morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-03-27
To: Food packing
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Spent yesterday at the Community table during their blue plate special lunch to promote pledges for my fund raiser. Spoke to a number of people about my upcoming hike. The rest of the day was spent updating my email contacts on my hike.Today was busy with errands and food packing. Had to get some legal work done and the lawyer we chose is a Trail Angel who cooks for thru hikers near Franklin and his wife is active in the AT conservancy. Amazing coincidence.Rest of the day spent trying out the new lawn mower and packing up food boxes. Also deciding if I will be doing mail drops and where. Somehow it appears I have too much food unless I do lots of mail drops. I may increase the quantities in my dehydrated meals. An article appeared in the local paper about my hike. 5 days to go with final check out in 3 days. The 10 day forecast calls for clear warm weather for 2 days then 3-4 days of rain.
Date: 2014-03-30
To: 2 days and counting
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Last 3 days have been hectic. Spent 2 days sorting out my food and determining what goes into my mail drops. Reviewed the process with my wife so she call give me support. She will be meeting me at 3 locations in the 1st 3 weeks.Have been watching the upcoming weather. At this time it looks like it will be good for the first couple of days.Went to Franklin yesterday to attend their Hiker Bash. Hear a interesting lecture by Amy Allen. Ran into Walkintree who I met at the ATKO.Took apart my pack to review my gear and arrange it so I can find things. Ended up with a total weight of 35 lbs. 5 lbs over my target weight. Can't figure out where I gained the weight but I know I have at least 3 lbs of clothes. This is mainly for the colder weather. Not sure I will eliminate them. Practiced hanging my bear bag. 1st try I got confused on the method but then it went very easy.   Neat way to hang the food.Will be heading south tomorrow to drop off boxes at Mountain Crossings and Top of Georgia Hostel. Then spending the night in Blairsville before heading to FR42.
Date: 2014-03-31
To: Tomorrow's the day
Miles today: 0.0

Did last minute errors before hitting the road to Blairsville. Left home at 11 on a cool morning but it's suppose to warm up. Drove to Top of Georgia Hostel to drop off one of my boxes. Arrived about 12:15, was able to make a reservation for next week. Talked with Sir Packs a Lot about some of my gear. Suggested I go with either a filter or water treatment not both, also loose one of my fuel canisters. We also discussed bear bagging.Next headed to Mountain Crossing to drop off another box and to get tent stakes since I lost one yesterday putting up my tent. Unfortunately they were all out. Weather has really warmed up to about 65-70 and sunny. Visited with the Shephard who is hiking with 3 dogs.Headed into Blairsville for lunch, checking in to the hotel and getting tent stakes. Successful for lunch and checking in not so successful for the stakes. Headed to the local Walmart in Murphy to see if they had any stakes. They had some good lightweight ones and also pickup some sunglasses.Back at the room, tore the pack apart again to lighten up some. Left the small fuel canister, the water filter, a shirt and some food out. Then I had difficulty getting everything back in. Probably only dropped a couple of pounds. Biggest weight is the winter warm gear. Almost left the heavier clothes out since the next couple of day the lows may only be in the 50s but not taking any chances.Weather for the next couple of days calls for sunny skies with temps in the 70s with lows in the 50s. Not sure where they are measuring these.Feeling good. Not tired as I have been the last couple of days. Anxious to get going but am concerned with the extra 5-7 lbs.Hope to sleep well tonight
Date: 2014-04-01
From: Tomorrow's the day

To: Horse Gap
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: clear sky

Started the day at Holiday Inn Express with breakfast and left at 8:30. Drove to FS42 and Big Stamp Gap. FS Road very rough. 10:45 headed to Springer with my wife, signed in the register and started down at 11:15. Stopped at the parking lot and then headed north at 11:45. Quite warm about 70-75. Mostly hiked alone passing about 10 other hikers. Arrived at Hawk Mt at 2:30 had lunch but decided to continue since it seemed crowded and had lots of Mosquitos. Met 3 ladies who were day hiking and then met them when they got to their car. Got some trail magic in the form of bug spray. Met up with Hey George whom I met at Springer, he was going down I was going up. Spend the rest of the day with him. Was planning to go to Cooper Gap but when we got to Horse Gap decided to not push on. Arriving at 4:30 There was one gentleman there in his hammock so we set up camp. Eventually there was a total of 7 of us there including Justin. Had some difficulty hanging our bear bags. Went further than planned but felt good. Only one uphill but no soreness. Not much of an appetite. Good start with nice weather.
Date: 2014-04-02
From: Horse Gap

To: Preaching Rock
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: clear sky

Slept Okay. Warm night about 60 deg. Up at 6 AM and started to pack up. Had some breakfast bars and left at 8:10. Hey George and I headed up the mountain to Copper Gap. We knew that there were jugs of water left there and also the army sometimes has a tank there. Hard climb up with 800' elevation in 1 mile. Then we had another hard climb over Sassafras Mt. Got water at Cooper Gap then over Justus Mt. Trail was good no rocks but a steady downhill to Justus Creek. Arrived at Gooch Shelter about 11:30. 4-5 hikers there. Had lunch filled up on water. Left about 12:30. About a 1/2 mile out of the shelter I realized I had left my water bottle so back I went. At one point was not sure I was on the trail since I didn't see any blazes but it was the only trail. Caught up with Hey George about 4 miles in . At Ramrod Mt. met up with Justin. Major climb thru rocks and boulders. Very Hot Day about 80-85. Everyone was feeling the heat. We were headed to Woody Gap for water and some to the hostel. We were going for Preaching View. Water source at Woody Gap was okay but dirty. Father and son where were hiking for a week decided to stay at Woody Gap. The trail out of Woody Gap was deceiving. We knew we had a climb but it was flat and smooth. Suddenly about 1/2 to 3/4 miles from Preaching view we encountered a major rock field and a climb of 300' Arrived at 5:30 with a great view of the valley. Minimal campsites but good trees for bear bagging. Some day people were there and gave up some water. Justin, Hey George and myself were by ourselves that night. Another warm night so left the tent flap open. Again bed by 8
Date: 2014-04-03
From: Preaching Rock

To: Neel Gap - Blood Mt Cabins
Miles today: 9.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Up again at 6 and left by 7:45. Cooler temps this morning with easy climb from Preaching View. Water stop at first spring. Started to get warmer. Lots of good campsites before Lance Creek. Were headed to Jarrad gap. Got there about 10:45 Had Lunch at Jarrad Gap and get water. I missed the water source and went down the mountain another 1/2 mile.   At the junction to the Woods Hole Shelter we realized it was 1/2 mile round trip down a steep hill so we decided not to go. Met a hiker with a nice looking brown lab who were going to take the Freeman trail to avoid Blood Mt. The dog was having some irritation from his pack. Took about 40 mins to get up Blood Mt. Not a bad climb. Lots of thru and day hikers on the trail and at the top of Blood Mt. Great view with clear skies. Called Blood Mt Cabins but didn't need reservations. Climb down was very hard with lots of rocks and boulders. Arrived at Mt. Crossing at 3 and got 2 cokes and picked up my mail drop. Packed up some of my winter clothes and some food. Had not seen Justin all day but we had told him we would be Blood Mt Cabins. Weighted my pack and it ended up weighing 35#. Headed to the cabins with Hey George. Best place to stay. Full Kitchen, 2 bedrooms and they did your laundry. Highly recommended.   About an hour after we arrived, Janzelle knocked on the door to see if we had room since the hostel was full. So we ended up with 4 in the cabin. Made dinner and Justin arrived. He had went to the Woods Hole shelter. Made a list of the pictures taken. Bed a little later 10 PM
Date: 2014-04-04
From: Neel Gap - Blood Mt Cabins

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: light rain

Still not sleeping well but up at 6. Had backpacker pantry of Denver Omelet. Not a backpacker meal unless you have a fry pan. Weather called for severe thunderstorms in the late afternoon. Slow start since Justin had to stop by Mt. Crossing which didn't open until 8:30. Left mt Crossing at 8:45 for Low Gap. Weather was perfect with cool temps. and fog and mist. Put on our pack covers but didn't really need them. Tough climb out of Neel but then the trail flattened. Arrived at wolf laurel at 10:55 with clear skies. Hard climb out of Tesnatee Gap with a 700' in a mile climb. With the next shelter 1.2 miles off the trail, Hey George and I just cont. on Lunch at Hogpen Gap at 1. George had lost a shoe but Bleach had picked up. Everyone looks out for everyone. Arrived at Low Gap at 3:15. Shelter was small and full but we found a nice campsite. Lots of tents and good water source and Cables. Washed my socks and had dinner. Jazella showed up and Justin came in at 6. Cooled down and had to put the down jacket on. The hiker with the brown lab came into camp. Weather was very good today.
Date: 2014-04-05
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Cheese Factory Site
Miles today: 13.4

Breakfast of granola at 6 and headed out at our usual time of 7:45. Very windy so I wore my rain jacket but then switched to my fleece top. About a mile from Chattahoochee Gap met 3 day hikers training for the Camino. They asked us if we were coming from Blue Mt. Shelter. We showed them on the guide where they were. They had made a right turn off the Jacks Knob trail and were headed south instead of North. Got them straight. Ran into Rambler from Hiawassee who was a 2007 Grad of Western Carolina. Small world. Arrived at Blue Mt shelter at 11:15 very cool and windy. Visited with Dragin who I meet on the top of Springer. The downhill to Unicoi Gap was steep. got there at 1. Lots to day and overnight hikers including a boy scout group. Hard climb again out of Unicoi. Weather was warming up to about 60, very pleasant. Heading up the hill to the cheese factory. Figured that tray mt shelter would be crowded so we would camp at the Cheese Factory. Good water source .3 mile south of the campsite. Nice site with lots of flat tent areas. Probably about 25-30 hikers that night. Rambler and Dragin came. MRE was already there. Justin arrived about 7:30. No trouble bear bagging. We are using smaller rocks in the bag which is easier to throw.   MRE is going to Franklin before returning to work. Slight wind and cooler temps. Wore my tights and fleece to bed. A long day with the longest mileage but feeling good. Had 1 up and 2 down. Lots of hikers both thru and day. Left hip no longer sore.
Date: 2014-04-06
From: Cheese Factory Site

To: Top of George Hostel
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: clear sky

Slept well with my ls shirt and tights. Woke up at 6 but stayed warm until 7. 40 mins to pack up. breakfast bar and headed out at 8. Cool day with high winds. Long Sleeve shirt, fleece top and tights. Went up Tray mountain non stop no rest stops. Felt good about that. Was low on water but most of the sources were a long way off the trail. Past Two Sticks a couple of times. She had started 3/23 but her partners got hurt and she took off 7 days. Had an encounter with a doberman who was with some weekend people who did not control him well. Headed down to Deep Gap shelter for lunch and water. Steep .3 trail to shelter but a good water source. Got to the shelter at 12:15 and Two Sticks came in to spend the night. No one else was the shelter. Lunch of Cheese, peanut butter and tortilla. On the way up to the main trail ran in to MRE. Climbed Powell Mt. which wasn't too bad but the last mile to Dicks Creek Gap seemed hard. Hey George was going into Hiawassee for restock and take a chance to find a place to stay. I went down the hill the Top of George Hostel arriving about 3:15. They didn't have my reservation but there was no problem. I was in the main hostel in the 6 bunkroom by myself.   Visited with other hikers. Did laundry and had dinner of chicken Lasagna, potatoe salad and salad. Ate 2 portions of each. Still really dehydrated and hands especially thumbs feeling really sore. Not sure about tommorrow. Calls for rain all day and temps at night down to 40s. No internet here at the hostel and poor cell service. Overall a long day but good weather. Bed by 9:30.
Date: 2014-04-07
From: Top of George Hostel

To: Top of George Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

Decided the weather didn't look good so will be zeroing here and spending less time at home. Will be going into town to the library to use the internet and get lunch at Subway. Also to give the feet a rest. May be a bad decision if the weather clears up.Took the 9 AM shuttle into town. Spent 2+ hr at the Library updating and reading emails. Headed for Subway for lunch. It started to rain so good decision to be off. While eating I looked up and Justin was coming down the street. He had camped last night and got a ride into town. He's buying poles and restocking.Shuttle came at 1:20 back to the Hostel. Updated my journal, took a nap and generally just took it easy. An afterthought I should have probably stayed in town till the 5 PM Shuttle.Had my Subway sandwich for dinner. The meal at the hostel was hot dogs and slaw with desert. Seemed overpriced for this meal.Anxious to get on the trail.
Date: 2014-04-08
From: Top of George Hostel

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Slept pretty well. No stomach issue in the morning. Up at 6 had banana, orange and some ceral bars. Packed up and waited for the shuttle to Dicks Creek Gap at 8. 10 people started at the gap. I was the last to leave. Good climb as usually out of the Gap. Ended up passing all but 2 . 2 sticks, no fly and I kept flip flopping. Cool day. Stopped at 8:50 to visit with Justin who was camping. He got his poles. Feeling stronger kept drinking water. Climb up Buzzard knob was tough but I didn¢t stop. Ran into a tree with my head since I wasn¢t looking up. I was alone to Plum Orchard shelter which was .2 downhill. Hey George was here yesterday at 1. When I got to the main trail I met 2 sticks and no fly. We continued to walk together till lunch.1204 crossed the border into NC. Took the required pictures. Went to Bly Gap and the Twisted tree then went back to the camping area since the ridge was very windy. Had lunch and rested for 1 hr. No fly left and 2 sticks stayed to finish lunch.The climb from Bly Gap was the hardest yet. Lots of rocks. Got to Sassafras gap at 2:30. Mostly hiking with no fly. Got to Muskrat Shelter at 3. Had a snack and headed to Standing Ind shelter which was another 5 miles.Trail was typical NC with lots of rocks. The trail from muskrat started smooth with lots of water on the trail from the rains. Another significant climb up and rocky descent into Deep gap. Last mile into the shelter was tough.Arrived at 5:30. No fly got the last shelter space. I tented near by. There were probably about 20-25 people at this site ¢ 6-7 in the shelter 3 hammocks and 6-7 tents. Set up tent and started dinner. Lost my big spoon. Had Beef Stronoff and veggies.   Called my wife who said it was supposed to rain around 3 AM till 10. Got water.Into my tights and yellow tech shirt. Bear bagged with a trash cover to keep it dry. In tent by 8 Other hikers sitting by the fire.Overall a good long day. 9 12 hr for 16.7 miles. Hey George is about 1 day a head and probably camped out. Weather was pretty for hiking. Hiked alone most of the day. Felt strong on the flats and uphills except for the rocky climbs and downhills. Glad I took off yesterday. Bed by 9
Date: 2014-04-09
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Slept ok. Another down hill site. Was very warm with liner and bag and long sleeve shirt and tights. Cool morningDid not have breakfast and left at 745 but stopped at 8 to put on socks to keep my hands warm. Had my Long Sleeve Shirt, fleece and long pants. Was foggy and about 45. Actually very comfortable hiking weather.Headed up Standing Ind Mt which was relatively easy. Lots of switchbacks and I was going at a good pace. Got to the Summit about 9. Due to the fog there was no view. Good descent down until the 5 mile mark when I started to slow down. Ended up stopping for some food. Probably bad decision to start the day without breakfast.11:15 at Carter Gap. Had lunch with 3 other thru hikers. As I was leaving 2 sticks and no fly arrived as did 4-5 other hikers. Made another water mistake. Didn¢t get water before I left and the spring that was a mile away didn¢t exist.Trail was again really wet in places. Got to Betty Creek Gap around 3. Met Sam (8 yr old) and his dad who were thru hiking. Sam kept a very good pace when we were hiking into Betty Creek.   Filled up my water at a good source.At Mooney Gap got first trail magic from the Nantahala Hike club president and his family. Got water, cheese and candy.   Good boost . Feeling good but next came Albert MT. 400¢ in .2 miles.The climb up was steep with major rocks. Took about 12 hour to do this ascent.   100 miles complete. Beautiful view of Otto and Franklin. The Nantahala trail angel had beat up to the top. Had 2 12 miles to Long branch Shelter but it was a smooth downhill trail. Very quick ascent into the shelter. Filled up with water and headed to Rock Gap Shelter which was 3 12 miles.   Even though this would make it a 20 mile day, I knew this trail and felt good. Called home to tell my wife to meet me at Wayah Bald not Winding Stair tomorrow.Last mile of the day is the hardest. 3 people tenting and 1 hammock in addition to 6 in the shelter.Arrived at 7 after 11 hours. Had developed a blister on the outside of my heel. The toe blisters are hurting some also. Set up tent, had dinner of Lasagna at 8 then bear bagged my food.   There are 2 streams in route to the Privy which could prove challenging.   Again I didn¢t get a flat site so another down hill slide.Took care of my blisters and will check them more when I get home. Bed by 10. Cool night so I¢m in my bag with my liner.Overall an up and down day. The trail started friendly but I crashed due to lack of food.   Did well after lunch until the last mile. Again most of the day was alone. I may see Hey George at Winding Stair as he starts out his day. I¢m concerned about my blisters. This could definitely slow me down. Should have stopped when I felt a problem. A 20 mile day with many breaks. And I know that doing this much this early could prove danger. Tomorrow could be a challenging day with climbs over Siler and Wayah Balds
Date: 2014-04-10
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Wayah Bald
Miles today: 14.8

Awoke at 6:30 and took my time breaking camp since everything will be washed. Granola for breakfast. Left at 8 next to last to leave the shelter. Good pace until Wallace Gap. I was hiking by myself and had forgot about the steep uphill out of the Gap. Morning was cold about mid 30s. Hiking with long sleeve shirt. Got water at Winding Stair Gap.Crossed route 64 to start climb up Siler Bald. Was on the trail and saw the stream on the right but headed up to the left on the Forest Service road. Went a short distance and realized this was not the trail. Returned down the hill and found the white blaze and the trail next to the stream. Can¢t believe I got lost on my practice trail. Temperatures started to climb. Unzipped up pants and switched to short sleeve shirt. Hard climb up Siler. A girl from CO, didn¢t remember her trail name, and I flip flopped up the climb. Otherwise I was alone again. Had lunch on Siler Bald then down the hill quickly to Wayah Road. Started the long hike up toward Wayah Bald. There were a few flat sections but it was mostly uphill. Decided to go with 2 sock liners to see if they would be better for feet. Toes feel better but the heel still is causing issues. May try the larger shoes with light hiking sock. Continued slow climb over some rocks. Crossed the road where I had picked up the trail in December on my practice hike. Blazes going north were more obvious. Continued uphill until about 2 miles from the bald. Narrow rocky trail in a very desolate area with good views. Again the last mile of the day was hard.Arrived at Wayah Bald at 4:15. Another hard day with warm temps and major climb. Cleaned up in the restroom and got picked up by my wife to head home for a couple of days.Had dinner at Fat Buddies of full rack of ribs. While eating Hey George called to check where I was. He was at the Wayah Bald Shelter which was 1 mile away from where I stopped.Home to get cleaned up, restock, update computer info, and help at a college track meet.
Date: 2014-04-11
From: home

To: home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Spent the day updating my journal, downloading pictures, getting updated on home happenings, and taking care of my feet. Went to The Community Table to check on my pledge drive. Then to Walmart to restock my food and get some other items.Made Vodka pasta with bacon for dinner. Great dinner.Spent the night redoing my food boxes and mail drops. Repacked my pack for the trip out on Sunday. Probably bought too much food.Good to be home but can¢t get comfortable here. Will be headed out in 2 days.
Date: 2014-04-12
From: home

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0

Spent the day transcribing and updating my journal. Then spent the afternoon at the WCU Track meet helping at the finish line. Beautiful day in the 60s.Got some advise on my blisters and walked on the grass without shoes most of the afternoon. Returned home to finish my mail drop boxes and food.Hope to be on the trail at Wayah Bald by noon and go to either Cold Spring or Wesser Shelter. Decided to take it easier in the next 3-4 days.The 2 days off were great for my feet but am anxious to get back on the trail.
Date: 2014-04-13
From: Home/Wayah Bald

To: The Jumpoff
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Before leaving home reviewed the mail drops with my wife. Took an hour from home to Wayah Bald. When we were walking up to the Stone tower, met a thru hiker coming up the trail. Took the necesary pictures at the tower. Left at 11:15. When my wife got back to the car she gave 3 hikers water and snickers.Stopped at the wayah shelter to rest my feet. I'm taking it easy today to control the blisters.Hiking alone again today. Weather was in the 60s and sunny.Stopped for lunch at Cold Springs Shelter. Have been stopping alot to cool my feet also to switch socks..Slow pace today stopping to taking in the scenery. Climbed up Wesser bald with out stopping. The new hydration bladder is helping keep me hydrated.Arrived at Wesser Fire Tower took some awesome pictures. Got to Wesser Shelter about 6:30, No one in the shelter and all the good tent sites were taken. Had filled my 2 Liter water bag but had not filtered it. Decided to move on to find a better tent sites. Went about 1 mile more just before the Jump off and found a nice 1 tent site. Set up camp, made dinner, and bear bagged my food. Didn't have any difficulty with finding a tree but couldn't find any stones.Will take the short hike into NOC and then decide since the weather is supposed to rain