morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-07-16
From: Bulls Bridge Road

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

With very mixed feelings, I have decided to head for home. The knee problem can't be ignored. I have walked through lots of other minor physical issues with ankles, legs, hips, and back, but this one is a bit different.   So, after talking things over last night with Sue and my AT consultant (Clair), I packed up my stuff this morning, and boarded a local bus to go to Danbury, where I caught a train to Grand Central Station in NYC, then a bus for home. The fluid seems to be reaccumulating on the knee, so I will probably be seeing a doctor in Kentucky. Part of me is sad to be leaving the Trail, and all the rest of the thru-hikers headed north to Katahdin. Another part of me is very joyous to be headed home. It's been four months, most of it extremely enjoyable and rewarding, some of it difficult and painful. Separation from Sue and the family has been hard. I have some options. One would be to finish the Trail at a later time, maybe in 2011. Another option, if the knee heals rapidly, would be to resume the trip in August. We are going to visit my sister Judy in Pennsylvania in two weeks, so that window is still open. My gut feel, however, is the completion of the hike will have to wait until next year.
Date: 2010-07-24
From: Home

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

It may be foolhardy, crazy, and ill-advised, but I am currently planning to return to the Trail next week. The knee is pretty well fully recovered, and the doctor has basically said all is OK, I can hike on it if I want, there is no underlying problem, and if I am looking for an excuse to stop the hike he isn't going to give me one. So the ball is in my court. Do I have the resolve to continue? Am I too worn out and tired to get back to the demands of the hike? Do I have enough time to finish? Sometime next week, if all goes well, Sue will be taking me back to Connecticut where I left off. We have a family gathering near Delaware Water Gap in early August, so I will have a bit of time to get back into the groove and see if this will work. If it does, my brother Jay may join me for a week. So, thanks to all for your encouragement and support. To all my fellow hikers, I hope to see you out there soon. And fyi I have posted a few additonal pictures, will try to get some more up in the next couple of days.
Date: 2010-07-28
From: Bulls Bridge Road

To: Mt Algo Lean-to
Miles today: 6.8

Sue dropped me off today around noon at Bulls Bridge Road. It was a short day, but difficult. Hot and dry, but I was able to find water when I needed it. I don't feel "in the groove" yet. I was tired by the time I got to the shelter and wondering why I didn¢t stop in town to get a Slurpy before heading out on the trail. I started out sleeping in my tent, but during the night around 3 am rain was starting so I moved in to the empty shelter. Then, it was a game of trying to Outwit The Shelter Mice who were scrambling all around trying to get my food bags.
Date: 2010-07-29
From: Mt Algo

To: Pine Swamp Lean-to
Miles today: 17.3

Lots of steep ups and downs, plus some easy walking along the river. A lot of mountains yet to go over. Very exhausting. I stopped at Stewar Hollow Brook Lean-to for lunch and to get water which was near the river, then soon after started climbing back to the ridgetop. I ran into three hikers, Salty, Little Dancer, and Jesse. They went on further. I got to the Pine Swamp Lean-to about 7:00 p.m., very tired. I saw lots of little tiny "tree frogs" along the trail today. It is very noticeable that it is getting dark earlier in the evening now. There is a large swamp, sort of a pond, here and lots of frog activity. It could be a noisy night. As the evening went on, the concert from frogs, owls, tree frogs, and birds was quite a performance. Nobody here at the shelter here again tonight, I feel like I am in a vacuum. Tomorrow I will be going in to Salisbury CT to re-supply that hopefully will hold me over until next Thursday.I will probably spend the night in a hostel in Salisbury.
Date: 2010-07-30
From: Pine Swamp Lean-to

To: Salisbury, CT
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: clear sky

Last evening I enjoyed the frog concert, backed up by the hoot owls, tree frogs and night birds. Needless to say I didn¢t get much sleep.I was picked up at the trailhead today In Salisbury by Maria McCabe.   A lovely woman who will be 81 on Sunday. She took me to her home where she has been taking in thru-hikers or 12 years now. She says that it keeps her alert. She was a very nice woman. She came from Northern Italy in 1947, married a soldier. It was good to be in town. Managed to get a sandwich (a "grinder"), orange juice, a beer and some ice cream. Oh, and Maria gave me a very large piece of delicious carrot cake. I'm in a nice room with a very comnfortable bed. I'm resupplied from the nice IGA in town with enough food to get to Dalton. Salisbury was full of hikers - they were everywhere around town, mostly just resupplying and heading back out.
Date: 2010-07-31
From: Salisbury, CT

To: Stealth Camp Jug's End Mile 1505.9
Miles today: 16.5

I had a nice breakfast at Maria's to start the day off, then headed out to climb mountains. I hiked up and over 3 mountains today - Bear Mtn, Race Mtn, and Mt. Everett. It felt good. The weather was nice and the blueberries were wonderful. There were lots and lots of day hikers and weekend backpackers around. I met up with a backpacker named Claude (I think) and walked with him a couple of hours. Nice guy, knew the area. He told me he had almost died a few years ago from a "flesh eating disease". Whew. We crossed the Connecticut/Massachussets border. I stopped to do my ritual baptism in the waters of the stream at the border, and managed to step on my glasses. But I held my breath and bent them back into shape, and they seem ok. Also met Stillwaters, a section hiker, and we leapfrogged a few times during the day from Riga Lean-to on. Ran in to some excellent trail magic at Guilder Pond, just before 4 pm, two guys who decided the day before to drive quite a ways up here and had all kinds of food. Word had spread on the Trail that they were there and were leaving at 4 pm so a few hikers were rushing to get there before 4 pm. They were closing up shop, so they gave me some salami and cheese and some cookies anbd other goodies. That is always a nice surprise. I hiked on another 3 miles and am stealth camping on a ridge top tonight. Hope no ridge runners come by and arrest me. I had a glorius sunset from my tentsite. I passed the 1500 mile mark today.
Date: 2010-08-01
From: Stealth Camp Jug's End Mile 1505.9

To: Mt. Wilcox South Lean-to
Miles today: 17.3

I did a nice breakfast on the rock exposure at Jug End after breaking camp. On the way down the very steep descent I ran into a lady hiking up for her Sunday morning walk, and we talked a bit. I asked her about the origin of the name and she said the area was settled by both English settlers and some from Germany. A German settler in the adjacent valley owned this mountain, and he said that it was a very young mountain. In German I guess that would be Jungend or something like that so it got shortened to Jug End. Down in the valley I ran into a southbound lady who was getting picked up later in the morning and she offered me a bagel and some tuna salad. It was quite delicious, I really hadn't done bagels before. Today I also ran into more blueberries which once again slowed me down. I also found some fresh apples on a tree next to an old farm homestead. I got lost for about 20 minutes today, wandered right past a turn in the trail and followed an unmarked trail for awhile before I woke up. I stopped at Tom Leonard Lean-to for lunch adn to get water, which was wayyyyy down the side of the hill to a very nice little spring with excellent water - but quite a hike. A crowd of kids came in and took up residence, so I decided to go on. Reached the campsite about 6:00. It looked like rain so I decided to stop. A number of hikers are here including Tripper and Wizard of Oz, a couple from Australia. It was a good day ¢ I felt good physically and also about the hike. I feel like I¢m getting my second wind and am optimistic about continuing on.
Date: 2010-08-02
From: Mt. Wilcox South Lean-to

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Had nice conversation with Tripper and Wizard of Oz,and wound up leapfrogging with them all day. We passed some nice ponds along the way, many with beaver lodges. The day ended with a walk around the right side of Upper Goose Pond, to the Cabin maintained by the AMC with caretakers in residence. The cabin is quite nice, and I wound up sleeping in the bunkroom on the second floor. The caretakers prepared an excellent spaghetti meal for all who were there, which was about 20 people. A few of the hikers there had been there for two or three days. On the lake there were several canoes and you could take the canoes out on the lake. There was even a small island in the lake, and one of the hikers, Beaver Chief, wound up sleeping out on the island. It was quite a nice evening. Upper Goose Pond is kind of like a Hiker Resort. I did my "laundry" in the lake, and went for a swim just as the sun was headed down toward the hill. The caretakers included an elderly woman, her daughter, and her daughter's daughter who apparently is being trained for the future. Kind of a succession plan for caretakers. It had a really wonderful and welcoming feel. The only downside was the uncertainty of sleeping in a shelter/bunkhouse. There was a father and three children who had hiked in for a few days, and the one-year old baby just didn't get the idea of it being bedtime, as is often the case with one year olds. So it took quite awhile to get him to sleep.
Date: 2010-08-03
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: few clouds

The morning started out with a wonderful blueberry pancake breakfast prepared by the caretakers. It was delightful. I could easily understand why people were spending multiple days here. I got off as soon as I could after breakfast, and set my sights on getting to Dalton. The day went by pretty well, and I got to Dalton just at the right time. There was a cooler of trail magic with some soft drinks just before town, then as I, along with another thru-hiker, walked thru town past Tom's, he was serving dinner and invited us in. Pasta, salad, sausagee, bread. It was excellent. He had a full house, so I went on thru town to stay at the Bird Cage, another hostel. Also at the Bird Cage were Home Brew, and two south bounders. They also had a dinner, and so I ate a second time. Home Brew shared a beer with me also, so it was a nice spot to be.
Date: 2010-08-04
From: Dalton, MA

To: Cheshire, MA
Miles today: 9.3

After spending the night at the Bird Cage, I got an early start and headed for Cheshire, where I was to meet up with my brother Jay, to go to a family get together to celebrate my sister Judy and husband Len's 25th wedding anniversary. It was a relatively easy hike, and Jay met me a couple of miles from Cheshire, where he had parked his car and walked to meet me. We had an enjoyable walk, taking our time. Jay recognizes many more of the plants than I do so he was really in to checking out the various things we saw and relating them to what he is familiar with. Once we got to Cheshire, we got a few snacks and headed south for Pennsylvania for the party.
Date: 2010-08-08
From: Cheshire MA

To: Mark Noepel Lean-to
Miles today: 4.4

Just a quick note from the wife since I noticed that it has been a week since Jerry called an entry in -Jerry made good time the beginning of last week. On Wednesday, his brother Jay picked him up and brought him back to the PA area for a family celebration of the 25th wedding anniversary of his sister Judy and her husband Len. It was a busy weekend with family activities and limited wifi.Today, Jay drove Jerry up to the pick up/drop off point in Cheshire MA. They will be spending the next few days together until Thursday when Jay needs to get back to his other reality.Jerry is alive and well and hiking on !Jay and I left Pennsylvania mid-morning, drove to Cheshire, got some lunch in a restaurant, and stopped in at the Catholic church which operates a hostel for hikers. They were fine with Jay leaving his car there. The folks at the church told us of other hikers who had recently stayed at the hostel, which seems like a very accomodating place. Jay and I hiked on up the hill to the Lean-to and set up camp. Others also there that evening were Lift-and-Step, plus Prometheus and two others. Prometheus had a bladder of wine and some rye whiskey he offered to share. The shelter area was on a steep hillside, but we were able to set up on a platform and a flat spot, and there was a good water source.
Date: 2010-08-09
From: Mark Noepel Lean-to

To: Seth Warner Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: few clouds

We started out the day with a stop at the Mt. Greylock Lodge, where I got a pancake breakfast and coffee - yummmm. It was a much longer day than we really should have planned. We went down, and then up a major climb of 2000 ft, and got to the border of MA and Vermont. Another state finished! The border of MA/VT is also the start of the Long Trail. We ran into a hiker, Andy, who was intending to do the Long Trail. Jay and I got to Seth Warner not too much before dark and got camp set up. There was a large crowd of hikers staying here, including LJ, Red Lobster,Serentina (Serenity for short), and Lift-and-Step.
Date: 2010-08-10
From: Seth Warner Shelter

To: Melville Nauheim Shelter
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: overcast clouds

1602.9 miles inAll is well on the trail for the two hiking brothers. Lots of ups and downs today. Set up camp about 9 pm. Rain during the night. Water supply on the trail is adequate. Over the weekend a section of the AT was closed in a part of NJ due to a fire believed to be caused by the very hot and very dry weather. It rained during the night. The hike today took us up a good climb then down a very steep descent to the road at VA9, then up a steep climb to the shelter. Again it was too long a day for someone who really hadn't had the chance to get his "trail legs", but we had set a goal to try to get to a road crossing on Thursday and were stretching to get there. But it wore Jay out, and by the end of the day he pretty well decided to take Option B and get a ride back to Cheshire the next day. Andy caught up with us and camped near us. The large bubble of people currently hiking was at the shelter which had a not much camping space. Also, the water source was not really appealing.
Date: 2010-08-11
From: Melville Nauheim Shelter

To: Kid Gore Shelter
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: broken clouds

Jay left today to head back to Kentucky. Headed back to his car by way of a shuttle. Then the long drive back to KY. Hats off to you Jay for making the trip. It was great having his company the past few days. He got a little flavor of the AT hiking experience. I hiked some today with Andy, a "Long Trail" hiker. Jay had helped him pick a trail name of "Lazarus", since he felt like he died every night after hiking and rose from the dead in the morning to hike again.Tough day of hiking today, lot of steep ups and downs again, I ran out of gas in the afternoon. Camp was set up around 4:30, just couldn't go any further safely. Stopped for lunch at Goddard Shelter, quite a crowd there, including Red Lobster, Serentina. The sun was shining and I set some of my wet stuff out in the sun to dry off. Went to the top of a fire tower on Glastenbury Mtn. Saw a lot of blue bead lilys along the trail. The shelter, off to the right, was on a pretty rocky sloped area, with few flat tent spots but I was able to manage. Other hikers at the shelter, including Andy and two guys hiking the Long Trail, Happy Feet and Mike. The sunrise in the morning was glorious.
Date: 2010-08-12
From: Kid Gore Shelter

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Andy/Lazarus and I wound up hiking together today for quite awhile. We headed up Stratton Mountain, a pretty steep climb. Andy had some foot problems and dropped behind. The lookout tower at the top had a good view of the approaching storm, so I headed quickly down off the peak toward the shelter. The rain started as I descended and continued for an hour or so. Andy came in a bit later. He is talking of quitting. Says he doesn't enjoy hiking alone, and after the Long Trail splits off from the AT there will be very few people on it. Ran into a thru hiker called Doc who camped across the pond. He got the caretaker to take him across in a canoe, didn't want to pay the fee to stay at the shelter, he said. I spent the night in the shelter, something I rarely do, and left as early as I could the next morning. There was a crowd in the shelter, so I had to be very quiet fixing breakfast and packing up.
Date: 2010-08-13
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: Manchester Center
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: broken clouds

I hiked as quickly as I could from Stratton Pond to meet up with Sue at the road crossing, and got there right at noon. Every time we get together on the Trail like this it is a marvelous feeling for me, even if it has been just a few days. We gave Andy a ride into town, he was headed for the hostel and trying to decide whether to continue or go home. We went in search of a campground to spend the night and found a nice place called Otter Creek just north of Manchester. We went into town to get some resupply items, and even took in a movie. Can't remember the last time I saw a movie. Ran into Doc, Prometheus, and otheres in town. Then, some pizza, and back to the campsite to get ready to hike out the next day.
Date: 2010-08-14
From: Manchester Center

To: Griffith Lake Tenting Area
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

After a great Hiker Breakfast in Manchester, Sue dropped me off at the trailhead. We saw some others including Red Lobster and Serenity also headed out. I had some leftover pizza for my lunch, a special treat. Later in the day I met up with Doc and One Life, and hiked with Doc to Griffith Lake,where we got tent sites. It was a beautiful hike today, with lots of little splashes of color along the trail, cobalt blue berries on the blue bead lillies, red/orange berries and burgundy leaves on the huddle bushes, red and orange mushrooms. There was a beautiful lake there,and so I did a combination swim, bath, and laundry in the lake. The water felt wonderful after a hike, although it had been a fairly short day. After a day in town it is nice to stop early to regroup and reorganize the pack. Vermont continues to be a very delightful place to walk through. Happy Feet and Mike are also at the campground.
Date: 2010-08-15
From: Griffith Lake Tenting Area

To: Minerva Hinchey Shelter
Miles today: 19.9
Weather: overcast clouds

The hike today crossed a beautiful rushing stream, and passed another of the lovely lakes of Vermont. It would be a great place to spend more time, just enjoying the lakes. The sky was overcast. Doc and I hiked together for a few hours, but then he went ahead. My pace is a bit too slow for him. Rain started after I got to the shelter (off to the right of the trail) and had my tent set up and had finished supper. A nice flat tent area below in front of the shelter. Red Oak and Buttercup are also tenting next to me.
Date: 2010-08-16
From: Minerva Hinchey Shelter

To: Pico Camp
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: light rain

Today was a big hike, up and over Killington Peak. Early in the day, I had the lens fall out of my glasses, so just had to pack them away, hoping I could get them fixed next time I got into town. The weather was threatening most of the morning, and started to drizzle as I approached a shelter for a mid morning snack. It poured down rain while I was at the shelter, lucky for me. I hiked on in a slight drizzle, and the sun came out for an hour or so. Then it started raining hard, about half an hour before I got to the next shelter, so it was fairly miserable for awhile, but stopped about 15 minutes after I got to the shelter. I wrung out my socks, took a deep breath, and began to long climb up Killington. The trail was muddy, and sometimes the trail was a creek, and on some of the steep ascents the trail was mostly washed away, so it was a difficult climb. The top of the mountain was shrouded in clouds, and very windy, so I didn't stay long. I wound up a few miles later, down off the peak, headed for a camp area half a mile off the trail, but instead I crossed a ski run for the Pico Ski area, and so I camped on the ski run. The sky cleared up during the night and the stars were brilliant. It was pretty cold, and I have not yet switched over to my winter sleeping bag, so I put on all the clothing I had to stay warm. I was glad when morning came, and I quickly made a hot drink, my usual combo of hot chocolate, coffee, and powdered milk, along with a breakfast of a special treat of rolled oats from Genesis Farm that Sue gave me. Very scrumptious.
Date: 2010-08-17
From: Pico Camp

To: Kent Pond
Miles today: 7.8

Ahh, glorious surprises. Yesterday, while hiking toward Killington Mountain, one of the lenses in my glasses fell out. So, this morning, I called Sue up and suggested we meet for lunch at a road crossing, since she was headed near there anyway according to our plan to meet up the next day. We ended up having lunch at the Inn at Long Trail, where Sue was able to get my glasses back together, and decided to spend the night here. So I am showered, we are doing laundry, and we even did a tour of the Long Trail Ale Brewery down the road, and then got some ice cream. Life is absolutely great here in Vermont. It is amazing to me how enhanced the senses seem to be from the Trail experience, all the senses, sight, smell, taste, touch. There is a plant up on the mountain tops that has beautiful cobalt blue berries on it, I think they are Speckled Wood Lilies but am not sure. A plant someone said is a hobble bush has brilliant orange pumpkin colored berries, and there are various red berries on some other plants. All these splashes of color bring such enjoyment and pleasure to me as I am walking. And taste. That ice cream I had yesterday just flowed over my tongue and stimulated the taste buds. All food tastes so much better than I can ever remember. And the beer I had last night, well, I can never recall beer tasting so good. The sounds of the forest, the birds, the rushing streams, the creaking of the trees in the wind, all are thrilling. All this of course comes with a price, since the climb up a mountain with a heavy pack in the rain and mud is also a sensory experience, and that too is enhanced. But the price is worth it.
Date: 2010-08-18
From: Kent Pond

To: Vermont Rt 12
Miles today: 19.7

Sue dropped me off this morning and I slack packed. Saw a few south bound hikers and day hikers. Sue got a nice tent site at a state campground,so picked me up at Rt 12 and we went to a restaurant for dinner. Life is easy right now for me on the AT! I'm the luckiest hiker out here.
Date: 2010-08-19
From: Vermont Rt 12

To: Connecticut River
Miles today: 21.9

Sue dropped me off and I again slack packed. Ran into Doc in the early afternoon, and we pushed hard the rest of the day and MADE IT TO NEW HAMPSHIRE. It was a great feeling of exhilaration and excitement. Vermont was a wonderful state, and I enjoyed it greatly. But now, only two states to go. Doc and I walked through Norwich for a mile or so, and crossed the bridge shouting for joy. Sue picked me up and we spent the night in a campground, and I prepared my pack to resume the hike in Hanover, New Hampshire. It sure is nice to be able to get a shower and clean up and get town food every night. Not to mention the company of my wife, instead of just a phone call when I have service. But tomorrow no more slack packing, it's back to the whole pack.