morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-06-27
From: Caledonia State Park

To: Burch Run Shelter
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: broken clouds

The AT is strangely quiet today as we stroll along. The animals seem more at ease and the frogs and toads less tortured. The animals are not the only ones who have noticed that Don¢t Bother is no longer sharing our adventure. All of his thru-hiking buddies are asking about him. He left with his parents this morning after he and Don¢t Want-To handed our some trail magic. Don¢t Want-To was impressed that Road Runner took 3 candy bars and ate them on the spot. She said that he must have been hungry, but the truth is, he had just finished his breakfast. Waste not, want not is the rule of the trail. So to prove my own status, I downed a few of my own and took a Zagnut for a snack. We strolled a quiet and quick 9.9 miles to the Birch Run Shelter. We set up our tent under a beautiful Hemlock tree beside a gurgling stream. The shelter and the surrounding area is immaculate. The shelter is cabin-like with bunk beds and a floor as shiny as any indoor basketball court. We still prefer to tent, but what a great place. Long walk tomorrow. I can¢t wait!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-06-28
From: Burch Run Shelter

To: Tag Run Shelter
Miles today: 17.2

Another wild day on the trail! We froze during the night, but awoke to a beautiful morning. We hoofed it to Pine Grove Furnace Park for the 12 gallon challenge.   All through hikers are obliged to buy a half gallon of ice cream and eat it as fast as they can. This is a tradition that wins the ¢successful¢ hiker a wooden spoon for their efforts, as well as a really sick stomach. Don¢t Mind and I failed in our efforts, each eating 3/8 of a gallon.   I think my effort was put off track by the two cheese burgers and coke that I had in the middle of my attempt.   Don¢t Mind could have easily finished, but she doesn¢t like melted ice cream and she knew that we had seven more miles to hike.   So, she gave up on the challenge, bought a hot dog and we ran down the trail on a sugar high. The seven miles went by quickly and we met some friends along the way.   We finished our hike with Beagle, MooJuice and Slow Poke and arrived in time for an early night.                                 --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-06-29
From: Tag Run Shelter

To: Boiling Springs
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Today I want to discuss an object that causes me to catch a lot of grief on the trail¢¦my plan.   But first, I¢ll tell you about today¢s hike.   I pushed Don¢t Mind out of bed at 6 AM, an amazing feat, and we were on the trail by 7. We had a rocky up and down hike for the first 10 miles but the last 3 miles were into and through the Cumberland Valley.   The hike through the farmland was a nice change and Boiling Springs is the prettiest town we have visited. We arrived in town by 1 PM, so Don¢t Mind had her town shoes today.         Now about our plan!   We have the entire hike, down to the day, planned out and printed on a spreadsheet.   My fellow hikers find this to be hilarious.   However, we are both goal oriented people who enjoy operating within a structured approach.   By having such a defined plan, we can feel free to change things because we will always know where we stand and what we need to do to make it up.   So we are not tied to our plan, we are lifted by it!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-06-30
From: Boiling Springs

To: Blue Mountain
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: light rain

Let¢s talk berries!   We have been stuffing ourselves with blueberries, blackberries, read and black raspberries and every other kind of berry you can think of. Everywhere we look there is another bush full of some kind of delicious wild berry.   Now, it is a known fact that wild berries are an important part of the diet of many forest creatures and that we should be careful not to overeat our share. Therefore, we limit our area of frenzy to within reach of the path. Still, we are eating ourselves into berry heaven with this limitation strictly enforced. This does not mean that you should stop sending treats.   A BIG thank you goes out to Jennifer Insley, here daughter Ann Marie and the Roberts for the suckers and fireballs. My sister, Karen, went way overboard and sent us thirty pounds of amazing cookies!   There were many happy thru-hikers hanging around us in Boiling Springs Post Office parking lot this morning.   I love you sis!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-01
From: Campsite

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: broken clouds

PA is famous for sharp rock infested trails and we had our first taste of that today. The first several miles into Duncannon were a relatively flat and easy stroll through lush fields of corn, hay, beans, fruit and grain decorated by blue hills in the distance. So, we knew there had to be a catch!   Sure enough, the last 10 miles were filled with rock slides and sharp down hills.   There is a constant fear of injury and it was the greatest first day on the trail. Every step I took I kept waiting to turn an ankle or blow out a knee. This fear had been slowly going away the more miles we put behind us. But these rocks have rekindled the fears and added a spoonful of gasoline.   Every step is on or between sharp stones and could end our hike with one mistake. This slows down our hike considerably! There are many areas of relatively easy trail and terrain between rocky sections where we can relax and stroll. However, we will have to be careful while in PA.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-02
From: Hotel

To: Peter Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

Ten miles or fifteen miles in a day feels the same. You get just as sweaty, just as hot and, seemingly, just as tired at either length. The biggest difference is in the level of foot pain. By the way, my feet are much better since I got my new shoes. The pain has slowly decreased and, although I believe I will always have some pain, I can make it day to day with the way my feet feel now. Don¢t Mind¢s feet are doing even better than mine.   This improvement was a great relief to us. We were really starting to get concerned about just how much worse we could take the pain. Now we are happy hiker¢s again; of course, we always were.        Today¢s hike started just above sea level as we walked across Susquehanna River and back into the hills. We climbed a quick 1000 feet to the top of the ridge and headed Northeast towards Maine.   The rocks definitely slowed us down, but some of the views were outstanding. Long day hiking tomorrow!   Goodnight.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-03
From: Peter Mountain Shelter

To: Rausch Gap Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: broken clouds

RATTLESNAKE!! That was how loud the word was in my head this morning when I nearly stepped on a rattlesnake as big as my arm. Don¢t Mind and I were crossing a large rock scramble with me in the lead by about 20 feet when I stepped over a large rock. As soon as my foot hit the ground the snake uncoiled and headed under the rock that was between my legs. I jumped sideways, and for those of you who have played basketball with me, you know how little vertical I have, and yelled ¢RATTLESNAKE, HUGE RATTLESNAKE!!!¢   Don¢t Mind immediately jumped into action and froze in panic right where she stood.   Obviously, in this situation that was the smart thing to do. As soon as the snake was completely hidden under the rock it began to rattle. The entire rock scramble filled with ominous rattle as Don¢t Mind gathered her nerve as stepped over the rock and onto the next one. The excitement was brief, intense and over.   At least it should have been.   Unfortunately, I spent the rest of the day jumping out of my skin at sticks, chipmonks, birds¢¦.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-04
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Happy Independence Day!!!   This is foremost a day to say God Bless America and our men and women of the Armed Forces everywhere.   Thank you to all who have been and are willing to risk the ultimate sacrifice to allow me to live safe and free. Freedom doesn¢t just happen and being free does not come by hoping for peace.   It must be preserved through the courage and honor of our finest men and women. I do hope that peace will one day reign over this earth, but until then, I thank God that I live in the United States of America. Please excuse this diatribe, but I am out here on a trail with a lot of wonderful kids, fresh out of school, who are a bit less thankful or who fail to completely understand the military¢s role. I love them to death and enjoy my discussions with them, but sometimes I feel very outdated and old. I am a very patriotic man and as my man Merle Haggard said ¢When you are running down our country Hoss, you¢re walking on the fighting side of me!¢ God Bless America!                                --Don¢t Matter                        (or in this case, Kit Letchworth)
Date: 2004-07-05
From: 501 Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: broken clouds

Roger Scott is the man!   It is in his contract that I have to declare that once a month. I know this journal is a lot of work and Don¢t Mind and I really appreciate Roger¢s efforts. If you guys are enjoying reading the journal, you can send goodies to Roger at 3300 Acorn Street, Williamsburg, VA 23188. Care of Roger Scott.   Roger, if Susan Arey sends you a pound cake, you must email half of it to our next resupply and you must type this entry just the way I am writing it. By the way, I forgot to thank my mom and dad for the bag of hard candy we got on our last resupply.   It is gone now, but it was good while it lasted. Sorry about my rant yesterday, but what can I say. I am proud to be an American.   PA is very rocky, but flat. The miles go by quickly and rather easily. We hear the real rocks begin in about 10 miles so I will keep you posted. Don¢t forget to send Roger some love.                                --Don¢t MatterOkay Kit, I entered the above exactly as you wrote it.   However, you didn¢t say that I couldn't expand upon this entry.   I of course appreciate Kit¢s kind words.   But wait a minute¢¦contract! What contract? I don¢t want to seem ungrateful, but please continue to send all care packages to DM2.   Although my sweet tooth would love it, my love handles don¢t need it. ;-)   -Roger
Date: 2004-07-06
From: Campsite

To: Port Clinton Hotel
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: broken clouds

A quick 8.6 miles into town sounded easy last night, but as I lay here tonight with sore beat up feet, I now know the meaning of PA rocks. Even when we were not hopping from rock to rock in a scramble, we were walking across pointed little rocks buried standing straight up and hidden by ground cover. It was a painful 4 hour walk, but it culminated by arriving in a very friendly trail town named Port Clinton. Today¢s walk was not the best, but it is always fun to walk into a pretty little town by a river nestled in the mountains and full of people who like hikers and welcome them into their community. We have got the town visits down to a science and we flew through our chores and spent the afternoon eating, bathing and just sitting around relaxing with our feet up. I am getting ready to mail out a package to Roger, so I have to wrap this up. Love to all.                                        --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-07
From: Port Clinton Hotel

To: Eckville Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: scattered clouds

A really cool thing happened at the Post Office in Port Clinton.   We received a neat form of trail magic. There was an extra box from someone named David Miller. Don¢t Mind and I couldn¢t place the name, but the package wasn¢t ticking so we took it back to the hotel with us. When we got back to our room I quickly opened the box to review an odd assortment of useful trail stuff like Fig Newton¢s, soup, deodorant, JiffyPop popcorn, etc, and a note. The note revealed that the box was from our trail friend AWOL, a thru-hiker from last year that we met on the way to Demascus.   He dragged us halfway up Roan Mountain before my heart attack made me slow my pace. He waited for us at the top and we saw him again at Trail Days. He was writing an article for his hometown paper and he included the article in his box.   Too cool!!! As fate would have it, there was no place to get breakfast this morning, so we ended up eating AWOL¢s Fig Newton¢s for breakfast before leaving town. Thanks AWOL!                                -- Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-08
From: Eckville Shelter

To: Bake Oven Shelter
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: light rain

Okay, I freely admit that I am a son of the south. I was born and raised below the Mason Dixon Line, but close enough that I¢ve always felt that I was comfortable on either side. I was wrong. People in the North are different and they find people form the South to be just as different. However, this is about what happened today told through my Southern goggles. It started to rain just about the time Don¢t Mind and I reached 309 and the Blue Mountain Summit B&B. We were almost done for the day, so we decided to stay at the B&B. We walked in found the manager and asked if there were rooms available. She said ¢No.¢ Now this is where the North and South are very different. In the South, the word ¢No¢ would have been preceded by the words ¢I¢m sorry, but¢ and followed by an explanation of why. All these extra words are really just window dressing, and we still wouldn¢t get a room, but they make you feel more comfortable. So that is what I learned today. I love the folks up North, but I am more comfortable in the South.                                -- Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-09
From: Bake Oven Shelter

To: Metallica Springs
Miles today: 11.4

Today¢s hike was amazing, awful, beautiful, dangerous, easy and interesting all at the same time. We awoke to a beautiful morning and followed standard departure procedures. I packed up the tent while Don¢t Mind cooked a delicious breakfast. We ate, brushed our teeth and left camp an hour after we awoke. We hiked through six miles of ripe blueberries eating the whole way. We arrived at Lehigh Gap around lunch time, so we sat on a rock and had lunch. There is a zinc mining facility near Lehigh Gap that went unregulated for years.   It produced or belched such toxic pollution that it killed every plant for miles around.   We hiked up the mountain out of the gap on what seemed like a moonscape. The climb was steep and dangerous because the rocks were all loose and there were no trees. However, the views were incredible for the same reasons.   Don¢t Mind stumbled on a loose rock and fell. Luckily, she only slightly hurt her wrist and banged up one knee. She is a tough one. The plant is now under EPA regulation and life is returning to the area.   The trees will be welcomed home.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-10
From: Metallica Springs

To: Wind Gap
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: broken clouds

Howie and Virginia are coming!! Howie and Virginia are coming!! And MORE importantly, Howie and Virginia are bringing their CAR!!   ¢Everyone around the world, come on!   It¢s a celebration¢ (Cool and the Gang for all you hipsters under 35).   We are in for a great next 3 days. We are sitting on the side of the road at Wind Gap waiting for our friends to arrive in about 15 minutes.   If they are a little late, we will not worry.   After all, it is Howie and Virginia.   They are going to take us to the Ramada Inn in Delaware Water Gap where we will be staying for the next 3 nights! Free showers for everyone.   Tomorrow, they will drop us off here after breakfast and we will slack pack back to Delaware Water Gap. Finally, we are taking a zero day on Monday so we can spend the whole day with them. For those of you who don¢t know, Howie and Virginia are our dear friends and constant companions when we are living normally. We have been fortunate enough to travel all over the world with them.   With them here, the next 3 days will feel like a vacation indeed.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-11
From: Wind Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

The worst rocks in PA made up the first 10 miles of our hike today. Fortunately, we were able to slack pack those miles thanks to our friends Howie and Virginia. They dropped us off at Wind Gap right after breakfast. We started walking towards Delaware Water Gap and they went quilt and antique shopping. Around 2 PM, they set out on the AT walking south from Delaware Water Gap. There is a tough 3 mile climb out of Delaware Water Gap so they had a real taste of the AT.   They were just reaching the top when we met them. We all walked back down together chatting as we went. It turned what would have been a long and difficult day into an enjoyable walk in the woods. Whenever we are with our friends it feels like we are on a vacation.   After the hike, we came back to the hotel and took showers and relaxed for a while before grabbing the laundry and heading out for dinner. Howie and Virginia had scouted out an excellent restaurant and we had a delightful evening.   Zero day tomorrow.                                -- Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-13
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Rattlesnake Spring
Miles today: 13.5

Howie and Virginia, and less importantly their car, have gone home. We had a great time while they were here and now we go back to missing them for another two months. We spent our planned zero day with them yesterday watching a double feature of Harry Potter and Shrek 2.   Our zero day has been in the plan the whole time, but there is no explanation for the quality of our choice. It rained from the moment we awoke to the moment we headed back to the hotel to go to bed. And I don¢t mean it drizzled, I mean it poured! Local areas received more than 11¢ of rain in 12 hours. In New Jersey, one town had five dams burst. All of this on a day that we had intended to take off and spend with our friends.   Life is so good.                                --Don¢t MatterP.S. The journal entry on July 11 covers July 12 as well. Roger
Date: 2004-07-14
From: Rattlesnake Spring

To: Culver Gap
Miles today: 14.9

We had a wonderful nights sleep last night. The air was cool and crisp and our tent was pitched on a soft level site in a beautiful meadow. It was one of those rare nights when several of our thru-hiker friends; Lady Bug, Bear, Tahoe, Beater, Wife and hiker, were camped all around us. It looked like a small campground for thru-hikers. We awoke to a chilly, foggy morning. It is hard to believe that it is the middle of July and 107 degrees just a few hundred miles south of here. We hiked all day with the temperature in the seventies. Our hottest day to this point was in April in The Smokies. That is really unbelievable and I sure hope our luck holds out.   Think snow!!                                        --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-15
From: Culver Gap

To: High Point State Park
Miles today: 14.4

There must be millions of hotels around the world and 99.9 percent of them are wonderfully run and a pleasant place to take your loved ones. The other 90,000 or so are complete holes where you wouldn¢t book your bookie and those are the ones in walking distance of the AT. Our hotel last night featured furniture that had been taken from a garage or body shop. I am not exaggerating.   There, beside the TV, was a rotating vise mount. Oil and grease stains were all over it. Oh well, the bed was clean and the TV worked. We had a great day hiking with Bear and Ladybug. It is always fun to be around nice people who are sharing your dream. Tomorrow should be another great day. What a great life!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-16
From: High Point State Park

To: Pochuck Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: overcast clouds

It is hard to believe that we have only 838.5 miles left to go. I know this sounds silly, but it is going way too fast for me. I truly love every step of every day and I am trying to cherish every moment. Don¢t Mind and I are finally feeling more confident and comfortable with our approach to backpacking and our fellow hikers have stopped making fun of ¢The Plan.¢ If we can continue, God willing, to avoid injury, I am starting to believe we can actually walk to Maine.   How cool is that?!   We are almost through New Jersey, but I am in no hurry. It is a beautiful state, with the possible exception of the turnpike, and the days are spent enjoying views of fields, mountains and lakes. I never knew New Jersey was this nice.                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-17
From: Pochuck Mountain Shelter

To: Wawaynada Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: few clouds

We had intentionally sped up on the less hard terrain of Virginia and the states through central PA, but now we are slowing down a bit. We had been averaging around 18 miles a day, so today¢s 11.8 seemed short and easy. There was one very steep 1000 ft climb, fortunately however, it was immediately proceeded by a large farmer¢s market. We split a watermelon and I had a chocolate milkshake, 3 donuts and a 20 oz. Dr. Pepper. Don¢t Mind ate the melon, 2 donuts, a tomato, a large bag of chips and a grapefruit juice with a milkshake on the side.   All fueled up, we flew up the difficult climb in record time.   While sitting at the overlook, we were visited by a large timber rattlesnake.   It was a beautiful snake, but we kept our distance!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-18
From: Wawaynada Shelter

To: New York 17A Warwick NY
Miles today: 9.9

Ok, so a day of constant rain is not fun to hike in. Add to that, several miles of hand or hand rock climbs and ten miles can be exhausting.   When we came to NY 17A there was an ice cream shop 0.1 mile to the left. We decided to go sit out of the rain and eat some ice cream. As we sat watching the rain increase while the room in our stomachs decreased, Don¢t Mind suggested that I look in the magic book for a local hotel. We only had two more miles to go, so I called a cab and we were whisked away to the Warwick hotel. I spent the afternoon watching sports on TV and a downpour outside my window. Life in the wilderness is really tough!!   16 miles to walk tomorrow!                                --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-19
From: New York 17A Warwick NY

To: Campsite
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: light rain

This may have been the most difficult and tiring day so far.   It was a spectacular hike that was never flat and almost always steep. There was a lot of rock climbing and the rocks were still slick from last night¢s rain. It was a lot of fun and a very enjoyable time, but never easy. It kind of felt good to have the mountains back and the level of difficulty raised! Don¢t Mind and I hiked all day with Beagle and Moo Juice, a couple of real nice ladies, whose conversation made the miles go by quickly.   Each time we completed a steep descent, a steep climb awaited us.   The famous ¢Lemon Squeezer¢ was a late day thrill, but we all made it safely through.                         --Don¢t Matter
Date: 2004-07-20
From: Campsite

To: Bear Mountain Inn
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: broken clouds

Mr. Eddie Stinson is a good man. He is also a very nice man. Eddie is a local to this part of New York and he is a wealth of information about the surrounding area with a particularly deep knowledge of West Point. Hi is also a father of my friend Pattrice (Wow) Stinson who you met earlier when she sent us cookies in Damacus, VA. Eddie was volunteered by his daughter to help us out. When we arrived at Bear Mountain, we found out that there was no laundry. So, I called Eddie, whom I had never met, and asked if he could run us out to a laundry mat. He came and got us, gave us a comprehensive tour of West Point, had dinner with us, toured us some more, did laundry and then toured us some more. Eddie is a good man.                                --Don¢t Matter