Ever been lost? I have. Ever been really lost and hurt to the point of being immobilized in inclement weather or far from home on an out of state hunt in remote wilderness? I have not. I consider myself fortunate.
In the words of the immortal Daniel Boone, when asked if he had ever been lost, he said, "NO I have never been lost, but I did get disoriented for about 3 weeks one time".
Knowing that guys like Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett got lost at least temporarily, makes me feel a little better about my 21'st century lack of woodsmanship skills and my inherently bad sense of direction. Truth is, it can happen to anyone, anywhere at any time. Fortunately most of the time, no one is the worse for wear, except for their pride. In fact, I am told it is embarrassment of admitting one is lost, that often presents serious complications to getting found.
I always carry (2) compasses, since I like to argue with one. It is hard to argue against two separate compass readings and a GPS unit.
That being said, it is still possible to get really lost, or more importantly to become seriously injured by breaking a leg, slipping a disc, or cutting oneself etc. You may not actually be lost, however you may not be in physical shape to make it back to your vehicle or base camp etc. You may have a medical condition that will worsen without immediate care, such as insulin shock if your are a diabetic. Add to the equation, severe climatic conditions such as freezing rain, snow and ice, high winds and your very survival might be in jeopardy if you had to spend a night in the outdoors.
There is now an affordable answer to this sort of situation and it is a handheld personal locator for emergencies called S.P.O.T. It is a unique, easy to carry satellite personal locator that just might save your life someday.
Features of the SPOT device include:
Built in GPS receiver
Built in satellite modem and transmit antenna - transmit ONLY
Lightweight 7.4 oz
Runs on 2AA lithium batteries
Waterproof - floats if dropped
Humidity and salt fog rated
Operating temperature -40F to plus 185F
Device sends and saves your current location on an internet site every 10 mins to view progress on Google maps
Requires a $99 annual fee for unlimited service
Device itself sells for around $150 at the time of this POST
Is it foolproof? NO as nothing mechanical or electrical is foolproof.
Do I own one? NO, not yet anyway. If I were heading to a very remote area, semi-guided or on my own, I think I would definitely spend the money, familiarize myself with the device and consider myself fortunate if I bought it and didn't need it.
As mentioned in these posts previously, I am one of those guys who would rather have it and not need it that need it and not have it.
Check it out on line - go to Google and just type in SPOT locator and you will be able to see it and read more detail, or hopefully just click on one of the ads with this post for SPOT.
Dan
Proverbs 21:21 KJV "He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness, and honour"
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