SOTA Trip Report: W6/NS-140 Andrews Peak — 5/19/2026

 I had studied W6/NS-140 Andrews Peak last year and thought it was doable for me as a backpacker, so I planned a 5-day trip from Hetch Hetchy.

I started on May 17 and arrived at Hetch Hetchy around 10am. The weather was perfect. I passed the dam, then the roaring Wapama Falls, and continued ascending toward Tiltill Valley.

Tiltill Meadow was flooded around ankle deep, and that made my boots wet for the whole trip. The campsite was very nice.

On the second day, I kept moving toward Jack Main Canyon. The flooded meadow was not easy to navigate. Right before I decided to give up, I found the trail again. Beyond Tiltill Valley, the trails were less maintained, but with help from Google Maps and Earthmate, I was able to stay found the whole trip.

I walked slowly to avoid triggering altitude sickness, and it worked. I only met one hiker during the whole day. I stopped around 6pm and camped next to a small creek.

The third day was my activation attempt day. I hiked about one mile to the place where I had planned to leave the trail. While ascending the peak, I made a very important choice: I saved waypoints along the way. I do not think I would have been able to descend safely without those waypoints.

On the way up, I met a bear mom with two cubs. I felt sorry to disturb their otherwise peaceful morning.

Andrews Peak is surrounded by a few other peaks and only opens clearly to the south. For the antenna, I bound two hiking sticks together to make a short mast for my EFHW. I managed to make 7 QSOs on CW and 1 QSO on FT8. All contacts were on 20m. I also tried 40m, 30m, 17m, and 15m on CW, but did not get any replies.

After the successful activation, I hiked back to camp. I had lost my appetite, so I just laid down and slept.

The next morning, my appetite came back. After a good breakfast, I decided to hike out. It was about 17 miles, but mostly downhill. The views were incredible.

This was the first activation of W6/NS-140, and it was a very rewarding one. It was not an easy trip, especially with the flooded meadows, less maintained trails, and off-trail summit approach, but careful pacing and saving waypoints made it manageable. I am very glad I was able to complete the activation safely.

Off-Trail WayPoints:

WayPoint[0]: [38.044816, -119.666966]
WayPoint[1]: [38.044783, -119.667566]
WayPoint[2]: [38.044666, -119.667916]
WayPoint[3]: [38.044499, -119.668066]
WayPoint[4]: [38.044466, -119.668733]
WayPoint[5]: [38.044416, -119.669450]
WayPoint[6]: [38.044000, -119.670400]
WayPoint[7]: [38.043750, -119.671383]
WayPoint[8]: [38.043683, -119.672016]
WayPoint[9]: [38.043433, -119.671900]
WayPoint[10]: [38.043249, -119.672366]
WayPoint[11]: [38.043216, -119.672516]
WayPoint[12]: [38.042850, -119.673233]
WayPoint[13]: [38.042899, -119.673650]
WayPoint[14]: [38.042583, -119.674266]
WayPoint[15]: [38.042316, -119.674616]
WayPoint[16]: [38.042000, -119.675166]
WayPoint[17]: [38.039633, -119.679049]