Here are the latest updates to the KCARC website:
The next meeting for the Kittitas County Amateur Radio Club (KCARC) will be held on Saturday November 14, 2026 at 8:00 am in the Canyon Room at the Palace Cafe, in Ellensburg. It's that time of year for the nomination of officers for 2027. The Agenda will be emailed during the week of the meeting.
There's still time to get in on this. For those of you who do a lot of operating, particularly in the HF bands, QRZ has announced a new award for 2026.
QRZ is granting The USA 250 award in celebration of the US 250th birthday. To earn the award, you must have logged on QRZ 250 confirmed contacts with US based ham radio stations over the course of 2026. For more information, go the the QRZ website.
There are a number of operating events coming up that offer good opportunities to either contest or get your feet wet making contacts around the bands.
| November Sweepstakes, CW contest |
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November 7-9, 2027
Operate 24 hours out of a 30 hour window. Contest times: 2100Z, Nov 7 - 0259Z, Nov 9. This is an HF contest, limited to the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 meter bands. There is a specific exchange for each QSO, and the operating details can be found at the ARRL page for both CW and SSB Sweepstakes: ARRL Sweepstakes. Note: logs are due within 7 days after the contest ends! PS: You can operate Sweepstakes from home, or out in the field. There's no requirement for outdoor operation. |
| November Sweepstakes, SSB contest |
November 21-23, 2027
Operate 24 hours out of a 30 hour window. Contest times: 22100Z, Nov 21 - 0259Z, Nov 23. This is the SSB Phone side to the CW HF contest, limited to the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 meter bands. There is a specific exchange for each QSO, and the operating details can be found at the ARRL page for both CW and SSB Sweepstakes: ARRL Sweepstakes. Note: logs are due within 7 days after the contest ends! PS: You can operate Sweepstakes from home, or out in the field. There's no requirement for outdoor operation. |
| Winter Field Day 2027 |
January 23, 24, 2027
2027 marks the 20th anniversary for Winter Field Day. Winter Field Day, like Field Day, is designed to get Amateurs out operating in the field during the most challenging time of the year. The operating period starts at 1600 UTC on Saturday (8 am PST), the 23rd, and ends at 21:59 UTC on Sunday, the 24th (1:59 pm PST). Set up is limited to 12 hours before the contest starts. You may operate individually or as a group. All Amateur bands may be used except 12, 17, 30, and 60 meters (aka the WARC bands). For more details, see the Winter Field Day website. PS: You can operate Winter Field Day from home, but it is really designed to get Amateurs out in the field. Try not to go wading in Taneum Creek! |
| Idaho State QSO Party, a.k.a The Spud Run |
March 13 and 14, 2027
Band conditions were pretty bad for 2026. In case you missed it, there were some rule changes for 2026. Most importantly, the Spud Run has changed from 24 hours straight to 12 hours each on Saturday and Sunday. Details are not currently set for 2027, but this will be updated when they are, Out of state participants send their state, Idaho stations send their three letter County identifier. Check the website for details on operating and log submissions: Spud Run website. Just a hint: Idaho is close enough to make a road trip and operate. You can help your contesting situation out by working POTA at the same time, being sure to give both exchanges. |
| 7th Call Area QSO Party |
May 1-2, 2027
For those of you who are interested, the 7QP (7th Call Area QSO Party) will be held May 1, 2027. It's an opportunity to be the center of attention on a busy contest weekend. Rare counties are always popular. At the moment, there are no details for 2027 yet on the website. Operating modes: SSB, CW, and some digital modes (Not WSJT). Bands: 160m, 80m, 40m, 20m, 15m, 10m. Multiple entry categories: Operate from home, mobile, or county dx-pedition. Single and multiple operators allowed. Self-spotting is allowed. Exchange is a signal report, and a 5 character code comprised of 2 character state and 3 character county code. For Kittitas County, the abbreviation is WAKTT. For more information, rules, logging software, log submission info, etc., see the 7QP website. |
| Field Day 2027 |
June 26 and 27, 2027
Always the fourth full weekend in June. Details are not out yet for 2027. Typically, Field Day should start at 11am PDT (1800 UTC) on Saturday June 26 and runs through 159pm PDT (2059 UTC) on June 27. Note: Generally speaking, Field Day runs 24 hours, but you may extend it to 159pm if you set up at the start of the exercise. You may operate individually or as a group. Operation on HF is limited to 160m, 80m, 40m, 20m, 15m and 10m. All VHF and UHF bands are open for the contest. For more details, see the ARRL Field Day website. PS: You can operate Field Day from home, but it is really designed to get Amateurs out in the field. Keep an eye here, we should have more operational details once the 2027 calendar comes out. |
As a new feature for the KCARC website, we are adding The Elmer Page. This will be a place for club members and contributors to publish an article of some kind that is designed to help hams with topics they are not familiar with, and in some cases, haven't considered.
Towards that end, I'd like to say that Roger, W7WKB has kindly contributed an interesting article entitled "Antenna End Loading With Spiral or Helical Coils." For most hams, this isn't something that we would normally try, but it does offer insight on how to improve performance on antenna loading. The article will well worth the read. I'd like to thank Roger for his contribution of this first article! Link to article.
Due to the price increase for the club mailbox, the decision was made at the last meeting to change locations of our mailbox. The new mailing address for KCARC is:
I'd like to take a moment to thank KCARC's 2025 officers for their service and contributions to the club. If you get a chance, give them a thanks. -Bob, AI7CS
| President: | Gary LaHaie, W7DVB |
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| VP/Pres: | Josh Nelson, KF7QNM |
| Secretary: | Dave Douglas, W7JAA |
| Treasurer: | David Broweleit, KI7DZK |
At the suggestion of Colby, KK7AGW, we've started a new net on Wednesday nights, called the "What's Up Wednesday Net", 7 pm on the Sky Meadows UHF repeater. 442.200 MHz, +offset, tone: 131.8 Hz. The net is open to anyone who can hit the Sky Meadows UHF repeater. This is a purely social net, so drop on by, and say hello!
Some of you may be coming to this website for the first time as a result of the mailing of a flyer put out to the club to the active Amateur Radio licensees in Kittitas County. I would like to welcome you here. Please take a look around at some of the things we've been working on, or the activities we've had in the past. We have a new slate of officers nominated for next year, so it will be interesting to see what they have planned for us. As soon as the election takes place, and as soon as I get any information, I will post it here.
I'd like to thank Dave, KI7GMG and his wife Jan, and my wife Maryann, for their help in getting the mailers out to the hams in the county.
KCARC would like to thank Carly Brettman for her work in putting together the new club mailer and flyer. For a glimpse of the new flyer, click on the image below.
Check out more of Carly's work at her website.
The Kittitas County Amateur Radio Club (KCARC) is now an ARRL Affiliated Club.
KCARC changed its name at the December 2, 2023 meeting from the Kittitas County Amateur Communication Service (KCARCS). We are keeping old content from the KCARCS days, as it is part of our club history. We are also updating the website, and adding new sections and more information over the coming months, so please check back often.
If you are interested in joining the club, or just visiting with us to see what's going on, in-person meetings are generally the first Saturday of the month at 8am, unless there is a holiday or special event. Meetings are generally held at The Palace Cafe in Ellensburg, but we also try to hold them in the Upper Kittitas County.
Meeting dates and times are posted on the website, and are sent by email to club members.
Find us on Facebook: Kittitas County Amateur Radio Club
Find us on QRZ: N7KGS
Dues paying members are welcome to join us on: Groups.io
| When: | Saturday November 14, 2026 at 08:00 AM |
|---|---|
| Where: | The Palace Cafe in Ellensburg, WA. |
| Output | Input | Tone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sky Meadows VHF | 147.360 | 147.960 | 131.8 |
| Sky Meadows UHF | 442.200 | 447.200 | 131.8 |
| Ellensburg VHF | 146.720 | 146.120 | 131.8 |
| Stampede Pass VHF | 147.360 | 147.960 | 141.3 |
| Stampede Pass UHF | 442.200 | 447.200 | 141.3 |
| Wilson Creek VHF | 147.160 | 147.760 | 131.8 |
| Output | Input | Tone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun East VHF (2m) Repeater | 147.000 | 147.600 | 131.8 |