w6csn’s outdoor amateur radio

Back in July of 2022 I got skunked attempting a POTA activation of the Point Reyes National Seashore netting only four QSOs from the Bear Valley picnic area. Like MacArthur, I vowed to return and finish the job of completing an activation from this national park.

The plan for today was to first hit the Marconi Conference Center State Historic Park (K-3470) then to head south and to the other side of Tomales Bay to activate Pt. Reyes National Seashore (K-0651) from Bear Valley where I had unfinished business.

The Marconi Conference Center is a state park unit that was originally the location of the Marconi Company’s KPH receiving station. The state park brochure details the radio action as well as other odd activities to take place at this location.

At Marconi it seemed only fitting to operate from the old antenna site atop Tower Hill. A little satellite reconnaissance ahead of time seemed to show a nice open hilltop area with what looked like some picnic tables.

Climbing the hill I was a little disappointed to see a large white “party tent” had been set up for some sort of occasion. But there were no people around and the picnic tables were all arranged behind the tent.

With plenty of antenna options at my disposal, I settled on the 17 ft whip set atop the GRA-ULT01 tripod. Fully extended, this antenna is a quarter wave on 20 meters. It took all six 17 foot radials to get the SWR to a minimum.

About 45 minutes of operating netted the 10 QSOs needed for a complete activation. I pulled down the antenna, tipped my hat to OM Marconi, and was off to the next park.

Not wanting to struggle with possibly poor connectivity at Bear Valley, I stopped in Point Reyes Station and scheduled my next activation so the POTA application would automatically spot me after hearing my CQ calls reported by the RBN.

Pro tip: grab a sandwich at the deli in the back of the Palace Market in Point Reyes Station so you are properly fed for the second half of your POTA day.

Pt. Reyes National Seashore is a huge national park unit with over 70,000 acres of protected landscape and seashore. Bear Valley is the administrative hub with a large visitor center to serve the public.

The San Andreas fault that runs through California heads offshore at Point Reyes and one of the interpretive paths at Bear Valley shows historical evidence of the violent ground movement that accompanied the 1906 earthquake that destroyed San Francisco.

While plenty of options were available, this second activation of the day was accomplished with the same radio, the Yaesu FT-818, and vertical antenna used for my earlier operations at Marconi. The steel base for the CW Morse paddles came in handy to hold the key firmly on this concrete picnic table.

With about an hour of working on 20 meters, including some breaks to explain ham radio and Park On The Air to curious passers by, I had 12 QSOs in the log. This was enough for a valid activation, I had settled the score with Pt. Reyes!

Even though it is autumn there are still plenty of summer vegetables available from local farms. The journey home included a stop at the farm stand for Little Wing Farm where I purchased several squashes and a bag of San Marzano variety tomatoes.

73 de W6CSN