Today (July 30, 2025) I was able to operate from Ślęża – the summit is 717,5 m a.s.l. There is some information about this summit in Wikipedia (read about Ślęża). It is not very high but quite impressive as the elevation from surrounding areas is about 500 meters.
Location
On the map below you can see an areas marked in darker green colour. It marks the borders of the SPFF-0132 Ślężaski Ladscape Park (also POTA PL-1666). But there are more attractions than just one SPFF/POTA in that area – as you can see below:
There are free summits valid for SOTA. They are:
- Ślęża – 717,5 m a.s.l.; SOTA SP/SP-001
- Radunia – 573 m a.s.l; SOTA SP/SP-002
- Szczytna – 466 m a.s.l.; SOTA SP/SP-003
Additionally the area of the Summit of Ślęża is a separate natural reserve area: Mount Ślęża Natural Reserve. It is marked with the SPFF-0930 (and POTA-1669).
As you can see there is another natural reserve area very close to Ślęża. It is SPFF-1273 (POTA PL-1672): Nature and Landscape Complex “Skalna”. The name “Skalna” can be translated as “Rocky”. The name comes from the natural character of the area: a lot of rocks and big stones all around.
Getting There
The area is located very close to Wrocław. It is like a 30 minutes drive to get there by car from the southern districts of Wrocław.
The most popular place to park the car is Przełęcz Tąpadła (Tąpadła Pass). There are three big parkings there and it is the starting point for many tourist trails. There are a lot fo cars there even during the week. It is a very popular place for family trekking trips, mountain running and cycling.
I also parked my car there. I marked the parking with (P) on the map.
Trekking to Ślęża
I was on Ślęża many times. This time I choosed the yellow trail – the easiest and the fastest one. I always use Nordic walking sticks – it was the case this time also. I treated this trekking as a prefromance training. So it was quite a fast walk.
Below you can see the trace of my trekking. It can’t be seen on the screenshot but I’ve done this route twice as I ued exactly the same trail. I marked the places I operated from.
Ślęża (SPFF-0930, POTA-1669, SOTA SP/SP-001)
Operating from Ślęża was very comfortable. There is a tourist shelter with tables and benches there. I threw the wire (about 20 meters) over the trees with a weight and connected it to an EndFed balun. I was using my Xiegu G90 (20 Watts) powered with a LiFePO4 battery.
I spotted myself in the cluster and started on 40 meters. I was logging on paper.
First QSO: 16:12 UTC, last QSO: 16:44 UTC. I made CW 46 QSOs. 42 QSOs on 40 meters, 4 QSOs on 20 meters. I was trying also 80m but with no luck.
SPFF-1273 (POTA PL-1672): Nature and Landscape Complex “Skalna”
AFter finishing of my operation from Ślęża I quickly dismantled my station, packed everything and started my trekking trip to SPFF-1273. It is necessary to go down a little and then to go up. As I mentioned “Skalna” can be translated as “Rocky”. Below you can see why:
Of course I used the same setup and the same method to install the antenna. And here is my “Rocky” ham-shack.
It was a quick operation. I was standing this time. It was very short operation. Only ten minutes. First QSO: 17:30 UTC, last QSO: 17:40 UTC. I managed to work 20 stations on 40 meters, CW.
Going Back
I quickly dismantled my “Rocky” station and started my trekking down to the parking. It started to get dark at about 17:50 UTC. I wanted to overcome the rocky part of the trail in daylight (sunset was at 18:40 today). So again it was fast trekking.
I reached the parking site without any problems. I tried to operate on 40 meters from there just to activate the SPFF-0132/PL1666. Unfortunately nobody called me. Przełęcz Tąpadła (Tąpadła Pass) is not the best place for radio operation – high hills all around. I was not even able to spot myself in the cluster – no internet/mobile accees there (beautiful place).
Thanks for all QSOs. Of course all contacts will be uploaded to WWFF, POTA and SOTA databases. I will upload my logs to the LoTW also.
