[VHFcontesting] Activating DL88 and DL89

[Marshall Williams]

The K5N Activation group wishes to make the following announcement.  
Please feel free to forward this to anyone that you think might be 
interested.  Thanks....the K5N Activation Group.


ACTIVATING DL88 and DL89

The K5N saga continues!  The K5N Activation Group has applied for a 
"Special Use Permit" from the Big Bend National Park to activate DL88 on 
6M.  DL88 is a very rare grid located at the very bottom of the Park.  
We have received a verbal OK from a Park official on our permit.  
However, the Park has a "No generators in the Outback" rule, so we will 
not be able to run a generator while we are in the Park.  We plan to use 
two large battery banks--running from one and charging the other from a 
vehicle alternator.

We will be operating from campsite Talley2 in the Park, which is just 
South of the DL88 line.  Talley2 is located at DL88jx just off Talley 
Road.  We will be using an ICOM Pro2 with a TE Systems brick amp and a 
6M5X antenna.  We will NOT have Internet or cell phone coverage, but 
there is a 2M repeater in the area that belongs to the Big Bend Amateur 
Radio Club.  We are hoping that we can get someone from their club to 
help us put messages out on the Internet.  After the DL88 operation, we 
will activate DL89.

Team members for this trip are Bill-K5YG, Danny-N5OMG, Bill-N5YA, and 
Marshall-K5QE.  Our support crew will include Joey-W5TFW(QSL Mgr) and 
JD-N0IRS(Webmaster and video editor).  The on-site group wishes to thank 
Joey and JD for all their help and support.  JD will be building us a 
web site for this summer's trip.  If you or your group wishes to help 
sponsor this trip, look to the web site when JD gets it up-check the KC 
Grid Bandits site for a link.

    Here is the basic schedule of events:

    June 28--N5YA and K5QE drive to Big Bend National Park.  We will be 
roving as we go, making as many contacts as possible.  Antenna will be a 
loop.  Call will be K5QE/R.  QRG = 50.150MHz SSB.  K5YG and N5OMG drive 
to the Park from the New Orleans area.
    June 29--Drive to DL88 and set up camp.  We expect to be operational 
by about Noon....give or take.
    June 30--Operate from DL88.
    July  1--Operate from DL88 until about 3PM.  Break camp and drive 
out of the park.  K5YG and N5OMG return home.
    July  2--N5YA and K5QE will operate from DL89wx.  This will be a 
daytime operation only.
    July  3--N5YA and K5QE drive home, roving as we go.  Call will be 
K5QE/R on 50.150MHz.

While in DL88 and DL89, we will operate on 50.150MHz SSB/CW.  If the 
band is "dead" for Es, we will operate FSK441(First Sequence always), 
also on 50.150MHz.  This is the same frequency we used in EL58.  Because 
of the battery power problem, we may not be able to operate all night 
long on MS.  We may have to conserve battery power by shutting down in 
the late evening and charging both our battery packs.  In any case, we 
intend to be on MS in the early AM hours.

PLEASE do NOT spend time trying to get your grid across!!!  Give us an 
RS(T) report and let us go on to another caller.  Please do not try to 
make duplicate contacts "just in case".  The logging software will not 
permit this and it just wastes other people's time.  Please DO work us 
in both DL88 and DL89 if the propagation permits.  If we ask for the 
station that ends in YZ, please do NOT continue to call, unless your 
call actually ends in YZ!!!  All the incessant calling just wastes time 
for everyone.

To receive your QSL cards, please send Joey-W5TFW your card along with 
an SASE.  NO SASE = NO QSL card!!  It will take us a few weeks to get 
the cards printed, so it will take a while to get all the cards out.  
Please be patient....do NOT hassle Joey about your card.  He will get 
them out ASAP.

All email concerning this event should be addressed to 
k5n at bellsouth.net, NOT to our personal email addresses.   While the 
basic parameters of this DXpedition are set, it is highly possible that 
there will be some changes made if the situation demands.

We hope to work everyone possible, so listen up for us.

73 de K5YG, N5OMG, N5YA, K5QE, W5TFW and N0IRS