A New Day...

Yesterday the band conditions were not very good, and I struggled to get the POTA site activated.  Today, operating at exactly the same time as yesterday, it was a bit different.

It took 42 minutes to put 23 contacts in my log, nine on 40m, four on 15m, and ten on 20m. I was really surprised when Charles, VA6CHK, answered my CQ on 15m.  It's been a long time since I worked any station from Alberta, that's almost as rare as Europe.  Charles was 2774 Km from me, not bad for 10w and a Hamstick!

Todays propagation numbers were:  SFI=164, SN=148, A Index=4, and the K Index=1.  The very deep QSB was a lot worse than yesterday, and I had a number of reports of my signal completely fading away in the middle of a QSO.

Here's todays contact map:

Hopefully band conditions will start to improve soon.

Stay Safe Out There!

Rotten Band Conditions...

Yet another mediocre day on the bands today.  I started on 40m and managed to get two contacts in 10 minutes before I decided to switch to 15m.  That band wasn't too bad as I could hear many European stations calling CQ, as well as being already in a QSO.  But it was not a good day to be calling, or answering, CQ's with QRP power....no contacts on 15m.

After another 20 minutes I decided to give 20m a try, and in the next 12 minutes managed to put ten contacts in the logbook.  Obviously I should have started on 20m and saved the anxiety I had on 40m and 15m.

Propagation numbers this morning were: SFI=169, SN=146, A Index=5 and the K Index=0. There was also a lot of deep QSB on the bands as well.  

I know it's summer and 40m is always flakey, so I think for the next few weeks I'll stick to 20m, 17m, and 15m, at least they seem to work some days.

Radio, as usual, was my KX3.  Antenna used was my Wolf River Mini on my Buddipole versahub, and a Canadian Army 9'5" collapsible whip.

Here's today's map showing my meager contact count:

Stay Safe Out There!!

Rideau Lakes Cycle Tour...UPDATED

This event is cancelled and has been rescheduled for the end of July.

Next weekend, June 10th & 11th, is the 50th running of the Rideau Lakes Cycle Tour, and the 15th year the Frontenac Radio Group has provided communications support for the event.  

We do have the threat of rain on us this weekend.  It's only a 40% chance, but it's not a thing we need or want.  The last time we got hit with cold rain was 11 years ago, that year 60% of the riders went down with hypothermia with the tour being abandoned half way, and riders evacuated by bus back to Ottawa.

There are only 1300 riders registered this year, the numbers being reduced from the more normal 2100 due to covid concerns.

For those hams who regularly use the VE3FRG C4FM repeater here in Kingston, please note it will be out of service next weekend and reserved for the Bike Tour traffic only.  If you need a repeater please use the VE3KBR repeater on 146.940- with a 151.4 tone.

As of yesterday, June 6th we are under an air quality watch due to forest fires in Ontario and Quebec.  We, here in Kingston, are in the worst of the smoke and as a result our air quality is the worst.  I'm actually hoping they cancel the tour as I don't think it's safe....but the decision to go / no go, will be made tomorrow.

Here's the air quality map:

Stay Safe Out There !!

POTA Sunday...

It was a fast activation this morning after spending all day yesterday playing radio or doing radio "things".  The bands had changed since yesterday afternoon, and 40m was not much good at all.

Todays propagation was: SFI=165, SN=96, A Index=5, and the K Index=2.

I activated Parrotts Bay, VE-5142.  Unfortunately the place was full with about 50 people having large family gathering and picnic, and the place was overrun with small screaming children running all over the place with no adult supervision.  Not a good place for ground radials!

The radio for a change was my FT-817ND with my hamstick antennas. I started on 40m and it was very short, and I managed to put four of my usual customers in the log and then the band got very noisy and just disappeared.  I looked at the other bands, 20m was very busy and I couldn't find a free frequency to start calling on.  So I decided to move to 15m, and was lucky enough to get another eleven in the log before that band died as well.  By this time I was tired of the constant screaming of the children and decided to pack up and go home. To be honest I found it strange that 15m was that busy, normally it's dead.

Here's today's contact map:

All in all it was a great weekend.

Stay Safe Out There!!

Smiths Falls...

I had a very good day yesterday.  After three years the Smiths Falls Ham Radio Flea Market was back in business.   No dealers this year, it was mainly piles of over-priced ancient junk that nobody in their right mind would pay any money for.  The good side was seeing, and talking to, so many fellow hams I haven't seen in the last three years.  

So what made it so good?  Well, meeting with friends from Ottawa and Smiths Falls, a good social lunch, and an afternoon of POTA beside the Rideau Canal National Historical Site made up for the disappointment of the flea market.

Eric VE3DN, Ranson VE3RCD, Don VE3MNE, and I went to Matti O'Shea's Irish Pub for lunch.  It was the first time we had been there, other than Ranson who recommended the place.  The food was great and the locally brewed beer was excellent.  I'm sure we'll be back next year.

After lunch we all headed back to Lower Reach Park, which is along the Rideau Canal, VE-4882, and active it for a few hours.  The weather was superb, we couldn't have asked for better.  I managed to activate the park on 40m with 15 contacts, including 9 P2P's.  Don spent his time hunting and made several good contacts.  Ranson activated with his digital station, and Eric chased European DX unsuccessfully.

Saturday's Contact Map

The propagation was pretty decent, other than some deep QSB.  SFI=162, SN=109, A Index=5, and the K Index=0.

Here's some pictures of the afternoon:

Eric VE3DN figuring out Ranson's IC-705

The VE3FI and VE3MNE mobiles at the Canal.

It was a great day with good friends!

Stay Safe Out There!!

One Canadian ????...

In late April this year I took part in this years QRP to the Field Contest, and really enjoyed myself doing it.  The weather was decent - for the time of year - and for once the propagation gods aligned and the bands behaved.

I was astonished earlier today to see the results posted, with myself in seventh place, and surprised to find I was the only Canadian to submit a score sheet, and even more shocked to see I was the only QRP SSB entry.  It is surprising that there is not more interest in this beauty of a contest north of the border.

Here's this years scores:

I'm already looking forward to doing this contest again next year!

Stay Safe Out There!!

This Week on the Radio...

Over the past 4 days I've managed to pull off seven POTA activations thanks to the improvement in the propagation.  Hopefully it's only going to get better.   It's been really nice being able to get out to the parks and bask in the nice weather we have been having, it's actually started to warm up here in Eastern Canada, and it's becoming much more comfortable to be outside again.  

Yesterday, down at Lemoine Point -VE-5141, I managed to make contact with several European stations including Rodolfo I4RHP, in Bologna, Italy.  Not too bad for 10w into a hamstick.

Today at Parrott's Bay - VE-5142, although the propagation numbers have improved overnight, my contact number was down, and no DX....but it is a work day, and yesterday was a holiday in the USA so there were more operators on the air.

Todays propagation was SFI=154, SN=179, A Index=4, K Index=1.  There was also some very deep QSB on the bands.  I managed to put 18 contacts in the log, but had to use 40m, 15m, and 20m to get those.  

It looks like the next few days will be good propagation wise.

Here's todays contact map:

Stay Safe Out There!!

The JPC-12 and a Hamstick...

The weather was great today, it was 22C under a beautiful blue sky when VE3WTN, VE3MNE, and I descended on Lake Ontario Park here in Kingston to do some antenna testing and analyzing.  It was a good thing we had some antenna work to do as the bands were absolutely terrible.

A few months ago I bought a JPC-12 antenna and have been waiting for the weather to warm up, and the ground to soften up, so I could get it in the ground to test.  Last week I did get it out and did some tests to see if I could figure out the band settings for it....as you don't get any with the antenna.  

Today we set up the JPC-12 for 40m with four 17' ground radials attached to the baseplate.  We also had a 40m hamstick, on a 5" mag-mount, on the roof of the van...where we normally have it.  Later on we also set the same configuration up for 20m.

It takes about one minute to set up a hamstick, and approximately ten minutes to set up the JPC-12 and radials.

After a search for some nets we found some fairly loud signals on the bands.  Switching back and forth between the two antennas the interesting thing we found was that there is less than a single S Unit between the two antennas.  On both of the bands we ran tests on the JPC-12 came out on top.  

I think if I was camping for the weekend, or spending the whole day at a park doing POTA, I would set up the JPC-12, but for my usual activations of an hour or less, I'll stick with the hamsticks, they are just too convenient.  My opinion is that there is just not enough difference between the two to worry about.

Stay Safe Out There!

There's Definitely an Improvement...

The bands are definitely improving.  Here's the latest contact map:

Still not hearing any DX stations, but I'm sure they will return soon.  There was still a bit of deep QSB, but nowhere as bad as yesterday.

Today the propagation numbers were: SFI=138, SN=109, A Index=4, and the K Index=1.

I have no activities planned now until Sunday, when my plan is to go to the local park and test and compare my 20m and 40m hamsticks against my JPC-12 antenna.  Stay tuned for those results.

Stay Safe Out There!

Bands are definitely better...

I've done two POTA activations in the past two days, and while my contact numbers are still low right now, the bands do seem to be getting better.  I'm not seeing any trans-Atlantic traffic, but give it another week and they should start showing up.

Tuesday saw me at Parrott's Bay, VE-5142.  The propagations was: SFI=135, SN=94, A Index=6, and the K Index=1.  There was lots of deep QSB which played havoc for both ends of the conversation.   

Here's Tuesdays contact map:

Wednesday saw me at Lemoines Point, VE-5141.  The propagation numbers were: SFI=134, SN=92, A Index=8, and the K Index=1.  The QSB was still there, but not as bad as Tuesday.

Here's Wednesdays contact map:

There's not much difference between the two, which is good, as I used the KX3 set at 10 watts and Hamsticks for both activations.

Stay Safe Out There!

Another Day in the Parks...

It was another beautiful day here in Eastern Ontario, lots of sun and blue sky.   Todays activation was VE-6003, the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail.  The trail runs along the Ontario shores of the Great Lakes from the Quebec border to the Manitoba border, and luckily for us here in Kingston, passes through four of our local POTA Parks.

Today, for the first time in a long time, I did not use my Hamsticks.  Instead I used my tactical mini SOTA pole and a QRP EFHW antenna cut for 40/20/15/10m.  Along with the antenna was a 1:1 Common Mode Choke.  The antenna and choke came from Tim, N9SAB, in Waukegan, IL.  The antenna also works very well on 17m and 6m.  I know it doesn't load at all on 12m, but I have never tried it on 30m.  The support pole is 6 metres high, or 19'6".

To be very honest I did not see any difference between using the hamsticks or the EFHW.  I suppose the only difference was the better signal reports I received today,  but as you will see from the map below, there was no real difference from where my signals normally reach with just the hamsticks.

Propagation today was:  SFI=144, SN=109, A Index=13, and the K Index=2.

Here's todays contact map:

Stay Safe Out There!!

Back Out In The Parks...

After 12 days of garbage propagation, today was finally a good day and I managed to pull off a successful POTA activation.  Not only was the propagation good, the weather was spectacular.  Of course something had to spoil the day, and I forgot my clipboard so it made writing my log a bit difficult.

The propagation numbers were:  SFI=149, SN=118, A Index=19, and the K Index=1.  There was quite a bit of QSB, but it was easy to work around it.  

Here's todays contact map:

While the contacts were not very spectacular, the idea that the bands were good enough to actually make contacts again was spectacular.

Nine of the contacts were made on 40m, and six were made on 20m.  I did try 15m but nobody answered my CQ's.  The radio was my KX3 with hamsticks.

I'm looking forward to getting out tomorrow morning and doing it all over again.  Hopefully this time I'll get a few more contacts.

Stay Safe Out There!

An Update to my Updates...

Looks like another few days of rough radio work.   Hopefully it will sort itself out for next week.

Here's the latest chart:

Stay Safe Out There!

And.....Here We Go Again...(Updated) and (Updated again)...

Here's the Space Weather forecast for the next three days, it's certainly not looking very good.  So far I'm not very impressed with the propagation of this solar cycle, it certainly isn't shaping up to be what they originally forecast for it.

This past week the propagation has been abysmal and it looks like next week won't be any different!

Update as of 0200 UTC, 7 May:

Update as of 1800 UTC, 9 May:

Not Much Improvement...

It was a rather mediocre time on the bands this morning, the affects of the last round of poor propagation was still being felt. Hopefully that will change over the next few days.

The propagation numbers were:  SFI=154, SN=79, A Index=10, and the K Index=1.

Weather wise it was wet, cold, and very windy, not at all what you would expect from there 1st May. It was, in fact, what my friends would call a "hot chocolate" type day.

Here's todays contact map:

All of my contacts, but one, were on 20m today.  Normally it is the other way around.  Along with poor propagation we also had some severe QSB, which certainly didn't help matters.  Radio was my KX3 and a 20m and 40m Hamstick.

It took nearly an hour to put 13 contacts in my log book, it normally never takes that long.  I'm hoping the bands improve and the good propagation returns soon.

Stay Safe Out There!

More Lousy Propagation...UPDATED...

Here's the propagation outlook for the next three days......might be tough going on Monday.

 

Stay Safe Out There!!

Here's the latest on April 24, 0100 UTC:

And the latest on April 24, 0700 UTC:

QRPTTF is over for this year...

Today was the 2023 running of QRP To The Field....so I went out and found a field and operated there.  It was wet and miserable....but I had fun.

Today's propagation was: SFI=151, SN=85, A Index=9, and the K Index=0.  There was some QSB, and more than a few LIDS out there, but we survived.

I finished with 22 contacts in the log and 10 multipliers, so I'm happy with that.  

Here's today's contact map:

Stay Safe Out There!!

QRP To The Field...

Coming this weekend, is this years edition of QRP to the Field.  This year it's open to both CW and SSB stations, it's one of the few that does allow SSB.

Rules and information can be found HERE on their website.

Here in Ontario the event runs from 0800 to 1800 EDT on Saturday, April 22nd.  Check the Rules for the timings in your part of the continent.

I'm planning on getting out and playing in the event.  As they have now allowed SSB I feel it should be supported, although I'll probably do CW as well.

Stay Safe Out There !!