The weekend of Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th November 2020, was the annual VKFF Activation Weekend for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program. The VKFF Activation Weekend is all about promoting the WWFF program here in Australia, and is an incredibly popular event for Australian park activators and hunters.

Marija VK5MAZ and I had planned to travel to the West Coast of South Australia, but unfortunately some restrictions were implemented by the Government re COVID-19 the day before we were planned to leave. As it turned out those restrictions were lifted about 24 hours later, but we had already cancelled our trip.

As a result we had to reconsider our plans for the 2020 VKFF Activation Weekend. The weather was forecast to be 40 deg C on Friday leading up to the weekend, and then 38 deg C on Saturday. This weather was going to present a significant fire danger risk so we decided against an inland activation. As a result of the weather and bushfire risk we decided to do a beach activation at the Encounter Marine Park VKFF-1707.

We left home at around 8.30 a.m. local time and made the short 26 km drive south to the seaside town of Goolwa. Goolwa is a beautiful little town and is a historic river port on the Murray River. I worked at Goolwa back in the mid 1980s. The name “Goolwa” means “elbow” in Ngarrindjeri, the local Aboriginal language.

We drove to the end of Beach Road where there is a large carpark, a cafe, and surf life saving tower. Despite it being quite early in the morning the carpark was a hive of activity. Marija and I deflated the tyres on our Toyota Hi Lux 4WD and we then drove onto the beach at Goolwa. We didn’t even reach the beach proper, before encountering one poor sole who had bogged his 4WD in the sand on the track leading to the beach.

The Encounter Marine Park stretches from Port Noarlunga in the southern suburbs of Adelaide down along the western coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula and across to the eastern part of Kangaroo Island. It continues down along the southern coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula, passing the mouth of the Murray River and includes part of the Coorong National Park.

The park includes spectacular snorkelling and diving locations, top fishing spots and has excellent whale watching areas. The park includes the majority of the shoreline of the beautiful Fleurieu Peninsula which is a very popular tourist destination. The Fleurieu Peninsula was named by French explorer Nicolas Baudin duing his exploration of the south coast of Australia in 1802, in honour of Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu who was also a French explorer and hydrographer.  

The park takes its name from Encounter Bay which in turn was named by explorer Matthew Flinders after his encounter on the 8th April 1802 with French explorer Nicolas Baudin (photos below are courtesy of Wikipedia).

The two videos below will give you a great feel for the Encounter Marine Park.

It was a warm morning with an expected cool changed in the afternoon including some predicted rain. Although the clouds looked threatening, there was no rain during our activation.

The Goolwa beach is separated by sand dunes with the Coorong and Hindmash Island on the other side of the dunes.

We drove about 1 km along the beach and then backed the vehicle up to the dunes and rolled out the awning of the 4WD. We were on the beach and set up by around 9.50 a.m. Although it was still relatively early in the morning, the beach was very busy with 4WDers, swimmers, people searching for the famous Goolwa cockles, and others just enjoying the sunshine. We were lucky though to find a relatively clear spot with plenty of room to string out the 20/40/80m linked dipole which sat up on the top of our 7 metre telescopic squid pole. We pegged off the ends of the legs of the dipole in the sand.

We ran the Yaesu FT-857d for this activation. For a good portion of the activation we ran just 10 watts PEP to comply with Marija’s Foundation licence. Other times I cranked the power up to about 40 watts to work on 20m.

First in the log were Theo VK3AP and Haydon VK3LOC, who were both in the Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620. It was a nice way to start the activation with a Park to Park contact.

Marija and I logged a total of 18 stations on the 40m band before the UTC rollover. This included numerous Park to Park contacts as follows…..

• Theo VK3AP – Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620
• Haydon VK3LOC – Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620
• Mark VK1EM – Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920
• Tony VK1VIC – Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920
• Andrew VK2PEZ – Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779
• Bob VK2BYF – Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779
• Brett VK3MCA – Crosbie Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2073
• Nick VK3ANL – St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195
• Tony VK3YV – Morwell National Park VKFF-0626
• VK1DI/p – Dunlop Grassland Nature Reserve VKFF-0839

For the VK5’s propagation on 40m seemed to be out to around the 200km + distance. We were able to log Ian VK5IS in the Beetaloo Valley (5/9 both ways) and John VK5MJC in Crystal Brook (5/9 both ways), both who live in the Mid North of South Australia about 280 km north of Goolwa. We also logged Les VK5KLV in Port Augusta 5/9 both ways) about 380 km north of Goolwa. We also logged Ian VK5CZ in the Clare Valley (5/5 sent & 4/3 received) about 225 km north of Goolwa. Ron VK5MRE at Barmera in the Riverland also featured in our log (5/9 both ways), about 275 km north east of Goolwa. But the winner of the strongest VK5 signal was Sue VK5AYL at nearby Hindmarsh Island who was 5/9 plus.

After the UTC rollover Marija and I logged a further 38 QSOs on 40m. This included the following Park to Park contacts……

• Tony VK7LTD – Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920
• Angela VK7FAMP – Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920
• Tony VK1VIC/ – Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920
• Mark VK1EM – Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920
• Tony VK3YV – Morwell National Park VKFF-0626
• Brett VK3MCA – Crosbie Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2073
• Liz VK2XSE – Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067
• Peter VK2KNV – Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067
• Bill VK3CWF – Lerederderg State Park VKFF-0763
• Nik VK3ANL – St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195
• Mike VK6MB – Brookton Highway Nature Reserve VKFF-1846

We were very surprised by the strength of Mike VK6MB’s signal all the way over in his park in Western Australia.

When callers slowed down, we lowered the squid pole and removed the links for the 20m section of the antenna and headed to the 20m band. I logged a total of 14 stations on that band including the following Park to Park contacts…..

• Marty VK4KC/p – Fort Lytton National Park VKFF-0179
• Mike VK6MB – Brookton Highway Nature Reserve VKFF-1846
• Tony VK3YV – Morwell National Park VKFF-0626
• Gerard VK2IO – Blue Mountains National Park VKFF-0041 & SOTA VK2/ CT-032

We then decided to try our luck on the 80m band as we had not logged many VK5 contacts. Sadly our only contact on 80m was with Adrian VK5FANA on the Yorke Peninsula who had an excellent 5/9 signal.

We then moved back to the 40m band where we logged a further 29 QSOs, including the following Park to Park contacts…..

• Allen VK3ARH – Cobram Regional Park VKFF-0961
• Peter VK3TKK – Ben Major Flora Reserve VKFF-2266
• Gerard VK2IO – Blue Mountains National Park VKFF-0041 & SOTA VK2/ CT-032
• Alan VK2MG – Pambalong Nature Reserve VKFF-2697
• Brett VK3MCA – Runnymede Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2184

We also logged David VK3IL, Andrew VK3JBL, and Glenn VK3YY who were activating SOTA summit VK3/ VE-074.

Our only local contacts this time around on 40m were with Rick VK3VCR and John VK5HAA both in the Adelaide Hills, both of whom had low down signals. But it was still working well into the Riverland with Ivan VK5HS being 5/9 plus.

The weather started to cool down and towards the end of the activation the weather had dropped to about 21 deg C. We made some enquiries and found that inland from the beach, the temperature had also dropped. Based on this we decided to pack up and head for the Scott Conservation Park which was just a short drive away.

Between the two of us we had logged a total of 121 QSOs. This included 58 Park to Park contacts. We were incredibly happy with the activation.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB before the UTC rollover:-

1. VK3LOC/p (Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620)
2. VK3AP/p (Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620)
3. VK1VIC/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
4. VK1EM/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
5. VK2BYF/p (Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779)
6. VK2PEZ/p (Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779)
7. VK3MCA/p (Crosbie Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2073)
8. VK3YV/p (Morwell National Park VKFF-0626)
9. VK3ANL/p (St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195)
10. VK1DI/p (Dunlop Grassland Nature Reserve VKFF-0839)

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB after the UTC rollover:-

1. VK7FAMP/p (Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920)
2. VK7LTD (Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920)
3. VK5MRE
4. VK5KLV
5. VK2CCP
6. VK2VH
7. VK4AAC
8. VK1VIC/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
9. VK1EM/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
10. VK3YV/p (Morwell National Park VKFF-0626)
11. VK3ARH/m
12. VK3MCA/p (Crosbie Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2073)
13. VK7QP
14. VK3BBB
15. VK3PF
16. VK3KAI
17. VK3FIMD
18. VK2XSE/p (Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067)
19. VK2KNV/p (Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067)
20. VK3CWF/p (Lerderderg State Park VKFF-0763)
21. VK3MTV
22. VK3ZPF
23. VK3CTM
24. VK3ANL/p (St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195)
25. VK6MB/p (Brookton Highway Nature Reserve VKFF-1846)
26. VK3LF/p (Crossover Regional Park VKFF-0965)
27. VK5HS
28. VK2DG
29. VK3ARH/p (Cobram Regional Park VKFF-0961)
30. VK3TKK/p (Ben Major Flora Reserve VKFF-2266)
31. VK2VW
32. VK2HFI
33. VK3SQ
34. VK3IL/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
35. VK3JBL/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
36. VK3YY/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
37. VK2IO/p (Blue Mountains National Park VKFF-0041 & SOTA VK2/ CT-032)
38. VK2MG/p (Pambalong Nature Reserve VKFF-2697)
39. VK3MCA/p (Runnymede Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2184)

Marija worked the following station on 80m SSB:-

1. VK5FANA

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB before the UTC rollover:-

1. VK3AP/p (Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620)
2. VK3LOC/p (Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park VKFF-0620)
3. VK5IS
4. VK3BBB
5. VK2CCP
6. VK2VH
7. VK4AAC/2
8. VK4NH
9. VK4DXA
10. ZL4TY/VK4
11. VK3OF
12. VK3PF
13. VK1EM/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
14. VK1VIC/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
15. VK2PEZ/p (Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779)
16. VK2BYF/p (Bomaderry Creek Regional Park VKFF-1779)
17. VK5MJC
18. VK5AYL
19. VK3ARH/m
20. VK3MCA/p (Crosbie Nature Conservation ReserveVKFF-2073)
21. VK5KLV
22. VK3ANL/p (St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195)
23. VK3YV/p (Morwell National Park VKFF-0626)
24. VK3UP
25. VK5CZ
26. VK1DI/p (Dunlop Grassland Nature Reserve VKFF-0839)
27. VK3MPR
28. VK5MRE

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB after the UTC rollover:-

1. VK7LTD/p (Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920)
2. VK7FAMP/p (Surveyors Bay Conservation Area VKFF-2920)
3. VK3CU
4. VK1VIC/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
5. VK1EM/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
6. VK3YV/p (Morwell National Park VKFF-0626)
7. VK3MCA/p (Crosbie Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2073)
8. VK2XSE/p (Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067)
9. VK2KNV/p (Micalong Swamp Flora Reserve VKFF-3067)
10. VK3CWF/p (Lerederderg State Park VKFF-0763)
11. VK3ANL/p (St Andrews Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2195)
12. VK3CTM
13. VK3KKP
14. VK6MB/p (Brookton Highway Nature Reserve VKFF-1846)
15. VK3LF/p (Crossover Regional Park VKFF-0965)
16. VK3ARH/p (Cobram Regional Park VKFF-0961)
17. VK3TKK/p (Ben Major Flora Reserve VKFF-2266)
18. VK3IL/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
19. VK3JBL/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
20. VK3YY/p (SOTA VK3/ VE-074)
21. VK5VCR
22. VK4FDJL
23. VK7QP
24. VK2IO/p (Blue Mountains National Park VKFF-0041 & SOTA VK2/ CT-032)
25. VK3ZPF
26. VK2MG/p (Pambalong Nature Reserve VKFF-2697)
27. VK3MCA/p (Runnymede Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2184)
28. VK5HAA
29. VK3PF

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK4SYD
2. VK4KC/p (Fort Lytton National Park VKFF-0179)
3. VK7RG
4. VK5AYL
5. VK2VH
6. VK4AAC
7. VK6MB/p (Brookton Highway Nature Reserve VKFF-1846)
8. VK2UXO
9. VK3DNH
10. VK7VZ
11. VK2ETA/p
12. VK3YV/p (Morwell National Park VKFF-0626)
13. VK2IO/p (Blue Mountains National Park VKFF-0041 & SOTA VK2/ CT-032)
14. VK2PKT

References.

National Parks and Wildlife Service, 2020, <https://www.parks.sa.gov.au/find-a-park/Browse_by_region/Fleurieu_Peninsula/encounter-marine-park>, viewed 30th November 2020.

Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goolwa,_South_Australia>, viewed 30th November 2020.

Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleurieu_Peninsula>, viewed 30th November 2020.

Marija VK5MAZ and I had a terrific time over the weekend (Saturday 28th & Sunday 29th November 2020) for the 2020 VKFF Activation Weekend. The weekend is all about promoting the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program here in Australia.

Marija and I activated the following parks over the weekend…..

• Encounter Marine Park VKFF-1707
• Scott Conservation Park VKFF-0934
• Myponga Conservation Park VKFF-0921
• Nixon Skinner Conservation Park 0923

We made a total of 435 QSOs on 15, 20, 40, & 80m SSB into VK1, VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5, VK6, VK7, VK8, and New Zealand.

This included 173 Park to Park contacts.

Thank you to all of the park activators and park hunters.

Tonight (Friday 13th November 2020) I attended a virtual presentation via Zoom, which was conducted by Steve VK5SFA on Transmitting Magnetic Loop Antennas. The presentation was courtesy of the Melbourne Electronics and Radio Club (MERC).

Steve is well known for his work with Magnetic Loop Antennas and is the winner of the 2018 QST Antenna Design Competition.

Steve spoke about various aspects including design criteria, the design and construction phase, and the testing phase.

He then showed a number of slides showing the proof in the pudding, with numerous DXCC entities worked on 80m and 160m using the TMLA.

Thanks Steve for a very interesting presentation, and thanks to MERC for the invitation.

More information can be found at……..

http://members.iinet.net.au/~sadler@netspace.net.au/tmla.html

I would like to publicly THANK the following people for their kind generosity in recently donating money to the VKFF program

• Liz VK2XSE
• Lee VK3FLCS
• John VK3CU
• Tony VK3YV
• Scott VK4CZ
• Marty VK4KC
• Neil VK4HNS
• Mark VK4SMA
• Marija VK5FMAZ
• Paul VK5PAS
• Hans VK6XN
• Tony VK7LTD
• Linda VK7QP

It is without people like you that the trophies offered in the VKFF Team Championship would not be possible.

Everyone who donates to the VKFF program receives a Certificate of Appreciation.

So again, on behalf of the VKFF Team (myself, Ian VK1DI, Gerard VK2IO, Peter VK3ZPF, Mark VK4SMA, Hans VK6XN, & Jonathan VK7JON), we say MANY THANKS.

If you feel inclined to make a donation to the VKFF program, all details can be found on the WWFF Australia website at……

https://www.wwffaustralia.com/treasurer-and-bank-account.html

The 2020 VKFF Team Championship was held on Saturday 24th October 2020. Marija and I activated two parks, the Tolderol Game Reserve VKFF-1752 and the Ferries McDonald Conservation Park VKFF-0881.

Each VKFF activator who took part in the event received a Participation certificate which features a photograph I took of a Superb Fairy Wren.

We made a total of 191 QSOs on 40m SSB & 80m SSB. This included a total of 31 Park to Park contacts.

Marija and I ended up winning the 2 ops/single tx/40 & 80m/wire antenna/<100w section. The certificate features another bird photograph of mine, a Crested Pigeon.

THANK YOU to everyone who called us.

Next years 2021 VKFF Team Championship will be held on Saturday 23rd October 2021.

On Saturday 24th October 2020, Marija VK5FMAZ and I activated two parks: Tolderol Game Reserve VKFF-1752 and the Ferries McDonald Conservation Park VKFF-0881. This coincided with 2020 National Bird Week.

This year National Bird Week was held between 19th to 25th October 2020. The event is hosted by Birdlife Australia and it is a chance to celebrate Australia’s diverse and unique bird species. We are privileged in Australia to be home to more than 800 bird species, with 45% of these found nowhere else in the world.

National Bird Week can trace its origins back to the early 1900s when the 28th October was designated by the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union as the first ‘Bird Day’.

As was the case in previous years, the VKFF program had a special certificate on offer to any VKFF activator who headed out into the field that week to activate a VKFF reference.

This year’s certificate features a Striated Pardalote which I photographed in the Bullock Hill Conservation Park. The smaller photos which I took in the Bullock Hill Conservation Park and the Cox Scrub Conservation Park show a Silvereye, a Golden Whistler, a Striated Thornbill, and a New Holland Honeyeater.

Thank you to all the VKFF activators who took part in this special week. I have started emailing out your certificate. I hope you like it.

References.

QORF, 2020, <https://qorf.org.au/whats-on/national-bird-week/>, viewed 3rd November 2020

umwelt, 2020, <https://www.umwelt.com.au/national-bird-week-2020/#:~:text=National%20Bird%20Week%20is%20underway,diverse%20and%20unique%20bird%20species.>, viewed 3rd November 2020.

Our second park on Saturday 24th October 2020, for the 2020 VKFF Team Championship was the Ferries McDonald Conservation Park VKFF-0881.

The park is located about 75 km south-east of Adelaide, and about 20 km south-west of the town of Murray Bridge.

The Ferries McDonald Conservation Park is about 880 hectares in size and is dense mallee scrub.

On the 28th day of July 1938 the area was gazetted as a Closed Area for Birds and Animals, creating the first reserve specifically for mallee fauna. The area was named after Robert Sweet McDonald, the donor of much of the land. In 1953 there was an addition to the park with monies from a bequest from James Ferries, thus creating the Ferries-McDonald Reserve.

The area was previously known as Chauncey’s Line Scrub, named after William Snell Chauncey, an English civil engineer responsible for a number of important engineering works including the first steam railway opened in Australia.

The park can be accessed either be Ferries McDonald Road (which dissects the park) or Chaunceys Line Road. There is a carpark in the south-eastern corner of the park on Chaunceys Line Road.

There is a walking trail in the park. It is a 2.4 km loop which takes about 45 minutes. More information can be found on the Walking SA website at….

https://www.walkingsa.org.au/walk/find-a-place-to-walk/park/ferries-mcdonald-conservation-park/

The park preserves an important piece of mallee and is surrounded by cleared farming land.

Birds SA have recorded a total of 89 different bird species in the park including Galah, Variegated Fairywren, Weebill, Southern Scrub Robin, Australian Magpie, Australian Golden Whistler, Grey Shrikethrush, Spotted Nightjar, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, Chestnut-rumped Hornbill, White-browed Scrubwren, and White-winged Triller.

The endangered Malleefowl can also be found in the park. The Malleefowl is a stocky ground-dwelling Australian bird about the size of a domestic chicken. 

Zoos South Australia have previously been given permission to collect Malleefowl eggs from the park, with a view to producing a breeding population of Malleefowl which can be released to mallee area within the local region.

We parked our vehicle in the carpark in the south-eastern section of the park and set up in a clearing in amongst the scrub. We ran the Yaesu FT-857nd and the 20/40/80m linked dipole for this activation.

Marija and I were saddened to hear strength 9 static crashes when we turned on the radio. They had really picked up from the morning. Our first station in the log was Rob VK2VH – VK4AAC/2, followed by a couple of Park to Park contacts with Ash VK3FASH/p and Peter VK3ZPF/p who were in the Sassafras Creek Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2187 as the team ‘Father and Son’.

Marija and I swapped the mic during this activation, so we decided to stick to the 10 watts PEP due to Marija’s Foundation licence. This made it a little more difficult, with some stations struggling to hear us through the very loud static crashes.

We ended up logging 41 stations on 40m before heading to the 80m band. That included a few more Park to Park contacts:

• Tony VK3YV/p in the Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020 – ‘Masked Activators’
• Bryan VK3LF/p in the Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020 – ‘Masked Activators’
• Alan VK2MG/p in the Munmorah State Conservation Area – ‘QRParktivators’
• Gerard VK2IO/p in the Munmorah State Conservation Area – ‘QRParktivators’

We also logged special event station VI110WIA being run by Gerald VK2HBG.

We were very pleased to hear very little noise on 80m when we moved to that band. First in the log on 80m was Jim VK3UFO, followed by Ian VK5CZ, and then Sue VK5AYL.

Between us, Marija and I logged a total of 48 stations on 80m from VK3 and VK5. This included a Park to Park contact each with Adam VK2YK/5 who was activating the Watts Gully Native Forest Reserve VKFF-2886.

To conclude the activation, we moved back to the 40m band, but sadly the static crashes had become even louder and we logged just 2 stations: Peter VK3ZPF and Nick VK3ANL.

We were about to pack up when I saw a spot on parksnpeaks for Hans VK6XN who was activating a park in Western Australia. We lowered the squid pole and headed to 14.310 where we found Hans calling CQ with a great signal from Kings Park Botanical Gardens VKFF-2980.

Marija and I ended up logging a total of 91 stations on 40m SSB and 80m SSB. This included a total of 43 contacts on 40m and a total of 48 contacts on 80m. In amongst this we logged 14 Park to Park contacts.

I made 1 Park to Park contact on 20, but this did not count towards our tally as it was on 20m and we had entered into the 40 & 80m category of the Team Championship.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK2VH
2. VK4AAC/2
3. VK3FASH/p (Sassafras Creek Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2187)
4. VK3ZPF/p (Sassafras Creek Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2187)
5. VK3YV/p (Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020)
6. VK3LF/p (Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020)
7. VK2MG/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
8. VK2IO/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
9. VK2PKT
10. VK2KYO
11. VK2EXA
12. VK3MPR
13. VK3PF
14. VK2WWV
15. VK2PEZ
16. VK3EJ
17. VK5HAA
18. VK3ECH
19. VK3SS

Marija worked the following stations on 80m SSB:-

1. VK3UFO
2. VK5CZ
3. VK5AYL
4. VK5UW
5. VK5LA
6. VK5IR
7. VK5ATN
8. VK5TFN
9. VK5KKT
10. VK2YK/p (Watts Gully Native Forest Reserve VKFF-2886)
11. VK5PET
12. VK5FANA
13. VK5YX
14. VK5NNT
15. VK5MJC
16. VK5YL
17. VK5HS
18. VK3SX
19. VK3BBB
20. VK2CCP/3
21. VK3HAQ
22. VK5IS
23. VK5WE
24. VK3ARH
25. VK3HRA

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK2VH
2. VK4AAC/2
3. VK3FASH/p (Sassafras Creek Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2187)
4. VK3ZPF/p (Sassafras Creek Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2187)
5. VK3YV/p (Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020)
6. VK3PF
7. VK2EXA
8. VK3LF/p (Baw Baw National Park VKFF-0020)
9. VK2KYO
10. VK2WWV
11. VK2PEZ
12. VK2MG/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
13. VK3MPR
14. VK2IO/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
15. VK2PKT
16. VK3SS
17. VK3GB/m
18. VK3CM
19. VK3EJ
20. VK3ZK
21. VI110WIA
22. VK2HBG
23. VK3ZPF
24. VK3ANL

I worked the following stations on 80m SSB:-

1. VK3UFO
2. VK5CZ
3. VK5AYL
4. VK5UW
5. VK5LA
6. VK5TR
7. VK5ATN
8. VK5TFN
9. VK5KKT
10. VK2YK/5 (Watts Gully Native Forest Reserve VKFF-2886)
11. VK5NNT
12. VK5YX
13. VK5FANA
14. VK5MJC
15. VK5PET
16. VK5YL
17. VK5HS
18. VK3SX
19. VK3BBB
20. VK2CCP/3
21. VK3HAQ
22. VK5IS
23. VK5WE

I worked the following station on 20m SSB:-

1. VK6XN/p (Kings Park Botanical Gardens VKFF-2980)

At the end of the activation we headed back home through the historic area of Hartley which was settled from about 1853. The town was named after Reverend Hartley Williams and once boasted a Methodist church, a post office, a school, and a creamery. Very little now remains, however there is a very interesting information board on Chaunceys Line Road.

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References.

Birds SA, 2020, <https://birdssa.asn.au/location/ferries-mcdonald-conservation-park/>, viewed 2nd November 2020

National Parks and Wildlife Service, 2020, <https://www.parks.sa.gov.au/find-a-park/Browse_by_region/Fleurieu_Peninsula/ferries-mcdonald-conservation-park>, viewed 31st October 2020.

State Library SA, 2020, <https://manning.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/pn/h/h2.htm>, viewed 2nd November 2020

Walking SA, 2020, <https://www.walkingsa.org.au/walk/find-a-place-to-walk/park/ferries-mcdonald-conservation-park/>, viewed 2nd November 2020.

Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Snell_Chauncy>, viewed 2nd November 2020

Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartley,_South_Australia>, viewed 2nd November 2020.

Last weekend (Saturday 24th October 2020) was the annual VKFF Team Championship.

Marija and I were planning to do a beach activation at the Encounter Marine Park, but we had a large amount of rain overnight on Friday night, and when we got up on Saturday morning it was still raining and was very windy. We decided that sitting on the beach was not a good option.

So we changed our plans and headed to the Tolderol Game Reserve VKFF-1752, as we knew this was a park we could drive into and roll out the awning on the 4WD if the rain continued.

After a coffee and some breakfast and packing the 4WD we headed off towards the park. We drove into the nearby town of Strathalbyn and then took the Langhorne Creek Road. It wasn’t long before we were driving through the Langhorne Creek wine region which is located between the Adelaide Hills and Lake Alexandrina.

Langhorne Creek takes its name from Alfred ‘The Liar’ Langhorne who was a cattle drover who was renowned for his dishonest dealings.

The Langhorne Creek area has a cool maritime climate which is attributed to what the locals call ‘the Lake Doctor’. This is the wind which comes off Lake Alexandrina, which is a 600 sq km body of freshwater which is located at the end of the Murray Darling River system.

Langhorne Creek has fertile soil which is predominantly deep, alluvial sandy loams. Langhorne Creek is famous for its Cabernet Sauvignon, however, the region also produces Shiraz, Chardonnay, and Merlot.

The town of Langhorne Creek is a quaint little place with a population of about 427 (206 Census). It contains a number of historic buildings which date back to 1850, including the Methodist church, the hotel, and the general store.

We continued along the Langhorne Creek Road and then turned right onto Dog Lake Road and headed south. The park is signposted on Langhorne Creek Road.

There is normally a closed gate towards the end of Dog Lake Road. This gate is kept unlocked. This time we found the gate open. We continued south on Dog Lake Road and took the sharp left hand turn and soon reached the second gate which was closed but unlocked. This is where the Tolderol Game Reserve commences. Just after driving into the park you will find an information board.

The Tolderol Game Reserve is located about 85 km south-east of Adelaide, and is located on the edge of Lake Alexandrina. It is about 428 hectares in size.

The reserve was proclaimed on 26th February 1970, with further land added on 10th January 1980. It has been modified into a series of 17 ponds or bays of water.

The reserve is located on the edge of Lake Alexandrina which the English settlers named the lake after Princess Alexandrina, the niece, and successor of King William IV of Great Britain and Ireland.

Birds SA have recorded a total of 164 species of bird in the reserve including Golden-headed Cisticola, Pacific Black Duck, Straw-necked Ibis, Spur-winged Plover, Black Swan, Whiskered Tern, Australian Reed Warbler, Baillon’s Crake, Spotless Crake, Ruff, Latham’s Snipe, Long-toed Stint, and White-winged Tern.

Below are some photographs of birds I sighted during our visit to the reserve.

Marija and I set up in the picnic/camping area where there are three concrete tables and benches. We ran the Yaesu FT-857d and the 20/40/80m linked dipole for this activation.

Our operating spot was right alongside of Lake Alexandrina, and it was very windy with the squid pole flexing violently in the wind.

Our first contacts in the log were Mark VK4SMA/p and Murray VK4MWB/p who were taking part in the Team Championship as the ‘ VK4WIPeouts’. Mark and Murray were activating the Main Range National Park VKFF-0300.

Marija and I then moved to 7.139 and started calling CQ. We decided to occasionally swap the mic for contacts during this activation, so we operated with 10 watts PEP as per Marija’s Foundation licence. This made contacts a little more difficult and we found band conditions to be very challenging at times with lots of fading. Signals in and out of Victoria (VK3) were well down compared to usual.

There was no local propagation around South Australia (VK5) on the 40m band, with just John VK5HAA in the Adelaide Hills logged on that band.

As always the 80m band proved reliable for VK5 contacts. We also made contact with Bob VK3SX at Gunbower on 80m, and Rob VK2VH/VK4AAC/2 at Mulwala.

Other than Mark and Murray we also logged the following participants in the VKFF Team Championship:-

1. Linda VK7QP ‘Tigers’ in the South Arm Nature Recreation Area VKFF-2929
2. Gerard VK2IO/p and Alan VK2MG/p ‘QRParktivators’ in the Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361
3. Rob VK4SYD/p and Scott VK4CZ/p ‘The VK4midables”, in the (\D’Aguillar National Park VKFF-0129)

We also logged Deryck VK4FDJL/p who was activating the Millstream Falls National Park VKFF-0315, and Brian VK3BCM who was activating SOTA peak VK3/ VG-157.

We were also very happy to log two special event callsigns. The first being VI110WIA celebrating 110 years of the Wireless Institute of Australia, and then VK65PFA to celebrate the eradication of the Polio Virus in Africa.

After 3 hours in the park we packed up and headed to our second park for the day, the Ferries McDonald Conservation Park. We had a total of 99 contacts in the log at Tolderol, including 16 Park to Park contacts. Marija had made 50 contacts and I had logged 49.

We had made a total of 82 contacts on the 40m band and a total of 17 contacts on the 80m band.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK4MWB/p (Main Range National Park VKFF-0600)
2. VK4SMA/p (Main Range National Park VKFF-0600)
3. VK2XSE/m
4. VK2KNV/m
5. VK3ANL
6. VK3BCM
7. VK2KYO
8. VK7FAMP
9. VK3PF
10. VK7LTD
11. VK3MPR
12. VK4SYD/p (D’Aguillar National Park VKFF-0129)
13. VK4CZ/p (D’Aguillar National Park VKFF-0129)
14. VK3MAB
15. VK2LHC
16. VK3FMDC
17. VK3LBW
18. VK4FDJL/p (Millstream Falls National Park VKFF-0315)
19. VK3SQ
20. VK2LX
21. VK2VH
22. VK4AAC/2
23. VK3MJ
24. VK2DWP
25. VK3SX
26. VK7ME
27. VK5AYL
28. VK2WWV
29. VK7QP/p (South Arm Nature Recreation Area VKFF-2929)
30. VK5HAA
31. VK3BCM/p (SOTA VK3/ VG-157)
32. VK3PIH
33. VK2ADB
34. VK3PEF
35. VK2IO/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
36. VK3HBG
37. VK2MG/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
38. VK2PEZ
39. VI110WIA
40. VK2HBG
41. VK3NDG
42. VK65PFA

Marija worked the following stations on 80m SSB:-

1. VK3SX
2. VK5FANA
3. VK2VH
4. VK4AAC/2
5. VK5PL
6. VK5AYL
7. VK5IS
8. VK5HAA

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK4SMA/p (Main Range National Park VKFF-0600)
2. VK4MWB/p (Main Range National Park VKFF-0600)
3. VK2KNV/m
4. VK2XSE/m
5. VK4CZ/p (D’Aguillar National Park VKFF-0129)
6. VK4SYD/p (D’Aguillar National Park VKFF-0129)
7. VK3FLJD
8. VK3MAB
9. VK4FDJL/p (Millstream Falls National Park VKFF-0315)
10. VK3MPR
11. VK2DWP
12. VK2VH
13. VK4AAC/2
14. VK2KYO
15. VK5AYL
16. VK3SX
17. VK3PT
18. VK3ARH
19. VK3ANL
20. VK3PF
21. VK3SQ
22. VK2PWG/m
23. VK7ME
24. VK7QP/p (South Arm Nature Recreation Area VKFF-2929)
25. VK3PIH
26. VK5HAA
27. VK2ABS
28. VK3ZH
29. VK2ADB
30. VK3BCM (SOTA VK3/ VG-157)
31. VK2IO/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
32. VK3HBG
33. VK2MG/p (Munmorah State Conservation Area VKFF-1361)
34. VK7LTD
35. VK2PEZ
36. VI110WIA
37. VK2HBG
38. VK3NDG
39. VK7FAMP
40. VK65PFA

I worked the following stations on 80m SSB:-

1. VK3SX
2. VK5CZ
3. VK5FANA
4. VK2VH
5. VK4AAC/2
6. VK5PL
7. VK5AYL
8. VK5IS
9. VK5HAA

THANK YOU to everyone who called us.

References.

1. Birds SA, 2020, <https://birdssa.asn.au/location/tolderol-game-reserve/>, viewed 28th October 2020.
2. Langhorne Creek Wine, 2020, <https://www.langhornecreek.com/about-langhorne-creek>, viewed 28th October 2020
3. Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langhorne_Creek_wine_region>, viewed 28th October 2020
4. Wikipedia, 2020, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Alexandrina_(South_Australia)>, viewed 28th October 2020

Last Friday evening (23rd October 2020) I was privileged to be asked by the Melbourne Electronics & Radio Club (MERC) to attend a presentation conducted on Zoom by Peter Parker VK3YE entitles “Fun with QRP’.

The presentation was very successfully conducted via Zoom and was well attended by members of MERC and the Bendigo Amateur Radio & Electronics Club Inc (BAREC).

The presentation consisted of a number of power point slides, followed by a question and answer session. It was very informative.

Many thanks to Stuart VK3STU of MERC for the invitation.

Last night (Friday 9th October 2020) I delivered a presentation on-line via Zoom to the Melbourne Electronics and Radio Club, and the Bendigo Amateur Radio & Electronics Club Inc.

The presentation was entitled ‘Having fun in the field’ and I spoke about the benefits of operating portable, the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program, portable equipment, and portable operating tips. The floor was then opened to a series of questions.

Many thanks to Stuart VK3STU for organising the event, and thanks to everyone who attended the meeting. It was great to put a face to many voices.