Dum-eye-at..
I pronounced it it wrong last time I paid a visit..
I’m lucky it doesn’t use its Scots Gaelic name..it should though, I think, Dumyat is Dun Mhead (Fort of the Maeatae)… click on the link HERE.
Forth Valley from the ascent
I did the ascent ‘directissmo’ from Blairlogie in ’19 but this time, I took the tourist route from above Bridge of Allan on the Sheriffmuir road would suffice, and after one mile ascent of rough narrow single track road, not for the faint hearted driver. I know how broken the road surface is as I descended it on a return from Sheriffmuir on my bike earlier this year. We arrived.
Looking W from the summit
A sunny, brisk autumn day and the hill was busy going by the car parking areas already being full.
I had enjoyed the Meikle Bin trip the previous Saturday so this time I decided to bring the Yaesu FT 817 out of retirement. I was more prepared this outing, the rucksack and equipment checked over just before leaving, in case…..
Looking along the valley
I had ‘declared’ for lunchtime so I headed up the well maintained path which was busy with people heading in all directions. 55 mins later, I was at the summit, the obligatory visit to the trig point before choosing a spot out of a chill north breeze, I could see extensive views of the Forth Valley stretching out to the three Forth bridges. Stirling Castle and the Wallace Monument were nearby.
I grabbed a bite to eat first, then I set up the mast and the beam, pegged it out this time round, pointed it southwards and listened.
Summit and beacon
Rob YTS was somewhere to the N of me on Beinn an-t Sidhein just NW of Loch Lubnaig so first contact was in the log, I had a listen and could hear a station 5ZX along with FTU on the summit of Scafell Pike in the Lake District, a few calls and I got through, it could have been a losing battle as the highest peak in England could be inundated with folk calling them. Details were exchanged and it was off to call local.
First to respond was Christine YMM and Ken AXY in Edinburgh, a station in nearby Clackmannan area IIO and I had a quick chat before I spoke with David HWZ this side of Glasgow, no enhanced propagation this week.
Stirling
Regular chaser Steve XPZ called in from Greenock, Robert GUF from Biggar with Paddy JOX in Knightwood next.
I decided to give 2m SSB a try and had two contacts, Rab RWJ in Motherwell and PKL in Edinburgh, I should have changed antenna polarisation but hey ho!.
A bite to eat and a last call. speaking with locals Jim VGR and Jonathon OKG just literally at the bottom of the hill before a last call and longer chat with another local, Hughie UYE.
15 contacts, happy with that from a hill of 418m ASL, I knew another station had declared for Benvane to the far west so I waited in the sunshine but nothing heard, it was time to head home, after an organised pack of the bag and I called home and arranged that I’d just walk down into main part of Bridge of Allan to avoid any possible chaos at the car parking areas. It was chaos, cars parked everywhere..
90 mins later I was waiting on Katie.
I needed coffee.
Easy to activate, it’s the logging afterwards, one in my so called paper log done on the computer Libre Office, an electronic logging program (Log4OM v2) and an upload to the SOTA database.
Dumyat contacts
One point added to my SOTA activation total…
The SOTA system of scoring uses the ‘Marilyn hill tables’ and points are from 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 depending on height.
For example Dumyat at 418m is 1, Meikle Bin at 570m is 2, The Cobbler(Ben Arthur) is 4 pts, Ben Lomond at 974m is 6, Cruach Ardrain at 1046m is 8 pts and finally Ben Nevis at 1344m is 10..
These are just examples of some better known hills.
Some tough one pointers out there in Scotland, this one was easy.
Next hill was to be easier.
aching legs and CQ 