US National Lighthouse-Lightship Weekend - How'd you do?

As mentioned last week, US National Lighthouse-Lightship Weekend, was this past weekend. How'd you do? Did you work any? Did you activate any? I hate to admit it, but I did so much around the house on Saturday, that all I did yesterday was nap, and hang around, generally doing nothing. My only activity was to smoke a brisket and make some homemade potato salad for dinner.  All my radio plans for Sunday vanished like a wisp of smoke.

It was too late for this year, but I'm thinking this would be a great operating event for the South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club in 2024. I can think of three lighthouses not too far from us, right off the bat.

The Sandy Hook Light USA-731 is also located in POTA K-0680. This one is probably the easiest to operate from. Sandy Hook is part of the National Recreation Gateway and there's a ton of space. The only caveat is that during the Summer you have to pay to get on the Hook. Off season it's free and I activated the park for NPOTA back in October 2016.

The Navesink Twin Lights USA-530 in Highlands, NJ is located in POTA K-0180. This one is actually the closest to us. We'd pass it on the way to Sandy Hook.

The Barnegat Light USA-039,  perhaps New Jersey's most famous lighthouse (affectionately known as "Ol' Barney"), is located in POTA K-1609. I'll have to check this out, as it may be a park within a park. I'm not sure, but Barnegat Lighthouse State Park may also be part of Long Beach Island State Park, known in New Jersey as LBI.

So this is double dipping - activate a lighthouse for US National Lighthouse-Lightship Weekend AND a park for Parks On The Air at the same time. How cool is that? And there are probably a few more that I haven't even considered. Cape May Light could be another, but that might be too long a ride in Shore traffic on a Summer weekend in New Jersey. If the weather is good, roads leading to the shore points (as we call 'em) become parking lots on Friday evenings and again on Sunday afternoons.

Now all I have to do is convince membership, and I already have a plan. Head down early Saturday morning before traffic gets super bad - set up and operate into the afternoon, and then on the way back home stop at one of the many fine seafood restaurants in the area for a nice dinner. I think they'll buy in!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!