[IRCA] Oregon Cliff (Rockwork 5) Ultralight DU's for 8-1

[Gary DeBock <d1028gary@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

     Once again the largest collection of ferrite this side of the Ukraine crossed over the Columbia River bridge at the bizarre hour of 2:30 AM this morning, kicking off the major Rockwork DXpedition on the ocean cliff near Manzanita, Oregon. Unfortunately nobody seemed to have informed the "sleeping squatters," who had jammed up Rockwork 4 with three large RV's. An attempt to set up in between two of them didn't quite go according to plan, as the owner of the closest RV attempted to back up his turf claim with some loud, colorful language. As such, Craig Barnes and I relocated to Rockwork 5, which featured only one sleeping squatter (with a bicycle), who turned out to be quite tame. Rockwork 5 is also a little too narrow for foul-mouthed RV owners, and provided one of the most exciting DU-DXing sessions we had ever experienced.

     The main attraction was phenomenal signals from both 558-Fiji and 1017-Tonga, which both hit S9+ levels for extended periods. This was the best performance these two Pacific island stations have ever had at the Rockwork cliffs, and made it a special morning to remember. Craig and I had a blast tracking these and the usual Kiwi blasters, including the Maori parallels on 603 and 765, 531-PI and others. The session had some decent Oz reception as well, but most of the recordings have yet to be reviewed. A special watch was kept for the Western Australians on 531 and 558, and some interesting signals did show up (which need further attention). The obscure Kiwis on 576, 585 and 936 were missing in action, however. So the really exceptional signals were from both 558 and 1017, seemingly the first time that has ever happened at the cliffs. Craig and I plan to head back to Rockwork 5 tomorrow morning, which seems to have all the space that FSL users need for setup (and none of the wacky turf claims).


558  Radio Fiji One   Suva, Fiji   Awesome signal with island music and medley song ID  on the half hour at 1230 (including "Radio Fiji One, Na Domoiviti" at 1:36)  https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/4d86k1snsvks1alioju565k2l4zhq0j0

765  Radio Kahungunu   The usual S9 signal from this 2.5 kW overachiever with distinctive Maori music at 1218  https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/ejwv81klsuy5j2phywh9cssyan2rafmt

1017  A3Z   Nuku'alofa, Tonga   Monster signal with island music at the start of the session at 1221  https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/ime1qsdd32h6wh0pumkrsozhwy6xestn

Monster signal with island music near the close of the session at 1314 (in other words, all session long)  https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/xgw85zga7d337r8905bnyu1qdgmvepn8


73 and Good DX,

Gary DeBock (DXing with Craig Barnes at the Rockwork 5 ocean cliff near Manzanita, Oregon)

7.5" loopstick CC Skywave SSB and XHDATA D-808 portables +

Very airport-unfriendly 15" and 17" FSL antennas (guaranteed to cause a security alert)

Session photo (with Craig at the prime position) posted at  https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/49owffx8wi0zre3jmbaeggfxfwxkzgsx


 

   
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