Decent tree cover for most of the trail
I thought I should write up a current summary on Roxy since one has not been done for quite some years and the area has changed. Roxy is the closest summit to my home qth and I enjoy the hike more each time I go up. It is a popular hiking and jogging area especially in the warmer months.
Shingle Mountain summit is a 5-mile out and back hike located Northeast of Dog Mountain and Augspurger Mountain north of the Columbia River accessed from a national forest road just before reaching the Moss Creek Campground. I marked both “Easy Trail” and “Treacherous Trial” above because like many SOTA summits, you get both on this one. You are rewarded at the top with a very pleasant activation area with a clearing at the summit and a view south.
For those speedy hikers Rhodes Peak can be hiked in a day. For those like me, a trail sloth, a backpack camp at Goat Lake half-way there is a fine alternative for a multi-day hike to three nearby summits. The lake is within a scenic alpine basin next to W7I/NI-108 and looks across a valley to Williams Peak W7I/NI-003. Rhodes Peak is Clearwater County’s highpoint and is sought by those summiting every County highpoint in Idaho. This popular summit has two elaborate summit register books. We met folks on our hike heading for this popular summit.
Williams Peak is a good trail hike with a short off-trail hike and a short rock scramble. The summit has good views but little room for operating. A good alternative is to hunker-in just below the summit and tie off to one of the few snags or live trees on the south side.
Williams Peak is also an ideal hike for a double activation with Rhodes Peak, W7I/NI-001. Both are just off the well-maintained US Forest Service Trail # 508. Both summits are an easy access up grassy/rocky ridges
K7EEX trip report for Wolfe Point (http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/k7eex/2018-january-13/wolf-point-oregon) mentioned a possible south trail. This report confirms a south access to Wolfe Point.
If coming from Cedar Butte activation, turn off of the road at: N45.57747° W123.63990°. Park at N45.57731° W123.61891° the trail looks like a small drainage (see pic). It is not maintained and hard to follow in places but you can get to the top from this south access.
Oreana Ridge is a picturesque summit with scattered trees, grass/forb land, an old US Forest Service L-4 Lookout and a log garage. There are fine views of high peaks in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness and the steep slopes of Salmon River breaks. The lookout built in 1934 has been abandoned and is in very poor shape. Though the stairs look inviting, the decking is rotten and hazardous to walk on. Trees are available to string wire antennas.
Trout Creek Hill is a near drive-up summit north of Carson, Washington. You can reasonably drive into the AZ, but you'd rather not travel the last few hundred yards to save the finish on your vehicle. So be sure and look for a good place to turn around and leave your vehicle before that last bit of road.
Bunker Hill is a nicely accessible summit a few miles north of Carson, Washington. The trailhead is an easy drive, and the hike is about 3.6 miles roundtrip and 1300 feet of gain. Note that little of the gain is on the first mile or so of the hike - it's steep later. The hike starts on the Pacific Crest Trail for the first easy half mile or so.
Short Version - Wildcat Mountain is only an hour from Portland. You can drive to the trailhead and the two-ish mile hike along a well-maintained, if not well-marked, trail gets you to a small clearing on a summit with wire-ready trees. APRS messaging and 2M FM contacts are both easy and it is a good location for working HF. You are unlikely to be alone, as the Douglas and 781 trails are quite popular; if you like solitude, get there early. And be prepared for snow, even in early November.
UPDATE: last trip I walked the bermed road. A bit longer but much easier and safer. Tracks on sotamap.
