Jose - VA3PCJ

Jose contacted us today to let us know that contingent to weather and other unforeseeable circumstances, this Saturday, August 5th, he is considering qualifying Clarence Island (FN25JN09) for the Canadian Island Activation Program.

He will try to be on the air from 18:00z (14:00 EDT), operating QRP/P only in CW in the 40m and 20m bands. CW will be manual at 20 wpm or less

If possible, his position will be in APRS.fi (VA3PCJ-7) QSX info will be sent to Twitter via SMS (follow: @VA3PCJ). 

QSL will be only via LoTW and eQSL(AG) (i.e., no QSL cards).

This another first activation.  We have issued Jose the number ON-301 for this island.

This is a shot Jose sent us of Clarance Island last week....under water

due to flooding with the constant heavy rain we have had here in Ontario 

over this summer.

It's a good job he will using his boat for this activation !!

Update on the activation from Jose......

The island was not as flooded as the one on the picture from last May… and though I did get to it by crossing the river by boat in was not in one of mine (it was in the “Ecolos” ferry). However, the island is directly accessible by road…  I parked the Jeep in a small parking area at the west tip of the island and got the PAR tribander set as a vertical up the 43 ft. telescopic mast resting against a tree behind the Jeep. I operated mainly from a bolder near-by, but transferred inside the Jeep when the wind got too strong and the rain started.

Most of the QSO’s were in the NAQP CW, but 4 were not: one was a long QSO I had with Bob in Staten Island, NY, another was an SSB QSO with the group activating the Barnegat Bay Lighthouse in Long Beach Island (IOTA NA-111). The third was with a POTA /P station in NY and the fourth was with a SOTA station activating a SOTA peak in Indiana. Interestingly, the first 25 QSOs were all with US stations (i.e., a single DXCC),  but number 26 was was with Brian VE3MGY from Sparta, ON. Then I also contacted VE5RAC in SK. 

It required some effort but it was fun.