18:03:31
From the time that the word 'Ramsey' was first uttered by Rob MW0RLJ, it ignited a spark in the gut of the the whole Strumble Head Contest & DX Group. It wasn't exotic, it wasn't that rare (only in Asia), but nevertheless to be successful in getting on this Island would be a great achievement for the group who's main roots were in this area of Wales. The postings previous to this entry give some of the details, as will articles in magazines over the next few months so my job here is to fill in a few gaps and add some info about the group as a whole and indeed the Island. Ramsey Island is owned by the RSPB and is currently run under the watchful eye of Head Warden Greg Morgan. Greg quite rightly kept an eye on our antics throughout our stay and was a fantastic source of information and help for the group.
Ramsey is named after Saint David (Dewi Sant) and is the Patron Saint of Wales. It was also the home of his Confessor Saint Justinian. The Island is less than 2 miles long and its highest point is 136M (446ft) above sea level. It is renowned mainly for its Seabird Colonies as well as its steep Cliffs and other wonderful scenery. It also has the most important Grey Seal Colony in Southern britain today.
The Birds using the Island are wideranging and include the Raven, Common Buzzard, Peregrines, Northern Wheatears, Gulls, Auks, Guillimots, Manx Shearwaters and 8 breeding pairs of the rare Chough. I also saw at least one pair of Oyster Catchers but sadly, no Puffins on Ramsey.
The water between Ramsey Island and the Welsh Coast is squeezed over the sea bed which changes height dramatically. During tide changes this water can race and reach in excess of 13mph. It is further squeezed when it meets the infamous and deadly rocks called 'The Bitches' 
. The condition of the sea at these times is treacherous and has to be given upmost respect. Larger boats avoid the area at all costs but the extreme currents, whirlpools and standing waves are a mecca for the Kayak enthusiasts. many boats and lives have been lost in this area of Ramsey Sound and one culprit is an underwater spire called Horse Rock. It is however an amazing sight to see as the tide rushes in both the ebb and flow of the tides.
Ramsey is surrounded by approx. 19 other smaller Islands and is totally uninhabited apart from the RSPB Warden and his Wife that we mentioned earlier. Livestock on the Island include 200 Ewes, 5 Ponies, Deer and the latest arrivals are Welsh Black Cattle. Grass and heathland cover most of the rocky island with foxgloves and many ferns amongst the most common plantlife. The range of colours on the island throughout the seasons are said to be breathtaking.
From a radio prospective and with a laid back casual approach to our operating, we worked over 5.5 thousand contacts from Ramsey in the few days we were active. Conditions were poor and a measly 85 DXCC overall reflects that. By Band data is as follows:-
10M - 33 DXCC, 15M - 45 DXCC, 17M - 39 DXCC, 20M - 76 DXCC, 40M - 46 DXCC & 80M - 28 DXCC. Its hard to guage what interest was achieved by WFF Chasers for Ramsey itself. However, in the days prior to the trip, over 1.4 thousand q's were logged by the 5 GWFF activations on the mainland which gave an overall total for the trip of just under 7K, a very happy result all round! 
Travelling for the members of the group is wide ranging from different areas in the UK and the total mileage for us all to get to Ramsey and back home was just over 1750 miles. I can't even begin to work out fuel costs! On that note we used just over 100 litres of fuel in the 5 generators we had, for the period we were active on the Island.
Being part of this trip to Ramsey was indeed a privilage. From start to finish we had numerous problems, some resolved immediately, some took time whereas others remained unacheivable and left us disappointed. None of the MC0SHL Team had experienced this sort of thing before so it was indeed a challenge. Not being accustomed to packing equipment for boat transfers and overcoming these sort of issues left us more experienced than when we went for sure.
On behalf of us all i would like to thank the RSPB, National park and all the other Staff that helped us in every way possible, from both the outset right up to the conclusion of our trip. Also, we would like to say a big thanks to all of you for supporting this event and for being patient in the pile-ups! We hope we gave you what you expected of us and certainly we were very pleased with the responses and comments from you. We hope we can learn from our experiences here and move on to bigger and better aims in the future.
Listen out for MC0SHL on the air and give us a call, you will always be welcomed into our Shack!
Thanks and regards,
Charles M0OXO
OBO MC0SHL Team
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