morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-02-23
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Ok Aprox. two months and Ill be leaving for Springer. I have decided to take USFS42 to the top of Springer and hike back to the start. The 8 miles from Amicalola Falls State Park to the start of the AT (Northbound)does not interest me. Ok now I have three entries so my journal should show up. More to come!!
Date: 2009-03-17
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well it looks like I wont be taking this walk in the woods by myself. Two local freinds have decide to take the journey with me. The father of this father and son team also happens to be an Eagle Scout so we should be in good shape. I am really looking forward to this trip. Reading the journals of those on the trail now are so interesting. I have been reading one today by Patriclees ( http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=8013 )that is great. If you have a chance check his out at the link above. The way he descibes the journey is halarious! I just hope we have as much fun. Oh by the way I failed to mention that the son part of this father and son team is engaged to my daughter. Do you think I may find out more than I need to know about him being in the woods for 30 days? Will see. Another great Journal is OMRiver. Check it out!Still trying to come up with a good trail name. I would really like to begin the hike with a trail name. Read Patriclees journal and you will see why. Now Patriclees is "Intents".Follow my hike on TrailPhone.net
Date: 2009-04-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well here is my gear that I will be hauling on my back. Let me know if I am missing something or if you see something I do not need to carry. I will try and weigh it all this afternoon. I believe it is around 35-40lbs., with water and food. This does not include the clothes I will start out wearing and hiking shoes.Follow my hike on TrailPhone.net
Date: 2009-04-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well I made a visit to the doctors this past week to get some anti montezuma's revenge pills. Dont want to get out in the woods and get a bad case of MR. I will be filtering the water but you never know. Im thinking the old scout motto of "Be Prepared" is the best way to go. I am going to take them as preventive maintence a few days before we leave. I also got some stronger advil type meds to keep the certain leg and feet pain at bay. The first question I got when I told the nurse what I needed and what it was for was, how are you going to charge your cell phone. I told her I would make it into civilization every 4 or so days and would charge it then. They were all really nice and more than happy to load me up with all the meds I wanted. So I think I am about as ready as Im ever going to be to get this hike underway. We will plan on starting around the first week of May and make it to Newfoundgap by the 28th. Ill do a test call on the trail phone this week to make sure thats all working.Follow my hike on TrailPhone.netPuddy
Date: 2009-05-04
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Leave for Amicalola State Park today. Will start the hike on Wed. morning. Weather is not looking good for the first few days on the trail. I guess the rain gear will be tested early on as well as the mental attitude. Lets leave our nice warm house and put a bunch of outdoors equip. in a bag on our backs and go live in the woods. Oh and lets also spend way to much money on that outdoors equip. I guess alot of people would think that this is just crazy! Tami has always said that my last words would probablly be something akin to "Honey hold this drink, and watch this". So another adventure in my book of life will begin on Wed. morning and Im stoked and ready to go! The pack is a little heavy at 35lbs. without my water. I have about 7lbs. of food that I will try to eat down pretty quick. I probablly have to much food but Im leaning on that scout motto again of "Be Prepared". Once I get out there and figure it all out I think I can cut down on the food lbs. Dont forget to check the trailphone.net link even if you dont see an update in the journal because that will be done each day that I have phone service. Next entry at Springer Mtn. tomm.Follow my hike on TrailPhone.netYou may have to click on the PLAY button twice to hear the audio update!
Date: 2009-05-05
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

At Springer Mtn base camp (Amicalola Falls Lodge). Will start the hike early Tomm.Will make an audio update before we leave in the morning. Forcast for Tomm. Is lotsOf rain and wind! This only means that it will only get better! .Follow my hike on TrailPhone.netPuddy
Date: 2009-05-07
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: light rain

Hey Everyone!! This is Jessica, Puddys daughter! We sent of the trifecta this morning! They all loaded in the shuttle and we waved goodbye as they started a trip of a lifetime. Spirits were high this morning when we arrived at the beginning of the approach trail for pictures! PR Man was VERY excited making good use of his trail name by conversing with everyone we saw!! Puddy was ready to get going every picture of him he has thumbs up! I think they are going to have a blast!! They had about an hour drive to the top of Springer where they began. They camped at Hawk Mountain Shelter and got a great start today hiking 8 miles!! We are soo looking forward to there next call and i will be sure to post when we get it! Puddy will begin posting again when he can get to a computer!! Keep them in your prayers! Puddy OUT!!
Date: 2009-05-08
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Jess again!! We got a call this morning from Puddy!! I was asleep but mom came back to tell me that they sounded so happy and were laughing and joking! They were in the middle of a rain storm when they called. Puddy said they were all soaking wet, and I mean SOAKING wet! Watchtower took out his tarp for his hammock and hung it between two trees to provide a dry space for getting into rain gear. I knew he would be good for something! Mom said they sounded like little kids at Disney World! Hopefully it will stay that way!! We just got ANOTHER call!! They must really be missing me! Puddy said they just summated Sassafras Mountain! They said that there wasn't really a view because of all of the clouds and fog from the rain. We got the call at about 12:45 PM and as of then they had hiked 14 miles total. They are getting a great start! Puddy, well i guess Jess OUT!!!!oh and dad your puppy who never chews anything or gets into trouble at all is being a sweet little angel today sleeping right next to me! He has only torn up TWO napkins today! Don't you miss him! I know you do!!! LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Date: 2009-05-09
From: Justice Creek

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hello from the Hiker Hostel. The owner of the hostel picked us up at Woody Gap after a good day of hiking from our justice creek campsite. We spent last night in our tents right beside a beautiful creek and it was so much nicer than staying In the shelter. No mice! We got up this morning packed everything up and headed north again. The hike today was good however it did rain again. Baby rain feels good when you are hiking but getting drenched is no fun and also makes the trail a mess. My left knee in bothering me some so I'm hoping that doesn't turn out to be problem. Our plan Tomm is to hike to neels gap where we have a box of food waiting. The hostel computer is down so I am typing this on my phone which is a pain. I will get to a comp soon and upload some pics and expand more on our experiences so far. I also want to give some reviews on the gear I am using. For now thanks for reading my journal.Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-10
From: Woody Gap

To: Neel Gap
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was a long one. We went from Woody Gap to Neel Gap. We crossed Blood Mtn. It was not as bad as we expected. The view from the top was unbelievable. You can not be where we are and see the views we have and not know that it is Gods work. We have met some really nice people along the way. We met a guy from Australia at Hawk Mtn. shelter. We also met a guy at the top of Blood Mtn. who was spreading his brothers ashes who had died at the age of 40 something. This hike has really been an experience so far. The change of emotions so quickly is hard to deal with. You are having fun and enjoying the walk on the easy parts and working like a horse and hating it all on the hard parts. The uphills are hard and so are the downhills Today was a beautiful hike up Blood Mtn. We have gone about 30 miles and tomm we have a short day of only 7 miles. The next day we will try to do 14 maybe. We have gone through are packs and made some changes and we are sending a ton of stuff home. Ok now for some gear review. I struggled about what to wear on the feet boots or trailrunners. I decided on the trailrunners and they are working out great, no blisters so for today that would be my recommendation for you. Will send more tomorrow and will do a trailphone.net tomm. too.Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-11
From: Neel Gap

To: Hog Pen Gap
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: light rain

I notice that the calculated miles is off . Our total miles so far is 37. Tommorrow we have a 14 mile day which will be tough one. Every day of hiking gets you ok better shape. The legs are getting stronger and my stamina is increasing each day. There is no better exercise than what we are doing. Today we hiked from Neel Gap to Hog Pen gap. It was a good hike with alott of great views. It rains every day in Ga.Gear Review--- the gregory baltoro 70 is to heavy of a pack at 5lbs plus. I am going to swap it in for a lighter one . More on that later.Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-12
From: Hog Pen Gap

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

Ok i made the pack change to a much lighter Granite gear pack at 2 lbs and sent my 6 lb pack home. My pack weight is now down to about 29 lbs with water. We made it the 14 miles today from Hog Pen to Unicoi. It was a long hike with alot of what they call in the hiker world as PUDS (pointless ups and downs). We made the hike in 7 hours which is pretty good. I love dialing in my MP3 player on the downs and getting into a rythum. If you come out I would reccommend you put together a playlist of your favorites. I dont listen to it on the ups because I can't enjoy it, Im hurting to bad. The pain is starting to come less often though which hopefully means I am getting in better shape. We went through the 50 mile mark today!!!!Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-13
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Tray Mtn
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: broken clouds

We hiked a short hike today from Unicol Gap to Tray Mtn. I were picked up by Ron of the Hiawasse Inn. He will shuttle us back to the trail tomm. We are in the honey moon suite tonight. It is really weird place. We got to eat a DQ ice cream a few minutes ago which was good. The trail was fairly easy today but we were slackpacking so that makes it alot easier. I would reccommmend slackpacking. Giving your body a break from hauling that pack is a welcome break. We will have one more day of slackpacking. Gear Review -- Jetboils stove is too big! I kept the stove part and got rid of the big insulated mug that comes with it. I bought the adapter for the stove so you can set a small pot on it and it works good. Now my stove pot and adapter all fit in the small pot. It is much smaller this way.Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-14
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Blue Ridge Gap
Miles today: 6.0

Today we hiked from Unicoi to Blue Ridge Gap. Just three miles from the border. Unfortunately we will not see the border until Sat. Because tommorrow we have a 12 mile section from Tray Mtn to Umicoi that we skipped because it is alot of ups and we wanted to see if Watchtowers knee was gonna hold up on the six miles today. After Tomm. We will have 73.3 miles of this hike done and just 2 miles to the border. We will cross it Sat. Morning. The first part of NC is going to be tough. Our next goal will be Franklin. The trail through GA. so far is not just a nice trail through the woods. The trail is a rocky, root infested, muddy path that at times is tough to navigate. There are small sections of smooth pine needle covered trail sections but most of the time you have to watch your every step jumping from rock to rock across roots and over muddy slop sections. The trail is always wet! Having said all that being in the middle of the woods on the trail is really nice. The smells and views are incredible. If you ever get the chance try to atleast go on a weekend trek in the woods along the AT. It is an experience that will make you a better person! The people you meet is an experience on of itself. I will tell you more about the great people we have met as well as the strange ones later in other entries. Please pray for us. This is by far hands down the hardest thing I have ever done physically and mentally.Gear Review --- The REI Mojave 15 degree bag is great. It is toasty warm and if you get to hot in it you can sleep on top of it. I sleep with the zipper down so I can pull a leg out if I get to hot. It will compress down to a loaf of bread or smaller.See you out on the trail!Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-15
From: Tray Mtn

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Some where along the way my mileage count got off and I have entered 8.2 as miles hiked today to get the total miles right. We actually hiked 12 miles today. It was a tough hike in places. The haul up kellys knob was a leg burner. The thing about the hard ups is once their behind you it wasn't so bad but while your climbing them you hate this whole hiking thing! Tommorrow we cross the border and I will do an audio update from the GA/NC border. I really appreciate those of who have signed my guest book. I enjoy checking the guest book and seeing who has signed it. It's like getting mail. Well sorry this entries is short but I'm tired and gotta get some sleep. Ten miles Tomm.Gear review--- Katadyn Pocket Filter has really been working great. Although it is a heavy filter it is working great filtering water for the three of us. It pumps quite a bit of water with each stroke and is well made. I'm sure in this section filtering the water may not be required but we are just being overly cautious. I have been pleased with this filter.Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-16
From: Blue Ridge Gap

To: Deep Gap
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: light rain

Well we did it. Georgia is done!! We hiked by the border today and took pictures and celebrated. We would have hung around at the border a little longer but the Georgia state bird (the gnat) were in full force swarming my head if you stopped for more that a few seconds. The hike was nice through many green tunnels that were really neat. They were about head high holes in the trees and growth that made it seem as if you were hiking through a tunnel. Tomorrow we hike across Standing indian Mt. which is a humdinger if the map proves to be correct. Watchtower is taking a few days off to rest his knee and will rejoin us in Franklin, NC. PR Man is doing good. he has a few blisters but not bad. So far my feet are holding up great and no blisters have formed. We have taken some great pictures but I have not found anyway to upload them to the site yet but I will keep trying. Sorry I did not do the audio update from the border but I had no signal. Will do it tonight! By the way Watchtower and PR Man have journals that you can read on trail journals.com. Check em out. A big thanks to a trail angel named amoeba who is letting me use her nice comp to do my update. The trail introduces you to so many nice people. Thanks Amoeba !Gear review --- Ur Sack bear bag. Well i started out with the metal insert thinking that it would keep my food from getting smashed. It weighs to much dont use it. The bag is nice and if it works as advertised thats great but so far I have not had it tested by a bear and doubt I will but once again lets lean on the side of caution and use it. It is heavier than any other food bag you could use. I feel better having my food in it but probably don't need it.As Carter would say in the movie The Bucket List "Find the Joy in your life"Continue to Pray for successful trek in the woods. Look back in the Prep entries for the link to Trail phone.net and listen to updates.Puddy Out!
Date: 2009-05-19
From: Deep Gap

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 24.0
Weather: clear sky

The 24 miles is over two days. We left Deep Gap yesterday morning early. On the trail by 8AM. I had to break out a pair of socks to wear on my hands it was so cold at first. We hiked Standing Indian Mtn first thing. It was not bad at all. Beautiful views in NC. We Tent camped at Betty Creek Gap 12 miles into the hike. It was my worst day yet. I was hurting bad. My back was screaming stop and I had bad pains under my right rib cage. I was hating every step. I had taken 4 advil first thing in the morning and then two more at the top of Standing Indian Mtn. I think this may have been my problem but I dont know. We stopped after 12 miles at our campsite at 3pm. I ate my dinner about 4:30 and went to bed. I did not sleep at all because of the cold. It was terrible. My sleeping bag did keep me warm but my face was cold so I had to pull it over my head. This morning getting up and packing was an absolute nightmare. It was so cold my hands were numb and I could not get them to work so I could pack all my gear. Finally at 8:30 Am we took off for Winding Stair Gap 12 miles away and Up Albert Mtn first thing. Within one hour we were shedding all the clothes. The hike up that mtn. separates the men from the boys! No hiking poles needed. It was rock climbing for about a mile of almost what seemed like straight up. It was fun though because it was so different. The view from the top of Albert Mtn was the best so far. I have pictures and will post them soon.I put on my music and hiked the next 9 miles with no pain and just a wonderful day of hiking. It is amazing the change of emotions on this hike. This morning I would have thrown in the towel if given the chance and within one hour it was my best day yet. I love the NC forest. What a great day. At Winding Stair Gap the famous Ron Haven picked us up and drove us to his motel the Budget Inn. My Ritz Carlton for tonight. Ron is a super guy and we are going to some slack packing with him for a few days. Gear Review -- Smartwool is a must for any hiker. Their socks are great and I was so glad I had the long sleave pull over top last night and this morning or I would have froze to death.I almost forgot the most important thing. We went through the 100 mile mark today.Ya-Hoo Puddy Out!
Date: 2009-05-21
From: Wayah Bald

To: Telico Gap
Miles today: 9.2
Weather: clear sky

We hiked a nice hike today into Telico Gap about 9.2 miles. Watchtower is back with us an going strong. Tommorrow we will hike into the NOC. Todays hike was nice. We started out at about 10AM and the trail was nice and easy but got harder by the end of the day. I decided as I was hiking to devote the day to enjoying my music ,nature and praying for a friend of mine Vicki in Myrtle Beach. She has been battling that dreaded disease that we all worry about for some time now and I decide to just spend the day walking and praying for her. If you are inclined to believe in the power of prayer remember Vicki because it would be a big help to her. She is one of those kind a people that make you feel real comfortable and any time you spend with her is filled with smiles and laughter. So I would appreciate if you would remember her next time you get a hankerin to pray. We are enjoying our time here in NC. The trails here are so much nicer than the GA trails. I have been taking alot of pictures and posted some last night to the photos section of this site. Check em out. I tried to put captions under each picture but for some reason they didn't come through. The ones of the motel room are the honeymoon suite and Hiawasse Inn. The blister shot is PR mans toe. The rest do not need explanation. Thanks so much for signing my guest book. I really appreciate knowing you all are following our trek. Keath -- I have tried the dryer sheets and Im not sure that myth is true.Flash -- Great to hear from you. Let me know when your ready to hike!Dad and Fran -- Everything is fine and we will be home soon.Bob -- good to hear from you, hope your doing well.Jessica from Texas -- I love you too!! and also Jennifer!!!!We should be at Fontana Dam on Sunday morning and begin our venture into the smokies!!More to come!Puddy Out!
Date: 2009-05-22
From: Telico Gap

To: NOC
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Well we made it to the NOC (Natahala Outdoor Center) not sure on that spelling. It is mainly a kayaking spot on the river. Lots of tourist hanging around. It was a hard hike today for me. It started out with a huge up hill and then we bounced up and down for a few miles and then a long down into the NOC. Today it was just PR-man and I as Watchtowers knee is bothering him again so he stayed back today. Tommorrow I am going to be hiking by myself doing a 10 mile section I missed when Tami came here. I may have forgotten to mention that she came to Franklin to see me day before yesterday so I took the day off while PR-man and Watchtower hiked a section. So I think it will be a nice hike tomm. Sunday we will be on our way to the Smokies and hopefully Wed. or Thur. we will make it to Clingmans Dome. I have added a few more pictures and captions if your interested.Thanks for signing my guest book!Dena -- Great to hear from!1 I hope you and your family are doing good. I miss seeing you!Lauren B. -- I miss being in the studio with you guys but I know it is in good hands with you. Puddy out!
Date: 2009-05-23
From: Winding Stair Gap

To: Wayah Bald
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today I filled in the section that i missed from Winding Stair Gap to Wayah Bald. So we have completed all of the trail up to the NOC now. Today was a good hike. I was by myself so that was a little bit different. I found myself looking behind me alot to see if someone was coming up behind me. Normally I have been hiking in the front so I always knew PR-man was behind me. At the end of todays hike was a very nice waterfall. I took several pictures and will post them soon.I actually hiked southbound today from Wayah Bald to Winding Stair but I listed it as Northbound to keep it all straight. Ron Haven picked me up at Winding Stair. He is a character if you ever come through Franklin try to meet him. Ron sas that this area is so far back up the creek that they get Saturday Night Live on Sunday morning. Ron is a super nice and funny guy and will go out of his way to help hikers. We may make a change in our plans and instead of jumping up to Fontana Dam we might just continue on from the NOC and do those 30 miles we were going to skip and save the Smokies for the next time. That would mean we would just get a ride to Newfound Gap on Wed. evening. Ill keep you posted on what we do. Rain is a big factor as we have storms moving in tonight! Hey Tyler B -- Great to hear from you brother, keep up the hard work in school and end on a high note!Gear Review -- Mountain Hardware Matterhorn hiking pants. I love them they are convertible pants that you can zip off the legs if it gets to hot. I have not zipped them off yet. I like hiking with the long pants. All the zippered pockets are nice to have. I would highly recommend them.Puddy Out!