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Cape Linked Repeater Network

Repeaters:

CTARC participates with and contribute towards the Western Cape Repeater Working Group, an inter-club initiative that maintains the repeaters in the Western Cape. Together with their counterparts in the Eastern Cape, the WCRWG has put together an impressive network of linked repeaters which runs all the way to the Transkei. More info on the WCRWG website.

The Network

Local Radio Amateurs are helped and hindered by having so many high mountain ranges in and around the Cape Peninsula. The hindrance is the relative difficulty with simplex VHF/UHF operation, but the help is the availability of many high sites where repeaters can be accommodated. A further advantage is that Amateur Radio in the Western Cape has access to some of the prime repeater sites by courtesy of official and commercial site owners and operators.

Current Repeater Network Status

Weekly bulletins of the current status of the repeater network in the Western Cape are published on the WCRWG website here.

Repeater Network Documentation

We are fortunate to have a large network of interlinked repeaters that stretches from Cape Town to the Eastern Cape and Transkei. The repeaters are linked by UHF relays and the links between different repeaters can be turned on and off using DTMF tones.

Most Popular Cape Town Repeaters

Diagrams of the current repeater stations are on the WCRWG website here

The most popular repeaters in the Cape Town area are:

• the 145.750 MHz repeater on Kanonkop, which provides good coverage of most areas excluding the Atlantic Seaboard. It is used to transmit the CTARC bulletin on Sunday mornings at 08h30, the CTARC Monday evening sked at 20h00, as well as for general QSO purposes. This open repeater does not require an 88.5 Hz CTCSS tone for access.;
  
  
• the 145.700 MHz repeater on Constantiaberg which is mostly used for scheduled nets like Hamnet which has a bulletin every Wednesday at 19:30. An 88.5 Hz CTCSS tone is required to activate the 145.700 MHz repeater.
  
  In both cases these repeaters operate with a transmit offset of -600 KHz.

Visitors to the Cape are welcome to use both of these repeaters. Please observe normal repeater etiquette and ensure that you leave a two second pause between transmissions for breakers or emergency traffic.

Support the 145.750 MHz Repeater

If you use the Cape Town Amateur Radio Centre's repeater on 145.750 MHz, please consider helping to support this popular repeater.

Your money donations can be paid to the CTARC Repeater Fund, and not just the WCRWG (see below). These funds help pay for repeater maintenance and for acquisition and installation of new equipment.

Please send your donations directly to our club account with the reference: "CTARC Repeater Fund" to the following bank account:

• Account Name – Cape Town Amateur Radio Centre
  Bank – Standard Bank
  Branch – CLAREMONT
  Type of account: Current Account
  Branch Code – 025 109
  Account Number – 072 561 580

Western Cape Repeater Working Group

The Western Cape's repeaters are owned and operated by the Amateur Radio clubs in the Peninsula. The Western Cape Repeater Working Group (WCRWG) was formed to co-ordinate the management of operating a repeater network of this magnitude and calibre.

Each of the radio clubs have one or more representatives serving on the working group where technical service, operational issues, licensing and network upgrading and expansion are discussed. The working group draws on the technical and management skills of club members to execute its task as custodian of the network.

Western Cape Repeater Fund

The Repeater Working Group also manages the Western Cape Repeater Fund which funds the expenses of repeater operations, regular maintenance and network improvement and expansion.

The Repeater Working Group encourages individual repeater users to make contributions for their use of the system. These contributions may be made monthly or annually and should be forwarded to the postal address. Direct bank transfers are possible too.

Users can also contribute to the repeater fund by joining one of the Amateur Radio clubs in the Cape Peninsula. These radio clubs provide most of the income by contributing to the repeater fund from their club fees.

Details are on the Western Cape Repeater Working Group website.

Join your local radio club and support the repeater network.