I'm missing Zone 34 on 80 m, and there is just NO 80 m CW activity from that Zone
Yep. I have been informally keeping track of a second 5BWAZ since I came to Arizona and that's the one slot I am still missing. If I somehow get it reasonably soon, I would have done it in about one sunspot cycle. But, of course, experience helps in this game. (The "second time" has a small asterisk as it includes a handful of tough zones from my original. But as an art-of-the-possible statement, it says something).
Still, the 80m situation on zone 34 is part of the game. Even a decade is a long time, in the end. But, being shut out of various zones, especially on 80m, due to either low activity or low activity when you are in darkness is a major thing. I spent a long time chasing zone 23 on both 10 and 80 meters. Easier now than it once was, but "easier", not "easy".
This is why it is so hard to be dogmatic about modes. Sometimes, you have to take what's there. Sometimes, you have to
wait for something to be there.
Not everyone is active on 80 and not everyone has a good station. And, oh by the way, a lot of the activity on the low bands is moving to FT8. So if there's only one station that's active when you have prop, you'd better work
their mode. Nowadays, that's very often FT8.
Or, you can wait. And wait. And wait. And maybe take the dirt nap while waiting. Your choice. But, the devil of this award is that even if you need but 40 slots per band, there are bands for which there is scant activity and for which you might only have mutual propagation for a few hours a day, a few seasons a year. Or, peak sunspots only.
That's why the awards is hard and why I never gave a hoot about mode.