morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-04-19
From: Ruby's Rest Damascus, VA

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

First thing this morning Snag shipped off our bounce box as I packed up our things and enjoyed watching the chickens in Jeff and Nicki's backyard. We ate our last meal at Mojoe's (a pretty hip coffee shop): blueberry pancakes and a smoothie each. We saw some of our hiker friends, but we will leave them behind today. They wanted to start late and go 9 miles to the first shelter where Snag and I wanted to do a full 15 miles. I'm sure we'll meet again soon, though - they are all fast hikers.It was tough leaving town, but our feet have relaxed enough for us to feel good and ready for a hike. It was a nice day, partly cloudy and breezy. We followed and crossed paths with the Virginia Creeper Trail. Our first full day of hiking in Virginia was full of gradual switchbacks, which was nice. At Lost Mountain Shelter tonight is Snorting Ox (an older man from Ohio), Magpie, and Doc. Privies had all but disappeared in Tennessee, but are back now and this one is really nice and new. It's the small things that we appreciate out here.
Date: 2012-04-20
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Wise Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: overcast clouds

We slept in a little longer than usual today, faced with a more reasonable day of hiking - nothing like our two big hikes into Damascus a few days ago. By the time we left, we were the last ones at the shelter. Although not necessarily an easy day, our hike up to Buzzard Rock and Whitetop Mountain was filled with switchbacks, which I have grown to love. Given the choice of going straight up a mountain or taking switchbacks, I choose switchbacks every time - they've become something we can do with less effort. At lunchtime as we reached Whitetop Mountain Road where there were 2 trail angels there handing out peanut butter/banana/raisin sandwiches, cookies, and herbal tea. They were real sweet and had never done trail magic before. We answered a lot of their common questions (What are your names? Where are you from? How many hours do you hike a day? What are you carrying in your pack?) and moved on. We climbed up almost to the top of Mt. Rogers, which is the tallest point in Virigina at 5729 ft. The trail stayed slightly lower in elevation at 5500 ft. Our surroundings were changing to more rocky, grassy, and exposed areas. The trail flattened out quite a bit for a while, and we came across a lot of section and day-hikers because of how beautiful this area is around the Grayson Highlands. There was a lot of talk of rain and possible storms today, so we were paying attention to the sky. It was cloudy, but looked like it might hold off for a few hours at least. We have been hearing about ponies that roam this area and we came across about a dozen of them in the afternoon. They are adorbale! Apparently in the 1960s, the park introduced them to use them to manage the grasses. About 5 of them rushed up to me, Snag, and Doc, hoping that we had food. They endured our pets and pats, but truly just wanted some treats that they never got. We pushed on. We entered Grayson Highlands State Park and we are at the shelter early tonight (4pm). Fetch and Tipsy (a couple from Ohio - lots of Ohioans!), Doc, and three section hikers are staying in the shelter tonight hoping to stay out of the rain. Walking Home (a guy in his 30s living in Maine), showed up around 8pm and tented nearby.We heard from Tipsy that our resupply point in Troutdale, VA (Jerry's Kitchen/Restaurant) is closed this year, which puts Snag and I in a bind. We had to dump out our food and decide what we can eat to get by until the day after tomorrow. We will have to eat a lot less, but we will be O.K.
Date: 2012-04-21
From: Wise Shelter

To: Trimpi Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: light rain

Up early, Snag and I left about 7:30AM. There was a lot of rock-hopping in this section, which leaves our feet a little more sore than usual. The terrain was more flat, though, and since we have been hearing rumors of storms, we wanted to make good time early in the day. A hint about the weather: especially in the mountains, the weather is so variable. Many day hikers tell us what they think the weather will be like and we get a lot of different information. We still love to talk and hear about it, though. The key is that no one really knows, and unless there are reports of severe storms, we just keep hiking because we can't really stay holed up somewhere.Today was full of trail magic! Just before lunch, we ran into a guy walking on thre trail with his dogs who asked us if we wanted some food. Yes! He gave us so much: snickers, an orange, granola bars. Almost in passing he told us that when we pass a parking lot up the trail, he has 2 coolers full of cokes and hiker food for us to resupply on. It was exactly what we needed!! We met Walking Home and Doc at the coolers and had pink lemonade, sausage & beans, and the orange. Snag and I took 2 packs of rice and beans and some potted meat (whatever that is), and some other food. We think it will get us to Atkins, VA 2 days away. Perfect. So we left and not 2 miles later we came across a guy who hiked in 1998 handing out honey buns.Snag, Walking Home and I hiked the remaining 6 miles together, hoping to beat the storm that was obviously brewing. It started to rain, then stopped. An hour later it started again, and then a rumble sounded nearby and I stopped to put my coat on. As I stood up, a clap of thunder and lightening erupted over our heads as rain came pouring down. I jumped and ran to catch up with my group. It was the first storm Snag and I have been caught in and it gave me a good scare. We still had 3 miles to hike, though, so there was no fighting it.There is a fireplace at our shelter tonight. Walking Home, Faulkner, Doc, Tipsy, Fetch, and 2 section-hikers from Germany are staying inside. The fire is going and we're trying to dry our clothes. We talked a little about the hiking philosophies out here. Walking Home is what we call a "purist", meaning he passes each white blaze religiously and will do everything in his power to hike every inch of the official AT. Then there are hikers like Tipsy and Fetch, who hiked part of the Virginia Creeper Trail instead for part of the day for a change of pace. They both consider themselves thru-hikers. There was a time when I accidentally hiked up the wrong trail for 50 feet, but didn't backtrack to make up the part of the AT that I missed. Someone like Walking Home wouldn't think twice about it - he would have backtracked so he made sure to walk every part of the AT. Snag is more of a purist than me. I plan on walking the whole AT, but I don't mind missing a few feet. If you submit yourself as a 2000-miler, or a thru-hiker, no one will check to make sure you hiked the whole trail. Your certificate and your time out here only means something to you.
Date: 2012-04-22
From: Trimpi Shelter

To: Rest Inn -- Groseclose, VA
Miles today: 22.2

An update on our dinner last night, the potted meat: it was absolutely terrible. Potted meat is about 3 levels below spam and tastes like cat food. We mixed it in with mashed potatoes and ramen noodles and it was the biggest disaster, but we had to eat it all.I heard that there was some mouse activity last night in the shelter, but perhaps with my ear plugs and restful night's sleep, I didn't notice. Snag and I left the shelter about 8AM in the fog and drizzle. It stayed cold and foggy all day, so we were bundled up as we went up and down our mountains for the day - Brushy, Locust and Glade. The terrain has been easier, and we made great time getting into town, 22 miles in 9 hours!I was in the gas station buying an armful of candy bars and a man commented that I must have some sweet tooth! The clerk gladly explained (in her southern drawl) that I am a hiker (how did she know?) and that I can eat that kind of thing. It's a big perk. I always hope that the clerks don't think I eat like this in real life. I live on candy bars between my big meals becuse I crave them and they keep my energy up!This area around Atkins, VA is beautiful, green and grassy. There are a few houses scattered in the hills, but the only things in town is a restaurant, hotel and gas station. Snag and I ordered a pizza from the next town over and we gorged ourselves. We are relaxing and getting ready for tomorrow.
Date: 2012-04-23
From: Rest Inn -- Groseclose, VA

To: The Comfort Inn -- Atkins, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

There were some people that predicted snow today, but I didn't believe them until this morning when we walked outside. This is the first snow any of us hikers have seen on the trail and we all agree that we have been spoiled by the mostly good weather. It was snowing and blowing and not fun on the short walk to the restaurant.We met Doc and another hiker from Ohio named KDOE at The Barn restaurant this morning and talked about the weather over breakfast. Were we staying in town? Hiking on? We were approached by hikers August and BLT who proposed that we share a room at the slightly more upscale Comfort Inn in Atkins, VA. It didn't take long for Snag and I to decide we would love to. Cado and Doc I think moved on. We are prepared for this weather, but we don't necessarily have to hike in it so we won't today. On our way into Atkins on a shuttle we stopped at the P.O. and now have a comfortable stay ahead of us here. We weren't planning on another zero in Atkins, but here we are!
Date: 2012-04-24
From: The Comfort Inn Atkins, VA

To: Knot Maul Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: scattered clouds

The continental breakfast was great this morning - boiled eggs, yogurt, waffles, cereal, juice and hot chocolate. It was kind of difficult to elave the warm hotel because it was a bit cold and very windy out. By 10:30 Snag, BLT, August and I were on our way north again.Although cold and windy, it was mostly sunny. The weather for this week coming looks variable. A chance of rain every day leaves us all guessing. We had 2 climbs up Big Walker and Brushy Mountins, but it wasn't too bad. Trail magic was left for hikers in 2 coolers with cola, crackers, and pb&j sandwiches! Yum! Unexpected and appreciated! There are lots of hikers here tonight: Duck, August, BLT, Gunrunner, Doc Holiday and his dog Wyatt, Napoleon and his dog Max, Huff, Puff, Magpie, Lucas and Eric. This shelter area is so full that some other hikers moved on. It looks like everyone is in high gear after the snow and cold the past couple of days. We're ready to hike! Hopefully we have good weather into Pearisburg.We had a nice fire and talked until 9PM (we call that hiker's midnight) about some news stories of late that we heard about in the hotel and how our hikes are going. These are all really fun people out here that like to have a good time and hike, hike, hike!
Date: 2012-04-25
From: Knot Maul Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Rain started last night while sleeping and continued into the morning. It was cold, but it could have been a lot worse. Nobody likes packing up a wet tent in the cold. Snag and I walked with our rain gear on for an hour or so, but the rain stopped and it got muggy, so our outer layers came off. It was cloudy all day even though the sun tried to poke through a few times in the afternoon.19 miles felt like a lot more today. My feet and legs feel fine, but my energy level was generally low. Snag and I set up our tent at the shelter, but only to dry it out before bed. We'll sleep inside the shleter tonight in case it rains again. August, Professor Oak, Lemmiwinks, BLT and Doc Holiday with his dog Wyatt sare staying in the shelter. Magpie, Tipsy & Fetch pitched their tents outside, although I'm sure they would have stayed inside if there was room.
Date: 2012-04-26
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Bland, VA
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: moderate rain

Rain, rain, rain today. Last night after dinner at about 8:00pm it started to drizzle and everyone said goodnight and went to bed, but no one slept very well. There were lightening storms and rain all night. The rain was coming in sideways and I was sleeping facing the outside of the shelter, so I put my rain jacket over my head to keep the rain off as much as I could.In the morning it was still raining and most of us left by 8:30, but some lingered in the shelter or in their tents hoping to wait it out. It rained heavily all morning, the sky lighting up the whole way and thunder sounding closeby. There was water everywhere: on the trail turning it into a little river and it filled all of the streams to the brim so they were flowing fast. After about 2 hours of hiking, our socks and shoes practically drenched all the way, we finally had to step into a raging stream to cross it and we resigned to squishy socks and shoes. Apparently BLT took the time to change into his camp shoes to ford the stream, but he was the only one. Shortly after, our rain gear completely failed (as it does in torrential rain) and everyone hiking was soaked to the bone. We met a guy, Mailbox, from Chapel Hill, NC and briefly talked about stopping in Bland, VA to dry our stuff off in a motel tonight. At noon we made it to a road crossing where BLT had called a shuttle to pick him up. We could ride along if we wanted to, and we did. We met up with Doc Holiday (and his dog Wyatt) and August going into town and they jumped in, too. Magpie showed up later, so there were 7 of us that ended up at the motel and we split 2 rooms between us.Our clothes are hanging and drying everyone in our rooms now. We're glad to be inside, because at 8:00PM, just like last night, the big storms started again. Lightening, thunder, and this time hail. The hail covered the parking lot, turning it white. BLT commented (from the comfort of our hotel room) that he loves it when Mother Nature flexes her muscles like this. It sure was a powerful storm. Apparently it could be like this for days. What to do? It's so nice to be indoors for rain like this. I imagine I would be soaking wet otherwise, and cold.
Date: 2012-04-27
From: Bland, VA

To: Trent's Store Camp
Miles today: 18.6

This morning the sun was shining and the trail looked like a different place than yesterday. The trails that looked like rivers had soaked up the water and were just mushy to walk on. We did some mud-walking, but our socks stayed dry. The walking today was fairly easy, I must say. It helped that we were all well rested from our stay last night.We hiked with August, Fetch and Tipsy, and BLT today and are camping with them tonight at a strange campsite. It's half a mile off the AT behind a gas station and next to a horse pasture. The horses are friendly and some un-penned pigs even showed up to say hello.The gas station had a "restaurant" selling greasy food but Snag and I managed to eat only our food that we've been packing to lighten our load and to not spend more money. BLT bought beer and Little Debbie Swiss Rolls and I had some of each. Yet again, we had a beautiful fire and stayed up late talking about ghost stories, among other things. A young guy named Four Spoke joined us. We've seen him in the registers the past few weeks and finally caught up with him.
Date: 2012-04-28
From: Trevor's Store Camp

To: Doc's Knob
Miles today: 16.1

No rain last night. Surprise! Our pig friends visited camp this morning chewing on everything in sight and Four Spokes made friends and fed them leftover marshmellows from last night. By 9AM Snag and I left camp, and we had a pretty easy day. Rain started, and so did the lightening and thunder, but just when we thought we would be in the rain for a while (we stopped to put on our rain gear and pack covers), it stopped and the sky slowly cleared up.Surprisingly, it hasn't rained since then and we are sitting 8 miles from Pearisburg with old friend Bootstrap and BLT, August, Magpie, and some young guys in their mid-20s that are triple crowners (have hiked all three of the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail and Appalachian Trail). It's quite a feat, and they've managed to do it in the last 3 years. One of them, named Stinger, not only will complete his triple crown this summer, but he started hiking this year in Florida and plans to hike into Canada. They have lots of stories about other trails and are planning to boat down the Yukon River next summer. They must love trail life more than real life and have a lot of time to spare. It's pretty awesome what some people manage to do.the shelter is full tonight and lots of tents are pitched in the area. Everyone must be going into town tomorrow.
Date: 2012-04-29
From: Doc's Knob

To: Holiday Lodge -- Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 7.8
Weather: broken clouds

More people came into camp last night. I've noticed more and more people night hiking and getting into camps later and later. I still want to quit hiking by 5:00PM, but everyone hikes differently.We were all up early, and most left by 8:00AM to get into Pearisburg for food. When sleeping in the shelter, everyone is at the mercy of the one who wakes earliest. It's hard to be quiet when you're trying to stuff your sleeping bag into it's stuff sack and you start unzipping and zipping things. If someone is sensitive to noise or likes to sleep in, shelters probably are not right for you. I find a good pair of ear plugs and a forgiving attitude works best. It was a relatively easy hiking, and we had nice views from Pearis Mountain and the view, Angel's Rest. It's nice to do laundry, but I feel like I've spent too much time in hotels and towns lately. Perhaps we'll try to stay out in the woods more in this next section. We haven't made it to the post office yet (since it's Sunday), but we should be picking up boxes with warm-weather gear tomorrow. We're excited to lose some extra weight by sending home our cold-weather bags and heavy clothes.
Date: 2012-04-30
From: Holiday Lodge Pearisburg, VA

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: light rain

Eric and I went into the post office this morning to pick up our bounce box. The lady at the front saw our ID's and said, "Lauren and Eric! We've been waiting for you." She brought us 5 packages. Box #1 was the bounce box (which we bounced ahead to Montibello without opening). Box #2 was our food drop. Box #3 were my new Keen shoes. Box #4 was our warmer weather gear (32 degree sleeping bag for me and 45 degree for Eric) and new Keen shoes for EricBox #5 were goodies sent from Chris United Methodist Church's sunday school group in Ashland, Ohio. There were crackers, granola bars and chips. We both really appreicate their gifts and thinking of us! Bea also baked some delicious banana nut muffins, which we ate and shared with some hikers at the post office.I decided that my old Keens (that I've worn for hundreds of miles already), still had some miles in them and so I shipped my new Keens ahead about 11 days. My old shoes are still so comfortable and I stitched up the sides with upholstry thread, so we'll see how that works out. Eric put on his new shoes immediately and they feel good. I've heard that all this hiking can make your feet get bigger (or wider), but Eric's seem about the same size. We got breakfast at Dairy Queen and got the final weather report (20 - 40% chance of thundershowers every day this week). Hiking out of Pearisburg wasn't exactly a "walk in the park". Just when we thought Virginia was easy, it made us think twice. We had a steep climb and it was pretty warm and sunny, so we were sweating like crazy. Lots of water was drunk. I've almost never been more relieved to reach a ridgeline and the walking from that point to the shelter was nice. We have some friend MAINE-iac, Bootstrap, Indiana, Magpie, BLT and August here along with Stinger, Phoenix and 2 Southbounders Trailmix and Hatchet. The southbounders have a cat named Meow that they hike with. She even killed a mouse shortly before we showed up! They let her roam during breaks and at camp and put her on a leash other times. Some poeple hiked up some beers and brats so we had a BBQ over the fire.
Date: 2012-05-01
From: Rice Field Shelter

To: Bailey Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: light rain

Happy Birthday, Bea! Thanks again for all you're doing to help us out on the trail. We hope you're having a good day!!In the night, a couple of big storms were circling the shelter. It had been windy all night and we got a lot of rain in a short time. We saw lightening from the tent, but the thunder sounded far away. In the morning it was cloudy and it rained on and off until the afternoon. I kept stopping to put on and take off my rain gear until I just gave up in frustration. I just wore my hiking skirt and short-sleeved shirt. BLT, Snag, Magpie and I ate lunch at Pine Swamp Branch Shelter as the rain picked up again. Shortly after, the sun came out and we all left, headed only 4 miles more until Bailey Gap Shelter.The climb up the last 2 miles had me huffing and sweating. The water source was 1/4 mile south of the shelter on the AT and further down a blue-blazed trail (that's a side trail), so I filled up our 4 liter water bag and 2 of our liter bottles for our dinner, breakfast and drinking water for tomorrow morning. Last night Snag bit the bullet and hiked 1/3 mile down a steep hill for water, so it was my turn. We met 2 more southbounders named Weaver and Sarge, completing their thru-hike from last year. It's a nice, relaxing night. They boys are up talking around the fire. August, BLT and Magpie are here, too, and we're all staying in the shelter tonight.
Date: 2012-05-02
From: Bailey Gap Shelter

To: Sarver Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: scattered clouds

I think it rained very early this morning, and only briefly - I wasn't awake enough to register it. Everyone was up by 6:30 and most rolled out by 7:30. It didn't rain again today, though. It was just the opposite: sunny, warm and breezy. Snag and I had a couple of hills to climb today, I think it surprised us both how tough they were. At 2:00, deciding that we weren't in a hurry, we took a nice, long break to stick our legs and feet in a cold stream. It felt so very good on our tired muscles!We had our first tick experiences today, although I've heard that they have been active for a while now. Eric and I both found some crawling on our socks while walking through an open field, and then I spotted more than a dozen on blades of grass. We were being so careful not to become their victimes! The little buggers just sit and wait for an animal to brush past and then they latch on. We need to start chekcing ourselves daily.our last climb up to the shelter was a hard one. Hot, tired and at the end of the day, I kept stopping to catch my breath. Once we reached the top, we had some nice ridge-walking for almost 2 miles before dropping down into a dark hollow. This shelter seems new. The steps to the covered porch have inlaid stones and there are shelves and big hooks to hang our bags. BLT joined us for tonight. He came in late and had just enough time to make dinner before hitting the sack.