Overview
At the May club meeting, Rick Curtis (W4BXL) — KARC’s POTA coordinator — gave a beginner-friendly introduction to Parks on the Air. Rick has been doing POTA for about four years and goes out at least once a month, usually with club members Kyle and Heather. His message throughout: POTA is accessible, welcoming, and a great reason to get outside. If you’re interested in going out to a park, Rick is happy to schedule a trip and show you how it’s done.
Key Topics
What is POTA?
Parks on the Air is an amateur radio award program that encourages portable operation from parks and protected areas around the world. Parks are registered with unique ID numbers, and operators can either activate parks in person or hunt activators from home or mobile. It’s a worldwide program with thousands of registered parks.
A Brief History
POTA grew out of the ARRL’s 2016 National Parks on the Air event. It was built and is maintained by amateur radio volunteers and has grown rapidly with international participation across many countries.
Basic Rules
- You need at least 10 unique QSOs within a UTC day for an activation to count
- Submit your logs even if the activation is unsuccessful — hunters still get credit
- All bands and modes are allowed; repeaters are not (satellite repeaters are the exception)
- Parks within parks count separately — you can earn credit for two or more parks in one outing
- Review the full rules on the POTA website before your first activation
Activators vs. Hunters
An activator is physically within park boundaries making contacts. Ten unique contacts activates the park. A hunter contacts activators from outside the park — at home, mobile, or from within another park (park-to-park). Hunters do not need to log their own contacts; the activator’s log handles that. Park-to-park contacts are especially valued — activators will typically bump a park-to-park caller to the top of the pile.
POTA Maps and Park Numbers
Every registered park has a unique reference number (e.g., Bays Mountain is US-6234). The POTA map at pota.app shows parks as yellow dots with info on hours, parking, and past activators. Rick also recommended potamap.us for viewing actual park boundaries, which is particularly useful for identifying parks-within-parks (two-fers) and the rare three-fers.
Spotting Yourself
To let hunters find you, submit a spot on the POTA website with your call sign, frequency, park reference, and a comment. You can also ask another operator to spot you. The active spots list shows mode, last heard time, and park number — useful both for activators announcing themselves and hunters looking for contacts on a specific band or state.
Logging Contacts
Rick’s preferred method is a paper log in the field, then manual entry on the POTA website afterward. You can also use any standard logging program that exports ADIF and upload that file directly. The POTA website is not designed for live logging. Each log entry requires: call sign, UTC date and time, band, mode, and signal report. Park-to-park contacts should include the other park’s reference number.
Awards and Statistics
The POTA website automatically tracks awards as you log activations and contacts. Award categories include number of parks activated, number of parks hunted, DX contacts, and special/seasonal events. Stats tracked include states activated and hunted, late shift contacts, and entities hunted. Rick noted that if you’ve been hunting casually for years without logging on the POTA site, you may already have awards waiting — worth checking.
Technician License Holders
Technicians can participate in POTA on 10 meters (28.300–28.500 MHz) on their own, or on HF alongside a General or Extra class operator. Rick encouraged tech holders not to be discouraged and offered to let them operate from his setup on club outings.
Why Participate?
- Gets you outside and into parks
- Builds portable operating and antenna skills
- Welcoming global community — Rick has never encountered an unfriendly contact
- Works even in bad band conditions — the spots page often has active operators when the bands seem dead
- You can operate from your car if weather is a factor
Gear Mentioned
- Xiegu G90 — Rick’s mobile HF rig used for car-based activations
- Portable battery — Essential for field operation; Rick keeps his on the passenger floor when operating from the car
- Paper log — Rick’s preferred field logging method; printable directly from the POTA website
- Laptop stand (in-vehicle) — Used to mount the G90 in the car for mobile park activations
- POTA badge and lanyard — Available through the POTA website shop; can be customized with your QTH (Rick’s shows Kingsport Amateur Radio Club)
Resources Referenced
- pota.app — Main POTA website; park map, spotting page, activation logging, awards tracking, and merchandise shop
- potamap.us — Alternate mapping tool showing actual park boundaries; useful for identifying two-fers and three-fers
- Logbook of the World (LoTW) — ADIF logs from POTA activations can be uploaded here as well
- POTA paper log — Printable directly from the POTA website; includes fields for park reference, UTC time, call sign, band, mode, RST, and notes