morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2017-06-07
From: PA 94

To: Scott Farm
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: clear sky

We had arranged a 19 mile slackpack (hike with day hike items vs full pack) for today with Cindy at the Holly Inn. We did not know it had rained most of the night until we opened the door to our room. Good call to stay at the Holly Inn or we would have been packing up a bunch of wet gear and spending most of the afternoon drying it out. Cindy dropped us off at PA 94 at 7:30 am where she had picked us up yesterday evening. We got out in the rain and started hiking. The plan was for Cindy to pick us at Scott Farm north of Carlisle, PA around 5 pm. The rained stopped around 9 am and we shed our rain gear. The first 3 miles were ascending and we had a couple of rock mazes to pick our way through. This is foreshadowing for the 154 miles of rocks in Northern PA that will start tomorrow on the way into Duncannon, PA and continue into NJ. We descended for a couple of miles and then the trail leveled out as we began crossing the Cumberland Valley farmland. Around noon, we reached the town of Boiling Springs after walking 9 miles. We had lunch at the Boiling Springs Tavern. I had the best Cobb Salad I have ever had. We began hiking again around 1 pm and had easy hiking as we continued across the Cumberland Valley. We had several highway crossings including the PA Turnpike and I-81. We called Cindy and she picked us up at Scott Farm at 5:30 pm. It was great to get in close to 20 miles for the third day in a row.
Date: 2017-06-08
From: Scott Farm 

To: Clark's Ferry Shelter 
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: clear sky

It was 48 degrees in Mt. Holly when we left the Holly Motel. Cindy from the motel took us back out to Scott Farms where we stopped hiking yesterday. We were on the trail at 7:30 am. We had 15 miles to hike into Duncannon, PA. We got there about 4:30 pm. We went to the hiker famous Doyle Hotel, better known for its bar and food than its accommodations. We decided to have a beer to celebrate our 8 day / 125 mile hike from Harper's Ferry to Duncannon, PA which we did in 1-2 less than expected. The lady bartender at the Doyle has a reputation for being a prankster. She asked me if I wanted a pint or 10 oz beer. I said a 10 oz. she said "you want a small one?" I said "yes". She said "you want the smallest one I have?" I said "yes" and she brings me a beer in a shot glass. This must be the oldest hiker bar joke in the book. I fell for it hook, line, and sinker. We all had a laugh, I downed my beer, then she brought me my 10 oz beer. Hooshr loaned me his headlamp and Swiss Army knife, both of mine which I misplaced on our slackpack yesterday, and a few other items for the rest of my trip. I can't think Hooshr enough for coming out and hiking with me this past week. It has made a huge difference getting me ready to continue on my journey. He has been a great guide and wingman and is now heading back to base. Thank you, Hooshr! I left the Doyle about 5:30. I had a 2 mile road walk through Duncannon, crossed the Juniata and Susquehanna Rivers, then headed up the AT on the other side. In 3 more miles I reached Clark's Ferry Shelter. It was 8 pm when I got there. I stayed in the shelter so I could get an early start in the morning so I could try to catch up to a group of hikers ahead of me.
Date: 2017-06-09
From: Clark's Ferry Shelter 

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 24.7
Weather: clear sky

I left Clark's Ferry Shelter at 6:20 am. I wanted to have a big day so I could close the gap with a group of hikers ahead of me. I had good weather. I hiked 24.7 miles today and reached the Rausch Gap Shelter around 7 pm.
Date: 2017-06-10
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: 501 Shelter 
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: clear sky

I was on the trail at 6:40 am. We had a shower at 9 am that only lasted an hour but the humidity hung around. High today was 82 but is supposed to jump to 92 tomorrow. At 11 am, I caught up with a group of hikers Hooshr and I had crossed paths with last week. I decided to join them. Around 1:30 pm, we crossed the 1190 mile marker which means we have less than 1000 miles left to Maine. We hiked 17.5 miles today. This was plenty given the intensity of the rocks on the trail is increasing and your feet feel it at the end of the day. Tonight we are staying at the 501 Shelter. Craig, the caretaker, was very hospitable and made sure we had everything we needed.
Date: 2017-06-11
From: 501 Shelter 

To: PA 183
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: clear sky

We had a nice night at the 501 Shelter. We were on the trail at 6:40 am. We only did 9.3 miles to PA 183 so we could go to the Rock 'n Sole Hostel to resupply and clean ourselves and our laundry. We were at the Hostel by noon. It's nice having a short day after doing 20 mile days the last several days. The sharp rocks take a toll on your feet after walking on them all day. I soaked my feet in the cold creek behind the hostel.
Date: 2017-06-12
From: PA 183

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 14.8

Today I did a 15 mile slackpack from PA 183 into Port Clinton. I spent most of the morning organizing my medicine delivery to the Rock 'n Sole Hostel for tomorrow am. I got on the trail at PA 183 at 11 am. I was trying to get to the post office in Port Clinton before it closed at 4:30 pm. I needed to see if they had my package which I had addressed to the Port Clinton Hotel which I later found out does not receive mail. I averaged 3 mph over the medium difficulty terrain with patches of rocks, taking minimal breaks. I got to the post office at 4:15 pm. The guy had just bagged all the packages to send out. I was just in the nick of time for him to pull mine out which was its way back to Texas. I had him bounce it up the trail 100 miles to the Mohican Outdoor Center in Blairstown, NJ. Craig from Rock 'n Sole picked me up in Port Clinton and brought me back to the hostel. Tomorrow after I get my medicine, I will get shuttled back to PC and continue hiking from there. Hopefully I can catch back up with the group I have been hiking with.
Date: 2017-06-13
From: Port Clinton, PA

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: scattered clouds

The UPS driver showed up at the hostel with my medicine at 11:15 am. I took my shots and was ready to go at 11:45 am. Craig from Rock 'n Sole took me into Port Clinton and dropped me at the post office at 12:30. I started hiking at 12:45 pm and had 15 miles to cover to the Eckville Shelter. The temperature was over 90 and I was hiking in the heat of the day. I reached the shelter at 7 pm. The shelter had a solar shower which I used to get the sweat, dirt and grime off me. Pretty good miles today considering the late start and hot weather. It is supposed to be in the low 80s tomorrow.
Date: 2017-06-14
From: Eckville Shelter

To: Campsite Past Bake Oven Knob Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: broken clouds

I was on the trail shortly after 6 am. The trail was increasingly rocky today with several boulder fields to navigate. When I wasn't rock hopping from one boulder to another I was walking on sharp rocks on the trail. The highlight of the day was crossing Knife's Edge. This is a rocky spine you walk across that goes about 200 yards. It didn't seem as bad as people had made it out to be. I would not have wanted to cross it if the rock were wet though. The temperature was in the low 80s so not too bad. We had 12 miles in by noon. We reached the campsite just before 6 pm so it was much slower going in the pm (8 miles).
Date: 2017-06-15
From: Campsite Past Bake Oven Knob Shelter

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: scattered clouds

We were on the trail at 6:20 am. We had hiked 2.4 miles past the Bake Oven Shelter yesterday evening to get into better position to cross the Lehigh River and make the steep ascent out of Lehigh Gap this morning. The trail heading north out of Lehigh Gap is extremely step (>1000 ft in 1 mile). It is supposedly the most difficult section of trail south of NH. it is not recommended to make this climb if the rocks are wet and slippery or in the heat of day due to the possibility of heat exhaustion. We had nearly perfect conditions for climbing. We were starting at 9 am so still had strong legs. The temperature was in the low 70s, there was a light breeze, and we had cloud cover blocking the sun. It took us about an hour to make the climb. You had to keep your pack weight forward and lean into the rocks to avoid losing your balance and falling backwards. We were all happy to make it up and have this difficult stretch of trail behind us. We reached Little Gap Rd around noon and had already hiked about 12 miles. Someone had left trail magic there, which included cold soft drinks, chips, chocolate, brownies, and a 5 gal water container for filling water bottles. The timing and location were both perfect as we were low on fluids, hungry, and there was little reliable water for the next 10 miles to Leroy Smith Shelter. We hiked about 10 more miles in the pm and arrived at the shelter around 6 pm. Today I hiked with McGyver from Augusta, GA; Nemo from Strunk, KY; and Train Wreck from Austin, TX. Another tough but good day...I should sleep good tonight!
Date: 2017-06-16
From: Leroy A. Smith Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA
Miles today: 20.1

We were on the trail around 6:30 am. We reached Wind Gap / PA 33 in 5 miles around 9 am. The 9 mile stretch from Wind Gap to PA 191 has the reputation for the worst section of rocks in PA. The rocks were sharp and pointed and were very difficult to walk on. My feet were throbbing by 11 am and we still had most of the day to walk. We crossed PA 191 around 1:30 pm and got to the Kirkridge Shelter around 2 pm. We had originally planned to stay here, but it was too early to stop walking. It was 6 more miles to Delaware Water Gap which is where the PA / NJ state line is. We called ahead to the Pocono Inn to see if they had rooms available as we needed a shower and to do laundry. We booked rooms and started hiking again. We got there about 6 pm. The hotel was ghetto. The bottom floor had been flooded and all that was open were the rooms on the second floor. The price was right, it had a bed, a shower, and laundry.
Date: 2017-06-17
From: Delaware Water Gap, PA

To: Campsite at Mile 1308.6
Miles today: 15.0

We got a little later start this am, leaving the Pocono Inn at 7:45 am. We are beginning the next section of the AT today which extends from Delaware Water Gap, PA to Great Barrington, MA. This section covers 240 miles through NJ, NY, CT, and 15 miles into MA. A mile after we started walking, we crossed the Delaware River which marks the PA / NJ state line. While there are still about 45 miles of rocky trails ahead in NJ, it is noticeably easier walking today vs the very rock stretch we had yesterday from PA 33 to PA 191. Around 10 am, we reached Sunfish Pond, a beautiful 41 acre glacial pond. We took a short break there and then the rain which was forecasted began. We continued on and at 11 am passed mile 1300 on the AT. Only 890 miles to the end of the trail in Maine! Around noon the rain stopped and at 1:30 pm we reached the Mohican Outdoor Center where I had two packages mailed to me. Unfortunately, neither of them were there. Thanks a lot USPS! One of them was my food for the next 5 days which I had bumped forward from Port Clinton, PA on Monday and the other was the under quilt for my hammock sent from home. After the initial panic was over, I went into scramble mode. I had the tracking numbers for both packages. The quilt was at the post office in Blairstown, NJ 6 miles down the road. The food package had gotten in the snail mail and was on the other side of NJ at a processing center. A young hiker from Macon, GA named All Star driving support for his father who is hiking the AT offered to take me into Blairstown. First we went to the PO and got the quilt. Then All Star took me to the only grocery store in town which was actually a pretty good one. I spent about 20 minutes going up and down the aisles getting items that are on my diet. We got back to the Mohican Outdoor Center, I thanked All Star and gave him a $20 for taking me into town, and did a quick reload and repack of my food bag with the items I had bought. I was hiking again at 4:15 pm. My fellow hikers had told me which campsite they were planning to go to which was about 4 miles up the trail. I caught up with them about 6:15 pm and set my hammock up. What a day!
Date: 2017-06-18
From: Campsite at Mile 1308.6

To: Sunrise Mtn.
Miles today: 18.8

We left the campsite around 6:45 am. It was very humid all day. The NJ humidity is worse than Houston's if you can believe that. I saw my first timber rattlesnake of all places on Rattlesnake Mtn. He was curled up in some bushes alongside the trail. Thankfully he didn't appear too interested in us when we passed by. We hiked on through the heat of the day. I felt very lethargic from the heat and humidity. Around 2:30 pm we reached Culvers Gap. Some hikers had told us about Gyp's Tavern 0.1 miles off the trail. It was on a small lake. We sat out back and relaxed and had a burger and fries. We had 5 miles to walk from there to Sunrise Mountain where we camped.
Date: 2017-06-19
From: Sunrise Mtn.

To: Pochunk Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 23.0

We were on the trail at 5:40 am. We stopped 3 miles short of the Mashipacong Shelter last night and wanted to make that up before 7 am. We did that, then wanted to do 20 more miles to the Pochuck Mtn. Shelter. It was very humid again this am. Around 11:30 am, we reached mile 1338 where the 200 mile stretch of rocky trails in PA and NJ comes to an end. Rain was forecast for mid-day and we wanted to get past the final rocks before the rain. Right at 11:30 the rain started and continued all afternoon until I reached the Pochuck Mtn. Shelter around 5 pm. The cool rain was a welcome relief from the humidity.
Date: 2017-06-20
From: Pochuck Mtn. Shelter 

To: NY 17A
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: broken clouds

We left the Pochuck Mtn. Shelter around 6:45 am. It wasn't fun putting the wet clothes back on that I hiked in during the rainstorm yesterday. The rain did bring cooler temperatures and lower humidity (mid 70s and 40%). I noticed my clothes actually dried pretty quickly while I was hiking this am. The first couple of miles was on a boardwalk over a wetlands. This was the only easy hiking we would have for the day. At 10 am, we reached NJ 94. The Heaven Hill Farmers Market was located 0.1 m W. We took a break here. I got a cup of coffee and two apple cider donuts...delicious! We got back on the trail and immediately started up "Stairway to Heaven", which was a very steep climb. About 3 pm and after 16 miles of hiking, we reached the NJ / NY state line which was marked unimpressively with spray paint on the rocks. Unbeknownst to us at the time (I had a note in my hiking guide I saw later), this was the beginning of a 6 mile "more difficult section" to NY 17A. Even the AWOL guide has a note saying "despite the unimposing profile, rocks, abrupt ups & downs make this section challenging". There was a hot dog stand at the NY 17A crossing we planned to eat at for dinner. This served as motivation to get us through this tough 6 mile stretch, but the hot dog stand was closed when we got there. Fortunately for us there was a Creamery across the road so we indulged in some cold fluids. We had hiked a tough 22 miles and were beat. Some local Samaritans there knew of cheap hotel a couple miles down the road in Bellvale, NY. They gave us a ride, we got rooms there, did laundry, and called it a night. Welcome to NY!
Date: 2017-06-21
From: NY 17A

To: Arden Valley Road
Miles today: 17.4

We caught the city bus in front of the Warwick Motel at 6:30 am and got dropped off by the closed hot dog stand on NY 17A where we hiked to last night and resumed hiking here. We had a tough day of hiking. We had another six mile stretch of "more difficult" trail towards the afternoon. This included going through the Lemon Squeezer, a narrow rock crevice, you squeeze through. I was able to get through without taking my pack off but just barely. Just beyond this there was a rock ledge about 10 feet up you had to throw your pack up on, then use some footholds to climb up. We were beat at the end of the day. We stealth camped by a water tower near the Arden Valley Road crossing.
Date: 2017-06-22
From: Arden Valley Road

To: Bear Mountain Bridge Crossing Hudson River
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: broken clouds

We were on the trail at 6:30 am. The temperature was cool overnight which made for good sleeping. We had about 14 miles to go to Bear Mountain Inn where I had my food box delivered. Like the previous two days, there was a six mile stretch of "more difficult" trail to navigate. About 1 pm while crossing Bear Mountain, we passed Mile 1400 on the AT. We climbed up the Perkins Memorial Tower, a massive stone observation tower, on top of Bear Mountain. From here you could see the NYC skyline 75 miles away. I got my package at the Bear Mountain Inn, an old stone lodge, with no problems. From there, we walked along a lake and through a small zoo to the foot of the Bear Mountain Bridge which crosses the Hudson River. A shuttle picked us up here around 3:30 pm and took us to the Stoney Point Conference Center where we stayed the night. This is a church run retreat center that caters to hikers as well as church groups. The shorter day felt good after three tough days of hiking.
Date: 2017-06-23
From: Bear Mountain Bridge Crossing Hudson River

To: Fahnestock State Park
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: overcast clouds

We got shuttled from the Stoney Point Conference Center back to the Bear Mountain Bridge at 7 am by an 82 year old couple named David & Joyce. We began the walk across the Hudson River, the lowest elevation on the AT at 160 ft. This meant a steep climb once we got to the other side. The terrain the rest of the day was easy compared to the first two days in NY. We reached NY 301 around 6 on and walked to Fahnestock State Park where we camped. A gentleman named Joe from Yonkers, NY was at campsite #11 providing trail magic. He is 72 years old and does this every other week in the summer. He cooked us a delicious egg sandwich and had cold drinks, chips, and apple pie to go with it. Thank you Joe! With today's miles, I have come 400 miles from Harper's Ferry since June 1.
Date: 2017-06-24
From: Fahnestock State Park

To: Morgan Stewart Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

It rained a little during the night. Around 5 am, my normal rising time, a heavy rain began. My weather app and radar showed it raining from 5 - 9 am, then clearing. I went ahead and started packing. Joe from Yonkers at site #11 said he would be doing a Trail Magic breakfast early for interested hikers. Around 7 am, I had my gear packed and the rain stopped. I ran up to Joe's and true to his word he was cooking breakfast. He had coffee and another round of egg sandwiches, apple pie, and chips. At 8 am, we left the Fahnestock State Park campground and took the connector trail back to the AT. At 8:30 am, we were back on the AT hiking north again. The weather cleared and once again the rain brought cooler temperatures and lower humidity. At 3 pm we had hiked 11 miles and reached a road crossing where a fellow was doing trail magic while he waited for his wife and eight other thru-hikers who were due in at 5 pm. He had cold Gatorade, bologna sandwiches and chips. It really hit the spot. We hiked on 3 more miles to Morgan Stewart Shelter where we stayed. What a great day of Trail Magic!
Date: 2017-06-25
From: Morgan Stewart Shelter

To: Ten Mile River Shelter 
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: clear sky

We were on the trail at 6:30. am. The terrain was fairly easy today. We walked alongside a pretty lake this am. Just before noon, we crossed the Appalachian Trail RR Stop that hikers ride up and back from NYC. We stopped for a snack at a nursery at the roadside. We had over 11 miles in by noon. We had a 30 minute downpour around 3 pm after hiking 16 miles but had just gotten to a shelter so stayed dry. We waited the rain out and continued hiking. A mile later we crossed the NY / CT state line. In 3 more miles we reached the 10 Mile River Shelter where we camped for the night.
Date: 2017-06-26
From: Ten Mile River Shelter 

To: Stewart Hollow Brook Shelter
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: clear sky

We left the Ten Mile Shelter at 6:30 am. We had a beautiful walk along Ten Mile River. In about a mile, the Ten Mile River joined the Housatonic River. We walked along the Housatonic for a while then the trail headed up from the river. We had a lot of steep ups and steep downs from there. Around noon, we reached CT 341. From here it was 0.8 mi into Kent, CT. Ray and Bernadette with the CT Appalachian Mountain Club were at the roadside and had been doing trail maintenance. They gave us a ride into Kent and recommended we eat at the Villager. I had a burger and fries and several glasses of sweet tea. We attempted to hitch back to the CT 341 trailhead to no avail so we had a 0.8 mile road walk to help digest our food. From there we had a couple more steep climbs and a really steep descent back down to the Housatonic River. At the bottom was a guy named "Pooch" doing trail magic. He offered us an ice cold Coca Cola in a bottle, chips, and Kit Kat bars. From here we had a 3 mile flat walk along the river into Stewart Hollow Brook Shelter where we camped. The weather has been great. Mid 70s during the day, low 50s at night.
Date: 2017-06-27
From: Stewart Hollow Brook Shelter

To: West Cornwall Rd.
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: light rain

We were on the trail at 6:30 am. We had 9 miles to hike to West Cornwall Road to meet "Hudson" who runs Bearded Woods Hostel in Sharon, CT. I had a food drop to pick up here. Hudson section hiked the AT in 2004 and 2008 and thru-hiked in 2014. Hudson has a great place. He said it was not livable when he bought it. He has done an amazing job with it. He has great attention to detail and the place was immaculate. I got a hot shower and got my laundry done. The short day allowed us to rest our legs and relax a bit.
Date: 2017-06-28
From: West Cornwall Rd.

To: Riga Shelter 
Miles today: 19.9
Weather: broken clouds

Big Lu, Hudson's wife from Bearded Woods Hostel, cooked us a great breakfast. Coffee was ready at 6 am and watermelon, scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, and English muffins followed at 6:30. I had been craving a good breakfast. Big Lu had us back to the trailhead at 7:30 and we started hiking. We had an ascent and almost immediately we came to Split Rock, CT's version of the Lemon Squeezer which was a bit wider than NY's. We took our first break at 11:15 am at Belter's Bump. Shortly after this we crossed CT 7 where some kind person had left trail magic. There was a cooler of Gatorade, individual bags of chips, and jugs of water for filling water bottles. What a treat! Around 1 pm, we passed Great Falls, an impressive falls on the Housatonic River. A little later we passed Giant's Thumb and shortly thereafter took a break at Billy's View. It was around 3 pm and we had 6 miles to go to Riga Shelter. We reached CT 44 leading into Salisbury and a little later crossed the 1500 mile marker on the AT. Only 690 more miles to Katahdin, ME. We reached Riga Shelter at 6 pm. Today was one of the best weather days yet. It was cool and sunny all day...a great day for hiking.