Most weeks we go about 12 miles on the bus into Cambridge. As we are old (!) we have free bus pass, so the journey is totally free. It is also as fast as taking our car. It is a pleasurable ride too.
Like most men, I hate clothes shopping. Instead I had a coffee whilst my wife did the spending!
Once again I am on 10m WSPR with my 500mW beacon. It is now 0820z and, so far, 20 stations spotted. Some are F2 and some Es. A very promising start.
As the Es looks promising, I am again on 40.680 MHz FT8 (TX 1st, DF about 1950 Hz). No spots yet.
I sent an email to Dave Parsons at OFCOM, who has always been quick and helpful. Within 24 hours he came back to me for some clarification. Hopefully, he will unblock things. He is one of the better people there.
UPDATE 1333z: Just a day after contacting Dave, my licence has been amended so I can run 20W if I need/want to on 8m.
My IC-705 was traded in some months ago for the Yaesu FT-710. Both are excellent radios and I have enjoyed them both. The FT-710 has 4m but no 2m or 70cm. The FT-710 also has an auto ATU which I find quite useful. The FT-710 is a 100W radio whereas the IC-705 is a 10W radio (5W with the attached battery). As a QRPer, 10W was more than enough for me.
I was hoping that Yaesu would announce a new QRP SDR transceiver at Dayton as a proper replacement to the FT817. Sadly, no such product was announced. Had one been announced, I might have traded it for the FT-710.
In my view amateur radio is at a crossroads. In many countries, amateur radio appeals mainly to older males. As these age, fewer new rigs will be sold and magazines will lose advertising revenue from dealers. Some will get smaller, less frequent, or close. In my view, several larger manufacturers will leave the amateur radio market as they will be unable to make profits. My prediction in the UK is that amateur radio will cease to be a service supported by OFCOM. I can see (not many years ahead) when CB, ISM and amateur radio will all become a "free for all" as these generate no income and are unnecessary hassle. The watchwords will be "no interference".
At the start of today, I had great hopes for Es in Europe. Sadly, certainly at the moment, things are not looking too great. Hopefully things will get better.
See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/8m-40mhz-spot-band/ .
We are used to thinking of time flowing from the past into the future and experiencing just one life from cradle to grave.
However, we are only aware of one life, which is the one experienced now. It is equally possible that we could have been born on a different planet at a different time. We could have multiple lives, not one.
All we know is things are far beyond our imaginations. We are just humans with limited brain power.
