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| Friday, 07 November 2008 21:39 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This page has been mentionned in some well known DX-bulletins and now sees many clicks. Thanks to all english speaking readers ! The following translations are brought to you by Maurice F5NQL. Why not take a few minutes to discover our new website ? We're sorry, the english part is still in work and not much of it is translated yet. Please consider making a donation to the Clipperton DX Club ... THANKS !
Paro, Monday Nov, 24th .
It's t 21h30 , Buthanese time (1600 utc) and A5100A operation has just shut down, with a last 40m CW QSO. 5805 QSO are logged. it'sa little more than in 2004 with worse propagation conditions and only one station. We will leave Paro to morrow at 6h30 to the airport. We will leave Buhtan to thaïland Bangkok airport at 0900. We will be in Paris on Wednesday early in the morning. It's the end of a marvellous adventure . We will thank a lot all of you for your calls and all of your kind messages wrote on our guestbook. A lot of apologies for all of you who called us and whom we didn't hear the signals. Thank a lot to our pilots, Laurent, F8BBL and Jean-Michel F6AJO who forwarded all of our messages on Internet. A a lot of thaks to all of you, Associations, Rdio Clubs and individuals who helped uus and made this project A5100A possible. Amitiés de toute l'équipe Thimphu, Lundi 17th, 0700 Buht. Time ( 0200 utrc.
Hi all
The last night was a little laborious on 40 an 80m. On 160 we worked, between 1600 and 1800 , BY, HS, UA, UA9, UT, OH, stations.
The first part of our stay is Buhtan is now finished . We logged about 5250 QSO's.
A big thanks to all of you who called us and for the other we couln't copy would you accept all our apologies.
The second part of our stay is changed as we aren't going down to the South Buhtan.
We will settle a station with the G5RV at Ogyen Cholling and Paros. A new bagrgain to do some other QSO's, but we will have Ogyen Cholling, only solar panels DC supplying.
A further message will be sent on next Nov 21st when return to Thimphu.
Amitiés de toute l'équipe A5100A. Thimphu, Sunday, November 16th, 1930 Buht. time ( 1430 utc)
Hi all After the 20 m piule up until the sunset, we have taken down the Spiderbeam. ( What sport it was in the night! ) and the vertical antennas. Are still in place only the G5RV and the 160m dipole. Before the last CW night on 40 80 et 160M, we count 5033 QSO's logged with only one station and 9 days and a half of traffic. We hope to be ableto send you a last message to morrow before leaving Thimphu to the Bumtang. Amitiés de toute l'équipe A5100A Thimphu, Sunday Nov 16th 8h Buhr. Time (2h UTC)
Hi all
Yesterday afternoon a very good propagation was on 20m. Between 1140 utc and 1225 utc in SSB then in CW until 1300, we enjoyed a very fine long path opening to the United States.
In the middle of the pile-up with the USA, Nicolas, FT5YI called us and we made a long QSO with him, who is, at the moment, assembling and tuning his station in Adelie land.
On 30m, a new try was this time unfortunately completely unsuccessfull at all. We suffered an heavy ROS and the laptop in such a case refused to work as did the transceiver . Only one QSO's and HB9RG in the noise was the only one. Digital modes were not very fine too.
The night was a little bit annoying on 40 & 80m SSB, with, after all, a good opening to JA between 19h and 22h TU (We listened JA on 3803). On 160M , UA4CC only , was logged. SP3BOI and GM4FAM said they listened us 559, but they were not QSA here.
At the end of the 9th day, 4800 QSO's are logged. We can traffic today for the last time in Thimphu. This afternoon, we plan to take down the vertical antenna ant the last part of the antennas to morrow morning after a last night of traffic.
To those who have the Buhtan missing on 160m :
The next night, look for us on 1826.6 up +2, at 1600, 1630, 1700, 1730 and 1800, and finally at 0000utc.
Thimphu, Sarurday Nov 15th ( 0800 Buht. Time, 0200 utc)
Another excellent night on 40m CW, but nothing possible on 80m because of the noise up S9+ whereas the 40m was very clear. Only one new QSO on 160m with an UA9 station, before returning on 40m for the South America and USA grey line . Thanks to all of our friends whocalle us but we couldn’t pick up in the jamming. At 00h00 at the end of our 8th day , 4100 QSO’s are logged . We will reach and be ahead of 5000QSO’s with an ony one station and poor proagation conditions. This morning we will have a tea and coffee breakfast with Françoise Pommaret , to talk about our two days stay in Ogyen Cholling , where we have a project with the Tang school.. Amitiés de toute l'équipe A5100A Addendum : These are some statistics based on the CW and Digi log ; ( the SSB one wrote by Gerard F2VX count 1671 QSO’s, but Gerard authorised in 1912 , as Paul F6EXV says, doesn’t know yet the electronic keyboard and uses only his old charcoal pencil!) 75 countries whom the top ten: QSO’s DXCC entities 539 European Russia 239 Ukraine 206 Federal Republic of Germany 174 Asiatic Russia 148 Italy 141 France 118 Poland 115 USA 92 Japan 81 Finland To the pseudo Ham who have shame of his real callsign (Has he ever got one ?) and sign our guestbook as JA100DX and writes : "expedition by EU only for EU", he can see that instead of the bad conditions, 174 Asiatic Russian , 115 US American and 92 Japanese stations are in the top ten.
For the two last days in Thimphu, we will focuse on radio, with just a little stop to take an Official luncheon, with Kunzang Choden and Françoise Pommaret. An other last meeting is scheduled, with the Kuensel National Paper journalists, to explain the readers how and what for, we did this Ham expedition to Buhtan for the Centenary of the Kingdon and new King coronation. Merci à tous et amitiés de toute l'équipe. A5100A Thimphu, Thuesday Nov 13th. (addendum) Thimphu, Thuesday Nov 13th Thimphu, Wedenesday Nov 12th
Hi all
It’s 0800 in Thimphu, blue sky . Since we are here, the weather is very fine . Temperature is about 20°C in the day but , around 1600 , when the sun goes behind the mountains it drops near 0°C.
The last night was good in CW on 40m for all Europe and on 80m with a good pile up with Japanese stations. On the other hand, nothing on 160m. We were on 1827 at 1730 UTC for FK8, and 0000 utc for the F but no answer. During the day , the 20m band is excellent starting 0600/0700 utc, but no sigs on 15, 12 and 10m.
On 17 and 30m only close stations have been heard.
In the evening, the 40m band is also ecellent for Europe, starting 1500 UTC until the sunrise. We observed some good opennings to JA, VK, ZL, LU and PY, but unfortunately nothing to North America.
To day SSB activity by Gerard and Vincent.
Thimphu, Nov 11th, 0300 UTC
Hi all
A very difficult night in SSB on 40 and 80m. Gerard and Vincent have broken their voices all night long for an average of 10 QSO an hour. At the sunrise, nothing on 160m, a good openning on 40m/CW until the signals were lost in the noise often up s9+. To those who ask us "why are you so weak" ... It's necessary to stay here in the Himalaya to understand. The valleys configuration offers no free horizon. The band noise is quite permanent at a high level. Unfortunately the propagation is not with us too.
The Buhtan is not a beach where the antennas can be erected " foots in the water", separated one from the others with a good distance and without any obstacle 360 deg around.
It's frustrating for you, but know that's even more for us.
If we want the Buhtan on the bands, we have to accept these difficult conditions.
Thimphu,Monday November 10th, 2008.
Yesterday, we had a meeting with the Dr Françoise Pommaret (Dr. Francoise Pommaret, leading expert on Bhutan and the Himalayas and author of the well-known guidebook to the Kingdom. She is founder and President of the French Bhutan Society, Les Amis du Bhoutan, and a Research Fellow at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Paris.) With and thanks her we could attend to a part of the big festivals organized for the New King coronation and 100th anniversary of the Kingdom. It was very impressive.
Now for the traffic : The 40m band was open yesterday evening ; Alain on 40/CW then Jean-Louis on 80/CW were QRV. For 160m we have an only 1827 kHz frequency possible, because elsewhere the PA refuses to work. We begun at our Greyline (between 1730 and 1910 utc) . We made 10 QSO's with the following entities : OH, ES, UA, UA9, UT. To day SSB traffic, but we haven't yet the band filters. We have less and less hopes to find the big parcel in which they were stocked. It's a complete parcel which is going missing with filters, cables , connectors and so on. It's really a big frustration!
Our antenna "farm", now consists of a 160m dipole, a vertical for 80m, a G5RV for 40/30m and a 5 bands spiderbream for 20 to 10 meters.
The main station is a IC746 with a 400WPA (thanks Serge, F6AML, who have lent it.). The DIGI station is QRV with a FT757 , but now we focuse on SSB and CW.
At 00h this morning ( 1900 utc), 1300 QSO's are logged. We will not put the log on line. The SSB log is a paper one.
73's Alain
Many thanks to Steve W7VOA (A52SW) who visited A5100A team, for sending us these photos of the team's setup!
Thimphu, Sunday Nov 9th
Hi all
We made SSB traffic last night with Gerard and Vincent on 40 and 80m, - G5RV and 400w - but very difficult, because of the contests. We hope to pick up from the Ham center , the gear we had left in 2005 especially the band filters which will permit to pilot two stations simultaneousy. At the moment it's impossibe to move away a station off the other, and according to the buildingl roofs positions , we had to use the place as it is , so without the filters we cannot use more gear as we are doing.
So the traffic in CW and SSB is made in alternation.
New and not scheduled, this morning, we will try to settle a 160 meter dipole with some tryings this evening in CW. The RTTY station is QRV since yesterday, but in the WAE/RTTY, a lot of contesters forgot we are not in Europe but really in ASIA; so we had only a few QSO's in this mode.
This Sunday morning, starting around 0630 local time, the Capital stadium is still full of people and the festival continues with the same cowd in jubilation who cries and applauds the highlights of the shows
Amitiés de l'équipe A5100A Thimphu, Saturday Noov 8th.
Hi all
The first night was interesting . A good traffic was made by Jean Louis/F9DK and Alain/F5LMJ on 40 then 80m CW. Without any amplifier and using the G5RV, we enjoyed some good pile ups with all Europe and had a good opening to Japan.. But as it was each time in the preview operations, the propagation shut down completely at 00h30 , after the sunrise. Only 20 m opens at 6h/7h TU.
Ham radio in the Himalaya is really a very difficult exercise.
This morning we erected the Spiderbeam and moved the vertical on th roof .
Now Gerard/F2VX , with the Spiderbeam and 400w piles up on 20m SSB.
At the moment we have only one station The second is part of the gear left in A5 in 2005. We don't expect to pick up it before the end of the week end, which is the most part of the 100th aniversary of the A5 Kingdom. We hope traffic with 2 stations on Monday afternoon or thuedday morning.
Whilst we are on the air, in the Timphu, Capital stadium, the festivities continue with always more and more spectators. Thousands of people, came from all the provinces, hurry and squeeze together for a new day of shows and ceremonies in the honour of the new King. The town will begin to be more quiet in some days.
Thimphu, Nov 7, 19:00 Buhtanese time (14h utc in France)
Hi all
We are finaly in Thimphu since 1300 afternoon, after long and long hours and hours of wait in Bangkok . This morning the flight was marvelous , behind the Everest, the Annapurna, the K2 and the Chomolari under a wonderful sunshine ... we repeat Wonderful!
In Thimphu, the town is quite made with Thusands and Thousands of people came to the Capital for the 100th anniversary of the Kingdom festivities. The stade of Thimphu where will be done the most important parts of the ceremonies of the new King coronation is crammed full. Here at the Jambayang, starting is a little bit hard. The sunset 16h30, has left us only two hours to settle the stations and the antennas. T the moment only the G5RV and the Vertical are QRV. Only one PA is in order . The final tuning will be made to morrow.
Those who spotted us this evening were right. We have made somme QSO's on 30m CW and 20m SSB, to tune the stations. Europe was closed.
This night we hope some EU among the other , on 30M CW and / or 40M , with for the moment one station and one 400w PA.
Hi friends
Buhtan News:
(Sending news is difficult for us in all Thaï Cyber-cafés for the PC keyboards fit US Standards QWERTY)
The hours are very long and the cyber café is welcome.
Our arrival in Thimphu is scheduled to morrow, Nov 7th around 1400 Buhtanese time ( 1100 utc) . We will settled the antenna system without delay, and are hoping to be on the air around 1300 or1400 utc.
From the A5100A team with 73, Hi friends
BuHtan 2008 :
From Gerard, F2VX, through Jean Michel, F6AJA's mailbox, Nov, 3rd 2008.
Three days before our departure we are quite ready and the last little things are beeing finalized.
As i it was done in our préview A52 dxpeditions, we will try to send daily information.
Our Timetable is to day know as follow :
We have a web page and a guest book on line at : See you soon down our logbook, from the Roof of World
73's , A5100A team
PS : F5NQL met Jean Louis F9DK yesterday, Nov 2nd. Two last minute information was given : 1st) It's beeing confirmed that 160m operations will be quite impossible. 2nd ) Some numeric modes will be activitated ( RTTY and PSK31).
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