Last January we were in the Quartzsite, AZ area and decided to spend a week at “Quartzfest”, a yearly gathering of ham-radio operators in the area. Being a amateur radio operator myself it’s needless to say I was in radio-heaven. The area where Quartzfest was held was easy to find due to all the antennas that were erected. Some people had awesome set up’s on their vehicles or rigs, sometimes bordering on “mad professor concoctions”.
During the week a “Special Event” station was activated (W7Q) which logged many contacts from all over the US and the world, even though atmospheric conditions weren’t all that great.
There were many activities organized related to amateur radio, from antenna building, lectures about propagation, radio reviews and demonstrations and ham license examinations to the use of solar and drones in amateur radio. Then there we plenty of other things to do, like off-roading, jeep-tours, campfires, a “hobo-stew” and many, many more, as well as plenty of kids activities and I have to say that we were quiet impressed with a young girl that build a radio transceiver out of scraps which looked like a flower sticking out of a vase. (The flower being the antenna)
Being on the road and often somewhere out in the boonies far from cell service it is very beneficial to have an amateur radio license so that in an emergency there is still the ability to contact the outside world. Melanie decided to study for a Technician class license which she passed with flying colors, and you can read about here
Again: Take it for what it’s worth, but it would behoove anyone that finds themselves out in the middle of nowhere often to get a basic ham radio license, and as the saying goes: “Better have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.”
-R-
Scouting Destinations 