Remote HF Station off the air!

Sometime in the last week I noticed that the HF remote station wasn't receiving as well as it should.  On Friday, February 9, I checked the VE7RLO west web camera and wasn't able to see the HF antenna.  I went up to Lolo that afternoon on snowmobile to investigate -- the first challenge was getting through the locked gate!  Normally it is left open in the winter, but not this year!  After a half hour of shoveling the concrete-like snow I was able to get into the repeater site.

Once there I discovered that BOTH of the copperweld antenna elements had snapped off at the centre insulator and were tangled up under the snow.  Because the ladder line is tied off on the pole (yeah, my mistake!), it will require pole climbing to repair.  I'm not sure how feasible this will be this winter, but I will be discussing the idea with a couple club members to see if we can get it repaired.  The main issue is access; we need at least two people for safety, and a fair amount of gear to perform the repair.

I have taken the HF remote station off the air until the antenna can be repaired.  I apologize for any inconvenience.

Myles, VE7FSR