Longer days and shorter nights

With the nights getting shorter with every passing day and less than two weeks until the clocks go forward with the start of spring, opportunities to hear the Dutch MW pirates here in England are getting slimmer.

You will see from my latest logs below that whereas at the end of February and start of this month it was possible to hear signals during the mid-afternoon, and sometimes earlier, it's now around 1800 local time before I can properly hear stations. That, coupled with sporadic propagation conditions, means that trying to listen is not always easy and can be frustrating as signals fade up and down - usually on the decline when a station operator makes an announcement! 

However, that all adds an extra dimension to the hobby and, like Max Nielsen commented on the blog's Facebook page: "There is nothing better than to here a great tune, with the fading, the crackles and the pops." If it's perfect reception we want, then there are plenty of internet stations we can listen to, and unstable signals are just part of the listening experience.

And so on to some logs. Plenty of stations have been heard in the last couple of weeks but, as you will notice, those transmitting during the afternoon are now unlikely to be heard here until the nights start drawing in again.

Freq       Time      Station name SINPO

Monday, March 13, 2017

1638       1934       Turftrekker 35333-45444 music programme

1670       1955       Digitaal 45434 music programme

1625       2000       Witte Raaf 35333 music programme

1620       2202       Batavia 35333 music programme

1635       2203       Ruisbreker 25332-35333 music programme

1646       2202       Vrolijke Mijnwerker 55444-55555 music programme

Observations

• There was some activity during the early evening but without any station identifications, so I haven't included them in the list above. There was a strong signal with continuous music on 1648 kHz at 1756, while an hour later there was a killer signal on 1620, peaking at the maximum SINPO of 55555. There was also a very strong carrier on 1653 at around 1930, but not even any audio this time. Another carrier I heard was on 261 kHz - a test from Radio Luxemburg, who I was hearing for the first time. It was only a carrier, though, with no audio. Still, great to catch my first Dutch pirate on the longwave band
• Witte Raaf has been quiet of late, so great to catch him back on the air tonight - the first time I'm heard him since last October

Sunday, March 12, 2017

1619       1657       Uniek 25442, 35443 at 1815 music programme

1647       1703       Witte Tornado 35453, 55444 at 1931 music programme

1625       1816       Batavier 35333 music programme

1633       2307       Barcelona 35433-45434 music programme

Friday, March 10, 2017

1611       1808       Polidor 35343 music programme

1632       1812       Wilskracht 35343 music programme

1611       1823       Derdeman 25342 music programme

1647       1829       Nachtzwerver 35333 asking for report

1625       1836       Derdeman 25342-35343 music programme

1655       1849       Relmus 25222-45444 qsoing

1645       1851       Alabama 25342 qsoing

1645       2015       Barones 55444-55555 music programme

1671       2112       Twentana 45434 music programme        

1629       2113       Moonbreaker 35333 music programme

1621       2123       Daniel en Soto 25322-35333 music programme

1611       2130       Batavia 23422 music programme

1625       2142       Turftrekker 34333-45444 music programme

1632       2157       Electron 44444 asking for report

1616       2205       Uniek 35333 music programme

1638       2211       Schorpioen 33433 asking for report

1634       2237       Monte Carlo 35333 music programme

1630       2255       Blauwe Daihatsu 24322-34333 report for Daniel en Soto

1636       2310       Nachtzwerver 45333 report for Monte Carlo

Observations

• A busy evening on the band tonight with a new name and one I haven't heard in a good while. Blauwe Daihatsu was difficult to decipher, and it took a little help to work it out, but we got there eventually. While the name is new to me, it's not a new station, although I've not heard him on air for a good while with his other name
• Schorpioen was making it on to my log list for the first time since March 27, 2014. And the previous time I heard him was in April 2012, so it's fair to say a catch of this station in quite rare. He popped up on 1638 a couple of times throughout the evening
• It was good to hear Electron for the first time in a while. He has a very distinctive whispering voice which makes him easy to recognise. It was the first time I heard his signal since November 9, 2016
• The strongest signal tonight was the mighty Barones, who has visitors in the studio in the form of Batavier and Witte Reus. Just to confuse listeners, which is always fun, the Baro was playing jingles from all three stations!
• Relmus was also packing a real punch towards the end of his broadcast on his regular Friday night frequency of 1655 kHz. So strong was his signal at one point that I was thinking he had signed off the frequency and a higher-powered station had come on air

Thursday, March 9, 2017

1629       1734       Edelkampioen 55444 music programme

1620       1740       Mike 35443 music programme

1622       1851       Dageraad weak signal qsoing

1642       1903       Pecon 45434 report for Waterman

1611       2027       Batavier 23422-34433 music programme

1621       2030       Marskramer 34333-44444 music programme

1631       2035       Blauwe Panda 23432 music programme

1636       2039       Dolfijn 45434 asking for report

1631       2148       Carona 35443 asking for report

Observations

• Nice to catch Pecon for the first time in a while tonight
• Carona appeared a few times this evening. I'm pretty sure this is a different station to the one that regularly used to transmit on 1655 as I haven't heard him since March 30, 2015. He used to have a very strong signal here and always used that same frequency. It could be that this station was using a temporary different name

Wednesday, March 8, 2017

1636       1800       Torpedojager (Twente) 25322 music programme

1620       1914       Alice 35333 music programme

1620       2252       Monte Carlo 35333 qsoing

1631       2255       Alpenjager (Groningen) 33333 music programme

1635       2258       Bluebird 55444 music programme

1623       2343       Jeneverstoker 23322 report for Alpenjager

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

1645       1810       Skywire weak signal

1622       1828       Dageraad 23432 report for Skywire

1655       1829       Wilskracht 35333-45444 music programme

1631       1830       Blauwe Panda 25432 report for Skywire

1620       1833       Johnny Camaro 24442-34443 music show. Later 1622

1629       1916       Turftrekker 35343-45444 music show. Later 1615

1640       1945       Eldorado 44444 testing

1630       2005       Marianne 45444 music programme

1646       2009       Barones 55444 testing

1653       2023       Barones 55444 music programme

Monday, March 6, 2017

1640       2210       Veronica 25222-35333 music programme

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

1633       1541       Barcelona 25342 testing

1645       1542       Casablanca (Twente) weak signal

1645       1720       Digitaal 35333 music programme             

1625       1813       Mike 35333 music programme  

1650       1816       Batavier 25322 music programme

1645       1816       Alabama weak signal report for Digitaal

1655       1828       Batavier 25322 music programme

1645       1945       Digitaal 45444 testing

1615       1949       Waterman 25322 music programme   

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

1656       1724       Digitaal 25322 qsoing

1611       1730       Anton weak signal qsoing

1623       1800       Bizon 35343, 45444 at 1834 asking for report

1655       1813       Batavier 25322, 35333 at 1854 music programme

1631       1824       Dageraad 34333 qsoing

1626       1838       Dageraad 34333 qsoing

1625       1843       Turftrekker 55444 report for Bizon

1616       2107       Napoleon 34333-55444 music programme

1630       2107       Marianne 44434-54444 music programme

1635       2108       Ruisbreker 33333-34443 music programme

Monday, February 27, 2017

1645       1629       Digitaal 25232 music programme

1638       2221       Bluebird 55444 music programme

1630       2233       Monte Carlo 35333 asking for report

1631       2251       Alabama 24322 report for Monte Carlo

Saturday, February 25, 2017

1620       1145       Utopia weak signal music programme

1611       1147       Johan weak signal music programme

1635       1155       Havanna 25332, 35343 at 1343 music programme

1636       1544       Spanningzoeker 35343 report for Dolfijn

1620       1602       Eldorado 25342 music programme

1683       1638       Noordzee 35343

1636       1705       Keizer en Keizerin 35333 music programme        

1701       1744       Digitaal 35333-55444

1645       1807       Skywire 25322-35333 music programme

1642       2320       Twentana 33433-44444 music programme          

1648       2338       Moby Dick 44444-54444 music programme

1668       2341       Snowman 23222-34333 music programme

1633       2342       Turftrekker 34333-55444 music programme

Observations

• Today was one of those great days when signals started to arrive during the morning. Although Utopia and Johan were very weak, Havanna was doing very well. I stayed with him throughout his broadcast, listening to the strength getting stronger until it peaked with a SINPO of 35343 at just before 1400.

Thursday, January 23, 2017

1645       2240       Barones 55444 testing

1655       2248       Batavia 35333 music programme

1632       2255       Monte Carlo 33333 asking for report