W6/CT-126 – Harold Beacon Benchmark

There is something about the summits along the 14 and into Palmdale which I really like, but to date, Harold Beacon Benchmark is probably my favorite because of all the flora and fauna. I parked my car on Rebel road and started hiking, first, down a dirt road which wasn’t so bad, then, to a steep moto track which goes straight up the hillside. This side of the hill was covered in Juniper. The end of the trail meets up with a fire road, which leads up to the summit. There are several different types of trees up here with several kinds of birds I couldn’t identify. At the top, there were three benchmarks of various vintage, and evidence of an old tower. I wonder if that was the beacon? I setup my station using an EFHW cut for higher bands. Worked 12M, 17M, and 30M CW. 4 S2S. I hiked down the way I came, although it seems like there are several ways up and down. I’ll look forward to activating this peak again.

https://sotl.as/summits/W6/CT-126

Total distance: 2.54 mi
Max elevation: 4725 ft
Total climbing: 867 ft
Total time: 02:41:33
Download file: Harold.gpx

Date:12/02/2022 | Summit:W6/CT-126 (Harold Beacon Benchmark)

TimeCallsignBandModeNotes
20:34NR3E24MHzCWS55N R33N
20:35W0MNA24MHzCWS52N R55N
20:37KU4R24MHzCWS55N R53N
20:38W0ERI24MHzCWS55N R55N
20:52KF9D18MHzCWS44N R33N
20:54WW7D18MHzCWS42N R52N S2S W7W/CW-061
20:56WU7H18MHzCWS33N R53N S2S W7W/CW-061
21:00K0LAF18MHzCWS56N R55N
21:03NG6R18MHzCWS57N R56N
21:14K6GVG10MHzCWS58N R55N
21:15N4LAG10MHzCWS57N R56N
21:17WB6POT10MHzCWS56N R55N
21:19K6STR10MHzCWS56N R55N S2S W6/CT-076
21:22K6QCB10MHzCWS55N R56N
21:22NW7E10MHzCWS55N R55N
21:22K6CPR10MHzCWS57N R53N
21:23K6LDQ10MHzCWS58N R53N
21:24K1LB10MHzCWS57N R57N
21:30AG7TX10MHzCWS55N R52N S2S W7N/TR-075
The road to the trailhead was a bit too ‘gnar for my commuter car, so I parked here.
Just a short walk down this dirt road to the trail I followed up.
the trail I went up was quite steep.
Heading down, I think that’s the Fin and Feather club lake off in the distance.
Ye ‘olde benchmark from 1929
Newer marker, no date
1975
I think that’s Sierra Pelona W6/CT-116