K2FR Mountain Top QRP fun. Mt Beacon NY 1500+ feet elevation FT-817

I woke up this morning, and felt the need to earn my day. I started out early and hiked hard. make it to the top in no time and hung around fooling with the equipment just kinda enjoying the view and playing with the radios.

I did not get as much time playing with them as I would have liked, but that's ok the PA qso party going on kinda had every frequency filled up, and I just decided to sit around and enjoy the view and not worry so much about calling CQ.

I absolutely CANNOT wait to do this again! Im looking forward to my next adventure

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• K2FR
• QRP
• Yaesu
• FT-817nd
• Mountain
• top
• CQ
• Ham
• radio
• VX-8R
• APRS
• FT-817

[saspgmer]

I agree ~ Can you connect your Yaesu VX-8R to that di-pole? curious to see how that would sound.

[KC2UOO]

I could I suppose, but FM work is vertical polarization and having a horizontal dipole would probably not pickup much if anything .

[raccoonnyc]

If there is QSO party going on, why not just join in? Contests are good sometimes for QRPers. I like the CA QSO party. It's fun to see what you can do with a few watts coat to coast. Most contesters by the second day are anxious to work anyone.

Good video.

Tom, ak2b

[KC2UOO]

Hi Tom,

I had been working the contest from home the day before and had forgotten what my serial number ended on. I wanted to play but didnt want to screw up logs by not having the appropriate serial for the other stations.

[chichimus]

I just dusted my 817 off and was out in the backyard playing around. I'll have to fine tune some kit and get and do the same as you.

I've a small netbook I can drag along, maybe do some digital...

nice video :)

[KC2UOO]

Yeah, I was on the back porch getting it setup before heading up there, but even that didnt prepare me for what happens when your on the mountain. It certainly was fun and looking forward to doing some other peaks in the area.

[Karl036]

Great video..

73..Karl

VK7HDX

[maurilucca]

nice nice radio

[steveinkentucky]

Beautiful day... Great location. Nice to make some contacts, but perfectly great day either way. Sort of like flyfishing. Nice if the fishies bite, but nice to be there anyway.

[48alfaone]

Very cool, even Howard Armstrong himself may have stood there thinking about FM? Thanks!

[redman840]

Tom,a video of actually making contacts might stoke a bit more interest for non hams.Nice to show others what QRP HF rigs can do with simple wire antennas.Dipoles or inverted "V" antennas makes the most sense for this.I would try to make some type of standoff on tower for antenna and get it higher above ground to make antenna work better.Maybe near top of tower.A vertical would not be practical on a peak like this due to losses in near and far fields of antenna radiation.73 Dennis/W7KB.

[zookie85]

Climb that dang fire tower and throw the antenna up there, dont have to stay up there if it is unsafe, just antenna. LOVELY spot, wish I had some like that in ohio, I dont have a clue where I could get a spot like that within 150 miles... Too bad for the contest, its like listening in on city phone lines, lol...

[fleebus090]

when i was about 7 years old (1981) me and my mom walked up to the top of mt beacon. about half way up, in the forest, there was an abandoned, half way burnt down house. I went in and had a look. it was pretty spooky. kinda like blair witch style. I wonder if its still there. if anyone else has ever found this place, it would be cool to hear about it.

[ab8xx]

Operating HF portable is awesome.

Something you may want to try is a vertical antenna. It would give you a lower takeoff angle of radiation and may skip over PA next time hi hi.