morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-07-29
From: Boblett's Gap Shelter

To: Fullhardt Knob Shelter
Miles today: 13.89
Weather: broken clouds

Pleasant day, although notably warmer and more humid! Other than a couple of tourists from Florida (whom I officially decreed to be "Certified and Official Trail Angels of the Order of the Blue Ridge Parkway" when, after admiring the view from a parking outlook at one of the several places on today's route where the Trail crosses the Parkway, they "offered" me two bottles of ice cold water from the cooler in the back of their SUV!), I went for over 24 hours without seeing or speaking to another human being. The trail is completely empty. In the late afternoon I passed a ¢Johnny Come Lately¢ Thru hiker from Vermont named Frank, who was followed by a Long-Distance section hiker named ¢Philadelphia.¢ We swapped information regarding the state of streams and springs as the availability of water is becoming a growing concern amongst the few of us out here. I arrived at the Wilson Gap Shelter at midafternoon and decided to continue on further to Fullhardt Knob. Having slept for over 12 hours last night, I felt pretty fresh. When I arrived at the shelter, I found seven students from the Old Dominion School, accompanied by three instructors, playing cards and relaxing from their day¢s hike. A section hike named ¢Pooh Bear¢ (a faculty member at a Georgia Medical School in Athens) is here too, and the evening was spent in true AT fashion, sharing experiences, talking about equipment, and swapping stories. This group of youths with their instructor is really great. At first, I presumed them to be either a boy scout group or a variation on the ¢Hoods In The Woods¢ theme, but these young men are too well-mannered and, for the most part, too mature for that. It was really good to talk with them, answer their questions about my gear and places I¢ve been and, through their questions, get a glimpse at the value of this kind of experience at work. After their lights out, I listened to ¢Mel¢ (actually ¢Emily¢), one of the instructors, read to them from a book about a knight¢s journey. The section she read was a thinly veiled spiritual allegory about the importance of ¢letting go¢ ¢ a helpful reminder for my old ears as well.Afterwards, she joined me at the picnic table as I was making these final journal entries and we had a pleasant chat about her work and these young men; their school; and the curriculum which has brought them to the Appalachian Trail for 14 days of trail life. I found it all to be very interesting and quite admirable. Now it¢s time for bed. The spring here at Fullhardt Knob is dry so I¢m glad that I schlepped an extra two liters of water in my platypus the last couple of miles as suggested by the NOBOs I passed this afternoon. (Ahhh, the value of good TI ¢ ¢Trail Intelligence¢)
Date: 2006-07-30
From: Fullhardt Gap Shelter

To: Daleville HO JO's
Miles today: 5.5

Today started off as ¢reptile day.¢ As is normally the case, I headed to the privy right after breakfast before hitting the Trail, and as I entered the facility I noticed a long, black snake curled up in the rafters¢ right above the ¢throne.¢ (Normally, this would have scared the &@$# out of me, but unfortunately it did not have the desired effect¢¦ after all these years of being terrified of snakes, the one time when they could have actually done me some, good proved fruitless, leaving me relegated to digging a ¢cat hole¢ in the woods later in the morning) .Having given up that quest, I packed up my gear, took some pictures of the wilderness crew from Old Dominion, said some goodbyes, and headed off on the access trail back to the white blazes of the AT. I hadn¢t gone even 20 yards when I came across what first appeared to be a very large copperhead slowly crossing the trail ahead of me. I looked more closely and did not recognize the head as having the typical ¢triangular shaped¢ head of a viper, so I deduced it was a harmless corn snake. I signaled to ¢Mel¢ (Emily, one of the instructors from the Old Dominion School) to come over and take a look, which she did and we began a lengthy debate as to whether the snake was a copperhead or a milk snake. When I put my pole down to move a branch to get a better picture of it, the snake started to become aggressive. I would have thought that a harmless milk snake would have become more defensive and would have taken off, but this one certainly had a ¢New York attitude¢ about it, and I decided I would go back to my original assumption and deal with it as if it were a copperhead. I then waved ¢goodbye¢ to ¢Mel¢ and bushwhacked off the trail for several yards to give it a wide berth and headed out. The third reptile of the morning proved to be none other than a Savage, North American Box Turtle. Measuring all of four inches across, this beast would not move off the center of the trail and did not even offer me the indignity of retreating into the shelter of its shell. It was a delightful little critter and I was able to take some nice pictures of it. The walk into town was all downhill and a very pleasant way to spend an otherwise hot and humid morning. I arrived at the Howard Johnson Express in Daleville, picked up my drop box, and went down to the mall about 12 mile away for lunch at a restaurant named the ¢Three Little Pigs,¢ (My presence made the place, more aptly, ¢The Four Little Pigs¢, or maybe ¢The Three Little Pigs and One Big Pig¢). At any rate, I pigged out on assortment of local barbequed pig parts and, with a full belly, returned to the motel, took a shower, did my laundry, and enjoyed a pleasant afternoon nap. The rest of the day has been spent puttering around with equipment (I fixed the leak in my Camelback bladder, I think!!!), and enjoyed a bit of Mexican food from the restaurant across the street while watching Deadwood (via HBO series on the town of the same name) on my room television. It¢s now about 10:30 pm, and time for shuteye.
Date: 2006-07-31
From: Daleville HO JO's

To: Lambert's Meadow Shelter Area
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: light rain

This is truly one of the most beautiful camping spots I have encountered on the Trail. The woods are open and free of undergrowth, allowing the late afternoon sunshine and a gentle breeze to penetrate all the way to the forest floor creating an animated mosaic of large, amoebae-esque splotches of light. A stream runs nearby, adding its distinct syncopation to the dancing light and rustling leaves. A doe with a spotted fawn are grazing at the fringe of the encampment ¢ Mama Deer presented the little one to us after having first made an appearance to ¢check us out¢ before beckoning the fawn to come out of its hiding place. It¢s almost as if the doe wanted to show her baby off to us ¢ seemingly a natural thing for the mother of a beautiful baby to want to do. The group camping here is comprised of the boys from Old Dominion School, their instructors and me. Everyone is going about his/her duties in hushed tones so as to not frighten the deer.The dancing light; the sensation of the light breeze on sweat-dried forearms; the intermingled, muted sounds of stream and fire and respectful souls; the closeness of nature¢s own -- it¢s one of those magical moments on the Appalachian Trail. Today¢s hike from Daleville was all uphill and, with the temperature in the upper 90s, was exhausting. I stopped for lunch at Angel¢s Gap, dried my clothes in the sunshine, and after a quick nap, chatting briefly with four college-age weekend hikers who passed by. I worked hard going up the steeper parts of Tinker¢s Mountain and caught up with the wilderness trip from Old Dominion at mid-afternoon. Along the way I was honored with an invitation to join them for dinner, which was I truly appreciated - I am very impressed with the dynamics of the group - the purposeful open feedback they give one another, the structure and the flexibility of the program, and the leaders themselves. Ms. Coli (Emily, aka ¢Mel¢) is reading to the boys again tonight. They are all laid out like sardines under one long tarp. It is getting dark in the woods and her voice carries through the trees in a lovely way. It is a comforting sound. It feels a bit like a scene from Peter Pan, when Wendy is reading to the lost boys. I feel like one of those boys here in the woods -- a lost boy with no desire to be found. I am very content to be right here, right now, doing just what I¢m doing. This kind of experience is what the AT is all about. Magical.
Date: 2006-08-03
From: Trout Creek

To: Chapel Hill, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Kathryn drove me to the post office at 7:00am. I thanked Kathryn for her hospitality and headed to the General Store, where I devoured a couple of homemade biscuits with egg and sausage at the general store while waiting for ¢Del¢ (my very chatty car service driver) to arrive and take me to the Roanoke airport. Confusing. It gets confusing here: I thanked Kathryn for her hospitality and headed off for the car rental counter at the airport, knowing I had made the right decision and knowing that I had just enjoyed a slice of Americana that, were it not for this ongoing AT journey of mine, I would never have experienced¢¦it would otherwise be hard to connect the dots between my apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and a remote Virginia home of otherwise total strangers where I found myself last night. But that¢s the ¢people part¢ of hiking the AT. *I thought you were heading to NY, what happened. Did you change your mind and fly to Chapel Hill, or rent a car and drive? By 4:00 pm, I was in Chapel Hill, North Carolina for a spontaneous visit with my daughter, Kim, where I intend to spend as much time as possible in her very cool, very air conditioned basement helping her with the installation of a new cork floor. Very cool.
Date: 2007-06-10
From: NYC

To: New Hampshire
Miles today: 0.0

As a youngster my parents would take me from our four room apartment in SW Hartford located just off "The Project" (an area also referred to as the "Combat Zone") to the Elm Theater every Saturday afternoon during the summers and deposit me there with $1.25 for the Saturday Matinee -- two Serials, ten Cartoons and two Westerns. The $1.25 bought me a ticket, a coke and a box (not a bag!) of popcorn. With the ticket came the right to sit in the air conditioned darkness (A/C was a true luxury for those of us from southwest Hartford!) where I could scream, and boo and laugh with several hundred other children all who were there for probably the same reasons I was.Of all the cartoon characters, my favorite was Mighty Mouse. To this day I can still hear his theme song playing in my head... "Here I come to save the day.. (chorus) Mighty Mouse is on the way!"Well, now at age 62, I've changed the words a bit, but the tune is still the same: "Here I come to hike the Trail... (Chorus) Mighty Bumpo's on is way!" Sometimes, admittedly, I change the chorus to try to rhyme with "Trail" to something like "Mighty Bumpo is no snail"!Regardless of which variation I choose, the song is reverberating through my head as now, for the fourth consecutive year, I am beginning to lay plans to get out to the AT for a few weeks of hiking. ("Here I come to hike the Trail...") Starting in early August, my plan is to go north from Hanover, NH through the Whites (White Mountain National Forest) as far as I can get in 3 to 4 weeks. Unlike last summer's debacle where the Virginia scorched earth policy drove me and everyone else out of the woods with 100 degree temperatures and dried up springs; this year I think I'll not only enjoy the coolness of some of Northern New England's most beautiful (and rugged!) mountains, but I should also find myself in the company of early Thru Hikers and other Section-Hikers whose presence is what makes the AT more than just a long hike.More later as plans begin to gel. But for now... "Here I come to hike the Trail... (you plug in any chorus you'd like and, if it's clean, add it to my logbook for consideration for future Trail-prep mental music to pack by). Do stay tuned.
Date: 2007-08-02
To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Well, I'm off to the Trail again. Finally! Reservations have been made, six drop boxes have been sent and friends have been notified. My personal and work-related "to do" lists have been cleared and I've re-acquainted myself with my gear.Ready or not, here I come!And already the Trail is dishing up surprises!The first came in a response to my e-mail to friends -- Dick Hurd who hiked across VT and into Hanover with me to close out my 2004 season. He wrote to tell me that he is going to join me in Hanover to start out my 2007 season.The second surprise came from my email to friends, too (as did the third and fourth surprises as well)! "Freebird", with whom I hiked through much of the Smokies and a number of miles in Southern VT, is going to be in NH and ME at the same time as I am this coming month. So maybe we'll run into one another again. That would be very cool.Similarly, my friend ¢Fern¢ who sectioned through a chunk of the Shenandoah¢s with me indicated in her response to my email that she was going to be in ME in August for a wedding and would take her backpack along in the hopes of connecting up with me somewhere along the way.But the best surprise of all is that my son, Jack, is in need of some "decompression time" from the rigors of work (don't we all!) and, at the urging of his wife, Alicia, is going to join me in Gorham for an "AT Journey" up to Andover, ME. Very Cool!So, this morning with the backpack on my back and briefcase in hand, I headed to the office for the last time for nearly 30 days: tidied up my inbox: and caught a cab to Penn Station for the trip to Boston. Low and behold, the woman who sat down beside me is a fellow AT Section hiker also en route to the Whites. Her trail name is "Baby Carrots" (for the dietary indulgence she enjoys while hiking). Fun to already be talking about gear, favorite sections, outfitters we have known and loved, etc. In some strange way, just 'talkin' the talk makes me realize that soon I'll be 'walkin' the walk.
Date: 2007-08-04
From: Moose Mountain Shelter

To: Dorchester Road
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: clear sky

Today was a perfect day for hiking. Last night¢s temperature dropped to 42 degrees, and today is much cooler with lower humidity and cloudless blue skies. Dick drove me to the trailhead after a breakfast at ¢Dowd¢s Country Inn,¢ where I ate blueberry pancakes and bacon with coffee. Yum! Dick and I said our goodbyes, and I stepped into the woods and started straight up - four miles and 2,200 vertical feet to the fire tower atop Smarts Mountain. Today I re-learned a lesson that the Trail had already taught me. I learned again that I must let the Trail dictate my pace. Today I hiked slowly, going up and comfortably coming down. Today was fun again! I felt like I belonged on the Trail after all. Other than some post-lunch indigestion (requiring a mid-afternoon stop for one Alka-Seltzer, one Zantac, and two Tums - I can only blame the chef! Me) it was a great day. Tonight I am at Hexacuba Shelter, a hexagonal-shaped structure with two open sides. It is located about half way up the east side of Cube Mountain. The shelter is full, and so are the adjacent tent sites, with 13 NOBO¢ and ten SOBOs. ¢Aussie¢, ¢Castinet¢, ¢Booboo,¢ ¢Lucky¢ and his brother, ¢Packrat¢, ¢Maniac Uno¢ and his son, ¢Maniac Duo¢, and ¢Maniac Uno¢s¢ brother, ¢Sticks¢ (who ¢sticks like glue¢) is sectioning with them, as are two of ¢Wingheart¢s¢ kids. A lot of information about water sources and places to eat is being exchanged. There are as many women here as there are men. Equipment, recipes, and tails of adventures are being shared. Laughter comes in clumps and echoes in the woods. Some late arriving SOBOs, including ¢Cat, Jack¢ (whose real name is Dick), ¢Tumbleweed¢, ¢Timber¢, ¢Woody¢, and the ¢Twisted Sisters¢ are all present. One late arrival from the north was ¢Alpine Strider.¢ I found myself sitting on the edge taking it all in, enjoying the scene, just chillin¢. When all of the sudden, an impromptu north versus south joke-a-thon began; as ¢Woody¢, self-appointed SOBO joke teller, started it all off with a ¢have you guys heard the one about¢¦?¢ The gauntlet was down, and a response from the NOBO¢s was necessary. It was great fun, and it also brought an end to me sitting on the sidelines. Ha! My tent is pitched up behind the shelter, and I am just now turning off my head lamp and rolling over for what I am sure will be another good night¢s sleep in the AT woods.
Date: 2007-08-05
From: Lyme, New Hampshire

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 9.1

Today was a perfect day for hiking. Last night¢s temperature dropped to 42 degrees, and today is much cooler with lower humidity and cloudless blue skies. Dick drove me to the trailhead after a breakfast at ¢Dowd¢s Country Inn,¢ where I ate blueberry pancakes and bacon with coffee. Yum! Dick and I said our goodbyes, and I stepped into the woods and started straight up - four miles and 2,200 vertical feet to the fire tower atop Smarts Mountain. Today I re-learned a lesson that the Trail had already taught me. I learned again that I must let the Trail dictate my pace. Today I hiked slowly, going up and comfortably coming down. Today was fun again! I felt like I belonged on the Trail after all. Other than some post-lunch indigestion (requiring a mid-afternoon stop for one Alka-Seltzer, one Zantac, and two Tums - I can only blame the chef! Me) it was a great day. Tonight I am at Hexacuba Shelter, a hexagonal-shaped structure with two open sides. It is located about half way up the east side of Cube Mountain. The shelter is full, and so are the adjacent tent sites, with 13 NOBO¢ and ten SOBOs. ¢Aussie¢, ¢Castinet¢, ¢Booboo,¢ ¢Lucky¢ and his brother, ¢Packrat¢, ¢Maniac Uno¢ and his son, ¢Maniac Duo¢, and ¢Maniac Uno¢s¢ brother, ¢Sticks¢ (who ¢sticks like glue¢) is sectioning with them, as are two of ¢Wingheart¢s¢ kids. A lot of information about water sources and places to eat is being exchanged. There are as many women here as there are men. Equipment, recipes, and tails of adventures are being shared. Laughter comes in clumps and echoes in the woods. Some late arriving SOBOs, including ¢Cat, Jack¢ (whose real name is Dick), ¢Tumbleweed¢, ¢Timber¢, ¢Woody¢, and the ¢Twisted Sisters¢ are all present. One late arrival from the north was ¢Alpine Strider.¢ I found myself sitting on the edge taking it all in, enjoying the scene, just chillin¢. When all of the sudden, an impromptu north versus south joke-a-thon began; as ¢Woody¢, self-appointed SOBO joke teller, started it all off with a ¢have you guys heard the one about¢¦?¢ The gauntlet was down, and a response from the NOBO¢s was necessary. It was great fun, and it also brought an end to me sitting on the sidelines. Ha! My tent is pitched up behind the shelter, and I am just now turning off my head lamp and rolling over for what I am sure will be another good night¢s sleep in the AT woods.
Date: 2007-08-06
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: Ore Hill Shelter 
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: scattered clouds

It started to rain just as I finished packing up. And rain it did. All day. Soaking, drenching rain! Besides passing one SOBO (¢Smiles,¢ who I have since learned walked to Katadan from Indiana to begin his hike), I saw no one else on the trail all day. From 9:00am until 3:30pm I was alone in the woods, soaking wet, walking in the quiet odiousness of raindrops falling on leaves overhead. The sound can become mesmerizing. I arrived at the Ore Hill Shelter and joined ¢Lucky¢, ¢Packrat¢, and ¢Alpine Strider¢, who were already wrapped up in their sleeping bags to get warm. In spite of the arrival of a group of intercity kids and counselors, sponsored by the Boston Salvation Army, I slept soundly for about one hour. When I awoke, the rain had ended, and so I took the chance to set up my tent in one of the few tent sites near the shelter. So far, so good. The rain has continued to hold off through dinner (Mountain House beef stroganoff), and right now the sun is barely visible through the trees, as it is about to set. Hiking in the rain is really solitary, even when you are with other people. But today was especially so. I found myself thinking a lot about my kids - Kimmie is visiting her friend Nicole in Alaska - and Jack who is probably at work in Minnesota today. I wondered how they were doing. I thought of Jack¢s wife, Alicia, and their daughter, Alexandra (my one and only 18-month-old grandchild!!) and wondered what they were doing while I am watching my footing so I do not slip on wet roots, rocks, or mud. I thought of my friends at work and how I miss their cheery camaraderie. It may sound strange, but I love them all, dearly. And I thought of my sister and wondered how her battle with cancer is proceeding. I thought, too, of her husband, Bill, and their four sons, my nephews. Whether it was just a thought or a prayer, it was offered with concern and hope. The 80 hikers here at Ore Hill are really nice, but tonight I am feeling lonely. The strenuous rigors of the past few days have slowed me down; not just physically, but they have slowed down my spinning mind and allowed me to get back in touch with some of my emotions. Today I feel like I am closer to being a human being than a human ¢doing¢. And what I am, at my core, is a man who values his connection with the people who matter most to me - family and loved ones. Nothing like a sopping wet, rainy day in the woods to be reminded of what matters most. If you are looking for a good reason to go for a hike, this is one for you.
Date: 2007-08-07
From: Ore Hill Shelter 

To: New Hampshire Route 25, Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: overcast clouds

This is truly one of the most beautiful camping spots I have encountered on the Trail. The woods are open and free of undergrowth, allowing the late afternoon sunshine and a gentle breeze to penetrate all the way to the forest floor thus creating an animated mosaic of large, amoebae-esque splotches of light. A stream runs nearby, adding its distinct syncopation to the dancing light and rustling leaves. A doe with a spotted fawn are grazing at the fringe of the encampment ¢ Mama Deer presented the little one to us after having first made an appearance to ¢check us out¢ before beckoning the fawn to come out of its hiding place. It¢s almost as if the doe wanted to show her baby off to us ¢ seemingly a natural thing for the mother of a beautiful baby to want to do. The group camping here is comprised of the boys from Old Dominion School, their instructors and me. Everyone is going about his/her duties in hushed tones so as to not frighten the deer.The dancing light; the sensation of the light breeze on sweat-dried forearms; the intermingled, muted sounds of stream and fire and respectful souls; the closeness of nature¢s own -- it¢s one of those magical moments on the Appalachian Trail. Today¢s hike from Daleville was all uphill and, with the temperature in the upper 90s, was exhausting. I stopped for lunch at Angel¢s Gap, dried my clothes in the sunshine, and after a quick nap, chatting briefly with four college-age weekend hikers who passed by. I worked hard going up the steeper parts of Tinker¢s Mountain and caught up with the wilderness trip from Old Dominion at mid-afternoon. Along the way I was honored with an invitation to join them for dinner, which was I truly appreciated. I am very impressed with the dynamics of the group - the purposeful open feedback they give one another, the structure and the flexibility of the program, and the leaders themselves. Ms. Coli (Emily, aka ¢Mel¢) is reading to the boys again tonight. They are all laid out like sardines under one long tarp. It is getting dark in the woods and her voice carries through the trees in a lovely way. It is a comforting sound. It feels a bit like a scene from Peter Pan, when Wendy is reading to the lost boys. I feel like one of those boys here in the woods -- a lost boy with no desire to be found. I am very content to be right here, right now, doing just what I¢m doing. This kind of experience is what the AT is all about. Magical.