morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-13
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Campsite at Elk River
Miles today: 14.9

Woke up fairly early, but played the roll-over-go-back-to-sleep game for a couple hours. When light came around, it was foggy still. There were gaps between the boards that made up the barn's wall, so it was easy to see the weather. I was finally coaxed out of the sleeping bag by a glimpse of sunlight. Blue sky too. Hopped out of the barn and snapped some pictures of the lingering fog in the valley below. Soon after, the blue sky disappeared and we were swimming in the clouds again. Popped my earphones in and listened to the radio while I strolled around the barn. Made up some coffee and generally took my sweet time. It was difficult to get hiking today. I wasn't very motivated. When I finally got around to hiking (around 10) I just didn't have it. It was a little chilly, I was in all the wet gear from yesterday, and I was in a drizzly fog. I hiked a little ways and then the thought occurred to me to put on a little music. So I dropped my pack, rummaged through it all, and found my radio. Ah-ha, my trail mojo was instantly restored. Rocked up the first hill to some Led Zepplin, and the hits just kept on coming. Found myself on a grassy ridge again, but I went ahead and forgot to do the lightning/rain dance. Nothin' but fog. Seemed like an awfully long hump up Hump Mountain - maybe that's how it got it's name. The music pulled me through it, though. Not sure what exactly did it. Maybe it was because I couldn't hear myself panting anymore. Maybe it took my mind off the pain gremlins. Or maybe something else, but either way I shall try it again tomorrow. The sounds of the forest and my inner monologue are nice at times, but I've missed music. Song of the day: Cold as Ice (by Hall and Oates is it?). Great song when it's 45 degrees and raining. Brr! Around 2:30, about the time I reached the bottom and 19E, I was teased with sunshine for a brief half hour. Then as soon as it appeared, the sun disappeared and it immediately started pouring rain. Took shelter under some rhodedendron and put the rain pants on. Glad I did, because it rained for the rest of the afternoon and on into the evening. I found myself out of the mountains and into the rolling hills. The trail meandered around quite a bit. Passed a couple of roads, a church, went right through a tree farm, a cemetary, and somebody's back forty. Interesting change of pace. Eventually got back on USFS land and found a campsite by a river. Pitched my tent right under some great big hemlocks, shaded from the rain. As it drizzles now, I think about half the tent is getting rained on. Oh well, had to choose between dry and hilly or semi-dry and flatish. Only saw two people today. The first was Ezra who was in the shelter last night, when he left. The second was a day-hiker that looked unhappy about the rain. Near as I can tell, I'm a day behind a group of six or more (depending on the day) and in front of about four or so. If I took a half-day to sit here, they'd walk by. But, no such luck. I'll try not to get too used to the solitude since it'll clog back up again soon enough.
Date: 2005-04-14
From: Campsite at Elk River

To: Dennis Cove Rd. (Kincora)
Miles today: 17.4

Got poured on during the night. Stayed mostly dry. By mostly, I mean everything but the bottom of my sleeping bag. It was touching the side of the tent, I suppose. Sun was out in the morning. That meant drying time. So, in true yard sale fashion, I laid out all my gear in the trees at the edge of the clearing. Strung the tent from a tree as well, then sat by the river for a bit, enjoying the sun. Lingered for a bit, until most everything was close to dry. Then I took off. Around 10:30 maybe, walked through another area that had been burned recently. The leaf-litter was all charred and the lower hanging rhododendrons were brown. Spots like these have been common along the way. These areas aren't totally burned out, the fire only burns out the sticks, leaves, and other things on the ground. The trees for the most part are unscathed. The idea is to keep future wildfires from getting hot enough to reach the tree tops and destroy the forest. So now that you've had your brief day's lesson on forest management, on with the hike. The trail wound around and up and down over easy, rolling hills. Crossed lots of streams along the way. The trail was still slick and mucky, so I tried to take my time. As the day wore on, the rolling hills became up-hills, thus a little more difficult. I climbed them though, even managed to belt out some lyrics to a song or two with the radio between pants. Today's song of the day: Here I Go Again by Whitesnake. In my head even after I turned off the radio. As the day wore on, I started to have some aches in my lower back. I think this stems from a near-fall I had yesterday in the rain. I managed to contort myself in some manner that angered my back for only a second then, but it's seemed to have had some lingering effect. We'll hope good 'ol vitamin I (Ibuprofin) helps to clear it up. Only fitting that as soon as the poison oak goes away (for the most part) that yet another malady manifests itself. But, at least I've had nothing that sends one off the trail (Porter now knocks on the wood table).Having seen not a single soul on this day, I decided to push on to Kincora that evening. The hostel was full of people when I rolled in at 7:30. Nurse Nick was throwing some BBQ chicken on the grill. I threw my pack down on a bunk and headed right for the shower. I wish every day could finish like that. Felt like a million bucks (all green and wrinkly) after that, then played a little guitar on the porch as the chefs (Nick and Josh) worked on the grill. Everybody decided to cook a big meal instead of going to a restaurant for dinner. Lucky me. It were a nice feast. Went back to serenading the hikers on the porch, then sat around inside the hostel by the heater for a little bit of jamming with Nick on his guitar. Much fun, and a good end to the day.
Date: 2005-04-15
From: Dennis Cove Rd. (Kincora)

To: Watauga Lake Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

Yes, I did do my taxes before I left. Rode into Hampton this morning with Bob (owner of Kincora) and a couple others. Re-supplied at the Food City in town. Made sure to grab breakfast (3 donuts, 2 bananas, 1 half gallon O.J., 1 cup coffee) as well. Got to chat with Bob for awhile too, which was great. Like so many of the folks out here, he's Good People and really interesting to listen to, too. Made it back to Kincora around 11. I did some laundry and packing up. Now, Kincora would have been an easy place to get sucked into and stay for awhile. And, that wouldn't have been all bad either. I can't say it didn't cross my mind. But, the weather was gorgeous and I wanted to hike a bit. So, I finished up my chores, called home to let my folks know I was alive, and hit the road. It was just after 2, still plenty of time to hike. I left with Josh and Hannah and their dog (the Tennessee Walkers) and walked with them most of the day in fact. We went through a pretty little gorge along the river and took in the view at the bottom of a big 'ol waterfall - Laurel Falls. The trail followed the river and over some amazing stone work. Bob Peoples maintains this section, and all the building and maintenance is apparently done by him and thru-hikers. Of course, Bob and the rest of the Tenn. Eastman Hiking Club are responsible for much more, but this little piece was something to behold. Anyway, the pretty little trail turned into a you-know-what of a climb. What is this, Everest? It was painful, but we got over. Then down to a lake. Around the lake and to the shelter. With people in it, too. Guess my days-of-solitude counter resets now. Probably won't get very high on the run to Damascus. But no matter. It was a great day. Chores done by noon, some slack time at the hostel, good trail, good views, beautiful weather, and good company. I can't really capture it all or what made it so good in a journal page, either. But I will say that days like today are what I came for.
Date: 2005-04-16
From: Watauga Lake Shelter

To: Iron Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: clear sky

Ended up being packed in at the shelter last night. Didn't sleep so well. Guess I got used to being the only one around. But, all the folks started stirring around and making noise round about sun-up. So I had the alarm clock at least. Took my time leaving, and found that the Tennessee Walkers go about the same speed in the morning, so we left about the same time. The trail wound around the lake shore and it was very pretty. Lots of flowers in bloom along the trail, and there was a nice cool breeze blowing off the water. We crossed over top of the dam and headed uphill. I've heard from several people that this section from Kincora to Damascus is "easy hiking". People have called it the Tennessee Turnpike, that you couldn't help but pound out the easy miles on this stretch. Maybe there's a stretch like that somewhere around here, but I haven't seen it yet, and I'm halfway to Damascus. But anyway, we had plenty of climbing today. It did make for a great view of the lake and surrounding mountains. We stopped at some rocks with a clear view and ate lunch. Good stop - much more scenic than most of my lunch stops. I ended up hiking with the Tennessee Walkers most of the day. They kept me on a pretty good pace, as they were planning on going 21 today. I had no such dreams so I stopped at the shelter before. I thought about going on as well, but I'm not in a hurry and the weather is good. I'll do a 20 some day when there's a need. So, I relaxed at the shelter and played some spades with Ezra, Ian and Kiri for a bit. Then dinner, then a fire, all before dark. All told, there's about 8 hikers here. Not a big crowd, but enough to have different folks to talk to. I've met most of the people here long ago, so we all sort of catch up on our times since we last ran into each other. Heard news that Tank and Eric are off the trail. I imagine they'll be back when Eric heals. So, if you're following along fellas, good luck to you.In other news, spring is slowly creeping up the mountain sides. Flowers are blooming along the trail, and the trees at lower elevations are starting to leaf out. My favorite parts of the trail so far have been the ones where little white flowers blanket the forest floor all around. There are also plenty of other little flowers popping up along the way. Almost makes me wish I'd brought a field guide because I have no idea what a lot of these things are. Oh well, got enough weight on my back anyway.
Date: 2005-04-18
From: Abingdon Gap Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: scattered clouds

As I was fiddling around with some of my stuff last night, I could hear the bats swooping over my tent. Seems the glowing orb my headlamp created inside the tent brought the bugs in. So, I sat there with the light on listening to the bat or bats buzz my tent over and over again. It was good for a few minutes of entertainment.But as for today, I was up pretty early. Waypoint made enough noise to wake me up with the sun. Today's hike was an easy downhill run into Damascus. About halfway down, I hit spring. More and more trees with leaves out. The past few days I've noticed more pollen in the air. The eyes itch and water, and I'm sneezing more. I think I'll pick up some more drugs in town. I was hoping I wouldn't be as bothered by all the pollen this spring, since I'm outside all the time and maybe somehow acclimate in some way. Silly dream. I got to town just after noon and headed for the hostel. Showered, snagged a burrito, and trudged off to do some laundry. Got pretty much all the chores done. Sat down at the computer in the library and read through my email. Terrible news about my pictures awaited. Seems the postal service's mail sorter ate my camera's memory card. Envelope showed up at my parents' house with a big 'ol hole in it...I had many choice words for this turn of events. Said them all under my breath though, I was in the library after all. So, that section through the Smokies, through Hot Springs, and all the way up to Erwin, TN will be forever trapped in my mind. I will say that they were some damn fine pictures, maybe 150 or so, long since swept up on a mail room floor. Needless to say, I'm a little pissed, but it could have been worse I suppose. Yeah, there's that silver lining. At any rate, I'll be exploring some other ways to get pictures back home and up to the web somewhere. Hope you weren't looking for some new ones anytime soon...But as for the rest of my day, I made some phone calls and joined the Brits by the creekside for a beer and some lounging around. Dinner was less than stellar, and the restaurant with the bar appears closed on Monday. Ah well, tomorrow will be a zero day anyway for a little more R&R and some other business.
Date: 2005-04-20
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

As most zero days go, I eased into this one. Had some stuff packed up and ready to go. Ate my breakfast of donuts and strawberries. Took some time to gather all the things that I was mailing off to the folks and before I knew it, it was lunch time. At this point, I had every intention of hitting the trail later on. Waddled over to the burrito place and happened to see every other hiker in town there. Yup, I say, I'm leaving town today. You won't be seeing me later...So I had me a steak quesadilla. Must've been something in that tortilla, because afterwards I wasn't motivated at all. Not one bit. Nope, not leaving town today. So I caught up on the journaling, and got things together for mailing home in the box. Went to the post office, then the library, then back to The Place for some good 'ol fashioned lounging around. It was nice to lay around for a change on a zero day, not having to worry about getting chores done and what not. Dinner was some pot luck over at the other hostel in town. GG made a gigantic sub. Figero and Tofu bought ice cream and pizza. Not to be outdone, I brought oatmeal cream pies. I remembered not to eat so much this time. Went back over to Dots with Biscuit afterwards. Not enough of a crowd there this night. Had a fun time sharing stories about all the characters we've met out here so far. Seth and Manuel joined us later on. It was a good laid back night. In early for bed time at The Place. Hiking tomorrow.
Date: 2005-04-21
From: Damascus, VA

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: few clouds

Slept in and then packed up all my stuff. A fellow was hanging out this morning with a gloom n' doom weather report. Snow, blah, blah, snow, blah, blah, cold. Ah well, guess it's time to pay for all this good weather lately. So off I went to get some breakfast. Took my pack, so I wouldn't be caught beached out somewhere after breakfast. I went easy on the Dairy King. I only had a couple pancakes and some eggs which seemed okay at the time. As I was leaving, full, I caught Biscuit leaving town also. We headed out of town and ended up hiking most of the day together. The miles go by much easier when there's someone along to converse with, by the way. So, the entire morning, breakfast was fighting back with a vengence. Clearly, the pancakes and eggs were not happy over their fate. And of course, I'm hiking uphill all morning with a rock in my stomach. Note to self: Do not eat big breakfast before hiking out of town. I managed to make it without leaving any goodies on the side of the trail, though. However, I nearly passed out at the top of the hill. I could hear my heart beating fast, then it slowed, so I took a knee. After the knee, I took a seat as it turned out. Such fun. Made it the rest of the day okay, though. Felt off balance a little with the new insoles. I replaced them later on in the morning with my old insoles. Have heard it's less painful to make the switch slowly. We'll see. Found some more poison ugly budding on my leg today. Got right on it with the Tecnu when we stopped for lunchtime/snacktime. I'm very proactive when it comes to warding off that evil now. Surprised? Pulled into the shelter to find a nice little crowd of folks, but there was room at the Inn. Rain tonight, so it's nice not to have to tent.
Date: 2005-04-22
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Wise Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: light rain

Hit the ground running before 8 a.m. this morning. That could very well be a record start for April. Hiked along down the trail until the big uphill to Whitetop Mountain. Not too tough, it was a well graded trail with switchbacks and all, but it was a long climb. It rained last night for awhile, and the clouds were clearing just a little in the morning. So, there was a good view at the top. The wind was whipping, so I didn't linger long in the chill. Ran into the TN Walkers on Whitetop. They had camped out there the night before in a great little spot. The spot also happened to have a spring that ran like a firehose. Nearly lost my Nalgene bottle when I went to fill it. The sun came out for us all - Me, Biscuit, Josh and Hannah, by about the time we hit Elk Garden and the big green meadow. Very nice. When we ducked back into the woods, the floor was covered in little white and purple flowers. Ah. Spring. And just about the time I thought that, the rain clouds rolled in. Got drizzled on a bit, and heard some thunder off in the distance as well. That made some of the open ridge crossings a little exciting, but we were in little danger. We bypassed the side trail to Mt. Rogers and moved on to the Thomas Knob Shelter. Stopped there for lunch, and right about that time, some rain set in. Just a drizzle. Then a good rain, Then harder, then some wind. Then a downpour. While all this was going down, the shelter gradually started filling up with people, (thank goodness it was a big one) each one more soaked than the last. Biscuit and I timed it perfect. We were dry. So, about eight of us sat around on the shelter floor and waited out the rain and lightning. Me, Biscuit, Josh, Hannah, Hemlock Muppet, Beam, Birdy and King. Hemlock Muppet remembered the Virginia Gentleman he'd brought along and that was well received by the crowd. Just the thing to put a nice shine on the afternoon. After a couple hours, the rain let up. I listened to the weather forecast for a bit and decided to hike on. It was about 5 o'clock, I had 5 more miles to the next shelter, and I didn't want to hike it in lousy weather predicted for tomorrow. So off I went. The rain had quit for the evening, so I hiked dry through the Grayson Highlands area. Pretty much the entire trail was on exposed ridge and I had great views. This was one of the prettier sections I've been through yet. The area also has wild ponies living there. For awhile, I only saw horse manure everywhere and a track or two. But, I eventually did run into three of them grazing along the side of the trail. They let me get pretty close for a picture before stomping away with a snort. After the photo-op, I went cruising down a blue-blaze trail hoping to find a water source. I didn't find any water nearby, but I did manage to scare up a couple white tail deer. So off I hiked back up to the trail and finished the walk down to the shelter. Less crowded here, 3 humans, 1 dog and who knows how many mice. Rain is in the forecast, so tomorrow should be a fun one.
Date: 2005-04-24
From: Trimpi Shelter, VA

To: Partnership Shelter, VA
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light snow

Attention everyone---Spring is cancelled for the following states: Virginia...Woke up this morning, peered out of the shelter and saw a ghastly sight I had not seen in some time. Snow. Falling from the sky, piled up on the ground, white all over. Excuse me, isn't this supposed to be spring? Guess not. So the word of the day was cold. Took some time to warm up as I hiked off this morning. Snowing the entire way, some wind to blow it around as well. Just delightful weather. So I walked in the winter wonderland for a bit until Bam and Sean passed me by. I hiked with them for a bit, the conversation kept my mind off the cold. By lunchtime, we arrived at Partnership shelter. It just so happens that this shelter is right next to the ranger station, which is right next to the road. So, snow, damp, and cold drive us all in to Marion for lunch. Seven of us went down - Me, Biscuit, Caroling Heald, Sean, Bam, and English Bob all wandered out to the road. We scored a hitch almost immediately. First stop was Wal Mart, then to the Chinese Buffet. We put a hurtin' on the buffet, as only 7 thru-hikers could. Then it was over to Ingles for some groceries, and the laundry to put one of our party's sleeping bag in a dryer. As we were walking in the blowing snow back over to the highway we came down on, a fellow pulled up in his jeep and offered us a ride up. It was pretty easy to pick us out as hikers as it turned out. So, we were back to the shelter around late afternoon. I divied up my groceries, then sampled the goodies we all brought back from town. The shelter had a nice loft for us all to pile into. The temperature was high 20's outside, mid 20's inside, but the walls kept the wind out and that's all that mattered. Spirits were high, we all joked around and had a good ol' time. On a day like today, there are plenty folks out there hating life, but I consider myself fortunate. Good spot, good people, good times. Later on, Bob went out to order pizzas from the ranger station phone. Pizza showed up shortly thereafter and I gorged again. It's not every day that one can have pizza delivered to the trail. Right?
Date: 2005-04-25
From: Partnership Shelter, VA

To: Crawfish Valley, VA
Miles today: 17.9

Temps dropped last night, but the shelter loft stayed a little warmer. Outside in the 20's, inside in the 30's. Slept nice and warm. The sun was out this morning. All the storms moved through in the night. Snow all around. It was like walking in winter again. Nearly an inch on the ground, with drifts in the 8-12" range. The wind was going pretty good across the ridge top, making for a chilly morning. It's interesting walking in all white again. Seems we've been doing that a lot so far. Maybe I'll miss these days in the summer when it's 90 and I'm melting, but this morning a good summer day seemed like a nice thought. As the day went on, things warmed up. The trail descended somewhat and by noon we were back into spring time. Out of the wind, things were pretty warm. We passed an old school house, the Linden schoolhouse, I think it was and took a look inside. Mid 1800's vintage place, stove in the middle and all. Then on to Atkins. The trail ducks under I-81 again, but does so after passing a gas station and a Dairy Queen. So, the hiker horde re-convened at the DQ for some burgers and blizzards. I hit it right around lunch time. So, it was good timing. Come to think of it, the trail wound around so much down to the highway, I wondered if we would ever get there. Nice little bit of trail torture when you're hungry for greasy food and ice cream. So, a double burger, fries, and heath bar blizzard later, back to the trail. Had a climb out of Atkins, then down to a gap with water. We pushed on past a shelter a bit to set us up for a reasonable day to a spot Heald wants to hit tomorrow night. There's a group of seven of us traveling together, it seems. All good folks, so it hasn't seemed crowded. Everybody staggers out on the trail and meets up again at say, DQ, or the day's destination. I've been going with the flow the past couple days as far as deciding where to get to at night. I've got a big 'ol food bag right now, so I'm not pressured to make it to the next re-supply in "x" amount of days or run out of food. I've got a nice margin built up, so I haven't been looking too far ahead day to day. Yup, it's extra weight, but nothing I can't handle. Going where the wind takes me, and I'll get there either way.