ONE AMAZING DAY: First the Moose . . . then Botswana



	ONE AMAZING DAY: First the Moose . . . then Botswana
		By Jim Cluett, W1PID Special to The ARS Sojourner
January / February 2007 It was a strange November day. The temperature was nearly 55F and I went for a hike with the XYL and the dog. We went up the trail into the woods on Shute Hill, about a mile and a half from home. I was putting up an antenna and Judy was sitting down with her knitting, when we heard a large animal approaching through the woods. Judy grabbed the dog's collar. A cow moose came into the clearing about 150 feet away. A moose is always a stunning surprise. They're huge. The animal's shoulders are at about eye level! We watched the moose, and the moose watched us. We each stood there for several minutes just looking at each other . . . then she tossed her head and headed back into the woods. OK . . . that was worth the hike! So I put the antenna up. I used a 33 foot wire straight up to an oak tree with the Elecraft T1 tuner and the FT-817 at 3 watts. No counterpoise. I was listening on 20 meters to a station in Indiana when I heard someone else calling CQ nearby. I tuned off frequency and heard A22/JA4ATV calling. He wasn't strong and he didn't call long. I thought he wouldn't hear me, because he was only 559, and I had no idea where A22 was. But no one else was calling, so I answered him. He returned my call with QRZ? Well, I sent everything twice, he got it all, gave me a 339, and we completed the exchange without a hitch. I NEVER worked Botswana before! Not with 3 watts . . . not with 300 watts . . . and . . . I NEVER saw a moose in the shack . . . that's why outdoor radio is so darned much fun. * * * * * Jim Cluett, W1PID, is a prolific writer, QRPer and outdoorsman living in Sanbornton, NH.