morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-09-06
From: Rattle River Lodge and Hostel

To: Gentian Pond Shelter
Miles today: 11.8

I slept better than the previous night by using melatonin to help me sleep. I got up around 8 am and went into the common room to find Maga making pancakes. He was making them for everyone as part of his work for stay. I really didn't want to start hiking early and decided to start sometime in the afternoon. I got my pack ready with the food resupply and did some health insurance errands online. I ate my bagged salad that I got from Walmart. I had to eat something healthy. I finally rolled out around around 1 pm after the rain stopped and planned on hiking to a shelter about 12 miles away.  The first climb of the day was gradual as I headed out. The trail was relatively easy with not much roots or rocks. I ran into Blue Stripe who had snapped his trekking pole. Luckily Leki was going to send him a new end. At a lake I ran into a SOBO who was setting up camp. She mentioned that the next section was really beautiful with plenty of views. I was excited to climb up there. I pushed on and golden hour started to come into play. The golden orange sun hid behind the clouds. I got signal and called my sister to talk about my niece Sofia. At one point I came to a downhill with lots of roots and fell. My legs went sideways and I kicked my trekking poles down the hill. Luckily I only scraped my arm and pressed on. I heard some talking next to a lake to find HAM and Rolly setting up camp. I told them I was going to hike to the shelter and kept going.  It was getting dark as I was entering a bog section. It was hard to tell which boards would cause me to slip in the bog. It became totally dark and I put on my headlamp. The trees were so thick that I couldn't see deep into them. It felt like someone was staring at me. About a mile from the shelter I took another spill and bent my trekking pole. I bent it back and kept moving on. The sign to the shelter appeared in the darkness. I followed the trail to find that everyone was already asleep in the shelter. I quietly setup my stuff and hung out back to make dinner. As I was cooking some chicken with potatoes a mouse ran up to my food bag. I smacked him and he ran away. It was just enough to scare him from eating my food. I finished eating and put my food in the bear box.  Tonight I'm looking at the stars from my inside my sleeping bag.
Date: 2018-09-08
From: Full Goose Shelter

To: Baldplate Lean-To
Miles today: 12.0

This morning was pretty cold in my tent. It seems that the temperature is dropping everyday here in Maine. I got up around 7 am and packed up my tent. I made oatmeal and coffee next to the shelter. The Tennessee trio had already left to hike over the Mahoosuc notch. It took me awhile to eat my oatmeal as usual but I knew it provided sustained energy. I rolled out of the shelter around 8:30 am.  The was one little climb before entering the notch. I made sure to put my trekking poles away and not to have anything outside my pack. When I got to the beginning of the notch it was a mess of boulders that had fallen from each side of the canyon. I had to climb over and under rocks. There were blazes and arrows that pointed the way. I went a few wrong directions since some areas were not marked well. At one point an arrow told me to crawl through an opening between two rocks. I had to take my pack off and push it ahead of me to get through. I was on all fours crawling through the crevice. When jumping from boulder to boulder you could easily fall into a pit of sticks or mud. I also made sure I didn't lose anything in a crevice. When it was all finished it took me two hours to go one mile. It's supposed to be the hardest or most fun mile on the trail. I met up with the Tennessee trio after the notch for a snack. We were prepping for the Mahoosuc arm which was supposed to be pretty steep. I ate a bagel with ham and cheese and got ready for the next climb.The climb up the arm was supposed to be the steepest on the trail. There were sections were I had to hold onto roots to make my way up. Another section had steep slanted slate but I managed to pull myself up. I ran into Santiago coming down the other way. He was headed south towards US 2 where the Rattle River Hostel was. He said he would slide on his butt if he needed to get down the arm. I finally made it to the top and met with the trio again. I felt tired and took a nap at the top in the sun. Afterwards I headed out towards Grafton Notch. I passed the speck pond site and did another climb up old speck mountain. At the top was a steel fire tower and I had a 360 view of the mountains around me. There were several lakes dotting the landscape and the clouds seemed to space themselves out evenly in the distance. I video chatted Theresa then headed down to Grafton Gap. I found Frolic and Fish ears there camping. They were not going any further. I decided to push onto the shelter about 2 miles away. The climb was pretty easy until it got darker. I couldn't tell the trail from a stream. I went down one trail thinking it was pretty easy. Then I checked Guthooks to find I went .3 off trail. I backtracked to the AT and continued the climb. At the shelter Bear Claw was sleeping there. She saw me and we caught up over the last few days. She had built a fire earlier but it had went out. I boiled water for ramen and added pink salmon. It was pretty good. It made Bear Claw hungry again. I setup my sleeping pad and went to bed.Tonight the night will get close to freezing.
Date: 2018-09-10
From: Surplus Pond Campsite

To: Bemis Mountain Lean-To
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: light rain

I woke up well rested from the previous night. Frolic, Baby Frolic, and Navi were sleeping in. I got up and got water near the abandoned cabin. The cabin was falling apart and had graffiti in it. Thru hikers had stayed in it before calling it a secret shelter. Back at the campsite people started moving about. Navi restarted the fire and I was excited to have warmth. Stretch came rolling by and got sucked into the fire. He was planning on hiking another 8 miles and staying at the human nature hostel. We hung out until 10 am. I was planning on getting to a shelter in 17 miles before it starts raining at 8 pm. A tropical depression is coming in and it supposed to rain all day tomorrow.  I pushed out at 10 am with little plans of stopping until the shelter. The first climb was easy compared to the rest of the climbs in southern Maine. As I was hiking up I saw Amazonian and Chumbawomba coming towards me! They had flip flopped to Katahdin and were now heading south. Chumbawomba had been taking some pretty good falls in Maine. One almost took him off trail but he recovered ok. They were planning on getting married on the top of Katahdin but there wasn't anyone ordained on the top that could do it. They were planning on moving back to Austin for a little bit so we'll definitely get to hang out with them again. Their plan was to finish on October 31st in Unionville, NY. They had been getting stopped by every NOBO going north. It seemed that they might need more time. I said goodbye to them but would see them soon. I pushed onto the next shelter for a quick snack since my body was telling me "feed me!". I kept going then hit the ascent up Moody mountain. It was steep but there was a lot of rock steps. I climbed over that mountain in an hour and 40 minutes. At the next gap I took a quick break to eat more. Then it was another climb up old blue. That mountain was twice as tall as Moody but it wasn't as steep. I tried pushing harder but my legs couldn't go any faster. The thought on my mind was to get to the shelter before it started really raining. Once I got over old blue it was easier terrain to the shelter. There were more climbs but I had done the two biggest today.  About a mile from the shelter I could smell a fire. I was excited to have one since it's been so cold. When I arrived Bullet, Sonny, Maga, and Grape were there! I hadn't seen Bullet and Sonny in awhile. I caught up with them on all the things that happened over the last month. They had broken off from Tree Beard and had done their own thing. I met Grape for the first time. Maga and her had been hiking together for a little while. She was sectioning and planning on only going to Stratton, ME. The fire was really warm and I made my ramen dinner next to it. It started sprinkling a little bit and the storm had finally come it. I quickly ate my food and got into the shelter. We all were sleeping in the shelter like happy sardines. I was excited to have a shelter from the incoming storm.  Tonight I'm nice and dry.
Date: 2018-09-11
From: Bemis Mountain Lean-To

To: Little Swift River Campsite
Miles today: 12.9

Last night it finally rained. It wasn't the huge downpour that everyone had talked about. The rain hit the metal roof above us making tinkering noises. It seemed to rain through the night. In the morning it was drizzling. I ate some poptarts for breakfast and hung out with Maga and Grape. Sonny and Bullet were going to try to stealth camp near town today. We made jokes that we would find Sonny up to his neck in a bog yelling for help. Maga, Grape, and I headed out around 10 am. The trail was wet today after last night's rain. It seemed that we were in Vermont again with all the mud. We were doing a lot of rock hopping to avoid soaking our feet. My shoes did get wet little by little as I walked on the sides of the trail hitting shrubs and grasses. At one point Grape completely stepped in a mud puddle. I almost stepped in a few times. The roots were the trickiest since now they were wet. It was easier to slip on them and fall. Most of our descents were filled with roots and it was slow going. We came to a river that we had to ford. Maga and Grape walked right through but I put on my Crocs since I didn't want my shoes wet for the rest of the day. The stream was pretty powerful in some deep spots as I walked on rocks under the water. I made it across and put my shoes back on. I was starving and ate most of my snacks. Grape had pushed on and Maga did some laundry in the river. Maga and I pushed up the hill to find Grape hanging out on a bench near the highway. There was a view of a massive lake with an island in the middle. I talked about taking a zero and hanging out on that island.  Maga and Grape were ahead of me and I took my time on the rest of the trail. Most of the time spent was avoiding mud pits and falling into bogs. I arrived at the little swift river campsite to find Grape on a canoe in the lake. This campsite came with its own canoes! Grape came back to shore and we took a paddle on the lake. On the other side was a huge beaver home. We wondered if a beaver built the lake. Back at shore Maga took the canoe for a spin. I kept thinking about the movie Pokahantas for some reason. We setup camp and then foraged for firewood. Using Birch bark we were able to easily light wet wood. We had a large fire going in 10 minutes. I made some more ramen for dinner and dried out my feet. Maga and Grape both dried out their pruned feet from the river ford earlier. The stars made their appearance after overcast all day. The time rolled around 10 pm and I stumbled off to bed. At camp I found two slugs on my hiking shoes. I guess they're dirty and moist enough for slugs.  Tonight I hope l don't get slugged.
Date: 2018-09-12
From: Little Swift River Campsite

To: Secret Stealth Site
Miles today: 8.4

This morning I found a slug on top of my tent but no more in my shoes. I was awake early enough to see the sunrise over the lake. A bright orange light shown through the trees on the other side of the lake as the sun came up. I went back to my tent to pack up. When I was finished I went by the fire ring to hang out with Grape and Maga. They had already eaten breakfast were ready to head out. We discussed our stopping point today. It would be right before the saddlebacks. They headed out to town and I ate a bagel with peanut butter.The trek was pretty easy since it was a gradual downhill. The was still roots and bogs to contend with. When I got to the access road to Rangely, ME I walked .3 miles west to the hiker hut hostel to pick up a resupply package from Theresa. The hiker hut was off the grid and used solar energy to power the lights and shower. There were a couple hikers there. One that I recognized from Virginia that would never stop talking. It was the same at the hostel. He wouldn't stop and it seemed that it was always a one sided conversation. I got my package and waited for the hiker shuttle to go to the laundromat. The shuttle took awhile so the owner took us in his car. He gave me some soap to use as well. I did my laundry and then got a hitch to town. An older woman picked me up. She had picked up several hikers over the last few days. She dropped me off at Sarge's so I could grab a bite to eat. I got a salad with steak and a large Baxter IPA. After lunch I headed over to the convenience store for snacks and toilet paper.  I walked back to the pub and a woman offered me a ride back to the trail for $10. I said I would look for a hitch. She dropped me off at IGA anyways. From IGA I got another hitch back to the trail. The driver talked about how all the moose were dieing off because of ticks. There used to be several in the area but he hadn't seen many recently.Back at the trail I had to hike another 3 miles to where Maga and Grape were camping. They mentioned I would come to a dirt road then I would need to hike .2 to their spot. About 2 miles in the sky darkened as it approached 8 pm. The trail was not forgiving as I climbed root staircases up steep terrain. I came to a campsite with 8 hikers huddled around a campfire. They told me the road was just up the way. At the road I walked west and saw a fire. It was Maga and Grape. They had made their own stealth spot in the forest. Grape showed me the spot. Walked through a dense wall of trees to 3 flat pads for camping. They had cleared a spot for me. I setup my tent and then joined them at the fire. I made beef stroganoff for dinner. We listened to a few classic rock songs on my phone. The time rolled around 9 pm, the music stopped, and it was time to return to the woods.Tonight on sleeping on some of the softest ground on trail.
Date: 2018-09-14
From: Woods Road Campsite

To: Crocker Cirque Campsite
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up to the sound of the waterfall. I packed up my stuff and walked over the stream to the other group's campsite. They had restarted the fire from last night and I hung out next to it while I ate breakfast. I had instant hash browns and hot chocolate with coffee. It took me awhile to eat the hash browns since there was so much. I headed back on the trail around 9 am.It was a steady climb up from the campsite. Then it leveled off for two miles until I got to the shelter. Maga and Grape were there hanging out and eating snacks. There was the book Oh the places you'll go by Dr. Suess. I read the whole book out loud to Maga and Grape. I told Grape that Hopper was looking for her. She was trying to avoid him since he's been trying to follow her for the past few days. We left the shelter and I had to grab some water. There was another easy climb up Spaulding Mountain. On the way down to Carrabassette river was another story. It was basically boulders on some parts. I banged my knee into a rock but luckily it wasn't too hard. It took me an hour and a half to descend. At the bottom I found Maga and Grape hanging out by the river. They were enjoying the cold water in the sun. I took a bath in the river. It was pretty cold but I needed one after a week of not showering.  From the river we hiked a mile up to campsite before Crocker Mountain. There were a few hikers already there but a lot of camping spots. My spot had a dead tree next to it that I managed to push over. It left the top part hanging in a tree though and I didn't want it to fall on me in the night. I setup my tent in a safer spot. Maga pulled rocks from the river and built a fire pit. He had a fire going in about 5 minutes. I built a seat from the tree I knocked down. We hung out by the fire listening to Fleetwood Mac and a few other classic songs. I ate two dinners tonight since I was pretty hungry. We watched cowboy TV into the night. I gave Theresa a call to catch up. She sent me pictures of dogs she was thinking about fostering. There might be a dog in the house when I get back!  Tonight I'm thinking about the end of this adventure and the next adventure.
Date: 2018-09-16
From: Cranberry Stream Campsite

To: Safford Notch Campsite
Miles today: 8.6

This morning I awoke to the sound of cracking sticks. Someone was rebuilding the fire this morning. I got out of my tent and packed up my stuff. Maga was starting to cook eggs and toast bagels near the fire. His breakfast made my poptarts and coffee look sad. Gear Head and Mira were up hanging out near the fire.  I finished my breakfast and headed out with Maga.  It was a slow long climb up to South horn. I started sweating a lot and could feel shirt becoming saturated. Maga was feeling sad today because Grape had got off trail because she went back to school. I could see that he had slowed his pace a bit more than normal. The hike was also coming closer to an end. We hiked up the first horn and was greeted with a spectacular view of of the valley below. There was a large lake that seemed completely void of people. You could have that lake to yourself if you wanted. We hiked down one horn then up another. Then down again and up to Bigelow mountain. It got rockier as we summited Bigelow. We ate lunch at the top and watched the clouds make shadows on the valley below. It seemed that the clouds were stuck in the sky and hardly moved. The next peak was Avery mountain named after Myron Avery who was instrumental in creating the Appalachian Trail. Maga and I joked that he used the CCC to create his own mountain for himself. He wanted to make the hardest climb on the AT by smoothing the rocks and teaching the rodents to steal all your food. We climbed down Avery and came to Stafford Notch Campsite. With only 8.5 miles today we were spent and ready to setup camp.  At the campsite I ran into Truck who had flip flopped to beat the weather at Katahdin. I found a spot and setup camp. When I came back Maga had a fire going. I toasted bagels on the fire and made sandwiches. I also ate rice with broccoli and cheese. I could have kept eating but I decided to save some food for tomorrow. I talked to Maga about pushing ahead tomorrow. We will probably split up because I'm planning on finishing sooner than him. I want to get back to Theresa before the end of the month. The fire died down and it was time for bed.Tomorrow I'm thinking about the long miles I'll be making.
Date: 2018-09-17
From: Safford Notch Campsite

To: East Carry Pond Campsite 
Miles today: 16.3

Last night mice were trying to get into my tent. They wanted my food and kept jumping into the side of the tent. It seemed that they came back every 10 minutes. I setup a trap for them with a plastic bag and food. When I heard the bag crackling I tried to hit it with my shoe. The mice always got away. In the morning I wasn't well rested. I packed up and ate poptarts for breakfast. Maga and I headed out around 8 am.The terrain for today was totally different than southern Maine. It was flatter and there wasn't any steep climbs. The only thing to contend with was still roots, rocks, and mud.  The first climb was easy and we made it to the valley. I was hiking at cruising speed since it was so flat. Maga and I hiked together for part of the day. I got to a road gap and exchanged my hiking shoes for my Crocs. My hiking shoes had been wearing down. Hiking in Crocs was a bit different than shoes. They were softer and didn't provide much support. The cush did relieve the ball of my foot though. I ran into Mayday who did a 7 mile hike for a resupply. He seemed a little out of it after doing that many sideway miles. We stopped at Flagstaff campsite for a quick dip in the pond. The water was cold and warm in some spots. Maga took a bath after in the pond using Dr. Bronners. Maga and I pushed onto West Carry Pond Shelter. Maga decided to stay at the shelter since he was doing low mile days all the way to Katahdin. I had Theresa motivation and needed to push on. It would mean that I wouldn't see him again on trail. We both wrote a goodbye to each other in the shelter log. I gave Maga a fist bump and I was on my way.  I hiked another 3.7 miles to a stealth spot near East Carry Pond. At the beach Georgia Peach was hanging out. We watched a few fishermen in the pond. Georgia Peach was going to night hike to Pierce Pond right before the Kennebec River. I stopped at a stealth site on East Carry Pond. Opie was there with a fire already going. I'm glad I didn't have to start one. I setup and ate a dehydrated meal. Opie and I talked about old video games. We also talked about hikers setting hard finish dates and those dates forcing them to constantly worry about finishing on time. The fire burned out and it was time for bed.Tonight I'm listening for splashes in the pond.
Date: 2018-09-19
From: Pleasant Pond Lean-To

To: Moxie Bald Mountain Lean-To
Miles today: 13.1

It was cold out this morning and everything was still damp from the night before. Bear Claw and I didn't feel like getting up early. We got up around 8 am. I ate poptarts and oatmeal for breakfast. Luckily I was able to keep the oatmeal down. We were planning on an 18 mile day but with our late start we might only go 14.  The shelter was right at the base of pleasant pond mountain. The ascent was pretty easy but there wasn't much to view with all the cloud cover. The descent took awhile since all the roots were wet from the day before. Scooter caught up to me as I was descending. He had stayed at the hostel in Caratunk the night before. His rash had healed up pretty nicely. He was bummed that a lot of his friends had jumped up to Monson and he probably wouldn't see them again. He was planning on doing large mile days until Katahdin. We stopped for a lunch break. Eventually Bear Claw caught up with us. I told her that I was only going to go to the Moxie Bald Mountain Lean-to in about 12 miles. I didn't want to setup in the rain. We all pushed onto Moxie mountain.As I was hiking I saw Scooter coming the wrong way. He had turned the wrong way coming from the privy. I pointed him in the right direction. The climb up Moxie was mostly slanted rock except close to the top where it became boulder and root climbs. It had started drizzling near the top. My pack and I started to get soaked and I put on my rain gear. At the top I couldn't see anything. It was all cloud cover. I made my way down Moxie as it started drizzling harder. At the bottom of the mountain was the Lean-to. Luckily there was 2 spots left for Bear Claw and l. Everyone was in their sleeping bags at 6:30 pm.  Maybe they were planning on getting up at 3 am? A hiker named Blue Diamond was there. I hadn't seen him in 5 and a half months. It's strange how you'll re-meet tons of people near the end. I made chili n cheese for dinner making sure not to wake anyone.  I guess they all needed to crush miles. I got ready for bed and climbed into my sleeping bag.Tonight I'm packed like a sardine in a shelter.