Why you need tech. while camping

[macca_75]

We managed to take the new camper for it's maiden voyage over the Easter break.

We ended up going to a small town called Bet Bet near central Victoria.

We put all the tech in the cars and didn't touch it.  Both our phones ran flat but we didn't care - we were camping.

Then all hell broke loose......

Around 12:30am our youngest decided it would be a good time to have a croup attack.  We are fortunate (or unfortunate depending how you look at it) that we have experienced this before, however this was a pretty severe attack and he wasn't calming down.  Any parents out there who have had a child have an attack will know what I mean.

The short of it - we had no idea where the closest Hospital with 24x7 Emergency was, nor did we know where we were really in relation to anything (we followed the GPS on the phone in).

Lessons we learnt for any other new Campers.

1) Always check out where your nearest 24x7 Hospital or major town is.  Either know how to get there without GPS or at least have a paper map (happy for suggestions as to the best ones here as we WILL be getting one covering VIC.  I am thinking HEMA unless someone has a better brand)
2) Always keep your phone charged.  Even if you have no intention of updating Facebook, Taking Photo's, playing you Candy crush, etc.  Waiting for a phone to charge enough to turn on when you need to call 000 for an Ambulance is no fun.
3.  See #1 and #2

Anyway, all is good and we learnt a hell of a lesson that we will not soon forget ;-)

BTW - The camper worked really well.  Sure we have made a list of things to improve before our next outing, but we were happy and it was an otherwise great time.

[edz]

Glad everthing turned out ok in the long run for the young one ... you are right though, no matter how much I hate mobile phones they could  be a life saver in an emergency ... GPS is great though you cant beat good O'l paper maps ... Maybe an  investment  in a good radio and a Sat / mobile phone combo would also be a be an option ...

[macca_75]

Yeah - my plan is to buy a paper map - really need to look into what is a good one.

I have a AGM Deep cycle battery - really need to get that hooked up so we can keep the phone charged.

And a CB isn't a bad idea - do emergency services operate on a channel 24x7??

[edz]

Seems the emergency channels are monitored by volunteers and cant guarantee 24 / 7 coverage .. this site should give you plenty of imfo http://www.uhfcb.com.au/Frequently-Asked-Questions.php

[macca_75]

cheers - will look into it at some time.

[Beachman]

While we do take a Ipad camping, it doesn’t always stay charged. But in both my car and my wife’s car is a phone charger (We have the same phone so it makes it easy) and these live permanently in the cars.

This way we know we always have the ability to recharge the phones, but gives the ability to connect to the car battery to make sure we have enough power for emergency calls. Over the years we haven’t needed to make any emergency calls ourselves, but twice I did receive calls advising a family member has been admitted to hospital. So I always keep my phone charged.

Thanks to evilbay, car charges are dirt cheap when shipped from our oversea neighbours.

[Swannie]

Glad all is ok mate. Croup is scary for the kids my little girl gets it often through winter.

Swannie

[macca_75]

We have a car charger - issue is when the phone dies you need to charge for a short time before it powers on - that short time can seem like an eternity.

[ozstickman]

You can always try ch40 on the UHF. Most blokes in trucks will help if you call out over ch 40. Might be different around cities like Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane cos they all crap on.  Another thing to try is try ch 1 through to 8 and make sure you have the DUP (duplex) button on and try hitting a repeater around the area.  All you need to do to hit a properly setup uhf repeater is select the repeater channel and press the the PTT button then release.  You should then here what they call a tail or courtesy tone or even a channel ID. If you do you have hit a repeater. Call for help there too. Not all channels are monitored but hey it's another avenue to try.

Cheers
Sticko

[DropBearRacing]

Glad to here that your little one is ok.  One of my girls still gets croup and she is 8, its something you just have to try and manage as you would know.  We had tow kids from the same family in our camping group over easter come down with croup, luckily they were able to be taken home (grandparents to the rescue).  We always take our phones, kids ipads, dvd player etc.  We have the capability to keep all of our electronic devices fully charged whilst camping in the middle of nowhere.  We control how much use these items get whilst away, they are good on rainy days when you have to entertain the kids (we can only play so many board games and card games with them).  The girls generally only get their electronic devices early in the morning to give mum and dad a sleep in or just after dinner when mum and dad are washing up and tidying up etc (we don't let them hang around the fire unsupervised).  I hardly touched my phone all easter weekend hence I only have limited photos (see my build thread).

Cheers

[Cruiser 105Tvan]

Paper Maps can be really helpful, but you have to know where you are on the map, to start with.
Edz, and stickman are both on the money.
But a Camps 7 map book will give you that in a convenient form.
As well as lots of useful info for planning that escape from life's problems.

Putting the phone's on charge overnight, would also help.
They're not drawing that much when charging. 
And little fingers should be asleep, even if they are twitching.

Glad things worked out OK all the same.

[Bird]

1) Always check out where your nearest 24x7 Hospital or major town is. 

May sound simple, but I bet its something that everyone has been guilty of not doing... We drove past the one in Warrnambool the other day, that was the only reason we found its location.. not many signs around..

[koshari]

one word,

"EPIRB"

trumps all phones, maps and street directory's.

why take Mohammad to the mountain when you can have the mountain come to you?

[macca]

one word,

"EPIRB"

trumps all phones, maps and street directory's.

why take Mohammad to the mountain when you can have the mountain come to you?

I would hope you had tried all other options before setting off an epirb, they initiate a fairly large chain of events when activated

macca

[Bird]

I would hope you had tried all other options before setting off an epirb, they initiate a fairly large chain of events when activated

x eleventy billion.. I don't think you'd be popular being 10klms from a hospital and setting one off!

[ozstickman]

x eleventy billion.. I don't think you'd be popular being 10klms from a hospital and setting one off!

As a young chap did at Leslie Dam a few years ago, broke his leg badly but there were others at the camp and there is mobile reception.

[Azz]

one word,

"EPIRB"

trumps all phones, maps and street directory's.

why take Mohammad to the mountain when you can have the mountain come to you?

I understand it that you should only set off an EPIRB if you are In Grave and eminent danger

If you are in mobile reception........ but if your mobile device is flat and there is danger to life, then maybe.

[mrsfirefox]

Glad your little girl is ok.  Tech is very good to have.  You don't have to use it but definitely have it charged.  For us, travelling around OZ, we have a satellite phone and EPIRB as well as the usual iPhone, iPads, etc. 

We've explained to the kids that EPIRB is only to be used if myself and firefox are unconscious and can't be woken up in an accident AND no one is nearby AND there is no phone service or if we tell them to operate it.  We've told them that it costs thousands of dollars to send out emergency services and it's not a toy.  They've both been shown how it works as well.

The satellite phone saved us when our car broke down 80km's out of Birdsville as their is no usual phone reception.  We only saw 2 cars in 4 hours and they didn't stop!!  The sat phone calls ended up costing us about $60 as we made arrangements for tow truck and for someone to come and transport 4 of us back to Birdsville and then checking on how far they were away as it was so hot!!  We were stuck out there for 4 hours all up but it would've been a lot worse if we didn't have the sat phone. 

In regards to doctors/hospitals, I always look at where they are before we head there, just in case, as I can go into severe anaphylaxis.  Also car phone chargers are worth their wait in gold and just turn the phone off once you are at the campsite so it's charged & ready to go if needed.

In saying that, we are bringing hospitals, ambulance stations and medical services into Tripigy so you'll be able to see where they are nearby.  The way, I believe, it will work in Tripigy, is that you can search services around the area you are camping and it will bring up a listing that you can then download into pdf and print it out.  So yes, tech can be really good   

[DropBearRacing]

In saying that, we are bringing hospitals, ambulance stations and medical services into Tripigy so you'll be able to see where they are nearby.  The way, I believe, it will work in Tripigy, is that you can search services around the area you are camping and it will bring up a listing that you can then download into pdf and print it out.  So yes, tech can be really good 

Mrs FF that is a good feature,  that sort of common sense seams like it came from a women??

[mrsfirefox]

Mrs FF that is a good feature,  that sort of common sense seams like it came from a women??

Of course it came from a woman    

[ozstickman]

Mrs FF that is a good feature,  that sort of common sense seams like it came from a women??

on the brownie point hunt from the ladies......

[DropBearRacing]

on the brownie point hunt from the ladies......

I prefer brownie points from the ladies than from the lads 

[ozstickman]

I prefer brownie points from the ladies than from the lads 

you do have a very valid point!

[koshari]

I understand it that you should only set off an EPIRB if you are In Grave and eminent danger

is there any other kind?

Anyway quite recently a prominent Victorian politician, One who even happened to be in charge of the emergency services portfolio at the time was injured and lost while hiking.
He copped quite a lot of criticism for NOT having an epirb.

i believe let it off if your in danger and let the emergency services decide if it was justified. The beacons Location will also contribute to the response, if your in a popular campground with mobile coverage an ambulance or police unit will be dispatched. if your in the boondocks it will likely be the air wing.

and of course iam not talking a blister on your foot or a burnt finger from picking at the pork crackling a little soon BTW.

[Ozsnowman]

Glad everything turned out ok - would have given you a huge scare!

We fitted a Narva combo 12v/2xUSB socket just inside the tailgate of our trailer, and very glad we did so - it was very popular on our Easter trip with our group wanting their phones charged!