morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-07-01
From: Camp Ken Etiwa Pec @ Blue Mountain Lakes Rd.

To: Brink Road Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: haze

After the short day yesterday, I decided to move to the first shelter so I could hike into Culver's Gap tomorrow to head back to DWG and then get to Cliff's house Friday for the 4th. With only 7 miles to hike, I took my time leaving the camp. I arrived at the shelter around lunch time to see Leif E and his party still packing up. They directed me as to the water source and privy, and then left me to fend off the mosquitos. With the stagnant pond just accross the path from the shelter, the onslaught was overwhelming. So after getting some water and eating a lunch, I set up my tent inside the shelter so I could read a book in peace and with most of my blood intact. I got to see a few people pass through. The Divas came by and said hello, then I saw the MD3 +1 (Snooze, Pokey and Das Boot. I think the +1 was Wendy who is going by a trailname that I don't know). Then early afternoon, hikers started coming in. Zoltan kept annoying me about moving my tent out of the shelter, so I moved it so he wouldn't continue to disturb my reading. All in all, there were probably 30 tents set up around that shelter tonight. One of which belonged to Cus Cus whom I hadn't seen since traildays. I also met Newt, one of the twins on the trail this year. A few others I recognized or who recognized me stayed the night, but I am only sure of a handful of trailnames. Rain came late, but my tent withstood the downpour. Yay! I have a shelter from the elements that does what it was meant to do! THANK YOU REI!
Date: 2009-07-02
From: Brink Road Shelter

To: Culver's Gap route 206
Miles today: 3.6

Very uneventful morning as I finished the book I started reading yesterday before packing up. It was still raining when I awoke, so I thought I would do something somewhat constructive. Plus I was not in a hurry to face the mosquito swarms. I finally left camp somewhere around 11. It took awhile to try to dry my tent, and I wanted to grab some food before I started. I got to Culver's Gap early afternoon and stopped at the coffee shop/deli for a drink and sandwhich. Then I started walking a bit while hitch hiking to PA. My first ride took me all the way into PA at the Dingman's Ferry Bridge. Just after he dropped me off, I got my second ride without having to walk 50 feet. That took me all the way to Marshall's Creek at routes 209 and 402. I walked the rest of the way to DWG. It took me 3 1/2 hours to get to the Church of the Mountain hostel just in time to catch the hikers' dinner. Not much food left as the dinner began about 1/2 hour before I got there. Desert was awesome! And there were a couple of familiar faces there. And I got to talk with a couple of church members that I remember. Tomorrow I need to stop at the library before heading to Cliff's.
Date: 2009-07-05
From: Culver's Gap route 206

To: Culver Fire Tower
Miles today: 1.9

Wow! It was great spending the holiday with family!!! The fireworks last night were amazing! I really enjoy spending time with my family. The family reunion on June 27 was really incredible! And then to follow up with 4 of us spending the 4th at my brother's house was so amazing! And I seem to run into the most amazing people both on and off the AT. After walking about 10 miles along route 209 today, I finally got a ride all the way to Carver's Gap about 7pm. I stopped for a break to find that the pain in my right foot was coming from a splinter I had picked up over the past 2 days. I was able to remove that splinter and treat the area with neosporin, but the foot is still very tender. I got to the top of the mountain just in time to get pictures of the sunset. As I did, Blessed passed me and told me he was hiking to the firetower. (my planned destination as it was already late) At the firetower I met Rufio and got to see Brown Cow and Brown Chicken whom I haven't seen since traildays. I climbed the tower to "hang" my food bag, and had a great view of fireworks being set off in most directions. I set up my tent to discover that I had not done a great job drying it off last week! But it all works out since tonight is going to be clear and beautiful, but a bit chilly. The moon is full so there is a lot of light shining all night. But I still was able to sleep well. Maybe too well!
Date: 2009-07-06
From: Culver Fire Tower

To: High Point Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: few clouds

Had a great day with nice views and saw a couple of familiar faces. I also met a real nice group of overnight hikers who shared lunch with me at the Sunrise Mountain pavilion. Bon Bon caught up with me at the Gren Anderson Shelter where I was taking a break. Then she stopped for a minute at the pavilion. I had great weather all day, but the mosquitos were enjoying it and me also. Had great views of the High Point Monument, and when I got to the shelter, Rehab and Ketchup were there. I set up my tent to keep the bugs out.
Date: 2009-07-07
From: High Point Shelter

To: Lott Rd. Unionville, NY
Miles today: 7.1

Left late today, not an uncommon occurance. But today I had a decent reason. As I was getting ready to leave, a storm blew through. So I waited until it had stopped. Then another came through a little later, but it wasn't as bad. So I took my time to get to Unionville, and arrived a little after 5 pm. Came accross a few hikers, and caught up with Bush Man just before he went too far looking for Unionville. We walked into town and to the deli where Simple Man (formerly "Hot Pants"), Wizard and dog (Buddy), Catfish, and Mud Bug were hanging out. Not everyone went to Dick Ludwick's house that night. They really missed out. It was a great stay. Grits, Couscous, Kiwi, Stud the Dud, August Rush, Kind Man, Ace, Garage Man, Desert Fox, and Firebug were among the 20 who stayed the night. Dinner was very good, Chili on rice and corn on the cob with cornbread and a bean salad. Watermelon for dessert. The hospitality from Dick, Bill, and Butch was almost overwhelming. I stayed an extra day to get somewhat caught up on my journaling and to go food shopping at a real grocery store (thank you Butch). Watching Bill cook breakfast (cheese omelet, toast, sausage, and potato pancake) was like watching a well oiled machine! He had 2 omelets cooking and was loading and unloading the toaster, placing cooked foods in the oven to keep warm while hungry hikers slowly awakened and moved in toward the dining room. He even had time to give Shadow (the dog) an occaisional treat between all that work!
Date: 2009-07-09
From: Lott Rd. Unionville, NY

To: Wawayanda Shelter
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Since I didn't slack pack yesterday (did a total zero), I did the full hike into the last shelter in N.J. today. I did get to hike with Ace, Garage Man, Desert Fox, Firebug, Couscous, Kiwi and Stud the Dud for part of the day on and off. Saw most at the Pochuck Mtn Shelter and again at the Heaven Hill Farm fruit/icecream stand. We all took a break there. And the "home made" ice cream was awesome! I also bought close to 2 pounds of fresh cherries! Well, they were only 99cents/pound!!! And I did share a few with my fellow hikers. I can't help that, when I offered, they only took 2 or 3 rather than a handful. What I didn't eat there, I finished for dinner. In at the shelter were Ace, Garage Man, Desert Fox and Firebug. Everyone else that we saw moved on beyond the shelter. As the other 4 set up their tents, there was not much tent space left when I arrived. Being the only one in the shelter with bugs galore, I set my tent up in the shelter. On my way to the shelter, I saw my only black bear yet this year! I had time to snap off a blurry picture before it headed into the woods out of sight. I also want to comment on the poor choice to relocate the AT in this section! 5 years ago, this section of the trail was well marked, maintained and evenly graded with no swamp areas to have to bridge through. Now, it's a mess where you turn off from the old portion of the trail! And it stays a mess through most of the relocated area.
Date: 2009-07-10
From: Wawayanda Shelter

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Late out of the shelter (anyone notice a pattern here?), but I was pretty tired getting only about 4 hours of sleep my second night at the "Outhouse" (this is the nickname given the exMayor's house now used as a hostel). This was a brutal section of hiking for me. Lots of ups and downs on rocks. Most of the ups/downs were only about 10-12 feet per climb, but there must have been about 30 of these just after the NY border. And the rock "steps" were about a double step height for each step you took, making my 50LB pack a task to take over this bumpy section. And with all of the rocks, I was beginning to feel a persistent pain in my left foot. The ankle rolls were not helping this problem, nor were the sharp rocks that kept stabbing at the sore spot! I am just very happy for the beautiful weather! Rain would make these rocks very treacherous. Before leaving the shelter, I saw Star Trek, whom I had met in Waynesboro, VA, while he was slack packing back to the Outhouse. At route 17A, I stopped to reward myself with ice cream at Bellville Farms Ice Creamery. Being the only one at the shelter, I again set my tent up inside to deter the mosquitos!
Date: 2009-07-11
From: Wildcat Shelter

To: Island Pond Rd. 
Miles today: 11.5

Beautiful Day today! Light breezes much of the day and a little cooler, so the bugs were kept at bay much of the day. Still lots of rocks and climbs (both up and down). I was not able to see the NYC skyline from Mombasha High Point, but there were some good views. I was out a bit earlier today, but I was still feeling a little tired from the lack of sleep the other day. And my foot was still pretty sore from the last couple of days worth of rocks. Today's rocks did not help that. I met Linus Cloudbuster today. He was the only hiker I saw all day. But, just as I hit route 17, I ran into Paddy-O! He has been giving trail magic for years! I met him a couple of times in 2004. Though he has personally given trail magic to at least 1600 people (doesn't leave coolers of stuff, but gives trail magic one on one, usually at his truck from which he professes to be able to serve at least 40 hikers at any given time), I wouldn't really consider him an "angel" (people giving trail magic are usually considered trail angels). So instead, I will refer to him as THE trail Magician! He is a master at what he does. Has turned it into a science. And his memory is so accurate, he remembered when and where he last saw me 5 years ago! He also keeps a trail register so hikers can make comments and sign in. He did tell me he has run into a lot of "repeat offenders" (hikers who have hiked in previous years), as Miss Janet would call them, this year. Well, I started this magic session off with an ice cold gatorade (quart size), quickly I moved onto a bagel sandwhich (Ham and Swiss - the good kind), after which he insisted I make one for the road! This time I added some turkey as well. Also a coke to take with me, some chocolate doughnuts, chocolate chip cookies, a peach, and about 3 ounces of single barrel bourbon. He wasn't taking any chances that I would have any desire of consumption that was not fulfilled that night. After packing up all of my new consumeables, I noticed it was getting late and I was too full to walk very far. So I started to set up camp at the next nice area. I didn't need to cook, so water wasn't an issue. It was also threatening to rain a bit. As I set up my tent, some day hikers went by. One couple stopped. Suzanne gave me some chocolate, and a couple of packs of oreos (just the single serving size, not whole packages of the cookies... that would be way too much weight), and her card. Turns out she organizes hikes in N.Y. and N.J. on a meetup.com site. They were very nice and he was interested in getting out to do a few overnight hikes. He didn't have the gear, nor had he ever experienced camping out alone. So, I ended up getting trailmagic twice today!!!
Date: 2009-10-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I am sorry I have not been finishing up my journal entries. I am no longer on the AT as of July 23. Injury and lack of money forced me to make a decision to end the wonderful adventure I was on. I will start spending some time to finish up my journal entries. It is difficult to write about the disappointing conclusion to my 20 year dream... even almost 3 months later. I am currently with good friends in North Eastern Pennsylvania working and trying to get back on my feet financially. I am near family, and the Appalachian Trail is within 2 hours drive from my current residence. I miss the friends whom I had met on the AT this year, I miss the amazing feeling of waking up every day in a new and wonderful place. But I can feel that way about anywhere I happen to be. And the love of friends and family always help get us through any difficult time of our lives. This is no exception. Will I never again attempt to walk the entire length of the Appalachian Trail in one continuous hike? As long as there is another day left in my life, there will be mysteries waiting for me... this is just one that I have not figured out. I am not currently making plans to start again, but I know that the AT will keep calling me. And I will keep coming back to it when I can.
Date: 2008-05-03
To: Let the journey begin...
Miles today: 0.0

My first journal entry! Woo hoo! My hike is still about 11 months away but my excitement just heightened at the creation of my own trail journal account. Creating my own TJ account feels like the first of many steps to come that make it feel more real. I've been talking about it for the past four years and now it's finally happening. Many people have an air of skepticism in their voices when I explain my plans, and when they don't, I feel as though they are simply humoring me. I understand, though. It's not every day someone talks about spending six months walking from Georgia to Maine simply for fun. I've wanted to do this for so long that I find myself not believing that I'm actually doing it. What will make it truly sink in? Will it be the purchase of my one man tent? The purchase of the handbook? The purchase of a flight or bus ticket down to Atlanta? I'm not sure. Maybe all of the above. Hopefully, documenting the year leading up to my hike on trailjournals.com will allow others to share in my excitement of turning this dream into a concrete, tangible adventure. And of course, I will do my best to add journal entries throughout my hike whenever I have access to internet. Creating this online account isn't much, but it's definitely a start, and it feels good.
Date: 2008-05-05
To: Why?
Miles today: 0.0

The question on everyone's mind when I tell them about my planned thru-hike is of course, why do I want to do it? This seems to be the best place to answer that, since many who will be reading this are probably thinking the same thing. Unfortunately, I can't give a cut and dry answer at this point in time, but I will do my best to answer that question to the best of my ability.Reasons Why Amy Wants to Hike the Appalachian Trail:#1. I love the wilderness and hiking#2. I love meeting new people and enjoy spending time with people who love the wilderness and hiking. Therefore, I am excited for the people who I will meet on my thru-hike.#3. I love having experiences that restore my faith in human kindness. I know I will find that on the AT.#4. It is an ultimate challenge, both physically and mentally. Who doesn't like ultimate challenges?#5 There is (was? maybe it's higher now) a 10% success rate (only a small percentage of those are females). I'd like to be a part of that small percentage.#6. I have a fear of bears I'd like to overcome.#7. I'm tired of reading about it. I want my knowledge to come from experience.#8. I'm confident that I can do it, but simply "knowing" is not enough. I feel a need to prove it to myself to feel satisfied.#9. I think I will love it, I think I will make it all the way to Maine, however, until I try I will never know for sure. Maybe I will hate it and hop off at the first town. If so, that's okay, at least I know I tried.#10. I have never heard of anybody that attempted a thru-hike and regretted it. #11. At this time in my life, my schedule, my finances, and my personal life allow me to thru-hike. I feel this is an opportunity I should not pass up.#13. I am being proactive about crossing off items on my LIFE TO-DO LIST. This was at the top.#14. I love outdoor gear and this gives me a perfect excuse to research it, buy it, and use it. :-)#15. I'm doing what makes me happy.
Date: 2008-06-03
To: long distance running vs. long distance hiking
Miles today: 0.0

So, I just got home from a visit to San Fransisco where I ran my first half marathon! I did much better than I anticipated given my poor training, coming in barely under two hours. I was very proud of myself! While running, I was thinking about the similarities between hiking and the race- my half marathon being on a much smaller scale, of course. My knees hurt, I had to prepare for it, I was extremely sore the next day, I ate a ton of food afterwards, it took a lot of physical and mental endurance. I never really considered myself a long distance runner before, but after discussing it with a friend, I think I qualify as one now. A few years ago, running that long of a distance was something I didn't think I could/would ever do. A half marathon (and eventually a full) are smaller things on my "Life To Do" list and it feels great to have checked another one off!
Date: 2008-06-09
To: Getting Lost?
Miles today: 0.0

No, I will not get lost. This is my response when asked by my close friend, Leslie, who wanted to know if she'd see my picture plastered across the news as they searched for a missing hiker. For those that don't know, the AT is very well marked. From Georgia to Maine, the trail is marked by white blazes that are 2" x 6" in size every couple hundred yards or so. Not to mention, the trail is walked by thousands every year so it is well worn and difficult to lose. I'll post a picture of standing next to one in the Smoky Mountains three years ago. I don't plan on taking a compass or maps, just an extensive guidebook that has mileage between shelters/water sources/towns and all the information you'd need to know when you hit towns regarding places to stay, eat, grocery shop, libraries, post offices, etc. I'm pretty sure I'll be using the "Thru-Hiker's Handbook 2009 edition". It is by far the most well-known and widely used guidebook for thru-hikers. There is also a new one that was first published this year called Appalachian Pages that I'm curious to read reviews about after this years hikers finish up. Currently, I'm trying to brainstorm my life schedule leading up to my hike and my newest plan is this: Work my last rotation as a field instructor for Sagewalk in December. Go to Hawaii for my brothers wedding in early January, then come back to Bend for a few weeks hopefully able to work in the Sagewalk office to earn some extra cash and move out February 1st and drive home to the midwest for about a month and a half before I hike. This would give me ample time to see friends and family and also prepare the final details for my hike (drop boxes, etc.). I'm now thinking of leaving closer to Mid-March opposed to early April...Oh, and I'm also in the middle of that book "Seven Life Lessons from Backpacking Across America" and it's really enjoyable and so applicable to the real world! The title doesn't lie.I leave in two days for the field for two weeks so there won't be an entry for awhile... Til next time!Happy Trails,Amy
Date: 2008-09-21
To: Let the planning begin
Miles today: 0.0

Hello!Now that I have returned from the field, I've got two weeks of free time which I plan on using to begin focusing on my thru-hike. With no more travel plans in my future, it's time to start focusing on the AT. I've spent the past few days contemplating/researching gear and hope to come up with an official gear list in the next couple days.   There are still some things I'm up in the air about, one of them being SteriPen vs. filter. I can get the Steripen for $80 through work, or I can use the filter I already own. I don't like how frequently you need to change batteries with the Steripen. If I go with my filter, I want to buy a 4L dromedary bag so I can pump once a day and not have to pull out the filter too frequently. I don't really mind the extra 2 or 4 pounds of water weight if it means not having to filter as often. I'm also thinking about what summer bag I'm going to want to use. I've got a 0 degree 800 fill down Mt. Hardwear bag to start with then I think I'm going to switch to the REI 35+ Kilo women's 750 fill bag for summer. I am gonna go to REI soon and test it out. I plan on ordering the Hubba in the next week or two as well, however, MSR is currently out of stock on the prodeal site I'm buying it from for $167! I also think I'll be purchasing the footprint for it. After using a footprint on all my other backpacking trips, I can't stand the thought of setting up a tent without one. It keeps the tent floor so much cleaner and in better shape. I have already acknowledged the fact that I'm not hiking the AT ultralight. At a local ski shop, I purchased some Hot Chili's Skin leggings. They are soft, but fit like tights. The owner gave them to me at half price. I'm thinking they might be great to hike in when I start in March when days could (will?) still be cold. The other high of my day today was purchasing a piece of 320 Icebreaker at half price! woo hoo! I don't think it'll be coming with my on the AT though. My t-shirt and long sleeved layer will definitely be Icebreaker though, my one concern with that is that you can't throw them in the dryer so it might be an inconvenience at laundromats to wait for them to air dry before changing back into them.    I could talk gear all day, I'll leave it at that for now. I just posted a bunch of pictures from my "Epic Adventures" mentioned in my prior journal entry. They are all the shots from the month of August. I also posted a few from my job this past rotation posted under September. Enjoy them. My friend, Pat, who I traveled with is an excellent photographer and took some amazing shots.   Speaking of, he is getting ready to head to Thailand for the next year or two. I wish him the best of luck and thank him for the life lessons, advice, and support he's given me as each of us embarks on these new and exciting chapters of our lives. Happy Trails,Amy