Mount Dundas, VK3/ VS-045 was my second activation for the Summits on the Air (SOTA) program for Monday 17th November, 2014. Mount Dundas is located about 309 km west of Melbourne, and about 16 km north west of the little town of Cavendish.
Image courtesy of mapcarta.com
Mount Dundas is 459 metres above sea level, and is worth just 1 SOTA point. It is an easy summit to access, with a dirt road, leading all the way to the top where there is a large array of telecommunications equipment, including a digital TV broadcast site. According to SOTAWatch I am the only operator to have activated this summit, which I’m a little surprised by considering the easy access.
Image courtesy of mapcarta.com
Access to the summit is via Dundas Gap Road, which runs off the Natimuk to Hamilton Road, just out of Cavendish. There is a dirt road leading to the summit which is suitable for 2wd vehicles. I parked the car a little down the dirt road, and walked a few hundred metres to the top of the summit, so that my final access into the activation zone was by non motorised means. I set up on the eastern side of the telecommunication equipment, and was pleasantly surprised when I turned the radio on to find that there was not a lot of interference from the conglomerate of antennas at the site. There really aren’t too many other options here, as the terrain drops away quite dramatically from the summit peak on all sides, and the surrounding scrub is very thick.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
As I left my car I heard Rob VK2QR operating from a summit, so I quickly set up my gear and gave Rob a call on 7.090. Rob was a good 5/8 signal and was sitting on the top of VK3/ VE-023, a 10 pointer in north eastern Victoria. I received a 5/8 signal report back from Rob. It appeared that the 40m band had improved since my activation at Mount Rouse. Amen to that!
Rob kindly gave me the frequency following our QSO, and it wasn’t long before I had a good flow of callers from VK2, VK3, & VK5. My second contact was with Peter VK3PF, followed by Bernard VK2IO, and my fourth qualifying contact was with Bernard VK3AV. It was certainly not as hard going as Mount Rouse, which was great. Although there was still a bit of QSB on the signals.
A few contacts later, I was called by John VK2AWJ/3 who was portable in the Burrowa Pine Mountain National Park, VKFF-069. John was a good 5/4 and I received a 5/5 signal report from John. This was followed by a contact with Rick VK3EQ, who was on top of McCarthy Spur, VK3/ VT-039, a 6 pointer. Although Rick’s signal was very weak (5/1), I was able to copy him without any difficulty.
I went on to work a further 14 stations on 40m. I didn’t try 20m as promised, as the weather was less than ideal, and I still had two planned park activations, and a big trip ahead of me to get back home to the Adelaide Hills. So I am sorry to any of the VK6’s.
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After 35 minutes on the summit, I had a total of 26 contacts in the log, including two Summit to Summit (S2S) contacts and one Victorian National Park contact.
The following stations were worked:-
Below is a video of the activation…..
After getting mobile from the summit, I worked Rob VK2QR/2, who was portable on Mount Murray, VK3/ VE-025. I was just about to enter the little town of Cavendish when I spoke with Rob, who was a good 5/7 into the mobile (5/7 received from Rob).
My first activation for Monday 17th November, 2014, was Mount Rouse, VK3/ VS-048, which is located near the town of Penshurst, about 275 km west of Melbourne, and about 30 km south east of Hamilton, in western Victoria.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
There are some activations, when you just wished that you had stayed in bed. This was one of those activations! Other than the weather being less than ideal (it was wet and windy), the 40m band was in very poor condition. I managed just 7 contacts from this summit. But out of everything bad, comes something good. To my surprise, I was called by a station in the Azores on 20m, who was 5/9 and gave me a 5/7 signal report. And yet I wasn’t even able to make contact with a single VK3 on 40 metres. I guess that is one of those interested aspects of this great hobby of amateur radio.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
I had activated Mount Rouse once before. That was back in September, 2013. For more information on that activation and information on the summit, including its history, please have a look at my previous post……
This is a very easy summit to access, with a road leading all the way to the top of the summit through the Mount Rouse Reserve. A set of steps takes you up to the trig point. Although only a little one pointer, this is a great little summit, with a bench awaiting you once you reach the trig point, and fantastic views of the surrounding countryside, and the little town of Penshurst below the summit.
On the subject of Penshurst, please take the time to have a look around this little town. It is full of history and as some very historic buildings. There is also the Volcano Visitor Centre which is well worth a visit.
As mentioned, the 40m band was in very poor shape. There was absolutely no propagation locally around VK3. I managed to squeeze 5 contacts into the log on 40m with Nev VK5WG who was my first taker, Larry VK5LY, Mark VK7MK, John VK5FMJC, and finally Allen VK5FD portable at Port Victoria. I did hear Peter VK3FPSR trying to call, but Peter was so weak, that it was impossible to make the contact.
So after 10 very frustrating minutes on 40m, I lowered the squid pole and removed the links in the linked dipole, for operation on the 20m band. My first contact there was with Mike VK6MB who was a good 5/7 (5/7 signal report received in exchange). And I then received a call from Joan, CU3AA, in the Azores Islands, in the North Atlantic Ocean, to the west of Portugal and the west African coast. Joan was an excellent 5/9 signal and he gave me a 5/7. But that was the end of that. I had no more callers on 20m.
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As the weather was lousy, and the band was lousy, I decided to head down and head off to my next summit, Mount Dundas near Cavendish. I had the very low number of 7 contacts in the log. One of my worst SOTA activations as far as callers is concerned.
Following my activation of Mount Eccles National Park, I headed off for my final activation for Sunday 16th November, 2014. That being the Mount Richmond National Park, VKFF-361, which is located about 380 km west of Melbourne, and about 22 km north west of Portland, in western Victoria.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
Mount Richmond is known to the local Gundidjmara aboriginal people as Benwerrin, meaning ‘Long Hill’. Benwerrin provided a rich variety of foods for the aboriginal people, both in the bush and along the nearby coast. The large trees with dark grey, hard and fissured bark with dense dar green foilage are Blackwood Wattles. The tree’s strong wiid was good for making hunting boomerangs, and the sticky sap forms useful glue for hand tools.
Mount Richmond was named after Richard Henty, who was one of the first European children born in the Portland area. The park itself was established in 1960, as a result of the dedication of local naturalists such as Noel Learmonth and Cliff Beauglehole.
About 450 species of plants have been recorded in the park, including 50 orchid species. Other plants include Correas, heaths, wattles, and Bush Peas.
The park is home to a large variety of bird life including Emus, Crimson Rosellas, Gang-gang cockatoos, honeyeaters, thornbills, Silvereyes, robins, finches, tree-creepers, and Currawongs. The park is also an important habitat fr the uncommon Long-nosed Potoroo, which is a small member of the kangaroo family. The Potoroo is rarely seen and is generally only active during the night. Other native animals that call the park home are Eastern Grey Kangaroos, Koalas, and Red-necked wallabies.
map courtesy of mapcarta.com
I entered the northern portion of the park via Mount Richmond Road. I found a nice picnic and camping area which had a wooden table and benches. It looked a great place to operate from. It isn’t very often that I get the table and chairs provided, so I decided to enjoy the luxuries whilst they were presented.
Image courtesy of parkweb.vic.gov.au
I found 7.095 to be clear and I put out a CQ call and was immediately greeted by Kevin VK3KAB and Glenn VK3YY who were portable on Mount Terrible Spur, VK3/ VE-134. Their signals were 5/7 with their QRP operation of 5 watts. You can read about their activation on Glenn’s WordPress site at…..
This was followed by Terry VK3UP and then Mike VK3XL, who both had 5/9 plus signals. A steady flow of callers followed from VK1, VK3, VK5, & VK7. A few QRP operators called in, including Mark VK3ASC operating with 5 watts, Mark VK1EM, and Daniel VK5DF running 5 watts. And I also spoke to a few mobile operators including Peter VK3PF on the highway approaching Rosedale, and Allen VK3HRA mobile in the Morwell National Park.
The strongest station worked from Mount Richmond, was Peter VK5NAQ who had a thumping 30/9 signal into Mount Richmond. What a signal.
I remained on 7.095 and continued to work the callers. I was working Johnno VK3FMPB when the heavens opened up, and it started to rain, quite heavy. So I had to grab the radio and run. Sorry Johnno. I wasn’t going to get wet, and certainly didn’t want the radio getting wet. So it was back to the car for a short time until the rain disappeared.
I then returned to the picnic table with my bothy bag and huddled under that, as the occasional shower still came through. My first contact after returning was Richard VK5ZRY on the Yorke Peninsula. I worked a further 10 stations after the rain, including Rob VK2QR/3 who was portable on SOTA summit, The Knocker, VK3/ VG-016, with a beautiful 5/9 signal. And also some more QRP stations, including Craig VK3JK on 5 watts, Colin VK3NCC on 5 watts, and Daniel VK5DF on 5 watts (using a different antenna this time). I was hearing a few European stations coming through on the frequency at this time.
After working 39 stations on 40m ssb, I lowered the squid pole and removed the links, and headed off to 20m, where I put out a number of CQ calls on 14.244, until I was answered by Albert S58AL. Unfortunately it wasn’t long, until a European station came up right alongside of me, which made things incredibly difficult. I managed to work a further 4 stations in Hawaii, Slovenia, Italy, and England, until I was forced to QSY as the bleed over was just unbearable.
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I found 14.253 free and put out a CQ call, which was answered by my good buddy, Marnix OP7M. A steady flow of callers from Europe followed this. I worked a further 18 stations from Italy, Germany, Poland, Japan, Netherlands, Russia, and France. And thrown amongst the mix was John VK6NU in Western Australia. Propagation to Europe seemed to be quite good, but the radio was struggling to get sufficient power supply from the 44 amp hour power pack, which was getting low down in voltage. Each time I keyed the microphone, the radio would shut down. This is a problem I’ve been experiencing a bit recently.
My 44 amp hour power pack just couldn’t provide enough voltage, and the radio kept cutting out which was extremely annoying. Plus it was getting dark and the weather was miserable, so it was time to pack up and head back to the warmth of the motel room at Portland. I had a total of 64 contacts in the log. Again, I was very pleased, as I had qualified the park for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) global award.
The following stations were worked:-
Kevin VK3KAP/p (SOTA)
Glenn VK3YY/p (SOTA)
Terry VK3UP
Mike VK3XL
Nev VK5WG
Matt VK1MA
Ian VK1DI
Tim VK5AV
Brian VK5FMID
Bernard VK3AV
Peter VK3RV
Col VK5HCF
Hans VK5YX
Tony VK3CAB
Mark VK7MK
Mark VK3ASC
Mark VK1EM
Peter VK3PF/m
Allen VK3HRA/m
John VK5BJE
Barry VK5BW
VK2CCJ
Bob VK5FPAC
Peter VK5NAQ
Jim VK5TR
Daniel VK5DF
Brett VK3FLCS
John VK5TD
Johnno VK3FMPB
Richard VK5ZRY
Dennis VK3BQZ/m
Brian VK3BBB
John VK5FTCT
Peter VK3TKK
John VK3FCAN
Craig VK3JK
VK3NCC/p
Daniel VK5DF
Rob VK2QR/p (SOTA)
S58AL
WH6DXW
S52KM
I5FLN
M0HDX
OP7M
IK1GPG
DL7UXG
SP5BR
RZ3DN
SP5AUB
JA1HOX
IK2VFR
ON4BB
PA1AR
M0WYZ
RU3EG
John VK6NU
DL2ND
DL1EKO
DL1EBR
F1BLL
DJ7ZZ
IZ5JMZ
DL5EBG
Below is a video of the activation…..
References.
Parks Victoria, 2014, ‘Mount Richmond National Park Visitor Guide’.
My first activation for Sunday 16th November, 2014, was Mount Napier summit, VK3/ VS-046, which is located near Hamilton in western Victoria (13 km south of Hamilton). This was my second activation for the 2014 Summits on Air (SOTA) Spring Activation Weekend.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
map courtesy of mapcarta.com
I first activated this summit in September, 2013. For more information on that activation, and some history of the summit and its surrounds, please have a look at my September 2013 post…..
I entered the Mount Napier State Park via Murroa-Buckley Swamp Road, which runs off the Hamilton-Port Fairy Road. The dirt road traversing the park is in good condition and is easily negotiated with a 2wd vehicle. I parked my car at the Mount Napier walking track, and commenced the 30 minute walk up to the top of the summit. This is a nice easy walk to the top, with a well marked path and a few benches along the way. The walk is spectacular taking you through the beautiful understorey of the Mount Napier State Park.
Following this activation I received an e-mail from Nick VK3ANL who stated:
“Mt Napier gets my vote for being “Essence of SOTA” – it’s a genuine walk to the top, but not too hard or long, and through some great Aussie bush, and then it opens out to a summit with real character, and with $million dollar views.”
I think Nick is spot on with his comments. Although only a one pointer, the walk up to the summit is very pretty and the views from the top of Mount Napier are really impressive.
map courtesy of mapcarta.com
The weather was not fantastic when I arrived at Mount Napier. It had been drizzling with showers from the time I got up. But there was the occasional break in the weather. So I ‘donned’ the jacket and my backpack, and headed off from the car, hoping to miss the worst of the weather. As mentioned, this is a really pretty walk. And I encountered a few wallabies on the way to the top/
On my way up, I received just a sprinkle of rain, but by the time I had reached the trig point, the weather had taken a turn for the worst. The summit itself is very exposed, with no trees, so it was incredibly windy, with light misty showers. I secured the squid pole to the concrete base of the Major Thomas Mitchell memorial which is located on the summit. It was so windy, it was quite difficult trying to keep the squid pole in place.
After setting up I put a CQ call out on 7.090 and this was answered by Rob, VK3EK, and then Peter VK3FPSR, followed by Peter VK3PF portable in the Coopracambra National Park. More information on Peter’s activation can be found on hsi WordPress site at…..
I then spoke with Darrin VK3FDAP operating portable and QRP at Moorabin. Thankfully I had my 4 qualifying contacts. I pressed on and worked a further 12 stations in VK1, VK2, VK3, & VK5 before the UTC rollover. There was very severe QSB on many of the signals. One of these contacts was with Julie VK3FOWL who was operating portable with her husband Joe VK3YSP, in the Wilsons Promontory National Park.
After the UTC rollover I worked a further 7 stations in VK1, VK3, & VK5. It was quite a struggle, with the band not in great shape. There was lots of QSB on the incoming signals, and the same was being reported back on my QRP signal. Gary VK2GAZ called me a number of times and although I was able to hear Gary, clearly he could not pull me out of the noise. Sorry Gary.
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The weather had not improved, so I had a quick tune around the 40m band and found Nigel VK5NIG who was operating portable from the top of Mount Gawler summit, VK5/ SE-013. Nigel had a good 5/5 signal (5/5 received back from Nigel). I then found John VK2AWJ/3 operating portable from the Chiltern Mount Pilot National Park, with a good 5/7 signal coming in to Mount Napier. With a little bit more tuning around the band, I was rewarded with a contact with Joe VK3YSP, portable in the Wilsons Promontory National Park, and then Tony VK3CAT who was portable on SOTA summit, Sugarloaf Peak, VK3/ VN-011.
It was time to dash back to the car. I had a total of 28 contacts in the log.
The following stations were worked:-
Whilst still on my way out of the Mount Napier State Park, on my way to Mount Eccles National Park, I spoke with a few stations from my mobile set up, which is a Icom IC-7000 and a base loaded whip antenna on the boot of the car.
My first mobile contact was with Peter VK3ZPF who was portable in the Yarra Ranges National Park, then Peter VK3PF in the Alfred National Park, followed by Allen VK3HRA portable on SOTA peak VK3/ VG-029 which is located in the Alpine National Park.
Below is a video of the activation of Mount Napier…..
After my activation of Mount Napier summit, I headed off to the Mount Eccles National Park (NP), which is located in western Victoria, about 270 km west of Melbourne, and about 15 km south west of the little town of MacArthur.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
Mount Eccles NP is about 5,470 hectares in size, and was established in June, 1960. Not surprising, located within the park is Mount Eccles, also named Budj Bim by the Gunditjmara aboriginal people. It is the site of the most recent active volcano in Australia. The most recent eruption of Mount Eccles was about 8,000 years ago. I am very pleased to report that it remained quite during my activation of the park. Mount Eccles is a relatively small hill surrounded by lush vegetation with a small hidden deep volcanic crater lake which is named Lake Surprise.
There is a good article and a short audio item with photographs on the ABC South West Victoria website at…..
I entered the park via Mount Eccles Road. There were quite a few people in the main campground, so I continued up to Lake Surprise lookout area, and set up in a cleared area near the carpark. This was certainly not as green and shady as the campground, but it was a lot quieter.
Image courtesy of parksweb.vic.gov.au
My first contact was with Col VK5HCF who was portable in the Canunda National Park in the South East of South Australia. Col was out and about with Tom VK5EE, and was activating the park as part of the VK5 National & Conservation Parks Award and the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program. They had a good strong 5/8 signal to Mount Eccles.
I then found a clear frequency on 7.110 and put out a few CQ calls and it wasn’t long before I was called by John VK5BJE, followed by Terry VK3UP, Frank VK2HFS, and then Nigel VK5NIG. After working a further 3 stations, I went hunting around the band again, and found Peter VK3PF operating portable from the Lind National Park, VKFF-287. More information on Peter’s activation can be found on his WordPress site at…..
After working Peter I called CQ on 7.095 and again it wasn’t long before I had a steady flow of callers calling in again, from VK3, VK5, & VK7. They included Joe VK3YSP and his wife Julie VK3YSP, operating portable from the Wilsons Promontory National Park. Nick VK3ANL also called in, whilst portable on SOTA peak, Mount Dandenong, VK3/ VC-025 which is located in the Dandenong Ranges National Park VKFF-132. And a few contacts later, I was called by Peter VK3ZPF who was portable in the Churchill National Park, VKFF-621. Peter had a good 5/7 signal.
After working Peter I had a further 12 contacts, before lowering the squid pole and trying my luck on 20m. I called CQ on a number of occasions on 14.310 but had absolutely no takers. I tuned around the 20m band, but the only station I could hear was Brian ZL2ASH, who was testing on 14.156. I called Brian, but unfortunately he could not hear me.
So I again lowered the squid pole, and reconnected the crocodile clips for 40m and again went band searching on 40m. I found young Reuben VK7FREU calling CQ from SOTA peak, Mount Wellington, VK7/ SC-001.
Prior to leaving the park I also spoke with Rob VK2QR/3 who was portable on SOTA peak, Sam Hill VK3/ VG-049. As normal, Rob had a good strong signal. And then I worked Amanda VK3FQSO who was operating portable in the Terrick Terrick National Park, VKFF-630.
I was also called by Glenn VK3YY and Kevin VK3KAB who were on top of Mount Terrible, VK3/ VE-067. You can read a bit about Glenn and Kevin’s activation on Glenn’s WordPress site at…..
After 2 hours in the park, I had a total of 49 contacts in the log. Again, I was very pleased, as I had reached the required 44 contacts for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) global award program.
A few days ago I saw a few posts on the Summits on the Air (SOTA) Australian Yahoo group about “SOTA activators pile up process“. I assume these comments were a spin off to last weekend’s SOTA Spring activation weekend. Personally, I did note a few SOTA activators not listening for QRP and mobile portable, etc, and just working the big guns. However the majority of activators are very good.
What was more noticeable over the weekend was that there was at times some poor operating practice by SOTA chasers and park hunters. The good operators were fortunately by far in the main, but netherless the occasional poor operating practice by some was annoying.
Here are some of my thoughts. I am not professing to be the world’s best operator. Far from it.
A few stations have got into the habit of calling between overs. In other words I am in contact with VK5AA and putting it back to them for their final over, and a cheeky station calls in between overs with their call sign. Not wanting to wait for the QSO to finish and join the other paitently waiting chasers and hunters. I have now decided to ignore those stations. They are simply queue jumpers. I was questioned by a senior ham over the weekend as to why I had not acknowledged him when he did exactly this. So please, if you are reading this and are guilty of queue jumping, please cease this practice. Please WAIT until the QSO is completely finished.
And there are still those out there, that come up on frequency, without asking if the frequency is in use, and take over a frequency. This happened to me a few times over the weekend. Clearly they couldn’t hear me. I understand that. But to come up on frequency without asking if the frequency is in use, is just rude. And those operators were quickly told by the chasers and hunters that I was working.
As for activating, this is what I TRY to do:-
call for any SOTA/park activators first
THEN…..QRP stations
THEN…..portable or mobile stations
THEN…..DX
THEN…..stations who can hear me, but with difficulty
THEN…..anybody/everybody else (now the fun starts)
Now that doesn’t always work out in practice. Because I often find that when I ask if a frequency is in use, there is already a large crowd waiting for me, and I invariably hear, ‘no the frequency is all yours Paul‘, and then it is ‘swing into action’ time. However, I always break from the crowd, every 10 minutes or so and call for the S2S and park to park contacts, then QRP, then portable and mobile. If you do, it is amazing who you get in the log.
When I activated Newland Head Conservation Park earlier in the year as part of the VK5 Parks anniversary weekend, I was operating right on the beachfront, with the Southern Ocean spray on my face. When I returned home a day or two later, and was checking my emails, I read with interest that some of my mates in Europe had written that they could hear me on 40m ssb in Europe, but couldn’t get through the VK pile up. What I learnt from this, is that you never know who is listening. So call for DX, you might be surprised. Certainly if you get onto 20m from a WWFF park, there won’t be any shortage of DX callers.
And when I mention above, ‘stations who can hear me, but with difficulty’, I am sure you have heard SOTA & park activators who drift in and out with the QSB. It is incredibly frustrating as a chaser/hunter, when the signals of these stations come up out of the noise, but they are only listening for the big guns. So if you are an activator, please try calling for these stations as well. I am sure those chasers and hunters will be pleased if you do.
I also tell the callers to spread out their calls, rather than calling all at once, over the top of each other. I jot down the calls I hear and acknowledge that I have received them, and then bring them in and work them in, in the order I hear them. It seems to work well.
Suggestions for DX Pile-ups………… by Uncle DX
1. The DX station operators are in charge of any pile-up.
2. The DX station should make and adhere to their operating rules quietly and respectfully.
3. The DX station should use, when appropriate, call areas and areas of the world for better accuracy, rate and order.
4. The DX station should use split operation and spread stations out, keeping in mind others not in the pile-ups. A must.
5. The DX station should give their call sign at least every 10 minutes and maintain a pattern especially when ending a QSO.
6. The DX station should create a rhythm or timing which maintains a good rate and allows the pile-up to call at the right time.
7. The operators in the pile-up, if not sure of a QSO, should dupe and the DX operator continue not wasting time commenting.
8. The DX station should work those who will create the fastest rate, at least at first, then make an effort to work the weaker stations.
9. No one should lecture on the air.
10. Everyone should always require and give full calls.
11. Know and practice the gray line.
12. Know the equipment being operated such as the split button, audio levels, keying wave form, etc.
13. NEVER be a “KC Cop”….never.
14. Operators giving spots on a DX Cluster should insure their accuracy!
15. Keep away from personal, political, and religious comment any time on the air and/or the DX Cluster. Keep all comments in the true spirit of ham radio whereby ALL ARE EQUAL.
16. Don’t rush when giving your call when the DX station is standing by, especially on CW. Time will be lost trying to obtain ALL of the call sign.
17. Don’t call the DX station constantly. Get in the rhythm.
18. Let the last station complete his QSO.
19. Use only the power it takes and figure out what that is!
20. Figure out the DX operator’s operating practice for greater success.
Please refer to the DX Code of Conduct for some very good information…..
Yesterday (Sunday 24th November, 2014), a ‘Welcome to amateur radio’ symposium was held at the Blackwood Community Centre. The event was sponsored by the Adelaide Hills Amateur Radio Society (AHARS). Eighty (80) people attended the event which commenced at 8.45 a.m. and concluded in the afternoon at around 4.00 p.m.
Those attending ranged from 9 Foundation calls all the way through to some very senior amateurs. It was great to see a good blend of experience.
The cost of attendance on the day was just $5.00. I chaired the day, which commenced with a welcome by Tony VK5KAT, the AHARS President, and then a short introduction by yours truly. There were 16 presentations during the day on a variety of topics. Below is the program…..
0830 – 0845 Doors open
0845 – 0850 Welcome – Tony VK5KAT
0850 – 0855 Introduction – Paul VK5PAS
0855 – 0915 History of ham radio – Trevor VK5ATQ
0915 – 0935 Operating legally & the ‘model’ QSO – John VK5BJE
0935 – 0955 DX Code of Conduct – David VK5LSB
0955 – 1015 ham jargon – Nigel VK5NIG
1015 – 1035 QRZ.com – Stuart VK5STU
1035 – 1050 Morning tea
1050 – 1110 APRS – Larry VK5LY
1110 – 1130 DX cluster – Brian VK5BC
1130-1150 Contesting & Chasing Awards – Andy VK5AKH
1150-1210 QSL cards – John VK5EMI
1210 – 1300 Lunch
1300 – 1320 Electronic logging programs – Stuart VK5STU
1320- 1340 Antenna basics – John VK5BJE
1340 – 1400 Blogs/Wordpress/You Tube – Paul VK5PAS
1400 – 1420 Demystifying the learning of Morse Code – Doc VK5BUG
1420 – 1440 Afternoon tea
1440 – 1500 Summits on the Air (SOTA) – Ian VK5CZ
1500 – 1520 Operating QRP – David VK5KC
1520- 1540 VK5 Nat & Cons Parks Award & WWFF program – Larry VK5LY
1540 – 1600 General questions to the group
1600 – 1605 Closure – Paul VK5PAS
Morning and afternoon tea consisted of tea, coffee, biscuits, and various cakes.
Lunch consisted of sandwich platters provided by Subway at Blackwood, and pizzas from the Little Caesars pizza shop at Eden Hills.
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Thanks to the following people (not in any particular order):
all the guest speakers (particularly Larry VK5LY who travelled from The Riverland, and Ian VK5CZ who travelled from the Clare Valley)
David VK5KC (for helping to set up on the morning & organising the pizza)
Barry VK5BW (for helping set up on the morning)
Roy VK5NRG (for taking the $$$ at the door)
Kim VK5FJ (for helping set up)
John VK5BJE (for helping set up)
my wife Marija (for organsing the morning & afternoon tea)
and all the attendees
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I plan to run another day in mid 2015, covering different topics including home brew, EMR, satellites, fox hunting, digital modes, Dxpeditions,etc.
After activating Lower Glenelg National Park and Cobboboonee National Park, it was time for some action in the Summits on the Air (SOTA) program. After all, this was also the 2014 SOTA Spring Activation Weekend. So I headed to Mount Clay, VK3/ VS-051, which is located about 30 km north east of Portland.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.com
Mount Clay is 186 metres above sea level, and is worth just 1 SOTA point. It was first activated by VK3DEE in August, 2013, and has been activated a total of 5 times. Surprising really, because it is a very easy summit to access. The summit is a digital TV broadcast site, so there is a road leading all the way to the summit.
I called in to the Narrawong General Store for directions. Thanks to the very friendly people there, I found my way to the summit quite easily, via Mount Clay Road, then Tower Road, and then Angelino Road.
As the gate at the end of Angelino Road, has got a plethora of padlocks on it, I didn’t want to venture all the way to the trig point which was visible from the gate. Although there were no signs restricting access, I wasn’t 100 % sure, so I played it safe and set up at the gate. This is well inside the activation zone.
I tuned to 7.095 and started calling CQ SOTA and was greeted by Brian VK5FMID in Mount Gambier with a beautiful 5/9 signal. This was followed by Nev VK5WG in Cyrtsal Brook who was also 5/9, Ian VK5IS in the Beetaloo Valley, again 5/9, and then Tom VK5EE at Mount Gambier. I was pleased. I had my 4 qualifying SOTA contacts.
My 5th contact was with Tim VK3MTB who was portable in the Baw Baw National Park VKFF-020, as part of the 2014 KRMNPA Activation Weekend. And soon after this I was also called by another park activator. This time, Nick VK3ANL who was portable in the Point Nepean National Park, VKFF-628.
A steady flow of callers followed from VK2, VK3, VK5, & VK7. All had good signals and generally my signal with just the 5 watts appeared to making the journey to most parts of eastern and southern Australia.
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My first Summit to Summit (S2S) contact was with Rob VK3EK who was portable on VK3/ VG-133. About 6 contacts later, I had my 2nd S2S with Tony VK3CAT who was portable on Mount Strickland, VK3/ VN-030.
After traffic had slowed on 7.095, I tuned down to 7.090 and found John VK2YW who was portable on Granite Mountain VK2/ SW-015. I gave John a call who was a good 5/7 signal to Mount Clay (5/7 received in return).
It was starting to get very dark, with rain threatening, and thunder & lightning nearby, so it was time for me to qickly lower the antenna and remove the links for 20m. I put out a CQ call on 14.310 and this was responded to by Mike VK6MB and then John VK6NU who had a very strong 5/9 plus signal coming in from Western Australia.
The rain was alomst here, so I quickly took down the gear and ran back down the road to car. Making it just in time, before the heavens opened up. I had a total of 34 contacts in the log.
Just as I had got back to the car I heard Rob VK2QR calling CQ from the top of SOTA peak, The Twins, VK3/ VE-017. I had just missed another S2S. But I did manage to make contact with Rob from the car (5/9 both ways).
I then worked Andrew VK1NAM/2 from the car. Andrew was on SOTA summit VK2/ SM-053, and then Peter VK3PF who was portable on SOTA summit, Monkeytop, VK3/ VE-041, which was also in the Snowy River National Park, VKFF-455. A new park for me. Yeeehhaa!
More information on Peter’s activation can be found on his WordPress site at…..
My second park activation for Saturday 15th November, 2014 was the Cobboboonee National Park, VKFF-728, which is located about 360 km west of Melbourne
Map courtesy of mapcarta
Map courtesy of mapcarta
Cobboboonee is abut 18,510 hectares in size (45,700 acres) and was proclaimed as a National Park in November, 2008. Prior to this the area was formerly the Cobboboonee State Forest. The park has lowland forests, heathlands and wetlands. The Lower Glenelg National Park is located just to the west of Cobboboonee. There are a number of walking tracks in the park, including the spectacular 250 km long Great South West Walk. There is also the Great Cobboboonee Horse Trail.
The Gunditjmara aboriginal people are the Traditional Owners of this land. I presume that Cobboboonee is aboriginal for something, but I haven’t been able to find out what?
The forest within the park is home to a variety of plants and animals including towering Blackwoods, tree ferns and many small fungi. Endangered Powerful Owls, Yellow bellied fliders and Kingfishers can be seen. The park provided habitat for the endangered Long-nosed Potoroo.
Prior to calling CQ, I tuned around the 40m band and found Andrew VK1NAM on 7.090 who was portable on Blackfellows Hill VK2/ SM-033. More information on Andrew’s activation can be found on his WordPress site at…..
I then found Johnno VK3FMPB calling CQ on 7.095 from the Grampians National Park. Johnno was my first KRMNPA contact whilst in Lower Glenelg.
After finishing up with Johnno, I tuned up a little higher to 7.105 and located John VK2AWJ who was portable in the Warby Ovens National Park.
I then decided to prop on 7.110 and call CQ. It wasn’t long before I had a mini pile up going. First caller was the ever reliable Larry VK5LY from The Riverland, with a booming 5/9 plus signal. This was followed by Tom VK5FTRG in Mount Gambier, Rod VK5VRB at Meadows, and then Mike VK3XL who was operating portable in the Churchill National Park, VKFF-621. Mike had a very strong 5/9 signal. A few contacts later, I was called by Terry VK3UP who was portable in the Brisbane Ranges National Park.
About half a dozen contacts down the track, and Phil VK3BHR called in, on the top of Mount Alexander, VK3/ VN-016 (5/9 both ways).
It was starting to get very dark and I could hear the sound of thunder in the background. Greg VK5ZGY then called in. He was mobile at Penola in the South East, not all that far away, and advised that there was lightning at Penola. No doubt that was what I could hear, heading my way. But fortunately, there was no rain at Cobboboonee for the time being.
A few QSOs later, Ron VK3AFW called in, whilst portable on Arthurs Seat, VK3/ VC-031. Apparently Ron had bumped in to Nick VK3ANL a little earlier, who had been on the same summit.
And speak of the devil, just 4 QSOs down the log, Nick VK3ANL called in, whilst portable in the Mornington Peninsula National Park, VKFF-333.
I then had a lengthy char with Rob VK2QR who was portable on Mount Lock, VK3/ VE-005, in the Alpine National Park. Rob was very interested in the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program, which I explained to him.
I remained on 7.110 for another 25 minutes, before QSYing and having a tune around the 40m band. I found Amanda VK3FQSO calling CQ from SOTA summit, West of England Fire Tower, VK3/ VW-016 in the Kara Kara National Park.
I then spoke with Bernard VK2IB who was portable on Mumbulla Mountain VK2/ SC-025. Bernard’s signal was very weak and he was being clobbered by the static crashes from the thunder storm. But we managed to make it (3/1 sent and 5/1 received)
I then found Peter VK3PF calling CQ from Mount Ellery VK3/ VG-153, which is located in the Errinundra National Park. This was one of the last three Victorian National Parks I required to qualify for the Worked all 45 Victorian National Parks certificate for the KRMNPA. So it was with a fair degree of excitement, when Peter came back to my call. Some details on Peter’s activation can be found at his WordPress site at…..
I then went to 7.100 and started calling CQ and was called by Bernard VK3AV at King Lake. Bernard is a keen SOTA & Parks chaser/hunter. John VK2AWJ/3 then called in, portable in the Warby Ovens National Park, and this was followed by Hiro VK3EHG who was portable in the Yarra Ranges National Park VKFF-556, and then Tony VK3CAT who was portable on Mount Vinegar VK3/ VC-005.
I went on to work a few more stations, but the rain starting coming down quite heavy and it was time to head back to the warmth of the car.
I had a total of 53 contacts in the log. I was very pleased, as the meant I had again qualified the park for the local and global World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) programs.
The following stations were worked:-
Andrew VK1NAM/2
Johnno VK3FMPB/p
John VK2AWJ/3
Larry VK5LY
Tom VK5FTRG
Rod VK5VRB
Mike VK3XL/p
Tom VK5EE
John VK5BJE
Mick VK3FAFK
Jenny VK3WQ
Terry VK3UP/p
Frank VK2HFS
Roy VK5NRG
Gerhardt VK3HQ
Andrew VK2UH
Ivan VK5HS
Phil VK3BHR/p
Hans VK5YX
Ron VK3JP
Greg VK5ZGY/m
Matt VK1MA
Daniel VK5DF
Brian VK5FMID
Derek VK3XY
Ron VK3AFW/p
Lesley VK5LOL
John VK3FAVI/m
Ian VK3FD
Nick VK3ANL/p
Rob VK2QR/p
Ian VK3VIN
Peter VK3CFA
Ray VK3NBL
Steve VK7PSJ/m
Charles VK5FBAC
Tim VK5AV
John VK3PXJ/m
Amanda VK3FQSO/p
Bernard VK2IB/p
Peter Vk3PF/p
Bernard VK3AV
John VK2AWJ/3
Hiro VK3EHG/p
Peter VK3TKK
Terry VK3UP/p
VK3CAT/p
Nev VK5WG
VK3FCAT
Barry VK5BW
VK3OB
Winston VK7WH
Owen VK5HOS
After getting back to the car, I worked Terry VK3UP who was portable in the Brisbane Ranges National Park.
Below is a video of the activation at Cobboboonee National Park…..
References.
Parks Victoria, June 2014, ‘Cobbboboone National Park Visitor Guide’.
My first Victorian National Park activation for the 2014 Keith Roget Memorial National Parks Award (KRMNPA) activation weekend was the Lower Glenelg National Park (NP), VKFF-296, which I activated on the morning of Saturday 15th November 2014.
The park is located in South Western Victoria, about 420 km from Melbourne, and about 500 km from Adelaide. The park abuts the South Australian and Victorian border. The park is very popular, and receives over 200,000 visits per year.
Map courtesy of mapcarta.
So after a cooked breakfast at my hotel, the Whalers Rest at Portland, I headed out along the Princes Highway and then travelled into the park via a series of dirt roads. I can highly recommend the Whalers Rest. I stayed there on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. The room was spacious and very clean, and the cooked breakfasts on offer were very hearty.
Lower Glenelg NP is 27,300 hectares in size and encompasses the spectacular Glenelg River limestone gorge. The park, which was proclaimed in 1969, contains a wide range of forest, scrub, and heathland. The park has been included in the World List of National Parks and Equivalent Reserves compiled by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN 1985). The park includes the Princess Margaret Rose Caves.
Prior to being declared a park, the land in which Lower Glenelg is located was exploited by European settlement, which included timber harvesting and repeated fuel reduction burning to provide protection for nearby pine plantations and the Nelson township.
William Dutton first settled Southwestern Victoria in 1829 and this was followed by Edward Henty in 1834. The famous explorer, Major Mitchell travelled through the area in 1836. His journey of discovery included exploration of the Glenelg River from the present Dartmoor to Nelson. The area was quickly settled and large pastoral runs dominated until the late 1940s.
Above: William Dutton. Image courtesy of adb.anu.edu.au
Above: Edward Henty. Image courtesy of wikipedia.org
Even by the late 1800s the Glenelg River was already important to the local community for recreation, particularly angling. A number of shacks were erected along the river for this purpose. However, following proclamation of the Park in 1969 and a 15 year phase out period, nearly all the river shacks were removed, and the sites have been developed for public use.
During the 1920s the first pine plantations were established in the area. Two substantial forestry
companies established major pine plantations throughout southwest Victoria in the 1950s.
Following World War II some native forests now in the Park were selectively logged, by individual
tree selection. Little obvious evidence of the logging remains today.
It was during the early 1940s that the Princess Margaret Rose Caves were also developed
as a commercial visitor operation.
Recreational activities in the park include sightseeing, fishing, pleasure boating, canoeing, water skiing, picnicking, camping, and bushwalking.
A diverse number of plant species are found in the park. More than 500 species of flowering plants and 30 ferns occur in the Kentbruck Heath and Moleside areas alone.
The park is also home to a large amount of wildlife, as I found out. It was very slow going through the park due to the large number of kangaroos and euros. Over 30 native mammal species have been recorded in the park. A number of threatened species are found in the park. The rare bat, the Large-footed Myotis is found in the park.
Additionally, over 136 bird species have been recored in the Lower Glenelg NP. Three species are considered threatened in Victoria, including the Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Rufuos Bristlebird, and the Powerful Owl.
A total of 14 species of reptiles are recorded as living in the park, and there are about 32 fish species also recorded.
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I was ready to go at 7.00 a.m. Victorian local time. I found a nice quiet spot and set up my deck chair and fold up chair. I ran the Yaesu Ft-450 and 40 watts for this activation into my 40m/20m linked dipole @ 7 metres. It was quite difficult finding a clear frequency, as the 40m band was already very busy. I called CQ on 7.097 and my first contact was with Charles VK5FBAC at Strathalbyn. Charles had a good 5/9 signal and he gave me a 5/9 signal report in return. So it appeared the band was in good condition. A number of the ‘regular suspects’ followed, all with excellent signals.
My first Summits on the Air (SOTA) contact in the park was with Rob VK2QR who was portable at Mount Hotham, VK3/ VE-006, which is also located within the Alpine National Park. Rob had a beautiful 5/9 signal to Lower Glenelg. This was followed by Andrew VK1NAM who was portable on VK2/ SM-036 within the Kosciuszko National Park. You can read about Andrew’s activation on his WordPress site at…..
About a dozen stations later, when things had slowed down a little, I found Rob VK3EK calling CQ in 7.110. Rob was portable on Mount Cann, VK3/ VG-133 in eastern Victoria, near the New South Wales border.
I then checked in to the Riverland Radio Club’s Saturday morning net, which is held on 7.078 each Saturday morning. The net is run by Ron VK5MRE. After working Ron and a few other stations on the net, I quietly disappeared and found Peter VK3FALA on 7.095, calling CQ from Mount Elizabeth, VK3/ VG-074. Peter’s signal was down a little (5/3) and I was very surprised when he gave me a 5/9 signal report in return.
I then spoke with Terry VK3UP who was portable in the Brisbane Ranges National Park, north of Geelong. Terry had a nice 5/7 signal coming in, and I received a 5/9 signal report.
After chatting with Terry for a while, I then found Nick VK3ANL, on 7.090. Nick was portable at Arthurs Seat, VK3/ VC-031.
I then found a clear frequency on 7.105 and put out a CQ call and was immediately greeted by Hans VK5YX at Hallett Cove with a 5/9 plus signal. This was followed by a number of callers from VK2, VK3, & VK5 who called in before and after the UTC rollover. They included Ian VK3TCX who was portable on Mount Elizabeth VK3/ VG-074, Fred VK3DAC on Mount Toolebewong VK3/ VC-033, and Peter VK3FALA on Mount Elizabeth VK3/ VG-074.
It was time to pack up. But before I did I had one last quick tune around the band and worked Rob VK3EK again, portable on VK3/ VG-133, for the new UTC day.
My last contact in the park was with Ron VK3AFW who was portable on Arthurs Seat VK3/ VC-031.
It was time to head off to Cobboboonee National Park. I had a total of 50 stations in the log, which meant that I had qualified the park for the KRMNP, and also for the National (VKFF) and global (WWFF) awards.
This included 10 x SOTA contacts and 3 x National Park contacts.
The following stations were worked:-
Charles VK5FBAC
John VK5BJE
Mick VK3FAFK
Frank VK3GFS
Greg VK5ZGY/m
Tim VK5AV
Ian VK5IS
Tom VK5EE
Geoff VK5HEL
Bernard VK3AV
Matt VK1MA
Les VK5KLV
Brian VK5FMID
Mark VK7MK
Rod VK5KFB
Rob VK2QR/p
Andrew VK1NAM/p
Greg VK5GJ
John VK5FMJC/p
Mike VK3XL
Peter VK3TKK
Amanda VK3FQSO
Col VK5HCF
Nev VK5WG
Mark VK3PI
Rob VK3EK/p
Ron VK5BRL
Rob VK5TRM
Dennis VK2HHA
Peter VK3FALA/p
Terry VK3UP/p
Nick VK3ANL/p
Hans VK5YX
John VK5DJ
Darrin VK3FDAP/p
Larry VK5LY
Steve VK3VM
Tom VK5FTRG
Andrew VK2UH
Norm VK5FNGM
VK3ZZS/2
Dallas VK5WA
Ian VK1DI
Charles VK5HD
Ian VK3TCX/p
Fred VK3FTAD
Fred VK3DAC/p
VK3FALA/p
Rob VK3EK/p
Ron VK3AFW/p
Below is a video of the activation at the Lower Glenelg NP…..
References.
Portland Region National Parks and Public Land Division, May 1991, “Lower Glenelg National Park Management Plan”.
VK5PAS 