morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-09-11
From: Troutville, VA

To: Boy Scout Shelter
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: scattered clouds

We got up and ate breakfast at the hotel this morning and started hiking around 8:15. We started off by hiking up to Tinker Cliffs. There were great views from the cliffs. Tinker Cliffs is named after Revolutionary War deserters, called Tinkers, who came to the cliffs to escape the war. We hiked on the edge of the cliffs for about half a mile. We then carried on to Lamberts Meadow Shelter and stopped for a bite to eat. After eating, we climbed up McAfee Knob. It had beautiful 180 degree views! We could see lots of mountains and the city of Roanoke, VA. We then carried on to Boy Scout Shelter, where we're staying for the night. It's a brand new shelter and we're here by ourselves. There isn't any water here though, so we had to be conservative with what we had. Nice day today.
Date: 2003-09-12
From: Boy Scout Shelter

To: Niday Shelter
Miles today: 22.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We hiked through a lot of cow fields this morning. The cows just watched us go by though, they didn't try to chase me this time! After about 7 miles, we decided to go .4 off the trail to a store. I got a 1 Liter Dr. Pepper, a hot dog, a corndog, cheezits, and skittles for a snack.(9:30) It was a very good stop! We then went back to the trail and climbed up Dragon's Tooth.(3020') There were some rocky spots going up it but there was a really nice view at the top. We then came down off of Dragon's Tooth and made our way to Trout Creek. We stopped at the creek for lunch and emptied our trash at a trashcan there. I love having these trashcans on the trail to empty trash! After eating, we climbed back up on a ridge for awhile and then came back down to Niday Shelter. We are staying with 4 guys from the Chesapeake Bay area tonight. They gave me some marshmellows and some apple cider!
Date: 2003-09-13
From: Niday Shelter

To: Roanoke, VA
Miles today: 10.0

We only did 10 miles today because Cephas's parents met us at VA42. We left this morning around 7 and passed by the Keffer Oak, which is the second biggest tree on the trail. It's over 18 feet around and over 300 years old. We then got to VA42 and rode to Roanoke with Cephas's parents. We ate at Hardee's and I got a wonderful hamburger and fries!! I then got in the hot tub at the hotel and boy did it feel good!!! My feet were saying, "Thank you!!!" We ate at Chick fil A for supper and went to the Valley View Mall for awhile and then to Supercenter WalMart. It's been really nice today taking it easy. It started raining this morning as soon as we got in the truck!!! We were very glad that we didn't have to hike in the rain!!! Great day today!
Date: 2003-09-14
From: Roanoke, VA

To: Pine Swamp Branch Shelter
Miles today: 20.9
Weather: scattered clouds

After eating a wonderful breakfast this morning, Cephas's parents drove us back to the trail, which was an hour away. We started hiking around 8:30. We started off by going through more cowfields. We then hiked up 1500' to White Rock(3800'). We then descended down into Rocky Gap and found trail magic there!! I had a Coke and it was good! I love trail magic! We then had another climb of over 2000' to reach Wind Rock at 4100'. We ate lunch up on the ridge and had a wonderful view from Wind Rock. We then descended down to Stony Creek and walked through tunnels of mountain laurel. It was beautiful! When we got to the shelter we decided to go down to the stream in front and stick our feet in and eat supper down there. It was relaxing down there at the stream and we had an enjoyable supper. We then went back and laid down for some rest!
Date: 2003-09-15
From: Pine Swamp Branch Shelter

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: overcast clouds

It rained on us almost all day today. We started off around 7:15 and climbed up about 1500' and got on a ridge. We then stayed on the ridge all day long until coming down into Pearisburg. We stopped at Rice Field Shelter for lunch. I'm not a big fan of cold weather, and it was COLD and windy today on the ridge!!! While we were stopped to eat at the shelter, I got extremely cold and Smokey said my lips were turning purple. We decided to start back hiking so we could warm up. It worked. After about 30 minutes I warmed back up. We then hiked on and walked over the New River on Senator Shumate Bridge and entered into Pearisburg. We went to a grocery store and I called Mr. Bo Thomas. He had signed my guestbook and offered to give me a ride or help out when I got to Pearisburg, so I called him and he gave and picked me and Smokey and Cephas up. He drove us around town to the post office, library, Dairy Queen, and to the hostel. Thank you very much Mr. Bo for your help! It is extremely nice having a way to get around town other than foot! We are staying at a church hostel tonight. The church built a "barn" out beside the church and they allow hikers to stay there. It's very nice. It has a kitchen, shower, electricity, bunks, mattresses, and pillows! It'll be nice to dry out tonight. We were surprised to find two other southbounders here, Bluegrasshopper and Talon. They've been ahead of us but they took a zero day so we were able to catch up with them. Great day today!You can check out Cephas and Smokey's website at www.geocities.com/bubba4664/at_hike
Date: 2003-09-16
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 16.2
Weather: broken clouds

We slept in this morning and then we got going and hitched a ride to the post office. After the post office, we went to Hardee's for a breakfast of biscuits and gravy! Yum! We then got back on the trail around 11:00 and started hiking again. We had a big climb to start off the day from 1600' to Angels Rest at 3600'. There was a really nice view of Pearisburg and the surrounding area from Angels Rest viewpoint. We then went over Pearis Mtn. and then hiked on a nice ridge to Doc's Knob Shelter. We stopped for lunch at the shelter. I was tired of tuna so I decided to just eat a snickers bar and pop tart instead. We then carried on to Wapiti Shelter, where we are staying for the night. I'm staying the night with Smokey, Cephas, two section hikers, and a southbounder from CT named Talon. He got his name because when he was in Vermont, a goss hawk clawed him in the head. Luckily he got the back of his head instead of his face, so all he has is a few scabs now. My family is coming up to meet me tomorrow, so I'm excited about that!
Date: 2003-09-17
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Wytheville, VA
Miles today: 17.3

We left the shelter this morning around 7:15 and it was FREEZING!!!! It was in the 30's. My hands were numb for about an hour before I finally got feeling in them again! We had really flat walking for about 7 miles to VA606. When we got to the road, we hitched to Trent's Grocery and got a hamburger, fries, and a Dr. Pepper! We stayed there for about 2 hours! We always seem to linger at stores for some reason!:) We then went back to the trail and crossed over Kimberling Creek on a suspension bridge. While crossing the bridge, we noticed a rope swing over the creek. The sun had come out in the meantime and it warmed up considerably, so me and Cephas decided to go for a swim. We jumped in and the water was extremely cold!!! We did swing on the rope swing but it was a quick swim because of the temperature! We then sat on the bridge for about 30 minutes and let the sun dry us off. After the swim, we up Brushy Mtn. and hiked on a ridge for awhile. We stopped at Jenny Knob Shelter for a break and then went on to VA611, which is the road that mama, daddy, and John Mark are meeting us on. We sat there for about 20 minutes and then they pulled up! It was really good to see them again! They brought Dr. Pepper and food too!!! We then drove over to Wytheville, VA to our hotel. They are staying until Sunday and Cephas, Smokey, and I are going to slackpack the next few days. That should be nice! Mama, daddy, and John Mark got caught in the middle of a police chase on the way up, but thankfully they made it here safely!!! Great day today!
Date: 2003-09-18
From: Wytheville, VA

To: Wytheville, VA
Miles today: 15.9

Hurricane Isabel is on it's way today, so we got up early to knock out the miles this morning. We were on the trail by 7 slackpacking. Slackpacking is when we only use a day pack instead of our huge, heavy packs. It is really nice and enjoyable! The hike was really nice today. Most of it was up on a ridge and the trail was really well maintained! We crossed over Interstate 77 and then continued on to VA615. Mama, daddy, and John Mark met us there around 1:00 and had food again! We had a little picnic there and then went back to the hotel room. Hurricane Isabel is already hitting land and we are supposed to feel the effects tonight around 6 or 7. We are supposed to get lots of rain and wind gusts up to 50 MPH here. We were lucky to get a hotel room because everybody from the coast is evacuating to this area! The hot tub is going to feel good to my feet tonight! I can't wait! I love hotels for a change!
Date: 2003-09-19
From: Wytheville, VA

To: Wytheville, VA
Miles today: 8.4

We slept in today and stayed around town and the hotel this morning. We got back on the trail around 1:30 and started hiking. We started off by hiking by Little Wolf Creek. We crossed over it 12 different times in 2 miles. Since we only have 8.4 miles today, we decided not to carry any pack at all. We aren't carrying water, food, or trekking poles. Just walking. It feels wonderful!!!! We finished the 8.4 miles in 2.5 hours. We were moving pretty fast!! Mama, daddy, and John Mark were waiting for us at VA623 and they had us some food and drinks waiting! I'm going to get spoiled with this slackpacking and drinks!! Too bad it only last 2 more days! Luckily, the hurricane didn't affect us too much. We got rain last night and this morning, but it's been beautiful weather this afternoon to hike in. After hiking, we went back to Wytheville and ate at a seafood restaurant and I got boiled shrimp! I love seafood! After eating, we went back and got in the hot tub to relax! I could get used to this!:)
Date: 2003-09-20
From: Wytheville, VA

To: Wytheville, VA
Miles today: 17.3

We decided to get on up this morning and start hiking earlier than yesterday. It took us about 45 minutes to drive back to the trail, so we started hiking around 8 o'clock. We started out with a nice ridge walk and then descended down into Walker's Gap and then climbed up Chestnut Knob(4410'). This is the highest we have been since Mt. Mousilauke in New Hampshire. There were beautiful views from the top. There was also a cabin on top so we stopped in for a snack break. This is another mountain that they cut the grass on top of. After Chestnut Knob, we descended for about 6 miles down to Lick Creek and then climbed up Lynn Camp Mtn. We then carried on to Knot Maul Branch Shelter and stopped for another snack break. After the shelter, we only had about 2 miles to VA42, where mama, daddy, and John Mark were waiting on us again. They brought pizza, bananas, apples, grapes, and Dr. Pepper for us and we had a picnic. Nice way to end the hiking day! We then drove back into Wytheville for our last night together.
Date: 2003-09-21
From: Wytheville, VA

To: Wytheville, VA
Miles today: 11.8

Today was mama, daddy, and John Mark's last day with me. Daddy took us out to the trail this morning around 7:30. We walked through lots of cowfields early in the morning and then climbed up Big Walker Mtn.(3500') and Gullion Mtn. We saw 7 deer this morning. Mama, daddy, and John Mark hiked in about half a mile from VA683 and hiked with us some. While they were hiking with us, I saw my first skunk of the trip. Luckily it didn't spray us!!! When we got to VA683, we ate at The Barn Restaurant. It had an all you can eat buffet! After we ate at The Barn, we were sitting outside in the parking lot and Smokey's parents pulled up! They were supposed to meet us today, but they were a few hours early. They are staying tonight. I had a great visit with my family and it was sad to say goodbye as usual, but only about another month and I'll be home! After my family left, I got in the car with Smokey and his parents and we drove back to Wytheville. They took us out to eat at Sagebrush Steakhouse for supper. I have been spoiled these past few days with all this food and a hotel room every night! Back to trail life tomorrow!
Date: 2003-09-22
From: Wytheville, VA

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: light rain

We slept in late this morning and then we drove down to Sugar Grove, VA so Cephas and Smokey could pick up a maildrop at the post office. We then went and ate at Wendy's and after eating, Smokey's parents drove us back to the trail. We started hiking around 1 o'clock. His parents hiked with us for about a mile and then they said goodbye and we were on our own again. The trail went right by a Settler's Museum and a one-room schoolhouse. The museum was closed, but they leave the schoolhouse open for hikers. We stopped in for a short little break and then continued on. We hiked over Glade Mtn.(3900') and Locust Mtn.(3700'). The trail has been pretty nice today. It's drizzled on and off, but thankfully it didn't really rain hard until we were already at the shelter. We got to the shelter around 4:30. The shelter is located right beside a the headquarters for the Mt. Rogers Recreation Area and they have a payphone here and you can order pizza to get delivered. So we ordered some and it tasted great! Great day today!
Date: 2003-09-23
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Old Orchard Shelter
Miles today: 24.7
Weather: scattered clouds

We woke up at 6 this morning as usual and got ready. We were ready by 6:45 but it wasn't light yet! We won't be getting up at 6 anymore! It's definitely not summertime anymore with those long days. Today is actually the first day of fall. We left around 7:15 and hiked 8 miles before stopping for a rest at VA670. We ate at Raccoon Branch Shelter and then hiked through Dickey Gap and then had a long hike up Iron Mtn.(4,320'). We then hiked on to Old Orchard Shelter and made it there by 5 PM. I was shocked we did almost 25 miles by 5 o'clock. The shelter tonight is at 4,050'. It has a wonderful view of the surrounding mountains and the sunset is going to be nice! After today, I have less than 500 miles to Springer Mtn.!!! I can't believe it! It's amazing to think how far I've come since Katahdin. When I started I didn't even know how to use our stove(Matthew had to cook), I've definitely learned a lot since May 27th!
Date: 2003-09-24
From: Old Orchard Shelter

To: Lost Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 23.2

Today has been one of my favorite days of the entire trip. We hiked through Grayson Highlands State Park today. Grayson Highlands is a miniature Montana. It reminds me of the grasslands and ruggedness of Montana. There are wild ponies that roam the area and cows everywhere. The highlands stays mostly between 4800' and 5500'. It is beautiful!!! We started off by hiking up Pine Mtn.(5,000'). We then descended down to "The Scales." Farmers used to bring their cattle up to the highlands to graze during the summer so the cows would fatten up before they sold them. "The Scales" is a corral that the farmers used to round the cattle back up for the sale. Nowadays, the US Forest Service owns the land, but they auction off "grazing rights" to the highest bidder to let their cattle graze during the summer. There are cows everywhere up here. Another reason it looks like Montana! We kept on hiking up on a ridge and had wonderful views ALL day long! We went by Massie Gap and then we saw some wild ponies! The ponies just roam freely throughout the state park. I got lucky enough to pet 2 of them. I wanted to ride one, but they were too little!:) We went on and went through Fatman Squeeze. This is a place where the trail goes between two huge boulders and it is a tight squeeze! It is one of three places on the entire trail where we walk under a rock. We stopped to eat at Thomas Knob Shelter. While we were eating, a deer walked up out of the trees. He walked up to about 10 feet of us and just stood there watching us eat. He stayed for about 3 or 4 minutes and then wandered off slowly. We kept on eating and then about 15 minutes later he appeared from behind the shelter and came within about 5 feet of us! I was amazed at how brave the deer was, we just watched it again and he eventually walked off. I guess he doesn't have to worry about getting shot in a state park. We then went on by Mt. Rogers(5729'). Mt. Rogers is the highest peak in Virginia. The trail doesn't go to the summit, but we did go up to about 5500'. We then carried on and came to VA600 and decided to hitch down to a store for a snack. We sat on the side of the road for about 10 minutes and not a single car drove by. We were about to keep hiking when a section hiker came by and his car was parked in the parking lot and he offered us a ride down to the store. Thankful, we took it. He took us into Konnarock Community to a tiny little store that didn't hardly have anything, but they did have Dr. Pepper, so I was happy! After a little break, we hitched back to the trail in the back of a pickup truck. We then continued on to Lost Mtn. Shelter. Due to all of the breaks during the day and taking our time through the pretty areas, we didn't get to the shelter until almost 7 o'clock. But I'm glad we took our time through the Highlands. Today is definitely the prettiest day yet! Great day!
Date: 2003-09-25
From: Lost Mtn. Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

We woke up this morning and left around 7:15. We were very excited about getting to Damascus today. Damascus is supposedly the "Friendliest Town on the A.T." It's a major stop for every thru-hiker. We went almost 16 miles by 12:40 today! We were moving! The trail goes straight through downtown, so we stopped in at Subway when we walked by and had a tasty pizza sub and 2 Dr. Pepper's! We then went on to the hostel called "The Place." It's a house that the Methodist Church here owns and they allow hikers to stay there. I've heard about Damascus since Maine from the northbounders and I can't believe I'm actually here! Damascus is the location of a festival called "Trail Days" every May. It's a celebration when past thru-hiker's all come back and have a reunion type thing. We're taking a zero day tomorrow and then I'll be in the state of Tennessee in 3.5 more miles!!!! Virginia has flown by despite having over one-fourth of the entire trail! I've really enjoyed it a lot and it's been beautiful! Looking forward to Tennessee and pretty soon Georgia!
Date: 2003-09-27
From: Damascus, VA

To: Double Springs Shelter
Miles today: 18.3
Weather: broken clouds

Last night, Cephas's daddy, cousin, and friend came. They are going to hike with us for a few days. We started off this morning around 7:15 and walked out of Damascus. Damascus was an extremely friendly town and I think it is one of my favorite trail towns yet! We started off with a hike up onto the ridge and after 3.5 miles, we entered into Tennessee!!!!! Finally we are out of Virginia! Over one fourth of the entire trail was in Virginia and it feels good to be in a new state! We then stayed on the ridge for about 10 miles to Abingdon Gap Shelter. We stopped at the shelter for lunch. After eating, we continued on up and over McQueen's Knob(3,840') and Locust Knob(4,020'). About 4:00 this afternoon, the wind started to pick up and it got really cold. About 10 minutes later, it started pouring down rain! Up on the ridge, we felt wind gusts of about 35 MPH and the rain was blowing sideways. We were about 2 miles from the shelter when it hit, so we got soaked! We got to the shelter around 4:45 and attempted to dry out, to no avail. I got in my sleeping bag to warm up and it felt really good! These cold rains ain't fun! Thank goodness for a warm sleeping bag!
Date: 2003-09-28
From: Double Springs Shelter

To: Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: scattered clouds

I woke up this morning to a VERY chilly morning! It was pretty tough putting my wet socks, shoes, shirt, and shorts back on. We walked pretty fast this morning to try and keep warm. I was even hoping for an uphill climb because they warm me up quickly! My wish came true about 3 miles into the hike. We had a climb up Iron Mtn.(4,130'). At the top of the mountain was Nick Grindstaff's grave. Nick was a hermit who lived on top of this mountain for 30 years. He died in 1923 and they buried him on top of the mountain. His epitaph read, "Lived alone, suffered alone, died alone." Pretty morbid life. We then carried on to Iron Mtn. Shelter and stopped in for lunch. After eating, we continued on another 7 miles to Vandeventer Shelter for the night. There is a BEAUTIFUL view from behind the shelter! There is a rock cliff to sit on and see miles and miles of mountains. Watauga Lake was in full view down in the valley. As the sun went down, it shone down on the lake and reflected off and it was very nice! Today was another cold day all day long! I never really got completely warmed up until I got in my sleeping bag at the end of the day. I think it's because my feet were wet. It's supposed to be a chilly 36 degrees tonight!
Date: 2003-09-29
From: Vandeventer Shelter

To: Boone, NC
Miles today: 17.5

Woke up again to a cold morning! Today is the first day since Vermont that I've had to wear long pants hiking. I also had to wear my fleece and gloves the entire day. We got a late start and then had a long downhill down to Lake Watauga. We hiked over Watauga Dam and around the lake. The lake was really beautiful surrounding by mountains. The leaves are beginning to change on the trees now and that just adds to the beauty. When we got to US321, Cephas's daddy Joe, his friend Neil, and cousin Bill had to go home. Cephas's sister Katherine picked us up and took us into Hampton, TN and we got to eat at McDonald's and then said goodbye to all of them and then it was just the 3 of us this afternoon. We had a 2,000' climb up to Pond Flats and then had a 2,000' descent after the top. We came down to a crystal clear mountain stream and we hiked beside it for about half a mile. After a half a mile beside it, we came to Laurel Falls. The falls were breathtaking! We were down at the bottom looking up at these 35 foot waterfalls that were atleast 50 feet wide. There were different colored trees surrounding the waterfall and it was definitely one of the prettiest waterfalls on the entire trip! After the falls, we continued on to Dennis Cove Rd. Cephas's mama came and picked us up at the road and took us into Boone, NC for the night. We had a wonderful all you can eat meal at the Golden Corral for supper!
Date: 2003-09-30
From: Boone, NC

To: Boone, NC
Miles today: 23.1

I woke up this morning around 7:30 and ate breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast, Cephas's mama drove us back to the trail. It was about an hour and 15 minute drive to get back. We started hiking around 9:30 AM. We started off with a long climb of over 2,600' to reach the top of White Rocks Mtn. There is a radio tower at the top and I climbed up a little bit for a view and I had a great view Roan Mountain in the distance. We then climbed down to Moreland Gap Shelter and stopped for a quick break. We then carried on to a logging road and stopped for lunch. After eating, we had a really nice trail to hike on. The trail was relocated through this section in January and it is brandnew. It's 3 miles longer than last year, but it's easier. It was pretty easy walking for the entire afternoon. We ended off the day by hiking through some horse pastures and we walked by a bunch of horses. After getting out of the pastures, we made it to US19E. Mrs. Carson, Cephas's mama, was waiting for us there. She had Dr. Pepper's and food waiting for us! She then drove us back to Boone for another night. We drove right by Grandfather Mountain and it was a crystal clear day so we had great views Grandfather's "face." We then came back and ate all you can eat pizza at Cici's Pizza. Cephas's sister Katherine goes to college at Appalachian State University here in Boone so we went over to her dorm to use the computer. Great day today!