Randy Wade (AF5RW) posted in our White River Radio & Communications Facebook group that he has all the states for POTA except Hawaii and was asking for tips on catching a Hawaii activation on SSB or CW.
I was in the same boat not too long ago, and here’s exactly what I did to finally snag Hawaii. I’m posting it here for Randy and anyone else who’s still hunting KH6 for their log.
Step 1 – Get a List of All Hawaii POTA Parks
We want HamAlert to notify us only when a Hawaii POTA park comes on the air. To do that, we need the list of Hawaii park reference numbers.
- Go to: https://pota.app/all_parks.csv (You may need to be logged in or have JavaScript enabled to pull this.)
- Open the file in a spreadsheet editor like Excel or Google Sheets.
- Filter the “Country-State” column for US-HI (Hawaii).
- Copy the list of Park Reference numbers (e.g., US-0037, US-1234…). (Right now there are 103 parks in Hawaii.)
Step 2 – Create a HamAlert Account
If you don’t already have one:
- Go to https://hamalert.org
- Sign up for a free account.
Step 3 – Install the HamAlert App and Log In
HamAlert is what delivers the alerts to your phone when a Hawaii POTA park is spotted.
Download the app:
- iPhone/iPad: Search “HamAlert” in the App Store (by Manuel Kasper).
- Android: Search “HamAlert” in Google Play.
Log in:
- Use the same username/password you created at hamalert.org.
- Allow Notifications when prompted — that’s what enables instant push alerts.
Step 4 – Create a Hawaii POTA Trigger
(Tip: I find it much easier to set up everything using the HamAlert website on a computer or tablet instead of doing it all on the phone. Once the triggers are created online, you can just enable push notifications in the mobile app.)
- Log in to hamalert.org.
- Go to Triggers and click the + to add a new one.
- In Conditions:
- Mode: Select SSB and CW.
- Park reference list: Paste in your Hawaii park reference numbers.
- Under Actions:
- Check App (this sends a push notification to your phone).
- Name it something like Hawaii POTA Hunt and save.
Step 5 – About Email Alerts
HamAlert used to offer direct email delivery, but that feature has been removed.
If you want email alerts instead of (or in addition to) push notifications, you can:
- Use the URL notification option in HamAlert to send data to a service like IFTTT, Pushover, or Zapier, and have that service email you.
- Or, just rely on the HamAlert app’s push notifications — they’re fast and don’t get caught in spam filters.
Step 6 – Sit Back and Wait
Now, anytime a Hawaii POTA activation is spotted on SSB or CW, HamAlert will ping your phone.
When that alert comes in — drop everything and call them before the pileup gets too big.
Got a trick for catching rare POTA parks? Share it in the comments — your tip might be the one that helps someone land their next big contact!
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