In January, I was having a rough time. I had just canceled my work trip because Marcus brought COVID back from his work trip to Malaysia, and we were both pretty exhausted from work, kids and chores, not to mention studying Spanish and planning for a year of travel with no income. Marcus took conference calls for work every evening and then studied Federal Aviation Rules to prepare for his Private Pilot’s License. It seemed like the perfect time to add a new project of my own.
My interest in amateur radio started when I was a kid. My dad had plenty of electronics projects around, and I remember listening to shortwave radio in the kitchen. I knew some basic electronics from college physics and figured I could study and pass the license test. You no longer need to know Morse code to be licensed as a ham. Not that I don’t want to learn Morse – I do – but it made getting started that much easier. I studied using a book from the library and an app on my phone. In February I passed the Technician test and upgraded my license to General a few weeks later.
Originally I hoped to use ham radio on our trip to keep in touch. In practice, using amateur radio in other countries is complicated. There are licensing issues (which I can overcome) and restrictions on importing and possessing amateur radio equipment in some countries (which is more hassle and risk than I want to put up with).
Still, I’m having a blast with the hobby. I’ve learned how to set up my high frequency (HF) radio at campsites and make contact with people all over the U.S. I plan to keep doing that as we travel across the U.S., getting some Parks on the Air (POTA) points.
I also became involved with the National Traffic System (NTS). With the help of great mentorship I learned how to send and receive radiograms. As a result, I was recently appointed as an Official Relay Station of the American Radio Relay League. I hope to keep sending and receiving radiogram traffic as we travel.
In any case, I now have two big projects to work on while the kids are doing homeschool work: learn Morse code and upgrade my license to Amateur Extra (the highest license class for amateur radio). There’s always more to learn!