morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2004-08-04
From: Horseshoe Canyon

To: Cloud Pond
Miles today: 28.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Heading out of horseshoe canyon I quickly forded anouther river and eventually moved away from the river bank. For the last five miles or so into Monson I had a feeling that I was back in Pennsylvannia. The trail, forest, rocks, and viewless flat walking had me wondering if I'd hallucinated the last month.Eventually I did reach the highway, there were a few lakes in the area which laid my fears to rest. I got a lift from the first car to pass. I resupplied and got a quick meal in the general store and was back out on the trail at about 12:30.Most of the afternoon was spent wandering through rolling hills past large ponds and across/through streams. Some of the streams had waterfalls which were larger than almost any I had seen on the trail thusfar.As evening approached the trail made an upward turn, climbing easily up ontu the Barren Mtn/Chairback range. On the way up the setting sun slipped through the trees witht light so red it almost seemed as though the forest was on fire. I got on to the slightly bare peak just in time to watch the sun slip down under the clouds...beautiful.The shelter was about a quarter mile off of the ridge, about a mile down from the peak. I got down just as it was getting dark. There were three guys in the shelter, with a wide range of ages and occupations. The eldest of the tree had at one point rode a horse across the US.
Date: 2004-08-05
From: Cloud Pond

To: Cooper Brook Falls
Miles today: 35.7
Weather: scattered clouds

The trek across the Chairback range was surprisingly nice considering their low elevation. The bog in front of Fourth mountian was one of the coolest on the trail so far...with a lot of really cool pitcher plants and sundews. On the way up Columbus Mountian I passed a group of struggling teenagers with outward bound. I stopped to chat with their group consulers for a while. They seemed more than a little resentfull of their babysitter position. I could hardly blame them, their group seemed quite green.The veiw from the ridge was slightly bizarre. Small, sharp mountians, fairly well spaced and seperated by large tracks of flat green and blue. It was not a view I was used too. I came off the mountian and reached a large dirt road (reminded once again that this was not a wilderness). Two middle-aged women were on the road, quite obviously ready to throw in the towel. I chatted with them for a bit, remebering that this was where Bill Bryson had given up his attempt to cross the wilderness. (Most of the people Ive seen the past to days were going from Katahdin to Monson of Vice Versa). Eventually a train of cars came by and picked them up and I continued on across the Plesant River (which I decided to cross barefoot). I watched a group of dayhikers cross while I put my shoes back on, grining while they alternatly cursed, laughed and slipped. I left while they were half across and moved through a grove of massive old growth white pine.The trail moved up Gulf Hagas stream to the White Cap Range. On top of the first mountian I saw a K with an arrow painted on a rock, and while I tried to commpute I suddenly stopped in my tracks. Katahdin...."THERE IT IS" I pointed and shouted. The mountian seemed to come up out of nowhere, surrounded not by other mountians but by massive lakes that seemed to fill out where the bases of its sister mountians should be. Mabye the lakes were the "Blue-prints" leftover from the unfinished landscape.I caught multiple glimpses of the Mountian all along the range. I stopped on top of whitecap to catch a glimpse of Western Maine, I could see the Bigelows, Sugar Loaf and many others that I couldnt identify. Eventually I dragged myself off the summit, with the sun already setting. I ended up walking about 3 miles in the dark, but this portion of the trail was quite flat so it wasn't much of a chore.
Date: 2004-08-06
From: Cooper Brook Falls

To: Rainbow Lake
Miles today: 33.4

Walking through the flat lake country today. It was nice, but I missed the panoramic views. I did, however, enjoy the incredibly easy walking. There were quite a few sandy beaches, but the weather was a bit too cool for swiming...and the lakes are known to have leeches.At around 11:00 I got to the shore of Pemadumcook lake. There is a one mile side trail to a boat dock from which you can signal a ferry to take you to Whitehorse Wilderness camp. Me, a southbounder and two section hikers were all at the dock at the same time. The SOBO, "Ghost" was going to stay and send about twenty pounds home from the camp. Lunch was a one pound burger, a few brownies, and a pint of Ben and Jerry's...mmmm.Newly refueled I moved out at around two oclock. There was one really Mountian this afternoon, Nesbuntant. There was a very nice view from the top, with Katahdin looming over the lake. Along the way from the Mouintian to rainbow lake I walked along a stream with alternating steep cascades and wide flat shallows. As I passed one of these "deadwaters" I saw a moose in the water. I bushwacked toward the shore to get a picture and suddenly the stream erupted with noise. There wasnt one moose in the stream, but Six, including a massive bull, four cows and a calf. Impressive.The weather was supposed to turn this evening, but as it was probably going to be my last night on the trail I decided to sleep out anyway. Theres another thruhiker here, but I never caught his name. He seems to be the kind that likes his privacy.
Date: 2004-03-27
To: Great Googlely Mooglely !
Miles today: 0.0

The first look I got of the Appalachian Mountains was in Connecticut. They don¢t rise up to meet the sun like their powerful cousins out west. Frankly, their modest elevation was far from impressive. But, the first day I actually saw their drama? Well, that was in northern Georgia, the day before I would start my first-ever backpacking trip. My folks, being retired, had agreed to take the drive down to Georgia and bid me farewell. They¢ve always wanted to be involved with the lives of my sister and I that way. Better parents simply do not exist. Throughout my preparation, I read that of those who start a thru-hike, nearly 50% stop at Neels Gap, a mere 30 odd miles away. It was an action I simply could not understand. Thirty miles? What could possibly unravel these committed adventures from their dreams after only 30 miles? But as I drove around that bend in route to Springer Mountain, I saw the answer to that puzzling question. There before us, as the trees dipped towards a valley, laid a vista of rugged, saw-toothed mountains. The spectacle extended beyond my peripheral vision and only then did the naivet© grow closer to comprehension. This entire visual and many more like it would become my world for the next five to six months. The power, the beauty and the enormity of this endeavor blinded me for the first time. At this moment the pleasurable romanticism of hiking in the woods was replaced by fear, anxiety and apprehension. With some knee-jerk reaction of bravado, I remarked that it ¢Looks like fun!¢ when ¢Oh My God!¢ was what I was really thinking. I had never climbed a single mountain in my life, let alone with a backpack. Before me now was nothing but one rugged peak after another. I truly must be an idiot at times, for I had forgotten that I had never hiked a mountain before. How on earth does one forget that tiny fact? I later would write in my journal that it was as if I took my first swimming lesson and now I would swim the English Channel! Having grown up in the relative flat lands of Texas, where other than the occasional hilly golf course, my decision to hike the AT had put me face to face with a mountainous foe I was unfamiliar with. Nonchalantly, I said to the folks, ¢I hope the lounge at the hotel is open, I'm ready for a cocktail.¢ But I learned, as we all do with new endeavors and 500 miles of section hikes how to enjoy the journey. Why I¢ve even learned how to have a cocktail at the end of a day thanks to a platy lexan flask of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum! Just one more month before I leave Florida and head to Springer Mountain to reintroduce myself to a more beautiful side of this world. April 30th my foot hits the Approach Trail, between now and then only about a gazillion things to do.
Date: 2004-03-28
To: All journeys have some sacrifice.
Miles today: 0.0

Any individual setting off on an AT adventure has to be ready for the barrage of questions that will ensue. Popular questions such as ¢How heavy is your pack?¢ or ¢How far have you come?¢ Or the very common ¢Where do you go to the bathroom?¢I remember the question put to me so frequently was ¢What do you think you¢ll miss most?¢ At the time, I could only guess and often replied that it would probably be something simple. Something that we all take fore-granted everyday ( No, not my wife, still single gosh-darn-it). It wasn¢t till I spent some real time out on the trail that those prized luxuries started to reveal themselves. The first of these was one of the great civilized inventions of the modern world. The chair. If it weren¢t for the chair we¢d still be sitting on the dirt or tree stump. Oh wait, that¢s exactly what I¢m sitting on. See how a chair helps? So much for progress marching forward. Naturally, being a bit of an aficionado on design, I favor the low-slung lounge chair with decadent ottoman. How glorious it would be to stride into camp or shelter after a big mileage day, take off the pack and collapse in to a slouchy, classic leather lounge chair and put the big, throbbing dogs up. All that would be needed to make the moment all the more brilliant would be to have a nice Zinfandel sitting on the chairs arm!My second item of massive longing was the humble piece of bread. Yes, give us our daily bread and let¢s say a smear of butter and I can go another ten. My bias of bread leans towards that of the Italians. Crispy, flaky, chewy crust with soft, puffy white texture. To turbo the bread, put the fixin¢s of a sandwich between two of those Italian beauties and attack. A rush of gastronomic proportions. Finally, do this from the slouchy, lounge chair and you¢ve got Heaven on Trail. When finished, a big, long swig of minty mouthwash ¢¦rinse and spit without ever leaving the nirvana of the chair womb. Sorry, got carried away there.
Date: 2004-03-29
To: The Appalachian Trail Diet.
Miles today: 0.0

Although not as well known as some of the more famous diets that make it to hardcover, The AT Diet just may be the most effective path to shedding those unwanted pounds.First, The AT Diet allows you to eat anything and everything you want. Actually, it demands it.Words like sacrifice, deprivation and denial are replaced by pig-out, gorge yourself and AYCE (All-You-Can-Eat). Imagine putting an end to calorie counting or portion control? Say farewell to fat free anything and hello to triple chocolate fudge cake. What diet routinely asks you to polish off an entire half-gallon of rich, full-fat ice cream?As a devotee of The AT Diet you¢ll lose your inhibitions that have plagued you your whole life. When asking for seconds once triggered a mental wrestling match, you¢ll now think nothing of visiting the buffet counter three, four, even five times. Why, you¢ll never cower from a carbohydrate again. So magical is The AT Diet that as you move from main-course to main-course, you¢ll not only drop loads of pounds, but you¢ll build muscle! A slimmer, fitter, more beautiful you is just one of the fringe benefits. Your skin will exhibit a healthy, sun filled glow and your lungs breathing capacity will double. Those days of listless energy and feeling winded from getting off the sofa will be a distant memory. Amazingly, The AT Diet also lets its followers travel. Big sky mountain vistas and cozy meandering trails engulfed by the spicy scent of evergreen will be there to greet you. Yes, a Heaven of culinary gluttony awaits you and all you must do is don a backpack and walk! How easy is that!?So try The AT Diet. Who wouldn¢t want to eat any and everything one wants while still losing 40 pounds and seeing the world? Those 30 inch waist trousers and that size 2 dress are just over the mountain.
Date: 2004-04-11
To: What we carry.
Miles today: 0.0

A tent or a tarp? A water filter or drops? A frown or a smile? Its been said that the disposition we wear today will carve its creases in our face tomorrow. For me, moving north will be about both latitude and attitude. I have to remind myself that it¢s not the weight of my gear, but my outlook that determines so much. Confucius said, ¢Fall down seven times. Get up eight.¢It¢s a fact that people have made it end to end with gear exceeding 60 lbs while others who carried only 25 lbs left the trail. Although not as fanatical as some, I am a champion of hiking with lighter gear. It¢s basic common sense and the least we can do for our legs and feet. My bathroom scale says my stuff is 32 lbs which includes five days of food (7.5 lbs) and two & half liters of water (5.5 lbs). The gear will lighten by several pounds when the cold weather stuff gets sent home. But I also mean lightness that goes beyond stuff. The simplifying of my life has been underway ever since the AT revealed some of its less tangible beauties. This short move to Miami was a great opportunity to give the old worldly processions a clean sweep. Purging myself of all the clutter, all the accumulated junk (well, most of it anyway), makes me feel I¢m living smarter. During the 1990¢s, multi-tasking Americans discovered that having time had become the new luxury. After pushing for success and achieving it, many found themselves with literally no time to enjoy it. So they got a nanny, a dog walker, a housekeeper, a gardener and countless modems and wireless objects just to help them keep up. In the process, I believe many lost touch with the genius of going light. I¢m starting to feel that what could evolve into the new luxury of this decade may be simplicity. One thing I won¢t be carrying on my journey to Maine is an appointment book. I won¢t need to remind myself of the 8 am meeting before the 9 am meeting to decide if I should fly at 1 pm to follow up on yesterdays 3 pm conference call. The wheelers and dealers of the world would benefit from some time in the woods. Anyway, simplicity is one of the great lessons learned on the AT and it appears to be an agreeable lesson for most. Unfortunately, simplicity doesn¢t just happen; it seems to take a deft touch and some tough decisions. I think it¢s hard for some to see the beauty in simplicity when they¢re so consumed with having more. The desire for having more and more is the proof of how stuff is far from fulfilling. And in an odd way, the more exposure to simplicity I had, the greater the desire for seeking it out. Do I dare quote ¢Less is more¢? Anyway, The Appalachian Trail in all its challenges serves as a condensed version of our journey through life. And the equipment, despite all the recent advancements, is still just equipment. No matter what stuff we surround ourselves with in life or hike, it is all a weak alternative to the greatest thing we can carry¢¦ common courtesy, a sense of humor and most importantly, a positive outlook.After all, what else can get you to put on those cold wet socks yet again?
Date: 2004-04-25
To: Homage to being last
Miles today: 0.0

We can¢t always be first in our endeavors.Occasionally you have to become comfortable with being last. Actually, sometimes being last is favorable to not being at all. Even though I may be one of the last to leave Springer Mountain and head north, I might be the most appreciative member of the Class of ¢04 for having the chance.What would first be without last?Already this season, many have come before me and are rackin¢-up significant miles before the summers heat. Some started the AT while it was still in winters grip...Mt. Katahdin will be theirs by August. But for me it will be the colorful display of the fall foliage. My favorite time of the year. Those who started first have faced numerous southern snowfalls where the going was slow. It may be a similar fate we late-starters might face up north?But they're really not first and I am not last. We are all just ¢middle¢s¢. Many have come before us like Earl Shaffer, the AT¢s first thru-hiker. And many more adventurers seeking a fellowship with the wilderness will come after. Of course, let¢s not forget all the SOBO¢s (south bounders) who have yet to begin.No, being last is no scare on my character, quite the contrary. In track & field, the last person on the relay team is known as the ¢Anchor¢. And if I remember correctly, every time the Chicago Bulls basketball team was introduced, the last person was some guy named Michael Jordan. Hmm, being last doesn¢t necessarily say your least.Naturally though, those who go first will receive great accolades and parades. They¢ll be waved at by young maidens hanging from high windows. They¢ll be gallant gentlemen in carriages poised to carry them to wherever the town may be. And all this because they were bold, brave and had zero degree sleeping bags.Einstein said it¢s all relative and the AT experience is no different. Yes, they may have the glory of leading this train of humanity, but what engine would feel truly complete without its caboose?Yea, exactly my point. So I say to the Class of ¢04, move with confidence and security because Postcard¢s got your six....Oh, and save me some blueberries.
Date: 2004-04-25
To: Hello I must be going.
Miles today: 0.0

My departure date has been the source of some angst. Although I consider myself fit and ready to face the Appalachians, I can¢t over look one immovable fact ¢ five months and two weeks from when I begin, I must be at Mt. Katahdin in Baxter State Park in Maine. The park service has deemed October 15th as the date they close down the park.Since January, I've been training and pumping iron to increase my muscle fiber. With my pack weight at a manageable 32 lbs., I find I¢m starting to entertain some potentially disastrous thoughts such as pushing hard on the miles early on to get ahead. Fortunately, I have just enough AT experience to recognize the folly of such thoughts.One cannot conquer the Appalachian mountains, they¢re not to be trifled with. They will ask us to show them the full measure of our physical strength on their ascents and to use our patience in slowing our momentum on their descents. It seems going downhill is the hidden demon that so many cannot comprehend in the beginning. It is the source of many knee injuries and hike ending pain.These occasional fretting thoughts about starting late will serve no helpful purpose and only tarnish the splendor of the journey. To head into the mountains focused on the inner tick tock of the clock can only push me closer to misery than to Katahdin. I must keep a handle on these thoughts and not let them steamroll me. From all I¢ve read and experienced on the AT, one does not slay the dragon, but rather, one must learn to walk along with it. Even a dragon can enjoy having a new friend.Just five more days... everything changes on April 30th. Ticketty tock, it¢s time to walk.Some go swift. Some go slow.But if it¢s Maine you seek, then go go go.
Date: 2004-04-27
To: My Starbucks
Miles today: 0.0

My Starbucks coffee house has been the source of much entertainment. It seems I can¢t stop laughing at the fact so few people walk anymore. Many of my neighbors here, (on this my last day in south Miami, Florida), will tolerate terribly long lines which move at a turtles pace just to avoid getting out of their cars and walking. My Starbucks has a drive-thru.Even if it means getting the hot mocha-nocha-pocha with soy and whipped cream ten minutes sooner!Do I think these people are lazy and crazy? Yes I do. I get the impression that some would chose root-canal over having to park and walk. Heaven forbid even considering leaving the ¢park¢ part out of that statement and simply walk somewhere. Anywhere. Why others might stare?I¢m sure this makes me sound greater-than-thou, which is wrong of me, but it is definitely an odd existence. And I would have to submit that America¢s many obesity issues are woven into the same mindset.For me to even have this point-of-view shows another of the subtle beauties of the AT. The reintroduction to walking and an attitude that empowers me to move un-mechanized is way healthy. I can only imagine that every walk to a mall or grocery store from the farthest parking space out will add up and up and up, and someday when I¢m 80, I¢ll still be fit, vital and looking at women.But the benefits don¢t stop there. One can see much more when they¢re a foot. Many of us look, but few see. Being a painter, I witnessed this increase in visual comprehension first hand. And with the longer time frame of foot travel, patience is also heightened in all the other daily activities ...which I¢ve already spoken of.I think drive-thru¢s are great, especially when it¢s raining. But rain down here in south Florida?...dreamer. Hey, can someone pass me the cinnamon? I don¢t won¢t to get up.
Date: 2004-04-27
To: Traveling companions.
Miles today: 0.0

Many have been asking if I¢ll be traveling alone?The answer is sort-of. Other thru-hikers are out there and some are indeed hiking solo too. But that doesn¢t mean they or I want to hike by ourselves. As far as I¢m concerned, absolutely not!Still others are in pairs (or couples) or three¢s and fours. Families are usually out each year as well. Once thru-hiker's start seeing the same faces each night around the shelters, we all start to understand each other¢s pace and temperament. Two singles of similar pace may form up and start meeting each night at the same destination...a partnership is formed. Others will come upon the new twosome and join if all the vibes are good. Eventually, ¢tribes¢ will emerge. This organic process will ebb and flow as individuals take ¢zero days¢ ¢ that is a day with zero mileage hiked on the trail. Generally zeros are taken in a town. If the others continue up the trail, the partnership loosens. However, as the others take their zero, the tribe is reunited.Now some traveling companions are more important than others. Case-in-point, my ten buddy¢s in the picture will be with me every step of the way, knock on wood.When I walk they¢ll walk...duh! When I sit, they¢ll,...well throb I suppose? And when I eat, they¢ll most likely still throb.They¢ve got some mileage on them and some of life¢s texture too. They were with me when we out ran the neighborhood bully in football at age 12 ¢ which made me famous with all the kids on Crest Cove Circle. Unfortunately, it made me less popular with the bully.They walked me up to the podium at all three of my graduation ceremonies. No, I don¢t have a Ph.D.. My third ceremony was actually my very first. A cap and gown graduation from First Grade. I swear, it was the only picture my late grandmother had up of me!And they accompanied me across the hardwood stage in front of 3000 people at Lincoln Center in New York City when I won my first TV Clio award for the best food commercial. Yep, these dogs are my good friends and they¢ll help us meet many more new friends as we move north. We may even meet ¢One Leg Wonder¢ (I think that¢s his trail name?). He has one ordinary foot and one very special bionic one. So, that¢ll be cool.As you can probably understand, they¢re not very fond of swimming pools. Why just a hint of the chlorine aroma and they cramp up. Anyway, they¢re looking forward to crossing 14 state lines, but it wasn¢t without some negotiations. They¢ve promised to not yell or scream too terribly much if I promise to rub them each night with Bag Balm and treat them to a new, fluffy pair of hiker socks each month. All quite reasonable I thought.(I didn¢t dare tell them that some of their nails might fall off...who knows what they might do?)