morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-06-30
From: 501 Shelter

To: Eagles Nest Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: broken clouds

It seems like it always works out that I get a shelter to myself after a rain, and it¢s good to have the extra room to spread out your gear to dry. After packing everything up I hitched a ride into Pine Grove to eat breakfast and pick up enough food to last until Port Clinton. I went with the AYCE breakfast bar (what thru-hiker wouldn¢t?), but it wasn¢t the greatest especially when you consider the extra distance I had to walk to get there. After eating I walked back to PA 501 and hitched a ride back to the trailhead. It was nearly 11:00 by the time I got back, and Montreal and April Showers were just getting to the trailhead too. Montreal Found the pack rain cover I lost when some low-hanging branches snagged it yesterday, and it was great of them to hang onto it for me. There¢s really not much I can say about today¢s hike. It was a beautiful day for hiking, but the rocks made the going painfully slow. I made it to the Eagles Nest Shelter late in the evening and had the shelter all to myself again. It seems like most of the thru-hikers have disappeared.Total Ascent:        1,740'Total Descent:        1,590'
Date: 2007-07-01
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: overcast clouds

I got another good night¢s sleep thanks to having the shelter to myself. The weather early in the morning was a hiker¢s dream being cool, sunny, and a nice breeze. I didn¢t get up as early as I wanted, but I didn¢t have but a half day¢s hiking ahead of me. The only unknown was just how bad the rocks would be today. As I hiked these last miles into Port Clinton, the rocks, even though there was no shortage of them, didn¢t seem so bad with the day¢s cooler weather, and the morning seemed to go by rather quickly. I was expecting to see Montreal and April Showers slacking south today, but never did. The only hikers I saw were a group of section hikers and some weekenders. Again it seems as though the other thru-hikers have disappeared. When I finally made it into Port Clinton, I ran into Alpine Strider heading back to the trail, and a real trail angel, Bag-O-Tricks, was with her. He was kind enough to give me a ride to a motel in Hamburg, as I was hoping to catch a bus home tomorrow for the 4th of July holiday. After arriving and getting settled in I ran into Montreal and April Showers on my way to eat and check out Cabela¢s, which was across the highway. I also arranged to catch the bus home so I could take some time off from the trail, and, hopefully, return reenergized for more adventures.Total Ascent:           850'Total Descent:        1,960'
Date: 2007-07-08
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Windsor Furnace Shelter
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: scattered clouds

It was a very long bus ride to get back to Port Clinton, and the bus had mechanical problems in the middle of the night making what was already a very long trip even longer. I didn¢t do as well sleeping on the return bus ride as I did on the way home, so I was pretty tired by the time we reached Port Clinton. It was nearly noon when I arrived and the day was already a real hot one, which is not how you like to start the day hiking. After eating and resituating the gear in my pack it was nearly 1:30 by the time I was heading north on the trail again. It didn¢t take long before I was climbing uphill, and, fortunately, when I reached the ridge there was a little breeze to make things a little more bearable. There definitely was an increase in the number of rocks on the trail today as others had warned me, but not a lot more than we had been traveling through up to this point. I took my time getting to the shelter, but it still did not take long with only 6.1 miles to travel for the day. When I arrived at the Windsor Furnace Shelter, Conquered, a section hiker, was already there and the Godfather, who was section hiking south, came in a little later in the evening. Rather than fighting the mosquitoes in the shelter I decided to set up my tent for the night, and after dinner it didn¢t take long for me to jump into my sleeping bag for the night.Total Ascent:        1,560'Total Descent:        1,070'
Date: 2007-07-09
From: Windsor Furnace Shelter

To: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: clear sky

I got up early because I knew the forecast was for sunny and hot weather today. It was already warm when I got up, so I knew the forecast would hold true. It feels really good to be back on the trail after my break, but this really hot weather I can do without. After eating and packing up it didn¢t take long to make the climb up to Pulpit Rock Lookout, and, of course, it took a fair amount of hiking through the rocks to get there. The views were partially obstructed by the haze and low hanging fog but very nice nonetheless. Mostly, the rocks were not too bad until I got to the Pinnacle area, where I took another nice break to enjoy the view. After leaving there the rocks all but disappeared on the way to the Eckville Shelter, where I took a long lunch break in the shade to escape the very hot sun. After making the climb out of the gap from Eckville, the rocks became almost non-stop when I reached the ridge, and from there all the way to the Allentown Hiking Club Shelter. Conquered and I decided we had enough of the rocks for one day and stopped there for the night. Both of us were nearly out of water when we got there so the first thing we did was to go get water. There is a series of three springs near the shelter, each one further downhill than the preceding one. Of course, the first two were dry and it was a 420¢ drop in elevation to get to the last one. Fortunately, it was an excellent water source, but it¢s not exactly the type of trek you want to make to get water at the end of a very hot day of hiking through the Pennsylvania rocks!Total Ascent:        3,420'Total Descent:        2,830'
Date: 2007-07-10
From: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter

To: George Outerbridge Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: scattered clouds

I was off to an early start again because it was forecast to be even hotter than it was yesterday. Amazingly, the first six miles of trail was fairly clear of rocks and flat. I made good time through that area, but things slowed down significantly after that. I think we had to pay for the easy section of trail because the rocks returned in full force, and then the traverse of the Knife¢s Edge was especially slow. After reaching Bear Rocks, there was a momentary break from the rock strewn trail, but the climb up and descent of Bake Oven Knob was literally over a rock pile. When I reached the Bake Oven Knob Shelter I took only a brief break there since I was low on water and the spring was dry. The climb back up to the ridge went quickly from Lehigh Furnace Gap, but there were many more rock piles to scramble through. Once on the ridge the rocks slowly became more bearable, and we found wild blueberries lining the trail. It took me a long time to hike through this section because I was constantly stopping to pick handfuls of the delicious berries to pop into my mouth. Eventually, I made it downhill to the George Outerbridge Shelter for the night, and Conquered also stopped in shortly after I did.Total Ascent:        1,560'Total Descent:        1,990'
Date: 2007-07-11
From: George Outerbridge Shelter

To: Leroy Smith Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: light rain

Conquered and I were both up early wanting to get a jump on the day¢s heat. We had been warned the climb up the exposed rock ledges on the other side of Lehigh Gap could be very hot in the afternoon sun, and, fortunately, it was grey and overcast with a little bit of fog mixed in to begin the day. You couldn¢t ask for a more fitting backdrop to be hiking through an EPA superfund site. Once on the trail it didn¢t take long to make the final descent into Lehigh Gap, and the climb out of the gap was steep one with some scrambling over the exposed rock ledges. One wrong move certainly had the potential for serious injury, and I took my time checking each step and handhold to be sure they were solid. Eventually, I did clear the steep climb, and after that it was just a matter of stepping through the rocks to the top of the ridge. The walk across the ridge of the superfund site was very eerie to say the least. The destruction of the vegetation gave me the impression of what I would imagine walking through the aftermath of an atomic bomb explosion would be like on this grey and dismal looking day. It was both astonishing and very sad to see what can result from the careless use of our planet¢s resources. I often wondered why the AT would lead us through such an area, but, after seeing the area first hand, I can see it serves to be a stark example of why we must be good stewards of our land. After leaving the ridge and descending to Little Gap, the climb back up to the ridge was marked by climbing uphill through yet another pile of rocks, but once on the ridge the amount of rocks on the trail lessened, making for much easier travel. About mid afternoon I could hear thunder rumbling in the distance, so I raced on to the Leroy Smith Shelter for the night. I made it there with just enough time to get water before the skies opened up. Conquered also came in shortly after I did, but he was not so lucky with the rain. It looked as though we would have the shelter to ourselves for the night when Nuclear rolled in just before dark. I¢m not sure how he got his name, but his snoring certainly is ¢nuclear¢ as he did a good job of rattling the rafters through the night.Total Ascent:        2,740'Total Descent:        2,210'
Date: 2007-07-12
From: Leroy Smith Shelter

To: Kirkridge Shelter
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: few clouds

I woke up to a refreshingly cool morning and bright sunshine, and I couldn¢t believe what a difference the change in temperature and humidity makes in attitude. It didn¢t take long for Conquered and I to make our way down to Wind Gap and then into town to pick up some supplies at the Turkey Hill convenience store. I even picked up a pack of hot dogs for dinner instead of the usual hiker staples of pasta and rice dishes. After we hitched a ride back to the trail, the rocks returned on the climb out of the gap. The next seven miles on the trail consisted of traveling over one continuous pile of rocks, and it was by far the worst we had encountered in Pennsylvania. Traveling through the PA rocks has been quite a mental challenge watching where each and every step you take will land, and it was comforting to know this was to be the last bad stretch of rocks left in PA. After making our way through Wolf Rocks, the rocks on the trail slowly reduced in number to the point you could hardly notice them, at least, considering what we had just gone through. We made it to Kirkridge Shelter around 4:00 in the afternoon and spent the rest of the day just relaxing, eating hot dogs, and enjoying the view. I could have very easily made it into Delaware Water Gap for the night, but I have been trying to not overdue it in the hot weather we have had recently. Chef and Sleeping Beauty both came in shortly after dark to round out the shelter¢s occupants for the night.Total Ascent:        1,880'Total Descent:        1,820'
Date: 2007-07-13
From: Kirkridge Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA
Miles today: 6.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Nobody was really in a hurry to leave the shelter with the short hike into town. Most of the day¢s hike was uneventful until we started the descent into Delaware Water Gap where there were many fine views of the valley below. When we reached Main Street in town Conquered and I said our goodbyes as this was his last day on the trail. I made my way to the Presbyterian Church of the Mountain hiker hostel to spend the night and relax on what was becoming another very warm day. I went to the post office after it opened and picked up my new trail shoes that I ordered while at home over the 4th of July. I heard some reports of some heavy snoring going on inside the hostel so I opted to sleep outside in the shelter behind the church. Moreover, it was going to be much too nice outside to be sleeping inside.Total Ascent:           650'Total Descent:        1,700'
Date: 2007-07-14
From: Delaware Water Gap, PA

To: Mohican Outdoor Center
Miles today: 10.3

I slept very well during the night being in the shelter by myself, and I heard from the others that the snoring was deafening inside the church. So it was a good move for me to sleep outside. I was up early and walked down to the restaurant to eat one last meal before returning to the trail. After crossing the Delaware River via Interstate 80, I learned of a potential bear problem ahead. So I was very bear aware during my climb out of the gap even though I didn¢t see any today. I reached Sunfish Pond later in the morning, which was very beautiful and appropriately proclaimed as one New Jersey¢s seven wonders. The rocks were still a major factor in travel today, but some of the views while walking along the ridges were mostly unobstructed, giving excellent views of the valley below. I decided to go to the Mohican Outdoor Center for a late lunch and when I got there couldn¢t resist staying for the night with Iceman, Buffalo Bobby, Birdlegs, Why Not, and Backfire. It turned out to be a very relaxing afternoon of swimming and just kicking back, and I felt good for having cut the day on the trail short to enjoy this great place.Total Ascent:        1,820'Total Descent:           970¢
Date: 2007-07-15
From: Mohican Outdoor Center

To: Mashipacong Shelter
Miles today: 26.7

We all got up early, packed up, and walked down to the lodge for coffee beginning at 7:00 in the morning. After taking my time to enjoy two very good cups of coffee I was back on the trail. Initially the trail was very rocky, but eventually they all but disappeared as I cruised along the ridge. Of course, just about the time you think you have seen the end of the rocks, they return. After reaching Blue Mountain Lakes Road, where I took a nice break next to a water pump, things changed back to the same old routine of hiking through the ¢PA¢ style rocks. Not too long after crossing Rattlesnake Mountain I ran into a family of dayhikers. As it turned out one of them grew up in Mishawaka, Indiana, so we got a chuckle out that. Not long after making the next climb the skies were threatening rain, but I made it to Culver Gap and the restaurant before the skies opened up. Also there when I arrived were Splendora, Snack Break, and Birdlegs sipping on some of the local brew, and Chuckles came in shortly after I did. After I finished eating the rain quit so I decided to get going before it started to rain again. I made the 3 mile climb out of the gap to Gren Anderson Shelter, but by the time I got there I had talked myself into going on to the next shelter to make up for yesterday¢s lack of miles. So I raced on for the next 6 miles to get there before it got totally dark. When I got there a large youth group had taken over the shelter and surrounding camping spots, but I managed to find a spot to squeeze my tent into and was in my sleeping bag for the night at 10:00 pm.Total Ascent:        4,010'Total Descent:        3,730'
Date: 2007-07-16
From: Mashipacong Shelter

To: Unionville, NY
Miles today: 14.3

I woke up early, but I was still tired from yesterday¢s very long hike. Those of the youth group that had been so noisy after going to bed were all still sleeping when I left the shelter. It was cloudy and humid most of the morning and, at times, looked as though it would rain. Later in the morning I stopped at the High Point State Park Headquarters for a nice break before continuing on. While traveling through the park I was hoping to climb to New Jersey¢s state high point but didn¢t because of the very poor trail signs in the park. I did get a nice view of the High Point Monument from an observation tower. After taking a break at High Point Shelter the rocks became much less of a burden to travel over, and as the day wore on they seemed to disappear. About mid afternoon I stopped at Jim Murray¢s shelter, located on his property, for a shower and a very nice long break while I waited for my clothes to dry. At the end of the day I walked into the very nice town of Unionville, NY, where I saw Orange Moon, his brother, and Gingersnap for the first time since reaching Harpers Ferry. I pitched my tent in the city park because it looks as though it will be a fantastic night to be sleeping outside.Total Ascent:        2,090'Total Descent:        2,940'
Date: 2007-07-17
From: Unionville, NY

To: Wawayanda Shelter
Miles today: 17.1
Weather: clear sky

I got up early because I knew it was to be another hot one today, and I wanted to get breakfast before leaving town. When I got back on the trail, it was a pleasure to find the absence of rocks so the morning went by rather quickly. The trail went around the outskirts of the Wallkill Wildlife Refuge, and then followed a boardwalk through the wetlands of Pochuck Creek. When I reached the intersection with NJ 94 I walked down to the Heaven Hill Farm Market to eat lunch and get some ice cream while talking to Chuckles. After getting back on the trail there was a big climb up through the rocks leading to the summit of Wawayanda Mountain. Not too long after beginning my descent from the summit I came around a curve in the trail and spotted a small bear not more than 20 feet away. Because of the thick undergrowth I saw the bear before it saw me, and I was not too concerned because, I thought with it being rather small, it would do no more than turn and run away when it realized my presence. Well this was all happening much faster than I can tell the story, and as I was within a couple of steps of the bear it sensed my presence and turned around to run away. Or so I thought. Suddenly, I saw black fur balls moving up the trees directly to my left, and I knew right away these fur balls were cubs. I thought to myself, ¢Oh shit, this is not good!¢ I continued moving on the trail, while looking back over my shoulder and thinking the bear would charge at any moment. Once the mother was sure the cubs were safely up in the tree it turned around and started making popping and huffing noises at me. I continued moving north on the trail, and, I think in this situation, it turned out the mother saw me as less of a threat because I continued to move away. Needless to say this definitely had my adrenaline flowing, and it wasn¢t more than a half hour later I spotted another much larger bear about 30 yards away. This time I stopped and made noises until it spotted me and ran off. Unfortunately, it ran right in the direction I was headed, and when I cleared the ridge there it was again. I made noises again, and this time it stood up on its hind legs to look at me before meandering off down the hill side. Finally, I made it to the Wawayanda Shelter for the night, and of all nights you would like to have some company for a sense of security, I was alone.Total Ascent:        3,770'Total Descent:        3,140'
Date: 2007-07-18
From: Wawayanda Shelter

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: light rain

I woke up to the sound of thunder and lightning around 5:00 am this morning and had a difficult time going back to sleep after that. After eating breakfast I waited in the shelter until about 9:30 for the rain to quit. When I did venture back on the trail it took only two hours to reach the New York state line. By that time the trail began to follow a ridgeline of rock slab, and even though it was still wet I was getting pretty good traction. There were even some tricky spots that required using all fours to make it up and down the steep rockfaces, and one spot that I thought to be downright dangerous was the descent from Prospect Rock. With the fog hanging on there were no good views until late in the afternoon went I scrambled over Eastern Pinnacles. Shortly after I came to the Cat Rocks, and I could hear thunder rumbling and lightning striking very close so I chose to take the short blue blaze around the area rather than taking the official AT crossing the exposed rocks. At this point, Wildcat Shelter was only a short distance away, and I made it there just as it began to rain. Also coming in for the night a little later in the evening were Backfire and Daniel.Total Ascent:        2,060'Total Descent:        2,070'
Date: 2007-07-19
From: Wildcat Shelter

To: Fingerboard Shelter
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: light rain

It didn¢t rain anymore during the night, but it was really humid in the morning making it rather uncomfortable. I left the shelter early hoping to cover about 19 miles today, but that was before I discovered all the rock scrambling we would be doing during the day. Going through such areas as the Lemon Squeeze in a downpour, descending Agony Grind, and the many mountains we climbed all made for slow going while on the trail. During the afternoon I was going over the top of Arden Mountain and spotted a salamander that I had never seen before just ahead of me. Of course, it scooted between the rocks as I approached, and I looked back to my left to see if I could get a glimpse of it between the rocks. About the time I was looking back to my left I heard a rattle to my right. I quickly looked in the direction of the rattle in time to see a rattlesnake with its head up above its coiled body in the strike position. My exposed right leg had just passed within not more than 6¢ of where it was now poised for a strike. Well, I decided not to risk making the snake more agitated than it already was so I just kept moving, albeit much more quickly. As I entered Harriman State Park it began to rain, and it soon turned into a downpour. Eventually, I decided to call it a day when I arrived at the Fingerboard Shelter. Also coming in later were Backfire, Ox, Chuckles, Nuclear, and Swamp. Not long after climbing into my sleeping bag for the night it began to rain again.Total Ascent:        4,790'Total Descent:        4,420'
Date: 2007-07-20
From: Fingerboard Shelter

To: Fort Montgomery, NY
Miles today: 14.2

We had a bat flying around inside the shelter during the night, and you could still hear it squeaking in the morning when we got up. It looked as though the rain had come to an end during the night, and I tried to dry out some of my gear before leaving. Of course things never dry as quickly as you would like them to so I packed up and left because I wanted to make it to the Bear Mountain Zoo before it closed. It was still partly cloudy, but much cooler and windy making for a very pleasant day on the trail. Most of the morning consisted of going up and down mountains without any views, but in the afternoon I climbed to the top of Black Mountain where there were many outstanding views. I found a nice rock ledge to sit down, take about a 20 minute break, and enjoy the view. When I got up I put my hand down to push myself up, and as I spun around to raise up I found myself staring directly over the top of a rattlesnake all coiled up. I immediately jumped back about three feet to a much safer distance. It appeared the snake had crawled up next to me, while I sat there taking a break, coiled up, and was soaking up some of the sunshine too. Seeing that the snake was not moving I snapped a couple of pictures, threw on my pack, and moved on. During the rest of the afternoon we had many fine views from atop West Mountain and Bear Mountain. After walking through the Bear Mountain Zoo, we walked into Fort Montgomery where we picked up more food, got some lunch, and called for a shuttle to a youth camp to spend the night. Also there for the night were Chuckles, Ox, Nuclear, and Backfire.Total Ascent:        3,170'Total Descent:        4,430'