Mark your calendar: 2012 Jamboree on the Air/Internet dates released

Scouters, do you copy?

I have an important message: This year’s Jamboree on the Air will be held Oct. 20 and 21, 2012.

What is Jamboree on the Air? Like the national jamboree, it’s a chance for Scouts to connect with fellow Scouts from other places.

But unlike its older cousin, Jamboree on the Air requires no travel — other than to find a ham radio shack nearby. Scouts use long-range, two-way ham radios to have conversations with other Scouts in another city, state, or country.

To get started, first check out the BSA’s official page.

There you’ll find complete details, including how to find a local American Radio Relay League (ARRL) club near you.

As I told you in February 2011, the BSA and the ARRL have an official partnership. That means you shouldn’t have trouble finding out about ham stations set up at camporees or other events near you.

Just contact your local council or a nearby ARRL club and ask what’s planned. If something’s already scheduled, all the work is done for you! Just head out with your unit.

But if there are no planned activities in your district or council, contact a local radio operator and ask to visit his/her ham shack during JOTA weekend.

Jamboree on the Internet

There’s also the related event Jamboree on the Internet held the same weekend. Unlike JOTA, you don’t need to know someone with a ham radio license to participate.

I’ll have more details on JOTA and JOTI in the coming months.

But for now, that’s it. As they say: “Over and out!”

What do you think?

Has your unit participated in JOTA or JOTI in the past? What worked, and what didn’t? Leave your thought below.


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.