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Never heard Heard
10 April 2016 | by I saw on Facebook this morning, that many were thanking the VK0EK expedition for the ATNO and were thanking them, in general, for a wonderful DXpedition. I would suspect they have gone QRT.
And I would guess I'm in the minority as I'm not in any of their logs. In fact, I never even heard them decently well enough to work them. There were a couple of times that I could tell they were on a given frequency, but they never loud enough that I would be able to hear my own call come back to me, on the off-chance that they would have heard me. It didn't seem right to just add to the QRM.
Am I disappointed? You're darn tootin' I am! Working VK0EK would have been an ATNO for me and I sure as heck would love to have them in my DXCC tally. But I'm not depressed about it.
It all goes back to that post a few weeks ago about balance. Yes, I do not have Heard Island as an entity worked. However, the sun is still shining, the birds are still chirping, our solar system is still plowing its way throughout the galaxy. I still have to go to work tomorrow and earn a living.
And while I didn't work them, and life goes on, I still applaud their effort. It's not easy to go to a remote island near Antarctica, and brave the elements and hardships to provide the rest of us Amateur Radio ops with a bunch of excitement and fun.
Thank you Team VK0EK - even though I'm not in your log - thank you for a job very well done, indeed!
72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!
Larry Makoski, W2LJ, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Jersey, USA. Contact him at [email protected].And I would guess I'm in the minority as I'm not in any of their logs. In fact, I never even heard them decently well enough to work them. There were a couple of times that I could tell they were on a given frequency, but they never loud enough that I would be able to hear my own call come back to me, on the off-chance that they would have heard me. It didn't seem right to just add to the QRM.
Am I disappointed? You're darn tootin' I am! Working VK0EK would have been an ATNO for me and I sure as heck would love to have them in my DXCC tally. But I'm not depressed about it.
It all goes back to that post a few weeks ago about balance. Yes, I do not have Heard Island as an entity worked. However, the sun is still shining, the birds are still chirping, our solar system is still plowing its way throughout the galaxy. I still have to go to work tomorrow and earn a living.
And while I didn't work them, and life goes on, I still applaud their effort. It's not easy to go to a remote island near Antarctica, and brave the elements and hardships to provide the rest of us Amateur Radio ops with a bunch of excitement and fun.
Thank you Team VK0EK - even though I'm not in your log - thank you for a job very well done, indeed!
72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!
11 Responses to “Never heard Heard”
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I’m with you Larry. Never heard VK0EK very well at all. Would have liked to get them in the log, but I will have to wait for another time when there are a few more sunspots or I have a better antenna. Kudos to them for the operation.
I tried to hear them several times and the one or two times I did they were nearly at ESP levels. I’m not in their log. But it was a monumental operation considering all the time, effort, and money that went into it. Hopefully we’ll have better conditions in 20 years when the next operation will presumably occur.
I spent or more like wasted, many hours on many bands and never heard a peep put of them…. With my P3 panadpator I could see a lot of others screaming at them. I don’t know how many worked them or if they were calling in hope of being called back, but it was frustrating. This is the first one time only dxpedition that I could now work…nor hear… Seems I am not alone..
I am happy to report I got them on 20 LP and its in the log!
Missed them this time, life goes on. Maybe some other day hopefully if and when conditions get better.
Never Heard from Heard
Not a single word.
Way to weak to speak
without a Sun Spot Peak!
The band Police were loud!
with their incessant scream out loud.
yelling at the new young pup.
with a cry of “LID” and “UUUUUP!!”
The odd hetrodyne that I occasionally got
Was from all those tuning on their spot.
Paddles locked beep beep beeping away
Adding more QRM to the large affray!
10Kc’s wide, most of the time.
Other qso’s gotten lost in their prime.
DX-peditions are fine but come at a cost.
The spirit of radio all seems to get lost
Logged onto SDR’s a long way away
which is useless we know
as there is too much delay!
If this is Ham Radio sharp and abrupt
then I think my friends
we are truly F*#cked.
Maybe we could adopt a nice product
A world wide use of
A DX CODE OF CONDUCT!
Have you heard from Heard?
nah not a word!
Maybe next time,
If I care to waste some time!
—————————————–
73 and thanks to all you guys on HEARD and other DX-Peditions.
How you guys cope with the raging hoards I do not know.
But somehow you do.
I look forward to reading your stories when you get home.
———————————————————–
PLEASE READ THE DX CODE OF CONDUCT!
http://www.dx-code.org/
———————————————————–
Add me to the list of those in the log for “Un-Heard” Island. A few characters now and then, but never enough to make a complete call.
Me neither, Larry. It is at about the farthest point on the globe from me and conditions have not been the greatest. I do appreciate their efforts and sacrifice. I hope all the scientific experiments were more successful.
I did, on the other hand, work FT4JA on 12 CW for #316…and am in the log. The DX gods giveth and the DX gods taketh away!
73,
Don N4KC
http://www.n4kc.com http://www.donkeith.com
Count me among the hams who are not in the log.
Propagation was poor, the pileups were difficult, and the comments of fellow “hams” on the VK0 operating frequency made for an overall rough experience.
Maybe next time…
Heard Heard, worked through the herd to get heard on Heard on 2 bands. True the openings were weak and far between. However, I heard FT4JA well enough to work ONLY for 10 sec. (meteor burst?).
The real difference for Central America is that we were in the right general direction from VK0 to the U.S. We are absolutely the wrong direction for any operation from the southwestern Indian Ocean. I have never heard a DX pedition from that part of the world…so; location, location, location. 73 from Panama.
I didn”t make the log this time either. But go back in the way back machine to around 1988 and I worked them running the full legal limit on 20 meters after many hours of calling. The next day came quickly and it was off to work. I stopped home at lunch time and checked the bands … there he was again on only running simplex. I called on time and he came back …. only this time I was running 5 watts from my just built HW-9. Go figure!
73,
Dave K1THP