Due to the recent relocation of Frog Lake Buttes from one butte to the other earlier this year, I was anxious to do another double activation on New Year's Eve. See my previous report for details on the route. The only difference is you must continue on from the radio towers down to the saddle and on up the other butte. Still very worth it for 14 pts.
1470 is an unnamed summit near Granite Falls, WA. It is an easy 3 mile walk (6 mile R/T) up a good gravel road. Around 1000' of gain. This is a good candidate for a mountain bike trip. Some nice views of Pilchuck near the top.
Ball Mountain is a relatively easy drive-near summit in the Oregon coast range, east of Lincoln City. Your passenger vehicle will get you close to the summit, followed by a short walk and then a bushwhack, neither of which is challenging. The summit area itself is treed in with ample space to set up and plenty of trees for antennas.
Smith Mountain is one of several two-point summits accessible from Weyerhaeuser rec permit access gate 6110. For permit information see: https://recreation.weyerhaeuser.com.
This is a drive-up summit into the activation zone. A couple of concrete blocks and a tall steel antenna mast indicate the site was a possible old Timber Company repeater station when the land was under different ownership. The summit ownership is now US Forest Service.
Summary - Crazy Hills, along with Lone Butte, is on the western boundary of Indian Heaven Wilderness, near the Lone Butte Sno Park. The drive is mostly on paved roads by way of Carson (Wind River and Meadow Creek) and includes a 1.5 mi hike (mostly cross country). Drive time from Portland is about ninety minutes. The summit hike follows a ridge and requires a short steep climb to the high point. APRS is good, ATT cell is servicable, two meter contacts are a struggle.
Medicine Point is a popular US Forest Service rental lookout. The hike is pleasant on a well-maintained good-grade trail, FS #181. I set up SOTA operation a couple of hundred feet away from the lookout to not disturb a young couple that had rented it. Much of the southerly ridge from the trail junction to the lookout is within the activation zone.
Getting There: DO NOT USE GOOGLE MAPS TO GET HERE!!!! Google maps will lead you straight to a gated road. Have your GPS open or a map next to you while you try to navigate this. From highway 14, turn North on Rock Creek Driver like you're headed to Skamania Lodge. Continue half a mile and then turn left on Foster Creek Road. Next turn left on Red Bluff Road which will become CG-2000. Continue a little less than a mile until you see the intersection with CG 2022 splitting up the hill to the left.
1.7 miles, +884 ft, -47 ft; On ATV Trail
Driving Directions from Checkerboard, MT
When I visited Northern Idaho, I also had the chance to activate this summit.
The route to the summit starts on Hwy 95, turning East onto Blacktail Rd. This is followed around until it once again turns East onto Little Blacktail Rd. Then follow the pit run (larger gravel) covered road to the top.
There are 3 or 4 repeater towers up there so I parked next to the large propane tank on the southernmost one and headed south to put some distance between us. Even so, 20m was very noisy. I didn't have a problem on 40m or 15m.