morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-06-05
From: Rod Hollow Shelter

To: Bear's Den Rocks
Miles today: 9.9

(6 am writing) Wow! What a solid night of rain. It started at 8 pm and has rained steady all night and is still raining. It would be hard to do this trip again and not take the tent I am using right now. I would want to take another like the Seedhouse SL-2 to save 3 pounds in weight....my tent is around 5 pounds and the SL-2 is around 2 pounds....both are 2-man tents....for you and your gear. But wow, the REI Half-Dome is a monster tent against rain. I have been in some soaking conditions during this trip but the inside of this tent stays perfectly dry. Great job REI!So I pack up everything I can inside my tent....now wait for a lull in the rain so I can pack up the tent without it getting wet. It lets up enough to get out and pack it up with minimal wetness....besides, I know I will have a chance to dry everything out at the Bear's Den Hostel.So it's a wet hike into the Hostel and we all hike it together. We're all just really ready to be there and take a break.....it was a great week of hiking, but we did put in some major miles and the body is ready for a day off. But it's going to have to wait just a little bit. Today, we start a section of Trail called the roller coaster which is simply a series of approximately 500 foot climbs and descents, one right after the other. Now I love to climb, and we've done climbs that were much bigger, and much longer.....so I thought this would be a breeze. It was a tough little section getting into Bear's Den. Nothing horrific, but enough to make it "not an easy" 10 miles today.As I'm walking up the side trail to Bear's Den, I see this couple who look a whole lot like my sister Mary and her husband Mark.....hey...it is!! How cool is that? And she had told me they couldn't make it because they were going to Virginia Beach. She said she tried to text me...and then didn't believe me when I told her that we hadn't had service until today. Just hike the AT for a couple of days and you'll believe me that AT&T customers are out of luck on the AT. Anyhow...we chatted for a while and then they went back to their campground while I got the hiker stink off me. They came back over to the hostel later on and we got a chance to talk. They got to meet all the hikers that they have read so much about, so that was cool. Their son, Mickey came with them, and his friend Derrick. I think they had fun just running around in the woods and stuff.My best friend, Scott, also came in that night and is going to spend the weekend visiting. Very cool. He's even going to stay in the hostel.....hope his nose isn't too sensitive! He and I put a couple of pizzas in the oven and had a chance to catch up a bit.Mr Buffalo Man's mom, Mer, also came in today and will also be staying in the Hostel. It was great to meet her. She'll be staying the whole weekend as well.So everyone gathered in the common room and it was a good night of just relaxing and talking.
Date: 2009-06-07
From: Bear's Den Rocks (Cottage)

To: Bear's Den Rocks (Cottage)
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day at the cottage. We did nothing today. We sat, talked and ate....and watched paint dry.....well, actually my tent stuff. I put anything that was wet on the back patio of the cottage. It dried quickly. Finally, after about 5 hours of just hanging, we decided to go to Wal-Mart. I got some supplies for the next hiking leg and got my photos developed. Thanks Scott for the ride to Wal-Mart!Scott helped me clean up the cottage and he filled the kindling wood bin. Thanks again Scott. Goof helped me do dishes. So we got the place cleaned up and looking respectable. Then Scott headed home to DC. I'm glad he got a chance to visit and meet the people I'm hiking with.Sunnuke, Goof, me, Mr Buffalo Man, and Mer went out to eat that night. Zoltan called and had hiked into Harper's Ferry but couldn't find a place to stay, so we drove in and picked him up and brought him back to Bear's Den.
Date: 2009-06-08
From: Bear's Den Rocks (Cottage)

To: Harper's Ferry
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: clear sky

Nice relaxing day on the A.T. today. Got up early enough to be on the A.T. at 7:30. Beautiful day today.....not a cloud in the sky.No real goal starting out today. Today's mission was simply to get into Harper's Ferry.....just shy of 20 miles. Scott, my best friend, who came to visit me this weekend at Bear's Den offered the use of his condo (Internet Computer) tomorrow so I could get caught up on the journal and pictures. I accepted.So the plan was to get to Harper's Ferry today so I could take the commuter train into DC tomorrow, use his computer to update the journal, and then grab the last train back to Harper's late tomorrow. Then hike out of Harper's Ferry on Wednesday, 10 Jun. Goof and Mr Buffalo Man will take 2 days to hike in to Harper's Ferry and we'll all hike out together.OK. So as I'm hiking I realize I'm hauling butt pretty good. So I decide to see if I can make it to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) Headquarters before it closes at 5 pm.Holy cow! Not sure if that was smart or not, but it was a fun challenge and I rolled in at 4pm. So I checked in, got my official thru-hiker photo taken, and my official "half-way" number. I'm the 271st thru-hiker to pass through the ATC in 2009.It was like an A.T. family reunion there.....Squeegie, Miss Scarlett, Newt, Mississippi, Repunzel, the "Divas", etc. Steve and Patti, Miss Scalett and Newt's parents were also there. It was great to see them again. Very cool people. It was a full house at the ATC. Patti gave me a loaf of homemade bread....which I'll have for breakfast tomorrow! Thanks Patti.We all went to a tavern called Secret Six for drinks and dinner. The New Zealand couple, Mr Ed and Lightweight also joined us. It was good to see them again. Good food, good conversation, and good company.Another good day on the A.T.! 1000 miles today....no pictures, no sticks. There weren't any good markers for that distance, and I was flying so couldn't use the watch (time-speed-distance calculation) very well. When I reached the trail to the Blackburn Hostel, I knew I was over 1000. It's at mile 1001.0.I'm staying at The Town's Inn, a fairly new hostel in Harper's Ferry. Mississippi, Zipper, Lightweight and Mr Ed are staying there also. It's a nice place run by a cool lady, Karan.
Date: 2009-06-09
From: Harper's Ferry

To: Harper's Ferry (day in Washington DC)
Miles today: 0.0

Should be an interesting day today. Got up and took a morning shower.....very rare these days! Went down to the Harper's Ferry Train Station. It is unmanned. There is also no information at all posted anywhere. No schedule info, no rate schedule, nothing. I asked a woman if she was going to DC. "Yes, just follow me" she says! So I did.Meanwhile, Scott calls me and informs me that there was a bad storm last night and the power is out in his apartment.So I board the train anyhow! If no power in his apartment, I'll try the library. If that doesn't work, I'm sure I can find an Internet Cafe in DC somewhere. I have nothing else to do today. Worst case....I took the train into DC for lunch!! I think it's going to be a very relaxing day.......couple of train rides, minimal walking, and completely away from the Trail for a day!The train ride in was relaxing. Got the METRO (subway) to Scott's. And have been typing away here all day! It feels good to be caught up on the journal part. Next....download a couple hundred photos. Brian, my nephew-in-law, downloaded about 130 photots for me today, and I have about another 150.....so that's what I'm going to do right now!!Let me explain so you get the right idea. I really like doing the journaling, taking the photos, downloading them, and all that stuff. It's finding the time and the right equipment that gets frustrating. Thanks Scott for the use of your computer today. It feels great to be caught up. I'm going to try to get titles on the photos today, but I might run out of time! We'll see.Scott and I went to Mr Days (bar and grill) for dinner and a couple of beers on the way to the train station. The train was delayed because of weather and ran at slower than normal speeds....but got back to Harper's Ferry around 10 pm.
Date: 2009-06-10
From: Harper's Ferry (day in Washington DC)

To: Rocky Run Shelters
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: overcast clouds

OK. A note on some great support by cool people lately. First, my sister Mary and her husband Mark for coming to visit at Bear's Den. That was cool enough. Thanks Mark for buying lunch for the whole herd!! And thanks Mary for cooking dinner for the herd back at the cottage. Too cool. Mark also brought his laptop with him but we were too busy visiting to worry about journaling. Thanks again Scott for the use of your Condo and computer. I know you're busy as heck at work so it was appreciated that you left work early to have dinner and "escort" me on the METRO to Union Station. Thanks Patti (Miss Scarlett and Newt's mom) for the delicious bread....made a great breakfast heading into DC. Thanks Steve (their father) for the ride in Harper's Ferry (my legs really appreciated it after 20 mile hike).Hiker Monday!! Great last couple of days visiting everyone. Slept very well last night. I liked the Town's Inn Hostel. Very comfortable place. I recommend it as a great choice for stay in Harper's Ferry. Good location, and cheaper than most alternatives. Make a reservation though....bunk space is limited.I was in no hurry this morning....funny how 16 miles is not as daunting as it use to be not so long ago. So I've been interested in my pack weight lately, coming up on the halfway point, and feeling like my pack is "dialed in" pretty good. So I went back to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy HQ's and weigh my pack and it weighs in at 48 pounds with 2 liters of water and 6 days of food. I took the food and water out and it weighed 30 pounds. I feel pretty comfortable and am happy. I could dump several pounds the next time I hike the A.T.! And 14 lbs of food for 6 days is a healthy weight. "They" say to assume 2 lbs of food per day on this hike.OK. I apologize to those who are reading for "trail info". I've been remiss lately, talking about people, and the happenings getting into Harper's Ferry and the Shenandoahs.So the hike today was nice. It started with a walk through Historic Harper's Ferry...pretty cool. Then came a very cool happening. Several years back, when I was stationed at the Pentagon, I took 3 days and bike rode the C&O Canal Trail.....185 miles from Cumberland, MD to Georgetown. While riding I came across the A.T. signs....they share trail for about 3 miles. Well I realized I was walking a dream when I was going down the C&O Canal Trail....HIKING....complete with people riding by on bikes. I'll never be able to convey the feeling during those 3 miles. Awesome!OK. So out of West Virginia and into Maryland for abot 40 miles. The trail today was soft and wide, gradually sloped, mostly uphill. There were some rocky sections, but nothing annoying. The trail today went though deciduous forests.There is rain expected tonight so staying in the shelter tonight. I hate getting tent and other gear wet on first day out of town.
Date: 2009-06-11
From: Rocky Run Shelters

To: Pine Knob Shelter
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: fog

Good choice sheltering last night as it rained pretty good several times. Yesterday I was lacking energy, and I thought it was just Hiker Monday. I slept in until 8am this morning.....about 2 hours past normal wake-up for me. I felt drained.So I get on the Trail about 9 am and I feel like crap.....very tired legs and a headache....no energy. So I'm hiking 2 miles at a time between breaks. Not sure what is wrong.....flu maybe, just dehydration? (Edited: I wrote in my paper journal that I thought it was dehydration.....but I think it was the flu.)So I'm dragging butt today. And I decide to call it a day around 1 pm at Pine Knob Shelter. The plan today was to go another 8 miles, but I would have hated every minute of it, and might have made things worse. Up to this point today I was expending every ounce of available energy just putting one foot in front of the other.The group pressed on ahead. I figure I'll catch them somewhere down the road....maybe by Duncannon, PA. We'll see.The Trail through Maryland so far has been soft, wide, and climbs/descents are easily graded. Another reason to stop early.....I should be flying on this terrain.Hopefully 18 hours of rest will make me ready for tomorrow. The good news for everyone is that there are only 3 other hikers here today and they are tenting....so I've got the shelter all to myself.
Date: 2009-06-12
From: Pine Knob Shelter

To: Wolfsville Road (Free State Hiker Hostel)
Miles today: 8.0

Wow! What a night! I slept on and off from 2 pm until 9 am this morning. Definitely felt like I had like a 24-hour flu bug or something like that. So I go over my options and decide the best course of action is to hike 8 miles to the Free State Hiker Hostel. I still feel like crap, but I definitely don't want to sit around in this shelter all day. I figure getting to the hostel and getting a shower, washing clothes, and sleeping on a bed will be the best thing for me.So I get hiking around 10 am. And simply hike the 8 miles straight. I actually feel better than yesterday so I think I'm on the back-end of this thing.So I get to the Free State Hiker Hostel. Wow. What a place. It's owned by Ken Berry, AT'06. Huge bunk room. Showers, laundry, internet, phone, snacks, the works! Ken thru-hiked in 2006 to raise money to save a Free Clinic in Hagerstown.NOTE: Now I know a lot of you like to worry.....but don't. I'll be fine! I say this because my next post probably won't be for another week or so. And I hate leaving my journal on this note.
Date: 2009-06-13
From: Wolfsville Road (Free State Hiker Hostel)

To: Wolfsville Road (Free State Hiker Hostel)
Miles today: 0.0

Well, they say everyone has some kind of setback on the Trail. I guess this is mine. I'm staying here at the Free State Hiker Hostel another day. I thought I was on the back-end of whatever I have, but I guess not.Bottom line is I have no energy, and a couple flu-like symptoms.....so I think it's the flu. I actually think it started the day I walked out of Harper's Ferry...I got up relatively late for that day....should have been a sign....then I walked 15+ miles in 100% humid conditions.....definitely didn't help. I definitely felt it the next morning....that's the day I stopped hiking early. And yesterday I hiked into this Hostel.Now don't feel too bad. Everyone gets sick and I guess I could expect to with the way I've been pushing it lately. Hopefully I can hike out of here tomorrow...if not, I may have to get off the Trail for a short bit to recover.But this is what makes this adventure a challenge, overcoming obstacles along the way...which everyone will face at some time.The blessing in all of this is that this Hostel was right here!! Life would have been so much worse if it had not been here. And it is a beautiful hostel. Ken Berry opened this hostel in 2006 after raising money to save a free clinic by doing an A.T. Thru-Hike. When he finished, he actually bought this house specifically to open a hostel....and having hiked the A.T., he knew exactly how to design it....really comfortable place. If I would not have gotten ill, I would never have known about this place....I had not planned on staying here....and really didn't even notice the entry in the Thru-Hikers Handbook.Well, here's hoping for a miraculous recovery and a hike out tomorrow!
Date: 2009-06-14
From: Wolfsville Road (Free State Hiker Hostel)

To: Devil's Racecourse Shelter
Miles today: 5.1

Hike On! I'm going to go for a short hike today. My body feels much better...except for some bed soreness from lying around so much. I've looked extensively for tick bite evidence but can't find any. So I think an easy hike today will actually do some good.Waynesboro, PA is just a couple of days away, so if I get to that point and am still feeling lousy, I'll find the nearest Emergency Room.Don't worry! But my next post won't be for a week or so when arriving in Duncannon, PA....if they have Internet access.Wow. What a day of ups and downs. Bad headache kept me up most of the night....got 3 to 4 hours of sleep. When I got up and took a shower, it took me some time to realize it through the headache, but the body aching was gone. I still don't feel 100% but I'm not energy depleted like I was feeling.So I took the morning time and "sterilized/washed" everything in my pack and washed the linens I had been using + the clothes I had been wearing. Fresh start, right?I hike out at noon planning on going about 5 miles. The 1st 4 are a breeze and a nice relaxing walk on a Sunday afternoon....beautiful blue sky, mild temps, nice breeze....Thanks God! The last mile was uphill.....would have considered it nothing a week ago.....but today I had to take it easy. I get to the shelter and set up my tent! Good to be back in the tent again.....much softer sleeping than the shelter's wood floor. Ate my MRE, downed some water, ready for bed!That's the recap: Funny things today; family and friends may be worried about me hiking out today....so of course I have no cell coverage to send them a text! 1. I spilled a little spaghetti on my shirt today....you know, the nice clean one....bummer. 2. So I'm sitting there getting water.....working on second batch.....the Steripen in my lap.....it falls to the ground (about 1-2 feet)....I'm sitting on a rock.....now the thing doesn't work....1st time I've dropped it.....you would think something made for the wilderness would be a little more sturdy. So I'm thinking of switching to Aqua Mira drops. The monthly costs of each are pretty even but the initial Steripen investment ($100) and the cost of replacement make the Aqua Mira a better choice for rugged outdoors.I did get to walk through 2 grass fields today....very open....direct sun....recharged my solar batteries....I just stopped there soaking it up.It's hilarious how my shaving throws everyone off. They all think I can't be a thru-hiker. Even Jonnel at the last hostel commented on that. Good to be hiking!!
Date: 2009-06-15
From: Devil's Racecourse Shelter

To: PA16 (Waynesboro, PA)
Miles today: 7.5

Got a couple of hours of sleep early in the night....bunch of hours up thru the night....and a couple of good hours at the very end. I obviously did a good job of rehydrating myself because I was out of the tent every 2 hours peeing! So I just lay there for a couple of hours admiring the blue sky getting brighter, and making a plan for the day. When I start packing I notice that my food bag has gotten all out of whack over the last couple of days. I've eaten a couple of meals on some days, but none of the other stuff. On other days, I haven't eaten the meals.This aided in my decision to hike into Waynesboro today. Get re-supplied with whatever I need to get to Duncannon. I have a food drop with more meals in it coming up in Southmountain, PA in a couple of days. This way I can walk out of Waynesboro like I do any planned stop. "Fooded up" until the next stop. Showered, laundry, fed, the works.....basically like starting day 1 of a 6-day stretch.OK. I've showered, got the supplies, and am doing laundry as I write this. Meal (tonight's) after laundry.Whoa! I got way ahead of myself there. So I took my time getting going and just hiked lazily on the Maryland trail, which is, for the most part, wide and easy grades. There are some rocky sections, but they don't drag on forever!So I stroll into Pen-Mar Park and there are a bunch of thru-hikers at a picnic table. I plan on using my cell phone during the break so I pick a different table far enough away that my talking won't bother them. "Chance" yells my name....which I'm not expecting any of them to know. It appears he got off the Trail for family fun and was just getting back on.So he and I hiked out together and crossed the Mason-Dixon Line together....yeah....into Pennsylvania! I was born in PA.When I got to PA16, a hiker hands me a PA Dutch Birch Beer from a stream. Trail Magic! Cool. Then the guy who provided the Trail Magic, "Terrapin", pulls up to replenish the supply. Then he drives me the 7 miles to the Days Inn!! How awesome is that? Thanks Terrapin!!Time for food and Bed!
Date: 2009-06-16
From: PA16 (Waynesboro, PA)

To: Rocky Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: haze

Took some NyQuil at the hotel last night. No way any of you reading this would know this, but I don't take any medications at all, unless an emergency. Not even aspirin. And up until 3 days ago, I had not taken any on this hike. I took 2 Ibubrofen at the hostel that Jonnel kindly offered hoping it would ease the headache and help me sleep better. Wendy (another hiker) gave me Alleve the next day at the hostel. Well, I took some NyQuil last night and slept like a champ. Got up and did normal stuff. Turan, who works for the hotel, kindly gave me a ride back to the trail. Thanks Turan.And then I started hiking. And throughout the day held a pretty good pace. Definitely not 100% yet, but on the way! The trail all day was very wide, through wide open forests. Very nice! The footpath was generally soft. There were some rocky sections, but not too long.I met two section hikers, a couple, from Boiling Springs, PA; Paul and Debi. We stopped and chatted for a bit. So today the race was on to get to the Southmountain Post Office before it closed at 5 pm. I had a maildrop waiting. I get to a road prior to the one I'm looking for....and there is a sign that says "Southmountain Post Office" with an arrow pointing right, down the road. But no distance. Worthless info to me without the distance. I know it's going to be 1.2 miles right when I get to the next road. Here, is it .5 miles or 3.5 miles? So I press ahead. The southbound couple I just mentioned, Paul and Debi, were there at the road and gave me a ride to the P.O., and back!!! Holy cow! Perfect Trail Magic. Thanks so much!Got my stuff and an uneventful hike to the shelter. 12+ miles and feel good. Definitely was the flu. Probably going to stay in the 12-15 mile range until 100%.I'm at a shelter here with about 8 others. Two have had lyme disease before and they think I had the normal flu. I guess aches associeted with lyme disease persist until treated and are more specific to an area (stiff neck, stiff joints) vs an all over achy feeling.