EC1CW's Ham Radio Blog

Castro (EA1/OU-038)

2011-11-08T23:42:00.006+01:00

This is a video of a SOTA activation from the summit of Castro, near the city of Ourense.

You can hear the cavalry on the background at the end of the video.

DO4DXA from Pico Sacro (SOTA EA1/CR-016) on 10m SSB

2011-10-24T22:41:00.012+02:00

This is a video of a QSO from Pico Sacro (SOTA ref. EA1/CR-016) with German station DO4DXA on 10m SSB.

The summit is divided in two. According to the leyend, it was a titan with his sword who did it.

YO8SOY from Castelo (EA1/CR-023)

2011-06-19T22:06:00.002+02:00

SOTA activation near Santiago de Compostela on 20m SSB.

It includes two summit-to-summit QSOs with SCotland.

FT-897 manpack by night

2011-06-19T09:49:00.004+02:00

This is a video Robi recorded with his mobile phone when we were doing some tests on 40m SSB with a V dipole and a manual tuner attached to the FT-897.

The video was shot just after we applied a coat of white primer to the tuner's aluminum case.

The Clansman PRC-320 with a random wire

2011-06-18T09:25:00.003+02:00

This is a video of a QSO with the Clansman PRC-320 and a randon wire antenna.

In favour of the Clansman I should say that I hadn't recharged the battery for months so I hardly had energy left for a single QSO, and I made this QSO calling CQ without the help of any cluster anouncement.

Alto do Anxelio (SOTA EA1/CR-020)

2011-06-17T12:52:00.002+02:00

This is a video of Anca's activation of Alto do Anxelio (SOTA reference EA1/CR-020) as EA1/YO8SOY/P on 20m SSB.

Thanks to this activation she now already has 10 DXCC entities confirmed on eQSL.

Serra do Larouco (CT/TM-001)

2011-06-12T19:31:00.002+02:00

Yesterday I was invited to a radio fair in Chaves, Portugal, and after the lectures I decided to attempt the activation of a nearby summit, Serra do Larouco (CT/TM-001).

This was my first QSO on 20m SSB, with English station 2E0RDX (Barry).

Uruguay on 12m: CX2DK

2011-06-04T10:20:00.004+02:00

I haven't checked my eQSL account for a long time and when I opened my inbox today I found I had a number of very nice eQSLs waiting, like the one on the picture from Marcelo (CX2DK) in Uruguay, for a QSO on 12m SSB.
I also found out that I already have 78 DXCC entities confirmed, so now I have to go for the 100...

YO8SOY from Pendella (EA1/CR-002)

2011-05-02T14:34:00.004+02:00

Yesterday I went to make a SOTA activation with Anca (YO8SOY). She made a total of 12 QSOs, all of them on 20m SSB using 20W and a whip antenna. On this video you can see an extract of her activation:

The hardest part for her was to memorise the callsigns, because we didn't have a pen to write them down (my fault), but in the end she did quite ok for her first SOTA activation.

Easter activation at Pico da Fiosa (EA1/LU-009)

2011-04-26T12:01:00.005+02:00

Last Sunday I went with my father (EA1AQ) to activate Pico da Fiosa (EA1/LU-009) and this is the vide we made. It was a very nice place with an improvised table, great views and excellent conditions for SOTA operation (low noise).

I was running 20W with my FT-857 manpack, an SG-211 tuner and a military whip. The battery is Lithium Polymer and works great. It is powerful and light. I am very satisfied with its performance.

Parque de Bens to Canada (VE2TFL)

2011-04-19T01:19:00.006+02:00

LAst Sunday I went to a public park in my city and decided to try my kevlar wire antenna. With the help pf some eucaliptus trees, this was the result.

I was using 20W, as usual, with my FT-857 on a LiPO battery.

Montalén (EA1/CR-006)

2011-04-17T13:19:00.003+02:00

This is a video of the activation of Montalén on 20m SSB. I started with a summit to summit QSO with Germany, and made more than a dozen contacts.

At the end of the video you can see how the wind starts to blow...

Fontardión (EA1/CR-005)

2011-04-15T20:52:00.004+02:00

This is a video of the SOTA activation of Fontardión, together with my friend Robi. The QSOs on teh video are on 20m SSB.

Last time I was not able to make the four QSOs necessary to claim the points, but I has luckier this time.

Carracedo activation (EA1/LU-049)

2011-04-03T22:31:00.004+02:00

This is a video of the activation of Carracedo. I started on 2m FM with a handheld radio, but I only made 3 QSOs.

Then I set up my HF station. As you can see on this video, I used a 2.9m collapsible whip and two wires as a counterpoise.

The weather and the landscape were magnificent and the activation couldn't go better. Thanks to all the chasers and to my father (Ea1AQ) and Ernesto (EA1LQ) for putting me on the Sotawatch cluster.

Carracedo (EA1/LU-049): Final ascent

2011-04-02T00:26:00.003+02:00

Last Thursday Ernesto (EA1AQ) and my father (EA1LQ) went to hunt a metorological baloon. When I joined them the sonde had already stopped tranmitting, so I decided to attempt some nearby SOTA activation. I found that Carracedo (EA1/LU-049) was close, and this is the video of the final ascent.

It was a bit harder than expected, but the wild horses and the beauty of the landscape paid off.

Carba (EA1/LU-038)

2011-03-27T23:40:00.004+02:00

This is a video of the activation of Carba (SOTA reference EA1/LU-038). It was so windy that it is hard to understand the audio sometimes.

This was a difficult activation beacuse the amateur bands were crowded because of the CQ WPX contest. That is why I chose the 17m band instead of the usual 20m band.

Austria (OE6GND)

2011-03-25T23:05:00.005+01:00

I have received this beautiful eQSL card from Austrian station OE6GND (operator Gerhard) from Gamlitz, with whom I made a couple of QSOs on 7 and 8 March from two different SOTA summits.
Gamlitz (Slovene: Gomilnica) is a municipality in the district of Leibnitz in Styria, Austria. In the first known document that mentions it (dated from 1145), the settlement is called Gomilnitz, a reference either to the Slavic gomilca which denotes a small hill, or to gom (a group or chain of hills); indeed Gamlitz is situated among and between rolling hills. The tradition of the local castle goes back to the year 1111.

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (75)

2011-03-24T21:55:00.005+01:00

I have just received an eQSL from Macedonian station Z35F, from Gevgelija, which is the 75th country validly confirmed for my eDX award.
I made this QSO with my FT857 manpack radio for the Summits On The Air programme.
Gevgelija (Macedonian: Гевгелија [ɡɛvˈɡɛlija] ( listen)) is a town with a population of 15,685 located in the very southeast of the Republic of Macedonia along the banks of the Vardar River, situated at the country's main border with Greece (Bogorodica-Evzoni), the point which links the motorway from Skopje and three other former Yugoslav capitals (Belgrade, Zagreb and Ljubljana) with Thessaloniki.
Located between the mountains Kozuf and Pajak only 70 km from Thessaloniki and 165 km from Skopje, the town acts as a rail depot between the two countries, making it a central location in its region. Its position in the south of the country gives it a warm, Mediterranean climate, making it the optimal location in the Republic of Macedonia for cultivation of fruits and vegetables such as figs, lemons, and grapes. The town is also a centre for raising silkworms, an integral part of the country's silk trade.

Alto do Anxelio (EA1/CR-020)

2011-03-22T23:38:00.003+01:00

Today I made a SOTA activation of Alto do Anxelio (EA1/CR-020). This is the video of my first QSO on HF, with English Station M0VRS (John).

The video does not have very good audio quality because it was windy, but I made a total of 42 QSOs, which is my best record so far.

Alto das Vaiñas (SOTA EA1/LU-025)

2011-03-13T09:22:00.004+01:00

This is a video of my activation of Alto das Valiñas (EA1/LU-025). I was using a LiPO battery which is really light and powerful.

The weather was very nice, and the LiPO battery behaved very well. Thanks to Anca (YO8SOY) for the recording.
By the way, the summit in the background is Pico de Santa Irene (EA1/LU-016).

Zimbabwe (Z21BB): The number 74

2011-03-10T09:43:00.002+01:00

I have just received an eQSL for a QSO with Z21BB (Fernando) from Harare, Zimbabwe. This makes my 74th DXCC entity confirmed for the eDX award.
I made this QSO on 15m SSB from my car, with 100W and a 4m whip. I owe this QSO to Ernesto, EA1LQ, who told me about this opportunity when I has parking my car at the university.

O Teso (EA1/LU-029)

2011-03-09T21:45:00.006+01:00

Last Monday I went to activate O Teso (EA1/LU-029) with Anca (YO8SOY). I had already activated this summit in December, but it was dark when I arrived there and I only made 4 QSOs.

In March the days are much longer, and the weather was nice, so I had an opportunity to make 26 QSOs, which is my record so far. All of them were made on 20m SSB with 20W and a 2.9m whip.
Thanks to EA1AQ and EA1LQ for announcing me on the Sotawatch cluster and thanks to mi0tmw, dg6sfu/m, oe6gnd, hb9agh, ok1sde, dk2rmp, ha7ug, g6mzx, oz4rt, ok1cz, dj5av, dl1dlf/p, g6odu, i3vad, s51zg, g0tdm, la8bca, dj0gm, z35f, g4obk, hb9ckv, on4up, sp9iek, m3xie, dk3bk, and oe6wig for the QSOs.

Bailadora (EA1/CR-038)

2011-03-01T19:41:00.005+01:00

This is a video of the activation of Bailadora (SOTA ref. EA1/CR-038). I made several contacts in VHF (EA1AQ, EA1DFP and EA1BTO) and HF.

It was foggy so you could not see the great view. I will definate be back with better conditions for you to have an opportunity to see the great view from up there.

Fontardión (EA1/CR-005)

2011-02-28T00:03:00.003+01:00

This is a video of the SOTA activation of Fontardion (EA1/CR-005) together with EA1AQ and Adi, who also helped with the camera.

I think I chose the wrong frequency this time (15m). I only managed to make 2 local QSOs before it started raining, but it was a good experience anyway.

Formigueiros (SOTA EA1/LU-002): DG7LAL

2011-02-26T05:28:00.004+01:00

This is a video of a QSO with German station DG7LAL (op Rainer) from the summit of Formigueiros (1639m) on 20m SSB.

Rainer was one of the first phone QSOs I made with my Clansman PRC-320 when I still had problems with my handset's microphone, and he made a voice recording for me at that time that you can see here:

Thank you Rainer!