QRP in the Driftless

Tag: Buddipole

  • Field Day, Day 2

    The rain did quit sometime overnight, so I got up a bit before 4:00, made plenty of coffee, and got on the road back to Wildcat Mountain State Park, K-1480. Though I drove slowly and watchfully to avoid deer, I was at the park a few minutes before it opened at 6:00. (Deer are termed…

  • Field Day, Day 1

    My planning for Field Day was kind of sketchy, and not at all ambitious, so I grabbed my radio pack after lunch and arrived at Wildcat Mountain State Park a bit before 2:00, or already almost an hour into the event. It took me about 20 minutes to set up the X6100 and the 20…

  • Devil’s Lake State Park, K-1449 and Ice Age National Scenic Trail, K-4238

    After a weekend of chilly and rainy weather there came a day where the forecast promised slightly nicer conditions, and I had scouted out this location a few weeks earlier on a trip to the Menard’s in Baraboo. I got there early and considered operating outdoor portable for the first time this year, but a…

  • Dell Creek SWA, K-4281

    I needed to visit the Home Depot in Lake Delton today, and I really wanted to do another activation, too. I brought the dream and the reality together by stopping at Dell Creek State Wildlife Area, K-4281 along the way! Once I found an access with parking, (off Town Hall road, north of North Avenue),…

  • Wildcat Mountain, K-1480

    Well I got lucky with the weather on Tuesday; though it was 26 degrees overnight the forecast called for a daytime high in the upper 40s. I decided to keep everything simple, so equipped with plenty of hot coffee, I headed for Wildcat Mountain State Park, K-1480. Setting up the Buddipole 20m vertical took about…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…