27th August 2004
Druim na h-Earba - GM/WS-339 - 288m - NN090713 - 1 point
QSOs: 40m CW - 2, 20m CW - 2, 40m SSB - 2
Known locally as Trig Point Hill and located just to the south of Fort William, this is one of the most easily accessed Marilyns in the area giving a great view up and down Loch Linnhe. From the picnic site (parking) at NN097722 take the gate opposite and cross the field to another gate. Then a path leads to the top past a couple of false summits. 25mins at a leisurely pace.
Shelter from the strong wind was found just below the summit and after a chat to Adrian, MM0DHY/M on the local 2m repeater (GB3HI), I worked G4AJA (Swindon) on 40m CW. However, conditions were pretty flat and I had to hunt around for the following QSOs: OE/IK3GHZ/QRP (Villach, Austria) & DF9YK (Mainz) on 20m CW, GB4TCF (Stoneleigh) & G3WCQ (Coventry) on 40m SSB and a chat with M3GXQ (nr Cambridge) on 40m CW to finish.
Used long wire on the walking poles throughout. I can't make up my mind whether I prefer end fed long wire or centre fed multiband dipole. One practical advantage of the dipole is that you are located at the pole making it easy to operate with a pole mounted 2m antenna without having to change operating position.
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