morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-05-13
From: Abingdon Gap Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: light rain

Day 51 5/13: TRAIL DAYS!We passed the NC/TN and Virginia state line! We now have completed three states: Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. We only have 11 more to go! And we are about 1/4 of the way done with the trail. It is hard to believe that we have come this far, but equally hard to believe that we still have so very far to go. It really hasn't been as mentally challenging as I thought it would be. I haven't had to convince myself too many mornings that I wanted to walk; I've just wanted to. Hopefully the "Virginia blues" don't set in, or if they do they aren't as bad as everyone says. Virginia is the longest state (around 550 miles) on the Appalachian Trail. It takes most people the better part of a month to finish it. It is famous (or infamous) for fostering a small bout of depression in many hikers. Let's hope we can keep those troubling thoughts at bay.We arrived in Damascus, VA this afternoon in the middle of the festivities. Trail Days is a 3-day event honoring the trail and the people involved in creating, maintaining, protecting, and hiking the trail. This was the 25th year.We camped in tent city, which I thought would be wall to wall tents. However, it wasn't too crowded in the section we were in. We had a nice place in the woods next to DVD.Trail Days is an excellent time to catch up with hiker friends that you may not have seen in awhile. We ran into Sarge, Weaver, Sam I Am, Origami, Lady and Sir No Name, PC, Ross, Still Steve, and Splitter. (And many others).Damascus is called the friendliest trail in town, which was reflected immediately upon getting there. The First Baptist Church had a stand with gatorade set up right as you get off the trail. We also took free showers, ate free food, and used free internet all provided by the church. Although, there was plenty of partying, music, and fun to be had, we went to bed pretty early. Hiker midnight had already come and gone!
Date: 2011-05-14
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Day 52 5/14: Water balloon time!Zero day in Damascus to enjoy the party. Some people change the name of the celebration to Trail Daze. That wasn't really my personal experience, but I can see how it could become that.Trail Days is a wonderful tradition. My only complaints are the town doesn't promote recycling, tent city was far from town and most of the activities, and it was hard to go to speakers or movies (etc) when you also had to take care of town chores. (groceries, gear repair, showers, laundry, etc.) I imagine I would enjoy the festival more as a past thru-hiker, rather than a current one.The hiker parade through town was PERFECT! Basically, all the hikers line up and walk together though the one-street town. Then the water balloons, water guns, and hoses come out. It is an all-out war between hikers and locals. The camaraderie was amazing. Sometimes, I think I have forgotten how to have fun. The parade helped me to remember that I shouldn't take life too seriously. I have a few pictures that capture the priceless look on the crowd's faces.During the parade, we ran into our family friend, Itrod, who hiked the trail last year. It was one of those moments when you know you know someone, but don't expect them to be there so you are completely confused. Anyway, it was great to see him. Thanks again, Itrod, for the trail magic!This evening, we hung out at Riff Raff, Billville, and a drum circle. Each of these were their own sections and party of tent city. Many people and much alcohol equaled fun and interesting times. Mainly just watching everyone make fools of themselves. I hope you are yelling "RIFF RAFF" at the top of your lungs right now. Hence, the Trail Daze moniker.Trail Days is a great opportunity to get your gear repaired and talk to company reps. Trudge's hiking poles were cleaned and fixed. Water filter lubricated, dry compression sacks patched, zippers fixed, and boots soles glued. All this for free. However, I accidently left my boots out in the rain, so the glue did not hold. Maybe, I did have too much to drink?
Date: 2011-05-15
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 53 5/5: Musical tentsWe ate dinner at Quincy's (for the upteenth time) with Lady and Sir No Name. I really enjoy their company and hope we see them in the future.We bought a new tent (Nemo Meta 2). This will be an upgrade, because it has two exits, weights 1 1/2 lbs less, and uses our treking poles instead of tent poles. The company had run out of the tent, so they said they would ship it to our next stop in Atkins, VA. Hopefully, it works out.We played musical tents. To be closer to town, we moved our stuff from far-away in tent city to The Place, a hostel in town run on donations by the Methodist church. The place (haha) was packed, plus many tents were in the yard. Trudge and I claimed bunks, and I went to bed since I was getting a cold. However, I (being the princess that I am) couldn't handle the snoring in my room, so I set up the tent in the yard. Too bad the tent was set up in the room to dry, so we had to take it down first and then put it up outside. Trudge says I would be fine if I just tried to get used to the snoring. I think he is mistaken.
Date: 2011-05-16
From: Damascus, VA

To: near Taylor Valley Trail
Miles today: 6.5

Day 54 5/16 Virginia Creeper, here we come!We planned to leave the friendliest town along the trail after lunch. However, we had to visit the outfitters again and the post office, where we ran into Lady and Sir No Name. We spent some time looking at Lady No Name's pictures and sharing Trudge's. It is neat to see other people's experiences along the trail. We made arrangements to meet them at Whistlepig's for lunch on our way back to the trail. We should have set a time.These arrangements did not work the way we had intended. Trudge and I finished packing our stuff up at The Place and started out walking towards the restaurant. Little did we know, that we were walking the wrong direction on the highway. We hiked for about a mile before we finally determined that we were never going to get there if we continued in that fashion. My apologies to Sir and Lady No Name for once we got there they were nowhere in sight. I don't blame them as we were probably a couple hours late. Of course, Whistlepig's was closed, so we went to a cafe across the street.We eventually got on the trail around 5 pm and walked about 6.5 miles. In this section, the AT parallels the Virginia Creeper, a 34.3-mile rail-to-recreation trail starting in Abingdon, Va., traveling through Damascus, Va. and ending just past Whitetop Station at the Virginia-North Carolina border.As we were hiking on the AT, we could see a campfire and some tents near the Creeper. How did those hikers get down there? We found a spot off the AT to camp right next to a trestle on the Virginia Creeper. When we wandered down to see who the other hikers were we found none other than Bootlegger and Splitter!! They hiked out of Damascus on the Creeper. Those slackers! They convinced us to camp with them, because there supposedly was a creepy man hanging out under the bridge (maybe living) near where we were planning on camping.
Date: 2011-05-17
From: Virginia Creeper trail mile before Taylor Valley

To: near Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: light rain

Day 55 5/17: Slackers beware!We started out today with the greatest intentions of continuing our northward journey on the AT. But the lure of flat easy trail and the peer pressure of Bootlegger and Splitter (I exaggerate on the latter) was just too much to withstand. So, we became slackers too. Bootlegger and Splitter hit the Virginia Creeper before we were ready to leave. With minimal discussion, we decided to follow in their footsteps. So, much for being a purist. In "real" miles today, we maybe did closer to 6, but in the end we made 11 miles on the AT. Walking the Virginia Creeper trail (a 33 mile rail-to-trail) reminded me of the Pine Creek trail at home. The Creeper borders Whitetop Laurel Creek; it was a nice change of scenery and pace. However, after a few miles on the Creeper I realized how much I like the challenges and rewards of the AT. After walking about a mile, we came to Taylor Valley and saw a small cafe. It was rainy and miserable so we spent several hours soaking up the warmth and food inside. Bootlegger and Splitter had the same idea. Looks like great hikers think alike. Trudge order chicken fingers and a hot dog, proceeded to eat the hot dog, started to eat the chicken fingers and then thought to himself "Didn't I order a hot dog too?". This was so funny that he decided to share his blond moment with us.We were feeling like huge slackers, so we even went to investigate a vacation rental kitty korner from the cafe. A nice lady across from the rental saw us pondering the house hopelessly and informed us that the cafe manages it. We went back to ask the price and much to our dismay the cafe had already closed. I asked Trudge to knock on the door and he did so timidly. The old lady that worked their couldn't hear our pleas. Regretfully, we continued walking on the Virginia Creeper. Shortly thereafter, Trudge was way ahead of me. This seems to happen more and more often. I was slow today; plus it is not much fun backpacking when you have a cold and are coughing up your lungs every step of the way.Eventually, I passed the intersection of the AT and Virginia Creeper. It didn't take long for me to realize that this was the southbound intersection. However, since I never caught up with Trudge, Bootlegger, and Splitter, I was concerned that they might have gone the wrong direction. I shouldn't have questioned their abilities, but I was certain that I should have caught up. It was not fun walking several miles worried that Trudge went the wrong way. I had all these crazy scenarios in my head.Luckily, they were smarter than that and I caught up with Trudge at Lost Mountain Shelter (Bootlegger and Splitter had already gone ahead). We decided to walk a little further to catch up with Splitter and Bootlegger, but we were tired and camped in a pine plantation before we found them. We also escaped the rain just in time.
Date: 2011-05-18
From: near Lost Mountain shelter past VA 58

To: Elk Garden
Miles today: 6.6
Weather: light rain

5/18 Day 56: Damascus is a vortex!This morning started out in a ironic fashion. After leaving our camp, we ran into Bootlegger about 100 yards down the trail at his campsite from last night. He and Splitter even made a huge bonfire in anticipation of our arrival last night and so we would have a greater chance of finding them. Such is our luck.The weather was a disappointment today and our biggest adversary. It was a cold, rainy, and foggy mess. We hiked up Virginia's second tallest mountain (Whitetop 5,520) and stopped at Buzzard Rock on the way up for lunch and to get out of the wind. There was supposed to be panoramic views towards NC and TN, but the fog would not allow it. We caught momentary glimpses of open meadows and balds, but that was it. There is a road that leads up to the summit and I had thought about hitching a ride the half mile. But no tourists would have dreamed of coming out on a day like this.The forest is red spruce and Frasier fir that is remnant of the glacial-front forest, which extended in front of an ice cap 10-20,000 years ago.   Below the spruce-fir are northern hardwoods of beech, birch, sugar maples. At the bottom of the mountain, I caught up with Bootlegger, Splitter, and Trudge. Splitter said she had been waiting alone for us for 3 hours! That seems a bit insane considering how cold it was. So cold that we needed (wanted) to find a place indoors.The Vortex, formerly known as Damascus, VA, was calling us back. The promise of warm pizza, cold beer, and place inside to sleep was more than our feeble hearts could resist. Even though we had left not more than two days ago, we needed to go back.We hitched a ride down the mountain in the back of a pick-up (not the best arrangement) and waited outside of a rundown gas station for another hitch. No success, even though a school bus driver with an empty bus did stop and say he would take us if he was going that way. After repeated trips inside the gas station for Honey Buns and to thaw out, we finally called Gypsy Dave for a shuttle. Gypsy Dave is a former thru-hiker from 2003 who moved down to Damascus after his hike to operate a shuttle service and a vacation rental. This is typical of many thruhikers. Like I said, Damascus is a vortex. The four of us stayed at Gypsy Dave's and his wife's rental cottage, which was one of the cutest places I've stayed at along the trail.Gypsy Dave's only advice to us was "Walk in a Relax Manner." Walk, walk now, machen es schnell!
Date: 2011-05-19
From: Elk Garden

To: Wise Shelter
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: light rain

5/19 Day 57: Ponies, Ponies, Everywhere!The day started out foggy, but cleared up beautifully. When Gypsy Dave got to the house to shuttle us back to the trail, a forklift was almost needed to pry us from the soft, plushy, comfy couches. Dearest Trudge didth his stomach contract in a disquieting fashion as we motored along in the auto on our return journey to the great Appa"latch"in. And yea did he exit said auto with stomach churning violently and satchel weighing heavily upon his shoulders and his mind, he stumbled forward drunk with the pleasures of city dwelling and the to and fro sway of that four-wheeled motorized carriage that we so often take for granted. Puketh did he in a fountain of Cap'n Crunch, Jack Links (TM) beef jerky, and a hint of last night's mac and cheese, upon my moccasin. And yea did I declare quote "Sir Trudge, thou hast puketh upon my moccasin. Account for thine action or punishments shall ensue." Trudge didst say "Burp" and yea he did depart soft as a whisper and darkness fell over the land. And all ears hungered for his eloquence which was now gone. And so endth the tale. We traversed through some of my favorite sections of the trail so far. Mt Rogers and Grayson Highlands State Park. Mount Rogers (5724') is the tallest mountain in Virginia and the cold that permeated our souls at Thomas Knob Shelter easily reflected this elevation. We found Jesus at the shelter and he bummed food off of us. Is it ok to yogi from other hikers? I really relished walking through the Grayson Highlands State Park. The high country looks like a bit of Montana dropped on the rooftop of Virginia due to rock outcrops, spruce/fir and northern hardwood forests, and open grasslands. The scenery was bizarre and out of place. The colors that surrounded us in the Highlands were majestic. The gray rock outcrops, reddish-purple blueberries, dark green spruces and fires, and light green shrubs and hawthorns. When the sun lit the dewy grass it blazed golden. We were attacked by ponies of all colors. Yes, yes this is true. The United States Forest Service has managed a pony herd in the highlands since the 60s to help keep the pastoral feel. The ponies were very curious about us. We fed (don't try this at home) two of them carrots and I was fearful they wouldn't leave me alone. We finally stopped hiking around 9pm at Wise Shelter. Trudge wanted to go on, because we were supposed to meet Splitter and Bootlegger. Good thing we didn't keep hiking, since they had hiked about 5 more miles to the next shelter.
Date: 2011-05-20
From: Wise Shelter

To: Dickey Gap 
Miles today: 16.1

Day 58 5/20: Taking recommendationsSome days I don't really have a whole lot to write about. We walk, eat, use the "bathroom", and walk some more. Eventually, we stop walking and we sleep.In effort to make my entries more informative and entertaining, I am taking requests and recommendations for topics to include. If you read yesterday's entry, you will realize that while the story of Trudge's carsickness is true, I may have taken some professional liberties. Plus, our dear friend Whisper may have guided me in the creation of that masterpiece. The weather was great today, which is a nice surprise compared to last week.I dislike when people leave stuff behind in shelters. This time we found a pocket shower, stuff sacks, small nalgene, and tyvek. We thought it was left there on accident, but found out we were mistaken. We carried it for awhile, dispersed some of the gear to other hikers, and then mailed some home. In the end we benefited, but I don't think shelters should be considered your own personal trashcan. We debated hitching into town for a hiker picnic at the Troutdale Baptist hostel. However, the picnic wasn't till 6 pm. It was only 3 pm at the time and we had walked a measly 7 miles so far. Regretfully, we did not partake in this feast as we heard the food was awesome. Good ole church lady food!
Date: 2011-05-21
From: Dickey Gap

To: Partnership shelter
Miles today: 15.25
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 59 5/21: I hit a wall!I hit a mental, emotional, and physical wall when we hike late into the evening. I did not want to keep moving tonight, especially after our nap. This morning, Jesus, stopped at our campsite and visited while we packed and made breakfast. We shared our homemade applesauce (or rather chunks of dried apple in syrupy goodness) and Jesus shared his beer.Jungle Boots, Meltdown, and Splitter walked by this morning at 11ish while we were packing up. They informed us of a hiker feed at a church at 3pm 7 miles away, while telling us not to judge them for hitching to the hiker picnic yesterday. This is a judgement free zone.   When we got to South Fork of the Holston River, we stopped to look at a map to see if we were in the right place to find the church of food. A nanosecond later a man pulls up in his van and says "I am here to take you to the chuch for some food." Perfecto! The food was great: beans, mashed potatoes, noodles, chicken and dumplings, bread, pastries, the list goes on. We conversed with an elderly lady for awhile and then when Trudge got up to get seconds (or maybe it was thirds or forths)she says "I can hardly believe my eyes. That there man is wearing one of dem scottish kilts." Oh my.After we were dropped back at the trail, we didn't stumble more than a few 100 yards and decided that we needed to sleep off our food comas. Trudge blew up his sleeping pad and I curled up in the leaves. We proceeded to take the longest nap in hiker history and then walked 8 more miles to Partnership shelter. We ran into StrawHat on the way who had decided that a nap and early campsite was also what he needed after the giant meal.
Date: 2011-05-22
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Atkins, VA
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

Day 60 5/22: Fun in the SunHot day in the sun, because a lot of the trail was through open fields. I am trying to get rid of my farmer tan. We hiked as fast as we could in attempt to get to the Barn Restaurant in time for their Sunday Lunch Buffet and to get our new Nemo tent that was shipped there. We missed it by about an hour . Even though they were cleaning up, they let us in to get our packages. Our tent was nowhere to be found. But we did find long lost friends (Bootlegger, Jungle Boots, Splitter, Janna) staying at the only motel in town. My sister's first grade class has been following along with Trudge and I for the past several months. They recently sent us beautiful letters. This special section is for them.Dear Mrs. Rosenbaum's class,Thank you for all the letters. Trudge and I appreciate all of your well-wishes and questions. Some of you mentioned that you wish you could be a hiker like us some day. We are excited to hear you say that. Hiking is one of our favorite pastimes. We have seen one bear so far. It was close, but we startled it and it ran away fast. We hope to see more bears and other wildlife. Seeing animals is a great part of our hike, as long as our food is safe in a tree at night.We have hiked about 500 miles and the entire hike is over 2,100 miles. This is A LOT of walking. Backpacking requires patience, endurance, and a sense of humour. When we get to Maine, we might just turn left and continue hiking. I am just kidding about this. I hope you all enjoy your summer. Don't forget to get outside and enjoy. Sincerely,Eureka and Trudge
Date: 2011-05-23
From: Atkins, VA

To: 1.5 miles past VA 617
Miles today: 1.5

5/23 Day 61: An unexpected nearoAtkins, VA was not supposed to be a zero stop. We waited the entire day at the Barn Restaurant for our tent to arrive in the mail. We should have contacted Nemo earlier. Due to some mix-up, they hadn't mailed the tent yet and were sending it today to Atkins! After some angry emails and phone calls, we had them send the tent to the post office in Bland, VA. Hopefully, the tent arrives ahead of us and we can get to the post office before they close for the holiday.Two white-haired ladies stopped to chat with us as they went into the restaurant. One of them asked me if I was afraid to tent out at night. Pointing at Trudge, I said "no, he will protect me." She responded "He will run if he sees a bear." We will just have to wait and see.
Date: 2011-05-24
From: 1.5 miles past VA 617

To: Crawfish Valley
Miles today: 4.7

5/24 Day 62: Should have just waited in Atkins!Rain and thunderstorms and more rain and thunderstorms. At least, we managed to stay fairly dry. This is because this morning after we had slept in till almost 10, and had taken down the tent, we immediately set it back up to escape merciless rain.Trudge had gone off to the spring to get water and all of our gear was strewn about as I was packing. I yelled for him to come back and we made a mad dash to erect the tent, heave all of the gear inside, and jump in behind it. We waited out the storm by reading and finally got moving around 2.Since another storm was brewing, we camped in Crawfish Valley this evening after only hiking 4.7 miles. We enjoyed the company of The Keeper, Owf, Low Road, and Segway. If we go to the beach, we will be hiking with a completely different group of people when we get back. I am trying to get used to that idea. Trudge keeps asking me "Why are you following me?" Isn't he charming?
Date: 2011-05-25
From: Crawfish Valley

To: Lick Creek
Miles today: 10.5

5/25 Day 63: Virginia is for haters!At one point today, I decided that Virginia is for haters. Yes, you read that right. My reasons include: tons of PUDS (pointless ups and downs) with no view, the difficulty of getting out of thunderstorms since we are always walking on ridge-lines, and it is the longest mileage state. Of course, last but not least, this is the state I got hypothermia in a few years back while leading the backpacking trip from hell.I hope I don't have the Virginia blues yet. I hate the rocks, but maybe they are just preparation for PA. I slip on every other one and the ones I don't slip on I manage to turn my ankle on. I told Trudge I'd rather have to wade through calf-deep mud. He said if that happens in the next several days he would push me in it and probably try to drown me. Let's hope that much mud doesn't transpire, but if it does I guess I have been warned.This afternoon I went over to a tree to check out what I thought was a brightly colored mushroom, but turned out to be trashed stuffed into a crook of the tree. All wasn't for naught as there were two cool (and scary) looked hornets or wasps laying eggs into holes in the bark. One insect was striped brown, yellow, and black with huge body parts. The other was smaller and red, black, and yellow. I bet I am making some of you never go out in the woods again.