Activation Report: Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier State Park (US-1916) — May 22, 2026
- 6 min reading time
Park: US-1916 · Mode: FT8 · Band: 20m · Radio: Xiegu X6200 · Power: 5W · QSOs: 18
Five watts. Sand. Japan.
Up early and at the beach by 6:20 AM. The Radioddity HF-010 was up, radials out, and tuned by 6:27 AM. On the air at 6:37 AM. Seventeen minutes from car to first CQ.
The Park
Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier State Park (US-1916) is built on the old Sunshine Skyway Bridge — the span that was struck by the MV Summit Venture in 1980, a tragedy that took 35 lives. Florida converted what remained into the longest fishing pier in the world. The park includes a beach at the base of the pier, and that's where I operate from. Open sky, no obstructions, and sand right at the water's edge. For a vertical with radials, that's as good as it gets. The sunrise this morning had no business being as good as it was.
The Antenna
The Radioddity HF-010 went straight into the sand — no guying, no fuss. Two minutes from case to deployed. I ran the NanoVNA before keying up and got an SWR of 1.017 on 20m. Didn't touch a thing after that.
SWR 1.017 on 20m — the HF-010 on sand doesn't need help
The Xiegu X6200 came out of the WINDCAMP bag alongside the Raspberry Pi 4 in its case, running DigiPi on the Waveshare 3.5" display and connected to the radio via a 1ft USB cable. The 20m bandpass filter was inline; 40m and 15m packed and ready. Power came from two 8Ah LiFePO4 cells charged with the LiFePO4 charger, fed through the 4-in-1 panel on the 3D-printed power box mounted to the 50L MOLLE backpack via quick-release straps. Everything out of one bag.
14.074 MHz FT8 — ready to run
On the Air
First QSO at 6:56 AM — JA1GLM, Japan, grid PM95. That's roughly 7,600 miles on 5 watts into the HF-010 sitting in beach sand. Japan didn't stop there. By the time the session was done: JA1GLM, JA1WSK, JH8SIT, and JJ2CJB — four contacts into the Pacific. All 20m FT8. All 5 watts.
The rest of the log filled in steadily — VE2FVV from Quebec, NU1T from FN42, KP4QVY from Puerto Rico, K0OTC from EN26, WW8O, N2MWX, KG5SUZ, and more. Park qualified at 7:35 AM. Last QSO — KE8UOH — at 8:04 AM.
20m was alive — J88IH (St. Vincent) working through the pileup
604 worldwide reception reports — 5 watts, the Radioddity HF-010, and sand
The PSK Reporter screenshot says it all. 604 reception reports across Europe, the Middle East, and deep into East Asia — all off a portable vertical that SWR's at 1.017 without a single adjustment. That's what the HF-010 does on sand.
Activation Stats
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Activation # | 25 |
| Park | Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier State Park |
| Park Ref | US-1916 |
| Date | May 22, 2026 |
| Arrived | 6:20 AM |
| On Air | 6:37 AM |
| First Contact | JA1GLM (Japan, PM95) — 6:56 AM |
| Notable DX | JA1GLM, JA1WSK, JH8SIT, JJ2CJB — Japan (PM95); KP4QVY — Puerto Rico (FK68) |
| Last Contact | KE8UOH — 8:04 AM |
| Total QSOs | 18 |
| Power | 5W |
| Band | 20m FT8 |
| Radio | Xiegu X6200 |
| Antenna | Radioddity HF-010 |
| SWR | 1.017 |
| Weather | Clear, 78°F, ESE winds 14 mph |
All-Time POTA Stats
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Total Activations | 25 |
| Unique Parks | 13 |
| Total QSOs | 639 |
| Best Activation | 75 QSOs — Skyway Fishing Pier (US-1916) |
Full log uploaded to pota.app. Photos and video from the activation on TikTok @grumpagrinch. New to POTA or FT8? My book FT8 for the First Time is available on Amazon Kindle and paperback. Join the conversation on the Tava One Discord.