Its been a while since my last activation so last Sunday Myself and friend Steve 2E0OWI hiked up the hill at Kingley Vale Nature reserve to activate GFF-0212. I used my go-to portable setup consisting of a Yaesu FT891 and a Slidewinder Antenna. We planned to kick off at around 09:00 but whilst looking for a clear frequency I heard a call out from Ivan VK4XS and ended up having a 5 minute chat with him with a nice 5-8 report both ways. After that we kicked off the activation and ended up with 82 in the log.
So today I attempted to connect to the International Space Station using APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System). Using my handheld radio Yaesu FT3D and a YAGI antenna (Diamond A144S10R2) on a tripod with 5 watts of power. It was a very low angle pass and I didn’t expect to connect, it was more of a practice session for the up and coming higher angle pass of which yielded more connections.
I used an app called Star Walk 2 to track the path of the space station and roughly follow it with the antenna.
ISS coming into view.
Much to my surprise I received a message back from CT1EBQ which read ” Gretings M0NRG-7 loud and clear from Cacais PT 73, QSL ask oitaven@ct1ebq.com” .
There were plenty of stations in the station list on the radio ranging from Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria and of course RS0ISS.
You can go to http://www.ariss.net/ and check whether you have been seen by the ISS.
Replying to a message on the handheld is not quick as you need to select each letter on the little touchscreen and you are limited by the pass whilst trying to keep the antenna in line with the ISS. Maybe some kind of predefined message where I just need to edit the Callsign can be prepared. Time to RTFM 🙂 or maybe hook up a laptop and software.
(EDIT: I have now setup some pre-defined messages that can be added to a message quite quickly. I will report back in the next ISS APRS post)
APRS ISS a first for me today. Space the Final Frontier 🙂
If you have words of wisdom please comment. Nige M0NRG
On Sunday I popped out with Stephen to GFF-018 Southdown’s National Park to complete his 6th brass monkey activation. It was pretty chilly with a northerly breeze that cut right through you. But nethertheless Brass Monkey was the name of the game. Steve had previously managed 28 QSO’s so the 24 he picked up this time meant goal achieved. 52 in total, 44 for activation and a few for good luck.
We spotted a few Red Kites but they were quite a way off, the one below dropping its payload.
So the pressure for the Brass Monkey award is off now for both of us but these are the first of many WWFF activations and /P radio activities..
So for my last Brass Monkey activation I went to Langston Harbour where I set up at the very end of Farlington Marshes. My Friend Neil M0CJM drove down from Basingstoke to sit in on the activation. Neil and I both passed out Radio Amateurs Exam (RAE) as it was known back then in 1996 I think :-). The weather was overcast and there was quite breeze coming from the SW. I carried in all of the radio kit in a new 5.11 Molle back pack which was being used for the first time so this was a bit of a test, I will detail this on the Ham Radio page soon. I took my usual portable Yaesu FT891 along with my trusty slidewinder antenna. I started off on 20m moving on to 40m with over 70 QSO’s in the log in just over an hour. A well spent afternoon off of work.
Another WWFF activation day. This time we were out looking for two activations for Stephen 2E0OWI to complete his Brass Monkey award #5 & #6, GFF-0358 Weadlen Heaths and GFF-0018 Southdown’s National Park. He managed the 44 plus QSO’s for GFF-0835 but not quite there for GFF-0018, so another visit before the end of February will be in order. During the activation we spotted a Great Spotted Woodpecker, well just about, it was high up in the canopy of the trees and I had to thread through the branches and twigs with the long lens. Not a great shot but managed to get a glimpse. With the first activation over and done with within the hour we then decided to go for activation number 2 which took us to the Southdown’s National Park. As we approached the point chosen for the activation the drizzle started to come in with a bit of a temperature drop but compared to some of the temperatures we have endured this year it was pretty mild. Here we spotted a number of Red Kites, again these were some distance away but the long lens proved handy again. And of course we had the company of the obligatory Robin.
Today my friend Stephen 2E0OWI and I visited Gilkicker Point on the south coast over looking Solent to activate GFF-0289. Today was my fifth activation of the required six towards the Brass Monkey award. Kicking off on 20m around 8:25 I had 76 in the log 50 minutes later with a bonus park to park contact on 40m after having a little tune around. The weather was the warmest we have experienced since starting the Brass Monkey back in December. Warm sun on your face, sitting on the beach looking out to sea, what more could you want on a Sunday morning.
The picture below shows the locations of the stations that I worked today.
At the end of the 50 minutes I was glad to take a break and have a cup of tea 🙂
Today I went along with my Friend Stephen 2E0OWI to activate GFF-0010 New Forest National Park for his #4 Brass Monkey activation. We found a spot within the park and setup. It was a bit of a grey and chilly day but not as cold as some of the previous Brass Monkey activations that we had carried out. A good morning was had with Stephen logging 50+ QSO’s for the activation. Whilst Stephen was working away on the radio I took the opportunity to have a little bimble and take a few snaps.
For #4 Myself and Stephen 2E0OWI visited GFF-0359 Short Heath Common. It was a cold frosty morning which presented a white sheen across the landscape along with a frozen lake. We spent the morning here eventually getting 65 QSOs in the log. After the obligatory bacon sarnie and cuppa we moved on to a second location where Stephen setup for his own activation.
For Brass Monkey #3 we activated the Basingstoke Canal GFF-0292. I was joined by some fellow Hams 2E0OWI Stephen and M0CJM Neil. The rules for this one is that you basically have to be as close as possible to the canal, on or near the tow path. As previously mentioned you need 44 QSOs (contacts) for an activation, this was a hard slog with just 55 in the log.
The GxFF Brass Monkey Activators Award is about getting out and activating 6 different GxFF references during December 22, January 23 and February 23, this is 2 refences a month.
Brass Monkey #1 and #2 was GFF-0119 Beacon Hill and GFF-0126 Old Winchester Hill in Hampshire. 11 December 2022 2 activations in a day.
