Running your own activation — Ham Radio

You've hauled a radio out to a park and you want people to call you.

Before you key up

  • Post yourself to the POTA spotting page from your phone before you start. This is the single biggest factor in whether anyone calls you.
  • Find a clear frequency and check that it's in use before you call.

What to say

You say: “CQ POTA, CQ Parks on the Air, this is your callsign in phonetics, your callsign in phonetics, park US dash the park number, listening.”

Say the park reference — hunters log it, and some are chasing that specific park. US parks use the US- prefix since March 2024; the territories have their own (PR-, VI-, GU- and so on).

They say: “[SOMEONE'S CALL].”

You say: “their callsign, five nine, five nine.”

Repeat their call back so they know you got it right, then give the report.

They say: “Five nine, thanks, seventy-three.”

You say: “Thank you, seventy-three. your callsign in phonetics, QRZ.”

"QRZ" means "who else is calling me?" It invites the next person without a full CQ.

What they will say back

Once you're spotted, expect a pileup — several people calling at once. Pick out any fragment you can hear and work that station: "the station with Delta Echo, go ahead."

If it goes sideways

If a pileup overwhelms you, slow down and say "one at a time please, I'm working through it." Everyone understands. If nobody calls at all, double-check that your spot actually posted.

Why it works this way

You need ten contacts for an activation to count. Spotting yourself is what turns a silent frequency into a line of people waiting, because hunters watch the spot page constantly and will chase a fresh spot within seconds.

Open this in Pocket Elmer, with your callsign filled in

More things to say