Gorgeous Weather

It was sunny and the temperature was darned near perfect for June in NE Ohio. My wife and I got on our bikes and cycled out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020 so that we could enjoy the day. The plan was to spend a little time at The Octagon shelter area so I could play a little radio and then head into Peninsula to grab some lunch. I figured that I could get the park activated in about an hour while my wife did a little reading and we’d be on our way.

Well. Yeah. The thing is…

Sensing A Pattern

We’re heading toward the high point of Cycle 25 and it seems that conditions on HF are getting less and less reliable. I know very little about solar weather and I’m certainly not an expert on our local star. I know what I’ve read and I can compare that with my observations. I’m definitely not alone in observing that activations are harder and harder to complete and that makes me feel less like it’s a “Me Problem” and more like it’s a “Giant Ball Of Gas Problem”. That works.

When I set up my Go-To gear (IC-705 with the AX1) and I’m struggling to get it done, I start to doubt myself. Should I toss my EFHW into a tree? Should I have brought the SuperAntenna? But the truth is, if I’m sitting there and RBN is picking me up but I’m not hearing much, it’s very possible that there’s no one out there to hear me or conditions are worse than I thought.

In any case, it seems that budgeting an hour for an activation is not as likely to bear fruit as it was just a few months ago. Not that it matters. Being outside with my radio is the point. Relaxing and getting on the air are the ends.

QSO Map

Here’s what it looked like on the QSO Map:

Final

QRP seems to be about patience these days. Could be that all radio activities are going to involve more patience than they have in this solar cycle. There are still plenty of exciting times ahead. There are months of long, warm, bright days ahead and I plan to spend as many of them as I can in the field playing radio.

Thanks for reading and 72!