morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-05-02
From: Rufus Morgan Shelter

To: Cheoah Bald 
Miles today: 9.0

It's 6 PM and I've made it up to my camp on Cheoah Bald. I usually don't journal much this late in the day because my brain is usually as tired as my body and I can't think of much to say. So I'll keep it short.It is a monster climb up here from the NOC. 3,332 vertical feet and add another 400 ft. where the trail dipped back down for a descent to Sassafras Gap before resuming its climb up here. It's the biggest climb (I think) northbound on the AT until New Hampshire. But the view is great and you get to watch the sun set over the Smokies if you camp on top. It's very windy, but warm and a bit hazy. On the way up I surprised a bobcat that took off straight down the mountain like greased lightening. Only the second one I've ever seen. Funny, I can't think of much to say. So I think I'll just pitch my tent (why do they call it pitching in regards to a tent? Isn't that what you do to a baseball?) and watch the sunset. Maybe get some good sunset photos.   A hard but sweet day on the trail.
Date: 2008-05-03
From: Cheoah Bald 

To: Cody Gap Camp
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: light rain

The wind roaring through the trees disturbed my sleep last night and I was feeling it todya. Thankfully, I'm in no rush to get to Fontana Dam, my next resupply point as I have a post office mail drop and tomorrow is Sunday. So I have a short mileage day today and only 9 miles tomorrow. It's been raining much of the day though not hard but the sun has finally poked through the clouds and is lighting up the forest. It's only 5 O'clock and I could move on to Cable Gap Shelter and have an even shorter day tomorrow, but I'm quite tired and think I'll just sit here in my lovely camp by the spring and listen to the evening bird song.
Date: 2008-05-04
From: Cody Gap Camp

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: few clouds

It feels good taking an afternoon off from hiking, especially hanging out at the Fontana Hilton, the deluxe trail shelter at the edge of Fontana Lake. It was a long hike down from the ridge top into the glorious spring foliage with many wildflowers lining the trail and all the birds singing, and tomorrow I'll be back up on the high spine of the Smoky Mountains where it's still just early spring. Some of the hikers staying here have gone into town to buy steak and potatoes and corn on the cob which we are going to grill up tonight for a big feast. By stopping here tonight I fall a day behind my pace of last year. And it's a good thing I'm getting the rest, as the rugged Cheoah range took a little of the steam out of my engine. Maybe the feast tonight will stoke it up again.Rock Lock, Manatee, and others came back with brats, steaks, potatoes, veggies, corn on the cob, and we even had a coconut cream pie thanks to Crutch and C. Mustard. It was good!
Date: 2008-05-05
From: Fontana Dam

To: Mollie's Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: clear sky

It's great to be back in the Smokies. Another perfect spring day, cool enough to be almost fall-like and invigorating. I had almost 21 hours of rest as I didn't get started until around 11:00 AM due to resupplying at Fontana Village. The first day into the Smokies is a tough one with a 2,300 ft. climb to the Shuckstack lookout tower and then many ups and downs after that. Park regulations require thru hikers to stay at trail shelters, so daily mileage is somewhat predetermined. I'm feeling stronger after my mini-break but will probably stop for the night at the first shelter. I'll see how I feel when I get there. I may have just bestowed a trail name on a fellow hiker. A young man from Atlanta named Hunter has been crossing my path since Carrock Mt. in Georgia. S I asked him today if he was familiar with the writings of Hunter Thompson, and when he said yes and was a fan, I suggested we call him "Gonzo". He said he was honored so we'll see if it sticks.I decided to take it easy after the big climb and stay at Mollie's Ridge shelter. Only 6 hikers here so it's only half full. The weather is supposed to hold until Thursday so tomorrow will be a good one with some great views coming up. All in all I felt good today on the climb with a very heavy pack carrying 6 days of food.
Date: 2008-05-06
From: Mollie's Ridge Shelter

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: clear sky

Oh dear, I think I fell down the rabbit hole again. Last time this happened it took me a couple of months to find the way out. It's wonderland on these Smoky Mt. ridge tops on a warm, sunny, calm day with all the trees flowering and birds singing. Two ravens just floated by, quietly croaking to each other. Manatee and Rocklocks just walked by and they are as enchanted as I am. It's just perfect. There are many grassy knolls on this section with great views that just invite you to stop and soak it all in on a spring day like this. But the trail calls so I must walk onward. But I think I'll stay in Wonderland for awhile.
Date: 2008-05-07
From: Siler Bald Shelter

To: Ice Water Springs Shelter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: broken clouds

I had good evening energy so went for the extra long day to Siler Bald shelter. The best I've felt, powerwise, on the trail so far. And today was a great day for climbing Clingman's Dome, the highest point on the AT at 6, 643 ft. Rocklocks, Manatee, and David were up there as well. I've been seeing these three young, high spirited, and good humored thru hikers since the N.O.C. When I got up there, Rocklocks was flying a kit that she had packed all the way from Springer Mt., and intends to fly on Mt. Katahdin at the end of the trail. At one point a tree grabbed the kite but after some time it managed to free itself, a bit of trail magic and a good omen.
Date: 2008-05-08
From: Ice Water Springs Shelter

To: Cosby Knob
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: scattered clouds

The choice today is between a 13 mile day and a 20 mile day. At least 5 of the people in the shelter last night are going for the 20. It's 11:00 AM and I've got some miles in already but I'm still undecided.   It is a very easy section of trail however. Running along the narrow spine of the Smokies, sometimes the ridge is only 3 feet wide, it offers many spectacular views off both sides. Although windy today, the promised severe thunderstorms have not yet materialized. In fact it's clearing up. I'm grateful for this because last year in this section it was raining and foggy and I missed all the great scenery. I'm feeling strong and the going is easy, so I may go for the 20. I've decided that David, Manateee and Rock Locks have some powerful Ju-Ju. Normally when it starts to rain you can stop it for a little while anyway by putting on your pack cover and rain gear. But by putting on all their rain gear before they even left the shelter, this trio completely pre-empted the storm! It is now sunny and warm in this Smoky Mt. high country. So I'm officially naming Rock Locks, David, and Manateee the "Nexus of Trial Magic on the Caboose End of the Thru-hiker Pack". I wonder if they can do it again the next time a storm is predicted.
Date: 2008-05-09
From: Cosby Knob

To: Camp
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: light rain

Last night I was greeted with resounding cheers of "Monk! Monk! you made it!" as I finally reached Cosby Knob shelter after a 12 hour 20 mile day. There is a lot of comradery among thru hikers. The shelter was packed with 17 hikers so I happily set up my tent even though it was still raining. Today I had the huge descent of 3,600 ft. out of the high country of the Smoky Mts. down into summertime at the Pidgeon River. I'm now doing all the resupply chores(laundry, shower, journal, internet, etc) at the rustic Standing Bear Hostel. The weather has cleared and I'll move on a couple of more miles this evening to a nice campsite I know of. It was a great trip through the Smokies and I was feeling strong the whole way. But it feels great to be back in the spring green again in these lower elevations.
Date: 2008-05-10
From: Painter Branch Camp

To: Old Roaring Fork Shelter Site
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: overcast clouds

My sleeping bag is drying in the sun and wind on top of Max Patch Mt. This is one of those big grassy "balds" with the spacious 360 degree view that are scattered up the ranges all the way into Northern Virginia. It's 3:00 in the afternoon and this is my first view of the day as it was still foggy when I summited Snowbird Mt. this morning. I've been slow on the uphills today, perhaps as a lack of sleep due to the big thunderstorm that came through last night. So I'm appreciating the good weather to dry things out. It's impossible even in a good tent, to stay completely dry in storms like that. Just the humidity tends to dampen things. It's been a lovely walk today with many miles of the trail lines with trilliums, geraniums, larkspur and other flowers. And now this view on Max Patch, looking back at the Smoky Mts and ahead to the ones leading me on northward. It is good to be walking this trail this spring. It brings a sense of endless, timeless, freedom, an ope endedness so intense it's almost scary at times. But a good sort of scary. I wouldn't trade it for anything.
Date: 2008-05-11
From: Old Roaring Fork Shelter Site

To: Lover's Leap Camp
Miles today: 17.0

I slept well last night until the bears came. I awoke around midnight because something was making loud huffing noises nearby. My tent was set up under a big Hemlock tree and my food bag was hanging off a branch not 20 feet away on the other side of the tree.   I peered around the tree with my light and sure enough, there was a large bear standing there looking up at my food bag. I commenced to yell at this bear but it paid me no mind and eventually wandered off. Then another, smaller bear appeared and was again unaffected by my loud exhortation to leave. I was beginning to wonder if I was going to get a parade of bears all night. When it finally left, I got out to gather up some rocks to throw in case they came back. But they bothered me no further and must have gone off to look for easier pickings. Or maybe I was just a skinny thru hiker and they preferred the fatter weekend variety.I did get some good sleep after all that excitement even though it rained again for the third night in a row. The weather did everything today with wind, fog, sunny warm periods and now windy again and fairly cold with light rain showers. My energy was great all day and I made it to Hotsprings to resupply and then climbed out of town up to this cold, windy, campsite above Lover's Leap. Time to crawl into my tent and call it good for the day.
Date: 2008-05-12
From: Lover's Leap Camp

To: Alan Gap camp
Miles today: 15.0

Another rainy night with lots of wind roaring through the trees, but at least no bears, not that I would have heard them with all the racket the wind and rain were making. I just passed up the side trail to Rich Mt. firetower as the cold wind is still raging up there. It is trying to clear after a cold morning with low scudding clouds. I'm temporarily out ahead of the group of young thru hikers, RockLocks, David, Matatee and Hunter, all were sucked into the Hotsprings vortex and haven't emerged yet. But they will pass me again soon, I'm sure.And when I reached Spring Mt. Shelter, Hunter, now "Gonzo", (the trail name I gave him stuck)caught up with me and now has passed. I'm also caught up with last year's self as I'm eating diner in exactly the same spot I did last year. I'll make camp a few more miles up the trail. As the days go by, more and more I'm living in the oneness of our true home. And last year's journey feels like a preparation for this one. This is why I'm out here.
Date: 2008-05-13
From: Alan Gap camp

To: Flint Mt. Shelter
Miles today: 15.0

It's finally warm enough for me to take my shirt off and soak up some rays looking out at the great view on top of Big Firescald Knob, with the big flat valley in Tennessee on one side, and the North Carolina mountains rolling off into the distance on the other.There was no rain, roaring wind, thunder, lightening, or rowdy bears to disturb my sleep last night so I'm well rested today. 39 degrees this morning so I got moving quickly. But there is not a cloud in the sky and the air is fairly clear so it's a great day for these big views.I made it to Fling Mt. Shelter for the evening with a rare group of older hikers around my age or better, including Flash, who thru hiked in '01 and three ladies who met on the trail but walk at the same pace named Batlegoose, Polywog, and Panama Snail. It's a hoot to listen to them banter with each other. Two other thru hikers I met today include Camel and Creeper. I've actually caught up with this grouping of slower moving hikers and will see some of them on and off until I gradually move ahead. Passing people who are moving only a little slower can sometimes take a week or more.
Date: 2008-05-14
From: Flint Mt. Shelter

To: Campsite south of Street Gap
Miles today: 13.0

A campsite with a view at last! A wonderful site on top of a ridge with an open meadow running down to the gap. I can see the grassy top of Big Bald Mt. and have stopped here early, for me at least, at 5:00 PM as there is no sense in going higher on this cool and cloudy day. I've been leap frogging Camel and Creeper all day and they have finally passed me on to a campsite 1.5 miles further on. But I'm content to sit here with my view. And maybe tomorrow the sun will shine for the big open views on top of Big Bald. It's a good climb up to the top at 5,516 ft. and I'm looking forward to it.
Date: 2008-05-15
From: Campsite south of Street Gap

To: Temple Knob Gap
Miles today: 19.0

I summited Big Bald Mt. on this grey gloomy morning, and as the views were obscured by thick haze I took no photos.   Last year I had blue skies and 80 mile visibility and I have some good pictures from that fine day. Despite all the gloomy skies of the last two days,and occasional drizzle, I'm feeling good on the trail and spirits are high. Now begins the gradual descent ot Erwin which I'll reach tomorrow and likely take my first zero day.
Date: 2008-05-16
From: Temple Knob Gap

To: Holiday Inn
Miles today: 4.0

I'm sitting on the porch of Uncle Johnny's Hostel on another cool gray day after walking down just 4 miles from where I camped after a 19 mile day yesterday. This gives me the opportunity to do a zero (near zero) day today and tomorrow rather than a zero day with two nights of the trail. Tomorrow is supposed to be the only sunny day so I want to be hiking! And I'm feeling good, my legs just need a little rest at this stage even after 26 straight days of walking. I'm just loving it out here. I decided to migrate down the road one mile to the Holiday Inn Express. And a little trail magic happened as a couple offered me a ride even though I wasn't hitching, and it turned out to be Barking Spider and Kokopelli who thru hiked last year. I had seen their entries in the shelter registers and had also been reading Kokopelli's journal before I started. It's a great day to hole up as its raining and cold outside. But tomorrow, unless my legs seize up, I'll be on the trail again.
Date: 2008-05-17
From: Holiday Inn

To: Low Gap
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: clear sky

It's sunny but windy and cool up here on Beauty Spot. I'm heading back up into the high country after already ascending 2,400 ft. from Erwin. From here I can see the spruce-clad top of Unica Mt. and the even higher Roan Mt. in the distance. I've been a bit peeved at the way the forest service has been setting their prescribed burns right along the Appalachian Trail. I've had to walk through miles of fire blackened landscape lately. Hopefully I've come to the end of that area. As expected, the trail has been empty today. Trail Daze in Damascus has vacuumed up all the young and many older thru hikers for the annual four day party there that celebrates the AT experience. So many of the hikers that were just ahead of me will now be behind me when they return to the trail.No wonder I'm tired. I just checked the map to see what my days' mileage was and it added up to 15. With a heavy pack and a lot of climbing. I'm camped in Low Gap just past Unica Mt. Very low mental energy but I think I'll sleep well tonight.
Date: 2008-05-18
From: Low Gap

To: Little Rock Knob
Miles today: 11.0

I did sleep well last night, and its been a rainy cool day, but now the wind is roaring in the trees overhead and tearing holes in the clouds allowing the first sunshine of the day to poke through. I'm camped exactly where I was last year after a short day and for much the same reasons. Roan Mt. at over 6,000 ft, is still socked in with clouds from this cold front and it's too late in the day to attempt the climb in any case. Plus I've got a great view just down the trail from my camp. I've only seen 3 hikers on the trail all day due to the Trail Daze effect. When I started hiking almost a month ago, spring was more advanced than last year. But with all the cool, rainy weather, the tables have turned and now the spring growth is noticeably behind what it was a year ago. Although it makes the spring slow down, I enjoyed all the storminess today, but I find it difficult to say exactly why. Perhaps it's all th freshness and energy in the air. And all the plants are happy, if not all the hikers. Tomorrow the high Roan Mt. and all the beautiful balds to walk just beyond. Hopefully the sun will shine.
Date: 2008-05-19
From: Little Rock Knob

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: scattered clouds

It rained again much of the night last night as part two of the cold front roared in, bringing high winds, thunder, and heavy rain. It was 38 degrees but clear when I got up and by the time I reached the top of Roan Mt. at 11:00 AM it was sunny but with a cold wind and still 37 degrees.But now the cold wind has died and I'm sitting in the warm, sunny meadow at Overmountain Shelter. Hikers have been streaming in for the last hour and now must be close to twenty. I had a dream many years ago of thru hiking the AT, and in that dream was this shelter, which is an old red barn converted for hikers, and the shelter was full of people as it is now. It's a beautiful, peaceful setting with a great view of the valley below. There were great big open spaces with distant views in every direction as the trail stayed high in the balds after the fir clad Roan Mt. And again tomorrow it will go up over Little Hump Mt. and the Hump Mt., both big balds before descending again 2,600 ft. to the forest below. My mind, or should I say brain, has stayed fuzzy and cloudy as it has been since Erwin. The low mental energy continues but at least my legs are still strong. No matter, I just walk through it all.
Date: 2008-05-20
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Elk River Camp
Miles today: 15.0

A symphony of bird song began the day with mourning doves, owls, robins, towhees, hermit thrushes, and many more all joining in the celebration. Just celebrating being alive in the spring time in the Southern Appalachians. It's quite a treat.It started off cloudy but warming and very windy which disturbed my sleep much of the night with all the tent flapping noises. But I noticed that much of my mental fog had lifted, and the exhilaration of climbing Hump Mt. in high, buffeting winds gusting over 40 MPH seemed to blow the rest of the cobwebs out of my mind. I really enjoyed the fun of being knocked around, staggering, and occasionally almost pushed over, on the way up the very exposed Bald of Hump Mt.   Fortunately the temperature has warmed up a lot and maybe summer will make an appearance at last.That was the last of the high country until I ascend Mt. Rodgers and the Grayson Highland in Virginia. It should be warmer and greener from here on.The trail was wonderfully diverse today, moving down from the high balds to the deep forest below. It wound its way up lush valleys, through pine and hemlock groves, past a cemetery, and crossed peaceful country roads. I've ended up for the evening here in an idyllic grassy stream valley called the Elk River. I wish I could describe what really happened to me today, but if I try to put it into words the reality of it will inevitably be diminished. But since this journal isn't just about the trail but rather where it leads me, I'll just say, at the risk of sounding like a mystical cliche, that I fell at times into a state of oneness; what the Vietnamese Zen master Thiah Nat Hanh calls our true home, and Jesus calls the Kingdom of Heaven, which really is at hand all the time. But most of us are so dense that it can require a long painful journey just to get a glimpse. It was a rare thing for me to get more than just a taste, but I'd say I had a feast today. And the flavor still lingers. It's funny because though it seems a long, strange trip to get back home, in truth we've never left.
Date: 2008-05-21
From: Elk River Camp

To: Park Ridge Camp
Miles today: 16.0

Another cold front has moved through with yesterday's thunderstorms and this morning's cloudy skies giving way to very cool, sunny fall-like weather. I should be energized by a day like this but despite the relatively easy terrain I've been struggling all day. My mind feels dazed, my body sluggish and tired, and I'm breathing much harder on the uphills than usual. And I've been sleeping well, so that's not the problem. But I don't have much farther to go today and I can take it easy tomorrow if I want as it's a resupply day. There are a lot of ups and downs on the trail, of every variety imaginable, so I just walk through them all.My energy picked up as I walked into the evening and way treated to a great sunset from my camp.
Date: 2008-05-22
From: Park Ridge Camp

To: Watauga Lake Camp
Miles today: 13.0

Today was going to be shorter day but somehow I still managed to walk 13 miles. It was a perfect day. Sunny, about 70 deg. and an interesting trail through Laurel Fork Gorge and past the falls. I met 4 thru hikers I hadn't seen before; Hippie Chick and the Poet, Sunny and Mr. J. The Poet writes haikus in the shelter register that are actually very good. There seem to be quite a lot of other hikers around as well down here by this big reservoir called Watauga Lake. I'm camped right by the shore and the peaceful forest sounds are occasionally shattered by the power boats going by.
Date: 2008-05-23
From: Watauga Lake Camp

To: Nick Grindstaff Monument
Miles today: 15.0

It's warm! The first summery feeling day of the trip. I've climbed above the lake and am on the long ridge of Iron Mt. Feeling sluggish and tired again with that muddy headed fog. Yesterday I was bright and chipper and today the opposite. I had this pattern on my hike last year a lot. I'm hoping that some zero days coming up will break the pattern.But this stretch to Damascus is a very easy trail, staying on relatively level ridge top the whole way. So I'm taking it easy today.