morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-11-06
To: PREP #6
Miles today: 0.0

I got my first real world test of my new tent and sleeping bag in a campout with my Cub Scout pack at Split Rock Conservation Park on the Ohio River in Boone County, KY (www.splitrockpark.org) on Friday night 11/2/07. We had a great time and went on a short evening/night hike on Friday night and another hike Saturday morning led by the park Ranger, Mark Jacobs. We've been to Split Rock in the past for hikes and to learn about the history and nature at the park, but this was the first time that I had the opportunity to camp there. I feel pretty good about the experience as a preparation for the mountains on the AT in the Spring because it got REALLY cold Friday night. I'm not really sure what it got down to, but I could see my breath in the tent when we went to bed and when we got up, our water bottles were frozen...not solid, but enough that it was obviously 32 degrees or lower at some point in the night!! My 20 degree rated sleeping bag kept me from shivering, but definitely not toasty - I would say slightly less than comfortable (with jeans, wool socks, and a couple of long sleeve t-shirts and a sweatshirt). Another interesting thing happened that I was concerned about...I woke up at about 1am wide awake (after going to bed at about 10:30) and laid there for awhile and eventually started to get really claustrophobic in my mummy bag. It was the first time I had slept in a mummy bag and was a little worried about that. There were still a couple of Dad's out by the campfire talking so I got up and hung out with them for awhile. I probably went back to bed at about 3 am and slept comfortably the rest of the night. If I had to deal with rain in addition to the temperature dropping overnight, it definitely would not have been fun (that's probably my worst fear about hiking in the early Spring on the AT)!!! My jetboil stove was a crowd favorite at providing hot chocolate for the group Friday night and Saturday morning. I was definitely impressed with how well it worked...although, I noticed that it didn't light again very easily when it was hot after I had turned it off - good to know.
Date: 2007-12-10
To: PREP #7
Miles today: 0.0

I've been doing a good job of walking with my pack lately - either on the treadmill or outside when it's not ridiculously cold. I've been doing 4 or 5 miles at least a few times a week. I'm still expecting some clothes and other ancillary stuff (i.e rain gear, etc.) as Christmas gifts, but with most of my base equipment and probably 1/2 the water that I would carry on the trail, my pack is at 22 lbs. Once I see what I get for Christmas, I'll work on getting everything else that I need and filling my pack to the normal weight I expect to carry on the trail.I did have a scare last weekend - on Sunday night, I walked about 4 miles on the treadmill and by the time I finished, it felt like my right knee was going to explode. I had a specific pain and all that kept going through my head was that I screwed something up that was going to take surgery to fix and my dream is over. I iced my knee pretty well that night and it felt OK the next day, but it is still bothering my slightly a week later - I can just feel that something isn't quite right (although I did walk about 4 miles outside this past Saturday and didn't really have any problems during or after). I'm contemplating scheduling an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon to have it looked at, but I'm afraid if I do that, he'll tell me not to do my hike and my wife would make me listen to him. I would rather take my chances and have to limp off the trail - at least then, I would have given it my best effort. If my goal was a thru hike, I might be more cautious, but I'm "only" going for 200 miles or so on this trip.On my walk this weekend, my 7 year old went with me - I carried my backpack and he had to be cool, too (although he didn't notice all of the people looking at us strangely as we walked down the street - the neighbors probably thought I was running away from home with my little boy). Alex carried his Camelback pack with 1.5 liters of water. He did pretty well until the last half mile when he just shut down - so I ended up carrying my 50 lb son on my shoulders with my 22 lb. pack and his pack. Now, that was a challenge...and I'm sure I really looked crazy to my neighbors.I read a great book over the Thanksgiving weekend that I would highly recommend for anyone who wants to get excited about your hike this Spring. A Walk for Sunshine by Jeff Alt was a fun, great read and it really will get you in the mood for your hike. It was one of those books that I couldn't put down. He really has a knack for telling his stories of the trail in an enjoyable way - my favorite was the night that he was so tired when a skunk snuggled up between his legs on his sleeping bag in a shelter, he just let the skunk stay there. Jeff happens to live in my hometown and I just found out that I might get a chance to hear him speak next month so I'm excited about that.
Date: 2007-12-24
To: PREP #9 TRAIL MAGIC #1
Miles today: 0.0

Merry Christmas!! I hope Santa brings the hiking gear on everyone's lists tonight!I'm 102 days from the trail and experienced my first trail magic today. I went on a 7 mile walk today with our black lab, Sophie. I was carrying my pack and had loaded it up to about 30 pounds. About 3/4 of the way through our walk, a guy pulled over and asked me if we wanted a ride!!! I guess he had the Christmas spirit and figured I was hiking down the road to get somewhere for Christmas Eve. Of course I had to say, "no thank you" since the purpose of my walk was to get in shape for the AT. I certainly appreciated the gesture, though, and I hope I'm that lucky on the trail!The walk went pretty well. It was the furthest I've gone in a long time and the heaviest I've filled my pack. I did it in about 2 hours with no breaks so I was walking at a decent pace. Our area of Northern Kentucky would hardly compare with the Appalachian Mountains, but it is pretty hilly. The last 1/4 to 1/2 mile is probably about a 350 to 400 foot vertical climb. It was definitely a challenge by the time I got to that point and made me start to question some of my gear choices...do I REALLY need that sleeping pad?I'm pretty good at making travel plans - I've planned the itineraries for all of our vacations for probably the last 10 years. I saved the day Saturday when my wife's step-mom's flight was cancelled from Owensboro, KY to Cincinnati (about a 3.25 hr. drive). I drove down to pick her up and bring her to our house for Christmas. Now, we need to take her back after Christmas.   Owensboro is about 2 hours north of Nashville, so I said, "hey, how about if we all drive Grandma Barbara back to Owensboro and then we can go down to Nashville and stay for a night or two at the Opryland Hotel and see the sights in Nashville." Of course, we will have a lot of fun, but there is also an REI store in Nashville so anything that I don't get on my Christmas list, I'll be able to finish off all of my hiking needs at REI!!! Am I brilliant, or what???
Date: 2007-12-31
To: PREP #10
Miles today: 0.0

Between Christmas gifts and my post-Christmas visit to REI in Nashville, I'm geared up and my pack is fully loaded and ready. Including a full week of food and 2 liters of water, I'm at 39 pounds. 39 pounds feels a LOT heavier than I imagined it would. I can't imagine carrying it for the 200 miles that I plan to cover much less the 2,175 miles that the rest of you plan to!! I gained even MORE respect for the thru-hiker the first time I lifted that pack.   I was hoping to be at 35 pounds or less so I have 95 days to figure out what doesn't need to go.
Date: 2008-01-03
To: PREP #11
Miles today: 0.0

I was getting a little nervous that my knee is still sore (it's really fine with normal walking - it's the lateral movement that makes it hurt a little) after over a month and since I'm quickly approaching 90 days out, I scheduled an appt. and saw an orthopedic surgeon this morning. They did X-rays and he pushed and pulled and said that it is most likely just a strained MCL. He scheduled an MRI for Monday morning just to be sure that there is no tear. Best case scenario, excercises and a brace should help me make it with no problems and worst case scenario, I got the impression that if he needed to do surgery to fix it, I could still be in shape to be on the trail April 5. If anything, I'm glad that I went to see him just so I'll have peace of mind.
Date: 2008-01-07
To: PREP #12
Miles today: 0.0

When I got to the doctor's office for my MRI this morning and found out that it was going to cost almost $500 between co-pay and deductible, I decided that the doc's exam the other day and his feeling that there's probably only a slight chance that there is actually any damage was enough for me. I cancelled the MRI and decided that I'll take my chances. I'll just accept that it's probably a strain and it's a little sore - $500 for the extra 10% to 15% verification that there's no real damage probably isn't worth it.I made a reservation for Friday night April 4 at the Amicalola Lodge. I'm planning to leave work around noon that Friday (my wife and kids will probably drive me down), stay at the lodge that night and be on the trail early Saturday morning, April 5. SuperDave VanFossen (AT06 thru-hiker), my mentor and advisor, told me that he and his thru-hiking companions all agree that the approach trail isn't really necessary since it's not truly a part of the AT so I'm planning to go straight to the trailhead and skip the approach trail.
Date: 2008-01-12
To: PREP #13
Miles today: 0.0

It was a beautiful day to get in some training miles. Sunny skies and mid 40's. I hiked about 7 miles at Mt. Airy Forest on the west side of Cincinnati. My pack was at about 37 pounds - I'm really hoping to cut out a few more pounds before April 5 - I'm not sure where it will come from, though. It's pretty hilly and according to my Garmin handheld GPS, I did a total ascent of a little over 1000 ft. which was also good. My gear and body held up pretty well. I could have easily done 10 miles + which is really the minimum that I need to do daily hit my goal for my 3 week Section hike in April. Today was the first day that I hiked with trekking poles and I loved it. We've had extensive rain in the last week and there parts of the trail that were VERY muddy. If I didn't have the poles for the extra balance, I'm sure I would have ended up on my butt or face quite a few times. I also really noticed the extra leverage they gave me on some of the steeper climbs - especially with the slippery, muddy areas (no faceplants today). I also got to test out the new tripod that I got for Christmas - it worked great - makes solo pictures a piece of cake.
Date: 2008-01-13
To: PREP #14
Miles today: 0.0

Temps in the mid-30's today with a constant light rain. It would have been a perfect day to start a fire in the fireplace and watch the game in between naps. I'm proud to say that I didn't do that, though. I put on my rain gear and went back to Mt. Airy Forest and did 5 miles on VERY sloppy trails. I'm glad I did it, I have a lot more confidence in my gear and that I can confidently handle the difficult weather.
Date: 2008-01-30
To: PREP #15
Miles today: 0.0

Looking forward to a great shakedown hike in Red River Gorge this weekend. Weather should be perfect (hopefully) maybe some rain/snow on Friday, but Saturday and Sunday should be sunny and 40ish with overnight lows of 25 plus. Going with a group from the Cincinnati Tri-State Hiking Club (http://hiking.meetup.com/201/). There will be a group of dayhikers staying in cabins, but I and at least one other backpacker will be tenting. If anyone in the area wants to join us, feel free to e-mail me! If you live in KY, southern Ohio, WV, or Eastern TN, Red River Gorge is convenient and a truly amazing place - it's actually one of the oldest forests in the world. Hopefully, I'll have some great pics to post after this weekend.
Date: 2008-02-16
To: PREP # 16
Miles today: 0.0

OK, it's taken me two weeks to add this entry, but I really did go on the Red River Gorge weekend I mentioned in my last entry...and it couldn't have gone any better if I had scripted the whole thing!The weather was gorgeous, the hiking was great, my gear worked perfectly and for the most part, my plans for how to handle things went very smoothly. Temps were just below freezing - probably 28 or 29, but for the most part I was pretty comfortable sleeping through the night and was comfortable in the morning once I got moving. I feel very good about my sleeping bag, tent and the clothes that I'm planning to bring. One thing that I learned - and had read about either in a book or on a trail journal posting - was to bring a plastic garbage back or stuff sack to keep my boots in my sleeping bag (or at least put them in there for an hour or so before I get up). Although I was warm and slept comfortably, once I got up and put on my COLD boots, I couldn't feel my toes after about 10 minutes...lesson learned. Luckily, my new friends had a warm cabin about 100 yards away so I could fix that stupid mistake pretty easily.One thing that did work pretty well was dealing with my contact lenses. My plan was to have my optometrist prescribe daily disposables so I wouldn't have to worry about carrying separate cleaning solution and cleaning and storing them every night. I slept with the pair in my pocket that I would put on in the morning - I brought a small mirror in my pack and everything worked exactly as I had hoped. With about 17 people in our group, we got kind of a late start on Saturday morning, but we did a good 9 mile hike which had a total climb of 1,500 feet according to my GPS. I was carrying my full pack at 39 lbs. and kept up very well with everyone (actually, I was at the head of the group by the end of the day) so I feel pretty good about being able to do the 10 - 12 miles a day I will need to maintain for my Springer to Newfound Gap section hike goal in April.Most importantly, this was my first outing with the Cincinnati Tri-State Hiking Club (http://hiking.meetup.com/201/) and it was the most awesome group of people I've ever met. It amazed me how a group of people who for the most part had NEVER met or only knew each other from occasional weekend day hikes could get along so well for an entire weekend. There wasn't one person on that trip who I woudn't want to consider a good friend. I'm very grateful to have gotten the opportunity to meet all of them!
Date: 2008-04-03
To: PREP #18
Miles today: 0.0

T minus 34 hours and counting....1/2 day of work tomorrow and then my wife, boys and Mom head south to Georgia with me. We're going to stay at a hotel not far off of I-75 Friday night and then they'll drop me off at Springer Mountain first thing Saturday morning. I feel good about my preparation and feel confident that things will go well for my three week adventure. I did my last warm up hike (7.5 miles on moderate terrain) on Sunday and it was very comfortable - I didn't have any problems at all with endurance, pack or boots. I'm sure that the hills of Cincinnati can hardly compare to climbing Blood Mountain, but I'll just take it one step at a time. I won't be carrying pocketmail or anything, but do hope to update my journals during breaks in trail towns so keep watching!Wish me luck!
Date: 2008-04-05
From: Springer Mountain

To: Hawk Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: moderate rain

NOTE: I'll go ahead and enter my first journal entry, but the rest will have to wait until I get home. Now that I'm on the trail, I realize how much of a challenge it is to keep up an online journal while on the trail and as a true journal-junky, I appreciate all of the thru-hikers who allow me to live vicariously through them. I'm enjoying an incredible nero day at Cloud 9 Hostel at Dick's Creek Gap. This place is amazing - you should definitely try to plan you hike around a stay here. Getting time on the computer is a little challenging and every minute you spend typing is a minute that you miss out hanging out with some of the coolest people on the planet. I am keeping a daily written journal and will update it when I get home at the end of April. I started a little before noon at Springer on 4/5 and stayed at Deep Gap Shelter last night with a short day to Dick's Creek Gap and a wonderful day at Cloud 9 today. Here is my journal entry from a wet 4/5 start day:Short day on the trail today. It's been raining non-stop since we left Cincy yesterday EXCEPT for most of the time I was hiking. We left Cincy at about 1:30 yesterday and got into Jasper, GA at around 9:00. Checked into Microtel and then went to dinner at Fatz. It was delicious. I had a full rack of BBQ ribs and they were gone in no time. I think it was my pre-hiker appetite.Janna, the boys and my Mom tried to walk up to the Springer summit with me but they turned back due to the nasty weather, rocky trail and steep climb about 1/2 way. So I jogged the rest of the way up (I left my pack down at the parking lot - my first slack-packing) and then back down quick. I did my hugs and goodbyes and took off up the trail by myself. I maintained a good pace and got to Hawk Mountain Shelter at 2ish. Storyteller Will and Dave (Dal Wahte) were there. I had thought about going on to Gooch Mtn. Shelter 8 miles up, but it was so foggy, I wasn't sure how soon it might start to get dark. Plus, it had started raining pretty steady in the last 30 minutes or so and I didn't think it was going to stop. It was a good thing I claimed my space in the shelter because it started to fill up quickly. In all my planning for this adventure, I've been saying that I planned to stay in my tent and not in any shelters, but I really didn't want to set up my tent in the rain and take it down wet in the morning - so I'll deal with the mice and snoring tonight. We have 10 people in the shelter and there are probably a dozen tents around us. Surprisingly, I'm the youngest guy in the shelter.I had lasagna and a butterfinger bar for dinner and it was delicious. Somebody had some extra banana chips to share and they were really good, too.It's about 8:00 and Storyteller has not stopped talking since I got here. His trailname has got to be one of the most appropriate on the trail. He literally has a story for EVERYTHING! And they're all great stories!
Date: 2008-04-06
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 12.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Gorgeous day today ¢ mid to upper 60¢s with cool breezes on the ridges and mountain tops. It was a good break-in day with decent mileage and some pretty big climbs. Left Hawk Mountain Shelter at 8:30 and hiked most of the morning until I ran into Jakebrake and Don and I hiked with them the last 12 mile or so to a nice lunchbreak at Gooch Mtn. Shelter at about 12:30 (had done 7.3 miles by that point). Had beef strouganoff, a little beef jerky and freeze dried ice cream (Christmas gift from Grandma Barbara) for lunch. Hung out at Gooch Mtn. Shelter for an hour or so before hitting the trail again. The next shelter was about 14 miles away and there was no way I would get that far so I knew I would be camping along the trail somewhere. Woody Gap seemed like a good goal for the night, but I didn¢t realize that there¢s a major trailhead parking area there and it¢s on a major highway. The highway must have lots of turns because there were almost non-stop groups of sport bikes roaring by. Hardly a peaceful place to set up camp so I continued east on the trail. About 12 to 34 mile down the trail, I found a side trail back to a nice small grassy camping area. I have good cell phone reception here so I called home to let Janna and the boys know that I¢m safe and doing well. I set up the tent and then changed into dry, no-so-smelly clothes. I fixed spaghetti (which was really good) and had a Snickers bar for dessert. I got everything cleaned up, hung my food bag down the trail to keep the bears away and retired to my tent. I looked over my mileage for tomorrow. I¢m sure I¢ll go 10.6 miles into Neels Gap. I¢m not sure if I¢ll stay in the hostel there or go a little further up the trail. Even though tomorrow is a little more mileage than today, it will be extra tough with a 5 mile, 1,581 ft. ascent up Blood Mtn. ¢ not looking forward to that one!Today was a perfect day on the trail and my legs feel remarkably well after my first double digit day with big ups and downs!
Date: 2008-04-07
From: Woody Gap

To: Bagg's Creek Gap campsite
Miles today: 14.8

Did some big, tough miles today. The climb up Blood Mtn. was especially tough.I slept like a baby last night. Closed my eyes at about 8:30 and didn¢t open them until 7:15. It was tough to get out of that warm sleeping bag, but I started doing my morning chores after about 10 minutes of snooze time. I just ate some Gorp for breakfast and got on the trail at about 8:30. As it turned out, I was camping just below the clouds (which is a good, dry thing). After a 15 minute climb on the trail from my campsite, I was in the clouds and soaking wet. I spent much of the morning walking through fog and missed some views that I¢m sure would have been incredible. I walked hard all morning just stopping once to get a quick Snickers bar.I ran into Jakebrake (Bill), Don, Dylan and Jacob (who I ate lunch with at Gooch Mtn. Shelter yesterday) on top of Blood Mtn. and walked down the mountain to Neels Gap with them. After three days on the trail, getting to Neels Gap (Mountain Crossings/Walasi-Yi Center) was like heaven. I got a Fanta orange soda first and then got two frozen microwave cheeseburgers and a Coke. It was absolutely delicious!I can¢t believe that with the wealth of information on the Internet about hiking, backpacking and the AT; all of the crazy, stupid and heavy stuff that people bring out here with the intention of thru-hiking. One guy today threw his five pair of cotton socks in the garbage can because they gave him blisters and he had just bought wool socks and liners in the outfitter¢¦Duh! They have got to make a killing there at the Mountain Crossings outfitter. Talk about a captured audience. Another thing, there were at least a half dozen thru-hikers there smoking! Seems kind of crazy to me. I could have stayed there at the hostel and taken a shower for 15 bucks. Could have washed my clothes, too. But I decided to hike on since I felt good after my big meal with lots of calories. If you had to spend any time near me, you probably wouldn¢t appreciate that decision. I¢m definitely staring to pick up the hiker stink! I¢m glad I kept going because I caught up with Jakebrake & crew and covered almost five miles and am camping with them tonight. They are really good people and I have enjoyed hiking with them. We have a similar pace to that helps.