WRTT642

LOL. Cant wait to see the responses to this one. This is gonna be fun. I agree with you to a point. I am licensed for both amateur and GMRS and I use both quite a bit, some days one more than the other, and I can see what you are saying to an extent. I have made some great relationships with some really solid guys on ham and there are some really great people that are doing some really good work on expanding the capabilities of amateur radio, BUT with that being said I have been doing a lot of digital work lately and I can say that I have also came across some really, umm, how do I say this nicely, "sad hams" as they are so called. People who are angry for unknown reasons and are quick to "correct" you and have really bad attitudes for no apparent reason. I have also come across some guys that were clearly intoxicated and were a bit of a nuisance, but they usually get called out really quick by other more experienced guys. GMRS is great are there are some really cool people on their as well, but I don't see the two being equivalent, they both are tools to use for the job that needs to be done. So far my experience with GMRS over the air has been fine and haven't had any issues with the few people I have come across on it, they have all been respectful and nice. So I think it is just a numbers game. You meet way more people over a greater distance on amateur than you do on GMRS. I can not speak on CB as I have never personally used it, but I have heard stories. Both are great, I have had more issues with people being "sad hams" on amateur than I have had issues over GMRS, but that simply is because I have talked to a lot more random people over ham than GMRS. I am sure there are jerks in GMRS too, I just haven't met them. Yet, lol. Thanks for the post.

Let me say thank you for all you do. I became a premium member shortly after joining because personally I felt like I was stealing from you guys with as much resources you have on here. All the help and info I have received on this site and then even being able to start a page for my state has been great. We have some really good guys up here in Alaska and they are really getting us caught up with the rest of the states which I am so grateful for. I don't mind volunteering and helping you with whatever you need, but I don't know how much help I can be still being so new to radios, but I'm always willing to help others if I can. Thank you again sir!

Welcome sir! Thank you for all our time and expertise as well as putting the equipment up. We much appreciate it. I drove down to Palmer the other day and tried to access it, but i couldn't get through to it. Maybe I will give it a try tomorrow. If you would like I would love meeting up with you and talking more about this subject or maybe a phone call. I am still learning all about this and I would love to talk to someone who is further down the road than I am. If you need any help with anything give me a holler and Ill see what I can do to help out. There are others here that are trying to get things running out here in the Valley as well as Anchorage. If we all work together we can really get a good net going that can cover South Central. There are also some up in Fairbanks as well as the slope which I found interesting. Anyway, keep us updated and let us know what we can do to help!

I am cool with that, not sure if there are other arrangements with other users, anybody is welcomed to chime in on their thoughts or ideas on this.

Good info! So, I have heard rumors of one being out on Flat Top, but I have not been able to confirm that personally. Getting something out on JBER would be great, but umm yeah good luck with that I guess lol. We have one the has recently popped up in Palmer and another member here is going to get one up out in the KGB area more towards Wasilla, so hopefully we can get something going to connect the Valley together. I am trying to work on getting one up and running for out here in the Big Lake/Houston area, but the only I problem I see trying to connect Anchorage to the Valley is that Baldy is kinda in the way lol. That is unless getting one up on top of Baldy, but again good luck with that lol. Maybe getting something out on the hay flats are connecting something down KGB towards Point Mac and we can jump Knik Arm, but I'm not sure how powerful it would need to be, but if we could get something like that then we can bypass Eagle River and connect Anchorage and the Valley.

Thanks for the info update. Please let me know when next one is I will try to make a point to having to get out there and jump on it.

Hey, have you gone out to Palmer yet and try that repeater? I asked creator for access, but I got no response. Also, let me know what I can do to help you out on that build you got going, if I can do anything I don't mind to help you since we live about 5 miles from each other lol. I need nothing in return.

Hmmm, good catch. Thank you for the info. I do not have Facebook so that is helpful information. Did anyone make mention of any repeaters that are up in Anchorage that are active that IS NOT on my list of repeaters? There should be one up in Eagle River, but not sure what you are using for radio or how far south you are in Anchorage. I live in the Valley and do not go to Anchorage all that often so I do not know for sure. I am planning on driving around here soon and trying out all the repeaters that I do know of to double check their statues. If you can give some updates on Anchorage that would be great.

100% correct!

Presumptuous of you to make such a comment about my respect of rules. Seeing that I have received both my GMRS license and my amateur radio technician license before ever transmitting over any of those radios respective to their use. As well as making mention on numerous occasions of myself informing others that they should have a license before transmitting on said radios. My initial comment was about my experience with GMRS and now amateur radio. I saw that many others have given their own stories and experience with radios, so I felt that it would be ok for me to put in my own story and experience. I do come on here to be apart of a community of individuals who hold the same interest. Is that not ok with you? Or do you want only those who agree with you to comment on here? Is it not ok with you to disagree on certain subjects? I will say this again as clearly as I possibly can. Should you have a license to transmit on GMRS and amateur radio? Yes. Do I agree with that? No. Do I have a valid GMRS and amateur radio license? Yes, WRTT642 & KL5LD. Am I going to tell people that you should have a license to transmit on GMRS and amateur radio? Yes. Will I berate or harass or report or degrade or ignore or dismiss or harm or hurt or threaten anybody who chooses to use these radios without a license? ABSOLUTLEY NOT. Will I encourage and uplift and strengthen and cultivate and teach every person I know everything I know about radios regardless of their license statues? ABSOLUTEY YES. So, I hope this clears up this issue and if I see anybody talk about this subject on this forum on this website, which I do pay money for the premium service, then I will continue to respectfully give my two cents on the matter. It is that simple. If you want to block me, then go right on ahead I don't mind, that is your choice, but I will not block you. If you want to try to get me banned from this forum, then please by all means go ahead and do so if you think I am such a nuisance to disagree with you or others on this subject. If I get banned then fine, I would rather not have that happen because I do enjoy very much coming on here and meeting new people and having these conversations and to continue to keep up on the club I made for my state, but so be it. But do not think for one second that I will just bow to you or anybody else when it comes to this subject and fall in line because I will not. Let us agree to disagree. BTW, Frozen is not a silly movie nor is the song Let It Go. It is an amazing movie and song that my daughters adore as do I and my son and my wife and quite literally tens of thousands if not millions of other people. What I find interesting is that you would say my daughters are silly little girls whom you don't even know then again to presume that this movie and song is only for silly little girls. Not very progressive of you and to be quite honest is a very rude and disrespectful statement to make on the gender role stereotypes of these type of movies and your gender inequality language. Please be a little more respectful next time. Thank you and good luck to you on your thesis.

Sounds good. Come back on tomorrow and see if you can hook up with any of the other members. I believe a couple of them live in Anchorage and Eagle River so maybe they can make a contact with you over the repeater. I plan on doing some meet ups once all this snow goes away, would be great to meet all you guys.

Yes, that looks correct.

Hey Ryan, thanks for joining the Alaska GMRS club. I have posted all known repeaters under the Alaska Repeater tab on the top of the page. If you click there it will show you all the repeaters that are up and running here. Check it out and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask!

Not entirely sure I understand your question. I don't want to assume what you mean by it, so if you can maybe reword your question I will be more than happy to converse with you.

BINGO! Now you're getting it. There is this great movie my kids love it is called Frozen, and in that movie is a wonderful song called "Let it go". Go watch it you will love it.

Exactly.

Early January 2022 here in Alaska we had a horrible winter storm that knocked out power to thousands as well as cell service to some, I lost heat, power, and cell service in my area for 3 days and I was completely unprepared. I have four children my youngest was 10 months old at the time. After that happened I promised myself I will never let that happen again. I then stared going down the "prepper" road and doing research on the subject. This is when I first learned about GMRS. When I Youtubed GMRS the first video to pop up was NOTARUBICON and his videos on GMRS. I took it all in and began taking the steps to get my license. I then watched a video with him and Josh at HAM RADIO CRASH COURSE talking about GMRS and Amateur radio. Then I found Jason at HAMRADIO 2.0 along with this website and ARRL and Radio Reference etc. The biggest thing that drew me into Randy, Josh, and Jason was that I could identify with all three in them as far as age, family/young children, similar interest, and their ability to explain everything rather simply and with some comedic relief. I have now since received my tech license (KL5LD) and I give full credit to Josh and Jason because their YouTube channels and the information they provided helped me tremendously in passing my test as well as taking a class with Bob Phinney over at New England Sci-Tech, Thanks again Bob (K5TEC)! I now have both GMRS and amateur radios that I use everyday, and I enjoy using both. With family it is mostly GMRS, while my kids are studying for their tech license and I for my general and with ham it is mostly for the entertainment of listening to all the old timers gripe at each other over ALLSTAR LINK on the the east coast repeater, it is quite hilarious to me personally (I'm just kidding guys), but there are also some really solid guys out here in Alaska that I have met over ham and they have been extremely kind and helpful in so many ways I couldn't even begin to list them. Heck, just a couple weeks ago my family and I got invited to a local clubs pot luck and gift exchange for Christmas when I was trying to find info during another horrible winter storm we just had before Christmas(It was pretty bad)! Yet, when I have talked to people over GMRS it is pretty straight forward, kinda like having a conversation with somebody in person. I'm going to be honest and say that I have been meeting more and more people in my area that have GMRS radios and they just use them. No license, no call signs, no codes or other things of that sort. It is just people out and about enjoying the great outdoors and using their radios as a means to communicate because there are many areas within our state where there is very shotty cell reception if at all and using these radios are literally life savers for people. This past September I went Moose hunting with my son and we ran across a bunch of guys using GMRS radios and when talking with them I would bring up the whole license issue and they all just laughed at me as if that was actually a thing. I guess up here in Alaska a lot of people just have a different mentality about how they utilize this tool. Everybody gets along great with no issues that I have ever heard of and it seems to be a growing "hobby" for us up here with new repeaters popping up, which is great! Sorry for the long winded comment, but with all that being said I guess it is different in each region and how people are using GMRS and ham. Down in the states you guys seem to be using it for, well, the reasons you have stated, but up here in Alaska, in what I have seen and experienced, we are not using it as simply a "hobby" (this is not to say you guys are "just" using it for the same reason) to meet new friends, I feel it is much more than that, it is literally a life line. It is a way for us to stay connected to each other during our rough winters when the power goes out and its -20 outside, it is a way to communicate while out in the bush chasing down a 1,200 lbs moose to fill our freezers for the year, it is a way to tell the guy further down the river to get ready, the salmon are coming, it is a way to tell our family and friends to watch for that bear out in the tree line with her cubs while out picking blueberries, from what I have seen up here in the Great North it is much much more. And who am I to tell anybody how to use their radios? I'm just another voice over the waves. To each their own. Be safe and respectful, have fun, and watch your six.

Hey guys. Just updated our Alaska Club page with all the available repeaters in the state that I know of. If something else needs to be added or I missed something or any other tips and info I should post let me know. If you haven't joined our club yet please feel free to swing by and join it is open for all. Thanks!

Hey how you doing. Nice to have you on here. I been out for a bit but I'm back up and running. I just updated our repeater list on our club page so check it out and see what you can do. Glad to have you aboard and hope to talk more soon!

Hey Connor! Nice to have you join this group. I have been away for awhile, but now I'm back and hopefully will get some more info updated on here. Keep your eyes out and welcome!

Why is that? Why are people on these radios this way? What happened?

Hi. Noob here. Ok so I have been reading more and more of these forums and well I have a question. Umm why so serious??? Am I missing something? I keep reading about people being fined and black suvs with federal agents coming to your home etc etc. I’m just not getting why everybody is taking this so serious. I am really interested in communications and want to be involved with this and talk to people, but at the same time it’s kinda like how can I if everybody is terrified of even using the system that is in place. Please don’t misunderstand me I understand about being an adult and respectful to each other, but I want to talk to my friends and family and make friends and practice more with the radios and understanding them and how they work buy actually using them. If I am missing something or not fully comprehending the seriousness in this please correct me. Like I said in another post I understand not interfering with first responders and such as that, but I mean come on lol. Short of interference with police and medical, what is the big deal? Again, I am not advocating for people to go over radio and act like complete fools, but even if they did on an open non emergency channel why does it matter? Sorry for my ignorance on this subject.

Short of interference with medical or law enforcement, why does it matter if individuals are on a channel talking without a license? I understand that there are rules in place to have a license to use system, but at the same time if businesses or individuals are using the system then who cares? I personally don’t agree that we should even have to obtain a license to use this system, kind of a racket if you ask me, but whatever I’ll play along and I’ll even help people get one if they so choose, yet I have read a bit of all these forums and everybody says the same thing, all they hear are crickets in most places. If the FCC isn’t too interested in policing the system then why should it be upon us to do so? Im sorry but I do not have the time nor patience to try and track down individuals or to go to businesses to inform them that they need to have a license to use system. Personally I don’t think any of us should be doing that in any way and putting ourselves in a possible dangerous situation just to inform somebody that they shouldn’t use a radio or how to use one. And to be honest I would much rather have my taxes spent on something more important than to have some government official spending their time trying to track down some kid telling poop jokes or cussing over radio.

Hello everybody, My name is William (WRTT642), I have lived in Alaska since 2012. As I have said before I am completely new to GMRS and radios in general, but I have been researching more about them and have become very interested in them. What really got me into looking into other forms of communication was last winter when we had that big wind storm down here in the valley and it knocked out my power for 3 1/2 days and the KFC lol! Not fun, especially when my youngest son was only 10 months old! So I started to take a couple things a little more serious and less for granted. Like communications for example, amongst other things. Love to hunt, hike, fish blah blah blah, all the typical Alaska stuff. Funny enough I don't physically own any radios yet. I have ordered 2 Baofeng UV9G and they will be here Tuesday. I do have C Crane CC Skywave SSB and love scanning through all the channels. I have a beautiful wonderful wife and four kids. My oldest son is about to join the Army in a few months so excited about that. My wife is awesome and is actually cool with me doing this whole radio thing. Next week Ill be pre ordering the Wouxun KG-UV9Gx. Cant wait for that. Well anyway got to head to Anchorage. Hope to hear from you all soon. Take care!

Hello everybody! I am completely new to this whole radio thing. I have recently received my GMRS license and I am excited to use my new radios and talk with people and practice the mechanics behind them. I am also working on my technician license as well, but for now, I will be using GMRS for all my radio needs. I have been on numerous websites and have been trying to network with other GMRS users in Alaska, but there don't seem to be many of us. So I am just trying to throw a net out there and find as many as possible and maybe start a GMRS club for Alaskans if there isn't one already, but I don't think there is. If there is anybody up here who is interested in connecting over GMRS please let me know. I would really love to do this and I know I might be a little too enthusiastic about this, but I don't have many hobbies or at least ones that I can share with others, well except with my awesome wife. So, anyways, I will be posting this here and on other forums, so feel free to contact me if you are at all interested in an Alaskan GMRS club, or please let me know if one already exists, I would love to join. Thank you all for your time. Take care!