morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-03-25
From: Fontana Dam

To: Mollies Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

It was cold today and snowing. Jeff from the Hike Inn dropped us off at 9:30 a.m. and after getting permits, we were hiking by 10:00 a.m. Not much snow at first but the higher I got, the more snow there was. Miles were a little tough, but I made shelter around 4:00 p.m. There was about 10 inches on the ground and still snowing, but it was starting to taper off. Carl, the ridgerunner, had a fire going which was nice. Chainsaw, Rat Puke and Able Jack showed up, too. Everyone had dinner and talked a while, then off to bed. I still don¢t like sleeping in shelters. I¢m not a big fan of hiking in the snow, but it was pretty. If I had known just how bad the snow was, I might not have hiked today. Just as well I didn¢t know, I would have missed the views. Strange how your mind will occupy the time when engaged in a unpleasant but necessary task. I kept composing this in my head all day: Well, I hiked in to the Hike Inn, took a bath and a shower;But I couldn¢t take as long as I liked ¢cause the shuttle leaves in an hour; Nancy told us there was all types of food, some for every likin¢; And that she¢d be back in an hour or so to drive us back to the Hike Inn. So she dropped us off at this Mexican place, and we commenced to eatin¢; But when I ordered a beer, the waiter, I fear, said ¢in this town there¢s no drinkin¢. With our bellies full and smiles wide, we walked out to the parkin¢; Nancy was there in her big white truck, and took us back to the Hike Inn. Later that night was I was countin¢ sheep on sheets of Egyptian cotton; I started thinkin¢ of things I had to do and things that needed boughten. One more night wouldn¢t be so bad, at this place called, The Hike Inn. P.S. Robinsville, NC (the town closest to Fontana Dam) is the birthplace of country music star, Ronnie Milsap.
Date: 2006-03-26
From: Mollie's Ridge Shelter

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 5.4
Weather: broken clouds

Wow! It¢s cold and still snowing. We finally got out of the shelter around 1:00 p.m. The miles were hard won today. I slipped and fell (for the second time this trip) on my knees. The shelter was a welcome sight. I¢m not going to be breaking any speed records through the Smokies, though.
Date: 2006-03-27
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 6.3
Weather: clear sky

Last night and this morning were interesting. Last night because when I got to the shelter, two spring-breakers were roasting chickens on the fire! They offered to share, but I didn¢t want to deal with the bones, so I passed. We had three other section hikers here as well: C-stepper¢s (hope you find a trail name that you like better!) goal is to hike all of the 900+ miles of trails in the Smokies! Go for it! It has been hard enough doing the 20 or so I¢ve done. The other two are sisters, Julie and Jessica. This morning they pull out a video camera and do an impromptu interview with me about my hike and the A.T. They said something about being on tv, but surely they were kidding. That would be pretty cool, though! Either way, it was great meeting them and I hope they will e-mail me so I can let them know when I¢m getting into PA. Maybe we will be able to hike a day or two together. The goal today was actually Siler¢s Bald Shelter, but I found out something. Worse than hiking in snow is hiking in snow, ice, slush, water and mud. It is physically exhausting and mentally draining. I started hiking about 9:45 a.m. and got to Derrick Knob at 2:30, but I was done! for the day. I did have great views from Rocky Top and Thunderhead but they were early in the day so the enthusiasm ran out early as well. Chainsaw was just leaving when I go here and told me to come one! I told him I wasn¢t sure. Once I took my pack off, I knew it wouldn¢t be going back on today, so after a brief rest, I went out to gather some firewood. When I got back with the first load, two sectioners were in the shelter. They came in from the north, so I hadn¢t seen them. We chatted for a bit, then I went to get the rest of the wood I had dragged trail-side. Once I got the fire going, I heard a bunch of noise outside the shelter: something like a band of Indian raiders. I saw movement, but couldn¢t make out who it was. Then I saw one was wearing a kilt. So, Grey Fox and Krush show up, follwed by Freight Train and Ryan. Baloo had dropped off for the time being, but might meet back up with Grey Fox at Davenport Gap. Come on, Baloo¢you know you wanna be out here! Freight Train went to get more wood and came back with some, but I didn¢t even want to know how he got it. After dinner and catching up, the fire was going strong and I hit the sack around 8:30 p.m.
Date: 2006-03-28
From: Derrick Knob Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: overcast clouds

The first part of the day was rough. The trail so far would be great if not for the total mess we are hiking on. I¢ve had more water in my boots everyday in the Smokies than I have had in my hydration bladders. Even if they dry by the fire at night, they are wet inside of an hour of hiking. Today¢s views were at the end of the day, so the last 1.7 miles flew by. But, it was still a long 1.7 miles. I made shelter by 4: 00 p.m. Freight Train was a little over-zealous on the wood and brought trees in that just wouldn¢t burn at first. Too rotten, I guess. We¢ve all decided to go into Gatlinburg for a little rejuvenation. Heal¢d and Dirt passed by about dinner time. I hadn¢t seen Heal¢d since Neel¢s Gap¢working at Mountain Crossings. Hopefully when we get back on the trail, more of this slush will be gone. Oh, I do have a ton more pictures, but haven¢t had the chance to upload any lately. I will as soon as I can.
Date: 2006-03-29
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

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

I was on the trail before 9:00 a.m. today. Clingman¢s Dome was especially nice since the road was closed and there were only hikers up there. The trail was still slushy and slippery, and I fell two more times. One time was particularly fun, as my knee slammed hard down on a rock. I kept on hiking, since I was afraid if I stopped it would lock up on me. I got to Newfound Gap and hitched into Gatlinburg. I went to the Happy Hiker to get a picture taken and to buy socks, then I got a room at the Grand Prix with Grey Fox, Ryan, Freight Train, and Krush. After getting cleaned up, we met up with a bunch of hikers at the Smokey Mountain brewery. Ryan got his trail name¢Homeward¢since he is from Maine. Randy also got his. He is now Nor¢easter.
Date: 2006-03-30
From: Gatlinburg, TN

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

Thanks to all for the words of encouragement and support. It¢s always good to know there is someone out there cheering me on! I did a little sightseeing, mostly wanting to be back in the woods. I went to hear a bluegrass band play and met Jolly Wompus, Andy and his girlfriend. We had a nightcap at the brewery, and then I was off to bed.
Date: 2006-03-31
From: Gatlinburg, TN

To: Icewater Spring Shelter
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I was going to go to Pecks Corner Shelter, but after looking at options, no matter what I will be spending two more nights in the Smokies. It was good to be back in the woods, though. A ¢97 thru-hiker, Rusted Root, gave me a ride back to the trail and I made the shelter by 2:45 p.m. The shelter was already half full with section hikers. All told, there are thirteen of us in here tonight. There is the possibility of thunderstorms tonight. I hope so, as I want to get up and watch the lightning. Everyone is fascinated when I tell them I¢m a meteorology student. So far, my guesses on the weather have been pretty accurate. Tomorrow, en-route to Tri-Corner Knob Shelter, I¢ll pass a rock formation called Charlie¢s Bunion. This is one more of the many natural highlights of the journey. I¢m off to bed, but not too tired, so plan to listen to the radio for a while. I¢m still feeling the effects of town. Hopefully, that will be gone tomorrow. I¢m vowing less town-time from now on.
Date: 2006-04-01
From: Icewater Spring Shelter

To: Tricorner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.6
Weather: light rain

I¢m not sure why they call it Icewater Spring, the water was normal temperature. I was hiking by 8:30 a.m. today. After the hard rain last night, it cleared off by the time I got to Charlie¢s Bunion. It¢s an impressive area with lots of nice views, more jagged rock and sheer cliffs than is normal for the Appalachian Mountains. The rest of today¢s hike was fairly easy. I saw a couple of hawks in their mating ritual off Bradley¢s view. Other than that, my mind was wandering all over the place today; so much so that I made it to the half way point without realizing it. I paid more attention the second half of the day, only to realize it was all uphill. Not hard uphill, but enough that I took notice. Now, Icewater was at 5920 feet and the trail went uphill for about 11 12 miles. Even a gentle slope of one foot up in every five feet traveled would equal an elevation gain of 12, 144 putting the top of Mt. Sequyah at 18,064 feet. That would explain the ¢glaciers¢ at the top. Not sure what the actual elevation is, somewhere in the 6000¢ class, I assume, as the trail descends the last mile to the Tricorner Knob Shelter, which is at 5920¢, the same as Icewater. Go figure. That is just a sample of what goes through my head while hiking, along with songs, movies and lots of other nonsense. Not sure where I¢m headed tomorrow. Just out of the Smokies is my goal. It¢s not that I don¢t like the park, but I hate staying in shelters. My back is screaming for my hammock! That means at least 15 miles. Grey Fox, Homeward, and Crush are heading for Standing Bear Hostel at 18 something. I don¢t want to stay there so I¢ll probably camp somewhere short of there. Weather permitting, I want to camp on Max Patch the next night. We¢ll see.
Date: 2006-04-02
From: Tricorner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: scattered clouds

Wow! Big day, today. I did make it out of the Smokies, and then some. I started out slow and got to Cosby Knob shelter for lunch and water around 1:30. While I was there, a rain shower moved through, but passed just as I was hiking out around 2:45. I decided not to take the side trail to Mt Cammerer tower since there wouldn¢t be a view because of the weather. So, at 4:00 p.m. I started my descent to Davenport Gap. I just blew down the trail and by 5:30, I was sitting on a rock at the gap having a snack. That¢s 5.2 miles in an hour and half, very fast for me. The campsite I was going to stay at was too close to I-40, so I pushed on, thinking I¢d find a better site. By 7:30, I made the road to Standing Bear and I was exhausted. So I just decided to stay there. I was so tired, I didn¢t even feel like eating dinner. Grey Fox said Baloo will be here in the morning. It will be good to see him back out here. And, we caught up to Nightrider. He zero¢d at Standing Bear. On to Groundhog Creek tomorrow.
Date: 2006-04-03
From: Standing Bear Holster

To: Groundhog Creek Shelter
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: few clouds

Sandman actually told me about this a couple of days ago, but I wasn¢t sure what I wanted to say, if anything. Phoenix was a two-time thru-hiker, who, at the age of 66, was attempting his third. Some time in the early morning hours of March 31st, at the Mt. Collins shelter he slipped away in his sleep to meet his Creator. Now, I never met Phoenix, but everyone I¢ve talked to who has, speaks kindly of him. But, he was out here, doing what he loved to do. What better way to go? We should all be so lucky. Today was an uneventful hike. I left late from Standing Bear and decided to stop for lunch abou the time a couple of thunderstorms rolled through. Dry under my tarp, I ate and took a nap¢a little longer one than I expected. It was about 4:45 when I was rolling again. The winds were howling across Snowbird Mountain when I got there. Then I see this UFO-looking thing sitting just off the trail, so I went to inspect. Turns out to be an FAA monitoring station.. It¢s this big white satellite dish looking thing on top of a small building. I finally made the shelter around 7:30. I wasn¢t hungry, so just had some tea and then went to bed. I¢m heading over Max Patch then on to somewhere.
Date: 2006-04-04
From: Groundhog Creek Shelter

To: Old Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: scattered clouds

I woke up around 7:00 a.m. and decided to sleep 15 more minutes. Two hours later, I woke up and broke camp and hit the trail at 10:15. Because the Data book was wrong, I ran out of water and through I¢d have to wait another 8.5 miles for water. Luckily, right before Max Patch, there¢s a stream. The views from Max Patch were great today, albeit blustery. Gusts were easily 40+ mile per hour; it was hard to stand still in that kind of wind. I spent an hour or so soaking up the sun and the scenery before heading on. I got to a shelter around 2:30, which turned out to be the new Roaring Fork Shelter. Too early to stop, so I continued on. Only saw one other person today, a day hiker just out stretching his legs. Just before Lemon Gap, I got to another shelter that turned out to be the old Roaring Fork shelter. Oddly enough, it was built in 1985, not really very old. I was going to move on, but Grey Fox said the Walnut Mountain shelter was not in good shape, so I stayed put. While making dinner, I mentioned just going in to Hot Springs and hiking out and Krush mentioned his birthday party, so I guess I¢ll stay there for the night then hike out Thursday. The weather is supposed to be nice the next couple of days and I want to take advantage of it. P.S. Just realized I¢m over 10% done! Woo hoo! At this rate I¢ll finish in December!
Date: 2006-04-05
From: Old Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: scattered clouds

Just a quick update. In Hot Springs and heading out tommorrow. Hiking's been great and feeling better all the time. Will update later.On the trail at 9:00 a.m. Walnut Mountain is really depressing right now. Evidently they are in no hurry to move forward on the ¢historic homestead orchard¢, since it looks exactly like it did in Papabeen¢s pictures from January. It felt really good hiking all day. I must be getting my trail legs under me. Grey Fox told me that the number of red blood cells quadruples somewhere in the fourth or fifth weeks for most people. It is a great feeling! I did the 14+ miles to Hot Springs in under 5 12 hours. That includes stopping for breaks twice. After a burger at the Smokey Mountain Diner, I hung out with Chainsaw, Able Jack, Nor¢easter and the crew. One of the guys at the outfitter officially named our group. We are now the Rat Pack. Not sure how we actually ¢earned¢ that one. The group consists of : Grey Fox, Baloo w/Cassie the dog, Freight Train, Night Rider, Krush, Homeward and me. I am also an associate member of team Riff Raff along with Chainsaw, Able Jack, Nor¢easter and Rat Puke. Krush¢s sister showed up around 11: p.m. and we all headed down to a campsite by the river, had a fire and sat around having a great time! Everyone crashed around sunrise. To hike out tomorrow, or not? That is the question.
Date: 2006-04-06
From: Campsite on French Broad River

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 1.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Okay, Okay, I know one little mile really doesn¢t count as a hiking day. But it¢s a really great spot and after getting town chores done, it was late in the day. Just me and Freight Train here, everyone else is still in town. Cassie cut her foot yesterday, so baloo and Grey Fox might not hike out tomorrow.
Date: 2006-04-07
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Spring Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 10.0
Weather: clear sky

Every mile on the A.T is not created equal! With a pack fully ladened with 8 days of food and the contents of my bounce box, I hiked out in 80 degree temps. It was a rough ten miles, and not marked well in the Mill Ridge area. I spent a little time at Mill Ridge Pond talking with a couple of day hikers about the trail and day-to-day routines. They¢re thinking of doing a thru-hike, so I gave them the limited advice that 275 miles affords.Not many at the shelter tonight, guess everyone stayed in town to wait out the severe thunderstorms headed this way. Oh, and we¢re under a tornado watch. Speaking of storms, I just heard thunder. So far this system has killed around 40 people. I hope Sandman, Junco and I don¢t make it 43.I saw my first ¢wildlife¢ today, if you consider a lizard fauna. I sat on a log to take a break and he was chillin¢ a few feet down. We just sat there, looking at each other every now and then. He practically posed for a picture, but took off when Sandman walked up. I also saw two spring flowers. One looks like a miniature orchid or iris and the other is kind of daisy-ish. (Just saw lightning, storms a-gettin¢ closer)Provided I survive the night, tomorrow¢s destination is the Jerry Cabin Shelter. It should be a bit cooler then and I ate my heaviest dinner tonight, so the 15.4 miles shouldn¢t be as bad. The only other thing is that the clip on my hip belt is all but broken. I¢ll probably make-shift a fix out of my bear bag rope to make it to Damascus.
Date: 2006-04-08
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Little Laurel Shelter
Miles today: 8.6
Weather: light rain

What a night! Wind gusts around 60 mph and torrential rain most of the night. I was awake through the first wave and escaped unscathed, so I went to sleep. Sometime during the second wave, my rain fly came loose and I awoke to a soaked everything! I grabbed my drenched sleeping bag and pad and headed for the shelter, vowing to zero here to let everything dry out.I woke back up around 10 a.m. and it was still foggy and raining off and on. Since nothing will dry in these conditions, I decided to push on to the next shelter; it gave me something to do while being miserable.I took my time packing since it was a short hike, and I got on the trail around 12:30. I felt pretty good despite the intermittent rain showers, except for being soaked in my rain gear. I made the shelter just before 4 p.m. and found a scout troop here. They are from just outside Greensboro, NC, and come out every year on spring break and do 50 miles on the A.T.After talking with them a bit, I unpacked everything and spread it out in hopes that it would dry before bed time. It didn¢t. Then, to make matters worse, the fog rolled in and it rained again and the temperature dropped. Luckily, it¢s supposed to be sunny tomorrow, so I¢ll spread everything out again and hope it dries before I pack up and head for the next shelter.Bonesaw and Tricycle came in late and said that Team Riff Raff was staying at Spring Mountain tonight after camping at the Pond the night before. Good chance they will catch up tomorrow or so.
Date: 2006-04-09
From: Little Laurel Shelter

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 6.8
Weather: clear sky

With everything dried out, great hiking day! The walk over Blackstack Cliffs was truly amazing! The Jerry Cabin Shelter reminded me of the ones in the Smokies. We tried to get a fire going, as it was a little chilly, but the wood was still a little wet.Freight Train and Knightrider showed up briefly and then pushed on. They are racing Grey Fox and Baloo to Damascus. Only thing is, Grey Fox and Baloo will be slack-packing the entire section and going back to Boone, NC every night. It ought to be interesting. Nor¢easter came in, and said he didn¢t know how far back Able Jack and Chainsaw were. He¢s trying to make it in to Erwin to pick up his new boots.
Date: 2006-04-10
From: Jerry Cabin Shelter

To: Miss Janet's House
Miles today: 8.6

I hiked with Nor¢easter and we decided to try to catch a ride into Erwin from Devil¢s Fork Gap. I was low on food from the short mile days, and Nor¢easter¢s boot was really digging into his foot. Redneck Rye picked us up and took us to Miss Janet¢s. We met Lone Wolf and Bag of Tricks there.
Date: 2006-04-21
From: Damascus

To: Lost Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

Well, I was going to leave Damascus yesterday, but got depressed when I weighed my pack and it weighed 46 pounds. So, I asked Dirt to help me do a shakedown. All said and done, my pack lost 8 pounds with 5 days of food and 2 liters of water! I can tell a difference. I still have my winter sleeping bag and when that goes home in Pearisburg, VA, I¢ll be down another 4 pounds.Finally around 11:00 a.m. today we hiked out of town! We being: Ajax, Novocain, Night Rider, Freight Train, Dirt and me. We decided to take the Virginia Creekper Trail instead of the A.T. for the first section since the Creeper is right on the creek. Much more beautiful than the A.T. We got to Taylor¢s Valley around 2:30 and stopped for lunch at the Creeper Trail Caf©. Low and behold, there¢s a sign by the door announcing bluegrass music on Friday and Saturday nights. Well, after lunch, which was great by the way, I asked the lady working the register if it was okay for us to hang out there so we could stick around for the show.After sitting around for a while, eating way too much, a couple of the group went fishing and actually caught a couple of trout. The music began about 7-ish, and was more of a good-old boy jam session. Everyone in the community who could pick, or strum or sing, I think, got up there and put on a great show. They even made us grubby hikers feel welcome by asking if we wanted to hear anything in particular.With great food and good music all around, we finally hiked out around 10:30 p.m. A good 7 miles later we got to the Lost Mountain Shelter, cooked dinner, then hit the hay just as a thunderstorm moved in. I almost forgot to mention it was raining when we left Damascus. I practically forgot, mainly because it was such a great day.
Date: 2006-04-22
From: Lost Mountain Shelter

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: moderate rain

What a weird, but wonderful, day! We all woke up later than normal. It might have had something to do with not getting in until 1:00 a.m. last night, or the rain still falling, or a little bit of both. By around 1:00 p.m., the rain had stopped, we were all packed up and ready to move out. Not 100 feet up the trail, it started raining again. Well, a couple of people headed back to the shelter to put on rain gear and ,well, Novocain, Dirt, Night Rider and I ended up playing cards and having dinner. I think we were finally hiking by 7:00 p.m.So, our second night of night hiking took us to the top of Whitetop Mountain around 9:00 p.m. with a moonless, clear sky. It was magical: such a crystal clear, unobstructed 360 degree view of the sky. We saw, besides the thousands of stars, one satellite, the international space station and several meteorites. We were hoping for a UFO, but no luck. We all just sat there, headlamps off, gazing at the display before us. I know I felt special, like we were the only ones seeing the universe this way at this moment. I hated to move on, but knew we had to.We got to the shelter around 1:00 a.m. again and since there¢s no camping, I had to stay in the shelter. We found a cat living in the shelter. Hope it catches mice!