Like many BC young men in the 1960s, I put myself through university by working the summers in the BC Forest Service.  Free room and board, and nowhere to spend your money because you were living in camps…. what’s not to like?

When we were working out of remote camps (fly camps) were dropped off by helicopter for a week at a time.  We took small portable HF rigs, called a Model B, with vacuum tubes powered by low- and high-voltage batteries and with a long wire antenna that we would throw up into the trees.  This way we could contact our base camp if we needed help or to coordinate our pick up time at the end of the week.

Here’s a photo of one of the portable radios. Yesterday I came full circle; I sold my old HF rig and ordered an IC-705 QRP radio.  Now all I need is a wire to throw up into a tree.