[ADXA] Heard and the Herd

[Dennis Schaefer]

I don't have a 30 meter antenna, but after Pat, W5VY, reported success working them with an end-fed half wave on 30, I put up a sloping dipole on the South side of my tower.  Two nights ago, I didn't hear them very well until 0400Z, when they got a lot stronger.   Pat suspected they turned their 4-square from Europe to the US at that time.   Once their signal came up, it was relatively easy to work them at 0405.

73,
Dennis, W5RZ

> On Mar 27, 2016, at 3:06 PM, Joel Harrison <w5zn at w5zn.org> wrote:
> 
> Heard Island came on the air a few days ago and the wild herd of DX'ers
> seeking to work them fired up!
> 
> Propagation to the island from W5 land has not been good. The first couple
> of nights they had set up 40 and 30 meters. The 30 meter sig was decent
> but 40 was not good. After a couple more days of antenna work they fired
> on more bands but we are still experiencing poor conditions here in W5
> land. Our common daylight/darkness with Heard doesn't help. In the
> evenings we only have about one hour of common darkness at the most so low
> band possibilities are extremely difficult. By the same token the common
> daylight is also only about an hour so that doesn't give much time for the
> sun to do its magic on the higher bands, plus the SFI and A index haven't
> helped either.
> 
> Right now we have some weak prop on 17, 15 and 12 around 8:00 AM and that
> is it. In the evenings from around 7:30 - 9:00 PM listen on 30 meters and
> lower.
> 
> I do not need Heard Island for an all time new one as I have it on 20
> meters and 30 meters, SSB, CW and RTTY from previous operations but I am
> deeply involved in the DXCC Challenge and working individual band
> countries and on a pursuit to reach the 3000 mark. I am currently at 2940
> so every little one counts and Heard is one I need everywhere except 20
> and 30. I was very lucky to work them not only on 40 meters and 80 meters
> as well Friday evening......an accomplishment I call 99% luck and 1%
> skill! This morning I was able to nab them on 12 meters. They had a really
> nice SSB sign from about 1300z to 1330z and then the bad died here.
> 
> Deciding which band to listen to when they are spotted several places is a
> hard decision. When I was a boy I loved to quail hunt with my dad. It took
> me a few times to learn when a covey erupted from their cover and birds
> were everywhere to focus on one rather than just shoot among the entire
> covey feverishly flying away. Working a DXpedition like Heard is similar.
> This morning I was trying to listen for them on 17, 15 and 12. Their CW
> sig was weak on 15 but was the only band I could hear them on and given
> the sig was weak I simply assumed there was no propagation on a higher
> freq, so I focused on 17 and 15. After a bit I just happened to notice a
> signal on their freq on 12 meters on another radio I had on and it was
> VK0EK, a very good 59 sig!!! I almost missed the brief opening because I
> had given up on 12 meters based on their 17 and 15 meter sigs.
> 
> So, the lesson from this is focus on one band at a time but stay cognizant
> of the other bands as well. After you shoot the one bird you need to know
> where to move quickly to next! Understand propagation and when you should
> expect to hear the DX station. Our W5 land band openings to VK0 are short.
> 
> VK0EK is scheduled to be on for another 13 days so you have some time to
> get them in the log. As time goes by the pileups will calm down a bit and
> hopefully the sunspot #'s will improve. Just remember, this is one you
> really need to focus on and work because it will not be back on the air
> for a very, very long time if ever again. The last operation I recall was
> VK0IR in 1997.
> 
> I still need them on 160, 17, 15 and 10 so if you're in the pile on those
> bands I will be as well.....assuming we can hear them!!!
> 
> Oh yea....and one other VERY IMPORTANT POINT - remember they are working
> SPLIT so make sure you're not calling on their xmit freq. Also they are
> listening DOWN so don't go up and call unless you hear the op specifically
> say so.
> 
> 73 Joel W5ZN
> 
> 
> 
> 
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