morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-08-09
From: Campsite near the Winhall river

To: Green Mountain House Hostel - Manchester Center,VT
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: clear sky

Day 118: An AT OasisWoke up early and laid in my tent for a while. A few of the gang (Boss, Miles and Deetz) were gonna leave camp by 6am to make it to town for breakfast. The rest of us were going to have a normal morning and catch lunch in town. It was just under nine miles into Manchester Center. Power Pack, Scatters and I still made good time after breaking down camp, and we made it to the road by 11am. With three girls, we didn't think it would be hard to get a hitch. It wasn't. A nice guy named Steve stopped and drove us into town and dropped us off at Friendly's. Thanks Steve!! We had hearty lunch at Friendly's and charged our dead phones. After lunch, we ran a few errands in town. I got a brand new hiking shirt. (thrilling!!!) We met back up with the other three at a pizza place in town and met Dutchess and Nuthatch as well. Deetz and Power Pack got their socks traded in for new ones at the outfitter, then we all headed to the grocery store to resupply and get food for dinner. We'd made reservations at a hostel where we could cook dinner, and Jeff, the owner, would pick us up from town when we were all ready. After shopping, we ran into 151 and Timon. They'd caught up! Xan and Neutron were inside Price Chopper, but I never got to see them since Jeff arrived. I got in the first shuttle and fell in love with our home for the night. It was a real HOME! Jeff and Regina have been running this place for three years now, and it is fantastic! So clean and homey. Just what every hiker yearns for. Shower time. Laundry. Family style dinner cooking (in a kitchen!). We grilled up veggies, the boys made steaks, and salad. Delicious!!! Hummous, sodas, bread... And part of the $15 hostel fee gets you a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. What a deal! This place rocks. We ate as much as we could, ate more, shared the rest, then hunkered down to watch Stand By Me. It's a nice, chill vibe here, and we're all looking forward to sleeping in BEDS with clean SHEETS tonight. Rain's in the forecast, but back to the trail tomorrow.
Date: 2010-08-11
From: Big Branch Shelter

To: Gould Brook (at 500 miles to Katahdin)
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 120: Falling to 500It poured rain on and off all night, but I stayed dry in my tent and managed to get sleep. Heavy condensation and a little splashing through the mesh, but I was fine. Luckily, the clouds had moved on by 6am and was only tree drizzles by the time I was standing up at 7am. Packed up the wet tent and everything else, had breakfast, then took off. It was a nice rolling flat for the first few miles, and then we got to a beautiful pond. We walked on boardwalks before Miles suddenly slipped while stepping down to take a photo. Deetz was behind him and thought he was going to end up in the water. He grabbed a tree, which saved him from a soaking, but it wrenched his shoulder out of the socket. He was ok, and, after figuring out that no one here knew how to pop a shoulder back into place, he took a dew deep breaths, relaxed, and it popped back in by itself. Apparently, that's how it usually goes for him when this happens - and it's happened a few times. He was sore but ok to hike. Phewph. Onwards!A side note about falling. Since Vermont, we've all fallen a lot. Maybe it's the mud?? Boss even fell three times yesterday, and he's pretty good on his feet. Scatters is convinced that Vermont has something against her and is trying to break her spirit. She's fallen at least six times (one was a complete face-plant). Power Pack dove into a tree two days ago. Deetz slipped down a decline on roots today. I've luckily only had my one minor spill with an ankle twist, but MANY close calls. My poles have saved me a bunch and so has a little luck as well, I think. I hope it holds up. We hiked. We took a break where there was a collection of rock cairns. We hiked. We took another break at another collection of cairns. At 2:30pm it had been exactly 13 weeks of hiking for me - almost to the four month anniversary! It was a beautiful day. And so peaceful in the woods. A bit of a breeze would've been a nice addition while climbing uphill, but I can't complain. Boss, Deetz and Power Pack had decided to walk half a mile up one of the roads to have dinner at a pizza place. Scatters and I decided to hike on a few extra miles tonight to make for a shorter day tomorrow and to eat out of our food bags. (Miles had hitched into town to go see a doctor about his shoulder.) Scatters and I said "see ya later" to the pizza kids and hiked on... up a WALL of an incline. Then a short break at the Clarendon shelter. Then another steep incline. Sooo glad we won't have those to climb in the morning  (though we will be climbing 2500 feet up to Killington Peak...). We found a nice spot to camp by a steam (our tents were still wet) and made dinner as it got dark. We'll probably hook back up with the rest of the crew sometime before getting to Rutland tomorrow afternoon. Xan and Neutron must be behind a half day or so. One Life is in Vermont somewhere. Not sure where the Aussies ended up. Time to sleep. Only 500 miles left to Katahdin!!!?!?!??!!
Date: 2010-08-14
From: Stony Brook Shelter 

To: Just above South Pomfret Road
Miles today: 17.4

Day 123: Four Months Gone By...Early wake-up after a nice sleep. Hikers from the shelter started passing by our tents around 6am. We didn't get going till 9am. No worries - it was going to be a beautiful day!It was a beautiful day. We saw Deetz, Power Pack and Miles as they left the shelter in the morning, and we spent the day trying to catch them. Short break at four miles in, by a road. Then onto hike up and down steep roller coaster hills. Longer break at three-ish miles later at an old cabin with an observation deck on top. Great view and very relaxing. Three more miles, and it was lunch time at a shelter.  Three miles after that (more roller coasters) we got to VT 12 and the small store .2 down the road that sold ice cream and sodas. And we finally caught up with Deetz, etc! We caught up and ate pints of frozen heaven. We'd all planned to go to a river, but a sobo said there was no camping there. Deetz, Miles and Power Pack went on in search of a large campsite by water. We four left a bit later and climbed away from VT-12. Eventually, we came to a road with an elevated clearing that would fit all four of us. Not knowing what was ahead and not wanting to night hike again, we set up here and planned to catch the others in the morning (again).We had enough water to make it through the night, so we made dinner and listened to Jim Gaffigan stand-up comedy on Boss' iPod. Funny stuff. Off to bed now with giggles rattling around in my head...Side note: today may be the first day in Vermont that Scatters did NOT fall.
Date: 2010-08-15
From: Just above South Pomfret Road

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 124: Berry DistractedNothing like an enormous climb to start the morning off right! Woke up after a great night's sleep, ate breakfast and then walked uphill for an hour or so. I feel like I burned up my pop tart and oatmeal within the first 8 minutes. Scatters and I stopped on top of a hill where Hitch offered us raspberries. Then we picked a bunch until Rorshach and Boss caught up. Fruit out here is such a treat, and when it's free for the picking, even better. Scatters and I walked on and talked a bunch. We played the "name your favorite meal" game for at least a mile, describing every course in detail. We took a short break by the Thistle Hill shelter with Butter, Six Toes, Hitch and Buttons. Then it was on to the deli five miles away ON the trail! We couldn't wait to get there, but the hundreds of blackberry bushes distracted us quite a bit. Some of them were HUGE and so good. Scatters and I stopped to talk with two sobo's (One Pace and Guiermo) who warned us about a few things to come. We rolled into the deli and ordered sandwiches. Miles, Power Pack and Deetz were there, digesting, and about 30 minutes later, so were we. Great food. Really nice people. And almost too much air conditioning. Chocolate milk, chips, ice cream, Gatorade, soda, a bathroom, power outlets - everything a hiker could want! We stayed there for over two hours. It would be a short day today - only four more miles to the shelter, so we relaxed and hung out until about 5pm. Then it was almost all uphill. We got to the shelter, and the stream was dry. Miles and Boss volunteered to walk back a bit to the stream that had water and fill everyone's bottles. Thanks guys!We set up. Deetz made an awesome fire. We ate and chatted and drank the TWO [glass] bottles of wine Boss packed out for everyone. It was such a nice treat to drink wine by the fire. Slowly everyone dropped out and headed back to their tents/hammocks. We are going to try to hit up Hanover for breakfast in the morning. It's about nine miles away, so it could be an early one. It's just begun to rain, so we'll see...
Date: 2010-08-16
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: light rain

Day 125: Oh HanoverAn early morning in the rain. It poured all night, but by 6am, it was reduced to drippy trees and occasional sprinkles. Most of my things were damp, but we were moving shortly after 7am. It was a quick five miles to the Connecticut river where we crossed into NEW HAMPSHIRE! The second-to-last state!!?! Deetz, Scatters and I took a break on the bridge for a few photos, and then we all headed through Dartmouth town to Lou's diner and bakery for breakfast.  Excellent breakfast and great company. We wandered around town to the post office, CVS, the outfitters. We decided to splurge on a hotel tonight since we were all a bit wet, so we rode the free bus a few miles out to the Sunset Motor Inn. We got a boys room with Miles, Boss and Rorshach, and a girls room with me, Scatters, Deetz and Power Pack. Showers!! Laundry!! Then a trip back into town to get a slice of pizza and resupply. Ramunto's Pizzaria offers thru hikers a free slice of cheese pizza, so we HAD to  go get it. Then we ended up grabbing a few more slices and a beer as well. Then onto the grocery store. Is this boring?? Blah blah blah, we ran into Tater Chip who had flip-flopped after the Shenny's and then Rock n Roll who we hadn't seen for a while. After a donut break with Wallflower, the Deetz, Power Pack, Boss and Miles crew headed back to the hotel while Rorshach, Scatters and I went back to the pizza place. Rorshach ordered a pizza to be delivered to the Sunset Motor Inn, and we managed to get delivered with the pizza. It worked out nicely. Brilliant. We all hung out with the tv back at the hotel while we packed up and planned the next few days. Poor Deetz had a fall/roll in a field of poison ivy a few days ago, and it has exploded all over her body. Don't scratch!!Tomorrow begins my "sprint" ahead before I go home for Adam and Kayanne's wedding on Friday! I'll be taking four whole days off. Too bad the mountains are just starting to get really big now... It may make sprinting more like a slow jog.
Date: 2010-08-17
From: Hanover, NH

To: Smarts Mountain Tent Site
Miles today: 23.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 126: Fresh Legs (Sprint Day #1)After an afternoon off in Hanover, it was time to sprint ahead. I woke up at 5:50am and got my things together to leave. The first bus to head back into Hanover was at 6:25, and I was going to be on it. And so was Boss. He's got a few friends back in DC and was looking for a little time off the trail, so he's gonna sprint with me and then come back to DC. With his speed and conversation capabilities, he should be a perfect sprinting partner in crime...We met up in the parking lot after I said a groggy see-you-later to Scatters in the dark of the hotel room (miss you already, Scats!), and boss and I walked towards the bus stop 200 yards away. Then the bus rounded the bend. We ran in the street and flagged the driver down and continued to run to get on the bus which had [thankfully] pulled over - 50 yards past the bus stop. We made it, but I didn't think the sprinting would start so early. Boss got breakfast at Dunkin Donuts and then we were off - out of Hanover by 7:30. Solid start to what would be a big day. Nice hiking in the cool morning. We walked by the Dartmouth sports field I played lacrosse on so many years ago... We took a few breaks when we caught up to Bird, who had camped in the woods [and claims to have been surrounded by barking cats last night...?]. Then a break atop Moose Mountain where we saw Tripper and Wizard. Red Hat and On The Loose were hiking along, and HD Mama was in the mix, too. She was slack-packing with her husband (Rick) as support. At one of the roads, we got trail magic sodas from them. Thanks!Today was full of climbing, as you can tell from the elevation profile picture. QUITE a leg work-out. After hopping up and over the Hoits Ledge mountain, we had already gone over 18 miles. We wanted to get over Smarts Mountain though! We made a last stop to get a free ice cream from Bill, a super nice guy with a house 30 yards from the trail. We said hello, signed the register and enjoyed a fudge pop. Thanks, Bill!Onwards to the mountain... So THIS is what real mountains are like! The first third was brutal. After so many miles already today, my legs were feeling it. I hardly stopped at all during the entire incline since I was scared it would be too hard to get going again. Boss was ahead, feeling kinda beat, too. There was a nice flat break in between two rigorous climbs, and the last mile and a half was really hard. My legs felt like jelly, but we made it up!!!The view was incredible. Hello, New Hampshire!! We went up in the fire tower and took a few photos before deciding not to push on any further. It was 6:15pm. We both knew we could go a few more miles downhill, but the tent site was pretty sweet, and we didn't want to damage ourselves too much. Lots more to do. HD Mama showed up, then On The Loose, then Bird. Boss made a fire and we all made dinner as the sun set. We had a nice, tranquil view over the valley. It'll be an early bed for all of us. All that climbing = very tired hikers. More tomorrow!
Date: 2010-08-18
From: Smarts Mountain Tent Site

To: Camp site right past NH 25
Miles today: 20.0

Day 127: Not So Fast (Sprint Day #2)Everyone awoke at the same time and pulled it all together. We were all a bit more sore than usual, but I was certain I'd be even more sore later this afternoon. It was a bit cloudy, so the morning view wasn't as nice as the evening one, but still good. Oatmeal and cereal for breakfast. HD Mama took off first, then On The Loose, Boss, Bird and I left about the same time. Downhill! And it wasn't too steep. Would've been nice to come up this way, actually. A good, quick four miles before we came to water, and we ran into Funk and Trooper. Today would be a collection of ups and downs, but nothing too grand. We climbed up to the highest point of the day at the summit of Cube Mountain and had a nice break. A bit chilly with the breeze on our sweaty shirts, but I keep my jacket easily accessible these days. Down Cube mountain and onwards until we found a good spot for lunch. A salami sandwich followed by a pbj sandwich, and then cookies and trail mix would do me well. A few swigs of Gatorade and we were off. A quick stop at a shelter where we met a few sobo's and HD Mama was there. I left a note for the pack I left in Hanover and took off to summit Mount Mist. Not too bad of a climb and a very anti-climactic summit. No view. Just a small sign. Pretty flat. We took a last snack break and Boss called his friend, Amy, who said she'd help us out with getting to the airport on Friday. We flattened out the details with her then began to hike downhill, looking for a camp site. We came to the bottom at NH 25, having found nothing flat enough or big enough for both our tents, so we crossed the road and kept looking. Then we found our spot. Fairly close to the road, but right by a stream. We set up, Boss made a fire, we cooked dinner and chatted till it was time for bed. We're both feeling a bit exhausted, but with our new plan with Amy, we only have to go 9 miles tomorrow. It would've been too hard to get over Moosilauke this afternoon at the end of the day, and it will be too hard to do Moosilauke and the Kinsman peaks tomorrow, so our sprinting ahead plan may not work out as predicted. We have gained at least a day, though, I think. Hopefully it will all work out when we get back to the trail on Tuesday. Tomorrow = Moosilauke. We climb from about a thousand feet up to 4800. It will be tough and steep, and it's only a taste of what's to come in the Whites... Fewer than 400 miles left as of right now. Congrats to Jess and Cyrus!!!
Date: 2010-08-19
From: Camp site right past NH 25

To: NH 112 (Passaconaway Camp site)
Miles today: 9.5

Day 128: Time for Time Off ("Sprint" Day #3)Relaxing morning, but very damp. It was like we were in a cloud. A few hikers passed our camp site before we were up and at em. Late start, but a short day. We planned only to do Moosilauke today, then to meet Boss' friend, Amy, for a night of camping before heading to the airport. It just would've been too much of a stretch to try to make it over to I-93. We hiked past the next shelter, crossed a road, then up to a sign that told us we were 3.7 miles from the summit. Here we go. Boss took off and was soon out of site. I'd planned to go the distance without stopping. It was pretty steep - like a stair-climber on the hardest setting with a 30 pound pack on. I climbed and climbed, and the legs were burning. It wasn't too warm, but I was sweating like a pig. A passed a few other hikers and kept my stride. I knew I'd made it at least halfway before I got a little light-headed and unbalanced. So, considering I had probably already burned off my entire breakfast, I stopped briefly to have a few bites of a protein bar. I charged on. I felt good. My legs were still burning but the view was getting better. I even teared up for a few seconds when I turned around to see how high I was. It was magnificent. Finally, I got to a sign that told me I was .8 miles from the summit... and then it was flat-ish for about a half mile. The last remaining trees soon were out of site and the trail opened up to exposed rocks. There was a moose (!) on a distant hill. I snapped a quick photo and marched up to meet Boss, HD Mama and Twigzy at the top. Woo hoo! Moosilauke!We took a well-deserved lunch break up there in the sun with a cool breeze forcing jackets to be put on. The Canadian Geese made it up, and then Thunder and Day Tripper arrived, too. I hadn't met any of them yet. Funk and Trooper had slacked-packed from the opposite direction and got there while we were up there. Good times. After a good hour at top, Boss and I began to make our way down. Lots of giggles and a few stumbles, but we made it all the way to NH 112 before 3pm. HD mama and Rick were down there with his truck and offered us a quick ride up the road where we'd meet Amy. A soda AND a ride! Thanks guys. A few minutes later, we were saying hi to Amy and her adorable lab puppy, Izzy. And she brought ice cream! (Amy knows what's up.)Since it was a magical, beautiful, gorgeous day, Amy drove us around to a few view spots, and I loved it. It's so pretty around here! We ended up at the Passaconaway camp site and set up before heading to dinner in North Conway. Ohmygoodness dinner was GOOD! She took us to The Moat. Good beer, nachos, a pulled pork burrito, sandwiches, and sweet potato fries. I highly recommended this restaurant. (Again... Amy knows what's up.)After dinner, we took a growler of pale ale back to the campsite and hung out by the fire. A little music and conversation before hitting the hay. Hard to believe I'll be boarding a plane tomorrow afternoon!?Full blog and photos: maine2010.blogspot.com
Date: 2010-08-20
From: NH 112 (Passaconaway Camp site)

To: My Parents' House in Berlin, MD
Miles today: 0.0

Day 129: Flying is Very EfficientDidn't wake up too early and broke down camp pretty quickly. Boss and I took showers at the [over-priced] camp showers. Eight quarters for 6 minutes! We didn't have enough change, but luckily showermaster Bob let us take a cash advance to avoid having to run back to the car. After getting clean, we met Amy down at the watering hole where Izzy was having a blast splashing around in the stream. The water was too cold to swim, so we headed into town for breakfast at The Blueberry Muffin. Delicious breakfast (and blueberry flavored coffee?!) and great conversation before paying the tab and driving around to a few climbing spots. We weren't planning on climbing today, of course, but Amy and Boss are climbers, and Amy has climbed a bunch in this area. Beautiful spots and another gorgeous day. The Cathedral looked like it would be a lot of fun. We had to rip ourselves away from being tourists and to start heading down to the airport in Manchester. Great day for a road trip (or anything, really) and stunning New Hampshire landscapes. Meredith was so adorable! Unfortunately, we hit traffic. At a few points, we were worried we'd miss the flight, but since we were leaving our tent stakes, lights, stoves, and hiking poles with Amy, we could carry our packs on the plane. It was a bit tight for timing, but we made it with a few minutes to spare - enough for Boss to grab some food. Thanks for driving and hosting us, Amy!! See you Monday!It was weird to fly. So efficient and clean. We had a few funny flight attendants entertain us every time they had something to say over the intercom, and we read the entire sky mall catalogue. In 90 minutes, we had traveled 455 miles. Our normal distance for that time is 4-5 miles...My mom picked us up at the airport with snacks and hugs, and after hitting a bit of beach traffic, we chatted our way home. My brother cooked up a FEAST while we were on the way. Steaks and chicken and veggies and corn and lots of other good stuff. Yum!We all ate ourselves silly and chatted about everything until Boss and I were about to pass out with fatigue. It was WAY past hiker midnight (it was actual midnight), so we all went to bed. Looking forward to breakfast in the morning. It's so weird to be back here.  Home-cooked meals and beds and laundry and my family. Nice. Full blog and photos: http://maine2010.blogspot.com
Date: 2010-08-24
From: DC to Plymouth, NH

To: Plymouth, NH
Miles today: 0.0

Day 133: One More ZeroWoke up late and loved it. It's amazing how much just driving can take out of you. Tyler was off at a meeting all morning, so Boss and I drove into town to have breakfast, stop at the post office, get gas and resupply at the grocery store. It was such a nice day, and Plymouth is adorable. Back at Renee's, we packed up. Boss took care of some business on the phone while I also made a few calls. We had the option to lay low at the house and leave around 3pm, so we took that option. It was nice to recover from the whirlwind weekend. When Tyler got back, he invited us to stay another night and enjoy a grilled dinner and a few beers. We couldn't resist. Does that make us bad hikers...?Tyler grilled us an amazing feast of sausage, pork tenderloin, steak tips, peppers, asparagus, and garlic bread. Soooooo delicious! Thank you, Tyler!! And if it hadn't been for a small, bizarre accident with a knife, it would've been a perfect evening. While we were eating outside, I somehow dropped a steak knife so that it landed on my right foot - stabby side down. With the help of gravity, I stabbed my own foot. Who does that?It bled a bit more than was comfortable, but I kept pressure on it, and I'm pretty sure it's only skin deep. It's doing fine now, and I think it'll be fine in the morning. Maybe a bit sore? We plan to leave Plymouth really early to get back to the trail to make up for not hiking this afternoon, so I hope it'll feel good. I'm sure it will.Hope the legs will be ready to go after 5 whole days off. Looking forward to a great next stretch of trail. Bring on the Whites!