morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-06-18
From: Wind Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

I've been reading a book called "About a Boy". The theme of the book is about "engaging" in other people and into life itself. We were talking today about how some of the best times in our lives have been when we've been engaged in a big quest (like this one). A big part of this is people. People put context and meaning into the process of engaging in a quest.But... Enough of the philosophy:Today was all about the rocks. We've been pounding through Rocksylvania for 200 miles, but the rocks came to a crescendo today. These were the sharp rocks that are between grapefruit and watermelon size embedded in the trailbed. The trail was like walking on the bottom of a dry riverbed. It is definitely tough on the feet, and more of a workout on the quads, but in reality, it was not as bad as we thought it would be. The last few miles into Delaware Water Gap were actually much easier. While on the final descent, we ran into Kevin, our trail angel from Palmerton. His wife (trail name Granola) was with him. They had some ice water in their fanny pack for us. Thanks guys! We made a plan to go out to eat with them later and headed into the gap. Delaware Water Gap is a beautiful little town. Lots of old buildings and an artsy feel. We walked over to the church hostel and sat down for a while to rest. Tink and Hindsfeet are staying in the hostel while Coyotebec and I are treating ourselves to a hotel stay. It's been 150 miles since our last zero and we are really ready for a break. Tomorrow we'll enjoy sitting around and doing nothing. Or maybe take a bus to a nearby town to watch a movie.more tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-06-19
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Well - We sorely needed a day off. It's been 150 miles in 8 days - a lot of which has been over Pennsylvania rocks. This has been very tough on the feet. It felt like I was walking on puffy swollen pads when my feet hit the ground this morning. In addition, some of the tendons in my ankles were really sore as well. I'll be hoping a day off can help these problems out.As far as the day, we did all the usual zero day activities: Grocery shopping, planning of our days, catching up on phone calls etc... Today we also decided to take a shuttle to a nearby town to watch our first movie in over 3 months.Lots of fun, but I think we're ready to be back choppin wood on the trail.More tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-06-20
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Unamed Creek
Miles today: 22.1

Leaving this morning was a little different. This was probably the first really comfortable hotel room we've had on the trip. It kind of reminded us of home. Both of us had a feeling of wanting to stay, but knowing we had to go. Really I guess we were wanting to press on, but the feeling was divided. We headed out and met up with Tink and Hindsfeet at the hostel. From there we walked out of town and across the Delaware River bridge. This was our 7th state line! We crossed into New Jersey halfway across the bridge. Around lunch, we came to the side road to the Mohican Outdoor Center. It was .25 miles up to the left. This is a facility run by the AMC where groups come out for weekends etc... We had read that you could get drinks and snacks as well. Today, they were doing Deli sandwiches as well - so we had ourselves a really nice lunch sitting in the beautiful lodge. We met some new hikers today that are catching up to us: Wrong Turn, Aloha, Fortune Cookie, Bloody Mess and Biz. Also a little different today is that we went by 2 lakes. The first was beautiful (sunfish pond). The second was more of a beaver pond. We had some ridge walking today with some great views. Its beginning to feel like the old (Pre-Pennsylvania) again. PA was much more closed in and, honestly, boring.We camped near a pretty creek tonight. The caterpillars are crazy around here. There were whole sections of forest with no leaves left from these things. All night we could hear bits of leaves falling on our tarp from them feasting over our heads.More tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-06-21
From: Unamed Creek

To: High Point State Park
Miles today: 20.5

Today is the summer solstice - the longest day of the year. Thru hiker tradition has it that this is the day to hike naked. Yes - naked. As in no clothes. This seemed to me to be a terribly inconvenient idea, so I told everyone that I was not participating in the tradition. Unfortunately Coyotebec got a wild hair with Hindsfeet and they decided to go for it. Their plan was to use our umbrellas as a cover should someone come up on them. Tink and I headed up the trail to give them some privacy so they could get ready to hike. When they showed up (umbrellas unfurled), we took some pictures. Then Tink and I walked ahead to deflect oncoming southbound traffic. Of course in the middle of new jersey on a wednesday - there's no one out there. We got a little ahead and thought how much fun it would be to shock them by doing the solstice thing and surprisiing them. We quickly dropped our clothes, and put our packs back on and hiked real slow. Soon they came around a bend from behind us and we got a great hoot out of them. Very fun! We then kept going (in the buff) all the way to the next shelter. We then went back to normal hiker attire. While this tradition may not make a whole lot of sense, it was fun, it felt freeing, and it hurt a whole lot less than the half gallon challenge.Later, we arrived at a road that had a couple of businesses. One of them was called Joe to Go. We were excited about getting coffee, sandwiches and drinks. The establishment was new and clean. While we were looking at the drinks, Tink went to the counter to order. There was an offer for a bacon egg cheese sandwich for $2.99 with a free cup of coffee. Since he's a vegetarian, Tink asked if he could get the special with a sandwich that contained no meat. Well- the guy (I think the owner) went ballistic and yelled at Tink to read the sign. He was literally having some anger management issues. Tink tried to calm him down, but they guy was out of control. We finally got our sandwiches ordered. The guy kept making everyone else's sandwich before he started on ours. Unfortunately we were all kind of scared of him, (like the soup nazi) so we were patient and said nothing. At the next shelter, there were a bunch of entries about this place. In one, the guy got so upset ! he grabbed the hikers poles and threw them into the road (this is a busy highway!). Well - I guess we're not in the south anymore Toto.We stopped at a pavillion on a mountaintop for lunch. There were 3 or 4 section hikers there. We soon hatched a plan to get some better pictures of tink and I in the buff (don't worry - they are in good taste). We decided to hold a rock up in front of us. Well - I'll leave it to your imagination - but we've got some great shots. The rest of the day was routine, but long and we were tired when we reached the state park. We dragged out the cooking gear and made supper. We decided that we would try stealth camping right behind the ranger station. It was a little risky, but we went for it. So far, we have not been thrown out. I'll let you know tomorrow if we got busted or not.More tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-06-23
From: Vernon, NJ

To: Unnamed Stream
Miles today: 19.0

As I write this, the light is dying in a beautiful forest in New York. The trees are black shadows against the twilight. A few birds still sing, but their songs are dying out. We've just cooked supper while lying in our tent, and it is just a wonderfully enjoyable evening.Some highlights for the day included: Crossing our 8th state line into New York.Hiking over glaciated rocks along the ridgetop for much of the day.Enjoying ice cream a a local creamery.We began by heading from the Hostel to the Mixing Bowl - a local restaurant. We enjoyed a great breakfast and headed to the main road to start trying to hitch. About 5 minutes after we started, a ridiculously (for picking up 4 hikers with packs) small car pulled over. Somehow we jammed ourselves and our gear in the car. On the way up, the driver asked Tink if he wanted to smoke some Mean Green. He refused and we were glad to get back to the trail in one piece.An hour or so after lunch, we came upon the NJ - NY state line. State lines seem like they shouldn't matter that much, since overall the biggest thing is the 2,174 to Kahtadin. And really they don't. But somehow it's always fun to cross a line and be into a new state.The day got hotter and hotter as it went on. The AT was on a ridgeline that followed some glaciated rock formations. The rocks were like the bony spine of some huge buried dragon. The hiking was a cross between backpacking and rock climbing. It was so hot, I thought my head would explode. Finally, we got onto easier terrain. Down in the trees, the temperatures were much more tolerable. Late in the afternoon, the rains began. At the road crossing a sign told us of ice cream .1 west. That was all it took. We went for it. I had 2 scoops of some kind of fudge ice cream and followed it with soft serve with hot fudge. Just right! We sat at the creamery until the rains subsided, and hiked the final 4 miles to camp.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-24
From: Unnamed Stream

To: Lake Tiorati Road
Miles today: 14.3

We woke to the sound of heavy rain on our tarp. Uggg... Tough to get an early start when you are nice and dry in your tarp and facing a wet day. We waited a little while, but that was no help. The rain just kept coming. Hindsfeet and Tink had left earlier because Hinds had to pick up a mail drop in Arden. I am not sure if it was the four 20's in a row, but we struggled through the morning. At first it was rought trail and creeks that slowed us. Then we were into some climbs that were insane. We would walk up on a climb, only to see the blazes go straight up what looked like a broken cliff line. It made you wonder what the trail builders were thinking. The hiking was hands and feet on the rock many times. It was slow, frustrating and a little scary - especially with everything wet from the rain.By the time we made our meeting point with Tink and Hinds, Becky was upset. She said that thoughts like "I'm sick of this" and even thoughts of quitting the trail entered her mind. That's a real shift for a woman that's been rock solid for 3 1/2 months. It took us well over 5 hours to complete the 8 miles. Later we learned this section was named "Agony Grind". Very True!!!We walked in the drippy rain the rest of the day and finally reached Tiorati Lake road. We walked the .3 to the lake and a building with cokes and treats. When we got there, they had closed 10 minutes earlier. Uggg. Hindsfeet talked the rangers into reopening for us and our spirits lifted. Tink finally got in touch with some friends from New York that were having a party at a camp in the same state park we were in. They invited us to come.   Problem was - the party was 7-8 miles away. Before you knew it, Tink had 3 cars lined up to take us there. Now that's some hitching skills! The party was a spring fling for the German Ski Club of New York. Adrian, Tink's friend was awesome. He cooked ribs, steak, grilled onions and more for us. We had fun meeting people, talking about our trip and relaxing. Hiker midnight came around 9pm and we were in our tarp for the night.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-25
From: Lake Tiorati Road

To: Graymoor Monastery
Miles today: 19.3

Today began where yesterday left off. Wet, dreary and incredibly damp. We packed our wet tent, put on our wet shoes and headed for the trail. We are all longing for the day we arrive in Pauling NY. Some people from near Pauling have been following our trail journal and invited us over to their house. The next morning, they will drop us at the train station where we will head to New York City for 3 days of R&R. Today though, this seems very far away. We have 58 miles of rain and mountains to cover before then.We got a ride back to the trail and started crankiing. The going was (thankfully) easier today, but the rain was just as persistent. Tensies was miserable. Sitting on a wet log.Near noon, we reached the observation tower on Bear mountain. All morning I had been stressing over Coyotebec. She was having a rough time (as we all were) and at the tower, it boiled over. The problem was that since nerves are wearing thin, we are not hiding our aches, pains and doubts as much. I have a compulsion to "fix" all of her problems. Obviously, I can't fix the mileage, foot problems or weariness. So I start getting upset and go silent. This silence makes coyotebec nervous and we begin a downward spiral.By the bottom of the mountain, we had worked it out and all was well. Tink calls the AT "2000 Miles of Therapy" and I guess it's true. We ate lunch at the park, and walked through an animal zoo that the trail goes through. A highlight was walking over the Bear Mtn Bridge over the Hudson River. This is a beautiful bridge. The landscape is really beginning to look more like New England. We arrived at Greymoor around 7:30. Greymoor is a legendary AT stopover. The monkes used to have the hikers in for supper, but this is no longer offered. Now there's a pavilion on the ballfield that hikers overnight in. The big toe on my left foot started hurting the last mile or so today. When we got to Greymoor, it was seriously aching. It seems like an infection in the skin around the toenail. I had trouble falling asleep because of the pain and from worrying how I was going to cover 40 more miles in the next two days.Well - I am praying for a miracle.
Date: 2006-06-26
From: Graymoor Monastery

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: moderate rain

When I woke up, I could immediately tell my toe felt somewhat better. It definitely seems to be some kind of infection around the toenail. Ugg... It hurts, but at least I can get my shoe on without crying.We rolled out around 7. The hike was uneventful till Coyotebec took a bad fall. She was stepping over a log and put her foot on a slanted rock. Since its still raining this moring, everyting is wet and slick. She fell onto her left hip. Her trekking pole was bent, her hip bruised and she needed a hug. This is our 3rd day of rain. Everyon's feet are raw and hurting. My toe still hurts, but is tolerable. We decided to hike for 2 hours, then take our shoes and socks off and let our feet (sort of) dry out. I don't think it helped a lot, but mentally it's what we needed. We continued through intermittent rain like this all day till we reached RPH around 6. Later that night, a trail angel named Socks dropped by (the shelter is near the road). We spent a couple of fun hours visiting with her and eating some of the treats she brought with her.Tomorrow is the last big push to NY22 and Pauling. This is our planned stop to head into New York City for a break. It could not come at a better time. Tink jokes that we've "been at the threshold of hell" for the last 3 or 4 days. I wouldn't go that far, but our feet have little sores on them from walking in wet shoes for 80 miles and my toe infection is getting a little gory. It is re, swollen and has some areas of pus under the skin. A family has offered to pick us up at NY22 and take us home for the night - then to the train on Wedneday to head into NYC. They had read our journal and emailed us back in Delaware Water Gap. So that's the plan for tomorrow. 20 more miles to heaven.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-27
From: RPH Shelter

To: NY22
Miles today: 19.7

We had arranged to meet the McConaghy's {our trail angel family) at NY22 between 4 and 6. Since we didn't know what the terrain was like, we decided to leave early to make sure we made it on time. The hike was pretty routine through lunch, with small climbs and descents over good trail. Around noon we reached Nuclear Lake. This is a pretty mountain lake that looks very inviting for swimming. We read that it got its name for the nuclear production in the area, but that the lake was safe. That was all it took, and we were in swimming. We had still had intermittent rain this morning, but by lunch, the rain had stopped and the sun even peeked out for a few minutes. We ate lunch and layed in the grass for 30 minutes and moved on.Because we had left at 6am, we only had 6.5 miles left after lunch. It felt like we were already on our break and our spirits were high as we ground out the last miles to NY22. We arrived around 4:30 and called the McConaghys.Kate McConaghy came by a little while later and soon we were at their house. After 3.5 months of shelters, tarp, and hotel rooms, I can't tell you how nice it was to be in a regular house. The McConaghy's are amazing hosts and made us feel very comfortable. We sat in the sun room eating chips and dip and enjoying our conversation with them. It turns out that Rob is an avid kayaker, and we enjoyed hearing about the local creeks. He used to do a lot of windsurfing and was even familiar with an event called "Hook In and Hold On" that I went to in the early 80's. Rob was a former sailboard racer and did a lot of sailing in the same era that I used to windsurf in. Small world and fun conversation. We had a fabulous supper of steak, pasta, baked potatoes and salad. Later that night, we had fun visiting with the McConaghy's daughter Charlotte. After pushing so hard to get here, it all felt like an incredible payoff for a hard job well done this week. We went to bed full,! happy and ready for New York City tomorrow.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-28
From: NY22

To: New York City
Miles today: 0.0

Today is the first zero of our break. We are planning 3 days off to visit New York City. Tinkerbell lived in NYC for 3 years while working here as a geologist. He is looking forward to being our official tour guide.Our day started with a great breakfast at the McConaghys. Then Rob took us to the train station on his way to work. We want to say a big thank you to the McConaghy family for having us over for the night. It was like being home again - and came at a time when it was sorely needed. We arrived at Grand Central Station in NYC. It is much more impressive in real life than in the movies. Tink skillfully guided us through the subways to a place called the Christian Herald. A friend of Hindsfeet lives in this building. They are out of town for the week and offered to let us stay in their apartment. This is a beautiful 5th floor apartment a block or two away from the empire state building. After dropping off our packs, we hit the subway again headed out to the Bronx for a New York Yankees game. I am not the biggest baseball fan, but it is so impressive to walk into Yankee stadium and see tens of thousands of people on their feet for the national anthem. Such an American moment. It is an amazing sight and a memory I will keep with me for a long time. We had to leave the game in the 8th inning to head back to the apartment to make sure we didn't get locked out (we didn't have the outer door key). After that, Tink took us touring around Central Park! . People were everywhere - running, cycling, rollerblading and just laying around in the park. It is very woodsy feeling and beautiful. We then headed over to a restaurant called Mama Mexico. They make guacamole at your table and have awesome food. The mariachi band even came by and played us a song. After this, we met up with hindsfeet again and Tink took us to Magnolia Bakery for dessert. They are famous for their cupcakes and banana pudding. Tink almost lost his mind when they were out of the banana pudding. He had walked 1,000 miles dreaming of that pudding. He calmed down - and we all enjoyed the amazing cupcakes. By then it was midnight. Not hiker midnight - real midnight. We were exhausted and headed back. I soaked my toe in epson salt and then Coyotebec lanced it and drained the pus. I am on an antibiotic for it. It is still pretty swollen, but hopefully it will improve over the next days off.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-29
From: New York City

To: New York City
Miles today: 0.0

Our second zero started with something we have not done in months - sleeping in. We slept till almost 9am. Wow. We were more tired than we had thought. Tink took us to a real NYC diner for breakfast. It was tiny. There was a counter and one row of tables. The food was great and the place was true New York. After breakfast we went to a place called TKTS where you can get discounted same day Broadway tickets. We bought tickets to the Broadway production of The Producers for tonight. Then we walked over to Ground Zero. The site is pretty sobering. The hole where the buildings were is huge. Some of the nearby buildings are still under repair. But life in the city seems to just move along like normal despite this tragedy. The afternoon was spent shopping. Clothes for Coyotebec (for our upcoming trade show that we have to attend in August), the Patagonia store and an outdoor store called Tent & Trail (where Tink bought his gear for the AT). Later in the afternoon we got some rest time before heading out to the show. It's hard to describe how impressive NYC is. The lights, the buildings and the whole scope of how big it is amazes me. Broadway is very crowded and there's a tangible feeling of energy. The show was amazing. The production, sets, acting and lighting were so good! Afterwards we headed back to the apartment and bed time.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-06-30
From: New York City 

To: Sherman CT 
Miles today: 0.0

Today I would like to dedicate my entry to a very special family. The McConaghy's display love, graciousness and generosity in a way that you see far too little these days. The family consists of father, mother and 14 year old daughter. The McConaghys have chosen to direct their energy towards the thru hiker community. They maintain the best trail magic spot I've seen on the trail throughout the thru hiker season and service it daily. Beyond this, they allow some hikers to come and stay with them at their home. We were lucky enough to be asked to visit the McConaghy's in their home. They took in 4 dirty wet hikers, fed us, put us up for the night, delivered us to the train station after a wonderful breakfast, had us back to spend the night after our NYC visit, fed us again, dropped us at the trail, picked us up 20 miles up the trail and took us home again for another night (including 2 more meals). But what they gave went far beyond the showers, beds and meals. They shared their lives with us. They made us feel for a couple of days what life back home felt like. They treated us like we were their long lost best friends. We owe them a debt we cannot repay. We arrived beat up and tired and left healed up and rested. This family has affected our trip and without a doubt - our lives. Thank you Rob, Kate and Charlotte! More tomorrow... Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-07-01
From: NY22 

To: Kent CT 
Miles today: 18.6

Rob dropped us off at NY22 around 8:30. Our plan was to walk to Kent CT and they would pick us up and bring us back to their house for one more night. We began by walking through some mucky trails until we began climbing. After 8 or 9 miles we reached the New York - Connecticut border - our 9th state line! After some quick pictures we were on our way. Around lunch, we arrived at a good whitewater river and stopped for lunch. 3 kayakers were playing on a wave while we watched. After our break we continued on through the afternoon. We arrived in Kent at 5:30. We stopped in at a small store and bought a bag of Lime Tostitos and salsa and promptly ate the whole thing. After that, we shopped for a few groceries and sat dow to wait for the McConaghy's. We went back to the house and had a wonderful evening. We went swimming in their pool, ate hamburgers, and hung out in the living room. We were tired, so it was off to bed early. More tomorrow... Gumby & Coyotebec