How to pick a Rover site, when you don't know where you're going. N9UUR/N9VSV
In this presentation, you may click on any map or picture for a larger image.
We had to go up to Eau Claire for the Wisconsin Association of Repeaters meeting on the weekend of the VHF/UHF contest, and thought it would be fun to go ROVER in the contest after the meeting.
Problem was, we live in Milwaukee, and I don't know anything about the area around Eau Claire.
So... I launched my map program, Delorme Street Atlas.
Street Atlas does a great job finding rural roads, but I want high ground!
After some web snooping, I found Delorme had another product. Delorme Topo
Maps, with topographic (height) data!
So I "looked" around the map, and found a nice high spot on a ridge, in EN35 just north of the intersection of EN34/EN35/EN44/EN45. Actually, I found some potential spots in each of the four grid squares just around the corner.
The program will also give you a "3D" view.
This is looking west toward MN.
The program will also let you draw a line, and then plot (toward the bottom) a graph of the terrain height between the two points. From this, you can see if there are any "mountain tops" in the way of your signal.
The Plot has EN35 on the left, and MN on the right.
The problem still is... you still don't know what the area really looks like at that spot.
The Delorme map program has a Satellite imagery section, but it's a $ add on for download (I hope to try that some other time).
So, I tried Google Earth.
By the time you zoom in far enough... just a green blur.
So we take our chances, and go rover!
And what do we find "on the ground"?
Here is our EN35 Spot. On 280th Street, north of Boyceville. We got lucky!
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Looking south |
Looking North |
Looking West
The 3D Plot again.
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Ended up to be a pretty nice place to pull off the road.
What... you have a problem with HO Loops on an E500 Mercedes Benz?
We get to the next grid square very quickly this way (grin).
Here is our EN34 Spot. On 100th Ave, north of I94, just west of Knapp WI.
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| Looking east | Looking West |
Looking North
Here is our EN45 Spot. On County F, north of 170, between Wheeler and Boyceville.
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Looking north |
Looking south |
Another good place to park! An old gravel pit.
And, no. We did not make a lot of Q's.
We really didn't spent that much time contesting,
but we did learn a few things, and had a lot of fun!
Give Delorme Topo a try.