Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
Re: Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
I know it was the right choice to turn around especially in an area not well traveled. I did have my Garmin Inreach with me so my lovely wife knew where I was and where my body would of been located. The main disappointment I had was not having the right gear with me to complete what I set out to do. Next time.
Re: Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
A little off the original topic of the post but how do you like the Garmin Inreach? I've considered getting a mini simply for the emergency features. Most of what I have heard has been good.
“Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.”
― Terry Pratchett, Jingo
― Terry Pratchett, Jingo
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retired jerry
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- Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm
Re: Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
I have an Inreach mini
I only use it to send a message once a day, and receive a reply. I could also use the emergency feature but I haven't had the need.
One negative is it often takes a while to send/receive - turn it on. Go to "mail check" and wait, this can take even an hour, but other times a few minutes. Go to "location" and wait for it to get the GPS position, this can take even an hour but other times a few minutes. Then go to "send message" and send one of my preset messages, like "everything okay". Then wait for it to send, this can take even an hour but usually a few minutes.
I don't know why it takes so long. Occasionally I forget about it and remember the next morning.
I only use it to send a message once a day, and receive a reply. I could also use the emergency feature but I haven't had the need.
One negative is it often takes a while to send/receive - turn it on. Go to "mail check" and wait, this can take even an hour, but other times a few minutes. Go to "location" and wait for it to get the GPS position, this can take even an hour but other times a few minutes. Then go to "send message" and send one of my preset messages, like "everything okay". Then wait for it to send, this can take even an hour but usually a few minutes.
I don't know why it takes so long. Occasionally I forget about it and remember the next morning.
Re: Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
On a 5 star system, I would give my Mini three stars, maybe 4. Mostly because of connection problems. Last year I was going to stop using it and cancel the subscription because it was so bad at keeping it's GPS connection, even in wide open alpine areas. But tech support walked me through upgrading the firmware and that helped a lot. I still lose the signal sometimes, I lost it two miles in on Herman Creek on Saturday. A half hour later, it still said 2 miles. I took a break at Casey camp, took my pack off, and it regained the signal, and kept it the rest of the day. It seems that having it farther from my body helps it get it's signal back.
I also found the setup was difficult. If I hadn't had friends who already had one, it would have been difficult to figure out.
But if you want a tiny emergency device, there aren't a lot of choices out there. I do like the ability to request a local weather forecast on longer backpacking trips.
I also found the setup was difficult. If I hadn't had friends who already had one, it would have been difficult to figure out.
But if you want a tiny emergency device, there aren't a lot of choices out there. I do like the ability to request a local weather forecast on longer backpacking trips.
Re: Herman Creek to almost Tomlike MT. 1-16-21
I've really like having the inreach mini especially when out solo. When I first got it I was having connection issues. After trying different things its been working great. I will turn it on and put it on my dashboard so the antenna has a clearer line of sight to the sky 30 minutes before arriving at the trailhead. That way it is fully connected by the time I start. While hiking the antenna has to have as clear a line of sight to the sky as possible. I usually have it up high on my shoulder strap. Its not perfect but I feel a lot safer that at least if something were to go wrong I have a better chance of getting found or rescued. The main reason I like it is if my plans change and I end up doing a different route then planned I can send a message relaying that info.