(2021-10-23) After a little more than a year in the execution, our new repeater (146.84, – offset, PL 88.5) is up on the hill, in it’s new building, with the new antenna on the new tower! Besides that new omnidirectional antenna, we also installed UHF yagi antennas pointed to Gold Beach and Crescent City, a discone for a monitoring antenna, and a pulley and rope, in case we want to hoist an HF balun up for Field Day or an emergency!
When we got the last connections made, Randy could hit the repeater from Gold Beach with 25 watts, and Christie Lynn had a great signal from Crescent City with her handheld! The coverage is a big improvement over the 146.96 repeater (same offset and PL). On 2021-10-01, we started using the new repeater for the daily noontime Health and Welfare net.
While the planning for this new repeater goes back a few years, this year saw some significant donations from club members from buying pizza and tools up to paying for the concrete pad installation and the building we put on it! This project is a tribute to all of our club members who contributed time, hardware and money, as they were able. We are grateful for all of them, and this repeater should serve us well for many years!
Those who were able to take part in the work parties on the hill all got their share of beautiful views, useful practical experience through collaboration, and a few stories to tell. We couldn’t have done this without them.