Glossary

Parks on the Air — an amateur radio program where licensed operators make contacts from designated public lands (national parks, state parks, wildlife refuges, and similar areas). Each location has a reference number. To activate a park, you log at least 10 contacts from within its boundaries. Hunters are operators who contact activators from home.

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A successful POTA outing at a single park — at least 10 contacts logged from within the park boundaries. The activator is the operator in the field.

A single outing that activates multiple parks in sequence. Set up, make the required contacts, pack down, drive to the next park, repeat.

An activation from a location that falls within two overlapping park boundaries at once, earning credit for both references with a single set of contacts.

Continuous wave — Morse code transmitted by radio. CW contacts use a key or paddle to send code and are received by ear. Most contacts in field notes here are CW.

Low-power operation, conventionally 5 watts or less on CW and digital modes, 10 watts or less on voice. Most activations here run 5 watts.

A POTA News & Reviews activator award for portable stations carried away from the vehicle by hiking, cycling, paddling, or another non-motorized approach. A qualifying activation needs at least 22 QSOs, and the full award requires 100 qualifying activations.

Pack Mule Award

A POTA participant who contacts activators from a fixed station, typically at home. Hunters earn credit for each unique park reference they contact.