morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-03-31
From: Dick's Creek Gap 

To: Plum Orchard Gap Shelter 
Miles today: 4.3
Weather: broken clouds

Today was a very cool day. We woke up after 13 hours sleep(!), repacked our packs, ate eggs and shrimp (thanks Larry!) and headed into town. As we passed the Gap, we saw Brew looking for a ride, so we picked him up. While we were chatting, Jonathan and Danny came down, so we piled them all in the truck and went to Hiawassee for PO, pharmacy, Subway, and to take Brew to a hotel (his knee hurts L). At the motel, we ran into Hammering Hank (snorer!) and Michelle and Josh (bro & sis from first night) at the hotel. On our way to Subway we saw Sprout and Clover (Canadian girls) and they hopped in for a ride back to the trailhead. At the trail head we saw Kevin (Peeps) and found out that neither he nor Leigh and Nate were staying at the Blueberry Patch, so we decided to go ahead and hit the trail! So we went back to the campsite to do laundry and hit the trail at 4 pm, made it to the shelter at 6 pm. There are a ton of people here! So, obviously we didn't go to the Blueberry Patch, so hopefully nobody sent us anything there. If so¢¦ you may want to call them and have them "return to sender". Sorry about that.
Date: 2003-04-02
From: Standing Indian Shelter 

To: Big Spring Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: clear sky

So today was our longest day yet! And believe it or not, it was a great day! The first 13 miles were actually very well graded and not bad at all. The last mile put us up Albert Mountain which was STRAIGHT up into the sky! We've been hiking with Danny (Apple Chillin') and Jonathan (Law Dog) and Sprout and Clover. Cuss and Snack Attack have been with us, but must have stopped early today 'cause Cuss is not felling well. Tonight we met Hopeful, Ben Herr, and Night Stalker. 12.8 miles tomorrow. Goodnight. We miss everyone :(
Date: 2003-04-03
From: Big Spring Shelter

To: Siler Bald 
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: clear sky

Today flew by quickly! It seems from sun up until we reach camp is a blur. We decided to sleep under the stars of Siler bald. This area was amazing. We could see mountains all around us. Spectacular! Hopefully we'll sleep soundly and wake up to a beautiful sunrise. Until tomorrow, sayonara.Also camping on Siler Bald are: Sprout, Clover, Slip, Trip, Thirsty, Granite, Cookie Tadpole, Neuroma, Starbuck, Jason and Sarah.
Date: 2003-04-04
From: Siler Bald 

To: Wesser Bald Shelter 
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Wow! We didn't mean to hike so far today, but I'm glad we did. We planned on stopping at a campsite 4 miles earlier, but some how passed it by! Jonathan thinks he saw it and it consisted solely of a fire ring! Oh well It's good to know that we can hike almost 18 miles and still feel pretty good! It was also our first day of rain, off & on, but still pretty dreary. At least we had a clear night last night sleeping under the stars. It was beautiful. Tomorrow we only have 5.6 miles to go to get to NOC! I'm exhausted. Lights out at 8 pm.
Date: 2003-04-05
From: Wesser Bald Shelter 

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center 
Miles today: 5.6
Weather: moderate rain

Woke up to pouring rain, thunder, and lightening! Our tent handled it pretty darn well. Awesome views today on our walk down to NOC. By the time we got to town, the sun was shining! Larry and Caleb met us and we went to lunch and watched all of the white water kayakers. Fun! Now we are resting and doing laundry in our "cabin" which is actually a great little apartment with three bedrooms, two baths, kitchen, wrap around porch, laundry room, etc. Great! Tonight we'll watch a movie and eat pastries (yummy German pasties filled with meat and veggies that Jonathan's mom, Pamela, sent. Thanks Pamela!) The one thing our cottage doesn't have is a phone so we'll have to venture out here soon to call some of our loved ones. We are thankful for all the time and effort Larry has spent to come and treat us to comforts off the trail. Thank you! Here's a poem that Caleb wrote about the AT for school:What a way to start the day,Arising to the morning dewGazing out I sometimes doubtThat I will last among the mountains vast.For it seems they'd devour my feeble powerAlthough, day by day I make my way to conquer the rest of my conquest.We just ran to the hostel to drop off some pastries for Sprout and Clover. Guess who was there? Apple Chillin'! Law dog had to leave the trail cuz of a bad knee, so Apple Chillin' busted butt to catch up with his "family". Also, Cuss, Snack Attack, Thirsty, and Granite made it! It was fun to see everyone.
Date: 2003-04-06
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center 

To: Sassafras Gap Shelter 
Miles today: 6.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We packed up this morning and went to Brysan County to get books to enjoy in the evenings. We ate lunch back at NOC. We hit the trail at 1:00 and wouldn't you know, after getting everything clean and dry after Friday nights storm, as soon as we stepped on the trail it started raining! It rained off and on for the first 2 hours, but for the last hour and a half it POURED! Along with thunder, lightening, and hail! We hiked very fast, but when we got to the shelter there were 30+ people there. The first 24 got spots in the shelter (that is supposed to sleep 14) and the rest of us had to tent. Only problem is there were no flat spots. So Jonathan and I climbed up and set our tent in a flat area right next to the trail. All our good buddies are here, so we ate our left-over pastries with them down at the shelter. We're supposed to get more rain tonight.. we'll see!
Date: 2003-04-08
From: Brown Fork Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam 
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Muscle is still cramped and Snack Attack took some of my gear so that my bag would weigh less. What a man! We got a cottage in Fonatana for Jonathan and me, Sprout (now Snort) and Clover, Apple Chillin', Llama, Snack Attack, and Cus. It was fun. Fontana is a "dry" county so Dragonfly went to Brysan City on a beer run! We got a case of beer for the 8 of us. We ate up at the inn and stayed dry although it rained all night long!
Date: 2003-04-09
From: Fontana Dam 

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Took the day off to try to make my leg feel better. We did laundry, took hot baths, watch tv and read our books. It was nice. Cooked dinner on our stove on the back porch of our hotel room. Salmon patties and mashed potatoes. And I made cheesecake for dessert! They're calling for snow tomarrow.
Date: 2003-04-10
From: Fontana Dam

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: snow

(Happy Birthday Deniz) Brrrrrr! It's cold. We got up at 5 am and on the trail by 6:30. It started snowing around 10 am and hasn't stopped! There will probably be a foot by tomorrow. We're in our sleeping bags in the shelter, and people keep straggling in. Glad we got here early!
Date: 2003-04-11
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Derrick's Knob 
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: overcast clouds

The shelter got FULL last night and wee were pretty warm, but it was COLD this morning. It didn't snow a foot but probably 6-8 inches. But in many places there were drifts to your knees! Jonathan and I had a very good day, because other than being wet and cold, the ice in the trees was beautiful. It was slow going though. We got to "break trail" for a couple of miles which was pretty neat. It took us almost all day to go 9 miles! There were 8-10 people already in the shelter when we got there. They had taken a zero day there. Some people weren't too happy about that because they ended up having to tent in the freezing cold since after squeezing 20 people in a 12 person shelter there was no room left. Lots of people are whining and are going to take time off in Gatherburg. By the way, my leg feels great today! Yeah!
Date: 2003-04-12
From: Derrick's Knob 

To: Mt Collins Shelter 
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: clear sky

(dingleberry)--We got up pretty early and pushed off with only a few ahead of us. The first hour was cold, but then we warmed up because the sun finally came out. Hiking was pretty strenuous in ¢the river¢ of a trail. Feet and shoes remained soggy all day. At 2:00 we made Clingmans Dome (the hights point on the AT, ~ 6,000 and change). Made the shelter by 4:30 and a fire was already started. Someone had pulled a large resevour of water too. Felling good. Sleeping by Papa Bear again (a great man). Good night.
Date: 2003-04-13
From: Mt Collins Shelter 

To: PeckÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Corner Shelter 
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: clear sky

So today was our favoite dy so far. We had beautiful views all da long. The trail was still soggy, but we had a great time. We had our first experience with ¢trail magic¢ (that is magic from people we don¢t know). At the first gap, there wer 3 people from the Smokey Mountain Senior hikers club. They had bolgna and/or cheese sandwiches, coke, bananas, candy, and fudge! And if that weren¢t enough, at the next gap (Newfound Gap) Scubaman¢s dada had orange juice, soda, fruit, and donuts! We dindn¢t have to eat much lunch today :) We got great pictures from Charles Bunian. Some fo the people here tonight are Papa Bear, Pippi, Wandereer, Gazer, Baby Steps, One Foot Forward, Scotland, and a few others.
Date: 2003-04-14
From: PeckÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Corner Shelter 

To: Cosby Knob Shelter 
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: clear sky

Snort and Clover did 20 miles today and met us at Cosby Knob! There are over 20 people here again. Lots of people in the Smokies! Another pretty day but we¢re starting to get sick of the sloshy trail. Took an hour break to read along the trail today which was nice and gave us energy to move on! Tonight is our last night in the Smokies. Also, today we passed the 10% mark! Only 90% to go!
Date: 2003-04-15
From: Cosby Knob Shelter 

To: Painter Branch 
Miles today: 12.7

Today was goofy. Went to Mountain Moma¢s Kuntry (that¢s right ¢Kuntry¢) Store for cheeseburgers (JAH) and grilled cheese (me) and to resupply with several other hikers. We also had fries, soda, ice cream, and cookies.So, we were stuffed and not feeling too great when we had to set out hiking again. The next goofy thing was hiking under I-40! We did a mile or two on the road walking (should be some pictures up soon). We camped at an awsome site between 2 streams. Others camping with us were Nothing Decent, Wanderer, Gazer, Baby Steps, Bag, and Shifty. Bag¢s real name is Patrick Jones and he knows Brian Tucker from Catalina Island (Cherry Cove) if you happen to be reading this Brian!
Date: 2003-04-16
From: Painter Branch 

To: Max Patch 
Miles today: 11.8

Hard hike today. Threw frisbee on Max Patch with Dingleberry, Nothing Decent, Shifty, and Bag. Set up camp down in the woods below the bald and hiked back up to the bald for the sunset. It was cloudy, but still beautiful! We also met a cool family from NH on the bald and they offered us showers when we get to Hanover!
Date: 2003-04-18
From: Deer Park Mountain Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC 
Miles today: 6.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we got up and out by 7:30 am and into town by 8:30! It was raining throught the night and a bit this morning. We were so excited to get into town for a big breakfast but when we got here, the only breakfast place had run out of propane and couldn¢t use their grill. They were cooking off one little griddle and all they could serve was bacon, sausage, eggs, and toast. And there were 24 tickets up ahead of us! Oh well! We waited patiently (we weren¢t in any hurry!) and got our breakfast. Then we checked in to Elmer¢s Sunnybark Inn. It is a big old Victtorian house with lots of guest rooms, sitting rooms, a music room with instruments, and a dinning room. Elmer runs an organic farm and serves gourmet vegetarian meels. Yum! It¢s a very neat atmosphere. A handful of hikers from previous years live here and work on the farm and around the inn to earn their keep!
Date: 2003-04-19
From: Hot Springs, NC 

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Last night we went to the Paddlers Pub. There were 30 or 40 hikers there! They hada great beers on draft and a bluegrass jam session going on. And¢¦ I got to dance! One of our good friends Snort (used to be Sprout from Canada) is a dancing fool! It¢s her birthday today. After the Pub closed, we went to the Hot Springs campground where some friends were staying and hung out aroudn the fire. Now we are sitting on the front steps anxiously awaiting the arrival of Andrea and Chris from Wilmington. We may go to the actual Hot Springs today :) And we¢ll all camp together tonight!
Date: 2003-04-21
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: moderate rain

We had a great time with Andrea and Chris in Hot Springs! We got to drive up to Max Patch so that they could see the awesome views. The ride up was a bit scary, but the powerful little Probe served us well. We had a picnic lunch (thanks for the yummy Turkish treats Deniz) and relaxed up on the bald. Back in Hot Springs we had dinner and beers by the fire and played some games. It was sad to see our pals leave, but it was great to spend some time with loved ones. Yesterday (Easter Sunday) we got out of Hot Springs by noon and walked 11 miles to Spring Mountain Shelter and got our tent up before it started to rain. We woke up this morning to more rain and it took us awhile to get going. We got out by 10am and to the shelter around 5pm. We're tenting a bit away from the shelter with Bag, Shifty, Jack and Mr. Spencer (Jack's dog).
Date: 2003-04-25
From: Nolichucky Gorge Campground

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: light rain

We have been bad little journal writers lately. (Well... Jonathan is always bad, but now I've been bad too). Today was a beautiful hike. It was foggy and ominous our and we went through an enchanted forest on Unaka mountain. Highlights of the past few days have been hanging out with Bag and Shifty, lunch on Big Bald, camping at Spivey Gap, the Pizzas Plus all you can eat lunch buffet in Erwin, and margaritas at the Holiday Inn Express. It ended up being a pretty big hotel party last night in Erwin! We stayed at the campground, but Apple Chillin's wonderful wife Lib picked us up and took us to the hotel for awhile. Lets see if I can name all that were there: Me, Dingles, Bag, Shifty, Snort, Clover, Burn, Buzz, Granite, Thumbkin, Stix, Switchback, Charity, Bob, Snack Machine, OFF, Snack Attack, Cuss, Llama, Thirsty (although we didn't get to see the last 4 cuz they arrived after we left), and of course Chillins lovely daughters Hattie (who painted everyones toenails), Brooke, and Caroline. It was a very fun time and we were back at our campground sleeping by 10pm, even though I hear the party went on a lot longer! We didn't get our till after 11am today, so we didn't get to the shelter until after 6pm. But... we are snug and cozy in our little tent now and ready to read a little and fall asleep!
Date: 2003-04-27
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Apple House Shelter
Miles today: 14.6

Yesterday was pretty bad, today was pretty good. Yesterday started out o.k. I saw 4 deer cross the path in front of me! After lunch it startd to get cold and rainy. A few miles later... I twisted my ankle. I thought I was definately going to have to leave the trail and get off my feet for a few days it hurt so bad when I fell. I was so scared and sad. But... I ended up being able to hike on it! It's sore and swollen and pretty black and blue, but... otherwise not too bad! So, I hiked 4 miles on it, in the rain, up the never ending Roan Mountain. Ugh! It was TOUGH. We finally got to the shelter, which was an old Firewardens cabin. It was very cool. And there was a thru-hiker (Lemming) there with ice cream and fruit! Even though it was freezing cold out, the Ben and Jerry's tasted great! And Switchback had an ankle brace that he was going to get rid of, so the day had a happy ending! We woke up thi smorning to sun and blue skies! Hoorah! And we had beautiful views all day long, especially on Little Hump and Hump Mountains. From Hump Mountain, we could look back and see Roan Mountain in the distance. It was amazing that we had walked so far!!! (we took a picture of this if you want to look at it!). Jonathan and I are both feeling very drained and tired the last couple days. I think we have bits of colds. We are VERY excited to take a day and a half off with the Hartsell grandparents in Johnson City!Right now, Shifty and Dingleberry are out to eat. I'm not kidding. Shifty had to use the phone, and the shelter that we are at is 0.5 miles from a road and then there is a restaraunt a mile or so down the road. So... the two of those fools walked down to use the phone and get cheeseburgers! I'm too sore and tired. They better bring me back a grilled cheese.Update: they didn't bring me a grilled cheese:( but that is o.k. because they only had $10 cash and the place didn't take plastic. Oh well. my ramen noodles were just fine!
Date: 2003-04-28
From: Apple House Shelter

To: Moreland Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: clear sky

Today was a long day, but beautiful. We saw a couple waterfalls, one was incredible... Jones Falls (see the pictures). We are chilling out at the shelter now, with a fire, and dreaming about our day(s) off in Johnson City. It is supposed to rain tomorrow afternoon and Wednesday. Perfect timing!
Date: 2003-04-29
From: Moreland Gap Shelter

To: Dennis Cove
Miles today: 6.0

So here I am sitting in the Johnson City Public library. I just finished entering the last few days of journals. We downloaded our pictures onto Pa Hartsells computer, so he'll upload them when he gets a chance. Check back in a few days. There are some good ones!Todays hike was very beautiful and easy! We were picked up right on schedule (although Larry was waiting where the trail USED to come out, but due to a relocation, we were waiting somewhere else! luckily some fishermen told him that they saw us sitting up the road!). Got to g-ma and g-pa dingleberry's house for a yummy lunch, got showers, and now ran up to the library to do this. Sorry I don't have time to do individual emails today, but I'm thinking of everyone and missing you all very much. I will try to call some people, and maybe make it back to the library tomorrow to do some more emails. But... Larry and Lester and Jonathan are waiting for me downstairs!!! Never go to the library with 3 men. Gotta run!
Date: 2003-05-02
From: Dennis Cove

To: Vandeventer Shelter 
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Snotrocket writes: So we ended up taking an extra day off yesterday. I ended up being sick all day Wednesday with a crud that seems to be making it¢s way through the hiking community. I had bad diarrhea, no energy, and couldn¢t eat a thing. Felt a bit better Thursday, but still could barely eat. But¢¦ this morning I woke up with an odd felling in my stomach. Hunger! So we ate some cereal and decided to hit the trail. Our time at Grandma and Grandpa Hartsell¢s was wonderful and relaxing (other than the being sick part) and we played lots of cards and Granny made excellent food! I think Dingleberry regained some of the pounds he shed. Anyway¢¦ Larry dropped us off at Dennis Cove without our packs and we ¢slack packed¢ 9 miles to US 321 where he picked us up and took us for lunch! After lunch, we said goodbye for real and hiked 9 more miles to the shelter. We got caught in a pretty wild thunderstorm which you all know I love, so we climbed down off the ridge-line and waited it out a bit. But we are safe now in our tent and I¢m working on crocheting a hat for Shifty!
Date: 2003-05-03
From: Vandeventer Shelter 

To: Double Springs Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: light rain

Snotrocket writes: Today was bad. It started out OK because the weather looked OK and we heard it was pretty much flat to Damascus. They call this section the ¢Tennessee Highway¢. So we thought we¢d go 23 miles today and 10 into Damascus tomorrow, but¢¦ I fell. Hard. And twisted my ankle AGAIN. I am very sick of this and feeling pretty bummed out. I fell on my face and got pinned by my backpack. After struggling for a while I got on my back and put my foot up and stayed that way until the Viking and Dirty Hairy came and helped me up. Again, I am surprised that I am able to walk so well on my ankle. But it hurts and I¢m frustrated. That was the worst of the THREE times I twisted my ankle today. I guess it¢s super weak now from all the injuries. I even have had my ankle brace on. Anyway¢¦ enough complaining about my ankle. Let¢s complain about the weather. More thunderstorms! I wish I wasn¢t so afraid of thunderstorms because I know it will happen all summer long. I may need professional help. Needless to say, when we got to the second shelter of the day, we did not want to go on. We got here just as one of the several stroms was getting very very close. So.. we are going to try to go 18 tomorrow to get into Damascus. Also, Jonathan¢s feet have been hurting too, so we¢ll see how they hold up.
Date: 2003-05-05
From: Damascus

To: Straight Branch
Miles today: 5.6

Snotrocket writes: Happy Cinco de Mayo! To celebrate we walked 5 miles. We were very proud of ourselves that we actually left Damascus within 24 hours of arrival¢¦ unheard of by most thru-hikers. We arrived yesterday at about 2:30 pm and planned on having a quite dinner date and camping by ourselves. All of our friends had arrived in Damascus on Thursday and/or Friday from what we read in trail registers. But.. low and behold¢¦ we arrived at the hostel and there were ALL of our hiking buddies! Shifty, Buzz, Snort, Clover, Snack Attack, Cuss, Llama, Jack and Mr. Spencer, Steppen Wolf, Sourmash, Off, and tons more! Almost everyone had gotten the hiker funk that is going around - 24 hours of vomiting and diarrhea! Bag even had to get hooked up to an IV because he got so dehydrated! So everyone was still in town and feeling better. Shifty, Dingleberry, and I went to a caf© for dinner and then we met the gang at a hostel where everyone was hanging out and BBQing. It was so good to catch up with everyone. Tonight its me and the 2 guys (Shifty and Dingles) at a campsite. I blindfolded Shifty for a while so I could work on his hat. Hopefully I¢ll finish it tomorrow before we get the golf ball sized hail we¢ve been haring about!
Date: 2003-05-06
From: Straight Branch

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Dingleberrey writes: Had a fun (previous) night with Shifty, Buzz, and Steppenwolf. We all played cards while Tressa worked on finishing Shifty¢s hat. Slept well to the sound of rain all night. The morning of the 6th we headed out ~10 (kinda late because we waited on Shifty¢s slow butt). Hiking was good, only 10 miles, and it only rained for a couple hours. The word of the day was ¢magnanimous¢. We got to the shelter with only around 6 people already there. But 2 hours later there was ~20+ people there and we thought we would have missed the exodus from Damascus.Tomorrow, Shifty, Snotrocket and I are getting up at 6:30 and hiking a big day to hopefully avoid the crowd. Oh yeah, Tressa finished the hat and gave it to Shifty. He loved it. Overall a great day.