The Seahawks Soar Edition
The Nosey News Hawk is flying a little higher this week — partly from strong thermals, partly from a certain football outcome that shall not be over-discussed. 🏈
Let’s get to the parks…
📡 70cm POTA? Yes, in Norway!
Kjetil LB4FH reports that during the Norwegian Hammeeting next weekend, there will be a 2m/70cm POTA event right outside the venue from 12:00–13:00Z.
A brand new park. VHF/UHF. P2P potential.
Microwave dreams, anyone?
We love seeing POTA stretch beyond HF comfort zones. Norway is about to light up the spectrum.
🌍 A New Recruit from ZS Land!
Patty W6AZO reports a lovely transatlantic QSO with Peter ZS1PZ in Cape Town on 7.153 MHz at 04:13 UTC.
The big news?
Peter now plans to join POTA and activate from South Africa soon.
Expansion into ZS activations is exactly the kind of global growth that makes this program sparkle. Welcome aboard, Peter — we expect wildlife photos with your activation logs. 🐕
👩🦰 YL POTA Party – March 7 in New York
Mark your calendars!
📍 Pineway Ponds Park – Spencerport, NY
🗓 Saturday, March 7
⏰ Starting at 9 AM
Angela N3ARB and Matt K2EAG are hosting a YL POTA Party in celebration of International Women’s Day. Portable stations, food, operating, mentoring, and an entire lodge full of radio energy.
You do not need to be licensed to participate.
Love this. More of this.
RSVP: brown@brownbuffalo.com
(And yes — check the PN&R Calendar for updates!)
🚤 AA8UP’s Isle Royale UP-pedition
John AA8UP has confirmed ferry reservations to Isle Royale National Park (US-0039).
Six-hour ferry. Nine days camping. Remote island magic.
Current stats for US-0039:
- 39 activations
- 447 QSOs
- 255 CW QSOs
He promises SSB too so hunters can get in the log.
📅 July 17–25
This one is going to be a logbook prize.
📊 Board Update: The Numbers Are Wild
Kevin W1DED shared a snapshot of POTA’s momentum:
- 85,000+ parks
- 236 DX entities
- 84,000+ registered operators
- 10,200 unique parks activated monthly
- 15.2 million QSOs in 2025
- Nearly 53 million total logged contacts since inception
Growth of 43% in QSOs in two years.
That’s not a hobby plateau. That’s velocity.
💘 Romance on the Airwaves – N8VFR
David N8VFR activated from Twin Falls State Park, WV on Valentine’s Day.
His valentine wanted hiking.
He wanted POTA.
WIN. WIN.
89 QSOs including CA, WA, BC, Quebec, Bahamas — and his first contact was N9VFR (almost missed him!).
That’s how you do a holiday.
🇧🇦 E77PY Breaks Phone Record
Esad E77PY (N5PYY) activated BA-0160 Oaza Protected Area under special call E7POTA and set a new phone record:
🎙 140 QSOs in one activation.
The Spanish POTA crew continues to raise the bar. Records in February? We’re just getting started.
🎯 KD4MZM Hits 10,000 QSOs
Eric KD4MZM finished his 10,000th QSO milestone at US-1904 Myakka River State Park.
This is his fourth park reaching 10K.
Bands: 20m, 15m, 17m
Modes: FT4 / FT8
25 watts into Hamsticks.
Precision. Persistence. Processed logs already uploaded.
Professional work.
🦌 LA1RQ First Activation – Stor-elgen
Espen LA1RQ first-time activated NO-3327 Stor-elgen.
16 QSOs. Two P2Ps.
Simple. Clean. First activation posts are some of the best posts.
Welcome to the activator ranks!
🇫🇰 VP8TM – Falklands Incoming
Martina and Thomas will operate as VP8TM from:
- FK-009 (Feb 23–24)
- FK-0008 (Feb 25–27)
If you need Falklands POTA in your log, now’s your moment.
Mark it. Spot it. Chase it.
🎉 KN4AL’s Third POTAversary
Jason KN4AL celebrated his third POTA anniversary.
850 activations.
500 unique parks.
That’s not a hobby — that’s a lifestyle.
🚗 Black River ARC Multi-Station Rove
The Black River ARC (K8BRC) will conduct a multi-station rove Feb 21:
- One data station (FT8/4, no identifier)
- Two SSB stations using /# for spotting
Coordinated roves continue to evolve. Nice to see clubs experimenting.
💻 New Hunter App – CAT Control Testers Wanted
Discord user phorcys released a Windows-based open-source hunter app:
Features:
- Click-to-tune (hamlib supported radios)
- POTA + SOTA spots
- Distance to activator
- Auto “scan” seek button
Looking for testers on IC-7300, Xeigu G90, and others.
If you enjoy beta testing and breaking things (Perry… 👀), this might be your playground.
💪 AC1UR Back on the Air
Leasa AC1UR returned to the air after wrist surgery.
First time back since January 22. Plated. Screwed. Casted.
But on the air.
That’s the kind of resilience we like to see.
📻 Orlando Hamcation
Hamcation is underway and the POTA presence is strong.
Scott W3GTR squeezed in a Warthog Rove while attending:
Five Florida parks.
All QRP CW.
101 QSOs total.
We expect more reports next week.
📅 Submit Your Stuff!
Got an upcoming event?
📬 calendar@pota.news
Park correction or update?
📬 parks@pota.news
Hot tip, rumor, record, or radio gossip?
📬 tips@pota.news
The Hawk sees much… but not everything.
Until next week…
Stay portable.
Stay loud.
And remember — some birds migrate.
Others win championships. 🦅🏆
— The Nosey News Hawk
