morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-03-16
From: luray, va

To: day's inn in luray.
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here once again. Right now we (Tracy, Cassidy, and myself) are at Day's Inn in Luray. They got off the trail because the weather was forecasted to turn worse in the afternoon. Picked them up at Hogback overlook around 2 pm, so we went and picked up a room at the above mentioned motel. So at this present moment, we are watching TV and doing the junk food gig. So I thought I would take a little bit of time write in the trail journals page. Some observations to make about being trail support. First, one needs to be flexible as far as being able to pick up the person or people that you are supporting. When bad weather comes (as it did today), them you need to be able to pick them up. It does not matter what the plan is; those can always be modified. What is paramount is the safety of the people on the trail that you are supporting. So while the snow keeps mounting up outside, will be back on the trail when the weather gets better.Take care,Foodwalker...............Hi, Tracy McG. Very cold when we got up today. Set off about 8:30. Passed a large group of Boy Scouts who had spent the night at Gravel Springs Hut. A little concerned about water, but came to a tiny spring trickling across the trail. After clearing away some of the leaves, we had a nice water source and filtered enough for the day. Thought we might get 10-12 miles today, but when we stopped for lunch I was able to check the weather forecast and found the threat of snow had been upgraded to a major winter storm. Thought it would be best to get off the trail until it blows over. Thankfully, I was able to contact Foodwalker with the change in plans, and we got safely off the trail about an hour before the snow started.
Date: 2014-03-18
From: day's inn in luray.

To: waynesboro1
Miles today: 0.0

Got up early in the morning to head to Waynesboro to start north on the Appalachian trail rather than wait at Luray for the skyline parkway to open up. We were on the road around 8:30; Tracy and Cassidy started around 10:00; their destination for tonight was the Calf Mountain shelter. Last contact had them climbing Calf Mountain. They were definitely ready to go; will see how their journey went. Will be trying to go shelter to shelter for the next couple of days, so as to be protected from the cold weather at night. I have been given permission to spend the night in a Walmart parking lot. If your trail angel budget is somewhat limited, sleeping out for free is definitely the way to go. As I go, I will also check to see if I can stop at church parking lots to sleep overnight. Again, there is the chance that I might be invited to people's homes, which I will not pass up either. Cannot afford to continually stay in motels. I think I will make it a point to give people the trail journals information if they are interested in following us,Back to the weather: it was drizzly for most of the way from Luray to Waynesboro. As we got closer to Waynesboro, it also seemed to be foggier. It was definitely more foggy when we got the skyline drive area. So both Tracy and Cassidy were going into it during the beginning of their hike.That's it for right now.Foodwalker signing off.
Date: 2014-03-19
From: waynesboro1

To: waynesboro2
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: few clouds

The day has been pretty nice after about 11 am; before that it was overcast and somewhat cloudy. The forecast looks good so far. We could use a few days of sunshine to melt off a lot of the snow on the mountains to make for a better hiking experience for Tracy and Cassidy. I had to drop them off to hike northbound yesterday morning; now I have to wait for the skyline drive to open up for traffic. At the last weather report from the park service, there were a couple of areas on the skyline that were open, but a lot of it was closed off because of snow and ice. Now it is a matter of waiting until the roads open. I do know that Virginia handles snow differently than Wisconsin does. In Wisconsin, the plows are out as soon as snow or ice comes, laying down salt and plowing like crazy until the roads are relatively clear. Do not have anything philosophical to add--just to note that trail angels need to aware that there is going to be some down time involved in a hike/adventure of this magnitude. What you do occupy your time is up to you. I read, visit libraries, walk, write, check out the town, and sometimes do my part to stimulate the economy in that area. Am also doing this while on a low carb/high fat meal plan. Because I had been having problems with high blood sugars, I started doing this diet in November of last year. So far my blood sugars have been under control for the past three months. Am seeing how it does as we are on this hike. Oftentimes, there is more than one journey that is going on during the hike/adventure, which is true of life. Signing off.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-20
From: waynesboro2

To: waynesboro3
Miles today: 13.2

Foodwalker here again--got a lot of final things done today; got an oil change for the Sedona, got front windshield wipers installed, did some final shopping, and generally got the whole thing ready for traveling tomorrow. Trust that Tracy and Cassidy are doing okay. Will check the skyline drive road conditions tomorrow as to how that may change. At this point, I have to go north on 340 to Elkton, and then get on 33 to head for the skyline. A note to the trail angels who may or may not be following me and my wife in the journal entries: when you get to Waynesboro, Virginia, it would be worth your while to shop at Smart Shoppers if you need to resupply for food. Some price examples include a three ounce package of turkey sausage for 33 cents, eight ounces of cheese for 1.79 to 1.99, 46 ounce bottle of V-8 fusion juice for 1.49, and a 14 ounce package of bratwurst for .99. So take my recommendation for what it's worth. They have an amazing diversity of produce. Hopefully will meet Tracy and Cassidy tomorrow. Time still unknown. Take care--foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-21
From: waynesboro3

To: powell's gap and beyond
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: broken clouds

This is actually the 22nd, but did not have any cell reception after I left Waynesboro. When I did, a was more involved in doing other things. So left Waynesboro yesterday morning. Early into the drive I saw 5 turkeys cross the road; they were walking pretty sedately until I came close, and then they picked up a little more speed. Then I saw three deer crossing the road, and again did not have a chance to take their picture.Meanwhile, Tracy and I were doing some text messaging. Finally decided to meet at Powell Gap, even though there was no parking lot. Had brought along some doughnuts and juice, which went over well when they saw it. They then left and hiked to South River camping area, and hiked a little bit past that to camp for the night. Meanwhile, I went to find a spot to rest for the night. Did so.The day could be summarized to the first five days to the tune of "the Twelve Days of Christmas": on the road I was driving these were the things I saw, five turkeys trotting, four deer a leaping, three bikers biking, two hikers hiking, and another place to spend the night."Signing off   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-22
From: powell's gap and beyond

To: fisher's gap
Miles today: 15.3
Weather: scattered clouds

I had written an entry for today, but I must have done something to not have come up for this day's entry. Technology and I are on ambivalent terms.To quickly summarize: met Tracy and Cassidy on the trail three times, the last two being Milam Gap and Fisher's Gap. After they met me in the morning, they went slack packing until Fisher's Gap, where they picked up their full packs once again. They went through so much water that I had to resupply myself twice. Before I stopped at Fisher's Gap, I checked out further meeting places down the trail. Slipped off the road into a muddy area, and I had to keep on moving so I wouldn't get stuck along the side of the road. Splattered up the truck pretty badly, but I got out of it. Signing off. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-23
From: fisher's gap

To: thornton's gap
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here again--with another trail angel/ support entry. I don't know how Tracy and Cassidy are doing it, but they have just posted their third day in a row that they will have hiked 15 or more miles a day. So, congrats to them, for keeping on going on even though they have been facing chilly conditions for most of this hike. I don't think that spring has gotten the memo that it is supposed to have already started. Will see what the hike will bring. It has been getting colder throughout the day, and should be cold once they start out again in the morning. Met them at hawksbill gap and then they switched to slack pack. Went to church service in Luray and then got back to meet them at the pinnacles picnic area. I arrived there shortly before they did. They wanted to slack pack until panorama/Thornton's gap, and they made it there about 5:20 or so. I may spend the night here, and then meet them at Beahm's Gap, so they can slack pack one more time. Once they finish with that, then will go to Waynesboro for a motel stay. Food repacking, resupply, laundry , food and rest, not necessarily in that order. Sun is heading out of sight, and a relatively busy day tomorrow. Weather has been changeable; yesterday it was very warm out, while today was straight from the arctic. So much for global warming.Signing off. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-24
From: thornton's gap

To: waynesboro 4
Miles today: 11.3

Foodwalker here--the weather last night and most of today can be summed up in a very few words--it was cold in them there hills. Or frigid, or chilly, or extremely cool (temperature, not attitude ). The wind was blowing really hard, and could feel the van shaking around in the wind. I spent the night at the panorama/Thornton gap rest area. When I got up, I was thankful for my Zero degree sleeping bag and for a heated rest room close by.Made it to Beahm's Gap relatively early. Parked the van in the sunshine to give the illusion of warmth, and after a while it was actually warm in the van. Tracy and Cassidy (aka the sisterhood of Payne)showed up when it was really starting to feel comfortable. They then slack packed to Hogback overlook, where they had gotten off before the big snow storm hit. They got finished around 2:00 pm. From there we went to Waynesboro, where we are staying at the Comfort Inn. This is the clean up, rest chow down portion of the trail. Both Tracy and Cassidy have been doing really well with the hiking. For supper, we went to the AYCE buffet at the Golden Corral, where we definitely sought to do that. Right now am working on the laundry, which took three loads to do so. Tracy and Cassidy are working on repacking and getting food for the next few days. May be less opportunity for slack packing.   At least will have a warm place to sleep tonight. Next couple of days are supposed to be cold, then supposedly there will be a warm-up. I'll believe it when I see it. Signing off for now. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-03-26
From: Top of Humpback Mountain, VA

To: Back to Rockfish Gap, VA
Miles today: 0.0

Foodwalker here--Tracy, Cassidy and I are getting off of the trail because of the cold and the extreme snowfall which took place yesterday. When they started out yesterday morning , the snow was coming down, but the forecast was for 1-2" at the most. However, the show kept on coming down, and ended with well over 2" on the ground, even at Waynesboro. It was also very cold in Waynesboro . It was much colder and much more snow on the AT.   Got Tracy and Cassidy off of the trail at Rockfish Gap. We are now in Youngstown, waiting for the the trails to clear off and the weather to warm up. Will restart the journal entries once we get back on the trail.Signing off for now.   Foodwalker               Hi, this is Tracy McG. It was quite an interesting day. We survived the night okay. We usually get up about 5 am, but decided to just sleep until daylight because it was so cold! Got up a little before 7. Just had a candy bar and some cheese for breakfast, because it was too cold to mess with my usual Nido and cereal. There was a beautiful blue sky and strong wind, very cold! We packed as much as we could inside the tents. My gloves were frozen stiff, but I had a warm pair of mittens. My boots and gaiters were also frozen stiff, but slowly loosened them up and got them on. The water was fine, because I kept it inside socks inside my sleeping bag. We took the plunge and emerged from the tents and packed them up as fast as we could, which was hard because our fingers kept freezing so fast and we'd have to stop to thaw them out! Started hiking about 8:40. Started to go over the final rocks at the peak, but Cassidy wanted to backtrack down the mountain instead, so we did. Shortly we came to a blue-blaze trail to the Humpback Rocks parking area 1.3 miles off, and started down that. Went over a pretty rocky downhill stretch, wind whipping the snow into deep drifts. Cassidy gave up trying to climb down the rocks and just sat down and slid down the trail, which worked fine! I could see the tops of the rocks fine after she slid over them and got down them fine too. Eventually we came to a wide stretch of trail, with strategically placed benches! Unfortunately the wind really whipped through this area, and the drifts were knee-deep to almost hip-deep. Falling was very easy, soft landings, getting up again was another story! Lot of laughing going on! Made it to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which was closed, and from there we just walked a little under 6 miles back to Rockfish Gap, where Foodwalker was waiting for us. Glad to see him! We decided to take a few days off and let some of the snow melt, and so headed off to visit our mother and other family.
Date: 2014-03-31
From: Back to Rockfish Gap, VA

To: chimney rock
Miles today: 5.9
Weather: clear sky

Foodwalker here--Tracy and Cassidy have started up the Appalachian Trail again. We started out from Youngstown about 6am, got to the trail about 2pm. They were excited to get back on the trail. We got to Rockfish gap, and we saw that the Blue ridge Parkway was closed. This was somewhat frustrating, as we were anticipating that the temperatures would have melted the snow on the parkway. The road was clear at the start of the parkway; this while it was in the low 60s at Rockfish Gap. This is not the way that they handle snow issues in the Midwest. So, what they decided to do was to go to Reid's Gap and start walking down the trail from Reid's Gap; Tracy just said that they had gotten to Chimney Rock area, and will be heading south from there. Should be meeting them Wednesday evening. Will be checking on them weather report to see if the snow has melted enough to be passible sometime in the near future. I am not holding my breath for that to open any time soon. I am somewhat tired of seeming to be living at Waynesboro. There are some places where I think that everyone that I see regularly is becoming somewhat familiar. I do not know of there is any probability of moving on. For all you people who are providing trail support: in the long run, it is better to be flexible and adapt to different situations, sort of like plastic man in changing circumstances. You adapt to the trail; it does not work the other way around.More later. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-01
From: chimney rock

To: past the priest
Miles today: 10.9
Weather: few clouds

Foodwalker or trail angel/support section of the journal is ready to be entered--it was a very sunshiny and warm day in Waynesboro, at least in the town section. I am not sure about the temperature on the trail. The first thing that I did this morning was to check the Blue Ridge phone announcement for the road conditions; they hadn't even updated the forecast from a couple of days ago. So this rather hard to understand southern drawl started talking, and I found out they were giving the road conditions for the 30th of March--they did have the year right. It is not helpful for people who are checking the trail conditions to see if they can reach the hikers they are seeking to support. As I said, it was a very nice day; I did a little lazing and some walking around the area. At least got some exercise, and it was a pleasant day to enjoy. I am finding, like I did last year, that not continually knowing what the news is is not exactly the worst thing in the world. A lot of what passes as public discourse in the different venues is nothing more than dressed up name calling. There appears to be little civility or respect towards each other. I do not like this type of demonizing rhetoric. It's kind of like "your mother wears combat boots." Every one should get get a life; I have found that these rhetorical natterers usually have narrow minds, little ideas, and are seeking to deflect attention from their own lack of accomplishment. Enough of this rant. Must be too much time thinking.More later.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-02
From: past the priest

To: long mountain wayside
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here again--could not get out am entry last night so I am getting one out this afternoon. Yesterday I finally made it from Waynesboro and got to Buena Vista. So have finally made some southward progress. I was getting to feel like the Bill Murray character in Groundhog Day, where the day keeps on repeating itself over and over again. At least don't have to start wondering if the Blue Ridge Parkway is opened or closed. Weather was also very pleasant; lot of bugs were out, and it actually had a lot of warmth and sunshine. While I was in Buena Vista, I walked a section of the Maury River walk. After that, I went to the meeting place on 60 east out of Buena Vista. As soon as I went under Blue Ridge Parkway, I lost pretty much any signal and lost any chance of getting in contact with anyone. I knew that they might not be down to meet me in the evening. They didn't make it down that evening. I did meet a lady who has a hostel nearby, one that had not made it into awol 's 2014 guide, but had been mentioned in his update. It is the Three Springs Hostel, phone # 434-922-7069, and is $40 per person per night. I believe meals were included in the cost. She has hiked some of the trail as well.Signing off. Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-03
From: long mountain wayside

To: glasgow shelter
Miles today: 14.8
Weather: clear sky

Foodwalker here once again. Did Tracy and Cassidy get off of the mountain? I did find out that they camped at Hog Camp Gap. It sounded like they got so tired that they made camp there, and then hiked down to the parking area, and it sounded like the Three Ridges and the Priest mountains were rather difficult. But they made it okay. After I am done with this entry, will text them and see where they are camping out. Not a whole lot else to report. They have taken out a lot of the brush from around the shelter, and it looks like it is well before the big hiker migration.Tracy and Cassidy still seem to be in good spirits; today is Cassidy's birthday.More later--FoodwalkerShould be picking them up on 501 by the James River, and perhaps coming to Glasgow for a bit.
Date: 2014-04-04
From: glasgow shelter

To: james river 501
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here once again. Met trouble at the shelter last night and we talked for quite a while. He had through hiked the trail from Georgia to Maine in 2006. He was doing some more hiking along the trail. He was very talkative, and very friendly. Took him to the James River trail crossing about 10 am. He was the first hiker I was able to give some trail support to. The morning was relatively overcast but was very beautiful.I them went to wait at the James River crossing, did some exploration up north on the Appalachian Trail. They got finished with their 13+ mile hike around 400 pm. We then went to the budget inn in Buena (pronounced boona ) vista. Evening given over to eating and resting.Catch you later.   Foodwalker
Date: 2014-04-05
From: james river 501

To: hunting creek trail
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Foodwalker here again, with the daily trail update. We had gotten a room for last night at the budget inn at Buena Vista. I would not recommend it; it was shabby, beds were hard, the refrigerator did not refrigerate, the whole room was relatively run-down and depressing. The price we paid for the room was too much. We did have a third bedroom, which was a bit odd. That was handy for getting the tents and other things dried out. We got a fairly early start on the trail. Got to the James River footbridge around 900 am, and I walked about a mile on the trail before I turned back to head to the car. Then went to pettite's gap and met them there around 2:30 pm. At least they had about 9 miles or so of slack packing. Am presently in Buchanan; I will be meeting them on 43 Monday sometime.Done for now--Foodwalker ..................hi, this is Tracy McG. We had a great day of hiking. Crossed the long footbridge over the James River. It was very nice having Foodwalker hike with us for a mile or so. Slackpacked 10 miles, which was great, felt like we were on a holiday! A little difficult putting the heavy packs back on after that. Ran into Rag, whom we had met last year as Navigator, very nice visiting with him. Second person we've met from last year so far.