morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-25
From: Indian Grave Gap

To: Clyde Smith Shelter
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: few clouds

Pleasantly enough I didn't get cold last night, even with pitching the tent on the snow. It looked like it was going to be a pretty good day. The sun was out but it was still cool and the wind was blowing a bit. We got started around eight. It is always a game at the start of the day to see who leads off. If we start on an uphill Poet usually leads. She has a good pace and when she gets rolling she can move. I can start on a downhill because that is one place where I can move quickly. Today, however, was an uphill and Poet led. We went up and over Beauty Spot. Last year couldn't see five feet in front of me due to the fog. This year it was covered in a lot of snow and the wind was blowing pretty hard. We did have a view but we didn't stay long. After Beauty Spot we hit Unaka Mtn. Andy and I went ahead because Poet, Free, and Serenity were taking a Nutella break. Those three will put Nutella on anything and eat it! Can't bring myself to try some of their concoctions yet. Unaka Mtn. is a steep climb and it was bad today because of all the snow and ice. Very slippery in parts. Andy commented on the fact that he left his crampons and ice picks at home. We finally made it to the top and then the fun started. The backside was all mud and slush! Trying to go down that was an exercise in dexterity. I made it own without falling but the descent took its toll on my left knee. It was letting me know it was there. We got to Cherry Gap Shelter where, to my surprise, I saw Gypsy and Touk. They were slackpacking back into Erwin. We talked about where we would be when so hopefully they will catch up. I asked Touk if she would carry something back to Break for me. She looked at me suspiciously and I laughed, telling her this was legit and not a bottle of perfume. I showed her the Snickers bar and told her that we had completed six weeks on the trail and it was a present for her. Touk laughed and said that it was worthy of carrying so I wrote a note to Break and gave the package to Touk. They left and Poet, Free, and Serenity came in. They did not fare as well coming down and showed their mud stains to prove it. We all had lunch and started on the 8.8 mile afternoon journey. Poet, Andy, and I reached Iron Mtn. Gap where I saw Vinny and Toolman. I introduced them to the others and told Andy and Poet I first ran into those two in Hiawassee. We chatted a bit and then headed on. The last mile before the shelter was driving me nuts! My knee hurt, I was tired and it seemed like I would never get there. I started thinking I had passed it and this time with my glasses on! I finally reached it and I pitched my tent. AWOL,(different AWOL than the '03 one) and Mr Clean Jr. were already there. Andy, Poet, Serenity, and Free also showed at various times.We camp together, start out together, hike at various times together, but the five of us don't always walk together at the same time. Different paces and all that. Tomorrow we go over Roan Mtn. and there is a 100% chance of rain in the afternoon. I really want to beat the rain!
Date: 2005-04-26
From: Clyde Smith Shelter

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: overcast clouds

had tunnel vision today. Get over Roan and to the shelter as fast as I could. Poet started ahead of us and the rest of us followed shortly thereafter. The weather was OK for now but as we moved the wind was picking up and I watched the clouds rolling in. I pulled ahead of the group and soon reached the beginning of the climb to Roan. Roan is 6100+ feet but it is a little deceiving. The first hill you climb is Beartown Mtn. Then you go back down and after that you start the climb up Roan. Beartown starts with switchbacks and then Roan smacks you with no switchbacks. The wind was picking up as I ascended. There was a lot of snow still up there and I was glad I was not caught up there when the storm hit last Saturday. I reached the top and kept moving. It was cold and the wind was blowing. I started down the backside and made it to Carver's Gap and here the wind was really blowing. I dumped my garbage in the can there and as I made my way back to the trail I saw Poet. She and I started up Round and Jane Bald. The wind was blowing at a steady 25 MPH and gusts that were hitting 35 MPH. It was really tough to stay on the trail much less stay upright! As we climbed I would turn around and watch as the weather moved in. The top of Roan was soon enveloped in fog and after awhile the area we just covered was fogged in. The rain still had not begun. Finally got over the balds with a little windburn to the right cheek. By now, Poet had pulled ahead and I caught up with her shortly before Overmountain Shelter. We pushed on and reached it around 3:30. Overmountain Shelter is an old barn converted to a shelter which meant four walls and roof. We got settled in and then the rain started. I had done it! Made it here before the rain and not just rain, but fog, a very thick fog had also rolled in. The barn was starting to fil up. AWOL, Cycle Hiker, Swamp Thing, Draggin, Tree Trunks, Mr. Clean Jr., the five of us and more coming in. Pacman and Linux showed up. They said they weren't sure if Break was going to push in. At this point I counted 19 people here so far.As it got dark Break showed up. She said she had a heck of a time on the balds and that she was glad to be here. By now it was dark when we heard voices yelling outside. Two more hikers trying to find their way in the fog. They were guided by voice and it turned out to be Toolman and Vinny. I think it ended up with 28 or so people there. Even though the wind blew through the barn I think everyone was glad to be out of it and out of the rain.
Date: 2005-04-27
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Campsite by Elk River
Miles today: 14.9

It was a cold but clear morning. At least for the time being. Weather report called for a chance of showers later today. I was up early and started my water boiling. It was the first time in a couple of weeks where Break and I had ended up in the same place so I did the two cup water boil for two cups of hot cocoa. Poet, Serenity, and I left first. Free was going to take her time getting out today and Andy was going to take it easy because his foot was bothering him. I was in the lead and started the climb up Little Hump Mtn. Now Little Hump is not a mountain in the sense of what we have been climbing. It is a bald from the bottom to the top and the wind blows here like it did yesterday. Because of this I was able to even out my windburn because this wind was on the left cheek. After Little Hump came Hump Mtn. which is exactly like Little Hump but much bigger. By this time Swamp Thing, Poet, and Draggin were the only people I saw as I looked around. As I was walking up Hump I was looking for the steer that inhabited the area. No such luck which was a bit disappointing. At least the weather held as we went across. I found out later that sleet and hail caught a bunch of people that came out of the shelter later. I was in cruise mode and I reached the Apple House Shelter around 11:30. I got a surprise when I saw Ranger there. I thought she was a couple of days ahead but she had gotten caught in the snowstorm and had pulled off at Greasy Creek. She was getting off for a few days so I told her we would leave her notes in the registers. A little while later Poet and Free showed up. Free had had a vision of a hot lunch and that is why she had put it into high gear. It took all of two seconds for them to twist my arm to come along. We got to the road and walked the mile to Buck's. We ordered food and took it over to The Beer Wash (real name, no joke). We ate and washed lunch down with a couple of adult beverages. After stuffing ourselves we hitched back to the trailhead and started the last seven miles of the day. Note to self; do not plan on seven miles after doing this! It was a slow go but we finally made it to the campsite. On the way we caught up with Andy and Serenity. They had taken a long time at Apple House Shelter. We set up camp, ate, and then Poet and Serenity read a story aloud from the book Poet was carrying. It was quite a funny story! I also noticed the sky was clearing so it looked like it was going to be a rain free night. Another great day on the trail!
Date: 2005-04-28
From: Campsite by Elk River

To: Moreland Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Again, I awoke to a sunny morning but with a little twist. The tent was covered inside and out with frost! All of our tents were. I was surprised because I did not get cold last night but it was chilly when I got out of the sleeping bag. It was going to be a fairly short day so the girls declared it "play" day. Play day means you stop at every nook and cranny and play. I just felt like walking so I headed out. After an hour I felt like music so I put the earplugs in. This is the first time this hike that I have listened while I hiked. Usually I just listen a little before I go to sleep. It wasn't a bad walk and I was just ambling along. The clouds were beginning to move in again which meant it was going to rain again. This is getting a little out of hand. It wouldn't be bad if it was warm but this cold spell makes the rain feel much worse and you get chilled to the bone. Around 12:30 I reached the top of a hill that had a nice sitting log on it. I decided that it was a good place for lunch. I took out the tent so I culd get it dry before the rains came. I sat there for about an hour eating, relaxing, and reading. I then shouldered the pack and headed down the hill. Much to my surprise, when I reached the bottom of the hill I saw the shelter we were planning on staying at tonight. I had to laugh at that. I expected I had another three miles to go. AWOL, Captain Chaos, and Draggin were already there. I knew it was going to be crowded here tonight. This shelter acts as a lay up point before making the 6.5 mile trip to Kincora. An hour after I got there the rain started and just kept going. More and more people pulled in and by the end of the evening there were about 15 people there including Pacman, Linux and Break. I had crawled into my bag early because I was chilled so I spent the evening reading and writing. Tomorrow we hit Kincora and then four days to Damascus!
Date: 2005-04-29
From: Moreland Gap Shelter

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 6.1

Got up at 6 AM. It had rained most of the night and it was still raining. I went to Free's tent to wake her up because she wanted to get an early start also. This was the third time I have been told to wake her early. I was also warned that she is not a morning person or easy to wake up. I say "Bah" to the warnings! Each time I have woken her she has gotten up without a second attempt. My wake ups are not shouts but a gentle whisper till I hear her stir. I told her this evening that I was no longer afraid. A lot of people were waking early. The thought of a dry place and dry clothes was on everyone's mind. I left shortly before seven and after a bit Andy blew by me like I was standing still. He was in a real hurry to get dry! Keep in mind it was still raining as we hiked so we were getting even more soaked. Captain Chaos passed me awhile later and he said the stampede had begun from the shelter. I got to Kincora around nine and found that there were a bunch of people leaving which meant there might be space for the group coming in. I saw Butterfly Moon there. I last saw her for a short bit in Erwin. I also met Free Heel, Morel, Goat, Squid Jerky, and Slap Happy. Others that I had met before were there also;Hookey, Boots, and Blue Light. Free, Pacman, Break, Poet, Serenity, and Linux rolled in and everyone managed to get a bed. I chose to sleep on the porch for my usual reason:I get up early and don't want to bother people. In my opinion, Kincora is one of the best hostels on the trail. It is run by Bob Peoples and he is one good man! Bob told us there would be a shuttle into town around 11:30. We got some chores started and then it was time to go.Bob has a truck with a hard top over the rear. We managed to cram 18 people into his truck, not including him. Talk about a contortionist act! It was quite the ride into town but we made it. The grocery store was key on the list and everyone stocked up on food for the next few days and dinner or tonight. When we arrived back at the hostel Vinny and Toolman showed up. The afternoon and evening was spent drying gear, cleaning up, eating, and talking. As usual, the bond between the hikers transcends everything else so talk comes easy. One of the good things was I was able to brew up several pots of coffee. Still nothing better than a fresh brewed pot of coffee. Blue Light timed the process. From the brewing to the final drop being poured it took all of ten minutes. A lot of coffee drinkers! Another good thing was the weather forecast. Tomorrow there was a chance of showers and then the first four days of May called for clear weather. Finally, we can see the sun again! The plan is to leave tomorrow and to get to Damascus on Tuesday. This will be a major milestone for all of us. A new state and 450 miles down!
Date: 2005-05-01
From: Watauga Lake Shelter

To: Iron Mtn. Shelter
Miles today: 13.6

The sun actually did peek out in the early morning. I asked what that strange yellow object was and Andy replied that he had heard that ancient texts had talked about it also. Linux noted it was May Day and he also suggested we take our bear bag lines and make a maypole. This got a chuckle from everyone. So, the sun was out but it was cool and there was a wind blowing which made it cooler. We just can't seem to break out of this cold front that has followed us from Erwin. You hike and sweat and when you stop you get cold from the wind blowing on your damp shirt. A no win situation. None the less, it was good to hike with the sun out. The trail wound around Watauga Lake. This lake is big, real big, and you could see it or most of the morning. From what I could tell it was created by a dam. Not a power producing dam though. As I crossed over it I saw nothing that resembled any turbines or anything electrical so it might have been built as an agricultural dam. I reached the Vandeventer Shelter around 11:30. This is a pretty cool shelter because of the rock formation behind it. You can sit on the rocks and have a great view of the valley and lake below. This is exactly what I did, for two hours. I read my book, ate, and took a little nap. Poet, Andy, Boots, Blue Light, and others also stopped and took some time there. Andy said that Serenity and Free were taking it real slow today and that they may just camp and not try to get to the Iron Mtn. Shelter. The rest of the day passed without incident and I reached the shelter around four. The sun was out but it was still cool. I set up the tent and sat down to relax awhile. Poet, Mr. Clean Jr., Draggin, Boots and Blue Light arrived and they set up their tents. Pretty funny. Here you have a shelter and everyone is setting up their tents. Squid Jerky, whom I had met at Kincora showed up as well as Socks. I had not seen her since Erwin. She was doing well and was looking forward to Damascus. We all seem to have gotten Damascus fever. To get there means we will have crossed into another state and it is always nice to cross a state off the list of 14. We got a fire going which was nice because of the chill. I finally crawled into the tent around eight. Tomorrow was going to be a 16 mile day to Abingdon Gap Shelter and then 10 miles into Damascus on Tuesday. It seems that Free, Serenity, Break, and Linux had decided to camp further back because they never made it in that night.
Date: 2005-05-04
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

The first true double zero I have taken so far. I got up this morning and went for coffee. While drinking the coffee I worked on a couple of mileage plans for the group. We wanted to try to arrange for someone to pick us up, to bring us back to Damascus, before we left. After I finished I showed them to the crew and we came up with, what we thought was a workable and GLGE type plan. I then started checking around for potential shutles back. I found a potential but that would not be confirmed until tomorrow. The biggest problem is that we have so many people that are coming back. One or two is no problem but our group will be 7 to 9 people. A car can't handle that! After that I met Free at the outfitter. She was checking on a shoe problem and it turned into a long session there. The people at Mt. Rogers Outfitters were very helpful. They spent a lot of time working on her boots and insoles so that her feet wouldn't slide around. At one point the person working with her looked at me and said, "Come on chief".Me, "What do you mean, chief"?Him, "Give me some input here".Me, "Chief, I'm not the chief, she's the chief".Him smiling, "Good answer". As Free busts up laughing. I told Free I was going to the Post Office and that I would be back. On my way back I was hijacked by Butterfly Moon, Socks, and Toast. They wanted to hike south a bit and they needed someone to drive the truck back to Damascus. They said we could use it if we wanted. No problem there! I went with them and took the truck back. It was nice, having the use of a vehicle. We made the trip into Abingdon where we ran a couple of errands and saw a movie. When we got back I ran into Slap Happy. We talked awhile and later that evening she, Boots, Ray and I played cards. I learned a new game called Up the River, Down the River. Lot of fun. I am going to have to teach it to Free and Scholar now that we have a deck of cards. Tomorrow afternoon we will leave this town. I shouldn't say town, vortex or black hole is a much better word. For some reason Damascus has a much stronger pull than most towns and it is hard to break loose! By the way, we have now finished 3 states and over 450 miles. Virginia is the biggest state with 500+ miles in it. Almost a quarter of the trail in one state alone. The attrition rate will start picking up soon. There have been quite a few people that have dropped off so far. I have heard rumors that there have not been as many who started this year. Even lower than last year which was around 1500 or so. I guess that will change though. We have heard that Newman and Redford may do the movie of Bill Bryson's, "A Walk in the Woods". If that is the case the trail will be a madhouse the year after that movie comes out.
Date: 2005-05-05
From: Damascus, VA

To: Saunders Shelter
Miles today: 9.2
Weather: light rain

"It's not too often when your stomache is bigger than your eyes". So said Serenity at breakfast this morning. Serenity, Free, and Scholar met me at the coffee place at 7 AM. This alone was a shock because I really did not expect them to get up that early! We walked next door where they had a big breakfast for cheap. Serenity didn't think she could eat it when she ordered it and after she was done she made the comment. After breakfast the four of us headed into Abingdon for a couple of last minute chores that we forgot to do yesterday, namely, find a Frisbee! We stopped at the CVS to drop off film and the next stop was the food store to find some Nutella. Free said that we didn't really need to get the Nutella. I looked at her in shock and said, "I am going to be traveling with four women. You, Poet, Serenity, and Scholar. There is no way I am going to be the only male in the group and have the four of you go ballistic because you don't have your Nutella. We are going to find Nutella"! (Andy had decided to go on ahead yesterday) We did find it. Five jars of it! Now they each have there own jar and one for the return to Damascus. Let the Nutella celebration begin. Geez, I think I am stepping into a potential minefield hiking with this group of women!We headed back to Damascus to finish packing and to try to get out of town before two which I did, but just barely. It was great, getting back onto the trail and the weather was nice. I caught up to Serenity and we slowed our pace quite a bit and just chatted as we hiked. After awhile Free caught up to us and I moved on ahead. Serenity and Free were going to sit by the stream for awhile. I reached the shelter and was surprised to see The Bruces, Ms. Mileage, Squid Jerky, and Piker there. They left late yesterday. They laughed and said they went about a mile yesterday and camped and that the shelter was just to inviting to pass up. It really is a nice area that this shelter is in. Lots of big pines, a nice area to toss the Frisbee in which, we finally did acquire in Damascus. Scholar was there as well as Poet so I set up my tent and sat down to visit for awhile. Serenity and Free came in and we all ate and after dinner Scholar broke out the fixings for S'mores. What a treat! We all toasted marshmellows and made s'mores. A perfect end to a good day.
Date: 2005-05-06
From: Saunders Shelter

To: Campsite
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: clear sky

A first for the trail this morning. Yesterday was Cinco de Mayo and while we were in Abingdon we decided we would celebrate it a little that evening so we stopped at the ABC store to pick up a couple of small goodies. We were going to toast Cinco de Mayo last night but Free's stomache was feeling queasy so we decided to wait or as she put it, "How about tomorrow morning"? I joined Serenity and Free for breakfast around eight this morning. Shortly after eating Free says, "Shall we"? I looked over and she had one of the mini's of tequila. I grinned and said, "Why not", and went to get mine. Serenity was laughing and said we were crazy. At 8:20 AM, Free and I toasted Cinco de Mayo and put away the mini's we had brought. Puts a pleasant perspective on the morning! Most everyone was still lazing about when I took off around nine. I told the group that I would meet them at Buzzard Rock. Buzzard Rock offers some nice views and the weather is warming up so hopefully it would be nice there. We planned on spending most of the afternoon around that area. It felt good walking this morning. To be in a new state, to be out of town, and to have the sun shining made everything right. I ambled along and reached Lost Mtn. Shelter around noon. Nobody was there but I decided to rest for a bit and have lunch. I made the rest of the journey to Buzzard Rock and reached it around three o'clock. It had gotten a little cloudy but it wasn't to bad. I sat down in the rocks, pulled out my book, and read and relaxed. Poet and Free came in around four follwed soon after by Serenity and Scholar. We had a snack or should I say several snacks and at 5:30 I decided to make the big seven tenths of a mile jaunt to where we were going to camp. I actually went just a half mile because there was a good water source and there were some good campsites. The rest of the crew came in shortly thereafter and we got camp set up. Then it was time for dinner. Dinner shortly after all the snacks at Buzzard Rock! As we were finishing up Linux, Dave, and Nick came in. Break was not to far back according to Linux and sure enough a little bit later she came in. Following her were Ranger and Shera. I had met Shera just as I left Damascus. Ranger and her are going to push some big miles in the next few days. By now it was past hiker midnight so I bid everyone good night and to the tent I went.