It was a very hot day, and a lovely time to go into the woods, and I thought I would try out this POTA spot. It is a 2-fer, with the Bruce Trail (CA-5628) as long as you get your placement correctly.
When I left the car it was 38°C, so I took a full litre of water with ice in the thermos. I probably should have taken more, but this activation required a lot more carrying than usual.
I parked in this neighborhood park (Chedoke Radial Trail), that had parking for 2 hours, and it didn't cost anything.
From the parking lot, it was a small walk under the power lines towards the Bruce Trail.
Just beyond was a sign for the conservation area, giving a map.
I walked at a slow-pace for about a half hour, and did not see any ideal places to activate. The woods had a lot of tall grass, and after getting 4 ticks last time, I was not keen on long grass. After getting a little tired from walking, I decided to go down a small Bruce Trail tributary trail. It was a single-track trail, frequented by mountain bikers, so not ideal, but I hoped that the heat would keep the crowds away.
I picked a tree that had some overhanging branches and a small piece of short grass that I could sit on, and keep my deployment off the main trail as much as possible.
I used a QRP-guys random wire antenna with a 9:1 transformer, and managed to get the radiating element fairly high.
The bands were fairly good. I did have some unexpected difficulty with my Begali key, when it stopped transmitting dits. It happened in the middle of a QSO call with a BARC club colleague, Chris, VA3CJW. I wonder if the key got some dirt or other contamination in it. I forgot to bring my reading glasses, so I swapped in a BaMaTech key instead. Definitely a case of it being a great idea to bring spare things in your bag!
I kept to 20m CW, using the KX2, and 5W, making two park-to-park QSOs. Here's a map.
On the way back I saw a family of deer crossing the trail. I only managed to get one in a photo. Here is a picture of the adorable deer.
| Date | Time | Call | State | Band | Mode | Park |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025/06/22 | 17:12 | VA3CJW | ON | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:18 | NM1L | TN | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:27 | KB6NU | MI | 20m | CW | US-0019 |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:33 | NØIJK | CA | 20m | CW | US-1125 |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:41 | K5OGR | AR | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:42 | W9SN | TN | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:43 | KA8JIL | FL | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:46 | W4WTS | TN | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:48 | NAØF | MN | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:49 | KD9PSY | IN | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:51 | KAØLDG | ND | 20m | CW | |
| 2025/06/22 | 17:54 | WW4N | TN | 20m | CW |