Tag: POTA

I made a run down to Ridley Creek State Park (K-1414, KFF-1414) for an early POTA activation. I usually do well at this park, but this morning was something else.

Using my usual Penntek TR-35 (5 watts), along with my 12-foot whip and homebrew coil, I made my first ten contacts on 40M in ten minutes. Among those was VE3WMB, a fellow Polar Bear QRPer. When things slowed down on 40M, I moved up to 20M. That’s when things really got interesting.

After I started calling CQ on 20M, I spotted myself on the WWFF spotting page. A minute later, the European stations came out to play. Between the stateside and European hunters, things got pretty busy. Up on 17M, for example, I had a string of six DX stations in a row. 

When I wrapped up after 90 minutes, I had 52 QSOs in my log, with five park-to-park contacts. I had a total of 13 European contacts today, including:

• Italy: IW2NXI, IK1GPG
• Finland: OH1MM
• Germany: DL1EBR, DL1HB, DG1KJG
• Sweden: SM4BNZ
• France: F4ILH, F4HZR, F6EOC
• Denmark: OZ1IPP
• Latvia (a new one for me): YL2TQ
• Poland: SP6GNJ

I think today’s activation was a combination of a site with good elevation, good band conditions, and some DX stations with exceptional ears. 

72, Craig WB3GCK

I made a long overdue visit to a nearby park yesterday. Norristown Farm State Park (K-4363, KFF-4363) is only about 30 minutes away, but it has been six years since my last activation. So, I set out to rectify that.

This time around, I parked in the lot near the park office, a few spaces away from where I parked six years ago. Being a working farm, this parking lot is surrounded by cornfields, making it an unusual setting for a state park. 

This time around, I used my current go-to setup: Penntek TR-35 (5 watts) and 12-foot loaded whip. I noticed that there was some local noise on the bands. It was most noticeable on portions of the 20M band. Undeterred, I got on the air.

I started on 40M, but that was slow going. After logging three contacts, I moved up to 20M, where I spent most of my time. I also checked 17M, and that band seemed in good shape as well. 

After an hour and 20 minutes, I logged 34 contacts, including five park-to-park contacts. Some highlights:

• European contacts with Spain, Italy, and Germany. (WWFF spots always seem to bring out the DX stations.)
• K4NYM called me on 17M from Florida. Bill was working a “3-fer,” giving me three park-to-park contacts with one QSO. Thanks, Bill!

I’m not sure why it took me so long to get back here, but I’ll definitely visit more often. 

72, Craig WB3GCK

After spending the morning traveling to watch my grandson play soccer, I had some time to go play radio. I made a trip to nearby Valley Forge National Historical Park (K-0761, KFF-0761) for a quick activation. I almost talked myself out of going, but I’m glad I went ahead with it.

I pulled into a trailhead parking lot, where I’ve operated from a bunch of times in the past. I used my Penntek TR-35 (5 watts) in the truck, with my 12-foot whip and homebrew coil mounted on the back.

I started off on 40M, but I only made two contacts there. The 20M band was where the action was this afternoon. I searched around for some park-to-park contacts before parking on a frequency and calling CQ. I spotted myself on the POTA website, and the hunters started calling. Today, I also spotted myself on the WWFF spotting page. Right after that, I started getting calls from DX stations. 

After operating for about an hour and 20 minutes, I had 44 contacts in the log, with five park-to-park QSOs. Twelve of my contacts were with DX stations on 20M and 17M. I worked the following countries today:

• Italy (3 contacts. One station worked me on two bands.)
• Sweden (2 contacts)
• France (2 contacts)
• Ukraine
• Finland
• Poland
• Czech Republic
• Switzerland (WWFF park-to-park)

I also worked Michael VA2NB, a fellow Polar Bear QRPer operating from Quebec. 

Well, that sure was fun today. When I have to talk myself into doing an activation, I usually end up having a good time.

72, Craig WB3GCK

I headed out for an early morning activation at Evansburg State Park (K-1351, KFF-1351). The weather forecast was calling for scattered showers today. I consulted my weather radar app before leaving the house. It looked like I could get an activation done before the next round of rain came through. Ha!

It was raining lightly when I got to the park, and it continued most of the time I was there. I set up my homebrew loading coil and 12-ft whip on the back of the truck. I used a plastic shopping bag to fashion a “raincoat” to protect the coil from the elements. To keep things classy, I used a bag from a local dollar store. It looked pretty cheesy, but it worked. I used my TR-35 (5 watts) in the cab of the truck.

Despite the lousy weather, I had a successful activation. After 90 minutes of operating, I had 45 QSOs in the log with 5 known park-to-park contacts. The 40M band was the most productive for me today. I had 22 contacts on 40M, with the rest divided between 30M and 20M. 

Thanks to all the hunters out there who kept me busy this morning.

72, Craig WB3GCK

I had a little time this morning before heading out of town for a family event. It’s been a while since I last visited Marsh Creek State Park (K-1380, KFF-1380), so I made a quick trip over there.

I operated from the parking lot at the West Lauch area of the park. Despite the hilly terrain leading down to the boat launch, I’ve always had good luck there. The beautiful view of the lake is a bonus, too. 

For my antenna, I went with my 12-whip and homebrew loading coil combination. I used my TR-35 (5 watts) in the truck.

The bands were in pretty good shape, which made for a busy activation. After operating for 50 minutes, I finished up with 30 contacts. Twenty-two contacts were on 40M, and the rest were on 30M. I had two park-to-park contacts I know of. 

It was a short activation but a lot of fun. And now it’s time to hit the road to visit family.

73, Craig WB3GCK

Looking through my POTA stats, I noticed I was one activation away from a Repeat Offender Award for French Creek State Park (K-1355). So, I set out today for my 20th activation for this park. For many POTA activators, this is a trivial milestone. But for a casual activator like me, it takes a while to get to that point. 

The Straight Key Century Club (SKCC) Weekend Sprintathon (WES) was going on this weekend. I hadn’t taken part in a WES in a while, so I started off using a straight key and calling “CQ WES.” My first eight contacts were with SKCC members. After that, I spotted myself and started calling “CQ POTA.” 

The 40M band was in great shape this morning, with lots of POTA activity. In fact, all of my contacts were on 40M. In about an hour and 15 minutes, I ended up with 23 contacts. Among those were four park-to-park contacts.

I used my 12-foot whip and homebrew loading coil for the second time today. I like that I can set it up in a couple of minutes. Once again, it worked like a champ. I think it will probably my go-to antenna for stationary-mobile operation. Inside the truck, I used my trusty TR-35 (5 watts). 

And with that, POTA activation #20 at French Creek State Park is in the books. 

72, Craig WB3GCK

I built a new loading coil to use with my MFJ-1956 12-foot telescopic whip. This is a scaled-down version of the old one I had been using. But, more on that in a separate post. Anyway, I was dying to see how it worked, so I drove down to Ridley Creek State Park (K-1414, KFF-1414) to put it on the air. 

When I rolled into the parking lot, I was surprised to see a large military truck there. As I drove around the loop, I saw about a dozen soldiers in a field. Two of them were carrying a stretcher back into the woods. No, the park wasn’t under attack. It appeared to be some reservists going through a training exercise. 

I deployed the new antenna configuration in a minute or two. Before I got on the air, I hooked up my antenna analyzer to confirm that I could tune it up on each band from 40M through 17M. Success! I used a Sharpie® pen to mark the coil tap locations for each band. 

My rig today was my trusty TR-35 (5 watts). I started out on 40M: and, after spotting myself, the calls started rolling in. I made the requisite 10 contacts in about eight minutes. After making 23 contacts on 40M, I moved up to 20M.

There was also lots of action on 20M. One caller was W6LEN in California. It’s been a while since I worked Jess, so it was good to hear him again. Jess spotted me for the WWFF folks, and I soon started receiving calls from DX stations. I logged contacts with Puerto Rico, Italy, France, and Poland.

After exactly an hour of operating, I had 42 contacts, with four park-to-park contacts I’m aware of. Throwing in the DX contacts, this was one of the better activations I’ve had lately.

I’m hesitant to attribute today’s success to my shortened, base-loaded whip; but this thing seems to have some kind of mojo. I’ll do a separate post on the coil and how I put it together. 

73, Craig WB3GCK

I wanted to get out for at least one POTA activation during the Labor Day holiday weekend. Since we have another extended heatwave kicking off today, I opted to go out yesterday. I got an early start at French Creek State Park (K-1355, KFF-1355), figuring that the park would be busy—and it was.

I parked at a trailhead, well away from the busy boat launch and picnic areas. Using my TR-35 (5 watts) and homebrew vertical, my first ten contacts came in about 15 minutes. Most of my contacts were on 40M, while 30M and 20M both yielded a few more. 

After an hour or so, the bands seemed to suddenly dry up; so I packed up. (After I got home, I saw that there was some geomagnetic activity in progress.) In any event, my log had 22 QSOs with four park-to-park contacts.

This activation put me one away from a “Repeat Offender” award for this park.  I guess I’ll be back again soon to wrap that up.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Labor Day holiday.

73, Craig WB3GCK