[pct-l] SPOT Alternatives

Tue Feb 22 17:42:08 CST 2011

Probably should carry a spare set of paper maps in case of a tent fire!

> Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2011 15:33:21 -0800
> From: paulrobisonhome at yahoo.com
> To: devon.taig at gmail.com
> CC: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] SPOT Alternatives
> 
> i would like to respectfully disagree,
> i've broken a lot more compasses than garmins in the past... and have dropped 
> both about the same number of times. compass's do shatter / break / leak fluid 
> ... and i'm often replacing my compass's when i take a spill (at 60 bucks a 
> piece for the brunton TDCL i use). my last eTrex fell about 15 foot onto 
> granite and was fine, and later washed away in a "creek" (waist deep snowmelt) 
> and i recovered it the next day in the water and it ran once i opened it up and 
> dried it out.
> 
> so far my dakota has only taken one good spill about 12 foot onto a stone 
> wash... it didn't even reboot. many compass's would not have held up to that.
> 
> ... that said you could carry 2 compass's for the weight of a GPS. of course 
> once you add in paper maps the compass route is FAR heavier (like 0.03 
> micrograms heavier! j/k )
> 
> a compass that you're using for real navigation is going to be 3 ish ounces, at 
> least 2.5 " 0.03 micrograms " is a drastic understatement. a compass's weight 
> is real and significant. those 2 dollar micro compass's aren't going to help 
> you if you have to cover a long distance.
> 
> 
> ... there was a time when people didn't trust cell phones... they wanted a land 
> line... compass's are going this way too. btw, by the time you add in a bunch 
> of paper maps, and 2 compass's, you could carry 2 GPS's as a backup ; )
> 
> My humble opine,
> ~Paul
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ________________________________
> From: Devon Taig <devon.taig at gmail.com>
> To: James F. Miller <jamesfmiller at hotmail.com>
> Cc: pct-l <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> Sent: Tue, February 22, 2011 5:16:57 PM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] SPOT Alternatives
> 
> I've been told by sources that if you can hike 2650 miles on the PCT, then
> you aren't too old to import .gpx data into your Droid. This apparently
> spells doom for me though since I'm still struggling to program my VHS
> recorder (but if I ever do figure it out, I'll be taping Miami Vice and
> that's gonna be radical, man!).
> 
> Anyway, just a word from a wise old man who hiked the PCT in 1991...carry a
> compass and the knowledge to use it. The .03 micrograms won't break your
> back, and the likelihood of the earth's magnetic pole shifting is
> considerably less than running out of batteries or breaking your GPS. Back
> in 91' on the trail, by gum, we didn't have no fancy GPS thingies. And we
> had to carry a compass! Built character, yes-sir-ee. And the trail was
> uphill in *both* directions back then too...30 foot drifts of snow (and that
> was in the Mojave)...
> 
> Devon
> 
> On Tue, Feb 22, 2011 at 2:15 PM, James F. Miller
> <jamesfmiller at hotmail.com>wrote:
> 
> >
> > I have Backcountry Navigator (BN) on my Droid X. I have started the work to
> >
> > to put the halfmile maps and data on it, but I haven't figure out the
> > importing of the maps to BN.
> >
> > Am I too old?
> >
> >
> > > Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2011 14:49:43 -0600
> > > From: ron.a.guay2 at gmail.com
> > > To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> > > Subject: [pct-l] SPOT Alternatives
> > >
> > > Those with android devices... Consider using backcountry navigator... It
> > > allows you to import gpx data... and download maps off-line... I have my
> > > phone setup with the entire p c t... using my topo maps and half miles
> > > data... his way points and track data. In theory this should be cool...
> > > since I can see all the water icons trail junctions..etc... relative to
> > my
> > > location. It is a lot of work... but it was fun...
> > >
> > > However, in practice this could all fail... and that is why I have
> > packets
> > > of paper data... as described in yogi's handbook.
> > >
> > > If you want to record tracks/waypoints...you may want to
> > > consider...oruxmaps. The apps take a bit to get comfortable using... take
> > > your time.
> > >
> > > (Typed using google voice)
> > > _______________________________________________
> > > Pct-L mailing list
> > > Pct-L at backcountry.net
> > > To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> > > http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> > >
> > > List Archives:
> > > http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Pct-L mailing list
> > Pct-L at backcountry.net
> > To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> >
> > List Archives:
> > http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> >
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> 
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> 
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/