Camping in August

Here are the details:

I've been looking for a chance to camp. I likely could have found someplace, but I was really trying for Fort Worden for a few reasons. Ft. Worden seems to be a place where many activities are available. Exploring the Artillery Hill emplacements, Flying Kites on the parade grounds, playing Bocce Ball either in a field, or, if they are still there, on actual regulation pitches.

As Port Townsend is right over the hill from the fort, the shops and places there are also available. Of course there is the always included in a camping trip to have fire cooked meals.

Having a camping trip that has a variety of things to do was a factor that comes into play. We didn't want anyone to feel that there wasn't interesting things to do.

I've reserved the campsite for Monday through Friday the last week of August. That's the longest stretch I could find during the school vacation period. This will allow our school age family member a chance to camp.

As for the rest, you are certainly welcome for the week if that fits your plans. You are also welcome to spend a day, an evening or a few days, whatever you can manage and are interested in. Mom and I, and likely Lukas will be there all 5 days, 4 nights. I understand the rest of you will have work schedules to take into account. 

Just let everyone know what your plans are so we can coordinate activities, meals etc. While we drive around via Tacoma with the camper, it's a reasonable drive to take the Edmonds ferry and drive over Hoods Canal and up to the fort.

So that's the deal.

Dad

Flagpole Update.

Brad will appreciate this first part as he helped me with the first flag pole hole. I did some internet research looking for advice on getting a hole dug through clay or more properly around here glacial till. We had a power auger and it was no match for that stuff. Like screwing through a sidewalk.

So, it appears that the most effective way to get a 3 foot hole dug is to use hand tools. I went and got a manual post hole digger, and to break up the hard stuff, a digging bar. That's a heavy pike thing that can be used to thromp it down in the hole to break up the material.

I'll still be looking for help, and yes, of course, some compensation in the form of Pizza or camping or something mutually beneficial will be part of the deal.

The job will have 2 parts, well maybe 3.

1. Dig a hole about a foot in diameter and about 3 feet deep. This is the hard work part. This step is followed, hopefully in the same day with #2.

2. Gravel in the bottom, then cement mixed and shoveled into the hole around the sleeve that will accept the flag pole. This step requires a person with a level making REALLY sure that the sleeve, and temporary pole in the sleeve are exactly level vertical.

3. After a week or so, dismount the existing flagpole and erect the new flagpole.

Easy Squeezey

Dad

Honoring Moms

Yesterday Dad and I did our traditional Honoring of our Mothers with flowers. It was a beautiful day and so sweet to think of them and be thankful for them.







I have been going through my moms papers and letters etc, and I found some information that led me to believe I might have other relatives buried at Evergreen. So while I was there I did a little checking at the office to see if I could locate them. Lo and behold the nice lady in the office was able to find their grave sites for me. So I was able to honor two more moms this year who are part of my family.

The first lady is Della Emeline Wells Sayles. She is my Grandpa Wells (Your Grandma Rendahl's dad)  Aunt. She would be my Great - Great Aunt. She was born in 1868 and died in 1957. I have the delight of caring for her Peonies in my garden and every spring when they come up I think of her. I have very fond memories of her.









The second lady was Elizabeth (Beth) Sayles Wells. She was the second wife of my Grandpa Wells. My grandmother died when I was less than a year old so I never had the chance to know her. Beth was the only grandma I knew. She and my grandpa were married when I was two. They lived in Seattle and Chicago so I was able to spend a lot of time with them when I was little. I stayed with them when both of my brothers were born. We went over to their house often to visit. She was a lovely lady, always smiling and I loved her dearly.

Beth is in the middle, Grandpa Wells on the right and the pastor who married them on the left. This was taken on their wedding day in 1952.

I am so grateful for both of these women, for all that they invested in my life and it was a joy to honor them after all these years.

What?!? Another Hole? Say it isn't so . . . .

Got your attention? 

I know that you have helped me dig a hole, and more than once (well, many times) you've helped me swing down my antenna er. Flag Pole, so I could tune the traps er, adjust the flag hoist rope

Anyway, despite my best efforts, and your amazing help not to mention patience, I just can't get it tuned right across all of the useful Ham bands that I want to work. I can get 20 meters good only to lose 15 and 40 meters. I get 40, and lose 30. Nature of the beast with a multi-band trap antenna.

In addition, the PVC outer pole just likes to sway in the wind 
a bit more lot more than we're comfortable with. 

So, ladies and gentlemen, what is the solution? Give up Ham Radio? (That'd be NO). But hey, how about a new

Flagpole!

What's that? Didn't I just say that the flagpole has issues that don't seem to want to resolve? Indeed, I did say that. Confused? Don't be.

I am switching to a all metal (well, mostly) flagpole where the pole itself is actually the antenna! To be precise, it's an off center feed (OCF) dipole. It radiates both polarities of the sine wave. 

As it's a DIpole and not a MonoPole like I have now, I won't need to run wires all over the grounds for 'radials'. That alone may earn me some points with my darling garden Czar.

To make it work across the wide range of frequencies, there are details, but to make it simple, the flagpole is insulated from the ground, by being set in a PVC collar that is set in crushed rocks or cement in a hole! 

At the base of the flagpole, there is an electronics box called an Auto Tuner that takes the signal from the radio, and with some electronic magic ;

(I can explain in detail if you ask), (Hint, it has a variable capacitor and Inductor) 

This circuit and the associated electronics makes the flagpole resonate at whatever frequency the radio is sending to it. 

So instead of a set of traps that allow a few bands to be worked (if I could get the entire system tuned) the whole high frequency set of Ham bands can be used with this flagpole. Cool huh?

So, who wants to be a volunteer to help dig a hole, perhaps shovel some rocks and/or cement, and be an eagle eye on a post level? 

Once again, I'll arrange to rent a powered post hole digger. Most likely more power and a wider auger as we know that we can't dig as deep as we'd like. (Darn Glaciers). 

Yeah, I'd be looking for help to dig another hole. Can't avoid it. 

After the insulating PVC sets (if I use cement), a couple of us will just need to lift up the flagpole, (It's just 20 feet high) and nicely drop slide it into the waiting PVC collar. Piece of cake.

Thanks for reading!

Dad