morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-07-09
From: Comfort Inn; Port Jervis, NY

To: St. Thomas Episcopal Church Hostel; Vernon, NJ
Miles today: 20.6

Hiked 7:45-7:00. The 20.6 mileage shown is a tad too high, because there¢s been a trail relocation. However, I don¢t know the effect of the change, so will go with the original mileage. This is consistent with what I did on another (lengthening) trail relocation back in North Carolina.Not a bad day at all -- cloudy and rained a bit, but that kept the temperature tolerable. Hiking was a mixed bag -- woods hiking, meadow hiking, and, for the first time, bog/swamp/marsh hiking (much of it on puncheon bridges or boardwalks). The good part of the bog/swamp/marsh hiking is that it¢s level. The bad part is that the mosquitoes are horrible.This is a church basement with TV and showers. We all sleep on the floor in one big room. Here are the demographics: Young men -- five; young women -- five; old men -- one (me); old women -- one. There is much musical practicing going on upstairs in the sanctuary, so who knows when we¢ll be able to go to sleep.I¢ll leave New Jersey tomorrow and enter New York. Actually, today¢s route dipped into New York briefly before returning to New Jersey. There¢s not much flexibility in New York, shelter-wise (very few) and campsite-wise (not allowed to camp except at designated sites), so I could end up putting in some very long or very short days there. I should opt for very short, because long days like today¢s leave me terribly exhausted. I wonder how I¢ll handle the White Mountains, where the terrain is much tougher than here (I know that from first-hand experience) -- and probably even tougher than the Smokies. Seems almost impossible at this point.I heard Gimp say that he and Scrounger would slack pack, with the help of friends, in the White Mountains. I¢ve been a purist up to this point, but that¢s partly because I haven¢t had any connections that would allow me to slack pack even if I wanted to. The test will come when we get to the White Mountains if somebody offers shuttle service
Date: 2003-07-10
From: St. Thomas Episcopal Church Hostel; Vernon, NJ

To: Wildcat Mountain Shelter (NY)
Miles today: 17.3

Hiked 9:00-8:15. I pretty much lost it emotionally today. You wouldn¢t have wanted to see it. I¢ve been on an emotional roller coaster lately anyway, and today was one awful day. The weather was cool, rained lightly in the morning and threatened thereafter. The vertical profile had me ready for an easy 17.3 miler. I couldn¢t have been wronger!Tough little ups and downs all day. In the afternoon came miles (or what seemed like miles) of major rock scrambling -- some of it requiring hand climbing, even an attached ladder in one place. I was making no time at all and meeting one rock climb after another. In this part of New York, you have to camp at the shelters or not at all, so for a while it was looking like I¢d be hiking until midnight.With 2.1 miles to go, at 7:00, I reached Highway 17A and was considering a motel, but there I saw Boat attaching a note to a tree for me, telling me of a newly opened ice cream store only a tenth of a mile down the road. That he would be concerned -- and the great ice cream -- was incentive enough to get me the remaining distance (which included more rock climbing), though I was too tired to cook when I got here. I¢m not feeling strong at this point.You really have to admire these kids. They just keep going and going and going, no matter how late at night. Most of them have very little money, so they¢re not able to enjoy the luxuries I do -- like motels and restaurants. For example, this morning while I was enjoying the Lumberjack¢s Breakfast (pancakes, eggs, bacon, fried potatoes, orange juice, coffee), they were all still at the hostel, either eating leftover pizza from last night or cooking the same meal they would have at a shelter. They¢re so strong -- physically and mentally.Thor saw nine bears in New Jersey! Several other hikers saw bears there, too. (I saw none, of course.) Bears are becoming quite a problem in northern New Jersey, sometimes entering homes in search of food.So I bagged another state today -- New Jersey. Eight down (GA, NC, TN, VA, WV, PA, MD, NJ) and six to go (NY, CT, MA, VT, NH, ME).
Date: 2003-07-11
From: Wildcat Mountain Shelter (NY)

To: Budget America Hotel; Harriman, NY
Miles today: 9.9

Hiked 8:00-5:30. Even tougher than yesterday! Temperatures in the 70¢s, but humid. A whole day of very steep ups and downs, with lots of rock climbing. Actually, a day a kid would love, but an almost-59-year-old would not. Probably the most strenuous day I¢ve had on the whole trek. I was aiming for a shelter at 14.3 miles, but the remaining 4.4 miles promised to be even tougher, so I had no alternative except to find a motel -- and here I am, after a four-mile road walk.Last night was a cool, rainy one -- great for sleeping. Again, no problem with the tarp.At noon I walked a half-mile down the road for a deli lunch. That¢s only about a 15-minute walk each way, so well worth it.Highlight of this day was a classic rattlesnake confrontation. As I was carefully walking across a large rock slab on top of Arden Mountain, I heard the loud rattle, and ten feet away was a huge yellowish rattler (timber, I think), coiled and watching me intently. How I wish I¢d had a camera at that point -- it would¢ve been a great photo.From one of the viewpoints today, you can see the skyline of New York City on a clear day, which this was not. These last two days have been very humbling and discouraging. The vertical profile on the map, unlike yesterday¢s, indicated that today would be tough -- and the rest of New York looks not much better. My only hope is to shorten my targets to about ten miles a day on average. This actually won¢t hurt that much, because such a pace will get me to the railroad station near the Connecticut border next Thursday night, just right for my weekend trip home next Friday.In yesterday¢s journal, I mentioned the toughness of the young people. Aloha and Shaka (guess where they live), a delightful young married couple, are good examples. They think nothing of 25-mile days. Today, they planned a 19.9 miler, starting at the same point I did. I¢ll betcha they made it, too -- while I struggled to do 9.9 -- and Aloha always seems to be enjoying it!You can probably tell that I¢m really struggling these days. It¢s just a matter of survival now until, hopefully, the hiking conditions get better. I¢ve been anticipating easy hiking for a few weeks now, and it hasn¢t happened. I don¢t think it¢s gonna happen, but it has to get easier than these last two days. If not, I¢m finished.
Date: 2003-07-12
From: Budget America Hotel; Harriman, NY

To: William Brien Memorial Shelter
Miles today: 9.7
Weather: few clouds

Things got better today: (1) Sunny, (2) low humidity, (3) not so rocky, (4) almost no rock climbing, (5) big-time trail magic, and (6) light, airy woods hiking.It was still a lot of ups and downs, but much of it was hiking on dirt (as opposed to hiking on rocks, roots, mud, etc.).The thru-hiker Class of ¢98 puts on an annual picnic for the current year¢s hikers, and it was today at the park next to Lake Tioratti. Grilled steaks, salad, fruit, all kinds of nonalcoholic beverages, etc. The Class of ¢98 drove around picking up thru-hikers who were already past that point, so we ended up with about 15 ¢guests¢ (and about ten hosts). I spent three hours there. The party goes on all night tonight and tomorrow.I entered Harriman State Park first thing this morning (and walked over the New York Thruway on a bridge). In the park, the woods seemed to change instantly from dark, gloomy, and dead-tree-filled to light, cheery, and grassy. I don¢t know what causes this difference.When we¢re out in ¢civilization¢ there is a bit of ¢glory¢ to be had by a thru-hiker at this point. Some people know enough to ask when and where we started, and some will explain to their family and friends what we are -- kinda like some rare species: ¢Look, son -- that¢s a thru-hiker. Once in their lifetime, they migrate from Georgia to Maine along the Appalachian Trail. Only about 15 percent make it.¢ ¢Gee, Dad, why would anybody wanna do that?¢¢Nobody knows.¢As I mentioned yesterday, Aloha and Shaka were attempting 19.9 miles (to here, actually), and I was betting they¢d make it, despite the terrain. I was right. They and three or four others pulled it off, though they got here really late. I¢m not sure how late, but I know they were still four miles away at 8:30 -- amazing!Unconfirmed observation: About 20 percent of thru-hikers are smokers -- all of them, except two, that I¢ve seen were young men (in addition to one old guy and one young girl). I¢m greatly surprised at this high number.An observation on rocky trails: Yesterday there was a place where the A.T. and another trail intersected. The other trail was rock-free, but the A.T. was full of imbedded rocks. This would lead me to believe that the A.T. wouldn¢t have to be so rocky.
Date: 2003-07-13
From: William Brien Memorial Shelter

To: Bear Mountain Bridge Motel; Fort Montgomery, NY
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiked 6:15-2:30. A highlight moment this morning at about 7:00. Sunny and cool on top of Black Mountain. All alone, I¢m sitting there eating a frosted chocolate fudge (my second favorite) Pop Tart and drinking berry juice, looking at the New York skyline in the distance -- beautiful!Later, I got another similar view atop Bear Mountain. There, though, a person can drive to the top, so there were at least 200 people present, including about a hundred motorcyclists.One fellow there was an army guy from nearby West Point, who was fascinated with my hike. He, his wife, and two kids had just driven up from church service. So nice to see a family coming from church!Bear Mountain State Park was packed with people this afternoon. All manner of music was playing, and all manner of languages were being spoken. Great place! I ate lunch at the Bear Mountain Inn.The trail goes right through Bear Mountain Zoo (free to thru-hikers), at the end of which is Bear Mountain Bridge across the Hudson River.The next possible campsite was too far away for my tired legs (after another roller coaster day), so I came here instead. Had to come up to Fort Montgomery for supplies anyway. Logistics continue to be a problem in New York -- too steep, too few camping spots, too little water, groceries too far from the trail. Despite the beauty, I¢ll be really glad to get this state behind me.Last night I camped next to a family with Brooklyn accents (very common here). None of them, including the two dogs, knew how to talk at normal volume. As a result, I didn¢t get to sleep until very late. They were all sleeping soundly when I left this morning, so I was thinking about ways to get revenge. Didn¢t do it, though, as I¢m sure you¢ll be glad to know.
Date: 2003-07-14
From: Bear Mountain Bridge Motel; Fort Montgomery, NY

To: Dennytown Road Campsite
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: clear sky

Hiked 7:30-4:45. Yesterday, a lady told me that Nobody was allowed to cross the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge. I didn¢t need to anyway, so didn¢t pay much attention, although, as I walked by it, I noticed traffic at a standstill and red lights flashing. It seems a fellow was threatening to jump (he didn¢t).The trail passes within a half-mile of the Graymoor Monastery, which was once a huge operation but now is largely vacant. The few remaining friars allow hikers to sleep in the picnic pavilion at their ballfield, and the friars even provide free supper for the first 14. I would¢ve loved to see what that was like, but it was only 11:00 when I passed through there.I also crossed Old West Point Road. This is the road used by our Revolutionary War soldiers to march Major Andre (whom all Van Wertians know well) to be hanged.It was another roller coaster day on the trail. However -- and keep this under your hat in case the New York A.T. honchos don¢t already know about it -- there were a few level places! I expect they¢ve already taken the fellow who blazed those level places to the Major Andre Memorial Gallows...Weather again was in the 70¢s -- partly cloudy, pretty nice. I don¢t know what I¢d do if was in the 90¢s.My sleeping bag has become a bit of a problem now that the weather is warm. Mine is a 20-degree (great in cold weather) down (very light) bag. In warm weather, though, it¢s too hot to crawl into. My only other alternative is to sleep on top of it, which may be too cold or may result in mosquito bites. A more experienced backpacker would probably get, say, a 35-degree bag with a removable liner to use when the weather is cold. Then, as the weather warms up, s/he could take out the liner and sleep in the bag -- or, if warmer yet, not use the bag at all, and sleep in the liner. These are the kinds of things you usually learn the hard way. I passed the 1400-mile mark today!
Date: 2003-07-15
From: Dennytown Road Campsite

To: Just north of New York Highway 52
Miles today: 16.3

Hiked 7:30-8:00. New York eased up a bit today -- more nicely-groomed trails, some level hiking, even some switchbacks. This made the roller coaster hike a little more tolerable. Weather continues warm and pleasant.A bunch of girl scouts from Toledo, Ohio, were at the campsite last night (on their way to New York City). We were hoping they¢d have hot dogs left over. They did.There were two thru-hikers there (including me), along with four section hikers. One of the section hikers was ¢Pastor John¢ (his real and trail name, I think), a United Methodist pastor from Gainesville, Georgia.The other thru-hiker, Bag, sleeps in a hammock. Those are becoming quite popular because they¢re so comfortable. They¢re not light and, in cold weather, not warm, but they have netting to keep the bugs out, and they have rain covers. Everybody who has one loves it.Today was one of those ¢tweener¢ days. I could stop at the first shelter (10.7 miles) or really stretch and try for the second shelter at 19.7 miles. I stretched and lost, so here I am in the middle of nowhere. Part of the reason I lost was that I went off the trail by four-tenths of a mile to eat pizza and make some phone calls -- which took me an hour and a half.The reasons I ¢stretched¢: (1) Felt good, (2) reached first shelter at 2:30, and (3) still would like to get to Connecticut before I go home for my ¢2/3 break¢ -- that would be a real morale booster.
Date: 2003-07-16
From: Just north of New York Highway 52

To: Wiley Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: light rain

Hiked 6:30-6:45. Because I fell short in yesterday¢s ¢stretch¢ effort, I had to go for another one today in order to reach Connecticut (i.e. get rid of New York) tomorrow. I made it, thanks to: (1) Some pasture hiking (which I enjoy very much) beginning at Mile 11, (2) weather clouded up (and cooled down a bit) about Mile 12, (3) nicely-groomed trails beginning about Mile 12, and (4) a hot dog stand at Mile 14.Otherwise, I wouldn¢t have made it nearly this far. It rained last night and was really humid today. Also, the hiking was rocky and roller coastery until the last four miles.So all is set for arrival in Kent, Connecticut, tomorrow and a bus ride from there to New York City early Friday morning. I certainly hope all of the logistics fall into place. I can¢t wait to get home!Much is made in trail posters about Lyme¢s Disease -- and rightfully so. I know of three hikers who¢ve gotten it this year -- and it causes major problems. I¢m not sure if I could tell a deer tick from any other kind of tick, but all of us occasionally find ticks on ourselves. As far as I can tell, I haven¢t been bitten yet (keep up those prayers).Four of us here tonight -- all thru-hikers: Deja Vu and his gorgeous wife, Songbird, along with Texas Jack and myself. All four of us are over 40, and a couple of us are at least pushing 60.
Date: 2003-07-17
From: Wiley Shelter

To: Kent, CT/LaGuardia Airport (NYC)
Miles today: 12.7

Hiked 6:15-2:15. Two good things about today: (1) I made it to Connecticut, and (2) I¢ll be home tomorrow!The hiking was brutal after the first three or four easy miles. Actually, New York went in like a lion (arduous, painful hiking) and went out like a lamb (nicely-groomed trail). Connecticut came in like a lion today -- many steep ups and downs -- boulder hopping, rock slides. I was really hurting by the time I got down to Kent. That¢s nine states down and five to go! Sounds better, doesn¢t it.I had planned on staying at the B&B in Kent tonight and catching the 6:20 A.M. bus (no trains in Kent) to New York City. There was a big misunderstanding, though -- the bus through Kent was at 6:20 P.M -- no morning busses, so here I am.I was a few minutes too late to catch the bus to LaGuardia from Grand Central Station, so it looks like I¢ll be in here all night -- horrible thought! It was a matter of sleeping here or at LaGuardia, neither one a pleasant prospect.Here¢s an example of how slow I walked today. Three guys came into camp late last night, giving us a total of seven people. I was the first one to leave camp this morning. Others in camp were: (a) Two young guys, (b) Deja Vu and his wife, Songbird (probably in their mid-40¢s), (c) Bag, a young guy, and (d) Texas Jack, who appears to be in his mid-60¢s and says he goes about ten miles a day.At about 7:00, while I¢m carefully placing my feet on a steep downhill, the two unknowns almost run by me. About an hour later, while walking on a level road, Deja Vu and Songbird scoot past. At 10:30 or thereabouts, while inching up a steep ascent, Bag goes by, commenting, ¢Isn¢t this great hiking!¢ Fortunately, I never saw Texas Jack, or I¢d probably be coming home to stay.The bus ride through the Bronx, Harlem, Central Park, the Museum Mile, and 42nd Street was really interesting. I¢m glad I got to do that.Weather today was sunny and warm -- mid-80¢s.I¢ll be back with you Monday, the 21st, if all goes well.P.S. After a subway ride and bus ride, I ended up sleeping on the floor at LaGuardia, using my air mattress and sleeping bag. Felt pretty normal, actually.
Date: 2003-07-22
From: Kent, CT/LaGuardia Airport (NYC)

To: Caesar Brook Campsite (CT)
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: light rain

Hiked 10:15-6:30. Another lump-in-my-throat day, just like the last time I had to say goodbye to Rosie. Those are really hard on both of us, especially, I think, when things haven¢t been going well for me on the trail. Fortunately, this was the last such parting, and, hopefully, we¢ll be back together to stay in a couple of months.The bus got me back to Kent yesterday (Monday) at 6:45 in the evening, too late to start hiking. Also, I had to wait until the outfitter opened this morning, because I needed fuel (you¢re not allowed to take fuel on an airplane); thus, the very late start today. I stayed at a lovely (and expensive) inn in Kent last night, which was good because there was a major thunderstorm late in the evening and another one early this morning.Hot and humid today, with a nice midafternoon downpour to cool things off a bit. Hiking was a good variety -- even a few miles of level hiking along the Housatonic River. Other than those few miles, though, it was the usual roller coaster -- not very rocky, however. I should have been able to do more than 13.6 miles in that length of time -- I don¢t know what¢s wrong.Double trail magic today. Thirteen cans of various Adirondack brand sodas at one point and a bag of oranges at another. I wouldn¢t expect much trail magic this far north, because there just aren¢t that many hikers to take advantage of it. For example, there were no empty cans at the one site, and at the other the bag of oranges hadn¢t even been opened until I got there.So how did the weekend at home affect me? The four zero days felt good, and the time with wife, kids, and grandkids was wonderful. It reminded me of how happy my ¢other life¢ is. Of course, this made the return to the trail that much tougher, and I haven¢t recovered from the emotional impact yet. Hopefully, in another day or two I¢ll be back in the hiking groove. Today was a tough one emotionally, though -- that¢s for sure.
Date: 2003-07-23
From: Caesar Brook Campsite (CT)

To: White Hart Inn; Salisbury, CT
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: broken clouds

Hiked 6:45-6:15. Connecticut looked very good today! After a rainy night and morning, the sun came out in the afternoon. Also, the trail, after a lot of morning ascents and descents, became quite civilized. Very few rocks and a lot of variety -- lovely pine forest, meadows, Housatonic riverside hiking (including the Great Falls).Here¢s how the terrain affects speed. With all of those morning ups and downs, it took me seven hours to do the first 9.6 miles. Then the trail changed drastically, and the last 9.7 miles took me 4 1/2 hours. I¢m just very weak on the steep uphills and steep downhills (which I do backwards).The humidity was really high all day. I think this affects my speed quite a bit. There wasn¢t a dry spot on my clothes today -- that¢s for sure. One advantage of sleeping inside is that I can dry out all my wet stuff -- nothing dries outside on days like this.I¢m feeling better mentally today -- only 6.7 miles from Massachusetts.
Date: 2003-07-24
From: White Hart Inn; Salisbury, CT

To: Hemlocks Shelter (MA)
Miles today: 13.4

Hiked 9:15-6:30. I bagged Connecticut today and am now in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. Ten states down and four to go. Sounds easy, eh? However, I¢ve hiked enough in those last three states to know that this is no slam dunk.Today¢s hike was just a mild preview of what¢s to come in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Three big ascents today -- Bear Mountain (CT), Race Mountain (MA), and Mount Everett (MA). All offered spectacular views -- Race Mountain the best by far. All three had steep, rocky descents, which were real challenges for me. The ascents, too, were really rocky, but that doesn¢t cause such a problem.Weather today went from drizzle and stifling humidity to cloudy and breezy to sunny and breezy. Not bad at all.Plato, from Concord, New Hampshire, and I are the only two in this very nice shelter. With all the young bucks on the trail, you expect at least a couple to come breezing in after dark. I¢ve often awakened in the morning to find somebody in the shelter who wasn¢t there when I went to sleep.The bushes were teeming with blueberries today. Must not be many bears here.Bear Mountain¢s top is the highest peak in Connecticut (2316 feet), but isn¢t the highest land in Connecticut. I¢ll leave it to you to figure that one out.It¢s been a nice day!