VK0TH Macquarie Island
Inviato: 2 aprile 2012, 19:01Down to the final 14 days of radio operations on Macquarie Island. The trip to Macquarie hasn’t been a ‘Dxpedition’ but part of my employment by the AAD to work on Macquarie.
Radio has been an enjoyable release from the work side of things and I have tried to satisfy those that ‘expect’ contacts with VK0/M. For the most part Amateurs have been friendly and understanding. And like all things in nature the harmonious are counterbalanced by the dissonance complaining about limited power outputs, lack of antennas or questioning my resolve to get up at 2am in the morning because they deserve a chance to get the new one :)
I took up the challenge of CW and for the first time in 25 years picked up a straight key and made it my own. To date I have almost 12000 contacts in the Log. Roughly 4700 CW, 4700 SSB, 1500 PSK, 68 JT-65, 4 SSTV and 55 HELL interestingly enough some of those contacts were made with my first forays into Software Defined Radios. Some of the JT-65 contacts were made on these radios with just a few hundred milliwatts.
In the next 14 Days I will make a concerted efforted to work at least another 1000 contacts. I will list my proposed schedule [on QRZ.com]. I still have to work so the radio will be in the hours after dinner and before bed. Thank you for your understanding and thank you to the many Hams around the world who have sent me emails and messages over my time here. I have really enjoyed operating on Macquarie and speaking with so many different people around the world. It is probable that Macquarie will not have another Amateur Operator on it until at least 2012/2013 when the following winter crew come down here and only then if there is an Ham included in the team.
Radio has been an enjoyable release from the work side of things and I have tried to satisfy those that ‘expect’ contacts with VK0/M. For the most part Amateurs have been friendly and understanding. And like all things in nature the harmonious are counterbalanced by the dissonance complaining about limited power outputs, lack of antennas or questioning my resolve to get up at 2am in the morning because they deserve a chance to get the new one :)
I took up the challenge of CW and for the first time in 25 years picked up a straight key and made it my own. To date I have almost 12000 contacts in the Log. Roughly 4700 CW, 4700 SSB, 1500 PSK, 68 JT-65, 4 SSTV and 55 HELL interestingly enough some of those contacts were made with my first forays into Software Defined Radios. Some of the JT-65 contacts were made on these radios with just a few hundred milliwatts.
In the next 14 Days I will make a concerted efforted to work at least another 1000 contacts. I will list my proposed schedule [on QRZ.com]. I still have to work so the radio will be in the hours after dinner and before bed. Thank you for your understanding and thank you to the many Hams around the world who have sent me emails and messages over my time here. I have really enjoyed operating on Macquarie and speaking with so many different people around the world. It is probable that Macquarie will not have another Amateur Operator on it until at least 2012/2013 when the following winter crew come down here and only then if there is an Ham included in the team.