Overcoming topography issue

micsarge

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Apr 5, 2024
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Location
Minneola, FL
Topographically speaking, I live in a bowl. There is probably a good 50-100 foot elevation difference from where I live to the highway outside my neighborhood. So, a huge mast is not really an option. What’s my best antenna option for my handheld or a base station for VHF/UHF? Or, do I need to buckle down on my general license and focus on HF?
 

mmckenna

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Jul 27, 2005
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26,265
Location
United States
Topographically speaking, I live in a bowl. There is probably a good 50-100 foot elevation difference from where I live to the highway outside my neighborhood. So, a huge mast is not really an option. What’s my best antenna option for my handheld or a base station for VHF/UHF? Or, do I need to buckle down on my general license and focus on HF?

Well, who is it you want to talk to? VHF/UHF or HF are two very different parts of amateur radio. VHF/UHF is good for local communications. HF is more longer distance stuff.

With a hand held, it's very unlikely any amount of hand held antenna is going to get you out of a 100 foot deep hole. Your best hope is that there is a repeater nearby that you can reach. VHF/UHF is mainly line of sight, so if you can't "see" any repeaters from your hole, there's not a lot you can do other than a 100 foot + tall tower.

For HF, being in a hole isn't going to help, but isn't as much of a hindrance as VHF and UHF. any decent antenna will work, but you might want to look at NVIS type antennas that will throw your signal mostly straight up and bounce off the ionosphere and back down.
 

kh2

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Feb 5, 2019
Messages
57
I feel your pain, I am in a 50' bowl with 100'+ trees all around me as well as up at the top of the bowl. For VHF/UHF I tried a lot of antennas, verticals, home made on roof etc. trying to beat the bowl none really good. But I made a couple Moxon and Yagi's which are quite small for VHF/UHF with online calculators and found good luck aiming at myt repeaters 15-20mi as the crow flies. This was on my 5W HT / IC-705. It prompted me to bite the bullet and "try" a commercial antenna. What I got was an ELK antenna the Log periodic. And for me anyway the receptions has been beyond my expectations. front and rear. I'm not saying this is your answer but maybe a couple "DIY" test antenna's will provide more insight to what may work for you, before dropping the money. The Elk I thought at ~$200US was expensive but in hindsight cheap money for the performance I have now.

For HF I have been experimenting with an EF at 72' long up about 40' I am 10W QRP there as well and have done well but mainly FT8. I have not spent a lot of time on SSB to rate my setup. Reception seems good but transmit I do not know.

It's all a compromise we never believe it but it is.
 
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