morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-05-05
From: 3.6 miles away from William Penn Shelter

To: Hamburg, PA
Miles today: 32.0

Today was going to be a big day. LittleDebbie, Bird, and I made a plan to try and get to Port Clinton/Hamburg today. It would require quite a long day, but we were willing to try. The databook detailed the segment with the distance of 32 miles. Normally, 32 miles wouldn't be too bad, but the rockiness of the trail would surely slow us down.Morning came and we quickly started packing up. Our target departure was for 6:30. The temperature was mild and, before long, we were on our way.The weather forecast had called for rain and thunderstorms starting at noon. We were determined to minimize our exposure to it as much as possible. The first mile of the trail was familiar as we had hiked I last night. It was getting dark and it was a complete Boulder field. LittleDebbie and I thought that we had overshot the potential camp spot and retraced our steps. I would turn out that we had been just shy of our target and had missed it by only 0.1 miles.The route remained primarily rocky and rough for the day. Luckily, the ascents and descents were less. The weather started off mild and clear. We hiked with purpose and made good ground.The forest is continuing to fill in. More and more ferns were shooting up through the dead leaf matter. Mayapples provided a much-needed green blanket to the forest floor.Along the way, we were stopped by a loud, rattling sound. LittleDebbie was obviously startled since he was in front. It turned out to be an endangered Timber Rattlesnake!!It was beautiful with its bold, unique markings. It stopped rattling and then restarted. A guy eagerly rushed up and wanted to check out the snake. I had been trying to film it, but stepped back for him.He started filming and got way too close. He kept waving his hand to get the snake to start rattling again. It made us all nervous and afterward, we all agreed that he was acting very irresponsibly. He fortunately did not get bit, but not because he didn't deserve it.During the day, we stayed diligent at making miles. At water sources, we did stop and take shorter breaks to give us time to hydrate. The day got hotter and more humid.I began getting chaffing worse and worse. The salt build-up and the friction made things bad. My feet also were being worked over due to the sharp and unlevel rocks. This day was taking a toll.While we were walking along a ridge, we heard the familiar sound of artillery fire could still be heard in the distance. I was so curious to know more about it.The shadows grew longer and I could tell that daylight was running short. It was difficult, but all three of us made it to the river which we would follow to town. We continued on the walk until we had to don on our headlamps to finish our last bit which was a sketchy roadwalk along a highway.We got into town just before Taco Bell closed. We had a Cinco de Mayo celebration with a gratuitous amount of tacos. It was great!! We were all exhausted and very excited to be in town!!
Date: 2015-05-06
From: Hamburg, PA

To: Hamburg, PA
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day today!!!! It was great!! The gang (LittleDebbie, Bird, and Deadline) was all in the same page. We all wanted to go tour the Yuelingling Brewery.The first step--find someone (or a service) to drive us to Pottsville. We called every number known to man. There wasn't anybody who could/would drive us over there. Finally, Bird found a shuttle service and ordered up a ride!Since we split the cost four ways, the ride was quite cheap. The driver was a very kind retiree who told is about the town and area. Soon, we drove up a big hill in Pottsville (which reminds me of the Pottersville in Its a Wonderful Life) and dropped us off at the brewery. The building was the beer makers second one. The first, built in 1829, burned down shortly thereafter. This was the second building and it was built in 1831. Across the street, the brewery's ice cream facility stood. Coincidentally, the ice cream facility went up right after the Feds sealed off the company's cold storage at the beer facility. Hmmm. The tour started in the employee break room, which looked just like a bar! It was cool with its wood trim, photos of history, and trinkets from the past. In fact, one section recounted the history of one of the Yuelingling's sons who flew bombing missions in WWII. I kept reading his daily flight journal.The rest of the tour was just as great. The tour guide was funny and the building (with its contents) really painted a picture of "back-in-the-day". Copper, stained glass, antique gauges, and old school equipment really was amazing. Even more amazing were the free "two" samples. Weird, because my glass was filled at least 5 or so times!!This would make the ride back a little nerve-wracking. Anytime you take a long distance hiker out of the woods and deny him bathroom access for pee breaks is scary. Luckily, we didn't hit traffic on the way home and all was ok.We longed for a bit back at the hotel. I had the misfortune of trying to eat an old taco from Taco Bell. Big mistake. So, we all went to Cabelas to look at the animals and gear.That is when it hit me. The food poisoning. Ohhh, it was bad. I puked and puked and puked some more. There went my energy and my hydration. It was rough. Another lesson learned. I am not a kid in college anymore who can eat anything!They guys were super supportive and I couldn't have appreciated it more. I couldn't stress to them enough that I only had food poisoning, not the flu or norovirus or anything bad.We stayed up late watching hilarious reruns of The Office, Seinfeld, and Impractical Jokers. It was especially great because we had been quoting those shows for days on the trail!Tomorrow, we walk on! I hope I have enough energy and can keep up!!'
Date: 2015-05-07
From: Hamburg, PA

To: Allentown Shelter
Miles today: 22.0

I was awakened this morning by a rap on the door. I went to answer it. It was Deadline and he wanted to tell us that he arranged a ride back to the trail for us. Great news!! Especially since the road walk back to the trail was along a highway.At 7:45am, we met up with Diesel (another hiker from Tennessee who has a friend on the trail) and headed up to the trail in his car. Did I mention that he has a BMW convertible??? Nice, right!? Bird, LittleDebbie, Deadline, and I rejoined the trail as it passed under the highway. There were cool murals about the AT painted on the bridge's supports.The day was so muggy. I sweated out so much water. The climb up to the ridge line was a real effort, especially because I didn't eat since yesterday morning. I felt gassed.Luckily, there were only a few climbs today. This first one was about 1,100 feet up. After gaining the ridge, the trail alternated in-between a nice path and rock gardens (this name makes them sound much better then it is) a.k.a boulder fields.As we walked along, we were stopped by the ominous sound of a rattle. It was another large, endangered Timber Rattler! It was quite active, and most interestingly, completely silent while moving on the leaf litter.The next snake we saw was a checkerboard gardener snake. That wasn't the interesting part. The snake had just caught a newt and began to eat it. The newt resisted, but the snake consumed him.As we walked on, we were treated to some nice views from some rocky outcroppings. Wonderful views of the lush valley below were expansive from the rocks. The leaves on the trees were beginning to fill in, finally providing some shade. The trail continued to have some rough areas, but overall it was a nice hike and very nice weather.Eventually, this day got late and the sun faded. This made the trail's rock jumping more difficult. More difficult usually equals slower speeds. We all pressed on. After much effort, Allentown shelter could finally been seen just off trail.I walked over and started looking for a pad for my tarp. It was now dark, but we were in good spirits. Before you know it, three stoves could be heard quickly boiling water for noodles and other dinners.Once we had all finished eating and retired, I sat up writing. As I sat, several large sounds came from what sounded like a bear. It came from the direction of the spring, which seems to make sense to me. I guess the bear didn't get the memo that I always hang my food!
Date: 2015-05-08
From: Allentown Shelter

To: Little Gap
Miles today: 22.0

It was a nice morning again. Comfortable temperatures made the arriving sun welcome. That and the familiar bird calls encouraged me to start my day. I did so and packed up. Today was a dry day. The waterless stretches were an effort with the additional weight of water in our packs. In fact, at the end of the day, we all carried 5 liters while doing rock scrambling. It wasn't just dry... And hot. It was HUMID! I would find out much later that this was a record temperature today. We knew it would be sticky when Deadline and I got up to an outlook this morning and saw the thick blanket of haze.In the late morning, Deadline and I took a break so that LittleDebbie and Bird could catch up. During the break, I saw a pileated woodpecker! It was also funny as we were stopped at a trailhead. Deadline is a spitting image of Daniel Day Louis. A bunch of young girls walked up ad stopped in their tracks. They definitely thought we were stranger danger. It was pretty funny. Then, we chatted with their chaperone and they walked by.Deadline joked that it was like when the impalas come up to the water edge, and then see an alligator. Then, they all bunch up and wait for one unlucky one to try. The other guys caught up and we went to the knob. It was another rocky feature that had expansive views. There was a lot of spray painted rocks and trees. It was sad.We then met John Becker (takingoutthetrashineasternpa.blogspot.com). John is doing an incredible service with cleaning up this once-beautiful rocky outlook. He had already removed lots and lots of trash and was here today to do it again. It is all volunteer work and I don't think enough folks know how much time john has invested.For periods of time, the trail stayed mellow and pretty flat. Other times, it turned into boulder hopping. Still others, those smaller rocks that are loose and moving. There was a nice knife edge that we walked...or should I say hopped.The most interesting section to me today was the climb up from the Lehigh River. The path gets steep and then required scrambling. I was surprised to see this type of climb right here.Unfortunately, the top of the mountain is heavily polluted and is a superfund site. The views were nice of a town below. Along the path, I was surprised to find Bleeding Hearts (a flower) blooming. As we were running out of daylight, there was a nice campspot in some pines near the top of the mountain. Despite having planned for another 2.2 miles, it looked like a nice camp and we took it! We all got set up and were happy to not had to set up our tents in the dark. As we cooked dinner, a guy with a dog walked by and said hello. We started to talk to him and realized it was John Becker, the volunteer clean-up guy! He said that earlier today when he was cleaning up trash, he ran out of water. That made him think of us and this waterless stretch. (How selfless is this guy that he runs out of water and worries about others?). He wanted to bring us water!! We accepted and john said he would cache the water down at the road for us. We will be able to grab it first thing in the morning.
Date: 2015-05-10
From: Mile 1282 (past Wind Gap)

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 12.0

The start of the day today was extremely humid. The moisture felt like it was ready to drip out of the sky. As it did.... Intermittent sprinkling throughout the day created more hazards.Normally, the sprinkling could be refreshing, however, the local terrain is not very compatible with wetness. The jagged rocks and boulder's surfaces are extremely slippery with any amount of precipitation.This morning, I was hiking quickly as I was headed to the Delaware Water Gap to resupply and see Brian. It took extra care to maintain my speed going through Wolf Rocks. It was visually interesting, but so, so slippery. Wolf Rocks is a section of fin of rock slabs upheaved at a 30-40 degree angle that the trail crosses. Following Wolf Rocks, the trail became progressively more and more busy. This was a good sign that I was getting closer. The tread became kinder in its climbs and quality. That was always indicative of being nearby civilization.I met a few folks who were out enjoying this Mothers Day Sunday morning. (By the way, Happy Mothers Day, Mom!!!). One fellow hiker was named Shark. He was training for an upcoming hike. We chatted about gear and the trail and then moved along.One of my favorite things today were the dozens of newts that were out today due to the wet weather. They are very friendly and colorful. I do worry about them getting stepped on and spend some time moving them off of the trail.The path finally descended into Port Clinton. It looked like a neat little town with its large turn-of-the-century buildings. Lots of folks were out and about today. I went straight through to the bridge crossing. The bridge was so noisy and stressful with highway-speed cars flying by next to me. The great part of the bridge was a painting on the sidewalk in the middle.. It was the Pennsylvania - New Jersey border!! I had finished another state!!! That felt great!!!I followed the trail along a road walk to a trailhead on the opposite side of the river. When I got to the parking lot, Brian was there waiting for me. He had sodas and beer!!! We drove back to his house and hung out. Brian cooked burgers out on the grill. I went through my gear and re packed my resupply. It was so great to get a new pair of shoes!! My current pair are beat!!!
Date: 2015-05-13
From: Murray Property

To: Wawayanda Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: broken clouds

The birds came alive once again right on time. It was 5:30 and the beginning of dawn. I slowly came to life, knowing that I had plenty of time to get ready. I popped out of my tarp and was greeted with the sight of the perfect little farm that we stayed at last night. It is so cool of that previous thru hiker to have lent this property to hikers.The morning was perfectly cool. Almost cold, but not quite. It was delightful! It was amazing... It was finally relief from the oppressive heat and humidity. ScubaB, Deadline, and I walked on.What about LittleDebbie, you ask?? The poor guy. He lost his wallet.... somewhere. So, he decided to go to town and try to call the tavern we hit yesterday in hopes that they have it. Fingers crossed!The trail began as a level route that headed through some swamp and wetland areas. There was lots of elevated path via boardwalk, which was much appreciated. I imagine this section could be nasty if the heat & humidity were here, not to mention if there was no wind (to keep the bugs as bay).It was great having ScubaB along for this section. We walked with purpose and made good time. There were blooming Marsh Marigolds, Honeysuckle, False Solomon Seal, and others. There were also a variety of birds, including Red-Winged Black Birds. We hiked until lunch when we passed a country road. Just 0.1 miles down the road was a farm market with all kinds of good stuff. We are, relaxed, and enjoyed the wonderful weather. It was fun.All too fast, it was time to head back to the trail. There were a few steep and rocky climbs. The type of climbs that turn into exaggerated, tall rock steps that kick your butt. With the pleasant weather, the task wasn't nearly as taxing.Eventually, we made it to the shelter. When we got there, a large guy was already there. The man was blaring DMX really, really loud. My first observation- his 18" (or bigger) survival knife. My second-- the wicked-looking pitch fork / double headed spear. Hmmm, little odd. Later in the evening, we heard a "Hey, hey!".It was LittleDebbie returning with his wallet!! Woohoo!! Nice job, LittleDebbie!!!! He found the wallet at the tavern. It was so cool that he got back. Then, I remembered earlier when Deadline predicted that he would show up at 8pm. He was only 15 minutes off!!We asked a ton of questions and LIttleDebbie told the whole story of where he went and who helped him to get back to his wallet. Quickly, we started getting tired and headed back to our shelters. The day was done. Time for sleep!
Date: 2015-05-14
From: Wawayanda Shelter

To: Mombasha High Point
Miles today: 19.0

The forest began to wake up at 530 this morning. The bright call of the birds coincided with the brightening sky. Our tents were all nestled deep in the woods, but some rays of light narrowly passed through the canopy.It was cold this morning. Not an uncomfortable cold, but rather a cosy, crisp cold. The kind you stay hidden in your sleeping bag for a few extra moments. It was so enjoyable, especially after the earlier heat and humidity.Scuba and I left camp a little before Deadline and LittleDebbie. It would afford Scuba a more relaxed pace. The morning was just about ideal. The temperature, the path quality, and possibility of a hot dog stand along the way made for an extra chipper mood.Scuba and I hiked along a series of rock ridges. I thought they were quite fun. The rocks were worn by glaciers and were a great combination of size and route. At one point, there was even a ladder cabled into place as there were no good holds to climb.Along that ridge was Prospector Mt, which had a flag pole and an American flag flying. It was around there that Scuba pointed out that we could actually see the New York City skyline! It was my first time seeing it in-person. Right after that, I passed some painting on the rocks that designated the New Jersey/New York state line!A new state!!! It was hard to believe that I was beginning New York already! The trail went off the ridge line and back into the woods. The route stayed kind to our feet and eventually wound its way to another road crossing.Ah, but this wasn't just another road crossing....this one had a hot dog stand that was 0.1 miles west. We went up and found LittleDebbie and Dealine finishing off their first round of 2-footlongs. The stand also has chili and sour kraut for fixin's. After our killer lunch break, we happily returned to the trail. It remained mostly level and only required a few climbs. Often times, the forest switched into an aromatic delight when the trees became mostly coniferous.The weather stayed ideal. We walked along and saw several animals. Deer, turkey, and even a porcupine were to be seen today. The porcupine rooted near camp for quite a while at dusk. They are quite comical, to say the least.LittleDebbie decided to go ahead and try to gain some ground on us. He's going back to his alma madder for graduation and is taking off a few days. If he gains ground on us now, it will be easier for him to catch back up afterward.Deadline, Scuba, and I got our camp water and headed up our last climbs. The trail passed by a nice waterfall (which I was told by a dayhiker that it was dry... That is why we all filled up our heavy water and lugged it up the hill, instead of getting the water at the waterfall... I am not sure why I keep listening to them!) and headed up the last rock outcropping.A short time later, we found a decent camp-spot that could fit us. We quickly set up camp amongst the gnats and mosquitoes. Soon, dinner could be smelled with us all cooking our simple, but well-earned dinners.It wasn't too long before everyone retired to their shelters. A nice day, indeed!!!
Date: 2015-05-15
From: Mombasha High Point

To: Above Bear Mountain Bridge
Miles today: 23.0

As the morning's light began to shine, Deadline, Scuba, and I awoke at about the same time. It was 530 and the morning air's temperature was about perfect. It was high 40's and low humidity. Scuba started having some knee pain at the end of the day (yesterday) and decided to get picked up by Kristen today. It was a bummer, but then again, pain is no fun.We hiked together and soon encountered a few healthy climbs. The large, glaciated boulder formations were cool. It made hiking strenuous at times, but was really worth it.The geology of the area was some of my favorite for the trail. It was really picturesque with its granite boulders, pine and beech trees, and the rolling topography.We walked a short while until we came upon a prominent road. This was Scuba's exit point. It would be a few hours until he was picked up, but he encouraged us to hike on. We said goodbye and headed out. Today was another fairly dry day. A lot of the water sources were dried up. It was a nuisance, but not a problem. One aspect is that you are harder on your water filter due to the lower water quality...One of the more interesting rock formations today was called the Lemon Squeezer. It was a fissure in a boulder at a slight angle that progressively got narrower and narrower, while it continued off camber. It was a funny and awkward spot that would have been trouble for a hefty person or a large pack.Deadline and I went passed a bunch of cool vistas. As we proceeded, dayhikers started appearing more and more. Many of these folks were New Yorkers... We were so close to NYC, that we could see it!Deadline and I didn't linger long and began the descent of Bear Mountain. Being such a popular lodge, the trail portion going to the Bear Mountain Inn were incredible! Granite rocks cut into coarse steps made for an easy walk.At the bottom, a massive lodge complex was spread out. It has everything, even a carousel. Deadline and I found the inn's bar and got a burger and beer. It was just what the doctor ordered! Too quickly, it was gone and we hiked on.From the lodge, the trail passes through a zoo. Very cool, right?! Yea, except it closes at 430pm. We took the "closed" trail around it. That led to the Hudson River.The trail crossed on a beautiful suspension bridge. It was fun to walk, but it was also getting dark quickly.Following the path, Deadlinw and I left the road and began a climb up a fairly steep slope. The darkness helped us decide that it was time to camp. Prospects looked grim and we made the decision... We camped right on trail.