morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-07-09
From: Hanover, NH

To: Moose Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: moderate rain

The day started interestingly enough. I woke up around 6:10am as I usually do. I woke up and went to the restaurant inside the hotel for breakfast. The sign said they start serving at 8:00am so I went back to the room. The next thing I heard was someone moving around the room. Johnny Blaze was awake, I checked the clock and it was 9:00am. I had fallen right back to sleep after getting back to the room. It had been raining when I went out at seven but by now it had stopped. Things were looking up. After breakfast Johnny asked if I wanted to spend another zero day in the hotel. I thought about it, the weather forecast calling for clearing skies this afternoon and the rain had stopped. I decided I would get back on the trail. The more I'm on the trail the quicker I get to go home and see everyone. The owner of the hotel gave us a ride back to town so we didn't have to hitch.I headed to the grocery store and resupplied. I passed by a Subway and got a BMT for lunch. I also remembered to get a sandwich for later. I ran into a lot of runners coming south from the local college. The last two days I have been running into southbound hikers starting between June 3rd and 6th from Katahdin. It¢s another sign that I'm getting closer. I haven't really talked to anyone in detail yet about what to expect through the Whites and Maine. It was fun to hear the excitement in their voices and how they were glad to be out of the Whites. I knew from the previous days to expect it to start raining about 4:00pm. I was going slow today and by the time I got out of town it was 11:30am. I knew at best it would be 5:00pm before I reached the shelter. On cue, at 4:00pm, it started to rain. According to the guide book I was close to the shelter, but a sign on the trail indicated the guide book was wrong. I got off the trail and stood under a tree to wait out the rain. Soon Johnny showed up to check on me. He said the shelter was just ahead and that the guidebook was wrong. It was nice that he was concerned enough to check on me, considering it was still raining. Thanks to the rain, I'm back to wet clothes, shoes and socks. I'm sleeping with my socks on tonight in hopes that they will dry out enough with my body heat to have semi-dry socks for tomorrow.Being wet and cold on the trail is dangerous. And that¢s exactly what I was getting into the shelter tonight. Those conditions are where you are the most likely to get hypothermia. I put on dry clothes and that was enough to warm me up. I ate the sandwich I had and then got into my sleeping bag. While I was eating a new thru-hiker named Fin showed up. He started March 26th and now caught up with me. He also had a thermometer and told us it was 60 degrees. It should make it into the fifties tonight. I did not pitch my tent tonight in the shelter. I think the shelters are going to start to be full especially with the rain we are expected to get.
Date: 2005-07-10
From: Moose Mountain Shelter

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: clear sky

I got an early start 6:50am and got to the shelter at 7:20pm for 17.7 miles. I worked very hard to get that done today.Everything was still wet and cold from the day before. That¢s when I got mad for the first time. Here I've hiked almost 1,800 miles and was getting into some of the best views and all I was seeing were clouds. It wasn't fair and I felt cheated that with the forecast and the weather I was going to be denied views again, and it made me mad. The forecast had called for clearing skies today and tomorrow with only a 30% chance of rain. As I walked down the trail still grumbling about the weather the sun tried to peek through. It wasn't much longer before I had clear skies for the rest of the day.In the end I had some spectacular views. Also, I had a falcon fly right in front of me as I was taking in the view. Overall, it turned out to be a good day with lots on great views. The bad part for the day was the mud! Thanks to all the rain, the trail was nothing but mud, mud, and more mud. You could not walk without stepping in it. I fell twice but nothing was hurt or broken, except for my ego. After tomorrow I'll be starting the Whites and a lot of time I will be above tree line in the mountains. I'll just have to wait and see how it all turns out. I will also need to adjust my pace time down. I need to look at my guide and start planning for the Whites for food, distances and shelter. Once that¢s done, it is off to bed. I did get a big shelter with only one couple in it so we both pitched our tents. No bugs tonight. Buzz, one of the guys from the steak dinner trail magic signed this and was here on June 28. I was glad to see he was still on the trail.
Date: 2005-07-11
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: NH25 Hostel
Miles today: 14.7

I took it easy today. The trail is still hard and I had a full day of it getting here. It wasn't as hard as the other day and I only had two hard climbs. I started at 6:53am and got here at a little after 4:30pm including the half mile walk to the hostel.The day stated out with a 700 foot climb up Mount Cube. I took my first break there and just sat, looked and ate my snacks. The rest of the day was the normal ups and downs you expect in the mountain terrain. I'm still not seeing much wild life. I'm still looking for my first moose but only seeing the droppings for now.I've reached the Whites. I¢m really looking forward to starting tomorrow. It starts the Hut system for the AMC. This is where you have to pay to sleep in the shelters maintained by them. For 77.00 a night you get two meals, dinner and breakfast, and a bunk with a mattress. The second option is you can ask for work for stay. They let two thru-hikers work there each day for free room and board. The third option is you can camp in their camp area and pay $8.00 to pitch your tent. The final option is you stealth camp. But with the trail being above tree line that¢s not a good option.I got to check emails here at the hostel and looked at some of the other hikers I've run into. I can't wait to get home and read all of the journals of people I've run into.Looking forward to tomorrow and the new challenges.
Date: 2005-07-12
From: NH25 Hostel

To: Eliza Brook Shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Welcome to the Whites! I started the day at 7:30am and got here at the shelter at 8:05pm. The day started with some leftover brownies one of the young hikers mother had brought to the shelter when she came to meet him. I started the half mile walk back to the trail head at 7:30am. The guide book said this was going to be my first river forging. I got there expecting to have to wade across but found a tree blown down I could cross on. It wasn't much after that the first real climb in the Whites started. It was the climb up Mt. Moosilauke with over 4,800 feet elevation. I started at 1,140 foot elevation. The climb covered about 5 miles. I reached the top after four hours. On the climb up there were many springs and small streams of various sizes for some nice pictures. The climb itself was very steep. It had lots of rocks patches and no switch backs. It was a very challenging climb and I had fun doing it. Once I cleared the tree line it was unbelievably awesome. I took a break there and just took it all in and snapped some pictures. I was told by some day hikers it only will get better. Wow.The next part was just as unbelievable, and breathtaking. It was the steepest descent yet. A sign warned you that it was very slippery when wet or icy. I set a new record for falls going down it, four in all. Most of the way down there was a cascading waterfall that went on for ever it seemed. It was also why it was so slippery. In places it was a shear rock face. To get down it they had taken 10 inch x 10 inch lumber cutting it at a 45 degree angle. Once they were cut they drilled the rock face and put in the cut lumber as steps with rebar. In other places they had rebar drilled into the rocks to use as a hand holds as you went down the steps. I had a hard time going down the climb. The shelter itself is next to the stream so I have the sound of running water to put me to sleep. I may add to this tomorrow after I have a chance to think more about this days adventure.
Date: 2005-07-13
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: Franconia Notch
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: light rain

The guide book said the South Kinsman ascent/descent involved rock scrambling. Yes, it sure did! The climb up was straight up as all the other climbs have been. The added feature was large rocks. I started up using my hiking poles as I normally would. Soon I was throwing the poles up and climbing with my hands. A new first I finally figured out the poles were doing me no good. I unscrewed them so they would fit in my pack and started the rest of the climb using my hands. I don't know any rock climbing techniques but I know I used them to get up the mountain. It wasn't dangerous just very difficult. I used hand holds on rocks, rock cracks, roots, trees and anything else I could find. In one place I had my hands on one side of a V shaped rock and feet on the other and walked up one that way. Again, I was rewarded with spectacular views. It was really unbelievable.The climb down wasn't any better but I did use the poles. Like the day before they had sawed lumber for steps on shear rock face. They were some places they needed them but there weren't any. One of those places a young section hiker decided he could just slide down and I watched him do it. I felt I wouldn¢t slide as well so I threw the poles down below and climbed down using rocks and hand holds.In the end it took me six hours to do 5.9 miles to the first AMC Hut. I checked it out and could of done work for stay. I needed to resupply so I couldn't do it. I made it to the notch and hitched a ride to town. By the time I resupplied it was too late to get back on the trail. As a result, I 'm staying in a hotel tonight. That¢s all I could do so I'm making the best of it. I'll be back on the trail early tomorrow. I'm looking at a 4,000 foot climb tomorrow. At least it says there isn¢t any rock scrambling in the guide, but I'm sure I can expect some from past experience.Right now the Whites are kicking my butt!
Date: 2005-07-14
From: Franconia Notch

To: Garfield Ridge Campsite
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: light rain

Wow, what an exciting day. It had a little bit of everything. Town breakfast, climbs, ridges, hiking above tree line, rain, lightning, sun, clouds, and more rain. All that in only 10.4 miles and 9 hours.I started the day at 6:30am with a walk to the restaurant for breakfast. I had the Hungry Man's Special which consisted of 3 eggs, bacon, hash browns, and pancakes. After that I went back to the room and finished packing. I walked outside and tried to hitch a ride. As I was waiting another hiker walked out and said there was a shuttle service. I called and got a ride back to the trail head.The initial climb was not as bad as the last two days. It still took me 2.5 hours to make it to the first campsite at 2.4 miles. It was a good thing I didn't try and get there the night before. I would not have made it or it would have been well after dark. The climb had all the elements from the other days. Some hand climbing, rocks and steep approaches. You've heard it before so I don't need to go back over it.Once I left the first campsite I headed towards the Franconia Range. This ridge line would be mostly above tree line and I was promised some great views. I wasn't disappointed. Again, as I got near the top I wanted to sprint so I could get up there and look. On the range my guide booked listed the following Mountains. Liberty Mtn, Little Haystack Mt (4,760), Mt Lincoln (5,089), Mt Lafayette (5,249), North Peak of Mt Lafayette (5,080) and Mt Garfield (4,150) with the exception of Garfield they were all above tree line. As I approached the first summit, I could hear thunder in the distance.I was now caught in the middle on an exposed ridge not the place to be. I decided I would continue forward and started hiking. It wasn't long before the sprinkles started and then came a driving rain. The rain did not have any lighting so I was lucky. After about a half of an hour it stopped raining but was too cloudy to see any views. Just as the sun tried to peak out, I could hear the thunder and see another storm building. I was still on the ridge but high tailed it as fast as I could to get back to tree line. I made it and the stormed passed behind me.   I thought I would have a chance to try and make it to the AMC Garfield Hut but the climbs are taking me too long. I got to the campsite after five and decided to camp. I pitched my tent on the platforms they use and was finishing dinner when it started sprinkling again. I got everything put away and was in the tent when it really started raining. The rain was accompanied by wind, thunder, and lighting. It was a good thing I didn't try for the hut. One problem with the tent platforms is there is no ground to absorb the rain and the wood makes it splash into the tent. Now I have not only a wet tent but things inside the tent are wet too.
Date: 2005-07-15
From: Garfield Ridge Campsite

To: Zealand Falls Hut
Miles today: 9.7

Tonight is going to be my first work for stay. I made it to the Zealand Falls Hut and was able to work for stay. I will get a hot dinner, a spot on the dining room floor, and breakfast. My job is to sweep out the place. Heck, I had been doing that in all the shelters I slept in anyway.I woke up to more rain around 7:30am. I tried to dry out my tent the best I could while packing. Due to the rain, I didn¢t get started until 9:30am, which has been my latest start so far. The views were great again today. And the view at the hut is spectacular. I don¢t know what is for dinner but I hope there is seconds. With luck I may get to do a work for stay at the next hut. But I will have to do 14 miles tomorrow to get there. The Whites are making my knees mush after a day of steep descents and ascents. I hope some of it is easier than the last five days. I need to get out of this state while I still have some knees left.We get to eat when the paying guest are done- around 7:30pm. I was talking to some of the people staying here and they were asking about my hike and everything. It¢s fun to see the looks on there faces when I say I walked over 1,800 miles. I even get some real nice hand shakes. I also explained how the ¢work for stay¢ works. They thought it was terrible that we had to eat the leftovers and sleep on the floor. I'm thinking how great it was I was getting a meal, had a mattress and didn't have to worry about rain. I guess it is how you look at it.We did have to wait for lights out at 9:30pm before we could set up to sleep, well past my 8:30pm bed time. Oh well.
Date: 2005-07-16
From: Zealand Falls Hut

To: Mizpah Spring Hut
Miles today: 14.1

Another great day! It was a great climb and had spectacular views. I stated the day with my sweeping task. If the job is worth doing, it¢s worth doing right. I gave it the best sweeping it had in a while and didn't get out until 8:30am, a half hour after the job is usually done. I even found a penny in a crack in the floor next to the wall. You know what that means. The hike started with a flat section, probably the only one I'll encounter. It was a five mile section that followed what an old railroad bed. I got to Crawford Notch and found trail magic- cokes and fruit. I had two cokes, an apple, and ate the last of my peanut butter before starting the climb out. The climb out had me going up and over Webster Cliffs, Mt. Webster and Mt. Jackson.The climb was as exciting as it could get, it was a lot rock climbing as the trail followed along the face of the cliff. It wasn't dangerous but I just kept throwing the poles up above me and climbed hand over hand holding whatever I could. I was having a ball and couldn't believe the views as I got higher and higher up. I found a spot and just rested and took it all in the best I could. I took some pictures in hopes they will show some of the climb. All the climbing meant that it was getting late. I needed to get to the hut if I was going to have a chance for work. From the mountains I could see it off in the distance and it sure looked along way away. While hurrying to the hut walking along some planks in a wet area I had the gee bees scared out of me. All of a sudden there was a fluttering noise right at me feet. I looked down to see this big brown thing coming right at me. I soon realized I was in danger and was being attached by a Grouse. I must have come right across its nest. In the past they would always flush and fly away or act hurt. Not this one. It just kept coming at me. I shooed it away with my pole, took a picture, and kept going. I got here at 5:30pm and have work for stay again. I hope I get out earlier tomorrow than I did today. I'll just play it by ear since I now have four days of food to make it to Gorham. They put me in the loft tonight or what the rest of us would call the attic. I know it is going to be hot but beggars can¢t be choosers. Some of the staff went on a raid of the next hut so I got a night job and can leave early tomorrow. I cleaned all the sugar, creamer, and coco containers and refilled them. Another great job the girl in the kitchen said I did an awesome job. The meal was turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, rice, and cranberries for dessert. I won't tell you how much I ate but it was more than anyone else. I went to bed full but still wanted to eat two hours later.Tomorrow--Mt Washington. I hope I don't get blown off.
Date: 2005-07-17
From: Mizpah Spring Hut

To: Madison Spring Hut
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: fog

More work for stay tonight! With an early start and just a 20 minute lunch break, I got here at 3:10pm. I may even have gained some weight thanks to all the hot meals (Editors note: He should be thanking the ice cream, McDonalds, and cokes for the weight gain). It was still a long day.Surprisingly, there were no real hard climbs today. The rocks were big and evenly laid out in most places. The day took me over the south peak of Mt. Clinton (4180'), Mt. Clinton (4310'), Mt. Eisenhower (4450'), Mt. Franklin (5004'), by the Lakes of the Cloud Hut, Mt. Washington (6288'), and Mt. Clay (5050'). The biggest surprise was how easy the Mt. Washington climb was. It wasn't straight up and was a fairly gradual ascent. Don't get me wrong, I didn't run up it or anything, but it was easier than I thought it was gonna be. One of the traditions of the trail is that you are supposed to moon the Cog Railroad that goes to the top of the mountain. I was all set to but the train left before I got there and I sure wasn't waiting for the next one. I could see the terrain that I would be crossing and it was going to take me all day.While eating lunch I saw Spitfire coming up the trail. She was just flying and said she was doing 22 miles. She didn't have her normal pack and only had a day pack. That would make a big difference. I could not keep up with her even without a pack.The sleeping arrangement for tonight is the dinning room floor again. It will be much cooler than last night. They have predicted rain everyday this week. With luck I will not get any of it. The second person showed up for work, Cotton Joe. While we were waiting for the guests to finish and the crew to eat, another long section hiker showed up. They are letting him work also. The meal was stuffed shells, peas, turkey soup, bread and brownies for dessert. All I can say is I've never eaten that many shells at home in my life.I never understood how all the hikers in the journals I read were always talking about food. Now I can. If I was eating these quantities at home I would weight over 200 lbs. I'll have to be real careful when I get home not to put the weight back on that I lost.
Date: 2005-07-19
From: Carter Notch Hut

To: Imp Campsite
Miles today: 8.4

I woke to clear skies. I went to the hut and had breakfast. The three hikers I passed the day before were there. They made it in at ten. I ate breakfast, my pop tarts, and talked with the caretaker. I didn't start hiking until 8:30am which was going to make getting to the shelter I wanted a lot harder.Within an hour the skies were clouding up. It was shortly after that I could hear the thunder. It finally started raining but it was just a light sprinkle. Then the sun came out. This pattern repeated itself for the next two hours. I reached the sign for the shelter which was .3 miles away. I made it here and was still reasonably dry. It was 2:45pm and the thunder was getting louder. I decided to stay since I knew I can make it to town tomorrow. I'm looking forward to a zero day and the town vortex has started drawing me in.I'm seeing more and more SB hikers. There were two staying at the shelter and I passed four while hiking. There are also two section hikers completing the hike from last year. They both got off the trail in Hanover last year. One of them has such a bad knee that he is carrying a rope to help get down the steep climbs. He can only do about 10 miles a day and he is still out here doing this. The Whites have been the hardest part of the hike so far.This shelter has a lookout which faces west so you can see the sunset. We all went down there for it and were not disappointedTime to turn in.
Date: 2005-07-20
From: Imp Campsite

To: Gorman, NH
Miles today: 8.0

I made it to town at 12:15pm after a 6:35am start. It went fast and it helped that the last two miles were flat.My cousin John would have been proud of me today. It was another hot day and I saw a river flowing near the trail. This inviting pool of water also had a little waterfall. It was calling me to take a dip. As I was looking at it from one side I saw Cotton Joe getting out from the other side. That was enough for me and I headed in. It felt GREAT but was too cold. If the days continue like this and there are more place to take a dip I may never get to Maine.I got to the trail head and didn't even have to hitch a ride. There was a bus dropping off a camp group and picking up another group coming in. I asked for a ride and the driver said sure. He asked where I was going and I said the Barn Hostel in Gorham. He said he didn't know where that was in Gorman and he would have to drop me off at the turn off to route 16. He dropped me off. I got out my guide book and looked for the hostel address. It was 55 Main St., Gorman. I looked at the address of the house he dropped me off at it was 56 Main ST. Yes, I looked across the street and there was the Barn Hostel. The town is full of hikers both NB and SB. I'm running into a bunch of hikers whose names I have read in the trail registers. One of the big reasons I've caught them is they all hike so fast they can take a lot of time off. I also found out that some of them have been sick, two with Lyme Disease, and the other with injuries. One I caught up with was Bodhi. The last time I saw him we were only 391 miles into the hike. Another two were English Bob and Biscuit. The last time I saw them was 579 miles into the hike. EB had not changed a bit. Moosie, Goldilocks, The Chairman, Biscuit, English Bob and I all had dinner together. EB was the entertainment and we all had a good time.I sent my son more pictures hopefully he can posted some when he get back from his vacation next week. He is in CO doing some 14ers.