Lake Lyndon with Castle Hill Peak at the rear to the right and Foggy Peak in front of it

Trig M and CB-570 are a rarity among ZL3 summits in that despite them both being over 1100m, you can do them both in one day.  When Geoff ZL3GA suggested I give it a crack, it had the added attraction of being the last weekend you could get activation winter bonus points this year (any hill in ZL3 over 1100m activated between 1 June and 30 September qualifies for 3 additional points).

Trig M summit

I was accompanied by David ZL3DRN who is a new licensee but a very experienced tramper and so not surprisingly keen to learn more about SOTA.  This complemented me well as I am an experienced licensee but a novice tramper!

Banks Peninsula and plains from Trig M

Trig M and the Lyndon Lump are just past Porters Pass near Lake Lyndon, an hours drive west of Christchurch.  The forecast did not bode well with strong Nor-west winds predicted so it was going to be questionable as to whether we could get a pole up to get on HF and so it proved

The Lyndon Lump (foreground) from Trig M

We tackled Trig M first.  This is a very straightforward walk with a steady climb which starts just passed the Porters Pass summit.  The wind picked up as we neared the top and it was blowing very hard once we were there.  We moved down the east side of the hill to avoid the worst of the wind and were rewarded with a nice view of the plains and Banks Peninsula.  Six QSOs on 2m with the local chasers got us both the points.  We did try to rig up an HF antenna but with it being only a metre off the ground we unsurprisingly did not manage to work anyone.  As it was getting really unpleasant we cut our losses and headed back to the car although not before each of us went outside of the activation zone to work the other and claim chaser points.

Halfway up Lyndon Lump. The false summit ahead of us

A ten minute drive to the end of Lake Lyndon saw us at the start of the walk up the Lyndon lump.  The first half of the walk is up a relatively steep four wheel drive track but once we got to the end of the track it got a bit easier.  From there it was up over a false summit with a real summit a few hundred metres further on and the trig visible.  With the strength of the wind we did not even contemplate HF and so were hoping VHF would work.  Unlike Trig M there is no direct line of sight to Christchurch so this was going to be a lot more difficult.  Fortunately Geoff ZL3GA and Geoff ZL3QR came up on 2m although using the rubber duck antenna signals were not good.  We managed to hoist a slim jim antenna a couple of metres off the ground and Geoff ZL3GA reported our signals went from 51 to 56.  Despite that we struggled for takers and only got the requisite four QSOs each due to Geoff ZL3QR’s wife Bev ZL3OV calling us and David and I working each other from outside the activation zone.

It was freezing cold so we headed back down quite quickly once we had the four QSOs.  All up we were only on the summit around 10 minutes in total.  The walk down is quite steep and it took us about as long to get down as it took to get up. 

Despite the wind it was a great day and 14 points for us both in the bag.  Thanks to the chasers!      

Trig M (centre) from the Lyndon Lump

Getting there: Follow State Highway 73 heading west out of Christchurch. Trig M is just past the top of Porters Pass on the left as you head down the hill. Just follow the track to the top. CB-570 is a ten minute drive from there down the hill, with a left turn when you reach the lake. Follow the road around the lake and park by some poplars. The last part of the road in is potholed. Follow an old four wheel drive track up until it runs out and then your nose.

Time to the top: Trig M between an hour and an hour and a half. CB-570 30min to an hour.

Permission: None needed as DOC conservation land

Trig: Yes on both hills.

Cell coverage: Vodafone on Trig M but none on CB-570.

Repeater coverage: The local 705 repeater on Trig M. I forgot to try on CB-570 but not likely.