{"id":6085,"date":"2016-07-29T08:10:53","date_gmt":"2016-07-29T14:10:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=6085"},"modified":"2020-09-23T11:51:49","modified_gmt":"2020-09-23T17:51:49","slug":"black-hills-sd-expedition-no-174b-summits-on-the-air-boulder-hill-7-4-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=6085","title":{"rendered":"Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 174(b) – Summits on the Air! (Boulder Hill, 7-4-16)"},"content":{"rendered":"

By the time Lupe and SPHP arrived at grandma’s house, Joe and Dusty were ready and waiting.\u00a0 Joe had already entered an alert on Summits on the Air<\/strong><\/a><\/span>!\u00a0 Joe, Dusty, Lupe and SPHP lost no time\u00a0leaving for Boulder Hill<\/a><\/span> (5,331 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Boulder Hill from USFS Road No. 358 (Boulder Hill Road) where Flume Trail No. 50 crosses the road. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At 8:19 AM (71\u00b0F), Joe parked the G6 at the high point of the saddle on USFS Road No. 358 near the Boulder Hill access road.\u00a0\u00a0A cool N breeze could be heard in the pines.\u00a0 Lupe and Dusty were soon racing through the shady forest.\u00a0 Joe and SPHP\u00a0took the access road.<\/p>\n

Rain had finally arrived\u00a0the day before – the real deal with thunder, lightning, small hail and at least an inch of moisture.\u00a0 Lupe found big tan mud puddles on the access road.\u00a0 She plunked herself down in several of them.\u00a0 She emerged with cool,\u00a0tan mineral water streaming from her fur.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0access road\u00a0was only\u00a00.375 mile long.\u00a0 It ended at the\u00a0base\u00a0of the big rock outcropping at the top of Boulder Hill<\/a><\/span> (5,331 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0A\u00a0spur of\u00a0Flume Trail No. 50 wound up\u00a0among the rocks to\u00a0a small, shallow\u00a0saddle between the N and S high points at the summit of Boulder Hill.\u00a0\u00a0Good!\u00a0 No one was around.\u00a0 Joe would have his choice of sites to set up his ham radio equipment.<\/p>\n

Two days earlier,\u00a0Joe had had such a good time with his first Summits on the Air<\/strong><\/a><\/span> (SOTA) experience “activating” Custer Peak<\/a><\/span> (6,804 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>, that he wanted to try activating another peak in the Black Hills before he and Dusty had to head home to Arvada, Colorado.\u00a0 SOTA is “an award scheme for radio\u00a0amateurs that encourages portable operation in mountainous areas”.\u00a0 Naturally, Lupe, Dusty, and SPHP had all wanted to come along again, too!<\/p>\n

Joe decided to set up the radio equipment at the N end of the N high point.\u00a0 He taped a 12 foot fishing pole\u00a0supporting an\u00a0antenna wire as high up in a pine tree as he could.\u00a0 SPHP then helped Joe set up 4 lateral wires near the base of the antenna.\u00a0 Lupe and Dusty supervised, while guarding against intruders.<\/p>\n

\"Joe<\/a>
Joe and Dusty during setup of the portable ham radio. The 12′ fishing pole supporting the antenna can be see up in the tree toward the L. Several of the lateral wires can be seen, too.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe supervises while Joe finishes setting the radio up. Photo looks NW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pretty soon, the radio was ready.\u00a0 This time, Joe had a much better idea of what to expect once the radio was on.\u00a0 Before “activating” Boulder Hill, Joe gave SPHP the log book and a pen.\u00a0\u00a0SPHP received\u00a0a\u00a05 minute crash course on\u00a0how to log\u00a0the contact call signs, and other\u00a0data\u00a0Joe would call out while operating the radio.<\/p>\n

\"AA0Q<\/a>
AA0Q (Joe’s radio call sign) ready to get Boulder Hill on the air!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Set up\u00a0had gone smoothly. \u00a0AA0Q was ready to\u00a0go on the air\u00a05 minutes before the alert time Joe had posted on the SOTA website.\u00a0 As soon as Joe started transmitting, the same thing happened as at Custer Peak two days earlier.\u00a0 Within seconds of turning the radio on, a contact “spotted” AA0Q on Boulder Hill on the SOTA website.\u00a0\u00a0Moments later, Joe told SPHP that it was another “pileup”.\u00a0 Joe said it sounded like 30 hams were trying to contact him at once.<\/p>\n

It was impossible to\u00a0respond to them all, but Joe was better prepared than last time.\u00a0 SPHP logged the contacts, while AA0Q “worked” them using Morse Code.\u00a0 Joe recognized some of the contacts as repeats from his SOTA activation of Custer Peak.\u00a0 Others were new.\u00a0 The most distant\u00a0contact was in Great Britain, which Joe said was very good for transmitting only 4 watts.<\/p>\n

\"AA0Q<\/a>
AA0Q on the air on Boulder Hill, with Dusty looking on. Photo looks NW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and Dusty helped, too.\u00a0 At one point, three hikers arrived up on Boulder Hill while\u00a0AA0Q\u00a0was still transmitting.\u00a0 Both Lupe and Dusty barked a warning.\u00a0 SPHP stopped logging long enough to point out\u00a0the lateral\u00a0antenna wires, so they wouldn’t trip on them.\u00a0 SPHP also took a couple of group photos for the hikers using their camera.<\/p>\n

Once again, Joe was rather amazed at the terrific response.\u00a0 His Summits on the Air activation of Boulder Hill was a big success.\u00a0 In roughly an hour, AA0Q worked 33 contacts by Morse Code, and one by voice.\u00a0 By activating Boulder Hill, AA0Q had earned 6 more points toward the SOTA “Mountain Goat” award.\u00a0 Including the 8 points earned on Custer Peak, he was now up to 14 points.\u00a0 SOTA was fun and added a whole new dimension to AA0Q’s amateur radio hobby!<\/p>\n

When Joe was done transmitting, it was time to take down the antenna and\u00a0pack up\u00a0all the radio gear.\u00a0 When that was complete, Joe, Dusty, Lupe & SPHP went to explore a slightly lower high point a short distance to the N.<\/p>\n

\"Joe<\/a>
Joe and Dusty on the slightly lower high point to the N. Harney Peak (L of Center) is the highest point in the distance. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Silver<\/a>
Silver Mountain’s summit is in view just above Joe. Cliffs at the edge of the N summit area close to where AA0Q had been transmitting are seen on the L. Photo looks SSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Joe stands near the spot where he had been transmitting from on the N summit. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Of course, the peakbagger in Lupe wasn’t about to leave Boulder Hill without a visit to the S summit area, too!<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe on the S summit. Silver Mountain<\/a><\/span> (5,405 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> is the grassy peak on the L. Harney Peak<\/a><\/span> (7,242 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> is on the horizon on the R.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"AA0Q<\/a>
AA0Q and Dusty at the S summit. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Harney<\/a>
Harney Peak using the telephoto lens. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Part<\/a>
Part of Storm Hill (5,192 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> is seen on the L. Hwy 16 is visible on the R. Photo looks E.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Joe<\/a>
Joe and Dusty on the trail on the way down. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By noon, Joe, Dusty, Lupe and SPHP were back at grandma’s house.\u00a0 Joe logged in all the QSO’s (contacts) he had made on the Summits on the Air website.\u00a0\u00a0All the contacts earned\u00a0points toward the SOTA “Shack Sloth” award.<\/p>\n

After lunch, Joe & SPHP went with other family members off into the hills again.\u00a0 SPHP wound up at Rushmore Cave<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, and Joe wound up at an antique shop in Keystone.<\/p>\n

Lupe, Dusty and Maya (another dog in the family)\u00a0were left behind with grandma.\u00a0 SPHP had given all three dogs water and a Beggin’ Strip before leaving.\u00a0 Grandma later reported that\u00a0all the dogs spent the entire afternoon snoozing on the soft carpet in front of the fan.\u00a0 Being a “Radio-Active” Carolina Dog can be a tough life, but someone’s got to do it!<\/p>\n

\"Summits<\/a>
Summits on the Air map showing AA0Q’s activation of Boulder Hill.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Next Black Hills Expedition<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Prior Black Hills Expedition<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s Black Hills Expeditions Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a> or Master Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By the time Lupe and SPHP arrived at grandma’s house, Joe and Dusty were ready and waiting.\u00a0 Joe had already entered an alert on Summits on the Air!\u00a0 Joe, Dusty, Lupe and SPHP lost no time\u00a0leaving for Boulder Hill (5,331 ft.). At 8:19 AM (71\u00b0F), Joe parked the G6 at the high point of the … Continue reading Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 174(b) – Summits on the Air! (Boulder Hill, 7-4-16)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6073,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[667,105,9,633,106,146,451,665,304,664],"class_list":["post-6085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-black-hills","tag-aa0q","tag-american-dingo","tag-black-hills-expeditions","tag-boulder-hill","tag-carolina-dog","tag-dusty","tag-joe","tag-sota","tag-south-dakota","tag-summits-on-the-air"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/IMG_1277.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6085"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6085\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28365,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6085\/revisions\/28365"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}