morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-02-25
To: Mountain Crossings
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Saturday February 24, 2007 Debbie and I took a trip up to Mountain Crossings at Neal's Gap. I wanted to talk to them about the fit of my shoes generally and about Superfeet specifically. I strongly recommend that you get up to Mountain Crossings before your hike if at all possible. When people on the various discussion sites say the Mountain Crossings doesn't try to sell you things you don't need, they really mean it.I ended up getting a pair of superfeet---that was really a given. Since many people rave about them, I have to try them to see if I think they make a difference. After we shopped, Debbie and I hiked around the area with our day packs for about three miles. All in all a very nice day.Today (Sunday, February 25th) I went back to Kennesaw Mountain for more "training." I hiked up and over Kennesaw and then another 2.5 miles out to Cheatem. The hike out to Cheatem is over gently rolling terain. But I went back the same way up and over Kennesaw Mountain for total distance of 10 miles and I guestimate (having researched a few elevation sites) about 1800 feet of elevation gain. It is about 700 up to the top of Big Kennesaw but then you come down into a saddle and go up Little Kennesaw. At any rate the whole trip took me 4 hours and 50 minutes including a 20 minute lunch break. I was pretty happy with that speed. I was carrying 32 pounds in my pack (lunch, water and old sheets). That is the maximum weight I ever expect my pack to weigh (with 7 days food and 2 liters of water). I am hoping that most of the time I will be under 30, but I want to train with maximum weight.
Date: 2007-04-07
To: Deleted the Hike Plan
Miles today: 0.0

A year or so ago, I came up with a day by day hike plan. Several people commented that a detailed plan is not a good idea. But part of the enjoyment of this for me is the planning. In any event, I deleted my day by day plan because my trip from Amicalola to Neal's Gap taught me it needs some revision. Even though I want to observe the not to far, to fast, to soon rule, I realized that I can go further per day than I though. I will keep training so that I am in reasonable shape the day I start. And as I commented on in my last journal entry I want to build more motel stays into my plan. I want more opportunities to get clean, dry and warm. Expecially at the beginning. Perhaps as I get more trail hardened I will then skip some of my motel stays along the way. But I think knowing what my options are will help keep me moving.
Date: 2007-06-17
To: Still Working On Physical Preparation
Miles today: 0.0

It has been a while since I posted. I am still hiking over Kennesaw Mountain on the weekends. I have also started working in my little home gym Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I want to focus on loosing a little weight. When I did my preparation hike this spring I was 192.7 pounds. I was thinking if I could get that down to 170 before I start it would make a big difference on my joints etc.This morning I was 188 pounds. I think I can lose 18 pounds before I start. Which brings up another matter. I am starting to think about going next year rather than wait until 2010. Finances are shaping up and I believe I may be ready by next March. We will see.
Date: 2008-05-07
To: Been a while since I posted
Miles today: 0.0

It has been a while since I posted. I took up a new hobby scuba diving which has been occupying my time. But the hike is still on. In fact, my planning is starting to come together. I have picked my start date: March 17, 2009.That date works for a couple of reasons. It is before the first day of Spring; I understand a lot of people like to start on the first day of Spring, so the trail can be a bit crowded.It is not a weekend day. The weekends seem to be very popular starting days for obvious reasons as hikers sweet talk friends and relatives into driving them to Amicalola.On the third hand, I am confident starting on a Tuesday, I can get to Neals Gap by Friday and spend Friday night and Saturday night in Blood Mountain Cabins.Work is becoming very hard, but it is definitely to late to start this year. So I need to wait until next year anyway. And I only have 313 more days to go.
Date: 2010-03-01
To: I think it is real
Miles today: 0.0

I think it is really going to happen. I have made reservations at Amicalola Lodge for the 29th. And reservations at Blood Mountain Cabins for the April 2, and 3. The idea is that my wife and I will spend the night at the lodge before I start and then spend the weekend together at Blood Mountain Cabins that first weekend. I think I only need 3 days to get to Neels Gap from Amicalola, but I allowed 4 days, trying to avoid to far, to fast, to soon.
Date: 2010-03-30
From: Amicalola Lodge

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: few clouds

Start Location: Amicalola Lodge End Location: Hawk Mountain ShelterDay Miles: 15.5 (7.8)         Total Miles: 16.6 (7.8)      Distance to go: 2,171.3 Trip Report:I forgot two data points yesterday. The first was to note that I am thru-hiker number 460 this year. Second I forgot to attach my plan. I did this first 40 miles as a practice hike a few years ago. I was training back then and it made a lot of difference. Today was hard; I haven't been training. But there are two schools of thought on training. One is to train and get a fast start. The other is "why train" just start slow and train on the trail. I am not following either plan. I violated a prime directive today--to far to fast to soon. And I can feel it. I hit the trail at 7:50 this morning. Got to springer at 11:15. I got to hawk mountain at 3:45, and took an hour for lunch, so I am bettering miles an hour which is a rough goal--2 miles an hour and 8 hours per day will get me there. By the way I listed two distances for milage today. The first is the miles I actually hiked and the parenthetical are the miles that count. The approach trail doesn't count. After today I will ignore the approach trail miles--the guidebook calculates everything from springer, so I won't have to think if this way. I only listed them today because one reader who shall remain nameless was concerned that I only did 1.1 miles on day one. I wanted to be sure he realized that I did more than 7.8 on day two. To compute total miles after today just add 8.8.
Date: 2010-03-31
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Start Location: Hawk Mountain Shelter End Location: Gooch Mountain Shelter   Day Miles: 7.3         Total Miles: Gooch Mountain Shelter      Distance to go: 2164 Trip Report:We had a first today-the first time that I went the wrong way and had to double back. Probably about .5 miles before I noticed. Today was hard. I am paying for over doing it yesterday. This will be the second night in a row that I don't have service. One carrier is providing service but not mine. I will let you guess which carrier is working. The jury is still out on this iPhone. Right now it shows that I never sent yesterday's email. And it shows that I sent Monday's email three times. I appologize if I did.
Date: 2010-04-01
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Neels Gap
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

Start Location: Gooch Mountain Shelter End Location: Neels Gap   Day Miles: 15.6         Total Miles: 30.7Trip report:I went from bad to worse. Meaning that if I went to far on day 2, I really went to far today. Last night I met a couple of recently discharged military guys. One navy and the other a marine. Both probably about 25. They had started the same day as I had. They were planning to do the hike I (we) did today. When they asked where I was going, I remarked that if they were going to Neels, I shouldn't even consider it; obviously it was to far for me. And I knew that there were lots of camp sites between Gooch and Neels, so I would just quit when I ran out of steam. And I almost did. I came upon a nice site next to a little stream. It even had a nice rock for sitting on and cooking dinner. It would give me a an easy 3.8 mile morning into Neels on Friday (Debbie and I planned to meet in Neels, get a cabin and I was going to do a zero on Saturday). In any event I dropped my pack, sat down on my rock and started contemplating spending the night in solitude. About then a local section hiker (section as opposed to thru-hiker) came by. He said that there was some aggressive bears in the area and I should consider moving on. About that time the marine (we hopscotched most of the day) came by and reinforced the warning by observing bear tracks. So I put my pack back on and continued to climb blood mountain, which went on forever it seemed--even the climb down Blood into Neels seemed like it was never going to end. In any event I am checked into the blood mountain cabins and will probably do a back to back zero on Friday and Saturday. On another note, I appologize for not responding to those who are writing. Service is very spotty (to put it gently). I have been turning the phone on ridges and in gaps hoping to find some RF. The most frequent service indicator I get is "searching for signal." I type my reports at night. When I find some RF I try to send them. When it says "message sent" I check the inbox. I can see that I am getting lots of messages, but when I try to read them all I get is the message "downloading message." I have tried waiting for them to download, but the indicator just spins. None have downloaded so far. Also so far I haven't had any service at night, not even tonight in my cabin 100 yards from Highway U.S. 19.Equally frustrating is that I will get an indication that my message has been sent, it will disappear from my drafts folder, disappear from my out box folder, but it never does appear as a sent item. Then a couple a day later it might reappear as a draft. I just looked and my day three report appears in my drafts TWO times. I have no idea what has gone and what hasn't. Sorry for carping but this has been my only unsatisfactory gear.
Date: 2010-04-04
From: Hog Pen Gap

To: Blue Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: few clouds

Day 7 ReportStart Location: Hog Pen GapEnd Location: Blue Mountain ShelterDay Miles: 11.6Total Miles: 48.7 (+8.8)Distance to go: 2130.4Trip Report:Unbelievably beautiful day. As a matter of fact the weather so far on this trip has been amazing. I covered the 11.6 miles in 5 hours--a tad better than my 2 mile per hour goal. I left this morning a bit anxious, because I want get to Franklin, N.C. by Friday. But that means a whole bunch of "mosts" for me: the most consecutive days hiking--7; the most consecutive nights camping--5; the most food I have had to carry (making my pack it's heaviest). I wasn't sure if I could do it, but I made my goal for the day. Now every day for the rest of the week the pack will get lighter as I eat the food. I think I have a good shot at making Franklin by Friday.Earl Shaffer the first thru-hiker entitled his book "Walking With Spring". Well Spring is indeed starting to spring. Along the trail today was large fern bank just starting to reemerge around a rocky area that was already covered with bright green moss. The contrast with the dead brown leaves was quite striking. Enough to make me stop and take a picture.I took several pictures today. I wasn't very good at pulling out my camera the first six days, but I am committing to myself to get better. Then I will just need to figure out how to upload the pictures to trail journals from the trail.
Date: 2010-04-05
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Deep Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: broken clouds

Day 8 ReportStart Location: Blue Mountain ShelterEnd Location: Deep Gap ShelterDay Miles: 15.3Total Miles: 64 (+8.8)Distance to go: 2115.1Trip Report:I have always been a fan of the great indoors. I am doing this hike in part to take me put of my comfort zone. But the point I am really trying to make is that before this hike I knew nothing about hiking and camping. Everything I am doing I learned from reading other hiker's blogs. These emails are also the basis of my blog. So, I am trying to write to three groups. Also please keep in mind that I am thumb typing, while laying on my back on the ground with three lines of text visible. So I appologize for the misspellings and awkward transitions. Lastly I have more I would like to share than anyone would have the patience to read or that I have the battery power to type.   The three groups are:1. Most importantly my friends and family who have asked to be included in my email distro. I assume most of you know nothing about thru-hiking.2. Blog readers on trailjournals who may be like me and know nothing about this experience. I want to share what I am learning.3. A record I can use to recall the experience myself.The crowds at the shelters have really thinned out. Where my first night on the trail there must have been 45 people at Hawk and the shelter itself was packed, the last two nights there have been about 10 and everyone has tented.I noticed another sign of spring on the trail today.Most hikers use treking poles (picture ski poles). So as we hike we are mulching the dead leaves along the sides of the trail and airating the soil. The result is the grass is growing along the trail on each side. In places it almost looks groomed like you would expect a trail to be at a resort.I want to talk about tents but I don't have enough battery power and I am a bit tired--I did a fairly long (for me) hike and there were a lot of long climbs. Two things have made me think about tents:1. I broke a tent pole tonight. Repaired it with, what else, duct tape. But let it be a lesson to others. I had some carbon fiber poles made to replace the original aluminum ones and save an ounce or two. I had heard that the carbon fiber were fragile but thought I could be careful. Not careful enough.2. I met a father son hiking duo who really know their stuff. They use tents that are super light and use their hiking poles to hold them up.I will elaborate on tents on my next day off when I have more time and battery power.I went about 2.7 miles further than my goal today. Actually I made my stretch goal. There were a number of motivators, but the big one is that getting to Franklin by Friday should now be in the bag easy (knock on tent floor). The reward for getting to Franklin is that I get to see Debbie one more time before I hike out of range for her to drive for a weekend visit.
Date: 2010-04-06
From: Deep Gap Shelter

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 9 ReportStart Location: Deep Gap ShelterEnd Location: Muskrat Creek ShelterDay Miles: 15.3Total Miles: 79.3 (+8.8)Distance to go: 2099.8Trip Report:Welcome to North Carolina. I made some real accomplishments today. The big one is reaching N.C. The second one is doing back to back 15+ mile days. I was asked to compare the trail sections I have done this week. Up until I reached the state line I was going to say that today was somewhere in between day 7 and 8. But the 3.9 miles between the state line and Muskrat were far and away the toughest so far. The trai maintainers in N.C. Clearly want there to be no doubt that you crossed the state line. They routed the trail straight up the highest mountains they could find. We are having unseasonably warm--err hot weather so that could be influencing my point of view, but this shelter is crowded with thrus and everyone is talking about how tough it was.This is the first shelter I have camped at that did not have bear cables. I hung my food myself. Please keep your fingers crossed that I did it adequately, because I will be in trouble if a bear gets my food.I am one whipped pup tonight which seems appropriate since the original Twinkles was a dog.
Date: 2010-04-07
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Big Spring Shelter
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: clear sky

Day 10 ReportStart Location: Muskrat Creek ShelterEnd Location: Big Spring ShelterDay Miles: 19.3Total Miles: 98.6 (+8.8)Distance to go: 2080.5Trip Report:In the words of Tony the Tiger, today was great. My hiker legs finally kicked into gear. The weather probably helped--it was not as warm and there was a breeze most of the day. But what also helped was some trail magic. The fathers of a young couple from Chicago drove all the way here then up a forest service road to surprise their kids who are also hiking and to pass out free food to the other hikers. It was only about 9:30 in the morning when I came upon them, so the hamburgers weren't on the grill yet. I took a banana, strawberry, bagle with cream cheese, and a gatoraid. I was just touched by their hospitality and it gave me a big boost. I have told Debbie that one experience I hope to get from this hike is the joy that only comes from deprivation and I think I got a little taste today.The day started with a big climb up to 5500 feet. That climb started right after the trail magic so I was on a big high. It seemed down right easy. The day ended with a hand over hand rock scramble over Albert Mountain that I almost thought I wasn't going to be able to complete, but of course there was no choice. Once over Albert, it was only about a half mile to the shelter. When I got here and calculated how far I walked today, I was very happy. I hadn't planned to come this far. I just kept going "just a little further" until here I was.Two 15.3 mile days followed a 19.3 has greatly enhanced my confidence. Of course seeing Debbie this weekend was a hugh incentive that has really been motivating me this week.Tomorrow I will make Franklin. I will do two zeros in Franklin to let my body recover. It will be interesting on Sunday to see if the rest helps or sets me back.
Date: 2010-04-08
From: Big Spring Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: light rain

Day 11 ReportStart Location:  Big Spring ShelterEnd Location:  Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)Day Miles:  9.1       Total Miles:  107.7 (+8.8)      Distance to go:  2071.4 Trip Report:A shorter day all around.  So I decided to work on speed. I managed to do the 9.1 in three hours or three miles an hour.  I am really looking forward to Sunday to see if I can maintain the speed and endurance. The trail becomes much more fun as the physical challenge becomes less overwhelming. I have reached the point on the trail where I have made the pledge to myself that if I think about quiting I promise to go one more week.I posted some new pictures on the blog site today. I also noticed that most of the blog entries lost all their formating and are unreadable. I need to figure that out.
Date: 2010-04-10
From: Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)

To: Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 13 ReportStart Location: FranklinEnd Location: FranklinDay Miles: 0Total Miles: 107.7 (+8.8)Distance to go: 2071.4Trip Report:I start back in the morning. In a very real sense the hike starts tomorrow. Up until now I have had a plan to see Debbie on the weekends which meant I had a support vehicle once a week and could count on Debbie to bring me spares (tent poles, rain suit). After tomorrow I am on my own.I have a plan to hike 11 days straight to get to Hot Springs on the 21st. The way the trail lays out I should not have to carry more than 3 days food max and I should get a motel stay (or something close thereto) every 2 or 3 days.It should also mean about 3 shelter stays in the Smokies. So far I have slept at shelters but not in them. I have tented near the shelters. I have pictures of a few shelters on the web site. Hikers sleep in them like cord wood laying side by side. The Smokies require hikers to stay in the shelters (with one exception that I will try to exploit).Here is how the exception works. Because of the popularity of the Smokies reservations are required for section hikers to use the shelters. Thru-hikers do not need reservations. Four shelter spaces are reserved for thru-hikers. If a thru arrives after those four spaces are taken, then he/she can tent next to the shelter. Some hikers like shelters because you save the time and effort of setting up your tent. I have been avoiding them for two reasons. I am not a sound sleeper and I enjoy having the private space my tent offers. We shall see.
Date: 2010-04-11
From: Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)

To: Wesser Bald Shelter
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: clear sky

Day 14 ReportStart Location:  Winding Stair Gap US 64 (Franklin)End Location:  Wesser Bald Shelter  Day Miles:  21.6       Total Miles:  129.3 (+8.8)      Distance to go:  2049.9 Trip Report:Big Miles today. 20ish mile days will be about the maximum I will be able to do. Tomorrow will be a nero day. Nero is hiker slang for a near zero day. I have 5.7 miles to go before I reach the Nantahala Outdoor Center most referred to as the NOC.I managed to do the 21.6 in right at 9 hours for a speed of 2.4 miles an hour. That is not to bad considering that their were four big climbs today: a 1100 footer, a 1170 footer, and two 800 footers. Logically I would have broken this stretch into two 14 mile days. But I wanted to fined out if I was capable of doing a 21 mile day this early in the hike.  But my other motivation is that I am conducting a bit of an experiment in trail conditioning. Most hikers (well serious ones anyway) have not taken three zeros this early in the hike. My zeros were driven by my wish to see Debbie the first two weekends.  So I decided, mostly on the fly, to push hard before the zeros and use the rest to recover. That is a pretty typical pattern for most exercise schedules. Since I don't have a zero planned anytime soon I thought I would try a variation on that same theme--a heavy day followed by a light day. Franklin to the NOC was only 28.3 miles. The NOC is more or less a mandatory logical stop on the trail.The next logical stop is Fontana Dam which is 29 miles from the NOC. I haven't decided on the pattern for that stretch. I have three options:  16 miles and 13 miles; 18.8 miles and 10.2; or 22.1 miles and 6.9 miles. Laying here in my tent, having just hiked 21.6 miles i have to admit I am leaning toward the 16-13 option. But we will see what my body is telling me on Tuesday.
Date: 2010-04-12
From: Wesser Bald Shelter

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: clear sky

Day 15 ReportStart Location: Wesser Bald ShelterEnd Location:  Nantahala Outdoor Center   Day Miles:  5.7       Total Miles:  135 (+8.8)      Distance to go:  2044.1 Trip Report:The past two days covered rather scraggly territory. Not very scenic.  We had to do a bit of crawling today. There was a big tree that fell over the trail. Much to high for me to climb over. Probably about 2.5 feet under it. So we crawled.  I am at the Nantahala outdoor center.  It caters primarily to white water rafters. They have large cabins, bunk houses, and 6 "cabin motel" rooms. That is where I am staying.Years ago Debbie (my wife) took white water kayaking lessons here. Debbie who used to sky dive avidly and road motorcycles through Thialand decided that white water kayaking was to dangerous. Speaking of Debbie and motorcycles, when we got married I asked Debbie to give up that hobbie and she did. But we never got around to selling her motorcycle--mostly because it fell into disrepair and wouldn't start. Well Kerwin retires and goes on a six month hike and somehow Debbie's old biker gang finds out. She asked me what I thought of her fixing the bike and starting to ride again. What is a trail bum like me supposed to say?Tommorrow morning, YIKES. We have a 3300 foot climb over the first eight miles. I am telling myself to look on the bright side it is better than 3300 feet over two miles.  But that means my best strategy will be to leave as early as possible and do that long climb in the cool part of the day.