[aprssig] APRS in Hethrow, Stenstead and the Polish Alps

[Pentti Gronlund]

Robert Bruninga writes:

> Using APRS in the Polish Alps:

> see they were up on the New-N paradigm as well!  But since I did
> not know the repeater offset in Europe, nor the tones, I was
> never able to make a contact.  I sent BLN's asking about the
> frequencies etc, but never got a message back.  Shame on me for
> not doing my homework before I got there.

Yes, all these are in the Internet. Like the one I found by just
searching for 'repeaters in poland' in Google:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/532620/Poland-2M-Repeaters

All 2 metre repeaters in Europe have the infamous -600 kHz offset
brought to us by the inability of the pre-Prog-line equipment of
the 60's to get on by on a wider band. Just like in the U.S. The
offset is negative, by the way.

Most repeaters have 1750 Hz single tone access.

> Next day, the short 300 lb Polish Professor suggested we go on a
> short hike (4km and 600m straight up).  We got to the top of
> Grzes(sp?) at 1650 meters with clear horizon in almost all
> directions on the Slovac border.  The HT was buzzing with
> stations, and I was excited to enter mine.  Anyone who has heard
> my talks has heard me say that "no one needs a GPS unless they
> are lost or cannot read a map."  So I had left my GPS down at
> camp, and figured I would just pull it off the map when we got
> wherever the professor was leading us.  Later we learned his
> nickname was "mountain goat"/
> 
> The trail had lots of people, everyone had a map of all
> varieties.  No one had a GPS, and NONE of the maps had any
> coordinates!  So my radio continued to beacon my position as if
> I was in Krakow!  ARGH...

So there, you were lost? Hope the goats brought you back in one
piece... Isn't it funny how people still can read the scenery and
topocraphics some place in the world?

> Anyway, using only the VX8R slipping in and out of my pocket was
> a joy.   Also, I think next trip I will not take the speaker
> mic, but just use the GPS attached right on the HT.  I normally
> never use a speaker mic on any of my HT's as just something else
> in the way, so I think I bought the speaker mic/GPS to make sure
> it was high on my body.  But the sensitivity of the VX8R GPS is
> so good, that using the GPS mounting clip to the HT itself would
> better match my style, and be more compact.

Just don't break your style. Performance is dispensable.

Benjamin OH3BK
-- 
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