The National Scout Jamboree takes place July 26-August 4 at Fort AP Hill, Caroline County, Virginia. A myriad of exhibits and activities await the close to 40,000 Scouts, leaders and staff. Coming from all 50 states, territories and foreign countries, they will have the opportunity to live, work and play together in an atmosphere of Scouting fellowship. And just like the National Scout Jamborees in 1973, 1981, 1985, 1989, 1993, 1997, 2001 and 2005, the 2010 event will feature Amateur Radio.

A team of 17 Scouters and two Scouts will activate K2BSA as a demonstration station at the Jamboree. According to K2BSA Staff Member Larry Wolfgang, WR1B, they will be demonstrating various operating modes to the visiting Scouts, with activity primarily on HF, around the published Scout frequencies. Wolfgang is the ARRL Liaison to the National Scout Jamboree. Another group of 17 Scouters and one Scout will assist other Scouts in earning the Radio merit badge, while seven Scouters will be offering classes and will help administer Amateur Radio licensing exams.

K2BSA will also operate an EchoLink station at the Jamboree on 444.425 MHz simplex, with a CTCSS tone of 100 Hz on the Jamboree equipment. The EchoLink node number is 307770 and the IRLP node number is 3011.

“We will also be on the air via D-STAR from the Jamboree site,” Wolfgang said. “We will be using the WS4VA 2 meter repeater (145.320 MHz, -600 kHz split), located 35 miles north of us in Stafford, Virginia, which in turn will be connected to D-STAR Reflector 30B.” The K2BSA repeaters will operate on 145.17 MHz, with a -600 kHz shift and 442.90 MHz with a +5 MHz shift; use a 100.0 Hz CTCSS subtone for both repeaters. There will be a Jamboree Net at 1900 (local time) each evening.

Some K2BSA staff will be equipped with APRS. Click here for to view APRS activity at the National Jamboree.

The K2BSA staff would like to thank ICOM America for the generous loan of some D-STAR equipment, the Stafford (Virginia) Area Radio Association (SARA) and SARA Trustee Emmett Price, K3EP, for the dedicated use of one of their D-STAR repeaters, as well as Gateway, Robin Cutshaw, AA4RC, and John Davis, WB4QDX, for the use of D-STAR reflector 30B. K2BSA also thanks the following companies and individuals for their assistance with their operation at the Jamboree: Array Solutions (W3NQN Bandpass Filters), Buckmaster, Cushcraft, Flex Radio, Heil Sound, HRO in Woodbridge, Virginia, Hy-Gain, MFJ, QuickSilver Radio Products, Steve Gwilliam, G8XGG, Ten-Tec and Yaesu USA.