morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-09-30
From: Brown Fork Gap Shelter

To: Rufus Morgan Shelter
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: clear sky

Thanks to everyone who signed our guest book, all 64 of you. Your best wishes, prayers and encouragement help more than you know. Hearing from high school classmates, childhood friends, people from work, fellow hikers, trail angels and complete strangers. Shelter mice are just a fact of life. They are as much a part of the trail as rocks, honey buns and fog. But do they have to be so damned loud? Last night I woke up over and over again as they ran across the tin roof, fiddled with trash under the shelter and a couple of times as they danced around my head. It's odd how many things we accept out here that we never would at home. Today we made the miles long descent into the Nantahala Gorge. It's the third big downhill in the last eight days, the other two being Davenport Gap and Fontana. We got up early to make it to the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center) with plenty of time to wash our clothes, buy food, shower, have a hot meal, all the usual things. Except there was no room at the inn. They have a sex segregated hostel but there were no open women's bunks. If we'd paid for four men's bunks we could have stayed. No thanks. We had a hot meal, bought two days of food and hiked another mile (uphill) to the next shelter. Tonight we have company, thruhiker company. For the first time since West Virginia we have one of our own kind here. Gospel, from Atlanta, GA went SOBO from Katahdin to Harper's Ferry. He's now doing some leapfrogging around the south in order to keep some family commitments. We enjoyed trading stories and info with him. For those of you reading this who are planning or contemplating your own hike, I plan to write a few end of trail posts on gear, lessons learned, best practices and the mental side of thruhiking. Stay tuned.
Date: 2013-10-01
From: Rufus Morgan Shelter

To: Wyah Bald Shelter
Miles today: 15.0

Today was like two days in one. The climb out of the Nantahala Gap was long, steep and painful. I had to stop multiple times. I don't remember the last time i was that weak early in the day. I can't figure out why. I predicted  the afternoon was going to be miserable, especially since the first climb was 1300 feet in 1.7 miles. That's a lot. So we stopped a little earlier than usual. I ate my typical lunch, tuna on a tortilla with olive oil and peanut butter on a tortilla. I had a cup of coffee. When it was time to go I put on my pack and picked up my poles. We headed up the mountain and it was as if I'd grown new legs. We blasted through the climb. In fact we blasted through the rest of the day. Just when their seems to be nothing new under the sun. Lately it seems we've finally given ourselves permission to be homesick and excited, knowing the cure for homesicness os coming soon. Hush's Dad's health issues continue. Her family hasn't been able to visit us since his medical treatment is happening three hours from their home. At least I have seen my parents and one of my daughters. We are ready to see our children and grandchildren. We are ready to see our home, our bed and our bicycles. Tonight we are in a full shelter for only the third time. It's been a fun night trading thruhiker stories with Gospel and getting to know the section hikers who are here. After yesterday's aborted plans at the NOC ( Nantahala Outdoor Center) we have high hopes for Franklin. We just hope getting a hitch isn't too hard. At 11 miles, it's too far to walk
Date: 2013-10-02
From: Wyah Bald Shelter

To: Rock Gap 
Miles today: 14.2

Out of politeness, Hush and I didn't plan to start stirring this morning until 7:00, about 30 minutes before sunrise in this part of the state. Normally we get up earlier, mostly just because that's our normal rhythm. With a shelter full of people (and a dog) we thought we'd wait awhile. Thankfully, one of the section hikers got up earlier so we were able to spring into action in time to reach the top of Wayah Bald for one of the most spectacular vistas of the entire trip. We headed for Rock Gap with a vengeance. That was a calculated gamble. Most people hitch from Winding Stair Gap but we wanted to put in more than 10 miles. Running low on food, wearing nasty clothes and smelling like something drug in by the the dog we were ready for Franklin, NC. The first car that came by picked us up and delivered us straight to our hotel. Everything we needed was close enough, barely. It was after four before we were able to relax a bit and enjoy the down time. We loaded our Kindles with one last book. I answered as many emails as I could. Earlier in the day I walked  to Three Eagles Outfitters to see if they had any info on potential trail angels who might give us a ride back to the trail. They had a whole list of them and we quickly arranged a ride for the morning.
Date: 2013-10-03
From: Rock Gap 

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: scattered clouds

We put in a lot of miles today, miles we will probably regret. We simply didn't feel like stopping. Every step is a step closer to the end of the trail. I love the Appalachian Trail and all that it means. I love the generations of trail maintainers going all the way back to the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s. Thanks for the switchbacks. I love trail angels and the kindness they show complete strangers. Thanks for all those hitches. I love the fair and honest business people in trail towns who cater to hikers. We've had some great meals and some really nice rooms. Thanks for shelter from the storms. I love the towns and churches who provide shelter and showers  for hikers regardless of the ability to pay. Thanks Palmerton, PA, Glasgow, VA, Vernon, NJ and Delaware Water Gap, PA. I love the day hikers and section hikers and all of the luck they've wished on us. Thanks Tenderfoot, Delia, Figure Eight, Natty and all the rest. But above all, I love thruhikers, that crazy, determined, resourceful bunch of folks who will forever be our people. Thanks Smoky, Carjacker, Kermit, Patches and all the rest. It's been a hell of a hike.
Date: 2013-10-04
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Dick's Creek Gsp
Miles today: 16.6
Weather: broken clouds

So there I was on the Appalachian Trail when all of a sudden I saw a sign reading NC/GA. The air around one side of the sign smelled strongly of pork roasted over hickory. The air on the other side had the unmistakable aroma of peaches. I'm a thruhiker, meaning I'm hungry, even when I'm being rolled out of an all you can eat Chinese buffet in a wheelchair. I stopped in front of the sign to dig my long spoon out of my pack. Hush snapped my picture, took my spoon away and kicked me in the butt. She spit  out her favorite command through gritted teeth "Hike!" So I did, all the way to Dick's Gap. There we met Gospel's fianc© (and Gospel) who was waiting to give us a ride to the Holiday Inn Express in Hiawassee, GA. We were in and out in one minute after getting a quote of $139 a night. What the hell? We hoofed it down the road to the much more hiker friendly Budget Inn. We can afford to stay here two nights and slack pack tomorrow between Dick's Gap and Unicoi Gap. There are so many things happening for the last time: the last state line, the last trail town, the last weekend with its corresponding weekend hikers, the last major resupply. Are we nostalgic? Sure. Wouldn't you be?I've done a pretty good job of keeping the business of home and work out of my head. I intend to keep doing so until I  am in fact back at home and work. Until them I am still Lefty. That other guy will take care of that stuff.
Date: 2013-10-05
From: Dick's Creek Gsp

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 16.8

Slack packing today without our gear made me think about the role gear plays in a through hike. It's not as much as one would think. We mailed a lot of stuff home Friday, including our tent. Yahoo! Lighter packs for the rest of the trip. Before we stepped foot on the trail, the only thing we had any control over was our gear selection. Reading about sleeping bags, backpacks and stoves gave us the idea we were going to have an edge. Since we were already spending every weekend in the woods we tested all the outdoorsy stuff our budget would support. In the end, not much of it really mattered. Our sleep system - sleeping bag and liner, stayed the same. So did our kitchen - pot and stove. Had we chosen differently we would still be in Georgia though. Our gear choices didn't get us here. Plenty of successful thruhikers made different choices. I am on my third pack, Hush, her second. Succumbing to the ultra-light insanity caused both of us to start out with packs not capable of comfortably carrying a four-day resupply. One pack of mine simultaneously started to disintegrate and no longer fit me with about 900 miles left. People spend hundreds of dollars to save weight and then they pack an extra pop-tart and, boom, they could have shopped at Walmart. Food and water are heavy and we all get hungry so let's keep it real. Many other pieces of hiking equipment didn't make the cut. We had expensive shoes we tested at home that ended up giving us blisters once subjected to the rigors of 10-12 hour days. Our sock choice didn't matter but we found out we needed lots of socks to make it through New England mud season. I started hiking in a $50 Merino wool t-shirt that lasted 500 miles. I replaced it with a $9 shirt from Target that I'm still wearing 1650 miles later. We built our first aid kit as we went based on what hurt. Here is some advice. Carry lots of Caladryl. Between mysterious rashes, insect bites and stinging nettles it will save your sanity.  We sent home all kinds of stuff from hats to extra anythings. You do not need extras. One is enough. We made it through with cheap stuff sacks from Walmart. We found out that our packs still get wet, even with expensive pack covers. It's the heart and legs that get hikers to Georgia, not the weight they save by cutting the handle off their toothbrush.
Date: 2013-10-06
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Whitley Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: broken clouds

Whitley Gap Shelter14.5 milesFive months we've been on the Appalachian Trail and we never went to a shelter too full of people for us to get in, until today. We sent our tent home yesterday. Uh-oh. So, we had to hike another 4.8 miles to the next shelter, one that's 1.2 miles off the trail. Yay! We walked six extra miles because a family decided that a hiker shelter as a group campsite.Other than the climb out of Unicoi Gap the elevation changes didn't present much of a challenge today. That's OK. We've been challenged enough. The trail in George has some rocky sections and these aggravated Hush's feet by the end of the day. We capped off the last 1.2 uncredited miles with a hot cup of tea,,a quick supper and an early night. As I write this the first ferocious bands of rain from Tropical Storm Karen are pounding on the tin roof. If the weather is too ugly we have the option of staying at Neel Gap tomorrow. No matter what we do, the shelter placement requires us to do 15 miles on our last day - only three days away.
Date: 2013-10-07
From: Whitley Gap Shelter

To: Neel's Gap
Miles today: 6.7
Weather: light rain

It rained. It rained hard. It rain very hard. As I listened to the pounding on the shelter's tin roof last night, I mentally prepared myself to hike through the storm. I learned early on to just accept the weather. Freaking out does no good and is counterproductive. Luckily the downpour ended just before dawn. We still got wet from the water blowing from the trees and the moisture clinging to the weeds but it wasn't the soul sapping trudging through an unrelenting downpour. Yesterday's unplanned extra miles meant we had a short day today. We got to Mountain Crossings at Walasi-yi at 11:30. An Internet friend, Elizabeth arrived shortly thereafter with a trunk full of gluten free goodies for Hush. We took a look at those and jumped in he car, smelly and dirty and headed to Dahlonega, GA for lunch. A quick trip into Walmart for one last honeybun and we were headed back to Neel's Gap. It was super cool of Elizabeth to make the trip and even cooler to talk cycling for awhile. The next two days will be around 15 miles each. I may not be able to post until the end of the trail. I wish I could convey our feelings adequately in writing but I'm not sure I even know what they are. I'm tired of being sore, of aching feet and my throbbing knee but that's all. I still love the trail, the hikers and the beauty of the mountains. This has been our life for five months. I have a feeling going home will be abrupt.
Date: 2013-10-08
From: Neel's Gap

To: Gooch Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: clear sky

Gooch Mountain Shelter15.9 milesIt's the last afternoon to practice our AT end of the day ritual. We typically arrive at a shelter and spend a moment sitting down after taking off our packs. I get out my Gatorade bottle and two liter Platypus. I get Hush's bottle and head for the water. While I'm gone she blows up the air mattresses and lays out the sleeping bags. When I get back, I set up the stove and boil the water for tea. We eat dinner and lay down to read. Pretty soon we are asleep. There were surprises today. Shortly before lunch we met Blake and Bobbie. They own Cycling Logistics, a great service for participants in some of the big bike events in the south. I see them once a year at the week long mountains to the coast ride, Cycle North Carolina. Because of our hike, Hush and I missed this year's ride. Bobbie kept up with us on Facebook though. As we were headed up Big Cedar Mountain, boom, there they appeared with trail magic. I just plain felt special. I was floored. Among many, many things I will miss is the opportunity to be surprised on the side of a mountain by kindness. Later in the day we were overtaken by Danko, one of the Southbounders we met in Hiawassee. He said "I couldn't tell exactly who you were but I knew you were thruhikers by the way you were climbing." That's one of the best compliments  I've ever been given. Down the trail we all met Mercury, the other SOBO. The four of us stood on the trail for awhile, in no hurry to move on. We told trail stories, talked of our post-trail plans and played "Did you meet..."  It was grand. I wrote my last shelter log entry tonight. I made a list of cheers and jeers. Yay Palmerton. Boo Port Clinton. Yay Green Mountain House. Boo Stratton Hotel. We head towards Springer early, before dark to make sure my Dad and Uncle don't have to wait. It's time to climb the mountain.
Date: 2013-10-09
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Springer Mountain
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: overcast clouds

We started hiking today at 6:15 AM. The last time we started that early was Maine. We managed to hike in the dark for well over an hour using our head lamps while still making decent time. The trail leading to Springer goes through several gaps but the tread way is good. We had a little extra motivation to make good time. After we passed the Hawk Mountain Shelter we stopped for our last creek water coffee break. We started seeing other hikers shortly after that. I told every person I saw that today was the last day of our through hike. I was a little excited. We had 14.5 miles knocked out by 1:15, putting us in the Springer trail head parking lot. We hung out, talking to other hikers, scoring consumable trail magic and trying to come to terms with it all. When my Uncle Fred and my Dad arrived we headed up Springer, where I got teary eyed only briefly. We were undefeated in our struggle to become thruhikers. We won.  We took a bunch of pictures. I left a rock from Katahdin up there with a note asking someone to take it back to Maine if they happened to be going that way. Now begins the transition from Lefty and Hush back to Lou and Carol. I'll give everyone an update in a week or so. Thanks for sharing our AT journey. Hit us up with questions if you are contemplating your own hike. Peace. Hush's entry: I am not sure yet how I feel about being finished with the trail. Just a couple of days ago I was so ready to be done. I was tired, sore and beat up (mentally and physically). But now that it is over, it just feels weird. My whole life right now all fits into a 25 lb backpack. But tomorrow I will be back in our house. With rooms full of stuff. Running (hot) water. I will have more than two outfits (hiking clothes and camp clothes). I will actually wear different clothes every day. And I won't get up everyday and hike. It all seems so foreign to me right now. There is one thing that I am sure about - I am ready to see my family!We couldn't have had a more beautiful day to summit Springer. There wasn't  a cloud in the sky. That did make getting good pictures hard though. There were just too many shadows from the sun shining through the trees.
Date: 2013-10-13
To: Five Days Later
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Time moves much more slowly while hiking. I can look back at our journal for any of the days we spent on the trail and recall details, sometimes very small ones. Since we came home life has been a blur. It took less than 24 hours to go from the summit of Springer Mountain to our living room. We pulled into town to find that it looks like it always has. We stopped at our local bicycle shop to see friends and went to the supermarket. Although our yard is a bit overgrown, our house still looks like our house. Our dogs went a little nuts but calmed down quickly. Carol went through through the monstrous mail pile in less than an hour.  We made dinner, watched a movie and went to sleep, just like half the people in America.  We went from member ship in a very small club to membership in a very large club just that quickly. While we hiked I made a long checklist of "things I want to when we get done": visit parents, visit kids and grand kids, visit work (before returning as an employee), ride my bike, clean my house, clean my yard, hike the trails we hiked before the AT.  I spent more time thinking about some of those than its going to take to actually do them. And, I'll bet while doing some of them, I'll probably be thinking about hiking the trail. Staying in the moment, not my strong suit. I'm still tired, very. I'm still stiff, very. I am not hungry. I am not overwhelmed by crowds. I am overwhelmed by how much stuff I own, not that I'm a "stuff" kind of guy. I feel like I have too many clothes, most of which don't fit anymore. Wearing a different shirt everyday is strange. Underwear is strange. We have too many dishes. It's strange to us a spoon ONE TIME and then put it in the dishwasher. There are plenty of things I don't miss too. I don't miss instant coffee. I don't miss drinking lukewarm creek water. I don't miss getting rained on. I don't miss climbing mountain but I do miss mountain tops.
Date: 2012-11-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

The next (and last!) big step is the visa. I have an appointment at the american consulat in frankfurt next monday (9 am).I am very curious about this appointment. It depends so much on it.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Useful links for getting the B1/B2 - visa (non immigrant visa; necessary for hiking the trail): http://germany.usembassy.gov/visa/niv/http://appalachiantrail.eu/7.html (in german)http://www.immihelp.com/visas/With the B1/B2 visa you can stay for 6 month in the States (maximum 12 months). You will have to use the DS 160 formular on the internet.https://ceac.state.gov/genniv/
Date: 2012-11-27
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I will get the visa!! I am so happy!I did so much preparation for this appointment, but the conversation with the staffmember focused mainly (luckily!) on the AT and PCT. He knew a lot about hiking, because he comes from seattle (nearby the PCT) and had already seen this powerful human beings with their heavy bagpacks. Only a few questions focused on my work and other things. After about 10 minutes he said, that i will get the visa. I was so unburdend!I left my passport in Frankfurt, they will deliver it together with the visa to me by mail.
Date: 2012-12-03
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I am still trying to figure out my footwear. My advantage and my problem is, that i am very tall (1.97m or 6.5 feet). Advantage: The AT is shorter for me!!! (of course not 5 million steps for me)Problem: There is only a short range for shoes to choice because i need shoe size 14 or 15 (US).My actual favorite is the merrell moab hiking shoe. I will try them in the next weeks. My goal is it to use shoes, which i can get on the trail. That will be sometimes difficult.I am curious, whether the merrell moab shoes will fullfill my expectations.Has anybody seen crocs in these shoe size???? Thats my second footwear problem!
Date: 2012-12-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I bought the samsung b2710 cell phone today on the internet.I don't want to hike with a smartphone, in my view that is not "political correct". For me hiking the AT means, that i am in nature and therefore i don't want to know what actually happens in the world. With a smartphone i am tempted to be on the internet every evening.My cell phone will be "offline" during my hike, only in the evening i will check whether there are some calls. This cell phone has additionaly a mp3 player, radio and the possibility to tape my voice (memo). In my view these are very useful functions. Listening to the radio will give me information about the local weather and other interesting stuff.I will use the voice tape as my logfile. It is my plan to update my blog when i get to a town where i have internet access.
Date: 2012-12-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light snow

I am actually reading "AWOL on the Appalachian Trail". It is very interesting to read about his thruhike in 2003.He describes his experiences on the trail very well, so it is easier for meto know what i have to expect in the near future (only 105 days left!).Its quite a bit ago, but IMO the live on the trail will be the same.The word "rain" is unfortunately often used in his book (on the first 50 pages). I have expected better weather for him, because he started in late april. On the other hand, the following saying has to be fullfilledNo pain, no rain ->> no maine.I am looking forward to a lot of pain and rain!
Date: 2012-12-16
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today i had a leave day and was busy with prep.I bought 3 eyeglasses for the trail. Why so much? I have made the experience, that i destroy one glass typically during a tent- holiday.So for this long trail, i will carry two glasses on the trail and the third glass will be in the bouncebox. Hopefully this will work. Later on i got my first immunization for my adventure next year. Now i am well protected against the tetanus bacillus. For the states following other immunization are recommended (www.crm.de):anti-rabies meningitistyphushepatitis AUnfortunately i have to pay for most of this immunizations. For examplethe anti-rabies immunization costs about 280 $. Therefor i will consider whetherthis is really necessary for me.I have to bear in mind by my decision, that are rabid animals on the trail (as i read in tj). At last i bought also a USB cable and a SD-Card for my cellphone. After getting a prepaid card from AT&T my cellphone will soon be ready for the trail.