KFF-3844 Jordan Lake

 The end was finally here, and I was heading to the airport to go home. Since my flight was in the late afternoon, I had some time to kill. Rather than sit around the terminal, I decided to get a quick WWFF/POTA activation in. Jordan Lake Recreation Area was on the way to the airport, so it was easy to stop by for some fresh air.

Playground and picnic shelter.

My plan was to go to Poplar Point and find a table to set up at. However, the lady at the entrance booth told me I needed a camping reservation to go in. So I instead went to the Ebenezer area, a few miles down the road. This day use area has some beaches and other stuff you might want as a day tripper.

Setup in the car. It felt so wrong.

It was cool and windy, and most of my warm gear was packed away, so I decided to operate from the car. I set my wire up from the car window across a field, using a tree to hold up the pole. Overall seemed like a good setup.

Pole and wire against a tree.

Since I only had limited time I decided to only do 20 and 40. I started on the higher band, and got a number of people, including Italy. After about 15 minutes I switched to 40 to get the locals. Someone started sending dits over me, on and off. After a few times of this, I just gave up. It was about the time I had to leave anyway, so not much time lost.

The stick I used as a stake is visible in the middle of the field.

This was a nice place for a quick activation, and if I'm in the area again I'll probably stop by for some more operating.

KFF-2735 Hanging Rock State Park

 I had another weekend off, so decided to go somewhere farther away for a run. I chose Hanging Rock SP, up near Winston-Salem. It was just past noon when I got there, and the main lot was full. Lucky for me, there was plenty of space at the lot up the hill.

The lake.

My route to the summit of Moore's Knob first took me by around part of the lake. There were plenty of people on the trail, and even some fishermen. On the other side, I found my way through the campground and the trail on the other side. This is where the stairs started.

So many stairs.

The trail up to the summit is basically a long staircase. It was a bit tedious going up, but was probably the right choice for tread considering how many people use it. I passed a lot of groups going up and down. The summit was pretty busy, and I was surprised no one was wearing masks despite being so close to other people. 

From the summit tower. This would be better on a weekday.

I didn't really want to talk to people about radio, so I found a small clearing a short distance off the trail to set up in. My antenna was put up pretty badly, all sorts of weird angles when it went over or under tree branches. Despite this I still worked Europe on 20m and plenty of W/VE stations on all three bands. 

The old reliable MTR 3B.

Once I had worked everyone, I headed down the other side of the mountain for the rest of my loop. This side had many fewer people, at least until I got down to the col. Here there were a bunch of boulderers, and even some horseback riders. After running through the woods some, I returned to the col and headed up towards Devil's Chimney. There were people enjoying the many viewpoints along the ridge, but still plenty of space for me to have my own.

Sauratown Mountain and Pilot Mountain.

I refilled my water bottles, then headed down to Hanging Rock, which the park is named after. The trail from the parking lot to the top of the rock is a wide trail with many people. So many people. Again, this would probably be better on a weekday with fewer people. After tagging the summit of the rock, I headed back to the parking lots. 

The trail runs under Hanging Rock before looping around to the summit.

This park was pretty nice, but super busy. In a few weeks when the leaves come in and the rhododendron start blooming it will probably be even nicer. Some day I'll be in the south when the rhododendron are in full bloom. I always seem to be there a little too early or late.

KFF-3848 Weymouth Woods Sandhills Park

 I was tired of sitting in my hotel room, so I decided to go out and play radio for a while. This park was a few minutes drive away, so seemed like an easy one to go do. 

Park border.

I wasn't looking for a big hike, so I decided to go to the Boyd Tract. There is parking at the Weymouth Center for Arts and Humanities, or across the street at the Campbell House. I parked in the large lot at the Weymouth Center.

About to set up at one of the picnic tables.

From here it is a short walk into the park, where there is a large field. Around the outside are a number of picnic tables. I picked one that was in the shade near some trees, and got set up. I hadn't planned on doing easy activations like this, so I only had my trail running setup. It wasn't difficult to get the wire up, however.

Making contacts on 40m.

There is excellent cell service, since I was basically in Southern Pines. I started on 40m, and quickly started getting contacts. Once they seemed to dry up, I went to 30 then 20. There wasn't anyone on 20, but some skimmers in Europe heard me, so the band must have been open. 

Woods just outside the Weymouth Center.

Once the contacts stopped, I went back to 40 to see if I could get anyone else. After a few more people got into the log, I packed up and headed back to the hotel. 

Overall, this is an easy park, with a number of different places to operate from. I enjoy going there to run or play radio. 

KFF-4514 Uwharrie National Forest

 Another free weekend day during work travel meant another trip to a POTA park. I had just done a long day across the river in Morrow Mountain SP, so was looking for something easier. I found a nice 8-mile loop in the national forest and headed out to the trailhead. 

The camp I passed twice. The road appears to be open to here.

It was much warmer than the day before, and as soon as I got out of the car I regretted wearing long pants. Nothing I could do at that point so I set off. My first goal was Dennis Mountain. It was a pleasant run along the road and trails to the summit. The area is much flatter than I expected; I guess I'm just used to the high relief of the Bay Area. 

Uwharrie NRT blazed in white.

There weren't too many people on the trail, and the area seemed popular with bikers. I was soon at the summit, where I found a small clearing just off the trail to set up in. I made some contacts, though not as many as I would have liked. What can you do, band conditions don't always cooperate. 

Playing radio at the summit.

From the top of Dennis it was a pleasant descent back down to the car. The overcast burned off while I was on the radio and the temperature increased a lot. I was really burning up in the pants now. 

Trail through the bare forest.

The trailhead parking lot was much more busy when I got back, which made sense since I had seen a lot more people on the trail near the end. Overall, it was a nice and easy little hike. The area is probably very pretty in the spring when the leaves and flowers come out. 

KFF-2746 Morrow Mountain State Park

 I was in North Carolina for work, and had the weekend off. Since I didn't really want to sit around the hotel all day, I found some reasonably close parks that I could go to to get out and play some radio in. I decided to do my long run and get some peakbagging in too.

One of the many small streams in the park.

I parked at the equestrian parking lot, the first one you drive by in the park. From here I headed down the trail towards Morrow Mountain. It was about three miles to the summit, and I was soon there. I picked one of the picnic tables and put up my antenna. I was hoping to get a bunch of European stations.

Setup on the summit. Picnic tables are so nice to operate from.

Despite being on the east coast, 20 meters didn't seem to be open at all. In fact, it took a long time of calling CQ before RBN heard me. After a few contacts, including two to Italy, I gave up on 20 and moved to 30 and 40. I could have operated longer, but I didn't have a warm enough jacket to sit in the cool overcast much more. On those bands I got lots of contacts. At the time I assumed that 20 meters was just closed, but later I began to suspect my radio.

Near the top of another summit.

My route through the park took me over all of the named summits and a few others. This part of North Carolina is so flat the "mountains" are just small hills, and doing a half dozen in a day is no big deal. About half of the peaks I went over didn't have any trails, but the forest in the park is mostly open, so the bushwhacking was easy. Some sections are steeper, but nothing that can't be done on foot. I did slip on one steep section when there was some wet mud hidden under the leaves. I was more careful after that. 

Small seasonal stream in one of the valleys. 

Check out my Strava for the route I took over the peaks. It may not be the best one, but I liked it. A bit more than halfway through the route I ran alongside the major river that is the eastern border of the park. This section was flat and near a parking lot, so it was much more busy than the more remote sections of trail. 

The big river. 

The loop I did was only about 14 miles, but had a fair amount of elevation thanks to all the small hills I was going over. By the end I was getting tired, and I was happy to get back to the car. 

Abandoned gate in the middle of the woods.

Morrow Mountain State Park is pretty nice, and if I'm in the area again I'll likely come back. There are plenty of trails if you like that, and lots of area to go off trail for more excitement.