Colonial Dorchester, Drayton Hall, and Middleton Place - Colonial and Revolutionary War Road Trip Radio Report; 24-26 April 2026

Last Friday afternoon, I drove up to Charleston, SC to visit some Low Country Colonial and Revolutionary War historic sites. My first stop was Colonial Dorchester near Summerville before heading to the hotel in North Charleston. I spent Saturday morning at Drayton Hall and the afternoon at Middleton Place, both of which are on Ashley River Rd in Charleston. Some months back, I'd booked a behind-the-scenes tour of the work being done on Drayton Hall's Great Hall ceiling and that was the main reason for the road trip. While in the area, I learned that Middleton Place has a 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution exhibit, so I decided to drop in and see it since Middleton Place was right down the road. I thoroughly enjoyed both the behind-the-scenes tour at Drayton Hall and the 250th Exhibit at Middleton Place. The trip was productive radio-wise as well; there were changes to Charleston area communications on the Palmetto 800 system since my last visit and I was able to better ID some Joint Base Charleston traffic on the USAF 57 system. Saturday also provided the opportunity to listen to a sizeable industrial fire in Berkeley County. I tried a POTA attempt from Colonial Dorchester on Friday, but all didn't go according to plan. Food-wise, I had excellent meals on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Drayton Hall in Charleston, SC - built in the Late 1740s

Parks on the Air Activation at a Historic Battlefield and a Visit to Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens - Overnight Jacksonville Road Trip Radio Report; 5/6 April 2026

When I first planned this road trip, I didn't realize that it was going to start on Easter Sunday... I left Savannah on Sunday morning and drove down to Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park for an Amateur Radio Parks on the Air (POTA) activation. Instead of taking I-95 down to I-10, I jumped off I-95 in Brunswick and took the scenic route via US-301/GA-23 through Folkston down to Macclenny, then over to the park in Sanderson. It took a bit longer than the interstates would have, but there was a lot less holiday traffic to deal with. I stayed overnight near Jacksonville IAP and visited Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens on Monday morning to see the new entrance and manatee habitat before heading back to Savannah. Sunday being Easter, there wasn't much MilCom (military communications) to to listen to due to the holiday, but public safety and railroad communications (CSX rail lines paralleled much of my route of travel from Folkston south and along US-90 and I-10) made up for it. Monday wasn't very active MilCom-wise either, probably a result of the overcast conditions that turned to rain later in the day. 

Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens' male Lion greeting visitors with a roar

Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park and the Robins Air Force Base Museum of Aviation - Middle Georgia Road Trip Radio Report; 21-23 February 2026

Over the weekend, I took a road trip to Middle Georgia, visiting Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park and the Museum of Aviation at Robins AFB. These visits were supposed to be part of a road trip I took in October, but I was unable to visit them because of the government shutdown. Since I was in the area, I also visited the Griswoldville Battlefield (part of the Jarrell Plantation State Historic Site), doing an amateur radio Parks on the Air activation while there. It was rainy drive up on Saturday afternoon and while Sunday was windy, it was a beautiful day for wandering around Ocmulgee Mounds. The temperature dropped overnight and Monday morning was cold, but it was still good weather for wandering around the outside displays at Museum of Aviation. Radio-wise, it was a fun trip, both listening to the scanners and on amateur radio; it was another trip during which I combined my loves of radio and history.

The Lesser (left) and Great (center) Temple Mounds at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park in Macon, GA

Space, History, and Wildlife - Space Coast, Treasure Coast, and First Coast Road Trip Radio Report; 12-16 January 2026

This past week was my annual Space Coast Road trip; this year in addition to the Space Coast, I added stops in Fort Pierce and Vero Beach in the Treasure Coast (my first time in that area) and stops in St Augustine and Jacksonville in the First Coast. I left Savannah on Sunday afternoon and stayed overnight in Orange Park to beat the Monday morning rush hour traffic in Jacksonville. The road trip began in earnest on Monday morning; my first stop was Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park in Flagler Beach, where I also did a Parks on the Air (POTA) activation after which I continued south to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville. Tuesday was "Space Day," with visits to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, the Sands Space History Center, and the American Space Museum & Hall of Fame. This year's Space Coast Road Trip took place just before the rollout of Artemis II from Kennedy Space Center's VAB to Launch Complex 39B ahead of next month's scheduled launch on a mission around the Moon. I may not have been there for the rollout, but I was able to hear some of the radio communications preparing for the rollout while in the Titusville area. It made for fascinating listening. After breakfast on Wednesday, I headed south to the Treasure Coast and visited the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce; after lunch in Vero Beach, I visited Mel Fisher's Treasures in Sebastian and the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum in Titusville. On Thursday, I made another visit to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, then headed north to Fort Mose State Historic Park in St Augustine (where I did another POTA activation) after lunch. I stayed overnight in St Augustine so I wouldn't have to drive through Jacksonville rush hour traffic and headed back to Savannah on Friday after a visit to the Brumos Collection in Jacksonville. 

The Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) and Launch Control Center (LCC) at Kennedy Space Center. This year's Space Coast Road Trip took place just before Artemis II left the VAB for Launch Complex 39B; while I wasn't in the area for the rollout, the timing did give me the opportunity to listen to preparation and support of the rollout.

Reconstruction Roots in the Lowcountry: Beaufort, Port Royal, and St Helena Island Overnight Road Trip Radio Report - 27/28 December 2025

On Saturday morning, I made a last minute decision to take an overnight road trip from Savannah up to Beaufort to visit the Beaufort History Museum and the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park. It was another practically tropical December day in Coastal Georgia and Lowcountry South Carolina, so it was a great day for a road trip. It turned out that the History Museum was closed for the morning due to a staffing issue, but it turned out to be an interesting trip anyway (and it gives me another reason to come back another day...). I also fit in visits to the Fort Fremont History Preserve, the St Helena Island Chapel of Ease, and the Fort Frederick History Preserve. Radio-wise, I didn't expect a lot of military aviation activity due to it being a holiday weekend, but there was one nice surprise. There was quite a bit of fire department traffic on the area Palmetto 800 sites to listen to, however. The radio in KF4LMT Mobile didn't stay silent much throughout the day. On the amateur radio side of things, there was decent activity on area 2 Meter analog repeaters and I squeezed in a short POTA (Parks on the Air) activation. 

The Beaufort History Museum in the Beaufort Arsenal (built in 1798), unfortunately it was closed the morning of my visit

Wildlife and Radio - Parks on the Air Activation at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge

This afternoon, I combined my love of nature, wildlife, and radio with a visit to the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge's Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive just across the Savannah River in South Carolina. It was a beautiful day for a visit, it got up into the mid-50s instead of the 30s that we had yesterday and it wasn't nearly as windy as it was yesterday, so it was a terrific day for watching birds. I saw a lot of Teal and Northern Shovelers, but unfortunately none were close enough to get photos of. I got some photos of American Coots and Common Grebes along with year-around residents Anhingas, Great Blue Herons, and White Ibis. I also saw what I think was an immature Cooper's Hawk. The cold snap wasn't so good for watching alligators and turtles, I only saw one alligator during the visit and it wasn't where I could get a good photo. 

I set up my portable HF station out of the back of my car at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge's Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive for a Parks on the Air activation

Poinsett State Park & Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens - Midlands South Carolina Road Trip Radio Report; 9/10 November 2025

I took an overnight road trip to Midlands South Carolina on Sunday, 9 November and Monday, 10 November 2025 to visit Poinsett State Park in Wedgefield and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens in Columbia. The trip up was via I-95 and the trip back to Savannah was on US-321, providing two different levels of activity on amateur radio and scanning. Both days were beautiful and especially on Monday, I enjoyed the colors of the Autumn foliage; we don't get quite as much color at home on the coast. Due to the Federal holiday on Tuesday, there was very little military communications to monitor, public safety in the Columbia area was busy as always, and the railroads around Columbia were active as well. There wasn't much Federal communications activity either, although I was surprised to hear the Fort Sumter NHS talkgroup on the Palmetto 800 system active during the Federal Government shutdown. While visiting the Zoo, I enjoyed listening to their radio system. On amateur radio, I had fun doing a Parks on the Air (POTA) activation at Poinsett State Park and listening to 2 Meter/70 cm repeaters along my route of travel. 

Autumn foliage at Poinsett State Park

My First Road Trip Incorporating Parks on the Air Activity - Central Georgia Road Trip Radio Report; 19/20 October 2025

This weekend's overnight road trip to Central Georgia was the first time I've incorporated portable HF operating and Parks on the Air activity into one of my road trips. I left Savannah on Sunday morning and headed toward the Piedmont NWR north of Macon. It started raining just north of Dublin, so went through Jeffersonville and Gordon to Gray, GA where I stopped for an early lunch at Old Clinton BBQ while I waited for the rain to slack off. After lunch, I continued on to the NWR, scouting for a good spot to operate from, finding one on the Little Rock Wildlife Drive. After activating the Piedmont NWR, I continued on to Juliette, GA where I visited Jarrell Plantation State Historic Site and activated it after touring the grounds. The day may have started out dreary and wet, but the afternoon turned out wonderful. Between it being a Sunday and the weather not being all that great, I didn't hear any MilCom activity, but there was plenty of public safety and railroad communications to listen to. I had a special project planned for the drive back home on Monday morning; I stopped at Exit 143 on I-16 and did some radio recon on the DMR system in use at Hyundai Metaplant in Ellabell. It was a successful stop and it yielded some good results.

Some of the historic structures at Jarrell Plantation State Historic Site in Juliette, GA