Category Archives: Mountains

Steve (WG0AT) has done it again with a great video of the Colorado 14er Event. Take a look at the saga of two guys and two goats scrambling their way to the top of Mount Humboldt (with the exclusive GoatCam technology). This new adventure features Peanut and Rooster, the brain power behind the Old Goats Hiking Team. This video captures the spirit of the 14er event, the premier mountaintop radio event.

For more goat hiking videos, see http://n0b-14er.blogspot.com/

73, Bob K0NR

We rounded up the usual collection of suspects to operate from Pikes Peak in the Colorado 14er Event. Our crew included me, Joyce K0JJW, Ken WA6TTY, Stephen KZ0Q, Steve KD0BIM, Stan WA0Z and Matt KC0LBA.

Since Pikes is a “drive up” mountain in an event where most radio operators hike in, we tried to compensate by covering as many bands as possible. We had 4 stations on the air:

• 2M FM
• 50 MHz (mostly SSB, some FM)
• 222 MHz FM, 440 MHz FM
• HF (20 Meters – Mostly SSB, some CW)

This had to be the best weather for the event in years, with no one reporting being chased off the summit by approaching storms. This is odd considering the stormy weather patterns we have seen this year.

Most of the 2M FM contacts used callsign KD0BIM, everything else used the club callsign K0YB.

Summary of Pikes Peak Log:

Band      QSOs    14ers          Comments
146 MHz    83       13    Best DX: K4S Mt Sunflower and N0KQY in Kansas

50 MHz     21        1    Only 14er: KQ6EE on Elbert

222 MHz     3        1    Only 14er: KQ6EE on Elbert

440 MHz     7        3

HF (20M)   17        1    Only 14er: N0B on Humboldt

Total:    131       13

We operated for about 4 hours, averaging about one QSO every 1.8 minutes. Pretty good rate for this event, based on past experience.

We clearly missed some of the 14ers that were on the air. Based on my count, there were 16 summits activated during the event:

Elbert, Massive, Grays, Antero, Torreys, Quandary, Evans, Princeton, Yale, Bross, Pikes, Humboldt, Bierstadt, Redcloud, San Luis, Huron

Thanks to everyone that came out for the event!

73, Bob K0NR

I woke up yesterday to the idea that it really is August 1st and that July is now history. I understand how that happens… I just don’t know how it happens so freeking fast!  If August is here, then it is time for the premier mountaintop ham radio event: The Colorado 14er Event.

What is that, you ask? It is ham radio guys having fun in the mountains, where Height Above Average Terrain takes on a new meaning.  

Amateur Radio operators from around Colorado will be climbing many of Colorado’s 14,000-foot mountains to set up amateur radio stations in an effort to communicate with other radio amateurs across the state and around the world. Radio operators with 14er climbing experience who plan to climb a 14er should log their name and intended peak at the HAM 14er Yahoo group.

I will be operating from the summit of Pikes Peak with a crew of other ham radio operators, using club callsign K0YB.

Last year we had a California operator (N6IZ) get on (yes, they have mountains there, too) and work one of the Colorado summits (N0B), for the first 14er-to-14er interstate QSO. See the goathiker (WG0AT) video for the full story:

We expect to have some California 14ers on the air again this year. Not only that, the K4S team in Kansas is planning to ascend the highest point in the state: Mount Sunflower at 4039 feet !

This is too much fun.

   73, Bob K0NR