Tag: morse code
-
Brown’s Mountain W7O/CM-085 | August 2025
Brown’s Mountain is near the Crane Prairie Reservoir. It had only been activated one other time by K7ATN and K7FOP back in 2019. They approached the summit from the East side via the Brown’s Mountain Loop Road. The report they published describes a very uninspiring experience. However, in researching alternative routed, Tim N7KOM, found a…
-
Shukash Butte First Activation | August 2025
In preparation for the 2026 W7O Campout to be hosted at Crane Prairie Campground next to Crane Prairie Reservoir in Central Oregon, N7KOM, N7OLE, N7KOM’s YL and myself decided to scout this unactivated summit. It being the closest summit to the campground it makes sense that many operators would be interested in getting some intelligence…
-
Willow Butte
Activation Report | July 2025 | W7O/CE-103 Willow Butte [W7O/CE-103] is an easy 4 pointer located in the Deschutes National Forest just 20 Miles SE of LaPine, OR. From Lapine take FS22 21 miles to NFD 2400-900. Turn south for ~ 1mile to NFD 2400-930 on the right. NFD 930 is soft and rutted but…
-
Sand Mountain
Activation Report – July 2025 – W7O/CM-077 Sand Mountain is located on the Cascade Crest in the Willamette National Forest. It can be access from the Big Lake Recreation Area with a reasonably high clearance vehicle via the Old Santiam Wagon Road, FSR 2690-810. The route was used for hauling freight over the Cascades between…
-
Activation Report: Spring Butte [ W7O/CE-154] and Green Butte [W7O/CE-117]
![Activation Report: Spring Butte [ W7O/CE-154] and Green Butte [W7O/CE-117]](https://w7mtb.blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20250504_122800.jpg?w=1024)
Spring and Green Buttes are 4 pointer drive ups in Southern Deschutes County, OR. Both are accessed via Forest Road 22 in LaPine, OR, a nicely paved forest road. At about 10 miles, we turned South on NFDR2220 towards Spring Butte. At 6 miles there is a short right then left juke on NFDR2430 and…
-
Activation Report: W7A/NM-131 | Fortification Hill
N7OLE and I had to fly down to the area to attend a Memorial Service for Randi’s uncle and now SK Marvin, KL1YY. After flying into Las Vegas and renting a car, we drove to Boulder City for a night in the Historic Boulder City Dam Hotel. We packed light for the cheap flight but…
-
First Activation: W7O/SE-051 | Crowcamp Mountain, OR
N7OLE and I attended the Giant Loop Ride at Crystal Crane Hot Spring near Crane, OR at the end of May, 2024. Being a fairly unpopulated part of the state, there are ample opportunities to grab some first activations so we took advantage. As it turned out, one of the routes that is suggested by…
-
Activation Report: W7O/CE-112 – Spence Mountain by mountain bike | May 2024
The Spence Mountain trail system has been in development for the past few years on private land that was purchased by a land trust to guarantee ongoing public access. Dirt Mechanics of Bend, OR was contracted to develop over 50 miles of single track trails on the property. There are 3 SOTA summits in the…
-
Activation Report: W7o/CM-123 @ Willamette Pass Ski Area | April 2023
N7KOM, N7OLE and I have been wanting to get a ski activation in all winter but our stars were not aligned. We attempted W7O/CM-005 a couple weeks earlier and managed to get through the turnstiles on the Summit Express lift when its came to a sudden stop and the lifties started turning everyone out. So…
-
Ski Shelters on the Air – #1 Nordeen
The past couple of months have not been very radioactive. The weather in the Pacific Northwest has been … unusual this winter. We had an unseasonably dry and warm early winter followed by a vicious cold snap and a heck of a snow storm making getting outside difficult. However, this week the temperatures rose into…
W7MTB: Amateur Radio Notes 