Good Views From Summit

Follow the directions to the Drake Peak Lookout that is located on Light Peak W7O/CE-004. Head up on foot the 1/3 mile towards Light Peak and watch for the faint road heading east just below the summit.  This is a cross-country route of about 3 miles RT. A GPS may be very useful to find the peak. Although it may look shorter to veer off the road on the return trip to slightly shorten the trip, I'd suggest staying with the road. The rocky peak has a few small trees for supporting poles and antennas.

Light Peak is located about one hour northeast of Lakeview, Oregon and features the Drake Peak Lookout that can be rented in summer. (Yes, Drake Peak Lookout is on the shoulder of Light Peak and not on Drake Peak...)

This is one of the last holdouts near Portland! After a successful first activation by AF7MD on W7O/NC-082, and the previous activation last year of W7O/NC-085 by WJ7WJ, I thought it was high time to bag this one before anyone else got to it!

It's about time I wrote this one up, almost a year after.

This peak stood out as one of the remaining peaks on private or questionably accessible land at the beginning of 2019, in the Portland metro area.

I love Bald Mountain. Not sure what it is about this gem. Maybe just like Wagner Butte and Grizzly Peak, it's a mountain I stare and gaze at frequently. It is the view from our ranch meadow (Brickpile Ranch) so again one of those mountains I wanted to hike but never did until SOTA. Each activation I have done from a different areas since it is a long summit, only once have I took the trail. If feeling ambitious I recommend doing Point Mountain or Anderson Butte same day.

Point Mountain has a pretty good trail most of the way. It is mainly a steep bald mountainside especially for the last  few hundred yards of the climb. I do not recommend short cutting, the brush is too thick where it gets tempting because you are oh-so-close to the top. This is also an area known for bear. My first trip up I got growled at by something in the thicket ?? Turned around and kept to trail...

4.3 mi, +2,100 feet

This is a good earlier season hike that offers spectacular views and some isolation after leaving the main Sun River Trail.

I believe previous activations of W7O/SC-071 reached the summit from the hang glider parking area to the north at the end of Woodrat Mountain Rd.  When I looked at Google Maps satellite view, I noticed a distinct trail from an earlier spot on Woodrat Mtn Road, to the east of the summit.  Woodrat Mountain Road is reached via Griffin Creek Road and Sterling Creek Road from the east.  It begins with asphalt pavement and then turns to gravel/dirt but is in very good shape compared to other forest roads in this area.  I was able to easily find where Woodrat Mtn Road was inter

Yesterday's SOTA adventure took me to the top of Mount Maria near Horseshoe Bend, Idaho for a first time activation.  The hike up was right at 1 mile in length and took about 45 minutes.  The last section was very steep, so had to slow down the pace quite a bit.

The view from the top was spectacular.  To the south you could see the town of Horseshoe Bend.  To the southeast, Shafer Butte.  To the north was a nice view up the Payette river.

Great day weather wise, about 70 degrees and sunny.  Hardly a breath of wind on the top.