One of the first awards many new hams chase is ARRL's Worked All States awards. The basic rules for US amateurs include:
You must be a member of the ARRL
The District of Colombia can count as Maryland
All contacts must be made from within 50 miles of each location
There is no time limit
No contacts can be made with repeaters
While you can use QSL cards to confirm contacts, it is much easier to signup and use ARRL's Logbook of The World.
There are different types of WAS awards to challenge you. Mixed WAS for any combination of modes, Phone WAS for any voice mode, CW WAS for Morse Code, RTTY WAS using all RTTY mode, Digital WAS for any digital mode (FT-8, FT-4, PSK31, RTTY, etc.), and Satellite WAS using any satellite, plus many more.
To help you make contact with states across the country below are a few WAS Nets that can help you achieve your goals. Most of these nets use a program called NetLogger, and it is a valuable tool for participating in these nets.
Daily nets on 20m, 40, 75/80, and 160m in SSB, RTTY, PSK and CW modes
Daily Phone nets on 20m, 40m, and 80m. Additional nets on Saturday and Sunday include 10m, 12m, 15m, 17, 40m, 80m, and 160m.
