Mesh deployment in the Mojave Desert

Last weekend, the LandOps Amateur Radio Club conducted a exercise in the Heart of the Mojave Desert near Cadiz, CA.  In addition to the usual VHF and HF nets, we set up an AREDN mesh network.  On Friday, we set up nodes at net control and at a trailhead about 11 miles away; we had 100% LQ and NLQ.  The node at net control consisted of a 5GHz Nanobeam on a 20 foot Harbor Freight flagpole.  The node at the trailhead consisted of a 5GHz Nanobeam dtdlinked to a 2.4GHz Rocket with a 2G13 omni antenna.

On Saturday morning we successfully tested VOIP calls between the two sites then we moved the node from the trailhead to a laager area.  After the move, we found that a hill blocked the connection to net control, so we had to move it again.  Since this was the fourth time we set up a site in two days, we were getting pretty good at deployment and I decided to make a short video.  Please look at it and feel free to make suggestions on how we might improve the process

https://youtu.be/r0b9GaL1nNk
​
This is the finished result:


​