Jump to POTA GB-1752 Map & Logbook.
About GB-1752 Coombe Abbey Country Park
Just outside Coventry, to the east, lies the very popular Coombe Abbey Country Park. Back in history, a 12th century Cistercian abbey once occupied this site, but the buildings now house the fabulously luxurious Coombe Abbey hotel.
Originally known as the Abbey of Cumbe, it was the largest and most influential monastery in Warwickshire. In 1539, the abbey was dissolved during King Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries in 1539 and it fell into his ownership. The building was transformed into a house and Princess Elizabeth, daughter of James I, is known to have lived there.
Gunpowder plot
During her time there a plot was hatched to capture the Princess and force her to act as a puppet queen and reintroduce the Catholic faith in England. This was all linked in with the famous Gunpowder Plot.
The estate was sold in 1923 to a builder and then Coventry City Council took ownership of the Abbey in 1964. The park was opened to the public in 1966, and the hotel opened in 1995 following extensive renovations.
Today, the park contains 500 acres (2.0 km2) of woodlands, formal gardens, an arboretum, open grasslands and a lake. The visitor centre is equipped with a Cafe and some local independent shops and workshops.
Activating GB-1752 Coombe Abbey Country Park
This is not the first time I’ve activated Coombe Park for Parks on the Air (POTA). The first attempt was last year and it was very hard work and, strangely, so was this one; the required ten contacts took over two hours to make. The first try was completed using a BuddiStick antenna and my 5w Xiegu X106 in the car park, surrounded by trees. This year I was parked in the same car park, surrounded by the same trees, but using my, now-standard, Xiegu G90 and Ampro mono band antennas mounted on a triple mag-mount.
Most of the contacts were made on 20m, two others being exploratory on other bands to see if I could get out any better. I stuck with 20m. There was no DX to be had, just pretty run-of-the mill contacts into Europe – though I am very grateful to the stations for working me.
I did try a new 20m mobile antenna on this activation – a Diamond HF-20FX. It’s an interesting antenna that comes in two halves, the flexible whip magnetically attaching to the top of the base loading coil. At over twice the cost of a 20m Ampro antenna I noticed no significant difference when switching between the two, if anything the Ampro seemed to perform slightly better – I guess there’s no substitute for more metal in the sky. If anyone wants to buy a Diamond HF-20FX, used once, half price for what I paid for it, email me.
This was also the first POTA activation that I’d used the van’s built-in catering facilities – being able to make a cup of your favourite brew (Lapsang Soushong) on an activation is a revelation. Highly recommended.
I didn’t hang around at Coombe Park as it was my intention to activate three local POTA stations this day, so I was off to my next POTA at GB-0542 – Ryton Pools, after a quick walk to the cafe and shops.
Map & Logbook
| CALL | DATE | TIME | BAND | MODE | RST Tx | RST Rx | SQUARE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EA4GA | 20260418 | 095530 | 20m | FT8 | -08 | -23 | IN80 |
| OH3DJP | 20260418 | 101415 | 20m | FT8 | -17 | -15 | |
| OH3DJP | 20260418 | 101945 | 20m | FT8 | -16 | -16 | KP21 |
| R1BGR | 20260418 | 103830 | 20m | FT8 | -01 | -05 | KO59 |
| E71DOC | 20260418 | 104330 | 20m | FT8 | +03 | -08 | JN94 |
| OH8JEP | 20260418 | 104945 | 20m | FT8 | -05 | -09 | KP24 |
| YO4GIY | 20260418 | 105745 | 15m | FT8 | +01 | -20 | KN43 |
| EA1C | 20260418 | 110330 | 30m | FT8 | -06 | +07 | IN82 |
| IU0KNS | 20260418 | 113600 | 20m | FT8 | -01 | -12 | JN62 |
| F4LWD | 20260418 | 115330 | 20m | FT8 | +14 | -05 | JN03 |
| IU4UWH | 20260418 | 120545 | 20m | FT8 | -11 | -11 |