KH9/KH7AL - Wake Island

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 News
Hello everyone,
I have several updates for you so let's get to it.

1) 12 meters was absolutely crazy the other day. I logged nearly 740 contacts between my morning and evening radio sessions. You can read about it on my Activations Blog, at the link below.

2) I am quickly approaching an impasse. Google Gmail only allows sending BCC emails up to 500 people. To my amazement, I am quickly approaching my limit as you all have signed up this for and shared my link for updates with your friends. I am looking to start using the service 'MailChimp' to help keep things professional and allow information to continue to flow freely. So if you see that change in the next week or so, don't be alarmed.

3) I am also working on a new website with a domain name I recently purchased. You all will be the first to know when that goes LIVE.

4) Lastly, my operating plan for 27 January is in flux due to potential work commitments. Right now I am planning for an afternoon (early morning UTC) radio time on 20m. As that gets closer I will have a better idea. I will do my best to update my 'Upcoming' page on my site for any changes.

Thanks to everyone for making my time on Wake an absolute blast!

73 and good DX!

Allen Le Vie
KH7AL/KH9

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 News
After last week's 10m marathon I thought I had reached the top. However, the 12 meter band schooled me. Again, I am humbled by the number of stations looking to contact Wake Island after logging a personal record number of contacts between my morning and evening sessions on the air.

For the past several weeks I have received many questions about bands and modes people would like me to operate on. 12m was by far the most requested band. Naively I tuned up my radio Tuesday morning thinking this would be just another busy day sitting near the ocean with the luxury of being able to also play ham radio and get a bunch of contacts. I underestimated my understanding of "busy". The firehose was officially turned on full blast this day as contacts came flooding in. Thankfully I didn't drown in the cascade of calls as the past two months of operating on Wake have helped me get ready for a truly busy day like this one.

Just before 2000z on 20 January, I got my radio affairs in order at my new favorite spot to operate from called Pirates Cove. Happy with the SWR on the meter I turned on the radio and like normal I scanned the band for any signs that it was open. I only heard one other station chatting away but not booming in. I found a nice vacant spot at the bottom of the voice band and listened. Once I knew the coast was clear I put out my call and within no time, K7YK caught me, and quickly spotted me. Off to the races it went. Within a minute the calls were lining up so I switched to operating split and started filling the log.

Even with the sheer volume of new callsigns I've been able to meet, I have started recognizing a few repeat visitors. That part of ham radio I truly enjoy, the community. KL7KK and AL7KC, way in the middle of somewhere (Bethel) Alaska, are great examples. Partly because I got my first call sign while stationed in Alaska, those prefixes jump out to me and I tend to pull them out of the mix quicker. Additionally, it's amazing to me that the sound of a familiar voice through the chaos stands out so clearly. Nearing the end of my morning radio run, I distinctly heard Rob, AE7AP, calling from my hometown of Helena, Montana. He has a unique way he announces his call, as I'm sure we all do, that is distinct and personal and is transported via the ionosphere to my far off location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

As the calls kept coming in, time just flew by. I only seemed to notice when I wrote down when the hours rolled over, one, two, three... In my past operations, the bands will typically fade away after a few hours. 12m showed now sign of stopping and I only pulled the plug after four hours as it was about lunch time and my brain was thoroughly exhausted. Standing up was a chore as I had been hunched over the radio, tensed up, and nearly affixed to my chair for those four hours. Funny, flying more than two hours and I'm ready to climb the walls with boredom. Put me in front of a radio and voila. Time disappears.

After lunch I spent several hours logging all 498 contacts, and finished just in time to dash to the dining hall for dinner, eat quickly, and get back out to the beach for my 0700z showing of, "Making (Electromagnetic) Waves on Wake". This time though, 12m finally did show signs of mortality and began fading around 0900z. Although the evening wasn't as strong as the morning to the east, I heard stations from all over Europe and logged about 240 contacts.

All in, I spent about 6.5 hours on the radio, and logged nearly 740 contacts. The next morning I felt a bit hungover, without having drank a drop the day before. Is radio-aholic a thing? 73, AL KH7AL/KH9

PS - Thanks again to several of you who have donated a few spare dollars to help me offset QSL costs and upgrade my antenna situation here on Wake. I hope to get QSL cards printed and begin mailing returns by the end of February with the help of my family back home.

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 News
Just before 2000z on 20 January, I got my radio affairs in order at my new favorite spot to operate from called Pirates Cove. Happy with the SWR on the meter I turned on the radio and like normal I scanned the band for any signs that it was open. I only heard one other station chatting away but not booming in. I found a nice vacant spot at the bottom of the voice band and listened. Once I knew the coast was clear I put out my call and within no time, K7YK caught me, and quickly spotted me. Off to the races it went. Within a minute the calls were lining up so I switched to operating split and started filling the log. KH7AL/KH9.

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 Wake Island News
Hello Everyone,
In case you did not hear, I made a 12m dipole this week out of some scrap material I found. I am looking to make my first of many 12m QSOs from Wake today. I may also make a 20m appearance this week to work Europe, but I am not sure when exactly.

Yesterday I committed time to my creative side and began working on some logos and designs for my QSL cards that I hope to get printed in the next few weeks. The logo attached was inspired by the many hermit crabs that inhabit Wake Island and I see everyday. Main design was created using ChatGPT/DALLE and a lot of editing in Acorn to modify to my liking. More to come in that area. In the meantime, here is my upcoming schedule that is always available on my site (link below my signature).

Next scheduled activities**:
20 January ~ 2000z, 12m SSB
21 January ~ 0700z, 12m SSB
26 January ~ 0700z, 12m SSB.
27 January ~ 0730z, 20m SSB

** If you would like to be removed from receiving future emails, please let me know by replying to this email with, "Stop".

73,
--
Allen Le Vie
KH7AL/KH9

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 News
Today, January 20, 12M SSB around 20Z
Tomorrow, January 21, 12M SSB around 07Z.
January 26, 07Z, 12M SSB, and 27 January at 0730Z, 20M SSB.

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 from Wake Island on 18151.5 now.

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 News
I have received many question and requests about 12 meters over the past couple months. Well, today I did something about it. I get it. People hunt DX. Then they hunt rare DX by band. So, with some spare parts and wire I made a 12 meter dipole after work. Once hoisted and in the air I was shocked that the SWR was at 1.25:1 without any trimming. My family will be shocked because I’m typically a measure twice, cut three times type of carpenter. With my measuring skills out in the open, I just wanted to share that I have a 12m antenna ready to go for this coming weekend. Now I just hope the bands cooperate to make many contacts.

[4L5A]

Hello friends,
This morning on 10 meters was simply amazing. 468 contacts in four hours. A drained battery and empty stomach are all that kept the fun from continuing as the new zulu day rolled to 13 January.

Just a quick update regarding LoTW as I have received a LOT of questions about it. With the help of my lovely wife back home, we were able to get the new KH7AL/KH9 LoTW certificate loaded onto my home shack PC and a copy to my laptop here on Wake Island. As of this afternoon, I have uploaded all 3068 KH7AL/KH9 QSOs to LoTW.

Here is my brief blog update and a few pictures. https://sites.google.com/view/kh7al/...tivations-blog

I hope to catch you on the air next week on some new bands.

73,
AL

Allen Le Vie
KH7AL/KH9

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 from Wake Island on 18114 now.

[4L5A]

KH7AL/KH9 Wake Island QSL Card.