morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-05-02
From: Low Gap TN

To: Damascus VA
Miles today: 21.1

As the Iceman and his Sherpa headed to Low Gap, in the distance the mountain tops were bloated out by the low hanging clouds. As the car climbed in elevation the clouds began to engulf it. Finally arriving at the drop off spot, the Iceman got out of the car to find out that on this day, like so many before, he was required to wear his weatherproof jacket over his fleece jacket. The mist from the clouds and the cold temperature combined to make the hike a bit unpleasant and believe it or not, gloves were also in order. There would be no views from the ridge that brought him into Damascus, Va. today only fog and dampness. The climb took about an hour to reach the ridge. He hiked for 12 miles in dense clouds that only permitted one to see for 100 feet or less. The ridge was nothing but puds. A sawtooth mountain across the 12 miles. Now, came the most emotional part of the hike into Damascus. He descended for 2 miles before he reached the sign telling him that he had just hiked 1/4 of the way to Mt. Katahdin in Maine and he felt happy and sad. Happy to have accomplished so much in the last 5 1/2 weeks; to have walked 468+ miles in cold, rain, poor visibility, without food for a day and a half, surviving injuries from falls on rocks and recovering from aching feet, legs and other body parts. Sad to leave the Deep South (Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee) with it's unimaginable beauty and the people who are so gentle, generous and just plain wonderful. The experience was so powerful and the Iceman and the Sherpa felt that they could live there in that part of our great country, for the rest of their lives. The Sherpa, as usual, found plenty to do in a lovely nearby town called Abingdon, Va. The Barter Theater has productions from Feb. through Dec. everyday and they begin in the morning and go on till late at night. There are two venues for plays and at times both venues are being used. There are plays like Mary Poppins, Miracle on 34th Street, Anything Goes, The Miracle Worker and something for everyone and every age. The Sherpa was lucky to see The Miracle Worker and what a surprise to find out that the actors were as good as any on Broadway. This theater draws from towns and cities as far away as Waynesville, NC, a 2 1/2 hour drive. It is marvelous! After a light lunch, she's getting fat, no exercise, it was back to Damascus to meet the Iceman who outdid himself by hiking 15+ miles in under 6 hours. Washed and ready for a good dinner, back to Abingdon to Figaredo's Bistro. Fabulous brick oven shrimp pizza, ceviche appetizer, homemade soup, salad, and delicious meal of fish baked in parchment. It was very obvious that the chef was trained. Questions were asked and sure enough both husband and wife met and worked in the kitchen of Le Cirque in New York. Best restaurant in these parts and in our opinion it can compete with any in NY.
Date: 2015-05-06
From: Fox Creek

To: Teas Road in Virginia
Miles today: 53.0
Weather: few clouds

Wednesday May 6th was a lovely day and started out in the usual way with a cool morning but quickly warmed to the 70's. Hiking today wasn't too bad as there were few rocks and roots to sidestep and even though the Iceman had to climb 1000' twice and decent the same amount he made good time. The hike was about 15.2 miles and he accomplished it in under 7 hours. During the hike he came upon a cascade of sparkling cold water coming from Comers Creek (this is the photo you see here). The falls at the headwaters of Comers Creek are well known and an attraction one looks forward to seeing when hiking this part of the AT. Desperately needing some exercise the Sherpa found a pilates teacher and studio but it was in Abingdon some 36 miles away. After dropping off the Iceman she drove to Abingdon and having arrived early decided to visit a local museum, William King Art Center. It was very small in comparison to others visited on this trip but interesting. The art and displays were all creations by local artists. Now it was time to meet the pilates instructor and what a surprise it was to find out that she was from Roxbury, NJ and her sister is the director of the Nutcracker ballet production held every Christmas at Centenary College in Hackettstown, NJ. Such a small world! She came to Abingdon via Orange County, California and told me she spent summers at a house her parents owned in Lake Hopatcong. The class was private and went quickly then the Sherpa felt it necessary to sample another local dining establishment. This time it was Chef Heather, a restaurant with seating for about 16 in one small room and maybe 10 in another. Chef Heather made all of her own bread, dressings, deserts and almost everything else in the cafe. There were folks waiting for tables and those waiting for take out orders but the wait I felt would be worth it and so it was. The Sherpa headed back to Marion and just upon entering the town received a call from the Iceman he was going to be finished his hike in an hour so off to the pick up point she went. There at Teas Road was Trail Magic in the form of a young man who had opened up the back of his truck and was giving the hikers sodas, water, cookies and many other well appreciated drinks and goodie. After about 1/2 hour the Iceman appeared and off again to the hotel in Marion to end the day with dinner in hotel.
Date: 2015-05-07
From: Teas Road in Virginia

To: Settlers Museum
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Thursday May 7th - South Fork of the Holston River to VA615 was a 16.7 mile noneventful hike. The climb up Glade mountain was slow but steady for 12 miles and then came the descent of about 4 miles. The hike included many puds. The Iceman felt as if he were on a roller coaster. He took a photo of the magnificent view from the top of the mountain and another of a rhododendron tunnel. From Springer Mountain to where we are in Virginia now, the mountains have been thickly covered with rhododendron bushes and he feels that it's the most consistent feature of the Appalachian Trail. They seem to be the most prevalent flora in the Appalachian mountains. With so many of our trees under siege by foreign insects and blights, he wonders how long the beautiful wild rhododendron will survive. The Sherpa's day wan't that exciting either. After dropping off the Iceman, the Sherpa's most important job, it was a stop at the only clothing store in Marion, Walmart, where two pair of khakis were purchased. The Iceman has dropped a size and the new belt recently purchased will go very nicely with the new slacks. Then to the local food store, Ingles, to replenish our supply of Vitamin water, plain water and fruit. It's interesting to shop in the produce section of most local food stores in that they have an extremely limited variety of fruit. You see apples, bananas, citrus fruits and that's about it. The produce employee said that they aren't buying anymore plums for a while because the last batch were hard????????? Oh well, we'll make do with what's available. The old explorer wasn't working so a new one was shipped to our hotel and arrived yesterday and the Sherpa, having become the geek, had to speak with Delorme because of some technical problems with the new gadget. All is working now, we think! Dinner was at the 27 Lions, next to our hotel. There are 27 taps of beer hence the name. We didn't try all 27 but we did try 2.
Date: 2015-05-08
From: Settlers Museum

To: VA Rt. 42
Miles today: 14.5

The Iceman started off today from Settlers Museum on route VA 615. The museum is dedicated to those people who settled this area of Southern Virginia and they were mostly the Scotch-Irish from Ulster County in Ireland and Germans who were in Pennsylvania and left to find land to farm. It's an interesting museum and there is a delightful woman who guides one through the exhibits and has many personal stories to tell. The first 4 miles of the hike took the Iceman through rolling fields of farm land and in this area there was a swampy section that required one to walk across a well built footbridge (photo is in the photo section) and then came the first 1000' climb. A decent followed and another 1000' climb and then the final decent. Another 2 miles through more farm fields filled with cows, black and white, full grown and calves. These fields extend as far as the eye can see, green and lush. The only drawback of going through these fields was that the Iceman had to climb ladder stiles about 8 times. Ladder stiles can be tricky to climb. At one point the Iceman caught his heel on one of the rungs and almost broke his leg. Because the weather has warmed up so quickly he now sees many trees and bushes in full bloom with pink, white and multi colored flowers. There are crab apple trees and mountain laurel bushes and the beautiful bright pink rhododendron plants. There are a multitude of wild blueberry bushes with there white showy flowers and when they produce fruit the bears will be very happy. The Sherpa tried out a Barre class in Abingdon, anything to firm up after 7 weeks of eating and driving. No one else showed up so it became a private session. The class was given by the same woman who owns the pilate's studio. From 9:30 to 10:30 we exercised our bodies and from 10:30 to 11:30 our mouths. We had a lot in common so it was an enjoyable conversation. Lunch then the car wash and then off to pick up the Iceman. The drive to VA 42 was slow because it wound around and around Hungry Mother State Park mountain. There were so many switchbacks that I lost count but the views of the fields and mountain ranges was once again awe inspiring. There are not enough superlatives to describe these vista's. On the road, Old Wilderness Road, as I drove by, there were 4 donkey's in a small enclosure and horses in another field, three ponies in one yard and 5 baby sheep in another, black feathered chickens at the edge of the road and a gaggle of black ducks crossing from on side to the other. Some of the homes were well kept and the yards were neat and tidy while other dwellings were rundown and the land surrounding them was cluttered with old rusting vehicles, garbage of every kind and from the looks of things they appeared to be uninhabitable but people were living there. The Sherpa waited for an hour and then the Iceman appeared worn out but happy to have completed another days hike. Mexican food for dinner and then back to the hotel.
Date: 2015-05-09
From: Burke's Garden Road

To: VA42
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Saturday 5/9/15 The drive to the trailhead started out fine, we drove first through Hungry Mother State Park which has a lovely lake for swimming and boating , until the road we turned onto became a gravel and then a dirt road. As route VA623 climbed up into the mountain it became narrower and narrower and the dirt surface changed to just rock. Several times the Iceman had to get out of the car to guide the Sherpa over deep gully's filled with rock because that section of the road had washed away. You can't always trust your navigation system. The last hour of the 2 hour drive was heart stopping but we finally arrived at the trailhead. The Iceman was doing a flip flop today so that he could get a chance to see thru hikers he hadn't seen in a while. Yesterday, when the Iceman was hiking northbound with the flow, he didn't see a single other thru hiker all day. It took an hour to climb to the top of Garden Mountain and then he hiked the ridge for 4 miles while looking out over some of the most extraordinarily beautiful picture perfect farms and valley's on both sides of the ridge. He descended to Walker Gap where he was greeted by a trail angel who was serving the hikers cold drinks and making them sandwiches. What a nice reward! The trail angel had hiked the AT in 2013. Many of the thru hikers were there enjoying the food and drink. The brothers, 5 and Doug were there also. The trail angel drove on an unpaved road to a place where it intersected with the AT and there he set up the food and drink that he so generously gave to the hikers. The Iceman's hike continued with a climb to Chestnut Knob of about 1000' to the top at 4430'. Chestnut Knob is a bald of about 100 acres and today it was clear and sunny so he could see for miles in every direction. There were people horseback riding on the grassy bald. He continued over 2 more mountains until ending the hike at the VA42 where the Sherpa was waiting for him. After dropping the Iceman off the Sherpa, still shaking from the drive up to the trailhead drove down the mountain on the other side even though the drive to Abingdon would be a much longer one. "Stonewall Country" at the Barter Theater was closing today and the Sherpa had a ticket for the 2PM show. The performers played banjo, guitar, bass and fiddle and sang songs about the life of Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson. The music was wonderful. There's a photo of the stage in the photo section. Tomorrow we leave Marion and move north to be closer to the AT trailheads.
Date: 2015-05-10
From: Burke's Garden Road

To: VA52
Miles today: 15.5

Sunday, May 10th, Mother's Day. Today was a hot, sunny day much like a day in July in New Jersey. The Iceman started hiking late today because the drive to the trailhead took more than 2 hours. In order to get to the trailhead it was necessary to drive over two mountains and through the most beautiful valley anywhere, Burke's Garden. I believe this valley was the inspiration for Shangri La, or "Lost Horizon" an old movie about a village that comes to life for one day every hundred years. Once at the trail the Iceman began to hike the 15.5 miles in the heat and wished that it were cold and rainy again. The Lily of the Valley were in great profusion and greeted all the Mother's today as they hiked. Even the Orange Flame Azalea are beginning to show themselves more and more. The hike took the Iceman up twice and down for 750' each time, lots of puds today. As he approached Laurel Creek, a stream about 30' wide and 2' deep he noticed two young people sitting in the cold water of the creek. He continued across the footbridge but thought of how nice it would be to stop and sit in the creek. He had to push on because the Sherpa was waiting for him at the road. Just before the road there was a trail angel giving out cold drinks to the hikers and they were deeply appreciated. The Sherpa that day drove from Marion to Burke's Garden then to Wytheville, VA where she was to check into a new motel, Hampton Inn but the room wasn't ready so she decided to have lunch. Skeeter's World Famous Hotdogs wasn't open so off to Starbucks for a cup of coffee. While having coffee outside at a table she searched the web for something to do and found a place called Big Walker Lookout that had live music outside so that would be the place to spend a few hours. Big Walker Lookout is on the top of a mountain and it's an old cabin with a porch in front. The parking lot was getting full but there was a space and she parked to car and went inside the store. There were hotdogs with all the fixins and cold drinks. Perfect! With hotdog in hand she went to sit in the shade and spent 2 hours listening to beautiful voices singing gospel songs. What a great way to spend mothers day. The Iceman also enjoyed his hike.
Date: 2015-05-11
From: VA52

To: VA606
Miles today: 18.6
Weather: overcast clouds

The Iceman started today's hike at 8:30 and right away he met a trail angel who was giving away cold soda's, snacks and sandwiches but since he had just finished breakfast he just took a cold coke with the prompting of the angel who told him that the caffeine would give him a good boost as he started up the 800+ foot climb to the ridge. This day he'd hike 18.6 miles in sunny warm weather almost entirely along a ridge at 3000+ feet. As he passed some young hikers just breaking camp he met Mooch and they talked for a few minutes and then he went on. He expected to see them later as surely they would go running past him. After a few hours of hiking alone he heard thunder and then came the lightning. It was unnerving being on top of a 3000' mountain ridge with lightning all around but he realized it could be a lot worse. Think of the guys that may be on top of a 5000' or 6000', 1000 acre Bald in one of these storms. What would one do? As he continued to hike it started to rain lightly but not enough to put on rain gear. After a mile or two he noticed that there were puddles of water and it had evidently rained hard in this area. As he proceeded he met a hiker who said that she had gotten caught in the deluge some miles back and told of a time she was on a bald with lightning all around so she put her sleeping mat down and layed on it until the storm passed. He hiked on another few miles when all of a sudden a torrential rain came down and quickly he put on rain jacket and backpack cover. His head actually hurt from the force of the rain on his baseball cap. For a half hour he was only able to hike a few hundred feet and then the rain stopped as quickly as it began. The rain and heat combined to make the forest a sauna. At the end of the hike he walked across a suspension bridge, this may be the only suspension bridge on the trail. It crosses the Kimberling creek a body of water about 50' wide and 2' deep. The Sherpa spent the day in the room trying to locate a new base camp in Blacksburg but it was nearly impossible as this weekend is graduation at Virginia Tech and every room for 50 miles around Blacksburg was taken. Even our hotel in Wytheville was sold out and we had to move somewhere. It was hours of calling motels, hotels and B&B's with no luck. We managed to get Tuesday and Wednesday night in Blacksburg but that was it. We're here at the Courtyard by Marriott and leaving Thursday morning to go to a hotel in Salem even Roanoke was all sold out. Most if not all of the hotels/motels jacked up their prices and some doubled them. Tonight we had dinner in an old historic hotel, The Bolling Wilson Hotel and the restaurant is Graze On Main. The hotel is beautiful and the food was good.
Date: 2015-05-12
From: Sugar Run Gap

To: VA606 Kimberly Creek
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: overcast clouds

The Iceman did a flip flop today and enjoyed seeing his fellow hikers, 3D, Buffy, the brothers from Ohio, Mooch and many others. It was an extremely hot day, in the 80's and when he came to a stream he sat down, took off his cap and glasses and scooped up the cold water and poured it all over his head and body. After feeling good and cool he headed off south. About 1/2 hour latter he looked at his watch but realized he couldn't read the time because he didn't have his glasses on. Yup! they were back on a rock by the stream. Quickly he raced back, about a mile, to find the glasses sitting right where he left them. Now the 13.9 mile hike became a 15.9 mile hike. Going on he came to a mountain pond of a few acres and there were two hikers fishing. They had caught already 30 fish which they released. Two miles from the completion of his hike he ran into four high school kids, two boys and two girls hiking the AT in FLIP FLOPS!!!! Can you believe it, hiking in flip flops? The Sherpa moved today, from Wytheville to Blacksburg, after dropping off the Iceman in Pearisburg,VA. On the way to the hotel she stopped at CVS to make prints of the many photo's she and the Iceman had taken so far. Then it was check in time at the Courtyard by Marriott and the room was a nice change from some others they've had although the first room smelled of cigarette smoke and had to be changed. This is a Non Smoking hotel but it seems that some people don't know that. If we were smokers we wouldn't have minded the odor. Time again to find a room for Thursday night through Sunday so many hours were spent researching and finally one was found in Salem, VA not a great location but it's a room. We can't be choosy when everything is sold out. The photo of the ducks was taken on VA42 when the Sherpa was going to pick up Iceman on another day.
Date: 2015-05-13
From: Sugar Run Gap

To: Pearisburg Narrows Bridge
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Wednesday, May 13th the Iceman hiked a short, easy 10.9 miles. The day started out sunny and cooler than yesterday with a climb of about 500' to a ridge at 4000 feet. While walking the ridge for 7 miles two young hikers passed him going in the same direction and a thru hiker wearing a Kilt was going south, he was flip flopping today. The fellow in the Kilt stopped to talk for a while and the Iceman noticed that he carried twice as much water as the Iceman. The Iceman consumes about 3 quarts during an eight hour hike and the Kilt hiker consumes 6. There was one other hiker who was running the trail. How anyone can run the AT is amazing. The Iceman has a hard enough time walking it - and so do most hikers. The runner may be one of those guys trying to break the record or just someone out for the day trail running. There were no exceptional flowers today but everything is green now. When he got to where there was a view he saw the town of Pearisburg and took a photo but he feels that the picture doesn't capture the beauty of the view. (Will add it to the photos tomorrow). The Sherpa dropped off the Iceman and then turned around and went back to Blacksburg for a pilates class. There were two other women in the class and one was a professor at Virginia Tech. She had gone to Georgetown and then Princeton for her degrees. She said her favorite town is DC and it's hard to disagree with that although the areas of this country that the Iceman and Sherpa have been spending time in, in the last couple of months, are more spectacular than any other places they've been. The Iceman was ready to be picked up in Pearisburg at 2PM and was hungry. Lunch was in West Virginia, the first time we were in WV, at a chain restaurant that neither of us had ever heard of, Texas Steakhouse and Saloon. The burgers were delicious. Back to the hotel to wash up and rest for a while. (The photo is of Whitetop Mt. with views of Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina.) Then dinner at a very disappointing restaurant whose name we won't mention. It's time to pack up again and move to Salem, VA about 30 or more miles from Blacksburg in the direction of Roanoke, VA. The next couple of days the Sherpa will be doing a lot of driving to and from the trailheads.