morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-05-17
From: Spy Rock Rd (Dutch Haus B&B)

To: Reeds Gap (Dutch Haus B&B)
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: scattered clouds

I did a slackpack today. I did it southbound. Was shuttled up to Reed's Gap @ mm 838.2 & walked to mm 818.4 (Spy Rock Rd). Started hiking @ 8:35. It was warm & humid. I climbed up a short distance to the first shelter & met 2 Speed & Blue Eyes. Spoke w/ them briefly. Headed up the hill & ran onto some trail magic. Some section hiker & her Mom were giving out breakfast bagels - eggs & sausage. I ate one. I chatted w/ the Mom since she was wearing a 'Milford Track' t shirt. We talked about our experiences in NZ. I then hiked on. I had a steep down. I ran into shadow. Later, I ran into Mack. After a long descent, I crossed over a suspension bridge over the Tye River. Then, I had a 3K climb up Priest Mnt. About 2K up, I came upon a nice view. Took a picture. Had coverage so I called Nancy. Also posted that picture on Facebook. I finished the climb and continued on my hike. The clouds started building up. I thought I was going to get wet. The hike took much longer than I expected. Hit Spy Rock Rd around 5:30. Called the B&B and they picked me up. All told, I did 19.8 miles. Tough day. Glad I didn't do it with a pack.When I got back to the hostel, Mack was there. He'd called the hostel & had them pick him up as well. We had another great meal that evening. I like civilization & creature comforts.
Date: 2013-05-18
From: Reeds Gap (Dutch Haus B&B)

To: Waynesboro VA (Stanimals Hostel)
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: light rain

Got a shuttle back up to Reeds Gap. It was raining today. Started hiking in the rain @ 8:36. Rained pretty steady for about an hour. Then the trees dripped on me after that. That slowed down & I was able to take off my rain gear. I had to worry about wet rocks for the first portion of the hike. Not as many rocks later on. I crossed BRP at Dripping Rock. Spoke w/ some cyclists who were resting & snacking. Then, I continued on. I reached my planned stop - Paul Wolfe Shelter - @ 2:45. I decided to chance going into Waynesboro that evening. The U. Of Va was having their graduation this weekend. Rooms were at a premium. Town was only 5.2m away. Hit Rockfish Gap around 4:45. I called Stanimals Hostel. He agreed to pick me up. The weather had gotten nasty. Very foggy & misty. Couldn't see 50'. I waited in the drizzle until Adam showed up. Went back to his place & slept in his converted basement hostel. Ate supper. 3 other hikers showed up (MN Pete & two others I don't recall). Called it a night.
Date: 2013-05-19
From: Waynesboro VA (Stanimals Hostel)

To: Waynesboro VA (Quality Inn)
Miles today: 0.0

Did a zero day. I had trouble sleeping. Woke up at 5 am and got up and went upstairs to the back patio and messed around w/ my smart phone. There were three other hikers that stayed in the basement with me. Two got up. I found out that one of them - a young 22 yr old kid - got up around 10:30 pm and asked the female hiker (didn't get her name) if she wanted to go running. She didn't. He left the hostel and never returned. We waited around until just before noon and Adam gave us a ride to the Outfitters store. From there, he took me to the Quality Inn where I had reservations for two nights. The other kid still hadn't showed up. Weird deal. The kid was a little flighty. My guess, he was off his meds. Later that afternoon, I went to see a movie - Iron Man. I hadn't been to a movie in a long time. I went w/ Trucker, Blue Eyes, Shadow, & Mack. A trail angel gave us a ride for free. He wouldn't accept money for the ride. Afterward, we returned back to the Inn. Then, the bunch of us, plus 2 Speed, went over to the Chinese buffet and pigged out. I think I ate four or five plates of food. I lost count. I then waddled back to the Inn and called it a night.
Date: 2013-05-20
From: Waynesboro VA (Quality Inn)

To: Waynesboro VA (Quality Inn)
Miles today: 0.0

Got up and ate breakfast around 6 am w/ Goose, Trucker, 2-Speed, Mack, Shadow, & Blue Eyes. It was just me & Goose at the beginning. Goose was planning to rent a car and drive to visit his Aunt & Uncle for a few days. The others were going to hit the trail after they went to the post office. I went to the post office as well when it opened at 9 am. I picked up my food box and my summer sleeping bag. I mailed my 15-deg bag home. The plan for today was to review my schedule up to Harpers Ferry (see exactly when I'll get there), rest, & eat. I called the Tea Horse Hostel in Harpers Ferry and made a reservation there. I'll need to do the same in Luray, VA (next resupply location).
Date: 2013-05-21
From: Waynesboro VA (Quality Inn)

To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: broken clouds

After breakfast, I got a ride w/ the same trail angel, Dubose, to the TH (Rockfish Gap). Minnesota Pete and another guy were picked up from the Motel. He drove to the local church hostel (which just opened up the night before) and picked up two more hikers. He dropped up off at the TH. We hiked a short distance and reached the self-registration entrance for the hikers. We filled out our itinerary permit and kept on hiking. The 1st half of the hike had water available. The second half didn't. We had to carry a lot more water than I'd like to. It was a bit warm this day. I sweated pretty good. The grades weren't very tall. The highest crest we hiked over was only about 1,000' high. I reached the shelter at 4:45. The shelter was split level. There was a really nice spring just in front of the shelter. The water was really gushing out of a pipe that was stuck back into the spring (ground).
Date: 2013-05-22
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: few clouds

Got up early and started hiking solo at 6:29. After a while, I ran into Raisin Bran Kid (53 yr old hiker from OH). He had slackpacked the previous day. He had been driven back to the trail this morning to resume his trek northward. I walked w/ him for quite some time. He was a rural mail carrier back home on a leave of absence to hike as much of the AT as he could. After a while, MN Pete caught up w/ us just prior to reaching the turnoff to the Loft Mountain Wayside (restaurant). We took the 0.5M side trail down to it and each of us ordered - and ate - cheeseburgers & fries. Much needed additional calories for us thru-hikers. We continued onward. Today was unusually warm & humid. I was sweating like a pig. It made the hike very hard. Water again was at a premium. Very few water sources along the ridges in the park. We dropped down to Skyline Dr. From there, we walked 0.2M to an unmanned Ranger Station and got some water there. Raisin Bran Kid was tired and his feet hurt. He took a longer break there. Me & Pete kept going. I hit the jct for the hut @ 5 pm. Once at the shelter, I cleaned up and discovered several ticks were on my. That was a first. One of them had burrowed into my skin (missed him previously). I removed all the ticks & pledged to myself to be more diligent on this issue. Don't want to get Lyme's disease. Around 7 pm, Crazy Frog showed up at the shelter. She had been hiking with Beacon (a kid from Austin) for quite some time. He was now a day or so behind her. Unknown to her, several of her friends had hiked up to the shelter and were waiting for her when she arrived. Big surprise for her. It was kinda neat to see the joy in everyone's faces. Around 7:30, it started to rain pretty hard. A few minutes later, the last thru-hiker showed up - Shrek. Long day. I was pretty tired. I was only 0.6M short of 900 miles. Quite a milestone.
Date: 2013-05-23
From: Hightop Hut

To: Rocksprings Hut
Miles today: 23.9
Weather: light rain

Big day planned for today - 23.9M. Got up early and started hiking @ 6:07. About 15 min out of camp, I spotted a small black bear running back into the woods. My first bear sighting. I'd been seeing from bear scat for several days. Raisin Bran Kid & MN Pete had both been wanting to see a bear. They missed this one. The grass was wet from the rain the night before. Soon, my shoes and socks were soaking wet. Yuck! MN Pete caught up w/ me after a while. We walked together for most of the day. Fortunately, the humidity and temperature wasn't as bad as the previous day. Otherwise, this would have been brutal day. We took several short breaks during the day. I didn't rest too long. Wanted to keep going. In the afternoon (around 2:30), we hit a junction to another wayside - Big Meadows. Another wayside, another cheeseburger. Calories! Yo quero mucho. I took off my shoes & socks and placed them in the sun while eating inside. By the time I came out, they had dried out pretty much. So, it started to rain a bit. Fortunately, it didn't rain very hard or very long. We hit the junction to the hut @ 5:13 pm. What a welcome site! Came in and cleaned up. Got some water and ate some more food. I was one tired puppy. Tomorrow, I have a 'short day' (14.1M).
Date: 2013-05-24
From: Rocksprings Hut

To: Thornton Gap (Luray VA @ Budget Inn)
Miles today: 14.1

It wasn't raining when I got up. It was very breezy & foggy. I started hiking @ 6:22. I was planning to hike 4.4M to Skyline Resort & Restaurant and eat breakfast to supplement the breakfast I had (more calories). I was motivated for an omelette. I got there around 8:05. Went inside and ate. I thought MN Pete would catch up to me before I finished. He didn't. As I was putting on my pack to leave, he showed up. The weather had turned much colder and was misting. I put on my rain gear and started to hike at a brisk pace to keep warm. I didn't see MN Pete any more this day. The mist stopped after about 30 min. It was still cold enough to keep the rain gear on for about an hour. Then, I took it off and kept hiking. My hands were cool but it was tolerable. Today's hike stayed mostly on the western crest of the ridge. Strong winds were coming from that direction. I liked it when the trail went into the forest. Less wind. I hit Thornton Gap at 12:51. I had to hike about 0.2M down Skyline Dr and take the exit for Hwy 211 & Luray, VA. I stuck out my thumb for about 30 min. A truck driver from El Salvador gave me a lift. He took me as far as the exit to Luray. From there, I had to walk about 1.5M to the motel (no one else stopped to give me a ride). I had spoken to my wife on the previous night and had learned that my Spot messages hadn't been going out. When I got to the motel, I did laundry (1M away), ate a burger, went by the library (it was closed even though the guide book said it was open until 5pm), and came back to my room. I changed the lithium batteries to see if that was the problem. The Spot worked like a champ. I was afraid something was really wrong w/ it. Now, my wife & friends won't worry about me now that my Spot messages will resume.
Date: 2013-05-25
From: Thornton Gap (Luray VA @ Budget Inn)

To: Terrapin Station Hostel (Front Royal VA)
Miles today: 23.9
Weather: clear sky

I tried unsuccessfully to contact a local shuttle guy to get a ride to the TH. I got up early and walked up to the hwy. I stuck out my thumb and waited about 20 min before I caught a ride. It was a local hiker doing a practice hike from the same TH that I was going to. Hit the TH and started hiking @ 7:05. Much earlier than I had anticipated. I began hiking and only went a short distance when I came upon the next shelter. Two trail runners were coming off the side trail from the shelter. They gave me a bag of cookies as trail magic. Yum. I ate them later in the day. I also saw a fox run across the trail. Only got a climpse of him as he ran. The morning was cool and breezy. No clouds. Chilly at the start. I hiked until I hit Elkwallow Wayside @ 10:40. I was planning to eat lunch there. They didn't serve lunch until 11. So, I waited until then for my burger & fries. Afterward, I continued N/B. As I hiked along, I would periodically get some nice views to the west. I'd then drop down to the forest and repeat often. I hit my planned shelter stop @ 2:40 pm. It was almost completely full. Turns out it was only about 1/2 M from the road. I ate some snacks and decided to move on to the hostel @ 23.9M (w/ a 0.5M side hike). I pushed hard and didn't take any breaks from that point onward. I was walking leisurely prior to that. I hit the jct @ 6:24. I walked down and found that MN Pete was there as well. After a shower, I ate my meal and the owner, Mike, gave both us a ride to the local grocery store. I was pretty tired for the day.
Date: 2013-05-26
From: Terrapin Station Hostel (Front Royal VA)

To: Dicks Dome Shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: clear sky

Left the hostel w/ MN Pete @ 7:27. Cool and clear day. Another great day of hiking weather. Steep uphill on the side trail back to the AT. From there, we continued N/B. We stopped at two shelters for short breaks. We also came upon two different coolers w/ trail magic (sodas). Those hit the spot. We hit Dicks Dome Shelter around 4:45. It was obviously a dome-shaped shelter. Only had room for 4. I made #3. MN Pete tented.
Date: 2013-05-27
From: Dicks Dome Shelter

To: Bears Den Hostel
Miles today: 20.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Left the Shelter @ 6:35. Wasn't too bad at the start. Lots of creeks and the grade wasn't too bad. Then, we hit 'The Roller-coaster.' Lots of short, steep ups and downs. Some of it was pretty tough. Fortunately, the weather cooperated and stayed mild and later clouded up some. That helped with the climbs. I hit the jct for the hostel @ 3:45. A short 0.2M later, I was there. A nice hostel. Looked like a stone castle. Went inside and claimed my bunk. I did the 'Hiker Special': bunk, shower, laundry, pizza, soda, & a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream for $ 30. Tomorrow, I'll cross 1,000 miles! Big mile stone.
Date: 2013-05-28
From: Bears Den Hostel

To: Campsite @ 1014.9 M
Miles today: 16.3

Left the hostel @ 7:54. We weren't planning to hike very far. Gonna take 2 days to get to Harpers Ferry. A short distance from the start, we crossed a stream that was the 1,000 mile mark. We took some photos & videos of the event. Very cool! As we hiked along, we decided to push further to a camping spot about 4 M from Harpers Ferry. We came up to a hwy that had a pizza joint 0.3M off the trail. Me & MN Pete ate pizzas & sodas. Hit the spot. We decided to call the hostel in HF & see if they jad room for 2 that night. If they did, we would push into town. They didn't. We hiked another 2M and camped.
Date: 2013-05-29
From: Campsite @ 1014.9 M

To: Harpers Ferry (Teahorse Hostel)
Miles today: 4.1
Weather: clear sky

It looked like it would rain last night (50% chance) but it never did. Got up and ate breakfast. Broke camp and started the short hike into Harpers Ferry. MN Pete left real early. I was a few minutes behind him. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) didn't open until 9 am. I wasn't in too big of a hurry. As it was, I got there a little after 8 am. We waited with another young couple for it to open. Once it opened, the four of us were able to get our 'Number' for the trail. They keep track of the number of thru-hikers and section hikers that go through there. For Northbound hikers (Nobos), I was the 243rd hiker to come through. They took our individual photos and we put the info in their photo album book. Pretty cool stuff. I then went over to the Teahorse Hostel and dropped off my pack there. They didn't allow us to 'move in' until 3 pm. We went down the street and ate a brunch. I then went to the local library and updated some of my journal entries. I then walked down to the lower downtown of Harpers Ferry. Pretty historic place. Lots of old buildings. I then came back to the hostel and got cleaned up - me & my clothes. Note: For some reason, my mileage listed on my journal isn't matching up to trail miles that I've hiked. As of today, I've walked 1019.0 miles on the AT. The journal miles shows otherwise. Don't know how that got cross-wise. Don't have the time or energy to figure it out right now. Probably wait until I get home.
Date: 2013-05-31
From: Harpers Ferry (Teahorse Hostel)

To: Pine Knob Shelter
Miles today: 22.9
Weather: clear sky

Left the hostel @ 6:27 & walked a mile down the road to the jct w/ the trail. I then walked over the bridge at river jct of the Potomac & Shenandoah Rivers. On the other side, the trail followed a flat bike path. The river was on one side & an abandoned canal on the other. Lots of bugs that wanted my blood. This stretch last 3-4 miles. Afterward, the trail climbed. About this time, MN Pete caught up to me. We hiked together. We hit the 10m mark at a state park around 10:30. There was a guy with some trail magic. Lots of goodies to eat. Even ice cream (which was melting). Mack & 2-Speed showed up as well. Hadn't seen them in a few days. They got ahead of me & took some zero days in DC. I started hiking again. The terrain was rather mild. I hit the planned campsite - Dahlgren - @ 2:30. Me & Pete decided that we would take a break there before heading further down the trail. The break included taking a shower @ the camp. The cool shower really lowered the body temperture. Felt good. We had finished our showers when Mack & 2-Speed showed up. They cooled off as well. We kept on hiking. We hit another state park that had the original Washington Monument. We checked it out. I never knew it existed. We pushed on. We crossed over an interstate & hit our shelter not too much further. We could hear road noise all night from the shelter.
Date: 2013-06-01
From: Pine Knob Shelter

To: Deer Lick Shelter
Miles today: 22.7

Left Pine Knob shelter @ 6:29. It was a very watm & humid day. I hiked a short distance to a cutoff to a view @ Annapolis Rocks. While taking in the view, 2-Speed passed by me. I continued on to Ensign Cowall Shelter where I took a short break. I then pushed on to the stream @ Warner Gap. 2-Speed was there getting water & taking a break. I did the same. I continued on. Lots of rocks on the trail today. I hit Pen-Mar Park @ 2:08. Very hot. This park is on the border of MD/PA. I rested on a shaded park bench while drinking Gatorade I got out of a vending machine. I bought several. There was an outdoor wedding about to begin @ the park. In talking w/ a park employee, he said that the wedding was already late in starting. He said he's never seen a wedding @ the park start on time. I found that amusing. I'm such a stickler about being on-time. Other hikers kept showing up at the park resting. MN Pete, Mack, Shadow, & others. I rested for about an hour. I had cell service so I called Nancy. I pushed on & shortly hit the Mason-Dixon Line. The border between the north (PA) & the south (MD). Took a picture of this. I then pushed on in the heat to Deer Lick Shelter. I got there @ 5:08. 2-Speed showed up later. As did a wierd looking section hiker. He looked like a fat Elvis in shorts. He said he was trying to lose some weight after his recent heart attack. Hmmm. You meet all kinds on the trail.
Date: 2013-06-02
From: Deer Lick Shelter

To: Fayetteville PA (Scottish Rites Motel)
Miles today: 13.2

up early & start hiking around 5:54. I was motivated to get to town (Fayetteville) where I decided I was going to get a room for the night. I was hitting the town on a Sunday & was unable to get to my food drop at the P.O. At the next shelter, there was a work crew that had some trail magic (bottles of cold water). I downed one and kept going. I was making really good time on the hike today. The grade wasn't too severe. I was averaging 3 MPH, sometimes more, on the hike. Somewhere along the way, my lunch food bag fell out of the side pocket of my pack. I didn't realize it. I knew that 2-Speed would be hiking behind me. I text her about my loss. She found it and agreed to hang onto it until I caught up to her at the hostel the following night. At 10:50, I hit the hwy junction to Fayetteville. I did 13.2 miles during that time frame. Not too shabby. I hitched to the west to Fayetteville. To the east, Gettysburg. I seem to recall something happening there many moons ago. When I got to the Scottish Rites Motel, I couldn't find anyone in the office or anyplace else. I walked across the street to a restaurant and at a burger. When I returned, the weekend lady was back. She had been cleaning up a room. I got my room, showered, and then did some laundry. Later that evening, I was going to walk back across the street to the restaurant to eat again. Turns out, it was closed on Sunday evenings. I had to walk about a mile or so to a pizza joint down the road. After eating, I walked back. I tried to hitch both ways but was unsuccessful.
Date: 2013-06-03
From: Fayetteville PA (Scottish Rites Motel)

To: Pine Grove Furnace State Park 
Miles today: 19.5

I caught a ride from the motel to the P.O. (pick up food drop) & the to the TH. I was hiking @ 8:16. Not too shabby. Today, I would cross the halfway point of the trail. A very significant milestone indeed. I took several breaks at each shelter that I got to. According to my guide, I reached the 1/2 mark & there was no marker. I hit the shelter nearby & was pretty bummed about it missing the marker. Just a few minutes out of Toms Run Shelter, I came upon the marker. It was 'mismarked' in the guide. I took some pics & a video of the event. I continued my hike to Pine Grove Furnace State Park. I arrived there a little too early to check into the Ironmasters Mansion Hostel. It didn't allow check-in until 5 pm. I walked over to the park store where the Half-gallon Challenge was going on. You eat a half-gallon of ice cream to signify the half-way point of the trail. You get a small wooden spoon if you successfully complete the challenge. There were a lot of hikers there: 2-Speed, Mack, Shadow, Flash Gordon, Miles to go, & others. I checked out what kinds of ice cream was left. Turns out, pickings were slim. I didn't see any flavors that I cared for. The had some smaller pints of Vanilla. Nothing in the larger containers that I cared for. So, I did not partake in the challenge. I ate a pint of vanilla & enjoyed it. I also took a quick tour of the AT Museum that was located there. Pretty neat. I later checked in the hostel. I claimed my bunk & proceeded to do the normal routine of cleaning myself & my clothes when ever I was in civilization. I learned that this house had been part of the Underground Railroad in pre-Civil War times. Black Southern slaves who tried to escape to the North would be hidden in secret basement passages of the house. Then, they would proceed to the next 'station' with the hope of eluding those who would capture them & return them to bondage. The successful ones reached their freedom further north.