morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-07-23
From: Vernon NJ

To: Wildcat shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: light rain

It was sprinkling when I woke up but had stopped by the time I headed back to the trail. I gave hitching a shot for about 10 minutes and then decided to walk back to the AT. Anishnabe blew past me at her customary walking speed. I climbed up the rocky trail to the summit of Wayawanda Mtn and met up with Blink Blink, Scubaman, and Granite. The morning continued damp, and much insect repellent was needed. I rested at Wayawanda shelter with the others, then climbed over Prospect Rock. I had lunch at the State Line Trail junction, where I met the first southbound thru-hikers, Bojangles and Wheel. The trail turned north on a long stretch of exposed ledge with lots of scrambles up and down as it paralleled Greenwood Lake. This was very enjoyable, but also tiring. I pushed on to Rte 17A, where I stopped for a hot fudge sundae. The afternoon finished up with nice partly cloudy weather, although some castellanus clouds were growing into thunderheads in the distance. I wound up the day by hiking over the Pinnacles and the Cat Rocks, which were visible from each other. I got to Wildcat shelter at 5:30, and had a reunion with Moonshadow and Morph, whom I hadn¢t seen since VA. Also arriving were Skittles, Rubberband Man, Mello Yellow, Journey, Sheep Stuff, CC & Chicken Legs, Sketch & Gazelle. Crowded? Yes, but we made room for everyone who wanted to use the shelter. Morph to Journey: ¢Were you a hippie in the 60s?¢ ¢No. Were you?¢ Morph, holding up two fingers: ¢Peace, Man!¢
Date: 2003-07-24
From: Wildcat shelter

To: William Brien Memorial shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: light rain

It was raining when we awoke, around 6, but it soon stopped. I packed quickly and left at 6:40. There were lots of ups and downs this morning with mosquitoes at the low points. I kept reapplying repellent (20% DEET) but it sweats off in less than an hour and speed is your only refuge. There were tough climbs up and down some very steep ridges. There were also some good views from Mombasha Hight Point, where I met Sheep Stuff. I hiked over Buchanan Mtn and past Little Dam Lake, then up and over Arden Mtn, another series of steep climbs, albeit short ones of less than 500 feet. The trail went down a long steep slope to Rte 17 and the bridge over the NY State thruway into Harriman State Park. (The climb in the southbound direction is identified on the trail sign as ¢Agony Grind,¢ a different approach to public relations than the ¢Roller Coaster¢ in VA.) I hiked into the park, which has a very attractive wooded landscape, and into the Lemon Squeezer, where I met Mtn Jack for the first time since MD. The squeezer is a slanted narrow crack followed by an 8-foot step. We both got up the step with a little bouldering technique and then traded photos. I stopped at Fingerboard shelter for a rest with Mello Yellow, Buttercup and Oreo. I walked on to Tiorati Circle for water, which came out rusty and began to clog my in-line filter. It was windy, and the lake didn¢t look very inviting despite the nice beach, so I skipped the swim. I kept the faith, backtracking to the AT instead of blue-blazing directly to William Brien shelter. I met Jack again where the AT crosses the road and learned that Tipperary was only a half-hour ahead. I quickened my pace, and sure enough, there he was at the shelter without his beard and 50 pounds lighter than when I had last seen him, in the Smokies. Great reunion! Also at the shelter were Cornpatch, Mello Yellow, Sketch & Gazelle, Mtn Jack, Morph, and Indiana Slim (last seen in VA), who played 40s and 50s R&B and blues on a portable tape player.
Date: 2003-07-25
From: William Brien Memorial shelter

To: Newton MA
Miles today: 8.1

Up at 5:30. The stars had been clear, although not brilliant at 2:30AM, with Jupiter very bright in the south. I haven¢t really had many nights on the trail when it was both clear and there was an open area big enough to see the sky. I said goodbye to Tip, also an early riser, and hiked enthusiastically, looking forward to getting home again for a couple of days before going up to Waterville Valley NH to lead two hikes for the ATC meeting. I climbed up the rock pile next to the shelter, over Little Black Mtn and down to Beachybottom Brook (great name) where I got water. Crossed Palisades parkway, which was less busy than I had feared, and up West Mtn. It was a nice clear morning. From a high overlook, I could see a piece of the Hudson River and in the distance, reflections from the buildings of Manhattan. The tranquility of the scene was intruded upon by sounds of ordnance being detonated, presumably at West Point¢s practice range, not far to the north. The trail followed West Mtn¢s ridge, providing several views of Bear Mtn and its observation tower, as I approached. I hiked into the gap and then up Bear Mtn. I climbed up into the recently renovated tower, which resounded with interesting echoes of the voices of other visitors. I then went on down the hill past a group of kids to the Bear Mtn Inn, where I changed clothes and caught the bus to NYC and Boston.
Date: 2003-07-29
From: Kinsman Notch NH

To: Oliverian Notch
Miles today: 9.5

[This day turned out to be the only slack of my hike.] After visiting my family for a couple of days in Boston, I drove up to Waterville Valley, starting about 4:30 AM and arriving at the staging area for the ATC meeting hikes. Before I decided to thru-hike the AT, I had promised Ed Hawkins I would lead two hikes. Today¢s hike was over Mt Mooselauke. The other leader and I decided to exchange car keys to reduce the lengthy shuttle around the mountain. I drew the north-to-south traverse, which was good, because Beaver Brook Trail is very steep. It was a beautiful day and we had a good group of hikers, although with only a day pack on, I had to hold back on the climbs to stay with the group. We stopped for a rest at Beaver Brook Shelter where we met some thru hikers, both NB and SB. We stopped for lunch at the summit, where the views are great and the alpine vegetation is beautiful. Then down to Glencliff and through another mile of woods to Oliverian Notch. I spent a long stretch of the downhill side talking with a gentleman in his 70s who is an active trail maintainer in NC. He said he expected to be sore tomorrow but had no trouble keeping up with the rest of the group.After the hike, I had dinner and sat around with my friend Debbie, a hiking/backpacking leader in the AMC Boston chapter who thru-hiked GA-ME in 1996, trail name Medusa.
Date: 2003-07-30
From: Gale River trailhead

To: Zealand Road
Miles today: 14.3

I led a second day hike up the Gale River Trail to Galehead Hut, where it joins the AT, then over South Twin Mtn and down to Zealand Hut, and out Zealand Road, where we saw a beaver swimming in Zealand Pond. Another nice group of people, including a 1988 GA-ME thru-hiker.
Date: 2003-07-31
From: Newton MA

To: Hemlock Springs campsite
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: broken clouds

I caught the bus back to the trail this morning. There were 3 hours to kill in NYC, so I walked to Bryant Park (perhaps America¢s finest urban park), which was full of people at lunchtime. I got back to the Bear Mtn Inn at 4:30 and had a glass of wine at the bar with Mountain Dew and Dirty Frank. After dinner at the Inn, I walked across the Hudson River and up to Hemlock Springs campsite, where I was the only person.
Date: 2003-08-01
From: Hemlock Springs campsite

To: Fahnestock State Park
Miles today: 17.0

Rain during the night continued as light drizzle in the morning. I took my time getting up and out, and started hiking at 9:30. I took a break near Graymore Monastery, sorry I couldn¢t stay there for a night. There were lots of minor ups and downs today. It was gray all day with drizzle and condensation dripping from the trees and rubbing off of the wet bushes, so I walked wet all day. While having lunch on Canopus Hill I met Chilly Willy and Kilroy, last seen on Tinker Cliffs. They convinced me to go past Dennytown Road to Fahnestock State Park. I had a nice talk with a local hiker, ¢Just Greg¢, who had left cans of soda at the Rte 301 crossing. I walked to the park, pitched the tarp, showered, cooked, and ate, while mosquitoes buzzed around. Went to bed at 8:45. It started raining again, so I lowered the tarp a bit.
Date: 2003-08-02
From: Fahnestock State Park

To: Morgan Stewart shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: haze

I¢m sitting under the tarp, pitched high, with a slight breeze and no bugs at the moment. It¢s 6:05PM. A large group of less experienced adult weekend campers has filled up the Morgan Stewart shelter and several tent sites, but luckily I have a piece of flat open ground in a grove of trees to camp on (and later share with Chilly Willy & Kilroy). I¢m drinking lemonade by the potful ¢ humid-day thirst, augmented by the Italian sub I ate this afternoon. I met a SB section hiker named Uncle and another female SB thru-hiker, a NB section hiker named Just Leslie, and ran into Double Dare slacking south. There were no views this morning, but a decent view around lunchtime of Canopus Lake, and the views were better from Hosner Mtn and Depot Hill, where the shelter is. It seemed like a long day since I packed up in the post-precipitation tree-drip and headed out onto the highway at 8AM; I made it down the road and back onto the trail at 8:25. There were a few intermittent showers today and one heavy one, which occurred while I sat under the overhang at the Mtn Top Deli, eating my sub. I saw a crayfish walking along the trail today, a startling sight; Heaven knows what it was doing there.
Date: 2003-08-03
From: Morgan Stewart shelter

To: Pawling NY
Miles today: 10.7

Last night I was comfortable inside the net bivy under my tarp. There was heavy dew but no rain this morning. There are still-sensitive chafed areas in my crotch, the result of several days¢ hiking in wet clothes. I put on my wet shirt and shorts, and my second pair of socks, which were dry going on. When I rested at the invitingly-named Nuclear Lake, the sky was still cloudy but a few rays of sun were breaking through. I had lunch at Telephone Pioneers shelter after taking a peaceful noon break in light rain on top of West Mtn. The rain became heavier during lunch, but it didn¢t matter, as I was wet all day anyway. There was a nice bit of trail through a hemlock grove. Met a ME-GA hiker named Waldo and passed a weekend hiking group. I emerged onto Dover Road and got water from a nicely landscaped house next to the trail. Walked across the edge of a pasture where several cows were grazing. There was heavier rain and thunder while going over a wooded hill, and I got out my umbrella to save getting dripping wet. I had a nice walk over board bridges in a swampy area. I met Slip and Trip and two of their friends who had come to hike with them for a few days ¢ the friends didn¢t look too enthused about hiking in the rain. I decided to bail out at Route 22 and go to a motel. Several hikers sat on the porch of a landscaping business next to the AT Commuter Rail station; the landscaper gave us rides to the motel in his station wagon. The motel was owned by a young couple with a small baby. They were nice enough to do my laundry for me for $3. Chilly Willy, Kilroy, and I had dinner at a local restaurant.
Date: 2003-08-04
From: Pawling NY

To: Mt Algo shelter
Miles today: 18.3
Weather: light rain

The owner of the motel gave me a ride back to the trail, and I started hiking under an umbrella at 7:20. I had a nice walk through rolling fields and over stiles like the ones in VA. Hammersley Ridge was not a bad climb. I stopped at Wiley shelter for a break from the rain; it was full of teenage girls and a couple of hikers. Going on, I passed the Gate of Heaven cemetery, with a large ornamental gate worthy of the name; however the graves are totally overgrown. I soon came to Hoyt Road and the Connecticut border! The sun began to appear at this milestone on the trail. I walked over 10-mile Hill to the 10-Mile River, followed it to the Housatonic, and began to feel I was really in New England. The trail here was wide and passed through an attractive stand of hemlocks, in contrast to the overgrown trail I walked on this morning. I followed the trail along the Housatonic, looking at the rapids, and across Bulls Bridge into the village of the same name, where I had a sandwich and cold drink. Leaving Bulls Bridge, the trail climbs steeply up Schagticoke Mtn, where I had my picture taken at an overlook by a group of teenaged boys. The climb felt good. The rain held off until I had passed Indian Rocks, then began again, light but with distant thunder. I walked into Aldo Mtn lean-to around 5PM. It had a nice stream for its water supply. No one else was at the shelter. I enjoyed a pasta dinner and the lemonade I had mixed up in my liter bottle while on the trail.
Date: 2003-08-05
From: Mt Algo shelter

To: Caesar Brook campsite
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: light rain

I slept until 8 in my net bivy on the shelter floor. I walked the 0.2 miles to the road and was heading into Kent when a woman, about 60, picked me up unbidden and took me the rest of the way to town. I thanked her and had breakfast at the restaurant she recommended.   Kent is a nice town ¢ a bit rich, but no franchises or touristy stores. There¢s a large private school in town. I saw Lumberjack in the restaurant for the first time since central VA. I walked to the post office, then to the library, where I killed time looking at nature guides while waiting for a terminal, and finally did my email. I also made an important stop ¢ at the local pharmacy where the pharmacist recommended hydrocortisone cream for my painful pack rashes, and Balmex diaper cream to protect the skin.I walked back to the trail and started hiking around 12:15, up to the ridge and then Caleb¢s Peak ¢ an easy climb. There was a hazy view of town from the overlook where I had lunch. After another overlook, there was a difficult climb down St. John¢s Ledge to River Road, a flat walk first on trail, then on gravel road, and finally through a field, all next to the Housatonic. It was nice to have the river views and even nicer to pass through hemlocks here and there. I met a couple of groups, one with a counselor exhorting a tired teenager to go another five minutes, as they had agreed, before resting; she yelled ¢Follow through!¢ as she pulled him by the hand. Better her than me.I started uphill from the road in the rain. I was low on water and what I had was a little silty (no wonder considering all the rain over the past days) so I set up camp in the rain about 7:15 PM at a campsite with a nearby brook. Things were OK under the tarp except for mosquitoes during dinner. And where did all the huge biting flies come from? They¢re like greenheads but with brown eyes instead.
Date: 2003-08-06
From: Caesar Brook campsite

To: Limestone Spring shelter
Miles today: 16.2
Weather: light rain

I had a good night in the net bivy after cooking and eating dinner at Caesar Brook campsite. I awoke to light rain, so I folded the net bivy, ate granola, and read a chapter of Harry Potter to wait it out. I felt low on energy and slow moving his morning, which was damp as usual and plagued with mosquitoes, deer flies (the ones with triangular wings) and brownheads.   I had forgotten to send the next section map to Kent and really missed it. I talked to a SB thru hiker named Jeremy at the Hang Glider overlook; he¢s going to visit NYC. As had become a pattern by now, the weather had turned partly cloudy and pleasant by lunchtime, which today was at Belter¢s Bump. I descended to Route 7 and met a man and his 13-year-old daughter who asked questions about me and the trail and gave me a little bottle of water. It was nice to walk along roads and fields for a change. I took a side trip at what I mistook for the Mohawk Trail (damn, I miss that map!), but instead met a guy in a Patagonia shirt who was sorting gear in his back yard for a trip to the San Juans with 3 teenage boys. He seemed a little eccentric, having put an old rug in the road to slow traffic, but was nice to me. I declined an invitation to go swimming at Great Falls and walked back to the trail. I passed the hydro station, the falls, and walked past houses up into the hills. A storm arrived at about 4PM when I was on Prospect Mtn, but it had stopped by the time I reached the Limestone Spring shelter trail, which descended 300 feet over a half-mile. I lay in the shelter, listening to occasional showers and a (Great Horned?) owl calling.
Date: 2003-08-07
From: Limestone Spring shelter

To: Glen Brook lean-to
Miles today: 18.1

I spent the night in the shelter with some late arrivals, Monkey and Iron Chef, both of them from MA. I headed out and up the steep side trail, reaching the AT around 8:45. It was hazy and damp as usual. I reached US 4 about 9:30 and walked into Salisbury; the weather was now mostly sunny. I was passing the White Hart Inn when Double Dare came racing out to greet me. He had jumped forward to get away from a bad-news bunch of belligerent thru-hikers; they were making shelter life unpleasant with their smoking, drinking, and general rowdiness. DD and I had omelets at the Thyme-Enz caf©. I bought stove alcohol (Isopropyl was all they had at the auto supply store), and got back on the trail at 11:30. It was a long steep climb to Lion¢s Head, territory I had covered in a fall day hike a few years ago. I got water from Riga Spring, then walked over rocky ledges to Bear Mtn, where I had lunch around 2:30. Hopeful, Foxy, Monkey, and a SB thru hiker soon arrived. There was a hazy view to Mt Everett and Race Mtn, which marked the Massachusetts border. It was a very steep descent to Sage¢s Ravine. I met a ridge runner and a section hiker from Worcester in the ravine and walked part way up the trail to Race Mtn with him. The climb up Race Mtn was long and steep, followed by a great cliff-edge walk. I had seen vultures take off from below the lip of the cliff when I hiked this section a few years ago on a nice spring day; today there was almost no view, but it was still an interesting ledge walk.The trail went down steeply and then up steeply to the summit of Mt Everett, followed by a final runout to Glen Brook shelter. I pitched the tarp on a nice bed of pine needles and washed up in the brook at the lip of a waterfall. My stomach was a bit out of sorts, and I had had a bout of loose stools earlier in the day. I ate at the shelter with SoBo Zagat, a nice guy.
Date: 2003-08-08
From: Glen Brook lean-to

To: South Egremont MA
Miles today: 4.3

It wasn¢t the best night. I had to run to the privy once and I awoke to find a mouse inside my net bivy at 2AM. In addition, everything kept sliding sideways and twisting on the slightly sloping pine needles. I slept late, got up at 8 and slowly got things together. I put a Compeed patch on some tender skin on the lateral side of my right heel. There were lots of red patches on my feet from days of walking in wet socks. I was still feeling tired and sub-par. I hiked to Jug End and down to the road, passing Last Minute, Hopeful, and Foxy on the way. I got off the trail at Rte 41 and got a hitch into S. Egremont from an 83-year old lady driving a maroon 1988 Olds. ¢My late husband always warned me not to pick up hitch hikers,¢ she said, but did, and I was grateful. By the time I picked up my mail drop, my appetite had improved so I had a meatloaf plate at Mom¢s Restaurant next door to the post office. In the restaurant I had a nice chat with a fellow about my age who came over from another table to talk about my hike. After lunch I checked into the Egremont Inn. It is a very nice historic inn from the late 1700s, and I got a perfect ¢stagecoach stop¢ room, with a four-poster bed covered with a hand sewn quilt, a tiny bathroom and pedestal sink in the corner of the main room. The room stinks of my wet gear, but at least it¢s drying.Dinner was outstanding and the staff was very pleasant, professional, and friendly. During dinner they brought me a telephone, which surprised me, as no one knew I was stopping here. It was Dirty Frank who had asked for any hiker who happened to be there ¢ I¢ll give him credit for ingenuity. He had cut his foot and wanted me to leave a note at the trail telling his friends where he would be.
Date: 2003-08-09
From: South Egremont MA

To: Mt. Wilcox North lean-to
Miles today: 22.0

I got up feeling better. I took 2 Immodium, bought lunch fixings, had breakfast at the Inn, and left the inn at 9:50. No ride, so I walked a mile or so to the trail and got started at 10:20. The trail went through mowed hayfields at first. There was a note at the next road warning that some bog bridges ahead might be under water; they were ¢ some by a foot or more, but this stretch lasted only about 20 yards so I plunged on, used to wet feet by now. (The socks had dried by the time I left the Inn, but the boots hadn¢t.) I walked on along the Housatonic, past cornfields loaded with ripe ears. I stopped at a garden center on Route 7 for a Snapple and to refill my water supply; they had jugs of water in the cooler for this purpose. I got to a section I had once hiked ¢ up June Mtn and East Mtn to Tom Leonard shelter (very buggy), across Rte 23 and up the next mtn. Late in the afternoon I stopped for a dip in Benedict Pond. Refreshed, I pushed on to North Wilcox shelter. I set up the tarp as it began to sprinkle, and cooked and ate under the tarp. Hopeful, Foxy, and 3 weekenders were in the shelter, which was buggy. It rained hard during the night, but I stayed dry.
Date: 2003-08-10
From: Mt. Wilcox North lean-to

To: October Mtn lean-to
Miles today: 22.8

I got up at 7 despite the water dripping from trees and was on the trail at 8:10. I had once day hiked this section of trail but it didn¢t seem very familiar except at a couple of places. There were large areas of hemlock and white pine and the trail crossed several streams. I got to Tyringham Cobble and rested in an old field among goldenrod and Queen Anne¢s Lace while it rained softly. It was very pretty. I had realized, reading Gary Snyder¢s poems on the hike that some of the most beautiful images involve rainy days or nights. I crossed Jerusalem Road and Main Road and climbed up the next mountain on pretty sections of trail. I wasn¢t feeling super-energetic but kept going. My G.I. problems seem to be over. I had lunch sitting on a boardwalk over a wetland with a stream passing through it. It began to rain just as I was putting things away, but the rain stopped soon. I skirted the Goose Ponds and past the shelter trail. I crossed the MassPike in triumph and even got a couple of honks from passing cars. (I¢ve always hoped to see a hiker when I drive under this bridge and used to imagine myself hiking across it.) I met Last Minute and Pony Boy at Rte 20. LM had yogi¢d a ride to the nearest store from a day hiker, so I asked him to get me an iced tea. PB and I sat around and talked by the side of the road. LM returned after a while with the requested items plus a trail magic bonus of 3 McD Big Mac meals. With seven miles to go, I climbed Becket Mtn and walked through several wet areas, past a pond and some wet meadows and former beaver ponds. On the home stretch I slipped on a rickety split-log bridge and fell butt-first two feet down into a foot of standing water. It was such a spectacular fall that I was disappointed no one was there to see it. I made October Mtn shelter at 7:30. Alpha and Trench (and Cadbury the dog) were there as well as another NoBo whose name I forget. We talked about the 100-mile wilderness, which they had previously hiked. I didn¢t need dinner after the Big Mac feed, so I made lemonade and retired to the tarp cave at 8:30. Not to be impatient, but when will the weather change? It¢s rained some every day since I crossed the Hudson River.