Re: [pct-l] Cell Phones

["R.J.Calliger (510.651.1876)" <calliger@infolane.com>]

At 6:18 PM -0700 10/15/98, ROYROBIN@aol.com wrote:
>Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't.  Unfortunately for hikers, it's
>often in the most remote areas that they fail.  Last year in the northern
>Cascades, one of the thru-hikers came upon another party with a medical
>emergency.  The group had a cell phone but they had to run five miles to get
>in range of a cell site.
>
>Personally, I don't think a cell phone is worth the pack weight for a long-
>distance hiker.  Makes more sense than carrying a GPS receiver (which I've
>also seen on the trail) but still far from an "essential."  Now, if you can
>get someone else to carry it ....
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At 8 ozs it seems to be a moot point- I now carry my cell phone on just about
every hike with a spare fully charged battery.

If running 5 miles to get a cell lock is less (could be 45 mins) time than
evactuating medical emergencied person then the cell phone of course
possibly "saved the day"...I have been able to get a cell lock almost on any
high point along the JMT where I climb regularly and am very happy.

Each week cell proximity is better and better.

Just a note- while in France recently I traveled the length of Paris and
noticed
a VERY large number of cell antennas- easily triple or quadruple of what
I notice in the US. (Well maybe they hide them better in the US but I have
a LOT of dead spots)...Oh- being an engineer I tend to notice these things
regularly.

Rich



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