View Full Version : Essential Gear?
Zooomabooma
05-01-2007, 14:04
When did a cell phone become as essential as food?
At least that's the way it seems with a lot I've been readin' lately. Like everyone has one on the trail.
I do realize they can be convenient but I will never own one.
Has it really become a standard piece of equipment?!?
DawnTreader
05-01-2007, 14:13
no..............
SGT Rock
05-01-2007, 14:16
You need one like you need a tuba.
A similar thread on the CDT list. One person suggested a homing
pigeon:
Personally, I like the homing pigeon idea the best... :)
Sign of the times I guess, when one the main questions on all the hiking lists are "How do I stay connected to the outside world?"
No comment good or bad (I did use a Pocketmail myself for newspaper articles afterall), but it is an observation.
How connected does a hiker want to be?
Once every 5-7 days ala Pocketmail? Once a day? More often? Do we need web updates and weather forecasts? Or is basic ASCII enough?
It is addicting to get e-mail. Guilty as charged.
I'd check my pocketmail every time I could. Getting those little "Somebody loves me" sounds made my day. My Mom, who has never used e-mail until this past year, loved how she could write me and I'd write back within a few days [1]
OTOH, if I could check my e-mail every chance I could, would it change the nature of my hike? I suspect yes. I also suspect I personally would *not* have the discipline to stay away from 24/7 connection. Probably best, for me, that I do not go down that route.
HYOH and all that. Just an observation that more so than even 2 or 3 years ago, how much of an emphasis there is on staying connected. Not just on the trail, but in society as a whole. Personal locator beacons were touted in a local paper as MUST HAVE accessory for every outdoor user. I already get odd looks from some people when I say I do not take a cell phone when hiking even on local trails. And now there are threads about how to stay connected on most outdoor lists.
Not good. Not bad. But definitely a different focus. A focus that means wanting to stay unconnected is becoming the aberration and staying connected is the norm for outdoor pursuits.
A definite sea change in how we view the outdoors as well as society as a whole.
Mags
[1] She also wrote my youngest brother in Iraq. With one son walking the Rockies and another son working in an Air Force hospital, e-mail was a god send for her!
When did a cell phone become as essential as food?
At least that's the way it seems with a lot I've been readin' lately. Like everyone has one on the trail.
I do realize they can be convenient but I will never own one.
Has it really become a standard piece of equipment?!?
Essential? No, but certainly becoming more common. For one thing, pay phones in towns are becoming fewer and fewer. Secondly, cell phone coverage is improving. Just like other equipment, times are changing.
SGT Rock
05-01-2007, 17:12
Essential? No, but certainly becoming more common. For one thing, pay phones in towns are becoming fewer and fewer. Secondly, cell phone coverage is improving. Just like other equipment, times are changing.
The pay phone reduction is one thing that has been troubling me lately about my past opposition to cell phones in my pack. My current solution is a cell phone that is also a 2 megapixel camera with flash, mp3 player, and FM radio that you can shut the phone part off and only use it as the other three beneficial gadgets unless you need/want a phone. Takes decent pictures and holds a good charge when it ain't a phone.
The pay phone reduction is one thing that has been troubling me lately about my past opposition to cell phones in my pack. My current solution is a cell phone that is also a 2 megapixel camera with flash, mp3 player, and FM radio that you can shut the phone part off and only use it as the other three beneficial gadgets unless you need/want a phone. Takes decent pictures and holds a good charge when it ain't a phone.
Can it download a pizza?
Originally I'd planned on carrying my cell phone on my upcoming LT thru hike, I'd even purchased a 2.5oz generator charger for it. I decided some time ago to forego the phone for two reasons: I wanted to have more of the feeling of isolation, and in the areas where I was most likely to have a real problem there was no cell service. I'd wanted to keep my trail journal current, but I decided that would take a back seat to the trip itself. I'll keep a few notes, take some photos, and post it all when I get back. The trip is the thing, not communicating about the trip or talking regularly to anyone while on it.
SGT Rock
05-01-2007, 17:26
Nope. But I bet some pizza places have 800 numbers LOL. I reckon I ought to set that up on speed dial before I go hiking next year.
mountain squid
05-01-2007, 17:32
A cell phone certainly is not 'essential'. However, there are times when it might be 'convenient'. Specifically, in ME when town stops are further off the trail and the road crossings don't see much vehicular traffic, making a hitch difficult to come by. You can call one of the hostels from a high peak prior to the road and they will come pick you up.
There may be a few other times when a cell phone would be 'convenient', but that is what comes to my mind...
See you on the trail (& at Trail Days),
mt squid
Add 800-FREE411 (800-373-3411) to your cell phone. It is a 411 directory service, handy from your cell or as a lookup in town - no charge, except the cell minutes. No need to program every pizza joint along the trail.
Ramble~On
05-01-2007, 20:14
:D Used to be I was all sorts of against cell phones on the trail....now, i carry one too -guess I need to have a talk with myself....but I only have one phone...guess I could text myself and read it later ?
My phone is turned off except for when I want to use it and i would never use it around a shelter or where other people would hear my conversation.
I do a bit of solo hiking and my phone comes in really handy for changing
pick up times and places, emergencies and things like that.
Like Sgt. Rock said.....a cell phone is a multi use tool..with it I don't need to carry a watch, pen or paper.
I consider a cell phone a luxury item rather than an essential.
Here's the vibe that is getting more and more prevalent in our culture as each year goes by: that it is irresponsible to be in a position, even briefly, where you cannot contact others and others cannot contact you. (My mother-in-law really layed a guilt trip on my wife back when she didn't carry a cell phone for car trips -- the prospect of car trouble without a cell phone is now supposed to be a reckless act and the ultimate horror, it seems.)
It's maddening. It has really warped the whole concept of what it means to be "independent." In my less tolerant moments it feels to me like people wedded to their cell phones are pathetically needy, or have an exaggerated sense of their own importance (people at home or work NEED me), or both. "OK, honey, I'm leaving the convenience store now and I will call you again in ten minutes when I get to work. Has Junior contacted you in the last fifteen minutes? He hasn't? He hasn't contacted me either and he knows he's supposed to call us as soon as he gets to school to let us know he's safe. I'm gonna call him." You get the idea. It's as if we need constant outside validation of our existence -- our own powers of introspection and contemplation just aren't enough, apparently.
Of course most of the time I'm much more easy going than this and can understand the reasons people might want to stay in touch, even in remote places (like some sections of trail) where that didn't used to be possible. So please don't stone me, folks:D . But I like the idea of walking down the trail with nothing but your wits between you and whatever scary or wonderful things are out there in the world (natural or otherwise).
fiddlehead
05-02-2007, 00:36
I'm sure i'll get some abuse for this but i would carry a cell phone if i was hiking again simply because i can work. My business can't afford to be out of contact with me for very long. So, if it means i can hike if i take the phone or cannot if i don't, hey, i'm taking it.
Of course it's a moot point for me cause i now have a 1 1/2 year old boy so won't be thru-hiking for at least 10 more years again. But i have my phone with me at all times anymore, even when i'm jogging. (not swimming though)
Sorry for those who think i'm wrong to mix fun and work but that's how it is when you live my lifestyle. I've been called a tru****nder but in reality, i just work a lot and at what i like to do.
Cell phones aren't really essential.. the advertizers and cell phone companies just want you to think they are.
Question for you cell phone users.. suppose some cell phone company wants to put up a tower on oh say.. Mt Moosilauke, or Saddleback, or on top of Max Patch or...name your peak... will you say that is ok because we need them for safety?? We got a long without em for thousands of years. Now we need them? come on! Hey they (state of NH) put one 300+ foot tower on top of Mt Kearsarge here in NH for just this reason.
I really wish more AT (thru) hikers cared about the wilderness they walk through. I think of all the kids that were just walking or running from town to town. More interested in bars than the serentity of the mountains. I met Guys who bought black berrys with them. Checking emails at shelters. Why don't I hear people complaining about the cell phone towers? Cell phones aren't just tiny slim devices that allow people to annoy others with their private but very public conversations. They are big ugly towers on mountain tops and other places. Even when disguisd they are visible.
If there are places on the AT where you will be out of touch for days or god forbid a full week..then all I can say is thank heavens. If you gotta be always in touch, 24/7 then stay in the damn city!!
And if J.T. read this.. I am not backing down.
David
If there are places on the AT where you will be out of touch for days or god forbid a full week..then all I can say is thank heavens. If you gotta be always in touch, 24/7 then stay in the damn city!!
If you read the stories on this forum or the many journals of long-distance AT hikers, there's an issue that comes up again and again, concerning married folks on long hikes, when only one spouse hikes. Young folks, carefree and single, don't really deal with the same issue.
Here's the odd thing. In the "real world" I hardly use my cell phone at all. I've got no kids to keep track of, no business to transact. But I'll be doing a six-week section hike in a few months, and I will have my phone with me. As it stands, my wife is already apprehensive about a six-week separation. We've been married 15 years. She knows how much hiking means to me, even if she doesn't really understand what it's all about.
Is the cell phone essential in any way? No. I could of course call her as I can, every few days when I'm in town. But that would be nowhere near as convenient, and would reduce the chances of actually connecting with her in person, as opposed to our answering machine.
Yes, the phone is a "tether" to civilization, but there are many such. Heck just wearing a watch, when you think about it. Or carrying maps. I see the phone as a means to preserve marital harmony during my hikes. It's been good for that.
greentick
05-02-2007, 09:34
Murphy's Law dictates when you REALLY need it the cell phone will fail or you won't have reception.
I take mine to check in with my wife at some point before we stop for the night. It makes her happy which makes it easier for me to hike the next time. She doesn't care how "good in the woods" I am or what I have done and experience previously in my life. If she hears my voice and knows all is well she can sleep easier at night. It stays turned off other than these commo checks.
When banana dan and I did a 6 day section last fall he got a little heat exhaustion. He's young and in great shape so a sit in the shade for 20minutes plus a liter of electrolytes and he was good to go (minus a layer). For a minute I was thinking "what am I going to do if he got worse cuz the phone is dead." My phone was dead because the Sidewinder phone charger crapped out after about 100 turns. For the next time I have a no-moving-parts charger that uses 2 AA batts.
I guess my point is if you take one, don't take it because you are going to rely on it to come thru in a pinch. It may just let you down. Similar to thinking GPS will solve your land navigation woes or replace a map/compass.
Ah, Terrapin too, i have admired the wisdom of your comments (honest!) and this one is right on. I, too solo hike year round, am middle-aged with grown kids who care about me... and my wife knows that a 24 to 48 hour period without seeing anyone on the AT during winter months mid week is quite common. While we both know that cell phone coverage isn't complete by any means, in an emergency i'm way more likely to be able to make contact, or at least to be able to make contact without going too far, and that is a great comfort to the woman i love. yes, and i do check in regulary enough so she has a pretty good idea of how far i've gotten.
I manage some rental condos and have found a definite trend towards cell phones from land lines. Once people have it with them it seems to be something that they always want to have with them.
Map Man (post #13) said it all. I agree 100%.
saimyoji
05-02-2007, 10:37
I've been called a tru****nder but in reality, i just work a lot and at what i like to do.
t r u s t f u n d e r ? ?
Gray Blazer
05-02-2007, 11:00
Someone was telling me, maybe it was Mala, that you can use your cell phone to have Hertz (when you rent a car, of course) pick you up and drop you off at some of the major intersections of the AT. If that's true, imagine the possibilities.
Fiddleback
05-02-2007, 11:01
"...the prospect of car trouble without a cell phone is now supposed to be a reckless act and the ultimate horror, it seems.)"
That's the only time I do carry a cell phone. There's no reception in my community and I have no use for one when I'm in town. However, for a little under $8 a month (TracFone) I can carry one in the car for 'emergencies.' In the five years or so I've been carrying it I've probably made a total 15 calls and most of those were to my Lady to let her know I was on the way home from late night meetings in town. One was for car trouble but it was from the center of town.:rolleyes:
TracFone has turned out to be a good deal for us. For well under a hundred dollars I can buy a year's service and 250 minutes (I've got 950 accrued now). To my point of view, that's not too expensive to carry one in the car.
I've considered carrying the phone on backpack trips, especially when I solo but, again, there's the coverage issue. So far it's stayed in the car at the trailhead.
FB
rjridgely
05-02-2007, 11:27
The call phone companies have convinced a huge part of the population that they must stay connected, to whomever, 24/7. I have never had a cell for that very reason, ie: I prefer to remain UN-connected at all times when I am not at work or at home. Can't call me in my truck, can't call me on the trail, can't call me at the pub....etc.
I have never owned a cell phone (redundant) so coverage has never been a problem for me.
Maybe, just maybe, when I do GA to Gettysburg in '09, if a device exists that is also a camera, and music box and gps positioner AND takes regular batteries....I would concider ther purchase.
But please...Don't call me......I'll call you.
ps. I wish I could type sarcasm better
Maybe, just maybe, when I do GA to Gettysburg in '09, if a device exists that is also a camera, and music box and gps positioner AND takes regular batteries....I would concider ther purchase.
Actually, you can get a cell phone that is a camera, mp3 player and a gps device. You may not find this with regular batteries, but you can get a solar recharger.
Like the poster that talked about multiple functionality, this thread re-raised for me an issue I keep thinking is closed ... what and how much to carry in the way of electronics?
Yes, I'm somewhat of a geek by nature, but *in* nature my inclination is to carry the least possible. For my PCT trip next year I'm inclined to carry a GPS, however --- not really needed perhaps, but a security blanket for me, I've infrequently found myself not really sure which is the real trail. I carry a digital camera. I'd like to carry some sort of journaling solution, but don't want to pay the weight cost, but I'll carry some paper. I'm inclined to bring an MP3 player (music plus books) --- not to tune out the wilderness, but for the long boring times. And per this thread, a cell phone would be nice as pay phones get ever more thin on the ground.
We're getting closer to the point that a single device can do all of those things; it seems like it's the camera image quality that suffers the most. But if I were to carry a separate GPS plus a camera plus an MP3 player, the total weight cost (with all lithium batteries even) might be something in the 10 to 12 oz range. I should be able to get a single device that does most or all of these things and more, throw in a solar charger, and maybe even a separate keyboard (journalling) and not necessarily come out a loser as a result. ??
Somewhat expensive, but one example of such a device is the Pharos GPS Phone 600, http://www.pharosgps.com/products/all-in-one/PTL600.htm
5.2 oz, so I would think that even adding a solar charger would keep within the weight limit of what I'd be carrying anyway.
I'm interested in hearing of any others experiences in bring a sort of "all in one" electronic device, both upsides and downsides. I can think of several of both; you sort of have all of your eggs in one basket, but if it's a nice enough basket, and if none of the eggs are absolutely essential, then ...
superman
05-02-2007, 12:38
Essential....I've never had a cell phone. My excuse is that I have zero cell phone reception at my house. I can't image how I survived 60 years without one. Then again I have no idea what an ipod, text message or blueberry is. My younger son tries to keep me in this century by making sure I have some sort of pumped up computer. Apparently I don't use that right either. “Safety” used to mean bringing the right gear for the situations and dealing with it yourself. Now safety is translated into carrying a cell phone. I don't know anyone in my life who can't wait until I make a town stop to get a call. When I was young I would be out of contact with people for months and the world still turned. I try not to stay in shelters anyway but when I stop in for water or what ever it seems like they are turning into phone booths. I remember two young thru-hikers in 2000 that in an effort to be ultra light they didn't carry the gear they needed to stay warm. In “99” on the LT I hiked with a retiree called Banjo Man. He patiently explained trail edicate as we hiked. Trail etiquette and norms have shifted a lot since then in my most humble opinion.
Sorry to say but i do carry a cell phone. It stays off unless i needed it. I do check voice mail here an there because if something happens to my family, i'd like to know sooner rather than later but i guess to some people on here they could care less to find out if a family member was in an accident or dead. I guess their theory is well i'll find out next time i get to a town with a phone!
o yeah and for those who want to stay "un connected" most phones carry an option called off button.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
05-02-2007, 13:14
We carry one because we have 9 kids (all adults), 19 grandkids (10 to 25), 5.5 great-grandkids (due in August - 6), two very elderly parents and a dear aunt -- mom and aunt in very poor health. We also have a higher than average probability of having a medical emergency given our age and medical problems. While I try not to use it when others are around, I do turn it on and retrieve messages on mountain tops and near towns.
bigcranky
05-02-2007, 21:01
I work at a university, and the students are constantly on the phone. On the way to class, between classes, after class, all day and all night on the phone. It's almost comical to stand on the main quad and watch every single student walk by talking on the phone -- even in groups, each one talking to someone else who isn't there. I think they are proving to each other that they really do have friends.
During our March section hike we ran into a couple at a shelter who spent about 3 straight hours on their phone. Calling the office. Calling the kids. The phone rings, and it's someone else. They just sat there and gabbed away like no one else was around. Grrrrr. Shoulda kept going, but we were wiped out.
Interestingly enough, I usually carried a phone on weekend hikes, but left it at home on this 8-day section. I didn't miss it at all. Called home from a pay phone in Hot Springs, using a cheap calling card (which weighs a lot less than a cell phone).
So, no, a cell phone isn't required equipment. Some folks like them, others don't. Just please don't use the durn thing where other hikers can hear/see you.
superman
05-03-2007, 07:16
...as I mentioned the shelters are turning into phone booths and the use of cell phones follows no trail ediquette.
The last time I flew I was sitting in the airport waiting for my flight and most folks had a cell phone at their ear. In years past I used to fly much more and in these situations people who were strangers would hold casual conversations. I had met some very interesting people that way.
I suspect there is an element of using a cell phone as a barrier to those people who are actually present. It may be nice to stay in touch with your family and friends but sometimes it may be done at the expense of meeting new and interesting people.
Flame away...LOL
If you listen in on a few cell phone conversations, I think you will find most are b*tching about something. Personally, I would rather they b*tch on their phone than at me.
So there I am, on a rock watching the world, when behind me some guy does the guess where I am thing. So I walk by, giving him the view, and say "Loud." Gave me an idea. I now walk by and respond to their conversation. They turn their back, then try to walk away, then often say "I gotta go, some a$$hole is listening." Hilarious. But then I am twisted...
I have had people stop and ask for directions, then ask me to wait while they talk about nothing.
Cell phones have their place.
So there I am, on a rock watching the world, when behind me some guy does the guess where I am thing. So I walk by, giving him the view, and say "Loud." Gave me an idea. I now walk by and respond to their conversation. They turn their back, then try to walk away, then often say "I gotta go, some a$$hole is listening." Hilarious. But then I am twisted...
I have had people stop and ask for directions, then ask me to wait while they talk about nothing.
Cell phones have their place.
That is the best idea I've heard in years.
rswanson
05-03-2007, 14:52
A cell phone is considered essential equipment, not by me but my wife and family. If I make myself purposely unavailable to them when I'm hiking, it heightens their anxiety. I'll sometimes call my wife for weather updates, too.
Also, I don't see any harm in using a cell to CYA. I'd rather have the ability to call for help if I, say, break an ankle and have help waiting ahead for me on the trail.
Hmmm the title of this thread was a bit misleading. I was hoping to have open it to a nice conversation on "essential gear" supposedly for 3 season hiking.
Anyhow I will make this my first post.
Is a cell phone essential?
No.
Should people be able to use them (responsibly and not catch flak for it)?
Yes.
I lost a friend in 2005, couldn't sleep at all and decided to go for a dayhike at 5:30 in the morning. I didn't come back for three days :0
I met up with a thruhiker group in CT section who were super nice and ended up slackpacking with them for 2 nights and three days. One of the women I was with (Sequine Sisters GAME 05) had a cell phone she kept off at all times unless they had to make an important phone call. She let me use it once to explain to my parents what I was doing. I didn't know she had it until I asked...
I feel we should try to be considerate of others at shelters and just in general (on the trail or not). Phone etiquette is just a part of it. I will carry one Southbound this summer and mostly it will be 3.7 oz of dead weight and kept off yet I also think it will come in very handy when I do use it every once in awhile.
I'm not taking it for emergency situations in the backcountry. I can see various reason as why to not have one as well though. Hope this gives a slighly positive spin on this topic and I wish I could have these few minutes back it took writing it. ;0)
Pleasure to meet y'all. :)
Skidsteer
05-09-2007, 23:06
:welcome to WB, Jonesy. :D
Cannibal
05-10-2007, 09:15
One of the main reason I'm doing a thru is to catch a break from the daily grind of being a grown-up. I can't think of any other items that represent that grind as well as my cell phone. I have no desire to feel it, hear it, or see it during my hike.
That said, it will be somewhere buried in my pack; turned off. Why not carry something that is not heavy and could very well save a life when minutes matter.
If anyone sees me with it in my hand and I'm not standing over a body, you have my permisson to throw sticks at me until I hang up. No rocks please, those hurt!