The trip the OP is planning
is 10-14 days with no electricity enroute. If he uses a smartphone he needs a charging system. In that area solar might work but we had two weeks of rain and fog.
my brother is a yacht delivery skipper
– Last Updated: Jan-21-14 9:33 AM EST –
--editing to correct - next poster is right, I am confusing EPIRBs and PLBs - sorry---
and he uses both EPIRB (not PLB) and SPOT. He says that EPIRBs (not PLBs) are set off by mistake a *lot* and that response is anything but instantaneous because the CG has to try to weed out the false alarms, because that is what the vast majority are. SPOT's primary purpose for him is for buyers and sellers of the boats he is delivering to track his progress, but he also has it programmed to be send a distress message to friends and his adult children if he selects that. He thinks the CG would respond quicker if they get a call from someone insisting this is no false alarm.
I find that hard to believe !
and I don’t believe it. You are passing along wrong information.
It is next to impossible to set of my PLB by accident
Here is the procedure:
- Flip up the red pull handle, pull the cover off. The antenna cover is an anti-tamper seal
- Hold the antenna. Unwrap the antenna until it stands vertical.
3 Press the ON button - there is a note here that says that there is a delay here of fifty seconds which in case of an accidental or false activation the user to turn off the Fast Find
After all the above, it is next to impossible to activate it unless it is done on purpose, or if some kid is playing with it.
Jack L
I don’t believe any of Optimi’s post
either,unless he can back it up with credible sources.
To add to what Jack said the PLB is a one time use only. It cannot be reused. You have to buy a new battery and have it serviced which is not a DIY project.
http://www.acrartex.com/support/faqs/personal-locator-beacon-faqs/
Most boats larger than paddlecraft are equipped with EPIRBS which I don’t know if they can be reset. OptiMistic suggests that paddlecraft are out there misusing their small PLBs in numbers. Most paddlers don’t even HAVE one.
If the misuse of rescue requests was coming over channel 16 you can bet your bippy we would all have to be licensed as radio operators to use our marine radios which many paddlers do have.
You are right - confused EPIRB with PLB
I edited my original post. Hopefully I didn’t cause anyone to make a poor purchase decision…
supported a friend using Delorme inreach
I was one of two safety support for a friend who paddled the entire California coast (OR to Mexico) over 7 weeks back in October-November. He had a Delorme inReach and we used it to send messages back and forth (weather reports, helping with other logistics, etc.). Connection seemed good, except for a couple of minor burps:
- On one day, he moved the unit inside his hatch, and the bread crumb signal didn’t work as well (supposed to be a bread crumb every 30 minutes, but only about 1 in 3 made it through). We yelled at him, not just for making the connection dad by moving it, but for not having it on his body should he get separated from his boat.
- on another day, he landed and sent his “off the water” text to us. His device said it went through, but it didn’t. He then shut off the device to save batteries while he went around making dinner and setting up camp. Only when he re-checked in before going to bed did we find out he was fine.
Local knowledge?
I suggest contacting local authorities and guides for their recommendations about what works in that area and how local rescue responds to the choice of devices. You might be able to rent that gear there too. Parks Canada has a basic guide with some trips and points of contact for the area. See http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/on/pukaskwa/activ/activ3/c.aspx
Actually,
I do recall reading something recently from a reliable source indicating that false alarms is becoming a huge problem with PLBs that is beginning to threaten their usefulness even for responsible users. Millions have been sold mostly not to people like us and they are being fired off in the middle of cities form time to time. That sort of thing. Can’t recall where I read this but it was concerning to me. I operating on the assumption that if you leave your destination on the web site and with your loved ones and have to fire it off in a wild area where you are supposed to be according to your trip plan you are going to get help quickly.
Sorry you can’t rent PLB or SPOT
– Last Updated: Jan-22-14 9:03 AM EST –
local to your trip.
Naturally Superior adventures actually rents some gear and is the local contact. But those devices are not among what they rent.
You can rent from other sources online before your trip.
Hopefully that guide will be changed a little. I contacted Pukaskwa after our trip last summer to point out some safety hazards need to be highlighted more than they are in that guide.
also re marine radio. In Canada operation of one requires a license. I don't have that license and use my radio as a weather radio. However in the case of a true emergency I wouldn't hesitate to use it if I saw another boat around or had seen one in the last two hours ( in the Puk area)
True about PLBs
PLBs are compact EPIRBs. There is really no difference other than size, and duration of signal. Also some EPIRBS (Class 1) deploy themselves automatically when the reach a certain distance under the surface.
Epirbs can be turned off, just like PLBs, and Epirbs need serviced after use, just like PLBs.
The differnce with PLBs (and spots) is that they can be bought and carried by any shmoe, so they have resulted in an increase in rescue calls, by people who either aren’t really in a life-threatening situation, or who made a trip they shouldn’t have made only because they had a “save me button”.
That said, they’re great resources, and hopefully they will be used responsibly, so we don’t see user fees, licenses, or rescue costs charged for legitimate users.
VHF with DSC button
The original post states “Our marine radio has a GPS distress button”, and I just wanted to point out the difference between a VHF with a DSC button, and a VHF with built-in GPS and a DSC button.
If a DSC equipped VHF does not also contain GPS capability, it is NOT capable of sending a DSC distress signal from a kayak. Some radios have DSC, but no GPS, which is fairly useless for kayakers (these are intended to be integrated into a larger yachts nav system).
I’d hate for someone with a red DSC button on their radio to falsely believe they are carrying a DSC distress transmitter when they’re not!
while confused, it does seem correct
Here is an article:
http://www.wildsnow.com/2323/plb-rescue-beacon-acr/
quoting a figure of 98% false alarms with PLBs. So while I was confusing PLBs and EPIRBs, it appears they have the same problems. Most go unregistered and are triggered when people think they are just powering them on or whatever. But the article says they are following up on them particularly in back country situations.
I don’t want to quibble with you
but how did you come up with data that said most are unregistered?
Registration is free!
And I have learned of several rescues triggered by SPOT and PLBs and none of rescues not attempted.
I worked in EMS for many years. When someone called 911 even if we knew it was unwarranted (like in frequent fliers situations) we had a duty to respond. Or face firing and loss of our careers due to our registration being suspended.
I read the article
Which linked to other sources of info. It appears to be legitimate. A lot of people make the same point as you, but none link to any information to back up the opinion. Yes, it is free and it seems like a good idea to me. I can only guess why most people don’t register them, but my guess is it isn’t clear that it is more than a “regular” product registration, which most people don’t do for most products. Why they don’t is only a guess on my part, but the idea that most people don’t register them seems to be supported by data.
THANK YOU!
Dear Paddling Community -
Thanks you for your responses on the PLB/SPOT for our Puk trip. As always, our paddling friends have given us lots to think about and digest. My concern with the SPOT is that our parents are in their 80’s - and tho they all use email, I am very concerned about them getting frantic if a day’s message got messed up (my father once alerted Isle Royale after we were several hours late).
We will go read all the links and articles and make our decision. We know about Naturally Sup. Adventures - nice folks - and will use them for our shuttle.
We are also concerned about the indiscriminate use of distress calls. We have heard that this happens a lot in the Rockies with hikers and backcountry travel. It would be a shame if a minority of morons ruined things for the rest of us.
We will not rely only on the marine radio for the distress signal - that was just a “nice to have” feature (we have bought a second radio for this trip - we will both carry one) and we know that at points the forecast we get will not reflect conditions where we are.
All that said - we are planning to begin the Puk trip on July 12 or so - we are allotting 12 - 14 days - we are in no hurry, want to explore a lot, and will not paddle if the weather/wind is iffy. We are a married couple - late 50’s/early 60 - anyone else want to come?
Thank you all again for your input and advice.
Ade
And not only that, but
If you don’t register your PLB,(annually) any initiation of it will be ignored.
Jack L
Have a great trip!
Enjoy. Wish my wife and I could join you but we have other adventures planned!
you didn’t read it either, did you?
They don’t ignore them. The article was about an unregistered one that the guy kept setting off because he didn’t know what he was doing and they kept scrambling to find him. Anyway, they do respond to unregistered ones.
renting PLBs and SPOTs
To rent PLB, click here - http://www.plbrentals.com/
To rent SPOT, click here - http://goo.gl/pn4Cph
To rent DeLorme InReach, click here - http://goo.gl/WN1b4f
If having difficulties finding something, try http://lmgtfy.com/
I think this is relevant to the thread
http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/excursions/post/kayak-kayaker-refuses-help-after-sending-sos/