[amsat-bb] Lake Superior Grid Expedition August 2010

[John Papay]

My 3 or 4 week grid expedition around Lake Superior is about
to start.  The planned date is August 2nd, however, a jury
duty summons may interfere with the departure date.  Hopefully
we will leave on time or a few days late.

The grids planned are:
EN28-29-36-37-38-39-
46-47-48-49-56-57-58-59-63-64-65-66-67-68-69-73-74-75-76-
77-78-79-83-84-86-87 and EO30 in both the US and Canada.

There will be FM and SSB activity, probably little CW if any.
This is a sightseeing trip around Lake Superior but I will do
my best to operate on the birds as much as possible.  We will
be camping in a tent most of the time.  Moving most every day
will make it interesting.

My XYL, W8ZJB, will be on the air only to work me if I have
remote access on the internet or cellphone.  She agreed to do
this but please don't call her for a contact.  She won't likely
respond except maybe to our son, KD8CAO.

Doug will be the point of contact for anyone wishing to get a
message to me during the trip.  I don't anticipate much cellphone
coverage while we are in Canada.  The planned route is on my
website:  http://www.papays.com/sat

If you have specific requests, please email them to me and I'll
make a list and will be sure to look for you when I am in the grids
you need.

The station is a TS2000, dual band Alinco for SO-50 and AO-27 receive
only, G5400b, LVB tracker, SatPC32, Arrow 7x7 UHF with relay switching
between horizontal and vertical and a 5 el Mosley, vertically polarized
for 2 meters.  I have a Mirage UHF preamp to help cut down on the coax
loses.  All of this is in a F150 pickup.  Other than orienting the
antennas north, everything is computer controlled and operating in the
rain is not a problem.  Backup is my Kenwood V7A mobile with a neck
strap, a 7ah UPS battery, the Arrow II antenna, digital voice recorder
etc.  We may do a backpack to Isle Royale with this setup if time
permits.

As always, I plan to qsl everyone I work on this trip.  If you do
send an SASE, please wait until the end of the trip and include all
of your qso's on a card or sheet of paper.  I anticipate that all
passes will be recorded.

I look forward to giving out a lot of needed grids.  Hopefully the
equipment will work well throughout the trip.

73,
John K8YSE