morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-09-06
From: Gentian Pond Shelter

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 9.6
Weather: few clouds

You can tell by the small miles that the trail is very tough. It took us 11 hours to hike 9.6 miles. This section up to Stratton ME. Is suppose to be the toughest on the entire trail. When the White Mountains ended the geologic features did not.There were a lot to technical climbs today. We could just through our hiking poles up ten feet and then climb the rock face up to them. Carol is now very good at climbing and I don't worry about her as much. My climbing is become suspect as my knees are sore and weak. We sometimes climb up the rock faces that are sloped granite like monkeys hand and feet clinging to the rocks. I never in my wildest dreams thought the trail would be this difficult.Today we climbed Sucess Mountain, Mt. Carlo, Goose Eye Mt. East Peak, and North Peak. All these mountains are devoid of vegetation on top. There are lots of hikers at the Shelter as tomorrow we undertake what is purported to be the toughest section of the trail, the Mahoosuc Notch.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-07
From: Full Goose Shelter

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

We made it through the Mahoosuc Notch which is one mile long in just over 3 hours. The notch is no wider than 100 feet and filled with boulders the size of refrigerators to the size of cars. Your have to climb, go around or go under these giant rocks. I have to ask myself "what does this have to do with hiking?" I feel like I am on a game show, but I know there is no prize waiting for me unless you call not gettin injured a prize. We had to take our packs off and hand them to each other 4 or 5 times and we had to go under the boulders 4 times. At one point we went under a giant boulder and them immediately do a rock climb up and out. Both Carol and I scraped our legs, and I fell wrenching my right knee. We will just continue on until we are done - one way or another.After the notch we them had a very difficult climb up a mountain called the Mahoosuc Arm. This was an 1800 foot climb over huge rocks and granite slabs. It took us just under 10 hours to go 5.1 miles.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-08
From: Speck Pond Shelter

To: Frye Notch Shelter
Miles today: 10.6

We entered Maine yesterday and southern Maine is very difficult, to say the least. There were huge climbs today and we planned on only going 7.2 miles but the sign to the shelter was gone and we commented on how far it was to the shelter. We missed it. The weater man called for rain today and it threatened and the wind was blowing hard most of the day. We climbed a mountain called Old Speck and them a mountain called Baldpate.Baldpate is a huge piece of granite that is devoid of vegetation for the last few hundred feet. We had to crab crawl up ledges while the wind whistled by. Once we got on top we saw a sign saying that Frye Notch shelter was 1.8 miles away. This is when we realized we missed the shelter. It was 4PM and we hoped we could cover the 1.8 miles in the next 3 hours, because that is when it gets dark.Carol is now leading the way in the hike as she can go faster down hill due to the pain in both my knees. It makes me hurry as much as I can to see her out front. She has really learned a lot about what she can do physically. When we first started she was afraid of things like walking on a 8 inch wide log across a stream. Now she can free climb up a cliff. She is really amazing, and for 114 pounds at 5 feet 8 is incredibly strong. Her pack weight is more than mine as she is trying to save my knees. The feeling is that if we can make it to the 100 mile wilderness in ME we will be OK; as it is primarily flat. There were lots of hikers at the shelter including Red Lobster, Unicrok and Scat Tracker. The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-09
From: Frye Notch Shelter

To: Andover ME. / Pine Mt. Hostel
Miles today: 4.3
Weather: overcast clouds

We had mailed food forward to the hostel and planned to stay there since Gorham. The 4.5 miles in to the road took only 3 hours so it was much easier than we have experience lately. Once we got to the road there were no cars in sight for over half an hour. Eventually Dr. Rock and his girl friend came by going the other direction in their car. They stopped and gave us a ride to the hostel. The girl friend went back and picked up another load at the trail head. They are really trail angels. They came along just in time.We walked to the restaurant had a meal, came back and showered and did laundry.We will get a ride to the trail head tomorrow, hike 10 miles and them come back to the same hostel. Right now we are seeking as much comfort as we can; and sleeping in a bed after a shower is FANTASTIC!The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-10
From: Andover ME. / Pine Mt. Shelter

To: Andover ME./ Pine Mt. Hostel
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: overcast clouds

We set out early today not knowing what the the terain held for us. We ended up pleasantly surprised. The first 6 miles was wonderful. It was up hill but not as steep as we have been having. We covered the distance in 3 hours. At the shelter (the 6 mile location) we met Gouda , Cous Cous. and AD. We have not seen Gouda for months. It was great seeing him again. He carries no watch, cell phone and at home has no TV. I kid him that he is living in the 18th century. At about 25 years of age he really is one of a kind.We hiked up the North Peak of Hall Mt. and I know I have said it was steep in Maine but to give you and idea of how steep I can tell you we had to take a blue blaze detour because of a landslide. This went on for some time before we could get on to the original AT again. Once we were on top of Moody Mountain we called the Hostel and arranged a time for pick up at the road. Gouda came with us and we are at the Hostel again. Also at the hostel are Joe the marine who we have not seen for a couple of months, and a couple of other hikers we have not seen for weeks. Joe is in his early 60's and we compared knee problems. He and I expressed our feelings for what it takes to complete the hike. It seems to be tenacity (Joe called it something else - a B---s.)Carol is continuing to lead the hike and I am continuing to groan at every down hill step, but today I felt more up beat.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-11
From: Andover ME./ Pine Mt. Hostel

To: Bemis Mt. Lean To
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: clear sky

The weather is starting to be quite cool. It was in the 50's F. today. We started out with a 2500 foot climb up a mountain called Old Blue. It was a long tedious climb with not technical rock climbing - just plain old steep hiking. The forest was very dark and dense.We climbed not only Old Blue but also the west peak of Bemis Mt., the east peak and then finally the third peak of Bemis mt. These mountains are around 3500 feet.I was not feeling well today and the climbs seemed to take forever. We only hiked at about 1 mile per hour. The trail was very muddy and in general the mountains in Maine are wet even though it has not rained. The trail had a stream that constantly ran down it. We have developed what I call the southern Maine stretch. We get to a mud puddle and look for a rock and then stretch across to it to try to keep the boots clean and dry. This only works sometimes.Where there is no mud there are rocks or roots. All are very slippery and we had some messy, minor falls today. We got to the shelter around 330 PM and I was too tired to continue. We settled in for the evening. We were joined by a hiker named Ghetto Sheep. She had fallen and cut her hand. Carol tended to her wound just before we retired for the evening. I hope tomorrow goes better.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru Hiker)
Date: 2010-09-12
From: Bemis Mt. Lean To

To: ME 4 /Rangely Maine / Saddleback Inn
Miles today: 17.7

I felt better today. We got up early with the idea to hike to a camping area about 13 miles away. The trail was very muddy, rocky and there were many roots. There was only one big treacherous downhill and the subsequent uphill from ME 17. After that there was smaller ups and downs as we hiked along the ridge. These 200 to 500 foot ups and downs however are very tiring after a few hours. Maine does not build bridges across the streams so hikers must ford them in their boots or Crocs. When we got to the river crossing we were pleasantly surprised that we could rock hop across the stream and did not need to take our boots off.The mud is every where and Carol lost her balance and fell on her butt 4 or 5 times. I fell 3 times due to the slippery conditions. When we got to the tent site where we were going to camp we decided to go to the road and hitch a ride to Rangely ME. The las 4.8 miles went fairly fast as we were dreaming of a shower.When we got to the road a young man gave us a ride to the hotel he owns. The desk clerk was very nice and did our laundry for us. We resupplied at the IGA and ate dinner. I then sat with 2 bags of ice on my knees for the evening.We saw lots of other hikers in town. Most were staying at the hostel.We have 220 miles left to hike and each day it is a real struggle. I seem to be getting weaker, Carol seems to be about the same. We both agree that we are very tired most of the time.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru Hiker)
Date: 2010-09-13
From: ME 4 /Rangely Maine / Saddleback Inn

To: ME 4 / Rangely Maine /Saddleback Inn
Miles today: 0.0

We took the day off to get ready for the next 40 miles through big mountains to Stratton Maine. We are told the trail gets a little easier right after Stratton.We walked down town and had lunch. I went to the library to enter my journal and the library was closed on Monday. The owner of the Saddleback Inn let me use his computer for these enteries.I am now going to have a nap.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru Hiker)
Date: 2010-09-14
From: ME 4 / Rangely Maine /Saddleback Inn

To: Poplar Ridge Lean To
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: light rain

Bob from the local hostel gave us a ride to the trail at 8 AM. It was a very difficult and miserable day as we started hiking up 1600 feet. The forests in Maine are dark, dense, mossy, rooty and wet (even when it has not rained).We climbed up over Saddleback Mt. in the fog and rain. We got no view and we moved as quickly as possible in case a thunderstorm broke out. At one point the fog and rain made us look as if we were climbing Mt. Everest, except there was no snow. Saddleback Mt. had 3 peaks and then another peak called the horn. All over 4000 feet and in the Alpine region. We have met several people we knew earlier, who switched half way through the hike, and now are hiking south. They are called flip floppers. The trail is incredibly muddy and many times we have no choice but to walk through it.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-15
From: Poplar Ridge Lean To

To: Spaulding Mt. Lean To
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: broken clouds

The trail was not too bad today. I, however, felt exhausted the whole hike. The trail was very muddy and wet. We climbed Lone Mt. and Abraham Mt., each at around 3300 feet. We determined that we did not have time to get to the next camping area by night fall so we cut our day short.We were up at 3100 feet so we knew it would be cold; we set our tent up in the shelter for extra protection and warmth. Just as we got set up it started to rain and we were glad we had stopped when we did. The rocks and roots are very slippery and we would have had to do an 860 foot ascent in one mile if we had gone on.We heard that the weather man was calling for heavy rain on the 17th and this meant we would need to cover 13.6 miles tomorrow over two giant mountains and make it down a 5.2 mile descent to the road and town if we wanted to avoid this weather. I had trouble sleeping thinking about it.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-16
From: Spaulding Mt. Lean To

To: Stratton ME / Statton Hostel
Miles today: 13.6

We were up at 6 AM and packing up in the twilight. We got out of camp at 7AM and immediately climbed up Spaulding Mt. which was a steep 860 foot ascent. We were not looking forward to todays hike as it promised to really test us. After Spaulding Mt. we walked along a ridge line with the inevitable 200 feet up, followed by 200 feet down repeated constantly. Eventually we came down 1500 feet to Caribou Road. We knew we needed to be at this dirt road by around 1100 AM to be able to climb and descend the two Crocker Mts. We arrived and ate lunch at Caribou road right at 1100 AM. Right after our 10 minute lunch we started to climb South Crocker Mt. It was a 2200 foot climb to the top. We were both absolutely exhausted when we got to the top. The mountains always seem to mistreat you when you get to the top. Just as we topped the mountain we started down 600 feet only to then go up 600 feet to the top of North Crocker Mountain. We sat for 15 minutes under a sign saying we were at the top and ate a snack. We were so tired we did not talk. At 1:40 PM we started down hoping to get to the road before dark. This was a 5.2 mile descent and it could have been rocky with technical down climbs but we were lucky. It was not as bad as we anticipated. We got to the road at 4:30 and telephoned Sue at the hostel who drove the 5 miles to the trail head to pick us up. Just as we got in her truck it started to rain hard.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-17
From: Stratton ME / Statton Hostel

To: Stratton ME / Stratton Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

Today we are resting and planning the next leg of our trip. The next leg is about 75 miles to Monson ME. This is the last trail town before the 100 mile wilderness and Kathadin.Our first task will be to get through the Bigelow Mt. range. This will be the last set of really tough mountains on the journey. We plan on breaking it up in two days rather than going for one exhausting long day. I am constantly exhausted and Carol does not say much but she is looking tired and her pack has begun to hurt her on her bony prominences of her lower back. My knees are still an issue and she now is complaining of knee pain. We will be glad to hike on some flat areas after the Bigelows Mt., and especially in the 100 mile wilderness.Staying at the hostel is Churchill a hiker from England we knew many states ago. He has completed his thru hike and gave us some valuable advice and encouragement. Back in New Hampshire we were told the toughest hiking would be in Maine and that is true. It has been a real struggle to cover more than 10 miles per day.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-18
From: Stratton ME / Stratton Hostel

To: Safford Notch Campsite
Miles today: 10.3
Weather: broken clouds

Sue from the Stratton Lodge Hostel gave us a ride to the trail. The weather was in the 40 F range and it was foggy. The trail was steep and we climbed over North Horn at 3792 feet, South Horn at 3805 feet, and Bigelow Mountain at 4145 feet. We could see Sugar Loaf Mountain from here. We finally climbed Avery Peak (named after the second man to thru hike the trail) at 4090 feet.The trail seemed to take a lot out of us today. There were steep descents which really seem to aggravate my already painful knees. As we hiked along looking for the side trail to the camping area we felt like we may be lost because the trail seemed to be hardly used. Finally we climbed between two large boulders and we could see the tenting area. There were 2 tent platforms and we settled on the nearest one to the trail. We were the only ones at the tenting area and it was a little disconcerting because there was a bear warning posted. Later a second and third group came into camp and set up. One person had a dog which helps deter any bears. At this stage we are not frightened by the bears but if they get our food it would be difficult to resupply in this remote area.We hung our food ten feet out from a tree and twelve feet up and there was no bear activity that evening.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-19
From: Safford Notch Campsite

To: West Carry Pond Lean To
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: light rain

We have now passed the 2000 mile mark. The temperature today stayed between 50 and 60 F. and overcast.We came out of the Safford Notch Campsite and climbed Little Bigelow Mountain. It was a climb of about 1000 feet but for some reason was very tiring. The trail in this area was great slabs of granite which makes it hard to climb up or down because your feet slip, and you can fall, unless you are well braced.We are entering the lake district of Maine and we could see Flagstaff Lake below us it was a beautiful looking lake from up above. When we got to the bottom of the mountian the trail followed the lake and we moved away some small shrubs and saw Q-tip a friend we have hiked with off and on during our journey. He is from Florida and loves Maine. He does not want the hike to end. He said he had been on the beach camped for a day and planned to stay another. After a half hour of talking we hiked on.We are very tired and as we hiked up a small mountain called round top it was very evident. We stopped and rested. I don't think we are getting enough food. Carol carries the food and she can't carry anymore. I carry other stuff and my knees won't take much more weight. As we got to West Carry Pond we saw loons on the lake and they gave their haunting call. We have not heard loons since leaving Canada. It brought back a lot of memories and emotions in us. I need to tell you that here in Maine what they call ponds are in fact medium sized lakes. The leaves are beginning to turn color and the air has the fall crispness I remember as a child.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-20
From: West Carry Pond Lean To

To: Harrison Camp
Miles today: 9.4

We cut the day short today because we wanted to stay at a rustic hunting and fishing camp. The A.T use to have these camps all along the trail but this is now the last one. Tim Harrison has owned the camp for 25 years and knows alot about the area and the wildlife in the area. We had a little cabin to ourselves with a small wood stove and two small kerosene lights. In the morning Time made us a huge breakfast of 12 pancakes, eggs and sausage. We are running low on food so Carol and I put some of the pancakes in a plastic bag for later.Hiking in the area is very muddy and there are planks over some extra muddy areas. We rested at a beach area and the gray jays flew right down and harassed us for food. There is quite a contrast between the bright sunny areas around the ponds and the dark areas in the forests. As you walk around the ponds, however, there are a lot of rocks and roots.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-21
From: Harrison Camp

To: Pleasant Pond Lean To
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: light rain

We again had a short day. I am feeling exhausted and my knees are hurting alot today. We hiked from the Harrison Camp to the Kennebec River (3 miles) and there we met Hillbilly Dave. He gave us a canoe ride across the river. This is officially how you are to cross this river because water is released intermittenly from a dam, and years ago a hiker drowned in the river. That is why they have instituted the canoe ride. He is quite a character.When we got to camp it was early and I sat and watched Carol gather some small pieces of wood, birch bark, moss and a few slightly bigger pieces of wood and make a fire. She boiled up some water and we drank tea. It was warm and wonderful. Later Joe the Marine stopped in and chatted. He hiked on to stealth camp. Trog came in with foot pain and Carol sprang into action and fixed his pain by apply thick moleskin around the callous, and tape to hold it in place. This relieved the pressure when he walked and he was good as ever.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)
Date: 2010-09-22
From: Pleasant Pond Lean To

To: Moxie Bald Lean To
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It was a perfect temperature for hiking, around 60 degrees. We had two mountains of medium size to hike today. The first one had a 1200 foot climb and the second would come at the end of the day and it had a 1300 foot climb. neither of these mountains would pose much of a problem previously but we are so tired out. If I didn't know that their were no ticks here I would suspect lime disease. Instead I am sure it is calorie deprivation. The first mountain was Pleasant Pond Mt. at 2470 feet. It had multiple peaks and these are always frustrating because you are never sure when you are at the top. There were big slab rocks heading down and we had to be careful not to fall. As we were descending we ran into a hiker we knew who is now hiking south (he is doing a flip flop hike) Freeman. He broke his foot and was off the trail for 5 weeks to let it heal. He then went to Kathadin and started hiking south. He will finish in Kent Ct. It was great catching up on trail news with him.We hiked down from Pleasant Pond Mountain there was a stream called Baker Stream. It said in our guide book that we needed to ford the stream. Here in Maine there are few bridges along the trail and there is a need to ford streams. Luckily the stream was low and we just rock hopped across. The second mountain we had to climb was Moxie Bald. All went well for the first three quarters of the hike up. Then all of a sudden it was straight up over slabs of rocks. The mountain was bald wiith huge round granite slabs on top. As we looked north we could see a giant mountain 134 trail miles ahead. It was Kathadin - our destination. It was awe inspiring, frightening and emotional all at one time. I felt my self only wanting to glimpse at the mountain. The down hill from the mountain was not as bad as I had envisioned. When we got to the bottom we discussed the next days hike. We decided to try to hike all the way to Monson ME. but we would need to eat almost all our food to do it. Carol made a completely full pot of ramen noodles (three packets). She added to that 3 servings of tuna and two sauces laden with calories. We sat and ate the entire pot.The Canadian Geese(Never quit on a bad day - Bison 2009 thru hiker)