morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2017-08-11
From: Abol Bridge, ME

To: Wilderness Edge Campground, Millinocket, ME
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: overcast clouds

8/11/17, Wilderness Essie Campground, Millinocket, MEMiles hiked: 1867.1, Miles to Katahdin: 5.6, Miles to go: 322.7Today's hike was only 9.9 miles of relatively flat, smooth trail to the Ranger station at Katahdin Stream Campground. I was up and on my way by 6:20 AM. Even though I took my time and leisurely hiked, the hike went pretty fast and I arrived at the Ranger Station by a little after 10:00 AM. I was the first one out and kept my eyes peeled for a moose; but, alas and alack, no moose. I fear I'm going to end this hike mooseless. At one point, as I was nearing the end of the hike, I heard the inevitable voices of approaching young hikers. It was time for me to get passed by the other hikers. I could hear them talking about mooses and calling for them. So, I decided to step off into the brush and crash around and make moose snorting noises. I heard them stop and start to approach cautiously, talking about a moose in the underbrush. As they came around the turn in the trail, I could see they were indeed young thru hikers. The only problem was that they were not my young thru hikers. In fact, I didn't know these thru hikers at all. They said, "You're not a moose! We thought you were a moose!"  To which I replied, "You're not my friends! I thought you were my friends!"  Oh well. They laughed it off and kept on hiking as if it was an everyday occurrence to come upon a gray haired man in a kilt in the middle of the woods pretending to be a moose.  I guess after hiking close to 2200 miles not much phases you anymore. I arrived at the Ranger station and got my permit to summit Mt Katahdin tomorrow. I'm glad we didn't go up today since a thunderstorm arrived just after I did. The summit of Mt Katahdin is 5267 ft in elevation and much of the trail is above treeline - not the place to be in a thunderstorm!The rest of the Fellowship arrived shortly thereafter and obtained their permits. We then waited for the shuttle to arrive at 1:00 PM. Soon we were on our way out of Baxter State Park and arrived shortly at Wilderness Edge Campground. We promptly showered and caught a ride to town to eat. We assured them that we would find our own way back to the campground and set about eating and buying snacks for our hike up Katahdin. Wild Thing was able to secure us a ride back to the campground in the back of a pickup truck. The rest of the afternoon was spent doing chores like laundry and getting ready for tomorrow's hike. I'm now in my tent and getting ready to go to sleep. We are meeting at the campground office at 5:00 AM for the ride back to  a Ter State Park. We are hoping to be on the trail as early as possible. We hope to summit and be on our way back down by early afternoon to best any potential afternoon thunderstorms. After months of hiking through rain, sleet, snow, wind, and blistering sun, it still doesn't quite seem real that we will be standing on the summit of Mt Katahdin tomorrow. Wish us luck!
Date: 2017-08-29
From: Maupin Field Shelter, VA

To: Seely-Woolworth Shelter, VA
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: overcast clouds

8/29/17, Seely-Woolworth Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 1903.6, Miles to go: 276.7The rain arrived around 4:00 AM. It rained really hard, so I was glad to be in the shelter. I would wake up every hour or so to find that it was still pouring, so I'd go back to sleep. Finally, around 8:30 AM, I had to get up to answer Nature's call. It was still pouring. After taking care of business, I started packing up to head out. By 9:15 AM the rain had let up a little, so I headed out. Even though it was still raining, I soon had to shed my rain jacket as I was beginning to get pretty hot climbing up Three Ridges. Two things surprised me today. First, I was surprised to find I had very little phone signal. I had better signal in the 100 Mile Wilderness! Second, the trail was much rockier than I expected. And, of course, the rocks were wet and very slick. In fact, I took a pretty good tumble coming down Three Ridges and banged up my right knee pretty badly.I stopped at Harper's Creek Shelter around 12:30 PM for lunch and to get out of the rain for a bit. I met a man named Bill who was hiking north and just hadn't been able to get into gear and step it out into the rain. I did find out from him that my Flip Flopper friends Sauce and Keller, who I haven't seen since Massachusetts, are just a couple of days ahead of me. I'm not sure if I'll catch them; but, it would be great to see them again. After lunch, I crossed the Tye River and started the long climb up The Priest. It was the first 4000 footer I've climbed since Katahdin. . It was a 3000+ foot climb over 4.5 miles. It went on and on. And on. I just put my head down and kept climbing. At least the trail had calmed down and the rocks went away. Of course, the higher I climbed, the blusterier the weather got. It was just a nasty day to be out in the woods hiking. I finally summited The Priest in the fog and rain and arrived at the Priest Shelter. It was about 4:30 PM and the shelter was full with another Freshman Orientation group from Washington & Lee, so I decided to push on another 6.6 miles to the Seely-Woolworth Shelter. The rain had finally tapered off; but, a fog had settled in and the trees continued to drip water. At one point, I came across an old apple orchard. The trees were groaning under the weight of tons of apples. I helped myself to several apples. They were wonderful! It's so hard to get fresh fruit out here. I finally arrived at the shelter around 7:30 PM to find five people already in the shelter. They invited me to join them in the six person shelter; but, I decided to set up my tent instead. I am now snug, warm, and dry in my tent. The rain has stopped for now; but, more rain is predicted for tomorrow. I am so tired of hiking in rain.
Date: 2017-08-30
From: Seely-Woolworth Shelter, VA

To: Stealth Site, VA
Miles today: 22.2
Weather: overcast clouds

8/30/17, Stealth Site 3.1 miles north of Punchbowl Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 1925.8, Miles to go: 254.5Today rated up pretty high on my list of Good Days on the AT. I awoke around 6:00 AM to find that it was still dark. This has been hard to get used to. Where we were so much farther north in Maine, I was used to it getting light before 5:00 AM. Even though I got up, ate breakfast, and started packing up, it wasn't fully light until after 7:00 AM. As a result, I didn't get on trail until almost 7:30 AM. I had hoped to get started earlier because I had a 25.3 mile day planned, setting me up for a 10 mile Nearo into Glasgow tomorrow. The rain had passed overnight; however, the morning was very foggy and drippy. That was OK though because it looked like, once the fog burned off, we would have a pretty day. The trail through this section was beautiful - smooth, packed dirt undulating along the ridges. These are the kinds of conditions that make for great hiking. You can fly down the trail without having to watch every step, allowing you to eat up the miles. To make matters even better, the trail ran through old farmland, with lots of heavily laden apple trees. As my wife will tell you, I love apples. They are my favorite fruit. Despite my wife's admonitions not to eat too many apples, I couldn't walk past those trees without sampling an apple. Or two. Or three. Or more...The sun finally broke out and the mist burned off around 11:00 AM, making the hike even more pleasant. I stopped for lunch around 1:00 PM (and 15 miles) at a wayside picnic area where the AT crossed US Rt 60. I laid out my tent and other damp equipment to dry while I ate my lunch. As I was packing up to continue my hike, a car stopped and a young man got out to ask me about my hike and, more specifically, about my kilt. We were joined by an older woman (Mom, I think), who also had several questions. We had a fun conversation about the AT, took a selfie of the three of us, and I headed on my way. Unfortunately, I didn't catch their names. After another 1.7 miles, I came to Brown Mt Creek Shelter. With my wife's admonition ringing in my ears, I hurried to check out the privy. Maybe I ate a few more apples than I should've. I'm sure I'll show more restraint the next time I come upon a tree laden with apples. Maybe...Around 5:30 PM, with 3.1 miles still to hike, I came upon a lovely campsite. I had just filled my water bottles at a spring and had talked to a northbound hiker who told me about a youth group that was heading to Punchbowl Shelter for the night. I decided that 22.2 miles was far enough for one day and that I didn't want to get into camp after 7:00 PM for the third night in a row. It was nice to have time to set up my tent, eat dinner, clean up, and hang the bear bag before sunset. My 10 mile Nearo will now be a 13.1 mile Nearo; but, the pleasant evening was definitely worth it.
Date: 2017-09-01
From: Stanimal's Hostel, Glasgow, VA

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter, VA
Miles today: 19.9

9/1/17, Cornelius Creek ShelterVAMiles hiked: 1958.9, Miles to go: 221.4Today was a nasty day to be out on the trail. The remnants of Harvey have reached us and it was wet, blustery, and cold. However, as has happened more than once on a rainy day, it turned out to be a good day of hiking. Bob delivered me back to the trail head by a little bit after 7:00 AM. The ride was calm and not nearly as scary as yesterday. I immediately crossed the 1000 foot long James River Bridge. It is the longest footbridge on the whole AT. Then, as often is the case on the first day after town day, I started climbing. In fact, the rest of the day was spent climbing. The rain held off for the first three miles; but, then the wind picked up and the first fat drops of rain announced the arrival of the front. The rain settled in to a steady, windy downpour. I basically put my head down and cranked out the miles. I passed two more Washington & Lee Freshman Orientation groups during my hike. Both groups had reached the end of their hikes and were waiting to be picked up. They all looked cold, wet, and miserable and relieved to be finished with their hikes. As long as I kept moving, I didn't get cold. So, I just kept moving all day. I also have given in and started listening to books on Audible to pass the time. I don't have anyone to talk to and I've heard enough forest sounds and bird calls to last me for years. I am listening to a book by Orson Scott Card which has captured my imagination, so the miles seem to fly by. Don't worry, I only use one earbud so I can still hear what goes on around me and maintain situational awareness. I arrived at Thunder Hill Shelter around 1:30 PM. I took a break to eat lunch and get out of the rain for awhile. Since I had already put in 15 miles, I contemplated stopping for the day rather than heading back out into the rain. However, it was still early and I have never been good at lying around a shelter all afternoon. I get too restless. So, I headed back out. I had gotten really cold eating lunch and had to hustle down the trail for quite awhile before I finally warmed up enough for my teeth to quit chattering. Another five miles of hiking brought me to Cornelius Creek Shelter. I passed another AT icon along the way - the Guillotine. It is a rock formation where you pass under a large boulder suspended above your head, trapped by the sides of a narrow passage between two rock faces. Four people were already in the shelter when I arrived; but, they gladly made room for one more. After changing into dry clothes, eating dinner, and hanging our food bags, we are all settled in our sleeping bags for the night. It is still blustery and rainy and predicted to get down in the 40s tonight; but, I am safe, warm, and dry for the night.
Date: 2017-09-02
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter, VA

To: Bobblet's Gap Shelter, VA
Miles today: 18.4

9/2/17, Bobblet's Gap Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 1977.3, Miles to go: 203.0Another rainy day on the trail. It rained all night. We awoke to rain, wind, and fog. I was up and on the trail by 7:20 AM. The trail surface continues to be nice and smooth, so I was able to make good time. I stopped for a break at Bryant Ridge Shelter. It is one of the nicest shelters I've seen. It is a fairly new double decker shelter with room for about 20 people and a big front porch. If I had looked ahead at the trail guide yesterday, I might have pushed on to spend the night here last night. I headed out after a short break and continued hiking through the rain most of the rest of the day. I stopped for lunch and a break from the rain at Cove Mt Shelter.  As with the Bryant Ridge Shelter, I was the only one there. The trail was pretty quiet today. I expected to see more weekend hikers since it is a long holiday weekend; but, I think the rain has scared most of them away. I did see a day hiker with a beautiful white German Shepherd named Zoey who loved to play fetch. I took a pretty good fall today. I was moving it out pretty good along a level stretch of smooth trail and managed to catch my toe on a rock sticking out of the trail. The momentum from the backpack on my back propelled me forward and before I had time to react I was sprawled out on the trail. I ended up with banged up knuckles on my left hand and scrapes on my left shin. Oh well, nothing to do but brush myself off, stem the flow of blood and keep hiking. I arrived at Bobblet Gap Shelter, in the rain of course, around 5:00 PM. There are a father and his teenage son staying here tonight. We had pleasant conversation during dinner and are now settled into the shelter for the night. The weather is predicted to improve tomorrow and I am heading into town to spend the night at my cousin's house, so tomorrow should be another good day on the trail.
Date: 2017-09-03
From: Bobblet's Gap Shelter, VA

To: Cousin Bill's Place, Salem, VA
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: clear sky

9/3/17, Cousin Bill's Apartment, Salem, VAMiles hiked: 2005.8, Miles to go: 184.5Finally! A pretty day to hike. We awoke to dripping trees; but, clearing skies. I bid goodbye to the father and son and headed out around 7:15 AM. It wasn't until I left that I realized that I never found out their names. The sun broke out of the clouds only a couple of miles after leaving the shelter and by mid-morning I was hiking under clear blue skies. Due to the vastly improved weather and the close proximity to the Blue Ridge Parkway, I saw several day hikers out today and stopped to briefly chat with most of them. For the most part, the trail was smooth and gently rolling, crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway several times. I made good time and arrived at the Wilson Creek Shelter for a mid-morning break in short order. The bright and beautiful day was dimmed somewhat when I learned via Facebook that a dear friend of mine from my days with the Mountaineer Area Rescue Group had died suddenly and unexpectedly. I spent the rest of the morning hiking with an air of melancholy, thinking of all the times I had spent with Ann on training missions and actual searches. The rest of the day's hike was uneventful and I arrived in Daleville around 4:00 PM. My cousin Bill was planning to pick me up around 5:00 PM and take me to his apartment for the night. Since I had an hour until his arrival, I went to the Kroger and resupplied for the upcoming section to Pearisburg. I also tried to stop at the local outfitter store and replace my leaking water bags in my Sawyer filtration system. Unfortunately, the outfitter was closed. I'll have to make arrangements to replace them tomorrow, I guess. Bill and his son, Matthew, arrived in short order and took me back to their apartment where I showered and washed my clothes. In a short while, his girlfriend Melissa and her daughter Jennifer arrived, bringing with them a wonderful meal of baked spaghetti, corn on the cob, and garlic bread. After dinner, we all settled in to watch the WVU-VT game. Although WVU lost, it was a very pleasant evening spent with family and friends. Tomorrow, Bill is going to drop me back off in Daleville and I will slackpack 20 miles past Tinker Cliffs and McAfee's Knob to VA Rt 311, where he will pick me up and bring me back to his place for another night.
Date: 2017-09-05
From: VA Rt 311

To: Niday Shelter, VA
Miles today: 22.7

9/5/17, Niday Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 2048.8, h Miles to go: 141.5Bill got me back to the trail by 8:15 AM, after dropping Matthew off at school and stopping at Advance Auto to buy more fuel for my stove. It was a beautiful day, with blue skies and light winds. Naturally, since I was leaving town with a heavy pack - let's all say it together - I climbed! I actually spent most of the day running along ridge lines. Unfortunately, rather than smooth, undulating trails, I spent most of the day scrambling over rock outcropping along the ridges. I passed two AT landmarks on the hike today. The first one came at 8.6 miles after a steep and rocky climb to the Dragon's Tooth. The Dragon's Tooth is a a 50 ft stone monolith at the top of Cove Mt. The views from the mountain were pretty impressive. I decided to eat lunch here and had pleasant conversation with two dayhikers. As I headed out, the skies clouded over and distant rumbles of thunder could be heard. Luckily, the rain held off for the time being as I continued to meander along the rocky ridgeline. Eventually, I descended to the valley, hiked through farm fields for awhile, and started to climb up the next ridges. After climbing 1500 feet, I reached the second landmark of the day - the Audie Murphy Memorial. Audie Murphy was the most decorated soldier in World War II. He was killed in a plane crash in 1971, with the memorial marking the spot where his small plane plowed into the mountain. By now, it was 5:45 PM and I still had 5.2 miles to hike to the Niday Shelter, so I shifted into high gear and moved it out. It was getting pretty dark as I was nearing the end of my 22.7 mile hike. Naturally, with about a mile to hike, the rains arrived. Luckily, it was just a steady rain and not a downpour. I am the only one at the shelter tonight. The keyword for this portion of the hike is Solitude. Luckily, I have Shogun on Audible to keep me company. I am now settled in for the night. The rain is still coming down softly on the shelter. Dinner is done and my teeth are brushed. I am lying in my bed finishing off my blog. No signal here tonight, so I will have to wait until tomorrow to post. Don't worry - I start my day with a 2000 foot climb. I'm sure I'll have signal somewhere on the climb.
Date: 2017-09-06
From: Niday Shelter, VA

To: Warspur Shelter
Miles today: 18.2
Weather: light rain

9/6/17, Warspur Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 2067.0, Miles to go: 123.3It rained on and off all night. I got up and under way by 7:20 AM. As I began climbing up the mountain right after leaving the shelter, the rain settled in. It was a cold and steady rain that went on most of the morning. Bummer. After climbing a couple miles, the trail leveled off and ran along the ridge. Unfortunately, as has been the case the last few days, the trail along the ridge was rocky. Only, along this ridge, the rocks were big tilting slabs. Wet, slippery slabs.I ended up on my butt sliding down those tilted slabs a couple of times. I have fallen so many times on this trail that I don't even pay any attention any more. I just pick myself back up, try to wipe off as much dirt or mud as possible, staunch any blood flow, and keep on hiking. My legs are pretty scarred up from six months of scrapes and cuts. After descending from the ridge, I hiked through pastures and farmland for several miles. At one point, I passed the Keffer Oak, a huge oak tree that is the second largest tree on the trail. What a beautiful, majestic tree!I stopped for lunch at Laurel Creek Shelter and the rain finally slacked off. Of course, the trees continued to drip for several hours and I brushed up against soaking wet bushes and underbrush as I walked, so it may as well have kept raining. The trail continues to be empty. The only people I saw on the trail were two hikers heading north. I continue to listen to Shogun on Audible as I walk. Luckily, it's a LONG book!After climbing and descending a couple more mountains, I arrived at Warspur Shelter around 5:30 PM. By the time I arrived, the clouds had actually cleared and the sun was shining brightly. It was nice to get into camp early enough to fix dinner and clean up before dark. I am in the shelter again tonight and I am, once again, the only occupant. It feels like the beach I after Labor Day. This is a very pretty shelter with lots of grassy space for tents. I can imagine what it looked like earlier this summer with tents and thru hikers everywhere. Now, it's kind of sad and quiet. The mournful howls of coyotes in the distance just add to the sense of sadness and loss. Amazingly enough, I have walked almost 2100 miles now. I can remember way back to Georgia in February. The trail seemed impossibly long and daunting. It seemed like the exhausting 8 to 10 mile nibbles I was doing every day would never get me to the end. Now, I get up and walk 20 miles every day without a thought. The 123.3 miles left seems like nothing. Heck, I've walked 194.6 miles since last Monday. I'm not trying to say what I'm doing is amazing. It's just funny how what once seemed impossible has become so mundane. Sadly, I also know that I am going to quickly lose this level of fitness when I am not walking 20 miles every day. Hopefully, I can keep off the 40 lbs I have lost when I go home. It sounds like I'm going to have a lot of cycling in my future.
Date: 2017-09-07
From: Warspur Shelter

To: Rice Field Shelter, VA
Miles today: 25.3

9/7/17, Rice Field Shelter, VAMiles hiked: 2092.4, Miles to go: 97.9It was a pretty chilly night last night. I was wearing all of my layers and was just a little cool. I was up and out by 7:30 AM. I had a long day planned, a 25.3 mile hike to Rice Field Shelter, setting me up for a Nearo into Pearisburg on Friday. Although there were two pretty good climbs, the majority of the hike was along ridge lines. So, I figured 25.3 miles was pretty doable. The other thing in my favor was that the rain had passed by yesterday evening. In fact, I woke up at one point during the night and the moon was so bright that it lit up the shelter. The morning was cool and sunny, with a light breeze - perfect hiking weather. The hike was pretty uneventful. I basically just walked while listening to Shogun on Audible. I didn't see anyone on the trail all morning. I stopped for lunch next to Big Stoney Creek and continued walking. At Pine Swamp Branch Shelter I finally came upon some other hikers. I met three women who were doing a southbound section hike. They had stopped to take a break at the shelter. After visiting awhile, I started the long climb up to the Peter's Mountain ridgeline. The AT straddles the VA/WV line along the ridge for about 10 miles. The trail was pretty good along the ridgeline, although it was pretty rocky in places. I passed through a couple of old farm fields along the ridge, complete with old apple trees. As you might have guessed, I ate my fill of the small tart apples. This appears to be a good year for apples. All the trees were heavily laden with apples. I finally arrived at Rice Field Shelter around 7:00 PM. This is a nice, fairly new shelter on the edge of a field on top of the ridge. There are actually five other hikers here tonight. They had all finished dinner and were settling in for the evening when I arrived.  I decided to set up my tent tonight. It is pretty breezy on top of the ridge and my tent is actually much warmer than the open shelter. I am now settled in my tent for the evening. The moon is shining directly into my tent, lighting up the interior. Tomorrow, I only have a 6.8 mile hike down off the ridge, across the New River, and into Pearisburg, VA. The plan is for my brother Kenny to pick me up and take me to his house in Lewisburg, WV, for the night. I now have less than 100 miles left to hike and expect to finish next Wednesday. However, I am keeping an eye on Hurricane Irma. If it looks like it might reach SW Virginia mid-week, I might beat feet and try to finish this thing before Irma gets here.