Top of the news bulletins since New Year 2014 broke has been the weather, specifically the storms and flooding throughout the UK. So when Marianne advised I would be taking Liam away for three days at the start of the year, careful study of the forecasts was required.

       

I calculated that by heading down into Gloucestershire/Bristol on New Year's Day, basing in Minehead on the 2nd, then returning home via the Cotswolds on the 3rd, I could dodge the storms and visit a number of very easy summits. Several of the summits in mind were ones where I would not get too wet as I wouldn't have far to walk from the car, and indeed Liam could wait in the car which would be in eyesight range.

It wasn't a particularly early start on Wednesday 1st January 2014 for I had been gigging with a band the night before for New Year's Eve. After breakfast at Congleton McDonald's, we took the M6, M5 and M50 down to Ross-on-Wye and into the Forest of Dean. First stop therefore was Ruardean Hill G/WB-021, and a 12m Challenge activation right beside the Pan Tod Beacon.

Nine contacts were split between CW and SSB in the ratio 2:1. Exactly the same ratio resulted when analysing the QSOs with the USA and England, the only two DXCCs worked on this activation. It was raining during the activation, which was undertaken from the inside of my bothy bag.  Although it would be dark by the time we got there, the next target was Dundry Down G/SC-010.