morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-04-17
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: 0

Today started with high wind and a few rain sprinkles. Fortunately it did not turn into full rain just then. We hiked all morning with wind and partly sunny sky. We stopped at a shelter for lunch at about 11:30am. As we were finishing lunch we heard thunder and the sky got nasty. It soon started to downpour with heavy rain and it got very cold quickly.We decided to wait out the rain, so I put my jacket and rain gear on and made myself comfortable. I was so comfortable that I dozed off, and by the time the rain stopped it was 2:00pm. We set out with rain gear on, but we soon took it off. When we¢re hiking we generate a lot of heat and the rain gear holds it in. Today's hike was one of our toughest climbs in a long while. We gained 2,000 feet of elevation in 3 miles. What that equates to is a steep climb.This shelter is at the highest elevation of all the shelters on the AT...6,285 feet. It is a log cabin with 4 walls, two windows that close, and a door. The weather outside is windy and wet. We¢re comfortable inside, and we all still have our winter gear.I realize that I will have to hike in the rain while achieving the goal of reaching Maine. I¢m glad that we¢ve been lucky to not have to do so yet, I¢m hoping it happens in warmer weather.I keep saying that if this were easy everyone would be doing it. The accomplishment of an AT thru-hike is the mountains we climb, the weather, the solitude of walking in silence, and many other aspects. It is the total experience that makes everyone's hike unique. There is a term used on the trail - ¢Hike your own hike.¢ It means do your thing, and not the next person's. They¢ll do their thing, and it will be different from yours.Today's song is "Katmandu," by Bob Seger. I felt like I was climbing one of the Himalian Mountains.I don¢t know if I¢m in Tenn or NC tonight. Last night the shelter was in Tenn and my tent, 50 feet away, was in NC.Goodnight.Old Goat Sue's Note: Old Goat gets an Appalachian Trail Conservatory magazine each month. The issue that arrived today has pictures of some of the AT shelters and talks about good places to stop for AT hikers. In the article are places Old Goat has stopped at - Neels Gap, Nantahala Outdoor Center, Hot Springs, Erwin. In Erwin it mentions Miss Janet's House and the Erwin Burrito Restaurant. Old Goat met Miss Janet and planned to eat Saturday's dinner at the Erwin Burrito Restaurant. It's fun to see places he has talked about and been to in the magazine article.
Date: 2006-04-18
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Apple House Shelter
Miles today: 14.7

Last night was cold and damp, and we were actually in a cloud. Fortunately we were in a log cabin with windows and doors. There was no heat or lights, but being able to close out the weather was enough. I slept well, and when we awoke the cloud was gone.We hiked into an area with a real nice overlook. Unfortunately it was foggy and we didn¢t see it. Soon after we passed that area the fog cleared and the views got better. There is no turning back for us; we¢ll have other great views down the road.Today I thought I was seeing things from lack of oxygen when I climbed Hump Mountain...I thought I was in Texas, but we were on Hump Mountain. There was a herd of longhorn cattle in the meadow when we got there. I took a picture of them that I hope comes out.From there we hiked down into a valley and up to this shelter. Right behind the shelter is a bunch of apple trees. I guess that is where the name comes from.Tonght, as I walked around the hills trying to get a cell phone signal, I walked up to a road and two houses. Here I am thinking I¢m in the wilderness, and I¢m about 100 yards from two houses. We cross roads a lot. I guess I shouldn¢t be surprised.I¢m in Tennessee right now; tomorrow the trail takes a little loop in North Carolina, and then we leave North Carolina for good. The next state is Virginia, and it will be a long time until West Virginia.I¢m still doing good. I even have a mindset that this is a long journey and there are many hardships to come. I¢m in this for the long haul. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.Goodnight.PS Next morning - I can see the roof of one of those houses from the shelter.Old GoatFlowers starting to grow - Click picture to see full sizeLittle Hump Mountain - Click picture to see full size Sue's Note: Old Goat didn't write about this, but it's interesting for anyone who hasn't backpacked for any length of time. It's expected that you'll be dirty and smelly, but you want to be clean. One way to clean your clothes is to do it with a Trail washing machine. It's a gallon Zip Lock bag, a couple drops of soap, and water. Old Goat puts his article of clothing in the bag, adds water, a couple drops of soap, zips closed the bag, and squishes it around. After a while, he empties the soapy water, adds clean water, and does it again. He keeps emptying the water and adding soap-free water until the clothes don't make suds any more, and, voila! Clean clothes.
Date: 2006-04-20
From: Moreland Gap Shelter

To: Dennis Cove/Kinkora Hostel, TN
Miles today: 6.1

Cell none.Today was a short 6 mile hike to the Kincora Hostel. The Hostel is .2 miles from the trail. The hiking here was the usual Pointless Ups and Downs {PUDS} but eventually we reached the road here. When we arrived there was no one here, the sign on the door told us where to go in and said ¢Make yourself at home¢. We took our showers, did our laundry and even ordered pizza before the owner came back. He was glad to see us comfortable and very hospitable. Everyone said Bob Peoples runs the best hostel on the AT and now I can say it too.After Bob got home he took us to the grocery store where we resuplied for the next push into Damascus VA.I had a wonderful call with Sue and we made arrangements for her to meet me in Damascus. It will be great to be ith her for a few days. I hope to show her some of the sites and maybe introduce her to some of the people I know.Old GoatSue's Note: Old Goat hasn't had cell phone reception since Monday morning. He checks for coverage several times a day when he didn't have cell phone coverage the night before. There is no cell phone coverage at Uncle Johnny's Hostel either, but there's a phone they can use and Old Goat has a calling card to use for times like this, so he was able to call. It's an interesting hostel - lots and lots of pictures of hikers at Mt. Katadhin (the end of the AT in Maine). They didn't see anyone from the Hostel for a few hours, but did as the sign directed ("make yourself at home").They are finished with North Carolina and thrilled to have passed another milestone (finishing another state).I wrote the other day about our riding lawn mower not going into reverse gear. Our friend, Dean, took a look at it....but as machines do when a mechanically-minded man looks at it, it went into reverse with no problem. Dean didn't do anything to it but start it!!! I told Old Goat and his response was that it makes sense - "men have hammers and we'll beat machines to get them working, if needed!" We used to have a car that would work just fine when Old Goat drove it, but I had problems with it just about every time I drove it! I swear it knew when Old Goat was behind the wheel! :-)
Date: 2006-04-22
From: Vandeventer Shelter

To: Campsite, Low Gap US 421
Miles today: 17.9

Cell good.It rained very hard all night. I had to put all my wet clothes back on to hike in. It was difficult to do but I didn¢t have much of a choice. If I didn't, I had the potential of having all my clothes wet tonight. The day started with heavy rain all morning and light rain in the early afternoon. It did stop raining about 2:30 and the sun came out.We made excellent time hiking in spite of the weather. Most of the morning we hiked along a ridge line. It was fairly level walking, so our pace was good. We stopped at Iron Mountain Shelter for water and lunch. I got cold when I stopped, so I ate fast and went right back to hiking.We made such good time that we reached our intended shelter at 3:00, just after the sun came out. We decided that Damascus was too far of a hike into in one day. We decided to move on to this campsite that is only 15 miles from there and easy to accomplish in one day. We reached here with the sun shining and a slight breeze. We pulled out our wet gear, put up clothes lines, and dried as much as we could out. Thanks to our good fortune in weather I¢m in a dry tent, dry clothes, and dry sleeping bag. Also I don¢t have to put wet clothes on tomorrow. Hopefully the good weather is here to stay. The forecast calls for nice weather once the storm passes, I hope it has.Bad weather and all my spirits are high and my focus is strong. I want to finish this hike in triumph!Old Goat Beautiful view between bouts of rain (20 min window of time) - Click picture to see full size
Date: 2006-04-26
To: Holiday Inn Hotel, Abingdon, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Today was a Trail Magic day. Sue and I stopped at the supermarket in town and picked up Coke and Moon Pies. We then drove out to a trail crossing at Elk Park that I had seen Monday. We hiked about a quarter mile up the trail to a stream that crosses the AT. We placed the Cokes in the water and hung a sign promising Moon Pies at the bottom of the hill. We had 7 hikers come by, and most of them were the group I hiked with before Damascus. I introduced Sue to Die Hard and all the others.It was raining and cold out. Most of them had to keep moving to stay warm, so they drank the soda fast, scarfed down the Moon Pie, and headed out. We stayed for the group from the previous shelter and a while longer. We then set up a self serve trail magic by hanging a bag full of Moon Pies and a sign telling them where to leave their garbage. We went back into Damascus and Sue then got the Hardhat tour. We stopped at "The Place," the largest hostel in town, and went around meeting old friends and some new ones too. Carbomb was there and he said Elspeth was still back on the trail. He had pack problems and he needed to get into town before the outfitter closed. It was great seeing him again; it was also a reality check on how hikers form groups. He was with a group I didn't know I mentioned names he didn't know. He told me Kelly "Low Gear" is still hiking, that's good news I'm glad to hear that. He also said the Sheila's from Perth Australia are back there and plugging along too.Tomorrow and Friday Sue and I are going to hike some miles together. More about that then.Old Goat Chip's entire "kitchen" - Click picture to see full sizeChip's entire "kitchen" - Click picture to see full sizeTrail Magic - Click picture to see full sizeTrail Magic - Click picture to see full sizeReading Natalie's note to Papa while waiting for hikers - Click picture to see full sizeO 2 Bee Hiking - Click picture to see full sizeDie Hard - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat, Sputnik, Die Hard - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat, Die Hard - Click picture to see full size10 Speed - Click picture to see full sizeLong Haul, Old Goat - Click picture to see full sizeGunner - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat, Coach K - Click picture to see full sizeSumo's signature characature - Click picture to see full size"The Place" - Hostel owned and run by a church - Click picture to see full size"The Place" - Hostel owned and run by a church - Click picture to see full size"The Place" - Hostel owned and run by a church - Click picture to see full size
Date: 2006-04-27
From: Damascus, VA SOBO then Dickey Gap VA 650 SOBO

To: Old Orchard Shelter SOBO
Miles today: 10.2
Weather: 0

Cell none.Today two wonderful things happened on the trail. First is my wife Sue is here with me and she hiked 10.2 miles with me. I¢m enjoying having my best friend with me, she¢s a terrific lady. The second is I¢ve now hiked 500.6 miles total so far. These two things have made today special.Sue is hiking like a real trooper. I¢ve had to tell her to slow down a few times I didn¢t want her to burn out too soon.Right now we are the only ones here at this shelter. Tomorrow morning there might be someone else here and then again not. We set up our two person Timberlite 2 tent in a grassy field near the shelter.By the way, we¢re hiking south once again and we¢re heading to Massey Gap where I left from Monday, and also where our car is. We parked in the Grayson Highland State Park and got a ride to Dickey Gap about 18 trail miles from there.Hopefully, as we get back towards our car Sue will get a look at the wild ponies. I saw a few Monday and it was pretty neat, I hope she does too.Yesterday after the main wave of hikers went thru our trail magic site we loaded up the stream and hung the Moon Pies for a self help trail magic. As we hiked today we met a lot of people who found our trail magic after we left and also a few that found it this morning too. We heard ¢That was so great¢ comments. We were both thrilled, but Sue really got an appreciation of how great the magic is, I am so glad we did it.This visit by Sue is really great! We are both enjoying each other's company tremendously. I love her so much, she¢s my best friend. I don¢t know what I did to be so lucky but I thank God for the blessing.Old GoatHurricane Shelter (Die Hard at right) - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat typical dinner preparation at Old Orchard Shelter - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat at Old Orchard Shelter - Click picture to see full sizeFood "cozy" sits for 20 min to re-hydrate food - Click picture to see full size
Date: 2006-04-27
To: Sue's Notes From Visit - Odds and Ends
Miles today: 0.0

Sue's notes from visit with chip - 3 (Odds and ends and Trail Names):As we talked while I was with Old Goat, I took notes of things he said that I don¢t recall seeing in his Trail Journals or hearing him say before. Below are some of the things he talked about: Thru-hikers talk about what it will be like when they finish the AT and go home. They call the re-adjustment PTTS ¢ Post-traumatic Trail Syndrome. I imagine it will be a huge adjustment for them!Old Goat filled me in on about other people on the trail ¢¢Neffa¢ is a woman who does folk dancing. The letters NEFFA are for a New England Folk, something, Association. Sometime in May she¢s going to leave the trail for a couple days to go to her daughter¢s college graduation, but she plans to return to finish.¢Lush¢s¢ trail name is from ¢luscious,¢ but I don¢t know why.¢Minnesota Smith¢ ¢ His pack is 70 pounds! He feels he needs two of everything. He¢s only hiking about 10 miles per day, and his main reason for hiking the AT is to lose weight. He feels the more weight he¢s carrying, the faster he¢ll lost weight. Getting to Mt. Katahdin is not a high priority to him ¢ losing weight is.¢Rambo¢ is a young guy who carries a big, Rambo-type, knife. He started the trail with no sleeping pad ¢ he would gather leaves, twigs, etc, to sleep on. He later found a sleeping pad that someone had tossed out because it had a hole in it. Rambo repaired it. ¢Mr. Breeze¢ came into the Laundromat when Old Goat was washing his clothes. This is his fourth attempt to hike the entire AT. He hiked portions of it in the past, and will have hiked the entire AT soon, but he wants to do it end-to-end. He had a major problem with one of his knees and had to go to an emergency room in Erwin, TN. He stayed in Erwin for 5 days and is back on and hiking at full speed. ¢Fiddlehead¢ is a young woman who fiddles and likes plants.¢Hinds Feet¢ ¢ she got her trail name from a verse in the Bible (Psalms 18:33). Hinds Feet is hiking with Chou Chou ¢ they have a fun Trail Journal.¢Chou Chou¢ came to the trail with that name from where she works. It stands for cream puff and is actually pronounced ¢shu-shu.¢ On the trail they¢re pronouncing it ¢Chow Chow¢ because they felt shu-shu is too soft for hiking the AT.¢Hui!¢ is really ¢Humuhumnukunukuapua¢a¢...he said he spent two years working in Hawaii and Humu... is something meaningful to him from there. He shortened it for the AT to Hui!, which is said with enthusiasm (thus the ! at the end) and stands for hello.¢Biscuit¢ is a doctor from near us who is section hiking the AT. His name was given to him from being an early riser on the trail. Someone said he rises early, like biscuits rise and decided that would be his trail name. Dr. Tinsley felt it doesn¢t fit what they were describing very well, but it¢s an ok trail name, so he uses it.Old Goat has heard there¢s an 83 years old guy thru-hiking this year! He hasn¢t met him.Old Goat has heard of a couple who did the entire AT in day hikes only. They didn¢t spend one night on the trail!
Date: 2006-04-28
From: Old Orchard Shelter SOBO

To: Massey Gap SOBO then Dickey Gap NOBO again!!
Miles today: 8.1

We were the only ones here at the shelter last night. This location is at mile 498.5. The group coming through wants to go over the 500 mile mark, which is 1.5 miles past the Old Orchard Shelter. With my SOBO hiking, I reached that mark yesterday. We needed get partway up the mountain so Sue didn¢t have to do it all today.Sue did very well, don¢t listen to her when she puts her comments, she did better than she thinks. At one point she turned around panting and said ¢Look,¢ she wanted me to see her panting and me breathing regular.When we reached Massey gap we finally saw the wild ponies. Someone gave us some carrots to give them. One pony came up and started to eat them, the others avoided us. I¢m glad Sue got to see them.We then drove back to Damascus and got a room in The Old Victorian B&B. We then went to dinner and wash my clothes. While we were in the Laundromat I brought my pack inside and rearranged my gear from two people operation to solo again. We got back to the B&B around 10:30pm, and I immediatly went to sleep.It was a great day sharing it with Sue.Old Goat Old Goat ready to hit the trail after morning packing - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat typical morning packing procedure at old orchard shelter - Click picture to see full sizeHui! (Humuhumunukunukuapua'a) - Click picture to see full sizeShenanigans - Click picture to see full sizeTeddy Ruckskins - Click picture to see full sizeAT clear with new growth on either side - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat - Click picture to see full sizeSue - Click picture to see full sizeLeprechaun - Click picture to see full sizeOld Goat, Billy Goat - Click picture to see full sizeHinds' Feet (name from Psalms 18:33), Chou Chou (means Cream Puff) - Click picture to see full sizeSumo - Click picture to see full sizeStile to keep horses in/out - Click picture to see full sizeBiscuit, Old Goat - Click picture to see full sizeBoulder - Click picture to see full sizeWild ponies at Massey Gap - Click picture to see full sizeGrayson Highlands Panoramic - Click picture to see full size
Date: 2006-04-29
From: Massey Gap SOBO then Dickey Gap NOBO again!!

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: 0

Cell none.We awoke at the B&B and went down to a wonderful breakfast. We then drove up to the Partnership Shelter to drop off a case of beer. Just as we got there Houi! showed up and said he was staying here tonight. I decided I would leave my pack here and slackpack these 14 miles.Sue drove me to Dickey Gap where we said a tearful goodbye. It was a sinking feeling watching her drive away. I waited on the trail at a spot with a view of the road. As she went by I started to cry, and she told me she did, too. It's tough to see your best friend, and soul mate, leaving. I'm glad this is only temporary. We'll resume our life in a few months.I managed to hike the 14.5 miles in 4 hours and 40 minutes - that comes out to about 3 mph. That's the fastest I've done on the AT. Not having my pack is the reason why. I hope I can move tomorrow. I guess I'll need vitamin I tomorrow. (Ibuprophin)When I got back to the shelter they were putting an order for pizza together, I ordered one, of course. This shelter is right behind the Mount Rogers Visitors Center. There's a pay phone on the building and you can have pizza delivered here. That is also why I dropped off the beer - no dehydrated meal tonight!We're sitting around a fire right now and the temperature is dropping. I'll be climbing into the sleeping bag soon. By the way, I now have my summer bag, I hope I don't freeze.Sue will be adding more when she gets home.Goodnight.Old Goat Partnership Shelter - Click picture to see full sizePartnership Shelter - Click picture to see full sizeTeddy, Gotta Go - Click picture to see full sizeHui! Hanging clean clothes - Click picture to see full sizePosie Picker, DieHard (DieHard arrived exactly the same time I did) - Click picture to see full size
Date: 2006-04-30
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Relax Inn, Atkins, VA
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: 0

Cell good.I'm "BACK ON" the trail going NOBO with a full pack again. With yesterday being a slack pack day, I figured I'd declare today as the restart day rather than yesterday.It's funny how we are accustomed to going distances in a car. Yesterday Sue dropped me off at the trailhead and then started for home. She is already home, and I'm just a few miles up the trail. I think I average around 2 mph when hiking with a full pack, she traveled at 65 mph, what a difference. But then again, for me "It's the journey that counts, not the destination."I used the term "Back on" from my Philmont experience. Whenever we reached an obstacle that slowed each person down in the crew, such as a stream crossing, the first person crossed and then would keep a slow pace on the other side until he heard "back on," which indicated everyone had cleared the obstacle and we could now resume our normal pace.I was the first one up at the shelter. As a matter of fact, everyone else was still asleep when I left. I hiked out at 6:50am, which is my earliest so far. The wind was blowing pretty good and the air was cold. I figured bad weather was coming and prepared for the worst. The weather is still cold and windy, but the sun is out, and the day looks good from this heated motel room.I'm catching up on my mileage planning - I'm studying the thru Hikers Handbook and checking the maps. I'm deciding how far I'll go each day by looking at the terraine and guessing if it will be easy or hard. I've made plans for the next 20 days. I hope to reach the Shenandoah National Park around the 20th. I'm not planning any further because those maps are at still at home, and it's still a long way out in the hiking world. I doubt I'll reach there exactly as planned, but I hope to be close. What location I stay at each night is sometimes reactionary rather than planned. If the mountains are tougher than expected, then I'll go fewer miles; if they are easier, I can go further.I have a song going through my head today that I need to get down. It is a changed word rendition of the "Smokey and the Bandit" song. Same tune, new words... North bound and down, Loaded up and hiking. We're gonna do some things that can't be done. We've got a long way to go, and six months to get there. Lookout Katahdin, here us hikers come.We started out in Georgia and into Carolina, then we went up through Tennessee. We've moved on to Virginia, the longest state on to see.I guess more will come to me as I'm hiking; I'll add it as it comes.So now you know one of the things that goes through my mind as I walk. Other things I think about are my family - wondering what they are doing. Fortunately I don't worry too much because Sue and I talk frequently and she keeps me abreast with what's going on. When I came into the motel today I looked forward to watching the NASCAR race, unfortunately it's rained out. More unfortunately, the storm front is moving this way and I'll probably be in it tomorrow.Old Goat