Amateur Radio · VHF/UHF · Summits On The Air · Colorado Mountains · Adventure
On December 1, most SOTA summits in Colorado gain an additional 3 points due to the Seasonal (Winter) Bonus. Joyce/K0JJW and I were looking for a summit not too far away that was still accessible for us to activate. This time of year, many US Forest Service roads are gated shut. Other roads remain open … Read more
Here’s an update on the most activated SOTA summits in Colorado. See my previous report here. Mount Herman (W0C/FR-063) still leads the pack by a wide margin, with many activations by Steve/WG0AT. Genesee Mountain has passed up Pikes Peak to take second place in the running. Genessee is in a park just outside of greater … Read more
When I get asked why I only use VHF/UHF frequencies for my Summits On The Air (SOTA) activations, I usually reply with: Height Above Average Terrain More specifically, I mean that using VHF for SOTA is fun because Height Above Average Terrain (HAAT) has a dramatic effect on the propagation of my radio signal. HAAT … Read more
A few days ago, someone told me that a rumor is circulating that I don’t own any gear capable of operating on the high-frequency (HF) bands. I laughed out loud, wondering where this came from. Actually, I know where this comes from: most of my postings here at k0nr.com are oriented towards VHF operating, often … Read more
Here are three affordable accessories that can help round out your VHF/UHF handheld transceiver (HT) kit. These items can significantly improve the performance of your radio and make it more useful. 1. A Halfwave Antenna for 2m I’ve already written about the RH660 antenna, which is a huge improvement over a typical rubber duck antenna. … Read more
I came across this new antenna, the TWAYRDIO RH 660S, mentioned in this Ham Radio Crash Course video. I have previously been recommending the TWAYRDIO TH770 antenna via this post. The RH 660S is a newer dual-band 2m/70cm telescoping antenna from the same company. For Summits On The Air (SOTA), I generally take along such … Read more