morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-07-06
From: Linden, Virginia 

To: Jim and Molly Denton Shelter
Miles today: 3.0

Tom (Molasses): Day 9 ¢ Saturday July 6 ¢ woke up this morning feeling great after sleeping in a real bed with AC. Unfortunately the hotel is just outside of town so did not have a chance to see anything in Front Royal. Did have a chance to do laundry and clean gear before heading out. Huge breakfast at the Holiday Inn Houlihan¢s. Checked out and started walking to WalMart in 95 degree heat. Great guy named Bill offered to drive us to WalMart and then to AT. He was driving a Jeep Wrangler which brought back memories for Scott. Finally got to the trail about 3pm and hiked to the Jim&Molly Denton Shelter where we pitched our tent. Met some great folks at the shelter. Blockade Runner from TN was wearing his Vols hat. I then pulled my Gator hat out of my bag to let him know who was really in charge at the shelter! There was another couple wearing kilts that they made. They said they liked the airy feel it gave them. Another hiker named Snacks was a good guy to know since he was always carrying extra snacks! All of these hikers were Northbounders (NOBO) so they were able to give us a preview of what we were about to encounter since that is where they had come from.Scott (Mac&Cheese): We hiked 3 miles today after leaving Holiday Inn. We hitched with a really kind fire dept paramedic Bill, who drove us to WalMart to resupply, then to the trailhead. He has a 13 year old son and would like to do the AT with him one day. The initial ascent today was brutal, but the trail led to an opening with a beautiful view and a bench to relax. That was my favorite. We met a father-daughter& boyfriend and the next day was the daughter¢s birthday. When we reached Molly Denton Shelter, we found Kilt (Mike) and Lighten Up eating dinner with Blockade Runner and High Tide. We ate mac and cheese ¢ I like it!! Found a great tent site in the grass ¢ very soft and level. Heard fireworks last night to the south ¢ I hear the ridge trail of the Shenandoahs is elevated with moderate difficulty.
Date: 2013-07-07
From: Jim and Molly Denton Shelter

To: Tom Floyd Wayside
Miles today: 8.4
Weather: light rain

Scott (Mac&Cheese):We found our first trail magic today ¢ lemonade and granola bars! Also hiked past a facility that looked like Jurassic Park with 20¢ fences and barbed wire, but it was actually a zoological research facility. Met lots of hikers today. Jeremy was hiking with his 3 children and is new to the area. Like Bill Long, Jeremy wants to hike the AT with his son. The sun was hot ¢ we sweat tons! Hydration is key ¢ fewer streams. Northbounders are enthusiastic. For example , AO and River were energetic and encouraging ¢ it rubbed off. We hiked 8 miles and ended at Tom Floyd Wayside Shelter ¢ 1900 feet. Tomorrow we enter Shenandoah National Park. I hear the blackberry milkshakes are amazing! My dad and I are soldiering onward. I have 2 blisters on my left foot toes, but they are tiny. I hope I¢m getting stronger and not wearing down. We witnessed a massive thunderstorm after arriving at Tom Floyd Wayside.Tom (Molasses):Day 10 ¢ Sunday July 7 ¢ Slept in so to speak ¢ 6:30am! Managed to break camp in about 2 hours ¢ our fastest yet but we were still the last to leave. Ran into a hiker named Miami, who ironically used to live only a few blocks from where I grew up in Miami. What a coincidence! We also had our first experience with ¢Trail Magic¢. That¢s when much to your surprise you find cold drinks and treats sitting right on the trail as you round a bend. The drinks and treats are placed there by trail angels ¢ volunteers who know what it means to a thirsty, hungry hiker. We arrived at the Tom Floyd Shelter in late afternoon. Literally the second after we got there, the skies opened up and it poured. Fortunately, we stayed dry in the shelter. Saw our first bear tonight. He was blocking the only trail to the spring where we had to go to get water. We backed off hoping he would disappear, but we weren¢t able to see him and couldn¢t hear him. Waited about 5 minutes and thought "what the heck, we need water", so we went clanging down the trail making all the noise we could so we could scare him off. We never saw or heard that bear again, but we did get our water. We were the only ones at the shelter, so we are sleeping in the shelter tonight rather than our tent.
Date: 2013-07-09
From: Gravel Springs Hut

To: Pass Mountain Hut
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Scott;s Journal:We broke camp on time and set out for Pass Mtn Hut 13 miles away. After hiking up South Marshall Mtn I almost fell asleep on Skyline Drive while my Dad was calling Mom and Jim. I must be tired! However, I pressed on to the hut. 13 miles is our longest goal yet. We stopped for lunch at Elk Wallow Wayside, and I ate a tuna on croissant. My dad had a cheeseburger. Coffee and Funny Feet ate there too. Funny Feet is my dad¢s age and is in excellent shape and can hike 13 miles because she runs on trails in Ohio. The last 562-foot climb wore me out!   When we reached Pass Mtn Hut before 7pm I felt like my legs were still moving even though they were not. A hiker named Lucky came in that night. I love him. Our campsite was level and had grass for cushioning. We have hiked over 80 miles in 12 days. Tom's Journal:Today we hiked 13.1 miles to Pass Mountain Hut. This was our longest day yet. I was totally exhausted by the time we arrived at the shelter. The highlight of the day, besides being in the great outdoors, was our lunch stop at Elkwallow Gap store and grill. I ate a giant cheeseburger and Pepsi. What a great treat in the middle of a long hike! Food is often thought of and discussed by hikers. The SNP is unique part of the AT since it is a public park that caters to tourists and therefore has restaurants, country stores and lodging at various points on the AT. I've been told to enjoy these food stops while I can since the opportuntity will no longer exist once we exit SNP. We hiked most of the day with Coffee and Funny Feet nearby. We all spent spent the night at the same shelter site. It was jsut the 4 of us until about 8:30 pm when a hiker named Lucky arrived with his headlamp lit. He was finishing a 25 mile hiking day. SCott did a few of those in 2009 but we are far from being able to do that now. We got some great pics of a deer that kept hanging around our tentsite. We had our typical Mountain House freeze dried dinner and got to bed early.
Date: 2013-07-10
From: Pass Mountain Hut

To: Birds Nest 3 Shelter
Miles today: 3.0

Scott's Journal:We broke camp late this morning and I got to sleep in. The others were late risers also. We only hiked 4.5 miles today. I¢m glad because I¢m worn out. Coffee and Funny Feet were always hiking nearby, but usually faster! We summited Mary¢s Rock, 3,800+ feet. The views were almost 360 degrees and amazing to take in. I ate a whole summer sausage up there for lunch. We stayed for an hour ¢ I could have stayed forever. We received cell reception up there. The sun shined on the valley southward. Looking back, it took a lot to believe we hiked over all those mountains and hills. It feels like such a long way. We finished our hike to Birds Nest 3 Shelter and pitched our tent. This is like a job! I love spending so much time with my father. Tomorrow will be a longer hike. I hope I am prepared.Tom's Journal:Today was a 4 mile hike. But don't be fooled by the low mileage. It was all uphill, ascending almost 1500 feet from where we started. It felt like the equivlent of 20 miles! But the hike was well worth it as we reached Mary's Rock at the top and were treated to a spectacular 360 degree view of the valley and mountain tops around us. It's at times like these that you really appreciate all the hard work of an AT hike. Because of the elevation there was quite a temp. drop. Felt good! Ate our lunch here, then took many photos. Arrived at Bird's Nest #3 Shelter late afternoon and followed our usual routine of collapsing in our trail chairs for about 30 minutes then began assembling tent, etc. Each shelter will typically have 5 or 6 tent sites. One of the first orders of business is to secure the most level and well situated tent site available. Was able to get cell phone service(not always available) and call home to let Cassie know that Scott and I survived another day in the wilderness. Early evening a hiker named Watcher rolled into the shelter site. He was a SoBo who had completed about 1000 miles at this point. He started talking about some of his other exploits such as 3500 mile cross country bicycle ride. Very interesting person!
Date: 2013-07-11
From: Birds Nest 3

To: Rock Spring Hut
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Scott's Journal: We got an early start from Birds Nest 3. We summited two mountains (Pinnacle and Stony Man Summit) and saw spectacular views. Stony Man had a famous pool of water on top that I had seen on a postcard.   I don¢t know if anyone named the pool of water though. For lunch we stopped at Skyland and I ate a large portion of fish and chips. On the mountain we took a photo as I hung my feet over the ledge sitting ¢ an awesome photo. My dad did the same ¢¦ scary! Eating lunch in a dining hall for a hike break was weird. (The AT criss-crosses Skyline Drive in the SNP and there are restaurants - Wayside Grills - available for the tourists in cars that the hikers use also.) We camped for the night at Rock Springs Hut and met Mike, Rickety, Solo, Parker, and Bluebird. All good souls. We were rained on that night and my pack got wet. Also, I had a puddle in the corner of the tent. I survived the wet!Tom's Journal:No matter how hard we try it seems impossible for us to break camp in less than 2 hours. It is usually my slowness not Scott's. I think I am way too meticulous about the way I pack gear. Some hikers just grab up all their things, stuff them anywhere in their pack where there is an opening and take off hiking. My personailty would just not allow me to do that! When we broke camp Watcher was still there. But we knew he would catch us quickly and with his speed we would probably never see him again. We also said our goodbyes to Funny Feet and Coffee since this was their last day of hiking. Really nice people we enjoyed very much. On today's hike, we saw some more great long range views and stopped for lunch in the dining room of a beautiful lodge called Skyland. It felt a little weird in our smelly hiker's clothes plopped down in the middle of non-hikers, but the food was great. We then made our way to Rock Springs Hut where we would spend the night. Met Mike and Rickety who were section hikers, who would do different sections of the AT every year. This year they were doing the Shenandoah section. Ironically they were both from Atlanta area and about my age. They were southbound so we would get to know them some more the next few days. Bluebird and Solo were also at the shelter. About 10:30 after we had gone to sleep, the skies opened up and it rained hard for the next 7 hours. 5 inches of rain! Everything was wet. Solo was also in a tent. He said he woke up about 3am in the middle of a mudslide, but was too tired to move - so just slept in the mud til daylight.
Date: 2013-07-12
From: Rock Spring Hut

To: Bearfence Mountain Hut
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: light rain

Scott's Journal:Last night was wet. I just keep a good positive attitude and look ahead. We began our hike and I fasted from breakfast because of the huge portion of fish and chips. We hiked through fog to our lunch stop at Big Meadows Wayside. We finally got 2 blackberry milkshakes ¢¦ they were well worth the wait. I used the restroom and my dad and I faced the rainfall. I wore no rain gear, but used my torn duck¢s pack to cover my backpack. After a while I enjoyed walking in the rain. I asked God for help while suffering the heavy cold rain and He told me to think I¢m in the middle of a fire needing help. It really worked. God sees the big whole picture. The rain finally stopped and my Dad and I hiked 13 miles to Bearfence Hut where we met Mike, Rickety, and Greasy Locks again and ate dinner and two Mrs. Field¢s oatmeal raisin and walnut cookies. We also met ¢Stinky Spice¢ ¢¦ a Spice Girl??Tom's Journal:Still raining when we broke camp. Put on rain gear for first time. The trail was flooded so the hiking was treacherous, but we somehow made our way forward. We once again encountered a wayside grill and this time got a special treat, that all the hikers rave about - blackberry milkshake. I've got to say it tasted delicious. Finally in the afternoon it stopped raining and I was able to remove raingear. Scott never put on raingear in the first place so had nothing to remove. He is a toughmudder. Arrived at Bearfence Hut where we once again saw Iron Mike and Rickety and also Greasy Locks and Stinky Spice. Most of our gear was unfortunatley still wet. Especially Scott's sleeping bag. He decided to wrap himself in a Mylar sheet which has a similar look to wrapping paper, and has superior insulating capabilities. Unfortunately it is a very noisy material and Scott kept me awake all night long rolling around in his Mylar sheet. We have now hiked over 100 miles!
Date: 2013-07-13
From: Bearfence Mountain Hut

To: Elkton, VA
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Scott's Journal:We hiked from Bear Fence hut to State Route 33 where Bob from Country View Motel picked us up. Where we tented last night, we found a tarp to bottom our tent and keep it clean ¢ real Godsend. My sleeping bag was wet, so I wrapped up in a Mylar blanket inside the bag ¢ that heated me up fast. Still got enough sleep. We ate lunch at South River picnic area with Greasy Locks, Stinky Spice, Rickety and Mike. They laughed at my Mylar story. (A Mylar blanket is an emergency hypothermia blanket.) We hiked 9 miles today and I am tired. Town food, warm shower, and bed will be another Godsend. Trail angel magic everywhere. Motel owner Bob is kind and loving, with a dog, Shadow, and an evil cat. Her name is Mean Cat. She acts like she want to be petted, but she freaks out if you do. We got our food box that Mom sent to the motel, and we return to the trail tomorrow. I have lost a few pounds. The Shenandoahs are awesome. I enjoy hiking through her beauty. The trail has been kind so far.Tom's Journal:Today's hike had a special anticipation since our destination was the town of Elkton, VA and the Countryview Motel which meant shower, bed & clean laundry. When you have been in the wilderness for awhile there's definitely a yearning for some creature comforts. After 4 miles of hiking we stopped at a nice picnic area and had lunch which we made ourselves. See - we don't always eat at wayside grills. Iron Mike & Rickety and Greasy Locks & Stinky Spice had lunch with us. It was a very sunny day (finally) so we spread much of our gear on the grass to dry out from all the previous days' rain. This was the last time we would see these hikers since they were continuing on to the next shelter rather than stopping in Elkton. After 3 more hours of hiking, the trail intersected with the highway to Elkton. We called Bob, the motel owner, who came to pick us up since the motel was about 3 miles away. I tried to avoid any walking that is not on the AT. Bob is the perfect match for the weary hiker. He caters to hikers and is extremely generous with his time and vehicle. He picked us up in his truck with his constant companion, his dog Shadow. After checking in he took us to town for laundry and dinner. Scott and I had the best stromboli I had ever tasted. we devoured it then Bob took us back to the motel for a night of blissful rest in our motel cabin built in 1935. We met another hiker couple from Florida at the motel - Chaco and Wishper. Chaco's trailname came from the fact he always hikes in Chaco sandals - no boots for him. They were quite an entertaining couple. Chaco told us his cobweb story. Cobwebs are an annoying problem on the trail if you are the first hiker early in the morning. He got tired of constantly untangling himself, so he made Wishper go in front. She is very short and not tall enough to actually run into the cobwebs. This perplexed Chaco, so he found a pair of sticks and strapped them to her head much like antennae. Cobweb problem solved!
Date: 2013-07-14
From: Elkton, VA

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 3.5
Weather: light rain

Scott's Journal:"I hated every minute of training but I said, Don't quit, suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion." Muhammed Ali. This quote inspires my hiking. We left Country View Motel at 1pm and started the ascent of High Top at 1:15 pm. We reached the top after an arduous 1200 foot climb and spotted the motel. After less than 4 miles we stopped at High Top Hut. A bee stung me. Our tentsite is nice and flat. I am used to tent camping and the work involved. I am at peace out here and in touch with the Good Lord God. There is one hiker, Indy, staying at High Top Hut with us. We passed several earlier in our hike. Spending time with my dad is a worthy investment. I love him. The tree leaves are a beautiful shade of green. I anticipate visiting Aunt Mary's and taking a zero mile day.Tom's Journal: We took our time checking out because we only planned hiking about 4 miles to the next shelter. As it turned out, the miles were straight up a mountain - a very grueling hike. But some great views. We could actually look down form the mountain top and see the Country View Motel far, far below. As we were hiking, a day hiker dad with two young kids went whizzing past us making us feel very slow. Of course, they were not carrying 40 lbs. backpacks. We arrived at High Top Hut in late afternoon and were the only hikers there until about 8 pm. That is when a hiker named Indy came rolling in after a 21 mile day - all excited about encountering bears on the trail.
Date: 2013-07-15
From: Hightop Hut

To: Loft Mountain Campground
Miles today: 14.0

Scott's Journal:We got an early start at 8:15 am, starting with the Lord's prayer. The trail was moderate with some uphills and downhills. We had an energy bar break, our tradition around 10:15am. We could see some log cabins in the valley from the high point we were at. We continued to Pinefield Hut where we ate lunch with Storm, a viking with foot long red beard and hair. We pressed onward to the Loft Mountain Wayside and had a feast with blackberry milkshakes. The cook likes our Osprey backpacks and wants to buy one to replace his broken Samsonite luggage. We will camp at the site here tonight. Oh yeah, we saw a bear cub looking under rocks for grub. He stopped and looked at my camera. We hiked over 12 miles today. We are worn out for sure.Tom's Journal: We got a pretty early start today and the weather was nice and clear. We made great time and actually arrived at our planned destination around 2 pm. This was much earlier than anticipated. It was a beautiful shelter setting with a babbling brook right in front. Very peaceful and soothing. We ate lunch, talked with a hiker named Storm who was carrying a guitar and then debated hiking further since there was a lot of daylight left. We were also being strongly influenced by the knowledge that six miles away was a Wayside Grill with blackberry milkshakes. The milkshakes won out. We put on our backpacks and headed forward leaving the beautiful shelter behind. The decision to hike further turned out to be very unwise. It was very hot and my feet started sweating profusely. Like a novice hiker I kept on hiking while noticing my feet beginning to hurt. About that time we had a close encounter with a bear. We were just sauntering down the trail near a spring (actually I was limping not sauntering) and about 20 yards in front of us was a bear cub overturning rocks looking grub. He stopped and looked at us, then shrugged and kept on grubbing. Scott quickly pulled out the camera and started taking photos. The bear turned around and looked straight at Scott and almost seemed to be posing! By the time we got to our destination we had hiked 14 miles - our longest yet - and for the first time since beginning the hike, I had blisters on my feet! Blisters are a hiker's worst nightmare. We found a tentsite and in addition to Scott being my traveling chef - he was now my traveling medic. Being a blister pro from his 2009 hike, he carefully evaluated my feet and concluded I would not need to be airlifted to the nearest hospital as I was requesting. He put up with my whimpering and complaining all night long. By the way - we did get our blackberry milkshakes so that soothed the pain a little bit.
Date: 2013-07-17
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Calf Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Scott's Journal:We broke camp early from Black Rock Hut at 8:30am. River Dog said his goodbye and we began on our 13 mile hike to Calf Mountain Shelter. This was the longest stretch without water source yet. I have been drinking the water pure without filtering when I see a piped spring. I started eating the berries I see on the side of the trail. We don't talk as much on our hike but when we stop to rest the conversation flows easy. I am at peace here. We hiked up Calf Mountain. It was the last mile of our hike and difficult. At the shelter we saw a Spotted White tailed owl and met Fred, Tom, Rangeley, Edwin, Kevin, Fingers, Log, and Nutty Buddy. Campsite was flat, I slept well knowing I would be at Aunt Mary's the next day. I love Nutty Buddy.Tom's Journal:Scott bandaged me up again and we were off and running. Scott's the greatest hiking partner you could ask for. Never complains, always willing to help and is very encouraging to me. Readily accepts hiking behind me even though it means going 1/10 the speed he is capable of!! Long day - hiked 13 miles with very steep uphill at end. Met Rangeley, a female hiker who was doing a section hike and been hiking the AT for years. She told Scott and I we needed to eat a lot more food if going to make it all the way to Georgia. We also met a real friendly hiker named Nutty Buddy from Buffalo. He carries canned foods and a great big pot in his backpack. Very unusual for hikers trying to keep pack weight down. He seemed to like us since we had trail chairs which many hikers thought was ridiculous. I think he liked that we were as unorthodox as him. He kept his food in his tent at night because he said bears knew how to get food bags that were hanging from trees or poles.
Date: 2013-07-18
From: Calf Mountain Shelter

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 7.7

Scott's Journal:We broke camp early at 8:15 am. Our hike today is only less than 8 miles. Came across trail magic ice water. We summited Bear Den Mountain. We were caught in a thunder and lightning storm. It had the hair on my dad's arms standing up. Riveting. The sun came out and we finished the Shenandoah section of the AT. The 7.7 mile day seemed like 9 miles. Once we reached Rockfish Gap we were picked up while waiting at Ron King's Kettle Corn stand. Oh yeah, I think it stormed because I wanted to eat a fattening summer sausage for lunch! Aunt Mary drove us back to her house and we were joyfully welcomed by Uncle Dave, and my cousins Sami and Ben. This is great! Dave taught me to trust the Holy Spirit's presence in my heart. Now I understand this. We ate crab, corn, and salad. I ate the most, 6 crabs. It is good to have showered and now sleep in Ben's twin bed. I love it.Tom's Journal:Big day! We are headed to Rockfish Gap where we will be met by Cassie's sister Mary and taken to her nearby house for some much needed R & R. The plan is to stay two nights at her home. The highlight of today's hike was being caught in a lightning storm and wondering if we would make it out alive. We did! And now time to enjoy being off our feet!