[Elecraft] qrv with KX1 from KH6

[Sergej Kindsvater DF6MU]

All,

just got back home from a vacation on a beautiful island of Kaua'i, 
Hawaii. I had only three rather short daytime occasions to work radio 
from the Anahola Beach on the north-eastern part of the island, grid BL02id.

As it was my first experience being qrv out of mid Pacific, here is the 
summary:
The only useful band seem to have been 20m, this is where I made my five 
qsos :) I didn't hear anything on 40 or 30m. On 20m most signals were 
quite weak, but all readable as there was no qrm  at all.

For the qsos with ZK2QQ, KG6YAE and FO/N6JA antenna used has beeen my 
Buddipole on a 3m high telescopic mast mounted in its standard  
T-configuration on a tripod right on the beach.
For the qsos with KH6ZM and KG6SNV I used a 8m long wire sloping at 45 
degrees up to a tree with higher point at approximately 3 meters AGL. I 
didn't feel any difference in RX when this wire fell down on the sand 
though :),thus being eleveated just about 1 meter above the sea level.

I only managed to get max 2.5watts out of kx1 on 20m, this at 13V (I 
have a foldable 25w solar panel). It would tune with 3.5w on 40m, but 
again, no activity heard there.

I received 579 from Brad FO/N6JA (qrb 2831 mi!), 559 from Dick KG6YAE 
(qrb 2642 mi). ZK2QQ is the most DX with QRB 2934 mi, gave standard 599 
on the first call (he was vy loud at 1853Z on 5.May calling cq with no 
takers).

Max KH6ZM, who himself was running only 5w into a 4el monobander and 
also quite elevated (his qth Volcano village at the Big Island), gave me 
549, I heard him 559. The distance between us has been only 314 mi. 
KG5SNV, Mario, eventually received my call KH6/DF6MU/P correctly but 
only gave me his name/qth and "qsb" instead of report.

I heard a lot of w6, w7, w0 and VE7 stations, all quite weak. The 
strongest signal around has been JH9FNB/MM qth "1 degree above the 
equator in the midpacific". I also received w1aw bulletins quite  well. 
One weekend there should have been a southamerican contest of some kind, 
so I heard 4e7c, xe1un (Yuri), a couple of LU and CX stations, but 
nobody answered.

Looks like the rig works just fine and it have been lots of fun, for my 
next portable activity I would just need to tune the 20m output, and 
maybe take with me a full size dipole for twenty and 12m telescopic 
fiber glass route.

I didn't use the KXPD1 option (that I also have), instead making solid 
30 wpm with the german Palm Radio M-P817 paddle, I felt it very 
comfortablöe to have my paddle detached from the kx1.

73/72 de DF6MU, Sergej Kindsvater