Barbados
Grenada
St. Vincent
You may consult my “Dictionary for Ham Chinese” if you can’t understand any unknown abbreviations and words.
My travel report was issued in “funkamateur” 10/1997
We saw rather long faces, as we declared to celebrate my 50. birthday in November 1996 in warmer regions, without thinking about any tickets for the rest of our big family. This time it was NOT Friday 13 (see travel report Barbados - “In the land of bearded trees”), as we started our Caribbean tour. That was probably the reason that some things went wrong!
Delayed departure in Berlin, another delay in London, arrival in Barbados after sunset instead of 14.00 local time and than this: after a first tuning effort I sit in front of the “wreck” of my good old IC-751A, which does not make a single “peep”.
Some hours of antenna building behind us and five weeks of vacation before us on the assumption that I coudn’t manage a single QSO drives the sweat out every pore. I am rather paralysed. We made great exertions to get the 80m dipol over the three gables of our beachhouse. A rather artistic effort without remedies. I have fastened a guidewire in a breadfruit tree and try now to throw another guidewire with a tied
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Band |
QSOs |
80 |
208 |
40 |
941 |
30 |
625 |
20 |
163 |
17 |
105 |
15 |
8 |
12 |
1 |
Total |
2051 |
Frank, J39CY, who cared for us in Grenada, gives us the phone number of his friend Donald DeRiggs, J88CD, whom he already infromed about our arrival in St. Vincent.
With the Island Hopper of Caribbean Airlines we cross the Grenadines on our way to St. Vincent the next morning. It is a breathtaking view. More than 30 islands lay like a pearlchain in the torquise sea.
Arrived in our hotel “Umbrella Beach” I think the stroke hits me! It is beautiful here but almost unusable as a QTH. Again at the south coast but surrounded with even higher mountains as in Grenada right behind the hotel. I don’t get my HF6V more than six meters away from the iron roofs which is unfortunately lying in transmitting direction and for my 80m-dipole no tree is high enough.
My XYL is already getting nervous because I don’t spend a glance on my antenna case for over an hour. I am completely down when the stopping ceiling fan signalizes a power loss.
After a first walk into the next village and a good sip of Rum life spirits come back to me.
Six hours after our arrival antenna and rig work fine and I call CQ on 20m. Once, twice, three times - NOTHING! As if I hadn’t known!!! Short time before I surrender PY7ZZ calls me - direction south seems to be okay. He asks me for 30m, “a new one” for him. More and more CQ’s - a few QSOs. Unsatisfying! I quit for a while.
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Band |
QSO’s |
80 |
331 |
40 |
2845 |
30 |
407 |
20 |
842 |
17 |
152 |
15 |
555 |
12 |
3 |
10 |
140 |
Total |
5275 |
I would have probably reached much better results with bigger antennas, more power and a better QTH, but for a vacational activity of a DXpeditions greenhorn I am not disappointed at all.
I envy the guys of 8P9Z or 3E1DX a little for their huge pileups when I helplessly call CQ a few kilohertz up. But after I have seen the contest station in Barbados nothing wonders me anymore: with 3 element beam for 40m, 5 element monoband beams, beverages and “afterburners” - there is no chance for me with my minimalistic rig - 100W barefoot into my HF6V. But I have fun too and enjoy ham radio like it is.
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On our way back to Berlin we have to stay on transit in Barbados for a day. My XYL starts rolling her eyes as I start to unpack my stuff and erect my antenna for these “few minutes”. I close my station in the early morning with more than 500 QSOs in my log..
With a total of approximately 10.000 QSO’s in my logs after that bad entry in Barbados we fly back into the cold and wet Berlin.
As we unlock our door we stand again in water, this time it is no salty water but water from the washing machine of the couple above. My cry “nothing but away from here” falls on “fruitful ground” - the next trip is already in progress!
During our first stay in St. Vincent we had a visit of Bequia (speak Backway) on our program. We were so surprised by the tranquility and beauty of the island that we decided, to come back in May 1997 and stay here for our whole vacation. My guest license is still valid, so nothing stood against another nice time in front of my radio.
The first ten days we stay at “Creole Garden” in Lower Bay with Dawn and Willi. Willi is a German who fulfilled his dream here in Bequia.
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