Last week I made arrangements to take out a fairly large loan from savings (thank you dear Linda) for the purchase of supplies and gear for the coming pack trip. Time is getting short, so Dad and I are evaluating our gear, repairing what needs it, replacing what we can’t repair, and buying what we don’t have.

I recently went on one of my favorite supplier online stores and put nearly $4,500 worth of gear on my “Wish List”. We’ll see how much of that I actually order. I have to admit that some of what is on that list is “want-to-have” stuff, rather than “need-for-the-pack-trip” stuff.

Yesterday I drove up to American Fork, to the Cabela’s store and spent nearly $1,000. I bought several items that I consider to be necessaries for the trip. I’ll address each item in detail and give my first impressions of them. During the trip and after it is done I’ll post a test-report on each and my opinions about them.

Recently, a good friend of my father, Dick Goodman, who will be helping us with logistics, advised us to buy a satellite phone, so we could call out if we had an emergency.  The idea that we could keep folks posted on our whereabouts and call out in case of emergency is a thought that had crossed my mind, but sometimes it takes someone else’s suggestion to bring an idea into focus. You have to remember that Dad and I both grew up before the advent of electricity…er, I mean cell phone and GPS technology, and sometimes we forget about things like that in our planning.

So, I went shopping at Cabela’s in Lehi, Utah to see what was available.

What I found was a number of Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) units by a couple of makers, several models of “Spot” emergency locators (which a friend had recommended), one model of satellite telephone, and several models of GPS units by DeLorme. After looking over the various capabilities, features, and options of a number of units, I settled on the DeLorme InReach Explorer, priced at $379.99.

The DeLorme InReach Explorer is a GPS unit, utilizing the Iridium GPS system. It has all the functionality of a regular GPS handheld, but also allows two-way texting via satellite. Not only that, but it also uploads details to my personal and Western Trail Rider facebook pages, as well as to DeLorme’s Map Share application*, accessed through their website, so all my friends and relatives can track our progress.

The one thing that might appear to be an issue with this unit is the small screen size. Maps? Nope, too small. Howsoever, this unit will talk to my iphone 6 as well as Android phones, by use of the Earthmate app that can be found through the App Store or any Android app site. The unit talks to the phones via Bluetooth, so cell coverage isn’t necessary. So, I will get all the map information on my iphone 6 in all its glory. In fact, through the Earthmate app, I am downloading the high-resolution map sets I will need to my phone as I type this post.

Once the unit is fully charged, one must follow the explicit instructions in the user’s manual provided with the unit for initiating and setting it up. Not following the instructions in order can cause problems that otherwise would easily be avoided. The first thing to know is NOT TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT FIRST READING THE MANUAL! The unit has an emergency beacon/call button/function that will send out an emergency call if inadvertently activated. The button has a lock associated with it, so it is quite safely secured, however, if you are like most people, particularly men like me, when they get a new toy they immediately start pushing buttons to see what they do. If you unlock the button and press it, you might get emergency vehicles and rescue helicopters arriving at your location. More on the SOS function later.

As I said, the first step is to ensure the unit is fully charged. While the unit is charging, become familiar with the various buttons and functionalities of the unit by reading the manual. While you’re at it, download the Earthmate app to your phone from the Apple App Store or your favorite Android site. Step two is to create your DeLorme InReach account online and select an airtime plan subscription.

DeLorme offers a variety of plans under two headings: Freedom Plans and Annual Plans. Both offer various options for functions and payments, with the Annual Plan options being significantly reduced in price.

The Annual option, meaning you subscribe to regular monthly service and subscription payments for a period of one year, requires an initial subscription premium of $19.95. The lowest priced plan, called the “Safety Plan” runs $11.95 per month and includes the bare minimum of functionality: Unlimited SOS, 10 texts, 10-minute tracking intervals, and tracking points and location pings at ten cents each. The highest plan runs $79.95 per month and includes unlimited SOS, texts, tracking points, and pings, and 2-minute tracking intervals.  One can change plans at anytime for a fee of $24.95.

The Freedom Plan means you can activate your coverage at any time for the month or months you require. This plan requires an initial subscription premium of $24.95. The monthly fees are slightly higher than those of the Annual Plan, but offer the same options for functionality. For instance, the low and high plans under the Freedom Plans run $14.95 and $99.95 per month, respectively, compared to $11.95 and $79.95 under the Annual Plans. However, one can change the coverage under the Freedom Plans without fee simply by selecting that plan when activating. Changing from the Freedom to the Annual plans subscription requires payment of a change fee of $24.95.

I selected the Recreation Plan under the Freedom Plans subscription for my trip. It offers unlimited SOS, 40 texts, 10-minuted tracking intervals, and unlimited tracking points and pings. After the first leg of our trip I will decide whether to upgrade to the Expedition Plan, which offers unlimited texts. The Recreation Plan runs $34.95 per month, while the Expedition Plan runs $64.95 per month.

After creating your account and activating a plan, and making payment via credit card, you can set up your options and add contacts, set up your preset messages and responses for texting, and set up your “sharing”. The menus on the unit are easily navigated by use of the small thumb pad, using the button with the check-mark as the “enter” button. The “X” button is the “back” and “stop” button. You can also access and control the unit on the phone through the Earthmate app, including activating the SOS function.

The third step in the initiation and setup process is to  go outside and make sure you have a broad and clear view of the sky. Turn the unit on, point the antenna in the air and  wait. When you set up the DeLorme account online, DeLorme sends out a welcome message as a test to make sure the connection has been made. You will see a little green light on the face, which indicates you have a message waiting. If the light turns red, you have an urgent message waiting. Please note that this little light only indicates messages waiting and does not indicate satellite coverage for the GPS function! You will respond to the welcome text with a simple response text, which tests your unit’s ability to send texts. This process may take up to 20 minutes to finalize, so be patient.

Once you are able to send your text response, the GPS unit has been initialized and is ready for use. You are then ready to complete the setup process by calibrating the altimeter and digital compass functions. You are also ready to make the Bluetooth connection with your phone and start setting up your personalized functions and options on your Earthmate app.

I had trouble getting my iphone and DeLorme Explorer unit talking to each other. I finally decided to try connecting the unit to my Apple Macbook Pro by USB cable (included) to see whether an update option would appear when it connected. It did! The update took several minutes to complete. I noticed that the “message waiting” light blinked red and green during the update. Do not unplug your unit from the computer or shut down your computer until the update is completed! Once the update completed, my unit connected right up to my iphone 6.

Calibrating the altimeter is not a one-time thing. Although it will always be approximately correct by just using the GPS as reference, it is a good idea to reset the altimeter at the beginning of or during an adventure by finding a point at which the elevation is certain, such as at a trailhead where elevations are often shown on trail signs, and using that elevation to set the unit. You may also set the function by using barometric pressure readings from a reliable source nearby, such as airport weather reporting.

The compass is calibrated by initiating that function through the settings menu. After selecting “Calibrate Compass” you simply move the compass in a figure-8 pattern, making sure the antenna moves through all directions in reference to the ground several times until you hear a beep, indicating the process is complete. As with the altimeter, it is a good idea to recalibrate the compass at the beginning of each new trip.

The SOS function is activated by sliding the “lock” switch on the face of the unit to the left, exposing a red line, indicating the function is now available. By then pressing the SOS button, the function is activated, sending out SOS messages to GEOS, the DeLorme monitoring center, which will then dispatch rescue services to your location. The SOS function can also be activated through the menu, by selecting the SOS icon, then pressing the “enter” button (the one with the check-mark), or by using the phone app and selecting the SOS function from the menu. Use this only in time of true emergency, as this will set in motion a very expensive bunch of fast-turning wheels.

As I look through the maps on my iphone 6, the resolution is sufficient that I can see excellent topographical detail, however at the magnification level needed to see marked trails, the viewable area of the map is quite small. I find it difficult to be able to see where a particular trail goes, as one would be able to do on a map, without simply following it on the touch screen. While one can gain greater perspective by zooming out, the dashed-line marking trails disappears after only two clicks out. A larger screen would alleviate the problem proportionate to the size of the screen, but this issue is not a problem with the Explorer, it’s simply the size of my phone display. I am pretty old-fashioned and still feel more comfortable with a paper map in my hands, however, for the Mexico-to-Canada pack trip I have planned, the maps alone, at 7.5 minute size covering the selected route, would number over 100 and would cost more than $700. Not having to buy and carry all those maps is a benefit one cannot ignore and one for which I can happily deal with the little inconvenience of a small screen on my phone. I should mention that I believe the screen on my iphone 6 is as large or larger than the screens I saw on all the GPS units offered at Cabela’s, including the venerable Garmin Montana.

My overall impression so far, not having actually used the unit yet, is that the DeLorme Explorer is exactly what I need, not only for the impending pack trip, but for all my packing adventures for years to come. I will be able to store the information from my trips, mileage, speed, elevation, etc., for my blog posts, keep my followers updated on my progress during the trips, call for help in emergencies, and make the trail information available for others to use.

Moreover, the peace of mind it will give my wife and my mother while Dad and I are out on this pack trip, knowing we can communicate with them and call out in case of emergency at anytime, from anywhere, via text and emergency beacon with this unit, and the fact that we can keep them posted on our progress via text and facebook posts, is well worth the $379.99 price tag and the subscription price.

This was a good score in my book. Thumbs up!

Now, you’re probably asking yourself how we intend to keep this handy little unit, as well as our cell phones, charged up.

Stay tuned.

* I will provide the link to my Map Share on a separate post once the trip is underway. The Map Share link is specific to each trip logged by the InReach Explorer unit.