morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2022-06-08
From: Dennytown Road Campsite

To: RalphÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Peak Hiker Shelter
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Said goodbye to the bear line this morning (see yesterday¢s entry) and stopped by the park spigot on the way out to refill bottles. The school bus was poised in the parking lot ready to make its morning run. School runs Sept thru June here. Canopus Lake was about 6 miles in. It has a public beach with all the amenities (concession stand, outdoor showers, electrical outlets, shady picnic tables) but is closed to car traffic on weekdays until summer begins. This means that we would have the beach and lake to ourselves!The first six miles was a blur. I did develop a ¢hotspot¢ under my left heel. Instead of stopping to doctor it properly, I traded the shoe for a Croc and walked the last mile-and-a-half with mismatched shoes. It worked out better than expected. I can¢t decide if Crocs are on the weight-savings chopping block or not. The lake lived up to the hype we created for it. The water was perfect, sun was hot, and breeze was strong (to dry our stuff out)! There was no one else on the lake or at the beach. On a busy day I¢m sure there are several hundred people here. We spent two hours soaking it all in. We filled water bottles on the way out and headed to RPH Shelter. RPH is in a suburban area. Even now I can hear the road. Houses are viewable from the ¢back porch¢.  There is a 45 gallon trash can inside - unseen anywhere else in a shelter for fear of critters big and small. Three bunks and a large back porch will keep the incoming rain off of us. RPH is maintained by a dedicated group of volunteers. They¢ve really done it up right here! The privy has a dozen signs sporting all shades of bathroom humor. There are maybe 40 one gallon jugs of water here for refills. The yard has recently been cut. There are me yes in the table for about 5 different delivery restaurants. We chose Chinese! Forty five minutes (and 75 dollars!) later we had all the chickens: orange, sweet & sour, General Tsaos, and sesame. Rice and sauces rounded out the feast. The broccoli was a nice surprise! We¢re settling in our bunks now. Baxter is in the floor and Jasper on a laid-back lounge chair on the back porch. It looks like rain tonight and throughout the morning tomorrow. Here¢s to good sleep!
Date: 2022-06-12
From: Schaghitcoke Campsite

To: CT 341 - Kent
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: few clouds

We passed Bulls Bridge Country Store this afternoon doing 60 miles per hour headed to Milford CT. What had been 16 trail miles and a day-plus-a-morning of hiking was rewound in the span of 10 minutes. We were out of camp this morning before the scouts were out of their tents. The threat of rain had abated so our need to press hard into Kent had diminished as well. We still made the 3.2 miles to the road in about an hour and a half. The welcome center was on the north side of town 0.9 miles from the trail. The outskirts of town were sleepy on this Sunday morning but Kent itself was a bustle. Coffee shops and Knick knack stores were already catering to the weekenders. We, ourselves were a bit of a curiosity - real AT backpackers walking into town. We were greeted on the sidewalk by a thirties-something dad who chatted us up and pointed us to the welcome center. On meeting him & his family a second time later that morning we got an invite to their Lake Winnipesaukee lake house in July. We¢ll see if that pans out. The welcome center was a very small building built with the hiker in mind. Public Restrooms, porch, outlets, bottle filler, and a coin operated shower in the back made this a great base of operations for the next 3 hours. We hit up the coffee shop for lattes and milkshakes and bought a roll of quarters. Then went back to the welcome center and took shower shifts. The other flip-flippers arrived after their in-town brunch and joined the shower queue. I took the boys to IGA for lunch (to save money) and we walked out with $55 of food. We spent some time in the bookstore and lazed in the grass. Ashley arrived at about 2:00 with brownies and chips wearing her homemade ¢Trail Magic¢ shirt. Old friends are great to meet again. We¢ve overtaken the basement room with gear and mattresses. The boys got in some video gaming with the Grant-Ekhart crew. We ate a great dinner and caught up with Ashley and Adam. Their kids are off to school tomorrow while we plan on making some big box store runs for gear and food. For want of a comfortable sleep pad I¢ve settled for quantity of sleep since the quality has been poor. The actual mattress I¢m laying on now holds the promise of both tonight!
Date: 2022-06-13
To: Ashley & AdamÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs house
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

REIChuck-Fil-AShop RiteDicks Sporting GoodsStaples/WalmartBarnes & NobleRocky¢s Barber ShopBella Napoli PizzaWe took full advantage of or zero in Milford today. We woke up slowly after a great nights sleep. The Grant-Eckhart kids were all headed to school at different times before 8:30. We cooked sausage and pancakes for breakfast. Ashley had church duties for much of the morning but Adam was around all day - he¢s on sabbatical. Joni and I borrowed the minivan and left the boys playing Switch to go run errands. We hit the first three on the list above before coming back home. We put the boys in the van early afternoon and did the Dicks/Staples/Walmart stop before settling down at Barnes and Noble for an hour or so. Pizza for dinner. Fortnite ad nauseum. Phone calls home. Video editing. Repacking food and gear. Laundry. Showers. ¢Where¢s my <<whatever>>?!?¢. And then lights out in the basement. Joni is finishing this past weeks video and the boys are making fart noises in the dark. They are fun friends. Adam recently did the ¢Maryland Challenge¢ for the 7th time. He runs/hikes the 42 miles of AT in MD in a 24 hour span. Could Jasper and I do this on our southbound hike? Adam and I discussed the possibility. We¢ll head back to the trail in the morning. We¢re shooting for an 11:00 start. Great Barrington is our new destination, 55 miles north.
Date: 2022-06-14
From: CT 341 - Kent

To: Stony Brook Campsite
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: overcast clouds

We¢re back up in the woods behind an old homestead within view of the Housatonic River. It feels good to be back in trail though the rest at the Grant-Eckhart¢s was exquisite. I won¢t say it was past due but we probably won¢t do another 13-day stretch on trail for quite awhile. We got out of the door this morning at about 8:40 after a hearty breakfast and goodbyes to the kids. Adam drove us back to Kent and parked at 341. We all ¢suited up¢ and hit the trail again. Adam planned to walk the three miles with us to Caleb¢s Peak. The boys set a good pace and rolled about 2 miles before stopping for water at a brook. We pressed on another mile to the summit - really just a ridgetop - and threw down packs for a lunch break at about 12:30. Adam didn¢t take any time to cool down before heading back to the car. He enjoys moving!The ridge-top had several 10+ foot boulders on it. Boulders this size get to ridge-tops riding glaciers. The ridge-top we were on was matched by another, equally high ridge to the east across the Housatonic River Valley. We soon found out how steep-sided the valley was as the trail dove off the slope to the river. It was pretty dicey downhill though boulder strewn alleys as we descended 600 feet in about three-quarters of a mile.The trail dumped out next to the river and spent the rest of the day in a broad, level, forested floodplain rising with the river as we walked up-stream. After arriving at camp Grayson and I set out on an adventure. Google Maps showed a creamery across the river and about a half-mile upstream from our campsite. So Grayson and I donned Crocs and headed for the creamery. The Housatonic is a wide, shallow river (mostly) so finding a spot to ford was easy. We crossed the river onto railroad tracks and walked to the lower field of the creamery. We would have been a strange site had we been spotted. We came though the fields and cattle runs to the back of the operation. We found a gate leading to the front and we were there. It was a self-serve, honor system gig. We got 4 cold drinks and some creamed honey and headed back. We counted 2 foxes, 2 cats, 12 cows (up close!), and a dead tree that had been run over by the train. Very interesting!  Mashed potatoes with bacon bits and cheese for dinner. Candy for dessert (thanks Doug!). It feels good to be back out.
Date: 2022-06-17
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Up-HillDoes the road wind up-hill all the way?    Yes, to the very end. Will the day¢s journey take the whole long day?    From morn to night, my friend. But is there for the night a resting-place?    A roof for when the slow dark hours begin. May not the darkness hide it from my face?    You cannot miss that inn. Shall I meet other wayfarers at night?    Those who have gone before. Then must I knock, or call when just in sight?    They will not keep you standing at that door. Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak?    Of labour you shall find the sum. Will there be beds for me and all who seek?    Yea, beds for all who come.
Date: 2022-06-20
From: MA 23

To: Shaker Campsite
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: clear sky

I had my best night of sleep yet at the Travel Lodge. I woke up first around 5:30 and laid in the soft bed for about an hour until Baxter woke up. Everyone else began stirring soon after. Papa Joe - shuttle driver - was due to meet us at 9:00 in the parking lot. We knew 9 would come quickly. I snuck out of the room and walked to the McDonalds for biscuits and coffee. I brought 8 biscuits back. Before they were done I knew we¢d need more so I went back for 2 more. We had packed up the previous evening so our biggest task was moving out. As we transported stuff to the picnic table and gathered trash I reworked Grayson¢s toe blisters. Neil had brought both Grayson and me sock liners. Rest plus liners plus foot care made for good walking today. Joe arrived at 9 and we piled into his Ford Explorer. He collected some information from us and put it in his notebook. He lives in Great Barrington and spends much of his time bringing hikers to and from the trail. The town is close to the trail - only 5 miles - so it¢s a short shuttle. We were at the trailhead in no time. We disembarked and lines all our stuff up at the kiosk. I shook Joes hand and handed over the $50. He held up a had and said ¢Keep it. I¢ve had some generous hikers lately. Happy Father¢s Day. Buy the boys something special.¢ What a generous blessing. We all thanked him two times and again. I talked it through with the boys as we walked away. Back at the Travel Lodge, as we were shouldering packs to take them to the Explorer, I said to them ¢shake his hand and introduce yourself¢.  On the short car ride they were all a part of the conversation and answered his questions thoughtfully. I told them, as we hit the trail, that I don¢t know if Joe took notice of those little things but they sure go a long way towards being winsome. Being a blessing to others prompts them to want to do the same for you. Thank you Papa Joe!Grayson and I, hiking in the back, misunderstood the plan for lunch today. The other three stopped at Wilcox Mountain South Shelter. We, instead, pressed on another 1.8 miles to Wilcox Mountain North Shelter before realizing our mistake. My phone had been on airplane mode and so I had missed Joni¢s texts. Grayson and I were blissfully ignorant but the kerfluffle did cause some angst for Joni, Jasper, and Baxter. Another lesson learned. We got to Shaker campsite and walked into a packed site. The camp counselor group from 2 nights ago was here along with a couple and group of 3 siblings. We made 5 more. It¢s turned into a great night. We plan to get out early in the morning and head to Upper Goose Pond Cabin. We hear there is swimming and morning pancakes. I¢m back on my inflatable sleeping pad. The technology has made some serious leaps in 20 years and I get to make the jump in 1 night.
Date: 2022-06-21
From: Shaker Campsite

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

It¢s early evening and we are relaxing at Upper Goose Pond Cabin. UGPC is a two-story, wood and stone building with 14 bunks upstairs and a sitting room, kitchen, and large front porch downstairs. There is no power or running water. Tenting spots surround the cabin for those who prefer to tent or for overflow. We were the first to arrive here today about 1:00. We hiked the 9.5 miles from Shaker Campsites stopping only once about 9:00 at a roadside shed-market for hikers. Inside the small shed was a fridge stocked full of drinks and freezer full of ice cream. The shelves in the shed held all the hiker vices. Prices were posted and a cash box was nailed to the wall. We spent about $10 on ice cream sandwiches and sodas and enjoyed three at the picnic table. Then hiked on. Rain threatened at noon. We hoped to make it to the cabin before getting wet but the distance was too far. We hiked through lunch listening to the rain in the tree canopy, never really getting wet. Eating was on everyone¢s mind followed closely by swimming (despite the breeze and drizzle). We learned at our ¢orientation¢ that canoes were available. We enjoyed a late lunch with Stomps, a NOBO from Jackson MS, and headed to the boat dock. Joni and I took a turn, too, navigating the narrow waterway separating Upper Goose Pond from Goose Pond proper. Goose Pond has some swanky real estate surrounding it - more like Lake Lanier without the pontoon boats.It will be an afternoon remembered for a long time. Grayson and I took our turns swimming. The water was not as cold as Sages Ravine but the breeze was chilly! A regular dip in clean water goes a long way towards keeping the stinky-hiker smell away.Joni injured her left leg low in her shin yesterday, probably due (in part) to the weight in her pack we picked up in Great Barrington. She made it through today and we are thankful for the long rest we can get here. We¢re rubbing it down with Biofreeze gel and popping ibuprofen. If it¢s shin splints then the only remedy is layer weight and lower miles. Tomorrow¢s profile is friendly and the weather will again be cool. The caretaker here at the cabin starts cooking pancakes and pouring coffee at 6:00. We¢ll be at the table, forks in hand. We hope to pull out before seven and take advantage of full bellies, early start, good terrain, and cool weather.Here¢s hoping for no snorers¢¦
Date: 2022-06-24
From: Tom Lavardi

To: Tom Lavardi 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

With much help from Tom, we did all the zero day things today: showers at the community center, laundromat, grocery, and WalMart. We walked to Juice n Java for an afternoon diversion. Joni spent most of the day off her leg. We iced, taped, Tiger Balmed, and got good advice from friends back home. We¢re going to try another 10 mile stretch tomorrow with some slackpack help from Baked Potato again. On the way to the grocery Tom asked what I needed there. ¢Lunch and dinner for today and one dinner for the trail¢ I answered. ¢Do you guys do pasta?¢, he asked. ¢Let me fix you dinner tonight.¢So we had a grand meal with pasta, chicken & veggies, sausages and pork chops, with bread and butter. Incredible. Half the fun was inviting other hikers walking by to sit and eat with us.The tents in the yard did a full turnover today. Sucre - a guy who¢s been here since day-before-yesterday - is the only person in addition to us who has stayed. There are about 10 tents here tonight. We got some good advice from Tom about the towns ahead, the resupply options, and meeting southbounders. He says not to talk to the SOBOs we see on the trail since every NOBO wants to stop and chat. They are our best source of info about the trail ahead (and we, theirs). But SOBOs get held up all day by the overwhelming number of NOBOs that want to chat. I hadn¢t thought of this before. Talk to other hikers in camp at night. That way everyone can keep moving. We¢re all looking forward to tomorrow. Being in e trail seems right. Here¢s hoping Joni¢s leg gets what it needs. We¢re willing to stop again in Cheshire if needed.
Date: 2022-06-27
From: WilburÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Clearing Shelter

To: Williamstown
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I did not rain last night. It waited until about 8:30 am and rained until just after we got picked up by the shuttle. It is nice to be sitting in a shelter, warm and dry, while it pours rain outside. I had arranged for the shuttle to pick us up on Notch Road towards Greylock¢s summit where the AT makes it¢s last northbound crossing. The 3 trail miles to the highway in Williamstown proper were very steep downhill - not good for Joni¢s leg. Shuttle guy (the Willows Motel proprietor) agreed pickup would be beteeen 10:30 & 11:00. We arrived at the road in a driving rain at 10:15. Joni and the boys sheltered under a kiosk 500 feet up the road. I stood at the crossing (where there was cell service) and waited. We kept waiting. I called at 11:00. Drama ensued - he did not know how to find us. We finally loaded up in his car at noon, all of us cold & wet & too tired to really be frustrated. A body trying to stay warm burns a lot of energy.We got to our room a bit after lunch. Boys crawled under sheets (before showering- gross) and the sun promptly came out. I was proud of their resolve in the rain and cold. No one¢s spirit broke. All we¢re patient. I like to imagine ¢comfort¢ is a region on the slider of bodily and mental sensation. Each time we¢ve headed out in a road-trip or a walk in the backcountry each person¢s ¢comfort boundaries¢ quickly become obvious. Those boundaries are tested in the outdoors. The boys have gotten good at moving the low boundary lower when we¢re outside. Proper gear helps but winning the mental game is something that can only be done inside. I walked to Subway and Dollar General for lunch about 1:30. The Phineas & Ferb marathon began as I left. Showers, laundry, and gear-drying began. Grayson, Baxter, & I went for a swim at the pool. Will Smith is the guy who helps with housekeeping here. ¢The pool is perfect!¢, he told me. ¢I¢m a CPO.¢¢Chief Pool Officer?¢ I asked.¢No. Certified Pool Operator.¢ Who knew?We hit up Subway again for dinner - fresh veggies and leavened bread are divine - and raided the Cumberland Market for cold drinks. I didn¢t realize how thirsty I was until Jasper put a cold vitamin water on the counter at Subway. It¢s strange how the mind can identify what body needs when it sees the thing - sugar, salt, butter, water, fruit. The mind doesn¢t see the Coke, it sees the sugar; not a Ritz cracker, but the salt; not peanuts, but the fat.Jasper discovered the game Polytopia in the App Store. Command & Conquer meets Civilization. It¢s a multiplayer pass-and-play game we¢ve been playing more than necessary. We¢re here at the Willows for at least two nights. We¢ll likely stay in Williamstown or nearby North Adams for 4 nights. I just got a text from Lightyear who¢s near Rutland (about 100 miles north), asking how we were doing. He heard about the shin splints. They just took 3 zeros for his tendinitis. That makes us feel better about taking 4.
Date: 2022-06-29
From: Williamstown 

To: Williamstown
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a true day of rest both mentally & physically. Joni¢s leg is healing and we¢ve run all the errands we need. We woke this morning after another great nights sleep and prepared to move hotels. The Willows was great but I was able to get 2 nights paid for with traveler points at a nearby motel. We packed our packs and made the move in a few trips. Checkout was at 11am and check in at the new place wasn¢t until 2pm. We hauled all our gear into the backyard of our new motel and unpacked EVERYTHING into the grass. I was interested to reevaluate what everyone was carrying again and see if we could ¢bounce¢ some of our gear north. Lighter packs is the aim. We started a pile of bounce gear and collected almost 8 pounds of stuff to mail ahead. The biggest chunk of that weight is the three-man tent. At 4.25ish pounds, it is more than half of the pile by weight. We pitched the 4 man tent and all 5 of us crawled in to test the fit. By alternating heads and feet we were able to fit us all cozily. So we¢re going to give it a try for the next week - send the three man ahead and sleep 5 in the four man tent. Shelters will help spread us out when possible.We included some clothing, a pair of crocs, some first aid gear, and other minor miscellany. By managing our food in addition to the weight we¢ve ditched I hope we can meaningfully reduce pack weight for everyone. Grayson, Baxter, & I snuck back over to the Willows after lunch for a swim at their pool. We weren¢t sure whose idea it was but it was a good one. On our way back Mr Ding-A-Ling, ice cream truck, was parked in the Cumberland Market lot.  He had all the stuff we had on our truck. We all three got our favorites and walked on, eating as we went down the sidewalk.Joni spent the afternoon reading, I was studying the AT through the White Mountains, the boys were watching Jurassic Park.We joined Tina and Jay at the Mexican restaurant for dinner. Trail folks have really interesting stories and these two were no different. Living on the trail requires some non-traditional lifestyle choices: creative work scheduling, quitting jobs, selling stuff. Everyone has made some unique choices to be out here.We¢re back in the room, showered, brushed, combed, and dialing down. Shuttle driver Bill will meet us here in the morning at 9:00 to take us back to Notch Road. We¢ll slackpack the three miles of trail back to town. Joni will sit those miles out. We plan on tomorrow being our last town night. We¢ll head north again on Friday morning.
Date: 2022-06-30
From: Williamstown

To: Williamstown 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Guest Columnist: Baxter SkogmanToday was another relaxing zero, with good food and lots of much-needed rest for Joni¢s leg and a little bit of hiking. We woke up in the Williamstown Motel and had a good continental breakfast of honey buns, cereal, and toasted bagels, courtesy of the motel¢s owner, Rocky. A guy named Bill came at 9:00 to pick us up and take us to Wilbur¢s Clearing while Joni rested at the motel. We hiked 3 miles back into Williamstown via the AT and found some trail magic at a kiosk. We walked to the Stop & Shop to buy a lunch of fried chicken, more fried chicken, chips, salsa, cookies, and Body Armors, which we attempted to flip for about half an hour, successfully landing them on their caps a few times, too. We heard that the man attempting the fastest known time (FKT) for the AT would be  passing through shortly (or so we thought), and we waited for Kristian for 4 hours at a stoplight while climbing trees, eating a little more than our share of trail magic, and flipping bottles. When Kristian came by, we fist- bumped him, pushed the pedestrian traffic light cross button (¢wait¢), and watched him slow jog across the road. We walked 2 miles back to the motel, which had some really cool houses along the way, and got back around 5:00. We enjoyed a dinner of pizza from Doug Moore. Thank you Doug! We watched Phineas & Ferb until bedtime. This would be our last zero day before we hopped back on trail and continued our journey. ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢-Joni got a great, one-hour massage while the boys & Darrell we¢re waiting on Kristian.As a result of our gear shakedown yesterday we were able to ship 10.1 pounds of gear ahead to the Bomoseen KOA in Rutland. The three man tent is most of that weight. Darrell¢s Crocs are in the box. Several articles of clothing are included. We spent an hour or more in the evening repacking packs and divvying up food, making sure that most of the saved weight came out of Joni¢s pack.