In this report, I aim to briefly describe the process I went through to get a license for Barbados, the SOTA activation of the islandās only SOTA summit Mount Hillaby 8P/BB-001, and also a few other interesting bits and pieces about the island. The bottom of the report will be a bit of a knowledge base, with links etc.
Background
We donāt usually do relaxing holidays. However, Mo wanted to visit the Caribbean. I suggested Barbados, having visited many years ago. Mo chose the hotel. Sorted. Then I admitted that it had a SOTA summit. Just the one - Mount Hillaby, a 1 point summit, 340m ASL. That meant Iād be taking some radios.
Licensing
The Barbados Telecoms website contains lots of information, including an application form, amateur radio handbook and licensing conditions. It all looked fairly straightforward except for the payment, which mentioned payment by cheque. I emailed the administrator but didnāt receive a reply. I then decided to email the last person to activate Mount Hillaby, 8P9VE, who turned out to be Mountain Goat @VE6AGR Ken, who lives in Calgary. Ken was very helpful and told me that he applied for his license in person when he was on the island, so thatās what I decided to do.
A month before we left I printed off the form and filled in the paperwork. I obtained written permission from my hotel to use my radio equipment. I photocopied my passport and printed a fresh copy of my UK radio license. All of this needed to be submitted with my application.
The Vacation
We arrived on Barbados at 1500 local time on Thursday 5th September. The following morning we walked into Bridgetown, me armed with my paperwork, and walked straight into the wrong building. My Gmail account had been wiped before we left and Iād lost Kenās helpful emails. Thankfully he responded quickly to a fresh plea and we were soon in a taxi on our way to the Telecoms office, near the edge of town.
Once signed in at Baoab Tower, we went up to the third floor where we were met by Omelia who looked at my application and told me that Iād receive a license via email, possibly that afternoon if she could find the director to look over it. She asked if I could use EZPay+ to pay the $30 BBD (about Ā£12) and I agreed, however when I later went to set this up, it only seemed to be available to residents who had a bank account on the island. Instead, I used a money transfer service, XE.com, to facilitate the transfer. This took longer than expected to go through.
Fast forward to Tuesday and the transfer hadnāt appeared in the treasury bank account. Omelia emailed me and agreed to grant the licence because Iād provided a receipt of the transfer. I was now 8P9BW. Game on!
After lunch I wandered over to a quiet corner of the beach, which was actually just outside the hotel grounds. It was well shaded and just within Wi-fi range. I chucked the EFHW up a tree using my Carbon 6 and hooked the whole lot up to the KX2 via a 45w amp. I put a spot on DX Heat, messaged the Home Boys and called away on 15m SSB. I was actually surprised to put a few EU in the log, including, and much to my surprise and delight, @2M0WNA Mike back in Aberdeenshire. Well at least Iād proven I was able to get a signal out.
Me playing ānormalā radio
Wednesday was activation day. It only took us 35 minutes to drive up to Mount Hillaby, initially on the good road that runs up the populated west coast of the island, with the last few kmās on ever narrowing and steepening rural roads. As we popped over a slight rise, I spotted the tip of a concrete column on a grass bank to the right. Was that it? I knew the road passed close to the summit, but surely not that close! I reversed back and parked up on a grassy lay by. From the parking spot, a 20m walk up the grass bank did indeed take me to the top of Mount Hillaby 8P/BB-001. The worn concrete column had a US style marker on the top. The summit was actually quite small. It would been easier to operate from the grass layby, which was easily inside the Activation Zone and also sported a handy park bench, but no I wanted the top.
Mount Hillaby 8P/BB-001
looking down to the car and road
SFI was high at 220 and k was 3. Instinct told me to erect the 10m vertical, so thatās what I did. 7m of coax trailed down to a wee grassy spot and thatās where I was, along with the radio and amp. I spotted using Iridium, solely because I hadnāt bought any data for my phone. After a few unanswered CQ calls, I wondered if the spot had gone. And then it happened.
The Pile Up! American stations were always strongest, so I tended to work them first when they appeared, however 10m was well open to Europe and it was great to work so many regular SOTA chasers across the UK, mainland Europe, Russia and Turkey to the east and enjoy strong signal contacts to USA to the west.
With 29 logged on 10m, I had a word with Mo and gained approval to try another band. She was quite happy drawing in her sketchpad. In fact she had commandeered the low trig as a stool. I quickly dropped the vertical, leaving the mast standing thanks to low slung guys. I popped up the 20m up and outer. This antenna has always been good to me on foreign trips.
enjoying the summit sun
That run was about to end. Absolutely nothing on 20m! I couldnāt believe it. āCan I try one moreā¦ā¦please?ā This time I put up my EFHW, keen to try 15m. I was actually carrying a 15m delta loop but it is a bit more of a faff to put up, and the EFHW had got my signal out on 15m the day before anyway.
15m was quiet, but definitely open. 10m chasers @G4OBK Phil and @GI4OSF John proved this by calling back in. My only other contact on 15m was with @HK3C John, from Columbia.
With 32 logged in an hour and a rain shower looming, I called it a day. We were packed up and back at the hotel within an hour. I was buzzing!
32 contacts from Mount Hillaby
Basians are very civilised and drive on the left
Most mornings for the rest of the week, around 10am, I would go to the same spot on the beach and āplay radioā for an hour. Always with the 10m vertical and usually making a few contacts around the place. Saturday morning was a particular highlight, worth mentioning. Iād been spotted on the cluster and suddenly the EU contacts came firing in, one after the other. Except they were all contest callsigns and they all wanted a number. Ok, 001,002,003ā¦.I think I got up to 008 before some automated Italian station started calling āCQ Contestā on my frequency.
Then the real highlight. Simon @GM4JXP was over on a Croation island activating Planjak 9A/DH-134. I hadnāt been able to hear him, but Simon was hearing me at 5/5. He swapped his antenna over for a 10m delta loop and tried again. Unbelievably he started to come through. Weak at first, with fading but eventually at 3/1. Contact made! 8000km/5000mls.
in the shade at my regular spot
That was my last radio activity of the holiday. The rest of the time was spent snorkelling, drinking way too much beer, too many cocktails and eating more than I needed to eat. We also took time to explore the quieter east side of the island, visiting botanical gardens and other wonderful natural sites.
our beach
The outstanding highlight at the hotel was the emergence of some baby 200 turtles from the sand, just 2m from where we were dining. The hotel had been closed for a couple of months due to damage caused by the June hurricane, so no one knew that a turtle had crept up the beach and laid eggs in the sand at that spot. Usually the hotel marks known spots using small wooden picket fences to keep folk off, however this one was a surprise to everyone. A hotel colleague scooped the 200 baby turtles into a large waste basket. Soon a couple of volunteers from the Barbados Sea Turtle Project appeared. They would check and count the turtles, as well as scour the nest for any un-hatched eggs. The turtles would then be taken to a dark corner of the beach and released into the ocean. Turtles that hatch near a hotel usually need this manual intervention. Bright hotel lights and swimming pools affect the baby turtles instinct to head for the ocean, and, left to their own devices many end up in hotel pools and on main roads.
counting baby sea turtles
So, that was Barbados and Mount Hillaby. A wonderful island with wonderful people and a great place to visit. Can the next one to visit let me know as Iād like a complete! Also, Barbados is a coral island which is rising at quite a rate from the seabed, so maybe weāll only have to wait a wee while for some more SOTA summits there.
Resources
Radio Licensing
Barbados Telecommunications Unit
3rd floor, Baoab Towers, Country Road, Bridgetown, St. Michael
Web - Telecoms.gov.bb application form, band plans, amateur radio handbook
Barbados amateur Radio society
On facebook ā search for Barbados Amateur Radio Society
Web ā arsb.org The website has details of daily and weekly nets etc.
Barbados Sea Turtle Project
Barbadosseaturtles.org also on facebook
Currency
We took Basian dollars, but the US dollar is equally accepted. $1 USD = $2 BBD
Contactless payments accepted in town and country in our experience
Climate
The last time I was in Barbados I got sunburn in 15 minutes. It is HOT! 32-36C but burning heat, so long sleeves, a hat and sun protection a must. I also packed a waterproof. There is a rain shower most days and I knew it would be my luck to have it happen during my activation. It didnāt.
Accommodation
Sugar Bay, Hastings, Barbados
Just south of Bridgetown and a 30 minute walk into the centre of town. Great rooms, food, drinks and service. As well as a quality buffet every day, there is a steak house, Asian dining and a rum shop serving more casual dining all afternoon. Highly recommended (all inclusive). The hotel quickly replied to my request to operate my radio equipment.
Car Hire
Organised via our hotel. Prices were comparable with the web and the vehicle was delivered to the hotel. Excellent service and the Suzuki Jimny was perfect for our needs. It came from Gocarsbb.com
Getting to Mount Hillaby
Itās located in the Scotland District of St.Andrews Parish. No, I didnāt make that up. I downloaded the entire island into google maps for off line use. I also had a topo map for my Garmin. No need though. The hill was easy to find and is to the east of the hamlet of Hillaby. The paved road leads right to the summit area. Check out SOTLAS Itās all on there.
Radio Equipment and Air Travel
It felt like a bit of a waste to carry radio gear half way across the planet and to jump through hoops to obtain a license, only to use it on one SOTA summit. I really only do SOTA, but thought it would be nice to spend an hour a day operating from the hotel gardens or the beach. A step into the unknown but a bit of active relaxation to break up the day. Thanks to a generous luggage allowance, I took the following items in my carry on bag.
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Elecraft KX2, with two 3S Li-Ions and a small 12v charger
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45w HF amp, with a 4200 mAh LiFePO4 to power it, along with a balanced charger
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Kenwood TH-D7 handheld. US model
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QMX, QDX and raspberry pi for digital modes
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Wire antennas - Ā¼ vertical 10m, delta loop 15m, up and outer 20m, EFHW 10, 15, 20, 40m
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Our hold luggage contained a 7m Spiderbeams pole, Carbon 6 pole and various guys and pegs.
I rarely use the amp, but thought Iād better make a bit of an effort to put a decent signal out from Mt. Hillaby. I never carry battery chargers on holidays either, but thought Iād need a few re-charges with daily use. This meant I also had to carry a smallish 12v power supply. Thankfully, my one can run off 110v, selectable by a switch hidden under a foil cover. And yes, I remembered to set it back to 240v before packing it away!
We flew British Airways from Aberdeen to London Heathrow and Heathrow to Barbados. At the airports, I didnāt even attempt to empty the bag and it went through the modern scanner OK. Leaving Barbados for the journey home, it aroused more interest, but once it was broken down into the individual equipment cases, it was all fine.
Misc
I set up a specific QRZ page for my callsign because I thought there may be some interest in my activities. 8P9BW - Callsign Lookup by QRZ Ham Radio
It has been popular and I received a couple of emails asking for skeds and also info for a DX newsletter. I also received an offer of free QSL cards. I declined, however I will endeavour to upload all of my logs to lotw once I figure it out.
That is all. 73,
Fraser
8P9BW / MM0EFI
