CHHA 1610 AM 0755 UTC May 1, 2021

[Treehouse SWL]

I've tried for this one before, but I just happened to stop on 1610 two nights ago and heard weak music in Spanish. Last night, 0605-0703 UTC on May 2, the signal was better and the music could be heard from across the room at times. I heard only a snippet of talking in Spanish the first night. On May 2, I heard what sounded like station information at 0700 UTC, but I never heard the call letters uttered. However, the music both nights matched perfectly what I heard via an SDR in Ontario and on station’s online stream.

This station runs 10 6.25 kW; distance is 2,052 miles from me in Lake Stevens, Washington.

[~SIGINT~]

Nice catch on this one. As of 2011, the contours were modified and the antenna radiation pattern was changed from non-directional to directional. The transmitter power was also modified from 10,000 watts day-time and 1,000 watts night-time to 6,250 watts day and night. The contour was modified by adding a tuned guy to the tower which effectively nulls the pattern toward the USA border.

You can view the antenna contour by visiting the link below.
https://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/finder?sr=Y&s=C&call=CHHA&nav=home

Here are a couple of pictures of the CHHA tower I took after going back to the site in 2020. You can clearly see the tuned guy in the second photo.

[Treehouse SWL]

Nice photos! I love seeing radio broadcast towers. My wife is used to me detouring during vacations to stop and shoot tower photos.

So it sounds like this was fewer kilowatts headed my way than I thought!

I'd tried tuning for this one before, but only heard traces of area TIS stations or, for a while, KOHI in St. Helens, Oregon, which moved itself from 1600 to 1610 -- apparently without FCC permission -- for a while in winter 2020. Some other stations pretty far east of me were coming in better than usual this weekend, including KBCV in Hollister, Missouri, on 1570.

[~SIGINT~]

If I recall, I believe that the deep null toward the USA was introduced to avoid interference with Travellers Information Stations (TIS) / Highway Advisory Radio (HAR).

[Treehouse SWL]

That makes sense ... Also, I just found notice that indicates they may indeed have boosted up to 10 kW in recent weeks ...

https://m.facebook.com/rwcrn/photos/a.191085784264112/3771306569575331/?type=3

[~SIGINT~]

Very nice. It will give me an excuse to stop in to the site again. I was in the area a little over a month ago. Back in September 2020 there was 4 Amps of RF flowing through the tuned guy therefor, theoretically, if the output power of the transmitter was increased I should now see more current flowing through it.

[NQC]

Hey All,

Even with the null in my direction,it is a fairly easy catch here.

Especially if you can "throw a bit of water" onto local bonfire WUNR 1600.

K