Category: Uncategorized
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Antenna build is on hiatus until next weekend, and another week goes by without an activation
Also, the finished dimensions are way less than perfect, though for what it’s worth I really did just pick them out of the air; it needs to be wider to provide space for the tripod head, and the 1/4″ hole might need to be a bit off center for the same reason. Maybe I will […]
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Antenna build progress
In the spirit of full disclosure, this project got started when I was reading about the QRPguys DS1 antenna kit in late February; when I looked at the DS1 on their website it was not available to ship at that time (nor is it today). Looking a bit further, I realized that I already had […]
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A hike or two, and all sorts of unrelated miscellany
With many updates; February 28th to March 9th Cold on Saturday and Sunday, raining on Monday, it was never quite a weekend for radio. Tuesday (February 28th) was sunny, if hazy, and the temperature made it into the 40s; I didn’t feel like taking the time for a park activation but I did go out […]
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Mirror Lake SP, K-1464
On Saturday night I was musing over the POTA map and my road maps, wanting another new park to activate and it struck me suddenly that Mirror Lake State Park, K-1464 which I really only knew of from a sign and a quick glimpse of water when driving by on the interstate, was actually right […]
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Activating Kickapoo River SWA, K-4296
For a while now, I have been wanting to activate a new park, and last Tuesday offered the opportunity to do so. An overcast day in the low 40s with a chance of some rain in the afternoon was the forecast, and that’s good enough for operating from the car. My last try for a […]
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The trees know that spring is coming …
Yesterday I was in the neighborhood of Mill Bluff S. P. (K-1463) and the weather was unusually mild for this time of year, so it seemed like it might just be time for a quick hike through the woods! The Camel Bluff trail was slippery with half-melted snow and irregular semi-ice and I was glad […]
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A day of exploration, and an activation at Wildcat Mountain (with QRP DX !)
I woke up early Sunday morning knowing that the weather forecast was for fair and mild conditions, the 20 meter band conditions were good, and I wanted to activate a new park! There were several possibilities, none particularly nearby, and after a few moments of study I decided to try Coulee Experimental State Forest near […]
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Winter Field Day: day 2
Watch for updates all day! 7 am local time, also 7 degrees F outside; we got about 1 1/2″ of light, fluffy snow overnight, (actually cleared the walks with a broom rather than a shovel) so in the interest of safe travel I am leaving later than I might otherwise. Give the plow trucks time […]
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Winter Field Day is here!
I checked out a WiFi hotspot from a local library, so I will be updating this post all day! I am planning on leaving in about an hour for Wildcat Mountain; right now I am making a lunch, lots of coffee, and some hot cider for the day’s entertainment, alternating with thinking of something else […]
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A few quick measurements of solar panel output.
A few weeks ago I was reading a guest post over at QRPer in which the writer observed that his solar panels’ output was noticeably less than expected. This was perfectly in line with my own observations in the past, but if I ever tried to quantify it the data has been lost, and I […]
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Winter Field Day is coming!
Scroll down to see the updates! Next weekend, in fact, January 28th – 29th, 1900 UTC to 1859 UTC. Right now, I am planning on operating from Wildcat Mountain State Park 1900 to 2200 UTC Saturday and 1400 to 1859 on Sunday. This park is also K-1480, I’m hoping the WFD rules will allow me […]
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No more antenna in the tree
Back in June when I had just received the X6100, as soon as I had charged the internal battery I improvised a quick random wire antenna off the deck: a small round rock carried some mason’s line over a convenient limb of the northernmost pine tree, which served to hoist up a lightweight insulator and […]