07 — Monday — Solar Panel Parts & Regulator Arrive

July 15, 2014 by Larry McGuire

We learned that the tropical storm Neoguri that passed over the Independence Day weekend is now strengthening to super-typhoon status and heading toward Japan. Last night, two men drowned off the pier in Merizo (less than a mile down the hill from the TWR Guam transmitters) when their boat capsized in the rough waters remaining from the storm. One of these men was the Merizo mayor’s nephew. Two others in the boat survived.

I worked with Mike this morning to determine the source of occasional momentary audio drop-offs on one of the transmitters last night. Eventually a reset of the computer that controls that transmitter’s programming seemed to solve the problem.

Next, Mike wanted me to try to repair a failed power supply for the Thompson transmitters, which had been replaced with one from the stockroom. Unfortunately, there is no schematic for it, which makes troubleshooting rather difficult. Fortunately, there as a couple other working spares.

Before making any progress on the power supply, the delivery truck arrived with the support structure for the solar panel array. Photos are below:

Some minor damage was noted on a couple of the longer mounting rails, so I took photos before they were unloaded. This photo shows the most serious of the damage, which can probably be easily repaired by TWR’s welder, Jim.

Jim unloads the support frames for the solar panel array. Phil and the truck driver are also in this photo. It was necessary to be very careful to keep from getting the forklift stuck due to all the rain over the weekend.

Shortly after unloading the solar array support structure, the post office called to say that the package with the regulator for the standby power supply had arrived. This small Merizo post office is so good about informing the station when packages come in the TWR post box.

When the regulator arrived on site, I began studying the enclosed manual to determine how to set it up. The old, now obsolete, regulator required little setup. This one had all kinds of digital settings that required adjustment before putting it into operation. While I researched the manual, Jim, Joel and Paul concentrated on enlarging the access hole and drilling new mounting holes in the alternator control box to accommodated the new regulator.

The new regulator mounted in the side of the control box on the alternator.

The new regulator now mounted in the side of the control box on the alternator.

After wiring the regulator, the engine was started with the internal permanent magnet generator connected, but with the field winding not connected. This supplied the 200 volt 300 Hz power to program all the regulator settings, before bringing the power plant on line.

After wiring the regulator, the engine was started with only the internal permanent magnet generator connected. This provided the needed 200 volt 300 Hz power to program all the regulator settings, before bringing the power plant on line.

After installing, wiring and programming the regulator, the remaining wires and circuit breakers were properly connected. The engine was again started and meters showed that it was generating the required 480 volts at 60 Hertz. We then transferred the load of the site onto the engine for a few minutes for its final test.

We left the site this afternoon with a sigh of relief that there will be standby power available, in the event of a power line failure, and praising the Lord that there had been no major power failure during the time the standby was out of service, even during tropical storm Neoguri!!

2014/07/06 — Sunday — North Tour of Guam

July 12, 2014 by Larry McGuire

At the beginning of the church service this morning, we were blessed by the singing of this Chamorro choir.

After church, we decided to visit some points of interest toward the north of Guam, starting at the north-most point. Here are some photos of our days adventure:

Our first stop was the Micronesia Mall to get something for lunch. Dance demonstrations were taking place. These are some Chamorro dancers.

The dancing got lively when the Tahitian Dancers took the stage! [Virginia too this photo]

The dancing got lively when the Tahitian Dancers took the stage! [Virginia took this photo]

On the way north, we drove over Mount Santa Rosa, the site of the last battle to retake Guam from the Japanese, then attempted to find the Yigo War Memorial. It was on our map, but we could not find it. Quite often on Guam, there are no road signs leading the way to these places, which makes it hard for tourists like us. We find it amazing that there are route numbers on the map, but no signs anywhere on many routes.

As we drove past the gate of Anderson Air Force Base on Route 1, it was beginning to rain. We saw a visitors center and decided that might be a place to wait out the storm and get some useful information. We walked in the door, saw several rows of chair, like is often found at the bureau of motor vehicles, and a clerk behind a desk. We quickly determined that this was not what we thought, but was the check-in desk for visitors to the base.

Most of the north end of Guam is Anderson Air Force Base. There is a narrow corridor along the west coast that allows the public access to the north point of Ritidian and the Guam Nature Preserve. On the right is a high security fence around the base and on the left is extremely thick bush with these signs frequently spaced.

Most of the north end of Guam is Anderson Air Force Base. There is a narrow corridor (Route 3A) along the west coast that allows the public access to the north point of Ritidian and the Guam Nature Preserve. On the right is a high security fence around the base and on the left is extremely thick bush with these signs frequently spaced.

On the left of Route 3A there is a small monument stone with this plague telling about the last air corps mission before the surrender of Japan.

On the left of Route 3A about 1/10 mile past a sharp left turn, there is a small monument stone with this plague telling about the last Army Air Corps mission before the surrender of Japan. Can you imagine 143 bombers being sent out on one mission today??!! Does the US Air Force even have that many bombers located on one base anywhere today?

Looking back (south) from the monument, we saw all these radar domes and decided to take a photo. I saw this truck coming from the base and thought maybe they did not want me taking pictures. Instead they wanted to see if we were having car trouble, since I had turned on the hazard flashers while parked beside the road by the marker.

Looking back (south) from the monument, we saw all these radar domes and decided to take a photo. I saw this truck coming quickly from the base and thought maybe we weren’t supposed to take pictures. Instead the driver wanted to see if we were having car trouble, since I had turned on the hazard flashers while parked beside the road by the monument.

Continuing north on route 3A, the road deteriorated dramatically, with huge potholes, which slowed driving to a crawl in places. In addition to the US property signs, these signs began to appear on the left. The foliage is extremely dense in this location. Not sure what is being hunted, but suspect it is deer and/or feral pigs. We saw one of the latter run across the road when we drove up the mountain about 3 weeks ago.

Also along this road were several of these coconut rhinoceros beetle traps. These beetles are devastating the coconut palms on Guam and these traps are for monitoring where they might be. Traps are strategically located all over the island.

We got to the gate for the nature refuge and Ritidian point only to find it closed to entering traffic. The park closes at 4 pm and apparently the entry gate closes about 3 pm. Guess we’ll have to return at another time.

Since we were in the area, we stopped by Two Lovers Point, a place that Virginia and Joanna visited a couple weeks ago. Just missed getting a photo of a Japanese couple getting married.

From Two Lovers Point looking across Tumon Bay at the city of Tamuning. The big waves resulting from tropical storm Neoguri are causing an unusual amount of haze.

Just north of Two Lovers Point, is a secluded, and rather difficult to find, beach. We saw only Chamorros on Tanguisson Beach.

Just north of Two Lovers Point (the cliff seen here) is a secluded, and rather difficult to find, beach. We saw only Chamorros (Guam natives) on Tanguisson Beach.

Waves from the tropical storm on Tanguisson Beach, which is normally relatively calm.

Waves from tropical storm Neoguri breaking on Tanguisson Beach, which is normally relatively calm.

On left of the road climbing up from Tanguisson Beach is this well concealed large satellite dish antenna. We have subsequently learned that it is the Tanguisson Cable Landing Station, where many trans-Pacific communication cables are connected. (http://wikimapia.org/29192587/Tanguisson-Undersea-Cable-Landing-Station)

Our next stop was Ypao (pronounced E pow) Beach on the south side of Tumon Bay. It is just west of the tourist hotel section of Guam.

Looking east from Ypao Beach towards the hotels. There are a lot of Japanese tourists on Guam. The flight from Japan is less than 4 hours.

Looking east from Ypao Beach towards some of the hotels. There are a lot of Japanese tourists on Guam. The flight from Japan takes less than 4 hours.

Looking north from Ypao Beach across Tumon Bay towards Two Lovers Point.

There are a lot of pavilions at Ypao and they were all busy because of the holiday weekend.

This extra large pavilion must have been the site of a huge gathering. Only about a fourth of the pavilion is seen in this photo. The familiar caterer is in the process of cleaning up.

This extra large pavilion must have been the site of a huge gathering. Only about a fourth of the pavilion is seen in this photo. The caterer (KFC) is in the process of cleaning up as it is quite late in the afternoon.

2014/07/05 — Saturday — South Tour

July 9, 2014 by Larry McGuire

Tropical storm Neoguri dumped an inch or so of rain last night, but this morning the rain let up. We decided to drive further south than previous ventures to see more landmarks. We are including many photos with captions in this blog.

The Agat Cemetery has quite elaborate memorials, which is typical of the Catholic cemeteries on Guam.

We made a quick stop at the Sella Bay Trailhead overlook and saw some of the damage done by tropical storm Neoguri. It wasn’t like this last week.

At the Sella Bay Overlook, we saw a Japanese couple (probably newlyweds) and offered to take their photo with their cell phone. In turn, they took our photo with our camera. Sella Bay is in the background with large waves. The west coast usually has few waves, but with tropical storm Neoguri having just passed, there will be lots of breaking waves in all our photos today.

On the hill, just before the small village of Umatac, is this Guam Vietnam Memorial.

A full view of the Guam Vietnam Memorial to Guam citizens who died while serving the U.S. during the Vietnam War.

As can be seen here, Guam is proud to be part of the U.S. , even if only a territory. Hence their motto, “Guam — where America’s day begins” (since Guam is located on the west side of the International Date Line)

Upon entering the village of Umatac from the north, we found this sign. The only path we could find went into someone’s backyard. Doing some research, we found that it was a Spanish fort on a rock at the north entrance to the harbor. There was a description of steps remaining on that rock, but no photos could be found anywhere. We wonder if anyone has been there in recent years. This is a site we may try explore further, if we have the time.

Less than 100 yards from the Fort Santo Angel sign is Sam's by the Sea. We did not patronize the shop, but note the memorial next to the road in front of it.

Less than 100 yards from the Fort Santo Angel sign is Sam’s by the Sea. We did not patronize the shop, but note the memorial within two feet of the road in front of it.

This outdoor library had wood bookshelves. The slots for the shelves can be seen on the right. There were also shelves on the left. When it was originally built, there was a wooden shelter to help protect books from the weather.

Looking toward Umatac Bay from the Outdoor Library, the huge waves can be seen coming into this normally very calm bay. We drive this route every day to get to the TWR Guam transmitter site.

Another 100 yards down the road is the largest structure in Umatac village — San Dionisio Catholic Church — a reminder of the Spanish colonization of Guam.

The Magellan Monument in the center of the Village of Umatac.

For comparison, this is what Umatac Bay normally looks like.

For comparison, this is what the surface of Umatac Bay usually looks like.

We don’t usually make comments on the plaques, but this one could use some cleaning, and should be protected when the monument is painted in the future!

Notice the flag on top of the rock that was probably the location of Fort Santo Angel

Across the narrow main road from the Magellan Monument are the ruins of the San Dionisio Church.

Across the narrow main road from the Magellan Monument are the ruins of the original San Dionisio Church.

The elementary school in Umatac surrounds the church ruins on three sides. How would you like to have ‘Sea Horses’ as your mascot name?

The Magellan Memorial Arches on either side of the bridge that crosses the small stream that empties into Umatac Bay.

The Magellan Memorial Arches on either side of the bridge that crosses Umatac River that empties into Umatac Bay.

Like a lot of places with old history, the old and the new exist side-by-side. Turning to my left while photographing the memorial arches, I captured this photo of boys riding ATVs on a muddy track. The older boy was showing off for the camera. The two younger boys were much more cautious riders.

On a high hill on the south side of Umatac Bay is Fort Soledad, a later Spanish fort. We mentioned this fort in one of our earliest blogs from Guam.

This plaque shows the various landmarks around Umatac Bay as seen from Fort Soledad.

In this view of Umatac Bay, we believe that Fort Santo Angel was located on the rock jutting out from shore on the north side of the bay. Fort San Jose was another fort sitting on the hill just to the right of Fort San Jose.

Visit — http://www.guampedia.com/fort-san-jose/ — to learn some history of the four different forts that were located at Umatac Bay from 1680 to 1810.

In this view of the bay, Umatac Village can be seen and the catholic church. At the right end of the bay are the Magellan Monuments (not visible in this photo).

About four houses into the village of Merizo (about 5 miles south of Umatac) are these domed houses. We met the owners one of the times that we were at Asan Bay Overlook.

About four houses into the village of Merizo (about 5 miles south of Umatac) are these domed houses. The dome on the right is actually a garage with a living area above it. We met the owners during one of our visits to Asan Bay Overlook.

More can be found about the building of these two domes at: http://www.guampdn.com/guampublishing/special-sections/IslandHomes/pg7.asp

We continued our sightseeing around the south end of Guam then back home via inter-island Routes 4, 4A and 17. Unfortunately, as we drove into Merizo, it began to rain rather heavily and it was not possible to take photos outside our vehicle. We will try to start at Meritzo next Saturday and continue our tour of the south of Guam.

We did manage to take a couple photos of the TWR shortwave antennas on the hill above Merizo, after delivering one of the office chairs that we had been given. The cloudy skies provided a backdrop that made the network of wires show more clearly.

In this photo, you can see two of the 5 shortwave antennas. The transmission lines leaving the building take the signal from the transmitters to the antennas. The antenna switch matrix that we are building is located on the slope below the base of the left tower.

The rain and dark clouds have made the outside lights come on!

The rain and dark clouds made the outside lights come on!

This photo was taken from a point about 1/4 mile south east of the KTWR antenna arrays.

This photo was taken from a road about 1/4 mile south east of the KTWR shortwave curtain antenna arrays.

2014/07/04 — Friday — Independence Day

July 8, 2014 by Larry McGuire

During the night, tropical storm Neoguri passed about 150 miles southwest of Guam. Strong wind and heavy rain could be heard even inside our concrete roofed apartment. The wind was strong enough to make the seals in the window occasionally ‘buzz’. We slept in a little later than normal this morning.

As a result of the passing storm, the TWR picnic at Nimitz Beach Park was moved inside. The Canadian couple, Phil and April, opened their home for the ‘picnic’. They have a large living/dining area with a big kitchen which easily accommodated the TWR staff .

The ladies prepared goodies to go with the hamburgers and hot dogs that were grilled under the carport. One of the delicious desserts even had a patriotic theme.Here are a few photos of the staff enjoying a time of relaxation:

The TWR ‘girls’!

After a good meal, we played some table games. Some new ones, to us, were Bananagrams — http://www.bananagrams.com/our-games/bananagrams — and Bandits, a card game, which is no longer made. [Located one used deck on Amazon as a collectible for $65 and one used deck on Ebay for $40!]

We headed home about 4 pm and, since we were within a couple miles of the east coast, decided to head that way first. We passed through the villages of Ipan and Talofofo. Unfortunately, the rain and haze did not allow for good photos.

On the way back to, and about 1/2 mile north of, our apartment, we noticed another ‘hidden’ memorial beach, Apaca Point, on the west side of Guam.

Apaca Point was another location where the Japanese had well-hidden defenses, including pill boxes and tunnels.

A Japanese tunnel at Apaca Point.

Apaca Point Island is just off Apaca Point. Usually, the Philippine Sea is very calm on the west side of Guam. Because of tropical storm Nigarow, the waves are quite spectacular.

Apaca Point Island is just off Apaca Point. Usually, the Philippine Sea is very calm on the west side of Guam. Because of tropical storm Neoguri, the waves are quite spectacular today.

While at Apaca Point we met a couple that were collecting shells on the beach. We visited with them for a while and learned that they were here to attend her mother’s funeral. They met while he was stationed on Guam with the US Army. She was a local Chamorro and they were married in 1975 at Marianas Baptist, a church about 300 yards east of our apartment.

2014/07/03 — Thursday — Last Interconnecting Line

July 7, 2014 by Larry McGuire

Today’s task? Complete the last long ‘straight’ connection, make the support poles and anchor these poles to the pad. The task was accomplished. Photos below, plus one of a visiting critter:

The line in the foreground is by far the longest. Although what we call a ‘straight’ run, it does make a corner. It just does not go up and over other lines. Paul is anchoring posts to the pad, Jim is silver soldering joints, and Joel is keeping Jim supplied with silver solder rods and making sure everything stays lined up straight.

By the end of the day, five supporting posts had been put under this line and had been bolted to the pad -- already for a tropical storm coming our way.

By the end of the day, five supporting posts had been put under this line and had been bolted to the pad — all ready for a tropical storm coming our way.

Our visiting critter of the day — a frog, or is it a toad? For size comparison, the wood block is from a 2X4.

McGuire Report

Larry and Virginia's Travel Blog

2014/07/07 — Monday — Solar Panel Parts & Regulator Arrive

2014/07/06 — Sunday — North Tour of Guam

2014/07/05 — Saturday — South Tour

2014/07/04 — Friday — Independence Day

2014/07/03 — Thursday — Last Interconnecting Line