Ham Radio Survival For Death Valley

[DeathValleyDazed]

i'm not a HAM radio operator but my brother has been one since 1966 so I follow it once in a while. BTW here's a Wiki on what HAM is about:
http://www.arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio

I came across this video about Wilderness Survival With Ham Radio and was wondering if any of you or your friend or the NPS staff have embraced this technology while in Death Valley National Park. Next time I'm at the Visitors Center, I'll enquire. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoXMeD8ngEQ

[Kauri]

Great question. I'm definitely curious about this too. I've been planning to study for a HAM radio license someday, but just haven't had time yet with school etc.

[DAW89446]

Many forum members here and at the other DV forums are HAM enthusiasts and users. 2M HAM is by far the most popular and easiest. There are many repeaters for nearly full coverage of the entire region, including Saline Valley, Trona, Ridgecrest and the Owens Valley.

[DVexile]

Ham radio is great fun but also perfectly inappropriate as a survival tool - especially in DVNP. VHF and UHF require line of site which means in Basin and Range country you need repeaters on peaks you can see. There aren’t any in DVNP and even if there were a few the likelihood you would have line of site when in an emergency are low. HF while very entertaining is even less appropriate for emergency use. These days actually a cellphone would be more likely to connect you with help in DVNP than any form of ham radio.

What you should absolutely carry is a PLB which is no bigger than a cellphone and sends an emergency signal to satellites forwarded directly to the correct SAR agency. These cost a few hundred dollars and are free to use (you don’t pay any monthly fee or anything).

Alternatively if you also want to send non-emergency messages you can look at InReach which is just as reliable as a PLB in an emergency but does require a monthly or annual plan.

[Kauri]

What you should absolutely carry is a PLB which is no bigger than a cellphone and sends an emergency signal to satellites forwarded directly to the correct SAR agency.  These cost a few hundred dollars and are free to use (you don’t pay any monthly fee or anything).

Alternatively if you also want to send non-emergency messages you can look at InReach which is just as reliable as a PLB in an emergency but does require a monthly or annual plan.

Good to know there are PLBs that don’t require a subscription plan! Is there one you’ve had good experience with and would recommend? (Not to derail DV Dazed’s thread here, since I know there’s another forum thread about PLB’s, but just thought I’d ask.)

I bought an InReach Mini from REI earlier this year, and must have gotten a defective unit (seems like this happens more often than it should, since I have seen numerous reviews online with folks having similar experiences to mine). I spent many hours trying to get it to activate and it even had Garmin’s customer service department stumped, so I had to return it; though I know folks who have good experiences with the InReach.

[DVexile]

Yes, apologies for the possible thread derail! I currently carry the rescueME PLB1 which weighs just 4 oz and costs about $300. I prefer its internal roll up antenna design to some other units which instead wrap the antenna around the body of the device for storage - always seem to pop out in my bag. I had a ResQLink in the past which is similar size, weight and cost but had an annoying antenna. PLBs like these use the publicly funded SARSAT constellation for communication which is why they are free to register and use.

I also have the InReach Mini and I have read of people occasionally have trouble activating and such which I’m sure does not inspire confidence! Another more general problem is that its GPS is less reliable than its actual Iridium messaging which frustrates folks since for non-emergency messages it uses the GPS to decide if there is enough sky visibility before trying to send a message (in an emergency it just tries to send no matter what). You can override this behavior for non-emergency messages as well but it’s fussy and dumb.

Oh, and I cross posted with DAW, and he’s correct there are 2M repeaters in the surrounding areas which you can hit from many open areas in the park. On a hike in a canyon, not so much.

[TacoLand]

My inReach Explorer+ is my go-to for both normal messaging & SOS emergencies when I'm off the grid. Works in the truck. Works when I'm hiking. Works when I'm on a multi-day backpacking trip. It just works, plain and simple. In the four years that I've been using it only once have I had a glitchy GPS coordinate. I've also lent it out to friends to use on their trips multiple times. It's pretty amazing, honestly.

And no one in my circle is a HAM operator so for short-range communication I just use crappy CB in the truck when caravanning on the road & in the backcountry with friends.

[trailhound]

I have been carrying a ResQLink for years. Fortunately, I have never needed to use it. The unit was originally around $300. The battery needs to be replaced after 5 years. A local boating dealer that handles the marine models did it. They do a complete test of the unit to be sure that all is in working order. The service was a bit expensive - over $100. That is not cheap, but what price is your life worth?

PLB's come in three models - land, boating use, and aircraft. Be sure to get the land use model.

For those with deep pockets, sat phones are around $1K plus a phone plan.