To wrap up our long day of SOTA in and around Tuscarora State Park, we continued northeast along Licking Creek Drive until turning onto Spectacle Gap Road. All of these forest roads were in good shape but were gravel. Spectacle Gap climbs up to the ridge of Shade Mountain, and the road eventually ends at Campsite 9, a primitive campsite that is within this SOTA activation zone at the very boundary of the state forest. Here there is a picnic bench, fire pit, and remnants of a fire tower removed in the mid-90s, but not many other amenities at this campsite. The primitive spot can be booked for just $10 a night. It might be a fun place to work a PA QSO party from in future years, but it does get windy and potentially quite cold in October.
Climbing Spectacle Gap Road
The sun was setting and Luna was exhausted. We just checked out the campsite and then I set up and settled in for an enjoyable activation, working 42 QSOs, including a S2S with the dynamic duo of DJ WW7D and Josh WU7H on 15m (W7W/CW-065). I also notably worked (just barely) JH1MXV on 15m, all the way in Gunma Prefecture, Japan! The vibes here were just great!
Luna enjoying the evening sun.Tuscarora State Forest campsite 9. The concrete pads are where the firetower once stood.
We were pretty pooped from the long day and stopped by Juniata Brewing Company back in Huntington for a celebratory dinner. Luna got a free (and large) dog biscuit!
Trailhead: 40.51361, -77.55951 : Tuscarora State Forest campsite 9
After wrapping our previous long hike and activation in Jacks Narrows, Luna and I headed into Tuscarora State Forest to do a few more new summits. I parked on Licking Creek Drive, where there is the option to hike either west to Blue Mountain W3/SV-030 or east to Blacklog Mtn W3/SV-028, two parallel ridges that the forest road runs between. We opted for the latter.
We followed the red-blazed Birch Run Trail, and shortly into the hike was a bridgeless creek crossing, about 10 feet across. The water level was just over a foot deep on this early spring day, so that’s something to be aware of when going for this hike.
Luna takes in Licking Creek.
Past the creek was a gentle climb to a small clearing and another trail sign, and here the trail gets much steeper and rockier, with a classic PA boulder field at some point. We continued up to the ridge and then left the trail for a final short, open bushwhack up along the ridge into the activation zone.
And it gets steeper!And then rockier.
There are plenty of trees around and got my contacts. By this point, Luna understood the routine and sat calmly, letting me work for about 40 minutes to get 36 QSOs. On the way back, Luna had a big dog moment, sniffing out our own track and excitedly guiding us right back to the trail. Our path back followed exactly our route there, according to the GPS, so she did a great job!
Luna sniffing out our track for the return path.
At the end of this hike, I decided to check out the semi-famous “Campsite 009,” the site of W3/SV-024 Shade Mountain. I’ll have to come back here for Blue Mountain some time.
Trailhead: 40.39025, -77.75942 : by Licking Creek Road
Jacks Mountain is a long and narrow ridge that spans Huntingdon, Mifflin, Snyder, and Union counties. The mountain is named for Jack Armstrong, a pioneer and fur trader from the 18th century who confiscated a horse from his debtor Mushemeelin, a member of the Delaware who later tracked Armstrong down and killed him for retribution. There are a four sites that meet the SOTA 150m prominence requirements along Jacks Mountain:
Jacks Mountain and its SOTA peaks. Jacks Narrows is between SV-021 and SV-025, following the Juniata River.
W3/SV-025 Jacks Mtn 2184 – Scrub Gap Trail & Windy Vista
W3/SV-062 Jacks Mountain – Hightop & East Kettle ATV Trails in Bald Eagle SF
At several points, rivers have cut through the ridge, resulting in steep gorges. The Juniata River has eroded through Jacks Mountain between Mapleton and Mt Union, resulting in the steepest gorge in the state of PA: Jacks Narrows. The northern side of this glen features the Thousand Steps hike on the Standing Stone Trail, which I had used to activate W3/SV-021 Jacks Mtn 2315 last autumn on one of the most scenic hikes I’ve encountered in the state, with a dramatic gain of elevation climbing from the Juniata River valley all the way to the ridgeline.
Following the Standing Stone Trail south from Jacks Narrows leads to W3/SV-025, Jacks Mtn 2184. This is a classic “central PA SOTA usual suspects” activation, with only three logged activations before mine: N2GBR, NK8Q, and W3QP, which usually indicates a long hike and/or gnarly bushwhack ahead! Thankfully, it was just the former.
I had Luna along with me and this was the first of three SOTA activations we completed during this late March day. This one would require a roughly 6.5 mi RT hike, and I wanted to tire her out so she would be obliged to rest while I got my QSOs. I parked in Mapleton, but instead of parking at the SST designated spot in Riverside Park on the north shore of the Juniata, I drove to the south edge of town and parked by the side of Hill Road at a gravel spot (coordinates: 40.38953,-77.9422), cutting at least a mile from the RT hike. I left a note on my car that declared my intent to hike on the SST with my contact info in case parking here was frowned upon, but nobody seemed bothered.
My parking spot at 40.38953, -77.9422, just in front of a No Outlet sign.
Luna and I walked along Hill Road, passing the last few houses in this neighborhood before we found the trailhead to Scrub Gap Trail. This is all part of the Standing Stone Trail, so orange blazes mark the path the entire way.
Scrub Gap Trail is gated. The gate was closed when I started the hike, but it was opened when I had finished. Be wary of potential traffic driving to the reservoir along the route, though I missed seeing any vehicles on the road.
This hike up the southern side of Jacks Narrows was dramatic and varied, just not quite as scenic as the Thousand Hikes trail. After passing a water reservoir, the trail climbs through woods, mosses, and some vistas. This hike is a gradual climb, 1500 feet of gain over 3 miles. I did stop a bit short of the summit itself, as I was within the AZ with a more open forest to operate in at ~2130 feet ASL.
Close to the AZ is this trail junction. I did not go to Windy Vista, as the AZ was a bit further along the direction of Three Springs, at least 10 miles south of this point. As of June 2026, a lean-to shelter was built in Three Springs for SST through hikers as part of an Eagle Scout project.I elected to operate in these open woods just off trail in the AZ. Luna watched carefully as I set up the wire.
Propagation was great this morning! I worked a bunch of locals on 40m, including NK8Q, VA2EO, KC1MXB, and N3HXZ, a small selection of my usual chasers. Then I got good amount of DX on 15m: HB9BHW, HB0CGA, SM5LNE, DL6MST, IN3KLQ, DK4DE, DL1AX, and PA5KM! After 40 minutes of patient waiting, Luna let me know it was time to go, so we started the long hike back. Two more summits were ahead of us today!
Trailhead: 40.38953,-77.9422 : Roadside gravel spot of off Hill Road in Mapleton
On March 13, 2026, I activated the four of the five DuBois Quintet SOTAs, and this was the third one of the day. The highpoint of Clearfield County is the highest SOTA site of the DBQ standing at 2411 feet ASL. You wouldn’t know it as it’s there are many short hikes that will get you to the broad activation zone. Since I ultimately did 4 SOTA peaks in one day to maximize the winter bonus, I decided to set up soon after making it into the AZ, another broad plateau with many choices for operating location.
I parked at just south of US-322, at the Rockton Mountain Trails section of Moshannon State Forest. There is a lot of space for parking here and a network of paths for mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and hiking. A painted wooden signpost provides a trail map for the area.
If you’d rather just drive into the AZ, another option is to continue south past the Rockton Trails area and park around 41.06656, -78.57335 to follow Bloom Road to what is labeled Clearfield County Highpoint #2 on my map. Folks on peakbagger will visit this place along with Chestnut Ridge, about 13 miles northeast of this spot, to be sure they’ve stood on the correct high point. Only one of these is in the SOTA DBQ!
Horn Shanty Loop trailhead.
I hiked on along the Horn Shanty Loop, which was marked by red/blue blazes along my entire route. Just a few steps onto the loop, I was in the activation zone, but I kept going along the trail to find a good spot to set up my EFHW wire, about a half mile in. All the snow from earlier was gone now, so it was becoming more pleasant to sit and operate a bit longer. For S2S, I got AE1MS and AE1JS on W4G/NG-025 on 20m, and K6EL on W6/NC-423 (classic El at Mt Davidson) on 15m.
Operating trailside. Nobody was around!
My last stop after this was to revisit DBQ #3, W3/PW-020 2266, an easy drive-on. The one DBQ I did not tackle this day was #5, W3/PW-050 2027 on State Game Land 31. This one requires a roughly 3.0 mi round trip and I didn’t leave quite early enough to have enough March daylight to do this last one.
You can drive down Bloom Road to get closer to the co-county high point. I didn’t bother because short hike-ons are more fun than drive-ons! Just know that the drive-on is definitely an option if you’re trying to squeeze every last minute out of an attempt at a single-day DBQ sweep.
Trailhead: 41.07618, -78.57820 : Rockton Mountain Trails network parking lot
On March 13, 2026, I activated the four of the five DuBois Quintet SOTAs, and this was the second one of the day, after Jefferson County HP. It’s a drive-on site by a communications tower just outside of Moshannon State Forest, and the 2nd most elevated of the DBQ at 2369 feet ASL.
I had already activated this spot March 2025 when I was first visiting this area to learn more about the DuBois Quintet. I looked up some information about the mountain, and found out that there are some caves in Boone Mountain that some folks believe may contain a trove of gold bars. There is a legend that a Union wagon train carrying 52 gold bars from Wheeling, WV towards Harrisburg in 1863 was lost near Dents Run, PA, about 25 miles east of Boone Mtn. Since then, everybody from the Pinkerton Detective Agency to generations of treasure hunters to the FBI have searched for the missing precious bars. Some treasure hunters claim the FBI took the gold and claimed to have found nothing when they conducted their excavation in 2018. I didn’t look for any material treasure, but settled for the warm glow that comes from getting those SOTA QSOs!
When activating Boone Mtn, I prefer to walk away from the tower into the state forest along an ATV/hiking trail, as there is a pleasant trailside spot not far from the site, making this drive-on marginally more interesting, I parked next to a gate just a bit southwest of the communications tower, which blocks a road going to water utility infrastructure. From here, I crossed Boone Mountain Road (also known as Fire Tower Road) and and walked just under a fifth of a mile to a trail junction that has plenty of space to set up.
The vehicle trail was flooded by the road today, but was otherwise dry.
This time, there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. A large growth of mountain laurel is at this location, with new growth for the year starting to show. This would be a great spot to check out in early June when the laurels bloom!
Operating location. See all the new mountain laurel growth!
On this particular activation in March 2026, I worked S2S with K2CPT on W2/GA-077 and JB KC1MXB on W1/GM-037, both on 40m, and WS0TA on W5N/SI-010 on 20m. I had worked JB already on the last activation (W3/PW-038 Jefferson County HP) as well!
A very short hike which was completely within the activation zone from start to finish.
Trailhead: 41.24571, -78.64861 : Beside gated access to water utility besides Boone Mountain Road
On March 13, 2026, I activated the four of the five DuBois Quintet SOTAs, and this was the first one of the day. The highpoint of Jefferson County is the fourth highest of the DBQ at 2169 feet ASL, and the county is where Punxsutawney (and Phil) reside. The peak is in State Game Land 54, which was once the site of the Ross Leffler School of Conservation, where wildlife conservation officers were trained.
Since I ultimately did 4 SOTA peaks in one day to maximize the winter bonus, I cut this hike short, not going all the way to the intriguingly named John Lennon Point Vista, though all reports indicate that it’s worth a visit if you ever find yourself in SGL 54.
The intersection of Game School Road and Empire Ridge Road. The latter is not maintained in the winter, and can be covered in deep ice ruts during cold months.
I had activated this summit last year, but found a gate blocking Empire Ridge Road for construction/improvement projects. I had to park on the side Game School Road and hike nearly an additional mile each way. This time, the road was open and I could drive up to a large parking area at 41.29569, -78.87447 after which the road was gated once again. There are a number of parking areas to choose from in this vicinity, and the one at 41.29286, -78.87438 may shave off a few tenths of a mile from your hike. The gate here blocking Empire Ridge Road is open from late September through January for hunting season, so you may be able to drive much further down the trail if you come at the right time of year. Check out this map for more information on seasonal gates on PA SGLs.
Just over a mile into hiking along the road, you’ll need to make a turn onto the trail (41.30238, -78.85854). You might be able to park closer to this spot when the gate is open.
The hike follows the road until this point, where a dirt trail/road continues to the ast.
The hike does get more scenic after you follow the dirt path into some woods. A light snowfall came down while I operated.
I stopped about a mile from the trail junction to operate since I was well within the AZ and had many more activations to do. The day started strong with two S2S: JB KC1MXB on W1/GM-037 and Mike WB2FUV on W2/GC-020, both on 40m. I would go on to work JB a second time on the next peak, the nearby W3/PW-007 Boone Mtn. Next time, I think I’ll just continue the extra half mile to see John Lennon Point, which is labeled with a stone marker and appears to overlook Little Toby Creek.
John Lennon Point Vista is on the very edge of the activation zone (red marker) and would make for a more scenic operating location. As you can see, this hike can be cut down to ~1.25 mi if you just want to get into the AZ.
Trailhead: 41.29569, -78.87447 : State Game Land 054 Parking Area
This one has been on my list for a while as it is a 007 summit, and I came here after my early morning activation of Martin Hill. State Game Land 104 is the way to get to this SOTA peak as other routes are gated or private property. I followed the path suggested by Dave K2CZH, taking Tiger Valley Red from Hyndman to SGL 104, where Tiger Run Rd starts. This gameland is on steep terrain and a scenic road winding up along the northeast side of Savage Mountain.
I drove to the parking area suggested by K2CZH. As this was late December, no gates were closed for hunting season. Checking the PA Game Commission’s Seasonal Roads map, there is a gate at 39.87138,-78.72861 that closes Tiger Run Rd seasonally (open from late September to early February), that would have been about 0.5 miles from the next parking area, where I ended up hiking from (39.87781,-78.72723).
The wind was starting to pick up as I hiked out. After a half mile hiking on a gravel road, I had to go off this path to follow a quasi-trail. A lot like the hikes away from the roads in other game lands, this is somewhere between a cleared trail and open bushwhack.
The hike starts by climbing this road for a half mile.To the right is the entrance to the “trail” to the top. It’s easy to miss, and I walked right on by at first and had to backtrack.Further from the road, the clearing for the trail is easier to follow. This really is more of a bushwhack through the forest.
The wind had really started to come in as I set up close to the summit. The trees were swaying a little and a light dusting of snow also came down. It was a dramatic activation, but a successful one with 43 QSOs, including a 17m S2S with KC3TVC on W3/SV-005 Wills Mountain less than 5 miles away and who I had just met on Martin Hill earlier this morning.
The summit area.A light dusting of snow came down during radio time.
Wills Mtn, Martin Hill, and Savage Mtn are SV-005, -006, and -007 respectively, and make up a good trio of summits south of Bedford. The deep ridge/mountain topology makes it take longer to get from peak to peak, but they’re all worth doing. Savage Mountain was the last of the trio I have activated.
Trailhead: 39.87776, -78.72723 : SGL 104 Parking Area
After my evening in Bedford, I returned to this spot in Buchanan State Forest where I failed to activate last winter. I had run out of time after taking a long W3/SV-005 Wills Mtn and operated at a spot called “Martin Hill” on my map that was about a half mile from the AZ. It was time for redemption!
After driving through Sweet Root Natural Area and seeing its alluring vistas, I parked at the end of Tower Road by the radio tower. The gate leading to Evitts Mountain Road was open, so I could have kept driving all the way into the activation zone along the well-maintained gravel road, which is characterized as a “Drivable Trail” on the forest map. I opted to hike in instead, following the same path I did last time.
I passed by the Mid-State Trail which briefly follows this gravel road before diverting away shortly after the start of this hike. The last time I was here was my first encounter with this trail. Now I’ve hiked several sections of it on several SOTA outings, and know how rough/rocky it can get! This might be the smoothest section of the MST that I’ve been on so far. This section also happens to be the high point of the MST.
It was a windy day, and I could hear the trees creaking under the strain of the persistent gusts. Some light hail briefly appeared too. I pulled over at a parking area inside the AZ and set up my antenna, maybe a half mile before the actual summit. As I was getting started, Dan KC3TVC was driving by in his truck, on his way to activate as well! He said he normally does the hike, but the road is just so good, so he drove this time. We chatted a bit more, and then he drove along to the other side of the AZ for his activation.
I only operated on 40m for this activation. I kept it to 20 minutes on that band to work the locals, then move on to the next hikes of the day. The wind had died down a bit, and some blue was visible in the sky on the hike back. It would not last too long, as a winter storm was forecast to come in this afternoon.
Trailhead: At the end of Tower Road, by the radio tower, where Evitts Mountain Road begins: 39.79122, -78.43923. If the gate is open, you can just drive up to one of a few parking areas in the activation zone. I operated at 39.84894, -78.55262.
To round off my foggy day of winter activations, I drove to Buchanan State Forest. This peak had only been activated by Jody K3JZD, so it was time to give it love from another activator. This is an easy drive-on with two options for parking points off the side of the road. There is rocky soil that was easy to get a ground stake into to hold up my mast. There are also many trees.
At this point in the afternoon, the fog had let up a bit. Nobody drove by the entire time I was on the summit. I stuck around for a while, walking along the bands: 40m, 60m, 30m, 17m, 15m, and 12m for just over an hour.
This time, 17m was the S2S band, to catch a few west coast activator duos: W6TED and N1CLC on W6/SC-460 WU7H and WW7DF on W7W/SK-163
On 12m, I got N6AN on his home peak of W6/CT-225, as well.
Trailhead: Two parking areas within the activation zone: 39.79122, -78.43923 and 39.79464, -78.43801 . I parked at the former.
Continuing on from the previous drive-on peak W3/SV-019 Bark Benchmark, I moved on to Town Hill in SGL 49, which had only been activated once time, earlier in 2025 by Dave K2CZH. For once, this is a PA summit that Tim W3QP has not yet gotten to (though he activated it in Jan 2026, not long after this trip!).
I parked on the side of McKees Gap Road and hiked the 1.4 mile climb into the activation zone along a gated gameland access road.
Freezing fog was still present and the trees were covered in rime ice.
I set up my wire along the wide gravel trail and chased a bit of S2S before working a brief 40m pileup.
My S2S QSOs (many in the NH mountains!): KC1MXB on W1/HA-021, a second S2S with JB today! N1CMD on W1/HA-010 W1CMC on W1/HA-018 WB2LJK/P on W2/GC-090
The next and last stop of the day was to be W3/SV-065 Big Mountain in Buchanan State Forest.
POTA: US-8748 PA 049 State Game Land
Trailhead: 39.80249, -78.31459 : SGL 49 parking area off of McKees Gap Road
Tom Zajdel 