morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-06-28
From: Wilbur Clearing Lean-to

To: Congdon Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: light rain

I completed another state today. That makes eleven completed, only three more to go. It took longer than expected to get through Massachusetts due to the rain, the mud, the town lunches, and having to resupply. I got an early start and hadn't even made it to the trail yet when I felt some rain drops. I had gone to bed with clear skies and woke up to dark clouds. It rained until about 2:00 PM. Despite the rain, I didn't fall on any of the wet rock or trip on any roots. I was very careful and watched every step so I wouldn't fall. Because I was watching my feet, I got a little lost. It cost me about a half of an hour. I got some chicken from the deli along with a pint of ice cream and sat on the bench to eat. I threw the empty ice cream container away and then realized I had thrown my spoon away with it. So I had to dig it out. I bet that made a great site-- a wet, dirty old man going through the garbage.The trail has also changed. In Vermont the trail goes through the Green Mountains and part of the Long Trail. It follows the Long Trail for some 97 miles before heading East toward NH. The Long Trail, was completed in 1931, and was the nation¢s first long distance trail. With the Green Mountain came more climbs and less flat terrain. As a result, I arrived at the shelter at 7:38pm.
Date: 2005-06-29
From: Congdon Shelter

To: Goddard Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: thunderstorm

The one thing I can count on to carry me through the hike is a positive attitude. Without it you can not make it. I was sitting at the shelter just getting ready to start the day when another hiker walked up. The conversation usually starts off with, ¢Are you a thru-hiker?¢ This fellow said he was a thru-hiker. However, he proceeded to tell me he was quitting when he got to Bennington. I explained I ran ultras and had dropped out of some because I felt bad or just had enough. I then said as bad as I felt when running, I always felt worst when I quit. I said if nothing else take a couple of zero days in Bennington and then decide. He said the last two weeks had been too much and he was not having fun anymore. I hope he goes into town and changes his mind. He invested a lot of himself to get this far and then quit.Every day the trail will try and break you. You can accept what happens, look for the positive, and know with every step forward you are that much closer to finishing. If it rains, go slower. Today¢s rain brings tomorrows flowers. If it¢s hot, it will dry out the mud and you are less likely to fall. If you are hiking alone, think of family and friends to pass the time. When you fall, laugh and be glad nothing got broken. If you are patient, the trail will reward you with a view, a wild life sighting, or a beautiful flower. Sometimes it just lets you become at peace with yourself. I have to admit though; I haven't come up with a positive explanation for the mosquitoes.When I got to the shelter there was a spring right next to it. The spring had ice cold water that was clear (for a change). I had a big drink of the cold water and it tasted great. I got set up in the shelter and I hung some clothes out to dry.Another hiker showed up doing the Long Trail. He had done the AT in 2001. Then another group of seven girls and three fellows showed up. They were all planning on staying in their tents. One girl had a guitar and the fellow doing the Long Trail asked if he could play it. Then all of a sudden it started to storm. The leader for the group asked if they could come in the shelter until it passed. We said sure and they all piled into the shelter. The fellow continued to play and it turned into a sing along. So I typed my journal and listened to the sing along as the rain beat down on the tin roof.That¢s my day.
Date: 2005-06-30
From: Goddard Shelter

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: scattered clouds

These long days keep popping up. This time I had to make sure I got far enough so I could get into Manchester to get my mail drops. With Monday being a holiday, the post office would have been closed. I would of had to wait three days to get my package. I now have time to get the mail and bounce the box Saturday morning. I also have another cheap room for two days. I need a zero day to try and get everything done, and I need some relaxing time as well. Everything is still wet. I'm still dirty and the trail is still muddy. The day was overcast which kept it cool. There were no falls but a lot of slipping in the mud. I saw moose droppings, but no moose. One of the notes in the shelter said they had seen one on the section I hiked yesterday. The water sources have been much better with nice clean water. There have been far less mosquitoes and the repellent helps keep them away. I did get stung by a bee or wasp today. It only hurt for a little while.Tomorrow there will be clean clothes and a clean Rick, if only for a day.
Date: 2005-07-01
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: VT11/30 Manchester Center
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: broken clouds

I arrived into town later than expected. This time it wasn't my fault, well sort of. The trail blazes were not well placed and were spaced far apart. I knew the trail would turn off the road someplace and watched carefully for the double blazes marking the turn. I still ended up walking right by it. They had the blazes painted on a white bark tree. They also had a small 4x6 inch wood sign that said trail in yellow, no AT or Long Trail on it. It ended up being a 45 minute loss. Even with the side trip I still made it to town in plenty of time to get to the post office and bounce my boxes. After that, I had lunch, took a shower, and did laundry. I even got to the book store and used the computer to check email. I think it¢s been almost a month since I last got to a computer. A couple of hikers emailed me and I now know they are still on the trail.After all that I treated myself to a good dinner at the Sirloin Saloon. While I was eating, it started pouring. There was a couple leaving just as I got outside. Their names were Bill & Barbara Muench and both are teachers in town. Bill also coaches basketball. They were nice enough to give me a ride to the hotel. In addition, they offered to fix me breakfast and shuttle me around town.I've said it before and I'll say it again, it really boosts your spirits and makes you realize that people really are good.I am still not seeing any other thru-hikers but there have been some Long Trail (LT) as well as some section hikers. The water supply is improving and shouldn't be a problem in the future. It is starting to dawn on me as I talk to the section hikers and I see the look of amazement when I tell them I have hiked all the way from Georgia. It is nice to hear their congratulations on what I have done. They are all very encouraging and wish me the very best of luck in finishing. Every once in a while I do think about actually finishing. But with 537 miles to go I'm not spending much time thinking about it. Let¢s see if I know how to sleep in a bed without a tent over me.
Date: 2005-07-02
From: VT11/30 Manchester Center

To: Zero Day
Miles today: 0.0

I got the bad news when I called my wife yesterday. My best friend John Holmes has died from lung cancer. With everything I did yesterday I spent most of my time thinking about John. It helped that I was so busy it took my mind off it for awhile.I was very lucky that I was able to retire in January and spend some time with John before starting my hike. As always with a loved one, it was never enough time. John and I have known each other for so long, I can¢t even remember when we met. I would believe it¢s well over thirty-five years ago. We started out playing cards with our wives as a group. That same group has been playing cards every month for all those years.John was an avid runner and when he started no one gave him a harder time about it than I did. One time I told him if I lived two life times he would never see me run a step. I thought at the time it was the stupidest thing anyone could do. Little did I know that with his encouragement and help that I would eventually do a 100 mile race. I couldn't count or tell you about all the Sunday runs we got up and ran at Croom or all the local races we went to. It was always fun and we ended up laughing harder than working. During some of my career I was self employed and I would go on jobs with John and help him with his cabinet installations. I'm being generous when I say ¢help¢. I think I got in the way more than I helped, but even if I screwed up he never got mad. We never had a cross word in all our years. I know as good a friend as I was with John, he made everyone who knew him feel that way. That¢s why he was loved by so many and will always be remembered with love.John, thanks for being the best friend I could have and all the great memories. Until we meet again, all my love.I think I may have said it before but here it is again. As much as I eat I could eat the same thing two hours later. Well, I actually did that today. I woke up at my usual time about 6:15. Even though Bill & Barbara said they would fix me breakfast, I didn't think I should call too early. I went to the local restaurant and had two eggs, bacon, hash browns, toast and a coke. That was at 7:00am. I called about an hour later and was only planning on getting resupplied, go to the post office and get the pictures mailed. When Bill got here he had gone to the store and loaded up with breakfast food. By 9:30am I had my second breakfast, and yes I was already hungry by then and ate more then the first time. I was even full for a couple of hours. Then, on top of that they invited me to a cook out tonight.The cook out was fun and I enjoyed the food and company. It would have been one my wife would of really enjoyed. She could have talked about teaching with them. They talked about parents interfering, bad teachers they don't want their kids to get, and the neat things they were working on for their students. They were a great group of teachers and very dedicated.
Date: 2005-07-03
From: VT11/30 Manchester Center

To: Big Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: clear sky

Before heading back out on the trail, I took a shower, ate breakfast, and picked up some food I forgot the day before. I then waited for a hitch. After all that, I was on the trail by 9:05am. The weather even cooperated, and it¢s not too hot.I knew it wouldn't be long before I thought about John. I was glad to be back on the trail and had nothing but time on my hands. I didn't mind a good cry as I thought about him and all we did. I felt better afterwards but I was kind of glad I didn't see anyone. I'm sure I would have been a site hiking down the trail crying. They probably would have thought another AT hiker had loss it.The views have been spectacular today. I went over Bromley Mountain and there was a great view as I walked up the trail. It followed a ski slop that was full of wild flowers. At the top they had an observation tower so I climbed up and took in the view. The whole day was filled with views like that, Styles Peak, Peru Peak and others along the way. I ended up at a shelter next to a stream and can hear the water going over the rock as I do the journal.I have company in the shelter tonight. There are four Mennonite hiking that call themselves the ¢Pennsylvania Pod¢ and a long section hiker called Skettles. I meet my youngest and oldest hikers today. In town, I met two brothers named Hell Boy and Beast. Hell Boy is 23 and his younger brother is 13. They are hiking fast, but I hope I will get to talk to them so I can tell you more. I was very impressed that a 13 year old was doing this. I also met an 82 year old hiker. She was not doing the AT but she did hike up Bromley Mountain and was up on the tower with me.All in all a good day back on the trail. It¢s now time to let the pleasant and restfully sounds of the rushing water over the rocks put me to sleep.
Date: 2005-07-04
From: Big Branch Shelter

To: Clarendon Shelter
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: clear sky

Today turned out to be another good day for hiking. I got a normal start at 7:30am and made good time. I did not have any real goal or distance I wanted to cover. There were a couple of town options I was looking at. I decided I would make my decision on towns once I got to the road crossing and saw what time it was.I reached my first road crossing about 10:30am and decided it was too early to go to town. It was still cool and I could get in some more miles before it got to hot.I continued on my way and took in a couple of nice views. I was thinking about John again, this time I was remembering all the good times we had running, playing cards and life in general. A lot of the good times were when all the couples got together and played our monthly cards. We always ate well, caught up on news from the last time, told a new joke or repeated a old one. We usually had quite a few laughs and we always had a good time. We must of had a lot of good times because I spent the whole day remembering. I did not get down or upset and was able to keep a smile on my face thinking about them. Thanks John, Diane, Wilda, Bob, Ray, Linda, Sam, Linda S. and Yvonne I think with John gone we will truly know how important friendship is in all our lives.At the second road crossing I opted for the town. I was trying for a hitch with no luck. Just as I started across the road I saw a truck rounding the corner and stuck out my thumb. He stopped and I had my ride to town. I told him I wanted to go to Mom's Restaurant and he dropped me of there. I unloaded my pack out of the back of the truck and walked over to the restaurant. It was closed for the 4th of July. I tried the pizzeria, but it was closed. The only other option was a deli down the road. I put my pack on and headed that way. I was in luck, it was open and I ate until I was full. Cokes, sandwiches, ice cream, macaroni and tuna salad. The PA Pod was there eating and trying to find out if the bus to Rutland was running. No one was sure but they thought it was and would be there around 5:00 PM. They needed to get to Rutland to stay in a hostel and pick up mail the next day. While I was eating, the 16 year old went and bought a half gallon of ice cream and almost finished before I left. I got a quick hitch back to the trail and was hiking again at 3:30pm. I had a short but difficult climb getting to the shelter and got here just after 7:00pm. I spent about two and half hours in town during the afternoon so I didn't mind getting in as late as I did.There are some LT hikers tenting, a southbound AT hiker tenting and one couple who are section hiking staying in the shelter. That left me room to put up my tent inside the shelter. The other couple in the shelter also put up their tent. There have been a few more mosquitoes around today and I would not want to sleep without mosquito netting. Again the shelter is near a stream and you can hear it running over the rocks. It did such a good job putting me to sleep last night I'll let it do it again.
Date: 2005-07-05
From: Clarendon Shelter

To: Tucker-Johnson Shelter
Miles today: 17.4

I reached two milestones today. I now have less than 500 miles to finish and I made it to the Maine Junction. The Maine Junction is where the Long Trail and the AT split. The AT turns east and heads towards NH and Maine. The Long Trail continues north to Canada just 165.4 miles away.There weren¢t many views today and it was cloudy and foggy. I did have an interesting climb up Killington Mountain. It had been a long time since I had a climb that long and hard but I enjoyed it for some reason. The climb stops .2 of a mile from the summit where there is a shelter. You can take a side trail straight up if you want to get to the summit. There was a camp group at the shelter where the side trail starts and I asked if they had been to the top. They said yes, but the concession stand was closed. That made my decision easy. I wasn't climbing straight up without being able to get something to eat.I made good time after a short lunch at the shelter on Killington and got to US4 at 4:45pm. Then the rain started. It wasn't hard so I tried to hitch. I had no luck for about 10 minutes. It then started raining real hard and I got under the cover of some trees. It finally let up and I said I would try for five more minutes and during that time I got a ride. I stopped at McDonalds and had two Big Macs, two apple pies, fries, four refills on cokes, a cheese burger and some ice cream. (Editors note: Dad¢s Grin should rename himself ¢High Cholesterol¢).I got a ride back to the trail head with Nail's husband. He is shuttling the car while his wife sections hikes VT. She made it here last year and is section hiking now to finish.There is no stream to put me to sleep tonight and hopefully no rain. I did pitch my tent in the shelter. I was the only one here and had plenty of room. Johnny Blaze just showed up at 8:45pm so there is someone else here tonight. He said his tent was too big to fit in the shelter so he pitched it in front of the shelter. Time to get the one mosquito that¢s in the tent with me and then to sleep.
Date: 2005-07-06
From: Tucker-Johnson Shelter

To: Wintturi Shelter
Miles today: 18.9

The rain continued on and off all day. It looks like I'll have wet clothes until I get to a town and can do laundry. The good news is the mud patches have let up and I do not have to continually step around them. The other good news is I didn't fall.The trail changed again as I headed east. Today it was mostly ups and downs. I made good time in the morning even with the climbs. I had a quick lunch and headed out for the next 9.9 miles. This time the climbs were much longer and steeper. I didn't make as good of time until a couple of miles before the shelter. There was a good long flat section and I made it here in 5.5 hours.When I got here there was one section hiker so I pitched my tent in the shelter again. Soon Johnny Blaze showed up. He wasn't ahead of me all day like I had thought. He said the PA Pod was coming and about 15 minutes later they showed up. After that another hiker showed up and said two more may make it here. We have made room in the shelter and a couple of the PA Pod are tarping with their hammocks. If anyone else shows up and want in the shelter I'll need to take down the tent and everyone will have to get close. Using the tent it takes about a space and half. It¢s still raining and the forecast calls for more rain the next two days. I'm getting use to wet clothes.There were no views with all the rain and clouds. I did follow a set of moose tracks that went down a road leading to the shelter. I keep expecting to see it but never did. The tracks looked very fresh and Johnny Blaze commented on them also. With all the mosquito bites I now itch all over and it¢s hard not to scratch them. I would like to count all the red splotches on me. I bet I look like I have freckles.Tomorrow will be another hard day so I can be sure to get into Handover, NH. I didn't want to have to do long days again but I don't want a zero day while I wait for the post office to open Monday. Worst yet I'll have to pass up a chance to go to town for a meal to be sure I make it to the shelter before it gets dark. I'll have to do 21 miles tomorrow which wouldn¢t leave me time for a town trip.It¢s 9:00pm and no one else has showed up so it¢s to bed for me after one more visit to the trees.
Date: 2005-07-07
From: Wintturi Shelter

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: light rain

This one will be short. I got a good start at 6:45am but did not make it here until 7:45pm. These long days are just too long and everything starts hurting after awhile. I don't want to end up hurt this close to the end. The next time if I have to spend a zero day that¢s what I'll do.I did get a quick hitch to South Pomfret so I had some sandwiches, Ben and Jerry¢s, a coke and some cookies. Only three cars passed by on the walk back to the trail. Not only that, but a dog came after me. It came right up to me so I put my hiking poles in his face before he stopped no more than two feet from me. I think it would have been a real problem if I didn't have the poles. The dog was very aggressive.I saw a couple of nice views today and took some more pictures. One of them I took was a course marker for the VT100 Mile Endurance Run. It was fun seeing the course marker that I probably passed when I ran the race.Before I fell asleep last night it really started to rain hard. It did that most of the night. The shelter had a tin roof and the rain was very loud on the tin roof. I didn't get as much sleep as I would have liked.The shelter here was not full so I put my tent up in the shelter. The forecast call for more rain. It was overcast most of the day and I almost got my socks dried hanging them on my pack.I thought I would put some perspective on the remaining distance I have left-- 447.7 miles. I figured that¢s like driving from my house in St. Pete, FL to Atlanta, GA. Then think of it this way: If you start and stop every 15 minutes on the interstate and then start the next day the same way that is as far as I travel in a day! I'm not quite as close as I think, but I am getting there.
Date: 2005-07-08
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 5.8
Weather: light rain

I only did 5.8 miles getting into Handover. More importantly it completed my 12th state. I crossed the Connecticut River which marks the VT/NH border.I got my bounce boxes and bounced two of them to Gorham, NH. I got the additional clothes I'll need out of the box and then bounced it. The town visit kept me busy and I got my hair cut and did laundry. The weather forecast calls for rain chances the rest of the week and next week. It doesn't include the hurricane remnants that I would bet we may get. If we get that much rain over the next two weeks it is going to be a real problem. I will be starting the White Mountains in three or four days and it is not easy to get to town and in some cases there just isn't a town near by. Along with all that, it will be cold. I just have to hope for the best as I continue on.There were a lot of hikers going into town and at the post office. I met three that were leaving for the day that had started back in February. The PA Pod, Hell Boy and Beast were also in town. I'm sharing a room with Johnny Blaze at the Sunset Motor Inn while we try and dry things out.That¢s it for the night. I'm turning in and heading out tomorrow. Hopefully, I'll be able to get breakfast first. The trail goes right by the grocery store so I can resupply.