Who knew…
…this is where ham radio would lead me? Isn’t it just a communication hobby??
KM1NDY
A Secret Little Adventure Ham Radio Blog
…And That’s How We Won Winter Field Day 2023
Winter Field Day and I are somewhat tentative companions. Some of you may remember the blizzard (2022), the caboose (2021),or perhaps even the bone-chilling downpour of 2020. So when K1SU sent around an inquiry about plans for WFD 2023, I was mixed. I had already concluded that due to the hardiness factor needed to tackle …
Just Another Lonely Spot…
Me, hitting the Reverse Beacon Network for Summits-On-The-Air of Overlook Mountain (W2/GC-112) in the Catskills of New York with a raging CW speed of 12 wpm at 6W.
The Oscilloscope Diaries: One Man’s Trash Is Another Woman’s Broken Toggle Step Attenuator
With a reputation for putting out strong signals, a friend of mine came across an irresistible way to get me to tone it down…a Pasternack 0-82.5dB toggle step 1W attenuator. An ebay purchase from a dude who spelled ham “amatuer”. I pounced at the opportunity. So, while it was being trucked across the country, I …
Easy Step-By-Step DIY Arduino Morse Code Decoder For CW Ham Radio Operators
As I mentioned on here before, I have been studying both the arduino and electronic circuits. The 48th video in Paul McWhorter’s youtube series on arduinos interfaced with an LCD display. While following the tutorial and watching my inspirational messages such “Hello World” and “I like pizza” transfer from the desktop arduino IDE to the …
The Monadnocks Are (Fortunately Not Really) Killing Me Part 2: The Real Monadnock And SOTA Winter Bonus Points
Spontaneous winter hiking when you live in Boston is not really a thing. With the sun setting almost as soon as it rises and the nearest sizeable mountains minimally 2 hours away if the traffic is at all reasonable, its not easy to sleep in on a weekend, wake up, and decide over a leisurely …
A Quick Hike Up Mount Norwottuck For Summits-On-The-Air (W1/CR-004)
AA1F and I met up with Nolan N2WU for a quick hike up Mount Norwottuck. Well, they were quick. I stayed at my usual turtle pace. Nolan activated CW with the KX2. AA1F set up his Yaesu FT891 and made QRO contacts And I operated 6 whole watts with the Yaesu FT817nd with CW and …
The Monadnocks Are (Fortunately Not Really) Killing Me Part 1: North Pack and Pack Monadnock SOTA
About a month ago, AA1F, Nellie (our dog), and I drove up to the northern terminus of the Wapack Trail to hike North Pack and Pack Monadnock. I convinced AA1F to leave the HF rig at home and we would use our trusty Yaesu FT-4X HTs with a homemade slim jim antenna and the Venus …
The Cheapo Evolve III Maestro PC Now Runs Linux Mint…
I figured if I was going to destroy a perfectly good computer…it might as well be a $60 one…
Where Are The Ladies Of Ham Radio?!
These are waters I do not swim in on this blog. But there was an international news story today that got under my skin. A despicable example of gender apartheid where women (girls) are being systemically denied access to any formal education whatsoever. Coincidentally, amateur radio’s national association sends out this month’s issue of its …