As mentioned in previous field reports, my wife and I spent the week of July 7th, 2024, in Wilmington, North Carolina, while our daughters were at summer programs at NCSU and UNCW.
On Sunday, July 14th, we packed our bags and drove to Raleigh where we visited the NC History Museum and NC Museum of Natural Sciences. We were in the midst of a heat wave, so the time spent indoors at the museums was much appreciated.
A beautiful display of vintage radios in the NC History Museum.
I had my Elecraft KH1 packed and planned to activate the State Capitol (US-6852), conveniently located next to the museum parking lots. The State Capitol grounds truly requires a super low-impact radio like the KH1 due to the strong security presence and limited setup space.
Upon arriving at the State Capitol, we found a large gathering (possibly a protest) and sweltering heat (104°F/40°C)! I decided to postpone the activation and instead opted for an early morning activation, the following day, at William B. Umstead State Park, just a ten-minute drive from our hotel.
I checked the park’s website and discovered that the gates opened at 8:00 AM. This was perfect: I could grab breakfast at 6:00 AM, catch up on emails, head to the park, activate until 9:30 AM or so, return to the hotel, and still have enough time for our 11:00 AM Duke University tour. (The reason we spent extra days in the Raleigh/Durham area was so that our daughters could tour NCSU, Duke, and UNC Chapel Hill.)
William B. Umstead State Park (US-2755)
I arrived at the park just a few minutes after the gates opened.
Although I had never been to William B. Umstead State Park, I had studied a map beforehand and knew there was a picnic area accessible from the entrance I chose (the park has multiple entry points, and I selected the one closest to our hotel).
It’s a beautiful park, and the contrast between the morning commuter traffic and the oasis of trees was striking! I parked at the first picnic area I found, grabbed my radio pack, and chose a picnic site.
This early in the morning, the picnic area was deserted – I only saw runners, walkers, and park staff.
Setting up
For this activation, I brought my Penntek TR-45L and paired it with my KM4CFT 30M end-fed half-wave with a 40M linked extension.
Although I found an ideal setup spot, the surrounding trees proved to be a challenge! The branches were either too low or too high. After some effort, I managed to snag a suitable branch with my throw line, deployed the antenna, and was ready to get on the air!
Gear
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Sunday, July 14 finally arrived, a day for which I prepared the past five weeks. It was time for Daisy and the POTA Babe to head to North Carolina for a week of POTA, SOTA, and camping. The drive was straight-forward and easy – Interstate 95 to Interstate 26.
About four hours after leaving Savannah, we arrived at my first POTA location: the Carl Sandburg National Historic Site (US-0804) in Flat Rock, NC.
map source: GIS Geography
I LOVE visiting North Carolina. Nearly everywhere you look in the countryside you see green, green, GREEN. There are ferns (one of my favorite plants) in the understory. There are wildflowers in the fields I don’t see back home. There is a certain earthy smell when one walks trails. And the roads! Don’t get me started on how much fun I have driving the winding mountain roads with their banked curves! (Can you tell I love visiting North Carolina?)
Ferns in the woods of the Carl Sandburg site
Back to the story at hand, the Carl Sandburg National Historic Site is 264 acres and contains the home of Carl Sandburg, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and poet. He and his family moved to the site in 1945. It suited his need for seclusion and his wife’s needs for raising her prize-winning goats. In fact, the park service actually maintains roughly fifteen goats in a historic herd on site today.
Property map with my notes
The Sandburg home sits atop a hill and one gets glimpses of the house as you walk along the lengthy driveway winding up the hill toward it. The drive is shaded and benches dot the pathway beckoning one to sit and enjoy the quiet. I longingly looked at them as an activation site but the intermittent presence of pedestrians nixed that idea.
Daisy is ready to go!The trail around the lake was necessary as a pedestrian bridge was under constructionView of the house from the driveway looking up the hillPath along the driveway
Both Daisy and I were surprised by the heat of the day. The temperature was 91 degrees! Thankfully, outside the house I spied some trees with shade beneath them. Their orientation would allow me to run my antenna toward the northwest and their shade was a welcome respite from the heat.
The Sandburg homeOur QTH in the shade
Given I saw no restrictions on antennas in the trees when reading the rules of using the property, I promptly set about getting the EFRW up. Trust this hobby to keep you humble, though. On my last activation at Tuckahoe Wildlife Management Area, it took just one perfect throw to snag the branch I wanted. Today, it took four! Some days you have it and others you don’t.
Creatively displaying the POTA flag!
The activation proceeded slowly, I think mostly due to the inconsistent band conditions. It took an hour to log twelve stations. There were several stations I heard but they were too faint or they disappeared on me. Continue reading The POTA Babe Goes North – Day 1→
The video was only recently published, but I’ve added it to Christian’s original field report. We’re highlighting it here for those who may otherwise miss it. (Note: Some of the video is in Italian, but YouTube closed captioning can auto-translate.)
On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, my wife and I were in the middle of a week-long stay in Wilmington, North Carolina, while our daughters attended residential programs at NCSU and UNCW.
That particular day, we couldn’t decide what to do because the weather was fickle! Temperatures and humidity were high, fueling a constant string of isolated thunderstorms rolling over Wilmington and the Cape Fear River area. Every hour or so, a new storm would roll past.
Heather suggested I fit in a POTA activation, and, of course, I loved the idea. I just didn’t want to play radio anywhere near thunderstorms.
We decided to drive south to one of my favorite coastal towns in North Carolina: Southport. Based on the weather radar, it looked like we could drive to Southport on the west side of the river, then return via the Fort Fisher Ferry on the east side, potentially avoiding most of the isolated thunderstorms moving north along the coast.
En route, we drove into a thundershower with rain so intense that most cars on the road turned on their hazard lights and slowed to a crawl. Visibility was nil.
Fortunately, the heaviest rain only lasted 10 or so minutes, and by the time we were two minutes from the park entrance, it had slowed to a drizzle. As we parked at the visitor’s center, it had all but cleared up.
Brunswick Town/Ft. Anderson State Historic Site (US-6834)
Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site is unique in that it offers a blend of colonial and Civil War history along the beautiful Cape Fear River.
Founded in 1726, Brunswick quickly grew into a bustling port town known for exporting naval stores. However, the town was burned by British troops in 1776 and never rebuilt, leaving behind ruins for visitors to explore today.
During the Civil War, Confederate forces constructed Fort Anderson atop the remnants of Brunswick. The fort’s earthen walls and impressive gun emplacements now stand as a reminder of the region’s strategic importance during this turbulent period.
Visitors can explore the colonial foundations and Civil War earthworks, while enjoying the river waterfront.
There’s also a visitor’s center with exhibits detailing the area’s rich history.
I was pleased to spot a picnic area on the opposite side of the parking lot from the visitors’ center. This would allow me to set up close enough to the car that if another storm approached, I could pack up quickly.
First, I introduced myself to the staff and asked for permission to activate. I was confident they would grant it, as this site had been activated 39 times already (mine would be the 40th).
The two park rangers inside were incredibly kind and accommodating. My wife and I ended up speaking with them about history for nearly 30 minutes. I also gave them more insight into the POTA program and asked if activators were following their rules. Fortunately, they gave a very positive report. NC State Historic Sites protect both the archaeology of the site and the natural resources, so I always ask for permission to activate because some sites have restrictions about putting lines in trees or stakes/spikes in the ground. Fortunately, this was not an issue at the picnic area.
Setting up
Since weather was iffy and since Heather and I wanted to spend the rest of the afternoon in nearby Southport, I decided to pair my Elecraft KX2 with my AX1 antenna.
This also gave me a chance to try out a new 3D-printed bipod that my friend Mike (KE8PTX) sent me.
I was really amazed at 1.) how easy it was to attach the clip to the antenna’s BNC base and 2.) how incredibly stable this Bipod felt even compared with the OEM bipod.
Thank you, Mike (and Adam)!
With the radio set up, I was ready to activate!
Gear
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I assumed 20 meters would be the best place to start and, frankly, I hoped it would be productive enough to cap off my activation in short order so that my wife and I could continue our travels.
In short? It was amazing and certainly a fabulous way to start the day.
We were in Wilmington because one of my daughters was attending a week-long program at NC State University, and the other was attending a similar program at UNC Wilmington.
That Tuesday afternoon, after dropping my daughter off on the campus of UNC Wilmington, my wife suggested we hit Carolina Beach State Park for a POTA activation. It didn’t take me a microsecond to agree to that plan!
Carolina Beach State Park (US-2722)
Carolina Beach State Park, located just south of Wilmington, is a unique spot full of natural wonders. The park covers over 760 acres of Pleasure Island, with diverse habitats ranging from the impressive 50-foot Sugarloaf Dune (which used to be used as a navigational aid) to the fascinating limesink ponds, each with its own special plant community.
The park is also home to the Venus flytrap, a rare carnivorous plant found only in a small part of the Carolinas. You can explore the park’s trails, winding through maritime forests and maybe even catching a glimpse of these fascinating plants in action. The park also has a marina for easy access to the Cape Fear River and the Intracoastal Waterway, making it a great spot for boating and fishing.
We arrived at the park a little before 4:00 PM local time. Had it not been so hot and humid, we would have hit one of the park’s trails before finding a spot to do POTA, but the weather being what it was, both of us were happy to spend time in the shade.
We pulled into the main picnic area and quickly found a spot to set up. As I pulled out my radio and camera gear, my wife, Heather, pulled out her travel watercolor kit, all packed in a Tom Bihn HLT1 (we’re a pack geek family!).
When Heather joins me on POTA activations, she almost always sets up somewhere and paints while I activate. I love the fact that we both enjoy the experience in different ways.
In fact, my buddy Steve (KC5F), who is also an avid POTA activator, performs almost all of his activations with his wife, who also paints while he activates. He told me that she likes a good couple of hours of painting, so he typically racks up a lot of contacts in that amount of time.
Setting Up
The first thing I did was set up my Thermacell mosquito repeller–it needs a few minutes to do its thing and clear out the mozzies. The model I carry, the “backpacker,” fits a standard backpacking stove canister. I’ve recommended this one to many other POTA ops who operate in areas with mosquitoes–so far, it’s never let me down!
After watching an activation earlier this year at Tuttle Educational State Forest, where I placed my KX2 and logbook on a wet and dirty picnic table–covered in pollen and other tree bits–Alanna ordered a blue Gingham picnic tablecloth and whisk and had it sent to me.
I’ve had this tablecloth packed in the go-box I keep in the Subaru, and this activation was the perfect time to put it to use because the table I chose needed cleaning!
Thanks, Bob and Alanna!
Next, I deployed my PackTenna 9:1 End-Fed Random Wire antenna and paired it with my Elecraft KX2.
New paddle mount!
I did (finally) get to try out a new piece of kit in the field: a newly-designed paddle mount from Steve (KB3SII) at QRPworks.
Steve handed this prototype mount to me at Hamvention this year. It’s an updated design of one we tested last year.
You basically attach the mount to the front of the KX2 (or KX3) and place a paddle like the Bamakey TP-III that has strong rare earth magnets. The paddle locks onto the metal pad and makes for a rock-solid, ergonomic keying experience.
Steve also sent me two short 3.5mm angled cords to connect the key to the radio, but I forgot to pack them for the trip. My standard paddle cable worked fine, although I had to angle the TP-III slightly.
Note that Steve plans to have these paddle mounts in production and available on the QRPworks website in the coming weeks. When they’re available, I’ll post a direct link.
With the KX2 set up and ready to go, it was time to hit the air!
Gear
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I started calling CQ POTA on 17M and discovered that it was a fairly quiet band. Nonetheless, I worked two stations in about six minutes. Secretly, I was hoping there might be a 17M path into Europe, but then again, it was a bit late in the day for that (and it seemed 17M wasn’t terribly energized). Continue reading Carolina Beach State Park: A QRP Oasis Amidst the Summer Heat and Activities→
Those of you who know me know that I’m a huge World War II history buff. Ever since I was a child, I’ve been fascinated by the stories of bravery, sacrifice, and technological innovation that defined this era.
That’s why the activation I performed on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, was very special.
I activated the Battleship North Carolina from inside the ship, using a modern transceiver, and one of the original vertical antennas mounted on the ship.
The Battleship North Carolina State Historic Site (US-6831)
The Battleship North Carolina is a World War II-era battleship that served in the United States Navy from 1941 to 1960. It is currently a museum ship in Wilmington, North Carolina.
The ship was launched in 1940 and commissioned in 1941. During World War II, it served in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters, participating in several major battles, including the Battle of the Atlantic and the Battle of Iwo Jima.
The USS North Carolina in Pearl Harbor in November 1942 for repairs. (Photo Source: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration)
The Battleship North Carolina was decommissioned in 1960 and donated to the state of North Carolina in 1961. It has been open to the public as a museum ship since 1962.
Growing up in North Carolina, I’ve always considered the Battleship North Carolina the icon of Wilmington. You can’t cross the Cape Fear river and miss this brilliant bit of naval history–it’s so prominent and accessible.
I had not actually toured the battleship since I was a child–some 40+ years ago. Last week, however, our family spent the week in Wilmington and the battleship was first on the to-do list.
Azalea Coast Amateur Radio Club
A couple months ago, I mentioned to my buddy Bob (K4RLC), in passing, that one of my daughters was attending a week-long residential program at NC State University while the other daughter would be attending The University of North Carolina Wilmington. My wife and I would stay in Wilmington for the week and I would somehow love to activate the Battleship North Carolina for the POTA program.
Fortuitously, shortly thereafter, Bob attended a presentation about the Battleship North Carolina by Mike Hartmann (NI2S) at a radio club meeting in Raleigh. Mike is with the Azalea Coast Amateur Radio Club, the caretakers and curators of radio central in the battleship.
Bob put me in touch with Mike who then graciously accommodated my schedule, even though it required his presence throughout the activation.
Mike did make it clear that the radio room is three decks below, has no air conditioning and is a proper “sweat box.” Turns out, too, that the week we were in Wilmington coincided with a bit of a heat wave which was affecting much of the eastern US. Because of this, I asked if we could meet on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the earliest possible time–8:00 AM, when the museum opened.
It was a beautiful morning and I arrived on site perhaps 15 minutes in advance. I needed to pull my camera gear out of the car and allow some time for it to adjust to the humidity (which was extremely high).
I thought my lens had finally acclimatized when I started the video before Mike arrived, but it turned out the lens was still a bit foggy for a minute or two.
Mike arrived and we walked into the ticket booth where I purchased my ticket. He then led me onto the deck and into one of the roped-off entrances to the lower decks.
He kindly allowed me to film walking through the ship into the radio central area. I’ll admit that it was difficult for me to keep my attention on the camera as I was walking through a ship I remembered from my childhood! Since my video is real-time, real-life, you experience it with me–I didn’t check out the ship in advance.
I was amazed at how much of the ship was open to the public and in superb, original condition.
In radio central, Mike allowed me to peek behind some of the closed off sections with my camera, so you’ll get the follow along with me.
What I didn’t realize was just how much signal intelligence was happening on a fast battleship like the USS NC.
There were rooms dedicated to listening posts, decryption/encryption, and sharing of intelligence. This was all so fascinating and enlightening.
Next, Mike opened up the actual radio room where an Icom IC-756 Pro III was hidden in one of the original ship radio desks. This being a museum, all modern gear was hidden as well as possible.
Mike was right about the room being a sweat box–even in the early morning, it was pretty hot and humid in there. Fortunately, he had two fans he turned on and pointed at us.
The view from my operating position.
Mike set up the IC-756 Pro III by connecting it to a power supply, then attaching a Bencher paddle.
The vertical–again, one of the original Battleship North Carolina antennas–also required a little bit of matching for 20 meters.
Any movement of 10 kHz or so, required engaging the 756’s internal ATU.
As I set up the camera and made a comfortable operating position, I realized just how noisy the room was with the normal ship sounds (it has its own fresh air ventilation system) and the two fans running full-bore.
I set up my wireless mics–one on me and the other inside the portion of the desk that housed the radio.
In truth, I wasn’t confident the audio would work out at all. First thing I did when I made it back to the house that day was to check the audio–turns out, it came out pretty darn well all things considered.
In fact, the audio in the video was much better than my own two ears experienced while operating. Having one of the mics much closer to the speaker and protected from the wind blowing really made a difference.
Many thanks to Doug (KO4WDE) for sharing the following guest post:
POTA and FBLA
by Doug (KO4WDE)
I have recently found myself fully immersed in the world of Future Business Leaders of America, as my wife is the chapter leader for the middle school where we teach. She started the program with just a handful of kids, and they performed so well their first year that six students qualified for national competition in Atlanta, Georgia last year.
To save money, and help provide this experience, we loaded them in our camper and took to the road. Fast forward to this year and they have continued to grow and develop to the point where they now have more than twenty four members! Now here’s the cool part: they didn’t just grow, they have developed into a powerhouse of Kentucky’s FBLA. Of the twenty four members, fifteen placed either 1st, 2nd, or 3rd at the state level competitions and qualified for national competition in Orlando Florida this summer. Of those fifteen, eleven went to Florida.
The costs for this trip were huge. Fuel alone for the vehicles to get us there was nearly $1000, and lodging, registration fees, and food drove the cost per student to well above $1500 per student. The students voted that they would not go unless they could all go. So they hit their computers and applied for grants and scholarships. They were successful in obtaining a local grant for $3500 to cover their registration fees, and came up with a battle plan for fundraising as much as possible. They formed a team that would go out into the community and present to local business owners in efforts to gain sponsorships to help lower the cost of the trip.
Goal Achieved
To say that they were successful was an understatement. The students were able to gain enough financial support to lower the cost of the trip to $300 each. This includes opportunities for the kids, (some of whom have never been out of Kentucky) to see the ocean, and experience many attractions that Orlando has to offer including Universal Studios and downtown St. Augustine.
That Ocean experience is where POTA plays a part. Our travel plan had us staying at Anastasia State Park (US-1832) for two nights. A couple of the FBLA members attending are also members of the School’s radio club (KQ4CWT) and were looking forward to the club’s first POTA activation (although the ocean was far more fun for them). I had not activated Florida myself and was greatly looking forward to the experience.
Traveling with fourteen people total, in two vehicles (a Nissan Armada, and a Honda Pilot) space is extremely limited so I started the process of streamlining several separate systems into one specific mission bag.
The Field Kit
The host radio was my Xiegu G90 kit seen here combined with a small folding camp table and a Wolf River Coils vertical antenna to use on the beach. My G90 kit is designed to be as simple possible for voice and digital modes, but it is completely based on using trees and wire antennas to get on the air, and picnic tables to operate from, so a few changes needed to be planned.
The nature of the beach itself is the most important change to plan for: no trees… no wire antennas. I don’t own a mast, so the WRC needed to be in the kit. Secondly, we would be on the beach for our planned activation, so I would need a small portable table to keep the gear out of the sand. I chose a cheap amazon table[QRPer affiliate link] that is small enough to fold up into my host backpack (a maxpedition Riftcore) and sturdy enough to hold the G90 and my Evolve III laptop. Preliminary testing on this little table was promising.
Testing the Amazon table
The Bioenno battery can wedge under the table while also supports lowering the center of gravity and freeing up the table top. The radio itself has lost the cooling stand as it was just too big and clunky for my go kit. It now rests on a small laptop stand[affiliate link] that is suspiciously similar to the radioddity version for a quarter of the price. I planned on sitting in the sand, under an umbrella using this little table to activate the park.
The Merging of the Bags
The G90 bag consists of the radio, battery, laptop, coax, power cables and adapters, stand, Digirig and backup wire antennas and tree line kit. The coax has been replaced with RG-316 to save weight but the kit is essentially the same as seen in the article linked.
The Wolf river coil bag is an old camelback hydration pack. It contains the SB-1000 coil, three legs, three radials, a 25 foot run of RG8X, and the whip.
The Riftcore has two main compartments and two secondary compartments. The front the main compartments consist of a large deep area in the back, and a slightly smaller and thinner area directly in front of that. The main compartment holds the table top, the table frame, and the WRC system with just enough room to zip up. The zippered pouch opposite holds the coax.
The main rift core compartment
The second compartment holds the radio, battery, stand, and ground coverings that double as padding and chargers, as well as the evolve III POTApotamus laptop.
The secondary rift core compartment
The front compartments hold the backup wire antenna, tree kit, power cables and Digirig.
The small outer rift core compartment
The kit, as planned, was much larger and heavier than the Redrock outdoors bag I’m used to carrying, but I thought it to be better since I would only have to keep up with one bag. Especially since I would be carrying other beach gear out to the beach, and would have the kids with me.
Success All-Around
So how did it go? Success, and major FBLA success!
We arrived in St. Augustine around 7:00pm. The boys and I setup camp, three tents. A boys tent dubbed “Brozone Zero”, a girls tent “The She Shack”, and “Smalls” a small tent for my youngest daughter, my wife and me. The girls took the Armada into town to get pizza for dinner on the beach.
I usually RV camp, but when I do tent camp it’s in a Kelty. Our little tent wasn’t a Kelty. We stayed in a Walmart special 3 man tent while the ladies enjoyed the Kelty tent.
When they arrived back, my wife laughed at our little tent and asked if it was like the magic one in Harry Potter. Bigger on the inside.
It wasn’t.
The boys blowing up floats to use as mattresses in “brozone zero”Pizza on the beach
The kit worked out better than I had planned. I was able to snag eleven SSB contacts between rain storms on the beach. I was unable to sit down and really do an activation because of a change in plans. We planned to stay two nights but we canceled one and moved to the local Hilton to avoid tent camping storms the second night, so it was more of a “set up as fast as you can and get ten” type deal.
The table worked perfectly, although the beach wind blew my WRC vertical over. Propagation was fair on 20 meters and I was able to get my last couple contacts via P2P hunting. I was excited to add Florida to my list of activated states.
Admittedly, it was a fun challenge to setup and get those contacts as fast as possible and repack. I need to pack some flags for the radials in the future.
The camp table was perfectEven with the feet of the WRC dug into the compacted sand the wind still managed to knock the system over
Once we left the beach for the hotel, radio time was over and I dedicated myself to the FBLA mission at hand. We spent five days competing and exploring Orlando. Our FBLA chapter performed very well overall and my daughter placed 2nd in the nation for her performance in the learning strategies competition.
My lovely wife was named the middle school chapter advisor of the year! We had many, many more successes across the event but we will learn final scores in August.
My daughter winning 2nd placeThe entire chapter before the closing ceremony party
This adventure was so much fun. It was very tiring, but worth every second of work to make it happen, and of course it’s always okay to sneak a little radio wherever you go.
Okay. Y’all haven’t heard much from me lately and may be wondering, “What the heck is the POTA Babe up to?” Actually, a lot!
Earlier this year, I asked QRPer readers for suggestions as to parks to visit for a summer POTA trip to either North Carolina and/or Virginia. I appreciate all the suggestions I received. In evaluating the time I have and that I’ll be driving by myself, I have opted to visit North Carolina. I’ll be on the road for eight days mid-July camping with Daisy. I hope to activate ten to eleven parks as well as successfully complete four SOTA activations. It is a lot to bite off but then I enjoy being challenged.
I originally planned for a twelve-day trip but decided to nix the second week near the Charlotte area due to obligations at home. I am bummed at missing out on those parks. (Thank you Bob K4RLC for the recommendations in that area.) However, now I’ll have those parks to activate on a future trip.
Preparing for this trip is no slap-dash endeavor. At least not for this POTA Babe. As I mentioned in the articles of my last trip to southwest Georgia, I am tweaking my camping equipment as well as how I organize and access those items.
An item I’ve added is a fan because camping in July might be a bit toasty, even in western North Carolina. My partner Glenn W4YES came across a helpful video on the CheapRVLiving Youtube Channel discussing USB-charged devices. The Koonie 8” rechargeable fan was mentioned. As it received favorable reviews on Amazon and I can charge it using my Jackery, it is now in my arsenal for summer camping.
[Note: all Amazon.com links are affiliate and support QRPer.com at no cost to you! Thank you!]
Koonie USB-charged 8″ fan
I also added an ultralight shelter I may use on a summit or for POTA in general. While researching summits to activate, I came across a picture on the SOTlas website and reached out to that op as to information about the tarp he was using for shade. Patrick WW4D introduced me to Mountain Laurel Designs, a company that makes ultralight shelters (tarps and tents). They aren’t inexpensive, but then I’ve learned to purchase good quality where I can. In a shelter, good quality counts.
I purchased the Trailstar. It can be used as a tent or a shelter. Before the trip, I need to seal the seams. What I didn’t realize until the other day is that I will also need to cut the guylines as well as figure out what knots to use in securing the guylines to the stakes included. Then I have to learn how to set it up using my hiking poles. The learning never ends, does it?
I couldn’t believe how light the Trailstar is having never experienced a shelter like it. It will be a welcome addition to my SOTA backpack since it weighs hardly anything.
The Trailstar by Mountain Laurel Designs. source: Outdoor Gear Lab
I’ve also undertaken re-waterproofing my tent. Sierra Designs sent me instructions and information about the products they recommend which I ordered. I thought to myself “how hard could it be to re-waterproof a tent?” Those of you who have done this know it is a time-consuming process! You have to remove the old waterproofing substances before applying the new ones. The substances used for waterproofing fabric are meant to not come off easily, especially after being on there for 30 years (the age of my tent). I’ve spent more time in the bathtub scrubbing and smelling rubbing alcohol than I care to admit. However, when this process is finished, my tent and its rainfly will be clean and good to go for another eight years or so.
waterproofing products for tent and rainflyWashing tent with unscented detergent and ammoniaold waterproof coating to be scrubbed offsection of tent floor with new coat of waterproofing barrier
I am also researching how to do a SOTA activation. I’ve found quite a few helpful videos on Youtube and plan to reference them in a future article. For my pack, I am using a Six Moons Designs ultralight pack (the Flight 30 Ultra) I purchased about four years ago. As it was not being used, I’ve been employing it as my POTA pack for several months now. Given I’ll be hiking to activate summits, I need to rethink what I’ll take in the pack since, in addition to ham gear, I’ll need emergency supplies one should take when hiking.
While preparing for this trip, I’ve had a new addition to my shack that is sharing my focus as of late. Nearly two years ago, I ordered a Frattini Magnetic Evolution bug. I didn’t hear anything further for the longest time and figured it wouldn’t ever arrive. Then, about four weeks ago, Alberto Frattini sent me an email the key was ready and, oh by the way, was I still interested in it? You bet I was! “The Frattini” (as I call it) is now in my shack and I am resuming my pursuit of the Straight Key Century Club’s (SKCC) Triple Key Award. (When I’m not scrubbing the tent, mind you.) My fist is a work in progress but what a great challenge!
my Frattini Magnetic Evolution bugHummer on the Frattini plate – a nice touch given my POTA Babe logo also has a hummingbird on it
My goal is to run at three speeds eventually – 16, 20, and 25 wpm. Right now I am concentrating on 16 wpm as that is a good speed for SKCC QSOs. At that speed, I am more relaxed and the more relaxed I am, the better I can focus on making my characters correctly with good spacing. My goal with the Frattini is that the dits and dahs be proportional and timed well enough it doesn’t sound like I am using a bug. With continued practice off and on the air, I will eventually get there.
One thing I’ve found that helps is having either Word List Trainer up and running or my Morserino in the shack. Just like a choir conductor will play a note on a pitch pipe for a choir, I’ll play the letter “o” at 16 wpm to get that dah cadence in my head before I get on the air. Eventually, I’ll fall into that rhythm naturally at that speed but in the meantime, I find that trick extremely helpful with my timing of the dahs.
If you’d like to hear my bug fist (a work in progress, mind you), click on the video link here to access it on Youtube. Also, if you’d like to follow my progress on earning bug QSOs for the Triple Key award, check out the goals section on my QRZ page.
Well, there you have it – my ham radio related doings since my southwest Georgia POTA trip. For those interested in hunting me while I’m in North Carolina, I will not release my itinerary in advance for safety reasons. However, Glenn or I will schedule my activations each morning so keep an eye out on the POTA and SOTA Watch pages beginning July 14 if you are keen to work me and support the trip.
I am a little nervous about the trip. I’m going to be out of my comfort zone and sure to make mistakes. However, this is how we learn – making mistakes. This is a part of ham radio and such a trip – the unknown! Who knows what I’ll learn and discover along the way. I hope to work many of you that week and look forward to sharing with you those adventures on QRPer.com after my return. But before I leave next Sunday, I plan a POTA activation Monday, July 8 to get my head back in the game. What park will I pick? Stay tuned…
Many thanks to Christian (IX1CKN) who shares the following field report:
Friedrichshafen: POTA Across Borders
by Christian (IX1CKN)
The Friedricshafen fair is one of the most interesting events for its social aspects, where you can finally put a face to colleagues whose voices you’ve only ever heard. Among the various OM (radio amateurs) I met this year was Gabriele IT9RGY, a flagbearer of the Italian Contest Club. When he recognized Andrea IW0HK and me, he said, referring to our respective SOTA/POTA activities: “You two are the real deal.”
I found that to be a very powerful statement, and I am grateful to him for it. Personally, I try to document each outing to capture the sensations it gave me, but also in the hope of inspiring someone. Andrea is more succinct than I am (if we were all the same, the world would be boring), but his spirit is identical. Parks on the Air (POTA) is a state of mind. It was no coincidence that, being in Germany for the Hamradio Messe, we had planned a series of activations.
Our schedule was tight and ambitious, and just completing it was a source of happiness, but there’s more to tell. In Germany, dinner time isn’t synchronized with Roman schedules. So, on Friday evening, after leaving the restaurant (for dinner with the Summits On The Air group) at 20:23, I looked at Hotel-Kilo and said, “If I go to bed now, I’ll digest in a week; let’s go activate a reserve!”
The easiest option in the area (after a disastrous experience last year in DE-0156, the park in the town center hosting the fair) was DE-0766, the Seewald Landscape Reserve. It’s near the FRN airport (and thus not far from the fairgrounds), in a fully bucolic setting. A narrow road cuts through meadows, with footpaths and bike paths leading into a wooded area.
We parked the car in one of these spots. It took only a moment to set up the vertical antenna in the field, but the presence of a swarm of mosquitoes as big as F-18 Hornets advised us to operate from inside the car to save our skin (literally).
Andrea turned on the KX-3 (10 watts would be our fixed power for this trip), and the 14 MHz calls began. Right away, a very strong IZ3QFG Dario (just 380 km from us) answered, highlighting an unusually short skip.
We logged 20 QSOs in 30 minutes… Many were from Italy (Spartaco from Grosseto at full scale, Mauro I1JQJ always active, and Beppe I1WKN a constant), with two “park to park” contacts. A classic for many OMs in the area, but also a great mood booster and a tasty appetizer for the next day… Continue reading Friedrichshafen: Christian and Andrea’s Multi-Country POTA Rove→
Many thanks to Sam (WN5C) who shares the following guest post:
Notes from a homebrew POTA adventure
Sam (WN5C)
I recently wrote about the homebrew transceiver I built to operate on a month-long trip through the American Southwest. Upon arriving back in Oklahoma here’s the final outcome: 27 days, 40 parks, and 669 QSOs. I honestly can’t believe that the rig went the distance, or that I made so many contacts on 2 watts or less!
The priority of this trip wasn’t radio, though. I’m an archaeologist and I’m starting a new research project that marries my historical interests with my love of two-way communication. In short, I’m studying the effects of how communication technology aided the American colonization and transformation of the western United States around the turn of the twentieth century. This means I walked and mapped single-wire telephone lines strung up in pine trees in northern New Mexico (used to connect fire lookouts with Forest Service ranger stations), a fascinating story of dramatic changes in land management. I also visited heliograph (sun-mirror signaling) stations established in southeastern Arizona by the U.S. Army Signal Corps in 1886 to assist in apprehending Geronimo.
Working Fort Bowie NHS (US-0815) in Arizona. The peak in the distance, Helen’s Dome, had a heliograph station on top. From the fort telegraph lines would have connected remote operations to the rest of the Army’s 1880s communication network. Next time I’m climbing up on top!
I look forward to relocating and studying the artifacts from more of these heliograph sites (mostly on remote peaks) to reconstruct this communication network and understand the lives of both the soldiers and the Apache, and how this novel surveillance system altered the battlefield. Based on the artifacts I’ve seen so far there are many cans of Army-issued proto-Spam and beer bottles surrounding the signaling station where American Morse Code would have been sent and received via flashes of sunlight. The original Field Day?
But back to radio. I covered a lot of ground and activated parks in Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and Kansas.
The POTA sites that I activated (click image to enlarge).
At some locations I was camping so I was able to do multiple long activations and work the lower bands well into the evening. These were some of my favorite moments of the trip, being the only spot on the POTA app and leisurely working with no time or weather-based worries. It also gave me a chance to hear callsigns I was unfamiliar with, essentially exploring a new area of the country.
Working closer states after hours on 30 and 40 meters at Colorado NM (US-0918).
For other times, due to time constraints or weather (thunderstorms or that it was unbearably hot), I got my 10 contacts and moved on. Sometimes I packed the equipment for a long hike, often carried it from the car to a picnic table, and a few times deployed my antenna and operated from my vehicle.
Not every activation was a grand adventure. Sometimes, like here at Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR (US-0226) in Colorado, I worked from the passenger seat in the car.
Every activation was memorable in its own way. I worked folks from 44 states, five Canadian provinces, and an unforgettable contact from Italy.
A map of the contacts I made (not including those in northern British Columbia, Alaska, and Italy).
The radio held up surprisingly well. Aside from it looking like a Dalí painting as the 3D printed box continued to deform in the heat, and some hot glue remelting, the electronic components worked as they should. I look forward to printing a stronger case and making some upgrades going into the fall. I do now have a real respect for the engineering that goes into designing field radios, especially those that are thrown into a pack!
Setting up a portable shack on Vail Pass in the White River NF in Colorado (US-4410). This was near the end of the trip, the plastic case was looking pretty bad.
After I began feeling less anxious about the homebrew radio (it kept turning on!) I could start focusing on the trip itself: an amazing POTA adventure with an often-uncooperative sun. Here’s a few themes I noted. Continue reading WN5C: Notes from a homebrew POTA adventure→
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We had an amazing time and I managed to squeeze in some Parks on the Air (POTA) activations at Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site, Carolina Beach State Park, and an epic activation at the Battleship North Carolina!
I had my Elecraft KH1 packed and planned to activate the State Capitol (US-6852), conveniently located next to the museum parking lots. The State Capitol grounds truly requires a super low-impact radio like the KH1 due to the strong security presence and limited setup space.
I arrived at the park just a few minutes after the gates opened.
It’s a beautiful park, and the contrast between the morning commuter traffic and the oasis of trees was striking! I parked at the first picnic area I found, grabbed my radio pack, and chose a picnic site.
This early in the morning, the picnic area was deserted – I only saw runners, walkers, and park staff.
For this activation, I brought my Penntek TR-45L and paired it with my KM4CFT 30M end-fed half-wave with a 40M linked extension.
Being this early in the morning, I started the activation on 40 meters.
I called CQ POTA only for a short time before the hunters found me. Fortunately, band conditions were pretty respectable! Continue reading A Radio-Active Day in the Triangle: POTA, Satellites, & Southern Hospitality in the Summer Heat 
