View Full Version : Weather
trailfinder
02-12-2006, 12:14
When backpacking for more than say 7 days, does any carry a weather alert radio or weather forecasting device? I've been looking at two orgegon scientific items for periods that I am out more than say ten days, but I am have a difficult time deciding whether I need anything? And if I need something I do not know whether a weather radio (NOAA and SAME) is better than a weather forecasting device. Any suggestions and recommendaitons would be appreciated!
Thanks!
mweinstone
02-12-2006, 15:33
if you want you could prepare for the worst weather .then you dont need to know its comming. or you can go out dangerously under prepared and use a radio to run from weather. the weight of a radio is equal at least to an extra hat. i dont use forcasts on the at.its just a luxury not a need. bushwaking in wyoming one isnt needed. only in city life must we know the forcast .
When backpacking for more than say 7 days, does any carry a weather alert radio or weather forecasting device? I've been looking at two orgegon scientific items for periods that I am out more than say ten days, but I am have a difficult time deciding whether I need anything? And if I need something I do not know whether a weather radio (NOAA and SAME) is better than a weather forecasting device. Any suggestions and recommendaitons would be appreciated!
Thanks!
i have a program called my cast i downloaded on my cell phone,it includes
forcast and dopplar radar,all i do is type in a zip code were ever i am hiking
the program costed me $5.00 to put on my cell phone i love it:cool: neo
http://www.my-cast.com/
http://www.cingular.com/indexc
Skidsteer
02-12-2006, 19:55
When backpacking for more than say 7 days, does any carry a weather alert radio or weather forecasting device? I've been looking at two orgegon scientific items for periods that I am out more than say ten days, but I am have a difficult time deciding whether I need anything? And if I need something I do not know whether a weather radio (NOAA and SAME) is better than a weather forecasting device. Any suggestions and recommendaitons would be appreciated!
Thanks!
I bought my wife an Oregon Scientific weather radio because she has a phobia about lightning. It seems to feed fear and keep her at home regularly. YMMV.
I bought my wife an Oregon Scientific weather radio because she has a phobia about lightning. It seems to feed fear and keep her at home regularly. YMMV.
there were a couple incidents were boy scouts were killed by lightning last year:cool: neo
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-03-scout-killed_x.htm?csp=34
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,164129,00.html
Lots of people get struck by lightning every year. Spend time outside and your chances increase. Go abover tree line and it increase your risk some more.
Stand on top of a mountain, above tree line and increase it even more, but the view is worth it.
Stand on top of a mountain, above tree line and increase it even more, .
Don't forget to wave your poles above your head. If you are going to take the risk...go all out.:rolleyes: ;)
I've got the altitech 2, altimeter barometer thermometer and french fry maker. The weather forecasting has never been wrong. It's really pretty cool.
For me, weather was just one of those things that you deal with on the trail. It didn't really matter what the weather was in the morning, because I was usually going to hike anyway (assuming it wasn't a downpour when I started). And I'd continue until I had enough hiking in the rain that day. So, I didn't carry a radio or anything else for the forecast, because it really didn't matter.
Wolf - 23000
02-13-2006, 14:55
When your out there, you can feel when a storm is coming in better than the weather man/woman.
Wolf
rainmaker
02-13-2006, 22:29
Madame and I always carry a small radio that can access NOAA. While we are usually prepared for the worst that nature can offer, hiking for us is supposed to be enjoyable , not a fight for survival. This attitude served us well several years ago while hiking on the AT in the GSMNP. We picked up a forecast for the mountains calling for a major winter storm with freezing rain and ice. We bailed out and headed home . The next day we learned that the Smokies had been hit with a record 52 inch snowfall. A youth group from up north was stranded for several and I think had to be airdropped food. We never leave home without it.
freefall
02-13-2006, 22:40
When your out there, you can feel when a storm is coming in better than the weather man/woman.
Wolf
Being a meteorology student, I like to take a radio w/ wx band along on my hikes. I like to compare what the radio says vs.what is actually occurring.
Sony has an decent radio. relatively lite(3oz),compact and receives AM/FM/TV/WX. Runs on 1 AAA last about 50 hours in FM.
In my opinion a weather radio or any type of weather forecaster would act as a barrier to my hike. I don't think I'd want to know what the weather was going to be like for the next few days until I actually experience it. Too much technology and I don't ever get any "feel" for the outdoors.
Like Wolf said earlier, after a short time you'll be in tune enough to know what's coming your way in the immediate future.
A couple of years ago we were hiking the Georgia section in March and it was close to 70 degrees one day. We were in shorts and t-shirts and sweating like it was summer. That night, on Tray Mountain, a huge storm rolled in and pounded us with rain and sleet. The temp continued dropping and it started snowing the next morning and snowed all day long. We holed up in Deep Gap shelter mid-afternoon with a good 8"-10" snow on the ground. It was beautiful and had that wonderful feather-soft silence that only snow can bring to the woods. Now, if we had known that the storm was coming, and had anticipated the heavy snow, we would have continued hikng just as we did, but I think that the magic and the wonder of that sudden and dramatic change in the weather from one day to the next would have been absent.
Just my opinion, but I see no need for a weather radio, but as in all things, HYOH. Now, a thermometer is a different matter ... I bring a small thermometer / hygrometer that I swiped from my humidor and I'm constantly checking the temp / humidity ... just an idiosyncrasy of mine.
Tipi Walter
02-15-2006, 11:03
I used to shun all types of electronic gear when I first started backpacking and camping but of late when I am doing my usually long trips in wilderness I not only take several good books(not dead weight to me but of course burned a page at a time!)and a little digital radio made by Coby Electronics which beyond the regular stuff offers fairly accurate weather reports on FM describing what's to come. I was out on a mountaintop south of the Smokies when Katrina pulled in and by listening to the radio I was able to anticipate some possible high water and rain. I did cut my trip short 2 days because of Miss Katrina.
But I can see the reluctance by some people in taking or using such gear in the woods. Cell phones, music pods, gps devices and even little radios really have no place in a "wilderness" and I strongly agree that someone outdoors alot can quickly and wisely forecast the next 24 to 48 hours of weather. My radio is mostly for diversion and as a fall back when I am in a tent for 2 or 3 days and the books and my own journal bores me.
I brought a Grundig MiniWorld am/fm/sw radio with me on my 500 miler in 04. About the size of a cigarette pack, weighs ounces.
Never had a problem with reception in VT, MA,CT,NY,NJ,PA, MD, or WV.
Besides keeping up with the weather, it came in handy on those lonely nights. I recommend it.