20 metre listening

Seems that 20 metres continues to be active with DX this evening.  Currently listening to OD5ZZ from Tripoli, Lebanon.  The band is much more quiet, but then again the weekend contest has no doubt ended.  UT7UJ is active from Kiev, Ukraine towards the upper end of the band.  It is sure nice to hear DX stations again on the bands after so much lack of propagation.  ZS3CX is on from South Africa, T88XT from Palau, VK4LJ from Australia, and ZL2BQ from New Zealand are all quite loud.

20 metre activity picking up

Managed to get enough of the shack cleared out that I could do some listening on 20 metres last evening.  I was pleasantly surprised how active the bands were, including well into the evening.  The contest weekends raise the question in my mind just how dead the bands are as opposed to just how "inactive" the bands are.  It seems that just about every contest weekend I can hear all sorts of DX but otherwise the bands have the appearance of being dead.

I listened to a number of Kuwait stations, New Zealand and mid-Atlantic stations working pile-ups.  After listening to one particular pileup for about an hour, there was momentary lull and I tossed my call sign out to 9K2WA using QRP (5 watts) on SSB and he came right back to me and gave me the obligatory 59 signal report.  (Yeah right...)  But he was about 20 over S9, so who knows how strong I really was on his end.