morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-03-19
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: clear sky

        Day 22        I froze my fanny off last night! The only way I could stay warm was by whacking Eats¢ military surplus air mattress whenever he started snoring again. That thing must have weighed 4 lbs. He traded a six pack for it and still had some with hisdinner last night. Nice guy though. He worked at an RV dealer during the day and tended bar at night to save for this trip. Sugar Daddy left in the dark to night hike(andimpress everyone), and I left early the next am without breakfast because I was too coldto slow down and eat. We were headed for Hot Springs today and that means a warm meal and Allyn is coming to pick us up and take us home. I thinkEvelyn and I need a zero together to work out our feelings. Bo and I agreed to meet at the diner when I left and I met Mello and Red Beard on the trail and had a great chat with them. RB and I had lunch¢¦.a very big lunch¢¦together; but after an hour; Bo had not arrived so I backtracked and found him coming in about a mile or so out. He had not left as soon aswe surmised. He was becoming a bit frustrated; because he felt that our paces were too different to be together; but I think that much of it was his fatigue talking. We¢ll see.Evelyn and Jennifer met us on the road coming into Meadowoods and WOW she couldn¢t have been sweeter and more happy to see me. I was so worried. I guess I just caught her at a bad time on the phone the other night. It was a real bonus to see Jennifer too. I learned that Bo¢s architect is coming tomorrow so I re-scheduled everything and heseems much happier with the new plans.
Date: 2004-03-20
From: Hot Springs

To: Spring Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 25        Evelyn drove us back to Hot Springs and we headed out in shorts and T-shirts again. We climbed most of the day and had nice lunch at Mill Ridge Pond. We made it a short day and stayed at Spring Mtn Shelter. After dinner; Eats, Slips, Fits, and Giles rolled in a built a great campfire and Bo is definitely in a better mood though it sounds like he has been listening to talk radio on his day off.
Date: 2004-03-22
From: Spring Mtn Shelter

To: Jerry's Cabin shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: few clouds

This was a better day for views. We did a lot of climbing up to Bearwallow Fire Tower and I met Sunshine. He graduated from U Fla and wants to go to law school. He seems to have his ethics and ideals in order; but he admits that many law students lose them as they begin to dream of dollars. My thumb throbbed all night last night so at lunch I went under it with my knife to see if I had some leftover splinter in it fromthe Smokies and sure enough; I was rewarded with a piece of splinter and 12 cc of pus.That felt so much better!   We finished the day along a terrific stone ridge that the local AT club built and dropped into Jerry¢s Cabin Shelter. I decided to tent to avoid the noise and I am glad I did. Eat, Slips and Fits rolled in later and I could hear them pretty well even from 50 yds away.
Date: 2004-03-23
From: Jerry's Cabin shelter

To: Low Gap Campsite
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: clear sky

27        We had a somewhat late start and I have changed the plan so Tom won¢t spend his first trail night at a motel in Erwin. That means a pair of back to back 20milers and Idon¢t know how Bo will take it. It was pretty neat to hike across Sam¢s Gap today and Ithink that I will feel differently about it whenever I drive across it from now on. I am really looking forward to seeing Tom and Evelyn in tomorrow.
Date: 2004-03-24
From: Low Gap Campsite

To: Erwin
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Low Gap to Erwin; our second twenty miler in a row. It began more difficult thanI had hoped; but soon the trail became a fast side hill down hiller and I just flew to the shelter above Erwin. Interestingly; the register was full of entries of people who had all done back to back 20¢s and more as they all headed into Erwin. I guess we all tend to think alike. Evelyn was waiting for us at Uncle Johnny¢s hostel and drinking beer with Grey Fox, Northern Harrier, and Early Bird. She has already a member of the group!Swiss Miss and Wildcat met her and then headed into Johnson City for the night.Tom was at home with the dogs when we got there and we had a great dinner and then retired to the hot tub.
Date: 2004-03-25
From: Erwin

To: Beauty Point
Miles today: 10.7

Day 29The hike today was pure uphill. We walked some with Swiss Miss and Wildcat and Shadowman from Wisconsin. We briefly saw D©j vu and she looked tired; but stillblew right by us. Tom struggled some with the heat and the climb; but he was tough all the way and we found a great camping site just off a bluff and pitched our tents. Looks like rain tonight.
Date: 2004-03-26
From: Beauty Point

To: Clyde 'Smith shelter
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: scattered clouds

30        Well the wind just howled all night and I think Tom and I stayed awake for most of it until around 4:30 when it stopped and the rain started. That calmed things down and we elected to stay in until the rain stopped since the radio said it was supposed to clear for the afternoon. Bo went on in the early a.m. so we¢ll catch up to him at the shelter.The rain stopped around 10:00 so we packed and rolled out. Tom wasn¢t hungry again this a.m. but he seemed to be climbing more strongly than yesterday. We met Moonpieat the Curly Maple Gap shelter and had lunch with her. She walked with us to the next shelter and was great fun to be with. Tom really enjoyed her and she treated his blisterlike a pro. Bo, Swiss Miss and Mello were waiting for us at the shelter and so we had a nice group for the night. The sky darkened just as we arrived and we could see cracks of lightning in the near distance so we were glad to be there. Tom couldn¢t eat dinner again and I am worried about him.
Date: 2004-03-27
From: Shelter just before Roan Mtn

To: Carver's Gap
Miles today: 7.9

Day 31        Moonpie led out into fresh snow this am and Tom and I followed.   It was just lovely; but we started with a steep climb right off the bat. I knew we had to do a big climb up Roan Mtn so I was a little disappointed when we went down again. Roan wasawesome. Slippery, snowy and straight up for miles with no let up. It was definitely the longest and hardest climb of the trip. Tom struggled to get down a single piece of dried papaya¢¦his sole food for the day. I knew he was getting into deeper and deeper trouble and had decided to take him out at Carver¢s Gap because I knew there would be a road there. As I broached the bail out topic; he said that he had been trying to figure a way to tell me the same thing; so it worked out fine. It turns out that he had hurt his knee on the first climb of the day and was in agony all the way up Roan. What a trooper! Bo met us at the top and hailed a car and sent on our way into the town of Roan Mtn where we called Evelyn for a pick-up. Bo went on with the group to the Overmountain Shelterand they had 50-70 mph winds that night followed by 8¢ of fresh snow. Moonpie and Sunshine elected to go on; but the rest hiked out to the road near Elk Park through waistdeep snow drifts and called it a day.
Date: 2004-04-12
From: Carver's Gap

To: unamed viewpoint just past 19E
Miles today: 16.0

4-12-04   Monday        It has been nearly two weeks now and I have finally finished the library cabinets and last night we had Schery¢s 60th birthday party. Sucha good time with good wine and slow roasted tenderloin. Evelyn dropped me off around 10:00am at Carver¢s Gap. It was low 50¢s at the bottom of the mountain and high 30¢s at the top with rain and lots and lots of wind.I said good-bye and headed up¢¦up¢¦and up through a couple of groves of rhododendron and out onto the bald. Whoosh! What a wind. I could barelystay on the trail and a couple of gusts literally blew me sideways off the trail and it took 5-6 yards before I could get stopped and head back over to the trail again. The rain just stung my face and the clouds/fog made visibility pretty much nil. Thank goodness for my new parka. It was an impulse buyon the sale rack going out the door; but it is a lifesaver now. I¢ve got the hood cinched down to lessen the amount of my face that is exposed.        I crossed two balds that I recall and then headed down the mountain inslick mud. I sat down hard a couple of times; but no damage done and before too much longer; I reached Overmountain Shelter. It is a converted barn with sleeping areas in the loft; but the gaps between the boards of the walls is no less than 6-8¢ anywhere. Freedom and CareFree were sacked in for the day as were a couple of others who actually were in their tents on the floor. I ate my lunch and visited a bit before pressing on. ¢ Perfect weather for hypothermia¢ he said and that phrase stuck in my head for the rest of the afternoon. Around 4-5 I reached Apple Hill shelter and the sun broke through and it was actually a nice day; but I figured that not another soul would be there tonight so I pressed on until around 6:30 and pitched my tent on a beautiful grassy ridge. I fixed my dinner and watched the sun set wellsatisfied that I had come through the worst of a hard day. Wrong! Around 1:30 am the flashes of lightning woke me and I heard the early sprinkle of rain. I counted the distance until the thunder and it was¢¦.Oh Shoot! ¢¦12 a mile and getting closer. Now my beautiful grassy ridge was looking a lot like an exposed ridge and a lightning strike just waiting to happen. Of course; the odds of getting hit would be pretty small. Darn it! I put on my wet shorts and socks and my parka and headed down the hill into the treesto wait out the lightning. Now it is 2:30 going on 3:00 and I am doing squats to stay warm. It¢s been a while since the last crack so; maybe it¢s safe to go back up..Kerpow! Maybe not. Another half an hour and the rain is really coming down hard now and I am shaking like a leaf. Finally, I decided that the risk of hypothermia was greater than the risk of lightning so I headed back to my tent to take my chances. It really did die down then as the rain became harder and harder. Not much sleep for me. Twice the windblew so hard that I had to get out and replace tent stakes that pulled free.
Date: 2004-04-13
From: unamed viewpoint just past 19E

To: Kincora
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: overcast clouds

13-04 Tuesday                It is still raining this a.m. so I waited until almost 10:00 to pack and go. I am so stiff and tired. I really feel it all over today; but I¢ve got 21 miles to get to Kincora. I stopped to see Jones Falls and it was huge and there had been so much rain; that the water coming off the top was literallybrown. I met Scuba (Waynesboro, Va) and Mountain Man ( Vermont ) thereand I tried to walk with them; but Scuba was slackpacking with about 10#and he was just flying. I caught them several times during the day and I would see them again when I got to Kincora. After lunch; I was so sleepy and achy. I tried eating and drinking more; but nothing seemed to help. Finally; after I got to Moreland Gap Shelter, I just perked up and felt goodagain. I think that I have just gone through my caffeine withdrawal. I missed that the first time; because I remembered to taper before I left for the trail.        When I got to Kincora , they were packed so Mountain Man and I got a ride into Hampton and took rooms at the Castle; an old railroad administration building that Beverly and Sutton had split between their living quarters and a hostel. GG, Woody, and Mickey One Sock were there and we had a nice reunion. MM and I went out for Pizza with Seiko ( a triple crowner many times over) and then sacked out for the night after laundry.
Date: 2004-04-14
From: Kincora

To: Iron Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 27.0

-14-04 Wed        I cannot believe it! Snow again! We had breakfast downtown and then had to wait until after 9:00 for Seiko to return and give us a lift to Kincora. The trail out of Dennis Cove was beautiful with heavy wet snow on the rhododendrons as we walked down to the river. Laurel Falls was a big broad falls with tons of water pouring off of it. The river was really swollen and surging and the trail ran right along the rocks next to the river. In places, we were only a foot off the water and some of the footing was very sketchy. MM didn¢t mention until later that we really should have unfastened our hip belts in case we fell in. I am sure we would have beenhundreds of yards down stream before we even thought about coming up for air. Pond Mtn. was a straight up kicker that was doubly difficult because of the snow on the trail. Footing was rough; but we enjoyed each other¢s company and had lots of common interests. When we came down the otherside; it was only 2:00 so we hitched the 2 miles back into Hampton; ate a great lunch, dried our clothes at the Castle and Beverly gave us a ride back around 6:00. We hit the Watauga shelter around 6:30; but it was already full. The afternoon rest left us feeling good so we pressed on to the next shelter almost 8 miles away. The walk was fabulous. Watauga Lake wasbelow us on the right and the sun was setting in the valley on the left.   Darkness settled in around 9:00; but with our headlights and the snow; the walking was really great. As we approached Vandeventer shelter; we sawa bonfire; which, though inviting; is not a good sign for vacancy. Sure enough; there was a school group and it looked like sardines above and below the sleeping platform. We chowed down on bagels and peanut butter and took off again for Iron Mtn. Shelter 6.8 miles away. It is now almost 10:00; but we were still feeling strong. The hiking was even more lovely as the lights in the valleys to either side of us flickered on. Now it is 11:00 and we are still not there and I could feel my reserves just go¢¦ I¢m back to heavy legs, and aching all over; but we are only following one or two sets ofprints so we feel that surely we¢ll find a space¢¦. It was packed too! We surrendered and pitched our tents in the dark in the snow and settled in. At first; my bag felt so good and warm; but after an hour, the cold crept up through the groundcloth and mattress and I was cold all night long. I kept waking up and thinking I had rolled off my mattress; but it was just plaincold. Mountain Man had the same experience and we both looked prettybad by morning
Date: 2004-04-15
From: Iron Mtn Shelter

To: Damascus
Miles today: 26.3
Weather: clear sky

4-4. We broke camp around 10:00 after a few fitful hours of sleep and headed for Damascus. We had been almost 25 miles the day before and this one would be over 26 if we made it. We caught up with Nails and Scarf at lunch and spent some time chatting and taking photos.The trail was really pretty broad and easy to walk and I had a nice feeling when we got to Low Gap and I recognized where I was. After we passed the Abingdon Gap Shelter, it was downhill all the way to Damascus; but both ofus were really hurting. My calves and his feet and we had to stop at Backbone Rock trail and take our meds. Finally we hit Damascus around 9:30 and I called Evelyn. She came right away; but we were in the pizza parlor and though I watched for her; I missed her because every other carseemed to be a Ford Explorer.. She drove all over town looking for us and finally found us and took us home. Mountain Man stayed with us for the night and we ended the evening with a beer in the hot tub. Life is Good!
Date: 2004-04-25
From: Damascus

To: Lost Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I got a late start because I had to seal the seams on my new Tarptent; but after Evelyn and Jennifer dropped me off in Damascus; I had a good sub at Cowboys and a nice chat with Cowboy himself. He is a nice guy and has great subs. I walked along the trail which really just parallels the Virginia Creeper Trail for much of the day. It began as pretty hot; but mid-afternoon I hit a pretty hard rain with lightning; but at least this time, I was not up on a ridge so I felt pretty safe. By 6 pm it was gone and I pulled into Lost Mtn shelter. I was tired; but had a great birding day:Hooded,Blackthroated Blue and Green,Black-and-White,Blackburnian warblers; Orchard orioles, Rose Breasted Grosbeaks, Scarlet tanagers, Wood thrushes, and Ovenbirds.   I met Boxcar/Stretch/Root, Addrock,Stumblebum,Freeze,at the shelter and Bramblepassed through briefly.
Date: 2004-04-26
From: Lost Mtn Shelter

To: Stone Mtn campsite
Miles today: 20.0

It rained pretty hard all night so the shelter was nice. It was big log construction with a tin roof so the rain made quite a racket. I left around 9am in a light rain; but I still felt pretty warm and the trail was great. I wished that Tom could have started on this section instead of on Roan Mtn; but as soon as I had that thought; it got much colder and windier and I crossed Whitetop in fog and rain. I was started to shake even though I was walking so I found a low spot and tried to add more clothes even though I knew it wouldn't leave much dry stuff to wear tonight. Then I realized that maybe I had waited too long; because my fingers were so cold that I couldn't work any of my zippers or drawstrings. I really was afraid that I wouldn't be able toget out my other clothes; but I finally succeeded and soon I was warm again and headed up to Elk Park. I found the feral ponies there and had a break fromthe rain for a while; but the rocks up on Mt Rogers were awful. Lots of twisting and turning on my left ankle and that is worrisome. It really would still be a great walk on a sunny summer day. By the time I hit Wise shelter; it was full so I traveled another couple of miles to a grassy field and set up my new Tarptent. It is great and so easy to put up. The rain stopped and by the time I had eaten and sacked out; the moon came out and I went to sleep listening to a Barred Owl calling.
Date: 2004-04-27
From: Stone Mtn campsite

To: Troutdale
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: light rain

I got an early start this morning and it looked like a great day. As I picked up some water at the first stream; I met Freeze coming from the Wise shelter and we spent the rest of the day together. He used to ride CAT II in Miami so we talked a lot about cycling and the upcoming Tour de France. The terrain was nice and Iron Mtn had nice open woods on top. They took us around to Comer's Falls and we traded pictures there. Freeze had sent all of his warm gear home so we definitely wanted to make the hostel in Troutdale; because the weather report was for low 30's. It took a while; but we caught a ride into Troutdale with a couple of day hikers we had passed earlier and they took us right to the hostel and gave us sodas to boot. What nice folks. We ate at the trading post and since the hostel was still a work in progress; they let us sleep on the church floor. I met Happy,Midas,Numbas,Harmony and Longshot there and had a good night listening to the wind howl....outside where it belongs.
Date: 2004-04-28
From: Troutdale

To: Atkins
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: clear sky

I made an early start and hit the Trading Post again for a Hungry Man Breakfast and hitched a ride back to the trailhead with one of the patrons.As soon as I hit the trail; I slowed to a crawl because the birding was even better. I added a Blackpoll warbler and a Broadwing Hawk to the birds I had seen yesterday. It was a beautiful cloudless day and the trail was nice. I met Fullmoon and his golden retriever, Jessee and we walked together until noon when I dropped back to eat lunch and tape my ankle. It was still pretty sore this a.m.; but I did a figure 8 with duct tape and that was wonderfully better. By 2 or 3 I reached the legendary Partnership shelter. It looks brand new and is right beside the Mt. Rogers ranger station so it is 2 stories,was a SHOWER in one side and best of all; you can use the pay phone at the ranger station and the pizza parlor will deliver there. There was a dumpster in the parking lot literally half full of nothing but pizza boxes. I hooked up with Adrock and Stumblebum there and we set off forChatfield shelter; but we lost Stumblebum on the first hill; a casualty of too much pizza. Adrock and I had a nice time talking about cycling as well and his plans to go to law school in Austin, Tx this summer. Too bad he can't finish the trail; but he got married Feb 29th so he needs to be home more than he needs to finish.   We caught Boxcar/Stretch/Root just before the shelter and when we got to the shelter they said they were going on to Atkins because the trail goes right by a Dairy Queen. Now that sounded really good since I missed the pizza run so off we went at their incredible pace and hit the DQ just before dark. We talked with one of the workers Eugene Hoover about his English Labradors that he breeds and suddenly I realized that I was only 40 minutes from home down I-81. We called Evelyn and she picked us up and we finished the night with beer in the hottub on a gorgeous starry night. Are we hiking right or what!
Date: 2004-04-29
From: Atkins

To: Poor Valley
Miles today: 17.0

4/29/04 Atkins to Poor Valley 17 milesWe left after a good home cooked meal and started walking and birding. They really enjoyed the warblers. At the North Fork of the Holston; we were soaking our feet in the icy water and were soon joined by Happy and Freeze. We hiked together to Knot Maul shelter and there was GG! She is the oldest woman hiking the AT this yea at 68. Happy stayed there and the rest of us went on to camp at Poor Valley and almost called in a Barred Owl.
Date: 2004-04-30
From: Poor Valley

To: Laurel Creek
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: overcast clouds

4/30/04 Poor Valley to Laurel Creek 19.4   Freeze and I had a great morning together birding. Chestnut Ridge Bald is lovely and the shelter is the first 4 sided one we have seen. Then we noticed that the roof was being held on by steel cables. That tells you something! Root and the gang caught up to us there and we began walking along the ridge overlooking Burke¢s Garden. They call it God¢s thumbprint. The bad news is that we lost Root for nearly an hour. Finally Adrock showed up with him from behind us and we continued on.I think Root was pretty scared because he has stayed pretty close since.Stretch burned us pretty badly getting us to Jenkins shelter; so I led out to moderate the pace a bit. This was the section where we crossed a stream 12times in 2 miles so we all ended up with wet feet. The campsites were nice though a little close to the road and I heard a screech owl burring lowly rightover our campsite. So Cool!