Capturing the Art of Nature
Hiking Mount Agassiz
It was fun being at the top of a peak again this Saturday, we had planned the hike a couple months back to operate our ham radios from the summit. The view from the overlook was quite pleasant as well.
Category
Serendipitous Discoveries
Summits on the Air
2013
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O ur morning began at 8:00 AM when Ralph and Brett arrived at my house in preparation to set off for our hike to the summit of Mount Agassiz. Although it was a pleasant morning it wouldn’t be a good start without a stop at the local Starbucks. And so we made our way to Brookswood and quickly had our favorite caffeinated beverages in hand. Our next stop was for gas and then before long we are at the start of the logging road on Mount Woodside.
I then switched the truck to four by four mode and locked the hubs. The road was actually in pretty good shape thanks to new construction taking place in preparation for some active logging later this year. Even so, the roughness of the road caught Brett quite off guard. About a third of the way up we encountered the first of several dump trucks coming down the hill. They were quite cooperative in allowing us to get past them but it still seemed to be a tight fit it times. Soon we reached an open gate and the active logging area. There we found a board where we signed in, then it was off to the place we had planned to start our hike. This final stretch of road went quite quickly, we saw quite a few side roads that had been improved and it looks like the area will offer some nice new access points once the logging is done.
It took us only a few minutes to get ready to start and then we were off on the initial slope climbing to the summit. Although it was a short hike, it was much steeper than we had expected. Fortunately being short, we weren’t too tired out by the time we finally reached the point marked on the maps as the summit. The summit was in from the edge and surrounded by trees which gave us no views to enjoy. So we moved a dozen meters to a ledge with a sharp drop that offered a nice view of the Fraser Valley and where we would have an enjoyable time operating.
With a lovely view and the warm sunshine we had found the spot for the day. It didn’t take long for Brett to have his inverted V antenna set up and making contacts across North America. We also were chatting with other club members on two meters with Ralph’s Yagi. After a couple of hours of operating we had made around 18 contacts. This was now a successful activation of the peak for summits on the air. Having successfully achieved the activation, we decided to pack up before we got too hot and tired. The return hike went quickly and soon we were closing in on the truck but in looking back up the slope, Ralph was nowhere to be seen, and he wasn’t answering our calls. Finally we did reach him on a handheld radio and discovered that he was too far down the slope and to the right of the truck. After giving him new directions on the way back, Brett and I finished the hike to the truck and waited for Ralph to arrive. Soon we heard him crashing through the brush as he climbed up to the road.
Now that we’re all together again we set off for the return trip home. The drive down the mountain went without incident though we had to wait for a logging crew to unlock the previously open gate. Soon we were back on pavement heading home. The day was a success and we all felt we had a good day and enjoyed ourselves on the summit of Mount Agassiz.