What is your proudest moment, as a QRP operator? Tell your story in this thread!!
As for me, I was a grad student at Colorado State in the late 70's. I had a General license, and a Galaxy V transceiver, but I was living in married student housing, and no way would an antenna for such a QRO unit would be allowed. So, I scraped up $138, and got a HW-8 and power supply. My "antenna" was a #28 wire, painted flat-black, with a fish hook on the end, running from my 2nd-story apartment to the sill of out building...essentially invisible. The transmatch was a home-made L-network, made out of a peanut butter jar used as a coil form and a 365 pF tuning capacitor from an old AM radio.
Using the Hot Water Eight, and that antenna, I worked 40 states, mostly on 40 meters. But one QSO stood out. It was a QSO between me, in Fort Collins, CO, and a ham in Ohio. And, by now, you're thinking...not so remarkable. But, here is what made it remarkable....my antenna had blown down in a blizzard, and was laying on the ground, covered by 18 inches of snow!!
So, what is your proudest moment as a QRP operator? Please share!!