morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-06-02
From: Duncannon (Doyle Hotel)

To: Peters Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: broken clouds

6/2/16I slept well. Taking a shower and getting all that pollen off me I felt 100 percent better. The Doyle Hotel is an old building and doesn't have AC but I opened the window, turned on the fan and slept comfortably. I thought about taking a zero mile day but I am here to hike so I decided to press on. I went across the street to a little dinner for breakfast. It was good and pretty inexpensively. Two eggs, toast, hash browns and a couple of pancakes later, I was feeling good. The next thing on my adgenda was to send some winter stuff home...so off to the post office. I should be able to keep my pack under 30 lbs now. Verizon texted me I was close to using all my data for the month and they had a better plan for me. So I called and the lady told me I could get three times the data for $5 more a month. Then she told me the monthly charge and with the new plan I would actually be saving $20 a month.I would be saving on phone and texting on the new plan...so win for me I planned to stop at the library and get some of the pictures on my camera uploaded onto the trail journal site but it wasn't where it said it was on my map so I started hiking. Later another hiker told me it was actually in a church and it was only opened a few hours a day. Just after leaving town, I passed over two bridges/rivers, the long bridge passed over the Susquehanna River. Then into the woods where there was a climb to reach a ridgeline I would be walking. What a difference a day makes....the hike was very enjoyable. I wasn't pushing too hard, my allergies were not bothering me and I think it was cooler and I wasn't sweating so much and the gnats were leaving me alone. This part of the trail is known to be rocky but they didn't seem to be too bad.I stopped at the first shelter of the day for a quick break and water. Six other hikers came and went while I was there. The next certain water source was 13 miles away with a unreliable one seven miles away at the next shelter. So I took an extra liter of water with me. I made good time and was there by 4:30. It was a 16 person and no places for tent camping. We ended up with about 12 hikers. I put my feet up for about 15 minutes and my allergies started bothering me. I think some pollen got on my sleeping mat the day before. I took it out and shook it off and it seemed to help. The forecast was for possible thunderstorms so inside wasn't a bad idea. I ate dinner and hung out with the other hikers until 8:30....bedtime. Tomorrow looks to be an 18 mile day. It was a great day to be on the trail
Date: 2016-06-03
From: Peters Mountain Shelter

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: clear sky

6/3/16It rained overnight and forecast called for more the next couple of days. The trail wasn't too muddy but the rocks were slick. Pennsylvania is known for rocks on the upper part of the state and we are starting to see them but not consistently yet. My eyes are bothering me a little other than that my allergies are staying in check. As I started to hike the weather was foggy...I like the fog...the greens pop and there is just a mystic feel about it. The next shelter is 18.5 miles so I won't be stopping at a shelter for lunch. Towards the end of morning the rain starts...it is not a heavy rain so it feels good and I'm not getting soaked. The good thing is it cools you down and it keeps the gnats from buzzing your eyes and ears. I stop for lunch a little after eleven and was going to get water from the spring. The water is pretty orange coming out of the spring so I decide to get it later. I hike past a sign that says there are remains of a coal mining town. I think about checking it out but it is .7 miles so that would add 1.5 miles to my day so I pass it by. A little way down the trail I see a sign for " The General" it is also .7 off the trail. I'm not sure what it is so I continuous on. When I get to camp there is a Ridge Runner, I ask him about the two places and he said the first place was a lot of foundations from old coal mine town and "The General" was an old locomotive. I kinda wish I would have went and checked out the locomotive. There is a chance of rain tonight but I decide to go ahead and tent camp. I have seen quite a few of the little red lizards today...I guess the rain brings them out.
Date: 2016-06-04
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: overcast clouds

6/4/16Well we didn't get the rain they were calling for last night so I got to pack up a dry tent . Looking at 17.5 miles today and water is sporadic so I will have to keep an eye on it. I hiked a couple of miles and ran into a couple of guys i met at the last town(Hoosier and Forster). I asked if they had any trail magic for me and thay had actually come across some Little Debbie cakes and granola bars. I grabbed a granola bar and spoke with them a short while. I moved on and came up on a section hiker. He had been hiking sections of the trail for 17 years and has made it this far from Georgia. He was a retired school teacher. We were heading up hill and he tried to keep up but he was out of breath quickly and stopped to catch it. I turned to ask of he was okay and he said he just need a breather so I continued on. I passed a girl that stayed at the shelter I did last night. This is the most people I had seen in the trail in a while. I was feeling pretty good but wasnt moving that extremely fast. The terrain was getting a little more rocky...at one point one of those rocks decided to jump up and I stubed my toe pretty well. There is a military installation on the east side of the trail. I'm not sure what all they have going on there. I hear some pretty heavy gun fire...in the past few days I've seen an array of aircraft to include C-130(what I worked on in the AF), biplanes, and another older aircraft. The gun fire goes on throughout the day. I end up getting to the shelter a little after 3:00. It is a nice one...fully enclosed, porta pot, solar shower, and the bonus... The pizza place delivers here. After four others arrived it started raining. I took it upon myself to organize the pizza order. I called it in, collected the money and went out to the road to wait on it. When I got to the road a car bad just backed up to leave and I noticed they left their shoes outside the door of where they were parked. I tried to wave them down but they sped off to get ahead of traffic. Guess they figure it out when they get home. Tomorrows forecast is for heavy storms so we will see what happens. Allergies were not an issue and I'm feeling well...other than the stubbed toe. The gnats even stayed away for the most part. Oh yeah....I went over the 1189.2 mile mark today...this means I have less than 1000 miles to go
Date: 2016-06-06
From: Eagles Nest Shelter

To: Windsor Furnace Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: broken clouds

6/6/16Well no more storms came through during the night. It was nice to see the guy that showed up after the storm. It's funny on the trial...you feel more at ease with a stranger in camp...lol. He started in Harpers Ferry and is headed to Maine...then he will go back to Harpers Ferry and head south to complete his thru hike(flip flopper). The way the shelter was built it was pretty dark...woke up a little after seven and wasn't that light but turned to the open side and it was a beautiful morning. Sun was out and plenty of blue skies. Not that we see much of that because we are hiking the AT (green canopy). So today's agenda was to get into Hamburg and go to Cabellas. I had nine miles to get to Port Clinton and Hamburg was a couple of miles south of that. I needed new shoes, a new waterproof food bag, Tips for the bottom of my trekking poles and a few other things. No luck on trekking pole parts. They didn't have the shoes I wanted but did get the food bag. This is the worlds largest Cabelas but they deal more with the hunters and fishermen. I had been here a few years back going to a running event. They have all sorts of wild animals (that have been to the taxidermy of course). I went to Walmart to do a food resupply and decided I'd go back to Cabelas and try the shoes they did stock. I really liked my shoes they were Socouny trail runners and I have put 950 miles on them on the trail. The bottoms held up good but the top of the shoes were shot. I will say Cabelas customer service was not very impressive... I've been to there smaller stores and have had much better service. I tried three pairs and decided on a Merrill shoe. So good bye old friends that have got me so far and hello new blisters that are sure to set in. So after that I got some dinner at Long John Silvers. I asked for hushpuppies for a side not realizing it came with hushpuppies so I had a plate of fish and chicken coleslaw and eight hush puppies. It was getting close to 6 pm and I had over five miles to go after I got to the trail. I headed towards the trail and seen a guy getting in a pickup truck...I asked if he could give me a ride to the trail head...he said he doesn't do that sort of thing, so I wish him a great day and started up the road. Not long after a couple pulled over and asked if I needed a ride and I was back to the trail in no time. Got to love the trail angels I got to try out my new shoes quick...straight up and the down and up again. So far my feet feel good, we will see if its the same tomorrow. It was a beautiful day with temps in the low 70s. I probably got a good 20 miles in today but only 14 counted It was a wonderful day to be a hiker
Date: 2016-06-09
From: Palmerston PA (Bert Steakhouse Garage)

To: Leroy Smith Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: clear sky

 6/9/16Sleeping in the garage was fine. Supposedly some loud alarm went off outside but I was just told about it today...lol. I was thinking of zeroing today but the forecast is sunny with a high of 70 so I decided to hike today and zero Saturday when they are calling for rain and T-storms. L ate breakfast at the place I was staying at and two other hikers(grizzly and moma?) were eating and lining up a ride with the owner to the trail. I had nothing packed and told them to go ahead without me. I started packing and they hadn't left so I got my stuff together fast and got a ride with them. Its amazing I didn't loose anything because I just started throwing things wherever and didn't even have my shoes on when we left. She dropped us off at a local business and I put everything in its home and had everything. The ride saved me two miles getting back to the trail. So I've been waiting for these Pennsylvania rocks I've heard so much about and the wait is over. The day started with the most technical climb we've had so far but we will get more further north. Huge rocks going straight up with small foot holds and a backpack pulling you backwards. It took close to an hour to get to the top of this mountain and the view was spectacular. I don't know what I would have done if I was a day earlier and that rain hit....there was nowhere to hide. The wind was kicking and Stitch lost her hat but we were able to locate it. I got a few good pictures then moved on. There is a detour on the AT because it passes through a super fund site where they smelted zinc from 1898 to 1980. The detour was quite scenic as we were out of the treeline walking a open ridge looking down on the village below and the mountains to the west. So after the detour the trail is back into the trees and just a continuous path of small rocks. And like they say they all have points that stick up. You have to watch where you put your foot down every step. Sometimes you are stepping on rocks and sometimes between them. It is a pretty tough hike, you're not doing much but watching where to put your next foot. Not making many fast miles today. I passed a couple of guys doing some surveying and they are complaining about the rocks too. After a long day and only a little over 15 miles I make it to camp by five. I get my tent set up....it needs to dry from yesterdays storm. I go get water and the closest spring is dried up. I end up walking .6 miles for water and that adds another 1.2 miles to my day. Not much water in this part of PA...there was only one other water source during the day and it was a ways off trail too. I got settled in and hope to get 20 miles in tomorrow but that may change. It was a beautiful day for a hike.
Date: 2016-06-10
From: Leroy Smith Shelter

To: Delaware Water Gap (Church of Mt)
Miles today: 20.2

6/10/16Yesterday must have been a rough day because I slept good. The temperature dropped into the upper 40s and it was good sleeping weather. I was up early though and was on the trail by 7:30. My feet hurt and feel tired but feel better after you get going a while. More rocks today and my new shoes are taking a beating. The trail started rough again but I was refreshed and feeling good. I know the trail is rough because it was a perfect day to hike and I see no day hikers or weekend hikers. As it was yesterday a lot of the trail has small rocks that point up. You can dodge some of them but end up on another one. I hit a couple of boulder areas and ensure I tap my treking poles on the rocks to warn any sunning snakes. I did see one snake under a rock but I didnt get close enough for him to rattle at me. One boulder area was at a cliff...not the greatest view but it was a sharp drop down. I made it halfway just a little after 11:00 and stopped for lunch. I pulled out my sleeping mat and even took my shoes off to air my feet out. I did another seven miles and stopped at the shelter for water. This was the only water supply of the day. The plan was to do another 6.5 miles and stay at a church hostel in Delaware Water Gap community. During the afternoon sections of the trail smoothed out and I wasn't dodging rocks like I was earlier in the day. I made it to town by 4:00 an hour earlier than I had planned. I went out for a calzone and beer and back to relax. I plan to zero tomorrow and be refreshed for Sunday. Today was a perfect day for a hike...low 70s, sunny skies and no bugs.
Date: 2016-06-11
From: Delaware Water Gap (Church of Mt)

To: Delaware Water Gap (Church of Mt)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

6/11/16It was nice to take a zero. Between the two days I seen a lot new and old faces. I ate a lot, did my laundry, resupplied and just gave my body some rest. I started the day off with a hiker breakfast that included two eggs, toast, bacon, hash browns and two pancakes. One girl, Ranger, hiked this area as a kid, fifteen years ago, wanted to go to Hotgog Johnies where they would go after hiking. Kinder had a car and I went along. This place was in Butzville New Jersey and it was amazing how many people were there. They had four windows to order food and there was a line behind each. The cook the hotdogs in peanut oil. I got two dogs, a fries and birch beer(kinda like rootbeer). They had been selling hotdogs here for like seventy years. It was really good. Later Ken, an older member of the church gave us a ride to the next town so we could hit Walmart...it was quite the ride. On the way back he dropped us off at a bakery that bad a hotdog and piece of pie special for $2.95. Since I already had a hotdog they were smoking pork and sausage out front. I elected to get the pulled pork with two small sides. It was late in the day and they hooked me up with a large side of potato salad and a large piece of watermelon. Later they were cleaning up an brought our table over some left over pulled pork. We ate that and then I couldn't leave with out some apple pie and ice cream. This hiker hunger is enjoyable and the best thing is no need to worry about gaining weight. People that stayed at the church hostel included, Pops, Pine Cone, Ranger, Griz, Moma Bear, Kinder, Toxic Feet, Robin, Subman and Suds, Secret Agent, Stitch.
Date: 2016-06-12
From: Delaware Water Gap (Church of Mt)

To: Brink Shelter
Miles today: 24.8
Weather: clear sky

6/12/16I got my stuff ready the night before so I would make minimum noise in the morning since I was leaving early. Most people were up before me though. The kid that showed up a week earlier at the shelter when there was tstorms got in late last night (Romontee?) So I talked with him, I had heard he was having knee problems but he seemed to be doing okay now. Subman and Suds was heading out at seven and I was fifteen minutes behind them. We had to hike an little through town and then we were out along interstate 80. They had concrete barrier and a place for us to walk as we passed over the Delaware River. It was a pretty long bridge and right in the middle we passed over into New Jersey. We passed a state park visitor center and then crossed underneath the interstate and eventually got back to the dirt/rock trail. The rocks weren't too bad starting off but they got bad for a while and then improved as the day went on. We passed by sunfish pond and it made by a glacier and had very acidic water that only few fish species could survive and one was the sunfish. As I was walking beside it two snakes out sunning were on the trail.. I seen the first and he moved off. The second caught me by surprise. I was in a shaded area and he was in one small sunny spot. He slithered off....just caught me off guard. I always hit my poles on the rocks when I feel I'm in snake territory. We had a couple of areas we were climbing on boulders but they didn't last long and the change of pace was nice. We passed one camping area that had a spectacular view but it was too early in the day to stop. I stopped at a fire tower for lunch. You could climb the tower but the observation deck was locked. It was extremely windy the higher up you went. I threw my sleeping pad out below the tower in the shade...took my shoes off...and enjoyed my lunch. Subman and Suds came by and I hiked with them a little after lunch. I was trying to get more miles in so I pushed ahead of them. Late in the afternoon as I hiked a bear went running across the trail about 25 yards in front of me. That caught me off guard because I hadn't seen a bear since Virginia. I was going to stop at a campsite but the water looked nasty so I pushed on four miles to the shelter. I found Moma Bear, Pops and a couple of other hikers at the shelter. I said I'll just set up my tent. They said one guy had his tent up and a bear came over and started sniffing it. So we all decided to all stay in the shelter. We ended up with nine hikers in a five person shelter. It has a big porch and we are sleeping on it also. Not suppose to rain so should be okay. The weather was low 70s and the wind kept you from sweating. Hiking doesn't get much better than this
Date: 2016-06-13
From: Brink Shelter

To: High Point Shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: broken clouds

6/13/16There were no bear issues during the night. It was a cool night...good for sleeping. When I got up my feet hurt...all these rocks have taken their toll. The bottom of my feet have been feeling sore but today's the worst I recall. It is a tired or even a bruised feeling but get moving and they loosen up. It just seemed today we started on a rocky trail again. Today's agenda included a beach and concession stand in the afternoon. The morning was cool...I had to start hiking to warm up. Water was limited again so I needed to stop at the shelter six miles away and fill up. By the time I was done getting water and filtering it I was cold again. I believe the temps were in the upper 50s and threre was a cool breeze. I hiked another four miles and found a shelter on top of a mountain with limited views I stopped for lunch. The sun was out and it wasn't so cool when you were out of the wind. On my way off of the mountain I spotted a wild turkey and five young turkeys. I tried to get a picture and got one of the mother. I hiked a little further and couldn't find a white blaze. So I turned around and got back to the trail. Those little turkeys threw me off. I made it to the lake and went to the concession stand to find it was closed on Mondays The sun was no lknger out and it was a cool day. Only a dozen people were on the beech. I took my shoes off and waded a bit and then took a shower to get one layer of dirt off. I put the same clothes back on but felt a little cleaner. I passed the highest point in New Jersey and took a picture of the monument that sets on top. I made it to the shelter and everyone is tenting or hammocking. So hopefully the bears will leave us alone. We always joke the people in the hammocks look like a burrito to a bear. Today was NOT a good day to...be a swimmer but a perfect day for a hike
Date: 2016-06-14
From: High Point Shelter

To: Wawayanda Shelter
Miles today: 23.9
Weather: overcast clouds

6/14/16I woke up early and was on the trail before seven. The trail was the best it had been in a long time. Not much elevation change and more importantly the rocks were gone to start the day. I was heading to Unionville to get a few things for my food bag at the local grocery. It wasnt much of a grocery but a convience store. They did have breakfast sandwiches and I got a ham, egg and cheese sandwich and OJ, the sandwich was exceptionally. Before heading out I got a throwback Mountain Dew with real sugar and that also hit the spot. I headed out of town and the trail remained good to me. After some time I came to some fields but they hay had already been cut and rolled and it was nice being out in the sun as the day had started out cool. There were lots of boardwalks throughout the day, one was over a half mile long. Its been dry for a while so not much water was under them though. I passed into New York and was back and forth between that and New Jersey all day. I had a late lunch and was heading for what the locals call "stairway to heaven". It was a pretty good climb up. Lots of people were here and on the boardwalks. A few passed me but had to stop before they made it to the top...I just kept a steady pace and passed them on the way up. The overlook was of both NY and NJ. I found the tower I was at just a day earlier and it was amazing to see how far I had come(22 miles to this point). Soon one of the couples I had passed come running up and said there were three cubs and a moma bear at the overlook entrance. One guy went down and scared them away and I never did see them. I headed to the shelter and picked up some water on the way up. This is one of the few shelters that doesn't have a close water source. I ate with six hikers I had never met before and headed to the tent because the mosquitoes were bad. I checked out tomorrows shelters and it will be a tough call. There is one at 12 miles and one at 26. There is not much as in campsites in between and one area is suppose to be kinda technical. I guess I will see how bad it is and go from there. It really felt good to get away from those rocks even though I had some during the day. It was the best hiking day I have had in a while. I was just feeling it and the trail and weather couldn't have been better. It was a wonderful day for a hike, indeed