TSPOTA April 12, 2025

For this year’s Texas State Parks On The Air (TSPOTA), Joe K5KUA and David KG5URA activated Galveston Island State Park US-3013 while Jayant KG5LJZ, John AB5SS, and Paul KJ5JIO activated Sheldon Lake US-3056.

Reports from our activators:

Jayant KG5LJZ

It was a beautiful crisp morning when AB5SS and I got to the Sheldon Lakes Park US-3056. We decided to set up a simple Vertical antenna than string a dipole on the trees. We chose a location we have never activated before as a club with a clear patch of sky and 4 picnic benches surrounding the antenna. 

Surprisingly we set up the antenna in less than 10 minutes and used one of 2 radios – courtesy AB5SS to start calling SSB CQ. We quickly got to 7 QSOs and then started struggling. AB5SS determined that a truck on the parking lot was also on the air and we had QRM. He walked over to talk yo the other operator and who moved from 20m to 17m. And LO and behold we had the 14 QSOs. 

Paul walked over and found us and got his very first POTA contact. Then we moved to CW and KG5LJZ was mentored by AB5SS. We also swapped the paddle for the new (used) paddle KG5LJZ had purchased from Gerry. The paddle made all the difference and we were able to get my good friends N4FFF and N4BKY who run a CW video channel from Alabama. It was a blast.

AB5SS took over and worked his magic for another 40 minutes while I took a nice walk. We decided to have a picnic lunch and wrap up and head for Galveston State Park where KG5URA and K5KUA were wrapping up.

However traffic was super bad and we decided to come back home.  Hope to go to Brazos Bend with Elmers next Saturday.

John AB5SS

Jayant, Paul and I had a great outing at Sheldon Lakes on Saturday.  We arrived shortly after 9am and scouted the the park for a place to setup.  Got on the air around 9:30am and started calling CQ TSPOTA on SSB knocking out several QSO’s on 20m.  Paul showed up around 10am and joined in on the fun.  Our shady spot gave way to the sun so we moved ~30′ to another picnic table under a tree and continued ops.  We took a lunch break then I called CQ on CW for a while before calling QRT.  I racked up 17 SSB and 20 CW QSO’s and we finally called it around 12:30p and packed up.  Jayant also did quite well and made QSO’s with some of his CW friends. We were going to head to Galveston Island for a second activation but given the travel time and it was starting to get warm, we decided to call it for the day and head home.

We did have some QRM (overloading the IC-7300) from another ham in the park running FT8 on 20m.  I talked to him (can remember his call) and he graciously volunteered to move to 17m.  He was the only other ham we saw in the park.

This was my first visit to Sheldon Lakes and I have to say it’s a very nice park with lots of space and several good locations to setup for POTA ops.  I think I’ll be going back for another activation or two.  Oh, we were prepared for mosquitos but didn’t see a single one this trip!  

Joe K5KUA

David KG5URA and I met up on the bay side at Galveston State Park around 9:00 AM. It was a beautiful sunny day with a nice gulf breeze. As we met up, there was a group of about 20 Girl Scouts and their scout leaders fishing all up and down the site. So before we started setting up, we decided to go over to the beach side. We arrived over there a little after nine and started setting up with two covered benches next to each other. David set up his really nice go box along with a new antenna on top of a Ferriday cloth. I set up my FT991a along with my ham stick David started working 20M SSB and due to our close proximity, I decided to work other bands. I started out on 15M and then 10M SSB and CW for about an hour and got zero contacts. Those two bands were not yet open, so about 1030. I decided to try 40M CW. I got two P2P contacts from other Texas State parks in about an hour just before the band closed. At some point we both were getting some intermittent static QRN but it didn’t seem to last very long.

About noon, we had a lunch break and I jumped on 20M CW. By then, the park was getting very crowded so David decided to pack it up and I decided to stay a little longer. I was on an end table and people kept cutting through, right in front of my ham stick. With the short radials lying on the ground, which had many bright fluorescent orange surveying ribbons tied to them, a ladies foot pulled a radial and knocked over my antenna. That was when I decided it was time to pack up and go. So at about 2:15 I called it a day. Ended up with 65 contacts, all CW. Another good thing was there were no mosquitoes.

David KG5URA

My experience and I believe Joe had the same thing happen was that about every couple of minutes we would get a massive static blast across the entire band.  Almost like a generator or other device cutting on and off.  It was very annoying when I was in the middle of a great QSO with perfect 59 clarity/signal.  It eventually faded away but by that time I had to pack up.  Joe stayed a while longer though.  He only lives a mile or so from the park.  Such a privilege!  I didn’t hear how he made out after I left.  I was hogging 20m which was productive but 15m that Joe was on didn’t pan out very well.  He set up 10m which I believe was dead and then 40m and made some interesting contacts there.  He’ll need to fill us in on that.

The location was wonderful otherwise with a view of the gulf right over the dunes.  The park was completely rebuilt a few years ago and is very nice and clean.  Great covered picnic tables.   We were a short walk from the very nice facilities and parking area as well.  I should have brought a portable wagon though to make hauling my equipment easier.

 

I would love to do a midweek POTA down there before it gets too hot and school lets out.  I might bring the wife and she can go over the dunes to the beach.  

L-R, Paul KJ5JIO, John AB5SS, Jayant KG5LJZ

John AB5SS working CW

David KG5URA’s 20m QSO map using his new Rezcon 40 vertical amaabove a Faraday fabric sheet groundplane.