This was much harder than getting the ARRL WAS certificate. It took me the better part of a year to work a POTA station in every state, and it was even longer than I expected due to some individuals not submitting a log and having to search again for an active park in the missing state.
Now that this is done I guess I have to find a new goal to work towards.
During those activations I put over 400 contacts in my log. Now 400 may not look like a big number, but when you consider I only do POTA as a QRP station with 10w into a hamstick, held on to the roof of my van with a 5" mag-mount, it's not too shabby a number.
So far June is shaping up to be a quiet month for activities, especially now that the Rideau Bike Tour has been cancelled for the second year in a row due to Covid.
I haven't made any plans for this years ARRL Field Day yet, I'm going to see what the rest of my ham buddies are going to do first. But if I do participate this year, it will be as a QRP station.
The decision last year by the ARRL to temporarily modify the rules was, in my humble opinion, an absolute disaster. It might just well have been any other contest weekend. The people who actually participated in the real SPIRIT of Field Day had absolutely no chance at all. They were getting completely blown away by the D and E class stations running large home based antennas and amplifiers. That's all you heard. Looking through my log, but I would say easily 95% of the contacts I made were Class D and E.
This year, to appease the large number of hams who complained about the D and E class stations last year, the ARRL have ruled that these classes can only run a maximum of 150w. Yeah...well, let's see how many of them play by the rules this year...I'm not going to hold my breath.
Stay safe out there!
The day didn't start very well today radio-wise. I had decided to try another POTA activation and do the Great Trail of Canada, better known to many people as the "Trans-Canada Trail", which is VE-5082. It crosses Highway 38 about 15 km north of the city, so it's pretty easy to get to.
I arrived at the nearly empty parking lot, and set up for 40m. Wow! What a surprise. Both 40m and 20m had a S9+20 noise floor. I couldn't hear a thing across both bands, and the other bands were the same. There are no power lines or building near the trail, so I have no idea where the noise is coming from.
The propagation numbers this morning were: SFI=73, SN=18, A Index=4, and K Index=2.
To be honest I wasn't expecting much after the mornings disappointment, and once again I was surprised.
Over 60 minutes I put 26 contacts in the log, including EA1AF in Spain, DJ4POT in South Germany, and NP3MR in Puerto Rico. I also had contacts in Newfoundland, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan....places I haven't worked in months.
I was using my KX3 at 10w with a 20m Hamstick with a mag-mount on my van roof....nothing fancy, but it works.
So it turned out to be a pretty good day after all.
It was raining and 8C this morning.....sounds just like last weekend!! So I decided to go to the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve - VE-0023, just to the north of Kingston to do an activation.
I put 19 contacts in the log in 19 minutes using the KX3 with 10w and 20m and 40m hamsticks.
Propagation at 0900 local was - SFI=72, SN=15, A Index=3, and K Index=2.
Contacts were made in FL NJ, SC, ON, NH, IN, MI, MA, IL, OH, NY, WV, and MD on 20m and 40m.
The highlight of this mornings activation was doing my very first Park to Park on CW. I heard Bill, K4NYM, calling CQ on 20m from a park in Florida and I threw out my call and he came back to me. Now what I thought! Well, I won't say it was a perfect QSO, but we did manage to complete it and get the information past. I hope he forgives me for my terrible CW.
It was 8C and raining when I woke up today, not the best way to start a day. The daily propagation wasn't any better either, the SFI=71, SN=11, A Index=5, and the K Index=3. Not exactly the best of conditions to be outside playing QRP portable radio!
But, outside I went, and within a few minutes I was at the first of three POTA Parks I activated this morning. All three of the parks were added to the POTA system only this week, and had never been activated before.
The first location, VE-5143, Marshland Conservation Area, was pretty much deserted which was a good thing as the parking lot isn't very big. Amazingly it took exactly 12 minutes to get the ten contacts necessary for a good activation. Within minutes of being spotted I had a huge pileup coming at me.
It took 15 minutes to get 16 contacts in my log at this location. This is a huge parking lot with plenty of room to spread out. It was busy though today with families getting some much needed exercise during the Covid-19 restrictions we're currently living under.
Nobody bothered me at this location, a few people walked past and had a look to see what all the noise was about, but that was it.
The final location was VE-5142, Parrott's Bay Conservation Area. The rain had decided to stop the downpour by now and was just a light drizzle which eventually stopped. In 20 minutes I put another 19 contacts in the log.
The equipment I used today was my Elecraft KX3 at 10 watts, and a 40m Hamstick mounted on a mag-mount on the roof of the van. I did try 80m and 20m but didn't have any luck on those bands, so 40m was the go-to spot.
I received mostly very good signal reports, but I also got a couple of not so good reports. Overall I was very happy with the results and am planning my next POTA adventure.
Stay safe out there!
Of course coupled with the rainy weather the propagation has not been much good either. There have been many POTA stations spotted, but I haven't heard them.
Today, May 1st, I mowed my lawn for the first time this year, wearing a coat, hat, and gloves. That's a first!
My plans to get out and activate a few local POTA spots have been thwarted recently by both the weather and the Covid-19 Stay at Home Order. However, it seems solo activations in the local area are acceptable to do - according to the local Police, so stay tuned for some local activations in the very near future....rain or shine.
