WINTER FIELD DAY 2026
What: Winter Field Day at the Park
POTA (Parks on the Air) event before, during, and after Winter Field Day.
Who: Anyone interested in amateur radio, WFD, POTA, State Parks, hiking/nature trails plus friends , family, etc.
Where: Lake Sylvia Recreation Area Cabins 1, 2, 3, 5,& 7
(Parking and cabin access is at the Camp Ouachita National Historic District parking lot at the North West end of the Lake)
When: Start setting up at check-in time 4:00 pm Friday 23 January and begin packing up around 8:00am Monday 26 Jan
Why: To operate, socialize, teach, learn, etc. and have a lot of fun doing it.
How: We will set-up multiple stations and antennae adhering to the POTA, WFD, and State Park Rules.
Primarily use club call of W5STR and ensure logging software has correct operator call sign
We will operate under POTA rules exclusively except during WFD 10:00 am Saturday – 16:00pm Sunday. During Winter Field day, we will operate under WFD and POTA rules
If you would like to be an activator, read the POTA Activator Guide . Come out and make at least 10 contacts during the same UTC day.
This area qualifies as a 3-fer. In other words, three POTA references activated simultaneously. Lake Sylvia State Park (K-10236), Winona WMA (K-7335), and Ouachita National Forest (K-4424).
SYLAMORE 50K
HAMFEST INFORMATION
44th Annual SELARC Hamfest
HAMFEST/CONVENTION
Start Date: 01/16/2026
End Date: 01/17/2027
Location: Ponchatoula Community Center
300 N. 5th St.
Ponchatoula, LA 70454
Website: http://selarc.org
Sponsor: Southeast Louisiana Amateur Radio Club, Inc.
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Talk-In: 147.000 , -600 kHz, 107.2
Public Contact: Tyrone Burns , N5XES
POB 442 24430 Panther Rd. (no mail - packages only) Springfield, LA 70462-0442
Phone: 985-687-2139
Email:
Jackson MS Capital City Hamfest, ARRL Mississippi State Convention
HAMFEST/CONVENTION
Start Date: 01/30/2026
End Date: 01/31/2026
Location: Mississippi Trade Mart
1200 Mississippi St.
Jackson, MS 39201
Website: http:/www.msham.org
Sponsor: Jackson Amateur Radio Club
Type: ARRL Convention
Talk-In: 146.76 (77 Hz)
Public Contact: James Armstrong , AK5J
1103 Pinehurst Place Jackson, MS 39202
Phone: 601-709-6740
Email:
21st Winterfest 2026
HAMFEST/CONVENTION
Start Date: 02/21/2026
End Date: 02/21/2026
Location: Hoxie Service Center
500 Southwest Lawrence
Hoxie, AR
Website: https:/www.w5wra.org
Sponsor: Lawrence County Amateur Radio Club
Type: ARRL Sanctioned
Public Contact: Dale Stratton
Phone: 870-759-2067
Email: s
Arkansas River Valley Hamfest 2026
HAMFEST/CONVENTION
Start Date: 03/07/2026
End Date: 03/07/2026
Location: Dardanelle Community Center
2059-2099 State Highway 22
Dardanelle, AR
Website: ARV Hamfest
Sponsor: Arkansas River Valley Amateru Radio Foundation
Type: ARRL Affiliated
Public Contact:
Email:
License Examination
Amateur Radio Testing Information
If you're interested in testing to earn or upgrade an amateur radio license please join us at our monthly meetings.
Test sessions begin at 1:30PM.
Advance registration at Hamstudy.org is highly encouraged.
For questions: Loma Westmoreland (KU5J) at
For information about what to bring to the exam session, click here.
For fully remote online exam sessions try PARC
The FCC released a Public Notice on March 23, 2022, stating that the amateur radio application fees, including those associated with Form 605 application filings, would become effective on April 19, 2022. The Federal Communications Commission's authority to impose and collect fees is mandated by Congress.
The $35 application fee, when it becomes effective on April 19, will apply to new, renewal, and modification applications that request a new vanity call sign. The fee will be per application.
Administrative updates, such as a change of name, mailing or email address, and modification applications to upgrade an amateur radio licensee’s operator class*, will be exempt from fees.
The $15 VEC exam fee will be paid to the Volunteer Examiner Team at the time of testing. The $35 FCC fee will be paid directly to the FCC. After the license application is received, the FCC will send a link to pay the application fee within 10 days.
