If interested in snaps of a couple of first time activations in the ever beautiful California Sierra Nevada mountains with the ever diminutive KX2 then click away at
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Well written Paul, and some jolly good photos to match.
Dave
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Well done, Paul!
Your reports are truly outstanding.
Ken, K6HPX
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Great writeup Paul, quite a challenging activation. Thanks for sharing.
73 Roger
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Paul,
What an extraordinary report with wonderful photos of a breathtakingly beautiful mountain world!
What an impressive philosophy and motivation, in complete contrast to others who collect points as quickly and easily as possible just to win laurels, which should then be reported on in as much detail as possible on the SOTA Reflector (…).
Congratulations and keep it up, Paul.
73 gl, Heinz
Thanks Kenny and thank you more for being a very consistent chaser when I’m on a peak!
Paul
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Thanks Heinz for the kind words.
Like many, I enjoy being an activator and the harder, less pedestrian ones can be rewarding.
Oddly enough doing my blog (sometimes sporadically) is a new found joy and glad others enjoy it too. Part of it is a letter to myself as an older man to aid in looking back at what I did when much has evaporated.
BTW…Switzerland is as spectacular as the Sierras!!
Paul
Yes Paul, that may be true, but here everything only appears in size XL and not XXL …
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Nice writeup! I’ve thought about adding more pictures to my reports (few as they are), but they would all look the same, as almost every “peak” I’ve visited here in MO is covered with trees.
73, Jim KK0U
To paraphrase: yes I found blood on my laurel mountain - SP/BZ-010 on December 14, 2019
Photos below:
Fortunately, nothing serious was happened, but please remember: in winter always check the ground with your sticks before your step 
73, Jarek
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An excellent account, thanks for taking the time to share it, Paul. The trip itself is so wonderful, adding a SOTA activation is like bonus points. Most activations occur over the course of a day; your multi-day trip is inspiring.
As KK0U said, those of us in flatland country often deal with tree-covered summits that afford little in the way of dramatic views – but still much in the experience of wilderness. It’s all good stuff.
As Edward Abbey said in his book “Desert Solitaire”: "You can’t see anything from a car; you’ve got to get out of the ***damn contraption and walk, better yet crawl, on hands and knees, over the sandstone and through the thornbrush and cactus. When traces of blood begin to mark your trail, you’ll see something, maybe.”
73 Paula k9ir
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