morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-07-11
From: Katahdin

To: Manchester, NH
Miles today: 0.0

Ate a good breakfast and headed to Manchester, NH. Tomorrow, we'll be heading to the airport to fly back home to Knoxville, TN.For awhile, we had the news station on the radio...it made me depressed. I'm already haven' different emotions that I'm trying to deal with...and listening to the problems in the world is the last thing I wanna hear right now. I needed something to help lift my mood. Luckly, it wasn't much longer that Lisa changed the station to music. Thank goodness, I was about to loose my mind...again.Both me and my family are looking forward to seeing one another. However, I'm feeling in the mood to where I rather (1/2 & 1/2) wait a few more days before seeing anyone....because ending my hiking journey is hard enough for me to deal with already. I rather go home and chill for along while and take everything in once more first. In other words, baby steps and not everything all at once. Don't get me wrong...I love my family and friends dearly. I just need to suck it up and just do it. I'll probably handle it better than what I think that I will.... I'm on the verg of crying right now just writing this in my journal. Ordered pizza for dinner and relaxed the rest of the evening allowing my body to heal.
Date: 2008-07-12
From: Manchester, NH

To: Knoxville, TN
Miles today: 0.0

Devoured the continental breakfast that we had at our hotel room this morning. My left ankle and knees are sore.7/12 - 7/13We flew to Washington, D.C. and then to Nashville, TN where we then drove home. Our second flight was neat. We rode a bus to our plane...got out and walked up the stairs that led you to inside the plane. I felt like a mini celebrity only w/o the red carpet and body guards. The funny thing happened on that plane which reminded me part of the trail. I found a penny laying on the floor of the plane. Not sure if I told ya of how much change I found since the beginning of GA, but the total was aprox. $15! Finding change out on the trail was one of my hobbies being out there. Norm and many others teased me because of it. There were times where I would actually crawl under the shelter to see what I can find. Silly, I know. (LOL)Got home, and TN was hot, but it is good to be back home. I actually brought myself to go see my mom as soon as I returned. Surprisingly, neither one of us broke down in tears like we thought that we would. We embraced like there was no tomorrow. After catching up with one another, I felt alot better. It really wasn't as bad as I thought it would have been. I think it was because I had alot of time to prepare for it during my ride home. The following day, I went over to my Mammaw's house in celebration of my safe return. I wonder how I would feel and how I react when I get to see everyone again. Again, I didn't cry...not even with my two little nieces who are now the ages of 2 and 4. I missed out on so much of thier lives of just growing up and doing things for the first time. I almost feel selfish for doing this hike instead of being home with family. My friends comforted me and just told me that I have a great story that I can share with them as they get older. My Mom and Mammaw done a wonderful job with decorating. I wasn't expecting any of this--cake, food, gifts...just thought I was coming over to see everyone. I really enjoyed myself and felt loved.
Date: 2008-07-14
From: Knoxville, TN

To: home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

7/14 - 7/17Keep waking up thinking that my zero days should be over and that I need to be back out on the trail. I had to go visit my boss at work to talk to her about my work schedule. Afterwards, I'll be heading to my brothers house and spend the night with my nieces. Tomorrow, I'll be taking them to Chuckie Cheese for pizza and games. It took me FOREVER to find something to wear for today and tomorrow. Much longer than usual. It was rediculously funny!...especially since I was use to just wearig the same thing day in and day out. Planning on going back to work starting the 22nd of July. To help ease myself back into everything again..she is having me work 2 days for 4 hours for that 3rd week. And then go back to work (normal hours) the week after that. That was really considerate of her to do. Thanks, Nancy!7/15Even with the screaming kids in the back ground, I still had a wonderful time with my nieces. Afterwards, I spent time with my other friends out for dinner and then took the teenager friends out to the mall. Like any typical teenager, they didn't want to be seen with their younger sister...otherwise, they would have let me hung out with them. So me and my friend Silver (the younger sister-12yrs) walked around the mall while her brother and the rest of the family did their own thing. Surprised that none of the business, the crowd, lights, and/or the noise didn't bother me. However, the next day when Norm's mom came home from work got to me. I could feel her frustration, tiredness, and the overload from her job. The funny thing about that was she didn't have a "bad" day at work. She is the type of person who always stays busy with something. I think it just brought back memories on when I had 2 or 3 jobs + went to school + tried to have a life. I promised myself, that I will never go back to that life style again...unless, I just absolutely had to. I've had 2-3 jobs + schooling ever since I was old enough to start working. Now, I am living for myself and enjoying life for we only live once. "I work to live, not live to work".
Date: 2008-09-23
From: home

To: HOME
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

This will be my last entry telling you all what's been going on from July 15 - September 23rd...Thanks, again, to everyone who took interest in my journal along with those who helped us along the way. God Bless You!Norm didn't go back to work until after Labor Day.Norm's been hiking more than I have lately. It's not that I don't enjoy hiking...I just needed to rest for my body was worn out. It took about a month and a half before my body is back to "normal". There is not a day that goes by that we both wish that we were back on the A.T. with our friends living the adventurous life.Within 3 weeks of being back, Norm and I found a condo..and we LOVE it! It's close to both of our's work, family, and everything else + we have a pool that is literally 20 steps out our back door. We love the country life, but with the way life is today, it's best that we live more in the city. Still to this day, we barely unpack anything to make it look like a home. Part of the reason is that we are alittle lazy and we don't have the money to do anything to it right now. We were living together before hiking the A.T., hiked/"lived" together out on the trail, and still livin' togther to this day and we are still going strong. We've been dating for going on 3 years this October. People keep asking when we'll get married..Norm's favorite thing to say to them is "a few days after never"...when to have kids? "a day or two after the few days after never with marriage" He's kidding of course. We may both be 25, but we're both not in any hurry to get married. Of course, I am not a fan of working like anyone else, but I like working more now than I did then. I've learned to look at things differently and handle situations alot better. As far as everything else around, I am handling it quite well. Things are not really bothering me as much as it once was. I ran the Marine Mud run and signed up for a motorcycle class this October + done some swing dancing. Other than that...it's just have been the typical every day stuff. As of today (September 23rd), we are planning on more hiking trips.If you haven't already, check out our photos which completes our hike. I, also, went back and added/changed some things around in my journal + added a picture for (almost) each day on my journal entries./sigh...so sad that this will be my "last" journal entry. Maybe one of these days, Norm and I will be hiking the PCT.
Date: 2008-06-11
To: Update since 2007 hike
Miles today: 0.0

Here is an update on what has happened since I left the trail last year. I had made it all the way to Maine before leaving to go home. About a month later my wife, Nadine, and I were flying to Japan to visit our son for three weeks. We had a great time in Japan ¢ riding the bullet train at 200 mph down to Hiroshima, visiting palaces and temples, spending time in Tokyo, even surviving a typhoon. We went to Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea. Jeff even drove us to Mt. Fuji although we could not climb it because the typhoon had damaged the access road up the mountain. Nadine changed jobs and is now working where I worked before I retired. We have been to South Carolina to see my daughter, Kelley and granddaughter, Shanna, several times and I even helped Kelley find a newer car. Also in January 2008, Nadine and I finished walking / running in a Marathon race, 26.2 miles, at Disney World in Florida. The course went through all four parks and physically it was one of the hardest things I have ever done. Even hiking the A.T. was not as hard as that day.My twin brother, Steve, and his wife, Peggy, retired last October.   He said he would go hike Maine with me if I would hike through the White Mountains in New Hampshire with him. So it looks like I am going back to finish the A.T.Also, our son, Jeff, left Japan last December and is now stationed in Las Vegas, NV. He and I took a road trip in early December driving from home to Las Vegas, NV stopping by the Grand Canyon.Since January, Steve and I have been planning our hike. We are leaving on June 12th and will start our hike from Norwick, VT hiking thru New Hampshire and Maine. We plan to finish in early August. Talked to my friend, Dutch in Michigan. I hiked with him in 2006 through Maryland and Pennsylvania. Looks like he may meet us in Gorham, NH and hike Maine with us.If you look at my total A.T. miles hiked, you will notice that it shows less than what the miles were when I stopped last year. I have subtracted the miles through New Hampshire since I am going to hike them again with my brother. It was just easier for me to keep track of the miles by doing it this way.It is getting close to the date, June 12, 2008 when Steve and I are about to leave. He is more excited about the hike than I am. I know how difficult New Hampshire and Maine are going to be. Steve is not a rookie hiker¢¦ he and I have backpacked together in the mountains of New Mexico and have hiked about 250 miles of the A.T. in Virginia. It is hard to believe than this year I may actually finish hiking the entire Appalachian Trail.
Date: 2008-06-12
From: Home

To: Norwich, VT
Miles today: 1.5

Today is a travel day. I woke up three times last night, but still got up at 4:00 am. Peggy (Steve¢s wife) and Steve picked me up at 4:50 am so we could get to the airport on time for our 6:30 am flight. We had mailed our food and some of our gear on ahead to the post office in Hanover, NH so we were able to carry our packs on as carry-on luggage.We arrived at the Manchester, NH airport right on time, 9:10 am. Then we caught the local bus to the bus transportation center at 9:48 am. That is when we found out that there was an earlier bus leaving for White River Junction, VT and Hanover, NH at 11:05 am, but it was leaving from the airport. Our original schedule was for 3:00 pm. So we grabbed a taxi and went back to the airport just in time to catch the 11:05 am bus. This would put us in Hanover at 12:30 instead of 5:30 pm.We went to Lou¢s Restaurant near Dartmouth College for a good turkey wrap sandwich. You can sure tell this is a college town with all the young people around. Steve and I look out of place here.After lunch we only had to walk a block and a half to the Post Office to pick up our mail drop boxes. This worked out good because we were not going to pick them up until tomorrow. It took over an hour to repack our food and gear, and then we started walking on the A.T. to Norwich, VT to spend the night. Yes, we are going backwards on the trail but that will change tomorrow. Got to the Norwich Inn around 5:30 pm and got a cheaper room in a small house in the back. It may have been fun staying in the big Inn since a local person told us there was a woman ghost at the Inn. For supper we just got a cheese burger at the bar in the Inn, it was good! Went back to our room and called family back home and went thru our gear again.Oh! Kelley, my daughter, sent us some brownies. We picked them up at the post office. Ate some for a snack before going to sleep. Today was supposed to only be a travel day but we got 1.5 miles of the trail hiked.
Date: 2008-06-13
From: Norwich, VT

To: Etna-Hanover Center Road
Miles today: 5.9

The alarm went off at 5:45 am. We took showers, ate breakfast, packed our gear and it was 7:25 am by the time we walked out to the road and started thumbing. In less than ten minutes a guy in a work pickup truck stopped and picked us up. He said he knew where we were going and sure enough he dropped up off at The Greens at Dartmouth College. We met a gentleman, 65 years old, walking to work at the high school so he walked along with us and asked a lot of questions about the trail. We knew all the answers. We crossed the road and walked past the soccer fields and into the woods and started our climb of only a 600 ft mountain. The trail was easy but the mosquitoes were out in full force. We crossed a bridge over a beaver pond.After crossing Trescott Road, we ran into a couple of guys out for a day hike. They caught back up with us before we got to Etna-Hannover Center Road and offered us a ride to Etna General Store. At the store we at lunch, then called the hostel nearby but there was no answer so we decided to go to the Days Inn 2.5 miles away. We were walking to the stop sign to try to thumb a ride to the motel when a young man in a yard near the road recognized us from the Norwich Inn last night. He was at his grandmother¢s house and had taken her to the Norwich inn for supper last night. His grandmother is 87 years old and had bypass surgery only 3 weeks ago. His name was Rick and he was getting ready to leave and gave us a ride to the Days Inn. All they had were smoking rooms, so they called the Baypont Inn in West Lebanon, NH and got us a room. A guy named John was getting off work and gave us a ride to the other motel. Today may be Friday the 13th but luck sure was going our way. Got showers, did laundry and even ordered a pizza for supper.Steve has a trail name now, it is ¢Shadow¢. Yesterday while hiking to the Norwich Inn he noticed his shadow and since I look just like him it has a good meaning.
Date: 2008-06-14
From: Etna-Hanover Center Road

To: Moose Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 5.1

We were up at 5:30 am and ate breakfast at the motel before our taxi picked us up at 7:00 am. We started climbing up Moose Mountain at 7:20 am. It was an easy climb for a New Hampshire mountain. Hiked thru some tall ferns and got to the top of Moose Mountain at about 10:30 am where we dropped our packs and took a rest break. It was only 34 of a mile down to Moose Mountain Shelter, arriving at 11:15 am. We had chicken salad with crackers, potato sticks and raisins for lunch. Afterwards, we went to look at the spring for water but it looked like a mud puddle. That is when we ran into two guys, one local and the other his cousin from California. They told us about a brook about 12 mile away that is a better water source. It took us an hour to go get water and get back to the shelter. It was 2:30 pm and we had earned an hour nap. Woke up when the temperature dropped and changed to long pants and long sleeve shirts and put on our jackets.At 4:30 pm a young couple came thru, they were going to the next shelter (6 miles away) hoping they would beat the storm that is supposed to come later this afternoon. We had finished our supper of beef stew, rice and green beans and had cleaned up by 6:30 pm when we felt the temperature drop and could hear thunder in the distance. The wind has been blowing but the bugs are a real pest. We are rigging up a mosquito net over our sleeping bags so we can get a good nights sleep without fighting the bugs all night. No one else has shown up at the shelter. Looks like just the two of us here tonight. It is almost 8:00 pm and it has started to rain. The rain on the tin roof will make for good sleeping.
Date: 2008-06-15
From: Moose Mountain Shelter

To: Trapper John Shelter
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: overcast clouds

It rained most of the night and it was real cool this morning. We were moving slow and did not get away from the shelter until 10:00 am. It turned out to be a beautiful day.At Holts Ledge there were several overlooks. Holts Ledge was a 500 ft cliff. Going down the trial from Holts Ledge we saw the only person we had seen all day. It was a local woman with her two dogs out for a day hike.We got to Trapper John Shelter at about 3:45 pm, got our water from a nearby stream and cooked supper. Supper was turkey tetrazzini, green beans, creamy chicken soup and hot cocoa. There was an old chimney in front of the shelter. It must have been where Trapper John¢s cabin was located.As soon as it got dark we were climbing in our sleeping bags. No one else came in so it was just the two of us again.
Date: 2008-06-16
From: Trapper John Shelter

To: Firewarden's Cabin
Miles today: 6.7
Weather: few clouds

We were up early at 5:30 am but did not get on the trail until 8:00 am. The hike down to Dartmouth Skiway was easy but it started to rain and continued to rain for over an hour. The rain caused the temperature to drop. I have figured out a way to turn our rain jackets into short sleeve rain jackets. We unzip the zippers under the sleeves so our arms can go thru the openings, then we tie the sleeves into a knot. It is a lot cooler when you are climbing a mountain. When we left the skiway that is what we were doing. It was a 2400 foot climb to the top of Smarts Mountain.When we went over Lamberts Ridge, we ran into a group of eight college students coming down the mountain. They were on their last day of a four day hike. The last 800 feet were in less than a mile, pretty much straight up.When we got to Firewarden¢s Cabin on the top of Smarts Mountain it was 2:30 pm and we ate a late lunch. We were trying o beat the rain. After getting water from the spring, First Shadow and I decided to climb the firetower because the sun had come out. Before we could make it to the top, the clouds had blown in and we couldn¢t see a thing.At 4:30 pm it got really dark in the cabin and we heard thunder close by. That¢s when Joel came hiking in. It was so dark in the cabin we didn¢t recognize each other at first. He and I had met on the trail last year in Connecticut near Kent and had hiked together for a couple days. Last year I met five people I had seen the year before and wondered if I would see anyone this year. His hiking buddy, Glen, can in about a half hour later. He had lost something coming up the mountain and had to go back to find it.At 7:30 pm Marathon came in. He had done a 29 mile day and the day before was 31 miles. He said he was doing about 27 miles tomorrow. It is easy to see where he got his trail name. He is a thru hiker that started on March 24th.The cabin is old and some of the floor is rotting but all the windows still have their glass panes and the door shuts so it is warmer than outside and bugs cannot get in.   We all shared trail stories then went to sleep at 9:00 pm.
Date: 2008-06-17
From: Firewarden's Cabin

To: Hexacuba Shelter
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Got up at 5:30 am and left the cabin at 7:15am. Marathon, Joel and Glen had just left. On the other side of Smart Mountain, near the top, First Shadow saw his first moose poop on the trail and there was a lot more before we got to the bottom of the mountain. The trail coming down was real good, so we decided to take a break and eat a snack beside a gravel road. There were some purple flowers there and butterflies all around.It was about a 600 foot climb up to Eastman Ledge. The weather is clear and the climb wasn¢t bad. The view from Eastman Ledge was great. We could see Smarts Mountain and the firetower on top about 4 miles away.We got to Hexacuba Shelter at 12:00 pm. After getting water, we cooked lunch. Later in the afternoon it got cloudy and again we heard thunder in the distance. We are the only ones here. It was a relaxing afternoon. For supper we had beef stroganoff, sweet corn, creamy chicken soup and apple cider.It was just getting dark at 8:45 pm when Andrew came hiking in. He is a local and is out for a 30 mile hike south to Hanover. The person giving him a ride to the trail was late. He still had to cook his supper. He had been in the Boy Scouts and was an interesting guy to talk to.The Hexacuba Shelter is a really neat shelter. It has six sides with two open and a big center pole support. It has a lot of room inside. It is 9:30 pm, time to stop writing and go to bed.
Date: 2008-06-18
From: Hexacuba Shelter

To: Ore Hill Shelter
Miles today: 7.3

Up at 5:00 am and hiking by 7:05 am. It got cold last night and the temperature was still in the upper 50¢s when we left. The climb up Mt Cube was real good and since the sun was out there were several great views. From the top of Mt Cube we could look back and see Smarts Mountain and the mountains in Vermont.It was an easy hike down Mt Cube. We stopped at Brackett Brook to get water since we heard that the water at Ore Hill Shelter wasn¢t very good. We are going to carry the extra water four miles to the shelter.At the NH25A road, there was a field of beautiful orange flower in front of Camp Moosilauke, a boys & girls summer camp. Shortly after crossing the road we stopped at a flat rock to eat lunch at 12:30 pm. After lunch, First Shadow made a sudden stop. In the middle of the trail there was a snake with a full belly. Looks like it had just eaten something, maybe a chipmunk.In the last half mile we had a 400 foot climb to the shelter. At the sign to the shelter it started raining very lightly. As soon as we reached the shelter it rained really hard for only15 minutes, then it cleared up. At 3:00 pm a northbound hiker, Hunter, showed up. He is in our age group but 2 years younger. He is a retired forest ranger.Even thought the temperature is cool, the mosquitoes have become a real pest. The three of us gathered firewood and built a smoky fire to try to keep them away. We cooked two of our suppers yesterday, one for lunch and the other for supper, so we would not have to carry so much extra water up the mountain. So today we are eating one of our lunches for supper.While I was writing, First Shadow rigged up a mosquito net over our sleeping bags. The net is real light and we are really glad we brought it. We have used it several times and it will not be one of the items we mail home to lighten our packs. We are also using a plant based lemon eucalyptus insect repellent and it has been working really, really well.