On a family trip last week, I was able to work in some ham radio. I activated the Santa Fe Trail TR11 for National Parks On the Air on October 18th. This was my first try at operating from he center of the USA. I had 25 contacts. The cool thing was I worked my friends Bob WB4BLX and Vic K4GXV in Panama City, Florida and Tom WD0HBR in Dothan, Alabama. I used the KX2 at 10 watts and the Bravo 7K vertical. The Santa Fe Trail site was three miles East of Baldwin City, Kansas. The site still has wagon ruts there from the eighteen hundreds.
On October 19th I was able to work Bob KK4DIV from Lawrence Kansas via the SO-50 Satellite. Bob was in Lynn Haven, Florida. Last, I made a couple of contacts pedestrian mobile on 20 meters with the KX2 and the whip antenna from my Aunt's backyard in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They came pretty easy. The weather was mostly sunny the whole trip and I got some good visiting in with the relatives out there. Suzy enjoyed the prairie!
Greg N4KGL
