This morning I decided to stay close to home, jumping on the bike and heading down to some of the parkland alongside the Eastern Freeway in North Balwyn.  I was successful in avoiding most of the RF noise I suffer from at home and traded it for vehicle noise from the freeway instead.  I spiked the HF vertical antenna in the ground and got on 40 metres about 15 minutes after the UTC rollover. I was hoping to get a contact with Allen VK3HRA/p on Mt Bride but by the time I'd set up, he was nowhere to be heard and probably on the way to his next summit.  Eventually Allen appeared again on Britannia Range and the pileup started again. This time I also struggled to hear him however others were not having any problems copying and were giving him good reports.  I had a couple of contacts on 40m myself but no SOTA contacts.

On this outing I did more listening than transmitting and spent most of the time monitoring 40 metres.   I also had the HT monitoring 146.500 Mhz.   Whilst listening I thought I'd do a little antenna experimenting just with the gear I had on hand.   The main purpose of this was to improve my chances of reliable 2m contacts when opreating portable or SOTA summits but without having to carry a pole or a bulky beam.

On a few occasions when operating portable, I have used a dual-band ground independent mobile whip hung by it's tip from an overhead tree with a short run of coax to the radio.  This has worked quite well and is a big improvement on using a standard rubber ducky antenna screwed directly into a HT or the FT-817ND.  The main disadvantage can be the length of the whip. It can be a nuisance or even a hazard to carry through dense bush tracks.   This is also the reason I don't carry a squid pole.

I also want to make more use of the vhf/uhf capabilities of the FT-817ND instead of relying on a HT and being limited to the FM mode only.  What I wound up with was a surprisingly effective vertical antenna but with the advantage of weighing almost nothing and all fitting neatly within my backpack when on the move.

The ingredients of this antenna are simple and I had all on hand without any pre-planning:

• Four lengths of wire, roughly ¼ wavelength
  
  
• A lightweight mobile base and lead assembly, 5 metres long terminated with a BNC
  
  
• BNC to PL259 adaptor
  
  
• 2 wooden sticks
  
  
• a roll of electrical tape
  
  
• string
  
  
• OEM FT-817 Rubber Ducky antenna
  

Putting these items together was crude but effective. Firstly strip the insulation from one end of the four pieces of wire. Strip a good 3cm back and twist the wires together and then wrap around the theaded antenna base, using the lock ring and nut to secure.  Next get the two sticks and tape them together to form a cross.  Then tape the ends of the wire ground plane you have just made to the sticks and adjust so they hang at about a 45 degree angle from the base.  Connect the BNC/PL259 adaptor to the whip and then to the base.  Connect the BNC at the end of the feed to the radio, tape the string to the top of the whip and throw the other end over a nearby overhead tree limb and adjust for maximum allowable height.

Hey Presto! Instant emergency antenna for VHF and UHF.  This works so much more efficiently than mounting the whip directly to the radio which is cumbersome at the best of times.   Indicated SWR was very acceptable across the 2 metre band and I could key up a number of repeaters easily that the HT was struggling to reach. Next time I do this, I will experiment a little more with the length of the ground plane wires as well as the 70cm band.   I will also screw the longer stub on the OEM FT-817 whip and give the 6 metre band a try.

This is the assembled antenna prior to hoisting as high as the 5 metre feed would allow.  I make the best use of any skyhooks that Nature provides when erecting antennas.  Where this is not possible or convenient, my antennas are self supporting when erected and easily transportable within my backpack.  This allows maximum mobility by bicycle or foot and allows me to traverse almost any terrain without getting snagged in foliage and damaging or losing anything en route.

Activated 25th May 2013

Another worthwhile SOTA day all round. I have been doing most of my activating of summits on a Sunday but today was different. I had some work related commitments in the morning but was free in the afternoon. It turned out to be another pleasant day and I wanted to make the most of every opportunity to activate as many summits as possible before the depths of winter really hit.




Between my work related obligations this morning I was able to play chaser and work a few SOTA summits from home. The first was VK3KAB/p just prior to the UTC rollover on VK3/VT-026. Later at lunchtime I scored another 3 summits: VK1RX/p on VK1/AC-035, VK3WAM/p on VK3/VN-015 and first time activator, Hiro VK3EHG/p on VK3/VC-030. Hiro was getting out very nicely on 2metres FM with limited power and I received him 59 at my home QTH. I hope we hear a lot more from Hiro on summits in the future. I have seen some of his equipment which includes a KN-Q7A SSB QRP transceiver kit that he has built – the perfect 40 metre SSB kit for SOTA activations.




I convinced my two daughters and XYL to accompany me to the Cathedral Ranges State Park to activate Sugarloaf Peak. It has been probably about 15 years since I last visited here, well prior to having an amateur radio licence. My wife had fond memories (pre harmonics) of our last climb to the peak and agreed it would be a worthwhile afternoon. We left home around 1.00pm and drove the scenic route through Eltham and the Christmas Hills down to Yarra Glen and then across to Healesville and The Black Spur, a delightful drive at any time of year.

Cerberus Road is the main drag through the Cathedral Ranges State Park. It is a well formed gravel road thanks largely to the logging activity around the lower reaches. As it climbs towards the Sugarloaf Saddle carpark, accessible by any reasonable 2wd, the corrugations can be fierce and but be prepared for a teeth-chattering ride in parts. Upon reaching the carpark, walking tracks diverge in several directions. From here you have two routes to the peak. Take the Canyon Track to the left and follow the orange markers. The Cave track to the right will also get you there but if your'e lugging a backpack full of gear as I was, this route will present a tough challenge, especially if you are wider than your pack which is likely. The Canyon track will still present you with a number of rocky ridges to traverse, easy if travelling light, but with a backpack full of HF gear you will find yourself climbing, clawing and scrambling and feeling every kilo of carried weight trying to unbalance you. I wouldn't recommend this peak for a beginner but the rewards however are great. Some of the nicest views in all directions from this summit and some of the most comfortable rocks to sit and operate from. Pick an easier summit if wet or the weather is not optimal. There are a few others nearby.

Now about the activation. According to the SOTA web stats, there have been only two previous activations, both by Wayne VK3WAM/p with all contacts on 2 metres. I was able to get several repeaters easily with the HT which meant some very likely simplex contacts into Melbourne. All my 18 contacts today however were on 40 metres. Unfortunately I didn't log any S2S contacts. I received good reports using my vertical antenna and The FT-817ND and worked VK3, VK7, VK1, VK5 and a station in VK2.

Band conditions were very good. This was proved by the fact that my first two QSO's were with only half a watt of power to VK7KO and VK1MA. In my haste to get on air, I tuned on lowest power and forgot to crank the FT-817 to the maximum 5 watts. A couple of subsequent stations I worked that had been listening from the outset commented that they could hear me with half a watt but the 5 watts made all the difference. I'm sure my half watt would have worked even better if I used the doublet in this case but this may also demonstrate the effectiveness vertical antenna. I operated from 0606 to 0640 UTC. Not too long as I was aware of the sun setting. By the time I went QRT, packed up and got back to the carpark with the family, it was almost dark.

So there is another varied day. Managing to satisfy work duties, get outdoors, play radio and keep the family amused all in a day. Getting to the next summit in a timed and orderly fashion is no guarantee. I'll get there when I can and at little or no notice!

Mt Macedon VK3/VC-007

Activated 18/19th May 2013

This weekends activations were organised on the fly because the weather forecast was looking rather ordinary.  I checked the weather radar upon waking on Sunday morning and noted that rain was passing to the east. Metro Melbourne was clear and things were promising. The radio gear was ready so with a rushed breakfast, I jumped in the car and headed for Mt Macedon.

It was a pleasant drive to the summit with the sun filtering through the trees and light mist which was rapidly lifting. Being unfamiliar with the area, I drove around the summit carpark which is well within the activation zone. I drove back from where I'd come a distance and found another picnic spot and carpark which provided an easy walk on a well formed path directly to the summit. Three comms towers and an impressive historical cairn mark the top and I set up across the clearing, finding a suitable rock to use as a radio bench. The trees here were too dense to set up the doublet so the vertical was spiked in the ground and my first contact at 2338 UTC was a S2S with RickVK3KAN/p on VK3/VS-049. Next was with Ian VK1DI/p on VK1/AC-038 Off to a flying start with S2S contacts for the day.

I worked 14 stations in total until the UTC rollover and snared another three S2S contacts with Al VK1RX/p on VK1/AC-019, Kevin VK3KAB and Glenn VK3YY both working separate stations on VK3/VE-011.

After the rollover I first worked Rick, Al and Ian once again on their respective summits and my first VK5 summit with Paul VK5PAS/p on VK5/SE-009. All up on the new UTC day I worked 18 stations before packing up and heading off to activate Mt Cobaw.

Mt Cobaw VK3/VC-015

Activated 19th May 2013

Mt Cowbaw is an easy drive north of Mt Macedon on mainly sealed roads. I took the most direct route to Ridge Road which goes close to the summit and the gravel roads I encountered were all easy 2WD grade. I parked the car at the start of a walking track on Ridge Road about half way between Camp Track and Boyers Road. This walking track will take you to the summit, a pleasant treed area with some nice large granite rocks to perch yourself on. The trees were tall and well spaced for erecting the doublet so I got out my spool of light nylon line, tied my trusty old bike crank to the end and let it fly.  It hooked perfectly over a good limb and as it came down, the spool tangled up on itself and disappeared high into the tree. A bit of pulling to dislodge it was to no avail. The weight of the spool alone was not sufficient for it to fall back to ground so I pulled until it snapped and recovered about 20 metres. So no doublet. The vertical antenna was then deployed and I got on the air at 0244 UTC.

I had a total of 12 contacts on Mt Cobaw but this time, no S2S stations worked.

Pretty Sally VK3/VC-034

Activated  19th May 2013

My last summit for the day was Pretty Sally. The summit itself is on private grazing land and is fenced on all boundaries. The summit is home to three comms towers and a fourth fire-watch tower. Old Sydney Road goes around the summit within the activation zone. The police have a distinct vantage point parking 100 metres or so up Old Sydney Rd with radar to catch speeding motorists on the Northern Highway. I got a wave from one as I drove past. I must have looked like one of the locals in the 4WD Triton as I headed up to the summit. I parked around the first right hand turn in the road and set up my station approximately 150 meters beyond the intersection of Beauview Drive.

Once the antenna was set up and the grazing cows on the summit had come down to check me out at the fence line, I got on the air just after 0500 UTC. This time I bagged 20 contacts. Included this time were four S2S contacts. Paul VCK5PAS/p this time on VK5/SE-002 along with Ian VK5CZ, and then Glenn VK3YY and Kevin VK3KAB on VK3/VE-204.

I also logged a contact with VI3BEZ75 a special event station operated by John (VK3ZRX) marking the 75th anniversary of the Eastern Zone Amateur Radio Club in Gippsland.

All up it was a great SOTA day with my best catch of S2S contacts so far.

Activated 10/11 May 2013

I left home early this morning following my slightly rushed plan to activate two summits today. I headed to Mt Beenak arriving at the summit slightly ahead of schedule. It is a fairly easy walk from where I parked the car at the entrance gate of Tower Track to the summit which has been logged quite recently. With the forest cleared, the view on the summit towards the north east is good however a lot of smoke was present from controlled burns around the district reducing visibility considerably. With no trees to hang the doublet from, getting the vertical antenna up was the only option.

I was keen to get a few S2S contacts in the log book today as Wayne VK3WAM and AllenVK3HRA had posted alerts along with others and I was particularly keen to bag a VK9 summit as there were many chasers also hoping to also be amongst the first to log a Norfolk Island SOTA contact.


At 2307z Allen appeared on 7.095Mhz but his news was not good. He was calling me from his car and unfortunately had alternator problems which was effectively going to put a finish to his planned summit activations before they'd begun. He was limping the car back to Healesville hoping to find an auto electrician to get him on the move quickly. At least I could help him with some chaser points in the meantime.

I pressed on up to the UTC rollover with a total of 19 stations logged but failed to log any S2S. As soon as the hour rolled over, the pileup started all over again with Peter VK3PF being the first contact in the new UTC day. I stayed on air for 20 minutes, logging 15 stations, most being the same ones I had previously worked. Still no S2S contacts! I was hoping to work Wayne VK3WAM but by the time I had set up on this summit, he had already been and gone and was on his way to the next one.  Time to head for Spion Kopje.

Spion Kopje

Activated 11th May 2013

Following the summit access notes from Peter VK3ZPF to Spion Kopje was straightforward although even finding some of the blue tapes tied around trees to mark the route can be challenging. On the way to Spion Kopje, areas of forest along Limberlost Rd have been recently logged along with controlled burns, scarring the landscape but allowing good distant views across the Yarra Valley.

Once on foot, continuing to push through and scrambling over some large granite rocks whilst maintaining your bearing will bring you to the summit, a large flat granite area marked in the centre by a small pile of rocks. Plenty of room here to spread out. A few spindly dead trees around the edges of this smooth granite outcrop are sufficient to string up the doublet roughly broadside to Melbourne. This worked well as I worked 20metres later in the afternoon with some DX into the USA.

All up I logged 40 contacts in a little over two hours, two of these with the handheld on 146.500Mhz FM with Ian VK3JS in Seaford and Ian VK3VIG. Other particular highlights being Allen VK3HRA/p who eventually turned up after his car troubles close to his home QTH on Mt Buninyong – my first S2S contact after all this time. I was fortunate enough to snare two rare Norfolk island S2S contacts on 20 metres with Brenton VK3CBV/9 and Chris VK3QB/9 both activating summit VK9/NO-001. After these contacts, I went a few Khz higher and put out some calls. Phil NS7P in Oregon answered and gave me a 56 report. Two minutes later Peter WA7JTM in Phoenix came up and gave me a 55 report.




I then was then made aware that Wayne VK3WAM/p had appeared on VK3/VE137 and was calling on 40metres. I quickly tuned him in and got through fairly quickly. Logged at 0546z Wayne was the last station I worked. With this elusive contact made, I called it quits and headed for home.

All in all, another satisfying day playing radio and a couple more summits added to my list.

Activated 5th May 2013

Today I was involved in a work-related activity, the Lake Mountain Roller-ski Challenge. I  planned to activate nearby Federation Range once free of my other obligations.

I arrived before 9.00am local time at Lake Mountain. The drive from home was pleasant and the weather looked like it may hold out quite nicely. Driving up to the village, the temperature dropped sharply and we disappeared into low cloud. At the car park, a strong biting wind made conditions tough at the top for the competitors. All went well with the Roller-ski Challenge and once the event was concluded I was simply able to grab the radio bag and head for the summit.

In this time, the sun had come out to warm me up a little, the cloud had passed and the wind had died back completely, making the walk to the top rather enjoyable. Upon reaching The Triangle, I wandered around the activation zone, found a rock to sit the gear on, threw the doublet up, and got on the air at my planned activation time.

As soon as I powered up the radio, there was Steve VK3ZYS already on 40m calling for me. We made contact and then I worked through a solid pileup for the next hour, logging 25 stations. No S2S contacts this time however, posting an alert of my planned activation a couple of days ahead on the SOTA website made a difference, with a number of stations hovering for a contact from the start.

4th May 2013

Today was one of those regular Saturday Morning family orientated run-a rounds where I had to get some household shopping done and drop one of my daughters off at choir practice while my wife was also working.

I was keen to make at least one contact with Paul VK5PAS on one of his summit activations during the week. Until now my work commitments precluded me from any HF radio play so as soon as I had dropped of my daughter at choir, with a window of opportunity of one hour, I went to find the closest parkland possible to set up the FT817 and vertical HF antenna.

I was quickly set up but S6 noise blanketed my reception on 40m – similar to the level I have to endure at home. None the less, I found Paul just coming through the noise floor and logged a contact with him on summit VK5/NE-028.  I then moved to another frequency and put out a couple of calls and then made contact with Greg VK2FGJW/p in the Blue Mountains. Light drizzle started then started to fall so I quickly pulled the station apart and packed up.

I only logged these two contacts this time in the space of 10 minutes of air time but it was still a worthwhile exercise in testing out how quickly I could set up, make contacts, pull the station down quickly and move on in trying conditions.