The fishing pole gambit is a favorite for vacationers who want to do some stealth operating from their seaside rentals. They take a surf fishing pole - some are 20 feet long when assembled - and do like many surf fishermen when not on the surf. They prop them up assembled on their balcony rather than break them down. Makes a convenient vertical antenna support that looks nothing like an antenna :-)
I'm assuming you had the Captain's permission to operate from the ship. My experience is on tankers, container ships, bulk carriers, etc., but from what I understand it is generally not hard to get permission to operate on many cruise ships, however; the Captain's permission is mandatory. Here's why. Modern shipboard communications gear uses frequencies throughout the HF spectrum from 2 to 30 MHz close to the HF Ham bands. Sure, routinely they use satellite comms, but also use HF because it is cheaper (ships pay air-time for satellites). They use TOR (teleprinting over radio) as well as SSB voice on the various HF frequencies. Like us Hams, they shift around the HF spectrum as needed to communicate with the desired stations based on the current HF propagation, time of day, etc. The shipboard HF equipment is also part of the key Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) system used for emergency communications whenever they are too far from shore for VHF. And since that shipboard gear is designed to be used at sea far from other transmitters, it does not necessarily have the sort of "bulletproof" front end like the Elecraft rigs to protect it from overload from a nearby HF transmitter. Consequently, any HF transmitter someone operates on board without the Captain's knowledge violates a whole bucket-full of international treaties, regulations and maritime laws. Of course, cell phones, smart phones, etc., are expected, but an HF transmitter is something quite different. I'd not be surprised to see someone operating an HF rig without permission have their equipment confiscated until returning to port and possibly find themselves banned from future passages on the ships of that line. 73, Ron AC7AC -----Original Message----- about 4 years ago i successfully used a telescoping crappie fishing pole or a folding shock-rope tent pole I forget which on a cruise ship balcony with my k2. ....we were up maybe 80-100 feet above the water.. The #22 line went out to the end of the pole (12-??ft) then dropped down another maybe 25 feet,,,,with a gnd to the railing.., worked the EU from the Carib just fine I tried to be stealthy about it ,,,, about the third day the folks in the adjacent room were on their balcony and saw me .... and she started hollering at me to get my attention.... SHE WANTED TO LET ME KNOW THE BAIT FELL OFF.......really.... bill ny9h/3 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
