Many due to Micah (N4MJL) who shares the next visitor submit:
by Micah (N4MJL)
What do you do with 24 hours off in San Francisco? Properly, as a card carrying FCC licensed nerd, I hit the streets and headed off to Fort Level with my model new Elecraft KH1 for a day of sightseeing and historical past.
Fort Level is the one brick fort on the west coast of the US. Development on the fort was from 1853-1861. Shortly after completion of Fort Level, the Civil Conflict started. By the tip of the Civil Conflict, advances in army expertise had rendered the fort much less efficient.
Cannons had been lastly faraway from the fort within the Nineties. Brick fortifications had been merely no match for rifled cannons and iron clad struggle ships. Within the Thirties, the fort was used as a command middle, cafeteria, and barracks for the engineers constructing the Golden Gate bridge.
Main as much as WWII, Fort Level would proceed to play a key roll in San Francisco harbor defenses. Durring WWII fort level was a management middle for the submarine internet throughout the harbor. Within the Nineteen Seventies Fort Level would lastly be formally categorized as a Notional Historic Website (POTA US-0819).
ATTENTION: Full disclosure right here!
The horny picture (above) with my KH1 on the ramparts of the fort, with the American Flag and Golden Gate Bridge within the background was a staged picture.
Sure, I’m sorry, not a single QSO was made out of that place. It was just too loud, too chilly, and too distracting to function from that place. Better of luck to anybody trying to working from there.
The automobile visitors noise, enterprise have an effect on off the wind, and the fixed circulation of vacationers made it a really tough spot. As an alternative I operated on a bench subsequent to the bogs outdoors the partitions of the fort however effectively inside the confines of the Historic Park website. The only brick column subsequent to the highway within the image above is the boundary line for working in Fort Level US-0819. Simply to the suitable of the brick column within the grass space in opposition to the hill is the bench (subsequent to the bogs) the place I operated for all my contacts.
The working space for Fort Level is slightly small and difficult. It will get very busy there. Be ready to be requested recurrently if you’re monitoring whales try to speak with aliens….. Area aliens to be precise…..
All my contacts for this activation had been from searching park to park on 20m utilizing whip antenna.
With the noisy distracting setting mixed with my compromised antenna I didn’t really feel comfy calling CQ. As an alternative I centered on searching parks I may hear very effectively in hopes they’d be capable to hear me with my compromised antenna. My first contact was at 1610z and my tenth contact was at 1754z. It was very gradual going, however I actually needed to activate Fort Level. To not point out the truth that Fort Level is a 3-Fer activation.
A 3-fer implies that with one activation you get credit score for 3 completely different park activations. Trying on the map above of the San Francisco space you possibly can see that Fort Level US-0819 (#6) falls inside a a lot bigger park entity (#7) Presidio (POTA US-7889). Each Fort Level and Presidio additionally each are situated in a fair larger park entity generally known as the Golden Gate Nationwide Leisure Space GGNRA (POTA US-0647).
Restating what’s written within the image above for simpler studying: After six generations, coastal defenses had been made out of date by intercontinental ballistic missiles. The Golden Gate Nationwide Recreation Space GGNRA was created largely from surplus coastal protection army reservations.
A lot may be stated about Presidio of San Francisco (US-7889). It served as a army out submit for the Spanish Empire(1776-1821ish), Mexican Republic(1821-1846), and United States Military (1847-1989).
As a pilot, I’ve to say Crissy Area. Crissy Area is a part of the Presidio park, and performed an enormous half within the quick improvement in aviation expertise. The primary profitable daybreak to nightfall trans con (east coast to west coast) flight landed at Crissy Area June 1924. Along with army operations, the airfield performed a serious function for Coast Guard Search & Rescue, AirMail, and Forest Hearth Surveillance.
The Presidio is a really giant park, that’s gives many beautiful views of the world. There are loads tucked away picnic tables close to tall timber which might be simply begging you to hold a wire antenna.
As an airline pilot, I’m in San Francisco typically. I’m all the time working QRP and far of the time I’m having to make use of a whip antenna as a consequence of busy/small working space. As my CW abilities enhance I hope to get extra of you in my log in a few of these arduous to activate parks.
PS Don’t quote me on this historical past stuff. Keep in mind I’m a pilot not a historical past main, so I’m simply sort of winging it.
Till then 72 . .
~ Micah J. LaVanchy
