morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-08-30
From: Franconia Notch

To: Garfield Ridge Campsite
Miles today: 10.3
Weather: broken clouds

Today's hike took me up to Franconia Ridge and over Mounts Lincoln, Lafayette, and Garfield in the presidential range of the White Mountains. Carol and I woke early at the inn, and Vicky came by to let me know my grandson Anthony was up. I got to play with him a little, and then we were off to breakfast at the Littleton Diner, where I chowed down four large whole wheat pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream. We returned to the hotel to say goodbye to Rich and Anthony, and then Vicky drove Carol and me to the trailhead, where we had finished in near darkness Monday. Carol and I hugged and said our goodbyes. The next time I'll see her is about 5 weeks, when the hike is over.I started the 2800' climb up to Franconia Ridge hiking alone. About halfway up Chuckbuster overtook me, and for a while I kept up with him. He is here in the shelter with BumbleBee and Lonestar. I'm in my tent.Just after reaching the ridge, the clouds that we'd awakened to on the north side of Franconia Notch blew in, as a cold front began blowing through. The clouds obstructed the view from the summits of Lincoln and Lafayette, but every once in a while they would open, allowing views of the distant ridges and valleys. I ate up on Lafayette in the lee of a rock formation between the two peaks. As usual, I needed to put on my gortex jacket and hat to keep warm. During the morning, I'd been hiking in my smartwool t-shirt, but after lunch I needed the jacket. As I finished lunch, Bumblebee, Lonestar, and Chuckbuster passed. They seemed to disappear into the wisps of cloud that were blowing over the ridge. Finally, as I was descending from the north peak of Lafayette, it cleared up and the views were magnificent.The rest of the hike was a descent down the ridge, and then a steep ascent up Mt Garfield, where a side trail led to the summit with additional views. Chuckbuster was there at the foundation of what I suspect was once a fire lookout. We could see back on the ridge to the summits we'd passed earlier. Ahead in the distance was the summit of Mt. Washington. From there it was about a half mile steep descent to the campground. My tent platform has a view toward the sunset, but it is in the wind so it's cold. I'm very glad to have my winter bag and longjohns. Dinner was mac'n cheese with foil-packed spam and chamomile tea. I was in bed by 7pm and watched the sunset from my tent.On! On!
Date: 2006-08-31
From: Garfield Ridge Tentsite

To: Ethan Pond Tentsite
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Today's entry is dedicated to Amherst College freshman Kit Callahan.It was quite cold last night and this morning, but I was toasty in my winter sleeping bag. After it got dark, the stars were magnificent. It was so nice in the sleeping bag, I delayed getting up until 6:30am.The morning started out foggy, with an additional descent down from the mountain followed by an ascent up above treeline. By 10am it had cleared off and was a beautiful day, though a little cool and windy. About 11am I came to Galehead Hut and enjoyed 5 bowls of noodle soup and a 2 inch thick slice of bread. Then it was on up the trail. Near 1pm, I passed the summit of South Twin Mountain, and mistakenly headed down a side trail toward Guyot Campsite. The blue blazes should have clued me that I was off the AT. Fortunately, after about .3 miles I found a sunny spot in the lee of some rocks and ate lunch. A day-hiker couple stopped to chat, and that's how I learned I'd gone out of my way over half a mile.The afternoon was more ups and downs, with a stop about 4pm at Zealand Falls Hut for water. I had heard the next section of the trail was good from the caretaker at last night's stop, so I continued on toward Ethan Pond, arriving about 5:30pm.By the time I'd set up camp and fetched water, it was getting dark. I wound up in the cooking area with a college orientation group from Amherst College, and I yogied* some of their dinner after finishing mine. They had lots of questions about my hike. It had grown dark by the time I was ready to return to my tent. It was then I noticed my headlamp was missing. One of the students, Kit (Christopher) Callahan graciously offered to give me his spare mini-maglite and guided me to my tent with his headlamp. Later, I discovered the headlamp in my sleeping bag when I unrolled it. But a big thank you to Kit nonetheless.On! On!*to yogi = to beg subtly.
Date: 2006-09-01
From: Ethan Pond Tentsite

To: Lake of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Again the stars overnight were beautiful as I looked out from the warmth and comfort of my sleeping bag. It wasn't as cold and there was no wind, so there was a good deal of condensate on the tent fly when I woke. I slept in until nearly 7am, and finally started hiking at 8:15. On the way down the caretaker overtook me on her way out for her days off, and I asked about FDOM-1. She remembered Veto having asked about BigFoot and GreyGoose as well, so I knew I was catching up. I tried to Yogi a ride to the Crawford Notch General Store, but she was in a hurry and a much faster hiker than I. She soon left me in the dust.I finally arrived at US 302 at 9:30am, having covered the 2.9 miles fairly quickly. By then, the fog had lifted and the day was beautiful. It seemed to take forever to get a hitch. After 45 minutes a couple in a pickup gave me a ride. They offered for me to get into the back seat, but I rode in back saying I smelled pretty bad, it being 3 days since a bath.The people running the Crawford Notch General Store and Campground were very nice. When the lady said "might could" I knew they weren't natives here. Turns out they were from FL, having moved here about 3 years ago.They had everything I needed for resupply, as well as B&Js ice cream, Pepsi, and a nice pound cake for lunch. I learned that FDOM-1 had stayed in the bunkroom overnight and had left at 8am. I knew I was hot on their trail.I paid $7 for a shuttle back to the trail, and at 11:45am started the long climb out of the notch. The trail was good and the views magnificent. As I got higher and higher, the successive views from Webster Cliffs, Mt Webster, and Mount Jackson showed more and more of the terrain. From the summit of Mt Jackson I could see Mitzpah hut in the distance. I contemplated asking for work-for-stay there, but knew the others would be at Lake of the Clouds Hut. When I got to Mitzpah, I asked the "croo" about the trail ahead. They indicated I could make the next hut about 5 miles on up. I left there at 4:15pm, and had stunning views under the late-day light of Mt. Washington and down into the valley.I arrived at the hut at 6:15pm. I felt really good on the last miles and was hiking fast. I got work-for-stay, and the FDOM had a reunion. Chuckbuster was also there and the guests were eating.After dinner we swept the floor and wiped down the tables as the croo washed dishes. Then it was our turn to eat -- chicken pot pie, pea soup, salad, great homemade bread, molasses cookies. I ate prodigious amounts. Afterward we helped wash pots and our dishes. When it was lights out 9:30pm, we set up camp in the common room. I am sleeping on the floor, but the others slept on top of the tables. I finally got to sleep at 10pm, lulled by wind mill noise.Onward to Maine!
Date: 2006-09-04
From: Pinkham Notch

To: Carter Notch Hut
Miles today: 5.9
Weather: fog

Another day of short, but very hard, miles. We got up at 5:30am at the hostel to pack and have breakfast in the motel dining room in time to make the Trailways bus back to Pinkham Gap ($4/person) at 7:50am. We were on the trail by 8:30am.At first the trail was level but very rocky around a lake for about a mile. Shortly the very steep 1800' ascent up aptly-named Wildcat Mountain began. The hiking poles often hung by their straps from my wrists, as I used hands as well as feet to clamber up the rocks. It was noon before we reached the summit of Wildcat Peak E, where the ski area gondola was dropping off sightseers. We'd gone only 2.7 miles, and had used hand and footholds carved into a 75* rock face on the way. Glad we were going up and not down! We ate lunch behind the summit lodge, and the sun came out briefly. Then it was more of the same on the ups and downs toward Wildcat Peaks D, C, B, and A. The downs between the peaks were as steep and difficult as the ups. After we reached Peak A, it was obvious we wouldn't make our intended miles to South Carter Mountain stealth sites. We deferred the decision on where to stay until we reached the side trail to Carter Notch Hut.About 4pm, as we reached the side trail, Sally the caretaker greeted us warmly and said she heard we were on our way. In almost the same breath, she offered work-for-stay and started leading us to the hut. How could we go on with that kind of hospitality? Work-for-stay was going to be scrubbing the common room floor, but Sally couldn't find the mop -- this was her 2nd day at this hut. Instead we stacked firewood for the upcoming winter -- the hut is open all year - swept the floor twice, and scoured the top of the stove.There were only a few guests, so we got to stay on beds in the bunkhouse, instead of the common room floor as at previous huts. I tried to catch up on journals, but fell asleep 3 times as I started this one.Onward to Maine!
Date: 2006-09-06
From: Hiker's Paradise Hostel

To: Hiker's Paradise, Gorham, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: fog

The word for today was "relax".We took a well-earned zero after finishing the Whites. A lot of other hikers are also in town: Junco, who I haven't seen since Damascus, VA, Blacksnake, LoneStar, MCGruff, Puffy Nipples & Cheeto, Rapunzel, and Hitch to name a few.The day was spent eating town food, doing chores, and buying needed supplies. I looked for a backpack to replace mine, but neither of the two outfitters had anything suitable. I was, however, able to buy a sewing awl and heavy thread, that I used to repair the broken right load lifter and pack carrying strap, and to stengthen the left ends of the same. Based on the location of the needle holes in the framesheet, I'd say the sewing was improper from the get-go. I'm pretty confident the repairs will hold out, as long as I remember to loosen the load lifter and shoulder straps whenever I take the pack off.I also went to RiteAide and had my full photo chip copied to CD's. These and the sewing awl and used up maps and guidebook pages then went to the post office to be sent home. That required a second trip down to the Center of Gorham. I extended it to visit the library and use the internet. I also walked a round trip mile in the other direction to pick up one or two food items at the super market on the edge of town. Altogether I'd guess I walked at least 5 miles today. They are easier by a long shot than walking with a heavy pack up out of town, as we'll be doing in the morning.Onward to Maine!
Date: 2006-09-07
From: Hiker's Paradise, Gorham, NH

To: Gentian Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: light rain

Today I saw my first moose at dusk. She was browsing in the far end of the pond. Hopefully the picture will turn out well.The FDOM (Four Dirty Old Men) got up at 6am, having pretty much packed last night, and we were at the door of the motel coffee shop for breakfast before 7am. Bruno had hinted that the first hikers to eat would be the first shuttled back to the trail, and we wanted to get an early start. We were at the trailhead about 8:15am and started out on the short road walk.The hike took us over a dam on the Androscoggin River, where there was a hydro station, then up 1800' to the summit of Mt. Hayes, where the view was great. We stopped there for a snack then continued on to the summit of Cascade Mtn, where we had lunch. Blacksnake and Lonestar joined us there and in the shelter tonight. Then it was 6 more miles of ups and downs to this shelter. On the way we passed three ponds and kept looking for moose, as there were fresh droppings along the trail.We had speculated on hiking 17 miles to the first shelter in Maine, but the trail was rough, though much easier than the Presidentials in the White Mountains, a forte to the White's fortissimo. We were happy to make our planned miles for a change. I reached the shelter at about 4:45pm, with Veto close but a little behind and GreyGoose and Bigfoot further back yet.I debated setting up my tent on a platform, but decided to stay in the shelter. The view from here is fantastic; the view from the tent platform was of the outhouse.By the time I finished dinner it was getting dark. I headed a few feet back the trail and toward the pond, and it turned out there was a cow moose there eating pond weeds. I came back for my camera and snapped a picture, alerting the others so they could see their first moose too.Maine tomorrow!
Date: 2006-09-08
From: Gentian Pond Shelter

To: Full Goose Shelter
Miles today: 9.6
Weather: clear sky

Today we crossed into Maine!The miles are reminiscent of the Whites, and so is the terrain. Everyone in the shelter, the FDOM, BlackSnake, LoneStar, and Junco agree, and all of us made the same hike today. Given the terrain, it was fortunate we had perfect hiking weather -- temps in the high 60s, clear, and sunny.The were numerous big ascents and descents today. We started out by climbing Mt. Success, a 1400' climb. Then about 11:30am we crossed over into Maine. At the border a sectioner was talking a nap in the sun while drying his gear. He took pictures of us on all four cameras, and clued us to a nice place to lunch before Carlo Col. There we had a beautiful view and lunched with Blacksnake and LoneStar. While we ate, Junco came through and continued on.After lunch we started a descent and heard Junco exclaim, "What do the trail (maintenance) clubs have against thru-hikers!" Soon enough we understood. The trail descended sharply through a boulderfall. Poles were useless and hands were required on the descent. Occasionally a butt slide proved the best way down. Then came the 500' climb of Mt. Carlo, followed by a steep, 500' descent to cross over to the base of Goose Eye Mt. There we crossed the West Peak, East Peak, and North Peak. The ascent to East Peak involved a 30' ladder climb. The descent was over boardwalks, some were cleated with 1 x 3"'s. Others resembled the ramps used by chickens to get in/out of the coop. The descent from North Peak included ladder rungs of 1" rebar fastened to holes drilled into rock faces. Is it any wonder the going was slow? It took all afternoon, from 1 to 5pm, to get to the shelter just 4.6 miles from our lunch spot.I figure today's terrain was the dress rehearsal for tomorrow's hike of Mahoosuc Notch and Mahoosuc Arm, reported to be the most difficult trail section.We all are in bed early. I'm the last one up filing this journal, and am signing off at 8pm.Onward to Katahdin!
Date: 2006-09-09
From: Full Goose Shelter

To: Grafton Notch Stealth Camp
Miles today: 9.7
Weather: few clouds

If NH's White Mountains were a forte fortissimo, then ME's opening movement has been a sforzando. Today we descended 1000' to pass through the jumble of room- and house-sized boulders at Mahoosuc Notch, then climbed up 1150' to the top of Mahoosuc Arm where we had lunch at 1pm. It took us 6 hours to cover those 4.1 miles.After lunch it was down then up to Speck Pond Shelter at 3pm.We debated stopping there, as there were showers forecast this afternoon, but decided to press on to the notch, as the shelter caretaker indicated trail conditions were improved. LoneStar and BlackSnake elected to stay at Speck Pond. We wanted to be close to the highway should BigFoot need medical attention in the AM. He fell about 8 feet during the ascent of Mahoosuc Arm, landing on his tailbone. FDOM continued the 1200' climb up toward the top of Old Speck Mountain. The climb was steep, but easier than Mahoosuc Arm. There was lots of walking on bare rock surfaces on the way. The views, though it was cloudy, were pretty spectacular. Then came the 3.5 mile-long, 2500' descent to Grafton Notch. As the caretaker indicated, the trail was good, but about 1/3 of the way down at about 4pm, the sky darkened and thunder was heard in the distance. It was clear we'd be walking in the rain soon, so I put on my rain jacket and gaiters and adjusted the pack cover. Fortunately we were well down from the summit when the thunderstorm came. It accompanied our hike for about 1.5 miles, until we reached the parking lot in the notch at about 6pm. It was clear we couldn't reach the next shelter, our intended destination, 2.3 miles up the trail.We debated calling for a shuttle into Andover, but I have no signal here. Second choice, since it had stopped raining was to set up tents on some stealth campsites near the parking lot. I decided to swap tomorrow's lunch and today's supper as I was getting cold. I had two english muffins slathered with peanut butter, 1/2 of a power bar, a large Hershy's special dark, and Hostess orange-flavored, cream-filled cupcakes. I'll cook today's supper for lunch tomorrow.I'm snug and dry in my tent for the night and turning in at 8:45pm.On! On!
Date: 2006-09-11
From: East B Hill Rd.

To: South Arm Rd. stealth camp
Miles today: 10.1

There were lots of ups and downs today, but the trail was good. Even the steep ups had stone steps and ladder rungs of re-bar drilled into locations where the stone was too steep to walk up. So far the Maine Appalachian Trail Club has done a great job maintaining the trail and shelters. Kudos to them and to all the volunteers who have built and are maintaining the trail.We got up early at the hostel and headed for breakfast at the Andover General Store. There had been frost overnight, and the sky was crystal clear and deep blue. It was all I could do to eat three of the huge pancakes served up for breakfast. Then David from Pine Ellis Lodging shuttled us out to the trail, and we set out at 8:15am. In the morning we hiked by Surplus Pond, mirroring its serene setting with one red maple among the green evergreens and birches on the far bank. A gradual climb to the top of Wyman Mountain took us up 1400'. On the way we shed our jackets and fleece as the day warmed. It was great hiking weather. Then we had some short downs and ups to reach Hall Mtn Lean-to at noon for lunch.I cut thick slices from the homemade loaf of whole wheat bread I was carrying for my peanut butter sandwich. The loaf was a lot like the ones I bake: it is heavy and seems to survive life in the pack well. While we were eating, the older couple from Virginia who are sectioning the whole trail, arrived on their southbound slack. We had talked to them over breakfast at the cafe in Andover.This afternoon we had only 4.1 miles to go, but they involved a down of 1500' into Sawyer Notch, followed by a very steep climb of 1000' to the summit of Moody Mountain, where there was a view including an array of satellite dishes in the distance. After the steep climb, the 1000' descent to Black Brook and South Arm Road was on very good trail. We made good time, arriving at our scheduled destination about 4:45pm. McGruff and Pedro are camped here too. FDOM (Four Dirty Old Men) is spread out, with BigFoot and GreyGoose on the south side of the brook, and Veto and I on the north side. It was nice to set up camp early and relax while there was daylight. After supper Veto and I walked to the spring a little way up the road to filter water. Since then there has only been one car that went past. Western Maine is very remote. The road and brook pass through a narrow notch, with rock cliffs crowning the steep hillsides on either side. It was beautiful in the light of the setting sun. It's 8pm and already dark and already cold. There will probably be frost again tonight.On to Katahdin!
Date: 2006-09-12
From: South Arm Rd. stealth camp

To: Beamis Stream stealth camp
Miles today: 12.5

What a beautiful day for hiking in the mountains of western Maine!When Veto called over from his tent saying it was ten to six, I really didn't want to get up. It got quite cold last night, and was 38* and foggy at 6am. Tonight promises to be another cold one. We are again camped near a stream, in an area where groups had previously camped. Veto even built a campfire, and I had my mac 'n cheese by the fire. At 8pm everyone else is asleep and the temp is 50*.For hiking the weather could not have been finer. Once we climbed above the fog on the 2200' hike up Old Blue Mountain, the sky was deep blue without a single cloud, and it stayed that way all day. The exertion of the climb quickly warmed us, as the sun warmed the trail up to about 70*. We stopped early in the hike to shed layers. Veto led today's hike followed by me, GreyGoose and finally Bigfoot, who is babying his bruised tailbone/pelvis. He kept reasonably close to Veto's pace, but the trail from 11am on was often rooty and rocky. It was difficult to make any time. Before 11am there was the long climb of Old Blue that started very steeply up out of the gorge. Then it was down and back up Bemis Mountain which had several peaks.Since the slackpackers (Lonestar, Blacksnake, Bumblebee, Iron Wolf, and Old Drum) had claimed the first summit rocks, we moved on, winding up at a really nice sunny spot on the East Peak of Bemis Mtn for lunch and a rest.The afternoon hike took us across three peaks in the Bemis Range, each lower than the previous peak. At one point there must have been nearly a mile of walking on bare granite. As we started the long 2000' descent from the last peak about 4pm, it was pretty obvious we'd fall short of our planned miles -- especially when the view opened up and we could see the climb that would have been required.We decided to look for a campsite at the "old railroad grade" shown on the map, and filtered water at a spring just before it. Alas the old railroad grade had been turned into a road. Fortunately just a little way further, we saw this campsite just short of Bemis Stream, and arrived here about 5pm. Since both Veto and I were hiking several minutes ahead of the others, and since we were very tired, we decided to stop here rather than press on the 4.5 miles to our "planned" destination, a trip which would certainly have been completed by headlamp and which invited injury. The trail teaches one to be flexible, adjusting our paper plans to the realities of weather and trail conditions.On to Katahin!