Mike:

1. Contact a local ham club in the area about the availability of VHF/UHF
repeaters in the park area. At that eleation, it is likely there is one within
range. Line of sight can easily be over 100 miles.

2. Cellphone-maybe   Local carriers have coverage maps available. If there is an
Interstate route near this may work even
some distance from the cell site.

3. HF propagation quality is greatly dependent on time of day.  If  this is for
emergency comms, you will have no HF skip
available when you need it. (Murphy's Law)

4. Call the National Park Service about this and see if it even legal to generate
hydrogen gas. You could have a serious
liability here if it explodes and starts a fire, not to mention having the end of
a longwire antenna near the balloon. Is there
a high E-field at the end?  If so, you have a potentially hazardous situation.
What sort of transmit power level does your
HF radio have?

Regards,
Dave N9MCE


SW6079@....... wrote:

> While this is not strictly about seismology and I apologize, I thought one of
> the group might be able to help me out with a problem.   Later this summer I
> will be hiking deep into Glacier Nat. Forest (WA) and I will need to suspend
> a communications antenna from a balloon.  I just don't savor the idea of
> lugging a 40 cu ft Helium or Hydrogen tank 20 mi.  I'd hire a heliocopter if
> I had the bucks, but I don't.   I seem to remember that some compound when
> simply mixed w/ H20  would produce huge amounts of hydrogen gas.  I am aware
> of other methods, but they're too risky (acid and alkalis, etc.)  I have
> looked everywhere I can think of and come up dry.  Anyone have an idea??
> Thank You.   Mike.
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