morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-27
From: Erwin, Tennessee

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: light rain

these miles haven't happened yet, as i'm still in shelby, on my way to erwin shortly. it's a beautiful day here, and hope it's the same where i'm going and walking today. ktr is still snug in his bag downstairs.note: not all these pictures on my site are mine --- mr. crumbles is responsible for a lot of the pictures that don't look 'ordinary' --- ie: he has some fancy lenses for his fancy camera. i use a little digital pentax that weighs nothing, he uses a big canon that weighs a good part of 5 lbs. and with that, sometimes his pack wt. is still less than mine! how?!!!tonight i get to try out my new sleep pad -- i played with it yesterday here, but the real test will be a shelter floor. i was "good" last night and planned out my miles to damascus, but haven't a clue as where's good to resupply after that. guess i will figure it out along the way.rumor has it that this latest snowfall was 'dogwood winter' and that we haven't had 'blackberry winter' yet. i won't be sending any cold weather gear home until after the mt. rogers area, and it's hot as crap during the day and uncomfortably warm at night.it's been a loooong break here. it's been great. this is why i started in march, to have the flexibility to rest and enjoy if i want to, w/o having to adhere to a strict schedule. i'm making my schedule up as i go. i've finished my medicine, and barely cough anymore. time to hike. my next update will be from kincora, where i'll resupply, and then damascus, and then ....
Date: 2005-04-28
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Clyde Smith Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: overcast clouds

i'm in the cherry gap shelter tonight. the weather is crappy, so the shelter is full. a third tent is about to be pitched, this time by fido. i passed fido this morning. i first spotted the hefty tripod under the lid of his pack and asked about his camera --- he's carrying a 4x5 and takes about 6 shots a day, depending on the weather. i wonder if he made any pictures of the beautiful woods about 4 miles back. oh, so, yesterday's miles did not happen until today. by the time we got to erwin, there was no way i was hiking. i was kind of stressed leaving town, so i drank my mini-carton (500ml) of shiraz on the way. it took the edge off and i killed the pack wt. that little sucker weighed 1.2 lbs! mr. crumbles, ktr and i stayed, for the last time, at the holiday inn express. we had our ben & jerry's for dessert. today started out beautiful, after the fog lifted. then the thin whispies moved in, then the solid white clouds, then the R word came. it was light, but steady. i got cold! going through the wooded part a few miles back. it was cooler there, and there were still patches of snow. oh, so anyways, today i hiked yesterday's virtual miles plus today's agenda, making it a 16.3 mile day. the miles were easy, but my knee and foot tendons still didn't like the miles, especially after having so many days off beforehand. i plan a shorter day tomorrow, only 8ish miles. it's going to rain or storm tomorrow. i HATE hiking in this kind of weather
Date: 2005-04-29
From: Clyde Smith Shelter

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: light rain

sleeping tonight in the clyde smith shelter. i thought about going over roan today, but changed my mind as my legs felt tired, and each step was a struggle with the mud and rain. i hiked in my rain gear today, and i was comfortable as long as i kept moving. the temps have been hovering around 50, which is not good when you're wet. even if it's not raining, the moisture permeates everything!i did a short day of 8.8 miles. i figured that was plenty after yesterday's miles. and, i didn't want to go over roan in the second half of the day --- so over i go tomorrow. i was hoping ktr would catch up by now, but ... i don't know where he is.i forgot to mention yesterday that i passed torch slackpacking southbound. i don't think i'd seen him since the n.o.c. --- so, i was very surprised to hear my name on the trail yesterday.i've been reading the little notes in the registers from the nasties and tree trunks. they're still days ahead, but i'm sure i'll see them in damascus, maybe at traildays. though the shelter is full, and still very active, i think it's time for me to go to sleep.the rumor is it's going to storm all night and clear up in the morning. i sure hope it's true, because i'm going over rain or shine --- i'd prefer the shine.
Date: 2005-04-30
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Apple House Shelter
Miles today: 8.2

oh, the last day of the month! (i think) i am at the overmountain shelter this evening. and, i did NOT get rained on today! today was roan mtn. all up, for miles. it was nice up though --- very pretty, rocky, and rooty. it kept my mind off the walk, as i had to focus more on where to place my feet.i had a million different tunes running through my head ... sarah mclachlan, beth orton, olivia newton john ("let's get physical") --- which then led me to thinking about the movie with jamie lee curtis where she's an aerobics instructor. see, this is how the mind wanders over a long section. i saw a lot of things on the ground today --- little orange salamanders and skinny dark slugs that looked more like leeches.i planned on having my lunch at the roan knob shelter. i did. but quickly. there was no place to sit and it was colder and windy. the descent was more forgiving than the ascent --- more gradual, though rocky. when i got down to the gap, fingers pointed at me. "look! there's a thru-hiker! and it's a SHE!" a woman had to ask some questions --- we shouted back and forth over a fence. i really felt the need to walk, and walk quickly, because the weather was iffy at best. she asked what percentage of the hikers are women. i don't know, but i haven't seen many in the last few days. she asked how much water i carry. i had only a liter at the time because i figured i wouldn't drink much before coming here. i forgot her other questions.i also forgot i was crossing balds today. the trail was easy to follow, but was totally locked in fog. the mist had my glasses all fogged with moisture too. i made my way down to the stan murray shelter where i took a pee break and read the register. that shelter slanted a bit back, and was currently unoccupied. but, onto the next shelter less than 2 miles away. this one is an old barn, and had an amazing view until the clouds, rain, and fog moved in.oh, i fell twice today --- once i slipped on a slanted mossy rock, the next slip was on mud --- i escaped clean. somehow.and lastly, a note to mom --- i had the dinner with the potatoes, broccoli, ground beef, and cheese sauce --- YUMMY! thank you! i think it's still expanding in my stomach i still don't know where ktr is. he said he'd catch me by roan. i may do a short day tomorrow to the next shelter, but if the weather is nice, i may go farther and camp somewhere (if i'm not too chicken).
Date: 2005-05-02
From: Moreland Gap

To: Kincora Hiker's Hostel
Miles today: 6.1

BRRR!i am not enjoying this cold weather. the sun won't stay out long enough to warm me.i walked my 18 today. my feet are NOT happy with me. i wondered before i got to this shelter (moreland gap) if i would have the gusto to go on another 6 to the hostel. hell no. if i did, i'd need to zero, and i'd rather not kill myself, and i think it's better to walk some miles everyday.this 18 mile section was nearly depressing. only one view, and the rest a wasteland --- contaminated water sources, garbage, tons of fallen trees.the only soul i saw hiking was bearbait. i arrived at the shelter before 5pm, and it was empty. while my dinner was in the cozy, clearwater arrived, and lastly bearbait. i'm happy to have the company, and i know these guys don't snore i'm not sure how well i'd sleep if i were alone.i'd probably freak out over every single noise.does anyone know when it's going to warm up?
Date: 2005-05-04
From: Kincora Hiker's Hostel

To: Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: few clouds

in the vandeventer shelter tonight.enjoying a campfire, view, sunset, and guitar. it was a short hiking day, but i "promissed" to walk 23 miles tomorrow!yesterday i left moreland gap shelter, all excited about getting to kincora. i was thinking about gear, and my sleep pad, and how cold i've been sleeping on my new pad --- which is an air mattress --- NO insulation. BRRR! so i was trying to figure out how i could get my prolite pad overnighted to kincora. i would call mr. crumbles when i got to kincora, he'd KNOW. he knows all about speedy delivery! then, i hear this voice, ..."hello!" i stop and listen, and answer. no. no way. i walk more. i see a figure, i see mr. crumbles ...mr. crumbles so, when we get to the hostel, everyone is out doing trail maintenance. so, we decide to slackpack a nine mile section north. it was a perfect day for it too --- beautiful gorges, views, sky --- it felt like a crisp late fall day.we tented beside the hostel.it was also a reunion day --- reunited with the NASTIES snowbunny & hairball. sooooo good to see them again, soooo good to walk with them again.so, today, leaving was hard. i had a small meltdown. mr. crumbles was just visiting, and not hiking on. yes, a meltdown. i may explain later. the nasties and i had a fine day of hiking in the afternoon. we did not walk as far as we intended, but we stopped at a shelter with a magnificient view (hope i remember to take a picture), got a fire going, and enjoyed the afternoon and evening light, and a beautiful sunset. nice people here tonight.i feel much better than i did earlier today. this experience was the unforeseen carrot in my day. i also heard of a ktr sighting --- so i guess i can stop worrying about him for now.
Date: 2005-05-05
From: Vandeventer Shelter

To: Abingdon Gap Shelter
Miles today: 23.1
Weather: overcast clouds

cinco de mayono cerveza hoy! we're 10 miles south of damascus in the abbingdon gap shelter, after a 23 mile day. if there was a day to do those miles, today was a good choice --- cool to cold, rain held off, rolling terrain. we stopped for lunch around 1pm and had a hot meal. it was just the right fuel needed to keep going. a good day of hiking. we should be in damascus by noon tomorrow.
Date: 2005-05-11
From: shelby, nc

To: traildays
Miles today: 0.0

um, if you didn't know, mt. mitchell is NOT on the trail. but, there is a blue-blazed trail to get to the summit, from the campground at its base.(here's where i talk about myself in third person)cupcake's head was not on the trail. it was definitely off-trail. so, since the head was gone, the body (and heart) was soon to follow. she had an amazing time. she almost got off the trail in kincora, but snowbunny said, "kincora's a LAME place to get off the trail". so, cupcake was in tow all the way to damascus.no injuries, no illness, just a new vision, a new direction.now, back to me.i could do it. all the way to maine. well, my body could. it is a head-game though. i was amazed at times how much the weather affected my mood. how quickly my thoughts would change --- i could be thinking about knitting one minute, and then gear gear gear the next. once my head was slipping off the trail, it was like a landslide. it's okay though. i boo-hooo'd about it last week. i boo-hooo'd because i was stressed over making the decision. usually, my biggest decision of the day is which of the 4 dinners i'm packing is going to be dinner.i still have more to say/share. stories to tell.hey, thank you trish! (cycle hiker's amazing sister) --- the cookies were delicious! they made many hikers happy my apolologies go out to 'bob' --- my regrets i won't be able to keep you up to date on the antics of the "nasties".i so loved the group of people i surrounded myself with. they were the biggest part of the experience. i'll miss hairball & snowbunny, ktr, and tree trunks. i'll also miss leapfrogging with everyone else --- countless others .....a big thank you to the nasties for that first night back on the trail after kincora --- that was such a good night at that shelter with the view, campfire, and guitar.i am heading out early tomorrow morning for traildays --- i have some gear to get repaired and tweaked, and i need to find my hiking partner, ktr --- though we did not hike from erwin on together, he was with me in spirit, and i know where to find him in damascus -- i think we have a little celebration beer to drink. we need to toast our success!i may find myself back out on trail later this summer, or even as soon as june.... i will update. i'm kinda antsy to go hike the superior trail in minnesota.
Date: 2004-08-16
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

         Dreams aren¢t perfect, they can come true but they aren¢t free.   In March of 2004 I set foot on the approach trail to the AT at Amicalola Falls, Ga. Approximately 1200 miles later, at the 501 Shelter in Pennsylvania I had to abandon my thru hike due to a stress fracture. I realize that I will have people reading this journal that followed me last year as well as some new readers for this year. I don¢t want to rehash the ¢04 trip. If you are a new reader, welcome, and if you want to know the story please feel free to read my ¢04 journal. The dream for me was to complete a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail. The ability to attempt the dream came true, but it was not free. My price, a stress fracture. The nice thing about dreams is that, sometimes, you have the chance to repeat them. So here I am, getting set for the ¢05 attempt. Notice I said, ¢attempt¢. I am not so arrogant or foolish to say I will make it this time around. Anyone that does say that is a fool because 2174 miles is a long way and a lot can happen during the time you are on the trail. I can say, I can be better prepared for this hike. The experiences I had last year taught me a lot and I plan on using that knowledge for next year. The boot cast came off today. The doctor said the bone was healing nicely. I told him about my plans for next year and he said there should not be any problems. He also gave me some info on foot strengthening exercises. By doing these, doing some daily walking, and trying to keep the weight off that I lost while hiking last year I should be in better shape for next year. I will say, the weight thing is a tough act. I think my metabolism has finally gotten back to normal. When I first got back I had a hard time not eating everything I saw! Snickers and Ben & Jerry¢s ice cream are a thing of the past, till next year. It is tough though, walking past them in the grocery store! I have gained back some weight but as long as I keep it to a ¢reasonable¢ gain then I will be happy. One of the things I have been doing is reading and watching some of the shows we talked about on the trail. Many evenings were spent talking about books or movies. I kept a little spiral notebook and when someone would bring up a book or movie I thought would be interesting I would jot the title or author down. So far I have watched, The Big Lebowski (excellent movie, can¢t believe I had not seen it before) and Elephant (another good one though the ending was not what I expected). Dingle and Skirt were the two that talked about these movies and several others while we were in Gatlinburg. I am also reading Stephen Kings, Dark Tower series, thanks to Yertle. There are many others in my little blue book and I plan on knocking them off, one by one. After all, I do have 7 months till I am back on the trail.
Date: 2004-09-01
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

               What color does a smurf turn when he is choking? I have been looking over some of my entries from last years journal and, to tell the truth, I am a bit disappointed in them. I would look at a certain day and think, ¢Oh man, I should have written about this or about that.¢ I realized that I was giving the ¢short¢ version in a lot of places. Maybe this was due to being tired or not feeling like writing a lot that day. I don¢t know, but, I have made the decision to write a more complete account of the days activities in ¢05. Part of next year¢s plan is not to hike the way I did this year. After Damascus, I would be on the trail by 6:00 or 6:30 and I would go, go, go until I reached my day¢s destination. Things I ran into I would ¢tuck away¢ to put in the journal that night. But, I can see many of these things slipped through the mind¢s eye when reviewing my journal. You learn from experience and I have already decided, NEVER, to let the mileage monster take over this time. He is a difficult foe to face but he can be defeated ¢¦ Maine isn¢t going anywhere. By avoiding the mileage monster I will be able to write a better journal. If I am tired at night and don¢t have the gumption to finish the entry, instead of cutting it short, I will have an extra cup of joe the next AM and work on the journal. What difference does it make if I leave camp at 6:30 or 7:30 or even 8:00 ..zip, nada, none! I also plan on stopping during the day¢s hike and write in the journal if I know I won¢t remember all the details of a particular event.   Another thing I have been doing is getting my pictures developed. Digital cameras are great but it is nice to have a hard copy of the picture also. Problem with that is the cost adds up when you have a lot of pictures to get printed! I only wish I had more pictures! I took between 500 and 600 pictures in the 1200 miles I was on the trail but I realize there are so many more I could have, and should have, taken. Next time around I plan on taking more pics of the people on the trail. I have some but there are so many more I could have taken! One thing I did do was chronicle the pictures so I knew what scenery shot it was and where I was. I will do this again next year.   There is not a day that the trail doesn¢t enter my mind in some form or another. To call it an experience is an understatement! I think I understand why a person like Baltimore Jack has done seven thru hikes in seven consecutive years. I speak to some of those who got off, like Scholar, Lumber, and Spiderweb. The one thing that appears in all conversation is how the trail gets into your blood and how you want to be back out there. A lot of the people I hiked with, are still out there will be finishing their hikes in the next few weeks. Krispy Kritter, LD, Now or Never, Polar, Pilot, Dingle, Skirt, Pappa Bear, Badger, Hawk and CatDog. They, and others, are all still out there and I¢ve been following their journals or hearing about them through others, all the while wishing I was with them. Knowing that I have the opportunity to do it again is blessing in it¢s own right.
Date: 2004-09-17
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

      Why are you trying so hard to fit in when you were born to stand out.   Well, THAT was quite the experience! Not sure when I will be able to post this because I have power but no cable or cable modem to get online with. Hurricane Frances just came ripping through my town. I live in Vero Beach and if any of you say the news, with the guy kayaking down the street/river, that was my town and that incident took place about three miles from me. There was a lot of damage but not as much as there could have been. Most, not all, of my friends and family came through it with minor damage. I lost power and got it back 5 days after it went through. Some people are still without power and if you have ever been to South Florida, in the middle of the summer, no power can be a major pain in the butt. I cooked a couple of meals on my trusty alcohol stove, filtered the water (we were on a boil water alert) with my hiking filter and just rode with the flow. Needless to say, that is not something I want to have to go through again!   It is amazing how you start planning and thinking about certain things for the hike. The local grocery has been running a buy one, get one free ad on certain items each week. Items that were part of my daily meal plan from ¢04 have been advertised and I have taken advantage of these ads and have begun to stockpile my food supply for next year. It is especially nice to know that the expiration date on some of this stuff is not until October of next year .. Plenty of time.   I plan on using more mail drops next year. I only had 2 in ¢04, one at Neel¢s Gap and one at Fontana Lake. There were some places that it would have been nice to have one instead of hassling with trying to get to the store or paying some pretty high prices. Based on what I know I will probably add one at Hot Springs, Kincora, Damascus, and Boiling Springs. After that I am not sure because it will be new territory from Port Clinton on.   Gear is another issue. I had planned on getting some new gear put when I started thinking about it, I was quite happy with what I have. I will have to get new poles and new boots but I am not going to replace my pack (Dana Design Bridger model), tent (Henry Shire tarptent), or sleeping bag (REI 20-degree polyester). The big 3 treated me well and I am going to stick with them. I saw a lot of people spend a lot of money and almost completely regear in ¢04 while on the trail. I don¢t want to have to do that if I get something new and realize I do not like it while on the trail. 6 months from now I will be heading for Atlanta. Skirt has kindly offered me a place there and a ride to the trailhead. I told her I would take her up on the offer.P.S. Any of you that are going to be reading my journal for this year I would really appreciate it if you signed the guest book. My next task is to try to send an email to each person that followed me in '04. That is, if I have email addresses for them. Thanks.
Date: 2004-10-03
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

               This is your life and it is ending one minute at a time.And here I thought hurricane Frances was an experience! It paled in comparison to Jeanne. Jeanne made landfall a little south of me which meant, outside of the direct hit zone we were going to catch some heavy duty wind from the eye wall. The eye wall tends to produce some of the more violent weather. We did! 110 MPH sustained winds and up to 120 MPH gusts. Jeanne was scheduled to make landfall around midnight. Hurricanes seem to have an uncanny knowledge of time. They always seem to hit it the dead of night so when the power goes off you can't see squat. My power lasted until 8PM which surprised me. We were getting 60 to 80 MPH winds by that time. During Frances I lost power much earlier. So there I am, with my battery powered radio, my Petzl headlamp, and my shuttered house. You don't dare open the door to check things out because you break the wind protection integrity of your home. All you can do is sit and wait,and wait,and listen. Listening to the winding screaming around your home,listening to the storm shutters creak as the wind rubs metal against metal,listening to the strange noises your roof is making and during all this, realizing this is just the start. The home I live in is built to withstand 130 MPH winds with gusts up to 140 or so. All those thoughts go out of your head when it really hits. I slept fitfully, woke many times and walked around the house with my headlamp to check the integrity of my ceiling. I did get some sleep, only because I felt my home was secure. If I had been in an older home I think I might have been awake the entire night! Daylight arrived. You don't know how good it is to see daylight after a situation like this. It was still quite windy but the storm had moved on. Doesn't mean I can go anywhere. the entire county is out of power and we are under a curfew until 6 AM tomorrow morning but daylight is comforting after an ordeal like this. I even have waterfront property now, since my street is flooded. Water came about halfway up the front lawn. I made coffee this morning with my Brasslite stove as well as my breakfast. We are under a boil water order and, if I have to, I will use my filter for water. I am typing this on my pocketmail for later transmission. All of my hiking gear is coming into play again .. gotta love it.