Yes and I’ll bet most of those stations are contest stations, running their multi-KW amps and just firing up on any frequency without listening first. Adding insult to injury their favourite spots appear to be the frequencies that are defined as frequencies for use by QRP stations!!
Ed.
Hi Mike,
Part of the tunnel has collapsed so no light getting through.
Thanks for trying, we VK’s do appreciate having you on at a time when we are around. After trying with you I worked a few JA’s a 8N1 and a YB on 20m on JT65. Sigs pretty mousy. Nix long path to Eu.
73
VK3AFW
Hi Mike,
Take a look at this post from Antonio,
From what he says, I think it was a Short path contact - so perhaps you’d be better going out late afternoon rather than early morning when trying for VK/ZL contacts? Between 16 and 2100 UTC looks best from the predictions, and actually 40m should be better than 20m. Of course don’t forget that the Eastern Australian states are 8.5 or 9 hours ahead of you in the UK. So you need the VK station on starting at about midnight their time!
Ed.
Hi Ed,
Great contact by Antonio, especially ssb and qrp.
Recently, I’ve had a couple PM’s from VK chasers suggesting 40m. In fact, I received one on Sunday morning after Saturdays G/SP-013 Gun activation.
Vertical or horizontal, is the $64k question?
For working DX, my feet are firmly planted in the vertical camp and the solutuion may well be, dragging my kite antenna out of retirement. I’ve worked VK using the kite from a SOTA summit, however, it was on 20m, a couple of years ago.
The kite will get a shed load of wire in the air for working the 40m band, however, I’m not exactly thrilled at the thought of flying it at 2100 hours local time 
Nevertheless, certainly food for thought.
Mike
The simple answer - is whatever you have got. At least for a first try.
I wouldn’t mind giving a short path contact to VK a try late afternoon / early evening - of course here I am an hour ahead of you, so it would be later for me. I suspect the limiting factor would be the time in Australia though. It’ll be past midnight on the East coast but a contact into VK6 (West Australia) might be possible ?
Ed.
.
Looking at the Space WX, I fancied trying to work a bit of DX from Shining Tor, this morning. Hearing the alarm clock go off at 0430 local time, is not the best sound in the world.
I was QRV on 20m at 0558z and was not happy with the Antron-99’s SWR. So, I spotted myself as QRX, while I changed both the feeder and patch lead to the tuner. There was a marked improvement, but not as good as normal. Seems like another problem to sort out 
The first half hour was slow with about 9 calls George SV2NCH and Christos SV2OXS both making the trip.
My first VK was Bill VK4ZD and then the band livened up. Great to hear Ernie VK3DET who was followed straight in by 2 more VK’s, Rick VK4RF and again under his old callsign of VK4HA, then Rhet VK3WE, who I hadn’t worked for quite some time.
A few more EU contacts were logged and then Matt VK1MA made the trip, he was the only VK1 I would work all morning.The very next call was David VK3BY and then Ken VK3UH. A call from Lazaros SV2FLM, was followed in by Jonathan signing VK6JON/P7 from his car in Tasmania with an easy copy. Jonathans friend, Steve VK7CW was the very next call, also with a fine signal. Steve was followed by two more VK’s Phil VK6ADF activating VK/FF1446 and SOTA regular Ron VK3AFW,Thanks for the call, Ron.
The VK calls started to dry up, and more EU call were logged including a couple of s2s contacts. The Final two VK’s of the activation were, John VK2YW and finally, Ian VK5CZ. That about wrapped up the morning.
Nice to finally find the 20m band in good shape, although, how long it will last is anyones guess
52 contacts for the activation, 14 VK
VK1/2/3/4/5/6/7 worked.
Big thanks to all the chasers, for a fine mornings radio.
73Mike
2E0YYY
That’s great to hear that 20m is in good condition again Mike after the awful conditions I experienced on Rojar EA8/TF-019 last Thursday. Hopefully this will mean I should be able to qualify tomorrow mornings activation of Guaza EA8/TF-016 on 20m SSB a lot more easily and maybe work you summit to summit as well Mike if you are going out activating again tomorrow.
Jimmy M0HGY
Skip right over the top of me Mike, I listened on several occasions, couldn’t hear anything at all from you.
WELL DONE with the VK contacts.
Ed.
Hi Ed,
Yep, the skip was running really long this morning. Could hardly hear any of the other EU activators, although I managed to work a couple s2s. Just couldn’t find VK8 this morning, although VK8, usually requires a miracle from a SOTA summit…
I heard an EU station working a JA pile-up on 17m, sounded like he was having a lot of fun.
BTW, I heard you working an activator on 40m, I tried to work him too, but the A-99 was having none of it this morning 
73 Mike
Great haul Mike!
I left my dipole up overnight in the garden so when I woke this morning I headed straight to the garden. I saw your spots on SOTAWATCH but I’d only got my MTR 5B CW rig with me. I heard a VK7 at good strength on 30m but the pile up was huge! 20m was pretty quiet with me.
I’ve spent the day chasing from the garden with my FT817. I’ve probably had my biggest points haul ever but I’ve found the propagation shocking today. I kept dialing up the spots but mostly I’ve heard static!
Best band today has been 30m by a large margin. I guess the moral of the story is that despite the doom and gloom about the bands, it’s still possible to have a good day on the radio!
73, Colin
Hi Mike,
That old CB antenna never ceases to do a wonderful job. It was hard going trying to pick the peak when enough of your signal was out of the local noise to get enough copy to make it a valid QSO. If there is a just sniff of propagation it seems likely I might work you so always a visit ti the shack.
I t would take a concerted effort here to work all VK call areas and take three bands and all day to do it. You did it in one band in an hour or so. Very well done.
73
Ron
VK3AFW
Hi Ron,
Many thanks for taking the time to call in. The conditions were somewhat unusual. There was hardly any noise on the band, the S meter was barely moving. There was quite a bit of splatter from the contest stations, many who were running power, though mostly below 14.300.
The thing that surprised me, was how good many of the signals were, coming out from down under.
For my first VK contact, I called into the Rotary net, run by Bill VK4RF and hoped he’d bring me in. He came back to my very first call. Bill did call in a ZL station but he was just too weak for to me work.
ZL is a very difficult DXCC to find from an EU SOTA summit.
Bills contact was a good start and I knew then, there was the possibility of some VK action and so, I went off and found myself a QRG.
It’s a funny old thing radio, two weeks ago, I couldn’t buy a call into VK and then suddenly, it all changes.
73 Mike
2E0YYY
I am genuinely interested to read that Mike. To date I have only managed to work two ZL’s both on 17m on the same activation. It took some careful prediction using VOACAP and some luck I guess on a still busy band. I don’t think at the time I appreciated the rarity of the contact prehaps. Both stations were good signals too.
Its not universal though, anything above 20m now is pretty awful for DX currently. I hope you fix your auto ATU !
Jonathan
I suspect a scan of the UK Database for ZL contacts wouldn’t produce too many. The activators I can remember working ZL are G6WRW, G7LAS, G3NYY, 2E0YYY, M1EYP, and yourself. There maybe a few unsung contacts too. IIRC, Phil G4OBK managed ZL from EA. IMHO, to work a couple in a day would be rare from the UK.
Having said this, I reckon it’s tougher to work VK8, Crocodile Dundee Territory. Sota Chaser, Greg VK8GM used to be around quite often, but I’ve not worked him for over a year.
Auto tuner all sorted.
Mike
The rise of SOTA in ZL should create new chasing opportunities - John ZL1BYZ appears to have an excellent station and is appearing in logs all around the world. I worked him in HL and JA, SOTA activators in EU and NA have also reported surprise at him being in their logs. The pickings might be slim but they might also be picking up!
Hi Mike,
Well it was not a good long path afternoon. Not a trace of you. I heard Rick VK4RF calling you but don’t know if he completed. I heard one G chaser but hard to copy and quite weak. 20 m was pretty much a write off but on 15 m there were good SSB signals out of Japan although lots of QSB. Different direction and maybe multihop E layer stuff.
73
Ron
VK3AFW
I was also surprised not to hear you this morning Mike, espciallly after working a DXPedition on the Faroe Isands at 5-9+20 each way. Strange conditions.
73 Ed.
Hi Ron and Ed,
Strange conditions, indeed. The 20m band was hard work first thing. As Ron pointed out, a combination of poor band conditions and probably me being just too early.
Talk about feast or famine, not a peep out of VK.
Then just after 0700z, up pops John ZL1BYZ with an armchair copy.
Ron, I took a listen to 15m and it was stone dead …
Mike
2E0YYY
Now come on Mike, you didn’t do too badly this morning.
You worked me, & I’ve got to be rare DX nowadays with my noise problems, especially on SSB
Thanks for the QSO.
73, Mark G0VOF
Hi Mark,
Thanks for being the first call in my log! It was a wet and miserable morning on Billinge Hill and still quite dark when I set off from the parking spot. Infact, used the head torch for the first 15 minutes.
Yep, it looks like winter is on its way
73 Mike
