Month: January 2017

Re-activating Vollmer Peak (again!)

Another year, another trip to Vollmer Peak. Today (Jan 29) I took the KX2 with an MFJ-1899T whip to try a pedestrian mobile-style activation. Since it was a Sunday afternoon, the steam trains were running and made a nice background noise for the hike. My sideband signals seemed to make it out, reaching AC1Z in NH and AA0BV on Mount Caroline Livermore on Angel Island. For the rest, I had to crack out the CW paddle. W0MNA and W0ERI were quick to respond, as always. After a few more contacts, it was time to call it a day.

2017

Thanks to all the chasers!

vollmer3_results

W6/CC-045 Mount Diablo (1173m) and W6/CC-051 North Peak (1084m)

I was very lucky to receive a KX2 recently as a gift from KK6MRI. I took the radio out on January 14 to two peaks for its maiden voyage: Mount Diablo and North Peak, and it was a joy to use. After this pair of activations, I made it to the milestone of 25 activator points. Slow and steady progress…

When we arrived at the summit parking lot for Diablo, it was still a bit early (just after 9 am) and we were not prepared for the cold, windy weather! We huddled in a small patch of woods on the summit trail near the parking lot to set up and stay out of the wind. I slacked a bit on finding a good spot for the antenna, so there were some difficulties getting out, but I did manage the four required QSOs.

The view from the observation tower on the summit of Mount Diablo
The patch of trees that we used to hide from the wind
Getting used to the KX2
A lot of folks biking up to the summit today
The view of North Peak from Mt. Diablo
The summit museum has a nifty scale model of the two peaks and the surrounding area

The hike to Black Point was about 5 miles round trip from the Mt. Diablo summit lot, and the last little bit to the summit of North Peak was very steep. The surrounding area was beautifully green due to the large amount of rainfall this winter. It had warmed up substantially by the time we got to the summit, so we stuck around for an hour, racking up 18 QSOs, which is a new high for me. I learned that my pileup-managing skills on CW (and my CW copy in general) could use work, and the increased activity from the North American QSO Party did not help, but fortunately the chasers were patient.

Embarking on the North Peak trail
Along the ridge
Looking back at Mt. Diablo
The end fed on the summit
Looking out on Diablo during the activation
Ladybug’s shell on the summit
A bounty of contact on North Peak!

Thanks to all the chasers! Special shout-out to WBØUSI, WØMNA, and WØERI for catching me on both peaks this time. Looking forward to more activations this year!

Mount Diablo:diablo_results

North Peak:northpeak_results