morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-04-09
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Preparing for the hike has been much more work than I could have imagined. We made countless lists of things to buy or make and an even longer list of things to do. Slowly all of the lists dwindled down to nothing on Thursday night. Instead of being relieved and relaxed at finally being done my body decided it was time to be afraid. I guess once the tasks were all done it all felt real for the first time. We had the gear, the money, the time, the plane tickets, and our possessions all secured and put away for six months. All that's left to do is get to Springer Mt and hike...We woke up early (330am) Friday morning and flew to Texas for one of Melissa's best friends weddings. I woke up to my nervousness being gone thankfully. It has been replaced by excitement. We will head to the trail from here on Sunday!We sent our packs down to Texas with a friend who was driving and we were very happy to be reunited with them last night. Thanks Felipe! He will also be giving us a ride to the trail on Sunday/Monday! That saves us from an 18 hour bus ride through the night. We haven't hike a mile yet but have been supported and helped so much by friends and family!
Date: 2016-04-11
To: We have arrived!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Well we made it! We are in the shelter at the foot of the approach trail. We start our adventure in the morning. A very big thanks to Felipe for driving us from Texas! It made for a great stress free start! We are all set up for bed, our stomachs are full and it looks to be good sleeping weather.We spent the day getting some great photos at the falls here with Felipe and can't wait to see how they turn out. We climbed 425 slippery stairs to get to the top. Tomorrow is a very difficult 8 miles up to Springer Mt....
Date: 2016-04-12
From: visitors center

To: Springer Mt shelter
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: light rain

The approach trail was challenging but very doable. We arrived at springer mountain at about 245! We went to Springer Mt shelter to set up and have dinner and have returned to the summit of springer to watch the sunset over the north Georgia mountains on a cool clear evening. We have met some cool people so far and can't wait to see what the journey will bring! I will add a picture later when we connect to wifi
Date: 2016-04-12
From: springer mountian shelter

To: Amacalola state park
Miles today: 8.0

Day 1 AT April 12, 2016Last night we got into our first shelter at amicalola falls state park. We met two guys, zack and James. Zach is a young skinny guy who says this is his first time camping in his life and he is attempting a through hike. James is an older guy who beat cancer three years ago and is turning 68 years old today. He was determined to hike in Spain but decided to do a few days in the AT. His few days turned into 6 weeks... Today we woke up at 7:45am and for my pleasure, my sleeping pad had completely deflated. Our camp stove didn't work right away and we lost a lighter and our rock bag for hanging the food backs. We worked out all of these slight setbacks and are getting ready to hike the approach trail today. Wish us luck.We made the trek up the approach trail that runs 8 miles. It is said to be the toughest climb in GA. The 8 miles was definitely slow going and felt more like a 16 mile day, but ultimately was very doable. At 9:30 am We started with a very steep stairway up a waterfall and then only went up from there. We made it to the AT starting point at 2:45 with a foggy but beautiful view of the surrounding mountains. After talking to a few other folks for a bit, we made it to springer mountain shelter by about 3pm. After arriving, we got set up and made our first AT ramen dinner. I was dehydrated and felt sick for about an hour. Luckily Mike took good care of me and made me drink water and lay down. He has been such a huge support from encouraging me while walking up hills to giving me back rubs to make my tummy feel better. I couldn't ask for a better teammate.
Date: 2016-04-13
From: Springer Mt shelter

To: hawk mountian shelter
Miles today: 8.0

Day 2 April 13, 2016"Everyone knows that pine trees are romantics"- mike Last night was brutal. There was 6 people staying in the shelter and 3 of them snored like monsters. We tried to go to bed around 9pm, and most people did. I on the other hand lay awake listening to the choir of snoring men until about 11:30. As frustrating as this was, I didn't know what to do. I tried pulling my sleeping pad out in front of the shelter but the wind was so vicious and cold that I could not stay out there. I moved back inside and lay there. It didn't help that every twenty minutes I had to blow up my sleeping pad again due to the slow leak. Finally, Mike started moving around. This was my chance. I felt bad but I leaned over and whispered " love, are you awake?" He responded to me so I asked him if I could set up the tent. I was at the point of tiredness and frustration that I could not stand to be in there any longer. Mike was clearly frustrated with my suggestion but said sure. I grabbed the tent and quickly set up the tent in the dark. As I finished, Mike came over to help set up. It was done. I went and grabbed the rest of my stuff to move into the tent. Mike stayed in the shelter to guard the rest of our stuff. The rest of the night was windy but without the loud snoring, I was able to catch some sleep. I woke up at 7:30 and packed up the tent and all my stuff before waking Mike and making breakfast. We chatted with other hikers and set off for an easy day. Along the first stretch of trail, we felt like we were in a tropical jungle. It was so incredibly beautiful as we walked along a stream with thick leaved dark green plants filling our view. A while later the terrain would change to ginormous pine trees that towers above us. Mike and I found so much joy in being in this amazing place together, recognizing the wonderful blessings that God has allowed us to take part in. We made our way passing other hikers, stopping, and getting passed, then catching up and ultimately being the first ones to the shelter. We stopped by a large waterfall to have lunch before we stopped for the day and it was definitely worth the extra time off the trail. Once at Hawk shelter, we pitched a tent so we could get a good quiet night sleep. The other hikers we had met along the way showed up and we chatted. There was Ben, square peg, Alex, Lou, and bones. Square peg had completed a through hike last year and was giving tips to us. We were all able to make dinner and relax for the remainder of the evening as other hikers began to show up.
Date: 2016-04-14
From: hawk mountian shelter

To: Gooch mt shelter
Miles today: 8.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 3 - April 14, 2016Today we woke up at around 7:30am and diligently made breakfast and broke down our tent. We were able to head out to the trail about an hour and a half later. Today was only an 8 mile day, but had two larger mountains to climb. Mike kept saying that today we would meet Sassafras and Justus and the guys who struggled before   weren't going to like meeting them. I thought that was the trail names of some old couple who stayed at the next shelter or were care takers that were rude or didn't take kindly to people who were inexperienced. Turns out it was the names of the two large mountains we climbed. They were difficult but we powered right up them passing a few groups. Up high on the mountains we had beautiful views on both sides of us. When we got into the valleys, it felt like we were in a tropical jungle. The day went by fast and we made it to the Gooch shelter. Only square peg made it in ahead of us and he left before 7am. The ridge runner keeping up the shelters was a younger guy who's name was Kenneth. He seemed to keep to himself a bit. Others trickled in over the course of the next few hours. We has eaten our last ramen noodle packs and took stock of the rest of the food we had. With a day and a half to go before result, we had enough food for two breakfasts, two bagel and peanut butter lunches, and many KINDbars to hold us over for dinner and snacks. I personally have been craving more salty foods and don't thing what is left is that satisfying, but it will keep me alive for the next few days. Now, Mike wants me to clip his toe nails so I am stalling by journaling right now...
Date: 2016-04-15
From: Gooch mt shelter

To: lance creek camp ground
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: clear sky

Day 4- April 15, 2016Today we left Gooch mountain shelter around 9am and hiked a fairly easy day. When we got to the parking lot at woody gap, a guy called magic hat asked us if we were through hikers and said he had some trail magic for us! We had strawberries, bananas, and dried okra. He also had beers and burgers that he was doing later. We opted out of waiting for the burgers cause the place we are camping tonight doesn't have a privy... After the generous lunch, we hiked up a mountain to a beautiful view of the endless mountains in the distance. The wind was harsh and cold but we survived. Not too long after, we made it to a camp site for tents only. There was only about 4 built sites and over all about 7 usable spaces for the campers. This is an issue cause while there are only 7 available flat surfaces, there is potentially over 20 hikers looking to stay the night. The next further camping area or shelter is about 3 miles away but it is a requirement for anyone staying the night to have a bear canister. Apparently a certain bear was relocated to this area because he got in too much trouble elsewhere with getting into people's food bags. Now, it is a $400 fine for staying the night in that area without a bear canister. Hikers don't use them cause they are so darn heavy. That area lasts for about the next 7 miles and the next shelter after that is ten miles from our current camp site. So that is the predicament.. How will we fit 20+ campers in 7 spaces? We got in early and set up, so we don't have a problem. Accept for the really nice guy next to us who snored me out of the shelter three days ago...
Date: 2016-04-17
From: blood mountian cabins

To: low gap shelter
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

Dregs (mike) here this timeToday was another great day. Out longest hiking day on this adventure so far, 11.5 miles. We are 43.2 miles into the trail (not including the approach trail) and so far all is better than expected. I am having foot pain in my heels that I think is related to plantar fasciitis that hurts very badly at times in the evenings. Both Melissa I are still dealing with one blister each. We are slowly increasing our mileage and easing our bodies into it. Tomorrow will be over 12 miles possibly longer if all goes well. We continue to be blessed with perfect hiking weather. It was a rather sad morning as we said goodbye to a couple trail friends Matti and Benji. We had a good time relaxing and talking over breakfast with them at the cabin. They are staying behind to rest one more day before continuing on. We hope to see them further on down the trail. The first half of the day was tough with rocky ups and downs. It warmed up quick because of our late start and our packs were heavy again with a 3 day resupply of food. On the way to our biggest climb of the day I got to give a buddy a trail name. I recommend the name Gandalf the Green and he liked it. He has long hair, he uses a staff instead of trekking poles, and you can figure out the green part. The climb up Wildcat mountain was short and steep but was over quickly. At the top our planned lunch stop was a shelter that turned out to be 1.2miles off the trail, we skipped that and found lunch and water at the bottom.We took our first long lunch and lounged by some downed trees. It was hot for the first time today so I mixed up some flavored electrolyte drink and we sat for almost an hour. The second part of our hiking day which was 4.6 mi was long but easy. There was a 2.5 mi stretch of some actually flat hiking. The last 1.5 miles dragged on and on with 3 mountain in a row that I thought (and told Melissa) were the last mountain. We got into low gap shelter and met a Swedish guy who was very friendly. There was a group already here who all started on the same day and all hike together. As we did our chores we made friends with Cosmo(not a trail name) and comet. A bit later Brooklyn and Gandalf the Green showed up and we all ate together and chatted. Curry rice for dinner was great but hard to clean up. Bones an Gains showed up and it almost felt like the old crowd was still together. We also met Kim and Carol (sisters) Lots of people we were hiking with are behind us now but we know we will meet more. Melissa and I are laying in our tents and readying ourselves for another night under the stars.
Date: 2016-04-18
From: low gap shelter

To: tray mountain shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

Day 7- April 17, 2016The first half of the day was easiest and the second half was the hardest. We woke up at 6:15 and got on the trail by 7:45. We switched from a hot meal in the morning to dry meals of pop tarts to save on time in the morning. We are almost out of coffee so I decided to just stop drinking it and Mike could ween himself off it. Instead of brewing some hot water, I saw Mike take a swig of his water and a spoonful of instant coffee and just swish it together in his mouth... Gross. He said it was fantastic! After leaving low gap shelter, we had an easy 8 miles of flat. It was the easiest part of the trail I have ever done. With the great pass we were making we had a few options for stopping points, either stop after 12 miles at Cheese factory camp site or go 16 miles to Tray Mountain shelter. We decided on Tray Mountain. The second set of 8 miles was devastating on our knees and feet. It would consist of walking straight down a mountain for about an hour, going up a tall steep mountain, back down and all the way up another to the shelter. It made a W shape looking at the map. While on the decline, our knees were taking all the shock of big step downs with our additional 30lb packs. Going up the mountains seemed to go on forever. Over all, I'd have to say for the first time, I prefer up hill. It puts much less strain on my body and I feel like my trail legs are coming in. Mike and I rarely have had to stop while going uphill and seem to be able to power through for long periods of time. After the first decent, we came to a parking lot full of people. It was a church group offering burgers and power aid and other snacks for through hikers. This is called trail magic. We were delighted to have a few burgers and chat with the group and other people stopping through. It gave us a nice break and took our minds off the difficult trail for a bit. We learned from other hikers that red tornado, the older lady who fell at Neels gap broke her neck and had to be airlifted to the nearest hospital. Prayers for her and her family. Anyhow, We still had two mountains to climb. We kept passing the same former through hiker in a yellow shirt who told us about wildcat mountain and chatting with him. When we stopped he would pass us but then we would catch up and pass him at his stops. We finally got to the top of a mountain where the cheese factory camp site was and took a long rest. We laid on the ground in the shade for a bit and then Mike went to get water while I built a little house out of twigs on the ground. I misunderstood where we were and how much further we had to go, so when yellow shirt guy passed us and said only another three miles, I was shocked. It made me feel like I worked so hard for so long and wasn't at the place I was so proud to be at. I begrudgingly stomped down this large mountain and back up another until we got to tray mountain shelter. We set up camp and saw our new friend comet come up the trail. We had dinner with her and set in for the night.
Date: 2016-04-20
From: Dicks creek gap

To: Hiawassee GA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Dregs here,Today was a nice day of rest in Hiawassee. We woke up at about 8am which is about an hour and a half later than we would on trail. We walked next door to the subway and got footlong subs for breakfast and we saved the rest for lunch. After that we walked to a grocery store and sat and had coffee for over an hour. We bought supplies for the next week and walked back to the budget inn we currently call home. The afternoon only got better. We sat outside enjoying the nice day from chairs for once. While we relaxed we met buck thirty from San Diego and he sat and talked for a while. His trail friend who soon became our trail friend Fast Forward came over to talk as well. This is when Melissa found out that Unicoi Gap (road crossing we where we got trail magic)was not unicorn gap....Everyone went their separate ways for dinner. We are staying in and eating trail food as we are a bit over budget for the week. Most of that is from gear replacement......Melissa needs a new hip belt for her pack as she can't tighten hers any farther. We bought one and it will be shipped to us about 5 days up the trail.The rest of the evening was quiet and restful. Hopefully the rest was good for our knees feet. The shuttle for the trail leaves at 9 am. Thank you all for your encouragement in the guestbook and thank you Terrie for the update on Red Tornado, she has definitely been in our prayers.
Date: 2016-04-21
From: Hiawassee GA

To: muskrat creek shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 10- April 21, 2016This morning I woke up in the budget inn at 11:30pm, 1:30am, 3:45am, 4:55am, and finally at 7:15am. A light outside of the window tricked me into thinking it was the morning all night long. But otherwise I had a great night sleep. We were trying to catch a shuttle back to Dicks creek gap to start hiking again at 9am. The stay at the inn was everything I hoped a 45$ motel would be. Slightly dank, leaky faucet, blankets that smell like sneezes, and some interesting colors on the maroon carpet; but a flat bed with a good pillow, basic cable, and a shower. As well as many other hiker friends. While on our zero day, Mike was trying to find a basketball game on tv and we happen to watch Big Bang Theory for the first time. As it turns out, we now plan to binge watch the series when wifi is available to us... Anyhow, we got out for our 9am shuttle back to the trail and talked to a few other hikers for a bit. We were informed that about 20 miles away from us up the trail, wild fires had closed the trail. Also, about 12 miles of Shenandoah have been shut down due to wildfires. Hopefully it will rain tomorrow or over night to put out the fires. We got in the shuttle and got back to the trail. It was an 11 mile hike to the shelter, 8 miles to NC and 3 more to camp. The first 8 miles weren't too bad but the last stretch was steep and long. Starting out, I had some foot issues. Looks like the start of planter fasciitis but Mike has it and knows how to manage it. After lunch at the GA/NC border, I was still hungry and tired so we out in headphones and powered up the mountain. Queen, Billy idol, Steve vai, and the Pocahontas soundtrack got me to the top. Mike was was super encouraging the whole way as I was fairly moody. He's been the best partner and teammate through this all. Once we got to the muskrat creek shelter, square peg greeted us along with a girl called sunshine. Marty, Cosmo, gains( now "silent do-good"), and more showed up. There was a dog and about 15 other campers as well. We set up in the shelter, which is scary for me cause of the snoring, but it's suppose to storm tonight. We'll see if I can make it through the night. A fire was made and we have been hanging out around it. Going to bed soon, currently 7:14pm. Hiker midnight it at dark.
Date: 2016-04-22
From: muskrat creek shelter

To: standing induan shelter
Miles today: 4.0

Day 11- April 22, 2016Today it rained. Hard. We woke up at muskrat creek shelter, shoulder to shoulder with other hikers. A loud few people chatted as the rest of the site was asleep. Eventually we all crawled out of our sleeping bags and into the cold wetness. No one was moving too fast and it was a bit later in the morning than usual to get started. As we got our rain gear on, Mike and I decided to try and wait to see if the rain would let up a bit. It didn't. We started hiking and got drenched before we even hit the trail. Mike was in good spirits but due to other complications, I was not feeling so good. We had a 12 mile day planned to hike but did not make it that far. It felt like the longest 4 miles ever, to me, over very easy terrain. It was slightly slippery and very mushy with some slippery rocks, but fairly flat. We made it to standing Indian shelter to have lunch. There were a few guys trying to air out their tent in the shelter and failing, As well as a couple still sleeping and the couple, josh and Ali, in a near by tent. It was still early in the day, about 11:30. We ate and tried to get warm but it was a losing battle. As other people showed up, we decided to stay until tomorrow so we could get warm and dry. We met some new people and got settled in in the shelter. It stopped raining around 3:30 so we could dry some of our clothes out. As it is now, clouds roll in around us and thunder is brewing at the neighboring mountain. It will rain again tonight but is supposed to be nice tomorrow. Pray for sun.
Date: 2016-04-25
From: siler bald shelter

To: cold spring shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

Day 14- April 25, 2016Today we left siler bald shelter around 8. We had a brutal climb from the shelter to the trail that is said to be .3 miles but feels much longer. We had loaded up on Mountain Dew and pop tarts before the climb, which made it easier but still more work than I'd prefer before even hitting the trail. Once we made it up, it was a nice downward slope for a while. The day was full of long ups and downs. We hit one mountain that we climbed for two miles. I also learned today that when we come to a gap, "gap" means "Get your Ass Prepared" to go up a mountain. Or so says Dregs. That long climb led us to Wayah Bald which is the top of a mountain that has a stone tower where you can see all the surrounding mountains. It was beautiful. We ate lunch, crumbled up tortillas with spoons full of Nutella and peanut butter, and squarepeg showed up. We chatted for a bit and went on with the day. More ups and downs through all sorts of scenery. We passed through a section that looked like a forest fire had devastated it, another part that was wind blown, brown dry areas, and places that had tons of wild flowers. We even went through multiple parts that felt more like a rainforest with mossy trees and little waterfalls with coves that created small ecosystems out of the roots of large trees. Looking at all of the new blooming flowers from the rain helped pass the time and we discovered that NC is covered in poison ivy. We hiked about 12 miles. Finally we got to our camp site where the shelter sat directly on the trail. No one else was there. We went to the tent sites up on a hill and found a spot with the most amazing view. As we claimed our spot, we heard other people approaching. Squarepeg, jack rabbit, diatom and Captain Planet, along with some other guys arrived. We ate dinner and hung out for a bit and had some good laughs. As the sun went down it was neon orange and lit up the sky with beautiful colors. We had some issues with hanging a bear bag, but dregs handled the situation just as bed time rolled around. Now, we are ready for bed and another day of hiking tomorrow.