Band conditions over the past few weeks have been pretty good again for the DX. Marija VK5MAZ has been working some big pile ups into Europe on 20m on the long path.

I have been focussing on trying to pick up some new DXCC entities and working some of the overseas Park & SOTA activators. Below is a bit of a snapshot of some of the overseas activators I have logged in the past few weeks.

27th September 2021.

IQ5QO – activating an Italian lighthouse – Castello Alfonsino (WAIL PU-029) and the Worked Castles Award (WCA 1737).

DL8ECA Stadtwald Göttingen and Kerstlingeröder Feld DLFF-0332 in GERMANY.

2nd October 2021

YL44WFF – YLFF-0221 in LATVIA

Sam F4GYG in FFF-2126 in FRANCE.

3rd October 2021

Daniel OA9DVK in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest in Chayu Nain Comunal Reserve OAFF-0040.

4th October 2021

F5NLX activating Foret Commuale De Vinassan FFF-2955

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Jean-Marie sent me an email and he said:

“I am very surprise when j heard VK5pas hi on my small dipole 2x5m at 3m up !!report 56 with my 30 watts”

Sam F4GYG – FFF-2098 FRANCE.

5th October 2021

I logged Daniel again OA9DVK in OAFF-0040.

6th October 2021.

Mike 2E0YYY/p G/ HSP-020

7th October 2021

Darius M0KCB/p – Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty GFF-0248 ENGLAND.

CT1MH – Bragadas CT/ TM-043 in PORTUGAL.

IQ5QO/p – IFF-0743 in ITALY.

8th October 2021

Sam F4GYG/p – FFF-1845 in FRANCE.

Fabio IK2LEY/p – SOTA Poggio Croce I/ PM-387 in ITALY. This is a 1,765 m high summit and is worth 6 points.

EA2RCG/p – EAFF-1172 in SPAIN.

IQ5QO/p – Area Naturale Protetta di Interesse Locale Il Bottaccio IFF-0507 in ITALY.

Babs DK0DFF – Hartz Mountains DLFF-0006 in GERMANY.

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DC8TM – SOTA peak Herzogenhorn DM/ BW-002 in GERMANY. This is a 10 point summit and is 1,415 metres above sea level.

10th October 2021

Mike 2E0YYY/p and Rob G7LAS G/ HSP-020

Mike posted on Facebook:- “Todays activation was a whole heap of fun and the DX was a real bonus.”

Antonio EC2AG – SOTA summit Unbe Mendi EA2/ BI-076 in SPAIN.

Jose EA5ITW/p – SOTA summit Plans EA5/ AT-006 in SPAIN. This summit is a 4 point summit located in the Alicante area of Spain.

During the past few days I received my certificate in the mail for the 2021 John Moyle Memorial Field Day (JMMFD).

I came first in the ‘Single Operator, Phone, HF, 6 hour’ portable category.

Thanks to everyone who called me whilst I was in the Bullock Hill Conservation Park 5CP-265 & VKFF-0873. And thanks to Dennis VK4AE the Contest Manager.

Details on my activation can be found at……..

https://vk5pas.org/2021/03/22/bullock-hill-conservation-park-and-the-2021-john-moyle-memorial-field-day/

My last station logged on Tuesday (12th October 2021) was the Voice of Indonesia on 3325 kHz on the 90m band.

I tuned in at 1313 UTC. The broadcast was in the English language.

The broadcast included news, music, and a program called Indonesian Wonders.

The overall reception of the Voice of Indonesia on this frequency was fair. The signal strength was fair with absolutely no interference from other stations, with moderate fading, and only slight noise.

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Below is a video showing my reception of the Voice of Indonesia, both on the Tecsun S-2000, and the Yaesu FTdx101MP.

Next in my log was a very interesting station, Echo of Unification in NORTH KOREA on 3945 kHz on the 75 m shortwave band. The broadcast was in the Korean language.

“Echo of Unification” is North Korea’s anti-Seoul propaganda radio outlet targeting listeners in South Korea.. The station transmits on the medium wave (AM broadcast) band, shortwave and FM frequencies. The signal is heavily jammed by the South Korean government.

I was receiving Echo of Unification well. The signal strength was good, with only slight interference from nearby stations and only slight fading of the signal.

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Below is a video showing my reception of Echo of Unification. It shows reception on the Tecsun S-2000 and the Yaesu FTdx101MP.

References.

1. Behind the curtain, 2021, <https://www.behindthecurtain-northkorea.com/audio-externalradiobroadcasting>, viewed 17th October 2021.

Next in the log was Bay of Islands Radio on 5045 kHz on the 60m band.

Bay of Islands Radio is located at Macleay Island, Queensland.

The station was coming in relatively well. The signal report was fair with moderate interference from adjacent stations and only slight fading. As there was an approaching storm here I experienced quite a few static crashes.

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Below is a short video of my reception of the Bay of Islands Radio.

References.

1. Facebook, 2021, <https://www.facebook.com/Islandfmqld/posts/941373969935100>, viewed 17th Octcober 2021.

My next station logged for Tuesday night (12th October 2021) was Radio Rebelde in CUBA on 5025 kHz. The broadcast was in the Spanish language.

Radio Rebelde is a Cuban Spanish language station which broadcasts 24 hours a day with a varied program of national and international music hits of the moment, news reports and live sport events.

The station was established in 1958 by Che Guevara in the Sierra Maestra region of eastern Cuba. It was designed to broadcast the aims of the 26th of July Movement led by Fidel Castro. It also broadcast the latest combat news, music and spoken literature to the people of Cuba during the Cuban Revolution.

Radio Rebelde has 891 kilowatts of broadcasting power with 44 transmitters that cover 98 percent of the island.

I was receiving Radio Rebelde very well. The signal strength was good and there was slight interference from other stations. However there was quite a lot of static crashes with an approaching storm here. Overall reception was good.

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Below is a short video showing my reception of Radio Rebelde.

References.

1. Wikipedia, 2021, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Rebelde>, viewed 17th October 2021.
2. Radio Rebelde, 2021, <https://www.radiorebelde.cu/english/about-us/>, viewed 17th October 2021

Next in my log was WWCR on 4840 kHz broadcasting from the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

From the WWCR website:

“WWCR has four 100,000 Watt, state of the art, transmitters which serve the world on 10 different broadcasting channels. Together our transmitters provide over 400 religious and talk programs direct from Nashville, Tennessee, USA, to a global audience.”

My reception of WWCR was good. The signal strength was good with no interference from other stations. There was just slight fading on the siognal.

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Below is a short video showing my reception of WWCR.

I then tuned into the Voice of Vietnam on 9840 kHz on the 31m shortwave band.

The Voice of Vietnam is the Vietnamese national radio broadcaster. It is directly controlled by the Vietnamese Government and is tasked with “propagating the views, policies of the Party and the laws of the state.

Prior to 1945, the Vietnamese were banned from owning radio receivers, and broadcasting was under control of the French colonial government. They established the first radio station in Vietnam, Radio Saigon, in the late 1920s.

Following Reunification, all of the radio stations were combined into the Voice of Vietnam, which became the national radio station in 1978.

Reception of the Voice of Vietnam was severely impacted by a Chinese language station on 9830 khz.

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Below is a short video of my reception of the Voice of Vietnam.

References.

1. Wikipedia, 2021, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_Vietnam>, viewed 17th October 2021.

On Monday night (11th October 2021) I logged some more shortwave broadcast stations. First in the log was WRMI Radio Miami International on 5010 kHz on the 60m band.

Radio Miami International was founded in 1989 by Jeff White (currently General Manager) and Kiko Espinosa (chief engineer, who passed away in 2005).

In 2013 WRMI purchased the former Family Radio shortwave station in Okeechobee, Florida. This is the largest privately owned shortwave station in the Western hemisphere, consisting of 660 acres which is also used as a cattle ranch. It has 14 transmitters, most of them 1000,000 watts, and 23 antennas beamed in eleven different directions around the world.

I was receiving WRMI overall fair. The signal strength was fair with moderate interference from other stations. Fading on the signal was fair and I was experiencing some static crashes.

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Below is a short video of my reception of WRMI.

References

1. WRMI, 2021, <https://www.wrmi.net/index.php/about-wrmi/>, viewed 17th October 2021

My last station logged for Sunday night (10th October 2021) was Voice of Beibuy Bay Radio (Voice of Guangxi Beibu Wan) in CHINA on 5050 kHz on the 60m band. The transmission was in the Cantonese language?

I tuned in at 1357 UTC.

VO Beibu Bay Radio commenced transmissions in May 2010, the station is a joint project between China Radio International and the local Guangxi Radio and Television station. VO Beibu Bay Radio’s transmitter power is 25 kilowatts. The station broadcasts in the Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Thai languages.

Beibu Bay Radio broadcasts from Nanning, the capital of the Zhuang Autonomous Region of Guangxi, CHINA. Nanning is located just north of the Vietnam border. Beibu Bay, also known as the Gulf of Tonkin, is an arm of the South China Sea and covers an area of 126,250 km². The gulf borders Vietnam on the northwest, west and southwest. China lies to the north with the Island of Hainan forming the eastern limits of the gulf. 

More information can be found on the BBRTV website at…..

http://www.bbrtv.com/about/aboutus/

I was receiving Beibu Bay Radio fairly well. Their signal strength was good, but there was moderate interference from adjacent stations which affected listening pleasure. There was slight fading on the signal.

VO Beibu Bay Radio’s program included western pop music.

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Below is a short video of my reception of Beibu Bay Radio on the Tecsun S-2000 and the Tecsun random wire (just a few feet off the ground).

I have sent a Reception Report to VO Beibu Bay Radio, both via email and postal address. Awaiting a reply.

References.

1. BBRTV, 2021, <http://www.bbrtv.com/about/aboutus/>, viewed 17th October 2021
2. coastcolour, 2021, <https://www.coastcolour.org/site_15.html>, viewed 17th October 2021
3. medxr, 2021, <https://medxr.blogspot.com/2021/01/spotlight-voice-of-beibu-bay-radio.html>, viewed 17th October 2021.