morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-05-24
From: 501 Shelter

To: Port Clinton, PA/ Stealth Camping at the Pavillion
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: clear sky

It seems that the trail wanted to give me a glimpse of hell today, it was an experience I hope to never have again.I was feeling a tad bit sluggish this morning, so i hit trail at 6:45AM instead of the usual 6:20-6:40AM.The trail today was the rockiest, on a consistent basis, day in Pennsylvania. It was as if the lord of the rocks was sent down to ensure the destruction of every bone in my body.There was not much elevation change today. My mis2ery was due to the rocks and nothing else.At Herlein Campsite I stumbled upon a group of college age kids, presumably out to celebrate the Memorial Day weekend with a little party on the AT.Three miles later I came upon the "Fort Dietrich Snyder Marker", which is a tombstone memorial of some sorts to the French and Indian Wars.After lunch at the junction for the Sand Spring Trail, I continued my push to Port Clinton.Later on the trail follows an old dirt road, and I nearly got lost. The trail was not marked, so I just assumed I was going the right way.After some more rocks and an extremely sharp descent, I rolled into Port Clinton.First I went to the outfitter and learned that their hostel is not up and running. I decided to walk down to the pavillion and tent, this is where I bumped into Cookie. He showed me how to properly pitch my tent.We were about to go to dinner when I realized my debit card was missing. After searching around, I confirmed it must have fallen out of my pocket at some point.Cookie loaned me some money while I handled the situation. I found a local in town who was willing to let me use her phone because there is no cell phone reception here. I contacted my dad and he agreed to wire me money and to send me his debit card for our joint banking account.Tonight I am tenting, and I have a funny feeling I am going to sleep well. Today took its toll on me, my zero tomorrow will be good for my aching body.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-25
From: Port Clinton, PA/ Stealth Camping at the Pavillion

To: Port Clinton, PA/ Port Clinton Hotel
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

I awoke at 2:45AM to the roaring sounds of motorcycles racing into the night. The sound was loud enough to penetrate my earplugs.I reawoke at 6:00AM, and layed around until 6:45AM. This is when Cookie and I waddled down to 3 C's restaurant for breakfast.Afterwards I returned to my tent and started packing up. I also determined what I need to buy when I venture to the grocery store.Cookie and I then walked to the outfitter and looked around a bit. By the time I was fonr with this it was time to wak up to the hotel and wait for Emily.However, that was not needed because she was driving down the street as Cookie and I were walking up it.After checking into the Hote, Emily drove Cookier and me to the grocery store in Hamburg, PA. First, however, was the wild experience of entering a Cabela's. This outfitter caters to hunters and fishers, with some gear for those who might be inclined towards the art of hiking.Afterwards we ventured to the local "market" for resupply. this is also where I received the money my dad wired to me.It was then time to return to Port Clinton to consolidate my food and take a long nap.Cookie decided to hike out three miles, he did not sleep well in town last night due to all the noise. We "agreed" on a meeting spot for the end of our hiking day tomorrow.I spent most of the afternoon napping, as my body requested.Tomorrow I shall march 15-16 miles to a shelter that's supposed to be quite nice.Time to sleep.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-26
From: Port Clinton, PA/ Port Clinton Hotel

To: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter
Miles today: 22.6
Weather: clear sky

Today, I felt like I was indestructable. Today represented my first full day in Pennsylvania in which I was not miserable at some point during the day. It felt nice not to be miserable.After saying good bye to Emily, I started following the white blazes north at 6:40AM.The climb coming out of Port Clinton, in retrospect, was fairly easy. There were plenty of switchbacks, which differed from the straight down descent into town.Once the trail was on the ridge, it was nice hiking for quite a while. At Windsor Furnace there was a sign proclaiming "Katahdin:956.7 miles". It was an exciting moment. It was the first time I relaized I now haveless that 1,000 miles to go.At Windsor Furnace Shelter I checked the non-existent shelter register to see if COokie left me a note, he did not.After another climb I came upon "Pulpit Rock", which is a rock outcropping with a view of the Pennsylvania valley.Hypothetically, "the Pinnacle" was 2.3 miles north of Pulpit Rock, but I missed it. I came to the conclusion that I was zoning out and completely missed it.At Eckville Shelter I had lunch. I once again checked the register to see if Cookie had signed it, which he did not. I was starting to wonder if I had somehow passed Cookie during the day.After lunch at the shelter I climbed one more ridge. On the finak approach to the shelter it became rocky once again. Most of today was either smooth trail or was following an old dirt road. It was a nice change of pace.I rolled into Allentown Shelter to discover no one was here. This is when I realized I did indeed somehow get ahead of Cookier.I was in need of water due to the fact that I ran out fice miles soith of the shelter, so I immediately fetched some and drank until I felt comfortable again.Two section hikers informed me Cookie was behind me and that he was at Windsor Furnace Shelter last night. I naturally assumed he would be here tonight, which was true.Today I bumped into Certain once more. She hiked Springer to Front Royal last year and now she's finishing up the rest of the trail.Tomorrow I shall walk home once more, slowly but surely headding to Maine.In memoriam:To all those who have served, or are serving, in the name of the United Stated if America: Thank you.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-28
From: Palmerton,PA/Jail House Hostel

To: Leroy A. Smith Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

I now completely understand why hikers hate Pennsylvania by the time they leave the state.I was up at 6:00AM this morning. After packing up, Cookie and I went for breakfast at a local diner called Bert's Steakhouse. The food here was good, and the purposeful interior design made you feel like you were living in the 50's.It was then time to hitch back to the trail. It took Cookie and me 30 minutes before a nice lady stopped and picked us up. Whn she first pulled over, her dogs looked ready to take a chunk out of my leg, but they turned out to be friendly dogs.Cookie and I began the ascent out of Lehigh Gap around 8:45AM.The climb out of the gap was amazing, it was the first time I actually felt like I was climbing a mountain in a long time. It's quite steep most of the way, and there are a few spots where you need to use your hands to get up and over a rock face.This climb and the ridge it leads to are barren due to zinc smeltings that ravaged the area for almost 100 years. Efforts began in the 1980's to reforest the area. This area is known as the "Palmerton Superfund Site".Believe it or not, I found the climb out of little gap to be tougher than the one out of Lehigh Gap. This is mainly due to the fact that I was expecting it, and it was extremely rocky of course.Cookie and I had lunch at some view on a blue blaze trail. This is where I called Mechanical Man to see if it was feasible to drop in for the night. After talking with Cookie, we determined it to not be feasible based on our planned milage, timetable, and expecting terrain ahead.The rest of the afternoon was spent walking a viewless ridge with plenty of rocks.I rolled into the shelter at 3:20PM. Todays 15.8 miles were quite tough, I'm happy to be done for the day.Tomorrow I shall march to Deleware Water Gap, PA(DWG), where the PA AT will come to an end. The moment you step on the Deleware River Bridge, you are in NJ.I am looking forward to NJ, mainly because it's not PA.Time for tomorrow.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-29
From: Leroy A. Smith Shelter

To: Deleware Water Gap, PA/Church Hostel
Miles today: 20.2

Dear Pennsylvania,It's been quite a journey through your land, but it fortunately ends tomorrow. I've met someone new, her name is New Jersey. She welcomes weary hikers who manage to escape your wrath. I've also taken the liberty of booking you a one way ticket to hell.                              With no love,                                 KirbyI hope that gives you an insight into what I think about PA. Today was no different.Two hikers decided to roll into the shelter around 10:45PM last night, make a whole bunch of noise, and once they knew I was awake due to their ruckus they asked me to move over so he could sleep in the shelter. Cookie and I repaid the favor by accidentally making lot of noise at 5:15AM.The theme for today was rocks, it was a rock convention today though. PA pulled out all the stops in her last hurrah. There were car sized boulders to scramble over and there were baseball sized rocks that twist your ankle every direction.At Hahn's Lookout I got my first good view of NJ. It felt nice knowing that NJ was soo close.I should mention that spring is in full bloom in the forests of Appalachia. The trees are thick in green, and the floweres are in the midss of blom. The flies are buzzing around, and gypsy moths have become the official species of the AT on a sunny day.There were many spots along the trail where it seems the local maintainers purposefully tilted on their sharpest angle to anger already disgruntled hikers.Then the trail came to a boulder rock scramble known as Wolf Rcks. Don't worry, there are no views to distract you. Believe it or not, this was the second most enjoyable part of the day. Instead of twisting my ankles every possible way, I enjoyed hopping from boulder to boulder.I rolled into Kirkridge Shelter at 11:25AM for lunch. I also bumped into Cookie and Thud here.After lunch I was fired up and ready to go, so I kicked it into high gear. I knew from here that in 6.4 miles I would be symbolically done wth PA. Most of this walk was spent walking n old dirt road, which made for easy walking.At the summit of Mount Minsi, I realized I was close to DWG when I looked over the cliff and could just barely see the river below.There were parts of this descnt that I ran over to alleviate the pain on my knees, I was also feeling pretty good. I was ready to rock and roll.I rolled into town around 2:30PM and proceeded to grab a bunk at the local church hostel. I was forced to resupply in a convenience store seeing as there's no grocery store in town.After lounging around the hostel a bit I split a pizza with Cookie. No signs of food posioning yet.After calling my Grandma, I decided it was time to call it a night, my body needs a good night sleep.Tomorrow I shall enter NJ and march to the Mohican Outdoor Center, where I shall stay the night.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-30
From: Deleware Water Gap, PA/Church Hostel

To: Mohican Outdoor Center
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

I awoke in a sudden state of panic, where's Cookie? I discovered he was not in his bunk, nut his pack was still sitting against the wall. After looking around the hostel, I looked out the door to discover he was lying on his sleeping pad in his sleeping bag on top of the picnic table. Problem solved.I knew all along that today was going to be a short day, so I was in no hurry to hit trail this morning. After eating breakfast I walked down to the local diner with Thud and Cookie for a cup of coffee.I had great conversations with the hikers I had conversations with. It was nice to interact with some people I have not had the opportunity to have conversations with before.Once I returned to the hostel, I packed up and was on trail around 8:30AM. The trail leads you over the Delaware River. Once I was over the middle of the river I celebrated my entrance into NJ, which also meant I was out of PA. I was ready for NJ, PA took its toll on my moral.While it is a 1,000 foot climb out of the gap, it did not feel like it on any level. While it was a little rocky, the climb was very gradual.6.1 miles into my day I came across Sunfish Pond. The significance of this pond is that it's the southern most glacial pond on the trail. This pond made me realize how close I am to the end.There was an eloquent simplicity to walking the perimeter of the pond. The water was still, and there was not an un-natural noise to be heard. it was as if there was no one left but me. It was odd that this tranquility came in NJ, a state with a large population and congestion problems that one can not begin to comprehend.The ridge the trail traversed today was quite nice. There was a lot of exposure, which lead to nice views of the valley on each side.I rolled into the Mohican Outdoor Center(MOC) around 12:00PM, and this is where I'm being put up for the night by the Appalachian Pages. The Trails End Lodge here is quite nice. It has comfortable beds and a nice kitchen facility.After eating a grilled cheese sandwich and settling in, I went for a swim with Cookie and Terry(section hiker) in Catfish Pond, which was quite refreshing.The rest of the afternoon was spent lounging around the MOC. I had a couple cans of soda and a snickers bar.I am looking forward to the trail ahead. At some point we start getting back into more mountainous terrain.Tomorrow I shall follow the blazes, most likely white, north some more.And that's the way it was.Kirby
Date: 2008-05-31
From: Mohican Outdoor Center

To: Gren Anderson Shelter
Miles today: 20.9
Weather: mist

NJ is a state that is renewing my spirits and raising my morale once more. This state is also making me feel like I'm almost home. It's and odd sensation.I was up at 5:30AM this morning. After eating five packets of oatmeal and packing up I was on trail at 6:15AM.The climb out of the MOC was fairly easy, although there were some rocks that needed to be scrambled over.The ridge this climb leads one to had some nice rock ledges with simplistic views of the NJ valley below.Although there's a "No Trespassing" sign on the fire tower, I went ahead and broke NJ state law and climbed up a couple flights of stairs to have a nice view.North of Blue Mountain Road the weather proceeded to go downhill as I was going up. This consisted of light rain, wind, and one rumble of thunder that kicked me into high gear.A lot of the ridge today had exposure. The trees were in full bloom, but they were barely taller than me. There were also patches of land with no trees, which raised the hair on the back of my neck seeing as a storm was chasing me.At some point Cookie caught me along the ridge. He made an attempt at imitating a bear, but for some reason it did not work all that well.At Brink Road Shelter I had some lunch, which was a nice break from the persistent drizzle blanketing northern NJ.The climb out of the shelter was easy, and the ridge had some nice views.At Culver's Gap I bopped into a convenience store near the rail and purchased a soda and Gatorade. This is where Terry was due to leave trail, so we exchanged contact information. Cookie and I then continued north.Three miles later we came to Gren Anderson Shelter, my home for tonight. The shelter is full and there are some tenters about.Onward and upward tomorrow.Good night, and good luck.Kirby
Date: 2008-06-01
From: Gren Anderson Shelter

To: Jim Murray's Cabin
Miles today: 18.7

Slowly, but surely, I feel like I am hiking the mountains of Appalachia once more. All the views to the east today had multiple ridge lines, the first time in a while it was not just simply a never ending valley.Wake up call was 5:20AM. After completing the usual morning chores I was on trail at 6:05AM.The climb to the summit of Sunrise Mountain was slippery due to the rain storm that moved through last night. On the summit there was a nice pavilion made of stone which had views to the east and west. I have come to immensely enjoy the views that the NJ AT offers, mainly because it is completely different from PA.At Mashipacong Shelter, if you don't pay close attention, you may well loose the trail. When you pop out of the woods into the open field with the shelter there's a well beaten path straight ahead. However, the trail curves to the left of the shelter. I was fortunate to remain on trail, but Cookie ended up walking an extra mile.High Point Monument was nothing special. The view from the top is the exact same one afforded below. The side trail was poorly marked and there was a persistent wind at the base of the tower.After that, it was smooth sailing to the cabin junction. The trail spent most of the time in the woods, but every now and then it would meander through an interesting open field.I did encounter a turtle on the trail today, a first in my hiking life. It was relaxing in the middle of the trail when I stumbled upon it. Never did I think I would encounter a turtle on the AT before encountering a bear.Jim Murray has a nice set up here for long distance here for long distance hikers(only). There is a hot shower, running water, electricity, and donkeys/mules scattered about an open field. There is also a cabin with an upper floor for hikers to sleep on. Cookie and I decided to walk one mile to Unionville, NY for some ice cream, which hit the spot for me.Tomorrow I have my eyes set on Vernon, NJ, where I need to resupply and picke up some mail.I would like to wish the best of luck to southbounders, whose hiking season unofficially began today.And that's the way it was.Kirby
Date: 2008-06-02
From: Jim Murray's Cabin

To: Vernon, NJ/Church Hostel
Miles today: 13.2

Another day in the books. It was another day of walking north, another day in which I crept closer to the greatest mountain.I was on trail at 6:00AM once more. My focus today was getting to Vernon, NJ.The trail out of the shelter was fairly favorable, allowing me to cruise along at a pretty good pace for the first part of the day.The trail spent of the first several hours of the day cutting through different open fields and meandering across silent country roads.Eventually the trail walking the perimeter of a National Wildlife Pond Refuge. Even though the Federal Government screws up a lot of things, this is one example of the feds getting things right. The pond was buzzing with wildlife ranging from ducks to birds to many species of insect.The trail then traverses you over a ridge with no views. The ridge line consisted of scrambling up many rocks faces that seemingly come out of no where.After descending off the ridge the trail then traversed one straight mile of boardwalk. This is here because there is a large marsh field that the trail would do massive amounts of damage to over the course of time.There were a lot of bog bridges in general today. It seems that this area is heavily saturated. It must have taken a whole lot of work to put in all those bridges. Thanks to all who made that possible.I rolled into NJ 94 around 11:45AM, and Cookie and I rolled into the church hostel about 20 minutes later after a fairly easy hitch into Vernon.Over the course of the afternoon I did laundry, took a shower, and resupplied at the grocery store. I also added a few entries to my journal.I also created the groundwork for a trip into NYC Saturday night, Sunday, with a return Monday morning to the trail. I am looking forward to this trip, it will be a nice change of pace from the everyday grind of the trail.Well, time to sleep, 17 miles is on the docket for tomorrow.And that's the way it was.Kirby
Date: 2008-06-03
From: Vernon, NJ/Church Hostel

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 17.1
Weather: overcast clouds

It was as if the heavens approved my request for a good day, a day with no flaws. It was as if someone wanted me to have a day of perfection. It was a day to remember.Wake up call at the hostel was the usual 5:30AM. As usual, I had no need to hurry. After partially packing up my bag I walked to Dunkin Donuts for breakfast. Back at the hostel I ate breakfast and finished packing up. At 6:50AM Cookie and I prepared to hitch out of town.Hitching out of Vernon was a nightmare. It took Cookie and me 30 minuts before someone finally came and picked us up. Apparently cops in this area strictly enforce NJ's law banning hitchhiking. We were lucky that no cop saw us violate state law. I would think they have better things to do with their time.I was walking north at 7:30AM this morning. The climb out og NJ 94 was fairly easy, and I was on the ridge in no time.There was nothing interesting about the approach to the NJ/NY border. I was entirely focused on entering NY that even if there was something interesting I would have completely missed it. Hello NY. I was welcomed into the state with an amazing ridge line walk. .4 north of the border is the highest point on the AT in NY, which is called "Prospect Rock", which is really an exposed ridge line. This ridge offers views of several paralleling ridge lines along with Greenwood Lake below. This is where Cookie and I decided to take a break. During the break I called Tin Man of Whiteblaze.Net fame to confirm he would be able to pick Cookie and me up in Pawling, NY Monday morning. After I confirmed he could I called and left a message for A-Traub confirming everything was good to go for NYC this weekend.After some more ridge line walking over car sized boulders I came upon NY route 17A. Cookie and I decided to walk .1 down the road so we could buy ice cream. We both went with vanilla ice cream mixed with white chocolate and fresh raspberries.The trail then came to the "Eastern Pinnacles", which is another exposed ridge line rock scramble that had the same views as Prospect Rock. Just south of the shelter there was one more boulder scramble appropriately named "Cat Rocks".Tonight I am at Wildcat Shelter with Cookie, Footmachine, Rabbit'sfoot, and two other hikers I can't remember the names of, they are out for a long distance section hike.Time to sleep.Good night, and good luck.Kirby