Date: 2018-04-20
From: Cosby Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm Hostel
Miles today: 10.7

Last night was really cold in the shelter. The fire really didn't heat up the place. I didn't sleep very well either. The large group FiveO, Splash, Burger King, and 3 other hikers were a train wreck. They acted like no one else was in the shelter. I was sleeping on the bottom area and they were on the top. During the night one of their shirts hit me in the head and woke me up. They had gadarade bottles and heavy stuff bags falling from the upper sleeping area. In the morning I couldn't find my aquamira, I mentioned it, and one of the kids had packed it away. Apparently FiveO told him to grab everything in sight. That would be ok if they were the only ones in the shelter. They also believed they had a right to be loud in the morning since they were a group larger than 5. Booga and I are going to hike faster than them so we're out of their bubble.The weather was warmer than yesterday. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. We hiked for about 3 miles then another .6 to Mt. Cammerer to a fire lookout. The lookout was constructed during the 1930s and was retired in the 1960s. From the tower you could see at least 50 miles out. We were trying to guess from the top were the trail led next. We hung out for a awhile and ate our snacks. It was another 5 mile downhill hike to Davenport gap. Another mile after that was the northern boundary of The Smokies. I was sad and happy to leave the park. I won't see vegetation like that again. It felt like a rain forest up there. However, it's nice that I can camp anywhere now. Also the weather should be a little tamer.  As we approached highway I-40 we saw Miss Janet's van and the train wreck crew. She was going to slack pack us to standing bear farm hostel. Before she took off she had us all do a dance across the bridge. She's filmed us a few times. I wonder if she has a YouTube channel. It felt nice not to have 25 pounds sitting on my back over the next mile.  Standing Bear Farm was built by Curtis Owen. He hiked the AT and wanted to created a haven for hikers. The farm itself had this rustic look. It even had tree houses that you could sleep in. They had a washboard where you could do your laundry. Everything you bought was on an honor system. You'd carry a piece of paper with you and wrote all the things you bought. They would charge you when you left.Booga bear and I got a tenting space while we're there. We didn't realize it was 420. Standing bear hosts a yearly party for that event. People were coming in from all over to hang out. They also brought a pot luck! I was most excited about the food. I ate 2 hog dogs, salad, macaroni salad, chicken soup, noodle slaw, a pork sandwich, scalloped potatoes, and a cookie. My stomach felt like it would explode. I had trouble drinking my beer because I ate so much food. They built a stage out back and listened to a cover band. While we were there Ann and Wizard showed up. They pushed really hard and did an 18 mile day. We caught up over the last few days. Everyone had seen new thru hikers on the trail since the road closure at clingmans dome created a new bubble. I met a hiker who did 27 miles in one day to make it to the 420 party. My feet would have fallen apart if I did that many miles. The band played until dusk and it seemed like the party was winding down around 9. It's strange that hiker midnight applies to parties out in the back country. We hung out in the kitchen/common area for a awhile longer. Pumpkin Spice was reading through AT hiker year books. You can send your trail name and picture in to have it become part of the year book. We looked for duplicate names. One book had 5 people named Rabbit.  On the way back to my tent there was another fire. There were was a duo playing guitar, harmonica, and banging on a wooden stump. Ramble was talking to an older guy who was a bit tipsy. The older guy talked about catching tuna, but in this loud raspy voice. His wife tried to get him to calm down since he was right next to the tents. He was really excited about catching tuna! I left that group and the duo kept playing on into the night.I feel asleep to music and the man talking about his tuna.