morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-06-04
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Mohican Outdoor Center
Miles today: 10.5

Please ignore everything I said about Pennsylvania NOT being so bad yesterday! It was a moment of temporary insanity. Perhaps I had been in the dark pit of rocky despair for so long that I¢d forgotten what the rest of the AT is like. New Jersey still has rocks but the 10 miles today were quite delightful. First along a stream, then to a beautiful mountain lake and finally along a ridge with some awesome views. All in 10 miles! Better then the entire state of PA put together, however disturbing that is because PA is over 200 miles! It is a bit odd to me that New Jersey is so nice so far because the name New Jersey does not really portray niceness. It¢s good to be surprised.Guess whom I saw today? I was walking by the Delaware Water Gap Visitor Center and I wasn¢t even going to go up there until I saw 2 packs. I saw 2 hikers talking on the phone and was a bit disappointed because I didn¢t recognize them at first. Then I figured it out, it was Waldo, who I last saw in Damascus and Deja Vous!! It was a happy reunion. I hope to see more of them.Last night, I told Scorpion that I was going to try and do a 25 miler to the next shelter. I slept on it though and in the morning I saw Scorpion off and met up with Bigfoot in the breakfast room. I was quite easily convinced into only doing a 10-mile day and hopefully hanging out with them tonight. I¢m not sure when they will get here though. I feel a bit of a jerk for not letting Scorpion know my change of plans, but I also feel relieved because I never looked for a partner. It was starting to crimp my style a little bit¢¦ Having to go slower or faster depending on them, not doing more or less miles based on how I felt. All in all, I think I¢m much too selfish of a hiker to hike with somebody else. Spur of the moment plans are much cooler for me then long-range ones. I still feel like a bit of a jerk though. Scorpion...if you read this please don't hate me...I don't think you will!So now I sit on a comfy couch in a nice lodge at the Mohican Outdoor Center, run by the Appalachian Mountain Club. There¢s free camping for thru-hikers. The AMC is also known as the Appalachian Money Club because of how they cater to the rich people in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, but they appear to do some good work here. I would love to sleep on this couch tonight but it could possibly involve money-changing hands and in that case it would not be worth it. I¢ll probably ask anyway. There are also sodas and snacks of various sorts, which look delightful. However, I have a lot of food in my food bag so I¢ll resist.Good news! The Calgary Flames will be playing for the Stanley Cup tomorrow night. Hopefully the cup will be back in Canada, where it belongs.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-06
From: Gren Anderson Shelter 

To: The Secret Shelter 
Miles today: 18.3

O little orange lizard¢¦ why do you sit in the middle of the AT? Don¢t you know that that¢s where people walk? The forest is big enough for all of us but Boy Scouts¢ll squish you if you don¢t watch out! Then you will be trail kill. Nobody wants that. Especially you.===Last night, at dusk, when I was almost asleep someone came into the shelter. I was annoyed at first but then quite excited to see that it was Waterfall. I left her at Harper¢s Ferry to go to Washington. Then she took a week off to go to New York to visit her sister. We caught up on trail talk and then fell asleep. Tonight I am staying at the ¢Secret Shelter¢ with Waterfall, it is for thru-hikers only, there¢s electricity, running water, a hot shower, and an indoor sleeping area. It's called the secret shelter because the guy who owns the place only wants thru-hikers to stay there and not boy scouts or weekenders. It's only marked by a well-water sign that is quite small and hard to see. Desperado let me know the secret, which was awesome and there's also a little description of it in Wingfoot. Very cool! It is run by an ex-thru hiker who is kind enough to let all of us stay. There¢s also a donkey. Nothing else to say for tonight.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-07
From: The Secret Shelter 

To: Church Hostel, Vernon, NJ
Miles today: 13.6

I feel like I am not even hiking the AT. A shower today, a shower yesterday, what could be better? I¢m at the hostel in Vernon and it is a sweet place! Waterfall and I got an easy hitch after stopping at a farm/garden center for some baking and icecream. Waterfall wasn't planning on coming in but was pretty easily convinced! We and are now hanging out with 4 other girls: Tika, Zik, Monty and Rio. How bizarre to have 6 girls at a hostel. It¢s nice and quiet, enjoyable but I kind of don¢t know how to act because I¢m around guys all the time.Today¢s walk was crazy¢¦ through swamps, along boardwalks, on bog bridges, up and over mountains and through pastures. It made for a great day. I am definitely a fan of New Jersey, it¢s turned out to be a beautiful and interesting state and this stop makes it even better.For dinner Waterfall, Tika, Zik and I decided to make a spaghetti dinner at the hostel. For $4.00 we gorged ourselves on pasta, salad, and garlic bread. I think that I have never eaten that much food before. Everyone was very impressed. I ate for an hour and a half straight, without really stopping. I estimate that I consumed about 4000 calories or so. I think I had about 1/2 a bag of salad mix and an entire box of pasta. It was one of my proudest moments on the AT!Sunshine showed up and told me that tonight was game 7 of the hockey finals. Sweet! He¢s from Florida and I¢m from Calgary, so it¢ll be a fun night.The Stanley Cup will not be coming home to Canada. It will be residing in Florida, which disturbs me because it doesn¢t even snow there. At least Sunshine was gracious in victory. I just know that probably 900 000 out of the million people in Calgary were watching whereas in Florida probably only a small percentage of hard-core fans even knew about it. Doesn't seem fair.
Date: 2004-06-08
From: Vernon, NJ

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 17.4

Hiked into another state today, New York. I was quite sad to leave New Jersey behind. New York has been tough; most of the hike was on giant slabs of rock, angled in crazy ways. If it were raining it would have been downright sketchy because I needed all the traction I could get. It was also hot, in the upper 80¢s and water sources were few and far between. The heat radiated off the rocks like an oven. I hated it. It was actually kind of a nightmare and days like this make me wonder why I¢m hiking. Oh yeah, the bugs were horrible, too. Some days I enjoy hiking but I¢ve been wondering if those good days are enough to make up for the crappy one like this. I don¢t ever really want to hike anymore. I¢ve walked 1355 miles. That¢s a long way, why do I need to hike more? Something to think about I guess.I also feel like it would be crazy to give up now after walking so far. Less than 2 months to go! Surely I can suck it up on those crappy days and just keep walking. Hopefully.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-09
From: Wildcat Shelter

To: William Brien Memorial Shelter
Miles today: 19.6

Today was another brutal day in New York. It was scorching hot, in the upper 80¢s. The first half of the day was straight up to exposed ridgeline where the sun radiated off the rocks, then straight down to swampy areas, infested with bugs. Repeat this endlessly for 10 miles, brutal! It took me 7 hours to hike 10 miles. 7 HOURS!! That¢s 1.4 miles per hour. Pathetic. I have never hiked that slowly on the entire hike. Even through snow and mud, blizzards and torrential Rain I hiked faster then that.When I got to the road crossing trail magic awaited me. Harold with his van was waiting for his son John. He offered me a coke and some water, which I desperately needed because all the water sources in the last 10 miles were crappy. I sat down and talked with Harold for a long while, resting in the shade and along came another trail angel, a local guy who offered us a ride anywhere we needed to go. I gladly took him up on it and got a ride a few miles down the trail. This is my justification: 1- I avoided a brutal climb in the scorching heat. 2- I want to enjoy Graymoor Friary tomorrow night and this way I only have 15 miles to get there, instead of 20. 3- the terrain in New York sucks. 4-It made me happy.The last 3 or 4 miles I walked to the shelter were beautiful gentle terrain and nice forest and no swamps. Why couldn¢t the rest of NY be like this?So far, I¢m on my own at the shelter. Rio, Monty and Waterfall have all hiked on to camp but I¢m tired and feel like staying. I feel a bit lonely but am also happy for the chance to be quiet, to listen to the sounds of the forest. It¢s peaceful. The view is only slightly marred by all of the garbage here. Stupid people, whom do they think will carry out their trash?JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-10
From: William Brien Memorial Shelter

To: Graymoor Monastery
Miles today: 15.4

You look at me with distaste from your shiny SUV¢s, with your clean clothes and perfumed body. I am dirty stinky and homeless. But you do not care that I have chosen this life of simplicity, of walking, of sleeping in the forest. You only see a dirty girl who makes you feel better about yourself because you can look down on her. You do not ask if you can help. You do not care where I have come from or where I am going. I have walked further in a week than you probably will in 10 years. Whatever. You have chosen a life to me that is excruciatingly boring. I have chosen a life to you that is beyond your comprehension. You watch TV, I walk. I feel alive. How do you feel?Today was quite enjoyable. The temperature was moderate because it was cloudy. I actually felt slightly chilled at times. How delightful, compared to yesterday. The trail was a bit more moderate as well. There were still a few steep ups and downs but there was also some nice stretches as well. The trail went through Bear Mountain Park, an extravagant monstrosity of a tourist attraction. School groups abounded. I sat and had lunch by the lake and watched the Canadian Geese. They seemed to just be out for a leisurely float around the lake. Then the trail went through a zoo. At one point a few years ago I vowed to never go to a zoo again because caged animals disturb me. The idea of walking around it on the road off trail just seemed dumb so in I went. As I expected it was quite disturbing but I did get a picture of me at the lowest point of the AT, 124 feet. It¢s all uphill from here. It was the experience here combined with all the other visitor centers that led to the beginning of this entry.So now I¢m hanging out at the Graymoor Monastery in a picnic pavilion type thing. It¢s peaceful, an oasis with a water tap not 10 feet away. Actually any water source is an oasis in this desert called New York. I got here around 3:30 pm and planned a relaxing afternoon. I was wandering where the privy was and not half an hour later a big truck drove up with a porta-potty. Sweet. Got some trail magic today, too. I stopped and talked to some people out for 3 days and they hooked some candies and me up with 2 Nutrigrain bars. Delightful. It always pays to talk to people.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-11
To: Tell it like it is...Maildrop
Miles today: 0.0

Hey there everybody, it's Tell it like it is. I just wanted to let everyone know about my next maildrop. I'm excited to see what I get from all of you in Kent...should be there in about 2 days or so. Things are going well...trail magic is abundant. Almost everyday someone gives me something or takes me somewhere and it's making my hike bearable. The hiking part of it is making me a little crazy but the side trips and stuff have been cool. Today I was crossing a road just past the Graymoor monastery and a guy was just hanging out waiting for the school bus to pick up his kid. As it worked out, I ended up going home with him for what I thought would just be breakfast. Breakfast turned into laundry, then a shower, then his wife sewed up my clothes for me, then we had lunch, then internet, then going to see the new Harry Potter, now I'm planning on staying the night. Amazing. Here's the drop info:Jacqueline Bolenc/o General DeliveryManchester Center, VT05255At hiker, ETA: June 30
Date: 2004-06-11
From: Graymoor Monastery

To: Waldron House
Miles today: 3.0

Just when I think my trail magic quota could not possibly be expanded more amazing things happen. I was walking early this morning and I came to a road crossing when I ran into a guy hanging out with his son, waiting for the bus. We talked for a few minutes and he asked if I needed anything. I said no because I really didn¢t NEED anything but in the end I said, ¢well if you offered me some breakfast I wouldn¢t refuse.¢ So off we went to his house. His wife whipped me up some eggs, toast, fruit and tea. Delicious! So kind. We were just hanging out and then breakfast became a shower, then laundry, then a trip to the grocery store, then going to watch the new Harry Potter movie and now I lay on the couch where I will sleep tonight. Jenn, when she was doing my laundry noticed a rip in my pants so she just sewed it up for me. How bizarre to just spend an entire day hanging out with a little family in New York, seeing the kid go off to school and then saying good night to them. I¢ve had a great day and I think the big guy upstairs is hooking me up because how can I day after day be at the right place at the right time and keep coming across the coolest people.I¢ve been feeling kind of down about hiking lately and a bit lonely on the trail but stuff like this lifts my spirits. The crazy thing is that these people, whenever, they see hikers ask them if they want to come over and most people do but no one really stays the whole day. I¢m actually the first one that has and I¢m so happy I did. Joe & Jenn said it is mostly because people just want to get some more miles in for the day. Crazy mileage nazis, see what you are missing out on! No wonder sweet trail magic doesn¢t come your way, because when it is offered to you, you turn it down because you¢re worried about your mileage for the day. In the whole scheme of things I would way rather spend a day like this and do some Yellow or Blue blazing if I had to at the end to make up time. It¢s about the journey, the people you meet, and the experiences not about doing 20 miles day after day. I think that¢s stupid and if you are a mileage nazi and do 20 miles day after day and have passed every single white blaze and are offended that I said that I really don¢t care!! Hike your own hike, I guess, but in 10 years from now I hope to still be in touch with all these cool people and what will you be able to say? That you finished in 4 months instead of 6 and you touched every white blaze. I¢ll call myself a thru-hiker, everyone else will call both of us thru-hikers but I will have the experiences and the friends and what will you have?Anyway this has turned into a rant and it is now way past hiker bedtime. Look what a taste of real life and artificial lights do to me. They trick my body into thinking 10:30 is sleepy time. A little corner in my brain knows what¢s what and is getting annoyed because I still keep writing. I think I¢ll give in. Zzzzzzzzzz.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-13
From: RPH Shelter

To: Morgan Stewart Shelter
Miles today: 9.0

Nine miles¢¦ What an enjoyable day. I was quite easily convinced by Spicey, Pretty Bird and Wandering Bear to go to the deli at 5 miles and a trip to the deli equals a lot fewer miles per the day. I left the shelter at 9:00 and was at the deli by 11:30. After an awesome turkey sandwich we sat and relaxed at the tables until 3:00 or so. It¢s been fun hanging out with cool people my own age! I seem to have a lot more fun. Then it was less than 2 hours of walking to the shelter.Now we are all just hanging out along with a section hiker guy who is kind of annoying me. He keeps talking gear, about his job, about slack packing, and how many miles he is going to average. All things I could care less about! When it¢s all younger people, the conversation is always funny, about real life stuff, lots of laughs but as soon as an older man is in the shelter the conversation always becomes boring. The older ladies for some reason seem much cooler. There are exceptions of course. Now he is blabbing on about how hard Maine is. Make the talking nightmare end! None of us are really listening but he just keeps talking. Like we don¢t already spend enough time walking the trail each day but then why do we have to talk on endlessly about it. I just walked the same thing he did...why does he feel the need to do a moment by moment replay of it when I have seen it first-hand. Can¢t we just talk about things that normal people talk about?JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢
Date: 2004-06-14
From: Morgan Stewart Shelter

To: Wiley Shelter
Miles today: 16.6

Today was just another day on the AT. It rained and then it stopped. Lots of road crossings. Lots of overgrown jungle-like swampy areas that could have used a lot more trail maintenance. I hiked on and off all day with Spicey, Wandering Bear and Pretty Bird. It made the day go faster and we had a lot of laughs. When we were at a shelter for lunch, we were sitting on the ledge of it, with our feet hanging over, eating. Then Spicey all of a sudden was just falling out of the shelter, no one pushed her, it wasn't on a slope or anything...quite bizarre!. It was really funny, but I guess you had to be there to get the full effect. A video tape of it would have been priceless. We now have plans to play a few cards. Annoying trail talk man from last night is sleeping. I feel like I should tell him to stop with the trail talk but he¢ll learn soon enough.I set up my hammock to avoid the evil mosquitoes. I hope I can get a good sleep in it.JB ¢ ¢Tell It Like It Is¢¢¦
Date: 2004-06-15
From: Wiley Shelter

To: Kent
Miles today: 12.8

I saw a suicidal frog today as I was walking down some stone steps on the AT. The frog was jumping down the steps in what looked like some dangerously big jumps for such a little guy. I guess he knows what he¢s doing though because he¢s still hopping. I also saw a rattlesnake, my first of the trip. It was all curled up sleeping. Pretty boring until I threw a rock at it, then it was a little scary. Right now, I¢m hanging out in Kent, CT, land of the rich and famous. There are a lot of nice cars but so far no one famous has appeared out of one.   I went to the post office and was happy to find packages from: J.W. Jones from Boston, Ann from Washington, who I stayed at a shelter with, and John from Maine. Thanks everybody! You guys are awesome. After the post office, I swung by the library to check e-mail and now I sit at the deli contemplating life. Kent has nowhere to stay overnight, which is troublesome. The next shelter north of here is 7 miles and the one south is 0.3 miles, but who wants to go backwards? Only crazy people do that. So it appears my only option is a little stealth camping in the trees. The only problem is that while I sit on this chair with my feet up, I feel a serious aversion to walking. The terrain today was tough and my legs are tired. Oh yeah, a new state today. I¢ve lost track of what number it is but I¢ll look in my handy book for ya¢ll. 10 down, 4 to go. I feel relieved. My mind and body definitely agree on one thing: that they don¢t want to walk anymore!Anyway, I¢m still in town 4 hours later and am now hanging out at the deli with Wandering Bear, Spicey and Pretty Bird. The outfitter in town left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. They were ¢chinsy¢ on fuel and overcharged for it anyway. Then they told us that there was nowhere in town to camp¢¦but then the guys at the deli told us we could ask the priest to sleep on the lawn and someone else told us we could sleep behind the town hall. So we plan to set up on the church lawn in a bit. This made us immensely happy.I also convinced Wandering Bear to do another state even though he wanted to drop out. So that was my good deed for the day. How ironic that I have to convince other people to keep hiking when this hike has turned semi-nightmarish for me. Maybe I convinced myself a little bit, as well as him.
Date: 2004-06-16
From: Kent

To: Stewart Hollow Brook Lean-to
Miles today: 6.9

How reluctantly we all left Kent. I¢m quite surprised we made it out at all. Spicey was leaving no matter what the rest of us did. Wandering Bear desperately wanted to take a zero day. Pretty Bird and I wavered somewhere in the middle.We went to the deli for breakfast, after being awakened by some men mowing lawns. Then off to the outfitters, then the library to check email, and then out for Chinese. I had my own plate of deep-fried goodness and then cleaned up Spicey¢s and Pretty Bird¢s when they couldn¢t finish. Tasty and cheap equals thru-hiker happiness.Side Note: I just noticed a bird¢s nest under the shelter with baby birds. Mother bird keeps scurrying off to get food. She's a very responsible mother. I could probably watch for hours. This is what happens when you don't have a TV...simple amusements amuse under-stimulated minds. I have a strong suspicion that this is better than being a zombie watching TV machine though!Anyway, Spicey ran into this lady, Susie, who offered us a ride back to the trail. Spicey and I accepted and off we went. As we were nearing the trail crossing, she asked if we needed anything. In a jiffy, I was at her house taking a shower, doing laundry, eating ice cream and using the phone. Delightful! Thanks so much Susie if you end up reading this. As I write this, tears come to my eyes. How emotional I feel about simple kindnesses when I am so weak. Truly thankful.Anyway, now I hang out at the shelter. It¢s homey. Time to rest. Pretty Bird and Wandering Bear just got new books so they¢re reading chapters out loud to us. It felt like summer camp. It's peaceful laying in my sleeping bag, enjoying the cool night air, talking, contemplating, surrounded by people I like. The forest has it's own voice, whispering us to sleep.