Work brought me to Wellington for a few days so I thought I would add some extra time in to experience some of the local summits. Boulder Hill ZL1/WL-118 was first up, on my way through Upper Hutt. Unfortunately the views were obscured by low cloud and fog so the scenic photos are limited. However the walk up was relatively easy with the cool breeze that Wellington is well known for.
There is not a lot of natural structures to tie a dipole to so bringing a pole to this one is probably a good idea. I started out on 14 MHz and was chased by Gerard Tony and Paul from VK land. After a few missed attempts I was finally able to exchange signal reports with NQ7R Thomas in Arizona. I dropped down to 7 MHz and made contact with John and Jackie in Auckland. Unfortunately attempts by closer stations on 40 or 80 didn’t make it. However I did work Ben ZL4BEN on VHF. Ben is new to SOTA and I hope he will continue with the enthusiasm he has set off with.
Details
Summit – ZL1/WL-118 Boulder Hill
Height –445 m
Access – Via Kaitangata Cres, Kelson.
Nominal time to summit – 45 minutes walk from Kaitangata Cres.
Mobile and internet coverage from the summit – 3g coverage on Spark and Vodafone.
Summit Marker – Boulders.
Land Access Permission – Not required – public land.
