A little extra cash, what would you buy?

[frenchy]

Maybe I should stick with the GPS.
At least I can do a point to point and find my way home even if I have no one to talk to.

Go back the same way you came 
I'm assuming you don't have some big bad Jeep that is going to take you into uncharted teritory. Probably go to Waiparous, run the 2 trails, map them on your GPS. Then realize, hey, I don't need a computer gizmo to tell me I'm on trail 1 or 2, return it at Walmart for a full refund 

Seriously, some people get so involved in the GPS they have no clue where they are, which way is which and get lost going to take a pee cause they don't have the GPS with them...

Get a map, compass & basic skills. Take note of where the sun is and where it is going. Which direction the water is flowing in the creeks, landmarks like mountains in the distance, bridges, funky trees, intersections, etc... That theory knowledge will help you more then the "signal lost" errors as you look at your GPS screen for an hour instead of getting out of the Jeep and looking at where your tire treads are coming from.


CB's are handy sometimes, it's too bad many internet social networking addicts have access to them and use them like they're at a party and can't stop talking   
I bought a handheld CB at a pawn shop for $40, it's volume it usually turned right down, unless really needed.

You seem undecided, why not put the money away for now and go enjoy life, jeepin' , 4x4'ing, maybe read some magazines, talk to some people, etc... come back in a couple weeks or months and then you'll have your own clue where you might want to spend your own $.

[tubby]

You seem undecided, why not put the money away for now and go enjoy life, jeepin' , 4x4'ing, maybe read some magazines, talk to some people, etc... come back in a couple weeks or months and then you'll have your own clue where you might want to spend your own $.

That is some excellent advice Serge. Well said. I personally wouldn't get too wrapped up in CB's and GPS's. Too many people on here get too excited about  offroad widgets. Just get out there and wheel.

[w squared]

Get a map, compass & basic skills. Take note of where the sun is and where it is going. Which direction the water is flowing in the creeks, landmarks like mountains in the distance, bridges, funky trees, intersections, etc... That theory knowledge will help you more then the "signal lost" errors as you look at your GPS screen for an hour instead of getting out of the Jeep and looking at where your tire treads are coming from.

Spoken as a guy that has invested a reasonable amount of time, effort, and money into getting the right GPS installed in my rig for wheeling....Frenchy is 100% right.

One of the free SRD paper maps and a compass is all that you'll ever need to navigate in Waiparous. The GPS is a neat toy. It will never be any better than the data you put into it, or your skill in operating it. It's not a replacement for a real map, a real compass, and the skill and confidence to use them properly. Even if you don't have a compass or a map (you went wheeling alone and you Jeep caught fire?), the skills that Serge talks about - noticing landmarks, being aware of your route in, paying attention to the topography, watching which way the streams flow...all of that will let you walk out of the bush comfortably instead of wandering in circles.

[SilverTJ]

Serge, Thanks for that great advice.  It really makes a lot of sense.  I think I am getting caught up in the 'new toy' fever.  Your right I think it's time to have fun and learn more about the jeep and the areas I'm in and stop getting caught up in the getting the next new thing.
Thanks for everyones advice.  See you on the trails.

[Spinalguy]

GPS is a waste unless you love exploring new areas.
i have gps tracks of Indian Graves, Dutch Creek, Livingstone, Waiporous and Moab. But that GPS is toast, so i only have memories and surprisingly, i do remember trails.

GPS is a necessity if you want to try and get new/old trails on the SRD map. Take the Novacc course and the GPS is necessary to map out trails.

CB's. i have them, never turn them on and listen to tunes instead. Over the years both CJA and FWS would come up to me on a trail to see if my CB was working

But as a club with newbies to offroading, i think the cb is a good tool that should be mandatory. Communication among newbies to 4x4ing is essential.

As i tried tuffer and tuffer trails, i found myself with other guys that had no cb's. So cb's were never used. Experience trumped cb's.

Although, if you are on a FWS run, HiLo Silver provides fantastic narratives along a trail regarding the history,etc.

[TJ54]

CB.
Bill is right about them, they can be a pain in the butt. But the best way is for everyone to be on the same type of radio, This comes up all the time, my opinion
cb is better than FRS,  Amateur radio is best, 2M,  the absolute best way. But in reality most club members are not going to get their licence and a newbie for sure won't.


GPS are nice at night, the trail you went in on can look a lot different when the sun goes down when you are tired and trying to go home.

[Knox]

With all these CB recommendations you guys keep throwing out prices like say $60, but do you still need to buy a seperate antenna cut to a fraction of the length of the signal? or is that "old technology" now? I guess I'm asking if you still need to add a whip to your vehicle? cause that could add another cost.

[Spinalguy]

You need an antenna, mount and spring.
i have used the 20ft non tunable whip antenna before. It worked well enough when needed.
Next was a magnetic mount. Not very good, prone to falling off and reception was not very good.

i than went to a Firestik tunable antenna. It worked well.
My next move was to a cheap  portable CB that plugs into the lighter. It worked well, if i was out of the jeep. The range was about 2 jeeps ahead of me. It basically sucked.
i bought an adapter to the prior firestick antenna i already had. i mounted the antenna, plugged into the portable cb and it worked as good as the whip set-up.

i re read what i wrote. i would like to add to it. CB's or a common form of communication is always good to have on hand. You may never need it but when you do...
Lots of guys on different wheeling trips like to yap it up on an adventure. i have definitely enjoyed the many conversations that take place at times. But, as the jeep grew and my skills got better, i found myself listening to music and not the CB. i always knew who was in front of me and behind me. If i trusted their abilty behind the wheel, i continued to listen to music. However, if it was someone that had not been on the trail before and was unaware of 'attack' lines on certain obstacles, ruts or hills, i would be listening and offering any tips to the guy behind me.
If the guy in front of me was new to the trail or wheelin in general, i also paid attention to the CB. i have been lucky enough to shout stop a few times over the years because of my cb.

For $100, i am sure you can be set up well.