4 April 2005

Lat 42'49"S Long 88'13"E
South Indian Ocean


The 2005 Microlite DXpedition to The Kerguelen Islands is now history.
11.5 days of operating netted almost 68,000 QSOs using the callsign FT5XO.
The operators for this DXpedition were AG9A, GI0NWG, HB9ASZ, M0DXR, N6MZ,
N0TT, SP5XVY, VE3EJ, VK6DXI, W3WL, W7EW and 9V1YC.

In an effort to equitably cover the variety of openings, bands, and modes
available, the team actively reviewed the QSO stats each day and adjusted
the operating plan accordingly.

The final numbers are as follows:

CW: 45687 68%
SSB: 19903 29%
RTTY: 2358 3%
EME: 6
-------------
TOTAL: 67954

Band-Mode breakdown

Band CW SSB RTTY TOTAL
---------------------------------
160m: 1173 16 0 1189
80m: 3578 957 0 4535
40m: 9643 2774 160 12577
30m: 9683 0 616 10299
20m: 4012 4640 327 8979
17m: 5144 2168 497 7809
15m: 4485 3964 758 9207
12m: 4411 3499 0 7910
10m: 3558 1885 0 5443

6m EME: 6


Continental breakdown
---------------------
Europe: 53%
Japan: 21%
USA: 17%
Other Asia: 5%
All others: 1% or less each


The journey began in Durban, South Africa on the afternoon of March 9 aboard
the R/V Braveheart. Kerguelen was reached on the morning of March 19, and
camp assembly was started that same afternoon. The first QSOs began at
about 0700 UTC on March 20.

The operation took place from an old abandoned whaling station at the center
of the island called Port Jeanne d'Arc, which is approximately 30km
southwest from the French base at Port Aux Francais. The operating site was
close to the seashore with good take-offs in most directions.

Antennas consisted of half-wave vertical dipoles for 20m and up, quarter
wave verticals for 30m and 40m (with 2 elevated radials each), and two
Battle Creek Specials for 80m and 160m. With the exception of the Battle
Creek Specials, all antennas were designed and built by ZS4TX. Radios
consisted of three Kenwood TS50s, a Yaesu FT897, an ICOM 756 ProIII, and one
Yaesu FT1000MP. We also had several small amplifiers for the low bands.

Because we broke from tradition and chose the Austral mid-autumn for this
DXpedition we were able to take advantage of excellent 10 and 12 meter
equinox openings which would have otherwise been impossible during the
Austral summer (when most of these types of Antarctic DXpeditions usually
take place). The drawback is that Kerguelen drops far below the Antarctic
convergence at this time of year bringing with it a noticeably cooler and
harsher climate.

The weather during our stay was typical for islands below the convergence,
with strong wind, rain, sleet and even heavy snow alternating throughout the
day. In fact, during the space of just one hour the weather changed many
times from calm and sunny to a 45 knot howling blizzard. Winds could come
from any direction, but the prevailing trend was usually from the southwest.

Static from snowstorms often produced S9+40 noise, forcing us to abruptly
stop operations until it died down. The intensity of these snowstorms also
caused the antennas to develop kilovolts of static voltage across the coax
connectors (something we learned the hard way when a large voltage spike
from one of the antennas destroyed a power supply and transceiver during an
antenna switchover).

The last QSO was made at approximately 0200 UTC on 31 March. With calm
weather throughout the morning the teardown went smoothly and on schedule.
The ship is now on its way to Fremantle (Perth) Western Australia and should
arrive on the morning of April 11. The total sea travel time for both legs
of the journey is about 22 days. Operating time was just over 11 days,
which works out to a 2 to 1 ratio of travel to operating.

We purposely advanced minimal publicity about this trip in the hope that the
chase would be more of a challenge. With good operating skills combined with
attentiveness to both propagation and band openings it is our belief that
FT5XO should have been available to all who wanted a QSO. For our part, a
great effort was made to work the weakest of stations and cover as many
openings as possible within our limited time frame. Reading some of the
feedback and looking at the final QSO stats we stand firmly behind the
belief that it is mainly skill, not hardware, that makes a successful
DXpedition. Small teams, light gear and strong operators are the key. We
hope that your call made it into our log on at least one band.

With the extremely high expense and travel time necessary to reach these
remote Antarctic islands we wish to say thank you in advance for all
contributions sent with your QSL cards.

Special thanks to ZS5BBO and all the members of the Highway Amateur Radio
Club in Durban, South Africa who made our air to sea transit exceptionally
smooth. Thanks also to TAAF (Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises)
for their kind support for our adventure.

And finally, we would especially like to thank our sole organizational
sponsor, the Northern California DX Foundation. Their continued support for
DXpeditions to the far reaches of the world helps to keep one of the most
exciting aspects of amateur radio alive. Without the NCDXF, this trip would
not have been possible.


73, and see you on the bands.

The Microlite Penguins DXpedition Team