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DX'ing your Hometown stations

Not too many to choose from around here, but I have heard 21 mile distant 50kw WRKR (107.7) on the Cedar Point Causeway in Sandusky, Ohio.

It's not exactly local, but I caught a Coldwater semi-local, WMEE (97.3) Fort Wayne, IN just north of Louisville, KY on I-65 one time. Also, WAJI (95.1) on cliffs overlooking the Ohio River in Milton, KY, across the river from Madison, IN.
 
When I was a kid, I picked up WLS in Jasper National Park, Alberta using a Philco 5-tube table radio with a 150 foot longwire antenna strung through the trees from our camping trailer. I've even got a QSL card to prove it. But that was many years ago. Probably could never do that now!
 
audioguy said:
When I was a kid, I picked up WLS in Jasper National Park, Alberta using a Philco 5-tube table radio with a 150 foot longwire antenna strung through the trees from our camping trailer. I've even got a QSL card to prove it. But that was many years ago. Probably could never do that now!
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I picked up WLS almost three years ago here in Western Washington, with ID to boot, so it still can happen, although it's tougher with CJDC and KDXU on now. WBBM 780 is about the most common Chicagoan heard here, and sometimes tears up Reno.

-crainbebo
 
In 1975 while visiting relatives in my Mom's home town of Weyburn, SK, I was able to receive 1190 KEX Portland after local CFSL signed off the air at 1 AM (their time). I heard KEX several times and WOWO as well. Sometimes both at the same time. Now-a-days I can sometimes hear CFSL in the null of KEX right here in the Portland area.
Other stations I received from the west coast while in Weyburn were: Little 1590 KUUU Seattle loud and clear, 1530 KFBK, 640 KFI, and 680 KNBR.
 
W7PAT said:
In 1975 while visiting relatives in my Mom's home town of Weyburn, SK, I was able to receive 1190 KEX Portland after local CFSL signed off the air at 1 AM (their time). I heard KEX several times and WOWO as well. Sometimes both at the same time. Now-a-days I can sometimes hear CFSL in the null of KEX right here in the Portland area.
Other stations I received from the west coast while in Weyburn were: Little 1590 KUUU Seattle loud and clear, 1530 KFBK, 640 KFI, and 680 KNBR.
Click to expand...

Hearing WOWO in SK, even when they were running 50KW was a great catch considering they didn't send much of their signal that way at night.
 
CFSL comes in sometimes over the top of KEX here in Western WA. Depends on the night.

I've heard a lot of my locals at night over in Yakima, WA and Portland, OR. Picked up KSUH 1450 Puyallup over the GY hash at night in Portland, probably 130 miles. KIRO and KOMO have reliable daytime AM signals in Yakima as well as Portland.

-crainbebo
 
When I go out of town like to Vegas or West Sacramento

I like to listen to SF AM's like 560, 680, 740 & 810

I'm going to try to catch 1310 when I'm out of town
 
haven't had too good of luck dxing hometown stations from Jackson, MS. I did once pick up WZRX 1590 1000 watts at night (now silent) on vacation in the Smokeys in Ducktown TN. and once in New Orleans at night . Picked up WJNT 1180 500 watts nightime and WOAD 1300 1000 watts nightime in the Ozarks Warsaw, MO. Picked up WOKJ 1550 (10,000 watts nightime) Now silent in Tulsa, OK and also in the Ozarks.
 
flytrap said:
haven't had too good of luck dxing hometown stations from Jackson, MS. I did once pick up WZRX 1590 1000 watts at night (now silent) on vacation in the Smokeys in Ducktown TN. and once in New Orleans at night . Picked up WJNT 1180 500 watts nightime and WOAD 1300 1000 watts nightime in the Ozarks Warsaw, MO. Picked up WOKJ 1550 (10,000 watts nightime) Now silent in Tulsa, OK and also in the Ozarks.
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Whatever happened to WOKJ, anyway? I think it was still on the air in the 70s, yet I was never able to hear it, AFAIK, when my local 1550 used to be a daytime-only station.

cd
 
My all time best "hometown" catch would still be WLS about 30 miles northwest of Honolulu on the north shore of Oahu in February 1965. Daytime skywave catches would be WMAQ (now WSCR) near Detroit Lakes, MN and WBBM outside of Ottawa Canada. Both in winter. Both roughly 600 miles.

For the lower-powered stations, it would probably be hearing WIND in Winnipeg a few times in the 90s and early 2000s. About a 750 mile nighttime hop for a 5kw signal (aimed in that direction).

Flytrap: I used to hear WOKJ on a semi-regular basis here in the Chicago area (back in the 60s and/or 70s IIRC). I've also heard WJDX a few times under semi-local WTMJ around sunset. The 810 from Magee, MS has also been known to come blasting in here before powering down at Sunset.

Zach: The Birmingham 690 has made it up here a few times on 50kw....mostly before its days as WJOX. I've also heard WAPI once or twice at 50kw (on 1070) but not recently.
 
cd637299 said:
Whatever happened to WOKJ, anyway? I think it was still on the air in the 70s, yet I was never able to hear it, AFAIK, when my local 1550 used to be a daytime-only station.

cd
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As always, I stand to be corrected. But I seem to recall that WOKJ was piling up all manner of FCC fines and violations of one sort or another. And on top of that, the physical plant was falling apart. I may be off-base, but this is what comes to mind for me.
 
^ Sorry to go OT, and this will be my last question on this thread re WOKJ:

Then, couldn't another entity have applied for the 1550 frequency & array? Isn't the pattern still protected? It's been 35 years, hasn't it?

[*Wanting* an AM station in 2013 is another issue.]

cd
 
I'm not completely sure when WOKJ went dark. But I can say that when I moved to Jackson to program and do mornings at the former Majic 107 in 1988, WOKJ was still on. It was country -- really country with "Hillbilly Willie" doing nights.

The station didn't last too long after that.

DE
 
Back in the late 1970's I received for a few minutes KLVI 560-Beaumont, TX, while on vacation on the south rim of the Grand Canyon.
 
cd637299 said:
^ Sorry to go OT, and this will be my last question on this thread re WOKJ:

Then, couldn't another entity have applied for the 1550 frequency & array? Isn't the pattern still protected? It's been 35 years, hasn't it?

[*Wanting* an AM station in 2013 is another issue.]

cd
Click to expand...

My GUESS is that the existing facility was already shot, and starting over from scratch would have been difficult and expensive. And then also expensive to maintain. If someone *wanted* an AM there has been no shortage of dark AMs in Jackson over the past dozen or so years. Most or all of which would've been easier and cheaper to build and maintian.

As for protecting WOKJ's pattern, I don't think they were entitled to much....if anything at all.
 
I always listen for my locals when I travel.

WLIP (1050, 250 watts ND). Great signal from Milwaukee to Chicago. Can be heard in NW Indiana and SW Michigan. Best distance was about 200 miles, near LaCrosse, WI around sunset.

WIIL (95.1, 50KW). Heard past Kalamazoo one morning along I-94. Always in and out in NW Indiana coming into Chicago. Best distance- see above.
.
WWDV (96.9, 50KW). Licensed to Zion, IL, but tower is in Kenosha County. Directional northwest to protect WDRV 97.1 Chicago (this must be one of the worst short-spacing allocations ever). Have heard in many places in Central and Western Wisconsin.
 
KenoGuy said:
I always listen for my locals when I travel.

WLIP (1050, 250 watts ND). Great signal from Milwaukee to Chicago. Can be heard in NW Indiana and SW Michigan. Best distance was about 200 miles, near LaCrosse, WI around sunset.

WIIL (95.1, 50KW). Heard past Kalamazoo one morning along I-94. Always in and out in NW Indiana coming into Chicago. Best distance- see above.
.
WWDV (96.9, 50KW). Licensed to Zion, IL, but tower is in Kenosha County. Directional northwest to protect WDRV 97.1 Chicago (this must be one of the worst short-spacing allocations ever). Have heard in many places in Central and Western Wisconsin.
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That isn't the worst I can think of. There are two 100kW stations on 104.7 less than 90 miles apart in the Carolinas and two 50kW equivalent stations on 105.7 less than 60 miles apart in the Mid-Atlantic. By the way, 96.9 is common in Manistee, MI during tropo.
 
Back in the 70's while in Woodland Park, Colorado I was picking up a fairly solid signal from KSAL 1150 in Salina, KS (and getting KSL as well)
 
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