SteppIR

Preparation for SteppIR Beam Antenna

Antenna Mounting Plate


Attaching the Plate

65 Foot Tower - From a Distance

SteppIR is Up the Tower - But not Level

Call in the Calvary - Grady and his Crane to the Rescue

Rig SteppIR to Come Down

Straps Attached

Coming Down

Going Back Up - Level

At the Top

Attach the Beam to Mounting Plate

We're Attached - Remove the Straps

Coming Down - Crane is Done

Antenna Bolted to Tower - Strut Wires Are Not On Yet

Strut Wires are Taught - Looking Good!

Ready To Play

SteppIR Works Great - Superb Beam Antenna

Screech Owl

Our nearest neighbor is a screech owl. Terry put up this owl house at the edge of our woods. The hole is only 2 inches so you can see he's just a little guy.

Working in the Yard

We've been spending alot of time this spring cleaning up the yard. Terry mows about 6 acres now. Marilyn takes care of the trees, bushes and flowers. Neighbors tell us it looks like a park.

It was sure a big job getting rid of the vines and underbrush, but now we can enjoy walking in the woods.

This is the "before" shot.

Building Portable Tower System for TARC

Gina W4GNA gave us steel for tower supports.

Terry N0TW welding it onto boat trailer so we can get mobile.

Great Use For a Boat Trailer


Where Can I Hang the Tower?
Need to drop top section directly onto base section.

Tower Hanging Over Trailer

Tower Bolted to Trailer

Applying Tie-Down Rope

Here is the left over steel from Gina's mobile home.

Tower Partially Raised

Tower is Fully Deployed

Terry goes mobile - April 20, 2010

N0TW has his truck all rigged up for operating CW in the GA QSO party.

He and KA3FZO drove 400 miles thru 14 GA counties to make 621 contacts in 2 days.

More Trail Cam Photos

Here's a doe looking right at you.

The trail cam is tied to a tree in the backyard. It shoots a few pictures most everyday.

12-22-09 deer at dusk.

(need to get the clock on the camera set right)

Trail cam caught Terry putting out corn for the animals.


Largest flock of turkeys we've seen, counted 25.

12-23-09 Red fox came by.

12-23-09 raccoon eating corn.

12-23-09 deer out at about noon.

12-23-09 Small 4 point buck.

12-23-09 Looks like the fox is waiting to see who else shows up.

12-25-09 Couple of deer came by for Christmas.

12-29-09 Couple more deer as the sun's coming up

Christmas 2009

Returning from our annual Christmas day walk, it was 65 degrees and beautiful. We walked around our property much of which we cleared this past year.

During the clearing we discovered a nice live oak tree near our east property line.

Our Christmas lights this year included an 8 foot star on the tower

Live pointsettias make a showy outdoor display.

Sequel to banana story

Taste as good as Chiquita bananas from the store!

The bananas ripened indoors in about 10 days.

In January, 2010 Florida experienced colder than normal temperatures. It was in the 20s for about 2 weeks. To save the bananas from freezing I cut them before the pod had opened completely. I was curious to see what was left of the pod so I picked it apart removing about 20 more petals before I got to the white center.

The 36 bananas weighted 10 lbs. They looked fully developed, but green.

The Story of the Banana Tree

In April, 2007 we planted a banana tree in our backyard in the Florida panhandle.

It's really a banana plant that grows from a large tuber that looks like a canna flower tuber.

In a few years however, it can easily look like a 20 foot tall tree with a 6 inch trunk.

In June, 2008 our banana tree was still relatively small because after a few frosts over the winter it looked dead, and we mistakenly cut it back to the ground.

We live in agricultural zone 9. Banana trees grow better farther south in zone 10 or 11.

Over the winter of 2008 we covered the tree to protect it from the frost. In the spring of 2009 we trimmed off the dead leaves and the tree started putting out new leaves from the trunk which was about 5 feet tall. We have been told that bananas will develop the second year after the tree has grown about 20 leaves.

At the end of July 2009 we noticed a banana pod developing and hoped for edible bananas.

As the petals of the pod opened we could see the small bananas and flowers.

There was a bunch of bananas developing under each petal that opened.

By August 2nd the humming birds had found how good banana nectar tastes.

August 11 More bananas are growing from the same pod.

August 11 Notice some of the bananas in the bunch don't develop properly.

August 24 petals of the pod are still opening, but no new bananas are forming.

August 24 The first bunches are still growing and filling out.

September 2 The stem on the pod gets longer and longer as the pod continues to open.

September 2 There are still flowers under each petal.

November 16 The tree is mature at about 20 feet.
The pod is much smaller and continuing to open.

November 16 The bananas will be ready to cut only when the pod has opened it's last petal.


December 14 The banana tree suffered a frost, but we continue to wait until the pod drops off to harvest the bananas.