morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-04-27
From: Bradley Gap, NC

To: Slide Hollow Stream, TN
Miles today: 15.9

I forgot something from yesterday that I forgot to mention. When I was near the top of the first bald out of Carvers Gap, I heard music. There was a very talented fiddle player on top making very beautiful music. I stopped and listened for a bit before hiking on. The wind in Bradley Gap was howling all night long. It made getting out of the sleeping bag hard. Have you noticed that it doesn't take much to make getting out of the sleeping bag hard? HaWe were camped between Little Hump Mountain and Hump Mountain, so the first order of the day was to climb Hump Mountain in very gusty wind. It was another climb where I looked drunk as my feet and poles were going where the wind wanted and not quite where I want. It was wonderful to be on top of the bald in the early morning. Another day of beautiful sunny skies with unbelievable views. We had two unusual views on the bald today. The first was of some African cows with very big horns. They were on the side of the bald that was out of the wind. Smart cows. They didn't seem too concerned by us and just ignored our presence. On the windy side of the mountain we saw five horses. One of the horses was keeping a very close eye on us. From where we were standing they looked like they were on the edge of the mountain with the far off mountains as a backdrop. It was a neat scene. When Tanglefoot and I arrived at the Apple House Shelter for a snack, we saw a menu to a restaurant 3/4 miles to the left on the road that was just past the shelter. Tanglefoot has been talking about getting a chocolate milkshake and a hamburger for several days and both were on the menu. We discuss whether we should walk down there for lunch. By the time we got to the road we had decided that lunch was in order. The walk ended up being a little over a mile, but the food was worth it. I think it was named Brooks Kitchen. I asked two friendly guys if they'd give us a ride back and they said they had to run to the hardware store to get some pipe, but if we were still there when they came back by in about 15 minutes they'd take us. They came back as promised and we rode back to the trail in the back of a plumbers truck. Good thing we didn't have far to go, because there really wasn't a good place to sit back there. I truly appreciated the ride as the road back to the trail was all uphill. There was a side trail to Jones Falls that I wanted to take today. The falls were magnificent. There were five guys there and they all climbed part way up as young men will do. I was content to just watch them enjoy themselves and to watch the falls. Tanglefoot put his feet in. I tried, but it was too cold for my little feet. Ha. I wasn't expecting such a great waterfall and it made my afternoon. Tanglefoot and I had planned to do more miles today, but the side trip for hamburgers and the falls kept us from the goal. I think the side trips were way worth it and made the day very special. We will hopefully make Dennis Cove tomorrow for resupply. As always, only time will tell.
Date: 2009-04-30
From: Vandeventer Shelter, TN

To: Double Springs Shelter, TN
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: clear sky

I slept very little last night. Sonny the dog decided to sleep with Tanglefoot who was next to me in the shelter. Sonny is not a small dog and kept stretching out and pushing me off my sleeping pad and into Brown Cow's space. We had seven hikers crammed into a space built for six. I had it better than Tanglefoot as he had the whole dog in his space. Ha. This morning about 6:30, Scout, Night Fight and James showed up at the shelter. They are trying to hike the 50 miles from Dennis Cove to Damascus in one 24 hour day. They started at one minute after midnight and will hike until they reach Damascus. Good luck guys! They are young and hike extremely fast, so it is an attainable goal for them. (I'm happy with 15 mile days. Those are hard enough for me.)After that really long, hard day yesterday and not much sleep, I had a hard time hiking today. I didn't want to hike at all, but I forced myself to get up, pack up and head out. It was a day of putting one foot in front of the other to get from point a to point b. This is the first day that I was ready to quit hiking really, really early. I got to this shelter at a little after four and I stopped for the night. I set up my tent, ate dinner and crawled into my tent. I am trying to catch up on my journaling and I'm resting my feet. I am so hoping for a really good nights sleep. I am 18.5 miles from Damascus, VA and should reach that probably Saturday morning. If the terrain is as easy as people say, I may try for it tomorrow and take a zero on Saturday. My body and feet need a break. I don't plan on staying at the hostel there. I want a bed and pillow that are not covered in plastic, a bathroom that is not shared with 20 other hikers and the ability to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night without going outside. Ha. The trail goes right through Damascus and I hear it is a small town. The best kind for hikers. Everything we need is within walking distance and we don't have to rely on shuttles. I am also hoping to have cell service, something I haven't had in town for quite some time. Sorry I don't have much to report today. It was an off day for me, but nothing a good nights rest won't fix. Until tomorrow.
Date: 2009-05-08
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I went to the foot doctor on Wednesday and I had a hard time getting him to understand what I had just put my feet through. He was like they should be swollen after walking that far. Ha. He didn¢t really believe that people walk even farther than that every year. I have to go get some x-rays and go back next week to find out if there are any stress fractures. I really hope they just need some rest and nothing more. I don¢t really think that my feet hurt more than the other hikers as I only met a few that said their feet didn¢t hurt at all. I just decided that I wasn¢t willing to hike that way. My feet, my decision, my hike.It has taken me awhile to realize it, but I think I would enjoy the hike more as a section hiker. I like to hike with time to explore and enjoy my surroundings and I just wasn¢t doing that towards the end. I was just hiking the miles to get me from point a to point b with thoughts that I¢d come back here some day to really see the trail. I¢d see a waterfall or a bald and I¢d want to just stay there for awhile, but knew that if I wanted to make my miles for the day that I needed to just hike on. I¢d like to learn more about the trees and flowers that I see along the way. I would like to take the time to look at a map to figure out the names of the mountains I¢m seeing when looking at the vast panorama in front of me. I¢d like to learn more about the history of the areas I walk through. If there is a side trail that has something of interest, I¢d like to be able to take it without thinking about how many miles I still have to do that day. I¢d like to take a better camera and spend more time taking pictures. I think that as a section hiker that the hike can be much more flexible, that I can make the hike what I want it to be. I want it to be about the journey and not the destination!I¢ve done nothing but relax and sleep since I¢ve gotten home. I am happy with my decision to come home. I don¢t in any way feel like I have failed. Every person has to hike their own hike and I have decided that for me my hike should be as a section hiker. Doing smaller sections and taking the time to research and plan each part. I also think that I¢d like to find somebody to hike with me, somebody that I can share the experience would make it that much more enjoyable. Well this is the end of my journey for now, but it will continue sometime in the future. I plan on posting the pictures I did take (not many) and I will update you on the status of my feet. I learned an incredible amount about backpacking, equipment and what I want my hike to be. If there is anything you¢d like to know please feel free to ask and I¢ll try to answer your questions. Thanks for following along!
Date: 2017-05-02
From: Buena Vista, VA

To: Spy Rock
Miles today: 16.7

My weekend was okay. The highlight was my sister Lynn coming to visit again. We went in to Lexington, VA to get a fuel canister at the outfitters and walked around the town. Very neat little place. A lot of stores are closed on Sunday, but we found a yummy little ice cream store. I think I talked her ear off, I have so many unused words that I had to get out. It was wonderful to see her again and it really made my day. I am headed to Waynesboro this week. There are two major climbs this week and one started the hike for the day. I met Billy Goat at the trail head. Nice guy. Very upbeat and positive. The climb up wasn't too bad. Just kept the slow and steady pace and finally reached the top. The highlight of the morning was walking across a bald or meadow. The views were amazing. The wind was wicked though. It kept trying to push me off the trail. I caught up to Billy Goat here and met Booty. I saw hundreds of trilliums, large patches of them in the woods. It was like the floor of the woods was painted green with dots of white, light pink and dark pink. So pretty. The sound of the day was the howling of the wind. Even when I was shielded by a mountain, I could still hear the wind howling. It is quite something. I arrived at the second shelter a little early and didn't want to stop yet. The next shelter is too far away, but there are two campsites between the two shelters. I ended up at Spy Rock with a couple of overnight campers. Spy Rock is a huge rock that gives incredible views. I climbed up and spent about an hour just enjoying myself. The wind made it a bit chilly, but I just sat up there taking in the evening. I didn't make it to sunset as I was starting to get very chilly. I enjoyed spending a couple hours with the young couple. They live nearby and this is one of there favorite camping spots. I can see why. I turned in about 8:30 with the winds still howling. I really do prefer the warm temperatures of last week.
Date: 2008-04-28
To: 2009
Miles today: 0.0

Looks like I'm not going to make it on the trail this year due to insufficient funds. Work is going really good for me at the moment, and in a couple months I may be able to save enough money to go, but it'll be too late for a NOBO hike. So, I'll just have to keep working hard, save money, and prepare for my 2009 hike from Georgia to Maine. I'll be traveling up to Massachusetts for two weeks around the 4th of July, and plan on doing some hiking up in the White Mountains. Possibly some section hiking of the AT, but I'm definately going to be bagging some more 4,000 footers. I'll probably write some more after my trip up there, because I'll be full of the excitement that is hiking. The last 4 months have been nothing but work, work, work. Spring is here, it's nice outside, and I'm ready now to play! Oh and PS, I'm single again and will be looking for a hiking partner for 2009. I don't mind either way, whether its going alone or with a friend or partner. I do think, however, that having a partner is safer and could make for a much more enriching experience that both people could benefit from and remember for the rest of their lives. Sounds good to me! I wish the best of luck to all of you that are out there !hiking the trail right now, and want to thank all the people who have written their trailjournals and inspired me with the amazing true life stories of adventures only found here on trailjournals.com!Love you all!2009.. I can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11
Date: 2009-05-02
To: Friends...
Miles today: 0.0

My friends Tim and Jenna are both going to be hiking the trail with me now. They've both been pondering it for a while, but lots of things just kind of fell into place, and both of them are now able to go. They made the decision not even a week ago, we've been spending the last few days running around getting gear, and doing nothing but talking about and planning for our epic journey together. We may end up doing a flip flop, that is hike from say... Georgia to Virginia, then skip up to Maine and hike back down to Virginia... since we are leaving on the late side for a NOBO (northbound) hike. So, if we're not making good enough time, not through most of Virginia by the end of July or so, then we'll have to make the decision whether to press on and risk running out of time or running into early snows in October in Maine, or do the flip flop. The only thing is none of us really want to flip flop, cuz we all want that dramatic finish at Katahdin... but we may not have much of a choice. We want to hike the whole trail and enjoy it as well, so there will be no rushing. Don't want to get hurt. Rather enjoy the sights and smells along the way as well. I'll write more when I get on the trail.
Date: 2009-05-18
From: Black Gap Shelter/Springer Mtn.

To: Long Creek Falls Campsite
Miles today: 6.6

1.5mi from the shelter and we were on top of Springer Mountain. What a rush of excitement to be at the start of a long journey. There we met a guy from Wareham, UK (the original Wareham) which is weird because I grew up in Wareham, MA. A sign? Maybe.... There was also an old guy named Roger "Many Sleeps", the local ridgerunner, up there signing in Thru-Hikers. Cool guy. Then, we got our pictures taken of us kissing the plaque on top Springer from a guy from the local newpaper. To be continued... tomorrow morning. They are kicking me out of the library, its 4:45pm. Ok, I'm back after a little stressful time in Rite Aid Pharmacy getting the pictures off my memory cards onto CD's. Tim is putting them on photobucket for me while I finish up my journal, so we can get back on the trail...We left Springer Mtn. heading down, taking the first steps and passing the first little white blazes of many on the AT. The trail winded through a grove of old hemlocks that were never logged back in the 20's and 30's like most other trees along the trail. So, these trees were huge, majestic, and a very rare site. Also, the trail went back and forth across foggy streams lined with big rhododendrons that often formed archways right over the trail. A very magical place. We stopped in at Stover Creek Shelter, to grab a bite to eat, use the privy, and take off our boots for a while. There we met this old drunk from Boston who was calling the shelter his home, a German couple (on a six month trip aroun the US) who were very fun to talk to, and three college kids from Chattanooga, TN. Tim had put some rice in a bottle of water to soak for dinner and left it sitting on the picnic table when we left. When he realized it was missing about 5 mins down the trail, he dropped his pack and ran back, to find the Old drunk from Boston eating the rice out of a cut open bottle. He made a gesture to Tim by raising the bottle of rice and said,"Here you can have some if you want, this stuff is terrible, it sticks to the bottle and all in my teeth." Tim snatched it out of his hands and said,"That my rice fool." He was pretty pissed. I can't help but laugh about it. We found a nice waterfall right off the trail not long after that, to monkey around in and take some pics. We were going to try to get to Hawk Mtn. Shelter, but our feet were hurting, and it was getting late when we found the most beautiful campsite right besides Long Creek Falls. A big beautiful rushing waterfall about 15ft high and 30ft or more wide. We were a little worried about bears, because we had seen notice earlier about no camping in the area, due to problems with bears. We stayed there anyways and it was great.
Date: 2009-05-19
From: Long Creek Falls Campsite

To: Gooch Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

Woke at 4:50am. Not going back to sleep. It had been raining all night. Between the rain, and being in the moist valley of the falls EVERYTHING was damp and cold. I crawled out of my tent in pitch darkness, could hear nothing but the loud rushing of the falls. I immediately went out and gathered dry tinder from under and inside fallen logs, and gathered a bunch of small wood to get a fire going. When Tim crawled out of his tent at about 6am, still pitch dark., I had the fire going pretty well, and he helped me go get some bigger stuff. When Jenna reluctantly came wandering over from the tent we had a good breakfast cooking over the fire. She didn't like the 10-grain hot cereal we were making so she had her banana bread and cream cheese instead. Somewhere between 8 and 9 am the sun peeked its head up over the mountain and shined it golden rays right on the waterfall. Beautiful.We left about 9:30 and made it to Hawk Mtn Shelter to once again use the privy, sign the register, and let some of our stuff dry out in the SUN!! Dirty D and KFC had stayed there last night, and were packing up their gear. Tokwe (Jenna) and Rockslinger (Tim) had got packed up and head out before me, and as I left the shelter in a hurry trying to catch up, I came flying off the blue-blazed trail, took a sharp left back onto the AT, and almost stepped on and got bit by a snake. Haven't identified it yet, but I'm pretty sure its of the non poisonous variety. He snapped at me though! Sassafrass was a butt-kickker, and when we got to the top there was a nice spot (where we later found out Bird had spent the night), where we took a lunch and foot break. Had a Rice Krispy Treat made in heaven, which made me fall backwards off the log I was sitting on ;P. Then we saw the "Youtube Video Tree". I'll put some pics on later. We made it to the Gooch Mtn Shelter, all of us very sore. We found nice campsites, did a little green-blazing and got a great night's sleep. Big pot of mixed beans the night before created two new world records:Tim:   Five catholes dug in one day and a whole roll of TP used...Eric: The most musical hiker in the woods...
Date: 2009-05-20
From: Gooch Mtn. Shelter

To: Campsite near stream at mile 23.3
Miles today: 8.2

Woke at 7am. Cold. Put all my clothes on, and went up by the shelter to get bear bag. Poptarts w/ a spoon, pnut butter out of the jar, and some supercharged green tea and ready to rock at 8am. Great weather all day. Had some nice view on top of Big Cedar Mountain. Our first vista so far. We found some Gem-Encrusted Puffballs (a choice edible mushroom) at Woody Gap and sauteed them and ate them over Couscous for dinner. YUM! Also, we were so happy to see the trash cans at Woody Gap to get rid of our stinky trash we'd already been carrying for a few days. We saw another snake and a box turtle on the trail leaving Woody Gap (my power animal... long explanation) Walked through a huge burnt area of woods. Control burn? Lighting? Cigarette? Don't know. Found a great site by a stream and set up camp. Derek and Matt showed up not long after we got there and set up their tent by us. We had another great night of great food and conversation around the campfire. I had a deep talk about life with the guys from TN. Then, as I tried to sleep pondering the problems of the world, I found myself missing a girl I met a few weeks ago... and found myself missing her alot. Her name is Megan.
Date: 2009-05-21
From: Campsite near stream at mile 23.3

To: Neels Gap
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: broken clouds

Woke at 6:30am. Got packed right up, had hot oatmeal, did our morning pullups down by the bearbag by the stream, and we all hit the trail about 8:30. Made it up to Blood Mountain (4,461ft), the 3rd highest peak in all of GA and the highest on the AT in GA. Beautiful day and amazing views from the top while eating lunch. We found yet another very amusing register entry from "bird" about how he and a few others who stayed up there the night before got their foodbags stolen from a bear. The shelter was old (built in 1934) and made of stone and was quite a sight amongst the scraggy trees and big boulders on top of the mountains. (Don't grab what appears to be old rope laying on the ground up there.... its really dried up bear poop! Unless you don't mind. I found out the hard way ;P)We made it to Neels Gap, where the trail goes across HWY 19 and right through the infamous Walasi-Yi hostel and Mountain Crossings Outfitter store. We got a ride to the Walmart Plaza in Dahlonega, from a nice guy named Matt who we met up on top of Blood Mtn. Thanks Matt! Before we resupplied our food for the next 4-5 days, we did what any hiker would have done after 5 days in the woods. Jenna went right for the chinese place, and Tim, Derek, Matt, and I all went to Domino's and split 3 large pizzas. Had a very nice lady bring us back up to the gap (17mi) from Walmart, after bringing her groceries home and convincing her husband we weren't a bunch of "weirdos". We got dropped off at Blood Mtn. Cabins 1/4mile down from the hostel and split a cabin for $60 a night. $12 a piece. Much recommended. Took amazing showers, drank some beer, watched the weather channel, and slept in beds. Well, I slept on the futon in the living room....Awesome! Another amazing adventerous day on the AT.
Date: 2009-05-22
From: Neels Gap

To: Best Campsite in the World- Wolf Laurel Top(3766')
Miles today: 3.4

Out of time... gotta get hiking. Will finish what I started in a few days, when we get to Franklin, NC. Hope you enjoyed it so far.Ok, back again with only 33 minutes to update before the library closes. Bad timing. Since when do libraries close at 5pm anyways? Back to journal....WOKE up @ 6am in cabin with the stupidest red male cardinal flying over and over and over again into the glass window that was right at the foot of the futon I was sleeping on. What the? It was funny... anyways. Cleaned up, packed up, did laundry at the store (George-the owner-nicest guy in the world let us do laundry there and even use his detergent) and we all bought postcards to send home. Then we all went back up to the Walasi-Yi (the only building the AT actually passes through) and got pack shakedowns. An associate goes through what you're carrying and tells you what you don't need, what you can send home, and what else you can do to make your pack lighter. I was only able to take about 2-3lbs off my pack. Better than nothing, I suppose... still 42 friggin pounds though, ugh! Jenna really didn't want to do high mileage, so we took pretty much the first campsite we found. Derek and Matt had a destination and a time limit, so kept going to get in some more miles. We said our goodbyes. Right after we got our tents set up, like 1/2hr later, Matt comes running back to tell us that they found the best campsite in the world and it was not even a mile more down the trail. Jenna wasn't happy at the time, but when she realized we were going to make the move, she got up and headed right out. Tim and I folded up our tents quickly, and sloppily and carried them to the spot which was indeed "The best campsite in the world" We had an amazing dinner of hobo-fried (in tin foil on the fire) cheesy potatoes topped with bacon bits and later some strawberry jet-puffed marshmallows. Drop-dead awesome! Then all five of us layed down side by side under one sleeping bag (imagine the wind) on the top of the mountain, watching the millions of stars. We saw many satellites moving slowly and a few shooting stars. This was a night to remember forever.