Bushwalk Australia

Hi
I am normally accompanied by others on bush walks but occasionally others are not available. I carry the usual array of paraphernalia like maps, compass, iphone4, etrex30, food, first aid items. I am reluctant to use my phone and I don't have a personal locator beacon yet, but will buy one if this happens more frequently. The phone apps that record tracks are normally a bit reluctant to forward position or a track-so-far every now and then, by email and normally require a paid subscription and waste the battery power which I would like to conserve anyway. Currently, in addition to providing someone with my plans and route, I have settled on copying the gps lat lon from the etrex to an email and sending this off every hour or so if within phone reception.
I was wondering what others do in an endeavor to act in a responsible manner to those who may care of your whereabouts when such occasions arise ....and you do take a risk.

Get a Delorme Inreach. That is what I did.

a Spot is one way. any method that is reliable will have a cost. as far as I know Spots can be rented, so that might be worth a thought instead of the outlay if you feel you will have limited use. or just fork out for the EPIRB and call it good. depends on what people hat home expect/demand. As an aside SMS is generally a more reliable situation than email as it requires less of a signal to get through.

Detailed plans left with wife plus any possible sidetrips (waterfalls, clifflines, spurs, ridges) I might get curious about, marked on it.
Plus time due back.
If camping on summits with phone reception I touch base with a evening call. All other times it's turned off.
Have a PLB as a backup....$50 a year for the duration of a 7year battery life is cheap insurance in my book.

I think I read somewhere you can also rent PLB's if needed...

Thanks for your ideas. I notice that PLBs can be bought for under $300 and that the user can the change the batteries in a few of them too. The free GPSies.com app has free live tracking but it only works with a couple of Android apps currently. My iphone4 is a bit old for most of the latest apps as they require a later operating system.
I will continue with the email or sms at intervals for now, [edit based on GPSGuided advice...] with the clear understanding that no messages being received does mean a problem and that non-receipt of a call sometime after the expected walk completion is the time to consider my welfare, but that any messages during the walk may assist in likely location.

nevw wrote:I was wondering what others do in an endeavor to act in a responsible manner to those who may care of your whereabouts when such occasions arise ....and you do take a risk.

I leave a map and carry a PLB. That's it. We have had talks about risk over the years, and luckily my wife has been on many walks so is up with what's involved.
I think I would help an overly anxious spouse to understand the risk better and come to terms with them, rather than check in several times a day. If I had a spot I would hit the OK button each night.

I'd say have a consistent reporting system e.g. InReach or SPOT, or not have any but have a PLB. Intermittent inconsistent reporting will likely bring more worries and problems in a real disaster.

I use a Spot gen3. It's small, light and reliable. I hit the OK button each night to tell whoever I decide that all's well. viewtopic.php?f=21&t=21795&hilit=+spot

I have a Spot 3 and a PLB. I would estimate success rate of Spot messages being delivered at 90-95% - highly dependent on where you are, especially in relation to gullies and heavy overhead tree cover. Tracking blips success rate much lower. Still quite happy with it, will look at the Delorme products next I think. The yearly access fee for the Spot costs more than the purchase price of the unit.....

ofuros wrote:Detailed plans left with wife plus any possible sidetrips (waterfalls, clifflines, spurs, ridges) I might get curious about, marked on it.
Plus time due back.
If camping on summits with phone reception I touch base with a evening call. All other times it's turned off.
Have a PLB as a backup....$50 a year for the duration of a 7year battery life is cheap insurance in my book.

I think I read somewhere you can also rent PLB's if needed...

Me too, I also include a specific time to alert the police, generally expected end time plus 24 hours, depending on the walk. I leave the phone off until I've finished the walk then check in.

Lindsay wrote:

ofuros wrote:Detailed plans left with wife plus any possible sidetrips (waterfalls, clifflines, spurs, ridges) I might get curious about, marked on it.
Plus time due back.
If camping on summits with phone reception I touch base with a evening call. All other times it's turned off.
Have a PLB as a backup....$50 a year for the duration of a 7year battery life is cheap insurance in my book.

I think I read somewhere you can also rent PLB's if needed...

Me too, I also include a specific time to alert the police, generally expected end time plus 24 hours, depending on the walk. I leave the phone off until I've finished the walk then check in.

+2
I have trained family that no news is good news and to give some overdue time. I carry a plb and if the button gets pushed they would be notified as one of the contacts. If the button is not pushed everything is ok. I check in occasionally from a high point.

Mostly I don't worry about it. That's the upside to having no-one who'll miss me if the worst happens.

north-north-west wrote:Mostly I don't worry about it. That's the upside to having no-one who'll miss me if the worst happens.

Wrong. After 8602 informative, illuminating and amusing posts here, you'd be missed alright!

I do loads of solo hikes because I absolutely love it. I leave my itinerary with someone at home and work. I carry a KTI PLB and leave my phone off. Go to kti.com.au. It's designed and manufactured in Australia.

jktrapdoor007 wrote:I do loads of solo hikes because I absolutely love it. I leave my itinerary with someone at home and work. I carry a KTI PLB and leave my phone off. Go to kti.com.au. It's designed and manufactured in Australia.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A good piece of kit the KTi and can be bought for $270


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

roysta wrote:A good piece of kit the KTi and can be bought for $270


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yep, light and small enough to take mountain biking.

I decided to get a KTI SA2G plb http://kti.com.au/safety-alert-plb/ as it is Australian made and the cost was $270 with a 10yr guarantee, that works out to be $27/yr for a solid emergency rescue option.
You register 3 emergency contacts with AMSA and can lodge your plans online with them before departure so I think that is that is a good outcome for me as I will lodge plans with the emergency contact/s too.

I was also considering the SPOT Gen3 GPS Satellite Messenger with the advantage of sending messages to others but at $200 for initial outlay and annual subscription fees on top is was bit too steep for me. http://au.findmespot.com/en/index.php?cid=103

My family is happy with the decision too and will get a call from AMSA if the plb is ever activated and that's what counts most to me.

I really appreciate all your suggestions.
Nev

Good arrangement, one that's practical for most.

I send an SMS and/or do a phone call when in range once or twice daily when I can, as in Alpine walking reception is not available at all campsites. With Telstra 3G you'd be surprised the availability of marginal SMS cover near some of the Proms Southern Circuit campsites and anywhere you can see Mt Oberon you are set. At the Bogong High Plains I've only had absolutely no service around Blairs Hut and the lower parts of Diamantina Spur......as well as some lower Parts of the Tom Kneen Track I had no cover. I usually don't hike with a PLB. When the opportunities arise, I will hike with others. I've done alpine walking alone, in all seasons as well as a number of other walks in all seasons too. Half my walks annually may be done alone.

Map indicating planned hiking route, text message when I get back to the car, instructions on time to allow after intended completion time, paid up insurance.....

north-north-west wrote:Mostly I don't worry about it. That's the upside to having no-one who'll miss me if the worst happens.

ditto
but i make all my walks a platform for raising awareness of important issues through social media. I suspect a lot of people are happy not to be nagged when i out of range.

nevw wrote:I was wondering what others do in an endeavor to act in a responsible manner to those who may care of your whereabouts when such occasions arise ....and you do take a risk.

I tell people at least one person when they can expect me back to base or receive a call. Usually someone who has the sense to call for help if they do not hear from me.
Leave an itinerary with the same person/s.
I always carry a PLB, mobile phone, first aid kit and at least an additional day's food.
Don't take any unnecessary risks.

I add my planned route to my Google Calendar, which I have shared with my family. This has the advantage that if my plans change I can easily update it anywhere I have phone coverage.

So many options! I usually hike either with my wife or alone, I'm not a fan of groups. In both situations I will carry a PLB which I update on line for each hike so that the information is current. I will carry a phone however many of my hikes have no phone signal. I notify family, provide them with a detailed itinerary, and will call them to all to tell them I'm back. I' m planning some long distance solo hikes over the next 2 years and will invest in a Satellite Phone and swap out the PLB for a SPOT, more for peace of mind for the family.

Tim Savage
http://www.australianhiker.com.au

Be very wary of posting details about trips on the internet, evens ecure areas. Thieves monitor these and target people who are away. It's best to give written advice, and maybe laod a trip plan onto the contact's computer without citing the walker's name, address, or any other identifying information.

When I read this thread, I can't help but sense a cerain hubris from some of the posters.

After Andrew Gaskell's recent misadventure I'd have thought people would have become more circumspect.

Andrew's experience surely shows that it can happen to you.

RonK wrote:When I read this thread, I can't help but sense a cerain hubris from some of the posters.

After Andrew Gaskell's recent misadventure I'd have thought people would have become more circumspect.

Andrew's experience surely shows that it can happen to you.

All of us who bushwalk accept there is an element of risk and that this is slightly increased for those of us who walk alone. However I think that the posters have indicated that they do everything that is reasonably possible to ensure that they will not need rescuing, and if they do the best information is available to the rescuers.

RonK wrote:When I read this thread, I can't help but sense a cerain hubris from some of the posters.

After Andrew Gaskell's recent misadventure I'd have thought people would have become more circumspect.

Andrew's experience surely shows that it can happen to you.

I carry a PLB. Sometimes I even take my mobile. Usually I put trip details (or at least a long list of options) on the AMSA site.
But, given that often I don't make up my mind exactly where I'm going until I'm there, informing all and sundry of rigid plans isn't practical. One of the things I like about walking is that I can make it up as I go along. And yeah, there's a very good reason for me to do my walking like that.

Lindsay wrote:

RonK wrote:When I read this thread, I can't help but sense a cerain hubris from some of the posters.

After Andrew Gaskell's recent misadventure I'd have thought people would have become more circumspect.

Andrew's experience surely shows that it can happen to you.

All of us who bushwalk accept there is an element of risk and that this is slightly increased for those of us who walk alone. However I think that the posters have indicated that they do everything that is reasonably possible to ensure that they will not need rescuing, and if they do the best information is available to the rescuers.

Everything? I don't think so.

To exemplify my point. Missing Tasmanian