Date: 2016-03-12
From: Standing Bear Farm Hostel

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: broken clouds

Sat March 12Standing Bear Farm to Roaring Fork Shelter Left @ 8 am Arrive @ 6 pmSo....We slept our night at the Standing Bear Hostel in the Tree House!! It was a little tree house with a fouton for a bed. It had four windows and a door with a balcony. The trap door was double doors in the floor to get up into it, ladder was homemade log ladder, permanently attached!! Adorable accommodations and simple design, cute & practical!! We didn't need to set an alarm, as we ALL woke up to the sound of the rooster @ 4 am!! We weren't intending on getting up at 4, but 6 actually....   It added to the ambience!! We hiked pretty much straight up all day. Not a gradual up, like switch backs and such, but....let's get us up there quick; kinda ups!!   The weather was amazing, mostly sunny and warm. It's still winter and our clothes are not for the warmth, so we had a rough sticky day and had to drink tons of water!! One water pit stop Big Cypress took his shirt off & drenched it in ice cold water of the stream....he said it cooled him and cold enough to take his breath away, but worth it!!Met one gentleman hiking for a month. He calls it, exerhiking! Our Trail family for today and past few days has been....Fiber, we really like Jason and hiking with him!! Teach and Steady (from PA), Candle Maker (from Holland MI), 38 (from Berkley MI). We also saw Captain Underpants a couple times. He was meeting friends for food on the trail, cuz he lost his money/cc and is hungry with no food. We got to the Max Patch road crossing and there was a tent. People started yelling.....hikers!!! Yah, hurray!!! Hooping & hollering!! Oh my gosh......We couldn't believe our eyes, It's trail magic and two groups of trail angels!! Yahoo, Gecko and (   ). Along with miss Heather Brave and her husband, and country girl nana. They were already feeding Candle Maker & Capt Underpants. Half the group was there for Captain, to feed him!! Heather's husband hiked last year and she loves doing trail magic and helping hikers!! She even gave us some health knowledge, about norovirus and ticks and hypothermia. She's got a degree in public health and has actually rescued 6 hikers. Some had gotten soaking wet and got hypothermia. It can happen any time, not just winter!! We ate like crazy hikers! Hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, tangelo, apples (from Sparta MI), bananas, homemade brownies, carrots & hummus, sodas, strawberries, lots & lots of snack sweet treats!! It was a welcome sight, for overheated weary hiker trash. Oh yah, we got to throw our trash away too. That's a big deal, not carrying your trash / extra weight!!   We just can't thank them enough!!! So very grateful.We parted ways at about 4; to continue on. We had about 3 miles to go and Max Patch Bald summit was a picture spot!! Beautiful!! Lots of pics taken. And then on to the shelter. Big Cypress and I were first to Arrive, got a nice tent spot for us and Fiber. Teach & Steady decided to tent by the creek in a little nook spot. Probably the best idea, as there is currently a hound dog barking its lungs out!! 7:53 pm The creek will drown out the yelping for them!!Critters: squirrel, woodpecker, big toad (they all must be waking from winter dormancy), we hear cardinals daily, I've neglected to post that.