If you’re in the area, this is a very easy summit to activate, it’s right off White Mountain Road, and a short, 5 minute (if that) hike up from a small parking area. Activation zone is pretty small, so I’m not sure one could stretch out a dipole. Worked KM6QCE on 2M FM, who then drove by to say hello! Also worked 20M, 40M SSB.
This summit is in the White Mountain range. I hiked an old two track road to the east side of the hill, then headed straight up to the summit through thick, knee high sage. Once on the ridge it was easy to get over to the summit. Worked 2M FM, 20M, and 40M SSB. On the way down, I took the ridge down to see if there was anything left of old prospecting mines marked on the forest service maps. I found a couple old tin cans and collapsed mine shafts.
Date:04/07/2021 | Summit:W6/WH-006 (County Line Hill)
Time
Callsign
Band
Mode
Notes
01:34
KM6QCE
144MHz
FM
S59 R59
01:35
WA6IQO
144MHz
FM
S59 R59
01:36
W0MNA
14MHz
SSB
S59 R59
01:38
W0ERI
14MHz
SSB
S59 R59
01:40
AL6H
14MHz
SSB
S54 R55
01:52
K6HPX
7MHz
SSB
S55 R51
01:53
KJ7UIZ
7MHz
SSB
S58 R56
01:54
K6CWC
7MHz
SSB
S55 R48
01:55
K6LDQ
7MHz
SSB
S55 R36
01:56
KX6A
7MHz
SSB
S55 R33
Where I parked the moto, County Line Hill in the background.Old two track road. I followed this around to the west side of the summit.Knee deep bushwhackingAt the topLady bugs hiding under rocks.At the summit with my vertical.
Sheep Mountain is near the end of White Mountain Road. I don’t have a car that will make it down this road reliably, so I brought my dual sport motorcycle which ran well at elevation. I was worried about it, as other carbureted motos I’ve owned completely loose power or refuse to idle when faced with altitude. While the hike wasn’t far, less than two miles, and not insanely steep, the elevation 12,439′ according to my GPS, really slowed me down. After reaching the top and catching my breath, I setup my vertical antenna with 8 radials and spotted myself on 20m via APRS. Made 3 S2S contacts, and 1 POTA contact. Unknown to me at the time of activation, this summit qualifies for summer bonus points, which was a nice surprise. I can’t wait to come back to this area for more hiking in the future!
White Mountain RoadMore White Mountain RoadMore White Mountain Road, this is County Line Peak.Where I parked the moto. Summit can’t be seen from here.All rocks hiking over the first hill.Not too terrible to hike overOver the first hill, Sheep Mountain is to the right.Benchmark at the topAnother benchmarkSummit log, signed by KM3A and N0OIHiking down, this is the hill I hiked over. I went around it going down.Looking at White Mountain Road from the first hill.
Access to this summit is pretty easy from the Bristle Cone Pine Visitors Center, either by taking the Discovery Trail, or by walking down White Mountain Road, then hiking up. See my .gpx file for more info on this. The assent is steep with loose rocks. Watch your step!
This summit starts at the Ancient Bristle Cone Pine visitor center parking lot. Take the trail to the Mexican Mines, which winds past some old cabins and mine shafts. Continue on the trail until a second set of collapsed mine audits. From here, just head straight up the hill a short distance to the summit. There, you will see another collapsed mine audit; this is where I setup my station. Worked 20, 40, 2, and 1.2GHz. Did a bit of rock hounding, then headed back to the car. This is pretty high elevation, and I was feeling the effects having just come from Los Angeles. No .gpx data for this summit, as I thought I would use a phone app instead of a hardware GPS. Phone app crashed. Doh!
Sunset Peak is rad. I started at Glendora Ridge Road across from Sunset Ridge Fire Road, and followed that up to the summit. At the top is a big chunk of sheet metal, I think from a lookout tower. I thought about ways to use this as a ground plane next time I’m there. Worked 20, 40, 2, and 1.2GHz. I got snowed on, in May, which was a nice surprise. The way down I was having so much fun, I went wayyyy past the turn off back to the car, but I eventually ran into GDR and cycled back on the road.
Edit December 5th, 2022. I was right about the big metal sheets on Sunset being from a old fire lookout tower. The info below was borrowed from firetower.org without any kind of permission.
Description
Sunset Peak replaced the former site on what is now known as Lookout Mountain, across the saddle to the north. Photographs appear to show it as an L-4 or BC-301 cab atop a 20 ft. steel tower. There was a small residence to the north and a cistern to the south. (The corrugated metal remains over what is believed to be the cistern.). Besides that all that remains are the footings for the tower and the foundation for the house.
Ron Kemnow’s site recounts stories of a 1928 lightning storm that destroyed the cabin, construction of the motorway in 1938 (eliminating the need of a pack train to bring supplies,) and a December 1938 fire which threatened the tower. Nonetheless, lookout Sherman Foster remained at his post. Both he and the tower survived.
The cab and tower were reportedly disassembled and transported to the Ontario Air Tanker Base in 1974 or 75. The final disposition of the structure is unknown.
I thought there was a road of some kind all the way to the top of this summit because of the fire lookout tower, but I was wrong! Because of this, I thought it would be a good bike ride. Park near Frenchman’s Flat Campground at the gate. You need a forest Adventure Pass displayed to park. Continue almost all the way down the paved road. You will see a small gate on the right, blocking a fire road – this goes to the summit. This road gets narrower and narrower the further you go up, ultimately ending up as a single track. At the top is a lookout tower which was built in 1969. This summit also offers nice views of Pyramid Lake. I setup my vertical and worked 20m, 40m, and 2m bands. About half way down the trail, I got a flat tire – but left my patch kit in my other bike bag – doh! Ended up walking most of the way back to the car. Overall, it was a fun day. Can’t wait to come back again!
At the gateOld road, no cars.At the gate to Slide MountainSingle track. I didn’t expect this.More single trackFirst view of Pyramid Lake, trail is very narrow here.First view of the tower.Made it! I’m never riding up here again.Station setup
This is a fun area to cycle; not too steep and the fire roads are in nice shape. Started out on 6N53 which is paved. Eventually you will come to a split in the road, where commercial towers sit. For W6/CT-263, stay to the right down the dirt road, 6N53b. Eventually you will find a Eagle Scout project/ picnic area on the right hand side, which is the trail down to the scout camp. Form here, you can sorta make out an old 2 track trail which goes up the hill. I pushed the bike up this part until it was flat/ hard enough to continue cycling. Using my GPS, I found the summit and setup my station. Worked 20M, and 40M, then 70cm SSB.
After all the chasers were gone, I decided to cycle over to W6/SC-076, Whitaker Peak. Go back to the transmission tower and take 6N53a all the way to another tower installation. From here, you need to sneak around the fence and traverse down the ridge over to the summit. Sadly, the tower site was extremely busy with workers, and I couldn’t get the bicycle past all their idling trucks. Additionally, there wasn’t anywhere to really hide my bike. Sadly, I turned around and went back to the car.
I’ve summited Whitaker Peak before, but didn’t activate it because my battery was dead when I got there. Doh! I did have a working pen and signed the summit log, which was pretty empty. Maybe I’ll actually get to activate it on my third attempt, which likely won’t involve a bicycle that I need to hide in the bush.
TrailheadBlocked roadHeading up, this part is paved.Eventually the pavement endsSummit in viewEnd of the hiking trail from the scout camp below. I thought about cycling down this trail…. No way!Trail to the summit on the left. Going right will also take you to the summit.Station setupI have no idea what this plant is, but there were several of them.A mount for some kinda measurement equipment? This wasn’t on the summit.
This was my second activation of Mt. Lawlor. The first time I didn’t take any photos/ video and I wish I had, because the summit and firebreak has been cleared. Tracks from a large machine can be seen at the top; I have no idea how they got it up there. Helicopter? You can get up to Lawlor several ways – I parked at Red Box Picnic area and hiked to the firebreak, then, straight up to the summit. You can bypass the insanely steep hike by going around to Strawberry Saddle and hiking the ridge up, which requires a bit of scrambling over rocks. Worked 20M, 40M SSB, and 2M AM (yes, AM). Brought a new (to me) HT which added 23cm to my quiver of bands. Tried to QSO with K6LDQ on 23cm – he could hear me, but I couldn’t hear him. Maybe next time!
A bit of snow on the trail.Freshly cleared firebreak to the summit.On the firebreak, tried to photograph the 45 degree incline.Bulldozed summitSummit is up and to the right.An old post at the summit where I setup my station.
This winter has been warm and dry, and the snowpack low. Bonuses are still on the table so I figured it would be a good time to get some extra points. Start at the Icehouse Canyon Trailhead, just off Mt. Baldy road. You will need a forest pass to park. I decided to hike the long way up via Chapman Trail, which adds another 2.5 miles and makes the hike a loop. At the summit I worked 20M, 40M, 70cm SSB, and 2M FM. I went on a weekday so there was little traffic trail. If you go on a weekend make sure to show up early to get a parking space, and be prepared for crowds, as this is a popular area to hike.
