morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-06-24
From: Telephone Pioneers Shelter

To: Kent CT
Miles today: 17.0

Me & Knightrider left the shelter @ 5:51 to avoid the heat. Yeah, right. It was hot & humid. We hiked downhill toward the hwy & and AT Railroad Station. On the weekends, the train to NYC would stop & pick up hikers. Next to the station, there was a garden center that allowed hikers to camp there if they wished. We thought about it the previous day. Glad we didn't. We later heard from those that did and they hated it. Highway noise and trains all night long. At 5 am, the automatic sprinkler system came on and doused their tents. I bet there was some cussing going on when that happened. We drank a lot of water on today's hike. As we were nearing our planned shelter stop, the skies darkened and we began to hear thunder. It looked like it was going to be a gully washer pretty soon. Once I got to the shelter, I had to walk into Kent CT & pick up my food package and walk back out to the shelter. When we got to the shelter, Knightrider suggested that we just split a room in Kent (expensive) and get out of the weather & bugs. I agreed. He called and checked to see if they had any rooms left. They did. We then started hiking w/ purpose to town. We walked by a fancy private school for boys - Kent Academy. We hit the outfitter's store where I picked up my food package. We made it to the Inn and got our room keys before it started raining. We had to run across the parking lot to our room. Once inside, it was time for us to get our showers. Afterward, we went back to the bar/restaurant and got some food. We later went to the laundrymat and cleaned our clothes. Sure glad we did this. Unfortunately, the grocery store closed @ 7 pm and Knightrider wasn't able to resupply his food. He'd have to stay late in the morning to get some food.
Date: 2013-06-25
From: Kent CT

To: Pine Swamp Creek Shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: broken clouds

Left the Inn @ 6 am. Knightrider had to stay & resupply @ the store when it opened at 8 (closed @ 7pm the night before). I road-walked back to the AT. The hiked through a meadow which soaked my shoes & socks. Another hot & steamy day. Lots of bugs. There was a good long stretch of level walking along a river. Made good time here. I got to the shelter @ 3:30. I was spent. I confirmed my decision to take a zero day in Salisbury when I got there. I met up w/ Shadow @ the shelter. I tried to sleep in the shelter with him but the mosquitoes were too bad. Set up my tent in fading light & slept there.
Date: 2013-06-26
From: Pine Swamp Creek Shelter

To: Salisbury CT
Miles today: 15.1

Left the shelter @ 6 am. Bugs were especially horrible today. Couldn't stop without being swarmed. I only stopped once to purify.water. Kept moving to lessen their effect. I sweated so much that I kept reapplying Deet. Hot & humid for the day. I hit the junction for Salisbury @ 12:11. I road-walked the 0.5m to town. Got my bed at at house where the lady rents them out for $ 40/night. I learned that Knightrider was also coming.
Date: 2013-06-28
From: Salisbury CT

To: Hwy 7/Sheffield MA 
Miles today: 21.7

Left Salisbury w/ Nightrider @ 5:53. It had rained the night before quite hard. It was sprinkling when we left but stopped shortly afterward. We had a 0.5m roadwalk back to the trail. We climbed from the road. For once, the mosquitos weren't too bad. We climbed up to the top of Bear Mtn. We ran into Crazy Frog, Blue Eyes, Chaser, & Promethius. Crazy Frog was ill - Lyme's disease. They managed to call for someone (turned out to be 'Bomber'; a hiker I knew from earlier in the hike) to pick her up at a nearby TH and take her to the hospital. As we hiking along early in the day, we crossed into MA. Another state bit the dust. We had planned to go to a shelter that wasn't too far from Salisbury. As we hiked there, we decided we would push a little further to Hwy 7 & stay at a house that rented out rooms to hikers. It didn't seem like the elevation profile was too bad. Boy, were we ever wrong. We were on slippery, slick rocks coming down from Everett Mtn. I fell several times. I scraped up my right leg pretty bad. We hit Hwy 7 @ 6:05 pm. We were both exhausted. We had expected to get there between 4 & 5. We called Bomber (the lady of the house was busy & she'd given us his phone number) to pick us up. He drove us back to the house. We showered. We then went outside where Bomber had grilled up burgers & dogs w/ all the fixings. We grabbed some food and chilled out w/ the others that were there: Crazy Frog (back from the Hospital), Chaser, Prometheus, Blues Eyes, and another guy I didn't know. Tough, tough day.
Date: 2013-06-29
From: Hwy 7/Sheffield MA 

To: Mt. Wilcox North Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: scattered clouds

The owner of the house, Tess, gave us a ride to the TH. We took off hiking @ 6:32. The mosquitos were absolutely horrible. We were lathered up in insect repellent & wearing our headnets. It was humid, the grass was wet from the previous night's thunderstorm, and there wasn't a bit of air movement. Miserable hiking situation. We climbed slowly. Both of us were very tired from the previous day. After a few hours, we finally started to get some breeze. This made the bugs not so bad. We stopped ad rested at each shelter we came across. We hit our destination shelter - Mt. Wilcox North Shelter - at 2 pm. We didn't even consider going any further. We were exhausted. Splash (Asian female section hiker) showed up for a while. Turns out she knows another thru-hiker I hiked w/ earlier in the hike: Starchild. We talked for a while at the shelter. She said that both of them would be at Upper Goose Pond Cabin the following day (our plan as well). After she left, Shadow showed up. He spent the night in the shelter as well. Shadow told me that he was going to meet up w/ Trucker in Dalton in two days. The two of them would go to a concert @ Woodstock (Dave Matthew's Band) and spend a few days at some trail angel's house. Due to the bug problems, I set up my tent inside the shelter. It wasn't perfect, but it kept the bugs at bay.
Date: 2013-06-30
From: Mt. Wilcox North Shelter

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: broken clouds

Got up and started hiking @ 6:05. Me and Knightrider took our time today. I was feeling a little better. Knightrider wasn't. We climbed to the top of Baldy Mtn. No views. But, no bugs either. I called Nancy and spoke w/ her. We then continued our leisurely paced hike. I found a hat on the trail that looked like it belonged to Splash. We later bumped into her and it was hers. She was happy that I found it. The three of us continued to hike to the Jct of Upper Goose Pond Cabin Trl. We hit the jct @ 1:01 pm. We walked the 0.5M to the cabin. The cabin was locked up. The caretaker wasn't around. Shadow and others started to show up. I went down by the dock and cleaned up (body & clothes). When I returned, the caretaker had showed up and let people into the cabin. He hadn't been able to find the key to the place. He found an unlocked kitchen window that he was able to get inside and open the front door. He would later have to leave and go into town to find out where the missing key was at. He couldn't unlock the back door or other portions of the complex. The cabin was really nice. Completely enclosed. Bug proof. Bunk room on the second floor. Dining/living room and kitchen on the 1st floor. Front porch w/ a couple of rocking chairs. A picnic table out back w/ a nearby dish cleaning station. Two composting toilets. Many jugs of water taken from a spring on the other side of the pond (it was still recommended that we treat the water). The caretaker said that he'd make pancakes in the morning. He would get up when he first heard people stirring in the bunk-room (his room was upstairs as well). Sweet! I was looking forward to a hot breakfast.
Date: 2013-07-01
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Dalton MA - Shamrock Village Inn
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: light rain

We got up & were served pancakes by the caretaker of the cabin. Really hit the spot. We started hiking @ 6:30. It didn't take long before a light rain began. Gradually, the rain got heavier. Got really wet. It was warm so I didn't bother w/ raingear at first. Eventually, it got heavt enough to put in the jacket. Absolutely miserable hiking conditions. Around lunch, we neared 'The Cookie Lady's House.' She provides cookies to hikers. She also sells sodas & ice cream @ cheap prices. We stopped in for all of the above. She wasn't there but her husband took care of us. The weather was so bad that I asked Nightrider if he wanted to push a few extra miles & get a room in Dalton. He agreed. I called the one motel & they had one room left. We hiked to town and got cleaned up. Did laundry. And got something to eat.
Date: 2013-07-02
From: Dalton MA - Shamrock Village Inn

To: Mark Noebel Shelter
Miles today: 13.9

The previous day, I didn't have good enough cell coverage to call home. Only could text. This morning, I had coverage at the restaurant we ate breakfast at. I called Nancy and woke her up. We talked for a while. Afterwards, me & Knightrider started hiking (7:30). We hiked 8m to Chelshire MA where we ate lunch. After lunch, we had a fairly.big climb - 1800' - out of town. It rained a little off and on. Not enough to put on rain gear. We hit the shelter jct @ 3:16. Miles to Go, Flash Gordon, & Andrew showed up at the shelter. It rained some that evening & night.
Date: 2013-07-03
From: Mark Noebel Shelter

To: Williamstown MA - Williamstown Motel
Miles today: 9.6

We got up & started hiking @ 6:13. The trail was very muddy & was covered w/ slick rocks. We climbed steadily until we got to Mt Greylock. This is the highest peak in MA - 3491'. Once there, we had a long drop to 680' & the jct with the hwy to Williamstown MA. Very steep & slippery walk. Almost fell several times. Managed to stay upright somehow. Even though it was a 'short' day, I was tired when I got to the jct. We walked 0.5m to the grocery.store & bought food for the next leg of the hike. First time for me i buy food rather than relying on food drops. I definitely prefer food drops. We then called the motel & they picked us up from the store & took us back to the motel. We checked in and got clean. We learned that they didn't have a laundry. We had to call a cab & go to the laundry. We ate Chinese buffet after putting in our clothes. We called the taxi company to get a ride back. Expensive laundry.
Date: 2013-07-04
From: Williamstown MA - Williamstown Motel

To: Congdon Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: light rain

We caught a shuttle ride back to the TH & started hiking @ 8:35. Very humid climb. At each shelter, we took a rest break. The trails were quite muddy. We crossed into VT. AKA Vermud. Another state down. 3 to go. Beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I also crossed over 1600m today. We hit Congdon shelter @ 4:18. We were the only ones there for a while. Wiki showed up about 3 hrs later. Mosquitoes were bad here. I set up my tarp tent in the shelter to get away from the bugs. Around 9:30 or so, I woke up to loud booms in the distance. It was fireworks. We guessed it was from Bennington VT. Sounded like a good display.
Date: 2013-07-05
From: Congdon Shelter

To: Goddard Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: few clouds

Me & Knightrider left the shelter @ 6:31. Another muggy, humid, & muddy day. We had a really steep decline down to the Hwy that leads to Bennington. After crossing the hwy & a footbridge, we came across some trail magic - cold sodas & chips. Somebody left a note saying 'Happy 4th of July.' While snacking, the guy who put it out returned to pick up his cooler. Turns out, his son thru-hiked 2 yrs prior. He now puts our goodies every 4th of July. When he saw there were still some goodies left, he decided to leave them & return later to pick things up. We hiked steady all day long. We hit Goddard Shelter @ 2:45. Nice shelter. Due to the bugs, I decided to set up my tent nearby & sleep there. Later in the evening, it rained. When it stopped, I got in my tent. Then, it started raining real hard. Thunder & lightning as well. It felt like the rain was being pushed thru the cubin fiber fabric. I was getting wet. Fortunately, I hadn't unrolled my sleeping bag. So it didn't get wet. When it slacked up, I grabbed all my stuff & set up in the shelter. When I got up the next morning, my tent had blown down. Not a good thing.
Date: 2013-07-06
From: Goddard Shelter

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: light rain

We left the shelter @ 6:23. The trails were much muddier today. We climbed up to a fire-tower near the shelter. It was fogged in so we didn't bother to climb it. All day long, we had to rock-hop to try & keep our shoes & feet 'less wet.' It helped some, I guess. We had a big climb to top Stratton Mtn. 3900'. There were caretakers (husband & wife combo) living in a hut at the summit. We talked w/ them some. They had been doing this for over 30 yrs. Mainly, they keep people from doing wild & crazy stuff on the observation tower. We left there & descended quite a ways. We finally hit Stratton Pond Shelter @ 5:00. Long day. 19.3m. This was a 'fee shelter.' $ 5 to stay there. Water was a long way from the shelter. I couldn't find it initially. I had to have someone show me where it was. And he got turned around as well. Very tiring & frustrating when you're dehydrated. But, I filled up. The shelter had a large capacity. The Long Trail & the AT run concurrently in this section. Lots of people doing one or the other trail.
Date: 2013-07-07
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: VT Hwy 11/30 (Manchester Center)
Miles today: 10.6

We left the shelter @ 6:22. We walked down to the pond & promptly took the wrong trail. Fortunately, we didn't go too far before we discovered our mistake. The terrain was fairly level for the most part. Of course, it started raining. Rain gear on & the sweating begins. After a while, the rain lessened & eventually stopped. At Spruce Peak Shelter (7.9m), we stopped for a break. We snacked & removed rain gear. Miles to go & Flash Gordon showed up. They are both from Maine. They've been boyfriend/girlfriend since early HS. Both have graduated from college. Nice couple. All of us were planning to hike to the next road junction & stay there. They were staying in Manchester Center & we were going to the east & staying @ Johnny Seesaw's Lodge. Since I needed to replace my tent w/ one that worked in a bad storm, we hitched into Manchester Center. We ate pizza, shopped at the grocery store, & I got my 1-man tent at Eastern Mountain Sports. We hitched to our lodge w/ little problem. We checked in. We were wondering if we would have to pay the weekend rate ($ 100) since it was Sunday or the weekday rate ($ 50). Fortunately, we only had to pay $ 50. That evening, it rained really hard for about 30 min. A gully washer. Glad we were inside.
Date: 2013-07-08
From: VT Hwy 11/30 (Manchester Center)

To: Big Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: light rain

This morning, we checked out. The owner agreed to mail back my Hexamid tent. He also agreed to shuttle us to the TH. So, we started hiking @ 6:35. Much earlier than we anticipated. The trail was very muddy. It looked like it would start raining at any time. When we made it to Peru Peak Shelter (10.1m), it did. Hard. We waited for a while to see if it would lessen. Didn't look like it would. So, we donned our rain gear & slogged on up the trail. After a while, it did finally stop. Off came the rain gear. We had to climb up the rocky & exposed Bakers Peak. Very slippery. Made it to the top without mishap. We hiked to Lost Pond Shelter where we took another rest break. We then hiked on to Big Branch Shelter where we stopped for the night. Two LT hikers were there (male/female cousins). Miles to go & Flash Gordon also showed up. I was able to erect my 1-person free standing tent (EMS Velocity 1) inside the shelter. So, I stayed bug free without having to bury myself in my sleeping bag. The shelter was also next to a running creek. Made for some good sleeping noise.
Date: 2013-07-09
From: Big Branch Shelter

To: Rutland VT (Hwy VT-103)
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: broken clouds

We left the shelter @ 6:10. Lots of ups & down. Little breeze. We passed two sections of rock art. Rock cairns stacked everywhere. Looked eerie. On the way down to Hwy 103, I hit a slick portion of rock slab that I slipped on. I fell real hard on my left hip & forearm. My hip really hurt. I didn't pay much attention to my forearm. I slowly got up & realized that I could walk. I slowly began to continue downhill. I then looked at my left forearm. It looked like something was protruding under the skin. It didn't hurt much. I pushed on it & it didn't hurt. It looked bad, though. We only had about 1/2m to the road jct. When I git there, I decided that I needed to make sure something wasn't broken before I continue my hike. We flagged down a ride to Rutland Hospital ER. After admission, I was seen by a Dr & had my arm X-rayed. The Dr had me flex my hip but decided not to X-ray it. My arm wasn't broken. The Dr suggested rest, ice, & tylenol/advil for a couple of days. We checked into a Comfort Inn for two nights. What a day!
Date: 2013-07-10
From: Rutland VT (Hwy VT-103)

To: Rutland VT (Hwy VT-103)
Miles today: 0.0

Rest day (Zero) in Rutland VT. Swelling on forearm went down. Left hip is still really sore. Did some walking around town on some errands. My hip hurt while I did. It worries me for tomorrow when I resume my hike.
Date: 2013-07-11
From: Rutland VT (Hwy VT-103)

To: Churchill Scott Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: broken clouds

After eating breakfast @ the Comfort Inn, we took a taxi back to the TH. As we started hiking, we grass immediately soaked our shoes. After hiking for a while, we came upon a Hurricane Irene reroute (2011). It included some road walking. A little longer distance but probably quicker route. We had a big climb up to 3900'. Muddy trails were the norm. Two days of drying our shoes were quickly erased. We hit our shelter @ 4:44.
Date: 2013-07-12
From: Churchill Scott Shelter

To: Winturri Shelter
Miles today: 21.8
Weather: broken clouds

Left Churchill Scott Shelter @ 6:08. We descended to Hwy 4. One way goes to Rutland & the other goes to Killington Ski Resort. We came upon Gifford Woods State Park. Nice camping. Even had a nice shelter that wasn't on Awol's guide. We had a big climb up Quimby Mtn. There were plenty of ups & downs all day long. Very tiring day. We had a planned 20+ today & also one for tomorrow. That would be an easy day into Hanover. We hit Winturri Shelter. We were bushed. We called it a day.
Date: 2013-07-13
From: Winturri Shelter

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Me & Knightrider left the shelter @ 6 am. Another planned 20-miler. 20-milers are rare for me now. Back-to-back 20-milers are even rarer. The trail was pretty steep today. Lots of ups & downs. Sometimes they were short in distance. Sometimes not. Very tough. Around lunch, we walked 0.2m to the west to check out Cloudland Market. The guide showed a restaurant & market. Total waste of time. Hardly anything in the market & the restaurant wasn't open until the evening. I bought a locally bottled soft drink that tasted like mouthwash. Yuck! When we hit the outskirts of W. Harford VT, I had cell service. I called Nancy and talked with her for a while. The signal kept dropping me tho. Irritating. We got to another market that was really worth the stop. The trail was along a road-walk portion. We got a really nice deli sandwich, some chips, soda, and a muffin. Plus, we were inside with the A/C. No bugs. Life was good for a while.After leaving the market, we had another big climb up to our shelter. The last 4.4M were strenuous. We hit the shelter @ 5:58. It was a nice shelter. Double-decker. Good water nearby. But, lots of bugs. With all the record rains we've been experiencing = mega bugs.
Date: 2013-07-14
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 5.9

We left Happy Hill Shelter @ 6:23. Short hiking day planned. Mostly downhill. Lots of bugs, though. We hit Elm St where we road-walked the rest of the way to Hanover NH. On Elm St, we ran into a lady who had trail magic in front of her house. Baked goods & watermelon. She also came out & spoke to us. She gave us a list of people who provide hiker services. We crossed over the Connecticut River and into NH. We continued our road walk to Hanover. In Hanover, we ate some breakfast at Lou's Restaurant. Great breakfast. Afterward, we waited until the outfitter opened to see if I could replace my hiking poles. One of the poles were bent on one of my many near falls. I needed to be able to completely shorten them when I hike in the White Mtns. Lots of scrambling that require the use of both hands. Unfortunately, this was a clothing-only store. Wasted our time waiting. We got the motel we had a reservation pick us up in Hanover and bring us to W. Lebanon. Actually, on the fringe of the town. I checked & there was an EMS store about 4 m away. I called one of the trail angels and she gave me a ride to EMS. Bought the poles & a map of the White Mnts. The angel took me to a local McDonald's were I picked up some sandwiches for me & Knightrider. I brought them back to the motel. We washed our clothes. We washed ourselves. Got food in our belly. Life is good.
Date: 2013-07-15
From: Hanover, NH

To: Bill Ackerly's House
Miles today: 17.5

Got up & got an easy hitch from W. Hanover into Hanover. We went to breakfast @ Lou's. We had to wait until the PO opened up @ 8:30 before we could start hiking. I had some cold weather gear coming. I had to ship back my summer bag. After I finished this, we started hiking @ 9. Another hot & humid day. Had a climb out of town & a 1K climb later in the day. We had been told by some SoBo hikers about staying at the Ice Cream guy's place (Bill Ackerly). He lets you camp in his backyard. Gives you free ice cream & sells sodas. We hiked the extra mile downhill & reached his place. Long day. Got there @ 6:35. Latest I've hiked. Nice old man. Really hospitable. Six of us ended up camping there.
Date: 2013-07-16
From: Bill Ackerly's House

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: clear sky

Got up this morning to wet & soggy tents & bags. Lots of condensation. We backed up. Bill brewed coffee for the hikers who drank it. We had two options for today - a short day or really long day. We opted for the easy day. We started hiking @ 7:35. We had 2 climbs today that followed each other - Lamberts Ridge & Smart Mtn. As per usual, it was hot & humid again. At the top of Smart Mtn, there was a firetower. We climbed it for the view & the breeze. Afterward, we dropped down to Jacobs Brook. We rested & cooled off in the water. That cooling affect didn't last too long once we started going uphill again. We made it to Hexacuba (6-sided shelter) @ 2:35. It was early in the day but we were still tired. Later, Sherpa showed up at the shelter. I hadn't seen him since NY. In talking w/ him, it turned out that he was a day or less behind us for quite a while. There was some sunlight that managed to reach the shelter area where there was a clothesline. I hung up my sleeping bag & tent and things actually got dry. Amazing. Around 10pm, some noisy SoBo thru-hikers showed @ the shelter & woke us up. Very rude w/ their talking and bright lights (didn't dim them). Didn't sleep that well.