Black Pine Ridge is a drive-to summit on easy Forest Service roads just outside of Phillipsburg, Montana. The last mile of the road is rocky and I advise four wheel drive for the trek.
Getting there: From Phillipsburg, Montana travel north on highway 1 approximately 1.8 miles. Turn left onto Black Pine Road and go 2.9 miles. Take a left turn onto Forest Service Road 448 and travel 3.25 miles. Here, veer left onro Forest Service 178. Travel 6.0 miles to the summit.
There was too much smoke in the air today to get any good pictures from the summit. The com tower is a small one and didn't seem to be functional while I was there. I set up my rig right next to the small tower and had no interference whatsoever. I even got a 59 contact on 17 meters SSB from New York running QRP at 15 watts. I used an Elecreft KX3 with end fed wire antenna measuring 88 feet long. Lots of high winds this day so I didn't stay up too long. I quit after 7 contacts.
This is an easy summit to activate. It won't take all day and can be done round trip from Phillipsburg in a couple hours. Phillipsburg is an old mining town with good shops and Sapphire mining for the kids. A great place to spend the entire day and get a summit in while there.
