December 15th at 6PM (not 7!): annual club holiday party at fire hall. This is a pot-luck extravaganza with very little business conducted, but a lot of camaraderie. Please plan to join us – more details soon.
Read MoreHalf-Hike Across Maryland (aka Half-HAM) October 4th
02October25 update:
This Saturday (Oct 4), the Frederick Amateur Radio Club is providing radio support for the Half Hike Across Maryland, where ~80 hikers traverse the Appalachian Trail (aka AT) from PenMar Park to Washington Monument State Park. If you are interested in amateur radio, you’re welcome to visit one of the checkpoints to see how it works. We use the free What3Words (aka W3W) app to provide exact locations, particularly along the AT where street addresses don’t exist.
Checkpoints include:
? 7:45-8:15 PenMar Park from: At the overlook platform. W3W: ///rides.cupcake.thankfully
? 8:30-9:30 High Rock: Short trail from parking area- the trail is not shown on some maps. Virtually a continuation of the entrance road if you were to drive straight. Light blue markings. Trail from parking begins at approximately: ///cooled.instructors.presenters.
? 9:00-10:30 Raven Rock Road: At guard rail just west of Richie Road – often cars parked along the road as indicators. Checkpoint is on the north (right if facing down hill) side of the road. W3W: ///competitive.sender.chill
? 10:00-12:30 Ensign Cowall Shelter: Couple hundred yards north on trail from parking area. Parking is at W3W: ///lavished.waterproof.desired with checkpoint about a half mile up the trail at: ///tile.sirens.delusions
? 11:00-14:00 Pogo Campsite: Hike in from Thurston Griggs Trail about a mile. Parking at ///masses.songwriter.readjust. Campsite at ///migrate.showbiz.easels
? 12:00-15:00 Boonsboro Mtn Rd: Located at northern-most trail crossing of this road, just south of I70 bridge. Park along the side of the road- no official parking area. Be a good neighbor. W3W location: ///bolsters.assortment.kickbacks
? 13:00-17:00 Washington Monument State Park: **NOTE: This Park has $2 per vehicle entrance fee for MD tags, $4 for out of state tags. ** The actual checkpoint is generally W3W: ///heavyweight.samplers.destined
You can listen on the W3CWC Clear Spring repeater at 146.94MHz
Original post:
On Saturday October 4th, the Frederick Amateur Radio Club will provide radio support for the Mountain Club of Maryland’s Half-Hike Across Maryland (Register or Volunteer for the 2025 Half Ham on October 4, 2025 – Mountain Club of Maryland). This biennial event will begin at PenMar Park near Cascade and follows the Appalachian Trail southward to Washington Monument State Park near Boonsboro. While not as intense as the partner full HAM event (from PenMar to Harpers Ferry held on even-numbered years), this is a great opportunity to practice portable radio operations in what can be adverse conditions. Fortunately, many checkpoint locations are HT-friendly.
This is a great opportunity to dip your toes into the amateur radio public service arena. If this is new to you, we’re happy to pair you up with a more experienced operator. If you’d like to volunteer or have any questions, please send me a note at my call sign @arrl.net
Thanks and 73!
Mike K3MMM
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Michaux GRVL Bicycle Race September 27th
The Frederick Amateur Radio Club, in conjunction with other local amateur clubs will provide radio support for the 2025 Michaux GRVL (Michaux Gravel — Franklin County Cyclists) cycle race on Saturday September 27th. Similar to other cycle events, we will provide radio communications at the start/end line, three rest stops and in two support (SAG) vehicles. What makes this different is the mountainous terrain of Michaux State Forest, that is not radio-friendly – but that’s what makes it a fun challenge. While this is not an HT-friendly event, we have a stockpile of loaner mobile radios that are just itching to be used – so don’t let a lack of equipment stop you from volunteering!
If you can assist with this event or have ANY questions, please send me a note to my call sign @arrl.net
Thanks and 73!
Mike K3MMM
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Fall Hidden Transmitter Foxhunt September 13th
We hope you can join us for an Amateur Radio Fox Hunt at Utica District Park on September 13, 2025 starting at 11:00AM (weather permitting). We will have both walking and driving foxes (hidden transmitters) in place for you to use your radio Direction Finding (DFing) skills to find. The park is located at 10200-B Old Frederick Road, Frederick, MD 21701. More about Utica Park is here: Utica District Park | Frederick County Parks and Recreation, MD. We will meet at the Archery Range between Shelter 1 and 2. Just look for the fox hunt signs or look for vehicles with extra antennas!
An Amateur Radio Fox Hunt is a practice drill to find hidden or lost radio transmitters using RF Direction Finding techniques. This is a receive only drill, so you do not have to be licensed to participate in this event. All you need to participate is a receiver or scanner capable of listening to signals between 144MHz and 148MHz, and an antenna. There will be extra equipment at the site for you to use. All our foxes will be on the 2M band (144 to 148MHz). We’ll have multiple fox hunts set up and running at the same time.
1. For the walking hunt, we’ll have a few low power (10mw) foxes located around the park for you to find while honing your DFing skills and enjoying a walk in the park! If you are a “DF expert”
you might hop in the car to find the fox located a few miles away. At the walking hunt there will be assistance for those new to fox hunting.
2. For the more skilled fox hunters, there will be a driving hunt using a 1W fox located within six miles of the park for you to find. The 146.730M repeater will be used to coordinate this hunt.
At the beginning we’ll announce the fox frequency and take check-ins on the repeater so we know who is hunting. When you find the fox don’t tell everyone where you are, in case you are the first. Just let us know you found it.
Hope you can join us for the walk in the beautiful Frederick County Park!
For a .pdf, including maps, click here: https://frederickarc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/FARC-Foxhunt-w_map.pdf
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