Shortwave, in its many forms, has been part of my life for 35 years. And even though it is next to impossible to enjoy the high frequencies at home now it doesn’t mean I am ready to give them up. I still have my KX3 and MP1 to work portable and this years teaching schedule does leave me with some excess time to work the bands from my school ground. The funny thing is that I moved from PL04ou to PL04pv and my school is only a 10 minute walk away from my old home in PL04ou. At least my old QSL cards are still valid to confirm those portable QSOs then.

My school is located at the top of a plateau and the view is breathtaking when the sun is out. I am usually able to set up my gear around 0800 UTC and have some 45 minutes of fun before heading back home. My KX3 shack-in-a-box and the MP1 can be set up in 5 minutes if I use a mag-mount on the car. Unfortunately the frequent autumn winds are very fierce, so then a stand with guy wires is needed which takes 10 to 15 minutes to set up.

What a joy to operate without any man-made interference. More than often I think either my KX3 or my antenna is not working properly; it is that quiet. If the sun has some spots then working Europe on CW is possible, but I am happy to work Asian stations as well. I even added the DXCC entry of Tuvalu to my list last month, working them split with 5 Watts on 20 meters.

0800 UTC is also the time that 40 meters start opening up and what a joy that is. Signals from all over Asia and the States are booming in. My MP1 tunes to 40 meters well, but it is still a coil-fed vertical without a proper set of radials and then the lack of some power means I can’t make a fist. I am still trying and hopefully one day I will send my puny signal on 40 meters all the way to the States.

…last year December. A real fixer-upper: 35 years old and not maintained at all. But the price was right and it had a large size plot of land that came with it. Buy land, get old house for free. It is large plot for Taiwanese standards. In the States and Europe you would probably laugh at the size: 180 square meters. Most houses are here are built on a third of that. I will not complain, though, because having a garden, even though a very modest one, is a dream come true. We are already eating organic veggies from our own plot and those are yummy.

There was a lot of work to be done on the house. We put on a sheet metal roof against leaking, changed the layout inside to get the most efficient use of all the space and we added a utility room. All the water and electricity had to be refitted, too, so it was quite an undertaking. Unfortunately the end result was not what we had hoped for. I won’t say much about it, because the Internet never forgets, but these words from the main contractor sum it up quite nicely: “It’s not my house, so I don’t really care.” They took our money, ran and left us with sub-par work. Not one wall was ready for painting when we moved in last July. There was electricity and water, but most power outlets and faucets were fitted so poorly that I had to have a shout out with the sub-contractor before it was done a bit properly. Getting them to put in a good ground system was another big struggle. I need at least a year to finish the walls, ceilings, doors and the roof, fit all the lights, curtains, hang the paintings and get my shack in order.

Of course, not all Taiwanese are selfish rip-off artists and we did meet some really nice and honest people, too. The man who did all our metal work was made of pure gold (pun intended). Because of good connections we got a bargain on the solar water heater (one day of sun, three days of hot water) and the store where we get our paint gives us a steep discount, especially when we buy paint from Akzo-Nobel (a Dutch buying Dutch deserves a good deal).

So I have been very busy with plastering and sanding walls and ceilings and I’m getting pretty good at it. Work on my new shack is starting soon now that the living room is nearly done. But so many months without a radio fix was too much to bear and early September I quickly put up a 2×5 meter dipole. Unfortunately I was met with this…..

It seems things never go smoothly for me. Other people throw a wire into a tree and start enjoying the bands, I put up a decent dipole and get a bucket load of QRM. As you can see the noise blanker can filter out some of the noise, but not all. 7 MHz and below are fine, though, and oddly enough 17 meters also doesn’t suffer that much, either. But 20, 15 meters up to 6 meters are almost useless. An X-Phase noise eliminator might bring some relief here, but right now I don’t have time to build one.

My wife would say that this is the year of the sheep and as we are both born in the year of the sheep this is not our lucky year. She slid of her scooter two months ago and hurt her knee pretty badly, so she might be on to something. So….radio back in the box till next year? Or maybe time to reconsider what I am going to do with this hobby of ours. For DXing the top bands I need to build new antennas, VHF/UHF/SHF in Taiwan is all but dead, APRS is not that exciting either. So what is left? Satellites maybe?

Stories you’ll find in our November, 2015 issue:

TSM Reviews: Electraft K3s—Another Step Forward
By Mark Haverstock K8MSH

If you already have a K3, you know you have one of the best, full-featured rigs around. It will serve you well for years to come. But many of us have the urge to keep up with the latest and greatest. Is it time to upgrade? A longtime kit builder and ham, Mark tells us why an Elecraft K3s should be in our future.

Current and Future Trends in Scanning Radio
By Chris Parris

The current models of digital scanners are now starting to resemble – no, they actually are small, self-contained computer systems, complete with networking, USB ports, removable media, built-in audio recording and updatable operating firmware. Some even offer the ability to remotely access and control these scanners over the Internet. Chris tells us which scanners are best for your local scanning situation.

TSM Reviews: EZ-Scan WS1095—Whistler’s Digital Scanning Receiver
By Chris Parris

With the introduction of the WS-1095, we get a look at a scanner design that was apparently conceived at GRE, but did not see the light of day until Whistler made it so. Now, Chris puts this multi-talented scanner through real-world paces. He notes, “Performance of the WS-1095 scanner in most respects matches the other radios in the GRE/Whistler line.”

TSM Reviews: Airspy SDR Receiver System
By Bob Grove W8JHD

In electronic communications, software defined radio (SDR) is becoming dominant. For radio hobbyists, a niche product is gaining momentum: the SDR dongle. Only slightly larger than a memory stick, when plugged into a USB port, it converts your computer into a flexible, wide-frequency-coverage receiver. Is this just another SDR dongle? Bob, tells us what really sets this diminutive receiver apart from the rest.

Digital Amateur Radio Roundup
By Cory Sickles WA3UVV

In the spirit of this month’s Radio Buyers’ Guide, Cory reviews the growing list of transceivers available for the digitally inclined ham. If you haven’t already transitioned into the digital domain, or you are looking for an additional model or methodology to try out, you will find this overview of use to you.

Toward a Glorious and Uncertain Future!
By Kirk Kleinschmidt NT0Z

With all evidence to date, the phenomenon we call amateur radio will have been born, matured, evolved and “died,” in a 150-250 year period. Period! Kirk shows us that there’s still hope for the future.

FTA Satellite-TV: The Heir to Shortwave Radio
By Ken Reitz KS4ZR

Originally, countries turned to shortwave to serve two specific purposes: promote their own cultural and political ideas worldwide and serve the expatriate community abroad. As shortwave declined throughout the 1980s to the present, many of those same broadcasters began appearing on geostationary satellites doing exactly the same thing, only this time with pictures (and now in HDTV format) as well as words and sound.

Scanning America
By Dan Veenaman

Tennessee Advanced Communications Network

Federal Wavelengths By Chris Parris
CBP OAM Changes

Utility Planet By Hugh Stegman NV6H
Goodbye HF911, Hello UrgentLink

Digital HF: Intercept and Analyze By Mike Chace-Ortiz AB1TZ/G6DHU
All About NAVTEX

HF Utility Logs By Mike Chace-Ortiz and Hugh Stegman

Amateur Radio Insights By Kirk Kleinschmidt NT0Z
Ham Radio on the Big Screen(s)

Radio 101 By Ken Reitz KS4ZR
License-Free Two-Way Radio: CB/FRS/GMRS/MURS

Radio Propagation By Tomas Hood NW7UST
The Sun Part 2: Coronas, Sunspots and SIDs

The World of Shortwave Listening By Thomas Witherspoon W4SWL
Buyer’s Guide to Shortwave Radios

The Shortwave Listener By Fred Waterer
Shortwave Listening via Internet Archives

Amateur Radio Astronomy By Stan Nelson KB5VL
Continuum Monitoring Using an SDR R820T Dongle

The Longwave Zone By Kevin O’Hern Carey WB2QMY
Miscou DXpedition and LF Resources

Adventures in Radio Restoration By Rich Post KB8TAD
Powering and Testing the Zenith Trans-oceanic G-500

The Broadcast Tower By Doug Smith W9WI
Why is that Tower where it is?

Antenna Connections By Dan Farber AC0LW
MFJ: Our Friend in the Radio Business

Radio Horizons
DXtreme Reception Log (V. 10,0); Klingenfuss 2016 Shortwave Frequency Guide

The Spectrum Monitor is available in PDF format which can be read on any desktop, laptop, iPad®, Kindle® Fire, or other device capable of opening a PDF file. Annual subscription (12 issues, beginning with the January 2015 issue) is $24. Individual monthly issues are available for $3 each.

Wow… what a day. Judy and I hiked to Knox Mountain. I worked Paul W0RW who was walking on Pike’s Peak. I also worked KM0U/P/QRP, Canary Islands and Mexico. The color was amazing.

Every day is a surprise. We expect November weather to set in, but it’s sunny and warm. It was a bit over 50F today, so we headed to the Knox Mountain cabins. We took an old logging road. This is not the charming trail we usually take along the brook. Loggers have changed that landscape and so we’ll avoid that route. Actually this was beautiful.

We hiked in about a mile and a half and came to the pond and the cabins. The loggers have not been anywhere near here.

I tossed my 30 foot wire over a cherry tree between the cabins and set up the KX3. I was a half hour late for Paul’s starting time on Pike’s Peak, but I tuned up on 14.342.5 anyway. What a thrill to hear him… I had no microphone so I set up cross-mode with a split… VFO B in CW mode up 600 Hz. Paul came right back to me and it was a real thrill. Just imagine working Paul who had a backpack PRC319 military radio walking on the north side of Pike’s Peak at 13,000 feet. It’s plain magic! Anyway Paul copied everything I sent and gave me a 599. His SSB signal was 55. He said the cold was “bone chilling.”

After I signed and tuned down the band. KM0U Terry was calling CQ. Little did I know that he was operating QRP portable with a KX3. We had a long chat. It was pretty cool to work QRP /P between New Hampshire and Minnesota. He was 589 and gave me a 569.

Next I worked XE2HOE in Mexico. Mode gave me a 449 and he was 599. It was a quick exchange and then I tuned down a bit and answered EC8AUZ Pedro in the Canary Islands. We gave each other 599s and signed. I packed up to leave. What a day… a perfect hike, great radio and fall scenery at its best.

Today I operated from the caboose of the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad as it traveled from Meredith to Lakeport. I worked Germany, Sweden, Hungary, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Curacao, and San Marino. Who could ask for more?

I’ve been working on the railroad for 10 years, but have only operated from the caboose once before. There was one train today running at 1:00 pm. My friend Tim W3ATB was the conductor. So I decided to take the opportunity.

I set up an Outbacker antenna on a grab rail of the caboose and ran some coax through a back window to a table inside. I set the Outbacker to 15 meters and tuned up the KX3. Right away, I worked DL65DARC in Germany. A few minutes later I worked HA7ITU in Hungary. Signals were strong, and I received good reports, so I knew we’d have a successful trip.

As the train headed out of the yard and along Lake Winnipesaukee, I answered more than a dozen DX calls on 15 meters. The train left early at about 12:30 pm. My first contact from the moving train was with Tony T77C in San Marino, Italy. Then I worked DL1BUG, Red in Germany. Red wanted to know my power and antenna when I told him I was operating from a moving train.

There’s no missing the smile on my face as I worked Rune, SM5COP in Copenhagen, Sweden. Here’s my log for the trip:

28 Oct-15 1533 21.024 DL65DARC CW 599 599 Germany
28 Oct-15 1534 21.011 HA7ITU CW 599 599 Hungary
28 Oct-15 1610 21.015 DL2DX CW 569 599 Germany
28 Oct-15 1631 21.021 T77C CW 599 599 San Marino
28 Oct-15 1633 21.027 DL1BUG CW 579 599 Berlin
28 Oct-15 1638 21.028 SM5COP CW 569 599 Stockholm
28 Oct-15 1648 21.028 PJ2/W4VAB CW 599 599 Curacao
28 Oct-15 1650 21.032 K5WE CW 599 599 OK
28 Oct-15 1654 21.026 DF3VM CW 579 599 Germany
28 Oct-15 1701 21.033 OK1FPS CW 579 599 Czech Rep
28 Oct-15 1712 21.030 LZ1WR CW 599 599 Bulgaria

Mike DF3VM was also curious about my antenna and power when I told him I was operating from a train. “UR doing a great job,” Mike sent. “Enjoy the ride on the train.”

You can bet I did… what a thrill to work across the big Pond from the edge of the little pond! Thanks all for the QSOs.

Tim… W3ATB has made a beautiful video of the operation. Hope you enjoy it:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9R9OiqxWRaQ&w=560&h=315]

Tim W3ATB and I went up to Livermore Falls in Plymouth this morning. I worked England, Spain, Israel, Denmark and Latvia. To make it even better, the fall colors were stunning.

The Plymouth and Lincoln railroad tracks run just to the west of the falls. I set up on some rocks in the sunshine. It was nearly 55F in the sun.

I tossed a 33 foot wire into an oak tree so my wire was sloping to the east. It was perfect on 15, 12 and 10 meters. I used the KX3 with a 9:1 unun.

As I tuned across 15 meters I felt like I was in radio heaven. FS/K9NU Paul in
St. Martin answered on my first call. Here’s my log for the morning:

27 Oct-15 1455 21.028 FS/K9NU CW 599 599 St. Martin
27 Oct-15 1458 21.024 OZ5RM CW 569 599 Denmark
27 Oct-15 1503 21.022 YL2TQ CW 589 599 Latvia
27 Oct-15 1508 21.007 LZ1IN CW 559 579 Bulgaria
27 Oct-15 1512 24.900 4Z5AD CW 599 599 Israel
27 Oct-15 1523 24.900 UR5WA CW 599 599 Ukraine
27 Oct-15 1525 28.028 G0EFO CW 579 599 England
27 Oct-15 1530 28.009 EA3AR CW 579 599 Spain

I tried 12 meters and worked Ukraine and Israel, so I moved up to 10 meters. I was amazed to find it also open. I worked England and Spain.

With that I packed up and headed home. I’m so glad I was able to get out. It’s supposed to rain the next two days.