morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-07-31
From: Lincoln, NH

To: Eliza Brook Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: light rain

I took my time going over the Kinsman peaks today because it was absolutely breathtaking! Such a beautiful day to be on top of mountains! The weather was perfect so the view was amazing and I couldn't be happier out here! The descent to the shelter was slow for me, but the last part was nice and gentle and followed a brook. I found it quite peaceful. Also, I passed THREE beautiful trail dogs today which I always get excited about since I love dogs =) And, I passed a ton of NOBOs, so I think I'm getting right into the middle of the giant NOBO bubble. At the shelter I met Big Hungry - a fellow SOBO so that was cool, I haven't seen another SOBO since Gorham really! Maybe I've been going slow enough that the SOBOs behind me are finally catching up.
Date: 2013-08-01
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: Beaver Brook Shelter
Miles today: 9.0

I'm running into all the NOBOs now! There's so many of them! Today's hike wasn't too hard, but it was up and down a lot and very rugged. I'd thought about pushing over Moosilauke if the weather was good when I got to Beaver Brook, but I got here right at 2:30 and clouds were starting to roll in so I just called it quits early today. I'm glad I did because it started pouring right when I would have been at the top, and it didn't stop all night! Glad I got my tent set up early though, there are 8 NOBOs here and Big Hungry all staying in the shelter [later, I learned the 4 more NOBOs showed up after I'd gone to bed!]. Hopefully the weather is good in the morning because Moosilauke is my last time above treeline and the last mountain of the Whites =( - it'd be nice to have a good last view.
Date: 2013-08-02
From: Beaver Brook Shelter

To: Ore Hill Campsite
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

I passed the 400 mile mark today! So that's kind of exciting, though I'm not really counting. This morning I hung around the shelter for a while talking to Moose and Soway and a couple other NOBOs while waiting for the clouds to clear up because it looked liked it'd be a good morning. And it was. Today was good because it included all of my favorite things to encounter on the trail: climbs, cool view, dogs, rain, sunny/breezy weather, real trail, trail magic. I left the shelter at 10 and the last two miles of the climb up Moosilauke were very gentle. I got to the summit as clouds were burning off over EVERYTHING and I sat and watched the world for 45 minutes. The view was amazing - I could see my last 4 days or so of hiking, and I'm sure I could see my next 4 at least, though I didn't know what I was looking at and didn't care, it was just amazing to sit and watch. It was a bittersweet moment because I've come to really fall in love with the White Mountains so I'm sad to leave it all behind, but at the same time, my knees are ready for some easier terrain for a bit. The descent was long but gentle and it rained for about 20 minutes which I thoroughly enjoyed! Also, I saw TWO dogs coming down the mountain and they were fun and awesome as were their owners. The rest of the day was REAL trail, as in you could see a trail and it was nice and not a stream or mud or rock slides! There was also a nice breeze all day while the sun was out. When I arrived at the campsite, there was a D.O.C. group there building a new privy, and the first words to me were "do you want food?" They'd made a ton of dinner and were sharing the leftovers with Big Hungry and 2 NOBOs and there was still some for me to have two helpings too! Everything's so awesome out here =) Life is good.
Date: 2013-08-02
From: Beaver Brook Shelter

To: Ore Hill Campsite
Miles today: 15.1

I passed the 400 mile mark today! So that's kind of exciting, though I'm not really counting. This morning I hung around the shelter for a while talking to Moose and Soway and a couple other NOBOs while waiting for the clouds to clear up because it looked liked it'd be a good morning. And it was. Today was good because it included all of my favorite things to encounter on the trail: climbs, cool view, dogs, rain, sunny/breezy weather, real trail, trail magic. I left the shelter at 10 and the last two miles of the climb up Moosilauke were very gentle. I got to the summit as clouds were burning off over EVERYTHING and I sat and watched the world for 45 minutes. The view was amazing - I could see my last 4 days or so of hiking, and I'm sure I could see my next 4 at least, though I didn't know what I was looking at and didn't care, it was just amazing to sit and watch. It was a bittersweet moment because I've come to really fall in love with the White Mountains so I'm sad to leave it all behind, but at the same time, my knees are ready for some easier terrain for a bit. The descent was long but gentle and it rained for about 20 minutes which I thoroughly enjoyed! Also, I saw TWO dogs coming down the mountain and they were fun and awesome as were their owners. The rest of the day was REAL trail, as in you could see a trail and it was nice and not a stream or mud or rock slides! There was also a nice breeze all day while the sun was out. When I arrived at the campsite, there was a D.O.C. group there building a new privy, and the first words to me were "do you want food?" They'd made a ton of dinner and were sharing the leftovers with Big Hungry and 2 NOBOs and there was still some for me to have two helpings too! Everything's so awesome out here =) Life is good.
Date: 2013-08-03
From: Ore Hill Campsite

To: Fire Warden's Cabin
Miles today: 12.8
Weather: scattered clouds

It was raining this morning when I woke up, so I read in my tent until it stopped and then got on the trail a little after 9. I got to a road about an hour later and Big Hungry was there with some raspberries he'd just picked from the side of the road! He'd waited to give me some, which I thought was really nice, and they were delicious! The climb up Mt. Cube was a little more difficult than I expected (I think I got cocky after the Whites - but today put me back in my place!), but the view was beautiful. I ate lunch up there and sat for a while. A couple with a 5 year old came up a side trail and immediately started talking to me. The little girl eventually wants to thru-hike the AT (or at least her dad said she wanted to), and she had some very good questions: What do you eat for breakfast? (oatmeal, poptarts, peanut butter); Do you ever sleep?? (every night, in a tent); What's that on your head? (a bandana); Why? (to keep hair out of my face and sweat out of my eyes); How long is it [the trail]? (about 2200 miles); Does it go through lots of states? (yep! 14!); Do you have clothes? (some.). And that's how it went for a while. We talked some more and she wanted to try to pick up my pack (which at the time was probably about 30 pounds, maybe 31 or 32 with the went tent and is as tall as she is). Her dad told her to go pick it up and she said "I bet it's easy peasy!" When she couldn't lift it she looked at me and said "It won't move!" So I helped her pick it up and she said "that wasn't heavy at all!" It was a good lunch break. Later, 3 other SOBOs caught up to me between Cube and Smart - Maverick (whose grandfather knows my dad), Bartender, and Kyle. The climb up Smart was very long, but not too hard and the view tonight is gorgeous! The shelter is an old Ranger's cabin and there's a fire tower that you can go up and see everything! My tentsite also has a good view and I can see the sunset from my tent! If the morning's clear I'll be able to see a cool sunrise too.
Date: 2013-08-04
From: Fire Warden's Cabin

To: Moose Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: broken clouds

I'm passing tons of NOBOs now which is pretty cool - they're all happy now, maybe because they're looking forward to the Whites. Today, I talked with a lot of them - one, Stripe, is flip-flopping so I may actually see him further south which would be cool! I can tell the trail is easier because I'm able to do more miles and they go by quicker, though I don't feel like I'm actually moving any faster. Also, I thought I was a slow hiker, which is fine, but really, I just stop and talk to everybody that passes, which adds up when you're passing 15-20 people! But I like people - it's one of my favorite parts of the trail! Especially if those people have dogs!. This morning I passed a couple day-hiking up to where I stayed last night. They asked if I was thru-hiking and we talked about it for a minute, then the lady told me "but you're so clean!" Now, I know that's a compliment, so I said thanks, but I'm oddly offended every time I get that from people! Which is pretty often actually, and today I'm not even close to clean (I know because I can actually smell my own stench, normally I'm too used to it). Anyway, I think it's b/c most thru-hikers are guys and have dirty, long beards. Since I'm incapable of that, I look cleaner! Maybe I'll just stop showering altogether... I stopped at Bill Ackerly's (The Ice-cream Man) place today. Sadly he was out so I didn't actually get to meet him, but he had a sign out to help ourselves to ice cream and croquet. So, I stayed there for 2 hours talking to Bartender and some NOBOs and eating ice cream! It was a really great time! The rest of the day was enjoyable but the weather couldn't decide if it wanted to rain or not, so it was off and on with some thunder the whole time. Moose Mountain was my last big mountain for a while, I'm ready for a break so that's OK for now!
Date: 2013-08-05
From: Moose Mountain Shelter

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: few clouds

Today was awesome and completely unexpected! I planned on neroing into Etna, but I got to the road before 10 and couldn't get a hold of the people I was planning on staying with, so I just went on to Hanover! I got there at noon, resupplied, then took my time in town hitting up all the places with free stuff for thru-hikers! I got a free alice of pizza, hit the library, got a free bagel, and then went to the Salt Hill Pub for happy hour where I found Bartender and two oher SOBOs -brothers Pabst and Commissary. The trail goes right through town, and though a shower and laundry sounded good (and is probably much needed), I didn't much care to find a place to do that at 5, so I just hiked out with Pabst and Commissary. On the way out, we went to Dan and Whit's which is an "everything" store that will give day old sandwiches to thru-hikers. Well, the cashier asked me if I was a thru-hiker then took me back to the deli area where the guy there said he was out of sandwiches and bagels... so he gave me a steak to pack out. For free. They didn't offer anything to Pabst and Commissary whcih I found hihky amusing =P but, we stealthed out as soon as we got back into the woods, built a fire pit and cooked the steak on a stone. I shared. It was delicious! After the fire died down, Commissary and I randomly decided to night hike. So at 11:30, we packed up and night hiked 3.5 t the next shelter! It was fun. Pointless, but fun! We rolled into the sheltef at 1:30 and luckily Big Hungry was the only one in there and he was amused when we got there. So, for once, what I'd planned on being a 6 mile day turndd into the biggest miles I've done yet! I think I'll be night hiking more often- it was really cool to stop and turn off the headlamps and stand completely enveloped in darkness.
Date: 2013-08-07
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Capt. Stash and Kathy - West Hartford, VT
Miles today: 4.0
Weather: few clouds

After night hiking, we slept in and just hung out in the shelter all morning. Pabst and Bartender got there and we built a fire to hang out for a little longer. We heard from some NOBOs that in West Hhartford, the trail goes right through town again and right past a guy's house who lets hikers tent in his yard. So, that became our plan for today which means a nero because it's only 4 miles to his house. It took an hour and a half to get there and we had the rest of the afternoon to relax, hang out with Captain Stash, play in the river, and eat at the general store which is also a restaurant with aome if the best pizza I've had. Then we zeroed there the next day. Captain Stash and his wife Kathy were amused by that espcially when we told them we'd neroed the day before so Kathy told us that we shoud name ourselves Team Net Zero. Which is pretty funny...and accurate. During our zero day, Funk and Bojangles caught up and they are a young couple that have the cutest puppy, Stella. We played horseshoes, hung out, ate food, and jumped off the bridge into the river. When I studied abroad in Costa Rica a couple years ago, I found out that my one fear in life (as far as I know) is to jump off of things into water. There was a waterfall there that we could jump off, but when it was my turn I completely froze and couldn't do it. That happened multiple times and is nw in my head because I'd always thought of myself as adventurous and fearless. So, this bridge in west Hartford is completely safe to jump from at a spot that is marked. It's about 30 feet high and Pabst, Commissary, and Bartender were all having a blast. I wanted to get over this fear so went up to jump and all three of the guys were offering to jump with me and stuff, but after an hour and a half (at least) I chickened out once again. I was so pissed at myself because I don't know what it is I'm scared of - it's not the height or the water or of dying or of getting hurt, it's literally just me being scared to take a step off the bridge. Weird. But, later, while everyone else was napping, I went back just to swim in the river. The AT goes right over that bridge and I knew if I didn't jump I wouldn't be able to walk across that bridge hiking out tomorrow and it'd be in the back of my mind the rest of the hike. So, I went back up there, stood there for probably 25 minutes, and finally jumped! Probably not that exciting of a story for anyone else, but it's a huge victory for me. But, apparently it didn't get me over my fear because I couldn't do it a second time when the guys wanted to go back to jump with me. Naturally, they don't believe I jumped because I couldn't do it again, but that's ok, I don't need to orove it to them, though I would like to at some point!He rest of the evening was a ton of fun- I really like this group of people.
Date: 2013-08-08
From: Capt. Stash and Kathy - West Hartford, VT

To: Thistle Hill Shelter
Miles today: 4.8
Weather: light rain

We finally hiked out today, though admittedly a tad bit begrudgingly. Also we waited until 1:00 before heading out, which means a nero into the shelter! That was possibly the worst 4.8 miles ever...though I think the problem was more the fact that I was extremely dehydrated and not actually the terrain. But I was glad to know that Commissary, Pabst, and Bartender all felt the same way. It took us a while. At the shelter I met Lost, a SOBO I'd heard a lot about. He's an incredibly inspirational and interesting person. He's hiking with 1 good arm and leg and has acquired many injuries in the past while serving in the military. He's done some incredible things since then and has overcome so much!It was great to finally meet him and sit and talk with him!
Date: 2013-08-09
From: Thistle Hill Shelter

To: Dan Quinn's House
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: moderate rain

It was POURING this morning, so I didn't want to get out of my tent. It never let up, so I finally packed up and left at 11. A couple miles in was some AWESOME trail magic: Gatorade, cheezits, string cheese, carrots, homemade cookies, oreos, bananas, and PB&J sandwiches! And water to fill up with. It was the best trail magic yet! It continued to pour all day but since my stuff was already wet and heavy, I kind of just enjoyed the rain! At the road to Woodstock there's a house where the owner (Dan) lets hikers stay in his barn or tent in his yard. When Pabst, Commissary, and I rolled up, the rain had just stopped. There were a lot of SOBOs there!Lost and Wood Butcher (who were at the shelter last night), but I was shocked and really excited to have caught up to Blue! Patches, Yogi, and Sumo were all there too and some others that I hadn't met yet. I never thought I'd catch back up to them! Turns out they've been here for a while... I'm starting to wonder if the Slowbo virus is unique to the Class of 2013 or if all SOBOs ever are this prone to falling into the zeroing vortex. Earlier this season, Norovirus was hitting all the NOBOs. As SOBOs, we started calling it the "NOBOvirus." Well, we decided the other day that the SOBOvirus is way better, the Slowbo virus... since we're going slow and whenever one person zeroes, it's easy to convince the rest of us to zero - it's kind of contagious. I don't know if that's funny to anyone else but us... probably not...but I tried! Anyway, it was a good evening spent catching up and hanging my stuff out to dry! IT was a clear night so Commissary and I cowboy camped in the yard and I could see so many stars! Also, there were quite a few meteors because the meteor shower is "officially" in a day or 2. It was really cool!
Date: 2013-08-10
From: Dan Quinn's House

To: Stealth site
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: light rain

I'm proud to say I did NOT get sucked into the vortex! I slept in, put my stuff in th sun to dry, hung out with everyone until I hiked out at noon. Gospel (a fellow PK!)hiked out a while before me; Pabst and Commissary said they were going to hike out but I don't know if they did. Everyone else is staying another couple of days because there are some festivities going on. It was tempting to stay, but I needed to get out of there. The hike was good! Also, before leaving, Lost really helped me out with some injuries I've been experiencing lately. He's really helpful. Pretty uneventful hike, but hopefully Rutland tomorrow!
Date: 2013-08-17
From: Stealth site

To: Green Mountain House - Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 46.2
Weather: clear sky

I did a really bad job of journaling the last few days, so this is just a highlight reel of the last week or so from Rutland to Manchester. Got into Rutland and stayed at the Yellow Deli which was a great experience - very nice people! A little weird, but I knew that going in, and I could do work for stay so it was great!Team D0C0 was reunited and Doc and I hiked out of Rutland together. I hiked out in great spirits - got my new pack which is much lighter and has a hip belt that actually fits (admittedly it matches Doc's pack...though in my defense my color choices were limited...); also got new shoes! Additionally, I have antibiotics for Lyme disease (which I may or may not have), and steroids and painkillers for a stress fracture in my foot. Sounds a lot worse than it is and despite all of that, the last few days have been really awesome and I'm still having a good time. We found Bojangles and FUnk with little puppy Stella which was awesome. The weather has turned cooler which I have mixed feelings about. ALSO! I passed the 500 mile mark AND the 25% done mark which is a huge milestone in my mind WOOOOO! With new shoes comes new blisters which I let Doc mess with because I know he missed feeling useful while he was off on the Long Trail. The mix of meds I'm on have numerous side effects - some of which are the same as the symptoms I was experiencing to begin with so that's frustrating. But, I also get super hyper and just want to hike and not stop. Which is great, but also kind of messes me up because I know I NEED to stop, for food and water breaks and whatnot... but then I just get drowsy and nauseous and migraine-y. So, it's made for quite the amusing hike! One night, Doc, Funk, Bojangles, Stella and I stealthed at this awesome spot right on the edge of a cliff where we caught another awesome sunset and had a great clear night for some stargazing - that was a great night with some great company =) The day before heading into Manchester Center there were a lot of weekenders out so I met some interesting people:a super nice couple from Massachusetts and I chatted for quite a while. Everyone in New England calls people from Mass "Massholes" which is amusing, but in my experience, I think it is completely unjustified! Most the people I've hitched into town with have been from Mass, and they were all super nice! Also, I passed a...friendly... older man day-hiking North (thank God)...naked. Completely naked. That was interesting. I thought I composed myself quite well considering I was caught extremely off guard and wanted to stop and chat. Gotta love the trail! Finally in Manchester Center for tonight! Staying at the Green Mountain House which is super nice and a great price! Doc's cooking dinner tonight which I'm excited for because well, I like to eat. And he likes to cook. Sooooo we make a good team! The hiker box here had a brand new pair of shoes that fits me, so I'll be bouncing that to myself for later use! It's been a great time!
Date: 2013-08-19
From: Green Mountain House - Manchester Center, VT

To: Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 0.0

The Green Mountain House was absolutely amazing! Jeff runs a very clean and organized hostel and makes everyone feel welcome. It was nice that he had everything in order for his guests when they arrive; we got there with 2 NOBOs (K2 and Indigo) and were given a tour of the hostel and led to our rooms. The organization was nice because a lot of times when you walk into a hostel, you have no clue where to go or where anything is. In addition to Team D0C0 and the two NOBOs, we were also in the company of a section hiker, Bryan. We had such a great time that in the morning at breakfast (provided by The Green Mountain House), we all decided to zero there! Bryan had brought burgers and hotdogs to provide trail magic for hikers staying at the hostel, so the rest of us (joined by Patches and another NOBO, Beerdra) all pitched in to get ingredients to prepare potato salad, cucumber tomato onion salad, ans cole slaw (Doc's idea) to supplement the burgers and dogs. Naturally, it was imperative that we all zero for this cookout to prove that NOBOs and SOBOs can in fact get along. It was a great decision, everyone helped and we all had plenty of food. Jeff joined us for the meal and I think he quite enjoyed himself as well! We all had a great time, definitely a good decision!
Date: 2013-08-20
From: Manchester Center, VT

To: Black Brook- stealth site
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: clear sky

After such a relaxing time in town filled with good food and good company, we finally hiked out (shocker, I know). It was a beautiful day: warm weather, and good trail! We took a break before climbing Stratton Mountain, I quite enjoyed hopping in Stratton Pond to cool off for a few minutes and chatted with some other hikers! We climbed up to eat dinner in the firetower and watch the sun set. It wasn't very impressive, but the moon rising (full) was absolutely gorgeous! We then night hiked down Stratton five miles to Black Brook where we found Commissary, Pabst, funk, Bojangles, and Stella stealthed out! So we stopped there and made camp with them across the river from some NOBOs. Bojangles carries a small American flag that he puts up at camp, and the NOBOs had a Union Jack flying, so it seemed like we were preparing for battle at dawn or something. Anyway, it was a great night for hiking, it's been warm so it wasn't real cold, he moon was bright and the sky was clear. Also, this is the most miles I've done in one day so far! All is good.