For days, I had been feeling the need to take a long walk in the woods.
This week was sunny and temperatures were very high, as a heatwave hung over Europe. I planned a double activation that I had never done before: Monte Due Mani (I/LO-192) and Monte Resegone (I/LO-177). Along the SP63 road, the trails leading to the respective summits begin just a few kilometers apart.
The parking area for Monte Due Mani is very small; if it is full, it is impossible to park along the roadside unless you go several kilometers farther away. Fortunately, the parking lot was completely empty.
I started walking along Trail No. 33. The first part of the trail runs through the woods; the second, steeper section climbs quickly across steep meadows before reaching the summit, where there is a recently renovated igloo-shaped bivouac shelter.
Once at the summit, the clima was excellent: breezy with cool air. I set up 20 meters of wire with a 64:1 transformer and operated on 40 and 20 meters in CW and SSB. I worked for about 30 minute.
Then I descended at a brisk pace, got back into the car, drove to the second parking area near Forcella di Olino, and started hiking along trail 917, the DOL route. The trail crosses a beautiful beech forest, very relaxing. After reaching the Forbesette spring, I left the main trail and chose a more direct path, trail 916-1 through Val Caldera.
In less than an hour I was on the summit of Resegone.
This mountain is much more popular than Monte Due Mani, so I moved a few meters away from the summit because there were quite a few people around. Here I set up a slightly shorter wire and I called on 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, and 10 meters CW. I also made a few attempts in SSB, with poor results.
Condensation clouds began forming along the ridges, and the S-meter started to rise. I believe the increasing background noise was generated by electrostatic charges building up in the clouds a few kilometers away.
Thanks at all chasers!
73