morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-08-26
From: Melville Nauheim

To: Sherman Brook Campsite
Miles today: 18.2

8/26/2015Treadway: 7/10Weather: partly cloudy and cool 3/10 Stats:17.33 miles 7:07:212.4 miles per hour 1392 c3769 feet up 4780 feet down 38497 steps Narrative:Slept in and was on the trail at 7:00 am. The first 3 miles were steep down then steep up, then it leveled out the rest of the way to Congdon Shelter. I pushed on until reaching the top of Consultation, then had lunch. On my way to Congdon, I met Sublime, who thru hiked the AT in 1978 and the PCT in 1983. I stopped at a stream .3 miles past Seth Warner to hydrate, then pushed on to the MA state line. When I got there, I saw Float, who flip flopped at Harpers Ferry and is now heading south to complete his hike. I also saw the two Russian men who I ran into earlier in the trail. They started at Katahdin 7/9. Once in Massachusetts, it became less muddy. There was a steep, rocky descent for .4 or so, but other than that it was generally good footing. I reached the campsite around 3:15 pm, set up my tent on a platform, ate, then went back to the trail to get water. Georgia rolled in around 5:30 pm. He had an interesting hitch into Bennington. The folks who picked him up were a little out there and insisted on taking him to the homeless shelter, but Georgia succeeded in getting them to take him to the Burger King instead. The motel at which Georgia stayed unfortunately no longer is hiker friendly because of the hordes of budget thru hikers who crammed 5 people into the rooms and made a ruckus. Long Portage rolled in after 6:30 pm.
Date: 2015-08-27
From: Sherman Brook Campsite

To: Cheshire
Miles today: 16.3

8/27/2015Treadway: 6/10Weather: partly cloudy and cool 3/10Stats:16.74 miles 6:19:202.6 miles per hour 1352 c4022 feet up 4402 feet down 37825 steps Narrative:Today we went up and over Greylock, the biggest climb and descent I expect to have until the Priest. Up at 5:30 am and on the trail around 6:00 am. The way down to the highway was easy, as was the walk along the highway and on the street leading up to the trailhead. At the trailhead, I stripped to my speedo and started the long climb up Greylock. At the bottom I ran into Float and he prudently advised me that the stream where we met was the last water before the top. The water there was crappy and I decided to go up the mountain with no water on an empty stomach. I was fine as the weather was cool. About halfway up I came upon a glorious viewpoint and stopped to take photos. Then I started going down until the cutoff to the shelter, and after that started climbing again. When I reached Mt Williams, the trail followed a ridge line to the top of Greylock. The top was in a cloud but I took nice photos of the War Memorial Tower and Bascom Lodge. I spent about 4 hours at Bascom hanging out with Float, Long Portage and Georgia, taking advantage of the good phone service, excellent wifi, potable water and power outlets. It was chilly at the top and I spent much of my time in a nice rocking chair in front of the fireplace. Around 2 pm Georgia and I started heading down. The descent to Cheshire was fast and easy. Once in town, I walked to the store and got there just before it closed, getting 3 Monsters and a bag of Chex Mix. Then I walked to the pizza pub, only to discover it had closed down. On my way back I arrived at St Mary¢s, signed the register, stamped my passport, found floor space for the night, did my stretches and had nice conversations with Long Portage and Georgia.
Date: 2015-08-29
From: Upper Goose Cabin

To: Tom Leonard Shelter
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: overcast clouds

8/29/2015Treadway: 6/10Weather: hot, muggy and buggy 5/10Stats:21.60 miles 7:47:382.8 miles per hour 1794 c4553 feet up 4452 feet down 48176 steps Narrative:For those of you on and off the trail who have asked me when I expect to finish, it is impossible for me to make any such prediction for the following reasons: 1. To know when to finish, you need to know how many miles you can go each day. 2. To know that, you need to know how hard each day will be. 3. How hard depends primarily on the quality of the treadway, secondarily on the weather, and thirdly on the amount of up and down. 4. While the least important of these factors (up and down) may be researched and determined in advance, the other two cannot. 5. In particular, there is no good information out there on how bad the quality of the trail surface really is. The people who describe the trail in the ATC guides are much too diplomatic. Seriously, if you wanted to inform future hikers that from October Mountain to Becket Mountain the trail sucks and is strewn with wretched rocks and roots, do you really think the ATC would permit that description in one of their official publications? Of course not. And yet this is exactly the kind of unsanitized, unvarnished true information you must have to figure out how far you can go when you reach that section of the trail. 6. And obviously, the weather is unpredictable, and notoriously so in Maine and in the Whites.This was an above-average but manageable day. Slept in, up at 6:20 am, breakfast of pancakes and coffee made by Debra. Met a SoBo couple from Maine, young man Torch and young lady Topsy Turvy. Also met German NoBo Hammer Time. Also met a man who thru hiked the AT in 1985 but did not get his name. On the trail around 8:15 am. Easy going for 7.4 miles to Main Street, but I was low on energy and stopped to eat an hour before that. At Main I had a pleasant walk into Tyringham, an idyllic small rural town in western Massachusetts, with nice views of the farmland and the forested hills rising above it. I picked up my re supply box at the post office and sorted it out in the library next door. Then I drank up and filled up at the water fountain and walked up Jerusalem Road to get back on the trail. After .2 miles uphill on the Tyringham Cobbles, it became uncomfortably hot and I stripped down to my speedo and hiked that way for the rest of the day. I had steady ups and downs on generally good tread way until the last mile or so as I was getting into Ice Gulch, when it became a bit rocky. I made it to the shelter around 6 pm and met three section hikers, Sushi, Mr Gray and a second man whose name I did not get. The bugs were quite dreadful that night and it was a mistake to sleep in the shelter instead of my tent.
Date: 2015-08-30
From: Tom Leonard Shelter

To: Brassie Brook Shelter
Miles today: 23.2
Weather: overcast clouds

8/30/2015Treadway: 8/10Weather: hot, muggy and buggy 6/10Stats:22.26 miles 9:05:002.5 miles per hour 1764 c5190 feet up 4895 feet down 47231 steps Today was a tale of two trails ¢ the hard to extremely hard trail at the beginning and throughout the second half, and the easy trail sandwiched in between. Up at 5:30 am and on the trail around 6:30 am. Within ten minutes it became intolerably hot and I hiked in my speedo the rest of the day. The first 3.6 miles were difficult and rocky ridge and ledge walking. About 3 miles in I stopped for cool water in a spring in a cleft below a footbridge as described quite well by AWOL. From mile 3.6 to mile 10.9 (Jug End Road) the trail was flat and easy field walking interspersed with a few stretches of easy flat forest trail here and there. At mile 8.3 I reached the Shay¢s Rebellion Monument and stopped there to eat. On the other side of the road there were trail magic jugs of water, and I helped myself to 2 liters. At Jug End Road, I began what Hudson later described to me as the hardest section of the trail south of the Whites. Why doesn't anyone say this in any of the guides? For me, the treadway difficulty was a very unpleasant surprise and it made a day I thought would be hard much, much more so. Very steep and very rocky up Jug End. Very rocky to the Hemlocks. More uphill, and more rocks, to the top of Everett. At the Hemlocks, I met SoBo Soul Money. On the way up Everett, I met SoBo Kermit, an extremely sure footed SoBo who flashed by me on the way down. The way down Everett was steep and rocky. The way up Race Mountain was steep and rocky. The Race Ledges were rocky. My attitude deteriorated as I had to step on and over all those rocks, and my feet were taking an unbelievable beating. At Sages Ravine I stopped to take a photo of the ¢Welcome to Connecticut¢ sign and proceeded along the stream, with predictably bad rocks. Then it got worse. The north slope up Bear Mountain was extremely steep and very difficult. I was relieved to make it to the top and the way down to the shelter was not too bad. I was the only person at the shelter and I stayed in my tent to avoid bug unpleasantness.
Date: 2015-08-31
From: Brassie Brook Shelter

To: Salisbury
Miles today: 4.6

8/31/2015Treadway: 6/10Weather: Hot and muggy 4/10Stats: 4.94 miles 1:44:162.8 miles per hour 414 c416 feet up 1440 feet down 13382 stepsNarrative:A well-earned nero after three hard days of hiking. Up at 5:30 am, on the trail around 6:20 am. The way down to Highway 41 was easy, with a little rockiness up and over Lions Head. Walked into Salisbury before 8 am. Bought fiber tablets and a stick for insect bites at the pharmacy, then picked up and sorted through my resupply box at the post office, then got food at the market, then ate a huge Italian submarine sandwich and a nice slab of cheese lasagna with a 2 L bottle of coke for breakfast, then caught up on my trail journal entries and aired out my sleeping bag while waiting for Hudson to pick me up and drive to Bearded Woods. I met Phoenix, a flip flopping NoBo from Vermont who is thru hiking after recovering from serious illness. Very inspirational. Was able to keep in touch with Georgia by text message, he was able to resupply in Greater Barrington. Caught up on more of my trail journal entries, showered, had laundry, and did more chores like going through my gear and flushing my Sawyer. Planning to slack pack from Salisbury to West Cornwall Road tomorrow.
Date: 2015-09-01
From: Salisbury

To: West Cornwall Road
Miles today: 16.6

9/1/2015Treadway: 3/10Weather: hot and humid 4/10Stats:17.54 miles5:33:153.2 miles per hour 1433 c3270 feet up 3405 feet down 36625 steps Narrative:Last night, I enjoyed an absolutely marvelous dinner prepared and served by Big Lu - salmon and pasta and salad and bread and an ice cream sundae for dessert. It was absolutely heavenly. I slept well and was up at 5:45 am. After a delicious breakfast of coffee, watermelon, omelette and English muffin, Hudson drove Phoenix and me to our respective trailheads. I was on the trail at 7:54 am. I zoomed past Pine Swamp without seeing the cutoff. About 4.2 miles into the hike I passed Phoenix. About 12 miles into the hike I passed Georgia, Nightmare and another hiker going southbound. The treadway generally was easy the entire hike, including the three mile road detour. By 1:30 pm I was done. By 2 pm I was at the market in Salisbury getting a huge submarine sandwich and a Mountain Dew. Nightmare and Georgia were resupplying too. We also met SoBos Becca and Flower Child.
Date: 2015-09-02
From: West Cornwall Road

To: Mt Algo Shelter
Miles today: 16.2

9/2/2015Treadway: 6/10Weather: beastly hot and humid 7/10Stats:19.33 miles 7:07:392.7 miles per hour 1660 c3822 feet up 3891 feet down 35180 stepsNarrative:It was fun hanging out with Georgia and Nightmare on the last night that dinner is served at Bearded Woods. Big Lu prepared and served a wonderful dinner of sausages, chicken, peppers, sliders, potato salad and bread. We also had ice cream and apple pie for dessert. It was heavenly. Woke up at 5:30 am and had coffee, grapefruit and orange juice and breakfast sandwiches and watermelon. Hudson drove me to the trailhead and I was on the trail at 8:24 am. Within minutes I stripped down to my swimsuit. It was so hot and humid that I felt uncomfortable the rest of the day. The first five miles were hard, then were followed by an easy walk along the river. I had lunch at Stony Brook Campsite, then continued the easy walk for another 2 miles before reaching St John¢s Ledges. Going up them in the heat was a beast. After the ledges I had about 4 miles of moderate climbs and descents before arriving at the road to Kent. There, I put on my clothes and walked into town to pick up my resupply package. I also got my AT Passport stamped by the post mistress. My box included my new chart from Kent to Delaware Water Gap, and it took just a quick glance for me to realize that getting to Fort Montgomery by noon on Saturday was completely out of the question, especially in this brutal heat. It was oppressively hot walking in and out of town wearing my clothes, even though I was not carrying my backpack. Next door to the post office was a supermarket, and I went inside to buy 3 20 ounce Mountain Dews, which I drank before getting back on the trail. There also were some trail magic water jugs at the trailhead, and I filled up 2 L and carried the water up the trail to Mt Algo shelter, where I spent the night. I was the only person at the shelter that night and I slept in my tent to keep away from the bugs.
Date: 2015-09-03
From: Mt Algo Shelter

To: Telephone Pioneer Shelter
Miles today: 21.2
Weather: clear sky

9/3/2015Treadway: 5/10Weather: Beastly hot and humid 7/10Stats:21.74 miles 8:15:112.6 miles per hour 1726 c4954 feet up 4678 feet down 47645 steps Narrative:You know it's going to be hot when you don't use your sleeping bag at night and you feel uncomfortably warm in your swimsuit before sunrise and before hitting the trail. That's what today was like, all day long. Up at 5:30 am, on the trail at 6:30 am, by 6:40 am I was sweating like a pig. The first five miles up to Indian Rocks were hard and slow going, with plenty of rocks and up and down. At Indian Rocks I stopped and called the Bear Mountain Motel in Fort Montgomery and made a reservation for Sunday night and asked them to pick up my box at the post office, which they did, thereby solving a huge logistical problem for me since the post office would not be open until after Labor Day. The trail started getting easier, and about 2 miles later I found a faint stream with a trickle and hydrated. The rest of the way to Ten Mile Shelter was mostly downhill and easy. I had lunch at the shelter and met Fortunate 1, a section hiker. After the shelter, I climbed to the top of Ten Mile Mountain. There was a sign indicating that I was one third of the way there, and I took a photo. After descending, I entered New York, and although there wasn't a sign, I took a photo of the first landmark I saw, which was an interesting footbridge. After entering New York, I hiked mostly through fields with high grass which scraped my arms and legs. By 4:40 pm I was at Native Landscapes, where I got my AT Passport stamped, used the restroom, took a cold shower outside and filled up 3 L. The last 3 miles to Telephone Pioneers shelter was easy. About a mile before the shelter I passed the big Oak Tree. There was no water at the shelter and no bugs either, so I stayed in the shelter and met section hiker Roaming John.
Date: 2015-09-04
From: Telephone Pioneer Shelter

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: light rain

9/4/2015Treadway: 5/10Weather: overcast and cooler 4/10Stats:16.17 miles 5:58:082.7 miles per hour 1318 c3070 feet up 3667 feet down 35227 steps Narrative:A relatively easy day after a hard day. Up at 5:40 am, on the trail at 6:30 am. The first five miles past Nuclear Lake were easy. After that, there was a gradual climb up to Morgan Stewart Shelter, where I stopped to have lunch and hydrate. The water did not taste good, but I had no choice but to drink it. The first five miles after that were easy, and the last 4 miles to RPH Shelter were moderate, including a 1-mile traverse that was rocky. At RPH I met NoBo Homey, who started from Graymoor. I called the number for the pizza place again and again, only to learn the place was not open because the owners were on vacation.
Date: 2015-09-05
From: RPH Shelter

To: Graymoor Spiritual Center
Miles today: 18.8

9/5/2015Treadway: 6/10Weather: Sunny and warm 3/10Stats:18.74 miles 7:06:482.6 miles per hour 1517 c4137 feet up 3927 feet down 37979 steps Narrative:Last night at RPH, I also met section hikers Peanut B and Monkey Poo. At 6 pm, Homey, Peanut B and Monkey Poo and I had enough critical mass to call the Chinese restaurant and phone in our respective orders. I ordered the House Fried Rice (large), 2 mango smoothies and 4 cokes. The water at RPH tasted quite dreadful so the smoothies and cokes were my backup plan for hydration. At 7 pm the delivery man brought the food only, not the drinks. I started inhaling the fried rice and 20 minutes later he was back with the drinks. I chugged both smoothies and one of the cokes, saving the other three for this morning. RPH had nice bunks, so I decided to stay in the shelter instead of my tent, but that turned out to be a mistake because the mosquitoes were having their way with me even after I generously applied repellent. Up at 5:30 am, on the trail at 6:11 am. The early morning light was nice on top of Shenandoah Mountain, and I was able to take nice photos of the 9/11 flag memorial. I also had good early morning light when I reached the viewpoint above the beach at Canopus Lake. From there to Graymoor the trail was off and on rocky and bad. But on a positive note, it was much cooler and less humid than the past 6 days and the hiking generally was pleasant. After 5 miles I had a delicious and nutritious breakfast of coca cola, Fritos and a Slim Jim. After 10 miles I had a second breakfast, equally delicious and nutritious, of more coca cola, more Fritos, another Slim Jim and Ritz crackers. At 10.35 miles I reached Dennytown Road and filled up at the spigot on the building next to the parking area. It was in this fashion that I was able to roll into Graymoor a little after 2 pm without having to use my Sawyer the entire day. There was a lively group playing volleyball and softball on the ball field, and I had a nice chat with the other folks hanging out at the field. After they left, I pitched my tent next to the left field foul line.
Date: 2015-09-06
From: Graymoor Spiritual Center

To: Bear Mountain Bridge
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: broken clouds

9/6/2015Treadway: 4/10Weather: Sunny and warm 3/10Stats:7.43 miles2:43:532.7 miles per hour612 c1351 feet up 1696 feet down 20778 stepsNarrative:Before retiring for the night, I chose a novel place to hang my food: in the netting of the soccer goal next to my tent. Up at 5:05 am, on the trail at 6 am. The treadway generally was good, and it was an easy hike to Bear Mountain Bridge. At and on the bridge, I took a number of photos. The views up the Hudson in particular were beautiful. At the west end of the bridge I called Doug at Bear Mountain Bridge Motel, and he picked me up quickly and drove me to the motel. On his recommendation, I had breakfast at the deli next door, a meat lovers breakfast wrap and a buttered bagel with a Mountain Dew. Then I went to the Mobil Mart and had another Mountain Dew and bought a can of Pringles for snacking throughout the day. I also bought 5 monster-sized Slim Jims for the trail. Then I went back to my room and sorted through my resupply box, which included a map for the rest of New York and New Jersey, AWOL pages from here to Delaware Water Gap, olive oil (chucked), pasta and chia seeds (chucked), sesame sticks and trail mix (chucked), three day rations of Cytomax and breakfast mix (golden), a Mountain House and more Slim Jims. Then I attended to a variety of maintenance tasks, such as washing my clothes, showering, clipping and filing my fingernails and toenails, and drying out my sleeping bag and tent. Then I walked down to the Chestnut Mart to see if it had a better selection than the Mobil Mart. Not really, but I bought Cheese Its, Pringles, and Snickers for the trail. Then I walked back to the deli across the street from the motel and bought 2 chocolate glazed donuts, which I inhaled on the spot, a coke which I guzzled, and a ham and cheese sandwich and chips to eat later in my room. At the Chestnut Mart, I also bought 2 Gatorades for hydrating the rest of the day. It occurred to me that it might be a good idea to stock up on Gatorade and carry it up Bear Mountain tomorrow morning as the heat is expected to be beastly for the next 4 days. Back in my room, I studied AWOL for hydration and food opportunities in the rest of New York and in New Jersey. I expect that the heat will make the six days from here to DWG especially hard.
Date: 2015-09-07
From: Bear Mountain Bridge

To: Fingerboard Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: scattered clouds

9/6/2015Treadway: 5/10Weather: oppressive heat and humidity 8/10Stats:16.06 miles 6:18:502.6 miles per hour 1286 c4258 feet up 3061 feet down 36048 steps Narrative:So here I am at the Fingerboard Shelter, feeling sick to my stomach, probably from heat exhaustion, and I don't feel like drinking any of the 3.25 L of water I hauled up here, even though I know I need to hydrate very badly. Today is Labor Day. Most reasonable people do reasonable things on Labor Day, like go to barbecues, watch tennis on TV, or drink beer. I of course decided to celebrate Labor Day by busting my ass on the Appalachian Trail in the most awful heat and humidity you could imagine. Up at 6 am, ready to go at 7:30 am, got dropped off at the trailhead just before 8 am. For a day like today, that was way too late a start. The zoo was closed, so I had to take the blue blazed bypass trail to Hessian Lake. From there, I hiked past the Bear Mountain Inn and up Bear Mountain. The trail to the top was very well constructed and maintained, with a number of steps thoughtfully placed to make the hiking easier and more enjoyable. At the top, I took off my pack, took some photos, and went up the tower. The way down to West Mountain was equally well maintained. Overall, the treadway was fair to good with a few rocky sections here and there. I carried a liter up the mountain and drank half at the top. About 6 miles into the hike, I drank another liter left on the trail by another hiker. I was counting on a stream at mile 8, but it was dry. That was hard. Five miles later, I crossed a stream with decent water. I drank 1.5 L and filled up 3.25 L so I would not have to make the .3 detour a mile before the shelter. Finally, I got there at 4:10 pm. I feel too hot and tired to do anything and hope I sleep well tonight and that I am able to get some water down me. As I was moving my pack into the shelter, I noticed that the front straps were caked with white residue, probably from all the sweating I did today.