morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-02-07
To: Reflection and support
Miles today: 0.0

today i made some great headway in my plans. this morning, some fire dept friends and i moved all of my large pieces of furnature to my storage unit. the weather cooperated and didn't dump any rain or slush on us as it has been doing the past few days. having enough time to move out without running around last minute has been on my mind. this week i was getting the premo reflection of this through one of my coworkers (see my about page for the skinny on reflection). my coworker was extremely nervous about knowing what she'll need to do when i'm gone for these six months. instead of just telling her to calm down, i saw this as a reflection of me and felt the space within myself. After this pause, i could easly tap into all the useless worry i was creating...will i get moved in time? will my transcriber get enough practice? have i forgotten anything? are three maildrops enough?i reminded my coworker of all the support she had around her. i could clearly see it, but she could not. in the spirit of eating my own dog food, i made a point to look at all the support i have around me. today for instance, bob, vince, jay, and dom came over with their trucks and helped me move. (thanks guys!) there was no stress or strain in this. i just called them up and they were happy to help. i worried about having enough time to move a few weeks before. now i see my worry was something i was creating and it wasn't helping me any. i will remember that i have lots of support for doing this adventure and there is no need to worry. also today i did some training for the trip. i have no real mountains nearby so little soapstone mountain will do. a loop trail winds its way to the top where there's an observation tower. this trail is in no way killer, just enough to get the body temp up and stress the quads. the very thick layer of watery-mashed-potato-snow made it more challenging as i had to high step it most of the way. i consider myself lucky as i can condition myself to the cold and snow of new england whereas someone like nuffy is experiencing summertime sans mountains in austrailia right now.Now that all the big stuff is gone from my home, what's ahead for me is sorting through 10 years of accumulated stuff, finishing up work next week (on friday the 13th!), and turning in my fire dept gear the week after. No worries.
Date: 2004-02-20
To: Going insane
Miles today: 0.0

My mind was so active tonight, I thought I was going to go insane. The worries are back... This time it's not the apartment. This sucker's almost empty, my parents are coming down sunday to pick up a load of stuff, and the end is in sight. Sweet.No, tonight it was everything else: I have to turn in my bunker gear, dress uniform, trauma bag, and O2 to the FD; finish up my fire department's 75th anniversary yearbook; retrofit the fire department's website to use CityDesk as a content management tool; create some instructions for how to use CityDesk, download pictures, resize pictures, blah, blah, blah; and do my freakin taxes... in the next 4 days. Is it possible? Absolutely. Will I have a mental meltdown before that? Possibly.Seeing that my mind was so busy creating new worries, I decided to give it something to do.... taxes! That will shut it up for a while and keep it happy. For the body, I opted for Fruit Gushers. (actually I was ordered to, see guest book) The watermellon ones are really good.. . .I'm about to turn in, the taxes are done, I got $800 coming back to me, and the mind is quiet once again. Glad this day is over. I'll start fresh tomorrow.
Date: 2004-02-22
To: Getting Closer
Miles today: 0.0

If this entry gets out on trailjournals it means my transcriber, Kris, has done a fine job! She will be the one who gets all my journal entries, while my friend Wally will be the one who updates the photos.Since I'm so nervous these days (for no good reason!) I thought I'd share a passage from Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" which mirrors my inner state.BTW, my parents came up today and grabbed a whole van-load of my stuff and brought it to RI. That was awesome. Thanks mom and dad!Ok, on to Jack...."[People] have worries they're counting the miles, they're thinking about where to sleep tonight, how much money for gas, the weather, how they'll get there--and all the time they'll get there anyway, you see. But they need to worry and betray time with urgencies false and otherwise, purely anxious and whiny, their souls really won't be at peace unless they can latch on to an established and proven worry and having once found it they assume facial expressions to fit and go with it, which is, you see, unhappiness, and all the time it all flies by them and they know it and that too worries them no end."
Date: 2004-02-27
To: I'm in Georgia
Miles today: 0.0

This will be my last prep entry, tomorrow i start my journey on Springer mountain.Today started at a very early hour, 3:45am. My flight, leaving from Providence, was at 6:20. My parents drove and it was a very quiet ride. I could not figure out if everyone was tired or if they were mad I picked such an early flight. I chose this particular flight because it was non-stop and also would allow me a day to chill before I start. I have been going through different currents of nervousness and I'm hoping a little space will make it easier to transition from old-life to trail-life.On the plane today I was feeling the dread of the unknown within me. I went into my 'training'.Breathe. Stay in the moment and only deal with what is there.I could feel myself being very present but there was still that slight uncertainty buried deep within me. I could feel it in my belly. During the plane ride, the woman next to me started up a conversation and we talked about her vacation and my upcoming journey on the trail. I expressed some of my uneasiness about this trip which seemed to move the uncertainty into a better light. That's another tool:If you feel 'stuck', start expressing. Expression will set things in motion.What's with all these 'tools'?   Many hikers have said after the first few weeks the journey is no longer physical, it's mental. To add to that, it's also emotional and spiritual. Out here I'll see all the same hang-ups that I had in my day-to-day life....magnified. There is little distraction out here to occupy the mind, so everything will be right in my face. Better to deal with it than run from it.I'm typing this from the hiker hostel.   Megan (nuffy) is here from Austrailia and we will be getting two more hikers later in the day. Megan is going to do the Approach tomorrow while I'm starting at Springer.That's all for now... I feel a nap coming on! Later we will be doing a gear check, a trip to Walmart for any odd supplies, and have dinner at Big Dave's grill. My pack is a bit heavier and the food weighs a billion pounds. Hopefully I will get to chuck some of it in the hiker box.
Date: 2004-02-28
From: springer mountain

To: hawk mountain shelter
Miles today: 8.5
Weather: clear sky

(a little recap from yesterday at the hiker hostel) the hostel is run by josh and leigh saint, former thru hikers. i only met leigh, since josh was out working overnight. the hostel is beautiful and a great place to begin the transition to trail life. (it could use a little more heat though to nourish our bodies with warmth.) at the hostel i met hikers nuffy from austrailia, bulldog, and alan. i was the only one doing a springer start on Saturday. nuffy is doing the approach trail and the other guys are starting further up the trail.ok, today...Before we left the hostel we picked up two other hikers from pensacola FL named paul and christine. they are father and daughter. paul will be doing about 50 miles of trail with her then she will go solo after that.The fears of yesterday vanished as i was dropped off at the springer mountain parking area. from here i had to hike SOUTH .9 miles to the top of springer, touch the plaque, do pictures, and then start down the mountain, retracing my steps going north.my friends at work, home, and the fire department never really got to see my exitement surface as i was usualy stressed to the max with my move-out tasks. as i passed the parking area and went north, my excitement could not be contained. "i'm on the appalachian trail!"i was high as a kite... almost skipping down the trail. it seemed quite surreal that i was actually doing this. the day added to my joy. it was 50-55 degrees with clear skies. perfect shorts and t-shirt weather. the mountains were gentle here and i stopped and talked to many along my way. i also saw many trailjournalists today: bulldog, micheal and patrick, dominick, and LWOP.my body was not quite in shape for my 40 pound pack. my lower back, which i injured before the trip is fine, but my mid back is cramped after today. i'm using muscles that don't get used to often. i'll take some vitamin I tonight and rest easy. i'm staying in my tent tonight because it's going to be clear and i need a little time to get used to organizing my stuff inside. plus i can already hear snoring in the shelter. :Pthere is a woman named arlene with us at hawk tonight. she's 62, carries a full pack and cooks over the fire. is she the next grandma gatewood? you'll meet all age groups on the trail and people from different states and different countries.it's 7pm and almost dark. i could go on and on but i need to do a few chores and get to bed.
Date: 2004-02-29
From: hawk mountain shelter

To: gooch mountain shelter
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: overcast clouds

today the sun was hidden most of the day and was a bit cooler. skies cleared at around 1:30 and the heat felt wonderful.i started the day at 7am. it was about 40* in the tent so that mean it was less outside. i changed from my sleeping clothes back into yesterday's hiking clothes. topped of with a down vest, i was ready to start day 2. i made a quick bowl of oatmeal and packed up my things. the guys who stayed in the shelter complained about not getting enough sleep. no doubt from the earth-shaking snoring from the night before. all packed up, i was on my way by 9am. the trail today started gently downhill and got little tough a mile later as i climbed sassafras mountain. i have been very careful to watch my pace and not push myself into a place where i feel out of energy. once i feel like i'm dragging, my mind will get involved with thoughts like "i'm out of energy", which is a hike killer. I moved in what seemed to be slow motion up sassafras -- staying within my body's head of steam and not exerting past that point. normally i hike faster and push myself to move at a certain speed. seems to be an east coast thing by talking to people out here. we definitely live lives of more 'speed' in new england. whether it's multitasking (which i will now call multitaxing) or pushing to get things done quicker... i think the net result would be the same as if i'd push my legs and feet past their limits. stressmy mid-back still hurts like yesterday. i can feel myself tensing my traps as i hike. keeping those relaxed as i move is someting i have to work on. (yes dr. laura, i am doing my exercises)i got to gooch around 2pm and relaxed and stretched my legs. gooch mountain shelter and camping area is packed tonight. there are so many hikers that i'm not even going to ask names. a lot of these people started today. ya, what i just did in two days they did in one. most are youngins traveling in packs with their friends. no disrespect to them but i rather liked my personal interactions last night with dominick, michael, patrick, and arlene. now, it's a zoo.there are two missing tonight. we think that christine (and her father, paul) got off the trail. i heard she was moving pretty slowly from the other hikers in my group. christine, if you read this send me an email (see my about page)well that's all for today. tomorrow is going to be double digits.
Date: 2004-03-01
From: gooch mountain shelter

To: woods hole shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: scattered clouds

a double digit day today. i had a lot of insights on how to make the best of this trip. it is quite physically demanding and i need to keep track of how my feet, knees, and legs are doing. if i see these symbolically, these parts are the ones that move me forward in life. today i thought about how often i ignore what my body is saying and how i would push it too far. as far as my body wanting a snack or a sip of water, the signals are very slight at first. i would notice this as i walked and would catch my mind saying, "after this next hill i'll get a drink". wanna make your body your enemy? throw on 40 pounds and ignore it. today i took care of whatever my body wanted right away.sometimes it's just a handful of gorp while other times i pop my boots off and put my feet in a stream. attended to early, the problem would magically vanish. imagine how this would work in other areas of life?it will take me some time to get my body in a place to do 10-20 mile days. i am patient with myself so i will do fine.
Date: 2004-03-02
From: woods hole shelter

To: neels gap, walasi-yi center
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: light rain

it rained most of the night and i was glad to have chosen to stay in the shelter. we were in wood's hole shelter last night. not the most convenient place to stay since it's .4 (miles) off the trail and the water source is pretty much non-existent. my first occurrence of trail magic happened when we passed 2 southbound hikers who informed us about the lack of water at wood's hole and we should fill to capacity before we get to the shelter. this helped out a lot and is one of those things that happens just at the right moment (as we were passing the last stream before the shelter).a note to march and april starters: if i knew then what i know now, i would have pushed on past woods hole and got water at a spring right on the trail and headed up to blood mtn shelter for the night. the climb up blood mountain isn't bad.i haven't been journaling too deeply lately since i'm spending a lot of time hiking and sleeping. when the days start to get longer and i am more attuned to this physically, my journal entries will gain more depth. right now i enjoy sleeping 11 hours a night. :-Dtoday i am at neils gap after a short day of hiking (rain and wind, temps in the 50's) and enjoying: a shower, food re-supply, laundry, and sleeping in a bunk tonight.i'll be hiking straight for the next 4 days and repeating the process in hiawassee, GA.today i'm still with micheal, patrick, arlene, dominick,and kirt. there are a few new faces in the hostel tonight also. i'm off to do some stretching and go to sleep. Zzzzzzz
Date: 2004-03-03
From: neels gap, walasi-yi center

To: low gap shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light rain

i left neels gap at 8:30. seemed like it was going to be a great hiking day. it was a mix -- it was a day of all kinds of weather. it started out moderate at about 55* clear skies. later in the morning a cloud moved in and obliterated all the scenic views, followed by some sprinkles, and then becoming sunny and hot in the afternoon. i think i sweated more today than any of the past days (so much for that sweet smelling laundry from yesterday).arriving at the shelter at about 3:30, i could feel the effects of not having water for the last 2 miles. lightheaded, i peeled of my boots and socks and inspected my feet as the aqua mira killed the cooties in the water i just got from the spring. i have to wait about 20 minutes for my water to be chemically purified since i opted not to bring a filter on the trip. they're just too heavy.today's hiking was not strenuous, but my feet were in pain by the afternoon. i got a small blister on the outside of each heel. tomorrow that may present some difficulty since i want to go the cheese factory campsite... about 13 miles away. there is another shelter 7-8 miles away in case i want to make a shorter day of it. pat's watch keeps track of altitude. so far we've gone up over 10,000 vertical feet from Springer Mountain. his brother, mike, says "that's funny, it doesn't feel a foot over 9000". we all laugh.there's lots of people at the shelter and camping this evening. i have lots of pictures to share that put faces to the people i've been meeting, but you're going to have to wait until i mail the flash card from the next town. at the shelter tonight: talks-with-trees, fozzie, mountain goat, hoss, rocky, alex, kurt, dominick, dharma, gapper, pat, and mike.the trail names are easy to remember and they're fun. everyone should change their name from time to time.
Date: 2004-03-04
From: low gap shelter

To: cheese factory site
Miles today: 13.0

today the first 8 miles flew by and we stopped at blue mountain shelter for lunch. after the ritual foot inspection i could see that i'm developing blisters on my heels. ouch. it's the same on both feet so it's either the insoles (doubtful) or the boots. i'm guessing my heels are moving in the heel pocket. i'll go to the outfitter in hiawassee to see if different boots will help. right now my heels are wrapped in compeed patches and moleskin.one note on band-aid brand blister thingies with compeed... they don't stick to thru hiker sweaty skin. but they will stick to your socks. freakin' useless. moleskin still rules.tonight it's me and alex at the cheese factory site. dom and kurt went to town at unicoi gap and the others pushed on to tray shelter, 2 miles and one big mountain away.also at the site today are sarah, briana and linsey. they are students from MI on spring break. they built a fire for us and we all made dinner and choco sitting around it.today i had a not-so-fun lesson, that deals with some things i learned in vywamus class.while hiking today i lost my winter hat (balaclava). when i discovered this i was furious. how could i be so stupid? i was feeling very victimized and my mind was trying to figure out what to do since a fleece hat is very important when it's cold. and here on the AT you don't carry extra stuff because you're very weight conscious. one hat and only one hat.so i'm hiking and i'm worrying about what to do if it gets cold. then all the sudden i remember something from class: be in the moment, only deal with what is, and the moment will support me absolutely.part 1: be in the moment - ok, in the moment i'm hiking.   anything else, like worrying about a hat, is not what's going on right now, so let that go.part 2: deal only with what is vs. what is not. this deals with lack. not having a winter hat is lack... it's what i DON'T have. it is not what is, it is what is not. so i throw away the idea of not having a hat and just hike on, since that is what i'm doing in the moment.part 3: i stayed in the moment and just hiked trusting the moment will support me. i hated doing this because i'm afraid to get let down, but what else could i do except be mad or wonder what happens when it gets cold. when i reached blue mountain shelter i asked if anyone had seen my winter hat. no one had seen it while they hiked today but rocky offered me his until i find or buy another one. that was totally unexpected and showed me the moment will support me absolutely. it requires a lot of trust and i hope i can continue to do this.i put a note in the shelter register (notebook) about my lost hat and what my schedule will be for the next two days. if someone finds the hat, hopefully they can get it to me.tomorrow i will go 9 miles to deep gap shelter. there are a couple of 4000 footers to go over so i hope my feet will hold out. nothing moleskin and duct tape won't fix. :-)
Date: 2004-03-07
From: hiawasse-mull's motel

To: muskrat creek shelter
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: clear sky

the cotton club picked up me, pat and mike at 8am. we went for breakfast at hardees (not recommended for future hikers) and were dropped off at dick creek's gap at 9:10. the cotton club had to return to MI today so we wished them farewell and left open the offer to hike with us when they finish this semester, provided they buy some synthetic clothes. ;-)since pocketmail was behaving badly yesterday you didn't get the details on these 3 girls from chilly michigan. i'll leave a note when i update the 3/6 entry.today the cotton crew would be in sever hypothermia... since it's snowing and gusting about 20 mph right now. the day started beautifully and slowly got colder. at 11 i met arlene and domenick after bull gap. we (pat, mike, and i) stopped at plum orchard shelter for lunch. also joining us was wildcat, sugar daddy, heald, and haiku.moving further on, the mountain we went up after bly gap kicked our butts. i was glad to come down the other side of that 4500 footer to muskrat shelter. when i got there, the shelter was already full and i knew there was a stream of hikers behind me (pat, mike, arlene, dominick, alex, capt. hook, pez, needles, and a bunch more i cannot name).as the sun was going down, the tent city was being erected in every nook and cranny of forest that was flat enough and large enough to hold a tent, tarp, or hammock. after securing our little homes, we all huddled together in the shelter, cooking dinner as the winds picked up and the white stuff began to fall. we expected rain or snow on tuesday, not today. everyone is prepared for this, but doesn¢t really want to experience it. if the temperature rises in the am, many of us will have wet tents to pack. not the grandest of situations. the tenters have an advantage over the shelter folks... and that is trapped heat. outside it's 32*, but in my tent it's a toasty 40*. it's actually a bit too warm right now in my longies and sleeping bag. i'll probably have to shed a layer.soon i'll get out of this "what happened during the day" jounaling and put some more personal stuff in. today, though, you're getting the play-by-play.
Date: 2004-03-08
From: muskrat creek shelter

To: carter gap shelter
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: clear sky

i'm sitting around the fire right now with deja vu, capt. hook, katherine, sugar daddy, and mike. it's a cool evening around 40*. the fire feels nice as most of us are writing our journals on pocketmail devices or on paper.today i thought about sweetness while hiking.a thru-hiker's diet is built on the exact foods that many people avoid -- large amounts of sugar, carbs, and fats. eating these foods is so pleasurable i cannot see giving them up when i get off the trail. but, these foods seem to be the enemy of many people. there are diets that exclude carbs totally, many foods are now 'lite' or no fat, and synthetic sweeteners are in many products these days. while i was hiking i was thinking, "what are we doing as a society replacing real sweetness with all this fake sweetness?"i know, i know--to lose weight. why does sweetness, hell, yummy food, stick to people's bellies? thinking about it symbolically, people eat sweets and don't metabolize them. they just store them. so is the sweetness being put on hold? until when? why?i wondered how often i put off a nice experience until something else in my life gets done. for instance, i won't go on vacation until project abc is finished. when i do things like this, am i delaying the fun thing (sweetness) i desire until sometime in the future? why not have it now? do i believe having what i want now will screw up the project or some other aspect of my life?does putting sweetness on hold add inches to our waistlines or give us heart disease? these are just some things i am pondering as i walk along eating M&Ms. i don't believe the answers to these questions are scientific ones or require creating more fake food. the answer may be to just let go and have fun when you feel like it... and stop putting conditions on experiencing your own sweetness.have some fun today.