tangent). They even shut down some schools in the area -- keeping my fingers crossed.More later.
Date: 2008-03-17
From: Erwin Tennessee

To: Deep Gap
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Had to run errands today since yesterday I actually zeroed (unlike Hot Springs). Got to the post, mailed stuff home, then me and Felton (now known as Transfat due to the massive amount of gas station Honey Buns he consumes) went on a Food Lion shopping spree with no time limit. It was very enjoyable shopping and hitting every isle.Next, Chino Kitchen for some face stuffage (more transfats & MSG). And after a few phone calls, got back on the trail after a brief run in with Alex (unofficially Betty Croc-Monsieur carrying olive oil, red wine, spice rack etc¢¦ we bought him a 5-lb bag of flour at Food Lion and left it on his bunk, possibly for cookies) and Matt, who is getting off the trail soon. I had mixed feelings about leaving Erwin. Although zeros are relaxing, they kind of make me want to be sitting at home. So the first few miles back into the woods were a little slow (also due to my massive pack). After 4 miles of hiking, Transfat and I made an emergency (eat a bunch of crap so we don¢t die from the weight) stop. After that, I felt much better. The day ended with tarping in some ferocious wind. At least we are dry.
Date: 2008-03-18
From: Deep Gap

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a Great Day. Started a bit slow and we got whooped climbing up Unaka Mountain, but we had lunch and got fueled for the day. Sometime during the day we decided to have lunch #2 at Clyde Smith Shelter and press on. We left Clyde at 6:00 with big plans. We ate a ton, looked at the profile, and headed toward Roan Mountain. A few miles to the base and at sunset we were staring up at a 3.4-mile, 2200+ foot climb.         It was cloudy all day and as we started up, the wind really picked up and rain fell. Headlamps on, we worked the stair stepper for one hour 30 minutes, only stopping once for water and once for rain gear. We marched straight up the mountain, over fallen trees and ice and snow that has remained for weeks -- we are finally hikers        I am really proud of the hike me and Felton made, my legs felt great, energy level was good, and we pretty much worked one of the tallest, steepest climbs.        The next section is supposed to be incredibly beautiful. Too bad it will be raining as we pass. Another note, which I almost forgot, is that we met a bunch of people maintaining the trail today. They were getting a section ready for a re-route, and sent us down the new un-blazed trail as the first thru-hikers to cross this way. Along the way I met two very important people in the trail community: Mountain Squid, who does a bunch with whiteblaze.net and the trail, and also Bob Peoples, trail saint / maintainer / owner of Kincora Hostel where we plan on staying in a couple of days.        So as a true man of the trail, he asked me to mark all of the blow-downs and sizes for the next section to give them an idea of what tools they need to clean it up. I couldn¢t say no. So I spent the afternoon trying to find myself on a map (I rarely use) and marking where the trees had fallen. Made me feel slightly important (whether I was or not).Great Day, a lot happened. Hoping for a nice one tomorrow, against the forecast.