Louise and I made significant progress on the antenna supports. She held the fishing reel, and after many attempts, I finally shot the fishing line over the intended crotch in the south support tree. We pulled 3/16" Dacron rope into the tree, and tomorrow I'll attach the pulley to the rope.
Back at the north tree, the support rope was resting on a small branch above the desired tree crotch. So we taped a dowel with an eyebolt to the rope to act as a "boom" holding a weighted fishing line. We pulled this contraption 65' into the tree, and with care and a bit of luck, we were able to position the weight on the far side of the crotch. Louise released the fishing reel, and the weight sped to the ground. We pulled the rope up and through the crotch, where it belongs. Later I attached the pulley and hoisted it into position.
The supports are almost ready to attach the antenna and pull it up.
The 133' Carolina Windom antenna is suspended about 40' in the air at the center, with the ends roughly 10' higher.
In the first 5½ weeks of operation, I contacted stations in 31 states and 57 countries. Not too shabby for 10 watts!
Four months later, by June 23, these totals had increased to 48 states and 70 countries. Many contacts were made during contests, including 210 made during Field Day 2013, when I was running only 5 watts.
Updated March 27, 2024