morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-06-04
From: Abingdon Gap Sheletr

To: Damascus
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: moderate rain

Abingdon Gap Shelter @ 0940 Finish: Damascus ¢ ¢The Place¢ @ 1220Miles: 10Weather: Rainy all morning & afternoon, overcast eveningBreakfast: Strawberry PoptartsLunch: Calzone, @ Sicliy¢s Italian Restaurant, Water, MilkDinner: Hot dog, Skyy Blue, Smirnoff, Killian's RedTrail Conditions: Muddy, Flat & DownhillAnimals: BirdsPeople: Brother, Bluebird, John, Belle, Pop-up, Yogi, Desperado, Spider, Scorch, Dude, Smack, Terrapin, Goofy, Mickey & Mallory, Lamby, Atlas & Amy, Stephen & Butterfinger, Section-Hikers, DayhikersIt poured all night long turning all the gear I had dried the last two days wet again from the damp clouds. I am always reluctant to start on rainy mornings. There is something about getting out of the warm and dry sleeping get-up, donning sweaty and wet clothes, and trudging off into the rain and mud that is not too appealing. But I suck it up because I know if I don¢t, I won¢t make it to Maine. On such mornings I now set goals. I get up, I tell myself I need this done by this time, etc¢¦ until finally I say I will start hiking at this time. And I just do it. So I just did it and headed out in the rain. As I instantly got wet I started singing Travis Tritt¢s ¢It¢s a great day to be alive¢ as loud as I could. Before long I rather unexpectedly found myself in Damascus. I saw the wood sign (I completely forgot about it) and scurried towards it. I wanted my picture taken under it so badly, but no one was there to capture the moment. As I walked under the sign I smacked it with my trekking poles and said ¢paddle on¢.Sopping wet, I made my way to the post office and got my food drop. I then proceeded over to ¢The Place¢ and took up residence in the hostel. I got to work drying out my gear, went to the library to use the Internet, and poked my nose around town. Wet hikers continued to trickle in throughout the afternoon. I ate an enormous Stromboli at Sicily¢s Italian Restaurant and caught a ride to Food City with Atlas & Amy. Food City had a wonderful deal where you could mix and match your own six-pack of bottled alcoholic beverages. So I made mine and drank it with a crew of hikers at Dave¢s Place Hostel. Atlas was grilling up hotdogs and burgers, it was a lot of fun. Across the street, at Mike¢s Auction House, fine items such as 10 x 24 tarps, dress-up dolls, and nail guns were being auctioned off. I stopped by to watch but never bid¢¦.although Mike offered to auction me off to a half capacity crowd of old blue-collar locals. Needless to say I declined. Not wanting to get myself into any other unnecessary mischief I returned to the hostel and called it a night.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-06
From: The Place

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: overcast clouds

DamascusStart: Damascus @ 0919Finish: Lost Mountain Shelter @ 1714Miles: 15.8Weather: Sunny & Cool. Perfect for hikingBreakfast: Strawberry CIB, Danish Raisin Oatmeal, PB crackers, bagel & cream cheese, cheese slices, 2 egg/cheese/sausage biscuits at Dairy KingLunch: Fudgeround, Oat n Honey, Snickers, PB crackersDinner: Beef & Garlic Potatoes, Honey Roasted Peanuts, 2 fudgeroundsTrail Conditions: Well maintained. One 1,000 foot climb, had good switchbacks thoughAnimals: Blacksnake, fire fliesPeople: Everyone at the Hostel from the previous day. Spent the night with Kiwi, Yogi, Brother, Willie, Mickey & Mallory, John, Hannah, Hansel & GretelFollowing last nights commotion I did manage to finally catch some shut eye. I first awoke around 0630 and then got out of the sack around 0715. The hostel was really hopping as everyone was prepping for their hikes. I had a fairly large breakfast and headed out with Desperado down to the wood Damascus sign for a photo shoot. Pictures taken I hiked out of town, minus a side trip to the Dairy King for a second breakfast, as I was hungry again. I then called my folks and started hiking.The hiking started flat but there was a good pull up Straight Mountain. Fortunately there were tons of switchbacks, which made the climb tolerable. I stopped for lunch at Saunders Shelter. As I sat on the privy Hans & Brit rolled in as did an old fellow named Bluebird. With him he was pushing a metal rickshaw and brought up four patio chairs for the shelter, trash bags, and shared pop and crackers with us. Thanks Bluebird!A family from Alabama then showed up. There were two daughters in their early teens that were real troopers. They were quite cute, but truly hardcore ¢as without complaint they popped their own blisters with a knife and then carved a spoon out of a stick so they could eat their lunch! It was by far one of the coolest things I have seen someone do on the trail.The rest of the hike went off without a hitch. I hiked a bit with Willie & Hannah along the Creeper Trail. I saw a huge black snake, about 4-5 feet in length. I got a great picture of it. Black SnakeThe shelter was very nice and new. It had a great privy, I have not seen a privy in several weeks. We had a good crew there for the night. We got a nice campfire going and shot the bull until hiker midnight (9:00pm). It was hilarious, John went to be early. He was snoring so loudly we could hear him outside the shelter 15 feet away, over our voices. I filmed a bit of it on my camera for fun. I¢ll show it to him tomorrow.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-07
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Wise Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: overcast clouds

RhododendronStart: Lost Mountain Shelter @ 0855Finish: Wise Shelter @ 1714Miles: 17.3Weather: Cool & Sunny in the morning, overcast in the afternoon, sun in eveningBreakfast: Chocolate CIB, Strawberry Poptarts, waterLunch: Snickers, Oat n Honey, trailmix, water, Hershey Special DarkDinner: Double Cheese Pizza HH, 2 fudgerounds, trailmix, waterTrail Conditions: Several good climbs, highlands area very rocky at timesAnimals: Birds, Squirrel, Brown Snake, DogPeople: Hannah, Willie, Yogi, Mickey & Mallory, John, Dude, Scorch, J-lo & Waterboy, Smack, Terrapin, Dayhikers, Section hikers, Hansel & Gretel.The temp dropped below 50 last night, however, I stayed quite warm and slept well despite three people snoring. I pushed off and ran into Hansel & Gretel again. They are two hikers that came to the U.S. all they way from Germany, just to do section hikes from their cars. I¢ve seen them nearly everyday for the past week at a different portion of the trail. They are really nice folks. Hansel & GretelBuzzard Rock was a neat location and I stopped for a quick snack. I love the large balds, and figured it was a preview to the Grayson Highlands. The first 12 miles to Thomas Knob Shelter seemed to drag on. Largely due to the fact that I kept expecting to see feral ponies and the highlands around each turn ¢ instead they were after the shelter and not before. Oops. I hiked with Yogi for little over an hour. He is from New York City, 42, and a real nice guy. We had a good chat. I ate a good lunch at the shelter. As luck would have it the beginnings of a good storm started rolling in over the highlands. Grrrrr. Feral PoniesIn the distance there were occasional rumbles of thunder. I decided to push on through. About 100 yards past the shelter I saw a herd of feral ponies. There were about 10 of them in the distance, then they all started running at me. The ground vibrated, it was cool. They veered off a few yards before me. I snapped quite a few pictures. Also, my wish finally came true ¢ after 490 miles of walking thru massive rhododendron thickets, I finally walked thru a patch that was in bloom. It was beautiful and very fragrant. I also passed through my first notch today ¢The Fat Man Squeeze¢, it was cool. The huge rock formations were awesome and the Highlands were beautiful. Luckily it didn¢t rain, but ominous clouds hung overhead as I walked the balds. The views were great despite the clouds, but on a clear day they must be spectacular.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-08
From: Wise Shelter

To: Troutdale Baptist Hostel
Miles today: 16.1

Wise Shelter Shelter @ 0833Finish: Troutdale Baptist Hostel @ 1514Miles: 16.1Weather: Rain & Thunderstorms all dayBreakfast: Vanilla CIB, Chocolate PoptartsLunch: Snickers, fudgerounds, Oat n Honey, trailmix, waterDinner: Philly Cheesesteak, 2 fudgerounds, honey roasted peanutsTrail Conditions: Muddy, turned into a riverAnimals: Dog, birdsPeople: Team Aquablaze, Bilbo, Jan (re-run) from Kazoo leading women¢s group, Hansel & Gretel, Lonnie (gave hitch into town)I slept good at the shelter last night despite it being so full. Everyone woke up early and we were all up and moving before 7:00am. I took my time getting ready and caught up some more with Roy and Jennifer. Bilbo, Yogi, and I all left within about 10 minutes of each other. On the way out I chatted with Jan from Adventures in Good Company. Her troop seemed to be having a good time for their first time hiking.Yogi and I hiked together for about an hour and shot the breeze. Yogi is from New York City and a real nice guy. We passed Hans and Brittany¢s camp. After I separated from Yogi I ran into Hansel & Gretel again. They are a very nice German couple, and tomorrow we will exchange contact information.I got to Old Orchard Shelter around 1100, and in fine fashion I ran into Terrapin, Goofy, Lamby, Smack and Dude¢¦all slacking off getting ready to hike. Shortly after I arrived it began pouring. After about an hour of rain it seem to stop so I chose to press on while everyone still stayed at the shelter. Not more than 5 minutes out the skies opened up and it began pouring again with thunder and lighting. However I was only at 3,000 feet so I wasn¢t concerned. I pushed to Hurricane Shelter which is only one month old and very nice. The rain briefly stopped and began once more just as hard. I got to Dickey Gap, stood in the rain and began trying to hitch. Finally, after about 20 minutes, a truck driven by a guy named Lonnie stopped, I hopped in, and the next thing I new I was in Troutdale. I stopped by the Troutdale Trading Post and headed up the hill and checked into the Baptist Church run hostel.The hostel was very nice. It felt wonderful to take a shower and dry out. About three hours later the rest of the crew showed up. They all chose to sleep in the church, while I stayed in the separate bunkhouse. I was glad to be by myself for the night as I prefer the silence. To save money I cooked my own dinner instead of eating out. It did not stop raining until about 2030. There was a beautiful sunset.I called Ben¢s parents and got the low down on his hike. Ben has only 12 days to go. I am very excited. I then called my folks. After that I wrapped things up for the night and hit the hay. Another good day on the trail.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-09
From: Troutdale Baptist Hostel

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: clear sky

Partnership ShelterStart: Dickey Gap @ 0850 Finish: Partnership Shelter @ 1433Miles: 14.5Weather: Hot and SunnyBreakfast: Maple & Brown Sugar Oatmeal, Strawberry Poptarts2nd Breakfast: 4 Hamburger Buns w/ Peanut ButterLunch: Cheese Breadsticks, Half of 16" Pepporoni/sausage pizza, pepsiDinner: More Pizza!Trail Conditions: Easy going, small PUD¢s, rocky in placesAnimals: Dog, birdsPeople: Team Aquablaze, Dayhikers, AT volunteers from Lynchburg area, USFS worker Louise, Hansel & Gretel.I am really glad I slept alone in the bunk room. Terrapin kept running his trap, as usual, people were snoring, and some weirdos showed up around 11pm all wet and setup their camp in the dark¢¦then proceeded to snore. Needless to say, not always following the pack is okay.I fixed up some oats (luke warm only) ate them and headed out. After using the archaic ATM at the Trading Post I purchased some peanut butter and hamburger buns for a second breakfast in the trail. As I stood along the road hitching for a ride, a crusty old truck with 4 people in the front seat blew by. About ten minutes later they came driving back and offered me a ride. Richard and his son¢s (who are fans of the AT) decided to turn back. I jumped into the back of the truck, they dropped me off at Dickey Gap, and I said a gracious thanks and farewell.I stopped by Trimpi Shelter and ate my second breakfast. While there Hansel & Gretel stopped by. We chatted for about 45 minutes and exchanged contact info. Afterwards I pressed on to Partnership Shelter and made good time there arriving at 1435. I wanted to push on further but the temptation of delivered pizza was to great. I threw my pack down and went straight to the Ranger station and called the pizza place, I was starving! While waiting for the chow to arrive I chatted with a group of middle-aged women who were volunteers for the AT from the Lynchburg area. Turns out one has a friend that lives in Holland, MI., and another immigrated from the Netherlands and had been to Holland¢s Tulip Time. It sure is a small world. I also chatted with Louise, a USFS employee. A nice lady.I got my pizza at the Ranger station and literally ran back cooing over my 16¢ pizza, cheesy bread, and two liter Pepsi. I sat down and tore into my grub. Hans & Britany came in shortly after, and the rest of the crew rolled in around 5:30pm. I enjoyed a nice hot shower and dried my wet boots and socks in the hot sun. we all chilled around the shelter and played skip-bo and bantered. It is just Team Aquablaze here tonight. As usual, Terrapin is making a racket and keeping everyone up.Also my domestic violence intervention is all the talk up the trail! The story has been blown way out of proportion, it is hilarious. I am now a police Sgt. who disarmed a man with a shotgun after he fired it at me! Hikers in Pearisburg already know of the story ¢ and it¢s a town 100 miles down the trail! Several day hikers were asking Hans if they knew who I was. Awesome.Sgt. Rowboat CopGA to ME, 2004 - The man - - The myth - - The legend! -One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-10
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Knot Maul Branch Shelter
Miles today: 25.5
Weather: broken clouds

One of Many FieldsStart: Partnership Shelter @ 0807 Finish: Knot Maul Branch Shelter @ 1958Miles: 25.5Weather: Very Hot & Very HumidBreakfast: 2 slices of pizza, maple & brown sugar oatmeal (cold), 2 buns w/PB Lunch: Dairy Queen Oreo Blizzard, 32 oz. FPG, 2 cracker packs, chocolate covered peanutsDinner: Chicken stew, Mountain House Beef StroganoffTrail Conditions: Muddy & Slick. Steep climbs last 11 milesAnimals: Newt, Cows, Deer, Centipede, Millipede, Grouse, Birds, SquirrelPeople: Utah, Section Hikers, Dayhikers, Crazy Truck Driver, Team Aquablaze, Hansel & GretelAlthough Partnership Shelter is undoubtedly the coolest shelter I have stayed at thus far, I had my worse night of sleep on the trail. I didn¢t sleep for much more than four hours. I rolled out of the sack around 0630, visited my friend the privy, and got ready for the day.It was very hot and incredibly humid. I was sweating buckets after only a mile, so I knew I would really have to push fluids. I ran into Hansel and Gretel for the last time, as they leave for Germany this weekend. It has been a lot of fun seeing them over the past few weeks. I stopped at Chatfield Shelter and had a second breakfast ( Parent's Note: our hiker is becoming a hobbit) and plugged on. A few miles later I stopped at the Settlers Museum and aired out my feet in the noonday sun on the porch to a historical one-room schoolhouse. With the heat, and big miles I wanted to make sure I took rest breaks often. Inside One Room SchoolhouseAfter walking through some cool fields I strutted into Atkins ready to tear into some Dairy Queen. Alas, the locals running the operation were out of damn near everything¢¦..shit they didn¢t even have vanilla ice cream! I settled for an Oreo Blizzard, and beat feet out of Atkins, but not before taking a big dump at the Citgo and talking with a truck driver who advised I should be a Green Beret and had never heard of the AT.I rested yet again at Davis Path Shelter and pushed out for my final miles of the hike. All went well although there were three big climbs and my feet got achy. It was all ridgeline hiking and the trail passed through several open pastures. There were numerous stiles to cross (pointless fence crossings PFC¢s) and more cow pies. I walked about 30 yards through a quagmire of mud, cow dung and farm run-off. It was ankle deep in places and my boot nearly came off. The smell was terrible.I finally arrived in the shelter thoroughly exhausted. I promptly sat down in the shelter and zoned off into space (1,000 yard stare), meanwhile the 7 people at the picnic table looked at me oddly. The water source was about 200 yards downhill. I was so mentally and physically drained I nearly started crying. I spilled my water, my stove wasn¢t working, I couldn¢t find my cooking instructions, and I was soaked in sweat. However, I wouldn¢t have wanted to be anywhere else. I ate a humongous dinner and called it a night. A good days work.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-11
From: Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: overcast clouds

View from Chesnut RidgeStart: Knot Maul Branch Shelter @ 0930Finish: Jenkins Shelter @ 1903Miles: 19Weather: Hot & Humid most of the afternoon. Scattered thunderstorms in eveningBreakfast: Strawberry Poptarts, cold oatmeal maple & brown sugarLunch: Honey roasted peanuts, snickers, buns w/PBDinner: Mountain Chowder, Hot Chocolate, SnickersTrail Conditions: Steep climb up Chestnut. Ridge walk most of wayAnimals: Hawk, Birds, FishPeople: Utah, Girl Scouts, Dayhikers If the lady next to me didn¢t snore at about 100 decibels I may have gotten more than 30 minutes of sleep. It was so bad I yanked her thermarest to make her roll over and change her breathing. It still didn¢t work. I rolled out of the sack quite sore and took my time getting ready. It rained during the night (as usual) and was super humid during the day.The climb up to Chestnut Knob was good and steep and long. I grumbled, as I thought the trail was supposed to get flat. The last two miles to the shelter passed through open field. There was a pond at the top of the mountain at 4,000 feet with fish in it. There were several loud frogs croaking, their ribits sounded like high-tension bands snapping. I chugged some water at the source and aired my gear and clothes out in the strong breeze. The views of the farmland below were breath taking. I shot the breeze with Utah and a female Girl Scout leader that had just graduated from the Air Force Academy. Hua! Field atop Chesnut Ridge The final ten miles of the walk were all along ridgeline. The trail was quite narrow, rocky, and often not level. I really had to be deliberate in places with my steps. We got some rain in the early afternoon, even though it was sunny, that made all the rocks super slippery and really slowed my progress. I enjoyed the ridge walk, but there was absolutely no water from Chestnut to Jenkins Shelter so I made it on 34 liter. I was extremely dehydrated by the time I arrived at Jenkins. My muscles were cramping, it hurt to breath, and I was hallucinating some. Needless to say I was not in a good mood when I got to the shelter.My mood worsened when I found the shelter area to be plagued by Girl Scouts who had no clue as to what they were doing. The had originally taken the whole shelter even though they had tents (Utah asked them to make space), and they took Utah¢s fuel bottle and filled it with water, which meant he had no fuel and would have to make a trip into Bland and get more. They didn¢t even say they were sorry. It took the women about 1-1/2 hours to filter water for 9 people. It was pathetic. Crazy thing is, the brother-in-law of one of the scout leaders works at Herman Miller in Holland. It¢s a small world.The heat and humidity is really causing me to sweat profusely and stink something fierce. It is getting to the point where I can smell myself stink; it is that bad. I have decided that I will rinse off every night at the water source and rinse my clothes out. Hopefully it works.One Year Reflection
Date: 2004-06-13
From: Helvey's Mill Shelter

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 24.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Bridge Over Kimberly CreekStart: Helvey¢s Mill Shelter @ 0951Finish: Wapiti Shelter @ 2048Miles: 24Weather: Rain in the morning/afternoon. Hot & Humid all nightBreakfast: 2 bagels w/ cheese & pepperoni Lunch: Bagel w/ pepperoni & cheese, snickers, frostingDinner: Lipton Cheddar & Broccoli Rice and Chicken Flavored Noodles, fudgeroundTrail Conditions: Very easy! Muddy. Flatest hike so farAnimals: Fawn, Birds, DeerPeople: Lamby, Goofy, Utah, Backdraft, Dig Doug, Bluejay, dayhikersWe woke up once more to the sound of rain. In near unison we all said ¢f---k¢. Then we all proceeded to fart and belch for the next few hours as we ate and packed up. The rain dissipated to a mere drizzle so I finally pressed off.It was incredibly humid, and cold rain from the forest canopy fell on me getting me even more wet. I hiked at a good pace covering 10 miles in around 3-1/2 hours. I stopped for nearly two hours and ate lunch. During this time it began down pouring once again. When the rain finally let up I pushed on. I had planned on staying at Trent¢s Grocery, however, a review of Goofy¢s profile map showed a flat stretch to Wapiti Shelter. I made good time to Kimberley Creek and crossed the cool wooden suspension bridge, I rested for about an hour and waited for Lamby and Goofy, but they never caught up. I was feeling pretty good so I decided to push the final 8 miles and pull another long day. Straits of Kimberly BridgeThe final stretch was the flattest portion of trail I have hiked yet. Water was in abundance, as the trail paralleled Dismal Creek all the way to the shelter. I rolled into Wapiti just before dark and claimed a bed space. My boots and legs were coated in mud so I spent about 20 minutes cleaning off at the stream and soaking my feet.I cooked up two Lipton dinners at once and ate and prepped my gear for tomorrow in the dark. There were several deer walking around camp. I would look up and my headlamp would illuminate their subtle green eyes. It was neat.It was a damp and humid night so I hit the sack waiting for rain to come. One Year Reflection