morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2017-05-26
From: Dahlgren Backpack Campground

To: Penn Mar park
Miles today: 23.5
Weather: clear sky

Today was one of those days that makes you wonder who is actually in charge of maintaining the trail. We hiked for most of the day in deep mud and over seemingly endless wet boulder fields. As a result of hiking with wet socks all day, we both ended up with very sore feet. The tops of the middle three toes on my right foot were very swollen and abraded. I'm hoping it'll be better when the shoes dry out.It was a day for amazing Trail magic though. At one of the road crossings, a very nice trail angel had just set up and provided us with chicken salad sandwiches, soda, and some energy bars. Manna from heaven after the first 17 hard miles.Later, after we finally managed to navigate through what felt like miles of boulder fields, we finally made it to Penn Mar State Park. We were met at the park by Omar and his wonderful wife who drove us over an hour to our friend Katie's house in Hanover.This is just another example of how the trail provides when needed. We had never met Omar or his wife, yet they'd gladly drove 2 hours round-trip to drop us off at a friend's house who wanted to let us visit and enjoy the comforts of civilization for a night.After we got cleaned up and settled in, we ate and relaxed. Katie arrived home from work a few hours later, and we all enjoyed hanging out and sharing stories.Then it was off to bed for some badly needed sleep.
Date: 2017-05-27
From: Hanover

To: Hanover
Miles today: 0.0

Caboose and I relaxed and really enjoyed the amazing kindness lavished on us by Katie. She is an amazingly kind soul who we had the good fortune to meet at Caboose's sister's home in the keys shortly before our hike.She's truly a trail angel and our stay at her house really recharged our batteries.Tomorrow we're back at it...
Date: 2017-05-28
From: Penn Mar park

To: Caledonia State Park
Miles today: 18.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Katie got up early and made us breakfast. After eating, we headed back to the trail. We took a few photos with Katie and her wonderful dog Bailey, then it was time to get going.Today the trail was better than it had been in Maryland. We hiked all morning in intermittent rain and a few boulder fields. The rain really started getting to Caboose by early afternoon. We got to Caledonia State Park and she was ready to be done. I checked on the possibility of camping in the park, but between having a 1/2 mile walk and the $29 fee for a tent site, I made other plans.We went to the snack bar and ate cheeseburgers with fries, while I arranged for a shuttle to the Scottish Inn in Fayetteville, PA.Caboose was very happy to be out of the rain. We showered, ate dinner in the room, and called it a day. Hopefully we'll actually see some sun tomorrow!
Date: 2017-05-29
From: Caledonia State Park

To: Pine Grove Furnace state park
Miles today: 19.5

What a difference a day makes. Today was better than yesterday in almost every respect. We got a ride back to the trail and were hiking a few minutes after 8 o'clock.Within an hour the sun started to peek through the clouds and immediately we both felt our spirits being lifted. All day long the trail was nice and we made great time. We passed the actual half-way point a little before lunch time. Caboose and I were both shocked to realize we were now closer to Katahdin than Springer. It's hard to believe this hike will be over in less than three months. Eventually we reached Pine Grove Furnace state park where we found Hummingbird on the deck of the general store. He was recovering from an attempt at the half gallon challenge. It's tradition for thru hikers to try to eat a half gallon of ice cream in one sitting. Neither Caboose nor I had any desire to try it, but we did enjoy a delicious quesadilla, fries, and some orange sherbet. I paid for a tent site and we made the long walk to the campground. If we had known it was so far back, we would have grabbed a couple of bunks at the hostel instead. But the campground was nice and even though it was memorial day, it was nearly empty since most people have to work tomorrow. Tomorrow we're hoping the forecast rain holds off...
Date: 2017-05-30
From: Pine Grove Furnace state park

To: Boiling Springs, PA
Miles today: 19.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Okay, so maybe staying in the campground wasn't a good idea. Crying babies and screaming teenagers made for a rough night. We did manage to get a relatively early start today. We hiked in the rain again for much of the day, doing almost 14 miles by noon.By that point my desire to hike had reached rock bottom. It's rained for most, or all, of six days in the last seven. Most of our gear is constantly damp with no way to dry it out. Our feet are starting to look and smell like they belong in the morgue. Even the local residents are complaining about the rain...Thankfully, a bit of trail magic in the form of sodas and snacks parked me up. Many thanks to Pickle who hiked the trail in 2016 for the perfectly timed treat!Caboose and I arrived in Boiling Springs around 2 pm. We contacted a local hostel and arranged for a pickup at 4:30. Then we grabbed a bite to eat and a cold beer. After we got to the hostel we got a glorious hot shower and ordered pizza. As I write this, it's pouring rain outside and we're praying it will let up tomorrow. I'm not sure how much more of this weather we are willing to endure. Time will tell...
Date: 2017-05-31
From: Boiling Springs, PA

To: Carlisle, PA
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: few clouds

Since our experience at the hostel was less than stellar and we both felt the need to get a good night's sleep, we decided on a nero into Carlisle, Pennsylvania.After we were dropped back off at the ATC office in Boiling Springs, it was only two and a half hours over the muddy trail to get into Carlisle. The hiking through farmland was a unique experience. We were in town and checked into the Days Inn before 11 am.By early afternoon we had done our laundry and eaten lunch. After that it was so nice to have an easy day spent relaxing.We aired out and dried all our gear after the many days of rain. Then we went to dinner and finished our gorging for the day.After eating, we flopped into bed and did absolutely nothing until falling asleep. It was a very good day!
Date: 2017-06-01
From: Carlisle, PA

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 17.3
Weather: few clouds

After one of the best nights of sleep we've had on the entire trail, we grabbed a quick breakfast and headed out.We finished crossing the Cumberland Valley by passing through many farm fields. At one point we passed within about 10 feet from a small group of cows who looked at us like we had invaded their territory. We both got a big laugh out of that.Eventually, the trail begin to climb and we worked our way back up into the mountains again. After cresting the mountain near a pipeline view point, the trail was reported to be very rocky for the next 6 miles. Neither one of us found that to be the case however. While there were certainly rocks, at no time were they bad enough that we felt hindered in our progress.Caboose did manage at one point to take a bad fall, hitting her head on a rock. Thankfully, it turned out to be minor but it could have been so much worse. Hopefully Pennsylvania has nothing more in the way of falls to offer us during our passage through the rest of the state.We made it into Duncannon by 1:30 in the afternoon. Just as we were walking into town A van pulled up next to us and we saw Viido in the passenger seat as she was catching a shuttle for resupply at the grocery store.We jumped in the van and got her resupplied done early before we got to the Doyle hotel and checked in.For those who aren't aware, The Doyle is something of a landmark on the Appalachian Trail. Hikers have been staying here for many years and while it has the reputation of being a dive, apparently that doesn't deter too many people.The room we ended up in was referred to as the honeymoon suite by one of the owners. This is somewhat humorous as at $35 it is probably grossly overpriced. However, in keeping with trail tradition, we did stay.After grabbing dinner at the pub down the street, we shared another cold beer in the bar at the Doyle, then headed upstairs to the room.Hopefully the train that we have been hearing go by about every 15 minutes doesn't keep us awake the entire night.
Date: 2017-06-02
From: Duncannon, PA

To: Stealth camp
Miles today: 21.4
Weather: clear sky

We got an early start this morning. After sleeping fitfully much of the night, it was tough to get moving. Walking out of town was interesting. Duncannon has a lot of traffic, but isn't really a large town. We dodged traffic for about 45 minutes until we got across the Susquehanna River. We did experience a humorous bird attack. There were a pair of falcons on the light poles as we were crossing the river. Apparently, hikers are on their list of unwelcome visitors. We were informed in no uncertain terms that our presence was not acceptable.Once we were back in the woods and had climbed the boulders up to the ridge, the hiking was decent. We took our time today and made no attempt to go fast. It was nice to move at a relaxed pace for a change.After enjoying an early lunch at Table Rock with Veto and Hummingbird, we headed out. I dropped down nearly 400' to get water from a spring at the next shelter, which required going down and up 300 stone steps.The weather was glorious all day, but by early afternoon we were both ready for a break and we got one in the form of ice cream sandwiches from a trail magic provider.Finally, around 3:30 pm, we found a nice tent spot and decided to call it a day. We set up the tent, cooked dinner, and called it a day early. Hopefully we sleep better tonight than we did at the Doyle.It was a great day!
Date: 2017-06-03
From: Stealth camp

To: 501 shelter
Miles today: 25.5
Weather: clear sky

It started raining around 4:30 this morning. The rain wasn't heavy, but it was enough that it kept us in the tent longer than we would normally have slept in. Neither one of us was in a big hurry to get out and start the day in the rain.We were finally packed up and got moving a little before 8 o'clock. During the morning hours the trail was great and the miles flew by. We got to Rausch Gap shelter, dropping down to the river for water around 10:30.At that point the hiking became harder due to many short steep climbs and much rockier trail. We stopped around 12:30 for some trail magic and a short lunch break.The Gatorades provided by Melamie, the trail angel, we're just exactly what we needed on a warm afternoon.It took another four hours of dancing through boulder fields to reach the 501 shelter. It's one of the few fully enclosed shelters on the trail. The shelter even has a large skylite in the middle.Since by this point in the hike we have learned that good sleep rarely happens in a shelter, we pitched our tent a little bit down the trail.After a tasty dinner, and getting cleaned up, we hit the tent for the evening. We are hoping to make it a little over 24 miles to Port Clinton tomorrow. Since the forecast is for rain tomorrow afternoon it would be nice if we could be in a motel room.We will just have to see how the trail is tomorrow...
Date: 2017-06-04
From: 501 shelter

To: Hamburg, PA
Miles today: 24.4
Weather: few clouds

Knowing we had a long day ahead, Caboose and I were on trail before 6 o'clock. As the morning went by, we noticed Pennsylvania was more and more beginning to live up to it's reputation for rocks. The boulder fields were longer and harder to navigate. Somehow we managed to make good time though. We covered over 24 miles and arrived in Hamburg by early afternoon. I called a local trail angel and we caught a shuttle to the hotel. After getting cleaned up, I did laundry while Caboose showered and relaxed. Then we went to the restaurant to enjoy some good food and cold beer. Two beers and a comfortable bed meant I was sound asleep very early. Caboose stayed up and watched a bit of TV while she unwound.It was a good day!
Date: 2017-06-05
From: Hamburg, PA

To: Eckville shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: overcast clouds

The long rocky miles yesterday took a toll on our feet. All hikers develop what we jokingly refer to as the hiker hobble. Basically we walk like we need a walker for the first couple of minutes in the morning. Well, this morning it was much worse. Caboose joked with me about laying a towel down on the floor of the bathroom because the tile hurt too much to walk on.I eventually got moving and went to Walmart for resupply. When I got back Caboose was up and we went about the tedious task of taking all the food out of the original packaging and putting it in ziplocs.After breakfast, we caught a ride back to the trail. Due to a late start combined with very sore feet and tired legs, we decided a short day was in order. Thankfully, the trail was decent with only a few boulder fields. By 3 o'clock we had made it to Eckville shelter. It was only a bit over 14 miles, but it felt so good to stop early.We're hoping to make better miles the next few days, but there's rain in the forecast... we'll see what happens.
Date: 2017-06-06
From: Eckville shelter

To: Allentown Hiking Club shelter
Miles today: 7.4
Weather: overcast clouds

The weather forecast called for rain all day and the actual weather did not disappoint in that regard.We got a 6:30 start out of the shelter and it began to rain on us within 10 minutes. Since the temperature was in the mid-50s, it was a cold rain and it made navigating the endless rocks and boulders feilds much more difficult.Within a couple of hours Caboose had taken a bad spill but was thankfully relatively uninjured. Other than a nasty bump on the knee and a bruise to her hand she got through that one as unscathed as you could hope for.Since she was freezing in the cold rain and had already fallen once on the wet rocks we decided to call it a day when we reached the Allentown Hiking Club shelter.At that point we had covered only 7.4 miles, but it was worth it to be dry warm and out of the rain inside the shelter. It was only 9:45 a.m. And we had many visitors stop in throughout the day who all admitted they were jealous of our decision when they saw how comfortable we looked.We enjoyed a tasty lunch, took part in a game of checkers, and just generally relaxed.By dinnertime a few more hikers had shown up to spend the night, but there were only five of us in the shelter as well as one hiker who tented nearby.We went to bed fairly early listening to the Rain pour on the roof and watching the puddles grow deeper in front of the shelter. It wasn't a long day of hiking comma but it was a good day given the situation.
Date: 2017-06-07
From: Allentown Hiking Club shelter

To: Walnutport trail crossing
Miles today: 17.8
Weather: light rain

After all of the rain overnight we knew the trail would be somewhat muddy and slippery today. In all honesty it was much better than we expected as the morning went on. We had many large Boulder fields and the trail in between was often quite Rocky as well. I guess we are finally in northern Pennsylvania and this is about as good as it gets. We crossed the knife edge which was fun, and we were both glad we had done it today instead of yesterday in the rain.For most of the day we had the trail to ourselves, seeing very few other hikers. Eventually we reached the Lehigh Valley area. From that point we were going to try to arrange a shuttle into the hostel in Palmerton. However, the hostel provider was short-staffed and declined to provide a ride, leaving us with little option but to seek shelter elsewhere.I called an Uber and caught a ride into Lehighton, Pennsylvania where we got a room at a local motel. We walked into town and got some resupply from a local market comma then we stopped at a local restaurant and had wings and some take-out beer for back at the room.Today was a good day!
Date: 2017-06-08
From: Walnutport trail crossing

To: Wind Gap
Miles today: 20.2

After having to call a taxi to get us through the trail we finally made it back to the trailhead by 9 a.m. The climb up out of Palmerton was as challenging as we were told it would be. There were some scary sections in the rocks but they were amazing views as well.Once we had cleared the open Rocky stretch and made the Ridgeline, the trail for the next mile or two was amazingly nice. Unfortunately, that didn't last long and the rest of the day was spent negotiating some of the worst rocks we had seen in Pennsylvania.As a result, this turned out to be probably mentally my worst day on the trail in a long time. I was just fed up with the constant struggle of trying to take a step without turning an ankle.By the time late afternoon had rolled around we decided a motel would be in order again, to reward ourselves for the difficult day.We got to the road crossing into Wind Gap and walked into town. We ended up getting a room with Monkey at the Travel Inn, which turned out to be probably the worst motel on trail so far! I strongly recommend avoiding this location...The three of us grabbed dinner and a few beers to take back to the room. After drinking a couple of cold ones we were asleep before 9:30.Please get us out of Pennsylvania...
Date: 2017-06-09
From: Wind Gap

To: Delaware Water Gap
Miles today: 15.5
Weather: clear sky

We got up, ate the breakfast I grabbed from MacDonald's, and caught an Uber back to the trail. The hiking went very quickly and while the trail was rocky, we enjoyed most of it. I think we were all excited about getting out of Pennsylvania. We stopped for lunch at the last shelter before town with Monkey and Oh Well. While eating we toasted to the last day in PA with the beers we packed out from the night before. Eventually we headed for town and we were excited to see Pudge, who had waited for us at the post office. It was a great reunion!After getting settled into the hostel, we got showered and gave our dirty clothes to Pole Runner who was headed out to do laundry.After a quick trip to Walmart for resupply, we went to dinner with Pudge and Monkey. It was a good time with some of our original "Tramily".Later on we grabbed some ice cream and called it a night. We knew it was going to be an early day in the morning.
Date: 2017-06-10
From: Delaware Water Gap

To: Brink Road Shelter
Miles today: 24.8
Weather: clear sky

While I slept fairly well last night, Caboose had a pretty bad night at the hostel. All the same, we got a very early start and we're out the door well before 6 a.m. and on trail a few minutes before 6.Punch was originally going to hike with us, but when I woke her up she sleep early advised me to go on without her. She said that she would catch up later.We had an amazing day of hiking in New Jersey and it was a great intro to the next state. Well the trail was at times still very Rocky the views were almost constant and we enjoyed ourselves all day long.Almost from the time we hit the woods until we got to camp we saw wildlife all day. Many different snakes, multiple deer, and a few rabbits.Eventually as the afternoon wore on we made it to Brink Road shelter and pitched our tent.The mosquitoes were a little rough in the area but nothing some repellent couldn't deal with. Today was a bad day for ticks as well, Caboose found three on her. So far, I've been very lucky on the trip having only had two total for the entire trip. Maybe ticks don't like me.We cooked dinner and enjoyed hanging out with a few hikers, including Hummingbird, Two Hearted, Walkamole, and Pudge who arrived 7 o'clock.It was a great day!
Date: 2017-06-11
From: Brink Road Shelter

To: Unionville, NY
Miles today: 26.7

We got an early start and left our little tent city by 6 a.m. By 9 a.m. it was already hot and it was obvious today was going to be a difficult day given temperatures above 90 degrees.The original plan was to only hike 19.6 miles to a shelter, but early in the morning after a conversation with Two Hearted, we realized that going on in to Unionville New York would be a better bet.So, on the hottest day of the last month we hiked more miles than any other day of the trip so far. By the time we limped into Unionville I'm very tired feet we had covered 26.7 miles over very rocky terrain.Anyone who says the rock's end after Pennsylvania has never hiked in New Jersey.We got into town and set up our tent at the city park, which is so graciously provided by the residents of this very quaint little village for our use.After setting up the tent, we went across the street to the local pizza place and enjoyed a delicious dinner and beer.It was a very good day!
Date: 2017-06-12
From: Unionville, NY

To: Vernon, NJ
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: overcast clouds

We slept in a little bit and didn't get to the general store until around 7 o'clock. Caboose and I both enjoyed a delicious breakfast sandwich and hot coffee.After picking up a few resupply items, we finally hit the trail around 8:30. It was already very warm and humid.Throughout the morning we hiked off and on with Two Hearted and enjoyed good conversation and some laughs.For most of the day we were on lower trail and lots of boardwalk sections with no shade. It was blisteringly hot with temps in the low 90s.Around noon we stopped at Heavenly Hill Farms and the local hot dog stand for ice cream and chili dogs. By the time we were done my desire to hike in the heat was finished and I called for a ride to the Appalachian Motel in Vernon.It was only an 11.8 mile day, but the A/C in the room, combined with a good dinner and cold sodas, was priceless.
Date: 2017-06-13
From: Vernon, NJ

To: Wildcat shelter
Miles today: 17.2
Weather: scattered clouds

After sleeping very well in the air-conditioned room we got up early packed up for the day. We ate a quick breakfast and are ride back to the trail was over by 7:45 in the morning.We hiked quickly and within a few hours we crossed the New York New Jersey state line. Maybe it was a sign of things to come comma we don't know. But, shortly after we entered New York we had hiked over a small ridge and a huge tree fell not 30 seconds behind us where we had just been.Whether it was truly a sign or not made little difference. The day was very difficult given the extreme heat and dozens of steep climbs.To top it all off, our water filter died. It would pump but it took 10 minutes just to get a little over a liter of water. By the time we got to the shelter we were extremely thirsty and very tired. When I got down to the water source which was supposed to be a spring but turned out to be a shallow puddle which seemed to be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, it was too much to take.After a quick attempt to get some water comma during which time I fed about 10,000 mosquitoes, I gave up after one liter.Caboose and I ate a quick dinner and dive into the tent just before the big thunderstorm hit. It rained very hard for about 30 minutes and actually hailed for about 5. This really wasn't anything we were unhappy about given the fact that it dropped the temperature about 20 degrees and made hiding from the mosquitoes in the tent much more bearable.Today was probably one of the hardest 17 Mile days either one of us have dealt with. We are looking forward to cooler temperatures and better water sources!