Seeking advice

[Guest Stan]

I had a CB when I was in High School, and my grandfather was a CB's with any many cards. I am older now and will be doing a good bit of traveling to support my wife who is working on hiking the AT and the PCT. I am looking for a device that will allow me to communicate with her when she carries a small walkie talkie. Something that allows me to reach out to her. I am also looking for a scanner that allows me to monitor emergency channels as well as police/fire/etc...just in case the zombies come.
I have read about GMRS radios and feel that might be a good solution for communicating with the wife or other entities. A combination device would be great if that is possible or a horrible idea.
I have been looking at 2 devices; Midland MXT115 and the Whistler WS1040. This is a whole new area and I hope that this is not too basic for some feedback and advice.

Stan 

[WRUU653]

I would take a look at some of the Garmin products for such a trip.
 

 https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/765374

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/890109   

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/533999   

[WRWE456]

Welcome!

Two way radio is line of sight mostly. So if she is hiking in the mountains, line of sight will be very spotty at best. Where will you be?  As WRUU653 suggests satellite phones/devices may be your best option.

[Guest]

In plain terms, the formula is simple:

'$$$ to be invested' = 'your level of concern' x 'risk your wife is taking'

If you are "not really" concerned and your wife is "not really" taking a risk (staying on the path, hiking in a group, good equipment and a backpack with supplies) -- you might end up saying that the cellphones in the group plus some "simple" radio will be sufficient.

If you want to replace those "not really" statements with "REALLY" statements, you have to go sat phone and emergency beacon...

As always, you will be somewhere on that curve - with a tendency to one side.

@WRUU653 has listed some great devices I would consider balanced and efficient as backup and, in some cases, even suitable for check-ins.

Unfortunately, @WRWE456 is right with the 'line of sight' caution.

There might be some repeaters that cover parts of those trails (websites dedicated to hiking on those trails might give you a hint!) but it is unlikely that trails are sufficiently covered. I am not the hiking type and it might just be that hikers already have a convention regarding certain radio usage when on the trail ?!?

In any case, if your wife is up to this, looking into repeaters and GMRS might be a fun way for check-ins - however, unless you have solid confirmation that it will work, this might be more of a game than a solid emergency solution.

As far as the scanner for the zombie attack, I have some bad news: Zombies do not use radios

Hope your wife will be having fun hiking while you are taking care of her "honey-do-list" back home -- sounds like you have little time to play with radios.

[Lscott]

15 minutes ago, WRXD372 said:

As far as the scanner for the zombie attack, I have some bad news: Zombies do not use radios

Maybe not, but they can use a telephone.

[WRUU653]

The third Garmin I listed is a GMRS radio as well as having satellite capabilities. As @WRWE456 mentioned GMRS is line of sight. One thing to consider is battery life and charging capabilities on the trail while keeping weight down. The Garmin in reach 2 will give you good battery life and satellite texting and that emergency button and it’s small. Do some research and figure out what is most important for your wife’s needs. Having your outside support will be a great help for her. 

[WRUU653]

4 minutes ago, Lscott said:

Maybe not, but they can use a telephone.

Telemarketer?

[marcspaz]

 

 

I have spent decades in the mountains and I have seen 'almost' every type of communications methods fail.  The only thing I have seen work 100% of the time (less equipment failure) is HF radio.

 

Sat phones are by far the easiest to use and the second most successful to use.  However, in order to work, the devices need to have clear view of a satellite phone network.  Being deep in a valley or in heavy tree coverage, the phone wont work.  Also, Sat phone uses a frequency that is very easily negatively impacted by solar/space weather.  It actually happens fairly frequently.  I mention these items because, while they are easy and very dependable, there is high cost to purchase and use and some risk of failure.

 

InReach and other services like it are more affordable SatComms solutions, but have the same technology restrictions as Sat phones.

 

UHF and VHF radio's are RF line of sight... period. If you have heavily wooded areas, are in a low area block by a hills or mountains... even a lot of buildings.  Range is massively restricted.

 

Circling back to HF radio... again, it never fails.  While space weather impacts performance, all it really impacts is what frequency you use during particular times of the day.  HF doesn't care about trees, rain, or anything physically in the way, and it's not a line of sight service.  Due to not being line of sight, and the way HF radio propagation works, you can talk to people anywhere on the planet (if you follow the rules) with just a couple of watts.

 

So, as someone whom has spent time in the woods and truly understands the points about weight restrictions (since you carry food, water, clothing, first-aid, bedding/shelter) the last thing I would want to do is add a bunch more weight.  And lets be honest, even the smallest of HF radio setups will add 5 or 6 lbs, its hard to tell you what to do when I have no idea what your wife is capable of carrying.  BUT... if it were me, I would carry a Sat phone or InReach and a portable 5w HF radio that covers 80m/40m/20m/ (and built in tuner), a random length wire antenna to support those bands and a roll-up solar panel charging system to charge the batteries on the phone/InReach and radio.

 

I personally can't justify Sat phone pricing, so I would use the InReach (for zero 'in the field' setup and instant use) and something like a Radioddity Xiegu x6100 or an iCom IC-705 in cases where the InReach doesn't work.  The IC-705 is way more capable and has coverage from all of HF, as well as 6m and 2m VHF and 70cm UHF.  But, the x6100 is only $600 compared to the IC-705 at $1,400.

[Hoppyjr]

I wouldn’t venture into the backcountry without a device like a Spot locator or Sat phone.

[WQAI363]

On 5/16/2023 at 9:25 AM, Guest Stan said:

I had a CB when I was in High School, and my grandfather was a CB's with any many cards. I am older now and will be doing a good bit of traveling to support my wife who is working on hiking the AT and the PCT. I am looking for a device that will allow me to communicate with her when she carries a small walkie talkie. Something that allows me to reach out to her. I am also looking for a scanner that allows me to monitor emergency channels as well as police/fire/etc...just in case the zombies come.
I have read about GMRS radios and feel that might be a good solution for communicating with the wife or other entities. A combination device would be great if that is possible or a horrible idea.
I have been looking at 2 devices; Midland MXT115 and the Whistler WS1040. This is a whole new area and I hope that this is not too basic for some feedback and advice.

Stan 

This reply maybe late, but better late than never. My advice especially when using two-way radios, do your homework. You'll find a lot of useful information and a lot of useless information.  Always read and ask more questions, because you'll discover there's multiple answers to the same question. Confusion is a part of any subject or any activity. However, two-way radio communications can at times leave you scratching your head, if you don't do that homework I told you to do.