Date: 2015-05-31
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Well last night was a blast! NOT. At about 10:00 last night the whippoorwills started in and kept going all night long until about 5:00AM. There was one so close to my tent and Wingman's tent you could year a little chirp before they started in on their obnoxious call. There were at least two or three others off in the distance adding to the all night cacophony. I was tempted to get up an throw rocks at the little buggers if I thought it would do any good.We were up bleary eyed by 5:30 and out of camp before 7:00.We hit the summit of Black Rock Mtn. in short order and climbed the craggy peak to take in the views. It was a beautiful morning in spite of the poor nights sleep we all had.Today we were hitting the Loft Mountain camp store to resupply as well as the wayside to grab some lunch. The camp store had recently reopened and was still under construction, but at least we could get supplies. Under normal circumstances we could have showered and done laundry - but these facilities were not open due to the work being done. There were showers down at the wayside that were free due to the inconvenience.Shopping for food when you are hungry and have been eating just trail food is a dangerous thing. We all were tempted to add to our food bags in ways we would not normally do. We picked up one extra dinner and breakfast as we were not sure if we would make it to Pocosin Cabin on Monday as planned.After loading up our food bags we started to head to the Wayside for lunch. Just after leaving the camp store a deer came out of the woods and posed for us to take pictures. So far on this trip the wildlife visual count is rattlesnakes 2, deer 1 and bears zero.We hit the wayside and ordered a big whack of food for lunch. I had a bacon and mushroom cheeseburger with fries and a blackberry shake. YUM!Greenie and Wingman carried some wine boxes and beer from the wayside for consumption later tonight.Another hiker we had passed earlier in our hike came in to join us for lunch - I think her name was lightening or something like that. In either case she was fast on her feet! Her family was to meet her at the wayside that day. She told us that her Dad was bringing some home made venison jerky for her - and that if she had any left over (doubtful) that she would share some with us.At the Ivy Creek overlook we were intercepted by a fisherman looking for a fishing access to nearby streams. I had noticed a fishing sign at a road crossing and after consulting our map with us he headed off to find a place to wet his line. We took some pictures, spoke to a man and a woman riding a motorcycle who stopped for a break and headed on.We reached Pinefield hut well before mid-afternoon and found some tent sites to make home for the night. The sites were a little better than what we had last night, but were on the small side and all dirt. We did have some rain and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening which the rain caused some splash back of dirt onto our tents, but nothing of concern.Water was flowing at the site, which had been noted as not reliable during dry periods.We sat and spoke to a father and son that stopped at the site. Other hikers came in but for the most part, thru hikers came and left but section hikers stopped and stayed for the night.Tomorrow is to be our longest day to reach the Pocosin Cabin some 18 miles north. At least with a landing at the cabin we will not have to worry about finding a place to camp. Hopefully we left the Whippoorwills behind us at the last shelter - I don't think I could take another night like last night!