morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-04-16
To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

(This entry being written after I completed the trl., when I finally took the time to read this entry and realized that my original text hadn't gotten in. Hence, here's my actual start from Springer: Got going north about 3 PM. Matt and Pete soon outdistanced me as we walked the .9-mi. to the trail parkn' lot (I'm pitifully slow). There was a light sleet about and general desolateness of feeling about the dreary day. I just hjoped that the projectwed weather for the next day's turning good held true. I made some five miles, and 'though there was some light left to the day, had dreached a gap that had some flat space, and thought it wise to settle in for the night. The lower the better when it's cold. Soon cocooned in my bag, and all well, 'thogh corn-like sleet accumlated on the tent.Monday morning, 16 Apr. I was up around 7 and moving in a nice day, which turned sunny. We had strong breezes for several days, but at least it was mostly dry. I went along, seeing the occasional hiker. At one of the shleters I met "Bahama Dave", who was a south-bound section hiker, wearing a Hawaian shirt. Also there was a young hiker who had on a tan Boston Red Sox hat (later learned hs name was Cheeseburger; I think he completed the trl. a day after I did). We discussed the various colors Red Sox ball caps come in, and yes, he'd bought this hat just for the trl.; you could see it was new. Funny thing, this shelter had a spring behind it, which I counted on for water. I asked B.D. about the spring and he said it had no water. I thought there might be another source, usually lower on the mtn., so went over to investigate. As I approached the spring, I could hear water trickling, and saw that it was covered with dead leaves. I brushed some leaves away and helped myself to some good water, then told the others about our good fortune. Later I was at Cooper Gap and saw a number of spent blank cartriges from an Army Ranger simulated firefight, I policed up a couple dozen and formed then in the AT logo, and photographed same; this to later share with Pete Pulsts, who'd driven me up to Springer and had trained here w/the Rangers). Then hiked on 'til near day's end at Woody Gap, where I went down a dirt road and found a nice flat spot to tent, as well as the spring. 15 miles.
Date: 2007-04-17
From: Woody Gap

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Day 3: Up, used the privy @ U/W @ 8; another brisk, quite breezy, sunny AM. Saw a few folx; most aren't underway 'til after 10. Plenty of trillium, not quite fully blooming. At Noon went up Blood Mtn., met a real nice father, 30-ish, who'd carried his ultra-cute son, Bryson, up the mtn.; Bryson, just a toddler, managed to say "hiker" when he saw me. Took their foto. Down to my destination, the hostel @ Mtn. Crossings by 2 PM. Later at the hostel, a couple w/car offered 2 get stuff in town, so I ordered a cannister of Gator Ade, the ATL newspaper & had 'em mail a p.card 4 me. Rob does many voices & acents, plus plays a recorder & sings beautifuly; I so regret he's getting off the trl. Says he needs several hundred bux worth of gear & will start up N., so I hope 2 meet him on the flip-flop. Sevral sml. buds R about the terrain. Pete has divulged that he's a Iron Man coach & is mostly on the trl. to get in shape. Up, used the privy and underway at 8:00 a.m. Another brisk, quite breezy sunny morning. Saw a few folks; most aren¢t underway until after 10:00 a.m. Plenty of trillium, not quite fully bloomed. At noon went up Blood Mountain, met a real nice father, 30-ish, who¢d carried his ultra-cute son, Bryson, up the mountain. Took their photo. Down to my destination, the hostel at Mountain Crossings/Neels Gap. It was an attractive sight, what with a string of Tibetan prayer flags flying across its facade. At the hostel, a couple with a car offered to get stuff in town, so I ordered a canister of Gatorade, the Atlanta newspaper, and had them mail a postcard for me. Rob does many voices and accents, plus plays a recorder and sings beautifully. I so regret he¢s getting of the trail. Says he needs several hundred bucks worth of gear and will start up north, so I hope to meet him on the flip-flop. Several small buds are about the terrain. Pete has divulged that he¢s an Iron Man coach and is mostly on the trail to get in shape. Rob¢s on a quest to get a rock at Mt. Washington¢¦.we then went on a riff about if a Ranger caught him taking arock from a National Forrest. (i.e., ¢but officer, I¢m making the mountain safer by lowering it!¢ And his rejoinder, ¢Do you realize what this mountain would look like if everyone took a rock?¢At Gooch Gap shelter at 3:00 p.m. Couple of nice guys there: a young gent from Maine, wearing a Boston Red Sox hat; I think he¢s a Northbounder. Other gent, Bahama Dave, a fellow U.S. Air force brat, lives in Atlanta and is a short-term hiker. The guidebook says excellent water, but Dave said the spring was dry. I checked it out, hearing water trickling under an accumulation of leaves. Moving them aside, it was easy to place a cup next to a flat rock, and in a minute or so you had water.Am right on schedule, 15 miles per day. Two hikers in hostel with me: Rob, who share the washer with me, who¢s giving up the trail, and an ex-triathalon gent, Iron Pete, Staten Island, who¢s doing quite well on the trail. My package was there, and I had most chores done in two hours.
Date: 2007-04-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Last nite at the hostel several of us noticed that our skin was parched fm. the cold breezes & we happened to find some Ben Gay-type ointment, so we put some on. At lights out the mice came out to play; happily, we all had hung our food from the rafters, such as is normally done at shelters.1 chipmunk; several orioles, occasional pileated woodpecker. Milder WX. Toughgoing out of Tenatee Gap, then some cruisin'. Pete and I passed ea. other twice, but I think I'll outhike him today; we'll see. Back at the hostel, 3 friends had signed in signed on the same day in Mar.: The Hermit and Dragon Lady, who said they were retiring their tent (I learned later that they bought a new one there) and Cimarron, who's attempting to complete the trail as its oldest thru-hiker, aged 85. 3 PM at Low Gap Shelter for water; Iron Pete & 2 gents fm. Miss. (short-term hikers)also there. Some chatting, then out on a real long stretch on an old road bed. Then over a nice section of new trl., clearly the work of one of the AT Trl. Crews, probably Konnarock.
Date: 2007-04-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Up at 7:00 and took the side trail down to fetch water at the Chatahoochee Spring, source of that river which I hiked alongside with several good friends on the Foothills Trail last month. (And I¢d recommend it to all, particularly as a training hike. Back at my camp, had breakfast. I struck same (camp) and am waiting out Pete who¢ll hopefully have my parka. Two short-term hikers came by, said it had been warm where they camped with no wind, as compared to my slightly breezy gap location. Pete showed towards 8:30; no parka, so I stashed my pack and set out southbound with water, camera and one trekking pole.1.5 miles later I met Chief & Billy Goat, whom I¢d seen since Blood Mountain. Billy Goat had my parka and wouldn¢t accept a Snickers bar as a thank-you offering. (The two gents are hiking Georgia and will get off the trail at the next road crossing. Chief retired from the USAF recently.) We all hiked north, as the Gap I had my stuff at was to be their morning break spot. At 11:00 a.m. I was finally underway after my costly mistake, but grateful that I didn¢t lose even more time as I would have if they hadn¢t brought said parka. A hugely fit gent cruised by; told me that he was doing the AT through Georgia in 48 hours; impressive. Views of Brasstown Bald, Georgia¢s high point. Was tempted to take the five-mile side trail over there, but later when I got a view of the steep road which goes up there, was glad I¢d not hiked there. At 1:30 at Unicoi Gap, which is a very noisy road crossing, indeed. A SAG wagon/truck was there, tending to bicyclists; possibily a tour of Georgia, but I doubt it. Also a loud, large youth group with adult supervision; obviously through with their hike (good by me). Lunch break at a stream up from the Gap. At 5:00 p.m. at the Cheese Factory Campsite. Pete was in his tent and hanging his bear bag (which I don¢t bother with¢wait for an action story as a result). I was about to hike on five more miles, but light sprinkles and strong winds convinced me to overnight at this excellent spot.
Date: 2007-04-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Fri., 20 Apr. Underway at 5:50, which was really too dark; will adjust to 6:10tomorrow. Watched sunrise as I climbed Trey Mtn., then went 2 the shelter ofthat name, 2 still asleep there, 3 awake but not much chatting so's not 2disturb those sleeping. On to a break later at Swag of the Blue Ridge, an unremrkable looking spot, despite its meaningful name. There Pete caught me, as did a fast older, ultra-lite hiker fm. the shelter. Snack breal at Deep Gap Shelter, w/Pete & 2 short-term hikers I'd seen before (they're doing 15 MPD). Lunch at a spring, from whence I can hear Dicks Gap, another road crossing and where all the other hikers, to incl. another short-term hiker w/knee brace will get off, all 2 end heir hikes, Pete to take a zero day at Cloud 9 Hostel. 2 PM at the Gap & then up a quite-steep grade (what's new?); met a gal beside the trl. who said she'd been at Cloud 9 Hostel, Unicoi last nite and drank a whole btl. of Drambuie so she wouldn't have to carry it, now was not up for hiking. Then met an apparition, an Ncredibly wild-haired, younger gent, w/yellowish tie-died shorts; he's the Ridge Runner & I overheard him tell the gal, when she mentioned she'd seen him before that he hadn't mentioned he held such a position (leading suspicious me to wonder if he was doing his job diligently, as he's supposed to accost ea. hiker w/Leave No Trace principles). 7:15 @ Bly Gap, 1 gal tenting & no famous tree in sight (the gnarled oak here is said to be the most-photographed object onn the trail). My first 20-mi. day.
Date: 2007-04-21
To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Slept in til 7:00 a.m. so I could photograph the (famous) tree at Bly Gap sure enough, it was just a ways ¢round the bend. Steep entry into North Carolina, them some easier going. 11:30 at Dick¢s Gap, where Cyril, a local fellow walked out of the woods with some ramps and proceeded to eat them raw; I could smell them from 12 feet. Jelly Bean, a gal trucker from Arizona/Washington (last year hiked the AT and her best trail friend was John ¢Mulligan¢ Killam, a friend of mine) and her dog, Bisbee (anice toruist minin' town in AZ, not far fm. Mex.), showed up, as did a fairly youngish-looking guy who had a keychain-type photo hanging from his pack. I asked him if that was to identify his pack, and he explained that the photo included his grandson, sort of like they were hiking together. Lunch break atop Standing Indian (easy trail up, in fact way easier than in Georgia, despite higher elevation) with Jelly Bean and Bisbee. Larry, a trail maintainer, on a two-day jaunt, incredibly had been following Jelly Bean on Trailjournals and was now meeting her for the first time. Turns out that my destination today is Betty¢s Gap (18 mi.) and Larry told us that there were two beers in a cooler there, for some trail magic, making my afternoon jaunt quite important. Registration break at Carter Gap Shelter. Late afternoon reached the Gap. Diligent search revealed no cooler w/beer. Jelly Bean went .2-mi. off the AT and camped near a road. I stayed put, as I wanted to get an early start in the AM. 18 mi.
Date: 2007-04-22
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Sun. 22 Apr. Happy Earth Day! (At least, I think that's what today is). Hiking at 5:20, so 2 reach (Fat) Albert Mtn./firetower by sunrise,which I did, albeit a few min. tardy....alas you can climb the tower but theaccess door to the platform on top is welded shut. Nice AM, w/several day hikers & a few thru-hikers sighted. The gradient of the trl in seems better than that GA. Alas, I got not no reception of Nat'l Pub. Radio, w/its excellent Sun. AM programs. 11:30 at Winding Stair Gap;a group of hikers was awaiting a shuttle who very soon showed; he manages Budget Motel & was taking clientele there, but agreed 2 drop me @ McDonald's. Then a hot, noisy walk thru busy town of Franklin; the motel of that name has edged out of the hiker business and caters to bikers (motorcycle type), but none there by Sun. PM, thankfully (am speaking of their noise). PM did admin chores. So w/1 week done, made my 15 MPD/106 mi., just as planned. Next, some nice high country for some 65 mi./4 days to the base of the Smokies. BTW, I must thank GATC, the Nantahaha Hiking Club, whose good work I've been Njoying on the AT, couldn't do it w/o them, as well as the ability to hike so EZily w/o the good graces, diligence & very helpfulness of my Trl Supt. & Significant Other, Joan J., who had my pkg. awaiting me here, w/various things I'd asked for, as well as a double batch of bars for the trl
Date: 2007-04-23
From: Franklin, NC

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Getting out of town went great; had a low-cost, healthy brkfst. in the form of bars Joan had sent w/motel coffee. Then a great haircut, Post Off to mail some cold-weather clothing back to Fl, then as I was walking thru town, a gal in a SUV asked if I was headed for the trl. As it appeared she wasn't gonna molest me, I accepted said ride. Turns out she'd met Bob "LWOP" Coveney (AT '05 & the owner of this pocketmail device, which he graciously loaned me). Debbie works on the Bartram Trl. in GA. When we reached the AT-road junction (AKA, Winding Stair Gap, several folx were gathered around a canopy: Trl. Magic, courtesy of a Church Gp. They had drinks & all kind of snacks, to incl. home-baked cookies, even "TP". A couple other hikers there, to incl. a Finnish couple. The trl. angels were all of retirement age and most were from FL. Soon underway, & the others out-hiked me as I took fotos, etc. Am typing this at our first bald mountain,: Silers. Nice, sunny, warmish, breezy spring day, plenty of day hikers. Hiked 'til Cold Spring Shelter, some 14 mi., not bad for an out-of-town day, especially when the trl. summited Wayah Bald (hazy views), over 5,000 ft. A nice guy at the shelter, DooDah, 50-ish fm. LA, offered me water from his carrying device, which saved me from dipping my bottle (had left my measuring cup back at the motel), we then talked gear; he also has a Stephenson's tent (outstanding, but expensive double-walled tent which accomodates two hikers and all their gear, and weighs but 2 lbs., 2 oz.). I tented on a designated tent site on a ridge. 14 mi.
Date: 2007-04-24
To: Sassafrass Gap Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiking at 6 AM, in 5 min. could turn off my headlamp. UneventfulAM, went some 8 mi. w/o seeing anyone 'til I met Kevin, a nice guy, 40 or so, who's been in the TGIF restaurant business in Kissimmee, Central FL) for some yrs. We hiked the remaining 3 mi. into our lunch destination: Nantahala Outdoor Cen. (NOC), a multi-million-dollar outfitting operation which caters to white water sports, as well as takes good care of hikers. Nice lunch w/9 hikers. Then bought a coke for immediate consumption, had lunch at the Riverside cafe w/a number of hikers. I must say, the young crowd of thru-hikers is living pretty high, most ordering beers with lunch (I almost always order water). As I left I bought a Ben & Jerrys to carry up the trl. Almost away in under 2 hrs., but ran into Sarah, whom I'd met a whole week ago at Neels Gap (seems like so long ago); she was canoeing the river w/a friend; got caught up on the news about various trl. folks, & soon was underway up the tough section known as "The Jump Up" (where I worked a week w/Konnarock Trl. Crew in '03). Soon Amy, a gal fm. OK who works at NOC was day-hiking w/me as her lunch break. Really tough trl,. sections up extraneous knobs, turns out I felt obliged 2 stop a couple mi. shorter than I'd Ntended, at Sassafrass Gap Shelter. Keith, a nice 50-yr. old Scotsman who's been in ME some 20 yrs., doing surveying work. Next is Don, "Flying Turtle" from Springfield, Il, he's run marathons in 47 states. Next is "APTech", fm. ME by way of Seattle, he's an ultra-litist w/but 12.5 lbs. base pack wt. Has been doing pretty good mileage & will do 22 tomorrow; got name as he has a lot of hi-tech gear, such as a 6-oz. UV light pen to sterilize H20. A lady Dr. came in real late; she was known to the others, but not me. Fun chatting & joke telling. The moon is about 1/2 full & comes thru the bare trees real well, I doubt this will be so next month.
Date: 2007-04-25
From: Sassafrass Gap Shelter

To: Cable Gap shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Translation follows text as Jon sent it.Checked the mi.-math matrix last nite & have been making Xactly15 MPD. 2day hiking @ 6:20, soon up the pretty tuff Cheoah Bald, where I got afoto of the rising sun w/2 unaware, asleep campers. On 2 Stecoah Gap, 1,000'sof white trilliums. @ the Gap met Sarah, whom I'd seen 2 X prior, who was Mbarking on a day-hike, she has a trl.journal under "Energizer" (that's also her lic. plate.) Then Ncredibly steep, prob. the steepest of the @ so far (& that's saying a lot) up a buncha knobs & lunch brk. @ Brown Fork Gap Shelter. Nice piped spring & real old-timey Appalachian privy. Aptech came in after a while, turns out he's a computer whiz & needs 2 go 2 Gatlinburg 2 get some work done (telecomuting, I presume. I took my 1st mid-day nap of the journey, what/w B'n nearly Xhausted fm. the trl. vicissitudes. PM slogged another 6 mi. 2 Cable Gap Shelter, arrived pent, @ 5:30, a doz. or so guys present & a pleasant, gnatty evening. In the last couple days we've walked over a couple of places where I've worked trl. crew...would take thousands more crew wks. 2 get the trl. in good shape. Translation: Checked the mileage/math matrix last night and have been making exactly 15 miles per day. Second day hike at 6i:20 a.m., soon up the pretty tough Cheoah Bald, where I got a photo of the rising sun with two unaware, asleep campers. On to Stecoah Gap, thousands of white trilliums. At the Gap met Sarah, who was embarking on a day hike; she has a trail journal under ¢Energizer¢ (that¢s also her license plate). The incredibly steep, probably the steepest of the AT so far (and that¢s saying a lot) up a bunch of knobs and then lunch break at Brown Fork Gap Shelter. Nice piped spring and real old-timey Appalachian privy. APTech came in after a while. Turns out he¢s a computer whiz and needs to go to Gatlinburg to get some work done (telecommuting, I presume). I took my first mid-day nap of the journey, what with being nearly exhausted from the trail vicissitudes. Afternoon slogged another 6 miles to Cable Gap Shelter; arrive spent at 5:30, a dozen or so guys present and a pleasant, gnatty evening. In the last couple days we¢ve walked over a couple of places where I¢ve worked trail crew¢¦.would take thousands more crew workers to get the trail in good shape.
Date: 2007-04-27
From: Hiker Inn/Robbinsville

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Back to last night at the Hiker Inn/Robbinsville: in town had Internet access and checked out myself on Trailjournals.com. I immediately realized the difficulty with reading my bizarre writing, so have modified it to near-English. Dined at a Chinese buffet, an incredible value, then a quick stop at Ingles grocery store and ride back to the Inn. The Inn is a hostel, transformed from an old motel; "civilians" not welcome. Today we got started at 7:30 a.m.; a still, dewey AM. Nice views of the mtns. Soon was hiking up & into Great Smokey Mountain National Park with Tom and Tim. Tom's from TN and is basically a computer whiz; Tim's a retired nurse (but couldn't yet be out of his forties). In 2 hours was at Shuckstack, where we climbed the tower for brisk, fairly-clear views. On to the heights and this journal break at Mollies Ridge Shelter, now open to the bears (in years past, these shelters were famously enclosed by hurricane fencing.) Now there's translucent roofing, which allows more light, and w/the addition of tables and benches, it's much nicer than before. The day continued gray and blustery; adding to my gloom, my camera seems to be defunct. Made it to my first shelter stay at Spence Field. The Ridge Runner talked me into sleeping inside, rather than tenting. I did it to mollify him and also because there didn't seem to be, suitable flat ground for tenting; my tent needs it absolutely flat or I slide to the side/fight it all night and suffer poor sleep. Made myself a nest in the upper deck and was just fixing a sandwich when the Ridge Runner asked me to eat outside; being comfortable ensconced, I was disgusted, but complied w/o complaining, but really miffed. In the shelter were the Finns, whom I think are real nice, two young gent thru-hikers, and "Bunkers", a female fire-fighter from upstate NY. She explained that bunkers is the name for fire-fighting suit, which she wore while training for this hike; her co-workers named her. Bunker's dinner was caribou which she'd shot in Quebec. She also hunts bear. She has an 8-year old daughter & is also pocketmailing her journals home for the daughter's class, hence it needs to be letter-perfect. Also in-house was Flying Turtle.
Date: 2007-04-28
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Mt. Collins Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Got my stuff out of the shelter in the dark and hiking by 5:45. Blustery, changeable weather, light sprinkles in the PM. Trucked all day and made some 20 mi. to Mt. Collins Shelter, bypassing the side-trail to the Clingmans Dome tower as it was totally socked in, and my camera is inoperable. Took a chance and tented illegally at the side-trail junction to the shelter, .5-mi. distant. Here came the Finns, who were tempted to stay with me but were out of water, plus not desirous of breaking Park regulations (you're supposed to stay only at shelters in GSMNP.
Date: 2007-04-29
From: Mt. Collins Shelter

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Hiking at 6:30, again blustery, but blue skies promising. I decided to hitch to dreaded Gatlinburg, to try new batteries for the camera and my small radio (had been enjoying NPR since in the Park). At Newfound Gap I stuck out my thumb and a Cherokee Nation cabbie offered to take me as a fare, but I demurred; he then said to get in as he was going tot town anyway, enjoyable talk the whole way. Once I was in town, here came a 50-cent trolley, so I got a ride to Food City and had a deli breakfast of biscuits & gravy, potatoes and decaf for $1.88, with refills! New batteries revived the camera, I decided to motel it, so's not to have to hitch back to the trail dirty. Nice room. Left word at the outfitter that another hiker could share. Did my laundry in the sink.Apr. 30.. Got up early and tried to hitchhike on a cool AM, but no luck. Towards 10 or so went back to the motel, thoroughly discouraged and had my free continental brkfst., which of course was pitiful. Then met two hikers who agreed to share the $40 shuttle back to the trl. w/me at 1 PM. Towards 2 PM the gal showed, saying that the gent had decided to stay in town (thus screwing me out of the time I waited to share w/them, and now I had to pay 1/2, rather than 1/3 of the fare). We got the ride and I hiked to vic. Tri-Corner Knob Shelter, I think.