FM DXing Spot - Kiawah Island, SC

[ScottBurns]

Just took a trip through parts of South Carolina, and found the beach on Kiawah Island to be a good spot for FM DXing. I had a range of pick-ups, mostly from South GA but also X-102.9 out of Jacksonville. Does anyone know if the latter is a normal pick-up from there? Or did I just catch some good tropo?

 

[charlestondxman]

Kiawah is a very good spot. South GA stations come in throughout the Charleston area during the summer. Savannah signals are almost always in. Jacksonville stations too. Not just 102.9. I've heard most of the Jacksonville FMs at one time or another.

It's a tropo, but it comes in so frequently that you know what it is. There are only two FMs close by there, 98.1 and 105.5 that are basically locals. The other Charleston signals are at least 20-30 miles away, some close to 40, so they're not as strong as other beach areas nearby.

Good tropo from our area is Orlando and even West Palm Beach.

 

[ScottBurns]

I would have loved to have picked up stations of my hometown of West Palm Beach. I spent three days in Charleston, and stayed on the city's south side. My best catches were Myrtle Beach and Savannah stations, but nothing further. I figured Kiawah was a great spot, given how far it is from most of Charleston's big signals (except 105.5 and 98.1, as you mentioned). Most of my pick-ups on Kiawah were from Brunswick County, GA. Jacksonville's 102.9 was scratchy, but it was audible. Which Orlando stations have you picked up? XL 106.7?

I was also in Columbia, and was surprised how well G 105.7/Augusta came in. I thought more of the Charlotte stations would be clearer. The only really clear Charlotte station was 103.7 WSOC.

Finally, this was my first summer visit to Hilton Head, and there was a huge difference in the DXing between summer and late fall/early winter. The Charleston and Savannah stations were equally powerful. I couldn't get anything out of Jacksonville, however. I remember the jocks on WAPE used to claim that they could be heard in Hilton Head (I am not sure how that is possible, given WSSX's proximity!).

 

[charlestondxman]

I get a lot of tropo from Orlando during the summer. The best signals are the Orange City transmitters (105.1, 105.9, 107.7). 105.1 used to be very frequent here before we got a translator about a year ago. The other Orlando stations come in less frequently.

105.7 from Augusta has one of the best FM signals in the South. Listenable almost to the east Atlanta suburbs, and it comes in almost every day around Charleston. WCOS (97.5) is great too. It can be heard in nearly every county in SC.

101.9 is probably the best Charlotte signal here.

 

[ScottBurns]

I was not able to pick up Augusta's 105.7 when in Charleston. Same with WCOS. I will have to try next time!