morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-07-20
From: Bennington, VT

To: Kid Gore Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: broken clouds

Day: 129Start: Bennington, VTFinish: Kid Gore ShelterMileage: 14.4Weather: niceAfter a poor night's sleep, I woke up to the sound of Earthling telling the garbage collectors about his hike and how we "were only going to Maine, but he was going all the way to Canada." Nevermind the fact that we still have over 500 miles of trail left (about twice the distance of the entire LT) and Katahdin is much further north than the northern terminus of the Long Trail. I didn't want to have this conversation though, so I tried to go back to sleep to no avail. We ate some food and then had a hard time getting a hitch out of town. We were even passed up by an old hippie in a converted school bus, at which point we knew we had reached an all time low in the area of hitch-hiking. We did eventually get a ride and we were back on the trail.Vermont really showed us her beauty today, especially with a very nice view from Glastenbury Mountain. There I went up my first fire tower in Vermont with Yardsale and Bams. We heard some people down below playing Marco Polo and ran into a camp group as we came down from the tower.We moved on to Kid Gore Shelter where I set up my hammock to escape from the mosquitoes. The view from the shelter was really nice and we watched the fading light in the distant sky as we ate dinner (I ate Yardsale's leftovers). I slept great in my hammock.
Date: 2005-07-21
From: Kid Gore Shelter

To: Stratton Mt.
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day: 130Start: Kid Gore ShelterFinish: Stratton Mt.Mileage: 12.0Weather: niceThe hiking today was nice and pretty easy. Tinkerbell, Jersey Fresh and Southshore caught up and we leap-frogged back and forth with those guys most of the day. We got the news about more London bombings along with news about moose sightings.Yardsale and I checked out a giant pile of sawdust about thirty yards off the trail. The sawdust pile was huge and looked like a sand dune. We climbed up Stratton Mountain and stayed up there for the rest of the afternoon. I read and worked on my journal while Yardsale took a nap. We saw quite a few jackrabbits that came into the grassy area for food. We met Mellow and then Croc Walker and Britanica all of whom came and left. Then Shawn, Caroline and Naked Son came up and hung out for a while. Caroline hurt her toe pretty badly and was limping along in pain. But she had walked fifteen miles that day and seemed to be doing alright. Yardsale, Naked Son and I watched the sunset from the firetower and then slept in it.
Date: 2005-07-22
From: Stratton Mt.

To: Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: broken clouds

Day: 131Start: Stratton Mt.Finish: Manchester Center, VTMileage: 13.7Weather: pm showersWe woke up early to watch a very nice sunrise from the fire tower, and I read while the others went back to sleep for a while. We got moving eventually and walked down the mountain to Stratton Pond. I swam in Stratton Pond for a while and heard that Shadow was chased around the pond by a bull moose the night before.The hiking for the rest of the day was pretty easy with no major elevation change. I stopped at Prospect Rock for quite a while to read. Yardsale and Naked Son came and went and I eventually left as well. I stopped in at the last shelter for some water and talked with a SOBO from Asheville for a while before heading into town. After almost getting ran over while crossing the busy road, I easily got a ride into town with a guy who had never heard of the AT. I don't know if he really believed that such a trail exists, but he was nice enough to pretend like he didn't think I was crazy.I met Yardsale and Naked Son at the pizza place after I returned from the post office and we resupplied, walked around town and went to the movie "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." I thought the movie was good, but the original rendition is still the best.When we left the movie, we met Yardsale's parents in the movie parking lot and drove back to the trail to drop off Naked Son before we headed off to a hotel room for the evening.
Date: 2005-07-23
From: Manchester Center, VT

To: Lost Pond Shelter, VT
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: clear sky

Day: 132Start: Manchester Center, VTFinish: Lost Pond Shelter, VTMileage: 14.8Weather: excellentYardsale met his parents the night before for the primary purpose of having them drive him to Boston so that he could go to a concert (SCI, Yonder Mt., Keller Williams and others) with some friends. So they dropped me off in town that morning after kindly feeding me some donuts. I did some more town chores and then started trying to get a ride out of town.Hitching out of town was pretty difficult (took about an hour) and I didn't get back on the trail until one in the afternoon. The hiking was well worth the wait though as I went over several nice peaks. Bromley, Peru and Baker peak were all really nice and the hiking up to them was spectacular as well. Coming down from Baker Peak I even startled a porcupine who puffed up all of its quills before darting off into the woods.I didn't know where I was going to end up staying that night since there was some discrepancy as to whether Lost Pond Shelter charged a fee or not (the error ended up being in the Companion). But I decided I would get there at least and walk on if they charged a fee. I did take the time to stop at Griffith Lake for a quick dip in the water. Lost Pond shelter did not charge a fee to my pleasant surprise, but they did house an impressive army of mosquitoes. Thus, I set up my hammock as quickly as possible to escape the onslaught of these horrible creatures. I was the only one at the shelter that night and I slept pretty well in my hammock.
Date: 2005-07-24
From: Lost Pond Shelter, VT

To: Greenwall Shelter, VT
Miles today: 9.8
Weather: clear sky

7/24Day: 133Start: Lost Pond ShelterFinish: Greenwall ShelterMileage: 9.8Weather: goodI woke up pretty late this morning and stayed in my hammock to work on updating my journal. During that time, a SOBO came by and gave me his map for the upcoming section and I met OC-1 and SWIFT.I left the shelter at about 1:15 after doing a lot of work on the old journal. The hiking pretty much beat me up today and I was glad to get to Little Rock Pond. I did the 200 yard swim across the pond to jump off the rock but was stopped after two jumps by a fisherman who was fifty feet away but thought I was disturbing his chances at catching a fish. So I hiked on to White Rocks where I checked out the multitude of cairns before moving on to the shelter. There I met Dan (LT section hiker) and saw OC-1 and SWIFT. Late in the evening, Morel came in and talked to me about going to the Ben and Jerry ice cream factory in the morning. I was pretty excited about the idea until I heard that the hitch-hiking would take most of the day. I had to sleep on the idea.
Date: 2005-07-25
From: Greenwall Shelter, VT

To: Minerva Hinchey Shelter, VT
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: light rain

7/25Day: 134Start: Greenwall Shelter, VTFinish: Minerva Hinchey Shelter, VTMileage: 5.1Weather: normalWhen I woke up in the morning I decided to go to the Ben and Jerry's factory with Morel. So I ate some breakfast, packed up my stuff and we were off. The hike to VT 140 was only a couple of miles but we were discouraged to see minimal traffic (less traffic equals a less likely chance of finding a ride).   A dump truck came by after only a minute or so, but we didn't even put out our thumbs. Commercial vehicles will rarely pick up hitch-hikers due to liability issues, but this guy happened to be the owner of the business and he stopped to ask us if we needed a ride without our even signaling for one. We were elated.We each bought a breakfast sandwich at the convenience store and went across the street with our cardboard sign reading "Burlington". We were in a car heading to Burlington before I finished my sandwich. Bob took us all the way to Williston which was actually closer to our destination than Burlington, and two other short rides got us to the parking lot of the factory.The ice cream factory was really neat, even considering my romanticized expectations due to recently seeing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. At the end of the tour we got to sample two flavors of ice cream (Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and a new flavor called The Last Straw). We bought some more ice cream outside and checked out the facilities in greater detail. We visited a graveyard for retired flavors, but they didn't have a tombstone for my brother Chris' favorite flavor, Wavy Gravy.The hitching experience on the way back was a bit more difficult and convoluted than on the way there. We ended up going from I-89 to VT 4 into Woodstock to VT 100a to VT 103 to VT 140. We hiked about three more miles to the shelter but didn't get there until shortly before dark. Rainbow and Sparticus had their tent set up in the shelter as they were the only ones there. Morel made a fire and we hung out for a while before I broke part of my hammock and went to sleep.
Date: 2005-07-26
From: Minerva Hinchey Shelter, VT

To: Cooper Lodge, VT
Miles today: 13.8

Day: 135Start: Minerva Hinchey Shelter, VTFinish: Cooper Lodge, VTMileage: 13.8Weather: good, nighttime rainWe set out somewhat late in the morning and stopped pretty early at Clarendon Gorge for a swim. The gorge was spectacular and I felt amazing swimming downstream with the current in the deep, clear water. The rock formations were great here as well and there was even a rock from which you could jump. All that swimming helped us to work up an appetite. So, we walked down the road about half a mile to the Whistlestop Cafe. The food was pretty good, but they charged me a dollar for water which did not make me happy. We walked on over ups and downs until Governor Clement Shelter where overnight stay is not recommended due to a history of hiker harassment from local rednecks. From this shelter, the trail goes up Killington Mountain quite a bit to reach Cooper Lodge.At Cooper Lodge, Morel and I met Grizzly Dave and saw Sparticus and Rainbow, Dan (LT section-hiker) and four other section hikers. Morel and I hiked up to the summit of Killington before dark (steep climb) and checked out the view. We went back down at dusk and I saw a porcupine on the way down. It started to rain and I retreated to my hammock. Since I had now "fixed" the broken piece on my hammock, it now sat far too low below the rain fly and I got pretty wet and did not sleep well at all due to the wind and rain.
Date: 2005-07-27
From: Cooper Lodge, VT

To: Rutland, VT
Miles today: 0.0

7/27Day: 136Start: Cooper LodgeFinish: Rutland, VTMileage: 6.2Weather: pm rainI woke up several times this morning to the wind sending blasts of water through the bug netting of my hammock and onto my face. Both my hammock and sleeping bag were a bit damp. So I packed everything up, put "fix hammock" on my to do list and started walking north.After a couple hours of primarily downhill walking, Morel and I were in a car and heading to Rutland to resupply. The guy who drove us into town dropped us off at the grocery store, but once we got out Morel told me that he saw a Pizza Hut and that he believed their lunch buffet closed in ten minutes. So we ran nearly a mile back toward the trail only to find out that the buffet had closed thirty minutes before. The employee told us that he could not give us the mass of remaining pizza for liability purposes, but we were able to convince him to sell us the pizza. So for five dollars each, Morel and I each picked up over five pounds of pizza.We sat on the lawn of a bank and ate before waddling back to the grocery store to resupply. We noticed it was going to rain when we left the grocery store so we decided to stay at a free hostel in town.The Back Home Again hostel is operated by a religious group known as the Twelve Tribes. These folks were very welcoming and they showed us a very different way of life. Morel and I spent all of the afternoon and most of the evening talking with Jeremiah and others in the bakery about their distinctive beliefs. While we were talking, members of the group brought us some amazing pizza, lemon-honey iced-tea and mixed fruit smoothies. Sparticus and Rainbow were also at the hostel as were Esoteric Ninja and Two Trackin'. I went to sleep late.
Date: 2005-07-28
From: Rutland, VT

To: Lookout Cabin, VT
Miles today: 17.5

7/28Day: 137Start: Rutland, VTFinish: Lookout CabinMileage: 17.5Weather: niceWe were unable to find any tribesmen in the morning to thank them for their hospitality. So we went to breakfast in town and found some of the guys when we came back. We got a pretty easy ride back to the trail from a guy who works at Inn at Long Trail (a popular destination). We received a bit of trail magic in the form of a candy bar from two former thru-hikers who were finishing up a section in the parking lot.After about a mile, we came to Maine Junction, where the Long Trail splits off from the AT. After even more walking, we came to Kent Pond but did not swim there because it smelled pretty bad. Next, we climbed Quimby Mt. which was pretty big. I saw Throw and Fetch for the first time in a while at the top of the climb and then met Boots and Blue Light and saw Sparticus and Rainbow all at Stony Brook Shelter.There was still light in the day when we reached the shelter, we had heard about this neat cabin and we were trying to make it to a hiker party by Saturday, so Morel and I pushed on a few more miles. The Lookout Cabin was worth the extra effort as it offered an impressive view of the mountains and an obscured but appreciated view of the sunset. The sky was perfectly clear and the stars were very bright, so I decided to sleep on the lookout tower. I watched the stars as I fell asleep and even saw a bright-tailed shooting star before I dozed off. A cool, consistent breeze kept the bugs away and enabled me to sleep soundly throughout the night.
Date: 2005-07-29
From: Lookout Cabin, VT

To: VT 12
Miles today: 6.2

7/29Day: 138Start: Lookout CabinFinish: VT 12Mileage: 6.2Weather: normalI woke up on the lookout tower in time to watch an amazing sunrise that illuminated the lake of clouds that filled the valleys along with the island-like peaks that rose above. This morning was the first time I was able to pick fresh berries for my cereal and I was very excited, especially since the berries were raspberries which are my favorite. Morel woke up late and we got moving sometime around mid-morning.The hiking rated as average to slightly above average on the enjoyment scale(with added points for a large selection of berries). We stopped pretty early in the afternoon to check out an unlisted barn hostel and, well, we ended up staying the rest of the day. These type of things just seem to happen - all your friends arrive, someone buys a blueberry pie for everyone to share, you figure out how you can make up the miles tomorrow, you reason that "this is what it is all about" and, before you know it, you are claiming sleeping space. In this case, everyone from yesterday showed up, Throw and Fetch bought the pie (very good), Morel called Britanica and arranged a ride to the party from a closer road and we even ate a pint of Ben and Jerry's (not good - freezer burned). Morel and I spent much of the late afternoon throwing his knife and then discussing with Throw and Fetch whether the thrown knife would kill various types of animals. We went to sleep planning to wake up early in order to hike twelve miles before noon to West Hartford to meet our ride for the party.
Date: 2005-07-30
From: VT 12

To: West Hartford, VT
Miles today: 12.6

7/30Day: 139Start: VT 12Finish: West Hartford, VTMileage: 12.6Weather: normalIt was a good thing Morel woke me up because I would have otherwise slept right into the morning. We packed up quickly and hiked quickly so that we could make it to West Hartford before noon. I was somewhat disappointed that we choose to hike so quickly since we were walking through some beautiful meadows and birch forests. The terrain was exactly what I pictured Vermont to be like in my mind.We made it to Thistle Hill shelter by 9:30 in the morning, so we decided to take a short break. Our break ended up being too long so we had to continue moving quickly after the break. We made it to town in time to catch our ride and even had time to jump off of the bridge into the White River. Croc Walker picked us up and drove us to his trucking business where he had tables of food set up for us to eat. I ate quite a bit of food, met several sobos and hung out the rest of the afternoon. Boots and Blue Light came in later in the afternoon and Spice Rack and Peeps came in after everyone had left. We all slept on the floor of the garage.
Date: 2005-07-31
From: West Hartford, VT

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 9.8
Weather: light rain

7/31Day:140Start: West Hartford, VTFinish: Hanover, NHMileage: 9.8Weather: goodSpice Rack, Peeps and Footwalker (sobo) left at 4:30 that morning, so only Boots and Blue Light, Morel and I remained once the sun came up. Croc Walker and Britanica left us with quite a few eggs for breakfast, so Boots scrambled them for us along with some chantrelle mushrooms Morel got from Footwalker the day before. We put it all into leftover sandwich buns and had a great breakfast. When we were done with breakfast, one of Croc Walker's employees drove us to the trail in a limo; we felt like very important hikers.We jumped off of the bridge into the White River a few more times before we started hiking. The walking today was pretty easy and I was really happy to be getting into New Hampshire (although I was sad to be leaving Vermont). I hiked past some of the sobos that were at the party the day before and rested with Shawn, Bams, Porter and Caroline at the junction to the Happy Hill shelter. I walked into Hanover on a cloud, feeling absolutely great about getting to this point and incredibly excited about the remainder of my experience out here. I couldn't help but to sing out praises to God for the blessing of this journey.Yardsale was already in Hanover when I arrived and he met me as I crossed the street toward the campus green. His parents, sister and brother-in-law had come to visit him (yesterday was his birthday) and we all ate pizza on the green. After we had eaten, we went to Dartmouth's library to check out an art exhibit that Yardsale's mom had seen years ago. The murals were interesting but pretty dark; the mood was balanced out by the humor I found in the fact that some people were in the building on vacation while others were there to study. We resupplied outside of town and Yardsale's family dropped us off back in Hanover and said goodbye.We went to Ben and Jerry's with Morel and then went to Phi Tau, a fraternity that takes in a few hikers each night. There we met Colonial Mustard (fast nobo) and played pool and ping pong for a while before going to sleep.
Date: 2005-08-01
From: Hanover, NH

To: Moose Mt. Shelter, NH
Miles today: 11.0

8/1Day: 141Start: Hanover, NHFinish: Moose Mt. ShelterMileage: 11.0Weather: pm rainI did some chores in town, most of which were completed at the Dartmouth Outting Club building. These chores took a bit of time and we got moving out of town later in the afternoon. Morel told us he was going to push on past where Yardsale and I were planning on going that day. We tried to get him to hike at a slower pace with us but he was convinced that he needed to go faster. I will miss hiking with him.After a quick stop at Ben and Jerry's (I didn't get anything), we were off. The walking was pretty nice but it was a bit hot and humid. I ran into Porter after a road crossing and hung out with him while waiting for Yardsale to catch up. We all walked on to find a sobo camped by a stream. The southbounder told us that the shelter had no water and we should carry water up from the stream. Doing so is never fun but its better than being thirsty and dehydrated, so we toted the water up the mountain.We made it to the shelter just before it started raining and found quite a few people there. The shelter itself was primarily occupied by a boy scout group (these guys usually tent) and there were lots of other folks there as well. Morel obviously didn't make it as far as he had hoped. Boots and Blue Light were also there along with Swifty (met him tonight) and Papa Bear (started for Maine in Hanover). The rain died down, I set up my hammock and slept well.
Date: 2005-08-02
From: Moose Mt. Shelter, NH

To: Fire Wardens Cabin, NH
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: clear sky

8/2Day:142Start: Moose Mt. ShelterFinish: Fire Wardens CabinMileage: 12.4Weather: pm rainToday was a pretty lazy day. We hung around the shelter for a while, waiting for others to clear out before proceeding with our morning duties rather than getting involved in the morning rush. Thus, we left the shelter a bit late.The first climb of the day was a bit of a beast, especially since the humidity was still high. Yardsale, Porter and I hung out at the nice view on Holts Ledge for a while. The sun was warm and the view was nice so we just soaked it all in. The walking after that climb was easy until we got to Lyme-Dorchester Road. Yardsale and I rested at that road for a while, soaked our feet in the stream and washed our socks. We talked to a couple of sobos passing through, but finally decided to leave after a group from Dartmouth showed up in a big van and told us they were going our way. The uphill after the road was pretty difficult but there were refreshments in the form of raspberries up most of the first half of the climb. After some ridge walking, we came up the second half of the climb which was really steep. I went into the firetower (we hoped to sleep here) and met Stumpknocker up there. I talked with him for a while and Yardsale came up eventually. A group of "hoods in the woods" arrived and we decided that we should claim some camping space before the Dartmouth kids arrived. I let Yardsale take the open spot in the fire tower and I set up my hammock. The water source was bad and the boy scouts were in the shelter again. We said something to them about camping etiquette concerning big groups and I think we did it in a gracious manor. It started raining a little bit that evening, but it wasn't as bad as the thunderclouds we saw from the fire tower seemed to indicate. I went to sleep to the sound of noisy college kids.