Day/Night AM/FM Outer Banks Vacation Project

[Schlep82]

I'm on vacation in the Outer Banks of North Carolina this week, and I wanted to see what kind of AM/FM radio stations I should observe. I have a Sony ICF-7600GR and an AM loop antenna. I'm arranging to do a full scan of the AM band, both daytime/nighttime, with the FM band. I did a similar project a few years back in 2017 in North Dakota with some success.

I'll try to give some updates to this post as I can, and I'll hope this project should be fun to discuss and figure out.

 

[Todd Mitchell]

1987: I had just moved to KDH from Minnesota, and what came booming in? KQRS and KTCZ from Minneapolis. Spooky coincidence.

 

[schmave]

Really looking forward to seeing what you find Schlep.

 

[awsherrill]

Years ago, someone posted here that they stood in the surf off one of the Outer Banks beaches, with a portable radio, and heard AM daytime signals from all up and down the east coast.

When they walked back out of the water onto the beach, reception was markedly reduced.

I tried this several years ago during one of our camping trips to Ocracoke and noted some enhanced reception, but I didn't have the patience to stand in the pounding surf and check every frequency. With all of the recent offshore storm activity and resultant rip currents, this week may not be good for surf DXing.

 

[Steve Green NEPA]

Some years ago from Pottsville PA I took one of those free gambling shuttle buses to Atlantic City. They issued me $5 in quarters and dropped us all off at the entrance to some casino.
My grandpa (same name as me, lol) was a bookie. With wisdom having duly been handed down, I turned my nose up, walked out the other door of the casino, bought some immense sloppy sub, and DXed all day on the beach, with a GE SR 2.
Super water-path DX ensued. Long Island stations abounded, some of them just as loud as the NYC 50 K omnis. It was like being home on L.I. again, only with reciprocal reception.
Beyond doubt, Schlep82, those conditions exist daily.
Back in Copiague Long Island -- right on the bay where I lived -- little 250-watt WOBR Wanchese NC 'Outer Banks Radio' was there all day., until Bridgeport 1530 came on. WBOF 1550 Virginia Beach was another daily visitor -- on a crumby CLOCK radio, next to WQXR 1560.
Roll some tape out on your excursion, 82. A friend of mine on a trip took his wife and a Zenith Royal 500 transistor (not necessarily in that order of priority) to the Outer Banks and reported hearing both WBZ Boston and WAPE Jacksonville at midday.

 

[Cordelia Chase]

WBOF 1550 Virginia Beach was another daily visitor -

Hey, Steve Green NEPA, do you remember what format and the type of announcers WBOF had? By the mid-80s, it was called WVAB, and it had a CHR format, but a signal that was pretty weak on the Tidewater Peninsula. I think it was a daytimer, right? IIRC, there was some sort of ownership controversy/scandal that led to up to the frequency's deletion a few years back.

 

[Steve Green NEPA]

@C Chase: That time of WBOF was quite long ago, Cordelia. But If memory serves, WBOF had a beautiful music format.
And indeed, it was a daytime-only station. An Olde Log Booke says they were 5000 watts, omni. Radio-Locator now has 1550 blank there now.
Btw: The aforementioned markets of Atlantic City plus Tidewater (as well as inland Scranton) all seemed to be satisfied at the time with their 'graveyard' signals on 1230, 1340, 1400, 1490, etc.