I nipped out up Allermuir Hill GM/SS-171 for a bit of radio fun not expecting much but for the first time since 10m really took off I deployed the Delta Loop antenna. Oh and there was a US contest on 10m , maybe other bands but I never got a free moment to check.
So I apologise for only working 10m. The antenna worked brilliantly, I can’t say it’s better than my EFHW but I worked 54 QSOs on 10m, nearly all were US stations. Also 2x Africa, 1x Asia and a few EU including G4TGJ/P and G4OBK by some kind of scatter and MM0IVR by ground wave.
Nearly all the US stations were 59 and many were 59+20 on the KX2 meter. I had to go up to around 28.784 to find a clear spot for SSB… I worked a few and then it went dead. I assumed someone was on the frequency out of my skip zone. Confirmed by Eric F5JKK in a spot comment. If I had seen it I would have QSY’d and / or called in CW for a QSO with him.
Tuning down the band there was a limitless supply of US contest stations and best results were had by only calling the 59 stations on the meter. I heard the following many times when I gave my report as “5910 5910 only 10W” “Wow, with just 10W you smashed through the pileup”. I must have heard that nearly 10 times.
ODX and a real joy to work was being called by Ken K6HPX and getting 539 from him for 10W to a delta loop with the base only 1.5m AGL. Thanks Ken.
So apologies for only doing 10m, I don’t think I can recall it being like this before. Could have been the antenna or the band or both. I was going to wait a bit longer to work some W7 and W6 stations but I was just too cold.
Thanks for the S2S. I almost didn’t check your frequency because I assumed I wouldn’t be able to hear you but you were a good signal. I assumed Sporadic E so why do you think scatter?
It would need to be quite intense to reflect 10mback down over just a few hundred km which is why I thought scatter from maybe something like SpE cloud or whatever.
Here’s the antenna deployed on a 5m mast. There’s a 1/4wave length of 75Ohm coax to match the nominal 200Ohm antenna to 50Ohm. KX2 said 1.2:1 at 28.0633 and 28.784. 1.0:1 at 28.3590.
Andy, I assume you are not apologising for real, aren’t you? You decided 10 meters were the best for you today, you worked them, it is absolutely ok. If someone has a problem with you not working other bands, it’s only their problem (I am pretty sure no one has though). If we have to start thinking about any activation in terms of “I have to do this and that otherwise chasers and other activators won’t be satisfied” I’d rather find myself another hobby
And if you believe the Many Paths theory many of those photons that made it to your antenna went via some completely crazy routes in the universe. And in any case - since the signal path went via the ionosphere - probably most weren’t the original photons that left Andy’s antenna.
I am using a resonant 10m GP antenna, 10m condx are FB and improving, and there is a SOTA 10m Challenge taking place. 10m is where it’s at, and therefore where I’m at when activating.
I do offer diversity in terms of mode, with SSB, CW, FT4, FT8 and FM used on most activations. I also intend to experiment with AM and SSTV too, but need to look into frequencies and protocols for these on 10m.
Of course it’s entirely up to the activator to do whatever bands/modes they want to do. I will certainly be doing some 10m only activations. But, as a chaser/S2S seeker, if an activator only does 10m it can make it much harder to chase them as the skip zone is much bigger. So I hope activators will bear that in mind and keep doing all the other HF bands they would normally do.
I have also focussed on 10m which keeps me busy for as long as I’m willing to stay on summit during cold weather - usually an hour or so. It is great fun in current conditions, which won’t last forever!
I have felt bad about missing regular chasers within the skip distance, but as long as I’m making the summit available to chasers “somewhere” then that’s about all I can do.
As Tom mentions above, I use a single band ground plane antenna, which doesn’t lend itself to multi band activations.
Having said all that, it has been interesting to work relatively local stations within UK, either by back scatter or whatever mode. Some such signals are intriguingly “rough” or “breathy” in quality, suggesting scattering of some sort…
You say “an activator” - if it’s a specific operator you wish to chase, perhaps you might contact them directly to arrange a QSO ahead of time.
But I suspect you don’t really mean that, in which case you can chase the dozens of other activators who I see every day alerting for the lower HF bands and where the skip zone is small enough. Scanning the list of daily alerts, it’s a small minority who are doing only 10m.
As I’ve said many times when this comes up, we activators have nothing to apologize for. We exclude whole classes of chasers when we choose modes (e.g. CW but not SSB) or bands. I try to mix it up (a 2m FM WOTA yesterday, a 30m/10m CW one last week).
And Tom’s right, many of us [like me] are enjoying this 2-4 year window for 10m and N/A Dx, some for the first time and for some of us Oldies maybe for the last time.
It was more a case I’d advertised 10-12-15-17-20m and stayed on 10m. It is a case of make hay whilst the sun shines, so 10m is the place to be. Normally I could nip onto 40m to give some locals a shot when using the multi band EFHW but with so many stations on 10m and it being so easy to work them for a new unique for the challenge, the desire to rig the EFHW (about 10mins) was lacking.
That must have happened to most activators, e.g. you alert intending to do 2 or 3 bands but on summit you get a long run or pile-up on the first band, by which time you’ve got very cold or simply run out of time and have to go home / onto the next summit. No apology needed - but sweet of you anyway, Andy.
If I suspect a potential problem I’ll alert for the first band and list others in the comment field as ‘maybe’s’.
Looks like a pretty exciting day, Andy, and I was thrilled to have the distinction of being the very last contact in your log that day! I’m currently located in Southern Arizona, not far from K6HPX.
As others have commented, when I am activating I make no apology for working a single band (10m) during the fabulous propagation and the 10m Challenge. On activations I use a KX2 running 10 watts to a vertical 10m EFHW fastened to a cheap 7m Chinese fishing pole. I’ve actually started bringing a microphone and a laptop to expand the number of modes used–from CW only to CW/SSB/Digital. I can only aspire to the level of Tom (M1EYP)!
I look forward to getting some S2S contacts in the log with you!
What about 2m FM only activations? There are plenty of them Richard. In 2024 and where I live, these are more challenging than 10m and equally rewarding as working 10m dx.
I’m at the stage with 10m that I’m going to try a whip next, having come from a monoband vertical through an EFHW and a shortish random wire during a contest and still getting the same (brilliant) results.
You decided 10 meters were the best for you today, you worked them, it is absolutely ok. If someone has a problem with you not working other bands, it’s only their problem (I am pretty sure no one has though). If we have to start thinking about any activation in terms of “I have to do this and that otherwise chasers and other activators won’t be satisfied” I’d rather find myself another hobby 
