Chasing a VHF SOTA station with my Yaesu FT-2980

In the previous video I showed how I use the dual-watch mode in my Yaesu FT-2980 2-meter radio to monitor the local 2 meter simplex frequency where many of my friends hang, while also checking for activity on 146.520. If I am expecting a SOTA activator to be calling CQ from one of the mountain summits in North Georgia, I definitely use the dual-watch feature.

I showed in the previous video that some SOTA friends had posted an alert to the SOTAWATCH web page, indicating that they intend to activate Grassy Mountain, which is in range of North Atlanta simplex stations. It happens to be 66.5 miles Northwest of my QTH.

I use a Diamond X-50A at 45 feet above ground. Some guys use 2-meter Yagi beams. A couple of guys have twin booms with 13-elements on each boom. We reach ranges of 60 to 90 miles, using 5W from our HT into a Diamond SRH770S high-gain “duckie” antenna.

My brother, W4KWM, designed and built a 3-element portable Yagi that has reached 120+ miles. The Yagi uses piano wire elements, which store inside the carbon-fiber boom for transport. The entire antenna weighs 3.5 ounces, most of which is the weight of the RG-316 coax and the BNC connector.

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73, de N4HNH