morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-07-29
From: Windsor Furnace Shelter

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 9.21
Weather: overcast clouds

It was a glorious day to hike, especially after 12 hours of sack time! I got up at 9:30 am this morning and organized quickly (for me!) but it was still after 11am by the time I found water and was back on the Trail. After a long, fairly steep climb, the rest of the day was all flat or downhill with great views of farmlands from Pulpit Rock and again from the Pinnacle where I lingered for a while to enjoy lunch.While refilling my dwindling water supply at Cold Spring (it lived up to its name as it was cold, clear and most refreshing!) I met ¢Trooper¢ and ¢Lumbar¢ (a Thru Hiking couple from Hatteras, NC) and ¢Spartan¢ (a Michigan State University student). We are now all here at the Eckville Shelter and have since been joined by friends of Spartan: ¢Tucker¢, ¢Cherry Bomb¢, and ¢Flatus¢ (aka ¢Fart Gas¢) with still a few more expected to arrive after dark.This shelter is owned and managed by the Blue Mountain Eagle Climbing Club and is maintained by a caretaker who lives in a house in front of the shelter. The shelter is a lot more lake a musty old shed than a true AT shelter of the type I¢m accustomed to. Nevertheless, it¢s got bunk beds, a sun-heated shower (oh joy!) a flush privy, (yeah baby!) and refrigerator with pops and cookies paid for on a "donation" basis. Quite the comforts of home!Just like the "AT Class of '04", this year¢s batch of Thru Hikers are delightful characters and fun to be around. They are all really nice and interesting people. It¢s now 8 pm and I¢m about ready to call it a day. This is great.
Date: 2005-08-01
From: Palmerton, PA

To: Wind Gap, PA
Miles today: 15.4

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit. There, now I¢ll have good luck for the month of August.At eight o¢clock sharp Jane Fisher, one of the innkeepers at the Roth House dropped me off at the Trail where I had finished up the afternoon before. Across the road sat a woman filling her water bottle from the jugs of fresh water left there by some thoughtful ¢Trail Angels¢ who knew that water was getting a scarce on the Trail. As I finished putting on my pack called over to her and with an intentional touch of humorous expectation in my voice (as if I had been waiting there the entire time just for her) and said ¢Well, are you about ready to head out?¢ She replied with an equal degree of feigned familiarity, ¢Yep, be right there.¢ And so began a day-long journey along the rock festooned Pennsylvania Appalachian Trail for ¢Grasshopper¢ her Trail Name and ¢Bumpo.¢ was a day spent talking of things past and future¢¦ of things intimate and banal. It was a day spent talking of things as big as one¢s understanding of God, and as finite as the importance of bungee cords and diaper pins as essential elements of hiking gear. The time flew by and this day¢s section that "Trooper" and "Lumbar¢ later described as being ¢pretty tough,¢ went by mostly unnoticed in the midst of our great conversation. Company on the Trail can be a good thing especially for an extrovert like me who is energized by interactions with others, especially after having spent the greater part of the past four days alone in the wilderness.After arriving at the Wind Gap Shelter, ¢Grasshopper¢ continued on north to bunk in the woods, while I elected to stick to ¢Plan A¢ and spend a second consecutive night in a real bed, this time at the Gateway Motel.After a shower and change of clothes, I walked to town for pizza and to shop for breakfast and lunch provisions for tomorrow. The half hour walk back to the motel was all uphill, lugging a bag of groceries, my book, and a stomach full of sausage and mushroom ¢pie.¢ Now I¢m really ready for bed.
Date: 2005-08-03
From:  Delaware Water Gap, PA

To: NYC
Miles today: 0.0

After waking up this morning and drinking some coffee I started to repack my gear for the next few days, when it occurred to me that I didn¢t need to head out and hike today, if I really didn¢t want to. Up until that moment the thought of taking a "zero day" had never crossed my mind. My business partner, Barb, was stopping by to drop off some paper work and office mail. It was then, I realized that I could ride with her to New York, get caught up on miscellaneous business matters and attend a few meetings (that I would otherwise have missed) and spend the night in my own bed. Tomorrow if I wanted, I could ride back here with her as she returns home. The best part of this plan is that I could rest my weary feet and even put new insoles into my hiking shoes. Once the idea crossed my mind, I was committed!And so the day unfolded ¢ by 12:30 pm, I was already back in the New York Office, dressed in my business attire and in the office for meetings, followed by a subway ride home, a cigar, and a light dinner in front of the television. It wasn¢t long before, I fell sound asleep enjoying a night of rest in my own bed away from the rigors and heat of the Appalachian Trail.
Date: 2005-08-04
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Backpacker Campsite #2
Miles today: 5.7

Up, but not really "at ¢em" until mid-morning-- by that time I had finished running errands and getting organized to return to the AT. I went to the office for a few hours before Barb and I left for the Delaware Water Gap around 3pm. It was close to 5pm by the time I got back on the Trail. It¢s been a really hot day today but now the temperatures are beginning to finally cool down. I stopped for water at a pump at the Delaware Water Gap Park before heading uphill to the backpacker campsite where I will be spending the night. The day off was fun; I feel refreshed and I am looking forward to another week in the wilderness. While hiking up to this evening's tent site, I passed a couple of SOBO day hikers who informed me that there were two bear cubs "a hundred yards up the Trail.¢ I never saw them (the fact I actually kept going was a surprise knowing that where there was cubs somewhere there would also be a VERY protective mother bear!). Others I passed reported having seen six bears in the past few hours and there are signs of bears in the area (i.e. bear scat and claw marks on the support poles for the bear bags at the campsite.) But so far the closest I've knowingly been to a bear today is in my mind where the children's song, "The Teddy Bear's Picnic" has been re-playing itself since I set foot in the NJ woods... If you go out in the woods today You're sure of a big surprise. If you go out in the woods today You'd better go in disguise.For every bear that ever there was Will gather there for certain, because Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic.Chorus: Picnic time for teddy bears, The little teddy bears are having a lovely time today. Watch them, catch them unawares, And see them picnic on their holiday. See them gaily dance about. They love to play and shout. And never have any cares. At six o'clock their mommies and daddies Will take them home to bed Because they're tired little teddy bears.If you go out in the woods today, you¢d better not go alone. It's lovely out in the woods today, But safer to stay at home.For every bear that ever there was Will gather there for certain, because Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnicTO CHORUSEvery teddy bear, that's been good Is sure of a treat today There's lots of wonderful things to eat And wonderful games to playBeneath the trees, where nobody sees They'll hide and seek as long as they please Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnicTO CHORUS On an historical note, today I reached my thirteenth State since I began hiking the Trail sixteen months ago. I am looking forward to seeing what wonders the AT in New Jersey has to offer.
Date: 2005-08-05
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Brink Road Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: clear sky

A 20-mile day! Wow! I¢m impressed. Knowing that Sunfish Pond (the first glacial pond on the AT for North Bounders) was only a mile and a half away, I packed up early and headed there to have breakfast, arriving around 7:30 am. It was a lovely, solitary and unhurried location. But an hour later I was back on the Trail.Even though I stopped more times than usual, (to switch from sandals to shoes and back to sandals, and then to sandals and socks; then to replenish water three times to be sure I wouldn¢t run out; jumped into Crater Lake for a quick dip and to cool off; for snacks; views; lunch; and to climb the Catfish Mountain fire tower). I still made pretty good time, arriving at Brink Road Shelter 12 12 hours after my initial departure.The day was hot and muggy, and for a few hours the skies looked threatening (thunder and lightning), but all we got were a few measly dribbles of rain. A good soaking would have been most welcome, but no such luck. ¢Spartan,¢ ¢The Dude,¢ and ¢Caboose,¢ (¢Caboose¢ and ¢Spartan¢ are brothers and ¢The Dude¢ is an old friend¢ ¢ three really nice guys from Kalamazoo, Michigan) are fresh back to the Trail from their first trip to New York. ¢Spartan¢ and I kept passing each other all day on the Trail. We'd chat for a while and swap stories before one or the other of us would stop for a rest or water, or, in "Spartan's" case, to wait for his mates. By the end of the day, we had all converged on the Brink Road Shelter. Following an extensive search for water, we found the trickling remains of what is obviously a very robust spring under normal conditions. The four of us ate dinner around the picnic table which was most pleasant, and now with my belly full of beef stew and mash potatoes and the nub of my cigar (to ward off the mosquitoes and in celebration of my first ¢20 miler¢ of 2005!) finished, I¢m ready for bed. A few minutes ago we heard a large BANG from the direction of the bear box where we've placed our food. We bravely, shooed what we thought was a bear away from it. The bear box is located only 20 yards away from where we sat, which was incidentally only 10 to 15 feet away from I where I had pitched my tent. As looked out in the direction, all I saw of the creature was the (reflection of it in my headlamp) was its eyes. As we started yelling at it, the others saw enough of its shadowy shape in the dark to admit that it was indeed it a bear. I have since moved my tent into the shelter where we are now all bunked down. If there is no safety in numbers there¢s at least comfort in them.The Trail itself in New Jersey is rocky but nowhere near as bad as PA. It¢s great to be alive and to be able to be here doing what I am doing regardless of the Trail conditions. I am a very lucky man.
Date: 2005-08-07
From: Port Jervis, NY

To: Pochuck Shelter
Miles today: 14.1

By the time I hitchhiked back to the Ranger Station, sorted out my food and repacked everything it was 11:30am. To my delight the Trail was relatively flat and pretty much rock-free. Four miles of walking on an old railroad bed and unpaved road was a big treat. Even a bigger treat, though, was finding the ¢NJ Secret Shelter,¢ which had a heated outdoor shower and cold water well: neither of which should be missed. With the humidity as high as it was today, both were really refreshing!Water is now virtually impossible to find with most streams now dry, as well as, the springs.When I arrived at the Pochuck Mountain Shelter, I was happy to find that ¢The Dude,¢ ¢Spartan,¢ and ¢Caboose,¢ were already here along with a mathematics graduate student from Israel named Tali. She is in the US for a month and, although obviously quite a novice backpacker, she is spending eight days of it on the AT. Good for her! She¢ll certainly go home with a different perspective of the US, and of the crazy American people by doing this rather than had she done the traditional tourist stuff. The shelter is small, but as the saying goes ¢There is always room for more,¢ so when ¢Cherry Bomb¢ and ¢Flatus¢ arrived a few minutes ago things just got a little more dense-packed, but it will work. This is a good group - a lot of fun-loving, good-natured energy. Time now for bed.
Date: 2006-04-24
From: NYC ADDENDUM

To: New York, NY
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

GOTTA GO; GOTTA GO; somehow I GOTTA GO...Since my last hike last summer, so many things have changed. I've promoted myself in my own company into obscurity so I could put my energy into the US start-up of a UK-based, global company that does CEO-to-CEO mentoring (you know, coaching kind of stuff with more of a business results focus!) I love the product and have committed to do what is most necessary right now -- to establish a market position here in the US and build some traction.On top of that, my son and daughter-in-law just had my first grandchild (and how outrageous of them to think that Alexandra is THEIR daughter when she's MY GRANDDAUGHTER!) My first and only granddaughter, to boot! So, besides that I want to spend as much time as I can with her (ok, them!) in Minnesota which isn't exactly adjacent to the Trail if memory serves me right. And as if that isn't enough, my daughter has moved to North Carolina and bought a house and, here too, I'd like to spend some time doing projects, being a Dad, etc. (Although Chapel Hill is closer to the AT than Minneapolis, it¢s still a few hundred miles to the East of the nearest "get-on place." Consequently, I've talked myself into believing that this will be a year when I "put my hiking on hold" and "settle for a couple of day hikes and maybe a long weekend or two on the trail." I was pretty convinced that this was the way things were going to be and the weather began to turn. Then I made the mistake of spending a weekend in NC visiting my daughter. Sleeping in her guest room with the windows open was like being in a shelter -- all I could see were the undersides of leaves and the smell of the woods that surround her house was as familiar and as irresistible as the smell of a hot apple pie cooling on a windowsill is to a cartoon character -- you know how the scent floats in waves through the air commanding their olfactory center to levitate them and carry the helpless foil to the source. Intoxicating! After three nights of this I knew I had to find a way to get myself out to the Trail for more than "just a couple of long weekends" and "maybe an overnight or two!" So here I am, staring at my calendar, trying to figure out how I can get to next month's meeting in the London, sign-up a bunch of new clients, spend time with my own "mentees", train our new faculty members, visit my "brood" in MN, put down some tile in my daughter's basement and still get in a hundred miles of "late Spring" hiking on the Appalachian Trail...One thing's for sure though; I GOTTA GO; GOTTA GO; GOTTA GO!
Date: 2006-06-24
From: Update: Gathering Gear

To: Update: Gathering Gear
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Drove to "The B's Nest Farm" over the weekend to gather my gear and start to get serious about the upcoming Foiurth of July Weekend junket to the Trail. While there I decided to take a walk around the fields and through the woods near the Great Trough Creek that serves as part of the Farm's property line -- you know, just a "to break in the boots again" kinda thing.While heading back to the farmhouse for an afternoon nap (after all that exercise!) I spotted a tiny fawn nestled into the underbrush hoping that whatever this creature was that was intently looking at him "would just GO AWAY so my Mommie can come back and get me!!" Scarred though it might have been, it sure was pretty. And how it re-kindles the lure of the Trail and the sense of being so close to nature's nerver-ending cycle of replenishment.
Date: 2006-06-29
From: New York, NY

To: Trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Well, my plans to get back to the trail are starting to materialize over the coming Fourth of July Weekend! Right now they look like this: On Friday, 06/30/06, I plan to drive to the Blackburn Shelter and slackpack back (nice alliteration there!) to Harper¢s Ferry and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy headquarters. It will give me a good 12-mile, yet hopefully light, starting day. At Harper¢s Ferry, I will meet my sister, Roberta, and my brother-in-law, Bill Rogers, whom I have pressed into service as my very own ¢Northern Virginia Trail Angels.¢ They will drive me to their house in New Market, where I will spend the night. While on the way, we will stop at Blackburn Shelter to pick up the rest of my gear. On Saturday, 07/01/06 (rabbit, rabbit, rabbit!), I will set out from Compton Gap to the Manassas Shelter about 16 miles to the North my longest planned day of hiking. The next day, Sunday the 2nd, should take me to Rod Hollow with for this outing of 13.4 miles. On 07/03/06, I hope to get to Bear Den Shelter at Snicker¢s Gap, a hike of 9.9 miles. This will take me through the infamous ¢Rollercoaster¢ stretch I¢ve heard a lot about. On Independence Day I will head back to the Blackburn Shelter, again in ¢slackpack¢ mode as I can pick up my car and return to Bear Den for my gear before heading back to New York City. It will make for a long day, but I am hopeful that if I get everything completed, I will be able to fill in that last remaining gap that has bugged me for the past two years every time I¢ve looked at my wall poster of the AT. Last weekend, I drove to ¢the farm¢ in Pennsylvania where I keep some of my hiking gear, and brought back to my apartment in New York. The past few days I have been doing my hiking and meal plans, so the reality of getting back to the woods is starting to sink in. In some ways it feels so familiar and in other ways it is a totally alien act. Nevertheless, I find myself as excited about setting out as I was over two years ago when I first started my Appalachian Trail adventure. That¢s a good sign.
Date: 2006-06-30
From: Blackburn Shelter

To: Harper's Ferry, WV
Miles today: 12.0

Well, my plans to get back to the trail are starting to materialize over the coming Fourth of July Weekend! Right now they look like this: On Friday, 06/30/06, I plan to drive to the Blackburn Shelter and slack pack back (nice alliteration there!) to Harper¢s Ferry and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy headquarters. It will give me a good 12-mile, yet hopefully light, starting day. At Harper¢s Ferry, I will meet my sister, Roberta, and my brother-in-law, Bill Rogers, whom I have pressed into service as my very own ¢Northern Virginia Trail Angels.¢ They will drive me to their house in New Market, where I will spend the night. While on the way, we will stop at Blackburn Shelter to pick up the rest of my gear. On Saturday, 07/01/06 (rabbit, rabbit, rabbit!), I will set out from Compton Gap to the Manassas Shelter about 16 miles to the North my longest planned day of hiking this time out. The next day, Sunday the 2nd, should take me to Rod Hollow with for this outing of 13.4 miles. On 07/03/06, I hope to get to Bear Den Shelter at Snicker¢s Gap, a hike of 9.9 miles. This will take me through the infamous ¢Rollercoaster¢ stretch I¢ve heard a lot about.On Independence Day, I will head back to the Blackburn Shelter, again in ¢slack pack¢ mode where I will pick up my car and return to Bear Den for my gear before heading back to New York City. It will make for a long day, but I am hopeful that if I get everything completed, I will be able to fill in that last remaining gap in Virginia that has bugged me for the past two years every time I¢ve looked at my wall poster of the AT. Last weekend, I drove to ¢the farm¢ in Pennsylvania where I keep some of my hiking gear, and brought back to my apartment in New York. The past few days I have been doing my hiking and meal plans, so the reality of getting back to the woods is starting to sink in. In some ways it feels so familiar and in other ways it is a totally alien act. Nevertheless, I find myself just as excited about setting out again, as I was over two years ago when I had first started my Appalachian Trail adventure. That¢s a good sign!
Date: 2006-07-02
From: Linden (Front Royal), VA

To: Rod Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: light rain

The ¢Hiker to Trail¢ side of my sweat towel (¢Wilson II¢) didn¢t work as well as the ¢Hiker to Town¢ side had the day before. It took over 40 minutes of watching smiling and nodding well-scrubbed Christians go by on their way to church before a fellow-non-church-goer like me stopped to give me a lift. His name was Jake, a 23 year old active-duty Marine. Really a nice guy! Wants to own a bar by the time he¢s 40. Like yesterday, I saw hardly a soul all day. Around mid-morning I ran into another Long Distance Section Hiker heading south and we exchanged one of the more cryptic of AT exchanges --¢Where ya going?¢¢Oh, South; you know¢¢Yeah¢¢Where you going?¢¢North; you know.¢¢Yeah¢We grinned, tipped our hats, and headed off in our respective directions. ¢You know.¢I had lunch by a spring right on the trail and, in spite of the notably high temperature and humidity from yesterday, still made it to the Rod Hollow Shelter around 4:15 pm.When I arrived I was thinking about making dinner and resting up a bit and then heading back out around 6:00pm for the 6 mile haul through the first half if the ¢Roller Coaster¢ to the next shelter.But changed my mind after I sat down for a while, and got some hot food into my belly and recovered from the joys of the Rod Hollow Hiker¢s Shower (a pipe from a spring that splashes into a rock suitable to sit on if you don¢t mind taking in a very high falsetto for the next couple of hours since the water temp was like two degrees above freezing!) Once I decided that hiking more that was clearly a dumb idea, I enjoyed a very leisurely evening of basically doing nothing but journaling, chit-chatting with the hikers ¢Bumble Bee¢ and ¢Jericho¢ (who also has a Trailjournals.com website) and a father and son team out for a long weekend together, that arrived at the shelter. It¢s now 8:15 pm and although it¢s still light, it¢s dark enough to call it a day. Birds are singing; life is good. Tomorrow, "The Roller Coaster!"
Date: 2006-07-28
From: Bearwallow Gap

To: Bobblet's Gap Shelter
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: scattered clouds

In the twilight, I recall the easy trip from New York to Roanoke and hike on the AT today, enjoying a batch of South Beach chocolate chip cookies and decaffeinated Oolong tea at Bobblet¢s Gap Shelter. My day began early. I was met at the airport by ¢Del,¢ a ¢rent-an-angel¢ (that man can talk!), who drove me up to Bearwallow Gap with an en route stop at the Daleville Kroger¢s Store so I could replace the perishables I left in my refrigerator in this morning¢s rush. I began to hike on around 3:15pm this afternoon and got to the Shelter a little before 5:00pm; an easy few miles for an opening day. Before a very leisurely dinner, I indulged in a cigar and worked on a Sudoku puzzle while snacking on cheese, pepperoni, and crackers with Crystal Light peach tea. I haven¢t seen a soul since I stepped into the woods which are now very peaceful. As I only had a few hours¢ sleep last night, I¢m ready for bed. A few songbirds are announcing, ¢Last Call.¢ All is well.