09/12/2006 | WB2AMU I operated in the QRP portable category again for this contest from a hill on Long Island, Grid FN30. This was a decent contest for September, although Six Meters suffered with poor conditions overall. No Sporadic-E was observed here at all, so there was quite a difference from the June VHF contest! As usual, most of my contacts were made on Two Meters.

However, my absolute highlight came shortly before 6 PM on Saturday night. I was switching back and forth between 144 and 432 MHz while using the same antenna, a three-element MFJ Two Meter Yagi. Suddenly on 432 MHz, I heard a real loud SSB signal. I dropped my callsign and AA3ID from FM25 came back. He apparently went up there from another band looking for a station that sent him there. He was 59 with tropo distortion and I was 57 for him using the 10 Watts and the Two Meter beam! That was fun!

I really find portable operating fun on VHF for all of the contests. It is really a shame that 222 MHz and 432 MHz only seem to be active during the contests so they are pretty much contest bands.

73

KEN WB2AMU -- WB2AMU