QRP Afield Contest

Charles, W2SH, NEQRP #338, here.

The XYL is away in Europe for most of September, so.....more things that I like to cook and eat are happening in our kitchen, and of course it's ham radio galore!

Just got back to New Jersey after two weeks in NH at the end of August. For reasons of personal safety, I have put my Red Sox hat away in the closet (I probably should have burned the sucker the way things have been going since the All Star Game).

In NH, W2SH/1 was radiating 5 Watts into a 80m dipole hung at 50 feet in the pine trees. Chuck gave me 599 those two Thursdays when I QNId the NEQRP net, and it was the same RST for the same power level each night when I QNId the VT/NH net on 3.539 mHZ at 1900 hours ET (Hi Jim, W1PID!). And I even accepted and hand delivered one message--to a newly licensed ham on the mainland, in Ashland, NH. Although I listed Sandwich, NH, as my QTH when on the air, I was in fact in a cabin ("camp") on Hoag Island, facing south from northeastern Squam Lake. "Squam" is Indian talk--woops, politically incorrect; I should have said, "Native American language" for "lake"--and therefore the literal translation would of course be "Lake Lake"!

Fast forward to Labor Day, 2009. I'm planning to be in MA and NH during 17-21 September, and since I'm in a ham radio galore month, why miss QRP Afield/Chowdahcon on the 19th and then the hamfest at MIT in Cambridge the next morning? Why? Why?

OK, now that that's settled, I'll be with relatives in MA, but I'd greatly appreciate learning from any reader familiar with Portsmouth the names of any motels that are both decent and fairly priced for the Friday and Saturday nights involved. Upon reflection, that's a somewhat silly request, for anyone living near Portsmouth certainly isn't going to be staying in a motel there. Anyway, e-mail me fairly soon, direct at w2sh@msn.com if you have any suggestions.

Advance tnx es 72,

Charles, W2SH