Treacherous Trail

Summary: On 31MARCH19 I decided to complete the first activation of W7O/NC-072 currently called only '2905' I had briefly attempted this summit for the S2S party on 23MAR19 but found the road covered in snow.  Today however I was able to drive the majority of the way up with the actual hike portion being fairly short but sweet.  I made the mistake of completing the activation during a big CQ competition so the entire 20m band was full of signals but I was still about to get 18 contacts including 3 s2s contacts.

This was a winter activation of Bearhead Mountain.

WW7D and I decided to give this a shot based on some WTA trip reports that indicated it was possible to drive to the trailhead. We took my 1988 Toyota 4x4 truck that has big tires and is fairly capable off road.

UPDATE Dec 2021 - Badger Butte (and other summits in the area) are not accessible from Dec 1 to April 1 due to closure of NF-48 and other routes to vehicles more than 50 inches wide. SO - if there's snow and you've got a snowmobile, have at it. See the photo below.  

If you find yourself along the eastern stretches of Highway 26 and have a high clearance vehicle, this would be a nice hike of about 2.5 miles round trip to an operating fire lookout. You may elect to drive to the summit, but you may find it more comfortable to hike the narrow steep section. There was snow partially blocking the road in late June, another reason to walk the last bit.

Here for some activation fun west of Trout Lake, Washington is Peak 4420 or Monte Cristo Range High Point. It's a bit out of the way, but is a near drive-up four pointer accessed by a road that a passenger car can handle. Check out this updated trip report here: http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/kj7eha/2020-june-24/monte-cristo-hp-june-2020-updated-info.

After my first activation on Black Mountain VE7/GV-013 a week ago, I wanted another activation before the rain season starts. I chose Hollyburn Mountain VE7/GV-011 because it seemed just a little more difficult than GV-013. An extra 100m gain shouldn't be too much, right?

This is a short one mile hike 400 feet of gain that you reach by driving about five miles on a poor road. There's some bushwacking required to make the Activation Zone. 

UPDATE March 2023: W7O/WV-069 has been retired. 

Blowout Benchmark is a short hike and cross-country summit near Detroit, Oregon. There are no views but you get to enjoy the quiet of a second-growth forest.

Peak 3700 is a bit of an adventure, but certainly do-able summit near Detroit, Oregon. You'll follow a long-abandoned logging road and head cross-country for the final ascent into the Activation Zone. There are no views and the final ascent is very rough, but you get to enjoy the quiet of a second-growth forest.

Here's an out of the way summit south of Prineville, Oregon with nice views and plenty of quiet. The drive towards the summit on Highway 27 is along the Wild and Scenic Crooked River and is lovely in itself with nice camping opportunities.