morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-06-30
From: Fox Creek

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 23.0
Weather: broken clouds

30 June 2010, Partnership Shelter   Went to breakfast at Jerry's Kitchen this morning and ate with Sketch, Old School, and Hopper.   Hopper dropped Sketch and me off at the trail head at around 9. Sketch moved on while I sat in the parking lot for about 15 minutes. I passed Sketch after about 1/2 hour and then he caught me when I was taking a break at the entrance to Trimpi Shelter. He went down to the shelter and I moved on.   I ran into a couple on a large footbridge crossing the South Fork Holston River who were NOBO hiking. There trail names are Kadiddle, and Dreamcatcher. They are doing 10,000 miles of hiking and biking and videoing people asking them two questions. The two questions are, what is your life¢s dream, and if you were 10 times bolder what would you do to make a positive difference in the world? I let them video me tonight at the shelter with my two answers; I think I was number 167 www.journeyofdreams.com. I got nervous during it and screwed up my answers.   Kadiddle and Dreamcatcher told us all of us about an experience they had the night before at Trimpi Shelter. They said long after dark they kept hearing people walk up to the shelter by hearing the clicking of hiking polls on the ground but no one ever came to the shelter. There last experience was similar but someone came to the front of the shelter with a headlamp in the red light mode, a ladies voice said something and moved on. When they woke in the morning there was no one around but they heard voices down by the camping area but when they checked it out no one was there. They read the shelter registry and saw a note that said 30 June was dress up like Halloween day. They swore the place was haunted.   We all looked at the menus from the visitors center and ended up ordering some pizzas. Old School and Dreamcatcher went to pick them up because for some reason they did not deliver tonight.    Kadiddle and Dreamcatcher set their tent up in the shelter. I did not think that was right but there were no other hikers that came in so I did not say anything.
Date: 2010-07-01
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Atkins
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

Atkins, 11.6   The weather was fantastic for hiking today. Left Partnership Shelter at 8 this morning. I did not see another hiker all morning except one person heading southbound.   I stopped at Chatfield Shelter around 11 for a snack. After leaving the shelter I saw many different specimens of mushrooms along the trail and took many pictures of them.   I went to the the museum and looked around, the old farmhouse was closed and locked up. The lady taking care of the museum handed me the keys so that I could go back to the farm house to check out the exhibits inside along with the other buildings. The place smelled old and mildewy. I enjoyed being able to check out the exhibits without the crowds. Other than that it was like any other 1800 farm house that I have seen.   After the museum visit we hiked on to Atkins to the Exxon station and a vanilla milk shake. Now this 53 miles section I previously skipped is now behind me.
Date: 2010-07-02
From: Loft Mountain Campground

To: Powell Gap
Miles today: 11.2

02 July 2010, Waynesboro   We drove to Harpers Ferry today to pick up mail drops. Mostly to get my laptop computer that was in the mail drop. I will be going to Louisville, KY with Hopper for two days while she attends an unexpected funeral; I decided to get my laptop so I would have something to do in the motel while she is doing stuff with her family. That way I will not be bored to death.   We made it to Waynesboro for the night. Tomorrow we drive south again towards Louisville. Before we get to Louisville we will be going though Shenandoah National Park. There is a large section that I road walked when I went through there. I want to hike the section of the trail that I road walked. I know I really do not have to but in my mind I want to be able to say I hiked every foot of the Appalachian Trail in 2010.
Date: 2010-07-03
From: Powell Gap

To: Lewis Mountain Campground
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: clear sky

03 July 2010, Powell GapI got a real late start today because I over slept later than I have on this whole trip. I slept until 9 this morning. I did not get started hiking until 11. This meant a short day of hiking.I had a good chuckle about two miles into the hike today. I ran into some day hikers that I heard before I got to them. I was hearing bells and when I came around the corner and saw them I realized what the bells were. They had bear bells hanging off their hiking polls. For those that don't know what these bells are, they are round bells about the size of half dollars and you carry them to make noise to scare any bear away that are I the area. They make the same sound as Christmas bells.I ran into a southbound hiker that I passed on 27 July but at that time did not take the time to talk to him. Today he was taking a break at an overlook and I stopped and talked to him for about 20 minutes. His name is Scarecrow and he is only out for two months. He just got out of doing six years in the air force.After I left Scarecrow I continued on to Pinefield Hut where I was very surprised to run into Pirate. Pirate is very well known in the AT community. Pirate has been the caretaker of the hostel at Neels Gap for many years. Right now he said he is hiking the AT to Harpers Ferry and then taking a left turn onto the Discovery Trail to Ohio. There is a big Pirate festival going on in Ohio where everyone dresses up as pirates and have mock sword fights and in general have a great time.About two miles before the end of my day at Powell Gap, I came up over the top of a mountain; I was still in the woods. I was surprised to see two big objects standing sideways in the trail. They were two horses and their owners. I struck up some small talk as I was passing by and noticed they were drinking beer. They seemed to be a few sheets to the wind. Horses are not allowed on the AT here but I did not dare say anything to them. I was hoping to run into a park ranger when I got to the road so I could let them know but I didn't.Scarecrow found us in the campground and came over and chatted with us for a while. He also said he was taking a zero day tomorrow here so we will probably see him again.Hopper met me at Powell Gap and we came back to Loft Mountain Campground. The first thing I did was take a shower. Next I started the grill and cooked some beans and hot dogs.
Date: 2010-07-09
From: Louisville KY

To: Waynesboro
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

09 July 2010, Waynesboro    I am not sure of this date here. I am going to have to research this to make sure I have the right date.   On the drive back to Harpers Ferry we stopped in Daleville to see the foot doctor I saw when passing though there. I got another cortisone shot. The shot did not seem to help this time. I am going to have to just walk it off it looks like.   Today was a driving day we drove from Louisville, KY to Harpers Ferry to and then to Waynesboro so that I could make up one more section I skipped going into Rockfish Gap just before the Shenandoah's.
Date: 2010-07-10
From: Waynesboro

To: Thornton Gap
Miles today: 0.0

10 July 2010, Thornton Gap   I made this a short day so that I could go and visit Luray Caverns today. After the hike I went back to the room and took a shower and a nap. When I woke up, I went to Luray Caverns. This was very interesting. I took lots of pictures.
Date: 2010-07-11
From: Thornton Gap

To: Humpback Rock
Miles today: 0.0

11 July 2010, Humpback Rock   Just north after the AT crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway at Dripping Rocks parking area there was a house to the right a couple of hundred yards in and a trail leading to it from the AT. The first thing that came to my mind was that this would be a great place for the hostel. There were no trail signs or any marking of any type so I assumed it was a private trail.   I had my lunch at Humpback Rocks overlook and took the usual photos and then went to the visitor¢s center. They had a live band there today playing blue grass music. I walked around and looked at some of the old farmstead exhibits that were kept up and turned into a museum. I listened to a little music and packed up our gear and headed back to Harpers Ferry.
Date: 2010-07-12
From: Lewis Mountain Campground

To: Gathland State Park
Miles today: 10.7

12 July 2010, US 576/Gapland State Park   Started out the day going to the ATC because that was where I left off.   When I walked into the ATC I was surprised to see Poptart. He now works there full time. Poptart was a good choice for the job. Poptart told me to give the ridge runner that took his place at Abol Bridge a hard time. The ridge runner was giving Poptart crap one time, saying he thought that AT thru hikers doing multiple thru hikes on the AT were stupid for doing the same trail over and over again. Yet he was telling Poptart he was thinking about doing the PCT again. I told him I would give him so grief about it if I remembered and if I saw him.    After the ATC I had to go to the outfitters to pick up a new hip belt for my backpack. I lost enough weight that my current hip belt was too big for me and they had to order me the next size smaller.   The walk along the C&O canal today was a nice walk. I think I would like to bike the C&O canal some day. I will have to research this the possibilities of doing it.   Autumn Rush caught up to me on the canal and we walked together and chatted for a while and then he picked up pace and moved on. I caught back up to him at the Ed Garvey where he was eating lunch, I also stopped and ate lunch and moved on.   Before I got to the Ed Garvey Shelter today I was really dragging butt more than usual. I cannot place why but can only guess it could be one of a few things or a combination of them. I did not eat a big breakfast; I stopped taking vitamin I and switch to something else, or it might just be the humidity, it is really humid today.
Date: 2010-07-13
From: Gathland State Park

To: Wolfeville Road
Miles today: 20.9

13 July 2010, Wolfesville Road/MD 17   When I started out this morning there was a tent in the back corner of the field hidden out of site of the road. I am sure it was a thru hiker but whoever it was still in the tent so I could not figure out who it was. I did not see any other thru hikers throughout the day.   Today was a long day and it took a toll on me in the heel pain area. The trail was rocky in some areas which I think did not help with the heel pain. I passed through two or three civil war battlegrounds today. I read the plaques as I passed by them. I passed a few north bound section hikers today. One group was south bound with about 12 girls and one boy in it, they were in there teens. I stopped at the Washington Monument for lunch, I cooked up some hot dogs. I took a good 45 minute break and then did the tourist thing by going up in the Washington Monument and taking photos.   By the time I made it to Woflesville road I was dragging ass.
Date: 2010-07-14
From: Wolfeville Road

To: PA 16
Miles today: 5.5

14 July 2010, Route 16   The last couple of days have been hard on me. Not only has my heel been giving me problems but mentally the trail has started getting to me. I need to overcome this dilemma and this stage of the hike.    I received cortisone shot in my foot about four or so days ago but it did not resolve the heel pain I am having. Also the temps and humidity have been high and putting in a 20 mile days has taken a toll on me. I also developed a case of heat rash down under that has really been painful. My knee pain is still there but not as bad right now. I have also been feeling really sick in the mornings when I start out. I don¢t know if it is just because of the heat and feeling depressed or what it is.   The trail has been getting to me mentally also. I did not get the Virginia Blues that everyone talks about while in Virginia but I think it was delayed for me because I am now in PA and am feeling the blues. Since I left the trail to go back and make up a section I missed I have fallen behind the group I was hiking with. Now I am about 10 days behind them and feeling really lonely. There are no hiking groups or packs this far back. Is seems like I am in back off all the packs/groups now. I have only run into a couple of north bounders since I got back on at Harpers Ferry. I feel really lonely out here. I feel like I am hiking by myself now. Before I when back to make up the sections I was seeing other thru hikers throughout the day. Now I go all day hiking by myself and do not see anyone other than Hopper at the end of the day. I think it was a mistake to go back and get the miles I skipped. I should have just kept going and came back after I made the summit of Katahdin. Now I am contemplating jumping ahead again to get back to my group and coming back later to make up the miles.   I was only able to do a short day today. I was feeling sharp pains in my heel so I wanted to give my heel a brake because it is started to concern me.   Nothing exciting happened today. I am going to take a side trip in about two days and will be going to Gettysburg. I am excited about that.   I called Bismarck earlier in the day and left a message on his phone. He called me back tonight. He is only about 110 miles ahead of me. He said he is going to get off the trail again shortly for about three or four days. I will hold off for now with my thoughts of jumping ahead. I will call Bismarck in another week and see where he is. I am just hoping my heel pain subsides. I went to a Walmart tonight to get some resupplies.
Date: 2010-07-15
From: PA 16

To: Wolfesville Rd
Miles today: 12.6

15 July 2010, Old Forge Rd   I started at PA 16 today and my heel pain was bad again. It has been a different type of heel pain than what I have had in the past. The pain I am feeling now feels like someone broke a needle off in the very back of my heel. When I step on it sometimes it feels like a needle is shooting up from the bottom of my heel, up through the back of it. I tried to walk it off today and it seemed to help the more I walked, to a point.    Today went a little better than yesterday. I was able to break up the boredom when I ran into people today and talk to them. While I was hiking south I ran into four northbounders, Utah, Thor. Two of them I did not talk to but when I was talking to Thor me told me there names, Cornpatch, and another who¢s name I forget. It was nice to find out I was not hauling up the rear of the pack now and there were others along with me.   Tomorrow I am going to Gettysburg. That will give me a little break. I got a PM from a friend from Maine on facebook tonight. Pjpreb is her name. It is her geocaching name, it is sort of like a trail name. Pjpreb and her husband and are also going to Gettysburg tomorrow, what a coincidence. I am going to call them tomorrow afternoon and we are going to do dinner together tomorrow night.   I did experience some of the PA rocks that everyone talks about today. It was not a long stretch but they were an inconvenience. This stretch was just north of High Rocks. I was also hoping to see some hand gliders at High Rocks today; it is a popular place for hand gliders to jump off. No hand gliders here today.   While at High Rocks there were three people that were trying to be discrete around the rocks and I asked them if they were geocachers. They said they were and we started chatting about geocaching and the Appalachian Trail.   My average speed of walking is two miles an hour but of good days I do three miles an hour. I find that if I try to do anything more than a 20 mile day than I start running into problems. Each time I have exceeded that I have gotten, blisters, knee or foot injuries.   One thing I have noticed for the last month is how small the deer have been. There not much bigger than a greyhound dog and these have been adult deer.
Date: 2010-07-16
From: Wolfesville Rd

To: Gettysburg
Miles today: 0.0

16 July 2010, Gettysburg, 0.0   I chatted with a few people on facebook last night when I had access. They seem to be concerned about me getting off the trail. Thank you to all who chatted with me and please stay in touch. I thought I would take the time to clarify more about my thoughts on this. I am not getting off the trail. I cannot say it has not crossed my mind but I am in this to the end, all the way until I summit Katahdin. The only thing that will take me off the trail is a serious injury or a death in the family. One other thing that could put a damper on this is my heel pain but I will cross that bridge if I get to it. I am walking through the pain right now hoping it will eventually subside. I am not going to let it end my hike.   The thru hiking community out here is spectacular. We are all like brothers and sisters. We all have the same goal. It is really hard to explain the camaraderie we have out here in writing. There is the usual trail gossip just like in everyday life but when it comes down to it, we are one big happy family. I love everyone out here. So far to date this is one of my happiest times in my life and I don't want it to end. I can see why people have separation anxiety after completing the trail, I know I will.   When I start tomorrow I will be attempting to do 20 mile days for 10 days. This should bring me close to Delaware Water Gap and should put me four days closer to crowd and the group I was around. That is the plan but we'll see if I can do it, time will tell.   It reached 97 degrees at Gettysburg today, I am glad I was not hiking in these temperatures.   I got a text message from Ratman and Tumbler today, they are in Dalton MA., Wow.   We hooked up with Pjpreb and her husband Pete and Lisa & Kurt who are also geocachers that I know. They took me and Hooper to dinner at a place call Dobbin House. It was a nice colonial tavern. It was an underground railroad back in the days of slavery, it had hiding spots for slaves that we explored. I was really glad I was able to hook up with these friends; the timing would not have worked if we had tried to plan this. What a great day today it turned out to be. Now back to hiking again tomorrow.
Date: 2010-07-17
From: Gettysburg

To: Shippensburg Rd
Miles today: 21.1

17 July 2010, Shippensburg Road   Today was one of those long days that did not seem to go right. I started out by getting a late start.   When I got to Tumbling Run Shelters the two maintainers were there doing some work on what they said was a newly erected eating pavilion. They offered apples and cokes, I had an apple. They were done for the day but socialized a little before they left.   The climb up to Chimney Rock was easy and I could not really figure out how it got the name Chimney Rock. Perhaps it was from the view down below in the valley looking up at it. There were no sign markings for the side trail to Chimney Rock. If I had not known the trail was there I would have had no clue to what the blue blazes to the east were for. There was also a blue blaze to the west but I had no clue where they lead to because there was no sign markings for that trail either.   I reached PA 233 and had lunch and I moved on. I made a quick stop at Rocky Mountain Shelters and then on to Caledonia State Park/US 30.   I expected the temps to be high today but it turned out to be a very nice day with temps in the upper 80's. I have been very lucky so far in avoiding the high temps while hiking, I don't know how much longer this will last.
Date: 2010-07-18
From: Shippensburg Rd

To: PA 94
Miles today: 21.1

18 July 2010, PA 94, 21.1   I passed the halfway point of my hike today. I ran into Ripple today. The last time I saw her was in Franklin, NC at the Budget Inn, 985 miles ago. We met again in the afternoon at Pine Grove General Store. She did not remember meeting me in Franklin until I refreshed her memory. We did the half gallon challenge together. The half gallon challenge is to celebrate crossing the half way mark on the AT. The goal is to eat one half gallon of ice cream in one hour. I tried my best but I just could not do it. I left about eight large spoonfuls of ice cream. I probably could have finished it but I did not want it coming back up when I resumed my hiking today.   After my failed attempt at the half gallon challenge I went over to visit the AT museum and was shocked to see Trail Angle Marry running the place for the day. I was glad to see her. She told me that I better stop and visit her when I get to Duncannon. I got directions to her place and told her I would.   I talked to an older man and his wife in the parking lot at the Pine Grove Furnace general store. He was full of questions once he found out I was hiking to Maine. He said he had always wanted to do it and he had plenty of questions. I was more than happy to answer them all. I was in his position once. I remember when the thought of thru hiking the AT was a dream for me.   It felt strange walking through the Pine Grove Furnace Park with it full with weekenders filling the picnic table and BBQing everywhere. The trail was a paved sidewalk right down through the middle of all the activities going on. It was like you were the center of attention or like a model walking the runway.
Date: 2010-07-19
From: PA 94

To: PA 944
Miles today: 21.1

19 July 2010, PA 944, 21.1   I ran into a NOBO hiker this morning by the name of Mr Smee that just got done packing his pack up. He said he was getting packed up late because when it rained last night he left his boots outside and they got soaked.   Went up Center Point Knob twice today, I was not paying attention. As I was walking on the trail there was a sign for Center Point Knob and it pointed left. I wanted to see what this knob was so I followed the trail to the left. When I got to the knob it was basically just a rock in the middle of the trail, I was not impressed. After seeing this rock I walked back down to the sign at the bottom. I could not find the NOBO AT when I got back to the sign. Then I realized I had been on the NOBO AT when I went to the rock. I am glad no one else was there or I would have felt more stupid then I already did. There were a bunch of large holes on the sides of the trail before coming out of the woods south of Boiling Springs today. There were the sizes of small creators. I did not know what they were. Just before we entered Boiling Springs we had a walk though rows of the corn fields.   I stopped in at the ATC office in Boiling Springs today and bought some maps for the sections ahead. While I was in there I asked the guy behind the counter what the big holes on both sides of the trail were further back in the woods south of the corn fields. He told me that there were two different stories of those holes. One was that the holes dug to try to find iron for the forge in town. The other story is that it was holes dug to try to find manganese during WWII.    While I was sitting around outside the ATC building I noticed a tick on my right leg. It was not all the way in but it was close.