You have that new or in some cases old Tech license and you want to try HF, the only problem is we are at the bottom of the sunspot cycle and 10 meters is dead. Well, that's not really true, 10 meters is very active even at the bottom of the sunspot cycle.  During E-Skip (Sporadic E) season the band can generate very good long and short skip openings on an almost daily basis. Ten meters is a great band for beginners, with many friendly OT's and loads of newly licensed hams it is a great way to learn good operating skills.