morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-04-07
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Yellow Creek Gap/ Fontana Village
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: broken clouds

I was to tired to write anything last night so I am just going to sum up the last 2 days in one fail swoop!!!The uphill out of the NOC was crazy insane!!! almost 8 miles of uphill by the time that we were actually done with ups for the day. We met up with a lot of other hikers that we would leap frog with throughout the day, all just trying to make it to the top, or at least the first shelter!We got into the shelter and had every intention of staying there but it was so windy that we decided to push onto the next camp site, which included yet more up hill. It was pretty cool on the ups because you would come to a clearing and you were able to see back down into the NOC... pretty views on a long day! When we did finally make it up to Cheoha Bald it was simply stunning! sunny and the view that went on forever! We all took our packs off and just hung out for awhile... After the bald we headed down to the camp site at Locust Cove for the night and ended up in tent city! All in all I think that there ended up being 14-15 tents in a very small area...At least you always get to make new friends when this occurs!We decided that we were going to make the next day a long day by doing 17 miles into Fontana, Bitter Goat and Walmart were there and we hadn't seen those guys in a little while and I think that we were all a little antsy to get into the Smokies...So 6am rolled around and we all starting breakig down camp to hit the trail and the long day ahead.One of the first things that we would encounter on this day was the dreaded Jacob's Ladder, a 0.6 mile incline with a total gain of 600 ft, no switch backs, just straight up or so we thought. Yes it was tough and yes I am glad that I didn't have to do it along with all of the ups form yesterday, but over all it wasn't as bad as I had expected. I was expecting to actaully climb hand over foot up this incline and mabye even have some steps or something. but no it was just a steep uphill walk! After the Ladder it was pretty easy going. Nighten' Gale hurt her ankle once again and so we ended up calling our day a little short by yellow blazing the last part of the trail into the Lodge. We got a ride from a very sweet guy by the name of Elden. Him and His wife Galinda saw us walking down the counrty road while they were out doing yard work and Elden gave us a ride the rest of the way! Thank you so very much for that!!So here we are in Fontana and I think that this will be the end of our little hiking group. Nighten' Gale needs to take a couple days off to let her body heal, Burning Daylight needs to make it to HotSprings so he can see his wife, and I am just not really sure what I am going to do yet. I will hang out tonight and then figure out the rest in the morning!!
Date: 2013-04-11
From: Yellow Creek Gap/ Fontana Village

To: Fontana Hilton
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: light rain

The last couple days have been interesting! We said good bye to Burning Daylight and Red Specs Tuesday morning as they made their way into the Smokies and Nighten Gale and I stayed behind to let her ankle heal a bit! Wednesday we headed into Bryson City so that she could get an x-ray and make sure all was well! We had an amazing shuttle driver, Diana thank you for being super friendly and knowledgable!! You made what could have been a long day very pleasant!! Everything went well with the x-ray, a severe sprain but able to hike! She got a really good brace from the doc... All good things!!Being here in Fontana for a few days has also allowed us to see some hiking friends that we hadn't seen in awhile! Bitter Goat and Walmart were here on mon/tues so I hung out with them and then Wed brought Circuit Rider and Sherlock into town... All great people and it was great seeing all of you!!!Yesterday we decided to slack pack the remaining miles into Fontana that we didn't do on Monday as a trial run... Things went really well and Nighten Gale said her ankle felt pretty good! So tomorrow morning we will head into the Smokies!! A little slower and a little later then we had anticipated but its all good... We will get to Maine in our own time!!!
Date: 2013-04-12
From: Fontana Hilton

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: moderate rain

Today we left Fontana! Holy heavy pack!! We are planning to hike straight through the Smokies so we are carrying a ton of food!! but man o man my pack is crazy heavy!! It was yet another grueling uphill but it was pretty most of the way... We spent a lot of time on a ridge looking down onto the lake! Nighten Gales ankle seems to be doing pretty good so that's encouraging!We have finally made it into the Great Smokey Mtns! It's been a long time coming and I'm excited to finally see what they have to offer! We made it into the first shelter and there are a lot of great people here.... Berkeley, Indigo, Amazon, Chuck Wagon, Whiskey and Women, Jeff and Nicole... Plus a few section hikers... It's been a good night... I'm sure we will hike with a few of these guys as we all seem to be going the same pace!
Date: 2013-04-13
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Derricks Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.0

So there are pros and cons to staying in shelters... One con is that mice have a tendency to kamikaze themselves onto your head while you are sleeping, prompting you to rapidly sit up and smack said head into the beam of the roof! Trust me its not as fun as you would think! The mouse incident would be the start to a not so great day! It was an awesome first part of the day, so many views a top Rocky Top, which we are in TN so I'm calling it The Rocky Top, from the song!! It was gorgeous with full views all the way around... Once we passed Rocky Top and Thunderhead Mtn the day just went downhill! We still had 6 miles into the shelter and every step was brutal and painful! Gone were the nice downhills and in their place were mean rocky downs... It was just a rough long part of the day and every one coming into the shelter felt the same so I didn't feel as bad about my whining!Also our days are now dictated by shelters... Which would be ok if the shelters were anywhere near normal miles apart... But they either put them 7 miles apart or 17... It's pretty annoying! Tomorrow we will do a short day and then try and figure out a game plan.It's also gotten cold again tonight, So we all huddled around the campfire, watched the sun go down and then said good night....
Date: 2013-04-14
From: Derricks Knob Shelter

To: Double Springs Shelter
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Today started out amazingly! We woke up late, made some coffee, and leisurely got in the trail... We were only doing 7 miles so why rush? Shortly after we left the shelter I had to go to the bathroom so we stopped and as I was putting my pack back on I looked up the trail and saw a deer standing right in the middle of the trail! There ended up being 3 of them and they literally walked straight down the trail and stopped within a 100 ft of us! They weren't scared or anything!! After they finally left the trail we continued on our way. A little while later Nighten Gale found some lamps, a small wild onion, so we went foraging! Deer and foraging all in the same day, pretty good if you ask me!It has been a windy day today and its currently raining so I'm glad we decided to call it an early day! Tomorrow we will go over Clingmans Dome, the highest point on the AT... Hoping the weather plays nice!
Date: 2013-04-15
From: Double Springs Shelter

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: overcast clouds

200 miles!!! Woot woot!!! Today was a stop and smell the evergreens kind of day. It rained last night and that brought out the smell of the forest around us... It was awesome! We've finally moved into actual forest instead of the winter dead trees, it's so gorgeous and green!! We hit Clingmans Dome today!!! The highest point on the AT and our 200 mile mark! It was awesome... We got up this morning and it was misty and foggy but when we got to Clingmans it had burned off enough that it was clear on one side and the other side we were sitting above the clouds! Gorgeous!! We had also been talking about coke all night and how when we got to Clingmans we would get one, well we were about a half mile from the tower when we came across a couple out for a day hike with coke and chips for us!!! Score trail magic coke!! It was a good thing too because the visitors store had zip zero nada!! It was disappointing! But I was ever so happy to sit up on top of the observation tower with my trail magic coke and Cheetos! It made my day!!!I said earlier that it was a stop and smell the pine trees and we did just that every chance we got! At Clingmans, at the entrance to the next shelter, at the parking lot next to the trail going up to Clingmans and then finally at Newfound Gap, the only road that the AT crosses in the entire Smokies... It was here that we would part ways with Indigo and Amazon and hitch hike into Gatlinburg.We didn't originally plan to go into town but with Nighten Gale's phone and external charger dead and me needing new sunscreen (I had a bad reaction to some stuff I bought at the NOC, so I haven't been wearing any and am slightly crispy!!) we decided to hitch hike into town for the night...Thank you Krista and David for the ride!!!! I hope you guys have a great vacation and we are truly grateful for the ride!!!Town was great! The Grand Prix has been a great place to stay and the owner has been super friendly and helpful!!! We got some food and coke, new sunscreen, showered and did laundry!! In the morning we will hit the all you can eat breakfast buffet and then hit the trail for an 11 mile day!!! We are hoping to catch back up with the guys we've been hiking with the last few days... So we are going to have to hike fast!!
Date: 2013-04-16
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: broken clouds

It was a long day today! We got our eat on at the breakfast buffet, finished up some last minute things in town and headed back to Newfound Gap. The first part of the day flew by... Got to the first shelter, said hello to a few people, then hiked on... We took a side trail to Charlie's bunion and had a great view!! Sometimes the side trails are so worth it!! And then we hit the last sign 6.2 miles to the shelter... Ok not so bad... Or so we thought...Those 6 miles went on forever! When you're out in the woods just walking and have no real way of telling how far you've gone, the miles just go on forever! And to add insult to injury we looked at our map and there was suppose to be a lookout that was on the way down the hill followed by an uphill to the shelter. I swear to you that we passed about 5 of those lookouts!! The first couple are pretty and then you just get angry because the shelter should be there and it's not... So Nighten Gale and I both came into the shelter a little grumpy, but we weren't the only ones so we felt a little better!This shelter is full full full tonight! Which means that we find ourselves in the bubble once more and will probably see everyone from tonight at the next couple of shelters... It's just the way to goes sometimes!It also started to rain on us again, nothing major but I hate putting my tent way wet in the morning!! So with that thought I'm off to la la land as the owls sing me to sleep!!
Date: 2013-04-17
From: Pecks Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a day to put the tunes on and just go. The terrain proved to be pretty good so we just went. And then of course the rain came. Nothing is a good motivator to move like the rain, at least it was warmer today so we weren't wet and freezing, just wet. We did 13 miles and at the end of the day I felt like I had run those miles. We also met back up with Amazon today, so that's good. He's a fun guy to be around. This shelter also brought us back together with Gweego and Wolf Spider, we haven't seen them since dinner back in Fontana! So all is well, tomorrow we leave the Smokies behind us!
Date: 2013-04-18
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 10.7

We got up super early in order to try and beat the crowd into Standing Bear Farm Hostel, to no avail as everyone that was at camp ended up passing us anyways! But it was a good day to hike as we have now officially left the Smokies!!We did however get bunks in the hostel! Standing Bear Farm is a great little place out in the middle of nowhere with a backwoods cabin feel! The people are all great and it's been a good night here. Tomorrow it's suppose to rain so we may end up staying here another night... The weather shall decide for us!
Date: 2013-04-19
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The rain has been coming down in buckets today so of course we are still at Standing Bear! Today however we have moved into the private cabin with Jolly Rancher, Amazon, Bon Air, and Hawaii... It's been great! We have sat on our porch listening to the rain and creek that flows under the cabin and played cards. I've pretty much curled up on a bench with a quilt and read. It's been a fantastic day and I've loved every minute of it. Tomorrow we will head out with most of the people that we are with tonight. The weather is suppose to be good and so shall the hiking!!
Date: 2013-04-22
From: Max Patch Summit

To: Hotsprings, NC
Miles today: 19.8

Yesterday was an interesting day! The hike was pretty mellow and we had planned to camp about 6-7 miles outside of Hotsprings and then hike in early to have a Nero day... Well that didn't exactly happen as planned! We found a great little campsite about 6.5 miles outside of town, set up camp, and were getting ready to make dinner when a group of people rounded the corner looking for a fellow hiker. Come to find out they had soda and bologna sandwiches in the car less then .5 back down the trail. And so off we went and got some great trail magic! After they left and the sun had set we built a fire and were talking about doing some night hiking... Well along come Hawaii, who we stayed with at standing bear farm, hiking south bound at night... Well at 10pm last night we packed up camp and went on a night hike! It was actually pretty fun. We all lined up in a row and hiked together. At one point we even did roll call to make sure everyone was still together. The hike was pretty easy and only took about 3hrs. We rolled into Hotsprings around 1am, hiked through town, across the river and set up camp at the first flat spot we came to. So imagine our surprise when we woke up this morning to find that we were camped out on the side of a rafting companies parking lot, whoops! It makes for a good story none the less. So now we are hanging out in town until our cabin is ready! 20 miles yesterday and a night hike all in one day, check those off the list!!!
Date: 2013-04-23
From: Hotsprings, NC

To: Hotsprings, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

This is a town that sucks you in and is so hard to leave! It's no wonder that 25% of the population is former thru hikers! It's a great town that loves hikers!!! We were planning on staying the morning and then hiking out a few miles later this afternoon... Well we are still here! Hiker vortex!!It was a really good day none the less. Nighten Gale and I spent most of the afternoon hanging out at Hikers Ridge Ministries with Queen Diva. It's a small little place that offers hikers showers, cookies, and really just a warm welcoming friendly place to enjoy. It was a great day! We are camped across the river about a half mile up the trail in hopes that we can get out of the vortex tomorrow! We will be hiking fast to Erwin as there is a nasty virus hitting hikers between here and there! So for the next week, keep all of us in your thoughts and prayers that we don't catch it!!!!
Date: 2013-04-24
From: Hotsprings, NC

To: Sketchy Pond
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: clear sky

We slept out by the French Broad River last night so that we wouldn't get sucked back into the vortex that is Hotsprings... Well that mostly worked, we did walk back across the river and get coffee and breakfast sandwiches. But we also managed to leave town.I don't know what it is but every time I leave town my pack seems to get heavier. I know that it's heavy because I've just resupplied on food but it seems like each town the supply gets heavier! And it shouldn't because I'm the opposite of every hiker out there and I'm rarely actually hungry! I'm sure the hiker hunger will kick in at some point but so far it hasn't!We only hiked about 5 miles today so it was a short day. It's currently raining which is one of the reasons we only hiked a little bit. Our only goal was to get out of Hotsprings, and we did that! We found this great little camping spot on the opposite side of this sketchy pond. We had to walk across this dam and if we had lost our balance it would have been a 25-30ft drop one way or into the nasty pond... Neither was an appealing option and luckily we all made it just fine. It's been a nice relaxing day!I forgot to mention the other day that we ran into Burning Daylight in Hotsprings! It was great to see him again. Sad to say that he was getting off the trail, he just missed his family to much. Even though we hadn't hiked with him since Fontana, it was a comfort knowing that he was out on the trail and I'm sad to see him go, but family comes first and I know that we will keep in touch! We even told him that he can come out and section hike with us any time he wants!!!It's sad to see people leave that you spend time with but you have to do what you have to do. For me right now it's enjoying the trip and meeting lots of cool people!!
Date: 2013-04-25
From: Sketchy Pond

To: Log Cabin Road
Miles today: 11.4

Today was a much better hiking day! We got in more then 5 miles!!! Nothing to exciting happened today. I took a wrong turn and ended up going a little ways out of the way, nothing to crazy... I did have to text Nighten Gale to let her know that I was now behind her instead of in front so that she didn't keep going and going! Oh the joys of modern technology!! But in the end it all worked out. We ran into our first person that is sick today... A couple that we had met back at the NOC was heading southbound, he was feeling sick and she was fine... This whole virus thing has got us pretty freaked out! There's not much we can do about it but keep to our group, stay away from shelters and hope for the best! We are camped a little north of Log Cabin Road... There are 5 people in our group and we always manage to find the smallest campsites!! It's like the camping version of fitting clowns into a small car!! Very amusing!
Date: 2013-04-26
From: Log Cabin Road

To: Meadow above Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 12.0

Up hills and over rocks that was what today was all about! We had a good 5 mile uphill to start the day and then we came across a sign that had an exposed ridge line ( the AT) or a blue blaze side trail for bad weather... It was fun at first but then the up and down the rock scrambles start to wear on your body... If I do this again I'm taking the blue blaze!Shortly after the rocks we can to Jerry Cabin Shelter which marks our 300 mile mark!! And yet another sick person. This time a girl was literally holed up in her sleeping bag a little ways from the shelter waiting for the rescue team to come and get her. Oh the good times! We talked with an AT trail volunteer for a little while and then moved on out. In a big meadow on top of the hill just up from the shelter came a couple atvs, the rescue squad... We set up camp in this huge meadow and slowly became a small little tent city... As people were coming up the hill they saw us and decided to join our camp... All nice people but when you're in a biohazard zone the last thing you want is people outside your circle joining you... Again it comes down to hoping for the best!!!
Date: 2013-04-27
From: Meadow above Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Devils Fork Gap
Miles today: 6.7
Weather: broken clouds

Rain rain go away, come again some other day... Or better yet just go away!!! It rained last night, it rained on and off all day and its currently raining right now and it's suppose to rain for the next 4 days!! Fun good wet times ahead for us!!We hiked in the rain today and decided to get off the trail at Devils Fork Gap and head into Hemlock Hollow Hostel... Not so sure that was the best idea... We got picked up, got checked in, and started to take showers. Amazon was the only one who had water, it's on a well and had apparently been drained, so we decided to get food at the cafe. As we are sitting there waiting on our food the owner comes in yelling at us for making a huge mess and flooding the bathroom... And I mean she was berating us like we were small children. Nighten Gale got up to go see this alleged mess... Yes there was a small amount of water on the floor but no flooding and yes there was some mud. But I mean what do you expect when it's raining outside and you have to walk down a muddy path to get to the bathroom!!! Needless to say it put us all in a very bad mood and had we been near the trail we would have gotten up and left right then!! I wouldn't stay at this place again. You just don't do that to paying customers!!
Date: 2013-04-28
From: Devils Fork Gap

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

The mood starting the day was not much better from where we left off yesterday. We've all decided to shuttle into Erwin and take a day to regroup and recharge. It's also raining like no other... It's hard being out on the trail when you are soaking wet, cold, and generally having a bad day... Which would have been today had we decided to hike... So Erwin and a zero day it was.I don't know what's been up lately, the weather has been gross and I think that the over lying cloud of noro doom has just brought us all down... But some McDonalds and a beer can cure anything! As well as being able to FaceTime with my family!!! They truly made my day. I started off with my brother, sister in law, and niece and then later in the day got a whole slew of my family as they were doing dinner at the parents house!! Thanks guys! You made my day a whole lot better and I don't know what I would do without you!!
Date: 2013-04-29
From: Erwin, TN- Devils Fork Gap

To: Sams Gap
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: light rain

We woke up today with the not so great realization that Bon Air and Jolly Rancher have come down with the sick!!! Not a good way to start the day.... It looks as though our little gang will be breaking up Nighten Gale, Amazon, and myself have felt fine so we decided to head out on the trail. Amazon is going to stay out and Nighten Gale and myself are going to do a slack pack today, head back into Erwin, and if all goes well tonight and we don't get sick then we are going to head back out tomorrow and bypass Erwin in the next couple days! Here's hoping all goes well!!!We did our slack pack and headed back to the hotel, we checked on the boys and they are much better and even went out and got food, so we are thinking that they might have food poisoning and not the norovirus... Good news for all of us! But Nighten Gale and I are in a different room tonight just in case! If we don't get sick then we will head out tomorrow and finish the last 24 miles into Erwin in 2 days... It'll be a good day when we can head north of this area!!!On a side note, Erwin has one of the best trail angels/ shuttle drivers/ all around awesome person!! We first met Miss Janet in Franklin and then have had the pleasure of her shuttling us around today... She is amazing!!!! She pretty much spends all of her time in her van driving everyone wherever they need to go... You can't ask for a better person!!!! Miss Janet we truly appreciate everything you do for the AT community and I look forward to seeing you up the trail!!!