SOTA in ZL3

Activation Reports Pre-Planning
1

Hello,

I plan to activate ZL3 summits in the second part of February. I guess that the traffic is less than in Europe, but can you give me recommendations and tricks in order to succeed my activations ( hours / band …) My setup: QMX and home made vertical antenna (40m / 30m / 20m)

VY 73,

Nico F5MDY

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Bon chance! 1) Join OZSOTA@groups.io | Home and announce your intentions at least a day before 2) Bookmark VK - Current Activity It cross-posts to SOTAWATCH anyway, but sometimes seems faster.

Cheers

John, VK4TJ.

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Hi Nico,

Bands:

  • 40m will usually work well across the length of NZ
  • 30m is sometimes good for inter-island and east coast VK. Note the band-plan as there are now CW and SSB segments to this band in ZL/VK. The only place I can find the updated band plan is here: https://nzart.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/NZART-Infoline-503-1.pdf
  • 20m is normally reliable to VK, but recently (solar maximum) VK contacts have been very challenging. JA will either work or it won’t
  • As we get towards the equinox 20m greyline may be a possible option into the EU at QRP power - or maybe not!

Summits & access:

Note that most summits in ZL are on private land and require prior permission to access (there is no right of access over private land). You can see which summits are private and which are public on https://ontheair.nz (dark purple public, pink private). If you turn on the pubic access land layer on the map you will see formal walking tracks too. Outside of urban areas, there are very few (<5%) summits in ZL with official , marked tracks to the summit. So either choose carefully or be prepared for off-track travel. If you’re into POTA/WWFF the site will also show you the park boundaries and which summits are in which parks.

Alerting and meeting up:

You can obviously spot/alert on sotawatch as normal, but for more contacts you might consider signing up to ontheair.nz and spotting there. Ontheair spots reach a wider range of ZL/VK portable chasers beyond the SOTA community (people interested in POTA, WWFF, ZLOTA, etc). It’s also worth joining the ZL-SOTA mailing list and giving an outline of your plans, especially if you want to meet up with hams on your trip:

Local programmes:

If you’re interested in some local awards as a novelty, you might also consider the ZLOTA/NZART award programmes for lakes, lighthouses and others. The first award certficate in most of these programmes is for 10 activations, so depending on the length of your stay and how you’re are travelling (e.g. lakes can be an easy evening option if you’re in a motorhome) you could achieve this during your stay. Spots and alerts for this are via ontheair.nz. Guides to the award programmes are in the ontheair user’s guide (info menu) or on the official NZART website.

Matt - ZL4NVW

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In addition to the good information above, be patient, we don’t have the same number of chaser as you maybe be use to, so don’t qsy too quickly.

73,

Warren vk3byd

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Thanks for all your recommendations. I’ll try to activate some spots or parks while my son surfs (I’m too old for that :=) ). I’m not looking to fill my logbook, just have fun. I’ll have to explain to the police during my flights that I have a fishing rod for radio communication…

One last thing: I’d like to bring a Quansheng UV5. I read that this rig might be banned in New Zealand. Can you confirm this?

Thanks again dear OMs and VY 73
Nico

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Our government is here to help! Outdoor Access Map Who says they don’t do anything for us? (Thanks Auntie Helen)

I find 10am to noon or 1pm there are more people about, by mid afternoon I find they are all having a nap. Post alerts on Sotawatch as early as you can. There are a people doing POTA most days. Default for POTA/SOTA 7090 or 7085, but spotting and alerting is key.

Here are repeater maps

They are not banned, and Quansheng is not a named brand in the notice. (but very much in scope of the notice). You are allowed to operate it once it is in NZ as you hold the required Ham license. I would bring a paper copy of your license and this gazette notice with you. I expect you will be OK.

If a customs officer was nit picking, you are not a permitted person to import the radio, so strictly speaking you are not allowed to bring it through customs. I am. PM me if you want, and we can sort something out to cover you.

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Hi Nico,

I think all main points have been covered. I carried Quansheng UV5 into NZ with no issue Battery in my hand carry, radio in checked baggage - customs officers were not interested, but that is just my experience.

I would remind you, and something that you will get checked for, is mud / dirt / debris etc on your outdoor equipment. I always declare that I have outdoor equipment and show the customs officer to guarantee no issues.

Main items to note are:

  • Walking boots - give them a good scrub and clean sole before you arrive. At customs they may dip these (the sole) in disinfectant. The same applies to trail running shoes, etc.
  • tent pegs, base of antennas, walking poles, anything that has been in the ground.
  • Tarps and tents, etc that may have been rolled up when outside and may have picked up any seeds, insects, etc

I have found the customs officers to be very friendly and helpful. NZ customs is more concerned with biosecurity than radios for personal use.

Im sure you’ll have fantastic time. Follow the advice given above - alert any activation as best as possible.

Cheers, 73

Roy

:new_zealand: ZL2VRN :united_kingdom: M0TKF

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TU for all these informations. I wiil be on site next week …. very exicted !! I hope this topic wiil help future ZL3 travellers. VY 73 Nico

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