morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2019-09-04
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

¢A Pilgrimage is an inner journey marked by an outer journey.¢  Sara GannonAfter 50 years of marriage, we look back feeling blessed in so many ways¢We as a couple love each other more deeply now than when we shared our wedding vows.We have been blessed with caring, loving children and their true companions and three grandchildren that fill our hearts and lives with pride, love and hope.We have friends that continue to enrich our lives daily.We have joy and purpose. We trust in a loving God who has created a world of beauty if we only take the time to look for it. As we begin our journey on the Camino we hope to learn more about ourselves and grow to love others. In all honesty, we don¢t know what we will learn or how we will grow...just that we will.  After all¢we are on a pilgrimage   Huckleberry and Finn
Date: 2017-04-09
To: Amicalola Falls SP
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Less than 12 hours until we head to Amicalola Falls SP to begin our Appalachian Adventure. We plan to begin at the approach trail (~8 mile trail leading to the official AT start point, Springer Mountain) tomorrow morning after signing in at the visitor center to get our hiker numbers and have a record of our official start! Until then, one last night of rest and relaxation in Gainesville, GA. PS-A big thanks to Neil Briggs for getting us down here and allowing our send off to go as smoothly as possible!! Brittany and Kevin
Date: 2017-04-10
From: Amicalola Falls SP

To: Stover Creek Shelter
Miles today: 2.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We made it to the top of Springer Mountain, completing the 8.8 mile approach trail and officially starting our AT miles around lunchtime! From there it was only 2.8 miles to the Stover Creek Shelter where we camped for the night and made some new friends!
Date: 2017-04-11
From: Stover Creek Shelter

To: Gooch Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: clear sky

We got a late start out of Stover Creek today, took our time in the morning bandaging blisters and stretching sore muscles. To reach Gooch Mtn shelter we had to traverse two small peaks, Sassafrass and Justus Mountains which definitely kicked our butts! Once at the shelter we met most of the folks from our first night, along with many new faces, including a friendly trail angel handing out sandwiches and a ridgerunner helping hikers with trail info and generally making sure everyone was doing OK. Overall a great day!
Date: 2017-04-12
From: Gooch Mountain Shelter

To: Gooch Gap
Miles today: 1.3
Weather: overcast clouds

Wound up taking a short day today as blisters are persisting and we want to give ourselves time to heal before we push on. The same trail angel from the shelter last night gave us a ride into Dahlonega, GA where we found a place to spend the night and will enjoy the comforts of civilization for an extra day to make sure our blisters are healed properly and prevent the need to get off the trail in the near future. Plan to be back out and on schedule Friday!
Date: 2017-04-14
From: Gooch Gap

To: Lance Creek Campsite
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: clear sky

Back on the trail! 7.1 Miles felt easy today which is a good sign. Made it into camp around 1:30 but decided not to push on to rest and air out feet. Met some fellow thru-hikers; Nate, Tim And 'Mamba' (Short for black mamba because he saw a black snake on the trail and though that was what it was.) With some intermittent rain throughout the afternoon we all tucked into our tents early, hoping for sun tomorrow!
Date: 2017-04-15
From: Lance Creek Campsite

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: broken clouds

Had an awesome morning today, got an early start and made the 7.2 miles up over Blood Mountain (highest peak on the Georgia section of the trail!) and down into Neel Gap before noon. The gap has an outfitter/hostel that is popular among hikers and with, to us, an extensive food selection, we treated ourselves to a whole pizza! We also experienced a little trail magic in the form of some ice cold sodas, courtesy of a generous day hiker :D. After Neel Gap we had planned to continue on only 6.7 more miles to reach Whitley Gap shelter. Upon reaching the shelter, however, we found it to be over a mile off the trail and, after some exploration into how difficult the mile was, we decided to push on to Low Gap Shelter, another 4.4 miles on. Phew.
Date: 2017-04-16
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Blue Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 7.3
Weather: light rain

After our 18+ mile day yesterday we took it easy today, only hiking 7.3 miles to Blue Mountain Shelter. We rolled into camp fairly early and found our friend Mamba already setting up for the night and, shortly after, saw Nate and Tim hiking up the trail as well! You never know if you'll see hiker friends again after separating on the trail, so it's always a nice surprise to all come together again like this. There are lots of other hikers at the shelter tonight, a few of whom have recently gotten over the 'hiker flu' (something called norovirus that gives you flu like symptoms for around 24 hrs before abating) so we are keeping our distance trying to avoid it. We still hung around the campfire for a while to hear stories from professional hiker Concrete (so named because, after hiking a 70 mile day on the Florida trail, he fall flat asleep on the concrete sidewalk outside a ranger station). He had lots of great advice for us first time thru-hikers, like how the first two weeks of any long hike will be the hardest part in terms of adjusting, which was nice to hear because we're certainly feeling it! All things considered, after a week on the trail, we're enjoying taking in every aspect of this experience.
Date: 2017-04-17
From: Blue Mountain Shelter

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 2.4
Weather: overcast clouds

We took a Nero (near-zero day) today to come into Hiawassee to pick up some extra first-aid supplies. Kevin's heel blisters ares healing but we want to keep them covered and padded to prevent new ones from forming, Brittany has a few small blisters as well that we're trying to let dry out to prevent infection. We've received quite a few blister tips over the past week from fellow hikers and local community members, such as:-For prevention, remove boots at every opportunity to allow feet to dry, even if it's only a few minutes.-Don't soak existing blister in Epsom salts, it will over dry the skin and inclrease the likelihood of cracking, soak in providone iodine solution instead.-To drain a blister, instead of just lancing with a needle, attach a thread and pull through blister to prevent healing over which will trap moisture (thread will wick moisture as well but make sure to use sterilized materials) - we haven't tried this one yet.-Be careful when wrapping feet with athletic tape, with the excessive sweating and moisture of extended hikes the adhesive can pull at skin causing small blisters on otherwise unproblematic areas (has happened to both Kevin and Brittany this week).We'll post any updates but for now just hoping taking it easing will help us heal and looking forward to tough feet!
Date: 2017-04-18
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Tray Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: overcast clouds

We got a late start today, giving ourselves max rest time, and did a nice short 5.7 up over Tray mountain (last peak over 4000' in GA!). The peak was in the clouds today so no views, and as the Tray mountain shelter is only a few hundred feet below the summit it's foggy here as well. We met hikers Braveheart (wears a kilt) and Dewey Decimal (carries a small library's worth of books in his seriously overweight pack), and discovered that Braveheart is from Greenwood, NY!
Date: 2017-04-19
From: Tray Mountain Shelter

To: Dick's Creek Campsite
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today had some rough terrain, a lot of rapid elevation change, but we pushed through the first 11 miles to reach the Top of Georgia Hostel where we were able to pick up some snacks and rest our feet for a while. After that it was only a mile to our campsite for the night, which was good because we were all full of snack food and (free!) sodas and hot chocolate. At camp we met an avid trail-runner/ultra-marathoner (think 100mi+ races), who is also attempting a thru-hike, and he gave us some great tips on how to maximize our calorie intakes, for energy on our long days, without too much excess. And we're almost out of Georgia!
Date: 2017-04-20
From: Dick's Creek Campsite

To: Whiteoak Stamp
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: overcast clouds

We made it!...out of Georgia. North Carolina welcomed us with a grueling climb up Couthouse Bald, where we reached our highest elevation yet on the trail, topping out at 4708'. We are trying to acquaint ourselves with the idea that most of the peaks in NC (particularly in GSM National Park) will be well above this, and we will soon be climbing more than a few of them.
Date: 2017-04-21
From: Whiteoak Stamp

To: Carter Gap
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: overcast clouds

We had some pretty heavy rain come through last night while we were camped, so we got a late start this morning trying to allow some extra time for our gear to dry out before we packed up. We had a long steady climb up Standing Indian Mountain, and enjoyed lunch at the summit before heading back down into Carter Gap for the night. The shelter and campsite are more full than we are used to seeing, but we haven't met anyone new because everyone is hiding in their tents from the rain that's been on and off all day.
Date: 2017-04-22
From: Carter Gap

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: mist

We hit 100 miles today!! Woohoo! At camp tonight we met some interesting new folks. Julie and Ken are an Australian couple who spent several months exploring the Amazon before deciding to try a thru-hike. Dave, a father attempting a non-traditional thru-hike with his son where they have their car and complete one section at a time with one being dropped off at the southern point of the section and hiking north while the other drives the car to a point north on the trail and hikes south, they cross paths and the one hiking towards the car takes it and picks up the other and they repeat this steadily northbound. Finally we met Pup and Pan, a couple from the U.K. we have been seeing on the trail since our first day but had never met before, we haven't heard the story behind those trail names yet but we'll update if we do! **Correction from earlier post, 'Braveheart' from Greenwood, NY is actually Ragnar, so named not only for the kilt he wears while hiking but for his long blonde Viking hair and beard, very fitting.
Date: 2017-04-23
From: Rock Gap Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 3.8

An intense thunderstorm rolled in last night just before we all headed to bed, with such forceful winds that both of our tarps were ripped from the ground and left our hammocks to be soaked by the rain. After some scrambling we managed to stake them back down and placed rocks on our stakes and lines to prevent them from being blown off again, but with our hammock soaked and the storm still ranging we opted to spent the night in the safety of the shelter. Today we got ourselves together as well as possible and trudged a few miles to fend off the cold from being constantly soaked by rain. If the storm doesn't let up we're considering a zero day in Franklin, NC tomorrow to recoup and resupply. Also, Kevin is now being referred to as 'Timber' due to his constant vigilance in regards to dead trees that may compromise our safety by falling (an actual concern, particularly in those places we've walked through which have recently been burned by forest fires).
Date: 2017-04-25
From: Franklin, NC

To: Wayah Bald Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: clear sky

We got a late start today, but still made pretty good headway, trekking up over Wayah Bald. Over the past few days we've been walking through some areas pretty extensively burned by last Novembers forest fires, and today we went through some of the worst of it. We took a picture at what's left of the Wayah Bald observation tower, where the stone base is still standing but the remains of a wooden pavilion and signage can be seen. We're all in bed pretty early because it's a little colder up at 4712', where we're camped tonight and, with the damage we saw today in mind, we opted not to make a campfire to warm up.
Date: 2017-04-26
From: Wayah Bald Shelter

To: A. Rufus Morgan Shleter
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: moderate rain

We had a long day today, dominated by our descent from Weser Bald to the Nantahala Outdoor Center, which dropped us from over 5000' to under 2000' on some steep terrain. We were just glad to be going down it instead of up. About 10 miles into our day we took a break at Cold Spring Shleter and met Pam (this was her actual name but she had also been dubbed 'Protector of All Mandkind' after she got off trail to help a sick hiker), she had some great advice about hiker healthcare and life in general, and as one of the many hikers over 50 we've met along the trail, she unknowingly provided inspiration for us to push through our tough days and enjoy our easy ones out here.
Date: 2017-04-27
From: A. Rufus Morgan Shleter

To: Sassafrass Gap Shelter
Miles today: 7.7
Weather: overcast clouds

We started off with an easy morning today, finishing the last mile descending from our camp to the Nantahala Outdoor Center. With thunderstorms rolling in we stuck around for a few hours, making the most of unlimited electricity, running water and wifi! As we prepared to head back out, a sudden shower held us back, which turned out to be lucky, as a few minutes later some friendly tourists brought us and all the hikers there hotdogs! (And if you're wondering, vegetarianism does not hold with trail magic food). To finish up the day, we climbed right back out of the gap we spent all day yesterday getting ourselves into and are ready for some much needed rest.
Date: 2017-04-28
From: Sassafrass Gap Shelter

To: Cable Gap Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Today we hiked down into Stecoah Gap and got some trail magic (bananas) from some nice picnickers who also took our pictures for their blog (hikingsouth.com)! Out of the gap we hiked a section, fittingly called Jacobs Ladder, which was about as steep as it gets without needing handholds to climb. Phew. We planned to camp at Cody Gap, but couldn't find enough camp spaces so we pushed on to Cable Gap and put up our sore feet for the night.
Date: 2017-04-29
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Dam Shelter
Miles today: 6.6
Weather: overcast clouds

We made it to Fontana Dam! One of our resupply packages didn't make it so we had to get a few meals at the resort general store (at resort prices) :( The highlight of today was when we reached the Fontana Dam Shelter (called the "Fontana Hilton" because it has solar showers and electricity!) We got some more trail magic here at the shelter when some former thru-hikers came down with donuts, Dr. Pepper, q-tips (things you don't realize you miss until you get them) and their dog, Vinny the golden retriever! We dug in and enjoyed our last night of cell service and semi-civilization before heading into GSMNP tomorrow!
Date: 2017-05-01
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up to the same storm raging this morning with some added rain and fog. Bleh. We procrastinated heading out into the rain as long as possible, hoping it might let up, but were antsy enough by 10AM to push through it. We only made it to the next shelter before we were so soaked and freezing that we had to stop in and warm up. Unfortunately, what started as a quick warm up stop turned into a full blown siesta while we tried to dry out our clothes and fend off hypothermia by eating lunch in our sleeping bags. Once warm, we were reluctant to get back out into the rain so we opted to either wait for some sun or cut our day short and spend the night at the shelter. While we waited hikers Holy Smokes, Tangerine and Pop Tart came in and started a fire in the shelters fireplace (shelters in the Smokies have fireplaces inside to keep warm on those extra cold nights!) which helped solidify our decision to remain here for the night. We will try to make up some miles tomorrow if the weather turns around.
Date: 2017-05-02
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Icewater Spring Shelter
Miles today: 20.8
Weather: mist

We definitely made up for our short day yesterday with our day today. We hit 3 big milestones: 1. Highest point on the AT - Clingmans Dome (6667') 2. We've walked 200 trail miles3. And we did our first official 20 mile day (20.8 miles). At Clingmans Dome we also met a couple from Buffalo (the husband was wearing a UB hat)! Now we're staying at Icewater Spring Shelter - very cold up here (5935').
Date: 2017-05-03
From: Icewater Spring Shelter

To: Cosby Knob Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: clear sky

Got a early start again to try for another long day. We're really starting to "get our legs" (as hikers say out here once you're able to hike big miles) so we made 12 miles before lunch and we're able to take a nice long break at Tricorner Knob Shelter. After that we only had 7 miles to push to our planned stop for the night, Cosby Knob Shelter, where we saw some familiar faces, including Julie & Ken (the traveling aussies) and a couple that had started the trail at the same time as us but we hadn't seen since our first day! We also met "Snorlax" (not his official trail name, but apt) - a hiker notorious for sleeping in shelters despite his excessively loud snoring. We don't carry earplugs, but after that experience, we may pick some up just in case.
Date: 2017-05-04
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Since our second day in the Smokies we've been hearing weather reports calling for snow at higher elevations this Friday, so we made it our goal to be out before then to avoid freezing temps at night (not comfortable in a 30¢¢ rated sleeping bag). Last night we heard the possible snow had been moved up to today, so we planned to be up early and book it the last 8 miles out of the mountains before things got nasty. We were up before the sun and made our best time yet, practically running the 8 miles into Davenport Gap (the Northern boundary of GSMNP) in under 3 hours! Even once we were out of the mountains the winds were so strong we could hear trees and branches falling all around us so we hightailed it to Standing Bear Hostel, only a few miles past Davenport Gap, where we're currently hunkered down waiting to see if things will clear up. The good news is, in the meantime, they have pizza and beer!
Date: 2017-05-05
From: Standing Bear Hostel

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 0.0

With the winds still howling outside, we opted to stay safe at the Hostel and zero here for the day. We caught up to a few more people we met on our first day hiking that are here with us riding out the storm, and it's great to see some familiar faces after we lost Mamba in the Smokies (He had to take some time off to nurse a hurt ankle/foot). Even though we're anxious to get back out on the trail, we have to appreciate any time we have to rest and let our bodies recover.
Date: 2017-05-06
From: Standing Bear Hostel

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: light rain

Getting back on the trail after a day of rest can be rough but today really took the cake! We left the Hostel with the sun shining, excited to be on our way to Hot Springs. The trail is littered with fallen trees from the high winds and rain of the past two days, and Brittany took a nice spill down a muddy slope while trying to circumvent one of the larger ones blocking the trail. Fortunately the only thing hurt was her pride, but we're taking it easy to prevent any real injuries. We only got a few miles in before the weather took a turn, first beginning to drizzle which turned to snow as we topped Snowbird Mountain. As we descended from Snowbird the snow turned to sleet and then hail, nicely rounding out our weather experience for the day. We hurried on, hoping to reach our planned shelter for the night before things got too cold, as we could feel the temperature dropping even at our lowest elevation for the day. We finally reached the shelter and, to top it all off, found that it was full! With temps still falling, and looking like it would be below freezing before dark, we negotiated our way into shelter spots (hammocks, our normal sleeping mode, are not great for cold weather as they don't insulate your underside from the cold air). So we slept packed like sardines and woke up to find snow on the ground!*Most journals we write at night before getting into our hammocks, even if we don't have service to post them, but this one was written next day because that night was just too cold to do anything.*
Date: 2017-05-08
From: Deer Park Mountain Shelter

To: Laughing Heart Lodge
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: clear sky

We were up early today, eager to get into town for some breakfast at the famous Smoky Mountain Diner. We only had a little over 3 miles to hike, so we made good time into Hot Springs. Kevin had twisted his ankle a few days back and just walked it off at the time, but on our way into town he rolled it again and was not able to shake the pain. We decided to hang around town after breakfast and our resupply to see if it would resolve itself. Hoot (formerly Nate, who we have been hiking with since about a week into our hike) has also been having some knee pain so in the interest of rest and preventing further injury the three of us opted to make today a Nero and stay in town for the night. We found reasonable lodging at the Laughing Heart Hostel where we are also able to shower and do laundry (always a plus), and we will reassess how everyone is feeling tomorrow to see how far we'll push on. Another friend we've been hiking with, Radar (formerly Tim, who we met the same day we metHoot and Mamba) is feeling strong and wants to push on so we said our goodbyes and will hope to see him somewhere up the trail. It's great making trail friends, and especially finding a group of people you can hike with that has the same hiking pace as you, but it's nearly impossible to stay together for long when things like injuries or obligations come up and necessitate time off trail. So we appreciate our trail friends and enjoy hiking with them while we can, and always see each other off with a hopeful "See you up the trail!" when the time comes to separate again.
Date: 2017-05-09
From: Laughing Heart Lodge

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

After our Nero yesterday and our Hostel stay last night we are feeling rested and Kevin's ankle feels strong so we're rest to get back out there! Unfortunately Hoot's knee is still hurting so he's decided to stay another day in town and rest. This means for the first time in weeks it's just the two of us back out on the trail. We dawdled in town as long as we could, relaxing and chatting with other hikers taking time off in town, but by midday we had to get a move on so, once again, we said our goodbyes and hope to meet again up the trail sometime. With our late start we only pushed to the first shelter outside town, a fairly easy 10 miles with some spectacular views as we climbed out of the valley in which Hot Springs is tucked. When we got into camp we heard there had been a bear sighting earlier that day, so everyone is being extra careful to hang our food bags well away and keep safe. On top of the bear sighting we heard the shelter privy is full of wasps! If it wasn't so late we'd pass on this inhospitable shelter, but as we arrived pretty close to dark we'll just have to stick it out. Hoping for better luck tomorrow!