Kvarnberget (The Mill Hill) is a hilltop located in Vallentuna north of Stockholm. The location was originally used by the then Swedish Defense Research Institute (FOA), which used it for troposphere experiments.

In the beginning…


In 1956 FOA started continuous measurements on the frequency 3000 MHz with Kvarnberget as the transmitting station and the City Mora and the village Särna in Dalarna (Dalecarlia), about 300 respectively 400 kilometres away, as receiving stations. The objective was to gain knowledge of radio signal behaviour in the troposphere. Later on, in 1960, another link was also established on the 1000 MHz-band. Also some meteor scatter research has taken place at Kvarnberget.The equipment at Kvarnberget consisted of one transmitter with 800 W continuous power and a 10 meters parabolic dish on 1000 MHz and one transmitter with 500 kW pulse power and a 3 meters dish on 3000 MHz. The research resulted in several important pieces of knowledge on radio propagation, and a number of publications and formulas was presented.
But everything needs to have an end. In 1978 FOA moved all its operations in this field to the city Linköping, and also all the activities at Kvarnberget then was closed down. A 22-year long period was over.
swedenmap

 

In 1956 FOA started continuous measurements on the frequency 3000 MHz with Kvarnberget as the transmitting station and the City Mora and the village Särna in Dalarna (Dalecarlia) as receiving stations.

 

The Amateur era


Thanks to a number of curious hams, this fantastic QTH was discovered by radio amateurs.
Calle SM5BF (SK), Affe SM5IQ (SK) and Bengt SMØHBV (SK), all members of Täby Sändareamatörer (TSA), are the people who are to be credited, and in 1982 after negotiations with FOA, hams were allowed to lease the hilltop.  It was decided that the cost for Kvarnberget should be shared between TSA, Stockholms Radioamatörer (SRA) and Sollentuna Amatörradioklubb (SAK).
 parabol

 

 

 An intensive activity then took place to fix up the buildings and structures to make them suitable for ham use. New towers and antennas were erected and cables installed, and there were some time left for a few QSOs! Naturally, the 10 meters parabolic dish that FOA had used for its experiments and left in place was also tried on 1296 MHz. But since it was very hard to rotate, results were not as good as expected.Another milestone in the history of Kvarnberget was 1993. The lease and the ownership of all the buildings were then transferred from FOA to TSA. Now the mountain was completely in the considerate care of hams. On 31st of August, 1993, the big 10 meters parabolic antenna was cut down, since there was actually no use of this antenna and the tower began to get serious damaged by corrosion. The well-known silhouette by Kvarnberget was changed, but still you can find the dish in our logo.
Kvarnbergets Amatörradioförening
Local hams as well as radio clubs was invited to buy shares in Kvarnberget in an appeal in QTC no. 7/1993, the magazine of Sveriges Sändareamatörer (SSA), the Swedish Amateur Radio Society. In the beginning of 1994, the club Kvarnbergets Amatörradioförening was founded, and a foundation was established to manage a capital fund to secure this fabulous QTH for the future. At present, we have 41 shareholders.Any ham who shares the club’s purposes may become a member or a donor to the fund. At present, the membership stands at SEK 300 :-. The clubs mentioned above (TSA, SRA and SAK) and Amatörradioklubben vid Ericsson Radio Systems AB, SK0CT agreed to pay a fixed amount every year to the club. SAK was discontinued in 1998 and TSA in 2003, but the remaining 2 clubs still support Kvarnberget.
ssalogo

Local hams as well as radio clubs was invited to buy shares in Kvarnberget in an appeal in QTC no. 7/1993, the magazine of Sveriges Sändareamatörer (SSA), the Swedish Amateur Radio Society. 

 

Today – Tomorrow
More and more towers and antennas are being built on Kvarnberget. Today we are one of the best QTHs in Sweden, with an impressive range of antennas. It is probably unique in the world  in having antennas on all HF and VUSHF amateur bands, from 1.8 MHz to 10 GHz. The aim is to promote advanced experiments in the area of antennas, propagations and ham radio-related innovations. The callsign SKØUX and SJØX is often heard on the air, both on the HF and the VUSHF-bands. Our primary objective is to provide our members with a good QTH and a good set of antennas. Rigs are not provided by the club. You should bring your own equipment and simply plug it in.

Currently we are leasing the land from the local municipality Vallentuna Kommun but that is somewhat insecure. We are  therefore continuously working on finding a permanent solution to keep this mountain as a nest for radio amateurs for years to come.

Thanks to Bengt SM0HBV, Affe SM5IQ and Danny SM0NBJ for the historical facts and to Göran SM0DRD for help with the proofread.