morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2023-07-16
From: MM 1805

To: MM 1805
Miles today: 0.0

Day 127 0 mi MM18050 up O downRest dayToday was primarily a day to rest, eat some good food and learn as much as possible about the next 150 miles. I have a plan - somewhat shaky compared to my usual efforts but the best the variables allow. The largest variable is the weather. The alpine zone (the area above the tree line) is bare and exposed. Thunderstorms are common and temperatures can change dramatically in a few minutes. But at least I know where my resupply points are for the next 100 miles. That will have to do. How am I doing?Great question for which i don't have a great answer. I can say for sure that I am not cocky or overconfident. I believe that I can do this but can also see scenarios that make it difficult and next to impossible. For example, if the weather turns very bad for more than two days (my reserve food capacity) then I may have to walk off the mountain via a side trail and find a way into a town (there are really only three) to wait it out. Not desirable but I'm sure it's happened to others. At this point, I think perhaps flexibility and adaptability are more important than physical skills. I think I'm ok there. I recall my flight instructor telling me not to fall prey to "destinationitis" - the desire to get somewhere despite the conditions and information you have. That's what kills more pilots than anything else. Extremely relevant at the moment. I dont expect to be able to do daily updates because of cell service. So no news is not bad news in this case. Don't fret. Well, the next task is to sleep tonight. Then start hiking tomorrow. Please pray for all the hikers in the Whites. There are some fine people out here.
Date: 2023-07-17
From: MM 1805

To: MM 1816
Miles today: 11.0

Day 128 11 mi MM18162423' up 2000' down Eliza Brook shelter Today was really my first day in the White Mountains. Yes, Mr. Moosilauke is one but the slack pack didn't really give me any information. Now I have some and it's okay, I guess. I averaged 1.15 mph over the whole day. The ascents were not bad; they were steep and rocky. There were a few times I had to throw my poles up and forward so I could use all four paws to climb. I think that will be pretty normal. It was the descents that really slowed me down. At one point I only went 0.4 miles in a half hour. That's crazy slow. My back has been out of whack for a few days and that slowed me down as I was definitely protecting it. What little flat there existed was super muddy so that was slow as well. My conclusion is that I can still get 10-12 miles per day even at that speed but it will take longer than I had hoped. Maybe some of the terrain will be better than today - just have to see. Supposed to rain tomorrow Shocker right.   I have about 9 miles to do to get into town - the last one for awhile. So I get one more data point before it's going to get remote. I start with a 2000' climb that shouldn't be as muddy according to reports. Either way, it will help me guess at how long it's going to take to do the next segment. There's also a map store in town. I'm going to try to get a detailed map of the Whites. My FarOut app has little info about the other trails. They could be really important if I need to bail out at some point. Set up my tent so I could stretch out and try to get this back to relax. Oh, and three little falls today. None deserved a number as I ended up on my butt and pack each time. Still, I used a few choice words on the third one. I would dearly love to see some trail like I'm used to down South. Sigh....
Date: 2023-07-18
From: MM 1816

To: MM 1825
Miles today: 9.0

Day 129 9 mi MM 18252329¢ up 3243¢ downNotch Hostel - Lincoln I made the right decision yesterday not going for the next shelter 4 miles on. It took me 4 hours to get there. The Kinsman mountains (north and south) were rugged. Again, no view except the clouds. Soon I will surely get a view. Today had some ¢throw your poles forward so you can use your hands hiking¢. I¢m not sure when hiking becomes climbing. Maybe not until you have to use ropes. I felt close to that twice but since I¢m not carrying ropes I guess I wasn¢t climbing. I walked 10 miles (there was a mile to get to the pickup point) in 8 hours. So the 1.2 mph starts to sound about right. I¢ve talked with several hikers who have spent a lot of time here and in Maine and this looks like what 300 of the last 400 miles are going to be like. That¢s not great news for me because honestly this isn¢t much fun for me. The Trail feels like it¢s much more dangerous now than it ever did in the southern states. I feel like when I was 25 I would not have  felt that way. But another 40 years of experience and a lot more brittleness has changed the way I look at rock hopping. Now almost every rock looks like it had the potential to end my hike. That makes for a very stressful day. Also, the body is definitely starting to break down a bit. I¢ve done something to my back and it hurts when going downhill. I think it¢s just old age stuff; I¢m pretty sure I have not damaged it. But compensating for the back is causing the knees to have issues for the first time too. By the end of the day I¢m pretty uncomfortable. I¢m not the only one either. A lot of folks are taking multiple days off. Unfortunately, I know from experience that this back niggle won¢t go away in a day or two. It usually takes a week or two to sort itself out. I hope not this time. We¢ll see. Tomorrow I start back up Franconia Notch. It¢s going to be a tough climb but supposedly the ridge is beautiful. That would be great. I haven¢t seen any of the beauty of the Whites yet and I¢d like to. I¢ve worked up a plan to get to Gotham which is close to the end of the Whites. One more resupply and nine days will do it. Most of the days are 8-10 miles which I think I can do. **Again, I have no idea about cell service so not sure when I can send an update. I believe that the resupply point will have Wi-Fi but I¢m not sure. Wish me luck and send some prayers if you are so inclined.
Date: 2023-07-20
To: MM 1834 - Garfield Pond
Miles today: 9.0

Day 131-9 mi MM 18344743' up 2548' downStealth at Garfield PondMan am I bushed!   I finally got a view today and they were not wrong - it was magnificent. Lots of clouds but no rain. Two 4k mountains today: Mt. Lincoln and Mt. Lafayette. That section is called Franconia Ridge. It¢s about 4 miles or so above the tree line and is one of the most popular hikes in the area.  There were tons of day hikers around. I started out moving well this morning but at a dead crawl by the end of the day. I wanted to get to Garfield tent site but that meant one more mountain to climb after 5:00.  So I found a stealth site at a small pond. Turned out to be very nice. I had a tough time getting to sleep because of leg cramps. Both of my hamstrings were talking to me. Finally did get to sleep and didn¢t wake up until 7:00 am  instead of the usual 5:00.Really wondering why I am going so slow. It¢s going to be a problem soon because of the distance between safe points. I feel like my own safety protocol margins are getting close. Fingers crossed.
Date: 2023-07-21
From: MM 1834

To: MM 1838
Miles today: 4.0

Day 131 - 4 mi MM 18381350¢ up. 1475¢ down Galehead HutWell, pretty terrible day today. You¢ll note from mileage and verticals that I didn¢t do much today. And you would be correct. Unfortunately, it took me five hours to accomplish those meager numbers. So something is going on and I don¢t know what. I¢ve consulted with my trail doctor (amazingly I have a little cell service here) and we are both befuddled. I stopped here today with every intention of halting my hike. I couldn¢t think of anything that wasn¢t pretty serious to account for the drop off in performance over the last couple of weeks. And especially the last few days. As I have sat here all afternoon nothing more serious seems to be happening. I feel mostly ok - I just can¢t seem to get moving. So I have decided to give it a try again tomorrow and see what happens. I¢m sitting at the base of a 1300¢ climb over 0.8 miles. That¢s my stress test. I should be able to call my Trail doctor from the top and have a discussion. At least we¢ll have another day of data. Talk later¢¦
Date: 2023-07-22
From: MM 1838

To: MM 1853
Miles today: 14.0

Day 133 14 mi MM 18533304' up. 4428' down. Made it to AMC Highland Center this evening and was hoping to have dinner but was told they don't do walk ins. So sad. I had a resupply box here so I took care of that and had a cold soak spaghetti instead. I went back to the trail a few hundred yards and found a stealth site for the evening. I didn't have any of the troubles of the past few days. I have no idea why or what was going on. If it's just an exhaustion kind of thing, then it could be back tomorrow since this was a big day with 7700' total vertical.  Have to wait and see. BTW, there were fireworks just as I was going to sleep. Didn't help!
Date: 2023-07-23
From: MM 1853

To: MM 1864
Miles today: 11.0

Day 134 11 mi MM 18645036' up. 1287' down Made it to Lakes in the Clouds hut for the evening. This is the largest and busiest hut on the Trail. I heard there were 94 guests here tonight and I got the last reservation yesterday. It sits right next to Mt Washington in the middle of the Presidentials which is why it's so popular. I'm really looking forward to getting to the top of Mt Washington. It's one of the few mountains on my list. It holds the record for highest recorded wind speed (not in a hurricane or tornado) on the planet at 231 mph if my memory is correct.  So the day seemed to go well enough. Fair number of miles and under the 7k mark for total elevation change. That may be where I have problems. Just not sure. But two good days in a row is a real boost for me. Maybe I'm back on track. I have a short day planned for tomorrow because I was a little worried about how today would work out. Since it was fine, I might be unhappy about it. But you have to go a day at a time and there's some guesswork involved. I thought not pushing it was the better choice.
Date: 2023-07-24
From: MM 1864

To: MM 1871
Miles today: 7.0

Day 135 7 mi MM 18712542' up. 2723' downThe PresidentialsToday was a northbound traverse of the Presidentials - a series of mountains named after Presidents. Todays summits were Washington, Clay, Jefferson, and Adams. Tomorrow I'll finish the traverse with Madison. The reason for the low miles is that I spent three hours on Washington. It's a place I've always wanted to go. It's billed as having the worst weather in America. There's a sophisticated weather station at the top and I spent some time talking to them. There's a really cool railroad that brings people up and you can drive as well although I didn't see where the cars were parked. It's a very crowded place. I had a chili dog from the cafeteria just to fulfill a bucket list item. Before I left the hut in the morning, I had the most delightful time talking with a 4 year old little lady named Remy. She was as cute as could be. I gave her a trail name of Sparkles.  She also made the 1300' climb up to Mt Washington - which is more than most of the people up there did. Just as I was about to start down I heard her yell my name out. So I got to talk with her some more. She is quite an accomplished little hiker already. I hope she keeps it up. Good luck Sparkles!So about noon I started the six mile traverse. It took about five hours which I am comfortable with. The vertical wasn't an issue. Almost every single step was a boulder hop. These mountains are nothing but big piles of rocks. Yes, the views are great but I miss real trails. My feet, ankles and knees are very unhappy with me tonight. I hope they let me sleep. Sometimes when they are this sore, it's difficult to fall asleep. I had dinner with a family of seven. They are doing a 3-day family hike of the same territory I just covered only in the other direction. They had a lot of good questions about through hiking. At the end of the meal, I was told they had never seen a sixty year old eat so much.  I could have eaten more. Hiker hunger is real!Got a little shower right before dinner. Probably gonna get some tomorrow as well. Have to wait for the morning forecast to be radioed in. I actually have no idea where I'm going to end up tomorrow. I have to climb Madison and then a crazy 5 mile descent to the road. The next official camp site is too far to make do I'll probably be looking for a stealth site somewhere. A long day. But a really good one.
Date: 2023-07-25
From: MM 1871

To: MM 1879
Miles today: 8.0

Day 136 8 mi MM 18791273¢ up. 4031¢ downKneesSo I am DONE with the Presidentials and I couldn¢t be happier. I know the folks up here are proud of their mountains and they have every right to be. But in my humble opinion, the last 75 miles or so haven¢t really been hiking. Call it rock scrambling and climbing (granted light weight climbing) and very little hiking. Most of the thru hikers have a similar opinion. The Whites are touted to be the hardest part of the AT. I guess it depends on what you consider hard. For example, I haven¢t been short of breath a single time which I consider a good indicator of how hard a hike is. Why?  In order not to fall and be injured, I have been moving very slowly and carefully. Would I be out of breath if I moved faster?  Sure!  But I would likely be in a hospital after a fall. I¢ve been close to falling numerous times even at the snails pace. So I don¢t think the Whites are hard. I think they are dangerous. Mistakes here have very serious consequences.  Everybody, I¢m told, slows down through the Whites. For me, it wasn¢t difficulty (for the most part) that caused this. It  was safety. Just like carrying extra food and warm clothes was for safety. NH isn¢t done with me yet. I have to do the Wildcats next. Really not sure what to expect. They are just hard so the word on the trail goes. I can tell there will be lots of ups and downs but no idea what the trail surface will be like. That makes a huge difference.Tonight both knees are swollen a fair amount. This is due to the large amount of steep descent on rocks today. Hopefully, they¢ll be okay tomorrow for the Wildcats.I know the NH folks probably don¢t agree with me and I¢m sorry for that. But I felt it is important to note what my impressions are. Especially since they aren¢t in exact alignment with the general story line.
Date: 2023-07-26
From: MM 1879

To: MM 1887
Miles today: 8.0

Day 137 8 mi MM 18873451¢ up. 1843¢ down. Steepest MileThe second mile out of Pinkham Notch has been deemed the Steepest Mile on the AT.  I don¢t know if that is literally true or not but I can tell you it is very, very steep. Every yard was either a rock step or a climbing scramble. For the first time, I stowed my hiking poles in my pack in favor of having unencumbered hands to grip with. In the past, I have always just let my poles dangle on their straps when I was climbing but they can sometimes get caught on something or just get in the way.  This time I didn¢t want that distraction. Most of the climb was on steps as I said. But these aren¢t steps like in  your house. These are just rocks stacked on top of each other that stick out a little so you can get your foot (or at least a part of one) on it. Sometimes the stones are round or uneven making you pay close attention to foot placement. I often used hands and feet together like I was climbing a ladder. Glad to have the hands free. BTW, sometimes you are coming down those steps and that is absolutely no fun at all. There were several places where you just had to climb. The most difficult one for me was about 20¢ long. Imagine you had a door made of two rocks and it was opened inward towards you. The right side would be the wall - in this case an almost vertical flat rock. The left side would be the door - a really big round rock with a kinda flat surface facing the ¢wall¢. The upper 8¢ had some rocks wedged into the groove to give some hand and foot holds. The bottom had nothing I could see. I really needed my nephew Jon who is a true climber. He could have told me what to do. I¢ve seen him basically walk up these things. What I didn¢t have was his arm strength and confidence. What I DIS have was a 30 pound pack on my back.You can sort of see where other people have put their feet because the stone is worn down a bit (making it smoother). I saw almost no hand holds on the way up so I was often just ¢slapping¢ the stone with the palm and using friction to grip it. That is a scary thing to do. As you are climbing, all you do is look for the next hand and/or foot hold. Don¢t look down and don¢t look up too far. Move one thing at a time and keep three points of contact at all times. Somehow that worked. Most of the other climbs were much easier because you had a crack to work with or at least some uneven surfaces to grip. I actually enjoyed the climbing - right after I was done with one. No real time to enjoy it while you are doing it. You need all your concentration. Or at least I do. So I¢m in a section called the Wildcats. A lot of up and down and fairly rocky. But so far all below the tree line so not nearly as mind numbing as the Presidentials were.  My knee held up on the climbs but was giving me troubles on the descents. A lot of swelling again tonight. We¢ll see what tomorrow holds. Thanks for all your support!  I need it.
Date: 2023-07-27
From: MM 1887

To: MM 1896
Miles today: 9.0

Note: Wes is hiking is hiking and accomplishing his goal.His focus is the trail so I¢ll be adding bits & pieces over the next couple of days. Don¢t be alarmed if there is a gap in the journal. Wes will be off grid for about 100 miles of Maine wilderness!
Date: 2023-07-28
From: MM 1896

To: MM 1900
Miles today: 4.0

Note: Wes is hiking is hiking and accomplishing his goal.His focus is the trail so I¢ll be adding bits & pieces over the next couple of days. Don¢t be alarmed if there is a gap in the journal. Wes will be off grid for about 100 miles of Maine wilderness!
Date: 2023-07-29
From: MM 1900

To: MM 1900
Miles today: 0.0

Day 140 - Zero DayResting knees and resupply.Note: Wes is hiking is hiking and accomplishing his goal.His focus is the trail so I¢ll be adding bits & pieces over the next couple of days. Don¢t be alarmed if there is a gap in the journal. Wes will be off grid for about 100 miles of Maine wilderness!
Date: 2023-07-30
From: MM 1900

To: MM 1912
Miles today: 12.0

Day 141 12 Miles MM1912Ready to get picked up from the motel and head back to the trail. Should be hiking within the hour. Knees are feeling better...Maybe 80% or so. That will have to do. I talked to more hikers; word is that the next 100 miles may be worse than the last. Just what I needed to hear - NOT!I have another resupply in 50 miles 5 days. My pack is heavy with 5 days of food. But one day and 10 miles at a time, right?My first few miles went okay. As the day went on, I was feeling drained and needed to get to the next shelter or find a decent tent site. I made my way, enjoying the never ending rocky "trail". All I can say is, we are spoiled on the Southern portion of the AT!Well, push came to shove and my body said it was time to stop. I managed to get myself to a spot where I could set up my tent. It took a lot longer than I hoped but I got it done. I was tired and not feeling hungry so I tucked myself in for the night and waited to see what the next day would bring.
Date: 2023-07-31
From: MM 1912

To: Headed down the mountain
Miles today: 0.0

Day 142 - Zero DayMuch to my dismay, I awoke feeling tired, my knee swollen and I had to make a choice. Either go on to the next section and enjoy the rocky terrain or take a little break and give my knees and back time to rest. So I'll be off trail for several days, maybe longer. So don't be alarmed if my posts are delayed or empty for the next week or two. I need to stay focused and get back on track.I have about 300 miles to reach Katahdin, Maine. So close to Maine I can taste the lobster!Thanks again for all the prayers, positive thoughts and kind words; it means a lot to me.
Date: 2023-08-01
From: Taking some time to rest the knees & back

To: Off-Trail
Miles today: 0.0

Day 143 - Zero DaysI'll be off trail for several days, as I said previously - don't be concerned if you don't see any posts for the next couple weeks. I'm focusing on getting the knees and back where they need to be so I can tackle some more rock scrambles and complete the last 300 or so miles to finish up New England. I'm way ahead of my anticipated schedule as it is.Thanks for following along with me on this journey!
Date: 2023-08-22
To: View Entry
Miles today: 13.0

Phase 2 - Day 1The details in the rest of the section from now until I reach Katahdin may be a little sparse or delayed due to cell service. So don¢t be alarmed if there are gaps. I may fill in more details when I finish the northernmost section.Sent on 08/22/23 @1:20pm Sitting on top of first mountain. 7 miles in. Tired but all is good enough. Would like to get 8 more in to next shelter. Mostly downhill so it's possible. I expect to lose cell service as soon as I start down. Sent on 08/23/23 @9:44amI'm bedded down for evening at a stealth spot. 13 miles. All in all pretty happy. Gonna have very sore feet tomorrow. Definitely lost part of my hiker legs. At least the feet part.  I'll send this tomorrow when I get to a summit - I hope.
Date: 2023-08-23
From: MM 2060

To: MM 2075
Miles today: 15.0

Focusing on Northernmost section of AT!I made my 15 miles today without a lot of difficulty. Feet were not as bad as I expected. The Voltaren really works. Right knee isn't a happy camper but isn't that bad yet. One deep water crossing today. Came up to my crotch but was fairly slow current. Another one tomorrow that will be deeper I think but virtually no current.With only three days of food, the pack hasn't been a problem either. On the map, it looks like most of the day was flat but it added up to another 1000' of up ad it was constantly up and down. Do it was actually a pretty good test. Happy to be feeling this good.
Date: 2023-08-24
From: MM 2075

To: MM2093
Miles today: 18.0

Focusing on Northernmost section of AT!Thursday report. 18 miles today. I'm at 2093. Went thru Monson to pick up resupply box. Still doing okay. I am sore but it's the normal " just getting on the trail" kind of sore, I think. Cell service will be very spotty from here on so be forewarned. I am hoping to summit on Thursday next week - weather permitting. Right now the forecast is for rain on Wednesday and Thursday is okay. If you are so inclined, please pray for dry weather on both days. I really don't want to climb Katahdin in wet conditions. I won't attempt it if it's raining. And I'd love to have a whole dry day before so the rocks will be dry. No real change in any of the medical issues. But I am still able to do almost 2mph the last hour of the day. The end of day exhaustion I was experiencing isn't happening right now.  That's really good news!