Posted: 9/8/2014 2:59:15 PM EDT
...OK so the views aren't quite as impressive as frostbite's threads but this was a very fun way to spend a Monday morning while the older kids were in school. 
I had the two younger kids with me so I needed something that looked like an "easy" approach. I found a summit in Ohiopyle State Park PA and decided to give it a go. This was a last minute idea that I thought of just last night. I've been putting SOTA off for too long and it's something that I have wanted to do. So I put up an alert and decided to give it a try. My alert ended up being about an hour off and I updated it frequently on my trip every time I was delayed. We're getting into the hills now. 
OK, OK, we get it... 
Over the river and through the woods... 
It looks like this is where we are headed...I think... 
Guess I should have taken some allergy medicine today. 
We found the access road which is an old road up to a fire tower. 
This is about as far as we could go as the road was washed out. 
KX3, iPad, EndFedz Trailfriendly, antenna launcher, and logbook ready to go! 
The road narrows a bit... 
I used a baby carrier for my 22 month old and my 3 year old walked...as you can see, she is dressed appropriately for a good hike with a nice dress and some sparkly shoes. 
Even less road than down below. 
Well, so much for driving a bit closer to the summit.
When we reached the summit, we found another road and a parking area.  Oh well, it was a good hike and, per SOTA rules, you need make the final ascent on foot anyway.
uhhhh...what's this all about?!?! 
Radio and antenna setup...made my 4 required QSOs for activation plus a few extras, packed up and headed home. Yes, I really need a travel paddle.
It was a great experience and a fun time that I would recommend to anyone who wants to try. 
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Very Cool! Cute daughter, glad you guys had fun. Your not far from all the Frostburg, Cumberland Gap mountains in MD, or Cooper's Rock area of WV. What's up with a PA park named Ohiopyle? 
I need to do that someday when I have something easily man portable. I aint dragging my 590 up a mountain! |
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Quoted:
Awesome! I like seeing all the pictures. Check out the Bulldog paddles. They are great for what you are doing. Quoted:
Awesome! I like seeing all the pictures. Check out the Bulldog paddles. They are great for what you are doing. Thanks! I'll have to check them out.
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Right on! Glad you had fun! Are you hooked now? 
How many points did you get for the summit? Very much. It was a great time! Got 8 points for this one. None of our mountains extend above the tree line , but we do have a few 10 point summits around just the same. There is a nice concentration of not yet activated summits in the eastern part of the state inside the NRQZ. I'd like to make a camping trip into the area to see if I could activate a few. There are a couple of smaller summits very close to my house but they are on private property. One is smack dab in the middle of a road in a residential area and the other is right next to a cell tower. I'm sure I can find a spot to setup within the allowable area for those two as well.
I have to say the process was a bit easier than I thought. It was cool to make contacts while portable as well. I haven't really gotten to stretch the legs of my KX3 much but it performed great. Lots of perfectly acceptable signal reports though I did forget my ear buds so me hearing some of the other stations was a stretch on occasion. I managed a few SSB contacts on 20m and 40m and one single CW contact at the end on 20m. A very fun morning.
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Very Cool! Cute daughter, glad you guys had fun. Your not far from all the Frostburg, Cumberland Gap mountains in MD, or Cooper's Rock area of WV. What's up with a PA park named Ohiopyle?
I need to do that someday when I have something easily man portable. I aint dragging my 590 up a mountain! Come on up here! Or we can meet at some summit between us and use my radio. You can have two activators on one summit. I wondered about the name too. It is a bastardization of a Native American name for the place. One of the few remnants of American Indian culture that can be found in the area is in the name. "Ohiopyle" is derived from the Lenape phrase ahi opih?le which means 'it turns very white', referring to the frothy waterfalls. |
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I have a green box...and an orange box. I've been trying to decide which to use. Perhaps I'll use the yellow just to be a godless heathen. Quoted:
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Congrats! Now all you need is a green radio! I have a green box...and an orange box. I've been trying to decide which to use. Perhaps I'll use the yellow just to be a godless heathen. Wait a minute! I use yellow for my waterproof radio equipment bags. I guess I now know what t'all think of me!
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Wait a minute! I use yellow for my waterproof radio equipment bags. I guess I now know what t'all think of me!
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Wait a minute! I use yellow for my waterproof radio equipment bags. I guess I now know what t'all think of me!
Well if I have allies then we could start a yellow revolution! 
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Nice!  Quoted:
Looks like a whole lotta fun!  Indeed. It was a blast. I don't really care about "points" and awards, but finding an excuse to go climb a hill with the kids and play with the radio on a beautiful day is hard to beat. |
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Points shmoints! BUT! Having your call as the first activator is pretty cool IMHO! I have my next SOTA planned out now, I also plan to take the daughter along for the hike...and subsequent ice cream stop in Dahlonega. Good jorb! I actually invested in some snake boots for myself and snake chaps for the daughter for these excursions. |
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Quoted:
Points shmoints! BUT! Having your call as the first activator is pretty cool IMHO! I have my next SOTA planned out now, I also plan to take the daughter along for the hike...and subsequent ice cream stop in Dahlonega. Good jorb! I actually invested in some snake boots for myself and snake chaps for the daughter for these excursions. With how much geocaching we do, and now that the SOTA bug has bitten me, I've been thinking about investing in some snake boots actually. They will certainly be nice when I'm hunting in a new area this year...it's called "Snake Hill".  Guess it's time to research them.
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