Trip of 2013.02.17

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes
• See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/HC-002 - Big Bald Mountain

Commentary:

It was a cold day for Georgia. Temperature was 23 degrees with a wind chill of 17 at the trailhead. Ice puddles, frozen streams, and frozen mud flows on the trail did not melt all day.

This was my third visit to the area. On the first trip, I scouted trailheads. For the second trip, I was stopped by Stanley creek. The dirt road fords Stanley Creek, and the crossing is about 15 feet wide and 10-12 inches deep. I was unable to find a dry crossing, after scouting upstream and downstream for over an hour. Since it was February, I was unwilling to wade.

This time I went with some very cool, lightweight hip-waders, weighing about a pound. Crossed Stanley Creek in 5 minutes.

Later, I encountered another creek and managed to cross it dry. As I was breathing a sigh of relief, I stepped on a sheet of ice and landed hard. Fortunately, the only wounds were to my pride and a big bruise on my hip.

It was a long, but not particularly difficult hike to Horsepen Gap. From there, it was 0.7 miles bushwhacking up the ridge to the summit. The first half of this bushwhack is steep and was a bear. The second half was not too bad. It is obvious when you reach the general area of the summit, but it is a broad and not sharply defined.

I literally tripped over the benchmark for the summit!

I had a tough time reaching chasers. I don’t know why. I used the same antenna and it was hung very similar to my successful summit last week. Both times, I used a 30 foot, end-fed, with a 9-to-1 UNUN, and a 33 foot, ground-level counterpoise. The antenna was almost vertical (with about a 15 degree slope, and the base of the antenna 2-3 feet off the ground. I’m not certain, but I might see a pattern of more chasers on Saturdays than on Sundays, or it could have been that many chasers were participating in the big CW contest today, or it could just have been a fluke of propagation.

This was an exhausting summit, due to the long bushwhack, and 7 miles round-trip is near the limit of my endurance on a winter day. I am particularly grateful to the chasers who found me, because I’d have HATED hiking all that distance for naught!

• 20 meters
  • W0MNA
  • K0YO
  • G0RQL
• 40 meters
  • K4PIC
  • N4EX
  • KC3RT

Trip of 2013.02.09

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide: W4G/HC-009, Dyer Mountain

Commentary:

A beautiful day in North Georgia – about 30 degrees at 9 A.M, rising to about 50. Dyer was not my first choice or my second choice for this trip.

Plan-A was Big Bald Mountain. I was stopped cold at Stanley Creek for that hike. The road forded the creek about 2 miles from the trailhead. The ford was about 15 feet wide and 10 inches deep. I bushwhacked 2/10 of a mile up the creek, looking for a crossing, but found nothing safe. I considered wading, but with no spare shoes and water temperature at about 35 degrees, and 60 minutes of scouting up and down the creek, I decided that discretion was the better part of valor and bailed out.

There was no cell coverage on the trail or at the trailhead. My preplanned Plan-B was Rocky Mountain (W4G/HC-008), but by the time I made it back to the car, there was no way I could summit Rocky and meet my alerted time. Since there was no cell, I couldn’t self-spot, and if you can’t self-spot, you can’t afford to miss your activation time. MAYBE Rocky would have had cell, where the Big Bald trail did not, but I didn’t want to risk a failed Plan-B.

So I headed over to Dyer Mountain. I’d previously driven past Dyer four times, without noticing it, when I activated Flat Top Mountain. It is an easy back country trailhead. There’s several miles of dirt road, but it is all good condition; most of it is lane-and-a-half; the last mile is single lane with pull-outs. Easily drivable in my Prius.

I used GPS to identify when I was near the summit. I bushwhacked up the ridge to the peak. Lotsa brush, deadfall, dense trees, and steep terrain. I’ll bet it is worse in spring/summer when the brush is denser. It is, as Oscar Wilde said of life, “Nasty, brutish, and short.” Navigation was via GPS until near the summit. (Once you get close, it is obvious where the apex is.)

There was a nice surrounded-by-peaks view through the trees. The weather was pleasant. It was a peaceful summit. Propagation was kind and I made 18 contacts.

I operated with 12 watts and a new-to-me 30’ wire antenna, with a Balun Designs 9-to-1 UNUN, and a 33’ counterpoise. It seemed to work really well on 20 and good on 40. I may switch to this from my EFHW for 20 meters. While it may not be quite as nice for 20 (in that it requires an explicit counterpoise and it is a little shorter), the fact that it works well on 40 and should also work well on 17 and 30 should make up for it. (And one of my 20m contacts commented that my signal was so strong that I must have been using “a kilowatt and a beam!”)

I used my 11 AA power pack with Powerex NiMh batteries again. I’m very pleased with its performance. It is a little large (since I’m an inept Maker and I put it into a convenient Really Useful Box from Office Depot), and a few ounces heavier than a LiFePo pack. I like the fact that NiMh cells don’t burst into flame and that I can safely recharge them indoors. I do have a charger that charges 8 AA cells at a time and manages the charging of each cell individually. I should get around to wiring a fuse into it. If you’re someone who is on the air for an hour, you might need a LiFePo, but I get 12 watts for my full activation, so that’s good enough for me.

Oh, and if the batteries in my GPS run down, I can always borrow cells from my power pack for the hike out. I’ve recently acquired an adapter cable which should plug into my power pack and supply power to my iPhone, in the event that its battery runs down.

Thank you chasers!

• 20 meters
  • N1EU
  • N0ZH
  • W7CNL
  • W4RK
  • NS7P
  • AE5KA
  • K3SAE
  • K0YO
  • CT1BQH
  • W3GWU
  • WB0P
• 40 meters
  • AA4AI
  • W4ZV
  • AJ5C
  • KC3RT
  • N4EX
  • N4MJ
  • K0LAF

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SOTA Activation Report: W4G/NG-007 - Double Spring Knob and W4G/NG-013 Round Top

Trip of 2012.12.30

• Succeeded: Yes (both)

• First-activation: Yes (both)

• See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/NG-007 - Double Spring Knob
• See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/NG-013 - Round Top

Commentary (Double Spring Knob):

Chilly (for Georgia) activation with some weather surprises. This would be a ‘piece of cake’ activation in the fall, or in a dry patch of winter weather.

It was 26 degrees when I left the car and 33 when I returned. As I hiked up from the trailhead, things turned from no snow, to a light dusting, to about 6 inches. The big surprise was that a recent ice storm left trees and underbrush coated with a thick layer of ice.

Hiking the AT was easy. (I am grateful to the volunteers who maintain it.) I expected I’d find a side trail to the summit from the high point of the AT. No such luck. The final quarter mile was a bushwhack through ice encrusted underbrush and a thicket of young trees in the understory.

Most of my QSOs were at 5 watts, but a few may have been at 10. I used 8 lithium AA cells, and the KX3 will let me set 10 watts of transmit power, but the first time I speak a little too loud, the voltage dips, and it reduces power to 5. I’m going to log the first QSO at 10 watts and the rest at 5.

I couldn’t have made it to the summit without my GPS. I couldn’t have made it back to the trail without my GPS. I don’t like having my life depend upon electronica. (In my defense, my iPhone also has a GPS, so I did have a Plan B.) Gotta carry a sturdy compass on future trips. The battery meter fell from full-bars down to 1 really fast. (To be expected with Lithium batteries which had been used on prior summits.) Glad I carried spare GPS batteries!

As the temperature rose and the sun hit the trees, they started dropping ice and snow. I was worried I’d lose my rig or my log to a direct hit, so I didn’t stay long enough to get all callers. The fact that I was perched on a sloped rock to get out of the snow, and was slowly sliding off toward a drift added to my enthusiasm to get off the summit.

I’d been asked to activate on 40 meters too, and I agreed to try, time permitting. Circumstances did not permit, and I apologize to chasers who couldn’t reach me on 20. I hadn’t planned on the ice storm remnants.

Summit - I operated from 34.87812, -83.65638, which was well inside the activation zone, but not at the exact apex. GPS measured altitude at 4242. Based on Lat/Lon, I was within the 4250 contour line. SOTAdata calls the peak at 4301 feet (1311 meters). Either way, it was well within the 75 ft activation zone. I prefer to operate from the apex, but there were several times during the bushwhack when I said, “I’m not going to summit,” so I’m relieved that the GPS evidence shows that I made it.

Contacts:

• 9 QSO at 5 or 10 watts on 20 meters. 14.339-ssb.
• W0MNA
• AC0A
• VE2JCW
• N1EU
• K0LAF
• NS7P
• KB1RJD AND KB1RJC
• N4EX

Thank you chasers! Given the slog through the ice, I am exceptionally grateful that you were there when I called CQ.

Airtime: 11:30 AM Eastern on 30 December, 2012

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• Icy, dense brush created antenna challenges. I recommend carrying a mast and using bungee cords or velcro to bind it to a tree.
• EARCHI 20m matchbox with an EFHW. Messily hung with a combination of short mast and zigzag through trees.

I was running late. I’d planned to use a slingshot to launch my antenna. The trees and brush were thick enough to make that difficult. I’d also switched from using a fishing weight to a large steel nut, and I kept hitting the uprights of the slingshot! I didn’t expect to be able to self-spot, so as my alert time came and went I was getting desperate to get SOMETHING in the air for an antenna.

I grabbed a 15’ carbon fiber fishing pole that I carried ‘just in case’, zip tied the antenna near the tip, zip tied the base of the pole to a small branch, and pulled the wire as far from the pole as I could. Since I use an EFHW, I had 18’ of extra wire which I zigzagged through nearby branches as best I could.

Despite my ad hoc antenna, I received multiple 59 signal reports, with one operator telling me I was the strongest activator signal he’d ever received. I would have expected some attenuation from the carbon fiber pole. I pulled the wire as far from the pole as possible. Call it a “semi-sloper” configuration. Maybe I got some gain in his direction from the zigzag…

Commentary (Round Top):

Hiking the AT was easy. (I am grateful to the volunteers who maintain it.) I expected I’d find a side trail to the summit from the high point of the AT. No such luck. The final quarter mile was a bushwhack through ice encrusted underbrush and a thicket of young trees in the understory.

My QSOs were at 5 watts. I used 8 lithium AA cells, but since I used them on another peak earlier in the day, voltage had dropped too low for 10 watts.

I couldn’t have made it to the summit without my GPS.

As the temperature rose and the sun hit the trees, they started dropping ice and snow. I was worried I’d lose my rig or my log to a direct hit, so as soon as chasers stopped responding, I got off the summit. (I like to continue calling for a few minutes. Often there is a second wave of chasers, who just need a few more minutes to get the rig fired up after a spot.)

Plus, it was getting late, and I wanted to make it back to paved roads before dark. On the way in, I dodged a beer bottle on Wildcat Road and I wanted to stop and collect it on the way back – not run over it!

Summit - I operated from the absolute apex for this one.

I did this summit immediately after activating Double Spring Knob, so my hike for this one begins at Addis Gap. (I did not hike back to my car on the road.)

Contacts:

• 6 QSO at 5 watts on 40 meters and 8 on 20 meters. 7.1908-ssb and 14.3221-ssb. It was tough to find a free frequency.
• 40 meters
  • KC3RT
  • WA2USA
  • N0TU
  • W4ZV
  • W6UB
  • K4QS
• 20 meters
  • VA6FUN
  • N1EU
  • W0MNA
  • AC0A
  • VE2JCW
  • NS7P
  • W7CNL
  • WT5RZ

Thank you chasers! Given the slog through the ice, I am exceptionally grateful that you were there when I called CQ.

Airtime: 2:57 PM Eastern on 30 December, 2012

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• I was able to successfully slingshot a heavy monofilament fishing line into a tree; I used that to hoist up my 33 ft wire.
• EARCHI 20m matchbox with an EFHW. Hung vertically (mostly).

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SOTA Activation Report: W4G/NG-010, Blue Mountain

Trip of 2013.01.05

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide: W4G/NG-010, Blue Mountain

Commentary:

A beautiful winter day in Georgia, an easy drive, and a well-maintained, easy to follow trail. It seemed like maybe propagation was not as good as it has been recently and, sure enough, when I returned him and checked online propagation predictions, they were calling it ‘fair’ (down from recent ‘good’) on 20 meters.

My eldest son came along on this trip. (He’s not a ham.) He is always a delight to have as a hiking companion and a SOTA buddy. He copies call signs and signal reports better than me! I was also joined by a new trail companion. I call him K4KPK/P. He’s a little confused about how he came to be on top of Mt. KX3.

Here’s K4KPK/P in “antenna support configuration.”

A surprising number of hikers were out for a Georgia winter day. Four on our side of the highway, and a gaggle of Boy Scouts headed the other direction.

My QSOs were at 12 watts. I used 12 NiMh AA cells, which I had drained down to 15.2 volts prior to the trip. Upon my return home, the mailman brought my dummy AA cell, so next time I’ll go with 11 fully-charged cells and a dummy, so I won’t have to pre-drain.

On the night before the trip, there were two other activators alerted for about the same time, so I moved my alert up by 15 minutes, to avoid competing for chasers. We hung around our summit for a little while after activation, in hopes that one of them would get spotted and we could S2S. We got too cold before anyone went on the air. (I think S2S is going to be a warm weather sport for me.)

In a first (for me), we encountered three people on the trail who knew at least a little about SOTA. One solo hiker is a ham with an Elecraft CW rig on order for SOTA. A pair of hikers said something to the effect of, “Oh. We talked to someone on a mountain in Pennsylvania who was doing what you’re doing. There was a terrible storm. He seemed very excited to be there.”

Contacts:

• 6 QSO on 40 meters and 8 on 20 meters. 7.19265-ssb and 14.3448-ssb.
  • 40 meters
    • N4EX
    • W4ZV
    • K4PIC
    • N0ZH
    • WA2USA
    • K0LAF
  • 20 meters
    • N7UN
    • NS7P
    • N0ZH
    • W0MNA
    • KQ2RP
    • AA4AI
    • VA6FUN
    • KI0G

Thank you chasers! I am grateful that you were then when I called CQ.

Antennas:

• A fine site for all manner of antennas. The brush is not too dense under the trees and there are trees of many sizes.
• I was able to successfully slingshot a heavy monofilament line into a tree; I used it to hoist up my 33 ft wire.
• There’s also space to guy out a mast, if that’s your preference.
• I used my EARCHI 20m matchbox with an EFHW. I had no trouble launching my antenna using fishing line on a spool, a 1 ounce egg sinker, and a slingshot. (Much better luck than last weekend.) I ended up stringing an inverted L.

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SOTA Activation Report: W4G/NG-007 - Double Spring Knob and W4G/NG-013 Round Top

Trip of 2012.12.30

• Succeeded: Yes (both)

• First-activation: Yes (both)

• See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/NG-007 - Double Spring Knob
• See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/NG-013 - Round Top

Commentary (Double Spring Knob):

Chilly (for Georgia) activation with some weather surprises. This would be a ‘piece of cake’ activation in the fall, or in a dry patch of winter weather.

It was 26 degrees when I left the car and 33 when I returned. As I hiked up from the trailhead, things turned from no snow, to a light dusting, to about 6 inches. The big surprise was that a recent ice storm left trees and underbrush coated with a thick layer of ice.

Hiking the AT was easy. (I am grateful to the volunteers who maintain it.) I expected I’d find a side trail to the summit from the high point of the AT. No such luck. The final quarter mile was a bushwhack through ice encrusted underbrush and a thicket of young trees in the understory.

Most of my QSOs were at 5 watts, but a few may have been at 10. I used 8 lithium AA cells, and the KX3 will let me set 10 watts of transmit power, but the first time I speak a little too loud, the voltage dips, and it reduces power to 5. I’m going to log the first QSO at 10 watts and the rest at 5.

I couldn’t have made it to the summit without my GPS. I couldn’t have made it back to the trail without my GPS. I don’t like having my life depend upon electronica. (In my defense, my iPhone also has a GPS, so I did have a Plan B.) Gotta carry a sturdy compass on future trips. The battery meter fell from full-bars down to 1 really fast. (To be expected with Lithium batteries which had been used on prior summits.) Glad I carried spare GPS batteries!

As the temperature rose and the sun hit the trees, they started dropping ice and snow. I was worried I’d lose my rig or my log to a direct hit, so I didn’t stay long enough to get all callers. The fact that I was perched on a sloped rock to get out of the snow, and was slowly sliding off toward a drift added to my enthusiasm to get off the summit.

I’d been asked to activate on 40 meters too, and I agreed to try, time permitting. Circumstances did not permit, and I apologize to chasers who couldn’t reach me on 20. I hadn’t planned on the ice storm remnants.

Summit - I operated from 34.87812, -83.65638, which was well inside the activation zone, but not at the exact apex. GPS measured altitude at 4242. Based on Lat/Lon, I was within the 4250 contour line. SOTAdata calls the peak at 4301 feet (1311 meters). Either way, it was well within the 75 ft activation zone. I prefer to operate from the apex, but there were several times during the bushwhack when I said, “I’m not going to summit,” so I’m relieved that the GPS evidence shows that I made it.

Contacts:

• 9 QSO at 5 or 10 watts on 20 meters. 14.339-ssb.
• W0MNA
• AC0A
• VE2JCW
• N1EU
• K0LAF
• NS7P
• KB1RJD AND KB1RJC
• N4EX

Thank you chasers! Given the slog through the ice, I am exceptionally grateful that you were there when I called CQ.

Airtime: 11:30 AM Eastern on 30 December, 2012

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• Icy, dense brush created antenna challenges. I recommend carrying a mast and using bungee cords or velcro to bind it to a tree.
• EARCHI 20m matchbox with an EFHW. Messily hung with a combination of short mast and zigzag through trees.

I was running late. I’d planned to use a slingshot to launch my antenna. The trees and brush were thick enough to make that difficult. I’d also switched from using a fishing weight to a large steel nut, and I kept hitting the uprights of the slingshot! I didn’t expect to be able to self-spot, so as my alert time came and went I was getting desperate to get SOMETHING in the air for an antenna.

I grabbed a 15’ carbon fiber fishing pole that I carried ‘just in case’, zip tied the antenna near the tip, zip tied the base of the pole to a small branch, and pulled the wire as far from the pole as I could. Since I use an EFHW, I had 18’ of extra wire which I zigzagged through nearby branches as best I could.

Despite my ad hoc antenna, I received multiple 59 signal reports, with one operator telling me I was the strongest activator signal he’d ever received. I would have expected some attenuation from the carbon fiber pole. I pulled the wire as far from the pole as possible. Call it a “semi-sloper” configuration. Maybe I got some gain in his direction from the zigzag…

Commentary (Round Top):

Hiking the AT was easy. (I am grateful to the volunteers who maintain it.) I expected I’d find a side trail to the summit from the high point of the AT. No such luck. The final quarter mile was a bushwhack through ice encrusted underbrush and a thicket of young trees in the understory.

My QSOs were at 5 watts. I used 8 lithium AA cells, but since I used them on another peak earlier in the day, voltage had dropped too low for 10 watts.

I couldn’t have made it to the summit without my GPS.

As the temperature rose and the sun hit the trees, they started dropping ice and snow. I was worried I’d lose my rig or my log to a direct hit, so as soon as chasers stopped responding, I got off the summit. (I like to continue calling for a few minutes. Often there is a second wave of chasers, who just need a few more minutes to get the rig fired up after a spot.)

Plus, it was getting late, and I wanted to make it back to paved roads before dark. On the way in, I dodged a beer bottle on Wildcat Road and I wanted to stop and collect it on the way back – not run over it!

Summit - I operated from the absolute apex for this one.

I did this summit immediately after activating Double Spring Knob, so my hike for this one begins at Addis Gap. (I did not hike back to my car on the road.)

Contacts:

• 6 QSO at 5 watts on 40 meters and 8 on 20 meters. 7.1908-ssb and 14.3221-ssb. It was tough to find a free frequency.
• 40 meters
  • KC3RT
  • WA2USA
  • N0TU
  • W4ZV
  • W6UB
  • K4QS
• 20 meters
  • VA6FUN
  • N1EU
  • W0MNA
  • AC0A
  • VE2JCW
  • NS7P
  • W7CNL
  • WT5RZ

Thank you chasers! Given the slog through the ice, I am exceptionally grateful that you were there when I called CQ.

Airtime: 2:57 PM Eastern on 30 December, 2012

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• I was able to successfully slingshot a heavy monofilament fishing line into a tree; I used that to hoist up my 33 ft wire.
• EARCHI 20m matchbox with an EFHW. Hung vertically (mostly).

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SOTA Activation Report: W4G/NG-006 - Coosa Bald

Trip of 2012.12.28

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/NG-006 - Coosa Bald

Commentary:

Cool weather, 2-hour drive from Atlanta, entry-level hike. My 13 year-old son came along for the adventure. He’s not a ham, but he is a real help with setup and he independently copies call signs, to ensure I don’t claim a bad QSO due to transcription error.

It should have been an easy activation, and we were also planning to do some antenna testing using (pre-recorded) CW and RBN. I’ve been carrying a 31’ Jackite mast for 20 meter EFHW antenna. It is great at the site, but awkward to pack. We wanted to compare our suspended vertical EARCHI 6-40 matchbox on 20 and 40 meters with the same antenna supported at mid-point on a carbon fiber mast as an inverted V (end-fed). But…

How to Turn an Easy Trip Into a Challenging One:

I carry two sets of paper - one hase my checklists and notes for taking a trip from conception to the trailhead, and one has my cheatsheets for trailhead through return-to-car. Importantly, my on-the-trail cheatsheet lists the frequencies I’ve alerted. I got my papers swapped, and left my on-the-trail packet in the car. When we discovered my error at the site, I left my son with my gear and ran back down the hill to fetch my cheatsheet, and hurried back up the hill. (My legs will never forgive me.)

Contacts:

• 23 QSO at 5 watts on 20 and 40 meters. 7.180-ssb,14.342-ssb.
• I heard from 3 people at W1AW. Since they all identified as W1AW, I’m counting that as a single QSO on SOTAdata but as 3 QSO here.
• 40 meters was very noisy and crowded, so I quickly moved to 20.

Thank you chasers!

Airtime: 1:00 PM Eastern on 28 December, 2012

• On-air for 40 meters from 1:00 to 1:10.
• On-air for 20 meters from 1:10 to 1:30

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• EARCHI 6-40 matchbox and wire, hung from tree, w/base and feed point 4.5’ off ground. I used an 8 foot length of RG-213 as feed line, with no counterpoise (beyond the feed line and radio case).
• As it was a calm day, I hung the antenna vertically from a tree using a slingshot and fishing line to pull up some paracord to hold the high end. The low end was fastened to a tree branch.

When I’m planning to operate solely on 20 meters, I use the 20 meter matchbox. This trip is the first time I’ve planned to use both 20 and 40 meters, so it was my first use of the 6-40 matchbox. It worked well on 20. I can’t tell whether poor conditions or poor antenna impacted 40. I suspect it was conditions.

Good Food:

On the way home, we stopped for really good barbecue at Smoke N Gold Barbecue, at 56 E. Main Street, Dahlonega. It is about a block short of the square. I bribe my son to come with me, by plying him with food. ;-)

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Trip of 2013.12.15

• Succeeded: Yes
• Propagation forecast on departure: 40m=poor, 20m=poor, 17m=good, S/N=0-1, A=16, K=1, Geomag=very quiet
• Propagation forecast on return: 40m=poor, 20m=fair, 17m=good, S/N=0-1, A=7, K=1, Geomag=very quiet

I set out today to activate Coosa Bald (W4G/NG-06) and Sheriff Knob (W4G/NG-034). I mostly-activated Coosa.

Getting to the trailhead in my Corolla was an adventure. It rained all yesterday, so there were some muddy ruts - scary enough that I got out and probed the depth to be sure they wouldn’t swallow my wheels. I dug a trench to the side of one, so it would drain before I crossed it.

The WX forecast called for no rain with “skies clearing,” so I was perplexed by the light snow and heavy fog. (The “out there” snow and fog. There’s often a little snow and fog inside my head!)

Signals were generally pretty strong on 20 and 40. I had to move twice on 20. Once was due to someone being ‘clever.’ A big thank you to the chasers who followed me in my vague QSY to “something lower on 20.”

I went to 40 meters, with the plan to come back to 20 after the joker was gone. However, ‘uncomfortably cold’ turned to ‘uncontrollable shivering,’ so it was time to get off the mountain. It is my commitment to work all chasers on every activation, and I left some chasers stranded on 20. I’m sorry about that. I really had to get off the mountain.

I drove to the trailhead for Sheriff, but I started shivering as I was loading up, so I canceled my alert and called it a day.

I don’t understand why I got so chilled. Temp was about 25 and winds were 15-20. I was out with the same gear in similar conditions in late November and it was just ‘uncomfortable.’ Maybe the fog; maybe I’m coming down with a bug. Time to visit REI for warmer togs.

SOTA Activation Report: W4G/HC-043 - Vineyard Mountain

Trip of 2012.12.02

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide: W4G/HC-043, Vineyard Mountain

Commentary:

The plan was to park at the Riverside Day Use Area, just below Alatoona Dam, and hike up the Eagle Scout Trails to the summit. But the road was gated just before Riverside. And there were plenty of “no parking” signs around the gate, and there was a gate house (to permit traffic to the dam?), so ditching the car and hiking up the road to the trailhead was out. My guess is that they close the road for the winter, and it will re-open in the spring.

Google Maps shows a route via Red Top Mountain Rd to Somerset Ln. Somerset is a gated community, and there wasn’t an easy walk around the gate, so Plan B wasn’t looking good either.

I was headed home and just before the I-75 entrance ramp, I noticed a rusty gate and a bit of pavement on the right. If you look at Google Maps, you’ll see two features: * A big gravel parking lot half-way up the entrance ramp. * Just east of the lot, there’s an old, abandoned dirt road running north.

Perfect weather, convenient site to Atlanta, moderate-level hike – at least the planned part of the hike was moderate. Important learning – Yes, chasers will show up for a 1-point summit. Thanks guys!

Contacts:

• 10 QSO at 10 watts on 20 and 40 meters. 14.340 and 7.262.
• Thank you chasers!

Airtime: Scheduled for 11:45 Eastern. On the air from about 11:00 to 11:30. 2 December, 2012

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

Antennas:

• Easy site for antennas.
• Trees around the opening at the summit.
• Space to guy out a vertical.
• Antenna I used:
  • 20/40 meters - EFHW on 31’ Jackite with EARCHI 20 meter matchbox. Bungee-corded it to the trunk of a tilted tree.
  • I used a counterpoise of about 21-20 feet.
  • Next time, if I remember, I’ll remove the matchbox when I move from 20 to 40.

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Trip of 2013.08.10

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

I made a little trip up to Vineyard Mountain, W4G/HC-043 today. It is a local 1-pointer, which I’ve activated before, but I had a new antenna setup I wanted to try.

I bought a $2 sand spike, which I drove into the ground with a rock, and I stuck the end of my carbon fiber pole into the cup. It supported the mast admirably, until I added the antenna, which ran off to the side because it is twice the length of the mast. I’m comfortable watching the narrow end of my mast bend, but the lower segments were bending enough to worry me, so I added guy lines at 5’ AGL. The spike would work OK with a 1/4 wave vertical on 20 meters, but I was using a half-wave inverted L. I had hoped to eliminate guying, but no such luck.

I’d planned to do some antenna trimming, with my new LNR 10/20/40. My son decided to join me at the last minute, and we left home later than usual, so we were hiking in August, in Georgia, with 90+ degrees and 90% humidity; he was pretty uncomfortable by the time we reached the summit. “Dad, can you finish quick so we can get off this miserable mountain?” So the trimming will wait for another trip. (I did measure SWR. The LNR is way too long.)

Massachusetts was out in force today. I heard from N1EU, NE1SJ, and K1MAZ summit-to-summit, all on W1 summits.

SOTA Activation Report: W4G/HC-036 - Pine Mountain

Trip of 2012.11.20

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/HC-036 - Pine Mountain

Commentary:

Perfect weather, convenient site to Atlanta, moderate-level hike. For a bonus, my eldest son came along and listened in via a second set of headphones. We both had a great time.

It’s a short, steep hike up from the west parking lot off Komatsu Drive in Cartersville. 20 meters was noise free and our chosen frequency was silent. (That’s an advantage of a weekday activation!)

Contacts:

• 11 QSO at 10 watts on 20 meters - 14.345 MHz SSB
• Thank you chasers!

Radio: Elecraft KX3.

• This is the first time I managed to get battery power and SWR just right to transmit with 10 watts. (Nothing wrong with the radio before this – just operator error.)

Antenna I used:

• 20 meters - EFHW on 31’ Jackite with EARCHI 20 meter matchbox. Bungee-corded it to the trunk of a twisted tree.
• I used a counterpoise of about 21-20 feet.

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SOTA Activation Report: W4G/HC-007 - Grassy Mountain

Trip of 2012.11.18

• Succeeded: Yes
• First-activation: Yes

See my trip planning guide at: SOTA Guide - W4G/HC-007 - Grassy Mountain

Commentary:

Perfect weather, beautiful site, intermediate-level hike. Lotsa driving on dirt roads.

Competing for bandwidth with the ARRL’s Sweepstakes contest was brutal. I briefly found an unused frequency, but I wasn’t able to hold it for long. After a few minutes, there was a contester who couldn’t hear my 5 watts. One of my contacts announced that the frequency IS in use (thanks!), but I don’t think the contester heard him either.

17 meters was also pretty busy, but made a good alternate.

Contacts:

• 5 QSO at 5 watts on 17 meters - 18.1385 MHz SSB
• 5 QSO at 5 watts on 20 meters - 14.285 MHz SSB
• Thank you chasers!

Radio: Elecraft KX3

Antennas:

• Easy site for antennas.
• Throw wires in a tree - use low trees around the clearing.
• Tie a wire to the tower.
• There aren’t any really tall trees.
• Big clear area at the end of the road. Warning: You may need to pound stakes with a rock. The roadbed is dense.

Antennas I used:

• 20 meters - EFHW on 31’ Jackite with EARCHI 20 meter matchbox. Guyed it in the roadbed.
• 17 meters - W3EDP - run through the trees. Twin-lead followed by single strand of speaker wire. I used my mast poles to push it into the trees.
• I’d like to further refine my antenna arsenal for better 17 meter coverage. I used a W3EDP for 17 meters, and this is suboptimal. Maybe next time I’ll carry EFHW wires for 20 and 17, and just drop and re-raise my mast in between.

I erected my Jackite in the clearing, away from my W3EDP. I wanted to experiment with both antennas. For non-experimenting use, I could have simply leaned my Jackite into a tree. (That’s what I did with the mast supporting my W3EDP.)

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