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Shortwave "Discone" Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Transmitter Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.
(fedia.io)
Shortwave "Discone" Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Transmitter Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.
All the pixels, none of the per-minute toll charges, at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4141766569
#photography
These places are what the Internet looked like a century ago.
I should note that while the site had a number of discone antennas like this one, they were mostly there as backups in case the main antennas (including truly massive wire rhombics pointing toward various oceanic regions) or transmitter combiners failed. The old Bell System did not mess around.
Here, by the way, is what I believe was the last published frequency list and schedule for the High Seas service. (A souvenir of my last visit to the station before it went off the air.)
@mattblaze@federate.social What gorgeous typesetting.
@steveyaeger@mastodon.social especially the waves made of dingbats under each station name.
@mattblaze@federate.social @steveyaeger@mastodon.social Here’s info on the receiving station at Pt Reyes, from the NPS: https://www.nps.gov/places/point-reyes-kph.htm
@mattblaze @steveyaeger I recall seeing those antennas as recently as ten years ago, but they had clearly fallen into disrepair even then.
@jgkoomey @steveyaeger There were actually three HF receiver sites at Point Reyes. There was the AT&T radiotelephone station KMI (which was completely razed about 10 years ago), which was next door to the still-alive-and-kicking RCA radiotelegraph station KPH (worth a visit when open). And up the road a bit is the still-active (but remotely controlled) Coast Guard station NMC.
KMI had this spiffy sign, which I'm told was saved and is in storage somewhere.
@mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social
KPH still lives on Saturday afternoons. I copy their CW, RTTY, & SITOR transmissions from as far away as the East China Sea on my ship. They also activate K6KPH on the amateur bands. https://www.radiomarine.org/
@steveyaeger@mastodon.social @mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy there are some really cool videos on the MRHS website about KHS, but probably the most interesting is DA sending the last sign off. https://www.radiomarine.org/mrhs-videos
@mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social
Point Reyes, hmm that rings a bell in me. I am sure I intercepted this station as well. Need to look it up my qsl archive.
@jgkoomey @steveyaeger
Did not find it immediately but I found another US Coast Guard station, Portsmouth. Plus RCA Chatham maritime station. Notice the nice personal handtyped QSL with number of technical detail on Trx and antennas.
Happen to know these @mattblaze ?
@harkank @jgkoomey @steveyaeger the RCA Chatham station (WCC) is now a nice museum. Worth a visit if you’re in those parts!
@mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social
You know you are getting old, when your past intercepts have turned into today' s museums. 😎
Solar cycle 21 from 1976 onwards was a fantastic HF season especially on the higher bands.
Pse keep posting these photos of HD stations, Matt & I'll try to come up with appropriate QSLs. 😎 Only parts of the collection have been digitalized so far. Should be a few hundred.
@jgkoomey @steveyaeger
What I appreciate about this is that the logo dates the sign to the 90's, when high seas HF radiotelephone was already no longer exactly a growth business for AT&T, but someone still loved the place enough to make a beautiful carved wooden sign for it.
@mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social I should ask around. I know a lot of those sign makers on the California coast. I should see if I can figure out who made it.