W3/PT-002 Boardman Ridge

This peak has only been activated 12 times before my trip, which is surprising given that it’s only 20 minutes away from W3/PT-001 Mt Davis, the high point in Pennsylvania. The summit itself is on private property, but there is a path to the activation zone completely on public lands, through State Game Land 271. Dale N3HXZ and Jim KJ3D had recently tried this path out, and so I felt confident going for it myself. This time, I brought out my MTR3b v4 (the Currahee) for its first SOTA activation, along with a 40m EFHW tuned for deployment as an inverted vee.

The initial hike from the gate in the parking area was no problem, and followed a dirt road. A little over a mile in, the trail opens up into a large clearing and it becomes more difficult to find the the trail. From here, you basically need to walk east and follow the easiest path that takes you to a higher elevation. The state game commission map for the area was last published in 2012, and indicates a road should continue east from this clearing, although it appears that the state has let this road be reclaimed by vegetation. If you attempt this in the summer, make sure to take all tick-related precautions you can. I finally got around to treating set of hiking clothes with permethrin, so I felt confident trudging through the taller grass.

I did lose the trail a couple times, but the last 0.25 miles were going to be a bushwhack regardless. I just used my compass to help me continue moving east and generally followed the hill up. Just at the edge of the game land, where it overlaps the activation zone, was a good clearing to set up and operate. The inverted vee worked well, but I also think the bands were cooperating this morning! A porcupine ambled through the forest about 20 feet away from me as I was working, and it was huge! I didn’t get a good picture, unfortunately.

I scored 31 QSOs in about an hour on 40m and 20m, including three S2S contacts: KC1ONG on W1/NL-004 in New Hampshire via 20m, K2JB on W4V/GC-018 in Virginia via 40m, and AA4K on W4T/SU-068 in Tennessee. I really enjoyed using the radio and am puzzled by its negative reception among some commentators online. Most complaints seem to single out the LED screen, which I could see becoming hard to read in direct sunlight. Since western PA hikes usually have tree cover (and the sky is often overcast), I feel like that isn’t going to be a problem in most cases.

This hike is worth adding on to nearby Mount Davis, which is a drive-on. I did just that!

Trailhead: 39.78370, -79.26640 : State Game Land 271 Parking Lot. I had to take it slow for the last few tenths of a mile, as the road was pretty rough.
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA] [PA Game Commission Map] – The last portion of my route is approximate, as it was a bushwhack.
Route: 4.0 mile RT hike. Roughly 0.5 mile bushwhack.
POTA: US-8966 PA 271 State Game Land

W3/SV-003 Schaefer Head

Schaefer Head is a distinct peak visible from Blue Knob State Park, nearly 3000 feet in elevation, making it one of the highest peaks in the state, though it pokes out from the shadow of Blue Knob. It is often done in conjunction with W3/SV-001 Blue Knob, but I had not yet attempted it due to confusion over which route to take up. The folks on Peakbagger describe an approach from the west side of the peak, while Jim AC3B had plotted a route along the trails from the south. This network of ATV trails can be confusing. Dale N3HXZ recently posted some waypoints that Jim had shared with him, and these were an essential guide for this trip. I went here directly after tackling W3/SV-010 Evitts Mtn.

I parked at Mount Hope Church near Pavia and walked across the state highway to a gravel road passing along the right side of a farm field. The road itself appears to be access to this network of trails, and was not posted or gated, so it looked okay to hike on to me. The ATV trails were overgrown with summer vegetation, up to 4 feet in places! It felt like a fool’s errand, trudging through a tick’s paradise, but I kept going, hoping for some relief.

Within the activation zone, the growth dropped substantially and there was now a pleasant, shaded area to look for a spot to activate. The trail seemed to curve around the high point itself, so I decided to take advantage of the open space to put up my wire and get to work. There was no need to add any off-trail bushwhacking to this hike.

I got two S2S contacts: WB2FUV in the Catskills for the second time today, and K2CPT also in NY, but in the Adirondacks. Walking back, the humid sky had some enormous clouds hanging in it. This was a good trip, though if I return, it will be in the cooler months when the trails would have less stuff growing on them.

Trailhead: 40.31680, -78.5724 : Across the road from Mount Hope Church
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA]
Route: 2.1 mile RT hike on ATV trails, about 600 feet of ascent.
POTA: None

W3/SV-010 Evitts Mtn

This summit is on private property, so you have to be sure to get permission. The landowner, Steve, who manages access to the top is friendly and curious about amateur radio after letting a number of hams go up over the years. I got Steve’s contact info from Dale N3HXZ. He’s generally fine with people coming up, as long as it’s not during hunting season (there’s a hunting club somewhere up the mountain) and access to the gate at the end of Black Bear Lane is not blocked.

After agreeing to show Steve my radio when I was finished, I parked to the side of the yellow gate and started walking up. Mountain laurel was in full bloom. The trail was shaded, and being above 1800 feet of elevation, I was on the lookout for timber rattlesnakes. I didn’t see any today, but Steve did mention I should be careful. The jeep trail goes to a black gate, and continues onward from there.

The ground gets more sandy as you climb, opening up into a wide sand pit. There would be lots of space to put an antenna up here, but it was just under the activation zone. I kept climbing to the actual peak and there was a strong breeze along the more open ridge with plenty of space to put up an antenna mast. I believe I stopped just short of the peak, since I did not come across the hunting club.

I got four S2S contacts: N1CLC in AZ, KE5AKL in NE, N0QLR in VA, and WB2FUV NY. I hiked down and chatted with Steve for a while. Radios reminded him of the how characters in the apocalypse film Reign of Fire (2002, top billing shared by Mathew McConaughey and Christian Bale) coordinated their assault on Earth-conquering dragons. Sounds like a wild time – it’s going on the movie night list!

Trailhead: 40.14132, -78.49662 : At the yellow gate at the end of Black Bear Lane, a gravel road.
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA]
Route: 2.2 mile RT hike on a Jeep trail, about 550 feet of steady ascent.
POTA: None

W3/SV-060 White Mountain

White Mountain has only been activated twice before, by two prolific W3 activators NK8Q and W3QP. It’s probably because of how strenuous the climb is, though I found the activation itself to be more pleasant than the one I just finished, W3/PW-029 Thick Mtn. Driving to this last hike of the day required me to drive past Poe Valley State Park and Poe Paddy State Park in succession along the scenic Penns Creek, which is evidently prime for trout fishing. These looked like nice parks to overnight in, so I’ll definitely be back to the area.

I parked at Havice Valley Road about 1.2 miles down the road from Poe Paddy State Park, as reported by W3QP. Here off the side of the road there was room for 2-3 cars to park, across from the driveway for a cabin. A short walk down this driveway is a bouncy suspension bridge over Swift Run, which continues as Long Path trail along the edge of Peens Creek Wild Area, marked with yellow blazes.

Before long, the hike became a relentless uphill trudge. The first 3/4 of a mile was not too bad, with an average grade of 15-20%. Then, things got ridiculous for the last 1/3 of a mile, with 400 feet of scrambling up a steep boulder field, over 50% grade at times. This was a slog, especially after having done 9 tough, rocky miles throughout the day so far, but coming at it fresh would have been all right.

Once I made it to the junction with the red-blazed White Mountain Ridge Trail, which continues northeast to the summit, I stopped to set up. I did this rather than continue up to the summit because I was now in the activation zone, I was tired, and the trail that way looked overgrown. It was also getting just a couple hours to sunset, so I was eager to get the QSOs rolling.

I had accidentally left my notepad in the car (doh!), so this was my first time using logging software in the field, Ham2K PoLo. I actually enjoyed the experience, and liked how it brought up each chaser’s name. I don’t like entering callsigns on a phone keyboard, but that’s more of a me problem. VA2EO was my only DX, yet again.

I packed things up, then descended slowly. Bring poles! I didn’t, and I fell, accidentally dropping my phone without noticing. I had to come back for it, which was a heartbreaking climb scanning through the boulder fields. Luckily, I did find it after about 10 minutes of searching.

Trailhead: 40.82389, -77.40512 : A spot off the west side of Havice Valley road.
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA], some info on the area from Purple Lizard Maps
Route: 2.3 mile RT hike on Long Path, steep climb of 1100 ft into activation zone at junction of White Mountain Ridge Trail.
POTA: Bald Eagle State Forest (US-5462)

Then it was off to Reeds Gap State Park (US-1412) where I would camp for the night. I did a late-shift POTA activation, racking up 58 QSOs! By the morning, the coronal mass ejection finally arrived at earth, and the raging G8 geomagnetic storm scuttled my plans for a morning hike up Thick Mtn, W3/SV-022. I’ll be back!

W3/PW-029 Thick Mtn

This second summit of the day in Bald Eagle State Forest was a short drive from W3/PW-024 Buffalo Mtn 2224. I parked near what Google Maps calls the Bear Run Natural Area, just north of the intersection of Bear Run Rd and Woodward Gap Rd. I found parking off the side of the road, but there is some space closer to the trailhead itself, which is right at the bridge crossing Bear Run. It was taken by a large truck today, but there is enough space for a few cars otherwise.

I hiked west along the the Bear Run Trail, which passes by a hunting cabin before continuing along the woods. The path starts out looking like a jeep track until you pass the hunting cabins, then turns into a hiking trail. It’s blazed in yellow, and about 0.6 miles in is a junction with the Mid-State Trail.

A jeep road turns into the trail once you pass the hunting cabin.

Here I continued west on the orange-blazed MST. The whole hike was a gradual climb of 400 feet over about 1.5 mi. As in the last hike, there was a lot of mountain laurel starting to flower. The trail was overgrown in places, but still easy enough to hike through. I did pass by a woman walking a friendly white lab, but those were the only other two hikers I saw. The activation zone covers a lot of the trail, but the tree cover is dense the entire way. I eventually found a spot I could step off trail to set something up.

This activation was subdued with some light rain. I did manage to work VA2EO on 40m, and a S2S with WN4AT on W4A/PT-004 Augusta Mine Ridge in AL. Be careful with ticks around here. I found a couple of them crawling on my leg as I was packing up.

Trailhead: 40.88637, -77.32471 : You can park right next to the trailhead if there is space, otherwise I found a spot off Woodward Gap Road at 40.88710, -77.32410 where NK8Q reports parking as well.
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA]
Route: 3.0 mile RT hike along Bear Run Trail and Mid-State Trail, 400 feet of gain
POTA: Bald Eagle State Forest (US-5462)

W3/PW-024 Buffalo Mtn 2224

I went for three SOTA activations in Bald Eagle State Forest on Saturday, hoping to beat the impending arrival of a recent coronal mass ejection (which would come to destroy propagation and ultimately spark a G4 geomagnetic storm – yikes!). This peak can be done with a half-mile hike up a section of the Mid-State Trail, but I extended the hike to experience more of “Pennsylvania’s Wildest Trail,” which bisects the state. It is notoriously rocky, and I got to experience that here.

I started at Hairy Johns picnic area, where the Hairy Johns Trail takes over the MST and climbs up Winkleblech Mountain. The trail is well-marked with orange blazes. Mountain laurel was everywhere along the trail, and the pink buds were getting ready to burst open. At one point, the trail became a large boulder scramble. The boulders were slick with the previous night’s rain.

On top of this first hill, the MST leaves Hairy Johns Trail and follows the Winkleblech ridgeline east. This was the most pleasant part of the hike, featuring more mountain laurel and a nice breeze. There were a few pretty vistas through the trees on the way up as well. There was also a good place to camp along the trail for overnight hikers.

The trail descended along the north ridge. Near the bottom, the streams had swollen with recent rain, completely submerging the MST in places. After splashing through some pooled water, I made it to Stony Run Road, a gravel road where most other SOTA activators seem to have started their hike. There were plenty of places to park off the side of this road, and it would cut off a good chunk of the trip, leaving just the last 0.5-mile, 400-foot ascent along the Kessler Trail.

Getting to the actual peak would have required going through a dense bushwhack, but a roughly 200-foot section of the MST is just within the activation zone. I carefully strung my EFHW down the length of the trail. I was off to the side in case any other hikers came by, but none did.

My only DX was the legendary F4WBN on 20m. I didn’t linger too long, since I had a nearly 3-mile return hike, and there were other summits to activate today! On the way back, I avoided the swamp of the MST by walking west on Stony Run Road until I reached a jeep trail that passed by a cabin. I waved at the elderly man sitting on the cabin’s stoop. He agreed that the MST was totally drenched and understood why I was walking by his way. I managed to avoid getting my mostly-dried out feet wet once again, so that was a win!

Next up was W3/PW-029 Thick Mtn, the trailhead just about a 10 minute drive from Hairy Johns picnic area.

Trailhead: 40.91116, -77.28251 : A lot of parking in the Hairy Johns picnic area. There is plenty of parking along Stony Run Road, so you can just start at the Kessler Trail around 40.92515, -77.25533 for a shorter 1-mile RT hike.
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA]
Route: 5.8 mile RT hike along Mid-State Trail (Hairy Johns and Kessler Trail), 1400 feet of cumulative gain
POTA: Bald Eagle State Forest (US-5462)

W3/SV-008 Rager Mtn via Rager Mountain Trail

Rager Mountain (2589 feet) is a classic drive-on western Pennsylvania SOTA peak. There is a high-tension powerline cut that crosses directly over the summit proper, and a good amount of natural gas processing infrastructure along its flat plateau (that leaked 27,000 tons of methane in 2022). I first activated this peak by driving south from US-22 to Dishong Mountain Road, then along the aptly named Gas Company Road, and had a fairly uneventful activation on one of the trails south of the peak. As Jody K3JZD writes in his activation notes, this is a ‘plateau summit’ with with a large activation zone.

Activation zone for Rager Mtn plotted using N6ARA’s activation zone estimation tool (https://activation.zone/). The circle was my approximate operating point, a bit off from some snowmobile trails.

You can see that portions of Gallitzin State Forest overlap the activation zone, so my plan for this return trip was to hike up to the southwest edge of the AZ through the forest to a point surrounded by some snowmobile trails. Luna was coming with me this time, and I wanted our hike to burn off enough energy so that she wouldn’t get bored during the “sit and goof around on the radio” phase of the excursion. The Clark Run/Rager Mountain Trail loop promised 1400 feet of elevation gain, which I figured would do the trick!

I parked at the Charles F. Lewis Natural Area entrance for Gallitzin State Forest, which was directly off of PA-403. We started on the Clark Run Trail which featured a steep climb on a narrow trail overlooking some pretty waterfalls. The trail is right on the edge of the gorge at times rising with over 25% grade, so this part was nerve-racking. I’m glad I had poles with me. After the first half mile, the trail flattened out considerably for a less steep (but still uphill) climb.

About a mile in, we continued up the Rager Mountain trail. As we continued from here, the snow could get as deep as about 6 inches in places, a very soft powder. The trail was well-marked with yellow blazes, but I found it easy to accidentally end up off trail with a thin layer of snow covering everything. The best views on the hike came from crossing under a powerline cut, with a cooling tower visibly bellowing steam in the distance. I still find it amusing to see trail blazes on things like concrete anchors for power lines, but I am noticing it’s just really common in western PA. The terrain started to get rockier, with large boulders visibly poking through the snow as we approached the 2-mile mark.

The Rager Mountain Trail crosses a snowmobile track, which I had intended to follow into the activation zone. However, the trails were pristine with fresh powdery snow when we got to them (just after noon), and I didn’t want to muck them up with my footsteps before they were packed down. We jumped off trail here and bushwhacked until I was reasonably certain we were in the activation zone. The snowmobile trail arced in a U around us, and six snowmobiles passed by during the activation (I think it was the same two that passed three times). Luna kept herself occupied by sitting alert as these vehicles whirred by, making sure they didn’t get too close. These were the only other people we saw on the hike.

Once Luna had plenty of water to drink and a snack, she settled down to rest and I got a wire up into one of the many trees around us. 10m was in good condition, and I worked AE7I on W6/NS-236 Prosser Hill and K6EL on my former home SOTA peak W6/NC-298 Vollmer Peak. My first SOTA contact was with K6EL on 2m from Vollmer Peak way back in March 2015, nearly 10 years ago! My only other true DX was with the celebrated F4WBN, making it 7 chases from him. K6HPX and WW7D also chased me, and they’re quickly becoming two of my “comfort callsigns,” with 20 and 15 chases, respectively. I spent a bit more time working familiar POTA folks on 20m, and then Luna let me know it was time to go.

For once, this was a loop hike, so the scenery was different on the way back. The trail crossed another powerline cut and briefly merged with a snowmobile trail. At some point, the trail passed into and out of a fenced area. There were even a few mile markers on the trail. This was a gradual descent and there was much more vegetation next to the trail than on the way up: mostly short green brambles poking out in most places, and eventually rhododendrons.

During the last mile or so back on the Clark Run Trail, the terrain got rockier and more uneven, with beautiful snow-capped boulders and rhododendrons everywhere. Pennsylvania was a reputation for really rocky terrain like this, but this was my first time encountering it on a hike. Luna had a good time hopping around, but again I found myself thankful that I brought poles. You would definitely want to watch out for snakes around here in warmer weather; tons of nooks and crannies for snakes to chill under.

After one last steep switchback descent and stream crossing at Clark Run, we were back at the car. Luna’s now got two winter activations under her collar! I’m looking forward to coming back here in other seasons with less snow and ice. It’s a nice hike with good challenge!

Trailhead: 40.41106, -78.98527 : Charles F. Lewis Natural Area gravel parking
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA] [Gallitzin State Forest Public Use Map]
Route: Approximately 5.5 mile loop hike along Clark Run/Rager Mountain Trail, then alongside a snowmobile trail, 1400′ gain
POTA: Gallitzin State Forest (US-5469) is partly in the activation zone. The trailhead is in Charles F. Lewis Natural Area (US-0628), but this reference does not overlap the activation zone.

W3/SV-001 Blue Knob via Lost Turkey Trail

Atop the second-highest peak in PA is a ski resort, making Blue Knob a drive-on. Since it’s the ski season, I wanted to stay away from the crowds and hike along the south face in Blue Knob State Park. I brought Luna along this time for her first SOTA activation, with the goal of hiking the Mountain View loop trail.

Park Road was closed off, likely due to snow, so we had to change plans. I continued up Forest Road to park at the Chappell’s Field Trailhead which has great views of the surrounding hills. A short walk through the family campground (gates were closed) got us to the Lost Turkey Trail, which is marked with red blazes and approaches the summit from the west. This trail was blazed by the Youth Conservation Corps in 1976. If we had gone west from here, we would have passed a monument for the Lost Children of the Alleghenies, memorializing two children who died in the wilderness around here in 1856.

There was about a foot of snow on the trail in some places, which made things trickier. Luna, only about 50 pounds, could walk on top of the hardened snow’s surface without leaving footprints, while I sunk right in with each step in places. She did enjoy diving into the snow when we found a soft spot. Adding snowshoes to the gear wishlist…

After about 700 feet of elevation gain, we made it to the northern terminus of Lost Turkey Trail, Herman Point. As is typical for PA peaks, there was a small collection of radio antennas here. Across the road was the Lost Turkey Trail Connector that continues on towards the ski resort. The trail’s entrance was hard to find, but is marked with a couple blue blazes. We lost the trail a few times in here, but our goal was just to get within the activation zone.

Last time I visited Blue Knob, I activated it by parking on Jack Rabbit Lane and walking down to this spot. This time, I hiked up from the west. Either way, it’s a good spot to operate while staying out of the way of skiiers.

I got a good 36 QSOs in 40 minutes, including a S2S with KC7WXD on Spanish Benchmark in Nevada (W7N/WC-084) and KB9ENS on Mount Lawlor in southern California (W6/CT-089). After waiting patiently for so long, Luna was happy to get back on the trail and jump through more snow. Blue Knob is an easy 10-pointer, one of only 4 in all of W3-SOTA. This trail was a great way to make activating it more of an adventure than a simple drive-on!

Trailhead: 40.28915, -78.58924 : Chappell’s Field Trailhead
Maps: [AA3TZ SOTA] [Blue Knob State Park Map]
Route: 4.8 mi out-and-back, following the Lost Turkey Trail and Connector Trail
POTA: Blue Knob State Park (US-1335)

W3/WE-001 Marsh Hill

After activating W3/WE-002 Dans Rock, I stopped for lunch in Cumberland. I then started to work my way back towards Pittsburgh, stopping by the Wisp Ski resort for the tallest SOTA peak in Maryland at 3091 feet: Marsh Hill. This was the middle of the ski season, so I did some “creative” hiking to get out of the way of all the skiiers and snowboarders.

I walked around the “Adventure Sports Center” cabin towards the whitewater course. The rapids were obviously closed for the winter season, but there were a few trails around here that felt like an unobtrusive place to set up. I hunkered down into the snow, which was a bit over a foot deep, in a small wooded area. I strapped the AX1 vertical to a tree and worked 22 QSOs, all on 20m.

These are probably going to be the easiest 10 (+3 winter bonus) SOTA points I’ll ever earn! I continued on for a return activation of W3/PT-011 Pondfield 2 Benchmark, rounding out the day with three SOTA peaks and a daily haul of 35 points, a new record for me!

Trailhead: 39.547121, -79.3714821 : Wisp resort parking lot
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA]
Route: A quarter of a mile into the woods in the whitewater area
POTA: None

W3/PD-001 Big Mtn

I wanted to add a second peak to my trip after bagging Snowy Mountain, but I was concerned about the building winter storm. AC3B’s trip report noted that the forest road leading to Big Mountain (the high point of the Tuscarora Mountain ridge) was wide and unexposed to steep cliffs, with plenty of opportunities to bail if needed. It also is within Buchanan State Forest, so this works as another SOTA/POTA special.

To get there, I drove west on US-30, then turned onto Augwick Rd. I followed this for a mile, then turned onto Tower Road, which is not maintained during winter and was covered in snow. I just had to take things slow and in low gear for the 2-mile drive to the summit, letting my Subaru’s AWD rise to the occasion. The road was double-track width, which was comforting (even though I didn’t pass anybody on the way up or down).

Tower Road looks like this the entire 2-mile drive up. Dear reader, the sign that says “No Winter Maintenance” was not lying! Still my low-clearance sedan with AWD made it with minimal slipping (going slow and low gear).

I parked along the small loop by the overlook and saw where the Tuscarora Trail continues north through the woods. The vista point must be great in clear weather, but all I could see today was a gray haze. I took in the view, setting up on the stone bench while opting to operate while standing. There was a security camera making sure that nobody would spray graffiti onto the rocks. By now, the flakes were coming down thick and making everything wet. I was thankful for the AX1’s rapid and painless set up.

I picked up 11 contacts in just about 15 minutes, including a S2S with WW4D on Cedar Creek Mountain (W4C/US-029). My notepad was starting to soak with the heavy precipitation and I decided to pack it in.

Trailhead: 39.92892, -77.95549 : The intersection of Augwick Road and Tower Road, just north of US-30
Map: [AA3TZ SOTA] – For the driving track along Tower Road
Route: Drive-on along 2-mile forest road (no winter maintenance, but relatively easy drive as forest roads go)
POTA: Buchanan State Forest (US-5463)

As I was leaving, this sign for Cowans Gap State Park beckoned me to continue north on Augwick Road for a POTA chaser, just 4 miles away. I set up in a picnic shelter near Parking Lot #2, not far from the park office. I could relax a bit and enjoy drier conditions for a bit.

Now that I’m accumulating PA state parks and forests, I feel like I should try to visit/activate them all: 124 parks and 20 forests!