To further enhance island chasing, several west-coast amateurs got together and in September of 1994 created the "United States Island Award Program". The US-I program covers inland fresh water river and lake islands plus selected saltwater islands around the county. Certain criteria were set forth in order to "qualify" an island for inclusion in the program, such as minimum size (100 feet long in any direction) and a minimum distance of 50 feet from all shore lines. If the island is connected to the mainland by a bridge or causeway, fine, as long as the 50 feet separation rule is met. (Not to mention, it's a whole lot easier to get to and operate from!)
The goal here is rather straight forward; to promote a simple and effective system of state island collecting in a professional manner, operated totally on "the honor system". You don't have to send in your QSL cards for verification when submitting for an award, just simply fill-out the necessary form and the appropriate fee. Hence, the honor system. This also applies to the location you operate from. The island must meet the requirements, and above all, BE an island. Here in Maryland, we have many communities with "island" in their names, such as Solomans Island and Broomes Island, but know them not to be islands in the physical sense (not totally surrounded by water). Another consideration is access to the island, It must be open to the public at all times (or a minimum be open a part of the day or night, such as state parks.) This "access" requirement has led to the removal of Gibson Island from the list of Maryland islands because it is a private community and not open to the public.
We here in the Baltimore/Annapolis/D.C. area are fortunate to have a number of islands available to us for a mini-expedition, many within a two-hour drive. Kent Island comes immediately to mind, just a short ride over the Bay Bridge. Not only does Kent Island qualify for the US-I award (its identifier is MD-04S), it also counts for IOTA as NA-140. Two for one...you can't beat that! Of course, not all the islands in Chesapeake Bay meet the requirements for both awards, but most bay islands qualify for the US-I award and that is our focus here. You don't even have to venture over the bridge. Head for our Nations Capitol. That's right, Columbia Island, sitting in the middle of the Potomac River counts for US-I as DC-001R! Its that easy to go on "an expedition" and create your own pile-up.
Since this is an "award" program, what are they? The Basic Award Certificate is for working 100 islands, with intermediate awards for working 300 and 500 US islands. Plaques are awarded for the truly ambitious who manage to work 1000 US islands. You can get yourself a free certificate by activating 10 islands. So the incentive is there. As they say on TV, all you have to do is "just do it".
If you want further information concerning the US-I Award Program, contact the program director, John Reisenauer, Jr. NL7TB, RT-2 Box 2161, Benton City, Washington, 99320. Happy island hunting!
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Last Update 23 July, 1996