morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-03-25
From: Mountaineer Shelter

To: Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: clear sky

I woke up this morning to the smell of coffee below. It was only 6AM and I should have gone back to sleep but the I couldn't resist the coffee. Hammer was downstairs and Nails was up too. He told me to feel free to fix a cup of coffee, so I did. There I was, sitting in a comfortable chair, drinking a cup of coffee. The heater was just to my left keeping me nice and warm and Nails had jumped in my lap and almost immediately fell asleep. I just sat there, taking it all in. I could see the sun rising over the mountains out the window. It looked cold outside and this made me even more thankful for such a place like the Kincora and such people like the People's. Amanda and I left around 9AM even though we both wanted to stay there another day. We passed by Laurel Falls and enjoyed the relatively easy hike by the stream. When we reached 321 we hitchiked into Hampton, TN for McDonalds and it was excellent! We filled our nalgene's up with soda before we left and as we walked out, I realized we each a "a liter uh cola" (Super Troopers). Our hitch back to the trail was an interesting one. A man with a rusty pickup offered us a ride, but the cab was full (him and his two massive dogs - one of which had to of been half bear). We agreed and hopped in the back of the pickup. Amanda's side was so rusty it swayed back and forth with the bumps. I could see the fear in her eyes. We arrived back at the trail safely and had a conversation with the driver. He was a true Tennessee Mountain man and was extremely nice. We thanked him for the ride and were back on the trail. To summarize the rest of the day, we met a stray dog who followed us all the way to the shelter. I wish we could keep him, but Amanda and I just don't think we can. He is such a beautiful dog. We also met a family out hiking for spring break. They were very nice and I enjoyed sharing some of my constellation knowledge with them as we sat on a rock behind the shelter and looked up at the night sky. --Josh
Date: 2008-03-26
From: Vandeventer Shelter

To: near Double Spring Gap
Miles today: 19.4

We got a really late start today. Josh couldn't sleep last night, which he blamed on the fact that he'd pumped his body full of Dr. Pepper the day before. I think the dog had a lot to do with his sleeping troubles though. He had the dog inside of his sleeping bag with him for most of the night. At any rate, we set off around 11am.The hiking was easier than most days...the terrain varied a bit but the ups and downs were considerably gradual. We were both thankful for that!Back to the dog... we decided not to adopt him. It was a tough decision--the dog was so cute and well-behaved--but after weighing the pros and cons it was clear that a dog would likely make our hike much more difficult. We had to shoo him back in the direction of Dean, Park, and Josh, a local family out for a spring break hike. We figured that they'd know what to do with him more than we would.Later in the day when we arrived at Double Springs shelter we met two couples. The first were the Frolicking Dinosaurs (one of which frequents whiteblaze.net) and another nice couple whose names we failed to get. We ate a quick snack of chocolate, honey roasted peanuts, and dried fruit, then decided to move on.We headed down the trail a few more miles, and ran into a woman parked next to a spring that flows next to a road. She said that many of the locals drive to the spring and fill up water bottles there. We both thought that was neat...it was something we'd never thought of. If we ever live near a mountain spring we'll be sure to do that, as genuine mountain spring water is delicious!We're now tenting about 13 miles from Damascus, VA. Tomorrow we'll reach our fourth state (Virginia)! We're looking forward to visiting the town, as it has a reputation of being the friendliest town on the trail.-Amanda
Date: 2008-03-27
To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Town days are always exciting. We woke up this morning planning to spend the night in Damascus, VA after having a large meal, warm shower, and clean clothes. I am writing this journal from the Mt. Rogers Outfitter's hostel after having had a 1/2 lb burger from the Iron Horse. We've had showers and washed our clothes. Damascus is a great little town.We picked up a care package which my family sent. It had more than we could carry (which is a wonderful problem to have). There was everything from Lindt chocolate truffles to small specialty summer sausages with Wisconsin cheddar cheese spread. Thank you so much mom, dad, Lisa, and Barry! We mailed what we couldn't carry on to Bland, VA and will pick it up when we get there.
Date: 2008-03-28
From: Damascus, VA

To: Saunders Shelter
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: light rain

The sleep at Dave's place (Mt. Rogers Outfitter's Hostel) was nice- It's always a pleasant change to sleep somewhere without a draft. Plus we got to take hot showers, which are a luxury. We started out the day with biscuits and gravy and a country ham and cheese biscuit at Cowboys, a gas station restaurant. It was delicious.After breakfast we ran a few errands, and spent a few hours at the library updating the website. Naturally we worked up an appetite in the process, so we decided to eat lunch at Sicily's Italian Restaurant. I had a chef salad and Josh ordered the best Philly Cheese steak he'd ever eaten. We shared garlic cheese bread. The owner was wonderfully kind and very humble. If you find yourself in Damascus, VA, be sure to eat there!We tried to wait out most of the rain and started heading back to the trail around 5 pm. We weren't expecting an ice cream shop to be on our way out of town. Of course we couldn't pass it up. They even had my favorite two ice cream flavors: Denali Moose tracks and Blueberry Cheesecake. Yum! When we started heading north at last, we found that it was way too hot to continue wearing our rain gear needlessly (it was hardly sprinkling). After about an hour of hiking that promptly changed. A down pour let loose in the distance, and we could hear it roaring towards us. We had just enough time to exchange looks of surprise, and within seconds we'd thrown our packs to the ground and frantically layered on our rain pants and jackets.We made it to the shelter around 9 pm to find 3 people fast asleep- one which was laying diagonally and effectively taking up 2/3 of the shelter. There were also 3 dogs that were either barking uncontrollably at our arrival or jumping all over us. Somehow we managed to squeeze our sleeping pads and bags into the shelter despite the chaos. It's nice to be out of the rain.
Date: 2008-01-25
From: Conservation Trail, Hampstead NH

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Prep #1Pipesmoke (AT 2004) and Mrs Smoke invite me to snowshoe a section of NH Conservation Trail that borders the back of their property. Gray Feathers graciously lets me borrow her snowshoes, which Memere brings over to the Smokes' house. 5 of us on the hike: Doug, Memere, Pipesmoke, Mrs Smoke and me. My first time on snowshoes. I can't believe how easy it is to walk in them! We have a great afternoon mostly snowshoeing on trampled trail, but also bushwhacking a little.For any deep snow on the 270 miles of VA AT I'll hike in March, I'll have a pair of snowshoes in the car. For ice, I'll have my winterized pair of Crocs that Pipesmoke invented. See photo. That man is a genius!
Date: 2008-01-27
From: Kinsman Trail

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Prep #2Memere and I get up at 4:45 AM. About 2 inches of light snow has fallen and it's still snowing. We drive to Concord where we meet Memere's daughter Lynn. Lynn has winter-hiked 8 of the 48 4000-footers. By the time we reach the Kinsman trailhead, snow has stopped, leaving light-as-down deposits of snowflakes on tree branches and trail.Memere has already winter-hiked all 48 4000-footers. For us, today's hike is just to enjoy each other's company and the day, and for me to get used to climbing and descending in snowshoes. We snowshoe about 3.4 miles to just below the ridge, turn around and snowshoe back down. As we're about to reach the trailhead, Lynn catches up with us. She's bagged #9 and #10, North and South Kinsman!Snowshoeing on a steep slope is way easier than I expected. It's really fun!
Date: 2008-01-31
From: Syracuse YMCA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Prep #3I'm back home. 2 weeks away from the gym has jellified pecs and abs, biceps and triceps, etc. It's undone all the hard, almost daily, work on YMCA weight-training machines that I did in Nov, Dec and half of Jan. I can't believe how fast jellification happens when one is a "certain age".Back to the machines for a few days while I'm home working on my taxes. Then I head out for the Florida Trail in February, the VA AT in March, NC and the Smokies AT in April.Happy hiking, everybody!
Date: 2008-03-11
From: Rte 613

To: Rte 601
Miles today: 7.9

Hiking north, Salt Sulphur Turnpike (613) to Johns Creek Valley (USFS 156/632) 5.9 miles, and hiking south, 601 to Johns Creek Valley 2.0 miles, total 7.9 miles.Start 9:45 in an inch of dry snow, which has confectioner-sugar-coated everything except the center of the trail, temps cold, low 20¢s, sunny. Despite the white dusting, blazes are visible if you keep a close watch for them.Hello to a junco, feather colors matching today¢s wintry scene.Thinking back to the last time I walked here, at the unlucky spot where Mountain Goat¢s foot/ankle pains caused us to turn around and hike back out, more bad luck. Because I¢m wearing Pipesmoke¢s ice-walker-cleated Crocs for this morning¢s ice and snow, I¢m carrying a spare pair of regular Crocs. In the dash to get ready, I clipped these to my pack, foolishly using a barrette instead of a carabiner. I discover the barrette¢s become unfastened and only one Croc now hangs from it. Not only have I lost a Croc (these are extra valuable to me because they¢re the only style that really fits me, a discontinued line called Highland Crocs), I¢ve lost the ice-walker slip-on from one of the Crocs I¢m wearing.The loss of gear bothers me, but leaving 2 traces on the trail bothers me even more. Usually I¢m good about not dropping things.10:45 we come to a campsite. Flat rocks have been placed on a horizontal tree trunk, places to set up your stove, says Purple Rose. A bit beyond is a copiously flowing piped stream.I¢m seeing reddish buds on saplings and downed still-live trees.Water from a bubbling-up spring runs onto the trail, causing us to take a little bypass around it.Purple Rose and I chat most of the morning.12:20 temps up to 50, snow gone, no wind, treadway is dry.Lunch at War Spur shelter. Read and sign register.Purple Sherpa hikes in to meet us. He¢s located a camping spot for tonight at Hess Campground. It includes 3 showers!Last 0.8 along clean trail beside clean stream.Out at USFS156/VA632. Purple Rose spots blooming coltsfoot.We decide since neither of us is 100%, we¢ll descend the last 2 miles. Purple Sherpa takes us to 601. At first the descent is steep and rocky, slowing us down. Soon it levels out, and the walking is easy.Purple Sherpa introduces us to Otis, the owner of Hess Campground. Otis introduces us to his daughter Rachel and son-in-law Jackie. Otis, one of 15 biological children plus 2 adopted children, was a coal miner for 29 years. From Otis, Rachel and Jackie, we learn that the resort we passed on our way to a trailhead is the site where ¢Dirty Dancing¢ was filmed. Also that there is a buffalo farm, and a camel farm, in the area. All three are interested in the presidential election and enjoy discussing their views, which are based on good common sense.Dinner in the VW of salad made by me and a delicious marinara sauce over pasta and corn tortilla made by Purple Rose.Another beautiful March hike. I love hiking in March. Good night.
Date: 2008-03-15
From: Rte 612

To: Rte 608
Miles today: 12.4

Saturday, March 15, 2008Hiking south today from Rte 611 to Rte 612, 8.1 miles, and hiking north from Rte 611 to 608, 4.3 miles, total 12.4 milesStart at 611. Warm, 50, cloudy.Hush again. Concentrate again. We¢re at Leafy Gap. It¢s even leafier than Leafy Hollow! We propel ourselves through leaves up to our necks. A mirthful, but slightly scary endeavor. Any deeper and we¢d have to leaf-shoe or leaf-snorkel.If need be, I¢m sure my snowshoes can double as leaf shoes. They¢ll keep us from postholing. To make them work in leaves instead of water, my mask, snorkel and fins may need special adaptation. Past Leafy Gap, we ridge walk, up and down. Some of the wet leaves on the descents are slick.I take a number of pictures of oak leaves that cover the path. Based on me comparing the photos to what¢s in the tree field guide, there are white, black, scarlet, bear, chinkapin, chestnut, red, post oak leaves, and probably others.We walk through white pine saplings so close to trailside that they brush first one shoulder then the other.Pass Helvey¢s Mill Shelter without stopping.Out at 612 at 1:25, meeting Purple Sherpa and Dixie. Eat lunch in the car on the way back to 611.Start 2:00 at 611.2:20 it begins to rain.See a common yellowthroat and 3 black-capped chickadees.2:45 summit of Brushy Mtn.2:55 this day, the Ides of March, I meet Apparition #2, who says, Because you are such intrepid and worthy hikers, I will direct you to another secret leaf-catching spot, Leafy Col. Return there in the fall to claim your catch, and the prize. Purple Rose never meets Apparition #2, but I show her the photos (see today's photos) and tell her what that apparition said.We¢re spooked. We¢re excited too.Pass Jenny Knob Shelter. Can¢t remember if we stopped.Out at 4:15, greeted by Purple Sherpa, Dixie and hot chocolate!I stop at the Bastian Clinic and get a blood sample drawn for the Lyme titer the urgent care place in Florida told me to get 3 weeks after Feb 18. Results in 10 days to 2 weeks. If +, they¢ll try another therapy.We talk to Lady Di. Sadly, no hiking with us this time. We¢re hoping she can finish her section-hike of the AT in 2008, and will try to hike with her whenever she¢s able.We drive to White Gate for a fund-raising spaghetti dinner at the Community Center, arriving about 5:30. My hiker appetite kicks in. Dieting on the trail is almost impossible. I inhale a big plate of spaghetti, salad, and 4 homemade desserts.At the dinner, we enjoy talking with people from the local area.
Date: 2008-03-16
From: Rte 608

To: Rte 606
Miles today: 8.1

Sunday, March 16, 2008Hiking north, Rte 608 to Rte 606, 5.3 miles. Hiking south, Rte 641 to Rte 634, 2.8 miles. Total 8.1 miles.High gray clouds that seem to be blowing off.   Start 9:30 AM. High 40¢s, maybe 50.Beautiful trail here, maintained by Roanoke ATC. Blazing is fresh and crisp.On the descent to 606 we see the first emerging green leaves. Honeysuckle leaves.I harvest some tiny dandelion leaves and a couple tablespoons of wild onion to add to my salad tonight or my sandwich tomorrow. What a pleasure tasting the first spring greens.We reach the bridge. Purple Rose gazes out at Kimberling Creek, dreaming of fresh-caught trout to go with mild wild onion and butter. Two days from now, we¢ll meet Brian from Tennessee, who¢s packing fishing gear. Wonder if he¢ll try his hand in Kimberling Creek.For lunch, I eat a 3-person salad, all by myself. Greens, tomatoes, almonds, pears, dandelion, wild onion, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.Start afternoon hike at 2:30 at 641. Bright sunshine. Everything beginning to green. Temp probably 60.Passing through land owned by a large area employer, Celanese.Suddenly we¢re at Leafy Col, the deepest leaves yet. They¢re over our heads. If it weren¢t for the siren song of Apparition #2 guiding us through, we¢d be there still.I¢m pretty sure Leafy Col isn¢t on Celanese land. It¢s in another dimension that Apparition #2 told us can be entered only by AT hikers whose trail names (if they have one word names) begin and end with the same letter of the alphabet OR whose trail names (if they have two word names) each end with the same letter of the alphabet OR whose trail names are 4 words long. WOW! Purple Rose and I qualify! Zig Zag too! Yolanda Vega, 2006¢s second place finisher! Amazon Woman! Goosebump, the Snow Princess! There must be some male hikers too, but I can¢t think of any at the moment.We reach the New River bridge.Interesting info about the New River. Do you know it¢s the second oldest river on earth? Only the Nile is older. The New River was happily flowing along before the Appalachian mountains were a twinkle in their daddy¢s eye. As those mountains pushed upwards, the New River found ways to course through them, albeit often roughly, over cliffs and around sharp turns. It¢s the only river that fully crosses the Appalachian range.Located on the western side of the Eastern divide, the New River eventually drains into the Gulf of Mexico.Purple Sherpa has stationed himself at Wade¢s, and gives us a wave. Looking at him, I miss the double blaze directing us to the right.No, the trail is this way, says Purple Rose.We hike up to the cemetery where lies Captain George Pearis, a Revolutionary War soldier, Pearisburg's namesake. Workers are refurbishing the area, labeling and staking many gravesites, building a stone dust path from Theresa¢s Garden to the parking area, and excavating around Captain Pearis¢s grave, perhaps before fencing it.Out at 634.Back to Trent¢s. Goodnight.
Date: 2008-03-17
From: Big Horse Gap

To: Rte 606
Miles today: 12.3

Monday, March 17, 2008Big Horse Gap to 606, 12.3 milesWe drive both cars towards Big Horse Gap, leaving the VW along the way and taking the Element up to the Gap. Along the way, on the right, we pass Miss Tillie¢s house. In May and June Miss Tillie used to host hikers at her antique house and barn. Last October, she passed on.Construction is going on there. It¢s thought that a member or members of Miss Tillie¢s family will be continuing service to hikers.Start from Big Horse Gap at 9AM, hiking south. It was in the 20¢s when we woke up this morning, probably mid-30s now. Enough clouds to blunt the sunlight.Great views through leafless trees of mountain ranges in all shades of blue. In another half hour, the blue tones have paled. Time of day makes such a difference in the view.Crunchy ice crystals underfoot.One of my favorite early spring sights. Split-open shells of last year¢s acorns revealing cherry red meat from which a stout rootlet finds its way into the soil.Hello to NOBO Unknown Hiker. Under a different trail name, he¢s completed 2 AT SOBO thrus but never a NOBO. He¢s hoping the trail name change will change his NOBO luck from bad to good. (I won¢t jinx him by mentioning his former trail name!)We arrange with him that if he can be at Wade¢s tomorrow between 10:30 and 10:45, Purple Sherpa can shuttle him to the library.Today is a strange day. Neither Purple Rose or I feels like we¢re hiking any slower than other days, but for some reason we¢re walking only 1 12 mph. Other days, we¢ve been averaging 2 mph. Can¢t explain it. It¢s not a hard hike.Stop at Wapiti for 15-minute lunch. No register. I¢m going to buy some notebooks and put them in shelters when I start the second leg of this walk up in Troutville.Pretty area of creekside walk and a small pond.Lots of bridges.At the juncture with the trail to Dismal Falls, Purple Rose and I separate. I take the trail to the Falls and she continues slowly on the AT.Trail feels about 0.4 down to the Falls, sign says 0.3.The Falls are just as pretty as I remember. I¢d love to tent here. Plenty of level ground, and level ledges. A huge trunk extends across the creek providing (for those with good balance) access to the bank I¢m standing on from the opposite side. Back at Trent¢s we meet 3 more NOBO¢s! It¢s so exciting to finally be meeting other hikers. They are Stride, Amazon Woman and Vagus. They¢re smart and fun and upbeat. S, AW, and V use the showers and the laundry, and pitch lightweight tents or tarps. Later I find out that they¢ve just hiked a few days with my trail friend Hopeful! How small, how connected the AT community.
Date: 2008-03-18
From: Big Horse Gap

To: Rte 634
Miles today: 11.5

Tuesday, March 18, 2008Hiking north from Big Horse Gap to 634Our last day staying at Trent¢s Campground.Purple Rose and Purple Sherpa invite Stride, Amazon Woman and Vagus for hot chocolate while I¢m using the pay phone down at the Store. I can¢t get my cell to work here.Goodbye, you three. Wish we had more time together! I¢m pretty sure we¢ll meet again.Overcast, much warmer, maybe 50. Start at Big Horse Gap at 9:30, rocky.10:15 at Sugar Run Rd. A little breezy.Good rock work by the maintainers. We find one that looks as if it¢s got fossils in it.11:30 Doc Knob Shelter. Sided in clapboard, which makes it different. No register. Sorry, Vagus, Stride and Amazon Woman. We wanted to leave you messages in the register. Purple Rose and Purple Sherpa will be going home tomorrow morning after they drop me off at Pine Swamp Branch (635). When I come out tomorrow afternoon, I¢ll be driving to Troutville. We won¢t see you tomorrow but we¢ll see you somehow somewhere up the trail.Sun out. We walk through a rhodo arcade, light not as contrasty as it is sometimes.20-minute stop for lunch at a flat rock a little off the trail.Hello to SOBO Mr Wren! He¢s down 2 thruhikes, 1991 and 2003. Last year a semi-thru between Katahdin and Harpers Ferry. This year another semi-thru between Harpers and Springer. He tells us NOBO Crazy Diamond is 4 long days ahead. He met NOBO Tabasco today. He hasn¢t met Unknown Hiker.Stone steps. Maintainers have placed crushed rock over steps that might be slippery when wet.2:35 We reach an official viewpoint. Weather is still blustery. Air is filmy like skim milk, not clear. We look through it at Wilburn Valley.3:00 We take the blue trail to Angel¢s Rest, another great viewpoint on View Rock. We can see the New River, the town of Pearisburg and environs, and Peters Mtn.Hello to section hikers, Samantha and Brian and their 7-month-old Beagle Frank. They started on the AT in Pearisburg, hiking south for a month. Purple Sherpa and Dixie hike in to meet us. Dixie and Frank sniff each other. They seem to check out OK.We hear the same birdsong we heard on our first day, 9 short sounds followed by a tailing long sound. What a bracket around this 9-day walk together.At the base of Pearis Mtn, we meet a homeowner and thank her for letting the trail come along her property. You¢re welcome, she says. It¢s green in the valley, early spring bulbs are blooming.Out at 4:40.I stop at the Courthouse Caf© to buy a beverage and use the internet to check email. Thanks, Pat.We overnight in the WalMart parking lot. Yes, they allow campers. Purple Rose asks me, What was it you did as a career?¢Was¢ is the operative word, my dear Rose. I left that life 6 years ago. More often than not, I now live out of my car.Looking at seedy me, and looking at her husband who is sporting a 9-day growth of beard, Purple Rose must be wondering what we¢re becoming.Brightly-lit parking lots like WalMart¢s are not optimal for sleeping. I put my 2 thermarests and the body-sheet towel around the windows, cocooning me in darkness Another good night.