morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2016-05-13
From: Curley Maple Gap Shelter

To: Clyde Smith Shelter
Miles today: 21.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I took off around 8am. Others in the shelter commented on me taking off so "early". It was raining lightly which made for a nice cool morning. I got trail magic at the first Gap. I sat and talked with the guy (I forgot his name unfortunately, it was Brother something he provides trail magic as part of a Religious Group) for a while and ate some banana bread and drank a cup of coffee. He told me of a guy that had gotten attacked by a bear in the Smokies recently. I didn't even see a bear in the Smokies but wanted to, from a distance atleast. I hiked on and got to the shelter around 5:30. No one was there, about an hour later Turkey Bait and Commish showed up. Turkey bait had started May1st and was averaging over 28 miles a day!It was going to be really cold the next night so he asked if I wanted him to reserve me a spot at Mountain Harbour for the next night to have a warm place to sleep. It would be about a 25 mile hike which included the Roans but I told him go ahead I'll just start early to make sure I make it at a decent time.
Date: 2016-05-14
From: Clyde Smith Shelter

To: Mountain Harbour B&B/Hostel
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: clear sky

I took off around 6:30am. Commish and Turkey Bait were still asleep in the Shelter. I twas a little chilly but I felt great and took off at a great pace. The roans weren't easy but I blazed through them. They were beautiful but with high speed and really cold winds I didn't stop for too many pictures. I had 15 miles crushed before Lunch! I ended up making it to the hostel for 3:30 with an average pace just under 3mph. I definitely had my trail legs now to pull off that pace over the Roans. I also knocked out another state, NC! I ran into some day hikers that gave me some trail mix and one commented on my dirty legs. My reply was it was actually from a few days ago. I hadn't showered in a week at that point but told them jokingly not to worry because I would finally get a shower that night. The hostel was really nice and situated over a Barn. I was looking forward to breakfast the next AM as it is often refereed to as the best breakfast on the AT. Commish and Turkey Bait rolled in around 5:30.We met a ton of other hikers who came to get out of the cold. Many had to tent so I was very thankful that Turkey Bait called in a spot for me the night before! We watched a few 80s movies including Cityslickers and Lethal Weapon 1 then called it a night.
Date: 2016-05-15
From: Mountain Harbour B&B/Hostel

To: Black Bear Resort
Miles today: 24.9

We went down for breakfast and it definitely lived up to the hype! There were a ton of dished and it was set up buffet style. I ate as much as I could fit in my stomach then took off N with Turkey Bait and Commish. We decided to do another 25 to another Hostel to avoid the cold again. We got on trail and could see snow in the Roans in the distance! I was definitely glad we smashed them the day before. I was hiking a little faster so was up ahead, but missed a white blaze headed down a four wheeler trail that eventually went back to the AT. Being a purist (making an effort to hit every blaze) I back tracked to hit the part I missed. I got behind Commish and Turkey bait and decided to just hike with them when I caught up. We were all full from breakfast and skipped lunch but around 3 started feeling it. We got into Black Bear at about the same pace I did the day before and decided to get a cabin together since it would be cheaper than the Hostel. Got a few beers from the store there and called it a night. It felt a little luxurious to get 2 showers in 2 days!
Date: 2016-05-16
From: Black Bear Resort

To: Stealth site Near Spring
Miles today: 21.6
Weather: clear sky

We woke up and Turkey Bait was Planning a 30+ while Commish said he would do a shorter day to Recover. I wanted to do a 20 so we all split. Trail started off very easy and quick but got rocky and slow around Laurel Falls. I got to Watauga Lake and stopped for Lunch. I saw I had cell service and checked my email to see my card was frozen due to suspicious activity. I checked my account and sure enough I had 2 fraudulent charges. Luckily I found that my bank had a Branch 7 miles away. I was just about to hitch and a guy pulled up asking if I needed a ride. Cornpatch was also a hiker doing the AT in sections. He was waiting for his room to be available and was literally just driving around to give hikers rides into town. He brought me to the bank were I got things taken care of then back to the trail. I don't know for sure but have a feeling were my card information was taken. Since I don't know 100% I will not say were but I will now only use cash at Hostels! I planned to take this approach before but was running low on cash at the time. I felt drained but pushed on to and unofficial campsite and set up for the night.
Date: 2016-05-17
From: Stealth site Near Spring

To: Stealth site outside of Damascus
Miles today: 26.7
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up at 5am to light rain. I figured I'd sleep until it stopped. Since it was light it should stop soon right? I should know by now that I can't avoid the rain. I ended up leaving camp at 9am. I felt great and was moving swiftly once again hiking at around 3mph. Made it to a gap around 10miles to get a trail magic Pepsi then hiked through a working cattle farm. It was interesting shoo'ing off cows that were laying on the trail and trying not to step in cow patties! I hiked to the last shelter before Damascus around 18 miles and talked with a local who was section hiking. He told me there were plenty areas to camp closer to town so I decided to eat Supper and push on. I crossed the state line now finished with TN! I find a nice spot to camp around 2 miles out of Damascus. I saw a headlight coming as I was eating a 2nd supper and then realized it was Commish! He put in a long day to meet some friend he was hiking with before in Damascus. He continued on into town.
Date: 2016-05-18
From: Stealth site outside of Damascus

To: Damascus,VA
Miles today: 2.3
Weather: overcast clouds

I slept in a bit and took off into town around 9:30am.Grabbed a bite to eat at subway then headed to the outfitter to pick up some new shoes! I decided to go with Merrell All Out Peak. I have enjoyed going with trail runners over traditional hiking shoes/boots. Got a bed at Woodchuck's hostel. The bed is Memory Foam so I am looking forward to that!Today makes 1 month on the trail and I am ahead of schedule. I am enjoying the trail even more now that I am hiking faster/longer. I now am wanting to finish in under 5 months! It's not that I want to get off the trail faster, I just enjoy pushing myself to see what I am capable of. Which is why I am always planning to take on the 4 state challenge (VA,WV,MD,PA in under 24 hours..around 42 miles). I am already confident that I will finish this thru hike as long as I stay healthy and I am already thinking about a PCT (and others) Thru hike in the next few years.
Date: 2016-05-19
From: Damascus,VA

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 28.3
Weather: light rain

Got up from a good night's rest at Woodchuck's Hostel. Woodchuck's includes a free breakfast that consisted of blueberry waffles, potatoes, boiled eggs, and more. It was a solid breakfast that fueled me well for the long day ahead. I took off around 7:30am. I could feel that I was starting to come down with a cold and it made me a little sluggish but I was not feeling terrible ill. Later in the afternoon is got dark, gloomy, misty, and foggy giving the woods a "sleep hollow" appearance. I hiked through a cow pasture (have gone through several now in VA). However in this particular pasture the cows did not seem to like my presence, previously they just ignore me. One cow was snorting and made a bluff charge so I just hiked quickly and got out of there as fast as I could. I got to my destination but could not find the water source so I decided to hike on to the shelter. I could tell I was getting close to Grayson highlands due to the amount of horses droppings on the trail. Grayson has feral ponies to maintain the balds. I got to the shelter and it was pretty nice with only about 5 people there and I believe this shelter held 16, so I decided to sleep in the shelter so I wouldn't have to deal with a damp tent.
Date: 2016-05-20
From: Thomas Knob Shelter

To: Stealth site near mile 518
Miles today: 20.9
Weather: broken clouds

I got up and headed off around 8am. I was definitely sick with a cold. I hiked towards Grayson and navigated through fatman squeeze (picture on my instagram). I saw a good bit of ponies and took several pictures. The wind was really kicking this day and was bugging me with feeling sick and getting hammered by a cold cold wind all day. I made it to a unofficial campsite marked on my Guthook App just as it was starting to rain and decided to set up camp here. I didn't realize until after I setup in the bottom that there were roads on both sides. It made for a noisy night, but I was dry and setup in my tent so I stuck with it.
Date: 2016-05-21
From: Stealth site near mile 518

To: Atkins,VA
Miles today: 25.8
Weather: light rain

I slept in a little bit and headed out at 9am. As soon as I crossed the road I saw a sign for a "hiker feed" put on by a local baptist church. This put a pep and my step and I quickly hiked the 4 miles to the hiker feed. I got to the hiker feed to be greeted by the owner of the cabin. There was a ton of food! Burgers, hotdogs, donuts, pastries, salad, etc. I ate 3 hamburgers, 1 hotdog, 2 bags of chips, a cream cheese danish, and a cookie, plus 2 cokes. I headed out to get back on trail. I decided since the food had me feeling a little better I would push on to Atkins,VA for a Motel stay hoping a nice dry room would help me to get better. I flew down the trail and made it in Atkins in time to get a room at the Relax Inn and a meal at the The Barn.The room was a mistake, it was dated and very damp and moldy. The carpet was damp, the wall was damp, there was mold plus they allowed smoking in the rooms. Instead of getting me better this stay actually made things worse. I elected to sleep in my Quilt on the bed rather than use the sheets provided.At the Barn I got the Hiker Burger which is a 1lb Burger, I also got fries oh and I had added bacon to the burger. I demolished the burger and really could have ate more. It was decent but I didn't find the food to be that great for as popular as this restaurant is on the Trail. I'm sure with being use to Louisiana cooking I will feel this way about most of the restaurants.I resupplied at the Gas Station next door which was the only option. This was interesting to pull off and a good bit more expensive then the norm but it got me set up good enough to make it to my next destination.
Date: 2016-05-22
From: Atkins,VA

To: Walker Gap
Miles today: 25.5

Didn't sleep much at all so I headed to the Gas station for a energy drink then continued on North. I hit the 1/4th mark and am pretty happy with my progress thus far. I was still feeling pretty bad and hiked on to Chestnut Knob which is a really really nice shelter to find it full. I had gotten a second wind and decided to push on a bit more to Walker Gap and camp there. I set up camp and it started raining immediately, perfect timing. It was a nice open area that I figured would attract wildlife so I was hoping to get to see a deer or a few turkeys in the morning.
Date: 2016-05-23
From: Walker Gap

To: Stealth near mile 593
Miles today: 23.7
Weather: overcast clouds

I was awoken at around 6:30am by a sound I have heard more times than I would like to admit, a deer blowing at me. I guess it was headed to the field, smelt me and was unsure what my tent was.I nodded off back to sleep and headed out about 9am. I felt a good bit better than the day before but was definitely still sick. I decided to try to get a private room at Wood's Hole Hostel and hike on as fast as possible to get there for some proper rest. Unfortunately I found out they didn't have any private rooms open, just the bunkhouse. I didn't want to get anyone sick staying in the bunk house but still needed to go there to pick up a package so I continued on. I camped at a stealth site listed on the Guthook App.
Date: 2016-05-24
From: Stealth near mile 593

To: Stealth Near View
Miles today: 25.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Still sick I headed out towards Wood's Hole. I stopped at Trent's Grocery 0.5W of the trail for a resupply and burger. The burger and Onion rings were awesome and had me feeling pretty good! This helped me to pick up the pace a bit. As I was chugging along around 5:30pm I heard a loud noise of to my left and turned to see a large bear running away from me. Finally got to see a bear, and in the exact way I wanted to see one (headed away from me)! I continued for a pretty good climb and came up on 3 three deer. I snapped a few pictures. I was pretty pumped I had now since more wildlife (as far as big game goes) in one day then I had seen all trip. I came to an awesome view and saw a good spot to stealth camp in the rhododendron nearby. I setup camp then ate super at the rock ledge as the sun set for the evening.
Date: 2016-05-25
From: Stealth Near View

To: Woods Hole Hostel
Miles today: 4.6
Weather: clear sky

I slept in a bit and took my time to get my things together, I was feeling pretty bad. I was in no rush with Woods Hole only being 4.7 miles away and my package not being guaranteed delivery until 3pm. The plan was to get to Wood's hole, grab my package, then hike on to Pearisburg (11 miles) and get a shuttle to the MacAruthur Inn in Narrows, VA where I would 0 and rest up.Around 9:30am I get a text that my package was delivered, so I pick up the pace to Wood's Hole. At the hostel I find my package was not delivered and later learned that basically the post office just marks it like that when it's out for delivery in rural areas because it will be delivered past the guaranteed time but this way they cover themselves. Or at least that's my take on it after talking with the Post Office on the phone when I was told that when it was delivered on the online tracking that just means it is out for delivery.Anyway, I was going to have to hang around a while and Neville (the owner of Woods Hole) was very nice and said not to worry about getting others sick and I was welcome to stay there. I decided to stay. I ordered homemade bread and cheese for lunch which was amazing and also signed up for dinner.Dinner was a stir fry of multiple greens all grown on site with ham and sausage balls to add for the meat eaters.I ate a ton of food then settled into the Bunkhouse for the night.
Date: 2016-05-26
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: Pine Swamp Branch
Miles today: 30.5

So the plan was if I woke up feeling great I would hike 20 miles, if not I would hike the 11 to Pearisburg then shuttle to Narrows and 0 at the MAcAruthur Inn as originally planned.I felt pretty bad as I headed out at 8:30am, however I was hiking at a good pace. I hit the 11 miles averaging over 3miles per hour! I knew I should go into town but my hard head decided to keep going.I got to my destination early so decided to do 30 miles. When I arrived at the Shelter I was already started to feel my symptoms worsen.I met Iry there who was jamming on his ukulele and from Shenandoah, Virginia. We spoke for a while and ate supper until Peter Pan from FL showed up. Alot of people from FL on the the trail! I finished supper and bs'ed with Iry and Peter Pan for a bit then headed down the hill to my tent.
Date: 2016-05-27
From: Pine Swamp Branch

To: Laurel Creek Shelter
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: clear sky

I got up feeling terrible. I was hiking at a snail pace and had to stop often. It was a very hot day and the hotter I got I could not stop coughing! I decided to do a "short" day and stop at Laurel Creek Shelter. The 30 from the day before put me ahead of schedule and my resupply was based on 20 mile days so I figured I would be fine. It rained the last few miles to the shelter which I welcomed, the cooling rain helped me to hike a bit faster.
Date: 2016-05-28
From: Laurel Creek Shelter

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 22.5
Weather: clear sky

I woke up and headed out around 9am again. Later than I like to but it was the new trend since I've been sick. I was slow hiking but felt a little better. I was also low on food. I thought I was fine but I went through my snacks quickly. After hiking all day and getting really hungry I decided to just eat my snacks for the next day since it would be only 6 miles to resupply and all I had left was my supper. The woods in this area reminded me of Kisatchie and my mind drifted to being home after the thru hike and using my new fitness to really scout Kisatchie prior to Bow Season, those deer are in trouble this year. Just as I was thinking of deer season I hear something and turn to see a deer off in the woods.Later in the evening I passed a guy that said "There's trail Magic at the Bottom". Well it was almost 6pm and the Bottom was over 3miles away, I figured the Trail Magic would be gone by the time I arrived but I needed food so I basically began running! I had new energy just knowing how bad I needed this. I got to the bottom to find the Trail Magic still there.A couple from Georgia whose daughter thru hiked 2 years ago follows "the herd" each year and puts on trail magic for several days at a time in different locations. They said they did it for their daughter and her friends and enjoyed it so much that they began doing it a couple times throughout the thru hiking season. They also volunteer with the Red Cross and were familiar with a lot of Louisiana. I also ran into another hiker heading southbound for a section hike who lived in New Iberia for a few years. We both were amazed to bump into someone else who spent time in New Iberia and talked for a good bit. I had a beer and several hotdogs. They tried to talk me into tenting there for pancakes in the morning but I new I needed to get up early to resupply early and have a full food bag, so I hiked on to the shelter a little over a mile. The food had me feeling great and I realized that my sluggishness the last few days was not just the cold but was also from not getting another calories. As I have really bumped up the mileage I need to work to put together much better resupplies so that I can continue to hike 25-30 miles a day at a quick pace.I woke up at about 2am to stomping. I knew exactly what it was and what was coming next. And there it was again that sound I have heard more times then I would like to admit, a deer blowing at me.
Date: 2016-05-29
From: Pickle Branch Shelter

To: Daleville, VA
Miles today: 32.4
Weather: clear sky

I got up and headed out. I had no food other than my supper (didn't eat it since I was full from Trail Magic) and I drank all my water. I could go .3 to water but figured I could do 6 miles to the resupply without water no problem.Well I didn't know I had rock climbing coming up. Dragon's Tooth area was tough and really slowed me down, a lot of rock scrambles and making sure my footing was correct to not bust my but. I was burnt out and saw something in the trail ahead, A BEER! I only had a mile to go and figured the carbs would help me out so I chugged the hot beer as fast as I could and continued on. I got to the Resupply which was a Gas Station but with a really good array for resupply and had a Lunch of Pizza, Chips, and Candy for around 3000 calories. All Junk but I was feeling great. I picked up the pace and was back to hiking around 3mph and taking on uphill climbs like nothing. I got to the trail up To McAfee Knob, day hikers all over. I was flying by Dayhikers and saw a Ridge Runner up ahead who said " I'm guessing your headed to Maine?" I said Yep and he replied with " Yea you got the stride of someone who has already hiked 700 miles". We talked a little of my plans for the day and about the shelter closed due to bear activity. I would have to hike 28 miles to the temporary campsite instead of the planned 23 to the Shelter.I got to McAfee's knob and took pcitures. There were people everywhere! I was bummed I couldn't get the iconic picture (I didn't want to be the guy to ask 10 people to get out of the way). However I did get a pretty cool picture and then hiked on. I got to the Temp Campsite around 8:15 I was rolling and it was only 4 miles to town. It was raining and starting to get dark. I didn't want to deal with a damp tent, hanging a bear bag in the dark, etc. So I decided to hike into town for a 32 mile day! eventually it gets dark and I have to take out my headlamp which is almost dead from accidentally turning on in my pack back multiple times.I'm not sure if you ever tried to used a light in the rain but it sucks! The light reflects of the rain and is basically useless, luckily my "natural night vision" was good enough to see the blazes for the most part however I I was stumbling on rocks and root so I just slowed down the pace.There were a few rock scrambles that were pretty tough to do in the dark and the rain but I survived eventually making it into town a little after 10pm.So yea I hiked my longest day (32 miles) with the last 6 hours being in the rain and the last 4 or so in the pitch dark with a basically useless headlamp. We used to joked in cross country that running in the rain made you feel 100% cooler than you actually are, well hiking in the rain and dark as that affect 2 fold haha. Really though it was tough and in hind sight maybe not the safest decision but being able to overcome challenges like this helps to reassure myself that I will make it to Katahdin.
Date: 2016-05-30
From: Daleville, VA

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Well it may be hard to believe but I am actually taking a 0.I got 2 nights at the Super 8 in Daleville which is pretty new, nice and clean and has a great Hiker Rate. Working on planning, shoe repair, and researching better resupply foods. I will take off tmw but have to wait on a package so it may end up being a short day, hopefully it arrives earlier than planned and I can get in 20 miles or so.