Radios Worked Great!

We brought two high-powered, waterproof walkie talkies and a base station with us to the lake.  This turned out to be a great idea and the whole plan of using radios for communication at the lake worked out great!  We had some initial bugs to work out at first (operator errors related to feature setup), but overall, this form of communication made life so much easier for us.

Mostly, these radios were used whenever we were kayaking or sailing.  We also used them in the cars which turned out to be a great idea as well.  The Groton State Forest has no cellphone coverage at all so our cellphones were useless.  Not only did the radios work where the cellphone would not, but they were much easier to use than a cellphone.  No dialing required...  just push to talk (or voice activated, if you wish...  we prefer push to talk).

The radios were invaluable while sailing...
this is a frame capture from video of me sailing.

Adam even took a walkie talkie with him on a bike ride.  The concern was that if he needed help, he would have the radio to aid in seeking help.  We weren't sure if the radios would be of much use if he was behind a mountain, but at least he had the radio to contact anyone within listening distance with no major obstacles like a big mountain blocking the signal.  It turns out that these radios were so powerful that Adam had no problems communicating with us on his bike ride.

Adam rode to Kettle Pond and Spruce Mountain...   did some easy, flat trail riding on the old Montpelier-Well River Railroad line which is now a multi-use trail...  and did some mountain biking on Spruce Mountain.  He called us when he was at the furthest point from the house...   on Spruce Mountain...  he was on his walkie talkie, we were on our base station on the deck of the house...  and we could read each other loud and clear.  So, that was a comfort knowing that the radios worked well in the rough terrain while Adam was out biking.

Adam communicating with the base station at the house...this is a
frame capture from video of Adam sailing on the other side of the lake.

The place the radios were most useful, however, was out on the water.  We could communicate between the kayaks and the house...   between separated kayaking groups...  and between the sailboat and the house.  Here there were no obstacles...  just clear, flat water.

Although we never dunked these radios in the lake, they are rated to be waterproof for a limited amount of time and to a depth of a few feet.  That, too, was a comfort...  especially when on the sailboat where you are constantly sprayed and splashed and there is oftentimes a threat of capsizing the boat and ending up in the water!

I highly recommend these high powered walkie talkies...  Motorola MS350R 35 mile Talkabout Waterproof 2-way Radios.  Just keep in mind that these radios are so powerful that they also require a license from the FCC for use.

I highly recommend the base station, as well...  Midland XT511 GMRS Two-Way Emergency Crank Radio...  we've had no problems with it whatsoever.  This base station was not only great for a third communication point, but also for receiving NOAA weather forecasts.

All in all, these radios were a great idea and I highly recommend this idea for all families!