morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-09-08
From: Mink Brook

To: Firewarden's Cabin
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up late this morning...almost 8:00. I definitely needed the sleep. I felt much better, although I can feel a cold coming on. I was sooooo warm all night in my wonderful down bag. I packed up, and was on the Trail by 9:15...not too bad. Littlist Hobo was not up yet, so I did not disturb him. The hike today featured some fairly aggressive climbs as well as descents. I was definitely feeling the new boots...and not in a good way. It felt as if I couldn't walk properly, and my feet were really hurting. I had hoped to do 18 miles today, but I could tell that it wasn't going to happen. I was starting up Smarts Mountain, a very steep climb, and it was already after 6. I had already decided that I would be spending the night at the Firewarden's cabin atop Smarts Mtn, so I didn't have much farther to go. When I arrived at the cabin, I could see that there were already some hikers in residence. one of the women said "welcome, come join us". I didn't need any more in!vitation than that. I set down my pack and hauled off my boots...my toes were all cramped up, and I could barely walk. I didn't know what I was going to do...if this was what the new boots were going to be like, I would never be able to make it the rest of the way. The hikers at the cabin were two flip-floppers, Spock and Kismet, and a SOBO, Rosie. They went up on the firetower to see the sunset and invited me, but I declined. I ate some dinner and set up my bed in the cabin. When the sun had set, they came back, and Spock told me he'd brought me someone...it was Pop-O! We caught up on the past few days...I asked if he'd seen Randy and Tumbling Grace, and he said he'd heard that they'd gotten off the Trail to see a doctor, as Tumbling Grace wasn't feeling well. I hope that everything is okay. Pop-O went back to the tower, where he was spending the night. Spock asked me about my foot issues, and was able to figure out that I needed more cushioning under the ball of! my foot. He showed me how I could do this using my superfeet and duct tape...hopefully it will work. Now I just need to get some sleep, which should also help. Good night!
Date: 2003-09-09
From: Firewarden's Cabin

To: Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 20.0

Sleep did not come easily last night...my nose was stuffed up, and I couldn't breathe. I took a Benadryl, which helped a bit. My feet were feeling better, and I spent some time doctoring my superfeet with duct tape. We'd had a late arrival last night...Bear Magnet, who is also heading north. We all got going...I was in cruise mode today, and felt that I could do a lot of miles. The first four flew by, of course, they were downhill, but who's keeping track? It was amazing to look back at the mountain I'd just come from and see how small the fire tower already seemed. I climbed Mount Cube, which was a rocky ascent, but also went by quickly. The views from the top were incredible, the weather perfect for hiking. I felt I could put in the mileage necessary to get to Glencliff, where there was a hiker hostel. I spent some time hiking with Bear Magnet, but when we took break at the next shelter, I started out ahead of him. I wanted to get to the hostel before dark, and !my feet were starting to hurt. I knew that I needed to go quickly or I would not be able to make it. I was able to make it to the hostel just after dark...it is a wonderful oasis for hikers. Bunks and tents to stay in, as well as snacks...I think I'll stay and rest for...hmmm...a day, anyway. Yeah, that's it...
Date: 2003-09-10
From: Hanover, NH

To: Mink Brook
Miles today: 8.6

I'm so very, very warm!! And I'm back on the Trail! These are both incredibly good things! Not that I didn't enjoy my visit home, mind you, but I needed to get back out here to finish what I started. I got up later than I wanted to today, but I was sleepy from staying up so late last night. I put my laundry in the dryer and started sorting out the rest of my food into smaller boxes for my Seester to send out for the remainder of the trip. I worked on repacking my pack as well. I am taking back all my cold weather/rain gear at this point in time, so I now have my cleaned (thanks so much, Mom!) down sleeping bag. This is why I'm currently so very warm! A 20 degree bag keeps you much warmer than a fleece sleeping bag. I am also carrying my thermolene top and bottom, my fleece hat and gloves and my rain pants and jacket, all of which I had sent home. I will not die of exposure in the Whites! When I picked up my pack, I was scared...but it wasn't too heavy. I guess I!'m just used to carrying a heavier pack than other hikers do...why change things now? My sis and I left Salem at around noon, which was the time at which I had hoped to start hiking. I continue to be fashionably late for everything...Seester and I split a Subway sandwich, then I got ready to head out on the Trail, while she went back to the car to go home. It was great seeing her again, and I know this next month will go by quickly, so I can go home for good. I started up the road, which the Trail continued to follow. At the Co-op, I found Laffy Taffy, JJ, Puff Daddy, Jersey, Bluebird and Espy. They were working on their second zero day, and tried to convince me to stay with them. There was no way I could do another zero...besides the fact that I'm on a fairly tight schedule, I HAD to hike today. I was so antsy from the three zeros I had taken, I needed to be moving. I said my goodbyes and continued up the Trail. I found Chief at the entrance to the woods...he'd a!lso been sucked into the town vortex, and was contemplating staying again. I think he must have stayed...he hasn't passed me yet. It felt so good to be back on the Trail, out in the fresh air and sunshine. I covered most of the miles I had planned to do today, with minimal difficulty. My new boots are working out pretty well so far...a few hot spots, but not too bad. I arrived at the brook, where I had planned on watering up, to find the Littlist Hobo. I hadn't seen him since the Mohican Outdoor Center. We chatted while I got my water ready, then I spied a campsite on the other side of the stream. I said goodnight, went and set up my new tent (same design, new, with unbroken strut poles), cooked dinner and went to bag. It's another night of trying to type while falling asleep, though. I'm going to wrap this up now, so I can make up some sleep time from the weekend...it's taken me forever to write, as I keep nodding off! Good night!
Date: 2003-09-11
From: Glencliff, NH

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day at the Hikers Welcome hostel in Glencliff. I'm trying to get rid of this cold that I've picked up, and hoping my feet recover from my 20 mile day in new boots. I had breakfast in town, put my thermarest out in a field out back and soaked up some sun and soaked my feet for at least an hour. More hikers arrived...all NOBO except for Thumbkin, who is also zeroing today, and Top Notch, who is from Boston. Here tonight...Espy, Laffy Taffy, JJ, Slideshow Bob, Kneepad, Big Bird, Fall Back Dan, Littlist Hobo, Librarian, Taba and Fire Pit, who is a car camper. This is a great place to hang out and just be mellow. We went to "town" (a convenience store, a hardware store and a pizza place), and I was able to get the fixings for hot port lemonade for myself and Laffy Taffy, who is also not feeling well. We got some dinner from the pizza place and came back to watch movies and hang around the campfire. I talked with my Mom then hit the hay at about 10:00. Tomorrow...bri!ng on the Whites!!
Date: 2003-09-12
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Oooops!! Did I say I was going to hike today?? Actually, I was notfeeling well when I got up, but I started getting ready, anyway. Themore I prepared, however, the worse I felt. Not only was my cold stillbothering me, but I was feeling sick to my stomach. I also hadn't sleptwell last night. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that Ishould hold off on hiking today. I really needed to rest a bit more. Ispent the day napping, reading and hanging out in the hammock. We endedup having a full house again...Puff Daddy, Laffy Taffy, Bluebird, JJ,Espy, Kneepad, Librarian, Top Notch, Big Bird, Cloud Nine, Fall Back Dan,Jersey, Littlist Hobo, Bear Bait... Drifter, a past thru-hiker, and afriend of Pack Rat, dropped by to cook burgers and hot dogs for us. Wehad a wonderfully fabu party around the campfire. A few of us started towatch "Quest for the Holy Grail", but we were tired, so we went to bed. Hopefully I'll get a good night's sleep...I moved o!utside to a tent today. I'm REALLY going to climb Moosilauke tomorrow!
Date: 2003-09-14
From: Beaver Brook Shelter

To: Eliza Brook Shelter
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: overcast clouds

This morning did not go well...it all started last night with the Dartmouth group. They continued talking for quite awhile after I'd finished writing my journal entry. I was able to get to sleep, though. At 2:00 a.m., however, there was a blast of music and people chanting "cookie fever" to the tune of "Boogie Fever". It took me a minute to figure out what was going on...the Dartmouth group was being "raided" by some upperclassmen. Now, I don't begrudge them their fun, but they woke up everybody, and it took me several minutes to get them to shut the music off. Even then, they talked for another 45 minutes and one of them banged on the shelter roof to deliberately further disturb sleepers (there were no Dartmouth people in the shelter, and they knew that). Finally, the whole group got up at 6 a.m. and carried on loud conversations, as if it were the middle of the day, and there weren't any people attempting to get sleep. I got up and asked them if they could at least! pretend to be considerate of the fact that people were sleeping. One of the girls started whining that they had to sleep outside in the rain and got wet, while we were in the shelter. I didn't bother wasting any more time with them at that point...the program is voluntary, so no one was forcing her to be out there. I just can't believe that the DOC, who runs the program, neglects a basic element of "Leave no Trace" ethics by allowing their groups to disturb other campers.   And this is just my first experience with this...Kneepad has been disturbed from sleep three times by these groups. I was feeling really disgusted with the whole thing, so I went up to the group and asked for the name of the program and its director. I WILL be writing a letter of complaint. Then, of course, there's the rain thing...the signs and ATC companion all warn about descending Moosilauke's northern side in the rain. They weren't kidding. I must say, though, it wasn't anything we hadn't s!een before. We just had to take it slow and steady, watching every step. There were a few hairy parts, where there were iron bars to hang onto, and I did my share of holding on to trees, roots, rocks...anything to get me down that mountain. It took over two hours to do the 1.6 miles down. That was just an indication of how the day was going to go. The rain set in in earnest, and the rocks continued. I kept leapfrogging up the Trail with Big Bird...Bear Bait had hitched into town after the descent...she had had it for the day. Librarian and Kneepad had gotten ahead of us. It was nearly 4 when we arrived at the next shelter, which was located 9.1 miles from our start point. We'd been hiking since 8...pretty discouraging. Big Bird and I decided to call it a day here. We were originally going to do 4 more miles, but it meant more rock climbing and another ascent. I didn't think I could face more rain and rocks, and my feet were mush. I hate to say it, but NH is kicking my butt! Here's hoping that the rain stops and we have a good day!'s hike tomorrow!
Date: 2003-09-15
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: US 93, Franconia Notch
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Another night of very little sleep... Sorry to sound whiny, however, the past couple of days have been kind of depresssing. Between the weather and the low mileage, I've been in a bit of a funk. I don't know why I wasn't able to sleep last night...it could have been the fact that the shelter was relatively full. I always worry that I'm going to roll over and whack someone in the middle of the night. I could hear the rain coming down all night long, and was sure that it would be raining when we got up. It wasn't, however, and Big Bird and I got up and going by 8:30. The hike up Kinsman took about 2 hours for three miles. It was a pretty strenuous climb, with the top part consisting of a rock scramble. This is when you are using every part of your body to haul yourself up and over the rocks that form the Trail. The wind was whipping through the thinning trees as we neared the summit, blowing away the clouds that surrounded us. As we arrived at the summit, we !were rewarded with a clear view of Franconia Ridge, our next area to tackle. The sun appeared while we took a well-deserved break at a somewhat sheltered space near the summit. Big Bird asked me if I was having fun, and I realized that I really was. I know that five months ago, I would have looked at that rock scramble and said "No thank you, buh-bye" and headed back down the mountain. Now I enjoy the challenge that it throws at me. Not that I don't still occasionally get a bit nervous, but I analyze the terrain and the options and work it out. Our break finished, it was getting chilly, so we moved on. The descent was even hairier than the ascent...more wooden steps spiked into the rock, as well as lots of slippery rocks. We arrived at the Lonesome Lake Hut at about 2...my legs were shaking with exhaustion from scrambling down, and my upper body (pecs and delts got a WORKOUT!) was aching from the effort. We went into the hut where we were greeted by Becca, a member! of the hut's "croo". She offered us sausages and blueberry pancakes left over from breakfast, as well as some peanut butter bars (yum!). Then we had some soup and lemonade for $2.50, all we could eat. It was a perfect way to break up the day, and, as the sky had clouded over again, the soup hit the spot. We only had 3 more miles to go to the road at Franconia Notch, which was where we were planning on hitching in to North Woodstock. I needed to have a hot shower to ease my muscles, and, hopefully a good night's sleep. We are staying at the Cascade Lodge, which offers rooms at inexpensive rates, but does not go overboard on cleanliness. We did laundry, showered, made some phone calls, sat on the porch and split a six-pack of Busch, then had dinner at the Woodstock Station. I'm feeling better...today was a good day, even though the mileage was again low. My spirits are up, and I'm still having a good time out here!Happy birthday, Mom!
Date: 2003-09-19
From: Zealand Falls Hut

To: Crawford Notch
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: fog

I had a good night's sleep in the bunkroom, despite the couple of snorers and the plethora of wool blankets (I'm allergic) in the room. We were sung awake this morning by one of the croo members, and I got up to look at the sky, to see what we would be in for today. The clouds directly in front of the hut were bathed in pink from the sunrise, however the ones coming in from the south looked dangerous and threatening. A little Armageddonesque...but very cool. Several of us took pictures, and I wished I had some charcoal, as the scene would have been great drawn in that medium. The forecast that came through was not good...winds of up to 80 miles per hour on the summits. The rain wasn't supposed to start till the afternoon, however. Laffy Taffy and JJ decided to do a blue blaze trail that would get them to the next hut in 9 miles instead of 14. Bebop and Don't Stop were doing the 14, unless they got rained on before they got to the road, at 7.7 miles. Big Bird and I d!ecided that we would also see how things were by the time we got to the road, and then figure out if we wanted to keep going to the hut. We started out at 8:40...and the Trail was beautiful. It allowed us to go at a cruising speed, something I hadn't been able to achieve since before Glencliff. It felt great to be able to get into a groove, and we were done with the 7.7 miles before noon. We were sitting at the road crossing, having a snack and trying to decide whether or not to continue, when it started raining fairly hard. It had been sprinkling for awhile, but nothing too intense. We opted for going to the snack bar up the road, and finding out if we could do work-for-stay at the Crawford Notch AMC facility, and if not, to get a motel room. Neither of us wanted to hike further in the rain...it didn't make sense to continue on in what would only be worsening conditions. We were not able to get work-for-stay, so we called the Above the Notch Motor Inn. They quoted! a price that was more than was listed in the companion, but we opted for it anyway. I asked some people coming out of the gift shop if they were going in that direction, and they grudgingly offered to give us a ride. They warmed up a bit on the way there, however, and wished us well when they dropped us off. We went in to register, and Steve, the owner, told us there was another hiker there...it was Chafe Master J, who I hadn't seen since PA! We went and talked with him for a bit, then went to our room, took showers and napped for awhile. I went to the convenience store a quarter of a mile down the road and got some food and beer to while away the rest of the evening. We watched mostly terrible TV, watched Analyze This, which was funny, then hit the hay. The storm raged off and on throughout the evening and night...I was glad to be inside, warm and dry.
Date: 2003-09-24
From: Route 16, Pinkham Notch

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Many hikers are in town here in Gorham...however, no one is hiking out. I spent the morning trying to decide what I would do. After my experience yesterday, I don't feel comfortable continuing through any part of the Whites by myself. I'm going to zero today and get back at it tomorrow. I stacked lots of wood and bagged aluminum cans for work for stay at The Barn. It actually felt good to do some physical work that wasn't hiking for a change.   Bandaged Heart, Grapenut and Grace arrived and ate their dinner here. I'll see them tomorrow morning. Hanging out at the hostel with many cool hikers...
Date: 2003-09-26
From: Carter Notch Hut

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I slept pretty well in the bunkhouse last night. Maybe because I had my own room. I was glad that we hadn't continued on and tented, as it rained for a good bit of the night. I spent some time decision-making between last night and this morning. I wanted to be able to spend some time with Bandaged Heart, Grapenut and Grace, so I decided to take a side trail down from the hut to Pinkham Notch this morning. Tomorrow, I'll go back up the same way, and start with Carter Dome and move on. I just know that with the time it's taken me to move through the rest of the Whites, I wouldn't be able to do 15 miles today to make it back into town. I swept the bunkhouses as work for stay, and told Big Bird about my plans for the day. I didn't want to abandon him at the hut, but I wanted to see my friends. He said he wasn't feeling all that well, and he didn't have enough food to get through two more days, so he chose to join me on the side trail. The Nineteen Mile Brook Trail is 3!.8 miles long, and follows the brook for a good part of the way down. It was a nice, leisurely hike...very pretty, not steep...it won't be bad to go back up tomorrow. The other decision that I've made is to do a partial flip-flop. With time growing short, and my nervousness about bigger mountains since the "Madison Episode", I want to make sure that I can climb Katahdin this year. What I'm planning on doing is hiking to Andover, then flipping up to Monson. From there, I'll hike the Hundred Mile Wilderness, climb Katahdin, then either go back to Monson or Andover to complete my hike. It's not how I first envisioned and planned my trek...but I want to be realistic about my abilities as a hiker. It's been really tough hiking lately, and I know that continues on into Maine, at least for awhile. I also want to be sure I'm safe. This has been a dream of mine for a long time, but I don't want to put myself into a dangerous situation for it. Katahdin toward the end of October could be just such a situation. I feel that if I do this, I will be able to enjoy my hike more again. Lately, some of the joy has gone out of it for me. I don't w!ant to be stressed out about my hike...I want to have fun with it. I really feel that this will help me be able to do so.I was able to spend time tonight with my friends swimming, relaxing in the jaccuzzi and having some dinner. They are wonderful Trail Angels! It's good to see them...since they moved from Salem, visits are scarce due to our busy lives. I finally have heard from Randy and Gerri...they had to get off the Trail. Gerri had to go into the hospital for a few days in Hanover, but is better now. It was a tough decison for them, but they decided to go home. I haven't actually spoken with either of them, but I am glad to hear that they are okay. It saddens me to know that they won't be finishing the Trail this year, and that I won't be seeing them out here again. I guess I'm in a bit of a funk right now, so I'll stop writing for the day...I know things will get better...I just need to have patience.
Date: 2003-09-27
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Woke up this morning feeling like crap. My throat hurts and my sinuses are so congested that my teeth hurt. Hiking for the day, for me, is out of the question. I went to breakfast with Bandaged Heart, Grapenut, Grace, Big Bird and Chafe Master J, who showed up as we were sitting down. It was a buffet...a hiker favorite. I ate lots...waffles, omelette, home fries, sausage, bacon...it was all good. I spent some time in the jaccuzzi with Grace, who wanted to swim a little bit more before she and her parents went home. I was sad to have them leave, but Bandaged Heart had work to do! It was so wonderful to actually be able to spend time with them. Big Bird and I said goodbye to them, and went to the post office. I picked up my maildrop and headed to the Barn, while Big Bird went to get a motel room for the night. We decided that if it was raining in the morning, we'd stay one more day, then resume hiking. As I walked back to the Barn, I was practically reeling...feeli!ng dizzy and nauseous. I got some Nyquil at the Rite-Aid and ensconced myself on one of the couches at the hostel. I watched movies with Chafe Master J and Cloudwalker, nodding off on occasion, then went to bed early. Several more NOBOs came in tonight...Seamus was the only person I recognized. So, it's still a full house here. Hoping I feel better tomorrow.
Date: 2003-09-28
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Rain is in the forecast for the day...we'd already planned on not hiking today. Of course, then, it wasn't raining when I got up. So...now what? It was clearly raining in the mountains, and I didn't want to hike Carter Dome in the rain. I called Big Bird to see what he thought. He was still not feeling well and wasn't into hiking today. I was fine with that decision, yet I am still in a funk. I have to get out of this town! But I know today is not the day that will happen. Chafe Master J and I went for a walk to Shaws to pick up a couple of resupply items, and to just get out of the hostel for awhile. We stopped in at Big Bird's room to see how he was doing. We ended up watching a couple of movies while we were there. Then Big Bird was feeling worse...the nausea and dizziness that I had yesterday hit him today. A definite flu thing...we left him to get some rest, hoping he'll feel well enough to hike tomorrow. We got back to the hostel...Espy was cooking dinner !for himself, Bluebird and Puff Daddy. There were leftovers, so I got to have a couple of bowls of spaghetti and meat sauce...very yummy! We watched The Others...a kinda creepy movie, then I went to bed early...I WILL be hiking out of here tomorrow!