15m SSB was the "go-to" band today, lots of activity there....as well as the now traditional tuner-upper and whistlers. I did try 10m and 17m but had no luck there.
First in the log today was Stuart, M0TTQ, followed by OS8D and GW0RQC. To be honest, I didn't expect any DX today given the band conditions, so these three were a nice surprise. I handed out a good number of S9 signal reports and received in return S5 to S9, so the hamstick was working well, and the 10w was definitely getting out and doing its job.
Propagation was: SFI=166, SN=124, A Index=24, and the K Index=2. There was some QSB, but not enough to worry about. The temperature was a rather frigid -16C (3F).
I have a new rule starting this year, any antenna I use on an activation that takes more than 10 minutes to erect, will not be used. I'm no longer "faffing" about with them, and for the most part my experience with them is that they don't work any better than my hamsticks do. I will therefore be in stealth mode for most of my activations.
All-in-all a good start to 2026, and let's hope it gets better from here!
Here's todays contact map:
