After leaving the Livingstone National Park, I headed back into Wagga Wagga and then travelled west out along the Sturt Highway towards Narrandera.  As I was leaving the park I spoke with Ian VK1DI on 7.095 who was portable on SOTA peak Mount Coree VK1/ AC-023 and Brindabella National Park (5/3 both ways).  And then as I was about to turn on to the Holbrook Road, I spoke with Peter VK3PF who was portable on Mount Flakney VK2/ RI-025 (5/9 both ways).

Once I had reached the Sturt Highway I tuned across the 40m band and found Andrew VK1MBE calling CQ on 7.105 from SOTA peak, Mount Gillamatong, VK2/ ST-034 (5/7 sent and 5/6 received).

After reaching Narrandera I headed north on Irrigation Way through Yanco and Leeton, and then headed out on the Griffith Road to Peter VK2NEO’s property.  It was great to meet Peter for the first time.  I had spoken with Peter many times on 40m and he always has an exceptionally good signal.  I had a bite to eat at Peter’s and a cool drink.  We discussed the possibility of me activating the Cocoparra National Park, VKFF-0104, to the north of Peter’s property.  Out came Peter’s atlas and we did our sums to see if I could fit in an activation at Cocoparra.

After leaving Peter’s place I made a last minute decision to head north to activate the Cocoparra National Park.  I headed to the little town of Whitton and then travelled north along the road towards Yenda.  This appears on maps as Griffith Road and then becomes Stock Route Road.

Cocoparra National Park is 8,357 hectares (20,650 acres) in size and was established back in December 1969.  The park is 457 km southwest of Sydney and about 25 km northeast of Griffith.  The park contains a prominent range of hils, including Bingar Mountain at 455 metres and Mount Brogden at 390 metres, which is one of two SOTA summits located in the park.

The park adjoins the Binya State Forest and the Cocoparra Nature Reserve.  Make sure you are in the National Park and not in the State Forest or the Nature Reserve.  Cocoparra consists of wattles, orchids, ironbark, and blue-tinged cypress pines.  Over 140 species of birds can be found in the park, which has been classified by Bird Life International as an Important Bird Area due its relatively large population (up to 50 individuals) of the near threatened Painted Honeyeater, and also the Diamond Firetail finch.  Over 450 plants have been recorded in the park.

Above:- Diamond Firetail finch, and Painted honeyeater.  Images courtesy of wikipedia.

The park is part of the traditional lands of the Wiraduri aboriginal people.  The word Cocoparra is allied to the aboriginal word ‘cocupara’ describing the kookaburra.  Nearly 60 aboriginal sites have been found in the park.  The first Europeans to visit the Cocoparra Range were John Oxley and members of his 1817 expedition exploring the Lachlan Country.

Unfortunately I did not get time to explore this park, but I will be back, as it appears to contains some great scenery and a number of walking trails to various waterfalls located in the park.

I accessed the park via Whitton Stock Route Road and then followed the dirt track to the Spring Hill Picnic area.  The road is easily passable in a conventional vehicle.  There was a nice picnic area here with plenty of room to stretch out the linked dipole and lots of shade, which was definitely required as it was a very hot afternoon.

I was set up and ready to go by 0415 UTC (3.15 p.m. NSW local time).  I still had a 300 km drive to get to Balaranald, so this was going to be a quick activation.  Prior to calling CQ I had a tune across the 40m band to see what the conditions were like and how active the band was.  I found Brendon VK5FSCC operating portable from the Deep Creek Conservation Park, VKFF-0780, with a nice 5/6 signal.

I then headed up the band to 7.085 and started calling CQ.  This was immediately answered by Peter VK2NEO with a booming 5/9 plus signal.  Peter and I had a bit of a chuckle with each other about me being in the park.  Six QSOs into the activation I was called by Heath VK3TWO who was activating SOTA peak Mount Buninyong, VK3/ VC-018 (5/7 both ways).  I was then called by Sergio VK3SFG who was operating portable from the Pykes Creek Reservoir Park, about 72 km north west of Melbourne.  Another portable station then called in.  This time it was Rob VK2MT who was operating portable from Hill End Historic Site in New South Wales.  And the portable trend continued, with the next calls being from John VK3TUL and then John VK3JO, who were both with VK3SFG at the Pykes Creek Reservoir Park.

Next up was Hans VK5YX who was operating from the Adelaide Hills Amateur Radio Club shack with the special call of VK100ANZAC.

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A steady flow of callers followed from all across Australia.  I worked a further two SOTA activators before going QRT.  They being Allen VK3HRA/2 who was portable on Mount Flakney VK2/ RI-025, and Monique VK6FMON/3 who was with Heath, operating from Mount Buninyong.

Unfortunately I didn’t have time to give 20m a go, as I still had  along drive to Balranald, and the kangaroos are unforgiving when you hit them.  This was a spur of the moment activation, but I was more than happy with the 50 QSOs, as this meant it was another unique and successful activation for the World Wide Flora and Fauna (WWFF) program.

And on the way back to Balranald I worked a number European stations from the mobile, as part of the CQ World Wide Contest.

The following stations were worked on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5FSSC/p (Deep Creek Conservation Park)
2. VK2NEO
3. VK3SQ
4. VK3DAC
5. VK2VW
6. VK3TWO/p (SOTA VK3/ VC-018)
7. VK3SFG/p
8. VK2MT/p
9. VK3TUL/p
10. VK3JO/p
11. VK1000ANZAC
12. VK5YX/p
13. VK5NRG
14. VK3YSP/m
15. VK3FOWL/m
16. VK2GSP
17. VK5BJE
18. VK3PMG
19. VK3PI
20. VK2YK
21. VK2YW
22. VK4RF
23. VK4HA
24. VK2IO
25. VK7CW
26. VK2HBG
27. VK3TKK
28. VK2HEW
29. VK2JAZ
30. VK2HJ
31. VK3BSG/m
32. VK1AT
33. VK5TT
34. VK5BW
35. VK3CAT
36. VK3DBP
37. VK7MK
38. VK3FTAD
39. VK7NWT
40. VK1HW
41. VK3VEK
42. VK7FRUS
43. VK3AFW
44. VK2FE
45. VK5FAKV
46. VK3HRA/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)
47. VK3BBB/m
48. VK3FAPH
49. VK2FABE
50. VK6FMON (SOTA VK3/ VG-018)

References.

NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, March 1996, ‘Cocoparra National Park and Cocoparra Nature Reserve Plan of Management’.

Wikipedia, 2015, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocoparra_National_Park&gt;, viewed 5th November 2015

On Sunday morning (25th October 2015) I had a little bit of a sleep in, as my intended park activation of the Livingstone National Park, VKFF-0292, was only 30 km south of Wagga Wagga.  Nether less I was still on the road by 7.00 a.m. NSW local time.  This was my last night in Wagga Wagga.  I had stayed at the International Hotel at Wagga Wagga which I can highly recommend.

I briefly drove around Wagga Wagga for a final look, before heading out to the park.  I stopped off at Geoff Lawson Oval, named after the former Australian cricketer, and also made a brief photo stop on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River.

Geoff Lawson Oval

de Havilland Vampire at Wagga Wagga

Murrumbidgee River at Wagga Wagga

I then headed south out out of Wagga Wagga on the Holbrook Road, and then turned left onto O’Briens Creek Road, and then right onto Wrigleys Road which takes you into the park.

The park is well signposted along the way.  Not the normal big brown park signs we have in South Australia.  But keep an eye out for the blue coloured signs with the NSW NPWS emblem on them.  The park was clearly visible as I travelled along O’Briens Creek Road, as was Mount Flakney which I had activated the day before.

The turn off on Holbrook Road

The O’Briens Creek & Wrigleys Road turnoff

The park in the distance

View of nearby Mount Flakney

I entered the park via Wrigleys Road and followed the dirt track up to Pine Ridge Track.  This looked like a nice elevated position to operate from.

I found a small clearing on the northern side of Pine Ridge Track where people had obviously been camping, as there was a little campfire.  I parked the 4WD and started setting up the gear.

Livingstone National Park was established in January 2001 and is about 1,920 hectares in size.  The park was originally proclaimed as a State Forest in 1915 for timber located within the forest which was to be preserved for the town of Junee.  At one stage there was a railway line located next to the forest, used to carry timber.  In fact the park is still marked on Google maps as a State Forest (a good example of why I don’t rely on Google Maps).   In 1976 the Wagga Wildlife and Conservation Society requested that the state forest be gazetted as a national park after it was under threat, however the request was denied.  It wasn’t until January 2001 that the State Forest was gazetted as a National Park.

The park consists of four different types of vegetation, including grass trees, mallee, kangaroo grass, and open forest.  The park has been identified as having one of two colonies of squirrel gliders, located in southern New South Wales.  Over 100 species of native birds call the park home.  Livingstone National Park has been identified by BirdLife International due to its importance for the conservation of Swift Parrots and Superb Parrots.

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After setting up I headed to 7.144, the frequency I had nominated on parksnpeaks.  Unfortunately the CQ World Wide contest was on and there were some very strong signals across the entire 40m band, including A71CV from Qatar on 7.144.  So I headed down the band and found that 7.085 was clear.  I started calling CQ and my first park hunter for this activation was Col VK5HCF in Mount Gambier with a good strong 5/8 signal.  This was followed by John VK5BJE, Peter VK5FLEX, and then John VK5NJ.  All with good strong 5/9 signals.

My next caller was Rob VK4FFAB who was portable in Aramoor National Park, VKFF-0662 with a very respectable 5/9 signal to Livingstone.

I went on to work a further 16 stations around Australia, including Peter VK2NEO who I arranged to catch up with later in the day.  It was at this time that I heard some rustling in the undergrowth.  As the two fugutives, the Stoccos, were still at large in the general area, my ears pricked up.  Fortunately, up over a ridgeline came some mountain bikers, who saw my 4WD and appeared a bit concerned as well.  I had a chat to the 2 lads who were locals, about their hobby and mine.  We also shared the view that we would high tail it out of the area if we saw the Stocco’s vehicle.

After the lads rode off into the bush, I hopped back on the radio and called CQ again.  This was answered by Ian VK5CZ/2 who was mobile out of Wagga Wagga to a summit for an activation as part of the Summits on the Air (SOTA) program.   After my contact with Ian, I had a steady flow of callers from across Australia.  Unfortunately I had a VK7 Foundation station calling and calling and calling, but not responding to my calls back to him.  So this made it a bit hard to pull out some of the weaker stations that were calling me.  Sorry if I missed anyone.

I was just about to scout around the bands to find the Wagga SOTA & Parks symposium attendees, who I knew were going to be out undertaking some SOTA activations, when Peter VK3PF/2 called me with a 5/9 plus signal from nearby Mount Flakney.  Peter was on the summit with John VK2YW/p, Warren VK3BYD/2, and Knud VK2KJJ, all of whom gave me a call.

A local VK3 net was about to commence on 7.085 so I headed off to have a look around the 40m band.  I found Dave, VK2JDC activating the Nangar National Park, calling CQ on 7.113 with a strong 5/8 signal.

I then headed over to 20m and struggled to find a clear frequency due to the contest.  I called CQ on 14.308 and this was answered by Rick VK4RF, followed by Mike VK6MB, and then Peter VK6RZ.  Unfortunately another VK6 came up just below us and started calling CQ contest, so that put a quick halt to my activity on 20m.

I headed back to 40m, hoping to find Marcus VK3TST and Dave VK4DD who were also going to be out and about activating a local summit.  It wasn’t long before I found them on 7.090 calling CQ from a great summit called Wheel of Fortune, VK2/ RI-031.

My last contact before going QRT was with Ian VK5CZ/2 who was on top of Mount Flakney, VK2/ RI-025.

It was now just after 10.00 a.m. NSW local time, and I needed to pack up and head off to Leeton to catch up with Peter VK2NEO.  I had a total of 51 contacts in the log.  Another new park for me and with over 44 contacts I had qualified the park for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program.

The following stations were worked on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5HCF
2. VK5BJE
3. VK5FLEX
4. VK5NJ
5. VK4FFAB/p (Aramoor National Park)
6. VK5FMID
7. VK5FANA
8. VK5FTRG
9. VK5FTVR
10. VK5AV
11. VK5HS
12. VK7NWT
13. VK2YK
14. VK5EE
15. VK7ZM
16. VK5JK/p
17. VK4HNS/p
18. VK3PMG
19. VK7MK
20. VK3VTH
21. VK2NEO
22. VK5CZ/2
23. VK2VW
24. VK3ZZS/4
25. VK4RF
26. VK4HA
27. VK3AP/2
28. VK4AAC/5
29. VK2KF
30. VK5MBD
31. VK5FMJC
32. VK2GGA
33. VK3FCAS/p
34. VK2LGW
35. VK5FUZZ
36. VK5ATQ
37. VK2FPQ
38. VK3PF/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)
39. VK2YW/p (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)
40. VK3BYD/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)
41. VK2KJJ/p (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)
42. VK2AAA
43. VK2IO
44. VK2JDC/p (Nangar National Park)
45. VK3TST/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-031)
46. VK4DD/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-031)
47. VK5CZ/2 (SOTA VK2/ RI-025)

The following stations were worked on 20m SSB:-

1. VK4RF
2. VK4HA
3. VK6MB
4. VK6RZ

References.

Wikipedia, 2015, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livingstone_National_Park&gt;, viewed 5th November 2015.

After leaving Wyperfield National Park I hit the road again and continued my journey east along the Mallee Highway, through the towns of Ouyen, Kulwin, Manangatang, and then Piangil, heading for the Yanga National Park (NP) VKFF-0554, near my intended overnight stop at Balranald in the far southwest of New South Wales (NSW).

Above:- Map showing the location of Yanga National Park in New South Wales.  Image courtesy of google maps

After reaching the junction of the Mallee Highway and the Murray Valley Highway I turned left and headed into the little town of Tooleybuc.  This is where you cross over the mighty Murray River which forms the border between the States of Victoria and New South Wales.  Tooleybuc is the home to a historic bridge which was constructed in 1907.  The bridge was designed to rise to allow paddle steamers to pass through.  I stopped briefly here for a photo stop and some lunch, and then made a shot detour into the Tooleybuc cemetery to take some photographs of some headstones, as family history is another hobby of mine.

The Tooleybuc bridge

The Murray River at Tooleybuc

I then continued north on the Mallee Highway, passing through the little town of Kyalite, and on to Balranald.  I booked in to the caravan park, and offloaded some of my gear, and I then headed back out to the Yanga National Park.  If you are passing through this area, I would highly recommend the caravan park here at Balranald.  It is situated on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River, which is Australia’s second longest river and is a major tributary of the Murray River.  I stayed in a self contained cabin which was very clean and contained all the required essentials.

http://www.balranaldcaravanpark.com.au/

The Comet windmill at the entrance o Balranald

The Murrumbidgee River at Balranald

I accessed Yanga National Park via Woolshed Road, which runs off Windomal Road to the south west of Balranald.  This part of the park is very well sign posted.  You can also access the park off the Sturt Highway.

Yanga National Park was established in February 2007 and is a large park, comprising 667,334 hectares.  It has a 170 km frontage on the Murrumbidgee River.  The park was formerly an important pastoral station which was established in the 1830’s, by explorer, William WENTWORTH.  Yanga Station was in its time, the largest privately owned station in the southern hemispherem covering 210,000 acres including the historic Yanga homestead which was built in around 1870.  In July 2005, the NSW Government announced that it had purchased the station with the intention of creating a National Park.  About 2 years later, on the 28th February 2007 the park was gazetted as a National Park.

Above:- William WENTWORTH.  Image courtesy of Wikipedia.

Over 300 plant species have been documented in the Yanga National Park.  The park comprises River red gum forest and woodland, black box woodland, and lignum/nitre goosefoot shrubland, and spike rush dominated sedgeland.  Yanga NP incorporates a number of wetlands and as a result, a large amount of native wildlife can be found in the park.  A total of 24 reptile species including geckos, goanna, dragons, skinks, snakes and turtles can be found in the park.  A total of 18 fish species also call the park home.  And around 33 mammal species and about 150 species of birds can also be found in the park.  The number of bird species varies dependant on the amount of water in the wetlands.

Prior to activating the park I stopped off at the historic Yanga woolshed, which when constructed, was once the Riverina region’s largest.  The wooldshed was built during the late 1800’s and housed 3,000 sheep and provided work for up to 40 shearers at a time.  Yanga was a working woolshed up until 2005.  There are a number of interpretive displays in the shed which give you a great insight into the history of the woolshed.  If you visit the park, this is a must see.

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After visiting the woolshed I headed to the Mamanga campground area, and followed the dirt tracks to a nice quiet spot alongside the Murrumbidgee River.  There were plenty of options, with a number of campspots alongside of the river.  Should you decide to camp here, there are great facilities including picnic tables, wood barbecues, and toilets.

Above:- Map of Yanga National Park, showing my operating spot.  Image courtesy of

For this activation I again ran the Yaesu FT-857d, 40 watts, and the 20m/40m linked dipole, supported on the top of the 7 metre telescopic squid pole.  There was a strategically placed wooden table and benches in the camp ground I chose, so I secured the squid pole to the table with the help of a long octopus strap.  As it was a nice sunny day, I also had the solar panels out to top up the battery.

I was on air and ready to go by just after 0500 UTC (4.00 p.m. New South Wales local time).  I headed for my nominated operating frequency of 7.144 and started calling CQ.  My CQ call was answered by the ever reliable John VK5BJE who was a very nice 5/9 signal to Yanga.  This was followed by another park devotee, Mick VK3PMG, and then Rob VK4AAC who was portable in the Kelvin Powrie Conservation Park, VKFF-0899.

After working a total of 31 stations on 40m in VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5, and VK7, I lowered the squid pole and removed the links in the dipole and headed for my nominated operating frequency of 14.310.  Once I got there I found that the frequency was already occupied by another WWFF park activator, YP1WFF in Romania.  Unfortunately they were a little low down for me and had a very big pile up from Europe.  I gave half a dozen calls but soon realised that it was going to be very very difficult to break through.  So I headed up to 14.315 and started calling CQ.  Sadly I had no takers there, so I decided to head down a little lower and started calling CQ on 14.299.

This was answed by Mike VK6MB in Perth in Western Australia with a good 5/5 signal to New South Wales.  Not bad considering that is a distance of about 3,000 km.  We call that a local contact down here in Australia.  There are many other parts of the world where that would be DX, with multiple countries in between.  My next caller was Jozsef HA6NF in Hungary, followed by Luciano I5FLN in Italy, and then Max IK1GPG in Italy.

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The 20m band on the long path into Europe seemed to be in reasonable condition, and I had a good steady flow of callers from Hungary, Italy, Slovenia, Germany, Russia, Israel, Slovak Republic, Switzerland, Pol;and, and Estonia.  Many of the callers were the regular European WWFF park hunters, but there was a scattering of new callers.  But the European run did not last for long and after working 19 stations on 14.299, things went very quiet.  So I took the opportunity of having a look across the band.  I found special event station LZ130SAK in Bulgaria calling CQ on 14.213 with a good 5/9 signal.  After a few calls I got through.  I then found FM/VE8DX with a massive pile up on 14.188.  It would have been a real thrill to get Martinique Island in the log, but the pile up was huge from Europe and it just wasn’t worth a shot.  I also heard PJ2/IK7YTT on 14.216 in Curacao, but again the pile up was enormous.

I then found a clear frequency on 14.275 and called CQ and this was answered by WWFF parks activator and hunter, Swa ON5SWA with a 5/7 signal from Belgium.  Two more Belgium stations followed, Gilbert ON4GI and then Luk ON4BB.  I worked a further 43 stations from Belgium, Russia, Italy, Czech Republic, Spain, Ukraine, Austria, Sweden, Germany, France, Poland, England, Luxembourg, and Estonia.

After things had slowed down on 20m I headed back to 40m to see if I could get some of the park desperados in the log.  Unfortunately I could not get back onto 7.144 as the frequency was occupied by some European stations.  And I did find it hard to get a clear frequency as there were some very good signals coming in from Europe.  I called CQ about 7 or 8 times on 7.150, but unfortunately had no takers.  It was 6.30 p.m. local time and I was starting to get hungry.  So I packed up the gear and headed in to Balranald to the local pub for a few cans of Bundy rum and coke, and a nice feed.  I was very happy with this activation, with a total of 94 contacts in the log.

But there was a hitch with this activation.  John VK5BJE and a few others pointed out that they believed Yanga National Park was in fact now known as Murrumbidgee Valley National Park.  It was also pointed out that on the WWFF Australia website, both Yanga and Murrumbidgee Valley had the same VKFF reference number.  I now vaguely remember reading about these 2 parks when I become the VKFF co-ordinator.  However, all of the park signs referred to Yanga National Park.  The NSW National Parks website states ‘…Also known as Murrumbidgee Valley National Park….”.  I am now awaiting official word back from NSW National Parks and Wildlife and hope to sort out this issue.

The following stations were worked on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5BJE
2. VK3PMG
3. VK4AAC/5 (Kelvin Powrie CP, VKFF-0899)
4. VK2VW
5. VK3PF
6. VK5FANA
7. VK2IO
8. VK3NBL
9. VK4RF
10. VK4HA
11. VK3FQSO
12. VK3TKK
13. VK3MEG
14. VK3FINE
15. VK2HHA
16. VK2HEW
17. VK5EE
18. VK5HCF
19. VK3DBP
20. VK7MK
21. VK2PKT
22. VK5PET
23. VK5MAS
24. VK7LTD
25. VK3DPG
26. VK3MCK
27. VK2WLS
28. VK3VT
29. VK7CW
30. VK5KLV
31. VK3CWM

The following stations were worked on 20m SSB:-

1. VK6MB
2. HA6NF
3. I5FLN
4. IK1GPG
5. S52KM
6. HA6OB
7. DK4RM
8. RV3LO
9. IZ2GTO
10. RK9DM
11. DL3HXX
12. 4X4JU
13. OM4AB
14. HB9RDE
15. IZ2SDK
16. S58MU
17. SP6GF
18. ES5GP
19. IK2AHU
20. LZ130SAK
21. ON5SWA
22. ON4GI
23. ON4BB
24. RN3QN
25. IW2NXI
26. OK1EP
27. EA3GHZ
28. UT5PI
29. OE3WMA
30. EA4DTV
31. SM6CNX
32. IZ5YHD
33. DL5EBG
34. SM4CTT
35. F8DRA
36. SQ5Q
37. OE8TLK
38. DL2ND
39. ON4VT
40. OK2TS
41. SP5UUD
42. F6CXJ
43. IK2VUC
44. IZ8FFA
45. IK8FIQ
46. ON8DNY
47. ON1JU
48. G0RPA
49. SP1MVG
50. DJ1SD
51. DF1YQ
52. UY0MM
53. G0RQL
54. DL3KZA
55. IZ5JNO
56. DL3BUA
57. IZ8EFD
58. M0YMM/m
59. LX1KF
60. EA8TL
61. ES1IP
62. SP2ORL
63. F6HIA

References.

NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, 2015, <http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/historic-buildings-places/Yanga-Woolshed&gt;, viewed 3rd November 2015.

Wikipedia, 2015, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooleybuc&gt;, viewed 3rd November 2015.

Wikipedia, 2015, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanga_National_Park&gt;, viewed 3rd November 2015

On Sunday morning, 21st June, 2015, we all awoke to a beautiful sunny, but crisp morning.  And we were all hoping that we would get the okay from the owners of Merna Mora, for us to travel out along one of their 4WD tracks to the Lake Torrens National Park, VKFF-278.  We had planned to activate Lake Torrens on Saturday, but there had been a lot of rain here in the north, so the 4WD tracks on Merna Mora property had been closed.

So we patiently waited and were then given the thumbs up by Philip and Sonya, the owners of Merna Mora.  To say I was excited was an understatement.  The rain had affected our trip quite a lot, and I was very keen to do a bit of 4WDing out to Lake Torrens, and of course activate a unique park.

Lake Torrens National Park is a very remote park, situated about 350 km north of Adelaide.  It consists of stark wilderness and the salt lake that stretches 250km in length.  Lake Torrens is normally a dry salt flat and has only been filled with water once in the past 150 years.  Thunderstorms occasionally provide a small amount of water in the lake and when this occurs, a variety of birdlife is attracted to the area.

Above:- Map showing the location of the park.  Map courtesy of mapcarta.com

By 10.15 a.m. we were on the road.  The 4WD track out to the lake is about a 110km round trip, taking you through some amazing country.

On our way out to the park I spoke with Mick VK3PMG on 7.105.  Mick was kind enough to post a message on the WWFF Australia Yahoo group and the VK5 Parks Yahoo group that we were enroute to the park, and also put up an alert on parksnpeaks for us.  Many thanks Mick

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We activated the park from very close to the shore of the lake itself, just off the 4WD track.

Above:- Map showing our operating spot.  Map courtesy of mapcarta.com

After arriving at the lake, John VK5BJE and I were quick to set up our stations.  John wanted to give 30m a crack again, so I started out on 40m, calling CQ on 7.095.  Quite appropriately, after his earlier help, my first contact was with Mick VK3PMG.  This was followed by Les VK5KLB, David VK5HYZ, and then Peter VK5FLEX.  Band conditions on 40m appeared to be very good.  It was very pleasing to have a steady flow of callers from VK2, VK3, VK5, and VK7, all with good signals.

After working a total of 22 stations I took a break, as I was getting a bit of interference from John VK5BJE.  We had set up a little bit too close to each other.  I had some lunch and enjoyed the sunshine, and admired the amazing view of Lake Torrens.

After lunch I put out a few calls on 15m, but sadly there were no takers.  And because we had no mobile phone coverage in this remote part of South Australia, we were not able to spot ourselves on parksnpeaks.  So I put a few CQ calls out on 14.310 and spoke with VK2ID portable on the beach, Alan VK4ALA, Fred VK4FE, Craig VK2PAW, and then Marc operating a military transceiver and running just 25 watts.

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I then called CQ on 40m and my first contact there was with Cliff VK2NP, followed by Gerard VK2IO who was operating from SOTA summit, Mount Canobolas, VK2/ CT-001, near Orange.  This was followed by a call from Karl VK2GKA activating STA peak, Mount Alexandra VK2/ IL-005 near Mittagong.  A few contacts later, Peter VK3YE gave me a shout, whilst operating portable from Chelsea Beach in Melbourne, with a home brew transceiver.  I also had a contact with Ian VK1DI who was activating O’Connor Ridge Nature Reserve VKFF-857.  For more info on Ian’s activation, have a look at Ian’s blog at…..

http://vk1di.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/oconnor-ridge-vkff-857.html

I managed to push on and go past the required 44 contacts for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program.  After 2 hours in the park I had a total of 47 contacts in the log.  We headed back to Merna Mora along the 4WD track, admiring the views of the Flinders Ranges and viewed a large amount of wildlife, including Western Grey kangaroos, Red Kangaroos, Emus, and Wedge Tailed eagles.  Also avoiding the occasional stock that we encountered along the way.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3PMG
2. VK5KLV
3. VK5HYZ
4. VK5FLEX
5. VK3VTH
6. VK5NQP
7. VK5WG
8. VK5KFB
9. VK3ZPF
10. VK2YK
11. VK5FANA
12. VK7AN/p
13. VK4AAC/5
14. VK5ZAR
15. VK3TKK
16. VK3CRG
17. VK3OF
18. VK3TJK
19. VK5KAT
20. VK5VBR
21. VK3FTWO
22. VK3ANL
23. VK2NP
24. VK2IO/p (SOTA VK2/ CT-001)
25. VK2GKA/p (SOTA VK2/ IL-005)
26. VK5SFA
27. VK5FO/m
28. VK3IO
29. VK3YE/p
30. VK5KKS
31. VK5FMID
32. VK3AWG
33. VK1DI/p )VKFF-857)
34. VK5ALZ
35. VK2RD
36. VK5ZRY
37. VK2NEO
38. VK4FTWO
39. VK4IL
40. VK1AT
41. VK7NWT
42. VK3XBC

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK2ID/p
2. VK4ALA
3. VK4FE
4. VK2PAW
5. VK6HAO

After returning to Merna Mora, we stoked up the outdoor fire and cooked some potatos in jackets in alfoil, as part of our tea, which we all enjoyed together again in the indoor kitchen area.

After leaving the Aroona ruins, we headed a bit further east on the Brachina Gorge Road and stopped for lunch.  Whilst there I spoke with Joe VK3YSP and Julie VK3YSP who were operating portable at the Melbourne Museum as part of Museums Weekend.  Both Joe and Julie had a terrific 5/9 signal into my mobile station.

After lunch we continued east on the Brachina Gorge Road through the park until we hit the bitumen of the Flinders Ranges Way.  We travelled a bit further south and went to the top of the Stokes Hill lookout, which offers some amazing views of the Flinders Ranges.  Sadly, the summit does not qualify for the Summits on the Air program.

After leaving Stokes Hill lookout we continued south on the Flinders Ranges Way and then turned right into Wilpena Pound Road and on to the Wilpena Pound resort.  It was here that we refueled and grabbed a cup of coffee.

I headed over to a cleared area on the northern side of the main carpark and set up my station, the Yaesu FT-857d, and the 40m/20m linked dipole.  John VK5BJE headed a bit further over to the south and operated from a spot where he had activated from previously.  John was going to call on 40m and I decided to stick to 20m.

Above:- Map showing my operating spot.  Map courtesy of mapcarta.com

I started calling CQ on 14.244, which is the nominated calling frequency for the WWFF program.  My first taker there was Jim VK2QA, followed by David VK4HAX (I was David’s first ever 20m contact), and then Caleb ZL2ML.  Unfortunately there was a lot of QRM from a nearby Italian station, so I QSY’d down to 14.200 and called CQ again.  This time my CQ call was answered by Karl VK2GKA, followed by James VK1DR and Bruce VK4YS.   My first DX contact was 6 calls later and it was no less than my very good friend, Marnix, OP7M in Belgium.  Marnix was 5/7 and he gave me a 5/5.  It was great to get Marnix in the log.  I went on to work a further 12 stations in VK2, Italy, Poland, Germany, England, Canada, and Switzerland, until I was called away from the radio.

It was one of the DEWNR ranges who was a little bit stand offish.  Fortunately in over 200 activations, I have only had one previous ‘bad’ contact with a DEWNR ranger who told me off for tying off one of the ends of my dipole to a gum tree.  And this fella, also did not have a lot of personal skills, I am sorry to say.  I was advised to seek permission first in future as people would ask questions about what I was doing?????  Secondly I should seek permission before driving the squid pole holder into the ground.  I bit my tongue for a while and when I questioned him about this, and asked how was it any different to a tent peg or a totem tennis pole.  I never got a sensible reply.  Oh well, it was bound to happen again, a poor interaction with somebody from DEWNR.

In any event, ‘permission’ was granted for me to continue, but by this time everyone had given up on waiting for me on 14.200.  I worked Lee, AK4QA in Alabama in the USA, Albert S58AL in Slovenia and then Gyula in Hungary.

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My last contact for this activation was with Rob VK4FFAB who was portable in the Conondale National Park VKFF-109, which is located south west of Noosa Heads in Queensland.  Rob had a nice 5/7 signal and he reciprocated with a 5/4 for me.

It was time to pack up and head back home to Merna Mora.  David and Joy had already headed off, which left just radio die hards John and myself, and our patient wives Marija and Jenny.  We had a very enjoyable drive back to Merna Mora along the 30km long Moralana Track through Arkaba Station and Merna Mora Station.  We enjoyed the most amazing sunset and as Marija said, the most number of kangaroos we had ever seen.

And along Moralana Track I fired up the IC-7000 in the car and spoke with Rob VK4FFAB portable, Peter Vk2NEO, Jim VK5TR, Colin VK4FAAS, Perrin Vk3XPT, and Ivan VK5HS.

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK2QA
2. VK4HAX
3. ZL2ML
4. VK2GKA
5. VK1DR
6. VK4YS
7. VK2JF/m
8. VK6NTE
9. VK2HOT
10. VK4WJW/6
11. VK2LX
12. OP7M
13. VK2MI
14. VK4OZI
15. VK2IO/m
16. I5FLN
17. Sp5INQ
18. DL7UXG
19. G0TSQ
20. VE7CV
21. DJ7ZZ
22. DL2ND
23. M0BKV
24. HB9FBG
25. AK4QA
26. S58AL
27. HA6OB

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5BJE/p
2. VK4FFAB/p (Conondale National Park VKFF-109)

After gettng back to Merna Mora, and freshening up a bit, we had a very enjoyable dinner together and the obligatory few bottles of red wine.  That guy John VK5BJE is a very bad influence!

We all enjoyed a good feed and a few more bottles of red on Friday evening at Merna Mora Station, where we stayed for 3 nights (Fri-Sun).  Merna Mora is part of a 230 sq mile sheep and cattle station located about 425 km north of Adelaide, and about 46 km north of Hawker.  About 2,500 sheep and 800 cattle are run on the property.  Merna Mora has facilities to accomodate up to 50 people.  For more information on Merna Mora, please visit their website at…..

http://www.mernamora.com.au/

Saturday morning, 20th June 2015, was a beautiful sunny morning.  After a cooked breakfast an enjoying a coffee in the sunshine watching the Miner birds and Honeyeaters in the flowering native plants out the front of our accomodation, we hit the road for the Flinders Ranges National Park, VKFF-176. 

Inside of our unit at Merna Mora

A view of Merna Mora

The Flinders Ranges National Park is situated about 450 km north of Adelaide and is located in the central Flinders Ranges.  The park is about 95,000 hectares and includes the Heysen Range, Brachina and Bunyeroo Gorges and the amazing Wilpena Pound.  The Adnyamathanha people (meaning hills or rock people) are the traditional custodians of the Flinders Ranges.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Flinders Ranges National Park.  Map courtesy of mapcarta.com

We drove north along The Outback Highway and turned right on the Brachina Gorge Road and headed east towards the park.  We briefly stopped at the interpretive signs and lookout, before venturing into the park through Brachina Gorge. Rocks exposed along the gorge are between 500 and 650 million years old and were deposited as sediments in an elongate depression known as the Adelaide Geosyncine.  This area was flooded by the sea for much of the 150 million year period, during which the sea level rose and fell many times.  Sediments were transported by rivers, and at times by glaciers, and deposited on the sea floor.  Rock strata along the gorge provide one of the most complete sedimentary records in the world for this time period.  It is truly and amazing and very spectacular drive through Brachina Gorge, with many interpretayive signs along the way.

We were fortunate enough to encounter a handful of the rare Yellow Footed Rock Wallabies as we drove through the gorge.  Sadly this little wallaby was once killed in large numbers for its pelt.  They scale cliffs and climb rocks with superb agility and can leap sizable chasms.  It was a real treat to be able to see them up close.

We continued on to the Aroona Valley, where we set up at the end of the Aroona Valley Road, at the Aroona Ruins.  The Arrona hut was built in 1925, as an outstation for Eddie Pumps.  It consisted of a four roomed dwelling with a stone fire place and a verandah running along three sides.  The house is a typical pug and pine construction.  Slabs of native pine from this area were cut and erected vertically side by side.  Chicken wire was nailed to the framework and mud or pug was flushed to fill the gaps.  The floor was rammed earth and the roof was corrugated galvanized iron sheets.  The famous Australian artists, Sir Hans Heysen stayed here in 1927 and started the first of many sketches and paintings of the Flinders Ranges.

Above:- Map showing our operating spot in the park.  Map courtesy of DEWNR

John VK5BJE was keen to try his luck again on 30m and set up near the carpark.  I set up in close proximity, a little further up the hill and started off on 20m.  David VK5KC headed a bit further to the east and worked 40m.

My first contact on 20m was with Fred VK4FE who was operating from Mowbray National Park, VKFF-367 in Queensland.  Fred was calling CQ on 14.310 and was a good 5/7 signal.  I then headed down to 14.305 and called CQ and this was answered by Michael VK6MMB who was portable in Goongarrie National Park, VKFF-209.  Michael and his off side Mike VK6MB were half way through a marathon parks trip in Western Australia.  This was followed by a call from Gerard VK2IO who was mobile on his way to a SOTA summit in the Blue Mountains.  I was then called by Adam VK2YK with a strong 5/9 signal and then Mark VK4MON with a 5/8 signal, operating portable from his back yard.

I then moved up to 40m and called CQ on 7.095 and this was answered by Larry VK5LY in the Riverland with his typical strong 5/9 plus signal.  I went on to work a total of 34 stations on 40, including Fred VK4FE in Mowbray National Park and Dale VK5DC mobile near the Northern Territory/Queensland/South Australian border.

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I then decided to give 15m a go, and managed to work Cliff VK2NP, Fred VK4FAAP and Ian VK1DI.  Prior to packing up, I worked Rob VK4AAC who was portable in the Vivonne Bay Conservation Park, VKFF-811, on Kangaroo Island.

After 90 minutes at Arrona Ruins, it was time to pack up and head off a bit further up the Brachina Gorge Road for a bite to eat.  I had a total of 43 contacts in the log.  We were planning on activating the Flinders Ranges National Park again, later in the afternoon, so I was assured of picking up 1 more QSO to qualify the park for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program.

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK4FE/p (Mowbray National Park VKFF-367)
2. VK6MMB/p (Goongarrie National Park VKFF-209)
3. VK2IO/m
4. VK2YK
5. VK4MON

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5LY
2. VK3CWM
3. VK5FANA
4. VK5DC/m
5. VK5FAJS
6. VK3PMG
7. VK5NQP
8. VK5FMID
9. VK5ZAI
10. VK3NBV
11. VK5ZGY
12. VK3APC
13. VK3FLCS
14. VK1AT
15. VK5IS
16. VK5NWE
17. VK3FEUG
18. VK5NIG/p
19. VK3DBP
20. VK3PRF
21. VK5STU/p
22. VK2GKA
23. VK5TW
24. VK5FTRG
25. VK1DI
26. VK4FE/p (VKFF-367)
27. VK5WG
28. VK2NP
29. VK5JP
30. VK5ZX/m
31. VK5FLEX
32. VK2IAN
33. VK2SL
34. VK3TKK
35. VK4AAC/5 (Vivonne Bay Conservation Park VKFF-811)

I worked the following stations on 15m SSB:-

1. VK2NP
2. VK4FAAP
3. VK1DI

References.

Department of Environment and Natural Resources, 2011, Flinders Ranges National Park

Friday the 19th June 2015 was ‘take two’ for the Gammon Ranges National Park, VKFF-189.  This was to be a unique park for me for both the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program and the VK5 National and Conservation Parks Award.

Above:- Map showing the location of the park.  Map courtesy of mapcarta.com

Marija and I travelled south along The Outback Highway towards Copley.  On the way south I had a chat with Mark VK6BSA who was mobile on his way in to work again (5/9 both ways) and Steve VK3HK who was also mobile.  I also spoke with Bill VK5MBD at Red Hill.

The Vulkathunha-Gammon Ranges National Park, which is about 660 km north of Adelaide, was proclaimed in 1970, and forms part of the traditional country of the Adnyamathanha people.  The park is rich with cultural significance.  The park is 1,257.23 km² (485.4 sq mi) in size.  Over 900 plant and 200 fauna species have been recorded in the park, including some rare and endangered species.  The park is remote and has many contrasts, including deep gorges and chasms, towering mountains, tree-lined creeks and freshwater springs.  The park encompasses some of the most rugged and spectacular country in South Australia.

Marija and I drove out from Copley through magnificent countryside.  The road out to the park is dirt but is in good condition and is a distance of about 70 km.

We stopped briefly at Nepabunna, a small aboriginal community on the doorstep of the Gammons.  Originally established as a mission in the 1930’s, the community became a council in 1998 and has a population of about 50 people.

Nepabunna

Nepabunna

We continued east along the Copley Road, into the park, until we reach Italowie Gorge.  We found a nice little area close to the McKinlay Creek and set up here.  Interestingly, the bushman, R.M. Williams is reputed to have learnt everything he knew about boot-making and leather from another man he met while camping in Italalowie Gap.  R.m. Williams later became a millionaire and a renowned clothing brand carries his name.

Again, for this activation I ran my Yaesu FT-857d, 40 watts and the 40m/20m linked dipole.  For 15m I used a simple 1/2 wave 15m dipole.

Above:- Map showing our operating spot.  Map courtesy of National Parks SA.

I started calling CQ on 7.095 and it wasn’t long before I had my first taker.  It was Bill VK5MBD at Red Hill with a very strong 5/9 plus signal, followed by Jess VK6JES, Brian VK5FMID at Mount Gambier, and Jim VK1AT.  I had a good steady flow of callers on 40m from around Australia: VK1, VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5, VK6 and VK7 worked.  This included some of the usual QRP suspects including Greg VK5GJ running just 4 watts (5/8 sent and 5/9 received).  Both David VK5KC and John VK5BJE called me from Farina in the throws of packing up and hitting the road.

After working 26 stations on 20m, I lowered the squid pole and put up the 1/2 wave 15m dipole and called CQ on 21.250.  My call was answered by Bill VK5MBD, who despite being very weak (5/1) was very workable.  This was followed by John VK6NU, Grant VK5VGC and Albert S58AL.  Yes Slovenia.  I couldn’t believe it.  I did not expect to work into Europe at 10.10 a.m.  And Albert and I heard each other perfectly.  In fact I was stronger to Albert than he was to me (5/3 sent and 5/7 received).

It was at this time that Marija and I were visited by two of the local rangers.  We explained to them what we were doing and assured them that we were not crazy, trying to catch squid in the creek with the squid pole.  They were quite interested in what we were doing and the hobby in general.

I then put up the 40m/20m linked dipole again and called CQ on 14.310.  But I only had the solitary caller there, and that was Bill VK5MBD, who again was weak (5/1), but again very workable.  There was no man made noise at all out here in the middle of nowhere.  I just wish it was like that at home.

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I returned to 40m for a short time, calling CQ on 7.098, which was answered by park stalwart Mick VK3PMG, followed by Adrian VK5FANA, David VK5HYZ and then Ian VK5IS.  I worked a further 17 Australian stations in VK2, VK4, & VK4.  This included John VK2KJO who called in from nearby Arkaroola.  John and Sue had travelled through earlier.

After 2 hours in the park I had a total of 52 contacts in the log.  We packed up and headed back in to Copley.

The following stations were worked on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5MBD
2. VK6JES
3. VK5FMID
4. VK1AT
5. VK5GJ
6. VK5HS
7. VK5HCF
8. VK3PF
9. VK7ALH
10. VK5RM
11. VK5DC/m
12. VK5KC/p
13. VK3FQSO
14. VK5BJE/p
15. VK2FJPR
16. VK3FLCS
17. VK5LY
18. VK4FFAB
19. VK3TKK
20. VK5WG
21. VK3DBP
22. VK3YAR
23. VK5TN
24. VK5GJ
25. VK5VGC
26. VK7MK
27. VK3PMG
28. VK5FANA
29. VK5HYZ
30. VK5IS
31. VK3FMAA/m
32. VK5FAJS
33. VK5KAF
34. VK5NRG
35. VK2KJO
36. VK5ZA/m
37. VK5JK
38. VK5ZK
39. VK2IO
40. VK4CPS
41. VK2MJB
42. VK3BHR
43. VK3OHM
44. VK5LDM
45. VK3PR
46. VK3HP
47. VK5GI

The following stations were worked on 20m SSB:-

1. VK5MBD

The following stations were worked on 15m SSB:-

1. VK5MBD
2. VK6NU
3. VK5VGC
4. S58AL

After returning to Copley we called in to the Copley Bush Bakery and Quandong Cafe, where Marija and I caught up with John and Jenny.  We enjoyed a nice cappucinno and a warm home backed Quandong pie with cream (each that is).  We then continued south to Leigh Creek, for a quick stop and then on to our next activation, Mount Scott, VK5/ NE-111.

References.

National Parks South AUstralia, 2015, Vulkathunha Gammon Ranges National Park.

Wikipedia, 2015, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepabunna,_South_Australia&gt;, viewed 28th June 2015