morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-10-10
From: Fort Wayne, IN

To: Athens, West Virginia
Miles today: 0.0

Several people have commented that they still go to this site expecting to read something so have decided to write more!SOS and I are both having problem "readjusting" to life at home after our totally different life on the trail. It is wonderful seeing the kids and grandkids and friends again but we sure do miss our hiker friends and the peace and quiet of the mountains and woods. Trail Mama even misses those winding dirt roads that took some getting used to in the beginning. Tomorrow we will attend our oldest granddaughter's 5th grade play. She is the assistant director. Then we will head for our Cincinnati house which we haven't seen in over 7 months. We will stay there overnight and on Friday morning we will head for the "last hurrah". This would be the "Gathering" in Athens, West Virginia. It is a weekend celebration of the Class of 2012 which is all hikers who completed a through hike in 2012. We are looking forward to seeing hiker friends although we realize that most of our "kids" will not be there since they will be back at work or in school. HeadnOut and TagnAlong are staying at the same hotel that we are so we will definitely see them! There is a recognition ceremony on Friday night where hikers get their certificates and get to walk across the stage. There are classes with all kinds of subjects pertaining to hiking. It will be the closing of this adventure for us.
Date: 2012-10-13
From: Athens, West Virginia

To: Concord College, Athens, WV
Miles today: 0.0

We spent the night in Cincinnati Thursday and then headed for West Virginia on Friday morning. We stopped for about an hour at the Folk Art Center in Morehead, Kentucky. The folk art there was all made by people in Kentucky...very interesting things. I bought a small carved wooden red fox for SOS because one of his best experiences on the trail involved seeing a little red fox. We arrived in Princeton, WV about 4:00. Our hotel was there because even though Athens is a college town, there are no hotel/motels in the town. Tim (HeadnOut) and Nancy (TagnAlong) were already there so the 4 of us drove the 8 miles to Athens to check in for the Gathering. We were delighted to find several hiker friends there...All Smiles, a man we hadn't seen since the Shenandoah's; Steamer, who hiked with SOS through the Smoky Mountains; and Overdrive and Peach, two of our "kids" who summitted one day before we did. Last night all of the above and some hikers that we didn't know all got called to the stage to receive their certificates for completing a through hike with the Class of 2012. the lighting in the auditorium was not good so neither are the pictures that I took. (Besides I didn't bring my camera plug in so can't put them on this site.) There were other awards and ceremonies including a memorial service for a young man who died on the trail this year in Maine. He cramped up and drowned in a lake near a shelter. Another long time hiker who makes things of metal made a "last blaze" sculpture with the AT symbol and a white blaze with a holder in the top for a flag. It will be hand delivered to his family after this weekend. Today after driving back to the campus, we all attended workshops. There were 12 offered in two time slots in the morning and then after lunch another 12. One hiker last year took videos of the trail and made a "movie" which we all enjoyed. In the evening, there were prizes awarded for the apple contest and the photo contest. Nancy and Tim won for the largest apple (13.7 inches around) and the best tasting apple. For this contest, you bring apples from your state and they are judged in 5 different categories. The main speaker was a young man who has hiked on many trails in many countries besides the U.S. He estimated that he has hiked 35,000 miles in the last 10 years. The slide show he talked about was his latest trip hiking in Nepal and India across the highest mountains in the world. It was very interesting to see what someone else did but not even remotely on any of our bucket lists! After the slide show and questions/answers, we went to the ballroom for Contra dancing....except the 4 of us watched others dance. Overdrive and Peach tried their best to get us to join them on the dance floor but we all declined. After watching and enjoying the music, we headed back to Princeton for some rest. Another fun day with hiker friends!
Date: 2012-10-14
From: Concord College, Athens, WV

To: Charleston, WV
Miles today: 0.0

Well SOS and Trail Mama are now officially members of ALDHA! What is that you say?? It is the Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association. This is the conference that we attended this weekend where SOS received his "diploma". We had a wonderful time with hiker friends catching up on news and making new hiker friends. There were no workshops this morning because of the business meeting being held. Tim, Nancy, Rog and I all attended and found that it is like most organizations we are familiar with...lots of discussions which take forever to solve which look like they could be easily solved if people would just talk less and not feel the need to restate everything 5 different ways! But at last all the business got done, the awards were awarded, and the meeting came to an end. We all went outside for a group photo and then it was time for lunch. Most of us had been eating meals in the college cafeteria because there is only one restaurant in town...a pizza place that is not close by. After lunch, we went with Tim and Nancy to pick up their prizes for the apple contest. They got a very nice vest and T-shirt! Maybe I should take some Indiana apples next year and see how they can compete with the Michigan apples! Then with hugs and goodbys again, off we went to start home once again. Since we were close to my cousin's WV house, we decided to check on it for her. We knew that she was in Ohio for her Mom's birthday. After driving one mile up the long narrow road to her house, we walked all around it. All seemed to be in order with nothing disturbed. I was amazed that I could get cell reception on her mountaintop as usually there is no reception. It didn't occur to me until I had dialed her and then there she was clear as a bell. Back down the mountain and on to the town labeled the "coolest small town in America". That would be Lewisburg, WV. We have been there many times before so we knew just where we wanted to go....me to the antique shop and Rog to the Wild Bean coffee shop. On out of town to another favorite WV spot...Tamarack Artisan Center near Beckley. It is a large circular building built around a center court yard. It is filled with arts and crafts from WV folks. Some of them have working studios in the building...if they are there, you can watch them work. By now we decided not to try and drive all the way to Cincinnati so we stopped in Charleston, WV and used yet another trusty coupon to get a good deal on a room for the night and here we are. When I ever get back to Fort Wayne, I will post some pictures taken the last several days. We learned today that a friend named Doc has not been feeling well lately so we pray for his return to better health!
Date: 2012-10-21
From: Fort Wayne, IN

To: Sandusky, MI
Miles today: 0.0

After another person told me they and some others they know are still trying to read the journal each day, I decided to write again...I am not sure why anyone cares what we are doing now that the adventure of a lifetime is over but here goes. We drove to Michigan to see the Lorenz family (daughter Megan, husband Jon and 5 wonderful grandkids, Isaac, Gabe, Chloe, Sam and Hannah). This was after church and then lunch with friends, Tom and Phyllis. We are here to attend the kids soccer games on Tuesday night which is when their season ends. 4 of the 5 play on 3 different teams but all the games are at the same time. That should be interesting to try and watch 3 games at once! Also on Tuesday, we will go to the kids school where I will do one of my favorite things...read to school kids. I bought a funny book about chopsticks which I will read to all three classes. Then I will have the kids try out my chopstick collection. I brought mini marshmallows and round cereal for them to practice with. It is so much fun to watch kids try out chopsticks! Another book I will read is a true story about a cat who lived on Mt. Washington which is a mountain on the trail that SOS and I were both on top of. We are still trying to adjust to the fact that this adventure is over and can never be recreated. Other places and adventures we have had could be repeated if we chose but the AT adventure is a once in a lifetime event because of the wonderful hiker friends we met along the way. We will treasure our memories. Two couples we met live in Michigan...Tim and Nancy outside Grand Rapids and Steps and Jane live in Capac which is only 45 minutes from Sandusky. We were all getting together but Tim has a bad cold so we will just meet with Steps and Jane on Wednesday night on our way back to Fort Wayne. All for now...but I did enter a few pictures...
Date: 2012-10-23
From: Sandusky, MI

To: Marlette, MI
Miles today: 0.0

Today SOS and I will go to Marlette, MI which is a 20 minute drive from our daughter/son in law's house in Sandusky. 3 of their children go to school there. I will read to all three classes and do some fun activities with the kids. Most of yesterday afternoon and some of the evening was spent making all 5 kids "Angry Bird" masks for their Halloween costumes. They are made of felt. I will post a picture when all 5 are together in their masks. It was fun to be making costumres again...something I haven't done since my kids were little. It was an exciting time with trying to narrow down what each one wanted to be, collecting the materials needed, and then sewing. My favorite year was when they wanted to be Wizard of Oz characters. Jeff was "too old" for this but still wanted to dress up so he became an "AIM" tube of toothpaste! We used an old sheet drawn up around his neck with the logo drawn in marker on the "tube" and then painted a big round ice cream container red as the cap. With eye holes cut out, it fit over his head so that he could see where he was going.Meanwhile Josh wanted to be the Tin Man and Megan wanted to be Dorothy (of course). I made her dress of blue and white checked gingham and, wonder of wonders, found little red shiny shoes just her size on the sale table for 2 dollars! With a little stuffed black dog in a square basket, she was ready to go. Josh's costume was a little trickier. I bought steel gray heavy material to make a shirt and pants then used round oatmeal boxes (two for each arm) to put in the sleeves with elastic in between and two large ones on each leg. With a red felt heart sewed on the shirt, a real tin funnel on his head for the hat, and a real little oil can in his hand, he was ready also! The biggest problem was that Josh couldn't bend with the oatmeal boxes on his arms and legs and heaven forbid if he fell down...he definitely couldn't get up! But he sure did look cute! We had good friends with kids the same age as Meg and Josh. When Danielle saw Megan's Dorothy dress, she was sad that she didn't have one also....so, of course, I made another one for her. Those were fun days so I was glad to get to be part of Megan's kids costumes this year.We noticed that the number keeps getting bigger that shows visits to the journal but no one is writing in the guest book...so if you are still reading...how about a message in the guest book?? Otherwise, this journal will come to a close until the next adventure comes along!
Date: 2012-10-25
From: Marlette, MI

To: Fort Wayne, IN
Miles today: 0.0

We have been to Michigan and back home again. It was great fun to see the 5 grandkids there and to read to 4 of their classes. The chopsticks were a big hit!! On the way home, we stopped to have lunch with a hiker friend and his wife...Steps (Jim) and Jane Hoover. They live in Capac which is about 45 south of Sandusky. Jane works in Lapeer so we meet them there and enjoyed lunch and conversation. We got to meet their new dog who just attached himself to Jim who took her home...not intending to keep her..but no one has claimed her so she has a new home it seems. She is a very polite mixed breed dog who know how to shake hands when I asked her to! We wandered home on the back roads looking for a small town in Michigan that we stopped in once and now can't remember where it is...didn't find it...again! While in Marlette, looking around downtown, I saw a printed sign in a gift shop that "spoke" to me. It said, "If you want to know where your heart is, look at where your mind goes when it wanders." Well, I can tell you where my mind goes since this adventure...to the peace and quiet of the mountains and small towns. I have dreamed about something to do with our trip every night since returning...and today it is one month since SOS and friends summitted on Mt. Katahdin. That seems really hard to believe but the calendar says that it is so. The campaign around here to simplify was the focus today. We took 4 bags of "stuff" to the Salvation Army and worked on cleaning out the garage. I also raked tons of leaves. It doesn't seem quite right to have as many leaves as we do since we only have two trees in our yard. Granted they are HUGE trees but the leaf output is amazing! I raked the driveway and then called in a neighborhood kid who did the front and side yard....and did an excellent job! He will be called on again! (We found out when we went to pay him that he used his Dad's heavy duty blower) but who cares how it got done...we were just happy that it was done...at least round one! It was such a gorgeous day here today with temps in the 70's that we took Josh's kids (Nora,7 - Tessa, 6 - and Eli, 2) on a walk to the library. It is a little over a mile but there were no complaints. All of us forgot our library cards but we just bought some of the sale books for 25 cents! We visited Dunkin' Donuts and bought a 25 pack of donut holes which disappeared in a little over 5 minutes!! Eli just pushed them in whole! When we went to the children's section, Eli looked up and said,"My Daddy made those". It is true that Josh designed the wavy structures on the ceiling and his architecture firm designed the library renovation. We played in a playground and finally got home a little before it was completely dark! All for now...
Date: 2012-10-27
From: Fort Wayne, IN

To: Bluffton, IN
Miles today: 0.0

It was a beautiful day in Fort Wayne, IN today...sunny all day with temps in the low 50's. Our first stop of the day was the South Side Farmer's Market which is one of our favorite places. You not only find lots of fresh vegetables and fruits but also herbs, teas, flowers, homemade cards, homemade soap, spices, and lots of flea market items. You also see a cross section of people shopping. There are wood burning pot belly stoves to heat the buildings. We purchased squash, little cabbages (bigger than brussel sprouts but smaller than cabbages and pumpkins. Next it was on to Bluffton where Trail Mama's 94 year old mother lives in an assisted living facility. We took Mom to Berne, IN where my youngest brother/sister in law live. Before getting to their house, we stopped to eat at a little cafe in town (It reminded me of cafe's that SOS and I ate in on the trail.) On to visit with family and then back to Fort Wayne. I used one of my squash to make some yummy squash/apple/ginger/leek soup which I will serve tomorrow night to some guests for dinner. Son Josh called to see if we would keep his 3 kids overnight while they attended a neighborhood Halloween party. The kids arrived in their pajamas and soon were tucked into bed in the "Angel room". It got that name when our oldest granddaughter came to sleep over for the first time in this house. She was a little afraid of being alone so I told her she could sleep in the angel room (so called because there is a border put up by previous owners which has angels all around). I told her the angels would watch over her all night long so now it is the favorite place for grandkids to sleep. They also love the glass shelled turtle light which they use as a night light. They were soon asleep which is where I should be so will sign off for now!
Date: 2012-10-30
From: Fort Wayne, IN

To: Fort Wayne, IN
Miles today: 0.0

Life is getting busier by the minute! We will be having the whole family here for Thanksgiving dinner on Friday evening...yes, that would be on November 2nd. Our Michigan 7 can't be here any other time this month so Friday it is. The turkey is thawing, the ham is in the fridge, and the cranberry salad will be made on Thursday. Nora,7 and Tessa,6, two grandkids who live close, are coming over after school on Friday to peel 10 pounds of potatoes for mashed potatoes. This is not underage child labor...they LOVE to peel potatoes! Meanwhile we are getting some attention from the news media. A reporter from our local newspaper is planning an article soon, neighbors across the street have a pod cast on the radio(not that I know what this is...)which we are being interviewed for on Thursday, we are speaking to a youth group on Nov. 11 and several churches and one school so far want us to speak. I am also finishing up an article for the AT Journal about SOS and Sleeping Beauty who is a young hiker friend who also had a broken neck with a 1% chance of recovery and finished the trail a few days before SOS. The next big project is to sort all the pictures into some kind of order for our speaking engagements. Some days this seems exhausting! But it will get done because it is so important to us to keep raising awareness of the needs and the funds to help those needs in the UM church camps in Indiana. So on to sorting pictures..... Just a note to say that we voted today along with many people...it was great to see so many exercising this right...Don't forget to VOTE!
Date: 2012-10-31
From: Fort Wayne, IN

To: The porch!
Miles today: 0.0

It is Halloween and even though I am a few days late in writing, I wanted to put on some pictures taken that night. For the last few years, SOS and I have been in Florida seeing clients at this time of year. So it was fun to be home and sitting on the porch waiting for little ones, dressed in their costumes, to come and visit the "witch" who lives in the big house on the corner! I had to have my down jacket under my witch robe (a nice touch that it is orange!...fit right in!) and also my black wool hat under my fancy witch hat. Too bad you can't see all the "jewels" in the back of the boa edged hat! I decided to poke holes our pumpkins and put all sizes and types of suckers in the holes. I also had a bowl full of little toys. Since we have so many neighborhood kids and we get car loads of kids coming from other neighborhoods, I told the kids they could have a sucker or a toy. It was surprising how many passed up candy in favor of a little plastic toy! SOS was busy being the resupplier and picture taker so we both had a good time even though it was so cold and very windy. See more picture in photos!
Date: 2012-11-02
From: The porch!

To: Upstairs
Miles today: 0.0

Last night was lots of fun! We did our first ever pod cast for a local radio program called Fort Wayne Speaks. It is the brain child of neighbors, David and Trinity. They do local interest, all positive stories featuring something or someone who has done something special or is making a contribution to better living for others. We were the 58 program they have done in the 7 months they have been in business. Because of a minor crisis at our house (a stray mouse made the mistake of coming into the house and was dispatched a short while later by SOS) we met David at a local cafe...actually we like any excuse to go to the Friendly Fox!! David set up his equipment and prepped us on how the process would go. He would ask us questions and we would talk about our adventure on the Appalachian Trail. It was fun to do...we enjoyed the experience! According to David, it will air on Monday. I don't know where it will be so when I know, I will post it here so others can hear it if they wish. I have also been busy writing an article for the Appalachian Trail Journal. It was also finished up yesterday. Since it is about SOS and Sleeping Beauty (another hiker)who both broke their necks and survived to hike the entire trail, I had to wait until SB spproved what I had written. He did so I sent the story along with pictures of each of them on top of Mt. Katahdin. Now we wait to see if it gets published...will keep you posted! Must go for now...Thanksgiving is happening at our house TONIGHT because that is when the Michigan 7 could come. Since SOS and I have never cared about the date...just having everyone here, it is very early this year! I must get little Tom Turkey into the oven...the cranberry salad is made and Nora and Tessa are coming after school to peel the potatoes. We will all celebrate this evening the many blessings we have received this year. Check out Oct. 31 for new photos and story.
Date: 2012-11-07
From: laundry room

To: all over the county
Miles today: 0.0

SOS and I have been very busy this week with neighborhood stuff. Our historic neighborhood has a Holiday Home Tour every year...for the last 20+. Usually 6 or 7 neighbors open their homes and 2 apartments in a historic building for this tour. It is always the first weekend in Dec....the 1st and 2nd this year. We have a horse drawn carriage which takes people around the neighborhood. There is also an authentic tea room in one of our historic buildings. All of our houses are on the National Register adn are at least a century old...ours is 121 this year. SOS and I had our house on the tour last year so this year we don't have as much to do to prepare for the weekend. We both volunteer to be hosts at someone's home and we also host the meal for home owners on the tour on Saturday night. Before the tour, we have lots of posters to distribute. Until last year, they were mostly passed out in Fort Wayne....but we decided that we could pass them out in towns all around our city...so last year we passed out 164 posters in many small towns. This year we have gone out for the last 3 days to 12 smaller towns and passed out 188 posters. Tomorrow and Friday we will go to 7 more towns to pass out 75 more. This really improved our attendance last year. SOS and I had 900+ people through our home on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon....so we will see how it works out this year. The weather is always a factor, of course. The other piece of news is that the podcast that we did last week is up and running. If you want to hear us talk about our experiences on the trail, then go to FortWayneSpeaks.com. We are podcast number 58 and are at the top of the list for this week. After this week, we will drop down one place but will still be easy to find. We really enjoyed this experience even though we had no idea what a podcast was before we did it. Essentially it is just like listening to the radio except you are using your computer...so if you listen to it and enjoy the experience, let us know by signing the guest book on the left. Thanks for reading and listening...Trail Mama