Petru Paler
Summit height: 2362m Transportation: car + cable car Rig: KX2, 10W, internal battery Antenna: LNR EFT-10/20/40 Trail Friendly, inverted L (sort of) configuration on SOTAbeams 10m telescopic mast QSOs: 13 SSB on 20m After a trip to Bern with the family we took advantage of the nice weather and took a longer way back to do a SOTA activation. The Bähnli-Gipfel identified Niesen as a good candidate, so we drove to Mülenen and took the cable car up.
17 Aug 2017
Summit height: 1663m Transportation: driving + cable car Rig: TH-D72E, 5W, internal battery Antenna: Diamond RH770 telescopic, handheld QSOs: 4 on 2m band and 1 on 70cm band, all FM The weather was still nice (although forecasted to worsen) while returning from Säntis so we stopped for a short activation on the way. After a nice cable car ride from Jakobsbad and a quick hike to the summit, I spotted myself and called CQ.
29 Jun 2017
Summit height: 2502m Transportation: driving + cable car Rig: TH-D72E, 5W, internal battery Antenna: Diamond RH770 telescopic, handheld QSOs: 6 on 2m band, all FM Wanting to spend a couple nights with the family to celebrate my wife’s birthday, I wondered how to best combine the occasion with a SOTA activation. Using HB9SOTA’s “Bähnli-Gipfel” list for inspiration, I picked the Säntis hotel for the very nice location and easy cable car access to the nearby 10 point summit.
27 Jun 2017
Summit height: 853m Transportation: driving + hiking Rig: KX2, 10W, internal battery Antenna: LNR EFT-10/20/40 Trail Friendly, inverted L (sort of) configuration on SOTAbeams 10m telescopic mast + tree QSOs: 7 on 20m including 1 S2S and 1 on 40m, all SSB Another pleasant, warm weather family SOTA outing. After a false start the day before (when we drove all the way there just to realize I forgot to take the backpack with the radio & antenna), we went again and started off with lunch at the Hochwacht restaurant.
26 Jun 2017
Summit height: 829m Transportation: driving + hiking Rig: KX2, 10W, internal battery Antenna: LNR EFT-10/20/40 Trail Friendly, inverted L (sort of) configuration on SOTAbeams 10m telescopic mast + tree QSOs: 2 on 20m and 5 on 40m including 1 S2S, all SSB This is the second closest summit to my home and so it made for a good target to activate together with the family. We took advantage of the warm day, packed the baby and radio in the car, and headed off.
18 Jun 2017
Brief notes on issues encountered while setting up WSJT-X v1.7.0 with a Kenwood TS-590SG. TS-590SG radio profile not working Solved by switching to Omnirig and USB audio. This worked well, for a while. Radio keyed but no signal being sent This was very frustrating. Things mysteriously stopped working and it took a long time to figure it out. Debugging: keying from ‘test PTT’ put the radio in data send mode; keying from ‘tune’ put it in MIC send mode tried to reinstall / clear settings, no luck additional clue: WSJT HB9HQX also stopped working with same symptoms Eventually thought of Omnirig, which was using the “Kenwood” profile.
19 Apr 2017
Summit height: 915m Transportation: bike + hiking while pushing the bike Rig: KX2, 10W, internal battery Antenna: LNR EFT-10/20/40 Trail Friendly, inverted L (sort of) configuration on SOTAbeams 10m telescopic mast + tree branch QSOs: 20 SSB on 20m, including 1 S2S. My first SOTA activation! I picked the summit because it was the closest to my home and (according to Google Maps) reachable by bike. It was a cloudy and not too warm day, so I packed the radio and antenna, hopped on my commuter bike, and off I went.
11 Apr 2017