Stand alone GPS

[Inkslinger]

Will the 66i work ok? I see one on ebay for $350...

You’ll get way more battery life from the 67i.

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?fa...GF7bdgPJot0ds9

Check out this guys YouTube channel. He takes a deep dive into gps and satellite communications.

https://youtube.com/@outdooremergenc...6jhQDiyczMbfQS

[Defaultmp3]

Something else to consider is simply using a smartphone, and put it in airplane mode to conserve battery if needed. You'll have a much better touchscreen than most units, larger screen than most units, that can get brighter than most units. You'll have a lot more ability to utilize multiple different maps and overlays, as you have multiple maps that you can use. Sure, it may not last the entire 10 days, but it would be pretty trivial to bring along an extra battery pack or two. On my SAR team, the only standalone GPS device people use are watches and inReaches, smartphones are overwhelmingly the primary navigational device. I'll also note that within the next few years, possibly as early as later this year, satellite connectivity with smartphones will become a thing.

If your eyes allow for it, I'll note that a watch can be very nice, because you can just glance down at it to check the trail, rather than having to dig a phone or standalone unit out of a pocket.

When I go backcountry, I carry a phone, my inReach Explorer+, and my Garmin watch. The watch serves as the primary, mainly because I preplan my trips and have all the .gpx tracks downloaded, so there's little by way of bushwacking. The phone is used when I need higher resolution maps, and is usually pulled out when trying to plan or look further ahead on the trail. The inReach serves as a back-up to the watch and phone, and is synced to the phone. I'll bring along a battery pack, usually a 20k mAh Anker, and if it's a long enough trip, a small solar panel.

[ubet]

Op, get yourself a good battery pack that can charge via solar, or just get a solar charging mat that can charge whatever you plug into it. It won’t be that much extra weight, and will be worth the cost/weight to know things can be charged


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[Krazykarl]

Op, get yourself a good battery pack that can charge via solar, or just get a solar charging mat that can charge whatever you plug into it. It won’t be that much extra weight, and will be worth the cost/weight to know things can be charged


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Do you have a specific recommendation? The last one that we had was terrible. I believe it was an Amazon purchase that was very disappointing...

[Allen]

Do you have a specific recommendation? The last one that we had was terrible. I believe it was an Amazon purchase that was very disappointing...

So the battery banks with a solar panel on them are more of a gimmick than anything else. Take for example one of these outxe.com (I have the 20K) with solar it takes 75 hours of direct sunlight to fully charge the bank. It's also heavy (~600g, 1.32 lbs) but that's the induction charger, flash light etc built in.

I have a few Nitecore battery banks and love them, my NB1000 weighing 150g, half the capacity of the 1.3lb Outxe gets me a 65% charge on my laptop, enough to survive a full day of work if I'm on site, or enough to charge 2 phones and my watch for 2 nights of camping. They have a small (30W) solar panel that I've seen good reviews on, but not used myself. Big thing is they need to be in direct sun for 8+ hours to get anything close to rated output, you'll see this in the reviews for GoalZero etc. What ever you do here, buy the panels & bank before the trip, make sure you didn't get broken ones, and figure out how you're going to secure them to your canoe.

FWIW Nitecore also makes the chargers that Cloud Defensive and a few others use for 18650's.

[Defaultmp3]

Also, if you really want to keep it standalone, there is the new Garmin eTrex Solar. It is quite basic, and offers only minimal maps if used by itself; you can integrate it with your phone for a lot more features, if you want, like topos and the like, but by itself, it's a barebones unit with essentially unlimited battery life (assuming good sunlight and above freezing temps)

[tangolima]

USGS topo map app can preload maps, and it is free. REI sells a folder solar panel that can be velcroed on backpack top for charging while you are hiking. Use paper maps (free for download on USGS website) for navigation and only turn on the phone when verification is needed, unless you need to track location every second to feel safe.

I have app on my phone that tells lat/long. It comes handy if the preloaded maps don't work for whatever reasons.

-TL

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[Krazykarl]

Quick update. The 66i for $300 was purchased. After a successful phone call with Garmin, a software update, the 66i is now paired with my phone. We are now looking into a solar charger. I appreciate all of your help.