morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-08-16
From: Short n Sweet and Grey Beard's

To: Thistle Hill Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Today ended up being a pretty good day, even if it did rain most of the day.  We got started just before 9 am.  The terrain was really nice and the ups and downs weren't too steep.  We stopped in Happy Hill Shelter to attempt to dry off a bit and take a rest.  We rested but definitely didn't dry.  We met 2 NOBOs, Beaker and Dragonfly.  They remind me a lot of Carnivore and Purple.   A few miles past the shelter we had another "road walk" which took us right past The Village Store of West Hartford.  We stopped in for lunch and to dry and warm up.  My lips were purple when I looked in the mirror there.    Most of the tops of the hills today were treeless fields and mostly over grown.  I guess we better do a good tick check tonight.  We met So Far who was almost done with the Triple Crown.  He was very nice and sang to us.  We also met alot of NOBOs today that have gray hair, 8 to be exact.  We also saw 8 red salamanders.  -Townie
Date: 2011-08-17
From: Thistle Hill Shelter

To: Mink Brook
Miles today: 17.7

Today was our first attempt to hike over 20 miles.  It didn't quite work out.  We started hiking by 6:40 and kept a pretty food pace.  Around 11 we stopped on route 12 at a little store and bought a small pie.  It was an expensive pie, over $6 for 6 inches and Ryan's can of Mountain Dew was $1.25!  It was also kinda annoying they didn't have a public restroom, but we kinda got the feeling they didn't have a public restroom for hikers.  After we left there we hiked about 4 miles all up hill to a nice lookout tower with a good view. The problem with that was my stomach didn't much appreciate the pie. So we ended up heading down the hill to a brook crossing to "stealth" camp a few miles short of our goal for the day. I know the miles will come for me someday, I just feel like I'm slowing Ryan down. -Townie
Date: 2011-08-18
From: Mink Brook

To: 12 Tribes Hiker Hostel, Rutland, VT 
Miles today: 14.5

We slept in today till 7:30, which was really great except we got a bit of a late start.  As we were leaving camp we met 2 NOBOs, Country Mouse and Shadow. They were super nice and encouraging.  They were also from Nashville, TN.  For breakfast I had dry strawberries and cream oatmeal and Ryan had his cereal; we also had a carnation instant breakfast for the first time.  Hiking was difficult today with my blisters.  I didn't realize I was stepping weird, and it ended up making my whole foot and ankle hurt pretty badly.  My knees, hips, and back are also starting to really hurt again.  I guess the week and a half off are really starting to catch up.  I was just hoping that I would finally stop hurting by now.  We saw a beautiful waterfall today and hiked some pretty trail.  We decided to go into Rutland, VT and stay at the 12 Tribes Hiker Hostile tonight.  Our plan is to slack pack 17.4 miles tomorrow and stay here again tomorrow night.  I think it can be done, especially without my pack.  I really hope so anyway.  I guess we better bring our head lamps just in case.  -Townie
Date: 2011-08-19
From: 12 Tribes Hiker Hostel, Rutland, VT 

To: 12 Tribes Hiker Hostel, Rutland, VT 
Miles today: 17.4

Today we slack packed, which is pretty much the best thing ever.  We ate a very delicious breakfast with the people from the 12 Tribes, then took the bus to the trail head.  We went 17.6 miles in 7.5 hours, and we crossed the 500 mile mark.  There was really great trail magic there, a cooler full of Cokes and Mountain Dews.  Thunder storms were all around us today but we never got hit by one.   When we were done with our hike we got a quick hitch into town with some very friendly folks.I keep trying to figure out when I'll finally stop hurting.  There has got to be some point you reach where hiking doesn't inflict pain.  I was hoping that would be the 500 mile mark, but I guess not.  -Townie
Date: 2011-08-20
From: 12 Tribes Hiker Hostel, Rutland, VT 

To: Greenwall Shelter
Miles today: 8.1
Weather: clear sky

This morning Ryan and I went to the Sabbath Celebration with the 12 Tribes.  It was interesting and reminded me of a Bible study.  Everyone sat in a circle and sang then shared different experiences they had during the week.  Afterward we had breakfast.  They tried to get us to play volleyball but I was wearing a skirt and I'm pretty sure it would hurt too badly.  We went back to the hostile to make sure we had everything together to head back out to the trail. Plans To Much, a former thru hiker,  gave us a ride to the trail head.  We didn't get started till around 1:30 so we only got in a little over 8 miles today.  Even with doing the low miles I still managed to get a new blister, this one on my left heel.  The ones on my right heel and right pinky toe are doing much better though.  -Townie
Date: 2011-08-21
From: Greenwall Shelter

To: Griffeth Lake Campsite
Miles today: 14.4

Today was a pretty good day.  Somehow my bandaid stayed over my heel blister all day.   We got a late start this morning getting on the trail around 9:30.  We only hiked a little over 14 miles because the positioning of the shelters and campsites.  We hiked along a few streams today which reminded me of Maine.  I'm really enjoying the Green Mountain National Forest.  The mountain climbs are slopping and there is dirt over most of the rocks and roots. Around 1:00 it got very dark outside; if my headlamp batteries weren't dead I would have used it.  Soon the thunder, lightening, and down pour followed.  We got pretty soaked.  Luckily we only walked in it about a mile, then waited it out in a shelter we passed by.  After the storm we were walking along and heard a loud noise in the woods and saw several trees sway.  That's when we saw a moose for the first time in the wild.  It stood there and looked at us from about 30 yards away.  It didn't have antlers so I think it was a female.  Either way, it was huge!  We got to camp and set up our tent right away be ajar it had been thundering for a while bit hadn't started raining yet.  I kept praying while we were hiking that we would get the tent up and dinner eaten before the rain started up again.  Well that's just what happened!  We put the tent up, cooked, ate dinner, and washed up.  Then as I was unzipping the tent to get in it started pour.  It's really nice that God listens to the smallest prayers.  It has been storming pretty hard for the last 1.5 hours now.  The trail is going to be a mess in the morning, but at least we're dry tonight! -Townie
Date: 2011-08-22
From: Griffeth Lake Campsite

To: Manchester Center, VT 
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: light rain

Wow did it rain last night! It stormed pretty much all night with very heavy rain. I woke up several times with rain dripping on my face, I guess it's time to re-waterproof the tent. We decided to go head and take a "zero" day here in Manchester Center since it will probably take all day for the waterproofing to dry. Also, it's been almost 100 miles and a week since our last "zero". So this morning we got up and going by 8:00. Withing our first 50 or so steps became across the lake that had majorly flooded during the night. We had to stop and take off the boots we just put on to don our Crocs. I'm glad we did. The 1st half mile of our hike was completely under water by several inches. The plank bridges that normally rest on top of mud were floating on the water and sank down half a foot when we stepped on them. We made it to the shelter and stopped to put on our dry boots and unsuccessfully tried to stay dry the rest if our hike. We had a few nice peaks today, but Bromely Mountain was the best. There is antiwar on the top where supposedly you can see 5 different states from. Reminds me of Rock City. There is also a ski lift that doesn't run in the summer. The trail took us straight down one of the ski slopes for a out a half mile, which was kinda neat and a good view. On days we are planning on hitching into town I pray through out the day that we will get a quick and safe hitch. Well today was our quickest hitch for sure. We stepped out on the side of the road from he parking lot and stuck up our thumbs; seriously within 10 seconds a car pulled over!We ate at McDonald's for lunch and had pizza for dinner. We are staying a the Green Mountain Hiker Hostel which is definitely the nicest place we've stayed yet. They have a hiker kitchen so I bought some eggs, sausage, and biscuits to have in the morning. They also have extremely comfortable beds and pillows and everything is nice and clean. I feel like I'm in a house. Tomorrow we will spend a significant amount of the day waterproofing the tent so I will no longer have rain water drip on my face as I'm trying to sleep. On a side note, we met a NOBO that carries a tomahawk offered to let is throw it. -Townie
Date: 2011-08-24
From: Green Mountain Hiker Hostel Manchester Center, VT 

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: overcast clouds

I love the Green Mountain Hiker Hostel!  The beds are so comfy and they have really nice pillows.  The hiker kitchen is very equipped and the living room is very cozy.  The house and yard are also nicely maintained.  Oh yeah, they have wifi, cable, and the latest PEOPLE magazines.  Also the owner Jeff is a super nice guy a d has hiked the trail before himself.  Today was a nice easy hike.  We did 11 miles in less than 5 hours.  We would have gone farther but the next shelter is another 10 miles away.  We are staying in the shelter tonight, the first since Maine.  This shelter is pretty cool and sleeps at least 16 people.  The porch is large and covered with a picnic table.  There are bunk bed platforms for you to set out your sleeping bags.  We'll see how it is sleeping in here tonight, I think it'll be a full house. -Townie
Date: 2011-08-25
From: Stratton Pond Shelter

To: Goddard Shelter
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: light rain

So last night in the shelter was a bit strange, but not strange enough to keep us out of the shelters. A woman showed up with her 2 sons around 9 pm (which is an hour past "hiker midnight"). They were very nice but also very loud. I know it's lame but we had already been in bed for almost an hour and another hiker had been asleep since 7:30! The weird thing was this morning when she pulled the trumpet out of her pack and started playing. So today we hiked 19.5 miles, our longest day yet. I actually kinda wished the shelter would be 0.5 miles off the trail so we could call it an even 20. Oh well, that day will come. The last 8 miles of the hike it rained. So and steady at first then torrential down pour in the last 4 miles. While hiking I felt something hitting the back of my legs. It was the rain cover for my pack, full of rain water! It holds water in better than keeping it out. When we got to the shelter there was a section hiker there already. I think we startled him because he didn't say a word to us for about 2 minutes, even when we were talking to him. I think he was sad, he had taken about 3/4 of the shelter and every hook a available to hang his various items on. When he finally did start to talk, the first thing he did was try to sell us illicit drugs. He was carrying a pack that probably weighed more than 60lbs which included about 20 roman candle fireworks, several full size blankets, a full size radio, a hatchet, and a rather large Rambo like knife. Later 4 ladies in there 50s and 60s who were finishing up their section hike of the Long Trail showed up. They were civilized and packed in bottles of wine, cheese, pesto, and baguettes and stayed up giggling and chatting. They too were a little scared of the firework man. He did not   appreciate having to scoot over. Maybe now we will reconsider of recent decisions to not pitch our tent. -Townie
Date: 2011-08-26
From: Goddard Shelter

To: Bennington, VT
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We got up with the ladies this morning to get going at a decent time, but the commando wasn't done with his shenanigans yet. He took the remaining 20 or so bottle rockets to the fire tower back we passed yesterday back up the mountain and shot them off there. He came back down, finished packing his probably 70 lb worth of gear, and before he left, he threw all the bottle rocket cases and some other trash into the firepit beside the shelter. I started to pick them up and pack them out myself, but Beka made a good point that we'd probably pass him in a little bit, and we didn't know how he'd react if he saw that. He did offer us a ride once we got to the road... we decided to pass on that. He marched off into the woods with pink blanket thrown around his pack.Our stuff was still dripping wet when we woke up, but our quick pace probably helped it dry quickly, 10 miles in 4:15. We're starting to consider ourselves pretty accomplished hikers at this point, though the terrain is more conducive to that. When we reached the road, Forest Service guys were posting notices to be off the trail by noon tomorrow for the hurricane. We kept hoping it would veer off, but it's headed straight for us. Hitched a ride to town and after some lousy Chinese food we checked in at the Vortex with Chris & Arla, really great guys. We walked around downtown, very nice little area, though nothing that appealing to thru-hikers besides a few restaurants. In my increasing urgency to keep moving, we decided we'd push on to Williamstown tomorrow and stay in a hotel to wait out the storm. I'm less worried about when the storm is on us as I am about what the trail will look like once it's passed. Flooding and downed trees may put an end to our newfound speed.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-08-27
From: Bennington, VT

To: Williamstown, MA
Miles today: 18.6

Slept on the front porch of the house last night, or tried to. A lot of late traffic for such a small town. A friend of Chris & Arla's, Steve, gave us a ride in the trail, then said it was on him because he cleaned up in poker last night. Very steep climb up out of the gorge, but once we were up the trail was relatively flat the rest of the day. We ran into Phenix & Dutchess, a cool couple we met briefly at the Vortex. Phenix is thru-hiking, and his girlfriend Dutchess, a previous thru-hiker, is doing a section with him. We passed some guys along the way who were just starting the Long Trail and claimed they had no idea about the storm. Crossed into Massachusetts, and the trail noticeably became less muddy and more rocky pretty quickly. Crossed the river into Williamstown and got to the grocery store just before a shower. This is the biggest grocery store we've been in on the trail so far, and we took advantage since we're going nowhere tomorrow by stocking up on "refueling" food. Got a ride over to our hotel, the Cozy Corner, from another friend of Arla's. We got the hookup from the Vortex! Thanks to a wrong turn before we got town, we ended up doing over 19 miles in 9 hours, and we felt pretty dang good about that. Pretty uneventful day otherwise, still adjusting to how much less "interesting" the trail is once you're out of ME and NH.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-08-28
From: Williamstown, MA

To: Williamstown, MA
Miles today: 0.0

Laid around eating and watching TV all day, the first time we've spent a zero day the way it should be. The storm wasn't as bad right here as they were expecting, but it was farther north and the creek beside the hotel has turned into a raging torrent. The news says VT got hit pretty bad, including Bennington (where we were the night before we got here) with roads washed out and destroyed. The Green Mountain National Forest was hit hard as a whole, and we just left it too. We'll see how the trail is tomorrow. Met Mr. Z who is also staying at this hotel, cool guy.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-08-29
From: Williamstown, MA

To: Mark Noepel Shelter
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: clear sky

Woke up to a beautiful day and receding water levels. Hitched a ride to the grocery store and actually bought food for the trail this time. Didn't start hiking till after 1, and the trail was in surprisingly good shape. Saw flyers about getting off the trail along the way. The one creek crossing we were concerned about was running as high as passably possible. The trail is pretty rocky in this area. A few moderate climbs then a long relatively gradual climb up Mount Greylock, the highest peak in Maine. There's a popular lodge & restaurant across from the monument on the peak, but everything up there, including the road up, was closed for the storm, even though it was a cloudless day and there was no storm damage here. We've had flashes of Maine so far in MA with all the rocks and roots on the trail, didn't realize we'd encounter this kind of terrain around here. - 2-packs
Date: 2011-08-30
From: Mark Noepel Shelter

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: clear sky

Woke up to a chilly morning and soon saw that the trail in this area has been a little more affected by the storm, more debris and downed trees. My boots, which have been pretty good so far but haven't been that durable or supportive, have finally hit the wall and I need to replace them. Luckily Merrell will replace 1 pair of boots for thru-hikers, no questions asked, so I called and get them to send a replacement pair on ahead. I've decided I want to try trail running shoes though, to lighten the load and see what all the rage is about. We called Berkshire Outfitters from the road to see where they were, and the guy drove out to the trail to give us a ride there. Settled on some very bright Salomon shoes. The guy then gave us a ride around Adams and Cheshire and even bought lunch for us at a deli before dropping us back at the trail, great guy! Pushed on over a few hills and headed down toward Dalton where the trail was on the road for a long time. When we came to a gas station where the trail went left on the road but we knew of an Applebee's down the road to the right, temptation got the best of us and we hitched a ride there. Even looked around Barnes & Noble, not sure why, a book would add ENTIRELY too much weight to our packs. All these restaurants and shops we have started passing so close to the trail are starting to be very tempting and very dangerous, both for how much extra time it takes to go to them and how much extra money we're spending. Got a ride back and are staying at Tom Levardi's tonight, a legendary trail angel who opens his house to thru-hikers. This was a long day, I feel like we were all over the place. We're attempting our first 20-mile day tomorrow.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-08-31
From: Dalton, MA

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 20.3
Weather: clear sky

Got an early start from Tom's this morning. Saw on TV before we left how bad Rutland and Bennington got hit in the storm. A couple of miles down the trail we came upon a curious sight: 2 guinea pigs sitting in the trail on a pile of pet food, just off of a road,, scared stiff. Apparently some genius who didn't want them anymore decided that since they were animals, they could survive on their own in the woods. Not much we could do, so we kept going. We pushed the pace today, and on Tully Mountain we ran into NOBO Master Splinter who talked to us for 10 minutes about how horrible a hostel he stayed at was. A couple hours later we reached the famous Cookie Lady's house, though we only met her sweet old husband. They own a big blueberry farm and give free cookies to thru-hikers. Beka even bought a couple of boiled eggs from him. They have a very old dog named Rufus that kinda waddles around the farm. Near Finerty Pond we came across a massive beaver dam that had collapsed during the storm and taken out part of a bridge on the trail. Tom had told us that the trail would be easy today, but it wasn't that easy, maybe because he said it would be. If Beka wouldn't have kept me focused, I'd have caved and hitched in to Lee for food (see, it's getting to be a problem). We pushed our tired, sore bodies on here to the cabin and finally got our 20+ day. Met some really cool section-hikers staying here at the cabin. Mr Z. is here too, and Phenix showed up not long after us. He came across the guinea pigs and heroically hitched a ride and took them to the local Petsmart. We're staying in the bunkroom of the cabin here. The caretakers run a tight ship but are good guys.We talked at length today about Beka possibly going home, though she's still not sure. She doesn't want to, but her knees and back just will not stop hurting, and day after day of that is outweighing the fun of the trip. We'll see what the next few weeks bring.- 2-packs
Date: 2011-09-01
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Mount Wilcox South Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

The caretakers at the cabin are famous for making pancakes for their overnight guests and only ask for donations. Unfortunately they came through waking us up at 5:45 for breakfast. Phenix stopped at the blueberry farm yesterday and picked some, and they ended up in the pancakes this morning. Awesome start to the day, hot breakfast and chatting with the section hikers. One of them was so happy about Beka thru-hiking, and he was going home to tell his wife about it so she would be more inclined to hit the trail with him. Took off around 9 after cleaning our water filter. Gravity filters are easy, but the filter clogs fairly easy which slows the flow to a drip. We've been starting to see the "green tunnel" we've been hearing about but not really looking forward to. Lots of small rolling hills, a few medium ones every now and then, and lots of seemingly pointless winding. It's funny because the mountains of Vermont were relatively small/tame to us, but for NOBOs it's probably exhilarating to get that high again. We stopped for a break at the road to Tyringham and passed a couple, Steve and Susan, headed back they way we came. In a few minutes they came back to grab something from their car, and we ended up talking for like 40 minutes. They were very interested in hearing about our hike, and then they gave us the turkey sandwich, chips and snack they'd packed for themselves! As awesome as the challenges and the scenery is on the AT, the encounters with people like Steve and Susan are what make it so special.Beautiful scenery the rest of the day walking in and out of fields and the forest. We saw a lot of signs of flooding on the trail over the past week in the area too, very glad we weren't hiking through here during the storm. Shortly after we got to the shelter a NOBO father & son came in too. We don't see many NOBOs at all any more, and these guys are going to have to hustle big time to get to Katahdin before they close Baxter State Park to overnight camping for the year on October 15.- 2-packs