These days I am very busy with our relocation. Our new home in Odoornerveen has been completed and we are moving in. So not a lot of time for the hobby. But thanks to Hugo Matten I was made aware of the “40 Watt DX-test” transmission of Kiss AM last weekend. Despite only using an improvised indoor loop antenna of 4x4x4 m on my trusted NTi Megaloop FX device I was able to identify two songs. The Kiss AM team confirmed it matched their schedule.
eQSL Kiss AM 1593 kHz
As you can see from the accompanying email, Kiss AM doesn’t have the optimal antenna either: “Two makes a pair!”
This is the first QSL for a reception of a station from my new location. With only 40 Watts, close to 900 kms distance of which a significant portion over land I’m pretty pleased with this one being the “ouverture” of my new DX-life!
A QSL for my reception of NSE Radio from Lima, Peru, broadcasting on 1180 kHz mediumwave.
Reception quality was poor. With good DX ears the ID is recognizable in the first clip at 4 seconds: “NSE Radio…”.
The second clip features a female voice with messages and a typical tune in the background. It sounds very familiar, I think it was in one of my childhood piano lessons, but can’t find the tune anymore. Anyone?
NSE is an abbreviation of Nuestra Señora del Encuentro con Dios. Broadcasting on 1180 AM from Lima, Peru, this Catholic station is part of the broader NSE Radio and TV network dedicated to evangelization. The underlying Marian devotion and apostolic works trace their inspiration to Father Rodrigo Molina, with the title “Nuestra Señora del Encuentro con Dios” emerging around 1994 in Spain; the media ministry itself has more than 20–30 years of experience and has expanded across Peru (including stations in Arequipa and Cusco) as well as to other Spanish-speaking countries such as Chile, Argentina, Colombia, and beyond, while also producing content shared with partners like EWTN, Radio Católica Mundial, and Vatican Radio.
The Lima AM outlet (historically noted at around 10 kW) serves as a key production and live-broadcast hub, airing 24-hour programming that emphasizes religious teaching, spiritual formation, evangelization, sacred and other music, news, cultural and educational content, and special live coverage of papal events, all aimed at drawing listeners closer to God through Mary in accordance with Catholic Scripture and Tradition, largely sustained by volunteer efforts.
On June 19th I received COPE Lugo broadcasting a message inviting listeners to switch to 90.0 FM if they wanted to continue to listen to COPE. So another one bites the dust…
Below my recording of their announcement which is somewhat compromised due to heavy thunderstorms as well as the fact that my loop is in a fixed 90/270 degrees position.
With 1000 kW the Roumoules transmitter is one of the most powerful mediumwave transmitters in the world. Built in 1987 it served Radio Monte Carlo broadcasts until March, 2020. The antennas are located in France, but the frequency is assigned to Monaco.
The religious broadcaster TWR has always used Radio Monte Carlo facilities, and since 1987 they also used Roumoules. And they continued doing so even when RMC seized their operations.
Since March 2026 the Roumoules facility has been made available to other parties. Radio Six was one of the first to launch a program “Midnight Rendezvous” and they were so friendly to QSL my reception report.
Below the recording I made of the program opening. Quality might be a bit compromised as my MW loop antenna had a fixed direction 90/270 degrees which I couldn’t change.
A very colorful eQSL from KLAS Radio, an unlicensed station broadcasting from Ireland on 1233 kHz. Power is 500 Watts, and presumed location is Sligo. 1233 kHz is one of the mediumwave frequencies that are nearly empty these days, and it competes with two equally low powered stations from Italy only.
Radio De Vliegende Hollander (“The Flying Dutchman”) from Meppel, The Netherlands, can be heard quite well here in Coevorden on 1467 kHz. No surprise as the distance is only 37 kilometers. This LPAM station is broadcasting with 50 Watts, slightly lower than most Dutch LPAMs. At my previous QTH in Woerden I was never able to receive this station, as Radio Paradijs from nearby Utrecht was dominant. The first time I heard this station was on a clip my friend Arild Skalmeraas sent me to help with the station identification. Which means that Radio Vliegende Hollander already made it to Norway!
In the audioclip below you can hear the Radio Paradijs ID at 14 seconds, and much louder, the Radio De Vliegende Hollander ID at 22 seconds: “Dit is Radio de Vliegende Hollander, AM 1467 kHz, vanuit Nederland. Wil je meer informatie over ons, surf dan naar www.radiodevliegendehollander.nl . Radio de Vliegende Hollander te horen op AM, 1467 kHz, vanuit Meppel brengen we je het laatste nieuws”
Radio De Vliegende Hollander ID
My reception report sent to 1467am(at)radiodevliegendehollander.nl was answered by Koert who is the station owner. Koert happens to be a member of the VERON as well as the Benelux DX Club, just as I am. And therefore maybe no surprise that reception reports are awarded with a beautiful old school QSL card. Big thanks to Koert!
Old school QSL card from Radio De Vliegende Hollander (which is Dutch for Flying Dutchman)
Fully detailed QSL card for Radio De Vliegende Hollander
I tried this one two years ago earlier, but without success. But maybe Radio North has a new QSL manager in Chrissy, who was so kind to confirm my report via radionorth846mwads(at)gmail.com with a very nice fully detailed eQSL.
Radio North is broadcasting from Redcastle, Ireland with 3 kW. The station is unlicensed. And I know this led to annoyance with Dutch LPAM stations as they have to pay quite a hefty fee for their license allowing them to broadcast with 100 W max, only to find that a relatively high powered unlicensed station is causing interference on a frequency allocated to the Netherlands. It was one of the reasons why Album AM went off the air. MCB from Alphen aan de Rijn has taken over operations on 846 AM since.
I listened to oldies, but at 0300 h UTC they brought a Gospel broadcast from father John Morrison. These are heard quite often on Radio North. Chrissy had to print my email for him, as father John is old school and doesn’t have email. Below a brief clip of my reception:
A month ago I already thought I’d received Energy AM on 1440 kHz, but it turned out to be Radio Argus. But this time I received them in reasonable quality with a full ID. Energy AM is an unlicensed station from the Dublin area in Ireland, active on weekends. They used to operate on 1395 kHz (as you can still see in their logo), but since late last year they switched to 1440 kHz.
Energy AM confirmed my report via Facebook Messenger and provided some details:
Peter,
It was indeed Energy AM you heard last night on 1440 khz .
We were running 425 watts into our T antenna 20 metres vertical and 33 metres of horizontal.Slight loading at top of vertcal 7 turns.Transmitter isa Hercules 1 kilowatt but not running more than 500 watts as any more power cause local breakthrough interference on a smoke alarm.
We also use a D&R mixing desk, Rode mic, technics sl 1200 turntable ,Tascam cd 401 mk2 cd player ,and a dell PC with playout one radio program. audio is processed with orban digital am optimod. If you require any further information i would be happy to forward it to you.
Thanks for your reception report from all at Energy Am.
Below you can hear the jingle with the “Energy” identification:
UPDATE: as I noticed they still had their old frequency in the logo I made a new one. And got a nice “Thank You” in reply:
DX-ing mediumwave pirates is nice because sometimes you have email correspondence with fellow radio enthusiasts. I received Radio Turftrekker on 1638 kHz. Operator Jeroen wrote that he was ‘spoon-fed’ with mediumwave pirate radio as his father is also a mediumwave pirate. As a small child, he was listened in. Occasionally he was allowed to say something on the radio.
But it is also nice because some of the station names used remind you of the heritage of the Netherlands. Radio Markies is an example. And so is Radio Turftrekker. While the next paragraphs are not really about radio or DX, I just enjoyed writing them. Skip it if you want, but if you like it, please leave a comment!
About the name of Radio Turftrekker
A “Turftrekker” or “Peat Puller” was a worker that extracted peat using a scoop with a net attached. Peat was used as a fuel to heat houses before we switched to coal (and Holland what late in doing so). However, with the peat being extracted, deep pools of water formed in Holland.
“God created the earth, except for the Netherlands, for the Dutch did that themselves” is a well-known Dutch saying referring to the polders and reclaimed lands. But what is often forgotten is that the same Dutch first lost almost half their country due to peat extraction.
“Turftrekkers” extracting peat. A picture from 1895 used in schools.
The prime example is the Haarlemmermeer (Haarlem Lake), the polder in which Schiphol (Amsterdam International) Airport is situated today. In the Middle Ages four lakes were formed as a result of peat reclaiming. Additional illegal reclaiming and storms resulted in the collapse of dikes, allowing the lakes to merge into what became the Haarlemmermeer. That lake was so large that it became an inland sea, and with southwesterly storms, it expanded ever further in the direction of Amsterdam.
The collapse of the dike between Amsterdam and Haarlem
The Haarlemmermeer acquired the nickname “Waterwolf” as the water consumed more and more land. A beautiful artwork created in 2024 visualizes this. The Waterwolf seems to be at rest in this statue, as is the Haarlemmermeer.
The “Water Wolf” statue in the Haarlemmermeer. Finally at rest after 4 centuries.
Plans were made to reclaim the Haarlemmermeer as early as the 18th century. However, by then the lake was too large to be drained with windmill technology applied in the Beemster, Wormer, and Schermer polders. And so nothing could be done and devastating storms in 1836 caused parts of Leiden and Amsterdam to flood.
The Haarlmemermeer in 1740, top left the city of Haarlem, top right Amsterdam
But fortunately there was the introduction of the steam engine. In May 1840, thousands of laborers began digging a 60-kilometer-long ring canal and constructing a ring dike with shovels and spades. Three steam pumping stations were built: De Leeghwater, De Cruquius, and De Lynden. On July 1, 1852, the Haarlemmermeer was completely drained, and the development and parcelling of the more than 18,500 hectares of new land could begin.
One of the steam engines draining the Haarlemmermeer
Back to Radio “Turftrekker”. Jeroen mentioned he didn’t have a QSL card. I proposed this design based on the school picture shown above. What do you think?
During the Pirate Hunt 2026 event I was able to log Radio Kristal, broadcasting from Twente, East Netherlands on 1655 kHz.
Operator Jan confirmed my reception with a nice eQSL featuring the offshore radiostation Veronica. The station I grew up with as a child.
Radio Kristal works with a tube transmitter and inverted V antenna. Jan mentioned that he is active for 47 years on AM and his station has been raided by the “Radiocontroledienst” (the authorities) twice.
BDXC : SWL 2262 PRe VERON : NL 14228 If you want to get in touch, just leave a message on one of my posts. Please note that I don't publish email addresses of verifiers which are not part of the public domain. So if you don't see the QSL address, just leave a message and I'll get back to you.
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