It all started innocently enough. A nice fall weekend at Cheaha State Park to camp and operate my radios. While there I was planning on finishing up my POTA Kilo Award for this park.
Things started happening right at the time I got to the park. My reservation got messed up and I had to to take another campsite. This campsite was further from the comfort station bu at a higher elevation. Even at the higher elevation, cell service was very spotty which added to the wild weekend.
Getting setup, I put up my 28.5′ random wire antenna with a 17’counterpoise. I used a homemade 9:1 UnUn with a 1:1 current balun to feed my IC-7300 (Peter II). In between was my trusty LDG Z-11 Pro. I ran FT8 at 35 watts.
As soon as I started operating, things began to get squirrelly. I normally start on 20 meters in the afternoon and then drop down the bands as night falls often going back to 20 in the late evening. That didn’t happen. I only stayed on 20 for a little while before jumping down to 40, for most of the rest of the evening. This was not going to be a typical campout/POTA Activation. The next day I spent time on 20 but the MUF appeared to be much higher as I crept up the bands all the way to 10 meters. Typically, during an activation, 20 meters is my money band but this time 40 meters was the winner. Of the 465 contacts I made, 197 were on 40m meters and 157 were on 20 meters. I worked 46 states (except AK,CT,ND, and NH) and 15 dx entities. I had some interesting DX. I worked Germany, Portugal, Spain and Canada on 10 meters; Spain, Italy, and France on 12 meters; Samoa, New Caledonia, Ukraine, and Romania on 30 meters; and Hawaii on 40 meters. See the QSO Map.
On my home, when I got back to full service, I started receiving emails from the prior day from the SWPC with a bunch of Geomagnetic Storm Alerts. That explained the wild times on the bands. It was fun trying to figure out were to go to catch the propagation. I did manage to complete 3 Kilo awards before I left the park. The moral of the story is bad solar conditions can bring some surprising DX results. 73 de Scott
October 28, 2023. Today was another work day on the trailer. I didn’t take many pictures as today was a work day and I — worked. We got quite a bit accomplished. The roof was washed in preparation to reseal it. The ceiling was insulated and furring strips were put up. The furring strips will be used when we hang 1/4″ plywood for the ceiling. One of the final acts of the day was to insulate the rear ramp. Our goal is to be able to use the trailer by Winter Field Day. Once we get the ceiling up, we will be almost there.
The next steps include installing the Split AC system. A countertop down one side of the trailer, running electric and coax to the operating stations (approximately 4) with outside hook-ups, installing lighting, painting, and applying sound-deadening materials. We want to be able to operate all stations with a minimal amount of audio interference.
It’s really a fun project. We are fortunate to have a large talent pool to help pull everything together even when planning is sometimes “on the go”. When the project is finished, we will have a trailer set up and ready to go for FunComm and EmComm. Field Days to Emergency Communications all in one package.
The West Georgia Amateur Radio Society (WGARS) is a great group. We like to do three things: 1) talk on the radio, 2) get together, and 3) eat. We did all three this past weekend during the Fall Support Support Your Parks on the Air weekend (POTA). We like to do about 4 gatherings a year namely Field Day, Winter Field Day, and the Spring and Fall Support Your Parks on the Air Weekends.
This fall we went a little uptown and rented one of the pavilions at Cheaha State Park (K-1037). This gave us shelter from the elements, power for the slow cookers, and plenty of benches to set up on. There were restrooms nearby with running water. Cheaha Mountain is the tallest point in Alabama and our pavilion was just a little down from the summit.
The weather was perfect. In the morning it was in the upper 40’s rising to the mid 70’s by afternoon. As I said earlier, we like to eat. There was an abundance of food, we had Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, BBQ, baked beans, buns, garlic bread, dunkin’ donuts, coffee, soda, and I am sure I missed a few. The bottom line is we could have fed half again as many and still had leftovers. There were over a dozen of us there.
We set up three radio stations. We had a Yaesu FT-991A and an Icom IC-7300. They were running FT8, CW, and SSB. I was running an Elecraft K3(s)/10 on FT8. My original plan was to run FT8 until it got warmer out and then switch to CW. However, we had a group gather around my station and we were doing what we like to do, kibitz and socialize. With FT8 I can run the radio and join in the conversation. We had a lot of fun chatting with one another. By the end of the day, I worked 40 states and 4 countries for a total of 120 contacts. The DX were Argentina, Canada, Ecuador, and Spain. States covered all 4 corners and in between. Not bad for 10 watts!
I had the pleasure of meeting Ward W4RE. Ward is a Vietnam Veteran and what made our meeting special is that we both served with the 101st Airborne Division. We were a generation apart with me serving between wars, but anyone who has served with the 101st understands that it is not a cakewalk; we had an immediate bond. Like me, Ward is a CW op albeit, much better than I. I am hoping that during one of our future meets, Ward and I can run a CW station together.
This was the trial run for my K3(s). I upgraded my K3 to a K3S. It is a QRP radio with a max power of 12 watts. The difference between 10 watts and 100 watts is about 1.7 S-units, a small change for CW. I operated the radio pretty much the whole time I was out there and it performed flawlessly.
While my K3 was in the shop for a repair and a going over, I put my name on the list for a KX2. There is about a 3-4 month wait for them and if things didn’t work out I could always cancel the order. When I received the invoice for the KX2, I asked my wife Mary K4SEZ about it, thinking it was worth a shot and as I was getting ready to cancel the order; she got on the computer and checked the books (she’s an accountant) and said “Happy Retirement”. I was ecstatic. I retire in 54 days and I have already made plans for that little radio. It was a great weekend that was full of surprises. Winter Field Day is right around the corner — can’t wait. 72 de Scott
First off, I managed to work W8S this morning (Wed.) on FT8. I tried CW but they were running about 32 wpm and my best is about 25 wpm. I thought I would give an update on my radios and how I feel about them. Before I go on, my comments and reviews are not deep-dive, technical reviews. They are more of what an average operator might do. Take the radio out of the box, skim through the manual, and use the radio, occasionally referring to the manual when he or she finally gets stumped.
My top radio is still the IC-7610 (Zeus). This is my do-all base radio. I have had this radio since 2018 and it does everything I need it to do. The radio is easy to use with top marks given to ergonomics. It is the radio I use the most in the shack.
My other QTH radio is my FTDX10 (Sheldon). I have had this radio for about a year now. I have a love/hate relationship with this radio. Where the 7610 has the best ergonomics, the FTDX10 has the worst. I have large hands and it is difficult to navigate the controls without careful consideration. The radio does not have auto-notch and the notch /Contour/APF controls are in the lower right-hand corner. It’s hard to get to. The only thing I found that helps is to use the radio with my left hand. Yes, I believe the radio is left-handed. Luckily, it sits to my left in the shack. There are things I like about the radio and I find I use it for casual CW like POTA. One feature I do like is the ability to send CW while in SSB mode. Some of the nets I check into have both CW and SSB check-ins.
The rest of the radios are field radios that I use for EmComm and FunComm. First on the list is actually a pair of IC-7300s (Peter I and Peter II). I’ve had an IC-7300 since 2016. These radios are my rocks. They do everything very well. If I could only have one radio, this would be it. It is the radio I recommend for first-time HF Hams. I have two for EmComm purposes. I have a backup that uses all of the same stuff as the main radio.
I have a new to me Elecraft K3/10 #8640. This was a case of happenstance. I originally had my sights on a KX2, but this opportunity came up in a trade negotiation. Most of my field activations happen while camping or near my vehicle so this works out well. I am calling this one Carlos because it is as smooth as Carlos Santana. It is a great radio; however, it does have an addictive nature similar to buying a vintage car. Money goes in but it doesn’t come out, but you are left with a big smile on your face. I have added the internal ATU and changed the filters to my liking with emphasis on CW. I am in the process of converting the K3/10 into a K3S/10. I haven’t decided if I am going to put the 100-watt amp in it yet.
I have an IC-705 with the AH-705 (Jack). I really enjoy using this radio. I like that its ergonomics are similar to my other Icoms and the radio plays well. I have apps on my iPhone and iPad that connect to the 705 via Bluetooth for logging, CW, and FT8. This means I can bring less stuff with me. I also have the Begali Adventure paddle and the 705 mount for it. It’s a very pleasant radio to use in the field. The AH-705 is a brilliant design. It operates like Icom’s AH-4 tuner, which is a real sleeper. If I don’t bring the AH-705 with me, I can always use my Elecraft T-1.
For my occasional SOTA activations, I can bring the 705 with me but I refer my WA3RNC TR-35 (Penny for Penntek). This is a QRP CW transceiver that operates on 40, 30, 20, and 17 meters. Looking at my POTA stats, these are my most used bands. The radio is lightweight, well-built, and is a joy to use. It makes for a very lightweight SOTA kit.
I have a QRP Labs QMX on order, and last time I checked, my order sequence was in the mid-80s. Maybe I’ll get it for Christmas. This will be a fun radio for SOTA/Hiking POTA activations. I am looking forward to using it.
That’s my radio collection as it stands. Any others I had have either been sold or traded. I am pretty content with what I have. I feel all the boxes have been checked. Hopefully, in the upcoming weeks, I can get back to spending time in the field. in the meantime 73 de Scott
I posted earlier that I was in a radio doldrum. Today I am slowly drifting back to fair skies and wind at my stern. My friend Thomas K4SWL recently posted on his blog a Field Kit Gallery showcasing operators’ various field kits: https://qrper.com/resources/field-radio-kits/ I thought I would post mine.
This is what I typically bring for a SOTA activation. I also have some general outdoor essentials like an iFAK, bug repellent, a compass, water, and of course snacks. For POTA, I am usually in my camper and bring a full-sized radio like my Elecraft K3/10. I also have an IC-705 which I like for those one-day POTA activations. The kit is pretty simple and gets the job done. Here is a list of components.
Also, I decided to take a break from everything else I have been doing and get on the air. I recently got my K3/10 back from the shop and thought I would give it a good workout at home so I wouldn’t have another calamity like I did a few months ago https://kk4z.com/2023/08/06/calamity-on-black-rock-mountain/. I set the radio up in the shack and started to make contacts. I had forgotten how far 10-watts CW can get you with a good antenna. At the home QTH, I run a 270′ OCF dipole with the apex up about 35′. I was hunting POTA activators and found I could work almost everyone I heard. I got as far north as Ontario, Canada, and as far west as TX, MO, and IA. This was still the morning and there weren’t many activators out yet. The K3/10 worked like a champ and purred like a kitten. Not hearing relays click during QSK CW is sublime. With the K3/10 cleared for field use, I have a couple of outings planned for it.
It feels good to be back in the saddle again. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and after being away from amateur radio, even for a short while, I appreciate it all the more. 72 de Scott
For the past month or so I have been in the radio doldrums, A doldrum is a period of stagnation or slump, often doldrum is associated with an area of the ocean near the equator that has little or no wind. Ships were be-calmed.
Radio-wise, I was radio be-calmed starting at the end of August. My wife and I were asked to assist in setting up a command center in Valdosta, GA to organize clean-up efforts after Hurricane Idalia. Valdosta and the surrounding area received significant damage. The command center was a relief effort by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where a large body of manpower along with material to help mitigate the damage was going to arrive in Valdosta, the same weekend I was supposed to to go camping. Instead, I canceled my reservation and assisted at the command center, organizing the relief effort. We set up at one of the church buildings and over the weekend over 300 work orders were completed in and around Valdosta. This could not have been accomplished without a high level of organization.
While be-calmed, an opportunity came up to attend the Georgia Beekeepers Association Fall Conference. As I get closer to retirement, thoughts of having more time to do the things I want abound. Beekeeping has been on the radar and with 6 acres of rural land, this should be very doable. I prefaced the conference by reading Beekeeping for Dummies. I was glad I did. while it didn’t make me an all-knowing, all-seeing bee pro, it did give me enough knowledge to understand many of the topics at the conference as well as giving me the capability to ask questions and understand the answers. I walked away with a lot of information — my brain was tired. I am hoping to have bees by next spring.
Some good news was I got my K3/10 back. I had damaged a filter slightly and the radio came with a few other minor issues. Elecraft fixed and updated the radio as well as tuned it up to meet or exceed factory specs. The repairs cost $310 dollars. Elecraft has a $250 minimum so my blunder cost me $60. Since I bought it used and it was homebuilt, I was going to send it in for a check-up anyhow. I got it home and set it up the way I like it.
I had a campsite reserved for the weekend of the 10/06. However, I was once again double booked, this time to help a couple of families with preparedness. The times they are a changing. Sometimes EmComm, sometimes FunComm. Taking care of friends and family always supersedes FunComm. Instead of canceling the reservation, I moved it to February. I have campsites reserved each month until then. While I missed two camping trips in a row, it is looking like I may be able to get out one or two days this week for a local activation. I’ll keep you posted. Life’s an adventure 72 de Scott
It all started innocently enough. This was my monthly camping trip where I take a weekend and go play radio somewhere. It gives me a chance for some FunComm and in a roundabout way EmComm. This month it was Black Rock Mountain State Park. The highest state park in Georgia. I really like this park and try to come here a couple of times a year. It works really well in the summer months as it is usually cooler here than in other parks. There is also a SOTA summit within the park (W4G/NG-027). I thought I would try both a POTA and a SOTA activation with the bonus that any SOTA contacts can be counted for POTA.
Radios for this weekend were going to be my new to me Elecraft K3/10 and my Penntek TR-35 with an Elecraft T1 tuner for SOTA. It was going to be a nice QRP weekend. Everything was going well until I arrived at my campsite. I got the trailer set up and when I reached for the cooler to start lunch, the cooler wasn’t working. Sigh, I had to troubleshoot the cooler before I could do anything else. I found out it blew a fuse and I didn’t have any spares. Luckily, the stereo circuit uses the same size fuse so I swapped the bad fuse for a good one and all is well. Note to self: Buy spare fuses.
After lunch, I set the K3 up and got ready to activate the park. I had no transmit power on the K3. Not on SSB and not on CW zip, nada, none. I spent the next couple of hours trying to troubleshoot the radio. No luck. Prior to the trip, I did replace some of the filters and added the KAT3 autotuner. I am pretty sure I tested the radio after the work I did. The funny thing is when I hit the auto-tune button, I get 5 watts out to tune the antenna. For CW, when I try to send, the TX led lights, but no output. I monkeyed with it on Friday and Saturday but to no avail. May have to send it in for repair. But wait! there’s more.
Prior to turning in for the night, I managed to sit on my eyeglasses breaking both arms. while my distant vision is pretty good, I need glasses for close-up work. Luckily, I made a few contacts on the TR-35 before the incident. I only made a couple of contacts on Friday due to trying to fix the K3, and made about half a dozen more before turning in and breaking my eyeglasses.
Saturday morning, I planned to hike from my campsite to the summit; however, I needed glasses so I drove to the trailhead which is on the way to town where I can get some readers. I have a pair of sunglasses that have cheaters in them, but they aren’t for extended use. I did use them to make the SOTA activation before heading into town.
The hike from the trailhead to the Tennessee Rock Lookout was about half a mile or so. It was mostly uphill and what I would term a moderate climb.
I set up a vertical antenna from my Frankentenna collection and the fence rail at the site provided a place for my radio, tuner, and battery. I used my flight deck for my N0SA paddles and iPhone. I am trying to get better at logging directly into Hamrs on my phone. Each time I do it I get better. Band conditions were not that good and it was a bit of a struggle to get contacts. Before I left the overlook I had 7 in the log enough for a SOTA activation and seal the deal for the POTA activation. It was a wonderful view of the valley from the overlook. It makes the huffing and puffing uphill worth it.
After coming down off the mountain, I drove into town and picked up a set of readers for my eyes and spare fuses for the camper. When I got back to base camp, I had lunch and tried to work on the K3 some more and yes, it looks like it is still going in for repair. The TR-35 did well for a little no-frills QRP radio. It only has 4 bands 40, 30, 20, and 17, so it’s not the best when the band conditions are up, down, and sideways. It is a great radio for SOTA though. Lightweight, 5 watts, and a decent narrow CW filter. I was glad to have it with me.
I made a total of 16 contacts. I would have liked to have made more, but given my “special” set of circumstances, I was able to complete an activation for SOTA and POTA. Below is a QSO Map courtesy of qsomaps.org and a YouTube Video of the activation. Note: The video did not escape the run of bad luck I had, audio is low.
Stuff happens and even though things didn’t work out the way I had planned, I was still able to make a SOTA and POTA activation. Plus I was able to check into my EmComm net on 40 meters. Every time I go to the field, I learn something new or I discover a weakness in my planning. For FunComm it’s not so bad, but for EmComm, where others may be depending on you, failure should not be an option. Practice makes perfect, or at least better. Till next time. 73 — Scott
I spent part of the Fourth of July weekend at Ft. Mountain State Park. I really like this park. It’s where my wife and I spent our honeymoon many years ago. This time I had a nice drive through campsite. The campsites are located down from the mountain top but I am usually able to get my signal out. Driving up there, the temps were in the upper 80’s but by the time I got to Ft Mountain, the temperature dropped by about 18 degrees. Seems a cold front passed over but then on Saturday afternoon, it made its way back in the form of a squall line. The wind picked up and we had thunderstorms overhead for about an hour or so. I had to lower the antenna and hunker down in the Radio Flyer.
Prior to the storm, the man came around and placed American Flags on the campsite markers. I love seeing our flag especially when the wind stands it up.
I placed a garbage bag over the lowered antenna to prevent water from filling up the fiberglass antenna pole. My antenna goes up and down in less than a minute.
The setup was typical. My homemade 28.5′ Random Wire Vertical with a 17′ counterpoise. The radio this time is my new (to me) IC-7300. I traded the FT-710 for it. Nothing really wrong with the Yaesu, I prefer Icoms. I now have two IC-7300 for EmComm and FunComm. One thing I can do with the Icom that I cannot do with the Yaesu is show all of the meters.
Where this really matters is during digital operation. I can watch Power, ALC, and SWR all at once. With a mode like FT8, the waterfall isn’t important on the radio.
Band conditions were poor with sporadic good moments. I book campsites months in advance so I have to work with what I got. The mode this time was FT8 and the power was in the 40-45 watt range. The IC-7300 doesn’t even get warm. I went QRV at about 1500 hrs local and operated until about 0100 hrs. I get early the next morning and checked into my EmComm net and then back to FT8. Like to check into the EmComm net from a park to give net members the opportunity to work a field station. I operated all day until about midnight local Saturday night. Sunday I packed up and came home.
Overall, I did pretty well. I worked 510 stations (500 for POTA) including 46 States and 11 DX entities. That puts me pretty close to a kilo maybe next time there. here is a QSO Map of the activation. The money bands were 40, 30, and 20 this time around.
Everything worked as advertised and only a few minor glitches. Below is a short YouTube of the activation. 73 — Scott
This weekend I got to participate with my local amateur radio club, the West Georgia Amateur Radio Society (WGARS) for Field Day. This is a great club and every event is fun. It covers a wide variety of activities, including Parks on the Air, Fox Hunts, Balloon releases, Field Day, and Winter Field Day. This year, Field Day was held at the Little Tallapoosa Park located in Carroll County Georgia. We operated as W4F, 5A GA. We did not operate 5 stations all of the time, we padded the number to allow members to bring their own rigs and operate for a short time if they desire.
I decided to make a night of it and brought my micro camper. Because I was in a group setting I set my radio up outside as there were plenty of folks to keep an eye on each other’s equipment. My original intent was to operate FT8 and CW. I have a newly acquired Elecraft K3/10 I wanted to try. However, band conditions were poor, so I relied on my IC-7300 and FT8. The club president tried CW and only made 2 contacts.
Everything worked well. The only glitch was a software one. We networked our computers together with N3FJP’s AcLog for Field Day. The glitch was with the CQ message. I set mine up for CQ FD W4F EM73. It would stay that way until I clicked on an incoming message (red). The FD would change to PACC on its own. I would have to change it back to FD before calling CQ.
I know this wasn’t isolated as I saw other stations from other groups calling CQ PACC. I had to keep an eye on it the whole time I was operating.
How did we do? I think we did okay. Our group is a little more casual than others but, by the time I left by mid-morning Sunday, we were north of 500 contacts. Here is a club QSO map.
I had a good run. I mainly ran FT8 on 20 meters. I ended up with 200 contacts from 38 states and 4 DX entities. The most fun came in the wee hours of the morning when there are DX openings to the west. I was able to make two contacts with Alaska and one with Hawaii. also about the same time I managed a contact to Italy. I didn’t hit the sack until 0400 hrs Eastern.
I was up at 0700 hrs to make the last few contacts. I wanted to pack up a little early before the heat of the day. I had a breakfast of eggs, bacon, OJ, and a pancake in a cup before heading home.
It was a lot of fun. I enjoy field operating and seeing how well my equipment does. What better way to spend a weekend than with friends and fellow amateur radio operators. Below is a short video about the event. 73 – Scott
Over the past week or so I have had a bit of a shake-up. I decided to sell some of my stuff so the line-up is changing. Yesterday, I drove to a friend’s house for a visit. While there I traded my FT-710 for an IC-7300. Yes, I now have two IC-7300s. They are a part of my EmComm package so now my primary and backup field radios are the same. One of the problems I had with the 710, is a needed extra stuff to make it work with my field gear. That and the IC-7300 is easier to use.
I think I said it earlier but the TX-500 is gone and the TR-45L should be leaving soon. The TR-45 wasn’t getting much use because of the IC-705. In their places, I have a QRP Labs QMX and an FX-4CR on order. When I don’t have to pack something like on a SOTA Summit I prefer bigger radios because they are easier to use. To that end, I am currently working on a deal for a QRP K3. It’s kind of a dream radio for me. I am looking forward to getting it.
My friend lives in SC so while I was there I did a quick activation at Chester State Park K-2889. I never did a POTA activation in SC so I wanted to check that box. I didn’t have much time as I drove up and back in one day so the activation was short, just 16 contacts on FT8. I stuck to 20 meters, and I made some decent contacts riding the crest of the QSB. here is a map.
The park is small and a little out of the way. My kind of park. It’s a fairly popular park with POTA enthusiasts, and I can see why. I enjoyed the short time I was there and maybe in the future, I can go back and spend more time. Below is an equally short video on the activation.
KK4Z 