morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-07-19
From: Delaware Water Gap, PA 

To: unnamed campsite @ mile 1301.5
Miles today: 8.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 104 - Last night, a number of hikers gathered on the porch of The Deer Head Inn swapping stories and showing photos. To the amusement of non-hiking patrons, it evolved into a contest of who had the most bizarre snake pictures. The Belgium Machine won with his picture of an 8 foot long skinny green snake. It was lots of fun and a good time was had by all. It's a hot day today - in the upper 90's at Delaware Water Gap. I'm in no hurry to hit the trail because my friends from home, John and Laura, are still here. After a large breakfast at The Deer Head Inn, I visited the local outfitter for some gear odds and ends. John and Laura took Gernot (the German speaking hiker) and me to Walmart to resupply our food bags. In Walmart, Laura accused me of swiping a large Pepsi from someone else's cart, but my version of the story is that the cart had been abandoned! We all went to Friendly's for lunch - complete with ice cream sundaes for all. At lunch, I read some notes Laura had brought from my former coworkers at Rotork. They really meant a lot to me - even the one from Don K., who was always trying to put gas in my electric car! Thanks to all of you for taking the time to do this! Gernot and I delayed the inevitable return to the trail (and heat) as long as possible. My friends dropped us off at the trail around 3 pm and Gernot and I began our trek into New Jersey across the I-80 bridge. We resolved to go slow and that made the heat bearable. Eventually, we made it into the woods, where it was close to 10 degrees cooler. There were no steep climbs out of Delaware Water Gap and that helped as well. We tackled two milestones today - the New Jersey border and the 1, 300 mile point marker by 6 pm. To celebrate, Gernot and I ended the night with some Fireball (cinnamon flavored whiskey). Tomorrow is supposed to be a cooler day. We should be able to cover some ground - while keeping an eye open for bears. NJ has the highest bear density of any place on the AT. It's joked that "Even Ray Charles sees bears in NJ". Even if I can't understand a word Gernot says, it's good to have a hiking partner in New Jersey. Two can fight off bears better than one! Until tomorrow....
Date: 2015-07-20
From: unnamed campsite @ mile 1301.5

To: stealth campsite @ mile 1320.5
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 105 - I like this part of New Jersey - except for the heat (not New Jersey's fault) and the mosquitoes. The trail is fairly easy, there are lots of scenic ponds, little lakes and overlooks, and the rocks are a more friendly breed. I'm happy to be out of Rocksylvania! The DEET has finally been put to good use because of the mosquitoes. I found a tiny tick stuck to my shin, at least I think it was a tick. It was too far from my eyes and too small to get a definitive ID. The tick was about the size of a grain of pepper and wouldn't let go of my leg, but I eventually got it off. If they are that small, I may have others on me that I don't know about. I got an early start hiking to take advantage of the cool morning air. The forecast called for another really hot day, though not quite as hot as yesterday. Trail magic at lunch time today! It was provided by the Trail Angels Division of the Hunterdon NJ Hiking Club - fruit, hot dog, cheeseburger, corn on the cob, and two bottles of Gatorade. There will be no weight loss today! I planned to finish the day at Brink Road Shelter, but the place was so overrun by mosquitoes that it was impossible to stay there. Even the DEET was only a minor obstacle to them. They were very adept at finding any square inch of untreated skin. The campsite I am at now overlooks a beautiful lake, has a cool breeze, and should even have a wonderful sunrise. About 1.3 miles ahead, there's a restaurant at a road crossing - just the perfect location for breakfast in the morning too! Does it seem like I'm a little pre-occupied with food? There's only 46 more miles of the AT in New Jersey before it enters New York, so I won't be in this beautiful state long. The trail follows the western and northern borders of New Jersey, an area I had never seen before. Tomorrow is supposed to be another hot day, then it's supposed to cool down for the rest of the week. That should make hiking more enjoyable. Until tomorrow.....
Date: 2015-07-21
From: stealth campsite @ mile 1320.5

To: High Point State Park Headquarters (NJ Rt.23)
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: light rain

Day 106 - I like early starts, especially on hot days. And I really wanted to eat breakfast at a diner that crosses the AT on Rt. 206. The forecast's for another very hot day, but fortunately, the last one for awhile. Here's one thing to note: when asking a non-hiker how far down the road a diner (or anything else) is, it's important to know that they are likely to underestimate the distance by at least 100%. A gas station attendant said the diner was about a half mile down the road, but it was more like a mile and a quarter. At the diner, there was a large bear who had just decided his breakfast should come from the diner dumpster. My first thought was I'd hate to meet him in the woods!! He was big! The trail was very rocky (Pennsylvania type rocky) today, so my opinion of the AT in New Jersey has diminished a bit. The mosquitoes were out in force as well. Because Gernot and I were hot, sweaty, dirty, and downright stinky, we decided to end the day at a hotel near Port Jervis, NY. That way we could enjoy the much anticipated cooler days with clean bodies and clean clothes. In the morning, our challenge will be to find a ride the 4.2 miles back to the headquarters at High Point State Park. But, that will be after an all you can eat continental breakfast here at the hotel. We'll clean them out of food and they'll never know what hit them!! Here's to big miles tomorrow!Until then....
Date: 2015-07-22
From: High Point State Park Headquarters (NJ Rt.23)

To: stealth campsite @ mile 1355.7
Miles today: 19.6

Day 107 - Gernot (pronounced Genoot) and I had a hard time getting a ride from our hotel back to High Point State Park where our hike would continue. I can understand the reluctance of women picking up scruffy looking old geezers. Some of the male car drivers that passed us must have known we were AT hikers just needing a ride back to the trail. Maybe they were all late for work, I don't know... but about a half a mile later, we thought we were going to have to walk all of the 4.2 miles uphill back to the trail. Just as this realization came to us, a guy responded to our hitchhiking thumbs and pulled over! At that moment, we were the two happiest guys on the planet. In our ordinary, everyday lives, most of us don't have to beg for help from strangers. Most folks tend to have resources available to them through their jobs, church, clubs, family, friends, or public/private agencies so they don't need to flat out beg for help. Maybe that creates a hard time for us to empathize with someone who does need help...just a thought. It can become easy to think that someone else will help them out, they're just lazy, they should just help themselves, or that our own lives are hard. I hope in the future I'll be more likely to respond to requests for help from others since I've been the recipient of help when I've needed it here on the AT. I know how grateful I was when I got help. Perhaps we're a bit too judgmental about those seeking assistance. I know it's changed my thoughts. Anyway, enough of my preaching for today. We were able to start today's hike just a little after 8 am. The air was cool and it looked like it was going to be a great hiking day. New Jersey partially redeemed itself from yesterday. The trail was much less rocky, the scenery was pretty, and the bugs were dormant. Gernot and I would have covered more distance today, but in NJ, you're only supposed to camp at shelters and the spacing is inconvenient. The next shelter from where we're camped (probably illegally) is another 7 miles (a 3.5 hr. hike) ahead. That would not be doable before dark, so this is the best we can find for the night. Wandering around in the dark looking for a place to set up a tent is really not a great idea. The New York line is just 10 miles ahead. I'll be marching into my home state tomorrow. I'm looking forward to that. Until then....
Date: 2015-07-23
From: stealth campsite @ mile 1355.7

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: light rain

Day 108 - Does everyone see bears in New Jersey? I guess the bear I saw in the dumpster will have to be my New Jersey bear. If he's typical of NJ bears, I'm glad I didn't see another one! I came upon a climb today called "Stairway to Heaven". There had better be another way to get to Heaven because if this is the only way, most people aren't going to make it. It was a steep, rocky, tough climb. I'm glad I was able to do it in the cool morning air because I was still hot and sweaty when I reached the top. It was a special moment for me to cross over into New York today - my home state. It's such a clear day. From one of the ridges, I could see the skyline of New York City in the far distance. I don't think it's visible in the picture I took, but check out the photo anyway on my photos page. Right now I'm only about 30 miles from Bear Mountain Bridge, which goes over the Hudson River. I've section hiked from there north to Woodstock, VT so I'll know what to expect on that part of the AT. Today's hiking included a lot of rock leaping, but this was much better and more fun because it was bedrock. I didn't need to think about rocks tipping. The traction was very solid. All things considered, I liked New Jersey. The section of NY I hiked today was good too and the weather was perfect! The best part of the day though was crossing NY 17A to reach Bellvale Farm Creamery - a large ice cream emporium. I had 2 large dishes of ice cream and a cone - delicious calories. It was hiker heaven! From there, it was just 2 miles to reach Wildcat Shelter, where I'm staying tonight. I haven't looked ahead yet to see what tomorrow will bring, but I'm sure it will be memorable. Until then......
Date: 2015-07-24
From: Wildcat Shelter

To: Fingerboard Shelter
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: few clouds

Day 109 - Both Gernot and I decided that we needed a a lower mileage day today - so here we are at Fingerboard Shelter for the night. High mileage days over rough terrain is not easily sustainable, especially so with a full pack. It's too easy to injure yourself. Today wasn't the easy day we were hoping for. The trail here in Southern NY State has many large boulders with steep ups and downs. Our hike today culminated in the "Lemon Squeezer". Many famous features of the AT have fear inducing names like Jacobs Ladder, The Roller Coaster, Fat Man's Squeeze, Stairway to Heaven, etc...but most do not live up to the hype. This one did. It could have been named Thin Guy's Squeeze because even a thin guy would need to distort himself to get through and in no way get through wearing a pack. On the other side of the Lemon Squeezer is a climb that is reminiscent of the climbing walls that you might see in a large mall/outdoor store or at outdoor events. For the faint of heart or in case of very bad weather, there is a blue blaze trail around The Lemon Squeezer. Purists don't take blue blaze trails though. Near there, I came upon a huge rattlesnake on the trail. I didn't even know NY really had rattlesnakes. I have never seen one around the part of New York State where I live. The picture I took shows the rattles on his tail. I think there were 13, which would indicate he's about 12 years old. Over the last couple of days, I've seen some southbound thruhikers. They started in Maine and are headed toward Georgia. Seeing southbounders will become more numerous in the days ahead. When I've section hiked in the past, I've typically carried a couple of liter bottles of water. Now, I usually carry just one liter. When I fill the bottle up at water sources though, I drink as much as I possibly can. That allows for the liter I'm carrying to last longer and saves 2+ pounds of weight I don't want to be carrying on my shoulders. I do, however, really need to be aware of the availability of water up ahead and plan accordingly. All of my equipment has been holding up exceptionally well. I was concerned about my Thermarest NeoXair mattress and my Eureka Backcountry 1 tent, but both show no signs of deterioration. My second pair of Merrell shoes are starting to look beat up, but shoes are a consumable item on a thruhike on the AT. I'll be getting a new pair in a couple of weeks. Tomorrow I'll be passing the 1400 mile point, crossing Bear Mountain, and passing through the zoo at Bear Mountain State Park before crossing the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain bridge. There's a food concession at the zoo and that means hot dogs and ice cream. I can't wait!Until tomorrow......
Date: 2015-07-25
From: Fingerboard Shelter

To: campsite @ mile 1405.8
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: clear sky

Day 110 - Today was memorable for a couple of reasons. I crossed the 1400 mile point, went up and over Bear Mountain and crossed the Hudson River. What was most important though was the great trail magic I experienced today. I was running low on food and didn't have a resupply plan. Even though I need to be in the small village of Stormville, NY on Monday to pick up a package, I don't thing there's a grocery store there - so I'd be out of luck. Since one of the campers at this campsite had to go back to his nearby house to give his diabetic cat an insulin shot, he volunteered to drive me to the local grocery store. The trail provides! It's very dry in this part on New York State and a lot of the water sources have dried up. I took advantage of the vending machines on top of Bear Mountain and later at Bear Mountain State Park to stay hydrated. I hope the water situation improves as I head north. The ironic thing is that where I live in Western NY it has been much wetter than normal. The trail over West Mountain and Bear Mountain was crowded with day hikers. Many of them picked bags of wild blueberries. I ate some blueberries, but the wild ones are so small. It just didn't seem to be worth the effort. Anyway, I'm back to the area on the AT that I've hiked before. That is reassuring because I know there's nothing that's too tough for me on this section of the trail, but that also reduces the chance for surprise. But you never know.Until tomorrow......
Date: 2015-07-26
From: campsite @ mile 1405.8

To: NY Rt. 301 @ mile 1421.8 
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 112 - Lots of trail magic today! After eating breakfast and breaking camp, I set out on the trail only to find a 24 hour deli/convenience store 3 miles north. I immediately plugged in my iPhone to charge (always the first thing), but then had breakfast #2. Orange juice, a cheese Danish, coffee, yogurt, and banana bread. What an amazing luxury. As Gernot and I sat there eating, a Jeep pulled up and out jumped City Kick, a hiker I hadn't seen in months. She's now section hiking with her dog. After hearing that Gernot needed to get to Stormville, NY tomorrow to pick up some new shoes, she said she'd drive us there in the morning. That will save us about 4 miles of non-trail walking. Again, the trail provides! Gernot and I had planned to camp for the night at Clarence Fahnestock State Park. When we got there, City Kick had already set up camp, had a beer and potato chips for us, and told us that a guy named Joe at site 11 was going to cook dinner for all the hikers! Wow!! Plus, there's free showers and one night of free camping at this park for AT hikers. After a day of hiking through two thunderstorms, all this trail magic was just what I needed. Gernot's shoes completely fell apart today. The big question for tomorrow is, "Will Gernot's new shoes actually be at the Post Office and will they fit him?". The thunder and lightning show has resumed here at Fahnestock State Park, but I'm dry in my tent with a full belly as I type on my iPhone. Life, for the moment, is very good!Until tomorrow...
Date: 2015-07-27
From: NY Rt. 301 @ mile 1421.8 

To: RPH Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 113 - After Joe cooked us an egg, cheese, and Spam breakfast at our campsite, City Kick drove us to the Stormville, NY post office to pick up Gernot's new shoes. They were there, but unfortunately they were too small. After talking to REI, they agreed to overnight ship the next size larger, which should be right. Free shipping and a 20% discount on the shoes because of the mixup sort of made up for our delay. City Kick also took us to Walmart to resupply our food. We didn't get back on the trail until after 1PM. That's ok since now we're at this shelter for the night. We'll only have a 5 mile hike and a 2 mile hitch to get back to the Stormville post office again tomorrow to get the new package of shoes from REI. My mileage plan for tomorrow is unknown - I can never predict how easy it will be to hitch a ride to and from a town. I'm only about a 2 days hike away from Connecticut and about 5 days from Massachusetts. The state count will be climbing soon. Unfortunately, so will the temperatures, which is always pretty tough on me and may slow me down. It's dry here in this area so I may need to carry extra water as well. I'm looking forward to a zero day or two with Mrs. Pockets in the not so distant future. I hope it doesn't create a crisis in my motivation to continue hiking, but I'm willing to chance it! Anyway - many thanks go to City Kick for her help today, to Joe for breakfast, and to Mudder for the pizza at noon. With any luck, Gernot's new shoes will be at the post office and will be the right size. I'll let you know tomorrow .....
Date: 2015-07-28
From: RPH Shelter

To: Telephone Pioneers Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: few clouds

Day 114 - The shoe saga continues....Gernot and I got an early start in the cool morning air to cover the 5.1 miles to get to Rte 52. From there, we hitched into Stormville, NY to the post office to pick up Gernot's new shoes that REI said would be delivered overnight. Of course, they hadn't come in yet. I was pretty frustrated, had no idea what to do, there really wasn't anything close by in Stormville and I didn't want to wait around. It would be difficult to hitch back to Stormville tomorrow because we'd likely be 14-16 miles further ahead. The helpful postal worker came up with a solution - he would forward them on to Wingdale, NY. The shoes should be there tomorrow (hopefully). So we'll hike 12 miles tomorrow, hitch into Wingdale, get a motel room (showers, laundry, pizza, ice cream, etc) and pick up the shoes Thursday morning. I'm so ready for a shower after hiking in the heat these past few days. After we got all this figured out, we had to hitch from Stormville back to the AT. A police car pulled over nearby us - with its lights flashing. Hitch hiking is illegal in New York and we got caught! The police officers checked my ID to see if there are any arrest warrants out for me, but they didn't seem to know what to do with a German National that couldn't speak any English. Then they gave us a ride back to the AT and wished us a safe journey!! Maybe they're used to thruhikers hitchhiking near the AT and overlooked the illegality of it for us, but we were lucky for sure. In spite of everything today, Gernot and I still did 16 + miles, which is pretty good in this heat. We passed Nuclear Lake, which was tempting for a swim, but the shelter was only 2 miles ahead. After a long day, we were ready to settle in for the night. Tomorrow, we exit NY and enter Connecticut. Will the shoe saga continue or will Gernot finally get his new shoes?I'll let you know....tomorrow!
Date: 2015-07-29
From: Telephone Pioneers Shelter

To: Rte 55 @ mile 1456.2
Miles today: 10.6

Day 115 - As Gernot and I crossed the Connecticut border today, there were some much appreciated ice cold drinks in a cooler under the border sign. Wonderful trail magic! Walking across open fields in the sun can get very hot. I hope the temperatures I encounter in Northern Connecticut and Massachusetts will be lower, especially at the higher elevations. It doesn't take much of a climb to get me soaking wet with sweat. The knats are still a problem, the mosquitoes less so, probably because it's been so dry here. We passed the famous Dover Oak Tree with a girth of 28 feet - the largest tree on the AT. My sister, Spyder, and my brother, Cotton, will be interested to know I saw no sign of 'Aunt Mary'. The path was very overgrown in this section - causing a concern about ticks. Amazingly enough, I didn't find any on me. Lyme, CT is where the whole tick borne Lyme Disease thing started. We hit Rte. 55 and got a shuttle to Wingdale, NY. No hitchhiking this time. It was 94 degrees when we got to the Dutchess Motor Lodge. After cleaning up at the motel, we checked on Gernot's new shoes. Of course, they're not at the post office. They are on the way - 80% chance they will be here Thursday by 9 AM and 20% chance by 3 PM. We are not leaving until they arrive! I'm still concerned about losing weight. Gernot and I had a huge barbecue dinner, followed by a 6 pack of beer and we're having ice cream for dessert. A big breakfast tomorrow should hold off starvation until I meet up with Mrs Pockets. It will be interesting to see what the scale says then.I'll let you know about the shoe situation tomorrow....
Date: 2015-07-30
From: Rte 55 @ mile 1456.2

To: Mt. Algo Shelter (in CT)
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 116 - Gernot and I walked about a half mile from the motel in Wingdale to Cousins Bakery for breakfast. Because of his lack of English and his unfamiliarity with American food, whatever I order, Gernot orders too. The only difference is that he really likes chocolate milk and usually has 3 of those, while I love my coffee. After my last cup of coffee, I called the post office to ask about the package. I was told, "No, no express packages arrived today." Deeply disappointed, I told her that it was only coming from Stormville and asked why was it taking so long? She said, "Oh, you must be talking about the hiker box - yes it's here." Finally! The post office was just a short walk from the bakery so we hurried right over, got the package and to make a long story short - Gernot now has his new hiking shoes. They are still about a half size smaller than his old ones, but he seems really pleased with them. We returned to the Dutchess Motor Lodge, packed up, and the owner shuttled us back to the AT - a very hot trail. After 5 miles and a steep climb, we were once again soaked in sweat. Then came 2 thunderstorms. The rain cooled us off nicely, but hiking with wet feet is a sure recipe for blisters. It makes the rocks slippery and really slows us down. Even though it was only 5 pm, Gernot and I were ready to get out of wet shoes and clothes and call it a day. The weather is supposed to improve and cool off for the next several days. I certainly hope so. Maybe then, Garnot and I can make up for the low mileage days due to the shoe saga and the high temperatures.Massachusetts is calling!!We hope to get there the day after tomorrow......