A big part of ham radio is helping others achieve their personal goals. This morning during a very brief opening on 6m I worked Fred KI6QDH in Wyoming. He sent me a message saying Alaska was his last contact needed for the ARRL Worked All States award. I always get a kick out of stuff like that.

Happy double sunset day! In Fairbanks, Alaska, and other communities just south of the Arctic Circle, there is one day each year when the sun sets twice in one day. Here the 1st sunset was at 12:01 am this morning followed by a sunrise at 3:53 am. A 2nd sunset will take place tonight at 11:58 pm.

Summer 1972. Aniak, Alaska. It was a real eye-opening adventure for 14yo me. I worked at cinnabar mine, fueled and cleaned airplanes, unloaded Wien Airlines cargo, made weather observations, and observed an eclipse from Aniak Lake. Soaked in a lakeside hot spring 100 miles remote. Clear 30’ waters.

It’s fairly uncommon to see such a vast swath of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago under clear skies. Today weather satellite METEOR-M N2-4 delivered the goods during a pass at 2012Z.

Goddammit!!! I was enjoying the best six meters opening to JA this season when suddenly the power went out. My neighbor was felling a tree for firewood. I can see what he did. He tried to tip the tree over with a skid steer, and it went back over the skid steer and the top snagged the line.💩💩💩

We had visitors last night. They got into some cables around the shack, too, and pulled down one of my ham radio antennas. About once a year I have to repair moose damage. 🤬

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. We’re living large. The last time I had boiled peanuts was driving through Luverne, Alabama, decades ago. Thank you to the donor.

The IARU HF World Championship contest begins at 1200 UTC Saturday. Amateur radio station KL2R will be silent as John AL7ID and I operate from his station. Mixed mode SSB and CW. Listen hard for us, as we’re going to run 100 watts. www.arrl.org/iaru-hf-worl...

Current situation on 6m in BP64. I watched Les KL7J work Norway this morning and received GM4WJA once at 2214z. The band is intermittent here and there, but anything is better that nothing. South Dakota in the bag. I’m at 43 WAS confirmed on six. Several years since I heard EU.

I’m pretty tickled with some VHF results this afternoon. Six meters kinda sorta opened at lunchtime. Stations in WA, CA, CO, NE, and BC in the log. On RS-44 I managed several FT4 contacts. One surprise was New York. Another was K2L in South Carolina! That’s a special event station for 13 Colonies.

A gentle reminder: “Reading to children, even before they can understand words, teaches them to associate books with love and affection.” (Princeton Book Review)

Six meters was interesting last night around 0400z, when it opened to the Midwest US. No W6/7 stations at all, only W9/0. South Dakota heard but not worked. Signals were in and out for an hour or so. Some peaked above +00.

I made my first-ever satellite FT4 QSO via RS44.

Alaskan aviation community: What’s the trapline telegraphing regarding the suspension of FAA staff at the FSS in northwest? Could the alleged misconduct be politics-related? 🤔

The GOP has inflicted unspeakable horrors upon us. "Misguided"? No. It's malfeasance, plain and simple. Even those who have broken free and express regret do not get a free pass. The cracked glass can never be repaired, trust and respect never fully restored. They have shown me who they really are.🖕

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. This is my dog Sita, a retired sled dog.

I can see Russia from my house. 😁METEOR-M N2-4 pass at 1500z over the Bering Strait.

Happy Canada Day, neighbors! Here Yukon and Northwest Territories are highlighted by Russian weather satellite METEOR-M N2-3 at 1917z. Received with RSPduo, Wraase KX137 turnstile antenna, and Satdump 2.0.0 processed as natural color.

Point your 6m antennas north! The magic band is alive.

One of these is not like the other. During the winter, the OLED display on my Microham Micro Keyer III failed. The OEM said I can send it to DX Engineering and then DXE would send it to them for repair. Timeline TBD. Alternatively, I could just repair it myself with parts from Digikey. Plan B it is!

I woke up at 4 AM thinking of food. That’s not unusual, but today is rainy and cool, perfect for time in the kitchen. I crave substantial comfort food. I decided to treat myself. Potato pancakes, bacon, boudin blanc, grilled tomato, mushrooms, artichokes, and two eggs over easy. I skipped the toast.

Hey ARRL Field Day participants! Listen for AL7ID operations from Two Rivers, Alaska. Good luck to all!

Boom! 💥

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. King crab legs and colossal shrimp sautéed in butter/olive oil and served atop a crunchy salad. Grilled corn on the cob.

It’s #NationalLeonDay nationaldaycalendar.com/celebrations...

Interior Alaska and visiting ham radio operators are invited to stop by the Arctic Amateur Radio Club Field Day site Saturday or Sunday. It’s a family-friendly activity showcasing emergency communications preparedness. The location is 270 Fairhill Rd. in Fairbanks. www.kl7kc.com/field-day-20...

Radio frequency interference to ham radio comes in various forms. The most common offenders are crappy wall warts, solar chargers, and lighting fixtures. A couple of days ago I spotted a radar emission in the 2m band. I have experience with radar, so it was obvious to me it’s an air surveillance 1/

Good afternoon from Two Rivers, Alaska. What’s on my mind? Why sauerbraten, of course. I’ve been thinking about making it for weeks. It starts with a marinade. My gosh the house smells amazing! thefullrecipes.com/authentic-ge...

A little lightning this afternoon and evening at amateur radio station KL2R. Nevertheless, rain is welcome. We have had some good soaking today. Wildfires are still possible. Be watchful if you’re in Interior Alaska. The main antennas are disconnected even though I have robust protection on them.

There are some signs of life on 6 meters in BP64 at 1845-1900z. I have worked VE7DX and VE7DAY so far. Wyoming heard earlier. Point north!

Farah’s (16 yo) latest has been to move the dog bowls around the living room to scrape lickin’s. She’s totally blind from cataracts. Recently she dragged the bowls over to the top of the stairs and backed right over the edge. She tumbled down steps in dramatic fashion but was uninjured. ❤️ #poodles

Happy Summer Solstice, everyone! I’ve been blessed. That’s sincere coming from a secular guy. To my fellow citizens in the Far North, we share a common value. We are survivors. We know what comes next. Enjoy the daylight!

A DUI and road raging while hauling two gasoline tankers! That's horrifying.

“He can stay, he can go. He can be impeached or voted out. But removing Trump will not remove the infrastructure of an entire party that embraced him, dark money that funded him, the online radicalization that drummed his army, nor the racism he amplified and reanimated.” ~ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

When I’m not on my ham radio, cooking, or watching old Westerns…

I’m a huge fan of discovering covers. David Bowie’s original was stupendous. Nine Inch Nails cover a cut above. But this cover cuts into your soul. youtu.be/F3g6MK9yZ5E

Hey, ham radio ops! Listen for me operating W1AW/KL7 CW on 17m 18-20z and 20m 22-00z.

A young squirrel has found its voice.

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. As delicious as they look. Applewood smoked pork chops stuffed with cheese finished on the grill. OMG Mashed potatoes and grilled zucchini on the side.

I used to be someone. 😁 I had a wonderful career at NOAA, and I managed to collect two bronze medals and a DoC silver in 20 years. I must have been doing something right. The best part of the experience was the many friends and brilliant colleagues with whom the impossible became possible.

Focus is back on satellite operations and a better workflow. I’ve been a satisfied user of the CSN S.A.T. controller with the IC-9700 & Yaesu G5400B rotator. I’m now using SatPC32 for rig control, as the SAT is a bit of a CAT kluge and presents issues preventing easy sweep of linear transponders.

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. The squirrels have been particularly aggressive with each other today. Finally we have a meal in peace.

Let’s not forget those Winlink check-ins today. winlinkwednesday.net

Good evening from Two Rivers, Alaska. Tonight’s menu features crab lump meat and assorted seafood salad stuffed into a wedged tomato, topped with Spanish smoked paprika. Grilled corn on the side.

Ham radio-wise, the weekend was a digital mishmash here. After getting my 2m APRS digipeater and igate up (N1TX-10), I created a bulletin for KL7KC field day signups. I’m also sending out local objects visitors might find useful like hospitals, airport, and info centers. I set up N1TX-15 on HF, too.

I’ve been a lot frustrated with the local packet network getting into the KL7EDK RMS on 2m (145.01). The path, only 20 miles or so, is obscured by a hill and now leaves. The two digipeaters I used to use are offline. I’ll stick with daily HF Winlink checks. I re-purposed the gear for an APRS Igate.

Good afternoon from amateur radio station KL2R. I like my yard squirrels. After an initial battle, we negotiated a long-lasting détente with snacks in exchange for not being very destructive. I’m afraid peace may be at risk as one determined 🐿️ is trying to get into my ham shack and damaging cables.🤬

Every stop reminded me that joy is not only personal. It is shared air. Strangers became a chorus. People waved from windows. Elders nodded. Children laughed without needing a reason. Some people told me they had been carrying heaviness for years. gurdeeppandher.substack.com/p/one-day-i-...

During the last two nights the 6m band has shown some promise with propagation between KL2R in BP64 and W6/7 as well as a lot of Japan. I’ve already received some emails requesting skeds with East Coast stations. Sorry, gang. That’s going to require a bodacious F2 opening. Hasn’t happened this year.