I often use Geograph to look at unique summits in the UK before I visit them.
In preparation for my visit to GW/MW-007 Banc Llechwedd-mawr on Saturday I checked out the Geograph website for its grid square and came across this 5 year old photograph taken by Michael Graham (Under CCL and reproduced here):
Maybe this has been picked up before on the reflector and I missed it…
The photo was taken on 04 Sept 2014, however the only activations recorded that year were in March (GW0HIO/P) and May (GW4VPX/P) a long time before the photo was captured. One wonders if this was a failed 2014 activation and the amateur concerned walked off in disgust leaving his equipment behind him!
ISTR the MT got a sh!!ty email from someone who saw that and blamed us.
There looks nothing wrong with the pole and you’re looking at approx £10 for a pole like that so I doubt a radio ham would have left it like that they’re just too careful with money. Maybe they took their antenna down and forgot to pickup the pole, I’d believe that. But left like that, I doubt it.
As you say, nobody had logged anything to do with the summit and I can remember checking to see if there were chases but no activation logs. The conclusion was “unlikely to be a SOTA person.”
And if we found out who did leave rubbish that causes SOTA to be viewed in a bad light, then it’s likely we’d be looking at excluding them from the program.
The photo was taken on 4th September, there could well have been thunder storms in late August early September, which might account for a hasty retreat!
These poles are often advertised as “flag poles”, it could have been any individual or group out on a jolly unrelated to radio.
If it had been a SOTA activator with hair sticking straight up, I think we would have heard about it
Hmm, it would probably have had something attached to the top, either a flag or an aerial - but it doesn’t seem to have, in the photo.
So, maybe the original owner accidentally left it behind telescoped and on the ground. Someone else then discovered it at a later date, and thought it would be fun to put it upright. Maybe to help the owner find it again…
When Paul and I activated Binsey G/LD-041, a woman came up to me and said “you’re not going to leave that there, are you?” referring to my pole. I cant remember my precise reply, but it definitely made reference to the cost of equipment. I do temember the scowl I received.
Regarding the pole in question, is Michael Graham licensed (who took the photo)? Just a thought… it might have been his pole!
I wonder if the person who left it still has the top bung? I lost mine recently (pictures preferably with grid reference gratefully received).
Whilst trying to source a replacement on a famous river, I asked if anyone knew the external diameter of a potential rubber bung (actually a walking stick tip). Answers so far:
No but the internal diameter is 19mm
No I bought it a long time ago
???
Why bother answering?
It looks in decent condition. I’ll bet it’s not there now. In fact I’ll bet it wasn’t there two hours after the photo was taken.
More people than you might expect do SOTA activations without ever logging anything on the Database. However, in all probability, this is nothing to do with amateur radio. More people than you might expect use fishing poles for applications other than amateur radio (the clue’s in the name).