morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-07-22
From: Mohican Outdoor Center

To: Gren Anderson Shelter
Miles today: 21.3
Weather: clear sky

It seems that the 5:45 wake-up thing has ended. I'm now sleeping to 6:45 and sometimes 7. Later sunrise and pure tiredness are combining to cause this effect. Hiked to Blue Mtn Lakes Rd for lunch where there was a water pump. This is another nice thing of late, water pumps and spicots have been available for every 4th water source or so. This saves the water treatment chemicals, and as a result cost. Rainman, O'pop, Voodoo, Twinkletoes, Jam and Lily were all there. The lure of potable water. In the afternoon I hiked pased Crater Lakes, and some lovely ridges with great views. Again, NJ is beautiful. I saw my first porcupine in the wild, it was just off the trail, and very well camoflagued with the dark underhairs and yellow quills. At Culver's Gap we stopped for a break at Gyp's Tavern. We were going to have beer and play pool, but the Weather Channel showed rain all night and the next 2 days, so we moved on to the shelter to avoid wet gear. At the shelter was the first bear box. This is a box with a bear-proof latch due to the high bear concentration in New Jersey. Didn't have to throw a bear line for the food bags.
Date: 2008-07-23
From: Gren Anderson Shelter

To: "Secret Shelter"
Miles today: 18.3

Today I was just exhausted. Not sure why I've been feeling this way for the last few days, maybe am getting sick. Severl folks have caught bugs of various sorts, so I guess it could be my turn. Hiked from Gren Anderson shelter to High Point State Park. Got there at 4:15, and the office with bathrooms had closed at 4pm (drat!). Decided to make an early hot dinner to energize the rest of the hike to the Secret shelter (a hiker cabin provided by Jim Murray, a 1989 thru-hiker who owns property adjacent to the AT). THe hike from High Point to the secret shelter was inthe pouring rain, but finally made it by 8pm. Soaking wet, but it turns out that the shlter has a hot shower, elecricity, running water, and a heater that worked very well to dry out all the wet gear. I basically had the energy to set things up to dry, and then eat some snacks and fall asleep. Haven't felt this tired before.
Date: 2008-07-24
To: Vernon, NJ - St. Thomas Epispocal Church hostel
Miles today: 13.6

It was till raining this morning, so waited until 11:30 when it actually stopped to start hiking nd leave the oasis that is the secret shelter. I feel very grateful to Jim Murray for his generosity. I needed to crash yesterday, and he provided the perfect place to do it. Decided to hike to Vernon, NJ to resupply and spend the night at the St Thomas Epispocal Church hostel. About 3 miles of the hike this morning was on a boardwalk of one sort or another. Pretty nice change. Some was just 2 boards with a crossection of telephone pole at either end, but one mile was a lovely professional handicap access boardwalk through a state park wetland. Had lunch by the Wallkill river in the Wallkill River NWR, then on to Vernon. We were lucky to cathc a ride the 2.4 miles into town. It is actually illegal to hitchhike in New Jersey, but it worked out. The St. Thomas Epispocal church hostel was the nicest one I've seen yet. Showers, laundry, kitchen use, TV, internet, chairs, and bet of all, a list of hiker chores to keep the place clean. THis was the first hostel that didn't have this dank musty smell, and I think it was because the cleaning chores were very clearly listed, and every hiker "had" to do at least one. Good idea. THe three Canuck grils (Mama Maple and her daughters Lily and Jam) were there, as was Chainsaw, and Smiles.
Date: 2008-07-25
From: Vernon, NJ - St. Thomas Epispocal Church hostel

To: Vernon, NJ - St. Thomas Epispocal Church hostel
Miles today: 0.0

Got permission to take a zero day at the hostel as I was feeling too drained (must be sick) to effectively do much else. Rested all day and did chores. Will hike out tomorrow.
Date: 2008-07-26
From: Vernon, NJ - St. Thomas Epispocal Church hostel

To: Wildcat Shelter
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Got up feeling somewhat better, so headed back to tthe trail after breakfast at Dunkin Donuts. Hiked up the 1000 foot climb to the top of Waywayanda Mtn., and then found trail magic soda and granola bars from the parents of a 2007 thru hiker. Continued on, crossing the New Jersey/New York state line just before lunch. Had lunch at Prospect Rock. Pressed on toward Wildcat shelter, and just before the shelter, on what's called the Eastern Pinnacles, we met another "trail magician". "Askus 3" was just returning from his weekly visit to the shelter where he had left water. He also gave us each a drink from him bag. I got a Mike Hard Cranberry Lemonade which was the pefect combination of thirst quenching and alcohol.   Enabled the last mile to go smoothly. At Wildcat shelter some section hikers had set up a big tent in the shelter, so I set up my tent down the hill. Met Freestyle. As I was going to bed I heard sirens. Seemed appropriate for the first night in New York.
Date: 2008-07-27
From: Wildcat Shelter

To: Orange Turnpike - John and Susan's house
Miles today: 8.1

At 3AM, the thunder and lightning started. I got out of my tent and brought the clothes in that I had left hanging to dry. 30 minutes later it started to rain pretty hard. then in another 20 minutes I saw headlamp lights and heard hiker's voices. Some women voices and mens voices saying "where is the shelter?", "There's a tent in it" "What should we do?". In the morning, after it had stopped raining, I found out that The 3 Canuck girls, and Just Mike, and Mash had decided to cowboy camp on the Eastern Pinnacles (bick rocks) and awoke to lightning popping all around them at 3AM. SO the packed up and scuttled off the pinnacles in the rain, and got to the shelter only to find the big tent set up inside. The section hikers took down the tent, and they all got in the shelkter after a bit of a bad night. Their bad night turned into our bad day. It was very hot and muggy, and while I was still feeling a bit sick, Mas was becoming truly ill. Very pasty-faced, wobbly, weak, and clearly needed to get off the trail. Fortunately, the trail provided as it seems to. At one road crossing, a trail magic cooler of water was there with some business cards from local trail angels Susan and John who offered a comfy bed, shower, meal, laundry, etc. So we called tehm and they picked us up, along with Rainman, O'pop, Cayenne, and Tailgate. Again, the kindness of strangers is such and amazing part of this experience. Mas was able to crash in a real bed (with a 102 fever), and the rest of us had dinner and hung out together. Thank you Susan and John!
Date: 2008-07-28
From: Orange Turnpike - John and Susan's house

To: John and Susan's house
Miles today: 0.0

Have spent a zero day here at the home of these caring folk, John and Susan. I've been able to get back up to 100%, but Mas has been running from 102 to 104 degrees temp. The most likely cause right now seemes to be Lyme disease.   Susan was able to take him to the Walk in clinic for a Lyme test, and also picked up Voodoo, Twinkletoes, and Da Wa Heh off the trail. Again the kindness of these folks is truly amazing.
Date: 2008-07-29
From: John and Susan's house

To: John and Susan's House
Miles today: 0.0

It is a constant source of amazement and appreciation that the trail has provided in the form of offerings of kindness and help from strangers. Spent another day at John and Susan's house, here in Tuxedo, NY. Around noon, Mas's fever broke and he felt like a human again, s it looks like I'll be back on the trail tomorrow. THough this sidetrack was unexpected, and really for the health of my hiking partner, in truth I needed the break too. I guess PA just wore me out. I'm feeling so much more rejuvenated and like myself after a few days of house-living and bed-sleeping.
Date: 2008-07-30
From: Orange Turnpike/John and Susan's House

To: Seven Lakes Drive
Miles today: 16.2

Susan took us back to the trail at 7 AM. We said goodbye and THANKS! Hiked over Agony gring, which wasn't actually that agonizing, through the "lemon squeezer" a narrow passage trhough a large cracked boulder, and stopped a Lake Tiorati for lunch (a recreational lake in the Harriman State Park). Crossed the "sub-800 miles to Katahdin" mark today. A new milestone. I'm very glad to be back on the trail, despite tyhe loveliness of the respite. A moment of excitement today just south of the William Brien shelter. I saw a beautiful dark-phase timber rattler, stopped to watch it for awhile. Then, when it started to slither away to some rocks by the trail, i was watching it go under the rocks and saw that there was actually a den of rattlesnakes under there. Three under on rock, at least 2 under another rock, and some huge shed skins laying around as well. My first den of rattlers anywhere. Very cool and exciting!
Date: 2008-07-31
From: Seven Lakes Drive

To: Graymoor Monastary
Miles today: 10.5

Awoke at 7am, and got packed up. Started the morning with a climb up Bear Mtn. Frorm here there are views of the New York City skyline on a clear day (it was a bit hazy for that today), and of the Hudson River valley. I was low on water the night before and this morning, so I actually bought bottled water from the vending machine on Bear Mtn. If there can be a vending machine, why is there not a spigot? Apparently we got up there too early for the observation tower to be opened as well. Other hikers told us later that the view was even better there. Coming down Bear Mtn, we then arrived at the Bear Mtn Trailside Park/Zoo. Ran into Snap and Snack, who are now hiking with Savannah and Gouda and their 2 dogs. Chipmunk came through the park as well. I decided to get a hot dog from the concessionaire, and while eating it, Foot Steps and Slow Poke (whom we had met onthe trail pre-illness) showed up. They are two very nice gentlemen from Cantonment, FL, sectioning the trail.   We chatted about how Mas was feeeling, and they kindly offered to drive our packs up to the Graymoor monastary (where the monks allow hikers to use a shelter and shower in their ballfield), allowing us to slack[pack the next 6 miles. This was excellent as Mas really wasn't feeling great at all. So, we gave them our packs, and we set off with Foot Steps' day pack containing our water bladders and a few other items. We hiked through the tTrailside Zoo. A zoo of native animals, sort of like at Homosassa Springs State Park in FL for those of you that have been there. Mostly old or injured/rehab animals. In an interesting and somewhat ironic moment, at the bear enclosure there was a sign saying "At an elevation of 120 feet, this is the lowest point on the Appalachian Trail". Both literally and figuratively, 120 feet, and there are two black bears playing with rags and dog toys in a fenced enclosure......... LOW. On top of Anthony's Nose, Mas got a call from the doctor's office confirming that he had tested positive for Lyme disease. So, three weeks of doxycycline 2X per day for him. At least he knows for sure why he was feeling so ill. Unfortunately doxycycline can be really rough on the human body (dizziness, extreme sun-sensitivity, digestive issues, etc.). Did finally make it to Graymoor, and we decided to stay there for the night. Set up our tents, and I rooted through the box of canned food that was donated to the hikers, and got corn, beans, and cranberry jelly. Mmmmmmm. Veggies, and low standards. My new lot in life.
Date: 2008-08-01
From: Graymoor Monastary

To: Clarence Faehnstock State Park
Miles today: 11.9

Awoke to the early departure of Slow Poke and Foot Steps. These two guys are motivated, and actually get out hiking while it's still nice and cool. While packing up to leave, I met another Southbounder (they've been coming in ones and twos daily for the past week now). He was from South Korea and had the trail name "Kim-Chee". He gave me some good info on hostels and trail angels in Vermont and New Hampshire. Today I saw 4 ribbon snakes, and a new species, an Eastern Milk snake. Very pretty, 9 inches long, and grey with redding-brown pattern. Too fast for a picture though. Found some huge, super-sweet blackberries at Dennytown road where there was also water from a spigot. Feeliong good today, so continued on the Clarence Faehnstock State Park. This was 1 mile down the road from the AT, but they provide a free site for hikers to use. That's great and all, but unfortunately the free site was covered with broken glass shards. Not good for lightweight tents. Did my beast ot pick up pieces to set up my tent. This park provides a striking contrast to the state parks in FL. No wonder the FL state Parks are national award winners....... Whew! Did get a hot shower though. Worn was also there having gotten lost and yellow-blazed.
Date: 2008-08-05
From: Kent, CT

To: Stewart Hollow Lean to
Miles today: 7.0

Had a lovely morning in Kent, CT. Awoke early, and went to the coffee house. Had some excellent coffee, and a Rosemary, roasted onion, and roasted sweet pepper muffin. Finished it off with a specialty chocolate: dark chocolate caramel with walnuts and sea salt. My kind of breakfast! The big event of the day was the arrival of my new pair of boots via UPS. I ordered the same boots as I had been wearing, and though they are definitely not as loose at the old beat-up pair, they fit better than I expected. I guess my feet aren't as freakishly swollen as I feared. Left town wearing the new boots,, and leaving the old ones in the dumpster next to the outfitters. I felt a little bad about this. Like the old boots deserved some kind of ceremony or something for getting me over 1500 miles, especially since they are light hikers. No omplaints at all from me on the Vasque Ion. Many other hikers are not pleased with their Vasques. I hope the new pair does as well as the old ones. One the way out of town I passed three hikers sitting maybe 30 feet away and above me, and I knew immediately by the smell that they were thru-hikers. Quite a few of us have taken on a certain "odour". I hope this doesn't include me, and since I take at least a bucket bath virtually every day, I think I'm not among the worst of us. But there are some that are quite strong-scented. These three were southbounders. Arrived at the Stewart Hollow Lean to for the night. Met some new northbounders: Remy, Highlnder, and Socrates. Also a very diminutive woman section hiker names Baggins. The rain started at about 2 in the morning.
Date: 2008-08-06
From: Great Falls on the Housatonic River

To: Stewart Hollow Lean to
Miles today: 18.8

Awoke to rain at 7AM after a night of loud rain on the metal roof of this weird little shelter. Didn't feel too motivated to get up as happens on rainy mornings. I felt badly for everyone in the tents, but was glad to be in the shelter. Dry gear is a nice thing. THe strange design of this shelter is really confusing though. YOu literally have to climb over a 3.5 foot high barrier to get in and out of the thing. Hit the trail at 9:20. Baggins was planning to spend another day at the shelter due to her leg injury. Everyone else was gone by the time I left. THe first 3 miles of the day went well, but then the unpredictable CT hills reared their ugly heads again. FOr some reason due either to the topography, or the layout of the trail, land ownership, whatever, you just seem to climb and climb in a very inefficient seeming path, never reaching the top of the peak, or a view, or anything that gives you a sense of accomplishment or completion. Also, the occassional elevations listed inthe thru-hikers companion for this state seem to leav out a lot of the climbs. So a listed landmark will be some road at 800 feet. Then the next listed landmark will be 3 miles later, a stream at 830 feet. But in between those two things are four 550 foot climbs. Oh well. It keeps it interesting. There are other books, like The Appalachian Pages that give every possible elevation detail, but so far the Thru hikers companion has worked okay. If I were to do this again, or reccommend a book to others, I might go with the Appalachian Pages though. Anyway, the rain has created a bloom of mosquitos that now swarm and bite as I hike, but it has also created a beautiful bloom of various fungi on the forest floor. All sorts of colors: reds, oranges, yellows, purples, etc. All very vivid. A small replacement for the loss of the spring wildflowers. In the afternoon we walked to the hydroelectric power plant on the Housatonic River (where they have a spigot and outside cold shower that hikers can use). Took advantage of the shower, and hiked only a short way further to a flat spot on the trail where we pitched our tents and had dinner by "Great Falls", which due tpo the rain were quite impressive. Fell asleep to the sounds of the waterfalls.
Date: 2008-08-07
From: Great Falls on the Housatonic River

To: Hemlock Hollow shelter
Miles today: 21.0

Set a good goal for the day to enable an earlier arrival in Great Barrington, MA, the next planned town stop. Today included the last section of Connecticut, and the entry into Massachussetts, It aslo included three peaks over 2,000 feet again. The elevations are starting to go up again, and will just continue to do so into New Hampshire and Maine. In the morning, I saw a new species of orchid, but when I stopped to take a picture of it, I was swarmed by a ridiculous number of mosquitos. I actually sat down on the ground to try to get a steady picture. This was a bad decision, because in addition to all the mosquito bites, I also got 9 deer ticks on me. I was finding them the rest of the day. This is of course even more disconcerting since Mas has now gotten Lyme disease, as has DaWahHeh, and a handful of other hikers that are further ahead. I really don't want to get it, and every deer tick bite is just a roll of the dice on that front. The last peak in Connecticut was Bear Mtn., also the highest peak in the state. On the way down, I met VigilAuntie and "Y". Apparently every time Mas and I have passed them it has rained, pr at least so they said. Turns out it was right for today. As I slowly labored up the last peak of the day, Mt. Everett, The thunder clouds were coming in, and the thunder and lightning were starting. By the time I dragged myself to the top, the storm was coming in fast. Even though I climbed the peak on the memory of fumes in my gas tank, the immediate threat of a soaking did manage to get me moving down the peak toward the shelter. I was practically running by the end. Night had come early agin due to the storm clouds. It started raining just as I was approaching the shelter, and mere moments after I got under the overhang, the deluge began. Mas and Powder River were sitting there already, and I heard them discussing my odds of getting soaked as I walked up. Whew, at least I beat the odds. And, it was great to see Powder River again.   A few minutes later, a southbounder named Mercury arrived soaking wet. the 4 of us shared the shelter for the evening. I felt very bad for Vigil Auntie and Y as they no doubt got drenched.
Date: 2008-08-08
From: Hemlock Hollow shelter

To: Great Barrington, MA
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: light rain

Awoke to the smell of a thru-hiker. Not sure who it was, but glad to determine that it wasn't me. The smell of many of my fellow hikers has reached a very noticeable and distinct level. Fortunately, the rain had stopped, and the spring close to the shelter was running, which it wasn't doing last night before the deluge. It was a pretty easy morning hike to Great Barrington. There was one section where the trail was not well marked though and a bit of a detour happened as a result. However, the mistake was realized quickly, and less than an extra half a mile was walked. We arrived at US 7, the intersection for Great Barrington, MA, and Sheffield, MA, at about 1pm. Mas used to live in Great Barrington, and still has friends here, so he planned to take a zero day with his friend Gregory, and I was able to piggyback on that opportunity (as I have been able to several times recently). Taking a zero day in a house is so much better than doing so in a hotel room. There's something so much more normal and normalizing about a house. In addition, of course, there's no cost for the lodging, and I'm totally used to sleeping on the floor or ground at this point. When we arrived at US 7, and stuck out our thumbs to hitch a ride into town, the very first car that went by stopped to pick us up. What a contrast to Kent, Connecticut, where people swerved to the other lane to avoid us , as if we might leap at their cars in our urgency to get a ride. The woman that picked us up actually drove us to Gregory's house,or actually his girlfriend Jessica's house. After Mas and Gregory greeted each other, we all sat down and ate a light lunch of various organic and local foods. Yum! What a treat to be offered Coconut water and avocados, and flaxseed bread with tahini and local honey. After lunch we got showered and headed to town to do laundry as in any other town stop. Wandered around Great Barrington a bit. A very interesting combination of wealthy, and green folks. When we returned to Gregory and Jessica's place, we met Jessica who is a very cool woman. I really like her style. She made us another super healthy organic meal: broiled fresh snapper, broccoli rab, organic green salad, fresh basil aioli, a lovely hard cheese, hummus, multi grain flat crackers. It was without a doubt the healthiest meal I've had on the trail yet, and everything was delicious! What hospitality! I feel very lucky.
Date: 2008-08-09
From: Great Barrington, MA

To: Great Barrington, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Took a fantastic zero day toady in Great Barrrington. Awoke to a breakfast of some german museli cereal that was out of this world, hazelnut tea, and the New York Times. Spent an easy morning and then went to see the new Batman movie in the afternoon. What a great performance by Heath Ledger as the Joker. WOW! Overall a great movie I thought. I was pretty much resigned to not seeing it in the theatre despite the hype associated with it as a result of Heath Ledger's untimely death. But, the small theatre here in this town was still playing it. So, no longer am I one of the hikers that hasn't seen it; because most have gone in to a town to see it at one point or another. After the movie, the day just got even better. Mas had made contact with another of his friends, and she was going to Tanglewood to see the evening concert of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The Tanglewood Music Center, in Lennox, Massachussetts, is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the site of a broad range of musical performances. At Tanglewood, the summer concerts have lawn seating where folks bring picnic baskets and lawn chairs and drink wine and listen to classical music performed by world class musicians. She invited Mas, and as a result me as well, to join her party, so we decided to do it. I've heard of Tanglewood throughout my life of being exposed to classical music and listening to NPR, so to go there was a real treat. It was an all-Mozart concert. The Boston Symphony Orchestra,with guest conductor Hans Graf. Andre Previn performed on the piano, sopano Andrea Rost performed a concert aria. Stefan Jackiw and Lawrence Power performed a beautiful sinfonia concertante for violin and viola. After the intermission were the 32nd and 33rd symphonies. I felt slightly out of place in my hiker clothes (and the extra layers I had borrowed from the back seat of Gregory's car due to the chill in the air), but it was just a wonderful night. A memory that will be a wonderful part of my AT experience.
Date: 2008-08-10
From: Great Barrington, MA

To: Great Barrington, MA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

When the place is as nice as Great Barrington, and the hosts are as kind and generous as Gregory and Jessica, it's easy for one zero day to turn into two. This is especially easy when just as you get prepared to leave, a cold rain starts. Hard to leave a warm, dry house for a cold rainy hike. So, we decided to stay until tomorrow morning.