Wyoming B.S. Thread

True. Red head is forever.

We aren't doing that this go around. I think Ben would poop himself if he rolled up on that in the van haha

Waiting for the hydrogen engine swap haha

 

Poop myself? I would just say no if it's too gnarly. And based on the campers filming us on the last trip my threshold for too sketchy isn't nearly as low as it should be.

 

It can go higher. Haha

 

I'm pretty sure the single channel radio Monte is talking about is not a hand held.

Nothing wrong with dual band in a hand held. The main limitation is their antenna. You can't really go wrong with this one.

$16 Baofeng UV-5R Two Way Radio Dual Band 144-148/420-450Mhz Walkie Talkie 1800mAh Li-ion Battery(Black)

https://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-UV-5R-136-174-400-480Mhz-1800mAh/dp/B074XPB313?th=1

 

monte, let me know when you have a rough route planned out for july haha

 

This was my dads recomendation for a mobile station radio single band: https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...radios/vhf-radios/13312-alinco-dr-138t-detail

He also offered to get it installed for you and tuned when you're out here if you wanted. You'd of course need an antenna. Which I'd recommend this guy: https://theantennafarm.com/shop-by-...field-tunable/6441-sti-co-mgnt-ft-niti-detail

He said otherwise if you don't want the install just get a Baofeng, which he does not like. But for simple simplex should be fine. You obviously got to experiance the downfalls of it's antenna reception this last trip.

Yeah I'll send you the Gaia map as I get it more honed in. I think I have your email, if not i'll PM you.

 

+1

I used to switch off between that STI and the Diamond antenna, but I run the STI almost exclusively now.

Pro:

• You can't beat the flexibility, and it's nice not to worry when I'm going through trees.

Con:

• It's definitely not as good as the Diamond at Tx/Rx.
  
  --> This weakness is barely noticeable in the desert at "dirt" speeds (35mph and less) because it stays mostly vertical.
  --> It is noticeable at highway speeds ( yes, even my hwy speeds ) where the antenna lays down a bit, and of course, it's worst in mountainous/canyon-y terrain, since it just doesn't have the same gain.

 

Ah, I'm not looking for a hard mount setup, handheld worked great, just a simple thing to use as long as I can charge it. Haven't looked into why the inverter wouldn't kick in yet. Hell I haven't put fuel in it from our last gas stop even. Stopped by the van today and already blew out the steering stabilizer so need to get another one ordered up before the next trip.

Speaking of Gaia, do you use the free version or the paid version?

 

Better to use uhf anyways in mountains and canyons. It bounces around more.

 

I paid for it. Only way you can offline download maps.

But so far enjoying it a lot. Ive been planning the routes on my computers in the browsers. Just syncs with my phone. Downloading maps is super easy and fast. Map layers are really good too. Worth it I think.

 

Well if you say it's worth it, and even though I rarely trust your judgement, I just might look into buying it before the next trip. I know OnX is another big one these days and it's hard to decide where to throw the money.

 

I heard something interesting from a few people "in the know." OnX is a big (well-known) one because they have a huge marketing budget and are paying any "influencer" who will have them. However, in real world use, the Gaia maps are better, the app has more features, etc.

One thing that is really nice with Gaia is the online map/web site. Creating tracks there (which I know you don't do as much as Monte or I, but still) is SO nice. Way nicer than Google My Maps even. And, once you create your route, it just syncs (including offline maps) with your device.

Full disclosure: I still use BCN. Actually, I use a combination of BCN Pro (the old one), BCN XE (the new one), and Gaia as such:

• Gaia (paid) - to create routes, which I then export to KML for Google Earth (since that's where I store my "master catalog." @mrs.turbodb runs this on her phone and downloads the routes+maps for each trip so she can poke around while we're driving. The maps are "great" from a detail perspective, and they are small since they are vector based - a few hundred MB for an entire trip!
• BCN XE - this is what's displayed on my tablet on a trip. I like it because of the Accuterra Land Use maps, which have a very nice/good/visible public/private land use display, and the maps are generally "pretty good." Downside is that they are bitmap based, so downloads are enormous (20GB/trip).
• BCN Pro - I use this on trips to record the actual tracks I run, one per day on the trail. BCN Pro is still the most stable of all the apps, and I want something stable to record an 8-hour long track. I don't download maps at all for this, since it's just recording in the background.

Gaia has pretty regular 50% off sales, so you should wait for one of those if you can. We're paying $24.99/yr I think from a Black Friday or Christmas sale.

 

What up wyoming-ites lol I don't live here but I'm here all the time. I drive a semi on 80 from Cali to kimball, Nebraska every week. I live in utah. Actually in laramie at the moment

 

What is the cost? Is it an annual subscription?

 

Yes it is , I have it too. I don't remember what is was before but I got a notice saying it's going up to 59.90 a year next re -up

 

It's pretty great. Plus if you ahve it, I can share the trip with you and you can easily see it, it'll sync to your phone or whatever. And you can add whatever you want to the map too. The potential for collaboration is big.

OnX charges you for a lot of map layers that Gaia just has. So I didn't see the cost benefit.

Welcome!

Most people in here aren't actually in Wyoming anymore haha we just hang here. i80 is no joke to drive though all the time.

Annual $60 a year. That's what I did.

 

Of all people i figured you would be the one to do this, but have you tried/want to set up starlink? Or are you leaving your off grid trips off grid?

YOURE ALL FAKE BUT MEEEEEEEEE

 

In other news, we're back in KW after a trip to the dry tortugas, waiting for the next favorable wind to start heading back north. This was our furthest away point we are sailing this season. We ran out of time to make it to the bahamahs, so we have to wait until next winter for that. Wish we had more time in the dry tortugas, it was such an incredible place, but we electd to come back with easy conditions ahead of a week of big wind.

 

Too bulky and expensive to be a roaming station. Plus, no one wants broadband out in the woods.

Very cool. Glad it's been a great trip. Looks like it's been a great adventure.

 

What Monte said, at least in part. The bulky bit doesn't bother me all that much (esp. with the flat starlink kit), but I don't need to be connected when I'm going to get away from the hustle and bustle anyway!

Those are some amazing sailing shots. Man, that looks and sounds so awesome. Good on you guys for doing it!