This is a drive-up to an old USFS fire lookout that should be accessible to most vehicles, although the road is somewhat rutted. There is a picnic table located on the spacious, forested summit that makes for a comfortable operating position. The road is closed to vehicles fr
2-Miles, +950 feet
Follow Head Lane north into the Scratchgravel Hills until it reaches a BLM pullout/parking area/trailhead. Continue north past the gate on the old 2-track, turning right (Easterly) when it reaches the low saddle. Continue following the 2-track easterly, and eventually southerly as it climbs to the summit. The summit is very pleasant, with a nice level clearing amongst the scattered pines, and fine views of the city to the south.
This unobtrusive summit offers a quiet, easily accessible QTH that may be conveniently accessed via the popular "Helena Ridge Trail". The Helena ridge trail is a scenic 7 mile ridge trail that connects from the trailhead at Park City to Mount Helena City Park (and on into downtown Helena). The trail is excellent for hiking or biking, and there is ample parking at the Park City trailhead. Follow the trail from the parking lot as it cuts up and around the north slope and eastern shoulder of the hill that overlooks the parking lot.
A cold, windy & snowy winter activation of Amabilis Mountain, 4,580 feet, located east of Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, was undertaken by me and my SOTA Buddy - Tim, KG7EJT. The forecast was for a substantial change from the sunny but cold weather this area had been enjoying the previous week. The TH is easy to reach, most of the time, being right at Exit 63, Highway I-90. The route we took followed the XC Ski groomed logging road leading from the Lodge Creek / Swamp Creek Basin to the summit area of Amabilis. The route was 11.18 miles RT, gaining approximately 2,050 feet elevation.
W7M/CL-194 Bend Benchmark (0.8 Miles, + 893 Ft)
Jumbo Mountain (3.4 mi., 3,400 ft, 16-mile approach)
The approach and climb to Jumbo Mountain offers a scenic journey through the remote and spectacular Bob Marshall Wilderness. We included this activation as part of a 9-day loop trip through the Bob Marshall Wilderness that included three SOTA activations.
We have some friends who relocated to White Rock, NM and over Thanksgiving we
went down to visit. My friend and I looked up local SOTA peaks and found that
the Cerro Grande trailhead was only 30 minutes from his house. In fact, a ton
of nice ten-pointers are close to White Rock.
We took NM Hwy 4 from White Rock past the "T" intersection with Hwy 501 and
ascended the southern flank of Cerro Grande. In a slightly flat area, on the
right, about a half a mile before descending down into the Valles caldera,
Nicolai Mountain is a drive-up summit west of Clatskanie in northwest Oregon. The gravel road is driveable the ENTIRE WAY in any passenger car (totally Priusable). So if your GPS is having you turn up a 4WD track you are going the wrong way. The views from the 3,028 foot summit can be awesome - the drive has views of the Columbia Estuary that's fantastic. Note that there can be of OHV activity on these roads and trails, especially on weekends.
One of the last beautiful Fall weekends of 2015, yielded an activation of Thorp Mountain and Hard Knox Mountain together with my "SOTA Buddy", KG7EJT and Dexter the SOTA Dog. The weather was superb, a successful dual activation, including a First Activation of Hard Knox, followed by a great dinner and local "Brew" in Roslyn, Washington, made for one of the more memorable SOTA outings in my career! The views, and great access, make this a highly recommended double SOTA objective. This report describes Hard Knox Mountain Activation. Thorp Mountain Activation is listed under a separate report.