jbclimber

My understanding is that one person called without consulting the leader. This is based upon what one of the party members told me.

Checkout the Rayovac Sportsman 3 in 1 headlamp. Only $12 at Walmart. You can either use its 2 red leds, 1 white led, or the Krypton bulb for high power.

I'm too lazy to wash my two down sleeping bags. Are there any local stores which do a good job at this at a reasonable price?

Anybody been up the Brothers- South Pk this year? Looking for some beta. Thanks.

Do you know which service and which phone is used? Thanks.

What about satellite phone coverage? Anybody have a satellite phone. I wonder if the reception would be better with this type of service when in the Cascades.

The Mounties usually go up the SW corner, which is mostly class 4 with one 5.5 step. They descend the South Face which is class 2-3. I did it a long time ago but don't remember much about it.

That HatTarp looks good!

Does anybody have the Bibler winter bivy? I am curious how you like it if you do have one.

REI and Pro Mountain Sports have them. About $100.00. Check their websites for pictures or do a web search. I think that I have to get a pair.

Has anybody tried the Stubai Ultralight Universal crampons? They only weigh 1lb 4oz and have 10 points. I am thinking about getting a pair for easier glacier climbs and those trips were you don't think that you are going to really need crampons but just might. I realize that since they are aluminum, they won't be a good choice for when rocks are expected.

I don't have an eTrex, so I don't know how battery life compares. For my Rino, rechargeable batteries are good enough for a day in the outdoors. This assumes the Rino is using the GPS features for over 8 hours and limited Radio use. When I use lithium batteries, the battery life is awesome, but these batteries are expensive. I didn't time how long the lithium batteries lasted but it got me through 3 snowshoe trips this winter. Regarding Ham radios, check out the Yaesu VX-1R. It is very small and you can easily use software to modify it for "free band" use. Just do a search on the internet. And if you get an antenna like the Comet SMA24, your range increases dramatically. The only drawback is only .5watts power. The VX-5R will give you 5 watts but weighs twice the amount. So I plan on using the Rino and carrying the VX-1R for emergencies, weather reports, etc... Cheers!

I have the Rino 120, which I would recommend instead of the 110, because it has more features, such as being able to upload Garmin Topo maps to it. Overall I like the Rino for trips into the mountains. Being able to upload your topo maps to the unit is great. You can just look at the Rino to get a good idea where you are instead of having to take the GPS coordinates and then transfer those to a map. You can't quite throw away the paper map yet though, because the scale for the uploadable topo maps is not as detailed as the USGS maps. I also occasionally use the GPS features for around town. Again, you can upload detailed street level maps to the Rino. Regarding the radio, it is okay for my use, which is short range communication in the outdoors, such as off/on belay. Don't expect to be able to communicate over 2 miles or if in dense forests, behinds ridges, etc... FRS uses UHF frequencies which travel line of sight. And the antenna and low power of the Rino make long distance communication impossible. Some users have complained about the low audio quality of the Rino , but I have not experienced any problems. It works fine but may be just a little bit fainter than my Cobra FRS radios. I have not used the feature which always you to beam your coordinates to another Rino, since I only have one. I doubt the usefulness of this feature, since the radio range is limited. Overall, for me it is great. It makes navigation much easier and I can communicate with other FRS radios (short range).

So i think what i'm getting from this is that a GPS is a nice addition but not a mandatory item? I agree totally with this. A GPS is nice when doing cross-country trips above treeline, especially when the weather turns bad. But at least for trips in the WA Cascades and Olympics, it is not mandatory.

Hey Snoboy: FYI, according to the book GPS Land Navigation, a 2D fix can be easily off by a distance of over a mile! And the book GPS Made Easy says that with a 2D fix, the accuracy ranges from 492-5,000 ft. If I get a 2D fix, I am going to ignore the postion that the GPS thinks that I am in or wait for a 3D fix.

Yes, you can get a 2D fix with 3 satellites, however, it is not accurate. I have noticed that a 2D fix can be hundreds of feet off, so it is not very useful in my opinion.

Well, what I mean is a sky that is clear of obstructions, not a blue sky. Trees, ridges, mountains, etc... block the signal for a GPS. Clouds, rain, and snow shouldn't block a GPS receiver from receiving signals.

Well, when considering a GPS, consider this. You usually need at least a partially clear sky to lock onto satellite signals. Based upon my limited experience with my GPS, when I am hiking through the woods on a trail, the GPS is fairly useless. However, when I am above the treeline or have a partially open sky, with the GPS I can usually lock onto at least 4 satellites, which is the minimum required for an accurate position fix. So if you will be spending most of your extended trips in the woods, I don't see what the advantage of a GPS is for navigation. On the other hand, if you anticipate that you will have some opens skies, then a GPS is a great supplement to your map and compass, provided that you know how to use it and what its limitations are. I have the Garmin Rino 120 combination GPS/Radio, and love it. The GPS is accurate and I can upload topo maps and detailed city street maps to it. The radio feature is also good for short distance communication (less than 1 mile), like when using rock climbing belay off/on signals. Cheers!

I finally used the Garmin Rino 120 in the outdoors. My first impression was good thing that it is waterproof, because it was pouring down rain. Summary of GPS Good: accurate with a 3D fix (4 or more satellites) you can download Garmin Topo maps and MetroGuide Maps, which are accurate easy to learn and use lots of features for gadget lovers batteries lasted all day (3 Nimh AA rechargeable) Bad: the "click stick" joystick is a little cumbersome. It is also impossible to use with gloves on serial interface to computer is slow (as compared to USB) doesn't work on trail in the woods (no surprise here and I don't need it on the trail anyway) TOPO maps are 1:100,000 scale as opposed to 1:24,000 USGS 7.5 min map (but I still like this feature though) Regarding the radio features, I haven't used them much yet. The radio quality is a little fainter than a cheap FRS radio, but it is still good enough quality to communicate with others. Overall I like the Rino and plan to use it as a navigation aid in the outdoors and for belay off/on signals while climbing. The GPS also works very well in the city.

So does anybody have the new Garmin Rino combo GPS/FRS radio? I was wondering what your thoughts are on it and if you have used it in the mountains. I will be trying mine for the first time this weekend. I loaded the Mapsource Topo map and made some waypoints. Curious if others have used it and what comments you may have. Thanks.