Sat phones, Spot messenger, Emergency devices

Ohboytimmy

Ohboytimmy

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What are you thoughts on the best "deal" to having a personal emergency communication device when you are doing back country hunts?

I have started solo hunting elk in Colorado for 2-3 weeks, at a time. I had purchased and subscribed to Spot gen3 messenger. I like the devices messaging and tracking capabilities. However, you are contracted to a yearly subscription of $16 per month. So roughly $200 bucks a year to use the device for three weeks. I may use it once and a awhile solo hunting northern Minnesota big woods.

I know there are companies they rent out sat phones but they aren't very affordable. Are there any better options out there? Or is $200 dollars not a bad price to pay to have a little more piece of mind for myself and for my family?
 
That's about the same price as the InReach freedom plan that you can suspend at will. If you suspend it for 3 months a year the cost comes out the same as if you go for their yearly plan that is closer to $12 a month. Basically you can only save if you suspend it for more than 3 months a year. That was my plan when I got mine last September but I haven't suspended mine because I keep throwing it in the pack when we go hiking, back country skiing, camping, etc. So, if you're looking for a less expensive option than the Spot you could switch to an InReach and go for the cheapest plan and save $3 or $4 a month. For me a couple of hundred bucks is cheap. I use it for non-emergency communication if I'm out of cell range where I'm sleeping so the cost goes up on a per-message basis but it's still less expensive than the next plan level up.
 
I can't say enough good things about the inReach SE. It comes with the option of only having it on when you want it. It also has tracking ability in your messages. I like the fact that's the texting is 2 way, so you can write what you want and not have it be just a generic message, plus the other person can text back, so you can have real conversations. It also has the SOS feature to get ahold of emergency services. With the newer updates you can get weather updates to within yards of your position. The device runs on the Iridium satellite system, so you don't need cell service to use it.
 
I haven't used either one but I have heard nothing but good things about the inreach.
 
IN REACH. You can add/drop your subscription as you please. I just add the $15 per month plan when I need it and drop it when I don't. If I go over my included messages, no big deal. They are fairly cheap. Cheap cheap insurance that could save your life.
 
Thanks guys! I think im gonna cancel Spot when my membership is over and switch to Inreach. Which device models do you guys use? Seems like its limited to just a few. Wish the service could connect with my garmin 64st.
 
I have the all year plan with the unlimited messaging. I believe it's $50 a month. I keep mine on year round. I like the unlimited messaging because I do a lot of texting when I hunt, back and forth with my wife and each kid and mother and whatnot. My wife appreciated a good morning text and it's nice to get her goodnight text when she goes to bed when I'm sitting around the campfire. As my children were growing up and were younger I called them every night. When I was out of cell service I was able to text them instead. Sitting around glassing gets pretty boring, so it's cool to have a little conversation going on to pass the time. There was also a time when I was elk hunting and my wife was able to reach me to let me know she was very sick and I needed to get home. I know a lot of guys say they go on hunting trips to 'disconnect' from everything and not be bothered for a while, but with my wife having a bit of piece of mind, I get to go on more trips without her worrying. It has also come in handy in other situations. I do a lot of cross country driving and there have been a couple of times I broke down and didn't have cell signal. I was able to reach my wife and she coordinated help for me. So, it's worth the money to have it year round and the unlimited messaging, but I can also see the value to other guys that only want it on part time and it's nice to have that option.

I have the yellow SE model. I don't need the GPS and stuff from the next model up.
 
JohnCushman said:
I have the all year plan with the unlimited messaging. I believe it's $50 a month. I keep mine on year round. I like the unlimited messaging because I do a lot of texting when I hunt, back and forth with my wife and each kid and mother and whatnot. My wife appreciated a good morning text and it's nice to get her goodnight text when she goes to bed when I'm sitting around the campfire. As my children were growing up and were younger I called them every night. When I was out of cell service I was able to text them instead. Sitting around glassing gets pretty boring, so it's cool to have a little conversation going on to pass the time. There was also a time when I was elk hunting and my wife was able to reach me to let me know she was very sick and I needed to get home. I know a lot of guys say they go on hunting trips to 'disconnect' from everything and not be bothered for a while, but with my wife having a bit of piece of mind, I get to go on more trips without her worrying. It has also come in handy in other situations. I do a lot of cross country driving and there have been a couple of times I broke down and didn't have cell signal. I was able to reach my wife and she coordinated help for me. So, it's worth the money to have it year round and the unlimited messaging, but I can also see the value to other guys that only want it on part time and it's nice to have that option.

I have the yellow SE model. I don't need the GPS and stuff from the next model up.
Click to expand...

I wish it would let the wife send nudie pictures while I'm sitting around the camp fire hahaha
 
I have the InReach and it has been a great piece of equipment to own. I don't think you can go wrong with it.
 
I also have the InReach, I keep mine on all year as well. Its nice to be able to send and receive messages with the wife when I'm out hunting or fishing and dont have cell service. I've had mine for 4 years now and it is always in my pack when I hit the mountains.
 
Another vote for the InReach. It uses the Iridium satellite network so its coverage is way better than SPOT and as good as you're going to get provided conditions are favorable. Message send and receive time is perfectly adequate, and if you pair your smartphone with it you can use your phone's keyboard to compose messages instead of the arrow keys. However, there is some rudimentary predictive texting built in so it's not impossible. The ability to suspend the service for no charge is great, and the ability to send and receive messages is really useful particularly if you do need assistance. My cousin sent a Havalon through his thumb while antelope hunting last season and I was able to coordinate an ambulance to meet us at the trailhead instead of simply pressing a "SOS" button and sitting and waiting for an unknown emergency response.
 
spot is junk. when my $170? Spot renewal was almost due, I switched to Inreach last year. very happy with it.

Inreach is way to go. very economical month 2 month plans available.
 
A PLB is a more powerful emergency device but it is emergency communication only and one time use only. It connects to the worldwide SARSAT system. There is no monthly charge but only about a 5-6 year life span.
HD
 
Thanks for the info. Listened to the Gritty Bowmen Podcast today talking about the InReach in action. Snyder actually had a situation and came across thoroughly impressed. While the cost of the unit will sting, the monthly insurance when I'm packing into grizzly country is a no brainer. Cheers!
 
another vote for inreach we didnt need cause we had good cell service in unit 70 colorado but it came in handy to communicate with another hunting party that was in site next to us.
 
Another vote for the Inreach. I have the $15 per month plan. Ten free texts and .$50 per text after that with unlimited pre-set messages (you can write your own.) The ability to suspend coverage until you need it is nice. When you consider everything it is cheap peace of mind to be able to communicate with loved ones that you are ok. I used it to coordinate with the packer to get my wife's moose meat three miles back to the truck. Without it, I would have had to drive out to cell service, 30 miles one way and it would have taken an extra day to get the meat out.
 
Another vote for the InReach. I absolutely love mine. Peace-of-mind in case of emergency, text back and forth at any time with family or friends and the ability to stop/start service at will. Hard to beat especially at the price.
 
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