morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-08-28
From: Dry River Campground

To: Lakes of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: clear sky

Day 137: Aw HutsUp and at 'em and packed up before 8am. We headed over to the general store for a few breakfast sandwiches which hit the spot. We ran into Uncas again and the Canadian Geese (Carol and Richard), and Papa Foot gave everyone a ride to the trail. Thanks, Fred!Soon, Boss and I took off to get started on the mountain. It was tough. Lots of hand-over-hand stuff that couldn't use poles. High steps and up up up. We took a break at the first lookout, and it was stunning. Uncas caught up and we all sat there for a few minutes. It was really nice. Onwards up the mountain. More up and up, but the exceptional views continued until we were above treelike and the whole thing was exposed. White mountain national park in every direction! I loved it. It was a gorgeous day. Bright sun. Cool (sometimes cold) breeze. Blue sky. Magical... Somewhere near the top of Webster mountain, we found a windless nook and had an early lunch. Then we walked the ridge over a few humps until we got to Mizpah hut for another lunch-ish break. Warm sun!! I laid my socks and shoes in the sun again to dry (avoiding ALL the puddles can be quite hard), and snacked inside with Boss and Uncas. I caught up with blogging a bit (sorry for the delays... very little cell service out here and no electricity at the huts to plug into...), then we filled up on water and were off. A steep climb up to another peak and LOVELY ridge running for the rest of the afternoon. We hit a few peaks and got to skirt a few others (Eisenhower). We also walked along a part of the trail the was part of the original AT and is THE OLDEST marked trail in the country. Established in 1919 and still being traveled on!! Very neat. Finally we got to the Lakes of the Clouds hut at 4:30 hoping to get a work-for-stay slot. Mount Washington was hovering overhead, waiting for us to climb her tomorrow. Only 1.5 miles to the top... We asked the Lakes croo about the thru hiker situation, but they were full up. Darn. Our only option was to pay ten bucks to stay in "the dungeon" - an emergency refuge bunk room in the back of the building. We wouldn't have to do any work, but we wouldn't get any food either. We decided to stay there, and it's a bit grungy and cold, but it'll do. Uncas arrived sometime after we did and signed up for the same deal. The three of us hung out then made dinner and eventually watched the beautiful sunset. Mount Washington is completely clear right now. We're all hoping it'll be clear tomorrow morning, too.I love the Whites. Full blog and photos: http://maine2010.blogspot.com
Date: 2010-08-31
From: Carter Notch Hut

To: Rattle River Shelter
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: fog

Day 140: Goodbye August, Goodbye Whites... Slept in in the bunk house. Having a pillow is so nice! We four (Boss, Rorshach, Wilbur, and I) walked over to the hut for leftover breakfast, and there was a bunch of food. Thick chocolate chip pancakes, oatmeal and a few peaches. It was good and plenty. Soon after breakfast, we were on our way. Wilbur left early, and Rorshach was going to take a swim in the pond before leaving. Boss and I stopped by the pond to take a few photos before beginning the steep climb up to Carter Dome. And it was steep. Too early in the morning (and too much breakfast in our bellies) for such a climb! And it never ended. Right when I thought I must be close to the top, it just kept going. And it was warm and sunny. Hot even. And there was no breeze. It was a pretty tough, steep climb for full stomachs and bright sun and no breeze until the top. But we made it. We'd only gone 1.2 miles. We descended the north side and enjoyed the breeze on the way down, checked out the 360 degree views of Height mountain, then gradually we started back up to South Carter. We had a lunch break on the trail with heaps of peanut butter and got back to climbing. We met southbounder Low Step and day hiker Jason before catching up to Wilbur. After Middle and South Carter, Boss and I were pretty tired. We took a break to get water at Imp campsite and then began our last mountain in the whites. Moriah. Moriah teased us with false summits and long slabs of rock face, but we made it up there and reveled in the beauty all around us. How did we luck out with such amazing weather almost all the way through the Whites?! (yes, we've heard that hurricane Earl is on the way... Ugh)The descent from Moriah was steep at the beginning, and then just long. My knees were hurting again with so much downhill the end of the day. We finally ran into the Rattle River shelter and dropped our bags. It was just the time to stop walking for the day, even though it was only 5:15pm. There was a group of high schoolers camping up the hill, and they went down to the river for a dip. Boss and I cleaned up a bit in the river and rinsed some of our clothes in preparation for doing laundry tomorrow in Gorham the first laundry in 11days. Can. Not. Wait. Wilbur showed up, and we three ate dinner together. A mother and daughter arrived and shared fresh fruit with us. The mom (Clickity Clack) thru hiked in 1997 with her husband, and the daughter (10 years old) plans to thru hike someday. The pears they gave us were SO GOOD! Thanks Clack!Time for bed. Into Gorham tomorrow!!Happy 30th birthday, Becky!!!
Date: 2010-09-01
From: Rattle River Shelter

To: Gorham, NH
Miles today: 1.9
Weather: fog

Day 141: Laundry Finally!!Got moving early to try to get breakfast in town. It was only 1.9 miles to the road from the shelter, so it would be a short one. The trail was basically flat, too, so it was very easy. We got to the road and organized ourselves to hitch the three miles into town. There wasn't too much traffic, and no one seemed interested in helping out a few homers (empty pick-ups?!?!). Three miles was more than I would've wanted to, but it was do-able to walk into town. Neither of us wanted to do that. So we kept our thumbs out and hoped for the best. Luckily, after 30 minutes or so, a guy named Dr Ford pulled over and gave us a ride in. He has a few hikers in his family and has lived surrounded by mountains all his life. Thanks Dr Ford!He recommended that we eat breakfast at Welsh's restaurant, so we did. And we ran into Backwards, Moped and Oompa (sobo). It was great to see Backwards, who I hadn't seen since Demascus, VA! He'd been all over Europe in the meantime with his sister and got back to the trail in the Whites about a week ago. I kept thinking I'd catch up to him, but I didn't until now. Boss and I had breakfast while the other three went back to the Barn Hostel to pack up and get going. Great breakfast and then onto the laundromat. We put on our rain gear in the 87 degree heat and threw our disgusting, 11-day hiker clothes in the wash and hung out with Prophet and Wilbur. I could not WAIT for clean clothes! After the laundry was done, we took showers before meeting Power Pack, Deetz, Miles, Rorshach and Prophet at the $5.99 all-you-can-eat Chinese lunch buffet. It was just what we all wanted and needed. Tons of food and endless ice cream. Oh yeah. After a break to digest, Boss and I walked the mile to the grocery store and resupplied. We had trouble hitching back with our bags, but finally got an offer from Stacy, who worked at the Family Dollar. Thanks Stacy! Back at the hotel, we fixed up our food bags for the next few days, ordered a pizza, and watched Dazed & Confused. Time to sleep again - with a pillow!!Full blog and photos: http://maine2010.blogspot.com
Date: 2010-09-02
From: Gorham, NH

To: Gentian pond shelter/campsite
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: few clouds

Day 142: Last Full Day in NHWoke up early, but lazed around a while with the tv on. Our packs were heavy. No need to rush to put them on. Eventually, everyone made it to breakfast at Welsh's again, and it was a big crew. Deetz, Power Pack, Miles, Rorshach, Boss, Homebrew, Buttons and me. Oh, and a sobo named Homeward Bound who had only just graduated from high school (!). We ate a bunch and chatted about what's ahead. Hard to believe there are fewer than 300 miles left of this thing. After breakfast, Boss and I went out to hitch a ride. After a few minutes, a red pick-up truck did a u-turn to pull over right in front of us. Two guys got out - Joe and Henry. They were sections hikers we'd helped out a few days earlier when Henry was having bad leg cramps a few miles past Mount Washington. We'd given him some water since they had run out. Karma had come around! They gave us a ride back to the trail head before running off to Walmart. Thanks fellas!Boss and I started hiking with our way-too-heavy packs [for just three days], and it was a bit slow going. We didn't get outta there till noon, and it was hot out. 85+ degrees in early September in almost-Maine?! The heat wouldn't have been too bad had there been a breeze, but the air was still and stagnant. Maybe hurricane Earl was messing with the typical late-summer New England weather...? I'm pretty sure Boss would slow down a bit behind me to make it seem like I wasn't quite so slow, but I sure felt slow. He's nice like that. We climbed a few hills and took a snack break when Backwards caught up. He'd been in and out of Gorham a few times and knew this part of the trail well. Boss popped his new mp3 book into his ears and hiked out front while Backwards and I caught up about his European adventures. My legs were pretty tired and not cooperating as usual. The guys both got out in front before Boss took a break. Snack break. Hiking. Sun. No breeze. Hiking up. Hiking down. Another snack break on top of a mountain where I made a few calls. We took our time getting to the shelter, and didn't make it there till 7:30. The heat made the day seem longer than it was. Not even 12 miles today...But! The day was over, and not a pinch too soon. After setting up camp and making dinner, it was blog and bed time. Mahoosuc Notch tomorrow - should be a lot of fun! (though I will miss New Hampshire a lot)Special thanks to the group of Bates college kids who gave me their extra Hershey bars!
Date: 2010-09-03
From: Gentian pond shelter/campsite

To: Campsite at the east (north) end of Mahoosuc Notch
Miles today: 12.2

Day 143: MAINE !!?!Woke up and got out early, but we were the last the leave. That's ok. Big day ahead. No rush. The first mountain to climb was called Mt Success, and it didn't give up. I ate a lot for breakfast, and maybe all my energy was being used for digestion, but I was feeling pretty slow.  Climbing and climbing. There were a whole bunch of cliche sayings that popped into my head while trying to get to the summit. "Success is never easy." "Just when you think you've attained success, there's still a bunch more work to do." "Success ain't easy, but the view from the top is great." ...and so forth. We got up there and took a short break. A few more miles of climbs and descents (it was like a mini roller coaster), and we came to the New Hampshire - Maine state line. Wow. Maine. There is was. I was in it. The last state of fourteen states, and more than 1800 miles walked. I felt powerful and happy and excited and a bit sad and a bit shocked. I had done it. I had walked to Maine from Georgia!? The journey, of course, has not ended, but to be in the final state just seems crazy right now. Boss and I took a short break, but pressed on to get needed water at the next shelter. Unfortunately, it was .3 miles off the trail, downhill, but when you need water, you need water. It was still pretty warm out, and we were both sweating a lot (as we do). We got water and had an early lunch at the nice shelter. A sobo named Abel showed up abs ate with us. Then Prophet caught up right before we left. He said that Deetz/Power Pack/Miles, Rorshach, Neutron and Xan all stayed at Trident campsite last night with him. We missed a party! Hopefully we'll get to see them all very shortly. Back to mountain climbing. The miles were passing slowly, and we were tired. Couldn't figure out what it was. I guess the mountains were not small, so maybe we were just pushing too hard...? Technically, we are still in the White mountains - just no longer in the White Mountains National Park. Maybe I just had it in my mind that I should be faster. Oh well...We made it to the Full Goose shelter and had a last snack before hiking down into Mahoosuc Notch. It's been called the most difficult mile of the trail by many, but I think it's probably just the slowest. Boulders all around and tough tight spots to squeeze through. It was a lot of fun, and there were crazy cold air pockets down in there. I'd be walking in 85 degrees then catch a cold pocket that shot the temperature down to 60 degrees. It felt good. It was a fun mile and took us a little over an hour to complete. We didn't rush and we stopped to take a few photos here and there. After we were done, we saw that Backwards had set up camp at a stealth site right off the trail. There was plenty of room for more, so Boss and I set up camp, got water, ate dinner, and hung out with Backwards whose birthday is today. Happy Birthday, Backwards!!Tomorrow, we should roll into Andover and maybe a shower. Would be nice, especially if the rain that's forecasted comes round...
Date: 2010-09-07
From: Rangeley, Maine

To: Rangeley, Maine
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 147: I Give Up......on trying to catch Scatters. She's still a few days ahead of me, and she's returned to her original plan of summiting on her 30th birthday, September 16. So, she'll be cruising, and it would be too hard to catch her. Bummer. But! She'll get to summit on her birthday, which she kinda wanted all along. Go Scatters!!So, Boss and I will be taking it easy. Maybe we'll meet back up with the Deetz pack and/or Xan and Neutron. Still looking at about the 20th to finish - only 13 days away?!?!?! It's crazy how quickly the end is creeping up. Mount Katahdin is going to be visible from one of the mountains I climb in the next few days. Before I know it, I'm gonna be climbing Katahdin. And then I'll be done?!I woke up to the smell of breakfast food filling up the house. It was amazing, and we all ate together. Breakfast crepes stuffed with eggs and bacon with cheese sauce on top. Fresh fruit, cereal and toast, too. It was great. Soon after breakfast, it was time for the non-zeroing hikers to head back to the trail. Boss and I said goodbye to Tripper, Wizard and On the Loose, and we organized our food bags and popped in a movie while Donna drove them back to the trail. I'm pretty sure we'll see them again in the next few days. We watched Monty Python's Life of Brian until Donna got back. Then we all went into town to run errands. Post office, outfitters, walking around. It was great. Donna gave us a tour of some of the Rangeley hot spots, too. We checked out the Rangeley Inn, the beach, and the viewpoint to Shaw (Doctor's) Island. It was so nice outside for touring. While Donna ran a few errands of her own, Boss and I had lunch at Pine Tree Frosty. I had a lobster roll and Gifford's ice cream - it was gooo-ood. We drove back to the house and laid low. Boss and I took the kayak out in the pond for a bit and chased a few loons around. Afterwards, I caught up on my blog, and Donna got started on dinner. Aunt Margaret came over later, while Boss grilled the London broil, and soon we were eating dinner on the screen porch. More awesome food! Steak, roast potatoes, peas, bread, salad, yum. Great conversation while the sun went down across the pond. What a great day.Life is good.Back to the trail tomorrow!
Date: 2010-09-09
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to

To: Stealth Site between the 2 Spalding Mountain peaks
Miles today: 15.8

Day 149: Cold and WetWhen I woke up, it was still sprinkling a bit. Mostly just blowing off the trees, but everything was wet. It was pretty cold, too. The three section hikers (who were AMAZING snorers last night) and Uncas left early, so Boss and I took everything over to the shelter to pack up. It was lightly raining when we left, and I was bundled up in my jacket and rain pants. It took a while to warm up, but soon I was fine moving around in just shorts and t-shirt again. Hiking was good. We hiked and hiked and caught up with the section hikers sooner than expected. One of them had just taken a faceplant in the mud, but he was ok. We met a guy named "Suicidal" who declared himself the last sobo thru hiker of the season. He was a little crazy and had so many injuries already. I hope he makes it...?We caught up with Uncas at the next shelter for a late lunch. It was cold and wet, but so nice to be under cover. There was a short 5-minute period of brief sunshine, then it started to rain again. We made hot chocolate then took off, back to the trail. We climbed up almost to the peak of Sugarloaf then down steep down to the river. Lots of very slow, hand-over-hand action, and I took a fall. A funny fall, though. Trying to avoid some mud, I slipped on a root, my foot dove into a thick pile of mush, and I lost my balance. I slowly fell into the bushes until I had taken a seat. No injuries!It cleared up a bit when we got all the way down, and we got to see a few hills. We took a short break to figure out where we'd aim for the night, and headed up to the first Spalding peak. It was a big ole climb. The first mile wasn't bad (we passed by the campsite), but the next bit was a mile of stairs. The light, cloud rain was back, and all the plants along the trail were saturated with water. The rocks and roots were still slippery. We made it up the the first peak in a cloud and continued on into the saddle. As we descended the first peak, The terrain got flat, and we found a spot for tenting. We set up and changed into dry clothes (ahhh!), ate dinner, and the rain held off. We are definitely in a cloud though. It's gonna be so hard to put those wet clothes back on in the morning!! Fortunately, we plan to stop in Stratton tomorrow, so there should be laundry. I love laundry.
Date: 2010-09-10
From: Stealth Site between the 2 Spalding Mountain peaks

To: Stratton, Maine 
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 150: Warm and DryCOLD!!! It was so cold last night and this morning!! I bet it was just under 40 degrees. And it was wet. It's not so bad to deal with wet when it's warm, and it's not so hard to deal with cold when it's dry. But, cold AND wet is tough. So hard to get out of my sleeping bag, but I managed. So hard. Not sure how I did it. And wet clothes again?! Just thinking about it now gives me goosebumps. I will try very hard not to camp in a cloud again. The moisture collected on all the trees and kept dripping all night and continued throughout the morning. Everything is wet. We got moving just after 8am in full rain gear. There was a small climb up to the north peak of Spalding with soaking wet plants hanging all icer the narrow trail, then it was five miles down to the road to Stratton. It was pretty easy trail, but, with the top of my left foot, I managed to kick a hard root that was sticking out. It hurt a lot and made my eyes water up, but no damage. Then later I took another slip/fall which strained my left knee again. Was there something trying to keep me from getting to town?!?!I was fine, just feeling silly for making so many footing mistakes. Boss and I finally made it to the road juuuust when Backwards was getting dropped off. Perfect! We got to say a brief hello to him, and then got a ride into town with Sue, who runs the Stratton Motel! Sometimes the timing works out. We said goodbye to Backwards and jumped in with Sue and her dog, Knucklehead. Got a ride to the motel, which also has a hostel, then got a hot shower, then some down time. The shower felt sooooooooo good!We got lunch over at the White Wolf Inn and resupplied at the small market. It was pretty chilly out. We did laundry, hung out, watched tv. It was lazy, and it was GLORIOUS. It felt really nice not to be walking. That's about it! Early to bed. Back to the trail tomorrow!Full blog and photos: http://maine2010.blogspot.com
Date: 2010-09-11
From: Stratton, Maine 

To: East Flagstaff Road
Miles today: 16.7

Day 151: A Wonderful DayWoke up relaxed and ready to start the day. Sue said she would drop us off at the Looney Moose for breakfast on her way to Bangor, so we allowed it. We packed up and headed over there. We said farewell and thank you to Sue as she left, and we sat down in a booth and ordered breakfast. After we'd finished, we hitched back to the trail (first car that passed!), and started hiking around 10am. Not too bad for coming outta town with a sit-down breakfast. As we took a few steps into the woods, we noticed a sign advertising trail magic this weekend. It was 17 miles away, but we'd heard Uncas talking about how good a spread it would be. Could we do 17 miles today...? Leaving at 10am...? We would go for it. Well, there were a few mountains in the way, but it was BEAUTIFUL!!!! Prettiest day we'd seen I'm a while. Sun! The sun was out!!!! We climbed up another Horn mountain and took in great views of the area. Sugarloaf was easy to spot, and you're supposed to be able to see Katahdin, but none of us knew which one it was. I took a guess. Down the Horn and back up Avery, the unofficial 2000-mile marker. I've walked TWO THOUSAND MILES!!!! Hard the believe or comprehend, but my body is sure starting to feel it. Actually, lately, I've been getting that paranoid feeling similar to the one I felt about two weeks before running the marathon last year. I'm so freaked out that I'm going to get hurt before I can finish! I'm sure I'll be fine, but it is a worry...Up on Avery, we tool a few photos, then took a few with the 2000 sign before descending into the valley. We only had to get up and over Little Bigelow and then we'd be set for a flat line to trail magic. I had another scary slip/trip but caught myself somehow. I wish I'd stop doing that!Slowly got up onto Bigelow and enjoyed the great view one more time. I hope the weather is this good for the rest of the trip! Boss and I quickened our hungry pace once we were back on flat trail, and right at 7pm, we rolled into the trail magic camp. Hooray! There were four guys running the show: Hydro (who hopes to complete a thru hike in 2012), Mad Mike (who I met at Trail Days and saw back in Mass at the ice cream shop), Old Faht (who looked kinda like Santa), and Walking Home. These guys were fantastic. Phenomenal. They offered us cheeseburgers as soon as we arrived, and we munched on other food while we waited for the burgers to cook. They had thought of EVERYTHING - perhaps because they'd been doing it for over a decade. A grill, tables, chairs, wood, tarps, and a port-a-potty!!! And so much food. Oh the food... Pasta salad, pbj, corn, candy bars, chips, oreos, beans, sodas, and lots more. We were in heaven. After chowing down, we set up camp, then joined the group by the fire. Backwards, Prophet, Uncas, Stryder were there, and there were sobo's - Trail Baby and Satellite. Great group, great fire and very good times. We stayed up till the temperature got too cold, then we hit the tents. There will be breakfast in the morning, too. I'm so glad we decided to go for it!