blank spots

[bobdavcav]

Is there any spot in the lower 48 where, in deadband conditions, absolutely nothing shows up on the fm dial?

 

[gar hi]

Don't know if there's a spot where the FM band is 100% empty but I remember driving on Hwy 1 on the California coast going south of Carmel and there was a little stretch where the mountains were getting higher and from what tuning around I was able to do on FM, I couldn't get anything.

It was freaky.

I wasn't able to do a full FM bandscan but that that kind of void on FM was a first for me.

 

[cyberdad]

Not quite the lower 48, but driving Ontario Highways 11 and 17 from Ottawa to Winnipeg, there are several spots where things are dead. Unless you encounter e-skip....in which case, you find yourself listening to Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Carolinas, etc. in the deep northwoods!

 

[ftballfan]

On most of Hwy 17 between Thunder Bay and the Soo, you would likely pull in at least one UP station.

US-50 around the Warm Springs turnoff in Nevada would likely be close to empty.

Part of the problem is whatever stations are nearby those areas only run low power, but could probably upgrade significantly without any other stations having to move.

And I think you could get at least one FM anywhere in Hawaii.

 

[Signal]

Hwy 103 in Nova Scotia. Between Barrington and Bridgewater.

 

[rbrucecarter5]

Parts of Camada 93 through Banff and Jasper national parks. But that was 35 years ago. I did have two AM stations, very faint.

 

[boiseengineer]

Idaho? Recently, No.
AM can be received almost anywhere in Idaho. And even in deep valleys you can hear something on FM bouncing off or knife-edge refracting over the mountains.

In the 80s when I traveled between Winnemucca & McDermott NV AM would disappear just north of town. Boise, Winnemucca, & Reno would just go away. The rust colored mountains to the East might be a clue as to why. Same area you could put the FM on search and nothing would pop up until the McDermott translators showed up.

 

[cyberdad]

On most of Hwy 17 between Thunder Bay and the Soo, you would likely pull in at least one UP station.

Most of the blank areas I encountered were on 11 between New Liskeard and Thunder Bay and on 17 between Thunder Bay and Kenora.

 

[mimo]

On most of Hwy 17 between Thunder Bay and the Soo, you would likely pull in at least one UP station.

Most of the blank areas I encountered were on 11 between New Liskeard and Thunder Bay and on 17 between Thunder Bay and Kenora.

I would imagine Washington state right along the Canadian border in the mountains would be dead on FM. You can drive along the southern highway of BC and not hear any FM at all. In B. C. itself you could drive from Banff Alberta to Kamlo0ps B.C. before you'd hear any thing on FM until very recently All radio was AM only and it would be one or 2 stations at the most. Most of them were either CBC radio 1 or rebroadcasters of the former 580 in Salmon Arm in Revelstoke and Golden. Revelstoke did have radio 1 on FM at the time. From about 40 mintues south of Merrit B.C. to Hope there is no radio at all except at night on AM..and FM is completely dead. To0 far from any city to hear anything.

 

[bobdavcav]

Come to think of it, aren't there parts of Yellowstone where the dial is blank except for maybe a scratchy 102.9 from Island Park, ID?

 

[crainbebo]

How about Hwy 95 past Las Vegas, or US-6 east of Bishop in the mountains? Almost nothing on FM there, maybe a scratchy Tonopah station, a scratchy KSRW 92.5, or KIBS 100.7/KRHV 93.3, and that's probably my best prediction.

 

[fybush]

I lived due east of Bishop, almost to the Nevada border, in the late 1980s, as it happens. The dial was empty, but not as empty as you'd think. That big KIBS 100.7 signal from up at Silver Peak really gets out, and nowadays the other Owens Valley FMs (KWTW, KSRW, KRHV) do as well. With nothing else on the local dial back in the day, I used to get some pretty wild knife-edge refraction through the Sierra and White mountains, and on most days I could point a rooftop yagi westward and get stable reception of several FMs from San Luis Obispo and sometimes from Fresno as well.

I don't think the Tonopah 92.7 has been on the air for years, but the Nevada Public Radio relay on 91.7 there gets out pretty well, too.

 

[kinphoenix2]

It's been a while maybe 10 yrs, but I vaguely recall getting nothing driving through some very remote parts heading south from Utah to Arizona.. I'm pretty sure I got nothing via FM nor AM and NO cell service on my then ATT mobile. I took hwy 15 to 89A and there were a few dead parts.

 

[crainbebo]

I lived due east of Bishop, almost to the Nevada border, in the late 1980s, as it happens. The dial was empty, but not as empty as you'd think. That big KIBS 100.7 signal from up at Silver Peak really gets out, and nowadays the other Owens Valley FMs (KWTW, KSRW, KRHV) do as well. With nothing else on the local dial back in the day, I used to get some pretty wild knife-edge refraction through the Sierra and White mountains, and on most days I could point a rooftop yagi westward and get stable reception of several FMs from San Luis Obispo and sometimes from Fresno as well.

I don't think the Tonopah 92.7 has been on the air for years, but the Nevada Public Radio relay on 91.7 there gets out pretty well, too.

I know KSKS has an amazing signal - I suppose that's one of the Fresno's you had. Anything that you heard from Sacramento, Visalia, Bakersfield?

-crainbebo

 

[fybush]

From where I was, the only reception to the west was via knife-edge refraction, with signals reflecting off mountain peaks on the way from the coast or the Central Valley on the way to me, and the paths were very limited. The sheer bulk of the Sierra Nevadas, especially to the south of my location, formed a wall that blocked out anything from Bakersfield, and I suspect there was similar terrain blockage toward Sacramento. It also didn't help that the Bakersfield and Sacramento FMs are on relatively low towers as compared to the surrounding mountain ranges, whereas the Fresno FMs are up higher.

I did hear 93.7 occasionally, but the 103.7 from Hanford was stronger. The very strongest signals on a regular basis, though, came from Cuesta Peak outside San Luis Obispo - KCBX on 90.1, KSLY on 96.1, KKJG on 98.1, KSTT on 101.3 and especially KIQO on 104.5, all at a distance of well over 200 miles across three mountain ranges.

 

[AKDXer]

From where I was, the only reception to the west was via knife-edge refraction, with signals reflecting off mountain peaks on the way from the coast or the Central Valley on the way to me, and the paths were very limited. The sheer bulk of the Sierra Nevadas, especially to the south of my location, formed a wall that blocked out anything from Bakersfield, and I suspect there was similar terrain blockage toward Sacramento. It also didn't help that the Bakersfield and Sacramento FMs are on relatively low towers as compared to the surrounding mountain ranges, whereas the Fresno FMs are up higher.

I did hear 93.7 occasionally, but the 103.7 from Hanford was stronger. The very strongest signals on a regular basis, though, came from Cuesta Peak outside San Luis Obispo - KCBX on 90.1, KSLY on 96.1, KKJG on 98.1, KSTT on 101.3 and especially KIQO on 104.5, all at a distance of well over 200 miles across three mountain ranges.

I grew up in Atascadero in the '00s, so all the SLO stations you mentioned were locals for me. Do you remember what formats they were running at the time by any chance? Or have any recordings/airchecks you'd be OK with sharing? I've always wondered what the SLO stations sounded like "back then".

I know elsewhere you mentioned you also got KZOZ 93.3 from SLO...how well? Was it rock/classic rock back then already? And what about 92.5? (It would've been KDDB at the time). I'm particularly interested in the history of 92.5...what was it formatted as back then, if you ever heard it and remember?

Just curious, what did you use for a tuner? And did these stations come in well enough to stay in stereo most of the time?

If you want I can tell you what they all run now...

 

[AKDXer]

From where I was, the only reception to the west was via knife-edge refraction, with signals reflecting off mountain peaks on the way from the coast or the Central Valley on the way to me, and the paths were very limited. The sheer bulk of the Sierra Nevadas, especially to the south of my location, formed a wall that blocked out anything from Bakersfield, and I suspect there was similar terrain blockage toward Sacramento. It also didn't help that the Bakersfield and Sacramento FMs are on relatively low towers as compared to the surrounding mountain ranges, whereas the Fresno FMs are up higher.

I did hear 93.7 occasionally, but the 103.7 from Hanford was stronger. The very strongest signals on a regular basis, though, came from Cuesta Peak outside San Luis Obispo - KCBX on 90.1, KSLY on 96.1, KKJG on 98.1, KSTT on 101.3 and especially KIQO on 104.5, all at a distance of well over 200 miles across three mountain ranges.

I grew up in Atascadero in the '00s, so all the SLO stations you mentioned were locals for me. Do you remember what formats they were running at the time by any chance? Or have any recordings/airchecks you'd be OK with sharing? I've always wondered what the SLO stations sounded like "back then".

I know elsewhere you mentioned you also got KZOZ 93.3 from SLO...how well? Was it rock/classic rock back then already? And what about 92.5? (It would've been KDDB at the time). I'm particularly interested in the history of 92.5...what was it formatted as back then, if you ever heard it and remember?

Just curious, what did you use for a tuner? And did these stations come in well enough to stay in stereo most of the time?

If you want I can tell you what they all run now...

 

[SwapMeetLouie]

KZOZ was CHR in the mid 80's until 1991, when it flipped to AOR to compete with 95.3 KWBR/Pismo Beach, which I believe was #1 12+ at the time, despite the fact their signal didn't reach north of San Luis Obispo. KDDB had their studio on Marsh St in downtown SLO and was Country. They had a weird signal that was 92.3 south of Cuesta Grade and 92.5 north of it. Sometime in the late 80's or early 90's, the signal on 92.5 was upgraded and it can now picked up on both sides of the grade. I remember SLO's FM dial from about 30 years ago very well because there were so few stations:

90.1 KCBX (San Luis Obispo, Central Coast Public Radio)
91.3 KCPR (San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly Radio)
92.3 KDDB (San Luis Obispo, Country)
93.3 KZOZ (Arroyo Grande, Contemporary Hit Radio)
94.3 KOTR (Cambria, Free Form Rock)
95.3 KPGA (Pismo Beach, Easy Listening)
96.1 KSLY (San Luis Obispo, Contemporary Hit Radio)
98.1 KKUS (San Luis Obispo, Easy Listening)
104.5 KIQO (Atascadero, Oldies)
107.3 KOZY (Grover City, Easy Listening)

Around 1987 a new San Luis Obispo station, KLZZ "Class" signed on at 101.3 with an Oldies/Easy Listening Format. Around 1991 another new station, KWSP "Whisper 106" signed on from Santa Margarita with a Beautiful Music format.

 

[bobdavcav]

Replying here to get subscribed to the thread again. Has anyone traveled up to Alaska? I'd imagine there would be some blank spaces up there.

 

[rbrucecarter5]

Lisa Kelly has previously reported no AM or FM on most of the Dalton road in Alaska.