Eight Reasons POTA Is the Best Thing Ever to Happen to Amateur Radio Ever
On my first Parks on the Air (POTA) activation, in April of 2021, I logged eighteen contacts. Seven of those were on satellite, which is only slightly better than I do on a typical satellite pass. If it had been an HF-only activation, as many POTA activations are, it would barely have been a success. In September of the same year, just five short months later, I activated Crystal Cove State Park , K-1141. Technically, I activated it twice, since midnight UTC rolled around partway through the afternoon (US Pacific time) that I spent there. On that visit to the park, I logged 104 contacts. I'd like to think that the increased success in completing QSOs can be attributed to the great strides I've made in my skills as an operator. I'd like to think that. More likely is that the activity itself is growing, and with that growth comes ever-increasing opportunities to make contacts. On-air activity for POTA has spent the last two years growing by leaps and bounds. We hear anecdo