Operating from Valley Forge National Historical Park (US-0761, KFF-0761) on the 4th of July has become something of a tradition for me over the years. I expected the park to be busy today, so my plan was to get out early before the picnic-goers arrived en masse. Then, get home to spend the rest of the day with my (far) better half.
I headed to a spot in one of the picnic areas that has some shade in the morning. Today, I used a 17-foot telescopic whip on my homebrew loading coil on the truck, along with my little Penntek TR-35 (5 watts, CW). An 18-foot length of coax was more than enough to reach my operating position.
Speaking of my operating position… I set up my camping chair and table on a paved area next to my truck. Normally, I would set up in the grass behind the truck, but the grass was a little high and the ticks have been bad this year. In fact, I found one strolling across my notepad at one point.
I started off on 40M, and things got off to a fast start. It was probably a combination of decent band conditions and it being a holiday. Regardless, the hunters pounced on me within a minute of posting my spot. It didn’t take long to make my first 10 contacts.
After things slowed down on 40M, I gave 30M a try. That band produced just a single contact. I moved up to 20M and found a little more action up there. After an hour and 10 minutes, I started losing my shade, so it was time to wrap things up. I finished up with 31 contacts, including five park-to-park contacts.
Around that time, I saw a teenager casually throw some trash on the ground before getting in their car to leave. This was only about 10 feet away from where I was sitting. Unbelievable, since they had to drive past the trash cans on their way out of the parking lot. After I loaded up the truck, I grabbed a plastic bag and cleaned up the mess that was carelessly left behind. Apparently, my parents taught me better.
Littering incident notwithstanding, it was a fun little activation this morning. I hope my fellow citizens have an enjoyable and safe 4th of July holiday.
73, Craig WB3GCK
WB3GCK QRP Amateur Radio 