Week 23 – Perfect Day – Glassy Mtn (#44), Wildcat Mtn (#46), Brasstown Bald (#47) Triple

It was March 18 and a perfect ending to a picture perfect day – Dave KE4EA and I operated from Brasstown Bald W4G/NG-001 culminating a tripleheader activation .... with the temperatures in the high 40s and calm winds - it was cool enough to be nippy but very comfortable.   On Brasstown I had an S2S with Joel Shannon KC4WZB who was on Rabun Bald W4G/NG-002, and with KE5AKL who was on W5N/SE-050.   Earlier in the day while on Wildcat W4G/NG-020 I had an S2S with KW4JM Scott while he was on High Rock W4T/SU-024 and KX0R George who was on W0C/FR-061.   Earlier yet still I had an S2S with George KX0R on FR-061 while I was on Glassy Mtn W4G/NG-031.   As icing on the cake I had DX calls from Sweden SA4BLM and Australia VK4TJ. With the S2S chaser points I just need 4 points to become Shack Sloth at 996 and I reached the halfway mark towards Mountain Goat at 503. Dave KE4EA completed his first triple activation - hiking all three summits including Brasstown. We had all the usual chasers including the YL's K9IR Paula, AG6V Donna, and W0ERI Martha.

The day started very early at 7 AM.   Dave was a little late having missed his turn into my development.  It was a 2 hour ride into the North Georgia mountains via SC11 and we saw the temperatures climb slowly from the low thirties while enroute.   The road to Glassy Mtn on Glassy Mountain Road was a very narrow forest road with steep almost 90 degree embankments.  My 4WD truck negotiated the twisty turns slowly and carefully.  When we arrived at the trailhead, the map confused us as it indicated a second road on the right.   I thought it had to be the road with the gate as it was headed up and on the correct side of the ridgeline per the track left by KI4SVM and we confirmed we were correct as we hiked up the forest road to Glassy Mountain summit.

Soon we had to make our way to Wildcat Mountain.   This hike was to be on the Appalachian Trail starting at Hogpen Gap.   At Hogpen gap we encountered a group of sectional hikers completing a 22 mile sectional hike from Unicol Gap and a couple of thru hikers trying to make their way to Maine (the full 2188 mile trek).  The trail was steep in the early section rising close to 100m in the first half a kilometer and then flattening out and reaching a false summit with 400m to go.  It seemed visually far but soon we were on the summit proper.  Dave found his clearing and I staked out mine.  Dave and I split the bands – he was focused on 40m while I swept 20m 30m and 60m.  At the end of the day I had 503 activator points.  I was halfway to become a mountain goat with more than half of the year remaining – 29 weeks – or a 6 week time margin.