morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-03-29
From: off the trail today

To: Dick's Creek Gap
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: clear sky

Iceman started off today at 7:25AM, for Dick's Creek Gap,just as the sun was lighting the sky. It was 20 degrees and he had on everything he brought with him just to stay warm, including GLOVES. The frost on the fields gave them a silver appearance and mist rose from Lake Chatuge. Yesterday was a fruitful day. We drove towards Franklin NC to find spots where the Sherpa, me, could pick up Iceman along the trail and in doing so we came upon PA Trail Runner, a fellow through hiker from Jersey Shore, PA who was just standing on Forest Road 67,the dirt road we were driving on, at a point called Mooney Gap. He had been on the trail for 8 days straight and needed to find a place to wash up, do laundry and buy groceries so we took him into Franklin and dropped him off at a motel. The town was filled with hikers and many lodging places were full. We hope to stay in Franklin in a day or two when the Iceman gets further north. Today's hike will be a test of the Iceman's stamina and endurance. The Wine Festival continues today, it's the last day, so time to do more tasting and pick up a few more bottles of Georgia wine. After a warm bath and just before bed the Iceman looks forward to a good glass of wine, it helps him sleep and the doc says it's good for your health.
Date: 2015-03-30
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Dick's Creek Gap
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: broken clouds

Hallelujah! The Iceman, NOT Icewater as it's posted in No Spring Chicken's journal, completed his hike today to my amazement as well as to the amazement of the young folks he was with and that includes, Lazy Sloth, Boombox, Wing Nut, Sharpie and Foxie. The day started out unbearably cold and for 4 hours he didn't see one human on the trail. All those who camped were too cold to get up and out of their tents even the water they had with them was frozen solid. The temperature on the mountain last night was 9 degrees without the wind chill factor. One hiker told of having to move his tent about 100' from the trail into the woods because the wind was so strong that no matter what he did he couldn't stay warm. Those that could afford it, went to either hostel's or motels for the night. The Belgian girl was appalled to find out that the hostel she stayed in didn't even have sheets on the beds or pillows and charged $8.00 for breakfast. Sometime about 11AM the Iceman began to see hikers on the trail and from then on he had company here and there. When his Sherpa, me, picked him up at Dick's Creek Gap he was with Lazy Sloth and it had been decided that we'd take him into Hiawassee with us so that he could stay in a room for the night and rest up. The first two motels that we stopped at were full so he decided to stay at the Holiday Inn Express. Preparations are being made for tomorrow and tomorrow night the Iceman will definitely have to camp out. The trail is over 20 miles long and will enter NC. I'll pick him up, if all goes well, 30 miles off the main road at an intersection of the Appalachian trail and a Forest Service Road (meaning a dirt road) called Mooney Gap. We'll most likely move our base camp to Franklin, NC on Tuesday.
Date: 2015-03-31
From: Dick's Creek Gap

To: Nantahala Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

Today the Iceman started from Dick's Creek Gap and I've only heard from him once. There's no cell coverage on much of the trail in Georgia so we aren't able to keep in touch. According to the crumbs that his in Reach Explorer dropped he stopped to camp about 12 miles into a 28 mile hike to Mooney Gap, which is in NC. The Explorer works off an Iridium satellite and must have a clear view of the sky to send a signal. There are 2 shelters between Dick's and Mooney Gap so I believe he was going to try for the second one. It's a gorgeous day and the Holiday Inn has emptied out. Everyone is on the trail. The Forest Service in Blairsville was somewhat helpful when I visited them this morning. They contacted the Service in Murphy, NC to find out if one of the National Forest Roads, Deep Gap Road, was open for the season. Deep Gap leads to the AT at about the half way point between Dick's and Mooney. If it had been open I would have picked him up and he wouldn't have had to camp out, but unfortunately they Won't open it until April 1st and today is March 30th. Just bad timing on our part. If anything, this will be a new experience for the Iceman and I hope a good one. Hopefully all of his companions tonight will be the two legged kind. There are 1500 Black Bear in the Smoky's and that's 2 per mile. He said he'd ask one of the other hikers to put his food with their's because he doesn't have a Bear bag nor a rope to hang it from a tree limb. That worries me! My darling took this photo yesterday from the top of one of the 3 mountains he climbed. I'll share some of the one's I took this afternoon at Brasstown Bald in another post. Brasstown is the highest mountain in Georgia and from the top on a clear day one can see the skyscrapers of Atlanta.
Date: 2015-04-01
From: Nantahala Shelter

To: Mooney Gap
Miles today: 28.0

Yesterdays hike was one of the toughest hikes yet. Iceman climbed 4 mountains and the elevation changes were hundreds of feet (too lazy to calculate them) and really tired him out so he had to stop at the first shelter instead of the second. It was 5PM on Monday when his body just said STOP. He set up his tent, a single with a fly cover, blew up the mattress then ate his dinner. I use that word loosely since dinner, while hiking, is tuna in a bag spread on saltines, baby carrots (until you can't eat anymore) protein bars and a small orange. At 7PM, after putting on all the cloths he brought with him, and leaning his backpack against a tree (it wouldn't fit in his tent) he crawled into his tent and tried to sleep. There were about a dozen other hikers camping at the same site. A few slept inside the shelter but most put up tents and slept outside. Temperatures dropped to the low 30's and he slept sporadically until 7AM. Time to get on the trail. It was still dark when he rose so he put on his head lamp, folded the tent, packed everything into the backpack and left the campsite before anyone else stirred. Tuesday warmed to the mid 60's so as he hiked he took off layers. His Sherpa, me, realized that he was making good time by watching the "crumbs" his Explorer was dropping so I picked up some fried chicken at KFC, large bottles of water, fresh fruit and headed off for Mooney Gap. The road to the Gap is paved for the first 3 miles then turns to gravel for the next 7.5 miles. It winds back and forth with many, many switchbacks and can only be driven at about 10 miles an hour or less. It was 3:30 when I arrived at the point where the AT crosses the road and waited in the car for the Iceman to appear. There were so many bugs surrounding the car that to get out and walk around was impossible. They were the very small nats that get into your eyes and nose and are just plain bothersome. At 4PM out of the woods came my hero looking like he couldn't take another step even if you paid him a Billion dollars. He got his aching body into the car and just wanted to take a bath and have a good dinner. OH! and lots of Advil. He was even too tired to eat the fried chicken and who's ever that tired? He saw "Volture"at Muskrat Shelter ,a cute girl from Ashville who also stayed at the Holiday Inn, a new hiker "Hot Chocolate" from Australia and believe it or not a young woman with only one leg. She asked one of the hikers to take her photo while she was holding her prosthesis. What courage she has! What an example for all of us. As for tomorrow, two tough days on the trail and a total of 28 miles may require a day with a shorter hike. It will be either a 9 mile or a 12 mile depending on how my poor guy feels when he wakes up tomorrow. The photo is at the Ga. NC state line
Date: 2015-04-02
From: Mooney Gap

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 12.0

This was a special day. Iceman finally passed the 100 mile mark and he also crossed Albert Mountain at 5250 feet. The hike getting to the top of Albert took at least an hour. It was gruesome! Temps were in the 70's and sunny so the jacket came off after about 1/4 of a mile into the hike which started at 9:40. By 11:00 he reached the top of Albert and the view was so spectacular that he asked a fellow hiker to take his picture, which is the one here. He then was asked to do the same with the fellow hikers phone. He reciprocated by taking a picture of his thumb three times until he was given instruction on how to use the phone for photo taking. After that all went well. At 3:30 he arrived at Winding Stair Gap which is on North Carolina highway 64. While waiting for the Iceman I conversed with several thru hikers and as it turned out one of them was "Hot Chocolate" from Australia. He had camped with Iceman two nights before and they became friends. "Hot Chocolate is a tall extremely thin Aborigine with a white beard. His reason for hiking the AT is that one day his son gave him the book "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson and after reading it he said to himself, "I have to do that" and so here he is. There were about 7 hikers waiting at the Gap for a ride into Franklin. They wanted to spend the night in a motel. In a few minutes shuttles started to show up and their respective drivers asked if anyone needed a ride into town. They do this everyday during hiking season. They charge $3.00 for the ride each way. Some motels have their own shuttles and pick up and drop off their customers at the trail. In the last nine days the Iceman has been able to lose his can of Bear spray and one trekking pole so today I searched for both at two different hiking equipment stores and was successful at the second one. And there was a bonus! If one purchased $15.00 worth of goods a beer was your reward. When I asked for the beer for my husband the very nice woman at the counter said that it was a beer in a cup. After I explained that my husband was hiking the AT that day, she put a cold can of beer in a bag and said that she thought he deserved it after a hard day of hiking. He really did appreciate it. Thank you kind lady at the Three Eagles OutfittersWe went in search of tomorrows pick up and finally after more than an hour found where the AT came to a road. It was a harrowing trip up to Wayah Bald on a very narrow gravel road for 5 miles. Upon reaching the top, 5385 feet, we found where the AT crosses and proceeds to go back down the mountain. It's going to be another gruesome climb.
Date: 2015-04-04
From: Wayah Bald

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 17.0

The Sherpa did her research and finally found JJ a lovely woman in her 60's who volunteered to bring the Iceman up to the tower at Wayah Bald so he could begin the 17 mile hike to the NOC. At 6:45am JJ showed up at the hotel in her silver Tacoma and the Iceman was ready to go. She drove to Wayah Bald (see the photo of the tower) and left him off at 7:30 to begin the long, long arduous hike. Along the way he came to a fork in the trail and looking ahead saw a young woman on the trail to the right so he proceeded to follow her. After about 1/4 mile he heard shouts from across the gap and it was Steve and Jim calling to him to tell him he wasn't on the AT. He had to walk all the back to the fork and get back on the AT. Thanks Steve and Jim. He caught up with them later and they hiked together into the NOC. It was 4:30, 9 hours later, and we all sat down for a beer and some good conversation. Steve and Jim had roomed together after college and it had been 30 years since they had seen each other. One of them contacted the other and they discussed hiking the AT. Since their respective jobs only allowed them to take three weeks off they decided to do only the AT in North Carolina. The Iceman really enjoyed their company. While they were hiking they were passed by a woman in her early 20's who was hiking 20 miles a day. That's something only a young, physically fit person can do. She had heard that there was a young guy who was also hiking 20 or more miles a day but hadn't met up with him yet.After the beer at the NOC the Iceman and I headed for an early dinner at Lynn's Restaurant. He was looking forward to a nice glass of wine with dinner so noticing that they didn't have a wine list we asked if we could bring a bottle in, we still hadn't unpacked the car and our stash of Georgia wine was in the backseat. The waitress said NO!! So it was Diet Coke for us. Later we found out that we were in the ONLY dry county in North Carolina. But further talks revealed that there were more moonshiners in town than any other part of NC and that Jack Daniels is made in a dry county in Tennessee. Who knew!!!!It was the 7th and 8th grade prom night and the restaurant was packed with pretty girls in fancy dresses and boys in Sunday attire. We enjoyed all the laughter and fun the kids were having and thought of how much we missed our grandchildren. Back at the Microtel in Robbinsville NC we unpacked the car for the 6th time and settled in for the night FINALLY with a glass of Georgia Rose (can't find the accent for the e on our laptop). Robbinsville NC has a population of 767. It's obviously a growing community. In 2010 there were only 620 people. Wonderful, friendly people.
Date: 2015-04-06
From: Stecoah

To: Fontana Dam
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

Easter Sunday started as any other day. The Iceman was dropped off at Stecoah Gap and proceeded to hike towards Fontana Dam, a 14 mile hike. As he approached Yellow Creek Road he saw a tent, chairs and food. He walked over to the tent to find a complete Easter lunch waiting for him and any other hikers that came by that day. There were three couples and they had prepared all of the food, set up the tent, put the chairs out for the hikers and were waiting to give a complete meal to each and every hiker. They wanted the hikers to have the feeling of being home. There was ham, turkey, potato salad, green salad, brownies, strawberry shortcake, and more. The Iceman found out that on April 5th 1995 one of the men who came up with the idea of giving Easter lunch to the hikers, started his own hike on the AT and finished in Maine. He wanted to commemorate that day by giving back. At 4:30, after 8 hours of hiking, the Iceman appeared on Rt. 28 and his Sherpa was waiting to take him to the hotel so that he could get ready to go to the Tapoco Lodge for dinner. The Tapoco Lodge is from the TVA period and housed the laborers that worked on the Dam during the Depression era. It reminded us of several restaurants we've been to in France. It's position on the Cheoah River is lovely. Tables are set up beside the river and one can have a cocktail before dinner while enjoying the solitude of the mountains and the sound of the water flowing over the rocks. It was a busy day for the Sherpa and demanded all of her strength. The move from the Microtel in Robbinsville required loading up the luggage rack 3 times ( we have WAY to much with us), and throwing the luggage into the trunk and back seat. This has become a way for the Sherpa to keep her arms in shape. After checking into the Fontana Village Resort it was time to look for lunch and the perfect place was found, The Pit Stop, a small retro 50's gas station with great hot dogs and sausage sandwiches. YUM, YUM! It was a tiring day and bedtime came early. Monday was a nero day and the Iceman hiked from Rt. 28 to the Fontana Dam that was about 1.5 miles in the rain. Tuesday will be a tough one and I'll let you know about it after I find out. The photo is of Trail Magic left by a Trail Angel.
Date: 2015-04-07
From: Fontana Dam

To: Clingmans Dome Smoky Mountains
Miles today: 0.0

What a miserable day to hike, cloudy and raining, thunderstorms expected, but it didn't deter the Iceman. Up at 6:30am, breakfast at 7:30 (that's when the restaurant opens) and out at 8:00 to start the very long hike to Clingmans Dome. He's starting from about 1700' and going to about 6600'. It will take at least 2 days and possibly 3, depending on the trail. He really doesn't want to tent but there's no other way to hike this part of the AT. The shelters are usually packed with hikers and so he likes to be in his own tent. The pack he's carrying this trip is much heavier than the one he usually carries when he's day hiking since it has food for 3 days and other items he doesn't usually need. He has a filtration gadget but still carries a certain amount of bottled water and that adds weight. He has bear spray and rope to hang his bear bag, extra socks and layers in case it's cold at night and who knows what else. I guess it's the Sherpa's day off, except to do the laundry at the General Store a short drive away from the lodge. It's quiet in the lodge today as most of the hikers have left although we did see "Hot Chocolate" going to breakfast this morning. We didn't even know he was here. He said he had to take a couple of days off because his shins were hurting him so we may run into each other today in the lobby or restaurant. When the Iceman contacts me the details will be posted and I sure hope that's tonight.
Date: 2015-04-08
From: Fontana Dam

To: Clingmans Dome
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

At about 5:00pm today the Iceman finally called to say that he had made it to the Russell Field Shelter after a climb of 2,560 feet. The first 4 miles took 4 hours. It was raining on and off all day so the 13 mile hike was wet and humid. He's now in his warm tent that's surrounded by fog. Tonight the shelter is full. The shelter has a spring near it so he has a good water supply. This is a photo sent from the Iceman's iPhone tonight of the view he saw from Russell Field which is on the border of NC & TN. He'll continue to climb upon waking but probably will not reach Clingmans Dome by days end. Clingmans is the third highest mountain east of the Mississippi and the highest point in Tennessee at 6,643 feet. The lodge was filled tonight with hikers and everyone was having a good time discussing the trail. The Sherpa, me, went to dinner after doing all the laundry and packing for tomorrow's departure. The thought of eating alone was depressing but to my surprise there was "Hot Chocolate" and he invited me to dine with him and two other hikers. One fellow was from Montreal, Canada and the other from Hackettstown, NJ but more recently DC. The conversation was lively and they each talked about the many places they had lived and worked, which included just about every country in the world. Two hours flew by and it was time to say good night. Tomorrow my three dinner partners were setting off on the trail again, after having a zero day, to try and catch up with the Iceman. Oh! I met Shrek and his partner Gummy Bear at the General Store while doing laundry. Gummy Bear was buying Gummy Bear packs by the gross, hence the name.  This may be a secret or not but there's a guy, lobsterman, from Maine (of course) that is trying to break the record for shortest time hiking the entire AT, Georgia to Maine. The record belongs to a woman who did it in 46 days. He's running it and the last time he was seen, he was running 35 miles a day and when he gets to flat ground he expects to do 50 miles a day. Oh to be young and strong! His partner is supporting him as he goes. Good Luck to him! I hope he makes it.
Date: 2015-04-09
From: Clingmans Dome

To: View Entry
Miles today: 14.0

We're now in Cherokee, NC the home of the Cherokee Indians and not far from Clingmans Dome where the Sherpa had hoped to pick up the Iceman tonight but it isn't to be. He left Russell Field Shelter and hiked to a shelter just at the base of Clingmans. At 7:30 this morning the "crumbs" began to appear on the topo map of inReach Delorme on my laptop which meant that the Iceman had packed up and was on the move. No word from him until 5:30pm when he stopped and called me. He sounded extremely tired and said that he hadn't eaten all day. Last night he threw his bear bag up in a tree and in his haste to get moving this morning he forgot to take it. All of his food for today and tomorrow was in it, except for 2 small chicken tenders. He'll eat the chicken and get into his wet tent. It rained very hard last night and he had to pack the tent before it had a chance to dry. He's really going to need a hot bath and a long nap tomorrow after I pick him up which should be at about 10:00am if he starts his hike at 7:am. My day started out making breakfast in my room and as it turned out the entire breakfast was in one container. Early yesterday afternoon the one cup coffee maker in the room came in handy for a quick cup of java. Forgetting that the coffee pouch was in the machine I put a cup of dried oatmeal under the spigot and pressed start. When I noticed dark water pouring into the oatmeal it dawned on me why. But since everything is good with a banana in went half a banana. After eating the new concoction, it was pack up the last few things in the room and get the luggage cart from the lobby. Three trips to the car and off I went in the direction of the Baymont Inn & Suites in Cherokee, NC. Room # 301 is pleasant and sunny and has a fridge and microwave for warming leftovers (although I doubt there'll be any tomorrow night) and WiFi. The sights are limited in town since this is a summer resort. The casino brings folks in on the weekends but during the week it's dead. The Museum of the Cherokee Indian was very interesting and I'd recommend it to anyone who visits Cherokee. The photo shows the wall at the entrance to the Museum. After speaking with Connie at the reception desk it looks like the Iceman has another two nights of camping out in the Smoky's before he's out of them. He's not going to like that but he probably already knows it. If it doesn't rain it'll be a lot nicer hiking. Say a prayer!