Have you ever considered taking a seperate battery up with you?
No, not really. I prefer to keep the weight to a minimum. It is more of a case of proper preparation and planning. If I charge properly and in time, then my internal battery in the 817 gives me 3 to 4 hours operating time, which is more than enough for a SOTA day. I just wasn’t properly prepared today.
Hi Tom,
many tnx for the fb QSO today.
After a busy day at work you just made my day!
Hope the wx will be better soon to make our first s2s on CW.
Sri abt the battery, I thought my “straight-key-CW” was to bad
and you prefered a beer to my ugly cw…hi
I also use a 7Ah-battery, it runs about 3-4 hours.
Vy73 and congrats on your CW-efforts!
Fritz DL4FDM,HB9CSA
In reply to M1EYP:
Not sure how you manage to get 3-4 hours out of the 817 battery, but we’re drifting off topic. I think I managed 1 hour max before I chucked mine in the bin 
Perhaps I waffle too much
Ian
G7ADF
In reply to M1EYP:
“Apologies to Mike GW0DSP who was possibly looking for a CW S2S given his coincidental Alert notice; I was unexpectedly early, and the battery was flat by 1610 UTC. Tomorrow’s alert time is probably more accurate, while Wednesday might have to be a 2m only activation.”
Absolutely no need to apologise Tom, hope you had fun again?
I did alert to coincide with your alert and hoped for the two of us to have our first cw s2s, but I was a tad slow setting up. Barry M3PXW told me you were up and running, but David, the farmer, kept me talking when I first arrived at the farm.
Maybe next time Tom? We’ll get that cw s2s vy soon.
Cheers
Mike
In reply to M1EYP:
Tom
There is a helpful article for newcomers to portable operation in Radcom - full of useful tips 
73
Richard
In reply to G3CWI:
There is a helpful article for newcomers to portable operation in
Radcom - full of useful tips73
Richard
And a couple of pictures of handsome Adonis type models showing how it should be done 
Ian
Not sure how you manage to get 3-4 hours out of the 817 battery…
I have a 2.3Ah battery that fits inside the set (same size as the supplied battery). The make is OPP (“One Plug Play”). I only ever run the set at the power needed to maintain contact (a common question on the Foundation Licence paper hi!), so switch down to 0.5 watts whenever possible, and up to 5 watts when necessary. This is how I get 3 to 4 hours operation from an internal battery (on 2m FM).
On 7MHz CW, I always use 5 watts, but of course the mode is much more efficient, so I still get the same kind of battery life. Having said that, when it did eventually run out today, I managed to complete with DL4FDM using just 0.5 watts!
Richard, I have found the article in Radcom with the advice to newcomers. I have to say I found it both informative and enlightening, and thank you sincerely for bringing it to my attention.
Another activation after work today, and a much better one. The summit was much more comfortable with the absence of yesterday’s biting wind, and I was able to set up in a more comfortable position with a better view. Where it did almost go pear-shaped was with the battery still not being fully charged after yesterday’s activation. I did catch it in time though, and was able to work through to the end of the pile-up on low power. I was rather surprised at the ease with which I was working into DL, F and HB with just 1 watt.
Despite the EU contacts, the highlights of the activation were a CW summit-to-summit contact with Mike GW0DSP/P on Hope Mountain GW/NW-062 and a QSO with Roy G4SSH/A down in Cornwall. Just three takers on 2m FM when I switch to that band/mode.
Well done… Seems like you are hooked on CW now Tom… welcome to the dark side
(Marc puts tin hat on)
73 Marc G0AZS
In reply to M1EYP:
Hello Tom, I said it all in the email earlier, a superb first 40m CW summit-to-summit for both of us, thanks.
Mike
In reply to GW0DSP:
Hi Mike - Tom,
at the risk of upsetting the applecart- why get so excited about a s2s between the cloud & hope mountain on see dubya?
Lets face it, you could do it on milliwatts in any mode. Or even on semaphore.
Dont get me wrong - Im all for cw - when condx are poor, but why use it when talking into a mike would suffice? Youd probably log more stations. I respect the right of the activator to use any mode he wishes, however I have sympathy with phone chasers who are not full license holders - then hear activators on 5Mhz phone who then qsy other bands cw. Anyway - after a bit of wine, Im losing this thread, so I`ll stop. Mike DSP - I need Hope Mountain for a unique activation - any chance of a guided tour some time?
73 Steve G1INK 413 activations, 10810 contacts 26 per activation - all phone!
Hiya Steve,
In actual fact we did do the S2S on 2m FM as well. Both Mike and myself used 2m FM on our respective activations yesterday as well as 40m CW. Mike used other bands/modes as well as that.
Due to limited battery power, I was using 1 watt from The Cloud on 40 CW yesterday and today. That was getting me into HB, DL, F and HA. There’s no way I could have done that wih 1 watt on 40 SSB, so I don’t agree with your “why use it when talking into a mike would suffice? You`d probably log more stations”. When I did talk into a mike (2m), I suddenly logged a lot less stations in actual fact.
There has got to be things you can do with a full licence that you cannot do otherwise - or there would be no point in having a three (on any number) tier system in amateur radio. Furthermore, I can’t work the 5MHz stations. Jimmy can’t work the CW activations. We don’t need sympathy. We know what we respectively need to do if we want to be able to work them.
Two approaches for Hope Mountain, Steve. 1) Drive into the farmyard and ask permission from the very friendly farmer to access the trigpoint. The land immediately behind the farmyard is PROW, but the higher part of the hill and trig is private. 2) Walk up the tarmac access road to the transmitter site on the other side of the hill. The parking area by the transmitters at the top is within the activation zone.
Why don’t you pop in to club night (Mondays) at the Macc & DARS sometime Steve? They always have a Storm Brewing Company ale on, and usually a Hydes real ale too. Better for you than wine hi!
73, Tom
In reply to G1INK:
Hi Steve, the only reason I worked Tom on 40 cw and got excited about it was purely because I had never had a cw s2s before, simple as that, I was chuffed to get my first one in the log, the same applies to Tom. It was just another sota milestone for both of us, the distance between the summits didn’t come into it.
“I respect the right of the activator to use any mode he wishes, however I have sympathy with phone chasers who are not full license holders”
In reply to the above statement, I agree with you 100% Steve as far as 60m goes, which is why I always start my activations on 2fm, then qsy to the hf bands, both ssb and cw, that way, hopefully, shows sympathy to all chasers equally, another point, not being a full licence holder doesn’t stop chasers using cw if they have taken the time to learn that mode.
If my memory serves me correctly, out of my 10 activations of Hope Mountain, seven have been on 2fm/ssb only, not really fair to the cw guys.
I think the cw debate will go on for ever Steve, I love the mode personally and it has been responsible for me aquiring a lot of chaser points and EU uniques. A lot of the EU activators only work cw.
As for Hope Mountain, any time Steve, it would be my pleasure to show you the summit, access is very easy to find and you would ascend it in approx 3 minutes, hi, let me know when you fancy doing it, maybe on your way back from a Snowdonia activation or likewise, drop in here for a scran/brew and then on to Hope Mountain.
73 Mike
Another one this afternoon. But not HF or CW this time though. The combination of the wet weather, and a deadline to be back to run Liam to cubs decreed that 2m FM handheld style was the order of the day.
At least I borrowed Jimmy’s VX-110 rather than try to struggle against the might of the Sutton Common PMR and broadcast relays with my VX-7R. Nine pleasant contacts were made, all remotely logged by Mike GW0DSP, with yours truly having forgotten, again, to take a pencil in order to realise the benefit of the waterproof notepad! Many thanks Mike.
Although it was very wet and cold, there was little wind, and it was a quiet and tranquil scene on the summit. The thick mist was swirling around below, and I rather enjoyed the activation. Now, will I really manage a pre-work activation tomorrow…?
Well, I had alerted for 7am (06 UTC) but in all honesty did not really know if I would actually do a SOTA activation before work. I’m usually still asleep on a work morning until gone 7am, despite being able to leap out of bed at 6am on a SOTA morning. Making today a SOTA morning, therefore, must have made the difference, for I was wide awake at 4.45am, and annoying Marianne with my restlessness. I got up, went downstairs, had a spot of breakfast, and left the house around 5.30am.
Twenty five minutes later I was at the small parking area on Cloudside, but it was cold, and the rain very heavy. I was early, so decided to sit it out for a bit to see if the rain would abate somewhat. With the good take-off to the north from this spot, I turned the car radio on. A new station, Oldham Community Radio on 99.7MHz was logged. Switching to medium-wave, BBC Radio 5 Live was rolling through all the news (Prince Harry, Madeline McCann & Gordon Brown) that I had already heard on the drive down from Macc. Radio London (‘Big L’) was audible on 1395kHz.
At 6.24am, I decided to strike for the summit. A spot was sent stating “QRV in 20 mins”, and up I went. It was a nice climb so early in the morning with the thick mist and therefore eerie summit atmosphere. It was pretty wet on top though, and quite cold.
My initial CQ calls around 6.40am (0540 UTC) did not elicit a response, so I went onto the GB3MN repeater, from where sufficient interest was created to prompt four mobile stations to QSY in turn to S18. Shortly after 7am (my alert time was for 06UT) the four stations either side of the Dee Estuary appeared, as they had faithfully promised to do last night, plus one more mobile who had been tipped off by the guys on MN repeater. At 7.15am (0615z), I went QRT, and down to the car. I was pretty wet and cold by now, and looking forward to getting in the car and whacking the heater up.
By the time I had regained my usual commuting route to work, I was about 25 minutes ahead of my normal schedule, indicating that future pre-work activations are viable, and could last a little longer in good weather. I even hope to do one tomorrow.
Nice activation, and good to work nine stations in half-an-hour, all before a quarter past seven in the morning! And I remembered my pencil this time, so although my notepad was soon saturated, I could still write on it, and the waterproof paper didn’t tear - and furthermore, later dried leaving everything “as written”. Thanks to all stations that called; six out of nine were regular or occasional SOTA chasers.
73, Tom
In reply to M1EYP:
Sounds like a good mornings work Tom and that’s before getting to work hi.
Not done a lot today here as the rain set in at around 0645hrs so been in the shack all day sorting the computer out getting rid of the rubbish.
I did notice the weather was going to be bad over your way today and sounds like it was, I think the last time I was up that early was the morning of 22/12/05 the last day I worked at the big chocolate factory here in York and then I was home by 1000hrs.
well at least you did get the early worms Tom it will be better later on in the summer mornings when the sun is out at that time makes more pleasant to get up to.
73, Terry
In reply to M1EYP:
Good one Tom! I guess you have started the Pre-Breakfast Club. I usually only request attendance by members of the 0800 Breakfast Club on my sorties. Perhaps it’s a bit easier to throw off the duvet a full hour earlier in summer. Maybe I should try it!
73, Gerald
You may be right Gerald, but in much better weather today, only three came on to work me, in contrast to the nine that took pity on me in horrid weather yesterday. Mind you, today I did not go round ‘advertising’ my activation on the local repeaters.
The weather was better because it wasn’t raining. It was still quite windy and chilly. The views were good though, and you could see the aeroplanes landing at Manchester Airport.
In the end, just three contacts on 2m FM between 0559 and 0606 UTC. A further ten minutes of calling produced nothing. Maybe it is a bit on the early side to be honest. This week I have activated G/SP-015 consecutively on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. I would rather like to add Saturday to that, but it will depend on whether I can sneak out tomorrow evening while the rest of the clan are glued to Doctor Who and that awful Grease talent show.
In reply to M1EYP:
Morning Tom,
I was listening for you this morning but from the works QTH near sea level in Bristol it was more in hope than anticipation…
Look forward to catching you from somewhere more favourable!
73 de Paul G4MD
Saturday and Sunday were both a case of nipping up in the evening when I was supposed to be out picking things up. Seven contacts made each evening on 2m FM. Hopefully back to 40m CW tomorrow late afternoon.
The ascent of this wonderful summit is here:
