morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-09-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

We did 20 miles today out of Unionville, and are at Gran Anderson shelter. We got a late start out of town, preferring to relax and eat ice cream in fron of the general store. Most of us bought sandwiches and packed them out for lunch. We stopped at High point which I think is the highest point on NJ. There is a large monument, and a look out deck where we spent an hour or so for lunch. We came upon a brick pavilion around 7pm on Sunrise mountain. The sunsets are pretty spectacular from this vantage point as well. We would have slept there except there was no water source. The water is much more scarce now than it was up North. We hiked the last two miles in the dark with our head lamps to get here. We all made a pretty big meal, mine complete with hot chocolate. It was probally the nicest day yet on the trail. Perfect temperature, perfect fall blue sky and perfect combination of dirt trail combined with crunchy leaves. And to top it all off.....the Phillies won. Loving life!!
Date: 2010-10-03
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

It is freaking cold!! Made it to the shelter in the miserable cold rain. Wolfman showed up late having been dropped off by his dad after a wedding Saturday. I was happy to see him not wanting to be cold and miserable alone. The rest are at the next shelter which I didn't push to knowing it was gonna be crowded with section hikers we met in town. Two things hikers absolutely hate.....putting on cold wet clothes in the morning and having to climb up a .4 mile side trail to get back to the AT from a shelter. I'll be doing both in the morning.....blah.   Wolfman is snoring, there is a bat flying around the shelter and two porcupines chilling in front. The rain is off and on, but the cold is just on. Feeling pretty comfy in my fleece pullover, wool hat and sleeping bag. 22 miles tomorrow to get to boiling springs. We have been very blessed with good weather do I hesitate to complain. But I'll still complain.....cold rain sucks. This reminds ne of so many cold lonely nights in the Army all around the world. You hone your imagination skills. You let your mind take you somewhere better. Tonight I'm on the couch watching Christmas movies with Aubs. She is drinking tea and hot coco for me. On the table, a buffet of Christmas cookies, and in the Kitchen a big dish of Sheppards pie.There....that was nice. Thing is, I'm still cold and hungry and Aubreyless. But the other thing is.......I still love it. The trail that is....even on these days I can forgive it. Even these days, I know will be looked upon fondly. You don't remember the bad days so much as the good parts of the bad days. Georgia is on my mind. It's not always, but it is today. Just got an itsy bitsy thing called Virginia to deal with between here and there. My mind wanders often lately. I contemplate everything. The other day I spent hours thinking about how nice it is having opposabe thumbs, and how not nice it would be to use toilet paper without them. Just saying.Good night friends!!
Date: 2010-10-10
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Harpers Ferry!!! The unofficial halfway point of the AT. We passed the actual halfway point earlier this week. Hey everyone, just a quick update here. Made short work of thwe last of PA covering 100 miles in 4 days. Walking into Harpers Ferry was quite the experience. It is a really neat historical town that looks similar to the way it did in the 1800's. There are Union and Confederate soldiers in character and Abe Lincoln can be seen delivering speeches. There is a really nice stretch of flat gravel road trail that is apparently a popular walking strip for the tourists. You should have seen the looks we were getting! I felt like telling them they are on the appalacian trail for crying out loud. "see those white blazes people"? This is the TRAIL i've been hiking for over a thousand miles and its perfectly ok for me to smell and look the way I do. Nonetheless, I have every intention of comiong back as one of these tourists next year. Except i'll find a bunch of smelly hikers and take them to lunch.....at the fanciest place I can!! It's an awesome town and if you have never been here I highly suggest you stop in.The Appalacian trail headquaters is here as well. Every hiker that comes through has their picture taken, and provides info. The pics go into a set of books on the wall. In 30 years from now my kids could come see my picture!!We are slack packing 20 mies today because Mikeys uncle lives near by and is hooking us up. Tonight he is cooking us steak on the grill and we are watching the Phillies game. With that kind of night ahead, hiking is going to be easy today.
Date: 2010-10-17
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Just a quick 18 miler today. The weekend hikers didn't wake up until after 7. This was a treat, usually weekend hikers wake up around 530 and cook extravagant meals while talking loudly. Weekend hikers carry an abundance of gear. It is not uncommon to see them hiking along with 70 pound packs complete with pots and pans hanging from the side....literally. This group was actually pretty cool though. They had a perculator, and this meant coffee for us. They call themselves the spin doctors. They are a group of doctors from Richmond who usually spend their time cycling, but opted for a hiking trip this weekend. There was a neo-natologist, a pediatric cardiologist, a oral surgeon, a urologist and an engineer. Way too many brain cells for one picnic table! They were very nice, and we enjoyed good conversation before we headed out. They were heading home so they offered us all their leftover food which was a nice gesture.The eyes in the woods last night turned out to be a deer. The deer here have no fear of humans since it is illegal to hunt. They will eat right out of your hand, but I haven't tried since there are 4 million sig s reminding us that "a fed dear is a dead dear".   Blah blah blah....they are cute and I really wish I could give them treats.After hiking my butt to a place with cell phone service I was horrified to find out the Phillies lost. It made for a bad hiking day and dropped my trail happiness down a point or two at least. However, they won tonight so tomorrow should be great.My iPod is dead so John Denver never came hiking today. His loss. I was thinking....I wonder if I could miracle anyone on my iPod to the trail the way I did John Denver. Next time I charge my iPod I'll have to see if Tupac or Frank Sinatra are down for a little excursion.I'm off to bed. I need each and every one of you to be rooting for the Phillies! If your a Giants fan than stop following now....I didn't mean that. Well, kind of. Ellie, the thru hiker turned section hiker....welcome to my journal. Thank you for signing my guest book!!Good night all.
Date: 2010-10-23
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Third update of the day!! Not really....just wanted to let you know I put a mail drop in for those of you that have been asking. Just click on mail drops to the left to see the address.   I should be there in 6-7 days. Also, I tried uploading photos from the library but could not. I promise there are tons of pictures coming!
Date: 2010-10-27
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Welcome to real time on the AT. I updated twice from town today but they may have been out of order since one had been previously written on my iPhone. I'm at pettites gap and it is 9pm. I'm by myself and have a big decision to make. Do I pitch a tent here or bust out 4.7 to the shelter. If I stay here, I'm by myself with no water, but if I move on it will include a 2300 foot climb. I just descended off a 1000 footer where it was really wet and foggy. Oh these are the times that try mens souls.....
Date: 2010-10-27
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

That 4.7 miles earned me three thousand.  I'm not in thunder hill shelter, but rather in Seville Spain with Aubrey.  We are enjoying the cool breeze coming in the window exactly how she described it in her e-mail today.I'm a different person than I was a few hours ago.  That was the hardest longest 4.7 miles that ever existed.  Twenty minutes into my climb the downpour started.  The rain was so cold, and the fog allowed only two feet of visibility.  It was coming down, it was coming sideways, and I'm pretty sure that at times it was even coming up.  It was just insane.  I kept telling myself that as soon as I hit a flat spot I'd pitch a tent, but there were no flat spots. I was in the swamp of sadness.....again.  It was more than discomfort or inconvenience, it was a matter of survival.  So you know what I did?  I walked.  That's all you can do.  100 feet at a time, 50 feet at a time, and sometimes two.  It's just rain, it's just fog, it's just mountains.  You've just gotta rise above your challenges.  I zoned out like I so often did when I was in the Army.  I found my happy place with Aubrey and she helped keep me warm.So tonight I'm treating myself to a pleasant daydream as I sleep in a cloud (literally).  I'm in Seville Spain and it is warm.  Comfy bed, comfy sheets and a full belly.  I have taken my place as what Aubrey affectionately calls the "big spoon".  I am dry.
Date: 2010-10-29
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I'm thinking of buying a new pack. I this goes down, it will be before I leave Daleville tomorrow. I feel like a trader almost. Like a trader against my pack that has done everything I asked and been so good to me. I carry a ULA Circuit. It's an ultralight pack weighing something like 2 pounds, and is a fantastic pack. However, ultralight packs are kind of pointless if you are not carrying an ultralight load. My gear is light, but I just keep adding things. I'm doing the opposite of what is supposed to happen. You are supposed to be frugile and dump weight as you go along realizing all the things you don't actually need. But it seems the further I go, the more I am willing to carry. I added several pieces of cold weather gear and will be adding more before the smokies, I added a pair of socks, and we swear that we will be carrying the boardgame crossfire at some time in the near future. I carry a Nook for crying out loud. I am an ultralighters nightmare.....a NOOK!!! So I may give in and go for it. the pack will weigh signifigantly more than mine, but will have better load carrying stability and comfort. lately i've been spending alot of time during the day adjusting my pack.I ran into a section hiker from my town recently. Lives just a few blocks away! Small world. his friend pointed out that I was not a skinny toothpick like the rest of the thru hikers they see. "Well asshole, I was fatter than they were when I started". I'm in good shape, but no I have not become emaciated like alot of thru hikers. Perhaps i'll put myself on a trail diet as not to miss out on the starvation that is inevitabley supposed to accompany a thru-hike.
Date: 2010-11-05
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Lessons learned....hiking in snow sucks.  Hiking in snow at night sucks more.  I'm in Pearisburg VA having stretched a long week from Daleville.  Quite a bit of rain, than the snow came.  I definately was not adequately prepared for snow.  For starters, a pair of gloves would be nice, as would pants, a sleeping bag liner and a snow blower.  It was really coming down in the mountains last night.  I found myself in whiteout conditions, and kept losing the trail since it was covered with snow.  This morning my shoes were two blocks of ice.  Literally.  Couldn't even get them on.  I started a fire with a book someone left at the shelter to thaw them out but accidentily set one on fire.....oops.  I than put on my ice cubes and hiked 23 miles to get here.  In the last two days I ate 3 packs of crackers and two cookies.  I pretty much ran out of food because I was behind schedule.  Suprisingly I was unable to eat that much when I got here.  Shrunken stomach I guess.  I'm going to have to figure out what to carry for the cold.  I still have to get through the smokies. My shoes are questionable too,  I'm not sure if my breathable Merrels are going to cut it.  If anyone has experience with cold weather/ snow hiking please feel free to weigh in!!  As for now I'm watching a Rocky marathon laying in bed.  I'll update again tomorrow!
Date: 2010-11-06
To: View Entry
Miles today: 96.0

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us" Ralph Waldo EmersonGetting ready to hike out of pearisburg. While it is tempting to zero here, it is a nice day and want to take advatage. I was able to pick up some cheap gloves at a gas station to hold me over. Yesterday my hands were on the verge of frostbite so I used a pair of dirty socks as gloves. My socks smell so bad that I feel bad for my feet when I put them on. You can imagine the grimace on my face the several hundred times that I insinctively wiped my face with a dirty sock hand. Unfortunatley the hotel doesnt have a washer and drier so I'll be hiking out smelling as bad as I did coming in. Although I did shower with some Zest. I always try to pick up a bar of soap from the store before getting to the hotel; the hotel soap just doesnt cut it. God I miss deodorant and aftershave.Thanks for your suggestions Terry and Diane. I ordered a pair of pants that are being shipped to Damascus. The guy from the company seemed high on something, and I had to walk him through the shipping directions line for line. I was thinking...."shouldnt you be telling me how this goes since you work for the gear company and do this all the time"? I hope they don't screw it up/ The last time I ordered from this company I recieved a pair of small board shorts instead of my wind shirt. It took me more than a month to get the right gear, and I had to compromise on the color. In Damascus there is also a mail drop waiting for me. It has my gloves, a neck buff and rain jacket. i'm carrying a patagonia Nano Puff, A light fleece, mid weight wool long johns, patagonia capilene 2 and 3 tops, a wind shirt, a wool cap and three pairs of socks. Despite this, I worry that it will still not be enough. I was considering gortex boots, but an awful lot of people say they have a tendency to last only a coupld hundred miles before ripping. If I don't get them, than I definately need some waterproof sock liners. Maybe i'll get a big'ol pair of those fishing waders just to be extra safe. Your feet ain't getting wet in those....no sir.I'm not going to lie, the last few days were brutal. As we like to say on the trail....."its getting real". Just really cold, and I was not prepared. After all my time in the military stationed in frigid places (Colorado/Korea) I should have been prepared but I wasn't. Every time I used to start missing the active duty Army, I just went outside for 10 minuts without a jacket to remind myself why I got out. But in the the Army we had standardized gear that was heavy and warm. Out here is is a learning curve. Not complaining, just saying. My poor feet are saying "learn faster John".I haven't been getting any signal from up in the mountains here so sorry if I don't update between towns. i've pretty much given up on uplaoding pictures. I spoke to a thru hiker from last year who said she had the same exact problem. Every time I try, the computers freeze up. I will upload every single one when I get home though, along with videos.On my way to Damascus.....Thank-you for your prayers and well wishes.
Date: 2010-11-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Alot of little girls' dreams could come true in the Grayson highlands of Southern Virginia.  It's full of ponies!  Wild ones that like hikers and lick salt from our hands.  We couldn't help it, we started giving them names.  Brownie, licker, old grey hair and brown beauty.  They were cordial hosts and welcomed us to some of the most beautiful country we've seen in a long time.  Definately one of my favorite days on the trail.  The highlands are bald, and above 5000 feet, so there were spectacular views in every direction.  Gods country.The weather has been spectacular as well.  Perfect for long days and night hiking.  I can't remember the last time I pulled into a shelter before dark.  We've been doing 23-28 miles every day since Pearisburg.  It's been a blessing.  I knew I would be hiking in winter conditions, but not the first week in November.  It was ample warning from the trail and we will be prepared.  I'm sitting by a fire on a bald with Stoker and baby face.  The other boys are at a shelter 5 miles ahead but we opted for the starry skies and what is sure to be a fiery sunrise.  21 miles to Damascus tomorrow.  In already working on my eating plans, and daydreaming about soda.  Soda will be a big part of my life from now on.  It wasn't before, but I was wrong before. It's amazing and I always crave it.  We are taking a well deserved zero Monday and will head into Tennessee Tuesday.  Finally leaving Virgina which consitutes 1/4 of the trail.  Snot rockets....All the guys are good at this.  It's when you hold a nostril closed and blow the contents out of the other nostril with the velocity of a bullet.  I've decided that I too must master this art.  I haven't reached a good velocity yet but with practice and determination those buggers will be clearing my shirt in no time.I can't wait till tomorrow.  I haven't showered in over a week, and haven't done wash in two.  My socks smell like a dead animal carcass.  I have so much to write about so stay tuned for multiple updates in town.  In limited with my iPhone, I can't type fast enough to keep up with my thoughts.  I think the next thing I'd like to write about is perspective.  Putting things in perspective.
Date: 2010-11-16
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hey all, I updated earlier today, but not about Demascus. I wrote an entry about this town on my phone, and will transfer it to my journal when i get service. Well, out of here today, and in about three miles i'll be in Tennessee!! Its depressing...it's such a great town and i dont want to leave. Either do my feet!! They've been begging me...please John just one more day of rest....I hadn't had foot problems since Maine, but this week the bottoms of my feet started to become raw, and I had stage 1 blister on the insteps. Very painful. Perhaps it is dirty sweaty socks, or it could have something to do with the 26 mile days we've been doing on a regular basis, or the rocks that are on loan to Southern Virginia from Pennsylvania. Probably a combination of all three. Either way, I got new socks, new shoes and new super feet insoles as well as all my winter gear.Please look for a lengthy update about Demascus in the future!! On to Tennesee, the birthplace of our Beagle Colin...so exciting.
Date: 2010-11-27
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I am a very happy boy. We are still in Ashville, and today is a zero. Four nights here total, but we managed to slackpack 40 miles while here. We have been well fed, showered and warm since Tuesday night. We head back to the trail tomorrow for our final push to springer. Hopefully we are prepared for the Smokies, which is our last big hurdle. Today will be spent watching some college football and eating a ton of left-overs. We've been charged with the responsibility of making sure there is no food left in the fridge tomorrow. I think we're up for the challenge. I contemplated sending my nook home, but I didnt. The thing is....its so cold that we dont want to hold our hands out of our sleeping bag to read. I think I'm going to invent a sleeping bag with a reading compartment. The last book I read was called "Inside Delta Force", which is an account by one of the founding members of this elite unit. Very interesting, and there was a very interesting assertion made in that book. He said that as late as 1981, they knew there were still POWs held in Vietnam and were preparing a mission to rescue them before it was sabotaged by the goverment. Another book I read was called "Flyboys". It is a story about aviators in the pacific, and a story about 8 pilots that were shot down on an Island near Iowa Jima. One of those pilots was the former President Bush, and another guy named Jimmy Dye graduated from my high school. It is a heart wrenching story of what these guys were put through. In the end, Bush was the only one to survive having been rescued by a submarine.We are going to REI today. Nothing good can come from this. You put a bunch of Thru-hikers in a store like that, and money is going to be spent. I am lucky enough to have an REI,EMS and LL bean all within 20 minutes of where I live. They know me quite well at all these places. I used to spend hours in REI just researching gear. I'd walk around and write down ounces of things.I want to thank all of you again for your messages. I read and re-read them, and I haven't deleted one trail journal message from my yahoo inbox. I'm so touched by your words of encouragement and support. Some of you have even talked about being inspired to start your Thru-hike planning. This is the ultimate honor, and you better believe i'll be here to help you every step of the way. Just shoot me an e-mail, and i'll do everything I can. Also, I'm going to do some kind of AT christmas card. It's something alot of Thru-hikers do, and send to all the hostels and places that helped us along the way. You all helped me, so you get one too! IF any of you would like one, please send your address to my e-mail. Jbrecon2@yahoo.com This of course is assuming I finish and have a picture of my happy self on that rock at springer!!
Date: 2010-11-29
To: View Entry
Miles today: 50.0

I'm at Standing Bear hostel, which is literally at the bottom of the smokie mountains. Tomorrow we climb 6,000 feet up to those suckers....God help me. Literally, i'll be needing his help because the weather is supposed to be horrible. Its been 33 miles since we left hot springs, and the warmth of Mikes family in Asheville NC. I can't begin to tell you what a blessing it was to be welcomed into their family holiday. We were so well taken care of, and they were all so nice. It was just the rest we needed to kick of this last bit of trail.Someone stole my Trekking Poles. Can you believe that? It was about two weeks ago, at Carver gap in Tennessee. There was a parking area where i put them on a wooden fence to get water. When I got back they were gone. I tried thinking back if I ever stole something to deserve such treatment but I dont think I did. Well, I was feeling rather homicidal as I climbed and descended Roan mountain without them, but i'm over it now. I hope they get good use out of them, and it haunts them every night. A hundred bucks those things cost me. Miss Janet had a pair in her trunk she lent me, and said I could just mail them back to her when finished. Thanks Miss Janet!My Mom is wearing one of my Pops Pops old coats into Philadelphia tommorrow (he's dead). Inside the pockets she is putting socks, gloves and cash. She's gonna pick out a homeless person and give it to them. Nothing to do with the trail but pretty cool idea. Kudos mom! Well I can't type much on here because the keys stick too much. Typing slow is incompatible with my ADD.
Date: 2010-11-30
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

"I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings. In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."                                                Thoreau