morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2022-04-26
From: Bearwallow Gap

To: Bryant Ridge Shelter 
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: scattered clouds

After our night by Bearwallow Gap we broke camp about 7:20 and headed straight up the mountain. The rain tarp over the tent was damp with condensation so I wrapped it separately in a plastic bag and will dry it when we stop for lunch. At first it wasn¢t bad but then the farther up you went, the steeper. The weather calls for scattered showers of 50% at noon and 60% at 1pm. At noon we could see dark clouds and hear thunder over the mountains to our left but it was still pretty over us. Then the wind started to kick up and the clouds began moving our way. We had about 45 minutes to get to the shelter. I asked the Good Lord to give is that time so we could get there and stay dry. Ten minutes after we got to the shelter it began raining! God is listening to this poor, aching hiker. :)And who should we meet at the shelter but Cool Whip, Tin Man, Smooth, GGnome, and Runaway! Didn¢t think we¢d see them again after yesterday and their plans for 17 mile days. They had stopped there waiting for the rain to pass and had been there about 2 hours. They were just pack ing u to leave when the rain started. They dropped their packs and climbed back into the shelter. Speaking of the shelter, it is called the Bryant Ridge Shelter and is one of the biggest on the AT. It can hold 20 people (most hold 6-8) and is 2 stories high with an upper loft. The water source is a stream right near the shelter and the privy is a short walk down a little path. Everyone was just laying quietly resting when a young hiker came in. She was quiet and wrote in the shelter log for the longest time. Then more came straggling in. The first girl and another hiker began LOUDLY talking about a smurf riddle they had come up with or heard. They went back and forth yakking and yakking like a couple of crows. It was really annoying! After about 8 of them had showed up, they decided to walk on to the next shelter (which is where we had planned to end our day). After they left, we just talked about how loud and annoying those girls were. (Cool Whip nicknamed them Chip and Dale.) We all decided to just stay here for the night rather than go to the next shelter with the annoying kids. GGnome and Runaway decided to move on and find a stealth camp because they had only done a nero yesterday and so far today. It rained for a couple hours before finally tapering off. Tomorrow is supposed to be really nice and only in the 70¢s. It¢s supposed to be nice for the next 4 days or so. After the rain stopped the guys went around and collected firewood and Tin Man made a fabulous fire. It took care of the bothersome bugs for sure. I forgot to mention that last night at the campground store Tin Man tried on a raccoon tailed hat. GGnome said if he didn¢t buy that hat he was gonna buy it for him! So Tin Man bought it and it hasn¢t left his head. :)We told the guys that when they get to Rockfish Gap in Waynesboro to call us and we will come get them for resupply and a place to stay. They were grateful for the offer. I hope we get home before they get there.Hiked 10.4 miles until 1:20pm
Date: 2022-04-27
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter 

To: Stealth campsite at Harrison Spring 
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up to a cold, cold morning. A day ago we were dying of the heat and today we are freezing. We ¢slept in¢ till 6am and enjoyed breakfast together at the picnic table with the guys. They are so funny and conversations are always lively. We were actually the first to leave at 8am. Began the day with ¢fresh horses¢, as Coffeebean says, to begin the big climb up to 4200 feet. It was cool below so I wore my fleece over my shirt. About 1/4 of the way up I stopped to take it off and realized that the water bottle that I have attached to my shoulder strap was missing. I¢d left it at the shelter! I said a prayer that one of the guys would see it and bring it along. The higher we climbed the worse the winds became. So I stopped again and put my fleece back on. We kept hiking up and up. The winds were just unbelievably brutal and cold. Hurricanic winds! (A new word I have just created to describe the winds we are experiencing.) We finally got to the top and over and the winds calmed down so I stopped and took my fleece off for the second time.We came down quite a drop and then began our second (3000¢) climb of the day. I know I bitch a lot about the ups and downs of these mountains. But until you are out here with a 25-30 pack on your back and climbing up an incline with anywhere from a 35-45 degree angle with strong/gusting winds trying to knock you over, it can be hard for you to relate. I wish I could find the words (other than my current whining ones) that really paint a true picture. We finally got to the Harrison Spring tent site. Coffeebean walked right past it and I only caught it because of the sign that said ¢water not tested¢. After checking Guthook I called Coffeebean back and we went down a picked a site. There was already a thru-hiker set up. The guys came in about 10 minutes later. The water source is not exactly the way it¢s described on Guthook. The stream was very small, not easy to find, and the water had to be scooped out with a cup. Tonight it¢s supposed to get down to 35 degrees. Brrr!Tomorrow we head into Glasgow and the hostel Stanimals for a shower, laundry, town food, and a bed off the ground. Can¢t wait. We¢ll also walk over the James River Foot Bridge, the longest foot bridge on the AT. We hiked 13.6 miles today.
Date: 2022-04-30
From: Stealth campsite by the river

To: Hog Camp Gap
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: broken clouds

Today is the last day of April and we should be home in 4 days or so. We woke up to the beautiful sound of the river below us. Tin Man is wanting to do a 20 mile day so he left pretty quickly. We wished him well and I gave him my number so he could call us when he reached Rockfish Gap and we would give him a free place to stay and shuttle him around for resupply. Coffeebean left next and I followed about 8:15. Smooth is meeting his wife at VA 60 which is only 6 miles from where we are. He told her 1pm so he has plenty of time to get there. The trail was pretty and ran along the river. We stopped at a couple informational signs. It seems that back in the early 1900¢s there had been a small community of freed slaves that had lived and worked there. As we walked we could see stones fences or maybe they were the walls of homes on the other side of the river.We had to cross back and forth across the river several times. It was so calming to walk along and see the small cascades and listen to the rushing water. It started to drizzle (Rain isn¢t due till tomorrow!) so we had to stop and cover our packs and put on raincoats. It picked up a little and then would go back to spitting. We stopped at the Brown Mountain Creek Shelter for a snack and met ¢Mother Nature¢. She is 80 years old (I thought she was in her early 70¢s/late 60¢s!) and has been driving a school bus for 48 years and hopes to go to 50. She and her husband (who 93 and finally stopped hiking at 90) have section hiked the whole AT and then went back and did a thru-hike too. She said hiking the AT was her passion and she took her grandkids hiking on it too. We continued on and knew when we were getting close to VA 60 because the trail started to ascend. We got up to the road and met ¢Mrs Smooth¢. :) She brought us trail magic of drinks. Cool Whip had a beer. Coffeebean and I had a Coke. Smooth gave Cool Whip a beer to give to Tin Man when he saw him. Then we started our 4200¢ ascent! It was tough, very tough. We finished that, walked down a bit, and then started Cole Mountain. It wasn¢t a bad climb and there were two balds at the top. It was really beautiful and serene. Just a short 1.2 mile walk from there to Hog Camp Gap where we planned to stop for the night. We thought it would be crowded with hikers but we were the only ones there. It¢s a beautiful grassy field with a firepit. Cool Whip was going to do a fire but it has gotten cold and we need to get to the shelter 8.4 miles away before the predicted thunderstorms at 2pm tomorrow.Hiked 13.1 miles today.
Date: 2022-06-09
From: Dennytown Road Campsite

To: Canopus Lake Beach Shelter (Raymond Torrey Memorial Shelter)
Miles today: 6.2
Weather: light rain

We were supposed to get .9 inches of rain but the rain that battered our tent was heavier than that. It was supposed to stop around 9 or 10am but it must have stopped sooner because it was clear when I got up at 8. I spoiled myself and walked over to the group camping area and used a port-a-potty and THEIR TP. I came back and woke Coffeebean. We packed up and walked over to the group camping and laid the wet tent and canopy on one picnic table and we ate breakfast at the other. Everything was dry by the time we were ready to leave at 10:10am. Late start but that¢s ok. The trail was a challenge today. A good part of it was puddles, some going down the trail for yards and some just enough to jump over. We walked carefully over the rocks and tree roots. Those are so slippery when wet or even damp.Water isn¢t going to be an issue today. The small streams were flowing well and the larger ones were torrents of rushing water. More than once we stopped to put our phones in waterproof bags and cinch up our straps to cross a river with strong flowing water. Today has been tough. We didn¢t sleep well with the rain and traffic so we struggled. Just before hitting the NY 301 road, we came across a beautiful shrine to those who are grieving a loss. It was an old fashioned rotary dial telephone attached to an exhibit board with the title ¢Telephone of the Wind¢. It was put there by a local grief therapist in honor of the first one created in Japan. (In 2010 a garden designer in Japan built a telephone booth in his garden so he could ¢talk¢ to his late cousin. Coffeebean said he had seen this on the CBS Sunday Morning program once.) Next to the phone were instructions to ¢use it to connect to the ones you have lost. To feel the comfort of their memory. May you hear their voices in the wind.¢ I dialed my beloved mom and dad and told them I missed them. Stopped at a picnic table at Canopus Lake Beach. The breeze was wonderful and so was the sun. It¢s a beautiful little lake with a nice sandy beach. After eating we walked up to the concession stand. Of course it is only open on WEEKENDS right now. Our dreams of hot hamburgers are getting dimmer and dimmer! But the bathrooms and water fountains were open so we got to use a flush toilet and not have to filter our water. Silver lining, I guess. We also spoke to a gentleman that was working there. He is a member of the Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Club. His trail name is Bascom Grillmaster. He told me about the meeting in October of the ALDHC at Williams College in Massachusetts and encouraged us to come. We then followed the blue blaze to the new shelter built in 2021. It¢s very nice but spartan. No water, no privy, but a huge field for tents. After a short discussion we decide to stop here. Like I said, we struggled some today and had a late start. Tomorrow we will get up at usual at 5:30am and plan to get to the shelter 13 miles from here. Even on a short day of 4 hours hiking we still did 6.2 miles. Slowly but surely we will get better.
Date: 2022-06-14
From: Mt Algo Shelter

To: Silver Hill Campsite 
Miles today: 10.54
Weather: overcast clouds

I had a good night¢s sleep listening to the soft sounds of the nearby river. Shauna and Thurston left before I could say goodbye or get their picture for our hiker photo album. Darn it! I was able to get pictures of Clydesdale and Teddybear before they headed out. We started out and the day was already getting warm even at 8:00 in the morning. The humidity is going to be bad again today. We hiked down a gigantic rock scramble called St. John¢s Ledges (I would love to know where some of these names come from.). It was really steep coming down and many times I put my pole straps on my wrist so I could use my hands to climb down. At one point I put my foot on the ground and it went straight down into a hole about 6¢ deep. The other thing too were the caterpillars. They were all over the rocks! It was so gross. Day hikers we pass just say ¢The season is almost over.¢  Caterpillars have a season?A really nice part of today¢s hike was walking along the Housatonic River. A flat trail ran along side the river with a lovely breeze. We walked like that for over 4 miles. It was great. Of course we knew it couldn¢t last forever. Just after we turned off the riverside trail and started up the mountain we had to stop and get water from a pipe spring. There is no water at the Silver Hill Campsite where we are spending the night so we had to fill up here. We also each carried an extra liter so we would have enough to cook dinner and breakfast. On our way up to the campsite, we met Eric (trail name Rock Steady) and his wife (we learned her name is Elaine) again. Coffeebean saw them first and yelled ¢Hey, you¢re late!¢ and they laughed. We talked for a few minutes and Eric admitted that he forgot the Gatorade that he promised but hopefully would see us again tomorrow and bring it. We hiked upward to the Silver Hill Campsite. It had a number of tent sites, a privy, a pavilion with 2 picnic tables (the tables were in sad shape though), a deck with benches, and a swing. After we got the tent up Coffeebean stretched out on the deck and I sat on the swing. The swing was a little tall so I had to sit on the edge of the seat for my stubby legs to reach the ground. I love swings! I also pulled the netting out of my hat and wore it over my head because the gnats and no-seeums were really annoying. Later we had a dinner of Mountain House beef stroganoff. We hit the sack about 7pm. This is a nice campsite. Very quiet. We hiked 10.54 miles today.
Date: 2022-06-15
From: Silver Hill Campsite 

To: BelterÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Campsite 
Miles today: 13.74
Weather: mist

No one else camped at the Silver Hill Campsite so we had the place to ourselves. We ate a breakfast of powdered milk and Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds and packed our pants side pockets with snacks for the day. Before packing up the tent we had to wash caterpillar goo off the canopy. It¢s a black goo that comes out of dead caterpillars. It¢s gross. Everything about them is gross, as I¢m sure I have mentioned before. Before we hike out we always look back to make sure we haven¢t left anything. Today is day 12 without a shower. We can now smell each other. Coffeebean always says that skunks can¢t smell each other. Well, we can. The hiking was hot and so many of the trees are dead that we had no canopy to hike under, no relief from the sun. We¢re guessing that the caterpillars are the cause. Last year¢s infestation just decimated the trees.One positive thing is the wonderful smell of pine as we walk. And walking on pine needles is so soft. We went through another rock formation similar to the Lemon Squeezer in New York. Connecticut¢s version of the Lemon Squeezer. It was a little easier than the NY version but still fun!We stopped at Pine Swamp Branch Shelter for lunch. We finished up the last of the cheese. Coffeebean took a short nap. He didn¢t sleep well again last night. Merit, a section hiker, stopped and set up her hammock (even though it was only about 12:30). She said she had promised herself 7 miles and then she would stop, so she did. She is section hiking southern MASS, CT, NY, and NJ.The trail in the afternoon wasn¢t too, too bad. A few minor ups but alot of fairly level trail too. Coffeebean¢s right knee has been buckling on him when he goes up or down.We finally got to Belter¢s Campsite about 5:00pm. There is poison ivy everywhere so I am trying to be really careful where I walk. We were both exhausted so Coffeebean didn¢t feel like making dinner and I didn¢t feel like eating. We just ate some granola bars and mixed nuts. We laid in the tent snoozing and I checked the local weather. Sunny for the next several days¢¦Then it started raining. What?!So Guthook, which I use, said we hiked 13.74 miles. AWOL, which Coffeebean uses, said we hiked 12.0 miles. I like my number better. °
Date: 2022-04-07
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I am one week from the start of my hike with Mike Hunnell. We are going to flip flop so Mike can take care of some work back home. The pack is 95% packed with a few small decisions to be finalized. Not sure I am ready to be aware from family for the next several months, but I am definitely excited to begin the journey. Everything starts with a Amtak ride overnight to the trail beginning and them off we go. I appreciate all the good well wishes and hope to be able to provide updates at least twice a week. With God's blessing this will be a great adventure!
Date: 2022-04-09
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light snow

Spent the day with Jim ¢speedbump¢ on Saturday hiking Yankee Springs area.  Ended up doing an 8 mile hike with my final pack of 35 lbs.  The pack is 4-5 lbs heavier than I would like.  I think I am ready to start the trail with Mike on the 15th. Looking forward to the adventure and the challenge.  Harper¢s Ferry here we come!
Date: 2022-04-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Mike and I are leaving via Amtrak after supper tonight.  We expect to arrive at Harper Ferry earlier afternoon on Friday and spend the night on the trail.  Thanks for all the well wishes and I plan to update a couple times a week.  See you all later and any of you are more than welcome to join us for a week along the way,
Date: 2022-04-15
From: Harpers Ferry, West Virginia

To: Ed Garvey Shelter
Miles today: 6.5
Weather: clear sky

We arrived at Harpers Ferry West Virginia on the Amtrak at 2:40 PM. Mike and I grabbed a quick lunch at Canon Ball deli before heading out of town, and then around 4 o¢clock began our excursion on the Appalachian Trail. We hate the 6.5 miles to the Ed Garvey shelter, and we surprised to find a packed camp. It is spring break for the local schools, and many people are taking advantage of the weekend to get outside. The Good Friday sermon talked about fining a word that you want to live your life about.  I gave that a lot of thought, and have come up with three words that are important to me: Kindness, Contentment, and Encouragement. The third of these words is something that I really need to work on in my personal life and hope that the trail will allow me to reflect on these three words and make the changes that I need to be able to display them in my life.
Date: 2022-04-16
From: Ed Garvey Shelter

To: Dahlgren Hikers Campground
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: light rain

We have been on the trail for the second day now.  Have had two great days of weather and will be tent camping tonight.  It is Spring break for the area schools so the section hikers are out in force. I will be trying out my new North Face 1 person tent for the first time tonight. We are spending the night at Dahlgren hikers campground which had a bathhouse with hot showers!  Found out our fifth grandchild due in July with be a baby girl and looking forward to the rocks in Pennsylvania. This is the same campground where my Michigan hiking friends and I spent a rainy night on an one week section hike.  During that trip we used the bathroom to play a game of Settlers of Catan in dry conditions. Thanks for all the well wishes and I hope you have a blessed Easter tomorrow! God Bless!
Date: 2022-04-17
From: Dahlgren Backpacker Campground

To: Ensign Cowall Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: overcast clouds

We dropped tents and got on trail in pretty good time this morning. The high temperature for the day reached about 48°, and we stopped for lunch at the Pogo Memorial campground. We were able to see some great views at Annapolis Vista. I was glad to have my puffy jacket along, because after we got to camp it became the extra layer that kept me warm. We had split wood at the shelter, and the was no way that I was not going to take advantage of getting a fire going for the night. We enjoyed the company of three other hikers, (Pork chop, Shaggy, and Kerri and her dog).
Date: 2022-04-18
From: Ensign Cowall Shelter - MD

To: Deer Lick Shelter - PA
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Today gave us several first time events, we completed the state of Maryland, our first state that we¢ve hiked the entire state. We also did our first resupply, and needed to hitchhike into town. We were able to get rides both ways, the trip back to town was with Linda Ott, who had given Mike a ride from the same location last October.  Our third first, was that it began snowing at 11 AM and continued all the way until mid afternoon the next day. We ended up with over 4 1/2 inches of snow and hiking got very interesting. The forecast was that the snow it was only going to be for a couple hours and then we change to rain but since the temperature stayed in the high 20s we continue to get snow. We decided to continue hiking, and ended up at Deer  Lick shelter. A resupply was at a Walmart, where we also were able to enjoy a Subway for lunch. The Walmart had Sawyer filters so I was able to replace my filter which did not work earlier in the week. Mike decided to modify the common trail saying of ¢You Do not get to Maine if You do not Walk in the Rain¢ to ¢If You Won¢t Walk in Snow You Better Not Go¢. We were the only people at the Deer Lick shelter, so we set up our tents inside the shelter to provide a warmer environment for the night.
Date: 2022-04-19
From: Deer Lick Shelter

To: Quarry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: fog

Day two in Pennsylvania.  We had snow from 11am yesterday until around 3:00 pm today. We are around 60 total miles into the trip.  I have completed the section that I hike with friends on my first AT section hike, and we enjoyed stopping for lunch at Rocky Mtn Shelter which is a place that I had stayed in my first trip to the area with Jim & Mike Gort. The Quarry Gap shelter is one of the more interesting shelters on the trail, it has flowerpots, and surrounded by beautiful rhododendron plants. Unfortunately, one of the two shelters was hit by a tree and is damaged at the moment.We were able to get water today at the state park, which also had open bathrooms for our use. There were three at the shelter, two Flip Floppers who decided to hammock and Big Breakfast who started in Georgia. We still are expiencing temperatures below freezing in the mornings.
Date: 2022-04-20
From: Quarry Gap Shelter

To: TomÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Run Shelter
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: broken clouds

We woke up to 28° this morning, and snow on the ground. It is our third straight day that will be walking in snow. The difference today is that the afternoon was bright and sunny and the trails were easy to walk. We had lunch at Birchrun shelter, and are spending extra time to help warm up a bit. We also decided to change our original schedule since we had planned on tent camping and want to be in a shelter with the cold. Even with walk in the extra miles we made it two toms run shelter before 2 PM. It¢s a very small cabin, only holds about four people, and there¢s no cell service at this location. There is a real nice water stream close to the shelter, and with the sun this afternoon things appear to be much warmer. It¢s amazing how much some sunshine changes the perception of the outdoor temperature. We cross the official halfway mark of the trail today, even though that¢s not the halfway mark for us obviously. Tom and Rob decided to tent at Tom¢s Run  shelter area due to the limited space inside the shelter. We did decide that it still was a good night for a fire and enjoyed the heat that it provided.