Inaugural #POTA activation of North Beach at Mylestom (AU-11194) on the NSW east coast. #hamradio #amateurradio This afternoon I am doing the inaugural activation of another new park on the #POTA Australia list - North Beach at Mylestom (AU-11194) between Coffs Harbour and Nambucca on the north coast of the state of New South Wales. I am roughly halfway between Sydney and Brisbane. As usual, I am using my Icom IC-7300 (Mk1) and my recently acquired JPC-12 vertical antenna.

Inaugural #POTA activation of North Beach at Mylestom (AU-11194) on the NSW east coast. #hamradio #amateurradio

This afternoon I am doing the inaugural activation of another new park on the #POTA Australia list - North Beach at Mylestom (AU-11194) between Coffs Harbour and Nambucca on the north…

Inaugural #POTA activation – Hungry Head State Beach AU-11195 I am doing the inaugural of the just added Hungry Head State Beach AU-11195, today, 11 April 2026. Hungry Head is at Urunga on the NSW north coast between Coffs Harbour and Nambucca Heads. I am using an Icom IC-7300 and JPC-12 vertical. I’ll be on 40 and 15 meters in phone/ssb between 0500 and 0600. I will spot to pnp and POTA.app.

Inaugural #POTA activation - Hungry Head State Beach AU-11195

New #POTA locations in Bellingen Shire on the NSW North Coast. #amateurradio #hamradio Thanks to Alan McDonald (VK1AO and VK2MET) VK1 and VK2 Parks on the Air (POTA) coordinator, five more locations in Bellingen Shire have been added to the parks list. Bellingen Shire is on the NSW North Coast and is bounded by Coffs Harbour City, Nambucca Shire and Armidale Regional local government areas. Its main settlements are Bellingen, Dorrigo, Urunga and Mylestom.

New #POTA locations in Bellingen Shire on the NSW North Coast. #amateurradio #hamradio

Thanks to Alan McDonald (VK1AO and VK2MET) VK1 and VK2 Parks on the Air (POTA) coordinator, five more locations in Bellingen Shire have been added to the parks list. Bellingen Shire is on the NSW North Coast and…

Or 21.24

Sat 0000z. I’m at AU-10464 Bellinger River trying out my new JPC-12 Antenna. 7.14 until 0130z

#POTA spot – Bellinger River AU-10464 Gday, Andrew VK2AWN here. I’m at Mylestom and Bellinger River AU-10464. I’m on FT8 15 metres to begin with until 0300 UTC then I’ll be on phone on 40 and 15 meters and spotting on PnP and POTA.app between 03 and 06 UTC. Saturday 14 March 2025.

(no title)

Some OCD porn

So, explain this to me…

The iPhone 17e is usd599.

The MacBook Neo is usd599.

The MacBook is roughly six iPhones laid out.

Yet, they’re the same price.

Hmmm…

@sixcolours.com @davehamilton.com

Amazing isn’t it

Yep, same, mine is in the car to listen to the local 2m repeater and airport control tower

It’s cheap, small, available and works well

Alternatives to #watch bands from #Apple A certain puppy had a crack at my Apple Watch Ultra 3 this week. The timepiece survived but the band did not. The replacement band from Apple was aud170 (usd120). Hmmm. I found this from Spigen on Amazon for aud50 (usd35). It has a nice fabric, the Velcro is strong and the buckle stylish. It feels secure and ‘worthy’ of being on the watch. The product name is “SPIGEN DuraPro Flex for Apple Watch 49mm / 46mm / 45mm / 44mm / 42mm Watch Band” 27 February 2025

Alternatives to #watch bands from #Apple

The Baofeng 5 Mini – a great little backup #amateurradio #hamradio for the car or home Discover Why the Baofeng Mini-5 is a Game-Changer for Radio Enthusiasts

The Baofeng 5 Mini - a great little backup #amateurradio #ham radio for the car or home

Doing more with your Apple headphones with nods and shakes Re today’s show, MacGeekGab, 17 February 2026… Pilot Pete mentioned that AirPods Pro 2 and 3 and AirPods 4 have the ability to interact with the user via nodding and shaking (the head). I have PowerBeats Pro 2 and the feature works there too. Apple has a knowledge base article on it. Apart from what Pete mentioned, it’s also pretty good at asking me if I have started or stopped a workout or walk.

Doing more with your Apple headphones with nods and shakes

How cool

Great Circle Map based on Sydney for #amateurradio #hamradio #vk #swl This map comes courtesy of the National Library of Australia. I remember having a copy in the 1980’s to aid my shortwave listening hobby. This map is as relevant today as it was back in the 1960’s, indeed since the first international shortwave broadcasts in the 1920’s when it all began. Source: National Library of Australia and Mullard-Australia,

Great Circle Map based on Sydney for #amateurradio #hamradio #vk #swl

This map comes courtesy of the National Library of Australia. I remember having a copy in the 1980’s to aid my shortwave listening hobby. This map is as relevant today as it was back in the 1960’s, indeed since the first…

Amazing tracking information coming in and I’m being told to chill! Over a decade ago, I lived I San Francisco and marvelled at DHL telling me my latest Apple product had arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, en route from China to me. It was exciting! But that’s all you’d get told. Your package was in Anchorage and would be with you in a day or two. Fast forward to today. I get packages from Ali Express in China and use the P…

Amazing tracking information coming in and I’m being told the chill!

IC-7300 original and mk2. Diamond cp-s6 vertical and 20 metre long half wave dipole

The band conditions are pretty good today. I’m in Bellingen running 10w and it’s going around on 15 metres

Questions about the consistency of solar weather information on propagation for #amateurradio #hamradio #vk I posted the following in the Australian Amateur (Ham) Radio Facebook Group. I will publish replies as they come in. Four services screenshot within minutes of each other I have had my foundation licence for over a year now and am loving the many and varied aspects of the hobby. One of the more interesting aspects is space weather conditions. It’s fascinating.

Questions about consistency of solar weather information on propagation

A great feature – iPhone photos clean up I forgot about this clean up (pictures) feature on iPhone and how good it is… Here’s the before and after. 3 February 2026

A great feature - iPhone photos clean up

Where can I take a look at this?

Lessons learned from an unsuccessful #POTA activation – AU-7738, Tuckers Nob State Forest On Sunday I went to The Promised Land. Few can say that! Well, it’s an area of land at Glennifer, ten minutes drive from where I live (Bellingen NSW 2454). It’s at the foot of the World Heritage Listed Dorrigo National Park. I went there to do a Parks on the Air (POTA) activation of Tuckers Nob State Forest (AU-7738)

Lessons learned from an unsuccessful #POTA activation - AU-7738, Tuckers Nob State Forest

I used Bartender for a decade but had to delete it on both of my Macs recently for all of the reasons mentioned in the article. I’m very disappointed. It was a great app.

Safety signage for wire antennas when doing POTA Generic sign Since getting into POTA I’ve had a lot of fun combining my interests in nature, radio and computers. I’ve also had a few snags, literally. I’ve had my wires do battle with drones, kites, fishing rods and over-sized RVs with way more on top than they should have (like bikes). So, what’s the answer? A sign! If you use Canva, you can edit the following file and put your call sign on it, as I did.

Safety signage for wire antennas when doing POTA

Yep, I I turned it… wasting electricity

Purchasing amateur radio gear on Facebook Marketplace I posted this to the Australian Ham Amateur Radio Facebook Group on 14 January. Ninety nine percent of my experiences on Marketplace have been positive. But you need to be alert for scams. 19 January 2026

Purchasing amateur radio gear on Facebook Marketplace

Updated content on VK2AWN and Apple and Amateur Radio I have updated my pages about my radio shack and mobile operations for VK2AWN. I have also updated my interests in Apple and Amateur Radio. The Amateur Radio Page includes a list of my interests, equipment and software. The Apple and Amateur Radio Page includes information on using Apple in Amateur Radio. It also has screenshots of apps on my Mac, iPhone, and iPad. I also post to Facebook, BlueSky and Reddit. 18 January 2026

Updated content on VK2AWN and Apple and Amateur Radio

I have updated my pages about my radio shack and mobile operations for VK2AWN. I have also updated my interests in Apple and Amateur Radio. The Amateur Radio Page includes a list of my interests, equipment and software. The Apple and Amateur…

#POTA activation at Woopi Back State Beach AU-8912 I was at AU-8912 Woopi Back State Beach, north of Coffs Harbour on Saturday, 17 January 2025. I started on FT8 on 15 meters and then went to phone on 40 metres.

#POTA activation at Woopi Back State Beach AU-8912

I was at AU-8912 Woopi Back State Beach, north of Coffs Harbour on Saturday, 17 January 2025. I started on FT8 on 15 meters and then went to phone on 40 metres.

Hi, I am at AU-8912 Woopi Back State Beach, north of Coffs. I’m on FT8 on 15 meters while I have lunch and then I’ll try 15 and 40 on phone.

pota.app#/park/AU-8912