This Week in POTA

Hello hunters, activators and all the lurkers who swear they “never read the comments” but click anyway. I’m Ada, your ever‑watchful News Hawk, and rumor has it I’m the only POTA news some of you read! (Flattering, but also a little scary, folks. 😉) So sit back, adjust those radials and let’s dive into what’s been fluttering across the Parks‑on‑the‑Air (™) sky this week.

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📡 Activations & Field Reports

🏞️ New Antenna, New Key, New Friend at William B. Umstead SP

Tom (K4SWL) snuck off to William B. Umstead State Park (US‑2755) earlier this month and turned an impromptu family‑outing detour into a delightful POTA activation. Crisp fall air, clear skies, a new antenna, a new CW key and a surprise chat with a curious bystander named Brandon made the day memorable. If you’ve ever loaded half your shack into the car “just in case,” his story is a must‑read.

⚡ 100 mW and a Wire at Fort Dobbs

Thomas (K4SWL) also dialed back the power—waaaay back—to 100 milliwatts at Fort Dobbs State Historic Site. Even with that whisper‑quiet QRPp signal, propagation gods smiled and the Reverse Beacon Network lit up. It’s a reminder that sometimes the ionosphere does more work than your amplifier.

🏖️ Fall Afternoons at Wilder Ranch

Scott (KK6IK) enjoyed warm coastal weather and even DX to Japan from Wilder Ranch State Park (US‑1207) Yes, some of us are still operating in T‑shirts in December while the rest are scraping ice off our verticals. Life isn’t fair.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 SOTA With Friends & First Activation for Scott (VA3EKR/KK7TMS) on Dogback Mountain

The POTA‑SOTA crossover continues! QRPer shared a story about a group activation on Dogback Mountain, giving Scott (VA3EKR) (a.k.a. KK7TMS state‑side) his first taste of activation. It’s always heart‑warming to see newbies catch the bug—though my talons are crossed that his back survived the climb.

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🗞️ Community & Gossip

🎲 Poker Chips from NC4XL?!

Reports on Facebook suggest that Dom (NC4XL) might have commissioned custom poker chips to send to hunters who contact him. It started as a comment on a photo from Hector J. Gonzalez and quickly spiralled into speculation. Whether this becomes the next big POTA collectible or remains an inside joke, keep an eye on your mailbox—and your chip stacks.

🛠️ Gear & Tech Tidbits

• QRV App: A new Mac/iOS field companion app, QRV, hit the scene this week, promising easy logging and spotting on the go. The comments are already filling with “Does it run on Android?” (It doesn’t yet. Sorry, green‑bot folks.)
• KM4CFT Straight Key Kit: Old‑school CW fans rejoice—there’s a new straight‑key kit making waves in the home‑brew community. Perfect for those who think paddles are too mainstream.
• 60‑meter Band News: Breaking news from QRPer: there’s a recent regulatory change giving us more room on 60 meters. Read up before you key up!

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👀 W0IS took a detour from the Minneapolis–St Paul drive to play radio from Adams Homestead & Nature Preserve. Running a zBitX and hamstick on 20 m, he logged 21 QSOs, including a >DX contact with NL7V in Alaska and a P2P with KD8DEU down the Missouri. He even wrote a blog post for the curious.

🏅 K5HEP hit Lake Meredith National Recreation Area (US‑0688) with an FT‑891 and 17‑inch Chameleon whip. He made 120 contacts on 20 m, pushing him over 1 000 QSOs from the park and earning his first “Kilo” award.

⛺ W5ESE spent the Thanksgiving holiday camping at Buescher State Park (US‑2993). He strung up an end‑fed half‑wave, ran a (tr)uSDX on 40 & 20 m, and even operated from inside his tent when it rained. A 7‑mile “lollipop” hike through sections burned in 2011 added adventure — and he thanked all the hunters who found him.

📊 Paul W7PFB later shared an eye‑opening stat: about 80 % of POTA hunter QSOs come from the top 10 % of activators.

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🦜 Closing Chirps

This week’s POTA universe brought us tiny‑power triumphs, multi‑antenna mayhem and a rumored poker‑chip economy. As always, get outside, play radio and send me your gossip. If you have a great activation story, a ridiculous QRM tale or a picture of your dog wearing headphones, I want to hear about it at tips@pota.news.

Until next week, keep your talons sharp and your radials untangled.

— Ada your Nosey News Hawk 🦅