morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-04-03
From: Newfound Gap

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: scattered clouds

After breakfast, we walked to the road that heads up to Newfound Gap. This is supposed to be a difficult hitch. Coyotebec had modified one of our sleeping pads into a hitchhiking sign. One side says "Hiker to Trail" and the other says "Hiker to Town". After about 15 minutes, a nice couple from Michigan stopped to give us a ride. Their names were Jerry and Wanda. They had a Chihuahua (sp?) who was not at all happy that we were being given a ride. They brought us 15 miles to Newfound gap - even though it was out of the way. Thanks Jerry and Wanda!We headed up the trail around 11:30 under building clouds. We reached the Icewater Shelter and decided to eat lunch since the rain was threatening. Gloworm, Lush and Snapper were in the shelter trying to dry out their stuff from the rain the night before. I think this kind of put me in a little bit of a worried mindset about having to tent out in some atrocious weather. I knew that the shelter we were going to would probably be full. As we walked, the weather kept getting worse. We were soon using our umbrellas again.All this lead up resulted in my and coyotebec's first trail fight. I use the term fight a little loosely. We actually just aggravated each other for the first time on this trip. Actually, Coyotebec would not say we aggravated each other, but that I aggravated her. The aggravation came from me thinking we spent too much time talking to tourists on the trail, when we needed to be making time so we wouldn't be shut out of the shelter. Well - it blew over quickly and we were back to enjoying ourselves.We walked ridgelines that were only 5 or 6 feet wide and dropped thousands of feet. The miles kind of dragged on and we finally got to the shelter around 5. When we were walking up, there were already 4 tents set up, so I had resigned myself to tenting. This doesn't seem like a big deal, but it was really cold and wet. We walked up to the shelter and it was like a family reunion. Bearbell, ChouChou, Hindsfeet, Oh2bee, GG, and others were all there. Best of all, there was room in the shelter!We had Garlic Pesto Frybread and Hummus. Thanks to Dr. Puck for the awesome meals from Mary Jane's Farm. If anyone is looking for great freeze dried meals, give the Mary Janes food a try.After dinner, it was quickly to bed since we were pretty pooped.
Date: 2006-04-04
From: Pecks Corner Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.9
Weather: few clouds

We were out of the shelter early and back up on the ridgelines. Overnight the fog and clouds blowing over the ridgeline had left a thick layer of frost on everything. The frost had built up probably a half inch thick on the trees and plants. The clouds were still rushing over the ridge creating a spectacular show. The far peaks and ridges played hide and seek in the mist. The wind howled all morning long. Everything was just coated with ice.It never seemed to warm up all morning long. My fingers were frozen until later in the afternoon. But the hours flew with the constantly changing views both in the distance and close up. The Tennessee side was dark cold and windy. Then when the trail would shift to the North Carolina side, it was warm and sunny. Around 12:30 we decided to stop for lunch in a sunny spot.By 3 we reached the shelter and had another surprise. Trail magic again! Pete - a friend of Crash Test Dummy was at the shelter with candy, cokes, beer and fruit. All the folks from last night¢s shelter filtered in through the afternoon, all of them buoyed by the trail magic...The last couple of days, Hindsfeet has posed a question of the day. Yesterday, the question was "what song has been going through your head while you are on the trail?" The Gilligans Island theme was mine. Embarrassing, but true. This has been fun and pulled people into a closer relationship with each other.Hindsfeet said "We all need to know each other if we are going to be sleeping together".
Date: 2006-04-05
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing bear farm
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: broken clouds

Today felt like a day off. We had 101/2 miles to cover. This was the northernmost portion of Smoky Mtn Natl Park. The miles were easy and mostly downhill. If anyone is considering a hike in the smokies on the AT, the section north of newfound gap is much easier than the south portion. Very scenic as well.When we arrived at Standing Bear farm, we were greeted by the owner and his daughter. She was 3 years old and dressed in a frilly pink dress with sequins. He showed us around his place and it is a thru hikers dream. The bunkhouse is built of old barn wood. It's very rustic. The toilet is a Privy - just like on the trail. There's a shower and a supply hut with all the essential foods. There's an outdoor kitchen that you can make pizzas in plus cook whatever you want. Beer and cokes are cooling in the creek that runs through the yard. Our bunkhouse is built right over the creek - giving you a creek noise all night. A group campfire ring was busy all day and into the night with hikers. The feeling is very relaxing and cool. Payment is all on the honor system. 15 dollars gets you a bed, shower and access to the facilities. I very much recommend this place if you are hiking through.We spent the afternoon relaxing and repairing a hole in my pad. We enjoyed visiting with Pi, Sumo, O2bee GG, Lush, Snapper, Sputnik and others.Heading to bed. A tough 14 is in the works for tomorrow.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-04-06
From: Standing bear farm

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: overcast clouds

Let me say again: I love my umbrella. Today we had rain from noon until just before we reached the shelter. It began as we were standing at Brown Gap with a guy named Apple from Austin TX that was doing trail magic. We were finishing our hot dogs and grape sodas as the drops started to fall.We hiked a few miles and emerged onto a beautiful meadow called Max Patch. Max Patch is a rolling mountain top meadow that allows a great view of the smokies to the house. The closer we got to the summit, the harder it rained and the harder the wind blew. The wind was coming sideways - making my right arm wet and really cold. I noticed when I would move my right hand I had a little electric shocky kind of feeling in my hand. It was pretty numb from the cold and wet. But the views were worth it. After we dropped back into the woods, the rain quit. A mile or two later, we were at the shelter.In the shelter, Bearbell was talking about ChouChou and the problems she was having with tendonitis in her achilles. He said "It's like 17 miles of PMS". We are all splitting up the weight in her pack to help her get into Hot Springs. Tomorrow will be 18 miles to get all the way into town. The weather report is calling for thunderstorms, hail, rain all day long tomorrow. Well - one thing we are learning to do in a hike this long is not to look too far ahead. The only thing I am thinking about in this shelter on this dark night is to get a good nights sleep and to be ready in the morning.
Date: 2006-04-07
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs NC
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: clear sky

We got going early as planned. Woke at 5:15 and the whole shelter bustled into action. Coyotebec and I were on the trail by 5:50. It was still dark, so we were hiking with our headlamps. We are using those tiny single bulb lights, which are great around the tent, but not so great for walking a dark trail. The dark changed to a charcoal canvas as the slightest amount of light began to come up. The charcoal turned to color as the sun became stronger. It was a beautiful and unique experience.We had 18 miles to cover, so we walked till 10:30 and took a break for an early lunch at a little creek. By lunch it was getting pretty obvious that the storm was not going to be hitting any time soon. We were still glad that we started early, as it was getting really hot at mid day. By 2 we were pulling into hot springs.Our first stop was Elmers Sunnybank Inn. This is a legendary AT lodging house. Elmers is a historic Victorian house with several rooms for guests. They serve vegetarian supper and breakfast (except on Friday - so we went out for supper). This is a great place to stay for anyone coming to the Hot Springs area.After a great supper out with a bunch of hikers (Pi, Bearbell, Novocain, ChouChou, Mr Breeze, Oh2bee) we headed back for a great sleep in a real bed.Our friend Tory asked whether the sense of newness had worn off the trip. Here's my answer to her:The newness hasn¢t worn off yet. It's kind of weird. We'll have been on the trail for 4 weeks on Tuesday - and it feels like we are still in the warm up/learning phase. We are feeling good - not sore or injured - and mentally very fresh. I think the frequent town visits, phone calls and emails have helped. When we did the John Muir Trail, we were pretty burned out by the end - which worried me for this trip. Like we missed home and our favorite restaurants etc..., but this trip, it's different. This will change eventually I am sure, but so far, we are still fresh.Tomorrow is a zero day! We have not taken any time off since Wesser (NOC) - so we are looking forward to relaxing.
Date: 2006-04-08
From: Hot Springs NC

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

Hot Springs is a great place for a zero day. This was our first zero since Hiawassee, so we were ready for some down time. We were pretty busy all day long. Our day started with breakfast at Elmer's. Homemade muffins, granola, juice, and fruit filled us up. We then organized our gear and our food, then calculated what we would need to make it the next 70 miles up the trail to Erwin. Seems like our timing with the weather has been perfect on this trip and today was no different. We were zero'ing and it was raining - perfect timing! We visited the store to buy food and use the internet to check email and look at our trail journal. Just want to say thanks to Jerry for keeping up with our journal entries. Supper at Elmer's was awesome. A great soup followed by a huge salad. Then we had some brown rice topped ith a vegetarian sauce. For dessert: homemade apple pie with ice cream on top. After dinner we had a great conversation with Brian who works at Elmers. He told us about a thing called Permaculture. This is a form of agriculture that is sustainable and works with the character of the existing environment. There's a whole lot more to it than this, and it made for some interesting discussion. If you ar interested, Google the term Permaculture and you will find some interesting info.That's what zero's are about:   connecting with trail friends, meeting new people, eating lots of food, and relaxing.more tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-04-09
From: Hot Springs NC

To: Spring Mtn Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: clear sky

All good things must come to an end, and our wonderful zero in Hot Springs was over this morning. We got some other bad news when we heard that Bearbell, Hindsfeet and ChouChou decided to zero for another day. We are going to miss them this week, but they are planning to catch us by Saturday for the Etouffee party at Miss Janets in Erwin.We left fairly late which put us into camp at supper time. We cooked some refried beans, Taco meat (freeze dried) and tortillas. Afterwards, we spent some time talking to Posey Picker. He is a retired botany professor from Missouri. The Permaculture thing came up and he told us about his place in MO. He has a 1.5 acre organic farm, produces his own electricity (some of which he sells back to the city, builds replicas of 200 year old furniture for museums with hand tools, Plays a stand up base in jam sessions in his barn - not to mention that this is his 3rd or 4th thru hike. Wow - that's a cool lifestyle! We are hoping to visit their farm at some point after the hike (and to go canoeing with him and his wife).Temperature is dropping, so we are headed for the sleeping bags.More tomorrow... Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-04-10
From: Spring Mtn Shelter

To: Licklog Gap
Miles today: 15.0

We started out with the mindset that this was going to be an "easy" day. Well - it wasn't easy. But it WAS awesome.We got out pretty early, getting on the trail well before 8. The first task of the day was a pleasant rolling downhill to Allen gap. Just before the gap, trail magic struck again. A sign gave us directions to a house 1/4 mile off the trail. As we walked up to the house, a "Welcome!" rang out from the owner, John Nelson (hercules Nobo 99). With him was Heidi, their Standard Poodle / Golden Retriever mix. Heidi was going crazy to greet us.Inside their cozy log cabin style house, we were offered: Belgian waffles, Pork stew, Fresh bread, Pulled pork sandwiches, Ice cream sundaes, Blueberry cobbler and probably a few things i am forgetting. John and his wife Jodie open their house every year for this daily feeding of hikers. They also told us some stories of their hike. One of the sad ones was about two people that after completing the trail, committed suicide in separate incidents over the last few years. This affected them because they had not shared with them their Christian faith. They shared the story with the hikers that were there and gave each one a printed poem about their faith. It was pretty touching and effective - especially considering how much they were knocking themselves out to serve the thru hiking community.After this treat, we began a 2,000 foot climb out of the gap. Some of it was really steep. We had planned to stop around the 11 or 12 mile point, and had filled all our water containers for a dry camp. Well - this is where the day got little long. We climbed up onto a ridgeline above Whiterock Cliffs and then Blackstaff Cliffs. There was no camping spots, so we pushed on. After the cliffs, the trail moved to a really rocky and exposed ridge that topped several peaks. The walking was like scrambling over large boulders the whole way. Up and down, up and down. Finally after several miles of this we came to Licklog gap and found a nice site forthe tarp. The day was a little testing for us as we were into camp much later than normal because of the extra mileage and the trail magic. We did well though. Our spirits were good and the weather was nice. We purposely camped at this gap (1.5 miles before the shelter). This is the first night we are camping alone in a long time. The sun is setting so its time to burrow down in the bag.More tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-04-11
From: Licklog Gap

To: Hogback Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 15.7
Weather: clear sky

No matter how hard we try to have an easy day, we just cant seem to have one. This morning, Coyotebec was moving slowly. After taking down the tarp, we headed down to the shelter. Once we got there, we were really happy we camped at Licklog gap. It was like a tent city at the shelter. We've walked our way up into a new wave of hikers. There's a lot of new hikers we have not met yet. Plus a few fast people are overtaking us. We have met Chainsaw, Able Jack, Squirrel, Junko, Belou and Figgy. We had planned to do 11 or 12 miles and camp at a place called Big Flat. Right after lunch, we caught up with Oh2bee and GG for the first time since Hot Springs. We fell in behind them and were enjoying our trail chat when we came upon Pi soaking his feet in a little creek. We immediately were facing one of our classic problems: Hike on with Oh2bee, stay disciplined and get to camp or dawdle and enjoy the creek. I tend towards always keeping on till camp while Coyotebec tends towards enjoying the moment. We went up the trail about 50 feet and stopped. A couple of seconds later we walked those 50 feet back to the creek and pulled off our shoes. This was a great choice. The day was warm and the creek was cold. Chris, Andy and Figgy showed up and joined in. They had found some morrell mushrooms earlier and were on the hunt for more edibles. Andy and Chris have degrees in wildlife management and were pointing out all the different trees and plants as we walked up from! the creek. There are a lot of Buckeye trees up here and the leaves are just starting to come out. They added a bunch of Ramps (like wild onions) to their mushrooms as we walked. We had brought enough water to make it there. Problem was, we never saw Big Flat. We ran out of water as we climbed the ridges - with the realization that we were going to have to go all the way to the shelter. Finally we made it all the way to the shelter. There were a lot of folks here. But not overwhelming.We only have 25 miles left to Erwin, and 2.5 days to do it - so we are going to have to slow down. We are planning to go 10 tomorrow and the next day with 5 or 6 on Friday.We are looking forward to seeing Matt and Rebecca. They are bringing Etouffee that my Mom is cooking plus some Gumbo from Prejeans restaurant. Looking forward to some good home cooking!more tomorrow..Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-04-12
From: Hogback Ridge Shelter

To: Spivey Gap
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

This morning we met a really unusual man. His trailname was Easy One. He is 83 years old and was out for a 10 day hike. He has hiked the entire AT six times. He said "I'm too old now to hike the whole thing". We asked him when the last time he thru hiked was and he said "Two years ago". Wow. Thru hiking at age 81. Easy One says that he does 10 day trips every month or two. He says that walking keeps you young. I would agree. He also told us "As you go north, it gets more and more beautiful". He really encouraged us. This was a great change from the typical former hiker that says "Just wait until you get to ...". We kept hiking and set our sights on Big Bald for lunch. Part way up we met a trail crew of volunteers from the Carolina Mountain Club. They were really friendly and Coyotebec enjoyed a fun exchange with an older man that grew up in Chile and now lives in Ashville. Coyotebec said "That was a beautiful man". I agree. He had a wonderful glow and presence.We arrived on top of Big Bald around 1. The 360 degree view of the Appalachians was spectacular. We enjoyed lunch with Figgy. She is a student getting ready to start medical school in the fall.After lunch we only had a couple of miles left to our planned campsite. We got there, pulled out our pads, and it just didn't feel right. After a quick discussion we were packed up and headed to a campsite 5.5 miles distant. This would put us into Erwin a day early, but we decided that we could figure out whhere to stay etc for when Matt and Rebecca arrive on Friday.We pulled into camp around 6, took a sponge bath in the creek and then cooked supper. After a fun discussion with Posey Picker, GG, Pi and Figgy it was off to the tarp.More tomorrow...Gumby & Coyotebec
Date: 2006-04-14
From: Erwin, TN

To: Erwin TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Matt and Rebecca arrive today!!!! We will be meeting them around 3pm.We had breakfast with Oh2bee and Mr Breeze. Mr. Breeze is having trouble with his knee. He's tried thru hiking twice before and had injuries - so this would be a major blow if this is a bad injury. He is SO bummed. We feel really bad for him.From the Coyotebec journal: I had a long talk with Mary on the phone today (about 75 minutes). It's funny, but when we ere done, I could remember only a little of what we talked about. I really miss her. Matt and Becca arrived! Yay! Visited for a while and introduced them to Oh2bee. They really like him - everyone does. We all went grocery shopping. I kept an eye on oh2bee to make sure he was getting healthy things. I found Nido milk and convinced him to get it.Supper with Hindsfeet, ChouChou, O2bee, Bearbell, and Hindsfeets parents was at the Riverside restaurant on the Nolichucky River. As we were eating, we saw 3 bears on the cliff across the river. The whole restaurant came outside to see.We went back to the hotel with Bearbell and had a Ben and Jerry's binge. Disgustingly full. When it was time for Bearbell to head back to his tent at Uncle Johnnys campground, we got in the car to bring him. We got lost immediately. Then a police car threw on its lights and pulled us over. Luckily it was just that we didn't have our taillights on and he gave us directions and we headed on our way. Soon Bearbell was safely in his place and we headed home to bed.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-04-15
From: Erwin TN

To: Erwin TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Tonight is the big Cajun Food party here on the trail. The food Matt and Rebecca brought up is going to Miss Janet¢s house (a local hostel) to be served to all our hiker friends.We decided to go to the Elms restaurant for breakfast with Oh2bee, Matt and Rebecca.On the "off the trail" issue, we got some bad news on GG. She has decided that she has had the experience she was looking for and is heading home.The people heading home are starting to add up. I guess it's a little bit of a worry - but we are still feeling good and are still excited to be here.Later in the day, we went to Miss Janet¢s house to start getting ready for the feast. Lush is a hiker from Austin that is a trained vegetarian chef. He offered to do the salad and steamed vegetables. We started preparing the meal, and within 30 minutes, our little crew was making it look like a real party.Coyotebec made a quick announcement to say that my mom had made the Etouffee and that Prejeans had sent the Gumbo up. Soon, there was a long line all the way through the house. Everyone served and went outside to eat. Amazingly we fed around 30 hikers some incredible food that they had never tried before. It was a huge success and a lot of fun. We enjoyed sharing something from home with people we've been hiking with and we met a lot of new people as well.Thanks so much to my Mom for the Etouffee and to Bob and Cheryll and Prejeans for the Gumbo.More tomorrow...
Date: 2006-04-16
From: Erwin TN

To: Indian Grave gap
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We started the day at Uncle Johnny's - a local cabin and bunkhouse. We had decided that we would have our own Easter service up on the mountain. With us were Matt, Rebecca, ChouChou, Hindsfeet, Bearbell, Oh2bee, Sir Lancelot and Pi. We walked up a creek for about an hour and picked a nice spot.We had planned for each person to share a memory, a scripture or a song. This worked out really well. Each person input something unique that pulled together for an Easter service we won't ever forget.After this, our trail family that we've built up over the last weeks split apart for a time. We did an 8 mile day while most of the "trail fam" did 12. We are planning on catching back up in a week or two. This is a fact of thru hiking. Groups form and break up all along the trail - then reform later.We had decided to do a "dry" camp. This means that there's no water source. So we filled up 2 miles from camp and conserved water for later. We found a nice campsite up on a ridge a half-mile before the gap. We had been trying to come up with trail names for Matt and Rebecca. For Rebecca we decided on Piper since she's always piping up. Matt was having a problem with his hands swelling up while hiking, so we had created a cord to hang the ring around his neck. With that ring around his neck and his curly hair, Frodo became his trail name.After supper, it started raining for a few seconds, and the 4 of us headed under our tarp to visit before bed. It was fun for us to catch up on everything from home.More tomorrow...