This Event has concluded

Event summary

Operations began just before 10:00Q on August 16th. For reasons that remain to be understood, we could not load up the 60-foot vertical tower as we have in the past. Only a handful of contacts were made on Saturday. Fortunes changed on August 17th; A full log on Sunday resulted as the tower loaded up as it normally does. Newly minted operator KB1ZZU, under W1LY’s tutelage the day before, ran multiple pages like an old hand in a pile-up. As has been the case all summer, 20 meters was the go-to band with most contacts around 14.255 mHz.

Beavertail Lighthouse Oil House and Tower

Beavertail Lighthouse , lighted in 1749, was the third light built in what would become the United States. Originally known as the Newport Lighthouse, it guided pre-radar shipping in and out of Narragansett Bay. The light is recognized by the International Lighthouse Lightship Weekend (ILLW # US0156), and Conanicut Island is recognized by both Islands on the Air (IOTA # NA-031) and US Islands (USisl # RI007S).

Beavertail Lighthouse Activation 60′ Vertical on Left, Oil house in front of light tower

Dave Brown Photo

The W1SYE station will operate from the oil house (small building with gray roof on right) and the 60′ base-loaded vertical tower shown here. The smaller antenna was an experimental Fan-Dipole that was being tested and will not be used. The light is part of Beavertail State Park and lies at the tip of a beautiful rocky shore with a 300 degree view of Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island Sound. The public and fellow hams are welcome and encouraged to visit and if you wish, try your hand at making national and international contacts with a coach to guide you.