morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-07-22
From: The Lookout

To: Dubois Hill
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was pretty hot¢¦ I stopped three different times to dry out my pack and shirt in the sun. It seems like this is pointless because by the time I¢m going up the next hill I¢m soaked in sweat again. Despite this, drying out helps me to feel a little more comfortable and it¢s also nice to stop for a 20 or 30 minute rest on a hot day like today. Getting water while hiking has been a little harder lately. Filling up by a shelter this morning I positioned my water holder to collect the dribbles coming down from some moss in the center of a mostly dried out stream bed. It took about 15 minutes for me to collect two liters of water. I crossed a road midday that was close enough for me to walk over to a farm store. I had an apple dumpling, a bag of cheetos, a cheese stick, a yogurt, and a gatorade. Eating this much means that I probably won¢t go through all of the food I¢ve brought with me. I must be getting tired of the protein bars I¢ve been eating for the past six months since they seem to be the thing that I skip on days like today when I¢m able to get some food along the way. On the way back to the trail from the farm store I met Miss Janet, the legendary trail angel. I¢ve heard about her from so many different hikers over the past year. She travels up the trail each year in her van providing trail magic to hikers as they make their way North.I was tired and hungry later in the day and wanted a nice place to sit down, take a break and eat my dinner. I decided to stop at a dirt road crossing so that I could dry out my shirt in the sun while I ate. It felt strange to be sitting down on a dusty dirt road eating my dinner but that¢s what I was doing today. Stumble Dwarf, a SOBO, came by and told me to look for some trail magic that was 3 or 4 miles up the trail. He also told me that he had recently fallen in a creek and gotten scraped up a bit. He was a shorter guy.. so he did look like a dwarf, and he had stumbled in a creek today. This was both funny and interesting at the same time.I was going to hike up to the top of the next hill before looking for a place to camp but about halfway up the hill I found a perfect campsite. It was flat and covered with pine needles. I set up my tent with both sides open to help me cool off in the breeze that is coming up the hill.
Date: 2016-07-23
From: Dubois Hill

To: VT 14 White River
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: clear sky

The trail today was nice to me, smooth with just a few ups and downs - a good day for this since it was pretty hot. I was happy to reach the bridge over the White River where I saw other hikers swimming and jumping off the bridge down into the water below. Linda came over as I was watching people jump off the bridge and invited me over to have a cold soda to drink. It turns out that Linda and her husband Randy are trail angels that help over 1,000 hikers a year. While I was enjoying a cold rootbeer Linda brought me out two meatball subs, Yum!As I was contemplating how much further I was going to hike a storm front came through with fierce winds and a bit of rain. After the storm came through I went over to check out some other trail magic set up by Long Shank, a thru hiker from 2010 who was there to greet a friend of his. I had some cookies, a hamburger, hotdog, and a few more things to drink. Before long there were 7 or 8 other hikers sitting around eating and chatting. I talked with a few people but found it easier to just sit and listen in to the ongoing conversations. I don¢t know if this is because I¢m tired from hiking or due to the fact that I¢m a fair amount older than most of the other hikers. I¢m going to make an effort to be more engaged in future conversations rather than allowing the introverted side of me to show itself. Tonight I¢m staying in the top level of Linda and Randy¢s barn, or maybe it¢s a garage, I¢m not sure. I did pick a bed that was close to a window just in case I need to get out if there¢s a fire. I noticed that there¢s not any smoke detectors here¢¦ Obviously I¢m not going to complain (it¢s a free place to stay after all) but it would make sense to have smoke detectors. I think I¢ll send Randy a couple of them.
Date: 2016-07-24
From: VT 14 White River

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I was the first one up this morning and headed out early so that I could hike during the cooler morning hours. It turns out that the weather cooled off due to the cold front that came through yesterday. There were all kinds of trees and branches blown down on and along the trail from the high winds yesterday. I was glad that I was on Linda and Randy¢s porch when the storm came through. Mid morning I saw a note on the ground that was held down by a rock. ¢Ground bees in ravine ahead, watch out¢ it said. I moved along as fast as I could through the ravine (which isn¢t very fast) and luckily didn¢t see any bees. I came out into West Hartford, Vermont and followed the AT down Elm St to another trail angel¢s house. I opened up the cooler and had some delicious banana bread. It turns out that a group of trail angels in West Hartford and nearby Hanover, NH open up their homes to provide housing for thru hikers. There's e¢s a whole list of them that you can call. I was excited to cross the Connecticut River and arrive in New Hampshire! That¢s 12 states down and only 2 more to go, although the SOBOs tell me that both of them are going to be pretty hard. I found the local gelato store and stopped in at the outfitters where I had shipped myself another merino wool shirt to replace the one I¢ve been using which is now full of holes. Next I went to a pool so that I could walk in the water for an hour which you may know I do to help my foot and leg feel better. Everyone of the housing trail angels that called me back said they were already full for the night so I drove North to Glencliff which is the next place I was planning on leaving my car anyway. I¢m staying here at the Welcome Hikers Hostel with about 20 other friendly hikers. And no, they don¢t have smoke detectors here either¢¦ Hmmm.. maybe I should order a whole box of them.
Date: 2016-07-25
From: Hanover, NH

To: Zero at Welcome Hikers Hostel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I was up early to get some coffee and enjoy the $5 breakfast of eggs, pancakes, and bacon. I gave For Be a ride up to Franconia Notch since he had missed the hostel shuttle when it left. Turns out that I had met him last year down in Georgia on the trail. After dropping him off I found another pool to walk in even though the towns out here are pretty small. It was the first pool I¢ve walked in that had a dirt parking lot, but friendly people and a decent pool. On top of that it was only $4 rather than the $25 that I paid last night to use a pool at an athletic center in Hanover. Here's a photo of a ladder I went down a few days ago.Tomorrow morning I¢m going to shuttle back down to Hanover and then hike back here over the next four days. It¢s nice to be at a bigger busier hostel with lots of other friendly hikers.
Date: 2016-07-26
From: Zero at Welcome Hikers Hostel

To: Moose Mountain
Miles today: 10.3
Weather: scattered clouds

I shuttled this morning down from Glencliff back to Hanover New Hampshire so I could continue my trek northward. I was dropped off right on the corner of Main Street as the Appalachian Trail goes through town here. I stopped at the dirt cowboy caf© to have an americano and a sweet roll to eat. It was fun to be able to sit on the Appalachian Trail and enjoy a hot beverage.I climbed up several hills today although none of them were too long or too steep. It didn't seem quite as hot today as it has been earlier this week. I also stopped a couple of times to rest and get something to eat. I decided to watch the latest motocross race on YouTube while I was resting. This was fun to do and it's pretty amazing that I'm able to do this while I'm on the trail.Towards the end of the day I came to a stream where some southbounders had warned me I should fill up with water since there was no other water for the next 8 miles. I climbed up the top of Moose Mountain and found the perfect spot for my tent which looks out over the valley.There's a nice cool breeze here so I'm sure I'll sleep well tonight.
Date: 2016-07-27
From: Moose Mountain

To: Smarts Mountain
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I packed up this morning and walked down to the shelter where I had my pop tarts for breakfast. There were 4 or 5 other hikers there who were quietly getting their gear together. The first climb today was about 1,000 feet. I took my time including a break at 10 am where I dried out my tent and of course my shirt. At 2 o'clock I stopped by Bill Akerly's house, the ice cream man. He has recently passed away but his son was there continuing the tradition for another year. I met two SOBOs that I had seen up in Glencliff and bid them goodbye as they headed off in the direction I had just come from. By the time I started up Smarts Mountain it was past 3 pm. I figured this was a good thing since the worst heat of the day was past. I set short term targets as I made my way up the 2,100 foot climb. "Ok, I'm going to hike to the overlook that's 9/10 of a mile ahead." I told myself. "That's all I'm going to think about right now." I listened to another Tim Ferriss podcast and he described breaking life down into two week experiments. "You can do anything for two weeks." He advised. I thought this was good advice for hiking. I stopped to rest again and had dinner. This is an advantage of hiking without my stove. It's much easier to eat along the trail. I sleep better if I'm able to eat at 5 or 6 rather than at 8 pm. I got a text of my granddaughter counting up to five. She's pretty cute so I face timed with my daughter while sitting there with an outrageous view of New Hampshire. The mountain became steeper towards the top. Interesting terrain, steeply sloped ledge rock with tree roots growing over it in places. I felt pretty good, most likely because it was cooler and I had taken it easy most of the day. I arrived at the tenting site but no one else was there. I put on my headlamp and hiked a little further up to check out the Rangers cabin. One set of hiking poles was outside so I figured I'd join whoever was in the cabin. When I quietly opened the door I saw 8 or 10 hikers who were all asleep for the night. I closed the door and decided to find someplace to tent instead. I went over to the fire tower and shined my headlamp up at it. "Maybe I could sleep up there." I thought for a moment before taking the more cautious approach of going back down to the tenting area. Another couple actually came in at 10 pm to join me here. I'm proud of the way I covered 13 miles in the heat today.
Date: 2016-07-28
From: Smarts Mountain

To: Stealth Site at mile 1780
Miles today: 9.8
Weather: light rain

I was surprised at how steep and hard the trail gong over Cube Mountain was. It was a tough climb followed by a steep downhill trek. I noticed that some of the granite or marble type rocks along the trail were wet while other rocks were dry. I didn't know if this was because of water that was condensing on these rocks that were colder for some reason or what. Another hiker suggested that there might be silicone in these rocks that was absorbing moisture from the air. Interesting mystery. I found this campsite late in the day after making my way over Cube mountain. The trail had leveled out and I'd planned on staying down closer to the road, however this site looked good and I could hear a noisy crowd at what sounded like a kids soccer game about 1/2 further down by the road.Right behind my campsite there was a decent sized old foundation made of field stones. It would be interesting to know the history of all the old stone walls and houses that I've seen along the trail. I know that a family used to live and work here. Who were they? What was there story? What happened to them?
Date: 2016-07-29
From: Stealth Site at mile 1780

To: Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 10.2

It was tough hiking up Cube Mountain yesterday. Luckily today the trail was easier with just one smaller hill to go up and over. I went past several places where there was some used up trail magic. All the food and drinks were gone with just buckets of hiker trash left to open for inspection.It felt great to make it to Gliencliff where I'm staying again at the Hikers Welcome Hostel. I waited until almost 11 pm trying to get my laundry done. Every time I checked there was another hikers stuff going round and round in the washing machine. I finally gave up and put my sweaty clothes into the dryer so that I'd at least have something dry to put on in the morning even if it wasn't clean.It's nice to be here and hang out with all the other hikers.
Date: 2016-07-30
From: Glencliff, NH

To: Kinsman Notch
Miles today: 9.2

I slack packed South today from Kinsman notch back to Glencliff. The climb up the North side of Mt Moosilauke was fun. The stream coursing down right nest to the trail was awesome! It was steep but luckily dry enough that i didn't have any problems making it up. There were places where wooden steps had been built into the rock faces to make the climb easier.Once I made it above treeline I was rewarded with outstanding views. I also met the moose you can see in today's photo. It isn't super healthy looking and has been standing right in the trail without moving much over the past week or so. I was surprised that the descent was also quite steep up towards the top of the mountain. The trail finally leveled out a bit and I was able to make better time as I descended. The final obstacle before getting to the road was to ford the stream. I managed to do this without getting wet since the weather here has been fairly dry. When I walked out of the woods I noticed a motorcycle that had stopped in the road. There were two people who were bending over a white dog that was laying down. I initially thought that they had hit the dog and I went over to see if I might be able to help out.Luckily, the dog wasn't hit. He was taking a nap in the middle of the road and the motorcyclist had stopped to try and find the owner or at least get the dog safety out of the roadway. I mentioned that I was on my way to the hostel nearby and despite my protests I found myself leading this dog along on a rope that the motorcyclist provided. Fortunately the cyclist drove up and down the road finally finding the dog's owner in an RV that was camped nearby along the stream. I have my hands full hiking as it is. I most certainly did not want to become responsible for someone else's dog.
Date: 2016-07-31
From: Kinsman Notch

To: Eliza Brook
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: light rain

I ended up shuttling my car up to Crawford Notch last night before spending the night at Chet's Place in Lincoln, NH. I didn't arrive until about 7:30 pm and was too tired to walk 1/2 mile into town to get some dinner. For some reason Lincoln didn't have a pizza place that delivers so I was stuck with whatever food I could find at Chet's house/hostel.It turns out that there wasn't much to choose from. No stove or microwave, just an old refrigerator that was full of rather old looking hiker leftovers. The bunks were full so I put my tent up in the back yard and went down in the basement to finally get my laundry done.While baby sitting my laundry I made a peanut butter tortilla from the hiking food I was carrying in my pack. There were some cans of "free hiker food", yams, green beans and such but nothing that looked good enough to eat. I opened a box of generic cheerios and ate a handful while pondering what to do for dinner. After 10 or 12 more handfuls I realized that this crappy dry cereal was likely to be the only dinner for me, other than the tortilla I'd just eaten. "If I'd waited until tomorrow morning to move the car than I'd be able to drive someplace and get something to eat." I fussed silently to myself. That's one of the things that I like about bringing my car along with my on my hike. But for tonight, no car, and no real dinner.I finished my laundry and retired to my tent which was now one of 4 or 5 tents all in a row. I tried to go to sleep but the other hikers walking around were talking and making noise even though it was past 10 pm. I could also hear traffic noise, the dryer vent, and the next door neighbors who ended up talking loudly until about 11:30 pm. Chet's wasn't a bad place to stay but I couldn't help but think how much nicer (and quieter) it would be in the woods somewhere. As I lay there I had a line come into my head from a commercial I'd heard many years ago. "The roach motel. Roaches get in but they can't get out." I realized that I was the roach : )Today's hike was slow going due to the steep terrain. Wolf Mountain was steep going both up and then back down. I stopped for dinner at a shelter and talked with a few SOBOs about the upcoming trail in Maine. After eating my "Stove-less" dinner of tortillas, pepperonis and cheese I continued hiking another mile or so before finally stopping part way up the mountain by Eliza's Brook and am now in my tent listening to the sound of the nearby falls.
Date: 2016-08-01
From: Eliza Brook

To: Liberty Springs Campsite
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was more climbing. Rocks, rock slabs, and big steps up over obstacles. I have to make it back to my car at Crawford Notch by Thursday since I'm going to fly home to take a week off the trail with my wife and family. I didn't realize where the White Mountains and the steeper terrain started. For some reason I thought that the White's didn't begin until I got to Crawford Notch. Because of this I'd planned on hiking 10 or so miles a day this week. With all the steep, rocky climbs and descents I'm finding that it takes me all day just to make it about 8 miles. I've been pushing it by hiking almost until dark and I still feel like I'm getting behind. An example of this was tonight. I stopped about 2/3 of the way up to Liberty Springs Campsite and decided to call it a day by camping in a little stealth site along the trail. I'm making it but the Whites are kicking my butt.
Date: 2016-08-02
From: Liberty Springs Campsite

To: Garfield Ridge Campsite
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: broken clouds

Today was another struggle for me as I made my way up and over Mt Lafayette. It started sprinkling while i was above tree line but luckily it wasn't windy so I was able to make my way along without getting cold. I hunched under a rock to get a break from the rain while eating my lunch of peanut butter on the tortilla. Next I climbed up Mt Lincoln and then worked my way down into the saddle before the final climb of the day up Mt Garfield. The view from up here is so good that I decided to camp just below the peak so that I could be here for the sunset. At the end of each day I can't believe that I've made it up (and down) all of the steep climbs. I'll be glad when I reach Crawford Notch. I'm looking forward to some time off with my family.
Date: 2016-08-03
From: Garfield Ridge Campsite

To: New Zealand Falls Hut
Miles today: 10.2

This morning I made my way down the trail which is also a small waterfall at this point. At one point I noticed a side trail which some hikers had blazed off to the side through the woods. I started down the side trail before deciding to go back up hill to stay on the steeper main trail. I've had a few "moments" the last few days where I've almost fallen during a steep descent. If I did fall I wanted to make sure that I was on a trail where someone would find me.I put my poles on my pack and made my way backwards down the steep section using my hands to hold onto the rocks. It seems crazy to be here - going down stuff that's so steep I have to worry about where and when someone might find me if I should fall. I stopped at the Galehead hut to get some snacks and soup. Despite trying to hurry I end my spending almost an hour there.Later in the day I came up to Maxine, a NOBO that I met down in Southern Virginia and then again while hiking with Dr Fixit in PA. It was nice to catch up with her as we made our way down to the New Zealand Falls hut which is where I am now. I've had a good dinner and I'm looking forward to sleeping in the bunkhouse here tonight.
Date: 2016-08-04
From: New Zealand Falls Hut

To: Crawford Notch
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: overcast clouds

After a nice breakfast I headed downhill towards Crawford Notch. The trail was flat much of the way and I ended up getting there before 1 pm. I changed my flight home out of Portland Maine from tomorrow to this evening so that I could get home one day earlier. The plan is for me to take about 2 weeks off to be with my family so that I can rest up and return to finish up the White Mountains and then Maine before the summer is over. Thanks so much for reading my journal. I appreciate all of your support.
Date: 2016-08-17
From: Portland, ME

To: Crawford Notch Highland Center
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Today I drove 2.5 hours back to the trail after stopping by to visit my parents and one of my brothers in Maine after a relaxing time at the beach with my family. The 2 weeks I've just taken off have been awesome. I was able to rest up both physically and mentally. After being away for so long I really enjoyed the time with my wife. Hiking the trail and my daily contemplation has helped me to begin to fully appreciate all of the goodness I've been blessed with. My wife and kids are at the center of an incredible life. The pain, numbness, and tingling sensations from my leg and foot took a few days to calm down after the exertion from the Whites that I put my body through the week before my vacation. Since I was no longer hiking 10 miles a day I expected everything to stop hurting but was surprised to experience a fair amount of pain in my hip muscles. So I asked myself the question "If I'm barely walking, going a few blocks to the beach and back, why the heck is my body hurting so much? The answer came to me late one night a few days ago as I was walking back and forth in the kitchen of my parents summer home in Maine. I'd stopped off to visit them on my way back to the trail. I was explaining to my father how I'd figured out my next big goal to go after once I finish my hike by reaching Mt Katahdin. "I'm going to work at getting rid of this limp I've developed." I said. Dad mentioned a book he'd read called "Pain Free." It turns out that I have a copy of this book at home that I'd bought a few years ago. I told Dad I was searching for a quick fix to my injuries back then and how I'd skimmed through the book before tossing it aside. "This is just a bunch of stupid exercises" I remembered thinking. I went on to explain how I wanted, expected, and insisted on finding some sort of miracle cure such as an injection, a nerve block, a pill I could take - something, anything that would "fix" the damage from my shattered hip and associated nerve damage in my leg. So now, after my admission three years after my injury, that I would have to work at healing for the rest of my life, and another 1500 miles or so of hiking on the AT, I discovered that if I could find a way back to a more normal body posture and gait that this will allow my body to continue healing. Im excited to head North on the trail tomorrow.