2005 Madeira / Portugal FM DX

[Jim Renfrew]

MADEIRA, AUG 17-28 2005

See part 2 for report from Portugal

Jim Renfrew, Byron NY USA

This report is still incomplete, in that there are still quite a few gaps in what follows. My mileage calculator only recognizes the largest cities, so I haven't calculated distance on most of them. However, the distance to Lisbon from Madeira is about 600 miles. I notice that William Hepburn's tropo map routinely shows bright red off the coast of West Africa, so these distances may not be all that remarkable. It also helps that once the listener gets past the local stations on Madeira there's little else until you get to Portugal or the Canaries. Morocco, though closer, was not easy to hear. A lot of the stations noted were from the highest elevations on the island, and some were from sea level. There is a high ridge of mountains running east/west, and reception is favored north or south accordingly. One big mistake I made was not to bring any kind of FM frequency guide. I had actually planned to focus on Medium Wave, but there just wasn't much to hear that I hadn't already heard from Newfoundland. Also, we spent a lot of time in the car, so an FM radio with RDS made it easy to DX throughout each day while taking in the sights. I noted quite a few Canary Islands stations without bothering to ID them, only to discover that there are a HUGE number of stations from those islands, so sitting here back at home it is impossible to determine which ones those were!

Receiver Notes: The Sony 2010, while nice to use with tuning steps of 0.05 Mhz in a 0.10 environment, in the presence of strong adjacent channel will sometimes give the impression that a given signal is as much as .15 MHz off channel. The rental vehicle in Portugal was almost always 0.10 Mhz off true channel.


Madeira, AUG 18-25 (primarily San Antonio da Serra). Receiver: Puegot
rental car radio with RDS and Sony 2010 with whip antenna.

Ch. ID CTRY CITY/TOWN kW RDS Text/notes Date/Time Miles

87.7 RNE 2 CNR Temejereque TVN 7000 “RNE CLAS” AUG 19 1659
88.0 Sintonia CNR La Oliva TVN 2000 “SINTONIA” AUG 19 1659
88.3 R. Isla CNR Santa Cruz TNF 6000 “R. ISLA 88.1 88.3 99.2” AUG 21 1508
88.5 Frontera E Jerez “FRONTERA” AUG 20 1351
88.6 R. Cinco CNR La Isleta GC 20000 AUG 19 1954
88.8 R.Jornal MDR Funchal 1000 “RJM 88.8” AUG 211508
89.0 CNR “radio” AUG 21 1659
89.0 R.Vina Mar CNR Icod de Los Vinos TNF 2000 AUG 21 1945
89.3 Antena 3 MDR Canico 500 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 1100
89.4 Cuarenta E San Fernando AND 4200 AUG 20 1351
89.6 R.Palmeira MDR AUG 20 2207
89.6 RFM San Miguel? AUG 20 1358
89.7 SER CNR Arrecife Lanzarote GCL 400 “SER” AUG 19 1711
89.8 Antena 3 MDR Funchal-Monte 1000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 22 1042
90.0 RNE 3 CNR Izana TFH 5000 “RNE 3” AUG 21 1659
90.0 RTM(t) MRC Casablanca 10000 AUG 21 1528 530
90.3 R. El Dia CNR Santa Cruz TF “EL DIA” AUG 22 1049
90.3 Onda Cero E Jerez AND 6000 AUG 20 1358
90.3 Punto Radio CNR La Palma AUG 19 1856
90.3 Antena 3 AUG 19 1230
90.4 R.Paris Lisboa POR Lisboa 5000 AUG 19 0710 598
90.6 MM CNR Montana de Guaza TNF “MM RADIO” AUG 22 1316
90.8 SER AUG 20 1358
90.8 Antena 3 MDR Pico do Facho 100 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 1100
90.8 COPE AUG 22 0020
90.8 Punto Radio CNR Santa Cruz AUG 22 2323
91.1 RTV CNR AUG 21 0948
91.3 Antena 3 MDR Santa Cruz-Gaula 1000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 0710
91.4 Onda Cero E Rota AND 2000 AUG 20 1358
91.4 Canarias Radio CNR AUG 24 0002
91.5 Power FM (t) CNR Norte La Isla LZR AUG 24 0201
91.6 R.Praia MDR Porto Santo 500 AUG 20 1109
91.6 Cadena Dial CNR Los Realejos TF 2000 “CAD DIAL” AUG 22 1316
91.7 German AUG 20 2245
91.8 Cadena Cien CNR Las Palmas GC 1000 “CAD CIEN” AUG 22 1049 388
92.0 Nova Antena POR Loures 2000 “RNA” AUG 20 1417
92.0 PEF MDR Funchal 2000 “PEF FM” AUG 19 1100
92.4 Cadena Cien E Cadiz “CAD-100” AUG 20 1417
92.5 RNE CNR La Frontera ELH 2000 AUG 22 2305
92.8 La Radio en Color CNR La Orotava TF “LA RADIO EN COLOR” AUG 20 1417
93.0 RKM CNR Las Palmas GC “RKM” AUG 22 2232
93.1 “RAL” AUG 22 2232
93.1 Antena 1 MDR Pico do Facho 100 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 24 0758
93.2 Punto Radio CTA Punto Radio AUG 23 2335
93.7 R. Marca CNR Las Palmas GC 4000 AUG 22 0935 388
93.7 Antena 3 AUG 19 0710
94.1 Antena 3 MDR Pico do Areeiro 10000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 0710
94.5 Antena 2 POR Lisboa AUG 19 0710 598
94.7 RNE 5 (t) E Lorca MUR AUG 21 2345
94.8 Antena 3 MDR Cabo Girao 3000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 1100
94.9 RNE 2 CNR Arrecife-Mt Mina LZR 4000 AUG 19 1930
95.1 RTMI(t) MRC Meknes-Zerhoun 10000 AUG 22 0944
95.4 R.Gente CNR La Matanza de A. TNF “ICOD RADIO GENTE 103.4 LAGUNA” AUG 20 1417
95.5 Antena 1 MDR Pico doAreeiro 10000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 19 1100
95.7 Antena 1 POR Lisboa 100000 AUG 20 1645 598
96.1 R.Palmeira MDR Santa Cruz 500 AUG 20 2100
96.2 RNE 2 CNR Izana TNF 5000 “RNE CLAS” AUG 20 1640
96.5 Antena 3 MDR Porto Santo 10000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 1100
96.5 R.Taoro CNR La Orotara “R.TAORO” AUG 22 1316
96.7 Antena 1 MDR Cabo Girao 3000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 21 1528
96.8 R.Insular CNR Arrecife Lanzarote GCL 5000 AUG 20 2224
97.0 RNE 2 CNR Valverde ELH 2000 “RNE CLAS” AUG 20 1640
97.1 COPE Tenerife CNR La Laguna TNF 2000 “COPE FM TENERIFE” AUG 20 1645
97.4 R.Comercial POR Monsanto 100000 “R.COMERCIAL” AUG 20 1119
97.5 Medi-Un MRC Rabat 20000 “MEDI 1” AUG 21 1532 587
97.8 R.Marca CNR Play de Las Americas TNF “R. MARCA” AUG 19 1100
97.9 R.Milenium CNR Orotava TNF “MILENIUM” AUG 19 1100
98.0 Q FM CNR Antigua FVN 2000 English AUG 20 2231
98.2 R. Cinco CNR La Frontera ELH 2000 “RNE 5” AUG 19 1100
98.2 Holiday FM CNR Lanzarote English AUG 21 1538
98.4 RTM MRC Meknese Zerhoun 10000 AUG 20 2245
98.4 R.Zarco R.Sal AUG 23 2309
98.5 Antena 1 MDR Santa Cruz-Gaula 1000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 20 2239
98.8 R.Calheta MDR Pico do Arco 500 “R.CALHIETA” AUG 21 1542
98.8 German AUG 22 2304
99.0 Antena 2 MDR Canico 500 AUG 19 0710
99.1 Cuarenta CNR Pueto La Cruz TNF 2000 AUG 19 1100
99.4 Antena 2 MDR Cabo Ginao 3000 “ANTENNA 2” AUG 19 1100
99.6 Medi-Un MRC Casablanca 8300 AUG 21 1543 530
99.8 SER CNR Orotava TNF 2000 “SER” AUG 20 1645
99.9 UK Way FM CNR Femes LZR English AUG 19 1959
100.0 TSF MDR Funchal -Monte 2000 “NOTICIAS” AUG 19 1100
100.1 La Pasion de Radio AUG 23 2321
100.3 SER CNR Telde GC 2000 AUG 21 1600
100.5 Antena 1 MDR Porto Santo 10000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 19 1100
100.7 R.Taoro CNR Orotava 2000 “R.TAORO” AUG 21 1557
100.9 R.Maria AUG 22 0038
101.0 R.Popular MDR Camara de Lobos 2000 AUG 19 1100
101.2 R.ECCA CNR Puerto del Rosario FVN AUG 19 1100
101.4 Cadena Dial CNR Pozo de las Nieves GC 2000 “CAD-DIAL” AUG 19 1100
101.6 Antena 1 MDR Canico 500 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 19 1100
101.9 Antena 1 MDR Paul da Serra 1000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 21 1552
101.9 Antena 3 POR Monchique? AUG 22 0002
102.0 Punto Radio “PUNTO” Badajoz? AUG 19 1659
102.1 RNE 2 CNR La Montameta TNF 10000 “RNE-CLASE” AUG 19 1100
102.2 Punto R. Lanz. CNR AUG 19 1957
102.4 Antena 2 MDR Funchal-Monte 400 “ANTENNA 2” AUG 19 1100
102.5 R.Europa CNR Montana Blanca LZR 7500 German AUG 22 0004
102.7 Onda Canaria CNR Galdur GC 2000 AUG 21 1607
102.8 RNE 3 CNR Arrecife-Mt. Mina LZR 1000 AUG 19 1954
102.8 R.Cinco AUG 24 0800
102.9 R.Portugues AUG 19 1659
103.0 R,Maria CNR Santa Ursula TNF 400 “R.MARIA” AUG 22 0007
103.3 Antena 2 MDR Porto Santo 10000 “ANTENNA 2” AUG 19 1100
103.4 Onda Cero CNR Arrecife Lanzarote GCL “24 hrs de R.Lancelot” AUG 21 1607
103.7 Megawelle CNR Orotava TNF 100 (or San Sebastian LGO) AUG 19 1100
103.7 R.Maria AUG 22 0007
104.0 Cuarenta AUG 19 1119
104.2 R.Faycan CNR Telde GC 500 AUG 19 1119
104.3 Antena 1 MDR Achadas da Cruz 1000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 20 1159
104.3 La Mega CNR Puerto La Cruz TNF 2000 AUG 19 1119
104.5 R.Tinajo CNR Tinajo LZR 2000 “R TINAJO 104.5 FM” AUG 19 1646
104.6 Antena 1 MDR Funchal-Monte 1000 “ANTENNA 1” AUG 19 1119
104.6 R.Valleseco CNR Valleseco AUG 21 1834
104.6 Medi 1(t) MRC Agadir 20000 AUG 24 0804
104.7 R.Ecca CNR Los Realejos TNF 4000 AUG 21 1008
104.8 R.Cinco CNR Temejereque FVN 1000 “RNE 5” AUG 19 1119
104.9 RNE 3 CNR Valverdedel Hiero ELH 2000 AUG 21 1619
105.0 Antena 3 MDR Achadas da Cruz 1000 “ANTENNA 3” AUG 19 1646
105.0 RNE CNR AUG 21 1000
105.1 R.Gigante CNR Los Silos TNF 500 AUG 21 1008
105.2 R.Arcipelago CNR Puerto del Rosario FVN AUG 21 1842
105.3 Medi 1 (t) MRC Marrakesh 12000 French AUG 19 1119
105.5 Medi 1 (t) MRC Meknes-Zerhoun 10000 AUG 24 0804
105.7 RNE 3 CNR La Monaneta TNF 10000 Or Santa Cruz TF AUG 19 1133
105.9 Canal 4 CNR Santa Cruz AUG 21 1632
106.3 Antena 2 MDR Santa Cruz-Gaula 700 “ANTENNA 2” AUG 19 1133
106.4 Onda Cero CNR Puntallano LPM “ONDA CERO” AUG 19 1133
106.6 Kiss E Huelva or Fuente al Saz “KISS FM” AUG 21 1659
106.8 RFM POR Montejunto 10000 “RFM” AUG 20 1159
106.8 R.Clube MDR Funchal 400 “R.CLUBE” AUG 19 1133
106.8 Onda Cero CNR Las Palmas GC 8000 AUG 19 2930 388
107.1 R.Mun.Tequise CNR Tequise LZR 150 “RMD” AUG 19 2016
107.1 R.Cl Portugues POR Foia 10000 AUG 19 0710
107.4 Canal 4 CNR AUG 21 1641
107.6 Onda Cero AUG 19 1133
107.8 R.Aventura CNR Telde GC AUG 21 1655
107.9 Antena 2 AUG 19 1655
107.9 RNE 2 AUG 19 1655
107.9 R. Realejos CNR Los Realejos 100 “R.REALEJOS NORTE” AUG 22 1316

[Jim Renfrew]

PORTUGAL, AUG 25-29 2005

See part 1 for report from Madeira

Jim Renfrew, Byron NY USA

This report is still incomplete, in that there are still quite a few gaps in what follows. My mileage calculator only recognizes the largest cities, so I haven't calculated distance on most of them. However, the distance to Lisbon from Madeira is about 600 miles. I notice that William Hepburn's tropo map routinely shows bright red off the coast of West Africa, so these distances may not be all that remarkable. It also helps that once the listener gets past the local stations on Madeira there's little else until you get to Portugal or the Canaries. Morocco, though closer, was not easy to hear. A lot of the stations noted were from the highest elevations on the island, and some were from sea level. There is a high ridge of mountains running east/west, and reception is favored north or south accordingly. One big mistake I made was not to bring any kind of FM frequency guide. I had actually planned to focus on Medium Wave, but there just wasn't much to hear that I hadn't already heard from Newfoundland. Also, we spent a lot of time in the car, so an FM radio with RDS made it easy to DX throughout each day while taking in the sights. I noted quite a few Canary Islands stations without bothering to ID them, only to discover that there are a HUGE number of stations from those islands, so sitting here back at home it is impossible to determine which ones those were!

Receiver Notes: The Sony 2010, while nice to use with tuning steps of 0.05 Mhz in a 0.10 environment, in the presence of strong adjacent channel will sometimes give the impression that a given signal is as much as .15 MHz off channel. The rental vehicle in Portugal was almost always 0.10 Mhz off true channel.


Ch. ID CTRY CITY/TOWN kW RDS Text/notes Date/Time Miles


Sinta, Portugal, AUG 25-28 (rental car routinely 0.1 MHz inaccurate!)
88.0 Occidente Sintra 1000 “OCCIDENTE”
88.4 Antena 1 “ANTENA 1”
88.9 Antena 2 Lisboa/Banática “ANTENA 2”
89.3 Antena 2 Lousa 100000 “ANTENA 2”
89.5 TSF Lisboa 5000
89.9 RFM Arrabida 12000
90.2 Renasenca Montejunto 10000 or Guarda
90.4 R. Paris Lisboa 5000
90.8 R.Comercial Lousa 44000
91.2 R. Sintra Sintra 1000 “RC SINTRA”
91.7 RFM Lousa 56000
92.0 Nova Antena Loures 2000 “RNA”
92.4 Mega FM Lisboa 5000
92.8 Horizonte FM Loures 2000
92.9 Antena 2 Portoalegre 10000
93.2 RFM Lisboa 50000
93.5 R.Voz Alenquer 500 “ALENQUER”
93.7 R.Mais Amadora 1500 “R. MAIS”
93.8 Nova Europa Torres Vedra 1000
94.2 Talk FM
94.4 Antena 2 Lisboa 100000
95.0 R.Miramar Oeiras 1500
95.3 Tropical FM Moita 1500 “TROPICAL FM”
95.6 R. Sestais
95.7 Antena 1 Lisboa/Monsanto “ANTENA 1”
96.0 Antena 2 Sintra/Janas 200 “ANTENA 2”
96.4 R.Clube Portugues Montejunto 10000 “RDP”
96.6 Best FM Lisboa 5000 “BEST FM”
96.9 Antena 1 Sintra/Janas 200 “ANTENA 1”
97.1 Vida FM Arruda dos Vinhas 500
97.4 R.Comercial Monsanto/Lisboa 44000
97.8 Radar Lisboa 2000 “RADAR”
98.1 R.Marginal Cascais 3000 “MARGINAL”
98.3 Antena 1 Lisboa/Montejunto 40000 “ANTENA 1”
98.7 R.Baia Seixal 1500
98.7 R.Pontevedra Pontevedra, SPAIN
99.0 Energie FM
99.3 Cidade FM
99.5 Maior FM Rio Maior 1000
99.8 R.Comercial Montejunto 10000
100.3 Antena 3 Lisboa/Monsanto 100000 “ANTENA 3”
100.5 R.Porto Algre Porta Legra 2000
100.8 Capital Almada 2000 “CAPITAL”
101.5 RDPAfrica Lisbon area 5000 “AFRICA”
101.9 Orbital Loures 2000 “ORBITAL”
102.2 Antena 3 Lousa 100000 “ANTENA 3”
102.6 Oxigeneo Oeiras 1500 “OXIGENEO”
103.2 TSF Bornes? 10000
103.4 RR Lisboa 50000 “RR”
103.8 Antena 3 Sintra/Janas 200 “ANTENA 3”
104.3 R.Clube Portugues Lisboa 50000
104.8 Eco FM Alcochete
105.2 Antena 3 Lisboa/Montejunto 40000 “ANTENA 3”
105.6 RC Mafra Mafra 1000 “RC MAFRA”
105.8 RR Arrabida 12000 “RR”
106.0 R.Renasenca Lousa 50000
106.4 Oasis FM Sobral de Monte Agraco 1000 “OASIS”
106.8 TSF 106.7 0r 106.8?
107.2 Cidade Amadora 1500 “CIDADE”
107.7 Nossa FM Sintra 1000 “NOSSA FM”

[KW4RZ]

Nice pile of DX, Jim !
Looks like you got into it deeper than I did in the 30 days I had in England in June 1995. Hearing FM radio from other countries is a nice treat for the avid DXer. Nice!