morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2005-04-13
From: Walnut Mountain shelter

To: Duckett Inn & Farm (Hot Springs, NC)
Miles today: 13.1
Weather: light rain

Today's hike was pretty uneventful. It rained a little last night, but all of our gear stayed dry under the tent vestibule. We got up and broke camp around 8:30-9am, and hiked at a quick pace to make it into Hot Springs before nightfall. Ms. Priss spent some of the day hiking with Gypsy LuLu, and I hiked for several miles with Bassline. Most of our conversations that day with other hikers consisted of discussions about food. Yes, the "food mood" is beginning to kick in for almost everyone, and everyone has their own little cravings.We made it into Hot Springs by 4pm and found that most of the typical hiker lodging spots were already full. We had a tip from another hiker to check out the Duckett Inn & Farm which was further from town, but supposed to be a very nice bed & breakfast. A B&B would not typically be a place that most hikers would seek out, usually because they are more expensive than hostels (average $15-20 per person per night). However, the fact that breakfast was included was a big draw, and we could get away to ourselves and enjoy a little more privacy. We got a ride to the Inn from Jake whom we met through August at the outfitters (Thanks August!). We made it just in time as the bottom fell out as we raced onto the porch. The owners, Brian and Frank, had made a run into Asheville and left a note to make ourselves at home. After a nice hot shower, and a short walk to dinner at the local diner, we crashed into bed thankful that we weren't camping in this downpour.
Date: 2005-04-14
From: Duckett Inn & Farm (Hot Springs, NC)

To: Elmer's Sunnybank Inn (Hot Springs, NC)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Our stay at the Duckett has been absolutely fabulous. Breakfast this morning consisted of organic coffee, juice, home fries, breakfast quiche with diced tomatoes & sausage, and biscuits with home made sorghum. We ate to our hearts content, then checked out and checked in at Elmer's. For those who are interested in visiting Hot Springs, I would encourage you to check out the Duckett House. You can search online at www.bbonline.comWe were perfectly happy at the Duckett, and we could've stayed another night or two. But we wanted to experience a night or two at Elmer's Sunnybank Inn since it has become such a famous stop on the AT. We read several books before starting our hike, and most of the authors had visited Elmer's and raved about their experience there. The location is also a little more convenient for a hiker with bipedal transportation.Elmer, we learned, is an ordained minister and after hiking the trail, returned to Hot Springs 30 years ago and opened Sunnybank. Before hiking the trail he had co-owned a vegetarian restaurant in the Raleigh-Durham area. The Sunnybank in offers breakfast and dinner to hikers by reservation (I'm unclear as to whether you can eat there if you aren't staying, but might be worth a phone call). The cuisine is gourmet vegetarian, and for a hiker to get gourmet on the trail is a rarity let me assure you. Most of today was spent talking to other hikers and catching up on where other hikers are in their journey. We also spent some time running errands and checking out the outfitter's, but the best part of today was our visit to the Hot Springs Spa. We had arranged to sit in the natural hot spring baths for an hour (group of 4 = $30), and we also had a half-hour massage. Ahhh....my aching legs are so grateful for that experience.Ms. Priss and I also ate a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream each as a reward for making it this far. We each have our own personal food challenges (as if hiking the trail weren't hard enough!) that we plan to accomplish over the course of our journey. Priss's challenge is to eat a pint of B&J every 200 miles and a half-gallon at the halfway point along the trail. She may try to eat a gallon at the end, but we'll see. My personal food challenge is to drink 15 half gallons of chocolate milk in 30 minutes or less. Although I spared everyone the details of my first experience in Franklin, I have successfully (if you can call it that) managed to drink my first.
Date: 2005-04-15
From: Elmer's Sunnybank Inn (Hot Springs, NC)

To: Elmer's Sunnybank Inn (Hot Springs, NC)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Today we have been goofing off in the big town of Hot Springs, NC. We uploaded some pics from early in our trip, and will be adding a few more to bring our journal up-to-date. Unfortunately, we have had poor cell service while in most towns since they are situated in the valleys between mountains. So to all our family and friends, we are sorry that it has been so difficult to stay in touch. We had some more disappointing news today...our pocketmail device is injured, and we will have to send it off to be repaired. Estimated downtime is about 2 weeks. It will be more difficult, but we will try to enter our journal entries when we arrive in towns with internet access.Thanks to everyone who has visited and signed our guest book. When you sign our guestbook, it sends your entry to our pocketmail device (when it is working). These are fun to read while we are headed out of a town back into the wilderness.We had a confusing mess with our maildrop, but we've sorted all that out. The PO had it sorted under Priss's parents name vs. our name. Now we have our food, and we expect to be in Damascus, VA by the end of the month.
Date: 2005-04-16
From: Elmer's Sunnybank Inn (Hot Springs, NC)

To: Rich Mountain Firetower campsite
Miles today: 8.2

It was tough leaving the beautiful little town of Hot Springs, NC. We have been spoiled by the warm and generous hospitality of everyone there. We got a late start on our journey today, and didn't leave Hot Springs until 1pm. Fellow AT hikers, you will need to turn right when you pass over the bridge & the trail continues along the French Broad river. We've heard that many hikers continue hiking along the road. The climb back up the mountain wasn't all that difficult.We've noticed that several stretches of the forest were burned recently, either from a controlled burn or a wildfire. We climbed the side trail to Rich Mountain fire tower and enjoyed great views of the surrounding area. We could clearly see beyond Hot Springs where we had just been. We considered camping up on Rich Mountain, but decided against it and joined several others (T-bone, Burning Man, Sunshine, Snowman & Icicle, and a few others) who were camped less than a mile away at another campsite.
Date: 2005-04-17
From: Rich Mountain Firetower campsite

To: Little laurel shelter
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: overcast clouds

We had such a nice evening with friends in our little tent city. We camped with Monkey, T-Bone, Burning Man, Icicle and Snowman, and Sunshine. Great night's rest! We started a little late this morning (nothing unusual there), but headed out on the trail well-fed with warm oatmeal in our tummies. It was a fairly uneventful morning. We did reach log cabin drive though, and found a bit of trail magic. We rested a bit before heading on. Before we arrived there, I believe I(Ms. Priss) stubbed my toes and/or tripped 7 times, I have never been the epitome of grace, but my goodness. After trail magic, I finally succumbed to the rocks and roots. I ended up doing a face plant, and I think it was all Bug could do not to laugh(once he realized I was ok). It was tough for me finishing up this afternoon, we had a bit of a tough climb after that, and I was in a foul mood already. Shortly after the climb though, we came upon Dorothy and T-2 who had a wonderful fire going. We thought about hiking on a ways, but instead have opted to take a shorter day today and stay here at the shelter.
Date: 2005-04-18
From: Little laurel shelter

To: campsite beyond Flint mtn shelter
Miles today: 13.6

I saw my first mouse last night! As I sat awake journaling, I heard a little scratching noise, and lo and behold, I look down at Bug's feet and see one peering out from his crocs. Needless to say, I didn't sleep well, for fear he would crawl in my sleeping bag. We got up and moving fairly early this morning. It has been a gorgeous day, and we have had cool hikes through spring-blooming vallies. We hiked out to White Rock lookout and over an amazing ridge along Big Firescald Knob! We did some rock-climbing/scrambling and had snacks up top overlooking the mountains and a town below. The Lord has blessed us with beautiful weather, and it is expected to last through Thursday! I was glad that we hiked through this in the morning as we were told it was rough to do in the latter part of the day when you are already tired. As we descended the knob we came out into an open meadow where Jerry Cabin Shelter was located. After a bit of a respite and lunch, we headed back out on the trail. It was beautiful open meadows across Big Butt, and easy wagon road trails coming down. We passed a historic mark where some Union soldiers were buried, some NC boys had gone to fight for the Union and on a trip home were shot because they were traitors, these were the Shelton Graves. We hiked a ways with Neighbor and Chickety, and ended up camping at a campsite about a mile beyond Flint Mountain Shelter. We read in the register that Mr. Clean Jr. was wanting us to catch up so we could tell him what to do about his blisters. This campsite is not the greatest, but we have suffered worse. It is just a spot on the side of the trail, and the water source is a trickle coming out of the side of the mountain. But it has been a nice evening, just Bug and I, and we have had a double dinner. Looking forward to tomorrow...
Date: 2005-04-19
From: campsite beyond Flint mtn shelter

To: Low gap campsite
Miles today: 14.0
Weather: clear sky

Today we got an early start, but we seemed to be struggling to get our hiking groove going. The climb up Frozen knob was especially difficult for some us. We've had similar hard climbs since starting our journey, and we should be in good shape by now. But nonetheless, it was difficult. Some of the trail today crossed rolling hills that were until recently used as pastures for livestock. We crossed 4-5 different roads on our hike today, including I-26. We stopped for lunch at Hogback Ridge shelter, and enjoyed salmon wraps with mayo (thanks Rick & Diane) with trailmix and candy bars. Dorothy and T-2 stopped in just as we were preparing to leave and showed us what ramps look like. Ramps are a type of wild onion found in many areas along the AT. We picked a few to add to our dinners, and continued on.On our way to Sam's Gap, we met a fellow hiking southbound to Hogback Ridge shelter. We talked for a few minutes, and after giving him our trail names we learned that he had been following our online journal. Its a small world afterall! He also tempted us with strawberry shortcake that he was packing into Hogback shelter to share with other hikers that stayed there. As wonderful as that sounded, we were not about to backtrack our footsteps today.Just as we crossed Sam's gap we began to get sprinkled with rain, and we could see that a thundercloud was developing behind us. We quickened our pace, and caught up to T-bone & Burning Man who had set up their tents just before we crossed an unnamed (but beautiful) bald/meadow. We continued hiking about two miles to Low gap campsite where we set up our tents and prepared for rain. Luckily for us, the thunderstorm bypassed us and we didn't get anymore rain. We enjoyed a small fire, and sat eating our double dinner (ginger Thai kitchen meal and Mac & cheese).
Date: 2005-04-22
From: Indian grave gap

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today has been an enjoyable zero day in the big city of Erwin, TN. After a late but big breakfast at Elm diner, we have spent some time catching up on our journal and taking care of a few errands. We have enjoyed our cabin at Uncle Johnny's and thus far have had a pretty pleasant experience there. This morning there was a bit of confusion with the shuttles. The situation could've been handled better, but all is well now.Tonight we will be meeting Mr. Clean and his wife for dinner. She flew in this morning to visit him and will be spending a few nights here in Erwin. Tomorrow we will be headed further north. Next stop, Damascus, VA.
Date: 2005-04-24
From: Cherry Gap Shelter

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Bug and I awoke around 8:30 am to howling winds and a winter wonderland as viewed out from under our tent vestibule. After a breakfast of oatmeal squares, we snuggled back down into our sleeping bags refusing to face the day. It is hard on a cold morning to get moving, but especially so when there is a blizzard going on outside. After a few short naps and book reading time, we finally got bored and started getting back aches, so around noon we emerged from our "cave" and packed up and moved to the shelter. We felt quite wimpy for taking a zero day in a shelter, but justified it because of the 50 mph winds, low temps, and blowing snow. We were joined by Retro and Uncle Kodak (SOBO) who had also spent the previous night tented out in the storm. Later that afternoon Boots and Bluelight, Finn, and New Hampshire & Lil' Bear Bait came along. Lil' Bear Bait was a cutie, he's an 8 lb. black pomeranian and the most well behaved dog I have ever seen (on or off the trail). Cycle-hiker and a few other arrived but alas the shelter was full and they tented nearby.Once we had had some Nutella and a Honeybun we decided to call it a night. We didn't really do much else today....just sat around in the shelter and chatted with one another.
Date: 2005-04-27
From: 19E (Mountain Harbour B&B)

To: 1 mile beyond Moreland Gap Shelter
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: light rain

Last night we had a wonderful dinner of spaghetti, garlic toast, and salad. Bug has been talking about spaghetti for miles and was thrilled to find that on last night's menu. This morning we awoke and entered the main house to wonderful smells of fresh baked bisquits, breakfast casserole, cinnamon roll bread and oj. We ate until it was gone and then went back to the hostel to pack up for the trip out. I was sad that I didn't have signal for my cell phone as I had been trying to reach Warren Doyle. He lives nearby, and we were hoping to meet up with him and his wife, Terry before they headed out on the 2005 AT expedition. We got on the trail somewhere around 10:30, and had a nice morning with very little rain! Beautiful streams, pastures, and pine forests for the first 3.5 miles. As we topped a mountain we discovered we had a cell signal and checked our messages only to find that Warren had left us a message that morning. It doesn't look as if we will be able to meet up with them after all. Along the way, was a side trail to Jones Creek Falls, an amazing waterfall falling probably 150 feet down a rock slab. Today was pretty long and I really had a hard time staying focused. Most people think that it is easy walking, but sometimes it takes a lot of concentration to pick up one foot and put it in front of the other, especially when you walk close to 20 miles in one day. To put it in perspective for you, we walked today on average what takes most people only 15 to 20 minutes in a car to travel (it took us 10.5 hours of steady walking to hike 18.5 miles).The data book we use is so very helpful, but at the same time can be pretty frustrating! We passed many legitimate streams during the course of the latter afternoon when only one was marked in the book, and at some point we passed Laurel Fork, yet we don't know when because we don't know what Laurel Fork was...another stream? a road perhaps? Oh well! At around 6:30 we stopped along one of the many streams, on a bed of pine needles to eat dinner, and had a fresh salted avacodo we had brought from town, for an appetizer. We made it to the shelter around 8:30pm but decided to move on a little further while we had a bit of daylight left. The light was fast disappearing, so we made it up on a ridge and tented on the side of the trail about a mile up and exhausted we climbed in our bags after a mentally and physically draining hike.
Date: 2005-04-30
From: Double Springs shelter

To: Low gap (US 421)
Miles today: 3.5

This morning we woke up to blah skies, but that was ok because we knew what awaited us only 3.5 miles ahead! Luckily, we were able to get ahold of our friends via cellphone and inform them of our cravings for sausage biscuits and oj. We were running a little behind and tried to hike quickly down to the road. When we arrived, Matthew and Rebekah weren't there, but some trail angels were. Craig and Susie with AT servants were at the road along with members of a local church doing trail clean-up and handing out soft drinks and little debbies. We sat for awhile talking with them and sharing our experiences. Shortly, our friends arrived, hot food in hand! What wonderful friends we have, they were so good to us! They took us to Rebekah's grandmother's house, where we were able to rest, clean our laundry, and bathe our stinky bodies! Mrs. Stout was so incredibly kind to open her home to us and she made us feel as if we were part of the family. Matthew and Rebekah have shu! ttled us all over today to get errands done (a wondreful thing under any circumstances, but especially so, considering gas prices these days). We couldn't have picked a better time to hike the trail....we are amazed each time we hike into town and see the gas prices. They brought goodies to us from South Carolina. Homemade strawberry cake and brownies, compliments of Grandma Love and homemade trail mix from Mama Love. For lunch, we feasted on fried chicken, biscuits, and pasta and potato salads. Bug was in hog heaven, as he had been craving fried chicken a few days prior.   Later in the evening we headed to town where we visited our local, friendly Wal-Mart, and dined on pizza at the Mellow Mushroom.Tonight we've been sorting our food for the next few days into Atkins, VA; we didn't really see it as being very intriguing, but they all sat watching us in awe as we divided breakfasts from snacks, and lunches from dinner.It's late and we hated to keep everyone up, so we've said our goodnights. I can't wait to get into this comfy-looking bed with a REAL pillow (ah, the things we take advantage of at home).
Date: 2005-05-01
From: Low gap (US 421)

To: Spring tentsite 
Miles today: 12.9

Ahhh! What a day (and night)! That was one of the best night's sleep I have had in a very long time! The pillow had just the right amount of loft, the sheets were soft & cool, and the bed was just as comfortable as it looked. When we finally managed to make ourselves get out of the bed and down the stairs, Mrs. Stout had made us a wonderful breakfast of muffins with our choice of different jams and sourwood honey. Sourwood honey is tasty! It is made by bees that collect nectar from sourwood trees.We spent time visiting and finished packing. We were able to stay long enough to meet Uncle Mike and Aunt Mary (more wonderful members of this family), who offered to put us up another night. As tempting as it was, we knew we had to get back on the trail. As nice as town stays are, it becomes more and more difficult to get back on trail, the longer you are treated to creature comforts. Uncle Mike has already been dubbed a trail angel by another hiker in a previous year (for which, I understand, he has recieved much teasing). I'm here to let everyone know---trail angels recieve extra jewels in their crowns for the good deeds they do for us hikers! Uncle Mike handed us a business card and told us to call if we needed anything at all. We have truly been blessed this weekend! Thanks so much to the Steens, Mrs. Stout, and the Longs...you are all trail angels in our book!Alas, it was time to get back on the trail and Matthew and Rebekah drove us back to the trailhead. After taking some pictures and saying our goodbyes, off we went into the woods around 2pm. It was a nice afternoon of hiking, and we arrived at Abington Gap shelter by 4:30 where we were met by Quiet Paul and Roamin' Goat. Bug and I took a brief respite to sign the register, visit, and share a few of our brownies with our fellow hikers. We had plenty of daylight and we heard Damascus calling, so we headed off to hike a few more miles. Somewhere between the shelter and our campsite, I began to feel a bit ill. I'm not sure if it's because of going overboard with the food yesterday or if it was the multiple brownies eaten at the shelter earlier. Whatever the case, the nausea passed, and before I knew it we were here at the campsite! It is lovely here, and we had a beautiful sunset. Bug made a nice fire and we have a nice soft spot on which we have set up the tent. I called Mom and Dad earlier since we had a good signal, it was good to hear their voices and know that everything is going well back in Memphis. Now we are snug in the tent, it is a nice evening so we are leaving the vestibule open to allow more airflow. Bug is on the phone with Mama Love and it is on to Damascus in the morning, where hopefully a big, hot breakfast awaits!
Date: 2005-05-02
From: Spring tentsite 

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 1.9
Weather: broken clouds

Wow! We hiked all of 1.9 miles today. It was an easy stroll down the mountain this morning into Damascus. We met Swampthing (a really nice guy, despite his trailname), come to find out, he actually lived in Somerville, TN for 8 years. Then we met some nice folks who are out here for a section hike who are collectively named "2/3". Right as we were coming into town, we spotted our friends, Train & Raindrop camped on the side of the trail.Our first stop in town was the post office, as we were expecting some "goody" drops, but there were none to be found. So, it was off to "The Place" hostel to see if there was bunk space available. We found 2 free bunks and claimed them, and then we were off in search of breakfast. We were told that Cowboys gas station had some of the best breakfast in town and we weren't disappointed. Today has been filled with a lot of nothingness. We famliarized ourselves with the booming town of Damascus, visting the outfitters, the library, and various eateries. We generally just relaxed.Our friends did bring us into Damascus a couple of days ago where we checked the PO and discovered that we were back in business with the pocketmail! So now we have no excuses for being slack with our journaling.We dined at Sicily's with Train & Raindrop for dinner, and saw Poet & Thirstyboots. Fellow hikers whom we had not seen since leaving Erwin. We are back at "The Place" now, which is a hostel run by the methodist church here. For a donation of $4 per night, you recieve a bunk, a hot shower, and general use of the facilities (microwave, general living areas, board games, etc.).