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GB6NT Naze Tower 2019

This year marks the 22nd Anniversary of the International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend which is held in Memory of the late publicity officer Jim Linton VK3PC who passed earlier this year. The objective is to encourage owners and operators of light houses and light ships to open up to the public with a view to raising the profile of the maritime heritage of these great institutions around the world. Our aim as amateur radio operators is to contact as many of the lighthouses and lightships as possible from around the world as well as other manned radio stations and raise the profile of our own Naze Tower. We aim to be operating fully from around 8am on Saturday morning    right through to Sunday afternoon at 4pm (weather conditions permitting) . If you are able to come along and wish to operate, please contact Mark  M0LTG  or Garry M0MGP so we can pop you on the logging software. Members of the public welcome to come and have a chat with the operators and view the equipment. You may also be able to pass a message. Pop along and see us. AUGUST 17/18 2019 Call used during the event will be GB6NT, lighthouse number   UK0212,     Locator   JO01pu,  WAB   TM22. EQUIPMENT SCHEDULED TO BE USED TRANSCEIVERS:-         YAESU FT DX 3000 For HF 80/40 YAESU FT DX 3000 For HF 20/17/15/12/10                                         YAESU FT 847  for VHF - SSB                                         YAESU FT 480D  for DATA Modes YAESU FT 847 Running SSTV demonstration  ANTENNAE:-               80 m Doublet sloping N from 80 to 40 feet AGL for HF                                         G3XTQ HEXBEAM at 40 feet for HF 40 to 6 metres with                                  associated GX 650 rotator and seeker software. 3 band Fan Dipole 80/40/20                                         Long wire at 10m vertical with associated CG3000 ATU.                                         41ft Vertcal multiband Logging Systems:-       iMac 24" running Skookumlogger                                        Mac mini running Skookumlogger                                        Lenovo Z51 running FT8 & FLDigi                                        Laptop logging FT8 on second digi setup. (Please note that any or all of the above may be altered without notice depending on availability and conditions)  For those of you not familiar with the Naze Tower,   it is an 8 sided brick tower some 87 feet high,  built in 1720, over a  ¼ of a mile inland, on the site of a former beacon in which a fire was kept alight all night every night. To read more on the history of the tower visit GB6NT on QRZ.com Three nearby cafes provided essential sustenance for the Special Event operation team.

Walton Lifeboat Special Event Station

May 11th & 12th 2019

GB6WLB Special Event Station

                               

Every year May is the month to bring the sterling and brave work of the Lifeboat crews around the country to the fore during their MAYDAY month of activities. 

Originally the Special Event Station was operated by Herbie G6XOU from his home QTH but following the success of last years ILLW event, members of Colchester Radio Amateurs Club have joined Herbie and Harwich club members (HARIG) to bring this event to the public and hopefully raise some funds for the RNLI and support their work.

Come along and visit us over the weekend, see how amateur radio works, meet the operators and perhaps pass a message "over the air" with the help of one of our operators.

We will be located in the NAZE CAR PARK. WALTON. CO14 8LJ

Weather and conditions permitting.

PROPOSED EQUIPMENT

HF

                RADIOS                                                                ANTENNAE

    2X Yaesu FT-3000 DX,                                        80m Doublet   for 40/80

           Yaesu FT-847                                               G3TXQ HEX BEAM + 40M

 Reserve Yaesu FT-450D                                           60ft Trailer Tower

                                        80/40/20 1/2wave Fan Dipole

           2Off 5B4AGN Filter Sets & 2 Off CG3000 Antenna Matching Units

  Logging Macmini and iMac 24 late 2009 

both running Skookumlogger software 

VHF

              RADIOS                                                                ANTENNAE

          Yaesu FT-847                                               Diamond X-510 Colinear

                                         Logging, Lenovo Z51 & Log40M            

DATA

              RADIOS                                                                   ANTENNAE

          Yaesu FT-897D                                           10m Vert & Long Wire Antenna

          Yaesu FT-100D                                           Snowdonia 360 vertical + radials

                                     SGC - 237 ATU & Yaesu FC - 20 ATU

SLOW SCAN TV

TBA

LIVE Operating frequencies will be posted on our Facebook page

GB6WLB @ QRZ.COM

WALTON LIFEBOAT POTTED HISTORY

The station was opened on November 18th 1884 by Baroness Bolsover with the newly installed Honourable Artillery Company (ON 31), a 37ft x 9ft self righter built by Forrest of Limehouse. Her first call came that very evening to red flares spotted 12 miles off shore near the Sunk light vessel.

In her 16 years of service she launched 84 times and saved 132 souls.

6 further boats came and went on station in the following years and then in 2011 the current boat.

 Irene Muriel Rees (ON 1299) took station. This Tamar class boat is packed with electronics and has a pair of 10,001bhp Caterpillar diesels giving 25kts, 250 nautical mile range, is 16.3m long and 5.3m wide and is crewed by seven volunteer lifeboat crew.

For more information on the WALTON LIFEBOAT click here