The Technician license has been the entry level for most hams.  Many of whom think it is a VHF and above license.  Those that do are missing out on the fact that they have digital privileges on the 10-meter band from 28.000 to 28.300 MHz.  That includes the very popular FT-8 frequency of 28.074 MHz.

Ten meters isn’t always open, but during the peak of the solar cycle (where we are right now), it is often open many of the daylight hours.  Sometimes, global DX is available 24×7 – it all depends on solar activity.

Given the popularity of FT-8, that might be an excellent way to get HF experience, along with Digital and DX excitement.  Especially using FT-8, Parks On The Air (POTA) can be more productive than voice.

This snapshot showing HF privileges for Technicians is from the ARRL:

The software is free and it is pretty straightforward to set up modern radio gear, like the IC-7300.  Check out https://wsjt.sourceforge.io/wsjtx.html