morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2018-10-25
From: Mt Collins Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 5.0

Crazy Brit,I was right from yesterday it was cold this morning, thank God for my Gloves and Warm clothing. It was a great hike thru the forest today just wish I could capture the different smells for you, they are Awesome. Met a few hikers coming South one I recognized from up in New Hampshire, he had broke some fingers at Abol Bridge and had to take some time off the trail. Now he was back Flip Flopping heading towards Springer Mountain in Georgia, good luck to him.Again a great hike through these great forests, I am heading to Newfound Gap where I can get a ride into Gatlinburg. A weird place, after a couple of hours I come out on the Gap there are hundreds of cars there. This is on the North Carolina and Tennessee border, lots of people park here to see the view then head up to Clingmans Dome.I take some photos and walk out to the road to hitch a lift into town. After about 6 cars a truck stopped, asked where I was going, I said into town, the guy said get in the Cab or in the Truck Bed. I elected for the truck bed I am a bit smelly, I was told to help myself to a Mountain Dew, or a Gatorade, Nice.Had a great ride into town lots of cars around. When we got to Gatlinburg the truck stopped and the drivers wife got out and asked me if I was a thru hiker. She asked me my Trail name and when I said Crazy Brit she was so pleased. Turns out she had been following me on Trail Journals, and it was her ambition to hike the Trail. Her name was Lisa, I thank you and your husband so much especially when they were going out of their way, thank you so much Lisa.I had to walk thru this strange place of Gatlinburg, it¢s like Las Vegas in the Tennessee Mountains weird.Found my hotel but I was early so left my bags there and went down to the Main Strip, just across the road was a Margaritaville Bar, told you it was weird. Had a beer and a snack, then headed up to the hotel, had a shower now laid in my bed with beer writing this Journal, will go out for dinner later after going shopping for food for next 2 days.So will speak to you tomorrow Goodnight.Remember living on the Edge it is always out there it¢s up to you to take the challenge, you won¢t regret it
Date: 2018-10-26
From: Newfound Gap

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Crazy BritWhat a day Rain, Wind and Cold sounds like a day in the Smokies to me. Started off great with a shuttle by Lee Ann up to Newfound Gap, just a couple of cars up there today. Wind was blowing and it was raining and cold. Lee Ann said are you sure you want to do this, I had made up my mind to go, I had on my waterproofs, got all my gear together and after signing her log book I was off into the mist.As you would expect the trail is flooded with rain water running off the mountains. The trail is a perfect channel for the rain to run down, it¢s not long before my feet are soaking wet, my arthritis loves this feet are a tad sore.Strange your feet warm up the water then it¢s not too bad, not good, but not to bad. It¢s the wind that is the problem blowing thru the trees, we passed some blown down driving up the the Gap. There are a couple of trees down but not large enough to block the trail.Coming up the trail are a group of young men and women, they are going South to Georgia to finish a thru Hike, they ask my name, when I tell them Crazy Brit, the girl said she had met David and Myself up in Vermont. She was coming South, that was pretty cool they were all happy that they only had just under 200 miles to finish, when told them I have just over 20 miles, they gave a big cheer, life is good.I had to hike along this Ridge which took most of the day, it got really cold with the wind chill and the rain beating down. Then in a pine section of the trail, along came two hikers from Austria, real nice young men they asked where I was going today, when I told them I was finishing up my thru hike, they got out a flask of Whiskey and we toasted the Appalachian Trail, Awesome.I am headed for the Shelter at Pecks Corner Shelter, it¢s .4 off the trail a long walk to get to a shelter but what the hell its cold and wet and I can get into dry clothes and eat some warm food.The shelter is empty so I spread all my stuff out to Dry, fat chance of that is really damp, so tomorrow it will be getting into a pair of Wet Shoes!!!!!!! Great.I am all set up now sat in my sleeping bag writing this Journal, drinking a hot Chocolate, life is good.As usuall it¢s a lot better to live out on the Edge all be it a bit wet today, try it sometime you might like it
Date: 2017-08-16
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 13.6

Hiked from darkness to daybreak this morning. On my way at 5:30 which meant a 4:40 wake up. About three quarters of the way I saw a patch of light between the trees in front of me. I thought of getting to that sunlight on the other side of those trees. This led to me singing "Break on Through" by the Doors! That, inexplicably was followed by a hearty rendition of "This is Ponderous" by 2Nu. HmmYesterday must have been a good one indicating I am doing better financially. I actually passed up two nice pieces of trail magic: a nearly fill box of Pop Tarts and a Mounds bar. I would have gobbled those up a few weeks ago. This time I decided to pass it on to whomever comes across it next.
Date: 2017-08-16
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 0.0

Nice toasty 84 degrees today. Got in a couple extra miles by going to Kor Chiro Studio in Brighton. Dr. Stephan is going to help me make sure my back, body, and overall health stay right as I continue hiking and preparing for A.T. Somewhat surprisingly he told me my spine was straight and that perhaps everyone should take up hiking! My thanks to both him and Susan for your positivity in supporting my hike. And also for the free gifts - I can always use cold water and a new water bottle :) On the way back to camp I finally lost the blackened toenail that started over a month ago. The good news? It took long enough for a nice new nail to start growing underneath. Yay
Date: 2017-08-17
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 11.2

Short day today but still got my mileage in. Couldn't sleep at all last night so finally gave up around 3 am. Went full wake up and pulled my stove out in front of my tent and made coffee. At some point I decided to put the lid from the stove put on something other than the dirt to keep it from shedding debris in my next cooking production so I grabbed an empty Twizzlers wrapper and put it down next to the stove. When coffee was ready I poured a cup, brought it into the tent and zipped the door closed. Only a few minutes later I heard scurrying and the sound of s victimized candy wrapper being dragged into the underbrush... Lucky I had eaten the whole thing in one fell swoop earlier!Hiked into a rainstorm on the way to town. Hugely positive note: I replaced my boots a week ago with some cheaper tennis shoes just to have a comparison. And these shoes are more fabric than anything else. Because wet socks and feet have been a huge problem early on I bought some Kiwi heavy duty water repellent and sprayed the shoes at least four times so far. And, voila, the shoes stayed dry the entire time I was walking. Happiness!Had to cut the day short though and headed back to camp, this time with hot sun overhead. Oh Michigan weather.
Date: 2017-08-18
To: Green Oak Township MI
Miles today: 15.6

Tent absolutely failed and let water in three corners during a rather intense rain storm. Ended up hiking a few miles extra in the dark at the end of the night to go to local outfitters for a new Kelty Circuit 1. Set it up deep into the night, looks nice and tight with a fully covering rain fly. Much smaller than my previous tents. Hoping that it works as advertised and that I have bought AT tent. I don't want to have to double buy before leaving.
Date: 2017-08-19
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 16.2

After work hiked to a local church a few miles away and enjoyed a free spaghetti dinner at a support group/worship program. Takes place every Saturday night and looks like my schedule is going to accommodate attending. Good thing! Good people there who are always so supportive and helpful. Thanks to the Genesis Community for this stay at the campground. Shelter for 15 straight days, very much appreciated.Totally snackish about 10:00 pm. Looked like an unsolvable problem but then I found a protein bar in my pack. Happiness!!
Date: 2017-08-21
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 11.2

End of the day and ready to enjoy the upcoming storm in my nice new Kelty Circuit 1. I'll report on that tomorrow.Came out of Target this evening before the hike home and as I was tightening my straps and ready to go, a man got out of his car in front of me... With an REI t shirt!Focus for the trail was: there are three breaths; one of them is useful. I'll explain tomorrow.
Date: 2017-08-22
To: Howell MI
Miles today: 3.8

Spent time with my best friend Doris today, wonderful to see her. She is the person who reminded me of my Appalachian Trail dream and I am very grateful to her. Afterward I met the coolest hippy couple, Josey and Bailey, who are offering me their backyard as a new home base for me for as long as I like. They sure seem like great people and talking to them was natural and comfortable. They even made sure I had enough water, took me shopping with them and drove me all the way back to camp. Quite a first meeting!As a result I only logged 3.8 miles, but kind of nice to take a break. Oh, and it was laundry day... I'm sure that makes everybody happy
Date: 2017-08-23
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 14.2

Decided to really push myself over last five miles of the day today just to see how I'm doing. Good result and I'm happy with things... As I usually am anyway :) Planning my next gear purchase - a little at a time - a lightweight mat. I'm sleeping on a very hard surface and I'm sure it won't be the last time. Inexpensive investment and I'm sure I will be happy about it in the long run.Trip back to Dr. Stephan tomorrow to check on my spine alignment. We'll see if my new hiking without socks thing is going.
Date: 2017-08-24
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 11.2

Tried hiking with no socks, actually nice and comfy so far a little more than 3 miles in. Would really like to think I can get by with a little less laundry to walk around with. Tent worked wonderfully in last night's rain storm very thankful about that - maybe I found my long term long hiker tent. Explanation for hiking focus on the three breaths: the breath just taken is now gone, it is the past and is no longer useful. The next breath doesn't yet exist and is not useful. The current breath fills the lungs, supports the mind and body in a wonderful manner; it is useful and to be thoughtfully considered.
Date: 2017-08-25
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 12.4

A while ago I saw the cutest thing. Ahead of me on the trail was a mom raccoon and two little kid raccoons. They began crossing and got about halfway, then stopped. Mom looked back and then turned to look intently to the woods. A little tiny coon appeared and immediately ran to get in line, bumping into big brother/sister. One more look from Mom and they proceeded to finish crossing the trail. I thought to myself of how many times we've all seen that in grocery store parking lots. Moms trying to get all the kids to follow her into the store, but there's always the one that likes to play around and not go along right away! LolIn the morning I saw Orion for the first time this season, watching me over my shoulder. Autumn is on its way in.
Date: 2017-08-26
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 11.2

Met my camp neighbors  Natalie Buerkle, Dalene Tyler, Ryan Tyler, Rodney Head, and Carol D. at Appleton Lake campground. Cool people!! Invited me to their bonfire and offered me a beer. I quit drinking alcohol a month ago, but did accept their hospitality. They also could make use of the larger tent of mine that I don't need so that was great. And they have me this handy light for my travels - it'll be pay of my long distance gear from now on. Will keep this group on my mind as I journey!!
Date: 2017-08-28
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 11.2

Introducing a new phrase: BigSpending. It is the act of spending money on an item or event that is beyond a budget plan. Usually used by trail hikers to describe "luxuries" like a real meal, i.e. one eaten sitting down with forks and knives and everything! Here's my BigSpend. Pancakes, eggs and hash browns at Big Boy!
Date: 2017-09-05
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 6.2

It's been one week now since I moved my camp to this new site as an experiment in being off the grid and all is very well. I have the chance to be alone and test the current gear while considering the next. I got to camp early last night after seeing that a large storm was coming through. Sure enough the storm arrived with a fair amount of wind and rain and I am glad to report that the Kelty is a great performer! Stretched out, enjoyed the sound of rain on the fly and read a book for hours. Great stuff. Nights like these make it hard to not start walking away toward the AT right now...
Date: 2017-09-05
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 0.0

I've now crossed 1,800 miles since May 8, 2017 hiking throughout Oakland and Livingston counties here in Michigan while preparing for my AT trip in February. Every step encourages me that not only can I get to the AT but that I will enjoy it when I get there. This has been a wonderful journey and every day continues to amaze me.P.S. New hiking shoes. The first quarter mile or so from my site each morning brings me through a dew soaked area which has resulted in wet feet during the rest of the day. Realized I would need to change that quickly but did not want to spend the money, of course. Finally convinced myself to take advantage of my ten percent discount at work and buy some $70 hikers. When I went in to purchase them I saw that the nicer hikers that were normally $80 were being marked down for Labor Day weekend all the way to $29. Bought them on the spot! They're working great, my feet are happy and the dew is just another fun thing to experience. Happy Trails!
Date: 2017-09-07
To: Howell MI
Miles today: 7.8

Got to stretch my legs a little today, weird not hiking so much lately. But I did get some good rain walking in :)  I had actually kind of missed it. Smelled great, refreshing, and my new hiking shoes are doing well. Good news! Big time big spend tonight. Hurried the walk and am going to buy dinner and go see the opening night of the movie "It" Then back to the tent and be lulled to sleep by rain on the tent...
Date: 2017-09-18
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 0.0

For those who cannot understand me, who are shocked and dismayed by my notion of freedom, who may want to know me despite my distant independence maybe you can start here. Chris McCandless was quite misunderstood as well. I have always had happy feet too; I remember following train tracks to Holly, Michigan from our home in Highland. It's not my intent to follow to a tragic end, but at the same time it should be remembered that on the day that McCandless died he lived first.
Date: 2017-09-26
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Life is good here at my home, Grasshopper Gorge. Rather Thoreau like in that I live in wilderness where I have lots of time to think, enjoy, and plan while still being able to attend to civilization such as work and a limited amount of shopping (as I am slowly saving for, and purchasing, trail gear). A great bonus of my current life is that I have the opportunity to field test gear well before I will need it on the Trail. Good evening to all.
Date: 2017-10-31
To: Brighton MI
Miles today: 0.0

October 31, 2017 Greetings from Kwai Col and Happy Halloween! I woke up to snow this morning. Nothing heavy - as AccuWeather calls it ¢just some light snow¢. Speaking of which AccuWeather certainly earns its name. It¢s the most accurate prognosticator for weather I have discovered. And not even in just a general sense. I have literally watched their Minute Cast predict rain down to the minute and it was spot on. Amazing and it will definitely be my weather app from now on. I have determined that it is extremely accurate or it actually controls the weather! Either way is fine with me as living in camp I enjoy knowing what the weather is going to bring me. Although I must confess that I neglected to look at the forecast last night and was a bit surprised when I opened the rain fly to discover snow! So I ran out of Sterno in one of my cans this morning while trying to make coffee. Fortunately I had another can ready and was able to get things going. This is not the ideal way to cook at camp even though I have some sort of ¢Tornado¢ version of a sterno stove and it does get things very hot. And I can¢t afford the ¢real¢ type of stove that I will be using out on the trail. Looking at a very lightweight Coleman stove that screws onto the fuel canister - low weight and low price. Great combination!So the sleeping bag arrived last night, finally. I had ordered this 0 degree bag on Amazon last week and utilized my Prime membership to get guaranteed two day shipping which would have been Friday afternoon. I guess that the word guaranteed means something different nowadays. Apparently it now means, ¢it will arrive Monday, not Friday, enjoy the cold weather! Love, Amazon.¢ I wasn¢t extremely pleased. However I must say that the bag is wonderful. Comfortable and warm and even has some features I haven¢t used yet. It is a bit much for the AT but I need some colder weather gear here in Michigan until I head out. Free food at work today, a nice find in the break room. Apparently this is a common occurrence and one that I look forward to. With my eating budget highly restricted right now, any help like that will be much appreciated. Only a few more weeks til pay starts rolling in, thankfully. Bigspent today (my name for spending above budget) included a coffee at our in-house Starbucks which it seemed like I needed on this first snow day, and then because it is Halloween I bought some licorice for tonight¢s treat back at camp. Can¢t believe I¢m eating Red Vines instead of my beloved Twizzlers but all I have to say is, special online coupon, 10 percent off for employees, and five percent more off for my Target Red Card. So Red Vines it is! Should be another cold night tonight (low 30s) so I¢m looking forward to the new bag. In a short bit I will be all curled up, eating dinner of Dinty Moore beef stew and some fruit and veggies and then on to the aforementioned snack and the World Series game 6 with Justin Verlander on my cell phone. Good times!
Date: 2018-04-29
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

So I was looking at my FB today and realized it's full of pretty hiking photos and nice things to say, so I'm starting a new series of observations about the funny, less glamorous moments of being a hiker. Here are two to start:You might be a hiker if you're really craving Haagen Dazs but settle for a half stick of margarine.You might be a hiker if it's 11 degrees below zero but it's not the temperature that's annoying, it's that you can't get the movie line, "It's frickin' freezin' in here Mr. Bigglesworth" out of your head!
Date: 2018-04-30
To: Green Oak Twp
Miles today: 20.0

Ah! Muskrat in camp! :) I think my camp is right in the way of his nighttime trail. This camp is so close to the marsh that when I open the door and meditate, blackbirds fly through the reeds right in front of my face. Lovely! Though for the amount of nudges said muskrat gave my tent I am thinking he (or she) is not amused like I am lol In honor of those beautiful birds and their calls first thing in the morning, I'm queuing up the Bob Marley song, "Three Little Birds." Yes every little thing's gonna be all right.On an even brighter note I'm hiking without the need for a warm hat today... Like getting to drive a convertible for the first time in the spring :) Hiked twenty miles today, still trying to evaluate just how well and how long these mostly mesh shoes will last. I'm hoping they can hold in there for a while, because they are so comfortable (and breathable) to hike in. Happy Trails!
Date: 2018-05-07
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Eating eggs on second half of hike, watching Wild in camp, Reese's Pieces in bed Remember Dr in ER asking if I"had a problem with pills" and I looked him straight in the face and asked if he meant as in I can swallow them or need capsules. He told me they would keep the pain in check "if I spaced them out" i.e he still thought that since I was homeless I was a pill popper. But nurses brought me sandwiches and jello and little juices for my pack along with 4 pairs of hospital socks to layer. Today's hike I saw what I knew were Maple trees budding up and showing baby leaves. Sentimental. Haagen Dasz for lunch! I have a person to do my mail drops Scott Mixer. Things are coming along.
Date: 2018-05-10
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

So after yesterday's 30 miles and 10 today my jeans have started leeching blue dye onto my legs. Looks like massive varicose veins! Got down to brass tacks today - dramatically cut the gear list, reworked the food list. Actually priced the Greyhound and contacted the Appalachian Trail Lodge for SOBO special and pick up at Bangor. I'm almost ready!
Date: 2018-05-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

It's 43 degrees with a steady cold rain pouring down. I only mention this because on my 30 mile hike only two days ago it was 78, breezy and sunny! Wow Michigan!I tried sitting out the rain at Panera Bread next to the fireplace but after an hour or so finishing reading Mile 445: Hitched I had to give up and head to camp. It's really close, actually, but it's amazing how I can wimp out over such a small thing sometimes  That being said I was excited to see my little red tent down by the marsh as I ducked under the mini green tunnel of trees.
Date: 2018-05-12
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

A Bauerhut gifted to me by Derek Trail Angel! He also gifted me an absolutely wonderful home cooked meal of eggs, pizza, baked beans (vegetarian, yay!) and rice. I gorged and got to take some for camp tonight. Much appreciated. And also...a whistle - one more piece of gear that I no longer need to look for, or purchase. One step closer.
Date: 2018-05-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Went through my Appalachian Trail Thru-Hikers' Companion and worked out my tentative hiking and mail drop schedule for Maine! I know that the key word there is "tentative" lol but at a glance it works out for my comfortable hiking schedule. On to New Hampshire tomorrow! And Greyhound sent me a discount offer for the bus to Bangor, ME from Brighton, MI but it expires tomorrow and my next payday is Tuesday, argh! But I sent them an email right away asking ever so nicely if they could extend the offer by one day. We'll see :)
Date: 2018-05-19
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I leave Tuesday morning...but I'm heading due south from Michigan to hike to Springer Mountain...change of course, but why miss out on 649 miles of adventure? :)  Starting to think about "last things" before I leave. Got the opportunity to see Trail Angel Squeegee one last time and his wonderful girlfriend. They gifted me a donation to me to keep my phone on lest there be trouble. How thoughtful was that ? ! Also really looking forward to saying goodbye to what I have affectionately termed the Khumbu, after the infamous Khumbu Icefall on Everest. Widely seen as the most dangerous part of the route, climbers anticipate with absolute dread going through it and are known to count down the number of times they'll have to risk the run before they get to leave the mountain. For me this comes as the very narrow bridge over an expressway on the way to my trail. It is always busy with traffic including huge tractor trailers and I have to squeeze through it twice a day every day. Six more times and I'll be free and clear. Wish me great fortune as I say goodbye to it!