https://youtu.be/EyXZ59-t8BQ

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Stations contacted:

01) K8II 02) NP4JV 03) W7JSD 04) N6UA 05) KC3FHV 06) NX9B 07) W5CBF 08) KD8ATF 09) KD8VRX 10) K8YSE

This was filmed on Sunday July 17th, 2016 on the Craggy Overlook Trail on the Blue North Carolina.

I think this video is pretty fun! This was my first National Parks on The Air (NPOTA) activation and it couldn't have been more exciting and beautiful. I made ten contacts, which is the minimum required to get credit for an NPOTA activation, and half of those contacts were from a short pileup immediately after I put my call out on the bird, SO-50.

This pass is from Sunday July 17th 2016 but I technically did my first activation the day before at the same place, and I even made 14 contacts on that near overhead pass, but I had more video sources (four) from Sunday than Saturday, and I also operated better, with more efficiency and with less screwups (though not none), than the Sunday activation.

Saturday felt very hectic as I struggled to operate well while also tracking the relatively faster moving satellite overhead. If I make a video of that pass I'm sure it won't seem that bad to others but that's just how it felt. I probably will make a video of that pass too but I definitely also want to make more opportunities for me to experience pileups like this. That's why it was so exciting.

As I said at the end of the video there are three national parks on the Outer Banks of North Carolina: Cape Lookout, Cape Hatteras and the Wright Brothers National Memorial. I'm sure those would be great places to get some cool video, though I'm not sure if I'll be able to use my DSLR out in that harsh environment! They'll also just be fun to visit.

I'm thinking of trying HF operation too as I bet I could get a pileup there too. Maybe I'll get a Buddipole. That would be a cool addition to my operating because over the last year I've done almost exclusively satellite communications. It would be another opportunity for a different kind of video too.

Until next time, thanks for watching!

73, John Brier KG4AKV

Links to videos featured at the end:

TOMSK Bandit ISS Repeater: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svnB7h_k7_M

My First Perfect ISS SSTV Image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7to9uX1sWC4

Equipment I use for ISS Reception: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3JwOwjYIkM

ISS Reception (Kopernik Observatory): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGFEanljOG8