Do you carry a weather radio? Two way radio with weather? Or just watch the skies?

So far we have just checked the forecast before leaving, and paid attention to the weather. But really, forecasts change and it would be nice to know if bad weather / wind is coming our way especially on travel days. Just wondering if people do or don't carry a radio in, especially after hearing about the recent accidents.

I do carry a plain weather radio.

I'm a slightly anxious person, and having the radio along is actually calming to me as my mind usually goes far worse than what the radio is saying (my daughter, on the other hand, is quite anxious and finds that the radio makes it WORSE...just the voice that's used on it makes her anxious).

This helped in 2009 when I was on a trip in a windy storm: weather radio not calling for severe weather or tornadoes = we will be okay; it's only 30-mph winds, and will last X more hours.

Helped in 2012: it was quite hot one day, and the next day the radio said would be just as hot. We were taking out that day. So we were sure to get up at the crack of dawn to set out so we could avoid the worst of the heat.

The one I have can be programmed to alarm for tornadoes for the county that you are in (must be set up ahead of time, though). I find that comforting. (well, I probably wouldn't if it went off, haha...but it's comforting when it does NOT go off..."I'll be okay...this is not a tornado or the radio would tell me.")

I just watch the skies. I can't control what is coming and there isn't much more I can do to prepare for bad weather than I'm already doing anyways.

I always bring canoes on shore, flip them, and tie them down overnight. Camp is always clean with gear and packs stowed safely away. Tent is placed in the safest possible location when initially set up.

When leaving camp for fishing or day trips I always bring a small pack with food, rain gear, and a few survival essentials in case of bad weather that prevents me from getting back to camp.

I'd just rather take what comes than constantly monitor what weather may be in the area or what may or may not develop later in the day or the next day. I think it could lead to obsessively monitoring and basing every decision off of the radio versus real world conditions on the ground.

quote nofish: "I just watch the skies. I can't control what is coming and there isn't much more I can do to prepare for bad weather than I'm already doing anyways.


I always bring canoes on shore, flip them, and tie them down overnight. Camp is always clean with gear and packs stowed safely away. Tent is placed in the safest possible location when initially set up.


When leaving camp for fishing or day trips I always bring a small pack with food, rain gear, and a few survival essentials in case of bad weather that prevents me from getting back to camp.


I'd just rather take what comes than constantly monitor what weather may be in the area or what may or may not develop later in the day or the next day. I think it could lead to obsessively monitoring and basing every decision off of the radio versus real world conditions on the ground.


"

same here. I do carry a weather radio on the Atlantic or Lake Superior ( havent paddled the other four GL you betcha I would). I have no hope of outrunning a storm and what would I do if the warning went off? Fly?

By the way, I do not "constantly monitor" it (I know you were not directing that at me specifically). Usually I check it each evening for the next day. If there is a storm I will use it again. I tried to explain how I find it calming even though I can do nothing...when your brain skips ahead to worse than is really happening, it can help reign in those thoughts. Haven't had it be worse than I was imagining, yet (while camping, anyway).

Another use: If it calls for higher winds the next day but says it's calmer the one after that, you could take the lie-in day that you planned for two days out the next day instead. If your trip included doing such a thing. :)

One thing to keep in mind in MN canoe country: don't listen to forecasts for Grand Marais if tripping off the Gunflint. It is too different. Listen for the "inland" forecasts. Also if you are close to a western county line, set it up to give warnings for the county just to the west of you.

You're right I wasn't directing that at anyone in particular, just saying some may become obsessive about it. It really ends up being personal preference. One person might find comfort in the info, another may be stressed by the info, while others couldn't care either way and prefer to just kick back and see what happens.

I could see where it might help in making decisions but on the other hand I could see where you could also start making decisions based on percentages being spit out by a computer. If you hear on the weather radio there is a 50% chance of storms tomorrow and tomorrow is a travel day? What do you do?

I kind of like the fact that I don't know what the next day will hold other than based on the 5 or 10 day forecast I looked at before entering. I like to make decisions based on the observable information I have plus prevailing trends. It might mean I have to alter plans mid day if the wind kicks up or storms move in but thats part of the adventure.

we bought one once we starting bringing kids to the BW. We use it to check before going on day trips with them. A few times it has saved us from having unhappy children. On bad stormy days we stay at camp and fish on our lake till the storms come

I bring a weather radio and listen each morning at breakfast and each night at dinner and when we get in the tent for bedtime.

I also try to read the skies. On a daddy/daughter trip w/ my older daughter when she was 7 the skies were dark off in the distance and she wanted to go out fishing as we finished up cleaning after a fish fry. I told her we needed to wait because of the weather. Then she said, "you told me this is my trip and I get to decide what we do". To that I replied, "remember, I said that I get to overrule you when your safety is concerned" I finished preparing camp for bad weather just as the wind starting blowing and we climbed in the tent just as it started raining. After playing uno and drawing pictures for an hour she looked at me and said "daddy, you were right"...... Now that she's 11, I don't plan on hearing those words out of her ever again ;)

One of my tripping buddies brings one. It is a big help. Watching the skies and feeling barometric changes can warn you, but it won't say how bad it might get. It is also a good idea to have a thermometer along to monitor surface temps of the water. Anything below 60 degrees can be dangerous. If cold, stay close to shore and if you go swimming, get yourself to land ASAP.

quote ducks: "I bring a weather radio and listen each morning at breakfast and each night at dinner and when we get in the tent for bedtime.


I also try to read the skies. On a daddy/daughter trip w/ my older daughter when she was 7 the skies were dark off in the distance and she wanted to go out fishing as we finished up cleaning after a fish fry. I told her we needed to wait because of the weather. Then she said, "you told me this is my trip and I get to decide what we do". To that I replied, "remember, I said that I get to overrule you when your safety is concerned" I finished preparing camp for bad weather just as the wind starting blowing and we climbed in the tent just as it started raining. After playing uno and drawing pictures for an hour she looked at me and said "daddy, you were right"...... Now that she's 11, I don't plan on hearing those words out of her ever again ;)"

Yup, we bring it and check it in the evening or maybe in the AM. then watch the sky. things can come up fast and it never hurts to be prepared.

I take a CCrane radio that has a AM/FM and weather bands. It works great for picking up stations. Last trip it really helped with planing when we did day trips and when we traveled.

I brought one of my walkie talkies with NOAA radio on my last trip. I could pick up nothing on the east end of LLC with it.

We've been bringing one for the last few years and I wonder how we did it before. I completely understand the "it is what it is" mentality. In no way will a weather radio prevent a storm from coming when your 15 miles from the entry point, the only option is to hang tight and weather the storm. Where it really comes in handy is when you have say 3 days in an area, 2 day trips and 1 day to relax. It allows us to change our plans so the day that the rain is going to hit we can be in camp instead of getting caught a few miles from camp and then have a beautiful the day on the day we picked to stay at camp. I just find it makes in trip decisions a lot easier.

quote Savage Voyageur: "I take a CCrane radio that has a AM/FM and weather bands. It works great for picking up stations. Last trip it really helped with planing when we did day trips and when we traveled. "

I probably have the same radio. I'm kind of a weather nut and I like to know the forecast when I'm up on multiple day trips paddling solo.

quote nojobro: "One thing to keep in mind in MN canoe country: don't listen to forecasts for Grand Marais if tripping off the Gunflint. It is too different. Listen for the "inland" forecasts. Also if you are close to a western county line, set it up to give warnings for the county just to the west of you. "

While I watch the skies to the west I probably would not have thought of setting the warning forecasts to inland. Nice reminder.

Yep. A Sangean DT 400W pocket weather radio. I tune in for weather and that's only in the early evenings.
It braced me for a storm once, when I was on Long Island Lake. Loud winds howling like hell on it's approach. I'm glad I was forewarned.

Yes, I take a small Midland weather radio and check it occasionally - usually once or twice a day. It's especially nice if you'll be out 10-12 days, which is longer than most forecasts.

I don't have a radio, but I now have a DeLorme inReach satellite communicator. It can provide weather reports, though I'm not sure what kind of detail or predicting it has for severe weather.

Nope. I would worry way too much. I'd rather take things as they come.

I might start! My daughter is working at the end of the Gunflnt this summer and she was out on trail last week in those storms. I was pretty worried. She texted today to let us know she was back safe and sound.

quote pastorjsackett: "I might start! My daughter is working at the end of the Gunflnt this summer and she was out on trail last week in those storms. I was pretty worried. She texted today to let us know she was back safe and sound. "

I've always been an "Anti tech" kind of guy myself, but this latest storm hitting places I'm intimately familiar with have got me to thinking differently. Funny, I didn't even feel that way when we got caught in the Gunflint tornado in the late '80's or early '90's. We were hunkered down on Tern Lake off of Jasper with trees crashing all around. Found out later the weather was on the CBS Evening News and Dan Rather had our wives all worked up for a few days. Maybe I'm older and "Feeling" that mortality a bit more?

Generally, I carry one for BWCA and Quetico trips. If I'm going farther a field, the NOAA-radio won't pull in stations so I leave it at home. Usually I'll do a nightly check especially if I'm out there solo.

I carry a small Midland weather radio and listen to it each evening.

I find that the extended forecasts aren't always correct but I plan my travel days using the radio. If the weather sounds good for the next day I plan to move and if storms are predicted I wake up and assess whether I am going to stay put because of lightening/wind or paddle in the rain.

We bring a weather radio. We'll check it in morning and at night to prepare for next day. If we see some ugly clouds we'll pull it out and checkout weather. Sometimes we won't get a signal then you just have to rely on instinct.

Looks like many have a radio and use it mostly as a travel planning tool. Better to be warned than surprised seems to be the theme. Guess I will be doing some shopping before our next trip.

I'm with Nanda. But only if I'm going in for a week or more. On my forty day it helped me on lac la Croix when I was wind bound and fishdance lake when a big storm was rolling in. Pretty crazy when they were naming the lakes nearby like Alice. It was basically pretty accurate.

My Inreach has weather, but I don't carry that on all my trips, just watch the sky.

I am going to be shopping for one also for the first time this year, mainly because it is my first time doing a full week. I normally look at the forecast right before heading in but I also normally trip for 4 days. A weeklong forecast will be useless so I would like the radio. Checking before bed can be nice for deciding whether or not I can keep the rain flap off the tent at night.

I bring one and find it useful. While you can't do anything about what weather is coming at you, it can allow you to prepare for severe weather.

Last summer on my solo there were storms each day I was in. I was lucky and they all missed but I was getting the severe thunderstorm alerts to the radio which helped me be more aware of the sky around me.

On the last morning, I was going to lounge in camp and take a later breakfast before getting on the water midday but awoke to a severe thunderstorm alert that was still a decent ways west of me packing 70mph winds. Based on the direction it was heading, it was coming toward my location. I chose to pack up camp, then make breakfast. My campsite had a big rock wall that would have provided shelter if I had gotten said winds. In the end, the storm passed just northwest of me but I was glad I wasn't out traveling and was able to prepared for the worst if needed.

On our Quetico trip this spring, it was useful because we decided to travel a couple days were were planning to layover and vice versa based on wind, etc. Without the radio, we would have had more wind issues.

Yes.

I take a Sony Walkman with the weather band.



Listen to weather report each night to make plans for the next day and then check again the next morning before heading out.

Also listen to Cardinal games every night on KMOX.

we use a small eaton. It gets turned on for 5-10 minutes per day while we review maps for next days travel.

No. For me that's one of the elements of the adventure of wilderness paddling.
I try to look at my environment and react to what I see, hear, smell, and feel.
The camera is about the only exception to my no electronics in the boat rule.
Oh, and now I bring the SPOT. But that is more for my wife's peace of mind than anything else.

I carry an Eton emergency weather radio, it is crank & solar operated, have had it for years. It has a bunch of stuff on it that I will probably never use such as the light & ability to charge other devices. We really like it, but something smaller will probably replace it when it dies. We listen to it in the a.m. & p.m. in the tent to get the weather forecast. It's helpful to be able to see the trend in temperature and weather if you are out for a while. When the temp is going down at night or 30+ mph winds are coming, it's nice to know what you may be up against. 2x this last trip we pulled out our SOL bivy bags to pull around our shoulder season sleeping bags because we had heard the weather was going to dip those nights. Toasty, restful sleep. Grateful for that forecast because it did indeed get chilly & the alternative is waking up in the middle of the night to do the curly shuffle.

Of course it helps if you can read the weather (I am a complete novice)...ooh look at that thunderhead...wow, it's an explosion going straight up like cotton candy...is that a drop I felt on my arm...now it looks like a big anvil...grab the sox & undies on the line....here it comes!