[TowerTalk] trees and verticals

[kr2q at optimum.net]

My FYI tale of vertically polarized antennas and trees.

I have always lived in very heavily wooded areas and have always used horizontally
polarized antennas on the top of crankup towers.  They clear the tops of "most" of 
the trees, but not all.  They work REALLY WELL (I have an outstanding QTH) for DXing.

Wanting to "save rotor time," while contesting (with my 402CD), I put up a GP (elevated
vertical).  It hangs from a tree.  It is "full size" and has full sized elevated radials.  My hope
was that it would be louder than my 2L 40 when the 40 was pointed at EU (50 degrees
from NNJ) when I heard a new mult from the south (zone 8, 9, etc).  The "base" of the GP
is about 20 feet above ground (and so are the radials, but they slope down somewhat).  It
was to be my "multiplier" antenna.

That was not the case.  The elevated vertical (GP) is always "weak" compared to the 2L
40, even when the yagi is pointed at EUR and I'm comparing to the South.  
The 40m yagi is at about 80 feet.

Now, I would expect the yagi to be louder to EUR as compared to the GP, but not so 
to CA/SA, which, at best, is off the back corner of the beam when beaming EUR.

The GP vertical element is supported by the trunk of the tree, so it is "right next to" the 
tree trunk.

I also took my 1/2 dipole on 160m and made it into an inverted L, using a different tree.
It is probably 100 feet straight up before the "bend" starts.
Again, the vertical portion (wire) is right alongside the tree truck.  The results suck.

Nobody can near me.  I mean NOBODY.  In the CQWW, I worked a handful of stations:
VE, W, zones 4 and 5.  Big deal.  I was hoping for a lot more.  The very low 160 dipole, 
which was had the apex at 45 feet and the ends about 6 feet off the deck, worked 
WAY better.

I am bummed on both accounts.

In case you don't know, I run QRP (5 watts).

de Doug KR2Q