RADIOS! Summoning help with radios (FRS GMRS)
partial post transfer from
"I'm not dead yet." treewell trap post
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...&threadid=4465
RADIOS
FRS/GMRS radios are as unreliable as cellphones on the mountain. In fact, they are less reliable because a cellphone will go right to 911.
5 Miles is bullshit unless you have true LINE OF SIGHT and even then it can be iffy. I found most FRS radios (all FRS only radios are 0.5W) are effective at ~0.5 average while on the mountain if you don't have true LOS. If you have a FRS/GMRS radio, no matter what its stated output, it will only do 0.5W for channels 8-14. This makes monitoring 9-11 stupid for anyone with a halway decent radio (for the type of radio we are talking about).
Nobody monitors FRS or GMRS channels around here.
Summit County's SAR team has some FRS type radios but they aren't apparently employed unless someone specifically says that a lost victim had one.
Universal monitoring of a single channel and CTCSS code by all resorts does seem like a good idea, but there is nothing to stop people from using that for personal use. Still, something like 6-11 seems like a find choice.
GMRS channel 20-22 (or was that 22-20?) is the unnoficial emergency GMRS channel monitored by some civil defense types, but that monitoring is exceedingly rare even more rare is the possibility that you are in range onf someone who is monitoring with a wimpy 0.5W or 1W GMRS radio.
There are plenty of radios out there that cannot do CTCSS codes and some radios have nonstandard codes. Disabling CTCSS (like channel 9-0 or 4-0 or 18-0) will let yo uhear all traffic on a given channel, CTCSS or not, but if you reply only people with CTCSS disabled or without it on their radios will hear you. Bleh.
What to do
The best bet I think is to scan and when you find an active channel/code combo, transmit if you need to be helped. Most of the time you will simply be trying to raise some gaper and convince them to go to a patrol phone.
IF YOU ARE GOING TO BROADCAST BLINDLY, DO SO WITH CTCSS DISABLED.
RADIO SUMMARY
FRS/GMRS are mostly usefull for keeping track of your group and should never be relied upon to summon help due to their unreliability. They are much more likely to summon help in a busy resort vs the backcountry (where chances would be nil).
Other Options
Much more reliable for the backcountry would be a nonactiave iridium sat phone or a PLB. A VHF/UHF radio would be a good choice too assuming you have a HAM license, know how to use your radio, and know the local repeater input/outputs.
FRS/GMRS RADIO RECCOMENDATIONSThe Motorola T5820 or T5920 seem like a kickass deals on amazon.com at the moment... $50 per PAIR then you get a $25 or $10 rebate. 1W FRS/GMRS radios.
My Radios
I carry a Motorola T7200 FRS/GMRS radio which does 2W output and is GMRS repeater capable (not that there are any GMRS repeaters around here). Soon (once I find a place to pass the FCC technician exam) I will be carrying a Yaesu VX-7R 5W 4-band VHF/UHF radio.
