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NS7P activation of Fox Butte, W7O/CE-091, on August 25, 2016

NS7P's picture
Summit: 
W7O/CE-091
Cellular Provider: 
N/A

 Fox Butte is a 6 point summit with a retired lookout tower.  The butte can be found by taking US 20 to a turnoff to the right (south) that is just east of the closed Millican Store (about 25-30 miles east of Bend, OR). The road to the butte is about 25 miles of rough gravel.  It will take an hour or so.

 

Follow the main road as it is called Newt Morris Rd (turn off of US 20), Fox Tail Butte Rd, Fox Butte Rd, Moffatt Rd, NF 2312, NF 23/Sand Springs Rd and NF 550.

 

The road finally brings you to a three way intersection.  The uphill road to the summit is called NF 550. A sign warns that there is a gate ahead with no turnouts. Believe them! If you start driving up the hill, hoping for a route to the top, you will encounter the closed gate several hundred yards up the hill. There is no place to turn around, and backing down would not be fun. A passenger car can make it to the base of the butte, but the washboard surface will shake your fillings out in places! 

 

So, park in a wide spot on one of the roads at the bottom and walk to the summit.  The road rises over 600' in about 1.1 miles.  The lookout tower on top is no longer used.  There are plenty of room to activate with nice views.

  

A note about late afternoon activations: I started calling CQ on 20 meter CW at 2333z. Usually, I will have four QSOs in the log in 5 to 7 mins, but it was a challenge at that hour.  It took me until 2358z to get five stations across three bands. I was starting to sweat making it before 0000z. An issue for late afternoon activations.