operating in the field

While most of our stations are accessible by car, we do have several that require hiking in four or five miles with all of your radio gear, with the ability to transmit for 8 to 10 hours over challenging terrain. Choosing the right equipment becomes very important. Here is some of our favorite gear for operating out in the wilderness.

Batteries

Our preferred field batteries are the Bioenno Lithium batteries. Light in weight and big in power, these are hands down the best way to power your kit. You can also hook up a solar charger for extended life. We typically carry at a 15ah battery at a minimum (5.5 lbs). We have invested in two 40ah batteries with power boxes to power both a radio and laptop for WinLink use. We use Powerwerx Portable Battery boxes for these big batteries. The battery and box weighs in at 13 lbs.

Antenna & Mast System

We invested in the Comet portable aluminum tripod (3 lbs 4 oz) and the telescopic aluminum mast (3 lbs). We already had Diamond X-30 antennas that we use with this system, but the Comet mobile antenna is also a great choice for lightweight portability. This antenna is fantastic. It's designed to connect directly to the mast, and it does not use radials (it's a true 5/8 wave length). While the antenna is designed for mobile (and has a cool foldover design so that it fits in your garage still mounted to your vehicle), it works well in a variety of applications. You could attach a line to this bad boy and hoist it into a tree and have it work perfectly.

The Arrow II backpack portable antenna (in photo) is another great antenna choice for working in the field. You'll need a portable mast for this antenna as well.

Radio

Your radio choice is not going to impact your kit weight much, as they all weigh close to the same. We like the Yaesu FT 2980R because of the waterproofing and ruggedness (4.2 lbs) with the 80W of power.

Shelter

Tyvek squares outfitted with corner grommets, hiking poles (up to four) and guy lines can make a lightweight shelter as the photo shows. A lightweight chair like the Helinox Chair Zero can also be helpful. A clipboard makes a great substitute for a table in the field.