W6/NC-531 Peak 1190

This unnamed peak in southern Morgan Hill is in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It is a short and easy hike up to the summit. It was black Friday, and since I'm not a shopper I decided to go do something outside. I parked in the large pullout at the intersection of Watsonville Road and Uvas Road, near the Oak Dell RV Park.

Looking back at the road. 

The initial climb up to the trees is quite steep, but once you get into the trees the grade mellows out, and the footing gets better. There are no trails on the mountain, but it was easy to follow the ridge line up to the summit. There had been enough rain recently that the grass had started to turn green again. The top of the summit has a lot of low scrub, but by staying to the left I easily walked up the grass/brush boundary to the summit. The north side of the summit is grassy, and there was plenty of space to set up my antenna.

Looking north (I think).

My phone camera has been acting up, with only the selfie camera working properly. This made it difficult to get good pictures. I sat near the brush, which acted as a nice windbreak. I operated on the usual HF bands, 30, 20, and 40, and got contacts on each. I then tried calling on VHF, but didn't get any responses on the bands I tried. I was surprised that there was no one out there. I then packed up for the quick hike back to the car, and the drive home. I was glad I had gotten down there early, because there were traffic jams on 101 south as I was heading north.

Trailhead: Intersection of Uvas and Watsonville Roads.
Website: SOTA Site.
Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.
Route: Walk up the hill, following the crest of the ridge.

Red Tape: None.

Looking up to the summit.