morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2009-05-09
From: Atkins, VA

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: broken clouds

Sassy had to close the door to our bunkhouse at 3 in the morning, when people in the parking lot next door decided to start setting up for the citywide yard sale.By the time I woke up at 7, the streets were full of locals out looking for a good deal. I've never seen so many people out all at once for yard sales!We went out for pancake breakfasts at the local exxon station, and did a bunch of dallying. We kept waffling over doing another zero, slackpacking, or just hiking on. We eventually got a ride up to Atkins from Sandalwood, and are now hiking south to Damascus for trail days.Within the first few miles, we ran into a neat living history museum. I ended up exploring it for almost two hours, while the rest of the group hiked on.I met up with everybody at Partnership shelter for the night. It's an awesome newer shelter, where you can have pizza delivered, and there's an attached shower.I'm about to go to bed, stuffed and happy. We just polished off two large pizzas, an order of bread sticks, beer, and 16 hot wings.Ahhhhh.....yum.
Date: 2009-05-10
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Hurricane Shelter
Miles today: 19.7

We didn't roll into camp tonight until 9:30pm.We had a relaxing day that didn't start until after 8am, when we all pried ourselves out of our sleeping bags. Most of the shelter had packed up and left already. I usually like to leave by 7.We lollygagged and made hot breakfast, and didn't start hiking until 10.The terrain was pretty gentle. Even though there were lots of ups and downs, it was gradual and well graded.After 10 miles, we stopped at a shelter for a liesurely lunch. Hiked 4 more miles and hitched a couple of miles down to a cafe, where we hung out for another few hours, enjoying our burgers, fries, and milkshakes.We left the cafe and got back on the trail around 7:30 and did another almost 5 miles.We didn't plan on doing almost 20, it just sort of happened. All of the long breaks today were fantastic! It's nice to be at a point where you can do an unplanned 20 without killing yourself.When we got to the shelter at 9:30, it was full of hikers, out cold. Kogito was there! Legs and Bonesey left a note on his bag to come find us in the morning.
Date: 2009-05-11
From: Hurricane Shelter

To: Hurricane Shelter
Miles today: 0.1

None of us woke up and got up until 10am. It was rainy and cold.We packed up and walked .1 of a mile back to hurricane mtn shelter. Shortest Nero ever!We made breakfast and decided to make it a zero day. Spent it in our sleeping bags playing cards and snacking. I finally learned how to play euchre! It's been a goal of mine for something to pick up on the trail.After supper and sitting around a fire, we're going to play some more cards. Such a rough life.
Date: 2009-05-12
From: Hurricane Shelter

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 28.0
Weather: scattered clouds

shook Daddy Long Legs' feet around 6am, as part of my designated alarm clock duties. We were all up and out of the shelter before 7am - a first for Sassy and DLL.We were all so grateful we has zeroed the day before to wait out the crappy weather! Today was sunny and gorgeous, and we traversed some of the prettiest section of the trail so far.The Grayson Highlands were spectacular! It looked like somewhere out west with the rolling, open hillsides and herds of wild ponies. Some of the ponies were still wet behind the ears!We took a long late lunch at one of the shelters, and decided to push on to make tomorrow easier, with less miles. We want to roll back into Damascus at a reasonable hour, so we can grab a bite to eat at a local resturaunt.Altogether we did something like 28 miles today. It's so nice to be able to just do 20+ when we feel like it. When we first started, 12 miles took all day.
Date: 2009-05-13
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Out by 7 and on the trail, hobbling away. My feet have been killing me! The skin on my heels and big toes has been cracking deeply and hurting like hell.When the AT joined and then split back away from the Virginia creeper trail, I stayed on the VCT. The route was flat, even, and gorgeous. It follows an old railroad grade along a river.The AT goes up and down steep mountains along the same route, often coming back down to almost touch the creeper trail, before veering off again.Even with my turtlish pace, I beat the group into town by an hour and a half. I stopped at the first resturaunt to wait for them, and ordered a chicken salad sandwich, fries, sweet tea and a brownie.As I was sitting on the front porch, I heard a sound like a goose in distress. Stewball! He had just hiked into town a couple of hours previously. We hadn't seen him since Erwin, TN, where he got off for a few days with some foot issues.A little while later we saw this rest of the group hiking in. Vigorous honking ensued. We honk to find each other in crowds, when we're coming into a shelter, or just for the hell of it along the trail. Less used but no less amusing sounds are the howler monkey, goat, chicken, sheep, and horse.We all headed over to the house next door to The Place Hostel to set up our tents. I got a sweet hammocking spot between two shade trees along the front lawn.The night we stayed up late at our picnic table, playing card games. I get a craving every now and again for port, so I sipped some of my 5.99 bottle while others had beers. We stayed up until actual midnight! (versus hiker midnight, which is 9pm).
Date: 2009-05-14
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

My eyes opened before 7am even though my brain told them not to. I peeled myself out of the hammock, and Sassy and I went for $1.50 coffees at the local espresso joint.We sipped our free refills and chatted with a bunch of other hikers, before schlepping on down to the local Baptist church to get free meal tickets for this evening. They only gave away 300. They say this town of 900 swells to 25,000 for trail days.Today was spent goofing off and hanging out with our reunited group. All 6 of us haven't been together in one place since Erwin.We watched the hot dog and cake eating competition, browsed the local stores, chatted with all of our long lost thru hiker buddies (trail days is like a giant family reunion), and completely stuffed ourselves at the dinner put on by the Baptist folks.After gorging, we took a walk through the park to digest. We ended up playing tag with two kids on the playground, for more than two hours. We were all laughing so hard that we had to keep stopping mid-chase to catch our breath. In the middle of being chased by "it", I accidentally dove head first down a slide, did a half summersault, and a mini face plant. I ended up on my back with my head hanging off the end of the slide. I'm told the area underneath one of my eyes is red and swollen. The rest of our group also took some falls. Crazy hikers!I raided the hiker box at the place next door and picked up some awesome free food in bar form, given out by the folks at Billville. I ate well today, and the only thing I bought was a cup of coffee. Woot woot! Stewball took Kogito and I out for artichoke pizza for lunch. Mmmmmmmm. Tomorrow looks to be even more free food and awesome activities.
Date: 2009-05-15
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Woke around 6 and took a shower at a travel trailer courtesy of the local baptist church. It was fantastic!Got my hair trimmed at a local beauty shop, and had an earful of juicy small town gossip.Wandered. Ate a ton of free food. Hung out with Legs' dad and the rest of the gang over at the hotel room they had for the weekend.Bonesey, Stewball and I went over to tent city that night to check out the drum circle and the late night hiker craziness. We didn't get back to our tents until almost 3am. I got 3 hours of sleep.
Date: 2009-05-16
From: Damascus, VA

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I fell ungracefully out of my hammock at 6:30 this morning. Sometimes the ground is a lot closer than I think it is.I did a lot of wandering and talking. Did contradancing for 3 hours tonight, too.Sooooo sleepy. It's 11:30 and I have yet to go to bed.
Date: 2009-05-17
From: Damascus, VA

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

I had too much fun and hadn't packed anything this weekend, so this morning I just kind of shoved everything into my new old pack that Luke sent me in the mail, and threw things I didn't need right away into my old pack to mail home.I grabbed a quick bite to eat with the group over at the hotel, then hitched down to tent city to meet up with the Hard Core volunteer trail crew.Every year Bob Peoples takes 50 current year thru hikers and 50 past years hikers/normal people out for a two day volunteer trail project.We worked on building new trail near Watauga Dam. Now there are switchbacks instead of the trail going straight up the mountain. We managed to do 2250 new feet of trail in one day. Woohooooo!Dinner was catered and served at the watauga dam visitor center. They ran out of food. D'oh! Us hikers are a hungry bunch....When we got back to the hostel, I scored my very own secluded spot in an old stone sauna out on the back 9. Everybody else crammed into the straining at the seams hostel, or pitched their tents in the back of it.It was a little nippy out. I hear they broke the record low for this time of year, and hit 34 degrees. I love my cozy sleeping bag!
Date: 2009-05-18
From: Kincora Hostel

To: Kincora Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

We moved the work party to Carvers Gap for some more trail relocation.I attacked the roots and duff with a fire rake, pulaski, and pair of loppers. All together, we created 2250 more feet of trail. When we packed up for the day, others followed behind to paint fresh white blazes on the new trail.Instead of going straight up and down, the trail now has nicely graded switchbacks.Dinnertime was a well managed mob scene. They had us go through a circular line back at the kincora hostel...we picked up our soup appetizer, then looped around to the end of the line to wait for dinner while we slurped the soup. We all polished off the soup and were ready for spaghetti dinner by the time we had arrived back at the front of the line.The most amazing thing about dinner is that Jack and volunteers had cooked the majority of it in the tiny hostel kitchen. This was dinner for 100+ people, half of whom had the appetites of two normal people. We all walked away stuffed. And there were still leftovers. Yay Jack!
Date: 2009-05-19
From: Atkins, VA

To: ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂrawfish Valley Campsite
Miles today: 6.2

After 6 days off the trail for Trail Days and the Hardcore work project, I'm finally back on. Wooohoooo! Ow. My hips and feet wonder why they have to go back to work now.I got a ride back to Atkins from a nice woman who hiked the AT in 04 and had come down for Trail Days.I bought a bottle of Heet from one of the gas stations in Atkins for my new alcohol stove, and sat on the tables outside to sort out my groceries and talk to Luke on the phone.I lollygagged my way up the trail, taking it easy for the first day back on. 6 miles took me 3 hours on easy terrain. I stopped to take lots of pictures and breaks.I'm using sneakers and a new backpack from home that I picked up in Damascus. My old backpack had been coming apart at the seams, and I wanted to see if sneakers would make my feet feel any better than my Chacos. I sent home my canister stove now that it's warmer out, and am trying an alcohol stove on for size. I also swapped out my thin foam pad for my thermarest, so I could sleep more comfortably in shelters.Dinner was half of a bag of .89 cent stir fry veggies, hot cocoa, and some Malaysian style noodles, followed by a couple of spoonfulls of peanut butter and a granola bar. The odds are against one of my fresh pieces of fruit (banana, apple, orange), making it through the night.After being surrounded by so many people for a week, it's odd to be camped by myself tonight. If nobody comes along, this will be my first night without company for the trip so far.Kogito lent me the call of the wild/white fang to read. I think I'll go hang out in my hammock and start reading it. 5:45 isn't too early for bed, is it?
Date: 2009-05-20
From: ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂrawfish Valley Campsite

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 28.0
Weather: clear sky

Not bad for the first full day back on the trail after 6 zeros...Today was hot and sunny. Perfect snake weather. I stepped over a stick on the trail only to have it move on me. Thankfully it was the non poisonous kind. Turned out to be a three foot plus long rat snake.A good day for critters on the trail. I saw a couple of deer, and multiple herds of Holsteins. I had to cut a switchback to get away from the cows, because they wouldn't get off the trail for me to get around. I was just herding them down the AT. After awhile, they started to follow me. They probably wanted to use me as a salty lollipop.I ran out of water for a 2 1/2 hour stretch in the hottest part of the day. There was a lot of hot and sunny ridge walking, with multiple pointless ups and downs. When I finally reached a spring, I sat there and just guzzled water. Mmmmm, liquidy cool goodness.There was also a stretch of grassy open ridge that was just gorgeous.I'm sleeping in the shelter tonight with two section hikers. They're getting up nice and early tomorrow too, so I can stay here in a shelter and not feel guilty when I start to rustle before 6am. Otherwise I'd hammock it, but it's nice not to have to set up and take down.
Date: 2009-05-21
From: Jenkins Shelter

To: Jenny Knob Shelter
Miles today: 23.8
Weather: few clouds

I'm kicking myself for carrying so much food. I don't need all of this since I've been going so fast. Do I keep up the mileage streak tomorrow? Stupid weight. I need a llama!Speaking of animals....I saw my first bears today! They were baby bears, clinging to the side of a tree. I didn't stick around too long, because I didn't know where the momma was.I mentally checked out most of the day. The terrain wasn't too spectacular either in views or hardness.I hitched a ride into Bland via a propane truck, and mailed my sneakers back home. Also sent my camera card back to Luke, so look for pictures soon!Grabbed a burger and filled up my water bladder at the gas station/ resturant/general store. Spent a good chunk of time around town looking for a Virginia map, to no avail. Made it in and out in 2 1/2 hours.Ran out of water again, about two hours away from the next source. These past few days have been long waterless stretches. Somebody actually dropped off a cache of water for us hikers at one of the road crossings.Tonight there are at least a dozen people in an around the shelter. We all tend to pile up around the water sources.
Date: 2009-05-22
From: Jenny Knob Shelter

To: Doc's Knob Shelter
Miles today: 22.6
Weather: broken clouds

Stupid rocks. Every second one wiggled, even the big mama pajama ones. I usually love rock gardens. I like to run really fast over them, because I'm good at it and most people aren't. Because most of the rocks were wiggly instead of being set well into the trail, I had to walk instead of run. How pedestrian.There was a lot of flat, nice area today, more so than rocky sections. . I cruised most of the morning, from when I got out I the shelter at 6:20am, until Wapiti shelter for lunch. Kogito and I spent an hour there, then hiked on to Doc's knob.The last two hours into camp I ran out of water, and my shin started hurting. I lollygagged in an hour after Kogito arrived. We were planning on going another 6 miles or so, but called it quits here.Everybody went to bed at 8. Hiker midnight is getting earlier...I'm hanging in my hammock tonight. I didn't get a very good nights sleep last night in the shelter, so I hope to sleep soundly tonight. Tomorrow, town!
Date: 2009-05-23
From: Doc's Knob Shelter

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Up and out by 6:20, I pulled a nero into Pearisburg by 9:30. Hitched the 2+ miles into town in a pickup that screeched to a halt in the far left lane, in the middle of the road. As I ran and hopped in, I apologized for being smelly. He was already rolling down his window as he smiled and said, "oh no, no problem".I got dropped off at the wally world to do my resupply. Loaded up on fruits and veggies. I went next door to buy a small bottle of Bailey's Irish cream for my nightly hot cocoa. It's the first liquor store I've seen in a long time....we've been in nothing but dry counties for awhile.I got a ride from another customer in the liquor store to the motel that Bonesey was staying in. It's a charecter filled place! Most of the rooms are filled with tenants. The paint is faded turquoise and orange circa the 1970's, the pool out front has been drained for who knows how long, the 24 hour tanning beds are broken, our "no smoking" room has ashes all over the t.v., I pulled massive amounts of long hair out of the tub drain before I even took a shower...and so on. I like it :-) The motel received an AAA award of excellence back in 1983 and 1984. I think it's gone a wee bit downhill in the interim.Spent the day watching trashy tv on my very stained mattress, and moaning about the weight of my pack.My shin suddenly started hurting again yesterday, dammit! It's in the same spot as usual, which is the same spot I dropped a rock on it back when I was 16. Ever since then I've had a dent in my muscle, which I'm thinking might have something to do with the pain.Kogito hiked on before we could track him down. That boy is fast...Bonesey has new shoes that make him look like he has super speedy super powers. They're an obcenely bright yellow and black. All the other hikers have commented on them as he walks past.I put a new shade of polish of polish on for this week - a nice pearlescent green/blue. I've been painting my toes a new color every couple of weeks. Gives me something to look at on the steep uphills. Another good excuse to wear sandals.
Date: 2009-05-24
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Bonesey and I didn't wake up until past 8am. It felt so good to sleep in, sprawled out on my queen size bed.We slowly packed and watched tv, milking our 1pm checkout time for all it was worth.Lunch was a cheeseburger and salad at the Dairy Queen, where Bonesey hopped back on the trail. I turned around and started hitching back to the other end of town. I got a ride from a nice older couple, who dropped me off at the catholic hostel on the hill.The hostel is in a gorgeous location, up in a quiet neighorhood with a fantastic view of the surrounding mountains. There's a path through a field down the hill a quarter mile to the nearby wally world.I had a dinner of corn on the cob, with sauteed onions, bell peppers, mushrooms and garlic. Dessert was a cup of cocoa, and more sliced strawberries with whipped cream.Some of the other hikers and I amused ourselves by reading aloud some if the more absurd/awfull passages out of the numerous romance novels here at the hostel.One line that had us all snorting was "could one look at a man sitting in a chair with his eyes closed and his legs stretched out and say, "I want a baby...come up and love me, I want a baby", or words to that effect?"There were so many bad writing examples, and plunging into deep shimmering vortexes of desire, talking about his special mountaintop, etc, that I laughed so hard I was tearing up.Went to bed around 9, and slept out on the covered porch in the nice warm breeze.I slept out on the covered porch in the nice warm breeze. It's starting to be too hot for my 20 degree bag, which is a nice change of pace.
Date: 2009-05-25
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Zeroed at the catholic hostel to rest up my sore shin. Plotted out the next few days, planning to take it easy. Read the rest of Call Of The Wild.Sauteed perogies and veggies for dinner.Addendum to Monday's journalI groaned inwardly when I saw Patience and his dog arrive at the hostel. We've been crossing paths ever since Springer.He's nice enough I suppose, but his dog is a pain in the ass. It's supposedly his service dog, although he's admitted to another hiker that it's just his pet that he's passing off as a service dog.The dog isn't very well behaved, and it whines constantly. Patience is deaf, so it doesn't bother him.Patience let his dog run loose around the hostel, including over my nice clean down sleeping bag with his soaking wet paws.As I was getting ready for bed, I went to grab something out of my grocery bag in the communal fridge. A bag of mixed veggies and a bag of snow peas were missing from it.I started to write a note to post on the fridge along the lines of "if you didn't pay for it and it's not marked as being free for the taking, don't eat it" when Patience wandered over and admitted to eating my food. He claimed he thought other hikers had left it. Seriously? What part of wrapped in a shopping bag, carefully packaged up to go on the trail in ziplocs, with absolutely no "free" sign on it don't you understand?He ended up going to walmart that night to buy replacements for what he had eaten. I drifted off to sleep on the porch before he got back, with thoughts of him getting lost in the grassy field and falling into the frog pond, dancing in my head.
Date: 2009-05-26
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Rice Field Shelter
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: light rain

I walked to walmart for a banana, yogurt, and juice for breakfast, and my first set of replacement batteries for my headlamp this trip.The hitch out of town was pretty easy. A black SUV (Mercury Mountaineer?) picked me up right outside of walmart. I slid into the leather seats and kept my pack on my lap so I wouldn't get dirt on the clean interior.The guy didn't talk much, and knew exactly where the trailhead was. As I was fiddling with the handle to hop out, I looked over to see the guy start to jerk himself off through his jeans. He said "hey, you can at least let me feel your breasts in exchange for the ride". "uhh, no thanks, I'm married", I replied, and quickly walked into the woods. I only went a few paces to hide in the shrubbery before I stopped to make sure he was leaving. He did, one hand on the wheel and one in his pants. I waited to make sure he was really gone. I figure it would be safer to run screaming down a road into civilization than to try and ditch him in the woods.He was an older guy, in his 60's or so. It was only after I was hiking for a while that I realized it was probably a very good thing I had my pack on my lap...otherwise the guy probably would have reached over and tried to paw me up. My pack covered everything and made a pretty effective barrier.I made it to the shelter in two hours flat. Nothing like a little adrenaline to get you going up the hills!I arrived at 11am in a downpour and decided not to go the extra 2 miles I was planning on today. I've been hanging out with two nice older guys who started on April 4th. They've taken 2 zeros so far. Yesterday was my 18th.