Well, firstly, I would like to offer an apology. The SOTA blog for Aberdare and District Amateur Radio Society has been left idle for quite some time. However, with a little encouragement from other members, the blog will now be updated every time any of the team venture out.
There have been many activation's since the last entry on here, and it may be possible to add these in the future, but for now, the blog will be updated with any current activation's from this date.
Also please note. We have a new club website where you can find the latest news and events happening at the AADARS Club.
Wednesday 18th September 2019
The AADARS SOTA guys have been at it again. Maldwyn GW6OVD and myself (Ian 2W0IWM) left home quite early on Wednesday the 18th to give our legs a little stretch.
We didn’t really have any specific summits in mind, so after checking the SOTA alerts to see who was out and about, we settled on GW/MW-025 The Begwns and GW/SW-041, Black Mountain, with 025 being a unique for me. These didn’t clash with any other operators and gave us the chance of some summit to summit contacts.
GW/MW-025 The Begwns. 415m IO82jc. 1pt.
Well, it’s fair to say there are some easy summits out there, and the Begwns is one. The summit is located about half a mile from the parking spot, and the ascent is quite gentle and pleasant. This is a good point for the inclusivity of the SOTA scheme.
The trig point is located to the side of a large circular stone walled enclosure, which has a semi circular stone bench within! No sit mat required on this one.
We arrived at the summit and set up our gear so we could sit on the bench while operating. A few calls started things rolling, and we both qualified in short order. Quick apology, I was distracted, and didn’t take any operating photos on this one. Only a couple on the way up. We chatted to a few walkers and explained what we were doing, then it was back to the car for a drive to Black mountain.
GW/SW-041 Black Mountain 703m IO82ka 6pts
I haven’t activated Black mountain for a while, and I’d forgotten its charm. Mal soon reminded me with a full frontal assault from the car part, meeting the diagonal path around 3/4 of the way up. My thigh muscles love you Mal!
Shortly before reaching the top, we switched back along another diagonal track, bringing us out closer to the path we needed for the actual summit.
Once on top, we set a decent pace, and were soon on the summit. We set up on VHF once more and calls came in quickly on both 2m and 70cm. It was a glorious day, and we didn’t rush, taking a good page or more of contacts.
Of note was our company throughout the activation... I thought at first we were being chased by horse flies, but it turns out they were little bees drunk on heather nectar. We both had them all over us, but there was no harm caused. After a closing flurry of 2m calls that Mal let me take solo... it was a quick pack away, check of gear and descent to the car park. See the bees on Mal below!
We did intend to try for a third summit on the way home, but operator wear and tear during the black mountain decent made us think better of it.
All in all, a fabulous day with beautiful weather. Many thanks to the chasers and fellow activators for the contacts.
73, Mal GW6OVD and Ian 2W0IWM
