@Elizafox The hobby is what you make it. We're seeing a big generational shift, which is good. Still mostly dudes though, but maybe that'll change given the makeup of YOTA.

We have an OStatus group for hams on this instance: !amateur

If propagation is your main interest then you might want to know there's automated tools for that. Check out #WSPR. There's some neat hardware for it, like UltimateS3 from QRP labs: http://www.qrp-labs.com/ultimate3/u3s.html

Personally I'm most interested in digital modes. I'm also a somewhat active contributor to #FreeDV, a libre digital voice system 😊