N1JI - Concord, NH

Reasons for Learning & Using CW

CW Gets Through When Voice Can't
A CW signal can be heard long after a voice signal of the same power fades into the noise. If you're interested in QRP, you will be much more successful with CW than with phone.
"Low Impact" Amateur Radio
If you're wearing headphones, your QSOs can be almost totally silent to someone near you. My shack is in our bedroom and I've had many QSOs while my wife sleeps, undisturbed, a few feet away. Which scenario is more likely to portray a positive image of Amateur Radio to a hiker; Someone yelling "QRN!" into a microphone at the top of a beautiful mountain, or a person quietly listening to his/her radio with headphones and tapping softly on a straight key?
Sense of Accomplishment
It can take years to become truly proficient at CW. The sense of accomplishment I feel after making a CW QSO is far greater than any QSOs I've had on phone.
CW Can Be Sent Many Different Ways
You can communicate with CW using radio, flashlights, car horns, smoke signals, etc. Basically, anything that can be turned on and off can be used to send CW.
There is a Lot of CW Activity on the Ham Bands
Take a listen during the ARRL DX Contest, or CQ WPX... There are hundreds of thousands of Hams still using CW every day and they're waiting to talk to you.