morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-04-23
From: VA 785 (Blacksburg)

To: US 220 (Daleville)
Miles today: 24.1

We made it through our longest distance day so far, but it was pretty tough on us. I'm sporting a new blister and we both have tired legs and sore feet. Fortunately the Super 8 where we're staying is clean and recently renovated, and Epsom soaks seem to help a lot. We did the 24+ miles NoBo with our slack-packs and finished the day very close to our motel room in Daleville. Homer Witcher shuttled us out to the trailhead this morning, and we got a good early start. It was 40ish with strong gusty winds and the first 4 miles or so were on a ridge, so we needed our jackets and gloves. I took off the jacket after the first couple of climbs (it doesn't breathe) and replaced it with my new arm warmers. Princess has used arm warmers for quite a while and finally convinced me to buy a pair. I think bicyclists often use them. They seem to work best for me in moderately cool situations. I can wear a short sleeve for later in the day when it gets warm, take off my jacket when I start to sweat a little, and pull on the arm warmers to keep my arms and hands warm. If I start to heat up a bit, I can pull the warmers down to my wrist. They're very light and stow easily. Plus they give good wind protection. Today must have been trail maintenance day. We saw 3 maintainers working on the trail at various points, Jim Webb, Dick Clark, and Bill (I think) Simpson. All from the Roanoke AT Club I believe and very nice men. The trail throughout this area is in great shape. We had several highlights on the trail today. The first was a signpost for the 700 mile point in the trail. I think it was a little misplaced, according to AWOL's AT Guide, we crossed that point yesterday.The second was McAfee's Knob. This knob has the reputation of being the "most photographed" point on the trail. Last year I took a pic of both Princess and Ranger sitting on the knob with a long lens so you could see who it was. This year I took the same pic of Princess and asked her to do the same for me and she thought she did. When I looked at the pic later, all I could see were my boots hanging over the ledge. I guess I'll have to go back one more year. The third highlight was Tinker Cliffs. The cliffs are a little over 4 miles past McAfee, but there's a lot of steep climb in those 4 miles. And the wind was screaming like a banshee up there, so I took a few shots and we moved through the half-mile cliff walk quickly. It was a very clear day and the views from McAfee and Tinker were fabulous. The last part of the hike was an endless ridge walk, or it seemed that way. The ridge seemed to get more rocky as we moved along it. It could have been fun if we weren't so tired. We saw a number of hikers today but the only ones we knew were Ironman Jack and Just Pete. We passed them on the way up to Tinker. They hoped to reach Daleville in time to pick up a resupply package at the Post Office, but I doubt they did. So it was a good, but exhausting day. And tomorrow is only a little better, 21.5 miles. But the weather is holding until Saturday.
Date: 2015-04-24
From: VA 43 (Bearwallow Gap)

To: US 220 (Daleville)
Miles today: 21.6

We just finished our second consecutive 20+ mile day and we're beat. This hiking stuff is tough day after day. Even when you're slack-packing. Our hike tomorrow is a little shorter, but with some tough climbs and likely rain. So I'm going to write less and sleep more tonight. Today was a fine hiking day, the temps were cool and the wind was brisk, but the sky was clear and the sun was warm. We hiked SoBo from Bearwallow Gap back to Daleville with slack-packs. For several miles after we started we hiked parallel to the Blue Ridge Parkway and we crossed the BRP several times. There were several steep inclines, but for the most part, the trails were not difficult and we made pretty good time. My biggest issue is a blister on my little toe that showed up yesterday after our long hike. I'm soaking it, cleaning it with peroxide, using antiseptics and covering it for the hike. But it's going to be a problem with the hills and miles we have planned for the next week. And rain is scheduled for the next two days. So in going to turn off the hockey on TV and get some sleep tonight.
Date: 2015-04-29
From: Lexington, VA

To: Lexington, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Today was our second zero day in Lexington at the 502 South Main B&B. I was a little worried that the doxy wasn't working yesterday, but things were better this morning. The swelling is down and the redness and warmth just above my ankle are gone. There is still some soreness, but I'm ready to move on tomorrow. We are really getting accustomed to the luxury here at 502. Everything is first-rate and it's going to be hard to leave. Mary Stuart prepared another great breakfast for us today, the centerpiece was cornmeal waffles with warm maple syrup and apple butter with plenty of other delicious sides. We headed downtown for lattes at the Lexington coffeehouse, lunch at Blue Sky, beers at the Palms, and then back to the B&B. Later we stopped at the Blue Lab Brewery to taste their wares, then had a superb dinner at the Red Hen. Back at the B&B we watched Tampa Bay wrap up a first round Stanley Cup win over Detroit. Princess got Tyler Johnson and Jon Cooper (Tampa coach) to sign her jersey a couple of years ago and we celebrated several Calder Cup wins with Killorn as well. Plus our favorite team, the Caps, also moved on to the second round this week. Tomorrow we're headed back to the trail very early. But probably not early enough to completely avoid the rain & possible thunderstorms that are scheduled around midday. Our plan is to be in Waynesboro tomorrow evening. I'll let you know how that goes.
Date: 2015-04-30
From: VA 56 (Tye River bridge)

To: Dripping Rock BRP 9.6
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: scattered clouds

I had 2 days rest to deal with my cellulitis (or maybe shin splints). After the second day of doxy, the redness disappeared and the swelling diminished. So I decided to hike today with a shorter distance than we originally planned. We decided to skip ahead to where we would have been (without the 2 zero days) and we will make these up on our way back to Georgia at the end of the summer to pick up our car. By skipping ahead, we don't have to change any of the reservations that we had up the trail. So today we had all our gear packed and checked out of 502 S. Main. Our shuttle driver was Gary Serra. Gary was recommended by Homer Witcher and we planned to work with him most of the week until I had to come off trail. Gary is a hiker and knows the trail very well. He took a short cut that delivered us quickly to the Tye River suspension bridge. We left our backpacks in Gary's truck since he planned to pick us up at the end of our hike. I remembered the hike up Three Ridges Mountain as a long tough climb, and that was accurate. It's six miles from the bridge to the top and most of it is a steady uphill crank. It was a good morning for hikers, cool - low 50's, and the trail was dry. We kept a steady pace, not fast, but deliberate. The mid and upper sections of the mountain have a lot of rocky stretches and that slowed us down a bit. When we finally reached the top, Princess was concerned that we would reach the end much later than planned - and much later than we told Gary to pick us up. And my leg was giving me more problems than I expected, particularly on downhill segments. I made some adjustments to my gaitors and boots, but eventually Princess texted Gary and adjusted the end time. The elevation profile in the AT Guide suggested a somewhat easier hike after the descent from Three Ridges. It would have been that way, but for the rocks. The last six miles or so seemed to be full of rock fields. And to make it worse, dark clouds rolled in, we heard some thunder and a drizzle set in. Rocks are hard enough, and wet rocks are really nasty. The rocks did a number on my leg. After a couple of miles, I could feel it on every step and I was ready for the end. The end finally came. We were 15 or 20 min behind our revised time estimate. Gary was waiting for us in the Blue Ridge parking area at Dripping Rock and he delivered us and our backpacks to the Tree Streets Inn in Waynesboro. Now we're settled in and getting ready to watch the Caps play the Rangers in round 2 of the Stanley Cup. When I got it unwrapped, my leg didn't look as bad as I expected that it might. Not much swelling and I have ice on it, so we plan to pick up tomorrow where we left off today. We do expect rain most of the morning which won't be so nice. Our room at Tree Streets is not as large as what we had at 502, but cozy. And we have to walk to the laundry, which isn't so convenient. But otherwise it's fine.
Date: 2015-05-01
From: Dripping Rock BRP 9.6

To: US 250, Rockfish Gap (Waynesboro)
Miles today: 14.4

Rain started overnight and was still falling when we woke up this morning. No surprise, we knew this was likely for several days. We've had trouble finding a shuttle driver who is willing to pick us up before 8. But today Mr. Gizmo texted that he was up early and ready to pick us up if we wanted. And we were, so we made it to the trailhead not long after 8. The rain continued as we started and the mist and fog held close to the ground. Our first target today was Humpback Mountain. Not the highest peak we've faced, but with several approach climbs and plenty of rock. I guess the mountain name is because the peak is a bump on a more level ridge, or at least that's what the elevation profile looks like. Near the top we crossed a rock ledge, but couldn't see more than 20 or 30 ft. I suppose the view on a clear day is great. After an hour or so, the rain diminished and eventually stopped. There wasn't much wind and the temp was above 50, so we were comfortable with a base layer and our ponchos. For the rest of the hike, the weather steadily improved and the sky was only partly cloudy at the end. After Humpback Mountain there were a couple of long descents leading finally to the Paul Wolfe Shelter on Mill Creek. The creek runs past the front of the shelter and there is a memorial stone bench by the creek. With the overnight rains the creek was noisy and high, and presented a small challenge to cross, but it was lovely as it cascaded down through the rocky stream bed. It was a beautiful setting and we sat on the bench for a rest and a snack. After we climbed back up from the shelter and the creek, the remainder of the hike was relatively flat with only short ups and downs. We passed by a very old cemetery with only fragments of the headstones remaining, and a stone chimney, all that was left of a previous cabin. But we did see a number of new (to us) flowers and I took pics of some. We called the Tree Streets Inn from US 250 at the end of the hike to get a ride back to the B&B. My leg felt a little better than yesterday, but it looked worse. So it's not clear that I will be ready to hit the trail again tomorrow morning. If I don't then Princess plans to hike by herself.
Date: 2015-05-03
From: Ivy Creek Overlook

To: Riprap Spur Trail @ NoBo 878.7
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: clear sky

Today Princess hiked solo while I chilled on my back with my leg propped up. It was pretty frustrating since it was a beautiful day, with temps in the mid-70's and mostly sunny. Cathy came for her at 6:30 and drove her to the Ivy Creek Overlook on Skyline Drive. Cell service is good for much of the trail in this area, and she sent me a text when she started on the trail. She slack-packed from Ivy Creek SoBo to the Riprap Trail parking lot where we started yesterday, and Cathy picked her up there and brought her back to the Tree Streets Inn. Princess is not a picture taker on the trail, but I made a special request and she squeezed off a few shots with her iPhone. I think the results are pretty good and I've included three. The first is a view from an overlook as the trail crossed Skyline Drive. The effect of the cloud shadows playing across the mountains is really dramatic, especially in person. The second shows the trail crossing Ivy Creek. The creek is cascading down from the upper right to the lower left. The trail comes up from the lower right to the edge of the creek. The double white blaze on the tree indicates that the trail makes a turn (across the creek), and if you look closely there is a single white blaze on the tree across the creek indicating where the trail continues. There are 4 or 5 nice rocks in the creek well positioned for hopping across. The third pic shows a section of trail across a field of rocks. In this case the trail maintainers have done a nice job of moving some of the rocks to provide a path. In other cases they don't. It's a lot of hard work. The trail today was relatively level ranging between 2300 and 3300 ft, with no major mountains. Princess hiked it in good time, close to 3 miles and hour - a record for us. She didn't stop for many pictures and she didn't have me to slow her down. She said she met quite a few hikers, including quite a few day hikers. I don't plan to hike tomorrow, so I'll have another opportunity for breakfast here at the Inn. We had blueberry pancakes and sausage today. Princess is going to do the next section north from where she hiked today. I don't expect to hike again until the cellulitis in my leg has cleared. I'll continue to move along with her and I'll make up these sections in Virginia after we've finished Maine. Shenandoah is about the closest point the AT comes to our home in Norfolk, so it's not hard to get here.
Date: 2015-05-04
From: Swift Run Gap

To: Ivy Creek Overlook
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: few clouds

Princess put in 13.2 AT miles today while I took another recovery day in Waynesboro. So I can't tell you much about the trail today. But she said the trail was great, a smooth path with hardly any rocks. She said there was considerable climbing, the highest point being Hightop Mountain and later, 3 other peaks around 3,000 ft including Weaver Mountain. And it was very hot today, into the 80's. Debbye picked her up at the B&B early this morning, but her starting point was farther up Skyline Drive, so she got a later start on the trail. She was heading SoBo and she made good time on the trail, but she met a lot of NoBo hikers and stopped to talk. She saw Silverback and Maverick early, Maverick is having backpack issues and had to return to the outfitters at Waynesboro. But he's moving again. She also met two section hikers who just started and talked with them about gear for a while. She brought back some interesting pictures I think you may like. The first is a crimson trillium. We've seen pink and white trilliums, but this is the first crimson. Later she took a pic of a pink trillium that we've seen more frequently. The second is a shot of the view from Hightop Mountain. I'm not sure if the TJ upload has enough resolution, but if you zoom into the pic, you can see one of the overlooks on Skyline Drive just below the center of the shot. The photo is a point of interest marker on the trail courtesy of the Shenandoah National Park (SNP). Almost all other parks on the trail put up larger printed signs usually painted or engraved to identify trail crossings or shelters, etc. But occasionally there is only a post with a missing sign, probably due to a misguided juvenile seeking to decorate his dorm room. SNP has solved this problem by erecting heavy cement posts and stamping the important information onto metal bands placed around the posts near the top. But the letters are about a quarter inch high with no contrast, and without my reading glasses they may as well be Braille - which I can't read either. So from my perspective, SNP has solved the problem of a few missing signs by making all of them illegible. But as far as I can tell all of the cement posts are still in place. Another nice photo Princess took is a tiger swallowtail, the state insect of Virginia. I've zoomed in on her shot, so there is a loss in resolution. And finally, she took a "900" mile shot, somewhere close to that point on the trail. According to AWOL it should be 0.9 mile south of Powell Gap. I'm hoping to be back on the trail soon, my symptoms are slowly disappearing. But I don't want to return sooner than I should, I've already done that once. We got some good news today, Princess' brother Ranger and his wife, Gay are planning to join us on Wednesday at Skyland. We move there tomorrow and plan to stay 3 nights while 'we' hike the sections north and south of there. (Also, the Caps took a 2-1 game lead over the Rangers tonight, Go Red!)
Date: 2015-05-09
From: VA 602 (Front Royal)

To: VA 55
Miles today: 9.8
Weather: clear sky

Finally, I'm back on the trail, still taking doxy but feeling better. Princess rearranged our schedule so that we had a short one today, only 9.8 miles. She and I started at VA 602 where she and Ranger finished yesterday. Ranger shuttled us out to the trailhead and we included a quick stop for a breakfast sandwich on the way. After leaving us, he drove back to the Quality Inn to pick up Gay and they headed back to Georgia. Our hike today was pretty short by most AT standards. I wasn't sure how fast I would be so we were cautious and planned on only ten miles. As it turned out, the trail was pretty smooth and I was able to do 2.5 mph. Not blazing speed, but I could have been slower. With an early start we were finished by 10:30 and we put in a call to our shuttle driver that we would be earlier than anticipated. Our driver was Mike, the owner of the Terrapin Station Hostel in Chester Gap, VA (near Front Royal). We stayed here last year and had a good experience, so we came back. When Mike picked us up at Rt. 55, he told us he needed to pick up another hiker in Front Royal. The other hiker was at the Quality Inn and as we approached the inn we saw Maverick walking out with his pack. Mike asked if he was headed to the trail and invited him to join us. Maverick said he had stayed at the Quality last night, but we didn't see him. So in the end, Mike took Maverick and the other hiker and dropped them off at the trail, and then took us on back to his hostel. The hostel was empty when we arrived, but there were several backpacks on the bunks. We got cleaned up and ready for tomorrow. I flopped on the bunk to rest my leg and slept for several hours. Later, two ladies from Oregon came in - the backpacks we saw on the bunks were theirs. They have come east to do sections of the AT for 5 years. We talked with them for a bit about their hike, and also the PCT. A little later another fellow came into the TV room and it turned out that he is Bow's father, Doug. We have met Bow and the Dude a number of times on the trail since Georgia. At one point, after I included a pic of Bow and her beau in this journal, Doug sent me a note in the TJ guest book. He lives a short distance from here. He came to the hostel because he expected the Silverback was going to stay here. Silverback has helped Bow and the Dude on the trail and he wanted to thank him. Unfortunately, Silverback wasn't here. But I did get a picture of Mike and Doug. We heated up several of the pizzas that Mike keeps for hikers, but we were still hungry and Mike offered to take us into town for dinner. He suggested Lucky's. It turned out to be a great place for beers and eats. (Maverick told us earlier that he ate there and recommended it.) Princess liked our bartender Gideon and we wanted to go back tomorrow, but they're not open on Sundays. So now we're back at the hostel. We're planning another early start tomorrow for another moderate distance. So far so good with my leg.
Date: 2015-05-10
From: VA 601 parking on Blueridge Mtn Rd.

To: VA 55
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: broken clouds

Princess worked hard at breaking up the trail into shorter pieces, so I could ease back into hiking again. Yesterday was just under 10 miles, today 11.8, and tomorrow 13.3. We're both lucky that the weather has been cooperating. Highs in the valleys have been climbing into the 80's and clear, but in the forest on the hills it's been cooler. Also, along the trail we had intermittent fog and overcast until the last half hour of descent when the sun came out. Besides good hiking weather, we hiked a beautiful section of the trail today. Blooming wildflowers were everywhere. Trilliums were the most abundant and they came in lots of colors: whites, pinks, lavenders and variegated. And there were many other types of flowers, most of whom I couldn't identify. Princess was good at spotting lady slippers, particularly yellow ones, she found over a dozen scattered all along the trail. She was looking for a pink slipper, but she never found one. Last year we saw lots of pinks and only a couple of yellows. The trail was especially busy since it was Sunday and also Mother's Day. We saw a lot of day hikers, especially near trailheads and parking lots, and later in the morning. We also saw a few thru hikers: Diabolical Duo (Boondoogle & That Guy), Ironman & Just Pete, Maverick and a few we didn't know. Day hikers were easy to identify, they usually had only a small backpack or no backpack. Our slack packs fit in the day hike category. By the end of the hike I was having more problems with my leg. I'm about at the end of the antibiotic I've been taking, and the leg has improved but not cleared up. After we finished and got cleaned up, Princess suggested that I should find an Urgent Care facility and get a professional opinion. Mike said there is a facility in Front Royal and offered to take me. The folks at Urgent Care were great. The physician I saw took a lot of things into consideration, explained his recommendation, and gave us plenty of time to ask questions. I ended up with another stronger antibiotic and an anti-inflammatory. Mike hauled us to Urgent Care and then waited on us at the drugstore. Later, back at the hostel, we packed up since we're leaving tomorrow and made final arrangements for the next couple of days. I plan to hike tomorrow, a little longer than today. After Mike drops us off at the trailhead, he's going to take our backpacks on to Bears Den where we plan to finish tomorrow's hike. So I think we're set.We had supper at Griffin's Tavern, about 10 miles from Front Royal. They have good food, good beers, and a TV so we could watch the Caps game. The food and beers were great, the Caps game wasn't. Back at the hostel, we watched a little more of the game, then called it a night. We'll see how the new drugs work tomorrow.