morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-03-27
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 11.5
Weather: clear sky

Getting to the NOC in 2 days was easier than I thought it was going to be, especially since I was planning on 3. Walking the last few hundred yards looking down on this place made it look like a paradise. There is a large river that flows right through this outdoor mecca, which is mostly for rafting, biking, and kayaking. It's a busy place, with fancy people and fancy cars everywhere, and plenty of youth groups. We got in about 3pm, from a very long downhill hike that made my knee start to hurt again. 4 of us got a bunkroom, and then On The Loose, Ikitoe Jo, Sherlock, Long Haul, Red Hat, Willard, Beefstick, Robb, and myself all went out to eat at the restaurant on the river. The blond hiker that I have been hearing about is here at the NOC too, and I got to talk to him some, along with his cameraman, Dwayne, and Linda, the couple who had biscuits and gravy for hikers at Unicoi Gap. It's just crazy to imagine doing this trail completely blind, with nothing to guide you except a voice GPS. It turns out he is skipping ahead of the Smokies to avoid the weather, so I am sure I will see him again. I am planning on taking a zero day tomorrow to rest my knee, and watch some kayak races, and also because it is going rain, which is not fun to hike in. So long for now my faithful followers.
Date: 2010-03-28
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

Today was a crazy day, even though I didn't hike at all. The day spent here at the NOC was great. The group of us woke up and got some breakfast, watched some kayakers, and bummed around. We decided to hitch a ride into Bryson City to get some good AYCE lunch, which took about 30 minutes until a super nice lady pulled over in a small SUV, told us all 6 of us could get a ride, and to watch out for the dog in the seat which she says "might bite". She dropped us off at a Chinese AYCE, we ate til our stomachs content, as hikers do, walked around the small town, and ended up at an IGA food store. Long Haul was asking around for a ride back, and he talked to an older man who gave us a "maybe" answer. We started to walk away, but he stopped us and told us to follow him, which seemed strange. We walked a couple blocks to a Funeral Home, he opened the garage door, and pulled out a shiny Cadillac limousine! We were all basically going nuts, because this just doesn't happen every day. As we pulled up to the NOC in our limousine, a few of our hiking friends were just getting in. It was good to see them and they snapped a few pictures, we had some laughs, and we went about wasting the day away. Tomorrow's hike starts out with 8 miles all uphill and an elevation gain of 3,500 ft. Still no good word about the Smokies weather, but my plan is to push through it no matter what. After all, I'm roughin' it! Weather will be weather.
Date: 2010-03-29
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Brown Fork Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: light rain

Today felt great after a relaxing zero day, so I pushed it to go 16 miles even though the first 8 out of the NOC were all uphill. It was a really rugged 16 miles, with pretty much the worst of both worlds. It was raining off and on all day, even though it was not supposed to, of course. Hiking day in and day out is definitely a mental game, since you have a feeling of what is coming, and what it is going to take of you. If I get a bad attitude, it makes my hike alot longer, and much less enjoyable. I get to Fontana tomorrow, which is at the base of the Great Smoky Mountains. I hear of how beautiful it is there all the time, even with snow, and so far it looks like the next few days will be good hiking weather, so hopefully some of that snow will melt. I am having alot of fun and meeting new people every day. There are some real characters out here on the trail, and It would be hard to fit all of the stories into a journal. It is hard to believe I still have around 2,000 miles to go. Good times a comin'!
Date: 2010-03-30
From: Brown Fork Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam Shelter
Miles today: 12.7
Weather: clear sky

Twas the decent into Fontana Dam today. We hear that the next 5 days or more are going to be gorgeous weather possible reaching 80 degrees!, so hopefully the snow will melt and it will be a feast for my eyes. Bucksnort, and funny 70 year old man who is hiking the trail as a 70th birthday gift to himself, broke his ankle today, which is a real shame. It probably means his hike is over, at least for this year. Myself, Strider, and RiverDog got to a road crossing, and hitched a ride into Fontana Village to resupply, where we saw another 10 or so hikers there already. We basically all sat in a parking lot and soaked up the sun, drinking, and eating whatever was in the general store. I got a shuttle back to the trail, and got to Fontana Dam Shelter, which is nicknamed the Fontana Hilton, because of how large and nice it is, as far as shelters go. It is right beside Fontana Lake, so I set up my hammock near the water, where I could watch a beautiful sunrise in the morning. I seem to have a pretty good system down as far as camp life goes. I set up camp and break down camp and cook and clean up about the same way and same time period every day. Even though I hate organizing and packing everything up, it must be done. I love the warm days like today where I can get to camp at a good hour and set up my hammock in the sun and read. It's the simple things that count out here. Beefstick, whom I have been off and on hiking with is meeting his parents in Newfound Gap 40 miles into the Smokies, and they are generous enough to buy me and whomever else a hotel room in Gatlinburg... very excited!
Date: 2010-03-31
From: Fontana Dam Shelter

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 16.7
Weather: broken clouds

Today was extremely difficult. It was the start of the Smokies, which are gorgeous so far, but we hiked almost 17 miles today, with a total of over 5,000 ft. of elevation gain. Definitely the hardest day of hiking so far, and my body is feeling it. I still have a couple of blisters on my heels, but I formed a new one somehow underneath one of my toenails on my right foot, and it will eventually make my toenail fall off. Let's just say my feet hurt. Sherlock , Beefstick, and myself are the only thru-hikers at the shelter tonight, but that's just because we are pushing to make it to Newfound Gap in 3 days. There are some college kids here from Wisconsin for spring break, and that's it. The weather has been far greater than any of the nasty rumors we heard before actually getting here, barely any snow here at 5,000 ft. I hope you don't get sick of my commenting on the weather, but that's what alot of people talk about up here. We are IN the weather, so we talk about it... capeesh? Life sure is great.
Date: 2010-04-01
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: clear sky

A not so good day today. About the only thing that happened was I got more blisters. I had a pretty nasty blister on my right heel that didn't really hurt much, but I decided to inspect it again. It was huge and red, and when I took the bandage off, it took the skin with it, and brown puss starting ooooooozing out :\ It covers most of my heel, so I decided to hike with one of my Crocs on my right foot, so take it easy on the blister. It felt weird to hike in a Croc, but it seemed to help. But of course, using the croc gave me 2 more blisters, one of the big toe, and one on the bottom of my foot. My right foot looks like a hospital patient, but only 10 more miles til I get to Gatlinburg, where a hotel, hot tub, and day off await me!
Date: 2010-04-02
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: clear sky

What we thought would be an easy day to coast into Gatlinburg turned out to be the opposite. It was a little over 10 miles, which we thought would take maybe 5 hours, but it ended up taking about 7. Right after we set off for the day, we encountered the snow that everyone had been talking about, which was probably about 4-5 feet deep throughout most of the 10 miles. I tried to keep a good attitude, but it whithered quickly after about 2 miles of post-holing through the snow. There was so much snow, and even though it was mostly packed down on the trail, every step was a question mark. You would be walking along, and you would collapse into snow up to your waist. It made for one challenging day. However, there were 2 semi-milestones today; we made the 200 miles mark in the trail, and we reached the highest peak in the entire trail, Clingmans Dome, which is 6,642 ft. Did I mention I was still hiking in one Croc? I wouldn't say that I recommend it. My right foot was cold and wet, and eventually I didn't care that I was tromping through 6 inch mud puddles for the last 2 miles, or hiking through snow trying to keep my sock dry. I am glad that day is now over, and I am in a fancy hotel room in Gatlinburg, TN, watching tv after taking a much needed shower. I look like hell after 5 or so days on the trail in hot sunny weather, but I suppose we all do.
Date: 2010-04-03
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Another enjoyable zero day here in the heart of Gatlinburg, TN. It is quite a clash of cultures coming from the trail into tourist America. We had a nice hotel last night, but tonight me, Sherlock, and on The Loose are sharing a super cheap motel room. Going into town can get pretty expensive, with buying a few days food for resupply, going out to eat every meal, and getting a place to sleep. It's also strange because I get so used to trail life, that going into town almost seems like the adventure, and hiking seems like the norm, which to an extent is true. It's not all relaxation, since there are chores to do, and errands to run, including a combination of trolleys, walking, and hitchhiking just to get to the grocery 3 miles away, and sneaking into fancier hotels to use their free internet and laundry services. Gatlinburg has been somewhat of a reunion, with hikers coming into town yesterday and today, going out to eat, sharing a few drinks, and exchanging stories from the trail. I looked at another map of the entire trail today, and I am very excited to get to Lynchburg, and see friends that I miss.
Date: 2010-04-04
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: clear sky

I feel today was the Smokies I have been waiting for. We started back at Newfound Gap after the day off in G-burg, another beautiful day for hiking. Nearly the entire day was rolling along the spine of the mountain range, with vistas to my left and to my right, and around every bend. Between the mountains, the trail ran along a knife's edge, with drop offs on either side. We got to Charlie's Bunion overlook early on, which was one of the great vistas in the Smokies. The whole day was breathtakingly beautiful. In the afternoon, I took a break on some rock crags that dropped straight down into a valley, with snow capped mountains to my left and right, and cascading mountains in the background. The calm breeze was wrapped around me, and I just sat with my boots off and watched the scenery around me. That made the whole day worth it, even though the rest of the day was great too. Tomorrow is my last day in the Smokies; 72 miles in 5 days. Not too shabby.
Date: 2010-04-05
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Pigeon River campsite
Miles today: 17.0

Happy Easter by the way. Not too much of a celebration out here for me, other than enjoying the creation all around me. Last night was super crowded in the shelter, so tonight I decided to camp alone by the Pigeon River, right outside the northern boundary of the Smokies. It was a beautiful day, hiking 17 miles mostly downhill in the hot sun, ending up on this small island between 2 creeks that join the Pigeon River. I set up camp, took a bandana bath in the river, and soaked my feet in it while I read my book. My feet are aching, the river is flowing, my hot chocolate is piping, and the sun is setting.
Date: 2010-04-06
From: Pigeon River campsite

To: Max Patch summit
Miles today: 14.7

As I am writing this, I am on the summit of Max Patch bald, where I will be spending the night under the stars. Max Patch is a huge 1,000 acre bald on the summit of the mountain. I just witnessed mostly likely the best sunset I have ever seen, camping in the best location I could imagine. It's an absolutely beautiful cloudless starry night with a calm breeze and cool temperatures. There is no need for a tent, and no trees for a hammock, so I am just cowboy camping on the grassy summit, and I could not be happier. There are a few of us up here; Aikitoe Jo, Beefstick, Mishap, Barnabas, Panther, Ridley, and 2 others I have not yet met. This is how camping should be, and I wish I could convey through words the beauty of this night. But I cannot. Hoping for a good sunrise tomorrow.
Date: 2010-04-07
From: Max Patch summit

To: Deer Park Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 16.6
Weather: overcast clouds

What was supposed to be a somewhat "easy" day hiking (even though 16 miles is never easy) turned out to be pretty exhausting. There were several miles of slow steady downhill, twisting and turning around the mountains, running by streams and waterfalls every so often. It was very nice. But as they usually do, my blisters reminded me of the pain with hiking. I have determined to pick up some new shoes when I get to Hot Springs tomorrow, because after 260 miles, my blisters only seem to get worse. It was a hot 90 degree day, which added to the exhaustion, and I finally got to the shelter, set up my hammock, and knocked out, ready for the short hike tomorrow to refresh in Hot Springs, NC.
Date: 2010-04-08
From: Deer Park Mountain Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: moderate rain

Had a short hike today to get to Hot Springs, NC where I spent the rest of the day. I got to town about 9 am and walked straight to the Smoky Mountain Diner, to load up on a hige skillet breakfast. It was just as relaxing as a zero day since I got to town so early, and after breakfast I checked into Elmer's Sunnybank Inn, an awesome hostel across the street. Elmer's is a large victorian house, which has a lot of history behind it. There were antiques everywhere, and every room had enough books to make a library. For the price of $20 I got a king size bed all to myself, in a beautiful room with a porch on the second floor. There were about 12 hikers that night other than me I think. Later in the day me, Beefstick, and Aikido Jo went down to soak in the natural hot spring, which is just what a hiker's body needs. Who knows if it was authentic hot spring water, but supposedly it was. About 10 of us went ouit to eat afterwards, and we ate, drank, and listened to the jukebox til about midnight. Fun times here in Hot Springs, back on the trail tomorrow, planning to go about 70 miles in 4 days. I think I have about 5 to 6 weeks until I get to Lynchburg, and I am pretty excited for that.
Date: 2010-04-09
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Spring Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: few clouds

Got some new kicks in Hot Springs, and they worked out great today. We started out kinda late this morning, after a delicious dinner cooked by Elmer, so we only hiked 11 miles. I couldn't even feel my blisters today, and my feet feel great for the first time. Granted it wasn't $100 that I wanted to spend, but whatever. Tomorrow I plan to camp on Big Butt Mountain, which is exactly on the 300 mile mark... 2 great things.
Date: 2010-04-10
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Flint Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 21.3
Weather: clear sky

I guess there are a number of "firsts" on the AT, or any trail for that matter. Today was my first 20+ mile day, and also the first time I got lost. One resulted in the other, as I was looking for a campsite up on Big Butt Mountain, where a few of us had agreed to camp. I couldn't find the campsite, or the AT, and I wasn't even sure if I was on the right mountain. So I continued to hike, until I saw Bonny Boy in the trail, and he told me where I was, and that there was only 2ish miles until the next shelter. So it was pointless to backtrack, and now I sit here in the shelter all by myself, eating my hamburger helper dinner... yum. I'll pay for this long day tomorrow, but it feels pretty good right now.
Date: 2010-04-11
From: Flint Mountain Shelter

To: Low Gap
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: clear sky

After a long day yesterday, we decided to take it easy and hike "only 15 miles". To be honest, it was the most leisurely 15 miles I have ever done. I didn't spend last night alone after all, because Aikkido Jo, Beefstick, Donner, Bonny Boy, Nobody, and another guy showed up pretty late. I started out the day early, and hiked about 9 miles before I stopped for some lunch, and it was perfect cool & shady hiking weather. I ate and waited for the rest of the gang to show up, and my lunch break lasted 2 hours. We hiked a few miles, and got to a road crossing where we met 2 older gentlemen named Coach and Sherpa.   They were both war veterans, former hikers, and are now volunteer trail maintainers. After talking to them for a few minutes, they offered us a round trip hitch to the nearest gas station where I loaded up on bottled Cheerwine, ice cream snickers, and some Cheerwine cake stuff. It was great to take that random snack run in the middle of the sunny day. We hiked the remaining couple of miles, and set up camp at Low Gap in the bottom of a green valley. Now as usual, we are sitting around a campfire, making dinner, and talking, waiting for the sun to set. Tomorrow is supposed to be another easy day, and then we coast down to Erwin.
Date: 2010-04-12
From: Low Gap

To: No Business Knob Shelter
Miles today: 14.6
Weather: clear sky

Today was another fairly easy day, I could have pushed on to Erwin tonight, but it's better to get to town in the morning, so you can spend the rest of the day there. So we are camping about 6 miles prior. Not much to say for the hike today, although in the morning we did ascend Big Bald, which was, as you guessed it, a big bald. I met a guy today named Sea Otter, who has hiked the PCT twice, the CDT once, and this is his second hike of the AT. He was with his girlfriend NutHatch, who has done a couple of the trails with him as well. To complete all 3 major trails is referred to as the Triple Crown of hiking, which I think would be amazing to complete. I talked to him for some time about differences between the 3 trails, amd how to go about planning and such. Who knows, maybe I will attempt!
Date: 2010-04-13
From: No Business Knob Shelter

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Every once in a while, there is not a privy at a shelter, and there are none in Tennessee. This forces you to dig a hole and do your business in the woods. This morning I was doing just that, not realizing that the trail was off to my left, within eye sight. 2 people walked by and I'm assuming they saw me, which was embarrassing for about 2 seconds. I have never seen them before, haven't seen them since, and when I am out here I just stop caring about certain things. So after that incident, we hiked a short 6 miles down to Erwin where I took it easy the rest of the day. I stayed at Uncle Johnny's hostel, but just cowboy camped in the yard. At the hostel, they had bicycles that were free to ride around, so I grabbed an old rusty blue beach cruiser, and rode around town for a bit. I rode to the grocery to resupply, and then just cruised. When you hike every day as your means of transportation, it's fun to ride a bike, although it creates a new area of pain if you know what I mean. There are alot of hikers here, so the rest of the day just consisted of doing chores, eating much food, and hangin loose.
Date: 2010-04-14
From: Erwin, TN

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: clear sky

Today was a shirt off kind of day. The weather was hot once again, as it has been the past couple of weeks. I saw a gang of hobos walking down the railroad tracks in the morning as I crossed over them, which strangely enough felt like we resembled one another. Tough climbing today, as it always is coming out of town. My pack was heavy from the fresh 6-8 pounds of food that I bought, and it's always uphill coming out of town. I wanted to go further today since I am trying to get to Lynchburg by a certain time, but I was just too tired.
Date: 2010-04-15
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Roan High Knob Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: clear sky

Today was a pretty entertaining day, and a pretty difficult day too. It's bittersweet to meet people that have horrible attitudes, but at the same time we get to laugh about it and have a running joke the rest of the day. At lunch we met these 3 macho men who are out for a 2 month hike, who complained about everything you could complain about, with a slew of curse words. It was hilarious to hear them say things like "Who the F%$* put the water down there!" and "Why the hell did they put the ---- shelter a mile off the trail?" Oh, how we made fun of them, and it was good that they didn't hike very far that day. At the end of the day we had to climb Roan Mountain which is definitely the longest and toughest climb on the trail so far, imo. It climbed over 2200 ft. in about 2.5 miles. Halfway up the trail we met 3 former thru-hikers from 2008 who were going to the same shelter tonight. They brought cake and popcorn with them, which was excellent trail magic at the end of that climb. This is the highest shelter on the AT, sitting at over 6200 ft. It's going to be a cold night.
Date: 2010-04-16
From: Roan High Knob Shelter

To: Apple House Shelter
Miles today: 15.4

So long North Carolina, you've been pretty good to me...The only way you could believe how beautiful it was today was if you were hiking with me. Definitely a great day to be alive, and specifically alive on the AT. The day started out descending Roan Mtn., about 2 miles down started the long stretch of balds to walk on. Out of 15 miles of terrain we walked on, I would say almost half of those miles were walking on a ridgeline of bald mountains, with sunshine and panoramic views all day. We had lunch at Overmountain shelter, which is an old barn set on the bowl of a valley with a great view. It's one of the better known shelters on the AT, because of how awesome it is. After a long lunch there we started the climb of Little Hump Mountain, and Hump Mountain, 2 balds with a bald valley in between. Hump mountain was the highlight of the day. It was extremely windy on the way up, blowing me off the trail a couple of feet when the wind would gust. When we got to the summit it calmed down, and I sat and stared all around me. It was so beautiful to feel the wind all around you so that I felt part of it, and to watch the shadows of the clouds move over the earth below. On the way down there were cows and longhorn bulls grazing in the fields, and they didn't seem to mind me walking near them. When we got down to the shelter there was chips & salsa, oreos, coke, bananas, and oatmeal cream pies waiting for us, left by 2 anonymous people. A great ending to an amazing day. Tomorrow morning we are going to a hostel off the road to eat a home-made breakfast. Really looking forward to that.
Date: 2010-04-17
From: Apple House Shelter

To: Moreland Gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.9
Weather: clear sky

We woke up this morning around 6 to walk the half mile to Mountain Harbor B&B to eat the breakfast to rule them all. It was a full spread of about 14 different foods, all homecooked and made from scratch. After stuffing our faces we hiked 19 miles. Not a good idea. The first half of the day was great, since the overnight rain made it cool and the ground soft. We saw alot of creatures including a few snakes, a toad (which urinated on me twice), a mole, alot of birds, a crawfish, and Panther even caught a fish in the river with some fishing line he carries. The last half of the day was just trudging along, but it's all good.