2006 Aug Colorado 14er

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2006 Colorado 14er Event

This was NOT a LARC event. It is included here because it is such a nice piece of work and in hopes that N0WAE will invite us next time? (hint, hint 🙂 )
Ray W9LQM

The little 13er that could!

By N0WAE

My interest in the Colorado 14er Event started in 2002 when I first learned about it and used my 2m home station in Longmont with roof mounted G6-270R and 25w to talk to Stan, K0YB on top of Pikes Peak. I also gained more experience and interest with mountain-top communications as a volunteer helping the repeater experts that run the Courage Classic event each year. I first put this knowledge to use at my elk hunting camp located in the mountains some 30 miles south of Glenwood Springs. I used a home made 3 element Yagi tape measure antenna and cross-band repeater that allowed me to use my HT anywhere in camp to call my wife Pat, KC0QXO in Longmont via the Colorado Connection. The stage was set and a re-kindled interest in the 14er event started after my 2005 elk hunting trip.

My goals for participating in the 2006 14er event were to test my acquired skills and my newly purchased VHF equipment on a 13er. My second goal was a hard one…to earn the 14er ‘Summit Award’ from contacts made in a single year’s event. To achieve these goals I needed to find a ‘line of sight’ communications site. I purchased mapping software and ran elevation profiles from high mountain locations that I could drive to. I finally chose 13,180’ Santa Fe Peak because it generated some impressive map profiles and only required a short hike from where I could 4-wheel to.

Since I planed on operating QRP I also needed a good antenna with gain. I purchased a 4 element Arrow Yagi “Back Pack” antenna and built a special base and mast for it. I used NG Topo software to find the exact magnetic bearings from Santa Fe Peak to all of the soon to be active 06’ 14ers. I then marked these bearings on the portable mast base so the mast and beam antenna could be quickly rotated to the proper headings. I would be using my 5w VX7R HT with a MH-57a4b speaker/microphone.

The big day came and my son-in-law Chris and I left Longmont at 4am on Aug 13, 2006 en-route to Santa Fe Peak and a new adventure. It was a highway drive and then a scary 4×4 shelf road up to our destination. 3 hours later we parked the jeep and started the short hike up the mountain loaded with packs and gear. Once on top it took us another hour to set up our VHF equipment. We used a compass to find north and staked out a 10’ long cord on the ground. The mast base was aligned to the N-S line and then secured with heavy rocks on top of the two 3/8″ aluminum rods that were inserted thru drilled holes in the bottom of the base tube. The 4E beam was mounted on one end of the 6’ PVC mast and the bottom end of the mast was then inserted into the base tube.

Chris built a rock table next to the mast for our 14er paperwork and logbook. We then set up our two mini chairs and sat down. (The mast had been built long enough so that the beam antenna just cleared our heads when we were seated.) We had a dedicated TH-25AT HT equipped with a ¼ wave whip that stayed on the primary 14er frequency. (147.42) The beam/VX7R was pre-programmed with all eleven VHF simplex 14er frequencies. I also prepared a list of all the activated 14ers complete with bearing and distance info as well as the Ops name and call.

The first 14er we heard on the air was Jeff, N0XDW on Mt Bross some 22 miles distant. We swung the beam around to 212° and looked at the pegged S meter!!! (S9+) It was then that we knew we had a “big gun” portable QRP station! We made our first contact at 8:10am or 14:10 UTC. As more 14ers became active things got ‘hot and heavy’. It was every Ham for him/her self as the mountain top pileups began. We had a QSO with David, W6OAL in Parker (58 miles distant) and Greg, W0EPK operating mobile from 13,186’ Mosquito Pass. (4WD road) Some of the 14er Ops used signal mirrors so that nearby 14er Ops could spot them. The radio chatter was funny… “Oh no! I’ve been flashed!” What fun all this was!

By the conclusion of the event (12 noon) I had achieved both my goals. It felt good to not only succeed but to get so many good signal reports in the process. I learned a lot from participating in this years event from this little 13er. My equipment proved sound and I now have acquired the experience and confidence to tackle a real 14er next year. Planning has already begun… For the 2007 Colorado 14er Event I plan to activate 14,289’ Mt Antero.

N0WAE’s 14er Log for the 2006 14er Event:

Call sign Peak name Bearing Distance UTC

N0XDW Mt Bross 212° 22mi 14:10

N0XGC Pikes Pk 129° 66mi 15:16

KC0TXK Mt Princeton 191° 61mi 15:42

KC0GBK Mt Sherman 207° 30mi 15:51

W4TTX Mt Harvard 200° 51mi 16:09

K8KMV Quandary Pk 220° 19mi 16:11

K0CEO Mt Oxford 202° 50mi 16:13

K0DEZ Mt Elbert 216° 45mi 16:29

K7MWD Mt Belford 203° 50mi 16:30

K0NR Mt Humboldt 162° 111mi 17:14