QRPTTF at Profile Falls
April 2013
This afternoon Dick N1LT and I headed to Profile Falls in Bristol
for the annual QRP to the Field
event. What a perfect day we had... lots of contacts... dazzling
scenery, even a little break for tea
and cake!
We set up right at the edge of the Pemigewasset River not far from
where the Smith River enters
the Pemi from Profile Falls. This year's theme for the QRP to the
Field event is historic trails. This
spot fit in perfectly. There are TWO historic trails here. We were
only several hundred yards from
the old Northern Railroad route between Franklin and Bristol and
just a little farther from the old road
that ran between the two New Hampshire towns. Both have been out of
service since the 1940's when
the Corps of Engineers took over the area for flood control.
We ran two separate stations. Dick set up about 70 feet from me. He
operated in my VW camper with
an FT-817 and a Par End Fed 40, 20, 10. I don't have his log,
but he worked a dozen or so stations on
20 meters in about an hour and a half of operating.
As shown in the first picture, I set up on a picnic table in front
of the river. I ran a K2 to a 21 foot
piece of wire (half wave on 15M) tuned with an Elecraft T-1 tuner. I
operated almost exclusively on
15 meters. The band was sparse, but now and then a strong station
appeared and I was able to work him.
Here's my log for the event.
Date UTC Freq Call Mode MY His QTH Name
-------------------------------------------------------------
27 Apr-13 1753 21.023 RA2FF CW 599 599 Russia
27 Apr-13 1758 21.061 AA5CK CW 559 599 OK Ted
27 Apr-13 1802 21.062 N7KE(?) CW 439 559 WA
27 Apr-13 1808 7.034 W2M CW 599 599 NY Morse event
27 Apr-13 1820 21.037 AA4PP CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1825 21.060 WT5RZ CW 229 559 NM Ron
27 Apr-13 1828 21.009 HB9BMY CW 599 599 SOTA
27 Apr-13 1830 21.029 WD4AHZ CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1833 21.033 F6FEA CW 569 599 France Didier
27 Apr-13 1920 21.034 K4LQ CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1925 21.017 I2TAO CW 559 599 Italy
27 Apr-13 1930 21.057 DF2GN/P CW 559 559 SOTA Germany Klaus
27 Apr-13 1937 18.073 WT0S CW 579 599 ND Don
27 Apr-13 1944 18.077 TM0SI CW 599 599 Sein Isl
It's a mix of DX, SOTA, FL QSO Party and a couple of QRPTTFers. My
QSO with
Didier F6FEA in France lasted more than 20 minutes and I received a
very cordial
email from Didier. He was most patient with my weak signal!
About three quarters of the way through the afternoon we stopped for
a quick cup of tea
and some lovely orange cake that my wife sent along with us. I had
brought along a gas
stove, a pot, and some cups and plates. What a wonderful treat.
Before packing up, we went across the road to Profile Falls. It's a
popular swimming hole
in the summer. A bit cold right now!
Dick and I have operated this event together at least 4 years out of
the last five. It's something
we look forward to each year with good reason. Thanks to Paul NA5N
for putting the event
together.