EI2KC - chasing DX to the edge of my sanity

Homer Simpson shows exactly how I felt when I worked TX3X.

It has to be said that DXing on the HF bands is definitely not a pursuit for the faint-hearted. It requires skill, patience, and, perhaps more than anything, time. The TX3X dxpedition to Chesterfield Islands in the Pacific Ocean is ending tonight. Antenna tear-down is at 22:00UTC. As of this morning, here in Ireland, I did not have a QSO with them and had never worked Chesterfield before. I needed it as an ATNO (All-Time New One). The pressure was enormous.

I have been trying to work them since Friday, October 2nd - a whole ten days ago - without success. Every day, in the morning and in the evening, and sometimes (when I wasn't working) all day long. And every day I've been disappointed. Propagation was poor since about a week ago. Some days I could hear them, on 20 metres CW especially, and sometimes SSB. I never heard them on any other band. Not once. This was a tough one. Many times when they were "workable" into western EU, they would suddenly announce "QRX" or "QSY" or, on one or two occasions, they just disappeared without explanation. This was extremely frustrating for me, and for many other ops in EI and in the UK. After five or six days, only the very biggest stations in Ireland had them logged.

It came down to the last weekend. Yesterday (Saturday), I could hear them well on 20 metres CW and they didn't have a big pile-up so I was confident I could work them. But, just as their signal peaked, they announced "QSY RTTY". Nnnoooooooooooooo!!!! My attempt to work them had been foiled, again. Their signal was OK on RTTY, but they had the whole world calling them, and even the big EU stations were not making it into the log. It was JA after JA after JA. I hadn't a hope.

I had actually begun to resign myself to the notion that here's one new DXCC that I wouldn't be logging. I had begun to philosophically convince myself that I was beat. There was a conversation going on in my head like this: "Well, only the big guns got them. You're a small pistol, and even though you have worked the rarest ones, the miracles don't always happen. You have to accept the limitations of your restricted station and the fact that you are operating from a small garden in the middle of a housing estate."

When the alarm went off this morning (Sunday), I immediately checked the DX cluster. No sign of TX3X on any bands that I could hope to work them on. So I had a bit of a lie-in. But I couldn't sleep, so I got up and headed to the shack, thinking that I should at least keep the radio on the right frequencies in case they popped up. So on one VFO I had 14.023 on CW and on the other I had 14.185 USB. Fingers crossed.

Then on Facebook, Gerry EI9JU said they were on 14.185. I listened in. Yes, I could hear them. But could I work them? I had tried before without success. I began calling. Then I heard "Echo India" but I could hear nothing else because a contest station was working on 14.183 and obliterated the TX3X. A few minutes later I was calling again and this time I heard something along the lines of "Echo India Two Kilo Charlie you're in the log already, but you're 5 and 9". I went back with a "roger roger roger Echo India Two Kilo Charlie you're 5 and 9, 5 and 9. There was QRM and I could not hear you previously. Thanks for the new one!"

Of course giving him a 5 and 9 report was a bit overzealous on my part, because at best he was a 5 and 3, but that's the way exchanges are generally made with rare DX. They don't bother logging accurate signal reports in most cases. Many dxpeditions use contest logging software, which automatically logs 599 on CW and 59 on phone.

I was delighted. Relieved. Ecstatic actually. I shouted "woooohoooo" at the top of my voice several times. My youngest, Finn, came running into the shack and asked me why I was shouting. I told him I had just worked Chesterfield Islands and gave him a big hug. I doubt that he, or any of my kids, understands why I get so excited about making contacts on my radio. But that's how it goes for us DXers. In the above video, made immediately after my QSO, you can hear the excitement in my voice at having worked them.

A short while later I went to 20 metres CW, where they had a decent signal on 14.023. About five minutes later, I could hear 1KC? and then something like IZ1KC? and figured it was me he was trying for, so gave my call several times. Eventually, I heard the magic "EI2KC 5NN" and I gave him "R R R 5NN TU" and I had two QSOs logged within the space of 28 minutes. Fabulous.

I cannot describe the feeling of relief and ecstasy at having worked them. I was under serious pressure with this one. The days were ticking by, and they were proving impossible to work. When it comes down to the last morning, you wonder if they're even going to be active on the bands where you need them. I was even wondering if a CME might trigger some Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance (SID) and knock out the bands completely. In the end, I needn't have worried. Two QSOs is more than I could have wished for even yesterday.

Here's a video of my CW QSO. You can hear the squeals of delight:

Yet again I have proved a few things:

(1) You need to be absolutely mad in the head to be a DX chaser, especially if you have a small station;

(2) You need to devote hours, and sometimes days, to logging an ATNO;

(3) The reward is all the greater when the chase is tough.

And I can tell you that today, EI2KC is beaming from ear to ear. That was the toughest ATNO chase I've had in the six years I've been licenced.

K1N Navassa logged as All-Time New One (DXCC #310)

I know I haven't blogged at all so far in 2015. There is a very good reason for this, which I will explain at the end of this post. But I have to tell you that I logged K1N Navassa as an All-Time New One (ATNO) this week, DXCC #310 in my log. Furthermore, as of this morning I have four slots, including 40m CW, and to my great delight, 80m CW. Below is a video made just after my QSO on 80 metres this morning:

The pile-ups have been huge, which is not surprising because it is the second-most wanted DXCC (the most-wanted according to some sources!). I didn't have much time to try them early in the week but now that I have more time I am being rewarded. I have made CW QSOs so far - on 20m, 17m, 40m and 80m. My 40m QSO was at 00:27 this morning and only took me two minutes! The 80m QSO at 07:38 this morning was the same!! I heard my friend Declan EI6FR going through and went about 1Khz above where he called and in no time at all I was in the log. Several Irish stations made it through this morning - EI8H, EI9FBB, EI6FR, EI2KC, EI6IL and EI8FH. As always, they peaked on the grey line and this was the best chance to log them. They are DXCC #167 on 80 metres for me. I'm really delighted with that.

The next challenge is TI9, Cocos Island, which begins this month also. In the meantime, I will try to log Navassa on the high bands.

LACK OF BLOGGING

A while ago, I made a decision about this blog which I didn't publicise. Life is busy on this side - hectically busy at times. I found that I was not getting any time to write about the things that I most love to write about - Irish mythology, monuments, astronomy etc. I was putting time and effort into this radio blog that could be put into writing other things. In August 2014, I started writing a novel. I tried to write every day, even though some days that was only for five minutes! The novel is now finished, but I am still writing other projects related to Mythical Ireland. I have also been taking a lot more photos. I found going out into the landscape was very conducive to writing good material. And all that has been very rewarding for me, and Mythical Ireland is the subject closest to my heart. (No - believe it or not, amateur radio is not my main hobby/interest!!!!) I have continued to indulge in radio, and DXing, but naturally with 310 countries logged I have less interest in repeating DXCC bands and slots, so generally I tend only to chase new countries and new slots. I hope and intend to continue in the hobby of DXing, and I am rarely in the car without having 2m and 70cm switched on. However, I have found that this re-prioritising of my life has worked very well in terms of my writing, which has flourished. I am now trying to find a publisher for my new novel. And I am trying to put together another non-fiction book about Irish mythology. So although you will still hear me in the pile-ups and I will continue to enjoy amateur radio as much as possible, blogging about it has to take second preference to my duties as an author. I'm sure (and I hope) that you'll all understand.

C21GC Nauru in the log - new country for me, #308!!!!!

Within the past couple of days, I was thinking how I had missed a couple of chances over the past few years to log C2 Nauru. And up pops a one-man dxpedition to that Pacific Island, starting today! I kid you not. Stan LZ1GC is there as C21GC from today until October 14th. He was spotted on several bands today. 15m CW - no signal here. 10m CW - no signal here. 17m CW - barely audible on the absolute limit and impossible to have a QSO with. Then, up he pops on the Reverse Beacon Network on 14.010. I have the antenna pointed at 8 degrees already. I dial down to 14.010. He is there!! 559 with flutter. I put the split on. I sit on 14.011.5. I call.

Within just a moment he comes back "EI2?" and within a short few moments I was in his log!! Wow. I managed to get in before he was physically spotted on the cluster. Lucky me, because when he was spotted the QRM became huge. I made the webcam video below a few minutes after working him.

C21 is my 308th DXCC worked. I'm delighted to have logged Stan on his first day of activity. It can be difficult to work such one-person dxpeditions in the Pacific. And, as the cluster spot proved, there can be considerable QRM too. Delighted now to finish off my weekend with another All-Time New One (ATNO) in the log, and so soon after E3 gave me my last African DXCC.

A map showing the location of C2 Nauru in the Pacific Ocean.