Yet another five stars day on ten meters. The band sounded open already at 8.00 UTC. I did my first QSO on 28 MHz at 9.45, with US5ZCW passing me 5/8 from Ukraine. Then, at 10.19 UTC Turkey was a first signal of skip getting longer. TA3CY from Izmir had me 5/3. Then, two others QSO, always from eastern Europe, with the channels starting to be really crowded: UR5ET (5/8), and RU3ZG (5/5). The pattern was looking like the one we experienced in the last weeks (propagation gradually opening to the East, then "switching" to central and northern america), and SV8/HB9AAI at 10.55 was another nice contact (and he even gave me a beautiful 5/9). Then, the unexpected and so far unheard (for me, obviously) happened. At 11.17 UTC, on 28494,8 kHz, a voice in English deserved more attention, due to its accent. It paid, as it turned out to be VK6EH. He didn't hear me, but it was a pleasure to stay on the channel and listen to him work his long way to Europe on ten meters. Not the strongest signal ever, but readable, and hey… when has it been the last time you heard "down under" on 28 MHz? Pushing "record" was a natural pulse.
 

I stayed on Wayne's signal some more minutes (probably, my best ever QRB on this band, as an SWL), then decided to move, but finger remained shortly on the dial. 28527 revealed at 11.17 UTC a strong station, working a pile-up that wasn't terrible at the beginning. However, just the time to give out three or four times the callsign, and 8Q7DV (an Urali team in the Maldives) ended buried under calls from Europe. Let's check the last part of this clip to understand what "rapidly gaining popularity" means (and on 10 meters you don't know how it will last, so that's why everybody's hurry to work the DX).
 

I took a break to have lunch, and when I came back to the shack, propagation was still sparkling, with some arabic peninsula stations booming in. Many of them were working split, and had lots of callers. A61UU has been the one who heard me, at 12.47 UTC. As for all my QSOs, I'm proud as I made it with a vertical homebrew antenna (the "fishing rod" by my elmer IX1VKK) and nominal 100 watts. QRB to Ajman, QTH for A61UU, is 4809 km, which is my 2nd ever long distance contact on 28 MHz. I had from Abdul a fine 5/8, and I passed him the same. It wasn't the first time I worked A61, but everything on ten has a particular taste, given by the unpredictability of the propagation.
 

By 13.00 UTC, the band was alive with north and south American stations. I tried the big hit, and succeeded only partly. LU5FF did hear me indeed, but even if I litterally shouted in the microphone any time he asked me to repeat my prefix, I didn't manage to have him read my "X" between "I" and "1". He ended the QSO by passing 5/5 to I1CKN. I know he copied me, and this makes for even more satisfaction (two continents other than mine, in a single day!), but I don't think I'm properly in his log. However, this has probably been the best ten meters opening in the serie that started some two weeks ago. Sadly, switching from Daylight Saving Time will easily make the party end, with much more obscurity each day. So let's take every opportunity the next days will bring. To put it with a Tweet I read yesterday night: DX is everywhere on 10 these days!

73,
Chris