Its only 186 hours till the start of the first weekend of the ARRL 10GHz contest (as of this posting)!

Time to ante up and announce your plans for this years first weekend of
the 10GHz contest.

I am still planning on going as follows depending on weather:

Saturday
8am till 10am
My start point for this year on Saturday will be:
Sterling State Park 2800 State Park Rd., Monroe, MI

Second planned stop is the Lost Peninsula area:
1045 to noontime
6276 Edgewater Dr., Erie, MI – EN81gr
This has a good shot directly EAST across Lake Erie towards Perry Park.
Outside of that, it is not very good for other directions. The owner of
the restuarant there has at least given me permission to use the parking
lot there when I want to.

Third spot
1:30 till 3pm(?):
501 W. Lakeshore Dr.  Port Clinton, OH   (EN81mm)

Fourth spot
4pm till 5pm(?):
Nickel Plate Dr.  Huron, OH      (EN81rj)

Fifth stop
5:30pm till 6:30pm(?):
4700 Coen Rd  Vermilion, OH   (EN81uk)

Sixth stop
8pm(?):
2800 Perry Park Rd  Perry, OH  (EN91kt)
=====

That last stop at Perry’s park may wait till Sunday morning as it would
be getting late and I do not have any idea how many would still be
around that late.

I have reservations at Geneva State Park (4499 Padanarum Rd, Geneva, OH)
for a camp site this year and thats a two hour drive from
Vermillion It all depends on how tired I am and how the schedule
goes.

If that happens, I will go back to Perry Park first thing Sunday morning
at 8am and then back to Geneva State park depending on who is out there.

Sunday currently is still up in the air right now. Waiting on a few
addresses for other sites which may change my plans for Saturday also.

Was hoping to get into Pennsylvania and New York this year but not heard
of any good sites to use.

I do have to mention that I am tied to the car battery for this year
still. I know, I need a portable battery. Just haven’t gotten around to
it as I have not had a need yet. It would just sit in the house and not
get used again until next year.

https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AvU0R8d2qq2DdE1vaFg4SW1wNDBLaXpKb2RROExlb1E&hl=en&authkey=CJqMlMcB#gid=1

Will have 3.4 and 10GHz stations with me along with 6m, 2m, and 70cm stations.

Currently have no idea who else will be out for MAD. I will post as I find out more.

I have only heard from NE8I so far and he says he is not venturing too far from home up near Traverse City…:( Gas prices I assume.

Plans are to have 10 and 3.4 GHz with 2m (144.260 MHz) as liason. May even have 1296 MHz if I can get the amplifier module installed this week.

Hopefully I won’t have other things crop up for the rest of the year.

So here are my current ‘plans’ for the rest of the year.

May 7th – GP Hill
Testing of new portable antennas for 6m, 2m, 70cm, and 23cm
3.4 and 10GHz
Spring Sprint contest day also

June 4th – Sterling State park
Same as April plans
finalizing of plans of staging and packing car for June VHF rover plan

July 9th – MI Section outing weekend – Lupton, MI
Demoing VHF/UHF/Microwave roving
Possible forum about VHF/UHF/Microwave in Michigan
Would like to see if I can entice a few others up here to show off equipment
and what a rover does for fun
This would replace MAD for this month

August 6th/7th – UHF Contest/MAD
Last chance to test and fix equipment before first weekend of 10 GHz contest

August 20th/21st

10 GHz contest – roving along bottom half of Lake Erie from Buffalo, NY to Monroe, MI

September 3rd – Port Clinton, OH
Last chance to test and fix equipment before September VHF and second weekend
of 10 GHz contest

September17th/18th

10 GHz contest – Roving from Traverse City area to Muskegon area along Lake Michigan

October 1st – GP Hill
Last planned trip of year to operate

That turned into a bust this year as one of our dogs came down sick and we thought she would have to be euthinized.  That so far has not happened. She has been doing better since Saturday…:)

Plus the weather along my planned route conspired against me also. I had planned to travel West along Interstate 96 from Detroit to Muskegon, then South along Lake Michigan to Michigan City in Indiana and then East along the Indiana and Ohio Turnpikes (Interstates 80/90) to Toledo and then back North along Interstate 75 home. Lake effect snow and sub-zero temperatures put a quash to those plans also.

Didn’t even get out to operate for a few hours on Sunday as I had stated in emails to the local VHFers. The xyl made other plans that I couldn’t disregard.

So I am going to be looking forward to operating during the Spring Sprints coming up in April this year. Going to take some advice from Les Rayburn, N1LF, down in Alabama and mount a few antennas in the attic as my xyl has told me I can’t mount anything on the roof at all….:(

I am planning on doing some rovering in June for the June VHF contest depending on gas prices then. Right now the cheapest gas is 2.999 a gallon and that looks like I will be paying at least 3.039 by next Friday….:( So we will see what transpires by June.

Here’s to the Spring Sprints and to making some contacts.

The rain didn’t start until about noontime EDT in Sterling State Park. From what I can gather is that the Canadian side of Lake Erie got pounded with the rain while the Ohio side got some but not in any amount that ‘dampened ‘ enthusiasm to keep making contacts. Sunday was a different story as it started out overcast then got sunny and then back to overcast then back to sunny skies.

Currently, I have no reports other than from K8JA about how well the trips along the lake shores went. Jack K8JA said he had roughly 30 contacts when we stopped on Sunday afternoon at Sterling State Park. I have 19 contacts on the log sheet for this year which is a improvement of a factor of four compared to the past three years that I have gotten active which is an indication that having your own equipment does help.

I’ll post here as I find out how each side of the lake did.

Now to start planning the September road trip up along Lake Michigan.

Remember all these plans are NOT set in stone until the end of the operating period and could change because of weather, human error, or cats not agreeing to be herded around to their appointed tasks.

Haven’t heard on Steve KB8VAO’s condition today. Hope is doing better than yesterday.

Looking at the Hepburn prediction maps today shows that there may be a very good chance to work some of the stations in New York if the predictions hold out for 10 GHz. I have no idea how close the maps are for predicting above 1296 MHz, but we;ll will see.

Still not much planning for Sunday still…:(

K8RAY contacted me today and said he was not going to make the trip to Empire, MI Saturday. Instead he will be down in Sterling State Park with me around 9:30am EDT.

WA3TTS reports that he is planning to be out at Perry Park on Saturday morning, hopefully QRV
by 9:00~9:30 and see how things pan out and is gunning for that elusive 5th grid for VUCC.He also mentions that he may come back again on Sunday to team up with KD0AR and possibly have W3BC show up on Saturday morning. KD0AR chimes in in a seperate message that he will tag team with WA3TTS around 8am Saturday.

Steve VE3SMA reports that he plans to start at around 8:30 on Saturday at Port Rowan, EN92SO, which faces east, primarily to look for K2LDU at FN02vu (and any other from the Rochester area he may manage to drag out), and KB8VAO, should he recover from his cold.  I’ll have both 10 & 24 GHz.  I should have VE3RKS and probably VE3KH with me (both 10 GHz only).  I’ll try to get around to the other side of Long Point and look for Ohio, Michigan and VE3ZV at EN82sb as soon as I can….hopefully about 9:30. He’ll also have a radio and vertical on 146.55 FM from time to time for a couple of guys with no SSB talkback rigs.
It looks like we may have quite a crowd at Port Rowan…if it turns out to be more than there is room for I might end up at EN92SN (facing Ohio) first.
I’ll work my west during the day.

WA8RJF reports that Bill VE3CRU stopped by Conneaut Park EN91rx this afternoon and reports that a WWII D Day re-enactment is schedule for both Saturday and Sunday. Even though the invading force is friendly the location will be problematic in the afternoon both days. There is an outside chance that the western most part of the park will be accessible but if the crowds are large the parking could be a problem.

VE3NPB reports that he has heard that Kevin VE3KH, and Roger VE3RKS also plan to start at Port Rowan. He also reports that Steve VE3ZV will be starting at Wheatley, toward the west end of the lake. Murray also states that Keith VE3HHT and Graham VE3FHM are also expected to be active at Lake Erie, but I’m not certain from which sites.
=====

Three day forecast from White Lake NWS:
SATURDAY
PARTLY SUNNY. A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE MORNING
THEN SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
LIKELY. HIGHS 83 TO 87. SOUTH WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH. CHANCE OF RAIN 70
PERCENT.

SATURDAY NIGHT
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY. LOWS 66 TO 70.
LIGHT AND VARIABLE WINDS. CHANCE OF RAIN 60 PERCENT.

SUNDAY
PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS 83 TO 87. NORTH WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH.

SUNDAY NIGHT
MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS 61 TO 65. NORTH WINDS 5 TO 10
MPH
BECOMING LIGHT AND VARIABLE.
=====

OK..That’s all for this years August 10 GHz and up weekend. I expect to hear most of you on Saturday and possibly Sunday.

Good luck to everyone and BE CAREFUL out there please!!!!!
=====

Don’t forget that 144.260 MHz is used as talk-in/around for most everyone. Please move -/+ if there are others trying to arrange contact.

Remember all these plans are NOT set in stone and could change because of weather, human error, or cats not agreeing to be herded around to their appointed tasks.

US stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
==============================================
WA8VPD K8JA WB8TGY- Heading into Ohio territory on Saturday between Cleveland and Vermillion probably.

WA8RJF – Between Cleveland and Ohio/Pennsylvania state lines

KB8VAO – I’m planning to start out along the shores of Lake Erie near Buffalo, NY and work my way back toward Cleveland, OH. I hope to be able to work the ops in MI since most of the path is over water. I’ve e-mailed some guys in Rochester, NY too, but haven’t heard from them. If everything goes as planned, I’ll head toward Buffalo, NY on Friday evening after work. I’ll stay in a hotel and should be ready to run EARLY in the morning. I’ve never operated from this area, so it might be a challenge finding locations where I can operate.

WA3TTS – Planning to be out at Perry Park Saturday about 9 – 9:30am. Posible Sunday operating at same location.

KD0AR – Definite plans for Perry Park Saturday 8am.

AA2LY – Vermillion, OH area

K8RAY – Sterling State Park around 9:30am EDT with a six foot trailer mounted C-band dish.

W8ISS – Sterling State Park (EN81hv) and then about noontime depending on conditions and contacts moving to the ‘Lost Peninsula’ (EN81gr) area of Michigan to see if I can garner anymore contacts.

Canadian stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
=====================================================
VE3SMA – Steve reports that he plans to start at around 8:30 on Saturday at Port Rowan, EN92SO, which faces east, primarily to look for K2LDU at FN02vu (and any other from the Rochester area he may manage to drag out), and KB8VAO, should he recover from his cold.  I’ll have both 10 & 24 GHz.  I should have VE3RKS and probably VE3KH with me (both 10 GHz only).  I’ll try to get around to the other side of Long Point and look for Ohio, Michigan and VE3ZV at EN82sb as soon as I can….hopefully about 9:30. He’ll also have a radio and vertical on 146.55 FM from time to time for a couple of guys with no SSB talkback rigs.
It looks like we may have quite a crowd at Port Rowan…if it turns out to be more than there is room for I might end up at EN92SN (facing Ohio) first.
I’ll work my west during the day.

VE3CRU/W8 – Planning on starting out in North East PA but could change plans depending on what is arranged with WA8RJF before hand and then venturing into Ohio towards Cleveland

VE3HHT and VE3RKS – expected to be active at Lake Erie, but I’m not certain from which sites.

VE3FN – Saturday, I plan to operate from FN16wf so I will be too far away to try to work you around Lake Erie and Lake Michigan.
However, Sunday I still plan to operate at Foymount FN15ik.  As I mentioned in an earlier message, at more than 1700 feet ASL, Foymount is reported to be the highest populated location in Ontario.  I hope that you (and perhaps others) will operate from one of the hilltop locations you mentioned where we might have a chance of a QSO.  Sunday afternoon, I will likely drive to Numogate in FN14xw,  This site is at an elevation of only 500 feet ASL, but it has a fairly clear horizon.

VE3NPB – Port Rowan, Ontario (EN92so), probably sometime between 0800 and 0900 local time, and move west during the day.

VE3KH and VE3FHM – plan to start at Port Rowan with Steve VE3SMA about 8:30am.

Lake Michigan stations operational
==================================
K2YAZ NE8I W9NU – Traverse City area

W9SZ W9SNR – Chicago area

Home stations in Michigan
=========================
WE9Y WW8M(?) KB8U K8MD(?)

WW8M and K8MD are having equipment problems so they may or may not be on the air this weekend. I have them listed here in spirit…:)

Available Beacons
=================
K2YAZ – Traverse City, MI
VE3ZV/VE3TFU – Waterford, ON
W2UHI – Grand Haven, MI

Found out that W9NU will be up in the Traverse City region operating. (Thanks Jack)

I forgot one important station to list yesterday, ME!!! I’ll be starting out at Sterling State Park (EN81hv) until about nootime. At about noontime, depending on activity, I want to check out the ‘Lost Peninsula’ (EN81gr) area of Michigan to see if it holds any promises. From looking at maps and Satellite photos, it looks like I’ll have good coverage across most of Lake Erie into Canada and to the Cleveland area. It will depend on if I can find a good operating spot from. The satellite photos show good spots, but are they private or public? I won’t know till I get there.

Steve KB8VAO is reporting that he might be under the weather (head cold) slightly for Saturday. I hope he gets better so that he can give out those much needed points to everyone that he can work. Get better Steve! As WA8VPD said, ‘We need you!!’

Looking at the Hepburn prediction maps today shows that there may be a very good chance to work some of the stations in New York if the predictions hold out for 10 GHz. I have no idea how close the maps are for predicting above 1296 MHz, but we;ll will see.

What are everyone’s plans for Sunday?

There will be one more last update Friday night around 8pm to this blog. After that, make contact on 144.260 MHz.

=====

Don’t forget that 144.260 MHz is used as talk-in/around for most everyone. Please move -/+ if there are others trying to arrange contact.

Remember all these plans are NOT set in stone and could change because of weather, human error, or cats not agreeing to be herded around to their appointed tasks.

US stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
==============================================
WA8VPD K8JA WB8TGY- Heading into Ohio territory on Saturday between Cleveland and Vermillion probably.

WA8RJF – Between Cleveland and Ohio/Pennsylvania state lines

KB8VAO – I’m planning to start out along the shores of Lake Erie near Buffalo, NY and work my way back toward Cleveland, OH. I hope to be able to work the ops in MI since most of the path is over water. I’ve e-mailed some guys in Rochester, NY too, but haven’t heard from them. If everything goes as planned, I’ll head toward Buffalo, NY on Friday evening after work. I’ll stay in a hotel and should be ready to run EARLY in the morning. I’ve never operated from this area, so it might be a challenge finding locations where I can operate.

KD0AR – Planning to be up to operate along Lake Erie

AA2LY – Vermillion, OH area

Canadian stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
=====================================================
VE3CRU – Planning on starting out in North East PA but could change plans depending on what is arranged with WA8RJF before hand and then venturing into Ohio towards Cleveland

VE3HHT VE3SMA VE3KH Roger Sanderson(call?)- nothing in writing yet for where operating

VE3FN – Saturday, I plan to operate from FN16wf so I will be too far away to try to work you around Lake Erie and Lake Michigan.
However, Sunday I still plan to operate at Foymount FN15ik.  As I mentioned in an earlier message, at more than 1700 feet ASL, Foymount is reported to be the highest populated location in Ontario.  I hope that you (and perhaps others) will operate from one of the hilltop locations you mentioned where we might have a chance of a QSO.  Sunday afternoon, I will likely drive to Numogate in FN14xw,  This site is at an elevation of only 500 feet ASL, but it has a fairly clear horizon.

W8ISS – Sterling State Park (EN81hv) and then about noontime depending on conditions and contacts moving to the ‘Lost Peninsula’ (EN81gr) area of Michigan to see if I can garner anymore contacts.

Lake Michigan stations operational
==================================
K2YAZ NE8I K8RAY W9NU – Traverse City area

W9SZ W9SNR – Chicago area

Home stations in Michigan
=========================
WE9Y WW8M(?) KB8U K8MD(?)

WW8M and K8MD are having equipment problems so they may or may not be on the air this weekend. I have them listed here in spirit…:)

Available Beacons
=================
K2YAZ – Traverse City, MI
VE3ZV/VE3TFU – Waterford, ON
W2UHI – Grand Haven, MI

Next ‘planned update’ Thursday morning.

Don’t forget that 144.260 MHz is used as talk-in/around for most everyone. Please move -/+ if there are others trying to arrange contact.

Remember all these plans are NOT set in stone and could change because of weather, human error, or cats not agreeing to be herded around to their appointed tasks.

US stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
==============================================
WA8VPD K8JA WB8TGY- Heading into Ohio territory on Saturday between Cleveland and Vermillion probably.

WA8RJF – Between Cleveland and Ohio/Pennsylvania state lines

KB8VAO – I’m planning to start out along the shores of Lake Erie near Buffalo, NY and work my way back toward Cleveland, OH. I hope to be able to work the ops in MI since most of the path is over water. I’ve e-mailed some guys in Rochester, NY too, but haven’t heard from them. If everything goes as planned, I’ll head toward Buffalo, NY on Friday evening after work. I’ll stay in a hotel and should be ready to run EARLY in the morning. I’ve never operated from this area, so it might be a challenge finding locations where I can operate.

KD0AR – Planning to be up to operate along Lake Erie

AA2LY – Vermillion, OH area

Canadian stations plans for operating along Lake Erie
=====================================================
VE3CRU – Planning on starting out in North East PA but could change plans depending on what is arranged with WA8RJF before hand and then venturing into Ohio towards Cleveland

VE3HHT VE3SMA VE3KH Roger Sanderson(call?)- nothing in writing yet for where operating

VE3FN – Saturday, I plan to operate from FN16wf so I will be too far away to try to work you around Lake Erie and Lake Michigan.
However, Sunday I still plan to operate at Foymount FN15ik.  As I mentioned in an earlier message, at more than 1700 feet ASL, Foymount is reported to be the highest populated location in Ontario.  I hope that you (and perhaps others) will operate from one of the hilltop locations you mentioned where we might have a chance of a QSO.  Sunday afternoon, I will likely drive to Numogate in FN14xw,  This site is at an elevation of only 500 feet ASL, but it has a fairly clear horizon.

Lake Michigan stations operational
==================================
K2YAZ NE8I K8RAY – Traverse City area

W9SZ W9SNR – Chicago area

Home stations in Michigan
=========================
WE9Y WW8M(?) KB8U K8MD(?)

Available Beacons
=================
K2YAZ – Traverse City, MI
VE3ZV/VE3TFU – Waterford, ON
W2UHI – Grand Haven, MI