By John KK6GUK
Hello, Coos County Hams. I’m writing to share a little bit of my recent experiences with “Parks on the Air.”
POTA & 1st Park Activations
For some of the new hams in the club, congratulations on joining this awesome hobby. I’ve been a ham since 2013, and in May 2024, I finally passed my general @ SEAPAC of all places, opening up a whole new world to ham radio. And I did jump in with both feet.
One of the biggest things to do in our hobby is Parks on the Air (POTA). Along Summits on the AIR( SOTA), this is a get outside and play. Today, ( Well, it’s been a while now), I have been asked to write about my recent experiences with submitting new parks and doing a 1st time activation of that park. In the future, we can write about the POTA subject, IE, equipment, time to go, awards, logging/spotting, hunters/activators. But for now, let’s stick to new parks.
Back in June, my wife wanted to spend a weekend together and go drive down the south coast, particularly south of Bandon, down to Gold Beach. The goal was to make a nice, easy drive and just stop along the way if anything interesting popped up. For me, I was game; my goal was to stop and see some of the POTA site, and maybe activate if I could. My wife is supportive of the hobby ( Her call is KI7GOE), and she is also interested in some areas. This led to the idea of a new park.
New River BLM Special Recreation Management Area – US 12462: South of Bandon. One of the requirements for a park is that it has to be a state or federally managed park. I have been curious about the New River of possible kayaking floats for some time, and we stopped to check out this area. Right off the bat, big sign, BLM. No other federal agency manages this area. I made a mental note to check the POTA website that evening. Long story short, I emailed the Oregon mapping connector, Charlie, and we had an email exchange back and forth. Next, I knew it was a park, and he waited until I was back in Oregon to make active. I kinda figured activating a new park for the 1st time is a rare event, and since Gary ( N6BLU) has been so helpful, I told him about what I did. So we set out to do the activation.
I planned to get there, scout out the area more, and try to talk to someone there to introduce myself, the hobby, what POTA is and promotes, and most importantly, what I can use for equipment, specifically antennas, and placement. No one was really around. So I plan a setup that does not include throwing a wire into a tree or a spike into the ground ( some places do not allow either). My setup was simple. I was gonna use a 20M vertical dipole I had cut and made myself, and my backup was my end-fed half-wave ( EFHW) chalk line antenna on a 38 ft mast and the balun on a buddipole tripod and mast. Radio-wise, I was gonna use my FT 710, BUT I FORGOT MY POWER CORD!!!! Well off to N6BLU shack to get his EMCOMM kit, and we used his radio. Success! 30 contacts, all on 20/40 meters.
South Slough Reserve State Park Preserve US-12510. I was surprised that this had not been submitted already. But going to the website, I noted that the state of Oregon does manage it, so again I emailed Charlie, and was quickly approved. I did get to talk to the staff @ the visitors center, and this is a place where nothing goes up into the trees or into the ground. The parking areas are small, so a small footprint is needed, but @ the south end of the park, where people launch paddle boards/kayaks from is a little space off the side of the road to set up. My setup was pretty easy at this point: my trusted and true EFHW, Mast, Buddipole tripod, and mast. And since it was a POTA Support you Parks weekend, we ( my wife was there in support) got a total of 60 contacts between the 2 days ( The time will be saved for a different post).
Since then, there have been 2 more parks submitted and activated by club members. Even down in California, I submitted 4 new parks, 1 was initially rejected, but after research was approved, and I recently activated it ( the highlight was getting all the way to France!!!). Another was approved and is currently waiting for the park number to be active. 3rd was rejected due to being managed by both BLM /USFS, and the last, I am waiting for a response, but I expect it to be approved. Each POTA park has things to see, and it joy to be able to go and get fresh air, relieve stress, and learn ham radio. I look forward to more POTA adventures.
John Edwards ( KK6GUK).
Coos County Radio Club 