morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-09-05
From: Bemis Stream campsite

To: Farmhouse Inn
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: broken clouds

The trail has been so nice here in Maine. The stonework and effort is so appreciated. We got up and made breakfast at the campsite. We pushed off around 6:30. We wanted to make it to route 4 early. We climbed the hill up to route 17 which offered a fantastic view of Mt Bemis and surrounding areas. We continued on the hill after crossing the street and the trail leveled out. The rest of the day would be gradual ups and gradual downs. We stopped at the sabbath day shelter and had a snack. I had called farmhouse inn yesterday to say we would be coming in. Kirk had told me when I got to Rangeley he would pay for my stay at the inn. They told me before I descended the hill to call them to set up a pick up from the trailhead. We moved on from the shelter making great time and stopped for lunch at a campsite on a pond. It was such a nice scenic spot. We were able to fill up on water and carried on. I called the inn to let them know that we would be there at 3 to the trailhead. The girl at the inn said everyone was doing runs and that she would try and get us a ride but if no one was there by 3:30 to try and hitch. We continued on our way with a slow decent to the road. It was such a nice trail today and a nice walk. We arrived at route 4 and rested in the parking area. A couple pulled into the parking area and offered to take us into town. We said yes please and they drove us to the farmhouse inn. We checked in and got "The Nest" it had two beds and another bed area in the front room. It was just perfect. We took showers, put our laundry in and washed our cook ware. We took the dinner shuttle into town and went to Parkside for dinner. After dinner we stopped and got an ice cream and then got dropped off at the grocery store for resupply. The grocery store had new hours starting tonight, they now close at 8. We waited outside until the shuttle came back and will get brought in the morning. We headed back to the farmhouse and settled in for the night.
Date: 2016-09-06
From: Farmhouse Inn

To: Stealth campsite on knoll 
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: clear sky

Had a great nights sleep at the Farmhouse inn. Woke up around 6 and took a shower and had a breakfast of waffles with Hazel. We got a ride to the IGA grocery store to do our resupply and then got a shuttle back to the trail. The Farmhouse Inn was amazing and the owners were so nice. I definitely would come back. Hazel and I got on trail at about 9am. Our first climb of the day was up Saddleback Mt. We stopped at Piazza rock shelter for a snack two miles in. We then continued the climb. It was sunny and the terrain was steep but nothing we aren't used to. We stopped at Eddy Pond to have lunch and it was such a beautiful spot. Old Timer stopped and had a snack at the pond as well. We continued on and began the steep climb up Saddleback. The clouds and fogged moved on when we got close to the summit as well as the mist. Descending down the other side was tricky with the wet rocks. We went slow and began the climb up the horn. This wasn't too bad as we only descended a few 100 feet down from saddleback. On the summit of the horn the sun came out. We descended down the horn and stopped at a campsite at the bottom to fill up on water and to have a snack. Our last climb of the day was up Saddleback Junior. The climb was steep and got right to the point. At the top flash and wolverine caught up to us. We chatted for a bit before descending down to the shelter. The climb down was hard with a lot of rock slabs and holding onto trees and roots. It took us some time but we made it to the shelter. The shelter was pretty full and the few campsites were taken. Our guidebook said there were more sites up on the knoll so we continued on walking and found a good spot. We set up camp, I built a fire, Hazel got water and we made dinner and roasted marshmallows. Yummy. We headed to bed and I passed out. Today was a tough day of hiking.
Date: 2016-09-07
From: Stealth campsite on knoll 

To: Carrabassett Tent spot.
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Today I woke up much earlier than normal. It was 4am and I said no this is not gonna work go back to bed. I did and woke up at a much reasonable 6:30. I heard Hazel say "Good morning Storm" We made breakfast, broke down camp and were on trail before 7:30. We had the best campsite on the knoll by poplar ridge lean-to. We had a steady downhill to start our day and then a steep climb up lone mt. We stopped at Spaulding Mountain lean-to for lunch and then climbed Spaulding mountain. It was a tough climb and I was dragging big time. It feels like everyday I'm getting weaker and weaker even though I'm eating and eating. After summiting Spaulding we had a gradual descent and stayed on the ridge until we reached the view right before Sugarloaf Mt. We passed a plaque commemorating the completion of the last section of the Appalachian Trail. There was a side trail .70 up to the summit of Sugarloaf. We did not summit as it was getting late and we knew we had a very steep downhill from Sugarloaf. We began the downhill and it was slow going with lots of rock slabs to make our way over. It was all in the sun and we were cooking. We both ran out of water 1/2 way down. Finally we arrived at the south branch of the Carrabassett River where we were able to filter water and drink generously. We forded the river and found a camp spot too perfect to pass up. We set up and Hazel started a fire. Flash and Wolverine joined us and are a couple. They are so cute and remind me of Jeff and I when we were in our early 20's. They set up their tent and came and made their dinner by the fire. We all chatted about our hikes and who's where that we know all together. By 8:15 we were all yawning and ready for bed. Hiker midnight is now officially 8pm.
Date: 2016-09-08
From: Carrabassett Tent spot.

To: Horns pond lean-to
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: few clouds

There is nothing like sleeping near a body of running water. I had the best nights sleep ever. I got up and made breakfast with Hazel. Wolverine and Flash came over and joined us for breakfast. We started off and began the steep climb up Crocker Mt. We hiked into the clouds and had no views. After going over South Crocker Mountain and North Crocker Mountain we began the 5 mile descent down to Maine route 27. The descent was gradual and nice. At about .90 miles from the road we crossed the 2000 mile mark. It was quite the moment and a bit emotional. We got to the road and sat and ate our lunch and took a little snooze. We got back on trail and pushed another 6 miles to Horns Pond   Lean-to. The view from the knoll overlooking horns pond was simply amazing. We walked down and arrived at the double shelter. One shelter had a couple in it that hiked up to the pond, the second one was empty. Hazel and I set up in the empty shelter. The caretaker for this site which is very popular came down to chat with us. She said it was unusually quiet. We started cooking dinner and sunshine showed up. I hadn't seen him since Shenandoah Park. We all made dinner and chatted before we all passed out at about 8:30.
Date: 2016-09-09
From: Horns pond lean-to

To: Grand Hebert Hotel
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: scattered clouds

I woke up at around 5:30 to the morning light starting. It looked nice shining around Avery Mt. We got up and made breakfast and chatted while packing up. Sunshine was planning on doing 18 or so and Hazel and I cringed. He flip flopped from Harper's Ferry and said that he's at the peak of his hike and in shape. We are at the end of our hike and our bodies are in the decline stage so big miles are just not possible. It's taking everything I got to get up the climbs and the energy level is really low. It makes sense as after 2000 miles I'm pretty tired. We headed out on trail at around 7:30 and began the steepest 1/2 mile climb on the whole AT supposedly. It wasn't too bad and we summited Avery peak. At the top we met Otter who was a flip flipper. I had heard there was another Otter on the trail, not to be confused with my Otter from Hot Springs. We continued in our way going up and over the horn and little Bigelow. We then had a three mile descent down to the road where we were going to meet Stephen. We got to the road and there was trail magic given by past thru hikers. It was such a nice thing to come out to. Stephen was not there yet and we had hamburgers, pasta salad, doughnuts, cake, soda, iced tea, ice cream sandwiches. It was simply amazing. We met the guy who created the Guthook app for Thru hikers. He was part of the group doing trail magic. After about two hours and Stephen wasn't there we began to worry. I tried calling him up on the hill and got nothing. I even had home try and call him. We sat for another hour and finally he pulled up. The guidebook coordinates for the parking area sent him to a completely different parking area where he sat for four hours. He finally saw a caretaker and asked if the AT passed by here and was told it was 5 miles north. Ugh we all laughed at the ridiculousness of it. We headed to Kingfield and stayed at the Grand Hebert Hotel. We had dinner across the street and it was 9:30 when we finished so all the errands will have to wait until the morning. We headed back to the room and crashed.
Date: 2016-09-10
From: Grand Hebert Hotel

To: West Carry Pond lean-to
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: scattered clouds

I woke to the sun rising on Main Street in the Grand Hebert Hotel. I slept so darn good last night. We got up about 7:30 and I showered and got dressed. We checked out of the hotel and went to do our laundry. While the clothes were washing we went and had breakfast across the street. I got a meat lovers omelette and lots of Mt Dew. We finished the laundry and Stephen drove us to Walmart in Farmington so we could do our final supply on our thru hike. We split the food into three days to last to Monson and 7 days for the hundred mile wilderness. I can't believe this hike is almost over. We are down to the last ten days. It's so surreal that I'm almost to the end. I'm ready to go home and be with Jeff but I'm also not ready for this to be over. Hazel is feeling the same way and when I mention it she tears up. We finished up at the Walmart and headed out. Stephen drove us back to the trail head where we got off. The trail magic guys were still at. Hazel said goodbye to Stephen and we got back on trail. We will see him in Millinocket in 10 days. My brother in law Doug will be up in three days to hike with us thru the 100 mile wilderness. I'm looking forward to sometime with him. We headed back into the woods at 3pm and planned to walk to 6. That brought us to West Carry Pond Shelter. When I got to the shelter no one was there. I think we are in the middle of an empty bubble. I arrived at the shelter first followed by iron face and then Hazel. I went down to the pond for a swim. We set up in the shelter due to the possibility of rain and made dinner. Later on in the evening Fish and two girls showed up and stopped for a rest before moving on. We settled in for bed around 8:30.
Date: 2016-09-11
From: West Carry Pond lean-to

To: Pleasant Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: broken clouds

It poured at around 2am. It was so loud it woke me up in the lean-to. This lean-to has a tin roof at west carry pond so the sound of the rain was louder than normal. I fell back asleep and woke up at 6:30. Yikes so much for getting up early and having an early start. We quickly packed up and ate a fast breakfast them jumped on trail. We had 13.6 miles to cover before 2. To cross the Kennebec River you need to use the ferry service. It only runs between 9-2 everyday. The river is too dangerous to ford. We got on trail at about 7:30 so we had about 6.5 hours to get there. The terrain didn't look too tough in the guidebook. We started out with an easy trail around west carry pond and then the trail continued to be easy to east carry pond. Then the thunderstorms rolled in at about 9:30 am. It poured and poured and we got soaked as well as the trail turned into a river. We made it to pierce pond shelter at noon. This gave us 3.6 miles to the river. The last ferry leaves at 2 and we didn't want to miss it as it would really foil our plans. We boogied on and the rain subsided and the sun even tried to come out. We made it to the landing for the river crossing at 1:45. There were two other hikers in front of us who were being ferried across the river so we waited. The ferry guy came back and we had to fill out a waiver and wear life jackets. His name was Paul and he told us he has Ferried about 2100 hikers so far this season both north and southbounders. We were the last people to be ferried across for September 11 2016. We stopped on the other side and sat and ate our lunch and rested. We had done 14 miles by 2pm. We continued on passing the road into Caratunk and began the small climb up to Pleasant pond. We arrived at the shelter at around 6pm. Tank and Frodo were set up in the shelter which was very crooked so Hazel and I decided to look for a tenting spot. All we could find was a spot along the path that went .20 to pleasant pond. We set up grabbed water and made dinner. It got cold quick and we were bundled up in our tents trying to eat dinner. We fell asleep before 8:30
Date: 2016-09-12
From: Pleasant Pond Lean-to

To: Stealth campsite
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: clear sky

I woke up at 3 am to the sound of Hazel getting back into her tent. Is it time to go I asked her. Not yet she said. I fell back asleep and woke up around 7 and it was freezing... We did not want to move. It was the coldest morning since Georgia. We made hot cocoa and ate breakfast. We walked down to Pleasant Pond to filter water and enjoyed the morning sun on the pond. It was pretty magical. We packed up and got underway at about 8. Our first climb of the day was Pleasant Pond Mountain. It was about a 1000 foot climb and it's been a few days since we climbed like that. The climb got right to the point and we were on the summit in no time. The way down was long and steep and it took a bit to get down. We crossed over the south end of moxie pond and stopped at a shelter for lunch. After lunch we had another 1000 foot climb up Moxie bald which had fantastic 360 views on top. The descent was fairly easy and a good trail. We made it to Moxie Bald shelter and decided to push on another 2 miles. We found a nice campsite near a stream and set up shop. The moon was rising as we ate our dinners and it could not have been more perfect. This would be our last night just Hazel and I as my brother in law will be up tomorrow to join us in the last 115 miles of the journey. It will be nice to be three.
Date: 2016-09-13
From: Stealth campsite

To: Shaw's hostel
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: light rain

Woke up at 5am and got our food bags down. Hazel asked are you making breakfast it's 3am. I said its 5 and she was like oh ok I'll get up. We made breakfast and while we were packing up the chipmunks waged war against us. They were pulling off sticks and pine cones and tossing them down onto us. Possibly getting their breakfast but it seemed like they were waging war on us. We got on trail and headed for Monson. We had two rivers to ford but the trail was a steady downhill. We bumped into Cake and Haiku and I hiked with Cake for awhile. We made the 13.6 miles in no time. We were staying at Shaw's as well as Cake and Haiku. We called for a pick up at the parking area. We got to shaws checked in and headed to pre-register at the visitor center. We then got lunch at Pete's place and headed back to Shaw's for laundry and showers. Had a nice relaxing night before we trek into the 100 mile wilderness. Won't have service for 7 days so there may be a delay on updates of these.
Date: 2016-09-15
From: Stealth campsite by stream

To: Cloud Pond Shelter
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: clear sky

Day 2 of the 100 mile wilderness. I woke up dreaming about blueberry muffins and hearing trooper saying they were the worst tasting blueberry muffins ever. Ok!?! of all food items to dream about blueberry muffins, really!! I fell back asleep and woke up to Hazel saying "good morning storm". Coffee and hot cocoa were had. This is my new favorite thing. Mix the two together. Ate a few pumpkin pie pop tarts and we packed up. We hit the trail at 7:30 and had more small ups and downs. We had to ford the Big Wilson stream which was mid thigh and had a current. It was a little intense but fun. We had to take our boots and soaks off and wear our camp shoes. We climbed up another hill and crossed railroad tracks before reaching Wilson Valley lean-to where we had a late morning snack. We continued on crossing several brooks and streams. We forded long pond stream before getting to Long Pond Stream shelter for lunch. We rested and ate for about 30 minutes and then began the climb up Barren Mt. We reached Barren slide and Barren ledges and had a spectacular view. It's probably one of my favorites on the whole trail. We continued on climbing up to the remnants of a fire tower with more spectacular views. We had a slight down and continued on to the side trail to the shelter. It was .40 off trail ugh!!! We needed to get water so we had to go. The terrain today was super tough. We only managed to go 12.3 and it took all day. It was pretty defeating as we don't have food for ten days. We walked the .40 to the shelter and came upon the most beautiful campsite ever. It was on a small bluff overlooking cloud pond. It was magical and one of my favorite tenting spots to date. We talked about the list of lasts. The last resupply, the last hostel. Ugh it's so sad to think this is coming to an end but it must. There are people at home anxiously awaiting our return.
Date: 2016-09-16
From: Cloud Pond Shelter

To: Gulf Hagas stream campsite
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: few clouds

Day 3 of the 100 mile wilderness. We woke up super cold. We had a frost warning for last night and it was close. I didn't want to move from my tent this morning. I fired up the stove and made hot cocoa and coffee mix. It's so good I think it's my new favorite thing. We packed up and got on trail at 7:30. The terrain looked like it was gonna kick our buts again and I wasted no time. The descent off of Barren Mt. was steep and slow going. At the bottom we crossed fourth bog and ascended fourth mountain and then had an even worse descent than off of Barren Mt. We then had to climb Mt three and a half which gave some nice views from the ledges at the summit. We then descended and climbed up third mountain which had a great view from the cliffs. Next we descended and climbed up Columbus Mt and stopped at chair back shelter. At this point it was 1:30 and we had only done 6.9 miles for the day. We were kind of discouraged that our pace was not where we expected it to be. We carried on climbing up chair back mountain to a great view of the mountain chain east of us. Then we had the climb down the chair back. A straight shot down a cliff in essence. If you look at the profile of the mountain it looks like a chair. That took awhile to successfully climb down without killing ourselves. We then descended down to Katahdin Ironworks gravel road where we were able to fill up on water as we were out. We carried on fording the west branch of pleasant river and then began the climb up Gulf Hagas mt. We met a ridge runner who told us that after the two mile restriction of no camping we could camp by the creek in a nice stealth spot. We found the spot set up camp. Made a quick dinner and got ready for bed. Another tough day with low miles. Only 13.3 today. On another note Holy Diver summited today and he posted his picture and it's becoming more real. I hadn't seen him since Erwin,TN. Dragon Head and Ninja Geisha should also be summiting today but haven't got confirmation yet as no cell service. Wow it's becoming more real that I actually am close to finishing this thing.
Date: 2016-09-17
From: Gulf Hagas stream campsite

To: Mountain view pond campsite
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: broken clouds

Day 4 of the 100 mile wilderness. The cold woke me up at 5am. I was like well I'm getting up, grabbed the food bag and made a huge cup of coffee. Hazel stirred shortly thereafter. The moon was so bright it was like a spotlight on us through the night. I started packing up and she did the same. Ms. Elizabeth was camped a bit of the way down from us. She is so inspiring as she is out here alone hiking this trail in her 70's. Wow! We got on trail at 6:30 which was a record for us. We had a nice trail up gulf Hagas mt. Cake and Haiku caught up to us and we all stopped Carl A Newhall shelter for a second breakfast. We all moved on and summitted Mt Hagas. Cake and Haiku got ahead of us and we went up and over West Peak and Hay Mt. We then headed up White Cap Mt which had fantastic views from the summit. The wind was blowing and the sun was shining. On the north side of the mountain there was Katahdin in the distance, looking as majestic as ever. Wow we have been headed toward this thing for 2100+ miles and there she was a site to see. Afterward we headed down white cap and stopped at Logan Brook shelter for lunch. We then boggied to hike till 6pm to see where we got to. We passed East Branch lean-to and made it 2 miles further north to a pond where we camped on the edge of mountain view pond. It was a fantastic spot. We made dinner and got into bed by 8:30.
Date: 2016-09-18
From: Mountain view pond campsite

To: Camped at gravel parking area near Nahmakanta Lake
Miles today: 24.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 5 of the 100 mile wilderness. Well a mental note for future hikers. Do not eat chili Mac at the dead center of the 100 mile wilderness for dinner. Oh my!!! We got up and packed up by 6:30. The rain early morning wasn't as bad as it was supposed to be so that was a big bonus. We started on trail and climbed over Little boardman mt and then descended. The trail leveled off and we boogied. We stopped at Copper Brook Falls lean-to for a snack and continued on. We passed Jo-Mary road and had a great trail. We had lunch at Antlers Campground. We continued on climbing up and over Potaywadjo bump as I called it. The trail leveled off and we hiked into the night as the headlamps came out. We camped by a gravel road in a gravel parking area and did an impressive 24.7 mile day.
Date: 2016-09-19
From: Camped at gravel parking area near Nahmakanta Lake

To: Abol Pines campground
Miles today: 26.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 6 of the 100 mile wilderness. The night in the parking area was fun. We had fun trying to get down to the water in the dark after being exhausted from our 24 mile walk. We laughed and laughed. There should not be precipitous drop off while getting water Hazel said. We made dinner and got ready for bed at 10 which for me was staying up all night. We got up and packed and headed on trail at about 7 and were determined to do 25 to exit the 100 mile wilderness. We were hungry, tired and weak and wanted to recharge and the key was to get out of the 100 mile wilderness. The trail started out flat and we made some good time. We then had climbs up Nesuntabunt Mt. We met up with Outlaw and Beast and hiked many miles with them. We made the descent and stopped and had lunch at pollywog stream. We hiked on refilling water at Rainbow Stream lean-to. The trail leveled off and became root free and we were able to move. We passed rainbow lake which was simply beautiful and climbed up Rainbow Ledges which gave us a partial cloudy view of Katahdin. We descended down off of the ledges and headed for Hurd Brook lean-to for a break. We moved on with only 3.1 miles to golden road which is the outlying road by the 100 mile wilderness. It got dark so the headlamps came out. The terrain became rooted and muddy we carried on exiting the 100 mile at 8:30. We headed to Abol Pines and got a lean-to and had dinner. We didn't settle down for bed until about 11:30. Tomorrow we walk the 10 miles into Baxter State Park to Katahdin Stream campground. My emotions are all over the place and I can't believe I have walked here from Georgia.