morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-09-04
From: Carlos Col Campsite

To: Bull Branch Campsite
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: scattered clouds

We got started a little after 7 this morning. I ate cold cereal, still not ready to fire up my little stove in the early morning. I saw Prayer at the shelter, who I have not seen for at least a month. He is hiking strong!We summited Mt Carlos, and both peaks of Goose Eye Mountain. Nothing exciteing happened- we were excited though, because today we were going to do the infamous Mahoosic Notch. Mahoosic Notch is a "jumbled pit of boulders" according the the AWOL book- and either the most difficult or fun mile on the AT. We actually met some SOBO hikers, and Cherie was asking them all about it. She has a fear of heights and had a little anxiety, but they said "Look, you have to go through it. So just decide- is it going to fun or are you going to be afraid?" We decided that fun would be more fun. So we decided to have fun.We got to some big jumbled boulders and went through for about 10 minutes, then the trail got smooth again. What is this? I said. Is Mahoosic Notch the South of the Border of the AT? A bunch of hype and then a 10 minute scramble?No. In fact it isn't. We descended to a little valley and the temps dropped like 20 degrees- then we climbed up and wow. BIG, car sized, building sized boulders were all thrown together in a gigantic obstacle course. We could go over, under, around. It felt like one of those mazes you see on kids menus, where you follow one course but then you have to turn back and try another. On either side of this rock jungle were rock cliffs, hundreds of feet high. When we passed the caves the rocks had formed, cold air was blowing out from the earth. We took our packs off in a couple of places and handed them along to each other, so tight was the squeeze. It was exhilarating, it was FUN, and never have I felt so connected to this trail. I had to use all of my strength to climb, to stretch over from boulder to boulder. Towards the end of the notch, we heard water running under the rocks. I layed down and peered under a boulder and saw a creek flowing under the rocks. We captured a few bottles of crystal clear delicious spring water and drank it like it was an elixir from heaven.When we continued, I tried to walk on a path about 2 feet wide hugging a rock wall on the left, a 20 foot drop to rocks on the right. My pack got stuck on an overhanging rock and it tipped my balance a little. I managed to get loose when the rock wall on the left nudged my pack. I dove forward, hit the dirt and lay still. D.No and C.Shell came up behind, waiting for me to finish this before they started. "You ok BonBon?" they asked. "Yes. I planned that." I said. Then I had to inchworm in the dirt, about 3 feet before I could safely stand. It occurred to me while I was down there that I have never been filthier than I was right now, And that I would be meeting Cherri, out trail angel, the next day.We camped at 5pm, finishing our day with low miles but on a high point. We celebrated by building a fire at the campsite. It was a good day!
Date: 2015-09-06
From: Grafton Notch

To: East B Hill Rd
Miles today: 10.3
Weather: scattered clouds

After a good nights sleep in a house, we woke up to Cherri making a really yummy scrambled egg with cheese breakfast. To say we were feeling like we were in heaven is an understatement. After breakfast, Cherri geared us up with day packs and brought us to the trailhead at Grafton Notch. She sent us off with fresh local tomatoes and subs from a little market we stopped at, and we were in great moods!The hike today was one of my favorites. It was just gorgeous, with the highlight being a climb up to the two summits of Baldpate mountains- West and then the east summit. The east summit in particular was stunning. We climbed up a long expansive Rock face. We were above tree line and the climb was strenuous. I had to use my hands a few times towards the top. Once we reached the summit, we were treated to 360 degree mountain views. The air was crystal clear . The mountain top I was standing on was like a gigantic rock cap on the top of the mountain. It has been a couple months since I hiked with a big happy smile on my face, but I did today. It was a perfect hiking day with unbelievable views.We had a steep-ish descent down the east peak of Baldpate, but the trail is maintained beautifully- and the granite we walked over is grippy and I felt very confident. One of the gifts that the trail gives me from time to time are incredibly vivid memories. A smell, a sound, something-will invoke a powerful nostalgia. This has happened a handful of times on this trail. Today, a memory was triggered by a near fall. I had stepped on a nice little branch and my foot rolled downhill with it- I glided about a foot, trying to keep my balance. It was like stepping on a rollerball. When I righted myself, I had a clear as day memory of my mother attempting to logroll on a beach on an island in the Phillippines. We had gone there for a little family vacation when we lived there in the 70s. I saw the wind blowing through her hair, her beautiful face lit up with laughter. She was so young, in her thirties, so vibrant and fun. My dad and three tow headed brothers were looking on, laughing too, and we all had sand on our faces and feet., gleefully sunburned. Most of the rest of the day was downhill, with one climb after the shelter We ambled along, very happy with this day.When we got to the road crossing where Cherri was to meet us, we saw trail magic. It turned out to be Mot Mot and Zeeba, whom we had last seen in the smokies! He called them the Soakies because it rained everyday while we were there.He had a very serious medical problem that put him in the hospital for a few weekends s, and it forced them off the trail. They are from Maine and were doing trail magic for a couple of days and tenting nearby. It was so wonderful to see the! We enjoyed a burger and a beer while we waited for Cherri.Cherri drove us back to the house and she had made really good taco fixings. We ate and talked and enjoyed our night. We have been here for two nights and it is a wonderful break from tenting and motels. Feeling very fortunate and grateful.
Date: 2015-09-07
From: East B Hill Rd

To: south Arm Road
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: broken clouds

I finally have data again. Apparently I use more data than my two teenage daughters combined. I can't post any picture until I have wi-fi. That chews up our data plan. also, my husband received my new LifeProof case for my phone. He is shipping it to Stratton. I will be able to take pictures in the rain again! I have not been able to do that since Pennsylvania.Today, Cherri spoiled us once again with a delicious breakfast. She is really an interesting woman and knows so much about hiking around here. She also knew Bill Irwin, Teh blind man who hiked the trail. She told us about him and he seems like he was an impressive man.We decided to slack pack southbound today's get our two climbs out of the way early and coast the rest of the day. That is what the elevation profile looked like, and oddly enough- that is exactly how the day played out! We had a steep climb up Mt.Moody aided by handholds and stone steps for part of the way. It was a fun climb, just enough challenge to make it enjoyable before it rose to the level of grueling. I had a nice view but not a big view- from the top. It was pretty. We then hd a very steep descent, once again aided by handholds. The trail maintainers in Maine have really done a fabulous job making this trail accessible and safer. At the bottom of the descent was a beautiful little campsite and it had a picnic table! We decided that was a sign to stop and eat our Suns- so we did.Another climb followed lunch, it was steep but we had great energy today. We passwd Riga and Gang going northbound and she shared a video she took earlier that morning of a moose bathing in a pond. How fantastic! I hope we get to see the moose!The trail became pretty easy after the summit of Wyman Mountain. I closed my eyes while I was going up a rocky part to see how it would feel to hike without sight. It was scary. I opened my eyes after about 10 seconds. About 3 miles before the road crossing, we saw Cherri! She decided to hike with us today for a bit. We might be thru-hikers (almost!) but we could not keep up with the Mine born and bred Cherri. She has a powerful stride and I had to work to keep her in sight.We stopped at the pond where the moose bathing hd occurred earlier. No moose. But a very beautiful pond. When we got the road crossing- same o e we ended at yestersay, Mot Mot and Zeeba were there again! Wht a treat! Back at Cherri's, her wonderful husband Andy grilled chicken and they'd erred up roasted sweet potatoes and sweet corn on the cob. It is going to be hard to leave here. ,
Date: 2015-09-10
From: road to Rangely

To: Poplar Ridge Lean To
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: moderate rain

Stacy at the farmhouse made a wonderful breakfast. Slider and Grey Goat were also enjoying the pancakes, and we planned to shuttle back to the trail after breakfast. I have to mention to future hikers- definitely put this hostel on your must do list. Stacy and her husband Shane are the most friendly and accommodating people. They have adopted a yes culture in their business that is authentic and nurturing. And their hostel is warm and cozy and has everything hikers need and want.The hike today included two summits over 4000 feet, and the first climb was nearly 6 miles long with a gain of about 2500 feet. No problem. The hike was gorgeous but it was challenging. The climb up was relentless, though not too steep for any extended period of time. Nearing the summit, we had a granite slab walk for quite a while followed by a climb up a series of rock ledges. It was so much fun and the view was incredible looking back. You could see the trail, above treeline, weaving back quite a ways. It is always a thrill to look back and see what you did, and it always surprises me that I did it! I leap frogged with Slider and Grey Goat all day, two guys who are polar opposites of each other. They are fun to listen to as they discuss this and that. As often happens on these double summits, the Horn kicked my butt. It was steeper (I think) but the view back to Saddleback smoothed my ruffled feathers. Then we hit Saddleback Junior. Yikes. That one did me in. I was sitting next to the summit sign writing a birthday message to my daughter on my hand with a Sharpie when Slider and Grey Goat got there. Grey Goat took my picture with my birthday message. I mentioned that the distance we would have covered when we got to the shelter was over 10 miles. He disagreed and said it was 9. He asked if I was confident enough in my 10 mile guess to make a bet- if it was 10 or more, he would get my water at the shelter. Less than 10 and I would have to get water. I had just looked at my AWOL, so I knew it was more than 10 , so of course I took that bet. And happy I was about it because the rain started before we got to the shelter. He got my water for me and I cooked up a dinner on my nearly weightless beer can stove. Cyndie Loppers and her crew hiked in and set up their tents plus cool strings of lights. It added a lot of ambiance to our shelter area! Someone aptly named Flame very efficiently made a large blazing fire, even though there was an on again off again drizzle. I occupied the shelter with 4 hikers I know, and when we turned in the rain started in earnest. It pinged off the metal shelter roof, and as I drifted to sleep, I wondered how I would ever live in a house again.
Date: 2015-09-12
From: Crocker Cirque Campsite

To: road to Stratton
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: light rain

I woke up around 5:30 am, after a not so good night of sleep- to the sound of voices and laughter. I yelled-"For the love of God- be quiet!" The kids hd chatted and talked well after dark the night before and I was officially a cranky old lady. This is the second time in a week that I have been a cranky old lady in the morning. I think I'm getting tired.I decided to get moving so I could try to make it to the post office for my resupply box, post office closed at 11. Said group of chattering kids bundled up in their sleeping bags and marched off towards a rumored moose bathing lake before it was fully light. . They looked like giant corn dogs and if I had not been so grumpy, I would have smiled. I made oatmeal and coffee and complained about them to Slider, who in his typical zen way, said that they were excited young people. Of course I felt ashamed of myself but I wanted to cling to my grumpy attitude for just a bit longer.I hiked out to try to do 7.3 miles before the post office closed. I soon realized that even with my early start, this was not going to happen. The terrain was rooty and rocky and included some climbing-a lot of climbing. While I was hiking, I thought about how grumpy I was and pet peeves in general. I have a chewing noise pet peeve, and this trail has tested my patience. We all eat like wild animals. I do too. I have learned over the last 5 months how to not let that bother me. I decided today that pet peeves are just self indulgent internal temper tantrums. I want to go home and not have pet peeves. I want to be more zen. I have annoying habits too- so there is a concrete life change I was to be cognitive of.I kept trying to call the post office but they never answered the phone. I was hoping They would let Katwalk pick up my package. I finally texted her the tracking number and hoped for the best.Cyndi Loppers and BackTrack passed me, and Cyndi Loppers helped me with the PO stuff. I realized that the number I was calling was one digit off when she gave me the correct info.We hiked out and eventually the trail became nicer. I hiked into the road crossing that goes to Stratton, and a huge trail magic operation was going on. Yard Sale's Morher's church had organized it, and there were burgers, dogs, salads and more. It was great!A police officer named Mark gave us ride in his truck to the hostel. 4 hikers in the truck, 5 in the bed. Very cool guy- he had lots of hiker stories. I saw him later the store buying BBQ fixings for some hikers he was hosting. When he dropped me off at the hostel, Katwalk was waiting on the porch. We hugged and it was so great to see her! We went out for lunch and caught up and talked about gear and stuff. Rain tomorrow and I have work I need to do. I might zero.
Date: 2015-09-14
From: road to Stratton

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Double zero in Stratton. Sunday I planned- I had work to do- but Monday we were walking out with our packs on and the rain came down hard. I did not want to do the Bigalows- my LAST mountain range on this trail- in the rain. I have heard the Bigalows are stunning. I want to see the view, and I don't want to be miserable hiking and camping on a tough climb in rain that is not forecast to stop anytime soon. Zeros can feel like weights around your neck if you don't plan them or have a hard deadline like I do, but I made peace with it and we consoled ourselves with ice cream, burgers, and potato chips. The rain stopped for a bit, then continued until after dark both Sunday and Monday. And I was grateful to be indoors.Katwalk and I saw Winston, a hiker we met on our second day on the trail. We had dinner with her one night and caught up on each other's experiences. I saw Cyndi Loppers as well. I apologized to her for being a cranky person at the campsite. She was very gracious and accepted my apology. She was heading back to complete a section she missed when she hurt her ankle. She was leaving her hiking group and sad about it, but she has passed every white blaze and is going back to pass the ones she missed. She's a pretty cool person, I like her and I think she is very tough. It is no fun hiking with painful injuries.Tomorrow I have a shuttle to the trailhead at 7am. Katwalk is shuttling up and will be a couple of days ahead of me. I'll have to catch her!
Date: 2015-09-19
From: rocky top

To: Bald Mountain Stream
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we woke up on the rocky top of a lesser-but still magnificent-moutain. We were really low on water so decided to make coffee and tea at the next stream.I hiked out early and enjoyed the sounds of the woods waking up around me. It was pretty cold, but as usual, the layers started coming off 10 minutes into the hike. I had about a 2 mile descent, it was rocky and steep, until I hit the water. I filtered a couple of liters, started up my cool little beer can stove, which I now LOVE and feel very comfortable with (thank you Steve Kingsbury!!)and I made some coffee and oatmeal. I feel so self sufficient now, I mean I always sort of felt that way but now I seem to have a confidence that is much more solid. I really think I can do things and I don't doubt myself as much as I used to. And I'm not afraid of failing. I have made so many errors in judgement on this trip and guess what- I'm ok. Making mistakes has led to some of the more memorable experiences. Making mistakes is ok Katwalk came along and got water and made tea. We have realized (again!) that we have completely different hiking speeds and goals for the day and are starting to have the coversation about being true to our hikes. Katwalk came here to support me, but also to put her hike into a context she is happy with. Neither of us can reach our goals if we are feeling pressured to hurry or wait. Our relationship, while new, seems to be made of good stuff. We can have these conversations and not hurt each others feelings. At this point, we have both hiked enough miles to understand HYOH. As I mentioned a long time ago-it is such a simple and yet complcated thing.After the rocky descent, the trail became smooth for a while. Of course roots and rocks are the halmark of Maine, so we did have that-and lots of mud. We had only one big climb today-Moxie Bald Mountain. The climb up was not as intense as I thought it would be, but it was 2 miles and over 1300 feet elevation gain, so it was not a cakewalk. The top was bald, rocky granite slabs, with views for miles. I feel so incredibly fortunate to have had nice weather for a week or so now. Knock knock. Coming down Moxie was tedious in places, but after I reached the shelter, the trail became lovely and easy. I came to Bald Mountain stream and layed down on a big rock slab, soaking up the heat from the rock. The skies were getting cloudy and the wind was picking up. I left my pack on the rock and hopped across the stream to scope out a campsite. Found a flat spot big enough for two tents and hopped back across to wait for Katwalk.When she got there, we hopped back across the stream and set up our tents. I made a fire and we chatted and laughed and had a nice night. The rain started falling after we were in our tents and continued on and off all day. Tomorrow- Monson! Woot woot!
Date: 2015-09-21
From: Monson

To: Wilson Valley lean To
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: overcast clouds

I got up early and went to the bread. Rebecca, owner of the Lakeshore House was there as well. Speaking of people with charisma and big personalities- Rebecca is a star! Her bunkhouse, rooms, nd restaurant all say I LOVE MY BUSINESS AND MY CUSTOMERS. Clean, comfortable, affordable. And she takes the time to listen to the stories, look us in the eye, gives us hugs if she suspects hugs are needed. I got one and it was an awesome hug.Rebecca picked up my box and I packed up for 7 days and nights of food, carrying it all. I missed the bucket drop so the food is heavy. Argh. I am ready and excited!Katwalk hiked in just before I left and she was ready for a bed and a shower and a beer. I briefly considered staying another night so I could have fun hanging out with her, but I really needed to go. We will meet in Monson.Rebecca drpped us back off at the trailhead and we hiked out after getting pictures with her and the signs marking the beginning of the Wilderness. I could not believe I was starting the end of the hike. All of that year of prep, preceeded by many years of dreaming, and after the last long 6 months of hiking and poof. The end is here. It will soon be over.The beginning of the Hundred Mile Wilderness started with a climb. Not big, immediate. Then the trail did an up and down roller coaster thing. Roots-rocks-mud-and so very beautiful. The woods are dense, the quiet is thick. I got the sense that if I yelled the woods would swallow my sound. I know the answer to the question about the tree falling in the woods. It isn't yes or no, but something remote and in between that I can't articulate, but understand.I walked by a stream, falls, ponds-no shortage of water out here. Because of the late start today, and the days getting shorter, I set my goal for the Wilson Valley Lean To. It got dark before I got there and I did the last mile by headlamp. The rocks were tedious and the roots were as well. I finally made it to the shelter and found Hauling Oats there! I was so excited to see her. She went to the End of Trail Festival in Monson, did some hard core work, and shuttled back to do the wilderness. She was sharing the shelter with someone named Katherine, who introduced hereself as "only" a section hiker. She got on in Vermont, so she has hiked over 500 miles. I never understand why section hikers say "only" a section hiker. I think in many ways section hiking has to be harder. Getting your legs over and over, making that time commitment year after year-it has to be very difficult. My hat is off to section hikers. I think my future hikes will be done in sections if I can handle it. Anyway, Hauling Oats was sleeping so I didn't wake her up.I cooked up a delicious Katwalk-Lamb and barley-so good! Then I hit the sack- so i could toss and turn all night with my relentless insomnia. Tomorrow looks difficult.