Shack is GO!

After weeks of getting the place ready, and a final connection to earth, the getaway shack is finally producing some warps in the fifth dimension (if you subscribe to Kaluza-Klein theory and its string theory derivatives!)

Using a 1/4 wave vertical and only 40W PEP in very poor conditions, I managed to work EA88ARI/P, very efficiently working a big pileup as he activated La Palma peak VGTF-053, Fernando Porto, under the DVGE scheme, the Spanish equivalent to IOTA.  Radio is a great way to practice language skills, and I never pass up a chance to speak Spanish, though this recording is only of the received signal, not the QSO:

After the QSO, I connected the 100W PV panel that is for temporary, but more rapid charging during operations than the permanantly-connected (but switchable) 10W trickle charge unit produces.  Even in very dull conditions, this was doing a great job of taking the battery back up to full charge in just a few minutes.  Nice also to see that there is no discernible RFI, at least on 14MHz, from the PV system, even without any ferrites installed as yet.

This is how things now look.  It appears pretty rubbish on the outside, but is structurally sound and remarkably warm inside, thanks to a thick heat-absorbing concrete roof, and water only a few centimetres below the building.