"Waves and Winds” - KNL-14 - The 14th Knollehof DXpedition Adventure" - 2-6 December 2024.

Last week, we were once again at our DX spot at Knollehof in Veurne for a five-day DXpedition.

In spring, there was some uncertainty about whether we would still be able to use the fields for setting up the long Beverage antennas, as the farmer was a bit uncooperative. Allegedly, we had not adhered to agreements, but it was all a misunderstanding. 

Together with Hugo (our local DX-collegue), I launched a charm offensive to convince him. With considerable effort, we managed to restore trust. However, the farmer did set a clear condition: we could only use the fields after the end of the hunting season in December. This led to a change in the schedule: the DXpedition was moved to a midweek, from Monday, December 2, to Friday, December 6.

Fortunately, there were no floods in neighbouring municipalities or farmer protests blocking highways like last year.

Most of us arrived around noon. After setting up the shacks, we got to work outdoors, erecting the Beverage antennas. The morning rain had cleared, and our new participant, Cornel, already had experience setting up Beverage antennas elsewhere. We set up a North America beverage (300°, 300 m), a RevBev Japan/Argentina (45/225°, 400 m), and Africa BoG (150°, 300 m) antenna. 

Preparing for the field work.

When looking carefully you can see the Alvear Tower
in Buenos Aires at the end of the antenna. 

The Africa antenna quickly delivered a hit with a clear signal from Radio Nacional de São Tomé e Príncipe. 

 

Guido Schotmans · R.Nacional De Sao Tome E Principe, Pinhe 945U 2024 - 12 - 02 20'18'58 KNL

However, the conditions were not in our favour for the rest of the trip. It seemed that all antennas were mostly only picking up European signals. A creative attempt to improve the conditions with a so-called "one-million dollar antenna" yielded little result. The team began to suspect that the radio gods were not smiling on us.

The one million Dollar conditions booster

On the second day, we set up the Far East/Colombia Beverage antenna (80/260°, 400 m). Jan had brought a whole arsenal of antennas: a vertical antenna (7 meters) with a balun, an AL1 loop antenna from Van Dijken Elektronica, and an LZ1AQ antenna. Additionally, a T2FD and a Sony AN1 were also spotted.

Cornel, also an avid Jaguar user on medium wave, also conducted other experiments with an RTL-SDR patch antenna for the L-band (1525–1600 MHz). The setup was improvised, using a garden chair, but the results were excellent. Even 10500 Bd data and 8400 Bd voice channels came through clearly. Software such as Jaero (aviation) and Scytale-C (maritime) was used.

Leen explored the fax frequencies, including the Pacific, Honolulu (11090 kHz), Wiluna (15615 kHz); Asia, JFX Kagoshima (16907.50 kHz), Tokyo JMH (7795 kHz), and Shanghai (16539 kHz). Even though the conditions were not special, it’s always better than being at home.

Shanghai 16539 kHz

Frank Huyghe focused his attention on Navtex and Fax projects that he built himself. If I heard correctly, I caught him exclaiming, "Murmansk Fax !"

Aart, Frank Thijs, and Guido doggedly persisted with MW-DX, but their determination yielded little. The anticipated conditions on medium wave completely failed to materialise. Moreover, we discovered a few days later that the North America antenna was performing very poorly. After inspecting various connections, we eventually found that the termination resistor was defective. The 1 kOhm potentiometer had a maximum value of only 170 ohms. In the future, we will replace it with a more robust fixed resistor.

The DX-gang : Frank H, Jan, Aart, Frank T, Leen, Guido and Cornel.

In between, we also went hunting for TII codes from the DAB+ transmitter in Oostduinkerke. Since DAB transmitters use a Single Frequency Network, you can only reliably determine the transmitted TII code near the transmitter itself.

The conditions remained lacklustre. Evidence of this was reflected in our condition barometer.

Conditions barometer in bad shape.

The DXpedition ended as it began: with typical winter weather. It was dry, but the strong winds made dismantling the antennas a challenge. Everyone worked together to wrap up safely. By around 12:00 local time, everything was packed up.

The 14th edition of the Knollehof DXpedition came with its own challenges and surprises but, as always, featured the indispensable radio experience.

Although the 14th Knollehof DXpedition did not experience the best conditions, the team once again brought out the best in themselves. The setbacks strengthened the collaboration and enthusiasm to keep experimenting. With a new participant like Cornel and the lessons learned, we are already looking forward to the 15th edition in February. Who knows, it might bring better radio conditions and more success.

Real Gem found in the KNL-13 files !

A real gem was found in the KNL-13 jaguar files by Marc Vissers.  We noticed already that on the 3^rd of February on 1210 kHz a signal that was surfacing occasionally bringing it just to minimal audio levels with religious content in Spanish, but it was hard to find any clear indication of which station it really was. The offset of 1209.9943 kHz made us dreaming that this could be the low power  250 Watts Radio El Libertador, Vergara, Uruguay. And YES !!! Marc found after a long intensive search an announcement at 0433 UTC as "Esta edición es una producción de Radio Transmundial". This is the overnight program that is carried by Radio El Libertador !

There are no other entries in MWList that this stations is logged in Europe before. Only Martin Hall from MWC logged it last year in Scotland. Also Jaguar’s Tomcat Nordic loglist doesn’t show it. 

We also tried to verify that this station is really only 250 Watts searching the Unidad Reguladora de Servicios de Comunicaciones site (Uruguayan FCC equivalent) and and the Normativa y Avisos Legales del Uruguay and found this http://www.impo.com.uy/bases/resoluciones/276-1998/1

So it sounds like the power listed in the WRTH and MWList is correct.

Well done Marc !!!

KNL-13 DXpedition (1-5 February 2024)

Our journey for KNL-13 turned out to be surprisingly smooth, despite concerns about getting caught in the midst of farmer protests. The fields, unlike the previous November edition, were in excellent condition. We were blessed with favorable weather conditions initially, which unfortunately took a turn in the following days, becoming extremely windy.

The highlight of our expedition was the second night, perfect for South-American DX. It marked our first attempt at setting up a reversible beverage antenna pointing towards Argentina and Japan, reducing the length of coaxes. To our amazement, we picked up Japan's JOFR RKB Mainichi Hoso, Fukuoka on 1278 kHz with considerable strength, a rarity during this period of high solar activity. However, no other Japanese stations managed to make it to our extensive antenna farm.

As the days progressed, propagation conditions deteriorated, resulting in miserable conditions during the final night. We suspected the Japan wire might have been damaged, possibly due to the relentless wind. Upon rolling it up, we discovered a significant portion of wire was left in the field, necessitating a search afterward. It was also a surprise to notice that nothing was heard from the Far East and Central Asia.

The beverage antenna for Colombia/Far East faced challenges from local pulsing noise, and we struggled to identify the culprit. Despite these obstacles, our trip to the western corner of Belgium proved once again to be fascinating, yielding more than a handful of FIRST logs.

Antennas used : Rev-bev JPN/ARG 45/225°, rev-bev CLM/AUS 260/80°, bev NAm 300°, BOG AFR 150°, Sony AN1 (Frank), T2FD + INV-V 9MHz (Leen), 40m longwire (Ron), LZ1AQ loop + vertical + Mini Whip model Veron/VRZA (Jan).

FIRST logs noticed so far :

Protesting farmers put sign posts upside down	The Argentine/Japan RevBev Balun

Jaguars in action

T2FD catching Chile Fax transmission

Rolling in the beverage in windy conditions

Frank, Ron, Aart, Guido, Jan, Leen and Marc.

Happy Birthday Aart !

KNL-12 Results

KNL-12 results created by  DXLog 3.0

(use your MW/FMlist username and password)

First Logs from KNL-12.

No matter how bad the propagation conditions are, It's always interesting to dig into the files.. There is always something new to pick up. Here are the First Logs from KNL-12.

KNL-12: A Challenging DXpedition in Adverse Conditions (17-21 November 2023)

The KNL-12 edition proved to be a test of resilience and adaptability for the participants. Originally scheduled to take place from November 16 to 20, unforeseen circumstances forced a last-minute change. Just like last year, hunters would make the fields unsafe on the first days. So everything was moved one day. But there was more to worry about. In the preceding days, the local media were filled with reports of floods in the neighbouring municipalities. 

We were overwhelmed with pictures like these the days before.

The last-minute change resulted in a reduced participant list, with Leen van Oeveren, Jan Feenstra, Han Hardonk, Frank Huyghe, Frank Thijs, Aart Rouw, and Guido Schotmans being able to rearrange their commitments.

While the first day we had to take in account that hunters would be still present on the fields, we started to unroll coaxes and putting up a LIRA-antenna but sometimes we were startled by fleeing frightened hares. That LIRA experiment was unfortunately a disappointment.  Suppressing backward stations was good but forward sensitivity was absolutely not on par with the beverages.  

After the hunters were out of sight the team started setting up a few beverage antennas just before sunset. However, the wet and muddy conditions of the clay soil made the process arduous. Despite the adversity, the North American and Argentina, beverage antennas were successfully erected. 

Next day the team worked tirelessly further, facing the sticky soil to complete the setup. The shortwave and utility-oriented team members focused on installing the LZ1AQ antenna, a Sony AN1, a T2FD, a ALA100-loop and a vertical. The team continued work on the beverage antenna farm, completing the 400m reversible Far East/Colombia beverage and a BOG to Africa. The latter one was shortened because the last part of the field was way too muddy to go any further. The Japan Beverage antenna was also not set up because we feared that we would not be able to rewind the 2 x 200m coaxial cable (which just fits on the reels). 

As the first night descended, it became apparent that DX conditions were not favourable.  Reception of North American signals was already notably noisy throughout the week at home, with constant very low signal levels. Here at Knollehof, the signals were better but still not like we were used to see a few years ago.  That is acknowledging the impact of the solar cycle on propagation and the recent bursts. Stations from Japan, the Philippines (PHL), Thailand, and Korea were almost absent. Minimal reception was achieved from these regions. 

But time for food ! Regular Chinese takeout and Hugo Matten's provision of delicious Belgian waffles kept spirits high.

While the team was savoring the delicious Belgian waffles generously provided by Hugo Matten, someone couldn't resist teasing, "These waffles are so good that they should actually come with a warning label: 'May cause uncontrollable happiness and a strong urge for a second serving!'".

The laughter that ensued was almost as sweet as the waffles themselves, proving that even amid technical challenges, a good joke and a plate of tasty waffles could elevate spirits higher than the tallest antenna (1).

The performance of the Argentina antenna during KNL-12 did not match the success of the previous year. Significant noise interference plagued its operation throughout the DXpedition, creating challenges for the team. The usual clarity experienced in previous editions was notably absent, impacting the antenna's ability to capture signals effectively. Despite the adverse conditions, the team persisted in their efforts to overcome obstacles and extract valuable logs from the challenging environment. Interestingly enough, there were still a few First catches on this antenna like Caribbean R Lighthouse, Jolly Harbour (Antigua) 1160 kHz,, R Perfil, Llavallol (ARG) 1190 kHz, R Nacional Buenos Aires 870 kHz. And maybe there are waiting many others hidden in the recordings. 

Frank Thijs his new Antigua QSL

What was also remarkable is that we encountered prolonged and pronounced long fading, further complicating signal reception. This phenomenon posed a challenge in maintaining consistent and clear reception throughout the DXpedition. Throughout the DXpedition, participants grappled with unfavourable propagation conditions. The anticipated radio wave propagation was hampered, leading to decreased signal strength and increased difficulty in capturing distant stations. 

Signals on the North American beverage were better but also there long steady signals were absent. Also on this antenna a few stations were audible that were never heard before like WWJ on 950 KHz, and a CBC station on 1230 kHz that could be the one from Iqaluit, NU, but no definite ID was heard.  

The guys active on the shortwave bands gained high scores in DSC-mode. Leen got a seldom Fax catch from Chile and Frank Huyghe got Bahrain in Navtex. 

The final day saw the daunting task of dismantling antennas amid persistent rain, transforming the fields into muddy pools. Nevertheless, the team successfully concluded the DXpedition, returning home with tired bodies and computer disks full of files for analysis. The resilient team that faced these challenges contributing to the success and unique experiences of the KNL-12 DXpedition. 

Special thanks were extended to the owners of Vakantiewoning Knollehof for accommodating the abrupt changes and ensuring a comfortable stay. 

In the face of unexpected challenges, KNL-12 stands as a testament to the dedication and adaptability of the DXpedition team, highlighting the unpredictable nature of radio exploration. Conditions might be down but it is still nice to be together with like-minded hobby friend.  

Frank H, Hugo, Frank T, Guido, Leen, Aart, Jan and Han.

Tuning the terminator	The LIRA parts
Frank T. and Aart on their way to Colombia	Han struggling to reach the top of the list.

Leen his Fax picture from Chile received on 17 MHz. 

Frank Hughe's set-up	Sony AN1, two LZ1AQ and a vertical reaching out for the airwaves.
The T2FD antenna that caught the Chile Fax.	A new popular DX mode is Earth-bounce reception 😀

1. This joke was generated by ChatGPT.

Edit:

No matter how bad the propagation conditions are, It's always interesting to dig into the files.. There is always something new to pick up.

Here is a list what was found by Frank T. and me so far. And the Argentine El Destape Mundo looks like a very nice one.

760	MEX	XEABC R Canon La 760, San Sebastian Chim
870	ARG	R Nacional Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires-Ge
940	B	Super Radio Brasil / Boa Vontade
940	MEX	XEQ La Q 9-40, Mexico D.F-Col. El Vergel
950	USA	WWJ, Detroit
980	CLM	RCN R Cali
1070	ARG	El Destape Mundo, Wilde
1160	ATG	Caribbean R Lighthouse, Jolly Harbour
1190	ARG	R Perfil, Llavallol
1220	USA	WHKW Cleveland OH
1230	PTR	WNIK, Arecibo
1360	USA	WSAI Cincinnati OH
1440	USA	WMAX Bay City MI
1476	BEN	TWR Africa, Parakou-Serarou