Satellite Phone for outback holidays

[Patrol-Guy]

Hi all,

Easy question - do I need a satellite phone if travelling the Strzelecki and Tanami ?

Thanks in advance.

[threedogs]

always handy if you are travelling alone I did the Strezelecki with out one .
well they weren't around then. Best would be to travel in pairs or better
. not putting a strain on the resources if it goes pear shaped

[Hardyards]

Hey PG,
We travel alone, so hired one last cape trip. We mainly had it so we could be contacted if something un-toward happened while we were away (to us or from our home)
Looking at the price of even second hand HF (near $2000 for a good one), and the fitting effort, we will be buying a second hand sat phone from the store that rents them. $400 in a tough case(Inmarsat), with a $30 plan that lasts three months, it is the best option for us (lots of different plans to suit individuals). I briefly looked at the Thuraya brand sat sleave (turns your smart phone into a Sat phone) but don’t like the limited coverage (IMO) at the moment. Good idea though!

Do you need one? Well, depends. Are you travelling with a group (only need one per group)? During “Busy” times (flag someone down), anyone in your group need medication (could potentially run out if you get stuck), sick relatives, kids, friends (get worse, have an accident and need to let you know) have HF (don’t need a Sat, then). Lots of reasons for, not too many against (cost being the biggest, I think)
I believe if you go remote and intend to remain isolated, then yes, It’s a cheap (add up what you spend on recovery gear) potential life saving piece of kit.

[macca]

We have one and take it everywhere, even a weekend trip locally as the mobile coverage drops out pretty quick.
It is handy and our group used it a lot keeping in touch with family last year on our 6 week trip.
Had a large-ish $800.00 bill when we got home but everyone paid for their own calls from the itemised invoice, kept some who needed to talk to family in a better "mood / morale".
So we think it is a great thing to have with us, if it all turns to custard... well I'm glad its there.
Where you are going is probably not a real need for such communications as there is a fair bit of traffic. If it makes you feel better to have phone contact the grab one.
Ours is an iridium on the Telstra satellite network, coverage and performance has been good, cost $1000.00 2nd hand in 2008 but we have used it a fair bit too.
Although others travelling with us have EPIRB's, the ability to talk to rescue people is something we all value.
Easy answer: As you are thinking about it hire / borrow / buy one.