morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-08-12
From: me17

To: swift river pond campsite
Miles today: 8.5

first, the past few days have been so hectic, i havent had the energy or time to write entries. i will say to refer to leah spurlins or specks entries to get details. well...we are finally in maine!!! the last of 14 states. the stretch that seemed like it would never come. its here! i say we because all five of 5-alive are together again! we have decided to continue on into maine, til the end, together. so, anyways. we left out of andover this afternoon around 2. and it feels like a completely different trail from what weve had the past week. its passable. its actually a trail! a footpath. and the terrain today was great. a couple small ups and downs, but nothing like weve had in vt or nh. we are able to average 2.5 to 3 mph again! it feels good to be able to cover distance quicker. anyways...we got here at the campsite around 6 and set up. theres a beautiful pond, or lake rather, down a short trail where i got water and, if it hadnt looked like rain and been on the cooler side, i wouldve went for a swim. but, we are supposed to be hiking near ponds almost everyday from here to katahdin, so, ill have plenty more chances. tomorrow we climb saddleback mt and sugarloaf mt, where we are supposedly able to see katahdin on one side and mt washington on the other. how cool would it be if we actually had a clear day and were able to see anything on top of the mtns. i hope it clears up! note: i havent seen the sun for more than probably 20 minutes since the middle of july. the weather channel said the last dry day in the area was july 15. thats ridiculous! the weatherman started laughing at the forecast as he gave it because it just wont stop raining! whats the deal yo! well, weve endured 4 months of it, whats another 3 weeks. we heard a rumor that its gonna be clear later tomorrow. hopefully its true! im lookin forward to it, nonetheless!
Date: 2003-08-13
From: swift river pond campsite

To: piazza lean-to
Miles today: 6.5

oh yeah! the big miles! we got to the road and decided we didnt want to go all the way to the next shelter which is another 9 miles, so we hit this shelter around 12:30 and stopped. and the weather started to break, the sun came out, and we are in a really nice place to relax and enjoy the cool breeze and the sunshine! we really wanted to make sure we have a clear day when we summit saddleback and we werent sure if it would clear today. so, since we know its gonna be clear tomorrow, we are gonna wait til then. i really want to see katahdin from the top. i think that would really energize all of us to get through the next 200 miles. but i really like the attitude of all of us, being totally ok with doing small miles and not caring about anything but having a good time the rest of the way. we dont have to be in stratton until saturday so we are slowin down, only doin 9 miles to the next shelter tomorrow and then two 10 mile days. it will definitely be nice!
Date: 2003-08-14
From: piazza lean-to

To: poplar ridge shelter
Miles today: 9.0

an exceptionally nice day! to wake up and know that no one is in a hurry to get anywhere, and that you only have planned to go 9 miles! its so nice. but, we got up anyways and got rollin around 8:30. we started the climb up saddleback mt, and i finally started feeling like i was back in the hiking mode. i guess the last couple days my body hasnt really wanted to go. but it was good to be able to push myself up the mountain and feel good doing it! a long, steep, rocky, and hard climb it was, but we got above treeline and man! it was beautiful! we could finally see something besides clouds and fog! mountains, valleys, and huge lakes all around us, and i might add...below us! it felt good to look down and know that i started at the bottom and reached the top. anyways...for a few miles we were above treeline which made the miles so much more enjoyable. the wind was blowing strong and it was cool, but even still, everybody got sunburnt! its kinda funny though cause we havent had to worry about that for a long while since its rained so much. but everyone is sore tonight. we took our sweet time comin off the ridge, since we didnt have far to go. we spent most of the afternoon above treeline and just soaked up all that we could of the weather. i cant get over how amazing it was today. clear and cool! finally!!! its about time we get a good day. anyways...got to the shelter around 4:30 and took a little bath in the stream. i thought it would be nice to clean up for the evening. its nice to be somewhat clean and put somewhat clean clothes on. and, we built a fire, and we ate some dinner, and now im fixin to go to sleep. we cant decide where we are going tomorrow, but ill let that wait til tomorrow!
Date: 2003-08-15
From: poplar ridge shelter

To: statton, me
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: light rain

another beautiful hiking day. its nice to finally have a streak of nice days. today would be number 2 i believe. anyways...i dont want to take it for granted, but to enjoy it and soak in as much of it as i can! this morning started out great. i was feeling strong and the weather was nice. it couldnt get much better. but as i started up lone mtn i started gettin my butt kicked! steep and really long! i never thought id get to the top. and i was hungry too, which makes it hard not to stop and sit down for lunch when i know its better to just keep goin up until i reach the top. so, i did and i sat and i ate! started feeling better, but i also realized i havent felt this worn out for a long while. very strange. but we keep going up to sugarloaf mtn, the 2nd highest peak in maine. definitely a toughy. our plan was to stay on top of the mtn, and all but me and cire did. we decided we wanted to go ahead and push to get into stratton tonight! food on the mind, gives me that extra get-up-and-go! so we get down to the road and after about 45 mins we get a ride from a young couple. got right to the restaurant at the motel and ate a huge pizza and salad! so soo good. and we got a great deal on a room so we stayed for cheap and ate good. tonights worked out just fine. just sittin down to some t.v. right now. maybe a movie will come on...
Date: 2003-08-16
From: statton, me

To: zero
Miles today: 0.0

since we came into town early we get the day off while we wait for the others to come in. i didnt sleep in as long as id like to have, but it still felt good. got up around 6 and read a little. went and got some coffee. nothin special this morning. the afternoon brought the rest of the group in and along with them came the infamous mr cranky pants! he had heard that we were in town and decided to drive over and meet up with us. it was so nice to have him surprise us like that. weve been lookin forward to seein him again for a long time. good to have him here. so we ate dinner and caught up, tellin stories and all that. a very nice evening. ill hate to see him go, but hes comin back to see us in monson so its all good. well, i think we wanna try for 16 miles tomorrow so ill need to get some rest...
Date: 2003-08-17
From: stratton mtn

To: little bigelow lean-to
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: overcast clouds

well, we didnt get goin today as early as id hoped but it still worked out. we got a hitch back to the trail a little after 9 this morning. the trail was nice for a change. we climbed a good bit, but it was nice. and this is the last big climb until katahdin. its the bigelows! weve heard good things about this range. and man, words dont do it justice. we ate lunch on the summit of avery peak, just over 4000 feet, and above treeline. we hid behind an old firehouse to get out of the wind. amazing though! it was cool to see mountains on one side and nothing but lakes on the other. this is definitely the land-o-lakes! the view from the top was just incredible. and then, down...the last time well be above 3000 feet until katahdin. its freakin awesome! only 13 days left. anyways...i pushed on and got to little bigelow mtn and made a couple phone calls since i had service. chilled there for about an hour and then headed down to the shelter here. a very nice shelter. well, the area around it anyways. the stream has a great pool that i got to take a bath in. very refreshing. and a couple nice tent sites. and we even had a fire. who knew today could be so good. oh, and the weather was gorgeous today too! this is a record i do believe. im keepin track. well, another big day tomorrow so im off to bed...
Date: 2003-08-18
From: little bigelow lean-to

To: caratunk, me
Miles today: 20.9

dang! i remember why i never do 20 miles days! it hurts!!! but after the stay here at the caratunk house bed and breakfast, it was all worth it! most of the day was easy. the trail was somewhat flat and fast-going. but it was very monotnous. the same thing over and over. we would go down to a huge lake, and then just walk around it and then up and then down to another huge lake, only to walk around that one. finally the shelter at 17 miles, where i got some water, and took a short break before the last 3 miles. but the last 3 miles were terrible. at least to me. i was already pretty worn out from 17 miles so the last stretch, which by the looks of the profile is a nice gradual downhill, stunk! up and down, rocks and roots! but we did make it to the river where we had to rely on a ferry, which is a guy paddling a canoe, to get us across. we just had to get there before 5. we did, so no worries. interesting way of crossing a river, on the trail. anyways...after crossing the river we were in town and walking to the bed and breakfast where i am now. and man, its probably the nicest place weve stayed yet, on the trail. they just treat us so nice. i almost feel like a normal person! note: if you are ever hiking near caratunk, maine...stay at the caratunk house b & b! we got an awesome dinner, laundry, movies, and breakfast. oh, and a nice bed with a nightstand and plenty of room to spread out! almost like bein at home. i has definitely been a good push for the next 12 days! dang, 12 days! i cant believe its august 18th! and that im this close to the end. the part that always seemed so far away is right here! ive had a few people tell me "congratulations" and really, it feels good. to make it this far is good. but its not over yet!
Date: 2003-08-19
From: caratunk, me

To: bald mtn lean-to
Miles today: 14.8

ha! we were only gonna do 10 mi today, but there was no water at 10 mi, so we had to go on. and we ended up here! we didnt leave until after noon today. ketchup and oopu got to the b&b around 10, so we just thought wed wait and get lunch there. and we werent in a hurry cause we were only doin 10 miles! anyways...we left at 12 and just booked it basically. we got to pleasant pond mtn, which by the way was not very pleasant going up or down it, and took a little break. then on to the campsite that we thought would exist. we kinda got split up on the downhill so none of us knew how far we would end up going. it was a mess. i finally caught up with cire and we chatted about where to go. by this time the mosquitos were on their feeding frenzy, so we started running down the trail and arrived here around 7. the first thing we did was make a fire to maybe smoke away the skeeters and then set up camp. and i had been out of water for 6 miles so i sat at the stream and drank probably a gallon of water! so nice. got some grub and now am resting. weve had a few big days now, so im looking forward to a really short day on thursday goin into monson and chillin all day there. a good break before the 100 mile wilderness. much needed!
Date: 2003-08-20
From: bald mtn lean-to

To: monson
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: few clouds

today was nice and slow. we took our time gettin up and took our time down the trail. we didnt think wed be doing 21 miles into town at this point so it didnt matter. we climbed moxie bald, which isnt really what i would consider a bald. more like so rocky nothing can grow on it. but the view was great! you are supposed to be able to see katahdin from the top, but not on a hazy summer day like today. it wouldve been cool though. we ate lunch at some stream, trying to avoid the mosquitos as much as possible. a short lunch, due to the skeeters, made it nice to get an early start on the afternoon. we forded our first river! the piscataquis i believe. nuthin big, just too deep to cross with shoes on. it was about knee deep, for the record. then we got to the shelter that we were planing on staying at around 3:30. looked at the mileage to town from there and decided we could make it tonight. we figured itd be our last zero day, and last time in town, so we wanted to live it up! we got to this road that we thought was the road into monson, later found out it wasnt the right one. but we walked it anyways, hopin to catch a ride. and...the only car that drove by turned around and picked us up! they knew their way around so they brought us into monson, and to the place we needed to go. it was an interesting ride. on the back of the tailgate of the truck. scary, but nice! we got settled in and got some food and now im just glad we decided to come in a day early. itll be nice to have a zero before the 100 miles wilderness.
Date: 2003-08-21
From: monson

To: zero
Miles today: 0.0

we got up early!!! 6 to be exact. but thats when breakfast is served at shaws house. and man o man was it good! way more than i could handle. but so good. then ketchup and oopu went back to bed. i went lookin for cire. and i found him and speck and slickrock together! unexpected. so we chatted for a couple minutes, planned lunch, and went on our merry ways. we kinda just piddled around all day. we were waitin for mr. cranky pants to arrive this afternoon. he came with food! we had a nice evening with him and did our thing. i came back to shaws and am goin to bed. i is tired! and we are gettin up early tomorrow for another great breakfast.
Date: 2003-08-22
From: zero

To: vaughn stream
Miles today: 14.0

alas, the 100 mile wilderness. after a wonderful stay in town, we venture forth to the last 100 miles of our trek. we got off a lot earlier than i anticipated too. around 9, which is i think the earliest we ever left a town. its good that we did though. we tried to get 15 miles, to a shelter, but there were 9 people that we knew of at the shelter so we stopped at this stream where there are some really nice campsites and swimming holes. its worked out good. the terrain today wasnt so bad. small ups and downs, nuthin big. tomorrow is when the big ones start again. barren mtn is gonna be a beast. but, not to worry. its one of two last big climbs before katahdin. its nice to be able to say that! its about time! well, i took a benadryl so im getting sleepy...the mosquitos ate me up today.
Date: 2003-08-23
From: vaughn stream

To: west branch of the pleasant river campsite
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: clear sky

man-o-man! barren mtn was as much a beast as i thought! but it was fun. ha! fun... and it cooled off a lot overnight so the weather is right for hikin. we had a great view of whitecap mtn from the top. i was able to make a phone call too. after that we just hiked until lunch, which we thought would be at a stream. we found out that the stream didnt exist. so we hiked like 4 miles without water. its been worse though. at least it wasnt hot. its kinda cold actually. like 50s cold. we found this trail that had a ton of rasberries and blackberries! it was so cool. i love finding berries. its like unwrapping a present at a surprise birthday party. you werent expecting it, so its that much better! anyways, then we found this great campsite and settled here. got a fire goin despite some drizling rain. i dont think ive been this sleepy for a while. its still daylight and im goin to sleep!
Date: 2003-08-24
From: west branch of the pleasant river campsite

To: logan brook lean-to
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: few clouds

i dont have much to write about due to the cold. i cant stand to have my hands out of the sleeping bag. where did 40 degrees come from! climbed whitecap mtn today and got my first view of katahdin! and i didnt expect it to be so close. it seems no more than 30 miles away. but the trail takes us around and around and ends up being 70 miles. i dont understand. anyways...to finally see katahdin was crazy! if it wasnt freezing cold and windy on top of whitecap i wouldve stayed there all day and looked at it. it was awesome. but now im just tryin to stay warm and not think about how much i want a cheese burger! only two more days til the whitehouse landing, where the cheeseburgers await us!
Date: 2003-08-25
From: logan brook lean-to

To: antlers campsite
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: overcast clouds

our last day of more than 11 miles! its about time we start takin it slow! nah, it was nice to bust a big day out today. we definitely picked the best terrain to do it. we had one small climb this morning, but after that it was actually flat! i couldnt believe it. it was flat for about 8 miles! i hope someone got a picture. it was still very exhausting, but walking 20 miles on any terrain is hard on the body. but we only have 6 miles to get to the white house landing, where the food awaits us! hopefully it will be what everyone has made it up to be. anyways...we really didnt stop for more than a quick snack break and once for water, and then busted it to the campsite here. and i must say, it was a good decision to come here. we are right on this huge lake! its amazing! we got a nice little fire goin and im just finishin up eating the remains of what is in my food bag, and then tryin to sleep. though it might be hard to sleep. i have the night before christmas anxiousness goin on. only replace christmas with cheeseburger! and its only 7:10! ridiculous. anyways...so it might be hard to sleep. but im gonna give it a go.
Date: 2003-08-26
From: antlers campsite

To: campsite
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: clear sky

yes, oh yes!!! the white house landing rocks the house! the hike to the w.h.l i dont even remember. we got there just before lunch too! and lunch...ahh...the burgers! 3/4 pound hamburgers were unbelievable! and ive got pictures. and i ate all of it. and a homemade brownie after it. i have never felt so deprived of calories than in the past few days, but this lunch filled me up and replenished all the calories! but it doesnt end there... i got another one for dinner and it was just as good! and i had a piece of pizza. in any other situation i would be called a pig, but not here! but aside from the great food...the place sits on the bank of this huge lake and we got to canoe out to the other end and look back over the house and see katahdin. and man, that mtn is freakin huge! now i know why its called katahdin, and why the trail ends there. its so amazing, breathtaking really. and in five days im gonna be on the top of it! craziness. it will definitely be one of the greatest moments in i think all of our lives when we get up there. the end is near. and i cant wait to get there! anyways...we got dinner and hiked out just about a miles to a sufficient campsite. got a fire goin to try and rid ourselves of the tormenting mosquitos. praying that it doesnt rain tomorrow. thankful for the short days to come. nuthin over 11 miles baby! and a week from today ill be at home! rock n roll!
Date: 2003-08-27
From: campsite

To: wadleigh stream lean-to
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: scattered clouds

one of our shortest days, at least for a long time. i almost didnt know what to do with myself. i already finished and sent home the book i was reading so i couldnt read. everyone is laying down in the shelter sleeping, and i just cant sleep right now. so ive been playin with fire! we built a small fire, but i managed to make it a big fire! so i tried my best to keep busy, not bored, and i was able to make time pass. it rained for a while when we got here to the shelter. nice to keep dry. ive really been struggling, trying to not just hike to abol bridge now! im ready to get there. but we dont need to be there til saturday, so we are chillin, takin a couple easy days. im just gonna have trouble not gettin too anxious. anyways...its almost 8 now, so i need to get some sleep. ha! 8 o clock. funny. its gonna be hard to get back in a normal sleep schedule back home. but ill take advantage of it now!
Date: 2003-08-28
From: wadleigh stream lean-to

To: little/big beaver pond trail
Miles today: 15.4

why all of a sudden am i so dang hungry?!! all ive thought and talked about all day is pizza and hamburgers. and why are those the only two things i want? i will never understand. but i still want it! and i know theres a mcdonalds and a pizza place in millinocket. so, in two days, maybe, but for sure in three days, ill be getting both of those! with my family! thats even better. oher than food though...today was kinda frustrating. we got to an overlook and saw katahdin and its not any closer than it was two days ago. whats up with the trail here. we go back and forth all day, not really covering much ground. i bet the 100 miles wilderness is actually an area of 30 miles x 20 miles and we just go from side to side until we cover the 30 miles. if thats understandable. it makes sense in my head. anyways...so all day i just wanted to make a beeline for katahdin. id just blaze my own trail and go the quickest way, a straight line. but i figured id probably get lost without a map so i decided against it. we did convince the girls to come a little further today. like 4 miles. so we only have 7.5 miles to abol bridge tomorrow. and they have more food! and of course its that much closer to katahdin. i think me and oopu are gettin up at 6 and tryin to get there asap! well see how possible that is...
Date: 2003-08-29
From: little/big beaver pond trail

To: Abol Bridge
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: overcast clouds

yes...we made it up at 6 this morning. at least me and oopu did. and we got off to a pretty quick start. headed up to rainbow ledges and we got to see katahdin, and finally, its closer looking than yesterday! and it did seem as though we were going straight towards it on the way into abol bridge. i guess at some point the trail has to head directly towards it right? that was encouraging! we pretty much just came as fast as we could to the bridge. and upon arriving we met cire on the bridge and we looked to our left and there was the most amazing site i think we've seen yet! it was katahdin, but it was more than just the mountain. it was the end. we could actually see the top and we knew that the end was right in front of us. still, we couldn't wait to get up there. but first...food! we got to the campstore and got some hot dogs and cokes and such. picked up a few things for the next couple of days. and since we got to camp so early (9:30), we have all day to just hang out. if we didn't have to wait til the 31st to summit, i would for sure hike on to the birches. but, no can do. me and cire did decide to try to get to town for the fun of it. and as soon as i stuck my thumb out a guy pulled over and picked us up. took us all the way into town too! so we went to use the phone and got something to drink. headed over to the grocery store to get some money and ended up getting some dinner there. they had a good food selection at the deli! so, we started heading back to abol bridge, tryin to get a ride. we walked about a mile and two guys picked us up in a pick-up truck. we rode in the back down this winding road, doing about 80 it seemed like. scary! then a couple picked us up and brought us the rest of the way. they were cool. they thought we were awesome for doing the trail and making it all the way. it was cool. anyways...got back here and its starting to rain so we are all in the tents just chillin. maybe me and oopu will play cards to make the time go by. can't wait til the birches tomorrow!-Diesel