morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-07-15
To: South Paris ME
Miles today: 0.0

Over the next few days I will post my final thoughts and memories. I'll also upload more pics as I get them and review & edit the journal entries as needed. I want to determine all my blue blaze, yellow blaze, trails miles, etc using the 2006 thru hikers companion (I started with a 2003 AT Data Guide). Stay tuned...or not.I want to add a few more "top ten" lists. Heres one:The Things I Got Tired Of:1. Sweating like a pig then chafing in all the wrong places.2. Deer flies buzzing in my ears until they got tangled in my hair3. Body Funk that didn't go away with one shower. Same applies to stinky clothes and only one wash4.Waking up in the middle of the night having to make a nature call and stumbling out of a shelter doing the hiker hobble (if I wasn't too dehydrated)5. The ache in my knees from steep descents6. Slipping on wet, damp tree roots or slimy rocks and taking dangerous falls as a result7. Getting a resupply. Yes, a resupply. That meant getting back on the trail with a heavier pack8. Walking in wet boots and sox9. Getting inaccurate info from hikers about the trail ahead. Seemed what they determined "easy, hard or fun" never matched my defintion of easy, hard or fun.10. Rain, rain, rain, rain...and oh yeah, did I mention the rain?
Date: 2006-07-20
To: Aberdeen NC
Miles today: 0.0

I'm on a train headed for Aberdeen North Carolina. The last few days went by pretty fast, just like the days on the trail. I've got an empty feeling like I am not sure what I need to do now. The trail was easy. Wake up, eat, hike, snack, hike, eat, sleep and repeat.The rat race pressures seem to be lurking in the shadows. How am I going to earn money? How will the bills get paid? How and when will/can we move back to the mountains?I've curbed my appetite a little but still need to work on how much I eat at one sitting. I went to a gym a few times in CT. My knees still ache a lot but the stiffness in my ankles seems to be loosening up.Occupations I've considered:Work for - 1. ATC2. NOLS3. Outward Bound4. NPS5. USFSBe a - 1. teacher2. counselor
Date: 2006-07-23
To: Boone NC
Miles today: 0.0

So, its been a few days since I've made an entry. Not really sure how to wrap up. In the mean time I have tried to upload more pix but seem to be having trouble with the website. Keep getting kicked off have to sign back in each time I try to upload a new one.So how has the trail changed my life? Well, I learned that things really are simpler on the trail...monotonous...but simple. And life doesn't have to be a rat race. And life in this world isn't just about me.A few weekends ago Linda and I went camping at our favorite campground in Boone NC. A spur of the moment decision led us to deciding we will move back to Boone area. Our hearts are really in the mountains, not the Sandhills or the Piedmont. Since I still don't have a job and we don't have a house, why not? Anyway, what changes will I carry on onto the future? First of all I want to be a teacher. I've spent most of my life trying to "get" things: sucess, money, toys, newer cars, nice house, motorcycles, all that crap. All that crap just isn't important. It's time for me to "give" something back. So I thought being a teacher would be respectable and self rewarding. I will return to school at Appalchian State University. I plan to get a teaching degree or finish my business degree then do a lateral transfer to become a liscensed teacher. Need a job too. All this will be a real lesson in humility. But that is what I want.I've been reading a little book called The Prayer of Jabez. To me, this little book is pretty relevant to my life right now. Without going into great detail, I've asked for Gods blessing and it has been given. I've asked him to expand my boundaries and they've been expanded. Now that I'm in over my head, I have to ask Him to help me and I believe He will. I don't know what the outcome will be, but whatever it is, it will be God's will. What all this means is that I realize that I did find something on the AT. I found spiritual growth and a better connection to God. After all He carried me along all those times I had doubt in my mind or had a poor mental attitude. He kept me physically capable of completing the journey and helped me to avoid injuries. My belief today is that without God in my life, I'm nothing. You don't have to believe that. But that's OK. I believe it and that's what matters.On an end note I will continue trying to get more pics uploaded and may contact the website administrators if I still have trouble. When I have time, that is. Remember, I'm looking for a job and hope to be in school by the end of the month. Plus, getting an internet connection when your living in a 26' travel trailer ain't easy!
Date: 2006-09-09
To: Boone, NC
Miles today: 0.0

So, here I am, nearly 2 months after finishing my journey and about 5 weeks after moving back to where my heart belongs.Random thoughts:1. Boone ain't what it used to be. If I thought the tourist problem was bad before, it's absolutely crazy now. Home prices have spiralled out of control, development threatens the pristine wilderness everywhere.2. Looks like I can't get into ASU until the spring semester. I was thinking that due to #1 above, was it really a good idea to come to Boone or should we have gone to Abingdon or Catawba, VA?3. I used to think hiking the AT twice was for crazy people. Maybe I'm crazy. I miss the trail and now think I want to do a MEGA hike. Being back in the world isn't all that fun even though I do have a low stress job.4. Speaking of jobs, I've been reading a lot of dissapointing and misleading economic propaganda in the newspaper.   A. Ben Bernanke says the standard of living for Americans has never been better. What Americans and where?   B. The unemployment rate in Watauga county is one of the lowest in NC. Some blow hard at the ESC says the number of people employed is up, guess cuz the labor pool has increased but the unemployment rate is also up. He fails to say what kind of jobs are being filled. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics recently reported there are more restaurant jobs. Great. More people flippin burgers at McDonalds and Hardees.    C. More Americans today are without health insurance than ever before and the average family income has decreased about 5 to 6 thousand dollars over the last several years. Why? Because big companies continue to create low paying, part time jobs that don't provide insurance and don't pay enough to buy it privately. They also doing a good job at putting smaller companies out of business, the companies that supposedly provide most of the jobs to Americans.(I'll get off my soap box now and continue to happier, dreamier thoughts).5. Have been thinking about starting on the MST (Mountains to Sea trail) and section hiking it toward Clingmans Dome.
Date: 2006-09-30
To: Boone NC
Miles today: 0.0

Finally got the photo problem straightened out by contacting Leif. I uploaded more pics. In the photo files they will appear mostly from about Mar 19 thru the end of march (Erwin TN to Damascus time frame.Did my 1st post-hike, 40 pounds lighter triathlon today. It was the second time I did the Watauga Lake Triathlon and even though the swim was 250 meters longer than last year, I beat my time by almost 10 minutes. My bike ride really improved. Riding around Boone in the mountains and pushing less than 200 pounds uphill helped a lot.When I initially got off the trail, I still ate like a little piggy and gained about 5-7 pounds. But I have since lost that and maybe even a few extra pounds too. Think I'm less than 195 now. Started the hike in Feb close to 240. Not sure if it is residual affect from the hike, but post race my knees were (and still are) killing me. Walking down stairs right now brings back memories of stumbling thru the Whites. Hope to get some more pictures posted over the next few days. Stay tuned....
Date: 2006-10-04
To: Boone, NC
Miles today: 0.0

I think I finally finished uploading my photos and posting one to each day of my journal. Most of the photos shown on each journal page were taken around the time/date the journal page was written. I still haven't located my WV and MD photos. Next mission for me to do is review and edit each page. I the pace I'm going that will take until next year. Once that is done I want to make one final (a really final) entry. In the meantime, enjoy the eye candy.
Date: 2006-12-31
To: Boone, NC
Miles today: 0.0

So here it is. The last day of 2006. I'm not really sure how to wrap this journal up. I don't have the writing skill to express how I feel about this past year. It's hard to believe that it's been almost a year since I started my thru hike. A few updates first, I suppose:We bought a house in the mountains outside of Boone, NC. At about 4,000' elevation we get more snow and frozen precipitation than other parts of the county.I should start school next week at Appalachian State University if the classes I need to take are available. Hope to finish a degree in business. Hope that leads to a teaching job, but still not 100% sure if that's the road I want to take.Since leaving Baxter State Park back in July, I've been back on the AT once, a short day hike with my wife and dogs down to Laurel Fork Falls near Kincora Hostel. In the last few weeks, I finally got around to putting together a scrapbook of my hike. I've also been doing some journal editing and mileage verification.One thing I know. My heart aches for a return to the trail. The simple life. The joys of nature. Everything I need on my back. Stress free. Spiritually free. I look at my pictures and I think "Yeah, I remember that. Wow!". Maybe its a person who runs a hostel, a trail angel or a hiker. Maybe an odd shaped tree or a breathtaking panoramic view. A deer. A squirrel. A chipmunk. A lake. A stream. Whatever it is, it seems like yesterday and I can feel myself in every photo.To all the hikers who made it to Maine (or Georgia), congrats. To those that didn't, it's OK, you tried. Dreams can't always come true, but at least you tried to live your dream. For those who want to hike but say they can't, just go for it!To my readers, thanks for following along as the odyssey really does come to an end. Thanks for the messages and the support. Thanks for believing in me. Thanks for living my dream with me.Until our paths cross again...
Date: 2006-04-03
To: Prologue
Miles today: 0.0

An Onion doesn't do anything much at all.It sits in the ground; Leaves, or rather stems, grow, and then somebody eats it. I am somewhat like an onion. It is not April 3rd. It is September 4th, 2006. I am recovering from a surgery that transpired a few weeks ago in Berlin, NH, near Gorham. That is as far as I had gotten on my northbound AT thru-hike. I intend to get up to Katahdin before Oct. 15 and flip-flop, hiking in several short sections if necessary for job reasons, and completing the trail by the end of the year. That is my hope. For now, however, I have healing to do. I shall rejoice in this world of showers and ice cream and crystal clear music and midnight snacks, and clean socks, and I shall paste my scribbled notebook entries onto this Online Journal in the hopes that, if I keep at it long enough, I'll break the 3-entry barrier and people will actually be able to see this stuff. Wish me luck!
Date: 2006-04-04
From: Springer Mtn

To: Gooch Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: clear sky

At the earliest crack of dawn, when the north Georgia night first yielded to that blue and shadowy vague-light by which one can 'almost' see enough to walk, I stopped pretending that I wasn't too excited to try and sleep anymore, and crawled out of my tent at Springer Mtn Shelter, into the 34-degree pre-sunrise early April air. It was dark. But becoming less so. A woodcock twittered its liquid display song from the sky above me. A couple phoebes let loose their raspy notes. I decided to wait for a more civilised level of luminescence before I broke camp, so I ran past hushed and slumbering tent-forms up to the summit to check out this legendary spot I had slept so close to last night and still had not seen. The southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Whoa...Back to camp to pack up. Mark, whom I met yesterday on the ride in, is also up, and I say goodbye to him as I head out, hoping to see him shortly down the trail. I retrace my steps, this time with my pack, to the summit, to officially begin my thru-hike. The Southern Terminus of the Appalachian Trail. I try to grasp the enormity of it, standing at the bottom of a million white blazes, with nothing but trail between me and Katahdin, but, it's one of those things, like light-years and galaxies, that are just a little too hard to comprehend. I start hiking. I didn't freeze to death last night, and it's not raining. So far, so good. At the Big Stamp Gap parking area, 0.9 miles from the summit, a guy camping out with a pick-up truck full of donuts for thru-hikers tells me I'm the first one he's seen come by this morning. This somehow gives me confidence, as there were approximately 457 bajillion people at the shelter last night, and I had kind of expected all the hard-core 'real' thru-hikers to leave me in the dust in terms of being early risers. Well, they still may, and probably will, but for today, at least, I'm the Webwalker. Woooh-hooh! He also tells me, as I munch on a second donut, that most folks heading out from Springer stop at Hawk Mtn Shelter. Whether this is true or not, it boosts my confidence to arrive at Hawk Mtn around noon, with no inclination to stop. I walk through open, sunny, oak woods, up bare hills, through rhododendron tunnels. The woods are naked and brown from winter, though the vernal season is betrayed by colorful violets, early bloodroot and toadshade trillium. I've always wanted, and never been able, to watch spring return from the beginning, outside the whole time, not missing a moment. And now I can. I write in my notebook, "I am outside, and I do not have to go inside again for 5 months!" I arrive at Gooch Mtn Shelter not late, but it is already full, complete with two dogs, so I take the last available tentsite and fall asleep amid rhododendrons and cool mountain air.
Date: 2006-04-05
From: Gooch Mtn Shelter

To: Slaughter Creek Campsite
Miles today: 12.4

Woke up to sound of Pileated Woodpecker. I'm Outside! I slept well last night after full day of hiking. Not to mention slightly more sane temperatures. I spend all day summiting north Georgia mountains and descending into north Georgia gaps. They have good, solid names like Granny Top Mtn, Big Cedar Mtn, Turkey Stamp Mtn, Ramrock Mtn, Dan Gap, Tritt Gap, Jacks Gap. Short, quirky, and functional. One of the gaps, Woody Gap, is even famous, having been mentioned in 'A Walk in the Woods'. A huge road goes through it. I sit and make use of the civilization - picnic tables and a trash can - before the cold chill wind that seems to blow constantly through these Gaps causes me to re-hit the Trail in search of Warmth. Woods Hole Shelter is a whole 0.4 miles off the trail, and probably crowded, so I skip it. I'm ready to rest, though, so shortly thereafter I stop at the Slaughter Creek Campsite at the base of Blood Mtn. After dinner and a brief rest, I've gotten my energy back, so I run up to the summit without my gear to watch the sun set. There is a shelter up there with only five or six people in it - I talk to them and we ponder the view and wonder which mountain is Springer. There is a mellow vibe which is nice and refreshing after the overcrowded scene at the first two shelters. I hike back down the 0.9 miles to my tent as dark is descending. I put on wool hat, long underwear, four layers of warm clothes, and curl up for the night.
Date: 2006-04-06
From: Slaughter Creek Campsite

To: Whitley Gap Shelter
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: broken clouds

Blood Mtn is a more serious sort of mountain, at least on the way down, than, say, Granny Top. It even has actual rocks on it. I climb down it in the morning to arrive in Neels Gap. Neels Gap may be the two words I heard most in my research and reading prior to this trip, famous as a popular place to either a)throw down major bucks for new gear, or b), quit. I do neither. But I do avail myself of the resupply and shower options, being careful to select the non-mouse-nibbled-on granola bars. Then I hike on, munching beef jerky and thankful to have escaped the event horizon of the hostel in Neels Gap, which appears to have sucked in many folks for the night, but, not me, not yet.   Tented in a lovely spot at the very beginning of the 1.2 mile trail to Whitley Gap Shelter. Brown thrashers and towhees all about. Still needed water, though, which was an additional 0.3 past the shelter. The almost three-mile round trip water-fetching adventure was along a beautiful rhododendron ridge with grass and rocky outcroppings, quite lovely, but it was so amazingly long that I measured it on the way back. After 1,584 steps, i.e. one rendition of "99 bottles of beer on the wall", I still wasn't back yet.I met some locals...Georgian #1: "It's so great to be out here for a few days..being out here you get used to a whole different way of living, like, today i took a leak on the side of the trail, and a girl walked by, and I didn't think twice."Georgian #2: "Heck, man, you'd only been out here fur like, forty-five minutes when ya took that piss..."   Georgian #1: "Well, what can I say. it comes back quick. like riding a bike."
Date: 2006-04-07
From: Whitley Gap Shelter

To: Blue Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

A big thunderstorm was coming.Everybody knew it. Everyone was talking about it. You could see it in the sky, dark swirling clouds, around mid-morning.Then it cleared up for awhile.There was a brilliant stretch of trail where it went around the sides of mountains in order to stay perfectly flat and level, for like five miles. It never did that when I went backpacking in the whites, a few years ago. Not even close. I think these Georgians are brilliant. There are trailing arbutus flowers and spring beauty flowers, and may-apple leaves. Hooded warblers, and ruffed grouse. But the thunderstorm was coming. It was hot out. I was sweating. So much sun through the leafless trees. A little sunburned. Uphill to Blue Mountain Shelter.It was only 2:00 when I reached Blue Mountain Shelter, and I was intending to continue to Tray Mtn, but the impending thunderstorm was the final straw in my decision to stay. Plus, the shelter was already full with thru-hikers settled in for the night. I guess this goes to show that no matter how early you get to a shelter down here, there's people in it. I set up my tent, but then, because of the impending thunderstorm, the folks in the shelter invited me in, and I squoze my linens into my 12" space and waited for the deluge.
Date: 2006-04-09
From: Deep Gap Shelter

To: Standing Indian Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: clear sky

There is a town called Hiawassee, and apparently everyone at Deep Gap shelter was in a grand hurry to get to it, because they all left before I did. I, personally, needed absolutely nothing from civilization at the moment, so I marched right on past the Hiawassee road, feeling like I was getting away with a great mischief, skipping Hiawassee and all, but very pleased with myself. I did, of course, before leaving the road, happily accept half a box of oreos, a couple sodas, some cookies and donuts, and an Egg McMuffin sandwich from the trail magicians that were working there. Crossed into North Carolina! I have been frustrated, a little, the last couple of days, because some parts of my body are holding other parts back. Despite my best efforts, some blisters have developed on my feet, and also, my pack is pulling on my shoulder in a heavy way, and I have to stop and rest it some times. But every other part of me just wants to hike real fast, fly through the woods, and see all these mountains! Also, I want to get ahead of people. They say the thru-hiker community is a great community, and maybe it will be once we get a little further in, but it seems now all I see are crowded shelters, tired middle-aged hikers bitching about how hard the trail is, and folks who are so fascinated that so-and-so has one type of stove and so-and-so has another, that they can drag out a stove and water-filter conversation for hours. I realize the importance of these conversations, disseminating information, adjusting to the new lifestyle. As a new hiker myself, I could probably benefit from them. But still. I reach Muskrat Creek Shelter after hiking 15.1 miles, and it is the crowded-est, most water-filter-talking about shelter I have ever seen in my life. I can tell without even hearing the actual words, from the cadences in the airwaves, that the subject of conversation for the last seven hours has been bitching about how hard the trail is, and who has what type of what gear, and making just brilliant comments like "North Carolina sure isn't very flat, is it, hardy-har-har", and 'do you filter your water or do you use iodine, cause you know I just can't stand the taste of iodine, it's just like, the grossest thing, I just can't believe how gross it is" and other such intellectually stimulating discourse. Plus there's no good place left for a tent. And so, despite my shoulder and my blisters and my warning to myself not to push too hard in the beginning, despite the fact that night is coming and I have less than 12 ounces of water left, I turn and press on, hard, to Standing Indian Shelter. And it was a brilliant decision. The folks at Standing Indian Shelter are friendly, mellow, experienced hikers, and there are only four or five of them. It is calm. I am calm. I sleep satisfied, knowing I have crossed a state line, broken the 20-mile barrier on my 6th day of hiking, and gotten past some more of the water-filter people.
Date: 2006-04-11
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: clear sky

Today was my first town, (Franklin) and I am pleased to report that the total time between leaving the trailhead at Winding Stair Gap, and returning to the trailhead fully laden with groceries, was 1 hour and 50 minutes. I got a ride in with a trail angel named Crutch, who enlightened me with vital information regarding what hot girls are ahead of me on the trail, and what the best place to eat in Franklin was. The Wasalik Poplar is dead, maybe, but it is surrounded by the lushest force of verdant southern springtime in the form of woodland wildflowers beyond description, which one doesn't see yet at the higher elevations, and which I would highly recommend to anyone who wanted to add a mile to their day. Also worth adding a mile and a half to one's day, (especially if one is only doing 7.5 trail miles, like me) is Siler Bald, which I went up to after setting up camp at the Siler Bald Shelter. This is the first of the famous balds, leastwise, the first that I noticed, and it is the most beautiful spot on the whole entire trail, not counting the 2,063.8 miles I haven't seen yet.
Date: 2006-04-12
From: Siler Bald Shelter

To: Wesser Bald Shelter
Miles today: 17.9
Weather: clear sky

Met Dan and Joanna, AKA Trickster and What?! They got married at Amicalola just prior to starting their thru-hike, which is to be their honeymoon. Today they are hiking 23 miles into N.O.C. Crossed two good Balds, Wayah and Wesser, both with Towers. Saw a large, humongous wild turkey.