This is the second, first activation of the day as Randi – N7OLE and I rode our Kawasaki dual sport motorcycles during the 13th Annual Giant Loop ride the weekend of May 29-June 1, 2024. The day started on Stinkingwater Pass with the first activation of W7o/SE-051, Crowcamp Mountain.

After finishing our delicious hamburgers at Oard’s Store in Buchanan, OR, we filled our tanks and headed south towards the famous French Round Barn near the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

Just beyond the barn site is a wide gravel road leading to the Southeast towards Riddle Mountain. After just a couple of miles on the wide road, we turned north on an unnamed gravel road, that turns to dirt, then to rocks and grass. It is about 6 miles from the turnoff to the abandoned Riddle Mountain Lookout and there had clearly been other motorcycles and trucks up this road fairly recently. The track is well graded, no big rocks or ruts to speak of but a high clearance vehicle with 4 wheel drive would be best for the drive up. The “road” continually steepens to the top, ending in a large gravel pad with a path to up to the lookout cab.

We arrived late on a Friday afternoon and I was anticipating a rough go, but not as rough as it was. That afternoon there was an X Class sunspot that was causing s8 noise on 40M at our remote mountaintop location. We tried for a while on 40, but gave up and worked 20M and were able to get 3 contacts, though rough copy. I suggested that Randi try her HT on 146.52 since Burns, OR was barely visible but within line of site. Amazingly, we had a response, bringing our total to 4 for qualification. Meanwhile, I was chatting away on the SOTA-NA Slack looking for anyone to work us. Ara-N6ARA said he could hear me 59+ in souther CA but he couldn’t figure out how to transmit on the remote FLEX radio he was using so we resorted to a CW-SSB cross mode QSO for the win.

Tired from a long day and still needing to ride the 40 miles back to camp, we packed up the KX2 and headed back down the hill, very slowly. Randi was feeling intimidated by the steep grade so I let her go first and coasted my bike down unpowered, a fun exercise I learned at a training camp last summer.

Riddle Mountain is very, very remote. Its about 50 mile South East of Burns, OR along mostly good paved roads. The access road is intimidating due to its remoteness but in very good condition once you get over the lack of tracks leading up the side of the hill. Most of the tower cab was boarded up and I didn’t get around too the West side but Randi said one of the windows was exposed and it looked as if it hadn’t been used in a while. There is a vault toilet, but of course it had nothing left inside. The views are indescribable. I think I said, “if I was a wild mustang, this is where I would live” when looking out to the South over the spring green rolling hills that end down towards the Alvord Desert. Not for the faint of heart but definitely worth the effort. Plan on bringing your HF gear but VHF did bring us the win.