Recommendations and costs for a emergency locator.

[joerunner]

Neither, I run.

[vibramhead]

I have both the Spot II satellite messenger, and the ACR ResQlink PLB, which I just bought for $230 after rebate. I used the Spot for a couple of years, and subscribed to the tracking feature. I can say that, for a reliable signal in an emergency, if you really want to make sure you can call in a rescue when you're hurt, get a PLB. The wattage of the transmission is 10x higher than a Spot, so it will get through tree canopy. Using the Spot on a hike around Mt Rainier on the Wonderland Trail, I kept the tracking on, which records your position every 10 minutes, and when I got home I could see significant gaps on the map where the signal wasn't getting through. That was under heavy forest cover. If I'd been injured in one of those places, the Spot wouldn't have saved me. Also, you have to pay the annual service fee for a Spot, while a PLB involves only the purchase price and no annual fee. Keep in mind that the battery on a PLB must be replaced every 5 years, and the replacement cost is substantial, i.e., $140. So effectively, you should just amortize the price of your PLB over 5 years and think of that as your annual cost.

The main advantage of the Spot is being able to send "I'm okay" messages to your loved one. ACR now offers a version of that for their PLBs, at $60/yr., so Spot's advantage is declining even more.

[Grannyhiker]

The chances are that your PLB will be completely outmoded (smaller, lighter, cheaper, does more) even before the 5 year battery warranty is up. That happened to me after only 3 years with the my original ACR model--the McMurdo Fastfind came out at half the weight, half the bulk, half the price of the one I'd bought 3 years earlier.