morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-04-16
From: Brown Gap

To: Kale Gap
Miles today: 10.9

We woke up this morning and got rained on - in our tents (well, it was just me that got wet). The condensation that had formed inside our tents had froze up overnight and was melting as the sun warmed it up. Of course the sun hit my side of the tent first and therefore I was the only one who woke up with a wet sleeping bag. Luckily, Russ (aka Lady and the Tramp) had a fire going so I was able to dry out my bag fairly quickly - even with all that wet wood lying around! So as the snow melted and our tent dried out, we sat around the fire until around noon before we took off. NBNC strikes again!We knew that starting off the day it would be a long uphill before it went downhill the rest of the day, but we hadn't realized how steep it was going to be. After being in our tents literally all day yesterday, our legs did not want to move. Our bodies definitely felt stiffer than ever before! We pushed ourselves though and finally made it to the top which is when our bodies finally warmed up enough to continue moving without having to take multiple quick breaks. The rest of the trail was pretty easy for the rest of the day. You've gotta love those nice trails! As we passed a shelter towards the end of the day, we decided to move on about half a mile down to Kale Gap since the wind was intense and blowing directly into the shelter. The wind should be calmer at a gap...right? Wrong. The wind was just as intense if not even worse! It felt colder than the night before even with all the snow! We made a fire, but it didn't really help us much. The fire was going crazy and just didn't warm us up so it was a early night. I'm hoping the wind will die down towards the morning, but it probably won't...oh well!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-17
From: Kale Gap

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: few clouds

We made good time today! I'm really proud at the progress we've been making with time. Well, I'm sure SuperFeet could make better time without me since he's not human with his insanely fast pace (says Knaffles and Meticulous), but I'm still proud! We walked a little over 9 miles without taking any breaks in exactly three hours - the first 6.6 miles we accomplished in under 2 hours! That left only 3 miles to get into Hot Springs. We would have pushed on, but I hadn't eaten much in the morning since it was still very cold with the wind so we had to stop at the shelter just before to eat lunch or I would have passed out. By the way, that wind from Kale Gap was ridiculous. It's freezing cold with it blowing all crazy-like, but the instant we walked about 50 feet, the wind was completely gone and it was like a 20 degree temperature difference! If only we had known this the night before we would have pushed on just a tiny bit more...Anyways! We have arrived in Hot Springs! There are tons of hikers here and there's just so much character in everyone. Hotels and hostels are filled, but luckily we managed to snag one room in the Iron Horse. Pretty pricey for a place with no tv in the room, but hey - at least it had a warm, fluffy bed! Since we got in late-ish, Hot Springs was pretty quiet so we just sat around the hotel lobby watching Forrest Gump and The Simpsons Movie with plenty of beer of course - and a large Mountain Dew for me!So, I'm sure everyone is tired of reading from my perspective only and I'm not sure how entertaining it is, but I've been trying to get SuperFeet to write entries! He's just not into journaling as much as I am because he just LOVES to relax - and I don't blame him. Relaxing after hiking is amazing! So yeah, he'll write something eventually...at least one. Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-18
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Zero day in Hot Springs! Apparently the entire hiking world came into town today because all hotels and hostels were completely packed. Probably because the forecast said bad weather was coming in, but the rain never came! it was definitely chilly with the breeze though, but not a drop came down. So much for trying to go kayaking down the French Broad! Well, with all the rooms filled, our only choices were to either tent or to stay in the "Hot Springs Shelter." Really, this shelter (which we named) was a portable stage with a ceiling fan and lights (that didn't work, sadly). But it was plenty big enough for all the hikers who were coming in to town! There was SuperFeet and I, Tuna, Meticulous, Day Tripper, Rock Sloth, Fuzzy Wuzzy, The Bartender (a southbounder!!!), and Hooch - this crazy man actually slept underneath the shelter/stage even though there was plenty of room up top for a couple more people!! Haha!We spent the majority of the day at the Hiker's Ridge Ministry Center which is run by sweet Queen Diva! She made us chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven! Meticulous and I even painted our nails here as we relaxed in the warm comforts of the center. They even provided a FREE bbq pulled pork dinner for all the hikers which was amazing!!! SuperFeet even went back for seconds (that fatty)! For the rest of the night, we all sat around a fire made by some guy who ran a restaurant next to the shelter/stage and everyone just drank and enjoyed each other's company. So many people - it was great! We even got to meet a man named Babylon who hiked the trail SIX years ago and just never left Hot Springs. Now this man is...definitely a unique character. It might just have been the "sixteen" beers he had that night (although he says he was completely sober), but he claims that he is a high priest that has been around for a millennium - that's right, a millennium. So he'll preach a little bit and talk to people who aren't really there. He's a nice man and all - don't get me wrong, but he sure is crazy and it's just so great! Definitely entertaining.Oh! Tuna now had a trail journal so everyone should definitely check him out! It'll be interesting reading from his perspective about us!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-19
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

The rain finally same down today, but it wasn't as severe as people were making it out to be. It's been a light yet constant downfall. It makes me wonder if the rain is worse up in the mountains (which it probably was). So far, all we've done is sit in the shelter watching the rain and drink even more beer. Not a very productive day, but it sure beats hiking in the rain! Plus, there was an Easter parade today! It wasn't big or very long, but it was cute. And seeing all the locals and their children come out and get excited about the parade was entertaining.So Ronnie has been entertaining us once again. Today he told me that whenever he gets angry, like really angry, he can create thunder and lightning. All I could do was stare and say, "wow." One minute this man seems like a normal guy, but then the next minute he's talking to no one (or really, he believes he's talking to God) claiming he's "trying his best but no one will listen to him." I'm not really sure how to respond to him the majority of the time. At least he really respects women because he doesn't like when bad language is used in front of women and he's always watching out of me - asking if I'm alright all the time and even telling me to be careful when walking over gravel. Never know when those tiny pebbles might reach out and grab ya!Tonight we'll be staying in the Alpine Motel with Knaffles and Dirtbag. Meticulous and Tuna have hitched a ride to Asheville for the day. They say they'll be back tomorrow for trail magic with Meticulous's father. Grilled cheese trail magic, I hear! Apparently Meticulous, Tuna, and Knaffles aren't leaving until Tuesday the latest. We're gonna have to leave them behind! But I'm sure they'll catch back up to us in no time. Our plan is to hear out tomorrow, but...who knows what'll happen!I forgot to mention yesterday that SuperFeet had picked up an Aerobie at the shelter before Hot Springs so we played with it for quite awhile yesterday and that's when I realized that I just might be a ninja. Meticulous, Hooch, and I were sitting side by side in the shelter/stage when SuperFeet threw the Aerobie at us - indirectly it flew straight at Meticulous' head and she wasn't even paying attention. At the last second, I reached out and actually caught the frisbee just an inch from her face (her eyes, really!). Instantly, it got silent and Meticulous turned her head and realized that I was holding the Aerobie right in her face. She didn't even realize that she was gonna get hit with it! Yeah, everyone was impressed with my skills - even I was impressed with myself! I just had to let it be known that I just might be a ninja. Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-20
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Rich Mountain Lookout Tower
Miles today: 8.3

It took every ounce of willpower for us to leave Hot Springs. It seemed as if everyone was going to stay another day and they all wanted us to stay with them. It was so tempting, but no! We had to go. As much as we wanted to stay another day, we had to leave before this town consumed us like it had done to crazy Ronnie! Of course we stuck around for quite awhile before leaving though - around 2:30pm to be exact.So we began our day, but stopped at Lovers Leap Rock for awhile about a mile in to our hike to look out over Hot Springs. It was such a beautiful view with the French Broad and all. Goodbye crazy hiker town!All day, it was an uphill battle. The initial climb out of Hot Springs was insane. It was very hot and it was crazy steep! That combination sure does suck. We stopped for a break and I said to Superfeet, "Tell me we've gone at least 3 or 4 miles." Nope...barely even 2! Yeah, today was going to be a long day. But apparently, according to Russ, Dirtbag, and Hooch, we were running because we caught up to them fast and they had left hours before we did. That made me feel a lot better! :PThe sunset at the lookout tower was beautiful - even despite the fact that the sun was setting behind the only tiny section of trees that blocked our view! we were planning on staying inside the tower for the night, but once the sun set the win had picked up so we decided that tenting would be the best option. And it was! Down below we could hear the tower creaking in the dark as the wind howled. Yeah, we definitely got a better night's rest down here in our warm tents!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-21
From: Rich Mountain Lookout Tower

To: Little Laurel Shelter
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: overcast clouds

It's a pretty good feeling waking up and knowing that in a couple miles, grilled cheese trail magic was waiting for you. Meticulous and her father, now given the trail name Grilled Cheese, were set up at Allen Gap. I was ready to get rolling! Today was another hot day though so it made all the climbs even more difficult and I rolled my ankles and scraped my knee along the way, but for the grilled cheese, it was going to be worth it!The grilled cheese sandwiches were amazing! I wanted to stuff myself crazy, but controlled myself since there were so many hikers that were coming by. Thank you Meticulous and Grilled Cheese for the trial magic!!!We sat around Allen Gap for quite awhile - 2 or 3 hours. If I was gonna get to the shelter before dark, I had to get moving so I decided to take off before SuperFeet. More than likely he'd catch up to me before the shelter - and he did! I was taking my sweet time and was almost near the shelter when suddenly I heard SuperFeet yell out a bird call. Silly man was practically running just to catch up to me and was panting like crazy. I don't know how he does it, but his speed is incredible. It's crazy that he caught up to me even after leaving 30-40 minutes after!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-22
From: Little Laurel Shelter

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 6.8
Weather: light rain

We hit the 300 mile marker today!!! It may seem liek a slow pace (okay, even I feel like it's a slow pace when compared to everyone else!), but it's still exciting! We got to this mile marker much faster than we got to the 100 mile marker or at least that's how it feels like and hopefully 400 will come by even faster.There would've been amazing views today, but we were walking through a cloud. We got out tents up just in time before the rain hit. It drizzled on us all day though, but luckily there was no lightning! Rumor had it that the weather was going to be awful and it would only get worse - but it didn't! The sun never shined, but it was still warm out. The view would've been amazing today, but since were walking through a cloud we had absolutely no views. It's a first for us actually. Walking and seeing no views at the best points isn't very fun. So Ive made up my mind - I'm going to re-hike this section of the trail after this thru-hike is completed! It bothers me that I had no view after all that strenuous climbing and it was a pretty fun hike. So one day, maybe next year I'll come back and re-hike this section to see what I've missed. Plus, I'm considering doing trail magic when I do!So I was scared twice today, both within 10 minutes of each other! We reached the top of the exposed ridge line and we noticed Dirtbag at the top. Now, I see this man and I'm thinking to myself, "What if he tries to scare us?" Well, I'm looking down so I don't trip and I guess we reached him sooner than I expected because he jumped out from behind a small bush and yells out and I just squealed. Yeah, squealed. How did I still managed to get scared when I was expecting it and knew he was there?? And then 10 minutes later, we were climbing down some rocks and I suddenly hear SuperFeet yell out because he was startled and therefore I screamed because here comes Day Tripper out of nowhere! This crazy man pops his head up from behind the rocks he was climbing over and didn't even mean to scare us, but he's just so fast and quiet! And in the process of letting him pass by, I slipped and fell right into him. My falling count seems to be quickly rising...Yeah, that was fun getting scared. This just means I'm going to have to get payback!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-23
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Devil Fork Gap
Miles today: 8.7
Weather: clear sky

Today was definitely a better day than yesterday was. The sunw as shining and it was feeling great! The trail was even nice and easy. We were climbing up some more rocks and I was concentrated on my footing when suddenly Tuna jumped out from behind a rock in front of me yelling and I swear I've never screamed that loud before! I was still staring at the ground screaming before I looked up and even realized it was him. Yeah, that's probably been the biggest scare of my life to date. It was great though!We cruised down to Devil Fork Gap to our group laid out on the grass just soaking up the sun. Tonight's plan was to stay here, but first SuperFeet and I had to go to the Laurel Trading Post for a resupply. Dirtbag was planning on actually staying there. So we called a shuttle and arrived at the trading post and before I knew it, we had our tent set up and decided to stay here for the night instead. They had really good good and we wanted a warm breakfast so of course we had to stay! WE were eating out burgers when someone brought up the topic of jerky. So the owner of the trading post brought over some BEAR jerky that he had made himself with his own special sauce. Now, I'm not one to try crazy foods, but I convinced myself to try it and I was oddly surprised at how tasty it was! So now I can start telling people that I've eaten a bear! :DThwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-24
From: Devil Fork Gap

To: Sams Gap
Miles today: 8.4
Weather: clear sky

SuperFeet's uncle, Dennis, and his friend, Bob, decided to surprise us today by showing up unexpectedly at the Laurel Trading Post! He pulled up and SuperFeet said, "Hey, that looks just like my uncle Dennis' car. Hey, that IS my uncle Dennis!" And he came bearing food!!! Sausage biscuits from Hardee's! Too bad we had just finished eating a big breakfast at the trading post, but we still managed to stuff a biscuit down. Hikers can't say no to food!Dennis told us that bad weather was coming in so of course we decided to stay with them for the night (and yes, this just called for a zero day the next day!) along with Tuna, Meticulous, Knaffles, Dirtbag, and Hooch. Since we were going to be staying with them for the night, we decided that today would be a slack pack kinda day! Now I wish I could do this more often because I felt great slack packing! My knees didn't hurt going downhill and I wasn't panting as hard when going uphill. It was amazing!But the nest part about today is definitely about the donkey. We had just started hiking when I turned my head to look up the trail when suddenly I see a donkey heading straight toward us. Of course, I started freaking out because I didn't know if I was hallucinating from the heat or not, but as it came up to me I couldn't contain my excitement. A donkey was standing right in front of me! And yeah, I took a lot of selfies with this donkey and it was amazing! And the best part is, the donkey actually followed us up the trail for about 2 miles! Bob was the last in line and the donkey just kept nudging his pack and pushing him forward as if saying we were going too slow for him. Silly donkey! Apparently Meticulous was the one who brought him closer to the trail from a nearby house and he refused to go back home. So now we've decided that we would be named Turtle and therefore be the Turtle Crew's mascot!Thwap-Thwap!-Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-25
From: Sams Gap

To: Dennis and Nancy's Home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a very good zero day. I don't think I've ever been so full in my life! Surprisingly SuperFeet and I were awake quiet early (earlier than the rest of the Turtle crew for once!) probably due to the delicious smell of bacon. How can anyone sleep through that?? Omelets, bacon, and toast for breakfast! What's a better way to start the day than that? The view from Dennis and Nancy's home is absolutely amazing. It was really cool watching the dark clouds come in from the deck. The wind was howling like crazy though. Good thing we weren't hiking in it! We made a trip to Walmart with SuperFeet's mom (Momma Feet!) for a quick resupply and for lunch - burgers and pizza! Yeah, we had a great nap after all that good food in our stomachs. Dinner was even better. Pulled pork, broccoli slaw, and corn on the cob! Plus, dessert was even more amazing, but we were so unbelievably full. Yeah, we were fed real good! Thank you Dennis and Nancy for letting us dirty hikers stay with you! And thank you Mommy Feet and Poppa Feet for coming up just to see us and for all the yummy food! Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-26
From: Sams Gap

To: Big Stamp
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: clear sky

Today called for another slack packing kinda day! The weather was nice and hot and with all tbe uphills we were going to do, slack packing seemed more and more appealing. Dennis, Nancy, Momma Feet, and Poppa Feet were waiting at the top of Big Bald for us with our packs - well, Poppa Feet walked down and met us a mile or two in. They had a bunch of food for us to have for dinner and breakfast the next day. Tough part was carrying it to the campsite that actually had a picnic table and chairs. It was a pretty cool campsite!We met up with Blueberry Bear today! I thought we'd never run into each other again. But he decided to stay with us for the night And by doing so he was able to try out the pulled pork from the night before so I'm sure he enjoyed staying with us for the night!Already, we miss Dennis, Nancy, Momma Feet, and Poppa Feet!!!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-27
From: Big Stamp

To: No Business Knob Shelter
Miles today: 11.2
Weather: overcast clouds

After not eating anything in our packs yesterday for lunch or dinner since we slack packed with left overs, our packs were still packed full from our resupply. I guess we picked out all the heavier foods because our packs were heavy - probably heavier than its ever been on the trip so far! So that didn't help the hike at all. My pace was definitely slower than usual. Plus, the heat was crazy. SuperFeet and I hiked without shirts on and I was still very hot. I felt unbelievably sluggish! This concerns me about the summer heat. The heat right now is pretty tough and it's only spring. So how am I going to make it through summer?! Yeah, I'm very worried. I'm just hoping that I'll adjust to all that heat when the time comes...We got to the shelter just to find out Tuna, Meticulous, and Blueberry Bear had pushed on a couple more miles to a gap. They had written in the log for us to move on as well, but that was absolutely not going to happen! We were wiped out. So we set up our tents and made a pretty awesome fire, but we went to bed earlier than usual. Tomorrow would be much better since it'd be a shorter day into Erwin!Thwap-Thwap!- Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-28
From: No Business Knob Shelter

To: Erwin, TN - Uncle Johnny's
Miles today: 5.8

The trail down to Uncle Johnny's hostel was pretty nice surprisingly. The uphill wasn't as steep as it looked in the book and even though it was hot, it was still nice. Maybe the idea of walking into town just made everything seem better. We've decided to tent at Uncle Johnny's and we're more than likely going to zero tomorrow because of thunderstorms. Hey, everyone advised us against hiking out in it - even Miss Janet!We were going to make a fire, but everyone was tenting nearby so we couldn't make one. Instead, we joined Mimick who had made a big fire across the river. Now, this guy was pretty crazy - not Ronnie crazy, but definitely crazy. Then he went on to tell us he was bipolar and stuff so that explained it. I mean, this man rub his arms all over a tree that was covered in poison ivy! He wanted to prove to us he was "immune" to it for some reason. And he never stopped talking, so there was never a dull.moment. He even told us his entire life story and its been a crazy life he's had. So he was entertaining to a certain degree. Makes me miss crazy Ronnie though. I don't think we'll meet anyone as entertaining as he was!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles
Date: 2014-04-29
From: Erwin, TN - Uncle Johnny's

To: Erwin, TN - Uncle Johnny's
Miles today: 0.0

We took a shuttle into town for all you can eat pizza and a stop at the Dollar General to buy none other than toys. SuperFeet's toy collection seems to be getting larger with every stop through town! First it was an Aerobie then a mini football. Now he's added a kite, a patriotic flag, patriotic sunglasses (the ones you can't see out of because of all the lines), chalk (for the turtle crew to write messages with), and an ultra light telescope that doesn't exactly work wonderfully. And I've finally bought myself a really cute koozie! Apparently SuperFeet is rubbing off on everyone because they've all decided to buy toys as well!So much for bad weather. It rained last night, but hasn't rained a bit all day. Tomorrow is supposed to be bad weather as well, but we're hiking out no matter what. We weren't supposed to zero today so we're definitely not going to zero tomorrow. Hopefully the rain turns out to be like today and not come until after we finish our day.We went to Wal-Mart after dinner just to look for more toys and we ended up coming out with even more food. We didn't even need to resupply yet we still did! So much for trying to lighten our packs. We've just added way too much now and our packs probably weigh more than ever!Thwap-Thwap! - Barnacles