morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-04-16
From: Gooches Shelter

To: Neel's Gap
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

It's day 4, anyway. Yesterday was our first day over ten miles, and man were we beat by the time we pulled into Hawk Mt (I think that's what it was) shelter. Brutal hiking. Our bodies are certainly being given a workout. Ah, but yesterday was awesome, really. Tough at the start, but then the day warmed up, and the going was easy for a while. It was a shorts day... The temperature was so nice that I actually took off my reeking shirt for a while. It was hard to believe that it had been so wintery in the recent past.Moxie's knee has been giving her some grief. She can march along well for a while before it starts bugging her.We're actually taking a "nero" (near zero) day today. We hiked the five-odd miles over the fantastic Blood Mountain (highest pt in Georgia), and resupplied here at Neel's Gap, and then began the daunting/rewarding task of paring down our pack weight. Believe it or not, we're shearing over 20 lb of weight from what we're carrying.The camera's going back for one. I figure I'll wait a month til I have my trail legs, and then I'll get it back. The winter gear will be swapped out at that point too, so that will make it easier. Plus, I'll probably have shed a camera's worth of body fat by that point.One of the people we've been seeing regularly at our stops is leaving the trail. He's missing his lady friend. It's sad to see him go. And I know what a tough decision it must be.Speaking of tough... The trail is tough. There is a lot of ascents and descents in this part of the trek. It's wearying.However, each day gets a little easier.Our nero means we'll be staying here the night. It'll give Moxie some time to rest her knee up.I look forward to being on the trail again.OK. That's it for now.Keep well, all.- Jonathon(I'm letting "whoa" take a breather. Gonna see if a trail name comes my way)
Date: 2004-04-17
From: Neel's Gap

To: Low Gap shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

Today was a great hike, a real turning point for me (moxie) and a good day for whoa also. Yesterdays projects were hike a little, eat a lot and most importantly MAKE THE PACK LIGHTER!!! I think we did very well on all accounts, and I reaped the rewards today. So far, I had been able to hike for the morning just fine, but by the time the afternoon came, I was like droopy the dog. Didn¢t seem to matter how easy the hiking was either. But today, with my pack down to 34 pounds fully loaded, I was like a new hiker. I zipped up the ups and did fine on the downs. My knee hardly hurt at all. I am now equipped with a knee brace, and I think the brace is really doing the trick. But enough about knees- I guess you think about them a lot when they are the tools of the trade!The view of the day was Cowrock Mountain, a super steep climb that summited on a nice big rock. We peeked around for a moment, and then were inundated by weekend families. The quote of the day- says moxie about the heat rash developed on her ankle: "I¢ve got Gorbechev right here on my leg!"Reality check: a fresh shower and launder last for approximately 8 minutes on a hot day on the AT. Stink is hard to leave behind.We¢re having a good time at the shelter here, our friends Samauri and Gobstopper made it in and we chewed lots of Hershey kisses around the picnic table. Then Goggles gave us some power bars he didn¢t need, which totally made up for the fact earlier he complained about his slow day when he beat us by hours. It¢s totally past my bedtime at 830 right now, and whoa is still having fun down there, so I will sign off for both of us and get some well-deserved rest.To happy knees!moxie
Date: 2004-04-19
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Tray Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: overcast clouds

My love and I are sitting on a sun warmed rocky bluff on the top of Tray mtn, like lounging lizards. Jonathon plays on his tin whistle sweet melodies, and this is the most peaceful spot I've been at yet, I think. It was a hot day of hiking after a huge breakfast in Helen, with a good rest at the cheese factory at midday. I have no idea why it's called the cheese factory site- I can't imagine cows running around in this area, or anyone making alpine cheese here. But what do I know.Every day the legs are better adapted to hiking, and along with that my spirits go up too. My knee is doing better every day, no brace today and it's feeling fine. We will be hiking out of Georgia in about two days, very exciting stuff.We won't see civilization for five days or so now, we don't plan to go into town before Franklin, NC. Hopefully I can convince Jonathon to take a zero with me there. Oh heck, who knows, maybe I'll be rarin' to go also.Not much else, just sighing away this lovely evening-love to all my family and friends, old and new...Moxie
Date: 2004-04-21
From: Dicks Creek Gap

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

On this date, in the year of our Lord, 2004, Moxie and Whoa left Georgia to enter the state of North Carolina. Because it was their first state crossing, they were rather excited. JP, Knuckles & the Samurai Butt Monkey were hanging at the sign that marked the boundary point. Everyone was feeling a sense of accomplishment, and feeling good.And then North Carolina beat the living daylights out of them.No switchbacks. Pure uphill madness. Sweat running into eyes. Calves screaming in pain. Etc.Whoa saw a black bear. The bear was seventy feet away or so. It hauled ass when he attemoted a conversation with the bear.Whoa also saw a large (prolly 4 1/2 ft) black snake. He played it a song on the tin whistle... It responded by climbing a tree which is a cool thing to see a snake do. Moxie saw the snake too, after it had climbed the tree... It made one wonder if the snake was hoping to do some stealth fall-on-one's neck type of snake trickery. Whoa and Moxie survived the encounter. In the evening they sat around a fire.They went to sleep not long after the sun set.
Date: 2004-04-22
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Carter Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Springtime hasn't yet hit the top of these southern mountains. No green canopy means no shade. Which means that Moxie and Whoa are frequently of a tanned or burned appearance. It was on this day that Whoa was first heard to quote "the tops of my ears feel like potato chips".The day was fairly easy going. No dramatic ups or downs.Evening entertainment consisted of a game of hearts.Daily travel companions were the now-usual Knuckles, Samurai, JP,and Goggles - as usual - was at the shelter long before anyone else.Santa also showed up in the late afternoon. He got the name from the sack he carries slung over his shoulder on his back. He does not have good equipment. In fact, he had some stuff, but he threw it away. He's putting his faith in god to get him through to Maine. We scrounged up some extra food for him. I'm worried about him. He has no rain gear, and very little food.Faith is cool and all, but that's a long way to go and nature can toss a lot at you weatherwise...And if he's going to be relying on the generosity of other hikers, I hope he knows that 90% of them drop out way before the finish line. There'll be a lot less generosity to go around then.More soon, Whoa
Date: 2004-04-23
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Wallace Gap
Miles today: 12.8

This was an incredible day.In part because it started with coffee...Yes, folks - coffee is an amazing substance. when you're starting the day all sore and stiff from some serious marching the day before, the fugue of sleepiness can be a hard thing to shake. I often find that I'm two or three miles into the new day before I shake that foggy sensation and feel somewhat awake.But on this day, me and Moxie shared some precious instant coffee that she'd scored the night before.And what a difference it made: two hours into the day and I'd gone over four miles. I was ahead of the usual crew by a decent amount, enjoying seeing the scenery and landscape slowly change around me.The power of coffee.There were some challenges and rewards to the day, as well as some unexpected and aweinspiring views.Going along the tiny, winding trail over the boulders and rocks on the side of Big Butt Mountain, you're suddenly given this sweeping view of the rolling green hills and the green valleys almost a mile below. It was so astonishingly beautiful. I had to stop and gape at it for some unknown amount of time...After that was the ridiculous ascent up Albert Mountain. The Appalachian Trail gave up any pretense of being a friendly trail at that point. It was instead a challenge issued out in white blazes marks on boulders reaching ever upwards. It was a great climb, and the view from the top of Albert Mountain was so worth the effort. From the fire tower on the mountain's summit you can see a sleepy green Appalachian forever. And it was a good spot to cool down from the climb. The winds had my sweat-drenched shirt dried in short order.The others soon arrived, and then we marched onwards. Our goal was Wallace Gap, where we'd find a ride into Franklin, NC. Franklin was to be the site of our first "zero" day, and the thought of that and restaurant food and hot showers propelled us on.And that's where I'm writing from right now.Yesterday was good, today was good, and we'll be back on the trail tomorrow morning.Stay well, all.- Jonathon
Date: 2004-04-24
From: Wallace Gap

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 6.8
Weather: broken clouds

Today I went back and forth between feeling incredibly fortunate and feeling like a lazybones for only going 7 miles today, but staying at the Siler Bald Shelter tonight makes sense for many reasons. They include the fact that we are only 23.5 miles from the NOC, the Natahala Outdoor Center, our next civilization-ish stop; we are a bit sluggish from our day off; and finally, the Siler Bald Shelter is a fine place to hang out. We arrived at about 2pm, met our new friend Matthew or Widget(?) (he's cooking up a new trail name) and commenced a fine afternoon of cards, eating, napping, and more eating. The weather reports warned of rain and thunderstorms, but so far all is peaceful. It's a tough life we live, I know.Brass Knuckles brought up some marshmallows and so we're tanning them. Whoa is making them into flaming black objects. It's quite spectacular. We are all in search of the perfect marshmallow. And creating marshmallow creature folklore.So about twelve miles tomorrow, and Samurai told me he's brought up a couple of beers from town. It's a secret... the monkeys will all be delighted. Good man, that Samurai.That's all the news that's fit to print tonight. love to all!moxie
Date: 2004-04-26
From: Siler Bald Shelter

To: Cold Spring Shelter (campsite past)
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: moderate rain

So after I put away the pocketmail last night, a spectacular display of mother nature broke loose on us in a big way. We heard lore of scattered thundershowers, and we sure got one scattered all over us. It sounded like the biggest bucket was pouring endlessly on the tin roof of the shelter, then lightened up to a minor din after an hour or so. I didn't sleep much, because for some silly reason I didn't wear the earplugs. We awoke to a very wet world, got a bit of breakfast in and busted out the raingear for the first time in about two weeks.We did well with the miles, it is really motivating to hike when it's too cold to rest. We took in Wayah Bald (or the cloud it was surrounded by) and marched on to Cold Springs shelter, with thoughts of it dancing in our heads. But when we got there, it was inhabited by the most grumpy and territorial people we've run into so far. They had divulged the contents of all of their packs so the shelter had the appearance of a weird, smelly yard sale. Their eyes were lean and mean. Needless to say, we didn't stay at the shelter.The rain had thankfully stopped, so Whoa, Samurai and I pushed on two more miles to a camping area. The rest of the Buttmonkeys stayed at a camping area close to Cold Springs. We spent a chilly evening trying to get a fire going, then gave up and crawled into the tent.Here Whoa and I learned a little something about what we need. Not like that! I mean, we need to have a flat area to tent. We spent the night fighting like angry slugs, then escalated to shoving each other back and forth. While other campers were snoring, we were growling, 'Why?!... Why?!' which is our way of saying, why are you so evil, etc. Oh, lake Eureka, you are so cold and cruel.-moxie mudbutt
Date: 2004-04-27
From: Cold Spring Shelter (campsite past)

To: NOC
Miles today: 9.2
Weather: few clouds

Finally, morning came. We skipped breakfast and just started hiking down the long hill into NOC. We nearly felt human after we were properly fed at the restaurant. Whoa and I decided to hitch into Bryson City while the others hosteled for the night. I think it was a golden decision. We were picked up by the sweetest gal Susan who told us where the best restaurant in town was (the Fryemont Inn) and even tried to get us a deal on the room. We stayed at Bennet's court, which was fabu, and had a wonderful evening with a massage for me and a bath. I am no longer angry with my hiking partner, who is a sweetheart.We took an extra day in Bryson City, because when checkout rolled around, I still needed to sleep for around six hours. Now I realize why as I'm writing this. My feet were a bit raw after the day in wet boots, and so we relaxed another day. Our best town day yet. Bryson City rocks- I highly recommend it.-moxie
Date: 2004-04-28
From: NOC

To: Sassafrass Gap shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: clear sky

Today was started late, as Bryson City had quite a gravitational pull and required huge escape velocity. We didn't hit the trail until 2 pm, so we knew today would be limited mileage. But you know, what came down must now come up, so that was a-ok. We climbed 3000 feet today, made fairly good time, and rolled into the shelter at 7pm. We met a host of new folks, including Paparazzi, the rabid marmot tribe, and Kevin, who I plan to try to trail-name Non Sequiter. I don't know if he would appreciate it too much, though. We had a fire and some good laughs, and the shelter was wide and nice. We are missing our buddies, though. I know they are a day ahead so we have to beat feet or hope they zero in Fontana.We had a very mouse-a-rific night in the shelter. Funny, I didn't experience any yet, and was wondering if they were a myth or exaggerated. But the night was filled with sounds of their mouse-doings, and I swear I felt one on my hand at one point. They didn't eat any of my stuff, but the poor girl upstairs found they had eaten her underwear. Those things have no shame.Jonathon slept through the night and didn't hear anything. Mr. Luckypants.Moxie mice-a-phobe
Date: 2004-04-29
From: Sassafrass Gap shelter

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: broken clouds

Holy long day of hiking, batman. We set out at 8:30 and trudged though on and off rain for the first three hours or so, and then coldish breezes that kept us putting clothes on and off constanly. Whoa had a tough morning, then after lunch, he got a big second wind. My wind apparently broke at that time (not like that!) and I had another gravity incident, which leaves a score of Mother Earth 5 , moxie zero. It was not a bad one, my pack is not as tall now so it doesn't attack the back of my head anymore if I happen to go over.We had planned to go to Brown Fork Gap shelter at 9 miles, but when we arrived it was full and unsuitable for tenting. We decided to push on to Cable Gap shelter. I forgot the guidebook. This was pretty lame, because I remembered about a mile down the trail. With much chagrin, I dropped my pack and trotted back for it. This was a revelation - I felt like i was floating. To hike with no pack, what a treat! Luckily I didn't have to go far, as Paparazzi had picked it up and met me halfway. But, after this we still had five miles to go, and these were some of the hardest I've hiked so far. We got to the shelter and I sleepwalked through the motions of the evening. Thank God tomorrow's a town day.moxie
Date: 2004-04-30
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: light rain

Too much to write about and I'm too tired and distracted. We caught up with the buttmonkeys (!) and had ourselves Cheeseburgers and beer. And a swim in a balmy pool. The rooms at the inn are sold out so thanks to the gang for giving us floor space. Night is full of laughs and silly stuff. And all is well. Now to bed so I can face the smokies in the morning...Whee!Moxie (not the best fooseball player in the world)
Date: 2004-05-01
From: Fontana Dam

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: light rain

Yesterday, me, Moxie and the Buttmonkeys woke up, ready to leave our cozy Fontana Village Inn room and brave an entrance to The Smokies. There was, however, this ominous sound that we kept hearing above our heads - a sound of dubious and potentially sinister origin. We hauled the curtains aside and gasped to see what Ma Nature had been up to while we slept: hellish black clouds were looming over the Smokies, and cold, punishing sheets of rain were hammering the ground.Knuckles took in the silhouettes of the stormy mountains, and whispered, "Mordor," rolling her R's like they did in Lord of the Rings.Yup. It could very well have been the home of Tolkien's dark lord, looking like it did right then... And we were as reluctant as Frodo and his hobbit pals were to go galavanting out in that forboding mountainous mileau. Unlike Frodo & Co. though, we had options.One quick phonecall to the Fontana Inn front desk later, and we were soon enjoying ourselves a zero day!Hee haw!Wooooohooo!But that zero day, as zero days are wont to do, soon passed...And this morning we were soon back in the wilderness, doing that wilderness thing that we do.And though the day was slightly more auspicious than yesterday, the "Mordor" of the Smokies had a couple tricks up its sleeves for the Buttmonkey Tribe.-----------------Midmorning. Marching up a mountain, when the precipitation started to cut loose from the heavens. We'd heard the weather reports, so it wasn't shocking, or anything. But there was something peculiar about its sound. It was somehow sharp-sounding, this rain was, as it hit the leaves of the mountainside underbrush. And that's because it wasn't rain at all! It was sleet!It's May, it's the south, and it's sleeting on us.Groovy.Sleet becomes hail becomes snow, and the paths were all super-muddy from yesterday's torrential downpours. There was a lot of slipping and sliding. Muddy legs.The 11 miles of the day felt more like 15...But we made it to the new shelter at Mollies Ridge.Made food, dressed in everything I have to keep warm.And it's even colder now, so I'm going to finish this entry.From the cold heart of Mordor,Whoa
Date: 2004-05-04
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Derrick Bald Shelter
Miles today: 11.7

What the Smokies of yesterday took away from us, they gave back double today. Today was one of the most beautiful days yet on the trail. It began clear and cold. After a great breakfast of pop tarts and CCIB (coffee and carnation instant breakfast put together) Whoa and I headed down the trail. After a mile or so, a doe skirted around us and continued southbound on the trail. Awed and smiling, we hiked away the first few miles and the day warmed up along with us. About six miles in, we came upon a grassy patch (little bald) that was singing sweet songs to us. We sat down to have some food, then sank further and further down into the grass. That was the closest to perfection we've had on the trail thus far. It was at that moment I began to understand why people would want to hike the trail more than once. Later on, the climbs got more punishing and we were good and beat when we got to the shelter. But still filled with the warm glow from this afternoon, and the incredible views from Rocky Top, the Smokies are showing us why they are Great. moxieP.S. Thank you, thank you Samurai for your freeze-dried cheesecake, and thank you Grand Canyon foods for making this product. Now if we could only find some freeze-dried beer...
Date: 2004-05-08
From: Newfound Gap

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: clear sky

We headed out of Gatlinburg today, a day later than we intended, but we wanted to keep the Tribe together. Knuckles had a bit of a stomach virus and was under the weather the first day she made it into town, so we took a couple of zeros to wait for her to recover. She is doing much better, she rocked today. That is an explanation of the time warp... now for today's news!We caught a ride up to Newfound Gap with some nice folks with the cleanest truck bed I've been in yet. The weather was idyllic, and the trail was like a traffic jam for the first three miles. We took a break at Icewater Spring shelter, and continued on up and down and over and under. The trail today was rocky and rooty, and I was feeling it. I think my pack is the heaviest it's been in three weeks, for I shopped for food like I needed to feed the hungry masses. We only needed two days, though, maybe three. I will someday get this right. We got to a beautiful view and found Samurai perched up on it, as he typically does. We sat and enjoyed it for a moment, but the thunderstorms were threatening to come closer so we hauled it to the next shelter. I think I broke a speed record- we made 1.2 miles in 20 minutes. No rain on us today!We arrived at the shelter to find two gentlemen napping. We chatted with them a bit, and they asked us lots of questions and watched us go about our eatings and cleanings. They asked me what sort of pharmaceuticals I carry with me, and this should have tipped me off, but they later revealed they were Rangers and that we were 100% compliant with park rules and regs. I am glad I'm so totally innocent and have nothing to hide. I only worried I may have emptied my cook pot a few feet too close to the shelter.The smokies have some weird rules, like if you don't have a park pass they can fine you thousands. Whew.Ok, I need to report to the cardgame. It's raining cats and dogs, I love you Pecks Corner shelter.mOxie
Date: 2004-05-09
From: Pecks Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: light rain

First of all, may we just say, Happy Mothers' Day to our moms! Our thoughts are with you. The hikers with cell phones were trying to get a signal to call their moms with mothers' day wishes today, but we are without and notoriously late mailing cards, so just know we love you!The hike was lovely for half and downright nasty for half of the day. But, I am a glass half full type and all's well that ends well. We caught the loveliest view off Eagle Rocks, then ate a lunch at Tri-Corner Knob shelter. It was about this time when the day went wrong. A thunderstorm was brewing, and a few miles later the sky broke its fury on us. It was raining and hailing all of a sudden, and we were moving fast to get off of the ridge. At Hell Ridge (I kid you not about this name) there was the twisted remains of a wrecked F-16. It was eerie, in the trees with the lightning and the rain. It had obviously been there a long time. We were moving as fast as possible, and found the shelter to be a mile closer than it had been listed in the guidebook. I was delighted.Now, at 7:30, the weather is clear and calm, and 15 hikers are going to squeeze into the shelter built for 14. Good thing we're all friends here. We are reunited with Jill, who we met our first day out. Everything is feeling nice, calm and good.On to Davenport gap tomorrow, where there could be cheeseburgers and perhaps a shower. Hot Springs less than 50 now, too!For today's Samurai update:Yes, we did see him cleaning his ears with sticks. Does his nastiness have no bounds? Then he got to the shelter and refused to take off his muddy boots. We all were clean and dry and he persisted in rumpled rainclothes. "What is wrong with him?" one might be tempted to ask, but trust me - to answer that question would require a lot of effort and a *lot* of space. We'll be examining this question more in the upcoming days...That's all the news that fits,love,moxie