morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-07-05
To: William Penn shelter
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: mist

This morning I wake up and discover who I've all camped with last night.There is UG, Livestrong, Gozar, and Quijote. I learn that the Troll family was camped close by as was Cuppa Joe. Quijote hiked the PCT last year so we chat about that as we pack up. Most of us are headed for the 501 shelter, a mere 17.5 miles away. We're all excited about this short day. Yes, a 17.5 mile day is considered a short day by most hikers now.Quijote and I hike together for a while reminiscing about the PCT. This makes us miss it too much so we start thinking about the aspects we didn't like. The desert heat, the blisters, the long distances between water sources... I have some weird stomach cramping going on so have to take a break and relax some muscles or something. I think it is left over from yesterday's push into camp. Something to do with shallow breathing, being hungry and being out of water and then eating and drinking fast? I don't know... It seems too much air is trapped in my body or something. Passing gas seems to help (I know, there is such a thing as too much information). Anyway, I feel better but lost Quijote. I meet up with Rawhide and Bubbletoes though. I pass them but they soon catch up. It starts to rain, then stops. It's hot and humid and there is a long climb and I have to slow down to survive. When I finally get on top of the ridge it starts pouring down. Now it cools off! I enjoy the rain until my shoes get soaked and it starts to get chilly. The rocks get slippery so I have to be careful not to fall. I meet up with Rawhide and Bubbletoes again and we have lunch together on the moist rocks. We figure we are close to the shelter but we are also very hungry and don't want to wait til we get there. When I finally do get to the shelter I'm exhausted. Really exhausted. I need a nap real bad. I spread out my Tyvek and collapse. Livestrong, Bubbletoes, Rawhide, and Gozar are there too but they soon move on to 501, now only 4 miles away. It's such a short distance. I don't have the energy to do it though. Sooo tired...It is 3:30pm and I set my alarm for 6pm. Surely by that time I should be well rested... Not! I'm still freaking exhausted. I don't even have the energy to go get water up the hill. I've got only two sips left but it'll have to do. I nap some more, eat a snack for dinner and lazy around. This would have been a great opportunity to catch up on my journal but I don't even have the energy for that. It's pretty bad.No one else shows up so I have the whole shelter to myself. It's quite nice. I wouldn't have been good company anyways. Finally it gets dark and it starts raining some more. Thunder and lightning add some extra flavor to it. Very impressive sound effects. I finally drift off to a nice long sleep. I guess I needed it.
Date: 2005-07-06
From: William Penn shelter

To: Trail to Sand Spring
Miles today: 18.5

After a 16 hour nap I finally manage to get up. I still haven't gotten any water and can't eat my granola with powdered milk so I eat some kind of smashed and crumbled thing from the bottom of my food bag. I make it up the hill, get some water and start the four miles to the 501 shelter.At the 501 I meet up with Cuppa Joe, UG and the Troll family! It's good to see them again. They're having a late start because they're only doing 15 miles today. This shelter has an outside shower and has four walls. Pretty nice. I cook myself a second breakfast (which is actually a dessert), take a shower and then chase the Troll family down. We hike and whine together most of the day. Good company! After a late lunch I decide to hike on because I want to avoid night hiking and it's getting quite late. Pennsylvania is infamous for its' rocks and I'm usually pretty good at rockhopping but this afternoon they get me. I walk and trip, almost catch myself with my trekking pole but then trip over the other one. Ouch!!!I land on the rocks with my shin. It's all scratched up but still functioning. I need some time to compose myself. I'm cursing the trail once again. Luckily Troll catches up soon enough and we both start bitching. So nice to do that together ; ). Then nurse Anchor shows up and she cleans out my 'wounds' (ouch!). While Troll is making fun of me Anchor puts a big bandage on and I look all cool.I hobble along to the Sand Spring trail where we decide to stay for the night. At least we know there's water here and we're not so sure about the water source at the shelter. Plus it's almost dark and we're tired.Hiking with Troll, Oblivious and Anchor is quite entertaining. They have great humor and Anchor has been really helpful. She knows all about pain killers and advises me on which ones to take and when. I follow her advice and hope tomorrow I won't be too stiff.
Date: 2005-07-07
From: Trail to Sand Spring

To: Port Clinton
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: broken clouds

Anchor gently wakes me up this morning. She wants to make sure that I'm allright. I'm really sleepy but want to make sure that I'm allright too. I stand up and the leg seems to be working fine. I'll be able to make it down the mountain... I think.They leave early but I'm really too sleepy so I go back to bed. Mmmmm.... bed.... sleep...good...Anyway, I finally get up and walk the 9.5 miles down to the town. I get some rain on me the last two miles or so but nothing too bad. The trees are pretty good at protecting me. The steep downhill into town isn't too painful but I'm glad to be done with it.I had planned to do a maildrop to this town but totally spaced out when I was in Waynesboro so forgot. It would have been a great idea since there is absolutely nothing useful here. The outfitter doesn't even carry candy bars. I can't complain though because it's at the outfitter that I yogi a ride to the supermarket in Hamburg. And a nice supermarket it is. One of the biggest I've seen in a while. I'm a little worried about the hitch back but get lucky again. When I'm repacking my stuff at the exit a nice lady asks me if I'm hiking. I say yes and mention that I'm a little worried about catching a ride back to the trail. She promptly offers to drive me to Port Clinton eventhough they're not headed that way. Man, I'm lucky today!They drop me off at the pavillon in town where I meet lots of hikers I haven't met before. Skywalker, Sleeveless, Lojack, Skillet, Bottle... I also meet Da Ox again, I haven't seen him since I hiked with my mom!
Date: 2005-07-08
From: Port Clinton

To: Windsor Furnace Shelter
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: moderate rain

During the night I feel rain on my face. What the ....?! The wind is blowing rain into the pavillon. UG, Skywalker and I move our stuff further away from the walls and try to go back to sleep. In the morning the weather doesn't look very inviting. Still raining. To hike out or to not hike out that's the question. After breakfast at C'3 I still haven't made up my mind. The Troll family is probably hiking out, UG is hiking out, Da Ox is trying to convince me to stay. It has stopped raining and I think I'm hiking out. Then it starts raining again and I'm not so motivated anymore. Finally there is a promise of sunshine and I put my shoes on. I'm going!It's only six miles to the first shelter. That sounds great. A nice mellow day out of town. There is quite a climb but since I have all the time in the world I take it real slow and don't get frustrated with it at all. I find a good radio station with oldies and have fun singing along. Hiking can be fun after all ; ) I'm sharing the shelter with the Troll family and Skywalker (who has seriously endangered his reputation as a fair weather hiker by hiking out today). UG is camped out nearby. Conversations are once again very entertaining. Oblivious is asking questions about dinosaurs (from my oatmeal packages) and UG says they have tiny little arms and legs like mine... You gotta love the thru hiker tact! A new trail name is born: "Dino Legs". Sounds kinda fun but I've been Apple Pie for so long, don't think I can give that one up. Now we're talking about tigers and lions and bears and the ways they attack. Skywalker who is 6 ft 11 is particularly afraid of bears. We're telling him that with his height he should be able to scare him off. We're trying to convince him that raccoons are much more dangerous. The conversation is real funny but unfortunately I can't quite transcribe the humor. Now we're talking about bear safe times and lemon blazing.Register quote from July fourth by Bear Fodder: " I celebrate this Independence Day by enslaving a species - the mosquitos and I have become fast friends - I supply the females with blood for their young, and they have declared me their king. They've decided to follow me to Bear Mountain, NY, at which point I will designate the new king, as I depart the Trail. My 11-day reign as king begins today, with a banquet. My minions feasted well".
Date: 2005-07-09
From: Windsor Furnace Shelter

To: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: scattered clouds

I'm lazy again this morning and don't start hiking til 9:30am. Will I join the others and do an easy day to the Allentown shelter or will I go further? With a late start like that and the leasurely pace I'm enjoying I think 16.5 miles will do just fine.I get to the vista at Pulpit Rock. Pretty nice view. There are lots of day hikers today, it must be weekend. Ah right... it's Saturday. I chat with a group and tell them about hiking the trail and how you get to meet cool people along the way.After a short break I continue on and get to enjoy some of Pennsylvania's rockier parts. Sometimes it's a mystery where the trail goes but I usually guess right. I'm going fairly slow. No need to speed up and fall again. I like this slow pace. No frustration, no pushing...I bypass the Pinnacle overlook thinking it's probably going to have the same view as the last one. Plus there are so many day hikers now that I don't really want to go out there. And I might want to actually hike some today ; )A nice dirt road section gives some relief from the rocks and I could have made some good time if I'd wanted to. I continue my leasurely pace though. I meet UG who's enjoying the sunshine at an open spot. He's from Florida and loves the sun. It's time for lunch but I prefer hiking on to a shady spot. I hike with UG for a little while but he hikes faster than I like. Don't like to break a sweat today. I eat a snack at a spring and hike with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for about five minutes. Keeping up with him hurts my shins though and I'm soon by myself again. No worries. I'm getting close to Eckville shelter now so will take my lunchbreak there. Skywalker and Chronic are there and they are sipping sodas. And eating ice cream... Yum! It turns out there is a fridge here and for donation you can have some luxuries. Great shelter. There is also a shower and a flush toilet. I use the toilet, the shower will have to wait to tomorrow when I'll also have clean clothes hopefully. Everyone is going to Palmerton and sleep in the jail so I figure I'll go there too and clean up there.Dragging out my lunch break is working out great and then Da Ox shows up. We b.s. some and then hike out together. Talking makes the hiking go by fast. We're not hiking fast though. I slow down the climb and he slows down on the rocks. We have plenty of time to get to the shelter though. Oxes knee is hurting so he's really happy when we get there. I'm doing great and could go on but am fine with staying here. The Trolls are really frustrated with the rocks but I actually had a great day. Going slow and good company works great for me!
Date: 2005-07-10
From: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter

To: Palmerton
Miles today: 17.7

Again I'm one of the last ones to wake up. Kind of a rude awakening actually. Trail maintainers stop by the shelter and start the weed wacker. Ugh! Ox and I hike out together. Too early to chat. Waking up to music seems the consencus. I find a good radio station and cruise along. We're making good progress and stop at the Blue Mountain B&B to tank up on water. Skywalker and Chronic talked the owners into making breakfast for them. I content myself with a Snickers bar and some crackers.We slow down a little on the way to the next shelter, passing the Trolls and UG on the way. Bake Oven knob has an okay view but we're pushing on. I'm ready for a break after all the big rocks we had to walk/scramble over. Lunch at the shelter sounds good. Unfortunately all the springs are dry but we should have enough water to last us the next 7 to the Outerbridge shelter. The water there is great. Now it's only another mile into town. Yippee! We get a hitch right away and head for the police station. Why? Because hikers can stay for free in the old jail. I'm staying in jail tonight!
Date: 2005-07-11
From: Palmerton

To: Palmerton
Miles today: 0.0

The Trolls are leaving early in the morning and I would like to join them but unfortunately I had an unpleasant early morning experience. I found myself nauseous and puking. Luckily there is a stellar bathroom here. I spent quite a bit of time there and wasn't feeling good at all. No hiking for me today. The upside of this is that I'll have time to update my journal today. I'm sure you've all been wondering whatever happened to me ; ).I feel better now but still have no energy. Hopefully I'll have more energy tomorrow. I really don't want to spend another day in town.
Date: 2005-07-12
From: Palmerton

To: Flat spot, mile 1267
Miles today: 23.2

A note offering rides to the trail was posted in 'our' jail. Canteloupe called last night and arranged for us to be picked up at 6:15am. This is early but necessary. There is apparently a hot and exposed climb out of Lehigh gap. It's made out to be extremely tough. Anyway, we (that is Canteloupe, Socks, Vogue, Tinker, and I) are get picked up and dropped at the trailhead. Five girls, pretty cool! I'm not quite ready yet (still wearing sandals) so the girls go ahead. A couple yards up the trail I meet Crazy Legs, Professor Nutmeg and Low Bridge. They were camped here and head out shortly after me. The climb is indeed rocky and exposed but nothing like the horror it's been made out to be. I can't help but think: "That's it???". Op top it's a seriously devastated area. The effects of the zinc mine are still visible. It seems like the area is recovering though. Greens are growing again. Part of the trail goes over a dirt road. Nice walking and views too. Crazy Legs and Low Bridge pass me here but I soon join them for a snack break. I'm feeling pretty good today. I'm taking it slow and feel fine. I join the guys again for a short break at Little Gap. I take a little bit of water from the jugs that are placed here. I started with about 4 liters this morning and want to make sure I can drink as much as I need. Rumors are that there is no water at the next shelter. I'm probably still dehydrated because of yesterday and don't want to risk running out. Yes, it's heavy but I lightened my pack a bit yesterday (those fleece pants are no longer needed, and I wasn't reading that book anyways) so it's not that bad.At Smith Gap I meet some dayhikers who are cooking lunch. They offer me a piece of warm pita bread with melted cheese and pepperoni. Very tasty. I also meet up with the girls again. They had taken a break at a viewpoint I had bypassed. It's less than four miles to the shelter now. We're making good progress today.Pus Gut (formerly known as Indy) wrote in the register that there is water at this shelter. It's .5 mile down though so I'm glad I still have enough to get me to Windy Gap. Right before Windy Gap I meet some southbound section hikers who ask me if I speak German. Uh... yes. The girl wants to refresh her German and wonders what the translation for 'ubrigens' would be. I draw a blank. When she suggests 'by the way' I have to agree though. I think that comes closest to it. They tell me that there are water jugs at the other side of the road. Nice! That saves me a .2 miles walk down the road to a spigot. When I get to the trailhead I meet up with section hikers 'Woodsgirl' and 'Feet don't fail me'. We chat for a while and I find out that they maintain a section of trail in New Hampshere. Cool!I want to hike some more to get closer to the Trolls and UG but I soon get a headache. Not fun. I decide to at least finish the climb and then look for a campsite. After about three miles I give up on finding a good site and settle for a mediocre one. I'm sliding towards the door of my tent and if it rains I might have some problems....
Date: 2005-07-14
From: Backpacker campsite

To: Brink Road shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I've barely started hiking and the bugs are driving me nuts already. While I'm trying to slap them I turn my head and see Socks come up the trail. One of these days I'll start hiking early just like her and I'll be able to do big miles and... Right, who am I kidding? We hike together for a bit. I like her company. Sunfish Pond (the glacial pond I was talking about yesterday) is beautiful. Some people have stacked rocks on the shore. It looks like art. Pretty cool. The trail is rocky and doesn't go around the shore line as much as I would have liked but I still like this stretch. Socks and I spot a big black snake right next to the trail. Nice!We meet up with UG at the road to the Mohican Outdoor center. We decide to check it out. That's a very good decision since they have fresh sandwiches. Yum! It's a little early for lunch but who cares? There is a group of teenagers asking us all kinds of questions about the trail. How much food do you carry? How much does your pack weigh? How much do you walk in a day? Etc. Maybe we'll inspire them to hike it some day.We have a nice ridge walk with some good views. New Jersey is quite enjoyable. We all meet up again at the waterpump at Blue Mtn Lakes Road. UG shows off his muscles while pumping. Later he tries to pull himself up on a branch. At first he succeeds, then he puts his pack on and tries again. Huge failure. We never actually find out if he would've been able to do it since the tree branch succombs under the weight. It doesn't quite break but it gets awfully close. That UG, always good for some entertainment.UG and I leave Socks behind here. She only has a couple more miles to do before she's done enough for today. We want to push on to the next shelter. We meet some sectioners (scouts?) that tell us we might not make it before dark. It's apparently a hard seven miles. We're thinking that they are just section hikers and don't know what we're capable of. We're thinking we'll make it easily. Later we understand what they were talking about. Some nice rockscrambling lays ahead. I lead UG astray for a couple yards. I don't see a trail up ahead so turn right towards a lake. There aren't any blazes however so we turn around and soon find blazes up the rocks. It still doesn't look like a trail but we follow the blazes and start the scramble. Rock scrambling with a pack on... yippee!!! (Can you feel the sarcasm?).My feet aren't too happy today. They got wet yesterday and my toes are starting to get irritated. The humidity doesn't allow the shoes to dry out and the wet grass this morning didn't help either. I try taping them but finally have to resort to wearing my sandals.We're both relieved to find the shelter. Tired!!! Chuckles & Gottago (different Gottago than last years') and a section hiker are the only ones here. They are smarter than we are and have set up their tents. We sleep in the shelter and get attacked by the mosquitos. Dumb, dumb, dumb.
Date: 2005-07-15
From: Brink Road shelter

To: flat spot at mile 1319.5
Miles today: 14.9

It is extremely hot and humid in the morning. UG and I are happy when it finally rains. My feet aren't happy with the wet shoes and socks but at least it cools off a bit. It doesn't last long however before it's hot and humid again. When we get to Culvers Gap we spot a gas station and a bakery. The bakery is closed and the gas station doesn't have a store but there is a fishing/hunting store with a life bait vending machine. Never seen anything like that before. There is also a tavern which serves food! Yum! We hang out there for a while and when we finally leave Chuckles, Gottago and Socks meet us at the road. A long climb awaits us. The temperature and humidity turn me into a sorry excuse for a hiker. I barely make it to the top of the hill. We decide to take a break. This break turns into an afternoon nap. It makes me feel a little better but it's mostly the drop in temperature that helps me out. I would have liked to get to the High Point shelter today but there's no way we'll make it tonight. Rutherford shelter would make a 15 miler for us so we'll shoot for that instead. It's very tempting to stay at the pavilion on Sunrise Mtn. Nice views and a great breeze... We have to tear ourselves away from the benches.Chuckles and Gottago stay at Mashipacong shelter (there are a ton of shelters here), we hike about 2.5 miles past it. We don't even make it to Rutherford Shelter... oh well. We find a semi flat spot to camp and crash. Zzzzz...
Date: 2005-07-16
From: flat spot at mile 1319.5

To: secret shelter
Miles today: 10.4

Lack of motivation from both sides makes us lazy and we don't leave camp until 10am. This is ridiculous! The humidity, bugs and pointless up and downs are really getting to me. I'm not looking forward to hiking at all. That's just wrong. At High Point State Park I hope to find a cold soda or something to cheer me up. Nothing close by though. We take a break in the grass amidst goose poop. In the restrooms I get some weird looks from tourists. That's always good. We've done three miles before lunch. Way to go Apple Pie! That'll get ya to Katahdin all right!At the observation platform where we might see NYC we have a hazy view. Not that I'm really interested in NYC anyways. I mean, isn't this supposed to be a wilderness trail? I follow UG down a nice trail. That should have tipped us off right there. A 'nice' trail... that can't be the AT. Indeed it isn't. We go back up and find a blaze on a rock. That's more like it!We see the High Point Monument and stop for a short break in the shelter close by. We talk with a ridgerunner for a while and then move on. We're close to the New York border but still in New Jersey for now.Today is really a push for me. So humid and hot. I'm wondering if there's something wrong with me. When we get to the 'secret' shelter we've done a mere 10.4 miles but I'm done for the day. There's a great fan upstairs which cools us off and keeps the mosquitos away. The cold shower is quite chilly but still nice.During the night the dueling donkeys in the next field wake me up a couple of times but I'm tired enough not to mind. I sure hope tomorrow will be better.
Date: 2005-07-17
From: secret shelter

To: Vernon
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: few clouds

We're planning on resupplying in Unionville and hopefully do laundry and showering. The resupply goes off without a hitch but the other two seem impossible here. I find a note at the P.O. saying that we can call the mayor for shower and laundry. That sounds like fun. Unfortunately the mayor isn't home so that plan falls through. We check out the motel and 'hostel' a couple blocks away. The hostel really is nothing more than a storage room with some shelves masquerading as bunks and the motel isn't open. I guess we'll continue our journey stinky as we are. The next shelter has an entry from the Troll family. They must have passed us some time yesterday. They say they're going to stay at the Vernon church hostel tonight. The chase is on!!!Before Vernon there is a beautiful raised wooden walkway. It leads us through a swamp. Finally some different scenery. It's a little breezy and quite enjoyable to walk now. It also helps that we take breaks on almost every bench there is. Only a suspension bridge and railroad tracks stand between us and Vernon now. I'm looking forward to seeing the Trolls again.We have little trouble getting a hitch into town and soon we are reunited. We also meet up with Skylark, Lojack, a southbounder, Chuckles and Gottago. The hostel has a computer, laundry, shower... heaven!