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POTA Camping Trip to US-1178 Mt. Tamalpais State Park

 I had dreams of activating the US-1178 each of the three days I planned on being there. I didn't get it done. Oh, but the other stuff I did do! Strap in. I may have to split this into a few different posts because there's so much stuff! 


  • I documented the updated transit route from furthest away San Francisco BART station to Pantoll Campground
  • I tested Starlink—a system I worked on a few years ago—with regard to doing my new work while out camping (how meta ☺️)
  • I hiked the Dipsea Trail for the first time in over a year. Ouch.
  • I camped for two nights.
  • I'd hoped to play radios from four different locations in three different parks. I wound up playing radios from two different locations in one park, the one I was camping in, Mount Tamalpais State Park.


Here's a view of the campsite and its very adjacent hiking trail.



And here's how the radio was installed at the campsite


It's in the TouCans and a Stick configuration with its carbon fiber mast vertical whip.

Normally, the kids, who are now 15, 13, and 11, travel to the campsite with me, but this time they met me a day later. As a side note, if you're in town and want to make the trip on transit with kids, get a youth Clipper card if you have the time. It'll cut the fare on each ride in half for the kid. I'll talk more about that in the transit sub-post to this one.

I'm signing off for now. All in all, I made 52 QSOs from US-1178 in twdifferent locations. Here's a quick although incomplete map of the 48 or so I made from the my campsite on my first full morning there.

And, here's a video of the second QSO I made at the site.




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