Many thanks to Micah (N4MJL) who shares the following guest post:

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Activating Grandeur Peak (W7U/NU-065)

by Micah (N4MJL)

Emboldened by my successful activation of W7U/SL-022 (7,500ft MSL) a week earlier, I decided to up my SOTA game and try to activate Grandeur Peak (W7U/NU-065).

Grandeur Peak is located in the Wasatch Range (POTA Entity US-4398) just to the east of Salt Lake City. It is approximately three ridges south of my last weeks SOTA activation. Which you can read about here.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, that should be true for climbing a mountain right?……

After conducting an area study, I decided to take the “West Ridge Route” it is a short 2.2 mile trail to the top of Grandeur Peak. Some of the comments on the hiker forums described this route as “undoubtedly one of the steepest hikes on the Wasatch Front.” Another commenter said, “this short but brutally-steep hike gains over 3,300ft elevation in a mere 2.2 miles to reach the summit. Adding up to just a 4.4-mile round trip, this is a quick jaunt for the most accomplished climbers.”

Reading in between the lines I deduced that this was a short 2.2 mile jaunt to the top, with a bit of elevation gain. After all, we know how these drama queens…I mean hikers…sometimes embellish hiking stories. Either way, this looked like a good way to stretch my legs after flying almost 8 hours the day before. There was a significantly longer trail with lots of switchbacks and more gentle elevation gain, that I could take, but I’m a millennial and delayed gratification is apparently not a strong suit for me. Looking at the SOTA page for this summit, it had only one QSO logged this year, even though this summit had been activated 14 times since April 2011.

On the morning of 25 August 2024 I got up at 0700 and packed up my REI Flash 22 day pack. I was taking with me a full 2 liter hydration pack along with 2 more 1 liter water bottles (4L water total), along with assorted snacks and electrolyte additives. Based on my last SOTA activation in the area, I decided I should bring some emergency gear just in case. I brought my trusty Surefire EdCL2-t flashlight [QRPer affiliate link], a few raps of duck-tape around a stick of chapstick, a box of matches, and a few feet of toilet paper. After all some things just happen, like the effects of coffee on an empty stomach. Don’t leave without toilet paper.

Since the temperature in Salt Lake City was projected to be around 85F, I decided to bring a flannel shirt and wool cap for the summit. There is virtually no humidity in UT and the temperature at 8,300ft could easily be 15 degrees cooler with possible wind chill. I’m bad enough sending CW without being chilled.

My radio gear consisted of the following:

• Rig: Elecraft KH-1
• Ant: SOTABeams Band Hopper III (resonate on 40\30\20)
• Key: BaMakey TP-III
• Mast: SOTAbeams Tactical Mini 19.6ft
• Battery: Bioenno 12v 3Ah (just in case)

During my 15 minute Uber ride from the hotel to grandeur Peak West face parking lot my driver was incredulous that anyone of sound mind would ever voluntarily climb such a mountain. He was convinced that I was going to be eaten by mountain lions.

After my first 5 minutes on the trail I started to question whether or not I actually was of sound mind.

After 15 minutes on the trail I began to think that there may have been some truth to what was written on the hiker forums about this trail.

After 30 minute on the trail I was definitely working through the five stages of grief!

1) Denial: how was I sooo stupid to be hiking straight up a mountain
2)Anger: I’m an idiot for NOT listening to those hiker forums
3)Bargaining: if I can just make it ten more feet further I’ll take another selfie
4)Depression: if I don’t get to the top, I won’t have a selfie at the summit and I’ll never get a dopamine rush from public accolades.

Seriously, the first 0.8 mile was brutal. The trail was completely straight up the ridge, and it was all loose gravel with little to no vegetation to stabilize the trail. If I started to slide down, I would be sliding aloooong way down. My plan if I tripped or started to slide was to go flat on my stomach like a star fish In hopes of stopping my down hill slide. I tried to get pictures to show how “brutal” this section of the climb really was. Unfortunately, pictures really don’t do justice.

It’s a 3,346 ft elevation gain in 2.2 miles; what more needs to be said? Looking ahead, I realized that if I could make it a bit further up, the mountain started to look more green indicating some shrubbery. I hoped this meant the trail would stabilize for me. Being young and bullet proof, I pushed on.

Fortunately for me, the higher up I got the more stable the trail became. After the initial 0.8 miles the hike was very enjoyable and I had no more safety concerns for the rest of the hike up.

I was beginning to feel cocky again, and I began to think about how much of a bad A@s I was for doing a hike like this. Suddenly, I heard a noise behind me. I turned around to find a shirtless Spartan Warrior of a man running up the very trail I had just slowly fought my way up. In my head, I heard the wise voice of my primary flight instructor from almost two decades ago, “LaVanchy, every time you strap on an airplane, check your attitude and leave it on the ground. There is no room for ego in the cockpit, only skill, and no matter how good of a stick you become you will always find a bigger ace on the base!”

By the time I made it to the top of the summit, four different hikers passed me on their way to the top. I’ll try to blame that on acclimation, but it’s been a long time since I was ever close to having a ripped six pack. Oh well, at least I know that this is a poplar trail despite the steep grade.

The view from the top was spectacular! It was Sunday morning and there was almost a reverent atmosphere on the summit. The four other hikers that passed me on the way were still there, and they each gave me a silent nod of welcome. I dared not pull out my phone and get a selfie even though it was burning a hole in my pocket! I would have to wait until they left! Lest they revoke the proverbial man card that I had just earned.

I looked around and found the geological survey marker from 1973. I also perused the Grandeur Peak mail box. The summit mail boxes are steeped in tradition. You can find life advice and encouragement in these mailboxes. For example Luke and Hopper wrote “if my dog can do it, you can” (6/2/24).

Due the reverent atmosphere I sensed on the summit, I didn’t want to be that guy and start climbing all over the place setting up a 20ft mast and linked dipole.

Even though I had carried the mast and dipole with me. Instead I only used the telescope whip antenna of my Elecraft KH1.

I only scheduled my self on the SOTA website even though I was also in a POTA entity. I wanted to give SOTA hunters the first crack at me. The reverse beacon network worked like a charm and had me spotted, by the end of the second CQ call.

I started calling CQ at 1654z and by 1733z I thought I had 11 contacts. I say “thought” because one of my 11 call signs was not valid. The call sign contained H and S next to each other. I tried various combinations but unfortunately I screwed it up enough that I couldn’t in good conscience log anything.

“H” and “S” are my two mortal enemies in CW.

On a recent activation during a summit here in Virginia, a very savvy hunter who had an H in the middle of his call sign sensed my problem and sent his call sign at normal speed until he got to the H, then he sent 4 slow dits, then he sent remaining characters at normal speed. I’m a noob and I know it. I’m 95% certain that my other 10 call signs were correct. In fact, at 1715z on 20m, I had the pleasure of working AC0UT.

The selfie with me wearing the blue flannel shirt was right after I worked my Dad (AC0UT) Missouri to Utah 5 watts CW. I heard many stations way down in the noise floor that I could not work. I even heard a s2s starting with I think a “KX” in the call sign, unfortunately I just couldn’t pull it out of the noise floor.

After I got the 11 contacts, I did not stay on the summit much longer. I would love to say that inclement weather, dehydration or low battery cut my activation short. Unfortunately the reality is that my butt hurt from sitting on un level rocks and my arms hurt from holding up the KH1 for 45 minutes straight, and I really wanted a cold shower and a hot meal.

Heading down the mountain was much less drama until the last 0.8 miles. I kid you not, there were times I sat down on my butt and inched my way down the slope on the palm of my hands trying not to slide down the mountain on the loose gravel trail. But looking over my shoulder I felt a sense of pride at another summit that I successfully activated.

I don’t not have any more Salt Lake City (SLC) over nights on my schedule for September and as we approach winter I don’t think I will have any more SOTA activations in Utah until it warms up next summer. I do have a few SOTA/POTA activations planned for the Phoenix, AZ and Las Vegas, NV area. I will be doing more California POTA activations mostly in San Francisco but also in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Sacramento.

Big thanks to all you hunters. I’m beginning to recognize some of your call signs. Even as I write this article, I just noticed several call signs that I just logged from summit in Virginia. It really is a small world with 5 watts and a wire!

Thank you all and 72..

~ Micah J. LaVanchy
N4MJL