Exposed Summit

Summit is exposed to wind, rain, sun (and good views)
K7VK's picture

Blue Nose - Idaho/Montana 13July2020

Summit: 
W7I/LE-150

Blue Nose is a US Forest Service Lookout built in 1934.  The structure still exists. From the summit are good views of the steep slopes of the Salmon River Canyon and high summits of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. The final access road is a bit

K7VK's picture

Un-named Summit 8586 - Idaho/Montana 13July2020

Summit: 
W7I/LE-152

This is a burned-over flat-summit on the Idaho/Montana Border.  Access is via an obscure 4x4 road that takes off to the north from FS#038.  Along this road after several hundred feet is a flatten area used as a dispersed campsite most commonly in hunting season.  Beyond this area the road becomes an ATV track weaving through a sn

K7VK's picture

Un-Named Summit 6925 - Idaho/Montana 17Sept2018

Summit: 
W7I/IC-195

This un-named summit on the Idaho/Montana Border has similar views as Skookum Butte Lookout to the east 1.5 miles.  The route also has good views looking down on Granite Lake.  Distance views are peaks in the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness.  It combines a vehicle drive, mountain bike road, a hiking trail and off-trail hike.

K7VK's picture

Elk Mountain - Montana 2July2020

Summit: 
W7M/LM-129

Elk Mountain is a short scramble off a good US Forest Service road.  The scramble is mostly on a ridge through an old clearcut that has in places heavy ceanothus brush.  Wood ticks can be abundant in the spring. 

AG7GP's picture

Bald Mountain November 2020

Summit: 
W7O/CS-095

Another Bald Mountain on my list. I swear we need a S2S Party just for summits with "Bald" in the name! Easy drive to summit but not really any view, just a nice park-like area. Beautifully timbered, relatively flat summit top. Easy to set up. I had zero service here. Might of had texting if I set up on the west edge but I almost always go for the east side. I had trouble hitting RBN and being found. 40m rescued me and I was able to get several QSOs once found.

K7MAS's picture

SOTA Activation: Pine Benchmark - Deschutes County, Oregon - October 22, 2020

Summit: 
W7O/CE-068

Between October 21 and October 30, 2020, we visited the Sunriver / Bend areas of Oregon.  The cold but clear weather allowed us to Activate 8 SOTA summits in 6 outings.  This report is one of a series, and deals with the Activation of Pine Benchmark, W7O/CE-068.  A little earlier in the day, we had Activated Pine Mountain, W7O/CE-058, approximately 1.6 miles SE away, as the crow flies.  This duo makes a fine single day Activation with minimal effort getting from one TH to the other.

K7MAS's picture

SOTA Activation: Pine Mountain - Deschutes County, Oregon - October 22, 2020

Summit: 
W7O/CE-058

Between October 21 and October 30, 2020, we visited the Sunriver / Bend areas of Oregon.  The cold but clear weather allowed us to Activate 8 SOTA summits in 6 outings.  This report is one of a series, and deals with the Activation of Pine Mountain, W7O/CE-058.  On the same day, a few hours later, we also Activated Pine Benchmark, W7O/CE-068, which lies approximately 1.6 miles NW of Pine Mountain.  That Activation will be subject of separate report.

K7VK's picture

Haystack Mountain - Idaho 19June2020

Summit: 
W7I/IC-200

Haystack Mountain is one of several SOTA summits near the Magruder Corridor.  This road divides some of the most wild-country in Idaho, the Selway Bitterroot and Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness areas.   A trail system FS#26, and a non-system hunter trail is near the summit however it is much shorter to just bushwhack from the road through mostly open forest.  Only a short obstacle of downed trees slows the otherwise easy hike.&nbsp

K7VK's picture

Burnt Mountain - Montana 24May2020

Summit: 
W7M/GA-145

One-day, three summits.  A good US Forest Service road system gets one close enough to activate three summits easily in one day, rare in Western Montana.  Burnt Mountain is an open grass/scattered-tree summit.  The other two nearby summits are Golden Mountain (W7M/GA-141) and Babcock Mountain (W7M/GA-146).  Both accessible v

AG7GP's picture

Smith Rock/Rustler, OR Oct 2020

 This summary is for two summits...Joell, KJ7GFN and I started our SOTA trip about 1.5 hrs before daylight, I was hoping to get to the first summit, Smith Rock (also Sky Lakes Wilderness for WWFF), while dx was still happening to EU. We dressed preparing for a freezing morning, forecast was at 20-25f low in the area, figured even cooler at 6000'. I wore the warmest of everything I had since I get cold very easily. But we were fooled! Some sort of an inversion in the mountains was happening and I am guessing it was more around 50-55!