This is not a formal activation report but a heads up and advice to anyone trying to access Boise Peak, W7I/BC-079. The shortest path up to the peak is via a road extending from 8th Street in Boise up the the Boise Ridge Road and then over to Boise Peak. On Boise National Forest Service maps the 8th Street Extension is shown as FS-231 and the Boise Ridge Road as FS-275.
Pine Mountain east of Bend, Oregon is a beautiful and relatively isolated summit in the summer. However, there is no defined trail so you have to find your own way through low density pine forest and scrubland.
Round Mountain near La Pine, Oregon is a straightforward and interesting activation in the summer. There is a fire lookout tower on the summit and the 360 degree views are magnificent.
A return Activation of Norse Peak. This time I was with Tim Nair, KG7EJT, two other non-Ham friends, Neal & Sherri, and Dexter the SOTA Dog. On probably the hottest day of the summer, 2015, we escaped the heat of the lowlands by starting relatively early, choosing an objective with substantial tree canopy and being at nearly 7,000 feet elevation. Good company, lively conversation and a successful Activation made for another memorable SOTA outing.
An Activation...yes. A great trip...undoubtedly! However no points to show for the effort, as I only managed to eke out 3 + contacts on 40M ssb... Yet I do not consider it a failure. I will return again, and give it another try. Round trip travel was 13.1 miles, with something over 4,000 feet gain, including some ups and downs along the very long summit ridge. Highlights included portions of the Wonderland Trail of Mount Rainier Park, a few creek crossings of the wildly flowing Fryingpan Creek, replete with slippery boulder hopping leaps, and being able to spend time with my son, KC7SQD, who was up visiting from LA LA Land.
UPDATE Dec 2021 - High Prairie Trailhead for Lookout Mountain (and other summits in the area) are not accessible from Dec 1 to April 1 due to closure of NF-44 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.
Description of hike is that of a lesser grade, but longer distance. We took the shorter distance (about 6.7 miles total) and 2800 elevation gain. We took the trail to the right and stayed on the newer trail.
It was very windy up on top which caused us to leave pretty quickly after getting four contacts....
This summit turned out to be on land owned by Weyerhauser and the parameters for use did not make it doable for me on this day.
Weyerhauser allows access from February 1st to August 30, with out a permit, and all other times a permit is required. You must hike in or Mountain Bike in (which I was not prepared for this time), an unknown distance, which I am guessing to be up to two miles.
I will return some time when I have a bit more time and planning for hiking, running, or mountain biking in.
On the first day of Summer, 2015, a short and easy hike up to a lookout tower providing one of the best views of Mount Rainier. Shady forest walk, a beautiful lake and a final ascent to a lookout tower that is periodically still manned. A fine weather Sunday made for crowds, however 90% + of hikers stop at the lookout tower, which is not quite the actual summit of Tolmie Peak.