Going round in circles was something we managed to do in both the driving and the walking on our most recent activation.  A circular drive and a circular walk to keep everyone happy!

Sunday 3rd July 2005 began with sparkling sunshine and blue skies.  "We ought to do something outdoors as a family today" said my wife Marianne.  Knowing that my instinctive thought to suggest "Shall we go and activate a SOTA summit?" would be greeted with slightly less enthusiasm than that held by its originator, I mentioned the banker - "Picnic"! This was agreed in principle; so far so good.  Then came the next prompt - "Where?".  Like Alistair Campbell trying to leak out some bad news unnoticed, I muttered "Moel Famau Country Park", praying that the first two words didn't arouse suspicion.  They did, but I was able to assure Marianne that it was a nice short and fairly level touristy type walk.  The go-ahead was granted, providing I went to Focus to get a new run for Liam's rabbits while she prepared the picnic.  Deal.

After going through Knutsford, I asked the family "A556 or M56"?  The A556 - Northwich by-pass - won by two votes to one, with one abstention.  We picked up the A55 and then the A494, making a couple of chaser contacts along the way - M0LKB/P on the Old Man of Coniston G/LD-013 and G4KKI/P on Whernside G/NP-004.  I also heard, but didn't work G3WGU/P on Gummers How G/LD-050.  Just after Loggerheads, we turned right for Moel Famau Country Park.  At the top car park, there wasn't anywhere that Marianne fancied bedding down for the picnic, so we backtracked to the lower car park and ate there.  During lunch, I worked Charlie GW0PZO/P up on our destination for a couple of chaser points.  A feast of tuna & sweetcorn and beef salad rolls, crisps, bananas, chocolate caramel digestive slices and a bottle of white Californian Chardonay later, we returned to the top car park, paid the £1 parking fee (to add to the £1 paid in the lower car park which was operated by a barrier, so the fee was non-transferable), and set off up the Offa's Dyke Motorway to the summit.

There were hundreds of people out on this path, despite the strong cold wind blasting in off the Irish Sea.  Views to Snowdonia were reasonable, but more impressive was the view over the Dee Estuary, Wirral, Mersey and Liverpool City from the summit.  As we neared the end of our ascent, Marianne had a grumble about me pretending that the walk was "level". I protested my innocence and suggested she accompany me up the Old Man of Coniston G/LD-013 or Yr Aran GW/NW-019 if she thought the Moel Famau path was steep.  She was having none of it, and insisted the she sit down for a rest, despite the crowds of toddlers and elderley folk skipping past.  I continued to catch Jimmy up at the summit, where I viewed the impressive installation of the man himself, and soon I could hear the faint familiar tones of "CQ contest, and also Summits On The Air"!

Charlie GW0PZO/P was in his tent beneath a large beam upon a tall mast, and participating in the Backpackers Contest.  I had been well aware of his intentions for some time, thanks to SOTAwatch, and hence had carried up the fishing pole in addition to the rest of the gear.  My first call on the surpisingly vacant frequency of 7.097 MHz brought Steve G1INK/P on the Old Man of Coniston G/LD-013 for an HF S2S, and this was followed by a station in Cheshire.  Then I struggled to make further contacts, but the clock struck 4pm local, and Charlie emerged from his tent.  I checked with him that he had indeed finished, and tried a call on 2m FM on the handy.  Marianne and Liam had started their descent by this stage, so I needed to crack on.

2m brought in Roger MW0IDX/P, who kindly offered to spot me on 7.089 MHz, and I almost immediately worked Brian MW0YDX, who must have noticed the spot on the SOTA website hi!  Then followed Richard G3CWI, but conditions and QRM deteriorated during this contact, and it was a job getting my report through.  I did get it through as "di-di-di-di-dah dah-dah-dah-di-dit", but Richard droped the bombshell that this technique did not allow me to enter it on the SOTA Database as a CW contact!  Back on 2m with the handy - I didn't dare allow myself the luxury of time to set up the SOTA Beam with Marianne and Liam long gone - I got John GX0OOO/P on Great Whernside G/NP-008, and a handful of other stations.  After much perseverance, I made the contact with that old pessimist G4BLH, who must be getting the message now that I won't leave him alone until I have given him the points!  I did hear Marjorie M3ULV call in too, but I couldn't find her again after working the mini-pile-up that had assembled.

We packed away on a suddenly deserted summit, a complete contrast from the crowds only quarter of an hour previous. I had another chinwag with Charlie, and we went our separate ways.  Charlie returned back down the Offa's Dyke Path, whereas Jimmy and myself set off down another track by taking a compass reading for the lower car park, where Marianne and Liam were going to drive down and pick us up. On the way down, I worked Steve M0SGB/P on Pendle Hill G/SP-005 for the last couple of chaser points of the day.  Despite a couple of hellishly steep loose stony sections, this was a very quick route down, despite being marginally longer and a further 100m+ to descend.  Best of all, it completed our first ever (almost) circular walk on Moel Famau.  Just as we reached Marianne and Liam in the car, we heard another car's horn blast "dah-di-dah-dit dah-dah-di-dah", and we waved to the waving Charlie as he sped past.  We dutifully called in at We Three Loggerheads for a pint, and drove home on the M56 to complete a circular drive to match the circular walk.

This was a nice day out, and with a further three points going begging, I feel it would be most improper not to do it again in December!  Many thanks to the following stations worked as indicated with 4 watts on 2m FM or 5 watts on 40m SSB: