2009 APE Tall Tales

AD5ZA/4, 1 August

AD5ZA/4 2009 APE

OKALOOSA IS, FL

IOTA-142

An August PSK Expedition (APE) was planned to Okaloosa Is, FL on 1 August to coincide with the TARA Grid Dip contest. The ARRL Field Day contest and the PODXS 4th Sprint were used to checkout the portable setup that was to be used for the APE. All of the bugs were worked out during these two APR drills except for the 19V computer power problem. The only recourse was to purchase additional computer batteries or halt operations after about 2 hours and get the computer battery recharged. I chose the latter option but will rethink for next year's APE.

The WX forecast for 1 August was for thunderstorms in the afternoon so I decided to get an early start and try to make some contacts on 40 Meters before the storms hit and 40 M folded. Good decision as it turned out. Left the apartment at dark-30 and was set up and on the air by 6:30 local. 40M was in good shape and the Grid Dip Contest was going strong. Made a few contacts and then shut down for breakfast, recharge the computer battery and an incoming T-Storm. Got back on the air about 1100 local, this time on 20 Meters. Worked 20 for about 1 ½ hours. Made a few more contacts by alternating between calling CQ and looking for strong stations on the Waterfall. Shut down again for battery recharge and lunch. By the time everything was set to go again, a severe T-Storm was in the area. Decided to QRT at that time.

Made a total of 23 contacts including APE station N2S. Not great, but considering WX and other factors it was, to me, a very satisfactory operation.

The equipment used for the APE was:

IC-706 MKIIG Xceiver

HamStick antennas for 20 and 40M

Outbacker Tripod for antenna mount

SignaLink interface

Dell laptop computer

120 Amp-hr Gel battery

Anyone that would like a special QSL for the APE can contact me direct via QRZ.com address or eMail.

N2S, 1 August

Well the 10-70 Repeater Assoc.'s second activation at Stony Point LH (USA-923) has come and gone. This time the PSK WORKED!! The weather was absolutely perfect which is a real rarity around these parts this summer. Sunny skies and a light breeze off the Hudson welcomed our eight radio operators to the Stony Point Lighthouse. We got going strong around 11AM EDT with phone, CW and of course PSK-31. The staff at "little lighthouse that could" was absolutely WONDERFUL in helping transport our equipment up to the pavillion (those electric cars NY State has at their parks are GREAT).

According to my log I have 21 QSO's which was great considering the short amount of time we were up there! The Special Event callsign N2S really helped out. I saw a few compiments about it fly across the screen. As for the bands they were good - we got into the midwest and even the north. I would like to thank all the PODXS members who spotted us. I got home to see quite a few spots waiting in my inbox, always a great thing to see. It was nice to be on the "other side" of a QSO for a change!!! Again THANK YOU all for working us and we'll definitely be on the air again next year!!

W7PSK, 1 August

APE was for Whidbey Island Washington, Island County, IOTA NA-065.
I was also parked at Admiralty Head lighthouse which is USA-002 for those that collect Light Houses.

I started out of the house at 6am to catch the 6:30 Ferry to Clinton on the south side of Whidbey Island. I got to Admiralty head at about 7:20am but the gate said 8AM open. Oh goody. So I ran up to the local town to see if the Hardware store was open. They since last year have started closing on Saturday (what a dumb day to close). I wanted a mounting pipe for the 4BTV as the one I had was a little short and would put the base of the antenna below my tail gate.

Got back to the Light house park and gates were open so went in and started setting up. Got the Antenna mounted but SWR was wonky but I brought my Iron Horse 20m to mount in the CB mount (I use it for my RV club). Antenna tuned fine and I got the Laptop out and connected the DC adapter. HASH like a bear on the rig. Anyone have a good DC Power supply for Laptops that doesn't make a ton of hash?

Well I called a few CQs and then got into a pattern of CQing and looking at strong stations and then disconnecting and using the laptop battery for weaker. A LOT of stations couldn't hear me. Anyway after a while I checked and they had 110v near the rest room so I decided about 10:15am to take a run up to Oak Harbor about 15m away to get a 100Ft ext cord, get some lunch and returned at 11.

Alas 0 power at that plug.

So finished up the day till 2pm when the Laptop was not going to charge enough to run without stopping for an hour to recharge so packed up and came home. Not many stations this year again but enough to qualify for those that need it.

Soon as I figure out how to make a new location on my LOTW account Ill post that. Sorry No EQSL. I will try to make a nice card for those that send direct.

Here are the contacts:
01-Aug-2009 15:18 14070 BPSK WT6X 599 599 Jose CN98
01-Aug-2009 16:15 14070 BPSK N3FX 599 599 Tony FM19
01-Aug-2009 16:17 14070 BPSK KQ7W 599 599 MATT CN87
01-Aug-2009 16:28 14070 BPSK WX6Y 599 599 EDDIE EM84
01-Aug-2009 16:31 14070 BPSK K7RE 599 599 Brian DN84
01-Aug-2009 16:43 14070 BPSK K8MV/KL7 599 599 Marty BP19
01-Aug-2009 18:07 14070 BPSK K0FBV 599 599 Vic EN41
01-Aug-2009 18:13 14070 BPSK KD4LCR 599 599 Jeremy EM04
01-Aug-2009 18:14 14070 BPSK KE5LLM/7 599 599 David CN88
01-Aug-2009 18:16 14070 BPSK KB1PSP 599 599 Bette EM14
01-Aug-2009 18:24 14070 BPSK WW2PT 599 599 Paul EM11
01-Aug-2009 18:24 14070 BPSK K0ACP 599 599 Art EN41
01-Aug-2009 18:40 14070 BPSK N3FX 599 599 Tony FM19
01-Aug-2009 18:49 14070 BPSK WG5T 599 599 Bill EM15
01-Aug-2009 18:50 14070 BPSK NO8R 599 599 DELOS EN73
01-Aug-2009 19:04 14070 BPSK KC0DJB 599 599 KEITH EN07
01-Aug-2009 19:14 14070 BPSK W6QE 599 599 Milt DM13
01-Aug-2009 19:22 14070 BPSK WB8MKH 599 599 DON EN75
01-Aug-2009 19:26 14070 BPSK WB4PPW 599 599 Rich EM73
01-Aug-2009 19:37 14070 BPSK W0GLB 599 599 Gordon DM78
01-Aug-2009 19:50 14070 BPSK AA9UF 599 599 JOHN EN50
01-Aug-2009 20:20 14070 BPSK KD7RX 599 599 JERRY DN62
01-Aug-2009 20:22 14070 BPSK WQ9Z 599 599 ROY EM58
01-Aug-2009 20:30 14070 BPSK N0IBT 599 599 Dave DM79

W7PAQ, 1-12 August

I arrived on Melita Island Boy Scout Camp on July 6^th and by the evening of the 7^th, I had my 80M delta loop and a 40M Carolina windom way up in the Ponderosas. MelitaIsland is a 64 acre camp located in the FlatheadLake just north of Polson, MT. The shack was a garage tent and I was using my FT897 and my SignaLink USB connected to my laptop. I made 104 APE contacts from 8/1 to 8/12 when I went QRT. The second week of camp I had a young Scout who had placed 36^th in the National Geographic Geography contest. He spent hours going over my qsl cards from 321 countries, including my P5 card. He literally and figuratively blew my socks off with his knowledge. I made copies of my P5 and PY0F (we were probably the only ones on the island that knew where Fernando de Noronha is located) and presented them to him at our evening flag ceremony. I purposely showed the 220 scouts I had no socks on.

I passed 48 Scouts on their Radio merit badge and was surprised at how many scouts and parents now have their licenses. One week I had 4 other licensed hams on the island. The scouts had all taken the Radio merit badge with me and had gotten the bug. We tried to connect to a local IRLP node, but unfortunately it was down. I hope by next year to offer that mode of operation. The last week of camp was with the 9-10 year old Webelos Scouts (Cub Scouts). They all learned their names phonetically and had a chance to speak on the radio.

Frank Kisselbach, W7PAQ
 

WA3WSJ, 6-9 August

WA0KAQ, 8-9 August

W5KAM, 15-19 August

On August 14, 2009, I, Ken Miller left my home in Hockley, Texas and drove 597 miles to Fort Davis, Texas to conduct my APE in the Davis Mountains.My equipment that I used for the APE was as follows:

1.Icom Radio:IC-746

2.MFJ 25 Amp Mightly Lite

3.Western Mountain Rigblaster Plug & Play

4.Buddipole Deluxe antenna set up as a vertical antenna with counterpoise

5.Dell Laptop with MixWVersion 2.19.

I was helped with my APE by Loyd Overcase KM5OE who helped with the set up on the antenna and the radio station.We were staying at Loyd’s home in the Davis Mountain at approximately 5500 feet just below the McDonald Observatory.We started our APE on August 15, 2008 and had to end it early on August 19, 2009 due to computer problems not transmitting the receiver.But during the time we operated we made 62 PSK-31 contacts and had a lot of fun on the APE trip.

Also during this trip Loyd and I both imaged with our telescopes and got some great photos of the sky above.Please see attached copy of my log from to APE trip to provide proof my APE PSK-31 contacts.

Please find below our attached log from our APE event.We are sorry that we had to shut down operations earlier than we wanted to, but we started to have software problems on our computer.

APE LOG:

W5KAM;KX8K;20090815172741;187;;;14071974;0;;BPSK31;599;599;001;838;David;Springboro,OH;;;EQSL OR LOTW;;;EM79vn;;;;;

W5KAM;K0LQK;20090815173648;609;;;14072007;0;;BPSK31;599;599;002;59;William;Washington,MO;;;;;;EM48mm;;;;;

W5KAM;NO8R;20090815174812;260;;;14072010;0;;BPSK31;599;599;003;777;Delos;Sand Lake,MI;;;[L];;;EN73hg;;;;;

W5KAM;KI6DUW;20090815181211;303;;;14071999;0;;BPSK31;599;599;004;193;Steven;Alameda,CA;;;;;;CM87vr;;;;;

W5KAM;KO8L;20090815182220;252;;;14071997;0;;BPSK31;599;599;005;599;W;Macedonia,OH;;;;;;EN91gi;;;;;

W5KAM;VA3TPS;20090815183040;586;;;14072220;0;;BPSK31;599;599;006;;Henry;Sanford,FL;;;[L];;;EL98it;;;;;

W5KAM;N7QU;20090815184214;284;;;14072211;0;;BPSK31;599;599;007;339;o;Eugene,OR;;;[L]QSL via LOTW, EQSL or Direct;;;CN84kc;;;;;

W5KAM;N2GWK;20090815195557;285;;;14072009;0;;BPSK31;599;559;008;619;Lac;Bardstown,KY;;;[L]QSL DIRECT, LOTW, EQSL;;;EM77gu;;;;;

W5KAM;W0PE;20090815200433;103;;;14072006;0;;BPSK31;599;599;009;975;kn;Yorba Linda,CA;;;EQSL, LOTW, DIRECT;;;DM13cv;;;;;

W5KAM;N3QU;20090815200846;166;;;14072006;0;;BPSK31;599;599;010;591;e;Indiantown,FL;;;;;;EL97qc;;;;;

W5KAM;WA7HDZ;20090815201719;169;;;14072008;0;;BPSK31;599;599;011;404;Lawrence;Richland,WA;;;FOR QSL INFO SEE BELOW.;;;DN06if;;;;;

W5KAM;KF3AA;20090815202455;235;;;14072014;0;;BPSK31;599;599;012;124;Robert;Huntingtown,MD;;;;;;FM18ro;;;;;

W5KAM;KD7MEK;20090815203333;734;;;14072018;0;;BPSK31;599;599;013;;pse;Kingman,AZ;;;;;;DM35ag;;;;;

W5KAM;N6ZEN;20090815204924;381;;;14072015;0;;BPSK31;599;599;014;;Daniel;El Granada,CA;;;Direct (no SASE required) or eQSL.cc;;;CM87sm;;;;;

W5KAM;N9TO;20090815205846;492;;;14072011;0;;BPSK31;599;599;015;;Timothy;Westmont,IL;;;;;;EN61at;;;;;

W5KAM;4A3YLH;20090815212411;241;;;14070693;0;;BPSK31;599;559;016;;El;Mexico;;;MANAGER: XE3EA;;;EL61dm;;;;;

W5KAM;W5VGR;20090816010802;342;;;14071995;0;;BPSK31;599;599;017;293;e;Houston,TX;;;[L]WWW.EQSL.CC;;;EL29ko;;;;;

W5KAM;WG5T;20090816011457;246;;;14071999;0;;BPSK31;599;599;018;5;Bill;Norman,OK;;;[L];;;EM15ge;;;;;

W5KAM;W4KRN;20090816012050;202;;;14072001;0;;BPSK31;599;579;019;215;Karen;Nokesville,VA;;;[L]DIRECT, BUREAU, LOTW, EQSL;;;FM18dr;;;;;

W5KAM;KU1T;20090816012521;156;;;14072006;0;;BPSK31;599;599;020;769;Zbigniew;Ashburn,VA;;;eQSL.cc and LoTW always done, paper QSL returned 100%.;;;FM19fa;;;;;

W5KAM;N2SI;20090816013518;533;;;14071999;0;;BPSK31;599;599;021;;Joe;Shoreline,WA;;;;;;CN87ts;;;;;

W5KAM;K9VIC;20090816014550;376;;;14072000;0;;BPSK31;599;599;022;312;k;Plainfield,IL;;;[L];;;EN51vo;;;;;

W5KAM;K6ELC;20090816015358;272;;;14072007;0;;BPSK31;599;599;023;;Eugene;San Jose,CA;;;;;;CM97cj;;;;;

W5KAM;N2EOC;20090816020004;135;;;14072005;0;;BPSK31;599;559;024;559;Charles;Neshanic Station,NJ;;;;;;FN20om;;;;;

W5KAM;K9AAN;20090816020438;157;;;14071996;0;;BPSK31;599;599;025;;John;Louisville,KY;;;;;;EM78ee;;;;;

W5KAM;K4BSC;20090816142426;189;;;14072004;0;;BPSK31;599;599;026;;Brent;Rock Hill,SC;;;;;;EM94lx;;;;;

W5KAM;KX8C;20090816143216;579;;;14072009;0;;BPSK31;599;599;027;636;AX;Brunswick,OH;;;[L]DIRECT SASE NOT NEEDED, DX BUREAU OK, SWL WELCOME;;;EN91bg;;;;;

W5KAM;W3MEL;20090816144459;201;;;14072010;0;;BPSK31;599;599;028;706;Melvyn;Mohrsville,PA;;;;;;FN10xl;;;;;

W5KAM;W7PSK;20090816144926;301;;;14072009;0;;BPSK31;599;599;029;138;Ricky;Everett,WA;;;[L]LOTW, DIRECT OR BURO - I WILL NOT USE EQSL EVER;;;CN87vw;;;;;

W5KAM;W7PAQ;20090816145649;316;;;14071964;0;;BPSK31;599;599;030;354;BTU;Missoula,MT;;;[L];;;DN36at;;;;;

W5KAM;AD5ZA;20090816150548;166;;;14071973;0;;BPSK31;599;599;031;633;James;Richardson,TX;;;[L]LoTW, eQSL or Direct;;;EM12px;;;;;

W5KAM;WB5NHL;20090816151900;419;;;14071968;0;;BPSK31;599;599;032;143;David;Aiken,SC;;;;;;EM93dm;;;;;

W5KAM;KC7CWQ;20090816153634;100;;;14071904;0;;BPSK31;599;599;033;595;Loren;Redmond,OR;;;QSL DIRECT or theBUREAU;;;CN94jh;;;;;

W5KAM;N9SB;20090816154001;129;;;14071905;0;;BPSK31;599;599;034;921;Stephen;Galesburg,IL;;;;;;EN40tw;;;;;

W5KAM;NK5G;20090816154454;288;;;14071902;0;;BPSK31;599;599;035;50;David;Conroe,TX;;;[L];;;EM20gi;;;;;

W5KAM;K0FBV;20090816173350;194;;;14071999;0;;BPSK31;599;599;036;810;Victor;Bettendorf,IA;;;;;;EN41rn;;;;;

W5KAM;W0GLB;20090816173944;428;;;14071994;0;;BPSK31;599;599;037;909;Gordon;Security,CO;;;;;;DM78pr;;;;;

W5KAM;N6DLC;20090816175620;280;;;14072000;0;;BPSK31;599;599;038;955;Timothy;Glendora,CA;;;DIRECT OR VIA BUREAU;;;DM14bc;;;;;

W5KAM;K8TOM;20090816180352;260;;;14072002;0;;BPSK31;599;599;039;;William;Monroe,WA;;;[L]LOTW, DIRECT, EQSL-AG AND ARRL W7 BUREAU;;;CN97av;;;;;

W5KAM;K7TRK;20090816185334;290;;;14071932;0;;BPSK31;599;599;040;;Ted;Medford,OR;;;EQSL.CC , DIRECT (QRZ INFO) OR LOTW (DIRECT QSL ALWAYS GETS MINE;;;CN82nh;;;;;

W5KAM;KF2T;20090816200432;488;;;14072198;0;;BPSK31;599;599;041;;George;Henderson,NV;;;;;;DM25kx;;;;;

W5KAM;WD6CZY;20090816201449;386;;;14072197;0;;BPSK31;599;599;042;;David;Henderson,NV;;;;;;DM26jh;;;;;

W5KAM;N4MGA;20090816202434;312;;;14072195;0;;BPSK31;599;599;043;;DX;Rex,GA;;;[L]http://www.eqsl.cc;;;EM73un;;;;;

W5KAM;W6DNE;20090816203444;362;;;14072194;0;;BPSK31;599;599;044;9;Jonathan;Carmel,CA;;;;;;CM96bn;;;;;

W5KAM;W6NA;20090816211101;207;;;14072009;0;;BPSK31;599;599;045;;teo;Soquel,CA;;;;;;CM97aa;;;;;

W5KAM;N3FIU;20090816211517;494;;;14072008;0;;BPSK31;599;599;046;2000;Clifford;La Plata,MD;;;PREFER DIRECT, EQSL AS SECONDARY;;;FM18om;;;;;

W5KAM;KV9W;20090817142730;518;;;14071999;0;;BPSK31;599;599;047;;Dale;Anderson,IN;;;DIRECT, EQSL, LOTW, OR THE BUREAU;;;EN70dd;;;;;

W5KAM;K4OP;20090817144021;305;;;14072043;0;;BPSK31;599;599;048;514;John;Vine Grove,KY;;;[L]QSL - Direct, LOTW, and 100% reply to all cards (no SASE needed);;;EM77at;;;;;

W5KAM;WB4JJJ;20090817145431;353;;;14072051;0;;BPSK31;599;599;049;985;Alan;Fairfax,VA;;;;;;FM18iu;;;;;

W5KAM;K0ABC;20090817150159;339;;;14072051;0;;BPSK31;599;599;050;897;Mark;Springfield,MO;;;DIRECT PREFERRED, CAN DO LOTW/EQSL IF YOU NEED THOSE;;;EM37ie;;;;;

W5KAM;KC2TYZ;20090817151140;236;;;14072034;0;;BPSK31;599;599;051;;Howard;Egg Harbor township,NJ;;;;;;FM29rk;;;;;

W5KAM;AA7OK;20090817151810;164;;;14072040;0;;BPSK31;599;599;052;;Westley;Bellevue,WA;;;;;;CN87wp;;;;;

W5KAM;VA7PX;20090817152252;319;;;14072037;0;;BPSK31;599;599;053;562;John;Canada;;;[L]MGR VE7AXU DIRECT OR (VIA BURO & LOTW);;;CN88iu;;;;;

W5KAM;W3BUG;20090817153144;263;;;14072038;0;;BPSK31;599;599;054;;John;Bel Air,MD;;;;;;FM19um;;;;;

W5KAM;KT4NM;20090817154116;211;;;14072038;0;;BPSK31;599;599;055;298;John;Vero Beach,FL;;;[L]DIRECT, BURO, E-QSL, LOTW;;;EL97tp;;;;;

W5KAM;K7PWL;20090817155036;283;;;14072048;0;;BPSK31;599;599;056;711;Bradley;Redmond,WA;;;DIRECT, BUREAU, LOTW, EQSL;;;CN87wq;;;;;

W5KAM;K9ZXO;20090818135316;236;;;14072018;0;;BPSK31;599;599;057;;Mitch;Rochester,IL;;;;;;EM59fs;;;;;

W5KAM;K8IJ;20090818140040;198;;;14072023;0;;BPSK31;599;599;058;038;Charles;Alexandria,KY;;;[L];;;EM78tw;;;;;

W5KAM;AE5PW;20090818140440;302;;;14072021;0;;BPSK31;599;599;059;;Patrick;Newport,AR;;;DIRECT - EQSL - LOTW - BUREAU;;;EM45jo;;;;;

W5KAM;N9WSQ;20090818141656;142;;;14071981;0;;BPSK31;599;599;060;;David;Freeport,IL;;;;;;EN52eh;;;;;

W5KAM;WB8RMA;20090818142307;516;;;14071989;0;;BPSK31;569;599;061;;Gene;Fenton,MI;;;;;;EN82du;;;;;

W5KAM;WB4Y;20090818143332;323;;;14071989;0;;BPSK31;599;599;062;;William;Boone,NC;;;LOTW, EQSL, OR DIRECT;;;EM96ee;;;;;

We will be looking forward to doing this next year.Thanks for all the contacts and we will be looking for all on our waterfall next year.

N2GWK, 15-16 August

The 2009 N2GWK APE was located at Lake Cumberland State Park in Columbia Kentucky. Once again N2GWK was accompanied by the XYL who proved her salt by assisting, or should I say managing, the pre-trip logistics. Our road trip was a mere 90 miles from our home QTH but the trip turned out to be a 2.5 hour drive. This was due mainly to two lane country roads and what seemed to be a major highway renovation project from Point A to Point B. All in all though, we saw some gorgeous farmlands and several towns we had heard of, but had never visited.

Upon arrival at Lake Cumberland we checked in and proceeded to Cottage #505.We were less than excited when we saw the pathway down to the cottage. But we still proceeded to unpack the vehicle and lug all the necessities down to the cottage.

I was beginning to doubt our cabin assignments because it was significantly lower than the road surface.The backyard of the cottage was extremely steep and putting up the vertical antenna and laying the radials would have been a difficult endeavor.The only alternative was to put the antenna on the only flat spot which was right beside the screen door.I erected the vertical and laid out the radials.We were pretty sure that due to the location, i.e. down in a valley, we'd have less than satisfactory reception.

After about 3 hours without a trace on the waterfall we struck out in search of a better operating position.

Directly across from our signal starved cottage #505 was cottage #510.Cottage #510 was on the top of the hill and overlooked all the other 500 series cottages.Using an FT817 and an Outbacker Perth Antenna, we took a quick 'listen' to 14.070 MHz and heard the melodious tones of multiple PSK-31 signals on the waterfall.After a short drive to the main lodge, we were transferred from Cottage #505 to Cottage #510.We broke camp and within an hour we were in Cottage #510.

Our thanks go out to the more than accommodating staff of Lake Cumberland State Park for allowing us to move.

Our new location was still a bit on the 'hilly' side which somewhat limited where The FT857 / tuner and power supply are all prewired and affixed to a wire rack/platform.I shortened the legs of a standard wire kitchen dish rack (from Lowes) that sits nicely inside a laptop roll-aboard case.The laptop rides under the wire rack when packed.Since all the equipment on the rack is pre-wired, one can just pull it out of the laptop case and connect it to the antenna, A/C Power and laptop.All DC Power connections are made with Anderson Power Pole connectors. Replacing the A/C power with a DC Power source is a simple matter of unplugging one and plugging in the other.

The new operating position was great.There were lots of traces on the waterfall, and there were many answers to our CQ's.The N2GWK APE ran from August 14 @ 2000 UTC to August 17 11:41 UTC.During that time, we made 89 APE QSO's with some really great DX.23 of those 89 QSO's were PODXS070 Members.

Again, the toughest part of the trip was ending it.

I wonder where we will be next year.

Date TimeStationBandModeLocator Name070 # S/P/C

8/14/20020:02 AA5AT 30mPSK31 EM40knDonLA

8/15/20000:07 CO2NO20m PSK31 EL92 GustavoCuba

8/15/20000:18VE3NOO40mPSK31FN14heMichaelON

8/15/20000:22NO8R40mPSK31EN73hgDelows777MI

8/15/20000:27CO8LY30mPSK31FL02laEdwardiCuba

8/15/20000:40K3ML30mPSK31EL94gqMelFL

8/15/20000:54WD4FNY/030mPSK31DM78otBillCO

8/15/20001:01CM3RPN40mPSK31EL82stNivaldoCuba

8/15/20001:10W1/E74OF40mPSK31FN34kiPedjaVT

8/15/20001:36WB3FME40mPSK31FM18lwMarkDC

8/15/20012:13JM7OLW20mPSK31QM07foSukeJapan

8/15/20013:00N1KPW20mPSK31FN31xoGregCT

8/15/20013:12XE1XSJ20mPSK31EK09ehMexico

8/15/20013:19K3PRN20mPSK31FM18rxDon677MD

8/15/20013:31NY4FL20mPSK31EL96ddDick477FL

8/15/20013:39W1/E74OF20mPSK31FN34kiPedjaVT

8/15/20014:31KK1X20mPSK31FN42enJohn325MA

8/15/20014:39KX8C20mPSK31EN91bgJim636OH

8/15/20014:50VA3TPS20mPSK31FN04pmSteve526ON

8/15/20015:04W7PAQ20mPSK31DN36Frank354MT

8/15/20015:12N9UUP20mPSK31EN53sbJeffreyWI

8/15/20015:26YV4DHS20mPSK31FK60afHomeroVenezuela

8/15/20015:33K5WTA20mPSK31EM90JakeFL

8/15/20015:49N2QGV20mPSK31EL98ioArtFL

8/15/20016:02KU1T20mPSK31FM19faZibi769VA

8/15/20016:09AD5ZA20mPSK31EM12Jim633TX

8/15/20016:18KB3FN20mPSK31FM09opLynn223MD

8/15/20016:28KB3RJH20mPSK31FM19kpAnthonyMD

8/15/20018:14N1BSA20mPSK31FN31hvChrisCT

8/15/20018:18KD0CES20mPSK31DN81dtHarleyNE

8/15/20018:27KD2WL20mPSK31FN13dgBudNY

8/15/20019:15W2GSB/LH20mPSK31FN 30 jpWalterNY

8/15/20019:21K1CGI20mPSK31EL87sfVictor993FL

8/15/20019:33KT4NM20mPSK31EL97tpJohn H298FL

8/15/20019:43NP2G20mPSK31FN21gaEddieVirgin Is.

8/15/20019:524A3YLH20mPSK31EL61El CuyoYucatan Mexico

8/15/20020:00W5KAM20mPSK31DM80aoKen700TX

8/15/20020:13KD1NA20mPSK31FN42lsDaveMA

8/15/20020:41KA1PPV20mPSK31FN31JoeCT

8/15/20020:50KP3RE20mPSK31FK78ehPuerto Rico

8/15/20020:58VE6VK20mPSK31DO21xaRussCanada

8/15/20021:40K4WMN20mPSK31EM90ecWadeFL

8/15/20021:51N2EOC20mPSK31FN20Chuck563NJ

8/15/20022:10GM0SDV20mPSK31IO75wsVictorScotland

8/15/20022:26AE5ER20mPSK31EM02wtCecilTX

8/15/20022:32ON4AXU20mPSK31JO21qeGerardBelgium

8/15/20022:41W4SPZ20mPSK31EL88pfLawrenceFL

8/15/20023:10IW8CGX20mPSK31JN70rxValerio Italy

8/15/20023:26DL2OCE20mPSK31JO41xwHaraldFed. Rep. of Germany

8/15/20023:48W8KID40mPSK31EN63uhDickMI

8/15/20023:58AA6NN20mPSK31DM14ccJohanesCA

8/16/20000:04HA6ZB20mPSK31KN 07cs GyuriHungary

8/16/20000:09IS0BOZ20mPSK31JM49leManuelSardinia

8/16/20000:15TG9AHM20mPSK31EK44roEmmanuGuatemala

8/16/20000:27HP1AVS30mPSK31FJ08phVictor635Panama

8/16/20000:31YV1PX30mPSK31FJ49siRobertoVenezuela

8/16/20000:44KP4ED40mPSK31FK68wiLuis693Puerto Rico

8/16/20000:55H81L20mPSK31FJ09eaPanama Canal

8/16/20001:09WG5T20mPSK31EM15Bill491OK

8/16/20001:27K0PSK40mPSK31EM29daDon804KS

8/16/20001:43K4WY30mPSK31FM18JohnVA

8/16/20001:51W5VGR30mPSK31EL29knDon293TX

8/16/20002:01KD1BD30mPSK31FN31DaveCT

8/16/20002:12W1ZI20mPSK31FN32rkJohnMA

8/16/20002:19K6VVK20mPSK31CM87wkVincentCA

8/16/20002:29K0FBV40mPSK31EN41rnVic810IA

8/16/20002:38K8CKC40mPSK31EN91ejMikeOH

8/16/20002:47KB8OIE40mPSK31EN82drPaulMI

8/16/20002:59RA0FLP20mPSK31QN16jpLeoAsiatic Russia

8/16/20003:08WA7HDZ20mPSK31DN06ifLarry404WA

8/16/20003:18W1/E74OF30mPSK31FN34kiPedjaVT

8/16/20003:27N2LZ40mPSK31EL87uvDaveFL

8/16/20011:31N4CTC40mPSK31DM79jtBobCO

8/16/20011:39VK4TUX40mPSK31QG62dkAdrianAustralia

8/16/20012:10KC2MOT40mPSK31FN12frMarkNY

8/16/20012:23WT2W40mPSK31FN12JimNY

8/16/20012:37PI110HL/LH 20mPSK31JO21bxNetherlands

8/16/20012:584L1QX/MM20mPSK31FM41lhEminBermuda

8/16/20013:08N1FCC20mPSK31FN42lwDaveNH

8/16/20013:16WM6V20mPSK31EM20mrFlorenceTX

8/16/20013:28CO2JD20mPSK31EL92JuanCuba

8/16/20013:43KA1GMN20mPSK31EM12kuPhilTX

8/16/20014:05W3MEL20mPSK31FN10xlMel706PA

8/16/20014:18CO2WL20mPSK31EL82sxLazaroCuba

8/16/20014:21YV1PX20mPSK31FJ49siRobertoVenezuela

8/16/20014:30RX0AE20mPSK31NO66kaPeterAsiatic Russia

8/16/20014:40W8L /LH20mPSK31EN66JohnMI

8/16/20014:50K1GMD20mPSK31DM84ijPhil411NM

8/17/20011:41VE1CDD/P20mPSK31FN84dsJohnNS

EB5DZC, 10-17 August

HOLA A TODOS

MI VIAJE COMENZO EL SABADO 8-8-2009 SOBRE LAS 21:00 SALIENDO DE FUENTE ALAMO (PUEBLO SITUADO A UNOS 30 Km DE MI QTH) , Y CON DESTINO CAMPING DE RIOMALO DE ABAJO EN EL NORTE DE CACERES, JUSTAMENTE LINDANDO CON LA PROVINCIA DE SALAMANCA.

MI LLEGADA AL DESTINO FUE CERCA DE LAS 8:30 DE LA MAÑANA DEL DOMINGO , TENIENDO QUE DESCANSAR DEL VIEJE DE NOCHE , MI QTH/P

Y MI EQUIPO ESTABA LISTO PARA TRANSMITIRA LAS 22:00 DEL DOMINGO, PERO NO PUDO SER HASTA EL DIA 10 , PORPROBLEMAS EN EL PTT DE MI INTERFACE, (NO QUERIA TRABAJAR HI.).

EL DIA 10 YA ESTABA EN EL AIRE -EB5DZC/EA4-,LANZANDO CQ´s Y CONTESTANDO INMEDIATAMENTE A MI LLAMADA .

GRACIAS A LOS ADMINISTRADORES DEL CAMPING RIOMALO DE ABAJO, ME DIERON PERMISO Y ACCESO PARA TRABAJAR CON INTERNET VIA WIFI, LA CONEXIÓN ERA MUY MALAPERO MENOS DA UNA PIEDRA HI.

DURANTE EL DIATENIAMOS UNA TEMPERATURA APROXIMADAMENTE DE 30 GRADOS Y POR LA NOCHE BAJABAN A LOS 16 GRADOSY CON ASIDUAS TORMENTAS CON APARATO ELECTRICO QUE ME IMPEDIAN ESTAR EN EL AIREMAS TIEMPO DEL QUE YO QUISIERA.

POR PROBLEMAS PERSONALES TUVE QUE ADELENTAR MI VIAJE DE VUELTA A EL DIA 19 , LLEGANDOA MI QTH (CARTAGENA) EL DIA 20 POR LA TARDE , YA QUE TUVE UN PROBLEMA CON MI CARAVANAY TUVIMOS QUE HACER NOCHEEN TALAVERA DE LA REINA , PARA PODER REPARARLA ( UNA AVENTURA HI. HI.)

POR MI SITUACION EN RIOMALO , SOLO PUDE TRABAJAREN BUENAS CONDICIONES LAS BANDAS DE 20-30-40 , Y VARIOS DIGIMODOS, MI INTENCION ERA CUBRIR MAS BANDAS 10-40, PERO NO HABIA CONDICIONES PARA TODAS.

UN CORDIAL SALUDO A TODOS LOS QUE CONTACTARON CON EB5DZC/EA4 EN RIOMALO DE ABAJO .

PARA QSL/PAPER TODA LA INFORMACION EN QRZ.com.

73 + 55 ………

JUAN CARLOS# 886

IZ5PAJ2009081015541414.07990PSK31

I1FCL2009081016071614.07000PSK31

IZ8OXW2009081016222614.07000PSK31

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VE3OIJ/W1, 20-21 August

K9H, 21-23 August

K9H — Going APE, 2009

August 21-23, UTC

We are Chuck (K9PLX) and Mitch (K9ZXO) Hopper. We grew up in the west central Illinois town of Jacksonville, although both of us have lived elsewhere for many years now. We decided to combine a trip to the old homestead with an APE weekend; we obtained the special event call sign K9H (H for Hopper, of course) in commemoration of the event, and began making our plans in July.

Mitch provided the rig (an old IC-751 that he lovingly refers to as "steam powered"), the interface (a Rigblaster) and the tuner (an MFJ Intelli-Tuner). Chuck went to his club, the York Radio Club of Elmhurst, IL, and borrowed a couple of sectional 30 foot masts, a couple of 50 foot lengths of coax, and a nice trapped dipole for 40 and 20 Meters, which also happened to load 80 Meters very well. The old homestead provided the 110 V. AC.

We fretted through the week prior to the event, as the weather was extremely hot and muggy, and the O.H. is not air-conditioned. Thursday evening the skies opened up and poured on us; still hot and muggy. Oh, my gosh, what have we gotten ourselves into?! BUT THEN...

Friday, opening day, dawned clear and cool and fairly dry—and things stayed that way for the rest of the time. The weather was glorious, with highs in the mid-70's, low humidity, and a beautiful breeze nearly constantly. We ended up using only one of the masts, putting it in the center to hold up the middle of the dipole; the ends found homes in convenient trees. The rig / computer / etc. was set up on a screened porch, things were tuned up, and we were on the air by about 1:30 PM local time.

The two of us took turns throughout the rest of that day and up until nearly midnight of the following day, with time out for meals and the requisite nap from time to time. This was the first chance the two of us have had to play radio together in a long time; it was great fun! By the time we quit late on Saturday night, we had logged exactly 100 QSOs (yes, we stayed up until we hit the number!). Somehow (probably he cheated, but we'll never know) Mitch, K9ZXO ended up making 66 contacts to Chuck's (K9PLX) 44. Isn't sibling rivalry wonderful?

All QSO information has now been uploaded to eQSL.cc under the K9H call sign. Those who wish a paper QSL should send their own with a SASE to K9PLX (he's good on QRZ.com). Sorry, but we haven't yet been able to figure out how to use LoTW for a special event call. We'll work on it.

The view from the rig toward the antenna—the feedline is going through the center	Bottom view of the center pole	The center pole from a distance
The center pole with dipole attached	North end of the antenna disappearing into the trees	The rig
K9PLX and K9ZXO raise the center pole	K9ZXO hard at work	K9PLX making a QSO
K9PLX is on the air!	K9ZXO seen through the screen	K9PLX making another QSO

The Logbook

(All QSOs made using PSK-31)

WA0TDQ, 28-29 August

Even with great planning you have to have decent band conditions at the time you plan to play radio! We drove over to Branson Missouri Friday for a few days. (two and a half hours away). We have season tickets at Silver Dollar City and go over for that and see some shows down on the strip. This left me with a limited time to operate in the evening when band conditions were flackey. We stayed down on Indian Point road where I could drive up to the door of the cabin. Using the home brew roof- top mobile antenna mount for the Hustler (picture attached) I moved everything inside and operated in comfort! (picture attached). Antenna mast removed when in motion of course. 25 feet of coax connected me to the antenna on top of the car. I did get my 20 contacts before packing up to come home. Found one ham 3 years older than me. He is 88 years old. You do the math! Log attached.

28-Aug-2009 20:47:47 14070.000 BPSK K3MY 479 barry
28-Aug-2009 23:19:25 14070.000 BPSK W7R 599 599 JACK SPEC EVENT
28-Aug-2009 23:53:54 14070.000 BPSK W6MDH Martin #991
29-Aug-2009 00:47:30 14070.000 BPSK VE1CDD/P John #679
29-Aug-2009 01:55:11 14070.000 BPSK W6SGD 599 599 Harold
29-Aug-2009 02:44:59 14070.000 BPSK W1NDY Al #945
29-Aug-2009 03:39:25 14070.000 BPSK WA6OVP 599 599 tom
29-Aug-2009 22:58:09 14070.000 BPSK W0PE 479 Fred #975
29-Aug-2009 23:32:02 14070.000 BPSK WT6X 599 Jose
30-Aug-2009 00:22:13 14070.000 BPSK K3PX Bob
30-Aug-2009 00:41:28 14070.000 BPSK WD8EBS 599 599 Michael
30-Aug-2009 00:44:56 14070.000 BPSK WK2H Guy E Hoose
30-Aug-2009 19:19:41 14070.000 BPSK N3GSE 599 599 Joel
30-Aug-2009 19:40:04 14070.000 BPSK K3ML MEL
30-Aug-2009 19:56:43 14070.000 BPSK N7WET MEL #869
30-Aug-2009 20:40:03 14070.000 BPSK KJ4NKL 599 599 Michael
30-Aug-2009 20:43:58 14070.000 BPSK CO2WL 599 599 LAZARO
30-Aug-2009 23:25:46 7070.000 BPSK W0JLY 599 599 BILL
30-Aug-2009 23:40:17 7070.000 BPSK N5SQV 599 599 LOUIE
31-Aug-2009 00:16:37 7070.000 BPSK K0SNG 599 599 bob