morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-05-30
From: Pine Knot Shelter

To: Unknown Tent Site
Miles today: 0.0

We awoke and started out on the trail, walking over some very rocky areas. The rocks are challenging and beat your feet up (any your legs) as you choose between either trying to land between them if possible or hopping rock to rock if not. After a long day, we reached the Pen-Mar Park Picnic area and Sunset Pavilion. Tricycle had gone ahead and was waiting at a picnic table when Bonesaw and I arrived just before dark. There were some other picnickers there also and we decided to cook our dinner and then move on to a nearby camp in the woods. After dinner we walked on and soon found an area suitable for our tents. We were somewhere before the Falls Creek Bridge at about mile 1051. We set up our tents and fell fast asleep.
Date: 2006-06-02
From: Birch Run Shelter

To: Pine Grove Furnace State Park
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

We were up very early and out on our way to my meeting place with Lynne, and the halfway point of the hike. Traditionally, thru hikers take part in a 12 gallon ice cream eating challenge at the Pine Grove Grocery Store. I wasn¢t sure if I¢d take part in the challenge. The day was perfect for hiking and we made great time there. I think I walked faster than usual knowing I would soon meet Lynne. The hike was over some more gently rolling hills. When we came close to the park, we passed some perfect cabins next to the trail. We them came out on to the road and made our way to the grocery store. I called Lynne, and she had just landed at BWI and was renting a car to drive to me. I was hungry and ate a cheeseburger, a 20 ounce coke, a bag of chips and then decided I would take the ice cream challenge. I chose a half gallon of Double Dutch Dark Chocolate Bryers Ice Cream and finished it easily. Just as I was finishing, Lynne drove up and we embraced. All was well, and we headed out to Boiling Springs where we will spend some time before I return to the trail on Sunday, June 4.
Date: 2006-06-03
From: Boiling Springs PA

To: Boiling Springs PA
Miles today: 0.0

Lynne and I zeroed in Boiling Springs, going to Foundry Day and hanging around town. I went to an outfitter in Mechanicsburg, PA, and I had left a note at the ATC center for Bonesaw and Tricycle to call me when they arrived in town. Lynne and I were on our way to Gettysburg to be tourists when they called, so we came back so Lynne could meet them and we could perform trail magic with a case of beer, apples and candy. After the hikers we met were hydrated with the beer and ready to continue, Lynne and I left and went on to Gettysburg and looked around. Later we went to dinner and ended a perfect day together.
Date: 2006-06-04
From: Pine Grove Furnace State Park

To: Alec Kennedy Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Lynne and I woke early and enjoyed the morning together before she returned me to Pine Grove Furnace State Park. I asked her to walk with me down the path until it entered the woods. This turned out to be a very emotional walk, and we both had a few teary moments before we turned and walked our separate ways. It took me a few minutes to start because I stood there and watched Lynne walk out of sight. Returning back to my hike I continued north with a goal of making it to the Alec Kennedy Shelter. The trail was gentle until it reached a rocky area where it seemed like the trail boss must have hade a sense of humor when he set up the path where it crossed through large boulders. It would have been a lot of fun if I wasn¢t in a hurry to get to the shelter. Finally I reached it and ran into Dead Bear, Delicious, and Old Grey Mare. I ate quickly and hit the sack.
Date: 2006-06-05
From: Alec Kennedy Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I was up early planning to get to Boiling Springs for breakfast. I arrived in town, signed in at the ATC and went to the local caf© where I met DaBear and Dancing Bear for breakfast. DaBear ate an impressive amount of food, selecting one of each of all the breakfast sandwich selections. DaBear and I hiked out together and it was very nice to be reunited after last seeing him at Pearisburg at my birthday party. DaBear is still a great guy, maybe even better than ever and a pleasure to hike with. I lucked out again. I told him about Bonesaw and Tricycle and our partnership and he was interested in catching up to meet them. We hiked long and hard across the Shenandoah Valley and up into the mountains on the north side of the valley. We hiked to the Darlington Shelter where we ran into Sandman. DaBear and I decided to hike on, not realizing there was a thunderstorm brewing. We came out of the woods into a clearing and noticed why it seemed so dark in the forest. A thunderstorm was approaching fast and we soon heard thunder and felt the storm breezes. As we hiked over open pastures I became nervous about the lightning strikes.   I stopped and geared up for the rainstorm. Soon after we reentered the forest and began searching for a camp. We found a suitable site and made camp, enjoying a great campfire and a great conversation. It was another special night in the woods with great company.
Date: 2006-06-07
From: Duncannon PA

To: Clanton Ferry
Miles today: 0.0

I heard everyone mustering for breakfast in the morning but I could not get up. I slept in and was painfully aware that I was sick again. Later Dead Bear brought me a take out of sausage bread for breakfast. Later we all got together and decided to leave the Doyle today. Bonesaw, Tricycle, Sleeper, Dead Bear, DaBear, and I headed out of town and onto the trail. We quickly ascended the hill and arrived at a vista where someone had constructed rock chairs around two firepits. It was a perfect place to take a break and we enjoyed a nice time while comfortably sitting in the rock chairs. We finally set out again and arrived at the Clanton Ferry Shelter for the night. It wasn¢t a long day of hiking but I was done, and it was hot. The group planned a big feast for our first night out of town. They had a big tenderloin of beef, a Keilbasa and much other town food. They fashioned some cooking tools from branches and cooked over a big fire. I set up my bed and went to sleep. They had their feast and I woke up as they celebrated their culinary success. The tenderloin looked perfect.
Date: 2006-06-08
From: Clanton Ferry

To: Tent Site
Miles today: 0.0

I am going back a few days to catch up on my journal. Since I was sick and kept hiking I used all my energy up on the trail and had none left to write. I woke and the guys were still excited about last night¢s feast. They made a big shelter journal entry so everyone would be envious, naming our group Team Neaderthal because of the cooking tools they had made. We hiked on and stopped early near a spring at about mile 1150. The guys cooked another feast and I went to sleep early.
Date: 2006-06-09
From: Tent Site

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

We woke in the woods. DaBear, Dead Bear and Cowboy camped by the fire last night. As we were breaking camp, DaBear¢s bearbag was tangled in a tree, so Dead Bear climbed the tree to free it. As he got higher, the tree fell. Dead Bear landed with a thud and it was hard. He¢s a tough guy and just seemed to shake it off. The height that he fell could have caused serious injury, but we all laughed and kidded about the incident, probably because we were relieved he was not hurt. We got going and caught up to Tricycle at a campsite. A creepy guy was lying on the ground near Tricycle. When we all arrived this guy started asking for food and money. We all felt uneasy around him. He finally left and we then noticed that the weather was turning, a large thunderhead was approaching and we quickly decided to erect our tarps as a shelter. Just as we had set up the two tarps it started to storm, even beginning to hail. I felt like we had made a good decision to hunker down, and I felt secure. The storm blew over quickly and we broke camp. As we were leaving a young girl named Kid came up and talked to us before hiking on. She also had run into ¢The Creep¢ but luckily he hadn¢t bothered her. We continued on and stopped at the Rausch Gap Shelter for the night. The shelter had a nice spring right in front!        We built a big campfire and dried our socks and shoes from the wet walk into camp.
Date: 2006-06-10
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We woke and started hiking. Dead Bear was last to leave and had decided to go back to Duncannon to work at the Doyle for a few days and earn some money. The rest of us set out with the 501 Shelter as our goal. Along the way, we encountered two black snakes and Sleeper and Tricycle played with them and handled them for awhile. We arrived at the 501 Shelter and decided to order pizza since the shelter was close to a road. While we were at the shelter, the caretaker came in and was very unfriendly towards us. We had read the shelter journal entries and had noticed a lot of negative entries mentioning the caretaker¢s behavior. He came in and asked us who tore a page out of the register. (No one had). He was accusatory and had a negative attitude towards us from the beginning. Later when the pizza arrived the caretaker came in to make another check on what we were doing. He said ¢I¢m making a head count¢ but in reality he was checking to make sure we didn¢t have any beer. He was gruff and seemed like a miserable person that was unhappy with his life. I don¢t know why he would want to be a caretaker. I would think that a caretaker would enjoy his job and try to treat the thru hikers as his primary customer. The register showed that the caretaker had called the police a few nights back because someone did have beer in the shelter. After the last bedcheck, we did not see him again. We played a game of Texas hold em with M&M¢s as chips and Bonesaw was the champion.
Date: 2006-06-11
From: 501 Shelter

To: Eagles Nest Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We made sure we left the 501 Shelter in good condition. All trash was picked up, the chairs were placed in their proper position under the table and everything appeared perfect. All pizza boxes were in their place, the recycling was done and the trash was thrown out. We didn¢t have a fire so we did not do anything with the firepit. We left the place perfect knowing the caretaker would come in and check. Along the hike we rant into more black snakes. At one point I was walking along with Bonesaw and DaBear when DaBear spotted a bottle of beer sitting on a rock about three feet from the side of the trail. The expiration date on the bottle was 1999 and the top was rusty. We opened it and the beer was still good so the three of us split it and had a good laugh about our good fortune. We hiked to the Eagles Nest Shelter where we spent the night. Bonesaw and I slept in the shelter while Sleeper , Tricycle and DaBear set up camp in the tenting area along with Thruhiker Delicious.
Date: 2006-06-12
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Windsor Furnace Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We hurried to Port Clinton where we hoped to resupply and get a meal. The outfitter and restaurant were closed, but we called Cabela¢s and got them to shuttle us to their store where we hit the buffet and bought some supplies. After, we were shuttled back to Port Clinton and headed out on the trail up a steep grade. We walked to the Windsor Furnace Shelter and had a sweet campfire. I am still feeling the cold and not very energetic.
Date: 2006-06-13
From: Windsor Furnace Shelter

To: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We walked up the mountain to the Pinnacle, which is considered the best view in Pennsylvania. At the rocky viewpoint we found two mating black snakes and a rattlesnake. After leaving we were walking down an old dirt road where I almost stepped on a large rattler. Tricycle said ¢watch out¢ and I took a long step around the snake. Sleeper enjoyed playing with the snake and we all observed it coil up and begin rattling its tail. I was glad to hear the rattling sound so I would be able to recognize the sound. We made it to the Eckville Shelter where we met the caretaker there named Mick. Mick had a bad attitude also and when Sleeper introduced himself and tried to shake hands, Mick announced in a very unfriendly, gruff voice that he doesn¢t shake hands with through hikers. Mick said, ¢Are you the Neanderthals?¢ and Bonesaw told him yes. Mick replied, ¢You have a shitty reputation in front of you.¢ He refused to tell us who told him this, but we suspected it must have been the 501 caretaker. Mick also seemed like an unlikely candidate to be a caretaker. I don¢t know who hired him, but they need to reconsider. Both the 501 and Ecksville caretakers need to be retired. I strongly recommend the ATC or whoever responsible consider getting someone that likes what they are doing and who is better qualified for the job. I could go into more details, but we have heard from other hikers and read in the registers that many through hikers were treated shabbily by these two. We continued north and spent the night at the Allentown Hiking Club shelter. This shelter was a beautiful shelter, well cared for and a joy for a stop. We had a fire and went to bed.
Date: 2006-06-14
From: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter

To: Ocean Grove
Miles today: 0.0

We got up at 4:45 am and got an early start. The walk was over some terrible rocks and was a challenge. Lynne was on her way to pick us up at the trailhead at Palmerton. We were beat up by the time we got to the end of the trail. We sat in the parking area and Lynne arrived soon after. We drove to the Jersey Shore where Lynne is spending the summer in Ocean Grove.
Date: 2006-06-15
From: Ocean Grove

To: Ocean Grove
Miles today: 0.0

Our first zero day in Ocean Grove. We walked around town and I explained the town¢s history to my hiking friends. The guys wanted to go deep sea fishing so we drove to Belmar to check out the boats. We went out to dinner at a seafood restaurant overlooking Shark River Inlet. I enjoyed my time with Lynne while the guys took a walk on the boardwalk.
Date: 2006-06-16
From: Ocean Grove

To: Ocean Grove
Miles today: 0.0

We woke early and took Bonesaw, Tricycle and Sleeper to the marina where they went on a 34 day fishing trip. Lynne and I spent the day doing errands and enjoying each other¢s company. We picked up the fishermen and discovered they had a very successful day fishing. They almost won the boat pool for largest fish and had about 10 flounder (Fluke) filets. We had a great fresh fish dinner at home and went to bed soon after.
Date: 2006-06-17
From: Ocean Grove

To: Ocean Grove
Miles today: 0.0

We woke and spent the day organizing our food after going grocery shopping. We walked around town and went to an art show and car show. Later we went to our friend Felice¢s house and cooked out. We had a nice evening and then walked the boardwalk to Felice¢s favorite tiki bar in Asbury Park at Convention Hall. We ended the night saying our goodbyes to Felice and finalized our packs to prepare for tomorrow¢s return to the trail in Palmerton.
Date: 2006-06-18
From: Palmerton PA

To: LeRoy Smith Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

We woke early and Lynne drove us to Palmerton so I could write this journal. We stopped at a restaurant in Palmerton for our last breakfast before retiring to the trail. Today showed promise of being brutally hot. The air looked polluted as we drove up from the valley to the trailhead. We started where we had left off a few days before. The trail went up and then straight up a rocky climb over many rocks. It was so steep that my heart was beating at maximum levels and I was out of breath. I don¢t like heights and this scared me to the limits of my ability to keep going. It would have been very easy to turn around and say I can¢t make it. But I somehow found the will to go on. The temperature was 97 degrees and there wasn¢t any shade. I wished I was back with Lynne at the shore. I finally made it hand over hand to a place where I could stand up and carefully hiked across an ugly landscape that could have been on another planet. There wasn¢t much relief from the sun as we walked on. My pace was painfully slow as I tried to conserve my strength in the blast furnace we had to endure. There¢s not much I can do but keep going and hope I will make it past this area. I wouldn¢t hike this section again for a million dollars. Eventually the sun was lower and the hike was bearable but the rocks did not let up. I can¢t imagine anyone choosing to day hike in this area. But we don¢t have a choice ¢ we¢re through hikers. So every section, no matter how crappy has to be hiked. We found a spring and Bonesaw and Tricycle were nice to offer to refill my water. The spring was 15 minutes down and 20 minutes up over a steep, horrible trail. Bonesaw fell on his was down the blasted trail. We rehydrated and hiked on for an eternity of painful encounters with sharp rocks. Finally we arrived at the Leroy Smith Shelter, which was full, and one of the most depressing shelters I have encountered. We elected to tent in the tent area. This area was actually pretty nice and Sleeper had a campfire going in no time. I went in my tent and updated this entry to escape the mosquitoes. I checked my cell phone, had service, so I called Lynne to tell her thanks for all the wonderful things she did to give us a great vacation from our perfect vacation on the trail. Tomorrow we will try to walk to the Delaware Water Gap.
Date: 2006-06-19
From: LeRoy Smith Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Woke up, had breakfast, broke camp and started walking at 7am. It was a nice night temperature wise. The hike started on rocks and took us on a tour de rocks. Every type of rocks for the rock connoisseur. Little sharp rocks, little loose rocks, medium rocks to step on, medium rocks to trip over, larger rocks to hop, boulders to jump, boulders to climb and slip on. Rocks, Rocks, Rocks. If I can make it here I can make it anywhere. But I pledge never to return to this area. We broke at the Kirkbridge Shelter. I was hiking with Tricycle and we were on the AT where the trail turns up to the shelter. We were discussing going on but we had agreed earlier to meet here. The weather was changing,   we could hear thunder approaching, so we went up to the shelter to ride out the approaching storm. Bonesaw and Sleeper arrived soon after. Everyone was beat up and there was talk about staying at this shelter for the night. We had about 6 or 7 miles left to hike if we were going to make it to Delaware Water Gap. We decided to go on and stay in a hotel. We called and reserved a room. It was late and we knew we would have to hike hard to make it into town by 9pm. We headed out with purpose, walking as fast as we could. The thunderstorm hit us and we walked in the storm on a trail turned into a creek. At some point Tricycle, who was the fastest, agreed to hike ahead and pick up pizza and beer before the store closed at 9pm. I called and ordered the pizza and Bonesaw and I hiked together. Sleeper was a little ahead and Tricycle was way ahead. We pulled into town about 9:15 and walked to the hotel where we found our room and Tricycle there with our dinner. I jumped in the shower and we watched Game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Before we came into the room, another through hiker who we had met yesterday briefly, stopped by, saying he was staying at the church hostel and wanted the watch the game. In retrospect, he was rude and I wish we hadn¢t let him in to our room. He freeloaded, taking over the TV, eating our pizzas and drinking our beer without offering anything or even saying thank you. I had never seen such behavior, but it got worse. After he left, we heard a knock at the door and Tricycle opened it up to find two other through hikers who had come for beer and pizza. These were not young hikers, they were rude hikers taking advantage of us for their own selfish needs. I was glad when they left and afterwards we all had a long discussion about inappropriate thru hiker behavior. Soon after the sweet restful sleep took over.
Date: 2006-06-20
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Mohican Outdoor Center
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

We awoke after sleeping in. We checked out at noon and went to the diner for lunch. The diner was a good stop and we left very satisfied. We walked out of town and across the Delaware River Bridge to the New Jersey state line. Yahoo, I¢m out of Pennsylvania. The trail in New Jersey immediately noticeably improved. We entered the Worthington State Forest and walked along a beautiful creek. The trail went up a gentle path and eventually reached Sunfish Pond, the southernmost glacial pond on the trail. I was concerned because I had no strength in my legs. They felt like rubber and I had a hard time walking. It seemed strange that I had such difficulty. It just started this morning. I hoped it would get better but at one point I was walking and all of a sudden I was falling down backwards hitting hard on my backpack. I must have made a noise because everyone came running back to assist me. The weather was about to change so we decided to erect the two tarps and play a game of euchre and wait out the approaching thunderstorm. We played and Bonesaw and I were handily beaten by Tricycle and Sleeper. We decided it was late and we needed to get going so we took down the tarps and headed out. I had trouble lifting my pack and trouble walking. I had to will my legs to go on and could hardly support my self. We took forever to reach the Mohican Outdoor Center on Camp Road. Before getting there we watched a beautiful sunset on Kittatiny Mountain. It was beautiful in every way. We rolled into camp late after 10pm and cooked dinner at the picnic tables outside the camp store. We then went to the tenting area and set up camp. I said I would see how I felt after a night¢s rest but if I didn¢t improve I would need to see a doctor. I went to bed at midnight.
Date: 2006-06-21
From: Mohican Outdoor Center

To: Newton Memorial Hospital
Miles today: 0.0

It was a nice night and I woke up to a disapointing dicovery. I was much worse and had difficulty getting up off the ground and out of my tent. I struggled dressing and getting my boots on. My legs and hands did not work. I told the others I needed help and made my way to the camp store where I was helped by Marshall. He drove me to Blairstown and then to the hospital in Newton NJ. I asked everyone to continue their good hike and told them how much I enjoyed out time together and how much I cared about them, and then started to leave. Tricycle said they would stay closed until I called to let them know about my status. I reached the hospital and was examined by the doctors. I had another tick on my leg which was removed. I was told I either had Guillian Barre, best remembered as a complication of the swine flu vaccine given in the 70's, or I had tick paralysis or Lyme disease. Tests were run and I would know tomorrow. If I have GB then I will get much worse and maybe not be able to breathe. I needed to be admitted so I could be monitored. I always feared Lyme disease but now I hoped that's all I have. I now in a room with a gentleman awaiting a pace maker, who has also been battling lung cancer. I guess everything is relative and I should count my blessings. I hope to find out tomorrow what my fate is. I already miss the trail and miss my good friends that have gone ahead. I wish you well and will never forget you, my friends.Here I sit in my hospital room unable to walk to the bathroom, hardly able to open the simplest of containers. I can hardly write these words. I am still hopeful I will be able to return to my quest to thru hike the AT this year.