Amateur Radio · VHF/UHF · Summits On The Air · Colorado Mountains · Adventure
Operating from countries outside the US can be a lot of fun. I just completed another another Slacker DXpedition, this time to the Cayman Islands. The formula for this type of operation is simple: identify an interesting vacation spot that is also considered DX, travel there with friends & family, take along some compact radio … Read more
It is time for another W0C (Colorado) Summits On The Air dinner! Last year, we had 15 people get together for an informal dinner in south Denver (Lone Tree): Steve WG0AT, Wayne AD0KE, Brad WA6MM, Caleb W4XEN, Carey KX0R, John N0TA, Curtis KC5CW, Mark N0MTN, Bob K0NR, Joyce K0JJW, Steve K7PX, Al KH7AL, James KI0KN, … Read more
I came across this story in my archives, written by me way back in August 1992. This was before mobile phones were commonly available, so ham radio turned out to be critical in this incident. Even today, there are many places in the Colorado backcountry where mobile phones don’t work but amateur radio can communicate. … Read more
The world is divided into two groups: Bag Guys and Not Bag Guys. (I am using “guy” as gender neutral.) I am a Bag Guy. I am always looking for just the right backpack, computer bag, luggage or duffel bag. For example, I’ve got this special bag, a backpack, that I use for hauling my … Read more
During a discussion of various VHF radios and antennas on the SOTA reflector, Phil/G4OBK recommended this antenna: TWAYRDIO RH 770 SMA-Male Dual Band Telescopic Handheld Antenna. I have used this antenna on several SOTA activations and have found it to work quite well. Not having to worry about whether I’m operating on 2m or 70 cm is a big plus.
I’ve been referring to the VHF FM as the utility mode for quite a while now. I picked this up from Gary Pearce/KN4AQ when I inherited the FM column from CQ VHF magazine (no longer being published). Gary recently filled me in on the origin of this term, which he captured in his first FM … Read more