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It's now 2025. Reflecting back on the year, it has had its ups and downs. However, I feel that I've had a pretty good holiday season, all things considered. The month of December 2024 started with a 7.3 magnitude earthquake on the 5th, which triggered a tsunami warning. Days later, at the start of the ARRL 10m contest on December 14th, San Francisco experienced its first tornado warning in history. Despite these challenges, I had a successful experience making contacts this past month.
My operating location for the ARRL 10m contest was the Presidio. I like this location because it's easy to get to from downtown via the 30 bus, and it is also a POTA park, allowing me to attempt a POTA activation while participating in the contest. On the first day of the contest, Saturday, I took the bus out and ended up getting caught in the rain. I have not yet fully waterproofed my setup, so I turned around and went home as soon as I arrived. On the second day, Sunday, I was far more successful. It was cold but not raining, and I managed to rack up a whopping 17 contacts in a couple of hours using only 5 watts of transmission power. Propagation was stellar, and band activity was high.
My operation hasn't been limited to the 10m contest lately. I've had great success operating FT-8 with my dipole antenna deployed indoors in a V formation in my window. We've been blessed with excellent propagation at the peak of Solar Cycle 25, so I'm taking advantage of it as much as possible. Whenever I have free time at home and the band propagation is good, I usually operate FT-8.
I'm thankful for a successful year and a good holiday season. For Christmas, I cooked a delicious spiced honey ham with green bean casserole, and my brother came to visit me after Christmas for the New Year. While he was in town, I took the opportunity to show him how to operate SSB on 10m. To start, we hiked up to Corona Heights Park. We managed to make one cross-country contact, but after setting up the antenna, we were met with a light mist of rain. This experience put my setup to the test and gave me lots of ideas for how to better waterproof it in the future. A couple of days later, we also went to the Presidio, where it was dry but cold. We made a couple more contacts and fell short of the 10 required for a successful POTA activation, but we had a great time nonetheless.
As I reflect on my 2024 holiday season in ham radio, I feel a deep sense of gratitude for the experiences, challenges, and triumphs that made it memorable. Whether operating FT-8 from home or exploring outdoor locations like the Presidio and Corona Heights, I’ve learned, adapted, and grown as an operator. Sharing these experiences with my brother added a special dimension to the season, reminding me that ham radio is as much about connection as it is about communication. Here's to an even more successful and fulfilling year ahead on the airwaves in 2025!