SolarPowered Ham Radio Field Station

Hello Operators This is Julian OH8STN from the YouTube chsnnel "OH8STN". Last year I started a journey to build an all weather, solar powered, field station to support my qrp portable field operations. This idea was born out of many years suffering the elements up here at 65° North, for my love of amateur field communications, and to bring interesting new ham radio content to the community. After the April 2017 RaDAR Challenge, I realized I couldn't continue suffering the elements without a proper field station to protect myself and gear from the harsh winters. So it was time to build a shelter, portable power, heat, and all the other gear that goes along with building a man portable Field Station. This has been a long journey, but an exciting one which I've shared with the ham radio community on YouTube. So far I've been able to collect a hot tipi tent, build pulk sled, antennas, thin-film solar panels, telescopic mast, LED lighting, firestarters, and lots of other small things that go into building a lightweight yet capable field station. What I'm lacking is a more capable radio for the station. I planned on a Yaesu FT-857D as the basis for portable field radio. I chose this rig because of its long history, low rx current draw (compared to other rigs in its class), and ability to be modded into a field deployable rig. Of course other options are the Icom 7200, but it might need to go on a diet before that. Another option is the mcHF, which would be ideal for size and weight. Also the Elecraft KX2 or KX3, but may very well be out of the budget for the moment. The simple fact is whatever I can raise through this campaign, will put me closer to getting the field station completed. Why do I need a second radio? If you've watched me on YouTube, you know I have the Yaesu ft-817nd. It's an excellent rig and I love working qrp however. Living so far north and operating qrp is a challenge I readily accept. Though sometimes it's necessary to reach out with a little louder voice, in order to establish effective digital communications with stations beyond my current reach. A second rig would also enable me to carry out more advanced experiments for the channel, and share more regularly. Finally, a second radio would help reduce the workload on my little 817, which has been in champ for all these years. Many thanks to all of you. 73 Julian oh8stn