Hi again Tom,
I have noticed your alert for Saturday morning, you may find 40m full of high powered contest stations for the CQWW WPX CW contest taking place this weekend.
Currently CW contest stations are running up to 7090KHz with several being full scale here!
7032KHz may well be un-usable for SOTA this weekend 
Good luck!
73,
Mark G0VOF
In reply to G0VOF:
Yes Mark, I realised that just after powering the computer down last night! There may be a bit of space on 15m to use, otherwise I will be searching and pouncing on that band. 15m was open yesterday morning.
If I find a QRG to settle on and run, I will send a self-spot.
73, Tom M1EYP
Saturday 28th May 2011 - The Cloud G/SP-015
15m was not in anything like the sort of shape as the previous day, so the activation was almost exclusively on 40m. There was no option other than to S+P on the contest stations. The logs began unimpressively at 0602z with a QSO to the Stockport Contest Group G5O in a caravan in Rainow, just about 7 miles away. The QSO rate was very slow in the band crowded with high power (and fairly deaf) contest stations, and EA8 was probably the best of nine contacts.
A tenth and final contact came on 15m CW as some life finally appeared on that band. After working YU5A at 0725z, I packed up and went home, for it had started raining. Last minute CQ calls on 2m and 70cm FM were unanswered.
Back at home, I had a good day working new DXCC-band slots (for the 2011 G3WGV UK CW Table) in the WPX contest, but reasoned that this was best left at home, and that I should adjourn to a WARC band for the Sunday morning activation.
Tom M1EYP
Sunday 29th May 2011, and I was up promptly at 0530z again. After a breakfast of cereal and yoghurt, I was on the road. The skies were dark and menacing grey, so I anticipated rain.
I swapped the 40m dipole for the 30m dipole in my pack, and walked up the hill (again!) to Cloud summit. The choice of 10MHz proved to be a good one, and I was quickly into a good run, consisting largely of regular chasers. And this without a self-spot as well, for I had left my mobile in the car. Thanks to HA5CW and HA7UG for those all-important spots.
The 30m dipole works acceptably if not spectacularly on 10m as well, so occasionally when things went quiet, I QSYd to 28MHz and worked a few contest stations. A very heavy band of rain could be seen approaching quickly in my direction, so I unleashed the bothy bag and got inside. In the event, no rain actually came down on the summit, but it was nice to warm up a bit anyway.
A total of 41 QSOs were made - 36 on 30m CW and 5 on 10m CW. As usual, I called on the 2m and 70cm calling channels before leaving the summit, but as usual there wasnāt a response!
Thanks to all the chasers that called in today.
Tom M1EYP
Up at 0430z again on Monday 30th May 2011, and looking forward to another early morning Cloud activation. I removed the 30m dipole from the rucksack, and replaced it with the quarter-wave verticals with groundplane for 17m and 12m. How was I to know that those bands, which have been wide open, day and night for three days, would have shut right down?
Soon after commencing the drive from Macclesfield, some drizzly rain started, and it looked set to continue as I parked on Cloudside some 20 minutes later. So it was on with the jacket an waterproof overtrousers before starting the familiar climb.
The rain had almost stopped when I reached the summit, so I didnāt get a soaking while erecting the 17m antenna. I called CQ incessantly on 18.077MHz CW, but it was 20 minutes before I got any response. Then things really picked up with a staggering six QSOs in just 45 minutes!
The rain had restarted, and become much heavier, so I was now huddled inside my bothy bag. All ideas of changing antennas and going on to 12m were dismissed. I packed away the 817 and accessories, but could still hear the rain pounding down on the bothy bag. I was warm and dry inside it, and was reluctant to emerge, but it was clear that the rain was not about to stop.
During the packaway and descent I got a bit of a soaking, or rather my waterproofs did; I was pretty much unscathed inside them. The drive home was irritating with BBC Radio 5 Live 909kHz AM flicking between the news of corruption within FIFA and a phone-in about what advice should/shouldnāt be available regarding caring for a baby. How I never managed to revert to Canalside Community Radio 102.8MHz FM I do not know.
Thanks to all callers.
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
How was I to know that those bands, which have been wide open, day and night
for three days, would have shut right down?
Easy, check the solar weather websites before setting off?
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to MM0FMF:
What I meant was, how was I to know that when I hadnāt checked the solar weather websites?
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
You donāt need to go any further than Spaceweather.com: there was a C7 X-ray flare at 0605 UT. The sunspot complex of 1226/1227 seems pretty active and worth keeping an eye on. And to cap it all, we have had the planetary k-index up to 5 in the last 24 hours with a good chance of further buffeting from the solar wind stream from a coronal holeā¦so its worth looking out for Scottish-type auroral openings on VHF!
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to M1EYP:
Easy Tom - after a 48hour CW Contest the ionosphere is bound to want a rest 
Roger G4OWG
In reply to M1EYP:
Hi Tom,
Sorry I missed you on Sunday morning, I was up until 4AM & was sure I had set an alarm to wake me before your alerted time but I hadnāt.
I am sure we could have worked on both 17m & 12m as I would also be using a vertical antenna.
73,
Mark G0VOF
NP Mark.
Sunday was 30m & 10m, it was this morning that was supposed to be 17m & 12m, but as the rain got heavier and heavier, I quit rather than put the 12m antenna up.
Back to Ye Olde Faithfulle tomorrow - 7.032MHz CW - which might work for you from the Brecon Beacons.
Better go to bed before it is time to get upā¦
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
Ah yes, the bank holiday confused me 
Back to work for me in the morning so will miss you unfortunately.
Mark G0VOF
Back to the normal MO tomorrow morning. Voting is now open.
CAST YOUR VOTES
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
80m CW/SSB or 40m CW/SSB Iāll be happy with either, or maybe something completely different if it gets more votes
I donāt think 40m will work as well as last time though Hi!
73,
Mark G0VOF
24MHz PSK31
In reply to G3CWI:
Gerald already did that (kind of) witty hilarious joke further up the thread.
Looks like 80 might be getting wheeled out again thenā¦
ā¦but voting continuesā¦
Tom
In reply to M1EYP:
80 metresā¦SSTV!
Oh Gawd, does this mean Iāve got to listen to the dawn chorus again?
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to G8ADD:
Well, I heard the birds, but not a peep out of you, Tom. The band was full of continental stations. I followed you down to the CW area but any chance of reading you was wrecked by a USB contact taking place on the frequency. Sorry!
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to G8ADD:
Hi Brian,
sorry to hear you missed Tom this morning, the USB qso on 3.555 sounded French to me & did not appear to be amateur. There seem to be more of these happenning on 80m lately.
I would think that 80m would be the best band for inter-UK at that time, but 40m would give Tom more contacts.
73,
Mark G0VOF
It was a pleasant, mild and still morning on Cloud summit on Thursday 2nd June 2011. The 80m dipole went up, but I only worked Mark G0VOF (on CW and SSB), and Jonathan M6HBS (SSB). On 2m FM from the handheld, it was that man G0VOF again, then Steve GW7AAV.
Further calls on 80m CW (the USB QRM had gone by then) and SSB brought zilch, and I packed up and descended. Although I made five QSOs, three of them were with G0VOF, so it was a good job I qualified the summit for the point back in January!
I think weāll leave 80m alone for the time being!
Tom M1EYP