morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-09-26
From: VA 606

To: Franklin Farm
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day. We drove into Blacksburg for our resupply. Blacksburg is Virginia Tech land. I have never seen so much support for a college football team as the Virginia Tech Hokies. Even the sandwich store had special sandwiches named after the Hokies football team.I resupplied at a Food Lion grocer. I went with everything bagels with hard salami, hot capicola and Swiss cheese. I also bought a Halloween bag of mini Snickers, peanut butter sandwich crackers, blueberry pop tarts and... Count Chocula! Not just Count Chocula but a box of Boo Berry as well. The design of the boxes have changed considerably since I was a kid. I almost didn't recognize the Count. This obviously was not my healthiest resupply.As soon as we got back to the farm I pre made all of my bagel sandwiches. I pre make them to evenly distribute the meats and cheeses and I can also strip my food bag of all of the outer packaging's (trash). After I make the sandwiches I put them in individual zip-locks. This way I can keep one in the side pocket of my pack for access while I walk.I'm on the porch of the farm. It is in the low 40's. I am wearing my hat, gloves, under-armor shirt and long underwear. Some how Check (Mango and Grettle's dog) got to my long underwear bottoms while we were gone today. She chewed and tore out the crotch... I'm still wearing them until I can pick up some new ones. It's not nearly the first or last thing I will loose because of a dog. ~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-09-27
From: Franklin Farm

To: VA 623 Garden Mt.
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

We hiked about 25 miles today to VA 623 Garden Mt.. The sky cleared up a bit since yesterday. It is difficult to tell what the sky looks like when in the woods. The canopy of the trees is thick enough to block the sun. The temperature is usually 10-20 degrees cooler in the woods also. Today was mostly overcast but no rain. The leaves are just beginning to change in the south. The north bound thru hikers get to enjoy the spring when all of the wildflowers are blossoming. Us south bounders get to enjoy the southern mountain foliage. Because of the recent rain and wind the forest floor is covered in blankets of yellows and reds from the leaves. The leaves will be at their peak of change while we are hiking in the Smoky Mountain National Park!For the past week or so I can't help but notice the incredible amount of acorns that fall while I walk and also the incredible amount already on the ground. They fall all around me all day. There are so many on the ground that I sometimes begin to slip and roll on them. Often I envision little chipmunks and squirrels in the tree tops dropping them on me. Until today I had not been hit by any. But this afternoon one dropped square in the center of my skull. It felt like someone threw a brick at my head. These acorns are 3 times the size of the ones I'm used to in Mass. and when they are falling from 100 ft. they land with some impact. I was glad that I got hit. There were so many close calls before this one. I may get hit again but the worst part is over.I'm on the porch again. I am sleeping next to a large pile of red cedar. John was telling me all of the spiritual aspects of cedar and how it is used in Native American culture. I figured, not only does it smell amazing but if I am protected in some way by it while I sleep then why not.Temperature is in the low 40's again. I'm bundled up in the same outfit as last night, crotchless thermals and several top layers. ~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-09-28
From: VA 623 Garden Mt.

To: VA 42
Miles today: 0.0

Hiking this morning was short. We pushed out 17+ miles to VA 42. I had offered to give John a hand on the farm as soon as we returned from the trail.John intends to turn some gigantic boards of red oak in to his dining room floor. As of this morning the boards were in raw condition. They were splintering on all sides and the exposed surfaces were discolored and weathered. These pieces of wood are 14' long and up to 21" wide. We planed them all down to the same thickness. As we fed the boards through the planer John was explaining to me how to identify the "better" side of the board to expose on the floor. These red oak pieces were pulled from timber that had been sitting in a forest(on the ground) for some time. There are hundreds of worm holes in all of the pieces. The more worm holes the better I am told. They give the wood character and inevitably will give the room that they are fitted in to character, in this case John's dining room. Worm holes or not I have grown a better appreciation for the patterns within the wood and the colors within it as well.I also helped John out by bagging all of the wood shavings created when planing the wood. He uses the shavings for the pigs bedding. I kept offering to do more projects. I was looking at it as a way to help John accomplish things that he will not be able to once we leave (due to his bad knee). I also looked at the farm labor as an upper body workout opportunity. I moved a couple of piles of lumber from one place to another and also cut some scrap lumber in to fire wood pieces.   On the porch once again! This evening I am listening to a CD for better relaxation. Linda has similar sleeping difficulties as me and she has shared this CD collection with me as it has helped her clear her mind and relax her body before trying to sleep. ~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-09-29
From: VA 42

To: USFS 86
Miles today: 0.0

Today's hike was about 19 miles. The weather has been nice. The average temperature during the day was low 60's. Not one mountain summit had a view today. Most of the ridges and mountain tops are covered in trees. We slack packed to USFS 86.Cubby made an amazing enchilada casserole tonight. He put the whole production together by himself. He was busy in the kitchen for an hour or so diligently cutting and chopping. He insisted that he was all set with help and determined to make this thing by himself. The casserole came out great. It was a tasty, hearty meal after a long couple of long days of hiking.We all watched TV tonight for a couple of hours. The economy has fallen apart and the presidential race looks to be a circus. I like to think about the fact that while in the woods we know nothing of the world outside of ours and it's almost like none of these crazy things that are happening exist. The only thing that forces me to admit they exist is returning to the real world in a month or so.
Date: 2008-09-30
From: USFS 86

To: Troutdale VA
Miles today: 0.0

We hiked in to Troutdale today, about 19 miles. As we exited the trail Spoon noticed a sign for a local winery. We followed the signs to Davis Valley Winery. We were the only ones at the winery other than the woman behind the counter who was serving us samples of the local wine. She allowed 2 rounds of sampling. It doesn't take much to get you a little tipsy after hiking. We bought a few bottles for Grettles parents.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-01
From: Troutdale VA

To: Old Orchard Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today Linda dropped us of at Dicky Gap where we left yesterday. It was sad to say goodbye to her and John but I'm fairly certain that I will see them again.We hiked in to Old Orchard Shelter from Dicky Gap. The temperature dropped to low 50's this afternoon. My nose was running, red and freezing cold while hiking. I stopped at one point to re-tie my shoe laces. My body got cold within a matter of seconds of not moving. My clothes were still sweaty and the breeze on my sweat was bone chilling.Old Orchard has an amazing view in front of it. The only downside is that the exposed front is a breezeway for the wind coming over the fields. As soon as I got here I stripped naked... powered up and put on my dry clothes. The temperature has continued to drop. Spoon and I tied Cubbys and my tarps over the front of the shelter in an attempt to block the wind from blasting directly in to the shelter. The wind gusts are constant and strong. The tarps seem to be helping but since the sun went down it has been frigid. My thermometer shows 38 degrees inside the shelter.I'm wearing 3 pairs of socks, long underwear bottoms (I got new ones at Target before leaving town), 2 pairs of shorts, under-armor long sleeve shirt, thermal base layer long sleeve shirt, Patagonia t-shirt, EMS T-3 fleece long sleeve shirt, crappy $2 gloves from Target and a winter hat.I am having second thoughts about getting my 20 degree bag sent. The 60 degree works OK when heavily clothed in 40's and 50's but 30's is a bit much. Tonight will be my best gauge.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-02
From: Old Orchard Shelter

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Last night was insanely cold. My watch registered a temperature of 38 degrees without taking the 40+mph wind in to consideration. I'm guessing it was closer to 35 or 36 outside of the shelter and close to freezing with the wind chill. The wind has been relentless. It has been howling for 2 straight days now. While hiking it feels good and brings everything around you to life. When trying to sleep the shelter creeks and the trees rustle, big gusts can get intimidating. The tarp rig that Spoon and I set up worked fairly well. It kept out the majority of the draft but it was still freezing regardless. My feet were the coldest.Only 12 miles today. We hiked from Old Orchard Shelter to Thomas Knob Shelter (Thomas Knob elevation is 5400 ft.).I saw some wild Grayson Highland Pony's that everyone has been talking about. I am obsessed with the idea that there are still wild pony's in the US. These things aren't wild mustangs roaming the country side but they are wild midget horses! The pony's are about 1/2 the size of a full grown horse and they have giant pot belly's. They are so used to people passing through the Grayson Highlands that they approach you for attention and food. Two came to the shelter. I got video of everyone petting them and Check just being confused.There are grass fields at the tops of 5000 ft ridges and mountains. The leaves are rapidly changing in to wonderful fall colors.Wearing same clothes as last night. Dried them over the fire first. Also trying a technique of sleeping in my pack for added leg and feet warmth. My Therma-rest only fits 1/2 the length of my body (for minimizing weight). When I'm sleeping in the cold comfort is second to the missing thermal qualities at my lower end. The wood of the shelter is just as cold as the dirt underneath it and it passes right up into my feet and legs. Tonight I have slipped my legs right inside my pack (with the back padding facing the floor). I hope it works because last night I was kept awake shivering from cold feet. ~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-04
From: Damascus

To: Double Springs Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today is Saturday. The town of Damascus was thriving with people this morning.I walked to the Exxon station down the street from Hikers Inn. They served coffee and breakfast sandwiches. I got 2 sausage egg and cheese's on biscuits as well as a coffee and a Full Throttle energy drink with 230mg of caffeine and a ton of other stimulants and chemicals in it.We walked through Damascus and passed hundreds of people that were out hiking or biking the area. I'm glad we did the Creeper Trail yesterday because today there were 10 times the amount of people. We also passed several high school groups that were traveling on the AT to help maintain the trail.The hike today was challenging. The initial climb out of town was 1300 ft. After that ascent the rest of the day did not fluctuate more than 300 ft at a time. Though the inclines were small, they were really steep. I could feel the effects of my heavy pack on my joints. I weighed my pack this morning at the hostel. I'm at 42 lbs! Nothing to be proud of... by this time thru hikers usually have their gear minimized down to the mid 30's. I am carrying an excessive amount of food and 3 liters of water. Otherwise I don't carry any gear that is not essential. Eating a ton of calories is a way to be assured that my body can keep itself warm during the cold nights. Until my 20 degree bag arrives I am not taking any chances. I am at Double Spring Shelter. This is by far the shelter with the worst mice infestation. I have already seen at least 5. One of the 5 ran over my foot while I was stretching. I don't mind the little critters. Mice have never bothered me. I just hope they stay out of my food bag (which is hanging) and don't destroy my gear by chewing it.I did my abdomen exercise regiment as well as stretches and 15 minutes of meditation. It is decent weather right now, probably in the high 50's. Cubby has an awesome fire going. I hope I sleep well. I need my rest for tomorrow's 22 miler.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-05
From: Double Springs Shelter

To: Watauga Lake Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today I hiked from Double Springs Shelter to Watauga Lake Shelter (21.2 miles). It is so nice to be around large bodies of water again. During the last 5 miles of my hike I walked in view of and directly over Watauga Dam. After being in the woods for so long the water made me feel small. The dam was hundreds of yards in length and 2-3 driving lanes wide. Watauga lake is gigantic. There were sail boats and people wake boarding and water skiing. I walked alone all day today. Passing by the lake was exciting. I was thinking about how all of these people were enjoying their recreational weekend on the water... and here I was walking alone with my pack on out of their site on top of the damn. It gave me a feeling of being in a different world. After the dam I entered the forest again and the sounds of the boats faded. Not long after I arrived at the shelter.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-06
From: Watauga Lake Shelter

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

Tonight I am at one of the last hostels on the trail that has gotten rave reviews by other hikers. I am at Kincora Hostel in Tennessee. I would have to say that this is indeed one of the best hostels on the trail. Bob Peoples has run Kincora (attached to his house) for 12 years. He told us that this year he welcomed his 35,000th hiker. His house is a log cabin. The front is covered in ivy and the exposed parts are dark, old logs with cement filler between them. The hostel is a newer addition in the same style. The property is very welcoming. The hostel is covered in AT bulletins, stickers and pictures that hikers drew. The inside of the hostel is set up like cottage. There is a living room with couches and chairs that are draped in quilts and there is a full kitchen with cookware and dishes. Bob drove us in to town shortly after we arrived. Mango and I purchased all that was needed for a Tai feast (that Grettle and I cooked) of stir fry and a Sarah Lee pumpkin pie. Before arriving at Kincora today we stopped in the town of Hampton which was 7 miles in to the hike. We ate lunch in Hampton at a place called The Saloon. The Saloon was a biker bar. It was dark and smokey and... the food was great. We sat at a table outside (because of the dog) and enjoyed the sun while I ate my chicken sandwich and drank a Mountain Dew.We also stopped at Laurel Fork Waterfalls this afternoon. They were with out a doubt the most impressive waterfalls that I have seen on the trail. The water was vibrant white and the rocks behind the water were dark, almost black. The falls were 30ft or so and the water splashed in to a nice little swim pool. Everyone accept me went swimming. I appreciated the falls and enjoyed watching everyone freeze in the water but my mind was in a deeper place. I couldn't bring myself to break and just let loose. I was content with just admiring the falls from outside of the water.Today was an action packed day. I had a ton of fun. Right now I have the hic-up's. I have had them for the past couple of hours. I am sleeping upstairs in the bunk room of the Kincora Hostel.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-07
From: Kincora Hostel

To: Mountaineer Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Tonight I am staying at Mountaineer Shelter. This shelter is less than 2 years old. It is built from trees that were cut from this site. The structure itself is perfect. It was built with great care and noticeably influenced by actual hikers. Some shelters are old, beat up, infested with mice, millions of names and dates and graffiti are carved in to them... and they are not practical for hikers. I have slept in shelters with baseball bat style flooring - when the floor is rounded (bat thickness) wooden poles lined up vertically. Laying on a strip of baseball bats is not comfortable at all. Also many shelters do not have any hooks or nails or dowels to hang your pack on. Some shelters do not have any rodent protection strings hanging. Some shelters are not built long enough for a 6' person to sleep in without your feet hanging off the edge. This shelter has plenty of hooks, mice strings, flat flooring, a loft, a picnic table and there are no gaps in the siding, so the wind is blocked well.Rodent Resistant Hangers (description) = Most shelters have rodent problems. Hikers leave behind all sorts of crumbs and goodies for mice and rats. They are intelligent little critters and will go in to your pack and chew through whatever material needed to get to your sweets. If you hang your food bag from a string, they will climb to the ceiling and down the string and proceed to chew your bag as it is suspended in the air. The simple solution... poke a small hole through the center of a tuna can or soda / beer can or any saucer or cup. Feed the string (which is attached to a cross beam or ceiling nail) through the hole in the center of the can (tie a knot to keep the can where you put it along the string). Leave about 10" of slack hanging out of the bottom of the can and tie a stick to the end. Now you have a string hanging from the ceiling with a can suspended in the middle of it. The idea is that when mice begin to climb down toward your food bag, they can not get around the can without slipping off and falling to the ground. Writing a description of one of these simple little rigs is confusing. If I could draw a picture it would have saved me 5 minutes and probably any confusion on the readers end.Cubby was here first, he moved quickly today and kept to himself. Before I arrived he had collected enough wood for the evening and lit an awesome fire. There are logs and large rocks around the fire and we all spent some time warming up and starring in to the flames. I felt as if we were all thinking about the same thing when we were looking in to the fire, "I'm going to miss this". We all have different plans for when we get off the trail and some of us want to get home sooner than others, but tonight was one of those nights where you can't help but appreciate the experience. ~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-09
From: US 19E

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

The trail follows the North Carolina / Tennessee border for a couple of hundred miles. At times my left foot is in NC and my right in TN. I have seen signs that welcome you in to either state three times now. I am at Roan High Knob Shelter @ 6275 ft. Roan High is the highest shelter on the trail. Once again it is freezing cold and windy. This shelter has a loft with a trap door. Spoon, Cubby and I are sleeping in the loft. Mango, Grettle and Check are in their hammock outside. I read my book for 30 minutes or so and within that time I have seen at least 5 mice scurrying around. There also seems to be an abundance of large spiders up here. I keep flicking them away but I swear it is the same ones returning. I don't know what they want from me. I witnessed the most amazing views I have ever seen today. The clouds were heavenly. There were rays of sun coming through the clouds and lighting the colors of the leaves. We passed by Overlook Shelter which is an old barn in the middle of a valley covered in trees of all different colors. Nestled in the mountains were little white clouds that looked like musket smoke. Backpacker magazine claimed that the Overlook Shelter view was one of the best in the nation. I can't imagine that view looking any more spectacular than it did this afternoon. We sat at the barn for a lunch and sponged up the scenery.I'm making an effort to eat better for the last few weeks on the trail. I am still packing out bagel sandwiches and have promised myself to eat at least 2 fresh fruits per day. I have stopped eating the Pop Tarts and Snickers and Nutty Bars. They were making my blood feel like molasses and bringing my energy levels to a screeching halt.I did abs and stretches.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"
Date: 2008-10-10
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I am at Cherry Gap Shelter with Cubby and Spoon. It is 8:00pm and Mango and Grettle never showed up. Today's hike was moderately difficult. I'm sure that they called it quits and wilderness camped in their hammock. Cubby and I were concerned for a bit but they have done this a few times and I assured him that they were fine and not to worry.Cubby got a roaring fire going. There are 2 day hikers staying in the shelter with Spoon and Cubby. I am sick of the mice and spiders keeping me up at night. I will be in my hammock as often as possible from here on in. The day hikers in the shelter are an older couple who met while thru hiking the AT last year. We exchanged stories about the experience. There is also another day hiker named Luke who is tenting at the camp. He has been doing 2 week hikes in the south on the AT for a couple of years now. Luke has had bad experiences with bears in the past and shared his stories about trying to defend his food and fending off bears from inside of his tent. The last several times that I have stayed in the shelters I have awaken in the middle of the night from either feeling mice touch me or hearing them chew and scurry around. Once I wake up I can't help but listen to the piter patter of their feet all around the shelter. I follow them around with my mind and stress about them potentially chewing my gear. Each incident has cost me up to 3 hours of sleep per night. I can't afford losing sleep so I will no longer stay in the shelters unless I have to or unless the shelter is new and looks NOT to be infested with mice.Tomorrow Spoon has arranged for one of his fraternity brothers parents to take us in for the night. Apparently they took in their nephew a couple of years ago when he thru hiked the AT and enjoyed feeding and housing him. They made Spoon promise that he would allow them to do the same for him when he passed through NC / TN. I haven't met the Sauls yet but they sound like kind, giving people and I look forward to meeting them.I did do my abs and stretches in front of the day hikers. They commented on me not hiking far enough if I still had energy to exercises. I assured them that I have indeed done my share of walking and the exercises were to try and balance my bodies wear... I guess it does sound kind of crazy but I feel stronger and more limber while hiking. Maybe it's mental but I'm hooked on the routine now.~Santana~ "by myself but not alone"