Golden Gate Park is a 1,017 acre city park separating the Richmond and Sunset neighborhoods in the western half of San Francisco. Although large and internationally known, GGP is a city park and thus does not qualify for a Parks On The Air reference. The park is a two minute walk from my Richmond District QTH, so it would be incredibly convenient if it were, in fact, a POTA park.

A few months ago, a POTA Slack channel discussion of multi-park activation opportunities in the Presidio of San Francisco National Historic Site revealed a “3-fer” that I had not recognized before. Activating from Mountain Lake would net you the Presidio US-7889, Golden Gate National Recreation Area US-0647, and de Anza National Historic Trail US-4571.

This got me thinking that if the Anza expedition traipsed north from Lake Merced to Mountain Lake, then they must have crossed what is now Golden Gate Park. And, if that were the case then there was the opportunity to do a legit POTA activation within the park.

Of course, the exact route taken by the Anza expedition through the vast sand dunes of what became known as San Francisco’s “outside lands” is unknown. But the route can be reasonably estimated. The NPS website for the Anza trail shows a historic trail corridor roughly aligned with Crossover Dr. and the Park Presidio Bypass in Golden Gate Park.

I figure anywhere within the historic trail corridor and that is public land is fair game for activating Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail US-4571.

The western portion of Strawberry Hill and Stow Lake extend into the corridor and with the hill being the high point in the park, this is where I chose to activate from.

Even though the forecast called for warm weather, at 9AM the marine influence was still holding firm, making the top of Strawberry Hill too cold to spend more than just a few minutes there.

My companion and I quickly gave up on the 409 foot “peak” and retreated down past Stow Lake to a meadow which was in the sun, protected from the west wind by Strawberry Hill, and by my reckoning, still within the historic trail corridor.

There I setup the GRA-7350T whip antenna using the ground screw and extension post which is part of the Gabil Radio GRA-GNT mini tripod mounting kit. This easily gave a match of under 1.5 to 1 with the KH1 tuner in bypass mode.

The bands were surprisingly active for a Monday morning and, being a West Coast QRP operation, it took a while to finish the activation. I could hear European DX calling on 17 meters, with the distinctive “flutter” signals get flying over the poles, but unfortunately was unable to raise any of them.

With 11 contacts in the log and one “eyeball” with Ben KG7KGE, who was also enjoying the morning in the park, I called the activation of US-4571 in Golden Gate Park a success.

A short walk later we were home for lunch and refreshment.

73 de W6CSN

Many thanks to Lee (M0VKR) who shares the following field report and video: SOTA CW Activation on High Willhayes Dartmoor by Lee (M0VKR) It was an overcast and breezy morning when wife Joanne and myself Lee, M0VKR set out on our latest SOTA (Summits on the Air) activation adventure. Our destination was High Willhays, the … Continue reading QRP SOTA: Lee pairs the KH1 and MPAS 2.0 to activate High Willhayes (G/DC-001) →

When our family needs a change of scenery without a long drive, Mount Mitchell State Park is our go-to destination. I’ve mentioned before that it’s my “happy place” here in North Carolina. Mount Mitchell is only about 6 miles from our home as the crow flies, but it takes about 50 minutes to drive there, … Continue reading Tabletop QRP POTA: A Father’s Day Getaway to Mount Mitchell State Park →

Many thanks to Lee (M0VKR) who shares the following field report and video: Activating Lewesdon Hill with the Elecraft KH1 by Lee (M0VKR) After taking a day off from work my wife Joanne and I pondered about what we could do. “Shall we go over to Dorset to that hill you have spoken about and … Continue reading M0VKR’s Lewesdon Hill SOTA activation with the Elecraft KH1 →

Many thanks to Drew (W8MHV) who shares the following guest post: QRP in Thailand by Drew (W8MHV) I travel to Southeast Asia each year and usually have a few weeks in Thailand, but this year we planned on a longer stay. My XYL (N8MHV) has family in Thailand and we own a condo in downtown … Continue reading QRP in Thailand: Drew’s Journey to Get Licensed and On the Air →

You might recall that my friends Eric (WD8RIF), Miles (KD8KNC), Brian (K3ES), Kyle (AA0Z), Charlie (NJ7V), and Joshua (N5FY) all played hooky on the final day of the 2024 Hamvention (Sunday, May 19) and instead activated a couple of POTA sites. I wrote a short field report about our first activation at Pater State Wildlife … Continue reading From Hamvention to History: A POTA Excursion with friends through Indiana’s Past →

After 126 Days, A Long-Awaited Unboxing: The KH1 Arrives! by Emily (NI1Q) If there was one thing being in a physical rehab facility for 4 months taught me it was friends and families were a comfort.  They brought encouragement, broke the boredom and were helpful in bringing hope when I wasn’t sure if I would … Continue reading NI1Q’s Long-Awaited Elecraft KH1: Worth the Wait? →

The spontaneous HF radio operating enabled by the new Elecraft KH1 handheld transceiver opens up a whole new set of opportunities for the POTA activator. Combined with the sprawling Golden Gate National Recreation Area (US-0647) you could do an awful lot of POTA activations and not operate from the same spot twice.

Nestled between the San Francisco Maritime NHP and the Marina Green, Fort Mason and the land it occupies was a location of military importance from before California was a U.S. state through the second World War.

My plan today was to operate from Black Point Battery, a fortification from the time of the American Civil War, or the war between the states, if you prefer. This location is of particular interest to me because over 40 years ago I worked a summer job on an archaeology crew that unearthed this gun battery.

I remember digging and sifting a lot of dirt! We frequently found spent primers used to fire the guns, there were hundreds of them! Occasionally we’d find “live” primers which had to be treated with care. What was most exciting however is when the timbers that supported the semi-circular track on which the guns would pivot were uncovered.

While it wasn’t particularly busy, I didn’t want to setup a separate antenna atop the berm because there is a pathway there that people use to get sweeping views of San Francisco Bay. I deployed the KH1 with the supplied 4 ft. whip and Tufteln 3D printed angle adapter while sitting atop a concrete entryway to one of the old magazines.

Although I checked conditions before heading out, it seemed that propagation was really quite poor today. In a half hour of tuning and calling, I’d only managed a single QSO on 20m while 17m and 15m seemed completely dead. This was unusually quiet for a Saturday afternoon.

With only two hours of parking, if I wanted a chance at a valid activation then I needed a new plan. I descended the hill down to the the piers that served as the point of embarkation for servicemen heading into the Pacific war in the 1940s.

I found a spot behind the old firehouse that offered protection from the wind which was really blowing at this point, too windy even for a tripod vertical. However, I felt I needed longer antenna to combat the lousy propagation with my QRP signal.

I walked back to the car and retrieved a quick release mount and MFJ-1979 telescoping whip antenna. This quarter wave vertical gives a 1-to-1 match on 20 meters when fully extended. A length of ABR Industries RG-316 connected the antenna to the BNC port in the KH1. I bypassed the internal tuner and got a “perfect” match.

With this setup, and being closer to the Bay waters, I was able to make more progress towards a complete activation. A rocky outcrop at the base of Black Point blocked my view to the east and southeast, but I had a clear shot over the Bay to the north so, unsurprisingly, this is where most of the contacts came for today’s activation.

Fortunately, 30 more minutes was all that was needed to fill the log with the QSOs for a complete activation. Even though this wasn’t a purely pedestrian mobile expedition, like the Wave Organ, I probably would not have even come to this spot without the inspiration provided by the KH1.

Many thanks to the hunters and other activators that ultimately made this POTA a success. Some of the call signs in the log were familiar and some were brand new to me, this is my favorite kind of operation to work both old and new friends.

Equipment used in this activation:

• Elecraft KH1 with internal tuner and whip antenna.
• MFJ-1979 telescoping whip.
• ABR Industries RG-316, 25 feet.
• Rite In The Rain spiral notepad.
• Zebra Mechanical Pencil
• Quick Release 3/8×24 antenna mount

73 de W6CSN

Many thanks to Matt (W6CSN) who shares the following post from his blog at W6CSN.blog: The Adventure you get is not always the adventure you expect. Recently I’ve been plotting a unique activation of the De Anza National Historic Trail, but that particular POTA activation is going to need a good antenna and just as … Continue reading The Adventure You Get →

You’d be forgiven for assuming all the posts on this website are either related to Parks On The Air (POTA) or Summits On The Air (SOTA) activations, but in fact, this blog is simply about “outdoor amateur radio.”

Today’s activity was just such a case of not POTA and not SOTA, just plain old outdoor radio. The driving factor was that today was Memorial Day, a day to honor the fallen, and traditionally, to spend some time outdoors, but trouble is that at my home QTH in San Francisco the skies were overcast and the temperatures expected to remain in the mid-50s. When the weather is like this, which is most of the summer, our family likes to escape to Marin or Sonoma counties to experience the warm weather that is uncommon in The City.

One of our favorite spots is Marin French Cheese Company factory and store, simply known as “The Cheese Factory” located in Hicks Valley near the Sonoma county line. Here they offer delicious cheeses made right there on-site as well as variety of picnic fixin’s to enjoy with your cheese. However, the main reason we go here is that the cheese factory offers its guests the use of their park-like grounds.

Most visitors congregate around a small pond and picnic area on the north side of the parking lot, but if you go around back, on the south side, there is a wide open grassy field dotted with full shade trees and plenty of picnic tables. Even on busy days, you practically have the place to yourself. If there are other groups, they are usually spread out enough that you still have plenty of space.

Now, about the radio activity. I’m making plans for an overseas trip later this summer and hope to have the opportunity to attempt a Parks On The Air activation while I am there. It would be very easy to bring the KH1, an entire station in a small “camera” bag. But I just got the KH1 after a six month wait for delivery and would be very upset if something were to happen to that radio while traveling abroad.

Slightly less convenient, but still quite small is the station consisting of the QMX multiband CW/Data radio, Gabil GRA-7350T base loaded vertical antenna and tripod, Talentcell Li-Ion battery back, and various connective bits. All of this can fit in my carry-on and still leave room for other travel necessities. And if something unfortunate happened to the QMX it’s not nearly such a big deal. The station could be replaced quickly and inexpensively.

I just needed to do a quick field check of the QMX station combination to verify that I can put it on the air in a park like setting, such as I am likely to encounter while traveling. The QMX is a high band model covering 20m through 10m which enables a smaller deployment footprint. I promise, there is no chance that I’ll be tossing wires into trees in a foreign park!

Previous activations have shown that when using the GRA-7350T on these high bands, especially above 14 MHz, that easier tuning is achieved when the 16 foot radials are folded back on themselves, effectively shortening the radials. Instead of folding them, I took one set of radials and cut them in half. There are two sets in this kit from when I thought I needed a lot more radials than I actually do with this antenna.

When hooking up the QMX to check the ability of the antenna to tune to a 50 ohm match with the shorter radial set, I realized that I forgot one of the power cables that connects the Talentcell to the QMX, doh!

I did have the cables needed to use the Bioenno LiFePo-4 pack with the QMX, but the battery was fully charged and supplying more than 13v, which the QMX cautioned against by flashing the battery icon to indicate the over-voltage condition. Well, shoot!

Fortunately I had another option. I brought along the KH1, because why not take the KH1 every where you go (except overseas)? With the internal autotuner bypassed, I could still test the tuning ability of the antenna system to provide a low SWR and be confident that when I use the tune mode on the QMX that I could achieve a similarly good match. I am not planning on bringing an antenna tuner.

The antenna tuned easily enough on 20m, 17m, and 15m using the KH1 as an RF source and SWR indicator. Naturally, I tried to make a few QSOs while I was proving the antenna system.

Normally when I do ham radio in the outdoors I am activating a park or summit, so I am the DX. But the cheese factory is neither a POTA park nor on a summit. I’m just a regular ham, outside, running QRP. I didn’t even have cell phone coverage out in the country, so I couldn’t look at the POTA spots page for stations to hunt. I would just have to do it the old fashioned way, by tuning around and listening.

I spent about an hour “on the air” hunting for stations calling CQ POTA or CQ SOTA. That yielded three QSOs, all on 20 meters.

W0ABE	Colorado	20 meters	20:25 utc
K7SHR	Wyoming	20 meters	21:12 utc
W6KC/VE7	British Columbia	20 meters	21:25 utc

While testing the setup on 17 meters, I didn’t hear a lot of activity but I did hear a JA working an Italian. I could copy both stations, the Italian was weak but the Japan station was pretty loud. EA3PP was calling from Spain, but QSB was enough prevent me from attempting a call. You can’t work ’em if you can’t hear ’em!

The logbook looks very different when I am not activating and don’t have access to spots info. A lot of callsigns written down, but not worked. When I work a station, the time notation becomes the indicator that I had a QSO with that callsign.

On the way back to the cold City, we stopped at Hicks Mountain Hens to pick up some freshly laid, pasture raised eggs. So I guess you could just as well title this post “Ham ‘n Eggs.” Ok, I am leaving now …

73 de W6CSN

is not always the adventure you expect. Recently I’ve been plotting a unique activation of the De Anza National Historic Trail, but that particular POTA activation is going to need a good antenna and just as importantly, time.

This day afforded a few hours in the morning for outdoor radio but not enough to retrace the steps of the De Anza expedition. Instead, I headed down to the San Francisco Bay side for a quick outdoor amateur radio session.

Since it was was a Saturday, my usual spot at Presidio East Beach was heavily impacted by weekend recreation enthusiasts, so I continued for a quarter mile to the practically empty parking lot east of the St. Francis Yacht Club.

Thence on foot past the old stone light tower and the clubhouse of the Golden Gate Yacht Club, you find yourself of the path to the end of the breakwater where a unique art installation sits.

The Wave Organ is a curious sculpture that uses tubes and cavities between old cemetery stones to channel and amplify the watery sounds of waves as the tides move in and out of the Bay.

Surrounded by saltwater at the end of this jetty, which by my reckoning is within the boundary of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (US-0647), this location was perfect for the “no impact” operation afforded by the Elecraft KH1.

My plan was to see if I could complete an activation of making 10 contacts entirely by hunting other POTA activators, perfectly reasonable given it was a weekend with no geomagnetic storms to disrupt radio propagation.

What I did not count on was that it was a contest weekend with both 20 and 15 meters wall-to-wall with rapid fire contesters. As a QRP station, finding the POTA needles in that haystack was going to be tough.

I retreated to 17 meters which should offer good daytime propagation and no contesters. There on 18 MHz, I was was able to collect five park-to-park contacts in a span of 23 minutes.

At that point I’d exhausted all of the 17m active CW stations on the POTA spots page and didn’t really have time to wait for more to show up. Therefore the “all hunting” activation strategy was abandoned and I commenced calling “CQ POTA.”

The activation was “validated” with a call from Dave, AA7EE as the 10th QSO and then completed with one more park hunted, K9DXA in US-1001. Most of the contacts were with stations east of the Rockies.

One thing I learned from earlier outings with the KH1 was to not cut the log sheets too small, as might be suggested by the lines printed on the page. Without enough paper under the top and bottom tabs of the logging tray the sheets can easily be caught and snatched away by the wind.

Leave enough margin on the logging sheets and they are easily secured in the tray, even in the face of brisk Bay breezes.

The “hunting only” activation plan didn’t quite work out but it was a great time out playing radio at scenic spot in San Francisco Bay.

While I didn’t expect to activate from the wave organ today, it turned out to be a fun adventure and an excellent spot from which to get on the air with the KH1.

73 de W6CSN

I arrived back at the QTH late yesterday afternoon after an amazing week of travels. I’ve got (no kidding) more than 100 emails in the inbox that require attention, so if you’ve written to me recently, my apologies in advance for the late reply. I’m spending the next few days catching up with my family. … Continue reading Elecraft KH1 in Motion: Proper Pedestrian Mobile Activation in an Ohio State Nature Preserve →

The 2024 Dayton Hamvention is in the books! This morning, I’m still at our hotel in Dayton, Ohio, but about to pack up and head out. Eric (WD8RIF), Miles (KD8KNC), and I are heading for a day at the Armstrong Aerospace Museum, then, hopefully, a POTA activation on the way back to Athens, Ohio, where … Continue reading Post-Hamvention Activation with Friends →

On Tuesday, March 12, 2024, I woke up with SOTA (Summits on the Air) on my mind. That morning, I plotted to activate a local drive-up summit I’ve basically ignored the past few years. Peach Knob (W4C/CM-097) is one of the most popular summits in the Asheville area no doubt because it’s so accessible. That … Continue reading Handheld SOTA DX and Testing K6ARK’s New KH1 Pressure Paddles! →

My wife and I headed to our favorite park, Beavertail (US-2868) on Conanicut Island, RI,  to watch the Eclipse this afternoon.  We were too far to the east to enjoy totality, but we figured it would be fun to see 91% of the sun occluded.  The weather sort of cooperated, with thin high wispy clouds and a temperature in the low 50s.  But I didn’t quite plan on the stiff breeze blowing right off the water into our faces – I was shivering, especially my hands.

I figured that I could use this as an opportunity to try out my Elecraft KH1 and it’s built-in 41-inch whip antenna at a park.  Despite my trembling fingers, I managed to make ten QSOs between 2:15 and 3:09 PM, all of which were during part of the eclipse.  I was actually pleasantly surprised  that folks could even hear me, but they did with a few fills required and signal reports ranging from 539 to 599.  That completes another of my goals for 2024, by the way.

 

 

 

On Wednesday, March 27, 2024, I had a number of errands to run in town. Before leaving the house that morning, I looked at my schedule and honestly couldn’t see a wide enough opening for an activation. In the latter part of the morning, however, I was miraculously ahead of schedule en route to a … Continue reading Field Report: Elecraft KH1 for a Quickie POTA Two-Fer! →

Many thanks to John (NS6X) who shares the following field report: Frustrating rove from California QTH to OzarkCon in Branson, MO. by John (NS6X) I had great plans for a radio-centric, POTA activation road trip from my home in Camarillo, CA (outside Los Angeles) to my first visit to OzarkCon in Branson, MO. The Four … Continue reading John’s KH1 Redeems an Otherwise “Frustrating” Start to a Cross-Country POTA Rove →

I placed an order for a KH1 on October 20, when the shipping date was "4-6 weeks". Today is the 8th week with a new projected shipping date of mid-January.A big justification for placing the order was the anticipated ease of taking the tiny rig on a late December cruise and operating from one or two ports, or from the ship itself (we have a balcony cabin).Subsequent activity with the rig would be

I don't particularly care for the KH1's sidetone for two reasons:First of all, it sounds terrible and I find it to be reminiscent of a code practice oscillator I built as a kid.Second, there is no way to zero-beat a station based on how their pitch relates to your own sidetone.Neither of these reasons matter too much - the KH1 is a utilitarian radio designed for a specific purpose - quick