morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-04-07
From: winding stair gap

To: cold spring shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: moderate rain

Woke up this morning with very low expectations as it was pouring down rain. The thought of loading up and walking out of a perfectly dry hotel seemed undesireable. Rather than worry about what the plan was, we made sure to be ready for the 7:15 shuttle to the first baptist church in franklin. Not only do they put on an all i can eat pancake breakfast but they come to the hotels with a big van a drive you over too! So after i got my first stack along with some bacon i went over to get a cup of coffee. I asked one of the church ladies donating her time where i could leave a donation. She replied 'oh sweetie, put your money right back in your pocket and spend it someplace down the trail'. 'For reals?' Yes for real she said. Again, unbelievable random acts of nice people. They even come around and photo you, print it, give you an envelope and a stamp for you to send it to someone. Awesome. We returned to the room just before 9 so there was not time to get on the 9:00 shuttle. We layed around digesting waiting till the 11:00 shuttle came by. The rain stopped about 10:30 which gave us great hope we would get in a dry hike. We arrived at the trailhead just about noon and it started rainong kust after that. Then it poured but we were out on the trail so we walked on. One really long climb up wayah bald was rewarded with a very neet stone towere from which you get some really amazing views, usually. Rumor was that you could see a hundred miles on the clearest of days. Today was nowhere near that. No matter we carried on with on a few glimpses through the fog. I did get a really great photo down a long valley at one point. We made it to cold rive shelter at 6:30, threw up our tents and crawled inside. Nice and snuggy warm i cooked dinner on my porch and it really hit the spot. Chili was a good choice after a day like today. Short day planned tomorrow. Only twelve miles to the Nantahala outdoor center, we are going to stay there the night. Really liked being curled up in my tent. Still living the dream
Date: 2014-04-08
From: cold spring shelter

To: nantahala outdoor center
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Rolled up camp on a cold wet windy morning in a hurry so we could get moving and warm up. It had stopped raining but everything was wet. I even left a warm layer on knowing i would soon take it off. A nice hike up to a tower on wesser bald gave AMAZING 360 degree views. Mountains as far as you could see fading to lighter blues as they got farther away. From there it was almost all downhill to the noc. Walked along ridges and ledges with tiny wildflowers starting to bloom. A nice easy walk into town. Booked a bunk in one of the little cabins they have and immediately started to empty our packs to dry everything out. Nice to get things unsoaked. We got a shower and did laundry after we ate late lunch at the restaurant. Made some phone calls and walked around the campus till it was time to go to bed. I didnt partake in the shooting of beers the youngins were doing in the common room, carrying my mobile home with a hangover did not sound like a happy day. Good weather is in the forecast so off toward fontana dam we go tomorrow.
Date: 2014-04-09
From: nantahala outdoor center

To: cody gap
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: light rain

Had a great breakfast in the morning while waiting for the oufitter to open at 9. Captain phillips' zipper gave out on his sleeping bag so a new one was in order. After a full belly and a new bag we set off for the 8 mile ascent out of the noc. We started out at a nice pace for digestion up to the first lookout point. Jumpoff point is a beautiful overlook of the river that runs through the mountains. More climbing over glacier debri and through thick patches of laurel. When we finally got to the summit at Cheoah bald we sat on a log for a bite to eat and watched the shadows of the clouds crawl over the mountains for as far as you could see. Just an absolutely beautiful scene. A few miles later we came to Stecoah gap to cross a road knowing we had a good climb on the other side. We had planned on a quick sit down and a snack so when we saw picnic tables and a box of mt dew we got real excited. The box was full of cans, empty cans. No trail magic was to be had. No worries, away we went waiting for the infamous Jacobs ladder, the last big steep spot of the day. Well it lived up to its billing, as we had to catch breath 2 times in .6 miles. Pretty sure my heart and lungs were borderline spontaneous combusting, not to mention my thighs that felt like noodles. We had originally planned on staying at Brown fork shelter but there was a 8 people already there and it only sleeps 6 so we pressed on 3 miles to the next tent site. Glad to arrive we got great spots next to a creek that would be a very peaceful place to snooze. Tents up, water filtered, water heating for dinner, air matress inflated, sleeping bag rolled out, eat dinner, hang bear bag, and turn in for the night with a stream and 3 saw whet owls asking ' whoo whoo who cooks for you? ' in the background. I truly do have it better than anyone.
Date: 2014-04-10
From: cody gap

To: nc 28 Fontana dam
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: clear sky

After the clearest coldest night (42degrees) we had a quick breakfast of pop tarts packed up our worlds and set off for fontana dam for a resupply before the long trek thru the smokies. Met up with Bear bag, a young hiker we met in Franklin, and hiked in with him. He is an ultra light guy that fully loaded carries 15 pounds. Crazy i say. Im spoiled and i like comforts and im not afraid to carry them. When we first spotted the lake we were still over 4 miles away but it was gorgeous. The trail has a funny way of not taking you the shortest way to a destination. It used to get under my skin but now i just walk along and when i get there i get there. Once at the road crossing they have a soda machine and a phone set up solely to get the shuttle to 'town'. $1.25 later we had a soda pop and a lift to town. So today will be our first nero day, a near zero but that does not mean playing checkers and braiding eachothers hair. Showers first, then hand laundry in the sink and tub, hang that out on our makeshift clothesline. Venture to the store to figure out what we want for food over the next 5 days through the mountains as there is limited resupply in the smokies. Tough because you want sooo much but in turn what you get you must carry up to the highest point on the AT. I stand in the rows of food deliberating on the ounce per calorie per taste ratio. This is my biggest downfall so far, i pack too much food. Then after the store we wander a bit further to the only restaurant i have ever been in that all the cooking is done by microwave. Yup microwave. After two sausage chili and jalapeno dogs we waddled back to the room for a chat about politics. Now sitting in the fauncy lobby for internet service i type out my journal update while directing a young thru hiker to the general store to pick up. cigarettes. I find it surprising when i see people smoking on the trail as i know how out of breath i am at points. How must they feel? A good early night tonight will make for an epic climb to the smokies. Im pretty excited about it and our first high probability to see a bear on the trail. Every day i think how lucky i am to be enduring this self made torture that brings me peace happines and thrills of what may be over the next hill. Thanks to my home crew, hiking friends, and trail angels. I do have it bester than everyone but dont be jealous, every dog has a day.
Date: 2014-04-11
From: nc 28 Fontana dam

To: russel field shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today would be our first day in the great smoky national park. Although it is a beautiful place a lot of the kikers dont like it here because of the rules. The biggest complaint is that you must stay at a shelter so your day revolves around where you are going to stay. Im not looking forward to staying at a shelter as i have only tented or stayed in a room. In the morning we crossed over fontana dam and saw a bald eagle with a fish dangling from his toes. By the time i figured out what exactly i was looking at and dug my camera out of my pocket, the bird had gone out of site to eat breakfast. At the south end of the park we slipped our permits into the box and headed up up up up into the mountains. A very long up the mountain hike with nice views of fontana lake and the mountains fading to the horizon. We came to the shuckstack fire tower and clumb to the top. Let me say that this sucker was really high and im sure it wasnt as scary as i thought it was but i still had a death grip on the angle iron rail. Most of the stair treads had been replaced but some were still old weathered boards that i put my faith in. The view was amazing and worth the climb up. Going up doe knob two things happened. First captain phillips saw his first woodpecker, and it was actually pecking wood. He said they are rare in england. Next we came to the nc/tn border which we will follow for a while. A couple miles later we passed thru the devils tater patch that was a little valley between two peaks. It was full of green sprouts and white wild flowers, not too devilish but i like the name. As we came to russell field shelter there was already a few people there so we threw out our sleeping bags to assure us of a spot. At first i wasnt sure if the 2 guys there were going to warm up to conversation or not but it turned out that they liked me because i knew what Cades Cove was when they told me it was only a couple miles to the west. Their names are Fizz and John C. Both trail names. Fizz was talking about a baracuda when i asked if he wanted to hear about my baracuda story. I told him about it and he said 'you were almost lunch!' Thats when i got my trail name. They said i could either be Ninja baracuda mother fucker or Lunch. I chose Lunch, it suits me better. Also i dont need people knowing im a ninja baracuda mother fucker. We talked for a while, they were good old boys that come up in the mountains to get away for a bit. They told me about a couple places that i need to come back to see. Its good to get the scoop from locals. A few more hikers came in while we ate dinner, it was gonna be full up at the shelter tonight. Bedtime for a hiker is around 8 and everyone is asleep by 9. Well let me tell you, a shelter with 14 dirty people is stuffy, warm, smelly, and snorey. There were three duelling snorers on my first shelter night. WTF. I would survive the night with partial sleep.
Date: 2014-04-12
From: russel field shelter

To: double spring gap shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: clear sky

As morning came to the shelter it seems to be a stand off of who is going to be the first to get up and make noise. In the world of packbacking everything is noisy. Zippers, pull straps, nylon stuff sacks being packed, cooking pans, everything makes noise no matter how careful you are. So when one person gets up, most people follow. After oatmeal for breakfast, water filtered for my camelback, and all the gear packed we set off. Rewarded early with great views off of rocky top and thunderhead mountains. Gorgeous. You could see mountains for days. It was a great day but every person we talked to that stayed where we did last night said they slept poorly and felt tired, i know why. The day was filled with nice lookout points and i could have taken a million pics of mountains. I took a bunch but did hold back the best i could. We made it to double spring gap shelter about 4:30 and the next was over 6miles further so we set up camp there. This shelter had 4 guys already there, they were hiking together 2as thru hikers and 2 as section support staff. They were all military so captain phillips did most of the talking. I didnt have much to say being a civilian. More people came in as time went on, full up again tonight. The nice thing was that one of the military fellas knows he is a very loud snorer so he set up his tent so not to disturb the rest. This night would be better, a good breeze brought in fresh air and only two people sang the song of chainsaws in their sleep but they werent professionals. I got decent sleep.
Date: 2014-04-15
From: I-40 underpass

To: I-40 underpass
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Today was our first zero. The decision was made when we woke to pouring down rain and an outside temp of 42 degrees. One more day at motel 6 for us. We did a short hike over to the wal mart of a half mile. Well first of all it was a half mile thru pretty heavy traffic and rain. Kinda freaked me out a little. Cars surrounding me in every direction was just about complete opposite of the life i had been leading. At the wall mart i bought food to eat throughout the afternoon and a resupply for the next couple days till Hot Springs. Hands full of plastic bags we marched back to the hotel, this time thru heavy snow! Oh yeah, real deal snow. Not just a few flakes dancing around, the kind of snow that even a polar bear would be sad about. When we got back to the room my english friend turned the thermostat up to 80! Hes not real good with degrees if its not celcius. I didnt know we rented a sauna but we of the did. Hung out the rest of the day in the room watching tv which made me a litlle antsy after a while. I can see how people like zeros but two in a row would drive me a litlle crazy. I really cant wait to get back on the trail. I even fixed the leaky showerhead with my leatherman pliers. All in all it was a great day to take off and there were no regrets. I still feel on top of the world.
Date: 2014-04-16
From: I-40 underpass

To: lemon gap
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: clear sky

Today was a beautiful day. The snow stopped and the sun was out. We got dropped off at the underpass and started up the hill for a long climb up snowbord mountain. Looking back a the snow covered mountains of the smokies we had crossed just days before was amazing, possibly epic. As we went higher up the hill there was small patches of snow still on the ground so i took a pic. Then bigger patches, so i took a pic. Then really big patches, i had to take another pic. You get where this is going? Soon enough the ground was covered and the trees looked like they were covered in crystal, shining in the sunlight. I was so glad to see snow at least once on the trail. As we got toward the top we turned a corner to see a tent set up, really a big open tent like at a garage sale. Under the tent was what was magic. Apple a true proffesional angel had hot water for with which to make hot chocolate or coffee, snacks like oreos and peanut butter crackers, and honeybuns. Good honeybuns with lots of icing. We both had a hot chocolate with 2 packets. TWO PACKETS! Then a honeybun. After many thanks and a good chat we threw on our packs when Apple said 'you boys better take a bun with you, i have too many'. Oh my, one for the road. Such a nice guy. On we went toward Max patch bald, one of the best views on the AT. We got up there for a late lunch with amazing 360 views. Just about nearly unbelievable. A few more miles to lemon gap and a really nice tent site. Was glad to be back in my tent and next to a stream made it even better. Was getting cold but only 35 so was glad to have a 30 degree sleeping back. Fat and full of dinner, i would have a cozy night dreaming of pizza. I have it made more better than anyone.
Date: 2014-04-17
From: lemon gap

To: hot springs
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: clear sky

Cold night but cozy in my bag it was hard to get out and pack up. It was like pulling off a band aid. Jump out throw on clothes, eat and pack so we could get going and warm up. With only two big hills early on in the day and a long mostly downhill between us and hot springs we blew on up the first hill. Then into a gap, gaps mean only one thing, uphill is coming. A long climb up Bluff mountain lead us to geat views. Highest point for a long way so we could see for days. Down the hill was great, with green undergrowth pppin up like a nice fluffy carpet. It was really nice to see green instead of brown leaf litter from last year. Looong way down the hill with huge boulders scattered here and there was great. Had lunch at a campsite for our break then pushed on to the town. Rolled in at 1:30 so first thing was to secure a place to stay. The first building you come to is the hostle. We had to stop there to pick up a package for captain phillips. The place was a hostle. Not nice, just a place to lay down. I remembered Bear Bag telling me to go to Elmers so i looked it up in my guidebook. Same price and much nicer. Much nicer. Its an old victorian house that you rent a bed, a nice bed, in a room fully decorated with antiques. They have a library, a music room with instruments and multiple bathrooms. Just incredible, big spiral staircase i the front and our room even has its own balcony. $20 for reals. I could hardly stand it. Best part is that you pay when you leave. This hike has been really amazing. The actual hiking is such a small part of all the great things that happen along the long trip. People are really great and that makes me happy. Only 3 more daus till i get my first visitor from home, cant wait to see cindy.just need to work out where she will find us. Or where we will find her. I still feel like nobody has it as good as me. Probly that wont change for a while.
Date: 2014-04-20
From: low gap campsite

To: erwin, tn
Miles today: 20.4

Low gap was a nice tent site with water very close by. I hung up my sweaty shirt and hat in a tree overnight hopeful it would dry so i could wear it for two days. That would be important, if it dried i would have a clean shirt to wear while doing laundry. If not i would have to wear my rain jacket. Shirt and hat were both dry! Happy boy. Fed, packed, and ready to go we set off for erwin. The last day of three long ones to earn our zero. Right from the start was a long climb up Big bald. Incredible 360 degree views of mountains from the open top mountain. Seems crazy that the top is just a huge meadow that nobody knows why they stay only grass. From there it would be downhill for a while with short steep hills tossed in just to keep my heart from getting lazy. We made it to Spivey gap for lunch and what a nice little road crossing. Perfect weather, shade trees, and a little stream to grab a drink out of. This is where we will do our own trail magic on our zero day tomorrow. This was the last meal before resupply so it was a big lunch. Double pack of tuna on my tortilla, last of my gummy worms, and a granola bar. I would rather fill the gas tank than carry it to town. From here it would be mostly an easy 10 miles to town through hardwood forest that look as though they suffered a forest fire quite a few years ago. Tons of rhotodendron made for some green tunnels that were nice and cool in the heat of the sun. The excitement for the afternoon was a big old black salamander we scared off the trail. He didnt go far just shuffled off under some leaves. As we approached the town we got a look from way up on a cliff. Seemed thousands of feet nearly straight down to the nolichucky river and railroad tracks. Down the switchbacks for an hour and a half with a few views of the town getting closer and closer. Eventually we were even with the rooftops of the houses, yay. We came out to the road right at the hostel where we got a cold drink and paid $5 for a ride to town. That was better than walkin three and a half miles. Super 8 was the only hotel to accept pets so i got a room there as Cindy has her two pups with her. Unfortunately she was stuck in bad traffic so it was another date with captain phillips for dinner. We went to the huddle house for a greasy burger, sweet potato fries, and four glasses of sweet tea. Hmmm, better have a brownie sundae for dessert to. Right next to the diner was a gas station so i grabbed a quart of chocolate milk, a gatorade, a box of vanilla oreos, and a 'share size' bag of skittles. Just in case we also got a phone number for a pizza delivery store. We luckily wouldnt need that as they were closed. Cindy got here about ten so we visited for about not too long and went to bed, tired. Was a good long productive day and looking forward to a zero tomorrow. Its good to be me.
Date: 2014-04-21
From: erwin, tn

To: erwin,tn
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today would be my first visit from home. Cindy was visiting her sis in florida so she is meeting me on her way back. Nice to see a face from home especially that one. Once i get closer i should be able to con relatives into visiting me or putting me up for the night. So first thing, same as everyday, is breakfast. Surely it would be an easy task to purchase a breakfast cooked by someone else just for me. After dropping off laundry we looked for a diner. Several were on my map of erwin so it was just a choice of where. First place was closed till 11, next was not open on monday, next was open till afternoon, etc etc. Finally found a really questionable place but it was open and said breakfast. Inside a nice lady asked if yall was eatin? We said yuhhuh so she said to go to the back counter, put in our order, sit down anywhere and they would bring out the chow. Cool. Getting to the back counter, looking at the menu i realized you could get biscuits and gravy in a large or small and you could get that with or without hashbrowns. Limited but doable, all we needed was someone to take the order. Nobody showed up after about 5 minutes so we left. Went back to put the laundry in the dryer and on the way spotted another diner, open with cars in front. This is where we would eat. Clothes in dryer, breakfast eaten, sodas and treats in hand we set off to do our own trailmagic at a place the trail crosses the road ten miles before erwin. I was so excited to be on the other emd of the magic! I thought we would give out all our snacks and sodas but as it turned out, only 2 hikers came by in about three hours. Disappointing to say the least but it was nice out so it was like resting which is the point of the zero. The other cool thing was that there was a couple there also doing their own trailmagic so we passed the time talking to them, nice folks. About 2:30 we rolled out leaving 8 sodas in the cool mtn stream for people to stumble upon. Back to town to resupply we spotted a dirty trail hippie walking the sidewalk so i pulled up gave him a soda and a bag of gummy bears. Result, happy dirty hippie. After the grocery we came across 4 more so we again pulled up and made their day a little better. After a rest at the hotel we went out to a nice spaghetti dinner to carb up for tomorrow. Really good food with a nice salad for ten bucks. Result, happy clean hippies. Was a good day, time to retire and rest up for the return to the trail. Living the dream everybody dreams about. Who could have it this good?