morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-05-27
From: Clearing near a spring-fed pond

To: Little Wolf River
Miles today: 0.0

We camped last night in a clearing - but under a spiney hawthorne tree (we tried identifying it with Jay's tree book). When we got up and started packing our things Jay discovered some disgusting worm / catapillar like things all over his backpack. We're not talking about several of these slimey gross things, we're talking about HUNDREDS - everywhere - on his belongings. It was as if they were trying to decompose everything we brought in to the area. The more we looked around, they were on everything - tents, eating area, etc. THe last straw for Jay, which naturally was the most comical to me, was him picking up his hiking poles, just about to put his hand through the wrist strap when he lets out this scream and drops both poles to the ground. It turns out his poles had been taken over, too. Jay and I have a good time laughing at and with one another. Tonight, after a 17.5 mile day, I got to camp about a half hour before Jay, I decided to hang the bearbag line (he had done it the previous night in the clearing - we've been taking turns doing it for a while now). I was working on it when he arrived. I thre it and caught the limb I was aiming for on the second try. But the rock wasn't heavy enough to pull the line down and for all my shaking, the line wouldn't budge. It must have been stuck on something. So I grabbed one of Jay's hiking poles and start jumping for dear life trying to grab the side of the rope that has the rock and pull it down with the pole. I extend it to its full length and it still wouldn't come down. All the while Jay is getting a kick out of me acting like a fool trying to get the rock down. I moved to the two pole system, attempting to grab the rope between the two poles and pull it down. Still, no luck! Finally, he comes over and with his height, easily gets the rope down. I have been really happy to have been hiking with Hay the past couple of days. He's pushed me to go farther than I thought I could. Not only have I done it each day, but now I know I can do it and be successful at it. It was just so odd for me to realize the full extent of the sunlight. We hiked from 9am until 8p.m., taking an hour break around 5 for a late lunch at Jenkin's Shelter. Up until then I was really draging, not enjoying my hike at all. After a warm late lunch/early dinner of mac and cheese and tuna, I felt so much better. It helped that we had an awesome hike along the Little Wolfe River and all of its estuaries. I felt so great about being in these lovely mountains. Again, a change in perspective makes all the difference in the world. Camping here by the river is wonderful. It's nice to have the talking waters in my ears tonight and tomorrow when I wake up.
Date: 2003-05-28
From: Little Wolf River

To: other side of Bland, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was much the same in terms of hiking. We climbed out from our tenting area and on to a ridgeline. We hiked around the ridge, overlooking the valley below for about 7 miles, where were we reached the road to Bland. Near the road crossing, along the trail, someone had left gallons of water in Ted "Soleman" Anderson's memory. It brought back lots of emotions as to why I'm out here and my purpose. If, in my life, I have half the zeal he had, then I know that I've lived well. It was a reminder to continue to carry him with me in spirit - to see things with wonder - because even if they seem everyday to me, they are most certainly extraordinary. At the road in to town, Jay and I hitched in to Bland. It only took 10 minutes! Originally he had wanted to walk to town (something like six miles). I protested, saying that I thought we could get a ride within ten minutes (we made it just under the mark). We went to the IGA and found out about the restaurant at the Citgo Station. I got the lasagna special and a milk. That was, so far, the BEST trail town food I've had. Then on to IGA for groceries. We were in and out of town in a matter of hours and back on the trail by four. Arounds six or so I got the biggest scare of my trip so far: GROUSE ATTACK!!!I was in my hiking daze, with Jay behind me, when, from the fallen leaves and underbrush to my right I heard a snake. Something was hissing at me. Then it started moving...towards me! The hissing has turned to a squall. I glance back and whatever it is, is bumrushing me, fast. I freek, pick up my poles, put them under my armpits and start RUNNING down the trail. I glance back to see something that looks like a chipmonk ten times larger than ususal (or a discolored raccoon) hightailing it after me. I hear Jay behind me laughing, laughing, laughing. He says "It's a grouse." I am stunned that I've been running from a grouse, so I stop, turn around and watch that freakin' bird unpuff itself and fly off to the left - acting injured so as to detract attention from the nest she was trying to protect. So, the long and short of it is that I got the crap scared out of me by a bird. I'd love to see how I react to a bear. Better remember not to take flight again - it might lead to another chase. Of course Jay and I both got a good laugh about that after it was over. Tonight we're tented on a ridge about five miles outside of Bland. Our next goal is to be in Pearisburg by Friday. That means two more 18 mile days. I'd better be heading off to sleep so I can make an early wake up call around 6.
Date: 2003-05-29
From: other side of Bland, VA

To: Stand of Pines in Clearing near Dismal River
Miles today: 0.0

Jay and I slept on a ridge last night and awoke to rain. We stayed bunked in our respective tents well in to the morning. I didn't even start hiking until 10:30. I was hiking at a pretty good clip though and passed most everyone who had breezed past us at our campsite earlier that morning. Had lunch at Jenny Knob Shelter - and recorded my grouse attack in the register there. I did some washing and got back on the trail. Around five Jay and I crossed the suspension bridge at Kimberly Creek and had dinner by the water. I was hoping that if the storm clouds above us were going to do anything they'd do it while I was under the cover of the bridge. We had hiked along Dismal Creek for a long time in the afternoon and in to the evening, so finding a place to camp that was suitable for some tents and wasn¢t part of the creekbed was a challenge. Finally we happened upon this strange clearing, but it looked good enough to me. I was ready to rest. I was in my tent, Yaker in his to my right, Jay in his to my left and behind my tent some. Just as I was drifting off to sleep there was a blood curdling scream that scared the crap out of me and brought be bolting back to reality. The screech turned in to a hoot that left us all relieved that it was an owl rather than some lone bobcat. Jay said that during the night deer were huffing around the site, angry that we were in their territory. I never heard a thing.
Date: 2003-05-30
From: Clearing with Stand of Pines in Center 

To: Pearisburg
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: broken clouds

I pulled in to Pearisburg exhausted and covered in mud. The descent from Angel¢s Rest was a muddy one that had me sliding constantly. It must have been a right of passage for every hiker coming in to town to slip and fall in the mud because I know I did. Every hiker I saw come in to town after me had fallen also. I had been pretty steady on my feet after my first 20-plus mile day but when I came close to town, I saw a car on a road below. All the sudden my attention was diverted from my hiking, my legs went out from under me, and I slid ¢ all legs and butt in to the mud. The call of town had me up at 5:30 and on the trail by 6:30 this morning. On toward Wapati Shelter, then up over a 1,500 foot climb, across the ridge, then down. The final climb of the day was straight up to Pearis Mountain where I had some great views of the valley below and the mountains across the way. While I was sitting on the rock at Pearis Mountain and looking at the greenery of the mountains, I looked back behind me at what surrounded me. I realized that for all the beauty I was seeing across from me, I was surrounded by ten times more. It was one of those cool realizations that keep you going. I stopped at Angel¢s Rest, the last overlook before town, but was disappointed that the only thing it looked over was the river and a nasty factory below. I guess the lack of views from there kept me pressing on faster and more furious for the shower that awaited me in town. I pulled in to Pearisburg exhausted and covered in mud. The descent from Angel¢s Rest was a muddy one that had me sliding constantly. Before Pearisburg I would swear to other hikers that I didn¢t mind the mud, sloshing through it, and wearing it as thickly as possible upon me as I entered town. In fact, I¢d tell them, I relished the opportunity to get knee deep in the stuff before coming in to town to shower off. After falling on my way in to town, I resend any comments I made to that affect. When I reached the final road in to Pearisburg, I removed my boots at the trailhead and put my sandals on. My ankles were blistered from not having my boots tied tightly enough (the day before they were too tight) and I didn¢t want to drag my muddied boots in to the motel lobby. My worries about dirtying the motel lobby were silly though. All the business I did was done from outdoors, from collecting my mail drop packages to securing a room. I had an abundance of food from my mail drops. Both Chava and Bridget had sent me care packages! Oh, and I got a postcard from Jen A and a letter from Bridget. Now that feels great. I shared some of the goodies from my packages and horded the rest. Then on to a shower and out for dinner at the only bar in town ¢ the All Sports Caf©. Um, a couple beers and a nice fried chicken salad and I was one happy camper. I enjoyed my time at the dinner table with Baltimore Jack, Mala, Doc, Llama and Martha Graham. After they left, I joined Jay, Foz, Chaco, MooseMunch, Stonehenge and Hoops. It was great to unwind and hang with these folks off the trail.
Date: 2003-05-31
From: Pearisburg

To: Pearisburg
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I hit the post office late on Saturday just before it closed to forward my bump boxes on to Troutville. During my leisurely stroll back towards the motel, I stopped for breakfast at the Dairy Queen. I ordered my ¢breakfast blizzard¢ ¢ an oreo one ¢ and a cup of coffee. What a perfect way to start the day. Puff Daddy and Bluebird had just recently gotten in to town and I offered for them to share the motel room with me. We relaxed all afternoon, watching the high winds and thunderstorms roll in and thanking goodness that we were inside. I pitied the people who were out hiking in those elements. At one point I went to the Motel office to use the computer. I¢d sat down with the intent of updating some of my trail journals online after checking my e-mail. Three messages in to my e-mail account and the power in the town failed. That was the end of my online endeavour for Pearisburg. For dinner my roomies were headed to the bar for dinner. I walked up with Jay and Yaker but stopped at the Dairy Queen to compare their fried chicken salad with the one I¢d had the night before; the one at the sports bar was far better. I met up with lots of folks at the bar ¢ Puff Daddy, Bluebird, GI Gypsy, MooseMunch, Jay and Yaker, but left early with Riff Raff because I was feeling so tired. Just before I left MooseMunch gave me a pair of his old sock liners that he didn¢t need any more. It was exactly what I¢d been needing since Damascus, where one of my sock liners shrank to the size of a baby sock. I didn¢t have to pay full price and they didn¢t even smell too bad (but I washed them anyways). Plus, I had a big day tomorrow; I was going to hit the trail.
Date: 2003-06-01
From: Pearisburg

To: Symms Gap Meadow 
Miles today: 12.0

Being on a hiker schedule makes sleeping in a bit difficult. I¢d say it¢s practically impossible to sleep past 9 a.m. I was up, repacking my bag, showering and making breakfast early in the attempt to make it out of town before noon. The breakfast making was probably the biggest drama of the morning. I was using new solid fuel tablets that I¢d recently received; they are Army issued that I¢d found much cheaper than the Esbit tablets. Little did I know that one bar was divided in to three sections, meaning that each section would boil about a cup or two of water. I put the whole darned bar on the stove and lit it up. Between the enormity of the fuel tab and the high winds, fire was licking out from beyond just my stove. I had visions of burning down the Motel. I had to get one of my roomies to hand me my baking soda that I use to brush my teeth to begin the process of smothering the flames. It continued burning for some time but at least now it was more tame. That was my lesson on using portions of these new tablets. You learn something new every day out here. Indeed I was ready to go by about noon. Jay was also ready to leave, so on our way out of town we stopped at Wade¢s Supermarket near the trail and got some fried chicken. That tasty stuff plus the donut I bought gave me the energy to get up out of town. We crossed the New River, paralleled some train tracks for a while, then disappeared in to the forest for the climb up to some spectacular views. When we neared the top of our first climb for the day, there were rewarding views from Rice Field. I was tempted to stay at this shelter only seven miles from town, but it¢s proximity to the cow pasture made it a less appealing option to me. The wind from the day before was high but without the stormy weather it was perfect for keeping us cool. In another five miles I¢d found the most awesome place to call home for the evening. There were already a couple other campers there at the Meadow, so I pulled out my tent and looked for the flattest, least rocky location to pitch. This location provided views of the valley below and the mountains beyond, plus we were guaranteed an excellent sunset. Some new folks that I haven¢t ever really met before are camped here with me tonight ¢ WindTalker, Pipes, Two Dog, Sleepy Floyd, Viking and Flatlander. We all sat around the campfire ring this evening and prepared dinner together. It was such a family-like experience.
Date: 2003-06-02
From: Symms Gap Meadow 

To: Wind Rock Campsite 
Miles today: 15.0

Awoke this morning above the clouds that had consumed the valleys below. I ate a slow breakfast and watched the sun burn off the fog before I broke camp to head for the hills. Today while hiking I was working on my poetry memorization. I¢ve got the first four stanzas of Song of the Open Road by Walt Whitman down pat. Now I think there¢s only 96 left to conquer. It¢s really amazing how much I can continue to discover one poem that I¢ve read a gazillion times by learning it by heart. I was thinking today that I¢d happily take suggestions of good poets to read and memorize while I¢m out here. If anyone has a suggestion, send them my way via the guestbook. The trail before me today lead me down through a pine forest beside this loud running stream to Piney Branch Shelter where I had lunch. Then it took me over tons of rock scrambles, where there are lots of big and small rocks to walk over, never knowing if one is set or loose. They are very tedious to hike over and slow me down significantly. I was only happy that I didn¢t have to hike over all those rocks in the rain. It was another nice hiking day today, but WindTalker says they¢re calling for rain tonight. Wind Rock overlooked three sets of ridges, one behind the other, that looked to me to be all wilderness. How amazing to see so much untouched land.
Date: 2003-06-05
From: Mountainside above Trout Creek

To: Boy Scout tentsite
Miles today: 0.0

I got up and out of camp before everyone else this morning. I was on the trail by 7:30 and within a 1/2 mile came across Jay who was ready to walk too. I haven't seen him or hiked with him in several days. We topped Dragon's Tooth together. I encouraged him to climb all the way up to the top. He encouraged me to do the same. He're a run down of the rest of the day:Beautiful ViewsTerrible downhillTrail Magic at road - Gatorade - YumShower at Four Pines HostelWalk six miles to Road Sore left Leg - PAIN!!!and 12 ibuprofin laterRELIEF...Road in to Catawba - Homeplace RestaurantLots of hikersLots of fatty fatty southern foodLots of foodResupply at grocerBack to trailSORE TUMMYSICK TUMMYTented at old boy scout shelter location.
Date: 2003-06-08
From: Fullhardt Knob Shelter

To: Bobblet's Shelter
Miles today: 13.0

Ah, I got to sleep in this morning! I woke up around six but lounged in my sleeping bag and dozed in and out of sleep until 9 or so. Yeah! I like this new do-what-feels-right kind of hiking. The laying low in the sleeping bag was mainly because it was raining pretty steadily outside. Finally, it let up enough for me to grab my food bag and make breakfast. The ONE good thing about the rain this morning was being able to put my pot under the drippies from the roof so I could collect water to cook with. When there isn¢t a functioning cistern at the shelter; I¢ll make one! The water wasn¢t great looking ¢ it was a dingy yellow color, but I boiled it and took care of my nasty contaminants. I finally left the shelter around 10. The databook said there would be a spring in .4 mile; that was wrong. So I sucked it up and hiked on ¢ feeling a bit dehydrated, until I hit the REAL watersource at 3.4 miles in to my hike.After eating a quick lunch at Wilson Creek Shelter (and attempting to dry my boots and socks in the overcast and humid air), I pushed on and walked in to the cloud that I would stay in the rest of the afternoon. The hiking was fairly easy and I was covering ground more quickly than I thought I was able with my sore knees. The trail criss-crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway several times today but didn¢t get any views from the vista overlook points that I passed through. At one point I rounded a curve in the trail and saw what I thought was a mirage. It must have been. It looked like a lemonade stand. Slip and Trip were sitting at a bench on the other side of the lemonade stand ¢ with sodas on top of it. And I heard the voices. I came closer and INDEED, there were some folks out there enjoyed their day in the mountains. Best of all they were sharing their goodies with hikers ¢ grapes, breakfast bars, sodas and good company. Bob(?) ¢ Moondog ¢ and Kathy (24 Karat) and their new border collie were awesome trail angels. It was fun to sit and share stories with them. I didn¢t feel rushed to push on to get extra miles in, which made it all the more worth it. Afterwards, I hiked on, truly joyous to have met these two new trail angels (they didn¢t know they were ¢trail angels¢ until I told them that¢s what we called folks like them ¢ 24 Karat appreciated knowing that in particular. It sounded to me like we might expect to see them with a hot dog roast at a road crossing in a future AT thru-hiking season). And I had a renewed thankfulness for my experiences out here on the trail. They really helped to mold my day in to something memorable; otherwise it would have just been another day of walking in the clouds.
Date: 2003-06-10
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Marble Springs Tentsite
Miles today: 17.0

Nothing new; I hiked from Bryant Ridge Shelter to Marble Spring. Lots of waist high ferns and a stroll beneath the Guillotine ¢ a boulder suspended between to others ¢ that you walk just beneath. I should have taken a picture of it but was too lazy and stupidly conserving pictures. Ah, well. I had lunch at Cornelius Creek Shelter ¢ beautify rhodo setting I¢m tented here at Marble Springs. Other folks are scattered about ¢ Kilroy, Chilly Willy, Millipede, Pakabear, Slip and Trip, Flip Flop recently came in. I am in my tent early ¢ driven inside by the persistent bugs that kept me slapping myself during dinner. It's kind of nice to listen to all the conversations outside my tent; I don't have to participate if I don't want to but can interject when I feel like putting in my two cents. It sounds like the deer aren¢t too happy about us being here. They¢re huffing and stomping. Something scared the crap out of me earlier when I wandered off to use the bathroom. I have no clue what it was¢¦but it flipped me out. I¢m pretty sure it wasn¢t a deer¢¦it sounded bigger, madder and all together threatening. I won¢t be headed in that direction of the woods if I have to pee in the middle of the night.
Date: 2003-06-12
From: Punchbowl Shelter

To: Cow Pen Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: light rain

My body is spent from a day of hiking and the long days of hiking before. I'm longing for a day of rest and think I'll have it Saturday when Tracy comes to visit. Though tired physically, I'm mentally/emotionally feeling great and still lovin' the trail. I got an extra boost this morning by Tom Boy and Renegade (the mileage assassins) who prepared a bacon, sausage, egg and pancake breakfast for me this morning. Ah, it was to die for! The cookies were good too. This was their last day of trail magic, which they provide to hikers for a week out of each hiking season. I told them I thought Pakabear was right behind me and on his way (it turns out he went south on the trail instead of north when leaving Punchbowl shelter and didn't get breakfast from them after all)I got up and over Bald Knob with no problem: the key to my success there may have been my slow and steady approach. I rolled in to camp here just around 5:30. That gave me time to clean myself off and wrinse out some clothes - just enough to get the grime out. Doesn't have to be perfect anyways, cause I'm heading to civilization tomorrow! My goal for today was actually to make it to Hog Camp Gap but the threat of rain had me stop short at this location with a shelter. I saw lots of weekenders/section hikers today (10 in all- all headed southbound). It's nice to see some new faces out here; I'll just have to be more careful and pee behind larger trees in more discrete locations off the trail - out of view of nobos and sobos. Also, I got a quick diagnosis of my stomach cramps from Virginia Creeper. He says when I'm doing big climbs after meals that blood is being diverted from my stomach, where it's needed to digest food, to other body parts to get up the mountain. Long and short of it is that I need to digest more after meals before hiking. Longer breaks - I can deal with that! Lunched today and walked beside Brown Mountain Creek - absolutely beautiful area...