morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-06-23
From: Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: Dalton, MA
Miles today: 20.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 103- June 23, Upper Goose Pond Cabin to Dalton, MA, 20.6 miles. Yahoo- our 4 20+ mile days are completed and we lived to tell about it! We had a wonderful start to our day-the caretaker at the cabin where we stayed last night cooked pancakes for all the hikers this morning. We delayed our usual early start so we could enjoy this treat as well as the company of the other hikers. The elevation map for today showed a long section of flat terrain but it proved to be a bit more challenging than I thought it would be. The trail conditions were rocky and rooty which prevented me from hitting my stride. I was usually having to watch where I placed each foot so I didn't stumble. Oh well, there were some lovely sections through the woods and we did very little rock climbing. Just after crossing I-90, the MA turnpike, we discovered some trail magic! A former hiker left a box of Clif Bars on the trail with a note to enjoy them! So we each tucked a bar into our pockets and were grateful for the thoughtfulness of others. Speaking of the MA turnpike, to Charlie D. thanks for the wave-we picked it up today!Our guidebook mentioned that about 10 miles into our hike today we'd go near the Cookie Lady's house. That sounded good to us so when we got to the cross road we, along with Mary Poppins, walked the tenth of a mile to her house. We were disappointed to discover no one home but took advantage of her offer to fill our water bottles and to leave our trash in her garbage can. Jim and I decided to eat our lunch on her picnic table in the shade, but Mary Poppins needed to move on. As we were finishing our lunch this guy emerged from the high-bush blueberry plants wearing a hazmat-like suit and pulling a portable sprayer. It was the Cookie Man, Roy, and he had been spraying the blueberry crop. He went into his house, took off the hazmat suit and came out carrying a basket with 6 cookies in it. Jim and I each took one and thanked him and then he told us that all 6 cookies were for us! Trail Magic strikes again! We bought a couple of lemonades from him and Jim also bought a hard-boiled egg. We chatted with Roy for a while and learned that his blueberry bushes produce about a ton of berries each year and that he was originally from Watertown, NY. That bit if information led to a discussion about snow! We enjoyed our time with Roy and truly appreciate his and his wife's commitment to helping hikers. We are in a motel in Dalton, MA and offered to share the room with Mary Poppins, which we are happy that she accepted. Tomorrow is a relatively short day, 14 miles, so we don't plan on getting a real early start. The weather was perfect again today, but changes may be in our future as there is rain in the forecast. Oh well, no rain, no Maine! All is well.
Date: 2014-06-24
From: Dalton, MA

To: Wilbur Clearing Shelter
Miles today: 20.5
Weather: broken clouds

Day 104-June 24, Dalton, MA to Wilbur Clearing Shelter, 20.5 miles. You may have noticed that we did another 20+ mile day. We've had a change of plans. We left Dalton this morning shortly after 8 after enjoying a very tasty breakfast at a local coffee shop. We thought we were only hiking about 14 miles so I wasn't pushing the pace. After 9 comfortable miles we came to the town of Cheshire where we walked the short distance off the trail to the General Store where we bought cold drinks and ice cream treats to go along with our peanut butter sandwiches. After lunch, while we were hiking Jim decided to check our email and found a very recent note from my Dad saying that my Mom was in the hospital! So I immediately tried to call him and was fortunate to catch him before he left camp to return to the hospital. After our quick chat I realized that they were not going to be able to pick us up on Thursday as planned but I really wanted to be with my Mom and Dad. So here is the good news: our friends, Sandy and Walt were planning on meeting up with us tomorrow for lunch and to hike with us for a bit. After a couple more phone calls they willingly agreed to still pick us up but will now take us to the hospital. So we will start our zero days a day early. I have no idea what this medical setback with my Mom will do to our hiking schedule. Family comes first The forecast for tomorrow is for thunderstorms and our original hiking plan had us climbing up and over Mt. Greylock, MA's highest point, first thing tomorrow morning before our meet up with Sandy and Walt. Jim got concerned that we might be delayed on top of the mountain if those storms rolled through so he suggested that we walk 6.6 extra miles today so we were on the down side of Greylock tomorrow. It was a good idea but that now makes five 20+ mile days in a row. We did have good views from the top of Mt. Greylock and we admired the war memorial monument on the summit. There is a youth trail crew camped here tonight. I am hoping that they worked hard enough today that all the kids will turn in early!
Date: 2014-06-25
From: Wilbur Clearing Shelter

To: North Adams, MA
Miles today: 3.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 105-June 25, Wilbur Clearing Shelter to North Adams, MA, 3 miles. Short miles, lunch with friends, and seeing my parents~ it's been a good day. Our friends Sandy and Walt were meeting us at 10:30 AM and we only had 3 miles to walk to get to the meeting spot but we got an early start because we had lots of downhill in those miles and we didn't want to get rained on. The rain never materialized during our hike and we got to our meeting spot with plenty of time to spare. Sandy and Walt arrived as planned and instead of lunch and then hiking with us we started to drive towards the hospital which was caring for my Mom. We stopped for a nice lunch in Cambridge, NY and then finished the drive to the hospital. We are grateful to Sandy and Walt for their flexibility and willingness to shuttle us around the Hudson River Valley. My Mom was being discharged from the hospital so we all piled into their car and my Dad drove us all to camp! It is so good to be back at camp since we missed last summer because we were in Australia. It has been raining quite heavily during the late afternoon and evening and we hope all of our hiker friends are finding places to stay dry and safe. We will take our 2 zero days here and enjoy the rest and relaxation and get ready for the final push to Maine. Back on the trail on Saturday. All is well.
Date: 2014-06-26
From: North Adams, MA

To: North Adams, MA
Miles today: 0.0

Day 106-June 26, Zero Day at camp. This has been a day of rest. And there is no better place to rest than at our camp in the Adirondacks. Jim helped my Dad re-stock the wood shed. This afternoon I took Jim to Glens Falls where he rented a car and drove home to Rochester to visit his Mom. He'll be back at camp tomorrow night. My exercise today was a quick row around the lake after dinner. More of the same is planned for tomorrow and then back to the trail on Saturday. We did make some tentative plans for the next couple of weeks on the trail including reservations at the Green Mountain Hostel and a possible stay at a vegetable farm near the VT/NH border. All is well.
Date: 2014-06-27
From: North Adams, MA

To: North Adams, MA
Miles today: 0.0

Day 107-June 27, North Adams, MA, 0 milesI'm rested, rejuvenated, re-energized and ready to return to the trail. After 2 zero days at camp, my Dad will take us back to the trail in North Adams where Sandy and Walt picked us up on Wednesday and we will continue our hike north. Thanks for the many well wishes for my Mom. She is feeling well but will return to Rochester for further evaluation and diagnosis. All is well.
Date: 2014-06-28
From: North Adams, MA

To: Congdon Shelter
Miles today: 14.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Day -108-June 28, North Adams, MA to Congdon shelter, 14.1 miles. After a tearful good bye to my Mom at camp, my Dad drove us to North Adams where Sandy and Walt picked us up way back on Wednesday. My Dad walked a short ways on the trail and then I had a tearful goodbye with him as he headed back to his car to return to camp. Being at camp with them for a couple of days was good for us all! Thanks Mom and Dad!We had two highlights today-we entered our 12th state by leaving MA and entering VT and we crossed the 1600 mile mark! As soon as we entered Vermont the AT is concurrent with Vermont's Long Trail. These two famous trails share blazes for 105 miles before the AT peels off, heading to New Hampshire. The Long Trail continues north to Canada. We expect to see a fair number of people out hiking because of the popularity of both trails and the fact that it is summer! This shelter area must already have a dozen people at it. AT hikers refer to Vermont as "Ver-mud" because the trail through this state is notorious for its long stretches of mud. We had our introduction to the mud today but we were able to navigate our way through the deepest muck by rock hopping and stepping on tree roots. I imagine that some more rain would only add to the mess but today was dry and tomorrow is forecasted to be rain-free too. The tent sites around this shelter aren't vest but we've managed to get the tent up in close quarters and just down wind of the privy!!! Thankfully there is not much wind. Our dinner is rehydrating as I type this- ground beef, peas, pasta and baked bean gravy. Yummy! All is well.
Date: 2014-06-29
From: Congdon Shelter

To: Kid Gore Shelter
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 109-June 29,Congdon shelter to Kid Gore Shelter, 18.7 miles. Up to another clear day and on the trail around 6:30 AM. The toughest part of our walk today was the descent to Rt. 9, the road into Bennington, and the climb out of the road cut. Both were steep and had many rock steps in place to help with going up or down. We found trail magic when we arrived in the parking lot on Rt. 9! Steve offered us cold drinks and something to eat! We stood around talking to him while we chugged our Gatorades and ate bananas. Thanks Steve-it was perfect! We have been hiking through forests with predominately beech trees now as opposed to the mostly oak forests that we've been in. The only problem with with the predominance of beech trees is that the trail is not always clearly blazed because the light gray bark of the beech trees does not lend itself to a visible white blaze. We weren't sure we were still on the trail several times but we walked on until we spied a dark barked tree that had the blaze. We noticed lots of moose droppings along the trail today and kept our eyes peeled for one of those great beasts, but no luck yet. There were just a few really muddy, wet sections of the trail today, mostly in the morning. By the afternoon our boots had dried out and we were able to keep them that way all the way to the shelter. Dry boots and clean socks in the morning-a great way to start a day!The shelter we are at tonight has a great view of the Green Mountains and our tent seems to be near a garter snake nest as there were 3 snakes sunning themselves on a nearby rock. I made sure the zippers on the tent were securely closed! All is well.
Date: 2014-06-30
From: Kid Gore Shelter

To: Stratton Mountain Pond Shelter
Miles today: 15.0

Day 110-June 30, Kid Gore Shelter to Stratton Pond Shelter, 15 miles. In case you were worried, the snakes were not a problem last night or this morning! The highlight/challenge of the day was the climb up and down Stratton Mountain, you know, where they downhill ski here in Vermont! We had an 8 mile walk to get to the base of the mountain and then the climb began. Jim put it all in perspective when he compared the climb to going up Mt. Hadley, a mountain near our camp in the Adirondacks, which we've climbed numerous times. He said the elevation gain was the same as Hadley, but the distance to cover that elevation was twice as far as going up Hadley. I knew I could manage that just fine and I did. We cruised up the 1700 feet in 3.4 miles in an hour and a half. We enjoyed the view from the top of the Stratton Mountain fire tower and were happy to find cell service there so I could post yesterday's journal. We ate lunch on top and then began the descent, which wasn't too bad. We are staying in a shelter tonight that is supposed to have a caretaker and charge $5 per person. We've heard rumors that no caretaker has been on site for a while so it may be free. The Green Mountain Hiking Club charges this fee at 4 of its shelters in the higher use areas here in Vermont and provides a caretaker to help manage the resources and minimize hiker impact in this area. This is a popular shelter because it sits near Stratton Pond. We used the pond for swimming and to wash the mud off of our legs this afternoon. It was lovely and reminded us of our lake in the Adirondacks. Tomorrow's a short day as we head into Manchester Center to stay at another highly recommended hostel. We will also need to resupply for the next few days. We're here tonight with The Machine and 3 section hikers (so far). All is well.
Date: 2014-07-01
From: Stratton Mountain Pond Shelter

To: Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 111-July 1, Stratton Pond Shelter to Manchester Center, VT, 10.7 miles. It's a good thing we didn't have far to walk today because neither of us slept well last night. We slept in the shelter because there was no camping allowed in the vicinity of this particular shelter. The mosquitos were a bit of a problem and it was a warm enough night that we didn't want to be in our sleeping bags, but we needed to be in to keep those mosquitos from driving us crazy. Plus there was snoring and people up and about all night. We had a nice surprise last night when we returned to the shelterafter watching the sunset on Stratton Pond we discovered that Frank had just walked into the shelter. Frank is one half of Frank and Nancy who we hiked with for the first 2 weeks back in March. Nancy suffered an ankle injury and got off the trail in Damascus. Frank has hiked on and we were thrilled to see him. I am sorry that Nancy is not with him and wish her a full recovery. We were on the trail by 6:30 this morning and the first 6 miles were fairly flat with good trail conditions so went by quickly. The last 4.7 miles were a bit hillier, but we still made good time. The day was warming up as the temperature was forecasted to hit 90 degrees today so we were happy to have our miles done by 10:30. Once we reached the road to Manchester Center I stuck out my thumb and 10 minutes later I had a ride into town. Our town "Things to Do" list included grocery shopping, getting lunch and having some Ben and Jerry's ice cream. We completed the list and made a call to Jeff at the Green Mountain House Hostel who promptly drove into town to pick us up. Jeff owns the Green Mountain House and what a beautiful hostel it is! We are in one of the bedrooms in this meticulously cared for home. Our room is a private room with two beds and there are 2 other rooms that have 5 beds each. There is a full kitchen for use by hikers as well as a comfortable, large living room with a huge TV and several nice couches and chairs. There is a spotless bathroom on each floor as well as a washer and dryer for our use. We bought food in town to cook for our dinner tonight and will have breakfast with food provided by Jeff. He will then return us to the trail at a time of our choosing. The cost is $25 per person. I've been in motels which charge a lot more and provide a lot less service. This is a great spot! Another milestone: we have now completed 3/4 of the miles on the AT! Yippee!I'm not sure how far we are hiking tomorrow but there are 3 shelter options in a 5 mile stretch after we've hiked about 15 miles so we'll see how we are feeling and what our options are for tenting. All is well.
Date: 2014-07-02
From: Manchester Center, VT

To: Little Rock Pond Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: clear sky

Day 112-July 2, Manchester Center, VT to Little Rock Pond Shelter, 19.8 miles. We had a very comfortable stay at the Green Mountain House Hostel, Jeff, the owner, drove a group of us back to the trail at 6:30 AM. We were unsure of our exact destination but at a rest break we brought out the maps for the next few days and made our plans. We hiked nearly 20 miles today, will do the same again tomorrow and then have about 12 miles to get to the Inn at Long Trail where we have a reservation and a plan to meet our friend, Mike B. Today we climbed the following mountains: Bromley (another VT ski hill), Styles, Peru and Baker. None were really difficult but some were longer than others. On top of Bromley we could see the chairlift tower and where the different ski trails peeled off. Styles and Peru were nothing special but Baker was a rocky climb to the summit and great views of the surrounding area. As we started on the last two mile section we heard the rumblings of thunder overhead and I tried to keep the pace up. Within a quarter mile of this shelter some rain started to fall but we climbed up the steps of the shelter to the covered eating area just as the skies opened up and the rain came down in buckets! There was a guy, Eric, sitting at the picnic table who has been camping at this shelter for a few days enjoying the lovely pond that is right by he shelter. After the rain stopped Eric told us how good the swimming was in the pond so off we went. Jim and Eric swam and I had a good rinse off. The water was quite warm. We have decided to try sleeping in the shelter again since the bugs don't seem too bad. There are 3 others currently in the shelter, including our friend Frank and there are 3 others camping on nearby tent platforms. We have no cell service at all here so we're not sure what the weather holds for tomorrow. Time will tell. All is well.
Date: 2014-07-03
From: Little Rock Pond Shelter

To: Governor Clements Shelter
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 113- July 3, Little Rock Pond Shelter to Governor Clemens Shelter, 19.4 miles. We has a surprisingly good night in the shelter-the bugs were not a problem! We were on the trail at 6:20 this morning and you may notice that our departure time keeps getting earlier-Jim cannot sleep in! Today there were several highlights during our 19+ miles. We enjoyed 2 art installations along the side of the trail. Both consisted of large rock cairns that hikers had built. They were unique and interesting to look at. We added our own rocks to each collections. We passed by 2 major waterfalls today and we love waterfalls! The first was on Bully Brook and looked like it would have been an exciting Slip 'n Slide run! The second one was on the Mill River, a river near VT 130 so there were people there swimming in the pools above and below the falls. This was the place where we picked up Jim's nephew, Michal, 6-7 years ago when he thru-hiked the AT and it looked familiar to us, although there was more water in the river this time than when we were here for Michal. There was a reroute on the trail today to go around a bridge that was blown out a couple of years ago when Hurricane Irene devastated this area. The reroute was .5 miles longer than the 1.5 miles of the original trail and followed gravel roads. The sun was out and it was hot so we decided to take the original trail and take our chances with fording the river. This was a good decision as we were able to rock hop across the river. The last few days we have witnessed a phenomenon of sweating rocks. The temps have been hot and humid and when large rocks are mostly buried in the ground where it is cool, the part that is above ground gets a wet shine from the condensation of the hot humid air. These wet rocks have made sections of the trail more challenging than they need to be. But Jim and I have both had sweat dripping off our chins and elbows so the rocks might as well be feeling the heat too. As I write this the thunder is rumbling over head and the wind has picked up. Rain is on the way. We will be sleeping in the tent tonight because the bugs seem to be a bit more of a problem here. Tomorrow we climb up and over Killington Mountain, going 12+ milesfor a night at the Inn at Long Trail near Rutland. Three of the other guys at this shelter tonight are also planning to spend the Fourth of July in/near Rutland. Today we passed a sign indicating we had less than 500 miles to go!All is well.
Date: 2014-07-04
From: Governor Clements Shelter

To: Rutland, VT
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: broken clouds

Day 114-July 4, Governor Clements Shelter to Inn at Long Trail, Rutland, VT, 12.4 miles. Update from last night: for a while we thought we might have to build an ark, but the rain abated and we were dry in the tent. Probably should have stayed in the shelter, but it is good to know our tent will keep us dry in a downpour. We had 12+ miles today to get us to the Inn at Long Trail, where we had a reservation. In between us and the Inn was Killington Mountain so we climbed up and over it. The climb up wasn't too bad except for a half mile stretch which was steep, rocky and rooty. It was very slow going because even with the above mentioned conditions everything was very wet from last night's rain. Slow and steady got us through. There were no views from the top so we headed down the other side of the mountain. You may remember that the AT and the Vermont Long Trail shared the same path for 105 miles here in Vermont. Today the trails split with the Long Trail heading north to the Canadian border and the AT turning east towards New Hampshire. We had a visit from Mike B. who is a good friend of Corey's (and us!), and who lives in Burlington, VT. He arrived at the Inn about 3 PM, bearing food! Sub sandwiches, crackers and cheese, salads, beer and Ben and Jerry's ice cream! Is it any wonder that we love this kid? He drove us into town of Rutland so we could grocery shop for the next few days. Mike was able to stay through dinner in the pub here at the Inn with us. It was great to see him again and are thrilled that he would spend his Fourth of July holiday driving a couple of hours to hang with us! More love from the Syracuse University cross country team. Thanks Mike!Our plans are now to take 3 days to get to New Hampshire. We have made arrangements with loyal Trail Journal readers to stay a night with them on their vegetable farm near the VT/NH border. Trail Magic!All is well.
Date: 2014-07-05
From: Rutland, VT

To: Winturri Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: clear sky

Day 115-July 5, Inn at Long Trail, Rutland to Winturri Shelter, 18 miles. We got a later than usual start today because our room reservation included a full breakfast and the Inn didn't start serving until 7:30. With full bellies we had to climb a half mile up to get to the AT and then we spent the rest of the day going up and down, a lot. Survivor Man reports that we climbed 3869 feet today. Today we celebrated crossing 1700 mile mark! This is a lot of miles but we still have a bunch to go! The weather was great for hiking-mid 70's, low humidity, and a good breeze. There were also no sweating rocks today! Near the end of our miles today we came to a Lookout on top of a private cabin. There was a steep set of steps up to the roof line of the cabin where there was a viewing platform for the surrounding landscape. It was quite an impressive set up and view. I'll try to include a photo either with this journal entry or in the photo gallery. We climbed up and enjoyed the panoramic view of the Green Mountains. If you are prepared with water you could stay the night in the cabin, but we didn't have much water and we wanted to finish our planned miles for today and not add to what will already be a long day tomorrow. We passed by 2 lovely waterfalls, one which was still used to power a mill of some sort. We also walked by Kent Pond, a beautiful small lake that looked very inviting. We are at a shelter tonight with several hikers we know ( Survivor Man, Dune and Inflammable) and some new hikers (Mosey Along, and some guy whose name I have already forgotten!). We know that 4 young women who we haven't seen since Memorial Day are staying at the lookout cabin tonight. All is well.