2012 APE Tall Tales

 

 

IK1AMC, 12 August

 

Also this year I made the APE expedition with fun.

From my home in Vado Ligure (JN44fg) I went in the Piemonte region near the city of Cortemilia (JN44co).

The trip started at 9 AM (local time) and I started the transmissions at 10.36 AM (local time).

I was the only member of the expedition and the site of the expedition operations was on the way to the beginning of the village as shown in the picture.
IK1AMC_2012APE_1

IK1AMC_2012APE_2
My rig was the same as the last year (APE 2011):

Radio: Yaesu FT-857D set on 20 W output

Computer: netbook Packard Bell / Windows 7

DC-DC adapter for netbook

Software: Ham Radio Deluxe

Interface: home made

Antenna: home made Long Wire

Balun: home made

Antenna Tuner: Z-11Pro LDG

Power Supply: 1 Battery 12v/12Ah (radio), 1 Battery 12v/7Ah (PC)

I also brought a 45 Ah extra car battery for greater autonomy but has not been used.

Best 73 de IK1AMC Gilio.

12 Aug 2012 IZ7FSY 14,070 PSK31 8:36

12 Aug 2012 GM4XAW 14,070 PSK31 8:48

12 Aug 2012 LX1ITI 14,070 PSK31 8:56

12 Aug 2012 DD9ZZ 14,070 PSK31 8:58

12 Aug 2012 DK9KW 14,070 PSK31 9:04

12 Aug 2012 OE3FFA 14,070 PSK31 9:10

12 Aug 2012 OK1AW 14,070 PSK31 9:17

12 Aug 2012 9A4KW 21,070 PSK31 9:26

12 Aug 2012 ON4AVT 21,070 PSK31 9:26

12 Aug 2012 DK0ZG 21,070 PSK31 9:30

12 Aug 2012 PC3M 21,070 PSK31 9:33

12 Aug 2012 DG7EKJ 21,070 PSK31 9:39

12 Aug 2012 GO6XOU/P 21,070 PSK31 9.48

12 Aug 2012 DM5HF 21,070 PSK31 9:51

12 Aug 2012 M0YDK 14,070 PSK31 9:59

12 Aug 2012 SP1TJ 14,070 PSK31 10:00

12 Aug 2012 PD2ATG 14,070 PSK31 10:04

12 Aug 2012 HB9ENU 14,070 PSK31 10:09

12 Aug 2012 DR1B 21,070 PSK31 10:18

12 Aug 2012 ON7II 14,070 PSK31 10.26

12 Aug 2012 DO1EWT 21,070 PSK31 10.36

12 Aug 2012 DK7EC 14,070 PSK31 10:41

 

 

N6MG & WØPE as W6QP, 13-19 August
 

W6QP_2012APE_DSC01940
Official APE Ground Rod, Interesting, huh?

W6QP_2012APE_DSC01937
Official APE Operator N6MG

W6QP_2012APE_W0PE - APE 2012a
W0PE - APE 2012 = Official APE Operator W0PE (Humor)

W6QP_2012APE_DSC00540
Official W6QP APE Eatery - The best food in Running Springs, Ca.
 
W6QP APE 2012 was a good time. It gave us a chance to add to the W6QP LONP count as well as hand 070-1454 to those that needed it. Although we didnt spend the time we've spent in the past, we wanted to give out APE contacts to as many fellow 070 folks as possible. The conditions experienced were good by day and outstanding after dark.

W6QP Club Station:
Kenwood TS-480 HX at 40 watts into an LDG AT 200 Pro and feeding a G5RV, suspended from existing mega sized pine trees.

Contacts: 167
070 Contacts: 47
 
Thanks to all that worked us and spotted us on the 070 reflector and Telnet.
 
73,

Milt, N6MG

 

W6QP - APE, 2012
               
CALL DATE BAND MODE TIME RST(S) RST(R) ENTITY
               
CE4SFC 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 23:44 599 599 Chile
N2GXJ 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 23:31 599 599 USA
K8GGL 8/13/2012 15 PSK31 22:37 599 469 USA
WQ9Z 8/13/2012 15 PSK31 22:23 599 599 USA
ZL1LC 8/13/2012 15 PSK31 22:12 539 355 New Zealand
KF7PXU 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 21:48 599 599 USA
N0UIL 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 21:25 599 599 USA
VE6AGE 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 21:17 599 599 Canada
EA1AHY 8/13/2012 15 PSK31 20:48 599 599 Spain
WA7HDZ 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 20:02 599 599 USA
KJ4IZW 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 19:50 599 599 USA
W5FER 8/13/2012 20 PSK31 19:34 599 599 USA
W5ZHI 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 21:46 599 599 USA
KD0NZY 8/14/2012 15 PSK31 21:12 599 599 USA
F6GCP 8/14/2012 15 PSK31 21:05 599 599 USA
KE4OOI 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 20:49 599 599 USA
KF7EE 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 20:41 599 599 USA
KF5JXP 8/14/2012 17 PSK31 18:15 599 599 USA
K7TRK 8/14/2012 15 PSK31 17:44 377 599 USA
NU4C 8/14/2012 15 PSK31 16:22 599 599 USA
W5VGR 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:43 599 599 USA
N7QU 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:32 599 599 USA
ZR6DX 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:27 599 599 South Africa
KA8JHD 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:17 599 599 USA
K8TOM 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:09 599 599 USA
W6QP 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 14:01     USA
N6MG 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 13:58 599 599 USA
WB5NHL 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 13:51 599 599 USA
VA3MJR 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 13:44 599 599 Canada
WQ9Z 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 13:37 599 599 USA
VE6VLV 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 5:57 599 599 Canada
K6BDK 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 5:40 599 599 USA
K6BDK 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 5:27 599 599 USA
AC6YY/6 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 5:19 599 599 USA
ND7W 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:48 599 599 USA
K8TOM 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:40 599 599 USA
K7PWL 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:35 599 599 USA
KJ4IZW 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:29 599 599 USA
N6PCD 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:24 599 599 USA
N2GXT 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:19 599 599 USA
K9PLX 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:10 599 599 USA
K9VIC 8/14/2012 40 PSK31 3:02 599 599 USA
CE1WFM 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:49 599 599 Chile
N6PCD 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:40 599 599 USA
KR4U 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:33 599 599 USA
VA7GEM 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:20 599 599 Canada
KG4KRB 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:12 599 599 USA
W3HF 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 2:06 599 599 USA
VE6KAD 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 1:58 599 599 Canada
K6FN 8/14/2012 20 PSK31 0:31 599 599 USA
W8TTY 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 23:56 599 599 USA
W8TBX 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 23:52 599 599 USA
KX7DJ 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 21:55 599 599 USA
W7PAQ 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 21:32 599 599 USA
K7TRK 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 21:23 599 599 USA
N0EF 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 21:06 599 599 USA
WD9DUI 8/16/2012 15 PSK31 18:03 599 599 USA
VE6DJT 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 17:09 599 599 Canada
W5FER 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 17:03 599 599 USA
NO8R 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 16:43 599 599 USA
KB3NPH 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 16:34 599 599 USA
WG5T 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 16:26 599 599 USA
KI4EBD 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 16:15 599 599 USA
N9AVY 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 16:05 599 599 USA
CO4SM 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 15:39 599 599 Cuba
KF3AA 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 15:10 599 599 USA
VA7GEM 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 15:06 599 599 Canada
W4KRN 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:57 599 599 USA
AG0O 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:56 599 599 USA
W4FGA 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:29 599 599 USA
N7CQU 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:23 599 599 USA
W0PE 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:15 599 599 USA
W1YK 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 14:12 599 599 USA
WA8RPQ 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 13:59 599 599 USA
VK7KT 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 13:43 599 599 Australia
JH9FNB 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:38 599 599 Japan
YV5MM 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:34 599 599 Venezuela
W4RDD 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:26 599 599 USA
JA1LZB 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:15 599 599 Japan
VK7KT 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:05 599 599 Australia
UA1OM 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 5:01 599 599 European Russia
W6ZH 8/16/2012 40 PSK31 4:15 599 599 USA
YV1FPT 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 4:02 599 599 Venezuela
AD7OY/P 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 3:57 599 599 USA
KK4JOW 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 3:40 599 599 USA
FK8GX 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 3:31 599 599 New Caledonia
K7JBS 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 2:37 599 599 USA
K6FN 8/16/2012 20 PSK31 2:25 599 599 USA
WB6YTE 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 18:39 599 599 USA
WB5NHL 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 16:41 599 599 USA
N6PCD 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 16:33 599 599 USA
KA0IBF 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 16:12 599 599 USA
VE3IZZ 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:56 599 599 Canada
N2SI 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:41 599 599 USA
K8GGL 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:37 599 599 USA
K6VIB 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:22 599 599 USA
NU4C 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:17 599 599 USA
W5XZ 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:10 599 599 USA
K8PL 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 15:06 599 599 USA
K4OP 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 14:54 599 599 USA
WQ9Z 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 13:08 599 599 USA
AC0QG 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:53 599 599 USA
KD0QYN 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:36 599 599 USA
KB3DH 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:32 599 599 USA
VK4ALO 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:17 599 599 Australia
NU4C 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:12 599 599 USA
KD0CA 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 12:11 599 599 USA
K8GGL 8/17/2012 40 PSK31 11:54 599 599 USA
W1WLH/P 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 3:16 599 599 USA
KJ8O 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 0:37 599 599 USA
KB5HG 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 0:24 599 599 USA
W0MJ 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 0:23 599 599 USA
KB5OI 8/17/2012 20 PSK31 0:23 599 599 USA
KK4JSJ 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 18:31 599 599 USA
W6LY 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 18:15 599 599 USA
W7RIV 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 16:44 599 599 USA
K8TOM 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 16:24 555 599 USA
KJ6MQE 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 16:21 599 599 USA
W7JSD 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 15:54 599 599 USA
YY5CWM 8/18/2012 15 PSK31 15:50 599 599 Venezuela
LU8HGI 8/18/2012 15 PSK31 15:47 599 599 Argentina
K8IJ 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 13:44 555 599 USA
VI5CW 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 13:28 599 599 Australia
N8BB 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 13:26 599 599 USA
WQ9Z 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 11:57 599 599 USA
WJ1B 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 10:10 599 599 USA
CO8KP 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 6:12 599 599 Cuba
JA1CLW 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 6:00 599 599 Japan
AG6IF 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 5:21 599 599 USA
HA0ML 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 4:39 599 599 Hungary
CO8WZ 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 4:17 599 599 Cuba
YY4DNN 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 4:15 599 599 Venezuela
K9PLX 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 3:52 599 599 USA
W4KRN 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 3:46 599 599 USA
N1SPX/P 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 3:39 599 599 USA
KB9TYT 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 3:12 599 599 USA
K5TRM 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 3:12 599 599 USA
WM9V 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 2:47 599 599 USA
KI6WJ 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 2:38 599 599 USA
W0PE 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 2:21 599 599 USA
CM2ECO 8/18/2012 40 PSK31 2:09 599 599 Cuba
N7CQU/P 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 1:59 599 599 USA
VE3NOO 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 1:42 599 599 Canada
KC6QHP 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 1:22 599 599 USA
FG4PK 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 1:18 599 599 Guadeloupe
HK3Q 8/18/2012 20 PSK31 1:11 599 599 Colombia
KF4WBJ 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 21:50 599 599 USA
K9GO 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 21:39 599 579 USA
K4BDC 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 21:32 599 599 USA
W1IDL 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 21:19 599 599 USA
LU6EE 8/19/2012 10 PSK31 21:01 599 599 Argentina
XQ7UP/3 8/19/2012 12 PSK31 20:57 599 599 Chile
XE1/AA0AA 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 20:05 599 599 Mexico
WA0JZK 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 19:52 599 599 USA
W7JJL 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 19:45 599 599 USA
WH6AA 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 19:36 599 599 Hawaii
W6PST 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 19:28 599 599 USA
W6QAR 8/19/2012 10 PSK31 19:06 599 599 USA
K4LYJ 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 17:48 599 599 USA
AC7GI 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 17:32 599 599 USA
KD0OYE 8/19/2012 20 PSK31 17:27 599 599 USA
K8GGL 8/19/2012 15 PSK31 17:07 599 579 USA
K0QBW 8/19/2012 15 PSK31 16:58 599 599 USA
WA6HZV 8/19/2012 15 PSK31 16:47 599 599 USA
CM3RPN 8/19/2012 15 PSK31 16:42 599 599 Cuba
KE4URL 8/19/2012 10 PSK31 16:32 599 599 USA
N8YYD 8/19/2012 10 PSK31 16:18 599 599 USA
KD6DWX 8/19/2012 10 PSK31 16:06 599 599 USA

 

 

 

 

AD7OY, 15-16 August

AD7OY_2012_Ape

 

After a 13 hour drive from home to Laramie, Wyoming, weather and family matters prevented me from operating until the 15th. After getting the antenna up and on the air I found the band in decent condition. I began operating qrp with my normal travel rig and all was well for the first few contacts but as the band congestion came up it seem difficult for operators to find me, so I switched trancievers and finished the APE putting out 20 watts.

The initial set up for the station consisted of a Yaesu FT817 @ 5 watts, transmitting through a BuddyStick Antenna mounted to the ladder on the back of the fifth wheel travel trailer. An NUEPSK modem was used direct to the tranciever. To increase power capability due to band conditions I switched off to a Yaesu FT897D @ 20w to complete the APE.

A delay in our departure plans allowed me to operate a short time on the morning of August 16 and that resulted in a few additional contacts. A total of thirty contacts were made including Canada, Cuba and the APE operating at Running Srpings California. This was my first successful APE and I am sure that it will not be my last as we are already planning some trips for next summer when the XYL is off school for the summer.

Sorry for a lack of pictures but I havent seemed to master sending pics with my iPhone to an email yet. Here is a pic of the rig set up with the FT897D.
AD7OY_2012APE_rigphoto
Log Data

Call Date Time Freq 070 Notes

W5FER 08/15 2020 14.070 *

W7NBH 08/15 2030 14.070

W6NEV 08/15 2110 14.071

WG5T 08/15 2315 14.070 *

VA7GEM 08/15 2325 14.070 * British Columbia, Canada

K8TOM 08/15 2327 14.070 *

AF6YO 08/15 2340 14.070

KM5YE 08/15 2352 14.070 Rio Rancho NM (Lost mid contact)

NO8R 08/16 0000 14.071 *

N9NTC 08/16 0012 14.071 * (Lost mid contact)

W7CPG 08/16 0032 14.071

VA3MJR 08/16 0038 14.071 * Hamilton, Ontario

KA8G 08/16 0048 14.071

W9JFB 08/16 0054 14.071 *

N7WU 08/16 0103 14.071

W0PE 08/16 0202 14.071 *

KB5GA 08/16 0208 14.071

K2GT 08/16 0213 14.071

W7ZT 08/16 0219 14.071

N7QU 08/16 0227 14.071 *

NF7D 08/16 0234 14.071 *

CO8QZ 08/16 0236 14.071 Santiago de Cuba, Cuba

W6QP 08/16 0247 14.071 * Milt, APE @ Running Springs, CA

N6MG 08/16 0254 14.071 *

N2SI 08/16 0300 14.071 *

K4DCG 08/16 1915 14.071

WA7HDZ 08/16 1928 14.071 *

W5WDY 08/16 2039 14.071

W5WRJ 08/16 2010 14.071

K7TRK 08/16 2018 14.071 *

 

 

N7CQU, 17-18 August

A very short story about my APE. I have never been camping before so this was quite a thing for me. The radio set up went well and also the tent and awning. The weather was another thing, we left Eugene with temps at about 85 and got to the coast and the temps were around 60. As the night came it was very much colder. Almost froze to death (lol) and it was also the dogs first time. We were quite a pair of rookies. The next day things were a little better, radio conditions were not as good as I wanted but made my 20. Sunday morning around 3:30 a m I had to go to the bathroom, not good, fell out of tent. Not many folks fall out of tents, but I will be camping again. Lots of fun and laughs. W7JY and wife Dixie were with me on the trip, in their motor home. N7QU was along as well to do the hard work of laughing at my new camping experience.

Some pics attached, I have my head under a towel so I could see the computer it worked real well.
N7CQU_2012APE_019

N7CQU_2012APE_007

N7CQU_2012APE_008


Date Time Call 070# Band

 

8-17 2010 N6STA 1516 20

8-17 2042 VE6VLV 20

8-17 2052 K3BFQ 20

8-17 2224 VE3NOO 20

8-17 2259 W6QP 1454 20

8-17 2303 N6MG 650 20

8-17 2314 W0PE 975 20

8-17 2317 K5USF 20

8-17 2331 KJ6MQE 20

8-17 2350 NK9N 20

8-18 1313 N7QU 339 20

8-18 1757 W7JSD 20

8-18 2106 KK6BJ 20

8-18 2156 K9ZJ 20

8-18 2256 KE0VCC 20

8-18 2312 AB6ZQ 20

8-19 0237 W8TTY 20

8-19 0249 K8WDX 20

8-19 0326 WV3E 20

8-19 0342 KD8LMM 20

 

N3PPH & KF3AA as K3CAL, 18-19 August

Bob KF3AA and I, N3PPH, both belong to the same local club: Calvert Amateur Radio Association Inc. and have been trying to expose the rest of our club to the joys of PSK. We as a club were going to activate a lighthouse so we decided to setup a digital station as the location met all APE requirements. We worked with Bob’s Mystery Antenna and were on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Being a club event we were fed well and enjoyed a lot of company. We had a good weekend and hope to find a way to APE again in the future.

K3CAL_APE2012image003
KF3AA on the air.

K3CAL_APE2012image005

This is our antenna collection, when we arrived in the morning there were none, just as we left it.

73,

Bob N3PPH


K3CAL Log:

Date Time Callsign
08/18/12 1644 K8GGL
  1647 K8TOM
  1652 V39SLH
  1706 KJ8O
  1712 KC8WPW
  1725 NW8S
  1749 KP3RE
  1837 KP3ER
  1903 N8KMY
  1916 CS5DFG
  2021 W5WF
  2027 NO8R
  2203 K7TRK
  2215 IK5ZUB
  2220 WB5K
  2223 EB3JT
  2231 K5UOR
  2235 WA7HDZ
  2243 KT4NM
  2318 VE4OK
  2344 W3HF
  2347 RA6ASU
  2352 UA6HJT
08/19/12 0014 N4THG
  0015 K9VIC
  0020 VA3MJR
  0024 EW6FW
  0031 KB3DHE
  0046 W1JN
  0059 CO6GU
  0110 N3AIN
  0115 WG5T
  0120 KF2GQ
  0148 CW5X
  1251 W5FER
  1319 WQ9Z
  1350 WB9IXF
  1502 N3PPH
  1537 KF3AA

 

W7RIV, 17-19 August
 

I was very excited for APE. This is my first year as a amateur operator and I have been loving digital. I had the opportunity to get up in the mountains with my family and friends. We headed to Heber, Utah and it was beautiful. Except my performance on the radio. I spent a fair amount of time searching and most times I could hear, but I just wasn't getting anyone to respond. There were even some event stations that I tried to get as well. But, in the end I fell very short. I don't get discouraged, I just look forward to next August. I think where I went wrong was the experience of using my vertical loop and maybe the location. I ended up being further back in the mountains putting me a little closer than I had expected. The equipment I was using, Elecraft K3/100 & Samlex 1223 Power Supply going into a DK9SQ Vertical Loop using Signalink USB and Ham Radio Deluxe.

 


W7RIV_2012APE_Antenna Location
The center post is where I had attached my DK9SQ Vertical Loop

W7RIV_2012APE_Cabin Panorama
This is the overlook of where I was operating

W7RIV_2012APE_Chipmunk
I had many friends hanging out with me, this little guy was one

W7RIV_2012APE_Fans
I had many fans this weekend, these were 3 of the cutest

W7RIV_2012APE_Moose
Not only did I have small friends, but I also had large ones, both mornings the Moose came by the lake

W7RIV_2012APE_Rainbow Trout
The trout were all over in the lake, they happened to be fed by the owners of the cabin and would come to shore with very little effort

W7RIV_2012APE_Station
This is my station and where I was located while operating

N3PPH & KF3AA as K3CAL, 18-19 August

Bob KF3AA and I, N3PPH, both belong to the same local club: Calvert Amateur Radio Association Inc. and have been trying to expose the rest of our club to the joys of PSK. We as a club were going to activate a lighthouse so we decided to setup a digital station as the location met all APE requirements. We worked with Bob’s Mystery Antenna and were on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Being a club event we were fed well and enjoyed a lot of company. We had a good weekend and hope to find a way to APE again in the future.

K3CAL_APE2012image003
KF3AA on the air.

K3CAL_APE2012image005

This is our antenna collection, when we arrived in the morning there were none, just as we left it.

73,

Bob N3PPH


K3CAL Log:

Date Time Callsign
08/18/12 1644 K8GGL
  1647 K8TOM
  1652 V39SLH
  1706 KJ8O
  1712 KC8WPW
  1725 NW8S
  1749 KP3RE
  1837 KP3ER
  1903 N8KMY
  1916 CS5DFG
  2021 W5WF
  2027 NO8R
  2203 K7TRK
  2215 IK5ZUB
  2220 WB5K
  2223 EB3JT
  2231 K5UOR
  2235 WA7HDZ
  2243 KT4NM
  2318 VE4OK
  2344 W3HF
  2347 RA6ASU
  2352 UA6HJT
08/19/12 0014 N4THG
  0015 K9VIC
  0020 VA3MJR
  0024 EW6FW
  0031 KB3DHE
  0046 W1JN
  0059 CO6GU
  0110 N3AIN
  0115 WG5T
  0120 KF2GQ
  0148 CW5X
  1251 W5FER
  1319 WQ9Z
  1350 WB9IXF
  1502 N3PPH
  1537 KF3AA

 

N7QU & N7MQ, 23-26 August

 

After several years of saying we should do an APE, George N7QU and I
went over to a campground on the Oregon coast, near the Oregon Sand
Dunes, at Florence Oregon.

We reserved a park site, which turned out to be a terrific radio site.
Upon arriving on Thursday, August 24th, we used an antenna launcher to
pop some lines into fir and pine trees, and then hauled up a G5RV.  At
the end of the camp site, I put up a two element end fire 20 meter
vertical array.

We took Band Pass Filters, but the antennas were just too close together
for the filters to work ... and almost all contacts were on 20 meters,
so George and I took turns on 20, him on his dipole and me on the array.

Some foggy weather, other times very sunny; but always cool and
occasionally cold at night which prevented operating after dark. Lots of
good eats and a great time.  Hard work mining those Q's. New
appreciation for those who have gone on multiple APEs.

N7MQ_APE_2012_verts and MQ

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_FOG JETTY

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_n7mq

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_SUN PAC

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_Geo canopy

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_site and cars

 

N7MQ_APE_2012_foggy campground

	All reports 599 SENT/599 RECEIVED, unless otherwise shown:

N7QU	8/23/2012	2324	20	PSK31	GEORGEe	070 #339
KO6IZ	8/23/2012	2340	20		MIKE
W7JY	8/24/2012	0213	40		PETE
W2TMT			0220	20		
KF5OIO			0238	20		BRIAN
N0O			0249	20
K0PVW			0250	20		BRYAN
K7AAT			0256	40		ED
AD0BK			0333	20		SANATH  [Note: rest of QSOs all on 20]
VE6KAD			0345	[rest on 20]	KEVIN
W6AMY			0350			PHIL	
WQ6C			0354			CARL
W0LPR			1422			HOUSTON
CO6RD			1432			REY
CO8WZ			1501			RUBEN
KG4JO			1506			
NQ6L			1511			NORM
KG4JOK			1518			WALTER
W6YJE			1547			BOB
KC9KZQ			1600			DON
K8IRC			1820			BART
K4KBL			1828			JERRY
W7RKU			1835			VIC
W8IDW			1925			JOHN .... in OH on his APE
K4DCG			1929			DAVID
W3IY			2341			CARL
N2DP			2348			JERRY
VA6JB	8/25/2012	0001			JOHN
W5JDA			0006			JOSH
K9H			0006			cHUCK K9PXL/#930 and MITCH K9ZO/#967-OPS
WQ9Z			0020			ROY
W4UOR			1345			FRANK
KG4KGL			1352			ROBERT
KK6BJ			1622			BRUCE
K8ARC			1628			BRYAN
K1BHX			1630			EARL
W5WR			1641			CADDO LAKE, TX APE
KH6GRT			1751			PETE
AD7MI			1753
KD0JLE			1758
KC0ZVN			1806			GARY
K0A			1813			ROBERT
KS0KS			1817
KD5ZDU			1920			JEFF
N2TSJ			1932			JIM [AGE 90]
AG0Z			1940			GALEN
KC0DEB			1948			JOHN #069
VE3IZZ			2134			GUY
W3DP			2135			DON
N7PTM			2143			BOB
WS0O			2148			CHAUNCE
KC0DJB			2200			KEITH
KK7RT			2307			BOB
K4GDR			2314			BILL
W8TTY			2322			AL
KE4TH			2342			KEITH 599/459
KB5IRC	8/26/2012	0209			STONY
W3HF			0207			STEVE #025  559/559
KA5VZG			0212			ALAN  #1509  599/559
WB3DLS			0244			BILL  599/579
KE5PYF			0255			DAVE #1081
AI5W			0300			MARIO
KF2GQ			0309			ROBERT #710
WK5X			0316			BOB
KB0QC			1436			RICH
N0F			1443
KB3QHA			1457			BRIAN

APE at OREGON SAND DUNES, FLORENCE, OREGON
MARK PERRIN N7MQ 070 #1098
AUGUST 24-26, 2012
N7QU log:
End date UTC RX kHz Mode Call RST S RST R Name QTH Notes
-------------------- -------- ------ --------- ----- ----- --------------- ----------- ----------------
23-Aug-2012 23:10:08 14071.0 BPSK31 WQ9Z 599 599 roy il 519
23-Aug-2012 23:20:18 14071.8 BPSK31 W1HEN 599 599 rick ct
23-Aug-2012 23:26:12 14071.5 BPSK31 N7MQ 599 599 mark or 1098
23-Aug-2012 23:57:19 14071.7 BPSK31 W7PAQ 599 599 frank mt 354
24-Aug-2012 00:00:33 14071.7 BPSK31 WB2QEF 599 599 elwood nj
24-Aug-2012 00:20:47 14071.1 BPSK31 AD0BK 599 599 sanath sd
24-Aug-2012 00:41:16 14071.3 BPSK31 NO8R 599 599 delos mi 777
24-Aug-2012 02:01:20 7040.0 BPSK31 ND0K 599 599 lee mo
24-Aug-2012 02:09:44 7039.8 BPSK31 W7JY 599 599 pete or
24-Aug-2012 02:15:43 7039.7 BPSK31 N7CQU 599 599 bette or 698
24-Aug-2012 02:59:55 7039.7 BPSK31 K7AAT 599 599 ed or
24-Aug-2012 03:13:32 14070.4 BPSK31 AH6JA 599 599 harvey hi
24-Aug-2012 03:21:04 7040.3 BPSK31 VE3NOO 599 599 michael ontario
24-Aug-2012 13:44:16 14071.0 BPSK31 ZS2CR 599 599 colette pwr failure
24-Aug-2012 14:00:22 14071.3 BPSK31 ZS2CR 599 599 colette
24-Aug-2012 14:09:32 14070.8 BPSK31 AA2MF/4 599 599 rich fl
24-Aug-2012 14:20:42 14069.9 BPSK31 W0LPR 599 599 houston mo
24-Aug-2012 14:42:47 14070.4 BPSK31 ZR2SAP 599 599 shaun
24-Aug-2012 14:54:25 14070.6 BPSK31 W4EFT 599 599 elvis al
24-Aug-2012 15:40:32 14070.2 BPSK31 CO8WZ 599 599 rueben
24-Aug-2012 16:47:16 14069.8 BPSK31 N7MJ 599 599 jack wy 1561
24-Aug-2012 17:53:19 14069.6 BPSK31 VA6JB 599 599 john
24-Aug-2012 18:00:27 14070.4 BPSK31 N1AB 599 599 steve ca
24-Aug-2012 18:04:09 14070.4 BPSK31 AE5BI 599 599 steve ca
24-Aug-2012 18:58:54 14070.4 BPSK31 K4KBL 599 599 jerry ga
24-Aug-2012 19:08:36 14071.3 BPSK31 K2PSD 599 599 ron nj
24-Aug-2012 19:13:52 14069.3 BPSK31 W8IDW 599 599 john oh 1425
24-Aug-2012 19:42:01 14069.7 BPSK31 K4DCG 599 599 david ky
24-Aug-2012 20:48:42 14071.2 BPSK31 W1EMQ 599 599 chuck
24-Aug-2012 21:05:31 14070.9 BPSK31 K9ZJ 599 599 rich wi
24-Aug-2012 22:08:47 14071.4 BPSK31 W5ZHI 599 599 dick nm
24-Aug-2012 22:56:24 14070.8 BPSK31 K9H 599 599 mitch and chuck 930 and 937 not sure of time
25-Aug-2012 14:04:17 14070.8 BPSK31 YW5B 599 599
25-Aug-2012 14:13:45 14071.4 BPSK31 KS0SA/P 599 599 sandy mo
25-Aug-2012 14:32:03 14070.5 BPSK31 KC2WTG 599 599 george nj
25-Aug-2012 17:08:48 14072.2 BPSK31 AD7MI/KH6 599 599 scott hi
25-Aug-2012 17:14:26 14070.5 BPSK31 AH6RR 599 599 roland hi
25-Aug-2012 17:23:50 14072.1 BPSK31 JH2DBQ 599 599 Teo
25-Aug-2012 17:38:26 14071.8 BPSK31 KS0KS 599 599 larry ks
25-Aug-2012 17:41:57 14071.0 BPSK31 KH6DQ 599 599 jack hi
25-Aug-2012 18:32:35 14070.4 BPSK31 VA6DBA 599 599 dave
25-Aug-2012 18:46:10 14070.4 BPSK31 VE3QN 599 599 bryan
25-Aug-2012 19:13:31 14071.9 BPSK31 WQ6C 599 599 carl ca
25-Aug-2012 20:13:40 14071.7 BPSK31 N8KMY 599 599 craig mi
25-Aug-2012 20:33:37 14070.8 BPSK31 W5FER 599 599 jim tx
25-Aug-2012 20:46:51 14070.8 BPSK31 WA6OWM 599 599 ray ca
25-Aug-2012 20:53:41 14070.4 BPSK31 W7SVD 599 599 charles az
25-Aug-2012 21:00:47 14071.3 BPSK31 N0O 599 599 rob ks
25-Aug-2012 21:21:11 14071.2 BPSK31 KD0MTA 599 599 john ks
25-Aug-2012 21:28:20 14070.8 BPSK31 VE3IZZ 599 599 guy
25-Aug-2012 22:35:50 14071.2 BPSK31 KD0NZY 599 599 nils mn
25-Aug-2012 22:55:56 14070.1 BPSK31 N2YVE 599 599 robert ny
25-Aug-2012 23:44:13 14071.2 BPSK31 WA1KBE 599 599 steve ma
26-Aug-2012 00:01:56 14071.3 BPSK31 W7WIA 599 599 oliver ca 658
26-Aug-2012 01:50:57 14070.9 BPSK31 AE7CW 599 599 chuck az
26-Aug-2012 02:23:04 14070.3 BPSK31 AF5FH 599 599 jim nm
26-Aug-2012 02:27:38 14070.3 BPSK31 KD8KFQ 599 599 rob wv
26-Aug-2012 02:36:19 14071.2 BPSK31 W5WRJ 599 599 wayne tx
26-Aug-2012 02:43:15 7040.0 BPSK31 KC7EQL 599 599 mark wa
26-Aug-2012 13:54:11 14071.9 BPSK31 W5JDA 599 599 josh tx 1556
26-Aug-2012 14:16:54 14072.0 BPSK31 AB8O 599 599 john oh
26-Aug-2012 14:27:38 14071.4 BPSK31 W4UOR 599 599 frank nc
26-Aug-2012 15:10:46 14070.1 BPSK31 K0A 599 599 ks
26-Aug-2012 15:15:01 14071.2 BPSK31 W7BOZ 599 599 kevin ut
26-Aug-2012 15:24:27 14070.9 BPSK31 WA8RPK 599 599 tom oh

 

W8IDW, 24 August

 

PODXS 070 August Portable Expedition

August 24, 2012

Lake Hope State Park, Ohio – W8IDW Operation

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic1

 

My first 070 A.P.E was a good news / bad news affair.

Bad news – didn’t make 20 contacts.

Good news – exceptional weather, great setup location and valuable antenna experimentation.

Lake Hope State Park is located in the Hocking Hills region of Southeastern Ohio, in the Wayne National Forest. About 20 miles from Athens OH, it is easily reached from the north via Nelsonville and from the south by US Rt 50 and State Rt 278.

 

Leaving home on the WV side of the Ohio River around 9:30 am put me at the large parking area I planned to use a little after 11 am. A convenient picnic shelter was an alternate operating location, but appeared to be occupied by a rather large group so the completely deserted parking area filled the bill nicely.

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic2

 

 

The station was setup on the tailgate with my movable ‘shadebrella’ to chase the sun from the computer screen as the day progressed.

 

My portable setup for digital operation consists of:

·Icom IC-7000

·LDG IT-100 tuner

·HP Netbook / Win7 operating. system

·AirLink Express software (by KR1ST) for PSK31 / digital modes

·Scratch paper, radio manual, quick guide, etc.

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic3

 

 

 

 

A comment regarding the IC-7000.

 

A set of cables I found from www.xggcomms.com make digital operation a total breeze with this radio. Connect one cable from the radio’s 13 pin DIN acc socket to the computer ‘smart phone’ jack via a ‘Y’ split cable that combines mic and phones into a single 4 conductor plug and you have instant sound card control. Plug the USB connector from the netbook to the radio remote jack to the computer smart phone jack and you have radio control from any computer software program. Set AirLink Express software to recognize the IC-7000 and you are in business for PSK, RTTY, etc.

 

[Send Steve (G8XGG) an email and he can advise you about cables for a variety of Icom and Yaesu radio models. Completely eliminates the tricky setup of other more complicated interface schemes.]

 

I have some choices when it comes to portable antenna operation. When initially setting up my portable station, I decided to look for a ‘system’ that would perform over a wide range of conditions, bands and modes. After some research, I settled on a Chameleon V11 multi-band horizontal dipole kit.

 

As I operated various ‘portable’ events, I added other antenna alternatives.

 

·OPEK HVT-600 10 band “mobile”.

·DX Engineering NVIS wire.

·Emergency Amateur Radio Club (EARC) end-fed matchbox wire. An excellent END FED 6 – 40 Meter Multiband HF Antenna project that you can build from their plans or buy readymade – see http://www.earchi.org/92011endfedfiles/Endfed6_40.pdf

[I have three random wire lengths – 30, 50 and 70 ft (approx.) depending on setup circumstances]

 

 

I decided to leave my Chameleon in the bag this time and go with the NVIS to hopefully get some Ohio and PA contacts and the OPEK mobile. If time permitted, play with the EARC wires. That would mean breaking out my antenna shooter – more on that later.

 

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic4

 

 

A little after noon I got everything connected and the station actually on the air. A quick check of the bands for activity (unfortunately I did not have a WIFI or cell signal) and I started ‘running’ on 20 meters. The entire APE was conducted on 20 meters as I never found any prop on the other bands.

 

Started out on the NVIS antenna (see photo) but not much coming my way so I switched to the OPEK. It was the top performer all day as it turned out. The NVIS is a four wire affair that sits atop a 16 ft painter pole (Lowes) which is anchored via a rooftop aluminum tripod. See their writeup at:

http://static.dxengineering.com/pdf/WP-NVIS-Rev2.pdf

 

Got a couple 070 members early then kind of a dry spell. Several stations on the waterfall but not many coming my way. After a couple hours and few contacts, I decided to take a break and put up the medium random wire and give the EARC matchbox a try.

 

In order to use the trees that surrounded the area where I was parked, I broke out my version of the pneumatic PVC antenna launcher that I build from plans by K8BLO.

[ http://www.qsl.net/k8blo/launcher.pdf ]

 

 

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic5

 

 

Plug in the 12volt air compressor, charge the tank, shoot the ‘dumbell’ over a handy limb, pull your antenna rope back over using the mason’s line, clip it to the antenna and haul away.

 

 

W8IDW_2012APE_pic6

 

 

I modified the matchbox wire project a bit by mounting the matchbox to an ‘L’ bracket which has an eyebolt for one side of the antenna rope, and a strain relief for the coax drop.

 

This is the first time I had tried the wire antenna in actual operating conditions. Glad I got the chance to deploy it (even though the best “talking” antenna I used all day was the OPEK 600), because I plan to have a wire up for this year’s Ohio State Parks on the Air (OSPOTA) contest I am working in September.

 

So here is the log of contacts I managed working the APE from noon to 5:30 pm (EDT).

 

 

 

Date

Time

Call

070#

Band

Comment

24-Aug-2012

1649

W5FER

1217

20

  

24-Aug-2012

1656

N7MJ

1561

20

  

24-Aug-2012

1914

N7QU/P

339

20

Running an APE

24-Aug-2012

1926

N7MQ

1098

20

Running an APE

24-Aug-2012

1947

CO6RD

---

20

  

24-Aug-2012

2026

DL8ZBA

---

20

  

24-Aug-2012

2047

DK7SS

---

20

  

24-Aug-2012

2115

F1HSY

---

20

  

24-Aug-2012

2124

K3NSA

---

20

  

 

 

John Pitner – W8IDW

 

 

Had the opportunity to exercise my portable station, on a really nice day, play with some new antenna options, and had nice qso’s, just not enough. Thank you to the operators who worked me and maybe we’ll do it again next year.

 

 

 

W5WF, 25-26 August

 

On Friday the 25th of August, Larry Brown, WB5CXC and I made an uneventful trip of 216 miles to Uncertain, Texas located on Caddo Lake - the only natural lake in Texas. We stayed in small New Orleans style cottages at Lafittes Landing Guest Quarters.
W5WF_2012APE_cabins

Saturday morning after scouting the area we found the best position for our antenna. We set up the portable station inside one of the cottages because the Texas heat, mosquitoes, and humidity outside were more than either one of us wanted to endure. Our portable station consisted of a Kenwood 480 sat with a hamstick dipole at about 15 ft.; our computer was a MacBook Pro running on Windows 7 with a Signalink USB interface. For software we used HRD 5.23 and DM-780. With only minor problems we operated except for a break Saturday due to storm conditions. We were surprised at how well the hamstick dipole worked. Band conditions we felt were very good.
W5WF_2012APE_DSC02169(1)
W5WF_2012APE_DSC02141(1)

Thirteen of our contacts were with PODXS 070 club members. We had two DX contacts one with Scott XE1/AA0AA in Mexico and the other with Sig 5Z4EE in Kenya.

Our complete log is as follows:

Date Callsign Band Time PODXS

8/25/12 K8ARC 20m 1554

8/25/12 N7MQ 20m 1641 1098

8/25/12 W4IJY 20m 1646

8/25/12 KZ2R 20m 1711

8/25/12 NO8R 20m 1842 777

8/25/12 W9JMJ 20m 1848 1330

8/25/12 KD8KFQ 20m 1855

8/25/12 N2GXJ 20m 1902 1424

8/25/12 W4HQF 20m 1911

8/25/12 K8FER 20m 2009

8/25/12 N8ALQ 20m 2025

8/25/12 W3BUG 20m 2308

8/25/12 W3HF 20m 2315 025

8/25/12 W4HIX 20m 2327

8/25/12 K7TRK 20m 2342 1028

8/25/12 W3IY 20m 2347

8/25/12 KE4TH 20m 2354

8/26/12 WT6X 20m 0000 614

8/26/12 K8JMB 20m 0008

8/26/12 WB5NHL 20m 0024 143

8/26/12 XE1/AA0AA 20m 0032 1550

8/26/12 N9YOD 20m 0041

8/26/12 5Z4EE 20m 0048

8/26/12 WA3FRQ 20m 0056

8/26/12 WG8W 20m 0101

8/26/12 WA3WZR 20m 0113 875

8/26/12 KK4FYN 20m 0123

8/26/12 KJ4WEH 20m 0131

8/26/12 W0PE 20m 0142 975

8/26/12 AC0QG 20m 0145 1222

8/26/12 W9HZ 20m 0151

8/26/12 W1IPS 20m 0159 646

8/26/12 N1AB 20m 0226
W5WF_2012APE_APE2012 Color White

The above picture provided by Larry shows that most of our contacts came from the Northeast section of the USA.

W5WF_2012APE_APE2012
Thank all of you for your support of my APE to CaddoLake. We had a great time and look forward to doing it again next year.

73’s

Charlie Webb

W5WF