Day Activation at JL Lester WMA K-3756

Going with my goal to improve my CW skills I set out this morning to a nearby WMA for a POTA activation. It is the closest one to my house but it is still 30 miles away. CW is a participation sport, and like many things, in order to get better, you must practice. One of the things I have done was to sign up for a CW class in this case CW Innovations. One of the things CWI stresses is getting on the air and making contacts. I believe in that, and part of me joining CWI was forcing me to practice what I preach. The course is 10 weeks long starting next Monday. It is my plan to try to get out and make one day activation a week along with practicing from home. I like to activate but sometimes I get distracted at home and other things take precedence. By setting a schedule, I hope to break the pattern.

The JL Lester is a small WMA and I chose the less populated parking area. It’s a quiet place. My antenna was my 28.5’ random wire. It’s the easiest antenna I have to set up. It takes a few minutes and puts no wires in the trees nor holes in the ground. A win-win for everyone. The antenna is a permanent resident of my truck. The radio for this trip was my Elecraft KX2. It is a perfect radio for a short duration activity. Hook up the antenna and plug the paddle into the radio; I’m in business.

I was set up by mid-morning and thought I would start on 40 meters. Forty was already dead so I moved up to 20 meters and jackpot! I had quite a flurry of activity. I kept my speed at 18 wpm. Slow enough for those still around 15-16 wpm but fast enough for zippy guys. It can get hard to adjust your speed. I often falter when going from 16 wpm to 22 wpm. The band was in okay shape. There was a bit of QSB which made hearing some of the stations a little difficult. There was also some pile-up QRM. I really prefer it if everyone would send their call once and let me grab one. Sending a call 2-3 times slows down the whole process. I have to wait for everyone to stop sending before I can respond. Like today, most times, I stay on long enough to work everyone in the pile-up. Today I stayed on until no one was calling and then went QRT.

It was a pretty fast run, I made 32 contacts in less than 50 minutes. Could have made a few more if…

Below is a QSO map and a short video describing the activation. Thanks to all for your patience. I had some trouble with a few call signs due to QSB and a short between the ear cups. Hope to see hear you out there next week. 72 — Scott