morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-04-25
From: Trimpi Shelter

To: Campsite on Vaught Branch
Miles today: 18.2

A day of magic! First there was telecommunication magic. The word was ¢no cell service for 75 miles from Damascus¢. But again I got one-bar and talked to Ruby Bagonia. We finalized the next mail drop and cleaned up some business stuff. It was so nice to talk to her for an hour!Next up was trail magic. Partnership Shelter is famous because 2 pizza restaurants will deliver there and it has running water. If that isn¢t good enough, when I got there, Daddy-O (AT 2008) was grilling for this year¢s thru hikers. It was a feast! I had 3 hamburgers, 2 hot dogs, cheddar cheese goldfish, potato chips, some brownies, a Dr. Pepper, 12 gallon of Gatorade and I took some goldfish and one more hamburger for the road. Thank you Daddy-O and I can¢t wait for next year to do trail magic on the PCT. It means so much to the hikers.Climate Magic: Two days ago, it snowed on the mountain tops; today it¢s in the 80¢s.Weather Magic: 5% chance of rain. Two thunderheads all day ¢ both rained on me. Go figure!And finally, record magic. Record Number 1: Only 1,650 miles to go. Record Number 2: 103.8 miles this week.
Date: 2009-04-26
From: Campsite on Vaught Branch

To: US 11
Miles today: 4.0

I needed a break so I decided to take a near zero day. I stayed at the ¢Relax Inn¢. A better deal would have been found at the Happy Hiker Hollow ¢ well now I know for next time.The Relax Inn wasn¢t bad. The Barn Restaurant was cheap and food was plentiful and tasty. The Village Truck stop was very expensive and very limited selection. I would have been better off paying for a shuttle to a real grocery store. Spring seems to have really arrived. A week ago, it was still mostly winter. Now, there are insects everywhere (so far no mosquitoes), robins, cardinals, and geese flying north. Lots of little creatures rustling in the leaves including a moth that looks exactly like dead leaves. I only saw one because I almost stepped on it and it flew away. Also, lots of butterflies. Lots of fun!
Date: 2009-04-27
From: US 11

To: Knot Maul Branch Shelter
Miles today: 13.9

A nice summer hike ¢ i.e. it¢s hot out! Today I passed the 14 mark. I¢m actually making progress!I need to be in Pearisburg on Friday so I can get my mail drop on Saturday. If I¢m late, I¢ll have to wait for Monday. That¢s 88 miles in 5 days; 18 miles per day. Not sure if I can do it but I¢ll give it a try. Stay tuned ¢¦
Date: 2009-04-28
From: Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.1

It was a strange day but I survived it. On the map and in the guide, it looked like the first half of the day was going to be hard and the second half would be pretty easy. Oh, so wrong! The first part was steep, but the path was wide and grassy and the miles just flew by. Lunch was at the Chestnut Knob Shelter; a stone structure that looked like it could survive some brutal weather. The afternoon hike turned out to be on rocks; big rocks, little rocks, sharp rocks, and rolling rocks. It was a total energy drain. I hope the trail improves or I¢ll never get to Pearisburg on Friday.As long as we are discussing trail conditions, let me reveal for the first time, the Bow Willow Proprietary Trail Ranking System. I devised it a few years ago when I starte doing a lot of solo hiking in San Diego County back country. I realized that a minor injury like a badly sprained ankle could have a much more serious outcome when no one knew you needed help and no one knew exactly where you were. So, I devised a numerical scale to help me pay appropriate attention to the terrain.1.0: Like walking at the mall. Nothing to trip on or impede you except your own feet. You can scan down trail often and while walking full speed1.5: Some minor obstacles (roots, uneven ground, etc.) but mostly smooth. Glance down trail but keep one eye scanning close by. You can still go full speed but you sacrifice a bit of the long range scanning or you slow down a bit if route finding is an issue.2.0: Lots of obstacles. Usually you need to stop or slow down a lot ¢ every few micro trails (i.e. one millionth of the AT or about 15 feet) to scan ahead. Every stop requires a decision ¢ on, over, or around.3.0: Scrambling. You need to use your hands to grab and pull or steady yourself. All looking down trail requires stopping. Every move requires deliberation.There you have it. In these terms the first half was 1.0 and the last half was 2.0
Date: 2009-04-29
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Jenny Knob Shelter
Miles today: 23.8
Weather: overcast clouds

A strange and wondrous day! Also longest day! Also, only 1,600 miles to go! Forecast called for rain but the morning started sunny. Around noon, thunder could be heard. Just before Helvey¢s Mill Shelter, the rain started. Soon it was a deluge. I nearly ran the last quarter mile, but I was soaked. I dried off in the shelter, had lunch, and watched the pyrotechnics. As a bonus I had cell reception and called Ruby Bagonia and we chatted. As the afternoon wore on it seemed like my hiking day was done. Bummer ¢ that would end the Pearisburg by Saturday quest.It was 3:30 when I got off the phone, and in the next few minutes the rain stopped the skies cleared. Hmm, if I leave now I can make the next shelter about 8PM. That¢s playing it close but Pearisburg calls. The next four hours were a blur of strenuous hiking but here are two highlights. I all but stepped on a 3 foot jet-black snake; definitely not a pit viper, maybe a king snake. I saw a neon orange 2 inch salamander. Made the shelter at sunset, finished eating, and set up in the dark. The rain returned and continued all night.
Date: 2009-04-30
From: Jenny Knob Shelter

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: scattered clouds

A relatively short day, but it leaves me with only 16.6 miles to go to get to Pearisburg.It was a nice day, nice hiking, but the rain is supposed to be with us for a while. So far I¢ve been lucky ¢ yesterday was the only hard rain.
Date: 2009-05-01
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Pearisburg
Miles today: 16.6
Weather: light rain

Nice hike into town. The last 3 miles featured a panoramic view of town and the New River from Angel¢s Rest and then a quick descent along a wildflower edged path. I stayed at the Rendezvous Inn. It¢s about a mile from the town center but they give shuttles when possible and it¢s on the trail.Tomorrow is a zero day and a chore day. My body could use the rest.
Date: 2009-05-03
From: Pearisburg

To: Campsite after Symms Gap Meadow
Miles today: 12.2

Rain most of the night and rain in the morning. Forecast is for solid rain to Tuesday afternoon, then scattered rain up t o the weekend. By the time I packed, watched the rain, got a ride to Hardee¢s, ate, digested ¢ it was 11AM. There was a break in the rain so off I went.I crossed the New River which is quite substantial on the highway bridge. The first few miles were quite industrial ¢ plastic factory, rail tracks, landfill, etc.By now it¢s raining. This continues all day (and night). Drizzle, hard rain, momentary stoppage, repeat ¢¦With moderate temps, walking in the rain isn¢t bad. Cooking, setting up camp, and packing is fun at all, but there is no alternative.SIGH ¢¦¢¦¢¦¢¦¢¦.I fell once; the rocks are slippery. No injury, but it¢s still scary. When everything is so slippery, one lapse of concentration and your down.
Date: 2009-05-04
From: Campsite after Symms Gap Meadow

To: War Spur Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: broken clouds

A long and interesting day. It rained hard much of the night. I got up to pee and the fog was amazingly thick. There was an apple tree about 10 feet from my tent and I couldn¢t see it. I took a couple of steps toward it and it was dimly visible. I turned around and I could just barely see my tent. Oops! It would be very bad to lose my tent.In the morning, the rain let up at 7AM, so I started to break camp. Fake-out. As soon as I got the rain fly off the tent the rain came back with avenges. Aarg! That is the wettest my equipment has been on this trip. In the early afternoon the rain stopped and the sun came out. I took an hour break and got everything from soaked to damp. A victory of sorts!But the rocks are still slick and I managed to fall again. I jammed my shoulder a bit. It is tender but no real damage. It is so hard not to make a minor mistake and go down.The streams are running high ¢ one crossing was a bit scary but I went upstream a bit and found a place to get across.The night was mostly clear ¢ maybe the rain is done.
Date: 2009-05-05
From: War Spur Shelter

To: Sarver Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: thunderstorm with drizzle

While the rain held off till early afternoon, it was most decidedly not done. I think this is the sixth day in a row of rain. The highlight of the day was the ¢Keffer Oak¢ a 6 foot in diameter tree said to be more than 300 years old. In the same area were dozens of dogwoods in bloom. Very nice. The shelter was very nice; a roofed porch and very clean. It might be my favorite shelter so far. It was rated for 6 but it could have easily held 12 or more. I think I¢m going to invent a language (a la Esperanto) for use on the trail. Forty percent of the vocabulary will be words that describe weather, especially we weather. Another forty percent will be words that describe food (like a word for high in calories but low in weight).
Date: 2009-05-06
From: Sarver Hollow Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: light rain

Although it rained most of the time, today was nice a nice walk. Everyone is excited about going to the ¢Home Place¢ restaurant in Catawba. It is supposed to be an awesome AYCE (all you can eat). Many hikers time their hikes to make sure they eat here. We shall see ¢¦We passed a memorial to Audie Murphy, who was the most decorated soldier in WWII. He died in a plane crash near the memorial.
Date: 2009-05-07
From: Pickle Branch Shelter

To: Catawba Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: light rain

Almost no rain today! Just a bit of sprinkles after lunch. Early in the day we crossed ¢The Dragon¢s Tooth¢. This was a very physically challenging section. A couple of times, I looked for the next white blaze and saw it across an abyss. There was a lot of slipping down rock faces and walking on narrow ledges. A bit scary, but I made it unscathed.We met some section hikers who turned out to be trail angels. Pole Climber offered us Gatorade, water, and some candy bars. They were finishing a day hike and gave us most everything they had left! It made the push to ¢Home Place¢ much easier. Thanks Guys!We got to the Home Place Restaurant. It turned out to be fairly fancy and there were 100¢s of people some of whom came in vans from churches and retirement homes. The meals were served family style. Our table consisted of Sue, Jason, Sue¢s Grandma, Sue¢s Step-Grandfather (who live in nearby Roanoke), Bender, Steamboat, and me. We ordered 3 meats ¢ fried chicken, roast beef, and BBQ pork. The sides were green beans, coleslaw, apple sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, and cherry cobbler with vanilla ice cream. At $14 it was a great deal! The wait for a table was an hour but fortunately Sue got on the waiting list 12 hour before Steamboat and I showed up so it wasn¢t bad.We got a ride back to the trail from an Italian guy who was waiting for his table. Turns out he lives in Mission Valley ¢ about 20 miles from me. Small world ¢¦At the shelter tonight, there was only one other hiker, Peachy Keen, who thru-hiked last year. She was there with her Chiwawa, her young Beagle who she was trail training and her guitar.¢Do you play?¢ I ask (as a clever conversation gambit).She responds, ¢No. I was hoping someone would come along and play it.¢So, I got a chance to play for about an hour ¢ SWEET!
Date: 2009-05-08
From: Catawba Mountain Shelter

To: US 220
Miles today: 17.8

Finally a day of great weather with a town stop coming up. The miles flew by. At the end, it was tough slog but the destination kept calling us. I was hiking with Loon and we managed to lose the trail for about 10 minutes but otherwise there were no problems. Many other hikers and myself are staying at the Howard Johnson Express.After 9 days of rain, it is so good to wash clothes and shower.Yani Bear and I went to Rancho Viejo, a very nice Mexican restaurant. We split a hug pitcher of beer and I am ready to go to sleep.
Date: 2009-05-11
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Bryant Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: moderate rain

It is Thursday, May 14th as I write this. The next few entries will be skimpy so that I can catch up. We¢re now hiking near the Blue Ridge Parkway. Interested readers should use Wikipedia or Google ¢Benton MacKaye¢. He conceived the AT in the 20¢s and had a falling out with the ATC in the 30¢s when the parkway was proposed.Great story.Meanwhile ¢¦ the hiking was great!
Date: 2009-05-13
From: Marble Springs

To: Puchbowl Shelter
Miles today: 18.2
Weather: light rain

I figured today would be a very short one since the hitch into Glasgow is reputedly difficult. But when I crossed the ¢James River Foot Bridge¢ (longest foot only bridge on the AT and that is compared to the bridge a couple weeks ago which was the longest foot only SUSPENSION bridge). Loon and Hot Sauce were talking to a guy (Ken) by his car. His avocation is giving rides to hikers! So, he took us to town, gave Loon and Hot Sauce a ride back because they were in a hurry, came back to get me, lent me his cell phone (because T-Mobile connection kept failing) to deal with Gregory, and gave me a ride back to the trailhead.Gregory will ship a loaner pack to Waynesboro ¢ to the outfitter, I will ship my pact to them, they will fix my pack, send it to me in a month or so, and I will return their loaner. Let¢s hope this all works out.Meanwhile, the pain level keeps increasing. I stop once an hour, take it off, readjust, and rest. It is bearable (just) ¢¦. This is a pain and I can¢t wait to get to Waynesboro.
Date: 2009-05-14
From: Puchbowl Shelter

To: Cow Camp Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Crossed mile 800 today!! Over 35% complete!!It was supposed to rain starting last night but it didn¢t (yeah) nor during the day (yeah, again). It is now almost 8PM and it looks like it will but so far, nothing.This stretch of the trail has 3 huge climbs (yesterday, today, and day after tomorrow). They¢re all about 3,000 feet. The steepest does it in 5 miles. The first two have been pretty ¢easy¢. We¢ve really gotten stronger in the last 2 months.My pack woes continue, but you don¢t want to hear my complaining. Three days to Waynesboro!
Date: 2009-05-15
From: Cow Camp Gap Shelter

To: The Priest Shelter
Miles today: 17.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Long day.Over night it rained quite hard and the lightning show was intense. But I had elected to sleep in the shelter instead of tenting. So I stayed dry. The rain stopped during the night and again, it didn¢t rain during the day. Got some good pictures from Cold Mountain of the fog and clouds covering neighboring peaks. Also got a picture of a stone wall that supposedly runs for 14 miles. It was used to separate two grazing areas probably around 1900.Just Phoenix and I are at the shelter tonight. Many of the hikers have gotten off the trail and went to Damascus for ¢Trail Days¢, which is a gathering of hikers and equipment manufacturers. It is supposed to be a lot of fun. I want to just get to Waynesboro, pick up my loaner pack, and then head off to Harper¢s Ferry to have a reunion with Ruby Begonia. (Oh, yeah ¢¦ the broken pack still sucks.)
Date: 2009-05-16
From: The Priest Shelter

To: Maupin Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: overcast clouds

A relatively short day, but a 3,000 foot climb from the beautiful Tye River to the top of 3 ridges as well as a rocky ridge walk made for a long day.Tomorrow I plan on 22 miles into Rock Fish Gap and Waynesboro. Hope the weather cooperates.Did 113 miles this week and there are ¢only¢ 1,350 miles to go.Again, there was a big lightening storm and a lot of rain but it ended at dawn. This has been the most cooperative ¢week of stormy weather¢.I actually passed on a free chili dinner that was being offered by the local trail maintainers because I would have had to camp in the rain instead of staying in the mouse infested, but dry, shelter.
Date: 2009-05-17
From: Maupin Field Shelter

To: Rock Fish Gap
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Another long day, but I want to get to Waynesboro. The trail was loaded with day hikers, weekend campers and trail workers. Part of the fun is talking to them and that took sometime ¢ there were so many. Early in the day, I passed E who went to the Food Fest I passed on yesterday. He had a quart baggie of desserts and gave me two chocolate chip cookies. A bit later I came across one beer on the trail left by some trail angel. Looked good but I left it for E. I found out later, that another hiker passed him and he didn¢t get the beer. Oh well, I tried.Again, the rain stayed at bay. It drizzled a bit and looked bad but never poured in earnest. With temps in the 50¢s, the miles just flew by. I got to Rockfish Gap at 5:30. Waynesboro has an active trail angel group who gives rides to town. I called a name at random and a bit later I was in my room at the Quality Inn.Dinner was at Gauld¢s Steakhouse (like a Sizzler). Quite filling!I stopped at a pizza place on the way back for a carryout. Quite filling! Tomorrow I will call the outfitter and, with any luck, I¢ll have my loaner pack.
Date: 2009-05-18
From: Rock Fish Gap

To: Rock Fish Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Called the outfitter ¢ no pack. Sigh. Went to Ming¢s Chinese Restaurant for lunch. Very good food! If you are from Southern California and know Onami¢s, fairly similar except Ming¢s is $7.15 for lunch. I had (among others) two plates of sushi, cooked shrimp, stuffed crab, green pepper and beef, egg foo young, lots of fruit, egg rolls, and ice cream.In the middle of lunch I got a hold of Kristin from Gregory. Pack should be here tomorrow.I also grocery shopped, laundried, and used a computer at the library to caption some of the photos.
Date: 2009-05-19
From: Rock Fish Gap

To: Rock Fish Gap
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Still no pack. Sigh. Well, if I have to be stuck in a town, Waynesboro is the one to be stuck in. Went to a music store and played guitar for an hour. Went to the Waynesboro Museum. Went to Ming¢s (again). Walked thru the Fishborne Military Academy Campus. Talked to Kristin, who talked to FedEx, who promised the pack will be there tomorrow.
Date: 2009-05-20
From: Rock Fish Gap

To: Calf Mountains Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: clear sky

It¢s a miracle; the pack has arrived! I walked the couple miles to the outfitter. Sure enough, the pack is there. We set it up, boxed up the broken pack, and bought a few supplies.The only problem with the pack is that it is bigger than mine and it¢s designed for heavier loads. That makes the pack heavy, 5lbs 6 oz. Also the suspension is very stiff with my relatively light load. The pack is designed to hold up to 75 lbs comfortably.Luckily Bender and his dad were in the outfitters and they gave me a ride back to Ming¢s so I could have one more great meal.By 2:00 I was packed and ready to go. After a few calls, I got hold of a trail angel and voila, I was at the trailhead.The weather was great (and is supposed to reamin so all week). Because of a few days of inactivity and because my Crocs aren¢t so good for my feet, the miles were slow and a bit painful. Fortunately, I only had to go 7 miles to the shelter.The Calf Mountain Shelter was packed. Thru hikers: me, Hot Sauce, and a guy whose name I forgot (ARGH). Section hikers: 5 guys from Louisville, 4 high school guys from Virginia, and a young woman from Portland, OR. I slept in my tent; didn¢t bother with the rain fly for one of the first times on the trip. Gorgeous night! Since they were leaving tomorrow, one of the guys from KY gave me a freeze dried beef stew. It was a whole lot better than mac¢n¢cheese with tuna.It felt very good to be back on the trail! Finished 40% of the trail today; less than 1,300 miles to go.
Date: 2009-05-21
From: Calf Mountains Shelter

To: Loft Mountain Campground
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: clear sky

Another beautiful Southern like California day.Today I entered Shenandoah National Park. My initial thought was that Shennandoah must be an Indian word for ¢Land of wide, well-groomed trail with lots of squirrels¢.It was a joy to hike and I met several interesting and generous people.There was Ben and David from Pasadena. They were ending their hike and gabe me a bit of summer sausage. Later I ran into Richard who is an editor for Southern Living magazine. We discussed ideas for articles he thought the trail angels from Burning Town Baptist Church were promising. Richard carried the largest pack I¢ve ever seen for a weekend trip. It must have been 100 liters, but he handled it with ease. When we got to his car he shared a Coke and a Power Bar!I was pushing to get to the Loft Mountain Wayside (i.e. restaurant) before it closed, but I came up about a mile short. Luckily the camp store was open so I bought a feast worth of food and grabbed a site at the campground - $15 but for hot running water and flush toilets, a bargain. So odd to hear RV generators, crying babies, and all the other sounds of a ¢real¢ campground.
Date: 2009-05-22
From: Loft Mountain Campground

To: High Top Hut
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: broken clouds

Another beautiful day (keep them coming). I had breakfast at the Wayside. Three huge pancakes with ham, and egg muffin, O.J., coffee, and their specialty, blackberry shake. Because it¢s going to be a short day, I had a second cup of coffee on the porch. This is actually one of the few times I¢ve relaxed and just watched the world drift by.A bunch of motorcyclists from New Jersey struck up a conversation with me. They were blown away by the thought of walking the AT. Each of them had to get a picture with me. Felt like a movie star. At the shelter tonight, I was joined by Cy and Hot Sauce; good to see folks I know.During the night, a rather rambunctious bear bounced around for a while before going to wherever rambunctious bears go.