Despite 18 years as a SOTA activator that have won him at least two high-ranking awards for operating in the German Alps, Dzianis, DD1LD, had some unfinished business. This month, it stood before him, all two thousand four hundred and thirty metres of it above sea level: the Tiefkarspitze, the single summit in the SOTA DL Association that had gone unactivated in the 20 years since SOTA-DL was established in Germany.

His harrowing mountain ascent on July 18th was punctuated by intense rockfall - not unexpected but nonetheless terrifying. As he wrote in his blog, he was compelled to ask: [quote] "Why do I keep doing this to myself?" [endquote]

Still, he made it to the summit where he soon logged his first QSO with his good friend Mario, DJ2MX. Then came the pileups. Finally, he went QRT after one more QSO: another close friend, Andy, DL2DVE. With 66 in his log, he had transformed that lonely, daunting rocky outpost into a shared space among friends. Dzianis, as solo activator, had turned a personal challenge into a triumph for himself and the DL-Association.

As he wrote in his blog: [quote] "I let my feelings run free." [endquote]