Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board New Spot Messenger

Spot has announced a new and improved version of the Spot Messenger. Smaller, lighter, better buttons, lights, better antenna, etc. Scheduled for retail sale in mid-September. Check it out at their website.

If anyone is interested in such electronic signaling devices, you might also check into 406MHz Personal Locator Beacons (PLB's). They have a much stronger signal and are far more likely to be detected when you're in dense forest or down in a canyon. They also have a secondary 121.5 MHz homing signal that they emit that a SAR team can use to zero in on you once the 406 MHz identifies approximately where you are.

Generally, PLB's have a higher up-front cost, but there's no service cost. If you cost it out over about four or five years, the PLB can actually be cheaper (depending on which model you buy and what you pay for it).

Also, the PLB program is run by the US Government; there's not much chance they'll go out of business.

On the other hand, a PLB has only two modes: On and Off. There's no "intermediate" condition like there is on the SPOT. I think the new version of the SPOT may allow an additional message type.

Can you mention some brands names as I am considering purchasing one. My research to date: ACR TerraFix 406 GPS I/O NH PLB

There's a phaseout of 121.5 and 243 MHz signals...only 406 MHz signals will be processed from now on:

"Starting on 1 February 2009, the Cospas-Sarsat System stopped processing signals from the deprecated 121.5 MHz and 243 MHz beacons; now only signals from 406 MHz beacons are processed.[2] The switch to 406 MHz is expected to result in a substantial reduction in wasted use of SAR resources on false alerts while simultaneously increasing the responsiveness of the system for real distress cases."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cospas-Sarsat#Phase-out_of_121.5_.26_243.0_MHz_distress_radiobeacons)

Another thing too regarding SPOT. You should also check out on REI's website the reviews regarding SPOT and then decide for yourself:

"SPOT does not use the 406 MHz signal nor the system of satellites. Instead, it depends on the GlobalStar satellite system. It has richer features (for instance, can send many non-emergency signals) -- but it does not work in as many places as 406 MHz PLBs - for instance under dense forest canopy or steep canyons. [26] "

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distress_radiobeacon#PLBs)

Consequently, your best bet is a 406 MHz Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) since they work directly with the already proven and reliable international COSPAS-SARSAT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COSPAS-SARSAT).

Vendors for the PBLs: ACR and McMurdo

Check out http://www.rei.com/category/40002203

Thanks for the posts about the 406 MHZ PLB's. I think I'll be going that route when this year's SPOT subscription runs out. I'm only interested sending out an accurate distress signal and not any of the tracking options the SPOT has; so the PLB's sound like the better option for me.

Does anyone have an opinion on this one?:

http://www.rei.com/product/791972

excellent information--thank you!

ACR and McMurdo are the two main brands that are out there. Perhaps there are smaller brands out there, but ACR and McMurdo pretty much dominate the market.

The model I got, the ACR Aquafix, is available for $425.00 at http://www.life-raft.com/product.asp?Product_Id=47985. At the time I bought mine, this was the best price I could find. Things may have changed. There are also products with lighter weight out there now.

Here's a PLB FAQ if you'd like some basic information: http://www.equipped.com/faq_plb/default.asp.


That is correct that 121.5 and 243 MHz signals will no longer be used as a first alert signal. 121.5 MHz will however continue to be used as a homing signal that SAR can use to home in on you, once the main 406 MHz signal has given them your general location. In other words, PLB's have two signals: an alert signal (406 MHz)and a homing signal (121.5 MHz). See also this answer from the above linked FAQ: http://www.equipped.com/faq_plb/default.asp?Action=Q&ID=21.

I don't own a McMurdo, but from what I've read, a) McMurdo is a reputable company and b) these new lightweight models are the hottest thing on the PLB market. My PLB weighs about 13oz. The new McMurdos weigh about 5oz -- less than half the weight of mine.

They're also a lot less expensive. Again, from what I've read, ACR is really taking a pounding from these new generation McMurdos.

Caveat: I have not researched articles or looked at user reviews. There is some possibility that there could be some issue that I'm not aware of. They sure look good just from the specs and price, but were I you, I'd still do my research.

Here is a review: http://www.equipped.org/McMurdoNewFastFind.htm

Just a note for people trying to decide between a PLB and the Spot Messenger: The PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) is for emergency use only -- basically one-time use. If you activate it, Search and Rescue people will be looking for you.

With Spot, on the other hand, its primary use is so family and friends at home can watch your progress and see you location from any computer. The added plus is that in the rare chance that you DO need a rescue, you can activate its 911 button, which also brings SAR people into action.

Granted, the Spot's use of the Global Star satellite network may not be as fail-safe (some transmissions do not get out). However, the unit continues to send the 911 signal for 24 hours, and the signal WILL be received when a satellite travels over your position in the sky. I have not heard of a situation yet where the 911 signal was not received.

My wife appreciates being able to follow my progress when I am out -- a PLB cannot do that.

There are definite pros and cons to PLB's vs. a SPOT. One nice thing about a PLB is that even if the PLB can't get a GPS signal, they can still get your approximate location the old fashioned way: via the Doppler shift of your signal. In other words a PLB still works even if the GPS doesn't work or doesn't get a signal.

With a SPOT, no GPS = no location.

An article on the new SPOT: http://www.equipped.org/blog/

My wife got me a SPOT so she could follow my progress and know I'm OK. I think it misses way too many messages, even though I attach it to the top of my pack strap where it has a good view of the sky.

On Tuesday, I climbed North Palisade, Starlight, and Thunderbolt from South Lake. I had it on track all day, but it only recorded 23 messages. It didn't recode the first message until I stopped for water between Bishop Pass and Thunderbolt Col. It missed the OK message I sent from the top of North Palisade. (It also missed the OK from the top of Tyndall a few weeks earlier.)

It's a nice idea, but you just can't count on it all the time. Maybe that's not all bad, since you won't be tempted to do anything stupid, thinking SPOT will save you. Hopefully, SPOT 2 will be better.

SPOT does have one small safety advantage over a PLB. If you turn on tracking, people at least know where you are, even if you can't push the 911/SOS button. I didn't wear my pack on the summit blocks of Starlight or Thunderbolt. If I had fallen, I might not have been able to reach my pack to push the button. (I might have been unconscious and unable to push a button, even if I had carried SPOT with me.) Several hours of tracking messages from the same place when you're supposed to be moving can signal trouble to an astute family member.

These units seem to be getting smaller, lighter, cheaper, and more efficient as time goes on, maybe at some point it would be worth it to just get both a PLB and a Spot?

There's be a lot of discussion about the non-transmittal of signals from the device.

Along the same line, I was out for over 20 hours last Friday and there weren't even 30 track points from the device. According to spec, that should have been at least 120. 25% success... (Although OKs have a much, much higher success rate, which leads me to believe that Help/911 would be successful.)

Part of the problem (which will hopefully be corrected in Rev. 2) is that I don't think it's using the SiRFstarIII chipset, which HAS been available for a lot longer than SPOT's been in existance.




Just hope you fall down with the device pointing up! If it's under you, you're hosed!

I use SPOT tracking on my Scout outings. It is a safety blanket for the families of the boys. They love knowing where their children are and hearing that they are okay. It does fail to transmit tracking signals, but enough of them get out to serve my purpose. I couldn't do the same thing with a PLB. If I want to be sure a signal has been sent, I make one of the boys sit and watch for the long green light while we are taking a break.

Bob, The Spot messages are transmitted every 5 minutes, but if there is not a receiving satellite in the viewable sky at that time, the transmission is lost. The last discussion we had gave a link to the satellites Spot uses and their position at a given time. I checked those, and there are a lot of times when the birds are low on the horizon or not visible at all.

You are climbing in the most rugged places in the Sierra, where half the sky is blocked by the peak you are climbing, so it is not surprising so many of your signals are lost.

Given the lack of satellites issue, to successfully transmit an OK message, you may have to leave the unit sitting for up to an hour. If you just hit OK, then switch back to track in 5 minutes, the OK message may never be received.

And there is another hint I saw recently -- when sending an OK message, wait some seconds for the unit to calibrate after you turn it off and back on, before you hit the OK. I wait three or four blinks of the light.

Steve:

Spot only transmits every 5 minutes in 911 mode. It transmits every 10 minutes in track mode and when sending help messages. It makes three attempts to send an OK, 10 minutes apart. The third attempt will be 20 minutes after the first one. I always wait at least 20 minutes before switching back to track mode, but I don't always spend the entire 20 minutes on the summit. Leaving the unit sitting on the summit for an hour is a waste of 40 minutes.

Thought I'd show another example of "mis-calculated" locations from SPOT:



Track point 4, in the lower-right corner, should be over by the Switchbacks instead of in Meysan Canyon.

That makes an especially important point for people who use Spot to send a single check-in message per day -- if it is wrong and one needs help, they might not find you. However if you have been checking in regularly, or better, using the tracking mode, then the trail of points makes it pretty obvious which points are on-track, and which ones might be bogus.