Winter Field Day 2019 Wrap-Up

Dragging in early on Sunday, weak with a stomach bug, then feeling much better after a nap, I'd posted the one pic Sunday evening.  Here's a more complete summary.

Packed in with a friend on the Tuxachanie Trail from the Hwy 49 trailhead near Saucier.  Just a few miles in, turned north onto a jeep road, then a little deeper in on another less-used jeep road.  The underbrush was too dense to camp in, but after deer season these little roads are the next best things to clearings.

Got on the air by 2pm CST, and hour after things had started, but no matter.  As shown in the one pic, I ran with a dinky 5-watt QRP rig.  For antennas, I used a 1/4-sized W3EDP "mini" hung vertically and a full-sized version strung horizontally.  The mini could work all bands from 6 to 40 meters, with some horizontal reach during the daytime, while the full-size would handle 40 meters and down after dark.  Well, at least that was the idea going in.

As expected, 20m was hopping and 40m was about the same.  I even snagged a contact out in western Washington state on 15m, voice no less – and remember, all on 5 watts.  In general though the bands above 14 MHz (i.e., 20m) were dead, and that one 15m contact was a lucky fluke.  Grabbed a few PSK-31 digital contacts on 40 and 20, then broke for supper.  After dark, the 40 and 80m bands came to life on the full-sized horizontal antenna.  I picked up a couple of digital contacts on 80, but couldn't quite punch through with voice.  The one disappointment is that somehow the antenna wouldn't tune on 160 meters.  I suspect that the 16' counterpoise wire was a little short.  Will have to hang the antenna an the side yard and try out some things with an SWR analyzer before next time.

So in the end it came to 7 voice and 8 digital contacts, QRP power, with bonus points each for remote, off-grid, and outdoors operation.  Not too bad for just messing around.  I'll tot it all up and get the log to the WFD folks later this week.

So... what about lessons learned?  There's always lessons.

• Once again, packed waaaay too much, totaling out this time at – I am embarrassed to say – 49 pounds.  Now, it was a dry campsite so we packed in all the water we anticipated needing, and that was 25% of that horrendous total weight.  Next time, carry 2 1L unbottles and camp reasonably near water.  Then there was the radio gear...
• The basic FT-817nd plus accouterments is only 5 pounds.  But then I packed a laptop and SignaLink, and 4 (!) antennas (full-sized & 1/4 sized W3EDP, plus LNR EFT-40-20-10,  roll-up 2m slim jim), plus 25' of LMR-240 coax, and oh yeah that little 15' scrap of RG-174 for the LNR antenna...  While I would've had to forego 80 meters, just the LNR antenna and feed line would've been about 4 or 5 pounds lighter.  Never hauling all that crap again.  Didn't even break out the 2m or LNR antennas.
• But even if I wanted to work 80m or even 2m, that RG-174 coax would've been adequate.  Leave that big-ass roll of LMR-240 at home next time!
• Hauling a laptop and SignaLink was overall a mistake.  Could've bagged PSK-31 contacts using my phone and EasyDigi link instead and saved the 4 pounds.  True, the iPhone+EasyDigi combo is nowhere as convenient as the laptop+SignaLink, but four pounds.
• Push come to shove, 8xAA Eneloop Pro batteries would give 2 hours' operation.  Or go for 4 hours with the Bioenno 4.5 AH batt pack.  Why bring both?  Not like I operated for 6 hours.  Bring one or the other, not both.  That's either 0.72 or 1.26 pounds saved, depending.  Decide, dammit.
• The rest of the camping gear was pretty reasonable and performed much as expected.  No real changes to make there.  On a mid-30's night, the Marmot 25 degree bag was toasty.  The Z-fold Thermarest pad was a little skimpy, but just enough.
• I need to do a longer "no radios, just hike" trip before this winter's out, just to see what it's like to hike with only 20 pounds on my back for a change.  Bet it's a whole lot more fun.

And finally... don't get puking sick for no good reason.  It really brings an otherwise enjoyable trip to a premature and somewhat dazed end.  But if you do happen to wake and roll out the tent just in time to  befoul the forest floor, it's probably better to get while the gettin's good.  Which we did, and even the hike out was still pretty nice.  Can't wait for next year's Winter Field Day!

ps: Bonus video, not of me but of one of the stations I'd worked, N5OAK on 40 meters.
pps: "2019" not "2018"!