morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-11-09
From: Wawayanda Shelter

To: West Mombasha Rd
Miles today: 17.1
Weather: light rain

Well, I monitored the election pretty late last night and used up most of my battery, so this may be the last post for awhile. We were on the trail by 7:00 and almost immediately it started raining. It rained most of the day, and still is, but never very hard. Within about a half hour, I crossed into the Big Apple, my 12th state. She greeted us with boulder scrambles/climbs most of the day. Rain and boulders are not a good combination. Both of us took a couple spills, but nothing broke and we stayed on top of the mountain. Aside from a couple small board walks, that's what we did all day. The clouds and fog blocked the views. We are between shelters, so we are tenting by the trail. Had to set up in the rain which is never fun. We will have reached our goal of Bear Mountain on Friday. A little earlier than planned, but that's a good thing. My son, who is an 07 West Point grad, is coming up to the Academy on Saturday, and will be taking us back, so everything worked out great. We do need to get from Bear Mountain Bridge to the Holiday Inn in Peekskill Friday around noon. If any of my readers are from the area and could recommend a shuttle service or other type transportation, that would be great. You can pm me here or send email to vogel407@gmail.com. Until next time. Sent from my iPhone
Date: 2016-11-10
From: West Mombasha Rd

To: William Brien Memorial Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: broken clouds

We were on the trail by 7:00 after a rainy day and night. Today was very nice. Hiked all day in my fleece, which is just right. Most of the day was just up and down mountains, with some nice views up top. The highlight was going through the "lemon squeezer." A very narrow gap between two huge rocks, through which you can only pass by dragging your pack behind you. I posted a video of Papaw knocking it out like a pro. After not seeing a single person yesterday, we saw one single hiker and two groups today. One looked to be sixth graders, and the other Japanese adults. We also saw three deer, two of which weren't the least bit scared of us. We are in our tents tonight outside William Brien Memorial Shelter. Papaw didn't want to stay in the shelter because he spent a day in it with a group of people waiting out a rainstorm on his first hike. Tomorrow we will wrap up the last 10 miles of this section and begin making our way home. I'll make one more post tomorrow. Until next time. Sent from my iPhone
Date: 2016-11-11
From: William Brien Memorial Shelter

To: Bear Mountain Recreation Area
Miles today: 9.2

We got started early today at about 6:30. We climbed three mountains before reaching the Bear Mountain Recreation Area where this section will end. At the top of Black Mountain, the first, we were able to see the NYC skyline, which was really neat. After that, we crossed the four lane Palisades Parkway. The second climb, up West Mountain, was a tough one. We got our first glimpse of Bear Mountain and the Bear Mountain Bridge on its summit. The third climb was Bear Mountain. While it was a long one, the trail was amazing. There were steps on all inclines, and smooth trail between. Probably the best trail I've seen. Bear Mountain is a popular tourist spot, and you can actually drive up it. The first thing we did was hit the vending machines. There is a tower as well where you can get a better view of NYC. On the way down the mountain we passed a whole bunch of folks headed up. We got to the Bear Mountain Inn, where we called a cab for our hotel. My son will pick us up tomorrow, we will tour West Point then head home. Thanks for reading my journal once again. I promise no more sections this year. The plan is to finish NY to Vt in early summer and complete my hike in Maine in late summer. We will see how it goes. Until next time. Sent from my iPhone
Date: 2017-06-10
From: Bear Mountain Recreation Area

To: Stream at 1412
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: overcast clouds

I finally got caught up on my farm work and decided it was time to head back to the mountains for section hike # 12. I called Papaw (my hiking partner) and he said "lets go!"  I took a train to his house on Virginia, then we took his truck the rest of the way. I have two sections left, and we decided to do the Bear Mountain, NY to Manchester Center, Vt one this time. We drove to within a couple hours of Bear Mountain and got a hotel room. We were able to watch the Cavs beat The Warriors at a local establishment. We got to Bear Mountain around 9:00 this morning, ready to go, and as soon as we pulled in the parking lot, the truck overheated. The Rangers called us a tow truck and we got it loaded up. The driver told Papaw that it couldn't be fixed until Monday. Papaw tells him, "no problem, I don't need it for a couple weeks."  We finally got on the trail around 11:00. The first place it goes is through a trailside zoo. It contains the only Bear Papaw has seen on probably 2500 miles of hiking the AT. It was better than I expected. The rest of the trail was pretty nice. We did get off trail a couple times because of blaze problems, but the trail is designed well. We had trail magic twice and passed a convenience store (not bad).  The first time we got donuts and chips plus a refreshment from the store. The second time we got a hotdog and another refreshment (thanks Howie). We are camped tonight by a stream, since there are no shelters in this area. We met a few other hikers today. Chili, who is tenting nearby, is finishing a hike she started last year. Chef Boy RD is a young through hiker who hiked on. Tap is another through hiker that was moving pretty fast. Feels good to be back out here. Until next time ...Sent from my iPhone
Date: 2017-06-11
From: Stream at 1412

To: NY52
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: clear sky

We were up and on the trail at 5:45 this morning trying to beat the heat. As the day wore on, the 92 degree temps took their toll. We took a lot of breaks and had to stop at every water source. I'm glad the water sources are good right now. I forgot to mention yesterday that I saw a couple guys at the Bear Mountain Zoo wearing West Point shirts. I struck up a conversation with them and found that they both graduated with and knew my son at West Point. One had actually been his roommate. Our wildlife count today was a deer, squirrel, chipmonk, and garter snake. Not too many highlights, just a lot of climbing! We did see the 911 Memorial painting on top of Shenandoah Mountain. We leapfrogged with Chef Boy RD all day, but didn't see any of the other hikers until the end of the day when we were at a road crossing trying to decide where to set up camp. Tap came by and said he was walking 3/10s down the road to a Deli and possibly tenting nearby where they allow hikers. That's all it took. Off we went. We had our fill at the deli, charged our phones, had a refreshment (or two), and are camped on a little field that a local concrete company maintains for hikers (thanks!). There are six tents here tonight. One is a couple that are hiking with a cat. The deli opens at 5:30 in the morning, so we will grab breakfast before heading out. One more hot day, then it is supposed to cool off a bit. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-12
From: NY52

To: Wiley Shelter
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: clear sky

We learned this morning that the concrete plant, upon whose land we were tenting, begins operations at 3:30 am; and they are noisy! Papaw and I were ready and waiting at the Deli when it opened. After a good breakfast, we headed out. We had great trail all day and made pretty good time. We only had one hard climb. We were taking a break at Nuclear Lake when Tap caught up with us. While we had only seen one deer and some squirrels, he said he had seen five deer, a Bobcat, and a young rattle snake. Toward the end of the day things got pretty interesting. First, we came upon some fresh trail magic. I had a coke and mini Oreos. The Dover Oak was next. It is the largest Oak Tree on the AT. A short while later, we walked across a quarter mile footbridge through a swamp. At the end of the footbridge is an AT train stop. Yes, you can ride a train to and from NYC. We then had some drinks and ice cream at a neighboring gardening store that is very hiker friendly. After that, we had a tough climb that brought us to Wiley shelter where we are tenting. This shelter breaks the rule by being too close to a road. There are a bunch of partiers here already. We will see if we get any sleep. Be sure to check out the photos. I posted several today. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-13
To: Mt. Algo Shelter
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: clear sky

We were up and on the trail by 5:45. The "partiers" from last night were actually through hikers. They quieted down pretty quickly after they let everyone in the county know they were there. Let's just say, they are an interesting group. Shortly after leaving the shelter, we passed Tap, camped by a nice stream. Was probably much quieter there. In another mile or so we came to the Connecticut state line. It is the 13th state I've been in. I must say though, Connecticut was not a good host. She hit us with 90 degree temps and a full day of climbing, mostly rocks. It's great that there is plenty of water in the streams. We usually get drinking water and cool ourselves down in each one we come to. Rarely do you hear hikers talk about wanting rain, but I heard that several times today. Rain has been in the forecast for today all week. Around 3:00 we reached a shelter just as the thunder started. We decided we'd had enough heat and climbing so we put our gear in the shelter to keep it dry. We waited, and waited, and waited. We still haven't had rain, but it has cooled off a bit. We did see some beautiful scenery, especially along 10 mile River, and whatever river it is that joins it. One of the mountains we crossed had burned recently. The entire top was black. About half of the fire was stopped by the trail, but it had jumped it in other areas. Ok Connecticut, I'm ready for a cooler day tomorrow. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-14
To: Pine Swamp Brook Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Ok, Connecticut, I'm sorry for all those terrible things I said about you yesterday. Today you were not a bad host, but a very good one! First, you afforded me the best night's sleep I've had on this trip. Then you provided some wonderful trail, 5 miles of which was along the Housatonic River. I must add, however, that the rock scramble down from Calebs Peak rivals those of New Hampshire and Maine. Just sayin. You amused us with a Lemon Squeezer wannabe. It wasn't even close, but bless your heart for trying. And finally, there was Trail Magic at the last road before our shelter! I had an ice cold Coke and a bag of Doritos! Perfect! Most importantly, you dropped the temperature 20 degrees without raining. Thanks Connecticut. Tonight you are my favorite state. We are tenting this evening at the Stewart Hollow Brook Shelter.
Date: 2017-06-15
To: Riga Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: scattered clouds

After a nice, cool night, we got started at 5:45 and 6:00, and that's all I'm gonna say about that. We did a lot of climbing today, but also had some things to see. We hiked through Falls Village. Went past their High School which is still in session. I told Papaw that the teachers could have their students look out the window at us and tell them "if you don't become successful in school, you might end up like those guys!" We had another nice walk along the Housatonic River. Leaving town, we came to a hydroelectric plant. They have a shower head and electrical outlet for hikers to use. We took full advantage of both. I wish we would have had the shower on those 90 degree days. The caretaker visited with us for a bit. Nice guy. As we left town we passed a waterfall, which is where water is diverted from the Housatonic River to the hydro plant. A great swimming hole! From there we hit the mountains again. We passed the "Giant's Thumb," which was a big rock sticking out of the ground that looked like, well, a giant's thumb. Before reaching our shelter, we were routed around the town of Salisbury. Our shelter is on a mountain called Lions Head. The shelter has an incredible view. It is supposed to have an awesome sunrise. We will be packed up and ready to watch it if the clouds haven't arrived yet. Our first rain is supposed to start tomorrow morning. Supposed to be in the sixties also. Might get chilly. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-16
To: Hostel at US7
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: broken clouds

We were up and ready for the great sunrise, but the clouds hid it from us. We set off at 5:45, and soon reached the peak of Bear Mountain, which is the highest point in Connecticut. On the way down, we met a ridge runner and chatted with him for a while. We asked him about the confusion over where the Massachusetts state line is. He explained that he felt it was the first one after crossing the river. Good enough for us, so I took a picture there. Soon after noon it began to rain. At about the same time, we met a flip flop hiker called Tall Man. Yes, he's 6'6". The three of us spent a couple hours trying to get down the now wet boulder field without falling off the mountain. Of the three of us, I'm the only one that fell. I have to say that the views from Mt Race were incredible! There was a rock ledge that was .6 mile with a 180 degree view as far as you could see. Worth the climb. Earlier in the day we decided it was time we got cleaned up and resupplied. We called a hostel and arranged for a pickup at a road 18 miles out at 4:00. We made it on time and Jess picked us up, stopped so we could resupply, then took us to her home. It is 3 stories, and set up with rooms for hikers. She did our laundry and will serve breakfast in the morning before taking us back to the trail. We highly recommend her to other hikers coming through. Oh yea, Tall Man was here when we arrived. We all went to a local BBQ restaurant and told Trail stories over a few beverages. We did 119.2 miles in our first week. Not bad for a couple old guys. If anyone has any questions about the comments in my journal, don't hesitate to ask. I have a lot of tent time to kill in the evenings. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-17
From: Hostel at US7

To: Shaker Campsite
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: scattered clouds

After a great night's sleep, Jess dropped us off at the trailhead at 8:00. This was obviously later than normal, so we knew we'd have to go hard to reach our 18-20 mile goal. There was really nothing that interesting that happened today, other than the weather was nice and we had good trail through nice forest. The rocks and roots are still wet, so we have to focus on where every step will be. Both of us slipped several times, but we didn't go down. It is the weekend, so we saw several day hikers and weekend backpackers. With the exception of Tall Man, we haven't seen any through hikers for 2-3 days. Tall Man is behind us now. He was meeting with his sons after being dropped off by Jess. We are at the Shaker campsite tonight. It is located a couple hundred yards below a once thriving Shaker settlement that is no more. There is a written history of the settlement here to read. Very interesting. There is a "frequent bear sighting" warning posted here. There is a camp journal entry on May 5 that the Bear box was upside down when the writer arrived. No sign of bears mentioned since then. Since we've had no cell reception today or tonight, this will be sent tomorrow when we get reception. So if you're reading this, you know the bears left us alone. Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-18
To: October Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: light rain

We survived the night without any bear issues and were on the trail at 5:30. Everything was still wet and slippery. About half way through the morning a 2x10 swamp walk board finally got me, and down I went. Papaw and I are now tied with two falls each. There was a lot of swamp walking today. One area was very long and needs some attention. I'd hate to go through there after a heavy rain. We walked around Goose Pond (in Ohio it would be a lake), and another, smaller one later. There was a plaque at Goose Pond recognizing an organization for donating the land after the group broke up (there is a picture of it in the photo section). We crossed over the Massachusetts Turnpike on a walkway, and a field full of very nosy Herefords. We did see a couple through hikers today, but still not very busy. It looks like our luck with the rain runs out tomorrow. They are giving flash flood warnings. Could get interesting. Tomorrow morning we will pass the Cookie Lady's house, but it will be much too early to get her homemade cookies. We will pass through Dalton, and plan on a late lunch at one of their fine restaurants. Happy Father's Day Dad!  Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-19
To: St Mary's Church in Cheshire, MA
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Our day started with thunder at 4:30. I quickly started packing my gear, not wanting to get it wet. When raindrops started falling, I threw everything into a plastic bag and headed for the shelter. We packed up and were on the trail at 5:25. It didn't actually rain until later in the morning, and just a little bit. We had great trail, so we knocked out the 12 miles to Dalton by 11:00. The baby toads must have hatched last night because they were all over the trail. The trail actually goes through Dalton for nearly a mile. We, of course, started looking for food. We settled on Angelina's. This is also where Papaw left to figure out a way to get to his truck back at Bear Mountain. He is having foot problems again, and the last couple days have been rough on him. He will return to support me the rest of the way to Manchester Center, Vt. I should be able to finish on Friday. After leaving Dalton, the thunder started again. I made it about 5 miles before the rain started. It rained fairly hard for about 5 minutes. Not bad. I made it into Cheshire, Ma around 4:00 and began looking for ... food. I found a little sandwich shop and ordered a ham hoagie. While she was making it, she kept telling me about the bad weather coming. She said the local Catholic Church puts up hikers, and I should consider waiting out the storm there. I took the sandwich to their picnic table and started eating. I watched as storm clouds kept moving closer. Finally, I grabbed the last half of the sandwich and my gear and took off. I came to a church, but it was a white Methodist instead of a red Catholic. I moved down the road a bit further, and there it was! I hustled around back and saw the door with a bunch of hikers standing around. I literally made it with 30 seconds to spare. It has poured for an hour! Tomorrow I climb up and over Mt Greylock, the highest peak in Massachusetts. I should also pass into Vermont. This rain will make it interesting. Happy birthday mom! Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-20
From: St Mary's Church in Cheshire, MA

To: Seth Warner Shelter
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: moderate rain

What a great place to stay last night. My compliments to the parishioners of St Mary's. Last night was choir practice, so we even had music! One of the guys in the room with me was German. He was reading a book on his tablet in German. Every once in a while he would bust out laughing. Finally I had to ask what he was reading. In his German accent he said Tom Sawyer - Huckleberry Finn. I found that interesting. I was anxious to get started this morning because I had the climb over Mt Greylock, first thing. It is a 2500 ft climb, and the distance up and down covers 14 miles. I was on the trail at 5:00. Obviously, I was the only one out there at that hour. I never saw another hiker until about a quarter mile from the summit, a southbounder. The trail on the way up was like a stream after last night's storm. There was no keeping dry. I made it to the top in 3.5 hrs. There is a lodge, a war memorial, and an amazing viewing area on the summit. Obviously, there is a road to the top, and I'd recommend a visit to anyone in the area. I made the trip down the mountain in 3.5 hrs as well, but descending was much harder on my wet feet. There was another 1800 ft climb before I reached tonight's shelter. There are a lot more hikers out here suddenly, and the shelter and tenting areas are full here tonight. It seems that three groups are coming together - the through hikers from Georgia, the flip flop hikers that started at Harper's Ferry, and section hikers. I've caught up with most of the hikers I met earlier. I met and talked with "halfway" and "shutterbug" this evening. Oh yea, I'm in Vermont now! It is often referred to as Vermud, and is very worthy of that title presently. I got a message from Papaw today. He has his truck and is headed back. He will be meeting me at a road crossing in the morning for resupply. What a trooper! Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-21
To: Goddard Shelter
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: light rain

After a good night's sleep, I was hiking at 5:30. It's always a challenge to pack up quietly since nobody is awake when I pack up. I try to pitch my tent as far away as possible. I knew Papaw was setting up trail magic about 12 miles away, so I was anxious to get there. The trail was terrible. There is still some water flowing down the trail from the storm, and anywhere it gets trapped is a mud pit. You are constantly looking for ways through without getting a shoe full of mud. I made it to the parking lot and trail magic by 11:00. I think I had one of everything he brought. He also brought me some resupply. I'm giving up my stove these last couple days to save weight. I left several other things as well. When I left him, he had quite a group of hikers eating and drinking, and had agreed to take a group, one being a dog, to town. After not using bug spray at all yesterday, I decided to leave it as well. Big mistake! As soon as I hit camp they swarmed me. I hurried up with my chores and jumped in the tent to escape them. Gonna be 12 hr tent time tonight. The second half of the day I had great trail. I passed two lakes, which I always find interesting. They had everything except a moose standing in them. Tomorrow I will meet Papaw at about the same time on a gravel road. It will be right before my last big climb of this section. 30 miles to go! Until next time ...
Date: 2017-06-22
To: Stratton Pond
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: moderate rain

Was a bit chilly last night, but made for good sleeping. As usual, I was on the trail at 5:30, ready to hike the 13 miles to where Papaw was meeting me for resupply. The trail was very good and I made good time. I passed one shelter and stopped at the next for a break. Reading through the shelter journal I came across and entry telling of a bear entering camp at 4:00 am and tearing down a bear bag that had obviously been hung too low. The bear ignored hikers screaming at him. Not a good situation. Bears will keep returning if rewarded with food. There has been bear trouble in the whole area. I saw a bear track yesterday and skat today, but still no bear. I met Papaw and resupplied. We also made plans for pickup tomorrow. He was doing trail magic again as well. After leaving him, I headed up and over Stratton Mountain. It was a beautiful day and good trail, so it was an enjoyable climb and descent. On top there is a caretaker and a fire tower. The view from the tower was great. Stratton Mountain has special meaning to AT community. It's peak is where Benton MacKaye conceived the idea for the AT. After reaching the bottom of the mountain it was time to look for a place to tent. I came upon beautiful Stratton "Pond," looked to my left and there was a tent platform! Good enough for me. This is probably the neatest place I've ever tented. I have an easy 10 mile hike in the morning to meet Papaw and wrap up this section. Rain is in the forecast again. Maybe I can outhike it. I'll have one more entry tomorrow to wrap things up. Until Next time ...