JERSEY SHORE - Despite the Internet, cell phones, email and modern communications, every year whole regions find themselves in the dark. Tornadoes, fires, storms, ice and even the occasional cutting of fiberoptic cables leave people without the means to communicate.
In these cases, the one consistent service that has never failed has been Amateur Radio. These radio operators, often called "hams" provide backup communications for everything from the American Red Cross to FEMA and even for the International Space Station.
The Bald Eagle Repeater Association will be showing the capabilities of the amatuer radio service on Saturday at the gazebo on Main Street in downtown Jersey Shore. The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
There will also be a Fox Hunt starting at 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
What is a Fox Hunt AKA a Transmitter hunt?
A radio transmitter is hidden and then searched for. Transmitter hunters use radio direction-finding techniques to determine the likely direction and distance to the hidden transmitter from several different locations, and then triangulate the probable location of the transmitter.
The winner of the hunt is the person whose vehicle travels the shortest overall distance to locate the hidden transmitter.
The Bald Eagle Repeater Association will be giving away more then $300 in prizes to the winners in the fox hunt.
