The Grand Teton National Park has plenty of mountains for Summits On The Air (SOTA) activations, so I wanted to activate a few of them as we enjoyed the park. I am still recovering from a fractured ankle, so I was definitely looking for an easy-peasy summit to activate on our trip. It turns out there is a summit right at the top of the Jackson Hole Arial Tram that operates during the summer months (W7Y/TT-061). (This tram serves the ski area during the winter.)
The SOTA database shows this summit as unnamed and refers to it by elevation, 10450. The locals may refer to this as Rendezvous Mountain, not to be confused with Rendezvous Peak (W7Y/TT-035). For SOTA purposes its just “10450”.
The bottom of the Arial Tram is accessed in Teton Village and is easy to find. However, don’t confuse the it with Bridger Gondola, which goes to another peak.
Well, this sounds pretty awesome…ride the tram to the top and play ham radio. Now the bad news: the ticket for the tram is $42. It’s an all day pass that gives you access to other lifts and plenty of hiking trails but still it is expensive. OK, slightly better news: if you purchase online you can get the pass for $32. There are senior and other pricing options, so check out the web site for the latest info.
The September weather was overcast and cold at the summit. I opted for a simple VHF activation using my Yaesu FT-1DR and a half-wave vertical antenna. I had my 3-element 2m yagi with me but I didn’t deploy it. I figured that my ability to contact folks on 2m fm would be limited more by who happens to be monitoring…signal strength would not be a major factor.
It was cold at the top and I was glad that I packed my gloves, hat and a decent jacket. I made five contacts by calling on 146.52 MHz. Corbet’s Cabin at the top of the tram offers basic food and drinks and warm place to sit.
The tram ride was quite enjoyable with good views of the Jackson Hole area. However, this may go down in history as my most expensive SOTA activation.
73, Bob K0NR
Can you tell me a little bit about that half wave antenna? Is it homebrew?
I’m tempted to start trying to activate some of the summits around here, although the highest peak in NY is barely above the town at the foot of Rendezvous Mountain.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for the question. The antenna I used is the MFJ-1714 as described in this blog posting at HamRadioSchool.com:
http://www.hamradioschool.com/a-half-wave-antenna-for-your-2-meter-handheld-radio/
These antennas will not take much abuse and I did manage to break it on this trip. I’ll be ordering a replacement but I have my eye on the Smiley antenna version which flexes at the bottom. See http://www.smileyantenna.com/product-p/14680.htm
73, Bob
Thanks Bob! It looks like either antenna would work with my FT-817 or one of my handhelds for SOTA.
I’m also on the hunt for a 2M half wave vertical for my motorcycle. But that’s a pretty demanding application and I don’t think a handheld antenna would survive for long.
You are correct, the halfwave HT antennas are not sturdy enough for use on a vehicle.
Hi Bob, it was great to work you on the HF NPOTA activation that followed. I only later noticed from the spot list that you had done a SOTA activation as well. Busy day! I assume the HF was back down off the peak, in the relative comfort of your car?
I ended up doing three NPOTA activations in the past week: Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Rocky Mountain National Parks. I’ll be posting some information on that in the next few days.
Bob K0NR