BLUEMOMENT

After some forum discussion, here and elsewhere, and some email with people I respect at the CA and RYA, I decided to invest in Navtex.

After one season I was an enthusiastic convert, despite the known reception problems in parts of the west of Scotland. When working, it records the shipping forecasts on 518 kHz, and the inshore forecasts on 490 kHz (updated twice a day).

However last week, instead of having two updated inshore forecasts per 24 hour period on 490 kHz, we would get only one, and none at all on odd days. Don't think it was a reception problem, as we were getting loads of coastal station pressure readings.

Anyone know what's going on?
Frank Singleton's site still shows two per day from Portpatrick at 0820 and 2020 UTC, but, errrm, they're not there.

ours went a bit deaf, and so did a friends (who has a special long aerial that he is very proud of and boasts about.....) so I think there may have been issues at the transmitting end. I'm sure (as a registered hamorak, ) that I would have been made aware of any unusual tropospheric conditions that may have been around at the time.
Seems to be back again now??

Since Sahona's post, we've spent another three night aboard, and I'm afraid that the problem still persisted ie there was only one inshore forecast per day on 490kHz, not the fabled two. What we did have have, were a pile of atmospheric pressure readings from coastal stations, not the same thing at all.

I see from the latest RYA mag, they are are still pushing the two a day line. That's just not been happening.

While mentioning the RYA mag, I really do wonder if the authors of the current article actually use the Navtex services or do any serious cruising. I ask this because, once again, the article talks about mobile phone downloads and internet connections.......... Jeez.............

I'm one of those folks who's been quite happy to punt the RYA an annual sub, confident that they're looking after my interests, but not wishing to have any active part in it. Now, I'm not so sure. When they start telling me how easy it is to get mobile and internet connections, then I really start to doubt if they understand anything beyond the Solent.

I'm going to have another check on Navtex over the next few days, but I am certain that we have not been experiencing a reception problem in recent cruises (we got all the other stuff on 490). It's a content problem.