morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-04-10
From: Hiawassee, Blueberry Patch Hostel

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: overcast clouds

11.6 miles in 8.5 hoursMy bunk at the hostel lay along a window. I could see the hills outlined against the stars in the moonlight, then the dawn came. Some yellow-throated warblers had a great conversation going around sunup.Time passes slowly at night, with frequent wakings from discomfort or calls of nature. Still not toughened up for sleeping on the ground.We were treated to a huge sausage and pancake breakfast. The Poteats are active in their church, and the blessing before was as good as an Easter sermon. They even handed around "peeps," those chemical-yellow marshmallow chicks. We all enjoyed their hospitality and meal.At 9:30 they shuttled us back to the trail. With six days' food on board the pack was enormous and HEAVY. We ran into one stiff mountain after another and my legs weren't worth much at the end.Ben and Raven at twisted oak just past GA/NC bordeWe crossed the state line into N. Carolina. Just a sign on a tree along a long upgrade, easy to miss if you don't look up (that's me, right, Gloria?). The tree had a short section of pipe stuck sideways into it, as if the tree had grown around it. One state down, a milestone!Raven and some others walked over to a ledge that looked over all creation, to enjoy a brilliant sunset. The wreckage of a plane lay in the woods along the way. No one knew the story. I was too leg-weary to walk out there.Local lore: Blood Mountain got its name from a huge battle between warring indian tribes, whch left the mountain soaked with the blood of the fallen.Standing Indian Mountain took its name from the myth of a winged monster that lived at the top (as in the Katahdin story). Indians posted sentries around the base to give warning. One didn't do his job and as punishment was turned into a pillar of stone, when a mighty bolt of lightning came down and shattered the mountain and the monster with it. We didn't see the remnants of the Standing Indian rock.Well, I took all the hiker pills: multivites, Ibuprofen ("Vitamin I"), and Chondroitin/Glucosamine. Full belly, warm bag awaiting, G'nite!
Date: 2004-04-11
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Betty Creek Gap
Miles today: 16.2
Weather: light rain

16.2 miles in 9.5 hoursA noisy night in the shelter, otherwise an uneventful start. Out by 7:30 AM. A chill breeze and gentle drizzle started up. The hills all around us, bristling with trees yesterday, now looked soft and blue in the mist. Hiking wet isn't bad but you chill off if you stop too long. Keep the food and water coming, and hike on.At Deep Gap a large group ATC members had set up a canteen and massage studio for passing hikers. They weren't fully set up when I dropped in, but I came away with a pile of coffee cake, a ham and cheese sandwich and a banana. Later arrivals told of omelets, and back, shoulder and foot massages!Full of magic-power, I sailed up Standing Indian Mountain to The Prairie Home Companion on local Public Broadcasting. Great hiking tune from the show: "I'm Going to Strangle You, Shorty" by the Flatlanders, a guest band out of Lubbock. Great slapping bass line, jaw harp accompaniment, and lyrics about women trouble.I don't listen much on the trail because stations drop in and out so much with the ups and downs.Not much head music today: the allegro movement of Beethoven's First, a theme from a Mozart Flute Quartet, some more Merle (Okie from Muskogee)Trail magic at Deep Gap: hot breakfast in the rainEnjoyed hiking and talking much of the day with Raven. We have a lot of interests in common. We pulled into this camping area together. The only other hikers at this place tonight are two delightful older ladies, easily in their 60's or 70's: ""Grandma Jean" and "Grandma Sally." They've been section hiking from Springer Mt. into Virginia for years, and they move right along. The AT is for everybody. Kids as young as five have through-hiked.Showers and thunderstorms predicted for the next three days. But this hike is still a blast.Full of beef stew and Jello instant pudding. Life is good. Just heard a barred owl hoot nearby. My food bag is hung high, so that's it for today. G'nite! Andante
Date: 2004-04-12
From: Betty Creek Gap

To: Rainbow Springs Campground
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: moderate rain

9 miles in 6 hoursA drizzly night, but quiet. When Raven and I got up at 6 AM it was so dark and foggy I couldn't find my way out of the campsite to my bear bag hanging on high. And I was hungry!Our gear was wet when we packed, and it started to rain as we set out, with a stiff easterly breeze. Our first waypoint was Mooney Gap, known as the rainiest place in the east with 94 inches of precip. yearly. It acted true to form as we scaled Mt. Albert in a chilly rain and wind. A lot of clambering up slippery rocks, but no worse than many places back home in Maine.After that scramble it was a long easy downhill to a road crossing where Raven and I walked to Rainbow Springs Campgrounds. There we each took a bunk, a big meal and a wonderful shower. We hung our wet gear out to dry. We felt odd leaving the trail so early in the day, but Raven needed a resupply and we both wanted dry comfort.Tent Envy: My tent is actually a tarp, a simple little item called the Go-Lite Lair. It's built for two, but it can barely hold me and my pack without something poking out and getting wet.Raven and another hiker I met, John Goldsworthy, are each using a much roomier one called the Henry Shires Tarp-Tent, Squall model.I called Home to Gloria, who ordered one of those to be sent ahead to me at Hot Springs, just after I emerge from the Smokies. Too bad I have to wait so long. Thanks so much, Gloria.Pickup back to trail. Across front: Southern Boy, Saffron, Fast OxA whole bunch of hikers we'd met earlier descended on the campgrounds. We're full of pizza and just relaxing before doing laundry, calling home, and turning in early. More rain tomorrow. Life is good, especially when you're dry.G'nite!
Date: 2004-04-13
From: Rainbow Springs Campground

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: light rain

7 miles in 4 hours[*Editors note-Sorry about the delay in the entries. I had the opportunity to visit the youngest two children in Germany. One week isn't quite as nice as Bob's 6 month vacation but it will have to do for now. Gloria]Today and yesterday were "near-o" days, that is, not full days of hiking.Last night a wild thunderstorm parked itself over our hostel. We stayed in a yurt, a circular structure with a conical rof,at least thirty feet across with at least twenty bunks. Very spacious, with a skylight in the center overhead, which let the lightning flashes light up the place from above like some crazy rave event.We were shuttled to the trailhead and marched off into a chilly damp east wind, and eventually climbed up into the clouds and their cold driving drizzle.Streams were rushing down all over after last night's deluge. Our plans for big miles quickly changed at the first shelter about seven miles out. 11 of us are packed into a place designed for seven. It's nearly dark now at 7 PM in the fog, around 36 degrees, and sleet and scattered thunderstorms are predicted. Partial cast of characters: Fast Ox and Saffron, Southern Boy, T-Bone, Raven, two sisters from Maine, and me. Along the way we noted patches of turned-over forest floor. This is done by wild pigs, which were imported last century for sport hunting, and now have become pests.Our host at the campgrounds told us to look for wild "ramps," a garlic-like wild bulb with leaves like a tulip. Should be fun to add into the usual hiker fare of instant mashed.Since our journey began we've climbed ever higher. The mountains in GA were in the 3000 foot range. Here in NC we're in the 4000's, with some peaks over 6000 feet ahead in the Smokies.The nature of the trails and the scenery remain the same.Rime ice on branchesIt's dark now, it's changing to snow, our bellies are full and we're warm in our bags in this crowded shelter. How can it get better than this? [Editors note: Perhaps having your loving wife with you????? Or maybe not!] G'Nite!
Date: 2004-04-14
From: Siler Bald Shelter

To:  Cold Spring Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

"It Was a Dark and Stormy Night"11 miles in 7 hoursMuch wind and low temps. The shelter was packed. From my place near the open front, I could feel snow prickle my nose, the only part poking out of my bag. Shared warmth helped us get through the long night.Morning showed frost rime blasted onto trees all around and about two inches on the ground. Our water bottles were all or partly frozen.I finally scaled up breakfast so I wouldn't grow hungry an hour later: A double portion of Carnation Instant Breakfast with powdered milk added, double instant oatmeal, and a bag of breakfast cereal with powdered milk added.We hiked into a beautiful wintry scene. Unfortunately it took us into the clouds again, with a stiff wind, fog and fine snow. We hit our first "balds" today, Siler and Wayah. These are peaks with grassy pastures on top. I'm not sure how they got started, but they're kept that way by the Park Service. We missed the panoramic views but saw plenty of freezing mist.Wayah Bald Observation Tower in Freezing MistThe hiking was tough: wet feet, slippery muddy trail, and big changes in temperature making for frequent clothing adjustments. Everyone looked tired at day's end.Two hikers chanced on baby wild piglets trotting towards them on the trail, quite fearless and curious. The hikers were concerned that Mom might come tearing out of the woods after them, but nothing happened.A mammoth dinner of a whole package of instant mashed potatoes with bacon bits, followed by Ramen noodles. Hikers come straggling in with their tales. Tomorrow will be sunny and cool, and maybe the snow will melt. Tomorrow brings us back to civilization, at the Nantahala Outdoor Center hostel! Right now at 7 PM the wind is blowing chunks of rime ice off the trees down onto our shelter's tin roof. Should be a rattling good night!
Date: 2004-04-15
From:  Cold Spring Shelter

To: Wesser (Nantahala Outdoor Center)
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: clear sky

From Winter Back Into Spring12 miles in 8 hoursAnother chilly night, but clear skies. I put on every layer I owned and was comfortable in my 20-degree-rated sleeping bag. Latecomers straggled in and settled for tenting nearby.Another huge breakfast at first light, then Raven and I set out on the trail as the sun rose. The ground was crunchy with fallen ice chunks from the branches overhead. Hiking through tunnels of snow-covered rhododendron was eerie, as if an ice age had suddenly come to the jungle. By late morning the snow had largely disappeared except when the trail wound across northeastern slopes.We were treated to a spectacular view of a wide valley where our next two town stops, Nantahala/Wesser and Fontana Dam lay. Far to the west an enormous range rose, with its highest peak, Clingman's Dome soaring in the center, still frosted with white. We'll be struggling up it in ten days!Looking down toward Fontana Dam, with the Smokies in the distanceThen followed an endless downhill walk to the Nantahala Center. The lower we got, the richer the blooms. Countless wildflowers, and now flowering trees such as dogwood. We walked into spring in less than two hours.A big broad-winged hawk soared overhead, finally making a run right overhead at treetop level.The Nantahala Center sits at the side of the rushing Nantahaa River. From the bridge we saw rafters go by, and we saw kayak race markers hanging overhead.Welcome showers, laundry, and serious feeding activity, followed by repacking and trimming pack weight, maybe 2 pounds' worth.A huge day ahead, 16 miles of major ups and downs with full, heavy packs. It's way too late, so g'nite.
Date: 2004-04-16
From: Wesser (Nantahala Outdoor Center)

To: Brown Fork Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: few clouds

But You're Already Booked!16 miles in 10.5 hours(Left over from yesterday): I stepped up to the sign-in desk at NOC yesterday and gave my name and address. The clerk said "but you're already signed in." On closer inspection, it was my son Rob's record from his 2000 hike! Guess they never cleaned out the system.Today's hike was the longest yet, with some enormous ups and downs starting with the LONG walk up out of the Nantahala River gorge. We started at 7 AM to beat the expected heat. All was cool and quiet. The sun rose high and beat down hard, taxing our water supply. Luckily we came upon springs along the trail in the right places. Nantahala River gorgeRaven and I had some long discussions about generational differences and life in general. A few minutes bemoaning the mess in Iraq and wishing the worst upon our chief executive in his campaign for re-election.As we climbed ever higher we left spring behind. Much fewer flowers at 5000 feet than at 2000.Critters seen: Yellow swallowtail butterflies, wood thrushes, and a rufous-sided towhee. An apple tree at NOC swarming with huge bumblebees and a few honeybees working the blossoms. Where did the the honeybees come from? There should be no wild honeybee swarms, with all the parasites around these days.A hiker just behind us came upon a big black snake lying on the trail. Inside it were a dozen lumps all lined up. What kind of dinner did he have? He didn't budge when the hiker stepped by.As we hiked up the Balds (Cheoh and Swim) and the gaps (Sassafrass and Stecoah) I found candy alone wouldn't suffice. By far the best energy food for desperate exertions is....sardines!!! Pure power, best in tomato-basil sauce. Yum! We pulled in to Brown Fork Shelter bone-weary but were able to enjoy a fine sunset and the company of some older section-hikers. I could even enjoy sunset on the privy. These are three-sided, missing doors and a front wall, and this one faced west. Look what conventional homeowners are missing!Full again, warm again, hiker-pills on board, a delightful tenting night beckons. Tomorrow, a shorter easier hike down to Fontana Dam Resort, and a private room at the Inn. Woohoo!
Date: 2004-04-19
From: Fontana Dam Resort

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: overcast clouds

13.5 mi. in 8 hrs.A leisurely checkout after a big buffet breakfast, then a shuttle to thetrailhead at Fontana Dam. A fine sunny cool morning for the long climb out ofthe valley up Shuckstack Mtn. What a fantastic view from the tower there, butthe girders set up a scary vibration in the wind.We passed One-Leg and his son, doing well. We also saw a hiking family with three youngsters, the Garland Five. We heard the kids had big problems getting up and on the trail before 9 AM.Once again we left spring behind as we climbed back up above 4000 feet. Irounded the shoulder of a bald to find myself in a snowy landscape. I soonrealized they were tiny white flowers, called "spring beauties." On one side ofthe hill there were none, then around the corner the woods were white with them.Spring beauties And a further mystery: honeybees were busy pollinating them. How had thesebees escaped the ravages of all the recent pests? Resistant species? Stillliving in isolation from diseases down below? Some beekeeper lugged his hives way up this mountain? I'll have to contact our state bee guy about this when I get home.Pulled into this shelter for another huge dinner. My alcohol stove works slowly but well. Had an enjoyable evening dining with six others including Trainwreck(because of multiple scrapes he got into at home), Sheriff (built boats for awhile in Maine), and Machine and his wife, an unemployed hi-tech couple from Silicon Valley.A beautiful evening. I feel tired but comfortable, not too sore. Maybe I'm getting trail-hardened at last.I miss the home scene, but it's great out here. Actually, I've had little reminders of Maine buzzing around my head at every stop: you guessed it, black flies! G'Nite!
Date: 2004-04-20
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: overcast clouds

17.4 miles in 1 hrs (including supper break en route)Another big day. Out by 8 AM with Raven. Several had left earlier.Cool, overcast, with occasional drizzle, but decent visibility from the heights. The balds now were truly bald, with high thick grass and in some places, abandoned apple orchards.We shared this part of the trail with pack-horse parties. Saw none, but lots of "horse sign."The Trail now runs along the NC/TN border. So now we can walk north with our left foot striking TN soil, the right foot NC's. Of course you can spit either way, or anything else you can imagine. In places the ridges are as narrow as Katahdin's knife edge.We did something new today: cook an early supper, then keep on walking. It worked. Critters noted: 1) Grouse walking across the trail in front of us, quite unconcerned.2) Juncos mating right nearby. Ah, springtime. We came across more torn-up patches of forest floor, this time with clear wild-boar trotter-prints in the mud. Two hikers ahead of us came upon a LONG snake's tail lying across the trail, with rattles buzzing as they neared. They circled it very widely. Plant life: 1) More hillsides of spring beauties, mixed with trout lilies.Ramps! These have bulbs like scallions, two big leaves like tulips, and a fine oniony-garlicky tang. They did wonders for my tuna-macs & cheese. Ramps are a local delicacy, as are fiddleheads up our way in Maine.Wild ramps, like miniature onions Big Announcement: Miraculous Conversion on the Road to Damascus (VA): I've had it with this trail name of "Andante." Reasons?1): Too artsy-fartsy for the trail. 2): No more "Is that..Dante?", or.. "Al Dente?", or.. "That was the third Musketeer?"So, henceforth, "Andante" is dead; long live "Now-Or-Never"! It's self-explanatory, and no one else is using it. I'll still have to be listed as Andante on the Trailjournals.We must sleep in shelters in the Smokies unless there's an overflow.Chain-link fencing runs across the open front, making us feel like prisoners of the bears. Good company tonight. One hiker, K-2, just returned from several years in the Peace corps, first organizing medical clinics in Kirghizstan, then some work in Bosnia. Everyone has a tale to tell. I'm tired but injury-free. I'm full, it's 8 PM and time for bed. G'nite!Now-Or-Never
Date: 2004-04-22
From: Gatlinburg TN

To: Tricorner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: light rain

15.6 miles in 9.5 hoursRaven and I had an early pancake breakfast across the way, then Papa Smurf, a saint before his time, gave us a ride out of town to the trailhead. he was staying at the same motel and took along another hiker too. Thanks, man, and Blaze too. You inspire us to pass on the favor in times to come Goodbye crazy Gatlinburg, glad we saw you. Oh yeah, add to the critter list: Dinosaurs!The winding road out of town reminded me of an 11-mile stretch with 338 curves back near Fontana called "The Dragon's Tail." Loved by motorcyclists and would-be NASCAR drivers, and patrolled heavily by the local police. What a hike! We stayed at the 5-6000 foot level, with easy grades. The farther we hiked, the rougher and wilder became the scenery. Jagged peaks, vertical drops, stark dead trees, whole mountainsides bared by landslides.Trail sceneWe walked miles along ridges only a yard or two wide, steep drops on each side. Not a cute New England Currier and Ives forest scene, more like something by Bierstatdt from the 1840's, or out of Lord of the Rings. I expected to see Frodo and Bilbo round a bend any moment.We came upon a big crag projecting out into space, called Charlie's Bunion. The original explorer named it after a prominent part of his partner's anatomy. Got maybe the best shot of the trip there. The shelter was nearly full with a lot of new faces. Some names: Sir Fixalot and wife Blue Sky, and Buttercup. Big miles and injury-free. What luck! Even the cranky knee is cooperating. Still, as it is said: "If the self is nothing, Then whose arthritis is this?"From: Zen Judaism (Mel Brooks?, Woody Allen?) G'nite! Now-or-Never
Date: 2004-04-23
From: Tricorner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Shelter
Miles today: 18.0

Farewell to the Smokies18 miles in 10 hours A noisy party of 20-somethings blew in late yesterday and stayed up well past"hiker's midnight", i.e. 9 PM, with noisy conversation and radio music. Cheerfulbut clueless.Raven and I left early at 7:30 and made good time. Cloudyweather, more haze, and some great views of flowering trees peppered over themountain peaks and valleys. Then came a long, long downhill run to DavenportGap, where the Smokies end. We felt the Smokies were the best part of the trip so far, whileothers who hiked through earlier in bad weather were glad to be done with them. Aftersome miserable road walking which included an I-40 underpass, then a short steepsection of AT hemmed in with poison ivy, we came to Standing Bear Hostel. It's awonderfully "crunchy" small farmstead with all hiker services. It's run by a young retired Marine living there with his young family. Lots of companyincluding a large party of retirees from Wilmington, NC for a weekend hike. Characters met: One Day at a Time, Blue, Icebreak, Paradox, manyothers. Plant life: miniature irises, trout lilies, tall flowering trees, unknown type.Rehydrated, showered clean, full of microwave pizza, ready for bed, how muchbetter can life get? And probably a short easy hike tomorrow. G'nite!AT from Davenport Gap to Atkins, VA
Date: 2004-04-25
From: Brown Gap

To: Deer Park Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: overcast clouds

20.1 miles in 10 hoursA long day, and our first 20-miler. It was easy to get started, since it was tough sleeping. The partying down at the trailside barbecue got wilder and noisier, with music and shrieks until 4 AM. Could it be a human sacrifice? No, just a vanload of hikers from elsewhere on the trail, ferried in to share the fun and feasting. Our first big destination was Max Patch, the biggest bald yet. An enormous grassy round knob, like some scottish moor only grass-covered, very windswept, with 360 degree views of the Smokies behind us and a long ranges of hills yet to be climbed stretching out ahead. Most of the day consisted of long stretches of gentle ups and downs. We rested, ate and drank every hour or two, and the miles went by. Andante and Raven atop Max PatchCharacters met: Half-Full, Little Engine, Aswah and his companion Day Tripper, Amy and Machine (the Beats Working Brigade), and One Day at a Time. Nutrition 101: It takes energy to hike eight hours a day. By day three or so, my appetite became a raging monster.The average sedentary American needs about 2000 calories a day. You can triple that for the average hiker.Typical breakfast: triple Carnation Instant Breakfast, with powdered milk, 660 calories. Plus triple instant oatmeal with powdered milk, about the same. 1200 calorie breakfast, and I'll be starving by 9 AM. Hourly trail snacks (energy bars, granola bars, trail mix or gorp), about 250 cal. each. Dinner: Instant mashed potatoes with powdered milk and chicken added, total 780 calories, with dessert, entire package of Jello Instant Pudding, 660 calories.It all reminds me of Mississippi riverboat races as described by Mark Twain. Everything available was tossed into the firebox when the race was on: firewood, kindling, flooring, deck chairs, anything to get the speed. More, more!It's dark, I'm weary but feeling good, there's thunder coming and some rain is spattering on the tent. Life's OK!Fence stile below Max PatchNow-or-Never