GW/NW-030 Moel Cynghorion

More than airwave action today

GW/NW-030 Moel Cynghorion

18/08/2015

Val and I came off Moel Eilio yesterday and decided to pop down to the car park at the beginning of the Snowdon Ranger Path SH5643 5506. As expected it was full so an early start would be required the following morning to ensure a parking space for the day as I was not too happy about leaving the car on the main road....it would cost us £5 for the day:(  Later in the evening Simon G4TJC sent me an e-mail reminding me to get there early...thanks Simon.

My GPS track

By the time we were ready to leave the car park in the morning it was already full so Snowdon was in for a busy time again as it was once more a glorious day. About half way up the zig-zag we were treated to a fly past by a pair of F-15 fighter planes leaving me wishing that I had my SLR camera with me today. 

 F-15 above Llyn Cwellyn

The path was very busy and we surprised quite a few when we turned left off the track at SH5743 5529 and cut up towards the bwlch between Foel Goch and Moel Cynghorion....we looked back and it was surprising how many had stopped wondering if they were going the right way for Snowdon :) It’s a 3.76km walk to the summit but a very pleasant one with glorious views towards Snowdon, Llanberis and South towards Beddgelert and Moel Hebog. 

Llyn Cwellyn

Towards Cwm Clogwyn and Snowdon

Towards Beddgelert and Moel Hebog

As I was setting up we had a visit. A helicopter was flying around Snowdon and moving around Llyn Coch and the cliff face below Snowdon as if searching the area. We assumed it was a Police helicopter but very soon it headed directly for us hovering just above us... a wave from the pilot and it was away towards Moel Eilio. Turned out to be an Eurocopter Squirrel of the Defence Helicopter Flying School based at RAF Shawbury in Shropshire.

Eurocopter Squirrel

I was straight into 60m today as Rod M0JLA/p was on 5.398.5 from G/WB-017 Shobdon Hill and tendering my apologies for not being able to hear Viki on 2m....thanks Rod. I announced a QSY with Jonathan confirming that he would spot me....thanks Jonathan.  60m was really working well today..incidentally,  the linear does not work on 60m.

10:22z	M0JLA/P	5MHz	SSB	Rod s2s
10:25z	GW2HFR	5MHz	SSB	Jonathan
10:27z	GW4ENB/P	5MHz	SSB	Clive
10:29z	G4ZRP	5MHz	SSB	Brian
10:29z	G8MIA	5MHz	SSB	Andy
10:30z	GM0AXY	5MHz	SSB	Ken
10:31z	GM4YMM	5MHz	SSB	Christine
10:31z	GM4COX	5MHz	SSB	Jack
10:32z	G4WSB	5MHz	SSB	Bill
10:32z	G0RQL	5MHz	SSB	Don IO70uv
10:33z	MW0YCC	5MHz	SSB	Alun
10:34z	G4APO	5MHz	SSB	Roland
10:35z	M0TVU	5MHz	SSB	Paul
10:35z	GW6OVD	5MHz	SSB	Mal
10:37z	G8TMV	5MHz	SSB	Colin
10:37z	G0VWP	5MHz	SSB	Terry
10:38z	GW6DGU	5MHz	SSB	Roy

Moel Eilio behind me

Llanberis Path and a couple of trains heading up

With Roy GW6DGU being the last caller I moved quickly on to 40m as Hans HB9BQU/p was calling from HB/SZ-039 Unter Gibel...another s2s in the log....thanks Hans. A quick spot via RRT and Barry M0IML kicked off a good run of regular chasers...thanks everyone.

10:50z	HB9BQU/P	7MHz	SSB	Hans s2s
10:52z	M0IML	7MHz	SSB	Barry
10:54z	PA7ZEE	7MHz	SSB	Geert
10:55z	G4WSB	7MHz	SSB	Bill
10:56z	LA3NGA	7MHz	SSB	Henning
10:56z	G4FEX	7MHz	SSB	Ken
10:57z	G6TUH	7MHz	SSB	Mike JO00bx
10:57z	DL8DXL	7MHz	SSB	Fred
10:58z	MX0WFF	7MHz	SSB	David G0WOU
10:58z	EA2DT	7MHz	SSB	Manuel
10:59z	DL3HXX	7MHz	SSB	Lothar
10:59z	EA2LU	7MHz	SSB	Jorge
11:00z	ON4QM/M	7MHz	SSB	Rik
11:00z	SM6DER	7MHz	SSB	Sten
11:01z	DK5WL	7MHz	SSB	Heinz-Josef
11:01z	PA2CVD	7MHz	SSB	Cor
11:01z	MW0BYT	7MHz	SSB	Ross
11:03z	G0WOU	7MHz	SSB	David
11:03z	PA3EVY	7MHz	SSB	Willy
11:05z	2E0DIQ	7MHz	SSB	Andy
11:05z	DK7ZH	7MHz	SSB	Manfred
11:05z	G0VWP	7MHz	SSB	Terry
11:06z	F5PLR	7MHz	SSB
11:07z	PA0B	7MHz	SSB	Rob
11:09z	DL8DXL	7MHz	SSB	Fred
11:10z	DJ8BK/P	7MHz	SSB	Dieter
11:12z	EA2BD	7MHz	SSB	Ignacio

Snowdon and the Snowdon Ranger path

It went quiet on 40m but RRT informed me that there was a possibility of an s2s with Inge and Reithaler on HA/KD-003 Kozepso-Hajag (20m) ....in the log ...thank you both. Now Simon G4TJC/p had been making a long but steady slog up to Moel Hebog GW/NW-014..he got there eventually and a very much out of breath Simon made it into my log :)..thanks Simon.(see Simon's blog..link in 'My blog list')

11:24z	HA/OE5IRO/P	14MHz	SSB	Ingeborg s2s
11:27z	HA/OE5RTP/P	14MHz	SSB	Reinthaler s2s
11:33z	GW4TJC/P	144MHz	FM	Simon s2s

 Towards Glyder Fawr

As it was such a nice day I decided to go onto 20m so links changed and linear on I spotted myself. Surprise, surprise first in the log was Sean MW3PZO down near Blaenau Festiniog followed by an all mighty pile-up of chasers. This was a troubled visit to 20m as QSB was spoiling some of the contacts so I hope all the callsigns are correct.

11:43z	MW3PZO	14MHz	SSB	Sean
11:43z	EA2DT	14MHz	SSB	Manuel
11:44z	HB9AGO	14MHz	SSB	Hansruedi
11:44z	YO2LGH	14MHz	SSB	Curtu
11:45z	OK1VM	14MHz	SSB
11:45z	HB9AGH	14MHz	SSB	Ambrosi
11:45z	OK1SDE	14MHz	SSB	Borek
11:45z	OK3KW	14MHz	SSB
11:48z	RA1AVP/1	14MHz	SSB	Alexei
11:49z	UA1ANE	14MHz	SSB	Ostapenko
11:49z	S58AL	14MHz	SSB	Albert
11:50z	SQ5NAZ	14MHz	SSB	Kamil
11:50z	SO9EWA	14MHz	SSB	Henryk
11:51z	IK2ZJR	14MHz	SSB	Antonio

I was glad to get off 20m as it had been difficult as I had to repeat my callsigns and locator so many times. I decided to give a call on 2m to end the activation and was pleasantly surprised to hear my friend Jeff GW3UZS/p replying. He was down near Cardigan so another good contact. As I was preparing to pack up RRT informed me that Andy FMF was on 60m from G/SC-001 Dunkery Beacon, so a quick link change and he was in the log...thanks Andy.

11:57z	GW3UZS/P	144MHz	FM	Jeff
11:59z	MW0BYT	144MHz	FM	Ross
12:01z	MW3PZO	144MHz	FM	Sean
12:02z	GW4ZPL/P	144MHz	FM	John
12:07z	MW0PAD/M	144MHz	FM	Paddy
12:17z	M0FMF/P	5MHz	SSB	Andy s2s

On our way home we noticed the usual crowd of aircraft enthusiasts lined up on the hillsides above the ‘bwlch’ leading down the valley to the Tal-y-Llyn Lake (Cad E and Cad W –Mach Loop).  Now this forms part of the renowned ‘Mach Loop’ (Google it) so today I pulled in at the car park SH7530 1358 and went to get my little camera from the boot.... jumped out of my skin as an RAF Hawk screamed over head...missed opportunity :( ‘Patience is virtue’ and it paid off as within 15 minutes an RAF Typhoon came down the ‘bwlch’ edge on...now I pressed the button on the camera but I thought it had switched itself off and I had missed another interesting photo opportunity...I was wrong because when I checked at home there it was :)

Many thanks everyone for the contacts. The weather is not looking good for the next couple of days but fingers crossed for next week and a few more NW summits.

73 Allan GW4VPX