morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-05-07
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Campsites (after Grayson Highlands State Park)
Miles today: 17.6

Day 4805/07/03 Wednesday17.6 Miles on Trail        490.3 TotalIt¢s 9:15 and the rain is gently tapping on my tent. What a day. I got up and going at the usual time. Up at 6:00, on the trail by 8:30. Today¢s hike was an up and over White Top and Mt. Rodgers. As with most bald¢s, these had rutted, rocky trails. Rockier than most days so far. The uphill was tough with a mostly full food load. Add to that the blisters on both heels that are caused by uphill¢s with a heavy pack and it made for a somewhat uncomfortable day. The new pack belt rides differently and so the hips are sore too. All in all it was a tough day for everybody.We were headed for Wise Shelter in Grayson Heights State Park, passing Thomas Knob Shelter 5 miles earlier. There was some drizzle, but not much, on and off and slate gray skies all day. When we got to Wise, Wanderer had scouted ahead and found some camping by a stream. There were a bunch of tents already set up, but there were so many rocks the size of a breadbox that I couldn¢t find a place for my tent. So, I went on. This all happened in the space of about 3 minutes at about 7:00 p.m. I went on further up the trail because there was suppose to be camping .3 miles further on. There was. It was full. So I pumped 4 lite3rs of water and headed up the hill where I saw a tent. It wasn¢t raining so I got all set up and cooked dinner. Then it started to rain. I sat in my vestibule (sort of) and ate my just cooked food. All in all a very tough day and Pippi, Wanderer and Baby Steps are at a different campsite for the first time in many days. Tomorrow is another day, planned to be a long one again so we can get to the Post Office in Atkins by 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Otherwise it¢s a wait until Monday, which none of us really wants.I got to see and photograph a wildflower I hadn¢t seen before. A Jack in the Pulpit. Pippi was ahead and left a sign for me when she saw it, because I mentioned that I wanted to see one after we¢d found the Pink Lady Slipper for Baby Steps.In the pace of town and the last couple of long days and getting to camp late, I forgot to mention how great the cookies were that Baby Steps Mom sent to her in Damascus. Terrific Stuff!My eyes are closing. It¢s 9:45, the rain has stopped for now. We¢ll see what tomorrow brings.
Date: 2003-05-08
From: Campsights

To: Raccoon Branch Shelter
Miles today: 17.3

Day 4905/08/03 Thursday17.3 Miles on Trail        507.6 Total.2 Miles off TrailIt was windy, rainy night. I slept in spurts. The rain stopped about dawn. The sky was threatening rain, but I did my normal morning thing. As I was drinking my coffee, a doe walked by. She looked up and saw me and then ran off. Nice way to start a day. The trail was easier today but the residual effects of yesterday left me rough shape for the final climb to Raccoon Branch Shelter. The tenting here is not good. The only place I could pitch rolls to the left about 7 degrees. It still beats staying in the shelter with the snoring and mice.As I was setting my food bag line, another deer kind of ambled by. They must be pretty used to campers. We were making a lot of noise. It¢s nice to see some Mega-fauna for a change.Tomorrow is suppose to be a 20+ mile day. We¢ll see if my blisters and ankles will cooperate so I can get to Atkins before the Post Office closes on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. Days of the week are only relevant in towns, so I tend to forget about them. Going ointo Damascus though, we realized that we would be timing it wrong for the Post Office so we took it easy. This time, we¢re racing to get there. My mind says ¢sure, no problem¢, my feet on the other hand aren¢t so sure.Oh well, it¢s 10:00 again. How odd to be up this late 2 nights in a row.
Date: 2003-05-09
From: Raccoon Branch Shelter

To: Chatfield Shelter
Miles today: 20.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 5005/09/03 Friday20.1 Miles on Trail        527.7 TotalTough day and my quads are tight and my right heel looks like hamburger. I know that town is now only 4.5 miles away and I should be able to get to the Post Office by 11:00. I¢m ahead of Wanderer, Baby Steps and Pippi by a few miles. Wanderer is the only other person who needs to get to the Post Office and he can walk quite fast when motivated.Today we passed Partnership Shelter. It has a shower and a wash tub. Plus you can order a pizza from it. I didn¢t stay long enough to do any of those things. I moved on to Chatfield Shelter. It was empty when I got here. I thought at 7:00 p.m. that would be it. A little while later Big Red, Tadpole, Cookie, and Starbuck showed up. We all ate and chatted. As I was writing this at 9:45 p.m. we saw headlamps coming down the trail. Four more folks showed up a couple of minutes ago. The trail was tough enough in the day. I can¢t imagine it with just a headlamp.Today was the kind of day where I knew what needed to be done and did it. I brought my feet along for the ride and they aren¢t happy about it.Tonight¢s entry is disjointed because I keep getting caught up in conversations. There were no good tent sites, so I¢m in the shelter. Plus it¢ll make it easier to get out in the morning.Tomorrow should be a relatively easy, but busy day. Town chores after a short walk. Looking forward to a shower.
Date: 2003-05-10
From: Chatfield Shelter

To: Atkins, VA (Village Motel)
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: broken clouds

Day 5105/10/03 Saturday4.5 Miles on Trail        532.2 TotalI¢m on my side of the bed in a hotel room. Pippi is asleep. Wanderer and Baby Steps are on the phone. My ankles are starting to feel normal after being whacked when I woke up this morning. The blisters on my heels are drying out nicely. I think we¢ll do a relatively easy day tomorrow, then see how my feet and ankles are doing and go from there. Today¢s walk was beautiful. Through some Maple forest, pine forest and some meadows. I got a good solo hitch to the Post Office without sticking out my thumb. I was in a gas station reading my data book and a guy asked me how far from the trail we were. Well that gas station is actually right on the trail. He was a section hiker getting ready to do Damascus to Pearisburg. He offered me a ride. Eating came next. It¢s become a pretty big preoccupation. Oh well!It¢s time to hang out the sleeping bag to dry and get some sleep and let the body heal itself. I¢m tired. The last 3 days were tough and the last 2 nights I did not sleep well between the sloped tent site and the shelter. Hopefully I¢m tired enough to sleep through anything tonight.
Date: 2003-05-11
From: Atkins, VA

To: Tilson Gap, Big Walker Mountain
Miles today: 8.0

Day 5205/11/03 Sunday8 Miles on Trail        540.2 Total1.5 Miles for WaterI¢m in my tent on top of Big Walker Mountain. We missed the campsite we were shooting for and we had all had enough for the today, so we looked for a piece of flat ground to set our tent on. We had planned on an even shorter day. The day started in the hotel room. The weather report was for bad thunderstorms and clearing. Jim from the Atkins Diner picked us up at the hotel and brought us back up to the trailhead. There is a restaurant called The Barn there so we went in and had a second breakfast. By the time we were done, the worst of the rain had passed. We all had our rain gear on (mine is now a large, heavy duty, garbage bag), but it didn¢t rain the rest of the day. The Rhododendrons are blooming now. Some patches are blooming all together. It¢s absolutely gorgeous. Some are pink and some are deeper violet. The tread way was mostly packed earth with only a couple of rocky patches. The topography was up and down, but nothing too steep for too long. All in all a beautiful day. Once we found a place to camp, Wanderer and I backtracked to get some water from a source we had passed about 34 mile back. While we were eating a bunch of other hikers we knew went by to get to the next shelter. Then as we were talking to some of them, a deer came by. As the evening progressed, several more came up the same way and checked us out. It seems we camped right on their normal path. Then an owl flew into a tree about 20 meters from us. As I¢m writing this I¢m hearing what I think are deer (I can¢t see out of my tent) walk around.The sky is clear except for a few puffy white clouds. The wind is up, but we are in the lee of the mountain so I hear it, but get few gusts on my tent. The moon is half and waxing. It¢s beautiful here and I am grateful to be here.
Date: 2003-05-12
From: Tilson Gap

To: Spring-fed Pond after USFS 222
Miles today: 13.1

Day 5305/12/03 Monday13.1 Miles on Trail        553.3 TotalToday was a perfect day for hiking. Cool, breezy, and partly cloudy. Beautiful day. My feet are quite happy about the 3 back to back low mileage days. The blisters are healing and my ankles feel like ankles.The deer were up and about all last night. I would wake up and hear them right outside my tent and go back to sleep. After breakfast in the morning, they watched as we packed up our tents. Pippi got a picture of one about 10 feet away, just looking at her.We are camped by a little pond just before Chestnut Knob Shelter and now instead of cool and breezy it's cold and windy. I¢m warm enough in my sleeping bag, but I sent all my cold weather gear home from Atkins. That will make breaking camp tomorrow very special. We had a campfire tonight which helped a lot. I¢m falling asleep at the pen. More tomorrow.
Date: 2003-05-13
From: Spring-fed pond

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 5405/13/03 Tuesday11.8 Miles on Trail        565.1 TotalThis morning it was cold. I sent home all my winter gear. That meant having to get up and get moving quickly. It was super windy and I slept in a hole and on a rock. The combination made me grumpy. After I got moving I felt better. It was comfortable hiking weather. There was a cool shelter at the top of the mountain called Chestnut Knob. Then there was a ridge walk for several miles. I saw a couple of more Pink Lady Slippers. They were perfect and in full sun. They looked like they were glowing. The Lilies of the Valley are just starting to bloom. There are some patches that are so thick, it¢ll be amazing when they all bloom en¢ mass. I got to Jenkins Shelter at 3:30 with energy to spare. I had some more water pump problems and the rest of the gang wanted to stay, so here I am. It¢s not near as windy or cold tonight, just a nice relaxing evening.I¢m a little frustrated. I thought I would be capable of lot more mileage by this point, but my walking speed and foot problems are holding me back. I¢m going to skip ¢Trail Days¢, the big hiker fest in Damascus and press on. Baby Steps and Wanderer are going to go. Pippi is meeting 3 of her sons next week, so the group is falling apart at least for now. It¢s sad because they¢ve been excellent companions.
Date: 2003-05-14
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Helveys Mill Shelter
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: broken clouds

Day 5505/14/03 Wednesday13.8 Miles on Trail        578.9 Total.5 Miles off TrailAnother great hiking day. Including a stop in Bland. Got out of camp about 8:00 a.m. and had hiked 11 miles by 12:30. Got a good hitch for 4 into town. Quick re-supply. Then an average pizza. Then out of town was a huge up with a full pack and a full belly. My ankle tightened up as I was eating ¢dinner¢.Our little group is separating, at least temporarily, tomorrow. They have been great company. Pippi and I are going to continue to hike together at least till Pearisburg. Wanderer and Baby Steps are going to try to catch us. Then Pippi is going to take off with her sons.There are 6 or 7 people who are night hiking tonight. There is an almost full moon and I hear the terrain is good. Perhaps next month. Like I said, the ankle is tight tonight.Tonight¢s venue is Helvey¢s Mill Shelter. Tomorrow there is a shelter 12 miles out and 24 miles out. We¢ll see what the body feels like in the morning.I wrote the rest of that while sitting at the picnic table in front of the shelter. There are lots of distractions that way. Now I¢m in my tent on the levelest most rock and root free site I¢ve had in days, maybe weeks. Anyway, the forest is green. Yeah, I know. Sure its green, but it is startlingly so at this time of year on a sunny day with all of the new growth. Not many flowers today, but I did see a rabbit and a garter snake. On the subject of snakes, the girls saw 2 indigos and 3 people saw a timber rattler in the last few days. Something to watch for. Now, I¢m done for today.
Date: 2003-05-15
From: Helveys Mill Shelter

To: Wapiti Shelter
Miles today: 24.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 5605/15/03 Thursday24 Miles on Trail        602.9 Total.6 Miles off Trail to Dismal FallsTonight I¢m in Wapiti Shelter. As we were walking in we heard distant thunder. There were high school kids hanging out in the shelter. I think their leader made them move when we came in. They got re-situated and we moved in. No sooner had we gotten started cooking, the sky opened up. It¢s drizzling now. The day started with a very brief sprinkle at about 6:15. Not even enough to get the tent wet. I walked mostly alone to the next shelter at Jenny Knob, about 10 miles. Wanderer, Baby Steps and Pippi came in shortly after. We ate lunch and got under way. Pippi and I said our goodbyes to Wanderer and Baby Steps, who are going to ¢Trail Days¢ in Damascus. I sure hope they catch up. Pippi and I went on. After about a mile it started to rumble. When we got on top of the ridge, the lightning and thunder got as bad as the rain. It was a cold rain. It lasted a long time. After it let up we got to the Dismal Falls side trail and went down for a look. It was worth the 15 minutes. The weather stayed OK till we got to Wapiti Shelter. My shirt was mostly dry and my pants were partially dry. My socks and boots are wet! After 24 miles of hiking, the last 12 hour of which we weren¢t sure if we had passed the shelter, the shelter sure looked good.Crossing the 600 mile mark feels good too. It¢s late, I¢m tired and the other guy in the shelter is snoring. Hope the mice and the bears leave us alone. More tomorrow.
Date: 2003-05-16
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 16.2
Weather: light rain

Day 5705/16/03 Friday16.2 Miles on Trail        619.1 TotalTonight Pippi, One Foot Forward and I are staying at the Holiday Motor Lodge in Pearisburg. Today was a rock hop. It started with putting on wet socks. Then the first thing out of Wapiti Shelter northbound is a great big hill. Then once on top the trail gets rocky, small and huge. It doesn¢t matter, it still turns my ankles. The motion combined with the wet socks caused, you guessed it, new blisters on both heels. Oh well, I¢ll treat them in town. There was no time to use the phone tonight. It¢s time to sleep and let the body recuperate.
Date: 2003-05-17
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Day 5805/17/03 Saturday0 Miles on Trail        619.1 TotalOK, so yesterday was a rough hike. Today was a busy day in town, but I got a lot done. It rained all day and it¢s raining now, so it¢s better to be in town so I can start fresh and dry in the morning, even though the forecast calls for rain through Wednesday.I met some folks I had been following for a while in the shelter logs, the A.T. Boonies. They are a nice couple, hope to see more of them. The French couple from Quebec were celebrating her birthday today and were really enjoying themselves. Jackonamountain, Sean O. and another older gentleman named Stripe joined Pippi and the A.T. Boonies and me for dinner and a Blizzard at D.Q. I¢m finally starting to understand the fascination / obsession thru-hikers have with their ice cream. It¢s amazing. I ate a pint of Ben & Jerry¢s after lunch and had a Blizzard after dinner and I think a milkshake sounds good now, but I¢m in for the night.I¢ve got a heavy food load for the pack tomorrow and a huge uphill to start the day. Hope the heels don¢t decide to blister more. I also added the spandex shorts back to the clothing bag to hopefully stave off the chaffing that comes with hiking in hot or wet conditions. I¢ve also got the Body Glide in the Med kit. I put it in back in Damascus and it saved my skin, literally, yesterday. OK, that¢s probably too much information, but it¢s a fact of trail life.Once again the eyes grow tired. The thunder is rumbling. Glad I¢m inside. Gazer to be back on the trail tomorrow rain or shine (unless I haven¢t made it perfectly clear, shine is better). Pearisburg is nice but, but springtime in the mountains in Virginia is amazing.
Date: 2003-05-18
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: moderate rain

Day 5905/18/03 Sunday7.3 Miles on Trail        626.4 TotalI¢m in Rice Field Shelter with 8 other people. It¢s between 48 and 52 degrees according to Wizard¢s watch thermometer. Sure glad I sent all my winter gear home. I haven¢t been so glad to see a shelter since that day in the Smokies. Today I got as cold as last Thursday, but for longer, and I was wearing my contractors garbage bag rain gear. Water is far away, but I had some and Clover, Off and Wizard got extra to share when they went. Off and I shared some of our fuel with Wizard and we all shared stories. Dragonfly got here late and said Trail Days was like a hippy-fest. I only walked 7.3 miles today, so my blisters are still in healing mode., but my socks and boots are wet from the all day icy rain. We¢ll see what the morning and tomorrows walk brings.This is a very interesting group. Everybody is journaling and is quite respectful. There are also about 7 people in tents and tarps. They were bummed out that the shelter was full, as I would have been. The weather conditions are unusual for this time of year and they are dangerous with the gear I have left. I got to the shelter with hands that couldn¢t pinch the alligator clip. I started to shiver. It took a couple of hours to warm back up. The weather is going to be a big factor in how fast this next segment goes. The Post Office schedules are a real pain. They are one of the only things that hold up progress. Either I race to beat it in and beat myself up and loose enjoyment of the trail or I take it easy and loose momentum. If it wasn¢t for the Post Office schedules I would literally forget what day of the week it was and not care. As it is I have to look at my watch to get reminded.I hope tomorrow dawns brightly.
Date: 2003-05-19
From: Rice Field Shelter

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 6005/19/03 Monday0 Miles on Trail        626.4 TotalAwoke to 45 degrees and rain. After my experience yesterday, made a decision not to continue today since I sent all my winter gear home. Very hard to sit still while everyone else went on or back. 4 people actually went back to town. I figure I have enough food so I stayed put. Someone left the first 188 pages of Harry Potter and that kept me busy. So, another day of letting the legs rest and the blisters heal. Not too bad. Back after it tomorrow.
Date: 2003-05-20
From: Rice Field Shelter

To: Campsites past Wind Rock
Miles today: 21.3

Day 6105/20/03 Tuesday21.3 Miles on Trail        647.7 Total.5 Miles off TrailI¢m camped at the tent sites just after Wind Rock Shelter. It¢s 9:55. I just finished dinner about 20 minutes ago. Tough day, lots of rocks and steep little ups and downs. I treated a blister at lunch, but the treatment may have made it worse, hard to say. Anyway, it got big.Today dawned clear and cool, so I got underway. Happily. The trail in the a.m. was OK., not much to see but forest. The spectacular view came late. Before lunch I had just crested the hill and was in a clearing. I turned left and looked up. Almost 15 ft. in front of me was a deer just staring at me. I stopped and looked at it for a while and started to get my camera out slowly. It got bored and started to graze so I didn¢t get a perfect shot, but I couldn¢t have gotten much closer. After lunch, the trail got nasty. Don¢t get me wrong, it was beautiful, but brutal. The ups and downs were flat on the elevation map. They were not high, they were short and steep. Then came a big up to the next shelter. Then the trail got rocky. Ankle twisting, slippery, hard to judge, not always stable rocks for next couple of miles. Then up to Wind Rock and a spectacular view of the valley. After taking in the spectacle, I took a wrong turn and went down the wrong trail for about 5 minutes. Small error. But after 20 miles over rough terrain, a very unwelcome detour. Got to camp and the water source was close and good. Pitched the tent near 5 others. 2 more arrived while I was cooking. Caught up with Pippi. Don¢t think I can make Daleville by Saturday, so I might take it easy tomorrow. We¢ll see.
Date: 2003-05-21
From: Campsites

To: Sarver Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: light rain

Day 6205/21/03 Wednesday15.9 Miles on Trail        663.6 TotalTonight I¢m staying at Sarver Cabin Shelter. Truly a first class shelter, built in 2001.There are 10 of us in the shelter that is listed for 6. No problem. It has skylights and a covered deck with a big picnic table. I got here late, so I¢m on the deck.Today was a hard day. A couple of tough climbs and a lot of rocks, two really interesting stream crossings and a ¢bridge¢ that was wild. I also got followed through a field by 6 big cows. There were about a dozen fence styles to climb over. The blister on my heel didn¢t seem to get any worse and I could clean it with alcohol and it didn¢t sting.There was one point in the walk today just before War Spur Shelter, that was solid mountain laurel for about a quarter mile. All of it just ready to bloom. It might be almost worth it to back track to see it. NAH! It would will be beautiful though.A little bit about rain. It¢s been raining or threatening to rain every day for almost 2 weeks now. Today was a steady drizzle with heavier bursts at times. It¢s not nearly as nice to walk wet in a garbage bag. Sure hope we get some better weather soon.
Date: 2003-05-22
From: Sarver Hollow Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 6305/22/03 Thursday15.9 Miles on Trail        679.5 Total.6 Miles off Trail (to and from shelters)I awoke several times during the night. The mist at first was so thick I could feel it hitting my face. Then it started raining hard, and since I was on the deck (covered) the splatter got me. I moved to the picnic table which was drier. Note I didn¢t say dry. After as much rain as we¢ve had, nothing is dry. Then there were 2 guys who could, if they wanted to, be entered into the record books as the loudest snorers. I swear the nails are looser as a result. It was still misty and raining when I got up.I got moving at the usual time. I didn¢t mention it , but the shelter was .3 miles off the trail (so is tonight¢s) and it was as far down as it was across. So, the steep climb up got the day started. Here the ridge walk was a real treat. The views would have been spectacular if I hadn¢t been inside a cloud. Fortunately it didn¢t actively rain all day. Just forest drip and mist. The ridge walk was also as treacherous as the trail has been to date. Knife edge, slick rock hopping. The afternoon was tamer, but that section from Sarver Hollow to Niday Shelter was tough.I¢m in a shelter again tonight, Pickle Branch. It¢s a small shelter and we¢ve got 6 people in it. Someone just came in at 8:42. If we were really motivated, we could fit him in. It isn¢t currently raining and 4 of the 6 of us went to sleep at 7:30. So he¢s going to tent. Under similar circumstances I would do the same. If it was actively raining, I would press the issue.Looking forward to a few forced easy days. I have to slow down because I can not make it to Daleville by the time the Post Office closes on Saturday no matter how hard I press. So, I¢ll do a night in a hotel, get some food and have a couple of EZ¢er days to let the body heal and hopefully Wanderer and Baby Steps will catch up.