Prior to this Rockwork DXpedition it was somewhat of a challenge to track
down 1017-A3Z in Tonga here at the cliff, primarily because of its very early
morning sign off at around 1100 UTC. We normally arrive at the Highway 101
turnoffs around that time for antenna setup, and Tonga had usually bailed by
the time the broadband loops were set up. The quick set up FSL's usually could
catch the Tonga sign off, but without the sunrise enhancement boost that
dramatically boosts up DU signals.
All that has changed completely with 1017-Tonga's new 24/7 broadcast
schedule. The signals from Nuku'alofa have transformed into something like the
old 738-Tahiti, becoming the most powerful and reliable DU big gun on the
cliff. Like 558-Fiji, it seems to have somehow tapped into the Kiwi propagation
pipeline to this wild site.
This morning Tonga pounded in with its best-ever signal at the Rockwork
cliff at 1305 with beautiful island music, hitting S9+ on even a hot-rodded
XHDATA D-808 portable
https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/radzvqalieda4gnakw8l34kwd4z1n9lf
Tonga wasn't the only DU on the warpath this morning. At the 1300 the rare
2 kW Kiwi station 531-More FM pounded in with an S9 ID at the TOH, managing to
completely bury its more common Kiwi co-channel PI
https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/9o43ydwob8pwwi98303rdelm23k83fig
The squatters once again were out in force, making three DXers spread out
to three different turnoffs (Tom at Rockwork 4, Chuck at Rockwork 2 and me at
Rockwork 3). Despite the somewhat ragged-looking California vehicle parked only
15 feet away from me the session was uneventful (except for the good Longwave
and Medium Wave DU-DX). As posted earlier, the 500 watt Longwave NDB (air
navigation beacon) 260-NF on Norfolk Island, an Australian territory, showed up
on a hot-rodded Tecsun PL-380 and 15" Longwave FSL at 1210
https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/209sk7dvhkfglpqv50gs1ehypgmxz2m2 This was my
first Ultralight South Pacific NDB reception in over 5 years, and was quite a
thrill.
73 and Good DX,
Gary DeBock (DXing at the Rockwork 3 ocean cliff near Manzanita, OR, USA)
7.5" loopstick CC Skywave SSB & XHDATA D-808 & Longwave Tecsun PL-380 portables
+
17" & 15" Medium Wave and 15" Longwave FSL antennas (a.k.a. "Financial Sinkhole
Loops")
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