From MM6BWA/P
I eventually qualified Craigendarroch GM/ES-078 on both 2m fm and 70cm with one contact to spare!! I was stuck on 3 until I took the dipole down, coiled up the guys and heard a noise on my handy with stick aerial. Stuck the coax back on the dipole, hauled it up and tucked under my arm and GM3XOQ (Peter, Kennay) and GM0NRT (Bill, Aberdeen) came booming in on both frequencies. Job done as they were added to MM0EFI, 2M1EUB (Paul, Aboyne) and MM0JLA (Rod, Ballater - inspecting fish and chip shops! Thanks Paul, he found it in the end!), Job done but it had taken the combined efforts of my 3 original contacts, Whatsapp and email to gather the troops. without their help I would be talking to myself for the whole time. The strange thing is that I was still a 70cm contact short when packing up on GM/ES-036 Geallaich Hill earlier in the day and the vital extra, GM0CQV (Brendon, Peterculter) only arrived when the dipole was on the ground. Is this a local custom??
Beautiful sunny day now (Wednesday) but no hills today and we are activating the washing machine instead, More tomorrow and Friday before travelling to Aberlour on Saturday for another week of little hills (hopefully) Thanks for your help everyone.
Viki
From MM6BWA/P
A rest day today (Pictish stones and a jolly hillfort) so we have plans for Thursday and Friday.
Tomorrow we hope to reach GM/ES-034 Mona Gowan at 1100 UTC
and on Friday GM/ES-047 Pressendye, Time at present undecided but it should be earlier as the hill is quite close to our QTH and it will probably be hot day -phew!
Please listen out for me on 2m fm and 70cm as I may well be struggling as my ‘organiser’ is now going up hills near Glen Feshie so won’t be rounding up the troops with quite his usual efficiency! M0JLA will be on HF on any band that is working as it sounds as if 40m is not great at present!!
73 Viki
I will try and listen out from GM/WS-006 but I think the Cairngorms are in the way ….
40m was excellent last night. 59 into south wales from GM on 5w
If you both had 817s and 3ele Yagis then it would probably work on 2m SSB.
From MM6BWA/P
Tx for the s2s to both of us (when on GM/ES-34) on 2m fm and the brief s2s on 70cm which was more of a challenge!! It sounded as if you were busy! Obviously the radio waves found a path somewhere!!
Tx also to MM0EF! Fraser on GM/ES-052 which was no problem - now we have to add that summit to our ‘to do’ list from Aberlour!
We aim to be on Pressendye GM/ES-047 tomorrow at 1000 UTC. Hope it won’t be too hot. There was an unexpected stiff breeze today so the giant Jubilee cairn was very very useful. Sorry the dipole was not as high as usual - cracked pipe joint (not yet repaired!!)
73 Viki
Thank you too! That was the highlight of my day: all three 2m summit two summits, you and Rod and Fraser @MM0EFI. Just 5w and a slim Jim for me.
I needed 2m. HF was in a shocking state, couldn’t qualify on 40m! I did get a funky sporadic E summit to summit in Switzerland on 10m when I spotted on 10m, expecting nothing.
I’m travelling to Rúm tomorrow for activations on Saturday. I’ll keep my eye out for another s2s. I put a call out this evening on 2m and got a bunch of stations…. Quite a few hams around the isles so I hope to qualify on 2m again.
From MM6BWA/P
Rather hot today and difficult to get 4 contacts from Pressendye GM/ES-047 but Fraser’s magic finally worked. Good to get a s2s with 2M0ROT on Ben Lomond on 2m fm but we couldn’t manage 70cm!
Hope to be on GM/ES-072 at 1130 UTC tomorrow. A lot of Scottish alerts so I shall just have to hope as Carn William is not very high. We then travel to Aberlour for another week’s fun - and weather!! M0JLA found HF a bit of a challenge again today.
73 Viki
From MM6BWA/P
Another hot day but we were fortunate that much of the initial ascent was amongst the trees on Cairn William GM/ES-072. We started up a rather soggy straight track , much used by bikes, which was quite pleasant but, after a brief walk along a forest road it was up and up and… on a mountain bike descent route which was hard work but got us above the tree line and into the heather, A more direct walker’s path branched off towards the summit and then petered out in the high heather which was a nuisance as I realised that heather doesn’t get smaller when you near the summit on a hill which is just less than 450m so I was floundering around for a bit . Meanwhile M0JLA with a GPS was somewhat lower on a never ending bike path which didn’t really gain any height to his annoyance. We eventually met, reached the trig point and set up our masts, He found nothing happening on HF so eventually joined me and took 3 2m contacts including a s2s with Ben Again GM/ES-069 (tx MM0SMD Jim.) I made repeated attempt to reach Arthur’s Seat which I could hear intermittently but I wasn’t quite strong enough. I was hoping for quite a few s2s but it seems we were just too late - or they weren’t listening as I was up there for over an hour. The descent took longer than expected as I foolishly chose the never ending ascent path which (unsurprisingly I suppose) didn’t want to descend either and no-one had decided to take any short cuts that we could see. When we reached the valley the path shown on the map didn’t appear and M0JLA decided to try and find it amongst the trees - and then had difficulty finding his way back to me when I decided to stay put. Needless to say, the track was found about 50 yds away round a couple of corners and we could proceed a little more quickly back to the soggy track (now greeted with more enthusiasm(!) and back to the car somewhat later than expected. On the way over to Aberlour the temperature reached 25C but was more like 22C on arrival with a stiff breeze (and sadly no aurora as we missed it last night and I desperately want to see it…)
Have alerted for 1015 UTC on Brown Muir CS-120 (hoping for a s2s with Morven??) which looks less challenging and then (if wx and legs permit) GM/ES-069 Ben Again as I would like the complete but it looks a stiff climb. Thunderstorm now forecast for Monday so may have to think hard before setting out. BTW we did notice that the B992 S of Insch was marked 'Road Ahead Closed) as we drove through Whitehouse and it seems it may stay like that for some time judging by what we saw when we used it a couple of days earlier.
73 Viki
From MM6BWA
Rather windy today so not as hot as expected. Probably activating GM/ES-052 Carn Daimh at 1100UTC tomorrow but needs confirmation - probably using the Glenlivet estate path No 5! Please listen out.
73 Viki
Hi, I will be on Ben More, Mull GM/SI-003 tomorrow. Maybe difficult this one, Ben Nevis area in the way, but I will try and listen out.
Tim
I heard you once from Arthur’s Seat. I’d actually thought we’d just gotten enough to make the contact but I’ll edit it out of the log.
Fine day for it though.
Awesome summit to summit @M0JLA and MM6BWA, Ben Mhor (GM/SI-003) to Carn Daimh (GM/ES-052)
Has to rank as one of my favourite. 200km and a bunch of the highlands in the way !!! Thanks for checking and the patience,
Tim GM5OLD/P
Diffraction somewhere in the near of Ben Nevis and friends probably.
From M6BWA
Awesome summit to summit @M0JLA and MM6BWA, Ben Mhor (GM/SI-003) to Carn Daimh (GM/ES-052)
Tx for hearing me Tim amongst all your other contacts. We were sitting on the top of Carn Diamh in dry but cool conditions thanks to the wind, eating our lunch and resting after managing 4 2m contacts and only 2 70cm in 30 mins. (VHF/UHF is often hard work in rural Scotland - and sometimes completely impossible!) The dipole was up and the radio on 145.500 when I heard a clear ‘CQ SOTA’ and all your details. Lunch was quickly forgotten as I tried to reply but was beaten by a stronger signal. I followed you down to 400 and tried and tried with no success. Rod suggested I waited a bit until the pile-up lessened and, a bit later, I heard you call again on 500 and then QSY. Down I went to have another try with ‘he’ll never hear you’ ringing in my ears! This was true about twice then I heard the blessed words’ Stand by everyone there is a summit calling me…’ so off I launched. It took some time and I congratulate you, Tim, in picking out my 5w over that distance and through that rock! I have managed over 300 km before but not usually with so much in the way. You found the s2s with M0JLA even more of a challenge (does the female voice travel further ir do I just make more noise!!!) We were both delighted that we had made the contact - a full 45 mins after our last local contact and 11 mins after I had started trying to chase you. We then decided it was time to pack up - especially as the dipole was lying on the ground after impact between a head and a guyline which was secured only with a loose stone . The poles were all trussed up when we had a text from NI to say you were calling on 473.475 (MY frequency!!) but it didn’t seem worth the effort of re-erecting after exchanging signal reports of 51 and 31/21 on 2m. Had the dipole still been in one piece I would have tried. Sorry we didn’t have the chance.
Congrats Tim on making the effort to get up there - we ducked it when on Mull (in poor weather) a few years ago - not fit enough by a long chalk. Don’t think we’ll get you tomorrow from GM/ES-084.
73 and tx Viki
From M6BWA
GM/ES-052 was a longish walk for us but a pleasant but busy summit as on the Speyside Trail as well as a Glenlivet Walk. For details see above. Tomorrow we hope to activate GM/ES-084 Bin of Cullen at 1030 UTC and then potter round Cullen and a bit of the coast. Delighted that we have made a few s2s at last and I managed 3 completes yesterday (with a bit of help from MM0JLA who went up a different hill when I was on Ben Again) and a super s2s today. Very behind with even my paper log let alone photos etc. thanks to the current weather (fingers crossed).
73 Viki
There was no mistaking the summit call when I heard it. Thanks for the patience. I was very well positioned for Glasgow, the isles and Northern Ireland so had quite a bit of a pile up - 21 in the log !
The signal was marginal compared to noise, and came up and down. Rod was down until I tried a few times and I got it.
70cm struggled compared to 2m so unlikely we would have made it.
2m SSB was quite interesting, I could hear @GW0PLP in south wales, but no QSO. Maybe aircraft scatter.
Unfortunately you won’t from the m74 
. Very sad to be leaving but will be back soon, my few days on Rúm were the best moutain days I’ve had - see you at the hog roast for another s2s ?
From M6BWA
Visited GM/ES-084 Bin of Cullen and qualified (just - tx to the grasscutter in Buckie who turns on his handy when he has lunch!) then a short coastal visit and excellent fish and chips in Cullen. Tomorrow we hope to activate GM/CS-115 Knock of Braemoray (between Nairn and Grantown) at 1015 UTC and listen out for Gavin on GM/SI-001 just in case!
73 Viki
From M6BWA
Even hotter today and some good visibility so actually saw the high mountains from lowly GM/CS-115 between Forres and Grantown on Spey. Got a s2s with Gavin on GM/SI-001 on 2m and might have made 70cm if he’d had a suitable antenna. Also s2s with GM5AiB on GM/ES-015 near Ballater and a good haul of locals to get 8 on 2m and 7 on 70cm. About the best yet.
Hoping for GM/ES-079 at 1015 UTC and 071 at 1330 but I might fall by the wayside if it is as hot as today. Forecast expects it be 8c cooler on Saturday when we move to W of Stirling for 3 nights.
What gorgeous pics from GM5OLD on Rum - the aurora was spectacular obviously. Very sad we missed it. 73 Viki
From the single sample point of VK5PAS and VK5MAZ - yes. Marija is always a readabilty point above Paul in marginal conditions on their joint activations.
From MM6BWA
We travelled back to Aberdeenshire, just east of Huntly and tucked the car against the graveyard wall of the (ruined) church below GM/ES-079 Hill of Tillymorgan As we returned to the car afterwards, we walked through the graveyard and found 2 stone masons erecting a gantry to lift a fallen tombstone - never seen this happening before but the second summit was calling so we couldn’t wait to watch the procedure. We were told that the local granite was particularly heavy but I think any large stone would be a challenge. In the warm (about 2C cooler than yesterday) we walked up beside the windfarm and then round a turbine and up beside the lowish fence looking for a good place to cross to walk through the old quarry to the trig point, I’ll just say that the crossing place on the way down (near the turbine) was better! Apart from ensuring you didn’t fall down any of the large holes the top was easy and a nice hollow beside the trig just waiting for the 2m/70cm activator who has to be at the very top of course. You HF people who can wander off and look for a suitable hole have got an easier life (except when lugging the kit to the top!) We soon qualified on both frequencies and walked back down.
M0JLA decided to stay by the car on GM/ES-071 Hill of Foudland so I walked up a ‘simple straight track with no gates’ (I’m no good at lifting gates to shut them and have given up climbing over them - I hope) and wondered at the accuracy of my briefing as I went through the second deer fence gate and pondered again which road to choose - luckily it is easy when going up as you choose the steepest but slightly more tricky when descending. Obviously most of the area has been recently forested (with a wide variety of trees - an interesting map on the first gate) and thus more roads and fences than expected. I raced up to the trig pushed by the wind and an attempt to reach the top while the Aberdeen net was still working to ensure I got some contacts. Unfortunately they did not hear me on the stick aerial as I walked up and the net ended 2 mins before I reached the trig and erected the dipole. Luckily this didn’t matter as I got 7 2m and 5 70cm contacts within 30 minutes (thanks to a spot and the odd email…) and I quickly packed up and admired the hundreds of newly planted trees (mostly silvery birch and a few rowan near the top) as I descended. We are having a radio rest day tomorrow and then travel to Stirling on Saturday possibly via a hill then 3 days there (more hills we hope) and then head south. We shall be sad to leave such a beautiful area - especially when it is looking so lovely.
73 Viki