This activation is from not only a different park BUT A DIFFERENT STATE!!! Today I activated K-1039 Desoto State Park and it was a lot of fun even though the QSO count is pretty low.
So let’s set the stage here. I had some business to take care of in Ft Payne AL pretty early so I figured I would find a park close by to activate if I had time. Well, Desoto State Park is only a fifteen minute drive from there, so here we go!
Now to be fair, I know this park well as we have spent a considerable amount of time at this park over the years. Backed with this knowledge, I had a pretty good idea of where I would setup for the activation.
The “weapon” of choice today? The Penntek TR-35 QRP transceiver. I have grown to love this little radio over the past year and it is now one of my primary radios I take to the field when activating parks. Here it is with the supporting kit to get it on the air today.
Yes, the cup of coffee is part of the kit. LOL. Of course the antenna is not shown, but I do have the coax and the RF choke pictured. The RF choke is sort of optional as the radio will work without it but I like having it installed. The black box is the power pack/speaker unit I built for this radio, then there is the travel key and a pen and notebook. Done. Simple. I love it.
Below is what the assembled station looked like for me today. I really like to do my activations from the bed cover of the truck if possible as it is more inviting to passerby people and gets me out of the truck. Once I found a clear frequency I dont really need to be right on the radio so I can set it a little out of the way like it is here and just have the key and notebook at hand for logging.
The location I chose wasnt really the best for someone not wearing headphones to be honest. I was right by the road (as you can see below) and didnt take that into consideration when setting up the station. If I had thought about it, I would have worn headphones to be able to hear as cars would pass by. Cars are a lot louder than I realized for some reason. Lol. Lesson learned, I wont make that mistake twice.
This little parking lot is about half way to the old entrance to the park (it is the first photo above) Sadly, most people never see this beautiful stone work done by the CCC back in the 30’s as the main road into the park now goes a different way.
I always try to back my truck into the parking space so the antenna is out of the way. This keeps little adventurers out of my radials and such. But it also lets me setup like you see here which is over to the side and out in the open. Below shows the logbook and the signal reports are kinda telling. Don’t reference mine, the first column, because I don’t have an S meter on this radio so I am just guesswork. The second column are my received reports and they show the bands were terrible.
Locations that are normally 599 both ways are barely getting in the log today. Still got it done though. Thanks for following along with my journey. Until next time…
72
WK4DS