Our final activation for Tuesday 31st October 2023 was the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary VKFF-1880 and the Port Adelaide silo VK-PRD5. I used the special event call of VI10VKFF for this activation. 

Above:- Map showing the location of Port Adelaide. Map c/o Google Maps.

Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, located about 14 km northwest of the Adelaide Central Business District. Before the settlement of Port Adelaide by Europeans, the area was covered with mangrove swamps, tidal mud flats and a narrow creek. The Kaurna aboriginal people inhabited the land and called the area Yartapuulti.

The creek was first explored by Europeans in 1834, when Captain Henry Jones entered the creek which was subsequently named ‘the port creek.’ The first harbourmaster at Port Adelaide was Captain Thomas Lipson in 1837. At this time the area was known as The Port Creek Settlement.

By 1840 the area had acquired the name Port Misery due to the port being plagued by mosquitos, its long distance from Adelaide, and its few amenities.

Above:- Port Adelaide, c. 1846. Image c/o Wikipedia.

Due to its rich maritime history, Port Adelaide contains numerous historic buildings dating back to the 1800s.

Port Adelaide is home to the Clipper Ship City of Adelaide. The City of Adelaide was built in 1864 to carry passengers from England to Adelaide, South Australia. A total of 23 return voyages were made. It is believed that about 250,000 Australians can trace their ancestry via the City of Adelaide. It is one of only 2 surviving composite clipper ships in the world.

Port Adelaide is also home to an inflatable dome used to store cement.

The Port Adelaide silos are located at Moonta in the Inner Harbour of Port Adelaide. They are run by Viterra. It is located 11km upstream of Outer Harbour. The silos have a loading rate of 800 tonnes per hour.

Above:- the activation zone of the Port Adelaide silo. Image c/o SiOTA website.

Above:- An aerial view showing our operating spot. Image c/o Google Maps.

It was quite noisy on the 40m band due to the industrial nature of the area that we were operating from.

Above:- An aerial view of Port Adelaide showing the location of the silos. Image c/o Google Maps.

I logged a total of 12 contacts, all on the 40m band. I was pleased to be the very first amateur radio contact for Andreas VK5AKB.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3PF
2. VK2IO/m
3. VK3MDC
4. VK5HAA
5. VK5JOS
6. VK5AKB
7. VK3APJ
8. VK3AN
9. VK3CNC
10. VK3UAO
11. VK3ZGA
12. VK4KLA

References.

1. City of Adelaide, 2023, <https://www.cityofadelaide.org.au/about>, viewed 19th December 2023.
2. Vitera, 2023, <https://viterra.com.au/Storage-and-handling#Port%20terminals>, viewed 19th December 2023.
3. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Adelaide>, viewed 19th December 2023.

Our next activation for Tuesday 31st October 2023 was the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary VKFF-1800 and the Osborne silo VK-OSE5.

Osborne is a suburb on the LeFevre Peninsula in the west of Adelaide, about 21 km northwest of the Adelaide Central Business District.

 Above:- Map showing the location of Osborne. Map c/o Google Maps.

It appears that Osborne was initially known as Brooklyn. In 1878 it was named Brooklyn by Alfred Jones, a hay and corn merchant of Port Adelaide. Three years later in 1881, James Gartrell (b. 1846. d. 1925) and Captain Robert W. Osborne (b. 1834. d. 1920) created Brooklyn, in current day Osborne and Wingfield.

On the 10th day of May 1945, the name Osborne was formally submitted by the City of Port Adelaide at a council meeting and was formally adopted in 1951 by the Nomenclature Committee.

Above:- Captain R.W. Osborne. Image c/o https://www.flickr.com/photos/paelocalhistory/14768611130

In about 1922 the Osborneville Post office was opened. It was renamed Taperoo in February 1964 and then North Haven in 1989.

Osborne is the home of several industrial employers, including the Adelaide Submarine Corporation, a naval shipbuilder – Royal Australian Navy’s Collins class submarines and Hobart-class destroyers.

The Osborne silos are located on the southern side of Veitch Road, Osborne.

Marija and I drove down to the bottom of Vietch Road and parked in the carpark right alongside of the Port River.

Above:- An aerial view showing our operating spot. Image c/o Google Maps.

Above:- the activation zone at the Osborne silo showing our operating spot. Image c/o SiOTA website.

It was a lovely warm and sunny evening and we had a nice view up and down the Port River.

Above:- Aerial view showing our operating spot. Image c/o Google Maps.

Unfortunately, we had a strength 8-9 noise on 40m. This was not unexpected as this is a highly industrial location.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5BJE
2. VK3APJ
3. VK3PF
4. VK2IO/p (Pooginook Conservation Park VKFF-0929)

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK7ZA
2. VK4HAT
3. F1BLL
4. PA5WK
5. F4WEC
6. F5LML
7. ZL4NVW
8. F4DSK
9. SP2GWH
10. EA5JMN
11. F6DZU
12. EA3MP
13. ON5RKN
14. W1OW
15. IZ2IHO
16. IK4JPK

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 19th December 2023.
2. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne,_South_Australia>, viewed 19th December 2023.