[pct-l] PLBs

[William Canavan]

Ron,
I use Backcountry Navigator on my Andriod phone.  If you download the maps
of where you plan to be, and the trail waypoints, you don't need cell
coverage to use your GPS navigation.  I have Halfmiles waypoints for WA and
OR on my phone and maps that show 4 miles to each side of the trail.  I
turn the GPS function on when I need it (to save battery life) and it works
great.  So far it has been very accurate.  Try downloading the maps ahead
of time so you don't need cell coverage to use the phone company's location
services.
Good luck,
Little Brown

On the other hand, if you use the *Backcountry Navigator* app (which has no
relationship to Delorme's *inReach*), download the PCT waypoints to it,
turn on your smartphone's location services, and happen to have a
connection to your service provider's network, then you can see quite
precisely where you are and that you're still on the trail. And at many
points along that 20 miles stretch, I did have cell phone service,
sometimes even 4G, so I could use *Backcountry Navigator*. I also overcame
the inReach's message problems by simply phoning my wife from time to time!
 I hope to do the PCT in many small sections, so as I advance, I probably
won't feel the need to keep so connected--but to begin with we wanted to
see what was possible.