After announcing the Michigan Lighthouse Award, I felt bad about not qualifying for it myself. So, since this weekend is International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend (ILLW), I decided to activate lighthouse number 5, so that I could award myself certificate #1.
The lighthouse closest to me is the Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse on Belle Isle, in the middle of the Detroit River. So, yesterday, despite my wife warning me that I was going to get rained on, I threw my KX-3 into the car, along with a folding table and chair and a simple lunch, and headed to Belle Isle.
Belle Isle was established as a city park, back when Detroit was in its heyday. It was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, the landscape designer of New York City’s Central Park, the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC, and many other famous parks and campuses. As did the city of Detroit, it fell on some hard times, but now, under the supervision of the Michigan state park system, it’s enjoying a renaissance. Its 982 acres really are a jewel.
The Livingstone Lighthouse
Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse was named after William Livingstone of Detroit. Born in 1844, Livingstone was president of the Dime Bank, owner of the Detroit Evening Journal, and long-time president of the Lake Carriers Association. He was also responsible for several important navigational improvements on the Great Lakes, including the creation of a deep-water channel in the lower Detroit River which became known as the Livingstone Channel. Following his death in 1925, friends and colleagues across the city rallied to build an appropriate monument in Livingstone’s memory.
Designed by renowned Detroit architect Albert Kahn, the Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse is located on the northern end of Belle Isle, facing Lake St. Clair, and is one of only two lighthouses that are also memorials. Hungarian sculptor Geza Maroti designed the ornamentation of the lighthouse in 1930. It’s very Art Deco style, with a classical fluted pillar. The 58-foot-tall lighthouse was sculpted out of Georgia marble – the only such structure in North America.
The lighthouse’s bronze and glass lens, originally from the older Belle Isle Lighthouse that was demolished in 1941 to make room for the Coast Guard station, generates an 8600-candlepower beacon visible for up to fifteen miles.
My operation
I arrived at the lighthouse about 12:30 and took a short hike down a trail to see the lighthouse up close and enjoy the view upriver. During this short hike, I did feel a few sprinkles, but after inspecting the clouds, I decided to set up anyway.
Just off the parking lot, there’s a set of three picnic tables, sitting under a pergola. The pergola looked like a good, if kind of low, support for my 28-ft. vertical antenna, and the picnic table looked like a perfect operating position. I threw then antenna up into the pergola, and in less than 20 minutes, I was on the air. Almost, anyway.
This antenna consists of a 28-ft. vertical radiator and three radials. Normally, I’d just lay the radials on the ground. That didn’t seem to work here. I couldn’t get the SWR below about 2:1. It was a little puzzling, as it had never behaved like this before.
I played around with different configurations, but what worked the best was elevating the radials off of the concrete floor. I’m not sure if the concrete had some metal reinforcement that was detuning the antenna, but elevating the radials brought the SWR on 40m down to 1:1.
I spotted myself on pota.app, and over the next hour and half, I made 24 contacts. Towards the end, activity really dropped off, so I started to think about packing up. Before packing it in, I decided to give out one more CQ, and I’m really glad that I did. The last contact proved to be my best contact of the day.
W2RC, with Neil, KC2KY at the key, replied to my CQ. W2RC is the club call sign of the Radio Central Amateur Radio Club, and they were operating from the Old Field Point Lighthouse, on the north shore of Long Island, NY. This was my first lighthouse-to-lighthouse contact of the day. After a nice ragchew with Neil, I said my 73s and packed up my stuff.
I ended my day on Belle Isle by visiting the Dossin Great Lakes Museum. Its exhibits include many models of ships that sailed the Great Lakes; the pilot house of the SS William Clay Ford, an iron ore freighter; and the Miss Pepsi, one of the hydroplanes that raced the Detroit River. All these exhibits tell the story of more than 300 years of Detroit’s maritime history. It was a great way to end the day.
W2AEW says
I was glad to work you from my vacation spot. I was running about 5w with a EFHW.
Dan KB6NU says
Thanks again for the call. Did you see me spotted on pota.app, or did you just run across me on the bands?
Dave New, N8sBE says
I had no idea there was a lighthouse on Belle Isle, and a rather unique one at that!
I’ve gone on a couple of Michigan lighthouse photography workshops, and neither of them included that lighthouse, which I think would make an interesting image.
I’ll have to add that one to my list.
Dan KB6NU says
Perhaps I’ll try to organize an ARROW field trip to Belle Isle that would include a POTA activation, a lighthouse activation, and maybe a visit to the Dossin Museum. You could take some photographs while we’re there. I don’t know if you happened to click over to juannonly.com, but I think the kite aerial photography that Juan is doing is kind of interesting.
Tom Loughney, AJ4XM says
The concrete at the Lighthouse Park most likely had rebar laid in to provide strength since it would seem this is an area that would commonly freeze in the winter and that is a customary practice in construction up North. Here in South Florida, it is not as much of an issue but laying Visqueen (a plastic sheeting) over the rock and gravel foundation before pouring concrete is required. Concrete is porous so water will seep up from the ground and evaporate off the concrete surface. If you paint or seal the surface, it forms water pockets under the paint or sealant and they pop like blisters. Then it peels away. We still put both Visqueen and rebar in things like concrete swimming pool decks and sidewalks in some areas. I cannot put ground radials on my pool deck or for a few feet off the deck since the rebar extends past the edge of the deck. (Found that using a metal detector looking for something lost in the grass). I put a BuddiPole antenna out there sometimes and must elevate the radials a little. Same thing if I set up in a park with the antenna close to the concrete pad under a cover. Always different tradeoffs for radials and using the park’s pavilion for mast support attachment. Beautiful Lighthouse and one that should be activated more often.
Dan KB6NU says
That’s what I was thinking.Next time I go there, I’ll use my doublet antenna. It performs better anyway.
KA7NIQ says
I live near Tampa Florida now, but I grew up in Detroit. I remember many a good time on Belle Isle. I was only 16 when I left Detroit for Tampa, and was not a Ham yet. But I was into CB, and would drive my mobile CB equipped car down to Belle Isle, to be near the river. LOL, back then, I thought any water would help with DX Range, and never had a clue it needed to be salt water.
Yes, I remember the lighthouse on Belle Isle, and sometimes I do miss the Detroit area.
And Dan, yes, a doublet will usually outperform a vertical antenna, especially if the doublet is high enough.
A friend works field day with a doublet pulled up into an eighty foot oak tree, almost right on Tampa Bay! Of course, Tampa Bay is Salt Water, so we all know what that means!