morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-03-07
From: Low Gap Shelter 

To: Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: clear sky

7:11pmPoundcake (Craig) got a new name today. "Lockjaw" dislocated his jaw at about 11pm last night. He lay awake with it all night and in the morning we decided he needed to find a town and get someone to fix it right away. Then, miraculously, on the way to the nearest road crossing, we ran into a group of physical therapists who popped his jaw back. He ended up going into town anyway to have it looked out, but still, it was great. We also got trail magic today. We came down a huge, painful descent and I saw a van with the back open in the parking lot of Unicoi Gap. Soda, crackers, oatmeal creme pies, yum. It was great. I probably had well over a hundred grams of sugar, and it powered me up the huge hill on the other side of the gap (the biggest, baddest ascent so far, worse than Blood Mountain). That big climb was followed by another huge down and then Tray Mountain, where we are tonight. We're near the summit of this big, beautiful mountain with a blazing fire and a view of city lights and lots of woods. The sunset was spectacular. I found a "nodule" on my earlobe. I think it's a spider bite. They say it's purple and ugly, but I can't see it. I thought I was going to die again today, but I guess I didn't. Here I am. I hit my stride about 7 miles in today, and again at 10-12 miles in. The last few miles sucked ass though. This group is great. I might last. I hope so. Tomorrow we hitch into Hiawassee.
Date: 2006-03-08
From: Tray Mountain Shelter

To: Hiawassee, GA (Holiday Inn Express)
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

9:23pmI'm exhausted. I had a ton to eat today. Another AYCE. 10.6 miles today, supposedly only one big climb, but it seemed like they just kept coming. Kelly Knob was the big one. It was pretty much horrible. Today overall wasn't so so bad except for this morning when I could barely walk. I started to cry as I hiked, it hurt so bad. Both my ankle and my knee. Stiff, sore, and shooting pains with each step. Didn't help that it was very cold and I had the tent to break down first thing when I woke up. The last couple of miles of the day seemed much longer than they were. It was so nice to reach Dicks Creek Gap where we got to stop walking and catch a hitch to town. Tofurky and I rode with a very nice couple from Florida who drove us to the Blueberry Patch to pick up my mail drop and then right to the door or the Holiday Inn. The hotel is great. The whole group enjoyed a dip in the hot tub and pool and a buffet next door and some bad TV. Lovely. Short day tomorrow, which will be great. Then 3 toughish ones before Franklin, where Jeanette will pick me up. My feet hurt. Today Achilles and Gumby (section hikers who've been hiking with us) leave us. Sad. They'll take off early tomorrow and do a big day and get to Franklin by Saturday instead of Sunday. I'm dead tired. Shit.
Date: 2006-03-09
From: Hiawassee, GA (Holiday Inn Express)

To: Plumorchard Gap Shelter
Miles today: 4.3
Weather: overcast clouds

2:54pmShort day as planned, 4.3. Basically nothing, but it¢s lovely here. We¢re the only ones in the shelter (me, Kurly, Swansons, Kaptain Kangeroo, Sunshine, and Boomer--Tofurky went on) and although we expect rain later, its sunny for now. My ear ¢nodule¢ is hurting. Damn spider. Pussing too. Swansons and Boomer are playing chess. I should stay out here as long as possible. Knee and achilles started out better today, probably because it was warm in the hotel and I was up for a couple hours before we started. We¢ve gathered firewood and now we¢re hanging out.7:32pmSitting around the fire. Talking about exes. Such a hot fire.
Date: 2006-03-10
From: Plumorchard Gap Shelter

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: clear sky

7:25pm12-mile day. Not too bad. Yesterday night was a blessing. So warm, I slept till about 6 and was comfy and happy. Hopefully the same tonight. Ate lunch today at Muskrat Creek shelter. We crossed the border into North Carolina today, which was cool, but otherwise today was uneventful. I¢ve been coughing though and I feel kind of sick to my stomach, so that¢s not too pleasant. And the smoke¢s seriously in my eyes tonight, too. Talked at the fire tonight about how I¢ve been in therapy. Hm. I feel sick. Kaptain: ¢Well, until he threw it into the fire, probably an ecosystem.¢ (Inside joke, folks)at forty-seven hundred feetone pain is replacedby another. one emptinessis filled. thoughts turnto heartbeats not heartache.and silencecries out the best musicever to fall on these ears. That¢s it for now. Damn, I forgot to brush my teeth.
Date: 2006-03-11
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Big Spring Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: light rain

5:00pm14.4 miles today. Easy miles, very flat for the most part. I had a tough day though, both physically and mentally. I was hurting, and worse, time seemed to crawl by, making the 14.4 miles seem like 20. Maybe because the terrain was uneventful it was boring and seemed slow. Boomer is done tomorrow. He was grouchy today, and I think it's just about his time to throw in the towel. Tomorrow's the day. I'm going to make it past Franklin. Wasn't sure I would, but I think I will. We're taking a zero day in Franklin the day after tomorrow. Jeanette (my dad's old boss from when we lived in Sylva, NC) is picking me up tomorrow and taking me home and then I have a doctor's appointment for the next day (the zero), so I guess I'll be able to hear someone tell me to stay off it for a few weeks. Then I'll turn around and come back out here. This morning Swansons decided his tooth was too bad to wait. He and Kurly started walking to the road this morning early and I called my parents to see if Jeanette could/would drive out there to pick them up. Otherwise, it would be a long walk on a road that doesn't get much traffic. I think she did, and hopefully that means they had an easy ride before too long and found someone to look at his tooth. I hope they catch up, I really loved hiking with them and I miss them and I think part of my mental slowness today was missing/worrying about them. I'm filthy. I smell and my hair's nearly crusty. I had pasta w/ tomato sauce, pesto, parm, and olive oil for dinner. Yum. I'm out of food though. Tomorrow might be rough. Food-wise. 9 miles though, tomorrow, so that'll be fine. Just me, Kaptain, Sunshine and Boomer in the Shelter tonight. Stupid cellphone battery died so I can't check on Swansons and see if they called. I think a spider just bit me on the part of my hair. I could go to sleep now. Wow. We got here around 2:30. We made killer time cause it was so flat, although the last couple of miles before the shelter were a total rock scramble. Tough, and scary in spots. The last few nights the old me has come out a little. I've talked about getting attached to people. I'm afraid of when I'll have to separate from the group (p.s., Kaptain's really awesome). They're risk-takers in a way I'm not. I'm a tag-along and a wannabe. But I'm loving it. I am this person. I am Big Pinkin' and I will be who I feel like out here. With attitude. Haha. I'm listening to Nickel Creek right now. Haven't listened to my MP3 player much, but it's nice to have. Haven't learned Chinese yet, but I'll start listening to my language learning CDs any day now. Maybe. Last night was pretty warm again. Nice.
Date: 2006-03-12
From: Big Springs Shelter

To: Franklin, NC (Jeanette Newsom's house)
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: overcast clouds

5:01So I made it to Franklin! Woo hoo! Also, yesterday we ran back into Lockjaw. What a reunion. Then he proceeded to beat me at chess. I was hitherto undefeated. Damn him. Haha, oh well. Today we also passed the 100- mile mark, which is great (as long as you don't think too much about the 2,175.6 total distance). We saw Kurly and Swansons at the Budget Inn where they were staying. Swansons hasn't been able to get any real help for his tooth yet. What a drag. He's on pain killers, but until he gets it pulled, who knows. I do hope that tomorrow early they'll get some help and be able to get back on the trail before too long. If they slackpacked the last 23 or so miles that we did over the last 2 days they could do it in 1 and catch up with us pretty quick? But that's only if they get in to see a dentist soon. I kind of wish I was with those guys instead of here at Jeanette's house. She has a lot of food, but not an AYCE buffet quite, and no TV. I have nothing to read/do but I've been putting my journal entries on here, so it's been okay. Tomorrow I have a doctor's appointment at 9, I think, and after that I'll meet up with the "one more" group (so named because no matter how many peaks anyone tells us there are in a day's hike there's always at least one more). Listening to NPR which is nice and reminds me of home. We've been wondering if big news was happening behind our backs. Guess it kinda has. Slobodan Milosevic died, although I didn't keep up on him too much anyway. And UNC beat Duke. But that was a while ago. I have to poop. Hurray for bathrooms. Also, when we got off the trail today there was someone waiting right there to take all of us to Franklin. No hitching. It was great. Great ride. Lovely. Tofurky's still a bit ahead, but overall pretty much a huge reunion going on here in Franklin. We plan on 4 days between here and Fontana Dam.
Date: 2006-03-14
From: Franklin, NC (Budget Inn)

To: Cold Spring Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

6:38 amIn town for the morning after a zero day. Swansons and Kurly left a little bit ago to get a ride all the way back to where they got off the trail. They'll slackpack the 23 miles we did over the last two days and then they'll only be one day behind. We have 15.8 planned for today. Hopefully the body will hold up. I learned to play quarters last night, which was fun. We also played poker, BS, and sporks. Some young guys from Nashville joined us for awhile, which was fine. I like being the baby of the group. Swansons kicked me in the head just now. I guess that sounds more malicious than it was, but it hurt anyway. I also rocked sporks. I was so surreptitious about taking the sporks. It was incredible. We also went to an AYCE buffet yesterday around 3:30. Real good, and only $6.50. I'm in Kurly and Swanson's room right now. Didn't exactly ever really sign in. Whoops! This place is so great though in terms of hiker-friendliness. Free shuttles and computer, and Kurly was saying they really took care of her and Swansons when they first arrived. Swansons ended up getting a root canal yesterday. Poor thing. So painful and so expensive! But I guess it hurt a lot more before it was done and now he's kind of ready to go. I went to see a doctor yesterday too. Told me to rest my achilles and knee. Imagine that. Oh well, he also gave me some different shoe inserts and a knee sleeve so maybe that'll help. Plus he didn't exactly sound like I'd be permanently screwing my body up and he told me to take twice as much Aleve as the bottle says. So no Vicadin prescription or cortizone injection, but I'm going to keep going and see what happens. Who's still here: Sunshine, Tofurky, Kaptain, Lockjaw, and Boomer. Boomer's girlfriend and dog came to visit while I was at Jeanette's. People said she was nice and it certainly was great of her to drive all the way from DC. So Boomer's still in it. Plus Brett showed up!
Date: 2006-03-15
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: scattered clouds

5:44 pmDidn't write last night, so will briefly tell about yesterday. Big day, 15.8, but beautiful. I loved it. Trail magic near the end of the day with Apple, which was hot drinks and candy. We also saw two balds, one of which had an awesome observation tower. We were also heavily questioned by tourists there. At the end of the day we got to the shelter and it was so cold. Coldest one yet since the first day I think. Aptly named Cold Spring Shelter, but it wasn't just the spring that was cold. We camped way up on a cliff, well above the shelter, and with wind chill it was probably in the teens or single digits. Tofurky just arrived here at this campsite where we're staying tonight. Boomer left today. Dropped out. He got a call saying he was being considered for a job interview. So he's flying out tonight. Today was hard. We got up in the cold (Brrrr!). 11.5 miles from Cold Spring Shelter to the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center). The last few went straight down. Down, down, down. Painful and awful. And before that was hard too. At the NOC we got an amazing lunch. Onion rings with great dipping sauce, a terrific black bean veggie burger. Yum! So happy after that horrible hike to have that lunch, and then only 2.5 miles to this campsite for a total of 14 miles even today. Harder than the 15.8 yesterday though. Small group here. Hopefully Kurly and Swansons will catch up by Fontana (day after tomorrow). Now it's Sunshine (who's feeling sick), Lockjaw (who shared a pint of Cherry Garcia with me at the NOC today), Kaptain Kangeroo (who put a pink plastic pig in my bag), and Tofurky.8:10 pmNice night, a little warmer than yesterday. A lot warmer, actually, I think. I hope I won't have to get up twice to pee tonight--that sucked last night a lot. I burned my socks today. I was trying to dry them by the fire, but put them too close and they basically melted. Shit. "Ooo, heaven is a place on earth". Kaptain and I talked about climate and travel today. Kaptain Kangeroo put a plasic pig in my pack. Tofurky spilled the beans, which was too bad, because I liked the total mystery and inexplicableness of it. Oh well, still damn funny. Might pass it on for laughs.
Date: 2006-03-18
From: Fontana Inn

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: broken clouds

8:10 amHad a nice St. Patrick's day yesterday in Fontana. Now I'm in the hotel room waiting for the shuttle back to the trail. Can't get the shuttle till 9:30 which sucks. 13 miles yesterday. We passed the pickup spot and went to the Fontana Dam Visitor's Center. I'm glad we did those extra 1.4 miles yesterday. Today it'll be 13.5 miles uphill to Russell Field Shelter. Fontana Dam is a weird place. It's not a town. It's a "resort community" with a general store and post office and not much else. No sign of Swansons and Kurly. Hm... I hope they catch up. 7:17 pmToday! 13.5. "Walked up bloody great hill" was how Kaptain described the day. I ate a great black bean burrito with rice, salsa, and cheese that my mom sent me for dinner tonight though. It's cold tonight. Brrr! At a shelter with a ton of weekenders and spring breakers. Going to stay in my tent I hope. So I completely hauled this morning. We went up Shuckstack, the big mountain at the beginning of the Great Smokies. I was feeling great and going fast. I was nervous for the Smokies, but I think I totally did well so far, although it's cold. Everyone's smoking cigarettes in here. The weekenders. Not pleasant. Swansons and Kurly are still nowhere to be seen. Kaptain felt real bad today. I was worried. But he had some Gatorade and felt better. Phew!
Date: 2006-03-19
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Silers Bald Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: overcast clouds

6:30 pm 14 miles today. A lot of it uphill. Uneventful. Kind of cold at times, but often lovely. We've got a fire going in here (there's a fireplace at many of the shelters in the Smokies), so it's warm and cheerie. It's us and then Josh who we've seen a lot recently and two other thru-hikers who go really fast. Felt pretty good today, although not as good as yesterday. The last few miles today were real rough. Mentally I guess, but it didn't help that it was just hill after hill. Tomorrow we'll climb Clingman's Dome. That's the highest point on the AT. As Kaptain would say, "it's all downhill from there." I'm pretty happy we'll be in Gatlinburg tomorrow night. We hit Rocky Top today. A great view, plus Lockjaw got really into it and made a show of flipping off and mooning the summit. His rival school's fight song celebrates Rocky Top Mountain, so he wanted pictures to send to his friends recording his domination of it. Clothes are hanging up to dry in front of the fire here. Hope that works. It'd be amazing if we still had some fire left in the morning. All the food I have left is a crumbled poptart and some olive iol. Good though, because that means less to carry. This guy "Wolf" is here. He acts like he knows everything, and maybe he does, but he just keeps talking and talking. Giving us advice on shelters we're not even planning to stay in and stuff. I'm trying to decide whether to take my NyQuil now or later. It's 7:13. Not real late, but I'm tired and things are settling down. I am comfy, so I don't want to get up to pee, but I really don't want to have to tonight because I'm on the second layer of the shelter and would probably kill myself getting down. My toenail on my left foot is going to fall off. It hurts now and looks like shit and is not long for this world. I guess Swansons and Kurly took a zero in Fontana, which seems weird, but maybe they're with a new group they like or something or are just wanting to not push it or are worried about the weather. I do hope to see them again. Tired. Time to pee, then hit the sack.
Date: 2006-03-20
From: Silers Bald Shelter

To: Gatlinburg, TN (Microtel Hotel)
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: light rain

9:45pm Crazy weather today. It rained last night and then was snowing and sleeting. Really awful. We climbed Clingman's Dome. Wasn't a bad climb, but I was hurting beacuse I think I didn't have enough breakfast and didn't have any water or electrolites to speak of. I was struggling and it was snowing and slippery. We stopped briefly at the summit although there wasn't much of a view. Then we just pushed on to Newfound Gap where we caught a hitch to Gatlinburg. 12.5 miles today. We got an amazing hitch. Good thing too, because I was freezing standing there in the rain by the roadside, soaking wet. I have often said I would die on the trail, but today I think would be the most liekly. Anyway, this woman with this small car allowed three smelly and soaking hikers into her car and gave us a ride. Sunshine and Kaptain even came with me to the P.O. later, which was nice. They bought groceries. Gatlinburg is so so weird! It's this awful crazy tourist trap of a town with all kinds of attractions from an aquarium to a Ripley's Believe it or Not museum. We took a trolley out to the P.O. and grocery store. After that we ate a lovely dinner at a brewery. I had a delicious calzone. Then we went to Ben and Jerry's. Still cold and rainy out. Watching Titanic now with Sunshine and Kaptain in the room. I'm warm and happy now. Tomorrow will probably be wet and miserable, but that's life, right? No laundry at the hotel so I guess my clothes will have to stay dirty for awhile longer. No internet access either, which sucks. I hope we eat a good restaurant breakfast tomorrow.
Date: 2006-03-21
From: Gattlinburg, TN (Microtel Hotel)

To: Tricorner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

6:38pm It's really cold and miserable right now. Raining. Sleeting? All day it was beautiful though. This had to be one of my favorite days of hiking so far. 15.6 miles, and some of the best views of the trail so far. Kaptain was very very sick last night. I felt so bad hearing that in the morning, plus he still felt so crappy that he didn't hike out with us today. Yesterday we ran into Lockjaw at a KFC (in Gatlinburg) just by chance. He was with Tofurky, Slip n' Slide (formerly Josh, who got his name due to several mishaps on Clingman's), and Bleach (who's a 19-year-old self-employed bike mechanic from MN). He and Sunshine talked a lot about bikes today as we walked. He really likes to have conversations while hiking it seems. Anyway, today we got a shuttle ride without Kaptain. Tofurky hitched, and we're not sure how soon she got a ride or how far she got today. My clothes are hanging up and I bet they'll be completely frozen by morning. Anyway, today was nice. Charlie's Bunion was a great view, and the Smokies are just breathtaking. I'll be glad to be out of them weather-wise though. We really lucked out today. Davenport Gap shelter tomorrow night. Then only two days to Hot Springs I think. Hoping for sun. My food bag is going to be sopping tomorrow.
Date: 2006-03-22
From: Tricorner Knob Shelter

To: Davenport Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: clear sky

6:37pm Did 14.8 miles today. They flew by. The shelter's quite full. Some people we saw last night, plus Thumper and Treegirl. We went the .6 mile side trail up to Mt. Cammerer where there was this great firetower that looked like a little octagonal beach house. The view was 360 degrees and mindblowing. The snow highlighted the mountains. It was great. The whole day flew, but the 4.3 after that jaunt was amazing. I rolled my ankle three times today though. Hurts like a bitch. Tofurky saw us again today. She also rolled her ankle and she's going to go straight into Hot Springs from here. Everyone's just sitting around here talking about the crazy characters on the trail. Kaptain's still behind. Today was beautiful. We woke to snow and frozen boots, clothes, food bags, and everything. We stayed in our sleeping bags until probably 8:15. The snow and ice on the trees and path were beautiful. Lockjaw and I hiked together for most of the day. We met up with Sunshine and Slip n' Slide at Cosby Knob shelter for lunch. Then on to that mountain and the gorgeous view I mentioned. The last two days of these Smokies have been wonderful. Tomorrow we'll go to Mountain Mama's for breakfast, then push out another 16 or so to either Max Patch or a shelter near there. The blister beneath my falling-off toenail is really gross and painful. My earlobes are now getting nodualy all over. In two days we'll be in Hot Springs. It's hard to describe the views. All the old words that mean beautiful don't capture it because you are seeing it live. At one point today the view even looked fake because it appeared as if the trees were frosted with fake snow. That perfect.
Date: 2006-03-27
From: Little Laurel Shelter

To: Flint Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.7
Weather: clear sky

6:14 p.m. We planned a big day today. 21.5, we said. Then, upon realizing that the word of the day was definitely "slog" and arriving at a shelter 12.7 miles in, we decided to quit and enjoy a couple of hours of sunshine and leisure instead of continuing on to tackle more than eight miles including a long, steep bitch of an uphill. I built a snowman, which was small but very quaint. We outfitted it with some hiking poles and it hasn't melted yet. Today was beautiful weather-wise, the first time we've seen some solid sun in over a week. Of course, that meant that about halfway through the day the 10 inches of snow began to get quite slushy, which made downhills interesting and uphills near-impossible. There was a nice section on an exposed ridge that offered some good views (which we've been lacking lately), but to get up to the ridge we were sent sliding and clawing our way down and up several steep pieces of trail that wound around snow-covered boulders. My shirt dried in the sun on the outside of my pack, though, as did my socks. I was walking through deep snow with boots and my rainpants and tights on. At the same time, I was getting overheated in my tee-shirt. It was very odd. I hiked behind Kaptain for a while; we stopped for lunch and Lockjaw eventually caught up. Later I hiked with Sunshine. We had a bit of a heart-to-heart. We got to the shelter; I made my snowman. I had a bean burrito and Slip n' Slide insisted that we try to start a fire. I got it started and handed it over to him to maintain, doubtful that it would last, considering the wet wood/lack of wood combination. It's doing surprisingly well for now thought. Might go hit that up, because right now I'm in the shelter and rather nippy. Another cold night, I expect. It's been over two weeks since we've hiked with Kurly and Swansons. Weird. Two days until Erwin. We hit 300 miles today. Ra ra ra for that! Peace.6:52 p.m. The fire wasn't all that warm, so I'm back. I'm here to hike, but town days sure are nice. That snow today was horrible to walk through.