Posted by n4fff 25 days ago
Today we visited Wheeler Wildlife Refuge in Alabama. What a beautiful spot! We'd been at this spot before, right by the river for another sunset POTA, and this time was just as beautiful. Just as we got started, an owl let out it's characteristic WHO-WHO-ha-WHO, which was his best Q in morse code. I learned a good lesson today, but more on that in a minute.
For the antenna, we used a vertical 17' whip and ground spike mounted right by the water's edge. The radio was a CFT1 running QRP. Becky activated right before me with our new custom design straight key, the Duo Straight Key One, but I used my paddles.
When I started, I had only about 15 minutes to activate on the Friday UTC day. I set my paddles for 18 wpm and decided I'd only give each thing 1x instead of 2x. As I got started, I'm not sure what happened. We're used to there being some other stations occasionally that can't hear us because we're QRP and sometimes we need to move frequencies. Just as i got started, there were multiple very strong stations and what sounded like multiple people tuning up. I was trying to move fast to get in my 10 so I quickly QSY (changed frequencies) up a little bit. I got a few more, rushing all the while, and it happened again. I suspect a contest was starting up. In my haste, I don't even remember if I switched frequencies again, before I settled in but eventually, I knew that I was past the UTC deadline. Somewhere in there I'd gotten Alejandro from Mexico and Jean from France. I slowed down to my normal pace. As I was making contacts, I realized that it was a mistake to even try to go fast just to try to get my 10. I don't care if I activate or not. I love getting to connect with you all, make new friends, while enjoying being outside.
When Becky and I POTA, we often love to exchange names in addition to signal reports. We know some hunters are still learning and don't copy what we send, but we remember barely getting our own names also. It's the personal touch that we love about radio. Also, we know signals come and go, fading in and out. We like to give signal reports and states twice, so that everyone can enjoy the contact. In the end, I realize that I just want to go at my own speed. Ultimately, it isn't about the points for activating. It's just an excuse to get outside and meet all of you!
POTA Activation Report
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Operator: N4FFF
Park Reference: US-0161
Start Time (UTC): Fri, 23 May 2025 23:46:22 UTC
End Time (UTC): Sat, 24 May 2025 00:33:11 UTC
Duration: 0h 46m
Total QSOs: 25
Number of States: 18
Number of Countries: 4
Contact Summary by Country
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United States: 22 QSOs
Canada: 1 QSOs
Mexico: 1 QSOs
France: 1 QSOs
Contacts by Distance
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1. F4ILH (JEAN BAPTISTE, DX) - 4454 miles
2. N7JTT (John T, WA) - 2046 miles
3. K2MMT (Chris, CA) - 1671 miles
4. XE1UYS (Alejandro, VE) - 1178 miles
5. K1NF (Nels, ME) - 1117 miles
6. N0MRK (Mark A, CO) - 1065 miles
7. KC0TAF (Mike, MN) - 884 miles
8. W2ELS (Ron, NY) - 765 miles
9. AA5CF (Ken M, TX) - 742 miles
10. WB3DDJ (MICHAEL E, PA) - 727 miles
11. K5COL (Chad O, IA) - 678 miles
12. WK0E (Marty, NE) - 674 miles
13. K3MTO (Christopher L, FL) - 667 miles
14. NN3E (KEVIN J, MD) - 654 miles
15. WZ3J (Lou, MD) - 646 miles
16. VA3UZ (Allan Timothy, ON) - 645 miles
17. WE5K (Stephen L, TX) - 627 miles
18. KG4EXY (JOHN L, VA) - 602 miles
19. KE4Q (Frederick, FL) - 551 miles
20. N0FRC (Christopher A, MO) - 547 miles
21. KM4JEG (Bobby, NC) - 539 miles
22. K4MW (PETER D, VA) - 538 miles
23. W4AFB (KEITH A, FL) - 534 miles
24. KB4LCI (DAVID B, VA) - 521 miles
25. K4KVC (Kenneth A, FL) - 155 miles
Contact Map
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Posted by n4fff 30 days ago
That was a fun but tough one! That was probably the hardest POTA we've had yet. We almost gave up twice, but glad we didn't because we had 4 countries, if you include the US!
We were at a beautiful Park in Athens Alabama along the trail of tears. With the sun setting in the background and a cute little pond, we were also surrounded by historic buildings in this neat little town.
We were QRP. We started on the CFT1 and then switched to the qcx mini, just trying to roll the dice for a little bit more luck. The antenna was a K6ARK EFHW. We must have gotten it since we got several of y'all from so far away!
Operator: N4FFF
Reference: US-3791
Grid: EM66gu
Date: 2025-05-18
Total QSOs: 11
Contacts by Distance
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1. EA2BD (Spain) - 4369 miles
2. PJ7AR (St Maarten) - 1970 miles
3. KI7QCF (UT) - 1322 miles
4. XE2MWY (Mexico) - 1076 miles
5. WA2SPL (VT) - 931 miles
6. N1CMD (NH) - 927 miles
7. N4XAT (NJ) - 721 miles
8. K9ALT (WI) - 504 miles
9. K8LJG (MI) - 474 miles
10. N8JY (MI) - 448 miles
11. NA4A (AL) - 176 miles
Contact Map
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Posted by n4fff about 2 months ago
Every contact that makes an activation possible is a treat. Today I got to extra special treats with contacts from over 4k miles away on QRP and a wire.. Radio is magic!
For this activation, we were at Fort Toulouse National Historical Park. Fort Toulouse was built in 1717 by France so its soldiers could trade with the Creek Indians and keep British traders away. After France lost a war in 1763, the soldiers left and the old fort fell apart. In 1814, American forces led by General Andrew Jackson built a new fort here called Fort Jackson after winning a battle in the Creek War.
It was super neat to accidentally come by during a weekend of re-enactment. People were dressed historically with relics from the era and even stayed there using traditional methods throughout the weekend! Another great example of how POTA and SOTA gets you outdoors and to places you wouldn't have otherwise visited!
For the actual activation, we both went on a hike with our backpacks. We had everything including 2 chairs, table, and all the radio stuff in our backpacks. After our hike, we found a giant tree in the middle of the field that provided perfect shade to enjoy the activation with a light breeze and nature all around.
73 Mike N4FFF
https://www.youtube.com/@HamRadioDuo
Operator: N4FFF
Reference: US-6460
Grid: EM62um
Date: 2025-04-27
Total QSOs: 11
Contact Map
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Posted by n4fff about 2 months ago
This activation was special because we normally like to be portable qrp outdoors somewhere. This time we were in our truck. We are in the process of designing an antenna for vehicles, with a standard 3/4" mount. This was our first time using it for an activation!
We've been calling this the "Just OK" antenna. It's the most just okay gets the job done antenna you could imagine. At less than 2 ft, it's almost ridiculous as a 20 m antenna. We built it so that we could leave the antenna on all the time and not have to take it on and off getting into an hour garage or parking garages. It seemed to get the job done today!
I'm sure our full-sized ham stick could have done better. I'm sure any of our portable antennas would have done much better. Sometimes, for us it's less about maximizing and more about unlocking being able to play radio when you otherwise wouldn't. This is the antenna we intend to use all the time for CW on road trips and around town. At some point I'm sure we're going to be looking for beta testers if anybody has a similar problem that would be solved with a 2 ft antenna.
Send us a message if you want to be part of the early testers for this antenna!
Yeasu ft891
30 w
HamRadioDuo "Just OK" antenna (less than 2 ft)
Operator: N4FFF
Reference: US-1043
Grid: EM64hs
Date: 2025-04-19
Total QSOs: 16
73 Mike N4FFF
https://youtube.com/@hamradioduo
Contact Map
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Posted by n4fff about 2 months ago
This was part of our Joe Wheeler Easter adventure. We were camping in our RV camper and did multiple activations. For this one, we found a picnic table by the water.
We were using our CFT1 with about 5 watts of power. The antenna was a K6ARK EFKHW on a POTA20 mast. We had POTA Rose with us, our dog, and a very curious wasp that kept visiting and making it hard to send!
73 Mike N4FFF
https://youtube.com/@hamradioduo
POTA Activation Report
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Operator: N4FFF
Park Reference: US-1043
Total QSOs: 14
Number of States: 10
Contact Map
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Posted by n4fff about 2 months ago
This was a fun one! We got lots of contacts from states we don't often get and Chris from Bonaire! Part was the magic of 10m..
It was pretty slow compared to normal. When it was working, it was really working! Got lots of far away contacts including Chris in Bonaire! We don't often get CA but got 8 of you in CA! So many far away states we don't normally get! I started off on the G90 on 10m and pretty sure its due in part to the magic of 10m.
Some familiar "fists" and some new ones! We got our friend W1WC who lives nearby and was actually P2P in the exact same park!
My ham wife, Becky N4BKY and I are camping in our RV camper. This activation was right next to our camper. I started on our G90 at 20W and ended on our QCX-mini 5W QRP. The antenna was an XTenna EFHW.
Operator: N4FFF
Reference: US-1043
Grid: EM64hs
Date: 2025-04-18
Total QSOs: 46
73 Mike N4FFF es Becky N4BKY
https://youtube.com/@hamradioduo
Contact Map
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