I remember reading somewhere that there is a contest station available on
St. Martin. I am going to be there on a family vacation in August and was
hoping to operate NAQP Phone if I can find a station. Any help is
appreciated.
73. Ken, AB6FO, KWIDELITZ@DELPHI.COM
>From Bruce Sawyer <bsawyer@cylink.com> Wed May 31 22:07:07 1995
From: Bruce Sawyer <bsawyer@cylink.com> (Bruce Sawyer)
Subject: FD & Emergency ops/park rangers
Message-ID: <sfcc6b2b.050@cylink.com>
KI6X and K0KR recently have posted notes about dealing with park
rangers during mountaintop expeditions. While these postings were
certainly well-intentioned and attempted to offer helpful advice, I do think
the tone of these posts could lead a reader to assume he has more
"rights" in setting up on mountain-tops than the rangers are likely to
agree to.
In planning my expedition for the California QSO Party last year, I talked
with several guys who had some very bad experiences with National
Forest Service rangers in the past. Probably the worst experiences
were related to me by K6AAW, who at one point held 11 different
county records in CQP. He told me of the time a couple of rangers came
up to him in the middle of the contest and told him to pack up and leave.
He argued, per the posts I have seen here on the reflector, and ended
up staring down the barrel of a .38. He did then shut down and move
after he had it explained to him--in compelling terms--what it meant to set
up there without a use permit.
I don't know about the National Park Service (and in general try to stay
away from the parks because they are so over-regulated), but the
National Forest Service does have very clear and specific regulations
concerning use of the national forests. You can go camp anywhere it
is not explicitly prohibited. As long as all your equipment is mounted on
your car, you can use it. But once you start setting up equipment on the
ground, that does require a use permit. Sure, most people ignore this
and do it without a permit. The odds against getting nabbed in the middle
of a contest are probably pretty slim. But for something like CQP, where
I may spend 2 or 3 days growing my antenna farm before the start of
the contest and then put a major effort into building a score, the last
thing I want is to get shut down hal- way through the contest. The good
news is that, from my experience, the Forest Service is generally willing
to grant a use permit. You write to the District Ranger of the forest in
which you want to operate and spell out your plans in full detail. You
need to tell them when you will arrive, when you will leave, and what
you will be setting up in the area. It is important to stress that this is a
non-commercial operation and that no trace of your operation will be left
after you depart. They will then send you back a tentative use permit
which requires you to pay them $45. (At least, that was the price last
year when I did this.) After the financial office has received funds from
your cleared check, they notify the ranger office, which will then issue
a use permit for you. The whole loop took me a little over a month last
August/September.
Sound like a lot of hassle? It is. It's a real pain in the rear. But they do
have the authority to shut you down, and worse, if you take short-cuts.
I strongly suggest anybody heading out to the national forests for FD or
VHF not try to bully the rangers per the posts I referenced. It could lead
to some real headaches.
Parenthetically, I would add that this is particularly galling when you go
into the wilderness areas, as I have, and see how the forests have
been devastated by the lumbering companies--operating under the
watchful eye of the National Forest Service. Only from the highway do
the thousands of acres of national forest in the Sierras appear to be
pristine stands of virgin timber you think they are. Once you go over the
ridgeline, where the highway traveler can't see, you realize it has been
destroyed for many years to come.
AA6KX
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