morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-05-29
From: WarSpur shelter

To: Audie Murphy Memorial
Miles today: 23.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Where have all the hikers gone? I haven¢t seen very many hikers the past couple days. After waking up by myself, which was nice, I headed down the trail. I passed a few people but they were just day hiking for the holiday. I had seen signs for a hiker feed about 8 miles from where I was, so of course I headed for it. On my way I got some more trail magic of OJ on the side of the trail. I pressed on to make it to the feed so I could let the sun pass while eating. The closer I got more signs showed up. I finally got there and was greeted with an ice cold Mountain Dew. Followed by several different fruits and vegetables, a big Dagwood sandwich and pie. It was great. The group providing the feed was a group of high school scholars through Radford University to help preserve and understand the Appalachian history and culture for the area. After I ate myself full and played a game of chess (yes I know how to play chess, and I won.) I took off back up the mountain. In Virginia the trail goes straight up, runs the ridge flat for miles, then comes down and goes right back up. I had planned to stop at the shelter right at the bottom of that ridge. When I got to the shelter I knew I didn¢t want to stay. I figured I would go farther then camp at the bottom of the next climb. And when I got to the bottom I decided I would camp half way up. At half way, you get the point. Once on top of the ridge I went another mile and a half and finally pulled into camp. I set everything up and settled in alone for a long nap.Andy
Date: 2006-05-30
From: Audie Murphy Memorial

To: Campbell Shelter
Miles today: 21.8
Weather: clear sky

Same thing, different day. After walking all morning I came to a cooler on the side of the road and to my surprise it was full of Gatorade. I drank my share and was on my way. Since it has been so hot I hiked well into the early evening. Eventually right when the sun was going down I made it to MacAfee¢s knob. A giant rock that sticks out over the ledge looking over the valleys of Virginia. I sat there for a while enjoying the quietness till a group of 4 came up. They weren¢t disrespectful, I just wanted to enjoy the view. My plan was to sleep under the stars on top of the rock but I decided to move on. I went another mile to the next shelter and tried to be as quiet as possible. That didn¢t work. I dropped my full water bottle 2 times on the hollow floor and was anything but quite. Sticks, Compass Rose and Dirt Diva were good sports about it and didn¢t get mad. I laid out my sleeping pad and stayed on top of it. I tried to fall asleep but it was too hot. So I just laid there and sweated.
Date: 2006-06-01
From: Daleville

To: Daleville
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

I packed up everything in the room and headed towards the post office. After almost getting hit by a car or 7, I arrived and picked up my mail drop. I joked around with the guy behind the counter so he didn¢t go postal on me. Then I went to the outfitter. I got a new shirt, hat and well needed socks. Now I have 2 shirts instead of just the one that I have worn everyday since I started. I hit up the grocery for the last supplies, then back to the trail. All the people coming out of the woods said a storm was coming so I decided to stay and rest the legs a little. Plus once I found out that Shasta and H-Bomb were behind me, it put the final nail in the coffin. I went back to the hotel and had to switch rooms 3 times before I got one that fit both the hotel and my needs. Even though nothing was on TV I watched it just cause I could.
Date: 2006-06-02
From: Daleville, VA

To: Bobblets Gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: broken clouds

It seems that my extra day in town allowed a bunch of people to pass me. I did miss a small storm again last night and they are calling for another one tonight but I must go anyways. I got on the trail at 11:45 and started hiking. The up hills weren¢t bad at all. It was kind of boring but I just kept walking. At 6:15, I got to the shelter area where I was staying for the night since it is the last water source for a while. When I got to the shelter there was a full house and then some. Almost everyone was involved in a conversation about religions and their personal beliefs. All sides of the conversation were represented. In one corner you had your Christian Southern Baptist. Across from them was the Jehovah Witness party. In the east corner was someone who "was raised Catholic" and the west corner someone who I call a Tmone. That is some one who hates all religions and thinks people who believe in them are crazy. They always make me ask myself, were they held too much or not enough as a child?They went on for a long time but I just stayed out of the conversation and went on making my dinner. While I was eating my dinner one of the worst things happened that can happen to a hiker on the trail. One of my most important survival tools broke. My spoon! I was eating my pasta parmesan and all the sudden a loud snap followed my hand plunging down into my food. I kept eating but only with the cup end. After dinner was over, I set up my hammock and got ready for the storm that had been rumbling all day.
Date: 2006-06-03
From: Bobblets Gap Shelter

To: Cornelius Creek Shelter
Miles today: 18.9
Weather: overcast clouds

SleepWalker is my new trail fairy god father. He gave me his extra spoon that some one had given him a while back. I got a late start today so there were several people who passed me while I was sleeping. But it¢s ok cause River Weasels have 4 legs so they move faster. I felt sluggish today but it was a perfect day for hiking. It has cooled off and been threatening to rain. The final part of the day was a large climb that was about five miles up over Floyd Mt. It was pretty hard after a long day but worth it. Great company tonight. Repunsel, Dirt Diva, Compase Rose, 42, and a few others.I have a wake up call coming at 6:30 but that probably won¢t do much for me. The plan is for 23+ tomorrow.
Date: 2006-06-04
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Johns Hollow Shelter
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Another long day on the trail. After a good up hill climb in the morning it was mostly all down hill except for High Cock Knob. When I made it to the bottom of the mountain towards the end of the day I stopped at a shelter to get water and change socks before pushing on to find a place to camp. Right after the shelter, it put me out right on the banks of the James River. I followed it for a while before crossing the longest foot traffic only bridge on the trail. 625 feet. It was kind of weird seeing a giant river full of water after having trouble finding water the past couple days. I went about 2 more miles and set up camp. Today wasn¢t hard physically just a long day mentally.
Date: 2006-06-05
From: Johns Hollow Shelter

To: Brown Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 18.3
Weather: light rain

As I lay in my hammock up on the hill above the shelter, I can hear some commotion coming from the camp. The nice thing about the hammock is you can set it up anywhere and don¢t have to be right by the shelter. The bad thing is you don¢t know what¢s going on at the shelter. So I am trying to hear what they are saying, because I'm nosey and it could be good gossip. I listen harder but all I can hear is blah blah blah water. I figured some one went in the stream that was right down the hill. Laughing, I stopped listening so closely. Then I hear blah blah blah BEAR. Now I¢m listening. They said they were getting water and saw a shadow and looked up and there was a bear. At this point I¢m thinking I know I¢m faster than most of these people so the bear won¢t catch me. Then I began to worry because to a bear I look like a shis-ka-bob just hanging between two trees. Just to make sure I stick my head out of the bottom of my hammock and yell into the dark "did I perhaps hear something about a Bear?" When I found out it was a mile back, I felt better. Besides, there is a camp of 15 troubled teen boys right at the bottom of the hill that could take anything that might come this way.
Date: 2006-06-07
From: The Priest Mountain

To: Trail to Glass Hollow
Miles today: 27.8

Yet another long day in Virginia. The way that I have been approaching the whole quest for Maine is to look at it as a bunch of little trips between towns. Well the section between Daleville and Waynesboro has been the worst so far. It just seems like it will never end. No matter how far or long you hike, it seems that you aren¢t getting closer.After climbing over 3 ridges the terrain eased up a bit. Just a bit. There was a side trail right before the climb that looked enticing but I resisted. Since all I could think about was getting to town I continued into the night. I¢m sure the views were great but I couldn¢t see jack. All I know is that I had to climb over some crazy giant boulders with just my headlamp. It was a pretty intense situation if I do say so. When I realized that I was going to get into town at 4 am I decided I should pull over and crash. Since it was dark and just so happened to be 2:30 in the morning I stopped. I decided to just string my hammock across the trail. I figured that if anyone was coming they would have to go through me and wake me up.For the past 3 nights I have been hearing F-14s over head. I am told that they fly in from Norfolk doing low level practice runs through the mountains. If they are looking for Osama bin Laden they are going to have a hard time finding him since all hikers have big beards and smell bad. But even if they were fighting someone I wouldn¢t have any clue since real world news takes a while to get to us in the hills.Well I hope to get the rest of the miles knocked out early cause Weasie's Pancake House has an AYCE (all you can eat) on flapjacks which is just the thing I need after this long section. And with a name like Weasie's you can¢t go wrong.
Date: 2006-06-08
From: Trail to Glass Hollow

To: Waynesboro
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up early and started hiking. Even though I was tired from the night before it didn¢t matter cause I was going in town. And as for the trail being open, since I technically only got a few hours sleep it was considered the night before. So the trail was open. After a short hike I came to the last shelter before Waynesboro. I knew that I was going to run into people who hadn't left from the night before since it was so early. When I came around the corner and walked through the stream to the shelter I heard ¢is that The River Weasel?" It was Cabernet and Scarecrow (who has switched to Sammeri cause his hair is so long he can put it up on top his head.) I hadn¢t seen them in almost 500 miles. We caught up then pushed on to the road. When I got to the road I was so excited that I kept walking. I walked about 1/2 a mile up a hill while talking to my dad on the phone then realized I had gone too far. I basically hung up and started walking back. When I got to the visitors center I thought there was trail magic waiting. I saw a huge tent with a bunch of food under it. I later found out that they were filming Bruce Almighty 2 in Shenandoah National Park and that was just the crew. I talked with one of the producers who was amazed with me being a thru-hiker and I was amazed with him being a Hollywood producer. Once he told me that Jim Carey wasn¢t in it, I lost interest. Then he told me that Jennifer Aniston wasn¢t in it either, and I basically slapped him and walked away. Since I had gone the wrong way, Cabernet beat me there and called one of the local "trail angels" for a ride so I hopped in with her. After deciding to get a room, I hit the laundry mat and then headed for Weasie's. It was awesome. It was like a Waffle House with a personal flavor. I kicked back several flapjacks and some coleslaw. (It looked too good to resist.) Then I headed back to the hotel for the usual pizza and beer while watching anything on TV. I propped my feet up, hoping to rest my arch and be ready to leave in the morning!
Date: 2006-06-09
From: Waynesboro

To: Waynesboro
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I woke up in the lovely bed and kicked my feet over to the side to get up. When my feet hit the ground I almost crumbled. For some reason my arch just kept hurting. After hobbling to the bathroom I saw a commercial for the opening game of the World Cup for today so I decided to rest the foot today. It was definitely worth it after the last section. I checked e-mail and went to the store and got all my other town stuff done while watching non-sense TV once again. I never get tired of watching random stuff on TV. I guess that goes back to my college days of being a reality television major. (Communication, same thing.)
Date: 2006-06-10
From: Waynesboro

To: Calf Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

As I have said before, the crazy stuff doesn¢t happen on the trail it happens hitch hiking. Well today was one of those days. After packing up and hitting the post office to mail some stuff home I headed for the edge of town. Right before I got to the edge of town I started thumbing. After I passed the can man, this white jeep came screaming down the road from the other way. A guy with dreadlocks yelled out the window. A little bit later he pulled up and I hopped in. When I got in he hopped out and went to talk to the can man. He thought that the can man was trying to attack me. After he got back in we headed to the outfitter. He said he was glad he saw me cause he didn¢t have anything to do. When we got to the outfitter he said he was going to look around. I got fuel and he bought a GPS, walkie talkies, a water purifier and a hackie sack.
Date: 2006-06-12
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I woke in a bed only to look out and see rain and clouds. And since I was in the mountains the clouds are not only above, they are right in your face. We packed up and went to get breakfast, something other than a poptart for a change. We headed back to the campground where I left off the day before. We said our good byes and they left. I still had to change clothes and get my pack in order. It is one of the hardest things to start hiking when it is nasty outside. It is even harder to start when you haven¢t woken up in it and you came from the high life. I finally got moving and made it about a mile when I found a vista. It was neat to see the clouds moving through the mountains and valleys in the distance. I sat there for a while and enjoyed the day. Aka procrastination. Several people came and went. Finally I decided to get moving and headed down the trail. Just a little ways farther I ran into Cheese Whiz. We started talking and decided to hike together. We had the perfect combination going. It¢s hard to find some one who you can hike at the same pace with for a long time. We knocked out about 14 miles at a great speed. When we got to the shelter we knew we couldn¢t stay. It was one of those cases where we knew this guy who hadn¢t gotten there yet, was going to be staying there. We kept hiking after dark with headlamps on. We both agreed that hiking at night is a thousand times better when you are with someone. Your mind doesn¢t wander and pick up on every movement. When you are hiking at night it is weird cause the slightest thing catches your eye and it could be anything. While we were hiking I saw a black thing move. My first instinct was that it was a bear. Well when I looked closer I saw it was a skunk. So I pulled away kind of quick and kept going. I smell bad enough as it is!
Date: 2006-06-13
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Something was definitely eaten very close to where my hammock was hanging last night. After being awoken to a loud crash and scuffle in the night, we found signs of a struggle a little ways up the trail. It looked like something from a Discovery Channel show. Let¢s just say it was very calming.I hiked with Cheese Whiz again today and we put in good miles. One of the best and worst parts of the Shenandoah is the tourist. Some hikers don¢t like talking to them but I rather like it. Typically you get asked "where ya hikin to?" "How long you been hiking?" and "are you crazy?" But after 17 miles of hiking and only a mile to go till the resort area with food and adult beverages, we ran into a National Park Tour Group on the trail learning about the AT. When we came around the corner we saw a group of people part like the red sea and stare in awe. The park ranger asked if she could ask us a few questions. We happily agreed and answered a few questions for the group of 30 or so. The ranger then let us go and we were on our way. We talked about how we thought that was short and that we would have stayed all day answering questions. We continued on to the resort area and while we were trying to not look like complete hiker trash and freshening up outside the building (changing shirts and a baby wipe shower) we heard a guy yell over to us. It was one of the guys from the tour group getting out of his car. It seemed that we had been moving so fast we beat the tour group back and they had cars.We then headed for the tap room to re hydrate. Had several conversations with nice tourists but couldn¢t get a free beer from any of them. Cheese Whiz left before I did to start hiking to where we planed to stay for the night. I finished my beer(s) and went to get my pack. Cheese Whiz was still sitting there in awe. He told me what happened. He was getting ready to leave and a guy came up and asked him if he was thru hiking. He said yeah and the guy said "well I know it¢s not trail magic but here". And handed him $20. I was pissed cause if I had gone out first it could have been mine but hey, that¢s how it goes.We then started hiking as it was getting dark. When I pulled into camp Cheese Whiz was only a minute behind me. And he asked if I had seen the 2 bears. He had seen 2 bears in separate spots and I hadn¢t even seen one in the entire trip. To say the least I am probably the only person not to see a bear on the entire trail.
Date: 2006-06-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

The bugs are starting to really become a problem. They are everywhere swarming around my head and crawling all over me. You would think that after all of their brothers and sisters that I have killed, they might get the point. But they just insist on flirting with danger and sometimes winning.Although I have seen a ton of bugs, I have not seen a single bear. Over 900 miles of walking through the woods, and no bear. Not even a noise that I thought maybe could have been a bear. I am leaving the Shenandoahs tomorrow and my bear count is still at zero. Well there is still plenty of time even if everyone else on the trail has seen multiple bears.I teamed up with Cheese Whiz again and we pushed on. We were making excellent time as usual. When we got to one camp store we ran into FDR. Neither Cheese Whiz or I had seen him in quite a while. The three of us went farther and set up camp. While we were setting up camp it started to thunder off in the distance. We got set up and sat under Cheese Whiz's tarp to eat. It still hadn¢t started raining but you could tell it was going to. It¢s an interesting feeling knowing a storm is coming and there is nothing you can do except hunker down and hope you stay dry.
Date: 2006-06-15
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I am having trouble understanding how I have hiked over 950 miles and still no bears. Everyone who I have talked to that has ever been to Shenandoah has seen a bear. Not only myself but other thru-hikers think I might be the last of a dying breed of hikers who hasn¢t seen a bear. Rumor has it that a bear was shot in downtown Newark NJ the other day but I can¢t see one.After putting in big miles and finally leaving the national park I made it to Front Royal. My plan was to try and get in and out without staying over night. I successfully did so. It was very hard to leave town and I know that I could have stayed a while. Once I got back to the trail, I was walking a while when I came to something in the trail. It was a baby skunk. My first reaction was to say hello. My next reaction was to try and get a picture. The only problem with digital cameras is you have to turn them on and let them boot up before you can take the picture. By the time mine was ready to take, the skunk had turned and started running down the trail. Since I didn¢t have a picture of a skunk yet I really wanted one. I chased the little stinker for a little bit till I was suddenly stopped dead in my tracks. For some reason I realized that the only defense mechanism that this skunk has is from behind and I don¢t want to encounter that. I decided to give up on the chase due to better judgment. Even though I didn¢t get sprayed by the skunk, I still smell. But what¢s the difference between today and any other day?
Date: 2006-06-16
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

I knew it was going to happen some time and it finally did. Several times. Since the day I started I knew at some time I would get off the trail and go in the wrong direction for a while. After realizing that I had forgotten to get batteries, I knew a stop was in my future. I saw a store a few miles ahead 1.2 miles off the trail so I figured I would stop there. Johnny Apple Seed said he was going to stop there and get beer. I offered to get it for him since I was leaving earlier. He gave me the money and I took off. I was going for a while when the trail left the top of the mountain and headed down to the road. I was making good time when I realized the trail was getting worse. I looked for a marker since I hadn't seen one in a while. When I was almost at the road the trail disappeared. I could hear the cars but there were no more trails. I definitely wasn¢t on the trail anymore. My first thought was to just bust through the woods to the road. Then I thought what if it was the wrong road. So I back tracked a good half mile till I saw where I thought I had gone wrong. I hopped back on the trail and kept going when I came to another big meadow. I could see Johnny Apple Seed coming down the hill. I figured he definitely passed me when I was on my side adventure and had forgotten something and was heading back for it. I got a good chuckle out of that. Then when I got closer to him I realized I had gone the wrong way when I got back on the trail. So we had to walk all the way back to the point where I got lost the first time, then go on to the store. At this point I was going to forget the batteries till later. I could just switch the ones from my camera to my head lamp at night to make the most out of them. But I had offered to go to the store and since I am a man of my word I did just that. I started hitching and no one was coming so I started walking. After about a half a mile I got a ride. But on the way back I had to walk the whole thing. When I got back my total side trip miles was around 4 miles. My trail miles were 3. Some nice stats. I had a few beers and kept going.   When I got to the next shelter I stopped for a snack. I waited and it took Johnny Apple Seed a little longer than I thought it would take him to arrive. He finally arrived and collapsed on one of the benches. He definitely wasn¢t feeling well so I decided to stay and keep an eye one him. Even though he said he felt fine I stayed and watched him. After a brief puking session he started looking better. I left him and headed for the next shelter. Once again I looked up and noticed I was off the trail again. I proceeded to back track to find the trail cut off sharply where I had missed it. I got back on and continued to the shelter after a long day of hiking with only half the miles to show for. I set my hammock up hanging over a creek near by and went to sleep, still kicking my self for all the wrong turns. But tomorrow's another day.