morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-07-17
From: South Wilcox Shelter

To: Upper goose pond cabin (shelter)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I, Shelter MOnkey, pledge to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but it so help me God, so today I wrestled a bear, hiked 5 miles an hour, adopted a rattle snake as a pet, swam a mile at the upper goose pond and canoed to a far off island... I like hiking agian after all my complaing a few days ago. UP at 5 and hiking by 5:45 it was to be a hot day ans swimming at upper goose pond was at the end of my 16 or so mile trek. I love hiking early in the morning, its cooler, the sun shines through the trees at crazy angles creating striking light rays through the trees, there is a certain calmness to enjoy. I slowed down to take some pixs, one intresting one where someone had left a roll of tp on a branch, using it as a TP dipenser, intreesting pix! Also this spider web that shined in the suns rays, hard to get a pizx that recorded what it looked like in real life you know that seems to be constan though the pix never quite convey what it was really like, one reason I thik I dont usually likle to bother with pix b/c Im more intrestd in enjoyuing the moemtn right then. But about the web, it was so clear with th light of the sun but when the sun wasn't shining on it, it was invisible, coun't see it really so much like life, with our a light shining on seithing what is there, the beauty isn't seen even though it is still really there, you just pas by and dont even notice it as it is seemingly invisible, what a gift to see this also i've been thinknig about trees and how they are sort like people, you walk by it in a rush thinking yeah yeah its a tree, their all the same I Know what a tree is, you know the typical pine or oak or whtaever, BUT there is so much variety and uniqueness in each one if you stop to really look... The way it bends and curves its roots outta the ground so with peole we stereotype or dont take time to see the beauty or uniqueness in each person because we think we know them or know all aobut people, slow down really look at things see the uniqueness beauty the intricacies, ive got really great pix of some trees wit the roots showing, coing outta the ground which also facinates me. how you only see abgout 1.2 the tre b.c so much of the roots are underground you dinow some of the roots are almost as big as the branchs of the tree, roots intertwined in all these intricate patterns but hidden from view of anyone else, hmm...we are like that too so much below surface others dont see, trees, who would thought??so back to the hike the cabin is a shelter but has bunks, a cartaker, is fully enclsed, has swimming at the pond, a canoe to borrow. so relaly different than other shelters I arrive at 1pm so had lunch, took a seim (wash off the sweat) canoes around hung out wit other hikers pretty much amazing... relaxing playing cards and as always laughing I REALLY enjoy the people out here, we are around great group right now. so a night away from mosquitos, they are really bad on the trail the last couple of days
Date: 2008-07-18
From: Upper goose pond cabin (shelter)

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

We saw a MOOSE today I didnt' know they were in MA I was thinking more Maine but we were hiking and heard loud noise in woods around us and I thougth BEAR! But then I saw the moose come RUNNING across the trail and his huge booty. I froze and was like umm...Shawna what do we do? mosse go away! Shawna was like "moose arent afraid of people they can be agressive it thought it was going to run at us" so it ran away but for awhile I was like go fast he might come back, we went oup some rocks on trail and I was asking if she thought the moose could climb them. Shawn said "man you relaly afraid animals are going to chase you and eat you, huh?" then I realized at that point I was being a LITTLE paranoid pretty amazing though in one of the registers a few miles back someone had written they saw a moose but never did Ithink I would be joining them in thei sighting, so when we got to town (Dalton) around 7 or so that night I told a few hikers and lets just say the were pretty jealous! one can only hope for more sightings to come. Weather report? well here it is most of the afternoon it was sunny but thundering which really confused me what I heard didn't line up with what I saw...so as we neared town the sky grew doark and the storm was definte at that point right as we pulled into town we felt the sprinkles but upon arriving on the proch of a place to stay the wind picke dup and it poured water all over the land...hey we pretty much had perfect timing, what can I say the wird thing is 15 minutes later the sun came back out and it cleared up ut I was dry happy and eating pizza while hanging out with LOtus and Thinker and meeting some hkers that have been ahead of us as well as some southbounders, no complaints here. We walked further into town to get a drink and snack later and coming toward us looked like 2 warriors coming from a tough day of battle felt as if I was seeing a scene from BRaveheard or something...2 guys with shirts off wet hair scruffy one witha mohawk walking with an aura of having conquered a great feat, really it was 2 southbound hikers, i think they took the warrior comment as a compliment. Today was a good day of hiking out longest yet, I lay my tired bones to rest clean clothes and a shower a bed all dry inside as I hear it start to rain later in the night. Knowing tommorow is a day of rest no hking with my firend coming to visit. Oh yeah and anothr beautiful part at the upper goose pond cabing the car taker made BLUEBERRY PANCAKES! for breakfast, oh how I love pancakes! great way to start the day PS at this point we are 1/4 way done with the trail!
Date: 2008-07-19
From: Dalton, MA

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: haze

A day of REST oh how lovely this is AND even better a day of rest with friends my friend Sarah who I met in San diego moved to NY about the time I also left S. deigo. so she and her boyfriend zack met us in Dalton to hangout today!! so like any other day in town we got the chores to do...resupply, post office (with amazing treats from home brownies, yumm), laundry but still time to chat, laugh we also saw a movie which if you know me is a big thing b/c normaly i HATE movies, wastin time could be doing somthing else with time living life but hey its hot outside and there was AC and a comfy chair for about 2 hours so heck yeah...movie time but I will warn you DONT see Wall E or whatever it is called its seroulsy proganda about being green and is not funny or cute, i was preched at and bored, oh lets not forget lulled to sleep although the sleep maybe b.c thats normally what a movie does to me. The only thing I agreed with in the movie was how er are getting relaly lazy as a whole not wanting to be active people but anyway just shocked at how blantant the message was in a supposed kids movie okay anyway the day was really enjoyable and super great to visit iwth SArah and Zack, not to mentino another night of rest in a bed (no hiking today) tommorwo slack pakcing 22 miles! Shawna hasn't been feeling well with stomach cramps etc... so we'll see if she goes tommorow.
Date: 2008-07-21
From: Dalton, MA

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

SOooo, you must think that I am making a trip to the post office to change my address to dalton since I have been here like a million days....so YEP still in good 'ol Dalton at the Birdcage (Rob Bird's house, he lets hikers stay here do laundry shower relax lots of hikers in and out all the time he's been doing this for about 7 years, pretty amazing, hospitable, generous) So why am I still here??? Waiting to get the results of Shawnas giardia tests. Shes on some drugs to kill the vicious creatures in her stomach or wherever they are...not sure when she will feel ready to hike if it will be in the next day or longer. so im constantly re-evaluating my priorites as today I really wanna move on to vermont get going again long time to be in one place but I cant move on not knowing what is going on with shawna at times I feel a tension between what i want for myself and waht is needed for my friendship with shawna. I know my selfish tendencies...but making the most outta the zero, shawna fixed my hair cut today cause a few days ago i decided to cut my own hair with shawnas pocket knife,though i do have to say that i didnt do too bad of a job it did need a little touching up. So it seems as though all I know how to do these days is hike and eat then hike some more and eat...so not hiking today i find myself just wanting to eat...
Date: 2008-07-22
From: Dalton, MA

To: congdon shelter, Vermont
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I finally left DAlton!!!!!! Yeah, movin on. Started in North Adams today, picking up where I left off when I slack packed day before last. Just about 4 miles to finish in MA and then Im in Vermont!! The Long Trail joins up with the AT for about 100 miles so it is interesting to meet the people who are starting thier journey on this trail, I've met about 3 kids who are in high school who are doing the Long Trail, quite amazing to be doing it that young!! Quite literaly upon crossing the Vermont boarder from MA it started to rain on me. I had just enough time to throw my pack cover on before it really started to downpour. The odd thing is that I didn't really get wet for awhile, the tree cover works pretty well as mini umbrellas. But I knew at that point that it was going to rain on me pretty much all through Vermont, thus far this has been the case. Hiked with Site for awhile and had great convo...seems alot of people on the trail open up and talk about their lives and what has brought them to this point. As I was hiking later this week (after 7/22) I was thinking about how this sorta goes along with how in Documentary school I loved to hear others stories, see the beauty of life through others eyes, hear how they see things and what has made them who they are. It would be really interesting to sorta collect (i dont think collect is quite the right word but...) others peoples stories on the trail. anyway we heard the thunder right over us about the time we were getting to the shelter hoping it would hold off just enough to get us to the shelter. So sure enough right as we saw the shelter and dove into it the storm broke loose. Made it outta the storm again by seconds, what an experience to sit in the shelter and watch in pour and thunder as you sit DRY!! (how my luck will change in just one mere day...) One young kid who just started the LONg trail that day had just written in the register it was 4:25 and he heard thunder but was giong to try the next 5 miles to next shelter and hoped to miss the storm, as it poured outside I read this entry looked at my watch it was about 4:45 and then thought man he musta got soaked...10 minutes later he shows back up soaked saying he made the decision to hike back instead of keep going in the rain. (My sitting cozy and dry lasted this night but the next night I was the one coming in soaked...)Well only 4 miles into Bennington tommorow morning where I get my rain jacket in exchange for my poncho thing I dont ever use.
Date: 2008-07-23
From: congdon shelter, Vermont

To: Goddard shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Started out this morning with damp air from the previous evenings showers, wet muddy trail (pretty much as muddy as yesturday, you could say this is vermud instead of vermont...) After a few minutes is began to rain again and turned into an actual thunderstorm, only 4miles then I have a pit stop in a town (bennington) for a package so I"m not sweating it too much. At first I was frustrated and not really excited about the storm but yah know after awhile...you just look around you and take it in the beauty of it all the misty fog in front of you. It was actually a really awesome hike this morning into town. In bennington (got my rain jacket JUST IN TIME) it cleared up had a great lunch at a coffee shop and our friends offered for us to stay with them at a hotel and get/stay dry but we figureed hey it was going to be thuderstorming for about 3 or so days and so why try to hide from the rain, we'll just jump in?? so we headed out around 2 or so for another 10 miles to goddard shelter. It started out fun just misty jumping from rock to rock to miss the mud puddles and to avoid our feet sinking into the mud. Then it started to rain, just a little at first then it poured!! The worst of it we were still about 5 or 6 miles from the shelter, do we go on?? do we stop and tent out??? it was cold, rainy, windy and seemed like an eternity to get to the shelter. At one point I was decently far ahead of Shawna so I decided to turn around to meet up with her and we hiked the rest together. We ended up at the shelter aoround 8 or 8:30 soaked, tired and cold. There were already 6 people there cozy in their sleeping bags, so we quickly tried to get out of our wet clothes, eat somthing hot, and get in our bags for the night. The awesoem thing was when we arrived everyone was lying down and then one head poped up and it was one of our friends, peanut and wrongway, no way who woulda known, so this made the night much better, I guess they had made it in just before the storm ( so see how the luck changes day by day, we all get our chance at being soaked) Man that night it rained and rained and rained at times i didnt think it could rain harder but it did then i was like it couldnt possibley rain harder...then it did. At one point the thunder shook the shelter, but thinking back on it, it was a good night getting in warm clothes and bag and listening to it storm outside, but I do have to admit the thought that we might have made the wrong decision to leave town did cross my mind at least once. So rain tommmoorw???
Date: 2008-07-24
From: Goddard shelter

To: story spring shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Yep, its raining, pouring and there are rivers everywhere, the biggest river is the trail!! So we wake up with the rain, do we really wanna get up and put our cold wet clothes, socks and shoes on and keep hiking in the rain?? well...not at first but once you get going it isn't that bad just how you look at it, met a southbounder who had a great attitude aobut it all (had aobut 3 weeks of rain in Maine he said)so very helpful and a reality check to me to just get over it all and enjoy it. So we got everything else packed up until the only thing we could do is put our wet stuff on, we stalled some and then bit the bullet, out back into the rain but for a short day, hoping to get dry again and hang out at the shelter. It is funny at how your mind set changes as you hike in this weather, at first you try to jump from each puddle not step in mudd decide if the mud will suck you into a black hole or if you can step on it and hope for the best trying to keep your feet dry and clean, but then after you put your foot in the first huge puddle you dont really care as much you just start sloshing through it all, really the trail did turn into a huge long stream, you couldnt tell the differnce beteween the trail and the brooks we were to be passing. so we floated into the shelter on the AT rapids and had some lunch and relaxed as the other hikers came in for the night, it acutally started to clear up today and didnt rain at night.One thing you dont wanna get wet is your sleeping bag and some dry clothes and though my pack cover didnt really work and my pack was pretty much all wet, i still had a dry bag and pair or clothes but there was a couple of hikers that came in with all their stuff soaked, so I was thankful for the clearing so they could dry out some stuff!!!   Horray for the sun!!!!!
Date: 2008-07-29
From: Big branch shelter

To: rutland 12 tribes
Miles today: 15.0

getting to town today!!! going to this 12 tribes place, they are a community with religious ideas that have a cafe and a hostel, look them up they are interesting and have a community in san diego also...great food NICE place and people, and these amazing mate bars that are about 600 calories and really good tasting, perfect trail food!!! Im loving this, good trail today also
Date: 2008-07-31
From: Rutland (12 tribes)

To: thistle hill shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: moderate rain

HIlls hills and more hills to climb but great weather, some bugs are constantly buzzing into my ears and in my eyes but as you get used to their buzzing it begins to make itself into some weird sorta background music today was a hard day seeming like the climbing wont end, and man i sound negative, but to be honest i am, trying to do it in my own strength and I dont think that is working so...cant depend on myself any longer
Date: 2008-08-01
From: Thistle hill shelter

To: Hanover, NH
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Our last day in VErmont and into new hampshire!! another state down and we are getting into the most diffucult terrain, the whites in new hampshire, which im sorta nervous about seeing as the last few days in vermont have been pretty hard for us more climbing and longer climbs but nothnig compared to what is ahead...so we staying in ahotel as we are both really tired and achy and just beat down as we are having a hard time wondering if we can make it, i cant even relaly explain unless you are out here what it is to say it is hard, looking at it all on paper you think yeah challenging maybe but not hard, well...hopefully this will pass as we relax tonight in a hotel...its getting harder!!
Date: 2008-08-02
From: Hanover

To: Moose mountain shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: scattered clouds

first full day hiking in NH, crazy what will it hold???? RAIN, we got within 10 minutes of the shelter and it started pouring!! not fair we were too close...if we would have just not talked to the forest ranger so long...anyway we were practilcally running up the mountain to beat the storm as we heard the thunder and serously were about .2 from the shelter when we got soaked, but the shelter was an amazing repreive...in the register it read that we were not the first to not make it before rain, for days before us it read mulitple times didnt' quite make it before the rain started. well you win some you lose some we all get our time in the rain that is for sure as even around 7 or 8 as we were warm and dry in our sleeping bags 3 hikers get to the shelter in the middle of another thunderstorm that day soaked and cold...
Date: 2008-08-03
From: Moose mountain shelter

To: Firewardens cabin shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: broken clouds

STORMS ALL NIGHT LONG!!! some with lightening so close you could smell it, in the am sitting in the shelter ppondering to zero or not to zero that is the question, but alas we made it out and it eneded up not being so bad, just wet feet...
Date: 2008-08-04
From: Firewardens cabin shelter

To: Glenciff hostel
Miles today: 20.0

Since the trail has been getting progressivly harder, more/longer/steeper climbs I was not planning on doing any more 20 mile days for a long time, but today was great, one of those days you feel like you could keep going, and with a hostel at the end of the day dangled in front of you, it is quite motivating!! (though the hostel wasnt what I expected I guess i've been spoiled) shower, clean laundry quite a treat. Especially with the wet muddy socks that dont ever really dry just collect bigger and bigger clumps of mud. Cause you dont keep your feet dry, it is impossible as the trail has been transformed into a river in itself, and one big mud puddle. ONe wrong step and I sunk down into the mud to above my ankle bones when I pulled my foot out it made the most digusting sound, looked down at my feet and just laughed out loud to myself...what are you going to do it is funny cause I know in about 10 minutes I will be stepping in some cold water and rinsing it off anyway in fact as you walk you see skid marks in the mud from others in front of you sliding in the mud and i know I left quite a few for those in back of me. you just have to laugh at yourself when you fall/slide down the trail one minute you are walking fine and the next thing you know you are on your side on the ground with your left leg under your butt and your right leg over your head wondering what just happened and how the heck you are going to get yourself up having this 30 pound tummer on your back, it is quite funny for all involved more so for those watching the whole event. even if you dont fall you end up flailing your bodyparts around in the air to try to regain your balance...anyway it is getting harder in more ways than one but i will tell you that good conversation will keep you motivated and make the time fly, thats how I got through the last 6 or so miles today, OH New Hampshire!!
Date: 2008-08-05
From: Glenciff hostel

To: North Woodstock
Miles today: 9.6

Today is suppost to be the best weather day for the next week or so (there has been lots of rain and storms up here for weeks, talking with a guy from NH it has been record rain and they even had tornado a week or so ago which NEVER happens here), which is great Today is the first climb in the White mountains!!! Mt Mousilake (spelling is wrong???) we climbed up to about 4700ft, hard work and not quite a view at the top due to the fog, cloudy weather but it was awesome to be up so high and to experience above tree line, feel like a giant around the trees, as they are short at that elevation. The sun came out for a breif moment, but a cool feeling created as the mist or fog or whatever it is blows in. Walking up to the top the fog made the people further up look like ghosts. Quite the treaturous climb down, steep slick rocks next to a huge beautiful waterfall, the waterfall seemed to go for about a mile or more down, so there was a lot at stake as one missed step and you might be riding a natural waterslide down to the bottom of the waterfall. I think it took longer to get down than it did to climb, so even though the miles seem short today...I was ready to be done, felt a little beat up, with a headache anyway ended day at a hotel, shower and town food, cant beat that, so about tomorow and the storms/rain??? Hey we had a day without rain, Im not complaining at all!!