Activation Report: Sawgrass Lake Park (US-6700) — November 10, 2026
- 7 min reading time
Nineteen contacts on 20m FT8 at 5 watts from a picnic table at Sawgrass Lake Park, with a Starlink Mini running sealed inside the STARWARE hard case I was reviewing. KI5J in DM72 was the farthest at 1,372 miles.
Mode: FT8 (Digital) · Band: 20m · Radio: Xiegu X6200 · Contacts: 19 · Park: US-6700
Nineteen contacts on 20 meters at 5 watts, with the Starlink Mini latched inside a hard case at the end of the table.
The park
Sawgrass Lake Park, the Pinellas County conservation area in St. Petersburg. It's the closest park to my house. The last two times I was here I ran mobile from the parking lot. This time I carried the field kit to a picnic table on the grass, with live oaks around the edge of the hill.
The main reason I came out was to review a Starlink Mini case STARWARE sent me. The activation came along with it. The full write-up on the case is here: STARWARE Hard Case for Starlink Mini review.
The setup
Field kit out of the one pack: the Xiegu X6200 at 5 watts, the Radioddity HF-010 vertical up on the hill, DigiPi on the Raspberry Pi running WSJT-X, and the tablet over VNC. The NanoVNA put the HF-010 at 1.086 SWR at 14.070 MHz.
The other thing on the table was the STARWARE case. I unboxed it right there and had the Mini strapped into the lid and running before I got on the air. At first it ran off the DC socket on my pack's power box, the same box that feeds the radio. Partway through I didn't want to keep wearing down that pack, so I moved the Mini over to my Starlink battery and latched the case again.
On the air
All 20 meters. KC8YOM in EM79 was first at 8:57 AM. Three more were in by 9:07 and then nothing for six minutes. After that it picked up, with nine contacts in the log between 9:13 and 9:28. KK4ELM was number ten at 9:19 for the qualification, and WF4I in FM05 closed it out at 9:39. That's 19 contacts in 41 minutes.
KC8YOM shows up in the log a second time at 9:04. That one's a dupe and it isn't counted.
Everything stayed in the US. KI5J out in DM72 was the farthest at 1,372 miles, with KI5QIO in DM81 right behind him. The best report I got was +04 from KJ5LMM in EM11.
The Starlink side was quiet the whole time, which is how I want it. The case sat latched at the end of the table and the tablet, the phone and the Pi stayed online start to finish. The one hiccup was in my own Activate app. Its park-to-park panel couldn't load spots. That's an app problem and it's on my list.
Would I activate here again?
Yes. It's my home park, and it's where I tested the HF-010 back in May too. Today it was the case's turn.
73 de W4GGJ
Activation Stats
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Park | Sawgrass Lake Park State Conservation Area (US-6700) |
| Date | November 10, 2026 |
| QSOs | 19 |
| Band / Mode | 20m / FT8 |
| Frequency | 14.075561 MHz |
| Power | 5W (Xiegu X6200, digital) |
| Antenna | Radioddity HF-010 |
| Measured SWR | 1.086 at 14.070 MHz (NanoVNA) |
| Internet | Starlink Mini in a STARWARE M101S case, lid latched |
| Grid Squares Worked | DM72, DM81, EM11, EM12, EM52, EM56, EM58, EM66, EM69, EM75, EM78, EM79, EM87, FM05, FM07 |
| Call Areas | 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9 |
| First QSO | 8:57 AM EST — KC8YOM (EM79) |
| Park Qualified | Yes — 10 QSOs reached at 9:19 AM EST (KK4ELM) |
| Last QSO | 9:39 AM EST — WF4I (FM05) |
| Session Length | 41 minutes |
| Hottest 15 Minutes | 8 QSOs (32/hr) starting 9:13 AM EST |
| Furthest Contact | KI5J (DM72) — 2,207 km / 1,372 mi |
| DXCC Entities | United States |
| Best Report Received | +04 from KJ5LMM (EM11) |
| Weather | Clear sky, 71°F, light breeze 5 mph |
All-Time POTA Stats
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Activations | 44 |
| Unique Parks | 17 |
| Activation QSOs | 1,174 |
| Parks Hunted | 555 |
| POTA Awards | 19 |
Gear used in this activation: Xiegu X6200 · Radioddity HF-010 · NanoVNA · LiFePO4 Battery · DigiPi on RPi 4 · STARWARE Hard Case for Starlink Mini · Starlink Mini
Some links above are affiliate links. My Radioddity code W4GGJ takes $15 off.