Monday, January 30, 2012

Winter Field Day (2012/01/29) – F.C.A.R.E.S. – from ve3clq.blogspot.com


It was a dark and windy morning… So goes the tale!  Well, at 0600L at Lamoine Point on Sunday morning (2012/01/29) it was very dark and very windy. Thankfully, the snow never really arrived in force.
We set up five HF stations with only headlamps and flashlights, bobbing around in the dark. The surprising thing was that it didn't take us much longer to set up than it does during the summer; and nobody got hurt. Granted the weather wasn't that bad … and it could have been a lot worse. But still, I believe that the many island and lighthouse activations we do over the summer really are helping us to get our act together.

We had VE3MNE, VE3HRW, VA3TBZ, VA3ORP, VE3UCL, VA3 VDP, and VE3CLQ in attendance. Thanks must go to Dave, VE3DZE, who arrived around 0800L to do a coffee and bathroom run for those  that needed it, and a very welcome sight he was too. Thanks also must go to Les, VE3 KFS and Tim, VA3TIC. These guys couldn't be on site, but they were on the air making sure we made a few contacts.

Special mention must go to Bob, VA3QV in Ottawa,, who also came looking for us on 40 m. It's always good to chat with Bob, on or off, the air. Unfortunately, I was on the 20 m. radio when he call in but his message was passed to me via 2 m. simplex.

We made contact with 11 countries: Canada, USA, France, Poland, Ukraine, Netherlands, Yugoslavia, Russia, Belgium, Bulgaria, and Iceland. We had 43 HF contacts, 2 VHF contacts, and 2 PSK31 contacts. All contacts were done on battery power.

Overall, it was a good time. Everyone was cheery and seemed to have a good time at the park. Winter Field Day next year? You bet. The plan is to find a cabin or cottage like we did in 2011 and make it a weekend event.
Until next year … .Stay warm (from Bill Nangle, VE3CLQ – link: http://ve3clq.blogspot.com/

No comments:

Post a Comment