Looking to activate Wendover Woods this weekend all being well.
Some reports seem to suggest being near the trig and others near a fence.
From those who have been before (recently?) where is the preferred location.?
I will be using HF linked dipole and a roll up 2m antenna to a guyed mast.
Looking at activation.zone, the AZ is quite big!
Cheers
John
John,
I have activated Wendover Woods twice but not recently (2021 & 2022).
The first time was next to the Trig Point, late in the day, with plenty of room in open space.
The second time, I had to change my plans as the farmer was working in the field so had to set up along one of the many paths.
However, I struggled to find a space that allowed sufficient space for my pole & antenna without it being snagged in the branches. I did manage to find a suitable location in the end.
I did not park in the main car park, but on the side of one of the approach roads.
There may well be better operating locations than the one I used the 2nd time.
Good luck.
Robert
M0RWX
Thanks Robert. I guess I will find out when I get there. Cheers
John
M0VAZ
It was probably me saying “near the fence”.
I’d suggest parking on the side of the road to the North of the activation zone, there is a wide verge on the right as you head North west downhill.
The best activation place is undoubtedly in the large field where the trig point is. However, there are reports that the farmer doesn’t like people in there except to walk along the footpath, so I now tend to set up along the western edge of the field near the fence where I’m not so visible. I’ve never met the Farmer and have never been asked to leave.
Thanks. Given the size of the AZ, I should be able to find a suitable location
This question has come up before. For 19 years I lived 5-10 minutes drive from G/CE-005 and have activated there on HF, 2m and 23cm many times.
I always operated in the field with the trig point which is a ~15 min walk from the massive C.P. at the visitor centre. One can hang the far end of an inverted-L to some of the lower branches of the mature trees on the west side of the field. There’s loads of space (not overlapping the public footpath) for a 160m dipole should you be inclined.
When I posted the reply below, somebody came back and said a farmer has objected to them. I never had that problem.
If you’re using HF you should be able to find a good spot in the wood.
I had read reports about the farmer objecting to people setting up at the trig so went to the “farm” to ask, however the farm was actually a camp site. They said the farmer does get angry about people setting things up in his field without asking permission, but they said I could set up in one of their empty camping fields which was still in the AZ.
I would avoid parking on Hale Lane (to the south) - my car was broken into when I parked here. There was no phone signal and the local police were really unhelpful.
Hi John
I qualified this summit on 28/01/2017 when I was playing “taxi of dad” to my younger daughter (now M7SQT) who had a day event with several friends in Maidenhead, when we were living in Wolverhampton. Taxi of dad duties are not generally what one wants early on a January Saturday morning (when one could stay in one’s warm bed!) but this was an opportunity to qualify G/CE-005 and put me on a good footing to complete G/CE (which I did with CE-001 a few years later). G/CE-002 Walton Hill was my closest summit when I lived in Wolves.
I drove down the M5 and M40 and quickly deposited the kids in Maidenhead and then made for Wendover. I went through High Wycombe and then north up the B4009 at Wendover. After around 2km, I turned right onto the road towards Aston Hill and parked at the side of the road - just before the cycle hire place. Roadside parking is free but the cycle centre charge (as of Jan 2017).
I then walked south along the road and took the next footpath on the right, leading to the summit of Aston Hill. As I remember, the trig-point was on the opposite side of a long fence. The fence made an ideal support for an HF, inverted V, dipole setup. I made 17 QSO’s on 5MHz, including S2S with GI/SM-006. I concluded with S2S on 14MHz with OK/ZL-016.
This was probably my most successful activation in terms of QSO numbers. At the time, my main mode was 2m FM handy with dipole from the high Welsh mountains. I figured this would be much more difficult on a summit such as Wendover Woods so went with the intention of operating HF and I wasn’t disappointed.
I used a Yaesu 857 with a Sotabeams 20-40-60m linked dipole with power between 10-20W.
My operating position was near the trig point and my central mast was strapped to the fence and the two halves of the dipole were anchored to the fence. I met a few people, mainly dog walkers, and either they passed by or we exchanged a few pleasantries. Certainly no rangers, who are employed to help people enjoy the countryside, telling me that I’m not allowed to enjoy the countryside! Everyone I met was lovely and, obviously, they are lovely people who live and work in the Chiltern Hills.
73s
Alastair Hopkins, M0TYM
Also meant to say - the AZ is very large so you may find, through the experience of others, that there are much better operating positions.
73
M0TYM
I doubt it.
I just discussed it with my wife. We’ve walked with our dogs all round Wendover Woods a gazillion times over nearly two decades. Most of the fields in the AZ are closed to the public and you would have to climb over barbed wire fences to get to them and shoo the alpacas from chewing your guy ropes. Most of the rest of Wendover Woods AZ is, er, woods so not good for VHF or HF.
Also, it’s a very popular place to visit - more so since they built that large visitor centre and massive car park. I wouldn’t like all those kids and dogs running round my antenna.
Maybe this farmer thing has happened since I moved up north but were I to activate G/CE-005 again I would have no hesitation in activating from within the trig point field.
Thanks for all the tips people, I guess I will find out on Saturday when I do the activation. I think a wander around to find the best location will be in order.
For me it will be FT857/Vertical 2m antenna and HF linked dipole for 20/40m
cheers
john
I have activated Wendover Woods a number of times from the field where the trig point is located, but situated near the edge of the field so as to keep a low profile. I normally parked NW of the trig point by the side of the road on a hill leading up to Aston Hill Bike Park. I had heard in the past one or two reports that cars parked there got a parking ticket, but don’t know why that should be. Does anyone know if this is still an issue, and if so, what the reason was for issuing parking tickets?
Thanks and regards,
David
