Quartz Hill provides plenty of opportunity to explore our hobby of amateur radio to the maximum. Activities include:

* DXing - Even if the bands are near dead, there are possibilities with the antennas on site!

* Contests - There is a keen group of contesters in the Quartz Hill User Group. The site is used to advantage in the annual New Zealand Jock White Memorial Field Day contest (with Wellington Branch 50 winning outright in 1999 and 2000 and having almost permanent ownership now of the ZL2 shield).

* DX Contesting - ZL6QH can be heard in the major contests in the DX calendar including CQ Worldwide Phone and CW contests and the Oceania, Memorial, 160M, and RTTY contests. We use CT logging software with networked computers, operating up to three stations simultaneously. Click HERE for a list of the contests in which we have competed.

* Ragchewing

* Pactor, RTTY and other digital modes

* LF activity - A number of members are keen LFers, and there is plenty of room for those very long antennas! The continuing challenge is a two way contact with Australia on LF. For some reason this is still eluding the ZL2BBJ and ZL2CA team, though they have achieved it with Asiatic Russia!

* VHF - The site is well suited for DX opportunities with a clear path to Australia and good paths up and down the country.

And if we tire of amateur radio there is always the view!

View towards the South Island of New Zealand from Quartz Hill. The mountains are the Kaikoura Range.

Posted by ZL1AXG on January 01, 2002