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Lava Butte, OR | Mar 2022

Submitted by NE7ET on
APRS Coverage
Don't know
Cellular Provider
T-Mobile
Voice Cellular Coverage
Good, very usable
Data Cellular Coverage
Good, very usable

On the 3rd day of our Bend trip, I got dropped off at the Lava Butte Visitor Center while my wife and kids sped off to the Bend High Desert Museum.  The hike to the top was on a very nice, paved road for 1.75 miles.  I made it up in an hour and looked around the lower level of the firewatch tower on the summit and the surrounding views.

I was able to raise a few folks on 2m and then switched to 20m EFHW on a fiberglass mast tied to a tree for the remaining contacts.  11 QSOs in total.  The wind was blowing a bit on the top so I picked a spot on the side of the footpath so as to be mostly out of the wind.  After packing up, I retired to the enclosed lower level to eat some lunch and wait for my family to finish looking at the museum.

NOTE: This summit is also within the Deschutes National Forest (K-4378) and the Newberry Volcanic Monument (K-4390) for POTA folks.