morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-06-03
From: Harpers Ferry

To: Dahlgreen Backpack Campground
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: overcast clouds

At breakfast today we were a bit surprised when Cpt Ph. said good bye to us, he will now visit some family members in the USA before flying home. We didn't know that he was only section hiking, we are sorry for Lunch who was used to his hiking partner. We came along the Potomac river had some beautiful views. Just as we were trying to cross the tracks the barriers closed we took our backpacks off because that would take time a very long train was passing by. Mike later told us he had set up his tent near the tracks and he couldn't sleep the whole night. In the afternoon we arrived at the Dahlgren Backpack Campground ther was a tent and we met the Swiss couple we asked where they have been all the time, he had cut himself and had to be stitched in Hospital. They took some time off the Trail and went on the beach for about 2 weeks. This campground is huge, with restrooms and showers and a Restaurant nearby we decided to go there with the swiss couple. We took a shower and when I came out I saw the german hiker and there was another one I didn't recognized him when he called me it was Mike I gave him a big hug and called Pierre to say hello, he was so skinny he wouldn't stay here he will go further. A bit later we went to the Restaurant the waitress looked at us from top to bottom with an x-ray view and found us clean enough to eat in the Restaurant. We ate very well and had a good conversation.
Date: 2014-06-04
From: Dahlgreen Backpack Campground

To: Raven Rock
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: clear sky

After we had breakfast and everything was packed we went out together with the swiss couple, after only 2 miles we came to the Washington Monument we stayed there for a while. We continued on hiking we have another pace than the swiss and they took a longer break. We didn't hike to the Annapolis Rock, now I'm sorry about that I thought it would be another Rock cropping but this one must be beautful , everyone who came along asked if we have been there, nope and they said you have missed something special. It's very rocky my feet are hurting me.
Date: 2014-06-05
From: Raven Rock

To: Quarry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 25.4
Weather: light rain

We made it to Pennsylvania and I know also now why it is called Painsylvania or Rocksylvania, it is a bit flatter, only a bit, but much more rocky. We came across the Pen Mar County Park which is at the MD - PA border about 8 miles later to the Old Forge Park there is a picnic area they have also showers and only 3 miles before our campsite is a side trail to Caledonia State Park.Some hikers have passed us like " Long bone " and some other younger hikers, they are all very friendly all the time when we see some other hikers everybody says hi how is it going or how are you doing. If we see some locals they ask where we come from and we say from Springer Mountain Georgia and some are very surprised and ask all the way hiking ? yes hiking some gave us some fruit everyone is very nice we will miss it when we are back home. It has been a long day with very nice weather.
Date: 2014-06-06
From: Quarry Gap Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: light rain

Today was a great day for us we did it to the Midpoint after about 11 miles I am very happy that we have made it this far on my birthday I will always remember that on my 54 th birthday I was at the Midpoint on the AT. How many times did I want to give up and I'm still not sure yet if we'll stay until the end. About 5 miles later we were at the Pine Grove Furnace State Park there is also the AT Museum but unfortunately we were to late it was closed. Here is also a General Store the home of the half gallon challenge wi didn't ate a half gallon. When we arrived we saw Lunch and Long bone sitting there eating a half gallon of ice cream, congratulations to them. We ate and talked for a while with them and went out again.
Date: 2014-06-07
From: Campsite

To: Boiling Springs
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: scattered clouds

We had an early start today, we wanted to go to the Allenbary Resort like so many others but we didn't have a reservation. When we arrived we already saw some familiar faces,the german guy with his buddy Union Jack. When we asked for a room at the reception we were shocked by the price and we asked if there was no special prices for hikers. Oh so you're on the AT,then we got a cheaper price including breakfast and lunch with an all you can eat buffet. There were some other people behind us who were very surprised because they had to pay the expensive price. We went to our room got a shower, we wanted to do our laundry but there was only 1 machine so I sat down and waited until the machine was freed. When we had all done we walked bout a mile and we saw a street market their were stands with homemade goods, some people from the AT, first aid,rescue dogs. Many people in the streets we went to a Restaurant to ate some snacks and a drink. Then we walked back to the Resort we had problems with his feet he sat down with us but he also wanted to go to the street market. He set out to find someone to give him a ride an he found someone , lucky man. Later we went to the Restaurant for dinner it was full inside so many officials from the AT we got a table and someone came to us and asked if we were hiking on the AT and if we have been at the AT Museum we said yes but we came to late it was closed he was sorry about that and he gave Pierre his had. Later we heard from another hiker that soeone has paid his dinner, very nice people. There is also a theater here at the Resort , I wanted to go there with Union Jack because the german guy and Pierre don't like theater but later we decided not to go we were to tired.
Date: 2014-06-08
From: Boiling Springs

To: PA 850
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: light rain

At breakfast we met Mike, Long bone , Right Here and some other hikers they all have to stay another night because they came in to late yesterday an the post office was closed and they all have a box with ressuply at the post office. We feld sorry for them because tonight and tomorrow there is no more buffet.We said goodbye and went out only about 2 miles we saw 2 chairs in front of a house and a cooler with sodas and a book to write our names in, we took a little break and drunk a Soda. We walked along and we hear gunshots again and again and than we saw people in costumes in the distance they are certainly reminiscent of a war. In the early afternoon the weather changed clouds came up and a bit later it started to rain.We hiked for about 3 more hours wanted to go further but we were so wet so we decided to stay here in the middle of nowhere a man passed when we pitchted the tent and we thought perhaps we gonna have trouble but he went away.
Date: 2014-06-09
From: PA 850

To: Peters Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: broken clouds

Everything was wet inside and outside we have camped near a stream and it was raining almost the whole night. When we finished breakfast we went off, the weather looks better than yesterday. After only 2 miles the terrain started to get really rocky I was glad that the rocks weren't wet anymore otherwise it would be more slippery and therefore more dangerous.First we had an up About 600 feet and then straight and rocky for 6 miles and then a descent to 384 feet to Duncannon. We went in to the Doyle Hotel which is very known on the trail we had lunch and a cold beer, it's all a bit older here but the owners are very friendly. We moved on again down the street, when a young man came out of his house to go to his mailbox. When he saw us he asked if we would like to drink a beer with him on his terrace, we went behind the house he has a view at the Susquehanna River. He told us he works in Washington which is not far from here and that he hiked the AT last year. We would have like to stay but we still had about 10 miles to go and it got warmer and warmer. We walked across the Clarks Ferry Bridge, US 22/322 very noisy, Railroad tracks,and up about 1000 feet. We came to Clarks Ferry Shelter but could hear the noise from the road so we went to the next one.
Date: 2014-06-10
From: Peters Mountain Shelter

To: Shikellemy trail
Miles today: 4.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Do not quit the trail on a bad day thats what we heard a lot of times, it was not a bad weather day but a very bad mood day. I don't want to hike anymore, we hiked 4.1 mile when I saw the sign Shikellimy Trail 0.9 to parking area. I said to Pierre I'm so sorry but I wanna go home seriuosly this time Pierre looked at me are you kidding me I said no not this time I really want to go home. We went down to the parking at the guide I could find a phone number for a ride we had to wait about 30 minutes. We explained that we need a room and we need to rent a car, he phoned with his wife to help find a rental car he drove us to Pine Grove we stayed there for 2 nights then he drove us to Harrisbourg and we had to drive back with the rental car to Delaware Water Gap because we had send our winter gear to that post Office. We had phoned with our daughter Nathalie for a new fly back home from Atlanta, we drove the whole way back from where we hiked we saw the mountains from down the road it was very impressing. We went to Front Royal saying good bye to Flinch, went to Damascus saying good bye to Linda and Jerry and went of course to Franklin saying good bye to Renee who still had our box with all that gear ( surplus ) we took out in Neels Gap she wanted to send it home but it was to expensive so she kept it home. Thank you so much to all those who have helped and supported us on the Trail and in towns. We will miss all this fantastic Trail Family Right Here, Al & Mike, Lunch & Captain, Mobius, Long bone, Tortoise and Just Paul, Flinch and all those others of the names I don't remember anymore. And of course all the Trail angels without you it would be much harder on hiking the AT, thank you.
Date: 2019-12-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

In 2014 I didn't know trail journal exist, I heard about it while hiking on the trail. Since we came back on the AT in 2017 and I've had a journal I thought it would be ok to write about our experiences from the first time. I wrote this Journal from notes in the AT guide and my memories.Maybe I've forgotten a few things by now, but the most important is written here, perhaps in a few years our children or grandchildren like to read about our adventure. In 2014 I often said never again I would come back to the AT, but I have to admit since we came home I thought every day on the AT. Especially when I saw that everything was fine with Nelly, if it hadn't been that far we would have been back on trail after 14 days. We waited until 2017 and came back started on the Approach Trail and Unfortunately we stopped in Bennington VT because I had fallen and had hurt my ribs. We try a third time in 2020 and gonna start in Bennington I hope we can finish it for good this time.
Date: 2014-02-11
To: Start of the Journal - About me
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Welcome to my trail journal!Wow, where do I begin!? My name is Alex Murray, I'm from Columbus, OH, and I plan to thru hike the Appalachian Trail this year. This has been a personal goal of mine for quite some time now. The past year of my life has been full of excitement. I graduated with a degree in Video Production from Ohio University, had an internship at one of the coolest media houses in Columbus to ever exist, worked on a farm in Athens, OH, and now I'm working in Columbus doing freelance video work - All of this in preparation for what is to come later in my life. As for now, my one and only goal is to finish the AT. Saving money has been crucial for this trip. I have been slowly buying my gear since the beginning of Summer 2013, which has been very expensive. The other main expense is the trail itself. Hikers spend anywhere from $2000 - $7000 on food, hotels, rides, more gear, and anything that seems to help get them along the way to finish the AT. While working this last year, my main goal was to save in order to pay for this. I seem to have finally reached a point where I feel comfortable financially (for the hike). When I was a kid, I had always been intrigued by the trail. My grandfather had hiked the trail in 1989' and I was always curious about it. He passed when I was 11, so I never had the chance to know him as the "adult" I am now. I recently came across some of his AT trail journals, which were pretty amazing to read. He was a great writer, and his entries made me really excited for my journey. So, I figured the best way to walk in his memory would be to adopt his trail name, "Towhee". I'll be starting my journey the weekend of March 22 with my dog, Reptar. He is a young Australian Cattle Dog (Blue Heeler) with a lot of personality. I raised him to hike and love the woods - he seems to be eager to start as well. Hiking with a dog will add a large challenge to my goal, but I don't know how I would be able to do it without him. He's the coolest. Another interesting aspect of my hike will be that I'm planning to film it. I'm taking a small camera package that will allow me to take high quality video without weight being a huge concern. I'm not sure what I will do with all of the footage exactly, but I just want to have every aspect documented - so be on the lookout after I am finished for a small documentary? That seems to be the bulk of it! I hope you enjoy following along as I walk! I don't know how often I will be posting onto this online journal, but I can imagine at least once a week (from my smartphone). Thank you all for the support! More to come!-Towhee
Date: 2014-03-12
To: Coming up quick!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

One week from today, my girlfriend, Hannah, will be taking me down south! I start hiking on Saturday the 22, but Hannah and I decided we wanted to spend some time together and take a mini-vacation before I departed. The plan is to stay in Chattanooga until Saturday morning, and then drive 2 hours to the AT approach trail. I've gone through some quick gear changes in the last week or so, and am still figuring out what exactly what is working best and what is not. For instance, Reptar and I slept outside the other night while temps got down to 30 - Unfortunately, what I thought was adequate sleepwear for him was not warm enough, so I just ordered a new full body suit for him that supposedly will keep him warm throughout the night. It looks incredibly goofy, and he seems to hate wearing it, but it will keep him alive! Going to have to try it outside one of the nights this week! Once all of my gear is completely set, I'll post a gear list of what I'm taking. Getting very excited!
Date: 2014-03-16
To: Athens County
Miles today: 0.0

Reptar and I packed up for the weekend and headed down to Athens for one last test hike and to say goodbye to some good friends. The weather was beautiful and we had an awesome little hike up to a lookout over Strouds Run. Reptar and I both had full weight and all of our gear on just to make sure nothing was wrong or uncomfortable. I then had a bunch of friends meet at Jackieos for some beer and goodbyes. The weekend was great - though it's a bit weird to say goodbye to Hannah's house and a lot of friends who are graduating and moving on. It's tough to say when I'll ever see some of them again! Nonetheless, it was a great time and I'm happy I got to spend my last weekend here before heading out!
Date: 2014-03-19
To: Gear List
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Clothing:- Buff (1.6oz)- Mont Bell U.L. Down Jacket Mens (8.1oz)- Hiking Boots- Darn Tough Hiking Socks (3 Pairs) (9.2oz)- Patagonia Nylon Shorts (8.2oz)- Long Johns (6.8oz)- Frogg Toggs Rain Pants (4.1oz)- Frogg Toggs Rain Jacket (5.7oz)- Long sleeve Crew (5.9 oz)- (2)ExOfficio Give-N-Go Boxer Brief (5.oz)- ExOfficio Give-N-Go Tee (4.7oz)- Mountain hardware hiking tee (5oz)- Marmot Driclime (8.4oz)Sleeping:- Marmot Plasma 30 (24.1oz)- Sea to Summit Reactor Plus Thermolite Compact Liner (9oz)- Thermarest Neo Air x-lite (12oz)Gear:- Big Agnes FlyCreek UL2 & footprint (46.5oz)- Gregory z55 Backpack (61oz)- Petzl Tikka XP2 Headlamp (3.1oz)- MSR Pocket Rocket Stove (3.9oz)- GSI Soloist Cookset (24.6oz)- Spork (.5oz)- Stuff sacks (3.4oz)- 2 Liter Camelback Bladder- Buck Knife (4.4oz)- Trash Bag (Liner)- Pack Rain Cover (4.0oz)- Shovel (2.9oz)- First Aid (1.5oz)- Water Treatment (3.4oz)- AT guidebook (8.6oz)- Paracord (3.4oz)                                                        273.8oz = 17.1 lbsCamera Gear                                                - Overboard Waterproof SLR Camera Bag (9.3oz)- Canon T3i 18-135mm (38.6oz)- 3 Canon Batteries (5.4oz)- Video Monopod (47.8oz)- Card Holder (3.5oz)                                         104.6oz = 6.5 lbs                                                                        23.6 lbs Total Base WeightReptar:- Ruffwear Boots- Ruffwear Bivy Bowl- Ruffwear Pack- Half of a Thermarest Z-Lite Sleeping Pad
Date: 2014-03-22
To: 1 More Night Until the Start of the AT!
Miles today: 0.0

I start the Appalachian Trail tomorrow! Wow. I still haven't figured out how I'm feeling yet. I can remember the first time I seriously told myself that I wanted to hike the AT - almost 6 years ago! Every year since then, it became more doable, until I finally made a start date for myself (2 years ago). Since then, I've been counting down. I just can't believe it's finally here! Now with all this hype I've been spreading I just hope I don't end up back in Columbus in 2 weeks... (I won't).Today was a great day! Hannah and I woke up in Chattanooga, TN,and headed over to Lookout Mountain for some hiking and great views. We then headed back into town so I could pick up some last minute items for the trail. After we were squared away and got Reptar some exercise, we headed to Chattanooga's downtown area for some dinner. We had a delicious last dinner together outside at a restaurant across the street from an outdoor climbing gym. It was a lot of fun to eat and watch climbers at the same time. We ended the night back at the hotel and did one last gear check to make sure I wasn't missing anything.Tomorrow we have a 2.5 hour drive to Amicalola Falls to start the 8 mile approach trail to the AT. I can't wait to get started! Goodnight!
Date: 2014-03-22
From: Amicalola Falls A.T. approach trail

To: stover creek shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Wow. Today was unlike any other day in my entire life. Such a wide spectrum of feelings changing from one to another the whole day. I woke up in Chattanooga with Hannah, and we drove to Amicalola Falls to the head of the AT approach trail. I signed the AT thru hikers registrar and loaded up my back. Hannah surprised me with a bunch of letters from friends and family back home, which were amazing to read just now in my tent (Thank you to all who wrote - very uplifting to read). Saying goodbye to Hannah was one of the hardest things I've ever done - I couldn't tell you why, it just did NOT feel good (for those of you who don't know Hannah, you totally should - she's super cool). As I began walking, the first part of the approach trail was 170 something stairs straight up a waterfall. It was extremely beautiful, and also extremely difficult with my pack. When Reptar and I finally made it to the top and felt done for the day, I realized I still had about 11 miles to go to reach my goal. The rest of the hiking wasn't so taxing on my body as much as the stairs, but it sure did wear me out! 8.9 miles in, we finally reached the top of Springer Mountain - the start of the Appalachian Trail. I thought it would be a bit more climactic, but it was very crowded. However, I was very excited to finally be walking on the actual AT now, as I had pictured that moment for so long before.We then walked about 2.5 more miles to get to Stover Creek shelter. At this point, I was really ready to be done hiking for the day as my feet were killing me and I was out of water. We then arrived at the shelter and sat down for a while.There were a few people here when we arrived at about 4:30, and some more people wandered in as the evening went on. I met some cool people who went to OSU and we're planning to through hike! Small world. After eating 2 packs of ramen and some of my grandma's peanut butter cookies, I felt content and relaxed from the difficult day. From excitement, happiness, confidence, sadness, soreness, and fatigue - I really felt it all today. What an amazing day though. Tomorrow is supposed to be rain but mild temperatures. Going to try to push 13 miles! Headed to bed now!
Date: 2014-03-23
From: Stover Creek Shelter

To: Gooch Mountain shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Stover creek to gooch mountain shelterToday was a great day. We woke up around 7 and started packing up before it started to rain at 8. I then made oatmeal and coffee under the shelter's overhang while it rained. Around 9 I finally was set to go and headed off in the rain. It was off and on for about 2 hours, and boy was it beautiful. We hiked through everything. One mile would be towering pine trees above the trail with a fast creek along side, while another mile would be on a ridge with thick fog and no rain. It was a great stretch of a hike. I had lunch with some of the people that I camped with last night, but none of them getting to where I'm camping tonight unfortunately. The day, as beautiful as it was, was very hard on my body. The terrain went up and down 3 mountains and I felt every step. I feel like my body was handling the hiking well, but my feet were definitely not. ended up with two big blisters on both feet when I arrived at camp. I'm just excited to get my trail legs and feel completely comfortable doing longer distances.I'm now staying at Gooch Mountain shelter for the night. There were some nice people here to chat with, but also a couple of "know it alls" about the trail who ended up being quite annoying to listen to. Later in the evening two people showed up with a backpack full of apples to give out to everyone who was camping here. It was a nice appetizer for my dinner of blue box mac n' cheese and tuna. Tonight is supposed to get down to 25 or so and it is pretty windy out. Luckily there isn't supposed to be any rain for a while! Going to get some rest now! It was a tough day!