KONG 48 Day Zero - Waiting For The Storm

Indeed, we are bracing for the storm! The weather forecast predicts very high tides (which are not a concern for us), severe gale winds, and heavy precipitation. Quite the start to our September DX-pedition!

However, let's start from the beginning. Today (Thursday) started off exceptionally pleasant, reaching up to 20 degrees Celsius, with just a few clouds and gentle breezes. Ole arrived at KONG HQ just before noon, followed by Bjarne a few hours later. OJ Sagdahl is tied up with business in London and won't be joining us until late Friday evening.

Seizing the opportunity presented by the fair weather, Ole and I decided to install the last antenna before conditions deteriorated. Around 15:00 local time, we ventured out and were soon met with a series of unpleasant rain showers. Temperatures were nice, however, and the rain soon gave way to delightful sunshine peeking through the clouds.

The 340 beverage antenna, a staggered dual run measuring 340 meters each, took us about an hour to set up, complete with all connections and grounding. The photos below capture how it appeared at that moment.

End point of one of the dual 340 beverages.

Grim weather ahead

The treasure appears to be located at the end of the 50-degree beverage.

Red Man Walking - Ole on his way to the starting point of the 340.

From nearby Berlevåg (photo: Norsk luftambulanse)

At the time of writing (around 22:00 local time), the rain and wind have intensified somewhat, although it's nothing out of the ordinary. It's too dark for outdoor photography, so we've spent the evening savoring some fine beer and enjoying a meal of "Vossakorv," a unique sausage from the town of Voss (close to Bergen), accompanied by bacon and mashed root vegetables. For dessert, we had chocolate pudding with custard, Amaretto, and Grappa.

Conditions? Forget about them. We're not even close. And it's going to be a dark and stormy night.Temperature around 10 Celsius - still quite mild by mid-September standards. See you on the other side!