morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-03-13
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Deep Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: overcast clouds

I think that this will be my last fifteen-mile day until after the Smokies. I've been walking more miles-- partly to get to Hiawassee and partly to hit a shelter each night, but the legs are complaining. Yesterday's terrain was fairly easy, but this was up and down all day, and featured two of the hardest climbs yet: up Tray Mountain, and over Kelly Knob (the last being particularly hard, being at the end of the day.)I had a revelation while hiking this morning-- well, not so much a "revelation" as a "coming together of previous impressions." There are really two types of hikes on the AT: the lonely one, where you walk on your own, take your time, and can take the time to think deeply about things. The second is the social one, where you primary goal is to get to the shelter everybody else is staying at, you try to stay near other people, and you rarely have the privacy to sit on your own and think your own thoughts. This being Georgia in March, the AT is very crowded, so my hike has almost entirely been of the second type. But that hike won't get me to Maine-- there will be times when I want or even need to do my own thing, and then the first kind of hike will become a reality. It's the yin-and-yang of AT thru-hiking."Hike your own hike" is an oft-repeated mantra among the thru-hiker community-- it means you shouldn't let anyone else dictate the conditions of your own hike, either for how far you go or what you carry or what towns you go into. Hike your own hike the way you want to.For me, "hike your own hike" is about finding a balance between the two hikes- where I can have privacy when I need it, but enjoy the company of others when I need that. So far, the few times I've been on my own, I've felt lonely because I feel like I should be being social-- but I need to learn to be comfortable with either situation.Anyway, those thoughts were clearer in my head than they came out on paper, I think.Hike your own hike.Live your own life.
Date: 2004-03-15
From: Blueberry Patch Hostel

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: moderate rain

Got up about 7:30 and packed up in the hostel; it had rained overnight and we were grateful that we had had a roof over our heads. Then Gary and Lennie fed us pancakes with homemade blueberry syrup, cheese biscuits, and sausages-- it was delicious. They took us back to the trail after that, about by 10 am we were walking.It sprinkled on and off most of the day, and cloud clover was low, so on some of the higher mountaintops it was very foggy. We crossed from Georgia into North Carolina, with was exciting, but immediately afterward we had our steepest ascent yet, up from a place called Bly's Gap.Reached the shelter about 5:30 to find it full. A couple people already had tents up, so I found a site and pitched my tent. All through the evening more people came in, and by the end we had twenty or twenty-five people staying in or near a shelter that was designed for six.
Date: 2004-03-16
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Carter Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: light rain

Woke up this morning to the sound of pouring rain outside the tent. Took my time eating breakfast and packing up, and by the time I was ready to get out of the tent the rain had lightened up considerably.We climbed our highest mountain so far this morning (5,498 feet), but it was foggy and there wasn't even a hope of getting a decent view. Finally the fog and clouds began to lift in the afternoon, and I was pulling in the shelter at 3:30 despite a bad rash on my upper right thigh that had been itching and peeling since last night-- I think it's either an allergic reaction or a bite, but to or from what I don't know.A campfire was started, and I politely declined the bowl of pot that was passed around. (It has amazed me over the last few days how many people out here smoke-- either cigarettes, pot, or both). Still, the conversation was good, and I went to bed later than usual, at about quarter 'til 8.
Date: 2004-03-17
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Rainbow Springs Campground
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: light rain

I've decided that the rash that's been bothering me is most likely an infected bite that I caused by scratching too much. It's oozing and peeling, but I'm not suffering any other adverse effects from it, so I'm keeping it in the "Monitor" condition. If it's worse or not any better by the time I get to the Nantahala Outdoor Center about 30 miles from here, I may go into town and find a doctor.Still haven't seen any shelter mice, despite the fact that the shelter we stayed in last night was an old, decrepit shelter from the 1950's. In fact, 100 yards down the trail was the shelter's replacement, which we didn't see until we had set up our gear in the older shelter. Oh, well.Today we climbed Albert Mountain, which was the steepest, rockiest climb so far-- a 500 foot ascent in just three tenths of a mile. The view at the top was great, though.Our goal for the day was Rainbow Springs Campground, located about a mile off the trail at a place called Wallace Gap. What actually happened was, at Rock Gap (about 0.6 miles before Wallace Gap), we were met by a trail angel called Nightstalker, who slackpacked us to Wallace Gap (slackpacking is where someone else takes your pack to your destination while you walk), and then he gave us a ride into Rainbow Springs.On another note, I think the thru-hiker appetite is starting to kick in- I at e a 12-inch pizza for dinner by myself, something I normally couldn't do.
Date: 2004-03-18
From: Rainbow Springs Campground

To: Bartram Trail/AT Junction
Miles today: 11.3

Slept in today (7:15). Woke up, packed up, and had a sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit for breakfast- what luxury! At 9:30 we got a shuttle back to the trail and began hiking just as it began to rain. It continued sprinkling all day, and as we reached the higher elevations, we hit an oppressive fog. I think of all the conditions I've hiked in, fog is my least favorite-- it deprives you of any views and makes it seem like you're walking through a narrow tunnel.Stopped for lunch at Siler Bald Shelter, and several people decided to stay there on account of the rain, but Paul, Laura and I kept going another 4.5 miles before stopping at a campsite that was so full of gnarley old trees, that combined with the fog it was almost like a scene from Sleepy Hollow. This is not a place I'd like to camp alone.
Date: 2004-03-19
From: Bartram Trail/AT Junction

To: Wesser Bald Shelter
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: clear sky

Woke up to the beginnings of a beautiful day-- the clouds and fog had cleared, and the woods seemed much more friendly and inviting than they had the evening before.About 2 miles into the day's journey, we came to Wayah (pronounced "Warrior") Bald, where a stone observation tower stood. The view was amazing-- you could see for 50 miles. We saw Clingman's Dome, which is only 28 miles away as the crow flies but which is about 80 miles of walking via the AT, and looking the other direction we could see the fire tower atop Albert Mountain, which we passed about lunchtime two days ago.Then, as we walked into Burningtown Gap, we saw a big tent in the shape of a geodesic dome with a sign outside sayting, "Free Food- AT Hikers". The person responsible was a trail angel named "Apple", who comes out from Austin, Texas each year for about a week to set up shop and feed the hikers. What a great dose of trail magic! I ate 4 hot dogs, 2 Reese's Cups, and drank two cokes-- then, on full stomachs, Paul, Laura, and I began the long climb out of the Gap.The long climb was gentle, and we went slowly on full stomachs-- eventually the climb gave way to a long ridgewalk, which was absolutely beautiful; it was one of those afternoons where your could easily remember why it was you decided to hike 2,100 miles in the first place. If all the days were like this, the hike to Maine would be a cinch.The long ridge eventually gave way to some steep ups and downs, and about a mile before the shelter we reached the top of Wesser Bald, where there was a firetower that we climbed and for the second time today got some absolutely amazing views. We stayed up there for a forty-five minutes and were joined by two other thru-hikers, "Country" and "The Wandering Nunn", the first being a guy from Boone, NC and the second being a kid from England.At the shelter we met two southbounders-- one had started in Maine in September, and the other had started in New Hampshire in November. They had lasted through the winter, and were planning on taking seven more days to get to Mt. Springer. Pretty amazing.
Date: 2004-03-20
From: Wesser Bald Shelter

To: Sassafras Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Woke up at the crack of dawn, as usual, and headed of the the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center) by 7:45, a few minutes after Paul and Laura (new trailnames "Skyline" and "Sundance").The trail down to the NOC was 5.6 miles, and there were steep descents a lot of the way. I fell off the trail once, and would probably have tumbled twenty feet down a 60-degree incline had I not had the presence of mind to grab a tree trunk sticking out from the side of the mountain about one foot below the level of the trail. It was one of the more exciting moments in my day.The NOC is a kayaking center along the Nantahala River, with a restaurant, an outfitter's store, and a lodge. We rested there for a little while, ate lunch, re-supplied for the next two days before Fontana Dam, and left for a shelter about 7 miles away about 1 in the afternoon.Passed a memorial to a firefighter named Wade Sutton who died fighting a forest fire there in 1968-- it was surprisingly moving, and I paused for a few moments before moving on.The shelter was mostly empty when I got there, but it gradually filled up as the evening wore on, and people were coming in even as the skies opened up and rain began to pour.I seem to have picked up a trailname now: "Einstein," which was bestowed upon me by Laura/Sundance. I descended into Physics-major talk for a couple minutes a few days ago, and that impression seems to have stuck.So, Wade Sutton and Albert Einstein, your lives were as different as could be, but this evening I pause for a moment to salute you both. We don't have Budweiser out here on the trail, but Wade and Al, this Lipton dinner's for you.
Date: 2004-03-21
From: Sassafras Gap Shelter

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: clear sky

Well, so much for "no more fifteen-mile days until after the Smokies." Still, I'm glad I was able to make it here; now I have a nice, easy day into Fontana Dam.My feet were killing me over the last mile-- at Rainbow Springs I got new insoles for my boots that supposedly provide better support, but I'm afraid they may not offer enough cushioning for longer days. Well, we'll see how it goes.One of the things I haven't written about, and which I don't write about because I never think about it in the evening, is how bored you can get while you hike-- your mind wqanders, and you think about what you'd do if you were rich, or you make up limericks-- if there's no view or if the hiking is particularly dreary, sometimes these mind games are all you have.The worst is when you start thinking of home-- it's possible to get very homesick while walking, and it's at these times that my lowest moments, psychologically, of the trip have come.But it's always forgotten in the evening, when I can relax and eat and socialize. It's like a rollercoaster, sometimes, and it can be difficult to deal with-- but I'm learning.
Date: 2004-03-22
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam, NC
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: clear sky

A light snow was coming down when we woke up, and we spent a little longer than usual crawling out of our sleeping bags. A thermometer registered 21 degrees-- my coldest morning yet, I believe.I was meeting my Dad about 2 pm, but I got into Fontana Dam at about 11 am. I figured I would hang out for a few hours and do laundry, but much to my surprise, my Dad pulled into the parking lot 3 hours early!I had left my journal and guidebook at Cable Gap Shelter, so retrieving them was my top priority. Lucikly, a road crossed the trail less than a mile from the shelter, so within an hour we were able to get to shelter and retrieve my stuff.After that we headed into Bryson City, where I did laundry and grabbed a meal at Arby's. Then I went back to the hotel room and took a nape, then we went out for a meal at a nice Italian place, but to my surprise I wasn't hungry- only ate about half of the meal.We went back to the hotel room, where I was able to plug my Dad's laptop into the phone and get online for a while, and we crashed at about 9:30.
Date: 2004-03-23
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: clear sky

Got up, enjoyed the hotel's continental breakfast, and returned to Fontana Dam by 9 am. To my surprise, I was feeling a lot of the same butterfiles in my stomach that I felt my first day out two weeks ago-- maybe it's because for the past two weeks Fontana Dam has been my short-term goal, and now my short-term goal is Erwin, TN. Maybe it's because I have to say good-bye to a family member, or maybe it's because I just came from a city and a hotel room. Either way, though, I find myself thinking of home as I begin the 70-mile stretch through Great Smoky Mountains National Park.So far, for me, the AT has been almost entirely a social experience, and I haven't had much time to think deeply or anything like that- I've met a lot of people, but it occurs that that's not the primary reason I came on the AT- if all I ever see of the AT is the social part of it, I won't make it to Maine.These were the sorts of through that filled my head as I walked, dampening my spirits on what was actually a warm, sunny, beautiful day.When I got to the shelter, there were only 3 people there, 2 of whom I knew. It looked like Paul, Laura, Flora, Fauna, Tailwind, and a bunch of other people I've been hiking with had pushed on to the next shelter, which was only 2.5 miles away. I thought about heading up to join them, but decided against it-- maybe what I needed was to get away from my familiar social circle for a few days, and do things my own way. So I stayed.But lo and behold, about an hour and a half later up comes Tailwind! Turns out that all the people I thought were ahead of me are actually behind me. They got a very late start out of Fontana Dam, are trying to make it to this shelter before it gets dark.That's often how things work on the Trail. You try to predict what situation you'll be in in a couple days-- even just one day, and it never, ever works out the way you planned it. In fact, trying to plan specifics more than 24 hours in advance is usually futile-- at least for me. I feel like that's one lesson the trail is trying to teach me: "Lighten up, and take life as it comes. Don't worry so much, because things will work out in the end-- even if it's not how you originally planned."
Date: 2004-03-24
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Silers Bald Shelter
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: few clouds

The big group that was supposed to show up last night never did-- I guessed they pulled off somewhere to camp.Today was a day of ups and downs-- both physically and mentally. I had heard that the Smokies are only hard on the first and last days-- when you climb up to and down from the ridgeline, respectively.Wrong. Today was full of steep ups and downs, and the first half of the day was almost as hard as any I've had so far.My original intention was to only go about 12 miles, and I paced myself accordingly. My pace was further slowed by the same train of thought from yesterday-- the feeling that maybe my hike hasn't been everything I had hoped, and that maybe even calling it quits at Damascus would be the best thing to do.My spirits were lifted by a field we walked through which reminded me of Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia-- just a place on the mountains where there were no trees, only grasslands.I hit my target shelter, Derrick Knob, at 3 pm only to find a large group of kids on Spring Break already there. I took a break, and Country showed up a few minutes later. Together, we decided to push on for the next shelter, 5.5 miles down the trail.I kept up with Country and we talked, and during that 5.5 miles I pushed myself harder and faster than at any point yet, covering the whole distance in less than two and a half hours. I was amazed to find I could do so much at the end of the day, and it boosted my spirit on a day when my spirit needed boosting. It was an "up" end to an up and down day.
Date: 2004-03-25
From: Silers Bald Shelter

To: Icewater Springs Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: broken clouds

Just another long day in the Smokies today-- long, but good. Hit Clingman's Dome about 10 am-- the view was good, thought it was a little hazy. There was a chance of rain today, but rain never threatened-- the weather was beautiful again.Made good time after Clingman's Done, despite several areas where the trail was almost completely covered in ice, and before 3 I was standing in Newfound Gap. I had originally planned on going into Gatlinburg to re-supply, but it turned that I carried so much food out of Fontana that I didn't need to.After so long among smaller groups of people, the huge crowd at Newfound Gap was almost overwhelming, and I felt like a tourist attraction amongst all the clean-smelling dayhikers and tourists. Still, they were nice.About half a mile before Newfound Gap, we also had some trail magic-- two former thru-hikers named Spur and Ready and left a bunch of soads packed in the natural ice on a hill, and it really hit the spot.When we got to the shelter, we met Tacoma Ted, a man who's thru-hiked the whole trail already and has also section-hiked the whole trail, and is now taking his time doing various side trails as he makes his way to Maine. He carries a backpacking guitar, and so our evening was filled with music. Tacoma, Spur, and Ready-- a big thanks to all of you.
Date: 2004-03-26
From: Icewater Springs Shelter

To: Tricorner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: broken clouds

Another beautiful day here in the Smokies. The weather has been great, but I'm beginning to worry-- someone left a newspaper in the shelter last night, and it mentioned that this March has been one of the driest ever in the Southeast-- I hope this isn't a trend for the rest of the year.A lot of beautiful views today, too-- after about three hours of hiking, I stopped for lunch of a rock that provided a view that seemed to go on for fifty miles: it was just ridgeline after ridgeline, fading away into the distance.Other than that, a fairly uneventful day- cruised into the shelter about 3, and spent an easy afternoon hanging out. We shared the shelter with a local group of kids on break from school, and that was interesting, as they were all very nice and also knew a heck of a lot about the local area.
Date: 2004-03-27
From: Tricorner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: clear sky

My longest day today, but it's amazing what you can accomplish when you're motivated by real food and a hostel.Left early this morning (about quarter 'til 7), and by 3 I had banged out the 18 miles (mostly downhill) to Standing Bear Farm, a nice hostel with a bunkhouse, kitchen, laundry, shower, and telephone-- everything a thru-hiker needs. I decided to hold off on laundry until Hot Springs, but the shower felt great.We also got shuttled into town and I was able to get a huge sub sandwich for dinner-- really big, and really good.Afterward we hung out around the campfire until about 10-- way later than we usually go to bed.
Date: 2004-03-28
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Slept in today, 'til a little after 7. Re-supplied for 2 days to Hot Springs in the little supply store/closet that was there, and was walking by a little after 8.The highlight of the day was Max Patch, a huge bald area on top of a ridgeline that I reached in the early afternoon. There was a 360-degree view from the summit, and it was absolutely spectacular.Had originally planned on camping about half a mile past Max Patch, but when I got there was it only 3:30, and the two guys I've been hiking with since the beginning of the Smokies, Freedom and Scorpion, were still ahead of me and hadn't stopped. So depsite an increasing pain in my boot where it felt like my second and third toes were being pinched, I kept walking.It was easy walking after Max Patch, with very few ups and downs. The trail followed a stream pretty closely, and it was quite pretty.Finally reached the shelter a little after 5, and found Freedom and Scorpion already there. Another hiker, Dave, arrived a little bit after that, and we enjoyed a quiet evening. Looking forward to Hot Springs tomorrow.
Date: 2004-03-29
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: few clouds

The one disadvantage to hiking with Scorpion and Freedom is that they get up early, and Freedom especially likes to wakes people up. About 5:30 or quarter 'til 6 each morning, he yells, "Hey Scorpion! You up?" in a voice that's probably loud enough to wake up people in other shelters. I generally stay in bed for a half-hour or so after Freedom's wake-up call, but today it was my bladder that forced me out of bed.So by 7, I was walking-- not that I needed much motivation, since my destination for the day was Hot Springs, where a shower, a laundromat, real food, and a bed awaited me.A few miles into the day's hike, we walked through a large area that the Forest Service had just done a controlled burn through-- the leaves on the ground were charred black as far as the eye could see, but the trees were pretty much untouched, and there were a few small patches of untouched leaves-- it was pretty weird, actually.About 2 pm, we got into Hot Springs-- did laundry (first time since before the Smokies), took a shower, and ate a filling dinner at the Smoky Mountain Diner. Looking forward to a nice, relaxing day off tomorrow.