Mt. Townsend

Mmmm Steak and Peppers!

Took a hike to Mt. Townsend Saturday May 2. I knew this was going to be a steep climb, and this early in the season it might have been a bit too much to try. I survived though, even if I was the last of the  group to make it to the ridge. I have never been to this peak before and the views were breathtaking. Of course I brought my Bi0lite stove and made my stock day hike lunch of grilled red peppers and steak. Then after lunch I set up the KX3 for my first attempt at SOTA (Summits On The Air) peak activation. Unfortunately I was not successful. The 10M band was nonexistent and the frequency I choose for 2M turned out to be too close to a repeater in the area. So there was really no one to make a QSO with on HF. I figure using a repeater with SOTA is probably bad form. I did listen in on a lot of QSO on 20M (I cannot wait until I get my General License!) that I could not participate in because I only have a Tech License.

On the way up I was focused on taking the next step. The last mile was tough on me. Seems that I would stop and rest every 10 mins. However on the way down I was able to explore Camp Windy which we blew right by on the way up. It has a pleasant little alpine lake and was 40% still covered in snow.

We are talking about going back up at the end of the summer – to see how much better we do after doing  a summer of hiking. I’ll hopefully be a general by then, and I’ll have a better chance of activating Mt Townsend as a SOTA peak!