Parks on the Air® Activator Guide
Original author: W8MSC
Table of Contents
- Before you go to a park
- Read the POTA rules and documents
- Register on the POTA website
- Choose your park, station style and prepare
- On the Air
- QRT and packing up
- After your activation
- Joint activations
- Logging for POTA
- Multiple park references
- Special considerations for trails
- Operating digital modes
Disclaimer This document is for amateur radio operators participating in the Parks on the Air® (POTA) program. It is not a complete checklist or procedure.
Always consult the current information and check with park staff as appropriate.
Prepare multiple ways to navigate safely; avoid relying solely on GPS.
POTA maps only provide general proximity to parks for your convenience. Do NOT rely on POTA maps for navigation!
Before you go to a park
POTA is suitable for new and veteran hams. POTA is an excellent way of developing your skills as a portable operator. Not only with making contacts on the radio but with antenna selection and design, power, logging, public interactions, and general preparedness.
New POTA participants benefit from working with experienced POTA elmers, but doing research and homework on your own is also a part of improving your skills.
POTA might seem daunting at first—but it doesn’t have to be, especially with some forethought and planning. With practice, your skills will improve.
Read the POTA rules and documents
POTA is about having fun, but there are some rules. Please read the POTA Rules and understand them.
Significant time is spent by POTA volunteers troubleshooting log files and answering questions. Please consult the documents (activator, hunter guides, and other resources) and ask for help if you need clarification on any item.
If you have topics to discuss or reports to contribute, please engage the other POTA community members. POTA is available on social media at Facebook POTA Facebook and Slack POTA Slack.
POTA Videos
Many excellent videos are available on Youtube, including those by well-known POTA participants.
See the current list of official POTA Youtube videos for detailed instructions on subjects such as planning your activation and logging.
Register on the POTA website
Create an account on the https://pota.app website. When signing in, it is best to use one of your existing accounts on Amazon, Facebook, or Yahoo. The POTA system does not store any passwords.
Once your account is established, you can add any callsigns to your account, including those you previously held, 1x1 calls, and callsigns with modifiers. For example, add N3VEM/VE3 for past activations in Canada to be managed by the same N3VEM account.
Keep your QRZ.com profile up to date
Sign up for an account on QRZ.com and enter some information on your profile. Not everyone will use social media and won’t know anything about you or your station. If you don’t want to receive paper QSL cards, specify so on your QRZ.com profile.
Choose your park, station style and prepare
See a separate document on activation style and station footprint for guidance on choosing your parks to activate, and appropriate station footprint and activation style.
Get your gear ready
- Ensure your vehicle is well maintained and can safely access your intended parks.
- Have paper maps and a compass to navigate when GPS is unavailable or inaccurate.
- Take manuals for your radio and other gear. Have them printed on paper or PDF saved in your field-usable device.
- Take printed operating aids: band plans, park maps, grid square maps, ARRL section maps, etc.
- Double-check your gear. Make sure you have everything. Make checklists and use them! Bring spares where possible.
- Make sure your batteries are charged.
Have an accurate watch or clock and ensure the time is accurate. Correct time in the log is crucial for P2P contacts and around the UTC midnight. Make sure your computer’s clock is correct as well.
Be ready to engage with non-hams and park staff. POTA encourages its activators to be ambassadors for the hobby. Your activation may be someone’s first exposure to amateur radio.
Handouts such as the ARRL “What is Ham Radio,” QSL cards, etc., are good ways of providing information. Be aware that some park staff may consider distributing handouts an activity requiring a permit; be discrete and use common sense.
Consider personal comfort items—bug spray, sunscreen, water, snacks, hats, and seasonally appropriate clothing. Headlamps are excellent for hands-free lighting.
Double-check your gear.
Do you really have everything packed?
Advertise your planned park activation
Declare your activation plan on the POTA activation page, and it will automatically keep you on the POTA spot page with the up-to-date frequency when using CW or digital modes. See this section for the RBN info in CW, but analogous logic applies to digital modes.
Advertising your activation plan on the POTA social media (Facebook and Slack) sites will invite more QSOs for you. The post should include your callsign, approximate times, some station details, etc. Allow the hunters enough time when possible.
You can use local repeaters to announce your activation once you get to your park. However, contacts via repeaters do not count for credit. Use simplex modes if you want to use VHF or UHF bands as part of your activation.
Contacting the park staff prior to your activation
Are you already familiar with the park, or are you visiting this park for the first time? Use your judgement if you should discuss your station with park staff. Take your station footprint and the park’s size and sensitivity into consideration when deciding.
See if any changes to conditions or limitations to access your proposed operating location. You may also find out about unadvertised areas for overflow parking, group camping spots, or maybe even receive special access beyond what the general public would usually receive!
A brief chat describing your amateur radio setup with a park ranger before you set up a large station may save you an interruption later.
Identify the actual grid square and county using local maps or online tools.
Safety
Mark your guy lines, stakes, feedlines, etc., with high-vis (fluorescent) flagging tape or small traffic cones. It helps people from tripping on your gear and makes it easier to see when you are operating at night.
Be aware of your surroundings. The weather can change quickly: be ready to shut down your activation if conditions threaten your safety.
Darkness can also make packing up challenging. Use a headlamp to keep your hands free.
Animals may be interested in food: remove the temptation and store your food away. In areas such as campgrounds, animals can be acclimated to humans; put your gear away to avoid chewing damage or being carried off.
On the Air
Ready, set, go!
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Have a snack and visit the restroom. You might not have another chance for a while!
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Verify that your watches or clocks are accurate.
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Make sure you have your logging software up and running and have backup paper logs and pencils ready.
Exchanges
POTA does not require a formal exchange. Many activators exchange actual signal reports and their location, in addition to the callsign. Name and other exchanges are optional.
Some activators include their park reference in their CQ or the QSO. Providing your location helps hunters to aim their beam antennas.
P2P contacts should exchange and log each activator’s park references for P2P credits.
Courteous Operators
POTA activators should exemplify courteous standards of on-the-air best practices.
The DX Code of Conduct. is well known and is a good guide for park activators.
- I will listen, and listen and then listen again before calling.
- I will only call if I can copy the DX station properly.
- I will not trust the Cluster and will be sure of the DX station’s callsign before calling.
- I will not interfere with the DX station or anyone calling and will never tune up on the DX frequency or in the QSX slot.
- I will wait for the DX station to end a contact before calling.
- I will always send my full callsign.
- I will call and then listen for a reasonable interval. I will not call continuously.
- I will not transmit when the DX operator calls another callsign, not mine.
- I will not transmit when the DX Operator queries a call sign, not like mine.
- I will not transmit when the DX operator requests geographic areas other than mine.
- When the DX operator calls me, I will not repeat my callsign unless I think he has copied it incorrectly.
- I will be thankful if and when I do make a contact.
Search and pounce
Tune around and test your gear. See if you can work another station or two.
This is an excellent opportunity to find other activators and get P2P contacts!
Running
Find an available frequency within your license privileges, watch first for long enough to ensure there is no QSO in progress, and ask if the frequency is in use (QRL? in CW).
POTA does not have recommended frequencies.
POTA has detailed guides for CW and digital modes. Please refer to them for best practices and operating hints.
Self-spot on the POTA spotting page if you have access to the internet. Post to your social media pages to announce you are on the air, with your callsign and the frequency. Stay at or near your announced frequency and give the hunters time to find you.
Control your pileups. It’s your activation, so you call the shots. Run by numbers, call for QRP, other parks (P2P), YLs, mobile stations, etc.
Listening to experienced operators will give you an idea of how to handle the hunters. When things get busy, consider abbreviated exchanges and keep chattiness to a minimum. POTA does not require any specific exchange, so long as you log your contacts. Use UTC time and date when logging your contacts.
Activators with special needs/Third party traffic
POTA seeks to be inclusive and encourages the hunters to help make these hams’ activations successful.
The station callsign given out over the air may belong to a ham with special needs; the person on the microphone may be making the contact on behalf of the control operator. (Each operator must observe the laws and regulations regarding license privilege, control operators, and third-party traffic.)
Guest operator vs. mic passing
If multiple operators attend one station, there can be two possibilities. Your country’s rules permitting, POTA allows one or the other.
Guest operator
A guest operator uses the control operator’s callsign to make contacts. All the QSO and P2P credits are given to the control operator. This option may allow beginner guests to experience beyond the guest operators’ license privilege. However, the guest operator will not earn any POTA credits. (Consider upgrading the license and using a club station as a vehicle for multi-operator activations.)
Passing the mic
You pass the mic to multiple individual operators to make a sequence of QSOs with each hunter. Each operator must have sufficient license privileges to operate. Each operator submits their own log (as of it were their solo activation).
Hints for maximizing your QSOs
If you cannot self-spot, ask your first contact on the air to spot you, and repeat your request once in a while to keep your spot fresh.
- Call “Last Call” a few times before QSY or QRT. You may pull in some stations that may be waiting for the bands to improve. Work them to the best of your ability.
- Listen for “Park to Park” in response to your CQs.
- If you work a special event station or a 1x1 station, ask for the operator’s personal callsign.
- Some hunters may give you a club callsign and their operator callsign.
Double-dip with other OTA programs where qualified. Make sure you know the rules for other programs in advance. Some programs may not be compatible with the park location, QSO exchange, or the station. Some other events, such as QSO parties, may prohibit an activator from self-spotting. Some programs, such as Summits On The Air (SOTA), require a human-portable station. Understanding all rules and making a good plan is the key to success.
QRT and packing up
Break down your station
After you finish activating, take down the antenna and the equipment carefully. Organize and pack up your gear—make the subsequent activations easier.
“A place for everything, and everything in its place.”
Safekeeping of logs
Computers crash or run out of power. A few tricks may help save your logs:
- Save your contacts to a cloud-enabled folder.
- Copy your log file to a USB drive for backup or email your log file to yourself.
- Take pictures of each page of your paper logs with your camera or smartphone.
Paper doesn’t crash, but it can get ripped, water-soaked, or lost!
Check for left items
“Leave No Trace” principle—Pick up your feed lines, radials, etc. Leave the park in as good a condition as you can. Check your operating area after you are done.
After your activation
Process your logs
Process your log files promptly, upload them using the self-upload tool, or email your area’s log coordinator. See Submitting Logs for more. The hunters are eager to see new contacts listed in their accounts.
Your logs are precious! Store them in a safe place: paper logs can be filed, and electronic logs can be stored on a cloud service such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
Watch your email: some hunters may send electronic QSL cards. Be ready to respond with paper QSL cards or requests for LoTW-specific state, band, or mode confirmations. If you don’t do paper QSLs, note this fact on your QRZ.com page.
While not a requirement, QSO confirmation through Logbook of the World (LoTW) is recommended. LoTW users should create a station in TQSL for each park with the park’s state, county, and grid. Your activation maybe someone’s missing state for WAS or a band- or mode-specific award.
Repair your gear
Check your equipment regularly for loose connections, frayed wires, worn joints, etc., before storing your gear. Repeated setup and tear-down wear the equipment, particularly the connectors and cables. Experienced activators carry backup spares and stock up on repair parts.
Post-activation reports on social media
You may find talking about your activation is just as fun as operating. Share your experience with other POTA members by posting pictures and summaries to social media or blogs.
Joint activations
Activating a park with other hams can be a great way to build camaraderie for individuals and clubs, but some special attention is required for correctly logging your contacts.
Three types of multi-op activations are frequently used in POTA:
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Club calls. A club station activating a park will earn POTA credits to the club callsign and the individual operators. The club’s log manager uploads the log to POTA. club activation guide for more.
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1x1 and special event callsigns. Similar to using a club call. The callsign owner (the station’s log manager) will need to add the callsign to their account.
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Groups of individuals. Two or more activators may share a station to make activations. “Share the mic” style activations require each individual to maintain their log files and submit them to POTA individually. Be sure that the hunters know they are making contact with more than one activator.
Proper logging is critical to reducing time spent by POTA volunteers troubleshooting error-causing log files.
Park permits
Large field-day-style stations will likely need coordination with park staff. Permits may be necessary for towers or generators. Refer to the POTA Station Footprint guide for detailed information to help determine your impact on the park.
Logging for POTA
Correctly formatted ADIF (Amateur Data Interchange Format) log files are critical to the POTA system to credit scores to both the activator and the hunters.
There are two methods of logging, software or paper, both have pros and cons.
Computer Logging
Pros
- No need to type in later
- Automatically time the QSO
- Automatically record the frequency and mode, if the radio is connected to the computer
- Real-time callsign lookup if internet service is available
Cons
- Extra equipment to pack and setup
- Another device requiring power
- Another piece of equipment that could fail
- Time on the computer needs to be correct
- Windows updates want to ruin your activation
The ADIF standard file is generated by common logging programs, such as N3FJP Amateur Contact Log and HAMRS. Some general-purpose logging or contesting software may be used for basic logging but may not support additional fields recommended by POTA.
In club activation, the logging software must support multiple operators.
POTA recommends activators use well-known, well-tested, and actively supported logging programs for their records. POTA does not endorse or provide support for any logging software; you will need their support. Also, you’re likely to keep your log for many years; keep compatibility with future computer technologies in mind.
The ADIF standard requires precise formatting. Manual editing of fields is not recommended.
Pro tip: Test your logging app with some simulated QSO data, export, and inspect the ADIF file to see if it suits your purpose before settling on the solution.
Paper Logging
Pros
- Capable of copying multiple callsigns during pileups
- Flexible; allows taking notes format-free.
- Does not require power or maintenance; Reliable
- Lightweight
- Cheap
Cons
- Requires post-activation transcription effort
- Not easily searchable for dupe checking
- Paper can get torn, lost or water-soaked
- Bad handwriting may cause busted QSOs
Pro tip: Use your camera to take pictures of your paper logs as a backup.
Fast Log Entry is an efficient shorthand notation, invaluable when transcribing handwritten logs. There are Windows and multi-platform command-line interface (CLI) software. Both versions are POTA-compliant and can insert P2P and multi-operator details.
Duplicate QSOs waste a bit of time, but there is no penalty for including them in the logs submitted to POTA.
Spot History Archive
The record of all manually posted spots is archived and can be browsed or searched on POTA Slack’s #potaspots channel.
Multiple park references
It is possible to activate multiple parks simultaneously. Activators who participated in the ARRL 2016 NPOTA activities might remember “two-fers.” Some extra homework is required in research, planning, and logging, but the rewards are multiplied by QSO and P2P credits.
Consult the multi-park sections of the two links above for more details.
Parks within parks
Suppose you are in a park (with a POTA park reference) where a linear trail (with another POTA park reference) passes through. In that case, you can locate your station within the trail’s 100-feet (30.5m) activation zone, and you are two-fer, claim credit for both parks simultaneously.
A state forest (Park A) may contain areas specially designated as wildlife management areas (Park B). The activation within the inner Park B is a valid two-fer.
Example: Mount Rushmore, US-0786, is contained within the Black Hills National Forest, US-4524. An activation within the boundaries of Mount Rushmore would be a 2-fer.
Be sure you are clear about the boundaries of the parks you intend on combining into a multi-park activation. The location of your intended station must be valid for each reference you declare.
Parks adjacent to each other
Borders shared by neighboring parks are NOT valid for multi-park activation! If you straddle a border you are not 100% inside either park and neither can be considered valid.
Straddling park borders is not a valid method of activating a park.
You must be entirely within each park’s boundary you are activating.
Special considerations for trails
Activating a trail takes extra creativity in locating your station. Do not block access to other users of the trail. POTA allows an activator to be located no more than 100 feet (30.5m) from the trail, possibly including parking lots or trailheads.
Your station must be located entirely within 100 feet (30.5m) of the trail. Trails can be hundreds or even thousands of miles in length! There will be many possible access points. Do not depend on the POTA map GPS coordinates for trailhead access.
Trails may pass through other POTA parks. A clever selection of operating locations may enable you to run two or more park references without moving!
Trails in the POTA program may exist in more than one location (state/province/prefecture). Record the location in the log file, and let your call area manager know if submitting by email.
National Historic Trails (NHT) (USA-specific)
The National Trails System Act of 1968 classifies historic remnants of some trails for public use. These parks may be operated by state and local agencies in partnership with federal agencies. POTA considers these NHT locations as valid as these parks are authorized by federal law. As the historic trails do not have specific boundaries, you will need to check for local cities, counties, or other parks certified by the NPS. The NPS copyrights the rounded triangle shields for the NHTs, and their use is only authorized for certified sections. Look for official signage to confirm your operating location is NHT.
National Scenic Trails (NST) (USA-specific)
In the United States, National Scenic Trails are authorized by the National Trails System Act of 1968. These trails are designed for long-distance hiking and backpacking. The Appalachian Trail is a famous example. Others include the Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and North Country Trail.
Compared to ARRL NPOTA 2016 event, the POTA rule is less restrictive, allowing activations at NST trailheads or campgrounds, so long as you and your entire station are entirely located within 100 feet of the trail.
NSTs may have an association separate from the federal agency for the administration of day-to-day operations and coordination with the various volunteer organizations. These associations have detailed resources available either on their websites or in stores. The trails are subject to frequent maintenance due to weather and construction. Seek up-to-date trail reroute information.
Trail segments can be considered “Certified” when they meet the criteria to become permanently designated as official routes. Certified sections of NSTs are excellent locations to scout for potential POTA activations.
Linear Trails
Old railroad routes are being converted for recreational use. Such trails are more challenging to activate than a typical park. They are usually narrow as the original railroad right-of-way and have small or limited parking lots. The same 100 feet and the public property rules (see item 5) apply to linear trails as the NSTs.
Operating digital modes
POTA encourages the use of digital modes for park activations. A portable station involving a computer presents additional challenges.
A separate document describes some best practices for POTA, available at POTA digital modes guide
Further discussions about digital modes are available in the dedicated Parks on the Air (POTA) Digital Experimentation Facebook Group.
Feedback
Send any suggestions you may have about this document please send email to help@parksontheair.com.
Acknowledgments
Thanks to all the activators and hunters that participate in the program.