morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-08-04
From: Norwich, VT

To: Happy Hill Shelter
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: clear sky

Today my mom, grandma and two aunts drove up to say hi!! It was awesome - not only to see them, but also because the busses in town weren't running today, so we didn't have to overcome that obstacle. We had lunch at Mai Thai and went to EMS and LL Bean and W. Lebanon. Then we went to the co-op in Hanover to resupply. We got Lizann's dogs an allegedly super strong dog toy. We went back to her house, but she wasn't home. My family members had to use the restroom, so I let them onto the porch and allowed them one by one to use the room. It was a little weird because that felt very bold to do. Lizann came home in the process and she didn't seem to mind. We gave her the dog toy and she liked it. After playing with Barkley for about 1.5 seconds, it ripped. Strong dog toy FAIL! I was not happy... and a little embarrassed. Oh, I forgot to mention that Lizann has a piano that she allowed us to play, so we did that this morning. She also told us to find whatever we wanted to eat in the house and eat it. She is such a lovely woman.Mom and the ladies dropped us off at the general store in Norwich (that also had a piano to play, but outside) and we got a Ben & Jerrys to share. We hiked only about 4.5 miles today. It was strange being back on the trail at 5:00 PM after the luxuries of Lizann's and my family carting us around and all of the free stuff in Hanover & Norwich. But, here we are in our tent (mosquitoes) at the Happy Hill Shelter - made of stone and very cute. The only drawback is that the water source is dry. Time to sleep... we heard our first coyotes on the hike this evening. :-)
Date: 2012-08-08
From: Stony Brook Shelter

To: Inn at Long Trail
Miles today: 6.7

Today is my grandparent's wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary!!What a great day! We hiked this morning up and down some mountain that I can't remember (haha) the names don't stick with me as much anymore. It was Quimby Mountain. We came into Killington to get my lightweight/warmer weather sleeping bag and some groceries and that is when our plans went down the toilet. BOOTERMAN APPEARED!!We hung out with her all afternoon. We fed goats grass, saw a pony, went to Booterman's room in the Mountain Meadows Lodge, went swimming and Kent Pond while she kayaked and also ate lunch with her. Speaking of lunch... Heavyweight ate an entire half gallon container of peanut butter cup ice cream. Then Booterman couldn't finish her tuna sub, so he ate the second half!! WHAT!? He is crazy. And skinny. I eat faaaar less and I'm still flabby. Grrrr.Anyway, Booterman had to go around 4:10 so she left us. We then ended up talking to some NOBOs for almost an hour. I have no clue how that happened. We never got their names. We hiked on past the Maine Junction and are now at the Inn at Long Trail in room #37. We cooked Ramen Noodles in the room (haha!) after taking showers. Then we each took turns playing the piano downstairs. I am exhausted. We just ate lemon pies and I am going to bed. Good night!
Date: 2012-08-09
From: Inn at Long Trail

To: Gov Clement Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Steven has become a slave driver. My knees ache, my ankles hurt, and my feet throb. Waah! Today I found out there is a drink called Applejack - a kind of brandy. Awesome! I am making dinner at the Governor Clement Shelter. It is 5:40 PM and Steven wants to hike on. There is nowhere to hike to and there is thunder in the distance. I hate hiking today. BLAH!!!Well, we stayed at the shelter, but pitched the tent. There was only one person in the shelter, but we don't like mosquitoes. Also, she is sick. Too bad because now it is pouring rain and the fly is getting wet. Actually, it is a thunder storm. I'm very glad we aren't hiking in this. Tonight I try my new sleeping bag. It has been nice since we sent more weight home, but I still can't hike fast/long enough. Today on Killington we met Dunn and also Pete with his dog, Bishop. Also some other guy, but I can't remember his name. Uh - what? Our tent is leaking!! Not horribly, but bad enough to be annoying and get us damp. Stupid rain protection not protecting us. We should just get a frakking tarp. Sheesh! Also... someone is using a CHAINSAW!!! WHAT??? In the pouring rain thunder storm at NIGHT! What is the meaning of that?? Crazy. Scary!I want to go home because of the leaky tent and my hurting feet and my busted knees. I want to finish so I don't disappoint myself or anyone else. Gah! Stupid tent! Stupid chainsaw freaking me out! Stupid EVERYTHING!!!
Date: 2012-08-10
From: Gov Clement Shelter

To: Greenwall Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: light rain

Today was a much better day. We hiked 14.6 miles according to my book. There was the moment when Steven told me he wanted to hike 19.4 and I started crying. In all honesty, we could have hiked further, but I like to have time for dinner and reading or writing and general hanging out. It was a good choice because two Long Trail hikers, kirk and Karen, have a guitar and are singing. It is really nice to hear live music. Also Booterman caught up to us!! She hiked a 20 today. Crazy. I'm glad she did because there are other SOBOs here, Cosmo and Fountain, that seem to be hiking the same pace as us and her. I think this will give her some motivation to keep going. She and Cosmo are totally flirting. It rained almost all day. I am really glad that we are in the shelter. Tomorrow we're going to do a 15 and then a 10 the next day to Green Mountain House in Manchester Center.The sun just set and I'm gonna have to sleep soon if we are going to hike the 15 tomorrow. Hope it doesn't rain all day again. Sigh to the rain.We saw an owl today!
Date: 2012-08-11
From: Greenwall Shelter

To: Peru Peak Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: broken clouds

This morning we woke to blue skies and sun. WOO HOO! By 1:00 it was raining. Boohoo! We hiked 14.5 miles to Peru Shelter. We stopped pretty early. There is a father and son here speaking Hebrew or something similar, a father and daughter hiking the Long Trail, and a single guy hiking the LT. The hike today was fairly easy. Gradual ups and downs. Unfortunately, I put my glasses down on a rock during a break and forgot for 20 minutes after we moved on. I was so mad at myself, but I was willing to hike on without them. Steven went back to get them and I carried both of our packs down the trail about .2 miles. I alternated carrying each pack. Heavyweight's is much more awkward than mine. It hangs down pretty low on the butt. My feet were sore after that!Nothing particularly exciting happened today except that. Tomorrow is a 10.1 to the road. Hopefully I will be able to hike fast enough to satisfy Heavyweight.
Date: 2012-08-12
From: Peru Peak Shelter

To: Green Mountain House
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: broken clouds

Tonight we are staying at The Green Mountain House in Manchester Center. It is so nice and clean. For $20 each we got a private room, shower, laundry, cereal for breakfast, and a pint of Ben & Jerry¢s ice cream. How awesome is that? There is also a piano and computer and an awesome DVD collection. I made use of the piano and computer, but not the DVDs. Alas. Animal was watching some movie and Heavyweight joined him for a while, but others were partying and playing the piano very loudly so they couldn¢t hear the movie anymore. I was on the phone with Andrea, my sister. Bishop (Pete¢s dog) bit my hand today. I had just given him a treat and I went to pet him and he snapped at me. I didn¢t realize I was bleeding until I was in EMS looking at waterproofing stuff. I asked an employee if I could use the bathroom to wash my hand. You would have thought that I had asked for all the money in the register by the trouble it took! Three people later, I was allowed to wash my hand. Sheesh! It is bruised on my wrist and the skin is broken between my thumb and forefinger. Pete punished Bishop right away (which was sad to see in a way), so I didn¢t tell him I was bleeding.Looking forward to a comfy bed. It is nice to be showered and wearing clothes that don't stink even after you've washed them. OMG! I almost forgot the funniest thing that happened today! While we were sitting in front of Price Chopper waiting to be picked up, Dunn asked a random guy walking by "Where's the shit at?" The dude was wearing a blue Hawaiian type shirt and a hat. He said he didn't know because he had just gotten out of jail... for RAPPING!! hahaha! Heavyweight and I laughed so hard about the guy going to jail for rapping. HA!
Date: 2012-08-13
From: Green Mountain House

To: Story Spring Shelter 
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: broken clouds

Two momentous things happened today. First, we have officially hiked 25% of the trail! Woo hoo! The other is that we hiked our first 20! It was actually a 21.1 (!!). It was very flat today except for Mt. Stratton. I can¢t believe we did it. We are 33 miles from Massachusetts now. Crazy!We are at the Story Spring Shelter and there was only one person here hiking the Long Trail, Twirls, when we got here. Then appeared Dangerfoot, a German couple, and now five other people!I think Dunn bought me Applejacks for breakfast! He is such a nice guy. I took 34 of the box and left the rest at the hostel. Alright ¢ it is after 8:00 PM, getting dark - and I still have to clean up and stuff. Zzz
Date: 2012-08-14
From: Story Spring Shelter 

To: Stealth Site
Miles today: 13.0

So... after hiking our 21 yesterday, we only hiked about a 13 today. Right at the beginning of the day the sole of my right shoe detached. NOOO! So I put on duct tape, but that didn¢t last long before things went awry. I hiked in my camp shoes for the rest of the day. They slow me down a little because they don¢t have good traction and I can¢t step in a lot of places I would with my hiking shoes. Oh well. Tomorrow we¢re going to Bennington ¢ out of necessity for shoes, alas. It is chilly! Steven still doesn¢t have a sleeping bag so we¢ve been using mine as a blanket since the VT border. If it gets much colder I¢m going to get annoyed. At least we¢re in the tent tonight where the fly keeps in some of our warmth. I am cold and tired. Goodnight. Also, I feel uncomfortable in this area. It is devoid of squirrels and chipmunks and there are very few birds. Creepy.
Date: 2012-08-15
From: Stealth Site

To: Congden Shelter
Miles today: 10.3
Weather: light rain

Well, we didn't die last night. Phew! It did start raining around 3 AM. I think there were only a few stray drips into the tent. It wasn't bad.We are at the Congden Shelter just south of Rt. 9 to Bennington. There are abotu 20 NOBOs here. Crazy! They all know each other it seems, so I understand now that when they get together it is a big party. They talk about food and killing mice quite often. Also, tons of them smoke. It is so strange.We stopped in Bennington today and I got new shoes. They are Merrells, so I'm sure they are good. I tried on a lot of shoes. The Keenes were nice and wide, but they were slippery on the inside and so were the Sketchers. Anyway, I have new shoes. I liked the looks of a different pair better, but they were more for general wear and not hiking. Too bad. Maybe I'll get some after the trail. I think they were Merrell Samoas.We had lunch at the Blue Benn Diner. It was pretty good, but I didn't get a refill on my soda and Steven didn't get one on his water. Dunn, Pete, and Bishop passed us today. They were shooting for the MA border. I'm sure they made it. We'd have gotten quite a bit further if my shoes could have held out for a few more days. Oh well. I had a dream of Hyacinth Bucket last night. Her son was Richard Jr. and he was quite young. She was bossing him around in her typical fashion. Later, Richard Jr. entered a room full of people without his mother and he asked people if they remembered her. They all did, but noted it with rolling eyes and exasperated sighs. Richard Jr. took this info in and felt it safe to announce, "I've lost taste," or something like that. Meaning - he was really sick of his mum. I also keep forgetting to mention something that I didn't realize meant something until later.When we were staying at Chet's in Lincoln, NH a male hiker whom I'd never spoken with approached me and said (in a British accent0, "Never give up." There may have been an "ever" in there. That is all he said to me and walked away. I'm pretty sure it was Grandpa's way of talking to me. It brings tears to my eyes. That was his motto and it was one of his life goals to hike the AT from end to end and he never got to do it. If the deceased can see from beyond the grave, I hope that he is joining us from time to time and is proud of what we're doing.
Date: 2012-08-16
From: Congden Shelter

To: North Adams, MA
Miles today: 14.1

WE MADE IT TO MASSACHUSETTS!!!!!My new shoes are horrible. They hurt my feet so badly. I wonder if they will let me return them after hiking about 20 miles in them. We hiked to North Adams where we called Steven's parents and they came and took us home. I need to get different shoes... and we're going to slack MA with friends and family. Hooray!!Yay to a soft queen sized bed with a feather pillow and cats!
Date: 2012-08-23
To: View Entry
Miles today: 75.2

We've been slacking all of MA. Today was fun. Things of note:1. Crossed I-90 (on the bridge I've seen nearly all my life) and got cars and trucks to honk at us.2. Went swimming in Upper Goose Pond. So amazingly refreshing!3. Steven left his keys in Carol's car when we had hiked about 20 miles from his car to hers!!! A cop tried to open Steven's car, but he couldn't. Thankfully, he drove Carol to her car instead. That was just plain lucky.(We didn't hike 75.2 miles today. I just added up all of the MA miles we have done.)
Date: 2012-08-27
To: Hemlocks Lean to
Miles today: 4.4

So, I have been seriously lacking in my journal entries. I'll try to reconstruct the events of Massachusetts.We crossed into MA on August 16. My feet hurt so incredibly badly from my new shoes! Steven thought it was that they were too narrow. Guess what! I think that IS the reason why my feet have been in such pain this whole trip! Well, one of the reasons. I have not worn the new shoes since that day. I should call Merrell to see if I can return them.Steven's parents picked us up in between North Adams and Williamstown at 4:00 PM. We waited for them on the steps of a church for sale on Rt. 2. We took Rt. 2 home and I felt horribly car sick. :PI think we took a zero on that Friday. Saturday, my Aunt Jean hiked with us from the summit of Greylock back north to Rt. 2. It was only 6 miles, but it took a long time. On Sunday we hiked north from Dalton to Cheshire with Roy (Steven's dad), Roxanne (one of my BFFs) and her dog, Parrish. Steven... Heavyweight thought it would be flat, but it wasn't. Alas. Tuesday we hiked the remainder of Greylock. Carol slack packed us because she had a meeting in Bennington. (I guess we took a zero on Monday)Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday we did the 2 car slack pack with Carol's car and Steven's car.That left about 12 miles of MA to hike. We took one more zero yesterday. I couldn't bear to leave home again so soon. I did some laundry, shopping, and yard work. I still didn't want to leave today, but we did. Heavyweight's parents drove us back to the trail in South Egremont and we went from there.Hiking with a full pack after 3 zeros and several day hikes SUCKS!! If I could triple underline, bold face, and make "sucks" 72 size font I think that would sum up my true feelings. We hiked a total of less than 7 miles to the shelter where we are now. It is called The Hemlocks. We would have hiked further, but the next shelter isn't for 10 miles and there are supposed to be thunderstorms tonight.Heavyweight is midlessly eating banana chips while reading. We did walk up to Guilder Pond. We planned to swim, but the lack of sun was not exactly inspiring. I got my feet wet. It also isn't particularly warm. I find it interesting that I can tolerate cooler temperatures if I'm outside, but not when I'm inside. Air conditioning makes me too cold below a certian temp. Right now I'm in a tank top.I guess I should make dinner as I have run out of things to write... other than I don't enjoy hiking just to put in miles. I don't enjoy the heavy, stanky pack. I don't enjoy the pain in my knees, ankles, or feet. I DO enjoy cool breezes when I'm hot, views from hilltops, crickets and birdsong.I have added a pillow to my pack. It weighs 1/2 pound, but I think it will be a very good idea. Heavyweight has now eaten almost an entire bag of banana chips. I wonder how many bananas that is...
Date: 2012-08-28
From: Hemlocks Lean to

To: Stealth Site
Miles today: 14.3

We are in Connecticut! YAY! Four states down... ten to go.We woke up to pouring rain and then a big thunderstorm. We stayed in the shelter for two extra hours! We left at 8:30. I was glad not to hike in a downpour. We are not allowed to stealth camp anywhere in CT so we were a little annoyed that there were 2 shelters and a campsite all within 1.5 miles of each other and then nothing for 7 miles. We'd already hiked 10 miles and wouldn't make the 7 unless we pushed very hard. So, we are stealth camping after hiking about 14.5 miles.We ate dinner in the Salisbury cemetery. It was weird. I thought of camping there, but it was too thickly developed. Oh well. At least we got another uphill out of the way.I have very stinky gas. Poor Heavyweight. I hope we both survive the fumes. The tent doors are fairly far open. My pillow was the BEST IDEA!! I slept SO well last night. It is a truly worthy luxury. It is getting late. We plan on a 15 for tomorrow. If we feel good that could turn into a 21! I'd like to pick up the pace, but it seems like a 15 mile day is the most comfortable for me. Wow... no more Mountain House pasta primavera for me!! Horrible gas. Just horrible!! >:P
Date: 2012-08-29
From: Stealth Site

To: Ceasar Brook Campsite
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: clear sky

I forgot to write yesterday that I'm dedicating my CT hike to my mom because we entered it on her birthday and because there are almost 60 miles in it. GO MOM!!Today we hiked about 18 mies. We got up and out fairly early because we didn't want to get in trouble. We left at 6:57 AM by my watch! The earliest we've ever set out, I believe.In the morning we saw not one, but three deer! Finally! Two adults and one fawn. I was very excited. The only other deer we've seen so far is one at East Chairback Pond in the 100 mile wilderness.I think we are currently listening to a great horned owl. So cool! I love owls. Today was a sad day for newts. We found one half-dead and kind of wriggling, so I crushed its head to totally kill it. I think Heavyweight accdentally stepped on one later in the day and there was no chance of it living, so I killed that one too. :'( At least it wasn't in pain for too long. Later we saw a dead one on the trail. Poor little guys. I was hungry almost all day today. I ate all of my snacks and broke out some more. Hopefully tomorrow won't be so bad for hunger. I ate an entire box of cous-cous for dinner. It was good. We are at Ceasar Brook Campsite. It is our third night camping with no other hikers. It is both strange and nice. In fact, this is only the 3rd time that we've been at a designated site with no other hikers.I guess there is a family of bears in this area. Hope we don't encounter them tonight. Now I hear a barred owl... and geese.One last thing - I belted out "Everything's Coming Out Roses" at Belter's Bump. tee hee!
Date: 2012-08-30
From: Ceasar Brook Campsite

To: Mount Algo Lean-to
Miles today: 14.0

Today was an up/down day in both terrain and mood. We had a tough start and I was feeling tired and weak.We found trail magic just before a flat 5 mile river walk. Hooray! A coke and an apple - SCORE!! We took more than one item because there are fewer hikers now. OH! I also found the teeniest fleck of a leaf on me. When I went to brush it off it didn't go away. It was a deer tick! It was my first ever and what I hope is my last - yuck! I took a picture of it and zoomed in - that is how I was totally sure it was a tick. Sick! Steven and I just did tick checks on each other... everywhere. It was kind of embarrassing and weird, but better than Lyme Disease.I made the mistake of cooking our lunch today. I couldn't eat it all, so I poured it into my empty nalgene bottle. It looked like vomit. Truly. Anyway, lunch took an hour because of the cooking. We hung out with some NOBOs who had also stopped for lunch. They smelled quite strongly, but seemed nice enough.After hiking on a bit, I began shaking again like I had in the morning - feeling weak and kinda sick. I finally thought that I might be dehydrated even though I had been drinking water all day. I started drinking more water more often. I also had to pee a lot, but I felt better and wasn't shaking. I also took a multi-vitamin.We went into Kent, CT and met three NOBOs Water Boy, Buler, and Tinderfungus. They were very nice guys and kept me entertained while Heavyweight went into the outfitter. We dashed to IGA before it closed and met a woman named Suzanne in the parking lot. She talked for 30 minutes at us about pretty much anything that popped into her head. It was nice, though - except our ice cream dinner was waiting for us at the picnic table. We finally finished talking/listening and ate our half gallons. I ate maybe half of mine. Heavyweight finished it. He is incredible. I also ate a banana.We went to the gas station. On the way, a couple offered to have us stay at their house, but we turned them down. I did not, however, turn down the offer of an onion ring. YAY! Something warm! I was very cold after the ice cream.At the gas station we ran into Suzanne again! She had purchased us a bottle of wine (!!!) and gave us a ride back to the trail head. She also offered to slack us a little. I have her phone # so I may try to find her address to write her a thank-you note. We made it to the shelter at 10 minutes to 9. No one was here, thank God! I prayed that no one would be here because we'd have woken them up if they were. It isn't as cold as last night, so that is good. Hopefully I'll sleep better. Last night I had bad dreams about Cathy Fournier (a neighbor) dying and also about almost being raped, but my brother Christopher saved me by shooting the would-be-rapist with a crossbow after I tried stabbing the guy with a knife. Boo to bad dreams. We saw deer # 4 in CT today. We need one more to make our song* accurate. PLEASE let us see a deer tomorrow!! * Our song is "The 14 States of the AT" sung to "The 12 Days of Christmas"
Date: 2012-08-31
From: Mount Algo Lean-to

To: Wiley Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: clear sky

I saw the fifth deer!! I was SO happy. Then in NY we saw another. Hooray for wildlife.Today seemed like a hard day, though we only hiked 12 miles. We had a big disappointment at the "deli" in Kent where there was NO deli - just a shop with overpriced, premade sandwiches. I got one anyway. Then we went for a swim/bath (ha!) in THE MIGHTY HOUSATONIC!We are at the Wiley Shelter in NY. There is no water here or at the next stream. Nice. -_- Thankfully, we got magic water, tomatoes, and wine. Oh, also found red pepper powder. It ruined our Ramen noodles. Oh well.I've had too much wine. One cup. Literally one measuring cup. I also have a butt rash. It is my fault for not changing clothes after going in the river. The wetness is a problem. Oh well. It is so much warmer tonight than the past two or three. Very grateful... or greateful... ?? Either life on the trail or the wine is preventing me from knowing the correct spelling...I STINK like onions & garlic.I <3 owls and Steven.