SPOT Satellite Messenger

[CouesWhitetail]

Well back in April when I was beginning fieldwork for the owl surveys in the Chiricahuas and Pinalenos, I was concerned about how I would know if my workers were safe at the end of the day (or night in the case of owl work!). Some of the territories would be remote backpack trips and many times would be done solo by my worker, so I wanted a way to keep track of him and get him help in any emergency situation. The Chiricahuas have pretty poor cell service so most of the time down there we could not keep in touch by cell.

 

So I was looking into satellite phones (pretty expensive) and also personal locator beacons and this SPOT unit. Well, after looking awhile I decided to try the SPOT unit and called Eric at sponsor Santana Outdoors and he said he carries those and could get them for me. So I got two different units (one was the regular SPOT and one was the newer SPOT Connect that works with your smartphone). My worker didn't have a smartphone so he got the regular unit and I used the spot connect. (Thanks Santana Outdoors for working to get those to us quickly!! Eric even made sure I got all the paperwork needed to get the rebate SPOT was offering).

 

The Spot units are very small, fit in the palm of your hand. They have several ways of communicating...You can set it up so msgs go to groups of people or just one person. You can also set it up so you can send a message to a cell phone or to their email (or both). The nice thing about the SPOT units is that they send the GPS location with the message, so if you want your husband or wife to know where you are and that you are ok, you just send an "I'm OK" msg and the coordinates are automatically sent. So then when the recipient gets the message, they can just click on the link and it plots the location in GOOGLE MAPS. Cool!! This seemed very accurate whenever I check it out.

 

After the Horseshoe 2 fire was over, yet the forest was still closed, the USFS was very concerned about our safety during our surveys and wanted us to check in twice a day. But cell phones didn't work and we didn't really get good coverage with the USFS radio (not to mention they are very heavy to backpack around with), so we used the SPOT units and that worked great. All the higher ups in the USFS district would get emails with links to our location and a message saying we were ok. With my SPOT Connect unit I could even customize the message to say something like "Surveys complete, headed home" or whatever custom message you want (within certain character limits). So with the SPOT Connect unit, it's sort of like turning your smart phone into a satellite phone (although you can only send texts).

 

Now the best reason to have a SPOT unit is that if you ever get into a medical emergency or need assistance ASAP, then you can hit the SOS button and it will send a msg and coordinates to the GEOS International Emergency Response Coordination Center (IERCC). This is the international search and rescue group that knows exactly how to get you the help you need whereever you are in the world. (I am thinking this will be great if I am hunting Coues down in Mexico!) And you can buy some inexpenisve insurance so that you are covered up to about $50,000 of emergecy rescue services, so you won't have some giant bill even after a much needed rescue.

 

 

Anyway, I really recommend this unit as a great, lightweight way to always have a way to arrange for emergency medical help and to have a way to tell your friends/family that you are ok. I will be keeping this unit in my pack during my hunts this year as it gives me peace of mind that if I break my leg in the middle of no where, I can get help and they will know exactly where I am.

 

Check out the SPOT unit on Santana Outdoors website. Eric not only sells these units, but he has used them for a few years now and he was very helpful when I needed to get some. So give him a call and ask him about the units and see if this isn't the best solution for you.

 

http://www.santanaoutdoors.com/servlet/StoreFront?affiliate_no=1

 

 

[cw4192]

I could have used that on June 4th of this year. broke my ankle and tore ligament's in my ankle in the bottom of West Clear Creek, no cel service. Had to hike out and I was in bad shape at the top. Luckily my wife was at he truck reading her book and drove me to the hospital. (she wanted no part of the hike down) I will be getting one.

[Santana Outdoors]

Thanks Amanda!

 

I know they are expensive but someday they will save a life around you. We are going to rent these if you are interested.

 

2 years ago I was getting ready to go into the wilderness for 4 days, just a week before that I buckled up in pain and couldn't move. I had an emergency operation to remove a foot of my colon and only had 24 to 36 hours to get medical attention before possibly dying.

 

Had I gone on my trip and this happened without something like this SPOT I probably wouldn't be here today. I use mine almost every time I go out just to keep in contact with the family. I also let my kids use it when they go.

 

We have these units in stock don't forget to ask for the CouesWhitetail member discount (normally 5% but for this item I will give 10% off).

 

Thanks, Eric

[bustedknuckleinc]

I'm not trying to bash on the spot service but I purchased one of there units and put it away until I was going to need it. When that day came I called to activate the service because I was going to do a backpacking hunt. After I had it activated it requires you to do a self check test on the unit and it failed. I called them up to ask them what i needed to do and they told me I needed to send it to them and pay for the shipping both ways. I didn't do it because i guess I just have a big issue with buying something and having it not work straight out of the box. Then having to pay to have them fix or replace something that didn't work to begin with. If you do purchase one have it activated ASAP and test it because they don't have a super long warranty policy. Even if you don't plan on needing it anytime soon.

[CouesWhitetail]

Thanks to everyone for sharing your experience with this unit. You definitely want to test it out and do all the online setup stuff (to setup who gets your messages and to activate any optional services) in advance to any trip. It does take a little time to get it all setup, but I didn't find it very difficult. It's always good to test out technical stuff like this unit at home or on a short trip somewhere before relying on it for a longer trip.

I know I feel an added measure of security now that I carry this thing with me.

[silencedmajority]

Peace of mind with those units is priceless. I was playing with one the other day and the 3 different custom messages with the coords on Google maps are really cool!

 

The $49 dollar rebate they are offering right now is making them very affordable too.

[motoxno53]

Amanda what device do you see your self using more? I am getting ready for my solo back country hunt in CO and was thinking about getting one of these. I have started to do some research and I like the idea of the connect but because you use your smart phone, I worry the cell phone battery being a limiting factor to the device being useful for more then a day. I know when I hunt in places where i don't have service or poor service my phone searches for service and dies pretty fast. In that case can you still use the connect as a spot device or is it useless without the phone? If not only works with a phone I may just do the SPOT2 and not have to rely on a phone.

[Santana Outdoors]

I'm not trying to bash on the spot service but I purchased one of there units and put it away until I was going to need it. When that day came I called to activate the service because I was going to do a backpacking hunt. After I had it activated it requires you to do a self check test on the unit and it failed. I called them up to ask them what i needed to do and they told me I needed to send it to them and pay for the shipping both ways. I didn't do it because i guess I just have a big issue with buying something and having it not work straight out of the box. Then having to pay to have them fix or replace something that didn't work to begin with. If you do purchase one have it activated ASAP and test it because they don't have a super long warranty policy. Even if you don't plan on needing it anytime soon.

 

I'm sorry you had that problem. The internet buying experience is different, it does save time and money but if an item doesn't work then there is the hassle of getting it from you to them and back. All of the manufacturers do the same. We try to help in that area, if we send you a broken item we try to help get it replaced for you if they wont take care of it.

[Santana Outdoors]

Amanda what device do you see your self using more? I am getting ready for my solo back country hunt in CO and was thinking about getting one of these. I have started to do some research and I like the idea of the connect but because you use your smart phone, I worry the cell phone battery being a limiting factor to the device being useful for more then a day. I know when I hunt in places where i don't have service or poor service my phone searches for service and dies pretty fast. In that case can you still use the connect as a spot device or is it useless without the phone? If not only works with a phone I may just do the SPOT2 and not have to rely on a phone.

 

I know this one was for Amanda but I have both and prefer the Spot 2 if I was to choose only one because it will work without the smart phone. I do like the Connect because I can communicate better. You cna still use the emergency function with out the smart phone if it did dye and you needed it.

 

Amanda, what do you think.

[motoxno53]

Amanda what device do you see your self using more? I am getting ready for my solo back country hunt in CO and was thinking about getting one of these. I have started to do some research and I like the idea of the connect but because you use your smart phone, I worry the cell phone battery being a limiting factor to the device being useful for more then a day. I know when I hunt in places where i don't have service or poor service my phone searches for service and dies pretty fast. In that case can you still use the connect as a spot device or is it useless without the phone? If not only works with a phone I may just do the SPOT2 and not have to rely on a phone.

 

I know this one was for Amanda but I have both and prefer the Spot 2 if I was to choose only one because it will work without the smart phone. I do like the Connect because I can communicate better. Amanda, what do you think.

 

 

That was what I was thinking... the icing on the cake would be if you could use the connect with your phone when you wanted to but if you phone was dead or you were saving batteries then you could use is as a normal spot. But hey this is still a great option that we did not have just a short time ago... I am thinking this will become a mandatory part of my gear each time I go out.

[CouesWhitetail]

It's a good question motoxno53....If it's a long backpack trip, you are probably right to worry about your cell phone battery. You might consider getting one of those small flexible lightweight solar panels that is made for charging phones in the back country. Then you have the best of both worlds and no worries about the battery.

 

The Spot Connect can still be used for SOS without a cell phone, so if your cell phone dies, you will still be able to signal for emergency help. But you will lose the nice option of custom messages if your cell phone battery dies. So if you are wanting to send the "I'm OK" or custom messages often on your backpack trip, you might be better with the SPOT2.

 

On my backpack hunts, I turn the phone off unless I am using it so that it's not working to find cell service and therefore not burning up the battery. If you were to just use your phone for sending a message once or twice a day and then shut it off, then you might not have to worry about the battery dying. I think once you start sending the msg, you can shut your phone off, so it doesn't have to stay on the whole time the SPOT unit does for sending a msg.

 

So I guess for simplicity, I would say the SPOT2, but you also could try other options to make your cell phone battery last longer (like leaving it off unless using it, bring an extra fully charged battery or get a small portable solar charger).

 

But the real question is....without your smart phone on a backpack hunt, how would you check CouesWhitetail.com everyday???

[reddog]

So what does one of these units cost and how about the service fee, is it monthly or yearly etc. I have been thinking about one of these for along time just have not taken the time to do the research.

 

Thanks,

Reddog

[Santana Outdoors]

So what does one of these units cost and how about the service fee, is it monthly or yearly etc. I have been thinking about one of these for along time just have not taken the time to do the research.

 

Thanks,

Reddog

 

Hi Reddog,

 

The unit is $149.99, there is a rebate going on right now for $50, plus I will give you another 10% back. The Service fee is $99.99 for one year. You can also add other services like tracking and GEOS search and rescus and more see link below.

 

http://www.findmespot.com/en/index.php?cid=110

 

Hope that helped. Eric