morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-04-13
From: Fontana Village Resort

To: Fontana Hilton 
Miles today: 1.1
Weather: few clouds

Day 21: A nearo (almost zero miles) at Fontana Village ResortFontana Village Resort is nice, but expensive. Thankfully hikers don't mind splitting rooms with each other. We again had too much food in our maildrop, so we mailed some things ahead and some back home. The AT is very much a learning experience.We took a shuttle from Mario Andretti from the Resort back to the trailhead. All of us in the overfilled van thought we were going to die when the young resort employee drove like a madman on a racecourse down the winding, curvy, steep road. We were often on the wrong side of the road, even when motorcycles were coming at us. At the trailhead, Sarge, gave Mario a stern lecture. I am not sure if it actually sunk in, because all Mario complained about was how he had been doing the job for 5 or so years, blah blah. We walked 1.1 mile and tented at the Fontana Hilton. No, it is not a hotel, but rather the fanciest shelter so far. It can hold 24 people, has bathrooms, picnic tables, and showers near by.
Date: 2011-04-14
From: Fontana Hilton 

To: Mollie's Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 22: Our first National Park.We have entered the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It doesn't feel any different then where we were hiking before, except now there are more rules. We have to stay in the shelter if it is not full, dogs are not allowed, etc.The weather was perfect today. We walked through fields of wildflowers, which went on for miles. The ground was blanketed in millions of spring beauties, with the occasional trout lily, mayapple, and violet interspersed. It resembled fresh snowfall. The sounds of the forest are intriguing. As we were walking, we heard popcorn (with delicious movie theater butter) being made on either side of us. While popcorn sounds yummy, it was actually tiny grasshoppers or crickets bouncing all around in the leaves. Trudge climbed yet another tower (Shuckstack). This tower was extremely rickety and he didnt go all the way to the top for fear of losing his life. He wasn't sure the plywood on top would hold his weight.We should be at my friends' (Dave and Cailtin) house in about 4 days. It will be good to see them.
Date: 2011-04-15
From: Mollie's Ridge Shelter

To: Derrick Knob shelter
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 23. Day 2 of the Smokies.It was extremely windy last night. I was awakened by the tarps covering the front of the shelter flapping in the hurricane strength wind.The wind was terrible all day, making walking difficult at times. Occasionally, it was all I could do to keep walking forward and not be blown sideways off the trail. My hat was maliciously taken off my head by a gust and thrown into the shrubs.   I ungracefully blundered through the shrubs to retrieve it. The views were excellent, but unfortunately we couldn't stay on the balds or in any one place too long. The wind chilled you to the bone. The views were some of my favorite, especially when you came to a rise on the bald and could see where the trail continued over the next hill. The shelter was pretty full tonight. The Ridgerunner (an employee of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy who monitors the trail and shelters) said that people with reservations were suppposed to come, but they never did. There are 4 spots in each shelter "reserved" for thruhikers. Section hikers can make reservations and if they come other people need to move on if there isn't enough room. The Ridgerunner said that typically everyone just gets cozy if it is late or nasty outside. After we had been in the shelter for about an hour, it started pouring and continued all night. We had considered going maybe 7 more miles today (for a 17 mile day) so we could do Clingmans Dome ealier the next day, but we changed our mind once we got to the comfortable, out of the wind shelter. Thank god we stayed
Date: 2011-04-16
From: Derrick Knob shelter

To: Mt. Collins Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 24: We have been out of almost a month!!Our longest mileage (14) has caused us to be very hungry and tired. The terrain wasn't too bad, except for always wanting to be farther along the trail then we were. The wind has died down a bit, but it is still bitter cold. We hiked up Clingmans Dome (6,643'), which is the highest mountain on the trail, the Smokies, and in Tennessee. We hiked, and hiked, and eventually got to the top and saw a very strange concrete tower (right out of the 60s). I actually climbed this tower; but due to the thick fog and clouds we had absolutely NO view. (Check out Trudge's pictures for evidence). But, according to my friend Caitlin, who is a ranger in the Park, the view isn't her favorite anyway. So, maybe we didn't miss too much?We didn't stay on the tower long (too cold and of course no view), but I did read all the signs. Must be a personality quirk, because even in those conditions I wanted to learn about all that the interpretive signs had to offer. The Smokies are one of the most visited national parks in the US (if not the most)and one of the most environmentally-stressed ecosystems. The red spruce and frasier fir forest that surrounds Clingmans is stressed from invasive species (in particular a European insect that kills the firs), acid precipitation, and smog (among many other things). During the 21st century, the smog and air pollution have dramatically reduced visibility throughout the park.Sometimes, I feel like I carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, similar to the character of May Boatwright from the book/movie "The Secret Life of Bees." All the negative human impacts on the environment often weigh heavy on my mind. I often ask myself when will we (humanity) decide that enough is enough and stop taking our environment and human health (which are two sides of the same coin) for granted. On a funny note, there are two brothers (14 and 17 years old) who are hiking the trail together.   One evening, they came into the shelter around 9 pm or so and didn't stop bickering until they were asleep. This part wasn't so funny. My parents would never have let me hike the trail at that age, but the rumor has it that their parents told them to go. I'm not sure if this is child abuse or just poor parenting, but maybe the trail will help these two mature. Time will tell.
Date: 2011-04-17
From: Mt. Collins Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 25: Off to my friends' house!This morning as we were hiking our measly five miles to Newfound Gap, snow and ice were falling off the trees. The trail looked like it had been covered in white confetti. Trudge took pictures of icicles! It is almost May, for pete's sake!It never fails that when we are going to be close to a town or a facility that will have a "real" bathroom, that I immediately have to go about 1/4 mile from civilization. There is no way that it can wait. So needless to say, I was behind Trudge in getting to the parking lot at Newfound Gap. Walking up to the parking lot and out of the woods was a little disconcerting. I was expecting a parking lot for maybe 2 cars, and instead there are tons of cars and people milling about.Turns out, Newfound Gap is where FDR dedicated the park in the 40s and it is a popular place in the park for tourists and day hikers. Although, someone did say that sometimes tourists don't even know they are in a national park when they are there. Anyway, I couldn't find Trudge at first, because he had already come across some TRAIL MAGIC!It is hard for me to convince you that we are roughing it out here.   Godspeed (former thruhiker) and his wife Mountain Momma where serving chili, homemade cookies, soda, fruit, and of course little debbie snacks. Our hearts and bellies were full. We met other thruhikers there as well (Chicago, Gail one of the Chosen Few, Triple A, Crazy Legs, and Freight Train). The trail angels gave us a ride to the visitor center where we met my friends Dave and Caitlin (whom I met in grad school at SRU).A big thanks to Dave and Caitlin for sharing your house, food, car, shower, laundry, etc. etc. It was wonderful to see you and we appreciated and enjoyed our visit.
Date: 2011-04-18
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 26: Another zero, this time in the Disney World of TN.It was so peaceful to sleep in a real bed in a real house of real friends. So, all day long we weren't sure if we were heading back to the trail or not. We finally decided around 5 pm or so to stay another night. I bought a new dress to wear in town. You say, "buying a dress to go backpacking?" Well, I was sick of wearing my hot, sweaty, suffocating rain gear while everything else was in the washing machine. Plus, it is nice to feel like a lady every now and then. So, in my pack goes the dress and home in a box goes an extra knee brace, trowel, Trudge's gaiters, extra long underwear, and my over-sized crocs. Gatlinburg is like a beach boardwalk in the mountains or Disneyworld in the Smokies. Ripley's Believe it or Not, the bearded women, and a maze of mirrors were all amazing opportunities that we passed up. Instead, food, outfitters, and more food were our primary goals while in town.
Date: 2011-04-19
From: Newfound Gap

To: Tri-corner knob shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 27: Longest Day yetDave and Caitlin dropped us off at Newfound Gap where we proceeded to hike 15.6 miles. Yay, we passed the 15 mile mark. We are getting faster finally. Only a couple more days through the Smokies and then on to the next stop.As we were getting ready to start hiking this morning, several day hikers and tourists talked to us who were impressed with the thru-hike feat. They seemed genuinely interested and wished us good luck. So far, I think we have only come across one group of people who had no idea the AT existed ("There is a trail that goes all the way to Maine?"). A teenager at Newfound gap was quite surprised by the sign that said 1972 miles to Katahdin. You could hear the wheels and see the smoke from her head.About .2 miles from Icewater Spring Shelter, my glass fell apart and the left lens dropped to the ground at my feet. I carried the screw the rest of the way to the shelter and immediately proceeded to drop it on the floor when I took off my pack. Anyone have a metal detector? We searched and searched, but ended up lashing my glasses together with a tiny strand of tyvek. Now, all i need is some duct tape. We climbed to a lookout called Charlie's Bunion today. Mr. Charlie must have had one big bunion. It was a huge rock ledge with gorgeous view. As I am climbing up Trudge absentmindedly says "I wonder how stable this really is?" Wasn't that so nice of him? Must I remind him that I do NOT like heights!I am ready to be out of the Smokies. Need a break from the shelters, dead trees, and iffy weather. Supposedly there are 30 species of salamanders in the Smokies. I kept turning over logs left and right, but all I found was millipedes and other bugs. I guess insects are cool too.Out here in the woods, I am reminded again and again how much I don't know about the trees, plants, flowers, insects, weather patterns, geology. The list goes on and on.
Date: 2011-04-20
From: Tri-corner knob shelter

To: Davenport Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 28: I love my ankles.Started out hiking in the rain, but luckily it stopped right after lunch. We had some great views. One in which the clouds were rolling over the mountains. Had Trudge had his tripod with him, we would have spent an hour or so there while he captured the scene.I dislike uphills, because they are hard and take forever. I dislike downhills, because my ankles and sometimes my knees hurt. What we need is flat, but the AT is not well-known for the flat sections. We had 5 miles of ankle-killing downhill to the shelter tonight. On our way downhill, Trudge (of course he is ahead of me),stopped and waited for me with the biggest smile on his face. I asked him why he is smiling and can't he tell I am in pain. His response "Weren't you just singing?" Mine: "No, that was me moaning." A minute later, along comes Milkman, jaunting by singing and listening to his ipod. Next time, I'll make sure I am singing and rejoicing as my ankles go snap, crackle, and pop.That reminds me of rice crispies. Recently, I had mom mail us these hiker bars that I had made previous to starting out. Trudge takes a big bite and says "You know what would be good in here? Rice Crispies." Little did he know, the bars had crispy rice cereal in them that I bought from the Amish store. I guess rice crispies and crispy rice are not the same.
Date: 2011-04-21
To: Painter Creek
Miles today: 5.6

Day 29: Leaving the Smokies behind!I really hate shelters: can never ever sleep. We left the Smokies today! Moving on north.We saw a sign that stated "Did you kill this bear?" at Davenport Gap. The story goes like this: people leave behind food and trash, bear becomes used to people and no longer fears them (habituation). Tourist tries to take a picture, bear bites man on foot, rangers have to euthanize bear. Why do people not understand that these are wild animals? We stopped at Standing Bear Farm, a hostel near the trail in Hartford, TN. Check out Trudge's pictures. Trudge's mom had sent a surprise package there for us (we had also mailed food ahead to ourselves). We enjoyed the unexpected caramel popcorn! Thanks! The hostel was sweet. I guess you could describe it as a laid-back, hippy, hiker hang out. We never really met the proprietors. When we arrived, there was maybe 20 or so hikers hanging out around a firepit. They had a "store" with everything you could imagine (candy, pasta, crackers, toilet paper, bagels, hair ties...) run on the honor system. We enjoyed a frozen pizza and some sodas. They had a pet squirrel that apparently they had rehabilitated. The tree rat was frisky and jumped right on another hiker's face from Trudge's shoulder!To save money, we decided to keep hiking. However, we only went a few miles and found a peaceful tent site next to Painter Creek.
Date: 2011-04-22
From: Painter Creek

To: Brown Gap
Miles today: 7.8

Day 30: It is almost Easter!We expected to get up early to make up miles. I woke up and bolted upright to look at my watch which hangs from a tie from the roof of the tent. It was 9 o'clock. I thought Trudge was going to get me up early. It was raining and no way were we getting out of the tent. We finally got moving at 11ish; after we saw a bunch of salamanders in the creek. Trudge insisted that they were hellbenders. He kept going on and on about it (even though we both know he is wrong) to try to get on my nerves. Of course, as soon as we leave the Smokies we find the salamanders I was looking for.We ate lunch with two friends of ours, DVD and Splitter. Splitter told a story about a pet owl her family had when she was a kid. They rehabilitated it and it stuck around her front yard. When her dad fed it a hot dog, it choked and died. That is the saddest owl story yet. Every time DVD sees Trudge and I, she says "there is the cutest couple." So, now that has become a standing joke.   The other hikers really make the hike worthwhile.Once again, trail magic has been a blessing and a curse. We only made it to Brown Gap, because we ran into a hiker feed from the Rat patrol (former thruhikers and friends). They have been doing this same trail magic in the same spot for the past 20 years!   Lots of great food. We had an Easter Dinner: corn, green beens, ham, sweet potatoes, coleslaw, potato salad. We ended up just camping right there and listened to campfire music and then peepers all night. The reason I would dare say that trail magic is also a curse is then we have extra food to carry, plus we get "sucked" in and never leave.Trudge walked in his sandals today to try to see if the adage "a pound on your feet is like 6 lbs on your back." He seemed to be doing well with sandals, but time will tell. Our feet are currently are most prized possession, so we have to take extra good care of them.
Date: 2011-04-23
From: Brown Gap

To: Bluff Mt
Miles today: 12.0

Day 31: Nothing better than starting the day with trail magic!Since we stayed at Brown Gap with the Rat Patrol trail magic last night, we woke up to an amazing breakfast feast: sausage, bacon, egss with everything in them, fruit and even Girl Scout Cookies. Trudge enjoyed the meat, as the eggs would not serve him well. We got started on the trail late, but it was well worth the food.We climbed over another bald, Max Patch. The view was surreal. Imagine the top of a mountain covered completely in grass (neatly manicured) with other mountain tops seen in the distance. This bald was apparently used at one time to graze sheep and is still mowed occassionally. Makes me question our role in maintaining these unique features. Should we let succession take over or continue to hold it at bay, especially if the bald is a man-made feature in the first place? We enjoyed lunch on the bald, while watching tourists fly kites, small children being walked by their dogs, and DVD teaching Gumby how to do headstands. The Jackson 4 (four thruhikers that I have nicknamed, their "real" trail names are Gumby, Machete/Last Minute, Goopah, and Woodstock) love to sing. Loudly and not very well either. Once, they were singing while we were hiking near them. Trudge told me to hurry up and hike faster he heard banjo music, so I ran. I ran faster and faster until I fell. The ground rose up to meet me and I soon was on my heads and knees. Trudge said it looked like my lower half could not keep up with my top half. Falling is a humbling experience, makes me feel like a kid again (as long as I don't break anything.)
Date: 2011-04-24
From: Bluff Mt

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

Day 32: Hot Springs, NC awaits.We got into Hot Springs, NC a day earlier than we had originally planned (the schedule we worked out at home, before knowing anything. I wonder how much we will actually stick to this arbitrary schedule. We arrived in town around 2:30 and hiked 11.5 miles to get there. There seemed to be more uphills than I remember the map showing. We hiked with Splitter, from Buffalo, NY. I finally feel that I am making a few friends out here. Unfortunately, you never hike at the exact same schedule as someone else (unless you are Trudge and I or other couples), so your friends come and go on the trail. But, hopefully we will catch up to many people at Trail Days in Damascus, VA.The AT goes right through the small town of Hot Springs, NC. The main street (there is really only one) of town is also the trail. Hot Springs reminded Trudge of an old western town. We visited a very nice ice cream shop called Sweet Imaginations to fill our sweet cravings. What I didn't understand about the place was they had all these signs about saving the planet one ice cream cone at a time (no spoon, no bowl = no trash), but they continue to serve all the milkshakes in styrafoam cups. This seems to be a little incongruous. We went to the Hot Springs Resort and Spa looking for a room, because several other places in town were full. The guidebook said the resort had cabins for $50-72, but what it neglected to say was that this was a room without a real bathroom. To get a bathroom, I believe the cheapest was $145, which is just a little out of our budget.We ended up staying above a bar, the Rock Bottom, in a very nice room with a communal bathroom. Similar to what taverns used to be. The bar has a t-shirt that says "you've come 265 miles before you hit rock bottom." Clever.Hot Springs, like many other towns near the trail, really thrives and relies on hikers for business. There must have been atleast 50 hikers in town while we were there for a day and half. Many whom we didn't know.
Date: 2011-04-25
From: Hot Springs

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 0.3
Weather: clear sky

Day 33: A nearo day in Hot Springs.I am not sure if I've explained that a zero day means no trail miles. A nearo means almost zero. And a beero, well you can figure out that one on your own.We took a nearo day like much of the rest of the zero days. I was planning on seeing my friend Liat, who currently lives in Asheville, but that did not work out. Trudge's phone did not work, the town had no working pay phones, and no calling cards for sale. What do you expect of a small town? Hopefully, I'll get to see her soon another time.We decided to pamper ourselves and soak in the Hot Springs, which the town is known for. It felt nice, but I didn't feel as relaxed afterward as I thought I would. They pump the water into a jacuzzi-styled hot tubs, which is different from the hot springs Trudge has been to out west. Sometimes I feel like we spend way too much money in town. Going out to eat for every meal, buying gear, splurging on beer. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy every minute of it, but it is tough when my frugal genes start kicking in. So, just as in real life, money issues can play a part in frustrations between couples. Since, I wouldn't "allow" us to spend more money, we hiked out of town for less than half a mile to free camping on the AT (right across the river from pay camping, ha suckers!). But we did walk back for dinner. We camped near Hermit and Thighmaster (a couple from Key West) and their dog Bailey. We spent awhile chatting with them around a fire. This size group is much more to my liking than camping with 10 or so other people.
Date: 2011-04-26
From: Hot Springs

To: Rich Mt
Miles today: 7.5

Day 34: Slow motion.A slow, slow day. Seems that after town stops I move as though I am a turtle. We started hiking around 9:30, finished around 6:30, and only went 7.5 miles. The 1st section of uphill (Lover's Leap) was brutal and the heat was relentless.We stopped for awhile by a mysterious pond near Mill Ridge and we were going to eat, but a whole mess of thruhikers were there. Several of them smoking. We decided it would be more pleasant to move on and eat alone.But first, we had to try to capture on camera a brown water snake hunting near the shore. We had no success with that photo (which would have been the award-winning shot), but Trudge did get a picture of Blue Steele climbing a tree that was precariously situated over the water. One miss step and he would have been snake food.I finally went up a fire tower (Rich Mt), but it was only 30 feet tall or so. We had cell phone service up there, so we made our Easter family calls late. However, no one in my family answered their phone. The view from the tower was spectacular, but there was a cell tower no less than 30 feet away. So which do we want: a view or cell service?
Date: 2011-04-27
From: Rich Mt

To: Laurel Mountain
Miles today: 12.0

Day 35: Bugs galore.I am so excited, the bugs are out. These nasty creatures kept us from filtering water this morning and from cooking breakfast. We had to keep moving.Yesterday, we enjoyed using our new quick disconnects for our water bladders. This handy dandy item allows us to fill our platypus (water bladders) without unpacking our entire pack (or unpacking at all). This saves time and headache, especially when the water is right near trail. We used to fill up all the bottles and dump them into the water bladders, but now we can filter straight into the bladder! Only down side is if water is far off the trail, you have to carry your pack to it.I wanted to break our record and hike 17 or so miles today, but the last 5 miles of uphill was just TOO much. I was angry at the mountain for even existing. We decided to camp in the shelter. We all know how much I love shelters.We saw a four foot long black rat snake and small garter snake. The garter snake was pissed off and tried to strike at Trudge several times. Of course, when he tried to get a picture of it striking, it just sat there passively.