Every amateur radio operating event this month, described in plain English. No jargon, no assumed knowledge — just what's happening on the bands, when, and what it's actually like. Updated monthly.
October 17–18, 2026 · below-market gear that gets you into the action
A worldwide RTTY weekend run out of Japan — your age is the exchange. Never run RTTY? A digital interface and a quiet Saturday is the whole on-ramp.
Scouts worldwide get on the air — no scores, no exchanges, just kids discovering radio.
Two state parties in one weekend — chase New York counties Saturday, all 102 Illinois counties Sunday. A real HF contest-grade rig earns its keep here.
Work German stations for DOK district multipliers on CW and SSB — 20 and 15 meters will be full of Europe all weekend.
October 24–25, 2026 · CQ WW DX Contest, SSB
The last full weekend of October is CQ World Wide weekend — the biggest phone weekend in ham radio. For 48 hours, tens of thousands of stations on every continent get on the air, 160 through 10 meters.
Here’s the thing: you don’t have to be “in the contest.” No score-keeping, no exchanges to learn, no log to submit. When that many stations are calling CQ, the bands turn into the easiest DX hunting of the year. Answer a CQ, trade signal reports, log the contact, move on. The pileups do the work for you.
10 meters — manage expectations. We’re past the peak of Solar Cycle 25 (the peak was around late 2024), and the solar flux is running around 100 — down from over 300 at the height of the cycle. Daytime openings still happen, and a weekend this big pulls out every station with a 10-meter antenna, but it isn’t the wall-to-wall band it was two years ago. Check it around midday; don’t live there.
15 and 20 meters — the workhorses. Twenty is where most of the action will be, from daylight into the early evening. Fifteen opens when the sun cooperates — midday is your window.
40 meters — carries the evening. Comes alive in the late afternoon and stays open deep into the night. On a big weekend, 40 barely closes at all.
80 and 160 meters — after dark, the low bands wake up. Here’s the seasonal bonus: the nights are getting longer, and longer nights are exactly what the low bands want. From here through December, 80 and 160 get a little better every week — this is the start of the winter low-band season. If you’ve never tried 160, a weekend with this much activity is the gentlest possible introduction. Everybody’s listening.
October 24–25 is the single most target-rich weekend of the fall. Dust off whatever HF rig you have, match the band to the hour, and get on. Nobody’s asking you to compete — just be on the air while the world is.
Sources: CQ WW DX Contest, SSB — last full weekend of October each year (Oct 24–25, 2026); solar data from RSGB Propagation News, September 2026 (solar flux near 100, down from 300+ at the Cycle 25 peak); low-band seasonal improvement is the normal autumn pattern.
All dates verified for 2026 where noted
Weekend RTTY sprint in multiple operating periods; your 4-character grid square is the exchange.
Work stations across Scandinavia on HF phone — one of Europe's biggest activity weekends.
24 hours, 10 meters only, all modes welcome.
Hunt all 15 Arizona counties on CW, phone, and digital.
One of the biggest state QSO parties; runs in two sessions, Saturday plus Sunday afternoon.
A smaller, friendly state party — good county-hunting without the pileups.
Work Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific islands on CW, 160 through 10 meters.
Low power earns big score multipliers — the QRP crowd's weekend (24 operating hours max).
Work New York counties on phone and CW, Saturday daytime into the evening.
Worldwide RTTY contest run by the Japanese Amateur Radio Teleprinter Society.
Expected date — follows the traditional third-weekend slot.
Work German stations for DOK district multipliers on CW and SSB.
Expected date — follows the traditional third-weekend slot.
Scouts worldwide get on the air. Not a contest — all bands and modes, great for casual contacts.
One-day Sunday sprint for all 102 Illinois counties, phone and CW.
School clubs and students on the air all week — work the kids.
The big one: 48 hours of worldwide phone DX on 160–10m, tens of thousands of participants.
Moonbounce weekend for VHF/UHF weak-signal operators, 50 through 1296 MHz.
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