A Simple, Low Profile, Multiband Antenna for POTA

This article details the creation of a low-profile, multiband antenna designed for Parks on the Air (POTA) activations, focusing on blending into the environment. The antenna design is influenced by three concepts: Peter Waters G3OJV's "Invisible HF Vertical Ham Radio Antenna" using a 13ft vertical wire and ground radials; Greg KJ6ER's POTA PERformer antenna, which employs a raised vertical to reduce the number of radials to two; and Jim Heath W6LG's and Frank K4FMH's ideas of using a photographer's lighting tripod with a telescoping whip as the radiating element. The resulting antenna combines a shortened portable design with a raised feedpoint and two raised radial wires, suitable for multiple bands. It uses a 4:1 impedance transformer and requires a tuner, similar to a Rybakov antenna. The author, VA3KOT, built and field-tested the antenna, reporting positive results.