morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-03-23
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Fontana Lodge
Miles today: 5.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Last night's sleep was much better... the temperature was a bit warmer, which meant I could sleep without my neckwarmer and 2 pairs of socks, and there was no evidence of mice. Ah, the small pleasures. In the middle of the night the rain started, and it was so nice to know that I was warm and dry in an uncrowded shelter.Wild Blue and I were packed up and on the trail by 9. I think we were both spurred on by the thought of a short mileage day to make it to Fontana Village. The trail started uphill (what a surprise) but ultimately turned downhill for the last several miles. I had glimpses of Fontana Dam and the lake, but it took a long time to make it to the bottom, especially since the trail was a bit muddy from the rain.Once down there was a spot with a phone to call for a pickup to Fontana Lodge, where I'm staying tonight. First order of business was a shower, followed by a walk to the laundromat, and finally a stop at The Pit Stop for a hot dog, chips, and coke while my clothes were in the washer. Face it, I have no pride when it comes to my food consumption these days! I had a good conversation with Goat and Tommyhawk, two brothers hiking from NY state, and then I headed out to check my laundry. As I sat in the laundromat, Chino and Wild Blue walked by, so of course I had to join them at The Pit Stop for a second round of food (nachos this time). Whistle and Hot Dog came in as well.Wild Blue, Chino, and I all headed up to the lodge, where we capitalized on the WiFi in the comfy lobby. Eventually Maineiac and Grim came in, and I met a whole new group of hikers, including Clever Girl, Dumptruck, Mac, Apollo, Hermes, Roman, and several others whose names escape me. It's so interesting how one can hike for miles without seeing familiar faces, and then suddenly you're all reunited again.Lots of talk about the weather, which doesn't sound too good, and many are planning a zero day tomorrow at the lodge. I'm itching to hike, however, as are Chino and Wild Blue. They're both staying at the Fontana Hilton (the nickname for the grand shelter in this area) so they'll get an earlier start on the trail than I will.Had an excellent burger, fries, and salad in the restaurant and then spent some time reorganizing my pack and strategizing food for the Smokies. My understanding of the Smokies is that cell service is particularly spotty, so I may not be able to post journal entries for a few days...Today's highlight: being here at the lodge, clean and well fed, with clean clothes in my pack.
Date: 2013-03-24
From: Fontana Lodge

To: Russell Field Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up well rested and was the first in the dining room when it opened at 7:30. Ate a wonderful breakfast, packed up, checked out, and got a shuttle back to the trailhead.I was worried about the weather due to the dire forecasts, so had all my rain gear on. The weather turned out to be much better than predicted... I walked through misty fog for most of the morning, followed by some partial clearing and sunshine. Now, at 7:30 p.m. the rain is pouring down and the wind's blowing, but fortunately I'm dry in the shelter.The first 5 miles today were up, with a huge elevation gain. Glad to get that out of the way! Haven't seen any bears yet but did see a deer.A pretty full shelter here tonight, with Seventeen, Maineiac, Rainbow Braid, Mowgli, Tommy, Apple Pie, and a few others. A group of drenched and exhausted section hikers just came in as well.Great Smokey Mountain National Park operates a bit differently. All hikers are required to stay in the shelters. The shelters are all made of stone and have fireplaces. In case this sounds too luxurious, let me assure you that the floors are dirt and there are only 3 sides to the shelter.The big controversy about the park this year, however, is that there is now a $20 thru hiking fee assessed to all thru hikers. This isn't sitting well with many in the hiking community, as you might imagine. I'm a huge fan of the national park system, so if my $20 helps with their expenses, great. Possible chance for snow tomorrow, so we'll see what happens...Today's highlight: getting my day's hike in before the rain started.
Date: 2013-03-25
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Siler's Bald Shelter
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: light snow

Well, this day was hard. The rain turned into snow overnight, and we all woke up to snow on the ground and snow swirling in the air. What else could we do but hike? Too cold to linger in the shelter.I walked in the snow all day... probably 4 inches but as the day progressed I waded through drifts up to a foot high. My microspikes came in handy but it was still hard. I'm sure there were lots of magnificent views but we didn't see any.Stopped in Derrick's Knob Shelter for lunch at 2, but it was too cold to stop for the day. We all decided to walk another 5.5 miles to Siler's Bald Shelter. Full house tonight, with Oz, Jacob, Mowgli, Streaker, Rainbow Braid, Maineiac, Wild Blue, and a few others. Several of us are thinking about calling for a shuttle into Gatlinburg tomorrow... we need a break from this weather. Almost 15 miles in the snow today - 7:45 and time for bed.Today's highlight: hmmm... I guess the snow is pretty.
Date: 2013-03-26
From: Siler's Bald Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 1.7
Weather: light snow

Woke up hopeful that the snow had ended, but no such luck. The snow was still coming down hard, with a strong and blustery wind. We had a discussion in the shelter, trying to sort out our options. We decided we'd head for the next shelter, only 1.7 miles away, and re-evaluate at that point. Everyone wanted to stick together, since we were facing some tough weather. We all had visions of getting off of the trail and staying in Gatlinburg for the night, getting a ride at Newfound Gap (12 hiking miles away).We started out, with Maineiac leading the way, and soon found that over a foot of snow had fallen and there were waist high drifts that we had to cross through. A little way up the trail we ran into Movie Star, who had headed south looking for our group. He updated us that: 1. The Newfound Gap Road was shut down due to snow, 2. The snow was supposed to continue until Thursday, and 3. There was a side trail up ahead that would take us to a road crossing within 12 miles.We all pondered our options as we trudged on to Double Springs Shelter. Once there we looked at a map, discussed our options, and finally decided to stay put. This shelter is more airtight than the last one, has a piped water source, and also has a privy, so it seemed like a decent place to wait out the storm. We gathered wood and have kept a roaring fire going all day, which has been a big help in drying our socks and boots. Midway through the afternoon another group of hikers came through, and 3 stayed here and 3 pushed on to the next shelter.Full house here tonight, with Maineiac, Movie Star, Rainbow Braid, Wild Blue, Tin Man (formerly Jacob), Oz, Chino, Genie, Duffel Miner, Mowgli, Streaker, and two others. I was able to contact the park service and was told the snow's supposed to let up tomorrow, so we're hopeful. We'd all like to get into Gatlinburg, but don't know if that will happen due to the closed road.This shelter sits at 5,511 feet, and tomorrow we cross Clingman's Dome, the highest point on the entire AT, at 6,655 feet. Not sure if we'll see anything beyond snow! This AT adventure continues to throw its twists and turns.Today's highlight: being with this great group of hikers. I'm with folks from Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kansas, West Virginia, Minnesota, and Maine, and we're all working and joking together to make the most of a lousy situation.
Date: 2013-03-27
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: Newfound Gap Road (and into Gatlinburg)
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: few clouds

After yesterday's long ordeal, we were all hopeful that we could move on and out this morning. Woke up to more gray skies and blowing snow but we all decided to pack up. I called the park service backcountry info number and was told that although the Newfound Gap Road was closed, we might be able to catch a ride with highway maintenance employees if we could make it to the gap.We all packed up quickly (yes, it was really cold once again) and we were on the trail by 8 a.m., looking at a 10.8 mile hike to reach Newfound Gap. And not only did we need to hike all those miles through the snow, the trail took us up and over Clingman's Dome, the highest point on the entire AT. Can you hear me sighing yet?So off we all went, trudging through 1+ foot of snow. Miraculously, as we were nearing Clingman's Dome, the sun came out and we were rewarded with awesome views. It was especially cool to be the only people experiencing this... since the roads up were all closed we were the fortunate ones. If you click on the "photos" link on the left you'll see some more pictures from today.After Clingman's we still had 7+ miles to cover, and all I'll say about those miles is that we had to dig extremely deep to keep going. Although the sun came out and it was beautiful, it was really, really tough. We all decided that we should receive the bad a** hikers' award - we deserved it for sure.At long last we reached Newfound Gap and were told by a snowplow driver that they were reopening the road. We called for a shuttle and while we waited in the parking lot car after car drove up. We couldn't figure out what the big attraction was until we realized that such a large amount of snow in Tennessee is quite an oddity. Families were up there taking pictures and playing in the snow... pretty amusing since we'd had our fill of snow at that point!Now I'm in Gatlinburg, where the 12 of us are staying until Friday. We're all going to rest up and eat tomorrow (already started the eating tonight...) before getting back on the trail on Friday. After 3 days of being cold it feels truly wonderful to be clean and well fed. Hopefully some of the snow up high will have melted a bit by Friday...Today's highlight: toss-up between Clingman's Dome and being here in Gatlinburg.
Date: 2013-03-28
From: Newfound Gap Road (and into Gatlinburg)

To: Gatlinburg (Grand Prix Motel)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

After seeing nothing but snow, trees, hikers, and more snow, Gatlinburg was sensory overload! I'd never been here before, but the town seems like a cross between Atlantic City, Jackson Hole, Provincetown, and someone added Niagara Falls to the mix. Aerial tramway, Ripley's, Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum, Moonshine Distillery... Gatlinburg has it all going on. Oh, and fudge and every kind of candy and fried food you can imagine. Apparently it's spring vacation week for lots of schools in the south, so the town is packed with tourists. The hikers are easy to spot by their shuffle and hungry look, and overall the people watching here is extremely entertaining.This being a zero day, we had chores to attend to. First on the agenda was food, so we headed to The Log Cabin for breakfast. Then back to the motel for awhile to catch up on all our email, etc. After that we headed to the grocery store to resupply our food, which turned out to be a bigger ordeal than expected, since we had to locate the correct trolley to take. By the time we returned from the grocery store it was 2 p.m. and we were of course very hungry. Headed to Shoney's for their buffet, where some of our group ate yesterday as well. We ate our fill and then back to the motel for packing, naps, more eating, and overall downtime. All in all, a relaxing day.One day here is plenty, however, and tomorrow 8 of us are heading back out on the trail. Chino and I will be catching an 8:30 shuttle to the trail, and Rainbow Braid, Wild Blue, Movie Star, Maineiac, Duffel Miner, and Genie will be catching a shuttle at 10. Several familiar faces appeared in town today from the trail (Grim, Tommyhawk, and Goat) and they said it's tough going up there, so we're not sure what to expect. We don't want to get too comfortable back in civilization, though, so off we head to Newfound Gap in the morning to continue the trek north...Today's highlight: this totally relaxing day.
Date: 2013-03-29
From: Gatlinburg (Grand Prix Motel)

To: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up early to get packed and organized for our 8:30 a.m. shuttle. I walked over to the general store for a breakfast sandwich and a V8 juice... ah, one last time for town food.The shuttle took 7 of us up to Newfound Gap and we started hiking by 9:15 a.m. There was still a lot of snow on the trail, but thankfully the trail was well packed. What a difference a day makes! My microspikes really paid off today since there was plenty of crusty/icy snow. Yes, the spikes have been 12 extra ounces in my pack, but today they were 12 ounces of goodness.The trail followed a ridge for a long way, so there were views on both sides. I don't know who planned this stretch of trail, but it's quite dramatic. About 4 miles up the trail I came to Charlie's Bunion, which is a beautiful rock outcropping. There was a warning sign on the way there that said "keep your children close" which made a lot of sense as I carefully hugged the inner edge of the trail.Rain was forecast but of course it snowed since we're up high. The trail today hovered between 5 and 6,000 feet and once the snow started it didn't stop. In fact, it's still snowing now, at 8 p.m. Sigh. When will it stop?We're crammed in Tricorner Knob Shelter tonight, with 13 thru hikers, 6 section hikers, and a ridge runner. Chino and I made it here, but the other six hikers we've been with must be camped at the last shelter back. Some new faces tonight, including Paranoid, Loogie, BB Cliff, Dude, and PB, along with some familiar hikers such as Seventeen, BP, and Spidermac. Everyone's pretty punchy so we're laughing a lot. As the man next to me just said "have you ever slept with 10 people who you only met 10 minutes ago?". That's shelter life. I'm in the bottom "floor" of the shelter space, which requires major contortionist moves to climb into my bag.Absolutely no cell service here tonight, so I'll post this when I can. A very special Happy Birthday to my dad, Herb Van Schaack, who turned 84 today!Today's highlight: walking today's beautiful ridge trail.
Date: 2013-03-30
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: broken clouds

Woke up to a foot of fresh, heavy snow. I mean, really, Smokies? Haven't we had enough already? On the trail by 8:15 with the ultimate goal of getting the heck out of the Smokies. That $20 permit fee has provided more than enough adventure, believe me.Trying to put a positive spin on the trail, I'll describe today's hike as "variable trail conditions". We started out postholing through a foot of snow for the first several miles, then we walked through rhododendron thickets and got soaked by the melting snow, and finally walked through many miles of slushy snowy mud. By mid-day my feet were squishing. Ah, living the good life on the AT...We'd all heard rumors that Fresh Ground was stationed with Trail Magic somewhere near Davenport Gap, so that was the motivation that kept us going. Sure enough, Fresh Ground had a sign on a tree near the gap that promised trail magic less than 2 miles further. Once there, he was grilling hot dogs, and offering chips, soda, salad, soup, and fruit. What a great guy - we'd last seen him at Wayah Gap and soon he'll be moving north where we'll hopefully see him again.Once we moved on from the trail magic, it was less than 2 miles to Standing Bear Hostel, our destination for the night. What an interesting place... a funky bunch of buildings, including a bunkhouse, privy, shower building, kitchen, resupply house, and beer shed. Curtis owns the hostel, but it's run by a man named Rocket. There's a nice firepit and everyone gathered around the campfire. Here tonight are PB, Chino, Dave, BB Cliff, Loogie, Paranoid, Carpenter, and a couple of others.A long day with a good ending - I'm out of the Smokies and hopefully won't see that much snow again for awhile...Today's highlight: being done with the Smokies. I'd like to go back someday, but maybe just to stay in Fontana Lodge and do a few day hikes. Enough said.
Date: 2013-03-31
From: Standing Bear Hostel

To: Walnut Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: light rain

When I heard the rain start in the middle of the night I was so glad to be in a warm bunkhouse. We were packed up and on the trail by 8 a.m. and fortunately the rain had subsided by that time.The day started with an almost 5 miles uphill hike, which turned out to be manageable due to the numerous switchbacks. We finally summited Snowbird Mountain (4,263 ft.) which turned out to be a lovely grassy bald.From there it was back down again until we ultimately made the big climb up to Max Patch. Max Patch is an often photographed bald, and I wasn't disappointed. At 4,629 ft. it looms majestically above its neighbors and it's entirely grassy. The wind on top was whipping, so I walked quickly along its summit.More down and up before reaching the third bald of the day, Walnut Mountain. By this time the rain had started again, and I hustled to make it to Walnut Mountain Shelter. The shelter only holds 6 people and was already full by the time I arrived, so I set my tent up next to the shelter for the night. A long 20 mile day, but it should be an easy 13 mile day into Hot Springs tomorrow.Today's highlight: going over 3 grassy bald mountains.
Date: 2013-04-02
From: Hot Springs

To: Asheville
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Ah... a true zero day. John arrived at 1 a.m. this morning after several flight delays. Our day started with a lovely breakfast at Elmer's that included pecan pancakes and homemade granola. Around the table were Yonder, Zook, Just Dave, Dozer, and Chino, along with Elmer, Dante, and Matt.Since John had a car, we decided to head to Asheville to explore the city (about an hour away). We spent part of the day walking around the city and liked what we saw. Asheville reminded us a lot of Burlington, with fun local restaurants and coffee shops, craft shops, and street performers.Later we checked into a motel in town and then headed out to a movie and dinner. All in all a restful day and my feet have appreciated the time off from the trail.Today's highlight: spending the day with John away from the trail.
Date: 2013-04-03
From: Asheville

To: Hot Springs
Miles today: 0.0

My second zero day was even more relaxing than the first. After sleeping late we walked up to Tupelo Honey for a wonderful breakfast. So many good food choices in Asheville.Late-morning we packed up and checked out of our motel room and started the drive back to Hot Springs. We stopped at both Ingle's grocery store and a dollar store in my quest for a few more resupply items.Once back in town we stopped at Elmer's and then drove to the Hot Springs Resort and Spa on the edge of town to see about a soak in the mineral water. As we drove in, I saw Duffel Miner and Movie Star, who I hadn't seen since leaving Gatlinburg last week. It turns out that all six hikers that Chino and I had hiked with through the Smokies are still together as a group and had just been a day behind us. Anyway, we lined up a tub and soaked for an hour, which we hoped might help heal John's recovering broken leg and my tired feet. Very relaxing and highly recommended if you're ever in the area.Later in the afternoon we stopped in at the Spring Creek Tavern for drinks and a pizza. It was a beautiful day and we sat on the back deck next to the sidewalk and on the edge of the bridge. That's when the real fun began... we saw hikers who I hadn't seen in quite awhile and it was great to reconnect. Whiteout, Ned, and Logan are here, as are Tommyhawk, Goat, and Fix and Foxy. Grim strolled across the bridge, and I also saw Mowgli. And then Duffel Miner, Wild Blue, Maineiac, Rainbow Braid, Movie star, and Genie all came into the tavern and took the table next to ours. It was especially good to catch up with these six and hear about their adventures during the second half of the Smokies. I'm learning not to say goodbye to hikers, but rather "see you later", or "see you up the trail", because the hiking community is so fluid that you usually do run (walk) into each other again. John enjoyed meeting everyone and I was glad he had the chance to experience a taste of the trail community. Really, getting to know the people out here hiking the AT is the best trail magic of all.Later on we returned to Elmer's where I spent some time organizing my pack. We ate a great dinner across the street at the Smoky Mountain Diner and then back to Sunnybank for the evening. John has to leave early tomorrow morning to catch his flight out and I'm ready to hit the trail. The weather forecast for tomorrow is for rain, but as tempting as it is to stay in Hot Springs for another day, I'm itching to start walking north again. I might get too soft and comfortable if I stick around here another day...Today's highlight: the whole relaxing day.
Date: 2013-04-04
From: Hot Springs

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

It figures that today would be a bad weather day now that I'm back on the trail! I knew that rain was in the forecast for today, but decided it was time to move on anyway.John left for Asheville at 2:30 a.m. this morning. When I woke up at 6:30, the rain had already started. I had another one of Elmer's lovely breakfasts; around the table today were Grim, Chin Music, Javaman, ZZ Topless, Pack Rat, Lukas, Eagle Runner, Dante, and Elmer. I was out the door at 9:30, and started walking in a light rain. As the day progressed the temperature dropped and the rain turned to ice. The trees and plants were all coated with ice as I climbed higher, with frozen droplets clinging to branches and stems. Under different circumstances this would have been beautiful, but it was too cold for me to appreciate today.I made some poor tactical errors and ended up getting really cold. I hadn't anticipated the dropping temperature, so I wasn't wearing enough layers and started feeling very chilled. I found that my hands weren't working well, which was particularly frustrating. I didn't want to stop since there was no place to get out of the rain, so I just kept moving.I arrived at Spring Mountain Shelter at 2:30 and had all I could do to unfasten my pack, change into dry clothes, and hop into my sleeping bag. There's a hostel only 5 miles from here, but by the time I was finally warmed up the ice storm had intensified so I decided to stay put. Javaman and a section hiker arrived a little while ago, so I won't be here by myself.This hike continues to be a learning curve for me... in hindsight I should have stopped early on to put my rainpants and rain mitts on, instead of waiting until I was thoroughly soaked. Oh well, I'm warm now and Javaman said the weather is supposed to improve vastly tomorrow. Just another day on the AT...Today's highlight: breakfast at Elmer's. As I just noted, the rest of the day went downhill after that.