morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-04-05
To: mom hass- heading to Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

12:15 PM Chris called from the trail (finally had cell signal). He is still hiking with the 4 hikers from Georgia. They plan to stay at Tray Mountain Shelter tonight and will be meeting up with Luke and Cruiser whom he met on Friday's hike. Won't make town with access to TV for NCAA basketball final so we will leave a message on his cell phone. Should be in Hiawassee on Wednesday 4/7 for a down day to update journal at local library with internet hookup, get real food, and sleep at Holiday Inn Express. The food packs are proving to be too light at Breakfast (Mom was right!), in need of more protein and an extra mid day snack. Dinner meals are adequate. Will make adjustments in #3 Mail Drop as #2 bound for Fontana was mailed on Saturday. He will probably begin utilizing bounce boxes for longer hikes and make more frequent stops so we can send more food in the drop boxes without being as concerned about overall weight (we are averaging 1.25 lbs per day so we have room to add more). Suggested Bananas (or chips) in morning for potassium and Sunflower Seeds at night for calcium to reduce muscle aches from lactic acid buildup. Spirits are high, hiking pace is good, and he is having a great time!
Date: 2004-04-05
From: Low Gap

To: Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: clear sky

8:20 pm next to Poppin¢s snoring (later on though) That fire is getting mighty lonely out in front of the Trey Mountain Shelter. But, so far it¢s mighty cozy in here as I lay between Sal and Poppin¢s as she tries to coax him into singing his ¢theme song¢¢¦whatever that might be. All in all, a pretty uneventful day (as usual) although we ran in to never ending groups of people and scouts and whatnot¢¦must be Spring Break, eh? Oh¢¦my¢¦God.¢¦it must¢ve been up hill ALL the way since lunch! The uphills were just as never ending as the droves of people! Tim and I kept leapfrogin¢ Krewzer and Berkley Bill¢¦a quiet dude who we¢ll never see again because he¢s doin¢ like 25-30 miles a day!¢¦and he¢s already done the Pacific Crest and Continental Divide Trails¢¦he¢s going the the Triple Crown!¢¦and he looked like he was out for just a nice stroll! Everyone¢s looking forward to tomorrow¢s ¢magic¢. I think we just might stay there overnight and just max and relax¢¦my dawgs are getting tired and so am I. Too many doubts and fears creeping into my thoughts¢¦favorite people I wish I could see and the like. Just gotta keep telling myself to breathe and live¢¦ah, enough of the whining!..that¢s all. Some rejuvination will do me well, I think. Ah crap, my pen won¢t write well in the cold so I¢m gonna give up for tonight. Dreams of beer and food¢¦..zzzzzzzzzz.
Date: 2004-04-06
From: Trey Mountain Shelter

To: Addis Gap
Miles today: 5.3

9:50 pm¢¦full, tired, and just a tad bit loopy Oh¢¦my¢¦god¢¦what a day! This was everything I expected and more. The hike down Trey Mountain was cake¢¦and then we saw the scouts. ¢Addis Gap? You can¢t miss it with all the signs..it looks like wilderness graffiti!¢ And there were signs galore¢¦11th annual Feast in the Forest and what magic it was. Hosted by Moo, Gordo, and Whispers it was a sight to behold¢¦tents, chairs, stoves, food, people, and kegs¢¦.3 of ¢em! One in the river, one empty and one tapped and ready to rock¢¦and let me tell you¢¦ain¢t nothin¢ like droppin¢ your pack and grabbin¢ a beer to keep the spirits up! Sheriff and I got there at noon, he left at 2, and I¢ve never gorged myself to much in my life! Ooo, oo¢¦we even went swimming!!! We went to this place called Sliding Rock¢¦which, if you have no imagination at all is where we all rode yaks and chucked water balloon filled with vodka at each other¢¦but not so much¢¦it¢s a rock you slide down into a pool of manhood humbling cold water! Yikes! But it did satisfy my longing to swim since I can¢t do it in my lake this summer¢¦yeah, I should¢ve gone before I left¢¦I even had an offer¢¦. After that we all just lounged around, ate unearthly amounts of food, drank some beer, and talked to the most gracious hosts and all the other hikers that stayed: Krewzer, Happy and Snowball (a couple of older guys who rock and are really friendly), Squirrel Master, D-bone, Riverdance, Harry, Lil¢ Munchkin, Big Stick, and Gordy¢¦most of whom I¢ll see sometime in the near future. But yeah, that¢s what I did from 3 ¢til 10:30ish! So, hoist a brew to Moo!! Your trail magic is more like a trail miracle!! But yeah, I should probably start hiking for real soon¢¦too much lushness might make me soft¢¦or even worse¢¦a slacker!Current Music: ¢Dogs of War¢ ¢ Pink Floyed being played on a cd player by the fire
Date: 2004-04-07
From: Addis Gap

To: Dick's Creek Gap
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: overcast clouds

10:15 pm¢¦keeping some people up And so ends the first let of my journey¢¦I¢ve made it to my first mail drop in Hiawassee, GA!! Myself, Krewzer, Sheriff, Happy, Snowman, Daisy and Rufus (another older couple) are all staying here at the Blueberry Patch Hostel¢¦yet another great place run by great people. I mean the dude even did our laundry for us!! Almost like home¢¦except I do my own laundry at home¢¦believe or not. But I can¢t imagine ANYONE actually touching 6 day old grimy, smell, sweaty, just down right ranky hiker clothes! My outfit itself could¢ve stood up on it¢s own and run outside to play with the cats! But, it¢s life as usual for me in this most unusual part of my life. I caught a ride into town gby hitchhiking¢¦my first time, thankyouverymuch [clap, clap, clap]. So I checked my email, called my dad, step mom and my bro and went to the local steakhouse/buffet to gorge myself (yet again) and strike awe into the hearts of my fellow hikers at my jaw dropping eating abilities. And then we stopped at the store on the way home so I could get some ice cream!¢¦and as I write, I¢m partaking the goodness of Ben & Jerry¢s chocolate chip cookie dough (they were out of one sweet whirl¢¦.aawwww). Ooo, ooo, ooo¢¦so tomorrow I get to walk across my first state line! No longer will I be walking through GA¢¦I¢ll be walking through North Carolina¢¦uh huh¢¦can you feel it!?! I may even spend the night at Bly Gap, right on the border with my head leading into N. Carolina and my feel dangling back in GA! And to start off our day we get a phat (yeah, so good it gets a ¢ph¢) pancake breakfast with blueberry syrup and sausage! One last gorge can¢t hurt, right? Oh, and I even, finally got a chance to talk to my favorite girl¢¦who, even 2000 miles away makes me smile just hearin¢ her voice! She¢s just so damn cute and wonderful and she doesn¢t even believe it¢¦aahhhh [sigh]¢¦just what am I gonna do with you, hey Cutie? Anyway I should hit the hay and make use of a good bed while I can¢¦so until next time¢¦¢North Carolinaaa!¢¦.raise up!¢¦take your shirt off!¢¦twist it ¢round your head!¢¦kinda like a helicopter!!¢¢¦..uh huh¢¦yeah.
Date: 2004-04-08
To: Bly Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

1:05 PM Chris called from some nice person's truck that was giving him a ride back to the trail. He hopes to make Bly Gap by 7PM to meet up with the group that left the Blueberry Patch at 10 AM. (Laughs from the driver! Says he is going to have to hussle.) Also looks like he might encounter the first drops of rain. First mail drop pick up went well. Food prep and packaging is working well. First return box to home is on its way along with the first roll of film for development. Hope to have pictures on the site by mid next week. If you have taken the opportunity to look at other hiker journals, check out Officer Taco, a young man from Hamilton, MI and GVSU student. He is the first NOBO (North Bound Hiker) to make Harpers Ferry, VA!!!! He also took the initiative to start a journal for Scott Rogers, the bionic hiker with the artifical leg, for hikers to sign and Scott to pick up when he comes thru. What thoughtfulness! Michigan people are the best. Keep on truckin', Chris! I still think Forrest Gump is a more appropriate trail name but thanks for the honor! Mom Hass
Date: 2004-04-08
From: Dick's Creek Gap

To: Bly Gap
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: overcast clouds

9:46 pm¢¦..every state line And so it is that I am no longer hiking in Georgia¢¦but in North Carolina! I had a late start today, getting out on the trail at like 1:30 or so after getting all of my last minute errands done in town. Breakfast freakin¢ rocked! Thanks to Gary and Linnie at the Blueberry Patch. I even saw some more people that I started with and was able to inquire about the others, like Trucker, this young gal from Alabama (I think) that I met at dinner the night before I left the Lodge at Amacalola¢¦we had our last beers together. I saw her last at Woody Gap and she looked as if she was having some problems¢¦crying and stuff. But they said that she was doing well, so hang in there, Trucker! Not like she can hear me or anything, but it¢s the thought that counts, right? But onto to more important things¢¦like me. So far, NC looks a lot like GA¢¦same terrain and plants and stuff. But for me it¢s gonna bring back a lot of memories because my first job for the Forest Service was here¢¦and this place is quite pretty and I¢m excited about being able to see it again. But most of all¢¦I¢m excited! I think I¢m finally getting more comfortable about being out here and living the nomadic life that this is¢¦I¢m even a little excited about being along (sort of) and moving on to the pace I really want to be doing. Before, that really freaked me out because I didn¢t want to leave the cool people that I¢ve been hiking with so far. But now I¢m pretty stoked to see what new people I might meet when I finally strike out on my own¢¦in a sense, seeing as how I¢m already on my own. Besides, I¢ll see all these people again at Trail Days in Damascus. And it¢s because of these new found feelings that I¢d like to thank a couple of people who, over the past few days, have told me how cool what I¢m doing is and that they were proud of me. You know what?, I can¢t tell you much that means to me! So kudos to my two favorite gals¢¦one who keeps me nourished and one who keeps me sparkling!...EVERYWHERE! Thanks for making me feel good. Oh and I¢ve been blessed by the nature gods three times today! Once with a little bit of rain (oh, I love rain and all of its sounds and smells), twice with holding off on a lot of rain (it really sucks, sometimes, to hike in a downpour¢¦all day) and thrice (I love that word) with showing me the glory of sandals! My feet have never felt so good after pounding out some miles. Sure they get dirty¢¦really dirty¢¦but so does the rest of you, right? And who cares? And so I¢m off to bed. Gotta start my new upbeat look on things with a good night rest. Hee, hee, hee (dorkily smiles)¢¦.I¢m excited!Umba-band song of the day: ¢Fluffhead¢- phish¢¦everyone has an umba-band that plays songs all day in your head¢¦that¢s what I¢m referring to!
Date: 2004-04-09
To: Mom Hass - GA/NC Border
Miles today: 0.0

Chris is in North Carolina! He caught up with the group at Bly Gap and checked in via cell phone around 7:30 PM. Chris - I'm researching PocketMail. Ask the guys on the trail what the best configuration has been. Officer Taco is using one and just took delivery on his second model. I'll email him also. You are making us proud!!!!
Date: 2004-04-09
From: Bly Gap

To: Carter Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: broken clouds

8:49 pm¢¦and I¢m freakin¢ starvin¢! So, I just figured out that one of the worse things to talk about while sitting around a nice roaring fire is food¢¦good food¢¦Snickers, marshmallows, steaks, twinkies and the like. Sitting around with the Sheriff, and Hugs and Badges, a couple from Ireland and England, respectively, we had this conversation a little while ago¢¦but the after effects are still present (rumble, rumble, rumble). My first day in NC¢¦again, it¢s really a nice place. I¢ve finally noticed a change in vegetation¢¦more hemlocks and rhododendron tunnels¢¦and it just ¢feels¢ different¢¦like a new place. My one cool climb today up to Standing Indian Mountain (yes, the Indian is still there¢¦I think) had a great view. There is just something about being able to see where you¢ve been¢¦although I¢ve said it before¢¦it gives you a real sense of accomplishment. For instance, all through GA, I was able to see these two small lakes off to my right (east¢¦significant because I miss my big lake). But as I kept walking, I watched them gradually shift farther and farther to my right, until, today, I see them in the distance behind me¢¦apparently, I really am getting somewhere! Let¢s see, what else¢¦hmmm¢¦I love writing internal thought questions¢¦but not much else, really. I¢m heading to Rainbow Springs campground to their outfitter store. You see, I used to have this cool, treehugging, hippie shirt with an old, wrinkly guy whose long beard were the roots of a tree and his hair was the branches and leaves¢¦if that makes any sense¢¦but it¢s a great shirt for us granola-eating, squirrel chatting types. Anyways, I found the same shirt at a store at Neel¢s Gap and was wondering if this place had it in a short sleeve¢¦I had to buy a long sleeve at the other place. Just a side thought¢¦really, it¢s an excuse to sleep in a bed¢¦lush. Well, I¢m going to enjoy what¢s left of the fire and the really clear sky (I¢m out here alone all alone) before I hop into the shelter¢¦god, it¢s beautiful out here.Umba-band song of the day: ¢You and I¢ ¢ Jason Mraz
Date: 2004-04-10
To: Mom Hass - Rainbow Springs Campground
Miles today: 0.0

8:25 PM Chris and the gang are spending the night at the Rainbow Springs Campground, one mile west of the AT, just outside Franklin, NC. Bill Bryson, author of "A Walk in the Woods" stayed here (see Chapter 4). Chris is thinking that is pretty cool! After dinner and spending a part of the evening journaling, the gang is going to enjoy a "sauna". Looking to make Fontana Dam on Tuesday.
Date: 2004-04-10
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Wallace Gap 
Miles today: 12.8

9:23 pm¢¦warm, cozy, and sitting in my skivvies Another day and another hostel. You¢d be amazed at the amount of excuses and rationalization people use to validate a night of comfort while on the trail. ¢Well, it¢s supposed to rain tonight, so¢¦.¢ But the Rainbow Springs Campground is right one the trail (more or less) AND it is famous as one of the spots visited by Bill Bryson in ¢A Walk in the Woods¢. Right now, I¢m actually in the bunkhouse where Katz had a hell of a time getting into his third story bunk. Now, the bunkhouse is still there, complete with the three-leveled bunks¢¦but I¢m not sure if they had a sauna when they were here. That¢s right¢¦I¢m sitting mostly naked in a room with a temp of like 110, sweating, alone in the dark, with my headlamp on, writing in my journal¢¦it¢s a experience to say the least! So, NC is definitely more lush and green than GA. For most of the day, me and the Sheriff hiked through long rhododendron tunnels or along wet streams (as opposed to dry ones, I guess) with towering hemlocks¢¦at one point, the trail WAS the stream for a while! And then there was Albert Mountain...a climb so steep, we had to four-wheel it just to get up! But the view was incredible! 360 degree pana-freakin¢-ramic! And I even felt like a jungle Amazon tribesman or something!, walking in sandals with my walking stick held like a spear¢¦ahhhh, boys will be boys! I saw Harry and C.J. today (some kids I met at Addis Gap) too¢¦bastards had some lady friends who had invited them over for showers and steaks in Bryson City¢¦oh well. Man, is it getting hot in here? (random side thought). And I met Swissmiss, a gal who I¢ve heard of before¢¦who had also heard of ME before, for some unknown reason¢¦apparently, Momma¢s Boy is getting quite a name for himself! Hugs and Badges even showed up today. Amazing because they normally hike like 8 miles a day (they¢re taking it slow to start off) so this was their biggest day yet. And it¢s even Hug¢s birthday¢¦Happy 36th, you Irish rascal, you! And I ate a whole thing of Ben & Jerry¢s again tonight¢¦yum¢¦but I gave a big bite to Hug¢s for his birthday. You know the feeling of uber-warmth when your feet swell up, sweat is dripping down your back and you can¢t breathe? Yeah, I¢m there¢¦so much for the shower. No worries, I¢ll just smell bad everyday for the next 5 months anyway! Yikes!Umba-band song of the day: ¢Hold on¢ ¢ Wilson Philips¢¦don¢t ask why, but I had a dream last night where a bunch of girls were sitting around a table singing that song to me¢¦strange, I know.P.s. Mega thanks to Mike and Nicole for beer and pizza! It was great to meet you two¢¦oh, and you guys are great! And I saw the worlds second largest (whoopti-doo!) yellow poplar (liriodendron tulipifera) in the world¢¦it was big¢¦.bid and dead!
Date: 2004-04-11
From: Wallace Gap 

To: Licklog Gap
Miles today: 16.4

8:40 pm...there¢s just something in my eye Today is the day (although I didn¢t plan it) that I trek on, leaving behind what was comfortable and barreling forward into the unknown¢¦after all, isn¢t that what I¢m here to do? Anway, the Sheriff and I had expected to see each other today. He left earlier this morning and I (as I always did) would catch him later on¢¦never happened. He stopped early at a shelter that I didn¢t bother going to because it was a mile out of my way and the rest is history. I passed him without knowing and now he¢s about a day behind me¢¦and I never even got to say goodbye!...sniff, sniff. No worries, though, I¢ll see him again, I¢m sure. But I did have a pretty enjoyable day. The weather was cool and it rained on and off, but I got hike with Hugs and Badges for a while¢¦chatting with Hugs about about his hometown of Belfast and about the sites I should see when I go there (and I AM going someday!). When I left them, I hiked along some beautiful little streams that got me all teary-eyed and missing Colorado¢¦there are a lot of cool streams in the ¢rado! A babbling brook is definitely one of my favorite sounds and I just enjoy hikes that babble more than anything else. I did have one, long, strenuous, long uphill to the top of Wayah Bald¢¦well worth the work though. They had a bid whole stone lookout building you could go on top of and see for miles. I saw Standing Indian and Syler¢s Bald (a large, grassy area for all those non-geographical types), both of which I passed over within the past couple of days. You wanna know what¢s really disheartening? Huffing, puffing, and sweating up a mountain and realizing that there is a road that goes up to the same place that you are¢¦and then hearing and seeing people drive that road to get to the same place! Oh, if I was lazier¢¦but not so much. But yeah, I was kind of homesick today, it being Easter and all. I called the folks to wish them a Happy Easter and whatnot and it made me realize just how much I miss family functions like that sometimes. My mom¢s side were just finishing brunch and getting ready to go on the traditional Easter walk and my dad was working around the house and waiting for my brother to arrive, who was going to make dinner¢¦both of which I would¢ve been there for¢¦had I been there, of course. But everyone keeps the encouragement flying my way which helps me to get through my down, homesick times. That¢s right, laugh at me now, but those times are coming fewer and fewer (although I will always miss my favorite peoples) and I will have the last laugh when I can brag about completing the 2,100 miles hike¢¦so here is my preemptive laugh...HA! HA! HA! That time is coming so beware¢¦.mmuuuaaahh!! But my night was brighten when I got a message from a certain special someone who¢s voice always brings me comfort, wishing me a happy Easter¢¦.and I so I will probably sleep soundly with a smile. Umba-band songs of the day: ¢Sweet little sixteen¢ ¢ some oldies song ¢Standing in deep water¢ ¢ Jewel
Date: 2004-04-12
From: Licklog Gap

To: Nantahala River
Miles today: 14.9

11:10 pm....finally dry and clean What a day...rain and fog¢¦the whole day! Plus my tent wouldn¢t come down easily this morning so even that got soaked (like everything else)¢¦.and I even slipped in the mud and fell on my ass! [grumble] But I¢m not really complaining¢¦although I couldn¢t see a damn thing today because of the fog. And there¢s just something really eerie about walking in the woods and seeing nothing to the left or right of you¢¦especially knowing that there should be a valley way down below. At one point, I was standing on a rock, looking over the ledge of the mountain and I couldn¢t see anything but the rock I was standing on! Fog is pretty interesting. I was walking through a tree tunnel, with the fog filtering and flowing in and out of the trees and I thought that the headless horseman was going to pop out and throw his flaming pumpkin head at me¢¦.remember that movie? Every so often, though, I¢d hike down low enough to see the fog above and the sun below¢¦.oh! I just heard thunder! Lightning! Sweet¢¦.oh, I don¢t envy those stuck outside tonight! Back on track now...I even got some Easter trail magic after all! In the form of those Palmer¢s Bunny Munny chocolate candies¢¦bless the trail Easter bunny! Best part of the day (besides the burger with onion rings and the warm, dry bed at the hostel) was when, from out of the blue, I hear someone call, ¢hey, Momma¢s Boy!¢ I looked up and, I¢ll be damn, it was Krewzer! I¢ve been trying to catch that man one last time before his hike ended at Fontana¢¦and he even greeted me with a handshake and a hug! That man is probably one of the coolest, most genuine person I¢ve met on the trail so far¢¦and you know what he said about me to one of his friends? ¢This is Momma¢s Boy¢¦he¢s my choice for the 1 in 10 to make it all the way.¢ Man, if that¢s not an inspiration, than I¢m a bearded gnome! I¢m glad I¢m not outside again tonight¢¦it¢s raining something massive right now! Cats, dogs, mice, pigs, cows, yaks, you name it. But cheers to you, Krewzer! [clink] You¢re an inspiration to us all!Umba-band song of the day: ¢Kill the governor¢ ¢ Mustard Plug
Date: 2004-04-13
To: mom hass - Nantahala River Gorge
Miles today: 0.0

12:30 PM - after spending the night at the Nantahala River Hostel, with heavy rain storms, and the AM hours at the Nantahala River Outdoor Center, Chris is ready to resume his hike - first crossing the Nantahala River Gorge - on his way to Fontana Village and mail pick up by Wed/Thurs. He will then be at the gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains. His boots have been giving him problems, causing heel pain, so he has been hiking in his TEVA's which are working great. Suggested heavy socks for his boots. Will investigate new socks at Earth's Edge and send in next drop box which will go out on Friday, bound for Erwin, TN. Chris' spirits are high, any doubts of his trip decision but a fleeting memory! Told him about the article in GR Press about Officer Taco, aka Ben Reuschel, from Hamilton, MI., who is the first Northbound hiker of the season to reach Harpers Ferry, VA. Go get 'em, Officer Taco!