From W5XX:

The Jackson ARC invites you to this year’s ARRL Day in the Park this
coming Saturday from 9:00 am until 2:00 pm at Old Trace Park.  The folks
at Ridgeland Parks and Recreation graciously allowed us to use their
Recreation Center adjacent to the main parking lot. This will be a fun
time of fellowship and food (Dutch Treat from Food Truck).   At noon
there will be a few comments by W5XX followed by multiple door prizes.
In addition, Flea Market tables will be available, or you can tailgate
in the parking lot.  For those interested, the Mississippi State Fair
will be open for “after Day in the Park fun and games.”

Old Trace Park is located at 422 Post Road in Ridgeland. To get there
follow the signs to the Bill Waller Craft Center on Rice Road and then
continue on Rice Road a short distance until you get to a stop sign at
the intersection with Post Road.  Take a right on Post Road and Old
Trace Park will then be the second right.  The Rec Center will be on the
right side of the large parking lot as you drive in.  For further
information contact AK5J at cell 601-709-6740 or email ak5j@arrl.net.   
Talk-In: 146.64 (77 Hz) linked to 146.76 (77 Hz)

Best 73 de W5XX

Many thanks to Bob (K4RLC) & Alanna (K4AAC) for the following field report: Cabot Trail Activations on Cape Breton Island Nova Scotia  – August 2024  By Bob K4RLC & Alanna K4AAC In August 2024, K4AAC, my YL Alanna and I took a trip to magical Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It was Alanna’s suggestion to … Continue reading Bob and Alanna’s POTA Adventures Along the Cabot Trail! →

Many thanks to Rod (VA3MZD) for sharing the following guest post: Operating POTA from the interior of Quetico Provincial Park CA-0359 with a (tr)uSDX By Rod Murray (VA3MZD) In a previous guest post here on QRPer I gave a brief history of my introduction to Ham radio and specifically POTA and my experiences activating local … Continue reading Navigating Quetico: Rod’s POTA Adventure with the (tr)uSDX →

As always there are lots of links within the article. Click one! Click them all! Learn all the things! by Vince (VE6LK) In August and September 2024 I was travelling around Southern Ontario for some family matters and, naturally, I brought my radio kit with me to squeeze in some radio therapy stops along the … Continue reading Castles and Trains at Dundurn Castle NHS →

As always there are lots of links within the article. Click one! Click them all! Learn all the things! by Vince (VE6LK) In August and September 2024 I was travelling around Southern Ontario for some family matters and naturally I brought my radio kit with me to squeeze in some radio therapy stops along the … Continue reading Cross-border activation between friends →

Many thanks to Micah (N4MJL) who shares the following guest post: Activating Grandeur Peak (W7U/NU-065) by Micah (N4MJL) Emboldened by my successful activation of W7U/SL-022 (7,500ft MSL) a week earlier, I decided to up my SOTA game and try to activate Grandeur Peak (W7U/NU-065). Grandeur Peak is located in the Wasatch Range (POTA Entity US-4398) just to … Continue reading Climbing Grandeur Peak: Micah’s SOTA Adventure in Utah’s Wasatch Range →

Friday, August 23, 2024, was packed with activities, but I was looking forward to the evening to wind down and relax. That morning and afternoon, my wife and I ran numerous errands around town. I played chauffeur to my daughters, taking them to their volunteer jobs and Shakespeare classes. The day wrapped up around 5:00 … Continue reading Testing My C6 Rooftop Tent During an Overnight POTA Camping Trip! →

Many thanks to Micah (N4MJL) who shares the following guest post: Fort Point (3-Fer POTA activation) San Francisco 1 June 2024 by Micah (N4MJL) What do you do with 24 hours off in San Francisco? Well, as a card carrying FCC certified nerd, I hit the streets and headed off to Fort Point with my brand new … Continue reading 24 Hours in San Francisco: Three POTAs in One Activation! →

Many thanks to Conrad (N2YCH) who shares the following field report: Activating Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania August 21, 2024 By: Conrad Trautmann, N2YCH I recently took an overnight trip from Connecticut to Philadelphia via Amtrak and before I left, I checked to see what parks in Philly I might be able to activate. Conveniently, Independence … Continue reading Philly: Conrad Activates Independence National Historical Park →

Introduction by Matt (W6CSN) In early August, my family and I had occasion to take a road trip totaling nearly 2800 miles (4500 km) across six different U.S. states. The title of this posting might lead you to think that this trip was dedicated to doing Parks On The Air activations, but that was not … Continue reading Western States POTA Roadtrip Summary →

Many thanks to Micah (N4MJL) who shares the following guest post: Activating W7U/SL-022 on a Layover by Micah (N4MJL) As an airline pilot, I’m always on the lookout for POTA/SOTA sites that are near me when I have long layovers in different cities across the country. Salt Lake City, Utah is no exception. I always … Continue reading Maximizing a Layover: From the cockpit to the summit of W7U/SL-022 →

Many thank to Bob (K4RLC) who shares the following guest post: Marconi Revived – Activating the Marconi sites in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia by Bob K4RLC VE1/K4RLC Alanna K4AAC and I just returned from a wonderful trip to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It was a bucket list trip. One goal was to visit and … Continue reading Chasing Marconi’s Legacy: Bob and Alanna’s POTA Adventure in Cape Breton →

by Teri (KO4WFP) Daisy and I awoke the morning of Thursday, July 18, ready to attempt our third SOTA activation of this trip. Today we’d head to Mount Jefferson State Natural Area (US-3846), a short drive from New River State Park. Along the drive, I spied quite a few farms for Christmas trees. Mount Jefferson … Continue reading The POTA Babe Gets Wet – Day 5 →

by Teri (KO4WFP) I woke on day four (Wednesday, July 17) of my North Carolina camping and POTA trip, determined for it to be a better day. The three unsuccessful activations were actually a good thing. It put me on notice that I had fallen into my past habit of scheduling to the max. Sometimes … Continue reading Things Pick Back Up for the POTA Babe – Day 4 →

Many thanks to Christian (IX1CKN) who shares the following field report: POTA Friends Meet to Activate IT-0737 by Christian (IX1CKN) With Andrea (IW0HK) in Turin for a few days, it would have been a shame not to use Sunday for a POTA activation, recreating the “Multicountry Rove” team that participated in the Friedrichshafen Fair. Our chosen destination, … Continue reading Quarter-Wave Conquers: Christian and Andrea’s POTA Success Despite Solar Slumber →

by Teri (KO4WFP) As my friend Jon KC1FUU says “Some days are diamonds, some are stone.” The third day (Tuesday, July 16) of my North Carolina trip definitely fell into the “stone” category. The day began nice enough with a slow but steady pace. As our next overnight stay was at Lake James State Park, … Continue reading The POTA Babe Strikes Out – Day 3 →

The plane is empty.

She’s adamant that we must stay in our assigned seats but I somehow find myself stealthy relocated to a window seat.

Tired, excited and most likely caffeinated we are airborne from Cairo. The previous flight had left London sometime past midnight, presumably to garner the cheapest departure cost, inevitably has disrupted my sleep pattern, worsened by rigid and unbending seats.

Alarm and confusion set in as we descended early and all l could see was miles of desert and dunes. This can’t possibly be India and I wonder if we have somehow found our way onto the wrong flight to the wrong destination. Maybe she’s amused but responds that we are landing in Dubai and assures us we will get to Bombay after a short stop that requires no disembarkation on my part.

Weeks go by and we’ve traveled enormous distances at a snail’s pace. We’ve crept south from Bombay to Cape Comorin, the southernmost tip of India. As lone travelers we are an oddity to many. We visit Hindu temples, have become very familiar with train stations, carriages, government hotels and a diet that is proving hard. Density varies from a handful of people in remote and struggling villages to throngs that are almost a deluge in cities of equally challenged people. We’ve swung north along the Bay of Bengal towards Darjeeling. 

Weeks become almost two months and we’ve skirted westward across the lower Himalayas and into Kashmir. Maybe it was an article in the Guardian, but Rico has decided we must visit Leh in the otherworldly place called “Little Tibet” or more formally, Ladakh. Not long since a war frontier in bloody battles with China, this area is now open for the first time to tourists. 

Ill again, I stay in the Srinagar hotel room. Against the odds, Rico has scored a victory with two bus tickets and permission for us to ride from Srinagar up through the mountains on what is sometimes a plausible road clinging to the mountain side high above the Indus River.

Kargil is a desolate high altitude place. Unfamiliar with much, all hotel beds are nabbed by those in the know and we find ourselves sleeping on a dirt floor in a hovel. Maybe tea revived us the next morning but a day later we arrived in Leh and straight into the 15th century. No cars, limited electricity, heavy felt clothing, distinctive hats all make for a sense of somewhere that is not India. Buddhist pray wheals, pray flags and a miniature Portola dot a hilly and rugged community and close in feel and outlook to Tibet versus India.

The compartment was typical of the era. Two doors, two bench seats offering privacy and these cramped spaces were repeated the length of the carriage. No bathroom, no ability to move up or down the carriage. If trapped, fellow travelers could make the  journey almost unbearable.

Each is not particularly heavy nor bulky but five, seven or more rapidly became a chore to move. Pulling one out was possibly the highlight of the trip. Aged relatives with little to say made for difficult company for this ten year old who was shy and also had little to say. 

In a world of black and white TV and music pouring from a tiny transistor radio, badly curated by a prescriptive BBC, National Geographic was manna from heaven. A beautiful, exciting and colorful world existed beyond the drab 1970s UK. 

I loved the photos of American National Parks, hoodoos in Bryce or geysers in Yellowstone. Definitely not central London. I loved the photos of American states, colorful Vermont, cactus rich Arizona, I’m sold, I’m coming!. The occasional pull out map was always a perennial favorite. Photo tours of Africa, South America and even Europe were a delight. The ads for Bell Air or Cadillac conveyed such a sense of optimism. Camera and exotic shortwave radio ads sealed the deal for me. There is a Brave New World somewhere else.

We were essentially broke. Film was expensive, space was tight and unbelievably for an almost three month trip I have around twelve rolls of 35mm film, predominantly color but a few rolls of black and white. As a pretty unseasoned photographer on such a ridiculous “snap” budget it’s a marvel I have really anything to show for what was and is tritely, a life changing trip which made me a better human. Not many, a few, sunrise at Cape Comorin and this.

Permission granted, not as V victory but by two fingers, a rupee for each.  

I snapped it, I labored to develop and print it and caringly carried it over the decades through countless moves, an emigration to America and stashed it with family photos.

Its significance, somewhat unrecognized nor fully understood until later in life. In a way it’s a homage to National Geographic. Imitation is the finest form of flattery and I was “mimicking” what I had so enjoyed.

Twenty five percent inflation, relentless crippling strikes and an IMF bailout sharpens the will in 1970s London to avoid failure. 

With a newly minted Computer Science and Math degree, emigrating to join the A team was made all the more palatable having so enjoyed National Geographic’s simple message; the world is a wonderful place, the glass is half full, not half empty and optimism and America are the same thing. 

A simple philosophy to guide a simple life.

Many thanks to Rand (W7UDT) for sharing this short field report: Eiffel Tower QRP (Failed) “Activation” by Rand (W7UDT/FR) Earlier this Spring, my wife & I went on a ten day vacation to Paris. What a beautiful city, and a memorable time we had! Amongst our many excursions, was a visit to the Eiffel Tower. … Continue reading QRP Dreams in the City of Lights: Rand’s Eiffel Tower Beacon Attempt →

by Teri (KO4WFP) Monday, July 15, the second day of my North Carolina camping trip for POTA and SOTA, started chilly with overcast skies. Today I would attempt my first SOTA activations. I chose two easy summits – Black Balsam Knob and Richland  Balsam. Daisy and I headed out after a simple breakfast up US … Continue reading The POTA Babe Becomes a SOTA Babe – Part 1 →