Canadian Island Activating Rules

GENERAL In order to have more commonality between the US Islands organization and our Canadian one, we have chosen to base our rules on the US rules, with minor changes. ISLAND CRITERIA All freshwater and/or saltwater islands within the ten (10) provinces and three (3) territories qualify for Canadian Island Activating (CIA) if the following conditions are met:

1.	The island is totally surrounded by water and is a minimum of 50 feet long in any direction (including height) and a minimum of 50 feet from the main shoreline at DXpedition time.  These distances are approximate and shall be at the discretion of the operator.  Bridges and narrow causeways linking the island to the mainland or other islands are acceptable.  Please ensure that the island is not a peninsula. CIA encourages Island Hopping, activating multiple islands in a day or weekend.
2.	Operation from boats, ships, etc. is allowed as long as some part of the radio station (transceiver, antenna, feed-line or power supply) is physically located on the island.
3.	The name of the body of water, lake, river or sea, must be listed on a map. The island must be present on a map, including aerial images like Google maps. The island name should appear on a map of some type, preferably in the Canadian Topographical Map series, or as a minimum be known locally.  First-time qualifiers must coordinate the "official" CIA name with the Webmaster. Please supply the Webmaster with an accurate Maidenhead Grid for the island location.
4.	All provincial and territorial islands that meet 1 through 3 above must be qualified to receive a CIA number.

EXCEPTION:

            To be recognized as a valid activation, physical presence on the island is

          required.  However there are extenuating circumstances where this may not     

          be possible.  Consequently, we additionally recognize stations operating 

          under the "1000 metre Rule".

          Briefly stated, this rule states that any operation within a 1000 metre 

          distance of the island is valid, subject to the following:

              1.  If the island is not accessible to the public at all, or is in private hands 

                   and has restricted access, or is a wildlife preserve and is closed to the 

                   public; and

              2.  If due to infirmity, or age, or disability, a person is unable to reach the 

                   island proper via boat or canoe.

           We find this to be consistent with our stated purpose of recognizing an 

           island, and allowing all hams to fully take part in the Canadian Islands 

           Activators Program.

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.	The Webmaster will assign numbers for all islands according to province, territory, and type. Example: SK001, NL010 or NL012 where SK and NL are the provincial abbreviations for Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador, and the number is a consecutive qualification number issued.
2.	All the HF amateur bands are acceptable including WARC and any mode can be used. 6-meter contacts, and 2-metre simplex contacts are allowed. Cross-band, cross-mode, or satellite contacts are not allowed. The unofficial CIA operating frequencies are 7.250, 14.250-14.260, 21.350,  28.450 mHz phone plus your favorite CW or digital frequency.  The frequencies should be easy to remember as most of them end in 50! Those frequencies should be used for CIA DXpeditions and to pass CIA info. The frequency range of 14250 to 14260 kHz has become known as the ISLAND CORRIDOR. Note: 14.260 should be reserved for, and given way to IOTA (Islands On The Air) operations.
3.	If you're planning an island expedition, contact the Webmaster in advance so an island number can be issued beforehand and the details will appear on the CIA calendar.
4.	Once you have qualified a new island, email the Webmaster with a summary statement of your operation. "VE9XXX made 40 QSOs with 4 DXCC countries from NB077."

QUALIFICATION Qualification is the initial, first-time operation from a Canadian island authorized and numbered by the Webmaster.  In advance of the qualifying operations, the Webmaster will assign the island a CIA number (ie: MB099, Lake John, Manitoba) if required.  If the island is already on the CIA Island Directory, just notify the webmaster of your pending expedition.  An island is only qualified once. The Webmaster will retain your call sign as the person who qualified the island.  Islands can be qualified by an individual or a team. The CIA requires one "Team" call sign be used for all qualifying operations. Such as a club call, or the call of one of the operators. (All operators will receive credit for qualifying a new island). In order to qualify a new Canadian island, a minimum of 15 contacts including at least 2 different DXCC entities are required.  Example: contacts with Canada and the U.S. count as the two DXCC entities.  Until you reach the magic 15 QSOs during your qualification operations, we ask that you only use the term "ON new or BC new" and the island name. Once qualified (15 QSOs), the official number may be given out (such as BC099). You are encouraged to make more than just the minimum contacts.  The CIA and island hunting has a large following. This will give others a chance to add your island because of propagation changes.  ACTIVATION Activation is any subsequent operations from a qualified Canadian island. You are NOT required to contact the Webmaster to activate an island.  It’s a good thing to do however this way your activation details are posted on the Blogsite and on several other social media platforms for other amateurs to know how to make contact with you. There is no minimum number of QSOs required for an activation. An island expedition can include qualifying one island and activating another island. No summary statement is required for activations. Please contact the Webmaster in advance of your activation so a notice can be published on the CIA Blog page.

So, "what do I need to do to qualify an island", you say? Study the Island Directory or your local charts or maps. Spend time online with Google Earth or maps. Contact and work with the Webmaster in advance for verification and acceptance and then go out and do it!!! Remember to give advance notice for the Blog, and if you can on the DX Cluster, so we all have a shot at working you. Don't forget to take some photos of your own and send them in for the site..

CONCLUSION CIA assumes no liability or responsibility in administering this program nor do they make any guarantees of any kind. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome - improvement ideas are especially appreciated.  CIA will be changing as we grow to make island collecting even more exciting!  HAVE FUN CHASING ISLANDS!