🦅 THIS WEEK IN POTA
January 25, 2026 — Nosey News Hawk Edition
(ruffled feathers, light snark, full plumage)
🐗 Dan W6AAM Has a Date With a Warthog
If you thought five parks in a day was impressive, Dan W6AAM went ahead and made it official. One UTC day, five POTA entities, and boom — Warthog Award earned. 🏆🐗
For the uninitiated, the Warthog is not something you casually bump into while picking up milk. It’s proof of serious planning, endurance, and probably a slightly deranged look in the eyes by park number four. The POTA community howled its approval, and rightly so. Well done, Dan — that hog is earned.
🌵 K7TPD Is Officially Hooked
Welcome to the addiction, Tommy K7TPD! His first POTA activation went down at Saguaro National Park, and judging by the grin, there’s no turning back now. 🌞📻
First activation energy is real, folks — equal parts joy, confusion, and “wait… this actually worked?” Congrats, Tommy. We’ll see you out there again. Soon.
🛠️ Marcus W4BD MacGyvers His Way to a Q
No key? No problem.
Marcus W4BD, realizing he’d forgotten his CW key and moments from rolling out of US-1303, hears PJ2ND calling CQ on 40m CW. Instead of shrugging and driving off, Marcus does what any resourceful POTA op would do: uses his mic PTT as a straight key. 😳
Was it pretty? No.
Was it effective? Absolutely.
Was it logged? You bet.
Moral of the story: improvise, adapt, log the QSO.
🏅 Mike W6OBB Receives the Coveted N1CC Award
Ten bands.
Ten parks.
Zero shortcuts.
Mike W6OBB earned the James F. LaPorta (N1CC) Award, one of the tougher feathers to stick in your cap. This is deep-bench POTA commitment — planning, propagation awareness, and persistence across bands most of us glance at and say, “eh… maybe later.”
Huge congrats, Mike. That certificate belongs on the wall.
🎉 First Activation Joy, Continued
Over on the forum, Jacob KE5KTU shared his first activation story — IC-7100, marine battery, homebrew 40m dipole, about 30 QSOs on FT8, and a healthy mix of problems and fun.
Which is to say: a perfect first activation.
Welcome aboard, Jacob. The learning curve is half the fun.
🖥️ What Web Tools Are Hunters Using?
A new tool caught attention this week: POTAHunter.com, which can automatically tune your radio to spotted activations. That kicked off a broader discussion on the PN&R Forum about hunting workflows, browsers, spot feeds, and who’s running what in the shack.
Short version?
- There’s no One True Setup™
- Everyone swears theirs is best
- And someone is absolutely still using a spreadsheet from 2017
Worth a read if you like peeking into other shacks.
🚗 CQ-POTA, Show-Me State Edition
Rob Shack may win the unofficial award for best license plate of the week with Missouri’s glorious CQ-POTA plate.
If you’re ever stuck behind him in traffic, you know what he’s calling.
🍹 Rum Punch and RF
From Barbados, 8P9CB reports an activation at Little Bay Coastal Park that included:
- A cliffside setup
- Atlantic views
- Curious tourists
- And a complimentary rum punch delivered by the local tour guide
Some activations are colder than others. This one wins for hospitality.
🎒 Tom Hall, Radio Genius
Turns out Amazon pool cue cases are perfect for carrying whips, coils, radials, coax, and even a ground rod. Tom Hall dropped this gem of an idea over on Facebook, and somewhere a thousand POTA operators nodded silently and updated their shopping carts.
Hack of the week, right there.
❄️ Winter Field Day: Bears, Waterfalls, and Snow
As we write, Winter Field Day is in full swing — a natural fit for POTA ops thanks to packed bands and eager chasers. Unfortunately, it’s also happening during a massive winter storm stretching from Texas to Maine. Ice here, snow there, and a whole lot of shoveling everywhere.
Quick reminder: no self-spotting during WFD — let RBN or a friendly hunter do the honors. We’ll have stories next week, once everyone thaws out.
⛏️ Quartzfest: Oscillators Unite
Finally, a face-to-face moment in the desert as WQ0A and K5DGR crossed paths at Quartzfest. Repeat contacts becoming real people is one of the quieter joys of this whole POTA thing — radios first, handshakes later.
That’s the feather pile for this week. Quiet? Maybe. But still packed with ingenuity, firsts, awards, hacks, and a little rum-powered RF. Don’t forget to send your tips to tips@pota.news and your park reports to parks@pota.news.
Until next time — call CQ, get outside, and POTA on! 73, Ada, your Nosey News Hawk.🐾📡
