morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2020-07-24
From: NY Highway 52

To: West Dover Road
Miles today: 12.3

Rain overnight. Put in the earplugs and got some sleep. Finally cooled down but still humid. Turns out that there was an aggregate / asphalt plant across the street. They start up at 4am. Guess I¢ll get up early too! :-/. So I packed up and then went into the deli that opened early for a turkey/egg/cheese wrap and some coffee. Very good! On way by 7. 70s, overcast, breezes, gentle grade. So far, so good. At one break noticed blood on my elbow. Hmmm! Turns out a tick had burrowed in on the back side of my elbow. Could barely get a glimpse. Well, I gouged it out, treated, bandaged and hoped for the best since it hadn¢t been attached long. At one point in the day I took a break and enjoyed videos of my military son receiving an award earlier in the day. Very heart warming.  I lost my focus from the trail and, apparently, hiked off in the wrong direction - south! Luckily within 0.1 miles I met Eeby-Jeeby and Star Lord who turned me around. How embarrassing! How disorientating! Close to the trailhead I called the taxi and then hurried to meet it. Unfortunately I suffered my first fall. Yup, skinned forearm and blood involved. Luckily I have a red bandanna that is good to stem the flow. Met the taxi ahead of schedule and was taken into town. Nice lodging and close to town center,  a pretty little place, and food. I cleaned up and walked across the street to what many say is the best place in town, McKinney & Doyle. A burger and a beer. Yup! Restored all my blood loss. What a day! What a day! Almost 100 miles so far in my section hike. Great to be in town in a nice, conveniently-located place.
Date: 2020-07-25
From: West Dover Road

To: West Dover Road (Pawling, NY)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: fog

So nice to be on a bed in cool dry air . Solid sleep from 10:30-5:30. Convenient coffee machine in hallway outside room started the day well. Got to work figuring out day. Cleaned and aired tent, mattress, sleep sack, etc. Repaired a torn shirt (I¢m not a bad seamstress!) . Repaired gaiter straps. Visited a convenience store for breakfast and a CVS store for other essentials. Blogging, as usual, was fun to recount the recent days. A nearby taco stand had great, cheap tacos for lunch. A treat! Later, a quick shower and I visited the same restaurant as last night. What can I say, I¢m a creature of habit. Especially if the food is superb. Like- Corn and lobster risotto with a glass of red Sicilian. Nice capper to a restful zero day. Ready to roll tomorrow!
Date: 2020-07-26
From: West Dover Road (Pawling, NY)

To: CT 55
Miles today: 9.7

Today was the transition day to slackpacking. Loaded excess gear (gear not going with me on my hike during day). Two garbage bags full! The weight was staggering. My shuttler, Frank ( Trail Hopper), showed up pretty much on time, took me to start point and I was on trail by 8:20am. Wouldn¢t you know it- this stretch, now that I¢ve shed the backpack weight,  was pretty easy. Gentle grades, lots of pastures, mid-80 temps, breezes. Encountered Trail Magic twice offering water, Gatorade, snacks. Amazing the anonymous generosity. Saw Pothole again near the Appalachian Trail Amtrak station platform. A station dedicated solely to the AT! At the end of my hiking day I got picked up by Frank at a little after 2pm and ended up in Kent, CT. On the way in Frank talked about the town, about his hobby of area Native American historical research and a lot of related stuff. Very interesting man. Dropped me off at my lodging (Fife & Drum Inn) for checkin. Nothing spectacular but close to restaurants and shopping conveniences. Their restaurant was close so after cleanup I hit the Easy button and wandered across the parking lot for a very nice dinner at the Fife & Drum Restaurant. Of course all establishments in all cities require masks. People here are quite compliant. So there ended my best day hiking yet. Quite fun!
Date: 2020-07-27
From: CT 55

To: CT 341
Miles today: 11.2

A very quiet, cool night¢s sleep with a/c and ceiling fan making it very pleasant. I discovered a great breakfast place that opened early. Coffee, juice,  a breakfast wrap. Nice! Was filled up and ready for Frank pickup at 8. On trail by 8:20 . Trail followed parts of the Housatonic River including a very robust whitewater section. Heat Index was up to 94 but with tree cover on trail it was bearable. Did lots of hydrating - water filtering and cameling during the day. Met Scout, a middle aged woman from Germany thruhiking. Been a long-term dream of hers. Pretty views along the way from ridges. Beautiful homes at various mountaintops. Very wealthy part of CT, per Frank. At the end of my hiking day I was so close to Kent that I just hiked into the hotel. Passed the Kent Preparatory boarding school. Apparently a $60,000 per year tuition cost! Yikes! Stopped at local grocery for chips, beer and snacks for the next hiking day. After cleaning up I did the easy and went back to the Fife & Drum for dinner. They¢re starting to know me. Great food, great service, convenient. Back to room for journaling and basin laundry - don¢t want to be too stinky for the shuttler. Day had tough and easy parts and was quite warm but got ¢er done.
Date: 2020-07-28
From: CT 341

To: CT 4
Miles today: 11.1

Very rough night. Had neighbors in nearby room. They left bathroom exhaust fan on all night (I found out later about fan, had assumed it was their a/c or ceiling fan) . Sounded like a freight train . Texted proprietor, no answer. Put in ear plugs. Awful! I was very mad in the am. Texted proprietor again to ask for room change and a day¢s refund. She said folks were only staying a night and she¢s give the refund. She was unaware that fan was so noisy or why folks would leave it in all night. A small downside to slackpacking. I went to the great little breakfast place and met one of the customers who agreed to take me the 1.2 miles back out of town to the trailhead. He and his dog ageed.Even got a few free licks from the dog on the way out. Thanks, Jesse (the driver, not the dog). Had an early up, lots of sweat, sawtooth terrain ( ups and downs) then a vertical, treacherous down. That fortunately led to the best part of the AT so far. Long stretches of flat, rock-free trail along the Housatonic River. Very peaceful. Made great time. Met Sparkles (she) and Snapshot (he). Both from AL and Snapshot was of Hispanic descent. Great to see a thruhiker of color. Temps in mid 90s again but tree cover and hydration made it bearable. Frank pickup at 4:15 and... he had a cold beer for me. Oh Yeah! What a guy! Got back to room, cleaned up and ordered takeout from The Villager. It was Mexican Special night. Burrito and the works for $15! Great day! Sweaty day! Flat day! Best day!
Date: 2020-07-29
From: CT 4

To: Rt 7
Miles today: 12.1

After previous night¢s fiasco, slept quietly and soundly. Ready to go! Favorite breakfast place had the cals and the caffeine to fortify me. On way to dropoff Frank proudly told of his organizing and running a film festival in Kent, CT for many years. He was Kent¢s answer to Robert Redford¢s Sundance Film Festival. Early on met my only hiker for the day, a thruhiker , Mr Jenny (some play on Jenny in Forrest Gump movie). In the 90s again but breezes. The split rock squeeze was not as tight as the lemon squeeze farther south but a fun little adventure. No fat backpacks allowed! :-) Frank had that cold beer again. Luv ya, Man! After cleanup and laundry I headed back to the Fife and Drum for the ribs I was thinking about all day. Yup, that¢s the ticket! Had a twinge in left knee during day that disappeared, luckily. Good long day! Clicked off some good miles!
Date: 2020-07-30
From: Rt 7

To: LionÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Head Trailhead
Miles today: 11.5

Frank picked me up at 7:30 and I was on the trail by 8am. Early in day Trail was flat and fast. Parts along the Housatonic River again. Really pleasant. At one point I heard a loud splash along the riverbank below. Wasn¢t I surprised when I saw a black bear swimming furiously to the opposite shore. He was so quick I don¢t even have time for a photo. That sighting was a treat! Passed the 1500 mile mark as measured northbound from GA. (690 AT miles to go). Passed a couple youth groups backpacking N to S in CT over 4 days. They were having fun but very interested in my AT Section hiking story. Used a side trail (half hour down to parking lot) to wrap up the day and meet a Frank for shuttle. Frank was in a great mood so we stopped for selfies on the way back into town. What a guy! Another meat and potatoes kinda dinner at the Fife and it was a perfect day. Think I got my trail legs. Think I¢m kinda in the groove. Also helped that during the day I lined up my shuttlers for next week. Falling into place. Onward!
Date: 2020-07-31
From: LionÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Head Trailhead

To: Guilder Pond Parking Area
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: broken clouds

Solid night¢s sleep. After my usual J. P. Gifford¢s breakfast,  Frank picked me up along with all my gear as I was moving into MA now. Dropped me off at the side trail and I was up and hiking the AT by 8:30am. Took all morning to hike up Bear Mountain. Yup, just like NY, CT has a Bear Mountain too! A variety filled day. A long stretch along the Brassi Brook. Very peaceful listening to the water flow as I hiked. Hiking up and over Mt Race was scenic but very hot along exposed rock ledges. Did slice my left shin on an exposed tree stump when stepping down off some rocks. A quick first aid clean and bandaging and I was in my way. Not too much blood loss! :-o Then a challenging climb up Mt Everett and into the Guilder Pond parking area where Frank had his last beer for me. He dropped me off for the last time - this time in Great Barrington, MA. We had a lot of fun together on the shuttles. I¢ll miss him. Checked into the Days Inn. After cleanup I ventured the couple blocks into town for dinner. They had blocked off one of the streets for outside dining and music. Quite festive. Perfect weather. My burger and beer hit the spot. Tough long day but now based in a new state and moving forward. Great feeling of accomplishment.
Date: 2020-08-01
From: Guilder Pond Parking Area

To: Homes Road
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Overnight frustrated with new room environment and a noisy, inefficient a/c. Earplugs helped but better yet.. talked with manager in morning and moved to a new room before shuttle pickup. All good! Tried coffee shop a short walk into town. Nice latte! New shuttler, Joe, today was a great guy. Former Public Works Director in town. Lots of common ground between us. Dropped off at 8:30am to find a retired Seabee passing out Trail Magic. Sweet old guy! Shared a few stories and I was on my way. Lots of flat open fields today. Lots of sun, temps in upper 80s but lower humidity. Was treated to warm, woodsy pine smells from pine needles on the trail footbed. A very comforting aroma. Had yet another flat stretch along the Housatonic River. Since it was a fast day I finished early at 3:30pm and found a barber shop within walking distance. The lady (heritage - Ecuador) gave me a great cut. Felt great to de-fuzz. Dinner in town on same street that is closed off for dining and music. A seafood pasta plate and a glass of red. Great hiking day, haircut and a satisfying meal. Perfecto! Onward!
Date: 2020-08-02
From: Homes Road

To: Beartown Mountain Road
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Joe picked me up a bit early. On way he said his wife had predicted I was an engineer based on the schedule I had prepared for Joe. Kinda looked like an Excel spreadsheet but in handwriting. Since she is married to an engineer Public Works kinda guy she knows! On trail at 8:03 and truckin¢. Ups at beginning and end of day but gentle grades between. Saw a couple wild turkeys from afar during the day. Gone before I could get a pic. Had rain a couple times during day but put on boonie hat and hiked on. Was too warm for raincoat so went without. Rain cooled it down from 80s to 70s. Nice! Had my phone in a special hermetically sealed case. Very protected from rain but still operable through the case, including pictures. Joe surprised me with a cold Gatorade when he picked me up. I was a bit soggy but it was warm so no worry of hypothermia as in past years. Great day! Cranking off the miles!
Date: 2020-08-03
From: Beartown Mountain Road

To: Goose Pond Road
Miles today: 10.3

Previous night had a great Japanese dinner in town. Perfect egg rolls, grilled salmon, brown rice and wok veggies. All eaten with chopsticks. Keeping up my cals and my dexterity! This morning did my coffee shop run ( Place is called Fuel- perfect name, right, gotta have that coffee) . On trail by 8:20 . Pretty flat, temps in 80s with breezes. A few day hikers but, in general, I¢ve had the Trail to myself. Finished up at 3:00pm abd was treated to another cold Gatorade. After dinner at a nice, close steakhouse, spent evening figuring out the next stretch schedule into VT. Good day! Fast day! Uneventful day!
Date: 2020-08-04
From: Goose Pond Road

To: West Branch Road
Miles today: 12.4

Slept well, ate a few pre-purchased items for breakfast (Days Inn not offering much due to Covid) and was ready for new shuttler, Pete, for pickup at 8. It was Hurricane day. Hike or not hike? Pete spurred me on the night before in a text.  ¢You still hiking or going to listen to weather folks - high winds, flash floods, blah, blah¢. He¢s right, press on. On trail at 8:30.  Had 20 min of rain then nothing until early afternoon, 20 more min. Then at 2:30 the skies opened up and the wind picked up until I finished at 4pm. Trail was under 6 inches of water. Actually it was quite fun. Had my boonie hat, had my rain jacket. Knew I was going back to a dry hotel room. Had to laugh at the sign shown above during my hike. What??? Who checks this stuff? After Pete picked me up we dodged downed trees along the roads all the way back to Great Barrington. Quite a mess. No power in downtown GB but had power in my hotel. Had to go away from town for food. Found a great pizza place for takeout. Never tasted a better Greek salad and ¢za! Great day! Glad I did it. Temps warm so no hypothermia concerns. What a fun adventure! Slayed that dragon! Onward!
Date: 2020-08-05
From: West Branch Road

To: MA 9 - Dalton, MA
Miles today: 11.4

Moving Day. Changing my base from Great Barrington to Dalton, MA. Packed up my gear, enjoyed leftover cold pizza from night before and met Pete at 8. Pete delivered me to the Trail and I was hiking by 9am. He went on and delivered my excess gear to my hotel in Dalton. Great temps, easy grades, breezes. Felt pretty strong. Could hike right into Dalton, no shuttle required. Passed a home with a trail mileage marker shown in the picture. These AT towns are quite supportive of us hikers. Hiked straight to the Shamrock Village Inn. Checked in and went to the nearby package store for a cold beer (Pabst Blue Ribbon) which I enjoyed in my room in the a/c. Ahhh! Cleaned up then walked the 50 yds across the parking lot to Paddy¢s. Great food, super service and... close. Never had better chicken parm! Room nothing fancy but was cool, dark and quiet! Better hiking day that yesterday¢s storm hike. In a good place.
Date: 2020-08-06
From: MA 9 - Dalton, MA

To: MA 8 - Cheshire, MA 
Miles today: 9.1

Since the AT goes right through Dalton I could hike right out of town in the morning. Was on my way by 7:30am. It was so cool I wore a fleece out earlier to get my morning coffee at the nearby coffee shop that also offered juices, breakfast sandwiches and fruit. Pleasant coolness, finally! Cool air, sun, birds singing, gentle grades really made for a pleasant day¢s hike. Was overtaken by a thruhiker from a couple weeks ago, Pretty Boy. He was the one who chased a couple of bears out of our campsite. He was excited to see a fellow AT hiker. Not many of us out here along this stretch. Put in an advance 1 hr notice to Debbie, my new shuttler, in the afternoon as I was wrapping up my day¢s hike. She was on time and was kind enough to stop by Walmart on our way back to Dalton so I could pick up a few things. Nice lady. Did some basin laundry, a call with next shuttler for planning ahead, cleaned up,  then back to Paddy¢s for another great (easy close) dinner. Very pleasant day on the AT. I know why I¢m out here! :-)
Date: 2020-08-07
From: MA 8 - Cheshire, MA 

To: Mt Greylock Summit
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: light rain

A creature of habit. Back to my nearby coffee shop for a fill up and wake up. Fun, charming, chatty lady serving up coffee, breakfast sandwiches and local stories. Debbie picked me up promptly at 8 and I was on trail by 8:20am. Surprisingly gentle grades for climbing a mountain. Met a couple of Trail maintainers checking for downed trees and trail obstructions. They are the backbone of this amazing thing called the AT, possible because of volunteers. Thanked them profusely. I summited in early afternoon and enjoyed a lunch at Bascom Lodge there on the summit. A beautiful old lodge for hikers and skiers built by the CCC in the 1930s. Walked around the veteran¢s memorial built in the same timeframe. Debbie picked me up on the summit and got me back to Dalton. On the way back I learned what a hard working person she is. Shuttles and is also a part time nurse¢s aide for the elderly. Had a few funny, amazing stories about that! Met another southern bound (SOBO) hiker, Always Coffee, staying in the Shamrock. Traded stories then I was back at Paddy¢s for the third night. The husband/ wife proprietors noticed that I had been back and thanked me for the patronage and asked about my journey. Nice folks. It was a great hike up Mt Greylock today. Glad I just did the up side of the mountain for today. Quite enjoyable. Great views!
Date: 2020-08-08
From: Mt Greylock Summit

To: MA8 - North Adams, MA
Miles today: 6.3

The day started weird. Some wierdo decided to pound on my door at 5:11am. Sheer mischievousness, I guess. Didn¢t go back to sleep. Nearby coffee shop, yeah that one ( :-) ) , had fresh brewed Colombian today. Oh yeahhhh! Today is moving day so packed up and was ready for Debbie¢s pickup at 8:15. She shuttled me all the way back up to the summit, bless her heart. She was then continuing on into North Adams, MA to deliver my excess gear to my next lodging. She sure deserved her fee and tip. My hike was all downhill from summit. It was Saturday so lots of day hikers and dogs! Not too peaceful out there today. Did have a fall at the end of the day. Slimy rocks and over I went. Not too bad, skinned forearm. Only a two bandaid fall! :-) Walked Into town and had studied up on a bus that passed by where the AT came into town. Yup there it was, there I was and for $1.75 I got delivered to the door of my hotel, Holiday Inn Berkshires in North Adams, MA. Sweet! Checked in and was met by a very friendly manager who said she had already put my excess gear bags in my room. The usual Covid things here too. Mask wearing, their restaurant closed but their pool and fitness room open (wierd!). Great room, laundry facilities also available. I¢m in heaven. Cleaned up and made a trip to the nearby Big Y supermarket for a few provisions. Best food recommendation for dinner was the Freight Yard Pub. Nearby converted railroad facility. Sat next to the bar so Joe the bartender took care of my food and drink needs. Fun to watch that young, hard working man do his thing. Great weather, downhill shorter hike today. Nice day. Finally giving myself a zero tomorrow. All is well!
Date: 2020-08-09
From: MA 8 - North Adams, MA

To: MA 8 - North Adams, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Ahhh! A zero day in the wonderful little town of North Adams, MA. No breakfast service in the Holiday Inn Berkshires where I¢m staying (on far left in photo) so did a previous trip to the supermarket for provisions. Add in room coffee and I was all set to have my distance breakfast in my room. No mask required! :-) Used today to clean and repair trekking poles( got a slight bend in one when I fell- no problem - coaxed back to straight!), repair gator straps and plan out duration of this Section hike. Nice to see the end. Had to figure out doable daily hikes. Shuttler access points, strategic lodging. What a puzzle. Came together. Got excited for awhile when an MI friend, Bob, talked about joining me on the trail. Turns out too many rules in these states for out of towners re: Covid (AT hikers not incl). I¢m solo for the duration. Celebrated a successful zero day with a seafood dinner and a visit to the nearby ice cream store. Delightful! North Adams, MA was an industrial town over time. Had a large electrical manufacturing firm which left town. They have repurposed that plant into what they describes as the world¢s largest contemporary art museum. Add in the surrounding Berkshire hills and it¢s a very viable community. Nice zero day. Recharged and ready to hike into Vermont.
Date: 2020-08-10
From: MA 8 - North Adams, MA

To: County Road
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Exciting day. Hiking into Vermont today. Started with a quick shuttle from local popular shuttler, Dave Ackerson. Unfortunately he couldn¢t support me other than this one shuttle since he had to take a another day job due to unknown situation with AT being closed/open in pandemic. Nice guy. Hike started great. Early part of AT went through a guy¢s driveway. Odd! He did provide a water spigot for hikers. I thanked him. This part of AT coincides for 100+ miles with the Long Trail (LT). Is said to be the inspiration for the AT which was later conceived in 1921. The LT was also part of the Underground Railroad that slaves hiked to freedom in Canada where it ends. Later in hike came across the 1600 mile mark of the AT. Now a member of the 1600 Mile Club, A little later did cross the MA/VT line. Exciting to be in the 12th AT state (out of 14). Since I was starting with a new shuttler, Charlie,  I planned a short mileage day to allow wiggle room for coordination. Good thing! Things got challenging at the end of the hike and pickup. I stopped, based on my mapping, at what I thought was County Road, the prearranged pickup point. It was actually a high power line service road. Really pickup point was 100 yards up trail. Charlie was busy so he sent another shuttler. The sub shuttler came roaring down the real pickup road. I heard him and raced up to meet him. He didn¢t even stop, honk horn or wait. He roared out, the turd! Turns out he¢s that kinda guy. Well Charlie ended up making the pickup after all. 4.5 hours after I had finished up my hike. Total exercise in patience. Hope rest of shuttle coordinations work better. Got into town late but found a nice dinner place. Nice ending to a tumultuous day. Vermont is a beautiful state. Loved today¢s hiking. Tomorrow¢s going to be better. Onward!