morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-04-07
From: Walnut Mountain Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: clear sky

Woke up... and packed very quickly. I am going into town today so there is a heightened level of excitement in everything you do. Downhill, then a big up hill, then a 4 mile downhill. I hiked the 4 mile downhill in 45 min. The 13.1 miles into Hot Springs was a piece of cake... the hardest part was it was 85 degrees out and the sun was just baking me on the trail.Got into Hot Springs, it is a small town but seems very cozy. Checked out the outfitters and was able to update my trail journal. (YAY!!! Finally!! That is like 14 updates in one day.) Began looking at some lighter weight gear that I can change out for some of my heavier winter gear. Checked into a hostel, a beautiful old Victorian style house with really cool antique furniture in it. Showered, did my laundry, sat in the lawn of the laundry mat and had a few beers with some fellow hikers.When night time came around I went to the local pub and a bunch of us sat around, drank some beers and talked. Nothing to exciting but still very relaxing. I am sure more happened today than the stuff I mentioned above... but I have had a few beers, and couldn't really remember if anything else happened, so it probably wasn't important anyway. Time to sleep in a real bed! HYOH!!!! Wow... Editors Note: One of the mantra's of the trail is "Hike your own hike." Which means hike the way you want to hike, don't let someone tell you what's the right way or the wrong way. It is also a very overused saying that I believe originated from a hiker named Wingfoot. Wingfoot wrote a book called the thru-hikers hand book and just about everyone on the trail has it (well I don't, but most others do). The funny thing is most people can't stand Wingfoot for one reason or another, but still they own his book. One of my favorite Wingfoot bashing moments came from this older lady who was thru-hiking. She pulled out Wingfoots book and says "Well lets see what ole Numb-Nuts has to say about this place." It was great! Anyways... back to Hike your own hike. It is past the point of being a cliche now, so my friends and I tend to use it more sarcastically. For instance "You don't want to come to the bar with us?! Whatever! Hike your own hike!" Some people also just say the letters H-Y-O-H. It is from this that in our drunken ramblings at the Pub that we came up with "HYOH!" Think of a very intoxicated Ed McMann on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. After saying "HYOH!" we would all raise our glasses and cheers who ever we just called out for some inconsequential "hike your own hike" violation. Well I hope that all made some sense to you, and if not... HYOH!!! haha
Date: 2006-04-09
From: Spring Mountain shelter

To: Flint Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: clear sky

Long day today!Woke up to ice all over the rain fly of my tent, but I was perfectly dry... so I was happy. Hiked the 4 miles to road and found a sign directing me towards trail magic. I practically ran down the road the 300 yards to the magic. Two 1999 thru-hikers named Fal and Hercules invited us into their home and offered us pretty much any food we wanted: Waffles, Burritos, Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Banana Splits and Fudge Brownies. WOW! It still amazes me that people let complete random strangers into their homes and then offer them food. I ate my fill and about 2 hours later I was back on the trail.I had been planning on doing 21 miles for the day, but wasn't sure if that was possible now since I lost the 2 hours from trail magic. The rest of my hiking was pretty uneventful, it was a sunny day and fairly warm so that made things go easier.I made it to the 16 mile mark at about 6:30 and was debating to myself on whether to go on to the next shelter at 21 miles. At this point Novocaine and The Senator both said they wanted to hike to the next shelter... I was sold. The only negative is that they wanted to night hike and weren't gonna start till 8pm. I would have rather started earlier but 8pm would have to do. So we night hiked which isn't actually to bad... I tripped about twice as much as I normally do but other than that not much is different. It was a very clear night and with a 3/4 moon much of the ground was fairly well illuminated. The creepiest part was when we came upon these 2 graves of young boys killed in the Civil War. Both boys had left NC to fight for the Union and were on there way back home when they were ambushed and killed. All of this is very neat... but when it is 9pm and dark, let just say that it gave me the willies.We made it to the Flint Mountain Shelter at 10pm... 6 miles in 2 hours. Not to shabby. Well my hand are really cold and I am really tired... time for bed.
Date: 2006-04-10
From: Flint Mountain Shelter

To: Bald Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: clear sky

First off, before I forget. HAPPY 30th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD! Woke up to the sound of kids voices... well not kids voices but more adolescents voices. You know that very distinctive voice cracking that can only come from boys between 7th and 9th grades. They were a group of boy scouts and they were very confused because when they feel asleep the night before we were there but when they woke up we were. They couldn't understand why we night hiked, and a lot of me agreed with them.Packed my gear and was on the trail by 9am, but I didn't feel that great. Felt a little dizzy and very weak. So I stopped and had some peanut butter crackers and sat for a little bit. That seemed to make me feel better so I continued.I was very grumpy and cranky for much of the day today. Everything just didn't seem right and everything was pissing me off. There were lots and lots of ups today so that didn't really help things either. At about 4 o'clock I crossed under Interstate 26 and began the biggest climb of the day. Almost 6 miles of ups finishing at Big Bald Mountain which is about a mile from the shelter where I was planning to stop for the night. These 6 miles, while hard, seemed easier than the rest of my hiking today, I think some of this had to do with that fact that I knew there was a fantastic view from the top. And I was right, the view from the top was gorgeous, a 360 degree view of the surrounding mountains, valleys and towns. I was also able to make a couple phone calls from the top which was nice as well.Made it to the shelter right at 8pm. That's 11 hours of hiking today. I was worn out and hungry. Even after eating dinner I still felt very hungry but decided instead to go to bed.Tomorrow I will hike 17 miles and will then be going into Erwin, TN for showers, resupply and real food. I hope to stay at Ms. Janett's hostel while in town. Ms. Janett is widely considered one of the nicest trail angels on the AT. From what I have heard she runs a great hostel and is just as nice as can be. She comes heavily recommended from just about every hiker that has ever stayed in Erwin. Something that I have been meaning to mention in my last couple journals but I keep forgetting. I had my first friend decide to get of the trail. Lil Easy got of the trail just after the Smokeys. I hiked with him for about a week and he is a great guy and I will definitely miss him on the trail.
Date: 2006-04-12
From: Iron Mountain Gap

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Sleeping in a bed is definitely one of those simple pleasures that is missed while on the trail.Miss Janet made breakfast so around 8:30 we all made our way to the table... 15 guys and Miss Janet. Miss Janet's house for wayward boys is how someone described the scene.After breakfast Miss Janet drove Me, Novocaine, Senator, Rat Puke and Squirrel up to Iron Mountain Gap and we began our 19 mile slackpacking trip back towards Erwin. It was a pretty good piece of trail. My favorite part came on top of Unaka Mountain where out of nowhere we walked into a completely different section of forest. It was filled with very tall pine trees and almost no plants on the forest floor. You can barely even tell where the trail went and if it weren't for the blazes I am sure we all would have gotten lost.We made it back to Erwin around 8pm and then waited around for Miss Janet who said she would pick us up around 8:30. Miss Janet has to be one of the nicest people I have met on the trail so far. She is also one of the few people I have seen that can quickly subdue a rowdy group of hikers. When she talks people listen and her advice is the wisdom gained from helping hundreds of other hikers attempt a thru-hike. Before I started the trail I was told that one of the places I had to stop at along the trail was Miss Janet's House, and know I understand why.I was able to do some resupplying today and got about 4 days worth of food. It is 105 miles for me to hike to Damascus now, but I also plan on stopping at the Kincora Hostel to do some light resupply as well. Overall I am attempting to do a very quick hike into Damascus. Total hiking time for the 126 miles, including what I hiked today, I hope to be around 6 days. That means I need to average 20 mile days all the way to Damascus. Am I crazy... well maybe a little.So the Senator just came in and convinced me to slackpack again... tomorrow. I am so easily persuaded. Looks like we are gonna do about 15 miles and go over one of the highest mountains on the trail, Roan Mountain. I guess the bonus is I will get to stay at Miss Janet's for another night. YAY!! I like this place. Ok well it is really really late and I need to go to bed. I will hopefully attempt to fill in the blanks from the last couple days tomorrow. But I ain't gonna lie... the days are starting to blur together.
Date: 2006-04-13
From: Carver Gap

To: Iron Mountain Gap
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Slackpacked again today, this time with Senator, Novovaine, Dirt and Freefall. Miss Janet's dogs Fabian and Kaluha also came with us. The hike was fairly uneventful, very few views, but it did rain on us for a little bit.Once back at Miss Janets we all ordered pizzas. It was the first real pizza I have had since starting the trail and it was exactly what I was craving. I ate an entire medium and half of a large and was still a little hungry... just not for pizza.I was also able to upload a lot of pictures so please feel free to check them out.
Date: 2006-04-14
From: Carvers Gap

To: Overmountain Shelter
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: broken clouds

Woke up at Miss Janet's to the breakfast bell being rung. Once we had eaten, I was in a mad rush to get my pack organized before Miss Janet was ready to take us back to the trail. I was able to pack fairly quickly and had time to goof around for a bit. My mom had sent me a 2 lb bag of Jelly Beans which in our 30 min. of free time Senator, Freefall, Dirt and I were able to completely finish. None of us felt to good after this.Miss Janet then drove Senator, Dirt, Freefall, Novocaine and I back up to Carver Gap. Once there we all said our goodbyes, took pictures and then went on our way. Our plan for the day was to hike about 13 miles but that fell through when we got to one of the coolest shelters on the trail. Overmountain Shelter is an old barn that has been refurbished into a shelter. At this point we all decided to stay, get some rest and then get up early and try to do about 26 miles tomorrow.I have a friend that is coming down to visit me in Damascus, VA on Tuesday, April 18th. So I am trying to make it there by the evening of the 17th or the morning of the 18th. With 3 days and about 80 miles to go, getting there by the 17th is cutting it a little close, so I need to start cruising. Luckily I have heard the last 40 miles into Damascus are fairly smooth. But we will see.
Date: 2006-04-16
From: Dennis Cove Rd.

To: Watauga Lake Shelter
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: scattered clouds

Happy Birthday Katie!!!Dirt, Night Rider, Freight Train and I left the Kincora Hostel and startedhiking around 2pm. First couple miles flew, we went over a couple really cool wooden bridges and also got to see a pretty neat waterfall.The next part of the hike however was awful. You literally go straight up a mountain and then come down the mountain on practically the same side you came up. It was stupid. No views, no shelters, no real camp sites... just up and down a big mountain for the hell of it. It was bullshit. On top of all this it was like 85 degrees and we were all sweating our asses off. Sweat was dripping off my face and down into my eyes... not fun.Once down the stupid mountain we found our selves looking at beach and swimming hole on Watauga Lake. So took this as our chance to relax and go swimming. However, the water was so cold that the only person who got their head wet was Freight Train. I put my feet in, but the water was so cold it made my feet and legs hurt. It was still nice, however, to just sit, relax and people watch.We eventually got moving again and made our way the final 2 miles to the shelter. Here we found a full shelter, but also Freefall and Novocaine (How they got in front of us, we may never know). So we all set up our tents and went about trying to carbo load for our BIG hike tomorrow. We have almost exactly 40 miles to go until Damascus, VA and the terrain evens out quite a bit. So we have decided to try and hike all 40 miles in a day. The idea being: even if we fail we will probably still be less than only 10 miles from Damascus and that ain't bad either.
Date: 2006-04-17
From: Watauga Lake Shelter

To: Abingdon Gap Shelter
Miles today: 30.1
Weather: light rain

Today was a long day and I currently don't feel like writing too much about it. So here are the basics of what happened:Woke up at 5 to attempt to hike the 40 miles to Damascus, VA. Hike went well until around lunch it started pouring rain and thundering/ lightning. We decided to take a long lunch and kill 3 hours waiting for the rain to stop. Once the rain stops we hike again, stopped for dinner and had already completed 22 miles by this point but it was getting late. We hike on, with most of it night hiking, to the next shelter to make about 30 on the day. Surprisingly I don't feel that worn out, but it is now very late and I am very tired. I am, however, excited for Damascus tomorrow and very excited for my friend Katie to come.Ok, that's it... time for bed.
Date: 2006-04-18
From: Abingdon Gap Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: broken clouds

After hiking 30 miles yesterday I decided to sleep in a little. So I woke up around 8 and surprisingly felt really good. Not nearly as sore as I anticipated.By 9:15 I was on the trail. The first couple miles seemed to go real slow. I was having a hard time getting loosened up. It seemed like every time I started to get into a groove I would get a stick or a rock in my boot which would force me to stop, dig it out, and start the hiking process all over again.As it got warmer out, I was able to hike at a very quick pace. I was on fire and felt really good. I knew that about 3.5 miles out from Damascus I would be crossing the Tennessee/ Virginia border. Since I was raised in Northern VA, crossing the Virginia border started to feel kind of like a homecoming. Therefore as I got closer to the border I started to get really antsy. After every bend in the trail I would look for a sign and the last half mile before the border seemed to take forever. Finally I came to a sign welcoming my to the Mt. Rogers National Forest. This confused the hell out of me, by all logic this should be the Virginia border, but there was no sign. I was pissed. Finally I noticed on one of the posts holding up the sign a little marker that said "VA/TN" - the border. I made it. I actually teared up a little, I was home (Kind of, I lived about 5 hours drive north of Damascus). I had walked 450 miles to my home. I was fairly choked up, I was so proud of myself. If reaching the VA border is this emotional I can't even imagine what it will feel like to summit Katahdin and complete the AT, just thinking about it gives me the chills.I made it to Damascus around 12:15. Which was perfect, I had plenty of time to shower, eat and let the town shock wear off before I needed to meet Katie. When I was walking down the street to our predetermined meeting location I can see this person standing on the sidewalk about 5 blocks down. They stood out like a sore thumb, and I knew it was her. She stood out because she didn't look like a hiker and she definitely didn't look like a local.Since the lodging option in Damascus are few and far between, we drove into Abington. We then got dinner, and all you can eat pizza buffet!!! YES!!! I was so excited, I have wanted a pizza buffet for like 300 miles. I filled myself with 6 plate fulls of pizza and bread sticks... and it was good.Katie and I then went back into Damascus to join my hiking buddies at Dots Bar. There were about 5 or 6 locals there and about 20 hikers. And every single one of them fairly intoxicated. Now you need to remember that after being on the trail for a month or more most hikers have a fairly low tolerance. So 3 or 4 beers are enough to make any thru-hiker fairly ripped. It was a good time though and I think Katie got a pretty good idea of the type of great people I have been hiking the trail with. Plus I think she enjoyed all the attention she got since she was one of 5 females in the bar.
Date: 2006-04-19
From: Damascus, VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Zero day today and it was very relaxing. I was able to finally get some flipflops that are light enough that I am willing to carry them in my pack as camp shoes. I also got to wash my clothes and for the first time, my sleeping bag. Katie and I also were able to schedule a ride about 12 miles up the trail for tomorrow so we can day hike and slackpack back into town.
Date: 2006-04-20
From: Bear Tree Gap

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: overcast clouds

We got a ride to the trail from the Outfitters in town and they drove us about 20 min down the road. We were dropped off about 12 miles up on the AT from Damascus and began our hike back into town. We hiked the first 6 miles on the AT and then took a side trail over to the Virginia Creeper Trail. The Creeper Trail is an old railroad bed that has been turned into a hiking/biking trail. I had been told by several other hikers and locals that the Creeper Trail was more beautiful than the AT in this section. So I got a chance to hike both the AT and the Creeper for 6 miles. The AT had lots of ups and downs but nothing out of the ordinary. The Creeper Trail is the most gradual downhill trail I have ever hiked on. It was very pretty, but I wouldn't say it was any more beautiful than the AT. Overall it was a very nice hike back into Damascus.Once back into Damascus I ran into The Senator who had made it into town early in the day. He is going to be heading back out on the trail on Saturday which is perfect because I will have someone to hike with.I am taking another zero day tomorrow and I hope to buy a new pair of shoes. I currently wear a pair of waterproof boots that have treated my feet great so far. But they are heavy so I would like to get a pair of trailrunners or crosstrainers that would wear like a pair of running shoes.
Date: 2006-04-21
From: Abington, VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Another Zero day today. It was great to sleep in and then just lounge around the hotel room for a bit.I wanted to look at getting new hiking shoes so Katie and I drove to the Mall in Bristol, VA. There I purchased a new pair of New Balance Running/Trail shoes. They are very comfortable and I hope they will work well for me on the trail. While shopping for shoes I learned something very odd... my feet have grown... or stretched. I used to be an 11 1/2 and now I wear a 13. I was in shock! While at the mall I also purchased a CD (Pete Yorn - Music For the Morning After) because I have had most of the songs stuck in my head for a long time and just had to hear them... I also purchased a big ass "Mall Pretzel" and it was damn good. I wish I could buy big ass soft pretzels on the trail... I love soft pretzels...mmmmmm.I have received a couple emails from people asking me what all I am carrying in my pack. So when I got back to our hotel room I dumped everything in my pack out on to the bed and made a list. So here for your reading pleasure is a list of all the gear I am carrying, this excludes food and water.My Gear (Total Weight - 20lbs):Drugs -Vitamins -Ibuprofen -Claritin -Vaseline Lip Therapy -InhalerToilet PaperLighterWaterproof matchesLeatherman (knife, scissors, etc)HeadlampSD Memory Card USB Flash DriveHand SanitizerToothbrushToothpasteSmall First Aid Kit -Bandaids, moleskin, etc.Book (The Monkey Wrench Gang)Aqua Mira (water purification drops)Blow-up pillowAluminum Foil wind screenPepsi Can StoveSporkTitanium Pot and fry pan lidCampsuds all purpose soap50' of ropeDigital CameraCamera CaseWaterproof watch1 liter platypus (water bottle)2 liter platypusTentThermarest Sleeping PadTreo 600 Cellphone/ PDAFoldout keyboard for the Treo 600Treo 600 Travel Charger20 Degree Sleeping BagFlipflopsMarmot Precip Rain JacketWaterproof Rain Pants2 Pairs of Wool SocksTrail Running ShoesKnee BracePack CoverLongsleeve Polypro TopShortsLongpants with zip off bottoms2 Shortsleeve Coolmax tops2 Polypro BoxerbreifsGregory Z-Pack (Backpack)CashDrivers LicenseCredit CardDebit CardTrail MapCompass/ ThermometerHiking PolesExtra AAA Batteries2 Bandanas20 oz Coke bottle used to hold Denatured Alcohol (Stove Fuel)
Date: 2006-04-22
From: Bear Tree Gap

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 16.3
Weather: moderate rain

Woke up this morning and Katie and I helped ourselves to our hotel's continental breakfast. (There ain't nothing wrong with 4 bowls of cereal.) We packed up the rest of our stuff and then headed back into Damascus. There I bought new socks for my new shoes and some more fuel for my stove. I also went to the Post Office and mailed home my boots, gloves, ear warmer and used trail maps. We then went and picked up The Senator and drove up to Bear Tree Gap, where Katie and I had started our slackpack back into Damascus on Thursday. Katie and I said our goodbyes and Senator and I made our way up the trail.I had a great time while Katie was visiting. It was really nice to step away from the trail atmosphere for a little bit. I still love the trail, but Katie coming to visit was a nice vacation. I think she has a better appreciation for what thru-hiking is like as well, even though she probably still thinks I am crazy.It drizzled on and off for the first hour or two of hiking, but never hard enough to make me want to put on my pack cover or rain jacket. When we got to the first shelter we were both surprised to see Free Fall, Novocaine, Dirt, Night Rider, Freight Train and Ajax. They had stayed there last night and due to the rain had decided they were too lazy to move. So we hung out and talked to them for a bit. Finally we moved out.For most of the day I had been looking at the profile portion of my map and dreading these 2 climbs I knew would come later today. However, when I actually hiked them they seemed like no worse than any other hill I have climbed. So that was a nice relief. I did go above 5500ft today and followed the trail about 200yds from the summit of Mt. Rogers (The highest Mtn. in VA).Tomorrow I will be hiking through the Grayson Highlands and I am very excited about it. I have been told by many people that is one of the most beautiful sections on the trail. So I am praying for clear skies and not too much wind.For the next couple days I am trying to pace my days correctly so I will get a chance to stay at the Partnership Shelter. I have heard it is one of the coolest on the AT. It has several levels, hot showers and a payphone within walking distance where you can order pizza or subs. SWEET! Right now it is about 35 miles north of me so I will probably get there in 2 days.