morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2003-04-27
From: Gatlinburg

To: Tri-corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

Cruiser and I get a ride to the trail from Ficade, who is also on trail journals, along with Dutch, Woodsdragon and many others. Gave away my enormous salad to Blueberry, Pinot, Wingin' It, and "Pillow" at the trailhead in Newfound Gap. Phew! I was worried I wouldn't be able to give away fresh vegetables. Went for broke to catch up to Dutch, Woodsdragon, and Laughy Taffy, who took off yesterday. Got to the shelter 1/2 hour past sunset, exhausted, dehydrated, and starving after a HUGE day for me. Guess what, though. Today marks 10% of the trail travelled. So I broke out some cigs and a liter of bourbon (Jim Beam) and passed 'em around the shelter, to a much appreciative crowd more than willing to celebrate with me. After a few sips, Laughy Taffy practically had to tuck me in -- i could barely walk. Can you believe that Woodsdragon smoked a cigarette? Crazy night! I woke up in the middle needing to pee like a race horse, but when i sat up i almost passed out, so i ate a granola bar & drank some h20 instead, before passing out again. then i woke up lying on top of Pillow, who apparently was pretty, ah, tolerant of my friendliness. He's actually really comfy for a scrawny guy. I bet he never sleeps next to me again. I found out in the morning that he woke up the whole shelter yelling "whoa, whoa, whoa!" and then when someone asked what was wrong he said, "oh, ah, ...nothing, nevermind." When i came to later in the night, to my delight, i found that i was sleeping on half of that granola bar i thought i ate, a chewy one stuck to my bag. I LOVE midnight snacks. yummy. munch, munch. Can't wait to celebrate my 20%. Maybe i'll actually eat a dinner that night or at least arrive before dark. :-) Let me say that there are few people more appreciative of vices than hikers a few days away from civilization. I wonder what vice I'll bring next time.
Date: 2003-04-28
From: Tri-corner Knob Shelter

To: Davenport Gap Shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: clear sky

2nd big mileage day in a row. I wish you could see my hiking technique now. I walk down hills like a bow-legged cowboy, to spread the pain around my knees. Uphill, though, I use my patented two-legged limp, which makes me look like i should be hiking with a walker instead of poles. I was described by Dirt today (he denies it) as really slow, but at least i made it to the shelter before sunset! phew. I'm here with Woodsdragon, dutch, kelsy, and dirt. I've been cursing my sister recently for buying me a van morrison cd about 10 years ago, since i've had that song "moondance" in my head for a few weeks now. someone shoot me! No one told me about how my mind could eat away at itself as i struggle against the boredom of hiking through majestic mountains all day long. maybe i should get a job -- at least then i'd be paid to be bored. :-) nah, i'd really have to be crazy to do that. then again, i could listen to the radio. ahh, i miss music badly out here.dutch and woodsdragon are hiking machines. i struggle every day to keep up with them. it's humbling to be one of the slowest people on the trail. back home i'm a badass, but out here i'm a pathetic, whiny, cripple. what happened? i guess reality is just asserting itself. it's one thing to ride my bike for an hour each day, back and forth from work. what i'm doing now is breaking me down, teaching me all the ways i didn't prepare for this trip. meanwhile, dutch's ankle is getting better and soon he'll be running through the mountains again. he really does run, the crazy bastard.tomorrow will be an easy 10 or an easier 3 to standing bear farm hostel if i can slow myself down.
Date: 2003-04-29
From: Davenport Gap Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm
Miles today: 3.3
Weather: light rain

Easy day to standing bear, a hiker nirvana nestled in the mountains. here w/dutch and woodsdragon. when we arrived, very small animal and mr. pumpy were chillin', taking a zero after the 23+ they pulled yesterday. stoked to see them, a pair of friendly, crude, worldly, fun, bright, people. i resonate with them. and cruiser, who showed up in the evening! nothing stops cruiser from limping out 10-12 miles a day.also here are toby and ryan, a pair from the Framingham REI. looks like Toby has fluid under his knee. Doctor's orders: don't hike. Thanks, a-hole, good advice to give a thru-hiker. May as well tell an drinker not to put one back before noon. sheesh!Speaking of which, there's nothing like beer, pizza with all the toppings, smokes and ummm, other stuff, while hanging in some garden of eden in Appalachia. The proprieters, Curtis and Maria, have set up a laid-back, do-it-yourself hiker heaven. i highly recommend it, if you like rustic farm hostels with a chilled out attitude. 3 days to hot springs, where i'll zero unless my knees miraculously recover. we'll see.
Date: 2003-04-30
From: Standing Bear Farm

To: Groundhog Creek Shelter
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: few clouds

Pillows rule! And beds, even cot-sized pieces of foam. This morning curtis took me aside and played some riffs on his guitar. i was touched that he played for me ad amazed by his bluegrass influenced picking. not only does he run the most kickass hostel i've seen so far, but he has lightning for fingers.i made good on my promise to do between 0 and 7 today, hiking with Very Small Animal and Mr. Pumpy to the next shelter. A big thunderstorm opened up right as we pulled in, including marble-sized hail. So we're packed in like sardines in the shelter. Everyone who can is cramming in.Since leaving the smokies the flowers have changed -- lots of new species. even within a species there are subtle color differences, like these minature daisies i was seeing today, white next to lavender next to ever so slightly purplish ones. some of streaks of color in them. i feel tuned in whenever i notice little things like that, and out here in the woods it's all about the little differences. back in the city i'd have to be hit by a sledgehammer to notice something, since back then i tried to NOT notice things. too much stimulation, most of it trying to get me to do shit i don't need or want.knees are holding up, thanks to braces and the magic of Vitamin I (ibuprofen). Thanks, liver, for taking all this abuse. You rock! dutch and woodsdragon are ahead now -- i probably won't see them 'til hot springs. they are both stronger hikers than me; dutch is even running again, running to his honey, who'll visit him in town.my perpetual sunburn peels whenever i take a shower. perhaps i should stop using soap, stop stripping my skin of its natural oils. yum, stinky boy. i guess if i stop doing anything it should be smoking tobacco. why smoke something that kills but doesn't even get me high? must be my love of family tradition.the 28.8 modem came through for me today, letting me read a few emails before it cut out. thanks for your warm thoughts. we are really all of us hiking on our own Appalachian Trail every day. lives of struggle, cameraderie, beauty, and purpose. remember that and you'll be hiking. then again, not everyone is walking through, i kid you not, fields of poison ivy and sleeping in mouse dung, but those are just details.well, the sun has set and the moths are attacking my headlamp, which means bedtime has arrived. hoping for a big 13 miler tomorrow. ever closer to katahdin. g'night.
Date: 2003-05-01
From: Groundhog Creek Shelter

To: before Bluff Mountain
Miles today: 15.5

I don't have anything written up for today, and nothing could express the wonderful fucked up experiences i've had. I saw fields of trilliums which made me tear up. all that symmetry, delicacy, daintiness. 3 thunderstorms all afternoon, ever since leaving max patch, this enormous field on top of a mountain, with three sixty views. spent a long time up there chilling with very small animal and mr pumpy. before that, in the morning, i hiked with spitfire, and learned a little about the psychological progression of many sucessful thru-hikers, which she wrote her thesis about. she's a cool chick, and i hope she learns to operate her stove before she burns a shelter down. :-) i'm sure she will.VSA, pumpy, and i hiked for the rest of the day, talking about arabian spacesuits, cleveland steamers, etc., while cruising through rhododendron tunnels, trillium fields, and thundershowers. finally made it to Walnut Mountain Shelter, but it was all full. so after donning my Shelta'Wear(tm) to keep the blackflies off and chilling for a bit, a bunch of us (VSA,pumpy,cruiser,dutch,'dragon) head on down the trail. dutch and woodsdragon flew on ahead, but pumpy, cruiser, vsa and i pulled off into a field before bluff mountain. it was there after setting up camp that cruiser and i took a trip up a grassy hilltop to watch the thunderstorm pass. it's beyond words, but i hope someday you can be there, on a hillock covered in yellow flowers, soft rain drizzling on you, a setting sun in the distance throwing shadows on the folds of the earth, mist covered mountains on all sides and behind, a double rainbow stretching from one side of the mountains all the way to the other, so bright it was like another sun! i ran back down the hill to get everybody when i first saw this place, even though my knees were killing, 'cause i had to share this. boy was i glad cruiser came up, since now i know i wasn't just tripping.i decided to day that if i was dying in the woods, i want my last words to be "i love you." subject verb object. but it's an invitation for you to believe, that i love you, and i want you to believe that, i want that to be my parting gift to you. so even if i get squished by a boulder before i get a chance to say those simple words, you at least now know what i would have said. i love you.
Date: 2003-05-02
From: before Bluff Mountain

To: Hot Springs NC 
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: broken clouds

Today was a lucky day! Cruiser let me stay in her palace last night, instead of my wet, tiny tarp. Then we walked together to Hot Springs. We reached the last shelter right as a HUGE thunderstorm hit. So we got to sit out the pouring rain, and the WIND! It was the kind of wind which rips down trees. Then on to Hot Springs. Turns out the town was totally full, people were tenting on lawns. But we went to Elmer's Hostel to check for a message from cruiser's mom. though there wasn't one there, someone did call and cancel a reservation for 2 while we were standing there! Score! what a magic moment. so we spent the night in warm beds instead of tents and tarps.Got drunk tonight. almost everyone i've hiked with was here. i just drank beer all night long and caught up with all these people i wanted to see. some people even bought me beers, a thanks for that bourbon i fixed them up with a week ago. :-) i'm gonna be hung over tomorrow.
Date: 2003-05-03
From: Hot Springs NC 

To: Hot Springs NC 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

zero day. cruiser did my laundry for me. i met her mom, but had nothing to say since i was exhausted and wicked hung over. today i'm sad, on the verge of tears. why? by tomorrow this town will be full of strange faces. i'm scared about my knees, so will take another zero. maybe i need a week off. i'm lonely, a little homesick. sad to see all my new friends leave. am i failing? almost everyone is faster than me. hopefully i'll feel better tomorrow. right now i have to cry.
Date: 2003-05-04
From: Hot Springs NC 

To: Hot Springs NC 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Feel much better today. Cruiser held my hand and told me everything'll be alright. Now if mom would stop by and kiss my booboos i'd feel perfect. I love those sweet maternal gestures.spent the afternoon hanging with cruiser,vsa,and pumpy. some crappy food and crappy music at the pub and another night at elmer's.
Date: 2003-05-05
From: Hot Springs NC 

To: Hot Springs NC 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

happy cinco de mayo. zero #3 in hot springs. cruiser, pumpy, and very small animal are still here, soaking in the atmosphere. i guess they couldn't leave reason, but maybe the torential downpour had something to do with the decision to stay. Tonight i'm staying at the Cody House. Probably everyone will hike out tomorrow except me. already i miss them, though in some ways it will be good for me when they leave. less attachments dragging me forward along the trail. i wish i could go with them, though and still heal my knees. meeting people like them is intense, almost frightening. we are quick to bond, but the trail separates as much as it brings together, for there is only so far a thru-hiker can change her pace to walk with companions. i hope to catch up to all my friends ahead of me on the trail, though many of them i never will reach, at least not on the trail. there's a texture to life on the trail, comings and goings of beautiful, struggling, kindred hikers, new faces everyday and precious few faces day after day. it is a lonely path and a sweet one.
Date: 2003-05-07
From: Hot Springs NC 

To: Hot Springs NC 
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Saw Cruiser, Very Small Animal, and Mr. Pumpy leave today. I cried. I'm speechless with sadness and self-imposed solitude. i'm a fool for letting them leave. how can that be the right thing to do? i want out of the f--king town. will leave tomorrow probably. now i just want to curl up and die. or smoke a cigarette. same thing.
Date: 2003-05-08
From: Hot Springs NC 

To: Deep Gap
Miles today: 12.7
Weather: broken clouds

Finally left Hot Springs. Spent the night with shankadelic, peels, spliff, and no doubt and mcguyver, in one of the tiny campground cabins. Cheap, but lacking in amenities and privacy. Spliff and i wanted to sleep, but others were partying and drinking, especially mcguyver, who got more stumblingly, stupidly drunk than anyone i've seen before. Spliff tried sleeping underneath my bed, where it was at least dark, if not quiet, and no one would step/stumble on him.anyway, it feels good to be on the trail again. knees are somewhat better. got to the first shelter, and cruiser left a note saying she missed walking with me. boy do i miss walking with her. all day, wondering how many miles it'll take to catch up. and i miss vsa and pumpy. talk about getting attached, which i've been trying to avoid doing.had to jerk off today when i hiked through pump gap. how could i not fertilize a place with that name? i'm sure mr. pumpy would be proud of me. sun setting, bedtime nearing. i'm hoping for 15-20 miles tomorrow. won't catch cruiser, but will get closer, hopefully. thunder in the distance. will i get soaked in my pathetically pitched tarp tonight? goodnight.
Date: 2003-05-09
From: Deep Gap

To: Flint Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: broken clouds

longest day ever! knees were spent at the end, and the fluid filled sacks in my heels were inflammed too. trying to catch cruiser will cripple me. i won't reach her for at least 2 more days. grrrr. i miss her.saw brother black snake today, as long as a trekking pole. this snake was seriously chilled out. saw brother snail today, naked as can be, shell cracked along the trail. i guess brother snail needs to learn to become brother slug, else he'll be a tasty snack before the day is out.the sun has set and i'm exhausted. i hope for another 19 miler tomorrow. only way is to start early. cruiser or bust. hope i don't bust. sleep well, sweetheart. you'll need the rest.staying with lanape john and squaw and hungry hiker in the shelter. met brian and ace today while hiking. ace doesn't use his poles on the downhill, b/c he's too fast. hahahaha. i dreamed about that once, in a different lifetime. john'll give me a spoon to replace the one i lost. he's a sweetie. someone told him that he's too stubborn to quit. that person doesn't realize that all of us out here are too stubborn. there is no other way.
Date: 2003-05-11
From: Spivey Gap Campsite

To: Spivey Gap
Miles today: 0.1
Weather: moderate rain

walked from the campsite to the road. i can walk. cruiser and i headed to miss janet's house, a hostel (and house) in Erwin. Miss Janet rules. Saw woodsdragon there! i love her. say Very Small Animal and Mr Pumpy.scored a sweet hitch from spivey gap to erwin, right to miss janet's door. spivey is the kind of place you could wait hours to get a hitch and we got one in minutes. lucky stars!chilled out all day. tomorrow i'll do my first slack pack(hiking without a pack). the 11 miles from spivey gap to the nolichucky river, and then back to miss janet's for the evening.
Date: 2003-05-13
From: Nolichucky River

To: Miss Janet's House
Miles today: 0.0

Didn't do the 19 slack today. My knees hurt a lot. Cruiser and VSA helped me see Reason, who needs a break.cried a lot last night. my mood is all over the place. now i feel ok, but kinda weird. not that this is new for me. i'm just f-cked in the head.dutch is way ahead now, and separated from woodsdragon. phobia is here today, along with Peel, Very Small Animal and Mr Pumpy, and Cruiser. All doing zeros. I might do the 19 slack tomorrow. but i might just zero straight into Trail Days, the week long trail celebration in damascus. drum circles, a parade, a talent show, seminars, and lots and lots of hikers and other people. 30,000 are supposed to come to this one street town in a week. madness!i lost my little blue stuff sack in a grocery store. i've been leaving it all over the place, so i guess i was "meant" to lose it. it had my databook in it, my brand new $33 bottle of glucosamine, and my address book, so if i was supposed to call you and you're wondering why i haven't, now you know that i don't have your number anymore. email it to me, ok, and when i check my email in 2 months, i'll give you a call. :-) todd@yoism.org is my address. signing the guestbook works too.recently i've been really frustrated writing this journal. see it doesn't reflect my experiences on the trail. there's so much it is missing. and i worry that it is boring. and it's not easy finding computer time. sometimes i go weeks before i see a terminal. and shit, some of the stuff happening out here is too personal. like the time that.... i often don't feel like i have the time, skill, or will to write material that i appreciate, that is worthy. i hope you can forgive me for my inconsistency. this journal could transform in to anything. in 2 months it might just record my mileage. or my life story. no promises. so i'm sorry if i disappoint and i hope you get something from what is here. don't forget, you might be dead tomorrow. what are you going to do now that you remember? goodnight. i love you. make the most of life.
Date: 2003-05-20
From: Iron Mountain Gap

To: Nolichucky River
Miles today: 19.1

F**k. Lost a bunch of entries. I must have forgotten to log out or missed some other techno-magical incantation which is completely necessary and utterly unintuitive. Oh well. Here's the long and the short:The past week I've been watching movies and hanging out at Miss Janet's House, except for the drunken debauchery of trail days, between Wednesday and Sunday, where i saw lots of people from earlier on the trail, before i fell behind nearly everyone. A good time was had by all. I didn't puke. Hooray.Yesterday was all f**cked up. It's been so long now since i hiked that i can't really imagine doing it. Woodsdragon left monday morning, before i woke up. I really wish i could have said goodbye and told her everything would be ok and that if she needed anything that i would do my best. she's in my thoughts and if my knees ever get better i hope to see her again. 19 miles were hard, even slacking (not carrying a pack, if i haven't defined that word yet.) The conifer forest on Unaka Mountain is all that. Passed through some righteous burned patches of forest. Saw a bunny. Stoked when i saw shankadelic,
Date: 2003-05-21
From: Miss Janet's House

To: Miss Janet's House
Miles today: 0.0

zero day. left knee in pain from yesterday. it gets a day of rest. please get better! VSA hit the trail today, along with Peel. Famous Shoes left yesterday. I'm in good spirits, despite my f**king knees. I try to remember walking without pain. I try.Life is good at miss janet's and on the trail. still so far to go. and little time now.
Date: 2003-05-23
From: Clyde Smith Shelter

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Roan mountain is a tough climb. beautiful. reminds me of the 'dacks or the whites in new hampshire, with moss covered rocks and conifers everywhere. very frustrated b/c pace was slow and miles short. my knees, esp. left, are hurting. i heard that mr. pumpy arrived at 19E, with trail magic, looking for VSA. she had already gone though. which means they'll be together soon if they aren't already. my heart is glad, though i fear that i will never catch up, not at 6 miles a day. need to do 13.5 miles a day, every day, now to reach katahdin. f**k, i'm f**cked.
Date: 2003-05-24
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Doll Flats
Miles today: 12.1

Today was some of the most beautiful miles on the trail, from carver gap to hump mountain -- lots of balds, great views, highland fields, ridge walking, and of course the watusi (longhorn) cattle at the end.i fed a cow some gorp and suddenly lots were gathered around for a bite. one enterprising cow slobbered all over my pack while i was elsewhere. then a HUGE bull, with a nose ring the size of a bike wheel, to make sure i wasn't getting frisky with the ladies. all the while cruiser is cracking up and taking pictures of bessie licking my pack. and get this...none of the cows wanted an abercrombie and fitch baseball hat hanging off a horn. go figure. i guess they have no style. but try and put a cap on a horn and you can watch a cow duck and weave like a pro boxer. impressive.there was an adorable baby cow which looked just like her mother. many pictures were taken.the last 2 miles were tough on my knees. got passed by someone named floating widget. cruiser and i have started to refer to these anonymous trail boys as "the blurs", since they all are cute young scruffy lads travelling around 3-4 miles an hour, 16 miles a day on average, and carrying whatever they want! i have trouble telling them apart, but since i rarely see a "blur" twice, that hasn't been a problem.12.1 miles is much better than the mere 6.4 i managed yesterday. i am guardedly optimistic. can one be guarded and optimistic?also had luch at overmountain shelter, a beautiful old red barn overlooking a magestic valley. one of the most picturesque shelters. cruiser and i had a long lunch, and i crapped on the privy, only the 3rd one i've deigned to use so far. ahh, poop.
Date: 2003-05-25
From: Doll Flats

To: Campsite after Walnut Mountain Road
Miles today: 16.5

Wiped out. Rained on. Saw horses, cute colt with blue eyes. One chewed on my trekking pole. I guess my gear is yummy. Miles through a spooky location. A snake struck at my trekking pole. Long day. Yum.
Date: 2003-05-26
From: Campsite after Walnut Mountain Road

To: Dennis Cove -- Laurel Creek Lodge
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: light rain

Everything went right today, even though my knees hurt too much coming down in to dennis cove. at the moreland gap shelter we read about pumpy catching up with VSA. so romantic. then kundalini came by and gave cruiser a nutty bar, which she'd been craving for days. then, when we get to dennis cove, there's a note from pumpy and vsa saying they're staying at the LCL, even though they were days ahead of us. THEN miss janet shows up and brings us all to a barbeque party where famous shoes, joe hiker, spiff, johnny llama, dennis, and lots of other hikers are.life is good, but i'm increasingly nervous about my pace. if my knees don't get better, i won't make katahdin in time. i'll need to flip flop or section. cruiser is pretty worried about the pace too. i keep hoping for my knees to get much better, for my feet to stop hurting, for my heels to hold up, to make some big miles. then i would not feel the pressure and uncertainty that i feel now. i keep hoping and in the meanwhile i just try and do what is right. what is right?