morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello all,I'm sorry I haven't been keeping my journals updated but there wasn't really that much to report on. My sister got married this past weekend which was very nice. Initially, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to come off the trail to go. I guess if there was one good thing about my injury it was that I got to attend the wedding and see friends from out of town that I hadn't seen in years. I went back to the doctor yesterday for a checkup on my ankles and to pick up my orthotics. The Doc gave me good news, he gave me my orthotics and told me I had to wear them gradually at first so my body would become adjusted to them. He told me that after a week of breaking them in that I could start doing some small hikes and increase mileage as long as I felt okay. If I can hike about 12 miles with my pack with no trouble then the Dr said I'd be okay to get back on the trail. I'm pretty excited, I'm getting a little stir crazy being back home. I had initially planned to jump back on the trail with the guys I started hiking with and making up the section later but since I've been back I've changed my plans. When I get back on the trail I'm going to get back on in North Carolina right outside the Smokies and hike the rest without partners. I think that hiking without partners will help increase my chances of success. I think it was really nice having somebody you know on the trail with you but it also has it's disadvantages. There were days on the trail when my ankles would hurt and the best thing for them probably would've been to stop and rest, but when you have a pre-determined destination that you plan to meet the other members of your party you are forced to push on. And I think that this was the major reason for my tendinitis. When I get back on the trail I'm going to take a different approach with my hike. I have been reading Dave Leonard (Boomerang)'s trail journal since the beginning and he recently came off the trail for a few days because of low morale. While he was back he read Ray Jardine's Guide to Lightweight Hiking and he had picked up some tips from Ray he was having success with. Ray Jardine reccomends that every hour you hike you should stop, take your shoes and socks off and elevate your feet for about 10-15 minutes. Boomerang says he has been doing this and his feet are doing much better. I don't think I'm going to stop every hour but maybe every hour and a half or something. I have been going to Physical Therapy twice a week and it seems to be helping a good bit. He taught me some good stretches to take with me on the trail. It's going to be interesting to get back on the trail and start hiking with a whole new set of people from before. Well that's about all that's going on for the time being, I'll post on how my feet are doing once I start hiking again. Take Care,
Date: 2005-05-17
From: Home

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hello Everyone,I've finally got some good news to post. My ankles are doing much better, I can wear my shoes all day without any pain which is a giant leap forward from the condition I was in when I got off the trail about 4 weeks ago. I hiked about 5 miles today with about 20lbs. in my pack. I had no discomfort in my feet while hiking and they feel fine now. I plan to head back on the trail either Saturday or Tuesday, my transportation issue is kind of up in the air right now. I am really looking forward to heading back out. I've been back home for toooo long and I am ready to experience trail life again. One good thing I have going for me is that I will be able to slack-pack for a little while when I go back. My Uncle Dennis lives about an hour from the trail in NC so we are going to slack-pack a section together. I am curious as to how many other thru-hikers are going to be on the trail where I start out. I'm just hoping that when I head out this time I won't be coming back until after Katahdin.Almost there...
Date: 2005-05-24
From: Davenport Gap Shelter

To: Groundhog Creek Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light rain

Weather:High 60's, cloudy but niceLocation:Groundhog Creek ShelterMileage:10.6Animals:Birds and a frogPeople:WaywardFood:SpaghettiI'm happy to finally say that I'm back on the trail! My friend Boone drove me up from Atlanta and we dropped his car off in Hot Springs. My Grandpa and Grandma drove us to Davenport Gap where I first got off the trail in April due my ankle injury. Boone is going to hike with me until Thursday when we arrive in Hot Springs. I'm kind of sad to see that there are hardly any thru-hikers in this area. From reading register entries, I can see that there is a group about a day ahead. I think that I might get a little lonely out here after Boone gets off. Maybe a little solitude will be good for me though. My right ankle was aching a little today, I hope it just means I'm getting my "trail legs" back. I am pretty exhausted so into the sleeping bag I go..."Whether you think that you can, or that you can't, you are usually right." -Henry Ford
Date: 2005-05-25
From: Groundhog Creek Shelter

To: Walnut Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Weather:High 60'sLocation:Walnut Mountain ShelterMileage:12.9Animals:Rabbit, Boone spotted what he thought was either a coyote or wild dog People:Ol' Timer, 4 section hikers Food:Oatmeal, pop tarts and dehydrated yogurt and cherries, ChiliToday was a beautiful day, we hiked over Max Patch this afternoon. It was a little cloudy but there were great views all around. Boone and I sat on the summit for about 45 minutes and just enjoyed the view. I hiked all day with my Chaco sandals and a pair of socks. I really liked the way it felt, my feet felt great at the end of the day and it puts nowhere near as much pressure on my tendons as my shoes do. I'm going to continue hiking with them for a couple days and see how it goes. The water source at this shelter is pretty much dried up to a stagnant pool, so we're going to have to backtrack .8 miles to fill up in the morning. There are what appears to be two thru-hikers a day ahead of me, Turtle Girl and Falafel. I think I might put in a couple big mile days after Hot Springs to see if I can catch up. I don't have any rope to hang our food bags from a tree so they are hanging in the shelter. I hope no bears come around, I probably smell bad enough already that a bear wou! ldn't want to eat me. My battery is running low in my Pocketmail so I better sign off. "An effective way to deal with predators is to taste terrible" -Unknown
Date: 2005-05-26
From: Walnut Mountain Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: clear sky

Weather:Low 70's clear skiesLocation:Elmer's Sunnybank InnMileage:13Animals:A deerPeople:Elmer, Billy, John, Bob, Reality Check, Puppy Power, WagDaddy, Nikki Food:Oatmeal and poptarts, huge burger and onion rings at Paddler's Pub, PizzaHad a great day today, Boone and I made it into Hot Springs about 4:30 and indulged at Paddler's Pub. I definitely recommend the onion rings. Boone dropped me off at Elmer's and headed back to Atlanta with some seriously blistered feet. I was pleasantly suprised how cool Elmer's is. It's this huge Victorian house built in the late 1800's I believe. Elmer and his staff, Billy, Bob and John are very cool and down to earth people. Most of the people who work for Elmer are hikers he has met in the past. Elmer was kind enough to invite me to go down to the hot spring mineral baths. It was exactly what I needed, I propped my ankles up against a couple jets and I was in Heaven. Elmer and I just chatted it up while we relaxed in the hot tub. I really like this town, it's very laid back and it's in a great location. I think I'm going to try and come work here at Elmer's in the summer. I met another thru-hiker named Reality Check who seems to do about the same mileage as me. This means that I'll probably have a hiking partner for the next little while. I've only got a 10 miler planned for tomorrow so I will probably bum around the town for a while before heading out. GoodNight
Date: 2005-05-27
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Spring Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Weather:Upper 70's, SunnyLocation:Spring Mountain ShelterMileage:11Animals:The usual, birds and squirrelsPeople:Reality Check, MellowFood:Blueberry and Banana pancakes granola canteloupe, turkey sandwich, spaghettiI'm hurting pretty bad today. My pack has never been heavier due to full food and now I'm carrying my Chaco sandals. I'm not sure how much the sandals weigh, but I know that it's WAY too much. The 11 miles here felt like 25, it was almost entirely uphill and I was pretty much miserable the whole time. It didn't help that Reality Check and I left Hot Springs around 3. Before we left we both went with Elmer out to the farm that he owns right outside town. Elmer recently built a small house on the property that is really cool looking. I definitely plan on coming back and working at the Inn with Elmer. There's a guy in the shelter tonight named Mellow who thru-hiked last year. I think that Reality Check and I will be keeping the same pace so we'll each have a hiking partner. Before we left Hot Springs, Reality went to the outfitter and bought a new pack very similar to mine. He got the Granite Gear Vapor Trail, which is one size smaller than mine. After seeing that I could easil! y fit all my stuff in his, I wish I had gotten the Vapor Trail and shed a pound off my pack weight. I'm going to get off to a much earlier start tomorrow, I think I do better in the morning. I'm pretty sore so I better retire. "On a long journey, even a straw weighs heavy."-Spanish Proverb
Date: 2005-05-28
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Weather:Low 70's, partly cloudy with rain this morning Location:Jerry Cabin Shelter Mileage:15.4 Animals:Rabbit, Deer People:Nean, Plus 1, Heidi, George and Reality Check Food:Pop tarts, Yogurt & granola, ChiliPretty good day of hiking, not too many complaints. It started to rain at about 6AM so Reality Check and I decided to wait it out and went back to bed. The rain finally stopped at about noon and Nean and Plus 1 showed up to the shelter. Nean is a maintainer who lives in a cabin on Log Cabin Road right off the trail. Plus 1 is currently staying with Nean while he rehabilitates his knee that he blew out a couple weeks ago. We stopped by Nean's cabin for about 30 minutes or so and had a Mountain Dew before hitting the trail. The hike up Big Firescald Knob was pretty tough but definitely worth it. The trail followed the ridgeline and gave great views of sprawling farmland to the left and miles of mountains to the right. The ridgeline trail was very exposed and very rocky. It was probably the most technical climb on the trail since Albert Mountain. There's another guy in the shelter tonight named George. He's doing a section headed southbound. My Achilles started bothering me after about 6 miles so I finally used those ridiculously heavy Chaco's I'm carrying. It felt much better after the switch. A mouse just crawled into the metal mailbox(hiker's box) and is making a lot of noise inside there. Oh, just one of the perks of shelter life. RC and I plan to do about 14 tomorrow and we plan to get on the trail before noon (we said that last night too though)."We've got to roll with the punches, play all of our hunches, make the best of whatever comes your way. Forget that blind ambition, learn to trust your intuition - plowing straight ahead, come what may." -Jimmy Buffet
Date: 2005-05-29
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Hogback Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Weather:Low 60's, Overcast Location: Hogback Ridge ShelterMileage:13.9People:Colonel, 2 Packs, T-Rex, Bluegill, A-Train, Hashbrown, Lonestar, Jimbo, Reality Check Animals:Tons of chipmunks, rabbits Food:Pop-tarts, Fettucini, Spaghetti and meat saucePretty easy day of hiking, did the 14 in my Chaco's. Reality and I caught up to some more thru-hikers today. Colonel, T-Rex, and 2 packs were at the shelter when I got in tonight. And as I type 4 more thru-hikers just rolled up. A-Train, Hashbrowns, Lonestar, and Bluegill put in a big miler to get here at 9:45. 2 guys are from Florida, one from Texas and 1 is from New Zealand. I think I might put in a 20 tomorrow to make the shelter that's right outside Erwin. Although, everyone's been saying that there's supposed to be rain all tomorrow...what fun. I'm pretty beat so I'm going to bed listening to the hums of alcohol and fuel stoves.
Date: 2005-06-04
From: Morgan Gap Shelter

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: broken clouds

Weather: Foggy and rainy in the morning, cleared up for a beautiul afternoon Location: OverMountain Shelter Food:Turkey sandwich, Pasta with mashed potatoes Mileage:A whopping 5.3 People:Peaches, A-Train, Falafel, Uncle Dennis and about 12 other section hikers Animals:2 deer on the bald which we saw from the shelterFirst day back with "real" pack weight. My Uncle Dennis has been slack packing me from Erwin to Carver's Gap. He hiked with me today and is staying at the shelter tonight. We started early this morning and we were at the shelter by about 12. There was no one here and Dennis and I ate and took about a 4 hour nap. When we woke up the shelter was crawling with people. This is definitely the coolest shelter I've stayed at. It's a huge barn that was converted into a shelter some years ago, this thing could probably sleep about 50. Dennis will be getting off at 19E tomorrow and I'm going to be pushing on tomorrow with full pack. I plan to make it up to Damascus by Thursday where my parents are going to meet me. I have decided to head up north with my Aunt and Uncle next week to meet up with Mountain Dewd and Webb. They will probably be in Mass or Conn by then, and I will hike from that point to Maine and then back down to finish in Damascus. I was glad to see Falafel, A-Train, and Peaches roll up to the shelter tonight, I'll have some people to hike with. I hope that we have a clear morning tomorrow when we go over Big and Little Hump because I've heard that it's a highlight of the South. I'm gonna crash..."It is better to die on your feet than live on your knees." -Dolores Ibaruri
Date: 2005-06-05
From: Hogback Ridge Shelter

To: Morgan Gap Shelter
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Weather: High 70's, Crazy HotLocation: Morgan Gap ShelterMileage: 26.7People: NoneAnimals: A Bear!Food: Pop-tarts, granola, alfredo with garlic mash potatoesBiggest mileage day yet, 26.7! Suprisingly I feel pretty good too, other than my feet being a little sore. Today was extremely hot and I was blowing through my water real quick. I stopped hiking at about 4 this afternoon and set up my tent. I took a nap and then woke up, ate and started hiking again at about 8PM. I finally got to the shelter at about 11, and it was unfortunately empty. One reason I night-hiked was so I could catch up with some people but no luck. One cool thing that happened though was I saw a bear for the first time. It was about 8:45 and it was just getting dark, I heard something big rustling around in the leaves. I started banging my poles together and I heard it start to move fast. As I came up the hill I looked up and about 100 yds away stood a pretty large bear staring back in my direction. I started singing "Born in the USA" very loudly and he immediately ran off. Not sure why that song came to mind but singing The Boss' music does the trick. It was really cool, but also kind of scary because if something happened to me at night, no one would pass me until tomorrow. I must say that I didn't really enjoy the night-hiking, maybe it would be better in a less covered area than where I was. It's almost 11:30 and that's way past my bedtime.
Date: 2005-06-06
From: Morgan Gap Shelter

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 6.0

Weather:High 70'sLocation:Kincora HostelMileage:6People:A-Train, Jungle Girl, Kiwi Dan, MargretAnimals:Wild turkeyFood:Pop tarts, PB crackers, T-bone steak and fresh fruitHanging out in Kincora which is definitely one of the coolest hostels. Bob and Pat are the nicest people and the house is great. A-Train and I hiked in this morning and did some grocery shopping with Bob and Dave. I bought more food than I really needed but at least I'll eat well for the next 3 days. I plan to be in Damascus on Thursday. A-Train and I have mapped out our plan already. Three SOBO hikers showed up this afternoon who happen to be from the same town in New Zealand as A-Train. It's a small world. I've got a 24 miler ahead of me tomorrow so I'm going to take advantage of this bed while I'm here."Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there" -Will Rogers
Date: 2005-06-07
From: Kincora Hostel

To: Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Weather:70's and beautiful until 7 and the monsoon began Location:Vandeventer Shelter Mileage:18 Animals:4 foot black snake People:Logan, Katie, Robby, Courtney A-Train Food:Pop tarts and 2 hot dogs, Strawberries(fresh) PB Crackers, Spaghetti with meat sauce and snickersStarted out a beautiful day, things changed. A-Train and I had originally planned to wake up and be out by 7am. But of course we didn't get out until 10:15. Why is that whenever I plan to get out early I always end up starting later than usual? Oh well, we plan to start at about 7:30 tomorrow so I expect to be on the trail by about 10. A-Train and I had a very nutritional breakfast of pop-tarts and hot dogs on the grill. We had planned to make it to the shelter 7 miles past this one but our late start prevented us from doing so. Because we knew we weren't going to push it, we sort of mosied down the trail and stopped at anything that looked interesting. I spoke with a local fella down at Watuga lake and we exchanged snake stories. I told him about the huge black snake in the middle of the trail that I nearly stepped on while hiking. He told me about the "damn biggest rattler I ever seen." He told me he saw a rattlesnake on his way fishing that was about 5 inches thick. He counted the number of sections on the rattle and says there was 11! I'm not positive, but I believe they grow 1 new section a year. If that's true then this was one big, old snake. Since then I have been a little more cautious where I put my foot down. A-Train and I hiked all day in slightly overcast but great weather until about 6. Some dark clouds moved in and I heard thunder in the distance. We were only about 3.5 miles from the shelter so I tried to push it and beat the rain...I failed. Before we knew it the storm was on top of us and I was soaked. There are 4 section hikers in the shelter tonight that go to UGA and one girl lives about 5 minutes from my house. The shelter we are staying at is supposed to be haunted by the ghost of a woman who was killed here in the 1960's. They say she only appears when it's storming, and as I type, lightning strikes and thunder shakes the shelter...great. I really wish I had been smart enough to put on my poncho and pack cover when the first started, but I didn't and all my gear is hanging up to dry. Since A-Train and I botched our big mile day today, we PLAN to make it up tomorrow to give us an easy hike into Damascus. It's getting a little chilly in here, which is a pleasant change, I'm out..."I am at two with nature."-Woody Allen
Date: 2005-06-08
From: Vandeventer Shelter

To: Abington Gap Shelter
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: light rain

Weather:70's overcast scattered showersLocation:Abingdon Gap ShelterMileage:22.7Animals:2 Bear cubs, 3 cats and 1 rattlesnakePeople:A-Train, Bender, Old ScrubsFood:Granola PB crackers, Pop tarts more PB crackers, Pasta Sides and 2 snickers and a few more PB crackersIncredibly easy day of hiking, only 1 uphill stuck out as being a little challenging. The mileage flew right by. I read in the register last night that Bart had seen 4 cubs and the momma bear less than a mile from Vandeveventer shelter. About 11:30 this morning I was hiking this uphill when I glanced up at the trail ahead of me. About 25 yds from me, in the middle of the trail were two bear cubs. I froze mid-stride and they both turned their heads in my direction. I banged my poles together while I searched the woods around me, trying to spot the mother. I don't know much about bears but I know not to come between a mother and her babies. When I hit my poles together, one of the cubs looked puzzled and started walking slowly towards me. I may have been the first person they had seen and I was wearing nothing but a bright yellow bathing suit and my sandals. Backing away I remembered reading that bears are hunted by and scared of dogs. I stopped banging my poles and started doing my loudest, meanest dog impression. Both cubs froze for a second and then took off together down a hill to the left. I was still worried that the mother could be close so I waited a few minutes before walking the trail. I moved on and told A-Train of my story during lunch. He was pretty upset he didn't get to see them, A-Train's from New Zealand and really wants to see a bear while he's here. I saw 3 wild cats on the trail today, we fed one at Iron Mtn shelter but the other two were hunting field mice. We stopped by Double Springs Shelter and chilled with this guy named Bender for awhile. He's hiking to a Damascus then heading to a friend's wedding. He carries a Martin backpacker guitar and he pulled out and played some tunes, it was sweet. I wanted to stay at the shelter with him, but that would have meant an 18 miler into Damascus and now I only have a 10. I started reading this book caled "The Switch" by Elmore Leonard. It's excellent so far, I picked it up in Kincora. The bugs are dive bombing my head lamp and it's driving me crazy, so I'm out."Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too hard to read." -Groucho
Date: 2005-06-23
From: Nauman Tentsite

To: Mt. Washington
Miles today: 19.4

Weather: 60's very windy over presidentialsLocation: Campground near CrawfordPeople: Dewd, Webb, Mississippi Alan, Diesel, Dennis and Nancy. Mileage:19.4 grueling miles Food:Pancakes and peaches, Pizza, Hot dogs and smoresToday was long and miserable to say the least. This morning wasn't bad, I woke up feeling good and had a pancake breakfast at the hut before hitting the presidentials. It was a steady 6 mile uphill to Mount Washington and I felt pretty good the whole time. Spectacular views from ridge-running helped too. My left knee was hurting slightly but not too bad. On the way up Mt. Franklin I saw a large airplane escorted by 4 fighter jets, two on each side. I think it might have been Air Force One but I'm not sure, I snapped a picture and kept going. The climb up to Washington was extremely rocky but beautiful. I made it to the top around noon and found Dennis, Nancy and the guys. We waited for Diesel and Sippi to get there and we ate lunch and lounged around for a while. We still had 13.4 miles to do that day and didn't leave until almost 3. I had heard it was rocky downhill the rest of the day and just thinking about it made my knee hurt. The first couple miles were okay and after ! that I was hurting, my knee, my ankle and my feet. I bought a pair of boots in Lincoln a few days ago and I'm still breaking them in. Rocky downhills are not the ideal location for doing so. I have blisters on my toes and the rubbing off the boot on my lower leg has caused some ingrown hairs that hurt real bad. Not to mention my left knee was in excruciating pain on the rocks going down. The ingrown hairs were bothering me so much I took off my boots and hiked the last 3 miles in my flip-flops. I finally got to Pinkham Notch about 8:30 and was the last to arrive. We got to camp and cooked hot dogs and it hurt just walking around. I think I'm gonna have to zero tomorrow and let my feet and knee take a much needed rest. I'm exhausted and hot so I'm going to bed.