It’s official, I am retired. Fifty-three years in the making. Being on the north side of 66 does not mean you are wheelchair-bound. Maybe a little slower, but with patience and skill almost anything can be done. One of my first acts as KK4Z (ret.) was to do a SOTA activation. I chose Bald Mountain, a 10-pointer in northwest Georgia.
One of the reasons I chose a 10-pointer is I wish to get involved with a group called Southern Appalachian Summit QRPers or SASQ (SASQuatches). The group combines SOTA with a moderate level of Bushcraft. What’s not to like. There are skill-based membership requirements and one is a 10 pt SOTA activation within the past year. I wanted to get my 10-pointer in before the Park Service closes the roads to the summits during the winter.
I was originally planning on Tuesday for the trip, but the weather was going to be harsh that day. Lots of wind and rain. This is what I call the first winter storm of the season. Between the wind and the rain, it usually finishes knocking all the leaves off of the tree. So, I backed the trip up to Monday and checked the weather (Wx) – all systems go. Preflight check of the Wx 0600 hrs Monday showed VFR (good). The 10-point mountains are at least a 3-hour drive for me. Two hours on highway/improved roads and one hour on unimproved/gravel roads. That last hour covers approx. 20 miles. Along the way, I was confronted by a 6-8 pt deer who thought he was up to the challenge by a 5,000 lb Ram truck. After a few snorts, he thought better of it and scampered into the wood. Shortly after this, I heard Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, an omen I didn’t recognize at the time. When I reached the parking lot below the summit, things weren’t so VFR. I checked the Wx again and now it showed rain on the way. The sky had closed in and the summit was in a cloud. I figured I had just enough time to reach the summit, make the required contacts, and retreat without getting too wet. When I started the trek, it was 60 degrees. By the time I reached the activation zone, the temps dropped, and the wind picked up. When I got back to the truck the thermometer registered 50 degrees. I estimated that the wind chill put temps in the low 40’s to high 30’s. Whenever I venture out, I always bring an extra layer, in this case, a Gore-Tex jacket. I forgot gloves and my CW suffered for it.
I climbed just high enough to get safely into the activation zone. My setup was quick and simple. I used a Chameleon 40-meter OCF QRP dipole. I like OCF dipoles. They do not have to get very high off the ground (10-12 feet is enough) and they are good performers. I prefer them over EFHWs. I sit on a cushion on the ground, so I use the supporting tree as a backrest. Coax is 15’ of RG-316 with a choke on one end. The radio was my new Elecraft KX2. I waited quite a while to get the radio. I did set it up at home and made one contact before taking it out. Since I was in a hurry, I set the radio on my pack and the notebook log on my thigh. The paddles were N0SA’s SOTA paddles. I got lucky and got one from his last run. I held it in my left hand. I sent a spot out and a few minutes later I sent QRL? On 7.057 MHz. I got a NO, they were waiting for me, I’ve never had that before. The wind was picking up and I had some difficulty hearing. As my hands got colder, my CW and handwriting suffered. I had a pretty good pile-up going and after 19 contacts I called QRT. There were still some calling, but Wx was not on my side.
I packed it up and headed down the mountain. By the time I got to the truck, it was starting to drizzle. I really didn’t mind the weather, I need to keep my hands warmer though.
The KX2. It was everything I had hoped it would be. I ran it 5 watts and it purred like a kitten. The quality of the received signal was great. I ran with the filter set to 1K Hz and it was fine, no overloading even with a pile-up. For SOTA, the radio is hard to beat. I like that I only have 3 cables to the radio, paddles, earbuds, and coax. Simple and easy.
Next time I will be sure to add some gloves to my pack. It was fun and I can’t wait to do the next one. If I knew retirement was going to be this much fun, I’d have done it a long time ago. 72 de Scott
KK4Z 