N0B & N6IZ have First HF(QRP) 14er-to-14er QSO (state-to-state)

Video #2 "Gaining Altitude" is an account of N0B's journey into thin air with Rooster and Peanut is now online!

You can view the video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug2sQj908go&eurl=http://n0b-14er.blogspot.com/

On August 10 2008 N0B (operators Guy/N7UN and Steve/N0TU) along with their faithful Sherpa/goats (Rooster and Peanut) set out to climb Uncompahgre Peak, CO (14,309') from the Nellie Creek Trailhead (11,400'). Meanwhile in CA, Brian/N6IZ was climbing Mt Whitney (14,498' highest peak in lower 48) had 8 miles and 6200' between him and the summit, almost double the effort of N0B! The Ham 14er Event (http://www.14er.org/) provided a perfect venue for our Old Goats QRPexpedition adventure. The video tells the rest of the story.

BTW this adventure was so inspiring Guy and Steve are already making plans for next years Ham 14er Event! Meanwhile Rooster and Peanut suggest we stick to lower elevations for our QRP/goat hikes.

So here's the N0B list of productions by Steve/N0TU:
Video # 1 "Getting Attitude"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCYROUAefsU
Video # 2 "Gaining Altitude"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug2sQj908go
Video # 3 "Altitude with Attitude"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BV_0eaTX_R0

Related links:
http://n0tu.blogspot.com/
http://n7un.blogspot.com/
http://www.14er.org/

We Made It!!

Wow!! What a trip! We made it to the top of 14,309’ Uncompaghre, spent several hours on HF and VHF making numerous contacts before our descent. In spite of early clouds and 30 mph winds, we braved the harsh mountain top conditions until the sun broke through and warmed our bodies and spirits. The next 2 hours was “fun on HF CW and SSB” as we made contacts around the country. Our most notable contact was with Brian, N6IZ, on 14,497’ Mt. Whitney in California! We had coordinated our mountaintop schedule to align with Brian's in an attempt to be the FIRST to have a Colorado 14er contact with an out-of-Colorado 14er. Brian had a KX1 at 3w and a vertical and we had a K2 at 5w to an inverted Vee dipole on a Jackite 28’ mast. And Steve’s “mountain” pack goats were our invaluable sherpas! More information, writeups, and videos will follow as we craft our stories! Steve/N0TU has posted a few pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/n0tu.qrp/14er/photo#5234032384522587906 .

Update #2 Old Goats QRPxpedition Coloradio 14er Aug. 10th

Time is getting short! The Old Goats team of N7UN/Guy and N0TU/Steve will spend Saturday driving to Uncompaghre Mtn (14,309') trail head at 11,000 ft, camp the night until our planned 3 am start, summit around 6 am for sunrise, setup our antennas and be on the air around 7 am. Weather permitting of course!!! We intend to operate primarily on the HF Pack frequencies: CW: 7038.5, 14059, and 18081.5 and SSB: 14342.5 and 18157.5. Steve will be on 6M at 50.125 SSB or CW as well as HF. We will have 2M FM handhelds on 147.42 and up.

N7UN will have a Jackite 28' pole and multi-band 40-30-20m dipole. N0TU will have a HF Buddipole, 6m 3el spider beam and 2m/70cm 5el-beam.

A Google Map link to all planned ham operations on Colo.14-ers is at http://tinyurl.com/58f4t5 . Click on the callsign on the left to get more information about a specific operation. A website for this overall event is at http://www.14er.org/ .

Rooster and Peanut will be our sherpas and an invaluable part of this Old Goats team. Steve and I both plan to take a lot of pictures and videos to share the "story" with our friends. Look for N0B (http://n0b-14er.blogspot.com/) this Sunday morning! Hope to hear from you!

Update #1 Old Goats QRPxpedition

The Coloradio 14er Operating Event is getting close! August 10th is when dozens of intrepid ham radio climbers will summit one of the 54 peaks over 14,000' to activate the peak with radios to talk with other HF, VHF, and UHF stations. The Old Goats QRPxpedition team of Steve/N0TU and Guy/N7UN plan to top Uncompaghre Mtn with an assortment of radios and antennas (Rigs: FT817, K2, and 2m HTs; Antennas: 40-15m dipoles, Buddipole, 6m 3el spider beam and 2m/70cm 5el-beam). A great route description is at: http://tinyurl.com/6cpuwh and a recent Trip Report (with pictures) is at: http://tinyurl.com/6p3k4x

Our team goal is to summit about 6 am (requiring a 3 am camp departure!) and set up antennas with an on-air start around 7 am, using the HF Pack frequencies. All of this is, of course, weather dependant which will be our major risk element for this trip. Thunderstorms typically pop up around noon. And of course, our sherpas will be the infamous Peanut and Rooster, Steve's pack goats (see http://n0tu.blogspot.com/ ).

Another major goal will be to make contact with Brian/N6IZ who will be on the summit of Mt. Whitney in California. As far as we know, no out-of-state, 14er-to-14er radio contacts have been made during this operating event. You can see Brian's plan at: http://www.brianboschma.com/whitney_initial.py . So please look for us that Sunday morning, Aug 10th. We fully expect some great stories to emerge from the QRPxpedition!

August 10th Colorado 14er Special Event

Steve/N0TU, Guy/N7UN, and Dan/K0UIF, all part of the Old Goats QRPexpedition Team, are planning a summit activation of one of the 54 Colorado "14ers", mountains over 14,000' ASL. This effort will be during the Colorado 14ers Special Event where radio amateurs activate a peak to communicate with other amateurs. Primary activity will take place between 1500 and 1800 UTC on HF/VHF/UHF frequencies. See http://www.14er.org for more information. The Old Goats team effort will primarily be QRP HF on 40/30/20m but will have 144/440 SSB capability also. This is a picture of Uncompaghre Mtn at 14,309' ASL, our target for August.

And Steve's pack goats, Rooster and Peanut, will be our "sherpas" in support of this team effort, making the "story" that much more exciting and memorable. See more adventures of Rooster and Peanut at http://n0tu.blogspot.com.