morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2019-06-24
From: Birch Run Shelter

To: Campsite near Alex Kennedy Shelter
Miles today: 23.8

Day 84 Icecream ChallengeWe were almost at the half way point and I was anxious to get going. When I got there, the actual marker was not that impressive at all. Some small pebbles delicately forming the 1/2 sign. The reality is that the position changes every year because the AT distance changes every year due to route adjustments, detours and possibly more accurate means of measurement. ( I¢m sure some of the uphills are much longer and higher than they report) Some years folks had gone to great lengths to make elaborate signs to celebrate the half way point and I later past these. Next stop was the general store at Pine Grove which was in a State Park. The ¢Icecream Challenge ¢ is a popular tradition for AT hikers ... scoffing down half a gallon ... it¢s an indication of just how (greedy) hungry hikers can get. I was with ¢The Beast¢ and ¢Sweet¢. His strategy was to choose Neopolitan meaning he had three flavours to choose from and wouldn¢t get tired of any one.  Her strategy was DNS (Do Not Start). My choose was ¢Cookies and Cream¢ figuring the cookies would provide better calories. They don¢t make actual half gallon containers any more. Some marketing genius at the icecream factory figured they could reduce the container size without anyone noticing... but us hikers did so after finishing one container we are provided with an additional pint container to make up the difference! After round one ¢The Beast¢ was 3 minutes in front then at the finish he completed his half gallon in 32 minutes. I was a respectable 4 minutes 30 seconds behind. But to my credit I was still hungry so I then ordered a hungry hiker burger and French Fries. ¢The Beast¢ was content with a mere Cheese Burger! They have a hiker museum nearby which has one of the first signs from the top of Mt Katahdin, an original hiker shelter (I¢ll never again complain about the standard of shelters in the Smoky Mountains) and lots of other memorabilia. After that I set off back on my hike. Half way up the next hill I felt really ill. No idea why. But as I hiked on things settled down until by evening I was hungry again. I camped on a ridge above a stream called Whisky Spring. I¢m figuring long ago there must have been a secret still around here somewhere but sadly I couldn¢t find it!
Date: 2019-06-25
From: Campsite near Alex Kennedy Shelter

To: Campsite near Darlington Shelter 
Miles today: 20.9

Day 85 Boiling Springs and Open Farmland One of my fond memories from ¢The Coast to Coast Walk¢ in northern England that Mrs Treetrunk and I did several years ago was of pathways through open farm pastures. There were grand vistas of patchwork fields, farm buildings and row houses in the distances. The A.T. usually is not like that at all. It¢s a green tunnel. But not today! The path broke free of the forest and we were in pastures, maintained by the AT to retain the rural farmland feel of the locality. So picturesque. I was crossing over a very very wide valley from ridges on one side to ridges 10 miles or so on the other. In the middle of that was the village of Boiling Springs. How delightful it was, set around a large pond formed to service small steel kilns from the 1800¢s. The industry is now gone, but the kilns are still there. They are not big, almost like mini Mayan pyramids and sit peacefully in the woods. The other thing in the valley were a number of busy highways. I can¢t get over how hectic they are, particularly coming from the Northern Territory where I can drive for 300 km and not pass a car!! Climbing up the other side I made my way to a secluded campsite. And just in time. When I was safely in my tent down came the rain! It poured for an hour then out came the stars!
Date: 2019-06-28
From: Peters Mountain Shelter

To: Rauschenberg Gap Shelter 
Miles today: 18.8

Day 88 Elephant F@rtThe hike today was in secluded isolated forest. It felt like we were a world away from civilisation. All I could hear to remind me of the outside world was the occasional jet aircraft flying overhead; or if I really listened the distant rumble and horn of a freight train a long long distance away. About mid morning the planes seemed to really pick up and they were a lot noisier and close by than what I¢d expect. Suddenly there was a staccato explosion as if some giant beast had expelled a belly full of foul air after eating too many eggs and beans. It was really loud. I was sure that one of a plane¢s engine had exploded particularly as the plane then seemed to make a high pitched wail as if it was in rapid descent. I thought oh dear is it going to drop on me? I was in dense forest so I couldn¢t see any sky really and I had no idea where the plane was. I waited and waited for the inevitable plane crash, but nothing happened. Then another explosion and more wailing plane engines. What the heck is going on I asked myself. There is one man who would know ... ¢Polarbear¢ who is an Airforce aficionado. When I told him of what I heard he got most excited. ¢I¢m so happy you heard that¢ he gleefully exclaimed, ¢That¢s the A10 Warthog and the sound of a Gau-8 Avenger going off.¢ ¢We call that the Elephant F@rt and it¢s the most lethal gun around¢ He then poetically waxed lyrically (Maybe he he misses Kamdesh) about its 30cm barrel, it¢s gatling-gun operation, rounds that go off at twice the speed of sound and so forth. I¢d never really heard of such a thing but if you are a weapons connoisseur you would know all about this beast. Apparently when it was first created they had to come up with a new plane design to handle the thing otherwise it would shake the aircraft to pieces and the soot and debris from the cannon made the plane windscreen opaque. ¢Polarbear¢ told us that we were near a military firing range and it was likely that these pilots were getting their last training before being deployed. Given there is rising tension in the Middle East right now it kind of explains the training they at doing. Which got me to thinking that whilst I¢m in my hiking bubble there is an outside world out there and despite my best efforts sometimes it lets me know it¢s still there. They say that it¢s not reality that bites, rather our perception of reality that bites. With that in mind, next time I hear that sound I prefer to think of it as an Elephant F@rt and not the more lethal consequences that this gun can unleash! On that note, we had a very peaceful hike ending up in a sweet campsite by a playful stream that I got to wash my feet in. So relaxing after a long day. My picture is of steel furnace near Boiling Springs. It was used to make guns for the civil war, but not for the Gau-8!!
Date: 2019-06-29
From: Rauschenberg Gap Shelter 

To: 501 Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: broken clouds

Day 89 Beaver DamI started off my morning by exploring the area around our campsite from last night. A plaque nearby explained that back in the 1800¢s it was a village of over 1,000 people supporting a coal mine and steam engine repair/manufacturing. The mine turned out to be unproductive and the people all left. Soon the forest swallowed what was left. It was easy to miss at first but I found the old walls of a number of dwellings, a couple of old wells and walls now with massive trees growing through them. There must have been some floods because the ground level is now much higher. The fun part of the day was the next event. Apparently beavers had dammed the river and now the Appalachian Trail was under water. The trail organisers had arranged for a detour for those folks who didn¢t want to get their feet wet. But for purists it was possible to take the authentic route. Given the option of either a genteel dry walk or a slog in the bog I naturally choose the latter. Who wouldn¢t want to miss some fun playing in mud? We don¢t have beavers in Australia. Our closest animal is the platypus but it does not dam rivers. So I was very interested to get up close to see what beavers do and also to see their ¢house¢. The dam itself was quite large. Amazing the effort that must have gone into creating it. We waded through the slime... it was a bit smelly but we were smelly to begin with and at least this way our feet got a wash. I would guess that we had a 300 yard crossing and the water went up to our upper shin. Once that bit of excitement was done our day returned to its normal self of ridge walking. In the distance we could hear thunder getting closer. Soon a storm was upon us. I didn¢t bother to get out my raincoat. It was so hot and sticky the raincoat would just increase perspiration.  Either way I¢d get wet. The rain really pelted down for a while and despite getting soaked through, it felt wonderfully refreshing. Then the rain stopped and within a short while I could feel everything drying out. Coming to a saddle there was a camp with a fire going ... somehow they¢d managed to do that despite the rain. We were beckoned over ... it was trail magic!!  3 guys had hauled up over 2 miles of rocky track ice chests full of drinks on ice, hot dogs to cook on the fire and lots of other junk food. Just what a hiker likes. We took our fill and thanked the boys so much for their generosity. We made our way to the next shelter where once again the rain poured down. I sat down at a table and an English gentleman said, ¢I know you!¢ Turns out he remembers having a beer with me 5 years ago at a pub in the middle of Yorkshire , England when I did Wainwright¢s Coast to Coast walk there. What a small world it is!!
Date: 2019-06-30
From: 501 Shelter

To: Campsite at Stony Creek
Miles today: 17.5

Day 90 Stuff that has WorkedToday was a long day of walking with lots of trees to look at! When I¢m not looking at the trees I think of other things.As I get further and further into this hike I think of the things that have worked, things that haven¢t and how I can improve. The one thing I think most folks think about is how they can reduce the weight of their gear without compromising safety or comfort. It¢s said that the elevation change of hiking the trail is the equivalent of climbing Mt Everest 16 times. After a while every pound of gear feels like 10 lbs and the quest is on to find ways to trim the excess. Of course there are always some hikers who are the ex army types and who lug a 100 lb monster to prove to someone how strong they are, but after a while even they come around. The pack I chose was a Hyperlyte Southwest 3400. I chose that after months of google research, chatting to hikers who had done the AT and so on.The pack is made with a miracle fabric called Dyneema also known as Cuben Fibre which is super light weight, is waterproof, and depending on its overall density is very hard wearing. The marketing blurb says that whilst Kevlar is considered 7 times stronger than steel, Dyneema is considered 15 times stronger. Needless to say ...  It¢s bulletproof. The design of the pack is simple .. it¢s basically a roll up sack with hip belt and arm straps attached ! Back when I was a youth, it used to be that packs were made from canvas or a synthetic equivalent. These are tough but they are much heavier and when it does rain on the trail which happens so very often they get wet and then they get super heavy. Some folks use a rain cover which of course never really works when you want it too and they also add weight. When I started I didn¢t see too many people using my pack. They were a rarity. But now I¢m half way it they have become very popular. One weird thing is my pack is white, although every day it seems to get more mud smudges . It has that patina of muddy swamp camouflage!. But the white colour is a good thing because at night I can see it, and I am always so pleased to look in my pack and clearly see where I¢ve lost my wallet!! So that¢s one thing that¢s really worked for me on the trail. As I think of other things I¢ll write them down!As for my day ... Well after looking at lots of trees it was fairly boring. Basically we entered a forest and kept walking for much of the day without seeing views or places to get an idea of how far or where we were going to or coming from. But at the end of the day we came to Stony Creek, which was full of stones and not much water. I did find a deeper pool and used that to soak my feet. My deep pool became a mud pool. So then I found a stony pool and rinsed off. Then bed!
Date: 2019-07-01
From: Campsite at Stony Creek

To: Pt Clinton 
Miles today: 6.6

Day 91 Barber ShopToday was a  resupply day and a short one. The trail continued its way through the forest as it did yesterday, then we came out on a viewpoint and I could see we were on a high ridge overlooking a deep valley below. Next thing we started a very steep descent and in very quick time we were in the town of Pt Clinton. I was told a couple of days ago to go see the Barber Shop . It was on the other side of town but we did and I¢m so glad we did. Inside was the very welcoming 71 year old Frank Russo who said,¢Come on in, have a coffee, charge your phone, take a seat, have a chat.¢ For 71 he is in great shape and I asked him what his secret was. ¢ Oh I like to play live rock and roll music on my electric guitar... it keeps me young!¢, he said. Apparently he¢s very good particularly doing Jimmy Hendrix rifts and his barber shop often has live gigs while he is doing haircuts and usually he joins in! The shop is incredibly popular and most folks of the neighbourhood seem to visit some time or other. Frank didn¢t seem to care if I wanted a haircut or not ... it was all about the company and comradeship. He collects all kinds of memorabilia which he displays in the shop. Cassias Clay ( Muhammad Ali) used to train in a gym just up the road and he has his boxing gloves hanging up, plus all sorts of other stuff. I was fascinated by all that he had and the conversations going on with the customers. I ended up spending most of the day there. At some point a customer said he was going to Walmart located in a nearby town; I asked if I could get a ride as I need to resupply and he said yes. After Walmart I walked over to Cabela¢s which is a 5 acre outdoors shop. Largest in the world apparently. Amazing inside but really it didn¢t have much in the way of hiking resupply. But, what it did have was a free shuttle back to Pt Clinton so soon I was back at the Barbershop! That night I stayed in the Pt Clinton Pavillion which is a special covered area just for hikers. Trouble is it¢s right by a downhill road where truckers love to put on their exhaust brakes: a very noisy night indeed.
Date: 2019-07-02
From: Pt Clinton 

To: Eckville Shelter 
Miles today: 14.8

Day 92 Rocksylvania A while back there was an ice age and there was a massive glacier that picked up the most jagged, pointed and sharp rocks imaginable, and transported them all to the northern section of the AT in Pennsylvania. The smoother rounded rocks it left them be. The glacier eventually melted and deposited all those rocks on the trail. Thereafter the area here is called Rocksylvania and is a devil to walk across. I was nervous about this so stayed for the morning at the Barber Shop. Much better conversations there than the swearing and cussing at the rocks that I knew would occur. Eventually I had to move on and it was a steep uphill. At some point the trail diverted almost deliberately to outcrops of scary gnarly boulders with limited handholds. At this point it started to mistily rain making the rock surface especially slippery. What a trial! There were a couple of outcrops very popular with the locals called ¢The Pulpit¢ and ¢The Pinnacle¢. Great places to take a breather, admire the view and regain my composure! But then the trail designers took pity on us hikers and diverged away from the rocks to a smoother path. Trotting along this I met another hiker coming the opposite direction and he asked if I was a through hiker. On hearing that I was he produced from his pack an Indian Pale Ale! ¢Enjoy your meal tonight!¢ he said, ¢because tomorrow you have to do The Knife Edge¢ I made it to a grassy campsite by the shelter for the night and googled researched ¢The Knife Edge¢. There are lots of them around the world on hiking trails, and all of them challenging to say the least. But that night I enjoyed the IPA and left that worry for tomorrow
Date: 2019-07-03
From: Eckville Shelter 

To: Bake Oven Knob Shelter
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: broken clouds

Day 93 The Knife-edge and Other Assorted ObstaclesI don¢t know what was worse, navigating the Knife-edge or continually skewering my feet on the pointy rocks of the path. I¢d had the night to think about the rocks and I resolved to go very slow and carefully. The most captivating were the huge slabs which moved when stepped on. There was one called the balance rock which I¢m guessing would have to be over 15 tons that I could move with my hand as it pivoted on another. The knife-edge itself was a series of massive slabs on a 45 degree angle atop a ridge. These were not at even angles and were often separated by deep, wide fissures requiring a lot of courage to leap across or negotiate. Why the AT needed to go via this ridge is beyond me ... it would be far easier to gently contour around at a lower level. But the trail went that way and like the obstinate fool that I am, I followed the path. Some genius had painted white arrows up and down and around the boulders. I was mystified as to how anyone could actually follow the route they proposed but being the purist that I am, I made my best effort at keeping true to the path. My strategy was to take it easy and not think too much about the consequences should I slip. The reality is that a fall potentially would be spectacularly nasty. I must admit I let out a huge sigh of relief when I was over the worst of it. Of course later on I came across Baker Knob which was a re-run albeit with smaller hunks. That was it for me! Not too much further on was a shelter and so that was a good place to set up camp. I was done with rocks for the day and rested up ready to navigate more of the same tomorrow.
Date: 2019-07-04
From: Bake Oven Knob Shelter

To: Campsite near Phelps Trail
Miles today: 14.5

Day 94 A Heck of a Climb in the Hot SunA short time after I started the Appalachian Trail I ran into ¢2-Speed¢ and for a time we hiked together. Then I slowed down and he and a number of other hikers soon were two days in front of me. But then they slowed down or I speeded up and the next thing I knew was that I was in front! That¢s how the trail is sometimes! ¢2-Speed¢ had already done many sections of the trail dating back over a decade. This time he was going to do a complete through hike. But personal commitments came up and he had to get off the trail. So then he decided to return to finish those parts he had missed out on and at least thus complete a section hike. This week he finished that and to celebrate, he arranged to meet a group of us for triumphant refreshments. Today was the day. We had a merry old time in a park near the town of Palmerton. It was great fun. Next came the not so fun part of today. The walk out of Palmerton involved a massive steep climb. There were times I had to take my pack off and throw it up a ledge before I could attempt to get up the ledge unencumbered. The area was a Superfund site. For folks in Australia that means it was an environmental disaster zone. The government here has a fund to help restore sites which have been severely affected by toxicity of some kind, often from mining when the company has run out of funds before it has made good the land it has denuded. In this case there has been zinc mining for over 100 years and the site for a while was a lunar landscape plus there are a number of springs that are now noted as for emergency use only. ( I take this to mean that if you drink the water from the spring you will end up in the emergency ward of the local hospital) I understand that the team undertaking the restoration works have done a stellar job of revegetation. Still it was a roasting oven on the rocks. Now if I had read my guide I would have known that there were repeated warnings to not attempt this climb at midday because it¢s so hot. But I was having too much fun meeting back up with ¢2-Speed¢ to read the guide  and so of course we set off at midday. Somehow I made it to the top. For a while then there was a smooth path. But not for too long. Eventually it was back to the rocks of Pennsylvania. I clambered on. I was supposed to meet up with the rest of the group aways ahead. But at 8pm I knew I¢d run out of puff so I made camp in a clearing overlooking a valley below. It was a perfect spot because it was July 4th which apart from being Independence Day is also Firework Day. I had a grand view of all the numerous explosions and skyrockets going off. It was a fun and long day that ended with quite a bang!!
Date: 2019-07-05
From: Campsite near Phelps Trail

To: Campsite near Spring
Miles today: 19.7

Day 95 Still more RocksThe rumbles from all the fireworks last night kept echoing until midnight and strangely put me to sleep, eventually! I had hopes that Pennsylvania would let up on the rocks but I was sadly disappointed. They increased in their intensity and duration. There would be times when the path smoothed out but not for long. It was a tough old day. Hot too, with limited water availability.It¢s said that the only difference between stepping stones and rock obstacles is how you use them. Today I was questioning that wisdom! I camped the night with ¢Sweet¢ and ¢The Beast¢ We were all looking forward to gentler days ahead.
Date: 2019-07-06
From: Campsite near Spring

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 9.4

Day 96 Almost done with RocksylvaniaPennsylvania was not going to let up on the rocks as I neared its boundary with New Jersey. And there was a special little rocky outcrop to contend with too first up: Wolf Rocks. More stacked boulder slabs on precarious angles and the AT would have us go along the upper edge. But I knew the drill: slow and steady, check each foot placement and don¢t look down! I was glad it was over once I had done it and also very relieved that the copperhead and rattle snakes known to call this their home didn¢t come out to say hello. Although they were there.The morning heated up quickly and the humidity was intense. It seemed the atmosphere was begging for the opportunity to explode with a thunderstorm but didn¢t quite have the catalyst yet. The conditions made my mood so much more negative on the stony path. Then, just as I reached the outskirts of Delaware Water Gap, the town on the state border, the rains came down in a deluge. I scurried to Church of the Mountain where there is a hiker hostel. It quickly filled up with walkers seeking refuge. I grabbed a bunk, then a shower and waited out the storm. When it was done the hunger pangs set in so I headed into town with friends for a hamburger and beer, then apple pie and icecream at the Apple Pie Bakery then a resupply. We rested a bit then headed back to town to do our laundry. Just as we were finished drying our laundry an alarm went off on my smart phone.¢Flood Alert¢ It was the emergency services warning of a heavy storm heading our way. Heading back to our hostel with our dry clothes, the heavy storm let loose so our dry laundry now became wet again. Then the local tornado siren went off indicating that a tornado had touched down in the immediate vicinity. Too much fun. We made it back to the hostel safely and dried out again!I slept well knowing there was a dry roof over my head!