Well when we started not much of a signal was heard, so we really didn't have a bearing to go on except one that Scott had given us. Scott radioed back to the start that bearings could be heard at another location. When we got there, there was a signal, but it was almost uncopyable. After conferring with others at that location, all of a sudden up comes the signal by about 14.3db, enough so it could be heard without SSB. Now we could get all the bearings we needed. It looked like the bearings went to southeastern San Diego County. So we headed for the coast hwy to get down there.

Once underway I was evaluating my new auto attenuator (more about this later). Things where looking good, signal could be heard most everywhere, nice weather, cool looking girls near the beach communities, car running good, and the new attenuator doing it's thing. When we got to our secret get a bearing from here place, we found that the bearing had changed enough to do a re-think of our intended destination. It now looked like Margarita Peak. Know that spot! Can close our eyes and still get there.

Well up the 74 we got several more bearings on T1, which confirmed the location. We then turned off the 74 on to the paved road that passes by the hang glider launch point. We stopped because we now could hear several more T's, T3 and T4 along with T1. We plotted all these bearings and noticed that T4 and T3 seemed to be coming from the radio site on Elsinore Peak. Off we go, right pass T3, we arrive at the radio site and realize that T3 is back behind us, how did that happen?

So back we go, when we get there we see that Jippy is there all ready. We talk with Jippy tell him some lies, and sign in (I think Jippy got some video of us signing in). He left and we took a bearing on T4, still to the radio site.

Off we go to the radio site and the best bearing we get, seems to be pointing up there. We drive up and find that we can not drive to the top as you could before. So here we are swearing at Doug for putting the T in an area that we can't legally get to. So we spent about one hour trying to get a bearing with all the de-sensing taking place, so I hiked down the east side of the hill till I was out of range of the radio site and could get a bearing.

About this time a new T came on, it was the voice T; it also seemed to be in the direction of T4 about 88 degrees. It was the stronger of the two signals. We determined that they must be close together. Off the hill we go, we had decided to go for T1, because we knew exactly where it was.

Off we go, about 2 miles down the road to Margarita Peak, we come to Jippy going back up the road, why would he being doing this? Actually he told us he was trying to find T4, but in a T hunt you never believe another hunter, so of course we didn't listen to him. So we continued down the road to M. Peak. I don't remember this road being so good! What happened to the dirt that was here the last time?

Well we finally made it to Margarita Road and started up it, when lo an behold here comes Jippy down the road (how did he get by us? how did he get up to Margarita Peak so quick?) He stopped and conveniently parked so that we couldn't get a bearing on what now was a very strong T voice. We finally got a bearing and found that it crossed the 88 degrees we got from radio site, to a location between the I15 & I215. So now we knew where we where going after finding the T1. Jippy told us more lies and left.

We where hoping that we would get to T1 before the light was gone, but we figured that we had a good 45 minutes to get to the T. Now in our mind we where still trying to figure out how Jippy got by us and got to T1 so fast. We figured that he had to have gone back down a road that went directly down into the houses below the radio site, and came out on Clinton Keith road, finding T4 on the way. That was okay, because we would get T4 on the way to T voice. Now off to Margarita Peak.

All this time I was very interested in how the new auto attenuator was working, not thinking about what it was actually telling us. Needless to say we drove right by T1 on our way to Margarita Peak (we have known for the last 5 hours that it was on Marrgarita Peak!). So after realizing that the signal has been behind us for the last several miles, we turned around and headed back the way we had come to find T1. This is turning into a nightmare! We checked in as darkness was taking over. We headed back down out of that area heading for T voice & T4 on the way.

We bumped into Scott as we came to the paved portion of the road, and Scott gave us some interesting clues. He said that he hadn't seen our calls on any of thesign in sheets he had found. Oh! Thanks Scott for the sales brochure on your new book, what I want to know is it tax deductable?

We just knew that T4 had to be down in the housing development below the ridge route. We decided to turn on the computer now because it was getting dark and there were a million roads through that housing development.

Well we got a good signal from T4 so we chose the shortest way to the T. Needless to say it wasn't in the housing development! So we had to find a way up to the ridge T4 must be on. After going up several dead end roads or gated roads we found one that at least seemed to go up. Note: The Delorme Topo Map doesn't differentiate the different roads, be that they are a dirt path or a freeway. What a terrible road/path! Up we went till we came to a paved road, the signal was coming from the right, so that's the way we went. What is a nice paved road doing up here?

Well we finally found T4 after going by it. Then we took a bearing on now T2 & T voice, they both seemed to be at about 90 degrees, that's good. We decided to go down the paved road instead of down that gawd awful dirt path! We looked at our electronic topo map and saw that there where several ways to get to Clinton Keith Road. Well, we drove about 12 miles and no cut off roads! How can this be? Where in the heck are we? Do we turn around or continue on? Where's my naviguesser anyway?

We decided to turn around and go up about 10 miles to what I thought was a good looking dirt road below the that awful dirt road. When we got there, we discovered ( actually my naviguesser did) that we had been her e earlier in the day when we had left the radio site, what's this? We been driving on the same road that we had been on our way to T1? Oh! I was steamed! I told Steve that if he wanted to hunt anymore he could walk! I can't believe that we spent so much time going around in circles (I guess I'm doing that a lot more lately).

So we went back to 74 and down into Lake Elsinore, got something to eat and went home. Boy! Thanks Doug, did we have a great time or what?
Don KF6GQ