morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-03-29
To: Home Support
Miles today: 0.0

HiOnly a few more days until I hit the trail. Over the past few weeks the support I have received from family, friends and colleagues has been amazing. Not a single person has been negative about my hike and everyone has wished me a happy and safe journey.I would especially like to thank my boyfriend pictured above. He is an incredible person and supports my decsion to persue this goal. Having him support my decsion makes it easier to hike to Maine.Can't wait to be standing on Springer and walking North.
Date: 2010-04-01
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.8
Weather: clear sky

After a fun night sitting around a fire at the hiker hostel the day started with a great breakfast cooked by Leight. After breakfast Josh shuttled 11 hikers up the forest service road to the parking lot .9 miles from Springer. We had fun on the ride up Springer joking about which two out of the eleven of us who been the ones to quit at Neel's gap. The statistics say that 20% of the people who start a thru hike will quit after the first 30 miles at Neel's gap. After a quick hike up we were at the summit and meet Many Sleeps who is collecting data for the ATC and recorded all of our names, ages, gender and home state or province in my case. Our shuttle group hung out enjoying the view and taking photos at the plaque and then the hike began. Jason and I hiked together back down to the parking lot and I enjoyed getting to know him a little. Jason and I continued hiking together from the parking lot and Brian also joined us. The three of us hiked down the mountain to Stover Creek which was fun as the guys had some interesting stories to share. The hike down to Stover crrek was very scenic as the trail passed under lots of pine trees and the trail was covered in them which gave the forest a nice pine smell. The weather today was clear, sunny and farily warm and as the day progressed it got failry hot. Jason, Brain and I hiked to the falls and decided to stop for lunch. We enjoyed our scenic view of the falls during lunch and then we hiked on towards our destination for the night. Once we left teh falls we began to climb a mountain which reminded me of how hard the hiking is in GA and also how out of shape I am. I had to stop several times during the climb to catch my breath and rest. Once we reached the top we followed the ridge around the mountain and arrived at the shelter. There are lots of people here tonight including 9 of us from the hostel last night. Here tonight is Jason, Brian, Gingersnap, Orange Moon, Mayhem and Madness, Thomas, Mark, Glenn, Jeff and Dave and also a few others who's names I didn't catch. We had a good time sitting around the shelter chatting until 8ish then we all called it a night. For the most part I felt pretty good today although a tendion behind my right knee is hurting a bit. I was a little worried it would bother me hiking but I am hoping it is nothing serious. I guess time will tell. Well time for bed.Good Night from the AT.
Date: 2010-04-02
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: clear sky

I feel asleep fairly quickly last night but was soon awoken by the sound of explosions and gunfire. I guess the Army Rangers were out doing some training last night. I tossed and turned for the majority of the night as per normal my first few weeks sleeping in the woods. I woke up around 6 ish but it was still dark out so I hung out in my sleeping bag until light. Once dawn had broken I was up and on the trail by 8ish after a quick cup of coffee. I decided to head out on my own this morning and to take it easy so I could enjoy the scenary and forest. I hiked alone for about an hour and was soon leap frogged by Orange Moon and Ginger Snap. Not to long after that Jeff also caught up and a girls who's name I don't know also passed me as I was taking a break near the top of Sassafras mountain.The climb up Sassafras was not to bad and I enjoyed a boots off break at a view point near the top of the mountain. After my break I finished the climb up Sasafras and soon meet Maggie the unknown girl who has passed me earlier. I decided to hike with Maggie for a few hours so I could get to know her. She's from Virgina and has a degree on Horticulture so she helped me identify lots of the trees and a few of the wildflowers we saw on the trail. One of the wildflowers is a small white flower with a yellow center that I thought were daisies but Maggie let me know they were called blood root. There are called blood root because the liguid in there stems is red. I also learnt how to identify mountain laurel which is supposed to be beautiful when it's in bloom. Unfortantely it's not in bloom yet. After a hew hours of hiking Maggie and I met up with the rest of the gang at Justus Creek were everyone was taking a break beside the nice cool creek. Did I mention it is hot out, real hot. After a nice break at the creek we decided to hike the last mile to the shelter and arrived fairly earlier around 1:30 ish but decided to stay instead of trying to push for more miles this early in the hike. All of the hikers from last night also decided to stay at the shelter and everyone has a fun afternoon hanging out and chatting. Pretty much the same crew I started with at the hostel are here plus a few others who I haven't meet yet. The only one from our orginal 11 who isn't here is Glen who decided to hike a few more miles today. From the sounds of it our orginal crew will split up tomorrow as Mark and Jason are going to try to make it to Neel's gap and the rest of the group is headed to Slaughter Creek campsite at the base of Blood Mountain. As for me I have not decided where I want to stay tomorrow night instead I want to see how the day goes and enjoy the hike.Good Night from the AT.
Date: 2010-04-03
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Slaughter Creek Campsite
Miles today: 12.4

I slept better last night than the night before but I was still awake at 4am. I guess my body is still not used to going to bed as soon as it gets dark also known as hiker midnight. I started the day fairly early and was on the trail around 7:45 as I wanted to try to hike 12 miles to the base of Blood Mountain. I started hiking with Maggie and as we hiked we got to know each other better. She is a pretty cool chick and has already had some neat life experiences. Maggie and I hiked down to a gap and then climbed to the peak of Wildcat Mountain. There was a very nice view of the north GA country side from the top and the weather was again clear and sunny with a cool breeze. The weather gods have certainly been good to me the past three days, nothing but clear and sunny skies. Maggie and I parted ways at the top of Wildcat Mountain as she needed to make some phone calls home.As I left Wildcat I followed a ridge and descended into Woody Gap where there is a road an parking lot. There were several cars in the lot and lots of day hikers around. At the gap I meet up with Dave who was just heading back on the trail. As I kined out and up Big Cedar Mountain I met up with a day hiker Lisa who was very friendly so we hiked together for the next hour and had a great time chatting. Lisa told me about a lot of really cool places her and her husband had visited over the years. Lisa also gave me a powdered vegan drink mix that was developed by a world class triathalte and made in Canada. Thank for the trail magic Lisa. After parting ways with Lisa I hiked down to Docherty Lake trail and meet up with Dave again. I decided to stop for a break and try the vegan drink mix, it wasn't to bad but it woould take a bit to get used to the taste. Dave and I left Dockery Lake trail together and ended up hiking together for the rest of the afternoon. I had a good time chatting with Dave and getting to know him better. He is a great guy who is hiking the AT for charity. Check out his journal and donate some money, it's under Shovelhead.The hike this afternoon involved a fair amount of climbing and I was pretty tired and happy when we reached camp. I am not sure what has happened to the group of about 20 hikers who where at Gooch last night. I know a few pushed on to Neel's gap but I haven't seen the rest of them. Either way I will probably see everyone at Neel's tomorrow. I am really looking forward to a shower and laundry and some resupply and then I will hike a few more miles in the afternoon.Goodnight from the AT.
Date: 2010-04-04
From: Slaughter Creek Campsite

To: Bags Creek Gap
Miles today: 8.0

The day started a little earlier than usual as I wanted to get to Neels Gap early so I could do laundry, shower and resupply and still hike another 5 miles. I was on the trail by 7 and started the hike up Blood Mountain which was nice with all the switchbacks. Near the top of the mountain there are lots of rhodundrums
Date: 2010-04-09
From: Hiawassee

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: clear sky

After a great zero day hanging out with the Montana girls we all hit the trail at 9:30. Since the storm rolled through the temperature has dropped and it was a beautiful day to be hiking. As per normal there is a descent climb when leaving a town and leaving Hiawasee was no different. The climb seemed especially difficult since we are all carrying 6 days of food enough to get us to the NOC without stopping in Franklin. The days hike consisted of climbs, descents and some ridge walking, repeat until we reached the GA/NC state line. We had a small celebration at the state line and then moved on to Bly Gap for lunch. NC then welcomed us with two incredibly difficult climbs which both seemed to go straight up without and switchbacks. At the top of the second climb there was a nice view of the surrounding mountains. A few more miles of hiking and we arrived at Muskrat Creek Shelter and discovered that the Montanta girls had decided to hike a few more miles and not spend the night at the shelter. Turtle Dove and I decided to call it quits for the day and spend the night at the shelter. Soon Spaz a southbound thru hiker from Quebec showed up and he entertained us with trail stories. Spaz started hiking from Quebec and is planning to continue his hike all the way to the Florida Keys. Turtle Dove and I had fun talking with Spaz and soon a bunch of guys I had not meet yet showed up at the shelter. The new guys include One Life, Boomer, Laid Back, Trashman and Freight Train. Mayhem and Madness also showed up along with One Life Elder. We had a fun night getting to know the new guys.
Date: 2010-04-10
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Carter Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Sorry folks, pocketmail is out of business so a few of my enteries are on my pocketmail being sent back home. I had intended to use pocketmail to update my journal so now my journal entries will either be entered when I am in a town with Internet or mailed home.After a chili night, Turtle Dove and I were back on the trail early around 8 ish. I decided to try something new for breakfast, granola with powdered milk, not bad but when it's cold out not the best idea. I wanted to get moving as quick as possible this morning due to the temperature so left camp as soon a possible. The hike this morning was fairly easy and beautiful as the trail was surrounded by lots of rhodundrums, my favourite scenary to hike through. We hiked over a small mountain and then descended into a gap where we found trail magic. Former 2002 thru hikers Red Truck and Green Truck had a tent setup and were cooking up cheesey eggs with hasbrowns, sausages and biscuits. They also had coffee, OJ, snacks and gatorade for all the hikers. Most of the hikers we stayed with at the shelter last night showed up and everyone enjoyed a second breakfast. Thanks Red Truck and Green Truck. After the trail magic we all climbed Standing Indian Mountain which wasn't as bad as the profile showed since there were switchbacks up the entire 2 mile climb. At the top of the climb I took a break with Boomer and One Life and then hiked the rest of the way to the shelter with them. Boomer is a cool guy from Australia and One Life is from Texas. One Life is hiking for charity so check out his journal. I felt pretty good hiking today except during the last 2 miles my ankle started to hurt which I discovered is a hot spot. I have not been trying my boots very tight due to the shin splits I had earlier and I think this has caused a hot spot. Can't win I guess, shin splints or hot spots. I think it's a Vitamin I night.
Date: 2010-04-11
From: Carter Gap Shelter

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: clear sky

Spent last night camping with Turtle Dove, Trashman, Boomer, Laid Back, One Life and Freight Train. Finally played some dice with Laid Back and Turtle Dove. Laid Back call the game Hot Dice. Slept OK last night and got another early start on the trail around 8 ish. Fairly easy walking this morning from Carter Gap Shelter to Betty Creek Gap where we started to climb for 4 miles. After a few miles we started the hike up Albert Mountain which was fun but challenging with a pack on. At time I had to put away my poles and use my hand to pull myself up and over the rocks. Fun times, I really enjoyed the hike up to the tower. The views on top of Albert were fantastic as it was another beautiful sunny day. Turtle Dove and I took a nice long break with Laid Back, Trashman, Boomer, One Life and Freight Train while we all took in the views of the mountains. We had a blast during the break as the 5 guys are always telling jokes and laughing they also like to sing songs that they have modified the words to. The favourite song at the moment seems to be a song I don't know the name of but the main words are There is no sunshine when you are gone and they insert someone's name into the song. After the break on Albert Mountain we had 6 more miles to hike to reach the shelter and they were fairly easy miles with a mostly level grade which is very unusual for the AT. Although the miles were easy I felt tired this afternoon and my left heel is still bothering me. I have developed a hot spot which I covered with moleskin today but it my heel still hurts after 10 miles of hiking. The gang decided not to camp at the shelter as there were no tent spots so we hiked .10 of a mile further down the trail and found a nice spot to camp near a road. I normally don't camp near roads but I figured I would be safe camping with 5 guys. Milestone today passed the 100 mile mark. I am looking forward to the Smokies in another week or so and then Hot Springs.
Date: 2010-04-12
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap Franklin
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: clear sky

Fun night camping with the guys Laid Back, One Life, Trashman, Boomer, Freight Train and Turtle Dove. Up early and hiked down to Winding Stair Gap. Turtle Dove and I had full intentions of hiking past Franklin but on the way to the gap we decided to cut the day short and go into Franklin for the night. Who can resist the lure of cheeseburgers and ice cream. When we arrived at the gap the shortbus and Ron Haven was waiting there to pick up hikers. Ron is quite the guy, he entertained us with stories as we drove into Franklin. The seven of us all stayed at the same motel and had fun hanging out all day and then going out to dinner at Cody's Roadhouse. Trashman's birthday is on the 15th so we told the staff and he was suprised with a birthday sundae. It was fun to celebrate his 69th birthday while Boomer and Freight Train were still around.
Date: 2010-04-13
From: Winding Stair Gap Franklin

To: Wayah Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

Started the hike out of Franklin at 9:30 ish minus Boomer and Freight Train. Both of them have Dr. appointments today to find out about their foot problems. The hike today consisted of mostly climbing up hill and ended up being a very tiring day on the trail. By the time I reached Wayah Bald I was ready for the day to be over. The views on top of Wayah were outstanding and we could see many of the mountains we had hiked over in the days prior. We had our first campfire tonight thanks to O and had a blast hanging around the fire talking. Trashman told us one of his top 5 stories and as always One Life entertained us with his humour.Funny part of the day when Trashman was hiking up to Wayah Bald going up a steep incline with his head down he walked into a log that was across the trail. It struck him in his head and knocked him off his feet. At first it wasn't funny as we thought he was seriously hurt but after we found out he was ok, One Life couldn't stop laughing for the next 20 mins. Trashman is a-ok.
Date: 2010-04-14
From: Wayah Shelter

To: NOC
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: clear sky

Interesting day of hiking. Our gang decided this morning that we should hike to the NOC for dinner instead of staying at the A. Rufus Morgan shelter .8 miles from NOC. There were a couple of tough climbs this morning: Cooper Ridge Bald and Wesser Bald. We managed to hike 9 miles to the top of Wesser Ridge Bald by noon then we hung out at the fire tower for lunch. After lunch we started the 6 mile hike to NOC. I didn't look at the profile map and thought the hike was all downhill for the next 6 miles so I decided not to fill up on water. Big mistake. I left Wesser Bald with about 500 ml of water and the first 2 miles of hiking was not downhill instead up and down many short steep inclines. It was also a very hot afternoon so I was shortly out of water. Needless to say the next 3 miles of hiking was not enjoyable and I kept hoping a spring was around the next bend in the trail. No such luck and I didn't find any water until we reached the shelter .8 miles from NOC. I was a pretty happy hiker when I reached the stream and I found out I was not the only one to make the same mistake. After a nice break at the stream we hiked into the NOC where we stopped for the night and enjoyed a great dinner at the Rivers End restaurant. Tonight we are camped in tent city. The life of a thru hiker rocks.
Date: 2010-04-15
From: NOC

To: Locust Cove Gap
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: clear sky

Today is Trashman's Birthday. We started the day with breakfast at NOC and then had to wait for the store to open so we could resupply. Soon after resupplying Turtle Dove told me she was getting off the trail and staying at the NOC for the night. To say the least I was shocked as she had not mentioned anything in the days prior about leaving the trail. I was sad to hear the news and I was looking forward to hiking with her all the way to Virgina. After I heard the news I wanted to stay at NOC and hang out with her for the day but I needed to press on as my goal is to make it all the way. I am pretty sure Turtle Dove understands that I needed to hike and she is going to cheer me on all the way. Sad to say goodbye but everyone must HYOH. The 8 mile climb uo to Cheoah Bald was challenging but the view for the bald was worth the climb up. After a quick descent I found our campsite for the night. It was a little different not hiking with Turtle Dove but I guess that's part of life on the trail. A southbounder who started in 09 came into camp and decided to stop for the night. It was fun to talk to a southbounder who is almost finished the trail.
Date: 2010-04-16
From: Locust Cove Gap

To: Cable Cap Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: few clouds

Not much to report today. Hiked to Cody Cap for lunch where we found Slightly Inappropriate and Hardboiled hanging out at their campsite with Slightly Inappropriate's girlfriend. Nice chat with them then we hiked the remaining 3 miles to the shelter where we camped for the night. We arrived pretty early at the shelter around 3 ish and we enjoyed a nice relaxing afternoon. Lately we have been hiking around 11 - 12 miles per day. I am usually on the trail by 8 and done hiking the miles by 3 or 4. After reaching Hot Springs I think I need to increase my mileage and hike more hours per day.Only 7 miles to Fontana Dam tomorrow for showers, laundry and a hotel bed.
Date: 2010-04-17
From: Cable Cap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam Shelter
Miles today: 6.6
Weather: broken clouds

On the trail and hiking by 7 am. It's amazing how the lure of a shower, laundry and town food can get you out of the sleeping bag and moving early. Only 6.6 miles to hike to town. I was under the impression all of the hiking was down to Fontana but I have found out the trail is never all down hill. After a few tough miles the trail did start downhill and we were in Fontana Dam by 9:00. Shuttle pickup took us strait to the lodge for breakfast - didn't even shower first. While we were waiting for the shuttle we met a triple crown hiker named Greyhound. Greyhound came into Fontana and had breakfast with us which was very cool as it was fun to talk to a triple crowner about hiking all three trails. The usual town stuff ensued and we had fun hanging out on the porch in front of the general store talking to all the thru hikers in town.
Date: 2010-04-18
From: Fontana Dam Shelter

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Decided to zero with the guys today to give my body a rest before the hike through the Smokies. Laid Back and I met up with Madness and Mayhem on our way to the general store and it was fun to catch up on trail news since we hadn't seen them in a few days. Pretty boring day in Fontana until we were asked if we would give a talk to a group of people about thru hiking. The deal was we would talk about our experience on the trail in exchange for a dinner at the lodge. We quickly agreed although I don't like public speaking and when the time came to get up in front of the group I was pretty nervous. Thankfully all four of us (Trash Man, Laid Back, One Life and me) were giving the presentation so I didn't have to say much as Trash Man and One Life are pretty outgoing. The program started at 7p and we talked to the group for about an hour and it turned out to be lots of fun. After the talk I met a gentleman in the audience who is a self published author and he wanted to give me his book to take on my travels. Thanks for the book Don. I also met Byron who was interested in hiking up to Shuckstack with us the next day. What started as a boring day in Fontana Dam turned into a very interesting and enjoyable experience.
Date: 2010-04-19
From: Fontana Dam Marina

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The day started out with another great breakfast at the lodge and then trail magic happened. Byron from last night decided that he Tammy and Jenny would hike with us from Fontana Dam up to Shuckstack mountain. Byron dropped us off at the marina so we could slackpack the few miles from the marina to the dam. My first slackpack experience of this hike and one really can fly down the trail without a pack on. It feels very freeing to be packless. After a few quick miles we met Byron, Tammy and Jenny at the entrance to the Smokies. As we were crossing the dam we also met Crafty, Deets, Slow Go and Hazard. We started the uphil climb into the Smokies and after a few hours of climbing we arrived at the turn off to the Shuckstack fire tower. This time I decided to hike up to the fire tower and check out the view. On top of the tower Bryron pointed out that the lake looks like an eagle and it used to be called Eagle Creek. The tower felt pretty rickety going up the stairs but I made it up and down and conquered my small fear of heights. We said goodbye to Bryon, Tammy and Jenny and continued our climb into the Smokies. One of the highlights of the afternoon was the fields of little wildflowers that covered the ground as we hiked to the first shelter in the Smokies. We arrived at Mollies Ridge shelter and although it was our destination for the day we decided to push on to the next shelter another 2.5 miles away. It was an easy walk from Mollies Ridge shelter to Russel Field shelter and tonight I will have my first shelter experience of the hike as you are not allowed to tent in the Smokies. Also here tonight are Shovel, Krispy Critter, Trashman, Laid Back and 3 other people who I don't know yet. Well I am off to bed and just realized I left my ear plugs in Franklin....