morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-03-08
From: US Route 30

To: Ironmaster's Hostel
Miles today: 19.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Today was a hell of a day! We had hoped to do 20 miles to the Ironmaster's Hostel, at Pine Grove Furnace State Park, to avoid a night in 15 degree weather in a shelter. However, we had shelters at 10 and 16 miles to bail out if we couldn't make it. We quickly hitched back to the Trail and at 7:45 am we were at the trail head on the north side of Route 30. The temperature was 10 degrees, with no wind. The sky was a clear blue, with not a cloud. There was 6 inches of powdery snow on the Trail, which made the going difficult. We saw no one all day, and rarely saw human footprints. Rocky generally leads, but today we alternated leading to give each other a breather while breaking the trail thru the snow.After we climbed out of Caledonia State Park, at Route 30, we came upon two Christmas trees, decorated with Easter eggs--a nice touch by the trail maintainers. Our first break was at 2.7 miles at the beautifully maintained Quarry Gap Shelters. We have been impressed by the conditions of all the shelters we have passed. PATC does a great job of maintenance.Lunch was on the locked porch of the Milesburn Cabin, at 1 pm. We reached the projected halfway point of our proposed trek at 2:30 pm, at the Birch Run Shelters. Swamp Fox was hurting, and was of a mind to stay, while Rocky wanted to push on. However, after he thought about getting chilled for the rest of the afternoon and evening, he agreed to push on to the next shelter, 6 miles away. At least we would be warm while hiking, although the temperature never got above 35 degrees.We got to Toms Run Shelters at 5:30 pm for a quick snack. We both wanted to push on the remaining 3.7 miles to Ironmaster's Hostel, even though this would mean hiking in the dark. Swamp Fox hates the idea of night hiking, but a warm building was too tempting. It took us two hours to make it to Ironmasters. Rocky did wonders picking our way in the dark over a winding trail for the last mile or so. We staggered into Ironmaster's at 7:30 pm.Ironmaster's is an 1827 masonry mansion that was an Underground Railroad stop. It is magnificent building. The caretaker was very kind to us and showed us the food we could use for a great dinner. The only other guest was an Australian student, named Matthew.After dinner Rocky went out like a light, while Swamp Fox scribbled these notes. Tomorrow will be an easier day.
Date: 2005-03-18
To: AT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Well, I'm getting the last of the preperations done for this hike. Sometimes I wonder if I'm going to be ready when it's time to leave. I'm such a procrastinator! Anyway, I'm getting ready to go to the farmers market right now and buy lots of good fruits and veggies to dehydrate for the trail. :-P
Date: 2005-03-21
To: AT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I spent another $100 today. It was all little stuff such as waterproof matches and toilet paper (plus a poncho/tarp and some clothes). I found the best shirt at the store this afternoon. It's poly/lycra but it feels just like cotton. The only problem is it's white and that will just not do in the woods. So what do I do? Buy a tie-dye kit, of course! I'm not sure how well the dye will stick since it's fake fabric (not natural), but anything will be better than white. --for those of you wondering why white won't work, it's because I will completely dirty it up...being in the woods and all-- The money I spend just keeps adding up. Luckily my cousin-in-law gave me a bunch of stuff to use on the hike. How incredibly nice of him. :-D I've got everything I need now plus some extras. My next order of duty is actually packing my backpack. I need to make sure everything fits and pray that it doesn't weigh over 40 pounds. YIKES!
Date: 2005-03-28
To: AT
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

It's almost five in the morning. I have so much left to do, but I'm afraid to wake everyone. We leave for Atlanta right after Easter lunch. I'm starting to get nauscious from all the last minute worry. The other day I was looking at the clouds and I totally saw the Smokey Mountains. Hahaha. One might think I'm getting excited about this. ;-) By the way, the tie-dye did not work at all. :-( The two shirts actually turned out beautiful so it was pretty depressing watching all that dye just wash right out. So after doing some research online bought some Crayola Fabric Crayons. They are made specifically for polyester and poly blends. All you do is draw on a piece of paper and then iron it on the fabric. So...after my sister drew this beautiful picture my brother-in-law said "you can't iron that - it'll melt". Will I ever get cool looking shirts?! Apparently not! Now I'm doubly sad. :-( I hope that I'll be able to upload pictures from my digital camera while I'm away. If not, you guys will get flooded with pictures after a long time without. Whichever way it works out, I plan on taking a lot of pictures! :-)I want to take this moment to invite everyone to sign my guestbook - especially those who are going to try and meet me out on the trail.*hint,hint* I also want to apologize for my horrible spelling and grammer. I am a Math person, NOT an English person. Alright, now that that's cleared up, any questions or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. :-)I look forward to the next entry.........on the trail. Yipee!!! :-D
Date: 2005-03-28
To: Amicalola Falls State Park
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

This is it! I'm outside of Atlanta at my sister's place. We'll be leaving here shortly to drop her off at the airport and me off at the approach trail in Amicalola Falls. OMG!! I'm so excited! I filled out the maildrops up to Harpers Ferry. I'll update the rest later. My goal is to make it to Hot Springs in time for TrailFest. That would be so much fun. Well, I must go jump in the shower and enjoy it. I don't know when the next time I'll get a hot shower is. Later ya'll!!!!
Date: 2005-03-28
From: Amicalola Falls

To: Springer Mtn
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: light rain

Jim dropped me off at Amicalola Falls at about 6:30/6:45 AM. He dropped me off right at the bass of the falls (not the approach trail) so I just hiked around for an hour plus. I finally made it to the approach trail. It took me for-E-ver to finish. With all the hiking I've done, it is NOTHING compared to going up mountains. I've been walking so slowly and taking such little steps because I'm afraid of losing balance or stepping on a rock wrong and twisting my ankle. Speaking of balance - I was scared for the first few hours walking up mountains with a 45/50 pound pack on my back. I could just see myself leaning and falling down a mountain because my pack says "okay, I guess we're going this way". Seriously though, I've been so worried about the mental part of this journey that I had no clue what I was in for physically. Hopefully as I eat more food my pack will become a little more comfortable. It's amazing how quickly you realize what you do and don't need...for instance, a pack cover. I totally thought I could do without one and not spend the money. Instead I bought a pomcho that can fit over a pack. Packs get very heavy when they get wet. By the time I realized this I finally removed my pack and pulled out my poncho. This is a two person ordeal! I could not get that poncho over my pack for the life of me. So I bend over (which is a huge feat with a pack on) and quickly stand back up throwing my arms up and back hoping the poncho will have enough momentum to fall gracefully over my pack. It totally backfired! Instead when I stood upright the pack pulled me back even farther. I hit a small tree and that made me lose even more balance. So I reach for my hikin stick to brace myself. Bad idea since it was just a stick leaning on a rock. The whole ordeal ends with me on all fours in the mud. Lovely! I finally made it to Springer Shelter by about 6pm. It was such a COLD night. I slept horribly!
Date: 2005-03-29
From: Springer Mtn

To: Hawk Mountain 
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: clear sky

I slept in (because I didn't want to get out of my sleeping bag) and am now having a lovely warm breakfast of cream of wheat and warm chocolate. It's not hot chocolate because things cool down fast when it's cold and windy out. It's very sunny out today which should help my spirits. :-) Let's see how slow I can hike today.-----------------------------------------------------------------It's Wed morning. I didn't roll into Hawk Mtn Shelter till probably 9ish. Night hiking was fun until I got to a creek crossing. I could not see the other side of the trail at all. My little headlamp was shining at every tree in my paranoia. It was depressing too because I could see the lights from the shelter (camp fires and such) but couldn't find the trail that led to them. :-( Actually, that was the main downside of night hiking...the constant worry of accidentally following a side trail or even worse - an aniaml trail. I DO NOT want to get lost on a mountain. That would totally suck. So far I'm averaging like a mile and hour. I get to meet everyone though (because so many people pass me). :-) It's all good! Spry (guy from NJ) just called me Butterfly as in Social Butterfly. :-) Apparently I need to run it by a group first to see if they approve. We'll see. :-)
Date: 2005-03-30
From: Hawk Mountain 

To: Justus Creek
Miles today: 6.0
Weather: clear sky

Sassafras Mountain kicked my ass! Three freakin' mountains in one day! Luckily I put fresh batteries in my radio (they ran out in day 2!) so I had music to get me over them. Music is so rejuvinating. I find that hip-hop and rap are my favorite types to listen too while hiking. It's such moving music....haha, moving as in dancing so it gets my feet moving. ;-) The radio is also great to hear weather reports. It always helps when you know to get everything rain ready. Speaking of rain...I didn't make it to Gooch Mountain Shelter last night. Instead I ended up setting up camp at Justis Creek with Lil'Red and Oaky (past thru-hiker) and Todd (this guy quit his high end job at CNN in D.C. to hike :-). It was beautiful! I got to sleep in my hammock for the first time. It was so comfy swinging with the sound of running water as my lullaby. Well...the rain didn't start to drip in unitl the morning. It's because I don't have a real tarp. Oh well. I just can't wait to get to Neel's Gap where I can get rid of shit I don't need and buy the shit I do. Oaky made a lot of fun of me. That's what I get for not doing practice hikes. Oh well. You learn fast out on the trail. Three days to be exact.
Date: 2005-03-31
From: Justus Creek

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: heavy intensity rain

Does March really have 31 days? Well, once again I didn't make it to a shelter. It's all good though because I sleep better away from snorers and chewing mice. I had another first - packing up my stuff in the pouring rain. That sucked, but what can you do? I hiked up Gooch Mountain Shelter and hung out till it stopped raining. It was cool because a boy scout troop dropped in as well. It was also cool because the picnic table was under the shelter. So we all cooked breakfast while it was pouring rain and drank coffe and hot chocolate to warm up. The rain eventually let up (around noon) and we were off to Woody Gap. It's great because I'm starting to build a family of slow hikers. Unfortunately Lil'Red is leaving after Neels Gap to go back to school (she's a high school math teacher from Tennessee). :-( I saw the most beautiful waterfall/spring coming out of a mountain just past Jack's Gap. We ended up setting up camp just across Rte 60. It is a beautiful site. I can't wait to actually see it in daylight. Apparently there's a huge storm coming from Alabama with massive thunderstorms so I don't know what time I'll get out of here tomorrow. Besides a big rock wall on one side (kinda an L-shape actually) you can see a ton of city lights over the cliff. We can't tell what city it is though. Today I saw a salamander and a bunch of milipedes and snails. Yesterday on some mountain I saw two hawks flying just above me. Eventually they were flying below me --only on a mountain top can you experience such beauty. That, my friends, is what keeps me going, no matter how much pain I get and how heavy my pack is. If you could experience what I am you would understand. Well, I guess I should get to bed before the storm comes overhead. (hey, that rhymes) ;-) Oh, I almost forgot the most important part of the day - my trialname. It's official now......I present to you Saxy Lady! (get it? saxophone?) :-DGoodnight Ya'll
Date: 2005-04-01
From: Woody Gap

To: Thru-Hikers Hostel
Miles today: 10.7

I can't belive I forgot this yesterday, but I completed my very first trail trade. Actually it was a rental. I was going to mail home my Data Book since I wasn't using it. Music Man & Firefly mentioned that they needed to pick one up. We were at a mountain spring refilling our water (so beautiful outside). So I rented my my book for a granola bar and some peanut butter M&Ms. It was awesome! I felt so official. :-D They'll just mail the book to my mom's once they're done with it. Okay, so on with today. I never really got to see what the campsite looked like because the fog was so thick. Oh well. Lil'Red and I pushed on with the goal of getting to Neels Gap. We climbed up and up Blood Mtn missing every cool view because of the fog. The weather report was looking nasty. The major storm never came at night - only some rain. Knowing this we took Freeman's Trail instead of topping Blood Mtn. It's not safe to be on the top of a mountain while it's lightning outside. Freeman's Trail (a blue blaze) was tough, but breathtaking. It was waterfall after waterfall after waterfall. Definitely a less traveled trail, I was surrounded by pristine wilderness. We finally made it to Neels Gap at about 5pm. That was more miles I had hiked in one day since I started. I wore myself out, but it was a blast having a hiking partner. I stayed at the Thru-Hikers Hostel at Josh & Lee's very large mountain home. Lil'Red let me stay in her room since everyone around was booked (bad weahter will do that). Talk about getting pamperred. We had our own private room with a queen sized bed and private full bath. How am I supposed to survive the trail now when this is my first hostel experience? Actually I'm itching to get back out there. When Josh was shuttling us to this house we were winding around mountain roads. There was a gorgious waterfall cascading down this one mountain. I was just staring up at the hillside, face pressed up against the car window thinking how cool it would be to be up there amongst those trees - a rather frequent thought when I'm on roadtrips. It was a total "duh" moment because that's what I'm doing out here. I'm sure a night in town won't be that bad.
Date: 2005-04-02
From: Neels Gap

To: Walasi-Yi Inn
Miles today: 0.0

After a very long shower and a wonderful nights sleep in an actual bed I feel great. Lee made breakfast at the hostel. We had begian waffles, scrambled eggs, grits, orange juice and coffee. Pampering all the way. I am so glad I was there and not outside last night. The thunderstorms were horendous. I was also super excited about hiking on a nice sunny day like today. Unfortunately it's snowing.....very very hard - horizontally actually. Damnit! Tonight I'm staying in the hostel at Neels Gap. This is my first REAL hostel expericence. Its' not fancy in the least bit, but there's much hotter guys here. ;-) Actually it's like a little reunion of everyone that passed me a long time ago. I just hope I can get out there tomorrow. I don't think I can handle another day in society. This morning I got my pack torn apart at the shop here. The rule of thumb is if you haven't used it in 3 or 4 days - get rid of it! Boy did I have a lot to get rid of. I spent $500 alone! However I now have hiking poles which are apparently a necessity as well as the coolest tent that exists on the trail - the Hubba. Now I don't have to pack my pack in the rain. Isn't that hilarious that the dry nights I stayed in the shelters and the rainy nights I slept in the woods? Anyway, my pack is at least 15/20 pounds lighter and I created a bounce box. Everything is good now (except for my wallet). I'm sick of writing now so maybe I'll come back to this later.----------------------------------------------------------------------So I'm chillin' in the shelter with snow accumilating outside. Mr.Fusion who I hiked the approach trail with is here. :-) He works some gov't job in D.C. Apparently that place makes you want to run away into the woods. ;-) I'm also with two very hot guys who don't have trail names yet. I met them (and their parents) below Springer Mtn on day 2. And to think I'd never see these people again. We're getting pizza delivered tonight. I'm going in on one with Very Fine. How hilarious - VeryFine & SaxyLady. ;-) I went from a queen bed to a room full of bunk beds. I'm actually very excited. I bet a lot of bonding goes on in the hostels just like at the shelters. Oaky is here too. We all had lunch with Lil'Red before parting ways. If I make it to Damascus in time for Trail Days then we can all have a reunion again. I am loving this trip more and more as the days progress. I hope I keep this momentum up. I'm a little too tree happy to see myself slip anyway. :-D
Date: 2005-04-03
From: Neels Gap

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: clear sky

Oaky and I headed out from the hostel at the crack of dawn. It was such a pretty climb because of all the snow on the mountainsides. It was super windy and cold because of it. Eventually the sun got higher and that helped us warm up a bit. I wore my new jacket and it worked wonders to block the wind. :-) Unfortunately it kept all my body heat in and for the first time out here my armpits stunk. I shouldn't complain because a windbreaker is more important than B.O. but I was kind of priding myself on the fact that I didn't stink as much as everyone else. ;-) Overall it was a beautiful hike on a beautiful day. A bunch of us from the hostel ended up camping out at Low Gap Shelter including Jersey Fresh and Very Fine. We got there so early, but no one wanted to hike another 7.5 to the next shelter so we all hung out there. I met a man from Charlotte so we had the NC thing going on. We chilled into the night by a roaring fire. It was very pleasant. After the sun went down Wiggy decided to hike on. This is the strongest (or craziest) 18 year old I know. I set up my tent for the first time. The Hubba is SO easy and I love how much room is inside such a little tent. I slept well ignoring the fact that I was on a slight hill and kept sliding down all night and having to push myself back up.
Date: 2005-04-04
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Mr.Mr. Fusion and I took it slow getting ready. It was awesome because we hiked together all day. We¢re about the same pace which is nice. He¢s who I met at the beginning of the approach trail a week ago. I thought he was super fast, but it was all his friend Aaron pushing him. We had some great conversations and even rapped a little. ;-) (another pop culture fan) the coolest thing we found out is that we lived in Spain at the same time. He was born in Iran and a couple months later moved to Spain which is when I was born. (both have Navy dads) It is such a small world. :-D After trekking up Blue Mtn we made it to the shelter. There was a lot of daylight left and I mentioned I would feel guilty if I stayed the night there. Then a whole schlew of people showed up after a 17 mile day. INSANE! So Mr. Fusion joined me and we headed down the mountain. Oaky was camped out at Unicoi gap with cold Coke & Dr. Pepper and Wendy¢s fries waiting for us. He is too kind. It¢s kind of weird sleeping at the bass of a monster mountain you get to climb the next morning. It just stares at you. Hahaha. Let me give a quick assessment of me: I have no water purification system. I meant to get this cool iodine thing that lasts through 2000 Liters and left Neel¢s Gap without buying it. So right now I¢m relying on the goodness of others. I have broken out all around my waist, butt, and back of my thighs. Gold Bond works wonders though. It¢s kind of grossing me out just because I¢ve never experienced that. My feet are doing great so far. The tenderness is wearing aweay. Umm¢¦.and that¢s about it. :-)
Date: 2005-04-06
From: Addis Gap

To: The Blueberry Patch
Miles today: 5.3

I woke up early because there¢s no hiding from the sun when you¢re outside. I had an orange and an apple, which were deliciously juicy. They were making eggs but they scrambled sausage into ¢em so I couldn¢t partake. It¢s all good though. Mr. Fusion and I set off for Hiawassee. Somehow I pulled six miles out of my arse after a night of wine. He shot on ahead of me after the first two big climbs. When I got to Hwy 76 we worked our magic and hitched a ride to the Blueberry Patch ¢ a Christian Hostel. I hitchhiked for the first time ever! I¢m glad I had someone else with me because otherwise I would have chickened out and hiked the 3.5 miles down the highway. The hostel is great. I¢ve been hearing about breakfast at this place for days now and I¢m finally here. Oaky took up residence here to heal up so it was wonderful seeing him again. It turns out he got blood poisoning from an infected blister. Yucky! Sam-I-Am and Oragami who were partying last night at Addis are here too. So is the Brewmaster. Now he is a cool guy. He is now a retired Biochemistry Professor and is doing the AT as his retirement present. I could sit and listen to Brewmaster and Mr. Fusion talk for hours. I just feed off the exchange of intelligence. It¢s actually kind of funny, being the tree hugger I am, that I¢m attaching myself to the doctor, professor, and defense contractor. Who would have guessed?! It¢s Wednesday night and Gary & Lennie took us to their church. We had a free meal, which was nice. It was Missionary night at their Baptist church and Gary led the group by talking about the mission of the Blueberry Patch. It¢s awesome what they do. Before church we took a nice stroll into town. Actually it involved riding in the back of Gary¢s truck. That was a blast riding through the mountains with the wind whipping. It was Oragami, Sam-I-Am, Mr. Fusion and I. We were talking about how riding a roller coaster would totally freak us out after being on the trail for days. I had French fries and a McFlurry from McDonald¢s. The fries were so hot and delicious. When we got back to the Blueberry Patch I took a nice hot shower while Lennie & Gary washed my clothes. It was a fun filled day overall. Let¢s see how good this famous breakfast tastes in the morning. I almost forgot the fun part of the night¢¦.girl talk finally! I chatted with Katrin while everyone eavesdropped. With so many men out here and the few women being attached you don¢t get much girl talk in the woods. Thank you, Katrin. ;-)