morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-06-26
From: US 11/VA 683

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: overcast clouds

The decision to stay in the US 11 area instead of night hiking was a good one. We would have crossed a lot of rocky and slippery areas. Case in point; I got to one of the wooden bridges across a stream and played the slip and slide game. I reminded myself of one of those cartoon characters you see slipping on the ice! I almost slid off the bridge into the stream. I left a note for Krispy and Lint warning them about the bridge. As I got close to Duncannon I ran into a father with his two little kids out for a little hike. We talked for a bit and he wanted a picture of me with his kids. (Everyone wants a picture with a thru hiker it seems) While we were standing there the little girl says, "What smells"? I busted up and said it was probably me. Ah, the essence of thru hiker! I reached Duncannon around 1:30 and headed for the Doyle. The Doyle is a 100 year old hotel and is a tradition on the trail. It is also a landmark in the town. Duncannon is an old town, located on the Susquehanna River, which is the longest river the AT crosses. When I walked in I ran into Pappa Bear and Badger. They were staying the night also. As the afternoon wore on Krispy, Lint, Firefly, River Otter, Poler, and Pilot came in. I had not seen Poler or Pilot since Kincora. It was a lot of fun catching up on how everyone was doing. It looks like there will be a group of us for the next several days. We all have basically the same itinerary for the next week. Krispy and Lint will be a day back because they are going to zero tomorrow. It was a good day.
Date: 2004-06-27
From: Duncannon, PA

To: Peters Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 12.2

The morning started with coffee on the porch of the hotel. It was a perfect Sunday morning. The temperature was cool and there was no humidity. Those of us that were leaving started moving out around 8:30. Pappa Bear, Badger and I went for breakfast at the truck stop at the edge of town. They had a buffet and we put a dent in it! The climb out of Duncannon was steep and long but the temps were good so you didn't turn into a walking shower. The day was going to be a short one, only 12 miles. Funny, now that I think about it. Calling 12 miles a short day. A couple of months ago 12 miles was a mighty long day! Arrived at the shelter around three. The rest of the "hiking family" for the week came in shortly thereafter. The ones that are in this weeks family are Pappa Bear, Badger, Southern Man, Now or Never, Poler, Pilot, and myself. Our schedules are the same until we hit Port Clinton on Thursday. This was a very nice shelter. It was supposed to be able to hold 30 people because they did not want a lot of camping in that area. The water source, however, was a long way downhill. The builders of the shelter made a stone stairway of 240 steps down to the source. These were not consecutive steps but interspersed on the way down and placed in the steepest spots. A whole lot of work went into them! In a couple of days we will drop into the, under 1000 miles to go zone. So far so good but the rocks in this area are turning brutal! Time for bed.
Date: 2004-06-28
From: Peters Mtn. Shelter

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: broken clouds

This update has been a long time in coming but, it is only now, that I felt I could type it up. I am off the trail. As many of you know the only reason I would get off the trail was a physical injury. Well, that is what it was. I am going to backtrack a bit to the last couple of days and then give some other thoughts. I will also break it into daily entries to better present the chain of events. I got out of Peters Mtn. Shelter at my usual time, early. It was another comfortable day to hike and the entire crew was planning on the next shelter, 17 miles up the trail. My first concern was water for the day. There was no way I was going to go back down that 200 some odd steps for water. The guide said there was water about 4 miles up so that was not a problem. I usually planned one liter of water for every 3 to 5 miles. I actually found a water source much sooner than what the guide said. With all the rain we have had seasonal water sources that aren't listed show up a lot. I filled up and proceeded on. As I finished another downhill, not any different than any other, the first inkling of a problem reared its ugly head. As I got to the bottom of the hill I was thinking to myself that something was hurting that had not hurt before. It was in the same foot that has plagued me all along. As before, I proceeded carefully and headed up the next hill. As I was climbing I did not feel the pain anymore. Because of that I first thought was that it was nothing. When I reached the ridgeline and leveled out the "ouch" was back. I was glad that I was getting close to the shelter because I wanted to rest it as well as attempt a self-diagnosis. I hit the shelter around 2:00, got settled in, and rested. Shortly thereafter Pappa Bear and Badger showed up. I did not say anything about the foot. I still had not gotten off my butt from my "resting". Polar and Pilot showed up next and that is when I decided to move. The limp was back as well as a pain that was in a different part of the foot. Polar looked at me and she asked what happened. I explained to the crew when I first felt it. Polar immediately told me to get off the foot and get it elevated. I had to smile at how she said it, but I did comply with her orders. Nothing much happened for the rest of the day and evening. Just the usual eating, reading and getting ready for bed. Pilot commented on the fact that this shelter made her feel she was back in the medieval times. I laughed and had to agree with her. Funny, here I am at home typing this up and I am still doing it as a normal entry. Oh well, guess it creates the drama for the next episode :}----------------------------------This is your life and it's ending one minute at a time.
Date: 2003-10-26
To: Yes!
Miles today: 0.0

Spending time outside today prompted this first journal entry. I've been planning this thru hike since March 2003. I've spent a lot of time gathering information: talking with thru hikers, reading trailjournals and whiteblaze websites, and soaking it in at The Gathering in Hanover. Perhaps I've been spending too much time planning and not getting outdoors.So what happened today? Rain and Trail Magic. This morning I was part of a search and rescue team trying to find a missing person in the woods. I'm a volunteer firefighter where I live Ellington and this call brought us, and surrounding departments, out to Columbia, CT. About 100 firefighters participated in the search.Searching for someone in the woods is not walking down a trail and yelling somone's name. It's bushwacking for hours on end. (Eastern CT is gentle terrain though. Swamps and pricker bushes are the only things to look out for.)I think we spent about 6 hours combing throught the trees and brush, not coming up with anything at the end.During our search it started to rain. As I moved evermore gently over the now slippery rocks, leaves, and fallen tree libs I was taken back to the journal entries from the class of 2003. I was experiencing the mud, wet clothes, and wet boots that so many have written about. (they experienced it for 40 days straight though!) My fellow firefighters teased me about my upcoming trail hike saying that I must be crazy if I enjoy 'this'. But I do enjoy it. It doesn't matter what the weather is. "I'd rather be here than working", I thought to myself.Being volunteers, we don't get paid for this nor did we plan to have this take up most of our Sunday. We all feel a little bummed - on top of our hunger and slight dehydration. Enter trail magic.After our first search of the day, we were greeted by the Salvation Army Canteen Truck. Ah, breakfast at 11am. Free hotdogs, Gatorade, and beef stew. That hit the spot. When the county engages in large events such as this, part of the logistics is feeding everybody. We don't know where the food comes from, but it always shows up.We did two more searches and then got hit by some major trail magic. Waiting for us at the Columbia fire station was soup, stew, pasta, 40 platters of finger sandwiches, water, soda, cookies, and more. All donated by locals and the Mohegan Sun Casino. Woohoo! - we couldn't finish it all. People had to take food home. The generosity of people is amazing and I am glad I get to witness it.That was my Sunday.. Even though my day didn't work out as planned, I still got to hike for 6 hours, hang out with my buddies, and feel the generosity of others. Not a bad day.
Date: 2003-11-08
To: Tent Testing
Miles today: 0.0

There seems to be so many tasks to do and so little time to do them. I know this is my mind making up crap for me to worry about, but I feel it all the same. My start date will be near Feb 26. So that gives me about 3 and a half months to buy all my gear and food; take a couple shake-down trips; throw away lots of stuff; put my apartment in a 10x10 storage area; sell my motorcycle; prep my transcriber; cancel credit cards, phone, electricity, DSL; change my car insurance; and forward my mail. It still looks like a lot of stuff for three months! I am taking a leave of absense from my job and will have 2 weeks free before my thruhike. I am figuring some of these things will be compressed into that time period. I hope to finish by the first week in August so my friends in Maine can pick me up from Katahdin. After that I will be spending a week with some very fun spiritual people, visit friends and family, and then try to resettle back in CT. My job officially starts back up again on Sept 1. That's the plan, but who knows what I'll choose when I'm sitting atop Big K? Today though... I'm testing the Nomad Lite tent in the cold. It will be about 17-20 degrees tonight and I'm going to sleep out on the lawn of my apartment complex. I'll also be spending my first night in my Western Mountaineering Versalite bag. It's a 15 degree down bag. I'll be camping on the lawn and also taking two 5-day trips to get my cold weather gear set. Clothing takes up a lot of space and also weighs a lot. I want to make sure what I bring will keep me comfortable, but not be too heavy. Besides the two tents I'm testing (see picture) I'll also be trying a few sleeping pads. Again, it is a weight/comfort/insulator type decision. I want to keep my winter pack weight at 35 pounds or less.
Date: 2003-11-09
To: Cold night with the Nomad and Versalite
Miles today: 0.0

I spent yesterday gazing at the full lunar eclipse at ~8PM. It was wonderful to see it shift from full moon, to new moon, back to full moon in 30 minutes. As I stood outside I was wearing exactly what I'd wear on a chilly night in GA. I was comfortable with what I chose for clothing.People around me were groaning that the temperatures were falling into the teens this weekend. I actually welcome it so I can test out my gear! Last night's main attraction was the Nomad Lite tent and my WM Versalite bag. I planned on getting in the bag about 10PM but a fire call interrupted me for a little while. I finally got to settle in the tent and sleeping bag at 11PM.The bag was great!!!! ...maybe a little too warm since I was wearing my medium weight longies inside it. The temperature outside the tent was 19 deg. and inside it was about 29. Not bad for all the bug screening on the Nomad.I do these tests to see how I will be able to move in the tent, get dressed undressed, and how easy/hard it is to do what I need to do. In the winter I need to see how I can move about with out touching the sides of the tent body. The frozen moisture from my breath will actually snow down on me if I or the sleeping bag bump the ceiling or walls.It was a little tight in the Nomad light with my 6'6" bag. The next chance I get I will repeat the same test with the Henry Shires Tarptent on the front lawn. My neighbors will think I'm nutz. Maybe you have to be to hike the AT.
Date: 2003-11-23
To: morning dew, calorie challenged?
Miles today: 0.0

starting: 10 mile river campsitedestination: mt algo sheltermiles 8.3today i awoke without condensation all over the ceiling of my tent... but i did wake up with dew all over my bag and down vest. that was bummer. i grabbed my sponge and went to work soaking it up. that worked pretty well... i never planned for dew. tonight im sleeping in a shelter and will put my silk liner on the outside of the bag to catch the morning dew. the liner is much easier to dry than the bag itself. i will look into options for my versalite bag... maybe a dwr coating or have one made with special material.the hiking was moderate today but i was feeling pretty tired. Ever feel like you can never do this? Ever feel like quitting before you start? that's how i felt today as i went up moderate grades. i just didn't have the energy. I could see myself creating all these worries and then forcasting them to my future thruhike. If that isn't bad enough the emotions kick in with FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) and i start asking myself will i make it to my destination? do i really want to do this for 5 months? i remember reading other hikers' journals where they went through these kind of things. it seems like many have some fear to work through. i just hope i can process this through tonight.at 11:30 i took a break to eat lunch and air-dry my sleeping bag a bit. there was still a little moisture from the dew on it so 30 minutes in the sun was good for it and me.i met a woman today from new milford, she was out trying to hook up with a friend coming the other direction. she told me i was 45 minutes from the shelter and that was pretty acurate. i forget what time i got in, but i didn't have to eat in the dark today. roxors!at the shelter i'm hanging my tent to dry off this morning's dew and also used a tip from another thruhiker to dry my socks: put hot water in a water bottle and wrap my socks around it. sitting here typing im noticing my back hurts. im doing twists and stretches to help loosen it up as well as stretchs on my big toes which got painful during the last mile. my ridgerest pad doesn't really cushion as well as i thought it would. last night i could feel my sacrum pushing into the earth and i'd have to shift from side to side to get relief. its 5:30 now...pitch black. i'm going to stretch, read a little, eat peperioni, brush my teeth, and go to bed. tomorrow i'm going to do an experiment... i'm going to eat like a cow. i may not be eating enough to move me and 36 pounds of gear. yes, that's my full springer start gear with 4 days of food and 2.5 quarts of water.
Date: 2003-11-24
To: Silver Hill Campsite
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

This is a continuation of a short trip i started on the 22nd. Everything is lowercase because i was typing this on pocketmail. Such will be my journal in 2+ months. :-)starting at: Mt Algo shelterdestination Silver Hill campsite A great day of energy as i kept feeding the fire in my belly, never letting the calories run out. i covered roughly 10 miles today, 5 of them pretty flat so i made good time. i left the shelter at 9AM. Early in my hike i passed Kent and thought about getting more snacks so i can extend this trip one more day. I passed up the option to move to my next destination before dark. i reached the Silver Hill campsite at 3:30. silver hill is a unique camping area - with a pavillion, observation deck, and a swing. The downer for this site is the well. i read in the register that you have to pump for 10 minutes to get water. so, i pumped, and pumped, and after 5 minutes got a medium stream of water.after filling my nalgene i looked inside. Ewwwww! dark water with rusty flecks floating around. i still have a liter of clean water to last me the night and morning. there's a stream down the mountain and .1 across the road, so I'll dip from there tomorrow.I flipped on my radio as i unpacked my gear. NPR said it was going to be rain tonight with grand© wind. i didn't feel like dealing with that so i looked at my options. the pavillion has a tiny little loft with plywood across the rafters -- just enough space for me to sleep tonight... I just can't get up too quickly or my head will hurt! (as i type this, 7pm , the wind is really starting to whip, glad i'm not in a tent right now)i wondered if the metal roof leaked and had my tyvec ground sheet ready in case it started dripping. then i looked up and felt safe that there were spiders and other in habitants in the space. if it leaked i doubt they'd make it their home.the rain came down at 11pm, an hour earlier than NPR said. it rained until about 3am, the drops pounding against the metal roof. i finally got some sleep that was uninterrupted and awoke at 6am. it was 30 degrees, so i rolled over for an hour. at 7am it was... still 30 degrees, so i quickly slithered into my longies and powerstretch top and prepared to come down from the loft.the sun was out, and as long as the wind didn't blow i was quite warm. i aired my down bag in the sun on a nearby boulder.tomorrow im going into west cornwall to get a ride home. from there i have to eat up time until my friend gets out of work. why am i leaving a day early? (i was planning on 4 nights) i have a ton of emotional process to do over my energy level and the feelings of doubt i had yesterday. plus, my belly is feeling funny (probably the emotional stuff since emotions live in the belly area).emotions like i experienced don't come up so i can ignore them or distract myself away from them -- deal with them now or i will keep creating them. i assume many people feel this way when they start their thru hike. hopefully i'm getting it out of my system now and can lend a hand if someone feels this way in GA.Time for bed....
Date: 2003-11-25
To: The Last Day
Miles today: 0.0

i walked into cornwal bridge today. verrrry small town. i picked this one because it will be easy for my friend to find. there's 3 main businesses: a deli/general store, a liquor store, and a small outfitter. i got here at 11.30 and figured i could kill time until my friend picks me up after work. one problem, the library is closed on tuesday (glad i called first before walking there) so there's not much to do here. my main concern is i dont want to sit outside all day. in town there's a disadvantage if you have to use the the bathroom. you just can't do it anywhere. I'm typing this in the deli. the cashier said i could sit at the table in the back, which is real cool. i bought lunch here and not moving is making me feel tired. i think i'm going to get up and hike somewhere. and that somewhere was the lawn of a local church. I tried calling another friend who lived in the area, but no dice on getting a ride. So, i'll be waiting for my friends liz and fran to pick me up. That will be around 6.15 (brrrr)at the church i got to bask in the sunshine and read the first few chapters of dru melchizedek's new book, "living in the heart". around 3.30 the sun was falling behind the mountains and i started to feel the cold again. i moved on to housatonic river outfitters, where the manager, torrey collins, let me read my book while warming to his wood stove. At 5.30 i moved across the street to the deli and am now sipping hot choco at the table in the back. Soon i'll meet my ride outside.in closing of this mini-adventure/gear test, i am happy to have had all the experiences i had on this trip(infant code-5, doubt, morning dew, tiredness, unlimited energy, joy)... No matter how i label them, they all show me what it is that i am creating in the moment for myself. if i want a different experience i need to (1) accept/receive the choices I am making now, and (2) make new/different choices in the future.(Interestly, 10 minutes after I got home I went into a full blown 24 hour flu. How nice for my body to wait until I got off the trail! My Thanksgiving holiday was low key since I was not into solid food for a while. I really loved sipping hot Jello mix though... ya gotta try it.)
Date: 2003-12-31
To: New Year, New Body
Miles today: 0.0

i haven't written in a while. a lot of activity has been going on outside the AT preparation. This activity has mostly centered on my body.i see a chiropractor on ocassion to massage and correct my neck and uppper back. most times i can do the adjustment myself without thinking about it. after my 3-day AT hike at thanksgiving, i got a huge headache which i knew wasn't related to my 24 hour flu. something was definately going on in my neck, but i could not correct it. off to the chiro. i prided myself at not needing her services for over a year, but now was a good time to put the ego in check. the adjustments to my neck and back were wonderful and the headache subsided. I saw her for a follow-up session where she also did an analysis of my posture. Very interesting. i hold my head and shoulders forward of where they should be and this contributes to the tightnes i feel in my neck and trapezius muscles. i also don't use the "core muscles", as she calls them, to support my pelvis and abdomen. This puts unnatural stresses on other muscles that are compensatingfor the core muscles. she gave me exercises to strengthen muscles and to retrain myself to hold my body differently. Also related to the body, i am sitting in a podiatrist's office right nowwaiting for my appointment. the reason i'm here is two fold. 1. my chiro was curious about something in my stance, and (2) i'm just curious to see what he says about my feet, boots, and insoles.** after the appointment **well, cool beans... my feet are good to go. one thing he says i need to do is stretch my achilles tendons and give them greater mobility. i got a prescription for physical therapy and after new years I will start my stretching.the podiatrist also checked out my last two set of boots. he noticed my current boots are made from a different last than my older boots. this could be the reason I'm getting hot spots in different places than my old boots. i'll have to consider the last-style when i buy my next set of boots on the trail.i also found out i have what's called a "tight foot", which just means they're strong and well formed. he was impressed with my choice of Superfeet because it fit my foot very well. (i chose the blue over the green because the green felt too 'solid' on my arches. he says this is because i already have 'tight' feet and do not need the extra support.)so, i'm welcoming in the new year with a new adventure on the horizon and also a new body which i am building now. i don't think there is a coincidence between my choice to go on this trip and the changes i am making to my body now. "It's all support", a wise man once said to me. this is one more thing i can do to support myself on this journey.