Hi Paul, what a great reports! As a newcomer to SOTA they are very inspiring and hope to catch you on air soon.
73, Lea M0XPO
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Thank you Paul & Gerald for the dual outing absolutely great to work you again Paul. Thanks for the great wright up and pics and trust you both really enjoyed your day out like old times.
Look forward to the next, take care and stay safe both of you. 73 Don.
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Guru, Geoff, Kevin, Lea and Don,
Many thanks for your lovely comments they are much appreciated 
Hope to work you all in the not too distant future!
Report on Rhinog Fach, GW/NW-078 to followā¦
73 Paul
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With the successful activation of Great Rhos behind me, I was keen to get on and activate Rhinog Fach GW/NW-078. With further medical appointments potentially crowding the calendar, I suggested to Gerald G4OIG that we might find a day during week commencing Sunday 21st November. Looking at a range of weather forecasts, it seemed that Tuesday 23rd would be the best day of the week. Certain media channels were forecasting a new ice age for later in the week.
We had again developed an MO to minimise the weight I would carry, I would use Geraldās HF antenna setup to run 60m while he did 2m ssb, then he would take over on HF while I did 2m FM. This avoided the need for me to carry antenna, pole and ATU and I also ditched the FT60 that Iād carried on 500+ activations and used on about 3. In addition I went through the rucksack discarding numerous bits and pieces that had accumulated over the years and which I thought would be surplus to requirements; an action which would come back to bite me later in the day.
Making reference to Geraldās previous activation of the summit back in 2019, when the summit was considered to have a prominence of less than 150 metres and was therefore part of the HEMA scheme, an itinerary was drawn up for the outing. Following further consideration of the route and in deference to my health situation, the timings were extended somewhat and agreed. This would involve Gerald in an early start and a late return, but he indicated that this was fine by him. After all, we had often had even earlier starts to our outings over the years!
It was 05:15 when Gerald arrived at my house and a very quick turn-around enabled us to get on our way just 8 minutes later. The journey took all of the 2 hours and 40 minutes that the satnav had indicated on account of slow traffic on some sections. On arriving at the parking spot near Graigddu-isaf, we wondered whether we were at the right place or whether we should be further on. The landscape had changed considerably since our activation of Rhinog Fawr GW/NW-023 in December 2009. Back then there had been quite a bit of felling of the forest, new trees now 3m tall having been planted in their place. Fortunately an information board announcing that āwe were here" gave us confidence that we were indeed in the correct parking spot.
Rhinogs Fach (left) and Fawr (right) from the trailhead
It was just 4 degrees at the parking spot, but with virtually no breeze it did not feel cold. We set off along the forestry track at 08:30, soon passing the farm where the farmer was in a field nearby with his dog, the only person that we were to see all day. The initial part of the ascent was easyā¦ perhaps too easy as we made a rare navigational error, missing a turn-off on the forest tracks and had to backtrack a short distance, but we were soon making reasonable progress out to the bend in the track where the path to Bwlch Drws-Ardudwy is signposted. After fighting our way past the buddleia that was invading the generally well-made path and passing through a gate in the wall that marked the edge of the forest we entered a very wet section that had been upgraded with large stone slabs, beyond which the path deteriorated to a mix of boggy and stony stretches.
We knew that the path up the hillside started at the cairn marked on the OS map and this eventually came into sight. At the wall just before the cairn a path makes its way down to the valley bottom and over another wall thence on to the steep pull up the hillside. I took the opportunity to stash a bottle of water close to the point where the path started and then we crossed the wall to begin the steep ascent. The path, if you can describe it as such, wandered hither and thither across the hillside and was strewn with stones and boulders of all sizes, boggy in places and drier in others, the only consistent factor being the unrelenting steepness.
Start of path from Bwlch Drws Ardudwy. Can you spot it?
In quite a number of places a large step up was required. I soon found this somewhat challenging as I have had issues with nerve pain and weakness in my right leg which limited my movement and the result was that it took a considerable amount of time to negotiate this section of the walk, Gerald patiently waiting behind at each stage. We both found our walking poles a great help.
Upward and Onwardā¦ Nearing the top of the first steep section
After this first steep section, the ground flattened out and the going was easier for a while, but higher up there was another steep section, though thankfully this was somewhat drier than the lower section. Progress remained slow and we were both aware of the fact that we were getting behind schedule. I suggested that Gerald go ahead and start his activation, but being the good friend he is, he refused to leave me. The top section of the walk is over a series of undulations, and it wasnāt until these final few hundred metres that he agreed to go and set up the HF dipole ready for me when I reached the summit. He reached the summit cairn at 12:00, precisely the time that we should have started our activation.
Ups and downs on the way to the summit
I arrived at the summit at 12:16 to find the dipole ready and waiting for me and, to boot, a flat stone arranged for me to sit on. Gerald had started to set up for 2m SSB a few metres away. He would use the HF dipole later when I had finished my session on 60m.
On checking the GPS the distance walked was 6km, over 1km further than predicted when I put the route on the usually quite accurate OSMaps routing application ā testament no doubt to the wandering nature of the path at a level not reflected on the map.
There at last - Summit cairn
I quickly settled down, set up my station and took a listen on 5.3985MHz, the frequency Iād alerted for. It was in use, so I moved up to 5.4035 and my query as to whether the frequency was in use got an immediate response from super-chaser Don, G0RQL who was waiting for me there, having recalled my usual MO. After a pleasant chat, he kindly spotted me and a run of stations commenced, Rod M0JLA providing the fourth contact to qualify the summit for me. Throughout the run QRM from RTTY a bit above my frequency had been troublesome, so when things went quiet after I worked Ian, G4WTF I took the opportunity to QSY to the now-clear 5.3985. for some reason I couldnāt access SOTAwatch from my phone to place a spot, and I couldnāt remember the format of message to use Andy āFMFās excellent SMS spotting facility but despite the lack of a spot I managed to work a further six stations, finishing with David, M0NMI in Swindon and going QRT at 13:18.
Me in the 60m shack
To avoid having to carry two large poles, Gerald had utilised his walking poles to support his 5 element beam. Thankfully the lack of wind at the summit allowed him the strap the pole handles together with a couple of tie wraps and a small extension created a guying point. He later declared that he still had some work to do on this system to make it stable enough for when there was a breezeā¦ Mike G4BLH/P was waiting to pounce and made it first into Geraldās log at 12:37 on the usual frequency of 144.333MHz, no CQ being required! Signals were excellent and Gerald went on to work 9 on 2m SSB, good friend Don G0RQL appropriately qualifying the summit for him.
Geraldās shack, complete with āCunning Contraptionā Antenna support!
It was 13:20 when Gerald finished on 2m and after agreeing that it was changeover time, I recovered all the bits of kit I had taken out of my backpack and moved up to the summit while Gerald lowered his 2m antenna, packed it away and connected his feeder to the HF dipole.
I set up my RSS antenna by simply wedging it between rocks on the summit cairn, being thankful for the unusual lack of breeze which made this possible and assisted in maintaining my comfort despite the exposed operating position. After setting up the rest of my station and having a lunch of a few cereal bars and a glug of icy water, I was ready to call on 145.500. I was spotted by Simon, G4TJC at 13:47 though I didnāt work him ā thanks Simon! First call was from regular chaser John GW4ZPL, followed by a QSY to 145.525, which frequency I didnāt need to leave for the rest of my activation. Calls came in steadily until 14:02, when I was amazed to hear Ian, GI0AZB/P calling me for an S2S from GI/MM-005. Sadly I wasnāt able to work Ianās other half Esther, GI0AZA who was mobile below the summit.
No sooner had I signed with Ian than Nick, G4OOE/P called for another S2S from The Calf, G/NP-013 and I also worked Dave, G3TQQ/P who was on the same summit. A further three calls completed the log, including old friend Derek, 2E0MIX and when the frequency went quiet, I went QRT at 14:30
Meanwhile, after changing the links on the dipole to 30m, Gerald started on 10.124MHz CW, the RBN quickly doing its job of spotting him. Pasi OH1MM was first into the log and then everybody else arrived! Thankfully, the session was very pleasurable with callers sending their callsign only once and a number calling slightly off frequency which certainly made it easier to read calls. In all 20 were worked on the band around OH, DL, SP, F, S5, SM, OE, EA7, LZ and even GM. The 30m session ended at 14:00, whereupon Gerald decided that it was lunchtime and started to consume his smoked salmon starter, ham and tomato main course and orange chocolate biscuit sweet course, all prepared by his XYL. Who says this SOTA activating business is tough?
I was still working a steady run on 2m FM when Gerald finished his lunch, so he changed the dipole links again and called on 40m CW. It took a while to get a reply as he was now outside the RBN parameter set on the alert (S+2). Thankfully Mirko S52CU found him and after the QSO placed a spot on SOTAwatch. Once this had appeared there were a number of callers from around DL, EA2, PA, I, G, F, OK and OH to add another 10 contacts to the log, Marcel DM3FAM calling in to make contact on both 30m and 40m. A quick check on the spots showed that Louis HA5AZC/P was QRV on 30m, so he got up and made a quick change of links once again and the S2S was soon in the bag, after which he went QRT at 14:37.
In the excitement of the activation, time had run away with us and it was 15:00 when we started our descent, an hour and ten minutes later than planned. The upper section of the mountain is criss-crossed by many paths, and identifying the correct way down is difficult. I suggest anyone doing this hill take very careful note of the reverse route on the way up, and preferably use a tracking GPS to retrace their steps. Despite this, and Gerald having built a distinctive mini-cairn at the top of the steep descent, I managed to overshoot and cost us minutes that would be precious later in the day.
Summit of Rhinog Fawr, GW/NW-023 from top of second steep section
As much if not more care was required to descend the steep sections as had been on our ascent. Once again the walking poles came in very handy, particularly on the steep step ups, which were of course now step downs and potentially more hazardous. A few times I had difficulty negotiating these obstacles. With darkness upon us, it was with a measure of relief that we reached the wall and the gently sloping track back towards the car. I thankfully recovered the bottle of water stashed on the ascent and took a good swig before we set off.
Unfortunately we were now even further behind schedule and our head torches had been removed from our packs in deference to weight considerations. We had certainly not expected to be this late. By now my legs were protesting severely and it required a Herculean effort to put one foot in front of the other, let alone lift them over the stones in the path. We navigated by instinct and what little our eyes could make out, the cloud cover obscuring any assistance that the moon may have provided. Several times I wandered off the track into the heather and grass with somewhat unpleasant results.
Part way along Gerald took over the lead and managed to walk straight into one of the boggy sections - thankfully not above gaiter level, but almost! He said it stank awfulā¦ Where awkward sections were encountered, Gerald pointed them out to me, and we were relieved when we eventually reached the slabbed section of the path. As the route of the path is very straightforward I had not had recourse to check our position on my GPS and neither had Gerald checked his. Doing this belatedly reminded me (dāoh) that my phone had an LED torch on it and we used this to help us along the forest track back to the car which was reached at 18:30.
The journey home was straightforward, Gerald driving whilst I intermittently napped. I consumed an inordinate number of cereal bars en route and felt reasonably okay when we arrived at 21:26. Due to the late hour Gerald did not stay as is customary for a drink, but set off after phoning his XYL to update her on the situation. Closure of the M6/M1 motorway junction created a further delay for him and it was 23:18 when he eventually reached home. He assures me that this is not the latest return from a SOTA outingā¦
Obviously things went wrong on this expedition, largely due to my obsession with activating the new Marilyn which skewed my judgement and took Gerald and myself into a potentially dangerous situation. Fortunately on this occasion we prevailed, thanks to Geraldās selfless assistance for which he has my undying thanks. Heāll be glad to hear the lesson is well learned and I hope weāll get the opportunity to activate safely another 500 summits together.
Iām not sure what comes next, itāll depend on the results of further tests, scans and consultations over the next few weeks but be assured Iāll be back out on whatever hills I can safely tackle just as soon as possible!
Last but not leastā¦ Many thanks to Gerald for the photographs
73 Paul G4MD/G6GGP
PS Viki, if youāre still with me hope the info on the route is adequate if not please message Gerald or myself
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Itās always a great pleasure to get out on a joint activation with you Paul, indeed ever since our first outing in August 2007 when we hit it off on day one. Iām pleased that despite the difficulties, we got this one on our score sheet and I look forward to activating many more with you in the future. 
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Thank you for the report and photos Paul.
It was good to get you both in my chaser log from Rhinog Fach. Rhinog Fach shows up in my log on 5 occasions now so itās about time I activated it so thanks for the route pointers 
Looking forward to the next contact with you both and maybe another face to face at Norbreck in 2022
Stay safe
73 Allan GW4VPX
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Youāre welcome Allan, it was great to work you
Definitely a āhard workā mountain take care up there Iāll look out for you for the complete!
Yes Norbreck 2022 in the diary really hope to see you there!
73 Paul G4MD
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Been there, done that.
I often do that and then realize one day I would like to have the head torch in my pack to avoid being pressed by the sunset time approaching. Then, once at home I put it back in the pack, but after not needing it for several activations, I take it out again and thus the loop starts or ends or keeps going, whatever 
My head torch, with 2 AAA batteries in is a bit bulky and relatively heavy.
I think I should try to find another smaller, lighter one powered with a button or coin type battery like CR-2035 and the like.
73,
Guru
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Decathlon own-brand LED headtorch. Cost me Ā£9.99 but now Ā£12.99. Body is 84x40x32mm and weighs 80g. Red, eco-white (16hours) and bright-white(3-4hours). Charges from a standard USB-microB phone charger.
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I think Iāll try to get one of those. It looks much smaller and lighter than mine.
Thanks for the advise!
73,
Take yours to local Decathlon shop and compare brightness in case it is a lot dimmer than your current torch.
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Decathlon do quite a range of headtorches so you should be able to find one with a good brightness/weight ratio.
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Yes I am still with you Paul, but glad I wasnāt involved in your actual expedition - especially the return in the dark. I think there are a few lessons to be learnt from reading your account but we have all been there and done that - but not necessarily in one SOTA activation! We got caught out some years ago on Rhialgwm when we had been delayed as I had to go back to the summit to pick up my radio that I had, absent-mindely, forgotten to pick up from under a heather bush!! This meant we were a little later than intended and the path was shaded by trees (it is now more like a jungleā¦) so we scrabbled for our head torches which stay in our sacks all year round. I keep mine in a very small plastic box to ensure that it doesnāt get turned on and thus have a flat battery and I wonāt go into more detail but we descended the track by the light of MY torch!
Getting carried away by good radio contacts and pile-ups has also occurred but Iāve never had the demand that you two experienced (the perils of operating a NEW summit presumably) but there does come a time when it is sensible to pull the plug and start taking down. Rodneyās tip is to lower the power so fewer people will hear you and you get away quicker - but I always forget!!
I am very glad that you descended safely - always more difficult than going up - with the exception of our recent visit to Y Lliwedd, for some inexplicable reason. I can quite see with that summit that I really wonāt have any choice but I think I will wait until the days are a lot longer, the weather is better as I would like a clear day - and until GW4VPX and hordes of others have been safely up and down and thus improved the path (as long as they manage to keep out of the swamps!) Being a SOTA addict I know that I have got to have a go - especially as I have already chased it and thus it would be a complete!!
Thanks again for the honest account of your activation, I do hope that your medical hurdles are soon overcome and then you will be fit and well enough to have further adventures - but with a headtorch in your pocket this time!!
73 Viki
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Hi Viki,
Many thanks for sticking with me to the bitter end. And for sharing your own experiences.
I still canāt quite believe how sideways I allowed the expedition to go, and wanted to give a warts and all account to highlight the perils of prioritising making an activation over all else. I am very lucky that Gerald has found it in his heart to forgive me and even indicate he might consider another joint activation one day!
Good luck with your own attempt on Rhinog Fawr and many thanks for your kind thoughts
With kindest regards to yourself and Rod,
73 Paul G4MD/G6GGP
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Thanks for the report Paul.
Both you and Gerald were strong on 2m at my remote RX in the valley at Rhyd Ddu. But I was at a āno TXā location at the works QTH in Cheshire and not likely enough to be able to work you to warrant the hike off site.
On my activation of GW/NW-078 I was just suffering the start of a cold, which was bad enough. So all credit to you for coping with your circumstances. The Rhinogydd are tough.
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It takes two to Tango and thereās absolutely nothing to forgive, Paul. I donāt really know why I got into the ālightening my packā mode myself. I suppose it was in considering carrying two poles on my pack, something Iāve never done before and although I knew I was capable in terms of pack weight, the potential leverage that two poles might have when bending over did concern me somewhat. Iāve never been pulled off a hill by my pack and I didnāt want to risk that happening with the steepness of the ascent. As you know, Iāve been developing a lightweight walking pole mast and 2m yagi set up for summits requiring a scramble, so trying out the walking pole element was certainly worth a punt.
With the itinerary getting us back to the car at dusk, I should have thought more about it and ensured that my headtorch was in my pack. I like Vikiās āin the boxā approach. I usually have a bit of clingfilm preventing mine being switched on, but one day Murphy will no doubt wear through that and put it on, flattening the batteries ready for just when I need it. 
At least we did have a plan Bā¦ make a stop for the night in my 2 man bothy, modified / extended as necessary with our tarps. Thatās one piece of kit that I will never leave out of my pack! With water close by, your stash of cereal bars and a pitch on a grassy patch, Iām sure that weād have been fine. Weād have got that rough camping experience that weāve so often talked about over the years. 
Looking forward to the next oneā¦ as always!
73, Gerald
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Hi Simon,
Many thanks for reading! And for the explanation of your situation. And again for the spot 
Somewhat of an understatement according to my body 
73 Paul G4MD
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