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Snoqualmie Pass

S

slickkicker

Guest
At the top of the Cascades on I-90 I'm receiving very strong signals of Seattle-Tacoma FM's such as JACK, KWJZ and KZOK. Others such as MOVIN' and KISS are planting signals up there too (I think). Are these repeater type signals on the same frequencies? And yes they're on the same frequencies as compared to adjacent.

Others such as KJR-FM, the MOUNTAIN, KING-FM and KISW have little, or no signal, at the crest. I havn't done research on this and am not much of an expert on the tech side. It's nice to get a clean signal from Seattle for a 20 mile stretch up there however.

Any explanations?
 
Either it is repeaters, they're making the antennas on Cougar and Tiger Mountain more multi-directional...they're power output has gone up. It would be nice if the Seattle signals clearly reached Ellensburg or even Vantage, but that's expecting too much.
 
No repeaters.

The Cougar Mtn. xmtrs seem ill suited for I90 travel; the Tiger Mtn. ones are much better, all other factors being equal. Actually, Tiger gets in the way of Cougar from the SE and is higher to boot, so both of those factors come into play. The signals have not increased in power in years, nor are they all that directional...it's all about topography.

The best signals into the pass were the ones that came from Downtown, straight up the chute. Those are gone...with the exception of KUOW. C89 was a great ski station before they popped onto Cougar. Even our 250 watt translator flamethrower at 94.5 off of Capitol Hill could be heard near the pass, when it wasn't smooshed by Roxy to the SW, KATS to the SE, or the Vancouver hit machine to the NW. Victoria and Bellingham do well in the pass, also...if you look, the valley runs SE/ NW pointing towards the San Juans, roughly.

AND FINALLY...whew...there are a bunch of pretty high powered flamethrowers in central and eastern Wa that will drive out most of the westside signals not much past the crest. 94.9 Tri-Cities, 95.7 Walla Walla, 97.1 Walla Walla, 105.3 Tri-Cities and others can often be heard clearly just past Hyak.

Does anybody else remember the KZOK translator on Snoqualmie Pass? Trivia, what frequency did they broadcast on? Hiny, the call sign was K272BD if my memory serves at all.
 
It would...but too many miles and too many translators for this cowboy...I distinctly remember it being in the 103.1 to 105.5 range, so obviously I have my calls wrong! It :-\"might" be K283AA...like I say, it's never too early for senility!

102.3 wouldn't work, obviously! Now you will, for the first time, see someone admitting he may be wrong on this board!
 
104.9? Could've sworn it was 102.3 It any event, it would be nice if sticks could be put up at the highest points in the cascades near the passes to reach into the Eastern slopes of the cascades and even toward Yakima or the Gorge even. I recall getting 710 KIRO all the way out in Moses Lake on I-90 in the daytime.along with KOMO 1000
 
AM= high ground conductivity, in or near salt water or at least ground water. Being near the Cascades not a big plus if you are an AM. Actually in our crap soil it's a minus.

FM= the higher the better. But if you get too high you have to reduce your power so you don't make the Canadians angry. Measured in HAAT (Height Above Average Terrain) I have indeed worked for stations that had negative HAAT, not too good! :p FM doesn't generally curve around the earth, AM "can"...

Highest FM in our neck of the woods I would think would be KPQ Wenatchee 102.1 up above Mission Ridge ski area. I have heard this FM in BC, Western WA, N ID, and Oregon under just normal conditions.

Highest I know of is KBZY Big Sky/ Bozeman MT. Transmitter is at 11175 feet above sea level on top of the Big Sky ski area...they only are allowed 5kw but seem to go on for several hundred miles to the north, anyway.
 
Back in the '70s (LONG before KSWW came on), with a decent radio KPQ-FM could even be heard in parts of downtown Seattle and throughout Western Washington easily in many areas. It truly blanketed the entire region....

That signal is still AMAZING for 35,000 watts. And I do believe at one time, they were actually 100,000 watts and covered the entire state and well beyond, straight into the Rocky Mountain foothills of Montana. But were forced to cut back power for whatever reason. Not sure, but 102.1's signal seemed to degrade over time on this side...

"From the Olympics to The Rockies"...would've been a great slogan for KPQ-FM back in the day....
 
IndigoCoyote said:
The Cougar Mtn. xmtrs seem ill suited for I90 travel; the Tiger Mtn. ones are much better, all other factors being equal. Actually, Tiger gets in the way of Cougar from the SE and is higher to boot, so both of those factors come into play. The signals have not increased in power in years, nor are they all that directional...it's all about topography.

Even our 250 watt translator flamethrower at 94.5 off of Capitol Hill could be heard near the pass,
Click to expand...

IndigoCyoyte,

You are right when it comes to Cougar signals Running into Tiger... Thats why tiger stations are heard at snaqualmie and cougar its not (i.e. KJR-fm, C89, KBSG, KUBE, ect.)

By the way... which era of 94.5?

The KSVT times, the one before that? Or the new one for KMIH?
Just wondering ;D
 
At first I thought the CBS stations may have put some repeaters up there. Then I thought it could be a matter of Couger vs. Tiger. I travel all over the state and it came to mind that stations like KISS, JACK and KZOK just have better coverage pretty much universally. KZOK has a monster signal. KXXO is another boomer that truly can be heard in BOTH Seattle and (barely) Portland.

Over the years I'd just turn off the radio past the HWY 18 exit. Lately I've been flipping around and have been surprised at some really clean signals from certain outlets. In the end it's probably some improvements on the transmitting end combined with higher elevations and topography.

And yes KPQ-FM is still a great signal and one is always surprised and amazed when Walla Walla and Tri-Cities stations are caught up there. Victoria B.C. stations can pump in too above North Bend I've noticed. For a spell on the pass some Seattle stations are almost city-grade it seems. I thought maybe some repeaters were up there.
 
Ola Bongwater and Slickkicker!

I was referring to the brief history of SuperCFL KCFL-LP Fall City's translator on Channel 11's Cap Hill tower. The translator still "exists" at 94.5, but cannot translate the 104.5 signal from Fall City anymore. Why? Because Dr. Sandi and the rest of us had to bail out for SW WA when the 104.5 move in from The Dalles was approved. Our little ol' LPFM would be mooshed by the "Covington" signal, and we are not legally protected.

So off to Oly, Aberdeen, and Ocean Shores we went, to live happily ever after.
 
I forgot about SuperCFL. Didn't realize that's what you meant. Since my most of my time was spent in Puyallup and the surrounding area, I had 94.5 Roxy instead. I'm able to get 98.5 The Ocean and Rock 101 in terms of BC stations along with 92.9 KISM and KAFE 104.3 on South Hill.. also KUFO out of Portland can come in and 101.9 KiNK-FM
 
KXAA-FM CleElum comes in quite well from Snoqualmie Pass, all the way to the Gorge. For a Class-A, it plays pretty well!
 
From The KXA website:

"Principle Cities: Cle Elum, Ellensburg, Roslyn, Thorp, Ronald, Kittitas, Easton, and one of the 1st signals coming over Snoqualmie Pass. KXA 93.7 FM "The Wind" (Classic Hits) Serving Kittitas County in Central Washington"
 
KZOK KMPS KJAQ KBKS KWJZ KQMV all non-directional from Tiger, diplexed, good signal in the pass.

KBSG on its own bay at the E-com site, KNDD KISW KKWF KMTT directional away from the pass, same site, although I think they may have a CP approved that will improve conditions.

KJR KUBE KPLZ spiro antenna on Cougar, KNHC, KCMS also on Cougar. No boosters.

Question: Is KNHC using the licensed translator on 104.7 in Everett KJR 103.1?

www.fcc.gov search (fm query) full of info!

PS: Thanks for the memories Steve! I miss you guys.

Ty
 
Thanks for the info, ty...that pretty well explains the Pass right there! Appreciated.

I haven't heard either of these translators...but then was not specifically listening. Going to Everett this weekend, so will report back. Who is Steve? Sounds like quite the guy!
 
From what i've heard over the few trips i've been through over the pass, and onto "the other side" (Eastern Washington) where sagebrush and dirt dominate the landscape, all the Tiger Mountain stations make it easily over the mountains.  KZFM from Lewiston, ID has the most fights in the area of Easton and Ellensburg, with KBKS 106.1 from Seattle.  KZOK and KMPS have the most dominate signal on 102.5 and 94.1 respectively, over on the other side of the mountains.

Meanwhile on this side of the mountains, the clear winner is KPQ-FM 102.1 in Wenatchee, with 107.3 KFFM in Yakima sometimes making it past the mountains.   With KPQ's transmitter site on top of Mission Ridge, their signal makes it to plenty of locations on the western side of the state and including Snoqualmie Pass, but never Seattle in general.  It's like the mountains immediately behind Seattle have a shadow effect, because in West Bremerton, Brinnon, Quilcene, and Sequim, KPQ-FM most times comes in like a local station, while KSWW in Aberdeen takes over control of the frequency in places like Seattle, East Bremerton, Silverdale, Purdy, and Belfair, but yet, KFFM in Yakima and CHBE in Victoria, both on 107.3, have fights with each other in the Silverdale and Poulsbo areas.  I have heard of reports of Wenatchee and Spokane stations making it across the mountains as well, in Mount Vernon and places in Island County, but I never really travel to those areas to confirm that, other than hearing things from 3rd parties. 

LOL...I guess you can say, the Easton/Ellensburg area is the "battleground" for signals on the eastern side of the state, and Kitsap County and Jefferson County, are the "battleground" for signals on the western side of the state.

One other station on the western side of the mountains, KCMS 105.3, has a couple translators on this side in Aberdeen and in the way southern Puget Sound area.  I wouldn't be suprised if they eventually powered up a translator in Easton or Ellensburg in the near future.  Religious stations tend to do that kind of thing.

As far as I know though, all the translator stations on Snoqualmie Pass, we're pretty much snuffed out, when more stations powered up or moved to other sites or frequencies both on the western side and eastern side of the pass.

And it seems, even if you have 5,000 or 6,000 foot tall mountains standing between each half of a state, radio (or even TV) signals can somehow conquer those conditions.  Just imagine though, if the Cascades weren't there.  Besides completely different weather, we'd have different radio/TV signal conditions as well across the state.
 
Stephen said:
From what i've heard over the few trips i've been through over the pass, and onto "the other side" (Eastern Washington) where sagebrush and dirt dominate the landscape, all the Tiger Mountain stations make it easily over the mountains. KZFM from Lewiston, ID has the most fights in the area of Easton and Ellensburg, with KBKS 106.1 from Seattle. KZOK and KMPS have the most dominate signal on 102.5 and 94.1 respectively, over on the other side of the mountains.

Meanwhile on this side of the mountains, the clear winner is KPQ-FM 102.1 in Wenatchee, with 107.3 KFFM in Yakima sometimes making it past the mountains. With KPQ's transmitter site on top of Mission Ridge, their signal makes it to plenty of locations on the western side of the state and including Snoqualmie Pass, but never Seattle in general. It's like the mountains immediately behind Seattle have a shadow effect, because in West Bremerton, Brinnon, Quilcene, and Sequim, KPQ-FM most times comes in like a local station, while KSWW in Aberdeen takes over control of the frequency in places like Seattle, East Bremerton, Silverdale, Purdy, and Belfair, but yet, KFFM in Yakima and CHBE in Victoria, both on 107.3, have fights with each other in the Silverdale and Poulsbo areas. I have heard of reports of Wenatchee and Spokane stations making it across the mountains as well, in Mount Vernon and places in Island County, but I never really travel to those areas to confirm that, other than hearing things from 3rd parties.

LOL...I guess you can say, the Easton/Ellensburg area is the "battleground" for signals on the eastern side of the state, and Kitsap County and Jefferson County, are the "battleground" for signals on the western side of the state.

One other station on the western side of the mountains, KCMS 105.3, has a couple translators on this side in Aberdeen and in the way southern Puget Sound area. I wouldn't be suprised if they eventually powered up a translator in Easton or Ellensburg in the near future. Religious stations tend to do that kind of thing.

As far as I know though, all the translator stations on Snoqualmie Pass, we're pretty much snuffed out, when more stations powered up or moved to other sites or frequencies both on the western side and eastern side of the pass.

And it seems, even if you have 5,000 or 6,000 foot tall mountains standing between each half of a state, radio (or even TV) signals can somehow conquer those conditions. Just imagine though, if the Cascades weren't there. Besides completely different weather, we'd have different radio/TV signal conditions as well across the state.
Click to expand...

20-30 ago, KPQ-FM DID make it in Seattle proper. I guess they were a higher wattage, tower height once because as I mentioned, their signal has degraded in many areas on the West side where they were once pretty clear. I remember being in a dentist office on Capitol Hill several stories up when I was 14 and remember the office radio on KPQ-FM (when it was B/EZ...)

Now and then, in Skagit County, tropo in the August - October months does occasionally bring in KXLY-FM and KISC out of Spokane, drowning out KING-FM and KISW (a ghosty signal of KAEP did show up once on 105.7 in 2002, but was pretty much killed by the CBC Radio 2 powerhouse in Vancouver.) Vancouver stations are almost as strong as Bellingham signals in Mount Vernon....
 
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