morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-06-12
From: Roanoke

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0

It is difficult to say that this concludes my hike. I had intended to hike to Maine but I have decided that home is a good place to be. I left Roanoke at about 9:30 and began driving back towards Austin. It felt odd to be driving instead of walking. The world is now back to that faster pace. Instead of traveling at 2 mph, the world is now moving at 75 mph. But I am glad I am driving rather than flying, it gives me several days to put things in perspective and to reflect upon my journey. I know I will go back and finish this journey, but probably after I finally retire.
From: Footbridge, Sinking Creek, VA 42

To: Terrapin Cabin
Miles today: 0.0

We've had a lovely visit, my family. Aunt Elaine, Uncle David, Cousin Kate and my parents drove/flew in from Texas to spend a few days with me in Appalachia. We rented a little cabin in the woods (with a severe bug problem- this coming who has spent the last two months in the woods) along the Blue Ridge Parkway near Big Island and Glasgow. We did a few section hikes of the AT (Apple Orchard Mountain, James River, McAfee Knob). We took a long, scenic drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive and back down the Shenandoah Valley. The weather was a bit colder than anyone expected, especially the first few days. We sat out on the deck, bundled in every layer of clothing we could get our hands on. We played cards (spades), and the older generation taught the younger generation (Kate & I) how to play 42 (dominos). We laughed a lot, argued a little, and thanked our lucky stars to have each other to create such memories with. I think I have the best family the Universe could conjure up. Uncle David learned the art of trail magic by handing out beers and shuttling hikers. He really upped my "cool" factor. Thanks, Uncle David! Mom and Dad picked up a few hitch-hiking hikers and became trail angels in their own right. Thanks, Mom and Dad! Aunt Elaine and Kate joined me on along the trail to McAfee Knob to guarantee a sunny view from the top (given my track record of missed vistas due to inclement weather, I'm taking every chance I can get so see the "must sees"). Thank you, Aunt Elaine and Kate! I also ate about a pound of Uncle David & Aunt Elaine's famous fudge. My hiker appetite worked in my favor allowing me to eat five times as much of it as I normally do before I started to feel sick. Mmmmm. And there is still plenty bring with me. Jackpot!And all too soon, our time together drew to an end. There's still so much to see, but it will have to wait until the next time. I love you all. Thanks for making the trip. It means the world to me
Date: 2012-12-23
To: The beginning
Miles today: 0.0

As 2012 draws to a close, I find myself surrounded by ever-growing piles of gear, receipts, warranties, how-to-not-die-in-the wilderness books, and homemade alcohol camp stove prototypes. Though the Luddite that I am, I even find myself hen-pecking away at the keypad on my new 'fancy phone', a concession I made to give my husband a bit of peace of mind while I set off on this adventure. Life in our household is soon to be turned on its head yet again, but honestly, that seems to be our normal. My dear, sweet Tom is heading off for a tour in Afghanistan, and in his absence I'm going to take a walk. Tom, this virtual journal is for you, the best partner in crime a girl could ever dream of having.
Date: 2012-12-25
To: Wellesley Island State Park
Miles today: 0.0

The training began today. Tom and I rented a little winter cabin out on Wellesley Island, overlooking the St. Lawrence river, the 1000 Islands, and Canada. It was an opportunity to enjoy the local area and put the new gear to its first real test. Given the low temperatures (14 F), moderate/high winds and snow, I guess you could say that the weather cooperated with our experiment. I slept outside in my new tarp, bivy sack (part of Tom's military issue while mine is still awaiting shipment), sleeping bag, and air mattress. I was pleased to awake toasty warm, tarp still intact. I'm really pleased.Now for the backpack, clothes, boots and hiking poles. I loaded my pack with about 25-30 lbs of random stuff, and I donned the clothes I plan to wear in the AT to make experience as realistic as possible. And we set off. The trail was covered in about 3-4 " of fluffy, dry snow. We followed the water's edge along Eel's Bay, rolling up and down small hills, and skirting through The Narrows. The sky was perfect, the sun shining brightly off snow and icicles off the rocky outcrops. The edges of the lake were solid ice, with ice fishermen out doing what they do. As we passed by a quiet cove, we spooked an osprey out of its nest which spooked a flock of ducks and geese bobbing in the water. On cue they flapped their wings, beating the water and circled overhead until we had passed. As the sun slid lower into the sky, we cut slightly inland. We marveled at the trees downed by local beavers. Not a tree seemed untouched by their teeth. We continued our loop, following cross-country ski trails back to our vehicle. Tom set off to collect firewood, and I continued on foot the 2+ miles back to our cabin. What a lovely Christmas day.What I learned: the boots feel fine, but they definitely need to be waterproofed. The pack, well, I kept forgetting that it was there, which I guess is the most I could hope for. I'm really looking forward to my next outing.
Date: 2013-01-03
To: Airplane over Appalachia
Miles today: 0.0

Tom and I were flying back to northern New York after spending New Year's with friends down in Florida. I had settled into my customary window seat, book in hand. I noticed the sun's tangerine light reflecting off the top of the page and turned in my seat to admire the setting sun and its end-of-the-day finale. The sky was clear and cloudless except for the far horizon that stood defiantly slate-colored against the brilliant salmon above it. A few peaks poked their noses above the slate clouds, I wondered, as I always do when peering out of plane windows, what were the names of those mountains? And then it hit me, those were the Appalachians. Those were the very mountains I had become increasingly obsessed over. Those were the mountains I had been thinking, plotting and planning to spend the greater part of 2013 getting to know intimately well. And those unnamed clusters of lights beneath me were towns whose names I did not yet know, I knew I would come to know in the months ahead. Maybe that would be where I picked up a drop box or bought a new pair of boots. Perhaps it would be where I share a drink with new friends. Perhaps....
Date: 2013-01-10
To: Black River Trail
Miles today: 0.0

Today I was humbled. A few miles from our house, there's a little trail that runs along the Black River. Aptly, the trail is called the Black River Trail. It's a flat, peaceful 3.5 mile one-way out-and-back path. During the non-snowy season, I generally jump on my bike a couple of times a week and cruise down the trail to a little spot alongside the river to do a bit of yoga on the rocks next to the flowing waters. Today, the sun was shining, temperatures were warming. Tomorrow's forecast is rain. So rather than go to the gym and climb aboard the eliptical to nowhere, I decided to load up the new pack, grab my new snowshoes and fill my lungs with fresh air. The thing is, I've only ever snowshoed once before when the snow was perfect and the trail was nicely groomed. Today, well, not so much.I had grand plans of moseying down to the length of the trail, pulling off the snowshoes, and climbing a steep 1 mile hill at the end of the trail. Once I hit the top of the hill, I'd turn around and head back the way I came. In reality, within the first 100 m of the trail, I realized that I would have to amend my plans; I would cut out the hill. Within the first half mile, I amended my plans again; I would turn around at the hour and a half mark to ensure I got back to the car before it got too dark. Snowshoeing was not the easy stroll I had remembered. The trail was packed, lumpy and hole-ridden from cross-country skiers, other snowshoers, and hikers. Sometimes I followed their tracks, sometimes I ventured into the "fluff" which was far more like deep wet slush. The latter was much softer and easier on the ankles and knees than the former, but my legs were soon smoked from the trudging. So I alternated between the two routes. In all honesty though, I loved it. I loved the change of view. I loved the crunching sound. I loved having to stay focused so as not to tweek a knee or ankle. And I loved putting my body to use. But, man, I sure was happy to get those snowshoes off.
Date: 2013-01-20
To: Packing
Miles today: 0.0

I'm finding it difficult not to fall into the trap of "This really might be useful out there," especially when it comes to clothing, more specifically warm clothes. I like to think that I have a pretty high tolerance for misery, but I also know that I can be a pretty crap clothing-packer. I'll pack for a trip, and once I reach my destination, inevitably I think to myself "I must have been drunk when I packed this suitcase/backpack/whatever. What was I thinking?" Usually, it doesn't matter that much when the trip is only a few days and your life/health/extremities aren't potentially at risk. But this whole A.T. thing is a different ball game.Maybe I seem a bit dramatic and paranoid, but there is reasoning behind this. In 2007, for my 30th birthday I told my husband that I wanted to hike to the top of Kilimanjaro. This had been a dream of mine for years, and it was in our marriage contract that this would happen. And so it did. But the whole trip was a disaster. We didn't get shot, stabbed or food poisoning, but other than that it happened (robbed, abandoned (twice), swindled, lied to, mis-kitted, ran out of food (kerosene got poured all over our food rendering it inedible), and ultimately lost our luggage, etc.). It made for a fantastic story later, but at the time it was one train wreck after another. Most of the situations were out of our control to a great extent, but one thing that was in my control and that I really dropped the ball on was my own proper clothing choices for the hike up Kilimanjaro. At the lower elevations, clothing choice didn't matter that greatly. But once we were at the higher elevations, getting ready to make the final ascent I realized that a flimsy wind-breaker over a fleece probably was not the place to cut corners. And proper gloves would have been nice, too. Oh yeah, and something more than light tights under my pants would have been a good call. But it's what I had, and it's what I used. My water tube froze within a half an hour on the 5 hr trek (so no water), as did my last granola bar (As God as my witness, I will never be caught on a trail without at least a half dozen Snickers bars again). In short, it sucked. We got to the top, and I cried, and I told Tom that I wanted to go home. It was all he could do to get me to pose for a photo (I can be a bit pig-headed and stubborn and a even a smidge irrational at times). I finally conceded (which I'm soooo grateful to him, because could you imagine making it all that way and not?!), but the photo says it all. So as I look at the photo today, and I look at the weather outside and the forecast (-5F!!!!), it's hard NOT to pack three sets of everything. Just in case...
Date: 2013-02-10
To: Preparations
Miles today: 0.0

It's been awhile since I updated my journal, so I thought I would take this beautiful snowy post-Nemo Sunday to play catch up. Dare I say, I think I have my gear sorted? I still need to put together a little wilderness sewing kit (to patch and mend my gear as needed) and little wilderness first-aid kit (to patch and mend my body as needed), but other than that I think the gear part is done. I can't seem to stop buying socks though. I love the feel of new socks. I used to treat myself to a pair of new socks before marathons and triathlons, because I knew when I was out there on the course and my body was screaming obscenities at me, I could pacify myself with the thought, "Yeah, it sucks, but you're wearing brand new socks!" Maybe I'm simple, maybe I'm bizarre, but socks seemed to lift my spirits. So a new-ish pair of socks (seriously, I don't plan to have a new pair of socks for each day on the trail but maybe every other mail drop?) will serve as my comfort item. Operation Food Prep is also complete. I spent the greater part of January and beginning of February cooking, dehydrating and vacuum-sealing 130 meals. I'd like to ensure that I have one good, warm meal a day in addition to whatever food rations I amass in towns. I'm also hoping to sweet-talk a friend or family member into whipping up a batch of granola and send out to me on the trail (I have one of the BEST granola recipes that I almost always keep on hand. Not only is it our normal breakfast, but Tom and I would drag it along with us to whatever races we were doing to have as the pre-race meal. It's hardy enough to keep you moving over a 26-mile course, so I'm guessing it will make a great A.T. breakfast as well). In fact, I'm making a batch of it today to send to Tom in Afghanistan. It may sound corny, but I draw solace from knowing that in some small way we can have breakfast together¢¦.The physical training is going pretty well. I¢ve been out snowshoeing (with far more success than last time) and hiking a few times. I¢ve also been doing yoga a few times a week and hitting the pool at the local YMCA. I¢ve been shoveling a lot of snow (the snow blower broke down a day or so after Tom left. Classic, right?). But the bulk of my training has been aboard the YMCA¢s ever-dreaded treadmill and Stairmaster. I put on my hiking boots and occasionally load up the pack and set off for hours on these mentally torturous machines. I¢m far more up-to-date on reality television than I¢ve ever wanted to be. I¢ve also taken to bringing a pocket full of chocolates with me to the gym to snack on while I¢m trudging away. And let me tell you, it feels weird eating chocolate at the gym. In these cases, I¢m not very good at rationing myself and instead eat the chocolates one after the other. They are usually all gone within the first 20 minutes, and then for the next 2+ hrs I¢m left to stare at the half-dozen or so little balled-up foil wrappers sitting in front of me on the book-lip of the torture machine of choice. Oh, I can¢t wait to be on the trail for real¢¦..
Date: 2013-02-13
To: Mail drop nirvana
Miles today: 0.0

Finally I have been sitting down, trying to figure out where to send my mail drops. It's far more complicated than I imagined, mainly because there are far more options that I expected. There seems to be no end of places to resupply, which I guess is the far lesser of the two evils (the other being very limited options of where to resupply). I had really wanted to avoid having firm idea of where I would lay my head at night; I savoured the idea moseying along at whatever pace my legs might dictate. And I guess I still can for the most part. But throwing darts randomly at a calendar won't really work either. So plan I must! I have two open spreadsheets running (one strictly for mail drops, the other for daily mileage and sleeping location guess-timations). I realized straight away that you couldn't really address the former without knowing the latter. So the kitchen island is covered in guide books, spreadsheet printouts, highlighters, pencils, calculators and the telephone because the damn telemarketers won't stop calling. One dared to call at 8:47 last night. I asked him if he realized what time it was, and he said "Um, no...But this will only take a moment!" I gave him a piece of my mind. It felt good. But of course, I have to answer because it might be Tom... I think that's another reason I've become so short with them- annoyance, as well as disappointment. With that combination, they really don't have a snowball's chance in hell! So with telemarketers in tow, the planning continues.
Date: 2013-02-27
To: Miscellany
Miles today: 0.0

I took a trip up the AT yesterday. Not physically, obviously, but audibly. After a couple of days in front of the computer, I calculated where best to send the mail drops (or as of right now where I think is best to send them, if I¢m right or not is yet to be determined). With only a few exceptions, I¢m going to send them to hotels and hostels. As per every how-to/guidebook I¢ve read, I called ahead to make sure this was okay with the proprietor. The first call was to Georgia; a nice young man with a charming Georgia twang fielded the call. Every sentence either began or ended with ¢ma¢am.¢ It didn¢t make me feel old or uncomfortable, in fact, it was just the opposite. It made me feel at home. Growing up in Texas, ¢sir¢ and ¢ma¢am¢ are as natural of parts of speech for me as ¢please¢ and ¢thank you.¢ I smiled. The next call went to North Carolina; this time a friendly, polite soft-spoken Carolina drawl greeted me, and assured me my package would be welcome there. Tennessee came next, and the voice took me back to Tom and I¢s time stationed at Fort Campbell in Clarksville, TN- smooth, mellow, fluid. Then Virginia, I don¢t know how to describe the accent well, but it was distinct from the others. The lady offered advice, encouragement- walk one day at a time, not more. I spoke with another lovely lady in Harper¢s Ferry; you could feel the woods and hills in her voice. She was so incredibly accommodating; I wanted to hug her through the phone. The next call was to New York, but all I got was an answering machine. Even over the machine, I heard the back-of-the-throat-tightened voice and knew I was much closer to my current neck-of-the woods. I got another answering machine when I called Maine; that hostel was still closed for the season, but there was no doubt I wasn¢t in New York anymore. The voice was in the top of the mouth. Yes! I was so close to Katahdin!The funny thing is, that each time I made a call and heard the voice greeting me on the other side, I was surprised to hear the notable difference in accent and dialect. I¢m not sure I would have pick up on it so distinctly while I was out on the trail. Foot speed is so much slower than calling my way up the East Coast. I also felt a surge of hope. Hope that I would actually get to meet those voices in person and put a face with them.
Date: 2013-03-01
To: Evergreen, Texas
Miles today: 0.0

Oh my. It just got real. I'm officially en route. The Chipotle burrito in my stomach is doing somersaults . I'm heading home to Texas this evening with no less than 50lbs of dehydrated meals in-tow. Did I remember everything? The hell if I know. A Chinese philosopher once said, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and a bus, and a plane, and a car, and another plane, and another car." Or something like that.
Date: 2013-03-14
To: The End of Chapter 1
Miles today: 0.0

The "Preparation" chapter of this journal is coming to an end. Tomorrow the next chapter begins. I've been in north Georgia for the past week, visiting family, making last minute preparations, and generally fattening up. The clothes are getting tight and I'm just about out toothpaste and face-cream, so it must be time to go. I'm pleased to say, I'm starting this endeavor with a buoyant heart. My visit to Georgia has been so fulfilling. I've had the golden opportunity of getting to see a friend whom I hadn't seen in a decade. The conversation flowed as if I had seen her last week. I also spent true quality time with my in-laws. Usually we fly past each other around the holidays. Rarely, if ever, have we had the chance to really "talk." This time we did. It seemed that our relationship flourished more in the past week than in the previous decade. I've yet to set foot on the AT, and I already feel as if I've gained something tremendous- family that I share much stronger ties with than just a common last name. Steve, Elaine, Mike, Anne, Ellie, and Torie, thank you for making me feel a part of you!
Date: 2013-03-15
From: Amicalola Falls

To: Springer Mountain shelter
Miles today: 0.2
Weather: clear sky

Day 1Well, I'm pleased to announce that I made it to Springer Mountain. It was a beautiful trail up. I followed a cascading creek for the first mile, going up, up, up to the top of the falls. I turned into the woods, and watched the morning awaken. The woods still seemed to rest in its winter slumber. The trail was scattered with impish roots and rocks. It wound and curved its way up the hills. The trees seemed to be in competition to see who could come up with the most creative growing pattern. Some had noses, some had bent twisted arms, some had legs, some had giant bumps, some had hidey holes. Curious, indeed.Tonight I'm camping out, though there is plenty of space available. I just couldn't help myself.
Date: 2013-03-25
From: Laney Residence

To: Neels Gap
Miles today: 0.0

After six days off the trail, I'm happy to announce that I'm heading back out today! Thank you to everyone who has signed the guestbook, emailed, called and/or facebooked me. Its such a spirit-lifter to know that I have so many well-wishes headed my way. I appreciate and savour them all.It took three different antibiotics, but the toes are back in working order. I'm purposefully hitting the trail later in the day to help reign in the miles. I know myself well enough to know that given the chance to hike 6 miles or 12 miles, I'd choose 12. But I want to ease back into the mileage to ensure that the toes, all 10 of them, make it to Maine. So a noon start and 6 miles it is!The time off has allowed me to readjust some of my gear. New boots were the biggest change. I picked up some Montrail mesh waterproof high-top hiking boots in Dahlonega. They are the ugliest shoes I think I've ever worn, but if they keep me out of the emergency room then we'll get along just fine. Dahlonega was hosting a Trail Fest this last weekend, so I was able to look at different gear, speak with former thru-hikers, and be grateful I wasn't camping in the terrible weather (the Groundhog was dead wrong). I got seduced by the new Sierra Design 12F waterproof down sleeping bag, and my parents-in-law so generously indulged me. I've decided to dump my water filter. Given the amount of rain, I don't think water sources will be an issue. I also pulled out a few sentimental items. I'll carry them in my heart rather than on my back (Anne-Sophie, the dream catcher is still going with me!).I must admit, I'm excited to get back out there, but I'm also more concerned-nervous. Being taken down so, so early on in the trail took a hearty swipe at my ego and confidence. A gentleman on the thru-hiker's panel in Dahlonega advised to stay humble to the trail. I think that will become my new mantra.