morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-04-16
From: Hot Springs NC

To: Rich Mountain Fire Tower
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: scattered clouds

After a final breakfast at the Smoky Mountain Diner on Tuesday morning, April 16 2013, I pulled out of the Iron Horse shortly after 8:00 AM, headed north along the road and had no trouble following the AT as it climbed over the guardrail and descended to the level of the French Broad River. After passing several wild-campers, including perhaps a small group of inexperienced youth, the trail began a series of switchbacks, offering nice views of the river and of Hot Springs. I snapped several photos, some in which my Iron Horse room window can be identified.        A bit after 9AM I passed Vagabond, a 70-year-old woman who made it to PA in a previous year. We leapfrogged a little as I paused for photos, but I pulled away from her about 9:40. Once the crest was reached, it became a beautiful morning for hiking, with few rocks or roots in the trail. By 10:20 I was winding around the west side of a ridge, with birds tweeting and the sun out; with Vagabond behind somewhere, I was hiking alone... as I like it!        Shortly before noon I came to a pond with a couple of trailside benches, and met Big and Little Brother. They had Long Trail patches, so we chatted briefly about that 270-mile Vermont trail, which I hiked in 2004 (185 miles) and 2005 (85 miles). At the second bench I had lunch, and pulled out about 12:05 PM after sending a SPOT message and formulating an ETA of 2:00 PM for Rich Mountain ¢ it¢s 3 miles, and I planned to camp just beyond its fire tower.        The AT soon emerged onto a dirt road, complete with a few parked pickup trucks... we were out of the Smokies for sure! I got a little confused at Mill Ridge but fixed that with a compass check, and after re-entering the woods found a few pieces of rusty automotive sheet metal ¢ ah yes, civilization! At 12:45 an overpass crossed a four-lane highway, US 25/70, and the trail again began to climb. At a 2:30 pause for rest I switched to shorts and T-shirt, reached the trail turn at 2:56 and the top of the Rich Mountain fire tower at 3:03 PM. The views were nice, with Hot Spring clearly apparent. The Brothers soon arrived, and we snapped a few photos in the tower.        Five minutes after returning to the AT at 3:20, I was depacking at the tent site just north of the fire tower. Several others were there, most in a group apparently led by a tall, thin man (The Major, if I recall correctly) who sported a small black top hat; the group, which included a black and a Hispanic man (Rawhide), were SOBO section hikers. From overheard comments I infer that a couple of them were hoping to learn enough (from The Major and others; they were very interested in my tarp setup) to be able later to take their children backpacking. Nice group ¢ I was pleased to share the site with them. My early arrival encouraged setting up the hammock; I enjoyed several cups of coffee while lying in it, then dinner (BP Cheese Enchilada Ranchero) while sitting in it.
Date: 2013-04-20
From: Hogback Ridge Shelter

To: Whistling Gap
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: clear sky

A freezing morning Saturday, April 20 2013, at the Hogback Ridge Shelter found me staying in bed as others packed up and left, still concerned about how I felt. When I arose, about 8:00 AM, I remembered that I¢d simply removed and stowed my soaking boots yesterday; they were frozen, and I could not get them on. Fortunately, a small group (mostly tenters, I think) had made a fire to dry their clothes, and some careful and brief exposure of my boots to it produced the flexibility I needed to get them on. I did feel quite a bit better this morning, rested, and a bright sun and clear sky offset the 26°F temperature. No longer doubting my ability to walk a mile, or even to the first road crossing, I headed out, wearing my wind hat, mittens, and rain jacket, at 9:40 AM. About an hour and a half later I discovered I¢d left my rain pants, old blue Campmor Gore-Tex, hanging on a nail ¢ they were pretty scruffy anyway, and no way was I going back to get them!        Sam¢s Gap arrived at 11:15 AM, with some trail magic (I snagged a couple of oranges, and discovered the loss of my rain pants). The path up out of the gap was pleasant and began to descend only half an hour later. At the top of an ascent, during which Bomber passed, I took a break at 12:30, resting on a large fallen tree; this was at a level area, with several obvious campsites, so perhaps it was the ¢meadow¢ at which I¢d planned to camp last night.        Big Bald lay ahead. At 12:50 I snapped a photo of it, and of some kind of development on a hill to the east. At 2:30 PM, as I was still ascending it, Wiki passed ¢ he¢s the young man who invited me to join him and friends for a beer in Hot Springs; he had to go into Erwin to treat his norovirus and is just getting back to the trail.        At 3:45 I reached the Big Bald summit, meeting Medicine Man and Poof who took my photo. Wander (or Wonder, but Wander would be better!) Woman and Clark Kent, who¢d been tenting at Hogback Ridge last night, soon arrived. The views were spectacular in all directions, better (said Wander Woman) than Max Patch¢s ¢ which was completely fogged in when I was there anyway. I left the summit at 4:00 PM.        The walking was across a high-elevation grassy field, gently descending in bright sun but chilly wind; it was quite pleasant and easy. I passed the turn to Bald Mountain Shelter at 4:45 PM, reached the summit of Little Bald about 5:30 PM, and depacked at a very pleasant Whistling Gap site at 6:55 PM. Several other campers were here, in tents and hammocks a hundred feet or so ahead on the trail. I camped under fir trees, beside a large fallen tree that offered a nice seat. With that to sit on, and the late arrival time, I didn¢t bother with the hammock. It was a chilly night (rain jacket and bag liner!), but the clear sky was filled with brilliant stars that I could see from my tarp. My site sloped with my head slightly downhill ¢ it was either that or orient the open end windward, and I¢d had enough of that! ¢ but I slept well, very pleased with my Whistling Gap campsite.
Date: 2013-04-22
From: Erwin TN

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Monday, April 22 2013, began about 5:30 AM in my Erwin, TN Holiday Inn Express room as I wrapped up the final assembly of my REI Flash 62 pack, preparing for the flight home. Using the public computer in the lobby, I¢d found there were frequent flights to my home airport ¢ priced about 3 to 4 times what I¢d have paid if I¢d bought the ticket several months in advance, but you do what you have to do. I carry the backpack¢s detachable top pocket in a paper grocery or plastic bag, along with my Crocs, as my carry-on bag, and was able to fit the hiking poles (collapsed to about 26¢) into the pack¢s mesh side pockets, with a rope through their wrist straps encircling the upper part of the pack.        As I emerged from the elevator for breakfast, I met Chicago and Private Snowball, telling them of my bailing and wishing them well for the rest of their hike. A few minutes later I met Moonshiner and his wife, finalizing a time to meet and depart. It was a pleasant and fairly short drive down to Asheville, and it was a pleasure to get to know this nice couple a little better. In mid-morning I was ticketed and checked in, and was enjoying snacks and a new ¢Outside¢ magazine I¢d bought. There was no problem with the flight, my wife picked me up at our airport, and I was home that evening.        Why did I bail? I think I was doing all right, pace-wise ¢ I often ran into people who¢d started about the same date that I did. I was a bit concerned about my right knee, but the double-hinged brace I¢d obtained in Gatlinburg was allowing me to move fairly well. I suspect that I was just getting a little bored. Long, trudging ascent after long, trudging ascent... white blaze after white blaze... Perhaps the miserable wet and cold climb to Hogback Ridge Shelter ¢ a day that Wonder Woman told me really adversely affected her husband Clark Kent too ¢ had a lasting impact, or even the ¢treadmill¢ ascents (one pine-and-boulder peak after another) prior to the drop down into Erwin. I¢d enjoyed the past six weeks, but the prospect of another five months simply was not appealing. Although I¢m happy for acquaintances who have continued on, like Salsa and Twix, I do not recall (writing this 3 months later) any regret at pulling out. I have a full life here at home, with several hobbies that have fascinated me for many years, and am trying to keep in shape with long, vigorous walks and bicycle rides.        Some day, in the famous words of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ¢I¢ll be back.¢
Date: 2013-01-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today 4 us of drove to Sespe( above Ojai)to do a weekend hike. Fred, John and I were joined by Dave, my mountain bike riding buddy. Fred and I packed as if we were on the Appalachian trail. My pack weighed 40 lbs. (I don't know where the weight came from). It was about 70 out and felt hot. Right away my pack became unbearable due to its weight. I made a vow to get rid of anything to make the pack lighter. Fred 's pack also came in close to 40 lbs as did Dave's. John managed to come in with 28 pounds. We all agreed to stop early about amile short of Willet. We got out our new stoves and water filters. The freeze dried dinners were good. It got real cold fast, the river actually froze up during the night. Hanging the bear bags went easy. Everyone got along and it was fun. My toes were also cold all night in my sleeping bag, but my body,except for my face was toasty (2 thermal tops and a thermal bottom). In the morning it was so cold, we decided to pack up and walk for a few hours and then eat breakfast. That idea worked out well. After trying to keep my balance with the heavy pack all day,   I finally fell on a slippery rock in the river. When we got home, Fred and I dumped our packs on the living room floor and began discarding things we could do without. I was able to bring my pack weight down to 28 pounds including 1.5 liters of water and 2 days worth of food. Now I can be a happy camper.
Date: 2013-02-01
To: Gear Issue
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Back in September I made the commitment to thru hike the Appalachian trail. My start date is March 7, 2013. In all this time I have made many decisions on what I should include in my pack. Some of the major items are listed in the Gear Section of this Journal. In addition naming my final gear selections in the Gear Section, which brought my pack weight up to 22.8 pounds without water, food or fuel, I want to explain some of the decisions I went through. After my shake down hike in Sespe, CA I dropped lots of weight by eliminating several items, just because I really did not need the item. These items include: Sony Camera and it's charger, Sleeping bag liner, Iphone long life storage battery, 20 or so zip lock baggies for organizing. The following is a run down on items and decisions of whether to bring it or not, that I truly agonized over: My new Monkey man fleece jacket or my old Patagonia fleece. The old fleece was warmer but was heavier and took up more volume in my pack. After I bought the Patagonia Capilene winter base layer pants and top plus the addition of my Pearlazimi Base layer from my bike rides to work, I decided to keep the new fleece in the pack. Another agonizing decision was concerning whether to bring my new 10,000 foot warm gloves from OR. These gloves weigh .8 pounds and took up some volume. But after Sespe hike, I saw how cold it could get and decided my wool liners and ski gloves were not enough. So I added back the big gloves back into my back and decided to do without my plastic shovel. Yet another agonizing decision of whether to bring it or not concerned water shoes. I had bought these water shoes to use as a camp shoes and to cross rivers. But when I wore the camp shoes at Sespe, my feet started to go numb from the cold and I had to put back on my boots. So I dropped the camp shoes until summer. Then, I came up with this idea that Fred and I should carry just 1 stove and 1 water filter between us. I know this is bad if one quits, then all of sudden there is all this extra weight for the remaining hiker, but I was desperate to get the weight down in our packs. But then out of the blue, a brother of a friend, who had thru hiked the trail in 2009, sent me a cat stove. See the photo. It weighs less than a pound and he made one for Fred too. Thanks to Garage Man and his wife Pound Hound. You may wonder how the cat stove works. It is just the tin from a cat food dinner with some holes punched out. There are no moving parts, so nothing can go wrong mechanically. All you do is buy some denatured alcohol from the paint dept of your local Home Depot. Then pour about an ounce into the stove and light it up. Put a pot with water on the stove. In about 5 minutes the water is boiling. Then you can remove the pot from the stove and add pasta or a freeze dried dinner, enclose the pot with a pot cozy and wait about 8 minutes. Then eat. So, that's it for my gear issue. Next time I write it should be from on the trail.Thanks for reading this, I need all the support I can get.
Date: 2013-02-10
To: Syscamore Canyon -Prep hike 2 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Feb 9 2013 ¢ Sycamore Canyon, California Today John, Fred, Dave and I hiked Sycamore Canyon as our last prep hike for the Appalachian Trail. The trail was long with the beginning walking long up hills through long tunnels of trees. The views overlooking the canyon were fantastic. We could see the Pacific Ocean and Anacapa Island to the west. To the north and east we could see the San Bernardino Mountains and the snow on the mountaintops. Looking down, we could see the canyon as it headed toward the beach. After about 3 hours of uphill, we started our long descent to the canyon floor. We stopped at Danielson Ranch for lunch. Mine was salami and cheese with some trail mix. After that 3 hour hike we then started on a 2hr hike along the wide sycamore canyon trail all the way into the campground down by the beach. For me everything went perfect. My feet were good, my back was relaxed and I never really got tired. So I think I'm ready for the show to get going. I want to throw a big thanks to my brother Jim for suggesting I file down the corns on my little toe. I no longer feel sharp pains when going downhill or on a slant. The cat stove worked great too. My oriental top ramen noodles and salmon was delicious. Tonight I am wearing my new nunatak down booties and my toes couldn't feel warmer. Tomorrow we will be hiking mostly uphill for about 9 miles straight out of the canyon. Life couldn't be better then being with your friends and camping.
Date: 2013-03-06
To: Georgia 
Miles today: 0.0

Appalachian trailMarch 6. Today my wife and I got up at 3:00 this morning to start my journey to Atlanta  Fred, my hiking partner,met me at the airport and we had a nice flight to Atlanta.  John arrived an hour later. Hopped on the MARTA train and was picked up by Hiker Hostel's van. Picked up a dinner to go at a Subway and finally arrived at the hostel at 7:00. The hostel consisted of several log cabins with 4 bedrooms each that had 2 bunks. We met some new hikers and everyone got along well. Like me, everyone looked liked they had butterflies in their stomachs. Well we are finally on the verge of really doing it after 5 months of preparation. Can't wait to take that 1st step.  A bit more about some of the people we met:  A woman from Idaho. This is her 3rd try on the trail.  One time she reached 1299 miles- only to get Lymes disease.  A 19 year old guy from Rhode Island.  He has to go back to school on Aug 12.  His pack got broken during the 24 hour bus ride, so he was really bummed.  A guy from the Isle of Wight off of England.  Another guy from  Fairbanks Alaska.  He is going to finish by July 15.  A girl who came in from the trail, just to have 1 nite of bed and shower.
Date: 2013-03-07
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawks Shelter
Miles today: 8.1

Had a great breakfast at hiker hostel:   Waffles, eggs, grits, orange juice. Learned that the kid with the broken pack got the trail name of broken pack. He shortened it to BP. Got on vans for shuttle to Springer. John had to ride in one going to the approach trail. So we had to wait another 20 minutes for him to get there. We got real lucky on the weather. Day before was snow and rain and wind. Today was sunny and got up to 60. We had to go .9 mile to reach start of trail from parking lot. Took pictures to record our start. The trail was either up or down and at first very icy. Most of the trail was mud. We were always near water. We made at least 4 rock hopping river crossings and it was very soothing to always hear water running near by while we hiked   Because of our late start at 10:30am we only hiked 4 hours before stopping at 2:30. Finished cooking, hanging bear bag and socializing by 6:00. We were tired but really felt it was a great day and a great start. .
Date: 2013-03-08
From: Hawks Shelter

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: few clouds

. It was below 32 during the night at Hawks Shelter. II wasn't cold during the night but couldn't get comfortable. Got up at 7:00 but it took tll 8:30 to get started on the trail.  It was a beautiful day to hike. We were going up and down mountains all day. Ate lunch at Hooch Mtn Shelter. . Decided to go on to Woody Gap. Ran out of water about 1.5 miles from Woody. Skated by using my electrolyte drink. I was bone tired at the end. Just barley crawled into Woody and was greeted by this trail angel (trail name from last yr :  Fresh Ground) who yelled "I got 3 hot dogs for you all". Later on he went into town and brought us back 3 pizzas. We shared with all the hikers staying here. Since I didn't cook I gave 1 of my freeze dried dinners to BP.  Stayed talking till 7:00.
Date: 2013-03-09
From: Woody's Gap

To: Neel Gap
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: clear sky

Woke up at 6:15 at Woody Gap. We got hot chocolate and grits frm trail angel Fresh Ground. got a sausage from BP. . During breakfast met Gar Bear and his wife Bear Snack. They are a strong looking couple. He once held the world record for weight lifting. It was 805 lb dead lift. He met his wife at weight lifting competitions.  Her record was 232 lb bench press.  While walking we met Super Mom and her 2 boys and daughter and dog. They were thru hiking. The children were all less than 11.  The trail was always covered in dead leaves. We went up and down 3 mountains. The last one,called Blood Mountain, was extra long up and very steep going down. We had to inch our way down granite rock faces along with many day hikers. We arrived at Neel Gap at 2:30. We found a place to stay thanks to Flute. This lady plays the flute every evening before we fall asleep. Her flute music is very soothing. She got a cabin. And I had my first shower of the hike. Trekker and I bid farewell to John at this point. He wished us well and said he would keep up with our journals.
Date: 2013-03-10
From: Neel Gap

To: Low Gap Shelter 
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: few clouds

Changed my watch for daylight savings time. 6:15 AM is now in the dark. Ate John's food last night and this morning. Since BP had plenty of food I went over to the Neel Gap hostel and put John's food in the Hiker box. We left Neel Gap at 8:00. We went up and over 4 peaks. They were so steep that there were stairs cut out in many places. Some of the hikers we met along the trail were Trudger (from Peru), Lea, and Night Walker. Night Walker passed me on a long down hill and as he streaked by me I watched his technique and now can move a little faster downhill. Around 1:45pm we arrived at Low Gap shelter. I was again at the end of my strength plus we expect rain tonight so we called it a day. When I pulled off my shoes to relax I found out I had hiked with 1 foot with no sock - just the sock liner. Oh well, at least I didn't get a blister.
Date: 2013-03-11
From: Low Gap Shelter 

To: Cheese factory site
Miles today: 13.4

Started off from Low Gap shelter. Sleeping in the shelter was okay. Didnt see any mice and it was dry. I had to wait till sunup to get ready for the day. Did not want to wake anyone with my fumbling around to get ready. During conversation last night Lea accepted the name everyone was calling her: Hot Dog. Reason for her name: She was really sad that she didn't get a hot dog from Fresh Ground when she went thru there. And she kept fantasizing about eating a hot dog at Neel Gap. Clever Girl, her husband Dump Truck and friend Appallo were also at Low Gap shelter. Another hiking group was Granite and Dozer. The day's forecast called for rain all day. So I left camp with all my rain gear on. Slowly, as I hiked, I kept changing clothes because there wasn't much rain, only a mist. First,I took off my gaiters. Then I took off my shirt under my jacket. Then, awhile later I traded my rain pants for my hiking pants. Still later I took off my rain jacket and put back on my hiking shirt. I also at one time took off my ski hat and put on my hiking hat. Finally about 4:00 the rain came down in buckets. Lesson learned: don't change until the weather hits. We decided we couldn't make Tray shelter so we stopped close to Cheese factory site mile 56.3. Dozer had a tarp so we all cooked under that. Trekker was out of water and ate his cold food and a raisin bread and peanut butter tub I gave him
Date: 2013-03-12
From: Cheese factory site

To: Dicks Creek Gap
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Last night was difficult. My big feet kept hitting the side of the tent and when they did the water would drip onto my down sleeping bag. So I slept on my sides and stomach. It was windy and cold when we woke up. Water that was held on the tree leaves also kept hitting us with big splashes. When we hiked it was very cold and windy. Because we were going up in elevation, it got below freezing. As we walked, bunches of ice crystals were hurled down from the trees. We arrived at Tray shelter and ate breakfast and refilled our water. As I walked the trail I took off layers of clothes as the day got warmer. But I had to put my gloves on and off, depending what side of the mountain I was on. I've been listening o all the hikers saying how their knees hurt   One guy said he had shin splints and another wore a knee brace. My legs feel great except they get tired. My newest idea on walking is to forget all about technique and just blank my mind and stare at the trail. It's amazing. My legs automatically take half steps when they need to and always end up getting through the obstacles in a smooth fashion. I noticed my body always takes small steps and I haven't felt any jarring or knee wrenching experiences. Today I played leap frog with the Clever Girl group. I also saw BP at Tray Mountain shelter and along the trail. Since I started out first on the last leg I got to Dicks Creek first. There I met River Raft who was day hiking. He had thru-hiked in 2011. He gave me a banana just to say "good job" to me. The first car to come by gave us a lift right to doorstep of the Holiday Inn. For dinner we got ¢all you can eat¢ for $7.50. There we ran into John, who is from Canada, and slept at Low Gap with us, and Flute, who thinks she may take 2 zero days at Hiawassee. Still got to finish my laundry tonight and go to the market before I finally get to sleep.