morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-05-26
From: Four Pines Hostel

To: Catawba Mt Shelter
Miles today: 7.9

Well, I didn't see a bear today but I was there when other people saw the bears. Up on a ridge, between highways 624 and 311, Skibum, Big Stick, Lumber, and I were walking, with Skibum setting a brisk pace up front, me in the rear, when all of a sudden Skibum starts jumping up and down and like a kid at Christmas and shouting "I saw a bear! I saw a bear!" The other two caught a glimpse as it charged away, but, being in the back, I got gyped. A little further on, the two guys in front spotted another bear, just the head, but I was still in back, growing greener with envy.During the hike, it was decided we would try to hitch a ride into Roanoke to catch a showing of "Kill Bill II". After running into Catawba for mail drops and supplies, we looked at the local newspapers and found "Kill Bill" not playing anywhere. Looks like we were a little late. So it was a choice between "Troy" and "Shrek 2". Skibum wanted to see "Shrek 2", but the rest of us were going to "Troy", and for my part, if I'm going to go through all the trouble of hitchhiking in and out of a major town several miles away, I want more than a 90 minute cartoon. An epic blockbuster would be more suitable. A ride was secured and the movie was enjoyed (except for the dork on the cellphone at the beginning). After the movie let out, a torrential downpour was let loose from the heavens, so instead of hitchhiking, some of the guys were able to yogi a ride from one of the locals. He turned out to be a diagnosed manic-depressive stoner (but a really nice guy), and after a mildly alarming ride back to the trail, we hiked up to Catawba Mt Shelter in the dark. The trail was rugged and the going was painfully slow. I stopped at Catawba, but the rest of the guys hiked 2.2 more miles to Campbell Shelter, because they wanted to see the sun rise from McAfee Knob, some really impressive cliffs. Climbing into the shelter, I was surprised to find Coyote and Saltlick, whom I expected to be further ahead, seeing as how I had only done about 8 miles that day. However, they got a late start and did not make it any further than I did. Bumping into Coyote to get something out of my pack, she came up knuckles bared ready for a fight. I let her alone.
Date: 2004-05-27
From: Catawba Mt Shelter

To: Lamberts Meadow Shelter
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: scattered clouds

I told Coyote about last night and she didn't remember waking up ready to fight. Silly girl. Saltlick left his sleeping bag behind at Four Pines. He's going to get it mailed ahead to Daleville, where I'm looking forward to taking a nice, relaxed zero-day. They never seem to be very relaxing, though. Nice views from Tinker cliffs; would be a cool place to camp if there was water. Hung out with the guys from yesterday. They were bummin' around, and Big Stick was playing his guitar. Nice and bluesy. I think he mentioned something about being a music student. He's very good, anyway.
Date: 2004-05-31
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Bryant Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Today's start was interrupted by Scrubs, who could not be bothered to leave the trail to pee, or go in private before she left the shelter site. Instead, her boyfriend stood guard and stopped incoming hikers while she went by the side of the trail.Heard there was supposed to be serious trail magic at Jennings Creek on Sunday morning. A church group was to pick up hikers who showed up and take them to big honkin' breakfast and then take them back to the trail. I wanted to try to make it, but I just didn't have it in the legs. Being 34, I don't do the mileage alot of these kids 10-12 years younger than me, although I do find that not many my age or older are faster. Oh well, there will be other feasts.Got to the shelter, surprised to see Coyote and Saltlick there, who I thought should have been a day ahead of me. Turns out they were taking a zero, just sitting around in the woods all day reading and doing nothing. Sounds nice. I'll have to try it some time.
Date: 2004-06-01
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Confluence of Matts Creek and James River
Miles today: 23.5

Looooooooong day today. Pretty sure it's the longest one yet. Fortuneately, on relatively easy trail. "The Guillotine" was interesting. Standing underneath a large one-ton boulder that could flatten you like a pancake always is. Good thing it's wedged between two bigger ledges. Ran into Coyote and Saltlick , at Marble Spring, feeling recovered from their zero in the woods. In an uncharacteristic display of altruism, Coyote offered to get water for me as she went down to get hers. I'm not sayings she's not a nice person, just that gregariously altruistic acts are not my experience with her. Cooked dinner and hung out for a little while. We all reveled in our geekiness, as it was revealed that Saltlick is into role-playing games, Coyote is working on reading "The Silmarillion", and I admitted my love of comic books. I then marched the last 5.5 miles to Matts Creek Shelter. This is a beautiful spot with a wooden bridge going over a slot canyon carved out by Matts Creek bubbling nearby. Heidi Hobbit was waiting for her twin sister Holly Hobbit, who I had passed earlier.There was still some daylight left so the hobbits and I decided to forgo this beautiful spot for a rather hideous one near the highway and train tracks another .8 further (just so I could get a ride into town earlier in the morning), but just barely beating a little bit of rain which acted like it was going to be a big thunderstorm but amounted to nothing. This is where I met Yoda, Mad Scientist, and Lucy (dog). Lucy did a lot of barking and growling, but she's really all bark, no bite.
Date: 2004-06-03
From: Punchbowl Shelter

To: Buena Vista Motel
Miles today: 10.9

Today, I think I have had the best Mexican food I have ever had. It was in a small non-descript restaurant a block down from the motel, simply called Buena Vista Family Restaurant. The enchiladas were delicious, and the sauce was made with "over 50 ingredients, including chocolate". And I was stunned that no one in the restaurant was Mexican, for this was very authentic-tasting, not Taco Bellish. I cannot wait for the weekend buffet. I cannot get over how much I am enjoying southern food. Travel food is always good anyway, but southern hospitality is really bowling me over. Virginia is by far my favorite state so far.
Date: 2004-06-05
From: Buena Vista Motel

To: Hog Camp Gap
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: light rain

I had big plans for today. Was going to do 20+ miles, which got changed to 14, which eventually wound up 6. But I ain't complaining, not after what was in store for me and others at the end of the day.Yesterday's rains had for the most part cleared out, but the thick fog and the chill weather had not. After a rough 2000 foot climb in just under 3 miles, I made it to the top of Bald Knob, which is not very bald but is cold, and then on to Cold Mt, which is not cold but is bald. Go figure. I had heard from hikers going in the other direction that there was trail magic up ahead. I envisioned cokes and snacks in a cooler. Well, it was much more than that. It was a 4-day Bachanalian feast in which former thru-hikers grilled breakfast, lunch, and dinner for everyone who came by. There were burgers, hot dogs, beer, bacon and eggs for breakfast, smores, snacks, games, entertainment and even a guy who ate fried-cicada wraps as part of his "Survivor" audition tape. Old and new friends were there including Boo-Boo, Beatbox, Luna, Franco, Benny, Bucket and many others. I don't think anyone who arrived left that night, and many zeroed. Thank you to those who put on this terrific feast.
Date: 2004-06-06
From: Hog Camp Gap

To: Harpers Creek Shelter
Miles today: 22.0
Weather: light rain

I was itching to make up some mileage today, so I got an early start. Did not even wait for breakfast to be cooked. For as long as the day was, it was relatively easy, ridge-walking most of the way. One thing I like about hiking in Virginia is that there is less up and down. In the deep south states, one would go up a hill, get to the top, and then go right back down again, and then go right back up again. In Virginia, when you go up, you stay up for miles at a time, and when you go down, you stay down for miles at a time. The only drawback to this is that sometimes theres less water, because water is, of course, in the valleys. But today was a day where I was up high most of the day, with occasional minor ups and downs. The major down was about 3100 feet in 4 miles, but the terrain was never too bad, just persistently down to VA 56 and Tye River, where I happened by chance into Hawk and Lonesome Dove being slack-packed by Hawk's wife. The day ended with a moderately steep 2 1/2 mile climb to Harpers Creek Shelter, where there was Yippee and Jabberwock with Jabberwock's father, Catdog, and others. This was another gorgeous campsite with Harpers Creek flowing right through the middle of it, with lots of boulders and rock walls along the bank. Unfortuneately, a level smooth tent-site was hard to come by, but I found one good enough, and after chatting with Catdog as she was in her tent, I made my way to bed.
Date: 2004-06-07
From: Harpers Creek Shelter

To: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA
Miles today: 7.9

Everybody sing now!: Y-M-C-A!!! And do the little arm motions! Bah! Buncha young pups! Nobody wanted to do the YMCA dance with me today. Oh well. Short day today. Feeling tired, so I thought I'd attempt to hitch-hike into Waynesboro from Reeds Gap, and then tomorrow I will do my first slack-pack (hiking without pack) into Waynesboro. After about 10 or 15 minutes, I got a ride from a polite young man (who even called me "sir") into Waynesboro, getting dropped off at the library to check email, where I ran into 2cents, who has lost a remarkable lot of weight. Then on to the YMCA next door, where I signed in to stay at the free campground in the back. The Hobbits were there, as was Lonesome Dove, Beast, Gaia, Beatbox, Whiskey, Flatcar, Bucket, Scholar, Boo-Boo, Beartrax, and many others. I ran into Coyote and Saltlick at the post office. So it was quite the social gathering. The walk today was rather uneventful, and I thought the Three Ridges were not as bad as they were supposed to be, although someone said they saw a bear there. Virginia is just loaded with bears. I'm hearing more and more about bear sightings, and I'm getting really jealous. I figure I'll get mine in Shenandoah, supposed to be the best place for sightings along with the state of New Jersey.
Date: 2004-06-08
From: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA

To: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA
Miles today: 19.4

Long day today to make up for short day yesterday. Waynesboro has an amazing network of trail angels, the best I've seen on the trail. It worked out so that one of them could take me back, on her way to work, the 20 miles to Reeds Gap while I left my tent and most of my gear at the Y and hike unburdened. It felt great. I practically ran down the trail. I was on the trail by 630 and had done 19.4 miles by 330. Got a ride from Boo-Boo's dad (but not before his mom's dog bit me!) to the barber just in time before they closed. Got all my hair buzzed off (got a shave last night). Boy all that hair was bugging me. Went to the all you can eat Chinese buffet with Beartrax, Bucket, and Beatbox and we gorged. Went to bed a tired but happy camper.
Date: 2004-06-09
From: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA

To: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA
Miles today: 17.5

Another tough, tough day of slack-packing. Not. There are, however, some pretty sharp ups and downs, but they do not last long and and quickly return to easy ridge-walking. Today is the first day in Shenandoah National Park, and if the first day was any indication, this is going to be a breeze, in addition to being prime-wildlife spotting. I've seen deer and rabbits which have let me get VERY close. The trail in the park parallels the Skyline Drive, but it's not a road with heavy traffic, so the noise pollution is not as bas as one would think. The pattern so far has been a short, steep climb from the road, followed by paralleling the road from above, followed by a short steep climb down to a road-crossing, then repeat on the other side. Lots and lots of green in Shenandoah, and beautifully maintained trail that is very easy to walk, but still maintains its wild nature. Got a ride back to Waynesboro from a young kid on his way down to Georgia, back to Dahlonega, as a matter of fact, which is the closest town to Amicalola. I believe he said he was studying forestry, and was just taking a leisurely drive down, not getting in any hurry. I believe that is defineitely the way to live.
Date: 2004-06-10
From: Loth Springs Camping Area behind Waynesboro YMCA

To: Loft Mt Campground
Miles today: 9.0

I've been hiking around these last several days with shorts with a fly that won't zip up and zip-off legs that won't zip back on. I went to the local outfitter in hopes of getting a hiking kilt like Megabite's, but no joy. I guess I'll just have to be happy with convertible pants. Got a ride to the point I ended at yesterday, and after two days of slack-packing, reluctantly put my pack on for the 9 miles to Loft Mountain Campground. Oh, woe is me. That's ok. I'm returning to my slacking ways tomorrow, at least for one, maybe two more days. Early in my hike I saw a small family of turkeys, and got some good pictures. The last few miles of the hike were spent looking at the sky hoping to beat the rain. Thankfully, it never did rain, but the skies sure looked threatening. Got set up at the campground, where they gouged me for 16 bucks a night (I'm planning on staying two nights). Despite being in the middle of a national park in beautiful warm weather, the park was practically deserted. I started wondering around, and thought I'd try to make some new friends and try my yogi-ing skills. I wondered into the campsite across from me and lo and behold, it was occupied by Lonesome Dove, Scholar, and a middle-aged couple from Virginia who are hiking from Damascus to Harpers Ferry, slack-packing by shuttling two vehicles. Sounds fun. The couple and Scholar were playing word games and were not very sociable. Scholar for some reason seemed unusually moody, but Lonesome Dove was somewhat more approachable, although she did ask me if I always entered strange people's camps. After making small talk I went back to camp. Down at the campground gate I ran into Boo-Boo and Beartrax and talked them into staying the night on my campsite. Beartrax is running out of money and is planning on getting off the trail in Harpers Ferry, then head out west to do whatever destiny has in store for him. He's a really cool guy and will be missed.
Date: 2004-06-11
From: Loft Mt Campground

To: Loft Mt Campground
Miles today: 18.3

I am officially through slack-packing, at least doing it my way. Most hikers use a pre-arranged drop-off and pick-up, or get a ride a determined mileage ahead, and hike back to their night's destination. An example of the latter would be getting a ride from someone in Waynesboro while leaving everything except food and water at "basecamp", have them take you 15 or 20 miles down the trail, and then hike back to Waynesboro sans pack. The former does not happen very often because it is hard to predict when the hiker will arrive, plus it is also against the spirit of hiking to be on a schedule. And I do not want to do the latter, because I have this obsession about walking it all in one direction. I want it to feel like I'm making a journey and not being a tourist. I hope that makes sense. So the standard ways have their disadvantages. Well, my way has it's disadvantages, also.The hike today started off pleasant. At Hightop Hut I ran into Beast and Gaia, two very environmentally conscious young hikers. Beast gets most of his protein by drinking a dark-green seaweed concoction (he says it is an acquired taste. I'll take his word for it). Gaia gets limbered up every morning with several minutes of yoga. When I was young and was into track and taekwondo, I was a very avid stretcher and longed to be as flexible as her again. Time was I could do a very mean splits.The three of us had a discussion in which we came to the conclusion that we found it very bizarre and puzzling that the park has quite a few rules and regulations about where we camp, and insist that we follow them, and yet do a poor job of following lnt (leave no trace) principles by placing the shelter privy just a few feet from the water source. Shenandoah officials, you are being very irresponsible.Most of the day went rather uneventfully, but at the end of the day, for about the last mile, it started raining and gradually got more persistent, forcing me to take shelter under the highway overpass that I was standing on trying to hitch a ride back to Loft Mt. This is the disadvantage of my way, the way of walking ahead and hitching back. Hitching is sometimes undependable, as it proved to be today, despite the fact that it was pouring rain as the very few cars that came by passed. I was forced to take cover 2 or 3 times when the rain got hard, then made my way back up when it let up. Like a bonehead, I did not take any rain-gear or any other extra clothing, and spent the better part of an hour shivering and cursing my luck. Finally, a nice young German couple taking the scenic route to Florida in a small rented motor home picked me up and got me to the campstore just in time to raid it for a few snacks. I was really glad to get to camp and put on dry clothes. Later that night I ran into Luna and Momma's Boy, and they stayed with me at the campsite.
Date: 2004-06-12
From: Loft Mt Campground

To: Lewis Mt Campground
Miles today: 8.3

Another pretty easy day of gently rolling hills, the difference in the high and low of the day being only 1200 feet. Met a friend of Yoda's and Mad Scientist, who invited me to stay on his site, which was a nice gesture since it was a pay-site. I did the same thing for friends the previous two nights before, so instant karma got me. Beast and Gaia later showed up, Beast with his tarp made entirely of Tyvek, Gaia with her "big ole butt" backpack. Everyone ate and drank well, but the friend had a few too many beers and got a little offensive to some in the party. At least he warned us ahead of time that he's an ass when he's drunk, and he was right. Temps dropped really low, and I was concerned about staying warm since I sent my warm winter bag home and purchased a fleece blanket during Trail Days. It's going to be a cold night.
Date: 2004-06-13
From: Lewis Mt Campground

To: Rock Spring Hut
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: broken clouds

Play day today! Today was a day to just take in the beauty, not hurry, and have fun. Started off the day by thumbing my nose at AT traditions and did a blue-blaze. This means bypassing part of the AT by taking another trail, most of which are marked with blue blazes, as opposed to the white blazes of the AT. This is a big deal to purists, because I left some of the Appalachian Trail un-walked. 90 percent of the time, I'm a purist, but it was a loop of only about a half-mile, and it slightly added to my difficulty by being slightly longer and more rugged. I would never take a blue-blaze simply to short-cut, and bad weather cut-off routes are acceptable even to purists. I decided this blue-blaze is acceptable to me because it was not a shortcut nor was it easier. It was the opposite, in fact.The blue-blaze in question was the Bearfence Loop Trail, a short, rugged little bit of trail more closely resembling New England than Virginia. Lots of fun, precarious scrambling packed into a short stretch of trail.Next was a side-trip to Lewis Falls. A sharply descending .6 mile down that I was practically running, then another .6 back up. Right after that was a really nice meal with Meanderthal at Big Meadows Lodge, a Portobello mushroom sandwich with sweet potato fries. Very nice meal, and good company. Meanderthal is from Maine is one of the most enthusiastic hikers I've met. The day ended at Rock Spring Hut with Saltlick, Coyote, Gaia, Beast, and Dutch, along with some locals. Dutch was dealing with an injury and was going to have to get off the trail at the next road crossing. It was good to see her again. She is a very sweet lady. I believe the last time I had seen her was at Dragon's Tooth. Some of us tried to see if there was a way into the cabin a little way down from the shelter, but it wasn't happening. The tentsites at the shelters are surprisingly skimpy due to not having much level ground to work with, despite being in a part of Virginia that has quite a bit of gentle countryside. But hey, I just need a little bit of room to sleep.
Date: 2004-06-14
From: Rock Spring Hut

To: Pass Mt Hut
Miles today: 15.3

Relatively uneventful day today. Someone saw a bear near Stony Man. I was sitting at the top of Stony Man with my pack .2 away back down at the trail, so I hurried back down in case he came looking for my food, and also in hopes of seeing him and getting a picture. No joy. So, on to Byrds Nest Picnic Shelter, where a small group of thru's were gathering and dishing typical gossip about other thru's. After hanging out for awhile, I hiked on, only to discover after half a mile I had left a water bottle behind. Again! For at least the third or fourth time! Well, this is the one Gary gave me all the way back at day 1, and it was only a half-mile back, so I had to go get it. The trail is a bad place to be forgetful. You lose something back home, you go to look for it a couple days later, and hopefully, in 5 or 10 or 20 minutes you find it. You go to look for something on the trail two days later, and its 30 miles away. Forget it. Crisis averted, I hiked on to Pass Mt Hut. The shelter was packed like sardines, but just as I was setting up my tent, the rear pole snapped. Boy was I mad. After I calmed down, I reluctantly made my way down to the shelter to sleep in the over-crowded shelter, with 2cents knee in my back every 5 minutes until I told him to knock it off.
Date: 2004-06-15
From: Pass Mt Hut

To: Gravel Spring Hut
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Yo BEAR! Saw my first ursa in the wild today. Finally! Maybe a mile and a half before Elkwallow Gap, I heard loud rustling in the trees off to the left. I looked just in time to see a medium-sized black, featureless shape quickly down-climbing out of a tree to run away, about 50 feet away. Black bears are really black! I could not make out eyes, nose, paws, or any features whatsoever. Just a big black shape moving quickly. Excitement over, I hiked on to Elkwallow Gap Wayside for burgers, fries, and a blackberry milkshake. Later on in the day, more trail magic! Someone had left a cooler full of sodas, and a bunch of us sat around and gulped and joked and then hiked the last 3 miles to the shelter with contented bellies.