morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-04-27
From: Beech Gap

To: Long Branch Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

Today's sounds- swish of rain pants, plop and slop of footfalls in the muck. Fell asleep last night to the gentle sound of rain on the rainfly. We reached our planned destination early and pushed on. Then the rains really began. Albert Mt. has a "steep and memorable" ascent so we knew we would be taking the foul weather bypass since the rocks would be wet. We were surprised by Big Butt Mt. Very dicey. The trail goes along the cliff side with a sheer drop. I did not look straight down after Ted told me about the dropoff. The shelter I thought we would stay at is no more. The area is being restored to its natural state so the shelter has been removed and camping is prohibited. Signs state the next shelter is approximately a mile away. That was one long mile! We slept in the new Long Branch Shelter because it was raining and we were not in the mood to pack up a wet tent again. Today's goofiness....I fell in the shelter on the last step down from the loft. No damage except to my pride.
Date: 2013-04-28
From: Long Branch Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap/Franklin NC
Miles today: 7.3

Today was RAINY.  Started in a steady rain and ended in a steady rain. Only one hour of misty drizzle to break the rains. At home on days like this I don't even go to the mailbox much less stay out in it for hours. How wet?  Boots, socks, rain gear and mittens soaked through. How muddy? Mud up past my knees. The fall I took into a stream past Wallace Gap only made me wetter and muddier as I struggled to regain my footing on the mud slick bank. Again no damage but it did leave me a bit unnerved. At the trailhead we called a hotel and got the second to last room. Shortly after that 2 drivers pulled into the pullout and asked if we wanted a ride to town 10 miles away! Thank you Trail angels Dan and Dee. First on the list of things after check in is laundry then the shuttle to the outfitter and grocery store. Then where to eat. Right now enjoying my clean dry delightful smelling clothes and full belly. Bleached and airing my reservoir hoping to kill any remaining crud. Tomorrow we will be drying out here in town taking a zero and planning out next leg.
Date: 2013-04-29
From: Winding Stair Gap/Franklin NC

To: Frankln NC
Miles today: 0.0

Today would have been a super day to hike, sunny and breezy and just perfect. We finished our resupply of food and tried to find a replacement tip for Ted's trekking pole which is somewhere lost in the muck. Trail magic for the finder. We strolled through the town which has several lovely gardens cared for by the local garden club, walked along the Little Tennessee River Greenway then sat on a bench and watched the river flow by.   Right now we are sitting out front of the motel spotting cloud shapes and feeling ready to get back on the trail. Yesterday at this time I was standing dejectedly, chilled to the bone and completely soaked in a steady rain. What a difference 24 hours makes.
Date: 2013-04-30
From: Frankln NC

To: Frankln NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

What an amazing zero day! (Too much rich town food has delayed our restart). I was taking some photos in town when a woman struck up a conversation and introduced herslf. Mary K. asked if we would be interested in taking a ride to tour the Highlands. We had nothing planned so we hopped in her car and took off on the incredibly winding and narrow gorge road. She stopped so I could take my touristy photos and suggested we walk down under Dry Falls. It was so cool to actually be able to walk under a waterfall! She told us her husband is a trail maintainer. I showed her the pictures of the trail workers we had met last week. Her husband was one of those! I had a most unexpectedly wonderful day thanks to the kindness of a complete stranger. That is trail magic!
Date: 2013-05-01
From: Frankln NC

To: Wine Spring campsite
Miles today: 8.2

The good... We are hiking again. The bad...we are a bit out of hiking practice. I forgot to take some photos early. The ugly...I fell again. This time on my hip and nose. No damage but extremely pissed at myself. We agreed our packs seem ultra heavy. Shamed to say that I did not do the .2 side trail to Siler Bald summit after lunch. The rest of the day was overcast so I missed the window for a view. Will I ever learn?????
Date: 2013-05-02
From: Wine Spring campsite

To: Cold Spring shelter campsite
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: clear sky

Last night Ted reminded me to put the raincover on my pack. Good thing. Woke up to the drip, drip, drip on the rainfly. Packed up the wet tent. The latest forecast had not mentioned rain. Misty at Wayah Bald observation tower which is dedicated to John B. Byrne who seemed a dynamo and very instrumental in the Nantahala National Forest and AT. Finally at 4:08 the sun made a token appearance as we climbed out of Burntown Gap. Camped on the ridge above the shelter. Dinner with a view-fantastic (will update photos when I have a better connection). We set up quickly as the skies were darkening and the wind picked up. Sunny in the valley below!
Date: 2013-05-03
From: Cold Spring shelter campsite

To: campsite about 3 miles from NOC
Miles today: 8.5

Rain and wind last night. Rain and wind this morning. Woke at 7, breakfasted then snugged back down in our sleeping bags. Our excuse... waiting for the weather to change! Packed up at 9 and added mittens to my raingear. I so dislike the cold and wet. Not too far along a fellow passed us in T-shirt and shorts.   Shows what a weather whimp I am. Drizzle ended about half an hour after we packed up. 1st side trail was Rocky Bald. Very cool, nice view.   2nd side trail was Wesser Bald observation tower. Worth the steps for some spectacular views. Ted decided at our proposed daily destination we should push on to get as close to the NOC as possible since the forecast was for rain tomorrow. Good call! The Jump Off is described as a "rock outcropping boasting excellent views". That it is. What it failed to mention is that I would have to butt-slide a bit down those rocks. I sure am glad we did not have to do that in the rain. We found a campsite an hour or so later that seemed semi protected from the wind and called it a day.
Date: 2013-05-05
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center NOC

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center NOC
Miles today: 0.0

Our zero at the NOC.   Shed some more pack weight. I will send back my paper notebook journal and enter the technology age by solely typing my notes on my phone. Hush my family, stop laughing. Also been eating all the extra food that I had packed in the food drop box. And parting with my mittens and fleece balaclava. Here's hoping the cold weather is over. Last night we watched the weather channel dwell on the stalled rain in the south. We decided to take another zero tomorrow and let the trail dry a bit. Still have a few chores to do here but I printed our Smokies back country permits. Still blows my mind that we are really on our way!!!!!
Date: 2013-05-07
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center NOC

To: Sassafras Gap Shelter
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: light rain

It is good to be moving again.  Today's highlight. View of the Nantahala Gorge from about 4,000 feet above! Pretty amazing to think that just hours before we were at the river. Today's misnomer.... innocuous sounding Swim Bald; in my mind should be called "the hill that loved to go up and didn't want to ever stop". After crossing it we could see the Smokies. That made it all worthwhile.   Idols of the day....an older couple we saw come out of the the woods yesterday afternoon acter a hike today was on a 13.6 mile day hike from Stecoah Gap back to the NOC. They passed us about 8 1/2 miles through their day after their big up and looked fresh as daisies and light on their feet. Amazing. The talk this morning was how we should have been hiking yesterday. For us it was not a total waste. We finished our chores: laundry, bought fuel and sent home more stuff. We took a walk to the convenience store a mile away and stopped for lunch by a creek. At dinner we watched the rescue teams practice throwing ropes to their team mates who were floating down the river. Snug in the tent listening to the end of the day bird songs. Updated forecast is for rain. So what else is new?
Date: 2013-05-08
From: Sassafras Gap Shelter

To: Stecoah Gap/Robbinsville
Miles today: 6.7

Today was a full body workout. 2.5 premeditated butt slides down wet rocks, one crawl on all fours under a fallen tree too tall to clamber over, one hug a log and roll over it and one mud fall. The good thing about mud is it is easier on the feet and softer to land on. We got a very late start and figured that we would not have enough time or energy to climb out of the gap the 2.5 miles to the shelter so called a shuttle to town. The gentleman who picked us up is 85 and had to move out of his house where Fontana Lake now exists because the lake was filling. When we crossed the summit of Cheoah Bald it was misty so timing being everything we could not enjoy "one of the most splendid panoramas of the southern Appalachians". A hiker who passed us later told us the view was great. Timing again...steep decent after a brief shower on the now slippery rocks. Ted took a spill-his trekking pole went flying into the air and down the hill. It was a bit tricky retrieving it. The hotel has a lot of bikers here. They come to ride "the dragon's tail" a twisty turning road. Fun for everyone.
Date: 2013-05-09
From: Stecoah Gap/Robbinsville

To: campsite near High Top Yellow Creek Mt.
Miles today: 9.6

Some great views today coming up out of Stecoah Gap of Nantahala National Forest. For the first time in days I walked in short sleeves and no rain gear! Everyone was smiling and seemed perked up by the weather.  We stopped often go ooh and ahh at the vistas. Photos do not do them justice. Lunched in the sun at a gap and relaxed. We watered up at Brown Fork Gap Shelter. Took forever since my filter kept clogging with sediment. The stream water was running fast and with all the rain carrying a lot of fine sediment even though the water looked pristine. Lugged the water up out of the gap to a beautiful tent site a mile up on the ridge. Glad we didn't eat before such a long up. Dined with and by the gnats. Sunset came quickly after a long snail day. Tomorrow, Fontana Dam...a milestone for us. We can see the lake from our tent!
Date: 2013-05-10
From: campsite near High Top Yellow Creek Mt.

To: Fontana Village 
Miles today: 4.5

We are taking an overnight here at Fontana Village since we have to pick up our maildrop food package ( PO open 11:45-3:45), visit the outfitter and do laundry. Got a snail record breaking early start (7:56am). Great morning for a hike, 65 and partly sunny. Most of the walk was downhill through the lush woods. Worked up a bit of a sweat first up and quickly shed my long sleeve. Not many views today but it is interesting seeing how green the trees and understory are compared to earlier in our trek. Mayapple flowers are in bloom and the rhododendrons have buds that are just beginning to open. Wildlife sightings..... yesterday 2 nonvenomous snakes (looked like short fat garter snakes) and a fence lizard. Nothing exciting but a bit of a startle to hear the dry leaves near my feet rustle and try and quickly locate what caused the noise. Later today 100 Ducati motorcyclists will be arriving. Should be quite a sight.Checked the weather and staying one additional night.
Date: 2013-05-11
From: Fontana Village 

To: Fontana Village 
Miles today: 0.0

Writing this morning sitting on the patio, watching the clouds, drinking a most luxurious 2nd cup of coffee and letting the day drift. Yesterday a hiker decided to leave the trail. It was an emotional goodbye. Ted and I are lucky to have each other and our family supporting us. On the day I fell on my face I was ready to quit, disgusted with myself and seriously doubting my abilities. Ted storically listened and marched on knowing me well enough to know my thunderstorm of rage would pass. If I had continued to fume he was prepared to talk some sense to me. He was ready to call it quits going up Kelly Knob. We both plodded on and fist pumped when we finally reached the elusive summit. I told him it was a dispiriting trudge up the mountain for me too. Tecuned myself and so happy that yesterday's 4" welt on my arm from a bite is only 2" today. Overhead one of the Ducati guys say that he was going to take his shower that he could hardly stand himself. Sounded like a hiker!   My backing is resting and relaxing. For anyone who has never camped out there is an incredible amount of bending: to filter the water, set up and break down the tent, cook the food, retie boot laces that I never seem to tighten enough at first, and basically anything else that I normally take for granted. I had twinged my lower right side a few days ago and this rest is timed right. We are pleased with ourselves: a month out, over 100 miles and no serious problems. A favorite saying is hike your own hike. And so we are.
Date: 2013-05-12
From: Fontana Village 

To: Birch Spring Gap campsite
Miles today: 7.1

Once again back hiking. Visited the Fontana Hilton Shelter. It has views of the lake, nearby hot showers and beautifully designed. Next visit was to Fontana Dam. Quite an engineering feat. The engineers had even built an emergency spillway that thankfully never had to be used. Looking as we walked over the dam down to the river gave me a sense of perspective. The power generated by the dam covers a large area. Then we entered the Smokies. Hurray!  At the Shuckstack Mt. fire tower I finally admitted a do not like heights. I gingerly step when we cross a cliff and definitely do not look down but I had been eying the fire tower for a mile or so and was excited about the view others had said was stupendous. Well....I got to the 2nd landing, sat down, pulled my foot that was hanging over the edge back on the platform, took a look at the panoramic view which filled all the advance billing, snapped a few shots then gathered my nerves and made my way down. Lesson learned. At the campsite we were greeted by Carl the ridge runner. They go site to site checking on the area and answering any questions hikers have. He did ask if we had our back country permit which we did. Spent a quiet first night in the Smokies. Another lesson....charge the camera battery even though the icon indicates a full charge. Day 1 and battery only 3/4.
Date: 2013-05-13
From: Birch Spring Gap campsite

To: Spence Field shelter
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: clear sky

Waking to sunshine. Inside our tent 45 degrees. Basically a woods walk. The lushness we saw entering the park is now back to early spring higher up. Less canopy cover and less color.  Highlights were the "fields" which are grassy areas. We are lucky enough to witness spring arriving.  The trail is easy walking, no crazy rocks or lung sucking ups. Some of the trail is also for equestrian use. I have never ridden a horse. I imagine there must be a tremendous amount of trust between horse and rider on these narrow somewhat rocky trails. I see where those who have passed slid so I try to watch my footing. How do horse and ride communicate to take extra caution? Shared the night with some hikers who had come up a ravine trail. They had to ford streams 7 times some thigh high with a strong current. Mighty tough fellows; cheerful and friendly. Also a father daughter team who has done extensive backpacking out on a " short 20 mile circuit".
Date: 2013-05-14
From: Spence Field shelter

To: Derrick Knob shelter
Miles today: 6.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Another perfect hiking day. Took my time leaving Spence Field with the flowering trees. Rocky Top had a panoramic view including Spence Field. I don't look back enough so being able to see the mile long path we have walked is kind of cool.  Today was another fairly easy walk. Ups and downs but nothing ankle twisting or knee grinding. Tonight's shelter is where a herder's cabin used to be. There is a lot of cultural history just on the narrow band of the AT.
Date: 2013-05-15
From: Derrick Knob shelter

To: Clingman's Dome
Miles today: 10.1

A fellow hiker said at breakfast he heard something snapping branches, making noise and rolling on the ground last night. I always take this with a grain of salt. Well I do believe him. A few miles down the trail we saw first a tuft black bear fur on the trail, next a fairly large area where the ground had been pawed or somehow very recently rooted through and lastly some unmistakable bear scat. We haven't seen any bears but I am sure they have seen and heard us. The end of day brought us the rough boundary where "few high elevation spruce, hemlock, fir and balsam trees survive". It is a fairly distinct and abrupt delineation at Jenkins Knob. I stopped suddenly when the smell of those trees hit me. So awesome to walk through a forest unlike anything at home.  The last 3 miles were the toughest. Big steps up (I think of them as Paul Bunyan steps), some rocks and steep ascent after 5 miles of gradual up. Then there it was, Clingman's Dome with the observation tower. Of course we went to the top and enjoyed walking around the tower identifying the peaks from the posted photo guides and just plain soaking in the 360 vista.  Now came the hard part. It was too late for us to hike the 4.5 miles to the next shelter or campground. There is no camping in the Smokies except at designated campgrounds. We were able to get cell reception at the parking lot. Unfortunately the first 2 shuttles we called did not have any drivers available. We did get lucky on the 3rd try to Gatlinburg. We had hoped to go to Cherokee but we counted ourselves fortunate to get from the 8 mile road to the mountain plus the 16 miles to Gatlinburg and a hotel room. Now the gross part. We walked to the nearest convenience store where I bought a bag of Doritos and a soda and ate and drank both. I can't imagine doing that in real life!
Date: 2013-05-16
From: Clingman's Dome

To: Gatlinburg
Miles today: 0.0

Our day in Gatlinburg: The mundane... ate breakfast at the nearby all you can eat. Three plates of food and two bowls of cereal later we stopped at the outfitters and bought fuel and some freeze dried dinners. Expensive but easy. The more interesting. We walked into town ( we are on the south side). Marvelled at the glitz. Everything is geared to the tourist. Sidewalk hawkers, flashing lights and tons of places to eat. Stopped at Donut Friar (thanks Carla) and had a cafinated frothy sweet drink after deciding I really wasn't hungry for an eclair that was beaconing from the display.   Caught the shuttle to the nearest grocery store 2 miles away. Shopped weight frugally. The finale. Went to a karaoke bar and listened to some talent. She had been on American Idol. Why is it some make millions and others work for tips? Our daughter's best friend Karina is a fantastic singer who is just as good if not better than those who are household names. Alcohol fueled reflections....I jokingly referred to myself as "Aurens" as the Bedouin referred to Laurence of Arabia in his book The Seven Pillars of Wisdom. He coordinated a diverse group of non cohesive and antagonistic Bedouin against a common enemy. One of their many traits he had to adjust to was their living for the day. I am a planner, chained to a task. Ted is not. I also thought of myself as a Sherpa facilitator of this hike. True Sherpas are in life and death situations. We are simply putting one foot in front of another along a meticulously maintained footpath that thousands have travelled. Nothing spectacular and not requiring any talent or real skill. Tomorrow we head back to the Smokies. Forecast is for 30-60 % chance of rain for the next several days. Our next town stop will be Hot Springs, NC.
Date: 2013-05-17
From: Gatlinburg

To: Gatlinburg
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We overdid it again. Today was a lazy day, sauntered downtown and back. Went light on tbe food intake. Several hikers checked in today who knew some of the hikers already here. Hopefully tomorrow we will be headed out. Our plan for tomorrow is if it raining when the shuttle leaves we stay otherwise we are back on the trail for a short day.
Date: 2013-05-19
From: Gatlinburg

To: Mt. Collins shelter 
Miles today: 3.5

We finally left Gatlinburg. Yesterday it was raining when the shuttle left so we stayed. Less than one hour later the rain stopped for the rest of the day. Bummer. Today we got a late start. Five minutes into the 45 minute ride to the trailhead it started to rain. 20 minutes later it was pouring. Then the radio station issued a weather alert about strong storms and high winds. Lovely. Ted cheerfully assured me it couldn't rain all day. About 10 minutes later the rain ended. We arrived at the parking lot in mist and fog and distant thunder. Got a few pictures of clouds then put on my rain gear . I was dressed for disaster, people were walking up the .5 mile walkway to the observation tower in shorts and sleeveless shirts. Stopped to let a little girl hold my trekking pole for her family to snap her photo at the Appalachian Trail sign.  I was going to go up to the tower but opted not because the clouds were gathering, the thunder a bit closer and the park Ranger told us it was going to rain. We hiked in the stream of water going down the trail and very carefully and slowly went down the wet rocks. It wasn't as rocky as I had feared. Our luck held.....no rain!!!!! Full shelter this evening so we are tenting.   Friendly chatter and a fire. Sure does feel good to be outdoors again.
Date: 2013-05-20
From: Mt. Collins shelter 

To: Icewater Spring Shelter
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: broken clouds

Today was a day of views. Lots from Newfound Gap and past the gap on the way to the shelter. Ego boost of the day was the photo I was asked to be in as a "real hiker". Chatted briefly with Don who was doing trail maintenance. He said several times a year he has to de-silt where the water runs off. It was obvious he had been out for several hours as the run offs for over a mile were renewed.  The view from the shelter is awesome just as the couple we passed had promised. After chores (pumped water, washed socks and aired out the tent) just sat on the grassy area and watched the clouds pass by. It is not often that a shelter has an overlook.