3-24-22 W6/NC-298 (Vollmer Peak)



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7-19-23 W4C/WM-001 (Clingmans Dome)

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  I did this as part of a two week trip to Tennessee.  It's right on the TN/NC border and technically in North Carolina I think. Park in the parking lot (which is also a place to do POTA), and walk up toward the visitor center. Then keep going to the dome, a walk of roughly 1/2 mile.  It was a little misty the day I was there. It was not cold, however, just wet. If you have a disabled plate you can drive to the top I think.  There are a few places to set up off the trail, and lots of trees you can throw a wire into. One thing I read was that the rangers can get nasty and tell you that you need a permit.  I didn't encounter any on this activation, but the top was very crowded with people. So you have to be a little selective where you set up.  I chose to be bold and set up right in the crowd, with my antenna hanging in trees behind me. This allowed me to have some good conversations with people about what I was doing, at the risk of being scolded by rangers....
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11-1-2020, Mount Umunhum W6/CC-052

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I haven't bought any portable radio gear yet, and I've never activated a summit before, so I figured for my first attempt I would pick something easy and borrow some gear.  I look out my back yard and can see Mount Umanhum, a peak nearly 4000 feet up overlooking Almaden Valley.  I have been up there only once in my life during a VIP tour before they cleaned up and developed the peak.  Since then, it's been turned into a public viewing area and you can almost drive all the way.  There's just about 150 stairs from the parking lot to the summit. For radio gear, I turned to my friend Ray, N6DZK, who had an Elecraft KX3 and an AX1 antenna.  I've been looking at the KX2 as the best option for this - and I was very skeptical that the small AX1 would do any kind of a decent job.  Ray had never used the antenna before and was anxious to try it out, so we set the date. I started learning about how alerts and spots work, what the rules were, and downloaded things like...
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  I decided to go for a hike at lunch today, and the trailhead for Coyote Peak is a few blocks from my office, so I grabbed my SOTA kit and took off.  I've done this peak already a couple of times, the last time being just after I recovered from Covid and I remember it wasn't very fun, with all the respiratory issues I was having at the time.  I was hoping today would be easier. Just after entering the park, there is a kiosk to pay the $6 day use fee.  The automation station only takes credit cards and not cash. There's no permit required, but if you don't have the parking ticket on your dashboard you'll get an expensive ticket. I know they weren't charging during the pandemic, but that's over now. I parked in the main lot.  The trailhead here heads up to the Bay Area Ridge Trail.  Right at the start is a supply of paper maps. I'd suggest taking one if you've never been on these trails before, and then returning it when you're done with it.  They...
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