morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-05-13
From: Nolichucky River (Erwin, TN.)

To: Nolichucky River (Erwin, TN.)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

The Dog Pack moved out today. Thanks to my slack pack, I was still 19 miles ahead of them, so I decided to take one more day off. Michelle and I hung out around town, I reorganized my equipment, and in the afternoon we decided to take a drive up to Beauty Spot. I passed over Beauty Spot, a bald on the trail, during my slack pack. I noticed there was a small road and a parking area near the top, so we eventually found it, and brought some beer, rum and cups with us. It was gorgeous up there, and we passed out our trail magic to the hikers that passed by. Soon, our supply had disappeared, and after two hours, decided to head back to town. With no real plans, we grabbed some lunch/dinner, made a beer run (we had to drive about 20 minutes away, as Erwin is in a dry county), picked up some pizza, and headed back up to Beauty Spot. The group we left was still there, with many more thru-hikers adding to the party. Everyone decided to stay there, including the Dog Pack. We brought up the beer and pizza and passed it around, and enjoyed the fire everyone made, listened to two guitars being played, and had a very enjoyable evening. Around 11 pm, everyone was heading to bed, and we drove off the mountain.
Date: 2007-05-14
From: Iron Mtn Gap

To: Ash Gap
Miles today: 11.0

It¢s time to get hiking again. I was dropped off at the trailhead around 10:30 am. It was good to be back on the trail. My goal was Roan High Knob Shelter, on the top of Roan Mountain. Everyone in Erwin said the climb up Roan Mtn was brutal and never-ending. The trail was mostly uphill, and I took my time. Before I knew it, I was heading up Beartown Mountain, just before Roan. It was a tough climb, but not nearly as bad as I was led to believe. Still, a 1,500 foot elevation gain will get your attention. I came across a beautiful campground in the gap just before Roan Mountain. The Dog Pack still hadn¢t caught up, so instead of making the final 700 ft. climb, I decided to camp right there for the night. Pooh Bear and Caboosie showed up a little later and also camped there. I made some dinner, collected firewood for a fire, and then went to hang my bear bag.You have to hang your food every night, or risk bears or other animals coming to your tent to pay a visit. Most shelters have places to hang your food without throwing a rope into a tree. Not here. Usually this isn¢t a problem, but this time, my rope got caught in a branch, and was hanging down about 10-12 feet up. I carefully climbed up the tree (with the first branch about 5 feet off the ground) and reached up to pull the rope down. No problem, until the branch I was standing on broke. There I was, about 5 feet up, hugging the tree so I wouldn¢t fall. I was wearing my crocks, so I didn¢t want to jump down and risk turning or breaking my ankle. I tried shimmying down the tree, but slid down instead. Ouch! No major injury, but I¢ve got some really good scratches from the bark on my arm and stomach. I¢m sure it would have been comical to watch all this happen. Luckily, no one was around to see¢¦
Date: 2007-05-15
From: Ash Gap

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.0

It was another great morning. I woke up and got my gear together, not in much of a rush because I¢m still ahead of the Dog Pack, but I¢m not sure by how much. There was one more big climb that started immediately. Despite everyone saying how tough this climb would be, it wasn¢t bad at all. Maybe I¢m getting in much better shape; maybe I still wasn¢t fully awake so I didn¢t notice the difficulty. Whatever the case, I flew up the 12 mile climb and soon found myself in an empty parking lot on the top of Roan Mountain. This was the spot of a large, luxurious hotel from the late 1800¢s. Now all that¢s left is a plaque, and some old stone chimneys scattered around. Roan Mountain also hosts a rhododendron garden open to the public (and thus the parking lot), though I didn¢t venture down to that area. I just kept moving, heading to Roan High Knob Shelter, another 34 miles along the ridge.I soon saw a sight I wasn¢t expecting ¢ two guys pushing and one pulling a large cart up the trail. In the cart was lumber, metal sheeting, various tools, etc¢¦ I had run across a group of shelter maintainers, those unsung hero¢s who keep the trail clear of brush and debris, the shelters sound and safe, and yes, even the privy¢s functioning. The AT is primarily maintained by volunteers who collectively put in thousands of hours of work every year so we can all enjoy everything it offers. I volunteered to help pull the cart to the shelter. It wasn¢t easy, and gave me a new appreciation for everyone¢s efforts. I spent a few hours lending a hand, and decided to move on. While at the shelter, some other hikers passed by. There I learned that the Dog Pack was a handful of hours behind me. I took my time and had a leisurely day, eventually hiking with Edge (who caught up with me) and made my way to Overmountain Shelter. This is one of the shelters everyone knows on the AT. It¢s an old, converted barn. The bottom floor is all open, so when you¢re on the sleeping platforms, you can look out over a beautiful valley, with a ridgeline beyond. It¢s incredibly gorgeous.Various hikers began wandering in, including Candy Bar, R We (short for Are We There Yet), brother Doc and Crocket (not to be confused with Joker), Root Down, Gourmond, and others. Soon, even Dog Man, Sizzerz, Joker, Tinkerbell (aka Michelle, his girlfriend) and Moss finally made an appearance. Earlier I had helped gather some wood for a fire, and we had a good reunion. Gourmond was getting off the trail the next day, only section hiking, and he helped us celebrate by cooking up a peanut sauce for pasta, made with peanut butter, water, and some spices. Gourmond is by far the best trail cook I¢ve ever heard of. He can take any ingredients and make them into a gourmet meal. Plenty of ramps (a plant/bulb that grows along the trail, and tastes like a cross between an onion and garlic ¢ delicious) were also available, bringing new life to my spaghetti with meat sauce. A small guitar and mandolin appeared, and we soon had music as well. What a great night.
Date: 2007-05-16
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Roan Mountain, TN
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Talk about some serious trail magic!!! When I opened my eyes in the morning, I had an immediate view of the valley below, the ridgeline in the distance, and the sun just rising above some small mountains. This is what it¢s all about. Two of the guys started picking on the guitars almost immediately. I was short on fuel, so I used Dog Man¢s stove to cook up some oatmeal, added an additional packet of his, and the two of us had a big hot breakfast. Each of us started trickeling out of the shelter when we were ready. Our rendezvous point: Route 19E, about 9 miles away.While in Hot Springs, Moss met a guy in a caf© who happened to live and work in Roan Mountain, TN, just a few miles from where the AT crosses Route 19E. He¢s a chiropractor, and invited us to give him a call when we were in the area and he¢d give us all free adjustments. We began hiking, with a decent climb to start the morning, then leveling out to easy hiking. I¢d stop now and then to take off the boots and rest the toe, a routine that seems to work well. After a little bit, it started raining a bit, but we kept on moving. At Stan Murray Shelter, just one mile from the road, we gathered again and I grabbed half a doughnut, complements of trail magic left by¢¦.I really don¢t remember who left it. Anyway, we were soon at the road, and walked over to a nearby hostel. We couldn¢t reach Doc Roger, the chiropractor, so we got a ride into town and had lunch at Dairy Land, a local mom & pop restaurant with massive burgers (two hand-made patties, with ham, bacon, and lots of other stuff.) We finally reached Doc Roger, and Joker, Tinkerbell, Moss, Dog Man and I were soon sitting in his office. Doc R. is a great guy. I¢ve never been ¢cracked¢ before, but afterwards, I felt great. It was really raining out, and while we were at the office, Doc R mentioned that he had just rented a house two doors down. It didn¢t have any furnishings, but did have a working kitchen and running water. We were welcome to stay. It didn¢t take us long to say YES!!! We headed back to the hostel, grabbed our packs, and made our way back to Doc R¢s place. During our travels through town, we noticed backpacks outside a local watering hole, and found out Doc (not to be confused with Doc Rogers), Crocket (who took that trail name after Joker gave the name up), Candy Bar and Root Down were also in town, avoiding the rain and enjoying a few beers. They were invited to stay, and soon we had 10 people at Doc R¢s place. We all showered, made a food & beer run, Doc R brought over a guitar and radio, and we had a great day and evening. This is trail magic at its best!!! When we woke up this morning, this is the last place we thought we¢d be. You¢ve got to love the trail.
Date: 2007-05-17
From: Roan Mountain, TN

To: Roan Mountain, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Waking up in an empty house with 9 other hikers was odd. We all felt like squatters. It took awhile for everyone to open their eyes, due to the late night we had. There was quite a bit of discussion as to what the plan was for the day: to hike, or not to hike. To push for the Kinkora hostel, where we were planning to get a ride to Damascus, or work to get a ride from Roan Mountain. Moss and Sizzerz made a huge breakfast for everyone, and by the time we finished arguing about our plans, the decision was made for us ¢ it was too late to start hiking and make it to that hostel. Not to worry ¢ Doc Rogers offered to take us to Damascus in his RV for Trail Days. We spent the day laying out in the sun, listening to music, and doing as little as possible. We were all invited to Doc¢s house and had a great dinner they made for us. Back to our temporary housing and more beer. You know, it¢s a tough, tough life.
Date: 2007-05-18
From: Roan Mountain, TN

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

We cleaned up our mess, and in the afternoon Doc Rogers pulled up in a large RV, named ¢Born Free.¢ Well, that¢s one issue settled. Doc Rogers trail name is now Born Free. We loaded up the packs, the coolers with soda, beer and food, and we were on our way. In less than two hours, we were in Damascus, VA. Trail Days is a big festival for thru-hikers. Former hikers, future hikers, and current hikers all gather in this small town for one weekend to hear lectures and stories, meet those ahead or behind them on the trail, and have a party. Most of the major gear manufacturers are there as well. Thousands descend on this small town, known as the friendliest trail town on the AT. We were guided about 1 12 miles out of town to Tent City ¢ pretty self explanatory. We picked out a spot to set up among the hundreds of other tents, and soon set out into town. Everyone was there ¢ those I¢ve only heard about from shelter registers, those I¢ve hiked with or passed at the start of the hike ¢ everyone. After dinner and some drinks, we headed back to the tents, hung out at a massive bonfire, and had a bit to drink. I¢m not sure when I headed back to my tent, but the party was still going.
Date: 2007-05-19
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

In the morning, we all hung out, and put together a fire ring for the evening. Rather than traveling to others fires, we decided to host one of our own. I wandered to the Granite Gear booth, and changed out my medium hip belt for a small, as I was getting too skinny. We ventured into town again, and joined the hiker parade with the Class of 2007. This was our year. Of course, water balloons and water guns are part of the parade as well. The target? Us. I wandered around other gear manufacturer booths, and found Six Moon Designs, the maker of my tent. I got some tips on how to set it up a bit better, and then grabbed a huge lunch from one of the vendors. After doing laundry, I was back at the tents, where the fire was started. As the evening went by, more and more people gathered around, drawn by the fire, the guitars, and the laughter. Born Free pulled out 12 gallon of authentic Tennessee moonshine, made by a 90 year old, 3rd generation moonshiner. It went down really smooth, but caught up with you real quick. What a night. At one point, I counted more than 50 people hanging out with us ¢ most I knew, some I didn¢t. So this is Trail Days.
Date: 2007-05-20
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

After a late night of hanging out at the campfire just outside my tent, listening to a jam of guitars and mandolin, and having a few drinks, we were all moving a bit slow in the morning (especially Crocket.) All around us, people were packing up their tents and gear, and heading out. Trail Days was over. We eventually got our equipment packed, policed the area for garbage, disassembled the fire pit, and loaded up Doc Roger¢s (Born Free) RV. First stop, breakfast/lunch. After all, it¢s all about food when you can get it. My first priority, however, was to make a phone call. I hadn't spoken to Ally in a couple of days and a few days ago I learned Ally¢s father had a stroke. Reaching Ally, I got the news that her father had passed away in the morning. She and her family had done so much for me over the years; I knew what I had to do.After driving out of Damascus and nearing Roan Mountain, we stopped at a friend¢s of Born Free. The place was beautiful, with plenty of land and rolling hills, right on Watauga Lake. You could look up and see a ridge above the lake. We knew we¢d be hiking along that ridge in a few days, following the trail. I was able to get on the internet, and the next thing I knew I had a flight to Orlando for later that evening from an airport about 45 minutes away. I¢m heading down for the wake and funeral, and to offer what help and support I can to Ally & the family. For the next two hours, I enjoyed the sun, we played some hackey (trying to keep the sack away from the dogs was a challenge), Dog Man and Candy Bar took a swim, and too soon it was time to get in the car with Born Free and head to the airport. It turns out the rest of the group decided to camp right where we were and get on the trail in the morning. I¢m not sure how long I¢ll be in Orlando, but when I get back, I assured everyone I¢d hike fast and catch up with them in a few weeks. For now, it¢s time to catch a flight.
Date: 2007-05-25
From: Orlando, FL

To: Orlando, FL
Miles today: 0.0

The viewings are over, the funeral concluded, and today is a chance for everyone to rest, recover, and try to move on. With Ally, her nephew Mike, his girlfriend Samantha, and myself, we decided to rent a car and drive together. Tomorrow we¢ll be driving back to Tennessee, getting a room, and I¢ll start hiking again first thing Sunday or Monday. Hiking alone, I figure I can put in some really big miles. Hiking in a group is a lot of fun, and you can enjoy great company, but it slows you down. We start moving later in the morning, and we tend to stop earlier. Now I¢ll be able to start and stop when I want. Plus, the terrain gets easier and easier from here. My goal will be to reach Damascus is 3 to 3 12 days, 74 miles away. Tonight, Ally and I will head over to Pleasure Island at Disney World, an area of night clubs, comedy clubs, and a much needed distraction for us both. One interesting thing related to the hike did come up in Florida. Mike noticed that I was in much better shape since he¢d last seen me, especially my calves. I¢ve never really taken the time to think about this, other than worry about the weight I had lost. A closer look, however, did indeed show much larger calves. In fact, my left calf muscle is noticeably larger than my right. Since I¢ve been favoring my right foot/toe, my left leg has been working much harder. This is the result. Hopefully once I¢m hiking again, the toe won¢t be as much of an issue, and I can hike normally. Otherwise, I¢ll be completely lopsided when I finish.
Date: 2007-05-28
From: Roan Mtn, TN

To: Dennis Cove, USFS Road 50
Miles today: 23.8

After 1 1/2 weeks of not hiking, I'm back on the trail. I was dropped off yesterday after driving from Orlando, and stayed at the Mountain Harbour Bed & Breakfast and Hostel. The hostel is located in a 100 year old barn, complete with horses and goats on the property. After a few phone calls, Born Free stopped by to reunite me with my backpack. The evening went quickly as I chatted with mostly section hikers staying the night.The next morning, a huge breakfast was prepared. It was the best I've had on the trail yet. Finally, a little after 9 am, I was off. After a good climb from the road, the trail became relatively flat and easy. After a few miles, I took a side trail to Jones Falls. What a beautiful place to stop and rest. I found a small path leading up part of the falls, and seeing nobody around decided to strip down to my Crocks and take a hiker shower. The water was cold, but refreshing. I was only under the falls for a minute or two because the water was just pounding me. I could feel welts starting to form on my back from the force of the water, but it felt really good. I dried off with a bandana and started moving again.The trail became a bit more difficult. Of course, I had to get my body back into hiking condition. After all the time off, it was like starting out for the first time again. My feet were sore, my knees hurt, and I was tired. I kept pushing on, though. Even though it was getting late and the sun was setting, I decided to push on to the Kinkora Hostel. Hiking at night, even on a fairly easy trail, is no fun. Time goes by very, very slowly. Around 10 pm, I finally made it to the hostel. After a shower, cooking dinner and chatting with some folks, I was off to bed. A long day.
Date: 2007-05-29
From: Dennis Cove, USFS Road 50

To: Campsite north of Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: few clouds

I woke up extremely sore. I hadn't been this sore since I started out in Georgia!!! I wasn't going to let that stop me, though. After downing a poptart and some coffee, I slowly packed up and got moving again. The first challenge of the day: PUD Flats - er...Pond Flats, that is. (PUD is short for pointless up and down.) Simply put, the trail takes you up this hill/mountain, except it seemed to go on forever. You would climb 300 feet, then the trail would descend 150 feet, back up 350 feet, and back down 100 feet. Usually, climbing a mountain with a 1000 foot elevation gain isn't a problem, but it is when you're actually going up and down, up and down, probably climbing 4000 feet in reality. And there was no reason for the trail to do this!! It could have just gone around the side. Man, I was feeling it. The trail continued its ups and downs, and eventually came to a municipal beach and swimming area on Watagua Lake. It was a warm day, and too inviting to pass up. So, amid all the small kids out for a day with grandma and grandpa, high school students, and a few others, I took off my pack, laid out my sleeping pad, and jumped into the water. It felt soooo good. I relaxed a bit, had lunch, dried off, went back into the water, made some phone calls (my cell phone actually worked there!!!) and yogi'd some fresh pineapple and a banana from someone. (Yogi-ing is the art of arranging to have food offered to you without actually asking/begging for it.) Finally, around 5 pm, I pulled myself up, filled up on water, and got moving.The trail went up fairly steeply to run along a ridge above the lake. While fairly easy terrain, it was a constant up and down that really began wearing on me. In addition, all the water sources were dried up, leaving me very short on agua. Just after nightfall, I came across Vandeventer Shelter. I learned from Alright, a thru-hiker staying at the shelter, that there was a spring located 1/2 mile down a side trail, and down a very steep descent. Hmmm - what to do. Rather than make a 1 mile detour off the trail for water, I decided to push on. I knew that 4 miles down was a campsite with a spring. Once again I was night hiking. Yuck. The bugs were out in force. Around 11 pm, I was at the campsite, waking up Figgy and Stitches. The "spring" wasn't running. There was a small pool of water, and I was able to get about 1/2 a liter in my bottle. Add some iodine, and it really tasted nasty, but hopefully clean enough to avoid any sickness. I was so tired and sore, I just unrolled my sleeping bag and pad on the ground and went to sleep. Or tried to - the bugs were active. It was a very restless night.
Date: 2007-05-30
From: Campsite north of Vandeventer Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 28.6
Weather: scattered clouds

As I write this, I'm extremely tired, extremely sore, and my feet are throbbing. That's what I get for hiking 74 miles in three days. I was up and hiking by 7:30 in the morning. The trail was relatively easy, with constant ups and downs. It was tough to see the trail itself, as knee-high grass from the edge flowed over and blocked my view. This led to me rolling each of my ankles during the day, thanks to unseen rocks. I kept pushing forward, though. I wanted to get as close to Damascus as possible, take some time off my feet, enjoy real food, and pick up my next mail drop. Unfortunately, the long miles really started catching up to me. I wasn't stopping much to rest, and Figgy, Stitches and I kept passing each other. I finally rolled into Abingdon Gap Shelter at 4 pm.Alright and ???, followed by Stitches and Figgy, rolled into the shelter around 4:30 and found me passed out. I woke myself up and decided to follow Alright into Damascus, another 10 miles. It was good hiking with someone else, as it forced me to keep up my pace despite the pain and throbbing in my feet. We were cruising, though. After about an hour, we saw an adolecent bear below us in the valley. There had been plenty of bear sightings in the area, but this was the first time I saw one since my "adventure" outside of Erwin. Less than an hour after that, we crossed into Virginia. This is another milestone. Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee are all behind me. With more than 500 miles of trail located in VA, I won't be crossing into another state anytime soon. A little over an hour later, we made it into Damascus. That's 10 miles in 3 hours!!! We all found bunks at The Place, a hostel run by the Methodist Church here. For $4 a night, you can't beat it. Most places were closed, so we had dinner at a bad Italian restaurant. Well, bad by NY standards. It was excellent by hungry hiker standards. I'm not sure if I'm taking tomorrow off to fully recover, or if I'll hike out in the afternoon to the next shelter, about 10 miles away. We'll see how I feel.