WBCQ Reception

I have been picking up WBCQ better over the last week. I am not quit sure if there is more power being transmitted or if the propagation is improving due to longer days or if the sun spot cycle is actually starting to kick in. IN any case. I am looking forward to listening to actual broadcasts more than mp3 files. Don't get me wrong, I love getting programs off the net but there is something magical about getting a signal from the ionosphere.

Been Listening Lately

I have been on the go lately. I went to the Midwest Geobash. They have had a low power transmitter to do on on site radio station in the past. They did not this year.

I was also visiting some friends in Lebanon, Indiana, I got to hear WBCQ our of Maine and 740 out of Toronto. It is nice to hear stations that seam like old friends while out on the road. They both came in from fair to good and it seams like reception is getting better. I heard one report that solar activity is on its way better and we should be seeing an upturn in better reception this fall. I really hope so. It has been sucky for a while.

Dxing on the road

Again I got to do some short wave listening on the road. Not in the car like I have before but away from home. It is always neat to me to hear familar station as well as hearing ones I don't here at home. I got to hear Radio Netherlands in Lebanon Indiana. The only disappointing thing is that I did not bring my main radio so it was not a perfect comparison.

Fourth of July Reception Report

I did a smattering of listening to as much as I could of everything this weekend. As usual, it was not enough. I did hear of a neighbor dispute and a gun shot going off during the fireworks. I don't think it was related. Some kids playing on the frs band. There was a good deal of private airplane traffic on the fourth which is to be expected with a holiday with just about perfect weather. There was patriotic music and references made all weekend as well as the reporting of all the local celebrations on medium wave. I also got to listen to lost disc radio for the first time in a long time. That reminds me I need to do a qsl before I forget. Until I report back.

Reception Report

I am starting to get encouraged. I was listening to WBCQ last night on the short wave and getting the best reception I have gotten for a while. I have also noticed that VOR has also been getting stronger. It is weird, for the first time that I can remember, I am looking forward to summer and getting better reception. I am getting the feeling that the solar minimum is the cause and that there is not enough of the solar influence going onto get a good signal through and the longer summer days wills actually be helping. I might be totally off and if someone in the know can correct, please leave a comment. Heck, if someone in the know can help with this speculation in any way, then leave a comment. All I know is tha I think it is weird that we are going into spring and the reception is getting better. Winter is traditional been the best listening and that is not holding at my shack right now. Even some of the medium wave dxing I have been doing has been weird. We will see how it goes, I am definately waiting for better listening.

Musings

I have been listening to the airwaves lately. Picked up Voice of Russia and got enough to go for a QSL. That's good. I have not been picking them up the best for a while. I also have not been going for QSL's as regularly as I have in the past. It is not a big concern. My listening goes up and down and it is the listening and not the QSL's that is the heart of the hobby for me. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the QSL's they are a great record of what I have listened to. The point is to listen. The point of the QSL is the thanks you for the reception report. It helps make it a two way communication. I also appreciate it when the QSL managers do an email that the QSL is on its way. They don't have to but it is nice to get a confirmation.

Besides, this is very much a solitary hobby. I may have my wife with me but it is still my hobby and I am doing basically alone. It is nice to hear from someone else concerning the hobby. Sometimes, I think I need to get on the ham side of things so I can share the hobby with someone else. Maybe i need to get on some shortwave forums. There has got to be some. There are forums for anything anymore. The internet is full of people who want to share their views on everything which may go a long way to explain this blog.

Until later.

Reception Report

I have still trying to scan the shortwave bands. WBCQ is coming in marginally better but still an inconsistent listen. I got tot hear the Voice of Russia in English but on a frequency unexpected to me. Even CHCO out of Toronto (740 KHZ) has been less than the stellar blow torch I have gotten use to. It has not all been a bummer lately. i have been enjoying listening to the local minor hockey team on local weather. I have also been purposely listening to my police scanner and weather radio. The flooding has been unreal. I have seen water levels higher than the normal flooding I see in spring. It is scary when you hear that people are being evacuated by boat and there is 4 foot of water across the road. It turned really cold and it looks like they had to chip the ice off the road. At least the water is going down now. Hopefully the water can recede before we get the rest of the spring rains.

I have also been taking this low reception time to listen to some podcasts. I never konw If I should call then podcasts since I am not using an Ipod. I have been listening to mp3 files on my mp3 player. If one mode of reception is not there, I will use another. The shack will not be denied.

Until later, 73's.

Dxpedition

During my trip to Lebanon, Indiana trip, I did take my radios so I could do some listening in a new area. I got to do some listening but not as much I wanted. I got more aircraft than first responder on my scanner. Probably die to the closeness to Indianapolis and I may not have had the optimal frequencies f0r Lebanon programmed in. I also listened to the local NOAA stations. Always informative and it is interesting how the information varies from local to local. I also got to hear 87.7 out of Indy. It is an audio only of a Indy tv station so you can at least hear the station during your commute. It was also the first time I use the computer to listen to a radio station back home to get weather and news. I have listened to the station before but that was just to listen to music. Handy way to get the weather when you are going to travel back home. Yeah, I know I could of used weather.com but sometimes getting a local perspective is better. I like to listen to radio station over the air and by rf but sometimes that does not work and alternate means are needed. Does not mean I am giving up on the radio shack but the shack has gone digital. Three radios and a laptop with a wifi card means a steady flow of information. Here is to good listening.

Dxpedition in Lebanon

I got to some radio listening in Lebanon, Indiana. So I have learned that you CHWO from Toronto but can not get the much closer WOWO. Much be something about how the antennas are aimed or the nature of the am skip. They are both 50,000 watts of blowtorch. Just interesting but not conclusive.

General Reception Report

I have been noticing that my overall reception for mw and sw frequencies have been less than stellar for the last week. The atmosphere has been cooling down and generally unstable. i have not checked the sun spots and solar wind to see if that has been a factor. I should get a link for and put it on the blog. Got a lot of great ideas and do not always have the follow through for completion. I am sure it will eventually get done but not today.