T88UM (PJ77) Palau is.

Palau is. 8-12 march

This evening, I fly from Guam to Palau, arriving late at night, so I’ll begin setting up tomorrow morning. Since the 13 cm band activity is planned for Saturday, March 8, I’ll try to activate it first.

It looks like I’ve identified and temporarily fixed the issue that caused the lack of reception on 13 cm—let’s see if anything else comes up. If it still doesn’t work, I’ll quickly switch to 23 cm. But if 13 cm, which has been “silent” for so long, suddenly starts working, then I’ll remain on 13 cm and move to 23 cm from March 9 to 11.

As always, a lot depends on unpredictable factors—lost luggage, bad weather, and so on—but I’m hoping for the best.

See you on air!

The plane arrived late in the evening, and customs was a breeze—no “angry Caribbean” chaos here. The people are friendly and easygoing. I explained what amateur radio and EME are, showed some photos from past expeditions, and after about half an hour, I was on my way to the hotel.

The hotel has a flat roof with clear moonrise and moonset visibility, but there are a few challenges. Construction work is ongoing, and the corner room closest to the roof exit is off-limits because a welder is working there during the day. So, I had to take a room in the middle of the building, which means every trip to the roof involves a 50-meter walk down the corridor and another 50 meters across the roof to the installation site. That’s a 200-meter round trip each time, and by the evening, I could barely move my feet. Getting old.

The weather hasn’t been great—strong gusts of wind and rain throughout the day, with an unfavorable forecast ahead. I had initially hoped to start with 13 cm, but with these conditions, it’s safer to begin on 23 cm. If and when the wind calms down, I’ll run sun reception tests, confirm the azimuth, and then switch to the new band.

Setting up the tripod and antenna took about two hours. I connected all the wires and cables, and I had 500 watts ready for transmission. As the sun set, I managed to “catch” the azimuth despite the moon being high and hidden behind clouds. With moonrise approaching in Europe, I announced in the chat that I’d be on 23 cm, and then—disaster.

A strong wind with heavy rain hit suddenly. I had to rush to lower the antenna, cut the power, and secure all the equipment in the tent to prevent it from getting flooded.

The wind grew even stronger, and I realized I needed to remove the antenna from the rotator to avoid a serious mishap. My instincts were right—the constant shaking had once again loosened the fastening screw between the rotor and the elevator. So, I brought it into the room for a quick overhaul and tightened the cursed bolt once more.

If the wind dies down, I’ll try to set everything up again later.

2025-03-08,13:59:00,2025-03-08,14:01:00,PA3DZL,,1296.100999,Q65,-15,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:08:00,2025-03-08,14:10:00,DG5CST,JO60,1296.100999,Q65,-27,-14,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:11:00,2025-03-08,14:13:00,G4CCH,IO93,1296.100999,Q65,-20,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:16:30,2025-03-08,14:18:59,OK1DFC,JN79,1296.100999,Q65,-22,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:22:00,2025-03-08,14:24:01,UA3PTW,,1296.100999,Q65,-25,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:25:00,2025-03-08,14:27:12,OE9ERC,JN47,1296.100999,Q65,-19,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:33:30,2025-03-08,14:35:59,OK1UGA,JO80,1296.100999,Q65,-22,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:35:00,2025-03-08,14:37:00,DK4RC,,1296.100999,Q65,-11,-13,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:37:00,2025-03-08,14:39:00,G0LBK,,1296.100999,Q65,-18,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:40:00,2025-03-08,14:42:00,ON4AOI,JO21,1296.100999,Q65,-18,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:43:00,2025-03-08,14:45:00,IK3COJ,JN65,1296.100835,Q65,-20,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:45:00,2025-03-08,14:47:00,PA0BAT,,1296.100835,Q65,-19,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:47:00,2025-03-08,14:49:00,IQ2DB,JN45,1296.100835,Q65,-17,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:49:00,2025-03-08,14:51:00,PE1L,,1296.100835,Q65,-17,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:51:00,2025-03-08,14:53:00,PA0TBR,JO21,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:53:00,2025-03-08,14:55:00,SM6CKU,,1296.100835,Q65,-13,-11,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,14:55:00,2025-03-08,14:57:00,RA4HL,,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:01:00,2025-03-08,15:03:00,DL8YHR,,1296.100835,Q65,-20,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:06:30,2025-03-08,15:07:03,ON4QQ,JO20,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:08:30,2025-03-08,15:09:49,IK1FJI,JN44,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:12:00,2025-03-08,15:14:00,SP5GDM,,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:14:00,2025-03-08,15:16:00,PA3FXB,JO33,1296.100835,Q65,-19,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:16:00,2025-03-08,15:18:00,SP7EXY,,1296.100835,Q65,-17,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:18:00,2025-03-08,15:20:00,OK1IL,JN69,1296.100835,Q65,-18,-26,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:20:00,2025-03-08,15:22:00,ZS4TX,KG30,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:22:30,2025-03-08,15:24:59,OK1KIR,JN79,1296.100835,Q65,-12,-09,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:26:00,2025-03-08,15:28:00,YO2LAM,KN05,1296.100835,Q65,-19,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:28:00,2025-03-08,15:30:00,DL7UDA,JO62,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:30:00,2025-03-08,15:32:00,YL2GD,,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:32:00,2025-03-08,15:34:00,RD4D,,1296.100835,Q65,-15,-14,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:34:00,2025-03-08,15:36:00,ZS6JON,KG33,1296.100835,Q65,-22,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:36:00,2025-03-08,15:38:00,DK3WG,JO72,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:38:00,2025-03-08,15:40:00,OM4XA,,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-24,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:40:00,2025-03-08,15:42:00,LZ4OC,KN33,1296.100835,Q65,-23,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:42:00,2025-03-08,15:44:00,DL1AT,JO61,1296.100835,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:44:00,2025-03-08,15:46:00,PE1LWT,JO22,1296.100835,Q65,-22,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:46:00,2025-03-08,15:48:00,OH3LWP,KP11,1296.100999,Q65,-20,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:48:30,2025-03-08,15:50:59,OK2DL,JN79,1296.100999,Q65,-09,-13,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:50:30,2025-03-08,15:52:59,IZ8GGF,JN70,1296.100999,Q65,-21,-24,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:52:00,2025-03-08,15:54:00,DF2VJ,JN39,1296.100999,Q65,-23,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:56:00,2025-03-08,15:58:00,G4YTL,IO92,1296.100999,Q65,-25,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,15:58:00,2025-03-08,16:00:00,I5YDI,,1296.100999,Q65,-21,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,16:00:00,2025-03-08,16:02:00,DL8FBD,JO40,1296.100999,Q65,-29,-24,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,16:03:30,2025-03-08,16:04:43,DG0FE,JO62,1296.100999,Q65,-20,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-08,16:20:00,2025-03-08,16:24:10,UA9YLU,,1296.101954,Q65,-27,-17,,,,,,,

45 QSO

++++++

Despite the challenging conditions, I managed to log 45 QSOs—far more than I expected. I was thinking 20, maybe 25 at best. The strong wind gusts kept shifting the antenna, causing it to lose azimuth, which I’m sure many noticed yesterday.

This meant constant trips up and down to the roof, and by moonset, I was completely drained. Somehow, I mustered enough energy to set up the vertical and get on 14 MHz. After that, I took a much-needed shower and collapsed into bed—completely exhausted.

In the morning, if the weather holds, I’ll need to overhaul the rotator after yesterday’s turbulence, reinstall the dish, and try to work W1, W6, JA, and VK. Then, later in the evening, I’ll attempt to reach those I couldn’t work yesterday due to the weather.

As a result, I didn’t need to overhaul the rotator, but another issue cropped up. Due to yesterday’s turbulence, the plastic water bags that were used to stabilize the tripod legs started leaking. Without at least 20 kg on each leg, there’s no way to securely set up the dish—it would be swept away by the first gust of wind. With nothing heavy available on the roof or nearby, I had to head to the hardware store and buy two bags of cement for ballast, which unfortunately made me miss the “American window.”

Before sunrise in Europe, hardly anyone was active, so I took a break and grabbed a bite at a local restaurant. By evening, the weather had improved considerably—the wind died down, and I even managed to work OE3JPC (Hannes), who’s operating with just a pair of 56 yagis!

Today’s log shows 38 QSOs (36 init)

2025-03-09,08:59:30,2025-03-09,09:01:59,BA7NQ,OL63,1296.101000,Q65,-26,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,12:35:00,2025-03-09,12:37:00,SM5DGX,,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:04:00,2025-03-09,13:08:00,DL4DTU,,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-25,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:09:00,2025-03-09,13:11:05,OK1VUM,JN79,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:11:00,2025-03-09,13:15:56,LZ4FR,KN13,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:14:00,2025-03-09,13:18:00,IK7EZN,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:22:00,2025-03-09,13:26:00,DM2CFH,,1296.101000,Q65,-12,-16,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:26:00,2025-03-09,13:30:00,IK2DDR,,1296.101000,Q65,-18,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:35:00,2025-03-09,13:36:03,OK1USW,,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:39:00,2025-03-09,13:41:06,PA1PS,JO21,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:41:00,2025-03-09,13:42:55,OK1USW,,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:42:00,2025-03-09,13:46:00,ES3RF,KO29,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:46:00,2025-03-09,13:50:00,RA4HL,,1296.101000,Q65,-13,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,13:56:00,2025-03-09,14:00:00,HB9Q,,1296.101000,Q65,-08,-12,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:24:00,2025-03-09,14:32:01,LA3EQ,JO28,1296.101000,Q65,-35,-24,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:37:00,2025-03-09,14:41:56,I0NAA,JN63,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:43:00,2025-03-09,14:47:56,F1RJ,JN18,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:46:00,2025-03-09,14:50:00,IK2CDI,,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:50:00,2025-03-09,14:54:00,JJ3JHP,,1296.101000,Q65,-18,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,14:54:00,2025-03-09,14:58:00,DL1SUZ,JO53,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-25,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:06:00,2025-03-09,15:10:00,JQ3JWF,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:14:00,2025-03-09,15:18:00,JH3AZC,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:34:00,2025-03-09,15:38:00,SV8KOU,,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:38:00,2025-03-09,15:42:00,DK3EE,,1296.101000,Q65,-16,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:45:00,2025-03-09,15:49:56,OE9ERC,JN47,1296.101000,Q65,-07,-07,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:47:00,2025-03-09,15:51:56,DL1HUH,,1296.101000,Q65,-07,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,15:58:00,2025-03-09,16:02:00,OE3JPC,,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-26,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:08:00,2025-03-09,16:12:00,RD9SAC,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-16,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:13:00,2025-03-09,16:17:56,F5KUG,JN03,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:23:00,2025-03-09,16:27:56,CT1FFU,IM59,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:35:00,2025-03-09,16:39:56,CT1WO,IM58,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:46:00,2025-03-09,16:50:00,I7FNW,JN81,1296.101000,Q65,-28,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,16:56:00,2025-03-09,16:59:00,EA8DBM,IL18,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,17:09:00,2025-03-09,17:11:15,UA9FA,,1296.101000,Q65,-28,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,17:17:00,2025-03-09,17:21:56,9H1BN,JM75,1296.101000,Q65,-28,-22,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,17:34:00,2025-03-09,17:40:04,DJ2DY,JN39,1296.101000,Q65,-30,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,17:38:00,2025-03-09,17:42:00,OT7K,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-14,,,,,,,

2025-03-09,17:41:00,2025-03-09,17:44:48,DF7KB,JO30,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-20,,,,,,,

+++++

This morning I went diving because moonrise here isn’t until about 15:00 local time. I returned roughly 30 minutes before moonrise, planning to work two USA and VK contacts in an hour and then try to activate on the 13 cm band.

When I got to the roof, I was absolutely shocked! In the six hours I was away, a team of Chinese workers had begun constructing a fifth floor on the roof of a four-story hotel. Right where I had planned to catch the moonset and achieve some significant gain, they installed steel beams! You could say I literally “jumped on the last train” yesterday.

So if someone didn’t manage to make a contact, the only hope now is that my elevation isn’t lower than 40 degrees on my end.

Moonrise is on the opposite side, so I turned the antenna—but the moon was behind the clouds, and the sun was in a completely different direction. I aimed roughly using the compass on my iPhone and asked Frank, NC1I, to call me. He always has a strong signal and is always ready to help. During the receive cycle, I slowly adjusted the antenna, and there it was—a signal strong enough to hear by ear.

I managed to complete 10 QSOs.

2025-03-10,06:49:30,2025-03-10,06:51:59,NC1I,FN32,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-15,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,06:53:00,2025-03-10,06:55:00,W2HRO,FN20,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,06:55:00,2025-03-10,06:57:00,KB2SA,DM13,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,06:58:30,2025-03-10,07:00:59,W5LUA,EM13,1296.101000,Q65,-17,-19,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:01:00,2025-03-10,07:03:00,VE6TA,,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-17,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:05:30,2025-03-10,07:06:30,AA6I,DM06,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-23,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:11:00,2025-03-10,07:13:00,K5DN,,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-20,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:25:00,2025-03-10,07:29:56,VK2JDS,QF46,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-21,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:47:00,2025-03-10,07:51:56,N6RZJ,CM99,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-18,,,,,,,

2025-03-10,07:54:00,2025-03-10,07:58:02,VK4CDI,QG63,1296.101000,Q65,-31,-24,,,,,,,

Total: 93 QSO

Then, I switched everything over to 13 cm. Reception was working, but now there was no transmission. Tomorrow morning, I’ll try to figure out what’s going on.

+++++

My short Pacific expedition has come to an end. I’ll be staying in Palau for another five days, staying a little active on HF, but I’m packing up the EME antenna. It’s been raining every day, and there’s no one left to work with on bands above 23 cm.

My first attempt to activate Palau on 13 cm was unsuccessful—something must have come loose during shipment. I’ll investigate the issue when I get home.

I logged 91 QSOs, which I think is a solid result, and the pileup was quite intense.

Many thanks to Hide-san JM1LJS and IMPAC Tours agency and Mrs. Akiko for the great support and help in obtaining a license in Palau and finding a suitable QTH!

A huge thanks to my supporters:

PA3FXB, YL2GD, DF2VJ, ES3RF, IK2DDR, G4YTL, DL1AT

On my return flight from Palau - Manila - Istanbul - Madrid - Tenerife, the airline lost my suitcase containing the antenna, tripod, and septum. It left Istanbul, but never arrived in Madrid.

Having lived in Spain for many years and knowing how things work here (or rather, how they often don’t work), I always had a feeling that something like this might happen—and, well, it finally did.

With that, I think it’s safe to say the winter-spring season is officially over.

To end on a positive note, here are a few non-radio photos from Palau!