2. Ham Radio

Diamond Mtn W6/NS-191, Thompson Peak W6/NS-183 SOTA Activations 7/10/2014

Read More
My pack and SOTA cap on top of the summit marker, which is just a small pile of rocks.
21 / 61

My pack and SOTA cap on top of the summit marker, which is just a small pile of rocks.

  • My pack and SOTA cap on top of the summit marker, which is just a small pile of rocks.
  • Hat back on my head, posing at the summit marker.
  • With no shade anywhere on top, the summit marker looked like as good of a place as any to setup my Alexloop and the Buddipole shock cord mast that holds it up. It was easy to cram the mast down into the pile, add another rock or two for stability, and know that it was a rock-solid setup. The camera is looking northwest.
  • Showing off my gear: Alexloop on the Buddipole shock cord mast with <a href="http://www.grizzlyguy.com/HamRadio/SOTA-Activation-MtPluto">my homebrew adapter piece</a> connecting them, KX3 and mini paddles from Palm Radio.
  • I thought I spotted some trash (rusty cans) tucked into the rocks seven or eight feet from the summit marker. I was ready to shove them in my pack and toss them in the trash when I got back to civilization, but...
  • ... it turns out that the rusty cans (one can over the open end of the other smaller can) actually contained a summit register. I added an entry to document this momentous event.
  • My view while operating. My feet (and the Alexloop behind me) are pointing east out into Nevada.
  • Looking back down towards where my ATV is parked in the saddle at DIAMOND_458 (which is actually behind that little hill that is closest to the saddle). The dirt line that looks like a road on the other side is where the fence runs. Not sure why there is a fence up here since it is national forest on both sides, but our federal government works in mysterious ways.
  • Aha... I forgot about this photo I shot of a fence post back down at DIAMOND_458. The fence is apparently there because the other side is "controlled". If only they could put this much effort into building fences down at our southern border to control that, eh? Naturally the federal government forgot to enter any contact information for the district ranger. Good thing I'm not working and just playing!
  • Anyhoo, back up at the summit... This shot is looking southwest, Red Hill lookout is on the peak to the left with the forested slopes. It isn't a SOTA summit. The white thing you can see on top of it is presumably a lookout tower.
  • Zoomed in on Susanville (north) through the Alexloop. I think that the peak on the skyline just to the left of Susanville is Fredonyer Peak W6/CN-008.
  • Lassen Peak W6/CN-002 on the distant skyline to the west-northwest.
  • Mt. Shasta W6/CN-001 on the even more distant skyline to the northwest.
  • My SOTAWatch spots for Diamond Mountain.
  • Logbook page 1 for Diamond Mountain W6/NS-191.
  • Logbook page 2 for Diamond Mountain W6/NS-191. The sun beating down on me with no breaks was starting to get real annoying, so I only operated for about 40 minutes. Thanks to all the chasers who called in!
  • After hiking down from Diamond Mountain and zooming back eastward on the Grizzly, I was at the turnoff for Thompson Peak in nothing flat. It's a neat mountain, but even though I only live a few hours away, I'd only been up there twice before. The first time was with K6ECK and <a href="http://www.grizzlyguy.com/HangGliding/Hang-Gliding-Photos">our hang gliders</a>. Unfortunately the wind was blowing over the back and we couldn't launch. <br><br> The second time was in a sailplane not long after I started flying those. An instructor and I flew out of Air Sailing (near Reno) in a K-21 and figured we'd take a quick and easy run up the Sierra and back. Mother nature decided not to cooperate and we got stuck scratching for lift on the side of Thompson for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only 20 minutes. Back and forth, back and forth, just a wingspan or so away from the side of the scary mountain (he was flying at this point). We were doing whatever we had to do to avoid landing in Susanville. That would mean waiting for his wife to drive up with the trailer so that we could take the airplane apart, shove it in the trailer, and get back to Reno sometime after midnight. FINALLY a thermal came up the side of the mountain, we S-turned in it until we were over the lookout tower, then cranked-and-banked the plane into a 360 and quickly climbed out above Thompson while yelling "woop! woop! woop!" along with the vario the whole time. I can't remember how high we were when we topped out, but we knew we had Air Sailing made on a long glide.
  • Hello again, Thompson Peak Lookout Tower. I parked my ATV down below the activation zone, grabbed my pack, and headed on up. This lookout is manned during fire season.
  • Topo map showing the peak. Note how closely together the contour lines are to the northeast.
  • Aerial photo view.
  • No Comments
  • Photo Sharing
  • About SmugMug
  • Browse Photos
  • Prints & Gifts
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • Owner Log In
© 2022 SmugMug, Inc.