Member Portal My Profile Member Directory Membership Dashboard Log out Member Login Reset Password Join BARC

Help — Using the BARC Website

Jump to: Using the site News & documents Members Joining & renewing Coordinators Admins

Finding Your Way Around

  • The top menu has dropdowns. Hover over (or tap, on a phone) Home, Events & Programs, Resources, Ham News! or Members to see the pages underneath.
  • Home holds the club's own information: About BARC, Officers & Coordinators, Bylaws, Past Membership Meetings (with Meeting Minutes under it), the Communication Center, Other Club Documents, and the Privacy Policy.
  • Events & Programs has two columns: On the Air (Field Day, Parks on the Air, Digital Radio, Hamfests, Public Service & EmComm) and Club Programs (Tech Night, Presentations, Educational Programs, Other Area Clubs).
  • Repeaters & Nets and Contesting/QSOs/QSL/DX go straight to their own pages.
  • The amber items — Newsletter, Calendar and Ham News! — change most often.
  • Most pages have a left-hand sidebar with related pages. Breadcrumbs above each title ("Home › Page") show where you are.
  • On phones and tablets the menu folds into the ☰ button in the upper right.

News, Newsletter & Documents

Ham News!
  • Headlines shows the latest stories from ARRL News, Amateur Radio Weekly, DXZone, SDR & Digital Radio, the Digital Library of Amateur Radio and Amateur Radio Newsline. Each list updates by itself; click a headline to read the full story on the source's site.
  • DX Section shows live DX cluster spots, updated every minute. Pick a band or mode, or tick Hide US & Canada for real DX. Click a call sign to look it up on QRZ.
Newsletter (Full Quieting)

The Newsletter page shows the current issue at the top and every issue from this year under Recent Issues — new issues appear automatically. Older issues are in the Archive by year. Each issue has Read Online (opens the PDF) and Download. The sidebar's Article Index lists every article that has run in Full Quieting.

Presentations

The Presentations page (Events & Programs › Club Programs) is a searchable library of past club presentations. Search by title or presenter, click a category to open it, and use the PDF button to view a file. Have a topic idea? Use Submit a Topic in its sidebar.

Meetings, Minutes & Club Documents

Home › Past Membership Meetings lists past meeting presentations by year, with Meeting Minutes beneath it. Bylaws and other official documents are under the same Home menu.

Members: Logging In & Out

  • Open Members › Member Login and sign in with your username and password. If your account was set up from the club roster, your username is your first initial + last name, all lowercase (for example jadams).
  • First time, or forgot your password? Use Members › Reset Password and enter the email address the club has on file. A link to set a new password arrives by email — check your spam folder if you don't see it.
  • Once you're logged in, the Members menu shows Member Portal, My Profile, Member Directory and Log out.
  • When you're finished, choose Members › Log out — especially on a shared or public computer.

Members: Portal, Profile & Directory

Member Portal is your members-only home page: a welcome with your membership status, the What's New box, meeting minutes, forms and documents, net-control resources, and the officers.

My Profile is your club record. Keep your contact details, call sign, license class and expiration, ARRL membership and interests up to date, change your password in the Account card (which also shows your username), and click Save profile. The Membership Details section is kept by the Membership Coordinator — contact them if anything there looks wrong.

Member Directory lists current members with call sign, license class, member type, email, phone and city. You can hide your email, phone or city — or leave the directory entirely — in the Member Directory card on My Profile. Only logged-in, current members can see the directory.

The badge next to your name shows your status:

  • Active — paid up for this year
  • Pending approval — a new application waiting for the Membership Coordinator
  • Renewal due — January and February, when last year's membership has ended; renew by March 1
  • Expired — not renewed by March 1; members-only pages are closed until you renew

Joining & Renewing

Join: choose Members › Join BARC. Dues are $15 individual or $18 family (your whole household). Membership runs January through December; join after July and dues are half price. Newly licensed hams can choose a free first year or a low-cost handheld radio.

Renew: dues for the coming year can be paid from November and must be paid by March 1. Pay at a monthly meeting, by PayPal (Friends & Family) to treasurer@bellbrookarc.org, or mail a check made out to BARC to BARC Treasurer, P.O. Box 73, Bellbrook, OH 45305. Your status updates once the Membership Coordinator records the payment.

Officers: Creating a Post

  1. Log in at bellbrookarc.org/wp/wp-admin, then choose Posts → Add New.
  2. Add a title and your text. Use + → Image for photos; select words and press Ctrl+K to add a link.
  3. On the right, pick a Category (tick What's New to show it on the Member Portal), set a Featured Image, and write a short Excerpt — that's the summary shown in post lists.
  4. Preview, then Publish (or Schedule for a later date). Edit later from Posts → All Posts.

Membership Coordinators

You see this section because you manage membership. Members don't.

Members › Membership Dashboard is your workspace:

  • Tiles at the top count members by status (Active, Renewal due, Pending, Expired and so on). Click one to list those members. Search always looks through every member, by name, call sign, email or phone.
  • New applicants arrive as Pending. Use Approve or Reject. Approving opens the members-only pages to them and emails them a welcome.
  • Open any member by clicking their name. You can edit everything, including the Membership Details card: paid-through year, member type, household link, approval status, notes and payment history.
  • Record a payment from the member's record. The rates box shows $15 / $18 and the half-price rule after July. Payments made in November or December count toward the next year. A household payment renews every linked family member.
  • Families: each person has their own record. Anyone with their own email gets their own login; others are linked to the household's primary member.
How status is worked out
  • Active through December 31 of the paid-through year · Renewal due January–February · Expired from March 1 · Life members never expire.
Reports

The Reports tab has nine reports — Current Active Members, Inactive/Expired, New Members, Members by Type, Renewals/Expiration, Contact List, Membership History, Members Missing Information and Membership Counts. Each one can be printed or downloaded as a CSV for Excel. The dashboard's roster CSV exports every member and field — a good monthly backup.

The Contact List shows details members have hidden in the directory. Keep printouts and CSV files private.

Site Administrators

Only administrators see this section. Before any big change, take a WPvivid backup.
Everyday jobs
  • Newsletter: upload each issue to the /newsletter/ folder with File Manager, named Full_Quieting_MonthYear.pdf (e.g. Full_Quieting_November2026.pdf). It appears automatically. In December, add the year's issues to the Archive widget.
  • Ham News feeds: add a feed in Aggregator › Sources, then a Display for it (5 items, no pagination), and paste its shortcode into a new card in the Ham News Shortcode widget.
  • After editing a page: click Update, then LiteSpeed Cache › Purge All, and check it in a private window.
  • Roster import (CSV) is at the bottom of the Membership Dashboard, visible to admins only.
Page-building rules
  • Standard page: Container 1 (title bar + styles), Container 2 row with a 210px sidebar and a content column set to Size: Default — never Grow.
  • Shortcodes go in Shortcode widgets, never HTML widgets. Internal links use /wp/page-slug/ with the trailing slash.
  • Members-only pages: edit the page, set Simple WP Membership Protection to Yes, tick all levels.
Security & settings
  • Wordfence: two-factor login is required for administrators. Locked-out users are unblocked under Wordfence › Tools › Blocking.
  • Email Hold snippet: while active, no email reaches members. Blocked messages are listed under Tools › BARC Email Hold. Deactivate it to send member email.
  • Keep your admin login separate from your member login — never give an admin account a membership level.

Something not working? Let us know — no detail is too small.
Email the webmaster — webmaster@bellbrookarc.org

Home › Events & Programs › Parks on the Air

Parks on the Air (POTA)

BARC activations at Ohio's parks and nature preserves — W8DGN
2017Program founded
76Ohio qualifying parks
10QSOs to activate a park
FreeNo entry fee — ever
What is POTA?

Amateur radio meets the great outdoors

Parks on the Air (POTA) is an international award program that encourages licensed amateurs to operate portable radio equipment from state and national parks. It combines the fun of portable operating with the rewards of outdoor exploration — and Ohio's southwest corner is an outstanding location for it.

The concept is simple: activators pack up a radio and operate from a qualifying park. Hunters work them from home or mobile stations. Both earn credits toward a growing list of awards. No complex rules, no entry fee, no barriers — just get on the air from a park.

BARC members regularly activate Caesar Creek State Park, Cowan Lake, John Bryan, and other Greene County area parks. Group activations are a great club activity — everyone pitches in on antennas, logging, and operating.

Want to join a BARC activation? Contact POTA Coordinator WB8TCT at pota@bellbrookarc.org or check the club calendar for upcoming dates.
BARC POTA activation
BARC POTA activation
BARC POTA activation
BARC POTA solar power setup
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Two ways to play

Activator or Hunter — pick your role

Everyone participates differently in POTA. Most hams start as hunters, then graduate to activating once they're comfortable with portable operating.

🎒
Activator — go to the park

Pack up a portable station, drive to a qualifying park, set up antennas, and operate. Make at least 10 QSOs on any band or mode and you've successfully activated the park. Log them and upload to POTA.app — done.

1Choose a qualifying Ohio park on pota.app
2Post a spot so hunters know you're coming
3Set up your portable station on site
4Make 10+ QSOs — any band, any mode
5Upload your log to pota.app after
🎧
Hunter — work them from home

Monitor the POTA spotting network, tune to an active park, and make contact. Each unique park you work counts toward your hunter awards. No portable gear required — hunt from your home station.

1Create a free account at pota.app
2Check the spots page for active parks
3Tune to the activator's frequency
4Make the contact and log it
5Upload your log — awards track automatically
Ohio parks near BARC

76 qualifying parks in Ohio — here are the closest

All Ohio state parks qualify for POTA. These are the parks BARC members activate most often — all within an easy drive of Bellbrook.

Caesar Creek State Park
Waynesville · 2,830-acre lake · 43 mi of trails
~15 min away
US-1940
Cowan Lake State Park
Wilmington · 700-acre lake · Great HF site
~25 min away
US-1943
John Bryan State Park
Yellow Springs · Little Miami gorge
~20 min away
US-1964
Buck Creek State Park
Springfield · 2,120-acre lake · Good portable site
~30 min away
US-1937
Hueston Woods State Park
Oxford · Old-growth forest · Lodge & nature center
~35 min away
US-1959
Clifton Gorge SNP
Yellow Springs · Gorge and limestone cliffs
~20 min away
US-7848
Every Ohio POTA entity

Find a park — interactive map

Search all 275 Ohio POTA entities (parks, forests, wildlife areas, and more) by grid square or by a latitude/longitude range. The map and table below update together.

Loading Ohio POTA entities…
ReferenceNameTypeGrid
Getting started

What you need for a POTA activation

A typical POTA station is lightweight, battery-powered, and fits in a backpack. You don't need expensive gear — a simple QRP radio and a wire antenna will get you on the air.

Radio

HF transceiver capable of SSB, CW, or digital. Popular: Yaesu FT-891, Icom IC-705, or QRP rigs like Elecraft KX2. VHF/UHF works for local contacts too.

Power

A 12V LiFePO4 battery (10–20Ah) is lightweight and long-lasting. Solar panels work great for all-day operations. Keep it under 100W for portable use.

Antenna

A simple end-fed half-wave (EFHW) wire thrown over a tree branch is the most popular POTA antenna. Pack a fishing pole or collapsible mast as a support.

Logging

Paper log in the field (simplest), or a laptop with HAMRS, Fast Log Entry, or N3FJP. After the activation, upload your ADIF log to pota.app — awards track automatically.

Spotting

Post your spot on pota.app before you start so hunters know you're on the air. Cell signal at Ohio parks is usually adequate. The app shows active activations in real time.

Bring a friend

Group activations are more fun and make setup easier. BARC members regularly activate together — join a club activation to learn the ropes with experienced operators.

Next club activation
Caesar Creek State Park
📅 Check the club calendar for the next date  ·  📍 Caesar Creek SP, Waynesville OH · US-1940
🎙 Operating HF SSB + digital · All members welcome · Bring your portable gear or just come and watch
See club calendar → Contact POTA coordinator

Upcoming Activations

DatePark / PreservePOTA RefActivatorBandsStatus
Jun 7, 2025 Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve US-7848 WB8TCT 20m, 40m SSB Confirmed
Jun 21, 2025 Caesar Creek State Park US-1940 KE8DKC 20m FT8 / SSB Tentative
Jul 12, 2025 John Bryan State Park US-1964 TBD TBD Planning
Want to activate or join? Contact POTA SIG Coordinator Jim Gifford, N8KET, or email pota@bellbrookarc.org

Past Activations — 2024–2025

DateParkPOTA RefQSOsActivator(s)
Apr 19, 2025Clifton Gorge SNP US-784847 WB8TCT, KE8DKC
Mar 8, 2025Caesar Creek SP US-194031 WB8TCT
Oct 12, 2024John Bryan SP US-196452 KE8DKC, W8DGN
Aug 17, 2024Beaver Creek SP US-193528 WB8TCT

Resources

🗺
POTA Park Finder Map

Interactive map of all qualifying parks worldwide. Find Ohio parks, see recent activations, and post your own spots.

pota.app/map →
📖
ARRL POTA Getting Started Guide

Four-module course covering the POTA website, radios, antennas, and how to activate a park step by step.

learn.arrl.org →
🏆
Ohio State Parks on the Air (OSPOTA)

Ohio's own POTA contest — 76 qualifying parks in 2026, including the new Great Council SP near Xenia.

ospota.org →
🎙
Official POTA Website

Create your free account, log activations and hunts, track your awards progress, and find activators on the air right now.

parksontheair.com →
  • BARC POTA Antenna Guide
    PDF · Recommended portable antenna setups
    Download
  • Ohio Parks — POTA Reference List
    PDF · All Ohio POTA-eligible parks with ref numbers
    Download
Ready to activate your first park?
Join a BARC club activation — no experience needed. We'll help you set up, operate, and log your first contacts.
See upcoming activations →