morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-05-25
From: Unnnamed Tent Site MM 475

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 22.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 39 Unnamed Campsite to Thomas Knob ShelterWe got up early to make up for starting late the previous day. We actually left at 0800, the best our group had done. We had some big climbs today and saw a few really interesting things. Buzzard Rocks at the top of our big climb was really neat. We passed a field with cows and then saw wild ponies. The ponies were quite tame and wanted to lick us for the salt. We made it to the Thomas Knob Shelter near the top of Mt Rogers, the highest point in Virginia. This is the highest shelter on the AT in VA.We set up camp and enjoyed dinner together. After a bit, it was time go to bed. A productive day. We did 22 miles!
Date: 2016-05-26
From: Thomas Knob Shelter

To: Hurricane Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 40 Thomas Knob Shelter to Hurricane Mountain Shelter. We slept in a little bit as it rained in the night. We still departed by 0845. We hiked a short ways and we saw quite a few ponies. There were quite a few little colts and phillies and they were so cute! We petted a few and took pictures for a good half hour. When we walked on, it was very rocky. We eventually saw even more ponies and had to pet them, too. There is one I think my niece would love. It looked like a My Little Pony doll. We went over 500 miles on the trail today. That is a big accomplishment! We are a Little less than a quarter of the way there.As we were only doing 15 miles today, we took a nice lunch break and took a nap for 20 minutes. It was so nice! We still made it to camp by 5:30. I think I got some kind of stomach bug. My appetite has been suppressed and my system is completely cleaned out. I think I am coming out of it, though. I hope so. We are trying to get 18-25 in tomorrow so we all turned in by 9 pm. A solid, fun, day.
Date: 2016-05-27
From: Hurricane Mountain Shelter

To: Dry Camp MM 534
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 41 Hurricane Shelter to Dry Camp MM 534We got going at a usual time trying to make some big miles. It was a beautiful day to hike. We had made 19 miles by 3 and came to the Partnership Shelter. There, we came upon a while passel of hikers who had gone into Marion, VA. They had brought beer back and hijacked my crew. We each wrote a Haiku for the hiker Haiku who I had met in Erwin, TN. After a bit, I was able to pry everyone loose. We filled up with water and headed on to a dry camp. I lugged 14 pounds of water up a good sized hill and we came to a super camp site a couple miles from the shelter. There we stayed. I got a fire going, we ate dinner and we turned in early. A very productive 21 miles considering.
Date: 2016-05-28
From: Dry Camp MM 534

To: Budget Hotel, Atkins, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: mist

We got up early to hike into Atkins and resupply. It was a beautiful morning. We hiked at a pretty good pace as we wanted to eat in town. Just outside of town, we got to an old schoolhouse and received trail magic. There were cold sodas, fruit, and little toothpastes, cleaners, etc. We got to town and there were two gas stations, one restaurant, a Mexican restaurant inside a gas station, and the Budget Hotel. We got a couple of rooms, showered, and went and ate Mexican. It was ok. I was tired and decided to stay the night. Sailor, Gadget, and PeaceFoot decided to hike on. I went to other restaurant for dinner and had a salad and soup for dinner. It was just what I needed. I got a good rest. I needed it! An easy 9 mile day.
Date: 2016-05-29
From: Budget Hotel, Atkins, VA

To: Chestnut Knob Shelter
Miles today: 24.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 43 Atkins, VA to Chestnut Knob Shelter24 milesI got up at 0600 and hopped in the shower. It was so nice to start the day with a shower. I got ready and met Helen out front at 0625. We walked up to the nice gas station, but it was closed, so we had to backtrack to the old gas station as it was open. I bought a sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit, a coffee, and peanut butter cups for breakfast. It was good! The rest of group had told us they were 4 miles up the trail. We caught up to them right on time at 0800. It was sprinkling, but not too heavy so I did not don my rain jacket. We passed through some beautiful fields that were being used to graze cows. Tall alfalfa and Amazing views. I am sure these farms had been in their respective families for generations! We also had a few tough climbs today, but we made it to the shelter by 6pm. I heard there were horses at the shelter and I was not pleased about it. They really chew up the trail. When I arrived, there were a bunch of a amateur drunk riders that were hard on the horses and had thrown beer cans on the ground. I was ticked. They got their picture taken and then I asked them if they were going to pack out their trash. They belatedly said yes. The situation diffused, but I had to step away until they left. On the positive side, our campsite was very pretty and I had a good mountain house meal for dinner. We went back over to the shelter and visited with about 10-15 of our friends before heading to our tents for bed. A super productive day! 24 miles on muddy and challenging terrain.
Date: 2016-05-30
From: Chestnut Knob Shelter

To: Hotel, Bland, VA
Miles today: 22.0

Day 44 Chestnut Knob Shelter to Bland, VAWe got an early start as we were trying to make it all the way to Bland, VA, for some food. PeaceFoot had supplies sent to a hotel, so that was our main impetus to get there.The trail was relatively mild as far as hills and terrain was concerned and the trail was in excellent shape. We were able too knock out our 22 miles by 4:30. From there, everything got a little crazy. There were a ton of hikers trying to hitchhike into town. It took us a half hour, but a nice lady in a suburban picked us up and took us close to our hotel. I ate dinner at Dairy Queen and had a big burger. It was so good. After, I hiked up the hill to the hotel and got a room to share with Philip. For the first time, my left knee really started acting up. I iced it and visited with a group of hikers in front of the gazebo. I think it was a few too many miles in short of a time. Plus I tweaked it when I slipped on some rocks. I did not fall, but it really hurt. I was feeling really tired and a bit grumpy and hit the bed early.
Date: 2016-05-31
From: Hotel, Bland, VA

To: Dude Fest Trent's Grocery
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 45 Bland, VA to Dude Fest at Trent's Grocery I got up at 0615 after sleeping just OK. My knee was bothering me and any movement woke me up. I took a quick shower and walked to Subway with Sam, Philip, and Helen. They had a deal going where you could buy a sandwich and get a breakfast sandwich free. I thought it was a great deal. I took the sandwich for lunch. I then walked over to the Dairy Queen, ate another large Blizzard, and bought a few bars for a snack. We got a shuttle to the trail at 9:00 and we were hiking shortly after. We climbed a big hill and realized there was no more water for the next 10 miles. PeaceFoot and I went and got water for the group from a nearby spring that was a half mile off the trail. Bummer! We were all really excited to get to Dude Fest and fortunately the trail was not too bad. We stopped to get lunch at the next shelter. My sandwich was great!   We were ahead of schedule, so we took a nap for 30 minutes. We hiked the remaining 6.5 miles to Trent's Grocery in a little over two hours. We also went over 600 miles!!! We grabbed some supplies and some beer and were directed to a field out back. There, the Dude and a bunch of fellow hikers were eating burgers and hot dogs. A big fire was lit and we had a great time. I would guess 25-30 hikers camped there for the night. The owner of the place had a beautiful red quarter horse. He pranced around and knew he was a special guy. We had bought some baby carrots at the store and I brought him a couple. I scratched his neck for quite some time. He really liked me and I was the only one he would come visit. We all ate too much and stayed up too late. We had a great time visiting though. We ended up doing 18 miles, which is very respectable.
Date: 2016-06-01
From: Dude Fest Trent's Grocery

To: Great Dismal Falls- Dude Fest Day 2
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 46 Trent's Grocery to Great Dismal Falls Campsite I did not sleep well and woke up early. My horse, Red, was waiting for me and I gave him half a hamburger bun and scratched his neck. I walked over to the fire and visited with some of the campers who were already awake. After a bit, my crew woke up. We put in a load of laundry and walked down to the grocery store to grab a bite. It was packed! I grabbed a carton of cottage cheese, some V8, and ordered a couple of ham and egg biscuits. It took a while for the biscuits to get get ready so we sat and visited. It was fun.Someone said one of the ladies that camped out with us was a nurse and I showed her how swollen my left knee had become. She said it looked like bursitis and I needed to ice it, elevate it, and use compression at the end of the day. Obviously hiking was not good for it. Also stay hydrated and drinking beer was not the best for it. I set out to do all I could to help it and kept it elevated for a while. It helped! At noon it was time to hike to the Great Dismal Falls. This was the continuation of Dude Fest. It was hot and I was a bit gimpy today. When I arrived, quite a few hikers were already there and the falls did look quite nice. We made our way down to the bottom and swam. I soaked my knee in the water and it felt great. Later I took a nap and that really felt nice. A big thunderhead became visible and I told everyone it was going to rain. We headed to a campsite, pitched our tents and climbed in just in time! We waited for the rain to pass and then cooked dinner and went to bed early as we were all tired!We only hiked 3 miles, but my knee, Sam's Ankles, and Helen's shin splints were all thankful.
Date: 2016-06-02
From: Great Dismal Falls- Dude Fest Day 2

To: Wood's Hole Hostel
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: broken clouds

Day 47 Dismal Falls Camp to Woods Hole HostelI got up at 0645 and woke everyone else at 0701. It was a bit foggy, but comfortable. I did not sleep as well as I was trying to keep my swollen leg elevated. So I slept intentionally with my head down hill. It did help the leg as the swelling went down a little. Everything was wet from the rain the previous night. I ate a leisurely breakfast and we all left the camp site at 0900. I hiked at a slow bell as my knee was very stiff. Fortunately, the trail was very smooth for the most part. Helen's back was hurting and Sam's Ankles were bothering her. PeaceFoot and Philip were still going strong.We all met at a shelter for lunch and heard threatening thunder off in the distance. However, it looked like it would miss us. It did for the most part and when we climbed a good hill, it had cleared off for a good view. I listened to the last of my Douglas MacArthur book as I walked. Then another storm cloud passed overhead and the heaven's opened. I saw a flash of light and heard a sharp crack. Lightening had struck a tree just ahead of PeaceFoot, who was just visible ahead. I actually ducked when the lightning hit the tree nearby. Wow! It rained on me really hard for the next 1/2 hour as I made my way to the Wood's Hole Hostel. We had heard it was a nice place to stay and it was really super! It is a sustainable farm and they grow all their own fresh vegetables. I got in out of the rain and changed into dry clothes. My stuff was sopping wet! I ordered fresh bread, butter and cheese for us and we gobbled it down. It was excellent! Between arrival and dinner, we played cribbage and visited with all the hikers stoping by to get out of the rain. Dinner was served at 7:00 pm and it was delicious. Fresh salad and gumbo for dinner followed by homemade ice cream cones. After dinner, I just visited with everyone for a little bit. We did 13 miles. It was all we could do and I was so glad to make it to the hostel!
Date: 2016-06-27
From: Crystal City Marriott

To: Coeur d'Alene, ID 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

So, It has been a bit since I posted. My apologies. It has been a wonderful and difficult 3 weeks all at the same time. The wonderful part was seeing the trail in its beauty, walking with my friends, meeting new friends along the way, and the fun times we had in towns and campsites. The difficult part is that my knee did not get better. It got worse. Every mile hurt. A lot. Almost to the point where for the first time in my life it was not enjoyable to hike. Regardless, I hiked on. I did so out of determination, my love for the trail, and encouragement of the wonderful people on the trail. All of that changed on Friday when my knee just locked up a couple of times and would not loosen up. It made it impossible to walk. I hitched to Luray, VA and went to the doctor. Initial tests showed I have a damaged meniscus in my left knee. Fortunately, this is an easier repair and I am going to get it repaired. Fortunately, the timing was such that my friends and I were scheduled to take a zero and my friend Sharif came and picked me up and took me to a hotel by the airport. As my pass privileges are inactive, my brother was nice enough to get me on a flight to Spokane. There, I plan to get more tests done, get surgery if needed, and get back on the trail as soon as I can. I have been asked how I feel, am I angry, etc? I am sad the injury happened. However, it was not due to carelessness and sometimes things just happen. I am sad I had to leave my friends on the trail. However, the trail community is a small place and I have no doubt that I will see many of them again. Who knows how or when. No goodbyes, just laters. It has been a privilege to walk on the trail for 941 miles. I am thankful for every mile I was able to walk and am always looking for life's nuggets with each mile. I am relieved to get this knee fixed as I have not walked normally or without a limp for 3 weeks. It hurts all the time. I am excited to get back to the spry PB Tater of last month. Finally, as a believer in God, I know he has a plan for me. I do not divine to know his purposes, but I will keep my eyes open as often we learn more in a tough time than we do when times are easy. I will always remember hiking up Jacob's Ladder, Sassafras Mountain, Max Patch or the Grayson Highlands because they were challenges I overcame or were extraordinary places. I cannot remember off the top of my head what happened on the 3rd easier day in a row. I will post some of the writings I have worked on, but did not get a chance to post from the last few weeks. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers!
Date: 2016-05-01
To: The Hike Inn
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: drizzle

The Hike InnI arrived right at 6:00PM which was when I guessed I might arrive. Nancy greets me. It's been about 15 years since I met her when I spent a night and got a shuttle into the smokies. They've been here 24 years. Now they've got satellite TV. Fifteen years ago it was one channel that was extremely fuzzy. It was Nancy who told me about thru hiking and suggested I read Officer Taco's trail journal. She's the one who planted the seed all those years ago that led to me hiking the A.T.She told me that they knew Officer Taco because they had shuttled him and his friend from here to there a couple years before I met Nancy and Jeff. After reading Officer Taco's trail journal I decided to hike the AT when I retired. All these years later she's helping get me started on my next to last section and hopefully I'll finish it all later this year.
Date: 2016-05-02
From: The Hike Inn

To: Tray Mountain Shelter 
Miles today: 5.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Start 11:20End 3:00Best Part - Relaxing watching the rainBiggest Complaint - Out of shape againOf course the first 1.4 miles are uphill. What would you expect. And yes I had to stop and rest a lot going uphill today. What would you expect. Being out of shape and having to get back in shape is the worst part of section hiking. I know how it works. I just want to skip this part.My first three days are relatively easy but that's followed by three twelve mile days. At this time I'm a little concerned about three twelve mile days but by the time I get there it will probably be no big deal. The weather was OK today but I can see that being hotter than desirable at times may be an issue on this hike.I was relaxing in the shelter when it finally rained. We have six in the shelter and five or so in tents. Several in the shelter are hiking together. It takes me awhile to get into the mood but meeting lots of new people is enjoyable. This year I'm meeting a lot of section hikers. A lot of people are drying out their stuff. It looks like by hurting my back and delaying my hike for four days it kept me from getting soaked. Another strategic injury to help keep me dry.
Date: 2016-05-03
From: Tray Mountain Shelter 

To: Deep Gap shelter
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: light rain

Start 8:40End 1:00Best part - Nice weather, short dayBiggest complaint - None reallyI went ahead and had my normal breakfast. I first I thought it might be too much but it was OK. Three packages of oatmeal, a package of pop tarts and a carnation instant breakfast. You need energy to climb those hills. The weather was cooler which was good. I got to the shelter by 1:00 PMFor about twenty-five minutes I was by myself. The shelter had two levels. Floor level was room for 8-10. Above were two spots, left and right, each had room for one or a tight two. I decided to take the upper left. It's a bit of a hassle but you do have some degree of privacy.There's two couples in the lower level and Lucy has rigged up her hammock and hammock tent. A lot of stakes but a nice setup. Lucy is from east texas. Another couple has a tent and there's one more tent whose occupants I haven't seen yet. Eight in tents, six in the shelter. There was a folding chair with a back at the shelter. Some kind person hiked this chair to the shelter. Since you never have a place to sit with your back supported on the A.T. it's nice to have a chair to sit in.With an easy day tomorrow I think I'll be ready for three twelve mile days. We'll find out.
Date: 2016-05-04
From: Deep Gap shelter

To: Top of Georgia Hostel
Miles today: 3.6
Weather: light rain

Start 9:14End 11:00Best part - Really nice hostelBiggest complaint - Everyone is youngIf you went hiking for fifty years how many Trilliums would you need to see a year so you would end up seeing a trillion trilliums? These are the kind of things that come to mind when you hike in the woods by yourself. The answer is "I don't care". Another beautiful day. It was very windy this morning and I considered wearing my jacket but by the time I got to the top of the mountain where I had decided to stop and take my pack off to put my jacket on I had warmed up enough so I didn't bother.It's only 3.6 miles to the hostel. When I got to the road a lady volunteered to take me to 'Top of Georgia' hostel which is 0.5 miles from the trail head. Free coffee. At the hostel ice cream was either a 'nutty buddy' or an ice cream sandwich. I was able to buy individual oatmeal packets and poptarts. I decided to take an extra day to get to my next resupply so I had to add a days worth of food to what I had planned. I already had an extra dinner and lunch so I only needed to add one extra breakfast and a couple snacks. The first two twelve mile days will now be three days; 9, 7.7 and 7.6 miles.We get a free breakfast here. That will be tomorrow morning from 7:00 A.M. till 8:00 A.M. The hikers I've met so far are almost all younger. The crowd in the hostel are playing cards and since there all in their twenties I don't feel much like joining in. Ben and Barb, aka Pokeman and Poky are 69 and 65. It's getting so I don't meet many hikers older than me. That's what happens when you keep getting older.
Date: 2016-05-05
From: Top of Georgia Hostel

To: Bly Gap
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: light rain

Start 8:11End 12:45Best part - Getting tent up before rainBiggest complaint - Windy gapWhen I arrived at Top of Georgia hostel yesterday my pack weighed 26 pounds. When I left this morning with 4 1/2 days of food my pack weighed 35 pounds. I have improved in pack weight over the years. Forgetting things helps. This year I forgot my poison ivy medicine and my watch. There has been a lot of poison ivy by the trail but as usual I haven't gotten it this year. I like to have a watch so I don't use my phone to check the time all the time and use up my phone battery. Actually not having a watch makes me check the time less which makes the time go faster. I also forgot bacon bits but Fritos fills in as an alternative additive for Raman or mashed potatoes. Today I leap frogged several times with two girls and their dog. They leaped frog one last time and then hiked on while I stayed at Bly gap. Bly gap was very windy, so windy I considered not staying but I made my plan so I stayed with it. It was a bad decision. The wind just made it uncomfortable. I found a lot of firewood at the next campsite and started a fire but it started to rain so I got back in my tent. I heard someone putting up tents while I was safely dry in my tent. I got out later and they were in their tents. I got the fire going again and when they got out I invited them to enjoy the fire. They ended up cooking by the fire while I decided I'd rather eat summer sausage sandwiches. I went in my tent to eat inside out of the cold while they finished their meals outside.
Date: 2016-05-06
From: Bly Gap

To: Standing Indian shelter
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: broken clouds

Start 9:37End 2:35Best part - Being in the Standing Indian areaBiggest complaint - The climb out of Bly gapAfter a good breakfast and a long sleep in out of the cold I started the days hike. The trail out of Bly gap is steep and long. A hard way to start the day. Uphill is still quite an issue. I'm getting better but it's still quite a chore.Standing Indian is an area I'm familiar with so hiking through here is kinda neat. This overall section of trail has not been that tough but it does have a lot of up and down. The amount of rocks in the trail has been at a minimum but that's starting to change. Other than the ups and downs it's a lot easier than hiking in Maine. It's also pretty remote. You don't cross roads very often. Hearing a car in the distance signally a road crossing hasn't happened very often.My boots are falling apart. The part of my boot near my little toe on my left foot is coming apart. I'm using duct tape to try to keep it together but I'm running out of duct tape. I think I'm going to have to have my wife send my other boots to one of my stops to be able to make it to Fontana Dam, my final destination.