morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-04-25
From: Trimpi Shelter

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

Everyone got up early this morning, probably because the sky was bright by 6:30 and there was an annoying woodpecker pecking away at a tree right by our campsite. Nicky and I took our time getting packed up and were the last ones to leave the shelter around 9am. Nicky and I just chatted as we hiked along and before we knew it we were already at Partnership Shelter. Minutes after arriving Daddy-o (GA-ME 08) pulled up with coolers of hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, brownies, soda, gatorade, etc etc. Chef took control of the grill and cooked up some grilled cheese for the vegetarians. Lots of people here for lunch, most of whom were at the shelter with us last night plus a few more. I was going to call out for pizza delivery but after the surprise trail magic I decided to wait to do that until dinner time.This shelter is pretty sweet, two stories with a shower, a water spigot, and nice outhouses. The NRA (National Recreation Area; not the other NRA!) is right next to the shelter with flushing toilets and a visitor center but it's closed until Memorial Day.We got to the shelter by 1:30 and have just been lounging around, washing my clothes in the shower, and trying to make some phone calls (cell phone reception has been super spotty for the past 8 days or so). One Stick, Mudflap, Nicky, Steamboat, Growler, Stretch, and Tin Man are here for the night (everyone else took off after ejoying the trail magic for the next shelter). I'm glad we're staying put for the night...thunderstorms are moving through right now but will probably pass soon. Today was a scorcher (a high of 89 degrees) so the rain is cooling things off a bit. Some people hitched into town for dinner but Mudflap, One Stick, Steamboat and I ordered food from Pizza Hut and had it delivered to the shelter. I got breadsticks with marinara dipping sauce and also made a dinner from my food bag to lighten the load. I'm sleeping in the shelter on the second floor tonight (camping isn't allowed here for some reason)...I hope the mice don't get me!
Date: 2009-04-27
From: Atkins, VA

To: Just north of Knot Maul Branch Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: clear sky

Last night I finished watching Death At A Funeral, which I had started watching back at Elmer's in Hot Springs. I fell asleep quickly after that and awoke around 6:45 to the smell of breakfast being cooked downstairs. Breakfast was served at 7 - chocolate chip and strawberry pancakes, Aqua's famous french toast, hashbrowns, and cantaloupe. I ate like a champ and then started packing up my bag. One Stick and Mudflap were driven to the trailhead first and then Steamboat, Growler, and I were driven there around 8:45. I forgot to mention that the hostel owners have a brand new puppy which was one of the cutest and fluffiest things I've ever seen, and it sounded just like a squeak toy. Her name is Angel and I will miss her, as well as their other dog Gypsy.Within a couple miles of hiking, we ran into Bluebelle and Ohm who I had met at the Lazy Fox Inn in Damascus. I wasn't expecting to see them because they were a couple days ahead, but Ohm's toenail ripped off, got infected, and he had surgery on it 2 days ago. He's back on the trail but they are doing low mileage days until his toe is completely healed. It was great to see them again! They both stayed at the Relax Inn last night and said they gave it a negative star as a rating.Steamboat and I hiked together most of the day since we have about the same pace. The scenery was amazing today, but I was not expecting all the ups and downs. It seemed like we were either climbing a big hill or descending one, and the heat and my heavy pack were definitely weighing me down. I think it was close to 90 again, and I think today may have been the hottest day so far. Beads of sweat have been forming on my brow as I hike over the past few days, but today I had full on streams of sweat running down my face, and I stink. I still find it amazing how bad I can smell within a couple hours of leaving town wearing clean clothes!   We walked through lots of pastures and fields again today, and I am definitely loving all this greenery! Steamboat, Bender, and I had lunch beneath a big tree at the base of a hilly field, which provided some much needed shade. We got to Knot Maul Branch Shelter (where we were going to stop for the night) to find that water was only available 0.2-mile north on the AT. Instead of going up then back to the shelter, Bender, Growler, Steamboat, and I just decided to camp at a site just a bit north. As we were heading out, Stretch showed up and said he and the folks behind him (including Nicky, yay!) were going to camp just north of the shelter too.We have a mini tent city set up at this campsite right next to a stream. Those here for the night are Bender, Growler, Steamboat, Tin Man, Stretch, The Darkness, Steam, Old Spice, Nicky, and me. Such a fun group!   OH, Steamboat pointed out that we have officially completed 1/4 of the trail! Yea!
Date: 2009-04-28
From: Just north of Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 18.9
Weather: clear sky

We all filtered out of the campsite at different times after making breakfast and packing up. I left around 8:45...Bender, Steamboat, The Darkness, and Steam all left before me and everyone else left sometime after me. The climb up Chestnut Knob was hard (we gained 2,000 ft in elevation in 4 miles) but the views of the mountains on both sides of the knob were great. Steamboat, The Darkness, Bender, Steam, and I had lunch in the field next to Chestnut Knob Shelter which overlooks the valleys below. Rambunny from the Happy Hiker Hollow said that the sunrise and sunset from the shelter are amazing, but we decided to push on another 10 miles to the next shelter.Those next 10 miles were much harder than I had expected. Lots of pointless ups and downs (puds) and jagged rocks that made the bottoms of my feet scream. There were some nice views from Garden Mountain, but I couldn't stay and hang out on the overlook for too long because I wanted to get to the shelter before sundown. Steamboat, The Darkness, Steam, and I got to the shelter around 7:15pm and we are all tenting except Steamboat, who is the only one sleeping in the shelter tonight. We all made dinner and are calling it an early night after a long day. The others (Nicky, Tin Man, Stretch, Bender, etc) never showed up at the shelter so they must have stopped and set up camp just south of here. I'm sure I'll see them tomorrow.It was another hot day today but not as hot as yesterday. Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler with a chance of rain. I noticed today that the leaves on the trees are starting to appear which is definitely exciting!
Date: 2009-04-29
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Helveys Mill Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: light rain

I was sweating bullets all night long...I had Dom look into summer down sleeping bags for me because my 15 degree bag is way too hot lately. He told me today that he found a Kelty bag for $109 that is down, rated for 40 degrees, and weighs about a pound and a half. He ordered it and had it shipped to Pearisburg where I'll pick it up in a few days. I can't wait to ship my winter bag home!The 4 of us were packed up and ready to go at 8:45. The hiking this morning and afternoon was much easier than yesterday although I have a sharp pain in my heel that would shoot through my foot every once in a while. I hope it's nothing serious Lots of trail magic today! Just after VA615, we found a cooler with grape gatorades in it AND a garbage bag so we could all get rid of our trash we've been accumulating for the past few days. Then 5 miles later we came across gallons of water to refill our water bottles. As the day progressed, the sky was becoming more and more ominous and soon enough loud thunder was directly overhead and streaks of lightening were not too far away. I hadn't planned on going into Bland but I didn't want to be hiking in a thunderstorm. Steamboat and I got a ride into town before the sky opened up and we had lunch at a small restaraunt in the Citgo station. We then walked to the IGA to wait on the benches under the overhang for the rain to stop. Several people coming in to shop offered us rides back to the trail but we had to decline because it was still raining and we wanted to wait it out.The skies started to clear and we started looking for a ride around 5pm. It was hard at first because not many cars were heading in the direction of the trailhead but we eventually got a ride from a lady who knows a lot about the trail. We were dropped off and only had a short hike to the shelter where we are staying the night. Bender was here when we arrived, and soon The Darkness and Steam showed up (who had also gone into Bland). Tomorrow we are thinking about hiking 15 miles to a campsite that has a store and hot showers. I'm really looking forward to washing my nasty t shirt which has reached an all new level of stink! Less than 1,600 miles left to go! I can't believe we cross the 600 mile mark tomorrow; it seems like just yesterday that I crossed the 500 mile mark with Dom.
Date: 2009-04-30
From: Helveys Mill Shelter

To: VA606 Trent's Store
Miles today: 16.3

I was the first one out of camp this morning because I was worried it might rain and wanted to get as much hiking done in the morning as I could. It had rained overnight but had let up in the morning so even though I had to pack up a wet tent, at least all my other stuff was dry.I hiked 9 miles in the fog (but luckily no rain) to Jenny Knob Shelter where I had lunch. The sun came out just as I got to the shelter so I dried my tent out as I ate lunch. Steamboat showed up a half hour later and then Bender shortly after that. Steamboat and I hiked more or less together for the rest of the day, and we summited the THIRD Brushy Mountain in just 2 days! You think they would have been a little more creative when naming mountains so close together The descent from Brushy Mountain marked mile 600 - woohoo!My heel felt much better today, it's weird how some days it hurts and some days it doesn't. I did roll my ankle twice today though so that pain made up for the lack of pain in my ankle.We crossed over Kimberling Creek on a sweet suspension bridge which spills out on to VA606. We walked the 0.4-mile off the trail to Trent's Store where we are camping tonight. At the store I ordered some fries, grilled cheese, and an ice cream and bought some snacks to tide me over until I get to Pearisburg in 1.5 days. Bender, Steam, and the Darkness are also camping at Trent's tonight. As Bender and I ate our food out in front of the store, a cute white kitty (probably a stray) came over and hung out with us. I shared some of my sandwich with it and Bender gave it some Doritos.At Trent's you can get a campsite, hot shower, and laundry for only $6. I thought that was a great deal until I saw where the campsites are. We are basically camping in between trailer/RVs (that all seem to be abandoned) and a farm with horses and sheep. It's great! The shower house is so grimy that I opted not to take a shower even though I really should. And I don't think the toilet has been cleaned in at least 20 years. I wasn't going to wash my clothes either (I was going to try to stick it out until Pearisburg out of pure laziness) but I ended up throwing some things in with Bender and Steamboat's load. I heard from the packadivas today and they are two days behind. Do I zero in Pearisburg and then do some low mileage days and wait for them to catch up, or do I continue to cruise along and see what happens? I think I will let the weather forecast help me decide once I get to town!
Date: 2009-05-01
From: VA606 Trent's Store

To: Doc's Knob Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: light rain

I slept really well last night despite the cat fight close by and the snoring pig on the farm. We all ate breakfast (I had a roll of Little Debbie white powdered donuts, oatmeal, a banana, and OJ) then walked the 0.4-mile down VA606 back to the trailhead.Bender, Steamboat, and I walked off the trail to check out Dismal Creek Falls. It was a cool spot with some campsites and the pool at the foot of the falls would be a perfect place to swim once the water warms up.   The trail today crossed Dismal Creek several times. I found the area to be quite creepy...there are all these side trails branching off from the AT and it is unclear where these trails lead...maybe to the road, maybe to a campsite, who knows. We stopped for lunch at Wapiti Shelter (also creepy), where 2 thru-hikers were murdered back in the '80s. The killer was found and put in jail and the shelter was knocked down and rebuilt. He was released last year, and upon his release, came back to this shelter and attempted to kill 2 fishermen staying the night. He was put back in jail where he died in his cell. Eating lunch at the shelter gave me the heebie jeebies and I'm glad we tented at Trent's instead of around the Dismal Creek/Wapiti area. As we ate lunch, Spitfire and No Toys (from Maine) showed up and were hiking 30 miles today into Pearisburg. Crazy!After lunch the trail climbs a ridge and follows along it for a few miles. I felt much better on top of the ridge...there were no more creepy side trails and there were some really nice views of the valleys. The ridge-walking was easy on my feet at first but then the trail turned really rocky and my feet started to kill towards the end of the day.I got to Doc's Knob shelter around 5:30 and found a spot to set up my tent about 15 yards from the shelter in a grove of rhododendrons. Bender, Steamboat, The Darkness, Steam, and Obie (a thru-hiker who started in Key West and is hiking to Canada) are all staying in the shelter to make packing up tomorrow a bit faster. We are all waking up around 5am and hiking into Pearisburg to hopefully arrive between 10 and 11 to give us all enough time to get to the post office well before it closes (it closes at noon and is closed all day tomorrow). I've decided not to take a day off in Pearisburg (unless the weather is horrible)...I'm going to do short days tomorrow and the following day instead.
Date: 2009-05-02
From: Doc's Knob Shelter

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: light rain

Happy 2 months on the trail!I woke up at 5 and was hiking before 6. I hiked with my headlamp for a half hour or so until it was light enough to see without it.   This was the earliest I've hit the trail in the morning and I really enjoyed it. The birds were out in full force and the chipmunks were scurrying about everywhere. I got down to the Rendezvous Motel (just a block from the trail) around 9:30am, reserved a room for the night, and picked up my packages. Unfortunately my summer sleeping bag wouldn't be here until Monday so I am now picking it up in Daleville, about 7 days north. Oh well!Pearisburg is a fairly spread out town and it's difficult to get around. One of the motel owners gave me a ride to the library, then I had chinese for lunch with Steamboat, and then resupplied at Food Lion. There really isn't a good place to resupply between here and Daleville so I'll be carrying 7 days of food out of town tomorrow which I'm not looking forward to! I bet my food bag will weigh close to 20 pounds!      I spent the afternoon sorting through my food and watching TV. I'm glad I got to town on a Saturday...there've been a bunch of good movies on TV today. As Steamboat, The Darkness, Steam, and I were heading out to dinner, Nicky had just arrived at the Rendezvous after slackpacking 24 miles with a friend of hers from NH. It looks like a bunch of us will be heading to the first shelter out of town tomorrow. We had dinner at El Ranchero and stopped in at Walmart for a couple things (the motel owner lent us her car, which was awesome). I haven't packed up all my stuff yet because I'm not planning on heading out of town until around noon tomorrow, so I'll have lots of time in the morning to do laundry, pack, etc. I'm hoping I can sleep in until at least 9am!
Date: 2009-05-03
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 6.8
Weather: moderate rain

I woke up at 8am after a great night's sleep at the Rendezvous Motel. I watched some Full House and Beverly Hills 90210 on TV, took a shower, then went out for a late breakfast with Steamboat, The Darkness, and Steam (the motel owner let us borrow her car again). I had put off dealing with my food bag until the last minute because I knew how much food I'd be hauling out of town and wasn't too thrilled about it. All my food wouldn't even fit in my 13L food bag so I ended up stuffing some food into the crevasses inside my pack. Once I got all my food in my pack, I picked up my pack and it must have weighed 45 pounds! I don't think it's been this heavy EVER!I ended up hiking out of town around 1:30 since it was less than 7 miles to the first shelter where I was staying the night. It had been raining on and off since yesterday and the forecast showed no hints of clearing for the next several days. It wasn't actually raining when I left but I knew it could start any minute.I got a little lost (well, not lost, but disoriented) as I was heading out of town and one of the owners of the Rendezvous could see me down the road and could tell I didn't really know which way to go (it wasn't clearly marked, I swear!). He got in his car and drove to where I was to help me get my bearings and point me in the direction of the trail. He ended up driving me across the bridge (which was the AT) and past a huge manufacturing facility to where the trail enters the woods again. By doing this I missed about 0.25-mile of the trail but it was a very industrial and non-scenic part of the trail so I wasn't too bummed about it.There was nothing too noteworthy about the hiking today, except that my pack felt ridiculosuly heavy. The good news is that it will get lighter and lighter as each day passes. I got to the shelter at 5pm and Ducky and Madison, Old Spice, and Yoni Bear were already there. It was raining so I claimed a spot in the shelter instead of setting up my tent. The rain stopped after I ate dinner and it actually turned out to be a nice evening. I walked up the field in front of the shelter and the views of the mountains and valleys were really cool looking with the low clouds and darkening sky.It's a full shelter tonight, hopefully I'll get a good night's sleep with 2 avil PMs and earplugs I was counting up the number of times I've slept in a shelter on the trip so far and I came up with 7. Not bad for about 65 days on the trail!
Date: 2009-05-04
From: Rice Field Shelter

To: Bailey Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: broken clouds

I slept suprisingly well last night. Madison kept trying to sleep with me on my sleeping bag but I kept having to shove her off because I was sweating buckets already and having her on my bag made me even hotter. If it was a cold night I definitely would have let her snuggle with me but last night was pretty warm. It poured off and on all night and it didn't let up at all when I woke up around 7am. At least I didn't have to pack up a wet tent! I ate breakfast, got changed, packed up, and by 8:45 the rain had let up a bit and I decided to head out. Most everyone had left before me except Ducky and Madison, Bender, and Old Spice.It only misted on me today, nothing too bad. The clouds cleared out just enough for there to be some nice views when I got to Symms Gap Meadow. There was a lot of nice and easy ridge walking today. I stopped and had lunch on a nice log across the trail...avocado with bagel chips, yum. I stopped a few miles later at Pine Swamp Branch Shelter and saw Steam, The Darkness, and Nicky and her friend as they were about to leave for the next shelter. There were 2 weekend hikers there and I talked with them for over an hour before I left for the next shelter.It was only 3.9 miles to the next shelter where I am staying tonight, but the last mile was steep and tiring, I didn't think I was going to make it! Well, I did (whew!), and made dinner right away. Yoni Bear and 3 section hikers were already here when I arrived, and Bender, Ducky, and Madison arrived maybe an hour after me. All the others pushed on a little farther either to camp or to the next shelter. Maybe I'll see them all tomorrow sometime.The next few days are going to be crazy...I'm going to have to rest up tonight. Ducky and I are going to try to get to Daleville on Friday afternoon which means three 18 mile days in a row! I hope I can do it...left heel, don't let me down!
Date: 2009-05-05
From: Bailey Gap Shelter

To: Sarver Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 21.0
Weather: thunderstorm with drizzle

Happy Cinco De Mayo!I hope I can eventually get used to hikers arriving to a shelter after I've retreated to my tent for the night. I probably got settled in my tent around 8:30, fell asleep around 9:15, and was awoken to someone getting into camp around 10pm. I like knowing who is in the shelter or tenting around the shelter before I get into my tent because once I'm in there I can't see to the outside unless I unzip the fly. Anyways, I found out in the morning that the person who arrived late was an older gentleman section hiking southbound for a few weeks.I packed up my wet tent (ugh), made breakfast, and hit the trail around 8:20. After a few miles I met up with Nicky (Hot Sauce) and Old Spice, who had camped just past a road crossing. Hot Sauce and I hiked mostly together for the whole day. The day started off foggy and misty but it didn't actually start raining until after lunch. And it poured! It cleared a bit and we hiked through some scenic pastures - the AT actually crossed through a farm with donkeys 10 ft away from us as we walked through. They were too busy eating grass to even notice we were walking by. Once we got to the road, an older guy gave us some gatorades, and then we continued on to the Keffer Oak, the largest oak tree on the AT in the south (apparently there's a bigger one in New York), about 18 feet around and estimated to be 300 years old.I didn't anticipate on hiking 21 miles today (my longest day so far!) but I didn't want to tent in the rain so Hot Sauce and I pushed on to the next shelter. Good thing we did (even though we got in at 7:45pm) because this shelter is awesome! It is located 0.3-mile off the AT down a ravine (not a welcoming descent after such a long day) and is relatively new with a deck and picnic table under an overhang. Bow Willow, Yoni Bear, Steam, Bender, The Darkness, and Steamboat were all here when we arrived. Everyone is sleeping in the shelter because there aren't any good tent sites and it will most likely rain tonight.Since I pushed the extra miles today, tomorrow will be a little shorter than originally planned (16 miles instead of 18). Good thing, my feet need as much rest as possible! Speaking of feet, Hot Sauce definitely has trench foot, and I think I have the onset of it. Walking in wet socks each day is the culprit, but it goes away overnight as my feet dry out in my sleeping bag. I'm thinking about taking a day off in Daleville to let them really dry out.
Date: 2009-05-06
From: Sarver Hollow Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: light rain

I am tired of all this rain! Everything is soaking wet, I smell awful, my shoes haven't been dry in days, and my feet hurt (oh boo-hoo!). Nothing to mention for today except that it poured on and off all day long. When will we see the sun again? I'm hoping tomorrow is a better day!