morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-03-15
From: Tray Mtn Shelter

To: Dicks Creek Gap/Hiawassee
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: broken clouds

Phoenix, Blue, Bogey, August and myself woke up at 6 to get out of camp before sunrise. We had 11 miles to do and we wanted to get into town around noon. I was out of food so I just packed and hoped for the best. For the record, everyone in camp would have gladly gave me some of their spare food but I am stubborn sometimes. So we set off with headlamps on. Caught a nice sunrise as we were hiking and made some really good time before the bugs and heat started for the day. Phoenix and I pulled ahead and had an easy day up until we got to Kelly Knob. What a loooong climb. Its a great feeling being completely exhausted, soaked with sweat and looking up and just seeing another 800 yards of "up" to climb. I'm glad Phoenix convinced me to rock my iPod during the climbs. Somewhere along the way we ran into Dr. Pepper and he gave us some baggies of Snickers and M&Ms. It would have been perfect but we were nearing the end of the hike and I had given Phoenix a liter of water since she ran out. I knew that if I ate the chocolate, I would run out of water too so I just hiked while my stomach growled at me. We got to Dicks Creek Gap in a couple of hours. We grabbed a ride to town and all jumped in the Holiday Inn Express. First thing I did was go to Hardees and get a Monster Burger Meal. Haha. Then showered and did some laundry. We all went to a Mexican restraunt for diner. Fun relaxing day, tomorrow I'm trying to leave GA!
Date: 2012-03-16
From: Dicks Creek Gap/Hiawassee

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: light rain

Got an excellent night's sleep at the Holiday Inn Express. Phoenix, Blue, Bogey, August and I all split the room so it was only $18 a head. I got the pull out sofa all to myself. And for the record, the hotels hot tub was the best thing evahh. I slept good.Woke up at 930 and went out to catch the continental breakfast. Bacon, eggs, pancakes, coffee and cinnamon roll. Winning! We checked out at 11 and walked through Hiawassee trying to get a shuttle back to the trail head. Finally found the guy we were looking for and he piled the 5 of us into his Honda Passport and got us where we needed to go, all seemed well in the world. Until Phoenix realized she left her hiking poles in the dude's shuttle. It was a hectic 40 minutes but in the end, she was back with her poles. Unfortunately, all this caused us to only get onto the trail at 1:45 pm and I wanted to get miles in today. Well, don't worry faithful followers, I did. I was on a mission to get out of GA today and boy did I do it.Everyone I have been hiking with was stopping after 4 miles at Plum Orchard Gap and that wasn't going to get me to North Carolina. So we took pictures and parted ways. This afternoon I proceeded to do what Harvard men's basketball couldn't do in the Final Four, I dominated. Haha. I'm writing this a couple days after so I don't know the names of any of the mountains or gaps but it was a nice hike. I'm staying at Muskrat Creek Shelter tonight. It's supposed to sleep 8 but we are PACKED in at 7. Its all kinds of nut to butt in here. Cozy...My legs are getting so strong and so are my lungs. These mountains are just too easy now. I'm certain the Smokies will be a challenge but I still have a few days to prepare...
Date: 2012-03-17
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Big Spring Shelter
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Slept pretty good even though we were in close quarters last night. There was some nightime entertainment though; Around 2 am I woke up to the sound of little feet running around overhead. I grabbed my light and shined it up to find to 2 mice running laps around the roof of the shelter. Not looking for food, not trying to get down, they were just doing their own version of Nascar. It was comical, I went back to sleep. I got out of camp around 9 and started hiking. It was a pretty normal day. Came to Standing Indian Shelter and signed the log book. Kept going for a few hours and stopped for a late lunch at Carter Gap Shelter. At this point I decided that 12.5 miles wasn't enough and I would press on. I knew that Albert Mountain had to be summited before I could call it quits and that I would already be tired. I went for it. It was a steep climb but totally worth the effort. All day had been slightly overcast but as I slowly climbed to the top of Albert Mtn the sun came out and gave me an incredible view, from about 5100 feet elevation, on the fire lookout tower. It was just a short hike to Big Spring Shelter where I met a new bunch of hikers. I set up my tent and right about then Lefty walked into the campsite. He and I have been running into each other for the last few days and we made plans to hike together from here out.Tomorrow, we will stop in Franklin, NC to get some food and move on.
Date: 2012-03-18
From: Big Spring Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap/Franklin NC
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: clear sky

Wow. Two things:1. It rained so damn hard last night.2. I slept better last night than I have yet this trip.This morning I got up around 830 after a very big storm. My tent does really good in the rain and that makes me happy, for obvious reasons. Packed up my gear and played catch up with Lefty since he woke up earlier than I did. Covered the 9.2 miles in less than 2.5 hours to get to Winding Stair Gap to find I was 15 minutes too late. The shuttle had already left (Winding Stair Gap I where the road crossing that takes you to Franklin is). So after a little while, I got into Franklin and caught up with Lefty. We ate some burgers, got some food resupply and ended up getting a hotel. Which is sort of silly since I was just in a hotel 2 nights ago but I could hear the beers calling my name. Tomorrow, we are going to start actually "roughing" it for awhile.
Date: 2012-03-19
From: Winding Stair Gap/Franklin NC

To: Cold Spring Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: clear sky

Woke up at the hotel and got some McDonalds. Lefty and I caught the shuttle back to Winding Stair Gap, along with a bunch of other hikers. Very quickly, I found out that eating greasy food and drinking a bunch of beer does not work well, for me, when hiking. My legs were petitioning every step. Today's 3 big climbs were hard. From Winding Stair Gap to Siler Bald Summit was 4 miles of uphill hiking. That went well for me. And then my legs said "no". The climb to Bertram Trail intersection and then the climb to Wayah Bald were both REALLY hard today. Any other day would have been great climbs but today sucked. We ran into a bunch of other hikers we've been seeing at the stone tower on top of Wayah Bald. We all hung out in a big, stinky, dirty, bug-covered posse for about 40 minutes taking in the sun and the view. After awhile, we headed up the mountain to Cold Spring Shelter. After the break, my legs were in much better shape and the last climb was much more enjoyable. Got up to camp and ate some food. Now its time to sleep so we can be in the NOC tomorrow.
Date: 2012-03-20
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: clear sky

Slept good in the shelter last night. It was kind of dirty and run down but that made plenty of room for Lefty and I. The spring was only 20 yards away and the running water was nice to fall asleep to. There was a lot of going down today. 1000 feet down into Tellico Gap and then another 3000 down into the NOC. My feet started to hurt by the end of it all. We stayed at the NOC for the evening. Its a really cool place. Its right on a creek/small river and has an outfitter and restraunts. We had some beers and burgers, got a shower and did some laundry.
Date: 2012-03-21
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Brown Fork Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: few clouds

Felt a bit rough after beers last night. Immediately coming out of the NOC, there was a 3000 foot climb to get back into the mountains. I sweated lots of beer during this. It wasn't a pleasant ordeal. The afternoon was decent, filled easy ups and downs. The last climb of the day was Jacobs Ladder. It didn't look bad on my elevation graph but it was tiring after a long day. Got into the Brown Fork Gap around 5 and it was just Lefty and I. Others began to trickle in later and later into the night. Ate diner and went to sleep.
Date: 2012-03-22
From: Brown Fork Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Hilton
Miles today: 12.7
Weather: scattered clouds

The first part of today was mellow. The climb out of Cable Gap was tough due to some achy feet. I'm quickly finding that Merrell Barefoot shoes just aren't the best choice for long distance backpacking. Got into the Fontana Dam road crossing and we didn't know who to call fro a shuttle so we walked 2 miles down the road to get to the village. Got a pizza at the Pit Stop. While there, I found out the we were only 8 miles from Deals Gap, which is one of the coolest roads to ride motorcycle or sports cars on. Its 318 sharp turns in 11 miles. Went to the Post Office and got our food we sent ahead to ourselves from Franklin. We took the shuttle back to the road crossing and filled out our backcounty permits for the Great Smokey Mountains. Hiked over to the "Fontana Hilton" and laid out our bags. There was a public shower here so I hit it up. Called my beautiful and awesome girlfriend, ate some diner and called it a night. Tomorrow we enter the Smokies.
Date: 2012-03-23
From: Fontana Hilton

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: light rain

There was lots of snoring at the shelter last night and my iPod's battery died after two songs. Eventually I did fall asleep. Lefty and I crossed over the Fontana Dam and entered the Great Smoky National Park. These mountains are for real. Today there was a total of 5000 feet of climbing and 1800 of descent. I had heard that the Smokies were a wet place. So far this is true. We spent all morning walking in damp fog/clouds and then around noon it poured on us for about an hour. It was overcast and muddy all day. My feet were thoroughly soaked and started to ache again. This slowed me down and I was far behind getting into the shelter tonight. I decided I need to go into Gatlinsburg, TN to get some new kicks. Later into the evening two south bound thru hikers came into camp. I think their names were Cook and Slop(?). They were excited because they just hit the 2000 mile mark that day. I'm drying my shoes and clothes by the fire and going to bed.
Date: 2012-03-24
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: broken clouds

There was a crazy thunderstorm last night. It sounded like the lightening was striking beside us. I'm glad I slept in the shelter instead of my tent last night. Unfortunately, the only leak in the roof was dripping right near my head so I grabbed my rain jacket and put it over my face and the top of my sleeping bag. Easy fix. I slept with some of my damp clothes so they'd be dry this morning and it worked really well. I'm probably the only person leaving camp with dry stuff. I ate a huge breakfast since I have too much food with me. The first climb was nice I think it was Rocky Top Mountain. Took a couple great pictures. (I still haven't figured how to upload pics from my Blackberry to trailjournals) There were some steep ups and downs today which were made difficult due to the sloppy mud we had to trudge through. Cold Spring Knob and Siler Bald were both nice climbs. We stopped at Double Spring Gap Shelter for the night. When we got there, there were 6 kids from Ohio State on spring break. They had carried a 30 pack, hot dogs and baked beans up to the shelter and had been planning on staying the night. None of them had more than shorts and t shirts and it was now raining again and in the 40s. So they offered to share the beer and hot dogs with all of us. How to make a 30 pack disappear in 20 minutes? We figured out how. Just as dark was rolling in, so did Trey the Ridgerunner for the area. He was a really chill guy and offered to give Spice (another guy we've been hiking with), Jonas (from Germany also a really nice kid), Lefty and I a ride into Gatlinsburg tomorrow morning since his shift will be done and he's passing through. I can't wait to get new shoes.
Date: 2012-03-25
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: Gatlinsburg, TN
Miles today: 2.6

it rained again last night and nobody could get anything dried out. We're wet and cold. As soon as we start hiking we will warm up. Less than 3 miles today, this is the shortest day I've had. There was nothing but fog/cloud this morning. You can't see more than 20 feet ahead. I can only imagine some of the views we're missing. We got to Trey's Four Runner and piled in. As we drove down through the park, Trey told us all kinds of cool shit about local vegetation and weird facts about the park. He dropped us at the NOC in Gatlinsburg where I ran in and got some Merrell boots that fit awesome. I was worries about getting a wide width but I found some. Spice, Jonas,Lefty and I went across the street and got rooms at the Grand Prix Motel. Lefty and I split a room and it was only $15 a person. Now its time to venture into Gatlinsburg. This place is so weird. There's Ripleys Believe it or Not and mini golf and chain restraunts and everything you would expect to find on the boardwalk at the beach. But were out in the middle of the woods...Les, an approximately 40 year old dude that's really cool rolled in and met up with us. He made all of his backpacking gear by hand at home. We went out and got some food and had a good time seeing all the "best" of Gatlinsburg. Now its bedtime and I'm ready to be back in the woods.
Date: 2012-03-26
From: Gatlinsburg, TN

To: Icewater Spring Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: clear sky

Woke up and got stuff situated in my pack. Then we were off to Shoneys for the all you can eat breakfast. I had a very unusual breakfast of: a mixed greens salad with broccoli, cauliflower, chick peas, carrots and hard boiled eggs with blue cheese dressing, about 15 chicken nuggets, some french toast sticks and a lot of bacon. It was the best breakfast I've had in awhile. So we went back and checked out of the room and then checked about getting a shuttle. We were out of luck because every single shuttle was filled already. So Lefty and I walked a couple miles down to where the Great Smoky Mountains visitor center is located and asked some of the Park Rangers for a ride. No one was going out anytime soon. So we found a hiker, around our age, in the parking lot that was going up and he gave us a ride. He dropped us of at the Clingman's Dome parking area. We thanked him and took off up the hill. Got to the top and fought off some tourists to snap a few pictures from the observation deck. (Clingman's Dome is the highest point on the Appalachian Trail) It was really cool to look back and see the mountains we had already been over wayyyyy off in the distance. The rest of the day was beautiful. In the 50s, sunny, not a cloud in the sky. I stopped at the Newfound Gap and looked around, took a picture. Its really incredible what kind of views and scenery there is when the weather is nice. It was an easy 11 miles today and my feet were loving life. Got to the Icewater Spring Shelter with Spice, Jonas and Lefty in the evening since we got such a late start. We ate diner, took in the views of sunset and started a fire. Now its bedtime. New boots and no blisters!
Date: 2012-03-27
From: Icewater Spring Shelter

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: few clouds

Today was amazing weather. All day it was sunny and in the 50s. The views were amazing everywhere. First thing in the morning was Charlie's Bunion. It was so cool. We got some good pictures out there. It seemed like around every turn there was another overlook. When its clear out here, you get a hell of a show. We hiked for most of the day above 6000 feet elevation. Got into the shelter and chilled for the night watching the sunset.
Date: 2012-03-28
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Green Corner Rd/Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Spidderman and Waker caught back up with us late last night. They're two young guys from GA that we've been seeing a lot and they're fun to hike with. Glad to have them back.This morning we all rolled out in a big posse. Another day in paradise. The weather has been on our side since bailing out at Clingman's Dome. We just ran the ridges all day and had some more incredible views. The Great Smokey Mountains really are incredible. Today we left the Smokies and we were lucky to have 3 of our 4.5 days in the park stay dry and warm. This entire first 2.5 weeks has been excellent weather. We had a decent day going generally downhill. We popped out of the woods at Interstate 40 and saw fast moving vehicles up close for the first time in over two weeks. It was kind of weird. Lefty, Spidderman and I hiked another 3 miles and got to Standing Bear Farm. This place is wild. They have bunkhouses and tent sites, showers, kitchen, laundry and an honor system pantry/resupply all out in the woods. The staff were great people and the 20 or so thru hikers that stayed the night had a great time with them. If you read this and get near the north border of the Smokies on the AT, you have to check this place out.
Date: 2012-03-29
From: Green Corner Rd/Standing Bear Farm

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: light rain

Had a great breakfast and morning at Standing Bear. Everyone was not looking forward to the 3000 foot climb followed by another 1000 foot and then another ~1000 foot climb. It was a long day and very tiring day. There was some high points, usually whenever the end of a climb came around. Snowbird Mtn, which is a grassy bald at the peak, was pretty cool with a very UFO-ish looking Federal Aviation tower off to the side and then there was Max Patch. It was our last climb of the day and it beautiful. Spidderman and I had lost Lefty, as he hikes much faster than us uphill. So when we got to the top, we dropped our packs, grabbed our cameras and took some pictures. We saw a side trail that went to the top of the bald and figured "We're here, and we may not ever be here again, so let's go up there." We walked up to the top and were getting a great view of the valley down below when we came up to a fence post with a white blaze on it. Damnit! We were going to walk up here anyways, now we have to go back, get our packs and walk up again. Oh well, we convinced ourselves it was worth it. Got to Roaring Fork Shelter and played some cards after diner. I learned how to play Rummy. I came in second to last.
Date: 2012-03-30
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Deer Park Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: broken clouds

Lefty woke up really early and was heading out as I was coming back from the privy, so Spidderman and I hiked with "YouAgain" for most the morning. We had a great time joking and laughing as we hiked along in the terrific weather. We hiked all day with our shirts off. Today ended up being an entire day of "trail magic". When we got to Walnut Mtn Shelter, there was dehydrated fruit and cinnamon sugar instant rice (sounds weird but it was so good) left from the people the night before. Then about 2 hours later, we ran into Boy Scouts leaving from a small section hike. They had all this leftover food to offer us. Tuna packets, cheese cracker packs, gummie snacks, apple sauce, tortillas and Jolly Ranchers. They loaded us down with about 10 pounds of goodies and filled our water bottles. We made certain to chat with them for a little and say thanks. Finished our day at the shelter to find a bunch of guys that made us a roaring fire, a bunch of burgers and brats and then popcorn. They are walking into Hot Springs tomorrow and going home. We sat up around the fire having a good time and doing plenty of bullshitting. As I sit here fat and happy, 3 miles from Hot Springs, I look forward to 3 things tomorrow.1. Talking with my girlfriend Sarah, since I haven't had cell service in 4 days. 2. Smokey Mountain Diners' Hiker Special Breakfast3. Getting my Tyvek to make my tarptent.Hope we get a nice day in town.
Date: 2012-03-31
From: Deer Park Mtn Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: light rain

Woke up to some fog/clouds and it didn't matter. We ran down the mountain to Hot Springs and got to the Smokey Mtn Diner. I got the breakfast skillet and it was crazy. As I was eating with Lefty, Spidderman, Motown, Cheese and Eagle Eye, I realized I had to be at the post office in 15 minutes. I had to leave my beloved platter of food and run across town. Got there just in time and got my care package from my mom. Got the Tyvek, some cookies and chocolates. Perfect. Got some food resupply at Dollar General and we went to Chuck Norris' Laughing Heart Hostel. Got a bed and made my tarp. Went back downtown to check out the outfitters and Shawn (great guy I hiked with before he hurt his knee) pulled up in his Jeep. This is crazy because he had gone home to Wisconsin after hurting his knee. He and his wife had a hotel rented in Hot springs so instead of losing their deposit, they drove all the way down and they kept their reservation. Crazier yet, we were standing downtown and they ran into us. Small world.Then it was time for food/beer. We went to the tavern and things got crazy. There was 30 hikers out on the riverside deck, two really good bands and lots of booze. Excellence.
Date: 2012-04-01
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Campsite
Miles today: 2.0
Weather: clear sky

So we woke up, quite hungover, drank some coffee and showered. After we said our goodbyes to Chuck Norris, we headed to the Iron Horse for lunch. Spidderman, Lefty, Motown, Cheese and I all got salads and soup. It was delicious. We headed a whopping 2 miles out of Hot Springs and started to set up camp. I still didn't have my tarp sorted out and a huge thunderstorm came blasting in on us. So I jumped in Spidderman's tent and stayed dry. It was a wild storm and it felt like the wind was going to pick us off the ground like the Wizard of Oz. Motown and Cheese still hadn't made it up the hill yet and apparently they each curled up inside trashbags to stay dry. Haha. The rest of the night was nice and calm and we got some good sleep.
Date: 2012-04-02
From: Campsite

To: Little Laurel Shelter
Miles today: 17.6
Weather: light rain

Slept ok with my tarp. It was kind of buggy since there was nothing to separate me from "nature". It was cool to look out from on top of our hill and see Hot Springs down below. We got a late start today. Still some laziness from being in town I suspect. It was a really good day with perfect weather so we were hiking with our shirts off again. Got to Spring Mtn Shelter and ate some lunch. It really looked like some rain might happen. No big deal right? Well about 20 minutes after leaving the shelter, it started to rain. And then turned into hail, big hail. Shit did that sting my bare skin and it was so cold when it got between my pack and my back. The best part of it all was the single piece of dime sized hail that came down and stung me right on the nipple. It hurt so bad but it was fun to laugh about. It rained hard for the rest of the day. Everyone was soaked. I'm glad my dry bags kept my change of clothes and sleeping bag dry though. Money well spent.