OPEN BAND ON 2 METERS

kb9zcv writes " I am a new ham and all I have at the moment is a 2 meter H.T. I have heard fellow hams talk about how sometimes the band will open up and you can talk far away. I never experienced it myself till 5/16 of this year.



At about 11:30 p.m. I was scanning the band and heard all sorts of conversations on all kinds of different frequencies that I had never heard before. I heard two gentlemen talking on one of the frequencies I didn't recognize and sent out my call sign. One of the gentlemen came back to me and told me heard me but I was not keying up the repeater.


I asked him where the repeater was and asked if there was a p.l.tone. He told me the repeater was in FonduLac Wisconsin and told me the p.l.tone. I am in Machesney Park Illinois and this is no great reach for most people but I was reaching this station from an h.t. on 5 watts. I set the tone but still couldn't key up the repeater. I know now that I had forgot to set the offset. But because of me not setting the offset I was talking to him on simplex.


I was so excited that I hurried back to the local repeater to share my good fortune and a friend of mine from Cherry Valley also talked to the gentleman from Wisconsin. His station was actually in Juneau Wisconsin. I'm guessing it would be about 150 miles.


Like I said before I am a new ham and never experienced this before and I am still very excited about it. I can't wait till the next time the band opens up again.


73 Jeff KB9ZCV"