FT-817nd QRP 1W: QSO with EA8JK

Lithuania (LY1G) on 17m

On this video I make a QSO with Lithuanian station LY1G (Stasys) on 17m SSB from a bench in a public park in Acea de Ama.

Stasys has a ver impressive station, featuring a 3-element UltraBeam yagi and a 1KW amplifier.

I think he must be an active SOTA chaser, because I recall several QSOs with him when I was activating summits.

Yaesu FT-897D with internal antenna tuner: First test

I this video you can see the first test of my new project: a Yaesu FT-897D with an internal antenna tuner.

I intend to use this as a table-top portable radio. This is not intended as a backpack transceiver for SOTA operations in adverse conditions. For that purpose, I have opted for my FT-857 manpack, which is smaller and lighter.
Thanks to Robi and Ernesto (EA1LQ) for the help with the construction and tests.

Island of Antigua (V25WY)

This is a video of a QSO with teh Island of Antigua on 17m SSB. Bob W4OWY and Tom AA9A were active as V25WY and V25AA respectively from Antigua between February 14 to 22, 2012. They were on 160 – 10m, SSB, CW and maybe RTTY. QSL via bureau or direct to home calls.

Antigua was first settled by Archaic Age hunter-gatherer Amerindians, erroneously referred to as Siboney or Ciboney. Carbon-dating has established that the earliest settlements started around 3100 BC. They were succeeded by the Ceramic Age pre-Columbian Arawak-speaking Saladoid people who migrated from the lower Orinoco River.

Bonaire (PJ4J)

This is an eQSL of a QSO with Bonaire station PJ4J on 17m SSB. OS1T (ON4CIT) was active from Bonaire Island, 27 October - 9 November 2011 as PJ4J.

The Caribbean island of Bonaire, together with Aruba and Curaçao forms a group referred to as the ABC islands of the Leeward Antilles, the southern island chain of the Lesser Antilles. The name Bonaire is thought to have originally come from the Caiquetio word 'Bonay'. The early Spanish and Dutch modified its spelling to Bojnaj and also Bonaire, which means "Good Air".Bonaire was part of the Netherlands Antilles until the country's dissolution on 10 October 2010,[5] when the island (including Klein Bonaire) became a special municipality within the country of the Netherlands.

Carba (EA1/LU-038)

This is a video of the activation of Carba (SOTA reference EA1/LU-038). It was so windy that it is hard to understand the audio sometimes.

This was a difficult activation beacuse the amateur bands were crowded because of the CQ WPX contest. That is why I chose the 17m band instead of the usual 20m band.

Bailadora (EA1/CR-038)

This is a video of the activation of Bailadora (SOTA ref. EA1/CR-038). I made several contacts in VHF (EA1AQ, EA1DFP and EA1BTO) and HF.

It was foggy so you could not see the great view. I will definate be back with better conditions for you to have an opportunity to see the great view from up there.

Alto do Moradal (EA1/LU-024)

This is a video of an activation of Alto do Moradal (SOTA ref. EA1/LU-024) that I made on Christmas day.

It was a total of 6 QSOs using my FT-897 manpack with a 2.9m whip, all of them on 17m SSB.

Pedestrian Mobile with FT-857 manpack: Bens

This is a video of a pedestrian mobile QSO with Serbian station YT1E (Rod) on 17m SSB. I was using my FT-857 manpack, featuring a 2.9m whip and an SG-211 antenna tuner. The battery is NiMh and the power 20W.

The video was shot by Anca (YO8SOY) and the audio was recorded from my car's station.

Testing the FT-857D manpack: Beiramar

Here are some videos testinf my light Yaesu manpack. The first QSO was with Germany (Mike, DB1JAW) on 17m SSB. I didn't get a very good signal report because the band was not in very good shape.

Here you can see a demonstration of how easy it is to use the automatic antenna tuner, the SG-211 by SGC:

On this video you can see a very good QSO with the Canary Islands (Jean, EA8/ON5JV), on 20m SSB.

Finally, a QSO with Scotland (Kevin, 2M0ONW):

All the QSOs were made with 20W, a 2.9m whip, and a single wire as a counterpoise.

O Teso (EA1/LU-029)

These are some videos of my activation of the summit O Teso, SOTA reference EA1/LU-029. My first QSO was on 17m SSb with the United States immediately after I switched on the station before I had time to start the vide recording. My second QSO was with an avid SOTA chaser, Quique, EA1DFP, on 17m also.

It was getting dark so I tried the 40m band. The result was a QSO with Patrick (OM1XQ) from Bratislava, on 40m SSB.

My next QSO was with Fred, CS7/PD0HNL, from Algarve on 20m.

Here is the nice eQSL I got, which means my 72nd country confirme for my eDX award.

Before leaving I made some repeater QSOs on 2m FM with Julio (EA1UP) and Juan (EA1AQ).

By then it was completely dark.

Pedestrian mobile with Paquito, Man-Paquito

These are some videos of my new light-weight backpack radio. It is made out of a Yaesu FT-857D. The whip is 2.9m long and the antenna tuner is an SG-211. Thebattery is home made out of 4Ah NiMH cells and the power I was using was 20W.

The battery is a home-made 13.2V NiMh battery and the antenna is a 2.9m whip of military origin. My first QSO was with Canadian station VE2JCW on 20m SSB when I was tuning my antenna, before I could start the video recording.

The second QSO with IW3RUA from the North of Italy was on 17m SSB, and I was delighted to get such a good signal report.

The final QSO with the Czech Republic was slightly more difficult, but the new little manpack behaved like a champion. Test passed!

Pico Ribón II (EA1 LU-028)

On Christmas Day I went with EA1AQ to activate Pico Ribón (1051m) and I made 17 QSOs on 17m SSB. On this video you can see a sample.

As you can see, it was a very productive activation. Overall, I am very satisfied with the performance of my manpack.
Special thanks to HA7UG, DL3JPN, and all the other colleagues who are always ready to help with an activation.

United States from the summit of Formigueiros (EA1/LU-002)

This is a video of a QSO with American station K8CW from the summit of Formigueiros, for the Summits On The Air (SOTA) programme. That day I was accompanied by my friend Robi, who recorded the QSO.

The weather was good but it was starting to get colder, and this was a really good QSO. Just in time before the camcorder's battery died.

Activating SOTA EA1/CR-028 (Monte Francoi)

Today I went with Ernesto (EA1LQ) to activate Monte Francoi for the Summits On The Air programme. The summit was far away from the road so we had to carry the radios for half a mile or so, with spiny gorses and slopes up to 100 per cent. But in the end it paid, as you can see on this video featuring a QSO with EA8UP (Chano) from the Canary Islands:

We made five QSOs each on the 20-, 17- and 15-metre bands, with countries such as Italy, Germany, Greece and Israel.

Activating Torre de Hercules lighthouse (SPA-276)

Today I was activating Torre de Hercules lighthouse on the 15-, 17- and 20-metre bands. I made a total of 26 QSOs, mainly with European stations.
The Tower of Hercules (Galician and Spanish: Torre de Hércules) is an ancient Roman lighthouse on a peninsula about 2.4 kilometers (1.5 miles) from the centre of A Coruña, Galicia, in north-western Spain. The name of the town that hosts the lighthouse Corunna is said to be derived from the Latin columna, meaning "column". Until the 20th century, the tower itself was known as the "Farum Brigantium". The Latin word farum is derived from the Greek pharos for the Lighthouse of Alexandria. The structure is 55 metres (180 ft) tall and overlooks the North Atlantic coast of Spain. The structure, almost 1900 years old and rehabilitated in 1791, is the oldest Roman lighthouse still used as a lighthouse.
The Tower of Hercules is a National Monument of Spain, and since June, 27 2009 the Tower of Hercules is also considered an UNESCO World Heritage Site.[3] It is the second tallest lighthouse in Spain, after the Faro de Chipiona.

Croatia (9A3WL)

This is a video of a very nice QSO on the 17m band with Croatian station 9A3WL (operator: Milan).

I made this QSO on my summer QTH with 20W and a short whip antenna, whereas he had 300W and a yagi beam.

Sicily (IT9PQO)

This is a QSO with a Sicilian station IT9PQO (Tony) on the 17m band from my summer QTH.

I was using the 2.4m whip with my Yaesu manpack's internal antenna tuner.

Moldova (ER3ZZ)

This is a video of a difficult QSO with the Republic of Moldova on 17m SSB. At a given point I decided to replace the 2.4m whip with a longer 4m whip to see if I could get though.

The effort paid off because this is not an easy DXCC entity to work, and despite the fact that I have worked Moldovan stations in the past, I still don't have that country confirmed for my eDX award.

Greece (SV2MAP)

Yesterday I was on he countryside and I made several contacts with my Yaesu manpack. This one is with Greek station SV2MAP, from Ptolemaida, on the 17m band.

Ptolemaida (Greek: Πτολεμαΐδα, Ptolemaïda, Katharevousa: Πτολεμαΐς, Ptolemaïs) is a city in Northern Greece. It lies in the prefecture of Kozani, which is part of the periphery of West Macedonia. It is known for its coal (lignite) mines and its power stations.
According to archaeologists, the Ptolemaida region has been occupied since 6000 BCE. Prehistoric jewelry found in Ptolemaida. Archaeologists, in November 2005, discovered the remains of two farming villages dating back to the Neolithic period. A press report notes that such farming villages were trading centres and had a "developed knowledge of metalworking".
A golden necklace dating to roughly 4500 BCE was discovered on February 16, 2006. Associated Press reporter Costas Kantouris describes the item as a "flat, roughly ring-shaped [which] probably had religious significance and would have been worn on a necklace by a prominent member of society."
Lately in the lake Zazari near Ptolemaida there were found 16 houses that belong in the Neolithic era due to archaaeologists. These houses were in the lake and were exposed because of the decreased water level of the lake. That particular small settlement gives information about the society and the people in the Neolithic era.