[NEWS UPDATE] – Al, K7AR got in touch and provided some detail about the K8H DXpedition:

We made 12640 QSOs, of which 1979 or 15.7% were with EU stations. I feel good about that. The best conditions were at our sunrise and sunset on 40 and 30m with good propagation to EU. We even worked many western EU stations in EI, G, EA, CT, F, DL, OE and others.

The conditions on 160m and even 80m were poor. I have been on several Pacific island expeditions and I can say that KH8 is the most mountainous location I have been to. While there is an excellent path to the East, many other directions are blocked by mountains. Really, I’m surprised we made so many EU contacts.

I’m including a couple photos. One shows my DX Commander vertical at my first operating location. The 2nd one shows Al, K7AR on the left and Bob, W7YAQ on the right.

[DECEMBER 1] – We have recently passed the 10K QSO mark and will continue to work the deserving for 2 1/2 more days before leaving on Thursday.

  • 160 Meters has been a struggle here. We understand the high demand, but band conditions are poor. Our pennant receive antenna isn’t working. Despite its simple design and our rigorous review it doesn’t work. I have tried using an HF vertical as a non resonant receive antenna and it works surprisingly well. We will be listening during SA, and US sunrise times for the next two nights.
  • Many EU stations have contacted us asking about when to work us. The best times are at our sunrise and sunset on 40 and 30 M. Unlike 160, the band conditions on 40 and 30 have been excellent to EU with the UK, EA, F, DL and others easy to work.
  • The WX here has been stormy and rainy the last couple days, forcing us to disconnect antennas and go off the air at times.
  • We will be tearing down the stations on Thursday afternoon our time and head home later that evening.

LISTEN TO K8H ON 30CW

[QRV] Bob, W7YAQ and Al, K7AR will be active from Pago Pago, American Samoa from November 18 to December 1, 2022. The special callsign K8H will be used for the expedition. Bob and Al will be active as a Multi Single entry in the CQWW CW Contest. Activity will be on 160-10 M using two Elecraft K3 stations with KPA500 amplifiers. Logs will be uploaded to Club Log on a regular basis. QSL via OQRS, LoTW, or W7YAQ. 

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