10 Feb 2013

Pedestrian Portable HF DXing

G3XBM operating pedestrian portable in South Devon
The latest edition of Practical Wireless carries my article on pedestrian portable HF DXing. Getting out of doors in a noise free location with a simple HF rig and using it handheld - not with a large semi-permanent antenna, but with a whip on the rig - is one of the great pleasures of QRPing. With a good location, such as a clifftop site with a slope towards the sea, DX can be worked easier than might be expected even with a few watts of SSB.  Nothing quite beats talking to a station thousands of miles away with a small radio in the hand.  A small counterpoise wire is a must to get the best results. Especially in the summer Es season when signals can be S9, this can bring a whole new dimension to the hobby. Forget that plasma TV interference and get out there in the great outdoors!  Best bands are 15m, 10m and 6m (when open).

1 comment:

G1KQH said...

Look forward to reading it.

73 G1KQH