morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2019-05-04
From: .1 stealth campsite past Spring Mountain shelter

To: Jones Meadow
Miles today: 11.2

May 4 (Day 42): It poured rain and thundered last night and then it passed on. Yay! Tent was still pretty wet. Brutal uphills today. The hill after Little Laurel Shelter was straight up. It was really hot and humid, and, oh, the BUGS!! They'll drive you crazy! We got to Jones Meadow. It had started to sprinkle before we got there. The 2 Cindys and Chappy had gotten their rain gear and umbrellas out and said that it was still early so they were going to hike on a little farther. We were done so we wished them luck. We started setting up our tent as fast as we could and Diesel set up her hammock and then the bottom fell out! We threw our packs in the tent and climbed in. We thought of our friends and hoped they were ok in the a downpour. Jones Meadow, from what we quickly saw, is very pretty.We hiked 11.2 miles today.
Date: 2019-05-05
From: Jones Meadow

To: Jones Meadow
Miles today: 0.0

May 5 (Day 43): It poured rain all night. There was about a 30 minute break at 6:00 this morning and Diesel packed up. It was really foggy too. We told her we were going to wait until it warmed up a bit to see what we were going to do. It started raining again shortly before she left. (She later said it rained her whole hike.) About 10:30am we thought we might move on and had half the tent packed and the bottom dropped out again. The wind picked up then and it got cold. We decided to zero today. We really, really didn't want to but we just don't do well with rain AND cold. We slept and I journaled. (Surprisingly I have cell and internet access!) We also strategized about the rest of our hike. We would like to make Damascus, VA by May 18th (for the big Trail Days Festival). To do that we will need to pound out 14.4 mile days between now and then. We believe we can do that. Resupply is the only pain in the butt. It just seems to take so long to get into town, shop, and then get back on the trail, but we are going to work hard to shorten that time if we can. I'm telling you. If someone had a mobile truck, with real hiker supplies, and they went from gap to gap or parking area to parking area, they would make a fortune! To not have to get off the trail and hitch a ride into town and then hitch a ride back out, would be great!It's 5pm and the rain has finally stopped. It's supposed to be nice tomorrow, Tuesday, and Wednesday and then possible showers on Thursday. Hopefully we'll be far enough away by then. I'm tired of the rain and am trying not to get too depressed about taking another zero so soon.Tomorrow's another day.
Date: 2019-05-06
From: Jones Meadow

To: Campsite near Laurel Hostel
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: overcast clouds

May 6 (Day 44): We were on the trail by 7:40am this morning. The tent was wet so we bagged it to dry out later, probably when we stop for lunch. Walking along we heard wild turkeys gobbling down the way. We never got to see them, but we could certainly hear them.A hiker passed us and said that we would probably pass a couple in a few minutes who had stopped for lunch. They had gotten engaged on the trail! Sure enough, we came upon Hot Lips and Quincy. (Hot Lips got her trail name because she grew up watching M*A*S*H.) We congratulated them on their engagement! Hot Lips said they were on the trail in a thunderstorm at the NOC in Nantahala when Quincy pretended to fall on his knees. He has a bad knee and she thought "Oh, no, he's hurt his knee!" While down on his knee, he proposed to her! Hot Lips showed me her ring and it was beautiful! The ring was made by a friend of theirs and Quincy had recorded the making of it. It has a large round diamond in the middle with 3 smaller round diamonds on either side. She said they had passed us earlier in the day and Quincy had said to her "That'll be us". That made us smile.Another note about our engaged couple. Earlier that day I was feeling discouraged and slow. We started our hike on March 24th and seemed to be the last people in our bubble. I asked the good Lord to give me some encouragement. (I know everyone should hike their own hike, but sometimes it seems that we hike and hike and just don't get far. Like a hamster on a wheel.) We asked Quincy and Hot Lips when they started and they said March 15th. As we walked away, I realized my prayer had been answered. We were not the last people or the slowest hikers. I don't mean that to sound snotty, but it was nice not to be the old, last people in the bubble.Later we passed a headstone set by the trail by the Howard Bassette family. He had thru-hiked the AT in 1968 and passed away at 83. They had buried (or spread his ashes) on that site the following year. After that we came upon a beautiful meadow. In the center were three headstones - the Shelton graves. It seems that 3 Confederate soldiers had come home to see their family and were shot dead on that site. David and William Shelton and Millard Haire. Millard was only 13 years old! The site is maintained by the descendents of Millard Haire. It was really a beautiful and serene place. We sat and had a nice lunch. We also pulled out the tent to dry. I hope that wasn't disrespectful.We ended up hiking to a stealth camp just up the road from the Laurel Hostel, and right next to a beautiful stream. We set up camp and then soaked our feet in the stream. I took a picture of my "happy feet" and sent it to the Cindys.After that we walked up to the hostel and bought a Coke and a pizza (that they cooked on the grill for us). It tasted so good!We hiked 14.4 miles today!
Date: 2019-05-07
From: Campsite near Laurel Hostel

To: Below Bald Mountain
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: light rain

May 7 (Day 45): Today was a day of brutal uphills. Near the end of the day, after walking 13.7 miles, we were really tired and trying to find a stealth camp. The trail was narrow but it went on and on through blankets of beautiful white, wild flowers. We kept looking for a level spot to camp but the trail remained narrow and gently rolling. David finally decided to hike up the ridge, off trail, and found a dirt road. Along the road was a level spot! There were flowers all around it. Down below, on the other side, we could see a condo and another road. We hoped no one would come down our dirt road.We set up camp, made dinner, and hit the sack.We started the day at 7:40am and ended it at 6:30pm. Hiked 13.7 miles.
Date: 2019-05-08
From: Below Bald Mountain

To: Stealth campsite
Miles today: 10.0

May 8 (Day 46): We left our beautiful tent site and hiked up to Bald Mountain. Several hikers had camped there that night. What a view! The clouds were all around us, by the treeline, and the mountain tops in the distance looked like islands in an ocean.We hiked on and came to High Rocks. We left our packs near the trail and hiked up to the top. Another great view! Boy, was it nice to hike without a pack. We literally jumped up the rocks!We hiked along further and since we were worried about not finding a stealth camp again, we stopped at the next one we found. Shortly after getting our tent up, Six staggered in and asked if she could share the spot. We said of course! A short while later Mr. Maps came in. He and Six were hiking together. He was so glad she had stopped there too. Several hikers traveled through our site, since we were right on the trail, and one especially interesting fellow we met was Sketch from Osaka, Japan. (We asked his real name so we could Google him: Yusok). He is a freelance illustrator and sketches everyday just for himself. This is his triple crown. He has already hiked the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) and the CDT (Continental Divide Trail).We hiked 10 miles today.
Date: 2019-05-09
From: Before No Business Knob Shelter

To: Erwin, TN (Uncle Johnny's Hostel)
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: scattered clouds

May 9 (Day 47): We were short on water so we got up at 6am and hiked about a mile to the nearest water source. We then stopped at the next shelter (No Business Knob) and made breakfast.We continued our hike into Erwin, TN. We passed several views of the Nolichucky River as we hiked down. It was pretty impressive! We came off the trail and turned left and there was Uncle Johnny's Hostel. Diesel had booked a private cabin for the 3 of us. Diesel was slack packing and said she would meet us at Uncle Johnny's later. David was dying for Bo Jangles and the free shuttle from the hostel was not going that way, so we got directions and took off on bicycles. We emptied my backpack so we could also hit the Food Lion and resupply while we were out. We rode about 3 miles and could not find the "Erwin Linear Trail" that the woman at the hostel told us to take. We stopped to ask 2 men at a store and the father insisted that we go back the way we came and get up on the interstate and get off at the next exit. I said "We're on bicycles. We can't ride on the interstate." He said "Are you sure? I bet you can! That would be the way to get to Bo Jangles." I assured him we could not. Then his son said "I think she's right, Daddy. Remember that guy hitchhiking on the highway and the state police picked him up and took him to Spivey Gap?" They gave us directions that had us riding through town and then admitted that they were from NC and only came over the border to shop and didn't really know the roads in Erwin. So we rode on and asked some locals. We got better directions and found the trail. It was a nice paved path that ran along side the river. We had to ride about 3 miles and finally found the restaurant! Then we had to ride another mile to the Food Lion. We FINALLY got back to the hostel about 5pm, just in time to see Diesel and the shuttle head off to Walmart.The private cabin was big but not worth the price. Towels were raggedy and bed lumpy. Took a shower and then had to do laundry when we got back. That took another couple hours. Other than a bed and shower, I hate resupply! It's exhausting!We did hike 8.8 miles into Erwin.
Date: 2019-05-10
From: Uncle Johnny's Hostel

To: Indian Grave Gap
Miles today: 8.4

May 10 (Day 48): We woke up at Uncle Johnny's hostel and David made scrambled eggs and sausage patties for Diesel and I for breakfast. He's a great cook!We hiked out of Erwin at 10:38am. Just before leaving we saw T-Rex and chatted for a few minutes. We then crossed the bridge that went over the Nolichucky River and walked along side the railroad tracks. Then we had to actually walk up and over the tracks. We had to cross over lots of streams via footbridges. The first bridge was an Eagle Scout project. We met a bunch of hikers that we're slackpacking SOBO so they wouldn't have to do the big uphill out of Erwin when they left. It turned out that the uphills weren't as bad as we had been led to believe. Thank goodness! We finally got to see some of the wild rhodedendrons in bloom! They are so pretty. We have passed miles and miles of rhoddies with blooms but were afraid we'd never see any in bloom.We decided to stop and set up camp about 5pm just before Indian Grave Gap. We could hear thunder in the distance. We knew bad weather was due in for Saturday and Sunday. Oh, boy!Hiked 8.4 miles today.
Date: 2019-05-11
From: Indian Grave Gap

To: Erwin, TN (Motel 8)
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: broken clouds

May 11 (Day 49): We woke up at the stealth camp .1 miles up from Indian Grave Gap. It rained during the night and when I woke it had paused, so we quickly packed up. Of course just as we started to take the actual tent down it started to rain again! We left by 7:15am, our best time ever, even eating breakfast. I was wearing my new Frogtoggs rain suit.We hiked up Unaka Mountain and it was so foggy you couldn't see very far ahead of you. It was kind of spooky.Down the mountain we walked into a spruce forest. There were only the spruce trees, no bushes or smaller trees. The spruce were tall with no lower branches. The floor of the forest was soft with needles and it was very foggy. THAT was spooky too!We hiked in the rain till we got to Cherry Gap Shelter. I took off my pack cover to find that my pack was soaked! I don't know how as there were no holes in the cover. I was so pissed! David made a hot lunch of a Knorr Rice Side but I didn't eat much. I was cold and wet and just sick of this rain. We met hiker Just Jim at the shelter. He said he was calling for a shuttle at the next gap (Iron Mountain Gap) and we were welcome to split it. I said yes. David wanted to keep going but I was done!We met Just Jim at Iron Mountain Gap. He had called for a shuttle. A really nice guy named Doug picked us up. He told us of the attack of 2 AT hikers by a wack-job with a machete named Sovereign. We were really shocked by the news. Sixteen miles of the AT are closed off in VA due to the investigation.  Doug brought us to Motel 8 where we dried out. I met Amy and she and I walked to PAL'S for a hamburger and fries. David wanted McDonalds.The forecast looks worse for tomorrow (Mother's Day). Speaking of, Mackenzie and Megan planted new flowers (per a suggestion from their dad) in Mom's trike basket in the front yard, for my Mother's Day gift. I love it!Hiked 11.9 miles today.
Date: 2019-05-12
From: Erwin, TN (Motel 8)

To: Erwin, TN (Motel 8)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

May 12 (Day 50): The weather continues to look horrible. Constant rain. Ugh! Today is Mother's Day so I told David that I would like to take a zero today and just relax. Not have to worry about setting up in the rain and then taking down a wet tent in the morning. So we stayed at the Motel 8 and just watched movies, watched it pour rain, and relaxed. The hiker community is reeling from the news of the attack of 2 hikers by a man with a machete. The man had been threatening people and had been picked up and jailed here in Erwin, but no one would stay to see the charges through so they had to release him. He went up to Virginia and that's where the attack occurred. One man died but not before sending an emergency signal from his phone. The police arrived with a tactical team and found both men. The attacker, who called himself Sovereign, surrendered. A woman had also been attacked and walked 6 miles before coming upon a group of hikers and getting help. She is going to live. This is such a horrible thing! The hiker community is such a close-knit group. We can't believe this happened.We walked to Taco Bell for dinner and then came back and packed up. Just Jim texted to say that he called Doug and we are set to be shuttled back to Iron Mountain Gap tomorrow at 8:15am. The weather outlook is looking better too. Yay!
Date: 2019-05-13
From: Erwin, TN (Motel 8)

To: Roan Mountain
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: overcast clouds

May 13 (Day 51): Doug picked us up at 8:15 from the Motel 8 and drove us to Iron Mountain Gap. Just Jim was going to come with us, but decided to zero as a friend was coming in.Today is going to be a hike over the last 6000+ mountain until we hit the White Mountains in New Hampshire.The hike up Roan Mountain was really fun even though it was straight up. There were switchbacks and small rock climbs and lots of roots to maneuver around. We hiked through a spruce forest and that was really cool. It was foggy and all you saw were trees with no lower limbs. There were no bushes or smaller trees, just a floor of soft pine needles. It was spooky.At the top we saw the foundation remains of a hotel built in 1884 called the Cloudland Hotel. We would have loved to stay and look around more but the winds were strong and cold. Tonight's temps are going to be in the 30s.We passed the sign to the Roan High Knob Shelter but decided not to stay there because it was cold and that shelter is known for being cold and even icy in the mornings. And with the low temps expected we knew it would be freezing up there. So we started down and the trail was extremely rocky.We ended up camping in a spruce forest, next to Kryptor, just up from Carver's Gap. We hiked 15.8 miles, hiking till 6:22pm!! Did 34.17 minute miles.
Date: 2019-05-14
From: Down from Roan High Shelter

To: Doll Flats
Miles today: 11.8

May 14 (Day 52): We stealth camped in a spruce forest down from the Roan High Knob Shelter. We woke to temps in the 30s and ferocious winds. Neither of us slept very well because of the cold. We wore all the clothes we had, but were still cold. We hoped the temperature would warm up as the morning went on, but it didn't. David really wanted to take a zero, but we finally broke camp and headed out about 11:38am. Because we started so late we hiked until 7:50pm.We started by hiking down to Carver's Gap and then across the road. Our first mountain was Round Mountain and then Jane Bald. We love hiking up to balds because they have only short grasses and the views are amazing.Just before going up Little Hump we stopped to see an old red barn that had been converted into a shelter. It was huge and had an upstairs and 2 large platforms on the side (kind of like porches) where you could watch the sunset and sunrise. There were several hikers that had already decided to stay there for the night and had claimed spots for the awesome views.Then we started up Little Hump Mountain. That was a killer. Views were great but with the cold temperature and the wind, we didn't stay long to enjoy it. We came down the other side and had a short level period. Then I looked up... and up and up... the trail up Hump Mountain. David was not happy about doing another killer climb so late in the day when we were tired and he was getting hungry, but there was no where to camp so we had no choice. David went first and I followed. I tried not to look up because the climb seemed to go on forever. I saw a rock outcropping and thought "Thank God we're at the top!" Then God laughed because as soon as I got to the rocks I could see I was not at the top at all. Oh, He has a wicked sense of humor at times!We FINALLY got to the top, but again the winds were so bad and the temperature so cold that we looked at the views as we hiked as fast as we could back down. We thought what a great place to camp if not for the weather. We did see that 2 hikers had pitched their tent for the night. So down we went with no flat spots for camping. We were both getting exhausted. Close to 8pm we came across Doll Flats, a large flat area with a water source. As you walked into it there was a sign that read "You are leaving NC". I set up camp. David made dinner and we crashed. We didn't even bother to hang our bear bag. God help the bear that might wake us up!After all that we had only hiked 11.8 miles.
Date: 2019-05-15
From: Doll Flats

To: Mountaineer Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: light snow

May 15 (Day 53): Left Doll Flats about 9:50, we were cold and didn't sleep well. Today's hike had us going through woods and over bridges and through beautiful meadows. The elevation changes were like ripples, compared to the previous days. The ups weren't too high and the lows weren't too low.When we got to US19 there were several shuttle drivers waiting to see if anyone needed rides into town or the nearby hostel. We told them we were good and we were hiking on. They said to be sure to get past Isaac's Cemetery and Campbell Hollow Road before 5pm. There were 2 families in the area that had been feuding for about 200 years and they started drinking about 7pm. He said they wouldn't hurt us but would sure make us uncomfortable if we ran into them on the trail. Like the Hatfield's and McCoys!We were past those 2 spots early in the day, so we were ok. The cemetery was very pretty and serene. We just looked through the fence. Decided not to go in.After a lunch of cheese and avocado with a fun-size candy bar for dessert, we started hiking again. On the trail you could clearly see deer hoof prints. We must have followed those footprints for at least a mile. Section-hiking deer! Lol!We also hit our 400 mile mark! Someone made a "400" out of sticks on the left side of the trail.Saw a gorgeous waterfall called the Jones Falls. It was really spectacular and we took lots of pictures. The trail then ran along the Elk River. This was a big river that you couldn't just jump across on the rocks.Just before the Mountaineer Shelter was another waterfall called the Mountaineer Falls. It was not as big or impressive as the Jones Falls, but still pretty. The shelter was only .2 miles from the falls and the water source for the shelter was actually the top of the falls! The shelter is one of the newer ones, built in 2006, and sleeps 14. It has 3 floors and there were only 3 guys in it so they could each have their own floor. Lol! Also someone had carved a bear in a log and it was standing near the corner of the shelter.The area around the shelter was all hills, nothing flat. The tenting area was just before you took the path down to the shelter, so we are right next to the trail to leave in the morning.Today we hiked 11.8 miles.
Date: 2019-05-16
From: Mountaineer Shelter

To: meadow
Miles today: 11.9
Weather: light rain

May 16 (Day 54): Left the tenting area above Mountaineer Shelter about 8:30am. We both had had the best night's sleep in a long time. It wasn't cold and it was very quiet. Morning came too soon.Today had a lot of uphills but they weren't too bad. Saw another waterfall (Hardcore Cascades). Not as impressive as Jones Falls, but nice enough for us to have lunch there. Wet Sticks and his girlfriend, Honey Badger, did the same.Stopped for a break at the Moreland Gap Shelter. Called the Boots Off Hostel to arrange catching their shuttle into Trail Days in Damascus, VA on Saturday. Then headed uphill for a while longer.Decided to stop for the day at a tent site in a meadow with a pipe spring nearby. I washed several pairs of my stinky sock liners and hung them to dry.We debated going on for a bit longer but were worried we might not find a tent site, which has happened before. So we set up camp and then David was talking to a couple hiking past and they said that there were sites at the trail head 4 miles up. Ugh!! It was almost 5 by then and we didn't relish the idea of hiking for another couple hours so we just stayed put.Hiked 11.9 miles today.
Date: 2019-05-17
From: Meadow

To: Boots Off Hostel
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: clear sky

May 17 (Day 55): Enjoyed our night in the meadow. Hiccup and Sherpa pitched tent across from us later that night.Got back on the trail at 7:45am. The hike was straight up at first and then leveled out.We walked into the Cherokee National Forest and along a beautiful wide, fast moving river, which I believe is called the Laurel Fork River. We stopped and sat on a couple of huge rocks near the river for our morning break. Saw Legs and Marathon walk by and chatted with them for a bit.After our break, we hiked over big boulders and down into the gorge. There was a stunning waterfall. Sorry Jones Falls, but you just slid into 2nd place. The trail then ran along side the river and you had to climb over rocks. At one point we had to inch along a narrow ledge cut into the rock, just above the river. That was utterly cool!Stayed at Boots Off Hostel. Awesome!! Grumpy and John welcomed us. They had someone very artistic paint the building and showers. Even the porch where we ate was painted with a night sky. There are 2 showers. The men's shower has a painting on the outside that says "And into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul". The inside has the painting of a man wrapped in a towel showering and thinking of beer and hotdogs, etc. It's really whimsical. The ladies shower shows a painting of their little town of Hampton and the inside shows a woman dreaming of pizza, margaritas, Snickers, etc. Really cute! The showers themselves use a short galvanized bucket with holes around the sides that fills with water and sprays down. It's really clever.We set up our tent and I took a shower. Ohh, it was wonderful to be clean. Tomorrow is Trail Days and I can't wait!Hiked 12.5 miles today.