Sgorr Dhonuill - GM/WS-057 SOTA (2022)

Summits on the Air Activation Report

Activation Date: Wednesday 23rd March, 2022.
Activator(s): Richard M1HAX.
Summit: Sgorr Dhonuill, Western Scotland, Scotland.
Summit ID: SOTA reference GM/WS-057 (8 points).
Summit Height: 1001m elevation, 244m prominence.
Summit Location: Lat./Long. 56.65050, -5.19776. Maidenhead Grid IO76jp.
Also Activated: GM/WS-052.
Distance: 16.1km travelled with 1350m of ascent.
Difficulty: SAC Grade T4 / Grade 1 Scramble.^(?)
Elapsed Time: 8hr 15m (incl. operating and other summit(s) on the same hike).
Weather: 16°C, gentle breeze, sunny.
Radio Equipment: Yaesu FTM100D, MFJ-1714, Zippy 4200mAh 4S LiFePo4.
Callsign Used: MM1HAX/P.
Contacts: 7 (2m FM).

Trip Notes

Sgorr Dhonuill, standing at 1001 metres, is the second major peak in the Beinn a’Bheithir massif near Ballachulish in Western Scotland. Often known in English as “Donald’s Peak,” it forms a natural horseshoe with its neighbour Sgorr Dhearg. Geologically similar to its counterpart, it consists primarily of granite that was intruded into the surrounding schists during the Caledonian orogeny. Its more westerly position offers exceptional panoramic views across Loch Linnhe towards Ardgour and the mountains of Moidart beyond.

Having already summited Sgorr Dhearg earlier in the day, we continued our horseshoe route by following the connecting ridge that links these two magnificent Munros. As we traversed, I continued to regret the decision to carry winter climbing equipment - crampons and ice axe - which the unseasonably warm conditions had rendered unnecessary.

During our traverse, we encountered a gentleman who had travelled from Edinburgh by bus specifically to climb these mountains. He shared valuable local knowledge, suggesting an alternative descent route from the col heading south instead of through the forest to the north, which he warned was difficult terrain. Appreciating this advice, I consulted my map to revise our return route while we continued towards our second summit objective.

Following the obvious ridge route, we made steady progress towards Sgorr Dhonuill. The ascent was straightforward with some easy scrambling near the very top, where the ridge narrows briefly before opening onto the summit plateau. The excellent weather conditions - clear skies, gentle breeze, and warm sunshine - made the experience very enjoyable.

Upon reaching the summit, I set up my radio equipment once again for another SOTA activation. This proved to be the most successful 2-metre FM operation of my Scottish trip, with seven QSOs logged in just over ten minutes. The challenging aspect was signal propagation: I found myself standing on rocks and holding the mobile rig aloft to achieve sufficient range. Rather than my usual paper logging method, I recorded contacts using a voice recorder, owing to a lack of free hands

The contacts included several Scottish stations and, notably, a satisfying summit-to-summit (S2S) connection with Alan MM0VPM/P who was operating from GM/SS-171. Stuart MM7SWM in Glasgow provided another solid contact, continuing his role as a reliable station throughout my week in Scotland. The varied signal reports, ranging from 5/7 down to 4/2, highlighted the challenging nature of VHF propagation in mountainous terrain, but the summit’s prominent position ultimately allowed for a successful activation.

After completing our radio operations, we retraced our steps to the bealach (col) between the two summits and began contouring across somewhat uneven ground towards the forest, following the advice from our Edinburgh acquaintance. Eventually, we picked up a path that guided us through the forest and back to our starting point at the Co-Op car park in Ballachulish. Interestingly, we encountered the gentleman from Edinburgh again, who was still waiting for his bus home after two hours, providing an opportunity for another conversation about Scottish hill walking.

Overall, the day proved highly successful with two SOTA activations completed in magnificent weather conditions. While we didn’t experience the winter mountaineering we had anticipated, the spectacular views, enjoyable scrambling, and productive radio operations more than compensated.

Photos

Below are some photographs taken during my activation of Sgorr Dhonuill on Wednesday 23rd March, 2022.

Walking Route for Sgorr Dhonuill

The interactive map below shows my GPS track taken to the SOTA activation zone for Sgorr Dhonuill. Note that this summit was activated as part of a multi-summit hike and the map below shows the full route taken on the day. The GM/WS-057 summit area is marked on the map with a blue pin icon.

You can download the route shown above as a GPX file suitable for use with most GPS devices. This file is provided for information only, to support your own walk planning and research (it may contain navigation errors, detours and/or safety hazards). The route downloads provided here are governed by the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.

Station Log

I logged the following 7 amateur radio contacts operating as MM1HAX/P from GM/WS-057 Sgorr Dhonuill on Wednesday 23rd March, 2022 (all times shown are UTC):

In the notes field I will usually log the other operator’s name and the signal report they provided. In accordance with the Summits on the Air rules, I do not make a log entry where a complete exchange of callsigns and signal reports was unsuccessful.

Additional Information

The following resources may be helpful to walkers, mountaineers and SOTA activators interested in Sgorr Dhonuill:

• Sotl.as Summit Page for GM/WS-057 Sgorr Dhonuill.
• Hill Bagging UK Summit Page for Sgorr Dhonuill.
• Google Maps Page for Sgorr Dhonuill.
• Wikipedia entry for Sgorr Dhonuill.
• 360° Panorama near summit of GM/WS-057 Sgorr Dhonuill.

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