Tropo Returns With A Bang!

A nice bit of tropospheric activity graced the FM broadcast band today! While no big distances were achieved there were some good signals levels with many continental stations at instant RDS levels!  

 97.4 0739  F  France Culture, Abbeville/Limeux (80) OMs in school, as 98  364km
 98.5 0739  F  France Culture, Sens/Gisy-les-Nobles (89) oMs in school, as 98  577km
 95.1 0742  D  WDR 3, Langenberg/Hordtberg (nrw) WDR_3___ Over Norfolk  505km
 94.8 0743  D  SWR3, Linz/Ginsterhahn (rlp) Soft pops, as web  560km
 93.8 0744  F  France Musique, Sens/Gisy-les-Nobles (89) Classical, as 88.7  577km
 96.3 0745  F  France Inter, Sens/Gisy-les-Nobles (89) IN talk, as 103.7  577km **
 93.3 0747  D  WDR 2, Kleve/Bresserberg (nrw) YL report, as web stream  421km
 92.9 0749  F  France Musique, Villers-Cotterêts/Fleury (02) Classical, as 88.7  474km
 92.1 0750  F  France Inter, Verdun/Septsarges (55) YL talk, as 103.7  548km
 89.5 0755  F  France Culture, Auxerre/Molesmes (89) OM, as 98.0  655km
 89.6 0755  F  France Culture, Villers-Cotterêts/Fleury (02) OM, as 89.5  474km
107.2 0756  D  WDR Eins Live, Ederkopf (nrw) Pops, as 106.7  593km
107.4 0757  D  Radio Wuppertal, Wuppertal/Westfalenweg (nrw) German pops, as web  508km
106.7 0812 BEL City Music, Aalst/Hofstade (vlg-ovl) Owl City song, as web stream  351km
104.0 0818 BEL Bel RTL, Bruxelles/Hilton Hotel (brc) YLs serious talk, as web  378km
107.1 0819  F  France Bleu 107.1, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75) YL  OM talk, as web stream  497km
 98.7 0836  D  AFN Wiesbaden-The Eagle, Großer Feldberg (Taunus)/hr (hes) ID. US OM and pops  648km
 97.2 0838  F  France Musique, Hirson/Landouzy-la-Ville (02) Cassical, as 88.7  446km
 94.4 0840  F  France Inter, Hirson/Landouzy-la-Ville (02) French song, as 103.7  446km
 91.8 0841  F  France Musique, Bourges/Neuvy (18) Classical, as others  672km
107.2 0844 BEL Radio Bingo, Roeselare/Zilverberg (vlg-wvl) Radio Bingo IDs  313km
 87.6 0848  F  RTL, Béthune-Lens/Bouvigny-Boyeffles (62) French crooner, as 87.7  343km
 87.7 0849  F  RTL, Saint-Omer/Wisques (62) French crooner, as 87.6 and web stream  299km
 87.6 0850 BEL Nostalgie Vlaanderen, Oostende/Residentie De Mast (vlg-wvl) Oldies, as web stream  278km
 93.0 0850  F  RTL, Lille/Fort de Mons-en-Baroeul (59) Jingle ID in ads  339km
 88.0 0852  F  Fréquence Horizon, Béthune-Lens/Bouvigny-Boyeffles CV11 (62) Horizon ID in phone call  344km
 89.2 0853  F  RTL 2, Lille/Fort de Mons-en-Baroeul (59) Rap, as web stream. Lots of ch channel qrm  339km
 89.6 0856  F  RDL-Radio Dallas Loisirs, Saint-Omer/Racquinghem (62) OMs phone in, as web stream  306km
 89.8 0900 BEL VRT Radio 2, Nieuwkerken-Waas/Watertoren (vlg-ovl) ID and news  343km **
 90.6 0903 BEL Joe FM, Oud-Turnhout/Watertoren Pidpa (vlg-ant) Ashford  Simpson song, as web stream  376km
 91.0 0905 HOL Omroep Brabant, Roosendaal/Alticom Toren (nbr) MJs Rock With You, as web stream  334km
 92.0 0907  F  Radio 6, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont d'Herquelingue (62) Pops, as web stream  288km
 92.1 0908  F  Le Mouv', Paris/Tour Eiffel (75) Le Mouv ID  497km
 92.2 0912  F  RTL 2, Béthune-Lens/Bouvigny-Boyeffles (62) French pops, as web stream  343km **
 93.8 0914 HOL Slam!FM, Megen/Alticom Toren (nbr) Dance song, as web stream  387km
 95.3 0921  F  RMC, Château-Thierry/les Blanchards TDF (02) Jovial OMs on phone, as web stream  502km **
 95.4 0922 HOL BNR Nieuwsradio, Gilze/Prinsenbosch (nbr) Ad break and ID  359km
 96.3 0925 HOL Radio Veronica, Loon op Zand/Alticom Toren (nbr) ID after ad break  366km
100.3 0930 HOL L1 Radio, Roermond/Alticom Toren (lim) L1 Nieuws  443km
100.8 0935  F  Concact, Lens or Valenciennes ID and dance music
101.6 0937  F  RFM, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont Lambert (62) Pops, as web stream  285km
106.7 0940  F  Beur FM, Bagnolet(Paris)/Tour Mercuriales Ouest (93) IDs in OM talk  498km **
107.5 0943 BEL Nostalgie Belge, Braine Le Comte or Boussu-Bois Adverts and ID
 87.8 0945  F  France Bleu Nord, Lille/La Pilaterie (59) Phone in, as 94.7  337km
106.2 0946  F  France Bleu Nord, Calais/Mont d'Hubert (62) Jingle ID and ads  266km
 87.7 1001  D  NDR Info, Flensburg-Engelsby (shs) ID and YL news  627km
 87.9 1002  D  NDR Info, Heide/Welmbüttel (shs) YL news, as 87.7  599km
 90.3 1004  D  WDR 5, Nordhelle (nrw) Fair. ID after news  554km
 91.8 1006  D  WDR 2, Hohe Warte (nrw) ID after news and weather  544km
 92.4 1013  D  SWR1 Rheinland-Pfalz, Linz/Ginsterhahn (rlp) Rolling Stones song, as web stream  560km
107.0 1030  D  WDR Eins Live, Olsberg (nrw) Weather report and ID  592km
106.6 1032  F  Radio Campus Lille, Lille/Cité Scientifique (59) Heavy rock track, as web stream  342km
 88.9 1036 HOL Radio Noord-Holland, Amsterdam/Alticom Toren (nho) OM talk, as web stream  321km
 89.5 1037 HOL 100% NL, Alkmaar or Utrecht OM  YL, as web stream (Suspect Utrecht)
 91.1 1040 HOL Slam!FM, Hilversum/Media Park-Alticom (nho) V good. SLAM_FM_ and scrolling RDS  342km
 91.4 1041  F  Contact, Lille/Mons-en-Baroeul 2 (59) Lady Bla Bla nonsense, as web stream  338km
 92.4 1042 HOL Radio Hollandio, Westdorpe/Verkavelingsweg (zee) Dutch music, as web stream  323km
 93.3 1046 HOL Ujala Radio, Amsterdam/Alticom Toren (nho) Almost noise free. Indian music, as web stream  321km
 93.4 1047 HOL Radio Rijnmond, Rotterdam/Alticom Toren (zho) Kool and The Gang, as web stream  313km
 94.0 1051 BEL RTBF Musiq' 3, Ronquières (wln-hai) Shrill classical strings, as web stream  391km **
 94.6 1100 BEL Radio Maria, Brussel/Albertplein Toren (brc) Vocal ID on the hour  378km **
 95.2 1102 HOL Slam!FM, Alphen aan den Rijn/Alticom Toren (zho) SLAM_FM_ Late news start. ID. V good!  313km
 95.8 1105  ?  UNID, ? Club music station. Distorted. Sounded like it was off-tune
 96.5 1107 HOL 3FM, Several low power sites Tina Turner, As web stream
 97.4 1110  F  Rire et Chansons, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75) OM comedy sketch, as web stream  497km **
107.4 1121 BEL Family Radio, Presumed Oostende Jingle ID
107.5 1123 HOL Scheldemond FM, Oostburg/Watertoren (zee) Two bars but co-channel QRM. As web  296km **
103.4 1126  F  RTL, Charleville-Mézières/Sury (08) ID in local adverts  479km **
107.3 1347 BEL VBRO, Diksmuide/IJzertoren (vlg-wvl) Dutch music, as 107.9  292km
107.9 1351 BEL VBRO, Torhout (vlg-wvl) Dutch music and ID  297km
104.9 1355  F  Europe 1, Rouen, Compiegne or Abbeville Lively OMs chat, as web stream  **
 88.3 1402  F  France Culture, Laval-Evron/Mont Rochard (53) YL, as 88.5  550km
 88.5 1402  F  France Culture, Bourges/Neuvy (18) _CULTURE  672km
 89.8 1403  F  France Musique, Abbeville/Limeux (80) Classical, as 88.7  364km
 89.0 1404  F  France Culture, Le Mans/Mayet (72) YL, as 88.5. Noise free  599km
 91.4 1405  F  France Musique, Troyes/les Riceys (10) Opera, as 88.7  643km
 92.2 1409  F  France Musique, Tours/Chissay [41] (37) OM, as 92.0, etc  646km
 94.6 1412  F  France Inter, Chartres/Montlandon (28) Haydn horm piece, as 103.7  531km
 95.0 1412  F  France Inter, Mantes-la-Jolie/Maudétour [95] (78) Haydn horn piece, as 103.7, etc.  463km
 95.3 1413  F  France Inter, Troyes/les Riceys (10) Haydn horn piece, as 103.7, etc.  643km
 95.5 1414  F  France Musique, Clermont-Ferrand/Puy-de-Dôme (63) Rousing symphony, as 88.7  842km
 98.1 1416  F  France Culture, Chartres/Montlandon (28) YL singing solo, as 98.0  531km
 98.4 1417  F  France Culture, Clermont-Ferrand/Puy-de-Dôme (63) YL singing solo, as 98.0  842km
101.6 1421  F  France Bleu Haute Normandie, Neufchâtel-en-Bray/Croixdalle (76) ID and OM talk  381km
103.2 1422  F  France Bleu Berry, Bourges/Neuvy (18) BLEU.BER OM and phone caller  672km
107.6 1430  G  Vibe FM, Watford/YMCA (EN-HTS) Advertise on Vibe 107.7  173km
 87.9 1431  F  France Culture, Parthenay/les Chateliers (79) French OM over soft music, as 88.0  712km
 88.0 1431  F  France Culture, Alençon/Mont d'Amain (61) French OM over soft music, as web stream  498km
 88.2 1436  F  France Culture, Ussel-Meymac/Mont Bessou (19) YLs, as 88.0  853km
 92.1 1443  F  France Musique, Laval-Evron/Mont Rochard (53) Operatic shrieking, as others  550km
 94.9 1446  F  France Inter, Bourges/Neuvy (18) Rare appearance over BBC Lincolnshire  672km
 95.1 1447  F  France Inter, Laval-Evron/Mont Rochard (53) Peaking over a reduced Norfolk  550km
 99.2 1450  F  France Inter, Orléans/Traînou (45) Operatic shouting, as 103.7  590km
 89.0 1454  F  RFI Paris, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75) YLs discussion, as web stream  497km **
 89.8 1455  F  RDL-Radio Dallas Loisirs, Dunkerque/le Banc Vert (59) 60s song, as 89.6  275km
 91.5 1504  F  Virgin Radio, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont Lambert (62) messed up song, as web stream  285km
 91.8 1514  F  Fun Radio, Amiens/Dury TDF (80) Dance music, as web stream  390km **
 92.8 1515  F  NRJ, Béthune/Fresnicourt-le-Dolmen (62) Pops, as web stream  341km
 92.8 1517  F  Skyrock, Vannes/le Prat (56) Familiar jingle ID and ads, as web stream  647km **
 93.6 1525  F  Virgin Radio, Amiens/Dury TDF (80) Presumed Amiens due to conditions. Coldplay, as web stream  390km **
 93.8 1527  F  Contact, Saint-Omer/Tatinghem (62) Phone in quiz, as web stream  297km
 94.2 1528  F  Contact, Amiens/Dury 3 (80) Phone in quiz as 93.8  391km **
 95.0 1529  F  RTL, Montreuil/le Bois-de-Sel (62) ID and ads, including one for Carrefour!  302km **
 96.4 1535  F  BFM Business, Lille/Fort de Mons-en-Baroeul (59) Stocks et shares, as web stream  339km
 96.5 1536  F  Skyrock, Saint-Omer/Asdoit (62) Phone in quiz as 93.8  296km
 97.8 1538  F  France Bleu Nord, Montreuil/le Bois-de-Sel (62) Boogie woogie song and ID  302km **
 99.0 1548  F  RPL 99FM/RCV, Lille/Lambersart (59) RCV programming, as web stream  334km
100.2 1551  F  France Bleu Picardie, Amiens/Dury Towercast (80) OMs chat, muffled audio, as web stream  390km **
101.3 1555  F  NRJ, Lille/Mons-en-Baroeul 1 (59) Dance beats, as web stream  338km
102.5 1559  F  RFM, Calais/Mont d'Hubert (62) Pops, as 101.6  266km
107.3 1600  F  Skyrock, Evreux/Tour de la Madelaine (27) ID, jingle and pops  464km **
107.5 1606 BEL VBRO, Poperinge (vlg-wvl) Dutch music, as 107.3  304km
 87.9 1617  F  Virgin Radio, Montreuil/le Bois-de-Sel (62) Ad break, ID  302km
 88.2 1627  F  Radio Classique, Lille/Fort de Mons-en-Baroeul (59) OM serious talk, as web stream  339km
105.7 1639  F  France Info, Montreuil/le Bois-de-Sel (62) Presumed site. As other France Infos  302km **
106.7 1641  F  Fun Radio, Hesdin/le Quesnoy-en-Artois (62) ID and Club beats, as web stream  334km
107.0 1643  F  RMC, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont Lambert (62) Very weak, gruff voiced OM as web stream  285km
 90.6 1808  F  France Inter, Nantes/Haute-Goulaine (44) YL and French OM song, as 103.7  675km
 93.8 1810  F  France Inter, Parthenay/les Chateliers (79) French song, as 103.7, etc.  712km
 94.2 1811  F  France Culture, Nantes/Haute-Goulaine (44) Deep voiced OM, as 98.0  675km
100.7 1818  F  France Inter, Guéret/Signal du Maupuy (23) OMs  YL serious talk, as web stream  785km
102.3 1942  F  NRJ, Saint-Omer/Wisques (62) ID in excitable phone in  299km
100.8 1947  F  Contact, Three sites listed Phone in, as web stream
100.6 1953  F  France Bleu Picardie, Abbeville/Limeux (80) ID and pops  364km
 91.8 2006 HOL FunX, Rotterdam/Alticom Toren (zho) Pops, as web stream  313km
 94.2 2221  F  Europe 1, Saint-Omer/Wisques (62) YL phone in, as web stream  299km
 99.4 2226 BEL Topradio, Gent/IVAGO Proeftuinstraat 43 (vlg-ovl) Repetitive club beats, as web  333km
 99.6 2226 HOL Slam!FM, Hoorn/Electronweg (nho) Lady Blah Blahs DX This Way, as 91.1  325km

BOG Test (Beverage On The Ground)

It was a trial run. A DX trip to one of the most secluded places in England: The Wash! Unfortunately I chose a foggy day. 

The Wash is a square-mouthed bay and estuary on the northwest side of East Anglia on the east coast of England. Approximately 20 miles on each side, it is where Norfolk meets Lincolnshire and it is one of the largest estuaries in the United Kingdom. It is fed by the Rivers Witham, Welland, Nene and Great Ouse.

Being one of the most electrically isolated places in the UK, I assumed it would be an ideal place to run out a Beverage antenna. It was! Reception of several countries in the Far East was possible on most frequencies across the medium wave broadcast band. Many of the signals came from Chinese domestic transmitters but it was impossible to know exactly which transmitter was being received in most cases due to co-channel operation. Some signals were so strong as to override European and sometimes English radio stations! As well as China, South Korea, Thailand, The Philippines and even Japan was received. 

This trip was only a trial run and a simple 380 metre beverage was run along the ground towards the north-east, the best direction for receiving the Far East. I employed Bodgitt & Scarper methods throughout as it was a trial run and I wanted to see if reception was good enough to warrant a more robust build in the future.  

I will include a log of stations heard towards the end of this page, but please be patient as it is currently under construction. 

Abandon Hope ... all who run your beverages through here!

The peace and calm of the western shores of The Wash

A lone DXer tunes in to the world

RG58 leaving the mobile shack

RG58 on the ground!

The wire leaves the feed point (I know it's a bodge. This was only a test run)

Can you see the wire?

Termination point

Part of the beverage run

Making Recordings Of Your DX - How Important?

This is another matter which keeps rearing its head from time to time and there are no simple answers to the questions it throws up. Two questions which immediately come to mind are:

1. How important is it to you to make recordings of your DX catches?
2. How important do you think it is to others so they can hear your DX?

For me, personally, I like to have the recorder running when I am DXing because I know there will be times in the future when I would love to hear that DX again and be reminded how it sounded and that it really did happen. For others, it provides proof that you really did hear that DX. But just how important is it for others to be able to hear your DX? Does it really matter if you don't?

No matter how much I ponder this matter I keep arriving at the same conclusion. If you are fortunate enough to hear something rare and exotic on your radio, consider that others might not believe you. This is an unfortunate part of our hobby. Why should others not believe you though? I put this down to two things:

1. Elitist DX groups.
2. DXers who have been found, and have admitted to, fabricating DX loggings.

Looking at the first thing: (sorry to bring up the "elitist" thing again) I immediately think of a well-known DX group who practically insist that DXers provide recordings of their better DX catches. This might be partly attributable to the second thing: that there have been a number of well-known DXers whom, over the years, have been found to be making up some of their DX loggings. Is it any wonder then that some DX groups want proof?

Unfortunately, not all DXers are able to record their DX. In years gone by the DXer would use a tape recorder, but recording times were restricted to the length of the cassette tape. Some might have used larger, 1/4 inch tape, which could be slowed down to make the recording times longer. As technology advanced into the digital age we moved into minidisc and dat tape, but these could be expensive. Videotape recorders came to the rescue to a large degree, being able to record up to four hours on a VHS tape. When these advanced to have variable speeds you could have twelve hours of recording time. But how would you extract the part of the recording which contained your exotic DX catch? It all became very time consuming.

Then we entered the computer age, but did this solve the problems associated with extended recording times and has the DXer been able to use the technology to good effect?

The problem with computer technology, as I see it, it has reached such a level of advancement that most people have difficulty understanding it. It is too complicated for most of us. Younger people who are brought up with computers at schools have a better understanding of the technology at an earlier age. Older people, or people who were not brought up with computer technology, often have considerable difficulty understanding it. Not only this, but you almost need to be a fully qualified audio engineer to understand the intricacies of sound cards, sample rates and audio production software.

So, in conclusion, and as I said, there are no easy answers. But sadly we live in times that, should you be the lucky one to receive a low powered Bolivian signal on medium wave, or a multi-hop sporadic E signal on band 2, you have to expect that some DXers might challenge your reception and demand proof.

Some useful links which look at computer audio recording methods:


fmdxing.wordpress.com: Zen

fmdxing.wordpress.com: Recording: Zen Neeon Vs Samsung Yepp

fmdxing.wordpress.com: Teac AD-800: Three machines in one!

fmdxing.wordpress.com: Subjective comparison of recording methods

fmdxing.wordpress.com: Samsung Yepp mp3 Recorder

Late Evening Tropo

There was some late evening tropospheric activity on band 2.

Tropospheric:
91.0 2150 D hr1, Sackpfeife (Biedenkopf) (hes) Lionel Richie song and ID, as web stream 612 km

104.7 2150 D WDR Eins Live, Nordhelle (nrw) Pops, as 106.7. Almost noise free 554 km

91.8 2151 F France Musique, Bourges/Neuvy (18) Rock music, as 
88.7 web stream 672 km

93.2 2152 D WDR 2, Teutoburger Wald/Bielstein (nrw) OM, as web stream, riding above Bruxelles 591 km

95.5 2153 F France Bleu Nord, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont Lambert (62) That dreadful Gotye song, as 94.7. Almost noise free 285 km

97.6 2154 HOL Radio Decibel, Rotterdam/Alticom Toren (zho) Three bar peaks. Scrolling RDS 313 km

106.5 2158 F France Info, Boulogne-sur-Mer/Mont Lambert (62) As 

105.2. Noise free 285 km

91.6 2200 HOL Radio Veronica, Amsterdam/Alticom Toren (nho) ID and music promo. Noise free 321 km

91.1 2201 HOL Slam!FM, Hilversum/Media Park-Alticom (nho) Humourous promotion, ID and dance music 342 km

90.7 2202 HOL Arrow Jazz FM, IJsselstein/Gerbrandytoren-Alticom (utr) Jazzy Nightflights show. ID 344 km

90.2 2203 HOL 100% NL, Roosendaal/Alticom Toren (nbr) Nieuws. ID. Noise free 334 km

88.6 2204 HOL 3FM, Smilde/Alticom Toren (dre) YL interviewing OM on phone, as web stream 408 km

88.4 2205 HOL Slam!FM, Roosendaal/Alticom Toren (nbr) OM news, as 
91.1 334 km

93.8 2206 HOL Slam!FM, Megen/Alticom Toren (nbr) OM, as 91.1 387 km

95.0 2207 HOL Radio 4, Goes/Alticom Toren (zee) Violin concerto, as 94.7. Noise free 303 km

91.1 2209 F Skyrock, Dunkerque/Tour Emery (59) Bizarre phone in, as 106.9 274 km

98.2 2222 HOL Radio 4, Loon op Zand/Alticom Toren (nbr) Violin concerto, as 95.0, etc. Noise free 366 km

104.8 2226 G BBC Sussex, Burton Down (EN-WSU) Paul Whatsisname, as 96.1, etc. Almost noise free 257 km

87.6 2229 BEL Nostalgie Vlaanderen, Oostende/Residentie De Mast (vlg-wvl) Steve Harley song, as web stream 278 km

88.0 2231 G Shine FM, London pirate On new frequency? As web stream

88.4 2233 G Vision Radio UK, London pirate House beats, as web stream

Good DX!

John G1VVP, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) 1m ASL

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD (tropospheric)
Kenwood KT6040 (sporadic E & meteor scatter)
Icom IC7000 (OIRT)
Conrad RDS Manager

Aerials:
Rooftop Triax FM5, 8m AGL
Yaesu G-5500 azimuthal/elevation rotator

Software:
RDS Spy v0.97
VAC v4.10

10m Activity Disapointing This Weekend

This weekend's 10m activity was disappointing compared to last weekend's. I only worked six stations on Saturday 6th, but I also noticed that 10m activity on the DX clusters was also lacking. Here are the six that I managed, now bringing my total DX entities up to 16:

Date        GMT    Callsign  Locator  Their Sig  My Sig    Mode   Props  Distance
06/10/2012  16:47  PU1CWP    GG99UP   5/9        5/5       SSB    F2      9053 km
06/10/2012  13:24  A61BK     LL75QG   5/9        5/9       SSB    F2      5481 km
06/10/2012  13:19  CN2LO     IM61AP   5/9        5/9       SSB    F2      2480 km
06/10/2012  11:55  R4HZZ     LO43PM   5/9 +10    5/9       SSB    F2      3188 km
06/10/2012  11:37  UA9SBQ    OO62MG   5/9 +10    5/9       SSB    F2      6736 km
06/10/2012  11:29  OD5PY     KM73SU   5/8        5/6       SSB    F2      3503 km

A DX Dilemma

It's the time of year when bugs fill the air and I seem to have caught several of them recently - several DX bugs that is, and I am finding them difficult to fight off. They are:

FM broadcast DXing in the 88-108 MHz range. This band often proves very interesting as we enter the time of the year when autumnal tropospheric conditions can take hold of the band and produce strong ducts of several hundred miles or more.

The tranatlantic DX season is beginning on the medium wave broadcast band too and, since erecting a new flag antenna on the garden, I have found that it works so well I can hear lots of transatlantic and oriental DX. My Perseus SDR receiver records the band for me, but finding sufficient time to play back the recordings is proving difficult;

Finally, because solar activity is quite high, the 10 metre amateur band has come alive and I have developed a keen interest in QRP DX. My measly 10 watts has enebled me to work almost world-wide and penetrate pile-ups with little difficulty. I have worked all continents except the Pacific region. I think I might be able to achieve this with a bit of luck, but but breaking through some of those pile-ups needs patience and can take a long time.

So, there's plenty of DX activity to keep me occupied, but each of these areas of the hobby take up more time than I would like. Which one do I focus on?

This should be DX heaven right now, but I would be completely selfish if I didn't accept that there are certain domestic chores which also need my attention as they will not do themselves. Did I mention my relationship too? So, I need to take all of these things into account and strike a healthy and happy balance.

It can be tough having so many interests in this weird and wonderful hobby of ours, but as long as I remember that it is only a "hobby" and nothing more, we should all be happy here. It's a very addictive hobby though! 

Weekend 10m Activity

I spent the weekend DXing on 10m, using only 10 watts into a 5/8 wave vertical, two metres off the ground. 

Most of the hams I worked were using high power in the order of 1 kW to 1.5 kW. Funny how my signal report was only a couple of S points behind theirs. Who needs high power to work the world? 

Date        GMT    Callsign  Locator  Their sig  My sig    Mode   Props  Distance
30/09/2012  17:49  EA9BW     IM75JM   5/9        5/5       SSB    F2      2006 km
30/09/2012  17:45  M0HAZ     JO03DD   5/9 +10    5/9 +10   SSB    F2         2 km
30/09/2012  16:32  FM5WD     FK94MP   5/9        5/5       SSB    F2      6805 km
30/09/2012  16:18  LA2HA     KN33WN   5/9        5/7       SSB    F2      2279 km
30/09/2012  13:25  RX6DC     LN04NX   5/9        5/9       SSB    F2      3063 km
30/09/2012  13:13  K3RA      FM19PF   5/9        5/5       SSB    F2      5821 km
30/09/2012  11:34  TA3GO     KM38KG   5/9        5/7       SSB    F2      2618 km
30/09/2012  10:47  RT4RO     LO65ER   5/9 +10    5/7       SSB    F2      3299 km
30/09/2012  09:56  EC8AQQ    IL27GW   5/8        5/1       SSB    F2      3086 km
30/09/2012  09:31  R9XV      LP63XO   5/9        5/7       SSB    F2      3222 km
30/09/2012  09:12  LZ2AVA    KN43EK   5/9        5/8       SSB    F2      2320 km
29/09/2012  11:18  RV9YP     NO22NL   5/9 +10    5/5       SSB    F2      5017 km
29/09/2012  11:45  UR9MC     KN98JL   5/9 +10    5/9       SSB    F2      2719 km
29/09/2012  12:26  5B/G8DX   Paphos   5/7        5/2       SSB    F2      3429 km
29/09/2012  14:02  K3LU      FM19PB   5/7        5/6       SSB    F2      5834 km
29/09/2012  17:02  7X4AN     IM94GU   5/9        5/9       SSB    F2      2038 km
29/09/2012  18:52  WX3B      FM19KQ   5/9 +10    5/9       SSB    F2      5814 km
28/09/2012  17:40  KC4TVZ    EM84BE   5/7        5/9       SSB    F2      6669 km
28/09/2012  16:10  UT7EW     KN78MM   5/9 +10    5/7       SSB    F2      2467 km

Treen Bandscan, Cornwall, September 2012

Cornwall never disappoints! Be it for the spectacular natural beauty of its countryside or for its excellent DX possibilities!

We spent seven days at Treen Farm camp site and experienced a good tropo event between September 13th and 16th.

It was our first visit to the Treen Farm camp site and it immediately became our firm favourite. The Sea View and Lower Treave campsites have also been good for Spanish DX and are worth considering if Treen Farm is full, but there are some big advantages Treen Farm. The location is on a cliff top in the extreme south-west of Cornwall. There are sea views from the south-east to the south-west and there is a spectacular beach immediately below the site with almost white sands and the kind of azure/turquoise seas you expect to see around the Cornish peninsula. At night, the skies are so clear you can easily see the Milky Way above you. It doesn't seem to be the kind of camp site where noise is tolerated too. While children and dogs are allowed, there are notices on the site which state that noise will NOT be tolerated after 10pm!

Now, this is what we heard:

Thursday 13th September 2012

106.5 TSF R Noticias, Muro (vcs)
107.7 R Estrada, Unlisted site
 87.5 RKM R, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C)
 87.6 OM & YL talk 08:25 
 87.8 Cadena COPE Vigo, Moana (GAL-PO) __COPE__
 88.2 RNE R Clasica, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU) RNE-CLAS
 88.9 Euskadi Irratia, Bilbao (PVA-BL) EUSKADI1
 89.1 Los 40 Principales, Monte Castrove (GAL-PO)
 90.1 RNE R Nacional Galicia, Moana (GAL-PO)
 91.2 RNE R Clasica, Monte Meda (GAL-OU) RNE-CLAS
 91.4 Cadena Dial, Pontevedra (GAL-PO) ___DIAL_ PONTEDRA
 91.6 RNE R Clasica, Culleredo (GAL-C) RNE-CLAS
 92.1 RNE R Clasica, Moana (GAL-PO) RNE-CLAS
 92.2 RNE R Clasica, Gamoniteiro (AST-O)
 92.6 Spain
 92.8 RNE R.5, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU) RNE_5-LU
 93.1 Spanish phone in 20:50
 93.4 Spanish phone in 20:50
 93.7 RNE R.5, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C) RNE_5-C_
 94.3 RNE R.3, Monte Meda (GAL-OU)
 94.4 RNE R.3, Gamoniteiro (AST-O)
 94.5 RNE R.3, Culleredo (GAL-C) RNE_3___
 94.7 Euskadi Gaztea, Bilbao (PVA-BL) GAZTEA__
 95.6 Cadena SER, Pontevedra (GAL-PO) CAD-SER_ _AROSA__
 95.8 RNE R.5, Culleredo (GAL-C) RNE_5-C_
 96.2 R Galega, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C)
 96.9 RNE Radio Nacional Cantabria, Lierganes (CNT-S) RNE_1___
 97.1 Cadena COPE, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C)
 97.2 Spain
 97.4 RNE R.3, Moana (GAL-PO)
 98.1 RNE R Clasica, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C) RNE-CLAS
 98.7 SER Pontevedra, Pontevedra (GAL-PO) SER_EDRA
 99.0 RNE R.3, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C) RNE_3___
 99.6 RNE R.3, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU) RNE_3___
100.1 EIRB Irratia, Bilbao (PVA-BL)
100.2 Spain phone in 21:19
100.4 RNE R.1, Culleredo (GAL-C) RNE_1___
100.6 SER Vigo, Moana (GAL-PO) SER-VIGO
100.9 R Galega, Valga (GAL-PO) R.GALEGA
101.7 RNE Radio Nacional Galicia, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU) RNE_1___
102.1 R Obradoiro Santiago, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C) OBRAOIRO
102.3 R Galega, Moana (GAL-PO) (Presumed)
102.5 RNE Radio Nacional Asturias, Gamoniteiro (AST-O) RNE_1___
102.6 Bizkaia Irratia, Bilbao (PVA-BL) BIZKAIAI
102.8 RNE Radio Nacional Galicia, Mone Meda (GAL-LU)
103.2 Spain
103.4 R Renascenca, Muro (vcs)
102.0 Sud R, Toulouse (65) SUDRADIO
103.7 ABC Punto Radio, Bilbao (PVA-BL) PUNTO_R.
104.2 RNE R.3, Xistral (GAL-LU)
104.4 RNE R.5, Gamoniteiro (AST-O) RNE5-AST
104.8 R Galega, Monte Meda (GAL-OU)
105.0 RNE R.5, Lierganes (CNT-S) RNE_5-S_
105.3 RNE R Clasica, Monte Oiz (PVA-BL)
105.3 TSF R Noticias, Valongo (prt)
105.7 TSF R Noticias, Valenca Do Minho (vcs) _T_S_F__
106.4 R Del Principado Del Asturias, Gamoniteiro (AST-O) RPA_FM__
106.6 RNE R.5, Xistral (GAL-LU)
106.8 RNE R.5, Monte Meda (GAL-OU) RNE_5-OU
106.9 Spain
107.6 Spain
107.9 Spain
 94.6 RDP Antena 2, Muro (vcs)
 88.0 R Galega Musica, Valga (GAL-PO)
107.9 Radio Lider, Pontevedra (GAL-PO)
106.1 Radio Voz Compostela, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C)
 89.5 Spain
 88.4 Cadena Cien, Unidentified site CAD-100_
 90.2 Spain
103.1 R Nacional Galicia, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-C) RNE_1___
103.5 Spain
103.6 Cadena 100, Gijon (AST-O)
104.1 Los 40 Principales / Exitos IDs
103.4 Spain OM talk over jazz, then soul music 23:41
107.8 Valle De Buelna FM, Los Corrales De Buelna (CNT-S)
107.6 Spanish pops 22:47
101.1 Onda Cero, Cangas Del Narcea (AST-O)
 95.7 RNE R.5, Navarra (NAV-NA)
 97.1 Spain OM 22:54
 97.5 Kiss FM, Lugo (GAL-LU)
 97.6 Spain OM 22:54
 97.9 RNE R Clasica, Riano De Ibio (CNT-S)
 99.5 Spain OM 22:59
 90.5 Spain OM 22:59


Friday 14th September 2012

 99.8 Spain OM 01:25
101.4 R Del Principado De Asturias, Aviles (AST-O) _RPA_FM_
102.9 RNE R.3, Lierganes (CNT-S)
103.4 RNE R.3, Riano De Ibio (CNT-S) RNE_3___
104.6 Spain OM & YL phone in 01:32
105.6 ABC Punto R, Lierganes (CNT-S)
107.1 Spain OM & YL 01:39
 88.5 RNE R Clasica, Hornos De Moncalvillo (RIO-LO)
 94.6 RNE R.3, Hornos De Moncalvillo (RIO-LO)
103.3 RNE R.5, Hornos De Moncalvillo (RIO-LO)
 87.5 Loca FM, Oviedo (AST-O)
 96.5 SER Gijon, Gijon (AST-O) __SER___
 98.5 Kiss FM, Santander (CNT-S)
 91.7 R Euskadi 2, Bilbao (PVA-BL) EUSKADI2
102.4 Spain YL over classical music 23:54
 96.3 Spain OM & YL talk over classical music 23:57
 97.5 RNE R Clasica, Medinaceli (CAL-SO)
100.5 France Bleu Gascogne, Bayonne (64) BLEUGASC
101.4 Spain OM talk mixing Gamoniteiro


Saturday 15th September 2012

102.4 Spain Lively OM talk 00:04
 93.9 Spain OM talk 08:15
 87.7 Cadena Dial, Santander (CNT-S)
 88.0 R Nervion, Bilbao (PVA-BL) RNERVION
106.1 R Nacional, Monreal (NAV-NA) RNE_1___
105.4 Spain OMs discussion 08:32
100.3 RNE R.5, Cangas De Onis (AST-O)
 93.5 Spain Phone in 08:49
107.5 Spain Mexican/Latin music 08:50
106.7 Spain YL phone in 09:03
104.0 Spain OMs discussion 09:05
 92.7 R 7 Barakaldo, Bilbao (PVA-BL)
 94.8 Spain phone in 22:43
 98.2 Spain OM lively talk 22:48
 99.2 Spain OM talk 22:49
100.7 Spain Panel show 22:52
101.5 Onda Cero, Bilbao (PVA-BL) __DA____
 88.5 Hit FM, Aviles (AST-O)
 91.8 Hit FM, Gijon (AST-O)
106.5 Formula Hit A Coruna, Carballo (GAL-C) Tentative. Dance music & ID "Hit Music Radio Sol" 23:30


Sunday 16th September 2012

104.8 Kiss FM, Aviles (AST-O)

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Even when conditions are flat on the Land's End peninsula, Spanish stations always seem to be audible on band 2. But if you take your radios to the Land's End car park, Spanish reception is considerably better! We obtained permission to erect a beam at the Land's End cliff top car park during the evening - something we never actually did in the end, but it's there for next time. Now THAT should be VERY interesting indeed!

Summarizing The 2012 Sporadic E Season

After comparing my 2012 E season loggings with those of the 1011 season, I think I can conclude that this year's E season equalled last year's at this location and perhaps even slightly bettered it, but only slightly. This is my own experience. Other DXers have commented that the season has been much worse this year. SPoradic E conditions are hugely selective though, so comparisons are probably meaningless. If you were to average it out over the whole of Europe and North America I think the overwhelming opinion would be that the 2012 Es season was well down on last year's, which in itself was quite poor also. However, while my personal logbook show a certain "quantity" of loggings, there was certainly far less in the way of "quality". Not one single instance of double hop was experienced.

Looking at it on a month-by-month basis: The season seemed to begin well in May, but then went downhill before the end of the month, leaving June with large gaps of several days with no Es. July wasn't much better, if at all and August was average - maybe even slightly better than July, but after counting the number of loggings I had this season I notice that here are only slightly fewer loggings than during last year's season. There were at least three good, nationwide Spanish openings this year while I was away and so I probably missed a fair number of loggings. Last year I was in the fortunate position of being by the radio virtually all the time and I was conscious of the fact that I didn't miss any good openings.

As mentioned above, as far as quality goes, this year was definitely down on last year. Double hop materialised on at least two occasions last season whereas this year I am not aware of a single instance - unless you class the Moroccan transmitter at Assa as double hop at 2800+. I suspect the Es on this occasion hooked up with a tropo extension at the far end of the path. Maybe that is classed double hop though.

I am always interested to hear other's views, but overall I am satisfied with a good haul of loggings this year, even if the quality wasn't quite there.

It was also pleasing to get a lot of different stations this year whereas I had expected a huge amount of repetition.

By the way, Norway was the only main European country which didn't make it here on Es. My Turkish goal didn't materialise either, but then Turkey is probably just a tad over the single hop limit from me. Maybe next year.

Ster Bandscan, Brittany, September 2012

We took a holiday to Brittany between August 31st and September 8th. We had planned to stay longer and take a trip around the French Alps the following week but our plans were interrupted: We had intended to take our two Rottweilers but we found that there were many difficulties along the way which meant they had to be left at home. Fortunately, we have a very good friend, also a Rottweiler owner, who came to look after them while we were away. True enough, Rottweilers are large, fearsome looking dogs, but ours are very friendly and cuddly. Yes, I said "cuddly". We are daft when it comes to our dogs. They are part of our family and we love them dearly.

We try to take our dogs with us most places, but we find that some people prefer to cross over the road to avoid walking past them, depending on where we are. The locals love them and only want to fuss them, which they really appreciate. When walking in a rough part of Glasgow with them recently we found that people only crossed the road to avoid us. That spoke volumes about the area we were in.

Sadly, after weeks of planning and researching we discovered that Rottweilers were classed as "Category 2 breed: Guard Dogs" in France and thus were not allowed on French camp sites. If it wasn't for a well-known web forum we would not have discovered this information. Well done tripadvisor.com! Their members were exceptionally helpful and pointed us to the appropriate website which explained all the rules concerning Rottweilers in France. Before doing this, we had emailed and phoned various government departments, embassies, European vetinary organisations and Rottweiler clubs, only to be passed around in a loop because they didn't know where Rottweilers were permitted. Our very own government department DEFRA hadn't a clue either. No surprises there.

Arriving at the camp site we promptly set up a simple receiving station, comprising a Sony XDR-F1HD and a Triax FM3, mounted on a telescopic mast at around five to six metres, so that it was above the caravan roof and clear of obstruction to the beach, which looks out over the Bay Of Biscay, just 200 metres away.

Perhaps I shouldn't give a big build-up to this report as nothing much was heard, typical of all my visits to Brittany in fact. We had expected more Spanish DX this time as the Hepburn tropo forecast looked good for this. Instead, we experienced more of a lift to the north, into south-west England. I don't wish to rubbish the DX potential of this location as I am fairly sure that conditions were not as forecast, but I have never experienced much in the way of Spanish DX from this location. Band 2 is fairly quiet at the best of times, but with careful searching and the occasional rise in conditions, it's mostly always been more distant Breton stations which come though. Maybe I have been unlucky. In contrast, I have to say that the French Land's End at the Point Du Raz, some 50 km to the north-west, was dramatically better for Spanish reception, even under apparently flat conditions. Despite this, the Pointe Du Raz does not seem to provide the same proliferation of Spanish signals experienced at the Cornish Land's End. I have been to both Land's Ends several times.

Here is the report, complete with notes to begin with. Unfortunately I lost interest with the note keeping and DXing as nothing much was heard after the 4th.


31-08-12
Poor late evening. A few Spanish transmitters at weak/noisy levels.


01-09-12
Slightly enhanced after sunrise. Some Spanish signals almost noise free. Nothing at RDS levels.

 88.2 RNE Radio Clasica, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU)
 88.9 Euskadi Irratia, Bilbao (PVA-BI)
 89.5 RNE Radio Nacional Galicia, Xistral (GAL-LU)
 90.5 RNE R.5 TN Oviedo, Boal (AST-O)
 92.8 RNE R.5 TN Lugo, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU)
 93.2 RNE RNE Radio Nacional Asturias, Boal (AST-O)
 93.7 RNE R.5 TN Santiago, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-O)
 94.4 RNE R.3, Gamoniteiro (AST-O)
 95.2 UNID YL talk 0954 (Likely Onda Cero, Oviedo (AST-O) Heard at Pointe Du Raz)
 95.6 UNID Phone in 0956 (Likely Cadena SER, Lugo (GAL-LU) Heard at Pointe Du Raz)
 96.3 RNE Radio Clasica, Galicia (GAL-LU)
 96.9 RNE R Nacional Cantabria, Lierganes (CNT-S)
 98.1 RNE Radio Clasica, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-O)
 99.0 RNE R.3, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-O)
 99.6 RNE R.3, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU)
101.7 RNE R Nacional Galicia, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU)
100.9 UNID News 1002 (Likely Radio Galega, Valga (GAL-PO))
102.5 RNE Radio Nacional Asturias, Gamoniteiro (AST-O)
102.7 esRadio, unlisted site
102.9 RNE R.3, Lierganes (CNT-S)
103.1 RNE Radio Nacional Galicia, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-O)
103.7 Radio Galega, Monte Paramo (GAL-LU)
104.2 RNE R.3, Xistral (GAL-LU)
104.4 RNE R.5 TN Oviedo, Gamoniteiro (AST-O)
104.8 Likely Radio Galega, Monte Meda (GAL-OU)
105.0 RNE R.5 TN Santander, Lierganes (CNT-S)


01-09-12 Evening: Disappointing. Only Gamoniteiro heard extremely weakly and barely recognisable in the noise. SW England enhanced with North Hessary Tor and Redruth at one bar.


02-09-12 Morning: Rubbish! As 01-09-12 evening.

UK nationals Rowridge and a presumed Haverfordwest received via scatter.


02-09-12 Evening: Spanish? Where? I can't hear any.


03-09-12 Morning: Yawn! Even semi-local French stations are down in strength. SW England with some enhancement though.


03-09-12 Evening: Still no sign of Spain but SW England and The English Midlands coming in well. North Hessary Tor RDSing with two bars.

107.0 Heart, Redruth
 95.2 RTE Lyric FM, Clermont Carn
 95.2 BBC Radio Cornwall, Caradon Hill
 94.3 BBC Radio 4, Wenvoe
 92.1 BBC Radio 3, Wenvoe
 92.5 BBC Radio 4, North Hessary Tor
 90.3 BBC Radio 3, North Hessary Tor
 88.1 BBC Radio 2, North Hessary Tor
100.0 Classic FM, North Hessary Tor
102.8 Pirate FM, Redruth
 89.7 BBC Radio 2, Redruth
 91.9 BBC Radio 3, Redruth
102.2 Pirate FM, Caradon Hill
 97.7 BBC Radio 1, North Hessary Tor
 99.3 BBC Radio 1, Redruth
 99.5 BBC Radio 1, Wenvoe
101.5 Classic FM, Redruth
100.3 Classic FM, Rowridge
 89.3 BBC Radio 2, Haverfordwest
 93.7 BBC Radio 4, Haverfordwest
 97.1 BBC Radio 1, Les Platons
 89.6 BBC Radio 2, Les Platons
 91.1 BBC Radio 3, Les Platons
 88.3 BBC Radio 3, Sutton Coldfield
 92.7 BBC Radio 4, Sutton Coldfield
 97.9 BBC Radio 1, Sutton Coldfield
100.1 Classic FM, Sutton Coldfield
101.1 Classic FM, Haverfordwest
101.7 Classic FM, Wenvoe
 95.5 BBC Somerset, Mendip
 94.8 BBC Radio 4, Les Platons
 94.3 BBC Radio 4, Wenvoe
 93.3 BBC Radio 4, Llangollen
 91.5 BBC Radio 3, Haverfordwest
102.5 BBC Radio Pembrokeshire, Haverfordwest
107.2 Newstalk 106-108, Mount Leinster


04-09-12 Morning: Southern England enhancement continuing to grow slightly, add ...

 89.1 BBC Radio 2, Wrotham


04-09-12 Evening: SW England not so good but Spain returning into the small hours. Chiefly Galicia. Post sunrise: Only Gamoniteiro audible weakly.

100.4 Radio Nacional Galicia, Culluredo (GAL-O)
 99.0 RNE R.3, Santiago De Compostela (GAL-O)
 98.5 UNID Spanish phone-in 0304
102.8 Radio Nacional Galicia, Monte Meda (GAL-OU)
106.4 Radio Principado De Asturias, Gamiteiro (AST-O)

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As the holiday progressed we realised we were missing our dogs more and more. So much so that we decided to curtail the holiday and make our way back home! Our plan now was to spend a week in Cornwall with the dogs.