With Dave Kenny, Tony Rogers and Graham Powell
Sheigra (or Shegra) is a small village of about 10 houses in the far northwest of Scotland, just south of Cape Wrath (the most north-westerly point of the UK mainland). The surrounding area is typical of the sparsely populated low country found in Sutherland and Caithness - peat covered, mountainous and lots of sheep. UK DXers have been organising regular listening expeditions to the area since 1979 to take advantage of the quiet listening conditions and the particularly favourable sea-path to North America. We stay in a croft which has been converted into a holiday cottage.
We arrived at Sheigra around midday on the Saturday, having driven up from the south overnight. A group of Dutch DXers staying at the croft the week before were due to depart on the Saturday and we wondered if they would still be there when we arrived. In the end we missed them but they had left a very welcoming fire burning, along with copious notes of their logs and experiences of their first trip to Sheigra. They had also kindly left three beverage aerials ready for us to plug in and start listening straight away.
This was the first February DXpedition to Sheigra so we were not sure what to expect. The results were very encouraging - the logs speak for themselves. On mediumwave the first week favoured Asia from about 1500-1900 and east coast North America from about 1900 (when Newfoundland started fading in) until general fadeout around 1030. The second week saw a change with South American and Caribbean signals being dominant - these typically heard from about 2200-1000. Towards the end of our second week, North America improved again. Interestingly we could hear Alaska (KBRW Barrow on 680) most afternoons, even on days when no other North Americans were heard. On shortwave, we noted particularly good Tropical Band reception from the Pacific, Far East and Latin America around breakfast time (0800-1000). This was also by far the best general time for North America on mediumwave.
The weather could best be described as unsettled! True we did have a couple of very pleasant mild and sunny days, but these were interspersed with periods of extremely stormy weather including severe gales and driving hailstorms. The storms really put our aerials to the test, but with several DXpeditions behind us now, we now have this down to a fine art. With BBC TV forecasting severe gales, and after several breaks in the aerials as soon as the wind began to pick up, we decided to double the number of canes supporting the wires and to our great relief they held out without further problems, despite some really ferocious winds.
Dave Kenny - Lowe HF225 Europa, Lowe HF250 and tuneable
pre-amp
Graham Powell - Lowe HF225 Europa and tuneable pre-amp
Tony Rogers - Trio R2000 and Datong wideband pre-amp
(All long-wire beverages using 7-strand 0.2mm wire supported on 4-5ft bamboo canes)
340 degrees 400m terminated - aimed at Alaska
305 degrees 500m terminated - aimed at the Prairies and western
North America
280 degrees 450m terminated - aimed at the Caribbean and eastern
North America
045 degrees 500m terminated - aimed at the Far East and Eastern
Asia
1/2 Evening: Alaska (KBRW) at 1800 followed by
strong Newfoundland (NF) and Nova Scotia (NS) signals
2/2 Morning: NF/NS strong until fadeout by 1100. Evening: Good
general ECNA reception
3/2 Morning: Good ECNA to fadeout at 1030. Evening: Very strong
Canadian/New England signals
4/2 Morning: Good ECNA & fair Gt Lakes, fadeout 1045. Evening:
ECNA and Latin Americans mixing
5/2 Morning: Average ECNA, brief AB/BC, fadeout 1020. Evening a mix
of ECNA, Caribbean & Middle East
6/2 Morning: Average ECNA, f/out 1020, strong 60mb Pacific
stations. Eve: Poor ECNA + LAm, Middle East
7/2 Morning: As above. Evening: Good ECNA and Caribbean
8/2 Morning: Very good ECNA, f/out 1040 (later found we had no
earth!). Evening: Nothing but Latin America
9/2 Morning & evening: Only South Americans audible
10/2 Morning: Lots of Central Americans to 1000 fadeout, Alaska at
1300. Evening: Very poor, early night!
11/2 Morning: Latins everywhere, over to shortwave! Evening: Alaska
at 1600, LAs, Caribbean, weak ECNA
12/2 Morning: LAm, Caribbean & weak ECNA to f/out 0940, weak MB
to 1030. Eve: Fair Caribbean, poor NA
13/2 Morning: Weak Latins until 0855 f/out; brief opening to
NF/AB/AK 1100-1200. Eve: Caribbeans very strong
14/2 Morning: Latin Americans mixing with Caribbean, Florida &
Atlantic Canada to 1100
560 1951 1/2 CHVO Carbonear NF Ads "This is CHVO
country", VOCM wx
580 2108 1/2 CJFX Antigonish NS "8 past 5", wx, ID & sports
nx
590 2010 1/2 VOCM St John's NF VOCM five day weather forecast
600 2119 3/2 CBNA St Anthony NF (Pres) CBC nx reports // 1400
600 0906 8/2 CKCL Truro NS Ads, ID "AM 60 CKCL", country mx
620 2119 1/2 CKCM Grand Falls NF "CKCM" ID, mx, // VOCM 590
640 2105 3/2 CBN St John's NF Wx for Maritimes, Labrador
650 2133 1/2 CKGA Gander NF VOCM live bingo // 590
650 1515 10/2 ---- Qeqertarsaq, Greenland Greenland talking clock,
pips, ID, nx in Greenlandic
660 0743 2/2 WFAN New York NY "WFAN 20-20 sport"
680 1818 1/2 KBRW Barrow AK mx, TC for 9.18, local anns for Barrow,
IDs (also heard between 0830-1600 on 10,11,12,13/2)
680 1027 12/2 CJOB Winnipeg MB Sports nx, ID, mx & CJOB wx
680 2140 1/2 CKXG Grand Falls NF "Kicks country", local nx
700 2154 2/2 CHSJ St John NB "CHSJ 700 St John", country mx
710 2114 1/2 CKVO Carbonear NF VOCM five day wx, local ads
720 2238 3/2 CHTN Charlottetown PEI ID, ads, CHTN wx "minus 11
degrees"
740 2055 5/2 CHCM Marystown NF "This is 7-40 CHCM country",
requests, mx
750 2030 2/2 CBGY Bonavista Bay NF CBC nx // 1140 and 1400 kHz
770 0820 5/2 WABC New York NY "News Talk radio 7-70 WABC"
780 2345 2/2 CFDR Dartmouth NS "7-80 kix country"
800 2150 1/2 VOWR St John's NF "Saturday at 6" prog, hymns, ID
840 0820 5/2 CJXX Grand Prairie AB "First with your info we are
country 8-40 CJXX"
850 2147 3/2 WEEZ Boston MA sports nx "sports radio 8-50 WEEZ"
850 0845 8/2 unid ?? "The news station - news when you want it"
870 2240 3/2 CFSX Stephenville NF CFCB IDs, ads, mx
870 0859 8/2 WWL New Orleans LA "This is 8-70 WWL" nx
880 0820 4/2 WCBS New York NY nx "WCBS news time 6.20", lottery
numbers
890 0900 4/2 WLS Chicago IL "WLS Chicago" nx
920 0007 3/2 CJCH Halifax NS "9-20 CJCH" ID, money talk px
930 1953 1/2 CJYQ St Johns NF "Q93" ID, adverts
930 2059 3/2 CFBC St John NB Sports nx, ID, adverts
950 2040 1/2 CHER Sydney NS "Oldies 9-50 Cape Breton" wx, mx
950 0104 8/2 CKNB Campbellton NB "95 CKNB", country music radio
960 2347 2/2 CHNS Halifax NS "Oldies 96" ID
970 2130 3/2 CBZ Fredricton NB Local NB nx, sports, wx
970 0802 10/2 WZAN Portland ME Ads "W-Zee-A-N" ID
980 0046 8/2 CBV Quebec PQ (pres) Phone-in in FF
990 2139 3/2 CBY Corner Brook NF (pres) CBC nx // 1400
1000 0819 2/2 CKBW Bridgewater NS CKBW wx, ads, C&W mx
1010 2343 3/2 WINS New York NY "WINS news time 6.43"
1030 2312 2/2 WBZ Boston MA ID, phone-in, sport
1050 0906 3/2 WEVD New York NY ads, "10-50 WEVD New York"
1070 0820 4/2 CBA Moncton NB (pres) relay of Deutsche Welle
English
1080 0953 4/2 WTIC Hartford CT "AM 10-80 WTIC" phone-in
1090 0822 4/2 WBAL Baltimore MD ID, Rush Limbaugh px
1100 0759 4/2 WTAM Cleveland OH "WTAM 1100 its 3 o'clock" nx,
wx
1110 0800 4/2 WBT Charlotte NC Nx, ID, country mx
1120 0824 4/2 KMOX St Louis MO phone-in, "News Talk 11-20 KMOX"
1130 0809 2/2 WBBR New York NY "News 11-30 WBBR - WBBR news time
3.09"
1140 1138 13/2 CHRB High River AB ID, "Southern Alberta's community
radio station, AM 11-40 High River" (ex CFXL Calgary)
1140 2130 1/2 CBI Sydney NS "Atlantic Airwaves" px - Scottish mx
from Halifax NS
1150 0806 4/2 CKOC Hamilton ON "Oldies 11-50 CKOC"
1150 0822 7/2 CHGM Gaspe PQ phone-in, ID @ 0831, FF
1180 0833 3/2 WHAM Rochester NY "11-80 WHAM", promo for "Highway
Patrol"
1190 2305 2/2 WLIB New York NY ID/promo "11-90 WLIB"
1190 2359 3/2 WOWO Fort Wayne IN phone-in, "11-90 WoWo", nx
1200 0815 4/2 CFGO Ottawa ON "Energy 1200"
1200 0823 4/2 WKOX Framlington MA brief ID "WKOX AM 1200"
1210 2016 3/2 VOAR St John's NF "... right here only on 12-10
VOAR"
1220 0844 4/2 CKCW Moncton NB "CKCW where every song you can sing
along to"
1230 2330 12/2 CFFB Iqaluit NWT (tent) Phone-in & talk in
presumed Eskimo language
1250 0834 3/2 WTMA Charleston SC "Talk Radio 12-50 WTMA", talk
show
1260 2234 3/2 WEZE Boston MA PSA, ads, "12-60 Christian radio for
the family"
1270 2042 3/2 CJCB Sydney NS sports nx, tax ad, "CJCB"
1280 0908 6/2 WFAU Gardiner ME nostalgia mx, "12-80 WFAU - lock it
in"
1290 2330 6/2 CHRM Matane PQ "CHRM Matane", phone-in, FF
1290 1007 7/2 WKNE Keene NH wx, ID/jingle "12-90 WKNE"
1300 0804 2/2 WERE Cleveland OH "1300 WERE all talk, all day, all
night"
1320 2330 2/2 CKEC New Glasgow NS nostalgia mx, ID
1330 0920 6/2 WRCA Waltham MA nostalgia/classical mx, ID @ 1000,
FF
1340 1000 4/2 CKXX Corner Brook NF local wx & nx, sports,
"Kicks Country"
1350 0900 3/2 WGPL Portsmouth VA ID "WGPL
Portsmouth-Norfolk-Newport News"
1350 2208 3/2 CKAD Middleston NS (pres) funeral anns, AVR ID, "Nova
Scotia"s best country
1360 0900 3/2 CKBC Bathurst NB Broadcast News, "This is CKBC
1-3-6-0"
1370 0900 4/2 WDEA Ellsworth ME CBS nx, Baby Gold Bond ad, ID,
nostalgia mx
1375 0008 7/2 RFO St Pierre & Miquelon FF ID for RFO, relay
France Inter news
1380 0830 4/2 CFDA Victoriaville PQ Meatloaf, ID, wx, FF
1390 0859 3/2 WXTC Charleston SC "Charleston's best county" &
"Bubba 107.5 WBUB"
1390 2300 3/2 WEGP Presque Isle ME "WREM Monticello-Hulton &
WEGP Presque Isle"
1390 0829 3/2 WEED Rocky Mount NC promo for Riverside Church Sunday
School, "13-90 WEED"
1400 2105 1/2 CBG Gander NF px on local singer
1410 2058 1/2 CIGO Port Hawkesbury NS mx, "This is 14-10 CIGO",
nx
1410 1000 7/2 WPOP Hartford CT One on One Sports, "WPOP Sports
Radio 14-10"
1420 0938 4/2 CKDY Digby NS (pres) AVR IDs, C&W
1430 1003 3/2 WENE Endicott NY "Sports Radio 14-30", ID, Sports
Overnight America
1430 0959 4/2 WDEX Monroe NC legal ID "...WDEX Monroe-Matthews"
1430 0957 4/2 WXKS Everett MA "Boston's music love of your life AM
14-30 WXKS"
1430 0800 3/2 CKCY Toronto ON "Country 14-30", C&W
1440 2356 12/2 WLPZ Portland ME One on One Sports, ID "Sports Radio
WLPZ 14-40"
1450 2248 3/2 CFAB Windsor NS "Annapolis Valley Radio", C&W
mx
1450 0922 5/2 WFPG Atlantic City NJ "WFPG Talk Radio 14-50"
1450 2220 12/2 VSB1 Hamilton, Bermuda Nx, wx, adx ID "VSB 14-50 AM
Hamilton Bermuda"
1450 1000 9/2 unid ?? relay of "Your Kind of Country" (no other NAm
stations audible)
1460 0916 4/2 CJOY Guelph ON Oldies, "14-60 is C-JOY Good Time
Oldies"
1460 1010 6/2 WGNA Albany NY "GNA Headline News"
1470 0900 5/2 CJVB Vancouver BC "This is Greater Vancouver's most
complete, multi- cultural radio, AM 14-70 CJVB, Cable 103.3 FM"
1470 1000 8/2 WRBD Pompano Beach FL "WRBD Pompano Beach-Fort
Lauderdale"
1470 1000 8/2 WZOU Lewiston ME "WLAM Gorham-Portland, WZOU
Lewiston-Auburn"
1480 2158 3/2 WSAR Fall River MA jingle ID
1480 0833 4/2 WHBC Canton OH TC 3.33, "News, Sport, Weather on
WHBC"
1490 1030 3/2 WMBM Miami Beach FL 14-90 WMBM, mx, weak
1490 1030 7/2 CKEN Kentville NB (pres) local nx, AVR ID's
1500 2159 3/2 WFIF Milford CT religious pxs, Life Changing Radio
1500 AM WFIF
1500 2210 3/2 WTOP Washington DC wx, "WTOP News Time 5.10"
1510 2226 3/2 WNRB Boston MA "... right here on WNRB", religious
mx
1520 0958 2/2 WWKB Buffalo NY K-B Radio, ads
1530 0850 4/2 WSAI Cincinnati OH rel px, "Wonderful songs and
information WSAI"
1540 2305 5/2 WDCD Albany NY "Wednesday edition of ...??... on
WDCD"
1550 0839 4/2 CBE Windsor ON (pres) relay of Radio Finland in
EE
1560 0826 2/2 WQEW New York NY 15-60 WQEW, standards mx
1570 0900 7/2 WTLK Taylorsville NC C&W , "15-70 WTLK
Taylorsville, North Carolina"
1580 2359 5/2 WSRF Fort Lauderdale FL "WSRF, Fort Lauderdale"
1590 0929 3/2 WETT Ocean City MD ads, "News Talk 15-90 WETT"
1590 0750 3/2 WAKR Akron OH ads, ID
1590 0859 14/2 WPSL Port St Lucie FL Promos for WPSL internet px
& Art Bell show, ID
1590 2325 3/2 WARV Warwick RI ads, "15-90 AM WARV"
1590 2305 4/2 WSMN Nashua NH local nx, "Phone-in, here on WSMN"
1600 0848 7/2 WUNR Brookline MA (pres) SS px, ad, "... en
Boston"
1600 0926 7/2 WWRL New York NY "Radio WWRL"
1660 0910 4/2 WJDM Elizabeth NJ Radio Aahs, kids mx
530 2359 13/2 R Vision Cristiana, Turks &
Caicos SS religious px with EE ID on the hour
555 2325 7/2 R Ziz, St Kitts Public anns, "Radio Ziz" valentines
day promo
660 2218 13/2 R St Lucia "The News at Six", ID, ads
700 0845 11/2 JBC R1, Montego Bay, Jamaica Football promo Jamaica v
Venez. "... on JBC One"
705 2228 13/2 NBC St Vincent (tent) Music, nx in EE at 2230
780 2327 13/2 ZVBI British Virgin Islands (pres) Wx for Virgin
Islands, Caribbean accent
789.7 2244 13/2 Voice of Barbados Phone-in, local ads, ID "VOB"
830 0100 8/2 R Paradise, St Kitts "Trinity Broadcasting Network"
ID
840 2347 5/2 R Caribbean Int, St Lucia C&W mx ID "RCI" (also
rel BBCWS nx 2200 3/2)
890 2342 13/2 R Progreso, Santiago de Cuba Nx reports "R Progreso
Cadena Nacional"
1020 2318 2/2 Caribbean Christian R, Turks/Caicos ID, religious px,
USA address
1100 2320 7/2 ZDK, Antigua (pres) Funeral anns, Caribbean
accent
1130 0955 9/2 HIRL R Cadena de Noticias, Santo Domingo, Dominican
Rep Rolling nx, many IDs
1180 0035 8/2 R Rebelde (ex R Taino), Cuba SS speech (Fidel??), ID
// R Rebelde 5025 kHz
1190 2353 7/2 WBMJ, San Juan, Puerto Rico EE/SS religious px, promo
"... here on WBMJ"
1350 0030 10/2 WEGA, Vega Baja, Puerto Rico SS songs, ID "Radio Las
Vegas" (also 0929 10/2)
1400 0030 9/2 Harbour Light, Carriacou, Grenada ID, TC for 8.30,
religious px
1480 2258 12/2 WMDD, Fajardo, Puerto Rico (pres) mx, ID "Radio
Puerto Rico"
1540 2330 13/2 ZNS1 R Bahamas Nx, ads promo "ZNS Total Sports",
funeral anns
1570 0957 14/2 HRRF RCN, Tegucigalpa, Honduras ID "RCN ... Radio
Cadena de Noticicas"
1580 0916 10/2 WMTI, Morovis, Puerto Rico SS ID "WMTI Morovis"
1610 0925 2/2 Caribbean Beacon, Anguilla Dr Gene Scott // 5935
600 2327 13/2 ZYK278 R Gaucha, Porto Alegre, Brazil
(tent) Talk in PP //11915
650 0100 10/2 HJKH RCN Antena 2, Bogota ID "RCN Antena Dos",
ads
700 0042 13/2 YVPQ R Sur, Puerto Ordaz, Ven LA songs, ID
750 0030 9/2 YVKS R Caracas R, Venezuela ID, "Deportes RCR"
prog
770 0430 5/2 HJJX RCN Bogota, Colombia Nx "En el satelite, RCN",
ads
800 0920 10/2 HJBW RCN, Santander, Colombia SS ID "RCN
Bucaramanga", LA mx
850 2311 12/2 YVZC R Fe y Alegria, Maracaibo, Ven SS talk, ID, LA
mx
930 0756 10/2 HJCS LV de Bogota, Colombia Anns, ID in SS
940 0758 10/2 HJTL RCN Cucuta, Colombia SS ID, time pips @ 0800
970 0802 10/2 HJCI R Super, Bogota, Col TC & ID "Cadena Super
de Colombia"
970 2300 11/2 YV-- R Mundial, Barcelona, Ven Jingle ID "Radio
Mundial", LA mx
980 0014 8/2 HJCS RCN, Cali, Colombia RCN nx - many mentions of
RCN
1110 2300 5/2 YVQT R Carupano, Venezuela Several "Radio Carupano"
IDs
1380 2301 3/2 YVNG Ondas del Mar, Venezuela "YVNG 13-80, La Primera
con Mejores", promos
1380 0059 10/2 CB138 R Corporacion, Santiago, Chile ID " ... en
Santiago ... Radio Corporacion"
1390 2357 7/2 HJ-- Caracol, Colombia ID for Caracol Barranquilla
(not listed here)
1390 0902 12/2 YVZA R Fe y Alegria, Caracas, Ven S/on, Nat Anthem,
ID, freq ann, LA mx
1430 0900 6/2 YVTP R Bahia, Puerto La Cruz, Ven TC/ID "Radio Bahia
La Cinco"
1500 2254 4/2 YVRZ R 2000, Cumana, Ven "Deportes Dos Mil"
1550 0845 10/2 YVMW R Metropolitana, Los Teques, Venezuela. LA
songs, ID
1580 0927 14/2 HJ-- Caracol, Colombia ID for Caracol (not listed
here)
783 2316 10/2 Syrian Arab Radio, Tartus AA talk
& mx // 827 (heard under Germany)
827 2100 10/2 Syrian Arab Radio, Deirel Zawr "Voice of Iraq" px, ID
"Sawt al Iraq", AA mx nx 2130; Syrian Radio general programme from
2200
864 2039 8/2 Voice of Armenia, Kamo //4810 & 4990, listed for
external svce in Armenian
891 2300 5/2 TRT, Antalya, Turkey mx //927, 1017, 1062
900 1518 5/2 CBS, Tanshui, Taiwan OM/YL in CC //1521 & 3335
900 2312 6/2 BSKSA, Qurayyat, Saudi Arabia Quran //1440
927 2255 5/2 TRT, Izmir, Turkey Nx //891, 1017, 1062
1017 2300 5/2 TRT, Mundanya, Turkey Mx //891, 927, 1062
1062 2255 5/2 TRT, Diyabikir, Turkey Nx in Turkish //891, 927,
1017
1134 1617 5/2 R Kuwait `Main Arabic Prgr //11990
1143 1700 2/2 VOA, Poro, Philippines Yankee Doodle, ID, nx in
EE
1206 2055 12/2 Kol Israel, Haifa Hebrew px // 7495, 9390
1341 1712 10/2 R Kuwait Kuwait Radio anthem, AA //11990
1386 1443 4/2 IRIB, Ahwaz, Iran Talk in Persian, local songs
//15084
1413 1600 4/2 BBC Masirah relay, Oman S Asian vernacular, BBC
ID
1431 1557 4/2 IRIB, Isfahan, Iran Persian mx //15084
1440 2144 8/2 BSKSA, Damman, Saudi Arabia Arabic mx //9870
1449 1519 4/2 IRIB, Bandar-e-Torkoman, Iran Ext svce in Turkmen,
talk, songs, ID and IRIB nx theme at 1530
1467 1605 3/2 HLKN, Mokpo, South Korea Korean talk & mx //3930
(listed for same KBS svce)
1467 1709 8/2 All India R, Jeypore, India Indian mx //4800
1476 1659 9/2 UAE Radio, Dubai AA mx, YL in ID, pips, ID,
anthem
1494 1510 3/2 Xinjiang PBS, Urumqi, China Chinese svce //4500,
local mx
1503 1630 4/2 IRIB, Ardabil, Iran IRIB nx theme, nx in Persian
1512 1706 10/2 BSKSA, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Holy Quran Service
//9730
1521 1400 3/2 R Beijing, China Int Sig audible under Radio 1521
1521 1520 5/2 CBS, Changchih, Taiwan YL/OM //900 & 3335
1521 2210 2/2 BSKSA, Duba, Saudi Arabia Koran //1440
1525 1727 11/2 Iraqi Army Radio (CLAND) AA ID "Huna al Iraq, Idaat
al Jaysah al-Iraq, Sawt al Quwnat al Musallah al Basilah",
anti-Saddam rantings, many IDs, at 1738 jumped to 1537 kHz
1537 1738 11/2 Iraqi Army Radio (CLAND) ID as 1525 kHz
1548 2130 8/2 VOA Kuwait relay "Communications World" - armchair
signal!
1566 1630 13/2 HLAZ, Cheju, South Korea Russian ID "Govorit Radio
Stantsiya H-L-A-Zee"
1566 1658 10/2 IRIB, Bandar Abbas, Iran OM in Farsi //1503
1575 1459 3/2 VOA, Thailand End of Khmer px, VOA ID
1575 1500 3/2 Voice of Free Asia, Thailand EE px, IDs, very strong
Thai accent
171 2220 12/2 Medi 1, Nador, Morocco FF ID "Radio
Mediterranee International", nx (no sign of Medi 1 on 9575 at this
time.)
585 1939 8/2 RTT, Gafsa, Tunisia Arabic songs // 7475
630 1723 10/2 RTT, Tunis, Tunisia Arabic mx // 7475 (heard under
Norway)
684 2018 13/2 RTT, Kairouan, Tunisia Telephone conversation in AA
//7475
711 2022 8/2 Libyan Jamahiriyah R-multi tx, Libya Arabic songs //
1251
819 2250 5/2 ERTU, Batra, Egypt AA mx, ID "Huna Qahira"
840 2041 2/2 RNT Chad Sports commentary in FF // 4904.5
864 1930 9/2 ERTU, Santah, Egypt Holy Koran px // 9755 "Idaat al
Quran min Qahirah"
1044 1949 8/2 RTM, Sebaa-Aioun, Morocco AA songs // 594 (NB not
Medi 1 as listed in WRTH)
1251 2020 8/2 Libyan Jamahiriyah R-Tripoli, Libya Arabic songs //
711
1394 1906 9/2 Rdiff Togolaise, Lome Nx, "Radio Togo" ID, //
5047
1475 1915 3/2 ORTB, Cotonou, Benin FF talk, mx, ID "Radio
Benin"
1530 2038 2/2 VOA Sao Tome relay VOA African service, mx, over
Europeans
1544 2235 2/2 Nat R of Saharan Arab Dem Rep Nx in AA, many mentions
of Sahara
207 1500 9/2 Rikisutvarpid, Reykjavik, Iceland Talk
in Icelandic // 666, 738
558 2140 10/2 R Finland, Helsinki Ext service in EE // 963
630 1900 9/2 R Norway Int, Vigra Sunday-only EE service // 1314
666 1500 9/2 Rikisutvarpid, Hofn, Iceland Talk // 207, 738 (nasty
distorted audio on 666)
666 2025 13/2 R Vilnius, Sitkunai FS in EE, VOA Lithuanian relay at
2030
702 1940 13/2 NRK, Vadso Talk in Norweigan, songs //630, 1314
738 1500 9/2 Rikisutvarpid, Skjaldarvik, Iceland Talk in Icelandic
// 207, 666
1170 1600 4/2 Islamskaya Volna, Tibliskaya, Russia ID, talk //
1494, 1089
1381.2 1800 10/2 UNID Russian-sounding station Drifting/unstable
tx. Quite strong
1467 1640 9/2 R Pridnestrovye, Grigoriopol, Moldova RR/Romanian
Ids, ads nx, "Govorit Tiraspol"
1503 1940 5/2 Norea R/TWR test via Poland Test tx, mx, anns in
Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish
1530 1350 7/2 US Navy Br Svc, Keflavik, Iceland Military facts,
C&W mx, ID & UPI nx at 1400
1593 2330 12/2 R Moldova Int, Kishinev ID, int sig, ext service in
French
(these are just a few highlights of stations that we heard)
2310 1900 1/2 VL8A Alice Springs, NT, Australia
Phone in // 2325, 2485
2325 1902 1/2 VL8T Tennant Creek, NT, Australia Phone in // 2310,
2485
2485 1859 1/2 VL8K Katharine, NT, Australia Phone in // 2325,
2310
3925 0915 6/2 R Tampa 2, Tokyo, Japan (pres) Fast talk in Japanese,
ads for Coca Cola
3935 0910 6/2 ZLXA, Levin, New Zealand (pres) Relay of RNZ National
Radio
3945 0905 6/2 R Tampa 1, Tokyo, Japan (pres) OM in Japanese mixing
with Vanuatu
3945 0905 6/2 R Vaunatu, Port Vila (pres) Bob Marley track heard
under Japan
4115 1622 5/2 Voice of Indep. Kashmir (pres) Talk in Asian language
//5300 & 6300
4755 2155 8/2 R Educacao Rural, Campo Grande, Brazil. Mx, full ID
at 2201
4890 0932 6/2 NBC, Papua New Guinea TC, "Karai Radio" ID (heard
daily around this time)
4915 0919 6/2 R Cora, Lima, Peru SS IDs, Andean mx
4918.9 2335 5/2 R Quito, Ecuador Nx in SS ID "La Voz de la
Capital"
4925 2155 7/2 RRI, Jambi, Indonesia Koran, ID, nx in Indonesian
4935 0941 11/2 R Tropical, Tarapoto, Peru TC for 0441, "Radio
Tropical, Tarapoto"
4945 0832 11/2 R Illimani, La Paz, Bolivia ID "Radio Illimani, La
Voz de Bolivia", LA mx
4950 2320 5/2 R Madre de Dios, Peru Church svc, ID in SS, freq
ann
4950 0908 11/2 R Baha'i, Otavalo, Ecuador SS & Quechua ID "La
Voz de la Familia" , LA mx
4955 2315 5/2 Rdifusora Nac de Colombia, Bogota ID in SS, nx
4958.8 2202 5/2 Hanoi, Vietnam HS, morning exercises, talk in
Vietnamese
4990 0900 12/2 R Ancash, Huaraz, Peru s/on, anthem, ID "R Ancash..
buenos dias Peru"
5012 2216 8/2 R Cristal Int, Santo Domingo, Dom Rep IDs, mentioned
"Passport to World Band Radio"!
5020 0840 6/2 SIBS, Honiara, Solomon Islands Local messages, IDs.
Heard daily at this time!
5985 1233 6/2 R Myanmar Nx in presumed Burmese (1440 in EE)
6095 2015 5/2 Vorgan, Angola (pres) Western pop mx, anns in PP,
many refs to Angola
6130 2210 5/2 CHNX, Halifax, NS, Canada Oldies 96 // to and better
signal than 960
6160 2148 5/2 CKZN, St Johns NF, Canada CBC Newfoundland local px
// CBN 640
6570 1310 6/2 Defence Forces Broadcasting Unit, Taunggyi, Burma
Songs until 1327, brief anns & off
11740 1920 5/2 WINB, Red Lion PA, USA Gospel songs, full ID &
address at 1930
15050 1715 11/2 R For Peace Int, Costa Rica "Feminist International
Radio" px in EE
And so ended another very successful DXpedition to Sheigra. Despite our apprehension about what to expect from both reception conditions and the weather in February, we were not disappointed. And although conditions were not nearly as good as our last visit in November 1995 that was hardly surprising since November 1995 turned out to be one of the best openings to North America for some 30 years. In fact during that fortnight we could hardly hear anything but North America - night and day! This time we were rewarded with a great variety of reception - from both North and Central America, Asia and Africa; there was something for everyone. Now it's back to the tapes and time to make a start on those reception reports!
Dave, Tony & Graham