A plunging ocean side cliff, thunderous DU signals, awesome DXing companions and dazzling scenery-- who could ask for more?
Sandwiched in between an April DXpedition to the Cook Islands and a November trip to Kauai, Hawaii, the 9-day Rockwork Cliff DXpedition featured some exceptional signals, the largest-ever DXer contingent (5), a wacky boom in the squatter population and a bizarre search for antenna setup space each early morning in total darkness (right next to total strangers, more than a few of whom were pretty "strange"). Going through this bizarre routine for 9 days straight right next to the plunging cliff (500 feet straight down) is something that we will remember for quite a while.
Despite the challenges the South Pacific DX was more than enough compensation for our hassles, with DXpedition partner Tom Rothlisberger scoring the largest haul of Longwave South Pacific NDB's ever received on the west coast (55), while 558-Radio Fiji One and 1017-A3Z in Tonga managed the strongest signals I've ever heard recorded in North America. The ultra-rare Kiwi on 585 showed up for the first time in 4 years, while the Kiwis on 531, 594, 639, 657, 738 and 936 all managed their best-ever signals. Craig Barnes joined us for the first time, and Nick ran multiple tests of relative DU signal strength at the various turnoffs (while we carefully stayed in between his expensive gear and the squatters). Chuck and I were already Rockwork 4 veterans, but the squatters forced us to relocate to other turnoffs-- which actually provided involuntary relative signal strength test data. Overall the DXpedition was pretty thrilling-- in more ways than one. Full details, photos and MP3 recording links are provided in the 7 page DXpedition article posted at https://dreamcrafts.box.com/s/ci1n2tbcoh8gm8itrfee35rz93ggldv7
73 and Good DX,
Gary DeBock (DXing at the Rockwork ocean cliff near Manzanita, OR from August 1-9)
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/article.php?story=20190301091505756