A Good Night...

It was a dark and stormy night......well, it was dark and cold, the storm arrived this afternoon. During last nights ARRL Sweepstakes I was up on Fort Henry Hill...enjoying myself in the cold.

No, I wasn't there to take part in the Sweepstakes, I was there to take part in my local clubs QRP Sprint. This was the last Sprint to be held this year, and as the score is accumulative over the year, an important one to take part in.

It's a little bit creepy up there at night, although the view of the city, all lit up, is spectacular. The Fort has been a haven for ghost hunters for years as was the subject on one of the TAPS TV show.

I was set up ready to operate on Fort Henry Hill by 1900 local.  My 9.5' whip and Wolf River Coils Mini were ready for any 40m action that came my way.....and come it did, although it was a very hard slog with the thousands of other hams screaming "CQ Sweepstakes" with 1500w and stacked Yagi's.  

Propagation was not the best either, SFI=85, SN=11, A Index=12, and the K Index=3.  There was some pretty heavy QSB going on as well.

It was interesting working in the back of the van, with little light.  It did prove that you need to know where all your gear is so you don't spend hours searching for it. I must also remember to bring a hat and some hand-warmers next time....it's hard to paper log when your hands are shaking with the cold 😃

My KX3 was in top form though, I made contacts in TN, NC, TX, MN, ON, IA, MO, FL, NE, and SD.  At 2100 I closed down with only 13 contacts in the log.  I was happy with that, most contesters ignore weak signals, so a huge thank-you to those who pulled me out of the mud and worked me.

I am really impressed with the Wolf River Coils Mini, it works so well with the 9.5' whip.  On average I was making 2000 km SSB contacts with 10w, you can't complain about that.  

Another POTA...

Today was one of those beautiful sunny fall days, +7C under a deep blue sky...so, it was perfect for another Parks On The Air activation.

I chose to go to Fort Henry Hill National Historic Site, VE-4864, and operate from the parking lot.  Now that they have broke all of the plasma TV's they had set up in their information building it, once again, has a S0 noise floor....let's hope stays that way.

The Fort is actually closed for the season but the parking lot is still open.  I was surprised that there were so many people walking around the site trying to get some exercise, while still trying to stay safe with social distancing.  

The propagation today wasn't too bad:  SFI=82, SN=24, A Index=3, and the K Index=1 at 1600 UTC.

A new antenna was in use today.  I recently took possession of a Wolf River Coils Mini, and I had found in my garage an old AT-271 whip antenna for the AN/PRC-25 radio.  It's 113.5 inches long and is a perfect match for the coil.  I have it all mounted on a 6 inch mag-mount on the roof of my van (for stationary ops only), and it certainly worked well today.

I had the site officially activated in about 10 minutes after I arrived there, and I had 52 contacts in my log when I wrapped things up after 45 minutes.  Radio of the day, as usual, was my KX3 with a screaming 10 watts.  Stations were worked from New Brunswick to Kansas, and all done on 40m.  

We have a bit of heavy weather coming in for the next few days, but I'm hoping things will have settled down enough to get back out on Thursday and try out the same antenna setup on 20m.  

Thanks to all my chasers today!

The coil and whip mounted on the roof of my van.

The AT-271 whip antenna.

In Remembrance...

In Loving Memory

of the 

Officers, NCO's, and Men

of

2816 Squadron, RAF Regiment

December 1941 - June 1946

Per Ardua

POTA Activation...

What a beautiful November day it was here.  Not a cloud in the deep blue sky, and the temperature was an unbelievable 15C...almost unheard of in mid-November.

It was still early when I headed off down the highway to Lower Brewers Mill Locks on the Rideau Canal. This is site VE-4882, the Rideau Canal National Historic Site.  It's not a rare one, it's been activated several times...but given the large crowds out enjoying this good weather, it was my only choice to avoid the crowds.

I used some very simple antennas today, just a MFJ-1979 17' telescopic whip mounted on a Buddipole Versa-Tee about 7' off of the ground with a single 17' elevated counterpoise for 20m.  I also borrowed a 40m Ham Stick, mounted on large mag-mount thrown on the roof of my van.

Surprisingly, both antennas worked very well.....way better than I thought they would.  Contacts were made in ON, FL, AL, KY, LA, IN, PA, NJ, WV, and MI.   Most of my signal reports were 55 to 59 and I'm really pleased with that.   I managed to put four P2P contacts in the log today and had the site activated within the first 30 minutes.

Radio used today was my KX3, powered by a 1212a Bioenno Battery, and it worked flawlessly.   I'm really looking forward to doing many more POTA activations over the winter months from several locations around Kingston.  

Today's propagation numbers!

The Lock at Lower Brewers Mill

Rideau River

Great Propagation!!!!

Well, have you guys seen the propagation numbers tonight?  They are outstanding, I haven't seen numbers like this is 4 years!!

Hopefully this is a sign of even better propagation to come!

NA SSB Sprint...

Looking for something to do this weekend?  The North American SSB Sprint takes place on November 1st, from 0000 UTC to 0359 UTC.  I'm hoping to have more success doing the Sprint than I did last weekend doing the CQ WW DX Contest. 

The Rules can be found HERE.

I have decided that in future I will stay away from the BIG contests, and stick to the smaller ones....you know the ones, the type the big guns don't bother with.  I, and others, have quickly reached the conclusion that individuals who play within the set rules of a contest will never win.  There seems to be too many people running power levels far above the legally allowed limit, and who openly brag about it on the air without fear of any repercussions from the authorities, whether that's the FCC or Industry Canada. 

When you hear hams, on the air, complaining that even though they are running 3k and in one case, 5k of power in order to make contacts, something is wrong.  Yes, I know propagation was bad last weekend for the contest, but that's the cards you play with.  It doesn't mean you can continue to turn up the power until somebody hears you.  The rules are there for a reason, it's time people followed them.

CQ WW DX SSB Contest

This weekend see this years CQ WW DX SSB Contest kick off.  I will not be operating from the VE9FI contest station this year....for obvious reasons, which is a shame as I was really looking forward to it this year.  

Luckily for me my home antennas and other gear are in good shape and I will be able to take part from the VE3FI shack.   The FT-950 is warming up after being neglected as the KX3 has been the radio of choice for the past while.

I was going to activate a local POTA Park this weekend, but I'm beginning to think that would be a waste of time given how busy the bands will be with the contest.  The POTA activation will have to wait for the weekend after....hopefully the weather will still be good and warm enough to do it, that's always a risk this time of year.  I hate putting up portable antennas in the cold and snow.

This past week I have spent chasing POTA activations and having some fun on the HF bands now that they are starting to improve.  I read that over the winter activations from the Northern States and Canada start to drop off due to the cold weather, and the stations in the Southern States take up the slack to keep things ticking over.  I have plans for at least 6 local activations over the winter, and depending on the snow conditions, perhaps a few more.

I hope you're all staying safe out there!!

Tuner Uppers !!!

Sunday in the Park

I managed to spend a few hours Sunday morning down in the local park testing out an antenna and chasing POTA Stations...it was very relaxing.

It was not really a good day, propagation wise, to be out playing portable radio.  The numbers looked terrible.  SFI=73, SN=0, A=26, K=2.  It was only later after I got home that I saw the numbers had actually got a lot worse.

 So I was quite surprised when I called K5CIP on 20m and he came right back to me.  He was operating from the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park, 80 km west of Austin, Texas. Not too shabby for 10w SSB into a non-resonant antenna.

The other two contacts of the day were N8LEK and KC9IL, both stations were in Michigan, and done on 40m.

I answered many more but the KX3 and 10w just didn't cut it that day.  I did manage a "contact" of sorts with Steve, WG0AT on top of Mt Herman, Colorado.  I answered his CW CQ, he sent back my callsign, and then my key decided to stop working!!  I sent an email to Steve when I got home explaining what happened, and he was very gracious about it.

The antenna in use was what I call the "Whiskey Goat".  It was built using dimensions sent to me by Steve, WG0AT a year or so ago.  It is a 45.5' radiator and a single 17' radial.  It allows me to operate on all bands from 40m to 6m, and I have even made an 80m contact with it.  It's made with 26 gauge wire and weights nothing.  The KX3 tuner has no issues with it at all.

Stay safe out there!!

Parks on the Air

One of the things I did over the Chillycon weekend was to activate two Parks on the Air locations.  The first one I did was Rideau River Provincial Park, VE-0365. This was the first one I have ever done, and it was a lot of fun.

My first contact spotted me on the POTA system and all hell broke loose on my frequency. Honestly, it was like being at some exotic South Pacific Island on a DXpedition it was that busy. 

The second activation I did on Saturday, was the Rideau Canal National Historic Site, VE-4882. Again, it was a lot of fun and it created pileups on the frequency.  

What was the amazing part about all this is the fact I was QRP the whole time. 10w out of the KX3 into my 20m /40m linked dipole....and still creating pileups. I had contacts from PEI to Montana and everywhere in between.

After doing a bit of research I find that here are a number of POTA locations in and around Kingston that I can activate, so I think I have found a new niche in the hobby.

Stay safe out there!

We Survived...

This year we have changed the name from Chillycon to "Freezingcon".  This was without a doubt the coldest Chillycon I have attended over the past 13 years.....but at the same time it was one of the few we had no rain over the weekend.

Participant numbers was down from previous years, but we expected that with the Wuhan Flu going about.  We had 6 from Kingston, 6 from Ottawa, and a visitor on Saturday from Quebec.  Instead of the traditional Pizza supper on Saturday night, we had BBQ steak instead......and I think we now may have a new tradition 😎

Something new this year, I did two successful POTA activations from the park, and had a really great time doing them.  Friday morning I was spotted on the POTA website and within seconds I had a pileup.  It was the same on Saturday morning.  

I operated from inside the van over the weekend due to the cold temperatures.  It wasn't really comfortable and I'm going to have to rig up a portable operating position I can install and remove as needed.

Radio was the KX3, and the antenna was my 20/40m linked dipole, set up for 40m..and where it stayed all weekend.  I didn't even try 20m.  My 33' MFJ mast finally failed when I took it down on Sunday morning.  It's served me well over the past 14 years, but it was still not a pretty scene seeing it there broken.

The bands were not in the best condition over the four days, there was very deep QSB, and that made it harder for QRP stations such as myself.  I still managed to put 24 QRP contacts in the log though, so I'm well pleased with that.  The propagation numbers on Friday was: SFI=69, SN=0, A Index=4, and the K Index=2.

VA3AMX getting the
trophy from VE3MNE

Of course the highlight of the weekend is the DX Contest, sponsored by the Upper Canada QRP Club.  Over the past three years Eric, VA3AMX, has tried very hard to win the trophy......all with no success.  He has tried hard, and has placed second a couple of times.  This year, due to a lack of participants, the expert DXers amongst them, he won, with a DX contact to Bulgaria.....beating the second place station by 143 km.  I'm going to assume that the Kingston Skunk Works and DG Engineering will be working overtime this winter on new antenna designs to be ready for next year.

So that's it for another year.  Hopefully we will be back to normal by next September and we can have a non-social distancing Chillycon with the numbers of participants back to normal numbers.

Stay safe out there!!

The Battle of Britain...

Today is Battle of Britain day. 

Remember the sacrifices made by this bravest of generations. 

Forever indebted.

Chillycon...part 2

We're all packed and loaded.....except for the radio...and ready to roll out of here.  Of course this afternoon I had to take the van into the shop due to a strange noise when I turned left.....and only left.   Turns out I had a bent rotor guard, and no idea how it got bent....but it's fixed 😁

I'm hoping the propagation improves before the weekend, so far this week the numbers are in the toilet!!  There is a good amount of planned activity on the bands this weekend.  There are five State QSO Parties, IA, NJ, WI, NH, and WA, as well as QRP Afield.  On top of those, this Saturday night we will be holding our bi-monthly club QRP Sprint.  

As of 1800 UTC today, the propagation numbers are:  SFI=68; SN=0; A Index=6; and K Index=3.   Not too good.

So far they are not calling for any rain over the weekend, but it is going to be very cool at night, down to 1C.  During the day it won't be so bad as they are calling for 15C to 17C.  

Stay tuned for pictures of the event....if we survive 😉

Chillycon Preparations...

It's starting to cool down here during the day, so that means that once again it's time for this years Chillycon.  Coming up September 18-20, and held at Rideau River Provincial Park.  While it's going ahead, there are lots of social distancing event rules in place with regard to the Chinese Flu.

Chillycon has now become the largest annual gathering in Eastern Ontario for QRP'ers, and is an excellent place to learn about portable antenna's and QRP DXing.

The highlight of the weekend is, of course, the annual DX Contest, were a trophy is awarded for the contact at the furthest distance.  This has become so popular that the guys in Kingston have built their very own "Skunk Works" for portable antenna design in order to win.  The Kingston Skunk Works has more security than the Manhattan Project did........😎

Now, for the past three Sundays the guys in Kingston have been at Lake Ontario Park, playing with new antenna designs and home-brewed baluns looking for that perfect combination.....and it looks like we have one.  BUT.....no comment on it until after Chillycon, we don't want the competition to get wind of it, and he reads this Blog.

Here's a few photographs of the Skunk Works in action.....

VE3ULC at the controls while VE3JPW supervises.

VE3WTN and VE3MNE.

VE3WTN and VE3JPW.

W / VE Island QSO Party

Next weekend, August 29 - 30 is this years Island QSO Party.  This year it runs from 1200 UTC 29 August to 0300 UTC 30 August.....15 hours of Island Fun.

Rules for the event can be found HERE.

Due to the restrictions due to the Wuhan Flu, I'm not sure where I am going to operate from......more than likely it will be as a QRP Expedition, on an island in the Rideau Canal system, which will also allow me to play POTA at the same time.

So far the long range wx forecast shows warm and sunny for the event, let's hope it stays that way.

See you on the bands, and stay safe!

Hurricane Net

The US Hurricane Center has has issued a statement requesting that during the day, 14.325, and during the night, 7.268, be kept clear for Hurricane traffic.....it's that time of year again.

There are two hurricanes converging on New Orleans and Houston this week...a double hit and it may get nasty down there.

If you have time please consider monitoring these frequencies for a period.  Sometimes net control requires a relay, and you maybe in the right place to help out.

The Hurricane Center is reporting that they expect this year to be a busy one for Hurricanes.

Great Day at the Park

Todays operating location.

It was a beautiful day here in Kingston, a high of 23C with a light wind to keep the bugs away.  So, with nothing else to do it was off to the park after my morning walk to chase some POTA with VE3MNE and VE3ULC.

At 1700 UTC the propagation numbers were:  SFI=71, SN=12, A Index=6, and the K Index=1.   I had my KX3 with me and my new home-brewed 20m/40m linked dipole.   As my new Bioenno battery hasn't arrived yet I had my old 12v 7 amp SLA with me.

I finally managed to get the linked dipole on the analyzer and was very happy to see that I did not have to make any adjustments to it.  It looks good to go on 15m, 20m, and 40m.  I did not get it up very high in the trees, in fact the apex was only at about 20 feet, and the ends were about 3.5 feet off the ground.

I had a look at the POTA app on my phone and saw that Ed, W5LST, was active on 20m, so I gave him a call.  He came right back, and gave a me a lowly 22 - he was S9+10 at my end.  None the less I was happy as even at that low height I still managed a contact into Arkansas.

I have discovered that there are 7 POTA locations in or near Kingston, so it looks like I will be doing some activations in the very near future.

The finished linked dipole.

Lighthouses!!

I'm looking forward to this coming weekend, it's the annual International Lighthouse Lightship Weekend.  Timings are 0001 UTC August 22 to 2400 UTC August 23.

There are no rules, but the event guidelines are available HERE.

I think this will be a good event to do given the local Wuhan Flu restrictions we have here in Kingston.

My plan as of today, is to activate the Portsmouth Olympic Harbour Light on the Saturday.  I'll be using my KX3 and a 20m-40m home-brewed linked dipole.   Unfortunately my new Bioenno battery has not yet arrived, so it looks like I will have to charge up my small SLA's.

Hopefully the weather and propagation will cooperate.