My previous outing with my trusty old Hendricks PFR-3 portable field radio (see QRP on Deck) was with a Random Wire antenna. The big advantage of the random wire is that it is non-resonant on any band and can be tuned on any band. I prefer to use resonant antennas that can be paired with … Continue reading Pairing the PFR-3 with an EFHW Antenna
Category: Outdoor Ops
A Snowshoe Trek Across the Ice Shelf for a Late Year POTA Activation
We had a lot of snow over the Christmas weekend but I wanted to get out and do one last POTA activation before the end of 2022. I chose VE-5651 Hibou Conservation Area near my hometown of Owen Sound, Ontario. Hibou Conservation Area in Summer Hibou Conservation Area sits along the shore of Georgian Bay … Continue reading A Snowshoe Trek Across the Ice Shelf for a Late Year POTA Activation
QRP On Deck
We had a little light snow today and the temperature was hovering just below freezing, but I wanted to get outside and check out one of my old QRP rigs. The radio of the day was my Hendricks PFR-3. The "PFR" stands for Portable Field Radio. The PFR-3 is (or was; I'm not sure if … Continue reading QRP On Deck
Winter POTA Activations? No Problem!
Southern Ontario had a long, balmy Indian Summer this year. Indian Summer is defined as a warm period following the first frost. It was quite unusual to be able to continue Parks On The Air activations right into mid-November using exactly the same kit I used in the summer. But then winter came suddenly and … Continue reading Winter POTA Activations? No Problem!
How to Turn a 20+ Year Old Yaesu FT-817 into a CW Mean Machine
It was my very first HF radio. A Yaesu FT-817; the original vintage before the ND version was introduced. I was very excited; it was the perfect solution to serve my passion for getting outdoors into the Big Blue Sky Shack to play radio. I had a lot of success. My outdoor antenna was a … Continue reading How to Turn a 20+ Year Old Yaesu FT-817 into a CW Mean Machine
A Two-Fer Deep in the Woods
Maybe it's just dumb luck that I live very close to several parks that have recently been added to the Parks On The Air entity list. In fact, if I lived just one city block away, where the Bruce Trail National Recreational Trail (VE-5628) runs along the street for a couple of kilometers, I could … Continue reading A Two-Fer Deep in the Woods
Watts on Wheels
My portable operating station - which I use principally for POTA activations - is constructed in the form of a manpack inside a very rugged cotton canvas NATO-style rucksack. Nearly everything is hooked up, ready to go. I don't need to find a picnic table, the manpack has an internal frame just high enough to … Continue reading Watts on Wheels
The Decline and Fall of RaDAR
One of the first things that attracted me to this hobby was operating in the great outdoors; or as I refer to it now, my Big Blue Sky Shack. I enjoyed erecting wire antennas out in the field and calling CQ to see if I could get any responses. That was in the days when … Continue reading The Decline and Fall of RaDAR
Why I Log with Pencil and Paper
A fellow member of my club has very strong opinions about logging. He is an avid contester and uses N1MM for nearly everything - including POTA activations. At a recent presentation to club members he derided pencil and paper loggers and said "this is the 21st Century!" I wasn't offended; he said it in a … Continue reading Why I Log with Pencil and Paper
3 (not 4) Activations in the Beaver Valley
The great November weather continues and so does my enthusiasm for getting out into the Big Blue Sky Shack and doing some more Parks On The Air activations. A few days ago my wife and I took a short drive to Ontario's beautiful Beaver Valley. My target was to activate Old Baldy Conservation Area (VE-5654). … Continue reading 3 (not 4) Activations in the Beaver Valley
Ham Radio Outside the Box 