morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-04-19
From: Plumorchard Gap Shelter

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: light rain

It never got below 55F in my tent last night, a record so far.Rain and thunderstorms were predicted today and it started raining right after breakfast. Knowing it would probably be a short hiking day, I stayed at the shelter until 11:00 after everyone else left to work on my trail journal. So far, despite a climbing step learning curve, journaling with my new phone/photo/email device has proven to be a near disater for a host of reasons I will not go into here. It took me two hours to type two days of journals and used up an entire battery! I am beginning to think through a different way to deal with this since it should not take more than a few minutes a day to write a few paragraphs to keep folks informed.I crossed into North Carolina at mile 76.4 today. Another hiker was near me at the time so we took picutres of each other at the sign with each others' cameras.As soon as I entered North Carolina, the trail took a sharp turn towards the sky with steeps "ups" of 400 feet (with stairs in sections), then 500 feet and fnally a bit less steep section up 400 feet. After facing much the same thing at the start of the Georgia section, I, and others, are convinced that the folks laying out the trail had in mind a test to separate the men from the boys. God made the mountains, but men picked the grades and switchbacks to get up and down the mountains. In both cases as the miles have gone by, the grades have become less severe and, looking ahead on the profile maps, it seems like the trend will continue, though every day does have its "moments."I arrived at Muskrat Creek Shelter about 5:00 pm. Koop, Lucky and another person (asleep) were already in the shelter, and Moe! was tenting nearby. It was foggy, cold and wet. Right after I finished dinner, heavy rains began with thunder heard later in the night. I stayed in the shelter and everyone was in bed by 7:30.PhotosThe Georgia/North Carolina borderOdd oak tree at Bly GapMuskrat Creek Shelter
Date: 2009-04-20
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 4.9
Weather: light rain

It was cold and very foggy went folks started stirring about 7:00. The fellow who had been asleep since I arrived late yesterday afternoon, sat up and I looked at him sleepily. He asked me my trail name and when I told him, he said he was Old Hobo! I had not seen him for several days. He is no longer hiking with Cat, having left her with someone else at the Cheese Factory a few days ago and hiked on.I hiked out into the wet fog about 9:00 covering fairly easy terrain with only one 500 foot up. I passed the famous "Chunky Gal Trail" (don't ask) sign along the way. About 11:30, when I stopped for a snack, it began to rain, the temperature dropped from 55 to 45 in minutes and the wind picked up to about 30 mph ... the perfect formula for a case of hypothermia. I got rather soaked almost immediately and quickly hiked .9 mile and up 400 feet to the next shelter, arriving feeling quite chilly. Fearing hypothermia, I took of all my wet clothes and climbed into my sleeping bag. After about 45 minutes I warmed up, but the weather was still awful so I decided to spend the night there. During the afternoon One Hand, a fellow from San Diego who had broken his hand a few days back passed through, and another fellow, hiking under an umbrella passed though as well. Finally, near dark "501" came in to spend the nght so we shared the shelter while the wind howled through the cracks in the floor.PhotosThe origins of this trail name are shrouded in mysterySlippery trailI almost missed this sign in the stormStanding Indian ShelterOut of the rain at Standing Indian Shelter
Date: 2009-04-21
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Betty Creek Gap
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Up at 7:00 and on the trail about 9:00 with fog and the temp in the 30s. My clothes had dried a bit overnight and there was a promise of drier weather ahead as the day went on. Sure enough, about two hours later, the sun came out, or perhaps, since I had climbed 700 feet by then, I came out above the clouds. In either event, the day got very nice with temps in the 50-60s, sunlight peeking through the trees, water springs coming right out of the mountain every few hndred yards, and easy inclines of 700, 500 and 400 feet as the day went on. About half way through the day, I had the first real fall of my hike; a full face plant when a root tripped me up. I cut my nose, broke a hiking pole and was generally shaken up but no lasting harm seems to have been done. I hiked on to the next shelter to rest a bit, call Gossamer Gear to have them send me a replacement pole, and have lunch. While there "Maui Bill" passed through for a brief lunch and hiked on.I continued on arriving about 5:00 pm at Betty Creek Gap where I found Maui Bill had already set up camp. I tented near him, washed my socks and bandana, and cooked dinner ... actally a breakfast since I am almost out of food due to the full extra day due to the weather delays spread over the past two days.We chatted after dinner until the cold sent us to our tents about 7:30.PhotosIs it a bear track? The jury is still outTricky stream crossingFace plant. I took the picture so I could use my camera to assess the damage without a mirror.Old Carter Gap Shelter, still used for overflow crowdsNew Carter Gap Shelter. Note additional overflow sleeping area underneath
Date: 2009-04-22
From: Betty Creek Gap

To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: clear sky

Up at 7:30 and off at 9:00. It had definitely gotten down to 32 overnight since I saw ice crystals here and there, and there were a few flakes of snow early in the hike. Soon the weather warmed up to the 50-60s and it was a beautiful, clear day. I took off some layers and hiked in shorts and a t-shirt.The hike today was a lot of long, easy downhill, punctuated with fairly steep ups of 1,000, 400 and 700 feet along the way. About noon, I crossed the 100 mile line on the track from Springer Mountain to Maine, and right now, in Franklin, I am about 5% of the way there already!For the first time I saw no other hikers all day and had the woods to myself, a very peaceful thing.About 4:30, I got to the state highway that goes into Franklin where I am planning to take my first full day off. I got out the trusty "Hiker to Town" sign Bon Bon and I had used three times before, but had to wait for a full hour while cars whizzed by until I got a ride. Bon Bon sure made it look easy a few days ago! Finally a nice retired fellow about my age picked me up and took me directly to trial legend Ron Haven's motel where I am right now using the computer in the lobby. After cleaning up a bit, I went down the street and treated myself to some wine, a big steak and fries, rolls and two helpings of salad. Then to bed without even turning on the TV to see what has happened in the rest of the world over the past four days.PhotosRhododendron tunnelFirst 100 miles!An old bridge?
Date: 2009-04-25
From: Wayah Shelter

To: Wesser Bald Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

It was never below 60F in my tent last night, and the weather was in the 70-80s all day with a light breeze.I was at up 6:30 and off at 8:30. Wren hiked out ahead of me, and, given her pace, I doubt I will ever see her again.It was a day punctuated with ups of 300, 800, and 800 feet. At one point, I came upon a trail maintainer who was installing and repairing logs that divert water off the trail so that the trail does not become a river during rainstorms. He told me that there is nothing but good weather ahead for the next few days. He also told me there was Trail Magic about a mile ahead.Trail Magic is where folks come out to a road crossing and provide food and drinks free of charge to passing thru-hikers out of the goodness of their hearts. Often these folks are former thru-hikers themselves. I soon arrived at Burningtown Gap where there was a cabana-type tent with a box of oranges, a cooler of sodas, and four chairs. The host was not there at the moment, but I recharged my engines with 360 calories of sodas, left a thank you note and moved on. Later at Tellico Gap, while resting on a stone wall while also fighting off gnats, a local couple came by in a car. They were interested in my hike and when I complained about the gnats, the man said he was an amateur botanist and that the local folk remedy against gnats is to rub wild mint on one's skin. He got out of his car and looked around for a few minutes, but finally concluded it was still too early in the season for wild mint ... though not too early for gnats! Anyway, it was a nice thing for him to do!I arrived at the shelter about 4:30 and encounterd "Danger" who I had met before in Franklin, and "Hog on Ice," both guys about my age. We had a nice chat about gear, a constant topic of conversation out here. Hog on Ice was hammocking and Danger was trying out the new tent he bought in Franklin so I had the shelter for myself. Later the family of six from last night also showed up and tented.During the early evening, the first true SOBO I have met, "Detour," passed through and stopped to chat. He started in Maine last summer, hiked until November, took off 3-4 months during the winter months, and is now only about 130 miles from finishing at Springer. He is only 19. I asked him what was the most dangerous thing he had encountered on his trip. He said his tent had been attacked by a bear, presumably in search of food ... fortunately he was not in the tent at the time.PhotosWrenBreakfast at Wayah ShelterIdeal trail!Trail magic!Wesser Bald fire towerWesser Bald Shelter with "Hog on Ice" and DangerDetour, a 19 year old SOBO thru-hiker
Date: 2009-04-27
From: Nameless tent and water site

To: Locust Cove Gap
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: clear sky

Up and off by 8:35. It was a day of 2,500 feet up and 1,500 feet down.I had hoped to reach Sassafras Gap Shelter yesterday, but had put off the 2,000 feet of extra up to get there until today. When I finally did get there, I pulled in for water, took a nap, and then debated whether I should go further. I finally decided that an investment of another 500 feet or so of up, plus the downhill on the other side, would get me an additional 3.6 miles further on and that was a better deal than sitting at the shelter all afternoon so off I went.I got to Locust Cove Gap, a tent and water site, about 6:15 only to find Hog on Ice already set up there. We cooked dinner, chatted a bit, then went to bed.Now is a good time to talk about ridges. I mentioned in a journal entry a few days ago about how nicely the trail planners had sloped the trails in North Carolina. I had not experienced or thought much about ridges at that time. Now I am wiser. If a trail is routed along a narrow ridge, as has been the case much of the past few days, there is no room for switchbacks to lessen the slope/grade of the trail. Therefore the trail is as steep as the ridge itself as it meanders from mountain top to mountain top, sometimes, seemingly straight up! Live and learn! On the plus side, ridges can be as narrow as a few feet wide in places and the views are spectacular in the the left and right directions.PhotosThere's plenty of water along the trail this yearWildflower and 7An ancient privy still in use at Sassafras Gap Shelter where I stopped for water and a nap
Date: 2009-04-28
From: Locust Cove Gap

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: broken clouds

I left Locust Cove Gap about 8:30. Hog on Ice had aleady hiked out by then.This was a day of 3,000 feet of up.When I came to a road crossing at a place called Stecoah Gap, there were quite a few people there, hanging out around two picnic tables. I started chatting with one of them, a fellow from New Orleans camped there with his dog while looking to buy some land, and ended up trading him some almonds for a cup of coffee and some water! At the other table was a group a five NOBOs who I would see more of later in the day. Down a side road a few hundred yards, were three birders in chairs watching for birds since this turned out to be a major flyway for migrating birds at this time of year and they had already seen something like 40 species headed north today. An eclectic crowd to say the least.I played hop scotch with the group of five NOBOs, all in their 20s, all afternoon. They are a brother, a sister ("Blue Bell"), along three guys that have joined up with them along the way. They are carrying huge 35-50# packs (mine is now about 20#) and are actually moving forward at a slightly slower pace than I .. a first!As we moved along, we came upon Hog on Ice set up at yet another tenting/water site, but I moved on another three miles to the shelter.When I got to the shelter about 7:00, the five NOBOs were already in full swing, with a cooking fire going in the fire pit and lots of loud chatter. There was also a fellow more my age in the shelter named "Tunnel Rat." Since the 5 NOBOs were all hammocking or tenting, I decided to stay in the shelter with Tunnel Rat. Staying in a shelter saves about an hour of time otherwise spent setting up and taking down a tent and getting everything ready for spending the night in a tent. Tenting becomes increasingly attractive as a shelter fills up. I had not expected to spend as many nights in a shelter as I am doing before starting this hike.After dinner, the five NOBOs built a roaring fire and sat around telling campfire stories. I joined then for a while and then went to bed. PhotosStrange treeI managed to trade some almonds to this guy in return for water and a cup of coffeeThis area is a flyway for migrating birds and these folks were birders out to spot different speciesShelter campfire
Date: 2009-04-30
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Fontana Dam, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Ahh! A "zero day" off to rest and relax! Well, not quite. There's a lot to do during a zero day ... Check and respond to a week's worth of email, catch up on a the news, watch the weather forecasts, try to figure out why Verizon is loading unwanted stuff onto my bill again, go through my bounce box* to resupply and replace all kinds of things ... pills, maps, guide book pages, and much more ... go through my pack and decide what unused stuff has had a free ride long enough, and pack and mail it home, update my trail journal, study the profile maps for the miles ahead to plan how much food I will need to carry, recharge phone batteries, wash my stuff sacks, my pack, my tent and my air mattress ... you cannot imagine how much trail dirt they had accumulated in three weeks ... round up some alcohol fuel for the next leg of the trip, "fluff" my down sleeping bag in a clothes dryer for an hour to restore some of the loft it had lost to moisture, repack and mail the bounce box on to the next pickup point (Erwin, TN), organize my (so far) 1,900+ photos so my son can put some on the web, eat lots of fresh food, and catch up with other hikers who I have not seen for days or weeks.* (A bounce box is a resupply box that one mails to oneself at post offices along the trail. It contains things one needs down the road like maps, batteries, spare tent stakes, extra sunscreen, meds, and on and on. This saves carrying today things you may not need until weeks or months later, if ever. My schedule has me touching base with my bounce box about every two weeks. This was the first time.)I have now been on the AT for a bit more than three weeks. Here's a summary of my impressions so far:The hiking is tougher than I thought, but I get stronger every day. It is more fun than I thought. I have met lots of great folks. There have been no major medical or gear issues so far. The weather has held me back for 5-6 days so far, something I had not planned on. The scenery ranges from repetitive trail twists and turns, and ups and downs, to spectacular views and surprising wonders of nature just around the next bend every day.Tomorrow I am scheduled to head into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park which looms right outside my window. The weather forecast for the next several days calls for a high chance of rain so it may prove interesting. The first shelter is 12 miles and 3,000+ feet up into the park with the only alternative place to overnight being a tent site about 4 miles into that leg. If all goes well, I should be about halfway through the 70-mile Smokys in 3-4 days, at which point I will hop off the trail and go down to Gaithersberg, TN, to resupply.PhotosThis lovely resort is the only place to stay in Fontana VillageThere was a 5-day Mini-Cooper gathering while I was hereIffy weather
Date: 2009-05-01
From: Fontana Dam, NC

To: Stealth Site in the Smokies
Miles today: 5.4

I got up at 7:00 a.m. and it was overcast. Decided it was time to march on. By 8:00 a.m. it was raining cats and dogs as I went to the lodge for breakfast so I started to have second thoughts about leaving. My hiker hunger has kicked in and I enjoyed an all you can eat buffet. I had coffee cake, 2 jelly rolls, biscuits and gravy, hash browns, scrambled eggs, 2 pieces each of bacon, sausage links and sausage patties, a bowl of fruit and some coffee. By 10:00 the weather had cleared and the sun came out, so I checked out. I walked down to the village center to mail my bounce box up the trail and various other items home. Then I updated my trail journal. In the post office hiker box, someone had left a huge amount of food and other gear so Vivian, Mark (thru-hikers from San Francisco) and I raided it and made peanut butter and chocolate chip buritos for lunch.Finally, I took a shuttle to the Fontana Hilton, the most elegant shelter on the A.T. It overlooks Fontana Lake, sleeps 20 and even has hot showers! There I found the NOBO 5 and Tunnel Rat. I took some pictures and then headed north.I soon came to Fontana Dam and walked across. I had a couple of tourists from Oklahoma take my picture by the Smoky Mountains entrance sign.I then started on the trail hoping to go 4 miles into the park, but soon there were scattered showers. I stopped twice to put on my rain gear and pack cover in case things got worse.Finally after climbing up about 2,000 feet, at about 7:30 p.m., I found a perfect place to set up camp by the side of the trail. I got the tent up and the food stored and jumped in the tent about a minute before it started to rain again. So this will be my first night completely alone on the ATInstead of trying to cook in the rain, I ate a bag of gorp/trail mix for dinner.PhotosPeanut butter and chocholate chip tortillas with Vivian and Mark from San FranciscoThe "Fontana Hilton," one of the most luxurious shelters on the trailFontana DamOfficially entering the SmokiesA night alone in the rain at the side of the trail
Date: 2009-05-02
From: Stealth Site in the Smokies

To: Birch Spring Gap
Miles today: 1.6

Baptism by Rain, Day 2I was warm and dry all night, but in the morning it continued to rain pretty hard with no let up, plus there were high winds since I was camped on a ridge, so I laid on my back for hours waiting for a break in the weather while calling friends and family from my cell. Why I had cell service in the Smokies, but not in Fontana Village is beyond me.Finally, about 1:00 there was a brief break in the rain so I packed up and got moving by about 2:00.It was pretty clear that I was not going to make it the full six miles up hill to the first shelter in the Smokies today so I pulled off about 4:00 at a former shelter location which still has tent sites and a water source.While cooking a quick dinner between the rain showers and gnats (gnats go away when it is raining so there is some benefit to rain out here), Vivian and Mark passed through to pick up water and then, being young, strong and energetic, set off to reach the next shelter by night fall.Other than their brief visit, I spent the night alone.PhotosSign to "Long Hungry Ridge Trail"Ridge walking with fog on just one sideBirch Spring Gap, the site of a decommissioned shelterTenting alone at Birch Spring Gap
Date: 2009-05-04
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 5.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Baptism by Rain, Day 4It rained pretty much all night, but it was nice to be in a shelter, rather than a tent, so I could move around without fear of hitting the wall of my tent.In the morning, it turned out that Socks had somehow gotten my sleeping bag liner a bit wet despite being in the shelter. It really didn't make a lot of difference, but the upshot was that he traded me a clean, dry pair of socks in return for a dirty, wet pair of socks of mine since I had no more dry socks!About mid-morning, there was a break in the weather for awhile with a strong, dry wind passing over the ridge. Since my gear was getting so wet and heavy, I decided to dry out, especially my tent, as best I could before moving on. While waiting, a pair of young fellows from Cedarburg, Wisconsin, not far from my home town, passed though. My tent was dry about 2:30 so I then started hiking just as the rain started again. About 4:00 I arived at Russell Field Shelter and took a break for nearly an hour. This shelter has chain link fencing across its open side and bear warning signs all around. Over the past days, I have met several hikers who have seen bears in places I have visited, but I have not yet see a bear, nor heard of anyone who was in any way threatened by a bear.I finally arrived at Spence Field Shelter, about .2 miles off the AT, about 6:45. It turns out I am the only one here, so I will be alone in a shelter for the first time tonight.I should say a bit about the spectacular views in the Smokies ... There have been next to none with all this rain ... just fog. nevertheless, there is plenty going on in the Smokies. This place is a temperate rain forest with many unique species if one knows what to look for. The one thing I have noticed several times as I hike along is earth worms that have come out of the ground because of all the wetness. These worms are about the same diameter as typical earthworms, but they are up to TWO FEET LONG! ... something I am told only is found in the Smokies.PhotosThis guy's down sleeping bag had become too wet to use so he had to improvise to get through the cold nightFresh coffee!Drying outEverything was wetBear fencing at Russell Field Shelter where I stopped for lunchSlippery, soupy trail with a slush of leaves, mud and waterSpence Field Shelter where I spent the night aloneStory of a bear encounter in the shelter register