Weather radio

In my bwca gear post I mention that my weather radio is toast. Looking for recommendations on a new one. The DT Sangean 400W was good but reception in remote places wasn’t great. Heard similar with CCrane’s. What about those Baofeng walkie talkie looking units? Looking for weather radio, pick up a station or two when in BWCA or remote areas, powered by aa/aaa batteries, compact, and somewhat “weatherproof”. I also use the unit on nights like tonight when at home and in weather watches/warnings into the sleep time as to be alerted. Recommendations?

I have an old Sony and new Vondior pocket transistor radio. They both have external/extendable antennas and I’ve gotten reception in places I never thought they’d work

They’re both analog and use disposable AA batteries that last FOREVER

There’s other options that work anywhere in the world using satellites, Garmin In-reach is one to look at. They work to send texts and also as a PLB (personal location beacon) too.

Baofeng has rebranded itself as Pofung.
They make a few different models depending on what frequencies you want.
I have a UV-5R that’s a nice GMRS unit with Wx channels,
and a BF-F8HP Ham that does FM, 2m & 70cm ham bands, but no Wx.

The 11 NOAA Weather channels are in the 161.65 MHz – 162.55 MHz band.
FM broadcast radio is 87.5 – 108 MHz.

For BWCA use I think the OEM antennas should probably be upgraded.

B-Man: We bring a satelitte phone son don’t go the garmin inreach route. Many do in the BWCA and like it.

Jwellsy: THe Baofeng/Pofung has come up[ in other forums, too. It looks intimidating :), ease of use?

acarroline wrote:

Jwellsy: THe Baofeng/Pofung has come up[ in other forums, too. It looks intimidating :), ease of use?

GMRS is just about as simple as operating a CB radio. It uses pre-defined channels like a CB does, so that cuts down on a lot of confusion.

GMRS is just about as simple as operating a CB radio. It uses pre-defined channels like a CB does, so that cuts down on a lot of confusion.
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Looking at the basic UV-5r, to the waterproof GM-15 pro…wowza. I would like to get am, fm, noaa, and walkie talkie function….can I do that? Do these search for available AM/FM stations like a traditonal radio?

It’s hard to find a unit that will cover all 4 of those frequency bands.

Having said that, Midland makes a model called the Midland Base Camp XT511. I’ve never tried one so I can’t readily recommend it. It is an odd form factor and may be a bit toy like. But, it has a great description.

The Midland Base Camp XT511 combines a GMRS two way radio with an emergency crank radio! The XT511 also features a flashlight, an AM/FM radio, and a NOAA weather alert radio. The Midland XT511 can be is perfect for emergencies, as it includes both an AC wall power adapter and DC vehicle adapter. The Base Camp XT511 can also operate on battery power (included rechargeable battery or 4 “AA”). The rechargeable battery can be charged using the AC/DC adapters, or by turning the Dynamo crank.

As a two way radio, the Midland Base Camp XT511 supports 22 GMRS channels with 121 privacy codes per channel. Hands-free (VOX) mode is supported and a corded speaker microphone is included for easy operation.

The Midland XT511 makes sure you stay aware of changing weather situations by supporting NOAA weather alerts, as well as allowing you to listen to standard weather broadcasts. The XT511 also features an AM/FM clock radio with alarm, and a flashlight. A USB connector is also provided that allows you to charge your USB enabled devices (including many cell phones).

There’s bound to be other models that fit your specs that may be a bit higher quality and more reliable. But, at $100 the quality may surprise me and make an interesting addition to your setup.

Many Midland 2 way GMRS/FRS radio is also have the weather feature that tunes in to the NOAA weather channels. Might be worth thinking about because these could do double duty for communication between canoes.

I’ve used Midland radio is for years up in Canada where we have no cell phone reception. The ones with longer range have been excellent. The other nice feature is that you can substitute disposable batteries for the battery packs so you can take extra batteries to keep them going.

Grouse: We have 4 of the midland walkie talkie’s with NOAA capability. Work ok, but no am/fm radio option.