Running for the Bacon

Today is St.Patrick's Day, and also today we have the "Run for the Bacon" CW sprint.  This sprint has been sponsored by the Flying Pigs QRP Club International for over 20 years now.  In it's heyday there would regularly be over 100 participants.  Over the years, participation has slowed down some, mainly due to the club not being as active as it once was. QRP is still very popular and we still have new member requests every week.  The club currently has just shy of 4900 members from all over the world.  

Club Founder Diz W8DIZ

We were hit with some very bad news this month when we learned of the passing of Dieter "Diz" Gentzow, the club founder.  Diz was a great guy, patient Elmer,  designer and purveyor of kits and parts for hams all over the world.  He and his beloved wife Nancy owned and operated kitsandparts.com for many years.  

With this news, efforts are being made to revive the club to a more active level, and tonight was the "Run for the Bacon Sprint".  I admit this is the first sprint I have participated in for many years, but I had a lot of fun with it, and I plan to make this monthly sprint a "must do" item on my calendar. 

I'd like to thank Dan Shepherd N8IE, and Jim Sheldon W0EB, for taking the bull by the horns and getting the website and the domain for the Flying Pigs secured.  We are all working on the website a little at a time to try and modernize some of the features, as well as stir up more interest in the club and club events. 

Check out the Flying Pigs QRP Club International.  One of the first virtual clubs on the web!

1. No Dues

2. No Rules

3. Just Fun

If we find something broken, we fix it. 

72 es OO de KB9BVN

Brian Murrey FP -57

Revisit - Brown County State Park

Today we set a new record.  The record high temperature for March 13 was set in 1995 at 70F degrees. Today, March 13 2024 we hit 76F degrees, smashing an almost 30 year record.  Interestingly enough, the coldest March 13 was in 1960 at 0F degrees...man am I glad that record didn't get smashed today! 

So I hadn't been to Brown County State Park since last October, I got off work a little bit early and headed 50 miles south of home to activate this park, known as K-2251.  I found a good place to operate from and got setup, and was on the air by 5:15PM.  I started out on 20m, running 14.061 Mhz for about a half an hour. Then moved to 40m on 7.065 Mhz for about 15 minutes.  I did manage to work Bill K4NYM down in Florida, he was at a park on 17m 18.089 Mhz, for a surprise Park to Park contact. 

Lookout Fort at North Gate- I operated from this area

Brown County State Park is the largest state park in Indiana, it covers a little over 16,000 acres, includes two lakes, campgrounds, a firetower, nature center, swimming pool, horse stable, mountain biking, hiking ranging from mild to rugged, and there is a nice Inn on the property with a sit down restaurant.  Located just outside Nashville Indiana off State Road 46.  

My view from my operating position - looking north

Firetower

If you ever get out this way, you'd really enjoy spending a day shopping and sightseeing in Nashville, and visiting the park.  The next time I come I will bring some charcoal and grill some burgers and dogs.  They have grills and picnic tables all over the park. 

I was on the air about 45 minutes total, managed to log 21 contacts, of which two were other parks. Not a bad afternoon.  I wanted to get home before it got dark, so I packed up the POTA mobile and headed north. 

I did not get any European or South American DX today, the band seemed a lot weaker than it was yesterday, but I forgot to note the propagation index numbers to compare.  I need to try and do that in the future so I can make legitimate comparisons. 

The firetower is open to the public, and if you are so inclined you can climb up to the top level and see for miles and miles in all directions.  This is the highest point in the park, I think, and the DNR has a lot of antennas up there on top.  I did not climb the firetower, I did forty years ago and it was quite a sight. 

Here is the map of my contacts tonight.  I was running about 8 watts

My QSO Map from Brown County State Park

Until next trip!  

73 de KB9BVN

Revisit - Stone Arch Lake and Chapel

Wow, another great day for getting outdoors. It didn't make it to 70 today but it got really close. Beautiful sunny, clear sky, and the best part is daylight savings time is in effect now so it is staying lighter later.  This is a good thing for after work POTA adventuring. 

So this afternoon I head back to Atterbury again, on a week night it is hard to beat since it is just thirty minutes from home.  The next closest park for me would be either Morgan Monroe State Forest K-4215, or Brown County State Park K-2251,coming in at 50 minutes each depending on which way the wind is blowing. One way. 

I decided to run over to Stone Arch Lake on the south and west end of Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area. I hadn't operated from there in about a year.  There was only one fishing boat in the water so I pretty much had the whole place to myself. 

Stone Arch Lake is the second biggest lake in the Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area, coming in at 25 acres, compared to 63 acres at Pisgah Lake.  According to the Indiana DNR stocking database, Stone Arch was last stocked in 2022 with 450 Channel Catfish.  It could use some help. It's beautiful, but not sure the fishing is that great. 

Stone Arch Lake - looking to the west

Stone Arch Lake is also next to the POW Chapel.  The Chapel was built by Italian POW's during WWII.  Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area used to be part of Camp Atterbury, which is still in existence just south of this location. The Camp served as a POW camp for Italian prisoners. 

Catholic POW Chapel built in 1946 by Italian prisoners

Today instead of the little AX1 antenna, I decided to deploy the Eagle One hitch mounted vertical.  This antenna collapses down to about 48 inches, I have been using it for the last  three years and it has done a great job.  Here's a picture of what the hitch mount looks like. I have two 30 foot radials clipped on the bracket holding the upright.  These make tuning on 40 meters, a breeze. 

Eagle One Hitch Mounted to the POTA Mobile 

I was running the KX-2 at 8 watts, Morse Code, and using the 3d printed paddles I got from Bruce N9DBJ.  They are taking a beating and they keep on working!  Started out on 20m frequency of 14.060 Mhz and was able to work coast to coast and up in to Canada.  Didn't get any European stations this evening.  Here is a map of where my signals were heard and worked.  

Contact Map for this outing - 20 contacts

So that's about it for today, weather supposed to be great again tomorrow, so I may try to get out and do it again after my work is done.  I can hear my grass starting to grow...UGH.  Spring is a week from today, can't get here fast enough.  

72 de KB9BVN

(72 is for low power 73's) 

Almost Spring!!

 

First good day above 70 degrees in the Hoosier Heartland!! GO POTA! 

So here is it Monday,the 4th of March and we're getting a beautiful top notch Spring like day, even though Spring is still fifteen days away.  As soon as the workday was over I got in the POTA mobile and headed to Pisgah Lake, located in the Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area, AKA K-4183. 

Pisgah Lake - 63 Acres in Atterbury Wildlife Area 

Pisgah Lake is 63 Acres in size, has a concrete boat ramp and you can access it from the north side or the south side of the lake.  At one time a very long time ago there was a bridge that linked the north side to the southside, but it has been gone for at least 50-55 years.

This lake is stocked by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and you will find Crappie, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Largemouth Bass, and two or three varieties of Bullheads.  

The best time to fish here is in the early spring, by June the weeds are pretty thick and the bugs will carry you off into the woods and chew on you for days.  This evening I setup my station in the parking lot next to the boat ramp. 

Trail through the woods, over to the dam

The view from my operating position 

Earth Dam at Pisgah Lake

Tonight I setup the KX-2 radio and the AX-1 antenna, with a single 14 foot radial draped over the POTA Mobile.  Something was not working well as I could not get the antenna to properly tune for the 20m band.  So I packed up that antenna and broke out the 33 foot tall portable vertical antenna, the Eagle One. I deployed that with two 35 foot radials made out of 18g speaker wire (zipcord).  It was able to tune the radio and antenna just perfectly. I was running 8 watts tonight. 

I started out working other parks on 20m, these are called Park to Park contacts, and that means I am in a park and they are in a park.  The first of five parks were VA3KOT at a park in Ontario Canada, AB9CA at a park in New Mexico, N9MM at a park in Texas, KL7AC at a park in Arizona, and then KE5AKL at a park in New Mexico.  The band was working great to the west.

About that time a DNR ranger SUV pulled up and two of the park rangers and I chatted about radio and fishing, and how nice the day was for about a half hour.  They were surprised when I showed them my gear and explained that I had contacted hams in Europe, the Caribbean, and South America with my little antennas and 8 watts of power.  They told me to come by the dispatch office and show them how to do it because they can't hardly talk from one end of the property to the other at times.  I explained I was using shortwave frequencies, and they were using VHF or UHF...which is line of site, and doesn't penetrate trees very well.  Not sure it sunk in but we had a good chat and then they moved on.  I ended up with 10 more contacts, furthest was Washington State. 

This is my first POTA outing of the month.  March is always a crapshoot for weather around here.  It's March 4th today, Indiana has already had two EF1 tornadoes, one near Gary Indiana this weekend, and one near Jeffersonville Indiana about a week ago.  Forecast for tomorrow is everything from light  showers, to heavy thunderstorms, with high gusts, and potential for severe weather all afternoon.  I hope to have four more parks activated this month, and with daylight savings time returning next weekend, that'll give me more daylight at the end of the day so maybe I can get out and work from some other parks.  Atterbury is just super convenient to me, being less than 30 minutes away from home. 

73 de KB9BVN