morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2011-03-23
To: Hiawassee GA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Snake Hips and I are having a great time on the AT. We are slowly getting our "trail legs". We averaged 8 miles a day in the beginning and are slowly increasing to 10 - 12 miles daily. Due to the bugs and darkness, we are often in the tent by 7 and asleep by 8 to 9 pm. We have been tenting everynight, other than at Neels Gap hostel and Hiawassee. There are often 10 to 15 tents set up around the shelter. So far the group which started around March 15th has often ended up together each night with the same philosophy of slowly increasing the daily mileage. Most folks fall into one of two groups, either in their 20's, post-college, or in the 40's + and retired. There is alot of comraderie among us and greetings between us as if we have known each other for years. We are moving north slower than the spring. Already there are more bird calls and blooms. I wish one of my "old" college ecology professors was hiking with us to refresh my memory about the natural history that we are passing through. We have heard barred owls most nights, seen nuthatches and hairy woodpeckers. A hiker one day ahead of us witnessed a bear snatch his bear bag hung from a tree and had to resupply at Neels Gap. Have seen coyote scat and maybe one bear scat. Large stands of rhodedendroms and mountain laurel along the streams in the lowlands, not yet blooming but the rhodie buds are swelling. Holly and white pine are often the only other greenery in the forests so far. Tomorrow we head back to the trail after one night in Hiawassee GA to resupply and clean ourselves and gear. We have been fortunate to have only one day of drizzle the first day, then 7 days of sun up to the 70's, nights in the 40's. We have to be careful to apply sunscreen since the trees haven't leafed out yet. Rain is predicted for the next several days so will see how well our rain gear holds up. More from Franklin, NC, next trail town. Thanks for all your comments and support.
Date: 2011-03-29
To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Our hike is going well. We had a zero day in a bear sanctuary (but no signs of bear around our campsite) several days ago in Beech Gap. That day we moved our tent only around 100 feet to avoid a mud puddle that was developing around our tent. We were concerned about crossing over Albert Mountain in the lightning and thunderstorm so decided to sit it out that day. We were able to hike 15 miles the next day. After 2 weeks we felt about the same after 15 miles as we had after 8 days so are getting stronger. The trekking poles are really helping avoid falls on the slick rocks and mud. I wasn't sure they would be that useful but am a believer now. Seeing more beech and birch trees but not any trees leafing out yet. Heard ruffed grouse drumming during the rainstorm, a great sound along with the thunder rolling through the valleys. We head out for a 3 day section to Nantahala Outdoor Center and then to Fontana Dam, south end of the Smokies next. Should be through the Smokies in the next 2 weeks. Will be more prepared for the likely snow in the Smokies this time around. We continue to be amazed by the trail magic of strangers who help out the thru hikers in all sorts of ways including food, drinks, rides to town, etc. More later...
Date: 2011-04-05
To: Fontana Dam, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We are staying in Fontana Village at the Lodge tonight. 33 years ago I stayed at a nearby shelter but without the luxury of indoor plumbing. This is a delightful stop and we would be tempted to stay another night but good hiking weather is predicted for the next 2 days. We will also be able to go through our packages from the PO and send some more things back. We continue to find more things we really don't need and are not worth the weight or bulk to carry. Our pack weights are down to about 24 pounds for Spud and 26 pounds for Snake Hips with 4 days of food. We try to sterilize and carry only enough water to get to the next easily accessible spring. Water has been plentiful and always available where indicated on the topographic map or AWOL's book. Our next step to reduce pack weight will be to buy only enough food to get us to the next resupply point, usually 3 to 4 days. We finally ate all the oatmeal we had carried from Amicalola Falls. Our no cook meals are going well, particularly since our trail appetites are kicking in and everything tastes like the best gourmet instant potatoes, powdered soup... that we have ever had.We stopped 3 miles short of our goal last night. Our fellow hikers are more connected with smart phones than we are and knew that rain and thunderstorms were predicted. So we all camped in a gap with water and were able to set up camp before the storm came through. We had a wet tent in the morning which was unavoidable. Overnight the temperature dropped to the 20's and we had a show of hoar frost and hail on the way down the mountain. We have tented every night, when not in town, except for one night. That night, rain was predicted and we opted for a shelter. Although the shelter was designed for only 6, and there were already 6 hikers, everyone made room for 2 more. Another example of the great comraderie among the hikers.We have crossed some milestones by now. We are now hiking in our second state (NC) and have started our fourth week of hiking. Hiked 170 miles, only around 2100 more to go! Better not think about that now...Today we noticed many more spring wildflowers blooming. Some of the hillsides are now covered with green shoots although not blooms yet. We have seen isolated blooms of trillium, fiddleheads on ferns, violas, trout lillies and others I can't identify yet. Redbud and dogwood are blooming in the valleys, always a great show. Tomorrow we head into the Smokies, another milestone. I am expecting some snow at higher elevations but hope the blizzard we ran into in 1978 in mid-April was an exception. Will be ready for it with cold weather clothes and gear. Next post from Gatlinburg... Thanks for all the guest book entries.
Date: 2011-04-11
To: Gatlinburg, TN
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Many more wildflowers blooming now. We have traveled the AT along the southern half of the Smokies from Fontana Dam to Gatlinburg. We saw the most diversity of wildflowers descending in Fontana Dam with trillium, trout lily, violets and other greenery covering the hillsides. The Smokies have been quite different than further south with higher elevations and humidity. Many long dead but massive trees at higher elevations with frequent blow downs which have required much trail maintenance. Many of these trees are probably Fraser fir and more recently hemlock, both affected by non native insects. Moss and lichen cover the logs, trees and ground in the moister habitats making the landscape look like a fairyland. Part of the AT traveled through a wild boar containment fence built to protect the beech and other vegetation from the boar rooting. This enclosure was one of 20 erected in the 80's a decade after I had worked for a summer trying to trap wild boar (unsuccessfully). Twenty five percent of the park is virgin forest with potentially thousands of yet unidentified species. No bear sitings yet but several does and a buck were unconcerned by our presence several days ago. At some points the trail and stream beds merge for tens of feet. Some of the trail is carved a foot deep into the hillside, and barely wide enough to walk through. We have climbed the highest elevation of the trail at Clingman's Dome (6643'), unfortunately covered in mist limiting visibility to around 30 feet. But a day earlier we had spectacular views from Rocky Top, TN, including Fontana Lake which we had left just a day earlier. Remarkable how far you can go if you just take one step at a time. More of that to come as we return to the Smokies to continue our journey to Standing Bear Farm hostel just north of the park, and Hot Springs, NC a week away.
Date: 2011-05-04
From: Damascus VA

To: Damascus VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

More time to post now. We are in Damascus, VA, enjoying a lovely small mountain town at the crossroads of the Appalachian Trail, the Virginia Creeper Trail and the Bikecentenial Trail of 1976. Ahead is Mt Rogers, the high point of VA and the last of the higher elevations for awhile. We sent home more winter gear, including sleeping bags, perhaps a little early and have decided to stay in town one more night with freezing temps in the valleys tonight. The lighter packs will be worth it. Spring is coming along in the mountains. Mountain laurel has started blooming lower in the valleys. May apples, appropriately, are starting to bloom. The hill sides are covered with green with most trees leafing out. We still have views of the valleys below but won't for long. Soon we will be hiking in the "tunnel of green" with only occasional views to show us where we have been and are going. Our hiking legs are getting stronger. We are averaging around 15 miles a day. Our longest day has been 22 miles several days ago. We have hiked 465 miles, resupplied in Hot Springs NC, Erwin TN, Roan Mt TN and now Damascus VA. The terrain is more gradual with lower elevations overall (3000 - 4000') compared to 5000' of the Smokies.We often start hiking around 7:30 and find our next campsite around 10-11 hours later. Oatmeal with wheat germ, flax, raisins, peanuts and powdered milk is still our favorite breakfast. We eat around 4 snacks during the day such as GORP (my favorite), sports bars, Snickers (!), apricots/figs (thanks Mom and Dad). Water from streams or springs has generally been plentiful. We might stop to purify water (with a SteriPen), eat a snack and rest awhile several times a day. We don't miss cooking or warm food at all and look forward to meals we wouldn't eat at home- cold instant potatoes, tortillas with cheese and apples (good idea Jean), cold powdered soup mixes. Thank goodness for trail appetites. We can easily sleep for 10 hours but wake at dawn and are ready to get up and do it all again the next day. On to Maine...
Date: 2011-05-16
From: Pearisburg

To: Pearisburg VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We are in Pearisburg VA now. Taking a zero day to help recover from some minor troubles like sore feet and knees. Over 600 miles done and still enjoying the adventure. The last week has brought nearly daily rain, but fortunately the heaviest rain has been at night. Often the rain is so light during the day that we don't even take out our rain gear. Our tent has been fairly water tight after some minor changes to the footprint. The trail in Virginia has been much easier than in Georgia or the Smokies although there have been some challenging stretches along the ridgetops with rocky footing. Less views over the past few weeks with the trees leafing out and the frequent low clouds in the valleys. We have found that so far we do the best hiking around 15 miles a day consistently. I have had some trouble with blisters on my feet (still much better than in 1978 with 5 pound leather boots!) and SnakeHips has some sore knees. Nothing too serious yet but we are limiting our mileage for now and resting up so they don't develop into serious problems. Several people who have started around the same time we did have had to leave the trail due to blisters, stress fractures or other overuse type of injuries. Easy to do when you are hiking 8 to 10 hours a day. I continue to find many things daily to be thankful for and frequently think there is nothing I would rather be doing today. We never know what adventures we will have by the end of each day, who we will meet or where we will stay. Often the most interesting people are the locals we meet in town or while hiking, or the section hikers. I am most amazed by the older women in their 60's and 70's who make the considerable effort to section hike miles from their home, or who have completed an AT thru hike. So back to the trail we go. Thanks for following along. Enjoy the journey.
Date: 2011-05-27
From: Daleville VA

To: Daleville VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: few clouds

We are enjoying a several day rest in Daleville VA before heading to Shenandoah NP to visit with Jean, Steve and Sophie and friends over Memorial Day weekend. Then a shuttle back to Daleville to continue our hike northward.The last section from Pearisburg to Daleville was exceptionally scenic with many day hikers as well. The highlights were Dragon's Tooth, McAfee Knob and Tinkers Cliff all with rocky footing and long exposed ledges with views of the valley below. Some vertical boulders of Dragon's Tooth had metal bars added for hand holds or steps, one of the few areas where hiking poles were not helpful. Maybe a hint of what the trail in Maine has in store for us?Many of the mountain laurel, Catawba rhododendron and flame azalea are blooming now, adding color to the spring wildflowers. The green canopy has filled in making the occasional rocky outcrops the only viewpoints. One of the highlights for me has been the rare views where you can see where you have hiked from or are going, like Fontana Dam from Rocky Top, Tinker Cliffs from McAfee Knob or Daleville from Tinker. Interesting to see where 15 miles of hiking can take you.We have switched from winter to summer gear and our pack weights are down even more. But water sources are less frequent than in Georgia, despite the rains swelling the streams, requiring carrying more water and therefore weight. The SteriPen has been working well, allowing us to drink more water at the springs and carry less. Our stay in Daleville has given us the time to assess and clean our gear after 700 miles of use. My Keens have been replaced by new, which should last through the rocks of Pennsylvania. Will re-waterproof the floor of the Big Agnes tent which is no longer dry throughout a night of storms. The Osprey packs are comfortable and handling the loads, a big improvement over the GoLite packs replaced in Hot Springs. Looking forward to the next section up through the Shenandoah. Northward we go!
Date: 2011-06-06
From: Buena Vista VA

To: Buena Vista VA
Miles today: 0.0

We have enjoyed the section from Daleville to Buena Vista VA. More graded trails with switchbacks and frequent pine needle base. These trail designers have not chosen to take us up over every rocky outcropping along the ridges. Thank you! My feet are slowly adjusting to new shoes, Superfeet insoles and socks. May or may not be an improvement over the last. Will give another 4 days of hiking to Waynesboro to see. Snake Hips has assembled a slide show of some of our photos since Springer Mt. The link is on his trail journalsfrom todays date if you would like to see them. Time for a shower! More later.
Date: 2011-06-18
From: Big Meadows, SNP

To: Big Meadows, SNP
Miles today: 0.0

Snakehips and I are enjoying a leisurely hike through the Shenandoah NP. Friends from Portland, Art & Elizabeth, visited us at Loft Mountain. Great to see them again. We stayed at the Big Meadows lodge last night and enjoyed a hail storm from our warm and dry room. Beautiful views of the lights in the valley from the balcony. Going to see the lodge at Skyland on our hike by later today. Love to see the NP lodges.Fortunately my feet are better with my new Merrell Moab Ventilator shoes. The weather is cooler, in the 70's and 80's with less bugs as well. The AT in the Shenandoah has been less rocky with shorter climbs but is not flat! There are more overlooks with frequent crossings of the Skyline Drive. Lots of wildlife sightings of deer, rabbits and bear. Most of the mountain laurel has bloomed by now. There are less rhodies and azalea than further south. We have seen lots of wildflowers such as wild strawberry, cancer root, rattlesnake weed, spiderwort and wild columbine. Blue berries are not yet ripe but we are watching closely. We've hiked over 900 miles now and within a week should be in Harpers Ferry, the HQ of the ATC and "psychological halfway point". Onward we go.
Date: 2011-07-03
From: Front Royal, VA

To: Front Royal, VA
Miles today: 961.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Who could have predicted it would take so long to get out of Virginia? I remember the excitement of hiking into Damascus in early May with 20% of the trail completed and entering our 4th state. Now it is 2 months later and we are in the northernmost town in Virginia, Front Royal. We have been holed up in a motel for the last 2 weeks as I recover from Lyme Disease. The rest and antibiotics have helped restore my energy (and appetite). We have been taking progressively longer walks daily and plan lower mileage when we first return to hiking. I've come a long way from laying in bed for 3 days with no energy or appetite. We've seen the number of hikers staying at the motel steadily decline. When we started, we were in the bubble of AT thru hikers. If you've read Snake Hips journal, you know our plans of leapfrogging ahead to the trail in Massachusetts. After hiking to Harpers Ferry this week, we will take the bus and train to Williamstown, MA to resume hiking north. We hope to see some of the hikers we started hiking with in Georgia along the way. After Katahdin, we'll finish up the midsection of the trail by hiking south from Williamstown back to Harpers Ferry. We won't have the drama of a finish at Katahdin but will be able to optimize the weather in both sections and avoid the pressure of getting to Katahdin by October 15th. So northward we go. Thanks to Dr Snake Hips, visits from family and all the encouJragement of family, friends and fellow hikers. The journey north continues...
Date: 2011-07-21
From: Williamstown, MA

To: Williamstown, MA
Miles today: 33.3

We are finally heading back to the trail tomorrow. Thanks for all the support of family, friends and fellow hikers. We are looking forward to getting back to The Hike. We'll start back at Williamstown, MA and head north to Katahdin. Then return to Williamstown to complete the hike to Bears Den Hostel, just south of Harpers Ferry. A great hostel, by the way, the best on the trail so far. Our new goal is to complete the trail and celebrate Thanksgiving in town rather than with PB and tortillas.
Date: 2011-07-31
From: Rutland VT

To: Rutland VT
Miles today: 108.0

Snake Hips and I are doing well back on the trail post Lyme disease. Our hike resumed at Williamstown MA (thanks Rita), through the Vermont mud, past beaver ponds, up and down slippery rocky slopes, arriving at Rutland VT yesterday. We've climbed to the tops of multiple ski slopes like Stratton, Bromley, Killington and Pico Peak. On our way out of Rutland today we decided to take a zero day at the Inn at Long Trail with an Irish pub. Great decision! Snake Hips knees are better after rest and injections. I am about 85%  better after Lyme disease. We have hiked over 1100 miles and passed our own half way point. Our fellow thru hikers are now less than 500 miles from Katahdin. All worth celebrating. We are 4 days from NH and about 10 days from the Presidential range. We'll repack our cold weather gear that we had sent home after the Smokies and Mt Rogers. It feels good to hike in New England again, the woods I'm most familiar with. Only one tick so far and no poison ivy. Others have seen or heard moose but we are waiting for our first sighting. Mostly birch, beech, spruce and hemlock now. We've left the rhodedendron and mountain laurel behind. Most of the trail in VT goes straight up and down the fall line without switchbacks. The weather is wonderfully cooler and less humid than VA with most days in the 70's and nights in the 50's. We've hiked in a couple rainstorms including Stratton Mtn. Luckily the Stratton Pond shelter was large, water tight and welcome to about 15 hikers that night. Our boots stay damp and muddy and will be thrown out after Katahdin.We're looking forward to the Whites and Katahdin, for many the highlight of the AT. Then we'll head southbound to complete the MA to VA section. So far we've very fortunate that our obstacles have been manageable and we've been able to return to the trail. Several trail friends have not been so fortunate but may be able to return another year. Thanks to all for your support and good luck to our fellow hikers on and off the trail.
Date: 2011-08-05
From: Hanover NH

To: Hanover NH
Miles today: 47.0
Weather: light rain

We're in Hanover, NH now, having crossed Vermont from MA to NH. We left the Green Mountains and Long Trail hikers behind after Rutland and have been crossing the hills and valleys as we headed east to New Hampshire. We could easily imagine the early settlers as we passed miles of abandoned stone walls and forest roads.Hanover has been an unusual trail town with Indian and Thai restaurants and gelato shops. We've filled our backpacks with winter gear (fleece coat, rain pants, warm hat and gloves) in preparation for the White Mountains. We'll climb Mt Moosilauke in 5 days, our first peak in the Whites. Hopefully we'll have good weather for this section. After a quick stop at the Dartmouth food co-op we'll be off to the woods again. More from Glencliff NH.
Date: 2011-08-10
From: Hanover NH

To: Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 44.0

We are sitting out a rainy day at a hiker hostel in Glencliff, NH. Almost 1200 miles into our hike and less than 1000 to go. Good news or bad news? Next is Mt Moosilauke, a bear of a climb even when the steep rocks are dry. In our older and more cautious age, we've decided to do the climb tomorrow when the hike will be safer. We have seen the green hills of Vermont transition into steeper rockier slopes of New Hampshire. We've seen lots of piles of   what we think are moose rather than deer scat, but neither animal. The most obvious wildlife has been the cute fluorescent orange 2" long red efts, the juvenile stage of the red spotted newt. Lots of hermit thrush serenade us throughout the day. A slightly different song than the wood thrush we heard in the south. We are also meeting up with several hikers we had last seen in Virginia. They share their tales of the Pennsylvania rocks and we tell our tale of Lyme disease, neither of which has ended our journey. Onto the White Mountains!
Date: 2011-08-15
From: N. Woodstock, NH

To: N. Woodstock, NH
Miles today: 27.0

What an adventure this will be. We are in N. Woodstock NH waiting for the weather to clear. We should have several days of good weather starting Wednesday. Our hike over Mt Moosilauke and the Kinsmen gave us an idea of what is ahead. Long steep climbs and descents over rocky terrain which requires throwing your poles aside to use your hands as well. The summits had sweeping views of the Presidential range to the east and Green mountains to the west. Next up is a climb up from Franconia Notch to the Ridge which a southbound hiker described as "as close as I've been to Heaven". We have many more climbs up from Crawford and Pinkham Notch and hopefully views from the Presidentials. Nights are noticeably colder now and we're happy to have our fleece coats for the cooler nights and early mornings.  Haven't needed our warm hats or gloves yet. Our pace has slowed to 1 mph for some slopes. Now we can see how a day of hiking might cover only 10 miles. Hoping to see some of our hiking friends we hiked with in the south, like Moss, Bee and Sparky. It is great to meet up with hikers we haven't seen for awhile, like Teflon and Scooter on Moosilauke. Safe travels to you all.