weather radio suggestion?

[shando]

Hi,

Last September, I embarked on a 9-day solo trip to Algonquin's northern section. I thought myself well prepared until the weather turned fouled for a few days in a row. While lying in the tent waiting out the rain storms I came to the realization that I could really use a weather radio.

I am curious to know what fellow trippers carry with them in terms of weather radio, the model, and if it is one of those hand winding ones or battery operated.

Shan

 

[bcelect]

I purchased a handheld HAM radio online for around $60, it has Rechargeable batteries. There are lots of choices out there. You would have to make sure of the frequencies for Canada. The reception was pretty good in the middle of the Adirondacks with it , while my Family Handy talky with the weather channels would not pick up any weather channels. There is also the option to transmit with the HAM in an emergency situation if you do not have a HAM license. Just check on the Canadian rules for Emergency transmissions.
There is also something called the Wilderness Protocol where HAM operators monitor certain frequencies periodically throughout the day. I would like to know how effective this system is. I have not read too much on this subject yet.

http://www.buytwowayradios.com/produ...FWRp7Aod7wMAOA

 

[wgiles]

I have a couple of NOAA weather radios at home and I have to say that I am not impressed with the quality of them. I had one brand new one that quit receiving after a couple of weeks. The warranty replacement stopped working after a couple of months. I bought a different brand to replace it and it lost it's settings when the backup battery went dead. I had no warning, it just stopped working. There are probably some weather radios that are rugged enough for back country use, but I don't have one. Around here, commercial radio isn't much use for weather reports. I don't know how the reception would be in the back country. Other than internet, I'm inclined to think that a good multi-band radio receiver might be the best choice. The battery life on the internet devices seems to be too short to be of real use in the back country without some means of recharging and cellular service is probably nonexistent. I think that the best approach may be to ask the people who work in that area how they stay informed about the weather.

 

[Philtrum]

I have an old Optimus that cost me something like $80 about 15 years ago, and it goes on every trip. There are quite a few models that are a lot cheaper and probably just as good.

 

[red langford]

Just curious if the weather radio would have changed the outcome of your trip. The scenario I envision is this...

Sitting in the tent waiting out a stormy day.

Unpack the weather radio

Wind it up, charge it up, turn it on.

Spend some time finding the station.

Station announces that is raining out.

Continue to wait out stormy day in the tent

There is that and the fact there is no station you can get up this way that I'm aware of. Better for the states and lower Canada I think.

 

[wgiles]

What I'd like is an hour by hour wind speed forecast for wherever it is that I'm going to. Here in the midwest, we've had three straight days of 25-30 Mph winds with gusts to 40 Mph. I'd have to canoe at night when it drops to 10 Mph.

 

[Canoeguitar]

I've gone through a number of weather radios, and I finally have one that I'm very happy with. After using several models over the years, both in backcountry bush, and out on the Lake Superior coastline, I pretty much figured out what I wanted in a weather radio. After quite a bit of research I bought the Sangean DT-400W.

Here are the pros...
- very compact & light
- takes regular batteries - no wind-up BS. I found the wind-up radios frustrating, and the crank eventually breaks
- quite good reception & volume for a small unit
- antenna is a wire, not a telescoping type that will break (yes they will break)
- button lock function, so it won't turn on in your pack, draining your batteries
- am/fm with 19 programmable stations. In some locations, especially up here in Canada, a CBC radio signal may be available, while a weather band signal is hard to get.

I used the radio on a 3 week Quetico solo last year. Depending on where I was, I could get a weather band signal out of Atikokan, Ely, or a CBC signal. I had over a dozen very heavy storms on the trip - almost all in the evening or overnight, and the forecast gave me the heads-up to get things tied down tight.

As I've found out, the 30 dollar crank up radios are crap. Crappy signal. They switch on in your pack, draining the 5 minutes of crank power that you put into it. The parts and buttons are cheap, and the antenna will break.

The Sangean DT-400W is available on Amazon. You'll pay a bit more, about $75 to $80, but it's worth the money.

 

[BWCA66]

I have a marine radio that does a great job picking up the weather stations, got it to use on Lake Superior. Other than the big lake, I always leave it at home. Part of the adventure is dealing with whatever mother nature brews up.

 

[Philtrum]

What I'd like is an hour by hour wind speed forecast for wherever it is that I'm going to. Here in the midwest, we've had three straight days of 25-30 Mph winds with gusts to 40 Mph. I'd have to canoe at night when it drops to 10 Mph.

The National Weather Service forecasts are reasonably good. In the BWCA, it's important to remember that actual wind speeds are usually 5+ mph more than the forecast. I've come to the conclusion that it's because the lakes act as wind tunnels. This would also explain why the wind direction is often different from the forecast, especially on smaller lakes and near shorelines of larger lakes.

I appreciate BWCA66's perspective, but having the forecast enables me to plan layover days. Maybe it's the control freak in me, but I figure with all the other high-tech stuff I use, a radio is hardly overdoing it. Maybe if I learned to read the clouds ....

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

The radio I've used for 10 years, a Standard Horizon HX471S, is no longer a current model, but I'll explain the type of radio I sought out.

For canoeing and kayaking I got a waterproof, submersible (3 feet for 30 minutes) multi-band marine portable radio. It can receive and broadcast on all US and Canadian VHF channels and on FRS channels. It can receive Air Band, MURS, FM, AM, and about 10 NOAA weather bands.

It has a rechargeable battery that still lasts a long time. There is also a separate AA battery pack that can fit in the battery slot, which I carry with my emergency gear. It doesn't float, but it's small and light enough to carry on my PFD when on the ocean. Otherwise, I keep it in my day bag.

Frankly, the only thing I've used it for are the weather channels and the AM/FM bands for music. I've been able to receive weather bands anywhere in the US I've ever paddled and in Canadian maritime provinces. Otherwise, I can't speak to Canadian reception, and I'll never go there again.

 

[Mars]

I have the previously mentioned Sangean radio. It works remarkably well. It's on Amazon for $49 right now. Good sound, reception and the ear buds are a nice addition.

 

[Sturgeon]

I already use my InReach device in conjunction with my smartphone to text a message each night to say I'm okay. My wife's reply includes the next day's expected high/low, condition, and wind speed. This is southern Canada, though. Might be hard to find forecasts if I go further afield.

 

[Holmes375]

My paddlin' radio is an Icom M88 VHF. Its a basic featured radio, very rugged and has served me well for a decade now. Stays in my vest.

My basecamp radio is a C Crane CC pocket radio. Its a small AM/FM/NOAA portable. This is my third season with the C Crane and its performed very well. Believe it sells for around $60.

 

[Robin]

I have the previously mentioned Sangean radio. It works remarkably well. It's on Amazon for $49 right now. Good sound, reception and the ear buds are a nice addition.

I ordered one. GAS wins out again!

 

[Marten]

I already use my InReach device in conjunction with my smartphone to text a message each night to say I'm okay. My wife's reply includes the next day's expected high/low, condition, and wind speed. This is southern Canada, though. Might be hard to find forecasts if I go further afield.

We use the texting on my satellite phone the same way. I do not call home every night but I am sent the next few days weather in a text. It is very helpful in planning the safest travel. I have noticed that the forecast weather does not arrive in my wilderness location precisely when it is forecast. My assumption is we are getting the weather forecast from the nearest station to our requested area and it can be up to 12 hours off in its arrival. Even with that it works well for me.

 

[ppine]

I was given a portable radio with a crank for power that has short-wave and several other bands. But I never take it in the outdoors. I get a long range weather forecast before the trip and use the Indian weather rock method. I have studied meteorology and have turned into a cloud watcher.

 

[tump_lion]

weather's just another form of scenery -- i mean you get what you get -- that's half the fun...

 

[Philtrum]

No Title

Yup, it is. And I'd rather go through a hailstorm from under a tarp than out in the open. I was glad to know this was coming. To each his/her own, eh?

 

[Philtrum]

No Title

Speaking of being glad to know a storm was coming, the first time I used the weather radio was at the Willow Flowage in northern Wisconsin in the summer of 2002. The forecast was for 70 mph winds out of the west. Of course, my campsite faced west. I positioned my tent between two big pines, the last ones before the approach to the beach. (I figured if they went down they wouldn't hit me. They held.) I set up a tarp to take the brunt of the wind and double-staked the tent. After I took this shot I staked the tarp down to the ground.

During the night it blew stink - 50 mph straight-line winds - for several hours. The tarp sagged down to the tent, and the tent deformed due to the strong low-pressure area behind the tarp, but everything held. Without the weather radio I don't know what would have happened. It's possible I'd have been laid low by a fallen tree. I greatly appreciated getting an updated forecast at about 1:30 a.m., which indicated the worst of the storm had dissipated, so no 70 mph wind. That helped me get some sleep.

I haven't done a trip without the radio ever since.

 

[Rippy]

I ordered one. GAS wins out again!

Just did the same. +1 for GAS