morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-06-22
From: Sam's Gap 

To: Spivey Gap
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: scattered clouds

Holiday Inn express has a morning breakfast bar with a vast assortment of items on it. It has anything from bacon, sausage and eggs to bagels and cereals. Toss in juice, milk and coffee and you have a very satisfying meal. It¢s on to Sam¢s Gap. Richard drops me off at 8:45am and I am off to Spivey Gap 13.3 miles away. Not having the weight of the backpack is really helping my toes today. I think my future AT hiking will incorporate both back and Slack packing. As I approach 50 I can¢t keep treating my body this way. Last year when I did 20 days on the trail, my first week was the toughest. I don¢t think I can ever finish this trail if I had that to look forward to every year. I can also do bigger mileage days if I slack. Hiking by myself gives me a lot of time to reflect. This trip did allow me to process information I had read about Uncle Johnny¢s. First off let me say I only judge a person from what I see with my own eyes. That said I highly recommend Johnny¢s Hostel and I plan to go there again. They were extremely helpful and friendly to Richard and me. I see my first trail magic actually left on the trail. It is a Tupperware box of cookie & carrots as well as 4 jugs of water. I was full from breakfast and did not take any but I do wish to thank those that left this. Big Bald was spectacular. The sky was clear and the fields there were covered with yellow wild flowers. Just as I re-entered the forest I could hear a storm brewing off in the distance. I passed the young couple I met at Sam¢s Gap yesterday. I asked them about Jason and Carl. They apparently hadn¢t made it to Sam¢s gap yet. I also reflected on the people I had met on the trail. There were not as many this year. We had been a few days behind an interesting group who I thought had a very creative name¢¦¢Girls Gone Feral¢. Richard and I would laugh every time we thought about them. I imagined girls dancing around a camp fire half naked and un-shaven as they shouted ¢TAWANDA!¢ I hope I find their journal somewhere on the internet. I arrive at Spivey Gap at 1:00 to find Richard waiting for me with an ice cold Diet Pepsi. My feet felt pretty good. I can¢t wait to come back next year to Erwin to pick up where I left off.Happy trails! The "Flyingfishman"
Date: 2007-03-14
From: Woody Gap

To: Neels Gap US 19&129
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

Stayed in a bunk house - Walasi-Yi Center. Boo-Boo had bad feet (gave her food). Met "Easy does it", Pirate English 1. Still wet and cold. Very discouraging. MM19.9 - MM 30.5
Date: 2007-03-15
From: Neels Gap US 19&129

To: Low Gap Shelter
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: overcast clouds

I am making it but just can't get warm. I fell down a ledge 15 feet. I just want to make it to Hiawassee Inn! Stayed in Shelter. Bet "Bag Lady"; Toto and Dorthy; and others. Hiked with Smoker T.
Date: 2007-03-16
From: Low Gap Shelter

To: Hiawassee Inn
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: overcast clouds

MM41.1 to MM 50.5. Fell during a desent; hitched into Hiawassee. Left hip, knee, and ankle are in bad shape. Very cold and high winds. Felt that my "hike" was over. Finally! A warm shower and a time to launder my clothes and get dry. Today, I'm "slack packing".
Date: 2007-03-17
From: Hiawassee Inn

To: Deep Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: clear sky

MM 50.5 to MM66.6 Dick's Creek Gap. I am spending the last two days 'slack packing'. I am leaving my backpack at the Hiawassee Inn and taking the shuttle from Rocky Mountain, then from Rocky Mountain to Deep Gap Shelter. Tomorrow I start packing again. and heading for Muskrat Creek Shelter. In the morning I was not sure of teh condition of my hip. Hiked without a pack; hip seemed to do OK but knee and ankle slightly swollen. An unknown hiker was attempting to 'slack pack' from Unico to Dick's Creek. Most of us tried to talk him out of it, but he insisted -- as of tonight, Im not sure if he made it. My milage for the day was 16.1 miles. Very tough. Tray Mountain was a long grind but Kelly Knob was a mind-blower. The wind was freezing and roaring at 15-25 MPH. Got a ride into town and stayed at teh Hiawassee Inn. Great place. Saw "Bag Lady" and "Toto and Dorthy".
Date: 2007-03-18
From: Dicki Creek Gap

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: clear sky

MM 66.6 to MM 78.2Got a ride to Dick's Creek Gap. It was another long grind up the mountain. However, it wasn't that bad (it's all relative). Today was the day that I left Georgia behind and entered North Carolina; it was a short-lived moment of satisfaction --- there was Bly Gap and a massive straight up climb; the designer of this protion of teh trail needs to be shot!! If Bly Gap wasn't bad enough, teh climb was followed by another climb up Sassafras Gap. The day ended at Muskrat Creek Shelter and a milage of 11.6 miles -- a tough day. I was the first at teh shelter and soon Toto and Dorthy, C&N (Charles & Nancy); Buckles; Dogs Life, Crank Bait; and others arrived. It was very cold; were made a fire and as night came, it was tough to leave teh warmth of teh fire, but rest was needed.
Date: 2007-03-19
From: Muskrat Creek Shelter

To: Big Spring Shelter
Miles today: 19.3
Weather: scattered clouds

MM78.2 to MM 97.5I awoke around 7AM and got ready for a new day of hiking; it was very cold, but the water didn't freeze (that's good). I headed out at 8AM with an intended destination of Betty Creek Gap. C&N had told me that the hike today would be "easier" than other days. I kept pushing and met Johny Mudd at the Carter Gap Shelter. Within a few minutes C&N arrived (remember, I started more than 1 hour earlier than they did). After signing the register we all headed out. C&N (who move at the speed of light) were soon out of sight.Around 5PM I caught up with C&N at Bethy Creek Gap (They already had their tent set up). for some strange reason, I felt that I should continue to "push on" while there was some day light, plus it was on 3 "short" miles to the next shelter.Albert Mountain was a killer, it took me over 50 minutes to scale the rock face to gain the top; I was completely exhausted. With great effort I covered the 0.6 miles to teh Big Spring Shelter arriving after 7PM; all told, I had hiked for more than 11 hours and covered 19.3 miles!! My average hourly milage was NOT very good (a rate of around 1.7 miles per hour). A real killer.
Date: 2007-03-20
From: Big Springs' Shelter

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 9.1
Weather: scattered clouds

MM 97.5 to MM 106.6This was an 'easy' push. Big Springs Shelter (MM 97.5) to Winding Stair Gap (MM 106.6). At end, there were 2 'trail angles' who provided snacks - it was nice. Ron Havven from Haven Budget Inn provided transportation into town; it was great. Missippii Mule and I washed clothes and had an "all-you-can-eat" lunch meal. later, we even had an "all-you-can-eat" dinner. Nice to sleep in a bed.
Date: 2007-03-21
From: Tellico Gap (Mile marker 126.0)

To: Winding Stair Gap
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: broken clouds

MM 106.6 to MM 126.0A big "slack pack" day. Hiked in a 'reverse' direction (north to south) for Tellico Gap (MM 126.0) to Winding Stair Gap (MM 106.6). Not a lot of folks that I had encountered on the trail previouldy (e.g., Johnny Mudd, Tin Tin, Pouch, Snack Break, etc.). Hiked with Missippii Mule. Considering my pre-hike schedule, I am now 3 days ahead of "the plan".
Date: 2007-03-22
From: Tellico Gap

To: NOC
Miles today: 7.9
Weather: scattered clouds

MM 126.0 to MM 133.9A lot of ups and downs. Got into the NOC, got a bed in the bunk house, had a hot meal, and then got a phone call. Due to a family issue had to leave the trail and head home (FL). Will be back.
Date: 2007-02-21
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Good evening ignorant pigs, put down your crack pipes and your beer bongs and pay attention. This is the first entry in the journal, and the last night before i start the trail. Actually 2nd to last. i'll be sleeping at the Hiker's Hostel in some town in georgia. My pack, i'm sad to say, is a tad heavier than expected, but that might be due to the fact that i have 5 days of food in there. I'm about 32 pounds right now. that will probably waver around the 30 mark until i start to shed some of my winter weight (and get rid of any stuff i don't need). I weighed all of my stuff with intentions of posting up-to-date reports on what's in the pack, etc. buuuuut, i got lazy and stopped caring about it. I worry that i might be starting to get 'the fear' as i sit here waiting, but it will pass. Anyways, Check back here for photographs and/or my increasingly disconnected rants. Anna Tyler is in charge of the media, so complain to her when you don't see any updates. Email me at fruitflylove@gmail.com i got sick of having to explain what scoutindills365 means. Oh, and sorry about the stupid background of this journal, i had no choice. Peaches
Date: 2007-02-22
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hey kids, i'm alive and in georgia. step one....check. step two....walk to maine. or somebody. there's really nothing to report now, except that i start hiking tomorrow. i have to option of starting 8ish miles from springer or almost at the top. i think i'll probably do the hike part. what's 9 miles in the grand scheme of things. My next entry will probably be in a few days at some library in some town. i really haven't looked at the book or anything, maybe i'll go do that. it's sunny and warm here, time to get off the machine for a bit.
Date: 2007-02-26
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Helen, GA. ~50 miles into the trail after 4 days on it. pulled in 10 this morning before i thumbed into town. All goes well so far, pack is still in the mid 30's for weight, with water and food. haven't had to use the tent yet, but if the snoring persists, i may be forced to. Only one major 'rain event' so far, a massive downpour overnight. wind was so strong it blew moisture into the shelter. Fun night, shared it that night with local high school kids. good people. no problems so far, and i'm well on my way to making the mile i'll need to finish in time. but that's too far ahead to think about. For those who care, i spent the first night at Gooch shelter. second at Wood's hole, and 3rd at Low Gap. Tonight will be in town where i will resupply and consume beer. that's next. first i wanted to check in with y'all at my nearest and dearest public library. they told me i couldn't look at porn though, so it'll be quick, plus the screen is facing the girl at the front desk. If you have the mind to check this today, you can call my cell. it'll be on all day, otherwise, oh well. see you in a few days
Date: 2007-02-28
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hey kids, slight change in plans landed me in a hostel tonight. I was going to stay at deep gap shelter, but when i found out that there was a place with a hot tub, i pushed a few more miles to get here and relax. met beater and commando, southbounders about ready to finish up here. good people. the owner here is also quite fabulous, and has taken care of our many needs, including the soothing of muscles by means of hot water. mmmmmm. hot tub. Looks like i'm going to be meeting Praneet and Jen on sunday, so that'll be good times. i'll also be in franklin in a few days to update. weather is nice, trail is good, no problems so far.
Date: 2007-03-02
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Howdy all. I'm currently in Franklin, NC. staying at the budget inn here, which is quite hiker friendly. I believe the owner is a former thru hiker himself. I got picked up from the trailhead and everything. how nice. So since i last wrote (at cloud 9), i have now entered another state. the dirt is no longer red. alas. I have to say that aside from yesterday, the weather has been quite nice so far. sunny days, clear nights (tad chilly, but no big deal really). Yesterday, i must say, was something else. I've hiked in rain before, even multiple days of it. But this was nuts. So it rained all day long, and was quite cold. And windy. and i hiked 19 miles. Apparently i summited something like 2 mountains, but i really couldn't tell any different. Oh, and now it's time to say something about gore-tex boots. I've been hiking in big boots for a while. probably until i did the long trail, for that one i switched to as close to trail runners as i'll probably get (lowa tempest, quite nice). Everything on my person was soaked. except my feet. My feet were dry and nice the whole time, even while i could feel water pooling in parts of my jacket. Now, i'm not going to hike in these boots the whole time, but i gotta say that i'm really glad i had them on my feet yesterday, and all you trail runner types can eat my ass. or not. Anywas, the rain wasn't even the bad part i'd say. the below freezing temps that turned my clothes (and the boots) into blocks of ice. i took pictures. It's not the first time i've had frozen clothing, but this is probably the worst i've seen. It was like winter camping without the snow. Really though, not so bad, and i covered enough miles to spend the day in town today. I'm gonna go take a shower now before i venture into town for groceries and some poison ivy soap. yes, i got poison ivy. i have no clue how i got it so early in the season, but since i apparently don't have to touch it to get it, who knows. yea, i'm pretty pissed about that. I'll send out pictures soon so that people can see what my camera has seen. probably not too much. soon i'll have praneet to be my camera monkey so you can all gaze upon my sexy sexy visage.
Date: 2007-03-11
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hey kids,how's it going back wherever? I'm at standing bear hostel, very nice place, i recomend it to all. the space bar is broken,so i'll leave more typing for later. it's really pissing me off right now. anyways smokies are done,all is well here. nice section hikers make me fires and feed me. very nice. i'll say more in hot springs where i can type. peace
Date: 2007-03-14
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

ok, sorry guys, must not have been paying attention when i used f**k. i think i was pretty pissed off about having poison ivy. i get it really really bad when i do, so it's not a fun experience for anyone involved. So now i'm in Hot springs, taking a zero. The hiking has been quite solid recently. i had excellent weather over the smokies, and really haven't hiked in substantial precipitation since the big rain a while ago. that said some of the springs are a tad dry. i filled up between here and standing bear and got to eat some bugs in my water. i think of it as sort of like drinking gatorade or something. bugs. nutrition. tasty. In other news, the body is holding up well, and the mind is still intact. I find multi-dimentional life (towns) slightly confusing, but that was to be expected. Speaking of which, it's the first time that i've found an actual bar so far. tasty beers yummy yum yum. Oh, and pictures. right. i'm mailing out my first flash card today, so im guessing that my crack team of tech support experts will make availible to the whole world the pictoral representations of my journey. I think i only get 30 minutes on this thing without being charged for it, so i'll leave things at that. say hi to the kids for me. i'm off to a hot spring.
Date: 2007-03-18
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Mornin kids, or actually evening. Its a sunday, and the gas station wouldn't sell me beer. sorry south, but that's just way too harsh. didn't jesus turn water into wine? anyways, i'm still carrying that cross that the crazy man who gave me a ride handed to me. i suppose i'd feel bad if i got rid of it, plus it's light and looks kinda cool. seeing as i don't believe in luck, i can't pass it off as a lucky charm. speaking of coincidence...had some pretty awful weather past few days. had a solid day of rain which turned to freezing rain by the time i reached a shelter. everything froze that night (put must of my clothing in the sleeping bag though, stayed toasty), and then we had snow and high winds the next day. i swear i was up in new england in december again. temps around 20, snow, and high winds. it was actually really beautiful, but i only pulled in 10 miles that day to keep my face from falling off. cooked dinner from in my sleeping bag. it got sunny again though, as always, and now i'm in Erwin TN, hanging out in borrowed clothing while mine is cleaned, and generally feeling pretty good. i get to see the 'rents on friday, and apparently i'm gonna stay in some place with a hot tub. mmmmmmmm. maybe i'll score some internet access up 'round there and say hi to y'all agin, but perhaps not. other than that....let see.....got some cookies, that's always nice, and i'm getting ready to toss my big boots aside and swap out for my low topped boots. maybe try some trail runners. i'm scared of them though. not sure if my orthodics will fit in them. oh yea, if you haven't hiked in orthodics yet, do it. my feet are soooooooo happy. worth the price. the guy who made them is going to get a thank you picture of me nude covered in champagne at the end of the trip. peace
Date: 2007-03-25
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Evenin' children. Saying hi to you from Damascus VA. so i'm finally in another state...one that i'll be in for another month i guess. Weather has been quite nice. a tad hot. i've swapped out for my hiking kilt (which is just a nice way of saying skirt). much cooler than shorts. I've also tossed the boots for some lasportiva trail runners. they have exceeded my expectations as they can handle the rocks/roots just fine and are light and cool. i have gotten my first blister though. i'm not sure exactly how it happened as i dont' feel any rubbing as i walk, but it's a killer one on the bottomish part of my right heel. i guess if it's too painfull to walk tomorrow i'll take the day off here in town. I just zeroed at kincora, so i'm not exactly keen on missing another day of hiking, but so it goes. i get kinda bored when i'm not moving, even when i'm in a town, so the more walking i do the better. This is something that i'm always hearing about. people hiking too much, going too fast, yadda. the same person that will tell me 'hike your own hike' will then tell me that i'm moving to fast. by the way, i'm not moving all that fast. I hike as far as i feel like everyday, and that's just put me where i am. It's a matter of persistance i feel. While i enjoy nature and its offerings, my primary reason for being out here is not to smell flowers (although they are pretty). For me this is a combination of isolated introspection and a test of my willpower. the social aspect of the trail is nice, but in all honesty, i enjoy my time by myself the most. that is part of the reason that i started earlier than most, and why i don't really feel like i'm missing something if i only meet some other hikers for a few days, or even just one night. that said, where is mouse trap? "Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race."
Date: 2007-04-02
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

afternoon kids! i'm in pearisburg VA. rockin it hardcore here on the AT as always. First off i wanna say hi to those behind me that happen to check this out. Alleycat, i know you're reading this. I'm at the Courthouse Cafe, which isn't in the wingfoot, but is worth going to. new business, has awesome coffee and cheap sandwiches (2 bucks and change). help this guy get his business going and hit up this joint for all your needs. there's no place in town with a bar. that's a bummer. People are friendly, and you can drink in the laundromat, so that's a plus. news of the hike. Well, i met cobbler, who it turns out is doing a large section. he'll be here today probably. still workin on my new shoes. they gave me some issues yesterday, but that might not be their fault. so the day started out with me planning to do about 20ish miles, but as it went on i realized that it was time for a little test. I feel that it's good to test things out to make sure they work. like your body. so i decided to press on to do 30+ miles that day. of course, it also decided to rain pretty good, and so i ended up doing 32 miles with wet feet. gave me some hot spots on the tops of my toes. no so bad. it also only took 11 hours. now, i'm not saying this to brag or anything (just look at woodstock and see how badly he's kicking my ass to see that plenty of hikers laugh at 30 miles). just that i felt so good today that i actually pushed myself to do that and that nothing went wrong...well, thought i'd share it with my underage readership. i should also note for the adults reading this, that i was informed that this site apparently has children reading the entries, hence my greetings. therefore i can't tell you all to F#$K yourselves without having to do that. i can, however, say 'cleveland steamer'. Gear info. have to say this. komperdell poles are no good. i used to have leki poles, lost them, and didn't want to drop 120 bucks on poles again, so i bought the cheaper ones. i have bent the s@$t out of them. the positive angle handles are a nice touch though. get those. all you slow-pokes behind me better kick it up a notch, i haven't seen another thru-hiker in a week. and the closest one to me is probably no joke. oh boy. i might do another entry if i zero here tomorrow. we'll see. i don't decide what to do until i'm already doing it. peace.
Date: 2007-04-07
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Short entry today, stopped by an outfitter in troutville (outdoor trails)to replace my busted hiking poles. yes, i broke one of them. after complaining about them last entry, they decided they no longer wanted to operate under my command. alas, they don't have poles with positive angled handles, so i just bought a pair of hard rock trail runners instead. their price was the same as backcountry.com (i just checked), so good deal. i'm not done with my current runners, but i think that my feet have gotten too big for them, because the toe box is starting to rub the tops of my toes. it's only bad on long days, but i might check these fancy schmancy montrails and see how they work. i'll put a more meaningfull entry down in about a week when i have more time. seeing the aunt and uncle. peaches.