morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-09-09
To: I'm Doing WHAT Again?
Miles today: 0.0

Yes indeed I'm doing another GA-ME hike. It's been 10 years since I walked out my door and didn't come back for over 6 months....and I'm about to do it all over again.I remember that September day in '03, me, Sonic, Guana, Fly, Smoothy and some others had stopped for lunch at a shelter in Maine. Sonic had just sung Rainbow Connection and we were all happy and reflective about our hikes. Someone said, "Wouldn't it be fun to do it again, knowing what we now know"? I was the first to answer, "NO, it's too hard and it hurts too much", and I meant it...at the time. But like childbirth, the pain of long distance hiking fades and what's left is the memory of frosty mornings around a fire with lifelong friends, met just hours or days before, hikes through magical places like Neels Gap, Sages Ravine and the 100 Mile Wilderness, the wonderful, friendly, giving strangers that lend a hand, a meal, or a ride when it's most needed, and a fall day laying on a wooden dock in the sun, rocking back and forth with the waves. Watching Katadhin from Abol Bridge, then climbing her several days later will never, ever be forgotten. I want to experience that last 2 weeks over and over again for the rest of my life. I want to plan again, I want to read gear magazines and buy new hiking shoes. I want to grow my hair long and wear a pony tail. I want to buy shriveled foods in foil bags that weigh next-to-nothing and cook them in a ziplock bag that I eat out of with the only utensil I'll carry for over 6 months. I want to sing out loud while I hike and look to the sky while the trees leaf out to protect me from the summer sun and then the leaves fall to the ground like orange and gold butterflies as I wrap up my 2013 adventure. I want to stand on the top of the world and look out on that amazing patchwork world below me and feel the wind in my face as the tears fall. And so I hike. I still get choked up just thinking about it. It's time to return to the woods~Journey
Date: 2012-09-19
To: Gear
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

A few months back, I remember saying, "I don't need to buy ANYTHING for my next thru-hike". Yea.....right. Since then I've purchased:1) A Tarptent Moment tent 2) A Granite Gear Crown V 60 pack......A Trail Days special 3) A custom made Hyperlite pillow/stuff sack (Don't judge...I need a pillow, it might as well double as my clothes bag and have a soft, fuzzy side to it!) 4) An assortment of Hyperlite stuff sacks5) Two pairs of Dirty Girl gaitersThat might be it, but I'm sure I'm conveniently forgetting something else. In 2003, I started with a zero degree, three-pound, Western Mountaineering Puma sleeping bag. I adore this bag and would love to snuggle into its 8" loft nightly in Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, but will try to get by with my 20 degree, 1 lb 12 oz Western Mountaineering Ultralite bag by changing up my sleeping clothes a bit. Sleeping in my tent adds 10 degrees of warmth and adding a silk liner adds a few more. If my new system doesn't work out, my 3 lb bag is just a mail drop away thanks to my brother John.My Black Diamond Ion has moved aside for a more powerful headlamp that can be used for night hiking, something that I did not experience once on my last hike.Although I did not carry a cell phone last time, I most likely will this time around. Of course that means carrying a charger too. I'll carrry a camera, but have not yet decided which one. For journaling on my 2003 hike, I carried Pocketmail and really liked it. This hike I'm considering using my Kindle Fire. Lots of decisions to be made between now and March 1st, 2013.The excitement builds. I love the reactions I get when people hear that I'm heading out again to hike from Georgia to Maine. Someone even said, "I can't believe Jack let's you do that", and I had to explain that Jack and I don't "let" each other do things like this, we support each other in our decisions and make the best of it. It always works out. My last hike made us both better people, I'm sure this one will do the same~Journey
Date: 2012-09-23
To: Loading the Pack
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

After weeks of buying gear, analyzing gear, eating, breathing, and living gear, I assembled what I wanted to take on my October shake down hike to test my newly repaired peroneal tendon and the new gear I planned to use on my 2013 thru-hike. Fully loaded it was an amazing 17.6 pounds:*clipped on pack is a tube of chapstick and a whistle*4 full days food(some of this will come out depending on what time of day we start and when we finish on the last day)*1.5 ltr of water *Tarptent Moment tent*Western Mountaineering Ultralite 20 degree sleeping bag*Thermarest pad*kitchen: Esbit stove, 13 Esbit tabs, lexan spoon, and a 2C MSR T-Kettle, bic*first aid: 2 bandaids, 3 blister bandages, neosporin, lots of ibuprofen, 10   benedryl and 3 imodium*toiletries: very small hair brush, kid's toothbrush, half a sample tube of toothpaste, sample bottle baby powder*miscellaneous: headlamp, Aqua mira, TP and hand sanitizer*clothing: 2 pair clean socks, rain gearI need to add: silk bag liner that I ordered yesterday at 9.5 ounces, possibly a clean shirt, a half bottle of No Rinse Body Wash, my Leatherman Micra, and my cell phone.When I heaved my pack up onto the scale at Amicalola Falls in 2003, it weighed in at a hefty 29 lbs. I went back to my room at the Lodge and stripped it of 4 lbs. Three days later, at Neels Gap I sent another 2 lbs of unneeded, unwanted, useless things home.Warren Doyle taught me that fear is weight. I guess I had a lot of fear the first time around. I no longer feel the weight of that fear and it shows in my pack weight. I wonder what I'll learn this next time around~Journey
Date: 2012-10-01
To: October Shakedown Hike
Miles today: 0.0

On October 1st, I loaded the car with everything I intended to carry and oh-so-much-more...just in case. At 10 AM I departed for my 4.5 hour ride to the Bears Den Hostel in Beaumont, Virginia, where I'd be meeting up with Knee Hi, my hiking partner for this adventure. Knee Hi is on the 20 year plan to section hike the entire AT and had graciously agreed to let me tag along.As I came to that "sweet spot" on Route 70 where the valley opens up before you and the mountains and blue sky are the perfeft backdrop, I teared as that special place always says to me, "You're home...back in the mountains". The trip was uneventful and quicker than planned, which of course had nothing to do with me driving in excess of the posted speed limit. I think the wind was behind me for most of the ride. I arrived at Bears Den and already had the door code, so entered through the downstairs hiker hostel to find several Sobos (southbound thru-hikers) already there. Nice fellows all who I'll talk more about later. I killed time with the hikers until the upstairs part of the hiking center opened at 5 PM. I headed up and introduced myself to the new caretakers Patrice and her husband Justin, a wonderful young couple that had thru-hiked the AT in 2011 as Steadee and Deal. They are the perfect mix of experience, knowledge and thoughtfulness, and proved to be perfect hosts for this beautiful, historic, and possibly haunted hostel.My bunk was located in the upstairs, women's bunk room where 8 bunks share an attached bathroom. I settled in to wait for Knee Hi who would be arriving a day later due to a family emergency. We had planned to hike out tomorrow, but decided instead to spend tomorrow going through and sorting gear and food....which of course hikers could do for hours on end, fondling and discussing each piece, comparing weight, size, importance of need, etc. The hostel also hosts bikers (the pedel kind) and so my first night was spent sharing the women's bunk room with several. Lights out was around 10 PM and I slept well for most of the night, awakening around 4 AM to a metal on metal banging sound~J.
Date: 2012-10-02
To: October Shakedown Hike Day 2
Miles today: 0.0

This morning I awakened early, but laid in my bunk for a while waiting for the other women to awaken. When I finally got up, I looked out the window next to my bunk and saw 3 metal posts in the ground below me and thought again about the banging sound I heard in the night. After showering and dressing, I went to the communal kitchen to make what would have been my first breakfast on the trail....oatmeal. That and a couple cups of coffee got me going and I texted Knee Hi to see how far she had gotten the night before on her 10 hour drive to Bears Den, and when she expected to arrive. Before lunch we were unloading her truck and anticipating our afternoon of gear sorting. The next few hours were spent going through everything we had brought, checking weather forcasts and choosing food that would suit us for the next 4 days of hiking. When all was said and done, my pack weighed in at 21.4 lbs with food and water, and Knee Hi's was about the same.When I saw Patrice, I questioned her about any haunted house stories, and a smile crossed her face as she asked, "Why, what did you experience?" It seems that the man that built the home in the 30s has been known to surface occassionally, but causes no harm, so sleeping tonight will not be a problem for me.With that out of the way, we realized just how hungry we were, and headed to the Horseshoe Curve Restaurant just a few miles away. Scuba, Granite and I had eaten there in 2003, and although Scuba had an issue with the owners letting the dog circle our table during the meal, we liked it, so Knee Hi and I thought we'd give it another try.We had a fantastic salad with corn right off the cob and lots of fried, not-so-good-for-you protein that tasted really delicious. Satisfied, we wound our way back to the Bears Den and settled in for the night. Tomorrow will be the first day of our section hike from Front Royal to Harpers Ferry.
Date: 2012-11-28
To: October Shakedown Hike-Gear Summary-Tent
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The object of my hike was to join Knee Hi for a fun week on the trail and try out all the new gear that I had gotten for next year's thru-hike. TARPTENT MOMENT TENT: I had spent quite a bit of time searching for a new tent. In '03 I had started with the single walled Nomad Lite. Condensation was an issue from the start that rainy year, and the narrow pointed-end design just didn't work for me. I could never keep my 0 degree Puma bag with its 8 inch loft off of the tent, therefore most often I had a damp/wet sleeping bag. I had purchased a MSR Zoid 1 in Rockfish Gap, and lowered its weight to just under 3 lbs by not carrying its stuff sacks and using less stakes. I loved the 2-wall tent and carried it for the remainder of my hike, I just didn't like the weight of it. I still use the Zoid 1 from time to time and after my shakedown hike, I gifted the 12 year old Nomad Lite to Knee Hi who already used the original version of the same tent.I had gone to Trail Days in May expecting to purchase Hyperlite's Echo 1, but when I actually saw it, felt too confined in it. I looked at the Fly Creek at Trail Days too, but couldn't see how you could possibly get into the tent in a hard rain without soaking the interior of the tent. I left Trail Days tentless and more confused than ever.One rainy Sunday morning I got on the Tarptent website and fell in love with the Moment's design, quick set up, and roomy interior. After emailing Henry Shires several times, and spending time exploring the made-for-the-AT Notch tent that sets up with 2 hiking poles, I decided that the Moment was for me.This fabulous tent sets up in a minute with a center side-to-side hoop and 2 stakes. The clip and loop system on both ends pulls the tent taught and the center pole gives a very generous 40" height and wide interior. The tent affords lots of ventilation, which takes care of the single wall tent condensation issues, and the large vestibule will hold my dirty shoes and whatever else I decide to leave "outside". I had originally ordered the longer head-to-tail pole that makes the tent free-standing, but Henry counciled against that and recommended the interior 4 oz liner instead for warmth and occassional condensation issues. I have not used the tent yet in a rain storm, but feel confident that it will stand up to the hype. It's a great tent that packs at 2 lbs 2 oz WITH the 4 oz liner. I'm looking forward to it being my home for 6 months of 2013.
Date: 2012-12-02
To: Oct. Shakedown Hike-Gear Summary-Sleeping System
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

SLEEPING BAG:In 2003 I started my hike with the 3 lb. Western Mountaineering Puma 0 degree bag. The 8" loft is warm and dreamy to climb into at the end of a cold day. In Damascus,I traded it for my 1 lb. 12 oz. Western Mountaineering Ultra Lite 20 degree bag which was sent home late summer and retrieved in Vermont and used for the duration of my hike. But the fact is, I'm 10 years older and looking for ways to lighten the load, so this hike I'm going to attempt to start with the 20 degree bag. The coldest night temp for our October hike was 51 degrees, not much of a test for how comfortable I'd be at Springer in early March. So several nights ago as the temp dipped down to 21 degrees, I headed into my 2-man tent with our 5 year old granddaughter. She got the 0 degree bag, I took the 20 degree bag. Within minutes we had both shed our socks and sweatshirts. I had on my Patagonia silk weights and slept with my fleece hat. I was comfortable and cozy warm, so will have no hesitation carrying the lighter bag to start. My 0 degree bag will go to my brother John along with other gear and food that can be sent to me if needed.SLEEPING PAD:For our shakedown hike I had carried my almost new Thermarest Prolite 3 pad. I knew that first night it was not going to keep these soon-to-be 60 year old bones comfortable on the trail. Knee Hi had a cushy 2"+ thick pad that was heaven to lay on....you didn't even realize you were on the ground! On returning home, I visited our local REI and fell in love with the Thermarest Neo Air Xlite. The sales rep blew it up, popped a bag on top of it and I crawled in. I could have taken a nap right then and there, but he wouldn't go away, so I proclaimed it mine and got up The real plus is the internal emergency blanket type lining that will reflect 20% of my body heat back up at me...which makes carrying the 20 degree bag even easier. I went with the regular instead of the small and will have 2.5" of softness from my head to my toes while it's cold. It the pad gets too hot in the warmer months, I may trade it out for another.HYPERLITE PILLOW/STUFF SACK:In '03 while in Gatlinburg, after using my fleece and extra clothes as my pillow for weeks, I purchased a Thermarest pillow. It helped, but still wasn't what I wanted. At the 2012 Trail Days I had purchased Hyperlite's small pillow/stuff sack. I need a pillow and needed a way for it to do double duty, so it would carry my clothing and be my pillow. After several tries, I knew this too wouldn't work. I loved the design and that I could use it for my clothing, AND I loved the fleece side that was warm and comfortable, but it was just too small. I contacted hyperlite and asked if they'd make me a custom made 10x17" pillow/stuff sack and they agreed. It is perfect! It fits my clothing and is the right size for my pillow needs. Thank you Hyperlite...your Customer Service is the BEST! Just writing this makes me want to sleep outside tonight, but the tent is down, the gear restored, and it's so much easier and closer to climb into my own bed.
Date: 2012-12-31
To: Kuli' OuOu Ridge Trail, Oahu, Hawaii
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

A few months back, Justin, our son that lives in Hawaii texted me a few pictures of a hike he had taken on Oahu. The scenery was beautiful and the flowers amazing. I texted back, "Thanks for thinking of me when you hike". He replied, "I always think of you when I hike". Ahhh, just what a Mom wants to hear...and I'm sure he's thinking of my past and upcoming AT hikes and how difficult it must be to do it with 25 lbs on your back for 200 or so days in a row. Fast forward to our Christmas trip to Hawaii and plans for some hiking on Justin's terrain. Justin didn't think we'd make the 4 hour up, no switchbacks, hike up the tallest peak on Oahu, Ka'ala, so we settled on the Kuli'OuOu Ridge Trail, down near Justin's home in Hawaii Kai. My sister Barbara, her husband Andy and I drove from our place on the North Shore to the Kuli' OuOu neighborhood where we met Justin and started up the ridge trail. A short 2 miles and 1800' rise in elevation to the summit offers amazing views......on a good day. On the day we hiked, the mountains were shrouded in a thick fog. Andy and Justin quickly outpaced us. Near the top, Barbara and I stopped at a bench and enjoyed what view we had of the surrounding mountains and the Kuli' OuOu neighborhood from where we'd come. A quick call to Justin to find out how much farther to the summit led us to the decision that we'd stay put and let the guys come back to us. There was no view in the thick fog, and the last 20 minutes was through deep mud, something that is common on the Hawaiian trails. My slip-on Merrils just weren't going to cut it.It was an enjoyable hike, and we saw lots of people on the trail with their dogs that day. I carried 2 bottles of water, but could have used more. There is nowhere to get water on the trail, you carry what you'll need. We passed just one shelter, and it had 2 picnic tables for eating, but no place to sleep, so I guess it isn't used as an over night trail. I'm looking forward to our next trip to Hawaii when I plan to hike Ka'ala with Justin and enjoy her 360 degree views.This isn't my video, but gives a good representation of the trail: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skvg8hzawxg
Date: 2013-01-17
To: The One Left Behind
Miles today: 0.0

I remember back in late 2001 after reading Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods, saying to Jack, "I think I'd like to do that". His calm response, "I'm not sure we could make that work". Well, make it work we did and in 2003 I walked out the door to my house for six months and a week....and we all survived.In addition to working a full time job (full time for Jack is 12-14 hour days), he paid the bills (which I have always done), took care of our 14 acres, and with the help of our oldest son, kept the animals alive. At the time we had 2 dogs, 2 cats and 2 cockatiels. While I was on the trail in 2003, I kept saying to Jack when we talked, "The next adventure is yours". I was home just 2 months when he left to manage the Chesapeake, Virginia Nova Chemicals plant, the plant we had left 3 years earlier to move to western PA. Jack had an apartment in Norfolk and we went back and forth for 3 years. It was fun and exciting and he enjoyed his city life while there.Now it's my turn again and I'm heading back to Springer Mountain, GA to walk to Maine. The animal count has changed; we now have 3 dogs, one cat, 2 cockatiels and 2 ducks on our pond. We still have the 14 acres, but I'm working on getting a lawn service to mow the approximately 3 acres of grass. Though retired from Nova Chemicals, and after 3 years of just doing volunteer work, Jack is now consulting full time. Selfishly, I would have preferred he didn't work until I came home....so the house would run more smoothly in my absence, but he's doing work he loves, so I smile and do more planning, make more lists, organize until I can't organize any more.I know I was missed when I was on the trail, but Jack was great about not making me feel selfish or guilty about following my dream. Just once he let on....he said, "The weekends are the hardest". I still get a lump in my throat when I type that. We were used to being apart as Jack traveled for most of his working years, so it took until Virginia when it really hit me. He came to Waynesboro for our first visit in 3 months. We had never been apart that long! He came again to Carlisle, PA with the dogs in tow, and our last visit was Bennington, Vermont. We haven't made a schedule yet for this year's visits, but I'm looking forward to them already.Jack is the reason I can go out my door and walk from Georgia to Maine and know that things at home will be cared for. He's the reason I feel mentally strong enough to do it, and he's the reason I'll go back. We laugh a lot together, and I'll miss that the most. I love you babe. Thanks for letting me be me~J.
Date: 2013-01-21
To: Fear
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Them, "Are you going alone?" Me, "Yes". Them, "Are you carrying a gun?" Me, "No".Them, "Aren't you afraid of bears and snakes?" Me, "No".My 5 year old grand daughter asked me, "Mama, what are you afraid of?" I had to think about it for a bit. "Well", I told her, "Not really much of anything".In relation to the trail, Warren Doyle taught me that fear equals weight. If you're afraid of being cold, you'll carry extra clothes; which I did last hike, but then sent them home at Mountain Crossings just 3 days into the adventure. If you're afraid of being hungry, you'll carry more food; which I did last hike, but only for the first week or so. Food is so very heavy and there's nothing worse than getting into town with 2 days food still in my pack. For a 3-4 day hike I might carry one extra dinner...just in case.If you're afraid of bears, you'll carry bear spray or ....God forbid, a gun. I don't carry either, ever, but my sister and brother in law from Alaska think I should carry a weapon for protection.If you're afraid of getting hurt, you'll carry more bandaids, an ace bandage, 8 oz of anti fungal cream (wink, wink, BB and a full tube of Neosporin. In 03 I had a LOT of bandaids, but left them with Jack at Amicalola Lodge after my pack tipped the scale at 29 lbs. I went back to the room and took out 3 lbs of stuff. Then 3 days later, I unloaded another 3 lbs including a radio and mug for my hot tea. I didn't need entertainment until northern PA and this year it will be an ipod Shuffle. I didn't need the mug, I use my MSR T Kettle for my tea after boiling the water for my meals.There is one thing I'm afraid of and there's no getting away from it....I'm afraid that my feet will hurt again. I'm so afraid that my feet will hurt. In 2003, a hiker that had gotten off the trail, told me she got off because every step she took felt like she was walking on broken glass. "That's it!" I exclaimed. That's exactly what every step from Damascus, Virginia to Mount Katahdin in Maine felt like. It's horrible, so, so horrible and it can kill a hike. You just have to decide if it's worth it to keep going. For me, in 2003 it was. Jack came to Burlington, VT and took me to a podiatrist. I had a left heel spur, Morton Neuromas between every toe on both feet and plantar fasciitis on both feet. I was in bad shape. That's what I'm afraid of this hike~J.