morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-04-17
From: Spring Mt. Shelter

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 11.7

Today was a joy! It wasn¢t an easy 11 miles by any means ¢ steep stone block steps and narrow exposed ridge trail ¢ mud, rocks and roots, but after Sundays near death hypothermic episode, it was what I have been used to. After getting dropped off where Cheryl Picked my ¢sorry butt¢ up on Monday by Harold the owner of Spring Brook Cottages, I was itchin to go. It has felt recently like I¢ve been on a hamster wheel not getting any where. I felt bad because all I had in my wallet when I opened it up were moths that flew out. I had no money to tip Harold for the shuttle ¢ I promised I would send it out to him. I will! As I was trying to figure out the trail head on the NC/TN border, I saw ¢Dirty Ernie¢ and ¢Blue Sky¢ just coming back from some ¢trail magic.¢ They had gone up to Hercule¢s house (a 00¢ thru-hiker) who had quite the spread for all thru hikers. The trail still had snow in some places, but it had mostly turned the trail into a sloppy mud bog ¢ ¢slippery when wet.¢Bono and I had a nice lunch w/a sweet view on ¢Black Stack Cliffs.¢ It was warm and the hawks were playing on the thermals coming up from the valley. I thought about how far I¢ve come, I thought about how far I still have to go, but mostly I just thought about too many numerous things to write about. I took some self-portraits of Bono and I with my self timer¢¦.they came out pretty good. I used the tripod that attaches to my trekking pole. I planned on going a bit further today, but my legs felt weak after Sundays hike. It was nice to catch up on TV events, I hadn¢t watched in over a month. I watched an event that¢s near and dear to my heart ¢ the Boston Marathon ¢ my first! I also did it a second time with Master Kwon. Also viewed the Virginia Tech tragedy ¢ a state I will be traveling through soon. How sad it is to think that there is virtually no ¢safe place¢ anymore. I have to say I feel safe out on the trail away from the modern means of destruction. I hope I can bring this sense of relaxation back with me when I come back to the ¢civilized world.¢
Date: 2007-04-18
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Low Gap Campsite
Miles today: 20.8

Out of the gate at 7:30 a.m. ¢ ¢Tom B¢ gave me and Blue sky compliments on our well behaved dogs and also thanked us for teaching them to respect other hikers. That was nice to hear. Once thing that wasn¢t nice to hear was this guy cutting massive ¢cord wood!¢ He was snoring so loud I could hear him 50 yards away and through the stone shelter walls!   Looks like ¢Huzzy¢ loses the award as ¢The loudest cord wood cutter in the world!¢ What happened to me next while I slept was a complete shock! I was dreaming and in my dream it was nice and warm. I can¢t remember exactly where I was in the dream (maybe a hot tub ¢ LOL!) Anyway, I had to pee in my dream and then I was peeing!! I was peeing !!! I peed in my sleeping bag! OH MAN! Luckily it wasn¢t a full on pee and I caught it in time! I used the face cloth I use to wipe Bono¢s paws to clean it up. Hopefully, none of the other hikers catch wind of this because they¢ll change my name from ¢Bowleg¢ to ¢Pee-Pee Boy!¢Coyotes started cackling during the night and all you get out of Bono now is a head lit and 5 seconds later he¢s back to sleep. He has really come along way from barking at the top of his lungs at the slightest sound.As I stated in my previous journals, I like to get on the trail early to give my old motorcycle injuries a chance to warm up. Usually around lunch time everyone catches and passes me. Now I know it¢s not a race, but there always seems to be a bit of competitiveness between us hikers. I¢m sure in another month that will pass. Anyway, I started picking up my pace to catch up. Just then I was hiking through this area that had a lot of different species of wild flowers ¢ I mean really vibrant and beautiful. It was at that point I literally slowed down and stopped to smell the flowers. Well not literally. I couldn¢t bend down because of my 40 lb. pack and my legs were spent, but I did manage to take photos of at least 15 different kinds of flowers. I started getting all ¢Giddy¢ when I saw a new color. I¢d call Bono over and say ¢look Bono, that¢s a (I started to pretend I new the name of the flower) ¢corncepeitis flower.¢ LOL! I guess when you hike from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., 11 hours and 20.8 miles accumulated, you need to distract yourself in some way.
Date: 2007-04-19
From: Low Gap Campsite

To: No Business Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: light rain

Wasn¢t in much of a hurry to put my wet gear away this morning. When I finally did, I must have been around 43 lbs. OUCH! And boy did I feel the 20.8 mile day the day before when I started to hike ¢ slow & easy Bowleg ¢ slow & easy. Saw quite a bit of development not more than 100 ft from the trail so I encourage all to hike the AT while you can. Finally made it up to Big Bald, a mountain top we have been seeing for the past 50 miles away! It was really impressive with 360 degree views. I kind of felt like Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music spinning around! LOL! As it started to get warm, I started to strip down taking off my warm weather shirt and tights for shorts. I then hit a section of trail that was mud for about 2 miles. I stopped at a camp site to see where I was at when it began to sprinkle, so out with the tarp/poncho (it only took me 15 min. this time) to cover myself and pack. Wouldn¢t you know it, it stopped raining again. Decided to keep the rain gear in front of me because the sky still looked quite ominous. About an hour later I saw a deer! Well, I saw the ¢arse end¢ of a deer because Bono caught wind of it before I saw it and proceeded to chase it off. NO! I cried to him, but it was too late. He was in flight mode! When I finally called him back, his pack had spun pretty much around his stomach instead of his back. I scolded him and we continued on. I remembered that weird wish for rain the previous day; boy did it come through today. Wet and cold rain started coming down hard with 5 miles to go. Today was a test; rain makes it interesting to say the least. I rolled my long sleeves up, thinking I could keep them dry under the pouch, but when my arms and hands started to get numb, I decided the sleeves might insulate even though wet. Then it got interesting! When me and Bono heard that thunder! Both our eyes met and they were as big as cue balls! All that kept going through my mind was ¢what did the book say I should do in case of lighting? Let¢s get outta here Bono!!!¢ Rain started to trickle into the poncho and I could feel my shorts getting wet (no, not pee-pee boy) my hands were so cold I couldn¢t snap the snap. I used the end of the trek pole to push it while I used the other hand to support it. Finally, Bono and I rolled into No Business Shelter. I quickly changed into dry clothes and made a double fixing of food to share with my hiking partner. Today was a true test!
Date: 2007-04-21
From: No Business Shelter

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Did 6 miles to get to Erwin, TN. Rick Edmunds who helped me in preparation for the trip gave me his cousin¢s phone number in Erwin. Rob and Debbie Hoffman were very kind in opening up their home to this smelly hiker. They provided me with what all thru-hikers need when they stop over in a town. First, Rob picked me up at Uncle Johnny¢s and brought me to his house. They he made me lunch while I showered. After that I was able to do laundry (Ahh! Clean clothes!). He then let me borrow his truck so I could resupply. Dinner, beverages and a dry, warm bed capped off the evening! In the morning he brought me back to Uncle Johnny¢s. What awesome folks to open up their hearts and home to a stranger! Thanks Guys!My first step headed up to Curley Maple Gap Shelter was almost in a big (still steaming) pile of doggy doo! I was going to move it out of the middle of the trail because I did not want the hikers behind me to think it was Bono¢s doing of the Doo-Doo, but then I thought they know me by now and know that I respect everyone and would not be so blatantly disrespectful! About 5 min. passed and I ran into a woman with two dogs. She did not have a pack on and I would bet all my marbles that it was her inconsideration that give dog owners a bad name.SIDENOTE: Really ¢jacked¢ my ankle stepping of a 3 ft. high log to a weird angle rock. Thought I was going to land right, but I ended up turning my ankle. It was sore the whole day, but I got lucky ¢ coming out of Erin with a full pack with full food and water ¢ 40 lbs.I thought of this after the fact, but I was going to say to her, ¢Hey watch out for the dog doo smack dab in the middle of the trail. A dog owner didn¢t clean it up.¢ Bono has never gone on the trail. Poor guy, he climbs up on a slope to poop and as he¢s pooping, he¢s sliding down the mountain! Had a nice lunch on top of Beauty Spot Bald, 4,437 ft. That¢s where Bono met ¢Colt¢ a tan lab pup. We then came across ¢Goat Man¢ and his goat! I thought it was pretty neat to see a guy hiking with a goat, but when I said ¢Hey, how¢s it going,¢ he just gave me the, ¢I¢m too cool for you nod.¢ You know what they say about owners¢ resemblance to their pets. Maybe he didn¢t want me to hear him say BAAAAA?Finally, finally topped off at Unaka Mt. ¢ 5,180 ft. It was dry terrain all the way up and then it turned into the Haunted Forest! It was dark. It was cold. It was spooky! All I could think of was Lions & Tigers & Bears ¢ Oh my! Ran into a south bound section hiker. When I asked him his trail name, he said he hadn¢t had one until just before we met. For years folks would ask his trail name and he would say, ¢no name.¢ So this guy he met called him ¢No Name.¢ Clever! His dog was ¢Grace.¢ Got into Cherry Gap Shelter at 5:10 ¢ nice water source. Nice warm sun ¢ set up and chores done. Everyone fed by 7 o¢clock. Ahhh ¢ Bed time!
Date: 2007-04-22
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: clear sky

Left Cherry Gap Shelter around 7:45 a.m. Hiked until noon and took a break at Clyde Smith Shelter. I sat down by the water source and took a 1 hour lunch. Quite hot today ¢ 70¢s ¢ and I ended up putting on Sun screen during lunch break. I bought this bandana for Bono¢s neck to keep him cool ¢ it has some type of gel in it. I only found that out because I exploded it! I think I let it soak in the cool water too long and now (only now) seem to remember the directions saying 5 min. max. Stinks because it worked pretty well the first time I used it.Talked with Cheryl for 30 minutes. Always nice to hear from her for a lift in spirits. Hiking all day by yourself (no offense Bono) tends to get to you mentally. I catch myself talking to myself and I guess that¢s ok in this instance. When I was talking to Cheryl I told her I knew I had a climb to over 6,000 ft. I think my words to her were ¢ ¢No big deal!¢ Well, it was a big deal! And it kicked the ¢snot¢ out of me! Right now it¢s 6:50. We¢re both fed, chores are done and I¢m in my bag ready for bed! What a climb to the highest Mt. Shelter on the AT. Right around 4,500 ft. the smell of pine was incredible! It smelled like a million x-mas trees. Right away I thought of x-mas time. Poor Bono felt the heat today. Every time we crossed a snow patch he¢d lay down in it to cool his body. When we finally topped off, we saw a jack rabbit take off ¢ Bono was right after him, but I stopped him in his tracks ¢ Good Boy! Wind is starting to pick up and I have my 0 degree bag! Yeah ¢ it¢s going to get cold tonight. All who have been following my journals, I have a suggestion. Pick up the Appalachian Trail Thru-Hikers companion 2007 (not Dan ¢Wingnut" Bruce) that way you can read up on Roan Mt and know that there once was a thriving hotel in the late 1800¢s early 1900¢s, but closed down after loggers harvested all the Fir Trees. Having the companion will be as if you were actually here. Buy yours at EMS in S. Nashua. A bunch of teenagers pulled in after I was done cooking. Very respectful with lots of questions. They said they were only doing a ¢4 nighter¢ and kind of downplayed what they were doing. Isn¢t that how dreams start ¢ they start off small and then the inevitable self question pops into your head, ¢What if?¢ That is how it has always been for me. That¢s how I got started with marathons and eventually 7 of them on 7 continents. My advice is to start off small, but always think big! Gain confidence each time you achieve. After that, there is no stopping the successes you yield.
Date: 2007-04-23
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Campsite Few Miles Before Mountaineer Shelter
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Auto pilot was how I felt today ¢ up before light at 6:00 a.m. ¢ practiced putting my gear away inside my tent, then on the trail at sunup, 6:30 a.m. ¢ my earliest start yet! Breakfast came at 9:00 a.m. Very pleasant hiking today with long views on open balds ¢ not too hot. Made it into US 19E at 3:00 p.m., then walked 1/3 mile west to Mountain Harbor Hostel. Mary Hill (the caretaker there) brought me to the store so I could resupply. Picked up all the necessities, i.e., TP ¢ freeze dried Liptons ¢ snickers bars and dog food. Mary also took care of my trash and I got fuel ¢ all for $5.00. I ended up giving her $7.00. I was out of town and back on the AT for 4:30. I hiked until 7:30. I ended up hiking 13 hours covering 21.4 miles with 40 lbs. on my back and Bono was right there ahead of me the whole time. Speaking of Bono, he has an open sore on his ear that I have to keep an eye on. Mary gave me some Neosporine in a Ziploc so I have to remember to apply it daily. Tried my best to make it to the shelter, but it gets dark at 8:00 p.m. I ended up pitching by the river where a million little frogs are chirping. How do I know their frogs? Well, when I started to write I looked over and there was this strange colored frog on the inside of my tent! Yikes! Not sure what kind of frog never seen one before, so I made sure not to touch it. I used my shorts to pinch it and throw it out. Hope I can sleep with all this racket going on. I¢m in high grass by the river, so I have been checking for ticks. Haven¢t seen any yet! I¢m glad for that because the giggly weeds are high and it is the perfect place for them.Just had the crap scared out of me. It is dark and I am down by the river, which is quite loud with my headlamp washing my pot. There are two embankments that you go down from the trail, so I¢m cleaning my pot with my back turned to the trail, Bono by my side. All of a sudden, Bono starts flipping out barking! It was Brian and Glen (The BG¢s) from Georgia walking by with no headlamps! It took me some time to calm down Bono. These two guys passed me earlier today, but got side tracked because they saw a sign advertising free food! Turns out the place was closed. I did see a nice waterfall at the end of my day - that was cool. 9:36 p.m. ¢ It¢s been a long day ¢ lights out.
Date: 2007-04-24
From: Campsite Few Miles Before Mountaineer Shelter

To: Laurel Fork Falls Campsite
Miles today: 18.8

Frogs woke me up this morning. I am still not hearing my watch alarm. I¢d hoped to get up earlier. My tent was soaked with dew and condensation. I think it must be kind of like sleeping in a wet tomb. When the tent gets wet it sags and condensation forms on the inside and starts to drip, like Chinese water torture! Looked like rain all day, but never came. I¢d actually hoped it did because Bono was moving slow today. Found a soar under his armpit where his pack strap rubs. I put some Neosporin on it. I think I¢ll carry his pack tomorrow so it doesn¢t irritate it. It seemed to bother him when I touched it. Bono and I were taking lunch at the shelter; this lady was approaching when she abruptly stopped. As I watched her, I could see she spotted a deer! Just then Bono caught site of the lady (not the deer) and let out a bark! Luckily he didn¢t scare the deer and the lady got a picture of it. I got a picture of her taking the shot of the deer. I was glad I calmed Bono down. I did 12 hour of leash training on the trail. Now that I think of it, maybe that¢s why he¢s extra sluggish today ¢ he does tend to pull and I¢m trying to break him of that.Approaching the road we passed by a farm pond, so I threw Bono a few sticks. You should have seen him come to life again! Crossing the road I walked right by the hiker hostile, the lure of a hot shower, soda and ice cream would have been too tempting. I walked along the river that leads to Laurel Falls. There were steep canyon walls and narrow gorges, really cool. The river reminded me of the movie Deliverance. Coming down to the falls were large stone steps ¢ must have been a quarter mile down to the river. Once I found my tent site, I quickly pitched because I knew the tent was soaked. It was! It dried quickly though. Made a few phone calls. One to my friend Brian, who is going in for a back operation ¢ I wished him well. The other to my mom to discuss what¢s going on at the Dojang. Right now it¢s time to make a call to my girlfriend to wish her a good night and a big Thank You for dealing with all the crap I usually have to deal with when I¢m there.
Date: 2007-04-25
From: Laurel Fork Falls Campsite

To: Stealth Campsite Somewhere on the AT
Miles today: 18.3

Tonight I¢m ¢wiped¢ and I¢m not in a good place right now ¢ better get my act together or it¢s going to be a long, rough journey to Maine. God what I wouldn¢t give for a Sobe or a Gatorade, Coke, Orangina, Root Beer, water ¢ ANYTHING!!! Going to bed thirsty as you might have gathered. Did not have the strength to make it to the next spring and made some bad water decisions tonight, so I go to bed thirsty after 18 miles.The day started out like any other day. A little bit of a late start because I had to attach Bono¢s pack to mine. He¢s got a sore where his strap was rubbing and I wanted to give it a day. So needless to say, my legs are pretty much fried from carrying 50 lbs.I started off like any other morning, slow and easy. Man could I feel the weight! Around 10ish we finally came to a fresh spring and took a break. That¢s when I saw hikers I knew passing me by going So. instead of No. They were ¢slack packing.¢ Slack packing is when you get dropped off for the day at a trail head and hike backwards with little or no gear. Some do it to give their body a break and still get their mileage in. I thought it kind of ironic that they lightened their load to almost nothing and I gained 15 lbs. Don¢t get me wrong, they can hike their own hike. At this point in time I don¢t see myself doing it, but I don¢t know how I will feel in the future later on down the trail.The trail went around Lake Watauga most of the day, so I let Bono jump in for a swim or two. He had a tough time with the heat. All day long as we hiked we could look down on this beautiful, refreshing lake and watch people boating and jet skiing, yet we couldn¢t go in. Seems like a sick joke! As the day wore on, so did my legs get weary with the extra weight. I pushed myself and at times the only thing holding me up were my sticks! Then I was so tired I just dragged the sticks. Water was an issue all day. When I came to the first spring, Bono stepped in it and stirred up all the sediment on the bottom. Instead of waiting for it to settle, I hiked on. Finally came to a Blue Blaze water sign, so I grabbed my 1 liter and headed down the hill. Come to find out, it was about a mile down hill and took me 25 minutes to get a liter. Boy was I rippin! After I finished my liter, I put my pack on and not more than 25 ft. away around a corner was the shelter. Now I¢m really mad! Next, I decide to hike on. Don¢t ask me why. I was just so beside myself ¢ I got that negative adrenaline rush where I could not feel the hurt in my feet or legs. Finally found a tent site and had barely enough water from Bono¢s bag and my supply to cook some dry ¢ crunchy mac & cheese ¢ No water to drink.
Date: 2007-04-26
From: Stealth Campsite Somewhere on the AT

To: Abingdon Gap Shelter
Miles today: 20.7
Weather: scattered clouds

What a difference a day makes. One day you¢re mad at the world, questioning why you ever decided to take on such an endeavor, the next your singing in the rain. Literally! Finally, heard my alarm on my watch go off at 5:30 a.m. Out of camp by 6:15 a.m. Earliest start yet. Started hearing that all too familiar deep growl from Bono. I stopped packing long enough to look up to see two headlamps coming our way. Bocephus! It is you! Actually he called out first ¢ Bowleg? Then I said who goes there? He hooked up with this dude named ¢Hyde¢ who actually attends school at Plymouth State College in NH. Both had been doing high mileage together. Today they planned on doing 30 miles to get to Damascus for a ¢0¢ day. Once I mended up Bono¢s leg, we were off maybe 10 min. behind them. I caught up to them at the spring and both Bono and I took a good long! Drink! As they headed out for their 30 mile hike, I asked if they had some extra duck tape so I could tape Bono¢s leg back on (only kidding ¢ LOL!) ¢ They did so I patched him up with a band aide then duck tape. The hike was nice and flat today. Went by a hiker tribute to Nick Grandstaff monument. He was a famous hermit who lived on Iron Mountain. Although I don¢t usually take pictures of grave sites, I did this one because I thought the inscription was quite sad. It said, ¢He lived alone, suffered alone and died alone.¢ Not me! I would like to look down and see lots of friends at my funeral. Made it to US 421 and hitched into town for resupply. No resupply, but I did get some lunch and Neosporin for Bono. Got a ride back to the trail by some guy who said ¢Yeah, no problem, but I¢m kind of in a hurry. I¢m going to a funeral. Around 2ish it started to pour and I loved it! Bono was happy so I was happy! Then the rain stopped. We put our raingear away. It started to rain again, so we put it back on¢¦¢¦It did this a couple more times. Made it to another road crossing and I noticed a Styrofoam cooler¢¦Trail Magic? Yes! Mountain Dew, Pepsi and as ¢huzzy¢ would say ¢Soooda!¢ So I drank what I could and grabbed two ¢Soooda¢s¢ for the road (I mean trail). Made it to what I thought was the shelter. Water was .2 miles down a steep hill and turned out to be the toughest climb all day! Met up with the twins from Georgia (Brian and Glenn) and got a good interview on tape. We also took some pics with Bono as a group shoot. Pitched my tent, brushed my teeth, fed my dog. Now off to sleep. 3 state tomorrow in the 500 miler state, VA.