Good Views From Summit

Pearls On A Necklace – SOTA Adventures in W6/CT. Strung along the Angeles Crest Highway (SR 2, Los Angeles County, California), which runs through the San Gabriel Mountains, on the stretch between the Pasadena / Glendale area the south, and the Apple Valley / Victorville area to the north, lie more than 20 SOTA listed summits.  Most are 6 to 8 point summits. Proximity to Los Angeles, relatively easy access and beautiful terrain, similar to east slope Washington and Oregon Cascades, make this a “tourist delight” area.  On 3 separate days, between October 31, 2014 and November 4, 2014, I activated five (5) of these SOTA summits.  This report is #4 of 5.

Pearls On A Necklace – SOTA Adventures in W6/CT. Strung along the Angeles Crest Highway (SR 2, Los Angeles County, California), which runs through the San Gabriel Mountains, on the stretch between the Pasadena / Glendale area the south, and the Apple Valley / Victorville area to the north, lie more than 20 SOTA listed summits.  Most are 6 to 8 point summits. Proximity to Los Angeles, relatively easy access and beautiful terrain, similar to east slope Washington and Oregon Cascades, make this a “tourist delight” area.  On 3 separate days, between October 31, 2014 and November 4, 2014, I activated five (5) of these SOTA summits.  This report is #3 of 5.

This is an easy drive-up summit about sixty miles north of the center of Atlanta. There's even a deck and a folding chair for enjoying the views from this summit.

About 3.6 miles south of the 282 and 515 intersection in East Ellijay, Georgia, turn east from 515 onto Talona Mountain Road.

The high point of Alabama is an easy drive-up summit - Cheaha Mountain is located in an Alabama State Park about 16 miles south of I-20.

Pearls On A Necklace – SOTA Adventures in W6/CT.  Strung along the Angeles Crest Highway (SR 2, Los Angeles County, California), which runs through the San Gabriel Mountains, on the stretch between the Pasadena / Glendale area to the south, and the Apple Valley / Victorville area to the north, lie more than 20 SOTA listed summits.  Most of these SOTA list mountains are 6 to 8 point summits. Proximity to Los Angeles, relatively easy access and beautiful terrain, similar to east slope Washington and Oregon Cascades, make this a “SOTA tourist delight” area.  On 3 separate days, between October 31, 2014 and November 4, 2014, I activated five (5) of these SOTA summits. This report is #1 of 5.

Total elevation gain from the Damfino Lakes Trail 625 northwest trailhead on FS 31 via the northwest ridge trail of Cowap Pk to the activation location just northwest of Cowap Pk summit: 413 m (1356 feet). Approximate trail distance each way: 3.4 km (2.1 miles). The activation is a reasonable one-day trip, and, except for one spot just northwest of the actual summit, a problem-free climb.  The activation zone northeast of the summit is easily accessible, and a great family destination.

Seeing Red...and orange, yellow, blue and green.  The reference here is to fall colors and the ongoing hunting season.  Beautiful fall day, with mostly sunny weather, fall foliage on display.  Several hunting parties in the Teanaway, Beverly and Bean creek valleys necessitated wearing bright colored clothing, and making our presence known.

Hungry Mtn is located in the Okanogan National Forest near Carlton, WA. It’s only a short distance from the highway, with a short steep climb from the end of the road. No water, no trailhead, no facilities, no permits. You’ll likely want to use a high-clearance, 4WD vehicle – this road will be soft and slippery when wet. This peak took me about an hour to walk in to, and half that time to get back to the truck.

Last full day of summer, 2014 - A short Activation hike to a beautiful mountaintop view from the somewhat smallish summit area of Mount Catherine.

A last minute decision to attempt a SOTA Activation on the last full day of summer 2014, led us to choose Mount Catherine, behind the Summit East (Hyak) ski area, near Snoqualmie Pass. 

 This could be the second of two 6-point peaks in the same day when you combine this with an activation of Union Peak (SN-082) - you'll want to cross Union on the way to Jove anyway!