W6/NE-015 Mt Bidwell

This was the last peak of my Warner Range trip. After spending the night at the Cave Lake Campground, I continued up the rough road to the trailhead.

Cave Lake at sunset.

A short distance up the trail I walked past Moonlight Mine, an abandoned mine.

The biggest building of the mine.

The privy was sinking into it's pit.

The road got rougher after this point, but it was easy to follow. Up at the top of the first hill there was a wet section, but I was able to get across without getting my feet wet. Some cows ran away as I hiked up.

Some of the cows on the way up.

The summit is fairly bare, but I found some rocks to support my pole. I got setup and got on the air. K6ARK had planned to do his goat activation, but I was too early to work him. I did a quick activation, then hiked back to the car. I had a long drive home ahead of me, and didn't want to get back too late.

Looking down at the mine.

Trailhead: Intersection of 2 and 48N21

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Walk up the roads, past Moonlight Mine.

Red Tape: None.

W6/NE-059 Sugar Hill

Sugar Hill was the easiest mountain I did during my Warner trip. It is a drive up peak, with an old lookout tower and pit toilet on the summit. I drove over after hiking Bald and Cedar Mountains. The roads were in good shape, except for one rough one that I took.

A sad looking tower. Lots of glass on the ground from the broken windows.

The tower is closed and fenced off. It appears it is used to hold up antennas now. I setup in the shade it provided, since it had turned into a hot day. I had my KX3 and microphone, since it was a drive up. I made contacts on the usual bands, but added in some sideband to change things up a bit. It was much harder to make SSB contacts than CW.

Antenna on a hazy summit.

It had also gotten very hazy, and I could barely see Goose Lake below me. This summit probably has great views on a clear day. Just before I left, a guy rode up on a dirt bike, then lamented that he wouldn't be able to take good pictures since it was so hazy. I commiserated with him for a few minutes, then left to head up to Cave Lake Campsite, my destination for the night.

Nothing makes a summit scenic like a chain link fence and toilet.

Trailhead: I parked near the toilet.

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Drive up to the summit. Set up somewhere.

Red Tape: None.

W6/NE-292 Cedar Mountain

After activating Bald Mountain I continued along to get Cedar Mountain. The two peaks are connected by a ridge. The walk down to the col from Bald was pleasant, a wide, shallow ridge.

Looking at the descent from Bald.

Near the col, the cliffs start. Luckily they are not in the path, but they are nice to look at from the top as you hike along.

Some of the cliffs, on the east side of the ridge.

On the Cedar side of the col, the brush starts to pick up. It is not too dense, and didn't slow me down much. The last climb up to the summit is through the forest on a steep slope.

The summit is behind those pine trees.

It took me 45 minutes to traverse from Bald to Cedar. The summit is open, and there were a lot of flies buzzing around while I was up there. After taking a few pictures, I set up and got on the air. Plenty of cell service like most of the other peaks here. Once the chasers had been satisfied, I retraced my steps back over Bald and to the car, where I drove to Sugar Hill.

Summit of Cedar Mountain.

These two mountains are some of my favorites from this area of California. I wouldn't mind coming again to hike them.


Trailhead: Intersection of 46N30 and 44N67.

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take the road up to the ridge. Where the road ends, stay high on the ridge and continue up to the top.

Red Tape: None.

W6/NE-017 Bald Mountain

Bald and Cedar Mountains are in the middle of the Warner Range, just north of CA 299. I spent the night camping at the trailhead, and got an early start.

Waiting for dinner time.

The campsite is a few yards downhill from the road. In the morning I packed up and headed up the hill. The road doesn't see much traffic, but it was easy to follow up to the ridge. This climb is through the forest. On the ridge I turned left to continue up to the summit.

Bald on the left, Cedar right.

The forest soon ends and the hike up is through the open ridge. The road continues up before ending a few hundred feet below the summit. I made the mistake of following a herd path along the side, a bit below the top of the ridge. This ended in some thigh-high brush which was unpleasant to walk through. Stay near the top of the ridge for easier going.

Getting closer to the summit.

I got out of the brush, and made my way to the summit. There is a small stone windbreak, and a USGS marker. It was a fairly easy hike up, with great views along the way. I used the windbreak to hold up my pole, and got setup. K6ARK was on a peak, and we tried to get a summit-to-summit, but I couldn't hear him. I then put out a spot and quickly filled the log.

Benchmark at the summit.

 After finishing up, I packed up to continue along the ridge over to Cedar Mountain, the next summit of the day.

Trailhead: Intersection of 46N30 and 44N67.

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take the road up to the ridge. Where the road ends, stay high on the ridge and continue up to the top.

Red Tape: None.

Heading over to Cedar, in the background.

W6/NE-026 Buck Mountain

Buck Mountain was the final peak for the day, day three of my Warner Mountain trip. After stopping in Alturas to refuel and get some snacks, I drove up the nice gravel road towards the peak. The road got a bit rougher closer to the peak, but it was still in good shape.

Small pond (marsh?) by the road.

The FS map shows a small marsh next to the main road. Just north of this is an abandoned road, which it turns out runs right to the summit. The road is easy to follow. It had a few steep sections, but was generally well graded.

Getting close to the summit.

There is a long flat section just below the summit. The summit is unremarkable. I sat under a tree and ran my antenna out away from me. Surprisingly the cell service was intermittent on top. I was able to get out some text spots, and got the usual chasers.

On my way back to the car.

Back at the car I drove back down the road to the trailhead for my next hike, up to Bald and Cedar Mounains.

Trailhead: Unmarked road by marsh, along 46N30.

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take the abandoned road up to the summit.

Red Tape: None.

View from my campsite that evening.