morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-08-27
From: Hanover NH

To: Trapper John Shelter
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: few clouds

I had a restless nights sleep & got up early. T just have to go. To slack pack with nothing really planned was not organised hiking for me. Hike your own hike ???Said goodbye to David the owner of the property ,as i could not find Baltimore Jack i left .Hiked back to the co op to resupply with fruit & breakfast. Wasted a lot of time having breakfast as i got talking to the manager of the co op. Did not get going until 9.30am . My body & spirit feel really good after time out from the trail. Plus just to be back on the trail is invigorating. Passed Velvet Rocks in no time at all ,then along steady climb up to Moore Mnt2290ft. Joined by a mother & daughter for lunch & soaking up the sunshine. Honeydew came in for lunch, so the slack pack did go ahead. The 6 miles i had to do were slow going with some steep ups & downs. Arrived at Trapper Johns shelter AT 6PM.In Camp is chef mango sergeant& dog walking home &another woman. It was a good night around the campfire. Chef was interesting to talk to as she had lived in West Aussie for 4 months & toured Aussie for 8 months. Marshmallows supplied by mango to seal the night. Its going to a very cold night.
Date: 2009-08-28
From: Trapper John Shelter

To: Ore Hill Shelter
Miles today: 19.1

Thought i could here moose all night long so i did not sleep to well. Up at 6am & on the trail by 6.45am. I would like to be near Glencliffe but it will be a bit to far at 26 miles in this terrain. The night was very cold. My hands are very numb from the cold. Autumn weather is definitely here. Such a beautiful day, now for the climbs. Lyme-Dorchester rd 850ft up to Fire Wardens cabin 3230ft in 3 miles. NICE steady climb over tree roots mud & rocks & a couple of brooks . Fire Wardens tower offered spectacular views .Off in the distance i see storm clouds coming together BUGGER. I m hoping Mnt Moosilauke is rain free tomorrow . Ive had enough falls on these high hard rocky Mnts, but that is tomorrows hike. Cannot project tomorrows falls today?? Had a lovely lunch @ Smarts Mnt. Passed fire wardens cabin & hiked to Hexacuba Shelter. Its 3pm so i kept going to Ore Hill Shelter 7.5 miles away. The climbs are all roots & rocks. Arrived at camp 6.30pm,enough for one day. Greeted by jim dandy amaro & rock hound. Had not seen rock hound since standing bear hostel ,where he was working. It was a nice catch up. Had dinner & in the sack by 8pm. The rain is coming so it should be an interesting day tomorrow.
Date: 2009-08-29
From: Ore Hill Shelter

To: Beaver Brooke Shelter
Miles today: 19.1

Well it rained all night long. All my gear is drenched . This weather has come from hurricane Danny. It was not too far to NH25 & a quick walk to Glencliffe. Went to the Hikers Hostel & greeted by Baltimore Jack ,with a beer on offer & a   G¢day mate . Quite an amusing greeting . Jack just has to work on his accent a bit more .The owner of the hostel Gary did a shuttle into Warren.. Took a photo of the nuclear missile in town. Brought steak & a little resupply . Cooked the steak at the hostel & headed out in the pouring rain to Climb Mnt Moosilauke. It was a long wet clouded 50mph winds that travelled with me all the way to the summit . The wind was blowing me sideways across the summit ridge. A runner took my photo at the summit . he did not hang around as it was freezing. Then the long long descent down to the shelter. Was very happy to get out of the rain wet & cold. The actual up & down was not as bad as i thought it was going to be. EXPECTIONS ,i have to get rid of then, &do the trail as it is & not what is written , the trail is OR should be. In camp tonight is 3 thru hikers & 4 section hikers .I was very cold so i had dinner early & jumped in the sack fully clothed to get warm. It was a very cold night.
Date: 2009-08-30
From: Beaver Brooke Shelter

To: Kinsman Pond Shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: broken clouds

My knees really ache as they have not done so much work since Georgia. Go off the trail @ NH 112 Kinsman Notch & meet by Dutch@ the trail head car park. She took me into Lincoln/Nth Woodstock for breakfast & a resupply. Had just finished the things i had to do & had breakfast. Got walking out of town with a distance to go back to the trail head but decided to eat some more. Had just finished eating & about to pack up & guy comes over to me & offered to take me back to the trail head. THANK YOU. Im in & out of town in under 2 hours & have not had to hitch at all. These hiker friendly towns are amazing. Had along hard climb up South Kinsman & North Kinsman Mnts. Arrived at Kinsman Pond Shelter absolutely exhausted. Had dinner & straight to the sack before hiker midnight. ITS freezing.
Date: 2009-08-31
From: Kinsman Pond Shelter

To: Garfield Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Its bloody cold & cloudy. The pond is totally clouded. Great start to the day but the winds soon picked up & blew the clouds away leaving the possibility of a lovely day. This trail is very hard. Its up & down very steep water courses, over so many large rocks & tree roots & MUD. Its actually quite boring how tough it is. You climb a Mnt & given no reward (a view) .The view might have been there 50 years ago but not now. This has been the case on so many Mnts. What was wonderful back in the inception of the trail does not apply now .Its hard enough when the weather blocks you out but when it is trail management some things need to change in my opinion. But that is what the trail is today. Little Haystack Mnt 4800ft with Mnt Lincoln 5089ft & Mnt Lafayette all looming in the back ground. The Mnt range is spectacular. On top of the ridge above the tree line its an imposing view from Haystack Mnt across to Mnts Lincoln & Lafayette. Onwards & Upwards with no cloud about & winds over 40 mph & its cold. The views are very impressive. Just to finish the day off its down to Garfield Pond then up Garfield Mnt 4500ft then down to the shelter at 3900ft. Meet by the AMC caretaker who insists i drink beer with him when i register for the night. I cooked dinner in his tent & had 2 beers with him. A great bloke with a love of the Mnts & life. Another cold night expected. The moon is full & clear skies.
Date: 2009-09-01
From: Garfield Ridge Shelter

To: Ethan Pond Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Man it is freezing at about 35*F . My body is suffering from the very hard terrain to be endured. My knees are very painful plus the negative thought I have to hike so many miles a day to finish. Its all quite draining ,the first time on the trail that negativity is creeping into the spirit of my trail life. This hard terrain does not help & I could quite easily walk off the trail on this beautiful day. I DONT KNOW WHY, 30 days to go MOVE IT. Got up to Southern Mnt for lunch &don¢t know where the day went. The brain & body are in neutral cause its just very hard ups & very hard downs with rocks & rocks mud. Finally got to Ethan Pond shelter with another large college group in camp. Its cold again .
Date: 2009-09-02
From: Ethan Pond Shelter

To: Lakes of the clouds hut
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: few clouds

Had a good nights sleep despite a raccoon trying to go thru back packs all night . The college kids were surprising quite. Its very cold . Got up & left early. The college kids were still in there sacks snoring there heads off. Within a couple of miles its back to the big climbs again. Just started to climb Webster Cliff 3900ft & came across BRUCE aka Socrates now fancy pants. Soon after meet up with Dotty aka dame dotty now cosar the destructor. I have not seen bruce & dot since the ERWIN TN. They are hiking with patches   crazy lady   blackbird stickman. Had a beautiful break on top of Webster Cliffs soaking up the sun & enjoying the vista. I staid for a while then climbed up MNt Jackson 4052ft was a bitch to get over. At Mizpah Spring hut 3800ft I stopped for lunch- soup quiche & cake. Still had over 6 miles of rocks & roots to go. Its a long slow crawl up Mnt Piece 4312ft Mnt Franklin 5004ft . Arrived late in the afternoon at Lakes in the Cloud hut 5012 ft with 17 thru hikers sitting around . We are all doing work for stay. We all have to wait outside the while the paying guests have there meals before we are aloud to come inside. Its is so cold we all went inside & sat around a table until we were finally invited into the kitchen to eat. With dinner over it is find some floor space & bed down for the night.
Date: 2009-09-03
From: Lakes of the clouds hut

To: Madison Spring Hut
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: broken clouds

Everybody is up & packed away by 6.30am. Now we have to wait until the guests have finished there breakfasts before we can have breakfast & do our 1 & a half hours of work. We get to eat left over¢s Plus a little extra . We soon had our offerings grits & bits & coffee. Then it was work time. 6 bunk rooms to strip out wash & scrub the bunks, bleach, dry ,then put back all the linen & mattress Plus the walls had to be washed. At 11am we were finally released. All of us hikers were not happy. We feel really abused for 2 plates of food & floor space. We all worked our butts of. Work for stay is not worth the lost time but it is something to be experienced. Finally hiking with small miles today. Mnt Washington 6288 ft is the 2nd highest Mnt on the trail. The trail is all rock mile after mile.Finally got to the summit of Mnt Washington.So many sobo ,nobo,sectional hikers &tourists around. Mt Washington has the highest wind speed record on the planet(231mph) but on this day you could not fly a kite.Just the superb views & sunshine.Had lunch soaked up the atmosphere of the Mnt for an hour then I left with stickman.More rocks & slow going with sensational views of the Presidential Mnt range.Got into Madison Hut late in the afternoon. Booked in for more work for stay.Once again we all have to wait outside until the guests have finished there meals. Once again it is freezing so we all moved inside and sat at a thru hiker table.There only 10 thru hikers tonight & the Hut CROO treated us well. We were given good food & kindness.Many names & Nat gave a speach to the guests about life on the A.T. as a thru hiker.Then sang there new hiker song HIKER FUNK.The guests & us hikers responded with laughter at the humour of the lyrics. Nat & many names did a great job representing us thru hikers & themselves. Its been a good night.
Date: 2009-09-04
From: Madison Spring Hut

To: Carter Notch
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: few clouds

same routine as yesterday,pack up by 6.30am & wait for the guests to eat & vacate the dinning room.Then we eat then we work for our stay.This is a smaller hut .We have 1 bunk house o strip down ,wash bleach & dry.The whole exercise is over & done with within an hour.We are all pleased & hiking by 9am.Its straight into Mnt Madison 5366ft, its very tough going. At Osgood tentsite patches & black bird got attacked by a black bear. Fanct pants & myself missed it by 2 minutes.Patches recorded it all on video.Despite the attack it was quite humorous as patches threatened the bear with work for stay in the middle of being attacked.7 of us decided to hike together for safety.some how us 7 hikers missed the trail turn off & did an extra 4>5 miles.We all missed the trail to Pincherton Notch & ended up down the road.Hitched back to Pinkerton Notch , had lunch & hiked on. The others all went to town to resupply.Wildcat Mnt Peak D Tower 3990ft & Wildcat Mnt Peak A 4422 ft were the 2nd hardest climbs of the Presidential Range so far.Got to Carter Notch & free camped at the top of the trail.Went down to the Hut & greeted by Phoenix. It was a lovely surprise to see this young man, after the ordeal he had earlier in his hike with rabid raccoon.Phoenix had lost 6 weeks & had flip flopped to Maine so he could finish his hike.The last time i saw Phoenix was at uncle johnys in Erwin TN.Got water & had dinner & watched the moon travelling thru the clear skies,whilst laying in my tent.Fell asleep &awoke to check on the moon. Did this a few times during the night.
Date: 2009-09-05
From: Carter Notch

To: Rattle River Shelter
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Its my early rise & shine,its cold cloudless, the hills are alive & a big day ahead of me.We are geeting spoilt,as there has been 6/7 days of perfect hiking weather.Its straight up Carter Dome 4835 ft, down to Zeta pass 3890 ft up South Carter Mnt 4458 ft up middle Carter Mnt 4610 ft down north Carter Mnt 4539 & into Imp Shelter 3250 ft.Its been along hard slow roller coaster day.Hope to have a break in Gorham tommorow & let my body rest.Still its a rugged hike to Rattle River shelter with 1 last hurdleMnt Moriah 4049 ft. Its just another bitch of trail to get over & a long slide down into the shelter.2 sectional hikers came into camp followed by 2 obnoxious hikes. Phoenix came into camp just to say hello & left before it got to dark.Its damn cold.
Date: 2009-09-06
From: Rattle River Shelter

To: US2 Gorham
Miles today: 1.9
Weather: clear sky

Got up early & made as much noise as possible just to piss off the 2 knuckle heads i had to share the shelter with.Got to the Hwy US2 & met up J bird,We were offered a lift onto Gorham by marathon man(thru hiker in 1991).I booked into Hiker Paradise,which wqas bit of a dive but its only for one night. Had breakfast with marathon man & j bird.J bird had been awake most of the night & day so he took off to sleep. I hitched up tp wal-mart to resupply & get my favourite foods & steak N veg for dinner tonight.Ate 8 small steaks & vegs for dinner watched tv,rested ,talked to kermit who just done the 100 mile wilderness.She was going home battered & bruised.Its into bed early after along day of doing very little,just love a good NERO.
Date: 2009-09-07
From: US2 Gorham

To: Carlo Col Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: clear sky

Resterd well but its time to get going.Breakfast @ 7am & hitching by 8am.It took an hour to get a lift out of this small sleepy town on a labour day weekend.Finally got a lift to the trail head & started hiking at 9am. Was planning just to go to Gentian Pond Shelter but i need the mileage & to get out of NH & elevate to the last state, MAINE.Crazy lady & cozar the destructor caught up to me.Fancy pants has a job painting the outfitters for 3 days.He really needs the money as he is almost broke.Cozar is feeling sick.Well the trail is quite easy & i got to gentian pond shelter by 4.30pm.I thought 5.5 miles to the next shelter was a challenge. Straight into Mnt Success 3565 ft. That took over one & half hours just in its self.It was a 7.30pm setting sun when i crossed the state line into MAINE.The trail is very tough & hiking by a headlamp is really scary on the huge rocks ive got to go down. Eventually got into camp after 9pm,very relieved & tired.Had dinner talked to cloud walker& lights out. Am thinking about tommorows hike thru MAHOOSUC NOTCH.Will have to wait & see what it brings ,as i dont want to project & build up something in my head that does not need to be there. Goodnight.
Date: 2009-09-08
From: Carlo Col Shelter

To: Speck Pond shelter
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: clear sky

cloud walker & myself are up early,its a big day. Tough climb up Mnt Carlo 3565ft then across to Goose eye Mnt (east peak)3790ft then north peak at 3675 ft. That was the warm up session for the morning.After Full Goose Shelter its a lovely hard climb up Fulling Mill Mnt.south Peak 3395ft,then over to Mahoosuc Notch trail. Mahoosuc Notch is supposed to be the hardest & most challenging mile on the whole A.T. Cloud walker & myself have decided to hike together for safety & photos.Before we knew it we were in it.West end climbing over large boulders,up & over & around.It was very slow going but fun to do.Had to take packs off once to go thru a tunnel.Then we were into the east end of the notch with much of the same as the west end.Wish i did not have such a big back pack ,but hey.Eventually got thru the notch which i thought was the most fun part of the whole A.T. so far & not as challenging as is written about. Then it was a hard climb up Mahoosuc Arm3770 ft.A very tough day for 9.5 miles. Arrived at Speck pond Shelter very tired. My body, archilles tendons & calf muscles have had a big work out today.Had a good session in the shelter with the caretaker cloud walker hot chocolate son & chris & liz who i started the trail with so long ago. early to bed with another cold night due.
Date: 2009-09-09
From: Speck Pond shelter

To: Frye Notch Shelter
Miles today: 10.4

I dont want to wake up as i am so tire from yesterdays effort. My calf muscles & archilles tendons have never been so stretched. Anyhow its another day. Got straight into it,up Old Speck Mnt 3985ft just for starters.Got to Graffton Notch & had some trail magic from many names parents.Enjoyed there company for 1/2hour then back to it.It has been awhile since the last trail magic.It did not take long to get to Bald Pate Shelter & up to Bald pare Mnt west peak 3662 ft & east peak 23810 ft. Stunning day.Talked to Spaz a guy doing the Int. A.T.sobo Canada to Florida. Had lunch on top of east peak & soaked up the sun & views.Eventually got to Frye Notch Shelter, absolutely worn out. 20 miles in 2 days HHMM,its tough. In camp tonight is cloud walker george logan & alan.
Date: 2009-09-10
From: Frye Notch Shelter

To: Bemis Range (east peak)
Miles today: 21.9
Weather: few clouds

Im tired & restless.Just got into the swing of things early. Im bored with UP mnts DOWN mnts.Its hard & boring with little reward.One lovely surprise is Dunn Notch & water falls, very spectacular.Just did mileage,UP n DOWN.Camped alongside the trail in a pine forrest,its very quite & the moon is still up & its cold.I could sleep on a bed of pine needs for ever,they are so comfortable. Despite the rather boring day iam pleased with the mileage.
Date: 2009-09-11
From: Bemis Range (east peak)

To: South Pond
Miles today: 17.3

Had such a good nights sleep in this freezing cold.Aiming for Rangeley today but it might be a bit too far in this terrain, see how i go.Am feeling ok but by lunchtime ive hit a wall,i dont wont to walk , i just wont to lay down & rest.Got to Oquossoc Shelter,had lunch but my body is so tired & aching & i still have 13 miles to go.I feel like im pushing shit up hill slowly.Moxie Pond was lovely but to early to stop.Little swift river pond campsite was lovely as well, but still too early to camp.I just pushed on.Came across 1 or 2 moose eating near the trail but could not see them as the bush was too dense.Could here them running away thru the bush.I waited for about 10 mins trying to get a photo.got tired of waiting, so i walked to them. Silence then a mad dash away from me is all i could here of the beasts.Just not destined to get a moose photo.Got a lovely campsite on top of a hill on the A.T. Its a short hike tommorow to Rangeley.I hear strange foot steps nearby so its either moose or bears.Its another cold night.
Date: 2009-09-12
From: South Pond

To: Rangeley (Gull Pond Hostel)
Miles today: 2.1

God it was cold, slept really well.Had a sensational sunrise,just laying back in my tent with fly open watching the changing colours of the morning sky.Had a moose walking in the woods very close by. Am waiting in the tent with the camera ready for the moose photo(nope not my day again).Its only a couple of miles to the road but i wont to just lay here,rest & enjoy this sunrise.Cant do miles laying down???. Eventually got up & on the trail.Arrived at Maine 4 rd by 8am.GAWD road works are going on & i have to hitch from the wrong side of the road.This is strange.Took 5 mins for a car to stop,It just happened to be BOB Obrien the owner of Gull Pond hostel.He had just dropped off a slack packer & was heading home.Bob dropped me off at the BMC diner for breakfast.Made arrangements for Bob to pick me up later as i wanted to book into the hostel.went to the outfitters,& a store for choc milk then the library for internet.Went up to iga & resupplied then waited for Bob to pick me up 112 hrs later.Greeted at the hostel by Bill(father)& Bill(son) ramble & ox.I had a lovely dinner shared with bobs dog that now enjoys eating steak. Went to the movies.Bob is such a great host,pick up deliver pick & home or where ever you like,AMAZING old man.Ive now had 2 showers in 30 days & my body is loving the feel of hot water,but this will change no doubt.Spent the rest of the night infront of the TV,way past hiker midnight.
Date: 2009-09-13
From: Rangeley (Gull Pond Hostel)

To: Poplar Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 10.72

Could not sleep much,up early for breakfast with old bill & ox. Bob was doing a shuttle. Had a nice breakfast then bob dropped ox at iga & me back at the trail head by 11am.Sad saying goodbye to Bob,dont know why.I feel for him & the life he has had in Rangeley.Sadly at present when Bob passes on or retires there is no one to look after hikers the way he has & done so for a long time.Gull pond hostel is such a lovely setting right on the pond.You can use the canoe for a paddle around the pond. Thats the changing trail life.Back on the trail with a full back pack,its overcast & cold.It stayed that way for the whole day. Piazza Rock Shelter soon appeared. Then it was UP & UP & UP Saddleback Mnt 4120ft,the Horn 4040ft then Saddleback Jnr Mnt 3655ft. All in the clouds & very cold. Got to Poplar Ridge Shelter had dinner & in the sack by 6.30. Im tired & cold.Then a pleasant voice & surprise came into camp Snot N Piss(SnP) & stryder.Have not seen them since Damascus.Was a lovely catch up.Also in camp is firecracker & big fish. Im very tired.
Date: 2009-09-14
From: Poplar Ridge Shelter

To: Crocker Cirque Campsite
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Had another good chat with SnP & stryder. hope to catch up with them later after they have finished the trail.They still have 600»700miles to do??.Hit the trail & into the day,its still cold.Soon up Lone Mnt 3200ft,hard yards again,with not much reward for effort again.Got to Spaulding Shelter for lunch,still very tired & wanting to sleep.Left shelter & the trail is straight up Spaulding Mnt 4000ft,more hard yards in the clouds. Relieved to finally get to Crocker Cirque Campsite & tented on a enviormentally friendly platform.Its damn cold. Sat around a fire with firecracker & big fish.Ive had enough for 1 day & retire to my tent at 7.30pm.
Date: 2009-09-15
From: Crocker Cirque Campsite

To: Horn Pond Shelter
Miles today: 12.4

It rained most of the night,with a lightning & thunder attraction off in the distance. Slept well. everything is wet wet wet.Packed & hiking by 7am.Straight into South Crocker Mnt 4040ft followed by Nth Crocker mnt 4228ft.Both Mnts were very hard ups & downs &again no reward for effort as im in the clouds. Ive reached Maine 27 & hitched to the grocery store 2 miles away.The hitch took 30secs.Resupplied for 5 days,so pack is heavy again.It took 112 hours to get a lift back to the trail head.Whilst at the store having lunch there was sun shine (YEAH) & a good wind blowing so i dried my tent out.My hiker appertite is ravenous again 6 bananas 12 chook 1 turkey roll 1ltr milk 2 apples & still hungry.From the trail head its only 5 miles to the shelter.the trail is rather easy but with lots of rocks & roots.Arrived at Horn Pond shelter, took some photos up on the ridge over looking the ponds.Had the shelter to myself until olive oil & mildew arrived late & talked aloud.Its very cold again,was in the sack by 6.30pm.