morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-27
From: Hot Springs 

To: Hot Springs (a zero day)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I woke up in a comfortable bed this morning, at bird chirp thirty. No sleeping late for me, not when I knew that the Smoky Mountain Diner down the street was open. I ate there last evening as well. They cook great cheeseburgers and awesome pizza, I had them both. The next morning was a standard breakfeast, I ate slow and drank lots of good coffee. I finished my laundry the night before so I just walked around town waiting for the stores to open. I came upon a Train Caboose that is used for the town's visitor center. Right then and there I realized I had been here before, it was back in 1984 when I was going through the Army's Special Forces Training (Qualification course). I did part of the training in a near by National Forest and remember driving down the main street of Hot Springs.    At around noon I went back to Elmers and was fortunate enough to get a room. There I met my room mate for the evening named Song Line, another NOBO hiker I kept bouncing in to all the way North. The place was so relaxing and the bed so soft (a queen size) I just really enjoyed it that night. I went to the Hot Springs and sat in a heated hot tub for an hour. It did the body good to take the time off. Lunch at the diner again, re-supplied at the local store and the outfitters (picked up some peace pasta) then re-packed everything. Elmer that night laid out a good spread for supper, a vegetarian meal to boot. The salad dressing was soooo good. We all introduced ourselves and as tradition Elmer came up with a question. His question to us all was, "If you could choose anyone at all to hike with, who would it be"? My answer was John Burroughs, the naturalist. He was from my area here in NY years back and wrote many books that I have read. Being deployed a lot you read a lot, his books reminded me of home.    After dinner I went to the Paddlers Pub and had a glass of wine before finally hitting that big old bed, I slept like a rock. I swear that bed sank six inches as I put these old bones to rest. I don't think I moved an inch.
Date: 2005-04-30
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Hogback Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: light rain

Praying Mantis and I hiked together for another day. Towards the end it was another two hour push to set us up for a morning hike to Erwin in two days. I wanted to have the choice of doing a "Bob Nero" as I called it, if I wanted to. A Bob nero is when I would enter town and leave town the same day. Sometimes the miles that I did was like a normal day, just a long break in between two big sections of trail.   Along the trail this day Praying Mantis and I stopped to take an early supper on the trail. It was about to rain and we set up my poncho for overhead cover. We used our bear ropes and some pre-cut pieces of cord I had tied to the ends of the poncho. The rain came and we stayed semi-dry. I on my chair and Jacob on a rock, we were comfortable. I kept the poncho till it got warmer later on up the trail. It too was mailed home after Damascus.   The shelter was packed and the tent sites full when we got there. I was developing the way I started to hike because of this. Why, I said to myself, do I want to end the day like this. Everyone was already in their tents and bags so all I was doing was disturbing their peace. Eventually as I hiked longer days I would go till about 30 minutes prior to dark. I made sure I was carrying enough water for the evening meal and breakfast as well. I would find a suitable camp site and settle in with enough time to go through my camping routine.    My Bear rope went up as soon as I took my pack off and while it was still light. I would use my shoe to throw the rope over a branch. The water for food would be put on the stove immediately there after and then I would set up the tent. By this time the water was hot and ready to re hydrate the meal. While it set and re hydrated I would lay out the sleeping pad and bag plus put in all my comfort items. The pack would go on my chair and was covered by my pack cover. After clean up and just about dark I would hang the food and climb in for the night. A routine made set up quick and in the morning the order was basically reversed. Time efficiency let me hike longer and slower during the day. Worked for me...
Date: 2005-05-01
From: Hogback Ridge Shelter

To: Little Bald (a wooden summit)
Miles today: 11.4

Today, Praying Mantis and I both planned to walk off of the trail to a place that served home cooked meals near Sam's Gap. We were walking down the road headed to "The Little Creek Cafe". It was a Sunday and a gamble if it would have been open at all. We found out later that day that it was not. Keep in mind that Sunday in the bible belt region is not conducive to a hiker's hunger pains. Not to worry though, that old trail magic would come through again indeed. On the way there we were stopped by some folk in their pick up truck. They were asking all the hikers they could find if they were interested in having breakfast at their home. If so walk down the road and look to the right for other hikers. The "Smoky Bowl Family Farm" is what they called it and much to my delight they were serving a home cooked meal (excepting contributions of course). The food was great plus the coffee hot, fresh and continuous, the way I like it. Magoo, Jill and Sage were our hosts. They were just starting to offer this service and liked hiker people and I think I was number 13 since they started. They are in a good spot (just off the trail), to do just that and I wished them luck.   Whenever you can consume a meal elsewhere it makes the food you carry on your back last longer. As the hike went on I carried lighter meals and supplemented them by finding places like this when I could. Some complained about the cost of it all but I figured it this way. How much would you pay someone to carry it for you? Or how about this, yes you may pay an extra dollar or two for that hamburger, but what would it take for you to purchase, cook and clean up after yourself? Would you even be able to cook it in the first place? Not on the stove I was carrying. To prepare such a meal then you are carrying the weight to support it, frying pan, extra fuel and whatever else you need to fix it. Thinking this way actually helped me lighten the load. I carried light weight meals that were enough to get me to the next town, hostel or road side whatever. (forever adjusting, forever converting to the minimalist that was in me)   The other hikers there that day beside Praying Mantis and myself were, Fancy pants, Goose bumps, Dandy, Crispity and Crunchity. Crispity and Crunchity were renamed that day by yours truly. (I believe I may have mentioned this before, I cannot recall) When you try to help name or rename a hiker, I thought it best to ask questions and suggest a name that reflected their past. This way it would have a personal meaning. Crispity was going to leave the trail after trail days (That he did do). He was going to work a fishing boat in Alaska in search of Coho Salmon. So "Coho" became his new name. Crunchity traveled to Italy before this hike and stayed in Rome. She became a "Romer", like someone from NY is a "New Yorker". I thought it fit both of them and they liked their new names.      I had to laugh at myself that day. I was asked are you going to the Cinco De Mayo party? I asked what day that was..... Darn 70's
Date: 2005-05-11
From: Shady Valley, TN

To: South of Damascus
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: few clouds

I awoke before 6 AM and soon after went in to Carroll's place. His place opened early to serve the locals. I was drinking coffee with a man named Steve. Steve opens the store for Carroll and is a real nice person. In fact I made a note that all the people I met in Shady were nice and friendly. I was waiting for the diner across the street to open for breakfast. We all wandered over there and had some good food. I hitch hiked back to the trail soon after. Another ride in the back of another pick up truck. It seems that the locals know of the hiker funk and those who own pick-up trucks stop regularly. I hitched all over the place, up and down the trail. My longest hitch was when I went home for the 4th of July for my second 8 day rest period. That hitch was about 125 miles long and took a full day to do. More on that when I put that entry in the journal.   One of the things we talked about in Shady was what back pack I was going to switch to when I went "light". The two I was going to check out were the Granite Gear Vapor Trail and the Osprey Atmos 50. Spoon man or Lizard was carrying the Granite Gear and recommended it highly. I was already carrying a Osprey 75 that I picked up back at the NOC so I knew of the product and was satisfied with it thus far. It all came down to the service I received in Damascus. I have always been that way. Service sells for me.    The trail was covered in trail snot from the rain the day before. By the end of the day though the trail "tightened up", in other words it dried up nicely. I stopped for a break at the Abingdon Shelter and was trying to decide if I was going to go in to Damascus. Roamer and Coho where there as well as Slim and three others. I remember the water was 800 feet down a steep embankment. Funny how retrieving water was harder for me then walking the trail. Others commented on this as well. I guess it must be carrying the water in your hands compared to carrying it on your back.    All the other hikers decided to stay there and I once again, moved on alone. I stopped at the Tennessee/Virginia border and enjoyed the fact that I just finished my third state. Three down and eleven to go. I moved on and it was getting quite late. I said to myself I am going to move on till I either hit water or run in to some familiar faces. About 1.5 miles away from town I came upon Blue Angel and Cloth Monkey. They had set up camp and were set for an early move to town. I asked if I could join them and settled in for the night. Hard to believe at the time that Damascus and the Trail Days Feast with all the expectations of having a good time was just up the trail. What a mile stone to pass. It was all everyone on the trail was talking about.
Date: 2005-05-13
From: Damascus, VA

To: Trail Days
Miles today: 0.0

I do not know the time I awoke, I did not even care. This was a zero day and my only commitment in time was to link up with my daughter. Shannon arrived around 9:30 so she was early as usual (I don't know where she gets that from). We found each other at a coffee shop near the "Sundog Outfitters". This was a new place that just opened. I wish I could remember the name of it because I would highly recommend any coffee lover to stop on in, it is a nice comfortable place. We spent the next few hours walking around Damascus and afterwards we took my tent down and set her's up in its place. After lunch we decided to take a ride. I asked her what she wanted to do and she said she wanted to go to where there was some water and asked if I new a place (did I ever). What a strange feeling covering miles of distance in just minutes. A distance that just took me days to do.    We drove South and stopped in to see Carroll at his place in Shady Valley. I wanted to introduce him to Shannon and also to tell him we found a place to camp in town. We then went back to the Kincora Hostel. I wanted to show her what a Hostel looked like and also to look for my lost spoon (no luck finding it). A lot of hikers were there at the shelter that I new, I remember one for sure, Red Wolf. The last time I was with him was when we hitched to Gatlinburg together weeks before. Time sure flew by on the trail as did the miles.   We then went to the Laurel Falls and at 3 PM the two of us were swimming in the cool water. What a great day that was. The day hike was enough for her, she was not use to walking trails and her ankle began to bother her. I can see why this place was so popular with the locals, as I wrote before it was beautiful there.   Soon after we went back to town and took in the festivities. We ran into Coho who was leaving the trail that day. He was walking around with a cardboard sign over his neck that read, "Hiker needs a ride". A great idea that I used time and time again further up the trail. He wasn't hitch hiking, as that is illegal (and it is), he was just telling people he needed a ride. If one was offered it was by the driver of the vehicle, they call that solicitation. At least that was what I was told by a police officer when I went through the "Delaware Water Gap Park", again another entry yet to come.    Let's face it Damascus was a bust. Too many people and quite the let down. We were not in to a carnival atmosphere so we made the decision to leave. Many other hikers felt the same as I did. Shannon and I decided to head back to her home in North Carolina for a few days. She suggested that we go to the beach and relax there. What a great idea. My ankles were swollen still from the trail running I did to get out from under that last big Thunder Storm. Her home was 350 miles away. 350 miles covered in just eight hours. Hard to phantom when it took over a month to cover that on the trail. We had a great time there and I must add this, the home she and her husband Brad live in, is their own home. They both bought it when they were just 19 years old. I am very proud of them for that.
Date: 2005-05-18
From: North Carolina (break from the trail)

To: Damascus
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Shannon and I were up at 4:30. We wanted to get on the road so we can get to Damascus and spend the day together. We stopped in at a local place for a quick breakfast when her cell phone rang. Her husband Brad was calling from Iraq. All is well, thank the Lord, and we took a break so she could talk. Afterwards it was on the road again. We drove strait through minus a stop for fuel. My plan was to start walking the next day about mid-morning. I enjoyed the time off with my daughter and my body enjoyed the rest. I sure did need that break. It is one thing to take some time off to recover, it is another thing to take time off to heal.    We arrived around mid-day and set up Shannon's tent on the lawn at "The Place" once again. Quite the difference now that the town was empty. It was much more to my liking, quiet, warm and just a few people milling around. Believe it or not there were more long distance bikers then there were long distance hikers there at this time. The Place and Damascus for that fact, is on the trail for the cross country bike riding folk. I forget the name of the bike trail however, this was a stop along at least one coast to coast bike trip. Also in town there was a tourist type bike route called the Virginia Creeper Trail. A shuttle takes riders up hill, drops them off and they can literally coast back to town along the former Virginia Creeper Train rail bed (a successful "Rails to Trails" conversion). The AT followed along the Creeper for a number of miles. Shannon and I talked about riding it however, we did not do it. Knowing my daughter she would have loved it. Plenty of stream side stops for a quick swim, areas for picnicking, I am sorry we didn't ride it. I recommended to her that when her husband returns from overseas that she should take him there for a vacation.   We settled in for the night after a good meal and sat and talked for a while. Morning came fast and it was off to the Outfitters for the final purchase. I retired my hiking staff and decided then to buy trekking poles. I was hesitant to do so at first. They are a costly thing but, knowing what I know now it was well worth it. Tom, from the Mount Rogers Outfitters, helped me choose the style of Trekking Pole. It only took a little while to get use to them once I was back on the trail. There use reminded me of cross country skiing and many of those same style techniques I used for trekking. Once a rhythm was developed it made the hiking easier. There was a noticeable transfer of weight from the back to the arms, exactly what Tom told me would happen.
Date: 2005-05-19
From: Damascus

To: Campsite, mile 476.7
Miles today: 17.0

Shannon left this morning at around 11:00. I was back on the trail by 11:30. It was difficult to see her leave and to get going back on the trail. All my friends were days ahead of me except for two. In town I came across Pig Bear and Praying Mantis. They both hiked in to town that day. It was the last I saw of either of them. I do not know if they finished the trail.    At around 1 PM I took a break at the intersection of the AT and the "Iron Mountain Trail". I was just three miles from Damascus at the time. I was thinking then about my daughter and how hard it was to be separated from her, as well as the rest of my family. It was never easy leaving all of them when I was in the service and now I was feeling those same pains I felt so many times before. I have been deployed around the world so many times I cannot count. All those years away from home took a toll out on a man. Especially when I had to let my children go back to the X-wife, before I received custody, those were the toughest out of them all. It puts a hurt deep in your heart that leaves a permanent bruise. The kind that don't ever heal and now, I felt that pain again. This trip was my choice, not my duty. This was the first big trip away from home that I chosen to do. In my mind then there was only one thing left "To do", and that was to hike.    That afternoon I stopped in at the "Saunders Shelter". What a beautiful place that was. There I met Surface (for the second time, I saw him earlier on the trail), Shooter and Striker. Shooter and Striker were hiking together and Surface was hiking alone. He and I bounced in to each other all the way to Pearisburg, VA where I saw him and his girlfriend (who was visiting him from his home), for the last time. He was another strong hiker and walked the trail with ease. I never saw anyone who hiked like him, with no trekking poles he just glided effortlessly along (he was a light weight hiker as well). Two day hikers showed up at the shelter as well, Dan and Chip. I had extra clean water and gave it to them. Giving up your clean water is a gift. Clean water means it was treated, dirty water means it was not. The reason I gave the water up was because I wanted to move on still. I found a campsite just North of "The Lost Mountain Shelter". Too many people back there at the shelter so I moved on. I moved a total of 17 miles before I set up camp. Not a bad day considering I left at 11:30.    It wasn't long before I had a fire going and soon enjoyed what I was caring on my back from town. I had some red wine with me that I was hoping to share with some one. The last shelter was full of day hikers so no familiar faces there. I do not know where Surface ended up that day. People were tented up all around me (closest was about 500 feet away) however, I did not know any of them either. This was the cost I expected to pay for taking so much time off of the trail, to be alone amongst the crowd.
Date: 2005-05-24
From: South of Knot Maul Branch Shelter

To: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 20.2
Weather: light rain

This morning I was up and gone by 6:30. No water for breakfast and a cold start never is a good way to begin your day. I had a soaked set of clothes in my backpack that needed an hour in the sun to dry out. I did not hang them up last night for fear of being seen. Stealth camping has its risks and I told the girls the night before to be sure they were gone early to avoid any issues with the wrong people. They (Bella and Slick) stayed a little longer but moved out soon after I did as well. I passed the camp where the other hikers slept, a cold wet quiet camp it was. You could tell that they put it up fast and in the dark.   One of the girls had with them a small AM/FM radio. What a great idea, I knew reception would be iffy however, it sure would be nice to listen to some music (a future creature comfort purchase for me). Some people carried IPOD's and CD players, The cost and weight kept me from bringing one however, theirs was so small it made me think. A "must have" is what I wrote in my log later that day.    It was another long hike (20.2 miles) interrupted by the times that I stopped to dry my gear and to take cover while three storms blew by me (I was tired of being wet). I walked in to the Jenkins Shelter that evening with Squeaker and Umbledog. Tal, Syracuse Pete,Tweety, Navigator, Tophat and Light Foot was already there and Mustard Seed and Swamp Donkey came in a little later.   There was no night hiking for me this night. Though at the Shelter I stayed in my tent (to many people once again, no worries). Not a bad day though, The colors of one particular Rhododendron, The Flame Azalea, were really beginning to stick out amongst the woods. I recall when Tophat (NOBO) mentioned later on "up" the trail that the color made him think he was near a shelter once. It fooled him in to believing it was another hikers set up tent. I could definitely see that happening.
Date: 2005-05-26
From: Bland, VA

To: Dismall Creek Falls
Miles today: 20.5

We left Bland (finally) at 8:53 in the morning. It cost five dollars a piece to have the room service lady give us a ride back to the trail. I had no desire to try to hitch hike a ride after yesterdays experience. Last evening I ran in to Spoonman, Skywalker, Syracuse Pete, Sweet Sixteen, Buffet and Goat.    There across the street from the Motel was another Dairy Queen. A simple breakfast with Goat and Buffet and off we all went. The driver had an old International Scout and we all fit in fine. I loaded all the gear and then the hikers. Lined in two rows with each person sitting between the legs of the person in front of them. It reminded me of when I was a Jumpmaster and the load was like that when I used to load jumpers in a small aircraft. "Nut to Butt" as we used to call it. It worked and we all arrived at our destination safely. Unfortunately I left my hat and gloves back at the motel. Spoonman found them and carried them all the way to Pearisburg for me, what a guy (Thanks Spoonman). Syracuse Pete and Sweet Sixteen went on the next shuttle to the trail. They were slack packing this day so I planned to see them heading south somewhere up the trail (and that is exactly what happened).    The plan was to go at least 20 miles today. Tal and I hiked together and we did a total of 20.5. We talked and compared things we both did in the Army. Tal was an officer in the Israeli Army for four years. He left the service and came to the U.S. to give the AT a try. He made it about 900 miles if I am not mistaken. He just got bored with it and decided to go home (after he went to NYC to see a play on Broadway called "The Lion King" and then went to visit the "Bare foot girls", of course). We "ended up" staying near Dismal Falls that night. What a beautiful place. Goat, Buffet, Tophat, Tal and I settled in and enjoyed a nice fire. I went to the falls and skinny dipped in the pool at its base. I recall that Tophat was there when we arrived and had the fire going nicely. We just added wood to the fire pit and did that ever feel good after being in the cold water.    Tophat got his name from the hat he wore. On the hat were the words "Top Hat". He mispronounced the words when asking the sales person what does Tophat mean (he ran the words together). After a good laugh with the people he was with and from that point on, Tophat (sounded with words together) was his trail name. At first I thought his name was To Phat, PHAT as in "pretty hot and tempting". When I first read the name in the logs way back when, I knew I had to find out who this guy was to get the real meaning of the name. It should also be mentioned that he looks and sounds like the actor Kianu Reeves (back in the Point Break movie time period). He hated when people brought that up, and it happened quite often.    Later that evening Panoramic came in and set up camp with us. Panoramic was from Louisiana. I met him back down the trail just South of "The Beauty Spot" close to "Iron Mountain". I was so sick at the time. We talked for quite some time. He was or rather is, a nice person.