morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-08-25
From: Mystic, Ct

To: Phoenixville, Pa
Miles today: 31.0

averaged 11.2mph, 102(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 24mph; 2:44CT;It¢s been cool but its supposed to be 98 in Philly today. The AMTRAK station is only about 1.5 miles from the Schukyll River Trail that will take me back to the route I¢m following and through Valley Forge.The river trail runs right along side part of the route the marathon goes. I remember it when we ran that a few years ago. Phoenixville is a nice little town and I passed a brewpub that¢s right down town and a block from the hotel. :-) Main street is closed and they are having bands play and there are a lot of folks sitting in the street enjoying the music¢¦so I did too. Good day today..wonder if the short miles had anything to do with it?
Date: 2007-08-26
From: Phoenixville, Pa

To: Marrietta, Pa
Miles today: 73.0

averaged 11.3mph, 103(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 34mph; 6.25CT;I did not sleep well last night and the morning came way too soon. Got everything ready and went to check out and chatted with the night desk clerk. He¢s 80, lived in an orphanage until he was 16 and quit school and they through him out with $50 in his pocket. He¢s a short stocky well-built fellow. He moved here because that was where his sister lived. He said he used to smoke 5 packs of cigarettes a day until he had throat cancer and they had to operate! It was cloudy and damp most of the day and there were more and more hills and a lot of live stock operations along the way. All cattle I believe. Seeing a lot of Amish out. I saw several boys and girls on bikes. Boys all have the black pants and white shirts and the girls all have on long print dresses with bonnets. There are also the traditional horse drawn carriages, some with batteries for turn signals. Its neat to hear the clop clop of the horses as they approach. Usually I saw a man driving and the wife and kids on board although a time or two I saw a carriage with two women in it. I felt a little under-dressed since I had on my shorts, sleeveless biking shirt unzipped part way for cooling. I¢d say hi to al of them and the men would not back and the women would not and giggle!
Date: 2007-08-27
From: Marrietta, Pa

To: Baltimore, Md
Miles today: 77.0

averaged 10.8mph, 99(AHR); 140 MHR; MSP 32mph; 7:07CT;I¢ve seen several other bikers heading north on this trail. Saw a couple on a tandem this afternoon but they wee going down hill and I was struggling up the hill. One thing about the Adventure Cycling routes, they try to keep you out of high traffic areas and this usually means away from any areas that might have motels. I was getting real tired coming into to Baltimore and cities can be ¢exciting¢ when riding a bike and you are unfamiliar with the town. I stopped in a Starbucks in town and had coffee and asked if there were any motels or hotels up ahead. One clerk had no idea and the other one said that yes, down the hill across from John¢s Hopkins there were some. So down the hill I went and did ot see a thing. I asked this lady at a bus stop if she knew of any and she said the apartment house across the street rented rooms overnight. I rode over and sure enough I got a room there.I showered and walked around and found a little restaurant and went in and it reminded you a lot of a restaurant back home, the Grit. All vegetarian and very hippie like¢¦I felt like I was back home. I ordered too much food and actually left some. Be glad to get out of Baltimore, not because of any particular reason other than the roads in cities and owns usually have a lot to be desired.
Date: 2007-08-28
From: Baltimore, Md

To: Alexandria, Va
Miles today: 92.0

averaged 11.0mph, 98(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP n/a mph; 8:20CT;City to City! It was interesting leaving Baltimore this morning how the road improved when I got to the sign that said ¢State Maintenance Begins¢. I¢m probably not reading them right, but the inserts fro the city street on my maps seem to make me miscalculate the mileage. Lots of bike trails mileage today. Some of it was good and some if it was bad. A lot of it signed and some of it was a lot of guesswork. This was the first time I¢d ever had to go on a bike trail detour.One detour had me way off course in the middle of DC, not very pleasant when you¢re trying to get to a certain point and its already going to take a lot of miles. I did stop for coffee and bagel at a little coffee shop in a small town just south of Baltimore. I used the bathroom, which was up a long flight of stair that were covered with a plastic mat. When I started down I said I¢d better be careful or I could bust my rear¢¦yep, that¢s what I did. I looked that night and I have a large bruise and lump on my right side of my rear. Glad I did not let go of the railing or I could have bounced all the way down. Where was candid camera when I needed it ;-)
Date: 2007-08-29
From: Alexandria, Va

To: Fredericksburg, Va
Miles today: 81.0

averaged 11.4mph, 95(AHR); 129 MHR; MSP 34 mph; 7:08CT;Lots more detours today, but I did not take them and managed to get through without any real problem and there seemed to be a lot of confusing map directions today. The good thing is it seems to be flattening out :-) some drivers are really, well, not inclined to make the best decisions. Today I had 2 large trucks headed towards me at separate times have to lock up their rear brakes because cars were passing me on my left. I went by several civil war battle field sites today and while they are pastoral to look at now, the carnage that went on had to be horrific and the sites must have been one huge mess. I also rode by Quantico Marine Base live fire artillery section and they were firing their weapons. Interesting sounds they make.
Date: 2007-08-30
From: Fredericksburg, Va

To: Richmond, Va
Miles today: 71.0

averaged 11.6mph, 94(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 30mph; 6:07CT;It is definitely flatter now. Rode through Ashland, Va. and a nice small college town where Randolph-Macon college is located. The train tracks split the town in half with the dorms, classrooms, etc on one side of the tracks and facing them on the other side are the administrative buildings. There was a bike shop right in town on the route and I used their bike pump to put air in my tires and get a new set of bike gloves. It seems someone lost a glove. Don¢t even ask me how you loose 1 glove. You have to be having a dumb day for that. I¢d felt like the Michael Jackson of the biking set for a few days, besides the pain in the gloveless hand.Virginia is a pretty state to bike through, as it was to hike through. There are lots of farms, nice rolling land, and nice streams to cross on the bridges. For supper in Richmond, there was a restaurant across the street from the hotel. It is called Bryan¢s and has been in business since 1943 and has had 3 owners in that time, all Greek. I had baked fish and it was good and reasonable. I¢d sure eat there again. My legs are really tired though and I am looking forward to a zero day in Hopewell, Va.
Date: 2007-08-31
From: Richmond, Va

To: Hopewell, Va
Miles today: 36.0

averaged 11.4mph, 84(AHR); 117MHR; MSP n/a mph; 3:08CT;Easy to leave Richmond, even though they took you right to the center of town by the state capitol. I rode by more battlefields today and its amazing that the armies marched all over to get where they went and had to carry or transport all their equipment. It does make for pretty rides but it does tug on your heart too. The only ¢interesting¢ part of the ride was a ride across a mile long bridge with a long metal grate center. These grates do not inspire confidence in the stability of the bike and if you look down, you can see the water below! I¢m not normally afraid of heights, but for some reason I do not like looking down at the water through these grates.Hopewell is a nice enough old town with a lot of history related to the civil war. Tomorrow is their 200 anniversary and the celebration starts at 1pm an ends after dark with a fireworks display. I¢ll cycle over to it in the after noon but I¢ll be back before dark so if I can see the fireworks, it will have to be from the motel.Cape Hatteras in a few days.
Date: 2007-09-01
From: Hopewell, Va

To: Hopewell, Va
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day and I needed it. The activities I was led to think would be occurring all afternoon as a celebration of Hopewell's existence did not occur, nor was the restaurant I where I wanted to eat was open either. I did see a couple of nice cars, especially a 1960 red TR3 at the place I ate tonight.
Date: 2007-09-02
From: Hopewell, Va

To: Suffolk, Va
Miles today: 108.0

averaged 12.8mph, 101(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 25 mph; 8:25CT;I had intended to do about 80 miles today and there was a map error so I ended up with 108! That kicked by behind and I was tired when I got into Suffolk. I took a quick shower then pedaled down the street to the restaurant and immediately downed a large glass of water then a mug of beer. And did they taste good. There were some long desolated stretches today with no cross roads and no way to reinforce you were on the right road. Pretty much flat farmland with corn, livestock, soy beans and tobacco growing. I stopped and talked wit a biker who bikes this section a good bit and he told me a good way into town that avoided a lot of traffic. It worked too.
Date: 2007-09-03
From: Suffolk, Va

To: Edenton, NC
Miles today: 64.0

averaged 12.0 mph, 90(AHR); 135 MHR; MSP 21 mph; 5:19 CT;I was tired today from yesterday¢s ride but it was a nice slow paced rural ride and since it is Labor Day, the traffic is not bad. There was a lot os SE wind though. Edenton is a nice small town and the main street dead ends into the bay and they have a nice park thee and there were a good number of folks with their kids enjoying the park. Speaking of kids, I was supposed to be a grandfather for the second time by the end of August¢¦still warming in the oven so to speak ;-) Its not working out that Jane and some of her family are going to come to Ocracroke and I¢m a little disappointed at that so I may rethink my outer banks options.
Date: 2007-09-04
From: Edenton, NC

To: Bath, NC
Miles today: 61.0

averaged 13.3mph, 98(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 20 mph; 4:35CT;I was ok leaving this morning and got to the 3 mile bridge over the Albemarle Sound and there was a sign that said warning to bikers, low walls and high cross winds..just what you want to see. There were low walls but there were no cross winds and traffic was low so it was nice ¢hill¢ to ride over. It was cool on both sides of the bridge, but on the bridge and over the water it was warm. One nice thing about getting up early and getting out into the countryside are the morning smells and the way everything feels clean and fresh. A very pleasant way to start a day.My room tonight is right on the water with a kitchen and a screened in portch. I think the owner felt a little sorry for me and let me have all this for the princely sum of $55, including the use of the laundry, a car, and a kayak if I chose! I declined those but it was a nice offer. I¢ll be in Surf City on Thursday and it amazing how things work out. Jane will come up there and well spend a couple of days on the beach. I got a call from my older son and it looks like the new grandson will arrive on Friday so I¢ll ride back with Jane and be able to see the new one on Sunday. My legs can use the rest.A new first for me in all my bike riding¢¦I had to spray a dog today. He looked friendly enough and was barking and wagging his tail as I approached and started chasing me and no matter how I yelled NO BAD DOG he would not stop and I saw him eying my foot as I pedaled and he moved in closer so I hit him with a shot from my pepper spray. That stopped him. In hindsight, I probably should have unclipped and just given him a swift kick in the head. Next time I¢ll try that first. I've been chased by more dogs in NC than anywhere else so far, including a couple of rotweilers that were running loose.
Date: 2007-09-05
From: Bath, NC

To: Maysville, NC
Miles today: 70.0

averaged 13.6mph, 99(AHR); n/a MHR; MSP 21 mph; 5:10CT;Left about 15 minutes before I like to leave but I wanted to make the 7:00am ferry I had to take. I made it with about 15 minutes to spare and that was just fine. I parked my bike on board and sat in the enclosed lounge and got real sleepy. There were mostly working folks in the lounge and they were curious about where I was headed and when I told them, I got the same reactions I usually get..are you crazy?...amazing¢¦etc. They all wanted to tell me about the roads ahead and provide information they felt I could use. I had another first today. There was a detour and a road closed sign but I¢ve always just gone ahead and found a way through. This time I got down to where they were working and the entire road was cover with heavy equipment. Now I am not talking about a major highway here, just a small 2 lane back road. I looked and discovered they were working on a bridge and there was no road from one side to the other so I had to backtrack to the detour. That was no more than a mile and the detour was not much out of the way. I was not sure if I¢d get to Maysville but it was before 1 when I got to my other option to stop, Pollacksville, so I checked out the town and came on into Maysville. There was no motel in Maysville but there was a campground right on the route (and next to US17!) so I stopped in there and had a quick shower and went to the grocery store for supper stuff. After I had eaten and I was reading the paper, a camper, Dave, came over and asked if I¢d like t join he and his wife, Peggy, for supper. I had seen him peeling potatoes so I figured it was something good, but since I had eaten I declined but I did tell him I¢d have 1 of his beers so I walked with him over to his site and they were cooking a whole chicken with onions, potatoes, and carrots in an electric skillet. I sure wish I had not already eaten my can of cold soup, cold green beans, beets, and creamed corn! There¢s sounds a lot better doesn¢t it!
Date: 2007-09-06
From: Maysville, NC

To: Topsail, NC
Miles today: 55.0

averaged 13.9mph, 94(AHR); 126 MHR; MSP 23 mph; 3:56CT;It was nice ride today with some tailwinds. The route was supposed to go through Camp LeJeune on highway 172, but that¢s been closed so there is a re-route through Jacksonville, NC which I though would be a bear was real easy. They take you from Jacksonville over to Topsail mainly via US17 which had a great shoulder and was a fairly new paving. There is not a lot of commercial development on the island and the southern end is less congested and that is where I got a motel. Not lots of great choices of motels either. A little history, Topsail was an early development site for the US rocket experiments and the applied physics lab at Johns Hopkins developed the ramjet engine there. It¢s said that if the winter weather had been better, they would have kept the testing program there but moved in to Cape Canaveral instead.
Date: 2007-09-09
From: Winterville, GA

To: Winterville, GA
Miles today: 0.0

Still HomeCleaned my bike and while doing so, I noticed my rear wheel had several cracks around some of the spoke holes on the rim! I took it to my bike shop, THE HUB, and they said there had been some problems with these wheels and cracks occurring in them. They took my bike and put me a loaner wheel on it while they sent mine back to be evaluated. They've kept me on the road again. THANKS AGAIN GUYS! A great bunch of guys to work with let me tell you.Will head back up on Tuesday and resume the ride on Wednesday, Sept 12.See ya then
Date: 2007-09-12
From: Southport, NC

To: Conway, SC
Miles today: 75.0

averaged 13.3mph, 111(AHR); 126MHR; MSP 21mph; 5:41CT; Southport is a nice small town right on the coast. There are SE winds gusting to 20mph so I hope they subside before I start today, and they do!Met my friend Jeanette and her daughter Lisa in Calabash, NC and Lisa is going to ride to Conway with me then her Mom will pick us up and I¢ll spend the night at her house. Lisa is a very pleasant person and rides well. She spent almost 10 years riding her bike in New York City so she knows how to ride. We made good time and the weather cooperated most of the day until we got almost into Conway and then we got soaked. We found a coffee shop and got some coffee, called Jeanette and then went to Jeanette¢s and had a warm shower and a nice pleasant evening. Nice seeing old friends and I enjoyed cycling with Lisa.
Date: 2007-09-13
From: Conway, SC

To: Moncks Corner, SC
Miles today: 93.0

averaged 14.1mph, 108(AHR); 132MHR; MSP 25mph; 6:37CT;This was a long day with rain in the afternoon, but thank goodness it¢s warm so I do not get too cold. Not much to comment on about the ride, but more about where I ate dinner.It was a nice Mexican place with food like I¢ve had in Ensenada, Mexico. Not Tex-Mex but light, nicely cooked fish and just a good meal that does not leave me feeling stuffed. While I was eating a family of 4, Mom, Dad, brother, sister came in and they were all overweight except for the boy. Mom and Dad were waaaay overweight. When he sat at the booth across from me, his belly almost covered a third of his side of the table and he had to squeeze in there. His wife looked at him and suggested they move around the corner to a table. Too bad ¢cause I wanted to see what they ordered for dinner. A shame too, especially since one of the kids was very heavy too.
Date: 2007-09-14
From: Moncks Corner, SC

To: Yemassee, SC
Miles today: 81.0

averaged 12.4mph, 102(AHR); 134MHR; MSP 26mph; 6:33CT;Uneventful ride to here and no rain on the road. When I got to the motel and got off the bike, it felt funny and I looked and the rear tire was going flat! Talk about luck¢¦now I could change the tire in the comfort of a motel room and not be in any hurry. I got settled in and put in a new tube and rode up to a dollar store and bought dinner. When I was entering the parking lot, a young woman was backing up and backed into the bumper of a truck that was just parked. I fellow there told her to just leave and I told her that was hit and run and she should do what she¢d want someone to do if they backed into her car and that was leave your name and number. I went on into the store and when I came out she was gone and I do not know if she did the right thing or not.They are having a shrimp festival here tonight, but it¢s raining so I¢ll just stay in the room.Tomorrow I enter Georgia and I¢ll use Georgia bike route 95 which takes you from South Carolina to Florida. I¢ll leave the Adventure Cycling route and this will be my first time on a Georgia bike route.
Date: 2007-09-15
From: Yemassee, SC

To: Pooler, Ga
Miles today: 81.0

averaged 14.2mph, 106(AHR); 125HR; MSP 22mph; 5:41CT;First full day on the Georgia Bike Route 95 and there were some very good roads. The route is well signed and easy to follow. You can pull up the route information from www.dot.state.ga.us/dot/plan-prog/planning/projects/bicycle/maps/index.shtml. I would do another route if I have the chance. I stopped at a small old time store today that was listed as an ¢historic¢ building. I took a picture of the plaque but no the store! DUH!
Date: 2007-09-16
From: Pooler, Ga

To: Brunswick, Ga
Miles today: 78.0

averaged 15.6mph, 104(AHR); 122HR; MSP 26mph; 4:59CT;US17 was not bad, 4 lanes until after Richmond Hill and its a new road.Good tail wind and I had 30 miles in in less than 2 hours including the time getting through Pooler..bet I get spoiled.Not a lot of traffic on Sunday at least until about 1pm.Tomorrow is Florida and the last state. Its always nice to get to the last state, even if Florida is long north to south. Its going to be difficult to get to Key West by Jane's birthday, but we'll see.
Date: 2007-09-17
From: Brunswick, Ga

To: Yulee, Fl
Miles today: 59.0

averaged 14.3mph, 100(AHR); 121HR; MSP 29mph; 4:09CTVery overcast today but that keeps down the heat. Lots of wind too.US17 was good once past I95 and US17 intersection about 10 miles south of Brunswick. I stopped early today because of the distance to the next town. There is not a lot in Yulee and its all spread out.Highway A1A is very busy headed east toward US1. I hope when I get out in the morning that the traffic is lighter.In Jacksonville, it rained 4-7" and flooded a lot of roads. Glad I missed that.
Date: 2007-09-18
From: Yulee, Fl

To: Flagler Beach, Fl
Miles today: 99.0

averaged 14.8mph, 105(AHR); 130HR; MSP 30mph; 6:42CTEnjoyed the Mayport ferry as I always do. I was really moving with the wind and as got close to the ferry landing, I heard a loud horn and watched the ferry move out!A1A was ok once I got through Jacksonville. There were lots of bike lanes. Could not stop in St. Augustine since I was there by 12:30 even though I had scoped out a motel close to whats billed as the best restaurant in Florida for fried shrimp! Maybe next time.I stopped here because of the weather..hard rains were on me. Mostly today there were following winds, but when the rains hit, they come from offshore and hit you hard from the side. It got me so hard once that the bike slid sideways while I was going forward. Not the best feeling let me assure you.The motel is nothing to look at from outside, but the rooms are clean, new tile floors, fresh paint, and there is an Italian restaurant 2 blocks south.The desk clerk has friends in Good Hope, GA as well as Athens. Indeed a small world.
Date: 2007-09-19
From: Flagler Beach, Fl

To: Edgewater, Fl
Miles today: 40.0

averaged 14.4mph, 94(AHR); 119HR; MSP 20mph; 2:48CTI left at 10:30 this morning because it was really raining when I woke up and the wind was blowing hard too. I check at 10 and it looked like it was clearing up south of me so I packer up and headed out. All was ok until before Daytona and then it decided to dump buckets and I managed to get totally soaked going into Daytona and then it quit. I saw a Starbucks in Daytona and pulled in and walked in dripping. Needless to say I got quite a few looks but the coffee warmed me up nicely and gave me a chance to drip dry?.Leaving Daytona, it started raining again, not as hard though, and continued raining until I got to Edgewater. Some of the area looked familiar and it turns out Jane and I had biked part of this when we did Bike Florida this year. When I checked into the hotel, the clerk said I had stayed there before and I asked when and when she told me, I remembered Bike Florida.There was a restaurant next door I was going to go to eat but first I walked over to the grocery store and got some odds and end for tomorrow. When I went to the restaurant, they had closed early due to the rain, so I walked back top the grocery store to get some fried chicken and when I got to the deli, they had put all the deli stuff up! I was beginning to think I was not supposed to eat diner. The lady behind the counter asked if she could help and I told her I¢d like some chicken and she said it was cold and I of course said that was fine by me. Since it was cold she only charged me for 1 piece.
Date: 2007-09-20
From: Edgewater, Fl

To: Sebastion, Fl
Miles today: 87.0

averaged 12.0mph, 108(AHR); 136HR; MSP 23mph; 7:16CTClear skies and no wind at the start then about 8:30 the wind picked up from the southeast and never let up and that made it a real grind. I had gotten spoiled by the past few days.I was on US1 all day and it was not bad like I thought it would be. I stopped here because it looked like rain ahead and I had worked hard all day pedaling into the wind.