morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-05-31
From: Wilson Creek Shelter

To: Va. 614
Miles today: 16.8

Day 81I was up early but did not leave camp until 8:30. It rained last night and so the tent is pretty wet and I wanted to boil water for oatmeal and coffee. It was foggy most of the morning but did not rain. The trail was pretty nice today with not a lot of ups nor a lot of very rocky places. I decided to go a bit further today because Bravo said something about a big mountain we had to climb tomorrow and I'd rather get an early start on it. So I pushed on to Va. 614 where there is a camping area. No one else stopped to camp there but when I got there Hopper and Spike were there with their truck with camper. I was glad they were there since there were no other hikers and it is so close to the road. Spike and Hopper gave me a coke and a delicious apple. The trail today crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway several times and ran along parallel with it for a long time. The views at the overlooks were rather hazy except for the last one which was a view of a community below with the James River.Tomorrow will be a shorter day because of the climbs, but will be a hard one so I had better get some sleep.
Date: 2005-06-01
From: Va. 614

To: Thunder Hill Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 82It took all day to climb Apple Orchard Mountain. Actually there were a couple of smaller ones that had to be climbed first. It was not until about a mile before the shelter that the top of the mountain was reached, I was so glad to be going down finally. The day was partly cloudy the first part of the day but as the day went on it was total clouds and a cool breeze which was quite cool when I was not hiking. I reached the shelter about 5PM. One section hiker, Jeff, was there. Then came Masa, a young man in his early 30's from Japan, then Beach Party, and then Mr. Sweepers. We're all in the shelter because it has started raining.   This evening I saw a Baltimore Oriole in a tree at the shelter. I think it was looking for worms or insects to feed his babies. He was flitting around from branch to branch. I have seen the orioles at home do this. There are a lot of caterpillars out here right now so it should not take him long to find food. I have seen lots and lots of blueberry bushes in the last couple of weeks. Some have only blossoms and some have small green berries, depending on the elevation. The bears and hikers will have a feast later when they are ripe. The water source here is not very good. It is a walled-in spring that has stagnant water in it but a small trickle of water flowing into it. I held my cook pot under the trickle and filtered from the pot. Maybe the rain will help the spring.Tomorrow I plan on a 12 mile day. If it is raining, that will probably be enough. I hope it is sunny but from the looks of the sky and the clouds moving in it is most likely going to rain. The elevation here is 3960 feet. The mountain is at 4225 feet. So it is colder up here than down lower at some of the other shelters. It¢s bedtime now and the wind is blowing harder and it is cold and raining. Doesn't look good for tomorrow.
Date: 2005-06-03
From: U.S. 501, Va. 130

To: Punchbowl Shelter
Miles today: 10.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Started @ US 501Destination: Punchbowl ShelterMiles today: 10.5Total Miles: 783.1Stayed in shelterDay 84I was up at the usual time of about 6 a.m. The bed was terrible--probably worse than the hard floor. Beach Party continued to sleep so I gathered up my damp clothes and walked to the laundry to finish drying them. I had only rinsed them out yesterday in the sink. When I returned I went to the restaurant for breakfast. It was pretty good. Then I went to the ATM for some cash since I had used almost all I had on the motel. I started out on the trail at 9:30 after getting a hitch with a lady that was on her way to work at a post office. It was my first experience hitch-hiking alone. Beach Party had to make a few phone calls and wanted to wait until later. Soon after I got on the trail I saw a turtle on the trail and took a picture. It was the first one I've seen out here. Then a little while later I heard a cracking sound and then it sounded like a tree fell up further on the mountain. The trail was pretty much all up today so when I got to the shelter I was beat. There were 2 section hikers there that had been there since the day before. They are getting off tomorrow.   Beach Party and a hiker, Hammer, were already there (they had passed me about 2 miles before the shelter). Then Firefly and Hazy Sonic came in. They had also stayed in the motel we stayed in last night. Firefly is an RN and will be going into the Air Force in August. There is a fairly large pond here and the first thing I heard when I got here were the bull frogs. Later the other frogs started making their noises. It sounded like home. Over the last few weeks I have been seeing lots of blueberry bushes with either blossoms or little green berries on them. The bears and hikers will have a feast this summer. There is a card game going on now as I am about ready to go to sleep. Nothing will keep me awake tonight as I am very tired. Only 10 miles but the climb was tough. There was a little rain this morning but most was water was off the trees when the wind blew. I had to take off my rain jacket because I was getting wetter with sweat than from rain. It turned out to be a pretty good day for hiking.
Date: 2005-06-05
From: Hog Camp Gap

To: Tye River, Va. 56
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: light rain

Started @ Hog Camp Gap, USFS 48Destination: Tye River, Va. 56Miles today: 19.4Total Miles: 819.7Stayed in tentDay 86Some of the trail angels got a little carried away last night after drinking too much. I think it was after 2am before they settled down. To my knowledge none of the thru-hikers participated--but I could be wrong about that. Breakfast was pancakes with several toppings to choose from, sausage, bacon, cantalope, fresh pineapple, bananas, bagels with cream cheese, and more, I'm sure. They even said to take some fruit or something for the hike but I had no room. I still have food in my food bag to eat up. The tent was pretty wet this morning but there was a bright morning sun to help dry things. The sky did not have a cloud in it. A warm humid day for hiking. My miles today are the biggest yet. I wanted to get off the mountain since from down here another climb starts and I wanted to get it over with first thing in the morning. There are 25 miles to the last shelter before going into Waynesboro. And that is where I'd like to be tomorrow night but 25 miles is out of the question. If I can find a place to camp before that shelter then I'll hike the rest of the way in on Tuesday. The problem is that the data book does not list any camping spots and there are no shelters other than the 2 that are within the first 10 miles of hiking tomorrow. I am camped down by the river. I filtered my water and washed off in the stream. I was the only one here until about 9:30 when Handyman stopped by to set up his tent. He did 25 miles today. I have met him before at Kincora Hostel but have not seen him since. At least I'm glad I have company. This campsite is just off the road and it makes me feel better knowing someone else is here.Well, it is time to sleep and re-energize for tomorrow. Good night.
Date: 2005-06-08
From: Dripping Rock Parking Area

To: Rockfish Gap
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: few clouds

Started @ Dripping Rock Parking areaDestination: Rockfish GapMiles today: 14.6Total miles: 849.6Stayed in hostelDay 89We got a shuttle out to the Dripping Rocks Parking area with a volunteer from the church hostel. She also has section hiked the trail and is a trail maintainer. We started at 8:30 and finished at 3:30. When we finished at Rockfish Gap RedHat asked a woman in a car that was parked there if she was going into Waynesboro and if so could she give us a ride. While we waited for her to leave we got a couple of sodas and a couple of ice cream bars from the nearby gas station. Boy, did they taste good after the hot humid day of hiking! We asked to be dropped off at the post office so I could pick up my mail. Then we walked to the hostel. After we showered we went to the grocery store and then to the Chinese restaurant next door, which we were told was very good. It was Ok, but I like a particular Chinese restaurant at home better. The trail today was not too bad but there were some rocks at times. The thing about today was the heat and humidity. When we got to town it looked like it could rain and felt like it too. Not much of a breeze going at all. At least we can get a hot shower tonight. Tomorrow we will start hiking through the Shenandoah National Park. It will take a week more to get through and then we will be almost to Harpers Ferry. So now I need to get some sleep to prepare for more hot humid days through the Shenendoahs.
Date: 2005-06-11
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Loft Mountain Campground
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Started @ Blackrock HutDestination: Loft Mountain CampgroundMiles today: 7.4Total Miles: 877Stayed in tentDay 92We were on the trail by 7am today. I had awakened around 12:15am with a headache and still had it this morning. I took some medicine for it but it did not go away until this afternoon sometime, although it did let up a bit throughout the day. But this morning it did keep me from moving very fast. I have not had any coffee for a couple of days so thought it might be that or the fact that the humidity was so high. I have had a tickle in my throat and thought that it may be due to allergies. I need to pick up some cough drops today to use at night. There was one place on the trail today that was a place for pictures--it was Blackrock. Huge rocks everywhere in the middle of the side of the mountain. It took some doing for the trail maintainers to clear away enough of the rocks to be able to make a trail that was not a rock scramble. We got to the campground at 11am and got our tent site paid for and headed for the restaurant to eat. A ranger tried to tell us it was nothing special--just fast food! Obviously, he did not know that that is exactly what hikers want. The restaurant is a 1.3 mile hike down an access road to Skyline Drive but we were able to get a hitch. Yum! Was the food ever good! And I had a blackberry milkshake afterwards! After we got back to our campsite we set up our tents and then hung our food bags. It is a requirement because they said there is a bear in the area. We had seen MacPac at the camp store and told him he could share our tenting area so he came to set up his tent also. Then RedHat and I went to do our laundry and I took a 5 minute shower for $1. I wore my raingear until my clothes dried.By the time laundry and shower were over Redhat had asked a woman for a ride to the restaurant so we could have another meal. While we were in there Spike and Hopper drove up in their truck and camper. They gave us a ride back to the campground and we shared the space for a car (which we do not have) with them. So there are 5 of us here now. Hopper had something pop in her calf so has not been able to hike since I last saw her on the trail last week. But Spike is hiking a section every day. Troll, Anchor, and Oblivious are here in the park, also. Masa was seen here sometime today but I have not seen him. We were going to offer to share our tenting space with him if we saw him.Oh, I forgot! We saw a bear today and I got a picture of it. It crossed the trail up ahead of RedHat. It was a pretty big one--at least it seemed to me that it was. It looked right at us but it just moved right on. It is almost dark and I want to get ready for bed. It has been a bit breezier today and has felt good but now it is getting a bit chilly. It did not rain anywhere we were today, but it did look like it was going to several times. I pray the rain stays away tonight so I do not have to pack up a wet tent in the morning. Good-night.
Date: 2005-06-12
From: Loft Mountain Campground

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Started @ Loft Mountain CampgroundDestination: Hightop HutMiles today: 14Total Miles: 891Stayed in tentDay 93The Wayside restaurant did not open until 9am and we did not want to wait until then to go eat the Blueberry Hiker's Delight (3 large blueberry pancakes with bacon, ham, or sausage). Our tents were pretty wet from the moisture over the night and we waited a couple of hours for them to dry. We moved everything to another camping area's parking space where the sun was shining brightly to hasten the drying process. The sky was blue with a few white clouds so it looks like it is going to be a hot day. Yesterday the wind was blowing and made the day nice. Last night the wind blew quite a lot but it did not rain even though the clouds yesterday evening looked like there could be rain. We got on the trail by 8:30 and after we had walked 2 miles there was a sign post that said the Wayside was only .5 mile off the trail. The trail goes pretty much around the campgrounds and so we were coming back around in a large U-turn. The blueberry pancakes were calling and even though the half mile was down and that meant it was a half mile up on bellies full of pancakes. RedHat ditched her pack half way down but I was reluctant to do that. Anyway, when we got there MacPac was there having his breakfast. He did not leave when RedHat and I left because he was going for his breakfast from the campgrounds. He was quite surprised when he saw us. When we left to get back on the trail he followed us back to the trail so he would not have to go back and do the part that goes around the grounds. He is section hiking, he says, and can skip. Five of the miles we did toward the end of our hike were done slack-packing. A trail angel that has been slacking the Troll family offered to slack us so we took him up on it. It sure made the climbs go faster and we did pretty good on the time--over 2 miles an hour--a little faster than the usual 2 miles an hour here in the Shenendoahs. At the end he gave us each a large gatorade to drink. Other trail magic was sodas and cans of lemonade from a cooler near a road crossing. They were from Spike and Hopper.At the shelter tonight is MacPac, Circuit Rider, Sherlock, Mayfly, Doc, Pogo, DandyLion, and a couple with a dog that are section hiking. There are entries in the shelter register about many sightings of bear here and one of a bear getting into a hiker's food that was left on the picnic table while he went to get water. We did not pass any place to get food after the breakfast feast so we have to wait until tomorrow to get food at a camp store--not a short-order grill, but there are sodas, ice cream, chips, snacks, etc. That is one good thing about hiking through here. It is a bit expensive, though, but at least I do not have to carry as much food with me.Well, it is getting dark and even a little chilly so will get into my sleeping bag and get some sleep. Good-night.
Date: 2005-06-13
From: Hightop Hut

To: Bearfence Mountain Hut
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Started @ Hightop HutDestination: Bearfence Mountain HutMiles today: 12.4Total Miles: 903.4Stayed in shelterDay 94Redhat and I were on the trail by 6:20 this morning. It was somewhat cool but before many minutes of hiking went by we were perspiring quite profusely. There was a lot of climbing today but we only did 12 miles and had plenty of time to get to the shelter. We stopped at the camp store and they were all out of pints of ice cream so I got 2 klondyke bars, a root beer and then went back for some Doritos, another soda, and some cheese and crackers for the shelter tonight. Redhat wanted to get hot dogs for tonight but they were all sold out so she bought cans of weanie beanies to put on hot dog buns. That was dinner tonight. This shelter is near the campgrounds so there was a family of 5 from northwest Ohio here after we arrived to look at the hut. They do a lot of hiking and want to do a thru-hike someday with their children. A ridgerunner is here this evening. He is checking out the increased bear activity in this area. Apparently the berries are late this year due to the late spring and the bears are hungrier. As I was hiking this morning I heard a noise like a branch or limb cracking and looked to see if I could see a bear in a tree. The area was down in a dark area under a bunch of trees with a lot of dark dead downed trees and limbs about so it was hard to see. Then I saw a silhouette of a bear head and when I moved up further and looked back it looked the back end of a bear. But at the time I was uncertain because of the darkness of the area Just a few minutes later, DandyLion, from England, came up the trail and he said that he just saw his first bear--a small bear coming down from a tree. That is when I was fairly sure I had seen the momma bear standing by her cub in a tree. I guess we are about half through the park now. It has gone quite fast but I am beginning to feel the need for a day off without hiking.Well, it is getting cooler and I am ready to sleep although it is still quite early--7:40. At least I will lie down and if I fall asleep I fall asleep. Trouble is, I wake up too early and cannot go back to sleep. I guess that is one reason we get started so early in the morning.
Date: 2005-06-14
From: Bearfence Mountain Hut

To: Rock Spring Hut
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Started @ Bearfence Mountain HutDestination: Rock Spring HutMiles today: 11.5Total Miles: 911.9Stayed in shelterDay 95We were on the trail at 7am and got to the Wayside for a meal at 10:30. Redhat had a pancake breakfast and I had a hamburger, fries, and a chocolate sundae. Redhat wanted to stick around and later have lunch before heading out for the shelter which was only 4.4 miles away. I headed on out though because I did not want to hang around. It was cool inside but I was cold and outside I was even cool in the sun. So I hiked on to the shelter but stopped several times at scenic overlooks. The beginning of the trail today was pretty much up for the first 3-4 miles and then was fairly flat. Then after the Wayside there were a lot of scenic views. I did not see any bears today but I saw deer, a turkey, a squirrel, and chipmunks. There are lots of ants here at this shelter. I hope that they stay away after it cools down and gets dark.MacPac and Pokey and Gonzo are the only others at the shelter tonight.   They all told us when they came to the shelter that a couple in a white van was looking for us but they told them we had already left the wayside and was headed here. This would be the couple that slack-packed us the other day. They were supposed to be headed for Waynesboro to slack-pack another hiker. Maybe they want to slack-pack us again since the people they were slack-packing when we met them--the Troll family--are aqua-blazing (canoeing) right now.We're doing 15 miles tomorrow so better get some sleep if the ants don't get us first.
Date: 2005-06-16
From: Thorton Gap, U.S. 211

To: Hogwallow Gap
Miles today: 18.3

Started @ Thornton Gap, US 211Destination: Hogwallow Gap Miles todat: 18.3Total miles: 944.3Stayed in tentDay 97Gordon and Sue had us at the trail at 7:15. Then they met us 4 times throughout the day with the 4th time being at the end at which time we all went back to Elkwallow Wayside for something to eat then back to the campgrounds. MacPac was not with us as he got back on the trail at the Wayside at Elkwallow this morning instead of going all the way back to Thornton Gap. After he gets to Harpers Ferry he is planning a trip to Washington D.C., NY City, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. He wants to do a thru-hike someday but right now he is in this country for just 3 months and wants to see some of the sites. Before starting out I ate 2 granola bars and at the first road crossing where we met Gordon and Sue they gave us Gatorade and had chairs waiting for us to rest in. Next we met them at the Wayside at Elkwallow for lunch. The 3rd time they had the chairs out again and offered Gatorade again. They are such an amazing couple. It seems the only thing they want to do is help hikers. Having the day broken up into 4 segments where we were being met really helped to make the 18 miles go quickly. I really was feeling good and felt I could have gone further but there was no need and I really did not want to. I wore only my sock liners today and I think my feet did hurt less. I think I will be getting a half size larger trail runner and then I will be more comfortable in the liners and socks. And of course, having only a light day pack on was a tremendous help.The trail today had some nice views again and there were lovely spots along the trail as well. One place was lined with mountain laurels on both sides of the trail and another place had a lot of Turkey Beards growing along the sides of the trail. Some places you could look out and see nothing but sky until you got closer to the edge of the mountain or overlook and then you could look down into the Shenandoah Valley. The wind blew all day and I actually got cold whenever we stopped for very long. But while hiking and sweating I was thankful for the cool breezes that cooled us. We saw no bears today but did see a deer which startled RedHat soon after we got on the trail. We apparently spooked it and it took off suddenly from close to the trail. Then another time a bunch of birds that were in the bushes next to where RedHat walked by suddenly flew out and startled her. I don't know what kind of birds they were.Tomorrow we are going to do another 18 mile day. Toto is meeting us at US 522 and at that point after RedHat and I have hiked 10 miles we will take our packs out of Gordon and Sue's van and unload our packs into Toto's car and carry only the water, snacks, first aid kit, etc, with us in our packs. Gordon and Sue will then take us north to Manassas Gap and drop us off so we can all 3 hike 8 miles back to the car at US 522. Then we will go into Front Royal for a day off. So now it is hiker bedtime (8:45pm) and time to get some sleep.