Well fresh off the Frozen Knob trail and having just finished off a Cliff Bar I was ready for the second Summit of the day. Wilson Mountain is very close to my Cabin. The trail head is on Doublehead Gap Road about a half mile from the turn off to Springer Mountain. There is parking for maybe two cars there. A fiberglass trail sign is in front of a large burm. Once over the burm you can get going on the trail. There was some really nice looking ground cover at the start of the trail. Several places along the trail are faint and some look like an ATV trail. You travel probably 1/2 to 3/4 mile in a bottom flat area full of white pines and some hemlock trees. It is thick in parts with small scrub. There is a section you have to bushwhack about 200′ to the ridgeline where you pick up a second trail. From there you are ascending the rest of the trail. It is fairly steep all the way. There are a few side trails. Without studying the area and keeping your whit as well as having a tool like All Trails or a GPS you could easily get disoriented. I managed to stay on track. This hike was about a mile and a half each way with around 750′ elevation gain. I heard what sounded like some pretty large game rustling around. As I was on the final push I saw four of the largest Turkeys I have ever seen way off in the distance. I also saw a property corner marker just off the trail sticking out of the ground on a pipe about 18″ long. At the summit I changed into dry shirts/tops and got the antenna set up. I had no issues making contacts and was having fun. I only managed to operate on the 40 meter band and made 13 contacts. Those big turkeys made their way up pretty close to me while I was activating. They sounded like a bear in the woods they were so loud. They almost looked like ostriches they were so big. Daylight would fade and with the large ridge to the west and the thick woods it would be darker quicker on the trail. I set out at a quick but safe clip to get back before dark. I scratched a good marking on the ground where I needed to bushwhack back down to the lower trail. Once I was on the lower trail I knew I was good to go. I was tired from the long day, but excited to have a good wintertime activation with snow under my belt. My total Summits On The Air (SOTA) points are at 309. I am in third place after less than a year of activating. The two guys ahead of me have been at it for years. I will have been at it a year this coming January 29th. It has been a lot of fun. Can’t wait to get back on the trail!
Sorry, only a few pictures. Click here to check them out