Satellite Communicator (Garmin In Reach Mini II) questions.

[dogbrain]

I have a mini given to me by a concerned friend. I keep it turned off in the front pocket of my pfd. For those of you who clip it to the outside of your pfd, or just below your chin on a backpack strap, why? I’ve seen backpackers do that and wondered why it needs to be on and so accessible at all times. Not criticizing, just curious.

Mark

 

[recped]

Mine (old Delorme version InReach), is inside my PFD pocket, no need to have it dangling where it could disappear or get tangled. Mine is on at all times when I'm moving because I'm tracking which can be viewed online in real time (for my fans!).

Once I stop to camp, I send out a generic message and then turn it off. I only turn it on when setting out the next morning unless I want to send a message or get a weather forecast during the night.

 

[Gamma1214]

...wondered why it needs to be on and so accessible at all times.

As stated earlier, mine is on & clipped to my belt from the time I break camp until I settle in for the night. It allows friends & family to see where I am in real time (which both my father and my youngest daughter love to do; checking it throughout the day). I share the base maps & my planned itinerary with a few family members before I leave and they can then see if I'm making the progress I'd expected.

By having it on & tracking all day, it also creates the tracking "maps" that I include in my trip reports. It probably wouldn't need to be extremely accessible for any of that except that I want it on me (not a pfd or pack from which I can become separated).

I look at it like an insurance policy: I hope I never need it but, if I do, I want it where I can reach it regardless of the extent of my injuries or my physical condition. (I'm always solo and I think that fact also adds just a bit of extra caution to my habits).

 

[Black_Fly]

I keep my PLB fastened to my PFD. That way, if I lose contact with my packs, or am injured and can’t move, I still have my failsafe at my disposal. I’m considering a new device, one that sends messages. Waterproofing is a key feature I’d want, or I’d carry both the WP PLB on my person and another device in a dry bag.

 

[recped]

I can't speak to all of the available devices but can confirm that both SPOT and InReach are sufficiently waterproof to survive a long swim, their IPX ratings suggest 30 minutes immersion at 1 metre depth. If you are floating at the surface they should survive much longer.

If you dump in the middle of a large lake you should be pushing the SOS button right away unless you are absolutely sure that you can reach shore.

 

[yknpdlr]

I can't speak to all of the available devices but can confirm that both SPOT and InReach are sufficiently waterproof to survive a long swim, their IPX ratings suggest 30 minutes immersion at 1 metre depth. If you are floating at the surface they should survive much longer.

If you dump in the middle of a large lake you should be pushing the SOS button right away unless you are absolutely sure that you can reach shore.

My spot was mounted on the bow deck of my voyageur canoe in front of me for each of my five Yukon races including two 1000 milers. Exposed to sun and thunder storms with its patch antenna pointed skyward, except when we were behind high cliff shadow, it never failed to send out our location coordinate messages when required

 

[Black_Fly]

My PLB is an ACR. I have no idea if it works. It’s 10 years old. I had the battery replaced once.

 

[Paddlinhal]

The Nahanni Park Service was considering whether to evacuate us by helicopter last summer, due to a 6 inch rainfall event. The inreach messaging allowed the park ranger to text us, we retreated to higher ground, and we bivouacked for three days until the water levels receded. Of course that requires that you contact the park ranger with your contact info before you set out.

 

[Gamma1214]

Of course that requires that you contact the park ranger with your contact info before you set out.

Good idea. Whether a park office or a local friend (I've used Mem for intel on the past 2 Ontario trips), having someone local on your contacts list can be invaluable.

 

[Zac]

For those that have used multiple devices, which device would you recommend? I have never owned a PLB or a satellite communicator but I figure there's no better time than now, especially as I see more and more of my trips becoming solos. I've been pricing out the different plans: I'm not too keen on paying a yearly subscription for a device I will be using maybe 8 weeks of the year.

 

[recped]

I think the InReach fee when suspended is $6 month (I'm on a 9 year old plan so new subscriptions could be a bit different. You only pay the full fee when the device is active and even that is prorated so if you only use for one week you pay 25% of whatever plan you are on.

I don't really enjoy spending $60/year when I'm not using it but it's acceptable given the only alternative is to reactivate (and pay the activation fee) when you want to use it but that would only be a savings if you just used it once per year.

I have an old pre-garmin InReach that does not come with any mapping (I have a separate GPS), at some point I'll upgrade to a newer Garmin unit or perhaps my current one will last long enough that I can move directly to a satellite enabled smartphone.

One thing I can say for sure, all of these devices are cheaper and better than using a Sat Phone.

I would not go with any one way device like a PLB.

I'm not sure if it matters as much these days, in the past one important thing was which satellite system the device uses, Irridium was the most reliable a few years ago and may still be.

 

[Gamma1214]

@Zac, I have no experience with anything other than the Garmin but the yearly fee (US$) is only $35 and I use the recreation plan so I activate / deactivate as I'll use it and that comes to another $35 a month. I'm considering adding the SOS insurance (they'll pay up to $100K for an emergency extraction for $40 a year) but I haven't decided I need that yet.

I really like the simplicity of the Garmin and the interface with the Earthmate app on my phone (recent trip notwithstanding but that was totally my fault... I'll explain in the TR...)

I looked at everything before I bought and, at that time, decided that the Garmin (although the initial purchase price was hard to swallow) was the best deal in the long run. That's been a few years now, so let us know what you land on & why.

 

[Zac]

Thanks for your replies, I ended up going with the Mini2. Really liked the size and I've always had good luck with Garmin products.

 

[Tsuga8]

I have been disappointed with my Garmin InReach Messenger since I got it about a year ago, for two reasons.

My main reason for getting it was urgent/emergency comms in the backcountry. I navigate by map, compass and phone GPS (Avenza app and GeoPDFs) these days.

1) I was disappointed to learn that the much touted phone app will not connect to my phone without wifi/data service. I put my phone on airplane mode in the backcountry as this vastly improves battery life, and I use my phone most as a camera, and as a back-up navigation aid after map/compass (frankly, aerial imagery on my phone really makes finding inlet/outlet streams in confusing marshy areas much easier than trial-and-error). Once I hit airplane mode, even if I turn blue-tooth back on, the Garmin app won't reconnet to the Garmin. Heaven forbid you want to turn your phone off or need to restart it in the backcountry. I can't imagine why Garmin programmers thought this was an acceptable arrangement.

2) Last weekend I did a two-night trip in the St Regis/Floodwood area of the ADKs. Cell service was very spotty (Verizon/Galaxy S10) but I got a few SMS messages sent and received standing on particular rocks or in certain spots in Long Pond. I was trying to keep up with a family situation at home that arose after I left, and I was debating ending the trip early (family is fine now). I tried sending two custom messages (a huge pain to type out on the Garmin without the app) to my wife; neither sent, nor was there indication of whether they'd sent or not. They still show in our message history both on my Garmin online account and in the device, but she never got them. While attempting to send, I had the device out and held level. I left it out for a while, and refreshed the 'check for messages' function several times. I was on the edge of Long Pond and Slang Pond respectively for the message attempts. Canopy cover was probably less than 50% (being zero over the lake, and reasonably dense on shore). At the beginning and end of the trip, check-in presets did send to her successfully.

Today I tested the Garmin from the yard and was able to send a custom message to her phone and get one back from her. Canopy cover was minimal in the yard, though I was about 10yrds from the house and we do have trees around the edge of the yard. I'm pretty frustrated that when I really wanted the thing to send and receive messages, it seemed to fail without much indication that it did, or why. Would an SOS really send if I need it? What if I get hurt on a portage under full canopy? My confidence is not inspired.

 

[Gamma1214]

I would recommend checking in with Garmin on these issues as your experience doesn't seem normal. Might be something in your settings or might be an issue with your Garmin but they should be able to help.

I've had mine for several years now, regularly go off-grid and spend a week or more without wifi. I don't use airplane mode since I carry sufficient battery packs to maintain charge on all electronics but I turn the phone off every night. I had uninstalled & reinstalled the app before the last trip, neglected to download the Canadian maps and it still worked fine for messaging.

The only issue I've had is that there have been 2 times where I could not get a weather report immediately because it said it could not fix my location exactly but the requested weather report came through in the next 15 minutes.

I hope Garmin can fix it for you, it should certainly connect without data or wifi.

 

[memaquay]

I think it might be the airplane mode giving you trouble, as I have never had a problem in areas where there is no cell service. I usually keep my phone turned off all day, I have a dedicated camera, and I turn it on at night to send and receive messages.

 

[Keeled Over]

I think it might be the airplane mode giving you trouble, as I have never had a problem in areas where there is no cell service. I usually keep my phone turned off all day, I have a dedicated camera, and I turn it on at night to send and receive messages.

That was my exact experience - airplane mode screwed me.

 

[Simuliumvenustum]

I spent four days in the Floodwood Pond/St. Regis wilderness area in July, and like Tsuga8, I had poor cell service. I relied on my Garmin InReach Mini II to stay connected with my tripping buddies (via their InReach devices) and family at home and get weather forecasts downloaded into the Garmin Explorer app on my phone.

From my experiences with the three Garmin InReach devices I have owned (Explorer, original InReach Mini, and now InReach Mini II), I know how frustrating it is when there is an issue pairing it with my phone app. All three of my Garmin InReach devices use a Bluetooth signal to pair with my phone, not Wi-Fi. Bluetooth uses very little battery power and remains active even when the phone is in airplane mode as long as it is enabled, so as Gamma1214 suggested, make sure the Bluetooth setting is enabled. Also, I can check which Bluetooth devices are connected in the settings menu on my Apple iPhone. Sometimes, when my phone fails to connect to a paired device, I can connect it by re-selecting it.

Hopefully, your connection issue can be readily resolved, and it is not a problem with your hardware, Tsuga8. I had to call Garmin support once, and they were very helpful in resolving my issue. Garmin has an excellent webpage for troubleshooting pairing issues. (https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=jLbWCCrMCr1caJItxOLu28#:~:text=Confirm Bluetooth Pairing is Enabled,to open the main menu)
https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=4U1rUmI9LrAPazoGCKpuC6.

Good luck, Tsuga8.

 

[tketcham]

Interesting discussion(s), and timely. I was introduced to the Garmin inReach line of satellite messengers this summer on a canoe trip and especially liked the ability to get up-to-date weather forecasts. Came in handy one day when thunder storms had originally been predicted a few days before; it allowed us to better plan out the day.

The other function I thought was good was the ability to send a message without cell phone coverage. I'm planning on doing some solo canoe trips now that I've completely revamped my setup and being able to let my spouse know I'm OK is important to her. But I don't trust my Tracfone Android phone enough to depend on it for anything, so using it as the interface with a Garmin mini isn't something I'd even consider. Plus, I have a tenuous relationship with smart phones in the first place and I try to avoid depending on them. Personal problem, I know.

I decided to get a Garmin inReach Explorer+, which provides messaging functions and the ability to receive (and read) hourly weather forecasts but then found out they were no longer being sold. That's how I ended up ordering a GPSMAP 67i. Way more money than I wanted to spend () but it seems like a reasonable blend of messaging and navigation in a rugged unit. For navigation I already use a good, dependable navigation tool, the Garmin GPSMAP 64s. I just bring extra batteries and I'm good for a week and more. So I'm curious to compare the navigation capabilities and features of the GPSMAP 67i with my GPSMAP 64s. I may decide to leave the 64s home and just use the 67i and get a USB battery bank for longer trips.

Or just use a paper map and let life unfold as it may.

 

[recped]

This is the problem with the Mini versions, for full functionality they need to be paired with a smartphone. I have an old Delorme InReach (no mapping), it's doesn't have as good of an antenna so connecting can be slow and it doesn't work well (slow) under heavy cover. I travel with people who have the Garmin Explorer models, they can always send/receive much better than mine which really needs a clear line of sight. I tried once to pair it with a phone but I could never get it to work so I'm stuck with the really slow/clunky built in keyboard.