morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2019-04-05
From: Franklin

To: NOC
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: light rain

Made it! I had Matt drop me off at the top of Wayah Bald (mile 119) in the drizzling rain around 9:15AM. Even with only a day pack I knew this would be a long day. I felt great until the great decent that began at mile 130. The rain stopped as predicted but it stayed foggy until late afternoon. I was very happy that by the time I reached the Wesser Bald fire tower things had cleared enough that we could catch a view before the next cloud washed over us. Then the six mile decent began. You don't really realize how high you are until you come down. From the top of Wesser all the mountains around looked like small hills nearby, but as we dropped deeper and deeper into the valley, the mountains appeared far larger and more ominous. We dropped over 3000 ft with sometimes difficult terrain only to know we'd have to climb it all again tomorrow when going up the other side of the valley. I met and hiked with a young Swiss woman for a portion of the day. She has taken a sabbatical from work for the summer to hike the AT. It was fun talking with her about her home. An older couple "Skip and Linda 148" were also moving along. The 148 stands for their combined age. Some people are on a mission already doing more than 20 miles per day. I see them only briefly before they disappear. Some, like Skip and Linda manage 5-7 miles per day and have a wonderful and different AT experience. It is likely I won't see them again as well. And then there are those that somewhat match your own speed. The trail can be a very social place as equal paced AT hikers form a moving community. You tend to see the same people for periods of time and catch up or fall behind as your own speed dictates. The final decent is always exciting. You hear the river, the cars and finally you see the road and buildings through the trees. I was happy to see Leila waiting for me at the road crossing. Her tail was wagging and she showed much more energy than the day before. NOC stand for Nantahala Outdoor Center. This place as grown into quite a large facility for everything from tubing and kayaking to corporate retreats. There was a kayak race course as you see in the Olympics set up in the river. I reached to bottom around 6PM. We didn't see anyone out there so late in the day, but dinner at the associated restaurant overlooking the river was great. The place was crawling with hikers. Nearly a dozen packs were parked outside like motorcycles at a rally, and through the window I could spot another dozen or so hikers lounging across the river at a large fire pit. They all were going to have a good time tonight. I was just heading for bed. Not sure how my legs will feel in the morning when we have 6-7 miles of ascent to get to the top of Cheoah Bald. This next section is 30 miles but I'm planning for 2.5 days to reach my next town destination - Fontana Dam and the beginning of the Smokies. The predict 100% chance rain on the third day but as today once again reminded me, this many miles is too much for the knees and with this long climb ahead I'm planning on 11, then 12 then the rest on Friday.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-06
From: NOC

To: Stechoah Gap
Miles today: 13.9

NOC and up. Five plus hours of up. Much of it had a reasonable grade with only a few sections of challenging rocks or steps. The morning was foggy and the peaks were enshrouded in clouds, but it was slowly clearing as we hiked. Thankfully no rain expected. I say we today because there seemed to be about 20+ of us hiking loosely together. It you stopped for a moment someone would pass. Five minutes later you would pass them again as they took a break. It was a long slow game of leap frog. I had wanted to make it to the top before lunch but I finally couldn't wait that long. The same was true for pretty much everyone else so there was alot of passing and mingling going on. Had some great talks with some of my co-through hikers. The arrival at the peak was exciting. It was clear and you could see the sky open up above. The last few steps were very steep in the trees but just above was a beautiful grassy clearing. This was Cheoah Bald, another bald, another grassy mountain top over 5000 ft. It was very satisfying. This was the big challenge of the day, now for the downhill. A few more ups and downs along the way but nothing outstanding.I like most of this group has planned to make it to the tent site at mile marker 147 so it would be crowded there. On the way up I had been chatting with Bob who was slack packing to Stechoah Gap at mile 150. Where he'd hired someone to bring him and another hiker back to NOC for the night. I had a place to stay in Fontana Dam 15 miles ahead and nothing behind but was willing to go if it could mean avoiding the rain and mud expected Friday. It would mean a real meal and a grocery stop. It also meant offering some cover for the other younger female hiker who I could tell was a bit uncomfortable with Bob. I was hiking fully loaded because I had planned to hike through but I made the extra miles. Happy to make it to the road and the ride. We drove to Robbinsville, hit the Ingles Grocery store and happy to find plenty of fresh fruit and veggies, then found El Pacifico mexican restaurant for dinner. I had tried to reach Stan by phone/text but after numerous unsuccessful efforts we finally let it go. By the time we made it back to NOC the place was already shut down for the eveningHyper99
Date: 2019-04-07
From: Stechoah Gap

To: Fontana Dam Hwy 28
Miles today: 13.7

Once again slacking and racing weather. Supposedly tomorrow will be bad so completing this section to Fontana Dam is advisable. The weather was a little rainy to start but turned out to even have a few views as the day wore on. Amazing ridge walking with absolutely luminescent moss growing on the branches of trees. I ran into a woman going by the name of Raindancer. She was excited to see me as she also hiked in 1999. Unfortunately I did not remember her, nor did she I, but we could come up with a number of people we knew in common. Kind of fun. Then I also ran into the swiss woman again. We hiked together for the last bit. Once again, like dropping into NOC, the decent seemed to take forever. My knees were crying by the time we finally hit the bottom. What made it more tantalizing was that we could see the dam from up above but it just didn't seem like we could get there. There was no phone signal when we reached the road but a convenient snack structure had a landline with a note explaining that picking up the phone would connect us to the Fontana Village Resort and a shuttle ride. Another hiker popped out of the woods and his first question was what was the time. He desperately wanted to get to the General Store before 5 so he could buy him and his buddies a 12 pack. Haha. Priorities. The shuttle came and he made it.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-08
From: Fontana Dam Hwy 28

To: Fontana Village Resort
Miles today: 0.0

Yup. It poured as expected. Happy to be inside. Resort is highly overstating the place. A national park concessionaire, and the first week of business so everything was slim. Half the items on the menu weren't available. The shelves of the general store were mostly bare (but they had beer of course) and barely any WiFi, or phone service. It was good to rest the feet however.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-09
From: Fontana Dam Hwy 28

To: Smoky NP Park Trailhead
Miles today: 3.1

Chowhound was leaving today so I figured I'd walk the short 3 miles from the highway 28 to the Smoky NP trail head. There were a couple geocaches to pick up along the way and I was very looking forward to seeing the "Fontana Hilton" the shelter with water and a solar charger for phones plus a real bathroom with hot and cold running water. I saw on the sign it had been built by another of my 1999 hiking mates - Papa Smurf. I knew there had been a Fontana Hilton before but don't have any memory of it. Ah well, A beautiful walk and exploration of the area. A spiting of rain as we left but it turned into a nice day.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-10
From: Park Trailhead

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: clear sky

The climb out of Fontana Dam was far more gentle and far shorter than the climb out of NOC up to Cheoah Bald. I had forgotten that these trails were designed for horses so the grade is far easier than some of the rock scrambles we've been dealing with. The weather was stellar as was the track. I slacked the side trail to the fire tower and it was so worth it. Loved the views from the top. Once at the tower the trail became a ridge walk popping up and down the rest of the day. By mile 175 we reached an area where small flowers resembling strawberries appeared. Leaves were different though. They were so plentiful they looked like snow. I was thinking the song strawberry fields forever. It was a park like setting and it lasted for hours. Over 6 miles of a white flowery carpet. Got to the first shelter where I had thought to stay by 2 pm. Decided to do the extra 3 miles to the next shelter- Russell Field shelter mile 180. Thought of even going to the next, another 2.9 but this was a good crowd and the shelter had lots of room. Only 7 of us in a space for 16. Doc Griz. Caboose. Boy Scout, Pop Tart, Sunshine, and me. Two more showed at 8pm - a couple. Again, don't want to waste the beautiful weather. I can do shorter sections in the rain. Ridge hiking is nice because the ups and downs are usu short. You don't really notice you're going up more than down slowly rising to Clingmans Dome over 6000 ft. I won't make over the dome tomorrow but plan to be in spitting distance at me 195 tomorrow. Clingmans Dome is at mile 200. Yeay. Hope the weather holds out for a view. Weather was expected Friday but now looking better. Crossing fingers.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-11
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Wind kept getting stronger though the night. I was surprised the stars were still out 4:30 am because the wind seemed so weather laden. It was also reasonably warm. While rain wasn't predicted for today it was predicted 3am through 11am tomorrow. Got out by 730 you could feel the storm coming. Palpable. Even the cute little strawberry type flowers were closed up tight. The 1st 3 mi weren't bad but then the ridge running got tough. Water runs down the trail washing it out and leaving loose rocks on a steep grade. Finally reached Thunder mountain and found a ham radio operator working on a summits on the air challenge. Was fun to talk to him. The 5 miles to Derricks Knob shelter were tough but got there and found the trio still eating lunch. Scout told me the next 5 miles weren't as hard. Good to know. He was right. Planned to stay at Siler Bald shelter. Mile 195 but the boys had moved on and the next shelter was only 1.7 further. Worth it to move on before the storm. Was fun to suddenly reach the elevation for spruce trees. Loved the sudden change. Trees all on North side of hill for a bit until I got a little higher. The strawberry fields made it all the way to the pine forest. Amazing. Good to see the pine borers still hadn't gotten them all. Too bad i couldn't do Clingmans before the rain. Sad but seen it before. Arrived at 4:30 and only the trio was there. Thought that might be it for the night. Then people kept arriving all the way till 8 pm We suddenly had a full house with 3 ppl camping as well. 5 section hikers arrived and about 10 through hikers in total. Glad these are dbl decker shelters so more of us can have cover. The best spring too. Very near the shelter and clean water straight from the ground. Would trust not to filter but I did anyway. This one has a privy too where the Russell field did not. It had had a shit field and a shovel. Yuck. Happy I didn't have to use it.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-12
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: Ice Water Spring Shelter
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Really tough day today. Woke up with rain on the roof from the shelter. Nothing hard but very consistent. The to top of Clingman's Dome was beautiful but foggy windy and rainy. I managed to climb to the top of the tower and found myself blown around quite significantly. It was a struggle while it wasn't terrifically cold it was very hard on my carpal tunnel. Both hands stopped functioning very well which made my descent very slow. Also because we didn't go that route to the parking area I missed out on the gift shop, heat, dry, bathrooms and any good treats that might have been available there. Its the anticipation thwarted that makes it more disappointing. While I only did 13 miles today it was a very wet hard slog. Shoes and feet got soaked as I stepped into puddles and was not really able to use my hands. As my hands got warmer they functioned better so hopefully that will not always be a problem. It was wonderful to come out at the parking lot by Newfound Gap. I did not know what to expect there but a large parking full with many people was not what I had in mind. All but one of the through hikers from Dbl Spring Gap shelter headed into Gatlinburg with one of the many available shuttles but I chose to push on. The saddest discovery from the parking lot was that as I looked back to the Dome, the mountain top was clear. Sigh. The only time it had been clouded over in the last 3 days was the few hours I had been there. Ah well. Another day will come. Tonight was another busy shelter night. Met some new interesting characters, The Wiz, Carver, Slim were all happy to smoke some weed and play some batchy ball with the Minnesota gang. Since it was a Friday night a number of section hikers were also sharing the shelter. From them we'd learned Sunday's weather (day after tomorrow) would be bad. Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-13
From: Ice Water Spring Shelter

To: Tri Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: moderate rain

Rain shadows today. Not serious rain but off and on spitting with peeks of sun. Today was the most beautiful section I've hiked so far truly ridge walking where it dropped down a lot on both sides. Great view much of the day even with the clouds. Terrain was pretty steady too. Charlies Bunion was the highlight of the day. Got to tri corners around 3 and wanted to continue hiking but it was just too far to push the next shelter 7.8 miles away. I thought too everyone from the Ice Water shelter would end up here too simply because of the distance. Sure enough. This one was too close and the next one was that little bit too far. Then add to that a bunch of section hikers from elsewhere and we were packed. Supposedly bad weather tomorrow. Hail, potential snow and gale winds 70 mph threatened so we're all packing into the shelter like sardines a bit fearful of what will come. The shelter is technically designed for 12, but we had 21 with 15 camping thats how busy it was. One fast crew who had only been on trail for 12 days from Springer planned an early morning getaway to try to beat as much of the weather as possible. Many of the rest of us thought what was a good idea as well so we went to sleep with much anticipation. The temps were expected to drop through the day with accumlated snow by evening. Now in hindsight I wish I had gone on for the next shelter even if I would have arrived at dark. Ah well. One never knows the right decision to make. At least my feet were happy. The distance was good for them.
Date: 2019-04-14
From: Tri Corner Knob Shelter

To: Davenport Gap
Miles today: 17.1
Weather: overcast clouds

The day started early. The speedy ones started moving around the shelter to leave at 6AM. It was pitch dark. Already the wind had been howling for a while and we'd had a few rain bursts prattling on our tin roof. Everyone was on edge. I also got up and started prepping. I counted 10 more shadows moving around packing to leave as well. It was an interesting play of dancing quiet shapes moving through everyone's red headlamps. I hoped I had grabbed everything but it was hard to do a thorough check in the dark. It was 6:45AM as I walked away. Just enough light to not need a headlamp. It wasn't raining at the moment but every once in a while we'd get a few spurts. The wind however just kept amping up. There were a few more ridge walks and you really had to lean into the wind to stay on trail. I was happy when I finally dropped below the ridge. The next shelter sure had been a long haul and today I was glad I had waited to reach it today. I would have missed some of the amazing views I got this morning and the wind was an experience worth having so all good. But at mile 7 of the day the rain started getting serious. I was well prepared so happily my pack and torso were dry. Everything from the knees down I sacrificed to the weather. Finally I reached the sign to Mt Cammerer and saw it was .6 off the trail. It was raining, cloudy, I still had far to go so the prospect of heading out there seemed unattractive, but hey, it was a virtual geocache and I had planned it. OK out we go. As I got closer suddenly everything changed. The sun appeared! Such a surprise. I got out to the end and was amazed. Even the approach reminded me of the ocean not the mountains. It also looked more like a lighthouse than a fire tower. In fact its not even known as a fire tower but a lookout. It was explained on the nearby sign that the difference between a fire tower and fire lookout is that one is built on the ground and only one or two stories while the other is a tall ironwork tower many feet in the air. It just so happened that another hiker (section hiker) was out there as well. So exciting to suddenly see the sun after the slop we'd been walking through. Then low and behold! A rainbow! A big one. Then briefly it was a double rainbow! Photos taken. What was downright amazing was that after leaving, the rain began again, now twice at hard as before. It rained hard for another few hours as I slowly descended into the valley. Only once reaching the valley floor did the sun appear again. Suddenly I could see the green leaves of the valley trees. It had seemed that every time spring seemed nearby we ascended another 1000 feet in elevation, but now we are about the embrace spring with a vengeance. The altitude and the Smokies are now over.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-16
From: Davenport Gap

To: Max Patch
Miles today: 14.6

While the day started cold with a light coating of frost, it quickly warmed up to an uncomfortable level. It is my first day hiking with Leila again as she was not allowed to join me in the smokies. She was very rambunctious in the beginning but as the day wore on she lost that bounce. While I had spent 7 more days getting in better physical condition she had been lounging. Now the cost of that vacation was visible. It was a long but consistant climb out of the valley. I notice that a similar descent seems to take longer thsn the climb. Snowbird peak (4200) was our first major peak of the day. Another bald but this one had some sort of installation on the top that looked a bit other worldly and hummed ominously with high voltage I did not go near to check it out. The trail then descended unto a beautiful gap that enticed me to spend the entire day. The nearby shelter did not deter from the beauty. The Minnesota thru hikers caught up with me here. I pressed on through a series of lumps and bumps. Two section hikers chose to stop at an uncomfortable camping site at about the 251 mile mark, but with the others, I chose the next steep incline and following ups and downs as Max Patch was the lure for the day. It is a monster sized bald that thru hikers often stealth camp at. Before we reach the bald however is a surprise. A previous thru hiker, trail name Peach, had set up a hiker feed at the base of Max Patch. I didn't recall that it was possible to drive here, but now it was a popular locals hang out. A full parking lot was at the base of the bald. I, the Minnesota crew and a few more section and thru hikers enjoyed Peach's gift. I felt sorry for the two hikers who had stayed behind. There were hot dogs, hamburgers, soda, juice, beer, wine, fruit, cookies, chairs and more. She even brought toilet paper. The boys were enthralled. I finally hiked on thinking I wanted to make the shelter 2 mi beyond Max Patch but the group plan was to hike the 0.8 to the top, camp and watch the sunset. Once there I knew it was right to stay. While for distance planning purposes going further was ideal, the Max Patch experience couldn't be denied. A local college out reach group of perhaps 20 and other random picnickers were enjoying the park like setting. As what was promising to be a beautiful sunset approached, more locals with blankets and wine or beer drove up to enjoy the experience. We also now had perhaps 15-20 thru hikers tents scattered on the bald and another few dozen transient visitors. It was a festive scene with children and dogs, camp fires, beers and smores. The wind was persistant but the sunset was worth it.Hyper99
Date: 2019-04-17
From: Max Patch

To: Deer Park Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: clear sky

It would have been nice to make Hot Springs today, but just that little too far. I As yesterday's sunset was spectacular, this morning's sunrise was equally impressive. Leila had crashed for an hour or so when we had arrived yesterday but the she got her second wind. She spent the evening working the crowd successfully begging food from everyone. She finally came to bed as it was getting cold in the persistant wind. She then however scared me a bit later as she got up and disappeared for over an hour or more. The large waxing moon made night vision fairly easy on the bald but I had no idea where to look. I went back to bed trusting she'd return and was happy when she did. I was just like a mother wondering where her baby had gone. Of course at 6:30 AM when everyone is out to watch the sunrise and the thru hikers are striking their tents and repacking their packs, my slug-a-bed is not interested in getting up. Sorry girl. Time to go. Sunrise done and now some extra miles to put in. The two big peaks today were Walnut and Bluff mountains once we completed the long 5 mile descent off of Max Patch. The Roaring Fork shelter i had wanted to stay at was a dark rude little structure and i was so glad i didn't stay there. The weather deteriorated through out the day as expected but it was still a great hiking day with hazy sun persisting to its end. Walnut (4300) was another bald with another older unfriendly looking shelter. Bluff (4600), larger than Walnut, seemed to go both up and down forever but both peaks offered up the white flowered carpet floors that we had seen in the Smokies. Very beautiful. Now that we are again at lower altitudes we are far more often flirting with spring. More varities of flowers are popping up everywhere. The dogwoods are also in blume and the trees are starting to leaf. We can still see the lay of the land through the trees and too much sun is still an issue but soon the upper stories of trees will rebuild their summer canopy. Deer Park shelter area was my goal today. It was a stretch. Had the previous water source 2.8 miles back bern more reliable I would have stayed there, but that was not the case.Leila was tired and flagging badly. My feet had also had enough, but there were no good options. We made it by 4:30PM. Then i read the sign. We are so tantalizingly close. Only 3.2 miles to town. Had I been alone, perhaps I could have eaten dinner and continued but the girl was done. Like yesterday she was out almost immediately. And as I reflect on my body it is clearly best I did not go on.Hyper99