morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-03-09
From: Amicalola Falls State Park

To: Springer Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: overcast clouds

For anyone who's ever looked at a Mountain saying, "Oh, I could hike that" Well then... be my guest.... just be sure to put the 42 lbs on your back first, and have at it.... Thursday, March 9th, and I was off, my 2nd time hiking the Approach Trail to get to the top of Springer MTN, and the official start of the Appalachian Trail. The first .2 mile was "cake".. the rest.. well... I could of crawled faster than i walked, lol... but I made it up in @ 6 hrs on the 8.8 miles to the bronze plaque atop Springer Mountain. I got down and kissed it.. yes, thats right... you ahev to understand what this trail mean to me and my twin.. for some people, it's Church, for some its a bottle of Rum, while for others its serene music by a waterfall... well, for us... it was the Appalachain Trail ~ I was joined at the top by Matthew & Jeremy, and later at the shelter by "CrazyHorse" & "TinMan". It was a cold, rainy & windy night, yet I stood, watching the sun settle, and looked out over the valley. Thoughts of where these next few weeks and months would take, and if indeed... I would find some of the answers I was looking for ~ It was so good to be back... I rolled out my thermarest, tucked into my sleeping bag, and settled in for the stormy night ~ SOLACE
Date: 2006-03-10
From: Springer MTN Shelter

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter, Tented
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: clear sky

Friday , March 10th began the first offiical day on the trail with a 7.6 mile hike to Hawk MTN Shelter. It was a wicked crowded night, as 20+ boy scouts had joined up with 20+ hikers. I tried out the new tent... loved it... and having your own space on the AT is "priceless". It rained half the day, and come evening I found myself as I had so many times.. surrounded by @ 30 people, listening to all my stories, from Trail life, to Flight Attendant stories, to funny tales abou waiting tables... No one could believe how much I had done ... it felt good.. I felt like a King among the castle that night, with so many asking advice about the trail, their gear, and life in General. Supper was some noodles with tuna, seeing as the local Dominos Pizza was a "few" days walk away! I stopped at Long Creek Falls for lunch this day (Domino's was closed DARN!), and just sat.. quietly listening to nothing but the cascading water splash beside me.. and the endless limit of blue sky as it passed me by deep in the Georgia Woods ~ SOLACE
Date: 2006-03-11
From: Hawk MTN Shelter

To: Ramrock Mountain, Camped Alone
Miles today: 12.4

Sunday Morning found me whistling Church tunes as I walked 12.4 miles to Ramrock Mountain. Most people don't know I served a 21 month volunteer Church Mission right after High School in Texas & Louisiana. It was strict... no TV, no radio, no "regular life" so to speak. 6 1/2 days a weeks, you were in a suit & tie, on your bike, serving the community, traching others, doing community service, simply giving of yourself. You were only allowed to write letters home, and could only call on Christmas & Mothers Day, it was a huge commitment of self-sacrifice. Although i may not currenlty be actively religious.. there is not a day that goes by that I am not humbly grateful for those 2 years... the lives I touched, and those who touched mine ~ And so I whistled my happy tune.. and walked on. I stopped at Gooch Shelter, where in 2004, Sassafrass had dubbed myself, KTR, Grits & Rocket, "The Peanut Gang". I hung my tent to dry out a bit from the previous nights storm, had some rockin yogurt covered raisins & pushed on. A few miles later, I came accross a Church Group from a local college hiking a few days. As usual, that had ALL SORTS of questions... "What is that?" A BACKPACK! "What do you eat out here mostly?" LIVE SQUIRELLS! "How Do you afford to not work right now?" I WON THE LOTTERY! "Have you ever seen any Bears?" YES, JUST A MILE BACK, THEY WERE HEADED THIS WAY & LOVE GROUPS YOUR SIZE! ~ I'm tellin ya.. half the time there eyes get al bug eyed, and I start to laugh before they take me too seriously... I put in a good hike for the day, and as the sun began to go to bed.. so did I.. just .5 mi so of WOODY GAP, a beautiful rock ledge, 3,563 feet up... all alone.. When you settle for the night, you quickly have a list of chorse to do. 1 Pick a tenting site, check for rocks, and lay down enough leaves for a comfy rest. 2 Set up the Tent. 3 Gather Enough wood for the fire. 4 Check that no one else left any "goodies" near you as not to invite the Bears! 5 Supper! So, with chores done, i set aside my potato soup to thicken, and just sat there on the ledge, looking out on the world below, thinking of my family & friends everywhere. and at times, thinkinh of absolutley nothing... after all, thats part of the reason I'm out here. It was a beautiful night up on Ramrock Mountain, and i quickly drifted asleep with nothing but the sound of the croakers in the valley below, and the wind genlty brushing my tent. SOLACE   ps (for those of you who notice my spelling mistakes, i know
Date: 2006-03-12
From: Ramrock Mountain

To: Neels Gap / walasi-ye center
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: scattered clouds

The "Walasi-Ye center", located just outside Blairsville, Georgia is a popular destanation with hikers... I mean, what's not to love about a HOT SHOWER! A COMFY BUNK! REAL COFFEE! AND BEN & JERRYS ICE CREAM! So, it was with this in mind I made the 11.2 miles over 4 Mountains that day, including Blood Mountain, 4,461 ft. (higest point in Georgia) into Neels Gap at 550pm. I stopped in @ Woods Hole Shelter to signh in that afternoon, and atop Blood MTN, met "DEEDS" 04 thru0hiker & his girlfriend. Its ALWAYS great to meet another thru-hiker... you instantly hit it off, and they know exactly how you feel & think. Ther was a group of @ 20 teenagers at the top who I assume had all sorts of questions... but, here was Solace, who hadn't had a shower in 6 days!!! They never got close Oddly enough, I WAS ABOUT OUT OF FOOD! I was down to half bag of soup, and a packet of hot cider! My calorie intake this year for whatever reason was just huge, and I knew I had a pkg waiting i had mailed myself to Neels Gap.. so, after another amazing sunset, i pushed on into Neels... and got a bunk for $15. You would be AMAZED to see 6 days of hiker dirt wash off.. (no joke, i was in that shower for 40 min!) I setled in with "smile, ketchup, golden waldo" & erin & nick from MAINE for the night.   My head against the bunk... I was out for the best 7 hrs sleep I had in quite some time                         Cheers, SOLACE
Date: 2006-03-13
From: Neels Gap / Mountain Crossings

To: 0 Day
Miles today: 0.0

Its March 17th @ noon as Solace is writing this... Im off with "Little Easy" (my current hiking partner) he is 28, from Philly... we are off to "celebrate" St. Patricks day here in GEORGIA!  March 13th turned into a "zero day" here at Neels Gap. A "0 day" on the AT means just that = 0 MILES... it's a "day off" in trail terms. ANd thats jsut what I did... took a day to rest the feet, write some post cards (15 of them) and was joined for supper by 2 good friends, BEN & JERRY (choc chip cookie dough to be exact)! The previous day, coming up over Blood Mountain I ran into DEEDS, 04 thur-hiker, and had a good view at the top of BLOOD MOUNTAIN, 4,471 feet. Low on food, ui founf a bag of sunflower seeds another hiker had left because, in hiker terms.. IT WEIGHS LOTS! A few handfuls in mouth, I was of down the hill towards a hot shower and an ice cold coca-cola! Things I miss: MUSIC, nights @ G'Lords, Rylee, a flushing toilet, DAILY SHOWERS, the QWIN MAN, watchning the BRUINS , seeing the Party of Five, contact with Pomkat, Brandy, Snee, Ali, Duclos, Fite, others, time @ the "casa",CUPCAKE!,HAirball & "bunny", grits, Rocket!, driving... and time with Zimmer ~   A final Note... I saw in the paer this morning that my love, the BOSTON BRUINS, have lost all 6 games since i left town!!!    Well.... can they not hear me yelling from the Mountains or what! Thanx for all the well-wishes, thoughts, prayers, ect.      Solace... doing his thing, and doing well.   MANY CHEERS!
Date: 2006-03-15
From: Campsite, .2 mi. south of Blue Mt. Shelter

To: Tray Mountain, Camped
Miles today: 7.9

Arising on a very cold morning, the winds had stayed stedy through the night and I was quick to jump up, pack up, and make the 15 min walk to Blue Mt. Shelter where Al was the last hiker left. It was about 9am, and I took an hour for breakfast and to stretch. A couple hrs in, I arrived into Unicoi Gap, where BUTTERFLY MOON & her boyfriend greeted me with some lillte debbie snacks. Butterfly Moon had hiked with my twin (KTR) the previous year and I remember was named due to not just the tatoo she had on her lower back, but when she had bent over and kind of "mooned" some folks as well! Hiker names... you have to love it! From there, it was up ROCKY MT. at 4,017 feet and a windy day, it was the 12th, but hardest Mt. I had faced... but the view.. ahhh the view Most of the time, indeed worth it! Coming down the Mountain and into Indian Grave Gap, I met up with KETCHUP, SMILE, "MISS HOLLY" & DAVE, WHO i NAMED "JUMPSTART". We shared some nuts, fruit and live squirells over the fire.. (OK, KIDDING!) A good time was had by all, and I shared lots more thoughts of my "little dream" . . . It's called The WILD APPLE, and it's a Restaurant I hope someday to really open... more on that, another time ~ We all made our way up Tray Mountain which has some of the best camping spots in the entire south. There over a roaring fire, I was joined by those 4, as well as Lil East, Betty and Al. Lil Easy had hitched into Helen, GA eailer in the day, and surprised us all with some trail magic.. MARSHMELLOWS!!! yummy! I set the tent at the edge of the cliff up 4,330 feet.. and there, with a valley of lights of small towns below, settled in looking over the next days hike in my guide, while yelling for JUMPSTART to share the rum! Alas.. he had none.. and it was off to see the "sandman", on a very pretty quiet night ~      Cheers ~ Solace
Date: 2006-03-16
From: Hiawassee, GA

To: Hiawassee, GA
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light rain

The previous night, Lil Easy & I had decided to go about 10 miles, as I had known a great spot just .6 miles south of Dicks Creek Gap (US Highway 76!) THE ROAD TO HIWASSEE! Beer! Food! Beer! Beds! Beer! Showers! Beer! (Hey, it was almost St. Paddy's Day!) We had Beer on the Brain!   It was a gorgeous day and we set out with the group of SMILE, MISS HOLLY, JUMPSTART & KETCHUP. For some reason, the water sources were scarce that day and I found myself hoping for a 7-Eleven in teh woods... eh.. no SLURPEES around the next bend.. we pushed on    It was the first day Lil Easy & I really came together as hiking partners. You will find on the trail that getting a hiking partner sort of just "happens" . . . (so, for those of you in the class of "07) No worries, if your looking for one.. it WILL fall into place    We took time jsut getting to know each other, sharing stories of where we had been & what we had done. I have to say, Lil Easy, who is from jsut outside PHILLY is by far one of the most fantastic people I will ever meet and I'm hoping after this years hike oyr paths cross again ~   We jsut fell into a greta rythem.. matching one anothers pace step for step. One one guy was tired, the next one took lead... neither one of us stopped to eat much, and drank lots once in awhile... to be honest, it was perfect.          It felt like being with "ZIMMER", one of my best friends back in New York... with us, we just click so well, nothing matters. As was the case with Lil Easy.         Like anything else in life, TIME FLIES WHEN YOUR HAVING FUN! WE had made 10.6 miles in no time at all, it was @ 2pm, and with Hiawassee just 4 miles down the road and DAIRY QUEEEN calling our names, quickly the thumbs came out, and we hitched our way to town.   We got dropped at the place I know well, the HIAWASSEE INN. Before I go any further, BEST WISHES TO RON & HIS FAMILY    The INN is old, but Sam & Ron do some good there. Lil Easy & I basked in the fact that we were jsut in time for the NCAA Basketball Tourney on TV. After LOOONNNNNNGGGGGGGG   showers we aggreed that Dairy Queen was more than suitable enough for supper! SUPPER FOR SOLACE: 1 Foot Long Chili Cheese Dog                     1 Hamburger                     2 Large Fries                     1 6 Piece Chicken Finger Meal                     9 Ice Cold Miller Lites      Lil Easy coulden't believe it.. here he was telling me eailer that he could "put away some food" ... which he did, but not in "solace style" haha We were joined by TINMAN, more beer and with the stomachs on full, and a real bed under us, it was lights out Cheers from a quite FULL Solace
Date: 2006-03-17
From: Hiawassee, Georgia

To: 0 Day
Miles today: 0.0

A VERY HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY from a very happy Solace! ~ Greetings one and all.. yes, "Will" is alive 10 days into the journey finds me here in HIAWASSEE, GEORGIA, a very small Mountain town in the northern part of Georgia. Have logged 76.1 miles of hiking tus far, and 13 different Mountains. My 3rd year in a row down here doing this finds me for whatever reason stronger than ever, physically, but espically mentally I feel like an OX this year, and the appetite has matched that, cannot believe how much i am eating! It has been odd not to be with my twin & hiking partner, KTR... but I have also found a new sense of "solace" as well, having spent 3 nights alone, atop a Mountain... watching the sun dissappear,while the hawks circle above and the promise of a new day at hand. If there is ONE thing I came out here for this year... it was A N S W E R S ~ ~ Not so much as to the purpose of life But as to where I want settle & what I REALLY want to & NEED to do. The answers I have foufn have even surprised me...                     You will find that walking alone, with nothing but time, there is indeed much soul searching to be done ~ Enough babbling for now, time is short, and I am going to make a few "short" entries for each day thus far... so click the "first" or "previous" button to reacp each day of my hike thus far. I will arrive into FRANKLIN , North Carolina around MARCH 23-25th, and that will be my 1st MAILDROP town, so, anyone wanting to send any "goodies", you can find the address under the "mail drops" section on the left of the screen (thanx    ~ St. Patricks Day was a huge event in my family, made all the more enjoyable by my late mother, CASEY ~ Tradition held this morning as I was able to call my little brother Kevein and wish him a "Top of the Morning"... as he replied "And the bottom or balance of the day back to you" . . . ~ Some things never change, and for that, I am grateful ~ Happy thoughts from the WOODS of Georgia, where no Bear has eaten me just yet                Top of the Morning to Each of You ~ Cheers, Solace
Date: 2006-03-18
From: Hiawassee

To: 0 Day
Miles today: 0.0

Its SATURDAY NIGHT... which, in Trail life.. means pretty much nothing My current hiking partner (little easy) and I decided to stay one more night here in Hiawassee, but upgraded to the Holiday Inn.. this place is "sa-weet" ! Tomorrow morning will greet us with Cinnamon Buns & Fresh Brewed Coffee, SOLID! This morning, while leaving the Hiawassee Inn, Dave "Jumpstart" & his wife pulled up.. what a great surprise! I had hiked with Dave & his daughter, "Miss Holly" the past few days... when I say great people.. that is an understatement... the best They are from Jamestown, TN. We shared some fun nights, good laughs & formed a quick friendship that I hope will stay. A final check of the email here, so many.. thanks to each of you who take time Someone asked me... "HOW I DO THIS" . . . how can I just leave work, dissappear, and just go??? I can't begin to answer that.. simply, I just dont have the time... But, i will say this.. whether you believe in God or not... I do ~ And I believe his purpose for me was to spend my time and many talents simply.. TOUCHING PEOPLES LIVES ~ and in return, thousands have touched mine. I remember being a Senior in High School, 1991 . . . It was the LAST time I lived anywhere for longer than one year straight... since then I have moved about every 7 months... 42 times to be exact, 14 States, 16 professions ~ No, I'm not crazy.. and I'm not really a Gypsy.... Perhaps it's like that old TV show, "QUANTAM LEAP" . . . about the man who kept leaping from time to time, helping in some way.. and each time , hoping to make that final leap, H O M E ~   Home is New Hampshire... home is St. Louis,Home is Waiting tables and Bartending, Home is New York,home is behind the broadcast of announcing the game, Home is hiking the AT, home is being a Flight Attendant in San Fransisco, Chicago or Boston, Home is being in Love ~ Home is, "hanging your hat" . . . ~ I'm trying so desperatley just to find the hook ~   There was a time . . . There was a Place, eh KTR~   Cheers, Solace
Date: 2006-03-20
From: Plumorchard Gap Shelter

To: 0 Day
Miles today: 0.0

The storm had settled in for good by 4am, and with morning temps in the 20's and a steady downpour as we awoke, my advice to Lil Easy was a 0 Day.   I took it as a big YES as he smiled and rolled over to catch some more Z'sPLUMORCHARD GAP SHELTER was one of the FINEST Shelters on all the AT! With 3 levels, a large overhang for cooking and a picnic table with shelves in places, you'd swear you were at "Club Ritz" deep in the woods    5 of us actually decied to 0 that day, and a good choice it was as throughout the day the temp never rose above 35 and the rains fell, and fell... and fell    By mid-day, I made it a personal goal to collect as much firewood as possible and be the "fire marshall", ensuring we would use the wood properly and keep some needed warmth going throughout the long day. GLOW WORM, SUMO, Lil Easy & I found what we could... and at this point the wood wasn't much drier that your underware! But we did manage a good size stack, and a huge piece we named "BOB", which sheltered the fire nicely from the soaking skies.   Throghout the day a few hikers would drop in, be surprised to see a fire at all, warm up and be on thier way. Late in the day a group of 15 high school kids and their teachers joined us... URGH       You'll find that sharing the trail at times can feel like sharing the bathroom as a male with 10 sisters! Nice people and all... but I spent the next hour yelling.."NO, SEE HOW THAT TREE HAS GREEN LEAVES ON IT, DON'T THROW ANY MORE OF THAT ON THE FIRE!". "WHAT'S THAT? NO, THERE ARE NO FLUSHING TOILETS OUT HERE!". "WHAT, YOU HAVE NEXT TO NO FOOD FOR 15 KIDS!!!".   Interesting to say the least. It was nearly 5pm, and there was not a piece of me that was not cold or soaked... after nearly 9 hrs collecting wood and tending to the fire, I retired to some dry clothes and a warm sleeping bag. The shelter was packed and while contemplating what to cook for a "hot" supper, Lil Easy offered me a Snickers bar.... "Hot Enough" i thought    I was exausted from the fire chores and the weather itself. A little lite reading, ear plugs in... I passed right out. Even if my "little friends" scurried by in the night... I was WAY to tired to ever hear them    Sweet Dreams from the "RITZ" ~ Solace
Date: 2006-03-23
From: Wallace Gap, Logging Road

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 3.1
Weather: clear sky

Lil Easy and I JUMPED UP, packed up, and made the 3.1 mile stretch to Winding Stair Gap in 1 hour and 16 minutes! We were S M O K I N !!! FRASIR FIR greeted us early with some snickers.. thanx! Over the hill we went, and on the other side, right @ Winding Stair, there was the LEDGEND himself, RON HAVEN, perhaps my dearest friend down south! Lil Easy and I rode in as Ron and I immediately started the laughs of years past I arrived into FRANKLIN, North Carolina and will be here for the next week as i help good friend Ron Haven with our "APRIL FOOLS BASH" here in Franklin. Once again.. I'm the "Chef" along with CRUTCH    I Love this town.. population.. about 7,000 . . . out here, in the middle of "somewhere". Upon arriving into town yesterday, I stopped by the post office to find a HUGE care pkg from best friend ALI up in Vermont! HUZZAH to you Schwartz! Homemade brownies!!! I'm good, great actually... 113.7 miles hiked, 16 Mountains down The body has never felt this great... and the views have never been this good! A VERY HAPPY 5th ANNIVERSARY TO MIKE & CHERYL TODAY Back in Schenectady, NY! (Zimmer... you done good! Cher ~ god bless you for taking him in!) And a big HELLO to all the AFLAC ladies... send food, not the duck! Lil Easy grabbed a room @ the BUDGET INN, as I settled into my new digs @ the SAPPHIRE INN, rooming with CRUTCH, he's from alot of places, like me, we got along great, had some laughs... and shared some stories of life.. Cheers for the time CRUCTH... never to be forgotten   Cheers for now ~ Solace
Date: 2006-03-24
From: Franklin, NC

To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Hiking the Appalachian Trail at many times is not so much about the "trail, or woods" itself . . . rather... WHAT MAKES YOUR HIKE, and in the end..... what your hike became ~ As it was last night as i found myself along with CRUTCH, MERLIN & LIL EASY out here in Franklin @ "The Rathskellar". To the outside folk, it appears nothing more than it says on the sign.. A "Coffee Haus". Yes, it does serve coffee, but an array of others things as well. Some Amazing homemade breads, pretzels, cookies, chips, ect. Just walking in puts you at ease, with its comfy couch beckoning at you just to sit for awhile... tables scattered, with a "coffee bar" to sit at and relax. Games line the different high top tables, chess, checkers, some board games and cards strewn at different places. Wireless internet as well and a pretty good bookshelf overflowing with more than your local library. However... here, on A Saturday Night... it was live music on the small stage, and some German beer on draught.. for a "donation". After all.. This is a "dry" county... haha 3 local gentleman took the stage along with the female owner and among them, played some acoustic classic rock ranging from Jerry Garcia, The Band, Crosby Stills & Nash, and the Doors. To be honest, they were amazing, and the 4 of us sat back over a "few" beers just listening... appaulding, and simply... Enjoying Time ~   There was no alarm tomorrow, no boss to call, no kids to tuck in, or dog to feed. There was only time... and the friendship of 4 people who had never met untill just a week ago. But that is the trail.. and that is your hike, letting places, music and others lives touch yours... in ways you never even felt perhaps before. We laughed and talked of famlies back home.. of loved ones... of dreams and regret, and plans for the future... Its easy to lose yourself out here, and sitting there... in that small cafe with the words of those songs dancing like the fireflies on a summers eve . . . I found myself in many places ~ It felt just like St. Charles, Missouri and Burlingame, California.   Like Concord, New Hampshire and Hyde Park, Illinois. Like Lake Charles, Louisiana and Burlington, Vermont. Like Sandy, Utah and Atlanta, Georgia.   Like Schenectady, New York and Loveland, Ohio. Like Port Neches, Texas and Biddeford, Maine.   No matter what... for a time, it felt like home ~ Home has at one time been all of the previous mentioned places, and for whatever reasons I just put the hat back on... looking for the next place to hang it.   We sat like Kings long into the night, until the music stopped, the lights dimmed and the keg ran near dry One of the last songs of the night was "Desparado" . . . perhaps a verse has never rung more true than, "You Have To Let Somebody Love You Before It's Too Late" ~ I'm hoping someday soon that I do... And I believe... It's never too late ~               for anyone ~   It's late... the candle is out, and there are no more matches to be found.                  Nite from Franklin ~ Cheers for Four                                          solace