morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-07-15
From: Morristown, NJ

To: Mail Drop addresses
Miles today: 0.0

I hiked 38 miles from palmerton to delaware water gap on tuesday, and didn't get there until about 9:45 after a bit of night hiking. I planned to meet dad at the 24-hour diner, which closed at 9:00 (thanks wingfoot) I was able to get a few reheated slices of pizza from the pizza place a couple minutes after they closed, so i didn't starve.I originally planned 3 days off at home, but i really don't want to leave the trail for that long, so i decided 2 nights would be enough. I spent most of the day running random errands on wednesday, and decided that i had no interest in reweighing and changing around some of my gear. It worked for 1280 miles, it should work for another 894. I did take some time to reshuffle my food drops, taking out the food i have never eaten, and trimming them down to about 4-5 days of food each. I also reworked my schedule to reflect what i think i will probably do for the rest of the trip. Most of the numbers are still guesstimates, but at least they are closer to real. I will do two more big days so that i can get to the hiker feed in harriman state park this weekend, but after that i have estimated averaging no more than 20 a day. This way i should relax a bit more, find some people to hike with, and have more time to read/write/do nothing. Even taking it easy, this schedule has me finishing on aug 31.7/22 Kent, CT7/26 Lee, MA (someeone from worcester wanna come get me?)8/02 Manchester, VT8/07 Hanover, NH8/15 Gorham, NH8/25 Monson, ME8/31 KathadinThe locations and addresses are all the same as before, but the dates have changed significantly. It is possible i might run ahead of this schedule, so it doesn't hurt to send something a little further ahead of time. I will still leave forwarding addresses at post offices just in case.After spending a day at home, i am already looking forward to getting back on the trail. It is an entirely different environment, and i think the greatest part about it are the people. It hit me today while driving how different it is. On the trail, everyone is basically assumed to be friendly and trustworthy, and this is generally a safe assumption. If you encounter someone who makes a mistake or even intentionally does something stupid, the assupmtion generally is that it was a mistake. While driving, even the smallest mistake warrants anger, names, and a one-finger salute. The assumtion is that the driver is a bad driver and made the bad move intentionally. Driving is an extreme case, but it does show the difference between the 'civilized' world and life on the AT.It is far too late, and i should get some sleep before hiking a long day tomorrow. Ben is currently on vacation in CA, so they might not get up for a while, but there are lots of good pictures in the last set.
Date: 2004-07-24
From: Morristown, NJ

To: Kent, CT
Miles today: 0.0

Just made it into kent, ct last night. needed to stick around until the PO opened, but am still sucked into this town. there's a big book sale, several other hikers, a farmer's market, and free internet in the library.This update will be short, a better one will be up in a few days.hiked through most of new jersey trying to make it to fatfest, a hiker feed put on by some guys from '98. goose and i were 42 miles away the night before, so we decided to try and hitch. We hiked to vernon, hitched out of town, hitched up to 17 in new york, then hitched down 17 to harriman, then walked a couple miles to the bbq. it was well worth it. We were given burgers as soon as we showed up, only because the bbq chicken wasn't done. After the chicken, we feasted on the fresh fruit and salads they had. we slowed down a bit until 5 when they threw several 5-pound salmon fillets on the grill. we ate salmon until we were full, then they told us the best was yet to come. They opened the next cooler full of marinating steaks. after eating a few steaks each, the picnic area was closing, so we had to move up to the camsite, where they had already built a fire for us. The pulled out two huge coolers of beer, and we sat around the fire, stuffed for an hour. Then a truck pulled up with a dozen new york pizzas. we had trouble getting them down, but managed. Finally, an hour after that, they started going around with boxes of ice cream sandwitches and hagen daz ice cream pops. Anyone who tried to turn it down was jeered until they accepted.The hitch was well worth it, and the name fatfest was really accurate. goose and i hitched back and only hiked 5 miles that day before we stopped at a shelter to digest.i've been hiking with goose from bluefield, WV for the past week, and will probably stick with him for the rest of the way. We have been a day or so behind rainy jay, but we should meet up with him sometime in MA. Roadrunner is 4 days ahead and moving fast, c-legs is about 3 days behind and probably closing space.here's the short-term plansat: pine swamp brook lean-tosun: limestone springsmon: hemlocks or glen brook lean-to , stop in salsbury, MAtue: mt wilcox north or south lean-towed: picked up about noon at rt 20, just past mass pike near lee, for a zero in worcester and the super chinese buffetfri?: robs' hostel in dalton, MA (tenative)plan right now looks like i'll get to the mass pike wednesday noon, where ben will pick me and goose up. I've been dreaming of the super chinese buffet for weeks, all these towns have tiny 12-item buffets that pale in comparison to the 188 items at the SCB. Most likely the first stop in worcester will be the buffet. anyone else in worcester, feel free to join, probably about 2:00 on wednesday.it's already noon, and i do expect to do 15 miles today, so i really should be going. i will fill in alot more details when i stop and zero in worcester (and get to use my own computer with a decent browser (firefox))-bilbo
Date: 2004-07-28
From: Kent, CT

To: Worcester, MA
Miles today: 0.0

So i finally got myself out of kent a couple hours after expected. other hikers kept ariving, some i hadn't seen in weeks. i finally got out about 3 and made it to the first shelter. I met another hiker, trip, for the first time- he started the 20th, a week after me. he's the first one i've met who was even close to my base weight, but he was missing a few things i consider essentials (shelter- he had no tent, tarp, or bivy). He did tell me that C-Legs was close behind (finally), and he ended up arriving at the shelter that night.Had a good day hiking, ran into patty-o, the trail angel who was dispensing food and drinks. I passed up my free beer in cornwall bridge,ct because it was a mile walk, and i didn't realize guiness was one of the choices. Camped under my tarp that night and didn't get a moment of sleep due to bugs. i headed into salsbury that morning and got there by 6:30AM.I found out goose stayed in a b&b with allehegany. It would have been nice to get some sleep and a shower, but they spent quite a bit on food and lodging. Later that day, goose and rainy jay both met kevin bacon and his wife day hiking on bear mountain. By the time i got there, kevin was gone...so, i never finished this entry. allegheny got bit by a rattlesnake and we brought him to the parking lot where someone drove him into town. we hiked on, arrived in tyringham, ma, on wednesday. ben, my roomate, picked me, goose, rainy jay, and k-dog up and drove us to worcester. we went to the chinese buffet that nigt, spent thursday around worcester eating and resupplying. friday, we borrowed steves car and drove to RI to visit my uncle, aunt, and cousins. We spent most of the day at the beach doing nothing, eating, and drinking. eventually we went back to my uncle's house, then went out for a ride on his awesome boat. we came back and had steak for dinner, then went out for ice cream. The brief description does not do the day justice, but i really need to get to sleep ASAP. we want to get on the trail by 9 tomorrow, rainy jay's parents are going to meet us near the mass pike bridge and bring us food for lunch. we hope to get to dalton on sunday, and manchester, VT by next weekend.-joe
Date: 2004-09-02
From: Rangeley, ME

To: Monson, ME
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Just rolled in to monson this morning. Already got mail and ate most of what they had at the general store. threw in some laundry and now using my 30 minutes of internet time.quick overview in case i don't have time for any details:left glencliff in the afternoon and made it over moosilauke to beaver creek shelter. nice short day. Stuck to short days through the whites while goose and k-dog tried to catch up. Scored a work-for-stay at lonesome lake, zealand falls, mitzpah, lake of clouds, and madison springs huts. met some awesome people, especially at lake of clouds and madison. Got to madison on my 100th day on the trail, also the hutmaster's 21st birthday. had some fun, and both goose and k-dog finally caught up to us there. hiked 7 to pinkham notch in high winds, rain and fog, and decided to spend the night in gorham. hiked 21 the next day back to gorham. hiker's paradise has the best pancakes on the trail - cheap and all oyu can eat, too.left gorham, nh for rangely in 4 days. did 3 20 mile days and two shorter days. made it into maine, and through mahoosic notch(pictures will show- 1 mile of trail that takes over an hour to climb over, under, and through). stopped at the IGA in rangeley and bought lots of food to eat in the parking lot before leaving for the shelter. a nice couple, karen and phil, asked us if we wanted to stay at their place that night. they had 4 extra beds for when their kids/grandkids come to visit, and so we enjoyed the stay.left rangely for monson in 5-6 days. kept up the 20mi/day pace for most of it. the last few 4000 foot peaks were in there. after those, there's only a handful of 2000-3000 foot hills before kathadin. had some nice swims, saw a moose, and saw no views since it was cloudy on every single peak.will finish a week and a day from today- 6 days in the 100 mile wilderness, 1 day past that, then on home.i will be staying in lewiston with pete and colin for a couple days, then heading back to worcester until i can get a ride to VT to pick up my car, drive to NJ, and get my laptop.
Date: 2004-09-09
From: Monson, ME

To: Katahdin
Miles today: 2174.1
Weather: moderate rain

SUCCESS!!! Summited kathadin on sept. 9 at 1:45. 120 days, 17 weeks, less than 4 months. made it to lewiston where i am hanging out with bearfeet and c-legs for the weekend. will post more detail soon....Made it back to worcester over the weekend. too lazy to update fully, but i'm working on adding about 500 photos that'll be up by the end of the day.
Date: 2004-10-05
To: Worcester, MA
Miles today: 5.0

Well, i have been done for nearly a month, find myself still unemployed (i do have one job offer in the mail, though!), and have hiked on the mid-state trail every day this week to try and motivate myself. I haven't finished my website yet, and i need to assemble a slideshow about ultralight through hiking. anyway, my full updates are still on my website:http://bilboGAME.com
Date: 2004-04-01
To: Valdosta, Ga
Miles today: 0.0

Well Hello. I am about to begin a journey that I never thought I could undertake.I am joining James (Bwana Jim) on the next leg of his section-hike of the AT.We leave Wed the 14th. Drive to the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center in Wesser, NC.)We will sleep in the truck that night and start walking to Fontana Dam on the morning of the 15th hopefully arriving intact on the 17th earlyenough to make it home by 10pm on the 17th.
Date: 2004-04-15
From: U.S. 19, U.S. 74, Nantahala River. Wesser, NC

To: Locust Cove Gap
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: clear sky

Started at the NOCAte Breakfast about 30 min up the trail Used a coke-can stove to boil 3c of H2O for OatMeal and coffeeWalked to Sassafras Gap Shelter and waited an hour for Bwana, Jim B. Jeff, and Keith to catch up.Bwana & I summeted Cheoah Bald about 3:30pm with Jim B right BehindMade Locust cove by 5pm set up camp and ate dinner.
Date: 2004-04-16
From: Locust Cove Gap

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

Last Night we met Simon & Wooly. Two young guys thru-hiking they are pushing for a Zero day at Fontana Tomorrow. I'm glad I'm not going for 17 miles today.We walked up the hill from Stecoah Gap after lunch. The Topo is misleading on the climb.Jeff dropped out at Yellow Creek Mountain Road. Bwana, Jim B. , Keith, and I are pressing on to Cable Gap for the night. Walking out at Fontana Dam tomorrow.
Date: 2004-05-03
From: Little Tennessee River, Fontana Dam

To: Russle Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: light rain

Sleet, Snow, Hail, and Rain.... Cold Cold walk. Atleast climbing Shuckstack warmed me a bit. Bwana Jim & I made Lunch @ Campsite 113 where we ran back into RidgeRunner Carl. Carl is responsible for GSMNP from Teailhead across the dam, to mollies Ridge Shelter. We passed Ponderer, 4 Stoned Kids, A Father / Son team from Florida, and We Spent the Night with Tim, and Pope
Date: 2004-05-04
From: Russle Field Shelter

To: Siler's Bald Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: clear sky

Once Two Hikers Climbed ole Rockytop following the AT path.Sweated up and down ole Rockytop, by thunderhead they needed a bath.Rockytop you'll always be home-sweet-home to me.Good ole RockytopRockytop Tennessee.
Date: 2004-05-06
From: Icewater Spring Shelter

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: few clouds

Party At Tricorner! Oatmeal, Heinz, Chuggs, Nitro, Alexa, Pope, Tim, two Chicks from Atlanta, oh heck, about 20 folks bivy'd here tonight.
Date: 2004-04-12
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well the countdown is on. 7 days and I should be hiking. I'm hoping that i'll be able to get a picture or two up before i leave but we'll see. Anyways i guess after 3 entries they will post my stuff so i'm really just doing this to see things are working. I'll try and be more interesting after i start hiking.
Date: 2004-04-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Postponed departure 24 hours. I had to finish up loose ends and clean my apartment before I could head out of town. Finished packing gear and first week's food at about 10 PM. My first pack weigh-in was 42 lbs, a little bit heavier than I was hoping, but then again, so am I. My pre-hike weigh-in is 218 lbs, shoe size 11 1/2 (apparently they may grow a half-size, we will see).The plan is to leave for Virginia tomorrow and be in Georgia Wednesday. My first hiking day will hopefully be Thursday. Thanks to Ma & Pa Noll, I won't have to bus it to the start.
Date: 2004-04-20
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Yet another delay.... Instead of driving down to Virginia today, I spent the day in Buffalo trying to regroup after a guy in rush hour traffic thought he'd get a closer look at my bumper.... Fortunately no one was hurt; however, as you can see from the photo, my car will probably be totaled. A smarter man might consider this a sign and decide to call it off, but brains are not my strong suit. Also as my car spun around and I faced on-coming traffic for a second someone's life flashed before my eyes and I thought wow that guy led a boring life somebody change the channel, but then I thought wait a minute that was my life. Luckily the car came to a stop on the shoulder and I was completely fine. So I spent the day getting the car towed and dealing with the insurance company all day. So now I'll have to do some car shopping when I get back. Assuming the rest of the trip goes smoother I'm now looking to be hiking by Friday.
Date: 2004-04-21
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

**********OK, this is Jen...Dan will have me update his journal when he can't. I can't promise quite the same humor as him, but I will try to give you all the info I can about how his adventure is going!He says his neck was a little stiff this morning from the accident, but not too bad, and the hike will go on. Today he finally made it out of New York State! He is travelling with his parents and they made it from Buffalo to somewhere in Kentucky. He plans to be in Georgia by tomorrow night, and hiking by Friday.I will post more when I hear from him!Jen ('the scribe')**********
Date: 2004-04-23
From: Springer Mountain, GA

To: Hawk Mtn Shelter, GA
Miles today: 7.6

**********10:45 AMDan called on his parents' cell phone from the top of Springer Mountain where the trail begins! (Neither parents nor cell phone going on hike, though!) Reception was pretty bad, but from what I could gather, it was a beautiful day, 70° F and sunny. It sounded like he was just about to bid his parents farewell and head out walking!He hopes to make it to Walasi-Yi Center by sometime Monday (check out the "Mail Drops" link) where he will have a chance to resupply, maybe shower (?), maybe make a few phone calls (?).Good luck, Dan!Jen (the 'scribe'!)**********Dan Here - My Parents gave me a ride up the back side of the mountain on a forest service road so i only had a 0.9 mile hike to the summitt. Ma and Pa Noll were suppose to hike with me to the top but of course Pa Noll was in a hurry to get somewhere so they just left. If you know my father this shouldn't surprise you. (Fully retired?? and still in a hurry to get no-where) Thanks for the ride Dad.After the hike up springer, the first 4 miles or so felt pretty easy but then my legs began to feel my pack and my feet started to hurt a bit too. By the time i got to the shelter i was pretty beat and ready to relax. i also got a decent sunburn on my arms and melon (head).   At the shelter was about 15 people with about 8 'thru-hikers'. The shelter was two levels and could fit about 10-12 people but many of us tented (including myself). The shelter also had a ton of things that people decided that they no longer wanted to carry (apparently not everyone has heard of pack-it-in pack-it-out). Among the things were a sleeping bag, pots,pans, tanning oil??, etc. I grabbed a bandana from the pile for tying my bread to the outside of my backpack, so i could use the bandana i head to keep the sun of my head.
Date: 2004-04-24
From: Hawk Mtn Shelter, GA

To: Gooch Gap Shelter, GA
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: broken clouds

The legs were a bit soar today and the bottoms of my feet are hurting a bit but just from all the hiking with a pack - NO Blisters YET! The hike wasn't all that eventfull no real great views but it is definetly more green down here than NY was when i left. About the same people are at this shelter tonight with a few new ones maybe 15 all together.Today i met Cheese and Turtle who are 2 great older guys section hiking to just inside north carolina. They were fun to have around that evening and helped morale. Too bad they aren't going all the way. For those of you who don't know the 'cheese' and 'turtle' are trail names. Not sure how or why but when hiking everyone seems to eventually get a trail name that you go by on the trail. I have yet to get one....
Date: 2004-04-25
From: Gooch Gap Shelter, GA

To: Woods Hole Shelter, GA
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Well I haven't been sleeping to great yet. I didn't bring my sleeping pad to save on weight but i'm regretting that now. I tented the first two nights and the areas to tent get so heavily used that it was like sleeping on concrete. I think i've also decided to switch from using a water filter to using Aquamura droplets. Today's hike was tough, about 11 miles or a little more. (the books i have and the signs on the trail conflicted a bit) I didn't want to do this long of a hike this early but i heard from some other hikers that rain was coming and the woods hole shelter was the closest one. There are 5 of us here tonight. Bill who i spent half the day hiking with is a 'ski-bum' from colarodo and is a raft guide in the summers, he is also thru-hiking. Mercury and Ginger Bear (Mark and Ginger) are on there honeymoon and are hiking till Harpers Ferry (about the 1/2 way point). They are about 50 i'm guessing. Stephanie who is also a thru-hiker arrived here late.
Date: 2004-04-26
From: Woods Hole Shelter, GA

To: Walasi-Yi Center, GA
Miles today: 4.1

**********Dan's adventure is underway! He made it safe and sound to the Walasi-Yi center at around 2 PM today. So far no blisters and also no trail name. Just some real tough days of hiking. Overall he said he's doing really well and feels good. He has seen about 8 other thru-hikers and a bunch of section and day hikers, and says it's nice to have the company out there. He had a few hot and sunny days to start, but today was rainy, foggy, and wet. He was glad to get to the center, get a hot shower, do some laundry, and catch a 'shuttle' to an all-you-can-eat buffet with some of the other hikers. I won't write too much because he is mailing me his journal pages tomorrow and when I get them I will fill in his entries. He thinks he will leave the Walasi-Yi center tomorrow, and the next (expected) point of contact will be Hiawassee, GA around Thursday or Friday.Jen (the 'scribe')**********Dan Here - Wow was the shelter a good idea! It rained like crazy all night long with many downpours in between the steady rains. Unfortunately the tin roof on the shelter with the heavy rains didn't make for a quiet night in the woods. So sleeping wasn't the best. I waited till about 1030 to get going hoping the rain would let up but it sure didn't. The trail today goes up and over blood mountain to the Walasi-Yi Center which is an outfitter and hostel for hikers. There is also a side trail around blood mountain which mercury and ginger were going to take due to the rain. Stephanie is also taking the side trail because her knee is bothering her. Bill got an early start and i think he was going up and over blood mountian. Since i was feeling good i decided to go up and over, but now that i'm sitting at the top soaking wet with absolutely no view due to the rain and fog i'm starting to think it wasn't worth it. Since there was a shelter though it was nice to get out of the rain for a bit and cook up a warm lunch. I got into the Walasi-Yi Center around 2, soaking wet and hungry. Luckily i got one of the last bunks and after a shower felt much better. I got my maildrop (thanks Jen) and some snacks at the store. I also bought some lightweight 'camp-shoes' to have something to wear around camp after hiking, a sleeping pad, and Aquamura drops for purifying my water. I sent home some shorts, a wool sweater, water filter, water bottle and the top of my backpack.Tonight the staff will be shuttling us in to town to hit the all you can eat (AYCE) buffet at the 'Cookie Jar', which i must say was a just what i needed.
Date: 2004-04-27
From: Walasi-Yi Center, GA

To: Low-Gap Shelter, GA
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: few clouds

Some great views today, the first really good ones yet. Got to have lunch on Cowrock Mountain which i think overlooked where i'll be hiking to tonight. It was nice to sit in the sun on a rock with a clear view of the valleys below. It was a bit cooler today but good for hiking (~55-60 F) Tonight someone said there was a frost warning. Low gap shelter is crowded tonight. There are about 15-20 people and the shelter only fits maybe 8. So i tented again. Tray who is from alabama started a campfire. I played leapfrog all day with Tray who is hiking with his dog. Most everyone is going to push for Tray mountian tomorrow which is about a 15 mile hike with a lot of elevation change. I think i'm going to split that into two days though.