In August, the WS1SM team activated Owls Head Lighthouse, in Owls Head, Maine, for 2020 International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend (ILLW).
ILLW, which first began in 1993 as the Scottish Northern Lighthouse Activity Weekend, sees over 500 lighthouses and lightships activated in over 40 countries, and helps promote the preservation of lighthouses and lightships, and at the same time, gives the community an opportunity to experience Amateur Radio.
The Wireless Society of Southern Maine has participated in ILLW since 2011, activating thirteen lighthouses in nine years. Past activations have included Pemaquid Point Light, Portland Head Light, West Quoddy Head Light, Cape Neddick “Nubble” Light, Spring Point Light, and Rockland Breakwater Light, among others.
This year’s event also qualified as a Parks on the Air activation, since the lighthouse is located within Owls Head State Park (POTA: K-2399). It also has the ARLHS designation: USA574.
Club members, including Rory McEwen KB1PLY, Brad Brown Jr. KC1JMH, Tim Watson KB1HNZ, Eric Emery N1RXR, and Jason Andrews W1SFS, took turns operating HF, on 40m, 17m, and 20m throughout the day using Tim’s Yaesu FT857d, Rory’s Icom Ic7000, and Brad’s Yaesu FT991, along with a variety of antennas. Brad even worked a few stations on 2m FM Simplex – one as far away as Castine, and Tim made contacts on DMR. At the end of the day, we made a total of 77 QSOs.
To learn more about WS1SM Lighthouse Activations and to see photos, click here.
