morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-04
From: greasy creek gap

To: overmountain shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: broken clouds

finally over roan mountain! all things considered, it was the hardest climb yet. only 2500 feet in 3 miles, but the snow on the trail came up to my waist in some places. had lunch at roan high knob shelter, the highest on the trail at 6285 feet. after roan, it was a series of balds that had some spectacular views. at 3:30 we caught up with billy and corduroy, who made the observation that we had four miles left and six hours of sunlight... so i took a nap. that's going to become a regular thing if i can swing it. i felt great after just 20 minutes in the sun. overmountain shelter is a barn that was converted to a shelter, and it sleeps 20-30. good thing, too, because there are a lot of people here tonight.
Date: 2005-04-05
From: overmountain shelter

To: moreland gap shelter
Miles today: 26.4
Weather: scattered clouds

shattered my high mileage today... by 6.6 miles. first 20 mile day and first marathon (26 miles). hump mountain was by far the most incredible summit yet. i'll be hiking the roan highlands again for sure. nero (near zero) day tomorrow with 6 miles. today was going to be 18, but we all felt good and kept going. hitched into a diner in elk park, north carolina. half pound burger, cheese fries and unlimited sweet tea for $5.50.
Date: 2005-04-06
From: moreland gap shelter

To: dennis cove road
Miles today: 6.1

short day into kincora (a hostel). nice little hike... i passed a pond and tried to catch a salamander, but failed miserably. got into kincora at 11 and resupplied in town. burger skipped a small section and has caught up with us again, s we'r up to a loose group of 5. two days and fifty miles to damascus - i'm really starting to test my legs, but so far they've held up fine.
Date: 2005-04-07
From: dennis cove road

To: iron mountain shelter
Miles today: 24.3
Weather: light rain

today was part one of our two day ridge run into damascus. the first half was a little rough, but then we climbed onto a ridge known as a the "tennessee turnpike" (according to baltimore jack) because it follows an old logging road for quite while. two 500 foot climbs tomorrow and that's pretty much it for difficulty. corduroy and billy slackpacked the first section today with some other people and intended to make it here, but they haven't shown up.tomorrow i will be looking to do something with this gear:-rain jacket (zipper broke)-trekking poles (one is bent slightly, still)-headlamp (just not bright enough)-boot laces (frayed)-stove (love the whisperlite, but it's heavy)-water filter (may go to a chemical treatment)
Date: 2005-04-09
From: damascus, virginia

To: damascus, virginia
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

today was a targeted zero, and it was nice that we made it here on the day we planned even though the snow slowed us down. it feels good to be in virginia, but it's bittersweet leaving my home state. parents met me this morning on their way to go camping, so i sent some stuff home with them. bought a marmot precip jacket and converted to aqua mira (a chemical water treatment). feeling homesick...
Date: 2005-04-10
From: damascus, virginia

To: lost mountain shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: few clouds

out of damascus today. very tough mentally, but i haven't come this far to give up now. we saw burger in damascus (she had hiked ahead of us) and she was spending time with her family. chino and diesel are in the shelter with us tonight. such great company and i'm still lonely. mount rogers tomorrow, which supposedly signifies the end of winter weather.
Date: 2005-04-11
From: lost mountain shelter

To: old orchard shelter
Miles today: 23.2
Weather: broken clouds

great day... not too hot or cold, and the trail was smooth. after mount rogers (which turned out to be a pretty easy climb) we were stopped by the forest service because they were doing some extensive planned burns in the area. the virginia and grayson highlands after mount rogers were interesting. rocky grassland would be the best description. very scenic, and there were wild ponies all over the place. diesel fed them apples, then later found out that the forest service really doesn't like you to do that (especially apples, for some reason). burger surprised us late last night by making it to the shelter after dark, and she's with us again tonight, as are chino and diesel.
Date: 2005-04-12
From: old orchard shelter

To: partnership shelter
Miles today: 24.7
Weather: light rain

everybody that was with us last night made it to partnership tonight... this is one of the nicer shelters on the trail. it even has a shower, but i froze as soon as i turned off the water. it rained on us for the last 10.6 miles. team dumber (three guys, one returning from a cruise (!!!)) and some other people are at the shelter with us tonight, so we all ordered pizza from a place in marion, virginia. a hiker named gonzo left his number at the shelter, so we called him and he's taking us to resupply tomorrow morning.
Date: 2005-04-13
From: partnership shelter

To: atkins, virginia
Miles today: 11.6

woke up to rain this morning, and it continued all day. within an hour i was soaked with sweat and rain, although the new jacket works better than the old one did. the weather report said 35 degrees tonight, and since all our clothes are wet, we bailed to a hotel right off the trail. chino, diesel, team dumber, burger, and traction are all here. beer and the red sox-yankees game tonight!
Date: 2005-04-15
From: chestnut knob shelter

To: helveys mill shelter
Miles today: 23.8
Weather: clear sky

two instances of trail magic today - at the end of crossing the same creek 12 times (hello, freedom step! scrubs called it "adventure hiking") there was a cooler with apple juice. later, there were gallon jugs of water on the trail (this stretch was dryyy) when i had just run out. that's real trail magic. i have some sort of infection on the back right blade of my pelvis, where my pack rides. it feels like it needs to be drained, but i'm padding it and hoping it gets better for now. ugh.
Date: 2005-04-16
From: helveys mill shelter

To: wapiti shelter
Miles today: 24.0
Weather: clear sky

scrubs and i woke up last night to a raccoon wandering around camp. didn't think anything of it until there was a loud crash and diesel's pack was halfway under the picnic table. it made off with his camera before we could do anything. there are three section hikers here tonight, along with me, scrubs, orphan, diesel, and chino, so i'm tenting.
Date: 2005-04-17
From: wapiti shelter

To: pearisburg, virginia
Miles today: 16.2

i really like the fact that 16 miles feels like a short day now, even though it's all i need to average to finish on time (august 1). the weater's been weird - hot (60s) during the day and cold (sub-freezing) at night. glad i didn't exchange out my sleeping bag for something lighter just yet. had dinner at an ayce chinese buffet (excellent), then bought some ice cream and talked with some people at dairy queen. they ended up giving us a ride back to the hotel, which would have been quite a walk in the dark. bob and ellen, i think their names were - very nice people. everyone is very supportive... if they know what you're doing. diesel's at a hostel, so it's me, scrubs, and chino at the rendezvous motel.
Date: 2005-04-18
From: pearisburg, virginia

To: pine swamp branch shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: scattered clouds

great night's sleep, except that this cold is making me really stuffy. chino left first thing (as usual) and diesel leftr soon after (we saw him at dairy queen, which is the premier hang out in pearisburg). scrubs and i mailed stuff, resupplied (find of the day - real bacon bits on sale), and went to the library, which was closed. after and ayce pizza buffet at pizza plus, we headed out. considering it was basically a half day, we did well on mileage, but had to headlamp it for the last miles or so. the 'ol butt infection is getting better, so a big woohoo for that. diesel, chino, and team dumber (now just webb and moutain dewd) pushed on to a parking lot, according to some hikers here tonight. we'll catch them soon enough.
Date: 2005-04-19
From: pine swamp branch shelter

To: laurel creek shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: broken clouds

slow going today. my right shin has been really sore ever since pearisburg. if it's not one thing, it's another... but that's ok, all part of the experience. this is really the first muscle pain that's slowed me down. chino is with me and scrubs again tonight, as is pacer and senor nobs (long "o"). the senor thru-hiked in 1999, so we've been picking his brain a bit. pacer had some good stories from his pct hike - sounds like a totally different animal from the at. diesel and team dumber as slackpacking courtesy of mountain dewd's parents, so we probably won't see them for a while. apparently his parents are following and meeting them once a week or so.
Date: 2005-04-20
From: laurel creek shelter

To: pickle branch shelter
Miles today: 22.3
Weather: few clouds

met up with senor nobs early today, then ran into the no-name newlyweds (wanderlust and blazing ivy). the four of us had a good time and we're all here tonight, as is chino, pacer, and several others. scrubs and i have been dubbed (somewhat self-dubbed) "team awesome" and i have special permission to wear captain awesome's (wanderlust's) awesome aviator clip-on sunglasses. the virginia blues are still hitting me pretty hard - i feel overwhelmed a lot. my shin is frustrating me, and it's set off all kinds of other things. just need to walk through it - that's all i can really do. still having fun, though, if that makes any sense...
Date: 2005-04-21
From: pickle branch shelter

To: campbell shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: broken clouds

much better day today. started with a very nice rock formation called the dragon's tooth (i got video of scrubs on top of it), then on to the "home place" restaurant in catawba, virginia. all you can eat - 4 meats, tons of sides, unlimited drinks, unlimited peach cobbler a la mode, served family-style. heaven. afterwards we set out again (about six) and ended up going 4.4 miles up and over mcafee knob (the most photographed spot on the trail) before getting to the shelter. crowd here tonight - team dumber, the no-name newlyweds, diesel, scrubs, and me. now averaging 15.1 miles per day, according to my dad... that's a GREAT feeling.
Date: 2005-04-22
From: campbell shelter

To: daleville, virginia
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: mist

up early and fast hiking to get to the econolodge at this intersection. it's the daleville and troutville exit on interstate 81, but the town itself is called botetourt. rugged hiking today - virginia has plenty of rockes. still, we made it in by 2:30 and have been bombing around town. i got a new headlamp because the button on my old one fell off. sharing a room with scrubs, diesel, team dumber, and pacer - diesel beat me in chess but i put up a pretty good fight. we're thinking hot dogs tomorrow night if we can swing it. resupply and out in the morning.
Date: 2005-04-23
From: daleville, virginia

To: bobblets gap shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: scattered clouds

called for rain this weekend, but it held off today. just cold and windy. if the trail were water and i was a sailboat, i'd have it made. we've hit the blue ridge parkway, which we'll cross many more times in the next few days. scrubs, diesel, orphan, and team dumber (mountain dewd and webb) with me in the shelter tonight. chino took a zero at the econolodge - that is the nicest hotel we've stayed in to date. the hot dogs worked out well, so i may pack out more from time to time.
Date: 2005-04-24
From: bobblets gap shelter

To: thunder hill shelter
Miles today: 23.6
Weather: overcast clouds

we're paying for all that nice weather now... it's cold and snowing in the shelter (flashback to the roan mountain adventure). my inner uphill lover is almost satisfied, as we had four climbs of 1,000 feet or more in a 15 mile stretch. feeling better - the shin is still sore, but better than it was. flashing in and out of glasgow, virginia tomorrow to resupply.
Date: 2005-04-25
From: thunder hill shelter

To: johns hollow shelter
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: overcast clouds

woke up to snow (!) accumulation (!!!) this morning. late april in the middle of virginia, who'd have thought. very relaxing day, though... low miles and mostly downhill. hitched into glasgow and resupplied for waynesboro. glasgow's population is about 1,200, but they had everything we needed. had a big dinner at a deli in town. at the rate we're going, we'll be very close to harper's ferry (the closest town to the midpoint) by may 8th, which is mother's day and my birthday. my mom will be in the area (hopefully) for the maryland sheep and wool festival, and it'd be nice to do dinner or something.the videos below are from the first 280 miles of the hike... i'll put them all under the right dates at the end of the hike, when i can put up the rest of them.This is adams brother (josh) he asked me to upload some of his videos to the web so you can watch em, next time i talk to him i'll have him give me the dates so i can put them in thier proper place. meanwhile, check em out heremovie1movie2movie3movie4movie5movie6
Date: 2005-04-26
From: johns hollow shelter

To: us 60
Miles today: 19.7

a 2,200 foot climb took us to the top of bluff mountain, where we saw the ottie cline powell memorial. apparently this little boy was sent out from a schoolhouse to gather firewood and got lost. they found his body on top of this mountain five months later and the memorial was erected in that very spot. it was a heck of a climb to get up there... i can't imagine how a little boy did it (he wandered seven miles) with no trail. punchbowl shelter was less than two miles from there, and had an interesting register entry. "big boots" bob had spent the night at the shelter by himself last week, and wrote his initial entry that evening. in the morning, however, he added a bit more. in the middle of the night he woke up to what sounded like animal noises near his pack. when he turned on his flashlight, he saw a boy digging through his pack. the boy looked at him, made a whimpering noise, and ran out of the shelter. in the morning "big boots" bob found all his clothes folded next to his pack. weird. staying at a campground with mountain dewd's parents and grandmother tonight. they have a camper, and it's raining, so i'm sleeping on the floor.
Date: 2005-04-27
From: us 60

To: crabtree farm road
Miles today: 20.0

solitude today, which was a nice change of pace. team dumber slackpacked and scrubs decided to try and keep up with them. i just took it easy. went most of the day without seeing anyone until i met up with orphan about 14 miles in. camping with mountain dewd's family again tonight - very nice people, and excellent food!
Date: 2005-04-28
From: crabtree farm road

To: maupin field shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: broken clouds

frent toast - lots of french toast - for breakfast at the campground this morning. after a tearful fairwell, we climbed the priest (coolest name for a mountain yet) and fell 3,000 feet in three miles down to the tye river. after that, we climbed 3,000 feet in six miles, then down a bit to the shelter. pretty rough for 15 miles, but tomorrow will be easier as we kick it into waynesboro. i'm so sick of being in virginia! hopefully the shenandoahs will mix it up a little. the four of us are sharing a shelter with snowdog and the b's tonight (kb and sb), who are also hitting town tomorrow.
Date: 2005-04-29
From: maupin field shelter

To: waynesboro, virginia
Miles today: 21.1

drizzled all day, but didn't matter because town was close. the last five miles were haunted, according to the book, but we didn't see much of the old settlement that was there. just a chimney. sharing a room with scrubs and team dumber at the quality inn. put in laundry, then the laundromat closed... wtf? oh well. good chinese buffet tonight, and i'll hit up the library and get our clothes tomorrow. shenandoah time! we've been looking forward to these mountains for a long time now...
Date: 2005-04-30
From: waynesboro, virginia

To: blackrock hut
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: scattered clouds

got out of waynesboro and back on the trail by noon. very foggy and it drizzled all day again, so i just put my head down and hiked - nothing to see, so i ended up getting to the hut at 6:00. didn't think i could go so fast so long, but the terrain has been favorable. a lot of people are here tonight - frank and nightlion (we stayed with them out of erwin), crow, pacer, team dumber (camping), scrubs, and bassmaster. right now we're all trying to sleep while some weekenders are staying up and being loud.
Date: 2005-05-01
From: blackrock hut

To: hightop hut
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: broken clouds

stopped by by a campstore today (it was right off the trail), but it was closed. guess we're a bit early. scrubs (II) (a guy, flip flopper, that's here tonight) said we're the first group he's seen since starting southbound from harper's ferry. these "huts" are abasically just decent sized shelters, but they're well maintained. the shenandoahs have been nice, and now we can actually see them! nicely graded. here are some songs that i sing on the trail: what i got, hey jude, what a night, scrubs (by tlc, and it's made scrubs' secondary name "busta"), forever young, final countdown, and many more. frank and friends are still hiking with us (frank, crow, burger, nightlion, bassmaster, pacer), along with team dumber.
Date: 2005-05-02
From: hightop hut

To: rock spring hut
Miles today: 23.9
Weather: overcast clouds

it's cold in the shenandoahs... below freezing tonight. big event today was going to the big meadows lodge for dinner. i opted out of alcohol and still spent $20, but it was worth it. hung out in the lounge before dinner with frank, crow, bassmaster, and pacer, then all of us minus bassmaster (intelligently saving his money) ate in the dining room. big burger, frieds, bread, pepsi, and blackberry cobbler a la mode. heavenly. scrubs' parents are going to meet us in harper's ferry, i learned today... we plan to be there early saturday afternoon. did i mention it's cold?
Date: 2005-05-03
From: rock spring hut

To: gravel spring hut
Miles today: 28.4
Weather: overcast clouds

perfect hiking weather, but chilly if you stay still too long. broke our high mileage today by two miles... man i'm tired. stopped at elkwallow wayside for dinner, but it was really expensive, so i cooked tonight, too. the shenandoahs have been awesome. hopefully i'll be back someday when the leaves are out. front royal, virginia tomorrow to resupply for harper's ferry!
Date: 2005-05-04
From: gravel spring hut

To: jim and molly denton shelter
Miles today: 18.6
Weather: overcast clouds

in and out of front royal today to resupply. during the last stretch from town to the shelter, one section of trail was so perfect that i took a picture of it. frank and crow had promised trail magic, so we built a fire and waited. around 9:30 they showed up with marshmallows, hot dogs, chocolate, cookies, and a mostly empty bottle of captain morgan (they took a lot of breaks in the final miles, apparently). great - but late - evening.
Date: 2005-05-05
From: jim and molly denton shelter

To: sam moore shelter
Miles today: 25.8
Weather: broken clouds

out late at 9:00 this morning. frank, crow, and bassmaster aren't taking a zero in harper's ferry, so they didn't do as many miles. caught up with team dumber, who got ahead of us yesterday because they didn't resupply in front royal. we're midway through the "roller coaster" which is a 13.5 mile stretch with 10 significant ascents and descents. going over 1,000 miles and getting out of virginia tomorrow... two things i'm very happy about. still not sure about going back to damascus for trail days...
Date: 2005-05-06
From: sam moore shelter

To: harper's ferry, west virginia
Miles today: 22.9

over 1,000 today and out of virginia (finally)! decided to go to trail days if we can find a ride - we're ahead of schedule and i could use a break. zero tomorrow. scrubs' parents are in town (surprise for him), and mine will be tomorrow afternoon. pacer, team dumber, scrubs and i have a little cabin at the koa for the weekend.
Date: 2005-05-07
From: harper's ferry, west virginia

To: harper's ferry, west virginia
Miles today: 0.0

zero day! woke up and scrubs' parents took us into town and the outfitter in the morning, but i had to wait until my parents got here at 2:00 to get a new pack (woohoo!)... a granite gear vapor trail. just wanted to make sure they thought it was a good idea, too. i'm down to 29.5 pounds with two days of food, not bad. i'm een keeping my fleece. went out to dinner with my parents, scrubs' parents, scrubs, team dumber, and pacer. scrubs' parents paid for all of us, which was very nice of them. at the comfort inn tonight with my parents. working on packing my new pack.
Date: 2005-05-08
From: harper's ferry, west virginia

To: dalgren back pack campground
Miles today: 17.9
Weather: clear sky

happy mother's day! it was great to have my parents in town for that and my birthday - unless they go to trail days, i won't see them again until i meet my dad in monson (maine) for the hundred mile wilderness. the new pack feels great, just the right size. the new boots... not so much, but that's to be expected. met up with mississippi alan at lunch and hes camping with us. it's warm tonight for a change! we played some ultimate frisbeee... team dumber and mississippi alan vs. team awesome and pacer. we lost, but they cheated. somehow. rematch tomorrow. oh, and we saw somewhere between 51 and 55 turtles while hiking along the potomac. crazy.
Date: 2005-05-09
From: dalgren back pack campground

To: maryland/pennsylvania border
Miles today: 23.6

hot and dry today. the blister on my heel started making me limp, but when i tried to pop it, nothing came out. looks like an infection of some sort. pen-mar park (in maryland, right before the border) was nice - a bunch of guys (and frank, who's not a guy) got pizza, but i'm trying to be more careful with my money, so i had a lipton side and some ramen. infinitely cheaper. frank has the quote of the hike thus far: "i always talk in third person." out of maryland, all 40 miles of it, and into pennsylvania. bring on the rocks!
Date: 2005-05-10
From: maryland/pennsylvania border

To: quarry gap shelters
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: clear sky

up and out early today, thanks to my tent. it lights up when the sun hits it (which is a nice feature, in my opinion). resupplied and had some pizza (cheap pizza), then played some ultimate frisbee in a park just before the shelter. we're meeting mountain dewd's dad in boiling springs the day after tomorrow at 1:00 and he's giving us (scrubs, team dumber, pacer, and me) a ride to damascus for trail days. the stitching on my new pack is coming apart in a one spot, so i need to exchange it or something. hopefully i'll be able to do that at trail days. my other goal is to convert to an alcohol stove to save some weight... probably a soda can model made by antigravity gear.
Date: 2005-05-11
From: quarry gap shelters

To: james frye shelter
Miles today: 24.5

one thing that pennsylvannia definitely has going for it is the state parks. they're great. water out of a spigot, fields for ultimate frisbee... awesome. passed the halfway point today, which was cool. also played a game and a half of ultimate and took a swim at a state park about seven miles before the shelter. the store that typically does the "half-gallon challenge," where you try and eat an entire half gallon of ice cream, was closed. frank hitched into a store and bought us all (9 of us) a pint. nice shelter, but we can hear a highway... weird.