morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-07-14
From: Gorham, NH

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 144.5
Weather: clear sky

First of all, pay no attention to the total mileage ... I did something wacky, so it's off. Our total mileage is actually listed as "today's miles."We are in Hanover, NH! This trail town is right on the border of Vermont, so that means we (us & Fire Marshall) have officially finished NH! The 160 miles flew by! I'm so happy we had good weather through the Whites, and I definitely think that played a role. In Hanover, thru hikers get a free slice of pizza at Ramuto's, a free Snickers bar at The Mountain Goat outfitter, and a free coffee at the college bookstore. We were all over that! We stayed with friends for a full ZERO today and will hop back on the trail tomorrow. Today was the first day we hiked ZERO miles, our first time in 38 days that we will not hike!Anyways, a good summary of the last few days is holy heat. It's been hot out there, which is complicated by the fact that many of the water sources have been dry and we have been quite thirsty. The conversation between NOBOs and SOBOs along the trail has been centered around where you can come across good water in the next few miles. No worries! We have been playing it safe and carrying extra water whenever we come across a running stream.Another summary for the past few days ... The bugs are back! The skeeters are out for sure; but the horseflies have been the worst! They like to buzz around and around your head as you are hiking, then dive bomb and burrow in your hair. Deal has been practicing his Mr. Miagi one-hand kill of those little suckers, but I think his count is only up to 10 or so and that is not enough. Plus, this plan of action has failed a few times as he has lost his balance and fallen a few of the times ...One low point on Tuesday. We came upon trail magic in the woods (sodas left in the river), but it was all taken! Boo! A few miles later, however, we had heard about a blue house that had water and ice cream. There was no ice cream, but there were sodas for sale!!! Yippee!Here's my summary of NH:7 nights in a tent2 nights in a shelter2 nights in a hostel2 nights in a hut105 NOBOs passed 6 falls for Steadee, 4 falls for Deal2 dig-a-hole poops for Deal, 1 for Steadee3 snakes2 grouse1 partridgeTrail Magic: leftover dinner, granola bars from weekenders, cooler in the woods with chips & cookies, tuna sandwich, banana, chips & peanuts from the owners of The Cabin in Andover, ME, whiskey from weekenders, gatorade in a parking area, sodas for sale from a house off the trailWeird things you find in NH wilderness: broken TV, large sleeping bag, fleece jacket, sock, metal fork, broken glass, unidentified metal objectsUntil next time ... we have 149.8 miles in Vermont up next!!
Date: 2011-07-24
From: Manchester Center, VT

To: Cheshire, MA
Miles today: 73.0

Three states down! 10 to go!Greetings from Mt. Greylock at 3,491 feet, the highest point in Massachusetts, and mile 602.5. We are done with Vermont and entered Mass yesterday! The rest of VT was fine ... It was certainly hot and we did duck into another town for a night because we were just parched and many of the water sources were dry. The mud everyone complained about in VT was nothing in our eyes. If it doesn't swallow you whole, it's not bad. Maybe the heat has dried it all out, or we are just jaded by Maine's June mud.The bugs (horse/deer flies) on the other hand, hold some fierce competition to Maine. There was a 25-mile section in the past few days where we thought they may actually kill us. On a daily basis, we do have 1-2 flying around our head while hiking. But, this time, it was no less than 5 and up to 25 at any given time! And they were biting no less. Such jerks. It'd be one thing if they helped carry our packs ...The only other hiccup in VT was that Deal's pack strap broke on Thursday. I know, I know, unbelievable, right? Gregory (the pack company) is sending a new one that we will pick up in a day or 2, but Fire Marshall & Deal did a temporary fix. Anyways, here's our summary of Vermont:149.8 miles9 days3 nights in a tent3 nights in a shelter2 nights in a hostel2 showers3 hitchhikes115 NOBOs (Northbounders) passed 25 Soy Joy bars distributed1 river crossing (knee deep)1 fall (Steadee)5 dig-a-hole poop in the woods for Deal/2 for Steadee7 doses of trail magic2 silver AT markers1 snake1 turkey1 possumLots of toads, but one the size of my handTons of orange newts (in one 10-mile section)Strange items found in VT's woods: old stove, unidentified metal equipment in an old stone foundation, metal bucket, plastic bucket, old rusted jeep, old farming equipment, white plastic chair, mining equipment
Date: 2011-07-31
From: Cheshire, MA

To: Kent, CT
Miles today: 111.9

We are at Mile 722! Not only did we finish Massachusetts, but we are going to finish Connecticut tomorrow! Right now, we are experiencing greatness ... My sister picked us up to clean and feed us for the night!! OMG it was awesome. Anyways, Massachusetts was pretty good to us, especially for a state that never ranked high on our list. But the wilderness of Mass is something to talk about. Quite flat with a few notable climbs thrown in there from time to time. Lots of beautiful hemlock groves. One day, we walked right by a blueberry farm and the lady who owns it gives 3 cookies to every thru hiker! We also picked blueberries!We thought the trail in Mass was really well maintained and the shelters were also very nice! I always heard thru hikers talk about Upper Goose Pond Cabin and now I know why! It was free to stay there, but there are caretakers and they made us guacamole at dinner and blueberry pancakes for breakfast (with the blueberries we picked)! Actually, we stayed in 2 other free places. One was in Cheshire, Mass. Our Catholic friends will be amused to know we slept on the floor of a Catholic church parish hall! It was a nice escape from the heat!! The other free place was in Dalton, Mass. You walk right through the town and Deal was picking up his new backpack from a trail angel's house. When we arrived at noon, the pack had not. So we went to lunch and it was there when we got back. But after we got all situated, the sky opened up and downpoured! The temptation was too much to just stay in town at the trail angel's house ... Fire Marshall, on the other hand, kept going. So we have been separated from him most of the way through Mass, but we reunited with him today. Of course, we did get caught in one torrential thunderstorm, so I suppose we were due for it ...Here's our summary of Massachusetts:90.4 miles5 days3 nights in a tent1 night in a shelter2 nights in a hostel1 shower2 dig-a-hole poops in the woods for Deal1 iPod day of hiking120 Northbounders passed2 bunnies (while we were on roads)2 snakes12 orange newts (which I found out are actually called red-spotted newts, or efts)1 snailTons of toads (and if Vermont had the largest toad, Mass had the smallest ones)We did see a lot of bear poop and heard there were bears around, but have not seen one yet. I hope to update about Connecticut in a few days as well, but for now, that's all I have!
Date: 2011-08-06
From: Kent, CT

To: NY/NJ State Line
Miles today: 100.7

We entered NJ this evening and it started to downpour ... you would think our home state would be kinder to us!! So we quickly set up our tent and hunkered down for the night.The good news is we have entered our 7th state!! As for my summary of NY, I have mixed feelings about the state. The hiking/terrain was decent overall, and extremely diverse, which made each day different. But, there were some things I didn't like about this state. I think it's easier to just list it out.THE BAD*The shelters were crappy. Not only that, but most of them lacked a privy! What's up with that?? We actually only stayed at one shelter (RPH Shelter and it was awesome!) and camped at other random spots, including a monastery where they let you camp at their baseball pavilion (we crammed 5 tents in there because of the rain) and a garden center that was conveniently placed between railroad tracks and a highway (we only stayed there because the rain came in ... But of course sleep that night complicated by the wicked storm that created a strobe light dance party with all the lightening)*The water sources were pretty much all dry. We instead got water from the tap at delis, etc. Also, people put out water jugs as trail magic!*There was a lot of noise pollution as we were hiking. We crossed 4 major highways and countless other busy highways. When we crossed the Palisades Parkway, it was like being in a game of Frogger!THE GOOD*Trail magic! There was some trail tragic, but more magic, including a full cooler at the top of a mountain! When we were in the post office picking up our packages, some guy started chatting with us and came back in a few minutes later with ice cream sandwiches!! And like I said, sometimes trail magic was simply water! *Delis, hot dog stands and ice cream! It is what every thru hiker talks about when they mention NY! We only missed 2 on "the tour" because they were closed.*The views were surprisingly awesome!! Bear Mtn was a favorite and we were able to spend a lot of time up there enjoying it.*Like I said, NY's trail is very diverse. We even went through a zoo and we quite liked that!*We had our first bear sighting!! Actually 3 bears in total (Fire Marshall saw 4)Here are the stats on NY89.2 miles5.5 days3 nights in a tent1 night in a shelter1 night in a house66 NOBOs passed (they are definitely dissipating)1 fall for Steadee3 dig-a-hole poops in the woods for Deal4 doses of trail magic3 doses of trail tragic (empty cooler)1 iPod afternoon10 SoyJoys distributed1 shower1 hitch hike7 silver AT markersWildlife:1 snake6 deer1 fox or coyote (couldn't tell)3 bearRandom things found in the woods of NY:Toilet, fridge, lobster cage, guardrail, car seat cushion
Date: 2011-08-10
From: NY/NJ State Line

To: Delaware Water Gap, PA
Miles today: 72.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Guess what we have been doing the last few days?? NOT HIKING!! I'm excited to tell you all that we are enjoying a few zeros at my parents' house in NJ! We had this planned in our heads for a long time and actually, we haven't taken a full day off since Hanover, NH, just about 500 miles ago!! So it feels so, so good. In fact, we banged out a 24-mile day to get here earlier and have an extra zero day instead of a nero (near-zero) day. Anyways, we have a lot of "real life" stuff to take care of, so we have been busy bees to say the least! As for hiking, we are now at mile 895.5, the Delaware Water Gap in PA, which means we completed New Jersey! New Jersey was pretty good to us ... It rained quite a few times at night and was hot and humid during the day. Once again, keeping hydrated and finding water sources was an issue. When it is as humid as it was, we tend to drink upwards of 100 ounces daily!! The terrain in NJ was very nice and flat; there was even a 1-mile boardwalk section! We especially enjoyed the last 30 miles. You walk along a ridgeline and who knew that NJ had ridges?? I lived here for 22 years and I didn't know that! But it does and there are some incredible views!Anyways, here's our summary of good 'ol Jersey: 72.2 miles 4 days 4 nights in a tent plus we are spending 4 nights at my parents' 10 NOBOs (definitely slowing down), but we've seen more of "our kind" lately (SOBOs) - 2 caught up to us and we caught up to 2 others! 6 dig-a-hole poops in the woods for Deal (might I add that is a record for him in any state ... I think he is just really grasping nature ... Or there is something in Jersey water?) By the way, I only dug a hole once! Wildlife was kind of exciting, as we saw at least 6 deer, 1 snake, 1 porcupine an 1 bear along the trail! But the most exciting thing was that some kind of possum or raccoon tried to get in our tent one night and I woke up to Deal yelling at something and he ended up punching it in the nose through the tent wall to get it to go away! NO trail magic! There was no trail tragic either, but still! Jersey doesn't love hikers?? We did get trail magic from people we know though, so we can't complain too much. Fire Marshall's girlfriend picked him up one day for some zero days and gave us sodas and home-baked cookies! Also, Deal's friend Todd, the lead singer of Railroad Earth/From Good Homes lives near the trail and told us to call when we came through. So we did and he treated us to lunch! Not to mention, it rained the entire time we were at lunch ... An extra bonus! And then of course, there are my parents ... Big trail angels as they are dealing with our craziness and trying hard to fatten us up!! We weighed in again and right now, our weight loss is 27 lbs for Deal and 22 lbs for me! Believe me, we are eating as much as we can carry! And we will gain this weight back once we stop hiking. Anyways, we are planning to get back on the trail Sunday morning to start the infamous Rocksylvania!!! I am trying not to let some big bad rocks scare me!!!
Date: 2011-10-02
From: Damascus, VA

To: Roan Mountain, TN
Miles today: 74.8
Weather: broken clouds

Thank you to all the recent commenters in our trail journal! It brings us great joy to hear from y'all! I will try to return some emails soon! We are currently at a hostel in Elk Park, NC/Roan Mtn, TN at mile 1791.4 on taking a zero on day 119! And thank God we are in a hostel, because it is in the 30s and we are at a lower elevation (3,000 feet). People coming down from the mountains have reported snow and blowing winds ... Good day for a zero. It is the 3 of us here (steadee, Deal and Fire Marshall) with 2 other SOBO section hikers/flip floppers. Last night, there were 2 others. The most hikers we've seen in a hostel since New Hampshire! We were all happy to be inside and out of the elements last night.Yesterday, we hiked in snow, sleet & rain. Did you know it was Oct. 1? I thought it was maybe Jan. 1!So we have done 71 miles in Tennessee in 4 days. Tomorrow, we will enter North Carolina. Then renter Tennessee. Then North Carolina. And so on. This goes on for 153.6 miles and then another 72 miles in Great Smokey Mountain National Park, where we walk the state borders basically. Then there's 87.6 miles in North Carolina alone. And then we enter Georgia! But I'm getting too far ahead of myself.Tennessee has been great. It is like we are walking into fall. And beauty. We've seen 3 bear! My biggest gripe about TN ... No privies! So I've had to dig 2 holes already!! Deal, of course, has dug double my amount.We also received some great mail magic in the last week! For example, Ridley (Misti, my best commenter on the blog) & Panther, who thru hiked last year, sent us a surprise package to Damascus full of goodies, including some gourmet meals!Then, Second Nature/Paul, who hiked the trail in 1998, & Gr8tful/Kristen, his wife, sent us the fixings for no-bake cheesecake! Lots of other packages came through, especially for Deal's birthday! I also gave Deal his birthday present ... 35+ letters from friends & family. And just because I don't know when we'll have service again, here is the info for our LAST mail drop:Patrice and/or Justin La VigneC/O The Hike Inn3204 Fontana RoadFontana Dam, NC 28733Please hold for SOBO Thru HikerETA October 13
Date: 2011-10-19
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Hiawassee, GA
Miles today: 95.1
Weather: moderate rain

We have reached our 14th and final state, Georgia!Theoretically, we have accomplished our goal: we hiked from Maine to Georgia. But, the southern terminus of the AT is actually 67.5 miles south at Springer Mountain and that is where our journey will end in just a few days, on Oct. 24. We resupplied in Hiawassee, GA, about 9 miles over the state line! This was our last time to indulge in a town on the trail. It was a little bit of a difficult hitch into town (45 minutes & about 30 cars), but it was worth it, especially because it rained and even snowed in the mountains!So we just completed the 87.6 miles of North Carolina during these last 4 days! The first part of this section was definitely more difficult than the second part, with long climbs. Our iPods helped tremendously! But, we were always rewarded at the top with panoramic views! There are a few more balds in this section, but the ones further north are still our favorites. And thankfully, we've had beautiful weather, with only the one day of rain!We also walked right through the Nantahala Outdoor Center-a really cool pitstop and food break!This section of the trail has been really crowded, even for midweek. But, it is leaf-peeping season! The shelters have been packed every night, except for one when we were completely alone! I think I said this in my last post, but running into section and day hikers has been really fun in the South, as everyone realizes we are SOBOs on the AT before we even say anything and are so complimentary! We got our picture taken once again because of our thru hiker status. Most are now saying "congratulations" instead of "good luck!" We even got some unexpected trail magic the other day from a couple we were chatting with ... They said, "well, we don't have much to offer you, but we do have a soda & banana." That was perfect for us!Fire Marshall is now a half day ahead of us. His girlfriend, Alex, is joining us for the last miles of the trail, so he jumped ahead to meet up with her. We will reunite the team soon, but it sure is weird being split up! So here are the official stats for North Carolina:87.6 miles4 days1 shower1 night in a hostel2 nights in shelters2 nights in our tent3 dig-a-hole poops in the woods for Deal, none for Steadee because NC has privies!!!No wildlife to speak of (1 garter snake)Just 5 days and 67.5 miles to go!!! Just a few more 4,000+ foot climbs ... Here we come Springer!!
Date: 2011-11-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

You Might Be A Thru-Hiker If ...- Your grocery list contains foods invented solely to make people obese and you choose the products that weigh the least, while packing the most calories- You have difficulty recalling passwords, but you can spit out your start/end date, trail name and number of calories in a honey bun with no problem- The smoke from the campfire makes you smell better- You rationalize staying in a place that is missing part of its floor, the entire ceiling in the bathroom and has spiders crawling in the bed because, well, it's raining out and it's cheap - Seeing little white rectangles excite you greatly- You smack your head when you hear a buzzing noise- You consider nature your bathroom (dig a hole, drop a load)- Food becomes more important than taking a shower- You don't know the real names of people you have met in the last month- You can't recall where you slept the night before- You eagerly take food from strangers without question and consider eating unopened food you find on the trail or in a shelter- Duct tape is invaluable- You don't blow your nose with a tissue, you just blow snot rockets- You keep wearing a pair of socks or boots even though you can see your toes through the holes- You sometimes look at a creek and wonder if that is indeed the trail- You go to bed the same time as a 75-year-old does- You look for coolers at road crossingsAnyone else have something to add?
Date: 2010-03-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well this is my first entry I still don't know how writing interesting entries is going to go, writing never was my strong suit. Anyways, I can hardly believe that I only have a year to go! I am so excited and just hope that everything goes according to plan, such as me convincing my cousin to come with me!(Come on Ross, you know you want to!! ) If he does decide to join me, maybe I won't get so many crazy looks from people when I tell them I am planning to hike from Georgia to Maine. Everyone will just smile and say "Well isn't that is wonderful" rather than what I get now "What?!? NO! I can't let you do that all by youself." But I guess most people don't really get the urge to walk for months and months, so they don't know much about the trail except that Maine is really far away. So I guess I should cut them some slack, at least they are concerned, right??One thing I am nervous about is how cold it has been this winter and the threat of snow in the forecast tonight... The smokies are covered with snow and almost impossible to hike through. I hope that's not the case next year... Ahh its nerve-racking!
Date: 2010-08-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Reasons Why I want to hikeI need to escape the safe place I have created for myself. I want to meet new people, to experience new things, to change my surroundings, to challenge myself and see what I'm really made of.I need this trip. I'm tried of people always expecting things I don't want or don't have to give. I feel like I'm losing myself. They all put so much pressure on school and the future and yes, both are important, but in life things happen the way they should. As long as you set goals, work to achieve them and don't sit idly by life has a way of giving you what you need most.I need a change to reconnect with my individual beliefs and not the beliefs of my teachers or my parents,they both have good intentions, but that's not what I need at this point in time. I need to discover what makes me, me and what my purpose in this world is. I have always felt at peace when I take time by myself in nature. It clears my head and makes me realize what is really important. That is what I look forward to experiencing over the journey. Discovering where I want my life to go and how I want to make it happen.
Date: 2010-09-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hello,It was my birthday this past weekend and I of course received items for my hike as well as money to buy, well things for my hike. (this seems to be a theme... for most things these days) I don't have much left to buy which just makes this trip feel more real. Some times I wish there was a plane ticket to buy or even a bus ticket just something to make the date feel locked in, but living in Georgia means that's not part of the deal for me. That being said it will be nice to have my family and maybe even a close friend or two see me off. It is so hard to believe that in just a few months I will be trekking north towards Katahdin the mountain I have stared at through my car window on my way up to Nova Scotia each summer.The count down has also begun to my December graduation date! Geez I just can't wait for that day to come! Though it is going to be a bit anti-climatic considering I won't actually have a graduation ceremony... After 12 years of school I don't even get to wear one of those absurd hats. I didn't think I would really mind not having the traditional graduation, but as the time approaches I have to admit I am a little disappointed. Especially because my mom is so disappointed, but really by the time they get to the V's in the ceremony everybody just wants to go home anyways. I'm just helping them get out sooner. Plus the trade off of not having the traditional graduation is DEFINITELY worth it.