National parks balancing demands for cell service, silence

[Community Alumni]

National parks balancing demands for cell service, silence

[qtla9111]

K Charles wrote:
Why would they want to put cell service out in nature when they don't have it down town. Living between Hartford and providence we only have it in one room by the window. Some people don't have any cell service.

The Americas, North, Central and South are all way behind in connectivity. We have a long way to go.

[ppine]

The National Park Service has always had strong ideas about the visitor experience. I have worked with them as a consultant. Park roads are windy on purpose. They don't want you to go fast. They have an experience in mind and traditionally it has not included being plugged in or having phone reception. Most of the NPS campgrounds are dated and are not very good at accepting RVs. They have few hookups.

Not only that but the Parks are chronically under funded.

[Fisherman]

Veebyes wrote:

Fisherman wrote:
Can you imagine the mayhem if the internet/cell service broke down for a month.

The lack of connectivity would keep people home more than anything else.

Look around & observe all those who cannot take more than 10 steps without checking their beloved phone. The thought of leaving the house without the phone is inconceivable.

How did we ever manage to live in pre cellphone & internet days?

One phone that was for home and dads business, long distance calls were timed, people learned to write letters with auto correct and spell check. I got to 40 wpm in typing class on an Underwood. And if you didn't answer the phone, they would call back. :B

[Veebyes]

Fisherman wrote:
Can you imagine the mayhem if the internet/cell service broke down for a month.

The lack of connectivity would keep people home more than anything else.

Look around & observe all those who cannot take more than 10 steps without checking their beloved phone. The thought of leaving the house without the phone is inconceivable.

How did we ever manage to live in pre cellphone & internet days?

[pnichols]

Fisherman wrote:
Can you imagine the mayhem if the internet/cell service broke down for a month.

Yep ... and yep several more times!

That's the reason we base only part of our lives on the Internet and cell towers:

1. We have both cable and satellite based home entertainment.

2. We have both cell phone and satellite based navigation in our RV.

3. We have both cell phone and satellite medical rescue request capability in our RV.

4. We have mulitple citizen band radios in our RV.

5. All our financial affairs have paper copy backups that come in the mail, as well as Internet access to the financial records.

6. We have radio based weather information in the RV.

7. We have an all-band portable radio in the home.

[cptqueeg]

Naio wrote:

cptqueeg wrote:

Naio wrote:
Like a lot of solo female travelers, I'm rarely willing to camp or noondock somewhere without cell service.

I grew up way out in the mountains. I know what local boys can be like when they've been drinking. I lucked out and have never been caught by a group of them, but I don't want to be in the future.

When I was younger and stronger I wouldn't have been concerned about cell service, but now I feel it is pretty essential for boondocking.

Cell service is prob not going to help you in remote areas. Perhaps a weapon and training is in order if you happen to live in a free state.

I have weapons and training, but I also like to be able to call someone. It's not either/or.

Good to hear. Obviously the first tactic must be to extract yourself from the situation w assisatnce from law enforcement or others if possible. Have you considered an emergency satelite beacon?

xhttps://www.outdoorgearlab.com/topics/camping-and-hiking/best-personal-locator-beacon

[Naio]

cptqueeg wrote:

Naio wrote:
Like a lot of solo female travelers, I'm rarely willing to camp or noondock somewhere without cell service.

I grew up way out in the mountains. I know what local boys can be like when they've been drinking. I lucked out and have never been caught by a group of them, but I don't want to be in the future.

When I was younger and stronger I wouldn't have been concerned about cell service, but now I feel it is pretty essential for boondocking.

Cell service is prob not going to help you in remote areas. Perhaps a weapon and training is in order if you happen to live in a free state.

I have weapons and training, but I also like to be able to call someone. It's not either/or.

[Fisherman]

Can you imagine the mayhem if the internet/cell service broke down for a month.

[Horsedoc]

Perhaps cell service will help you.
We ran a CG in the Black Hills for a couple of years. Yeah, I know, not a National Park but pretty remote in some areas. First warm day of Spring this couple and their son were hiking along some pretty rough area and climbing up some ledges. As the son reached up over his head to pull up on the next ledge, a rattlesnake, just out of hibernation bit him on the arm. He took a major load of venom in the bite. It was pure luck but there was a cell signal in a very small area of the park. Mom was able to make an emergency call and get help enroute from Rapid. Again, the phone had a GPS capability and she gave the coordinates to the helo and it was able to fly directly to them. The child was in pretty bad shape by the time he was back to the hospital in Rapid, but he survived and recovered.
He was saved because of technology that reached an area is not usually covered. Personally, I thnk it might have been more devine intervention but had that signal not been in that area, there would have been a recovery rather than a rescue.

[cptqueeg]

Naio wrote:
Like a lot of solo female travelers, I'm rarely willing to camp or noondock somewhere without cell service.

I grew up way out in the mountains. I know what local boys can be like when they've been drinking. I lucked out and have never been caught by a group of them, but I don't want to be in the future.

When I was younger and stronger I wouldn't have been concerned about cell service, but now I feel it is pretty essential for boondocking.

Cell service is prob not going to help you in remote areas. Perhaps a weapon and training is in order if you happen to live in a free state.

[cptqueeg]

mjbenedict wrote:
All of this technology is making society soft. Our kids need to experience the disconnect, some adults do too.

FYI, I'm an Electrical Engineer that does automation and feel this way. I'm well versed in technology, not above watching movies and downloading them to watch in my RV. Just sometimes like to visit places with no connectivity.

Imagine having to plan meeting people for a get-together, missing them but hooking up with some others for some spontaneous fun. They will never have this experience.

Technology didn't put an end to the spontaneous hook-ups it was my wife.;)

[Naio]

Like a lot of solo female travelers, I'm rarely willing to camp or noondock somewhere without cell service.

I grew up way out in the mountains. I know what local boys can be like when they've been drinking. I lucked out and have never been caught by a group of them, but I don't want to be in the future.

When I was younger and stronger I wouldn't have been concerned about cell service, but now I feel it is pretty essential for boondocking.

[dave54]

Lwiddis wrote:
Interesting subject. Balancing the pros and cons of electronics but Congress seems to want connectivity.

Congress only wants what the people tell them. There is public demand for connectivity, and Congress is responding to the demand.

As for me -- my phone has a power off switch and I use it often.

Anyone that needs to contact me should know how to leave a voicemail or text. I figure if Lewis and Clark could navigate across an unmapped continent without a GPS and only a compass, I can live for a few hours with my phone off.

[Yosemite_Sam1]

time2roll wrote:
Starlink provided by SpaceX could soon make the debate rather moot.

Again a balancing act but this one will definitely be useful and can save lives.

Read a lot of rescue where a hiker was lost or injured and they are without cell signals.

I myself was lost arriving at night into my campsite and my Google map was rerouting and cannot find a cell connection.