2025 Flight of the Bumblebees Pictures

Summer 2025 Flight of the Bumblebees Event

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Mike - AD0YM

Earthquake Hollow Conservation Area in Callaway County, MO

I suspected conditions would be tough so I put up the best possible antenna from my collection. I also knew it was hot and humid so I kept wet both inside and outside. 1 2 3

Jody - K3JZD

Back Yard - Trafford, PA

KX3 - Bioenno Battery - Temporary 53' EFRW Antenna

Weather forecast was for severe thunderstorms. My planned operating location was in the middle of a field with no shelter. So to be safe I setup under a roof on my rear patio, using battery power and a temporary antenna. 1 1

Don - K3RLL

New Bethlehem, PA

KX1, small LiPO, heavy paddle and diminutive "logbook". Oh yes, and reading glasses to see it all.

Telescoping 20' Crappie Pole on HB tripod supporting 3-band Jumper Inverted Vee. Tripod legs easily disconnect and bundle with Velcro for transit. Note 'custom' stabilizing weight. You just don't find those everywhere. ;-) 1 2 3

Phil - K3UT

Stonington, ME

QMX and homemade 3 band trap EndFed about 20 feet up in a tree. EL 48feet' 1

Kelly - K4UPG

Central FL

Great turnout and lotsa fun. 1

Bob - KD8CGH

Phillips Park in NE OH.

Designed and 3D printed the straight key used. 1

Tom - KE5CW

Ray Roberts Lake State Park, TX.

KX2 (5W) and 40/20 lightweight fan dipole (inverted V) on 33' mast. You can barely see it in the background.


My original planned location was occupied, so I hiked along one of the trails and found a spot for the dipole along a paved hiking trail close to a good shade tree. Operated almost the entire 4 hours; used up two battery packs. 20m was very touch and go. Was tempted to spot on POTA near the end, but kept it pure and only worked FoBB. Had a blast!! 1 2

Jeff - N0MMI

Ballwin, MO.

When the photos were taken it was still cloudy. But by the halfway point we had full sun, and wow was it hot. The phone said the NWS was calling it 95º -- meanwhile when I was leaving I noted my car's outdoor temp was called as 104º. Brutal! Almost as bad as Field Day ;-)

So I was glad I brought my sun fly - and that I'd bought a cheap USB-powered fan. Having that blowing in my face also helped a lot. I couldn't pack up fast enough when it was time to go! 1 2

Dean - N2TNN and Danny - KW4LQ

Gloucester, VA.

Dean N2TNN sitting under pavilion to be in the shade. Was 95F in the sun.

Danny KW4LQ pointng out the 9:1 unun hanging from beam with 85 foot random wire. Two counterpoise wire laid out on ground. 1 2

Ron - N7BBQ

In a RV park outside of Seattle, WA.

CFT-1 and a 40M EFHW.

FOBB was a lot of fun, but propagation made things tough. I only made 15 contacts. 6 of them were Bees. 1

Jim - N7RCS

A local Puget Sound park near Lynnwood, WA.

KX3 and AX3.

Weak propagation but great wx. 1

Rich - NK9G

Western Shore of Lake Michigan in Milwaukee County.

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Linda - W1MP

Riverview Park, Allegheny Conservatory, Pittsburgh, PA

As you can see from the sign in one of the photos, my choice of operating spot wasn't a particularly good one! The noise level on the rig was S9 without the food trucks that started rolling in. I left before the live music. 1 2

Todd - W2TEF

Thomas Edison Center in Edison State Park, NJ.

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Ken - W4KAC

Lake Hickory, NC.

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Tom - WA4ZOF

F.D. Roosevelt State Park, GA.

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Mike - WB2FUV

Roosa Gap State Forest in Eastern New York

POTA, US-5279, elev 1647 1 2 3

Russ - WI5ARD

Bush, LA

Fall 2025 Flight of the Bumblebees Event

Click on any image for a larger view

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Steve - AK0M

Back Yard Patio in Linn County, IA (near Cedar Rapids, IA).

zBitx with K3JZD CW software patch, running off the two attached 18650 batteries. About 3W output. Temporary 67ft EFHWA inverted-vee-style in the backyard,with the peak about 25ft up over a tree limb. There were indeed some real bumblebees (and yellow jackets!) in close proximity but no contacts with them! Much more pleasant outside operating conditions compared to July.

All of my FOBB QSO's were on 20m, but I did have eight Salmon Run and Texas QSO Party QSO's on 15m and 10m that I didn't count in my total. I never was able to raise or hear any FOBB stations on 40m, 15m, or 10m. I think I worked everyone I heard except NA1L who I made several attempts with but QSB got us every time. 1 2 3

Jody - K3JZD

Bushy Run Battlefield, Harrison City, PA

KX3 with JCP-12 Vertical for 40-10m.

Unseasonably warm in WPA, but cooler than July. Had a nice breeze most of the afternoon. But needed to be under the shade tree. 20m seemed like the money band. But 15m and 10m were also open for the whole 4 hours. I spent a lot of my time calling CQ on 15m and 10m trying to work some Western BBs. But that did not pay off at all. Got a few on 40m, but expected to find a lot more there. 1 2 3

Don - K3RLL

Park in Deland, FL

KX3 with Lakeside Vertical.

I didn't try 10m but thought 15m was red hot, but only for the SS or whatever contest that was with the huge signals from everywhere. However, I didn't hear a single BB there, nor on 40m. While we had some QSB on 20m, I thought the band was good 1

Ken - N3AFS

Back Yard Patio in Rossmont Plan, PA.

LnR MTR3B with 15'6" Vertical. 1

Glenn - N4MJ

South Fulton, TN.

KX3 with a Buddipole dipole supported by a tripod. 1 2 3

Ron - N7BBQ

Outside of my motohome in a RV park in Belvidere, IL

KX3.

A couple of rounds of storms and heavy rain limited my operating time. But... It was still fun! 1

Rick - NK9G

Cudahy, WI.

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Linda - W1MP

Riverside Park in Pittsburgh, PA