We are wondering if anyone has a recommendation on a weather resistant handheld weather radio (without the VHF communication) that is good to take on kayak trips. We purchased an Oregon Scientific weather radio (model WR8000) but may have to return it. The batteries disconnect because the cover doesn't stay on well. We then have to reset the electronic features. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
David Scheckman wrote: > We are wondering if anyone has a recommendation on a weather resistant > handheld weather radio (without the VHF communication) that is good to > take on kayak trips. In a word, no. Have not seen a "weather radio" with the sensitivity and weatherproofness common to even the low-end $150 marine HH VHF's. Every one I have checked out has a cheap front end (electronically), which severely limits its ability to pick up broadcasts. When I did comparison-testing on the $20 Radio Shack weather radio I have against an ICOM 10A (about $160), the VHF was vastly superior in reception. Because the weather radio has a telescoping antenna and the VHF has a short "rubber ducky" antenna, it is easy to keep the VHF in a simple, totally waterproof, radio bag while using it, both for broadcast and reception. That telescoping antenna is an entry point for water. Compounding the inferiority of the weather radio I have is that the units available in this country for domestic use do not have all the frequencies used in Canada. There may be better ones, however. I'd recommend you save your shekels and spring for a VHF. -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On Mon, 27 Dec 1999 15:02:26 -0800, you wrote: >> We are wondering if anyone has a recommendation on a weather resistant >> handheld weather radio (without the VHF communication) that is good to >> take on kayak trips. >In a word, no. Have not seen a "weather radio" with the sensitivity and >weatherproofness common to even the low-end $150 marine HH VHF's. I have been somewhat disappointed with my NOAA portable radio from Oregon Scientific mainly because of its lack of range. On the Outer Banks last year it wasn't able to pull in much of anything, perhaps because of its short "rubber ducky" antenna. I don't think water entering the case would be a factor provided it was kept in a waterproof bag. The battery cover seems fine with mine.... >Compounding the inferiority of the weather radio I have is that the units >available in this country for domestic use do not have all the frequencies used >in Canada. There may be better ones, however. In the Ottawa area I am able to pick up a broadcast from Environment Canada, but it is just so-so.... and not really what I need given regular news broadcasts >I'd recommend you save your shekels and spring for a VHF. Probably a good idea.... especially as the Oregon Scientific one I have cost me about Cdn $100. --- cheers, Stephen stephen.bird_at_superaje.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
We bought a NOAA radio (~$40) from LL Bean to track tornados from our basement in SE Michigan. It is a very poor device. Its RF front end tunes poorly, the antenna is very directional. We have to hold it near a window on the SW side of the house to get any reception at all. We leave the TV on when we retreat these days. bob phillips frozen Michigan, where the water is too hard to paddle and too soft to snowmobile (not that discourages Darwinian processes). *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I have a water resistant Radio Shack weather radio in bright yellow with an alarm feature on it for emergency broadcast advisories. The radio resides on the coffee table in my living room. Range is great in the middle of Manhattan and the water resistance aspect will come in handy were I to spill a Cuba Libre on it. It also makes an interesting conversation piece allowed by my long suffering wife who has tolerated its jarring effect on interior decoration. I used to carry a weather radio in a waterproof bag for day trips and local camping trips. Plain ole Radio Shack $20 thing. It worked well enough locally. Now that I have the VHF, I don't bother with the dedicated weather radio. The reason I have the bright yellow one in the living room is that I like to listen to it regularly particularly in the days leading up to a planned paddling jaunt. By listening regularly, I have spotted patterns that affect both the athmospheric weather and likely sea conditions. Earlier this year I was following the weather carefully leading up to a Manhattan shoreline trip I organized prior to a group of us going to see the Shackleton exhibit. The morning of the trip dawned with fog and rain but I sensed an opening was highly likely. I got a cellphone call from Paddlewisers Bob and Joan Volin who were driving down from north of the city in pouring rain wondering if I was calling it off. Also from Bill Leonhardt (another PaddleWise regular) who was coming in from Long Island and calling from a car while sheets of rain pelting his windshield. I told them to keep coming, that conditions would be favorable by the time we hit the water. Sure enough, the rain stopped and the fog lifted enough to make things visible while still giving us a cozy, mysterious feel on the water. My soothsayer act was only made possible by constant monitoring and being able to identify those subtle shifts in what is being said on the weather radio; just listening to it that morning would have told me nothing in effect. The Volins and Leonhardts probably thought I was some sort of weather god though. :-) Now I also have my web page opener set for local weather and the quick bar above is bookmarked for getting individually the local marine forecast and a photo and reading of weather conditions at the Ambrose Light which tells me sea conditions and water temperatures. For those who want to do something similar, I got the webpage of general local weather from http://www.dogpile.com which has a button somewhere to get your local weather (it's a nice graphic with moon phases, etc.). The marine forecast and the photo and sea conditions at my nearest marine indicator (the Ambrose Light out at the mouth of NYC's lower bay) come from http://www.nws.fsu/B which lead to a marine forecast and the buoy reports. I can't wait to impress the Volins and Leonhardts with my wealth of info the next time we paddle together! :-) ralph -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Interesting topic. I went through several weather radios from Radio Shack before coming to the conclusion that none of them could get a reliable signal on Lake Superior. I ended up with an Icom M1 which picks up the weather fine from most places I paddle. As an aside, does anyone know of a waterproof (or at least weatherproof) FM radio that has, and this is the catch, a speaker? I I sometimes like to listen to the news while doing an afternoon city paddle and have contented myself with a little transistor radio that is going to stop working after the first dunking. -Patrick *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
ralph diaz wrote: > I have a water resistant Radio Shack weather radio [snip] > in the living room that I > like to listen to it regularly particularly in the days leading up to a > planned paddling jaunt. By listening regularly, I have spotted patterns > that affect both the athmospheric weather and likely sea conditions. > Earlier this year I was following the weather carefully leading up to a > Manhattan shoreline trip I organized [snip] > My soothsayer act was only made possible by constant monitoring and > being able to identify those subtle shifts in what is being said on the > weather radio; just listening to it that morning would have told me > nothing in effect. The Volins and Leonhardts probably thought I was > some sort of weather god though. :-) > > Now I also have my web page opener set for local weather [snip] > For those who want to do something similar, I got the webpage of general > local weather from http://www.dogpile.com which has a button somewhere > to get your local weather (it's a nice graphic with moon phases, etc.). > The marine forecast and the photo and sea conditions at my nearest > marine indicator (the Ambrose Light out at the mouth of NYC's lower bay) > come from http://www.nws.fsu/B which lead to a marine forecast and the > buoy reports. I can't wait to impress the Volins and Leonhardts with my > wealth of info the next time we paddle together! :-) Great story, Ralph! (Excuse, me ... weather god Ralph ... <g>) There is another source of weather prognostication (at least out here in Oregon) which the NWS makes available, which I use a lot. It's the inter-station "feed" detailing the **thinking** and some deeper analysis by the person(s) on duty at a given weather center. The feed describes the weather systems coming up, and often discusses the (usually different) predictions of the two or three computer models the NWS uses. It also mentions the range of possibilities. Don't know where the equivalent link is for NYC, but here's the one which works for Portland, OR: http://www.ocs.orst.edu/pub_ftp/weather/prog_discussion/prog.PQR Below the sig is what is on that link right now. (Not a great example, unfortunately -- weather is too good right now.) It takes a while to get used to their jargon, just as Ralph has made himself more attuned to the subtleties of his local weather radio mavens, by extended monitoring. -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR -- > NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION > NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR > 830 AM PST TUE DEC 28 1999 > > STRONG BLOCKING UPPER RIDGE OVER PACIFIC NORTHWEST CONTINUES TO SHOW > SIGNS OF WEAKENING. THE EAST-WEST SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENTS CONTINUE > TO SLOWLY DECREASE...THO EAST WINDS CONTINUE STRONG THIS MORNING NEAR > COLUMBIA GORGE. MODELS BRING A WEAK SHORTWAVE OVER/INTO RIDGE WED > WHICH WILL HELP WEAKEN EAST-WEST GRADIENTS FURTHER. THIS SHOULD ALLOW > INVERSION TO DEEPEN IN WILLAMETTE VALLEY FOR MORE MORNING FOG WED. > THE NEXT SYSTEM FRI SHOULD FLATTEN THE RIDGE SUFFICIENTLY TO ALLOW > STRONGER SYSTEM SAT TO BRING PRECIP TO N HALF OF OREGON. MODELS > INDICATE ENOUGH ONSHORE FLOW FOR VALLEY RAIN SO NO WINTER WEATHER > PROBLEMS ANTICIPATED FOR NOW. LIGHT WINDS AND SWELL 7 TO 8 FT OVER > COASTAL WATERS AND WEAKER EBBS SO NO MARINE ADVISORIES. BOHL *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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