OK, so it seems that I jumped into this SOTA thing a little too quickly and made a couple of mistakes. Thankfully, there are several people who have contacted me with some great advice for getting on track to doing things right. Hopefully I will have better luck going forward.
A crisp Fall-like day, sparse crowds and a successful activation made for a pleasant, if short day. The route to the summit, and the Activation itself were changed, and cut short, by a large heard of mountain goats which were straddling the ridge running between the SE Summit (incorrectly labeled as Mount Fremont) and the Middle Summit, (True Summit).
This second day of the NA SOTA Weekend dawned wet and misty, but with the promise (unfulfilled, as it turned out) of clearing at some point, and it wasn't really raining. So Joe K7ZG drove us to Green Mountain, where we intended to find the road that allows a drive-up to a parking area somewhat below the summit. I thought this road was north of the Gold Creek Trail trailhead parking area, but I wasn't sure how far or how it would be marked. We turned around before we got to it (as we learned later, see below), and decided to just do the entire hike.
On this Saturday of the NA SOTA Weekend, at about 10:45am, our party of four set out from Sunrise on Mt. Rainier to walk the Mt. Fremont Lookout trail. The Lookout promises spectacular northward views of the Grand Park meadows, and the entire trail is hugely scenic. More to the point, about ½ mile before the Lookout, the trail passes a few hundred feet below the summit of Mt. Fremont, and that was, of course, the real destination for the hams in the group: myself and Al N7OMS.
Doug (KY7S) and I activated this summit as part of NA SOTA weekend. We had a blast up there and enjoyed the great day in western WA. Important to have a plan for spotting up there. Cell phone was not that great...APRS worked Awesome. A lot of 2m S2S activity. More then expected. Cant wait to get on the next one.
Full Blog Link:
http://kf7pxt.blogspot.com/2015/09/kelly-butte-w7wkg-060-sota.html
I was negligent in posting my Mount Catherine activation here but wanted to get it up for all to enjoy and use. We had a great early start on our way across Washington state on the 24th of August and had a great hike up this summit. This is a highly recommended SOTA for anyone heading through the Snoqualmie Pass area.
Here is a link to the full blog with more pics and information:
Middle Mountain Oregon W7O/CN-075 is a pretty easy activation. From Hwy 26 travel approximately 28 miles north on Hwy 35 towards the town of Hood River. At 28 miles turn left (west) on Gilhauly Road. Shortly after turning on to Gilhauly Road there is a forest service gate that is normally open but just be aware of its existance. Travel 1.6 miles on Gilhauly Road. At 1.6 miles you will come to a fairly wide delta shaped "Y" intersection. Keep right at this intersection.
Decided Labor Day was a good day for activatiing Larch Mountain on the Washington side. Larch Mountain is the highest point in Clark County and is easy to access with most any two-wheel drive vehicle. We had great weather and enough chasers to make the activation a success. This route would also be good in the winter for a snowshoe activation.
A clear, sunny and warm day; beautiful fall colors of yellow, gold, red and purple; a successful activation; and the company of my wife, Sharon and Dexter the SOTA Dog - all made for a very pleasant outing. Summit Chief Mountain is a 6 point SOTA Summit in Chelan County, above the Stevens Pass Ski Resort area. It is accessed via highway entirely, being located at Stevens Pass, on SR 2.