Rattlesnake Mtn is part of King County's "Big Backyard" series of hikes. There is a trail head at the northwest end of the mountain at Snoqualmie Point and at the southeast end at Rattlesnake Lake. Walking from TH to TH is about 11 miles. We took the RS Lake route which is 4.3 miles and gains ~2500 ft to the summit.
After chasing a few stations the past few weeks, I decided to hike Pinnacle Peak (aka Mt. Pete) in Enumclaw to activate my first SOTA summit.
I neglected to send out an alert, but people found me anyway. I've climbed this little peak a few times. My plan was simple: take my Yaesu VX-7R, an extra battery (not needed), and a twin lead 2m antenna, and call CQ on 146.52.
Tuesday last week, with the help, support, and expertise of friends and an experienced mountaineering guide, I summited Mount Hood for my first time, and activated Mount Hood for its first time in SOTA. The climb began under a crystal clear starry sky around 00:37 on Tuesday, 11 June 2013, heading up the snowcat-groomed climber’s trail from Wy'East Day Lodge at Timberline Lodge. At midnight, I had met my guide, Rodney Sofich, at the Climber's Register just inside the day lodge to discuss what I was about to undertake.
Goat Mtn is located southeast of Molalla. It is a radio comm site with numerous VHF antennas (+ other transmitters) on one tower at the summit.
Iron Mountain is located east of Sweet Home, Oregon and is a very popular hike so expect a number of other hikers, especially on a weekend.
Wolf Mtn is located southeast of Oakridge. It is a radio comm site with numerous VHF antennas (+ other transmitters) on one tower to the west. The other east tower is an ATT celltower (good coverage!). The access roads are good and 2wd passable with some careful driving especially on FS2316 which is narrow in places.
A beautiful Fire Lookout on Huckleberry Mtn with great vistas of the Three Sisters. Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy before the lookout becomes active for the summer.
Getting There
After the long Iambic adventure I was looking for something easy and short. I choose Mount Wow, and read a lot of trip reports about the mountain. I had three choices to get onto the top. On the west ridge, from south following the old national park border trail, or from east using the Alan lake trail, which is also abandoned. At the end I decided to try it from west. This one is the shortest and most likely the easiest too.
On 5 June, 2013 I headed up to Wildcat Mtn. in the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness section of Mt. Hood National Forest OR for my first attempt at a SOTA activation. This is a quick and easy trip out of the Portland area, so give it a go!
Douglas Trail #781: route described below starts at Upper Douglas Trailhead
Driving Directions:
Just south of downtown Issaquah is Squak Mountain. It's a Washington State Park and so access is straightforward. From the north trailhead it's 2.3 miles one way on a maze of trails where it's a good idea to check the trail map carefully as there are several junctions on the way to the summit and one unsigned (very short) trail link.