morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-06-26
From: Clarendon Shelter

To: The Inn @ the Long Trail
Miles today: 19.7

Had a 7 mile climb up Killington Mt. today but too foggy, cold, and rainy to see anything. Kind of a miserable day, but it turned around once we got into Killington, VT. We decided to trear ourselves and stay in this awesome Inn tonight. But I digress.I walked to PO and picked up my new shoes (thanks mama) and was eating some snacks she sent too just on the PO floor because I was wet, cold, and exhausted. All the sudden, this super cute girl named Michelle asks me if I need anything, like a coffee or a ride. I was kinda dumbfounded by the offer because it's just not common for attractive people to give smelly hikers rides. I accepted to ride (should've taken her up on the coffee ;]) abd told I needed to go to The Inn @ the Long Trail. While in the car she asked me what I was doing, where I was going, where I had been, etc. She lived here, worked, snowboarded in the winter, and was busy being beautiful the rest of the time. I told her about me snowboard instructing in CO and she was impressed (oh yeah...) then when we got to the Inn where Fancy was, she offered to give me money. Awkwardly I denied bc truthfully I don't need it, but she insisted and said she had some singles around somewhere and spent like 5 minutes fishing $1's out of glove box. I just kinda awkwardly again stood there and took it saying I'd get something to eat. Alas she said she would but had to go wait tables at some restaurant. So this was the story I told Fancy and Orange Lightning inside about the girl that walked in and out of my life that fateful day... Theme for the day is regrets.
Date: 2012-06-27
From: The Inn @ the Long Trail

To: Abandoned House
Miles today: 20.1

Sad to leave the Inn, especially since the weather looked crappy, but it actually cleared up pretty good. Had a nice comp breakfast this morning w/ Orange. Probably won't see him again bc he's zero'ing to wait for Bat and Yappy =[ A nice man named Ron was talking to us during breakfast and offered to drive us to the grocery store. Once there he then pays for a pint of ice cream AND our entire resupply. Both of us. That was like $50, so nice of him! The Trail has seriously restored my faith that there are many good people left in this world. Anyways it was a really pleasant flat hike to where we were going. I found this abandoned house that someone had given up on renovating. But it had a floor and a roof, so I crawled through a window and set up camp leaving a note on the trail for Fancy to come on in. A SoBo showed up before Fancy. His name's Dave but Fancy didn't show up for like another 3 hours. Apparentlt, Ron had bought him a beer or two that morning and he got "held up." Theme is house sitting.
Date: 2012-06-28
From: Abandoned House

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Possibly the greatest day on the Trail yet!!!!! Easy hiking and BEAUTIFUL scenery all day. Passed into New Hampshire today! There was a 5+ mile road walk into Hanover, NH which was really nice. Hanove ris definitely the most hiker-friendly town yet. Free delas for us everywhere. Fre bagel, free pizza, free snickers, etc. And a trail angel named Short 'n' Sweet stopped in her car to talk to me and offered me a place to stay. She said Fancy could stay too, so that's what we'll do tonight! So we walked around Dartmouth College, ate a bunch, and then saw a movie (I saw Brave lol, it was actually ok). After going to a 1/2 half pizza buffet we called Short n Sweet and she picked us up and we headed to her place. She let us have a shower and air mattresses! We also popped Lord of the Rings Fellowship in and fell asleep to an epic quest. Good day. Theme is Trail Magic Overload!!!
Date: 2012-06-29
From: Hanover, NH

To: Fire Wardens Cabin
Miles today: 23.4
Weather: few clouds

That was... a... difficult day... Holy cow, we didn't leave Short's till 12:30 bc the weather was bad and then it cleared up. But she did cook us some killer omelettes. WE resupplied and finally hit the trail. Almost immediately I split off from Fancy once we started hiking bc I was feeling fast for some reason. Met a dude named Eagle Eye who was surpried to "finally meet us, because you and Fancy are kinda legends." Nice. I really pushed in the last 6 miles of the day because I wanted to make this fire tower by the shelter by sunset. Basically ran up this monster of a climb but I did make it and got some amazing pictures. Peepshow is the only one staying tonight. A few thru's named Kittens (funny, epic beard guy), Glide (chick), and Euro (German), were going for a night hike. I hiked 23.4 miles over super rough terrain in in about 7.5 hours. Not too shabby. Theme is beastin' it up.
Date: 2012-06-30
From: Fire Wardens Cabin

To: Jeffers Brook Shelter
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Got up super late today bc Fancy had camped on the ridge a mile or two back so he wasn't there as my alarm. Didn't hit trail till 8:45 am. Pretty hot today, pretty drained from yesterday and I can tell my recovery time from climbs today sucks. There were some great views but you really had to work for them. Tomorrow we enter The Whites and a little apprehensive. So many Dartmouth college kids here on some outdoor club outing. Saw a bear today and went swimming in frigid water! Met back up with Snarf who I haven't seen since NC! When I first met him, he wasn't thru hiking, just out for a month. Then he quit his job and decided to stay out here. He's now hiking with a character named Beowulf who pierces and breaths fire. The Dartmouth kids gave us donuts and marshmallows so they're now cool =] Theme for the day is exhaustion.
Date: 2012-07-01
From: Jeffers Brook Shelter

To: The Woods
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: clear sky

Long day over the hardest terrain in a while! Amazed at how easy it is to jumpo into 3,000 ft climbs. Started the day with Mt. Moosilauke which signifies the begining of the White Mountains. The view was breathtaking and very intimidating knowing that we would be walking over those giants over the next week. Met last night's shelter gang on top of Moosilauke and talked with the first legit SoBo. His name was Fair Child and a cool guy. Lost the group on the way down. Had to go into town and got another lucky hitch by a BEAUTIFUL woman! Her name was Jenny and she trail runs around her for fun. She also enjoys running ultra marathons which can be 30K's, 50K's, and she's also done some 100 mile races. Yeah. She was... fit. Pretty excited that my first day in the Whites was a 20 miler. Everyone has said that 20's in the whites is impossible. So ha! Saw ANOTHER bear by an alpine lake towards the end of the day! Just stealth camping in the woods tonight. Bear count is up to III and the theme is, "You're in bear country!"
Date: 2012-07-02
From: The Woods

To: Galehead Hut
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: light rain

Such a difficult day! Mt Lafayette and Franconian Ridge was epic! Such amazing view above treeline just walking on the spine of this mountain for like 3 miles! Really difficult day though. Instead of shelters and free camping, The Appalachian Mountain (or money) Club has put in these huts that people can pay over a $100 a night to stay in. Now obviously we can't afford that so they say that 2 thru hikers can work for stay and eat the left overs after all the important guests have stuffed themselves. All this does is create competition and turn thru hiker against thru hiker. It's awfully hard to pass up free food though and luckily Galehead Hut is cool and let 7 of us thru hikers sleep inside the hut. The mess hall area though... Talked to a SoBo Robert today for a while, he's staying here. As is Smiley, Kittens, Glide, and Euro. They're cool and we'll be seeing a lot of them. Theme is family reunion.
Date: 2012-07-03
From: Galehead Hut

To: Mizpah Spring Hut
Miles today: 20.9

First easier day in The Whites. Actually had about 6 miles of flat for a change. The terrain here has been SO intense. There's massive rocks that are the trail going STRAIGHT up these mountains. You basically ahave to put the trekking poles away and use your hands and feet to scramble up these huge ascents and descents. It's brutal on the knees. The hut master at Mizpah was a total you know what and almost made all the thru hikers go out into the storm. Finally after some confrontation, he just threw a hissy fit and said whatever. So we slept in the hut unrestfully and got up stupid early to avoid seeing him again. Theme is I hate huts.
Date: 2012-07-04
From: Mizpah Spring Hut

To: Madison Hut
Miles today: 12.3

Happy 4th of July! Unfortuneately it wasn't that happy on the AT. Terrible weather for MT. Washington ascent (Mt washington had the highest recored wind speed on planet earth for a long time) couldn't see a thing and was cold and wet. Got some food at the summit snack bar. Yeah. There's a snack bar you can reach by road or cog way. So the 2nd 6,000 ft climb in 1,800 miles had fat tourists on the top. So we headed down Washington and the weather only got worse, so we rushed to the next hut for shelter. Hoping they wouldn't have a problem with us staying there. The crew hinted that they wanted us to move on, so we said whatever (Me, Fancy, Kittens, Glide, and Euro) and went to set up our tarps on some grass just down the trail. Because now it was dark and the trail was soaking wet, slippery, and just dangerous. No one was going to hike. Of course the hut crew then comes out and tells us we are camping on an "alpine environement" and that the splant life is fragile and that it's illegal to camp here. We basically stood our ground and said we will either camp here or let us stay in the hut. Because it's too dangerous to hike right now, and we're not going anywhere. Basically we just invited ourselves inside and again had to get up at like 5 am to avoid seeing these annoying people in the morning. Theme is, "I am SO ready to be rid of the Whites and these stupid huts!"
Date: 2012-07-05
From: Madison Hut

To: The Woods
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: few clouds

Third 20 miler in the Whites! Feeling super tired but I want to get out of here too bad. The terrain the people here suck. Sorry. Had to get up super early and go hike in just as miserable conditions as yesterday. The weather did eventually clear but this morning was slippery and windy above treeline. Hike with Kittens and Friends for a while. They go fast just like us, that's the first group I've hiked with during the day in months. It was fun. They're getting off at this first road for Gorham, and we're going to the second road to Gorham to get Wildcat Mt out of the way. Last day in the whites and couldn't be more relieved. Just stealth camped in the woods again. The terrain is already leveling out some. Theme is no more scrambles!
Date: 2012-07-06
From: The Woods

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: broken clouds

Nero into Gorham and couldn't be happier. My body needs the rest. We haven't zero's in like 500 miles or something. Had to walk mostly into town but finally a hostel owner gave us a ride. Me and Fancy decided to walk around town and by any food we wanted as a reward. This is the last town with fast food apparently.So we started at Subway, then we went to Mcdonald's, and we ended at Dunkin Donuts. Soon it was time to find a place to sleep and we went looking. We found this big field and apparently it was a small airport for single engines planes. We almost pitched the tarp when we thought we'd check out these old rusty hangers by the grass runway. After finding a way into a couple, we explored this plane and pretended to fly it =] and then found another hanger that had a couch and electricity in it! This would be home for the night. So we slept on the couch and charged our phones. Not before going to the chinese buffet in town of course though.Theme is the perfect stealth site.
Date: 2012-07-07
From: Gorham, NH

To: Full goose Shelter
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: overcast clouds

The mileage felt very wrong today in the guide. Felt more like 24 miles. Terrain wasn't too bad today thank goodness. It's always hard to leave a good town though. We kinda jumped in a car Swiss Miss and Alien were hitching for and got outa town quicker than we expected. Before hitting the trail we said hi to Kittens and Friends at this trailside hostel. Probabaly won't see them again.Passed into Maine today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can now say I've walked from Georgia to Maine, and soon we'll be 2,000 milers! Had to take a nap today though, last night was not a good nights sleep and I felt so much better after. I think that might've been the first nap I've taken during the day on the trail. It was excellent. There are so many SoBo's now! All the shelters are full of them and their massive amounts of gear. Anyways theme is Katahdin or Bust!
Date: 2012-07-08
From: Full goose Shelter

To: Andover Rd
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Pretty difficult day but the weather was incredible. The big mountains are like big rock domes on domes and I'm so glad my shoes are still pretty sticky. Great views today and we're camping in a sweet site by a river with a NoBo sectioner named Jonathan. He's a cool guy but he's gotta skip ahead to meet some friends. He was at the shelter last night as well. Resupply tomorrow in Andover! Theme for day is great weather!
Date: 2012-07-09
From: Andover Rd

To: Andover, ME
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

Really short, easy day. and needin' it too. Got a lucky hitch into town on this really country nowhere road. Once we got to general store I ordered a chili burger with a patty, chili, cheese, and onion rings with fries. Then I got some kettle cooked chips and a candy bar. As we're coming close to the end I've been spending a lot more money but I think my frugal spending earlier is paying off. Finally got back to trail and camped by another river. Another gravity fire tonight and we're cowboy'ing under the stars tonight. Theme is Starry Night!
Date: 2012-07-10
From: Andover, ME

To: Rangely, ME
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: broken clouds

Nice, nice terrain today! Did a lot of miles and it didn't hurt at all. We rolled into another town haha and after a quick-hitch we went to a disappointing, expensive Thai restaurant. I guess it's not my thing, at least Fancy enjoyed himself. So we walked around town looking for a spot to camp and Fancy asked a couple if they knew anywhere to camp. They said it would fine if we camped in their yard and we could watch tv tonight and get a shower as well! It feels nice to do something normal. Like just watch baseball. Theme is town hoppin'.
Date: 2012-07-11
From: Rangely, ME

To: Poplar Ridge Lean-to
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: clear sky

Didn't leave town till super late but got a good resupply at the IGA. Terrain started nice but then had some big climbs. Oh! While walking over some bog logs I tripped over one and scared a moose that was chilling in a pond to the left. It was a bull with a pretty big rack, he swam to the opposite side of us and climbed out. He was huge! That was the only exciting thing for the day. So theme is meese.
Date: 2012-07-12
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to

To: Stratton, ME
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: clear sky

Well we are going into Stratton today and I've heard a lot about this food challenge the White Wolf Inn has. Apparently if one can eat three 1/2 lb burgers (that have a sausage patty, bacon, and mushrooms), and three plates of fries in an hour you get the meal for free. Naturally I had to try it. So after breakfast I only ate a tiny lunch all day, by the time we got to the inn I was ready to eat my foot. They brought all the food out to me and I was optimistic actually. So I dived in and ate two of the burgers in under 20 minutes. I then worked on the fries for a while and started to feel pretty disgusting. Fancy wanted me to try and eat all the fries first so if I couldn't eat the last burger he could. I took one bite of the last burger and had about half a plate of fries left when I tapped out. Fancy gave me $5 for the burger so the meal was now $25. Ouch. I felt crappy from a massive amount of food and the failure. We've decided to get a room at the Inn and it feels great to lay down and watch some tv. Theme for the day is Man vs. Food. Food wins... today.
Date: 2012-07-13
From: Stratton, ME

To: Little Bigelow Lean-to
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: clear sky

Pretty short day but we left Stratton late so we could use all the time in the room we could. Nice hike today with spectacular views. Maine feels like a whole other country with all the lakes, and no people around here. Well, it's official. I am now a 2,000 miler! I've walked that far and I still don't knkow what it means to walk 2,000 miles... Less than 200 miles left and excited for the end. So many SoBos at the shelter, so I'm hammocking. Did get to do a little swimming at these pools called "The Tubs" in front of the shelter. Theme is 2,000 miles down!
Date: 2012-07-14
From: Little Bigelow Lean-to

To: Pleasant Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 27.0
Weather: clear sky

Interesting day today. We cross the Kennebec River which is the only river on the trail that is too dangerous to cross on your own. There is a ferry service that shuttles you across. Now the "ferr" is a dude named Hillbilly Dave who picks you up in a canoe and you help him paddle upstream and across the river. The catch is though, he only is there certain times of the day. So you have to plan around it accordingly. This meant that me and Fancy had to do 20 miles before 4 pm. It wasn't too hard since it's been flat most of the day. I got to the river at 3 and Fancy just before me. Hillbilly Dave told me Fancy had just crossed with Antsy and Cliffhanger and they'd gone into town to get a beer and a burger. I decided to skip and just hiked on to the shelter. Once I got there I noticed there was a beach on a lake just off trail, so I headed over and swam for 1/2 an hour and sat in the sun another half hour. When I was leaving I ran into Antsy and Cliffhanger! Hadn't seen them since NY so it's nice to see we're catching up to our friends finally. Theme is Life's a Beach!
Date: 2012-07-15
From: Pleasant Pond Lean-to

To: Horseshoe Canyon Lean-to
Miles today: 22.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Had our first "real" ford today! IT was only knee deep so I just took off my shoes and socks and walked across. It actually got pretty fast in the middle but it was fun. Well, we've done it! We finally caught up to our old group! Besides the Atlanta Brothers who are on a tight schedule and have to run to Katahdin, everyone was at the shelter last night! Antsy and Cliffhanger stopped just short of the shelter, but Daypack, Whistler, Other Brother, and Gold Bond were there. Other Brother is a really interesting kid. His brother attempted a thru hike some time ago and made it all the way to CT and had to get off trail. Tragically he died once home, so his younger brother is now carrying his ashes from CT to Katahdin, ME! Such an amazing story. Now on a lighter note I just met Gold Bond as well. He's possibly the funniest dude I've met on the trail and we instantly became great friends. I feel like I've known him for years after just a day. Good to see Daypack as always, I've hiked about 700 miles with him. Besides Fancy, he's the longest partner I've had. Theme is, "We're back!"
Date: 2012-07-16
From: Horseshoe Canyon Lean-to

To: Monson, ME
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: few clouds

What a fun day! Well it rained really hard last night but was nice when we left. That unfortunately means the river crossing we have today that's usually ankle deep was now up to my armpits! Met up with Daypack and Whistler at the river and Whistler was already across. I knew if he could make it I could but Daypack was talking about staying this side of the river for the day till it goes down. I knew if we all went he probably would so I jumped in and started. The deepest part, my feet stopped touching for about 5 ft as it pulled me downstream but I quickly got my footing again. I was in and out pretty fast but I'd been pulled about 25 yards downstream. Fancy followed and thankfully so did Daypack. The water was up to Daypack's beard =]We're going into Monson, ME today! This is so exciting because it's our last official town on the trail! I can't believe this thing is finally coming to a close, it feels so weird. Well once in town we've all decided to stay at the Lakeshore House Hostel. This place is great, they have kayaks for the lake, inflatable trampoline, and movies. Not to mention there are like 15 NoBos here which is fun. Went and got some great BBQ and watched Willy Wonka. Good day... Theme is Oregon Trail fording!
Date: 2012-07-17
From: Monson, ME

To: Monson, ME
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Our first zero in like 700 miles. Feels really weird to nero and zero. I'm all antsy to walk but I know I don't have to. Instead me, Gold Bond, and Fancy went and paddled on the lake a lot. Kinda spending a lot of money here but I don't feel bad because I've been so frugal the entire trip, I think the last town deserves a splurge. Ate a whole pizza and an ungodly amount of other stuff today. We start the 100 mile wilderness tomorrow which is basically 100 miles of no resupply points and flat terrain. So flat we can probably do it in 4 days no problem. I'll carry 5 days to be safe, but my pack hasn't been this heavy since Georgia haha. Theme is rest at last, rest at last, thank God all Mighty, we are resting at last!
Date: 2012-07-18
From: Monson, ME

To: Cloud Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: broken clouds

Real easy day, we had such a huge group leaving Monson. I think there were 10 thru hikers taking the hostel's shuttle back to the trail with us. Trail was pretty easy all day and we're going a little longer than the rest of the group. Gold Bond hiked almost all day with me and Fancy which was so much fun to have a new partner but I think he doesn't want to leave the group he's been hiking with for such a long time, so he says he'll probably wait for them tomorrow. Whistler been acting kinda weird, I think he seriously wants this thing to be over. don't get me wrong I am too. I don't actually want to leave the trail, but I just don't exactly want to hike every single day anymore. It's been overdose with hiking, I want to have fun in other ways now if that makes sense.
Date: 2012-07-19
From: Cloud Pond Lean-to

To: Sidney Tappan Campsite
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: broken clouds

Another pretty mellow day. Me and Fancy are wanting to stay with this cool group of people. Unfortunately, about half stopped short today, but Whistler, Gold Bond, and Brother came to this sweet campsite. Made a pretty nice fire tonight, but when it went out we all noticed how incredible the stars were above us and we all just looked up for an hour. Saw shooting stars and a satellite. Probably the 3rd brightest stars of my life!Saw Katahdin for the first time today!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It looks incredible big and beautiful, I'll never be able to fully describe what it's like to see the finish line to a 2,184 mile journey! SO PUMPED!
Date: 2012-07-20
From: Sidney Tappan Campsite

To: Copper Brook Falls Lean-to
Miles today: 17.0

Well we had our last real climb today before Big K. That's weird to think about, no more PUD's... A really chill day, woke up late, climbed White Cap and stared at Katahdin for an hour and a half then went on. Found an AWESOME beach today and took another long break for a swim and some relaxation. That was nice. The shelter tonight is pretty awesome, everyone in the group showed up and there's a great swimming hole right in front of the place. So almost all of us jumped in and went for a VERY chilly swim. Worth it. Saw my first leech today!