morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-07-14
From: beechy bottom brook

To: graymor campsite
Miles today: 14.1

We started hiking at 645 with the anticipation of reaching bear mtn and the zoo. The zoo is the lowest pt on the trail. We made to bear mt tower around 820 and then started the long down into the park. We had to walk down 817 steps to the bottom. When we reached the bottom people were grilling out which is heaven to a hiker but we didn't get one burger or dog. So we hiked on, made it through the zoo and crossed the Hudson river. After crossing the river we made a climb of 500 ft and from there knew there was a store right on the trail 4.5 miles away with a deli. As we were hiking just a mile before the store our trail angel from yesterday was walking up the trail. He stated he wanted to take us somewhere for supper which was great. We hurried 1.6 to graymor set up camp and went out to eat. When we arrived back we had watermelon and we took outdoor showers. Also the Georgia boys made it to camp around 700 which was great bc we hadn't seen them since daleville. We also found out that 18 miles from here in the rph shelter they are feeding the hikers tom so we are going to start at 5 and try to get there. God bless.
Date: 2012-07-15
From: graymor campsite

To: rph shelter
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We had a restless nights sleep along with 20 other hikers. There was 150 people from Ecuador having a spiritual retreat. They had speakers and music which went on until 630 this morning. They did give me some coffee before we left out around 645. We hiked in a slight on and off drizzle for the first couple of miles then it cleared up and it was hot and muggy. We made it to dennytown rd where we filled up with water and slept for an hour. Pants on fires uncle agreed to slack pack us 10.2 to rph for the hiker feed. We hiked around Clarence fahnestock state park and when we made it to a summitt we could see the beach below. We were going to go down and swim but we heard thunder in the distance. So we hurried towards rph when about 1 mile from rph we had to take cover. It rained,thundered and lightning for a hr non stop. When it did stop we ran down to rph and changed into our dry clothes. We ate grilled hamburgers,grilled chicken sandwiches and potato salad yummy. We sat around and talked with hikers and other locals before going to bed. A lady offered us a shower and laundry at her home in the morning about 5 miles down the trail. God bless
Date: 2012-07-16
From: rph shelter

To: campsite near nuclear lake
Miles today: 13.2

We went to bed to the sound of thunder,lightning and hard rain but we woke to blue skies and birds singing. We ate cereal and started hiking around 745. We knew we only had 4 miles to hike until we reached the road that bill and Amy live on where we could shower and wash our clothes. When we arrived Amy showed us where the bathroom was and the washroom. After showing Amy made us coffee,oj and waffle what a nice sunrise. Before heading back out we also got a pint of Ben and jerrys ice cream. People like them are what makes the trail even better than it is. Also they have two cute daughters who are 1.5 and 7, we just want to thank the whole family. We resumed hiking and the first thing was a 500 ft climb which seemed higher with a full stomach. Problem is after the climb you are hungry again. We made to Morgan Stewart shelter had a snack and filled up with water from a pump. After that we made our way off of the mtn to our campsite. Tomorrow looking forward to reaching train station on the trail that picks up hikers and takes them to new York. We are 13.1 from conn/ny line. We have been out here 122 days have 63 to go. God bless to everyone. O we will post new pics in Kent conn.
Date: 2012-07-17
From: campsite near nuclear lake

To: ten mile river shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: broken clouds

We were up and hiking by 7 and made it to the appalachian trail rr station by 10. This is where u can catch train into ny. We walked to a deli .6 down the road for subs and cold drinks with easy,gravity,and spirit. We then had to hike 9.7 miles with not much happening. It was a humid and breezy at times. We made to camp at 7 and bathed in the river. We get to listen to the sound of rushing water tonight while we sleep. Since not much happened I have some stats of who we have met on trail. We have met people from 34 states and 8 countries. Wash.2,Alabama4,mass5,Georgia12,Fla11,wva3,ny9,Maine7,Missouri3,ill4,nc9,va13,ind8,Ohio7,Maryland5,Texas6,Kentucky5,Penn12,Tenn14,miss1,Michigan13,conn2,wis1,ri2,Montana1,Alaska1,Sc5,Minn1,cal4,Arizona2,Oregon3,nj5,Iowa1,new Hampshire2,Germany6,London2,Scotland1
Date: 2012-07-18
From: ten mile river shelter

To: kent
Miles today: 8.7

First I would like to thank driver8 for the heads up on the water supply. We started hiking at 630 to try and beat the heat. The first 1.8 was easy with the trail following the river at a level grade. Then we came to a climb of 900ft up to the ny/ct border where u finally crossover the line and say goodbye to ny. By the time we did that it was hot and humid. We then went up and down for 3 or 4 miles with little to drink. We finally made it to the road where a lady gave us a ride into Kent. We had her drop us off at the church so we could stow our gear and wait for spirit to arrive. While we waited we bathed in the church sinks. Spirit finally made it and we headed down into Kent to eat,resupply and laundry. We our now lounging in the grass resting. We tried to dl pics but computer didn't work will dl next town sorry. Here are the last 5 countries people are from,Australia2,England1,UK1,Switzerland3,Barbados1. God bless to everyone.
Date: 2012-07-19
From: kent

To: pine swamp brook shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: overcast clouds

After getting up around 600 and having blueberry coffee in Kent we headed to the trail. It was obercast,less humid and cool. We hiked up to calebs peak then had to descend off of st.johns ledges down to river rd. Had a nice flat 4 to 5 mile section along the housatonic river. As we were hiking I saw a nice place to fish and I caught 3 smallmouth bass and a sucker. Then we made our way up to silver hill campsite where there is a swing and covered tables to eat lunch. On the way up saw many blow downs from last years hurricane. We would like to thank all the volunteers who keep this trail clear bc there were many trees down that they had to get off the trail. After lunch we had only 6.7 more miles to cover but it was very difficult. There were many up and downs and it became warm as well. Just before the shelter there was a baby lemon squeezer we had to squeeze through. We made it to the shelter around 5 to find out the water source was beaver pond runoff so we will wait until tom morning to get water 21 miles to mass line. God bless.
Date: 2012-07-20
From: pine swamp brook shelter

To: falls village, ct
Miles today: 8.8

We woke to rain this morning. We stayed in our tent until 9:30 hoping that it would stop. It didn't so we packed up and headed out. We were almost out of water so we had no choice because we did not want to drink from a beaver pond. The climbs were not hard. We rather enjoyed hiking in the rain since we have been hiking in 100 degree weather for weeks. However after a few miles of hiking in the rain the wind picked up and we started chilling. We got to Falls Village around 1:30. We went to the cafe where we had a cup of coffee to warm up. We were hoping to wait for spirit there but they closed at 2 so we headed for the library to update journals. We are hoping Spirit will find us. We are planning to camp at the cafe tonight. They let hikers camp in their back yard for free. The rain was suppose to stop by noon but it is still raining. Nicer weather tomorrow. We don't want to hike out now that we have dried off. Also there are new pictures posted. God Bless!
Date: 2012-07-21
From: falls village, ct

To: sages ravine
Miles today: 14.4

We were up and ready at 6:30 so we waited until 7 for toymakers cafe to open. We had bf then headed to the trail. We first crossed the housatonic river then walked near the waterfalls for about .5 miles. We started up mt prospect which is at 1475ft. It was a very nice morning hike with the sun, birds and the breeze helping us climb. We stopped by this huge rock which is called giants thumb. Then we descended down into salisbury. While waiting for spirit we met up again with pace and hunges. We hadn't seen them since trail days. We then started to climb bear mtn. We stopped at lions head view that overlooks twin lakes. Meryll streep and rip torn own homes there. We then hiked up to bear mtn rock tower which is the highest pt in ct. We had a very hairy descent down into sages ravine where we finally made camp. We showered in the creek and spirit made it to camp about an hr later. We played cards until hiker midnight and went to bed. Hiker midnight is 9:00. God bless keep praying.
Date: 2012-07-22
From: sages ravine

To: kellogg rd/friends house
Miles today: 15.5

Started at 6:30. We climbed 700ft up to mt race and walked on along the ridgeline for .6 miles. The views were awesome. You could see for miles. We climbed up mt everett elevation of 2600. We had to climb up sheer rocks one slip and you were back at the bottom the hard way. We made it to guilder pond rd where a former thru hiker had left ice water for hikers. This was a blessing because there has been such a shortage of water. We climbed down jug end where we had to be very careful because it was straight off rocks and boulders. We made it to MA 41 and took a break before our last 4 miles into Great Barrington. We passed Shays Rebellion Monument. We also went through a section where mosquitos had a feast on us. They were so bad that our packs were black when we got out. We finally made it to MA 7 where we waited on Spirit and found more trail magic of cold cokes. We then headed .9 to our final destination where we met seeker and headed back to her house for steaks, salad and fresh veggies. Here is a short summary of our gear for those of you that have asked.Sleeping Bag: Marmont 30 degreeTent: Marmont limelite 2 personPacks: Flash 65 weight around 35lbs with resupplyhiking poles: Black diamondstove: pocket rocket from MSRBoots: MerrellSTATS: zero days-200-5: 55-10: 2510-20: 6620+: 12TENTING: 80hotel 22hostel 13house 9shelter 2 cabin 1hospital 1TRAIL MAGIC: 140money found: 40.41extra miles: 107WILDLIFE:deer-124snakes-67turkey-26bear-14raccoon-6grouse-4wolf-1FALLS: 1 eachSlack packs: 9
Date: 2012-07-23
From: kellogg rd/friends house

To: tom leonard shelter
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: overcast clouds

We had bf of fresh fruit and eggs that was prepared by spirit. We made it back to the trail around 1:00. It was a pleasant hike because we were not in any hurry. We planned on only hiking 10 miles but our plans changed. We heard thunder in the distant so we rushed to the shelter,we arrived at 3:45. It started raining around 4. The Georgia boys made it to the shelter an hour later. So we are all hiding out listening to the rain and thunder. We hope to reach upper goose pond on wed. Goodnight and god bless. 3:45
Date: 2012-07-24
From: tom leonard shelter

To: campsite on baldy mtn
Miles today: 15.1

We woke around 7:00 had coffee and went .3 over the mtn for water. Started hiking around 8 spirit had started at 630. We hiked to MA23 and tried to hitch to town to get bug spray bc the bugs are having a feast on our blood. A couple section hikers pulled in and had bug spray for us, see the lord provides. They also wanted to take pics of us so we traded pics for spray haha. We then climbed up to mt wilcox shelter at 1835 for a break and water also spirit had signed in at 935 and we were there at 1050. We decided we better start hiking faster to catch her. We then made our way to shakers campsite where we caught spirit and rested for an hour. We started hiking again bc we heard thunder in the distant. We made it to main rd into tyringham where we got water from a lady who lives next to where we crossed the road. We then hiked 1 mile up to our campsite for the night. I want to explain a little about mileage.0 miles for the day means your body needs a break, 0-5 miles and 5-10 miles is when you are going into town or leaving late out of town usually.10-15 miles usually is a long up and down or rocky day which takes a toll on you.15-20 miles is an ideal day for a thru-hiker and 20 up means the conditions were great and your body was doing well so u just keep hiking. God bless on to upper goose pond tom for some swimming and boating.
Date: 2012-07-25
From: campsite on baldy mtn

To: upper goose pond
Miles today: 6.0
Weather: clear sky

We hiked from 7:15 to 9:30 to upper goose saw one snake. A little about upper goose, it is a enclosed cabin with a caretaker. They offer a bunk anyttd pancakes for bf for a donation. When we arrived we canoed for 2hrs, sat on the dock for 2 hrs, swimming and fishing. It was a relaxing day. A friend and his family presented us with great trail magic. They hiked in 2miles to bring us hamburgers,fries,cold gatorades and snickers bars. It was great to see them again but I wish we would have had more time to talk with them. We hope to meet up with them later on up the trail. We want to thank them for the great magic. We will try 20 to dalton tom. God bless
Date: 2012-07-26
From: upper goose pond

To: dalton
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: clear sky

After a great breakfast of blueberry pancakes and coffee we reluctantly left the upper goose pond cabin. It was starting to rain so that made it even harder to leave. We US 20 and headed up Beckett mtn. We got to the cookie lady's house around 1245. We put in our order for 6 hard boiled eggsand 2 cokes. When our order was up we also got our free cookies. Everything tasted so good. After finishing that off we had an ice cream and another coke. That was enough to get us to dalton. After leaving we had to board walk alot. It was flat but the boards were slick. We headed up and over tully's mtn and down into dalton. We got to tom lavardi's where we called it a day. Er got showers and clean laundry..yeah! Tom and some other hikers prepared dinner that consist of hotdogs, potatoes, fresh corn on the cob, veggies and the neighbor gave us watermelon. It all tasted so good. We sat around talking to other hikers for a while then retired to our bed. So happy to b out of the rain tonight. God Bless!
Date: 2012-07-27
From: dalton

To: dalton
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

We are taking a zero today and resting I'm under the weather. After hiking 21 yesterday and eating supper at toms I started running a fever. I ask that u pray for me, we plan to hike 23.5 over mt greylock tom which will put us back on schedule. God bless and thank u for following our journey as we continue to walk with Jesus only 620 miles to go in 52 days.
Date: 2012-07-28
From: dalton

To: dalton
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: thunderstorm with rain

Taking another zero today, went to the walk-in clinic. Ratman had a temp of 102 so better safe than sorry. We will try to hike out tom. Thank all of you who are keeping us in your prayers. We still have 620 miles to do in 51 more days bc we are summitting on Sept 17. God bless.
Date: 2012-07-29
From: dalton

To: cheshire
Miles today: 8.8

It feels great to be back on the trail this morning even though Ratman is still under the weather. We left dalton around 830 to the sound of a little rain. The first two miles were walking on the main street in town then some back streets until we finally made it back in the woods. We had to climb about 800 ft up to gore brook and we took our time bc of ratmans condition. We passed about 6 weekend warriors then passed a group of about 15 kids with their leaders. When meet kids who are out here backpacking its great bc there are many other things they could be doing but instead are out here enjoying nature plus they are so respectful to thru hikers. When we get close to them they stop move to the side and relay to everyone in the group that thru hikers are passing by. We then made our way down into chesire and to the church hostel. We arrived around 12:30 that's not bad considering. We wanted to go further but thought better of it take it safe and slow for a few days. Spirit is 10 miles ahead and we should catch up in a few days. God bless thanks again for your prayers.
Date: 2012-07-30
From: cheshire

To: sherman brook campsite
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: light rain

We started hiking around 7:30 this morning with overcast skies. We started our climb up greylock which is the highest pt in MA. Y's guy has rejoined us and is looking forward to catching back up with spirit. It was a very long drawn out climb up to 3491ft. When we arrived the sun was shining and is was a great view, so well worth the 8 mile climb. We had lunch at the lodge as u expect, good but over priced. We then took some photos from the view and of the tower. Ratman had to stop several times on the way up to catch his breathe but he seems to be doing better. We started off the mtn and stopped at mt Williams for break and a view before starting our descent down to north Adams. It was a steep descent, one that hurts the knees from holding all the weight back while going down hill. We made it down around 4:00 and took a break before hiking the last 1.8 to camp. We heard from some hikers that in town a Mexican restaurant was giving thru hikers free meals with drink purchase but we just wanted to get to camp. We hiked up 600 ft to our campsite and set up our tent on a tent platform and had chicken noodle pasta for supper. The water source was a very cold spring just before the campsite. Spirit is 12 miles ahead. We also met heading out and tag along for the first time. They said they have been trying to meet us from the beginning but took 1600 miles to do that. They had been reading our posting before starting their hike. God bless and hope that all is well with everyone.
Date: 2012-07-31
From: sherman brook campsite

To: bennington
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: clear sky

We left camp at 7:20 with y's guy leaving 30 min before us. We started out with a tough boulder climb then it finally leveled out and we hit the Vermont line finally. We took pics and celebrated then continued hiking. The rest of the hike was gentle with rolling hills and the weather was perfect. We met about 11 southbounders today, we are seeing more and more of them. We stopped at congdon shelter for a break and a snack. We then continued hiking to Vermont 9 where we had a very steep and rocky off. We planned to go 1.6 more but our knees and feet hurt so we set up camp by the stream and will have a steep climb in the morning. We hitched into town to have pizza for dinner. God bless and I forgot to mention we hit 1600 miles today. Also pics hopefully sat or sun when we get to friends house.
Date: 2012-08-01
From: bennington

To: story spring shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We started hiking around 7 with overcast skies. We first climbed porcupine ridge about 1500ft climb. We like climbs first thing in the morning it just seems easier to do and cooler as well. Then we con't climbing up to glastenbury mountain where there is a lookout tower. By the time we made it up there the skies were cloudless and blue, which made for great views. We then hiked 9 more miles to our shelter. At the shelter were 25 hikers. We think at this time the north is meeting the south which is causing big pile ups at the shelters. We figure this will stop in a week. God bless.
Date: 2012-08-02
From: story spring shelter

To: manchester center
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: few clouds

We left this morning at 7:10 with the thought that if we could get close to town we would split a room with y's guy. We were looking forward to stratton mountain bc there is a lookout fire tower u can climb up into. The summitt is 3936 which is where benton mackaye conceived the idea for the appalachian trail. We went up in the tower and had great views from all angles. We then hiked down to stratton pond and had lunch with y's guy. At this pt we decided we had done 10.2 and it was 10.9 to town that we would go for it. We hiked on mostly level ground all the way to the road, we started at 12:30 and arrived at 5:20. Y's guy says we are trying to kill him but Ratman feels better and he says it feels so good to be hiking again and not sick. He says thank you for your prayers. Also Karen from Florida resent your email we tried emailing you back but it comes back error. We have checked into a motel here into Manchester center and will post pics later if computer works. God bless.
Date: 2012-08-03
From: manchester center

To: lost pond shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: light rain

After having breakfast at the motel we headed across the road to hitch back to the trail. A lady pulled up and offered us a ride. She said that she had seen us yesterday trying to hitch to town. She said since she saw us again it had to mean that she was to pick us up and give us a ride. She told us that she works on Bromley Mtn with the ski patrol. As we got back on the trail we had walk about 10ft and there was pepsi's left for hikers. We then started up the mtn. We climbed 1800ft to bromley mtn. You are suppose to be able to see 5 states from the tower but the tower is no longer there. We spent about an hour just enjoying the view and the war sun. We then made our way to styles peak and peru peak. The views today were great. We stopped at peru peak for a break and continues to bakers peak. From there we headed for lost pond shelter where we made camp for the night. After setting up our tent we went to the creek to wash up. We sat around the fire talking to Y's Guy and several other hikers. We then headed to the tent.
Date: 2012-08-04
From: lost pond shelter

To: wallingford, vt
Miles today: 11.3

Woke up early for a fast hike to wallingford. We passed little rock pond. We then climbed up to white rocks. We walked through a pine forest which I loved. It smelled like Christmas. The ground was super soft on our feet as well. There is a place where there are several rock karnes. It almost looks like a burial ground. It is so cool. There were alot that had been knocked over and we found out that someone had knocked them over just to be mean. Hikers have built many back up but there are still alot knocked over. Right before we got to them we ran into Spirit again. We hadn't seen her since Dalton. It was good to see her again. We then made our way down to the road where we hitched into town. Y's guy went to visit family and we went to visit some friends. We have 512 miles to go in 44 days. God Bless!
Date: 2012-08-05
From: wallingford, vt

To: wallingford
Miles today: 0.0

We decided to take a zero today and spend some time with friends. We played putt-putt and ate ice cream. Ratman got a 5 scoop waffle cone bc he couldn't decide what flavor he wanted. We were glad we didn't hike bc it stormed on and off all day. God bless.