June 2025 – WB3GCK QRP Amateur Radio

Boschveldt QRP Field Day 2025

Another Boschveldt QRP Club Field Day is in the books. This year’s outing was a little different for our little group. Besides operating with a skeleton crew, we had a few weather challenges. But that’s part of Field Day, I suppose.

Once again, a local business owner gave us permission to set up camp on his property for the weekend. We had some storms Thursday night and steady downpours on Friday morning, so I wasn’t sure what the condition of the field would be for the weekend. There have been some years when one end of the field became a swamp. It wasn’t as bad this year, but it was close.

When I arrived Friday afternoon. Ed K3YTR had already set up his teardrop camper. I headed down to a spot I usually use. The ground down there was a little soggy, but I decided to set up my tent there, anyway. That was a decision I would come to regret.

The area in front of my tent got muddier as the weekend progressed. The ground underneath the tent was just as bad. — The area in front of the tent got muddier as the weekend progressed. The ground underneath the tent was just as bad.

In the process of setting up, my walking in and out of the tent turned the area into a mud pit. I briefly toyed with tearing it down and moving it across the field, but I didn’t have the energy at that point. We had more rain overnight, so the conditions around my tent only got worse.

On Saturday morning, Andrew K2AFO arrived to spend the day operating with us. He was using a new Xiegu G90 and set about getting his end-fed halfwave up into a tree. In the process of doing that, his paracord got looped around a couple of branches and tied itself into a knot. It took a 28-foot Jackite pole, a tent stake, and some duct tape to free the paracord. Talk about some serious “MacGyvering!”

Andrew K2AFO operating in his first Boschveldt QRP Club Field Day

K2AFO using some advanced "MacGyvering" technigues to free his stuck throwing line — K2AFO using some advanced “MacGyvering” technigues to free his stuck throwing line

This year we operated as 2A EPA, using our club callsign, W3BQC. As you might expect for a QRP club, we ran QRP on battery power. I ran CW using my KX3 and a 29.5-foot vertical fed through a 9:1 unun. Ed K3YTR operated on 6M and 2M, while Andrew operated SSB using his new G90.

K3YTR's set up for 6M and 2M — K3YTR’s set up for 6M and 2M

On Saturday night, we headed out to a local restaurant for dinner (and some air conditioning). Andrew’s wife, Emily K2MLE, joined us for the evening. After enjoying a nice dinner (and some air conditioning), we headed back to our Field Day for a campfire. (Did I mention that Boschveldt Field Days are decidedly laid-back?) Observing a long-standing Boschveldt QRP tradition, we roasted marshmallow Peeps® over the campfire.

We had yet another storm heading towards us, so Andrew and Emily packed up and headed home, while K3YTR and I headed into our respective shelters. I operated on and off through the night, but dealt with some heavy QRN on 80M and 40M.

After getting some coffee and breakfast on Sunday, I had one last session on the radio. This time around, 40M was in much better shape. After that, Ed and I started tearing down and packing up. My tent and tarps were a real mess, so I just rolled everything up and shoved it in the truck. Needless to say, I have some gear to clean up this week.

Each year, our Field Day outings are an adventure. Although this one had some minor challenges, it was fun. Plus, we have some more stories to tell at future get-togethers.

I hope your Field Day activities were successful.

72, Craig WB3GCK

Getting Ahead of the Heat

Today was shaping up to be the first day of a five-day heatwave here in southeastern Pennsylvania. Since there are excessive heat warnings in place for the next few days (and I don’t hold up too well in the heat these days), I went out for an early morning activation to beat the heat.

I drove up to Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351), since my last visit was back in March. Because of a medical condition, I need to be careful with sun exposure. So, I looked around until I found a shady spot where I could set up my radio and use an antenna on my truck. My rig today was my Penntek TR-35 (5 watts, CW) and my 12-foot loaded whip mounted on my truck.

I started on 40M, and it didn’t take long to make my first 10 contacts. The Reverse Beacon Network (RBN) was reporting some strong hits from my 5-watt signal. After logging 15 contacts, I did some hunting and logged a few park-to-park contacts.

The 30M band was pretty quiet, yielding only 2 contacts. I had a little better luck on 20M, but the band conditions there weren’t all that great. I shut down after about an hour and a half, with 26 contacts in the log. Considering the early hour, I was satisfied with that.

WB3GCK operating in a wooded site in Evansburg State Park

In the end, it wasn’t the heat that was the problem today; it was the bugs. I was the target of both air and ground assaults by tiny mosquitos and huge ants. That was to be expected, I guess, since I was sitting in a wooded area on a warm day.

I hope the weather is better for Field Day next weekend. The extended forecast shows lower temperatures here, but a chance of rain on Saturday. Oh well, at least the heatwave will be over by then.

72, Craig WB3GCK

Rainy Camping at French Creek

The (far) better half and I took the trailer back to French Creek State Park (US-1355, KFF-1355) for a weekend of camping. We were hoping for some nice weather, but Mother Nature had other plans in mind. Not only was the terrestrial weather bad, the solar weather wasn’t much better at times.

It was dry when we arrived and got set up. After getting the camper squared away, I set up my usual 29.5-foot vertical wire and 9:1 unun. To avoid creating a trip hazard with my coax, I set up the antenna back in the woods behind the trailer. Not long after I got the antenna set up, the rain started. I set up my KX3 in the trailer and gave my portable station a quick test. The antenna loaded up easily as it normally does, but I couldn’t hear any signals whatsoever. I checked my connections, and everything looked good. Checking my band conditions app, I saw there was a major geomagnetic storm in progress. So, I shut the radio down and hoped for better conditions the next day.

My slightly leaning vertical among the trees

On Saturday morning, I woke up to rain showers and unsettled geomagnetic conditions. I got on the radio while brewing some coffee on the stove. The site we were on had electric hookups, so the trailer’s 12 volt converter was generating a ton of noise on the bands. To get around the noise, I shut off the main breaker and ran the lights on the trailer’s battery. The bands were plagued with static from storms in the area, but I still managed 10 contacts on 40M. A few of them were challenging, to say the least.

The rainy weather put a damper on my plans for operating outdoors—and all of our outdoor plans for that matter. So, later that afternoon, we had to hunker down in the camper. The (far) better half read her book, while I gave the radio another try. This time around, the band conditions were a little better. I logged another 10 contacts on 20M, before stopping for dinner.

Our little camper during a brief dry period on Saturday

Just after midnight UTC, I gave 40M another go. Boy, were things different this time. I quickly made 16 contacts. Just for the heck of it, I dropped down to 80M and picked up one more before shutting down for the day.

We had some torrential downpours overnight. I know this because the heavy rain actually woke me up at 3am. Having tent camped for many years, I know what the nearby tent campers had probably experienced with this storm.

By Sunday morning, the rain tapered off to intermittent showers. We decided to head home early, so I got on the radio for a bit before packing up. I made a few more contacts before packing up the radio gear. I finished the weekend with ‌42 contacts (plus one dupe) including a bunch of park-to-park contacts.

It wasn’t the weekend we had hoped for, but we had still had a quiet, relaxing time. I hope all the dads out there had a great Father’s Day.

I’ll be spending some time in the coming weeks getting ready for Field Day (June 28-29). My current plan is to operate with the Boschveldt QRP Club (W3BQC). If you work us on CW, it will probably be me on the other end.

72, Craig WB3GCK

Puppy Sitting Again

I recently spent six days out in Central Pennsylvania on house- & puppy sitting duty again. I got to spend some quality time with my grand-dog, Belle, and got in some radio time, too.

PA State Game Land 246 (US-8941, KFF-5862)

My first radio outing was early on a Friday morning. Pennsylvania State Game Lands 246 is only about 10 minutes away, so it’s perfect for a quick activation. With an active geomagnetic field, the propagation didn’t look at all promising. I ignored all that and headed out the door. As I was leaving, Belle thought we were going for another walk. Needless to say, I had a very disappointed German shepherd at the window watching me leave.

The parking lot at SGL246 was empty when I got there. I set up my 12-foot whip and homebrew loading coil, along with my trusty Penntek TR-35 (5 watts, CW). I spent the whole activation—and it was a short one—on 40M.

My truck at PA State Game Lands 246 — State Game Lands 246 (US-8941, KFF-5862)

Given the band conditions and the early hour (around 0745 local) on a weekday, I got off to a slow start. My big issue was the local power line noise. Before I started, I tuned around 40M to find a frequency where the noise was lower. Despite the band conditions and noise, I seemed to be getting out well enough, and the received signals were fairly strong.

After 30 minutes on the air, I finished up with 14 contacts. I packed up my gear and headed back to take Belle for that walk. After that, I think she forgave me for leaving without her.

And Then the Rains Came

Bright and early Saturday morning, I took Belle through the basement to let her out in the backyard. I found myself splashing through puddles of water in the rec room, and the sump pump was running like crazy.

We had some severe thunderstorms the previous night, and according to the local news, we received close to two inches of rain overnight. So, much of the day was spent cleaning up and drying out instead of playing radio. Fortunately, my (far) better half drove out for the weekend and helped with the cleanup effort.

Capt. John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail (US-4567)

When I woke up Sunday morning, I saw we were in the midst of a severe geomagnetic storm. Some hams on a local repeater were complaining about the poor conditions on the HF bands. So, what did I do? I headed out for an early morning QRP POTA activation.

For this water trail, I went to a public boat launch on the Susquehanna River. The river was still slightly flooded from the recent rainstorms, but the water hadn’t reached the parking lot.

Some minor flooding of the Susquehanna River — Some minor flooding on the Susquehanna River

Given the poor band conditions, I used my homebrew loading coil and a 17-foot whip instead of my usual 12-foot whip. I was hoping the additional five feet would help my 5 watt signal punch through the geomagnetic storm.

I also used my brand new Pocket Paddles from CWMorse. I neglected to order one with magnets, so I couldn’t attach it to my clipboard. However, I think I have a plan to address that as a future project. On the air, the Pocket Paddles performed flawlessly, and I’m looking forward to using them a lot more in the future.

After my third CQ call on 40M, I quickly logged my first two contacts. The contacts kept coming, but at a slow pace. After nine contacts, I thought that the tenth one might never come. Fortunately, it did. After 45 minutes, I ended up with 12 contacts, including one park-to-park. Not bad for a severe geomagnetic storm. I packed up and headed to a grocery store to pick up a few things for breakfast back at the house.

And Back to PA SGL246

On Monday morning I made another trip over to PA State Game Lands 246. There was a major geomagnetic storm in progress, so I knew this would be another challenging activation.

The parking lot was empty the whole time I was there. No big surprise, given that it was early on a weekday. I went with the same set-up as yesterday, opting for the 17-ft whip.

With a K Index of six and the usual power line noise, it was slow going on 40M. It took a few minutes of continuous CQing to log my first contact. It took almost 45 minutes to get seven in the log. At that point, things stalled for a bit. Around that time, I received a NOAA email alert saying the K Index had increased to seven.

I had allotted an hour for this activation, and I was getting close to the end. Then, out of nowhere, I had three callers in rapid succession that got me to 10 contacts. For good measure, there were three more after that.

I finished up with 13 in the log, with one known park-to-park contact. So, my little five-watt station managed to pull it off again. Take that, Mr. Sun!

And with that, I wrapped up my activations out here. Radio-wise, the band conditions were challenging, but it was still fun. I might be back in central Pennsylvania for another round of puppy sitting next month—with better band conditions, I hope!

72, Craig WB3GCK