Activating K-0454 Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge - NJ

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This morning I had the chance to activate K-0454 as part of the Early Shift before work.   I got to the park  just before 7am ET and found an out of the way place to park my rented POTA Rig (a very fun to drive Honda CR-V Hybrid).  It took me nearly 30 minutes to get set up because I kept fiddling around and messing up the most basic things.

First I couldn’t find my MacBook Air that I use for HAMRS - figured I left it back in the hotel.  Then I couldn’t find a pen and paper for manual logging, other than the envelop with my license and FAA/TSA/Airline related Lithium battery transportation policies that I keep in my Go Pouch.   I spent a few minutes to see if I could  get HAMRS loaded on my work tablet, but (wisely) decided against that.  A few more minutes to experiment with the manual logging screen directly in the POTA Website.   I was about to Call it a Day when I noticed the MacBook was in my backpack after all!

Next,  I used a 16oz Weaver arborist throw bag to get my KM4ACK 49:1 EFHW antenna up into a near by tree for the inverted V antenna configuration.  Somehow I got the antenna wire snagged on a lower branch and it took me a few minutes to work that kink out.   20M was alive, and the SWR measured less than 1.5:1 so I started calling CQ.   No one came back so I self spotted on the POTA home page.  I noticed XIT was on so the Good Lord Only Knows where I was transmitting.  With that fixed I call CQ for another 15 minutes but still not a single contact.   To top things off, every time my MacBook went to sleep, I would have to reset the Wi-Fi connection to my hotspot. Annoying indeed.

By now I’m 45 minutes into the activation, no contacts logged, and I have a work related conference call scheduled at 8:15am. I know I can take the call virtually from the car, but I’m starting to think that not only will this be my first activation in NJ,  it will also be my first failed activation in 27 attempts.

Before stopping, I decided to QSY down to 40M.  I’ve never activated on 40M before and had to confirm the band plan for the general segment.  I’ve activated in the extra segments before but I was very short on time. Plus 40M was hopping so it took a few minutes to find an open frequency at the very top of the band (7.295 LSB).  SWR was just about 2:1, but I knew the Elecraft KX3 would tune that no problem.   

I added a counterpoise to the BNC connector on the EFHW for good measure and draped it over the car.  I updated my fequency on the POTA spotting page.  Called CQ and the first contact came back immediately.  The next 25 were easy, and I was able to wrap up the log and close down the station with 10 minutes to spare before work.  Got many FB signal reports from the hunters and was pleased to have stuck it out.

This is what ham radio is all about.  Testing your limits, applying your skills, and having the right equipment to make it fun.   I was very happy with the performance of the EFHW antenna.  It was also a lot more fun than sticking the old mag mounted MP1 super vertical on top of the rental car.

Patience, and a little knowledge, is truly a virtue!

Chris de WX7V














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