Good Day Today...

Today I complete my 68th trip around the sun, and while it sucks getting old, it definitely beats the alternative.  As a way of celebrating I decided to return to Lemoine Point, and do another POTA activation, my 89th at that location.

Propagation numbers looked pretty good today, and I thought I would do well on 15m as I have done the last few times I'm been at the park.  The numbers were: SFI=173, SN=101, A Index=3, and the K Index=1.  The Bz was sitting at -0.3, but I've operated with a lot worse than that.

The bad part of today was the fact it was -17C (1F) out, but felt like -21C (-6F) with the wind chill factored in.  As I operate from my truck I figured I would be fine.

The radio of the day was my KX3 set at 10w, and as usual I used a 15m hamstick. I've learned to leave the truck running with the heat blasting away while I set up my antenna, as the door must be open in order for me to reach the roof properly.  

It turns out 15m was good, but it wasn't great.  I managed a total of 19 QSO's before I had to close down due to a failing battery due to the cold. I did get a 2m simplex contact with Jelle VE3THI, who was activating Parrott's Bay, VE-5142, which is about 6.5 km to the west of Lemoine Point.  The lesson of the day was to make sure you also have 70cm simplex frequencies programmed in the radio as well.

Here's todays contact map:

Be Well, and Stay Safe Out There!