Date: 2013-06-25
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 10.7
Weather: broken clouds

I went into today's hike thinking it would be easy. Up at the start and then mostly downhill. I didn't realize that the day would turn out differently. I headed out by myself and enjoyed the solitude. The terrain is rockier than I would like and it beat up my feet a bit. Eventually the trail smoothed out and I sped up. At one point I was hiking with a companion I didn't expect - a turkey. It was wandering down the trail keeping pace with me for several hundred yards, even up and over a ridge. It eventually ran off into the brush. Catching up to Walkabout and Longhaul was a highlight that includes a strange dog story. I came upon them talking with a sobo hiker with a dog. The dog was lost and the owner didn't answer the phone. The sobo hiker left a message and was planning to take the dog to Newfound Gap. The dog liked us so it stared following us. Dogs are not allowed in the Smokies and we were closer to a main road. The dog had 2 radio collars with antenna. We thought the dog was a boar (or bear but that wouldn't be legal) hunting dog who got lost and couldn't find his owner. We coaxed the dog to follow us and called him back from checking out scents in the woods around us. We were told he preferred nutter butters to jerky so Walkabout called him nutter. I called Jim 5 since that was the number on his collar. Longhaul called him dumbass since he loved getting between you and your hiking poles causing one's steps to falter. While we were herding the dog I had some great conversation with the other two hikers. Coming upon Davenport shelter we decided to eat a snack and rest up. The shelter has a cafe around it to keep out the bears. (They all did in the smokies until people started feeding bears to coax them to stay for photos. Then the bears showed up to much. It was like a reverse zoo. Now the fences are gone except for this one so it was good to see) Longhaul sat in the cage and pulled out his travel guitar. We ate to the sound of beautiful music. What a perfect day. We got to the road and I left a message for the owner. Another dog showed up with the same gear and they took off down the road like they knew where home was. I never got a call back so we guess he made it home. The way to the hostel was more strenuous than we thought it would be. It did follow a cascading river with a swift flow. I took many pictures of the various falls. The route turned onto the road to the hostel and we quickly arrived.Rocket man showed us around. He gave us an envelope to record anything we used and squared up with him in the morning. A cold soda hit the spot as we waited for a pizza to cook. The twins were here when we arrived so we spent time talking. When they took off it was probably the last time I'll see them. Standing Bear hostel is a peaceful place with a hippy vibe. Very welcoming and chill. I slept in the bunkhouse that was mostly empty. Getting up in the night I went out to see the moon that was as bright as a light. Dale and Buddy also showed up. This group is a perfect bunch to be around. After staying up past hiker midnight talking my tiredness got the better if me and we put off more conversation until the morning.