morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-05-10
From: Cove Mountain Shelter

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: few clouds

Hiked with: Tom & EvanTom was up fairly early and let Evan and I sleep for what seemed like a long time. Finally woke up around 8:30. Tom was ready to go so he got a head start and we all met about 3 miles down the trail.The hiking today was really tough.   Climbed up one 1000ft mountain only to come right back down and climb a 2000ft mountain (with another 1000ft to go still for tomorrow). We at lunch at the beautiful 2 floored shelter that had plexi-glass windows, a porch and a picnic table that was fairly level. Tom struggled quite a bit on the 2000ft climb, started cramping up and such, so Evan let him use his hiking poles.(Memaw do not read this next paragraph)About a quarter mile from the top of our climb Tom yelled down the trail to us to grab our cameras. When I got up to where Tom was standing, about 20 feet in front of us right in the middle of the trail was a 5ft long Rattle Snake. I took a step towards it and it immediately started to rattle its tail. COOOL!!!!! I pulled out my camera and snapped some pictures. Then I got the great idea of taking a video with my digital camera. So I got this great video of the rattle snake with me trying make enough noise that it would rattle at me... it did. Finally, after the snake hadn't moved from the trail, we decided to take a really wide loop around snake and back to the trail.We made it to the shelter with plenty of time to sit and relax. I was able to finish my book, "The Monkey Wrench Gang", and it was really good, and I very much enjoyed reading it on the trail. We also made a really good dinner consisting of pasta in a broccoli sauce, with chicken and cheese mixed in. Mmmmmmm. We then built a fire and sat until the wind blowing the smoke drove us away.
Date: 2006-05-11
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Thunder Hill Shelter
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: light rain

Hiked with: Tom & EvanWas woken up last night by Tom saying something about mice getting into our food. I turned on my head lamp to see 2 mice running across the ceiling wood beam. Tom then grabbed all our food bags wrapped them in plastic and just put them outside in the rain.Slept in till about 9am today, we only had a little over 5 miles that we could hike today, since we are meeting my dad and sister tomorrow only about 9 miles from where we started today. It was a good day to do short miles, though, it was rainy and foggy almost all day.We got on the trail around 11:30 and everyone was finished by 2. It was a beautiful hike, but for most of it you could see no more than 10ft in front of you due to the fog. I got my feet wet for the first time today, and it was a miserable experience, but I will survive.Once reaching Thunder Hill Shelter I changed into dry clothes, ate lunch and pulled out my sleeping bag. It really isn't that cold out, but the dampness and the wind had been enough to make me shiver really badly. Once in my sleeping bag I felt nice and toasty, and pretty soon fell asleep for almost 3 hours. When I awoke I was happy to find that my feet and hands were now completely dry and no longer pruney. I think Tom and Evan were able to take a nap as well, but they were awake when I woke up.Evan made dinner (a stew of some kind) and Tom some how managed to spill most of his dinner all over his sleeping pad. This was actually fairly amusing to witness, although I tried not to laugh at the time. The temperature has dropped a lot in the last several hours, the rain has stopped and the skies have cleared. Hopefully tomorrow we will have a nice cool sunny day to hike in. I would like to have a good sunshine that will allow me to dry out my socks and shoes. I am also really excited about getting to see my dad and sister, and really look forward to hiking with them.
Date: 2006-05-12
From: Thunder Hill Shelter

To: Marble Spring
Miles today: 7.0

Hiked with: Tom, Evan, Katie (Sister) and my dad.Another morning of sleeping in... and it was wonderful. Only 4 miles to the road where at 2pm we are suppose to meet up with my dad and sister. Ran into The Sandman a couple times this morning and was able to get some good trail news on some hikers behind me. Plus it was good to see that he was still on the trail and doing well.We made it to the meeting location just before 2pm. We then proceeded to wait for the next 3 hours for my dad and Katie to arrive. It was awful, I think Tom, Evan and I all achieved levels of boredom not seen in years. To make matters worse the gnats were so bad that you couldn't just sit down, relax and wait. We therefore ended up wandering up and down this gravel road, just killing time. We each probably walked another 3 miles just from pacing back and forth on the road.When they did finally arrive they could barely recognize me with my facial hair. I think Katie was actually a little scared of me at first as well. While waiting I had heard of a great camp site only 2 miles up the trail so we headed there. Once there Tom got a fire going and Katie pulled 6 huge steaks from her pack. Steaks!!!! She then pulled out seasoned potatoes wrapped in foil... and to top it off my dad brought out a bunch of beers. Natural Ice to be exact (Gotta love the high alcohol content). Needless to say I had an absolutely incredible dinner. And I definitely think all of this qualifies as trail magic. After dinner we sat around the camp fire and my dad asked me an interesting question. "So, what have you learned out here on the trail?" That's a very good question... and I really didn't have an answer, I think I am still figuring that out. So I answered the question like this: "Well, uh, shitting in the woods really sucks." Which is very true... I am not sure how profound that is, but it will have to do for now.Just before bed time Katie told me she had brought my MP3 player and loaded it up with songs.   I was so excited, I could barely contain myself. Music, real music! That I can listen to anywhere. No more of me singing really out of tune songs to myself. Just before climbing into my tent she gave me the MP3 player, and I have been listening to it ever since. On the trail music has played a huge roll for me, when I get into a funk or pissed off mood, music it is my escape. But all I have is this really small catalog of songs stuck in my head that I can only remember a half dozen verses too. My MP3 player opens my brain to a whole other realm of music I had completely forgotten about, and it's pretty amazing. Thank you Katie!And thank you mom for preparing the steaks and potatoes! They were amazingly good!
Date: 2006-05-13
From: Marble Spring

To: 1/2 Mile North of Saltlog Gap
Miles today: 15.4

Hiked with: Tom, Evan, Katie and my dad.Today was a good, solid 15 miles of hiking. It felt good, and I was very impressed at how well my family members handled the hike. 15 miles of hiking with a pack on your back is no easy feat.Some highlights of our hike today: Crossed the James River Foot Bridge, the longest Foot bridge on the AT. Climbed 2400ft in elevation towards the end of the day which lead us to 2 gorgeous overlooks. While getting water for camp Evan had a close encounter with a Rattlesnake.We made camp, built a fire and ate dinner... normal camp stuff. As it got dark, we realized that we got a really good cell phone signal up here so we called my Memaw and Papaw (My Dad's and Tom's parents). We put the phone on speaker and all 5 of us were able to have a great conversation with my Memaw, Aunt Nancy and Aunt Shoe. They all enjoyed hearing about all the flowers that are starting to bloom and about the many different bird calls we have been hearing. We also told my Memaw about the snakes we had seen, but she really didn't want to hear anything having to do with snakes. We were also able to wish Memaw a Happy Mother's Day. We then called my Uncle Mick (My Dad and Tom's brother) and talked to him for about 20 min about where on the trail we have been hiking. I think it is pretty incredible that my entire family is so supportive and interested in my journey. Everyone is so excited by what I am doing out here, and to have them come hike with me for over 50 miles is pretty amazing. I don't know to many people that have the same level of support I have received from my entire family while I am out on the trail. So thank you, family, for being there for me, whether that is just hoping I am well or actually coming on the trail to hike with my for a few days, I appreciate it all.So I keep hearing reports of people that are reading my journal but that are not on my email list as well. If you are reading my journal and would also like to be on my email list please email me at bpstorck@gmail.com and I will add you. My email list is just an email that I sent out about once a week where I check in and let you know I am alive, it also usually corresponds with my Trail Journal being updated as well. If you are interested please let me know.
Date: 2006-05-14
From: 1/2 Mile North of Saltlog Gap

To: US 60
Miles today: 13.1

Hiked with: Tom, Evan, Katie and my DadHappy Mothers Day Mom, Memaw and Grandma.... and every other Mom.Quickly packed up my gear this morning because it was starting to rain. Once on the trail it only rained for about 10 min before stopping. We at a late breakfast and early lunch at the first shelter (about 3 miles up the trail). We thought this shelter would have a good water supply, it had a water supply but I don't consider large stagnant ponds to be good.About halfway through the day I could tell that my family was starting to get really tired. They were all starting to hurt pretty bad, and I could tell Katie was starting to get really grumpy because she was no longer ignoring my sarcastic comments. About 2 miles from the shelter a thunderstorm moved in and it began to pour. Since I knew I would get really hot wearing my rain gear, I opted to just hike on in my normal clothes. This decision left me completely soaked in a matter of minutes. Since it was a cold rain I had to hike as fast as I possibly could to keep warm. I reached the shelter and shockingly almost immediately behind me was the rest of my family. They asked me what I wanted to do and I told them that I am cold and wet and I want to be warm and dry. So we hiked the remaining 2 miles to US 60 (where my Dad and Katie had parked the car). We completed the final 2 miles amazingly fast, with everyone at the car in under 40 min.I was excited to see that my Dad and Katie had driven my car down. It was even more exciting to crank up the heat in my car and drive it to the hotel. On the way to the hotel I did learn something interesting about my dad, he likes some of the songs on the CD mixes I made. Katie and I both found this very odd, because our Dad hasn't liked any new music since like 1985 when the Alan Parsen's Project came out with their latest album. We ended up getting a hotel in Lexington, VA and after one of best and warmest showers on the trail we went out to dinner. Ruby Tuesday for a bacon cheeseburger and then Dairy Queen for a chocolate chip cookiedough blizzard. It was perfect.Once back at the hotel I was able to access the internet via my Dad's laptop and I uploaded 6 trail journal days. I wanted to try and upload some pictures, but I got tired and didn't have enough time. The pictures will have to wait till I go home for a big zero in about 2 weeks.
Date: 2006-05-15
From: US 60

To: Wolf Rocks
Miles today: 11.2

Hiked with: MyselfSo I have 2 big reasons to celebrate today... 1. Today marks exactly 2 months on the trail for me. (YAY!!!) 2. As of today I have hiked more than 800 miles. (YAY!!) 400 miles a month... that ain't bad.Woke up warm and dry today... a grand feeling indeed! My family was all craving a big breakfast (well, I was too) so we went to a pancake house. It was really good. I had 3 pancakes, 3 eggs, 2 pieces of toast, 6 pieces of bacon and some hash browns. Good...My dad, sis and I said good by to Tom and Evan and then went off in search of a laundromat. We found one in Buena Vista (which some how managed to not have a change machine inside), so while my clothes washed I went about organizing my pack. For my food resupply my mom had sent down a small sample of every single snack food known to man, so this was added to complement my dinner and lunch food.My dad and sis dropped me off at the trail around 2:45. We said our goodbyes and I waved goodbye to my car. Then they were gone and I was back to hiking.Hiking felt really good early on so I was able to space out and just hike. That is until I see a Skunk jump out of the bushes only 4 or 5 feet in front of me and take off up the trail an into the woods. This simultaneously scared the crap out of me (I don't want to smell any worse than I already do) and intrigued me enough to reach for my camera, and once at a safe distance, follow it up the trail to take a picture. Unfortunately I was not able to get a picture... oh well. The hiking still went really well even after the Skunk incident, went up and down several mountain peaks including Cold Mountain, made famous (kind of) from the book and the movie by the same name. I was cruisin' along when all of a sudden I see 4 hikers setting up tents along the trail, I almost immediately knew it was the Jersey Boys. We all shook hands and caught up, and I decided to camp with them instead of hiking the 3 extra miles to the shelter. It is great to see these guys again. I haven't seen them since the last day I was at Miss Janet's house.There is a free lunch that is offered by a B&B about 6 miles north of where I am currently camped. So we are going to try to get up and hike the 6 miles by 11am. It is really hard to turn down free lunch.Overall today was a great day of hiking. I really enjoyed hiking alone, it gave me lots of time to think. I know I get lots of time to think out here, but there is just something really great about getting in the zone when I am hiking.
Date: 2006-05-16
From: Wolf Rocks

To: North Ridge of Three Ridges
Miles today: 20.2

Hiked with: Mostly myself, but also the Jersey Boys in the morning.Today was a very uneventful day. Got lots of good hiking in and I did see a Pileated Woodpecker. It had a huge red headdress, looked kind of like Woody the Woodpecker. Very cool.For the first time today I tried eating my dinner at a shelter and then hiked on to find a place to camp. I hiked about 3.5 miles after dinner and found a camp site only yards from a beautiful overlook. I am camping by myself for the second time and I really enjoy the alone time. It is a nice change of pace every once in a while.I am currently about 24 miles south of Waynesboro and the entrance to Shenandoah National Park. I am thinking about trying to do all 24 into town tomorrow. I know I can do it, I am just debating on whether I want to stay over night in town. It will probably be an on the fly decision. I really don't have much to get in Wanyesboro so it should be an in and out town stop... but stopping in town never is just in and out.
Date: 2006-05-17
From: North Ridge of Three Ridges

To: Rockfish Gap, Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Hiked with: Just MeApparently while I was sleeping last night some sort of animal decided my shoe lace looked tasty, because when I woke up I found 4 inches of my shoelace soaked in drool with 6 or 7 chew marks. Luckily I could still tie my shoes and was on the trail by 10am.The first part of my day seemed to go really slow, but after a quick late lunch, I started to feel really good and began to crank out miles. From 3:30 to 8 I was able to complete 14 miles and I even stopped for 45min at a shelter for an early small dinner. Hiking just felt really good, I didn't want to stop. So I just kept hiking until I hit the road to Waynesboro. Hiking has almost become like breathing, it is automatic. I don't really even have to think about it, or pay attention, hiking just happens.Once to the road I needed to hitch hike into town. The third car by stopped to pick me up. Inside were 2 very large black men, the guy in the passenger seat leans out and asks where I am going. I tell him just into town and then he asks "Your not a cop are you?" "Nope""Hop In."He then asks me one of the funniest things I have ever heard. "Your not a hitch hiking negro rapist are you?"I laughed... "What? Uh, I don't think so.""You don't think so? Well we need you to be positive on this one."The two guys drove me to a hotel and then insisted that I take a picture with them. Which was really cool. The guys were really cool but the hotel they dropped me off at was a little scary so I walked down the street to the gas station to get directions. At the station I run into a Trail Angel who offers to drive me to a less seedy hotel.I then took a shower, ordered a large pizza just for me, talked on the phone and watched TV. It was great. I just feel bad that I wasn't able to talk to everyone on the phone that I wanted too. Tim, Jared and Brian I will be calling you, I swear. I miss you guys! (you too Tara!)
Date: 2006-05-18
From: Rockfish Gap, Waynesboro, VA

To: 1/2 Mile North of Sawmill Run Overlook
Miles today: 10.8

Hiked with: Mostly myself, but some with Senator, John and Lilly.For some reason I had a really hard time falling asleep last night. So I only got about 5 hours of sleep before waking up to take advantage of my hotel's continental breakfast. At breakfast I ran into Senator and also John and Lilly. They informed me of where the grocery store and post office are and also told me I could get a ride back to the trail with them at around noon.So I went to Kroger's and picked up a few items, got a great surprise when I went to buy a soda from a machine and 2 came out. Sweet! Also went to the Post Office and got a letter from my Mom with lots of funny jokes in it. It will make for great reading right after I finish typing my journal.Got picked up and dropped off at the Shenandoah National Park entrance station around 1pm. Made it to the first shelter and ran into JayWalker. Talked to him for a bit and then decided to stick around the shelter for a bit, eat my dinner and then hike on later to find a camp site. After eating I hiked on and ran into John and Lilly and hiked with them for a little bit before finding a decent spot to camp.It is a little strange to think about, but I believe that this is my first time in Shenandoah National Park. I lived like an hour and a half from here for almost 10 years, and managed to visit National Parks all over the country, just not the one in my own back yard. Weird! So far it doesn't really seem much different than the rest of the trail, but I have been told that the bears here in the park are pretty fearless so you need to be careful about hanging your food when camping.It is pretty neat, while I have been typing this I have been serenaded by an owl that has been hooting for almost 30 min. Also I have heard the sound of a large animal rustling in the leaves next to my tent. I opened my tent flap to see a deer standing no more than 5 feet from me.
Date: 2006-05-19
From: 1/2 Mile North of Sawmill Run Overlook

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 22.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked with: AM (Myself), PM (Long Haul).A cold windy morning... well actually it was a cold windy day. I kept my long sleeved shirt on all day, when I got hot I would roll up my sleeves... then I would get cold and I would unroll them. Had a deer jump out of the woods no more than 3 feet in front of me. It scared the shit out of me, causing me to lose my balance and fall over. It seems everyone but me has seen a bear, I have even heard about people seeing bobcats, but it is just deer and squirrels for me so far.Hiked with Long Haul for most of the afternoon. I hadn't met him before today so we had lots to talk about. We also filled each other in on news about other hikers that we both know on the trail. Went to a camp ground restaurant for first dinner, and ordered one of the most over priced bacon cheeseburgers, fries and a coke I have ever had. But I did get to eat a second dinner when I got to the shelter for the night so things have a way of working out for the better. I also remembered that I had brownies from my mom buried at the bottom of my food bag, so getting to eat those for desert was a nice surprise.My parents are coming to visit me tomorrow evening and will hike with me for a little bit on Sunday. It will be great to see my mom and I can't wait to see the look on her face when she sees me with my "beard." Plus I am sure my parents will take me out to dinner, which I am really looking forward too. I am gonna try to do another 20 mile day before they meet me some where on Skyline Dr around 7pm.No real insightful thoughts today... However, I am really ready to get to Harpers Ferry and go home for a week. I love the trail, and I love hiking, but a week vacation from my job (hiking) will be wonderful.
Date: 2006-05-20
From: Pinefield Hut

To: Bootens Gap
Miles today: 23.3

Hiked with: Mostly Myself, but late in the afternoon I hiked with Snickers, Coach K and Pondwater.Today was a much warmer day than yesterday. So warm that it was hard to know how much water to carry. It was also a very hard day of hiking. The miles never seemed to come easy, but some how they still slowly stacked up.Later in the afternoon we came to a park camp ground with a store. I was able to buy some icecream and I also called my Dad and found out that my parents would be where we had decided to meet right around 7pm. So I was able to hike another 2.5 miles before meeting up with them.My Mom was definitely shocked by my appearance. She kept commenting on how red my "beard" is. Once we started driving she wouldn't stop bringing up how bad I smelled.
Date: 2006-05-21
From: Bootens Gap

To: Rock Spring Hut
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: few clouds

Hiked with: My Mom and DadAte a big breakfast at Bob Evans with the Parents and then it was back to Shenandoah National Park. My Mom and I started hiking at Bootens Gap and my Dad drove the car about 6 miles down the trail and then walked back to meet us. While hiking with my Mom we saw some gorgeous Yellow Lady Slippers (a type of orchid) and my Mom also told me the names of some of the other flowers I have been seeing along the trail.We made it to the lodge at Big Meadows and ran into 2 of the Jersey Boys, Rad McBadass and Shank. I introduced them to my parents, and then my parents offered them snacks and sodas to which they were delighted to accept. We all sat at the picnic area for about an hour and pigged out on left over pizza, homemade cookies, pudding and a variety of other goodies. I know my parents enjoyed meeting the guys and found them to be very funny... which they are. The Jersey Boys still wanted to get another 12 miles of hiking in, so they got back on the trail before me. I went about packing my bag and resupplied food for about 2.5 days, enough to get me Front Royal, VA. My parents then drove me to the overlook where I needed to get back on the trail. The wind was blowing really hard it was pretty cold so we said quick goodbyes. As I was reaching into the trunk to grab my my bag the wind blew the trunk closed and it smacked me right in the temple, knocking me to the ground. It was really painful, and I quickly had a pretty nasty welt just to the side of my right eye. After regaining my balance I put my pack on and walked off down the trail.Hiking felt really strange, and I had a pretty bad headache so I decided to stop at the first shelter. There is a group of 3 section hikers in the shelter from Philly but that's it. I am hoping to get a good night sleep tonight so I can get up and put in some big miles. Hopefully my headache and the swelling next to my eye will go away tonight as well.