I had seen mentions of SOTA in several of the amateur radio magazines which we subscribe to or buy on impulse from the local newsagent. I even ventured into the website at http://www.sota.org.uk on a couple of occasions, so I was reasonably well prepared when John Linford, G3WGV, came to give a talk on SOTA during the GMDX Group Convention in October 2002.
Needless to say, John gave us an enthusiastic introduction to Summits on The Air.
During the following winter months we started collecting Chaser Points by making 2-way contacts with the Activators who were brave enough to to out on the hills in, at times, not too hospitable conditions. As spring arrived with the better weather we decided to blow the dust off our portable station which we have been using to activate islands for the Islands of Scotland Award - IOSA, and head for the hills ourselves.

The first hill we decided to go for was Allermuir Hill, SOTA Ref. GM/SS-171, in the Pentland Hills range, just a couple of miles to the south of us here in Edinburgh. So on 9th of April we set off. We parked at the Hillend Ski Centre; yes that's right: the Hillend Ski Centre is an all year dry ski slope with 2 tows and 1 chair lift to the top of the skiing area. BUT, we decided to do it the hard way and walked up (climbed?) the hill alongside the skislopes. It was hard work with the station in the rucksack; the station not being exactly lightweight, weighing in at over 9 kgm (about 20lbs.+). But we got there, and we set up our half-dome fishing shelter just to the north of the cairn which marks the actual summit at 493 metres asl. The wind was fairly howling in from the east, straight in off the cold North Sea. The operation went fine, and we both got the required number of contacts in the log with a mixture of contacts on 40 and 20 metres SSB as well as few on 2 metres FM.

This is Christine operating as G4YMM/P from Thorpe Fell Top,
SOTA Ref. G/NP-025, making
more than 30 QSO's on 40 SSB.

Ready for the descent back to Thorpe
and the trek back to the campsite.

.... and afterwards, back at the campsite, who decided to put her feet up?

Christine operating from North Berwick Law SOTA Ref GM/SS-280. In the
background is Bass Rock with it's famous colony of gannets. We know it well, having
operated from there together with GM3BQA 3 times for the Islands of Scotland Award.
Conditions were not great, but we got our first Summit-to-Summit contact with Rob
G4RQJ/P, who was operating 40 mtrs. SSB from G/LD-051 in the Lake District.

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