Angry-looking clouds. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions. That sounds like a good time to go activate a park with a compromised antenna. So that’s what I did. When you get the opportunity to go play radio in a park, you just have to go for it.
Early on a Monday morning, I made a trip up to Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351). We had some storms overnight, and there were some lingering dark clouds around. So, I hunkered down under a picnic pavilion. I didn’t have much time, so I went with the Elecraft KH1 and its internal whip. Along with the whip, I used a Tufteln 90-degree adapter. For keying, I used my trusty CWMouse paddles on my clipboard.
Picnic Table-portable with the KH1 at Evansburg State Park
I installed the AXE1 extender coil for 40M and got started. The noise floor was very low, but I had to endure the occasional loud static crashes from storms in the area. Despite the unsettled geomagnetic field, the first five QSOs came quickly. After working a couple more, I gave 30M a try and logged three more.
With 10 contacts in the log, I removed the AXE1 and moved up to 20M. There was a bit more activity up there, and I made nine more contacts in short order. I shut down after an hour on the air with 19 contacts. That included four park-to-park contacts.
There are far better antennas than the KH1’s 45-inch whip, but probably none faster to deploy. Not to mention the huge fun factor in making contacts with such a diminutive antenna.
Once again, I was out in central Pennsylvania for a week. My daughter’s family traveled out of state for my grandson’s hockey tournament. While they were gone, I looked after my grand-dog, Belle, and took care of the house. I spent much of my time walking Belle and taking her on trips to a local park, but I still carved out a little time for ham radio.
Since my grand-dog, Belle, has some separation anxiety when her entire “pack” has to leave her behind, I try not to leave her alone for long. So, instead of activating some of the local parks, I set up an antenna in the backyard for some casual operating.
Using the 35-foot wire I tried out recently, I threw together a wacky but serviceable antenna. From the chair I was operating from, I tossed the wire up over my grandson’s basketball net and ran it over to a 20-foot pole.
My thrown-together antenna. A 35-foot wire runs from the chair, over the basketball net, and up to the 20-foot pole in the background.
I handheld my KH1 and used my K6ARK pressure paddles for keying. Admittedly, I was a little out of practice using those touch paddles, so it took a couple of contacts to get used to them. My apologies to the stations that had to endure my early attempts using them.
Operating my handheld KH1
As I had hoped, the KH1 found a decent match on each of its five bands. That was the good news. The bad news is that my daughter’s yard is in a low spot and tends to be a little noisy at times. Despite those challenges, I easily worked three POTA activators on 20M during the first of several backyard sessions during the week.
Most days, I took the KH1 out in the backyard for a little airtime in the morning and again in the afternoon. My grand-dog accompanied me, but she preferred to spend her time sunning herself and rolling in the grass. I mostly hunted POTA stations and worked some Alabama QSO Party stations. I also heard the occasional SKCC member, but I wasn’t set up for using a straight key. Most of these sessions were short and ended when Belle decided I needed to pay more attention to her.
Flight of the Bumblebees (FOBB)
As the saying goes, it was déjà vu all over again. I was also out at my daughter’s house for last year’s ill-fated Flight of the Bumblebees contest. After blowing the finals in my (then) brand new KH1, I was hoping for redemption.
For the FOBB, I used my trusty clipboard and CWMouse paddles. This made for easier logging during the contest. I also eliminated the basketball net and sloped the antenna wire up directly to the 20-foot pole.
My setup during the Flight of the Bumblebee (FOBB) contest
Belle and I headed out to the backyard a few minutes after the contest started, and Bumblebee #37 took flight. I started out on 40M and quickly logged my first contact. The local noise was present, but stations were still getting through. Based on the signal reports I received, I was getting out better than I could hear. After an hour, Belle decided it was time to go in. So, with 11 contacts in the log, I went back inside and took a break.
I eventually headed back out for about 30 minutes towards the end of the contest. The conditions seemed better this time around, and I picked up seven more contacts. When I ran out of FOBB stations to work, I called it quits with 18 contacts in the log. Seventeen of those were bumblebees. That was a far better finish than the solitary contact I made last year—and I didn’t blow any finals this time.
Given my surroundings and local noise, I think the 35-foot wire antenna did reasonably well for me this week. My particular configuration was no DX killer; my contacts were mostly in nearby states. My most distant contacts were on 20M during FOBB: Mississippi to the south and Missouri to the west.
Although there was nothing particularly exciting about my backyard-portable operation, I still had a fun week spending some quality time with my grand-dog and getting on the radio now and then.
When I tested a 35-foot non-resonant wire with my KH1 last week, I was pleased with the results. Continuing with that theme, I thought I’d try a 29-foot wire, another popular non-resonant length.
I drove back to Valley Forge National Historical Park (US-0761, KFF-0761) and re-created the setup I used last time. To support the wire, I again used my homebrew drive-on mount to support a partially extended 31-foot Jackite pole. I’m guessing the pole was up about 27 feet, give or take. I set up my camp chair nearby and ran the wire over to the KH1. Starting off, I used a 17-foot counterpoise wire.
First, I checked to see what kind of match the KH1 would find on its five bands. The SWR was very low on all bands except for 20M, where the best the KH1 would do was around 2.4:1.
I started my activation on 40M, and the wire seemed to get out pretty well. Although the band was noisy with static crashes, I made my first ten contacts in about 11 minutes. I eventually moved up to 30M, but I only had one hunter there.
At that point, I took a break to experiment with counterpoise wires. I tried both 29-foot and 13-foot counterpoise wires, but neither of them improved the match on 20M. I also tried repositioning the counterpoise with no luck.
I left the 13-foot counterpoise wire attached and went back to 40M. I made an additional handful of contacts on 40M before trying 17M. On 17M, I picked up three more before calling it quits.
Admittedly, I had high hopes for the 29-foot wire. I’ve used that length a bunch of times, although usually with a 9:1 unun and rigs with more robust tuners. In any event, it worked well on bands other than 20M. I managed 26 contacts in a little more than an hour.
On the drive home, I thought about some ways to improve the match on 20M. I’m not sure any of them are really worth the effort, though. For now, I’ll just stick with 35-ft when I use a random wire with the KH1.
I headed back to Valley Forge National Historical Park (US-0761, KFF-0761) to try out an antenna configuration I didn’t get to during my last visit. I was eager to see how well my Elecraft KH1’s internal ATU would match it.
The antenna in question is just a 35-foot wire with a 17-foot counterpoise. There’s nothing novel about this configuration, as it’s a popular choice for the Elecraft KH1. Since I bought the KH1 last summer, I had never tried directly feeding a random wire. Since I already had the 35-foot wire I used in North Carolina last year, I gave it a go this morning.
To support the 35-foot wire, I used a 31-foot Jackite pole on my homebrew drive-on mount. I sloped the wire down to my camp chair. I laid out the counterpoise wire in the grass and used a binding post to a BNC adapter to connect both wires to the KH1. To hold the KH1, I used a kneeboard from Tufteln strapped to my leg. I used my CWMouse paddles for sending.
My Elecraft KH1 on a kneeboard
Before starting my activation, I tried the KH1 on each of its five bands. The KH1 found a 1:1 match on both 40M and 30M. The 20M band gave the highest SWR at 1.6:1; however, the KH1 was putting out a full five watts on that band. On both 17M and 15M, the SWR was a respectable 1.3:1.
My 31-foot Jackit pole on a homebrew drive-on mount
Satisfied that the KH1 was happy with this antenna configuration, I got underway on 40M. The wire seemed to get ust fine, but it’s hard to judge an antenna’s performance on the air. There are just too many variables in play. Anyway, I made contacts all up and down the East Coast and out to the mid-west. I ended up making contacts on 40M, 30M, and 20M. It was a bit too early in the morning for 17M and 15M.
After an hour and 10 minutes, I wrapped up with 25 contacts in my log with nine park-to-park contacts. Not too bad for early on a Monday morning, I suppose.
Overall, I was very happy with the 35-foot wire with the KH1. I think it might be a permanent addition to my backpack. It certainly doesn’t take up much room. I’ll probably be using it for the upcoming Flight of the Bumblebees contest.
Except for Field Day, I’ve been mostly off the air for the past few weeks. To remedy that, I took advantage of a rare day with outstanding weather for a quick, early-morning activation at Valley Forge National Historical Park (US-0761, KFF-0761).
Since I have to be careful with sun exposure these days, I drove straight to an area I knew would have shade all morning. My original plan was to experiment with a wire antenna with my Elecraft KH1, but for reasons I won’t bore you with, that didn’t happen. Instead, I used a whip antenna on my truck and ran coax over to my camp chair and table. My handy-dandy propagation app showed unsettled geomagnetic conditions, so I went with my longer 17-foot whip and homebrew loading coil.
My operating position
Despite the poor band conditions predicted for 40M, there was no shortage of early risers hunting parks. Although there was a lot of static from impending storms, it only took five or six minutes to make my first ten contacts. After logging 20 contacts on 40M, I changed bands. I made a half-dozen contacts each on 30M and 20M.
My CWMouse paddles on my clipboard
I finished up with 32 contacts after an hour and 10 minutes on the air. Eight of those were park-to-park, including one with my friend Ken N3CU, and one on each of the three bands with Tom KG1A in Florida.
My antenna, as viewed from my shady location
I packed up and headed home to cut my grass before the rain moves in tomorrow. Except for a minute or two of sheer panic when I temporarily misplaced the keys to my truck, it was a good morning and fun to get back out in a park.
It’s hard to believe another Field Day has come and gone already. This year’s outing was a wet one, but the lousy weather didn’t dampen the spirits of the Boschveldt QRP Club members. We had another great weekend of catching up with old friends and reminiscing about past Field Days. There was some radio involved, too.
Once again, a gracious friend allowed us to set up camp on his property. It’s a beautiful field with great elevation. It easily accommodated the three stations we set up this year. Our participants this year were: WB3GCK, NK1N, K3YTR, and K2AFO. We operated 3A here in eastern Pennsylvania, using our club callsign, W3BQC.
When I arrived midday on Friday, Glen NK1N was already on site and setting up a shelter for our food station. I gave him a hand with that and set about putting up my tent.
My living and operating quarters for the weekend. The vertical portion of my 53-ft inverted L is behind the tent to the left.
Since we were expecting rain all day Saturday, I set up my antenna and radio, too. As in previous years, I used my KX3 and a 53-foot inverted L antenna fed with a 9:1 unun. I also used my little Evolve netbook for logging, rig control, and CW keying. This was the third Field Day for this cheap little laptop, and it handled the workload with no issues.
My Field Day station
NK1N camped out in his jeep and operated from a shelter attached to his jeep. Glen was running a KX2 to an 85-foot inverted L. He fed the antenna through a 4:1 unun with four radials. This antenna always works great for him.
NK1N’s station
When Ed K3YTR arrived, Glen and I helped put his G5RV Jr. up in the trees. Ed brought a couple of radios and planned to operate SSB this year. Unfortunately, a variety of equipment issues interfered with that plan. After everything was set up, we headed out to a local restaurant for dinner.
Sadly, the weatherman’s forecast for Saturday was dead-on. As predicted, it started raining and continued on and off for the rest of the day. Although it was mostly light showers, it was just enough rain to be annoying.
Glen set up a Wi-Fi hotspot in the food shelter so we could network our logging computers. We gave that a test, and I helped K3YTR get his computer configured for the network. To make sure my station was ready to go, I worked a couple of POTA activators.
Our kitchen area with our “bathroom” in the background
Andrew K2AFO arrived to spend the day with us. With some time to kill before Field Day kicked off, a few of us headed out for lunch.
Once Field Day started, I ran CW on 40M, while Glen ran CW on 20M and 80M after dark. Andrew brought his Xiegu G90 and used Glen’s antenna to run SSB for the first few hours. Sadly, K3YTR could never get his station up and running. Glen and I both had a few contacts on 15M and 10M.
Andrew K2AFO operating phone with NK1N observing
Early on, the band conditions weren’t great, with a lot of fading on the bands. The good thing about Field Day, however, there is always a station out there somewhere that will hear you. Thankfully, conditions improved later in the day.
Glen had good success on 20M and then a great run on 80M late in the evening. He also copied the ARRL Field Day bulletin and fired off our Section Manager message using Winlink on HF.
Glen NK1N operating
Given the rainy weather, we weren’t able to have a campfire this year. One of our Field Day traditions is roasting marshmallow PEEPS® over the fire. I like to call them crème brûlée on a stick. That’ll have to wait until next year, I guess.
Glen was up early and had a good run on 80M. After coffee and donuts, we got back on the air for a few more hours.
Since Glen had a two-hour drive back to New Jersey, we started tearing down around 0900 (local). Although it had stopped raining, my tent was still wet. I just rolled it up and stashed it in the back of the truck to deal with back home.
Unfortunately, K3YTR’s issues weren’t over yet. His car wouldn’t start, so I had to give him a jump-start. After that, we all headed out and arrived at our homes safely.
Giving K3YTR a successful jump-start
We ended up with 223 QSOs this year, with the vast majority of those on CW. It was far from our best showing. Given the highly informal nature of our Field Day operations, it wasn’t too bad by our standards.
It’s unclear if we’ll be able to use this site again next year, so we might have to find another location. Wherever we end up, I hope the weather is better than this year.
I’m in the process of getting my gear together for Field Day this coming weekend. Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, I’ll be spending the weekend camping with the Boschveldt QRP Club.
We’ll be running QRP (of course) on battery power here in Eastern Pennsylvania (EPA), using our club callsign, W3BQC. I’ll be one of the CW operators.
The weather forecast doesn’t look too promising, but we always have a good time.
Feeling overdue for a little QRP-portable activity, I made an early morning run up to Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351). As I was gathering up my stuff, I saw my old YouKits HB-1B sitting on the shelf looking forlorn. It had been quite a while since I last used it, so I grabbed it and threw it in the truck with the rest of my gear.
It was a cloudy morning, and I felt a couple of raindrops when I arrived. So, I installed my base-loaded 12-foot whip on the back of the truck and set up the HB-1B and Elecraft T1 tuner in the cab.
My old YouKits HB-1B rig
The HB-1B has one CW message memory, but it’s a fixed format. You can add your callsign, but you can’t edit the format of the CQ message. Normally, I bring an external keyer to automate my CQ sending, but I forgot to pack one as I ran out the door. So, I would have to send my CQs manually.
Fortunately, it only took about two CQs on 40M before the hunters started calling. The calls rolled in steadily for the first 15 minutes, before the activity started thinning out.
I jumped up to 20M, but about 15 or 20 minutes of CQing only produced two contacts. I dropped down to 30M, where I picked up one more before calling it quits. After an hour, the HB-1B netted 18 contacts, six of which were park-to-park.
I have had the little HB-1B for about 13 years or so, and it’s still hanging in there. For the first three or four years, it was my primary portable rig. The sidetone has some annoying clicks, so it isn’t always the most pleasant rig to use. Still, I’ve had a lot of fun with it over the years.
I need to rotate through my older rigs more often to make sure they get their fair share of time in the field.
I haven’t had much time for ham radio in the past couple of weeks. Life-in-general just seems to get in the way sometimes. This past weekend was not without some form of “radioactivity,” since I took part in two ARES-RACES events.
“Townships on the Air”
On Saturday, my local ARES-RACES group conducted a “Townships on the Air (TOTA)” exercise. The aim of the exercise was for members to operate off-grid from locations around the county. While a few members checked in by voice only, the focus was on sending message traffic to the county Emergency Operations Center (EOC) using the Narrowband Emergency Messaging System (NBEMS) over our 70cm repeater system and Winlink over our VARA-FM network.
For my part of the drill, I drove to a community park a mile or two from home. The park has a really nice pavilion, but it has a metal roof. Being unsure of the effect that would have on my VHF and UHF communications, I parked under a shady tree and operated from the truck.
My little Evolve netbook handling NBEMS traffic during the drill
For voice, an HT was sufficient to access our county-wide linked repeater system. On the data side, I used my old, reliable IC-207H with a mag-mount antenna. The 207H is about 23 years old and still going strong. I used my Evolve netbook on a steering wheel tray and a Signalink interface to round out my setup.
My NBEMS/Winlink setup for our ARES-RACES Drill
I powered the IC–207H with a recently purchased 20Ah LiFePO4 battery. This was my first opportunity to use it for its intended purpose: powering the 207H in the field. Another new piece of gear I used was a rechargeable fan. Although the morning temperatures were still fairly moderate, I hung it from a grab handle on the passenger side to get some air moving.
Keeping the truck cool on a hot day
The drill itself went well. I successfully transmitted three required NBEMS messages and one Winlink message. Our net control operators at the EOC kept things moving efficiently, so the drill wrapped up in about an hour.
French Creek Iron Tour
On Sunday, our ARES-RACES group provided communications support for the French Creek Iron Tour. This popular bicycle event benefits the French and Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust, which supports the preservation of natural resources and green spaces in our region.
This event is one of my favorites. This year was the 24th running of this annual event; and I think I have volunteered for most, if not all, of them. With course options ranging from 11 to 100 miles, the participants usually range from serious long-distance riders to families with young kids in bike trailers.
Some of the riders taking a break at the rest stop
Our ARES-RACES team staffed the Net Control location, five rest stops, and about a half-dozen support vehicles. Using APRS, the net control operators tracked each of the support vehicles so that they could be efficiently dispatched to problem areas.
As in recent years, I was stationed at one of the early rest stops. This year, my rest stop was located at a beautiful private residence in a rural area. Since we were on the tail end of a heatwave, I found a nice shady spot to operate from. I have to say, this was the nicest location I’ve had for this event. Jokingly, I told one of my colleagues that I was sorry I didn’t bring a hammock.
My cozy location in the shade of a tree for the French Creek Iron Tour bike event
From my location, it was an easy shot into our repeater system, so an HT was all I needed for solid communications. Thankfully, there were no major issues during my five-hour stint. At my location, rider issues were limited to a few minor mechanical problems. Overall, our group did a great job, and I was happy to be a small part of it.
I’m hoping to get out for a POTA/WWFF activation somewhere this week—if life-in-general doesn’t get in the way again.
Yeah, I know. That title sounds bad. What I’m talking about is finally making one thousand contacts at French Creek State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351). I’ve activated this park a bunch of times over the years, but I have yet to get that POTA Kilo Award. I was bound and determined to wrap it up this morning.
I started off this morning 36 contacts shy of the one thousand mark. Since we’re gearing up for a bit of a heatwave here in southeastern Pennsylvania, I headed out early to beat the heat. I was hoping for good band conditions and lots of early-rising hunters.
Hopewell Lake in French Creek State Park
My setup today was my usual Penntek TR-35 (5W, CW) and my 12-foot base-loaded whip. I normally use my Elecraft T1 tuner to touch up the SWR on the lower bands. This morning, though, the T1 refused to find a match. It took me a few seconds to realize that I forgot to set the tap on the coil. So the antenna had a bit more inductance than it needed. Doh! Once I corrected that faux pas, all was right with the world.
Given the early hour, I started out on 40M. It didn’t take long for the hunters to show up. After 12 minutes, I had my first 10 contacts logged. Although not at a breakneck pace, I had a steady stream of callers. When I hit 20 contacts, I was feeling like I had a shot at getting the 36 I needed.
The activity eventually dried up on 40M, so I moved up to 30M. After an hour on the air, I had 33 contacts logged. And then it slowed way down. After an hour and 15 minutes, I finally had the 36 contacts I was looking for. Thanks to W8AJF in Ohio for being number one thousand from this park.
My long-overdue Kilo Award at French Creek State Park
I made a couple more on 30M before dropping back down to 40M for a few minutes before shutting down. After 90 minutes on the air, I had 43 contacts—seven more than I needed. The temperature was warming up, so I packed up and headed off to run a few errands.
I don’t normally get too wound up about POTA or WWFF awards, but I do love a challenge now and then. Thanks to all the hunters who came out to play this morning.
WB3GCK QRP Amateur Radio 