White Hill

 After a quiet Christmas, I was ready to get out. I decided to do a combined SOTA/Nifty Ninety trip, and went up to Marin to get Pine Mountain and White Hill, both on the ninety list. Only Pine Mtn, however, has the prominence for SOTA.

White Hill

It was overcast when I left the Azalea Hill trailhead. I got there early enough there was plenty of parking available. All the mountain bike tracks in the mud were nice, they let me know how deep it was before I stepped.

Playing radio on the summit of Pine Mountain.

It is an easy hike up to the top of Pine Mountain. I set up in the same spot I had on previous visits and got on the air. My new QCX-mini did wonderfully, and the 5watter held its own on 40 as well. Its always fun to make contacts with homebrew rigs.

Muddy ridge.

It was cold and windy, and the clouds were pretty threatening, so I didn't stay too long on the summit. I retraced my steps back to the main fire road on the ridge and followed it to my turnoff. Here it drops down into the woods for a ways before coming up to White Hill.

Almost at the summit.

There are some steep parts on the way up to the summit, but the ridge itself is quite nice. The views are excellent up there. I had been in the area before during orienteering events, but I'm not sure I had been to the summit ever. Now there's no question, I've stood on the high point.

Cascade Creek.

The descent to the trail junction was quite steep. There is then some side hill trails to get around a corner of private property, then more descending down to the Cascade Creek. There were a number of bikes on this section, and plenty of people in the valley. I crossed the brook, then started a long climb back up the ridge to my car. 

The Marin hills after a storm.

In retrospect, putting a big 1000 foot climb at the end of a long run might not have been the best planning, but I made it to the ridge. Starting at Cascade Creek may have been a better option. As I climbed, the sun started coming out and it began to turn into a pretty nice day. Back at the car I stretched then headed down for the drive home, happy with the day's outing.

Garin Peak

What better way to start the year than peakbagging? New Year's Day was a nice day to go for an easy hike over Garin Peak. 

Near the trailhead.

We started at the main Garin Park parking lot. There were plenty of spaces open. People must have partied too hard the night before. The first part of the trail is paved, but then the dirt starts for a nice loop. 

Rocks in the middle of the field.

The trail is not difficult, and the views were nice. The grass was starting to turn green, but it will be a while before it gets to the bright, vibrant green that we get in the spring. 

View to the south.

We brought sandwiches, and had some lunch at the summit. It was a nice place for a picnic. On the way down, one of the groups we passed told us they saw a bobcat. They were loud enough I'm sure it was scared away and we had no chance of seeing it. 

W6/NC-092 Poverty Ridge

The forecast was for a beautiful day, so why not spend it all outside? I had had my eye on this peak for a while but was waiting for a nice day before attempting it. Poverty Ridge is about nine miles from the nearest trailhead, and the approach is all on a ridge, so cold or rain or wind would make it a miserable hike. 

Heading down the trail.

The standard route seems to start at the Twin Gates trailhead in Joe Grant park, so this is where I started. I got to the lot shortly after it opened at 8, but wasn't the first car. Once I was ready, I headed up the hill and north.

Looking back towards Mt Hamilton.

There is a steep initial climb, then lots of ridge. My first destination was Antler Point, a peak on the Nifty Ninety list. There is a trail that leads to one of the summits, but maps show the other one is higher.

View from near Antler Point of Day Mountain and Black Mountain.

Antler Point was quite nice, and is worth the hike out. The trail-less slope down from the point is very steep. Not one you'd want to go up. I crossed the marshy ground at the bottom and followed an old road through a broken gate to the next trail, a well traveled dirt road.

The fanciest gate on the way.

This middle section is relatively flat, with lots of short and gentle ups and downs. I saw a hawk of some sort sitting on the ground a short distance off the trail, which I was not expecting. Usually I see them flying around or perched on something higher up. Maybe I interrupted its lunch. 

Tree at the summit, looking west.

The last climb to the summit is the biggest, but it is not steep. Just before the summit there is another gate, this one with a mailbox. I tagged the summit then went back to the fence to set up the radio. I figured it was a good spot, close to a steep dropoff to the east. 

Looking south at Day Mountain and Mt Hamilton.

I did work France on 20m, so it may have helped. I did not have good cell service on top, so I relied on RBNHole to spot me. Before leaving I called a few times on 2m and 70cm, but didn't hear anyone. 

Antler Point in the foreground, on the way back.

I mostly retraced my steps to get back. I didn't, however, see a reason to go over Antler Point again, so I took the trail around the west side. The valley it went through, by the Pala Seca cabin, was quite nice. There were also a lot more people in this section. Must be about as far as normal people want to go on a day hike. 

A nice rock in the Canada de Pala.

The trail goes by peak 2844, a P300, so I decided to climb over it on my way back. It is not too far above the trail, and an easy side trip. The views on top were excellent, especially of the Mt Hamilton area. 

Copernicus Peak is on the left, with the small tower.

Back at the car I was pretty tired after running and hiking over 18 miles. But I was satisfied, I couldn't have asked for a better day to be out in the Diablo Range. 

Trailhead: Twin Gates Trailhead, Joe Grant Park
Website: SOTA Site.
Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.
Route: Take the Canada de Pala trail along the ridge. You can either take the Pala Seca trail over Antler Point or go around. Cross the marshy area on the old road to the well maintained one, and follow it and the ridge north until you get to the summit.
Red Tape: None. No signs or indications of private property.

2021 January VHF Contest

 For the past few years I've gone up to Loma Alta, W6/NC-350, for the January VHF contest, and this year was no different. It was warm and sunny at the Big Rock trailhead. I was prepared for cold, but was very glad I wore a t-shirt.

The Big Rock.

I took my time on the hike up, since I had a heavy pack and didn't want to get too sweaty. I was starting to regret wearing my thicker pants since it was so warm.

Gorgeous day to be out above the Lucas Valley.

It took a bit less than an hour to hike the 2 miles to the summit. This time I set up in a slightly different spot, on the peak away from the fence. I had put guy loops on both my poles, so I didn't need the fence to help hold stuff up. The view south around Mt Tam seemed a bit better too.

Trees shading a rock.

Getting close to the top.

I had two poles, one for the gain antennas and one for wires. I staked out the bigger pole, then put the two arrow yagis on it. It took a bit of finagling to get the 144/432 yagi balanced and pointed in the right direction, but I did it. I also managed to pull out two of the loops I had epoxied on. I must not have done it in a good way. 

Two meter EDZ.

On the other pole I planned to put my extended double zepps for 6m and 2m. The 2m one went up without an issue, but I broke one of the legs of the 6m one while setting it up. This was unfortunate, since it meant I wouldn't be able to use it with my 817 for WSJT-X. Luckily the tuner in the KX3 was able to match the 2m one on 6m. 

The other half of my antenna farm.

I finished setting up a few minutes before the start, so I turned on 20m to make a few SOTA contacts. The band seemed to be in good condition, with France booming in. At 1900z I turned to VHF to start making contacts. 

So many transverters and radios.

Six and two meters were fairly busy, as expected. After the first hour or so working the loud people on those bands I started trying the higher bands. Calling CQ on the 70cm and 1.25m bands got a few more people and mults, and some were even able to go up to 1296.

On the summit of Loma Alta.

I asked quite a bit, but no one seemed to have 902. I was disappointed, I carried up the antenna and transverter but didn't get to use them. Otherwise it seemed to be a pretty typical contest. 

Shortly before packing up.

I ended up using the 817 for 2m SSB, the KX3 for 6m and the transverter bands (222, 432, 902, 1296). I used my HT for FM on the three bands it has, 146, 223, 446. On the mountain top, the HT with just a whip seemed to do fine.

Around 5pm local time I shut down and started packing up. I was hoping to get down before it got dark, and I nearly made it. It was dark when I got to the car, but my eyes had adjusted enough I didn't have to dig out my flashlight.

Sunset over the ocean.

Overall this was a very good year for me. I got a personal best score (claiming 4008), and the most contacts and multipliers. There are, however, a number of changes that need to be made. 

I need a gain antenna for 6m. I have plans to get one, and a 2m antenna with more elements and gain. But these bigger yagis will need a more substantial pole.

I also need to find a mounting solution for my 902 and 1296 yagis and transverters. Holding them by hand is not a good way to do it. 

The Bay at twilight. 

I also think I need to go up both Saturday and Sunday. There were probably people I missed who only operated one day, or even an opening on 6m that could've gotten me more multipliers. 

I should also take my WSJT-x raspberry pi setup out on some more summits for regular SOTA activations to make sure it works as well as I hope it does.

Overall, it was a great contest, and I've already started thinking about locations to go in June!

St Joseph's Hill

 St Joseph's Hill is an easy hike to a nice viewpoint in the south bay. We parked near the boat launch for Lexington Reservoir, and headed up the trail. The first section is steep, but partially paved. The trail the levels out, before climbing more after the next junction.

View to the north.

There is a small network of trails around the summit. It was the day after Thanksgiving, so the trails were pretty busy. We got to the summit right as another group was leaving, and grabbed the bench to have lunch. 

Lexington Reservoir.

We continued around the south side of the hill to go down. There were great views of the reservoir and Highway 17. The hike down was quick, and seemed less busy than the route up. 

Forest near the start.