morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-07
To: Stoked!
Miles today: 0.0

Everything is coming together! The wind is at my back! Incredibly, my leave of absence request was granted, so I will have a job to return to from the trail. And it turns out to be work that I enjoy, as it satisfies my desire to make a difference for people in need. The puzzle of finding right livelihood while earning an adequate income off the trail befuddled me last year on the trail. This year I can just relax and enjoy the hike. Not that I did much worrying then, but there will be fewer problems to think about.Lowering my living expenses has been harder. Admittedly I have not made any sacrifices, but there has been some progress. I freed my computer and credit card from "aol" without losing features. Hotmail demands some adjustment, but I am finally learning how to navigate in it. I am waiting for equity loan approval so I can pay off credit cards. I await documentation from my son's college to obtain a "good student" discount on car insurance. I trimmed my cable bill by cutting off channels I never watched anyway. My wife and I tried to install a wireless network so we could cut out one phone line, but the modem would not work on my old computer. She is keeping the wireless modem anyway so she can move around the house with her laptop. I still need to suspend my cell phone service. I have been very frugal and just staying home: no movies, restaurants, etc.My pack is packed. This year I will debut as a lightweight backpacker. I cut off all the unecessary straps on my Mountainsmith Auspex and retired the top compartment, thus reducing its weight to about 3 lbs. My base pack weight is now 16 lbs. (base pack weight = total pack weight minus food, fuel and water). I should be carrying no more than 30 lbs. with 10 lbs. of food, 12 ounces of fuel and 46 ounces of water. The same pack feels much lighter than last year when I hauled 35 to 40 lbs. in it. I will have the same equipment but with less clothing, less water, and only a summer bag. My tent is a Henry Shires Tarptent. I will take the same 3/4 length Thermarest and Pocketmail. The only items I have purchased are a 6x8 silnylon tarp, 100 ft. of nylon rope, two silnylon stuff bags, an AquaMira water filter bottle and a digital camera, replacing my heavier 35 mm film camera. No maps this time, just Wingfoot's book from last year. No trousers, poncho or rainsuit except for the Frogg Toggs, and no coat, just a pullover fleece. A less-fearful hiker is a less-gearful hiker. Not to worry, I expect I will be adequately prepared for the weather in NY, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont in June. I plan to hike from Bear Mt. to Killington, a distance of 300 miles. I'm stoked and almost ready to go!
Date: 2005-05-29
To: Departure Day
Miles today: 0.0

In a few hours I set off for the trail: an hour and half drive to Jacksonville with my sweet wife, followed by a 17-hour redeye jostling on Amtrak to Grand Central Station, then a short walk on the streets of NYC to the Port Authority, and finally a bus ride up the Hudson River to Ft. Montgomery. There I will walk to the Bear Mt. Bridge Motel, where last year I agonized for two days over whether to stay on the trail or get off. It feels very strange to be revisiting that motel room. I wonder if I will have the same feelings of uncertainty and loneliness. I am not at all excited about going this year. I am aware of the hardships that may lie ahead, and it is so true that ignorance is bliss. I do long for the solitude and peacefulness of trail life and I recall fondly the chance meetings with other hikers last year. I will be ahead of the pack of thruhikers, but I expect I will find a few speedy ones like 2004's Boo's Goose, Endorphin, Double Nickels, Pickle and Peanut. I would love to have 60 days instead of 30 so I could hike with them all the way to Katahdin. I will sorely miss my son at first, but he will join me somehere near the Mass/VT line if all goes well. I want to make it to Killington, VT - God willing. That will be 300 miles in about 25 days, an average 12 miles per day. My pack is lighter (32 lbs) and I will wear trail running shoes I just purchased instead of boots. I will pitch a tarp or a tent. I am not going to sleep in shelters this year, but will camp nearby. I know that an adventure lies ahead. I hope that I can be open to it. I am carrying pocketmail to update my journal as I go. Please sign my guestbook as I will love reading your entries.
Date: 2005-05-30
To: Bear Mt. Bridge Motel
Miles today: 0.0

Amtrak does not run on time, but who cares. It's better than shoehorning yourself into an airplane seat and being cowed by invasive security inspectors. If you want to feel how it was before 9/11, take a train. It is just a bunch of blue collar folks and retirees hanging out in a very relaxed atmosphere. No guards or gates anywhere. And these passengers are not worried about terrorism. They talk about the rising cost of gas, housing and health care. The seats are roomy and comfortable. And if you feel cramped, just walk down the aisle to the diner car, sit at a table and get acquainted with your neighbors over a cup of coffee. Sure it is a long ride and there may be unscheduled stops making it longer, but just relax and enjoy the ride. A night train gives the bonus of a beautiful sunrise. Mine was a plowed field of clouds all lit up in creamsicle orange. Although the train came into Penn Station three hours late, I had plenty of time to walk eight blocks to the Port Authority and make my bus connection to Ft. Montgomery. I was let off at the doorstep of the Bear Mt. Bridge Motel and my room was open, the same one I occupied last year. All the restaurants were closed due to the Memorial Day holiday, so I contented myself with snacks from the nearby gas station/convenience store. I had only one small problem to solve before heading for the trail in the morning. The nose piece of my glasses had broken off due to a sheared screw while I slept on the train. I wrapped duct tape around the post, but it was rubbing against my skin. There were no opticians in the area, so I used hiker ingenuity and a bit of twist tie wire stripped of plastic as a replacement for the screw. I had kept the nosepiece. That works fine, but I also have an unclaimed pair of glasses given to me by the motel owner to use for spare parts. I slept soundly that night and woke up refreshed and ready for Day 1 on the trail.
Date: 2005-05-31
From: Bear Mt. Bridge Motel

To: Dennytown Group Camp Area
Miles today: 15.3

Trail Day 1 - Thrilled AgainDate 5/31/05Starting Location: Bear Mt. Bridge Motel Destination: Dennytown Group Campdaily miles 15.3 on ATThe thrill has returned! I would be reunited with the AT. I walked across the street for a delicious bagel, ham & egg sandwich, and a rich cup of coffee. At 8 am I was deposited at the entrance to the Bear Mt. Lodge. The sun shone brilliantly as I crossed the bridge. I expected a steep climb from the road, but the route from Bear Mt. to the Friary, seven miles away, was a walk in the woods on old roads and trails. I met a Japanese lady out walking her two dogs. She gave me directions over the bald as the trail was not well blazed, and I hurried on to the Friary. At a view overlooking the Hudson, I met two photographers on a day hike. They laughed that the first shot of me on the trail would be taken by a professional. At the Friary there were blue blazes on rocks to guide me to the ballpark where hikers are allowed to pitch tents. In July and August the Friars feed hikers dinner in the monastery. There was not a soul about today, so I prepared a leisurely lunch and rested during the heat of the day. I did not leave until 3 pm. It would be only 8 miles to the Dennytown Road Group Camp, so I thought I could get there by 7 pm. A big mistake! The trail was still poorly blazed and it took five hours to hike the 8 miles. It was a nasty little section with ridge climbs around rocks followed by drops into narrow gorges. I lost the trail several times and had to double back repeatedly searching for a blaze to find it again. On top of that, Wingfoot's mileages were seriously out of order so I was not sure where I was. When it started to rain and get dark, I looked for a place to pitch a tent but there were no clear or level spaces. I pressed on unsure of whether the road I sought was still ahead of me or already passed. Fortunately, I broke out onto the road and there was a perfect rainbow greeting me. There also was a water tap and a grassy field to pitch my tent. I was so tired I did not try to cook. I gobbled down some Gorp and crawled inside hoping for a better day tomorrow.
Date: 2005-06-01
From: Dennytown Group Camp Area

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: clear sky

Trail Day 2 - A Walk in the ParkDate 6/01/05Starting Location: Dennytown Group Camp Destination: RPH Shelterdaily miles 10.7 on ATA flock of cranes clucked me awake as they circled over my pasture. Possibly they were discussing who should lead or what direction to go in or how far before stopping for a break. Who knows? I never saw them for they were gone before I poked my head out. I did see a second flock veeing their way north, perhaps to Canada. I heard two more flocks flying near Canopus Lake. I walked through the next pasture on the way to get water and found Daddio and Orphan camped there. I met them initially at the motel when I got off the bus. They are a father & son duo who have been hiking together since Georgia. Daddio had become sick twice and had to leave for medical tests but was now rejoining his son. They are both diabetic and take insulin injections daily. Despite this, they are strong hikers and I cannot keep up their pace. I would catch up with them periodically over the next two days. Daddio is my age and he climbed mountains in the Olympic Peninsula and the Cascades as a young man but stopped hiking while raising a family. Orphan says when Daddio started hiking again a few years back he "just went crazy". The trail crested a hill to a pretty stream with a waterfall. The walk was easy almost the entire day. After it crossed a highway, it climbed a ridge bordering Canopus Lake, a finger-shaped gem in the woods. This was a delightful walk in a park-like setting. It reminded me a lot of the trail in Georgia. I arrived at RPH Shelter early in the afternoon: time enough to dry out my tent from last night's condensation and set it up. I prefer sleeping in the tent to a shelter because I can hear the birds singing and can see the light earlier in the morning. And there is no risk of being kept awake by snorers. I brought a tarp along to try out that style of shelter, but I have been prevented so far by the threat of mosquitoes, gnats and maybe ticks. I have a headnet but don't like the idea of sleeping in it. There are signs everywhere warning against ticks bearing Lyme Disease, but I have not seen any. I wore long nylon pants the first two days but did not want to due to the sweating underneath. I put them away after Daddio told me he had been hiking in New England for years and only once found a tick. He said just put petroleum jelly on it and it will pull out. I am now much more comfortable hiking in shorts. I spray DEET on my legs for insurance.
Date: 2005-06-02
From: RPH Shelter

To: Telephone Pioneers Shelter
Miles today: 16.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Trail Day 3 - Adjusting to the trailDate 6/02/05Starting Location: RPH Shelter Destination: Telephone Pioneers Shelter daily miles 16.6 on ATA long day today. I did not get tothe shelter until 7 pm and I was footsore and beat. The terrain was not all that difficult. There was a climb of 700 ft. in the morning, but that gradually rose over a distance of 4 miles. That was followed by a short road walk to a Deli for lunch.In the afternoon there were two more climbs and descents of about 500 ft. These were not terribly steep either. I think I am just not used to all the walking yet. Twelve miles is okay, more than that and I start to tire. My leg muscles are sore and my feet are blistery and red on the bottom. I think I just need to toughen them up. It would help if I had some Liquid Bandaid but I didn't think to buy it. Last year that product saved my feet from blistering and popping in Georgia. I will look for some in Kent, CN where there is an outfitter. The other problem with tiredness will just require time and good nutrition to resolve. I am taking vitamins and eating fruit. Vegetables are hard to find.The walk today was not real scenic: there were too many road crossings. The Taconic Parkway was in sight much of the day. The last bit was close to Nuclear Lake, but it did not look very inviting. This lake was cleaned up and tested after a nuclear processing facility on it was closed down. The water is supposed to be safe, and I was so hot and sweaty I would have jumped in, but there were no beaches except maybe one place that I did not get close to because there were geese occupying the shore and I did not want to disturb them.The shelter filled up that night with a crew of 3 young thruhikers coming back onto the trail after taking days off. They poled vigorously into camp like bulls with nostrils flaring. The next day they passed me, now five of them, in single file like the cars of a train chugging down the tracks. They are obviously into the physical challenge of hiking. Not my reason for being out here. I'll just take my time, shoot some photos, listen to the musicality of the birdsongs, and exchange greetings with the occasional hiker who is inclined to chat. I have met several section hikers like that going south and it has been a real pleasure meeting them.
Date: 2005-06-03
From: Telephone Pioneers Shelter

To: Wingdale, NY
Miles today: 10.2

Trail Day 4 - Perfect BreakDate 6/03/05Starting Location: Telephone Pioneers ShelterDestination: Wingdale, NY daily miles 10.2 on ATDaddio and Orphan left early in the morning for a long 21 mile hike to Kent where they planned to stay at an expensive B & B. The only places to stay in Kent are expensive B & B's. My plan was to go 13 miles to the Ten Mile River Lean-to. {Starting with CT going north, shelters are called lean-to's) The young bucks in the shelter were still snug in their bags. I said goodby to Daddio and Orphan as I would not likely see them again.The trail crossed boggy areas with plank walkways like in Maine. Thank goodness for the trail volunteers who laid them. I reached the Appalachian Trail Train Station, a platform with no other destination than the AT. I climbed a series of 3 ladders over wire fences enclosing pasture before entering the Pawling Nature Preserve. This is a deep forest area criss-crossed by trails and streams.At Wiley Shelter I ate lunch and made a new plan. The Handbook showed a town with a motel 3.3 miles down the next road crossing, too far to roadwalk but a reasonable hitch.Hitching is not supposed to be easy in the Northern states but I decided to give it a shot. I felt grimey and greasy after 4 days in the woods and was ready for a shower. I stood on the road with my pack and "Hiker to Trail" sign for half an hour while two cars passed me by. It was a lonely country road. I started walking hoping to find a more populated area. I was picked after about a mile by Norman, who was taking his son to work. After dropping him off, Norman turned around and took me to the motel. It turns out I was walking in the wrong direction for the motel, but the right one to get a ride.Norman is an IT Auditor. He helps healthcare companies keep their electronic information HIPA compliant, working out of a home office. He complained that the area was becoming too expensive because New York City dwellers were building homes there. The average home price is now $400,000 to $500,000.There was nobody in the office of the motel, so I talked to a neighbor who said just take a key out of the box and make yourself at home; the owner would be by later to collect the room fee. The owner's wife came by and offered to wash my clothes for the paltry fee of $5.00. This saved me from having to walk 3 miles to a laundromat. There was a Pizzaria just down the highway that delivered. It was a perfect break from the trail! Fred
Date: 2005-06-04
From: Wingdale, NY

To: Mt. Algo Lean-to
Miles today: 11.2

Trail Day 5 - The Outdoor LifeDate 6/04/05Starting Location: Wingdale, NYDestination: Mt. Algo Lean-to daily miles 11.2 on ATThe motel owner drove me to the AT and said, "Keep your money, friend" when I offered him a five for gas. In return I wrote some good words about his place in the next shelter register.I climbed 500 ft. up Ten Mile Hill refreshed and I stopped to see Ten Mile Lean-to, which was clean and well kept. It even held a small library of paperback books, including Slaughterhouse Five. It looked out upon an idyllic grass meadow. Signs were posted saying "No camping in the meadow". Someone commented in the register: If someone is foolish enough to camp in that tick-infested meadow, let them. No signs!This was a Saturday and there were day hikers walking on paths around the Ten Mile River. A church group of ten or so women from New York City assembled with their leader at the base of Schaghticoke Mt. and allowed me to pass. I knew there was a 1000 ft. climb up this mountain, but I don't think they had any idea what they faced. They were going on a 7 mile hike up and down steep rocky terrain. They were inexperienced hikers and their leader let them straggle out. One stumbled into the shelter at the end just before dark and asked what kind of drinks we had. I think she thought we were a refreshment stand in the woods. When a hiker, Ryan, offered her a drink from his water bottle, she asked if we had anything besides water, and then whether we had any cups. After we said no, she grabbed the bottle and downed it. She huffed: "This was not a hike. A hike is through grass, not all these rocks!"She was probably dehydrated after climbing over the mountain on a hot day without any water. Later I heard that the local Fire Dept. had to go up there and carry one of the women down that night. That must have been a difficult job.Ryan and I talked all afternoon and evening about places and people on the AT. He is from New Canaan, CT and has been camping at this shelter since he was a Boy Scout. He is now about 20 years old and works as a Lifeguard at the YMCA teaching spoiled rich kids to swim. He attempted a thruhike last year as "Beavis" with his friend "Butthead". Butthead got off the trail and returned home after he ran four miles back to Harper's Ferry when a bear charged him. Ryan said he got off when he just got tired of hiking.Ryan was planning to attempt another AT thruhike next year. He tried a semester of college this past year and just didn't like it. He comes out alone on weekends now to listen to the coyotes and owls, and to meet other hikers. Some people are just not made to live or work indoors. Others can't understand why anyone would want to be out there with the rocks, dirt and bugs. Count me in with the outsiders. -
Date: 2005-06-05
From: Mt. Algo Lean-to

To: Hollow Brook Lean-to
Miles today: 7.3

Trail Day 6 - Trail Magic, Pokey and Bermuda Rum.Date 6/05/05Starting Location: Mt. Algo Lean-toDestination: Stewart Hollow Brook Lean-to daily miles 7.3 on ATI packed quietly while Ryan slept in the shelter. Before leaving I checked for ticks and found a tiny one on my upper leg. I covered it with petroleum jelly and waited for it to pull out. It did not back out, so I tweezered it out with my fingernails. It felt good to have nipped that problem in the bud.The road to Kent is just a 15 minute walk down the trail from the shelter, and the town is only 1/2 mile down the road. I was there for three hours eating breakfast at the bakery and resupplying with items like DEET, a pocketknife, blister cream and a memory card for my camera.Kent was flooded with motorcycles before I left. It was like Bike Week at Daytona Beach without the girls and tattoos. It was an easy resupply town because it was small and compact but I was glad to escape it.I could still hear rumbling several miles up the trail.Just before coming upon a road crossing I spied a cooler in a clearing. Trail magic! I opened it to find Colas and Budweisers on ice. It is always great to come upon trail magic as it is evidence of a friendly visitor wishing hikers well. There was no note saying who left it, but I later heard that it was a local hiker named Paddio.Just over the next peak, I met Pokey, who was day hiking a section he had blue blazed in 2004 when a storm made it dangerous to walk on the ridge. Pokey started behind me in Georgia last year and I never met him. Still we knew many hikers in common. He completed his thruhike with a retired teacher named Gabby just before Mt. Katahdin was closed to hikers for the season. We walked and talked for two hours until he left for his car. I had a great time reminiscing about last year's hike with him and was sorry he left so soon.I read in the shelter register that the pump at Silver Hill campsite was not working, so after looking at some other campsites ahead and finding them too isolated, I decided to put up my tent near the shelter. Later, Ridgerunner Abe and some other hikers walked into the shelter. I cooked dinner with them and had a couple of swigs from a pint of a dark buttery Bermuda Rum that was passed around. It had been a delightful day of cameraderie in the woods.
Date: 2005-06-06
From: Hollow Brook Lean-to

To: Pine Swamp Brook Lean-to
Miles today: 10.0

Trail Day 7 - Hot! Hot! Hot! Date 6/06/05Starting Location: Stewart Hollow Brook Lean-toDestination: Pine Swamp Brook Lean-to daily miles 10.0 on ATThe first hour of walking this morning was on a flat trail along a wide river. Yesterday there were Canada geese on the river, but they were gone now. Tall weeds brushed against me on both sides. The Ridgerunner warned us to watch out for ticks here. I climbed easily to Silver Hill campsite and down to the road. While I was getting water at Guinea Brook, I heard children behind me. A woman and her two kids about 9 and 10 years old came down the hill heading south. They were all carrying heavy packs. I wondered how the kids would make it up to Silver Hill because their packs were nearly as big as they were. The mom said she had long dreamed of backpacking but was having trouble keeping her kids motivated. No wonder!The day became hot and humid. Sweat poured off as I followed the trail over a series of roller coaster hills. There were no switchbacks. It went straight up and straight down. There was a rock formation that one squeezed through in a narrow upward channel. By the time I reached the shelter, I was exhausted with the heat. Before long a big wind came up and delivered a cooling rain. I was glad to be in the shelter as the trees swayed violently outside. I was also glad for the rain as it might bring a cooler tomorrow.