The summit of VK3/VG-030
On the first weekend in Spring, I found myself once again at Mt Hotham taking my daughter to her regular FreeSki programme. In the preceding few days, Spring had expressed itself in the form of heavy rain which did much damage to the snow cover and so I was only luke-warm about the prospect of skiing. Being in the heart of the mountains, my thoughts of course turned to SOTA. I had already activated Mt Hotham and Mt Loch this season, so decided to head further afield. I activated Mt Livingstone last year and knew it was a straight forward activation. Nearby is unnamed summit VK3/VG-030 which would be a unique for me. I also eyed Mt Phipps, the only 10 point summit near Omeo and decided to try for that one first of all.
With my daughter safely in the ski programme at 8:00am, I headed for Omeo and Cassilis Rd that looked to be the fastest approach (least 4WD tracks). I turned onto Upper Livingstone Rd and quickly encountered the first problem for the day – a flooded road.
I decided this was beyond the capabilities of a Subaru Outback…
The gate at the entrance to Mt Livingstone
Time for Plan B. I headed back towards Omeo and drove up Mt Livingstone Rd as far as the locked gate. From here it’s a 2km easy walk up the access road to the summit. For more details of what there is to see at Mt Livingstone, see my post on the last time I activated it here.
The tent with squidpole in the background – you can see the weather was a bit ordinary,
This time, the weather was fairly inclement. It was drizzling with low cloud and a significant breeze. I had packed for this and took my tent with me as well as waterproof jacket and pants.
Setting up the tent was a little challenging in the wind and with the soft muddy and rocky soil, but I soon had shelter for the radio and myself and the EFHW set up on the squidpole tied to a convenient star picket.
The tent is a Tarptent Notch which uses hiking poles for support and in this case was set up without the inner mesh tent, but with just a Tyvek groundsheet to keep me and the equipment out of the mud.
The operating position inside the tent on a Tyvek groundsheet
As you can see in the photos, there is just enough room for one person, a pack and the radio gear to fit comfortably inside.
My Tarptent Notch is just the right size for SOTA activations and is nice and light to carry
Switching on the radio to 40m, there seemed to be a reasonable amount of activity, so I spotted and called CQ. I had a steady stream of callers over the next 30 mins with the summit well and truly activated with a total of 15 unique call signs logged.
Pleasingly I also worked Sid ZS5AYC and Adele ZS5APT S2S on VK4/SE-115 and also Mitch VK3XDM on VK3/VT-030 for some more summit to summit points.
I tried 20m, but had no takers today, so decided to pack up and move on to my next summit – VK3/VG-030.
VK3/VG-030
This is the start of the track as seen coming from Omeo. It has a sign noting it as a firewood collection area.
This unnamed summit has been activated a few times and has a rather overgrown 4WD track going all the way to the top. I was driving our Subaru Outback, which has some 4WD capability, but doesn’t have particularly high clearance and only road tyres, so I wasn’t sure how far I’d get up this track. With no recovery gear other than snow chains and a tyre compressor, I knew I’d have to be careful to make sure I always had a back out option.
There are two tracks at the sign, you need to take the right hand one.
The turn off to this track is off the Great Alpine Road not far west of Mt Livingstone Rd. It is not signposted, but does have a sign indicating that it is a firewood collection area. There are two tracks heading off from this point and you need to take the right hand one.
the track has a lot of re-growth both in the middle of the track and from both sides. It’s also a bit muddy in spots but no bog holes.
The track has much re-growth both in the centre of the track and encroaching from both sides. Some of the centre re-growth was up to the top of the bonnet! The track is a mixture of soil/rock and some muddy sections, but no deep mud. Taking my time, I was able to get the Subaru within about 300m of the summit. At that point, there was a large stump in the track that I decided not to risk the sump on and walked the rest.
There were plenty of trees around, so I suspended the antenna from a branch using a throw bag and polypropylene line
The track goes on past the summit, but there’s a reasonable sized clearing well within the activation zone. As the summit is forested, I used a throw-bag to get the antenna hung from a tree branch. I set up and was on air by about 1pm, but under a Bothy Bag to protect the equipment from the odd passing shower.
As the walk was short for this summit, I brought my table and chair for a bit more operating comfort…
…however rain came, so I had to use my Bothy Bag over myself and the operating table anyway!
Spotting on 40m produced an avalanche of callers! Propagation on 40m was clearly working well. I broke my own record for contacts with a total of 35 over 45 mins! Contacts were both local and interstate with VK2/3/4/5/7 represented. A very satisfying session.
Of course, just as I was packing up, the sun came out!
I finally satisfied all comers and packed up just as the sun finally came out.
The return trip was as careful as the trip in given the vehicle limitations, but I made it back to the highway unscathed and returned in time to meet my daughter at the end of her ski programme.
A worthwhile SOTA day netting 22 further points.
Good judgement required to negotiate tracks like that when solo. If you get stuck youre in a spot of bother. My SOTA escape car is a small city 2wd runabout so I do a lot more walking than some after parking it at the first sign of risk. All the more exercise! — VK3HN.
Yes, you have to be careful. I’m in the process of setting up the other car, a Ford Everest, for real 4WDing. You can be a bit more adventurous when you’re set up to get yourself out of trouble!
Hi David
I enjoyed reading your post and admire your determination. An interesting tent for SOTA work, but it wouldn’t work for me. I think it would be a bit cramped and working from the floor is alright for a short time, but I would cramp up! Finding the right shelter is always a challenge. I have a Bothy bag which has proved useful when it has been wet.
Cheers
John D, VK5BJE/VK5PF
Thanks John. Yes, it’s certainly not a roomy tent, but is at least light to carry. With careful positioning, I’ve managed to get my Helinox chair and table in this tent (see my JMFD blog post from 2014: https://vk3il.net/mt-st-phillack-jmfd-15-march-2014/ ), but still very cramped.