morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-03-29
From: Rufus Morgan Shelter

To: Sassafrass Gap Shelter
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: light rain

Todays Theme - "Take the good with the bad."Packed up and hit the trail out of Rufus Morgan Shelter at 8:05. Headed down to NOC to pick up my first mail drop! It was Great! Cheryl and Kayla Warren sent me some very nice well wishes - made me feel all warm inside - Thank you. Also, thanks to my mom for running around to get the needed supplies. Played with the contents of the box for about 2 hours and figured out what I would keep, what I would send. My feet felt great today with my new inserts as I climbed 4,000 feet. It started to rain as I sifted through the box, but finally let up when I hit the trail. As I was about to head out I heard "Bowleg!" It was M&M - She told me she had a table at the restaurant, so I joined her for a burger and an OJ. Leaving out of the NOC was straight up and it was humid! Also, my attempt to "lighten my load" didn't pan out because all of the goodies "home base" sent. Ran out of water again. I have now realized I'm drinking and Scuff is drinking from the the main water carrier, me! But then it started to rain and Scuff had all the water he needed! I took the good with the bad.Today was actually our first test in the rain and I never thought we would ever see the top of that mountain! But we finally did and I realized again - I took the good with the bad. The accomplishment I felt was a "good" feeling. Then again, for the third time, I noticed Scuff went from sluggish climbing to a new vigor in his step. He was revitalized!! so I took the rain on (in sheets at times)to the shelter. The rain had let up. We were offered space in the shelter, but I chose to set up my tent - it's raining again........I also realized we all finally dried off in front of a nice fire (from the wood that Scuff supplied) and had great conversation as we each talked about our trials and tribulations of the day.
Date: 2007-03-30
From: Sassafrass Gap Shelter

To: Stecoah Gap
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was my first experience with putting on wet ¢ cold ¢ smelly hiking clothes and hitting the trail. Tough at first but I got used to it. My pack gain was 5-7 lbs. due to the rain and although Scuff and I were offered a place in the shelter I opted to pitch my tent. Spent all morning and mid afternoon hiking in fog ¢ it was quite eerie when there were no birds chirping and the fog floated by. My ankle was quite sore but at least it¢s not my shin. Shin splints I think would be a worse delema to deal with. Around 1:30 p.m. Scuff and I were about to cross NC Route 143 when we came upon the best trail magic yet. ¢Bare Bear¢ and ¢Jelly Bean¢ who did the trail in 06¢ had just about everything a hungry hiker could want. They shared photos ¢ stories and advice about hiking the AT. Scuff also had all he could ask for ¢ maybe a bit too much! He got sick and threw up all the junk he had eaten. He then started to get the kennel cough again, which had me worried since I will be dropping him off in a couple days, so I phoned ¢home base¢ to have his meds fed-exed to the kennel.It was a nice night around the fire place joking, laughing and story telling. It has occurred to me that when a thru-hiker reaches Mt Katadin the magic of the journey does not end ¢ it continues and those who made it turn right around and continue giving in the form of trail magic and helpful advice. Speaking of advice, I got some good ideas from Scoobie ¢ about the tarp/poncho and a tarp tent. Thinking about going with it to save weight off my back. I did give some of Scuff¢s food to ¢Bisbee¢ the sheep dog and replaced the weight with water. It was getting too heavy for me to carry his water. It worked out fine ¢ just have to discipline myself to do it every day ¢ a little extra work but saves my legs. So I ended up icing my ankle and went to bed with it throbbing. Between that and Scuff hacking all night it was a sleepless night.
Date: 2007-03-31
From: Stecoah Gap

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Up at around 7:30 and eating pancakes and Danishes with coffee. Nice send off breakfast! Since I don¢t have to be in Fontana Dam until Sunday, I¢m going to take my time today. Even though the ankle felt good, no need to push it. The kennel guy can¢t pick up Scuff until 5 p.m. on Sunday, so I would have to wait either way. So far it¢s just me ¢ Scuff and ¢3rd Times a Charm¢ at the Cable Gap Shelter ¢ everyone else pushed on. No hurry for me! For ¢3rd Time¢ it is his 3rd attempt to make it to Mt. Katadin. Very inspiring story from this older hiker and some great advice.Washed out my clothes and hung out a line and stuff got wet again last night, part of the game! Man! How it¢s going to be tough not to hike with Scuff for a while. I¢m so used to him being there. I¢ll start on the Smokies on Monday and try to do the 70 miles in 5 days so I can get him back as quick as possible. If he could only speak! What would he say to me? I think he¢s having a good time, at least I hope he is. Ever since I got him I¢ve dreamed of the day we both set foot on the Appalachian Trail, to having him walk down planks, to riding in the back of a truck to taking him out in a thunderstorm instead of letting him run and hide. It was all training and so far that paid off. Now when they see Scuff coming into the shelter (he hikes in front of me) they all call Bono! And don¢t say squat to me?. Any who, ¢Chill Out¢ from NJ just walked into the shelter. He said he¢s been seeing dogs left and right on the trail? I¢ve only seen ¢Blue¢ who is about a day behind me. Again, it¢s not a race. I keep telling myself that we will all get to Mt. Katadin eventually ¢ hike smart and don¢t get hurt. Take care of yourself (both physically and especially mentally) and you¢ll make it. Can I do this for 5 more months? Yes!!!! No more saying ¢Well we will see what happens¢ or I would ask someone and they would say ¢I have 5 months, I¢ll see how far I get.¢ No more will I allow myself to think like that. I¢m walking to Maine and I will be there end of Sept. beginning of Oct!
Date: 2007-04-01
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was my first experience packing all my gear from inside my tent. It poured last night and since I pitched my tent on dirt, I had mud all up my tent. The hike to Fontana Dam was anything less than pleasant. To quote a song I was humming all day long¢¦¢¦¢¦.Today¢s hiking was, and I quote, ¢Stink ¢ Stank ¢ Stunk!" (NC) But then again, I really enjoyed hiking with my loyal partner Scuff. He did great today and did some awesome jumps over blow downs across the trail. The wind and rain were incredibly strong today and the trail was like a knife edge. ¢3rd Time¢ said he took out 15 ft. off the trail as it collapsed under foot. But getting back to mine and Scuff¢s hike, we strolled into Fontana Dam (the highest Dam in the Eastern US) wet and cold. We walked to the visitor center. The place was deserted (Oh yeah, it¢s Sunday). We then walked to the Fontana Dam Hilton (a brand new shelter that sleeps 24) and did not see any familiar faces, so we called for a shuttle to take us to the Hiker Village. The first guy that came by pulled up and looked at me ¢ then Scuff and asked, ¢Is that your dog?¢ I turned around in a sarcastic gesture (but it was so obvious it was my dog) and I said, ¢Yes, he¢s mine.¢ ¢We¢re not dog friendly.¢ I said that I told the guy on the phone I had a wet dog with me. Turns out it was not my shuttle. I finally got to town and waited for the kennel driver to arrive. Wow was this a tough day for me! Gave Scuff his ¢last meal¢ in the field ¢ and of course he wanted to play for a bit too. Sad to see him go. I know he¢s only a dog ¢ I know I will see him in 6 days ¢ and I know we will both appreciate each other so much more when we reunite. I guess we¢ve become a lot closer since we have hiked 163 miles together. I¢d check his paw pads and pack marks to make sure there was minimal damage. I would make sure he was fed and would keep him warm with my coat at night. Is he drinking enough? Will he run into danger as he hikes ahead of me? What¢s going to happen will happen ¢ I just hope he¢s getting a good night sleep tonight.
Date: 2007-04-02
From: Fontana Dam

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: scattered clouds

I awoke at around 5 a.m. to a terrible nightmare! The scene was from the Wizard of Oz when the old battleaxe (the battleaxe nightmare translated to the kennel guy, Dave. He kind of forced Bono into the crate, just like the witch does as she forces Toto in the Basket) picks up Toto to take him away ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ Da ¢ She¢s riding along and all of a sudden the dog pokes hi head out and it¢s Bono!, not Toto! Also in the dream was Auntie ¢M¢ (M&M). She was running after the witch and I was following suit! It was horrible! Poor Bono! I guess seeing him get taken away hit home harder than I thought?Walked across Fontana Dam today and make it to the trail head ¢ wait a minute, rewind. Got up and went to the post office to send some things home. Small scissors, insole, old hiking poles, IPOD, Band-Aids and medical stuff, video cam batter and blank tape. My pack actually felt pretty light with 6 days of food and 2 liters of water. Fast forward: Walked across Fontana Dam today to the trail head and got lost for 45 min.! I couldn¢t believe it! The trail was marked, but I missed it. I should have paid better attention, but instead I walked off trail to a trail (at least looked like a trail) and kept back tracking until finally I got so mad I had less than acceptable words come out of my mouth. ¢Where the ¢bleep, bleep, !!#@( , bleep, bleep¢ trail! Finally located it as M&M started up since she had to do part of the trail she missed.Other than actually witnessing a giant tree falling, it was your usual day of hiking. The tree at first sounded like gun shots as the roots broke free. I looked at ¢M¢ and she looked back as we saw and heard the mighty tree drop with a thunderous crash! Pretty awesome, but at the same time a bit scary! Anyway, we are into the Smokies and hope to finish by Friday. We will be climbing Clingmans Dome on Wednesday and at 6,643 ft. it is the highest peak on the AT, 355 ft. higher than Mt. Washington, the second highest peak. We are camping with a church group of teenage kids from Illinois. They are reading scriptures by the fire. 8:48 p.m. lights out.
Date: 2007-04-03
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: scattered clouds

The day started out for me on a negative side. I started to focus on situations that have been happening at the Dojang. For most of the morning I felt tired. Then it dawned on me!! The negative energy was burning me out! So I quickly changed my thought pattern and decided to think positive. Thoughts like seeing my hiking partner ¢Scuff¢ and seeing my girlfriend for the first time in almost a month. This train of thought allowed me to get my best day thus far ¢ 16.4 miles. I¢m learning how to handle negativity since being on the trail. I can¢t wait to share all ¢my lessons learned¢ with my students. I¢m already planning day and weekend hiking trips with all who enjoy hiking.Today¢s hiking was on some ¢knife edge¢ peaks! You had to concentrate pretty hard and no site seeing as you walked. Passed up two shelters that would have been nice to pitch a tent at, but I told myself, ¢Self, you said Double Spring Shelter. Shorten up this lunch break and keep moving!¢This site is pretty cool. There is a 9 year-old kid here with his dad. Ran into ¢Bocephus¢ again. He said he did only 7 miles today. That is why I caught up. ¢M¢ made it in too! She¢s coming down with something. She doesn¢t sound too good. We all got nervous about 6-7 days without a town, so we all stocked up on food, especially ¢M.¢ She brought a lot of food and is complaining about her pack being so heavy, but she also did 16.4 today. Tomorrow¢s day starts with Clingmans Dome and a 14 mile day! I¢ll see how I feel, so far so good. Ankle feels pretty ok! So I will see what tomorrow brings. Poor choice for a tent site tonight. Looked good at first, but now a storms rolling in and I¢m right on the edge of the mountain (like a funnel). I checked all my stakes and hopefully they hold .
Date: 2007-04-04
From: Double Spring Shelter

To: Ice Water Spring Shelter
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: overcast clouds

I thought I was a goner! I did talk to God last night and asked him to keep me safe. The lightening was very close ¢ too close for comfort! I also had visions of a tree falling on me since I have been seeing blow downs a lot lately. But I made my peace and decided if it was my time then so be it. At 3:00 a.m. the wind ripped a tent stake out ¢ the important one that holds the hiking pole. The whole tent collapsed on me. I had to put some clothes and my shoes on, bless myself and went outside in the torrential lightening storm. I couldn¢t find the stake so I took one from the back of the tent to reset the front pole. All the while I was doing this I had a vision of the guy golfing in Caddy Shack who gets struck by lightening as he holds up his golf club ¢ only I had a tent stake. Anyway, I¢m writing this entry so I must have made it through the night.As I was walking today I started hallucinating from sleep deprivation. I was the second one out of the camp today, 2nd after this guy who¢s trying to do the AT and The Pacific Crest Trail all in a calendar year. That is around 5,000 miles and change! As I walked in the fog, wind and rain up to Clingman¢s Dome I saw on the grass evidence of what I thought was pelting my tent the night before ¢ dime sized hail! Climbed the observation tower (pretty cool winding walkway), but you couldn¢t see anything due to the fog. Made it to the road crossing around 2 p.m. the NC/Tenn. border and heard a whistle. It was ¢Papa Smurf¢ serving up some trail magic. He did the trail in 02¢ and had some great advice for all who was fortunate enough to be there. Once I was full I headed up the AT. For the first time I ran into tourists and day hikers. The trail head is similar to Mt. Monadnock. After the first hour it was back to normal, just me and the trail. It seemed few chose to venture any further. Right now it¢s pretty much freezing. I¢m in my tent again with all my clothes on to keep warm. Two more days of hiking and I get to pick up ¢Scuff!¢ Can¢t wait to see him! My feet feel pretty good, just a small ¢twinge¢ in my (L) Achilles tendon. I cooked my dinner to a nice sunset and a nice end to a long day. For some reason this night I feel particularly lonely?
Date: 2007-04-05
From: Ice Water Spring Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 20.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Very, very long cold and windy night! I was glad to see day break. Up at 6:30, spent 40 min. chipping the ice out of my water bag with a tent stake so I could empty it. I wasn¢t about to carry 8 extra pounds of ice/water. When I went to bed I had just about every piece of clothing I¢m carrying on. As I warmed up in my bag I took pieces by piece off and stuffed it down in the bottom so they would be warm in the morning. Glad I did because every stitch of clothing went right back on for the morning hike. This 60 year old hiker ¢Salty Dog¢ asked if he could walk with me seeing it would be safer. The two of us together. I totally agreed and off we went into the worst conditions so far. The trail is basically a frozen creek bed for about two miles, then we hit white out conditions with the wind blowing hard up Porter¢s Gap. He didn¢t have sticks so I lead the way. I told him I was taking video for my students and that I wanted to go up to ¢Charlie¢s Bunion¢ to film the full fury of the storm, so he continued on as I made my climb. WOW! Total white out, totally treacherous climbing ¢ but I got the shots. There was no water along the way and my plata puss remained frozen until about 2 p.m. The last sip of water I had was at 7:15 a.m.! I finally stopped and thawed it out and made myself a Propel energy drink and had some tuna out of a pouch using a stick as my fork. Today I pushed 20+ miles in about 10.5 hours. I just realized I could probably walk to Hampton Beach in a day, which is 50 miles, but not over mountain peaks and it¢s on pavement. Took quite a bit of photos and self-portraits as well as video today. I know my motivation for pushing so hard is to be able to pick up ¢Scuff¢ tomorrow, 4/6/07. I only have 8 miles tomorrow and will take a ¢0¢ Saturday and then head for Hot Springs, NC so that I can meet my girlfriend on the 12th. I haven¢t had a day without hiking since I started. Tomorrow will be mile 234.9! I know it doesn¢t seem like a lot when the goal is 2175, but it¢s a lot when you hike it and at least it¢s a start! Met up with ¢Salty Dog¢ at this shelter. I think I¢ll sleep sound tonight!
Date: 2007-04-06
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: broken clouds

Another cold night. Up and out of the gate at 7:30 a.m. Scuff returns today! Can¢t wait for the kennel to drop him off! Hiked out of Cosby Shelter at 7:30 a.m., had to make it to standing Bear Farm by 2 p.m., otherwise, I wait until Saturday for Scuff. So I hoofed it and made it by 12:30!Standing Bear Farm is a hiker hostile. Curtis is the guy who runs the place ¢ nice people. I finally was able to take a shower and wash my clothes and eat something other than noodles! I finished the Smokies in 4-1/2 days. Not bad for a 70 mile trek over some pretty high 4,000 ft peaks, not to mention the weather ¢ everything is frozen! Anyway, going to hang here for a couple ¢0¢ days then head to Hot Springs, NC on Monday.At Standing Bear there are a couple of sleep options. One is the bunkhouse which is heated, the other is a cabin which has no heat. I chose the cabin and threw my sleeping bag along with 4 quilts over me and had the best night sleep yet! The creek flows right under the cabin, so it¢s similar to the noise maker I have back home by my bedside. Weather man is calling for snow. He was right. About 3 inches on the ground right now. Another bit about the hostel, its run like in the old days. You write your name on the envelope and tally up what you buy and when you leave you square up with the owner. It¢s all done on the honor system. I¢ll be sure to give a tip since Curtis doesn¢t charge much. ¢Fishin Fred¢ is a guy who¢s done most of the trail, probably 80% of it. He¢s a craftsman who makes jewelry and stickers and sells them at ¢Trail Days,¢ a big hiker reunion. Also met ¢Thunder¢ (he got the name because he snores). He was nice enough to do an interview for me. Both his buddies dropped off the trail. All for now!
Date: 2007-04-07
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

First ¢0¢ day ¢ 0 miles hiked. I did a lot of stretching and feel the ¢0¢ hike day worked out and will definitely work towards my benefit.Bunch of hikers came in later in the day ¢The Yorkshire Pudding¢ ¢ among them. There is a guy who carries a fiddle who plays quite well and there was a guitar lying around and someone new how to play that as well, so we had a mini concert in the bunkhouse around the woodstove. ¢Fishin Fred¢ was also playing along with his harmonica. Good Time! I¢m sitting atop a hill writing this entry ¢ nice day ¢ a bit breezy, but nice. I took a drive with the owner, ¢Curtis¢ to pick up some firewood at the country store, so we could keep the bunkhouse and his house heated. It was cold last night with 3¢ of snow fall.Not much to write about when you don¢t hike. One more ¢0¢ day then I¢ll hike to Hot Springs, NC. Not sure how I will stretch 30 miles in 3 12 days. It has only been talking 2 days to hike 30 miles! Guess I¢ll try using the internet and do my resupply for 3 days food.
Date: 2007-04-08
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Followed my instincts and listened to my body. Glad I didn¢t follow the crowd who all left Sunday. I stayed an extra day because I was ahead of schedule and I ended up cashing out at $130.00 for 3 nights ¢ food ¢ laundry ¢ phone ¢ internet. I have to admit it was quite boring so I took a walk up the hill to write in my journal. Talked with ¢Sprocket¢ (the handy man on the premises) and he said since the 6 years Standing Bear Farm has been in operation, Bono and one other dog have been the best behaved that he¢s seen! Now that folks made me feel pretty good!!!!! Man is it cold in this room (NC). I can see my breath!
Date: 2007-04-09
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: overcast clouds

First day back after 2 "0" days. Did I really hike 17.8? Sure didn't feel it! The highlight of the day was hiking with my partner "Scuff." It's like we didn't even skip a beat! We stopped quite a bit for water and still made good time. The second highlight was ¢Max Patch,¢ a giant bald that was created by grazing live stock. It¢s unique because there are all these peaks with trees on them and out of no where appears this huge grassy hill. Man! Is this flipping dog ever gonna get tired of barking? He hasn¢t stopped since I got here at 6:15 p.m., now it is 8:00 p.m! That¢s what stinks about pitching next to a road. Went on line and saw who signed the guest book. Thanks for reading and hope it¢s not too boring. Another cold night. Put my North Face on ¢Scuff.¢ He¢s snoring away ¢ hopefully I will be soon! OK DOG ¢ YOU CAN SHUT YOUR HOLE NOW AND GO TO SLEEP ¢ THANK YOU!
Date: 2007-04-10
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Walnut Mt. Shelter
Miles today: 5.0

Up at 6 a.m. to a non restful sleep. Cold once again and my bag is wet! Hung around Roaring Forks until 1 p.m. Made a fire, wrote some postcards, labeled my pictures and took my time getting out of there. I only had 5 miles to hike and was going to try and stay at the shelters instead of going into Hot Springs, NC, but I ran out of dog food and have been sharing mine with Scuff. He had maybe a cup this morning and that is far too little for the work he¢s doing.Cooked up my last batch of food, an experiment ¢ mashed potatoes and chicken flavored noodles. It started out not looking good, but ended up ok! You¢d be surprised how good things taste when you are hungry. When I gave my left over warm portion to Scuff he was so happy ¢ you could just see it in him after he was done how glad he was to be fed. It¢s like he was saying Thank you as he spun his big butt from left to right.Well, the wind is ripping again ¢ tent is a flapping ¢ can¢t wait till morning to head to town. It¢s still light out, so it¢s going to be a long night. It¢s just me and my dog up here on top of this lonely, cold mountain and I really appreciate having him here. I also won¢t take for granted the warmth of my loved one close to me in a warm bed. I know it¢s a bit mushy, but I guess you¢d have to be here to experience what it¢s like. 8:05 p.m. and the sun is trying to retire for the night, guess I will too ¢ not much more to write about. Chores are all done and the food (what¢s left of it) is hung in a tree.