Just south of downtown Issaquah is Squak Mountain. It's a Washington State Park and so access is straightforward. From the north trailhead it's 2.3 miles one way on a maze of trails where it's a good idea to check the trail map carefully as there are several junctions on the way to the summit and one unsigned (very short) trail link.
Along this trail I observed the largest spruce trees I've seen in Oregon - the trail is nearly a perfect picture of the Oregon coastal rain forest. That being said, there are no expansive views, no place for your antenna, and no place to sit...but it is an nice hike on the Oregon coast and close to Highway 101.
W7TAO and K7ATN will be activating W7O/NC-004 on the way to SeaPac in Seaside on Friday afternoon. QRV time for us is about 2100. If you are at SeaPac, please call us on 146.58-fm.
Sea Pac, the ARRL NW region hamfest is May 31 to June 2, 2013. We are having a Friday night SOTA gathering, much like last year. This year we have reserved the banquet room at the the same pizza place we met last year, so we should have lots of room for the expanding group of SOTA folks!
Sea Pac, the ARRL NW region hamfest is May 31 to June 2, 2013. We are having a Friday night SOTA gathering, much like last year. This year we have reserved the banquet room at the the same pizza place we met last year, so we should have lots of room for the expanding group of SOTA folks!
Sea Pac, the ARRL NW region hamfest is May 31 to June 2, 2013. We are having a Friday night SOTA gathering, much like last year. This year we have reserved the banquet room at the the same pizza place we met last year, so we should have lots of room for the expanding group of SOTA folks!
Most of the Oregon south coast summits are accessible only by dirt roads. access to summit bases are on un maintained dirt roads. Since the South Coast gets, on average, 6 feet of rain a year, well, you can imagine what a steep unmaintained dirt road looks like.
Note that there is another Idaho "Squaw Butte-W7I/SR-089" and that this "Squaw Butte" is also the name given to the long ridge just to the east of this two-pointer. However, the ridge and it's associated peak, "Squaw Butte South" doesn't have the required prominence for SOTA. But hey, the real peak is only a few miles away.
Directions to the "trailhead" seemed a little tricky for an out of towner - I've started them below from ID-44 - W State Street where you make the turn north on ID-16. See this for more information and other routes: www.summitpost.org/squaw-butte/275284
Shafer Butte is an excellent activation not far from Metro Boise - about an hour up Bogus Basin Road will get you there - and another 1.25 miles or so and 700 feet of hiking will gain you the summit proper. Or consider that there is a ski lift a few feet away from the summit - buy a lift ticket and climb a little and earn the bonus points for a "ski" activation during the winter.
