We’ve been on a nice vacation to Benton Harbor, Michigan, to visit my wife’s family. We typically stay in a cottage overlooking Lake Michigan. It’s in grid EN62 and allowed me to work a few satellite passes with my heavyweight portable satellite station: IC-910H, MacBook Air, and Arrow antenna.
On the weekend after our arrival I headed to the Dayton Hamvention where I help operate a booth for the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association that covers all things involving amateur radio and Scouting. That same weekend my wife hosts her college roommates and cousins for a talk-fest while I’m playing ham radio.
The Hamvention went well and I particularly like the new venue. The usual vendors showed up but I felt the forums were much better, chiefly because I could actually hear them in their air-conditioned and quiet rooms. The food court was a big improvement as well. The mud around the flea market was a hassle. But then I’m not one to buy stuff in a flea market.
Following the Hamvention, my wife and I headed to her brother’s cottage on a small lake near Ludington, Michigan, in grid EN63. While there I activated a few satellites. I also contemplated activating EN74 or even the EN64/74 line. But the rainy weather and my laid back approach to vacationing prevented it.
Next we take a car ferry across Lake Michigan to start our return journey. It’s good to be retired and take our time — enjoying our hobbies, our friends, and each other.
