morvasaaty/AppalachianTrail-LD-Hikers-Blogs-and-Weather-20-years huggingface dataset:
Date: 2012-05-16
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

The picture is from a hike last week. Today Reinhard put on his backpack and walked around town to see how it was with his cast. He did pretty good but we will see what the doctor says on Friday. If all is OK we are on the trail again. He will have to get a check-up the next three weeks so we will have to stop in a town each week that has some sort of clinic. The doctor's staff in Pearisburg is calling ahead to a few trail towns to clear the visit. All that ought to be interesting -- especially since we are hiking without any other mode of transportation. But, we are getting pretty good at hitchhiking.
Date: 2012-05-18
From: Pearisburg, VA

To: Back on the trail
Miles today: 0.0

Today the doctor gave Reinhard clearance to start hiking again. We hiked back to the place where Reinhard hurt his hand, and then he stepped on his glasses--now he only has a pair of sunglasses. It seems like an unlucky spot, so we're eager to get moving again and put some distance between us.
Date: 2012-05-19
To: Happy Birthday, Beate!
Miles today: 0.0

John, thank you very much for the beautiful flowers and cards. They were a wonderful surprise and brightened my day. I miss you, and wish we could all (family and hikers) be together today. Better luck from now on, and I will see you soon. I love you much! <3 Beate Happy birthday to my beautiful wife, Beate. I wish I could be there to celebrate with you, but you are always in my heart and thoughts. Thank you for the wonderful visit and for all of your continued love and support. I love you. John
Date: 2012-05-19
From: Outside Pearisburg

To: In the Woods
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: light rain

Slept in the middle of the woods not near anything or anybody. Very noisy because of the animals and birds throughout the night. The first few days back have been rough on our feet and body. Amazing how soft we bacame after only two weeks off the trail. Between the time we took off because of the injury to Reinhard's hand and his upcoming 4 doctor and 5 physical therapy appointments we need to start increasing our daily mileage.
Date: 2012-05-20
From: In the Woods

To: Sarver Hollow
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: clear sky

It was great weather during our 18.8 mile hike today. We had several 1500 foot climbs that were tough on our legs. We walked through some really nice pastures with excellent views--a nice change from walking in the woods. We had to hike almost a half mile off the trail to find water but it was after 6PM and it was getting late. The water source was really a small trickle of water coming out of the ground that collected in a small scum filled pool. We were really glad for our water purification chemicals. We had more trail magic today too. Some guy left a note near the shelter explaining were he stashed a six pack of beer for a lucky hiker. I went on a treasure hunt and found it. I drank 2 (and carried out of the woods the empty cans) and left 4 for the next lucky hiker.   Reinhard and I were the only people at the shelter but it was very noisy all night with various animal and bird sounds.
Date: 2012-05-21
From: Sarver Hollow

To: Pickle Branch Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: broken clouds

Only 16 miles today because a thunderstorm was threatening around 4:30PM. Shortly after we reached the shelter it started pouring.   Also, the thunder was really loud and close. Normally we prefer to sleep in a tent rather than a shelter. But, when it is storming a shelter is a luxury because you do not have to carry a wet tent the next day. Today was a tough day on water, we had to ration it pretty closely for most of the day. We only saw one other hiker all day--normally we see 15 or 20, so that was kind of strange.
Date: 2012-05-22
From: Pickle Branch Shelter

To: Catawba Mountain
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: few clouds

We went over 700 miles today... We actually walked an additional 2 miles if we could count the distance it took us to get to town for a small resupply. We were able to get a local to give us a ride back to the trail head. We had to climb up, over, and down the Dragon's Tooth today. Huge rocks and boulders that really challenged our mobility. There were steel hand and foot holds in strategic places to help us get down. It really challenged my fear of heights and challenged Reinhard with his broken hand, but he did really good. We were a bit disappointed when we went to town to pick-up our food drop--no fast food. We always like getting a hamburger or something but that was not to be had today. Did not see any AT thru hikers today. Not sure what is going on.
Date: 2012-05-23
From: Catawba Mountain

To: Daleville
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: moderate rain

Made it to the city of Daleville, VA. Reinhard has a doctor appointment in Roanoke today so we have an off day. Good thing, our feet and legs are sore and we need to wash clothes and take a shower. Having clean and dry socks is really important to prevent blisters. The rain the last few days was tough on our feet. Met a section hiker yesterday (Old Bones) who is 82 years old. He was really moving up the hills carrying a pretty large pack. He also slept in the shelter--wow. Today we also saw two of the more famous AT sights --- Mcafee Knob and Tinker Cliffs (google them). Pretty impressive and again a challenge for someone who is afraid of heights. Hallo, liebe Wander und alle die mich kennen. Ich bin zurueck auf dem AT. Ich habe einen Hand gips der gefenstert ist. Ich bin jetzt eine Woche damit gewandert, bei Wind und Wetter und es ging ganz gut, toi,toi, toi!! Ich habe heute wieder einen Kontroll Termin beim Arzt und morgen geht es weiter. Ich denke nach 4 Wochen Giops werde ich froh sein wenn er ab kommt. Ich mache mich derzeit ganz gut mit einer Hand. Ja, und gestern hatten wir ein Hylight in Form des Mc Afee Knob Felsens, sehr schoen! Ich gruesse alle die mich kennen und ganz besonders meine Frau! Reinhard-Rhino-the German
Date: 2012-05-24
From: Daleville, VA

To: Into the woods
Miles today: 15.0

All good things must come to an end so we are checking out of the motel and moving out. Received an email yesterday announcing a hiker feed on Saturday and Sunday. It is about 50 miles from here so we have to keep up a good pace. Only concern is the projected temperartures in the high 80's. We will carry only 4 days of food so our next resupply point is Glasgow, VA -- population about 1000.   The visit to the doctor yesterday went well for Reinhard. Reinhard may not even have to visit the doctor next week unless it starts hurting. He will have to keep the cast on until June 15. He is in good spirits since the visit went well.
Date: 2012-05-25
From: Into the woods

To: Hiker Feed Invite
Miles today: 0.0

Below is an invite we received for a hiker feed--in English and German. Pretty interesting.RE: Hiker FeedGreetings! Our next feed is this Saturday and Sunday right next to Thunder Hill Shelter on the Blue Ridge Parkway... This is north of Buchanan. If you think you might be not close enough but are on the part of the hike that parallels the Blue Ridge Parkway we can give you a ride. Liebe Gr14e! Unsere n¤chste Fueterung ist am Samstag und am Sonntag direkt neben der Thunder Hill Huette auf dem Blue Ridge Parkway ... Das ist n¶rdlich von Buchanan. Wenn sie denken, dass sie m¶glicherweise nicht nahe genug sind, aber auf Teilen der Wanderung, die parallel zum Blue Ridge Parkway sind, geben wir ihnen gerne eine kostenlose Fahrt.
Date: 2012-05-25
From: Into the Woods

To: Bobblets Gap Shelter
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: scattered clouds

We hiked 19 miles today. During the hike, we experienced millions of cicadas--literally millions. They're like locusts. There was a loud, constant humming sound for 15 miles. Sometimes we see thousands dead by one tree. Supposedly they burrow under ground and stay there for 17 years, and every 17 years they come out. That's what a lot of locals have told us. We didn't hear any south of McAfee Knob, but it has been constant since then. We crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway numerous times today. The Parkway goes through the Blue Ridge Mountains. It reminds me a lot of when we used to live in Springfield, VA and went to Shenandoah and saw the Skyline Drive.
Date: 2012-05-26
From: Blue Ridge Mountains

To: Bryant Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Today we hiked 13.5 miles and stopped at Bryant Ridge Shelter around 3pm. We have to time our hike to arrive at the hiker feed tomorrow at 2pm. Tomorrow we have about a 10 mile hike that is almost all uphill. We'll actually go from 1300 feet to 4200 feet.We had a big surprise today. We came across a swimming hole in a river. The hole was about 6 feet deep and was pretty cold since it was a trout stream. But it gave us a chance to go swimming, kind of get cleaned up a bit, and I got to try out my new $3 Goodwill shorts I bought. The shelter we stayed at was pretty cool--probably one of the coolest shelters we've stayed at. It was actually 3 stories and slept about 20 people. There wasn't really any camping since it was built into the side of the mountain, so we didn't have any choice but to stay in the shelter. The bugs were really bad, they bothered us all night. I'm really looking forward to getting back to my tent.
Date: 2012-05-27
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Middle of the woods, post-hiker feed
Miles today: 4.0

The hiker feed was an awesome feed put on by four great women-- Ann Mary, Pokey Hontas, Lizard, and Ms. Wiggy. 3 are actually ex-AT through hikers. They put on the most incredible hiker feast you could imagine. We found out the German translation in the hiker feed invite was done by a German hiker who's staying at one of the ladies' house, which explains why it was such good German! The feed was supposed to be from 2pm-8pm, but we got there at 1pm. By that time, they already had the cold salads laid out. They had all kinds of homemade salads--egg salad, potato salad, couscous, fruit salad, vegetable salad, curries, hummus, and chips. They had all kinds of delicious stuff! At 2pm they got out dutch ovens. I'd never seen it work before. They made beef stew and vegetarian using the dutch ovens. They also made homemade bread and quesadillas right on the trail. There was even grilled chicken. When we got done eating, they got out ice cream that was being kept cold by dry ice. It was really amazing. I miss my wife's cooking, so this homemade meal hit the spot!After we got done feasting, we only wanted to walk 4 miles. It's a lot easier to sleep in the middle of the woods on a full stomach!
Date: 2012-05-28
From: Middle of the woods, post-hiker feed

To: Glasgow, VA
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We got up this morning and walked 11 miles, then hitchhiked into town. We actually asked a cop for a ride but he was going in the other direction. A friendly local named Roger Henderson picked us up after about 2 minutes. He's really a friend of hikers and spends a lot of time shuttling them back and forth between town and the trail. He actually runs a little business called Hurricane Hill. You can check out the website, hurricanehillva.com. Roger's a super nice guy, and is actually a Naval Academy grad. We're now in the town of Glasgow. It's really cool--the town actually built a shelter for hikers with hot water in the shower, and cold water. It's a very small town but they're really taking care of the hikers. While we're here, we're picking up a mail drop and doing a little shopping.
Date: 2012-05-29
From: Glasgow, VA

To: Middle of nowhere
Miles today: 15.4

We had a pretty tough hike today coming out of Glasgow. It was really hot today, 90 degrees, and there was a 3,000 foot climb. We slept by a stream in the middle of the woods. By 7pm we could see thunderstorms coming in. By 7:30pm we were in our tents and it rained hard all night long. There was so much rain and thunder that we were actually concerned about tree limbs falling on our tents. Other than that, I slept really good! We also met another couple that's a little older than the "young hikers," and we hiked with them for a little bit.
Date: 2012-05-30
From: Middle of nowhere

To: Piney River
Miles today: 18.9

Dead tired. Anything over 15 miles is a challenge for us. Woke up at 6AM, started hiking by 7AM and stopped at 6PM. Took a break around 11AM to dry out our tents and sleeping bags because of the heavy rain the night before. Met "Easy" and "Gravity", a married couple from Michigan and we walked much of the day with them. Not often you meet hikers your age. The number of hikers has thinned. When we first started we would see 20+ hikers at night - now we see maybe another 3-5 hikers max. Some days we don't see any. Today I thought of a t-shirt I saw in town a few weeks ago ---- A hiker's life is simple: eat, sleep and hike. Slept next to a stream and a really neat tree growing out of a rock. Will post a pic soon.
Date: 2012-05-31
From: Piney River

To: Montebello, VA
Miles today: 4.2

Short day. In our AT guide there is an entry talking about a B&B/hostel that offers free lunch to all thru-hikers during the month of May and Jun. So, we went and checked it out even though we walked a mile out of our way. For lunch we had our choice of gourmet pizza (I chose shrimp with spinach on a white sauce), a hearty ham and potato dish, spiced apples, and for dessert a white cake with whipped cream and strawberries. All at no cost. The owner was wearing an apron from a culinary school and the quality of food showed. The name of the establishment is Dutch Haus B&B. Here is the website --- http://www.dutchhaus.com/Also included a pic of Reinhard's cast. Everyday he has to "open" the cast and clean the wound. He did it today at the B&B.
Date: 2012-06-01
From: Montebello, VA

To: Priest Shelter
Miles today: 4.3
Weather: moderate rain

These short mile days are getting frustrating. The forecast was for strong thunderstorms with hail, heavy rain and flash floods. So, we stopped around 10:30 AM because the storms were scheduled to begin around noon. Spent the afternoon in a shelter out of the elements. In the shelter were two Germans, a Brit, a guy from Nashville and two hikers from WI. Starange because I live in WI and lived in the past in both Nashville and Germany. Around 6 PM a group of about 10 weekend hikers showed up freezing and soaked. They came over every little bit to arm their hands by our fire. After a while they asked if they could have some of our embers to start their own fire (obviously it is difficult to start a fire when it has been raining all day).
Date: 2012-06-02
From: Priest Shelter

To: Devils Backbone Brewery
Miles today: 15.5

It was cold when we woke-up. Around 40 degrees. Again, glad i still have my winter sleeping bag and puff down jacket. Had another 3000 foot climb today to about 4 thousand feet. Supposedly that is the last big climb until Vermont. Another story. We heard on the trail that a brewery about 5 miles from the trail is real hiker friendly. They will pick you up on the trail, take you to the brewery, let you camp on their property and then take you back to the trail the following day. So, after about 15 miles we called the brewery and talked to manager. He told us to call when we came out of the woods to call and he would pick us up. Actually, we didn't need to call because after 15 seconds of hitch-hiking we got a ride (the first car before we were even able to get our phone out of our pack). Went down a steep hill past a ski resort (Wintergreen) and arrived at the Devil's Backbone Brewery. The manager told us where we could camp and we set up our tents under the mountain we had climbed earlier. The beer and BBQ were absolutely fantastic. If in the area check it out. Their website is:   http://dbbrewingcompany.com/
Date: 2012-06-03
From: Devils Backbone Brewery

To: Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Good day. Almost 20 miles and we made it to the southern entrance of Shenendoah National Park (SNP). The AM was really a pain on the feet because the trail was nothing but rocks. But, by lunch time the rocks disappeared and we were able to make some good miles in a short period of time. The highlight of the hike was a mile long rock fence in the middle of the woods about 6 feet tall in places. We were amazed at how long it must have taken some pioneer to build that fence. Also, we saw some old cabin ruins with the chimneys still intact. Tomorrow we will start hiking the SNP. My wife and I used to live about 1.5 hours from here so we hiked many different trails in the park on weekends. Reinhard and I also hiked the entire 110 miles of the AT in the park several years ago. It took us 10 days then. We hope to make it in about 7 days this time. Hallo ihr lieben Wanderer und alle die mich kennen. Ich lasse mal wieder was von mir hoeren. Ich habe nun einige Meilen mit meinem Gips gewandert, bin wieder einige Berge hoch und runter gelaufen. Wir haben momentan Trailbegleiter: Ein Amerikaner, der berentet ist und eine Deutsche aus Koeln, sie arbeitet in der Gewerkschaft. Ein schoenes Gespann. Wir haben schon einiges erlebt, z.B. haben wir abends auf einer Wiese kampiert in der Naehe einer Brauerei mit Nobelgaststaette. Haben da sehr gut gespeisst und getrunken. Ja und momentan sind wir noch in Waynesboro, hier war vor ca. 2 Jahren ein deutsches Filmteam und hat ueber den AT berichtet. Heute geht es dann in den Shenandoah National Park, den ich schon 2009 mit meinem Schwager gewandert bin. Es gaebe noch viel zu erzaehlen, aber fuer heute soll es gut sein ihr Lieben. Ich gruesse alle Wanderer und die mich kennen! Ganz besonders meine Frau Gisela, ja! Rhino-Reinhard-the German
Date: 2012-06-04
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Calf Mountain
Miles today: 6.0
Weather: scattered clouds

Back into the woods. We are now in Shenandoah Park. Every section of the hike has its own challenges. In the park it is the rules that they have because of the number of visitors to the park. For the last two months we could camp just about anywhere because we literally in the middle of nowhere. Now, they have something called regulations. I guess we will be seeing more regulations as we depart the sparsely populated areas and head north. We will see.Water will also be a problem. There is a section of 18 miles with no water. that is the longest stretch to date.
Date: 2012-06-05
From: Calf Mountain

To: Loft Mountain Campground
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: light rain

It rained all morning and was pretty miserable. Our feet got wet and very cold. One of the guys we¢re hiking with started getting hypothermia because he didn¢t want to put on his rain jacket since that¢s all he had to wear at night. We ended up having to buckle his backpack up for him because he was so cold. It stopped raining at about noon, but then started again at about 6 pm. It was a miserable day and night. Several hikers today saw a bear¢I didn¢t¢ see any. I saw a couple of deer though. I¢m also anxious to see how my new lightweight sleeping bag works out, especially in this crummy weather.
Date: 2012-06-06
From: Loft Mountain Campground

To: Hightop Hut
Miles today: 15.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Some days it¢s ¢all about the miles,¢ and today was one of those days. It rained a bit in the morning. Our boots became waterlogged and we just walked and walked and walked. There were no great views, no bears, and just a few deer. The life at the shelter was a little strange. We arrived at 4:30pm and there were only a couple of tent locations. By 7pm there was about 30 people there, a mixture of day hikers and through hikers. The problem with the Shenandoah National Park is there isn¢t a lot of ¢stealth¢ camping on the AT so people kind of get stuck going to the shelters. I also guess that¢s an indication of what¢s to come with the AT going more through built up areas and more day and week hikers with summer upon us.
Date: 2012-06-07
From: Hightop Hut

To: Bearfence Mountain Hut
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: broken clouds

We stopped at Lewis Mountain Campground for a hamburger and chips early this afternoon and just kind of got lazy and hung out and didn¢t hike much anymore. We carried hotdogs about a mile to the next shelter, Bearfence Mountain, where we tented for the night. We¢re planning for a big day of hiking tomorrow. I saw a bear today¢my first bear! Pretty excited about that. We need to continue to push to make it to Harpers Ferry by 14 June because Reinhard has his doctor¢s appointment on 15 June. A lot of people are at the shelter again tonight, including a couple of guys from Switzerland. If there are a lot of people now, we¢re expecting to see a lot more as our hike continues. Not sure how that will affect our sleeping arrangements, but it should make for more interesting acquaintances if nothing else!
Date: 2012-06-08
From: Bearfence Mountain Hut

To: Skyland Cabins
Miles today: 15.9

We¢re sleeping at Skyland Cabins tonight after about 16 miles of hiking. Four of us are splitting a cabin, so it¢s pretty cheap. We actually saw another bear today and I took a lot of pictures of it (to come soon). I went ahead and actually watched it for about 15-20 min. It was only maybe about 30-40 yards away from me so that was pretty cool. It was just a beautiful day, full of good day hiking. We were able to stop by 4:30pm, and I¢m actually drinking a beer right now. Life could be more difficult¢I could be a student in college right now having to take summer school classes and update my dad¢s hiking blog, but that¢s life! (Thanks for rubbing it in Papa! ¢Chris)
Date: 2012-06-09
From: Skyland Cabins

To: Stealth camping in the woods
Miles today: 18.3

We're in Beate and my old stomping grounds now, in places my wife and I have hiked before. We passed Byrds Nest #3 Hut, where Beate and I actually came a couple of years ago for lunch. We're camping in the middle of the woods, not near any shelter or water--just some serious stealth camping. We also stopped at Elkwallow Wayside Can Store and resupplied for four days, which should be enough to get us to Harpers Ferry. We're still pushing hard to make it to Harpers Ferry by 14 June for Reinhard's doctor's appointment. My one cell phone battery charge has to last me a whole week, so the journal's might be a little short until then!