Hamilton County
In February of 2022, Hamilton County experienced a nearly complete outage of all commercial communications (telephone, cell phone, and Internet). Of course, Amateur Radio still worked. When (not if) this happens again, we need to be more organized and prepared to help ourselves, our neighbors, and our communities across the county. We are looking for more people to get involved with emergency communications.
If you do not have an amateur radio license, we will help you get yours. A license preparation course will be held if there is sufficient interest. Contact Section Emergency Coordinator .
The Hamilton County ARES/RACES Training Net currently meets at 7:00 PM on the Speculator Repeater, and the Blue Mountain repeater. We are looking for more participants including net control stations on both repeaters. Alternate times and days are being considered to accommodate all who wish to participate.
Hamilton County ARES Training and Meeting Schedule:
| Date | Time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Every Monday except 3rd | 7:00 PM | ARES/RACES Training Net on the Speculator (Oak Mt.) and Blue Mt. repeaters. We are looking for net control and alternate net control stations on both repeaters. (You need not have to be able to hit both repeaters. A net session could also be held on the Long Lake repeater.) The schedule is open to change to accommodate participant schedules. Ultimately we plan to link the repeaters but for now, the net will be called on first on Oak if net controls are not available for both repeaters. Please contact if you would like to participate but can't do so on the currently scheduled day or time. No experience necessary. |
| 3rd Monday except December | TBD | In-person ARES/RACES Training TBD before or after the Hamilton County ARC meeting. Location and schedule subject to change to accommodate participant schedules. Please contact if you are interested in training or would like to participate but can't do so on the third Monday. |
| Any Day | 5:00 PM | Independent Training (Net operations and NTS voice message procedures): Check in to New York Public Operations Net on 3925 |
| Any Day | 6:00 PM | Independent Training (Net operations and NTS voice message procedures): Check in to New York State Phone Traffic & Emergency Net on 3925 |
| Tuesday January 3 2023 | 5:30 ~ 7:00 PM | Meet at EOC (Lake Pleasant Fire Dept). Test radios. Check in to NYSPTEN at 6:00 and NNYHEN at 6:15 PM This net repeats on the first Tuesday of each quarter. Please contact Section Emergency Coordinator for more information. |
| Monday, February 20 2023 | 7:30 PM | Digital messaging workshop after the Hamilton County ARC meeting. Bring your computer and learn how to install and use the Narrow Band Emergency Messaging System (fldigi, flmsg, and flamp) to send and receive Radiograms and other standard written messages. NBEMS is one of the primary technologies used for message handling. For anything other than very short messages, digital messaging is much more efficient and accurate than transmission over the radio by voice. Please contact Section Emergency Coordinator for more information. |
| Tuesday April 18 2023 | 7:00 PM | ARES informational meeting at Geiger Arena Long Lake |
| May 3 | see schedule | Albany NWS SKYWARN Weather Spotter Training physical session in Singerlands |
| May 4 | see schedule | Albany NWS SKYWARN Weather Spotter Training physical session in Mohawk |
| May 11, May 17, June 5 | see schedule | Albany NWS SKYWARN Weather Spotter Training virtual sessions |
| TBD | TBD | ARES basic communication procedures training for new members |
| June 23-26 | - | ARRL/ARES FIELD DAYS in Lake Pleasant and Long Lake. Public invited!! |
| October 7 | 9AM~Noon | ARRL/ARES Simulated Emergency Test |
| TBD | TBD | ARES basic communication procedures training for new members |
| TBD | TBD | Entry-level Technician license exam preparation course presented by NNY Section online via Zoom |
| November? | TBD | Online or in-person Winter SKYWARN Weather Spotter Training |
At the end of every month, please report any independent training you engaged in to .
Amateur Radio Emergency Service: ARES (pronounced "air- eeze") is an organization of federally licensed radio amateurs (“hams”) sponsored by the ARRL who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment for public service communications when needed, and engage in a program of self-training and improvement to perform this mission.
ARES is focused on providing radio communications during emergencies, but is also available for and may be activated to provide non-emergency communications for planned events, or whenever communications support is needed.
ARES members range from entry-level radio operators to individuals with advanced technical knowledge and extensive radio communications experience. All licensed amateurs are invited to participate in ARES.
Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service: RACES (pronounced "ray-sees") is a radio service defined by federal regulations to provide communications during certain emergency situations. Hamilton County has a RACES program. ARES and RACES are complementary programs, with ARES being available for both emergency and non-emergency communications. IN Hamilton County, ARES and RACES is essentially the same group of volunteers.
SKYWARN: ™ is a volunteer program with nearly 290,000 trained severe weather spotters. Spotters help keep their local communities safe by providing timely and accurate reports of severe weather to the NWS. You do not have to be an amateur radio operator to be a SKYWARN spotter, but amateur radio is a critical component of the Albany area SKYWARN program because when regular communications are inoperable, hams can still transmit reports to the NWS. The primary repeater used is the 147.375+ (100) KA2QYE machine in the Helderbergs southwest of Albany. Alternate is Gore Mountain.
If you are interested in joining Hamilton County ARES, please contact Emergency Coordinator . You do not have to be an ARRL or club member. No experience is necessary. If you do not have an amateur radio license, we will help you get yours.
The Hamilton County Amateur Radio Club supports emergency communications activity in the county, however, you do not need to be a club member to participate in ARES, RACES, or SKYWARN.