Backcountry communication

[skagitsteel]

does anyone have experience with the Delorme in reach?  I am do a lot of solo trips in the backcountry and need to keep tabs on my business when Im away, was curious what others experiences have been with sat phones, ect..

[actionshooter]

My buddy has one and we have used it a lot, I think it works better than the SPOT as I used to have one and it had service issues in Idaho.... We haven't had any problems with service and have used it in Montana, Wyoming and Alaska. He has also sent me several messages from Africa.
 The cool part is sending yourself messages and then checking out where you were on Google earth when you get home. 

[JackOfAllTrades]

OK.  A couple hundred bucks for the inReach,... How much for a monthly or yearly service contract?

That's another 11oz to add to my pack!

-Steve

[shanevg]

That's what I was going to say. Great investment, unfortunately the two-way messaging costs a lot!  ($50/month for 120/month.)

I'm guessing those companies are making a fortune off two-way messaging. Can't cost that much to carry a message over the network.

I still wonder why cell networks haven't just transferred to a satellite network. How convenient would that be!

[actionshooter]

 Messaging your pilot after 16 really hard days = Priceless 

 Cost isn't bad, you can keep the minimum service $10 a month and then have it activated for $25 monthly and there is no per message cost.

[JackOfAllTrades]

I DON'T WANT TO BE IN TOUCH! I just want.. (or the wife wants) a means to get attention from emergency services if I get in trouble. I can't justify the cost for one of these yet. (yes, I know that someone will say that the cost is very little for a life.) I don't run a million dollar business that can't do without me for a week or two at a time.

I'm sorry, I'm off topic. 

Looking forward to more people that have experience with one of these and SPOT's though.

-Steve

[Bob33]

I DON'T WANT TO BE IN TOUCH! I just want.. (or the wife wants) a means to get attention from emergency services if I get in trouble. I can't justify the cost for one of these yet. (yes, I know that someone will say that the cost is very little for a life.) I don't run a million dollar business that can't do without me for a week or two at a time.

I'm sorry, I'm off topic. 

Looking forward to more people that have experience with one of these and SPOT's though.

-Steve

A PLB is a much better solution if you only want to communicate in an emergency. It will communicate more reliably and has no monthly service fees.

[WAcoueshunter]

I usually take one trip a year where I'm truly out of reach of cell service for extended periods.  For that week I rent a satellite phone.  It costs about $100 for the week for the rental, plus a little extra for minutes if/when you actually use it. With the rental, I don't have to worry about the big cost of purchasing the device, and I always have the new technology.  The company I've used is Bluecosmo.com in case anyone is interested.

[Jburke]

I used a SPOT and it worked good last year.  But no two way messaging

[Skyvalhunter]

I do it the old fashioned way, smoke signals. If I can't get a fire, or the wind is howling or dark then I am screwed.

[McCRIZZLEY]

Has anyone on here actually used one of these devices for their S.O.S. function? I've heard some stories claiming they're not as great as they sound. But all just rumors to me, never heard from someones first hand experience.

[TheHunt]

If I did anything solo in years past I would rent a sat phone.  They have packaged deals for hunters. 

[Bob33]

Satellite phone: you KNOW your message got through.

PLB: you're ALMOST CERTAIN your message got through.

All others: you HOPE your message got through.

[et1702]

Rented SAT phone last time I disappeared way back in the woods for more than a week.  Cheaper and more reliable in the long run.  Last time I rented one, I didn't even turn it on (thankfully).  So, no additional cost for extra minutes used either.

ET

[Bmcox86]

Get a plb, it will work, anywhere in the world. Send it in every 5 years to have battery replaced. No monthly and it simply works.

http://www.rei.com/product/843146/acr-electronics-resqlink-406-gps-personal-locator-beacon


If you search a while back I posted on a search and rescue I assisted on where a spot was used. They work, but a plb is more reliable.