Successful Recon And Some Antenna Thoughts

July 9, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Today, 9 July 26, SWMBO and I went on a recon to a new park. We are looking at doing a camping trip later this month and wanted to check out Rocky Gap State Park US-1593 in Maryland. This is a nice park which adjoins a resort and casino. As you drive into the park you pass a very large golf course. The park is easy to find and to access.

We pulled into the parking lot for the park office and it was pretty much deserted. As I was setting up a couple of rangers passed us by in pickups but didn’t stop. I guess they had seen activators before. It only took about 7 minutes to get on the air and I received responses to my CQ calls immediately. It didn’t take long to work 17 stations on 40 Meters and then I closed down as we were only here for a recon and I had found the info I wanted.

Next we drove up to the campground area but could not get in as it was gated. No problem as the maps on the reservation page are detailed and include pictures of the campsites. Tomorrow I will go onto the site and reserve a spot. I am looking forward to it.

Now some antenna thoughts. I could pull into a park and set up a wire antenna (G5RV JR) and I have done that, but my philosophy has changed. I could also set up a tri-pod mounted vertical such as my “Buddi Stick ” which I have done in the past also but I choose not to. I do carry those antennae with me but I keep them as a back up. My “Ham Stick” antennae work fine and allow me to complete activations on a minimal level, not disturbing anything and leaving behind no trace of being there. One of the things that brought me around to this way of thinking is that I am not in a contest; I am not competing with anyone. I am satisfied with a successful activation rather than trying to make or break a record. I do this to relax and to get enjoyment out of the outdoors. Bigger or “better” antennae would probably net me more contacts, but what I have is satisfactory to me. If I want contacts out to about 600 Kilometers or so, I choose 40 Meters. If I want to work European stations I choose 17 meters or 12 meters. I have antennae for all bands from 80 meters to 6 meters but have had the best of luck on 40 or the WARC bands.

You may have noticed that I didn’t mention 20 Meters. I do work it occasionally but due to the crowding on that band, I do not get on often. There are a lot of nets and a lot of other usage on 20 and it is easy to step on someone’s toes (or have your toes trod on). I guess it is an age thing, but I prefer not to make waves.

Anyway, I have prattled on for too long. Namaste, kids and keep your stick on the ice.

Rocky Gap State Park ranger station

Is There A 4th Of July In England?

July 5, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

It is a Sunday afternoon, and I am sitting here sipping on some coffee. Got all the week-end running around done and it is time to relax and reflect. It is July 5th 2026 and the heatwave is broken. I am not sure who broke it or if it can be fixed but suffice it to say that the current temp is 30C (86 F) which is a lot better than the 40 C we have been having for the last 4 or 5 days. I blame it on the fact that it is Summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

It was 23 C this morning at about 0630 EDT (1030 UTC) when I decided to do an activation before it got too hot and thunderstormy. I arrived at Little Buffalo State Park US-1376 and got set up by 1054 UTC. The humidity was about 600% which made it a bit uncomfortable but it was still within the tolerable range with the forementioned temperature. I worked 23 stations in about 37 minutes and then packed up. Yesterday the band conditions were terrible due to a CME which had hit the Earth but that had calmed down by this morning. I was working stations from Florida to Missouri to Wisconsin to Connecticut. All of these on 40 Meters. I heard the following birds: American Crows, Red-eyed Vireos, Eastern Kingbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, Chipping Sparrows, Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, Chimney Swifts, Eastern Warbling Vireos, Common Grackles, Fish Crows, American Goldfinches, Northern Yellow Warblers, American Robins, Eastern Bluebirds, Northern Flickers, American Redstarts and Blue Jays. Quite a bit of happy noise! After I was done on the radio I strolled around and took a few pictures of the misty lake.

Speaking of radio, this past week was a bit hectic. I worked Monday through Thursday (inclusive) all 12 hour days. Luckily I was able to squeeze in some radio time. On July 1st (Wednesday) the 13 Colonies Special Event began. The goal is to work specific stations from all 13 of the original 13 colonies plus 3 bonus stations. You can get QSL cards from each station and also send for a certificate if you want. You only need 1 station to get a certificate though the majority of people elect to try for a “clean sweep” of all the stations. It is one of the fun activities in ham radio and the certificates and cards are well designed. I had finished my clean sweep by the evening of the 3rd (Friday).

On Saturday, July 4th, we had breakfast at the Blain Hotel and then took a drive to Ollie’s (Good Stuff Cheap). They had a 15% off sale for card members. Later on, since there was little to no radio activity with the CME roaching the ionosphere, SWMBO and I decided to take a ride up Hemlock Road and cruise with the windows down. The idea sounded nice until when we got to the road the sky opened up and a torrential thunderstorm hit. We went back home and waited for the power to go out (which it didn’t here, luckily). Other places in the area got hit hard and will be without power for the next couple of days.

Well, I am back to work tomorrow so I think I will spend the rest of the evening in a slothful state of relaxation. Namaste, kids and keep your reality real.

Hubert the gnome and Ollie the Owl watching my 6

A misty lake scene with reflections of the opposite shore

Vacation And Other Nonsence

June 30, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Howdy kids. This entry will be written over several days.

Today is 21 June 2026, the first day of summer (don’t argue) and the longest day of the year. SWMBO and I are up in NH for a week of relaxation and blatant tourist activity. We drove up on the 18th (Thursday) and the trip was uneventful, thankfully. The weather was cloudy and I believe we outran the rain. We took a drive up to Errol NH and then came back through Grafton Notch ME, down to Fryeburg ME, through North Conway NH and back up Crawford Notch NH. We also took a drive up Jefferson Notch Road to the highest elevation of a highway in NH. We did stop in Errol at Cote’s store and had our annual slice of pizza.

On the 19th and 20th, Friday and Saturday, we did some driving around and visited some thrift shops. It was raining off and on but not too badly, just enough to stop any yard sales. On Saturday a bear crossed the road in front of us but was too fast to get a picture of.

I did manage to do an activation yesterday: US-2653 Franconia State Park. It took me some driving around to find a good spot to work from but I managed 11 contacts in about an hour. One of my contacts was the president to the Perry County Amateur Radio Club, KB3PSN.

So far, for birds, I have heard Chipping Sparrows, Song Sparrows, American Crows, Black-capped Chickadees, Indigo Buntings, Chestnut-sided Warblers and Red-eyed Vireos. When I hear more I will post them.

Monday the 22nd, we started the day off right by seeing a moose right off the bat. We watched him for a few minutes and then SWMBO reminded me not to hog the moose as other cars were stopping. I pulled away and let others have their turn at ogling nature. We then went to an aquarium where we fed stingrays and tortoises, had our hands nibbled on by some small fishes and walked around gawking at various aquatic critters. After this, we drove into Vermont to the city of Montpelier and visited a couple cemeteries. Green Mount cemetery was really worth going to. We had been here before but wanted some pics of a couple monuments such as the one dedicated to Little Margret. Her memorial statue is something special to see. Her tragic story can be found at: Margaret Caroline “Little Margaret” Pitkin (1892-1899) – Find a Grave Memorial

Tuesday the 23rd, we set out early and went to Portland Maine to visit Portland Head Light. The rain kept the crowds away, as we had hoped. When we got back we activated White Mountain National Forest US-4512. In 12 minutes we worked 10 stations and then went for a ride to Zealand Road.

Wednesday the 24th was almost a bittersweet day. We knew we were leaving for home on Thursday and we were sorta wrapping things up. First we took a drive into VT and went to Lyndon State Forest US-5556. Over the course of half an hour we were able to work 22 stations (4 of them park-to-parks) and we even worked our club president, KB3PSN who was back home in PA. We heard Red-eyed Vireos, Black-throated Green Warblers, Ovenbirds, Alder Flycatchers, Black-capped Chickadees, Common Yellowthroats, Black-and-white Warblers, White-throated Sparrows, Chestnut-sided Warblers, American Crows, Blackburnian Warblers, Hermit Thrushes, Veerys, Northern Yellow Warblers, and Common Ravens. We were well serenaded!

Thursday we drove from 3am until around 2pm. We had a couple of traffic slowdowns and then had to deal with our bank as I found some bad charges to SWMBO’s card. We got that straightened out quickly.

We are back, now, trying to relax and getting ready for Field Day, which is tomorrow.

28 June 26 I admit I have been resting up from vacation. lol. Yesterday I went to the PCARC Field Day site and helped set up and then made a few contacts. I also spoke with a ham who wants to join the club and learn as much about radio as he can. Enthusiasm is nice. It is hard to believe that I have to return to work tomorrow. Time has flown past and I was glad to get home and sad to leave New Hampshire at the same time. Well there is always next year. Now we are looking forward to doing a camping trip or 2 and exploring some new areas.

I guess it is time to close out this entry. I hope everyone is having an enjoyable day. Namaste and keep your stick on the ice.

20260620_180818 — A sculpture in Franconia NH

A remote weather station at the top of Jefferson Notch

Black Aggie … if you sit in her lap at midnight you will die

20260623_095157 — Lighthouse keepers house and lighthouse at Portland Head Light in Portland ME

Driving North up Franconia Notch in NH

Driving North through Crawford Notch in NH

Looking around Casco Bay in Maine from Portland Head Light

A Spring Dream

June 16, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Hi kidlets. Another beautiful Spring day here in Pencilvania. Started the day with an oil change (my car not me) and then got to work. I had to mount a full-out assault on Satan’s Putting Green. I really can’t wait until my gourds take over the yard and make mowing unnecessary. I have some in each yard, one set in a raised bed and the others on boxes. I even have two potatoe plants which are going great.

I did an activation at Little Buffalo State Park US-1376 and worked 15 stations. The conditions were not great but for 40M t was to be expected. Also, time of day was a factor. I started at 20:30 and I think a lot of people were still at work. The temperature was about 26C and the sun was peeking out of passing clouds. I heard the following birds: Song Sparrows, Red-eyed Vireos, American Robins, Chipping Sparrows, Red-winged Blackbirds and Tree Swallows. There were several people around, boating, fishing and just strolling.

Yesterday we got a bit bored and went for a late afternoon drive. We went the length of Hemlock Road looking for critters and weren’t disappointed. There were squirrels, whistlepigs, turkeys, ruminants and chipmunks and also two Eastern Box Turtles which I had to lecture on road safety. Hemlock Road is located at the western end of Perry County and makes for a nice drive.

Well, that is all for now. Expect more updates soon. Namaste, kids, and keep your stick on the ice!

Looking down Hemlock Road

The gnomes and Ollie enjoying a nice day at Little Buffalo State Park

An Eastern Box Turtle listening to a road safety lecture

Unscrewing The Inscrutable

June 11, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Hi there kidlets. A hot day in June made more intense by the impending threat of a thunder storm. It is currently 34C (93.2F) which is on the edge of being too warm for some people.

This morning, SWMBO and I set out at about 0630 and went to Gettysburg PA us-0027 for an activation and a ride on a tour bus. We set up on Culp’s Hill and made 29 contacts within 33 minutes; all on the 40M band. It was an enjoyable activation. When we arrived, the temperature was already 26C (79F) but we were in the shade. While we were there, we heard the following birds: American Robins, House Finches, Mourning Doves, Wood Thrushes, American Goldfinches, Chimney Swifts and Eastern Wood-Peewees. A very bird-active morning.

We then took a drive around the battlefield to charge the phone batteries before checking in at the Gettysburg Tour Center. While in the center we got a couple stickers and magnets. The bus is a double-decker with the top part open to the air. We enjoyed a nice, narrated 2 hour tour and survived being hit by low branches. We also survived the 30+ C heat. After the tour we went to a well deserved lunch in an air-conditioned building.

Now for a bit of the thoughts of me on activating. First off, I have read a lot of books and articles on activating along with watching a ot of videos. One common piece of advice I have heard/read is not to have something else to do after your activation … to make sure you have time to get your 10 contacts. For the most part, I do not set timelines but sometimes it is unavoidable like today. We had the bus ride scheduled for 10AM and had to be there prior to 0930. Not a problem the tour center is about a 5 minute ride from Culp’s Hill so there was plenty of time to activate. Another area which I have heard opinions that differ from mine is in the Solar-Terrestrial Data readings. Some people check the data religiously before going out and activating and will not go out if the K index is too high. I never check the data before I head out as it sorta gives me expectations. For more info on the Solar data you can go to: https://hamradiofornontechies.com/current-ham-radio-conditions ( a great site with very good explanations)

Well now it is time to go and do some stuff before I leave for a club meeting. Here is a link to our club page if you are interested: Perry County Amateur Radio Club – Dedicated to Amateur Radio In Perry County, Pennsylvania. Namaste for now and keep your reality in line.

Yes, no gnomes. Culp’s Hill Gettysburg PA

The bus gets very close to traffic lights

Looking from the top of Little Round Top SW towards Devil’s Den

A Tuesday Evening Recon

May 19, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Busy day today. We went and voted and then had breakfast at the Blain Hotel. When we went home, SWMBO suggested that we tackle the bamboo before it got too hot. Good idea. We cut the hell out of the remaining stalks and are getting it under control (knocking on wood). This past week we decided to buy a woodchipper (yes, a dangerous toy in my hands) to get rid of the cut bamboo and some brush piles that have accumulated. It should be arriving on Thursday, so we are looking forward to that. We also have a new wheelbarrow coming to haul the chips.

As for the recon, SWMBO again made a suggestion. She desired to take a drive and look for Bigfoots (Bigfeet?). We set out on a couple back roads and found ourselves up on Hemlock Road. We saw a lot of squirrels (living); in fact,14 of them. We also saw 3 bunnies, 2 chipmunks, 1 turkey, and 1 whistle pig. The animals are really getting active in this warm weather. It was about 30C (86 F) when we started. Once we got onto Hemlock Road we rolled the windows down and enjoyed the ride. As we were tootling along, we saw a black snake lying in the road in front of us. Of course we had to stop and take a few pictures. This one measured about 1.2 meters (4 foot) and was taking up most of this narrow dirt road. After we took pictures and lectured the critter on road safety, I shooed it off the road by gently pushing it with a stick. The snake was very obliging and went off to the side. A short distance further along we spotted a porcupine who had been chewing on a wooden sign. He started to move away when he realized we were there but I was lucky enough to get some video footage which I will post a link to below.

We didn’t do any POTA activations yesterday or tofay but I am hoping to get out this weekend. As always, I have my Yaesu FTM-400 on in the car and keep it on 146.520 MHz. I also have it sending updates to APRS if anyone wants to track me.

Enough for now. I have to play adult tomorrow and Thursday so I am goinf to relax now. Namaste, kidlets and keep your reality in line with real life.

A video of a porcupine

If Its Weird And It Works It Isn’t Weird

May 13, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Greetings kidlets.

Due to the nature of my job, my work schedule is non-standard. A 2-week cycle goes: Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday, Monday and Tuesday; each day being 12 hours (1900 to 0700). It gives me every other weekend off and gives time off during the week. This schedule came about because we need the NOC manned (personed?) 24 hours a day.

I try to do an activation every week, though sometimes it doesn’t happen that way due to weather, my non-work schedule, and life in general. SWMBO is pretty tolerant of me and my foibles including my owl decoys and gnomes.

Today I activated Tuscarora State Forest US-5479 for the 16th time. It is close by and there are a lot of nice areas to activate from. I was up on Elk Hill this afternoon (just North of Newville PA) and the weather was nice. It was partly cloudy and 17C (64 F) while I was there, though it did start to cloud up before I left. I heard Red-eyed Vireos, Black-throated Green Warblers, Ovenbirds and Yellow-rumped Warblers. I didn’t see to many animals, just a couple squirrels. Over the course of about 3/4 hour, I was able to work 13 contacts including a station from Brazil. This was in spite of the static crashes that were dominating the bands due to approaching thunderstorms. Generally, you can hear static crashes from storms a few hundred miles away.

A word or 2 about safety: I do not operate during thunderstorms. When portable I shut down when a storm approaches. At home I disconnect my antennae and wait the storm out. It would not be fun to have my rig blown up by a nearby lightening strike.

Anyway, I am back at home, just finished supper and am relaxing with my cats. I hope the week is kind to you. For your enjoyment, I am including some of the local plant life from my activation site. Namaste

Missie, Moxie and Ptolomey keeping watch

A Month Of Sundaes?

May 10, 2026May 10, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

When I was a kid I heard adults referring to wanting a “month of Sundays”. My imagination went right away to 30 days of ice cream treats. Imagine my disappointment when I found out how wrong I was. Since I was forced to assume the mantle of “adulthood”, my perspective has changed. I could use a 30-day stretch of relaxation and slack time. Here is to retirement coming sooner than I expect lol.

Today, SWMBO and I took my mother-in-law to the local grocery store so that she could get out of her apartment for a bit. She seemed to enjoy the break. Afterwards SWMBO and I ran a few errands and had lunch. As it was a nice day (65F or 13C), we took an indirect and circuitous route home that took us into Tuscarora State Forest up and over Elk Hill.

When we got home, I packed up my radio kit, grabbed my owl, Tootsie, and set out for Elk Hill. It only takes about 20 minutes to get there from my house and I was soon set up to play POTA. Tuscarora State Forest is US-5479. The location I chose was at a turn-out on the top of the hill. Within 14 minutes I had worked 10 stations. I continued until my coffee ran out and finalized with a total of 17 contacts in 33 minutes. Not too bad for a casual Sunday afternoon. When I first pulled in there was a white car that remained the whole time and left as I was about to leave. A forest Ranger pulled up at one point and asked if I was ok. I assured him that I was and told him I was just operating ham radio. He gave me a thumbs-up and drive off with a smile. I did hear and record the following birds: red-eyed vireos, black-throated green warblers, black and white warblers and blue-headed vireos (all of which would be great names for Punk bands).

The drive home was pleasant and peaceful. After I did my stationary bike ride along with playing a video game, SWMBO and I made omelets for supper. Now I am relaxing with my kittys and hoping for a quiet evening.

Namaste, kidlets and keep your reality feasible.

Missie, Moxie and Tootsie supervising my activation.

What’s A Good Title For A Friday Afternoon Blog Entry

May 8, 2026May 8, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Hi kidlets. It is a good day as I am off tonight. The temperature is currently 16 C (60 F) and the sky is starting to cloud up to fulfill the promise of rain later tonight and tomorrow. The cats are doing cat things. Kalamazoo is sitting on the counter staring at me. Yes, they have been fed.

I activated State Game Land PA 230 US-8927 today. The part of the game land I was at is on top of the hill at Waggoners Gap where the hawk watch is. There is a nice parking lot they just built/improved. It was quiet up there except for the traffic on the nearby road. I was able to work 15 contacts on 40M and 17M in the course of 1/2 hour. Not the greatest rate but the bands were very “iffy”. There were no signs of critters or birds around (I didn’t even see any buzzards flying) which I attribute to the weather. I am sure on a better or more Spring-like day there will be lots of them around.

Before I left, I put out a couple of calls on 2M simplex. I used the (GASP) sacred frequency of 146.520 MHz. I didn’t receive any replies but I did offer to log anyone as a contact on 2 M. Ok, this will open a can of worms but remember this is my opinion. I use 146.520 (which has been suggested as the “national calling frequency” by a large ham radio association) quite often. I have QSOs on the way to work and I monitor it when I am travelling. There are those who will say that it shouldn’t be used as it is for calling. Well, 1. there is nothing in the FCC regulations which designates it so and 2. If no one uses it then what good does it do to monitor it? I believe it should be used. If someone needs to call a specific station or wants to say something on the frequency they can just break in as you do on a repeater. Consider this: it is pretty much the default simplex frequency on any radio. Most people leave it as such. One time, I was the EC (ARES Emergency Coordinator) for the county I was living it and I held a drill. It took the form of a message relayed from one end of the county and then back again. I took some grief from an OF who said that he refused to use the frequency and I was not just wrong but also mentally deficient for even suggesting it. Yup, I ignored him as hard as I could. My point is that if you are operating in a legal and sound manner, then it is not “off limits”

Ok. Time to descend from the soapbox and drink some coffee. As always, I invite any comments on my posts. Have a nice evening and namaste y’all.

This could be considered as a bit spooky

Good Day Mediocre Day

May 5, 2026May 5, 2026 / KB3CVO / Leave a comment

Sitting here and trying to unwind, but I am sure the coffee doesn’t help. lol Yesterday was pretty good and today, in contrast, wasn’t that great, though it has/had some up notes. First off, I will dispense with the ups and downs of today before I delve into yesterday.

Today started out pretty mellow. We went grocery shopping for us and my mother-in-law. That didn’t take long and we then had an early lunch at the Blain Hotel And Family Restaurant. Their special today was patty melts and they were good. After we got home I decided that it was time to tackle Satan’s Putting Green as it was getting a bit long and ragged since the last mowing. As I was mowing, SWMBO made manifest an herculean effort to cut back the bamboo; the same bamboo I mentioned before. She got a good bit of it done and when I finished the mowing I pitched in and we took down some more of that dreaded weed.

Finished with the yard work we decided to head over to Newville to the store for a few random things. Route 233 over Doubling Gap, though the shortest and most direct way, is clogged up with a construction project that has miles of one lane road and long delays. We took another route, 74 over Waggoners Gap and across Bloserville Road and Creek Road. No problems. We arrived and did our shopping. Then the return trip. This was sort of a colossal waste of time. We made it back up to Waggoners gap with no issues and down the other side into Perry County. At the bottom, right before a road we could have taken to detour if it wasn’t blocked, a farm trailer which had been filled with manure was laying on its side on a diagonal blocking the road. Shit! (pun intended). Ok, we turned around, went back over the gap and took 944 towards Sterrets Gap. We got stuck behind a car which varied from 5 to 10 MPH (8 to 16 KPH) below the speed limit. We finally got home after an extra 45 minutes of travel and put our semi-thawed stuff in the freezer.

Now I am relaxing. Sorry about the bitching. lol

Yesterday after a trip into Carlisle for some necessary stuff, I activated PA-088 State Game Land US-8787. I got set up rather quickly and got on the air on 40M. The temperature was a balmy 22.22 C (72F) and I left the doors and hatch open. Aside from traffic roaring by, it was a nice spot to sit. Within 9 minutes I had my 10 contacts to make it a bona fide activation. I ended up working a total of 24 stations in about 32 minutes. I headed home and then we ran some errands. Then last night I tuned to 7.245 MHz and immediately worked the W9IMS special Event Station! I have mentioned this event in previous years but I will summarize here to make it unnecessary to look my posts up. Every year W9IMS runs a 3-part special event starting with the Indianapolis Grand Prix followed by the Indianapolis 500 and finishing with the Brickyard 400. You can receive QSL cards for each individual event or, if you work all 3 you can get a certificate. More information can be found on http://www.qrz.com and look up W9IMS.

Yesterday I was able to hear Red-Eyed Vireos, Black-Throated Green Warblers, Chipping Sparrows. Ovenbirds and Belted Kingfishers.

All in all, yesterday was a better day than today and a good time was had by all. Namaste, kids and keep on keeping on even when things are not perfect. 🙂

Missie, Moxie and Ollie at SGL 088

Nature, Radio, and Me

A POTA Explorer's Diary

travel