W1AA International Marconi Day Operation, Marion, MA, April 23, 2022

W1AA Marconi Operation, April 23, 2022Henry Brown, K1WCC, posts on Facebook:
 
K1WCC operating as W1AA at the Marconi Transmitter Building in Marion, MA on April 23rd for International Marconi Day.
 
I was able to make 100 QSOs on 40 and 20 meters in short order, using 100 watts and portable antennas.
 
A great operating location, no audible or RF noise issues and a big thank you to Frank, the owner of the building, who kindly allowed me to use the parking area for my operation.
 
 

KD1D Fox is On the Loose Again in Westford, April 22, 2022

Alan Hicks, KD1D, writes on the NEMassFoxHunters list on April 22, 2022 at 6:45 PM:
 

I placed the KD1D Fox in a Westford location.   It is operating on 146.565 MHz with an output of 50 mW and the same 30 second message as last year, repeating every 60 seconds. I expect to retrieve the fox around noon on Monday. 

It should be a relatively easy find if you start from the Norman E. Day School on East Prescott Street (near the intersection of East Prescott and Town Farm Road).  If you’re not a local, be advised that East Prescott turns into North Main Street without warning a few hundred feet down the road.  North Main is not anywhere near Main Street, by the way.  If you choose this starting point, you will see a separate parking area for the John Gagnon Trail.

An alternate starting place is from the Blanchard School parking lot off of West Street.

A map of the area can be found at:

https://westfordconservationtrust.org/tws_holding/kissacook-hill-trails/

Happy hunting  and 73 de KD1D, Alan!

New England QSO Party, May 7-8, 2022

New England statesTom Frenaye, K1KI, writes:

The New England QSO Party on May 7th and 8th is a great time to check out antenna systems and offers a moderately paced opportunity to work new states and countries. You’ll find a wide variety of participants, from newcomers to experienced contesters, all interested in making contacts with New England stations.

Our goal is to get every one of the 67 counties in New England on the air so we hope you will encourage your friends to join in the fun! Even if you can join the fun for a couple of hours, we’d appreciate it! Will you be QRV? Let us know with a message to info@neqp.orgNew England QSO Party on May 7th.

Last year we had logs from 947 stations from around the country and world.   

The full rules are here -> https://neqp.org/rules/

The full 2021 results were posted last month – https://neqp.org/2021-new-england-qso-party/

It’s just three weeks until the 2022 NEQP.  Please get on and make some QSOs even if you don’t want to send in a log!

Thanks!

73 Tom/K1KI

A Two-Fox Hunt in Carlisle, April 9-10, 2022

Eliot Mayer, W1MJ, writes on NEMassFoxHunters and Waltham ARA lists:

Two foxes will be transmitting this weekend (April 9-10) from Greenough Land in Carlisle, MA.  This conservation area is only 15 minutes from the center of Westford and 25 minutes from beautiful downtown Waltham. The parking lot is more-or-less across the street from 811 Maple Street. If you come from Route 3, Maple Street is actually the same street as Treble Cover Road, so it’s a straight shot 2 miles from the highway.  A map of Greenough Land is available here:  https://www.carlislema.gov/DocumentCenter/View/805/Greenough-Land-Trails-Map-PDF

Both foxes will be on the air from Saturday at 9:30 AM until Sunday at 5:00 PM.

Call  / Frequency   / TX Power

K1MJC / 146.565 MHz / 15 mW
W1MJ  / 147.54 MHz  / 5 W

VARA HF Modem Group License Purchase

Gregory Kenley, KC1NRJ, writes on the Boston Amateur Radio Club list:

For those of you interested in VARA HF Modem for Email and VARA Chat, we’re considering a group purchase to save some money. Buy a full speed license for a one-time fee of $69 (single license) or $55 (>10 group purchase).  The slow speed is about 10% of maximum speed.
 
According to Greg, “First come, first served. We just need ten hams to grab a quick 10-pack license and save close to $20 each.”
 
 
 
 

Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net – Monday April 4th, 2022 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater System

Hello to all…

The April Eastern Massachusetts ARES section net will be Monday April 4th, 2022 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater system.

For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site detailing the repeaters that will be linked in through Hub 1:
https://mmra.org/repeaters/repeater_linking.html (Click the ARES box to see the repeaters and other systems linked)

We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net. We will have several announcements on upcoming events.

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 508-346-2929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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Massachusetts RACES Nets – Monday 4/4/22 for HF, Region 2D VHF, NBEMS & Winlink – Times and Details Below

AB1PH-Don Rolph writes:

For Apr, Monday Apr. 4 is the first Monday of the month, and will be the date for the MEMA RACES nets.

The Races nets will be held on Mon Apr. 4 at:

********************************************************************************
The HF net will start at 6:45 PM EDT: using the following frequency plan:

We will start at 3930 KHz moving up to 3955 KHz until there is a clear frequency,

Marc Stern WA1R will be net control.
*********************************************************************************
Region 2D VHF net: please note sector 2D net will be on Sharon Repeater

7:30 PM EDT VHF net on 146.865 MHz PL 103.5 (Sharon Repeater)

We will have a general call up of any RACES, ARES, or other interested stations. If there is time, we will have a simplex test.

Jim Repetti WJ1R will be net control.
********************************************************************************
HF NBEMS net:
7:00 PM EDT

Dial Frequency: 3584.5 MHx
Center Frequency: 1500 Hz
Initial mode: THOR22

We will have checkins,followed by an ICS-213 format message using FLMSG..
Alan Richards WA1AR will be net control.
*********************************************************************************
Winlink Net:

To participate:
– create a checkin form using the Winlink standard checkin form
– send via winlink after 6 AM EDT Mon. Apr 4 and before 0000 EDT Apr 5 (any mode, but include mode in checkin form) to AB1PH
– Tues I will create the checkin report and send to all of you
*************************************************************************************

We look forward to you checking in to any or all nets!

73,
AB1PH
Don Rolph

Eastern Massachusetts Hospital Net – Saturday April 2nd, 2022 at 1000 AM EDT

John O’Neill-K1JRO, South Shore Amateur Radio Group writes:

Good evening,

This coming Saturday the South Shore Health Amateur Radio Group will hold an Eastern MA Hospital Net commencing at 10AM. We realize that the regular locations for some groups are still unavailable due to ongoing COVID restrictions.

We encourage those effected to use their home or mobile stations to check into the net.

We will use the following repeaters and systems in the order listed.

1. Plymouth Repeater 146.685 tone 131.8
2. W.Bridgewater Repeater 146.775 dcs 244
3. DMR – EMHN Talkgroup 8851 Time Slot 1 on select NEDECN repeaters: NEDECN – Boston, Hingham, Bourne, Dennis, and Martha’s Vineyard repeaters
(The MV repeater is currently disconnected from the network).
4. Falmouth Repeater 147.375 tone 110.9 Hz
5. Simplex Test on 147.420

NET Protocol: Please wait for Net Control to ask for Check-ins. When asked to check in please use the standard net check-in procedure which is: Here is.., un-key, wait 3 seconds to check for doubling, then give your or your facilities call sign, your first name, and your facility’s name.

We extend an invitation to any health care facility or EOC of any city or town that is served by one of the participating hospitals to join the Net. We also extend an invitation to any RACES or ARES member to check in during the NET.

We are always looking for groups or organizations to try their hand at Net Control duties. If you are interested in trying your hand at Net Control please let us know. We can be reached by sending an email to ssharg@outlook.com or replying to this message. The goal is to rotate Net Control practice and the experience among as many individuals and groups as possible.

We thank the repeater trustees for their generosity in allowing us to conduct these monthly nets and the use of their systems in an actual event.

We hope to hear you Saturday.

John O’ and the SSH group
K1JRO – W1SSH

K1MJC Fox is On the Loose in Waltham, March 27, 2022

Mike Cormier, K1MJC, writes on the Waltham ARA list and NEMassFoxHunters list at 2:43 PM on March 26, 2022:

Yes, the K1MJC Fox is out first time for 2022!

I checked the weather, supposed to rain Saturday afternoon, but Sunday is supposed to be nice and decided to put it out on a Lark, perhaps Sunday maybe a bit chilly in the 50s.

The fox is in “Storer Conservation area” within the City limits of Waltham, MA.

I’ve decided to try out the “Delayed Start” feature, and set it to begin transmitting 12 hours later, so it should start transmitting or around 2 am and should be active all day Sunday. I also water-proofed it so a little rain this evening should not hurt it.

As usual, it will be retrieved before sundown Sunday.

There is no logbook with it so you could just post to the IO group if found.

The map on this page would prove useful!

https://walthamlandtrust.org/trail-guides/

NOTE: Perhaps in the near future, Eliot and I will put out tandem foxes, and the proposed location tentatively would be the “Greenough Conservation Land” in Carlisle MA.

Happy hunting!

Mike C. K1MJC 73

[Oops… forgot to mention, the fox is transmitting on 146.565. -Mike]

Additional Operators Sought for K2H Massachusetts 13 Colonies Special Event Operation, July 1-7, 2022

Larry Krainson, W1AST, writes:

Each year from July 1 through July 7 the 13 Colonies special event stations are on the air. The goal is to work all 13 of the colony stations plus the extra bonus stations. This is a fun event that hams of Massachusetts are part of. 

The call for Massachusetts is K2H. Team K2H is looking for a few additional ops to activate K2H during the 7 days of the 13 Colonies special event station.

If you have ever wanted to be on the receiving end of a DX pileup, this is a fun way to do something very similar.

Last Year the Team K2H ops worked 15,265 stations. We are aiming to beat that this year due to much better band conditions.

Would you like to be a part of Team K2H?

We’re looking for hams that can commit to operating at least 5 of the 7 days and work at least 500 contacts, which is very easy to do.

You can operate SSB, CW, Digital or Satellite. 

All logging must be on a computer program that can export an ADIF file format.

If you would like to join the team or learn more, please contact: Larry, W1AST, at:

W1AST@arrl.net

The last day to sign up is June 9th 1st.

Larry, W1AST

  • ARRL WMA ACC
  • HCRA President
  • Visit my Ham Radio club website at: www.HCRA.org
  • Team K2H – 13 Colonies Massachusetts State Manager
  • Project Big E 2022 Organizer

Army MARS to Reach Out to Amateur Stations For Reception Reports

Tom Kinahan-N1CPE, US Army Military Auxiliary Radio System, writes:

ARMY MARS to reach out to Amateur Stations for Reception Reports

Due to current events, the BBC has resumed shortwave broadcasts into Ukraine and Russia. In order to improve Amateur to MARS communications, MARS stations will be requesting to see if amateur stations can provide a reception report for these BBC transmissions. The BBC broadcasts are :

Frequency English Broadcast
15730 kHz 1300-1500Z
5875 kHz 2000-2200Z

The request is to see if you can hear any of these daily broadcasts, and get your report to a MARS station near you. MARS stations for their part will be reaching out on normal amateur frequencies, using their amateur callsigns. You will be asked for your callsign a signal report, time and frequency of the report, and your city and state.

The signal report can take the form of: Good Readable, Readable, Poor, Unreadable. If you listened, but didn’t hear anything, we want to know that with an Unreadable report.

The end result will be for stations to learn if their stations can receive these international broadcasts, to indicate a possible need for station improvement.

The exercise will last through March 25, but if you have gathered some reports, please don’t lose them, and send them after that time, to me by email, if you were unable to identify a local ARMY MARS station.

Let’s have some fun with this! Thanks for your support.

Tom Kinahan
US Army Military Auxiliary Radio System
Region One Director
aaa1rd@usamars.us

W1MJ Fox Will Be Deployed in Belmont, March 20, 2022

Eliot Mayer, W1MJ, writes on the NEMassFoxHunters list:

This Sunday, March 20, we are expecting partly sunny weather with a high near 53F in Belmont, MA.  I will deploy the W1MJ 5-watt fox in the Rock Meadow Conservation Area in Belmont from 9:30 AM until 5:30 PM.  The fox will transmit frequently on 147.54 MHz.  Information about this fox is available at http://w1mj.com/fox

The Rock Meadow parking lot is at 248 Mill St, Belmont, MA.  This is approximately 30 minutes from Westford per Google Maps.  If the lot is full, parallel parking on Mill Street is allowed.  Due to the rain expected on Saturday, please come prepared for mud in some parts of the meadow.

Per our online meeting over the winter, I will do another deployment at some point at Greenough Land in Carlisle, which closer to Westford.

73 DE W1MJ

CAARA Emergency Communications Group Hosting a Disaster Go Bags Presentation – Tuesday 4/5/22 at 7 PM at the CAARA Clubhouse

KB1PGH-Dean Burgess, Cape Ann ARES Emergency Coordinator, writes:

We will be hosting a meeting of the Cape Ann Amateur Radio Association (CARA) Emergency Communications group on Tuesday April 5th, 2022 at 7 PM at the CAARA Clubhouse on 6 Stanwood Street in Gloucester Mass. We’ll be discussing how to create disaster go bags. Everyone is invited to bring their own disaster go kits down and to show them off as well.

73,Dean-KB1PGH
Cape Ann ARRL/ARES Emergency Coordinator

KA1ULN 10-Meter Beacon QRV

Niece Haynes, KA1ULN, writes on the PART of Westford mailing list:

Happy PI day.

My  10m  beacon is  up and  running.   28.2235 MHz. If you can   copy/spot it  please  let me know.

This is a  two-year  project  I have been trying  to get together and it is  finally working.

10w  28.2235     Cushcraft  AR10  vertical    15wpm  KA1ULN/B

33/73,

Niece

The Great Hill Gang “Still Going Strong”

Established in June, 2020, the Great Hill Gang meets monthly at the summit of Great Hill in North Weymouth for a “Day of Radio.” It was started by a handful of local amateurs who were active on the Quincy 146.670 repeater. They decided to meet for coffee at the summit of Great Hill, which overlooks the Boston Harbor Islands. The group continued to meet once a month–even during the COVID pandemic. They adhered to official Massachusetts guidelines; they kept proper social distancing, wore masks, and maintained records of all participants.

“The group has grown over time,” says Mike Antoine, K1UVH.  “We started to set up tables, chairs and canopies, and offered a fellowship to other amateurs and guests.”
 
The “gang” celebrated its first anniversary at Field Day in 2021 by holding a cookout.  
 
An important goal of the group has been to provide assistance and mentor others on topics like: antennas, portable power, the use multimeters, antenna analyzers, SWR/ power meters, and just sharing ideas. Mike is proud of the fact that the group has welcomed not only brand new Technician licensees, but also “Amateur Extra class hams who haven’t been on the air in years.”  
 
The group’s QTH–the summit of Great Hill–affords an excellent view of Boston Harbor, and north as far as Cape Ann and beyond.  “We’ve made contacts all over the world, as well as just down the street–and on all bands,” K1UVH says.
 
Mike is known by many as the group’s official greeter and “welcome wagon” to ham radio.
 
“What a privilege it’s been.  I could not have pulled this off without the help of a close core group,” says Mike. He gives credit to: Mike, NA1XX; Steve, K1SEH; Scott, N1KMX; and Joe, WB1EMS. 
 
The Great Hill Gang will hold its next gathering on Saturday, March 19.
 
 

Boy Scouts Klondike Derby Ham Radio Demo, Milton, March 12, 2022

UPDATE:
 

Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in participating in this weekend’s radio demo at the Milton Klondike Derby. Because of the forecast, I’ve pulled the plug (word choice intended) on the demo. It’s supposed to rain all day, which 1) won’t be fun for the operators, and 2) means that there will be a lot of cold, wet Scouts who will likely be more interested in getting warm and dry than in engaging with us.

I’ll keep my eyes and ears open for other opportunities to hold similar demo events for Scouts in the future.

73,
Tom KC1OCY

 
Tom Ulrich, KC1OCY, writes:
 

The Scouts BSA Great Blue Hill district has expressed interest in having a few hams on hand to provide a demonstration of amateur radio during their Klondike Derby event at New England Base Camp in Milton on March 12, 2022.

We will be operating under the special event callsign W1BSA. (Thank you to Pi K1RV for use of the callsign.)

The base camp is in the Blue Hills State Reserve (K-8402); as such this event could count as a POTA activation.

If you’re interested in participating, please fill out this sign up sheet, including whether you’d like to attend and operate in person or monitor the airwaves for calls from the event. Details are still being worked out with the derby organizers, including the number of operators that they’d like to have attend; please don’t be offended if in the end we have more hams interested than can be hosted.

If you have questions, send them my way.

73,
Tom, KC1OCY
===
Thomas R.M. Ulrich
thomas.rm.ulrich@gmail.com
+1 (617) 571-8650
KC1OCY / WRCU734

Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net – Monday March 7th, 2022 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater System

Hello to all…

The March Eastern Massachusetts ARES section net will be Monday March 7th, 2022 at 830 PM on the MMRA Repeater system.

For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site detailing the repeaters that will be linked in through Hub 1:
https://mmra.org/repeaters/repeater_linking.html (Click the ARES box to see the repeaters and other systems linked)

We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net. We will have several announcements on upcoming events and also update the strong wind and possible severe weather potential for tonight in our area.

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 508-346-2929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://www.wx1box.org
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Eastern Massachusetts Hospital Net (EMHN) – Saturday 3/5/22 at 1000 AM

John O’Neill-K1JRO writes:

Good evening,

Tomorrow South Shore Health Amateur Radio Group will hold an Eastern MA Hospital Net commencing at 10AM. We realize that the regular locations for some groups are still unavailable due to ongoing COVID restrictions.

We encourage those effected to use their home stations to check into the net.

We will use the following repeaters and systems in the order listed.

1. W.Bridgewater Repeater 146.775 dcs 244
2. DMR – EMHN Talkgroup 8851 Time Slot 1 on select NEDECN repeaters:
NEDECN – Boston, Hingham, Bourne, Dennis, and Martha’s Vineyard repeaters
(The MV repeater is currently down).
3. Attleboro Repeater 147.195 tone 127.3
4. Dartmouth Repeater 147.000 tone 67.0
5. Falmouth Repeater 147.375 tone 110.9
6. Simplex Test on 147.420
7. Return to W. Bridgewater Repeater for Comments and Net Closing.

NET Protocol: Please wait for Net Control to ask for Check-ins. When asked to check in please use the standard net check-in procedure which is: Here is.., un-key, wait 3 seconds to check for doubling, then give your or your facilities call sign, your first name, and your facility’s name.

We extend an invitation to any health care facility or EOC of any city or town that is served by one of the participating hospitals to join the Net. We also extend an invitation to any RACES or ARES member to check in during the NET.

We are always looking for groups or organizations to try their hand at Net Control duties. If you are interested in joining the group please let us know. We can be reached by sending an email to ssharg@outlook.com. The goal is to rotate Net Control practice and the experience among as many individuals and groups as possible.

We thank the repeater trustees for their generosity in allowing us to conduct these monthly nets and the use of their systems in an actual event.

We hope to hear you tomorrow.

John O’ and the SSH group
K1JRO – W1SSH

NE1PL Special Events, April-May, 2022

NE1PL QSL cardFrom Massasoit ARA “MARANews” February 2022:

NE1PL USTNR

We will be on the USS Massachusetts April 23, 2022 remembering The Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II.

May 14th 1000-1400 Armed Forces Day activation: We are looking for operators for this event. This is in addition to our four annual events. I don’t have all the details at this time. Please email me if you can make it. kb1tee@gmail.com.

Thank you,

Rick