Category - Blog

MM0NDX/P Col  will use GM5A during the IOTA contest.  MM0NDX/P outside the contest.
St Kilda is a much needed IOTA counter for many. Particularly Japan. It is nearly four years since the last activation.

Due to its very challenging location, the main island of Hirta (where I will be based) has an extremely difficult take-off to the North, North West and East. Infact, generally any direction!

Restrictions mean only an antenna at maximum height 30ft (10m) may be used.  A yagi type antenna is most definitely not allowed nowadays. [bird impact – there are over a million seabirds on St Kilda !].

A 1000ft sea cliff towering over Village Bay certainly won’t help matters! I shall try my best for all areas.

St Kilda Archipelago has been claimed by 35.9% IOTA participants.

• QTH locator: IO75RT
• Islands of Scotland Award (IOSA) OL02
• WAB: NF19
• SCOTIA: D123
  World Flora and Fauna Reference St. Kilda (National Nature Reserve) Ref. No GMFF-061.

Please note, I’m the sole radio operator in a group of five. Won’t be on 24/7, but will try my best!
MM0NDX/P QSL Via M0URX Log will be uploaded to my logsearch after the activity.
Col has built a website especially for this activity you can see more information at: http://eu059.wordpress.com/
MM0NDX/P QSL is sponsored by United Radio QSL Bureau.

Unfortunately this expedition by Col was cancelled due to rough seas around St Kilda. Two weeks later the captain of the vessel has informed Col, that he has still not been able to get near St Kilda at any time since the proposed activity.

This week John 9M6XRO unveiled his callsign for the Lesotho expedition from July 27th to August 13th 7P8OK will be “On Air” using CW RTTY SSB. John will be in a team operating from The Trading Post Lodge in Roma, Lesotho, as part of the African DX Safaris Expedition. 

7P8OK QSL Via M0URX – QSL Direct or Via Bureau However I will not accept incoming cards Via Bureau. ALL BUREAU QSL requests must be made Via email to [email protected] This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   or Via my QSL request form in the left menu. I fully support the Bureau but incoming cards are not required for 7P8OK or 9M6XRO and we would like to reduce Bureau costs by doing this.

Log will be uploaded to Logbook of The World (LoTW) immediately after the expedition. The Online Log Search for 7P8OK will be live after the expedition.

Please follow my instructions and your QSL will arrive in good speed!

7P8OK QSL is sponsored by United Radio QSL Bureau.

GW/IOTA EU-124 – The Strumblehead DX and Contest Group have now sealed the final permission to activate Ramsey Island (EU-124), off the West Wales coast, from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds who own the island. They will be active from 18:00 24th July through to 14:00 27th July taking in the IOTA contest. 

We will be active using the club call MC0SHL for the whole duration of the operation, and using MW9W in the contest. They will be on all bands from 80M through to 10M SSB. There is also some 30M RTTY planned by G1VDP if the other guys allow him, with participation in the last 80M Club Championships DATA section. 

We will be operational using generators as power. Radios used will consist of 2 K3’s and a Yaesu FT1000MP MkV and amplifiers. Antennas will consist of 2 x Hexbeam, a windom and dipoles. Most of the activation is for the WAB award scheme as the square is semi rare and has not been activated for some time. 
The team will be on from the farm for a few days before and after using the GB0WFF for the World Flora and Fauna award see http://www.wff44.com for award details, and using the MC0SHL club call and erecting a tower for Rob MW0RLJ. The island will not only count for the WAB award but will also count for the WFF award.
World Flora and Fauna Reference for Ramsey Island is GWFF-072 and for the Club house on the Pembrokeshire Coast (Farm) is GFF-015.
A special QSL card printed for both club calls, full details are on the groups website http://www.mc0shl.com  QSL via the groups manager M0URX.
This IOTA QSL card  is sponsored by United Radio QSL Bureau.

This IOTA expedition has permission from the owners of the Island the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

You may remember that Steve 9M6DXX was recently in New Caledonia with his wife Eva celebrating their Silver Wedding Anniversary. Here is the special QSL card out soon!
FK/G4JVG QSL is sponsored by United Radio QSL Bureau.

I have been asked many times to register with eQSL, which i did for a couple of years but i was so annoyed by a constant stream of emails some quite nasty from eQSL users that i decided that it was time to remove my details from eQSL. Despite email correspondence between myself and eQSL i find that it is not possible to remove any of my details from the eQSL website which I feel breaks all data protection regulations. As a consequence of this I still receive a constant stream of emails from eQSL users. eQSL have refused to remove my email address and refused to understand my concerns about the constant stream of rubbish being sent to me from their website! Am I the only one to experience this? You tell me?

A very beautiful QSL arrived today from the team of E44M Palestine operation from January 2009. Below you can see the front and back of the 4 sided QSL card. 273 DXCC Confirmed so far… still a long way to go!

I received today the QSL card from the Desecheo Island DX’pedition K5D, below you can see the front and back of the QSL card. QSL Via N2OO. My DXCC total now stands at 272 confirmed.

Today’s email from John 9M6XRO includes some photographs taken today at the Borneo Amateur Radio Club of East Malaysia. John explains “I took these photos ‘up the hill’ today when we were working on the ants. One shows Rahim 9W6RHM up the tower working on the Cushcraft A4S beam. Another also shows the 100ft tower behind the clubhouse. There are various VHF repeater ants mounted on it plus the 160-80-40m trapped dipole. Unfortunately we cannot get the trapped dipole all the way up as there is a family of mynah birds nesting right at the very top and they dive bomb any climber who starts to get anywhere near them! Mynah’s CAN talk but they have not entered into any negotiations so far (hi).

The other photo shows the view from the foot of the tower looking towards KK. We are up a fair height, unfortunately that’s why we keep getting struck by lightning! The top of the hill has a flat area of about 200′ square and slopes away quite dramatically on 3 sides. The road up is not for the faint hearted as it is narrow and with deep potholes that come and go, and land slips in heavy rain are not unknown. I have been ‘trapped’ up there on occasion due to the WX.
John has taken part in this weekends CQ WPX CW Contest and the log has now been uploaded to LoTW.