By Timothy Cates (KC1QDK)

I want to start by saying that I have a fantastic group of friends who are also ham radio operators. They have inspired and helped me in so many ways that I don't think they even realize it. I should remind them as often as I can because they truly mean a lot to me and have made a significant difference in my life. I also feel incredibly lucky to have the most understanding XYL (ex-young lady) on the planet, who joins me on all my crazy adventures and supports me in pursuing my dreams without ever running for the hills.

Last summer, I set up Camp Cates in Derryfield Park, Manchester, and invited GSARA members and Code Buddies to come for the Parks on the Air (POTA) contacts during the Summer Support Your Parks Weekend. The meetup was successful—many members and Code Buddies showed up, hunted POTA contacts, and some even received the Support Your Parks certificate for participating in the event. This made me think that we could organize a park meetup focused specifically on CW and POTA so that everyone could enjoy participating together.

Every night, the Granite State Amateur Radio Association hosts a nightly net, featuring different net control operators each evening. On Saturday nights, Bill Arcand (W1WRA) and Tom Perkins (AC1J), two of my Elmers, friends, and fellow club members, usually run the net. They present a question of the evening or share a “Tale from the Dump” (I can just hear Tom laughing right now), where we discuss a question or talk about interesting events at the dump. While it may seem quirky, it’s actually a very entertaining ham radio tradition for Saturday evenings. Anyway, that night, Tom posed the question, “Have you ever made a 160-meter contact?” As I listened to everyone chime in, I noticed that the most common answer was no, and I was among those who also said no.

That question sparked a sudden curiosity in me about the 160-meter band. I started by reading about the band and confirming that, as a General Class operator, I had privileges to operate on it, which I did. I learned that many people refer to it as the "Top Band" because it operates at the highest frequencies in our allotment, and it's also known as the "Gentleman’s Band," as it was historically reserved for those with higher-class licenses and was less chaotic than the lower bands. I began discussing 160 meters with my Elmers at breakfast on Wednesdays when we all meet at a café in Bedford for show-and-tell and to discuss various radio topics. I gathered more information about what I would need to get on this Gentleman's Top Band and see if I could join the “Yes, I have” club for the 160-meter contact question.

Then it hit me: I should think of a way to ensure that everyone could answer yes to the question, “Have you ever made a 160-meter contact?” But how?

From what I gathered through my reading and conversations with my Elmers and friends, I learned that the Top Band primarily opens at night and during the winter and requires a really large antenna. Beginning in September 2024, I started planning my equipment without having a specific event in mind. In typical amateur radio fashion, I purchased a 160-meter manual tuner and a new old stock dipole approximately 100 yards long. I set it aside, waiting for the plan to come together on how to get everything up in the air and functioning in a portable way.

The ARRL 160 METER CONTEST AND POTA

I will be setting up a 160-meter CW station equipped with an antenna and a straight key while activating Mount Monadnock State Park from Friday, December 6th, through Sunday, December 8th. A heated tent will be available for our use. I suggest that those planning to join bring a chair and dress warmly. Since I have secured a campsite, we are permitted to have a fire, so please feel free to bring firewood, as well as items such as s'mores or hot dogs to cook over the fire. I see this as a great opportunity to make some 160-meter CW contacts, especially since the ARRL 160 Meter CW contest will be taking place that weekend, providing plenty of chances for good CW exchanges, similar to POTA exchanges.

If you wish to stop by to say hello, enjoy some fresh air, or perhaps make some CW contacts (if you prefer using a paddle or a bug, please bring it, as I will only have a straight key), it should be an enjoyable experience. My tent is large, and I have a tent heater, ensuring a comfortable environment. I am looking forward to some enjoyable outdoor radio activities. Whether you are an experienced CW operator, a novice, or someone who has never made a contact, you are warmly invited to join us and either participate or simply observe what it entails.

This was the advertisement I wrote for the club’s website, and as you can see, POTA and the ARRL 160 Meter contest seem to be a match made in heaven. I had all the pieces to make this into a fun weekend of CW contacts, camping, and camaraderie. I can say I was not disappointed.

I booked our campsite for the weekend, planning to use it as a ham shack and recreation room. I also booked a room at the inn up the road to shower and take naps as needed. (The best way to persuade your XYL to go winter camping is to promise an easy escape to the inn up the road with a warm bed and a shower—hint, hint.)

Friday morning rolled around—the first day of the contest starting at 5 PM. It gets dark around 4:30 PM, and it was windy with temperatures around 20 degrees outside. It had snowed a few inches the nights before we arrived at the mountain. The campsite was snow-covered, and the road was chained off, providing no access. The only way in was via sled and about a 100-yard uphill hike through the snow. I walk with a cane and have mobility issues, so this sled hike with gear was not an option for me. My wife was willing to try it, but she didn’t look like she would be a very happy camper.

I went to speak with the ranger to ask if I could camp in the unoccupied pavilion instead (December has a surprisingly low number of campers on the mountain—mainly just us and someone else working at the headquarters). The ranger was very kind; he had a plow truck, and he cut the chain off the road, plowing a path up to our campsite so we could drive up and park right at the site. Kim and I thanked him repeatedly, and he reminded us that next year, if it snows, they will chain off that road again, so there may not be access.

Shout out to the park ranger—our hero!

Kim and I went right to work because the sun was setting quickly, and setting up a tent and a 100-yard wire antenna was no easy task in 18-degree weather with strong winds, snow, and darkness.

Our first task was the tent. It went up relatively easily; we put a footprint down on the ground to insulate it from the cold earth, then tied and nailed it down securely to keep the Arctic breeze from blowing it away. Next, we needed to get the antenna up in the trees. My friend Elmer, along with fellow club member Eric (N1JUR), lent me an air gun to shoot a line into the tree. Sounds easy, right? Unfortunately, when I shot the cork up, the line disconnected, and the cork disappeared into the snowy abyss. Kim and I searched high and low but couldn’t find it.

Luckily, I had brought an arborist bag that my wife had sewn for me out of an old corn hole bag, along with a wheel-bearing race and some rope (thanks to Bill (KE1G) for encouraging me to bring it, even though I had the potato gun). With that, we proceeded to raise the first leg of the 100-yard dipole about 60 feet up into the air, along a fifty-yard stretch of an unplowed dirt camp road near the mountain.

The second leg of the dipole was planned to be a Sloper, making it into an inverted sloping L, following the advice of my friend Bill (W1WRA). This leg extended directly out fifty yards into the forest, crossing what appeared to be a set of very large, fresh moose tracks in the snow. Thankfully, Bullwinkle never stopped by the camp—although we did spot Rocky a few times.

Once we got the antenna in the air, we brought the coax into the tent, and our Arctic mountain station was set up. With the buddy heater blasting, my Yaesu DX-10 was all hooked up with my favorite straight key (a NYE with the navy knob) that I received from Dennis Markell (N1IMW) at Nearfest a few years ago. I was thrilled to find that the rig tuned right up on 160 meters, and to my delight, the waterfall was filled with the beautiful sounds of CW—no open spots. I sat there from about 5 PM until around 10 PM, listening and making contacts from Maine to Florida. Operating on 160 for the first time was exhilarating; I felt like a kid with a new toy.

Kim was so tired that she fell asleep on the tent's cot, and I had to wake her up so we could head to the Inn for the night.

Saturday arrived, and I rushed to the camp bright and early to check if the 160-meter band was still active. As I expected, it was like night and day—most of the band was dead, except for a few lone stations tapping into the abyss.

Saturday is usually the day when my friends and club members gather at “The Barn” early in the morning to chat about radio business, share experiences, have coffee, and enjoy each other’s company. Throughout my life, I've never had early morning friends quite like my Ham radio friends; we happily rise early and come together for a great time.

I missed all this because of camping, but my friends wouldn't let me off the hook that easily. Casey (KC1NID) first woke us up at 5 a.m. with an urgent text, letting us know he was coming and offering to bring anything we needed. When Casey arrived, Tom (AC1J) connected with me on the repeater, and we managed to make a daytime sked contact on 160 CW—my first CW contact with Tom! This made me really happy, as I have always admired his CW skills. Although I’ve helped him as a logger and watched him operate, this was the first time I got to work him directly.

Soon after, Ralph (KC1TLY) and Brian (KC1SVS) stopped by to see me. They brought along the G-90 and a Buddipole. Ralph activated the mountain on 10 meters, while Brian brought Kim and me some fresh local apple cider and cookies and helped haul firewood, for which I am incredibly grateful. Then John (KB1ICL) arrived, set up his Wolf River Coil, and activated the park from his nice new truck.

After all the company had come and gone and the sun began to set, the Gentlemen’s band started calling my name again. The waterfall of signals lit up the air, and it was so thick with CW signals that from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m., it was difficult to tune in on just one signal. It felt like magic as stations communicated from Canada to Southern Florida, filling our little Arctic campsite with the beautiful sound of Morse code.

I eagerly hunted and pounced on as many stations as I could, activating the park a second and then a third time. As the Universal Clock changed from Saturday to Sunday, my park activations climbed to a total of three at the state park—one for each day of camping, all on the 160-meter band. This was a feat that had never been achieved before!

Sunday Morning, we got up early as possible and ran back to camp to see if we could make some more contacts and, in the meantime, I checked my E-Mail My Friend, Elmer and fellow club member Barry (NF1O) had sent me an E-mail the night prior because he heard me hunting and pouncing and tried to catch me but missed. I called him to see if he was still tuned up and he was but had already submitted his log. He said you can amend your log and would do so if I wanted to do a sked contact and I said please, so I did a contact with Barry (NF1O) and then Mary (NE1F) so happy to get my friends in Unity NH Their signal was very loud and clear too in Jaffery NH. So with Barry and Mary in the logbook Kim and I decided to wrap it up we took down the Camp Cates cooked one more meal on the fire (burgers then S’mores for dessert) then we headed back to the city with a feeling that we just did something really fun and accomplished something pretty remarkable and unique.

I say if you have a vision of something you want to do, just do one step at a time until you see it come into fruition. We only have one go around so do what makes you happy and surround yourself with people and things that inspire you to do your best and be your happiest self. I know that I may never be able to climb Mount Monadnock again like I have many times in the past, but with radio waves and the help of a 100-yard dipole a buddy heater, good friends, a very understanding and helpful XYL I can use my radio and a straight key to jump over the mountain.

73 everyone and thanks for being there

Tim

KC1QDK