morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-05-16
From: Craig Creek

To: Four Pines hostel
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: few clouds

I surprised Bigfoot and Mr. Fab this morning when I walked down to where their tents were. They were really happy to see me. Bigfoot isn't going to Trail Days, but Mr. Fab and Overdrive are, so we'll figure out a way to get there together. Today was all about rocks. I hate rocks. There were some awful climbs down from a place called the Dragon's Tooth. I would come up to a sheer rock face and think, "Surely they don't want us to climb down this," but there would be a white blaze right down the side of it. I would throw my poles (angrily) down to the bottom and climb down with my hands or scoot down on my butt, only inches from sudden death. (Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration.) And of course that part was in the last 3 miles of the day, when I was already exhausted. I got to the road, finally, and a woman in a pickup gave me a ride 0.3 mi to the hostel. The hostel is a 3-car garage behind this guy's house which is filled with couches and cots to sleep on. Mr. Fab, Overdrive, Bigfoot, and Craftsman were already there. Overdrive had gotten in early in the day and had gone to the store and bought burgers, chips, beer, and breakfast for tomorrow, which was really sweet of him.
Date: 2012-05-17
From: Four Pines hostel

To: L.B.O.E.'s (Damascus, VA)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Back in Damascus for Trail Days! Yayyyy!! Joe, the owner of the 4 Pines Hostel, gave us (Overdrive, Mr. Fab, and me) a ride to Trail Days in the back of his truck, which was surprisingly comfortable. Joe, his son Josh, and two other hikers (Sipsey and Craftsman) rode in the front section. It was amazing how fast the miles flew by, and a little unbelievable that what had taken us 2.5 weeks to hike took us only 2 hours by car! When we got to Damascus, we walked around for a bit, caught a free dinner at the Baptist church, and came over to the restaurant - L.B.O.E.'s. (It stands for Little Bit of Everything - clever, right?) When Mr. Fab and Overdrive were in town last time, they made friends with the owner, Patrick, who said they could came behind the building during Trail Days, thereby avoiding the craziness of Tent City. Well Patrick made good on his promise, and not only that, but he had dessert and sandwiches and wine for us when we got there! Amazing. It's pouring down rain right now, so we've set up our tents on the front porch of the restaurant. Patrick is buddies with the local cops, so he called them to let them know we were camping there. I wouldn't want to get woken up by a cop in the middle of the night.
Date: 2012-05-18
From: L.B.O.E.'s (Damascus, VA)

To: L.B.O.E.'s
Miles today: 0.0

Trail Days is in full swing! It reminds me a lot of Bonnaroo; a bunch of dirty hippies walking everywhere, tents, vendors selling homemade jewelry and tie dye everything, checking the schedule of events to make sure you're not missing anything good. There is a lot of awesome stuff going on, and the First Baptist Church seems to be at the center of it all. They have free showers, internet, shuttles, food, health screenings, foot massages, anything you can think of to serve hikers. What an incredible blessing in the name of Jesus.Went to hear a speaker talk about the Camino de Santiago in Spain, which sounds like an awesome thing to do someday. Now that I have confidence in my backpacking skills, I would love to go on trips overseas. What a great way to see a country, and cheaply too.There have been a lot of reunions already, since so many people came from wherever they were on the trail to be here. I saw Gina, DR & Maps, Franklinstein, Papa Bear, Kennedy & Buddha and some of the Wolf Pack. I even saw Mr. Incredible walking down the road, but I was in the shuttle van and couldn't get out. Hopefully I"ll find him again tomorrow!
Date: 2012-05-19
From: L.B.O.E.'s

To: L.B.O.E.'s
Miles today: 0.0

Had a great day. The highlight was definitely the hiker parade. All the thru-hikers from this year and previous years walk the parade route through town. We all had water guns and balloons and were trying to soak the locals watching the parade, who were standing along the sides of the street trying to soak us. Some of them had garden hoses and buckets of water! We found UV & Ninja just before the parade started - they're a couple days behind us on the trail. They said that Button, Bunny, Rusty, Elastigirl & Mr. Incredible are all in town. I tried to find them all day but never saw them. Later in the evening we checked out the parties in the woods in Tent City, which were awesome. There were bonfires and music and dancing and fire-eating all happening at the same time. It was insane!
Date: 2012-05-20
From: L.B.O.E.'s

To: Catawba Mtn. shelter
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: clear sky

Said goodbye to Mr. Fab & Overdrive this morning as they got up early to leave for Hardcore. (Harcore is two days of trail maintenance with Bob Peoples, who owns a hostel on the trail and is kind of a legend. I'm not quite hardcore enough to want to move rocks and build trails for two days; hiking is hard enough, thanks. But the boys were really psyched about doing it.) Slept in a little later, packed up my stuff, bought a couple things at the Dollar Store and headed to Tent City. Met up with Joe for a ride back to 4 Pines Hostel, with the addition of a few extra people in the back of the truck. There were a bunch of people staying at the hostel when I arrived, so I decided to head back into the woods. It's good to be back in nature, but I'm missing the guys already.
Date: 2012-05-21
From: Catawba Mtn. shelter

To: campsite
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: scattered clouds

I had really good intentions to get up early and watch the sunrise at McAfee's Knob, but I must have turned off my alarm in my sleep b/c I didn't even hear it. It was just the beginning of a very lazy day for me - 10 miles in 9 hours! (Usually I hike at a steady 2 to 2.5 mph pace.) I definitely took my time enjoying the scenery.Even though I didn't get to the Knob for sunrise, it was still gorgeous. Sat up there for about an hour with Shorts, Aquablaze & All Balls. Got some great pictures. Later in the afternoon, I strolled up to Tinker Cliffs, which also had amazing views, and laid down on the cliffs and took a nap. I did intend to get a little closer to town today, but about 6 PM it got really dark and windy and I had to hustle to find a campsite before it started raining. Got my tent sent up about 15 min before the storm started.
Date: 2012-05-22
From: campsite

To: Fullhardt Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: few clouds

Made it into Daleville around lunchtime today and ate at a restaurant called 3 Lil Pigs BBQ. The food was excellent and they give free banana pudding to hikers! It was a huge bowl, too. Chatted briefly with an older couple at the next table; it always feels good to have a normal person be impressed at how far I've walked. It was super hot today; I was sweating like a pig. I saw a nice creek that would have been good to take a bath in, but it was right next to a road. And the cicadas were INSANE around Daleville. It reminded me of last summer in Nashville; they were everywhere. Somehow their loud droning makes a hot day seem even hotter.I struggled up the hill to this shelter, and thankfully it's much cooler up here. Sat around the picnic table for a while with Daystar, her sister Cole, Lighthouse, Glog & Cross Man. Cross Man is a traveling evangelist who had a giant cross strapped to the back of his pack. He says he usually travels by bicycle but had a calling from God to hike the AT for a week. Definitely an interesting guy. He's hiking south, so I won't see him again.
Date: 2012-05-23
From: Fullhardt Knob Shelter

To: Cove Mountain
Miles today: 18.2
Weather: moderate rain

We criscrossed the Blue Ridge Parkway several times today - there were a lot of nice scenic views off to the side.Met Indy and Mission just after dinner tonight. We chatted by the side of the BRP for a while, then I hiked behind them into the woods. A short time later, I came around a corner to find Indy holding a huge black snake, while Lighthouse and Mission took pictures! That boy is crazy! (It's ironic b/c Indy is short for Indiana Jones, who is deathly afraid of snakes.) The snake must have been 4 feet long. After Indy let it go, it climbed way up in a tree. And now I can add "having a giant snake fall out of a tree on my head" to my list of fears. Never a dull moment on the AT.
Date: 2012-05-24
From: Cove Mountain

To: Cornelius Creek shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: light rain

The beginning of the day was kinda rough, but it turned out great. The humidity was insane today. The sun barely came out at all, but I was sweating like a pig anyway. There was a swimming hole at Jennings Creek that I wanted to go in, but the water was freezing so I decided against it. A fisherman came by and offered me some trout, but I had to decline. I had just eaten lunch and didn't want to carry a stinky fish around until dinnertime! That's probably the one smell that could overpower my own stench right now.i felt kinda slow and yucky most of the day, and wasn't looking forward to the last 5 mi up to Cornelius Creek Shelter - all uphill. But I put some music on, and kicked that mountain's ass! When I got here, Lighthouse and Squatch were here. I had seen Squatch at Trail Days; he made a film about the AT last year and is doing another one this year. He interviewed Lighthouse and me on camera. He's really good at what he does; I felt very at ease, like I was just having a normal conversation with him. LIghthouse and I both told our Provisions stories in answer to the question, "What is the wackiest thing that's happened to you on the trail?" I could leave you in suspense, but now you're dying to know about Provisions. I met him back at Chestnut Knob shelter, where he had apparently been for 5-6 days. I was just inside the shelter for a few minutes while getting my stuff together before heading out in the morning. He was talking about how to kill wild animals with your bare hands, and how you have to get your fingers behind the eyeballs and into the brain. When he got to that point in the story, he let out this really loud SCREAM. (Chestnut Knob is one of the few totally enclosed shelters with a door and windows, so the sound really echoed in there.) Then he started whipping himself with a knotted rope, and talking about how when you're out in the wilderness for a long time, you have to wake up your skin by whipping yourself. He was definitely a crazy dude. Everyone along the trail has a Provisions story, b/c apparently he stayed at that shelter for weeks, creeping out every person who came by.
Date: 2012-05-25
From: Cornelius Creek shelter

To: Matts Creek shelter
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: few clouds

I got to swim in a waterfall today (Apple Orchard Falls)! It was 1.1 mi off the trail, so most people didn't go down there, but it was totally worth the walk. I took a waterfall shower and washed my hair, which was awesome. Other than that, it was a long day; almost 20 mi if you add in the walk to and from the waterfall. It was almost 9 when I got to the shelter. I pushed the miles so I could catch Gribley, Daystar & Cole and we could all hitch into Glasgow tomorrow.
Date: 2012-05-26
From: Matts Creek shelter

To: Glasgow hiker shelter (Glasgow, VA)
Miles today: 2.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Hitched into town this morning with the Noodleheads (Rigatoni and Angel Hair) because Daystar, Gribley, Cole & Lighthouse were slow getting ready. Stopped by the post office and picked up a package from my friends Eric and Mackenzie which made my day b/c it had pictures of their new baby inside!! There is a hiker shelter here behind the town's one and only restaurant (I ate there for lunch and dinner). It's really nice; there's a shower, picnic table, bench, and space for tents. Daystar, Gribly, Cole, and Lighthouse hung out here for a while before heading back to the trail, so Cheezit and I are the only ones staying the night it looks like. I decided to spend the night so that:a. my knees could recover from the downhill beating they took yesterdayb. Overdrive & Mr. Fab could catch up soonerc. I could go to church in the AM. Finally, for real this time, after missing opportunities in Pearisburg & at Trail Days.Had a lazy afternoon spent reading "Under the Tuscan Sun", which is a bad book to read on the trail b/c she talks constantly about delicious Italian food! It makes me so hungry!
Date: 2012-05-27
From: Glasgow hiker shelter (Glasgow, VA)

To: campsite
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: clear sky

Finally got to go to church this morning, and it was wonderful! Went to Sunday School and church at Glasgow Presbyterian, a really small congregation; so small, in fact, that they asked me to sing in the choir! There were 3 other people in the choir and 10 people in the congregation. I really liked the pastor and the sermon - he spoke about Joshua and the wall of Jericho, and how much courage it took for him to lead his people into a plan that seemed so foolish by human standards. But his obedience brought blessing to him and all the Israelites. Made me think about what God is calling me to be obedient to.It had been so long since I was able to go to church that I was hanging on every word of the sermon and prayers and songs. When I get home, I hope I won't take for granted the blessing of being able to go to church every week! After church, Dot, a lady in the choir, took me out to lunch at a restaurant in the next town called the Pink Cadillac (it was Elvis-themed). Then she drove me back to the trail. It was so sweet of her to do that!Apparently I had just missed Mr. Fabulous and Overdrive in town, but I got a text saying they would be at a campsite 14 miles out of town. It took me until 9:30 PM, but I finally caught them! It was so nice to sit around the fire and hear their stories about Hardcore. Glad to have some people to walk with again.
Date: 2012-05-28
From: campsite

To: campsite
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Had a great time hiking with the guys today. We actually stayed pretty close together; for a couple miles we were close enough to have a long conversation about Harry Potter and Stephen King and other books and authors we love. We got awesome trail magic from a thru-hiker named Skillet and his mom who was visiting for a few days. They had cold sodas and fresh fruit for us - delicious! The magic was right before a steep 4 mile climb, so it definitely helped power me up the mountain. It was SO hot - my shirt was completely soaked through by the time I got to the top.We sat around for so long at the trail magic that it derailed Mr. Fab from his crazy mileage plan. He was planning on doing 24 today, then 24, then 27 to get into Waynesboro for a hiker feed on Wed night. But Overdrive and I talked him out of that and we decided to get free lunch at a B&B tomorrow instead.I was thinking today about how I've experienced God thus far on the trail. [For my readers who are familiar with Mountain T.O.P, I was picturing a Friday night campfire and the question, "How have you experienced God this week?"]I have definitely experienced God through:1. the peace I feel out here. I know without a doubt that God will provide for me and therefore, I don't have to worry about anything. It's just that simple.2. God's beautiful creation3. definitely through the people I have met; whether hostel owners, townspeople, trail angels, or fellow hikers. I keep going back to Boots' comment, "If only the whole world operated like the trail, it would be a much better place." People really take care of each other out here; if you need something, a fellow hiker won't hesitate to offer it. It's what I imagine Jesus meant when he talked about the kingdom of God. Everyone is at peace with one another and looks after each other's needs. We all have the same goal out here, and that brings unity among people who are so diverse in background, age, life experiences, etc. I wish the church could be more like that sometimes; I wish we could realize our shared goal and mission.
Date: 2012-05-29
From: campsite

To: Dutch Haus Bed & Breakfast (Montebello, VA)
Miles today: 4.2

The free lunch at the Dutch Haus turned out to be a cleverly designed trap. Me, Mr. Fab, Overdrive & the Honeymoon Hikers got picked up at Spy Rock Road by one of the owners of the B&B (Earl). We walked into this beautiful house and sat down to a lunch of baked potato with ham and gravy, then red velvet cake for dessert. The Honeymoon Hikers had already made reservations to stay, and they didn't have to work very hard to convince us to spend the night as well. Once we found out that the owners will do your laundry for you while you get to lounge around in a big comfy robe, we were sold! And the food was amazing! For dinner we had vegetable lasagna with meatballs, salad & breadsticks, and peanut butter pie - all homemade. We relaxed and sat around in our robes until our laundry was done. Later in the evening, me, Mr. Fab, Overdrive and the Honeymoon Hikers played cards until it was time for bed. Staying here was an excellent decision.
Date: 2012-06-01
From: Quality Inn (Waynesboro, VA)

To: Grace Lutheran Church Hostel (Waynesboro, VA)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Had a great zero day in Waynesboro. Overdrive and I took the bus to the other side of town to go to some of the bigger chain stores. I got Watership Down at Books-a-Million, and can't wait to read it again. We walked around Target just to kill time, and I gazed longingly at all the cute summer dresses. I'm not a girly girl in real life, but I miss getting dressed up and feeling like an actual girl out here!We went to the outfitter and I finally bought some insoles; my arches have been killing me since I switched to the trail runners at Trail Days. My feet felt instantly better once I put in the insoles. I'm going to be flying down the trail now!Overdrive and I went to a Chinese buffet for dinner - it was amazing. Probably the best Chinese buffet I've ever had. We made sure to be back at the hostel well before 10 PM.
Date: 2012-06-02
From: Grace Lutheran Church Hostel (Waynesboro, VA)

To: campsite
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was the first day in Shenandoah National Park and I love it! We'd been hearing for a long time about how great it is, and so far it's turned out to be true. The terrain is relatively flat, no big climbs, and the scenery is really nice. It was definitely an easy day. overdrive and I even took a nap by the side of the trail, and we still got into camp before 6 PM> I did roll my ankle today, and it's a little swollen, but the good news is that I will live to hike another day.
Date: 2012-06-03
From: campsite

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was a really fun day. The weather has been beautiful, and we got to experience another part of Shenandoah we'd been hearing about for a while - tourists!It all started, however, with a crazy "what a small world" story. We walked about 4 miles to Blackrock Hut (the shelters in Shenandoah are called huts) and as I walked up I saw a familiar face. It was my friend Sam's landlord, who also works at the outfitter in downtown Nashville! She didn't recognize me at first, but I said, "Edith? You're Sam's landlord!" Her trail name is Tigger, and she and her sister Morning are thru-hiking, along with Edith's dog Elka. It was crazy to see her out here!Since it's Sunday, there were a lot of day hikers out (we could tell because they smelled so good). We came to an overlook just off Skyling Drive, where a family was sitting on a blanket having a picnic. I told Overdrive that we should linger by the overlook for a few minutes and see if they invited us over. Sure enough, they did! They gave us watermelon, grapes, oranges, cherry tomatoes and candy! We sat and talked with them for a long time, and told them all about trail life. I thin it's really fun to teach people about the AT and thru0hiking when they don't really have an understanding of it.We also had another awesome encounter with day hikers at another viewpoint later in the evening. There were about 4-5 people there, who asked us where we had come from. When we said,"Georgia", they were completely shocked. There was this one fabulous black gay man who was just so animated and funny in his reactions. We told him we had gone almost 900 miles, and his mouth just gaped open. He was so amazed, he had his picture taken with us, and I let him hold my hiking poles so he looked more authentic. One of the other guys in the group said he had done some backpacking and had though about doing the AT. He looked wistful as we talked about what a great experience it has bben. It's cool to think that maybe through our conversations with him, that could be the spark that convinces him to hike the trail, like the conversation with my friend Thomas was for me.
Date: 2012-06-04
From: Pinefield Hut

To: campsite
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: overcast clouds

The weather continues to be wonderful! Overdrive and I got up pretty early and hiked about 5 miles. We were feeling pretty good about ourselves, when we came to a nice grassy field alongside Skyline Drive. We sat in the sun for awhile, intending to take just a short break, when along comes Pants on Fire, Watermelon, and Tater Tot. So we all laid out in the sun and "just a few minutes" turned into an hour and a half. We passed the 900 mile mark today, which was awesome! There aren't actual markers on the AT which tell how many miles you've done in total, so people usually make them. We saw a "900" made out of sticks, but Overdrive was convinced that it wasn't at the exact perfect spot, so he went up another few tenths and made a marker out of sticks that said "the real 900". The Honeymoon Hikers caught up with us later in the day and we all camped together at a site halfway up Baldface Mtn. Overdrive and I stayed up late looking for bears but didn't see any. Everyone has seen one except me.
Date: 2012-06-05
From: campsite

To: Franklin Cliffs
Miles today: 14.6

We had our first rain today in a couple weeks, and it was pretty chilly for a while. 52 degrees in June is not my idea of summer weather!One of the great parts of the Shenandoahs is that there are campstores all throughout the park which are not far off the trail. We went to one this morning where I had a sausage biscuit and a cheese danish, and got a couple extra lunches b/c I was running low. We saw Squatch and the Honeymoon Hikers outside the store when we walked up and talked to them for a while as we were waiting out the rain. The Honeymoon Hikers have seen so many bears in the Shenandoahs; I'm super jealous.This afternoon we went to Big Meadows Lodge, where there was an actual restaurant. We sat in the lodge for quite awhile while waiting for the restaurant to open and talked to a section hiker named Growler. He had dinner with Overdrive and I, and then we hiked another 2 miles or so to these cliffs where Overdrive and I are camped. (Don't worry Mom, we didn't set up our tents right on the edge. We're a safe distance back.) Hopefully there will be a good sunrise (and bears!).