N8RJ ’s Vacation at
the Beach with Ham Radio
In October, I was at the beach at Topsail Island NC, with the
family. We did the usual beach
stuff: Walking & running on the
beach, Trips to town on bicycles,
Chasing crabs with flashlights, Shucking oysters, etc. I also set up my Ft-991A and a VHF/UHF antenna. I checked-in to some local nets. I could reach 20 repeaters in the Wilmington
- Topsail - Jacksonville area.
The antenna is a Slim-Jim flexible twin-lead attached to
scrap lumber I found in the basement.
Then that is tied to the railing of the sound-side deck. The red, green, and blue objects are
children’s beach toys used as spacers and insulators, in case the wood gets
wet.
I rode
by bike up to the apex of the new high-rise bridge. I can reach 17 repeaters with my Baofeng
UV-5R. |
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One day I turned on the radio and discovered that the local
hams were doing an ARES Simulated Emergency Test. The simulated emergency was a forest fire,
like the one they actually had in 1986.
I recorded part of the event.
Click the links below to hear the recordings.
Recording
#1 Recording
#2 Recording #3
Click this link for a description of the event by the Onslow
Amateur Radio Club: Simulated Emergency Test (SET)