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 Martha's
Vineyard mini DX-Expedition
Marian Juskuv, KE1LJ & Roland Daignault, N1JOY
On the local 146.76 Rhode Island 2M repeater, I had been hearing some
discussions about a group of Amateur Radio operators going to nearby Martha's
Vineyard, which is just South of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, for the Massachusetts
QSO Party. As new Ham, I joined this group with my 14-year-old son, Zdenko,
KB1DOY. The sole organizer, Roland, N1JOY, gave all the participants the
needed detailed information, what, who, why and where.
In Westport, MA, Friday, 30 April1999 at 8:00 a.m., we all assembled
at N1JOY's QTH and drove our cars packed with radio and camping equipment
toward Woods Hole, MA to catch the ferry to Martha's Vineyard Island.
At the most remote part of the island, we set up our campsite adjacent
to the Gay Head lighthouse in Aquinah, MA. Our site consisted of one camper
as our headquarters, four tents, and a number of minivans as our accommodations.
Our host, Walter Delaney, the senior selectman in Aquinah, paid his obligatory
visits throughout the weekend. Our group was nicely diversified, old radio
contesters from the Fall River ARC, and newly licensed people such as
myself, KE1LJ, my son, and Dawn, N1RZD. We all originally became aquainted
around the '76' Rhode Island 2M repeater. We had four children present,
ages 10-14. Two were licensed, and one has his 5 wpm code. All together,
20 operators during the weekend were present.
 By Friday afternoon, our HF and VHF antennas
were erected. We had an Outbacker on an Alpha Delta tripod, R7 vertical,
Hustler vertical, several mobile HF antennas, a 500' long wire, and I
put up my new Barker & Williamson folded dipole for HF. We also used
a 14-element KLM Yagi and TM-255A and 170-watt amplifier for 2 Meters,
and a 5-element Yagi for 6M. We had plenty of radios — an Icom IC-756,
two Yeasu 847's, Kenwood TS-690S, Kenwood TS-430 and my Kenwood TS-570D(G).
We ran everything off a very fuel-efficient 2,200W Honda generator, and
had two 4kW units as backup. We established a simplex frequency, 144.34
MHz, as an intercom between the group, and reliable 146.760 North Scituate,
RI repeater for contacting the folks back home. I was able to speak with
my wife Maria, KB1DRM, by radio and my son to my daughter Catherine, age
11, KB1EAQ.
The more experienced Hams were first to start filling the log sheets.
As evening came, along with the cold temperatures, we appreciated the
warm camper converted to a radio operations room. My son enjoyed the hot
meals and soon after took to the microphone. Surprisingly he learned rather
quickly. This is what it is about. We need young people in our hobby,
too. At midnight we went to bed, our sleeping bags and tents under clear
sky with millions of stars. Weather was fine, no wind, a little cold,
but far from the strong winds and rain that this group experienced a year
ago. We were in a large open area above the beautiful clay cliffs of Aquinah.
Three sides are facing the Atlantic Ocean, and we were unprotected. This
is an excellent radio location.
Saturday May 1st, we had been working contacts all day. Some other operators
came and relieved us from the radios for a while. I took advantage of
this and had a walk with my son and Dawn, the YL from Warwick, RI. It
was nice day. We were really lucky. Sunshine, light breeze, many tourists,
and a wedding party to take some scenic pictures at the cliffs and lighthouse.
After a short walk on the Atlantic Ocean shore, we dove into the radio
waves again for the remainder of the day, and a good part of night. We
were already becoming more skillful in the pile-ups. During a pause in
the MASS QSO Party, we continued as IOTA NA046 (Island On The Air) station.
W1ACT was our call sign, belonging to the Fall River Amateur Radio Club,
MA. After the last ferry to the mainland, during the night we were on
our own with nice weather and a quiet, twinkling sky. Before my bedtime,
I had a walk to absorb the atmosphere.
Sunday morning, 02 May, Bill,WA1RI, flew from Rhode Island in a Cessna
172 with his young son, Justin, as his pilot. This turned to be a good
decision. Bill is not only a good radio operator, but a good cook as well.
He prepared us fresh, hot blueberry pancakes with real maple syrup —
I loved them! Bill is a member of the Blackstone Valley Radio Club, MA,
as I am, too. We did not stay on the radios for a long time that day.
By 5 p.m. we planned to leave the area to head home. We planned some buffer
time for any emergencies, as not to miss the last ferry to Woods Hole.
It was a good thing because one vehicle's engine refused to restart in
the middle of the trip across the island. My Ford Taurus was equipped
with a trailer hitch and the disabled car was towed safely to port. On
the ferry we had a farewell meeting and celebrated a job well done.
I would like to include my observations:
- This was a fine blend of two distinctive groups, experienced contesters
from the Fall River Amateur Radio Club, and Amateur Radio beginners,
adults and children, from around Southern New England. As our leader
Roland, N1JOY, mentioned, it's a great way to break in the "newbies".
- This was a great location for verification of HF and VHF emergency
communications, and tested our skills in a typical isolated disaster
area with limited help from the outside.
— Marian Juskuv, KE1LJ
 Comments from N1JOY:
It was by far the best weekend I have seen on Martha's Vineyard. The
weather was 65-70°, and we never saw more than a light breeze all
weekend. This was the 6th consecutive year we conducted this event from
the Gay Head lighthouse in Aquinah, MA. The view is incredible on a clear
day, and we were sitting at an elevation of 180 feet above sea level,
surrounded by water on three sides.
The operators present were: Roland Daignault, N1JOY; Paul Gosselin,
N1RHS; Tom LaPointe, WA1LBK; Marian Juskuv, KE1LJ; Zdenko Juskuv, KB1DOY;
Dawn Burdick, N1ZRD; Paul Rollinson, KE1LI; Joe Farrington, KB1CMD; Wayne
Souza, KA1LH; his wife, Colleen; Jim Cahill, N1TZM; Wally Bonnevelle,
N1SXK; Bill Whetstone, WA1RI; Ed Jalette, N1UFU; his son Kevin, age 14;
Wheat Kelley, N1YCQ; his daughter, Sarah, age 10; Andrew Kelley, N1YEW,
age 12; Victor Aguiar, N1TTR; Tony Perreira, N1OCY; and Bob Paquette,
KB1CGH.
We operated on all bands from 160M-2M with all-mode capability. The
propagation was pretty good, and interference between the various stations
was minimal. The area we set up in is a public area and has high visibility
to locals and tourists. It is quite large, and we are able to spread out
our antennas. Paul, KE1LI, operated from inside his minivan, Marian, KE1LJ,
operated from inside a large camping tent, and most everybody else was
inside the 20-foot camper trailer that has been converted strictly for
portable radio operating. Some operating was done from inside N1TTR 's
van
Our food was a great smorgasbord. Everybody brought a special dish with
plenty to share with the gang. We had two small propane BBQ grilles, and
the stove in the camper for cooking. I was able to keep my secret recipe
chicken wings a secret for another year.
The station setups consisted of: Icom IC-756 on an R7 vertical; Kenwood
TS-690S with AT-300 tuner and a 500+ foot long wire stretched out between
the crank-up tower on the trailer, a flagpole, and a street sign; a 5-element
Yagi for 6 Meters; Yaesu FT-847 connected to an Outbacker Outreach 500
on an alpha Delta tripod; Kenwood TS-430 attached to a Hustler vertical;
Kenwood TS-570D(G) on a Barker & Williamson folded dipole; another
Yaesu FT-847 on a Yaesu HF mobile antenna in a minivan; an Icom - IC-706MKII
on a Texas Bug Catcher in a minivan.
 It was difficult to get the wire antennas up
high because we are in an open field, and the weather is so nasty at this
location that trees cannot grow more than a few feet high! Any vertical
supports had to be erected by us.
We are guests of the town when we conduct this event. Every year I send
a letter requesting the site to the town selectmen, and they are glad
to have us out there every year. We have created such a relationship with
these folks that all I have to do is get on the telephone and ask the
secretary for the senior selectman, and he answers the phone with a quick
"YES!", knowing who is on the line. It's a great feeling to
have made such a positive impression on the officials from a community
other than your own, and to be so welcome year after year.
This is a fun event for me personally, and quite challenging every year.
There is a lot of equipment that needs to be tested and packed up for
the weekend, and quite a bit of organizing with everybody attending. One
of the hardest parts is to coordinate everybody so we can all get to the
island, and return on the same ferry boat. Since there is a limited number
of vehicles that are transported back and forth each day, we have to have
this part coordinated months in advance with vehicle reservations, and
arrival and departure times. It's gotten easier with experience, but it
still challenging for everybody, and this is why we have such a consistent
turnout of participants every year. We brought out a few "newbies"
this year, and I'm sure they will be back for more next year. For months
I was warning everybody of the treacherous weather that end of the island
was famous for, but lucky for us, it never materialized. There is always
next year.
— Roland Daignault, N1JOY
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