morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-09-20
From: North Carter Summit

To: Rt. 2 Gorham NH
Miles today: 9.7
Weather: clear sky

A bright orange sunrise woke us shortly after 6 AM. We discovered ice on our sleeping bags and on my tarp. The wind was still blowing but the fog had lifted and it didn't feel as cold as when we went to sleep. We headed down the steep north side of North Carter making it to Imp Shelter just in time to catch Golden Fox, Swedish and Ottie leaving. I asked them to tell my wife that we were about one hour behind them.There were numerous overlooks on our way down. Some great views of Gorham, Mt Washington and the other presidentials and some spectacular looks at the mountains to our east in Maine. We made pretty good time getting down to the Rattle River Trail. Flying Bear, a thru hiker from 2001 making up missed miles from his hike, stopped to talk with us a bit. He assured us that it was possible to climb Katahdin after October 15 but we would need a shuttle into the park and out since camping was not permitted after that date.Sue was waiting for us when we reached the road around 3 PM. We stopped at the Post Office for mail drops and Pizza Hut for food. Then we checked into Hikers Paradise where we found Burnie and Katie aka Flava still in residence. Sue left for her 2 hour trip home. I hoped we would have more time together but it was not practical. Dinner was trail food. We watched The River on AMC then talked and hit the hay around 11PM.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-21
From: Rt. 2 Gorham NH

To: Trident Col Tentsite
Miles today: 6.9

We slept late this morning. Both Pokey and I needed the sleep. We probably should have taken a zero but Burnie and Flava decided to hike on today. The four of us got a shuttle from the owners of Hiker's Paradise. We had a very good experience at this hostel. Clean rooms, fresh linen, laundry on site, good cheap breakfast. Some other hikers who did not stay at Hikers Paradise complained because they were not allowed to ride with their friends or hang out in the hostel.We got to the trailhead just after 10 AM and headed up the trail toward Mt Hayes. By 12:30 we had reached the summit and stopped for lunch. We all had rain gear on because of a brief rain shower. We had another 4 miles to Trident Col and/or 9 miles to Gentien Pond Shelter. My knees are still hurting from the Carter Moriah Ridge so I decided to stop at Trident to help them recover. It was a special pleasure to get into camp well before dark. We had dinner and talked awhile then headed for our tents by 7:00 PM shortly after sunset. Now for a nice long sleep.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-22
From: Trident Col Tentsite

To: Stealth Camp before ME/NH border
Miles today: 9.0

Today is the first day of autumn but we are still not in Maine. However, we are less than a mile from the border. We stopped because the sun was setting and there was a convenient campsite nearby.It was fabulous today, with clear skies and cool beeze all day. Katie, Burnie, Pokey and I left Trident Col at different times but all stopped at a wonderful vista overlooking the presidential range and Carter Mariah range. We took too long of a break at Gentian Pond almost deciding to spend the night. Finally leaving to attack Mt Success.Katie left first, then Burnie. Pokey and I were behind. I am the slowest since I injured my ankle and my left knee has been acting up since the Carter Mariah fiasco. The downs kill my knees and I tried to hike faster to make better time into route 2.Mt Success is a long arduous climb followed by an exposed granite summit with occasional bogs. We met a man today who stepped off of a bog bridge into hip deep mud. Once passed the bogs and granite we started down. We reached a pile of boulders with no obvious trail but white blazes down below on the trees. I slipped and scratched my right shin which bled for awhile. Pokey struggled with the same area. We have seen no signs of the girls so hope they are doing ok. The sun began to set so we took the first available campsite we could find. We are both concerned about the girls. They are heading to Carlo Col Shelter. But it is a treacherous decent into the col. I'm hoping they made it before dark. (They are faster than I am so most likely I worry for nothing.)Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-23
From: Stealth Camp before ME/NH border

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: clear sky

No Pain, No Rain, No Maine!!!!MAINE MAINE MAINEWe are in Maine. It doesn't seem possible. It has been over 5 months of steady hiking. Five months of ups and downs.   Five months of tasteless dehydrated food. Five months of stinking like a stable. Five months of sore feet. Five months aching knees. Five months of morning hiker hobble. Five months of dreaming of Pizza Hut AYCE buffet.We took our time hiking to Carlo Col Campsite. Katie and Burnie left a message that they made it safely to camp last night before it got too dark. Pokey cooked a breakfast while I had some snacks and a nap. We took our time hiking over Goose Eye Mountain stopping frequently for photos and snacks. It was perfect for hiking. The sky was bright blue all day. We want to allow a 5 mile day for Mahoosuc Notch tomorrow so planned a short day. I'm glad we did low miles because Goose Eye was a tough workout. We saw few hikers all day until the last hour when 8 hikers caught up with us at the Full Goose Shelter. One couple became engaged at Madison Springs Hut on Saturday Night the day we left Madison. They ended up working all day Sunday and spending another night at the Hut when it was officially closed.We will be heading through the notch tomorrow morning. Maybe we will head on to Andover a day early depending on how we feel after the rigors of Mahoosuc Notch.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-24
From: Full Goose Shelter

To: Speck Pond Shelter
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: clear sky

Exhaustion!!! I've never felt so tired before and we only hiked 5 miles. I know the Mahoosuc Notch is tough but it kicked our butts. We left camp around 8 AM this morning. It was a tough climb over Fulling Mountain and down to the beginning of the notch where we decided to take a privy break knowing it would be impossible for the next miles. I have hiked Mahoosuc Notch three times before. The first time it took 3 hours to hike the one mile over and under boulders the size of VW beetles. The next time I did it in 2 hours and the third time took 1.5 hours. Well today it took 3.5 hours. I don't know why I found it so difficult. We did not tally but pushed our way through as fast as we could in a safe manner. Pokey was very nervous about the notch. At one point he said he was frightened by the difficulty of the hike and that this was the first time he wished he was home instead of hiking. We took a couple of breaks to refuel and to calm our nerves. We finally got out of the notch around 2:30 PM. We then had to struggle up Mahoosuc Arm. It is steep and covered with rocks and roots. Near the top the trail runs up nearly vertical granite slabs. You have to trust the tread on you hiking boots to hold you from sliding back down the mountain. We made pretty good time considering how tired the two of us were. The summit was in glorious fall sunshine with no wind. We put our packs down and laid down on the rocks to rest and recoup from our arduous day. We had another mile to Speck Pond Shelter but were too tired to hike any further. So much for making it to Andover one day early. In fact we may be one day later than planned. I'll have to stretch my food a bit.There was an entry in the Register from Katie and Burnie. They hiked the notch yesterday after doing Goose Eye. It took them 4.5 hours to reach the end of the notch in darkness where they stealth camped exhausted. They made it here around 1:30 PM today. That means they are about 4 hours ahead of us. They made a comment about how they planned to never hike in the dark again but somehow it keeps happening to them. They just keep trying to do too many miles. It may backfire on them because they will likely miss the Saturday post office for mail drop and have to zero in Andover until Monday.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-25
From: Speck Pond Shelter

To: Bald Pate Shelter
Miles today: 6.9

Pokey needs to pick up a mail drop in Andover. We will be getting there tomorrow (Sunday). The weatherman is predicting showers. We arrived at Bald Pate Shelter at 1:30 PM and decided to stay for the night. It is a real short day but we need the rest. We will still make it to Andover tomorrow just four hours later. Pokey cooked a huge meal for lunch. He can hardly stand up he ate so much. Now for some email and journal entries.We met a day hiker returning from the summit of Bald Pate. He said he saw Katie and Burnie just 35 minutes before he met us. I hope they did not slow down for us. I think they are just beat from their night hike through Mahoosuc Notch.It feels so luxurious not hiking at 3 in the afternoon. Aaaaaaaah!!!I just heard about Hurricane Jeanne heading for the east coast of Florida. Pokey is nervous about the possible damage to family owned hotels in the area. I told him there is nothing he can do whether he know what happens or not.We've run into many day hikers today because it is Saturday.At this point we have hiked over 1909.6 miles. Less than 263 miles to go.   Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-27
From: East B Hill Rd., Andover ME

To: Hall Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 6.0

A late start today in clear blue sky and 70 degree weather. Pokey and I decided to make it a low mileage day since we have not had a day off in 15 days. The woods are beautiful with fall colors. There is a great view about 100 yards up and behind the shelter. I ate so much at the shelter that I have a belly ache. We stopped hiking at 3:30 PM. An entry in the register shows that Katie and Burnie headed to South Arm Road to camp tonight about 4 miles up the trail.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-28
From: Hall Mtn Shelter

To: Bemis Mtn. Lean-to
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: overcast clouds

The Bemis Range is not very tall and it is covered with trees, roots, rocks, moss, mud and moose. We were ambitious today deciding to hike almost 13 miles. They were tough Maine miles that took a lot out of me. My knees are throbbing while I write this. We left camp at 7:30 AM. Stopping only briefly for lunch and snacks we hiked until the sunset at 6:30 PM. We heard happy sounds as we arrived at the shelter but it was full. So Pokey set up his hammock and I set up my tarp to make it through the night. The remains of hurricane Jeanne were suppose to bring us rain.   We were lucky in that it was only very cloudy all day. No rain. Hope it doesn't rain tonight. I hate carrying a wet tarp.Katie and Burnie are among those at the shelter. We have not seen them since before the Maine border. Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-29
From: Bemis Mtn. Lean-to

To: Powerlines beyond Sabboth Day Pond
Miles today: 10.0

I take it back.   The second part of the Bemis Range is beautiful. Great views of woods and lakes covered with fall colors made this morning¢s walk spectacular. The clouds slowly left as the day progressed. We stopped at ME highway 17 for lunch and received some trail magic from the owner of the Cabin in Andover. He refilled my fuel bottle. Sabboth Day Pond was beautiful. We could not resist spending an hour on the sandy beach near Long Pond. It reminded me of home on Crystal Lake in Gilmanton NH. The long break cut into our daylight hour progress so we stopped short of the twelve miles planned at some power lines that the trail crosses. The weatherman calls for a pretty cold night. I have my sleeping bag in my bivy sack which is in my tarp sealed like an A-framed tent. Hope it works.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-09-30
From: Powerlines beyond Sabboth Day Pond

To: ME 4, Rangely
Miles today: 7.7

The blue skies from yesterday continued through today. The trail was relatively easy with sections of roots, rocks, or mud typical of Maine. We made an early stop at Swift River Pond Tent site for a break and to use the privy. There was a register in the privy from 2003 with an entry from Wench of Pack 31 fame. She wrote that it was not as much fun in that privy because her friends were sitting on the log outside waiting for her.We hiked on for a couple of hours before taking another break for snacks. Then headed on again. Around 1:15 PM a beautiful schnauzer dog came running up the trail toward us and shouts of "yahoo" came from down the trail. It was Rainbow here to spend some time and help us into Rangely for a pleasant stay in town. We went to Gull Pond Lodge to register and meet Bob the wonderful gentleman that runs the hostel. We found Katie and Burnie in town at a pub having lunch. After dropping us off Rainbow went back to town to shuttle the girls back to the trail then came back to spend the evening at Hull Pond with Pokey and me. Tomorrow she will hike Saddleback with us. Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-01
From: ME 4, Rangely

To: Poplar Ridge Lean-to
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: clear sky

Today was awesome. First we had cool dry weather with dark blue skies. The Saddleback Mountain area is at peak foliage color and we were there to witness it from the summit.Last night we watched the first of the presidential debates and concluded that Kerry did a better job. Up at 6:15 Bob, the hostel owner, had stuff on the table for us to prepare our own breakfast. After eating and packing we loaded into Rainbow¢s car for a ride back to the trail. Rainbow insisted on carrying my full pack to the summit of Saddleback Mountain. She feels it would help me deal with my injured ankle and screaming knees. Hmmm "Screaming Knees" sounds like a good trail name.Yoda, her wonderful dog, led us up to the summit. After a nice lunch and a ton of photos Rainbow headed down the mountain with Yoda. Pokey and I headed north to climb the other two summits of Saddleback. The north side of each summit was a very difficult descent. It took us about 1 hour longer than we expected. But here we sit at the shelter eating our dinners at 7 PM in total darkness. We'll be asleep in a half hour.There was an entry in the register from Mickey, Mallory, Blackfoot, and Magnet encouraging Burnie and Flava to hike the extra 8 miles to the next shelter. They hope to reach Katahdin before October 12th. That means 16.9 miles each day with no zeros. I know I can't do that. We hope to get there around the 20th hoping the weather will hold out for a day hike to the summit. Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-02
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to

To: Sugarloaf Mtn. Summit House
Miles today: 10.9

Poplar Ridge Shelter has the old fashioned baseball bat slats for the sleeping platform. When it was built hikers cut pine bows to lay in the shelter for a sleeping surface. We are not suppose to do that anymore. It wasn't too bad to sleep on. Actually I sleep quite well. We were up by 6:30 and hiking before 8 AM. The sky was partly cloudy as we headed along Poplar Ridge. There are no more poplars on the ridge but the name has stuck. We met two southbound section hikers who told us they had talked with Burnie and Katie. The ended up camping about 2 miles beyond us. They left a note in Spaulding Mountain Lean-To that they had been there. Mickey, Mallory, Blackfoot, and Magnet left notes for Burnie and Katie urging them to hike to Crocker Cirque Tent site, only 6.7 miles down the trail.   We could have caught them there but had already hiked 8 miles and heard weather reports of rain and a big drop in temperature. We headed to Sugarloaf Mountain only 2.9 miles ahead. ! There is a building at the summit open to thru hikers. The weather was deteriorating as we hiked. Dense fog and strong winds made it difficult to see. We found the blue blaze trail to Sugarloaf summit around 4 PM and headed up. We stopped for water at a spring on the trail. Pokey told me to hike on ahead since I am slower. He would catch up with me as soon as he had filtered his water. I was at the summit in 10 minutes to find it so foggy and windy I could not make out anything but some orange arrows made from tape that were secured to the ground with rocks. I followed the arrows to the summit ski lodge and began unpacking and changing my clothes. One half hour later Pokey had not arrived. I was worried and considering going out to look for him but afraid of getting lost myself. Then I saw him scrambling down the trail. He saw the red arrows but stuck with the blue blazes instead. He ended up at the summit with extremely heavy winds and dense fog. He followed the blue blazes back to the red arrows and then to the building. He was very frustrated and cold. But we are both safe and out of the weather for the night.I hope Burnie and Katie are safely in their tents. It is very wet right now and the temperature is around 40 degrees. We have electricity in the building and a radio tuned into Red Sox baseball.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-03
From: Sugarloaf Mtn. Summit House

To: ME Hwy 27, Stratton
Miles today: 10.6

The wind howled all night. A metal vent made terrible noises that made it hard to sleep. But the fog cleared and a beautiful sunrise greeted us this morning. I went outside to relieve myself to discover ice on the stairs and the temperature read 30 degrees. I climbed back into my bag. A day hiker arrived before we were out of our sleeping bags. He left the trailhead at 5:30 AM. We talked about long distance hiking and the AT before we headed off to hike the Crocker Mtns. The Crockers are 4000 footers but offer no views. Our late start brought us to hwy 27 around 6 PM. A gentleman from Sugarbush Village heading in the opposite direction turned around and drove us into Stratton. After Dinner at the White Wolf Inn we got into our beds and watched some TV before going to sleep. My right knee screamed all night.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-04
From: ME Hwy 27, Statton

To: Horns Pond lean-to
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: broken clouds

Today is the 6th month anniversary of my departure from the summit of Springer Mt in Georgia. I am just one day short of 2000 miles. Weather has been extremely kind to us so far. It is suppose to be very cold tonight with possible snow flurries. We are camped at 3500 feet increasing the likely hood of below freezing temperatures. We are snug in our sleeping bags after a short hike from Stratton ME. We got a late start because the post office did not open until 9:30 AM. We had to repack our bags with 6+ days of food. And I had to wait for the restaurant to open because I left my hat in there last night by accident. When we reached the trailhead there was a european couple that approached us asking if we were thru hikers and then a barrage of questions followed. They hope to do a thru hike in the future. They took our pictures and offered wishes for a successful completion of our hike.There were register entries from Kate and Burnie who are now a full day ahead of us. By our calculations they will need to make 17 miles per day to reach Katahdin before October 12th. I miss hiking with them and wish them a successful last few days.We are in the Bigelow Mountains now with only 182.7 miles left. We should reach the 2000 mile mark tomorrow. Of course that could be delayed if we get snow tonight as predicted by one of the townsfolk.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-05
From: Horn Pond lean-to

To: Stafford Notch Campsite
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Wow!!! We woke up to frezing temperatures, trees covered with ice, heavy fog, wind and snow. I just closed my eyes and tried to get back to sleep despite the cold. The sun broke through a bit later in the morning so we managed to get out of camp around 10:30 AM. The hike over the South Horn and then the Avery Peaks was very cold and windy. We couldn't even stop to take many pictures. We don't have real cold weather gear mostly layers. I was wearing almost everything I am carrying and keeping moving just to stay warm. The freshly fallen leaves made the trail tricky. It is not possible to see all of the rocks and roots that are waiting under leaves to trip you up. We did not want to end up camping up on a ridge because of our late departure so we again modified our plans to hike 5 miles instead of 10. It was 23 degrees at Horn Pond this morning when we left camp and according to a hiker we met on Avery it was 20 degrees there. It is supose to be colder tonight but warmer tomorrow. Hoping we can make up some lost miles in the next couple of days.Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman
Date: 2004-10-06
From: Stafford Notch Campsite

To: West Carry Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: few clouds

Finally we broke the ten mile limit we have fallen into since The Whites. And we have made it across 2000 miles of AT. Only 165.2 miles to go. We were up before sunrise this morning and hiking by 7 AM. It has been a few days since we were able to do this. The weather was perfect with lows around 25 degrees highs around 50 degrees. Great hiking weather. You don't over heat yet you are warm enough to wear short sleeves and short/kilt. (Got to bundle up when you take a break.)The Bigalows have been wonderful. Amazing views of Flagstaff Lake. Sugarloaf Mtn was a constant view to the south with cell phone towers in clear view. Awesome fall colors all around us kept us going when the wind and cold temps tried to make our days unpleasant.Beatbox caught up with us again. He was off the trail for 12 days in Dalton MA with serious foot problems. He hiked 80 miles in three days resulting in the skin on the bottom of his feet splitting. He is again doing big mileage days to reach Katahdin before October 15th. Wouldn't you think he would learn the lesson from the injuries big miles cause?Katie and Burning spent the night here 2 days ago. They left a message in the register for us. That means they crossed the Kennebec River today. We will not be able to do that until Friday October 8th. I would love to summit Katahdin with them. But it looks like they are in a bigger rush to finish.Pokey and I have been discussing the lessons learned from our hike. We have less than two weeks left. The daily mileage will likely pick up a bit because we are out of the large mountains now with only Katahdin over 3000 feet. Here's hoping the winter storms hold off so that we can summit on our last day.   Life Is Good!! "Gabby" aka Art Cloutman